The Flu!

So, last Monday I called Cory on my lunch break to ask him a few questions and he mentioned that my mom had called him and that Brylee had the stomach flu. So, I hung the phone up and called my mom to ask her if I should come and get her. Of course my mom is so sweet and she said that she was fine and she would take care of her. Well, when I talked to my mom during my planning time she mentioned that she was still throwing up and now it was coming out of both ends. I felt so bad and helpless. Cory picked her up and we met at home. Brylee had no idea what to think. She has never been sick and so she was so shocked as to why she couldn't eat or drink anything.

Cory had the day off on Tuesday and so they just cuddled at home all day, yes I was very jealous. She hadn't thrown up or anything for a while. However, we were still very cautious on what we would feed her. She kind of spent the rest of the week acting okay and now I think she is finally over it.

Well, not only did Brylee give it to my mom and dad but to me as well. I woke up Friday morning so sick and so I had to get a sub. The stresses of trying to find a sub at the last minute. Luckily my sixth grade team took care of my sub plans and so I just had the chance to sleep all day. When I woke up on Saturday, I felt much better and so I cleaned the house and just took it easy. Well, I woke up Sunday morning not feeling super great and so we got a sub for our primary class. This flu is super contagious and I didn't want to give it to anyone. I just rested all day and slept a little bit and then I felt alright and so I ate some dinner. Bad Idea!!! I didn't sleep well all night because of the pains in my stomach and I was forced out of bed around 5:45 this morning to throwing up and of course the other stuff. Can I tell you how bad this stinks. I put in for another sub and ran to the school to do lesson plans.

My mom has Brylee today and so I have slept the entire day, I have only been up for around an hour and am feeling much better. I do know that I will not be eating stuff for a little while. It is not worth it. And let me tell you when you are pregnant, the stomach flu is the worse thing. I feel extremely bad for those who have morning sickness, because I couldn't do that.

I do have a few pictures of Brylee that I will post, since we could have another one coming soon. The pictures are from her helping us put up the Christmas Tree. My blood pressure is still not doing well. I wasn't able to go to Dr. Nance on Friday because I was sick and so I have to reschedule. I will hope for tomorrow.

I hope that nobody else gets this flu, it is awful!!

The Joys of being Pregnant!!!

So, as most of you already know I did not have a very easy pregnancy with Brylee and this one has not been much better!!!! AHHHHHH!!!! During the week of parent teacher conferences I was extrememely busy and stressed out. I had not felt the baby move for a few days and friends and family told me not to worry about it. I figured it was becauase I was busy and so I just waited until I had my scheduled Appt. with the Doctor. Parent Conferences were on a Thursday and my appointment was on Friday. When I went, he told me to hop up so we could hear the heartbeat and so I mentioned to him that I to was ready to hear the heartbeat because I had been worried that I had not felt her move. Well, he was nervous that I had not called him sooner!! He listened and got a a heartbeat, but he was still nervous. So, he sent me right to Utah Valley to have a non-stress test. I was there for about an hour while the monitored the baby. They said everything looked good and can I tell you that was a huge relief. Well, then the Monday after I took my class to planning time and when I went back to class I checked my phone. I had a message and so I began listeneing. It was the hospital and the message was marked urgent. My heart dropped and I instantly became very worried. The message mentioned that after the doctor reviewed the tests he was a little worried and wanted me to come back for another test. So, I made the necessary arrangements for Brylee and then Cory and I headed back to the hospital. We were there for about three hours. We had another non-stress test and two ultra-sounds and luckily things are okay. I tell you what being pregnany stresses me out!! I just don't have the easiest pregnancies and it makes me nervous. So now, I have to ask a couple questions for those of you who have been pregnant before.
I think that she is sitting on a nerve right now becauase I have a tingling feeling in my left arm. Is this normal. Has anyone ever felt this way before? I know I could be paranoid, but it is the weirdest feeling ever. Anyway, if you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know!!!

