Flu Mist

Today Will and I got our flu vaccination - via mist. I've been getting flu shots for several years now - working in healthcare, working in schools and working for the government made it necessary/possible. Last year, because I was pregnant, my midwife gave me a special flu shot. But, today was a new experience. We were able to get our vaccination via mist. It's pretty amazing that they have figured out a simpler way to give it - I didn't have to pull up (or down) my sleeve, I don't have a sore arm, and there wasn't any dangerous medical waste.

Liam's pediatrician recommended that we get both the seasonal and h1n1 vaccinations because Liam is so young and we are in the age group that seems to be being hit hardest by the flu this year. However, despite having an infant at home, I don't think we'll ever be able to get on a list for the h1n1 vaccine. Surprisingly, getting the seasonal one was VERY easy. We called the company distributing them for the state and made an appointment. It only took about 10 minutes today when we were there and our insurance covered it completely!

And, just because I didn't post one yesterday, I will end with a cute picture of our little man.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for some BIG news!

Magnification

For those of you who haven't heard, our ward is small enough that many people have multiple callings. Will and I teach sunday school to the 8-12 year old kiddos, get the 8-11 year old kids together for Cub Scout (plus the girls) a couple of times a month, and I am in charge of activities for the congregation as well. We have a great time with the kids and all of these callings have definitely brought blessings into our lives. I just wanted to jot down a couple of memories from the last week so that I don't forget them.

First, Saturday night I put on (and by I, I of course mean Will and I) a dinner and talent night for the congregation. I had been advertising for weeks and at a meeting a couple of weeks ago, mentioned that I was planning on 50-70 people. Our bishop quickly told me that I shouldn't plan on so many - 20-30 was probably the max that would attend and I would have way to much food, etc. otherwise. I chose to go with my gut (or possibly a prompting from on high?) and still planned for 70ish. We drove to the church at 4:30 Saturday afternoon in a torrential downpour (thank you hurricane Ida) and I had some moments of doubt. We got pretty drenched hauling 70 bread bowls and ~10 gallons of soup into the church but we made it. Thanks to some help from some friends, we had all the bread bowls hollowed out and started on time, with quite a few people there. People kept coming and we ended up with about 80 people there! I was glad I had planned for as many and the evening was, thanks to participation and help from so many people, a great success!

Next, tonight we took the kiddos (seven of them) bowling. It was an adventure from the beginning. Two of our kids live in a project. In order to get in, you have to show identification, car registration, etc. I've been there many times and even twice in the last couple of weeks but the very astute security guard tonight was the first to notice that the registration paper I had been handing them expired in April. Mr. Astute promptly refused to let me enter and informed me that I would have to park my car and walk to pick up the kids. I called one of the moms and she met me at the parking lot but I couldn't reach the other mom. It was dark. They live at the very back of the community. I wasn't comfortable leaving the two kids I already had in the car (+ Liam) in the parking lot and really wasn't feeling great about walking, alone or with them. I tried to talk the security guard into helping me but he was having none of it and said that if I wanted someone to walk with me I'd have to call the police. Although it was a flippant suggestion, I took him up on it. Not long after I called 911, the manager of the project came out and told the security guard to just let me through, no big deal. It was a lot of drama to pick up kids to go bowling! Bowling was crazy - the kids were really hyper and on the verge of out of control. At one point, the person running the bowling alley asked me if they were all ours. I think the look on my face answered him, but really?? The only kid that possibly could have looked like ours was Liam and there were seven kids between the ages of 9 and 12. Hmmm.

Cousins

More Cousins

Liam's Blessing - August 30, 2009

We decided to bless Liam in Utah so that our families could attend the blessing. We are so grateful for everyone that traveled to be there and it was a beautiful day. Liam was surrounded by strong, honorable priesthood holders whose examples I hope he will follow. Will gave him a beautiful blessing and he was great during it. He wasn't quite as great in the pictures we took later in the evening but we managed to get a few cute ones.

I am so thankful for a husband who is such a loving, kind father. I have been very spoiled to have him mostly home with me for the (almost!) first six months of Liam's life. They have such a strong bond and I know it will last for a long time. If only the father and mother could always both be home for the first six months of a child's life, right?

