"Production" Update

We have entered the final stages of production. Only 29 days or about 4 weeks until my due date. (Who's counting?) I'm in the final stages of nesting. The carpet cleaners come today in about an hour. Aaron has been a good sport, enduring moving furniture and helping me DEEP clean. (Mostly by keeping the kids distracted.) It's been like 2 straight weeks of cleaning the unimaginable. Who knew it was even that dirty? But this need to "nest" and have things clean & organized has hit me hard this time. I surely don't remember being this anal about it with Kaya or Logan. I told Aaron last night that the goal is to keep the house clean for the next 4 weeks. Surely we can keep the dishes done, the floors clean, and have things picked up each night before bed in the event that we're suprised with an early arrival. (Yeah right....but I can still hope!) I had my 36 week check up yesterday and I have started to dilate. That doesn't mean a whole lot but it does mean that we're in the final stretch. Yeah!! We still haven't decided on a name. We have a few that we've been "kicking around". I'm not too worried about it. There are still some things I'd like to get done before baby arrives but nothing critical. I'm essentially READY & WAITING!! We'll keep you posted.

(P.S. I stole the picture from a fellow blogger! Thanks Bree!)

How does your garden grow?

Well....mine isn't doing too bad. Things are at least GROWING!! The only plant to have produced anything so far is the tomatoes. (Seriously though - Just about anyone can grow a tomato!) It's exciting to watch the garden growing. Everything you see was planted from seeds except the 2 tomato plants. Our church is having a "Stake Fair" in August as a way to encourage people to plant gardens and learn to be more self-sufficient. There will be judging and prizes just like in a regular fair. For my first attempt at a garden, I am quite pleased. Hopefully what you see will produce edible vegetables and something worthy of being judged!!

My little green tomatoes!!

P.S. We also planted some strawberry plants in our planter by the house. The birds got to the first few strawberries that ripened. The kids and I shared the ONE strawberry today that was ripe enough to eat. It was tasty! The kids wanted more. We'll have to wait a few more days for the next ones to be ripe enough to eat.

Happy 4th Birthday Kaya!!!!!!

Today we celebrated Kaya's 4th birthday. It's hard to believe that it's already been 4 years since Kaya was born. It seems like it was just yesterday that my water broke and we were headed to the hospital. Kaya is our firstborn and the first grandchild on both sides of the family. She's VERY loved and has been such a joy to have in our home. Kaya's name is Hopi Indian and means "wise, oldest daughter". She is very smart and has a quick wit. Kaya is inquisitive and is always asking questions. She's eager to learn and go to pre-school in the Fall. She's also very independant, talkative, and opinionated. Kaya loves to play with her friends and is a good helper. She is also very polite and enjoys being the big sister. We are lucky to have such a cute and sweet little girl! Happy Birthday Kaya!

Logan's Big Boy Room

The past week has been pretty busy in our house. Part of baby preparations included converting the current nursery into Logan's new "Big Boy Room". Logan LOVES trucks & tractors and I found a really cute construction scene wallpaper border. Since the walls in his room are tan, I also found a cute tan based wallpaper with dots on it, just to break up the color a bit. I was able to get all the wallpaper done in one afternoon. The next day, we took down the crib and put up his new bed. It's actually the top half of a bunk bed that we bought with our economic stimulus check. With all the railings, it works really well as a toddler bed. We'll use the bunk bed set for the girls when the new baby gets old enough to use a toddler bed. Poor Kaya wanted bunk beds so bad, but she won't actually be able to sleep on a top bunk until she's probably at least 8 years old! We also needed to get one more dresser. Since the baby will be in our room for at least a few months, we decided to keep the crib down for the time being and have 2 dressers in Logan's room. We moved my glider rocker into our bedroom. Kaya & the new baby will share a room since it's the bigger of the 2 rooms. The pictures below are mostly for the grandmas to see the changes. I will also include a picture of Kaya's "Big Girl Room" that we did for her 2 years ago when we moved her from the nursery to another room. I found a really cute pink bumper set made out of that cuddly fabric (The super soft stuff with the raised dots). It will go well with Kaya's current decor.The new bedLogan's new dresser

The baby's dresser (Kaya & Logan both used it.)