1 Daddy and 3 Girls!!!

So, I know that I have not posted for a while because life is crazy. I am still trying to adjust to teaching full time, being a mom and wife, and being pregnant. It is a lot harder than I thought!! I try to spend every extra minute I have with Brylee and so when I get home there is not a lot of time for anything else. Once she goes to bed for the night, I usually end up working on lesson plans or grading papers!!
Last Wednesday, we had our ultrasound to see if we were having a boy or a girl-- Well, from the title I bet you can already tell that we are having another baby girl!! We are extremely excited and yet so nervous at the same time. The baby looks great and everything is developing well. So, a couple questions for those who have kids. When you were pregnant did you have any cysts? I had one with Brylee, but it never got very big. Then with this one, I had an ultrasound at 12 weeks and it was measuring 3.4cm and now at 21 weeks it is measuring 5.6 cm. I am not sure if this is something I should be concerned about, but it does cause some pain. Is there anything I can do??
Anyway, I am exausted but just wanted to let everyone know that we are having a GIRL!! My school class is helping with name suggestions, (it has become one of their favorite things)!!!! Hopefully we will pick a name a lot quicker than we did with Brylee!!!

Our LIttle Brylee is One!!

So, it has a been a while since I posted and I even have a good excuse this time. Those of you who have ever been a first year teacher will understand what this past month has been like!!!

Brylee turned one on August 8th and I can't even believe it. We celebrated that evening with Cory's family by having a sleepover in Alpine. Brylee thought it was great to be able to play with all of her cousins. She ate a little bit of cake, but then she threw a fit because everybody was watching her. She was so fun and it is so hard to believe that she is already a year. Then on Saturday we woke up (of course she was the last to bed and the first to wake up) and went to the Alpine Days parade. She got so much candy and lots of toys, she was in heaven.

On Sunday, we celebrated at our house with my family and our friends. She was so cute at first until I gave her the cake. Once again, she did not like that everyone was watching her and so we just let her down to play. She loved just crawling around. She got some fun gifts and we are so thankful for our family and friends that love her so much.

I am not sure where I would be without Brylee in my life. She brings so much joy and happiness. She is growing and learning new things everyday. I love that she says Mom when I come home after working all day and I am jealous that she is more of a daddy's girl than a mommy's girl. Cory and I are grateful everyday that she has had a very healthy first year of life based on the way she started life. She is growing and if you look at her, you would never know that she was a premie.

I will post some pictures that Cory took, he did a great job! (okay, I will have to post pictures later because he has the memory card!) Sorry this post is so late, but life has been crazy!!!

Happy First Birthday, Brylee Sue!!!

Can our lives get any crazier????

It has been a while since I have done anything!!! This summer has been so fun and I have been glad that I have been able to spend it at home with Brylee. She has been learning and doing so many new things. She is pulling herself up to everything in the house and this of course comes with a lot of falling and hitting her head. She loves to get into Cory's games and game systems, they are of course the first items she goes for. I am waiting for her to walk anytime, she loves to stand and can not quite figure out how to walk along things. She will walk with my grandmas walker and a toy at my moms, but she can't walk along the furniture yet. She is growing up to fast!! Her first birthday is on August 8th and I can't believe it. She is also starting to eat more foods. Our Doctor had us wait a little while to feed her solids and now she loves them! Cory of course likes to feed her the sweet things, marshmallows from the Lucky Charms, Ice Cream, Fudge Stripe cookies, and many other things. She is so fun and I am sad that it is almost time to go back to school.

Next, I start back to work in a couple of weeks. I have to attend the new teacher training next week since I only taught a half of year last year. So, I will do that and then it is back to work the next week. I am more excited to teach sixth grade now since I have been learning everything! I know that sounds crazy, but I have had to study up a little on some things. My team has been really willing to help me and luckily they are patient!!! There are so many mixed feelings because I love being a mom and yet I love being a teacher and so what better way to get to help kids and well as spend the whole summer with my family.