I am also grateful for my family and Will's family for all they do for us. We loved getting together for Liam's blessing and having a chance to spend time together!

(p.s. you can click on the picture to enlarge them!)

Liam's Blessing Outfit

I am planning on posting about Liam's blessing tomorrow. But, I wanted to dedicate a post to his blessing outfit. Two or so years ago when I was deciding whether to buy a wedding dress, one of my reasons for not buying one was what to do with it after the wedding. The idea popped into my head that I could use my wedding dress to make blessing outfits for my children. So, this past Spring, I ordered some blessing outfit patterns from ebay and cut up my wedding dress! Because Liam came early, I didn't have time to finish it before he was born, but I did finish it in plenty of time for the blessing. I was (and still am) quite proud of myself. The cute little buttons on the vest are from the back of my dress and I even used the lining from the bodice of my dress to line the vest and bodice (is it a bodice?) of his outfit. My other moment of pride was when I altered the pattern to include buttons on the inside of the legs. I knew that easy access would be essential should a diaper change be necessary during the service!

More on the blessing tomorrow!

Great Grandparents

One of the greatest things about the three weeks we spent in Utah in September was that Liam was able to meet three of his great grandparents!

Liam got to spend some quality time with his Great Grandparents Rudd and Great Grandma Menlove. I really value the relationships I was able to have with my great grandparents growing up. I was blessed to have great relationships with four of my great grandparents until my sophomore year in high school and my great grandma Hansen until after my senior year of high school.

My Great Grandma Keetch loved us all so much. She was a master seamstress and made us dresses several times a year. I didn't have a store-bought dress until I was in seventh grade. I have fond memories of going to visit my Great Grandpa Rudd at the nursing home for dances and holiday parties. I could (and probably should) write a book of all of my memories of my Great Grandma Hansen - I was blessed to spend a lot of time with her listening and learning.

I hope Liam gets to know all of his great grandparents (he still has one more to meet!) so that he can learn from them and bask in their love.

Liam's First Flight - August 27, 2009

Liam's first flight (of now so many that I've lost count) was our flight to Utah at the end of August. He has been such a trooper on our flights, despite having a double ear infection on a couple of them. He loves watching people and new things and on our most recent flight, he really started enjoying watching things from the window. I hope he keeps up his good flying etiquette (especially for our cross-country flight home from San Francisco tomorrow).

This picture is on a flight from Salt Lake City to Anchorage. Liam didn't have his own seat but when our neighbor went to use the facilities, we buckled him in to the empty seat. He loved it and quickly charmed everyone across the aisle. Such a happy, good boy!

Will and I, on the other hand, are becoming slightly disenchanted with flying. He'll start working soon and then I won't be able to travel for work so our flying schedule should slow down drastically in the near future!

11

Lest this post lead anyone to believe I don't know the real holiday that takes place today, I want to start this post with expressing my gratitude for all of the men and women that serve daily to preserve and protect our freedom. I am so grateful for those that have given their lives and time and made other sacrifices to make it able for me to have and continue to have the freedoms and luxuries that I have been blessed with. Thank you!

On to my obsession with this day. Many years ago, my sophomore year at Utah State, my cousin (and roommate) Camilla and I begin to see 11:11 all the time. It seemed that whenever we looked at a digital clock, the numbers would appear. At the time I hadn't heard that wishes were customary when witnessing 11:11 or many wishes would have been made. This lead to parties being held to countdown to 11:11 on 11/11 each year. AND, lest you think I'm silly - while we were roommates my aunt had her 11th child on 11/11. Which - and I swear I'm not making this up - was the 11th birthday of his older brother. 11 seems to pop up everywhere for me - hotel rooms, addresses, phone numbers...

So, happy 11.11. I didn't count down to 11:11 this morning because I was in a meeting and won't tonight because I will be fast asleep, but you can count on a big celebration at my place in two years (11/11/11)!

DC - August 2009

As mentioned in the last post, I had to go to a meeting in DC for a week in August for work. It was fun to be back in our old stomping grounds and made me a little homesick for the area and the friends we have there. I spent the week in meetings and Will and Liam got out and did a little exploring. One evening, we were able to get out and see the Rockies beat the Nationals with my good friend Ann. Aren't my boys cute in their matching Rockies outfits?

