Dan, Katie, Ruby and Peter

Ever Played "Grandpa Says"?

2012-01-11T15:29:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T20:57:00.001-08:00

We opened presents with my parents on Christmas Eve. My Dad was on a layover and had to go back to work on Christmas Morning, so we enjoyed a great Christmas with him Christmas Eve night. The crew: Mom, Dan, Grandma, Andy, April, Me, Dan, Ruby, and Jay. Can I just say that Ruby was in Heaven!!! She pretty much got to open everyone's presents. She moved from lap to lap, flashed her smile and cute personality and EVERYONE caved!

Ruby working the Beiber!

Ruby opening her special present from Namma (Grandma).

She was genuinely excited and ran over and gave Grandma a hug. She loves naming the animals and making their noises.

We all made my Grandma a build a bear. She loved it, and Ruby did too!

Ruby moving in on Grandma's other gift...Now Ruby wants everyone to "draw Annie, draw Annie" (Annie being my Grandma's westie)

She love her Monkey book, really Monkey's are her favorite! I am hoping that the moral of the story rubs off and she starts sitting quietly during church!! I will let you know.

Pre-Christmas Activities

2011-12-25T21:10:00.000-08:00

Here comes Santa Claus...Since I am being such a poor planner, we had to get pictures with the mall Santa. Sorry if you know or love a mall Santa, but I do not. Last year we went to the Garden of the Gods and met the Santa there. The best Santa ever. So sweet with Ruby and best of all, no line and they weren't selling photos! Dare I say that this Santa was not even very nice. They did however let us take quick pictures since we weren't buying one of their uber expensive picture packages.

Ruby's favorite word of the season...Snowman! It was hard to get a picture of her facing the camera. She kept turning around to look at Frosty.

You can see the look of concern on her face. But she is being very brave.

Ok Dad, I have had enough of this guy.

I totally dressed Peter up to match Ruby for pictures with the two of them on Santa's lap...what was I thinking?!? This kid just got over RSV, he will not be leaving the safety of his car seat and the cover is staying on to hopefully keep germs out! Peter will meet Santa next year...and hopefully it won't be a mall Santa.

Ruby loved riding the escalator! Grandpa took her on her first ride, no wonder she loves him best!

We went to build a bear to make a bear for my Grandma. It was so fun! I am not sure why every time (which isn't often) I go in there, I have to remind myself that I truly do not need to make a teddy bear for myself. What a great idea for a business though, wish I would have thought of it.

On our way out, Ruby had to stop and get one more good look. She did a very good job of not throwing a fit because the bear was not for her! So good in fact, I should take her back and make her one :)

Later that night, we went over to my parent's house to build our own snowmen. My family has never had good luck with building gingerbread houses, so we thought we would try something new. The great neighbor kids came over to make some also. Eden was Ruby's new BFF, she was so good with her.

All of us working, I even made my Dad, Dan, Jay and Andy build one.

Andy is making a face because he knows mine is better...

I mean seriously, no offense Andy, but what is that?!?

Peter chillin' with my dad.

All of us posing with our snowmen, only you can see the snowmen...

Here they are. You can see Ruby's on the left...it was a porcupine snowman.

Jay's

Dan's

This is mine, ehh, pretty good right?!?

This WAS my mom's. So funny, we watched the head just teeter off. It reminded me of Dumb and Dumber...our pet's heads are fallin off...

No official winner was formally chosen, but Dan pretty much won all the adult's votes. He also beat me at our family bowl off...looks like I have got some work to do before next Christmas.

Ruby Update

2011-12-14T21:09:00.000-08:00

So here is an update on our Ruby since last December. I will tell you that a lot has happened since our last post. She has in fact learned to walk, run, climb, talk, and be CRAZY! She is SO much fun and has SO much energy! Here are some pictures to get caught up on the last 12 months of Ruby.

December 2010

January 2011

February 2011

March 2011

April 2011

May 2011

June 2011

July 2011

August 2011

September 2011

October 2011

November 2011

Peter's Birth Story

2011-12-13T13:43:00.000-08:00

Peter's due date was 11-9-11. I went to see my midwife on the 10th and was not dilated at all. Her words, "Well, no baby today". I was settling in for at least another week of joyous pregnancy. However uncomfortable and exhausting it was, I was really excited to experience going into labor on my own. I didn't really know what to expect. I was questioning myself constantly...was that a real contraction, or just braxton hicks?? Well, the 11th came, and I was a little sad that we would miss this most perfect day for him to be born. After Ruby went down for a nap I made a batch of cookies - and I ate a ton of them - even the batter, I mean a ton! I went to lie down to rest until the Rube-ster woke up, and after a few minutes...something started happening. I got up quickly and got to the bathroom in time. My water broke! Wha!?! Serious?!? It was a little before 4. I called Dan using our pre-arranged "it's time" signal to answer the phone or call me back immediately. It was funny, his friend was in the background hollering, there is still time to get 11-11-11! I called my mom to come pick up Ruby, she had been on call for a few days, so of course she was ready!...have I told you before how I have the most best parents? Well I do.

Our last photo as a family of three, as you can tell Ruby was not thrilled.

When Dan got home I jumped in the shower, because I have heard that is what you are supposed to do, so I did it. Since I really wanted a natural delivery our plan was to labor at home as long as I could. We live SUPER close to the hospital, so we weren't worried about delivering the baby in the car or at home. It was going really well laboring at home, in hind sight I would have stayed there longer, but as the contractions were getting 2 minutes apart we headed out. It was 7:00 pm at that point. When we got all checked in, which seemed to take forever, the nurse checked me and I was dilated to a 4-5. So here we go. She left us alone for the most part, which was nice...although she was a great nurse! I did not want to labor in the bed, so she would listen to the baby for 10 minutes and then let me get back up for the next hour. I really think that is the worst thing to have to labor while being hooked up to the fetal monitor and trying to keep a stupid heart rate monitor on your own finger. Dan was a great support the whole time. I would say I did a pretty good job throughout the majority of the labor, but toward the end - which didn't seem toward the end at the time, I went a little nuts. "I can't do this anymore, I want an epidural!" I said that more than once, more like screamed instead of said. Dan reassured me that I in fact could do it and that I was already doing it. Thank goodness for his calming presence. I'm not sure why I even asked for an epidural when it was obviously WAAAY to late for one. Around 9:45 the nurse checked me again and I was fully dilated, however Peter was not moving down the birth canal. (He was posterior) The nurse wanted me to "work" through a few contractions to see if he would come down. I thought, lady you must be crazy! I'm not gonna sit here at 10 centimeters dilated and wait for him to decide to come down, can't I push him down?? It was funny, she looked at me like, huh, yeah we could try that. It worked. He had come down far enough to call the doctor in at 10:30. Pushed a few times with the doc and out he came. Sweet relief!!! Nothing feels so good as that moment of having the baby out of my body!!! He was 7 lbs 13 oz, 20.5 inches long, born at 11:09 pm. I got to hold him for a long time, he was healthy-what a blessing. Such a different experience from Ruby being whisked away to the NICU. The nurse commented over and over what a great team Dan and I were. I literally hung on him during each contraction for a good two hours. The next day he woke up really sore - I think it surprised him, I said honey you were holding up a 200 pound woman (there I said it) for hours! Of course you are sore...but I am more sore :) My sister asked me soon after the delivery if I would go natural again. It was a really good question at the time. I couldn't give her an answer-being that it was SO painful. But looking back, yes I would/hopefully will do it again. I didn't have some spiritual awakening about the natural birthing process, how powerful I felt or how beautiful it was, sorry. Only that I think our bodies are designed to do it, we can handle it, and so I wanted to give it a go. I love and am very grateful for modern medicine, hello I had a baby in the NICU for 12 days! However I do think sometimes they complicate things that were not meant to be complicated.