Cory and I celebrated our 5th anniversary on July 12th. He suprised me by taking me to the Stein Ericksen Lodge for the night. We had a great time just being together. It was hard to leave Brylee and I was missing her!!! The lodge was so nice. It is too bad that we aren't rich and can't stay there more often. I can't believe it has been five years already. He is so amazing and patient with me. I still remember when we went out in 9th grade and then we stayed best friends through high school. Then of course, we started dating a month or so before his mission. I am extremely glad that I have been blessed with him in my life!!! I love him so much!!!!

The 24th of July was fun, as usual. My cousin and her friend came from California and so it was great to spend some time with them. We watched the parade, did craft projects, played games, and of course ate lots of food. It is always fun to have them come for Fiesta Days.

And last--- I have been extremely sick this summer!!!!!!!! I am sure that most of you know what that means--- yes, I am pregnant!!! again!!!! Cory and I laugh because we waited forever to have Brylee and we weren't even prepared to have her and then I swore that I would never be pregnant again because I was so miserable, and obviously there are other plans for us. I am 13 weeks along and am finally starting to feel a little bit better. We are due on January 31st. We aren't sure how we are going to make things work, but I just hope this pregnancy is easier than my first one. We had an ultra sound a few weeks ago and it was good!! I just can't believe that I am doing this again, so fast.

All of the pictures we have taken lately are on Cory's camera and so I will have to post them later.

A Quick Little Update...

So, there is a lot to update about what has been going on in our lives lately. A couple of weeks ago Brylee and I were getting ready to head to Las Vegas and so I dropped her off at moms while I finished some last minute things up at the studio. When I went to pick her up, Mom said she had been crawling. I was so excited and yet sad at the same time that she did it with Grandma first. It is so fun to watch her and her knees are raw.

We took a trip to Vegas for a dance competition and we had a blast. My mom came down to tend Brylee and they enjoyed hanging out in the pool while I attended workshops. On Thursday, mom and Brylee flew home with Angela to attend a funeral. That was the first time that Brylee had flown on an airplane and mom said she did great until the landing. Her ears were killing her and they said she was screaming. I was sad that mom had to deal with that, but she insisted on bringing her home.

The dance competition went well and the girls did great. Our show won and they placed well in each of their team routines. I am so lucky to have the chance to work with such great girls. I try to picture myself without them and I can't. While we were there, the girls had the chance to do a workshop with Sabra Johnson, the winner of "So You Think You Can Dance!" They had a lot of fun and she was great. Our soloist did well also!! Besides the heat, we had a great weekend! I will post a picture of my niece with Sabra.

I was so excited to get home and see Brylee, I was missing her tons. She was such a good girl and I was glad she hadn't forgot who we were. I am so lucky have such great parents and in-laws that are so willing to tend and help whenever.

Brylee is now crawling all over the house and of course getting into everything she shouldn't. I am constantly behind her telling her no. I finally had to close up the entertainment center because she kept getting her legs stuck under it. I am not sure what we are going to do with all the DVD and games that we have on the shelves. Now, she is trying to stand!! She wants to stand on her own and she just can't. She pulls herself up to everything and anything she can reach. Anyway, she is a lot of fun and I am having a hard time believing that she is almost one! We have had so much fun with her.

I am enjoying just being home and have been really tired, so needless to say I haven't got much done. I keep telling myself that I will do it tomorrow and then tomorrow comes and it doesn't get done. I feel like I got more done when I was working because I had to!! I have enjoyed being home with Brylee and taking part in all of her fun moments.

Cory and I have had a lot of fun being home in the evenings and doing things together. It is nice to have that time together. We are continually working on our yard and trying to figure out why we can't keep our flowers alive. (I am the worst!) Anyway, there is a quick update on our life and a few pictures that we have taken lately.

Happy Father's Day!!!

I think that Brylee and I both agree that our dad is the greatest ever!!

