8 Month Old Miley

This girl is the absolute love of our lives. It is probably safe to say we are completely OBSESSED over her. We just can't get enough. We can't get enough of her gummy smile, her chubby cheeks, her slobbery kisses, and her little laugh. She brings joy beyond measure to our home. Miley continues to learn and develop her personality each day, and watching her always plants a big smile on our faces. Baby Miley at eight months old is more like having Animal the Muppet living in our home.This girl keeps us entertained with her LOUD grunts and yells. Everyday I try to teach her about having an 'inside voice' but I'm not sure that it is getting through. I can't help but crack up when she does it, and Justin eggs her on when he gets home with a grunt and yell contest, so I guess we are really not helping. Miley is so curious about any and everything. She wants to get her grabby little hands on anything she can touch, and sometimes it can be a real trick hanging on to her. She would probably leap right out of my arms if I didn't practice the death grip on her everyday.

Some of the fun/funny things she has been doing lately include giving kisses (which are more like an -open mouth, insert tongue, slobber, lick-but we love it), sticking her tongue out and blowing raspberries, and loves to curl her toes into a point, and when she is jumping in her jumper she will get up on her tip toes with her toes curled under?! I guess she is practicing to be a future ballerina. Every night Justin and I brush our teeth as fast as we can so we can hurry into her room together to watch her sleep. This is one of our favorite things to do, and we do it every night. It's partly to check on her, and turn off her fan, but mainly to smile or giggle at the funny position she has put herself in. There is something so sweet about watching her sleep peacefully after a long day of playing with toys, and singing songs. ;)

We Love You Miley. We are so glad you are ours! Kiss kiss.

Easter Weekend in Zion National Park

We spent a terrific weekend with family in Zion over Easter Weekend. It was a much needed vacation for us. Very relaxing, in beautiful surroundings. Here are some of the pictures from our trip.

The Crew minus a few that had to leave early. Madsen, Cox, Oliverson, and Andersen Families.

Humanitarian Aid Kit Assembly Night.

Us. Easter Morning.

Enjoying Sunshine.

Eating Out.

Thanks to our parents for such a great time!

We're Moving to CANADA!!!!

Today Justin burst through the door after work completely out of breath because he ran all the way home from campus as fast as he could to tell me he's been accepted to Dental School at Dalhousie University!

Holy Cow! We are excited!

Dalhousie has a class size of about 36 students, and there are usually only 4-5 spots made available out of those 36 to international students.

This is an incredible achievement. (I can brag about my husband a little bit.) Justin has worked so incredibly hard. I have seen his tireless efforts, and I could not be more proud of him.

I have felt for a long time that we would be moving to Canada, but we have had to wait, and wait, and wait to hear if my feelings would prove to be true. I am so glad they are.

We feel extremely blessed, and know that Heavenly Father is watching over our family.

I have always known the school that accepted Justin would have one amazing student. He will be an asset to the school and dental community.

Canada, Here We Come!

Expressing Grattitude

Have I been grateful enough for my life's greatest blessing? Everyday I tell Miley over and over how much mommy loves her. She hears "I love you, I love you" over and over all day long. Today I looked at a picture of Justin and I on the coffee table as Miley and I played on the floor, and I decided to switch things up a bit. Instead of saying to Miley "Did you know Mom loves you?" I said "Miley did you know Mommy loves Daddy?" I could not stop the tears from welling up in my eyes as I asked her. "Mommy loves Daddy" is not enough to describe how much he means to me. The love I have for Justin is what makes me happy. It gives me strength, and it is by a large measure, what I live for. I want my children to know and hear that their mom adores their dad. My life would not be the same without my spouse by my side. He is my guardian angel, my teacher, and my best friend. It is not just his unwavering faith or his incredible example, nor is it the laughter he produces or the way he loves our daughter. It is his one and only disposition that makes his entire countenance sparkle. It is his fierce loyalty, and understanding heart. It is the way he takes my hand in his. I love you. I'm grateful for you. I appreciate all you do. I admire you. So glad your mine. Forever.

March Madness

This month has been madness for more reasons than just college basketball tournaments. One reason being that Miley ans I are almost 100% dependent on Justin to keep things functioning. I miss being useful, and I wish I could help more, but you can only do so much when you are sick. I truly believe things are starting to turn the corner though. So hopefully Justin will catch a break one of these days.

Right now I am busy trying to plan a few different Graduation get-togethers for Justin. He will be graduating May 2ND, which is just right around the corner! Yesterday we went to the Grad fair on Campus to get Justin his cap and gown. There was this guy at one of the booths who kept calling Miley "Dude." It was obvious he thought she was a little boy. "Hey Dude." What's up Dude?" I guess it's bows from now on when we are out in public.

Justin had me fill out a bracket this year. He printed it out at work, and brought it home for me. I filled it out and then showed him. He probably almost died of embarrassment that his wife is so clueless when it comes to the whole Basketball thing. I thought I just needed to choose one team out of every four to win, and then I had the University of Utah as the Champs in the end. I know, I'm not all there sometimes. So, I filled out a new bracket, and am doing better the second time around.