First good photo of our handsome boy

Anyway, that was it! Now we have two kids, how crazy is that. I have had a few quiet moments to think about that over the last month. And although when they are both crying at the same time, or one is hungry and the other wants me to play and the house is a mess and the doorbell rings and I realize I haven't put on a bra yet and yes it is 2:00 pm and I am still in my pjs and WHY did you ring the doorbell when my 20 month old is napping - I think, whose life is this??, I'm so happy that it is mine.

First father/son photo after the son was fully dressed.

I love LOVE this picture of him, so sweet and handsome!

My mom came out to see us late that night to meet her grandson.

Great Grandma with Peter Nolan. Nolan is my grandpa - her husband's name.

Cooking with Grandma! While we were at the hospital.

During Ruby's first meeting with her baby brother. Notice we don't have any pictures of them together, there is a reason for that!

So sweet, I love this picture too!

There is no place like home!

Dan is already newborn multi-tasking.

Here is the first photo of Peter and Ruby...Notice my mom is holding Peter at a safe distance. Ruby is so fast you really have to be on your toes!

Pete

2011-12-12T21:27:00.000-08:00

Here he is.

Peter Nolan Ricks

Born November 11, 2011.

Thats 11-11-11

Not induced...Booyah

And I don't want any comments about why I couldn't have waited

2 more minutes until 11:11 pm - aight.

Go Baby Go!

2010-12-12T19:30:00.001-08:00

Ruby has been learning (very quickly might I add) how to crawl. She is getting very good at it and is getting pretty fast. No matter where you set her down in the room, she will be in the opposite corner within minutes! It is very fun to watch her work so hard. She is so persistent! One of her favorite things is standing. She is very close to pulling herself up on her own and will move her feet and attempt to walk if you hold her hands. Crazy! We are having so much fun with her and her constant entertainment! She loves blowing raspberries and giving you a head butt...great-grandma Hughes taught her that one :)

Ruby's version of the downward dog. Brindi is obviously teaching her a weird way to crawl!

I think we have a future piano player on our hands.

She has tried to chew on the pedals, uh oh! This girl will chew on ANYTHING!

Let me see if I can get my toys outta that bag!

Caught ya!

That is her favorite part of the tree, there is a little jingle bell ornament that she likes to jingle.

Chillin' before church waiting for Mom and Dad to be ready to go.

See the piano theme?

Stairs?!? She is trying, but not quite there, thank goodness!

That's all for now!

CT/NYC in PICS

2010-11-28T14:14:00.001-08:00

Don't have the energy to narrate tonight, so for now here is our trip back east in pictures.

First Halloween!

2010-11-10T15:22:00.000-08:00

Ruby had her first Halloween! Yay! It was pretty low key, especially since it was on a Sunday. It consisted of dinner at my parents, skyping with Grandma and Grandpa Ricks, and dressing her up just in time to get some pictures before she fell asleep. I did decide however that Dan and I need to start dressing up every year...starting next year of course :)

Ruby makes a very cute duck, in my opinion.

Dan makes a very cute dad, in my opinion.

Notice my little baby hairs - post pregnancy re-growth I guess - not very cute, in my opinion.

My parents make very cute grandparents, in my opinion.

I guess I have a lot of opinions.

Daddy Daughter Time

2010-08-29T19:33:00.000-07:00

I was going through our pictures and noticed...we have a lot of really cute Dan/Ruby shots! Here they are in no particular order :)

One of them is faking....can you tell who?

See the picture below. We did a re-shot. Look how much Ruby has grown!

This may be my favorite picture of the two of them.

This is what I saw when I got home from work...it must have been a hard day!

I don't know who looks cuter...the hubbs or the babes :) Ruby is wanting to chew on everything. So on recommendation from a good friend I bought her Sophie :) The cutest giraffe around.

Lets go home! Packing up after visiting with Grandma Julie and Grandpa Wayne. Dan never gets her buckled up very quickly, he takes advantage and googles with her for a bit!

Ruby's Blessing Day

2010-08-19T19:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is out of order, but I thought it was about time to do a post about Ruby's blessing!

We were lucky enough to have some of Dan's family come out for Ruby's blessing. Dan blessed her on June 6th, on her 2 month birthday. The other priesthood holders in the circle were: Blaine (Dan's dad), Wayne (my dad), Jaime (Dan's brother), and friends Heath, Chad, Kelly, Vern (home teacher), Randy, and Bishop Drollinger.

Many family members and friends were there. We felt very lucky and loved. Dan's parents, brother Jamie and his wife Brooke, younger sister Alaina and her little girl Ariah, and grandmother, My mom, dad and grandma, Andy and April. We had great friends there as well!

The "photo shoot" afterwards tested everyone's patience, especially Dan's. My sister Brooke and my mom made Ruby's blessing dress. It is so pretty and was perfect or our little Ruby!

Grandma and Grandpa Ricks' lovin' on their newest grandbaby!

(She has since lost that status - Congrats Justin & Ashley!!)

It was such a great Sunday! Dan and I feel so blessed to have this little girl in our eternal family. She really has brought us so much joy! She is such a doll!

One thing I am bummed about is that we didn't get any pictures with my side of the family. Do you think it would be weird if we dressed Ruby back up in her dress and took more pictures?

I have no words :)

Caught in the Rain

2010-08-17T21:11:00.000-07:00

We wanted to go on a walk with Ruby and the puppy to a reservoir where Brindi can swim. See below...Brindi LOVES to swim!

However, just after we got there...and got the baby all loaded up in the BOB and Brindi ready to go...and took 10 steps up the trail, a man told us that there was a baby black bear up the trail a little ways eating some fruit off a tree. So, uh, we decided that since we weren't up for out running momma bear so we went to Gold Camp Road.

It was a pretty clear sky when we started, but this is how the second half of the hike looked like. We ran the whole way down and THANKFULLY Ruby did not feel a drop of rain! I was so happy I decided to put my green rain coat in the BOB. We finagled that over her seat and she was as dry as a bone!

Welcome to my simple life :)

2010-08-16T21:00:00.000-07:00

Babies are the best entertainment!

2010-08-05T21:15:00.000-07:00

I thought perhaps we could capture a sweet moment between Mama and Ruby cuddling, as little baby fell asleep...

Wha....is that a CAMERA?!?

She did this a few times. She would relax and rest her head on my chest, Dan would whip out the camera and she would sit straight up again. I mean straight up and totally alert.

This is the picture Dan captured after the 3rd time Ruby pulled this little stunt, we were laughing so hard, that he couldn't keep the camera upright!

Hmmm, nice legs :)

Come on Ruby, cooperate please...

There we go :)

We love this little girl and are having so much fun with her! She rolled over for the first real time tonight. We will have to get video of that tomorrow!

Don't make fun on her huge pacifier, she likes it.

Playing Catch Up

2010-07-29T19:39:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone! I have been away for a little bit so here are pics of our babe. We L.O.V.E .her. Seriously. And we aren't the only ones :)

Brindi and Ruby. Ruby doesn't really care about Brindi...BUT Brindi cares about Ruby :)

I think in this picture she looks like my Dad...and I look like my Dad...so finally a picture where Ruby looks like me?!?

Dan gets mad when I put head bands on her...and Grandpa says it gives her a headache.

Ah well

She really does love the bath time!

I think little panda outfit is one of my favs! She looks so good in baby blue because of her eyes!

Her 4th of July outfit. I had to incorporate some red accents since I didn't buy her a special "4th of July" outfit.

So cute, but I don't have to tell you that! She has a little dimple on the side of her nose.

That might be a "Katie" look...what do you think?

So funny! I was dropping her off at Grandma's and it took me and my mom like 2 minutes to get her to smile :) She just kept looking at us like...Puhlease!

I bought these little baby legs (which are like my favorite things besides cloth diapers). I don't know why I thought they would actually fit her...they are so huge, but she likes them too so I let her wear them.

First really great smile caught on camera. I love this dress, she looks so cute in it. Notice the g diapers package in the background! Who wants to talk about cloth diapers???Anyone, Anyone?

Love the spikey hair and the double chin!

Why am I commenting on every picture?

That belly shirt used to be big on her! She is growing so fast!