First of all, he is so cute with Brylee. He always gets her out of the crib in the morning and never complains about it. Infact this morning was one of the best times. Of course she woke up early today and so Cory went and got her because she was talking so loud in her crib. When she came in to our bed, she wanted to crawl all over and Cory was entertaining her. Then she crashed, Cory had his arm around her and she was sound asleep sucking her thumb. Then she woke up an hour later and was ready to play again. Cory started talking to her and she just kept saying, dada dada!! He was so excited!!

Second, he never complains when he has Brylee. He is so excited to play and entertain her and I can tell because she is a total daddy's girl. He takes time to try new things with her and of course can't wait for the day when he thinks she will be ready to ride motorcycles. (He does not want her to be a dancer, he says they come with way to much to drama!)

Third, he always changes the yucky diapers. I don't know what it is but Brylee always waits till Daddy gets home to make messes and then he gets to change them, and only once and a while he complains.

Fourth, he gets her ready in the morning when I have to go to work. This even means putting lotion on her (which he doesn't like) but he does it for me because I like her to smell fresh.

Fifth, on his days off he loves to spend the day with her. He takes her to do all sorts of stuff and is always looking for new places to take her.

And sixth, I LOVE HIM for so many reasons. He has been the greatest dad and husband to Brylee and I. When I thought I couldn't get through one more thing this last year, he kept encouraging me and helping me. He would get up at night with Brylee when she was little and take a turn. He works so hard and always makes sure that he is providing for our family. I love it because he cooks most of the meals and he is great at it. Most of all, I love him because he makes me happy!!! He treats me like a queen and is always trying to make sure things are perfect.

I am sure that there are many more things that I can't think of right now, but we just want him to know what a great dad he is!!

Happy Father's Day Dad!!!! We love you!!!

Kung Fu Panda.....

Today we took Brylee to her very first movie. We originally had planned to go to Lagoon with Justin, Angela, and the boys but when the weather turned out cold we decided not to go. So, we decided to go to Kung Fu Panda instead. I was thinking that Brylee was going to enjoy watching the movie, and she did the complete opposite. She started off okay and then she got louder and louder!!! I decided I would take her in the little hallway and she was playing around, but at least she wasn't making loud noises. After a little while, I decided to try and sit in the front (talk about hurting my neck) and she started to cuddle her blanket and then went right to sleep. I was laughing because she was sound asleep as the movie was so loud it was shaking the theater. Anyway, we had a great time and I think we will wait a while before we take Brylee to anymore movies.

The Zoo!!

Last Monday, Cory and I took Brylee to the Zoo. On our way there, we dropped some stuff off to Cory's brother Greg and so he decided to join us. It was so good to have him around. He took the majority of the pictures and did a great job. Cory has wanted to take Brylee to the Zoo for a few months now and he finally had a day off to do it. The weather was overcast and it was perfect. She didn't really know what to think of all the animals. We spent most of the time trying to get her to pay attention to the animals instead of us. Her very favorite exhibit was the penguins. I don't know if it was because they were constantly moving and splashing around, or what it was. After the zoo, we went to eat at Rocky Mountain Pizza Co. where Greg works and it was really good. Overall, we had a great day. Brylee slept the whole way home, she was very tired.



The white alligator!!


Cory and Brylee!


Oh!! She is still so small!!


Our little family!!

It's Almost Summer!!

So, with the many things that I have had happen this year I am looking forward to the summer. We now have only 2 and 1/2 days of school left. I am so excited for this year to be over and to have the chance to start fresh next year. When I went in as a teacher in February, I didn't realize how hard it would be to start in the middle of year. I am so glad that I have had a lof of help from some great teachers.
I am so glad to be able to spend some more time with Brylee. I wish that Cory and I were in the stages if our lives where I could be a stay at home mom, but we are not. However, I am so grateful to have such an amazing husband. He is so supportive of everything and he is the World's Greatest Dad!!! Brylee absolutely adores him and he is so great with her. Brylee has been so much fun lately, she has been trying to crawl. She is so funny because she will go into the straddles and then roll thru to her tummy, once she is on her tummy she will get up onto her knees, but she doesn't move!! Cory and I have been working with her every day to help her get stronger. I am so excited for the chance to get to play with her more, I am glad that I have to chance to be home all summer (that is a great perk of being a teacher!).