A picture of Kaya's room decor.

Family Camping Trip

Aaron and I took the kids camping in the Ashley National Forest (About 25 miles outside of Vernal, UT) this past weekend. We rented a rustic cabin managed by the USDA Forest Service. The Colton Guard Station was built in 1933 and came furnished with a propane stove/oven, fridge, flush toilet, shower, & hot water. We also had solar lighting and a nice fire pit. The sleeping accomodations included a bunk bed and full size futon. It was a tight squeeze, but we all managed just fine. The kids had a GREAT time being outdoors, exploring the bugs, picking the flowers, and just enjoying themselves.This is a view of the cabin.A cute picture of the kids. There were fields and fields of wildflowers just outside the forested area. Logan enjoying his first s'more. He ended up eating only the chocolate bar and giving the rest back, asking for more chocolate! He's his father's son! ;)We made a stop at the Utah Fieldhouse of Natural History State Park Museum. (AKA - Dinosaur Museum). The kids really enjoyed seeing all the dinosaur displays, "digging" for dinosaur bones, and just exploring.The Museum even had its own geocache. We had to answer a list of questions before getting the coordinates to the final prize. It was educational for us and fun for the kids.We tried to make a stop at Dinosaur National Monument where you can see the largest Jurassic period fossil bone quarry in the world. The kids fell asleep in the truck shortly before arrival, so we decided not to wake them to go explore. We took some quick pictures instead.After the kids had taken their naps and we had lunch at a local park in Vernal, we found the Uintah County Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum. This attraction was FREE and featured lots and lots of neat historical items from the Utah Pioneers. The picture above is of Kaya checking out a VERY old rocking chair.On the way home we drove through the Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area. We made several stops to geocache and check out the sites and scenery in the area.

One of our last stops was at the Flaming Gorge Reservoir. Here we are at 6,040 feet above sea level. It was a fun little detour and the kids appreciate ANY opportunity to get out and walk around.

All in all we had a fun time. The kids were happy to be back home and everyone slept exceptionally well in their own beds last night. Being close to 34 weeks pregnant, I appreciated having a cabin to "camp" in. We'll do more tent camping as the kids get bigger.

Celebrating 8 Years of Marriage

Today is our 8th wedding anniversary. It has been a wonderful 8 years filled with lots of good memories and milestones. We actually started dating in 1997 which makes it 11+ years of being together. We have had the opportunity to travel, purchase a home, and start our family. We have 2 beautiful children with one more on the way. We are thankful for the example of great parents, grandparents, and friends who show us what it means to have a good marriage. Thank you!! Above are just a few pictures from over the last 11+ years.

This afternoon we're off to celebrate in Salt Lake City while our sister law watches the kids. Aaron asked last night what we wanted to do for our 10th anniversary in 2 years. I told him it would be fun to take a trip - just the 2 of us. However, since I've been 7+ months pregnant or nursing for 5 of the past 8 anniversaries. We'll have to see what our 10th anniversary holds in store for us. What an awesome milestone to look forward to!!

Happy Anniversary to my AMAZING husband and best friend!!

Happy Happy Father's Day!!!!

Aaron is a great "hand's on" dad to our kids. Dad is DEFINITELY more fun than Mommy and I sure appreciate the help with baths, feeding, clean-up, diapers, etc. Our kids are very lucky to have such a great dad and I am very lucky to have such a great husband. Here are a few pictures from the last (almost) 4 years since becoming a Dad:

The day Kaya was born. Kaya and Daddy ready for a luau.Aaron showing Kaya the cows at the Utah State Fair.

Aaron & KayaThe day Logan was born.Aaron & LoganDaddy & Kaya coloring Easter Eggs.Aaron & Kids

Aaron & Kids

Happy Father's Day Daddy!! We ALL love you!!