Special Ty Post

2010-06-08T20:21:00.000-07:00

My bro Ty came to town on the 22nd of May during his cross country training flight. Ty is currently in Del Rio Texas going to Pilot Training for the Air Force. It was so fun to see him! It was a whirl wind trip, he was there long enough to help Grandma move into her new house, eat at Chipotle (Ruby's first trip there), and go on a training flight. He was the last of my siblings to meet Ruby...now we just need Makamae and Keith to get over here :)

More Family

2010-06-08T19:26:00.000-07:00

Brooke and Jay came out to visit May 5th. I was so glad that they could come so they could meet Ruby! Brooke was officially dubbed the baby whisperer. Ruby was instantly fall asleep when she would hold her...except when we were doing her photo shoot (see previous post).

This was not a posed picture. We were all actually googling over her and Brooke snapped this picture. We are all a little taken with this little gal!

I think this is a smile at Grandma!

Grandpa's first time holding her. She was finally big enough!

Ditto for Andy!

Baby Whisperer strikes again.

Andy's fiance April. We didn't have to talk April into holding Ruby though, she loves her!

Finally talked Jay into holding her. He was afraid at every face Ruby would make (and she makes a lot of faces) that she was going to spit up on him. He escaped unscathed!

Ruby's FIrst Photo Shoot

2010-06-08T18:58:00.000-07:00

When my sister came for a visit, we decided that we needed some "professional" pictures of our little Ruby! Here are some of my favorites! Ruby wasn't at all tired during the photo shoot, so we did the best we could. I think they turned out great! Thanks Brookie!

I have to put a caption to this one. Ruby hates those head bands on her head! Which is a little sad because my sister-in-law, Alaina, made some really cute bows. Maybe Ruby won't mind it so much when she is a little older.

Growing

2010-05-20T22:20:00.000-07:00

Here's Ruby modeling her cloth diaper. This was the first day we starting using them, a few days after bringing her home from the NICU. Man they were big on her!

She has grown so much! Her cloth diapers are fitting perfectly now and she is actually getting ready to graduate to the next size...(not the cover, but the prefold underneath).

Did I tell you how much I love cloth diapers?!? Well I do...and Ruby loves them too :)

Again, two posts in one day...when I open iphoto and see all the cute pictures of her I just need to share them! Hope you don't mind :)

Ruby's first visitor

2010-05-20T21:33:00.000-07:00

Wendy (Dan's sister) came to visit us the beginning of May. We had a great time having her here...hopefully she had fun too! She was a wonderful guest and hope to have her and her family visit us sometime this summer :)

We went on Ruby's first walk, we had to bring her oxygen along. We had so many layers on her to make sure that she wouldn't get cold. Of course she slept the whole time like she has on every subsequent walk we have been on.

We are trying to teach Brindi how to walk with the stroller so I can handle her and the stroller on my own. She is getting pretty good to walk behind me, Ruby, and BOB.

I love these pictures of Wendy and Ruby. Ruby is totally looking at her in that first one.

No trip to Colorado Springs is complete without passing through The Garden of the Gods. It is seriously one of the most pretty places. And if you come visit us we will take you there :)

This is balance rock. Thanks for holding it up Wendy!

Here is Ruby during some naked tummy time. This is the edited shot. She has always loved her tummy time, even when she was in the NICU. She is now getting pretty stinkin good at holding her head up too - its amazing :)

Today

2010-05-19T22:47:00.001-07:00

We took a walk this morning. She immediately falls asleep when we start moving. Notice all the different materials. The car seat cover, blanket to keep her warm and another blanket to keep her head steady. AND LOOK AT THAT FACE! She melts my heart :)

Dan got a couple real bonafide smiles this morning. I am shocked I actually caught it with the camera the way this girl changes her faces so quickly. It is fun because everyday she is getting more interactive.

Uh, in case anyone is paying attention...that is 2 posts in one day.

Six Weeks

2010-05-19T22:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had my six week postpartum checkup. I am off all blood pressure medication, my blood pressure is back to where it should be, and I am released to normal activity. YAY! I am so excited! I have my BOB and I am not afraid to use it! I am very much looking forward to getting back to my pre-pregnancy shape...and maybe even shedding a few additional pounds!

Since we didn't get any pictures in the hospital, we brought Ruby along to the appointment so we could get a shot of midwife and baby and of course so Sharon could see Ruby out of the NICU doing so well and so Dee (Sharon's nurse) could meet her.

I really can't say enough about Sharon. She was so great through this whole process. She new exactly what kind of labor and delivery Dan and I were planning and preparing for and was extremely understanding and encouraging when it all went to crap.

It will be strange not to see these ladies on a regular basis anymore. But we will meet again - hopefully in a couple years :)

Birth Story

2010-05-18T02:00:00.000-07:00

Tuesday March 30

I left work to meet Dan for our 35 week appointment. We get there and do our normal check in. I leave a urine sample, get my blood pressure taken, get weighed, talk to Sharon (our midwife) and go back to work. Well, that's what I was assuming would happen. Turned out to be a quite different. My blood pressure, which normally is very low, was significantly high and they found too much protein in my urine. Sharon comes in looking very worried...she takes one look at my legs (extremely swollen - like painfully swollen) and sends us to the hospital...immediately. All of my symptoms pointed to preeclampsia. Now I had done my research on preeclampsia because I had been swollen for a couple weeks and wanted to make sure that I didn't have it. My saving grace was always the fact that my blood pressure was always low...until now. Sharon warned us, that if this was in fact preeclampsia, that they would have to induce asap. WHAT?!? We aren't ready! We don't even have a car seat! After a lot of tears and reassuring comments from our midwife we made our way to Memorial Hospital, not even allowed to go home and pack a bag. As soon as we get to the hospital I get my blood drawn so they can test it for preeclampsia - it only takes about 15 minutes and hurray, it is negative...at this point. However I still need to stay over night in the hospital so they can get a 24 hour urine sample.

Wednesday, March 31

24 hours + later we get the test results back...Dan and I were on pins and needles for the 2+ hours it took to get the results. If they came back that I had too much protein in my urine, we would be having the baby right then. Thankfully I passed!!! We get to go home, WHAT A RELIEF!!! We were thinking at this point, at least now we should be able to get to 36 weeks, which will be better for our baby. I was on strict bed rest, which is a lot less fun than it sounds...Especially when you literally have to be laying down the entire time.

Wednesday, March 31st-Monday, April 5th

Bedrest. Sunday I start another 24 hour urine sample. Monday morning we go into the hospital to get blood taken, and turn in my urine...I really dislike the word urine, but I really can't avoid it. We had an appointment to see Sharon that afternoon to go over the results of my tests. Blood Pressure still high, protein still in my urine, still swollen - although it was much better since I was on bed rest..blood test came back good, but they still hadn't gotten my urine results yet. So, Dan and I go home and wait and wait and wait. I guess it wasn't that long, but it's amazing how long a couple hours can feel when waiting to hear news that will impact so much. Around 6 we get the call from Sharon. I failed miserably, like 4 times more protein than the prior 24 hour test. We are to go to the hospital immediately and Sharon will meet us there. Oh my goodness, this is actually happening. Good thing our car seat had come in the mail on Friday :) Everything that we had been planning, preparing, practicing for - a natural childbirth - no induction, laboring at home, no IVs, no epidural, etc...all out the window. I was totally bummed to say the least, but what can you do.

Monday, April 5th

As soon as we get checked in they start me on Magnesium Sulfate. This is basically to keep me from having a seizure. Once you are on Magnesium you can't get out of bed - which means I get a catheter :(. It slows your nervous system down - best way I can describe it is a combination of having a really bad head cold, being drunk (although I have never actually experienced it) and feeling like I just got hit by a mack truck. Super disoriented. Once that got going they starting the induction process. Since my body is totally not ready to have a baby they start me on cytotech, which is pretty much the worse thing ever. I will spare you the details, but I am pretty sure the epidural would have been better utilized during the next 12 hours of having cytotech inserted every 3 hours than the actual "labor" part.