(Funny side story.) While we were at the game, Ann realized that she had left her house keys and her office keys in her office when she left to meet us at the game. She wasn't sure how she was going to get into her house when I remembered that I had a spare key to her house in my car. I had used the key four years ago to do some stuff at her house when she was traveling, then kept it in case of an emergency.... but for some reason didn't ever give it back. It worked out great! (I also recently through away a housekey for a coworker of a friend for whom I housesat once that never could meet up to get it back...)

10 days down for NaBloPoMo! I'm feeling good about this and am excited to get caught up with all of the journaling so I can spend my daily blogs pontificating on random thoughts I have.

New York City - August 09

In August, I had to go to DC for a week for a meeting so we decided to stop in New York on the way down. Other than Will having to brave Manhattan traffic while I was on a conference call, it was fun. Liam was perfect - he loved the subway and all of the lights. We ate amazing mac and cheese at S'mac in the East Village. We went to the top of the Rock and to Times Square. We stayed in Jersey City and had a great hotel that was close to go over to see the Statue of Liberty in the morning. The lines to go out to the island were insane so we just enjoyed the view from a distance.

I heart New York. Will does not. I think Liam is going with his mom on this one.

Will did love the gem of a diner we found for breakfast. He very highly recommends the Honky Tonk pancakes at the Brownstone Diner and Pancake Factory.

The Beach

When we moved to RI (the Ocean State) last Fall, I was a little bummed that we'd missed the summer living close to so many great beaches. I vowed that this summer (2009) I would go to the beach as often as possible. As often as possible ended up being once. Liam was born Memorial Day weekend and apparently didn't get the beach memo. The one time we did make it was beautiful. We went to Horseneck Beach State Reservation and it was perfect. There was a two-mile paved path along the beach that allowed me to be at the beach without trying to haul everything out on to the beach and then sitting in the sand with the baby. We had a great beach day!

Porter Ross Ward - October 5, 2009

I realized today when I was reading my sister Rebecca's blog (she is doing great with NaBloPoMo, so proud!) that I didn't ever introduce our newest nephew on our blog. Porter Ross was born on October 5th and is just a tiny little guy. He is a miniature version of my dad and is very very cute. We were in Alaska when he was born and just happened to be stopping in Utah for almost 24 hours en route to Oregon the weekend after he was born. Becca, Curtis, Sam and Porter were sweet enough to meet us at my parents' house so we could meet little Porter. He is so tiny and precious, it was fun to meet him. We love him and can't wait to get to know him better!

In this picture, Liam is 4 1/2 months, Sam is 26 months and little Porter is 6 days old. I hope we are able to provide these little guys with many opportunities to become friends and have adventures together. I am grateful for the friendships I have with my cousins.

I also can't wait until we can get these three together with Brynley to have all the cousins together. Maybe over the holidays!!

p.s. Liam sat on Santa's lap at the mall today. He took it very seriously. He didn't really care whose lap he was on, he was very intrigued by the lights, trees and (especially) the glittery presents and ornaments. It was fun to watch him and was one of those moments where I had to pinch myself - do I really have a baby? I'm so grateful for the miracle that is Liam.

Catching Up - Five Months

Liam - Five Months

18 lbs. - 25 inches (unofficial stats)

It's amazing to look at how much he changed between the three-month and five-month pictures. Our friend, Lucy, was here when we took Liam's pictures and she did a great job of getting some cute smiles out of him.

Catching Up - Four Months

Liam - 4 Months

16 lbs. 3 oz. - 25 1/4 inches

As seen by the variety of outfits in these photos, we didn't have a four-month photo shoot. We spent the day sightseeing, in the car and on a boat. We also didn't have the monkey with us in Alaska for a shoot, but these were all taken within a day of him being four months.

Catching Up - Three Months

Liam - 3 months

15 lbs. 2 oz - 24 inches

Looking back now he looks so tiny in these pictures. It's amazing how quickly he's developed. These were some of the first pictures that I was able to get with him smiling. Now, I feel like he knows what the camera is and smiles even without any prompts sometimes. These pictures were taken just a few days before we departed on our marathon trip.