So there you have it. Justin is so busy keeping up with school, work, and taking care of us at home he probably can hardly see strait. I am so darn sick I for sure can't see strait, and Miley is just happy as ever and cute as can be.

7 Month Old Miley

Look at this beauty. I love that I get to kiss those cute cheeks and lips everyday. Miley is the joy of our lives, and each month that passes she becomes even more fun than the month before. This girl loves to do the same thing everyday. Play, play, and play some more. She doesn't want to sleep, just play. She doesn't want to eat, just play. Bath time? No. Play time! Snuggle? No. Play. She wants to sing songs, read books, swing, play with toys on the floor, and she LOVES to bounce in her jumper. She is happy to just be home and play. I'll talk to her while I fold laundry, and she plays by me on the floor, and she will just smile and tell me all sorts of stories. She can go on and on. She will talk loud with serious grunts and high pitched squills, and then she will just giggle or whisper softly. When she's done, she'll just look up and smile at me like "did ya get all that mom?" Miley loves her Daddy.

Her first words were "DA DA." In the morning when she wakes up it's "Da Da Da Da Da Da." In the bath tub, and getting dressed it's "Da Da Da Da Da Da." All day long playing and after nap time I hear "Da Da Da Da Da Da."

So we will call Justin while he's at work, and I'll tell him 'Miley wants to talk to you' and then she will just eat and slobber all over the phone in silence. As soon as we hang up and the phone is quiet she'll look at me and say "DA?" Maybe it's just her way of giving him kisses. She really does have the best Dad in the world, and I'm glad she knows it at such a young age.

So Much Attitude.

This past month it has been fun to try new foods with her, and it's funny how fast she determined her likes and dislikes. Bananas are a NO, but she LOVES apples. She likes most veggies, but it's a NO WAY to avocados. She'll only drink water or juice from a cup, and doesn't like it in sippy cups, or bottles. She has a new fascination with the zippers on my jackets, and she will get really hurt feelings if you take a toy away from her that she is playing with. I wouldn't say she is really all that particular. Each day is pretty much like clock work, and she is very happy to just hang out with mom. She really is our precious little angel. We love to watch her learn and grow. We even love it when she's a bit feisty. Miley keeps things fun around our house. We LOVE 'er, LOVE 'er, LOVE 'er!

Spring Break

Well, it hasn't been much of one. To start it off we got blasted with more snow than we've seen all winter, we then took a trip to Primary Children's with Miley, and the rest of the week Justin worked and took care of Miley and I, while I layed on the couch trying to keep my food down, but at the same time trying not to think about it because the thought only made me more sick. We are not boring at all.

Here's Miley in the waiting room at Primary's. I made her this hat for her big day. At Primary Children's one of the methods of treating Torticollis in young babies is to inject Botox into their tight neck muscles, so we met with the Nurse and Dr there to see if Miley is a candidate for this procedure. After they examined her Justin and I decided it best to wait for Miley to start crawling, and grow into herself a little more before doing any of the Botox treatments. I had no idea that Torticollis can cause so many problems. Sight, and hearing problems, hip and spine alignment, etc.

The Dr. suggested that we get some x-rays to check some of Miley's vertebrae. I couldn't go past a certain point in the x-ray room because I'm pregnant, so I just had to watch the technicians hold Miley's little body down while she screamed bloody murder. I consider myself to be pretty tough. I have never cried when Miley has been sick, or had to have her shots, but watching her scream, and not being able to go to her and comfort her was more than I could bare. I could not fight back my own tears no matter how hard I tried. When they were finished I could not wait to get her out of there. And I sure hope we don't have to go back. My heart really went out to all of the children there who have severe problems or illnesses. It is hard as a parent to see your child go through any amount of pain, so my heart was broken for them.

I'm sure this week won't be going down in any history books as the 'Best Spring Break Ever' and even though we are sick of snow, sick of school, and sick of being sick, this week has helped me find gratitude for incredible blessings in my life I was not recognizing before.

Like a sweet, and supportive spouse who has been there to pick up the slack I've been dragging around. What a blessing he has been to me this week. He has done laundry, and dishes galore. If I leave the house for five minutes, I come back to it dusted, vacuumed, and incredibly clean in the blink of an eye.

He has cooked dinner, been up with Miley every morning so I could sleep in, and then come home early everyday so he can help take care of me, and play with Miley some more. I married a truly great man.

I'm grateful for my sweet Miley who reminds me everyday that being pregnant is so worth it in the end. She has been so sweet to just lay by me on the couch and play or read books. She makes my heart beat unconditional love.

I have felt a lot of grattitude for great friends who have called, sent notes, or come to visit to see how I am doing. Their kindness is above and beyond what i deserve, and I feel fortunate to have them.

I'm grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed us with another precious baby, and trusted Justin and I with the amazing privilege it is to be parents at this time. So I guess this spring break has not been as bad as I have made it sound. In many ways it has been really great.