Tuesday, April 6th

Around 4 pm they start me on pitocin, Sharon breaks my water, I get the epidural (which was strongly recommended since my blood pressure was still so high) and after 25 minutes of pushing our little Ruby was born, at 8:34 pm. I'll give you a few more details :) But I would like to say that they did a really good job with the epidural. I could feel all the contractions, I could still move my legs. It just took the edge off. Side note: you always hear about this uncontrollable urge to push. I was shocked at how strong it was. Sharon hadn't quite made it and I told my nurse I HAD to push. She told me I needed to wait for Sharon, she would be here in 5 or 10 mins...WHA!?! Like I could wait 3o seconds!! Gratefully she literally walked in within those 3o seconds I was willing to wait. When I started pushing there were 4 people in the room, me, Dan, Sharon and my nurse Julie. At some point during the pushing Dr. Baer, the physician who shares a practice with Sharon, comes in. Sharon looks concerned, he looks concerned. I look around the room and notice at this point that we have 4 or 5 nurses all huddled around the baby's bed getting things ready. Oh my, what is going on?!? Dr. Baer stayed for a few contractions, I guess things started to get better because all of the sudden he said, "you got this" to Sharon and left. Then a couple more contractions and Sharon looks at me..."Katie, you have to get her out with the next push." -Yikes- I guess the baby's blood pressure was spiking every time I had a contraction. Thankfully, and I don't know exactly how, but I was able to push her out with the next contraction. Wow! They put her on my stomach long enough for Dan to cut the cord then they whisked her away to the bed where all the nurses could attend to her.

All I could say and think was...you are going to let me see her before you take her...right?!? Dan was so worried, as they start to wheel Ruby to the NICU (they did let me have a quick look) he looks at me semi-panicked..."should I stay with you or go with the baby?" GO WITH THE BABY! Poor Dan had his whits about him so he could more fully understand what was going on with our baby. I hated this. I hated being on this drug that made me so unaware. I hated being confined to a hospital bed. I hated not being able to be with my baby. I hated not understanding what was going on with her. This was not the way it was supposed to be, but this was the way it was. There are a lot more details that I need to record about Ruby and her tough road, about Dan and how truly amazing he was through this whole process, and all my thoughts and feelings about this little girl that we have been blessed with...but that will be another post. I promise I will do better blogging! I always say that :)

Preview

2010-04-18T13:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know I should be sleeping when the baby sleeps, but easier said than done. Maybe I am not exhausted enough to be able to do that yet :) I know I have be absent from the blogging world for many moons, but now I have something much more cute to post about than my growing belly! Here are a few pictures of our precious Ruby Joy. Looking through the progression of these pictures again makes me quite emotional. She didn't not have an easy entry to this world, but we are so thankful that she has gotten better so quickly and is home with us and doing great. I cannot say enough about the nurses, nurse practitioners, respiratory therapists, and neonatologists at Memorial North Hospital. They are wonderful!

Ruby had to be on a ventilator for the first few days.

After she had progressed enough to be off the ventilator, but not ready to breath on her own, they put an apparatus on her head called a cpap. The tube on my shoulder is how we fed her. At this point she still had an IV in her umbilical cord, so it was a combo of breast milk and IV fluid.

Our little Ruby was a little jaundiced so she needed a combo of phototherapy and the bilirubin blanket. Those stylish glasses are to protect her eyes. She was such a trooper!

Getting better little by little. We got so excited every time they would take out a tube or IV. It wasn't a fast process, but slow and steady wins the race.

Finally Ruby is home!! And in her OWN bed! She will have the nose cannula for a few weeks. She is on the lowest setting of oxygen since she still isn't quite where she needs to be on her own. She is such a great blessing to our lives already and we are so happy that she is ours!

New Years Resolution, picture #1

2010-01-04T19:08:00.001-08:00

So, I think that I (or Dan) am going to take a picture everyday for the whole year so that in 365 days the Ricks' family will have a little picture scrapbook, that we can get one of those websites to make us a book of. So since I didn't start on Jan 1, I can start on the first monday in January?!? No reason to be defeated already with my resolutions...So here is the first picture. We will see how long this lasts and how boring it gets...for you and me :)

Little Brindi relaxing on the couch. Yes, we let her lay on our couch but only after we invite her up. She will be 9 months old next week. We decided her birthday would be April 10th with a good estimation of her age from the vet.

Ultrasound

2009-12-23T16:55:00.000-08:00

Well, as many of you, if not all of you know we had our ultrasound on Tuesday. And...we are having a little baby girl! I am happy and somewhat relieved to announce that I am, in fact, not giving birth to the devil as previously suggested by a member of my immediate family...who will remain nameless. (shhh, I have been a little "moody" lately) My mom, sister, and grandma came with Dan and I to the ultrasound. It was a full crew - very fun! Well, not so much fun for me until the end. I misunderstood the ultrasound tech (who really was one of the sweetest ladies) and thought there was a problem and was incredibly worried/stressed the whole time. I don't know why I didn't ask for clarification until the end, but I was just trying to process the whole thing - which turned out to be unnecessary. However, so far everything with her is going well - and we are very thankful for that, she is actually developing right on schedule. She was on Tuesday exactly 21 weeks and 0 days developed and that is exactly how far along I am - or was on Tuesday. The ultrasound tech did a quick 3-D picture of her little face for me (I think because she felt so bad for the misunderstanding - although I was, somehow, the ONLY one in the room who misunderstood) and to actually see her was a very surreal thing. It still has yet to really sink in that in a short time I will be a mother...oh my goodness!! So right after the appointment the girls and I went to the fabric store to pick out some cute material for some receiving blankets. I am hoping to not procrastinate preparing this little girl's nursery, so I...I mean WE need to pick out colors and get on the ball!

Calling all Moms!

2009-11-08T15:52:00.001-08:00

Who has used or has friends that have used cloth diapers? I am trying to convince Dan of the cost savings...I think he is almost there. Also I would love any suggestions on brands, types, etc. Jumping the gun maybe, but it is a much bigger upfront cost than disposables :) Any and all suggestions are welcome, would love the comments most if there aren't calling me crazy!

I love DAN!!

2009-10-31T07:33:00.001-07:00

Nothing is better than a husband who will run to the store first thing in the morning when it is freezing cold outside to get milk for your cereal and then goes down stairs to play guitar hero and sings along while he is jamming....Yes, honey you DO rock! Today is going to be a good day!!

Heart Beat

2009-10-29T18:38:00.000-07:00

So yesterday we had an OB appointment. This was our second one. Dan came, I told him I think husbands are supposed to go, right? Anyway, we got to listen to the heartbeat. It took what seemed like a few minutes to find it, although I am sure it was less than 30 seconds...my midwife said, "don't worry, the baby is really small so sometimes they are hard to find." Well hurry up, please! She found it and our baby's heart is beating within the normal range of 120-160 :) She did tell us what it was exactly but I can't remember...does that make me a bad mom? I had a couple ladies ask me what the heart rate was and I felt guilty that I could only say, somewhere between 120 and 160. Still feels a little surreal, out of body, are WE really having a baby? I've had a couple pretty good days - sickness wise, just sick at night which is a good thing! Definitely looking forward to a better 2nd trimester when I actually re-start some sort of exercising! p.s NYC Marathon is this Sunday, and I secretly...or not so secretly couldn't be happier that I am not running! Good luck to my gymnastics amiga Sarah G, run like the wind!!

This is what I have been doing

2009-10-23T19:01:00.001-07:00

So I realize I haven't blogged in a while. I've been busy...busy with "morning" sickness and keeping secrets/lying. It's been a long couple months, but now I don't have to keep the secrets or lie any longer! Let me correct some of my responses and answer some of the most commonly asked questions.

No, I don't have a weird strain of the flu that lasts an abnormally long time. I DO know what's wrong and I'm not feeling better. My training is not going well. The 13 miles I ran last week wasn't hard...because I didn't do it! And although my midwife said I could run the marathon, I think I will just defer until next year.

