Spring and Summer 2011

So, yes, it has been several months since I have posted. We have had a fun time lately! Our little boy is crawling now, and definitely growing up fast. Here are some pics of what we have been up to.

Recent family pic


Father/Son matching


We went to Disneyland in April with all 3 of my sisters and family. We got to eat lunch at the famous "Club 33," where Walt Disney used to eat. It was very good food with a buffet and filet mignon!





Hiking with Marissa and her cute girl. You can almost see the ocean behind us.


We had a 9 year roommate reunion in San Luis! It was totally awesome, and there were 7 of us! We got to talk, go downtown, kayak, body board at the beach, go to dinner, go in the jacuzzi, watch "A Walk to Remember," go to Montano de Oro, and eat a lot! I am so glad we could all get together. These are such fun girls!






Andrea and me at the beach


Cute cousins waiting to skype with Grandma and Grandpa


Walking along the cliffs near Pismo and Avila beach.


I got to visit my sister and brother-in-law while Dave was in China. They live in Orange County, so we got to go to a fun park that had a train ride that the boys just loved.


My sister, Melinda, teaching me how to cake decorate. It is hard to eat the cake after you spend so much time decorating, but we managed to eat it all:)


Cousins!


Train ride in Irvine, CA


4th of July at Pismo Beach. Notice the thousands of people camped out on the beach waiting for the fireworks!


I got to go up to Utah and visit family while Dave was in China. My nieces and nephews took me to this fun new water park near their house.


Going on a mountain bike ride in Alpine with my brother-in-law and nephew. It was beautiful, but it was killer!


Meeting Great Grandpa for the first time.


Hanging out with my awesome friend Na and her to kids before she heads off to Singapore for at least a few years! Going to miss her!


So Dave went to China with his MBA class of about 30 students. It was a two week trip where they toured several factories and businesses. He loved it, and I hope to go back there someday with him. Some people aren't that interested in traveling to Asia, but it has always been a dream of mine. Here he is on the Great Wall! He also was quoted in two newspaper articles in San Luis about their trip!

http://www.calpolynews.calpoly.edu/news_releases/2011/August/China.html

http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2011/08/21/1725419/cal-poly-business-students-china.html?story_link=email_msg


The English translations of the food were very interesting. This meat (whatever it is) is translated as an "extremely handheld device." :)


The Bund in Shanghai. Dave said it is a very modern and nice city. 25 million people live in Shanghai! Crazy because I think about 32 million live in the whole state of California!


He got to go up the 3rd tallest building in the world, and go to the tallest observation deck in the world! So I guess it the highest anyone can go in a building.


Forbidden City in Beijing


Enjoying the lights of Shanghai



Hiking Stewart Falls in Utah. He loved the backpack, but he is definitely getting heavier!


Buffalo in Grand Teton National Park. I forgot how huge these beasts are!


His fun cousin and aunt!


4 generations. Family reunion in Island Park. We played tennis, went tubing down the river, played games, roasted hot dogs and smores, etc!


Old Faithful Geyser at Yellowstone National Park


Grand Teton National Park. This was absolutely spectacualar.


So you may wonder why I have a picture of a huge ice cream. I have been pretty much off of dairy products because of problems with nursing. I decided one day that I was going to get an ice cream and see how the nursing went. I decided to go for the largest size I could get! I think his stomach has matured to handle some dairy, but he still definitely doesn't love it. Man, I have never enjoyed an ice cream that much!


Learning how to crawl! He started on our 5 year anniversary! He is so proud of himself. He is into everything now.


Hanging out with his cousin that is only 3 weeks younger! They have a lot of fun together.


Soaking it all in at the BYU Football practice with Daddy. Dave is starting him young I guess.:)

Labor and Delivery

So, I know it has been almost 3 months since my last post, and 2 months since the birth of our baby boy. I noticed that the last post, I had a huge belly being 8 months pregnant! I guess it is time I better post some cute photos, and tell about my labor and delivery before I forget it all. So here it goes.....


My due date was December 9th, and Dave's last final presentation for school was December 9th. Being a labor and delivery nurse, I saw many moms very anxious to deliver early, but I was the opposite. I wanted to be able to at least eat the Thanksgiving feast, and make it through Dave's finals. I was checked at about 39 weeks, and was closed dilation. After that, I convinced myself that I was going to be one of those moms that had to be induced one week late starting totally closed, and have a grueling 50 hour labor, push for 3 hours, attempt forceps, and then end up with a C-Section. Not fun!
During the last couple months of my pregnancy, I went on tons of walks and hikes with my Mom, ate a lot of frozen yogurt, slept in (for the last time ever:), took a sewing class, prepared for his arrival, traveled to Huntington Beach, went kayaking, and spent time with family during Thanksgiving. It was awesome just to relax! Every week, Dave and I would sit down and have our own little prenatal class together. Even though he had heard hundreds of stories about labor and delivery every day I got home from work, I still wanted him to feel prepared.