WII Fit

I am not sure how many of you have a WII, but it is the best video game console ever. Cory just purchased WII Fit and it is so fun. It is an exercise game and it reallyworks. I did lunges the other day and now my legs are killing. There is also yoga, aerobics, strength training, and several others. It is such a fun and challening game that I wanted to spread the news. It is nice to be able to workout at home and not have to go to the overcrowded gym!!!!

Any ideas?

Yesterday, Brylee started sneezing and then her nose started running all the time. I was thinking that maybe she had allergies, but I was not sure. We have considered ourselves pretty lucky because she has not been sick since she was born. We are usually pretty cautious in making sure that the house is sanatized, so she can't pick up germs and then come to find out her runny nose and sneezing has nothing to do with allergies!! She has a cold and is not feeling very well. I am sure that she picked it up from me because I have been sick since Tuesday, but I am just wondering how we made it all through the winter and now she is sick? So, I have never dealt with a sick infant and we are going to try and get into the doctor tomorrow, but for now I am not sure what to do. She still is sleeping and eating well, but she is a little bit grumpy. I feel blessed because even though she is a little bit grumpy, she is still being a pretty good baby. Brylee and I spent the day cuddling and it has been kind of fun. She normally is not a big cuddler, so today it has been fun to have her snuggle up and sleep. If anyone has some suggestions, please feel free to share.

It's finally over!!

Yesterday, I finally graduated!! I graduated from UVU with a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education. It was such a big relief to know that I am done!! It was fun to have all of my family there, my little sister surprised me by coming! My cohort has become such good friends that we were all excited to graduate, but sad to know that we won't get to see each other every day. They have been such a good group to go through the program with. During the 2 years, so many went through hardships and it was nice to have such a big support group behind us. On top of all 30 classmates, I have had the best support from Cory, Brylee, and my Mom. I couldn't have done it without the 3 of them. So, here are some pictures of our day. It is crazy to think that it has taken me 8 years to graduate from college. Here are some pictures.

These two groups are some of my closest friends. The majority of them will be teaching in a different district and some even in another state, however we still plan to stay in touch! Sue (the one on the right) is one of the greatest friends around. We first started in education with Southern Utah University and when they dropped the program we were doing we ended up in the same cohort. I can not even explain how much I have learned from Sue, and what a great person she is. She has been such a great partner and has given me courage when I thought I couldn't go on!! I love her tons!!!
After graduation, my family and friends went to dinner at Chili's. This is one of my favorite places to eat. We had a great time visiting and of course eating! Overall, it was a great day and such a huge accomplishment in my life!!!

Spring BreakOur family had so much fun over spring break!! I was glad to be off of work for a whole week, so I could spend it with Brylee. On Wednesday, Cory had the day off and so we met Angela and her family at Big Rock Candy Mountain. The mountain was really neat and we had a lot of fun. Brylee slept the whole the way there and the whole way home. Angela's boys Zac and Tyler love being big helpers with Brylee. Zac especially loves to help and play with Brylee. You will notice him in some pictures! While we were there, we did a little bit of Four Wheeling and of course a lot of eating. They have some great Cafe's down there. We feel so blessed to have such a healthy and happy baby girl.

The Big Rock Candy Mountain Resort
The resort got its name because of the carmel looking mountain. You can see it in the second picture. I have never seen anything like it.

Brylee and Zac just hanging out! Zac was having so much fun with her, he enjoys entertaining her! She is lucky to have so many friends and family members that love her!!!