I am just over 12 weeks along. I am experiencing morning sickness, it hits the worst in the evening. Baby Ricks' is due date is May 4th, but we are holding out for a cinco de mayo baby. We are going to find out the sex. We don't have names picked out, in fact that part really stresses me out, so I'm not even thinking about it yet. We don't have a preference for a girl or a boy-honestly, and I have no motherly instinct as to which it may be - although the Chinese calendar and my friend Roxana from work (who did a quick examination of my hand) both say it's a boy. I do have cravings...but only for a Sonic Limeade. And yes...my Mom is excited!!!

Andy's Birthday

2009-09-10T14:25:00.001-07:00

My little brother turned 22 in August. This is our family's classic party shot, around the kitchen table. My other brother Ty was in town (well in Pueblo - - for IFS training before he goes to pilot training) with his wife Makamae, and Dan's parents were visiting from Rexburg. The cute girl next to Andy is his girlfriend April. We love April, she is lovely girl!

I don't know what was up with my camera, makes the pictures look yellow. This is another one of Andy and April.

This is another of our family's classic photo shots...the stair shot. I think this is one of the funniest pictures ever! April brought her dog Jax then with my parent's dog Maizey and Andy's/my parent's dog Sage and our little Brindi, pretty impressive we could get them to stay put long enough to snap a few pictures. My favorite is Jax...you can barely see is head, I just imagine what he was thinking...WHY are we doing this? Anyway, Happy Birthday Andy! I am pretty sure I still owe you a present...maybe a pair of new shoes...since those soles are finished!

2nd annual

2009-09-08T20:15:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Dan's parents to Colorado Springs again for the 2nd annual trip! See how cute Dan's dimple is :) After we picked them up from DIA we headed over to Boulder and ate at Chipotle - Blaine and Rita's first trip there!

We ate mexican food twice that day...Amanda's Fonda in Manitou Springs for dinner. It's the best! Seriously, if you come visit us, we will take you there! In the picture with Blaine and Rita are Dan's aunt Cheryl and cousin Scott who just got back from his year long tour in Iraq.

We took Brindi with us on a hike. We hiked the Palmer Trail, it is one of our favorites! If you come visit us we will take you there too :)

Blaine and Rita are so adventurous!

Giving Brindi a drink of water. She is such a good dog and she loves hiking! Good, because we are going to do a lot of it over the next years!

Looking forward to next year!!

this is my present?!? thanks bro

2009-08-23T10:12:00.000-07:00

So last weekend my little brother Ty was in town and helped us move some furniture around in our workout room and spare room. While we were working he found a Christmas present that my older brother Jay gave me a few years ago. I got such a great laugh then, I thought I would share it with the blogging world.

Katie Burgess,

International Star Registry is proud to inform you that your loved one, Jay Burgess, has purchased the rights to name a star after you, Katie Burgess. The star chosen for you is the twenty second star from the sun in the Piedes solar system in the Anorxa galaxy.

As part of the special deal, you are also the proud new owner of the Katie Burgess star. As owner of said star you have been given all rights to any and all natural resources found, including coal, rubies, diamonds, etc... and in the event of an inter-galactic war, you have the responsibility to protect said star and any possible inhabitants from total annihilation.

As owner of this new star, we know that you are very excited and want to thank the person who bought you this star as he is quite possibly the coolest person in the world.

Sincerely,

International Star Registry

Included in my present was a picture of the sky with my star circled and titled..."your star".

I always thought it was kinda funny that people did this for real. Who actually has the authority to give the right to sell stars to people? Jay did get me a real Christmas present, but I have to say that my whole family laughed for a long time and still laugh now when we talk about my star that I have to protect from total annihilation...thats A LOT of responsibility.

My Friend Janet

2009-08-20T17:25:00.000-07:00

This is kind of a strange thing to write. Its wierd putting this in writing, telling you about my friend Janet, in a past tense. I've never actually done this since she passed away almost 4 1/2 years ago. I first met Janet 11 years ago. We met at Southern Virginia College where we decided to go to school and play soccer. Janet was one of the first people I met there. We quickly became great friends, teammates, and roommates. Janet is apart of most of my college memories. Even after we both graduated from college we kept in touch. Along with our fellow friend/roommate/teammate Adrienne, I went down to North Carolina a couple days after she had giving birth to her first son, Kaiden, the end of October 2004. It was so wonderful to see her as a mother and how much she loved that little boy. I remember just watching her as she held him with such natural ease and loved to play with his hair to form a little mohawk. That was the last time I saw Janet. It was just a few months later that I got a call from Adrienne with the horrible news. So I will get to the point of me posting this.

Janet with Kaiden at their home in Durham.

On April 26th, 2005 Janet was murdered in her home in Durham, North Carolina. Kaiden was in the house with her but wasn't harmed. As I am sure you can imagine this was a very hard thing to deal with and try to make sense of. A lot of us were able to gather together in Buena Vista, Virgina where we all attended college, for her funeral. It helped to be together along with her family, however most of us are still void of any closure. We have accepted or are continually trying to accept the fact that there may never be any resolution to our friend's murder. However, just recently I received some exciting news. On Wednesday, August 26th, in a just a few days, they will be airing Janet's case on ABC's Primetime Crime. Please tune in to see her story - check your local listing for the time. I don't know how much of the episode will be dedicated to Janet and I don't know if this will bring any new leads to the detectives. This is what I do know, due to my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that we will see Janet again, that family relationships and friendships can and will endure beyond on the grave.

"O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" -1st Corinthians 15:55

We got her!!!

2009-08-17T20:03:00.000-07:00

We are so excited! We went to meet her tonight and the couple liked us so much they let us adopt her right then and there! The "mom" was really sad to give her up, but they live close so we promised they could visit anytime. She is even cuter in person and has such a fun personality. She is a 4 month old boxer lab mix but really looks part tiger. I do believe she is going to be a good fit for Dan and I. They named her Selena, which is pretty, but doesn't roll off my tongue very easily, so we are thinking Selena for her middle name, but are looking for a first name. We are sort of leaning towards Brynn or Brindy, but are definitely up for suggestions..so share your ideas! We are so excited to be able to take her hiking and running and biking and for her to really be a part of our family. Thank you to Dan's older brother Jamie who cured him of his dog allergies so we could get a dog! I will definitely keep you updated on her training and cuteness, but for now I gotta go, I want to play before she gets to tired!

still in the running

2009-08-11T20:37:00.001-07:00

This is the little boxador puppy that I am pretty sure I mentioned in a previous post. I got a call the other day from her owner to tell us that we are still in the running. We get to meet her on Monday! I hope we do well on the "interview" :). Her family is moving out of the country soon and obviously can't take her with them, so...thats where we come into play. I think she is so cute, I mean look at her little face! Dan has been reading Ceasar Millan's (the dog whisperer) book, The Pack Leader. We are totally getting ready, hopefully WE like HER and SHE likes US! Although I still hate to get a dog before a baby, but hey such is life.

Christmas in August?

2009-08-02T10:25:00.000-07:00

On my day off last week I was feeling very crafty, so I went to a couple material stores to see if I could get inspired. I went into our (me and my mom, not me and Dan) favorite quilt shop and it was so busy - I found my favorite quilt lady - as I call her and found out they were having a huge sale...then she said, yeah, I haven't seen your Mom in here :) Told you it was our favorite. Too bad my Mom was out of town...or maybe it was secretly a good thing, I would have spent mucho more money with her to help me decide on material for a new quilt! Anyway. I got some baby blanket flannel which I choose not to post in case the recipient of a baby quilt looks at my blog. However I did see this really cute Mary Engelbreit Christmas material.

This "layer cake" is cool because you don't have to go searching for material that goes well together and they have already done that for you!

I think I am going to make a Christmas Tree skirt.