Thankful Thursday

When I decided to commit to posting every day for a month, I decided that I wanted to post more than just cute pictures of Liam (although there will be a lot of those). Some people say that having a theme for each day helps you to blog and one of the themes that I have seen in my blog perusing (a.k.a. blog stalking) is Thankful Thursday. I'm adopting it. Expressing a little more gratitude can never hurt.

Today, I am thankful for the amazing women in my life. I really love this quote by Sister Nadauld, a former General Young Women President

I have so many amazing women of faith in my life for whom I am thankful.

My Mother

Will's Mom

My Sisters

My Sisters-in-law

My Grandmothers

Aunts

Cousins

Friends

Primary, Young Women and Relief Society Teachers

Visiting Teachers

Sisters from my Mission

I'm grateful to be surrounded by women that reinforce Sister Nadauld's instruction - it is okay (even great) to be tender, kind and refined even though some view those qualities as less attractive/successful. I'm grateful for examples of purity, virtue and goodness. I'm working to become more of all of these things and to be a better sister, daughter, wife and mother.

When life gives you (51 pounds of) apples...

Two weekends ago while visiting the in-laws in Pennsylvania, we decided to pick some apples for applesauce. We weren't even there long (because I had a conference call which I started right there in the orchard (more on the joys and oddities of working at home to come, I'm sure)) and we picked 51 pounds of Sun Crisp, Melrose and Winesap apples. As you can see from the first picture, Liam came in very handy when trying to reach the high apples. If only he'd helped pick them once he reached them. So, what else does one do with 50+ pounds of apples other than make applesauce?

This was Will's first foray into the canning world and it was quite successful! I think his eager participation was due in great part to our newest kitchen appliance, an apple peeler, corer slicer. In fact, when I told him I was going to post about making applesauce, his suggested title for the post was "Apple Corer, Peeler, Slicer: How I love thee, let me count the ways." It was amazing how quickly the project went not having to peel and slice (and core, you get it) apples. We finished much more quickly than I had planned and actually went to bed Friday night with a clean kitchen. I'm not sure I will know what to do when Will starts working again. It will be a sad day for me.

We ended up with several varieties of applesauce, 13 quarts in all - some pureed very finely for Liam, some a little chunkier for us and some with cinnamon. We were quite proud and the initial taste tests came back positive from all parties (Liam just tasted a little off my finger, but he loved it). While were at it, we also made seven quarts of apple pie. I feel a little like the ant in Aesop's fable of the ant and the grasshopper. I like knowing that we've stored away a bit of food storage that we canned.

Two Busy Years

I don't blog much here, but just wanted to mention that Sara and I have been married for two years now, in that time we've moved twice, Sara started a business, I earned a Master's degree, and we had a wonderful baby boy. We've been up and down the East Coast, around the Rocky Mountians, the Pacific Northwest, Hawaii, Guam, and Alaska.

And I'm so glad to have spent the past two years with my wonderful wife, and I am so grateful for the way she inspires me.

I love you honey. Happy Anniversary! Thank you for being a great mom and a great wife.

And since all anybody wants to see here are pictures of Liam, here's one of the big man chillin in his easy-chair.

The Best Two Years

Dear Will,

Has it really only been two years? It must have been much longer. We've lived in two states, you applied for and finished graduate school and we have a child. We've moved forward so quickly that it's nice to take a rare opportunity to look back. The events of November 3, 2007 changed my life and continue to change it every day. I'm so grateful to to be married to a man who is committed to being an amazing husband and a fabulous father. I cannot imagine anyone I'd rather spend eternity with (or that could put up with me and remain sane for eternity). To celebrate this, our second anniversary, I give you a slightly cheesy acrostic. Something cotton is also on its way...

W is for the wishes I had for years;
I is for the many idiots who caused me tears;
L is for the laughs we had those first months;
L is for the love, despite a few bumps;
I is for intelligent and dreamy, my beau;
A is for asking me to marry, I couldn't say no;
M is for making my dreams come true; dreams to marry a man like you!