On Saturday, we had a girls day out. We went to Sandy to the Scrapbook Expo. It was crazy busy! Brylee was such a good girl and enjoyed looking at all of the different scrapbook ideas. I can't believe how much money people spend on scrapbook supplies. After walking around the Expo for four hours, we met up with Kristina. We ate dinner at Chili's and went shopping at South Towne Mall. We had a great day and it was fun to hang out with my family. I am truely blessed to have such a great family!!! So, that is how we spent our Spring Break. I am wishing that we had one more week off, but at the same time I am excited to get back into the classroom and teach!!!

IT'S ALMOST TIME FOR GRADUATION!!!!

After graduating from high school eight years ago, I am extremely excited that I will be graduating with my bachelors degree in Elementary Education in less than a week. The past two years have been so difficult, but now I am glad that I went through with things. As many of you already know, when I found out I was pregnant I was not ready at all. It came as quite the suprise and then she was coming in September, right when fall semester of my senior year was going to start. However, I went to the doctor on August 6th and he sent me to the hospital on August 7th for some non-stress tests. When the nurse called Dr. Nance, he requested that they admit me and keep a close eye on me. Well, on August 8th our nurse came in and thought things were fine (that was at about 9:00 a.m.) and then about 30 minutes later the news came......... I was having a baby at 12:00 p.m. I was so scared and didn't even know what to think. Well, I delivered Brylee and they immediately took her the NICU. (Those two and a half weeks that she spent in the NICU) were the hardest weeks of my life! As soon as we got the okay for Brylee to come home on August 23rd, I was so excited. Then life just got harder, UVSC's Education Department gave me two weeks and I had to be back in class. This was the hardest decision of my life and luckily I have a great husband who was able to stay home with her at the time. However, even though these last 8 months have been the hardest of my life dealing with a new baby, school, and work-- I am excited to be graduating!!!!! Sorry to ramble on, but tonight I just got thinking how I thought I would never make it through and I have!! I am done with school and I don't ever have to go again if I don't want to! (that will change since I plan on getting a masters later on in life) Anyway, I am grateful to have such a great baby girl, an amazing husband, and a great family who have helped me through it all! I will be posting some pictures tomorrow of our two day trip to Big Rock Candy Mountain!!!!

Look at that Smile!!!!

Brylee and I have enjoyed playing today. She ate a whole bowl of mush for breakfast this morning, yeah!! While she was eating, she even drank out of her sippy cup!!! We played on the floor and then she played in her exer-saucer (her favorite toy)! I spent time this morning rearranging the family room and trying to de-clutter the house. I moved the majority of the items upstairs to the hobby room, so now I will have to go through and clean it!! It felt good to just clean, I was even motivated enough to wash the walls. We are looking forward to a good day today. Dad is at work and we miss him. Tomorrow we will be packing up to go to Big Rock Candy Mountain in Richfield. We are going to meet Angela, Justin, Tyler, Zac, George, and Ilene. We will be staying overnight down there. Ang said we have plans to go four-wheeling and hiking. It should be fun as long as the weather is nice. I am looking forward to a mini vacation. I still have a lot to do and spring break is going by to fast. (Of course, isn't that how it works! When you are on vacation, time flies and when you are working time goes slow.) Later this afternoon, Brylee and I are going grocery shopping which is the ultimate worst chore in the world.

I have been watching the news and it sounds like they are searching for Kiplyn Davis. I hope that they find her. That would be such a hard thing to deal with. Well, Brylee is waking up from her nap and so it is on to more mush and the store.

Our Weekend

So, I am just barely learning how to blog and am extremely excited. We spent Saturday at the Sand Dunes with Cory's family. Our trip started off great with Cory sending the four wheeler through his back window. I was just a little upset! We did a lot of four wheeling and I was scared to death. Cory was taking me up the sides of the sand mountains and I was screaming. Brylee slept most of the day and enjoyed being outdoors. However, she does not like to ride on the four wheeler. She cried the entire time. Now, I am home for a week on Spring Break and am excited to just be a mom for a whole week. Brylee is so much fun and I am so excited to spend the whole week with her.