P.S. Too any of you fellow bloggers out there that have their favorite craft-type idea blogs that you would like to share, let me know! Thank you!

the fruits of our labors

2009-08-02T10:12:00.000-07:00

We planted 3 squash plants, only 1 grew, but it seems like it will be providing us quite a few beautiful yellow vegetables. We had our first homegrown squash on Friday night. It was delicious! Why did I not like squash as a kid??

Action shot of Dan "harvesting". As you might be able to see, we haven't done a great job weeding our garden. I'll do better next year, one step at a time.

My attempt at a self portrait. Despite the man at bicycle village telling me I have abnormally long arms...I guess they aren't long enough.

Dan is much better at it :)

update on Annie

2009-08-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

No Annie, you aren't allowed on the couch....oh well, you look so cute. We were cooking dinner one night and hadn't seen her for a few minutes started calling her name, Dan walked over to our family room, and this is what he found...I hope we do a little better job when we discipline our children.

Friday night we were playing in the backyard, this is the best picture I could get of her before our camera ran out of batteries. Yeah it's not a very good picture but oh well. She was going nuts! Running SO fast around in circles, she had Dan and I cracking up! If you look close you can see that she is in mid-stride. For a little dog she can really haul!

I love our backyard. We all still working on parts of it. We (as in my parents and us) put the mulch in around the grass last summer and we put more grass seed in the summer, its coming in ok. The rest of the grass looks great, lots of rain this summer and Dan has been fertilizing it quite a bit. Next spring we are going to get a few more trees to go along our back fence to get a little more privacy - eventually.

ward campout

2009-07-30T19:46:00.001-07:00

We had a ward campout last week, and this is the only picture I took, lame. It really wasn't cold at all, Dan was just being funny. It was a great time, not over planned, good food, good friends, bugs, little kids building a "fire" unsupervised...but without matches, so we were safe.

small obsession

2009-07-29T19:32:00.001-07:00

I love my OPI nail polish, I love painting my nails. I don't know why all the sudden I have this obsession, but I do. I will let you in on a little secret...I am not very good at painting my nails. I can't paint "in the lines" so I just practically paint my entire finger and then spend the next day peeling the excess off. Dan makes fun of me.

We kinda want a dog

2009-07-28T18:49:00.001-07:00

Well this is my Grandma's dog, Annie. Dan and I are going to dog-sit her while she is out of town. She is such a great little dog! Dan was recently treated for his dog allergies by his brother Jamie who is a chiropractor, and seems to be "cured" after spending Sunday afternoons around Annie, as well as my parent's 2 dogs, Sage and Maizey, and not having any reactions...but we thought it would be a good idea to really see if he is cured before we get a dog, so my grandma is lending us Annie for a few days. This was all brought on by getting an email from a lady in our ward whose son and daughter in law need to find a new home for their boxer/lab mix puppy...she is so cute, I mean SO! Dan is pretty in to the idea as well, looking online every night for another puppy in case we don't get the "boxador" puppy, which I hope we will, but you never know. Wish us luck!

no 4th of July stuff yet

2009-07-20T21:13:00.000-07:00

I am very disappointed in my fellow bloggers. The below video is one of the funniest videos I have ever seen, and very few of you are watching it. Maybe I just choose to believe that more people are visiting my blog than actually are, but seriously, if you have 1 minute and 14 seconds watch it, you won't be sorry, plus it will probably prompt one of those laughs that makes you remember how much you love laughing!! And then leave a note so I know you did, geez, I am being so bossy!

"Ken Leee" - nuff said!

2009-07-11T20:20:00.000-07:00

baby blankets

2009-06-28T09:18:00.001-07:00

I have so many people around me having babies! Don't get excited, we have no announcement to make...other than these cool blankets :) My Mom helped me figure out how to make them, and although that are not complicated I think they turned out so cute!

This one was for my sister-in-law Alaina, who just had her first baby. She had a little girl named Ariah whom we get to meet this week along with another new nephew Cruz (sorry that you didn't get one Cruz, this is a new found ability)!!! I found this super cute material and even though there is very little pink - I thought it was perfect! Hey, girls like green!!!

This one is for my friend Janeen who just had her first little boy David a couple of days ago!

I just hope that these blankets are useful as I think they are cute!

Freaky Potatoes

2009-06-15T21:27:00.000-07:00

So the big question is... How long have they been in there? How long do they have to be sitting in a cupboard before those arms start growing? And how long does it take the arms to get that long? Our estimation: 4 months.

I was checking on what I needed to get at the store for dinner. I think we may have potatoes...

AHHHHHHH! I laughed for 10 minutes. The little branch arm thingys started growing out of the holes in the bag. It was quite startling.

It may not strike you as funny as it did me. I had never seen anything like that before! I just wanted to include you in my little domestic discoveries!

New Bathroom

2009-05-28T20:25:00.000-07:00

So remember how I told you in a previous post that we never get really good before pictures...yeah, well while I was at work one Saturday Dan demo'd our guest bathroom upstairs without taking a before picture...the nerve!!! Anyway, this is kinda in the middle, after the carpet was ripped out, but before the painting. It is nice to have the carpet out, considering who knows how dirty it was!

This is me putting down the cement board getting ready for the tile.

Our pretty tile floor. We were up LATE finishing it. The tile baseboards are my favorite! Dan and I re-did the tile in the shower a couple years ago. That was probably our first project together...we were only dating at the time...but I knew I was investing in my future home!

Dan has got skillz! I really love that his know-how gives us a chance to work together. I love having a house!! I will post another picture once we get the whole bathroom put together.

Future Garden

2009-05-28T19:27:00.000-07:00

So we are trying to fix up our yard little by little. This is our side yard about a month and a half ago. See all that rock, yeah, we sifted that huge pile to get the dirt out and moved it to the other side of the yard to be dealt with later-thats another blog post, maybe in the fall.

About 3 weeks ago...

And today!

My mom and dad came over to help us finish. We loaded up all of the old mulch, sod we dug up last summer, basically trash into the back of my dad's truck to be taken to the dump tomorrow. Roto-tilled to loosen the dirt/soil/sand. Then divided the areas with a couple railroad ties. Now we have the beginnings of our garden. I am hoping that Dan's farming blood will help our little garden flourish. Now we just need to plant. I also want to plant some flowers back there so I can have fresh flowers in my house! I love peonies, but need some variety, so if you have ideas let me know!

Bolder Boulder

2009-05-11T20:21:00.000-07:00

So here goes my cramming for the Bolder Boulder. You'd think I would have overcome my procrastinating problem, nope! I really wanted to finish in under 60 minutes (its a 10k). Not that hard for many people, but definitely an accomplishment for me. Problem is I wait so long to really start training. Part of it I will blame on the weather :) I am hoping that the little bit of mountain biking and hiking along with the sporadic running will have some positive impact. So I have two weeks. Here goes nothing! --Julina, are we doing this or what?!?

Can we vote off the Judges?

2009-05-05T21:13:00.001-07:00

Can we vote off the judges? I am so sick of all the judges on American Idol...except Paula. First to go, Kara. She is so annoying, I don't even know why they added her. Next Simon. He is so pompous and it is really starting to get to me. Then Randy, yo yo dog, a little pitchy is spots, not the right song choice for me...for you. Does it actually count as judging when you say the same thing over and over again. Oh and as long as we are voting people off, first Adam. I am so over him and I wasn't always an Adam hater. Then Allison, although I am glad she sort of told Simon off tonight. Danny and Kris in the final and I kinda want Kris to win, but wouldn't be mad if Danny won. Adam is full of himself I can't even stand it. The one thing I am the most mad about is that I watched it on Tivo so couldn't vote. Sorry this is just me venting.

The Incline-the most trespassed trail in America

2009-05-01T19:40:00.000-07:00

The incline is a funny trail, if you can even call it that. It is just a set of stairs (made of rail road ties) in Manitou Springs, that is technically closed to the public, although no one pays a bit of attention to the "No Trespassing" sign. There is a gain of about 2,000 feet in just a little over one mile. Some local nuts do the incline a couple times a week when the weather permits. We are not like that, and we are definitely not breaking any world records getting up to the top. In our opinion anytime under an hour is a pretty respectable.