R is for righteous and honest and true;

O is for outstanding in all that you do;

B is for blue-eyed, tall and hot;

E is for easygoing, something I'm definitely not;

R is for rational, tempered and thrifty;

T is for thoughtful, all the times my spirit you've lifted.

D is for dutiful and committed for life;

O is for optimistic about your learning wife;

U is for unbelievable, your fathering skills;

T is for tremendous with Liam, for real;

R is for responsible, a manly man, mine for forever;

E is for eternity, can't wait to spend it together!

I love you honey and can't wait for the adventures that await us!

Sara

Photos by Tiana Simpson. She's amazing.

Round round get around, I get around.

I hope all readers of my blog love seeing cute pictures of this little guy because I have a lot to include in this month of posting every day! I figure these are appropriate because he's modeling an outfit from one of the 15 states (and a district) that Liam has visited in his short 5 months of life. He started off early with a quick trip to MA on the way home (in RI) from the hospital to stop at Babies R Us. Then, a road trip with mom and Aunt Megan to visit Will while he was teaching this summer took us to CT, NY, NJ and PA. Mid- August we repeated those and added DE, MD, DC, and VA. At the end of August, we made it to UT, ID and WY and then added AK and OR during Sept. and Oct. Next week he gets to add one more - CA. If we counted airports, he'd also have IL, but I think his count is high enough without counting airports.

And, just in case your curious about the time spent visiting all of those places, between August 15 and October 16 we drove approximately 4,336.9 miles and flew at least 10,616 miles. It was a lot of traveling and it has been nice to finally be home in our own beds for two weeks before we take off again.

I have a lot of pictures from our travels and hopefully will highlight some of the highlights in upcoming posts.

Until then, a few more cute pictures of the little duck.

Halloween and NaBloPoMo

I know, I know, I'm way behind on blogging. And, I have a LOT of good reasons, to be described in detail in upcoming posts. To get myself back in the habit as well as to add a bit of a challenge to blogging, I have decided to participate in NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month) for the month of November. The challenge is to post every day for one month. I can do that.

And, to get started, I'm posting Liam's Halloween picture for all to enjoy! He is finally feeling better and is back to his smiling, babbling self. Grandma Marie gave him multiple cute costume options this year and this skeleton shirt was a hit. We went trick-or-treating at the grocery store and he received a lot of compliments on both his cute outfit and his charming smile. We had a fabulous Halloween. Some of our good friends threw a fun party and we had fun preparing taco soup in a pumpkin, spidery deviled eggs, a pudding graveyard and other fun treats for the party. We enjoyed an evening of trick-or-treating, fun food and conversation and even a few ghost stories after the kiddos (except Liam) were in bed. My favorite was the story of Robert the Doll.

Two Months - July 24, 2009

At his two-month checkup on July 27th, Liam weighed in at a whopping 13 lbs. 4 oz. and had grown to 23 inches long. The first thing the doctor said when she saw his weight was that it was amazing that this was the same kid that we were worried about two months ago because he wasn't gaining weight. He clearly is packing it on now - we've had to pull out the 3-6 month clothes already. He's almost caught up to his cousin Brynley who is 6 months and just over 14 lbs.

Here he is with the monthly monkey.

He had his first vaccinations at his appointment and it was really sad to watch.

Other firsts in July also included:
First Roadtrips - he's now been in six states (RI, MA, CT, NY, NJ, and PA) with a few more coming this month. Including the trip to the pageant and two to PA, he logged at least 1800 miles and about 36 hours in the car.
First Smiles
First Swimming Pool
First MLB Game
First Babysitter (yes, I cried)

Liam loves to be held and loves to be moving. He really enjoys going for walks and almost always stays awake in the stroller - gazing around and taking it all in. He also loves bathtime and hates it to end. He's trying to condition me to not take him out by peeing all over me as soon as I take him out of the bathtub. I still take him out, we just wash his towels a lot. He also enjoys tummy time (especially if there is a mirror nearby). He's staring to make a few more noises but still prefers to grunt to get your attention and doesn't keep it a secret when he's uncomfortable or lonely.