To celebrate his finals being over, we went out to eat downtown for pizza, and walked around at the Farmer's Market. That was our last outing together before he arrived. At about 3 AM on Friday morning, December 10th, I woke up with some uncomfortable contractions. They were happening about every 10 minutes. That morning, I went to the doctor, and was excited to find out how far I had progressed. Closed Dilation once again. Bummer. I set up an induction date on December 16th, and planned on waiting. By this time, I was getting anxious to meet our little guy.

Finally, after 3 days of back labor 3-10 minutes apart, at about 11 PM on Sunday night, I decided that I needed to go into the hospital. We drove to the hospital, which was only about 5 minutes away, and went up to Labor and Delivery. The nurse checked me, and I was 5 cm! She told me I was going to be admitted, and I asked for the epidural right away. I had always planned on getting the epidural. Way to Go to all you girls out there that go unmedicated. You are amazing. The anesthesiologist seemed to take forever to get in the room. I tried to always be empathetic to my patients, but I definitely will be even more so now! At about 1 AM, I felt the epidural taking effect, and I felt probably the best I have ever felt. It was awesome! I have seen hundreds of women with epidurals, but it was crazy to finally have one myself. I was checked and was about 6 cm. I then tried to sleep for a couple of hours, and was rechecked at about 6 AM. I was still about 6 cm, so they decided to start just a minimal amount of pitocin. The doctor finally came in at about 8:45 AM, and broke my water at 7 cm dilated. There was a slight amount of meconium in the fluid, but I wasn't too concerned. I jumped from 7 cm to 10 cm in about one hour. His head was still slightly high, so we decided to "Rest and Descend." I am all about resting and descending. The epidural unfortunately started to wear off, and I decided to get a little extra dose of medicine. That re-dose made my legs completely numb, and so we decided to wait a little longer before pushing. By the time we started pushing, much of the epidural had worn off once again.

Once I started pushing, I only pushed for 45 minutes. Our baby boy was born at 1:15 PM and started crying right away. His Apgar scores were 9 at 1 minutes, and 9 at 5 minutes. That was such a relief for me, because I knew what things could go wrong. He was so alert, and was delivered skin-to-skin. What an experience! Dave and my Mom were there to see the birth. He was such a beautiful baby, and had a lot of brown hair. He even gripped his Daddy's hand right away. I was excited to see that much hair, but it started falling out at about 1 month old. Pretty young to already be balding:) After delivery, Dave got to help with his 1st bath in the room. Seeing him for the first time was such an amazing experience. We are very proud parents! He was 7 pounds 15 onces and 19 inches long. We love him so much!



After the epidural!:)

Our steak meal for two the night before discharge;)


Dave holding his baby boy for the first time!

He is now 2 months old and just went to his well visit today. Here are the stats:

12 pounds 12 ounces (68 percentile)

24 inches long (80 percentile) Maybe he will be the new Jimmer Fredette in about 20 years with being so tall!


He is growing up so fast!


Grandma and Grandpa, and some of his cousins!

Hanging out with his cousin that is only 3 weeks younger.

Dave and I with our twins.:)

My sister brought down her scale when she visited with her 6 week old boy, and he loved hanging out on it. We would sometimes weigh him before and after he ate to see how many ounces he was getting. He is getting big! We have been on a lot of walks these last 2 months. He loves the stroller. We have been lucky, because it has been about 70 to 75 degrees the last 6 weeks!

HAPPENINGS

It has been quite awhile since I have posted, so I thought I might give you an update!! Dave is learning a lot in MBA school, and is usually either in front of the computer writing a paper, or in his special blue chair studying. Every once in a while, he is able to get out and have some fun with me.



Kayaking in the bay. My parents got these inflatable kayaks a few months ago that are really fun. If any of you come visit, we can take you out ocean kayaking!


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Trunk or Treat with our ward. Dave dressed up as one of the three amigos, and I dressed up as a chef, with a "bun in the oven."

For Halloween weekend, we went down to Orange County to spend time with my sisters and brother-in-law. We celebrated her birthday, and then went to Balboa Island where all the rich people live. They have amazing decorations in front of their homes, so here we are in front of one of them. I guess Christmas is an awesome time to go walk around and look at all the lights and decorations!

Balboa Island

Newport Beach Temple. I love this temple! We met up with some family in Newport Beach, and went to the temple, and of course Cafe Rio! The sweet pork salad definitely hit the spot.

My blanket I made during my sewing class! Let's just say it was a little more time consuming than I thought, but it turned out fun. I made a blanket out of my high school and college sports and music T-shirts, like triathlons, swimming, soccer, youth symphony, tennis, etc.

My pajama pants I made. I am a very beginner sewer, so this is quite an accomplishment for me.:)

A couple of weeks ago, some of my family was able to come down and visit, and we got to go to the barn near the beach with a lot of animals, and the best ice cream in town. Here is a picture of my cute nieces and nephew that came!

The adorable diaper cake that a lady in the ward made me!

My car seat for the baby! Well, I guess it might be a little outdated. This is the one my Mom found in the attic probably from the 1970's. I thought about using it, but then I realized that it may not meet safety standards now.:)