In the car, Dan is seriously driving on 1-25 at that exact moment. Yes, we have matching visors.

This is just at the beginning, hadn't hit the really steep - 68% grade - yet.

A look from the top down.

I like this shot because it makes it look so much steeper and scarier than it actually is.

Dan and I at the top. A nice lady offered to take our picture. I felt kinda funny, like a tourist or something. Dan and I have both been up the incline numerous times, but everything we do now, I think, oh, we need to take pictures so I can put this on our blog!

Seriously

2009-04-26T21:15:00.001-07:00

I am getting really annoyed

Do you like my new pantry?

2009-04-19T20:25:00.001-07:00

Our pantry used to have 12 doors on it, so we took them off and re-organized it. It's in a nicely hidden area of our kitchen, so you don't actually see it unless you are practically standing right in front of it. I love it without the doors, it is so much easier to see everything instead of guessing...is it behind door #1?? Yeah maybe I should have known where everything was since I put it there, but all those doors were so disorienting, anyway, I figure this just one step closer to my organized, well-planned life :)

Sidenote: I love those plastic Oxo containers! If I were rich I would have 30 of those things!

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T10:59:00.001-07:00

Easter Sunday breakfast of pancakes, strawberries and whipped cream.

And this is the weather that we are "enjoying". I am ready already for some warmer weather! It is some seriously wet snow which is good because we do need some moisture, but rain would be fine too!

A portion of Elder Holland's General Conference talk.

Don't Judge a Book by it's Cover

2009-04-12T10:03:00.000-07:00

I think you everyone should watch this! It's a clip from Britain's Got Talent. P.S. Why is Simon Cowell everywhere?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91p01WvBQZY

Bragging Rights

2009-04-08T08:03:00.000-07:00

The dust has settled, after a valiant run by the Spartans, the Tar Heels are Champs, and we have our own champ....

KATIE RICKS!!!!!!!!!!!

Congratulations to Katie who impressively had 3 of the final 4, both teams in the finals and had North Carolina winning it all! Here's how we fell in line:

1st Place Katie Ricks 92 points

2nd Place Dottie O'Donnell 86 points

3rd Place Dave Schley 79 points

Jim Kennedy 77 points

Curtis Flugum 76 points

Carlos Bassett 74 points

Anya Schmidt 70 points

Randy Trochman 68 points

Traci Jewett 66 points

Randy Day 65 points

Todd White 65 points

- That was the email I got from my co-worker (who organized a little bragging rights bracket) on Tuesday morning. YYYYYAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYY! I won! I never win anything! And to beat out 7 boys who probably watch a lot of college basketball, and if not a lot of college basketball...FOR SURE more than I do! I need to apologize now to the rest of my co-workers because I will be taking the "bragging rights" seriously and you will all be hearing about it for a LONG time! -

HGTV inspired Home Improvement

2009-04-05T19:47:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when we don't have plans for a Saturday...we spend money and/or make messes! I was just minding my business watching my saturday morning cartoons (HGTV) and WE, (let me emphasize that it wasn't very hard to convince him) get this big idea to update our house. I was kinda sad to see our copper cut out/peek through or whatever you call it go. It was unique and quirky, but ultimately I am happy with the outcome!

We are so impulsive and Dan started demo-ing so fast that I didn't even get a proper "before" picture. He barely stopped ripping it apart for enough time for me to get this shot.

This took the longest time. That peek through was seriously SOLID!!

Those smudges showing up in the pictures is all the sheet rock dust in the air - ewww!

Dan putting the new sheet rock up to fill in the gaps. He is so handy! Seriously, I dream something up, and he does it. Not that this was that complicated, but still.

We are just getting warmed up :)

Finishing up the drywall and texturing - that dust is all over our house, I am dusting it away little by little.

Yay!! We found the perfect stain at Home Depot, and after 2 coats it is a perfect match! I don't think that you would even know that it wasn't original.

Just another angle so you can see how cool it is! We just barely put the poly on it, so it isn't ready for decor yet. If you have any ideas as to what I should put up there let me know. I am trying to keep this de-cluttered and simple.

On to the next project!!

Spring Fever

2009-03-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

It has been such beautiful weather in Colorado these past few weeks (not including the blizzard that blew thru last Thursday) that Dan and I are thinking more about mountain biking, hiking, and running in shorts and a t-shirt (more me than Dan on that last one) than skiing. However as you may know from previous posts we have ski passes that we still want to get good use of, so we went to Breckenridge today. I didn't know this, and many of you may not care, but I learned a good piece of trivia from Dan. Breckenridge has the highest ski lift in North America. The Imperial lift goes up to 12,998 feet! It was so stinkin' windy on the lift and at the top, but the snow was pretty good, so I tried to be tough. If I would have known that we were that close I would have made sure to hike up a little bit so we could have hit the 13,000 feet mark! Anyway, it was a pretty fun day and I have a wind burned face to prove it!

This is a picture from just above the Imperial Lift...courtesy of Wikipedia.

Five Guys

2009-03-28T20:14:00.000-07:00

We love Five Guys Burgers and Fries!!! They just recently opened one in Colorado Springs and we have eaten there a couple of times. In fact we actually had our Valentine's Day dinner there with my parents after an afternoon of them helping us run the telephone wire up to Dan's new office. Anyway, we went AGAIN last night and for some reason the french fries were better than they usually are...

The only complaint I have is that after you eat there, you smell like it all day long! Seriously!

photo tag

2009-03-01T21:02:00.000-08:00

I was tagged...

Instructions:

Go to the photo folder on your computer.

Go to the 6th folder of pictures.

Go to the 6th picture.

Put the picture on your blog and a description of it.

Tag 6 friends.

This is a picture of me, Dan, and Dan's dad. Dans parents came to visit for Labor Day Weekend and we went to "A Taste of Colorado" I think that is what it is called, either that or a Taste of Denver. Anyway, lots of food, some wierd people, but overall a good time!

Hmmm...I will tag

1. Brooke

2. Makamae

3. Heidi

4. Bekah

5. Julie

6. Alaina

One more request

2009-02-11T21:52:00.000-08:00

So I have been trying to customize this blog and it hasn't turned out that well. In the process I deleted all of our blog links. If you are not on my list and you feel that you should be...and don't be shy, please give me the link :) Thanks!

Somebody help me!

2009-02-08T11:25:00.000-08:00

I am trying to make my blog pretty and can't figure out how to do it! Where do I find the cool layouts or make my own? I may really be this dumb :(

Looks like we made it!

2009-01-31T20:56:00.000-08:00

We have been married an entire year! We got our anniversary cake from our baker, not as good as the original, but better than frozen year old cake :) I can't believe how fast time goes by!

Christmas in Idaho!

2009-01-31T19:54:00.000-08:00

Dan and I spent Christmas vacation in Rexburg and Boise Idaho. This is us Christmas morning with Dan's parents and his sister Alaina and her husband Landon. Please notice our matching pajamas. I never had this tradition of getting new matching pjs on Christmas eve, but I thought it would be fun...and I wanted new pajamas :)

Dan's dad trying to clear the snow! The snow blower broke like a second after I took this picture, but I promise it wasn't my fault! To try to make up for it Dan and I shoveled the back porch, we shoveled more snow than I ever had my whole life of living 15 years in Colorado! That may be a slight, very slight exaggeration :)

This me with Shane and Stephanie's 2 daughters that don't hate me :) Thats Jessica on my lap and Lily. They are so cute! We had so much fun staying at their house in Boise, playing wii, going sledding, they are a great bunch!

Dan with Shane and Steph's youngest Violet. She loves Dan but I have yet to gain her trust :) We had a blast watching her run around like a tornado our last night there, she had us all in hysterics! I wish I had a video of it! It made me tired just watching her run back and forth and jumping in and out of everyone's lap, what a ball of ENERGY!!

This is me with Jamie and Brooke's kids, well at least 3 of the now 5. Rowan, Aiden and Noah. Eve, their only daughter just wasn't feeling the pictures that morning. She is a gem of a little girl. Brooke had another little boy, Cruz a few days after we left.