Hill Cumorah Pageant

Several months ago, I was called to be the activities committee for our ward. Luckily for me (as we also teach primary and do Cub Scouts) it's been a pretty low-key calling. Sometimes less is more, right? Well, sometime last year our Bishop decided that a trip to the Hill Cumorah Pageant would be a fun activity so he reserved some cabins at a church camp. When it was first announced, I figured I would help with the planning but that we probably wouldn't be attending because we'd have a newborn. Well, after mentioning something about that, the Bishop informed me that his wife went straight from the hospital to a ward activity after one of their sons was born. If you know me well, you know that as soon as he said that, I knew I'd be going.

So, after our first successful roadtrip to Pennsylvania and doing the planning for the trip, we decided it was worth it to make the 12-hour round-trip drive (we didn't stay in the cabins - but neither did the bishop's wife :)). Like any good plan, however, it didn't go exactly as planned.

We had planned to go part way on Friday (the rest of the ward was leaving Saturday morning) to break up the drive so we got a hotel room in Albany and were planning on leaving around noon. After he had packed the car, Will checked his email and found an invitation to apply to teach at Johns Hopkins University's summer program for talented youth. He decided it was worth sending his email and a phone interview, unpacking and repacking bags and the car, and seven hours later, he had a job offer. The only hangup was that they wanted him in Lancaster, PA Saturday morning (as in 14 hours later).

So, Will drove with us to Albany where we stayed Friday night. Saturday morning we dropped him off at the train station to catch a train to Lancaster. Many tears were shed. Then, Liam and I continued on to Palmyra. Luckily, he was wonderful and slept almost the whole way. I stopped once to feed him and he only screamed the last twenty or so minutes.

Luckily for me we have an amazing ward family and I was well taken care of. The food and ward activity pieces went off without a hitch and Sister K even drove me to the pageant, to our hotel and back to the camp for breakfast and church in the morning. Liam was great and didn't seem to mind being passed from one pair of warm arms to another. Bill and Marie came to the pageant to meet us and even saved 30-40 seats for us when they got there before us! One of our primary children rode home with me and was great at talking to Liam and making sure the sun didn't bug him too much. On the way home he cried the last twenty or so minutes as well - not bad for a six-hour ride with only one short pit-stop.

I'm grateful for a ward family that is so great. I'm also grateful that we were able to attend the pageant and to be able to visit the church history sites so easily. I love to feel the Spirit and to have my testimony of the restoration of the church confirmed to me again. If you've been to the pageant, you know that there are a lot of protesters that come and try to get to the attendees with their megaphones... The young men and young women from our ward were visibly upset when they were being harassed in the parking lot. While the experience was upsetting to them, it provided an even greater contrast when we walked nearer to the Hill Cumorah and heard the hymns playing. That contrast made the difference between having the spirit and not having it almost tangible.

Unfortunately, because my hands were full and I was minus Will, our camera stayed in the trunk the entire weekend. If I get some pictures from someone else in the ward, I will post them.

July 4th, 2009

In addition to celebrating our Nation's birth every 4th of July, we also get to celebrate Grandpa Bill's birthday! We decided to take Liam on his first road trip and headed down to Pennsylvania to celebrate (and to hang out in the pool). Some highlights of the weekend:

Liam - ready for some pool action, flip-flops and all.

Liam and mom swimming - he really loves the water but the weather was abnormally cool so we didn't stay in the water long.

All decked out for the festivities!

We decided to get Bill tickets to the Phillies game for his birthday. Unplanned, Grandma Marie had gotten Bill and Liam Phillies hats for his birthday!!

The gang at the Phillies game. It was a great day for a baseball game and they won! Liam also got a certificate for attending his first Phillies game. Six weeks isn't too young for professional sporting events, right?

Other highlights that I don't have pictures of:
Will riding in the backseat with Liam the whole way to PA
Grandpa dancing with Liam to patriotic music (I do have video, I should learn how to post it)
Intense tailgating at the baseball game
Philly Cheesesteaks after the game
A fantastic pool-side Sunday afternoon BBQ

Liam was a trooper - he was excellent in the car. He may be rethinking the decision to behave so well because this was only the first of several roadtrips in July!

Tummy Time