Dan took a fly tying class in high school, so he was teaching his dad how to tie a wooly bugger and some others, I just thought this was a kodak moment :) We also got to visit Wendy, Paul and their three kids, Matthew, Megan and Carly. Played some games and I shot a paint gun for the first time. It was a lot of fun, I wish I had taken my camera!

Stephanie's friend made her these cute Christmas decorations. I took pictures so I could try to duplicate these next year :)

Jokes on Me

2008-12-14T19:09:00.000-08:00

Friday morning, getting ready for work, me trying to be annoying... "Daaannnn, do you know what today is?" Me trying to put on a very convincing -I know something you don't know- look, even though there wasn't anything especially special about the day. This is his response - "Lets see, today is friday, December 12th...our 11 month anniversary?" Oh my gosh!!! It is our 11 month anniversary!!!!! I didn't get a very funny response, but yay we get to celebrate!

So we decided to get a pizza,

Watch a movie, (which seems a little more disturbing the 2nd time around)

and go to bed early...So we could get up early and go skiing!

We got our season passes which includes 10 times at Vail. And since it is by far the best resort in Colorado - according to us - and one of the more expensive, we decided to take full monetary advantage and try to use all 10 times. We WILL get our money's worth this year! Its a long drive for one day, but Dan's a good sport, although I do offer to drive :) And thank goodness for Dan's good driving, he managed to avoid another accident on I-70 while the huge Dodge truck behind us was fish-tailing so badly that he almost spun around completely! Yikes!

1 down, 9 to go!

HAPPY 11 MONTH ANNIVERSARY TO US!

First Christmas!

2008-12-07T15:02:00.000-08:00

The Thursday after Thanksgiving I went into work and they told me to go home...which is great, and not with a pink slip...which was even better! We had too many people scheduled so I got to have the day off. CHRISTMAS DECORATING TIME! So Dan and I did some Christmas Tree shopping. I am all about the fake Christmas Trees! We found a pretty good deal at Lowe's for a kind of skinny tree which of course we ended up getting even though we had to go to Home Depot, Michaels and Hobby Lobby first to make sure we were getting the best deal!

AND...it is pre-lit!

Although we got new ornaments for the tree - we did keep Dan's snowflake/star tree topper. I like it! I am excited to start collecting/making cool ornaments over the years so we have a better assortment - We helped my Grandma decorate her tree this year and she has 2 or 3 ornaments from her first tree with my Grandpa many many years ago!! I guess we will have to save some of the Christmas Tree balls I bought at Michaels :)

Notice Dan's beaded necklace :) Those were the leftovers - you don't need that many decorations on our little baby tree!

The tree looks a little puny there, but it fits quite nicely in our family room.

Turkey Rolls!

2008-12-06T18:02:00.000-08:00

This is the reason that Dan bought a 20 lb turkey for 5 people. He had to have turkey rolls...and a lot of them! We had so many that we had to freeze pan full. We had a little assembly line and it was pretty fast and a lot easier than I thought. I guess this is the first year of our tradition of turkey rolls, and I am sure Dan wouldn't have it any other way!

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-28T12:34:00.000-08:00

Dan and I hosted Thanksgiving this year for the Burgess Family, although with Brooke, Keith, Jay and Andy in Germany and Ty and Makamae in Utah, there wasn't a very large group! We had a great time though! We spent a large portion on the afternoon watching the Movie Australia...it must have been like 3 hours long, but it was fantastic!

So since we got out the movie later than we anticipated, the turkey didn't get in the oven as soon as we had planned - I guess we aren't that good of planners :) - we had a very late Thanksgiving dinner!

That stupid red thing popped up finally!!! Notice the hour :)

We don't know why Dan looks kinda like a hologram in the picture below. We used the timer thing on our camera for the first time, but what difference would that make?

2008-11-12T20:14:00.000-08:00

Dan just pointed out to me that we have posts on our blog! Woops I didn't realize :) Thanks for your comments! Its fun to hear from you!!

2008-11-11T21:14:00.000-08:00

I love The Biggest Loser! It is such an inspirational show...I have lost like 4 pounds-since starting my own weight loss program, not quite as much as those guys but nonetheless working towards my goal. I am even more involved after tonight when Amy voted Brady off and start to break up the most annoying and obnoxious alliance ever! I must sound like a nut, but I can't help but love this show! Dan and I were practically yelling at the TV...hey, I watch college football with him :) Hopefully Heba, Ed, and Vicki get voted off next, in that order. Did anyone else notice in the preview for next week what Vicki put on Amy's door? Something about revenge...come on now. Can't wait to see what happens. My vote is for Colleen to win the whole thing!!!

Crazy Eights

2008-11-08T08:12:00.000-08:00

I love looking at my friends blogs, so I am going to try to make mine a little more entertaining...we'll see how that goes!

I got this one from my soon to be sister in law Makamae :)

8 Favorite TV Shows

The Office

The Amazing Race

The Biggest Loser

The Hills

ColorSplash

Law and Order - Criminal Intent

The Cosby Show

Man vs. Wild

8 Favorite Restaurants

The Dodo

Salsa Brava

Texas Roadhouse

The Cheesecake Factory

Cafe Rio

Johnny Carinos

Red Robin

Wahoo's Fish Taco

8 Things I Did Yesterday

Went to work

Ran 4 miles on the treadmill

Ate dinner at my Grandmas

Hung out with my family - Carrie and Joel were in town

Played Cranium

Read a touching news article about a friend of a friend's tragic accident :(

Cried

Started my new book about Thomas Jefferson

8 Things I Love About The Fall

My Birthday!

Sweaters

Anticipating Skiing

Our cozy house

Getting to decorate our cozy house

The weather turning cold

The upcoming holidays

The changing leaves and then SNOW!

8 Things I Look Forward To

Coming home for lunches with Dan

Hosting Thanksgiving - a little nervous too :)

Christmas in Idaho

Ty and Makamae's wedding

Loosing weight for Ty and Makamae's wedding

Next week only working 3 days!!

Finishing our landscaping - next spring

Seeing Brooke and Ty - its been a while!!! I love you guys!

8 Things On My Wish List

David Bromstad to design a room in my house

An ipod

New carpet

A beautiful fake Christmas tree

A new pair of birkenstocks

A new purse

A raise

...World Peace...

Ford Credit

2008-10-25T21:03:00.001-07:00

Natalie, Jen, Me and Janeen at my Bridal Shower

Me and Traci - her craziness somehow keeps me sane...go figure.

Lots of Fords at my wedding

I have officially been an employee of Ford Motor Credit Company for 4 years! I really can't believe I made it that long - obviously the longest job I have ever had. The sunday after I got home from my mission in Venezuela one of the members of my ward came up and asked me if I was looking for a job. I hadn't quite gotten that far in my desire to get back to the real world, but yes, I guess I was "looking"...and the rest is history. I love the people I work with, I have met some wonderful people! How long until retirement?

2008-10-25T20:38:00.000-07:00

I got my hair cut! Dan was a little worried...before I left he said, "Now, how short are you going to cut it?" Hopefully he isn't too disappointed! I can still put it up in a ponytail so it is long enough for me.

34 years!!!

2008-09-18T19:54:00.002-07:00

Today is my parent's 34th wedding anniversary! They are wonderful!

San Francisco

2008-09-18T19:54:00.000-07:00

Yay, I love San Francisco! With vacation time to burn, cheap flights and a wonderful hotel Busath ;), Dan and I spent a lovely 5 days in the bay area. We did as many touristy things that we could, pier 39, trolley cars, union square, fresh crab, clam chowder, and more pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge than one family needs! We then headed a little south to Monterey to see the aquarium and stayed at a cute bed and breakfast in Carmel-by-the-sea. We didn't get to do everything that we wanted, so we will certainly be going back for more! One highlight of our trip...seeing my old roommate Liz Baker after more than 5 years!!!