a beautiful life

Christmas 2011

2012-01-26T21:56:00.000-08:00

I am finally posting about Christmas! Be prepared for lots of pictures and boring dialogue to accompany them. This year Christmas was a bit different for us because we didn't celebrate Christmas on the 25th. Instead, we waited and celebrated with my family on the evening of the 27th (with my dad) and 28th (with my mom). It was Oliver's first Christmas that he got into and we enjoyed watching him excitedly tear the paper off of his presents. He got so many fun things.

But, going back to the beginning of the month, we picked out our Christmas tree.

Oliver thought it was pretty exciting.

Setting up the tree.

Wendel pulled out an electric train set (from Tyson last year) and Oliver went crazy over it.

We kept decorations super simple this year. We couldn't even find one of our Christmas boxes (which happened to be the one with our star - so our tree didn't have a star on top). I love simple though, so it was perfect.

One of my favorite things about Christmas is sending and receiving Christmas cards. We still have ours up.

On December 3rd our HOA held a little Holiday Gathering at the clubhouse. We took Oliver and he got to sit on Santa's lap. Last year, he was all about Santa. This year, not so much. He cried when I set him on Santa's lap but was okay next to Santa, as long as he could be on Daddy's lap.

Then we held our annual holiday gala. To be honest, it was pretty lame this year. We had just moved into our new home (in a a new state), we got the invitations out late, and we usually hold it the first weekend of the month but due to our move, we had to hold it the weekend before Christmas, which was a horrible time for everyone's schedules. So attendance was low (as in three couples other than us). In years past, we have had 85-90 people. So it was small but it was fun to see friends we hadn't seen in a while.

Of course we played White Elephant Bingo,

led by Wendel.

Denise got what was probably the best gift - an emergency car kit.

Fake tattoo. Possibly the worst gift.

We spent one Sunday evening on the Mesa Temple grounds, enjoying the lights. Oliver loved it.

We spent Christmas Eve at my dad and Dot's house. (As a side note, my dad is quite the chef. It is a passion for him. We are lucky feast upon his culinary creations every other Sunday.)

The picture on the right shows some food out on the back porch. Because in Arizona, you can do that in December.

Oliver with my dad.

Dot (my dad's girlfriend) made these cute name tags for everyone's stockings. She and her daughter make candles every year out of recycled candle wax and let their Christmas guests choose a candle. I love that.

My dad and Dot gave Oliver some mega blocks and bath toys. He loves them.

Oliver giving a "nose nose" (aka Eskimo kiss) to Ises.

Me with my siblings and dad.

And here are the photos from celebrating Christmas with my mom and siblings.

Cute personalized book from G&G Schultz

The biggest hit: Two train sets from G&G Schultz. Now "choo choos" are his new favorite thing.

Cute hat from cousin Connor.

Giving the monkey hat a "nose nose."

Oliver walked over and nestled himself between Levi and Amalie. It was really cute.

Super cute pjs from Grandma Herzog.


Markers from Aunt Lindsey and a fun wooden puzzle from G & G Herzog.

G & G Schultz gave Oliver this little table for Christmas. It was nice to put the high chair away and let Oliver have a bit more freedom when he eats. He loves his little table. It's just right for him.

The aftermath (showing off our tree, which is missing the star and half of our ornaments)

And a few more:

I love this picture of Uncle Ty and Oliver. Tyson gave Oliver these sunglasses for Christmas because Oliver's eyes are sensitive to the sun here. So cute.

Oliver with Aunt Lindsey, looking cool with his shades.

Oliver and Uncle Ty hanging out by our fire pit.

Sporting Dad's snowboarding boots and Aunt Lindsey's hat. What a cutie.

Also, Wendel got me a GPS system for my car. I am loving it - it's so useful for my new job. Overall, we had a wonderful Christmas season.

Best of 2011

2012-01-05T20:50:00.000-08:00

I shared some of my favorite photos from our 2011 shoots over on our photography blog and wanted to share them here too.

Which are your favorites?

resolutions and family photos

2012-01-01T23:22:00.000-08:00

Are you surprised to see another post from me two days in a row? Or does anyone ever read this blog anymore? I am leaning toward the latter. In case anyone is still reading, I will share my New Year's resolutions with you. I will preface them with this quote: As we reflect on the value of resolving to do better, let us determine to discipline ourselves to carefully select the resolutions we make, to consider the purpose for making them, and finally to make commitments for keeping them and not letting any obstacle stop us. Let us remind ourselves at the beginning of each day that we can keep a resolution just for that day. - N. Eldon Tanner (I specifically like that he points out to carefully select the goals we make and consider the purpose for making them. I am all about being minimal with my goals this year, therefore only selecting a few goals that I really want to commit to.) 01. Blog more often (hence blog posts two days in a row). 02. Read from the Book of Mormon daily with Wendel. 03. Write in my personal journal at least once a week. 04. Work on Oliver's book regularly. 05. Use my scripture journal with my personal scripture study at least one time each week. 06. Work out 3x / week. That's it. Most of my goals are focusing on family history this year. It is too important to let it keep slipping.

One thing I really wanted to do before leaving Seattle was get family pictures taken with the Seattle skyline behind us. I mentioned this here before but the most frustrating thing about having a hobby in photography is capturing other people's family but not being able to capture our own. Luckily my friend Julie was willing to take our photos for us and actually rearranged her whole schedule to make it happen. Things were a bit chaotic - we were in the middle of packing for our move, I was finishing up my practicum, Wendel had a lot of work projects on his plate with deadlines that needed attention...but we went for it anyway. Of course we forgot the diaper bag in our rush to get there, including Oliver's shoes, so we had to stop at the mall on our way and buy new shoes for him. It's always something in our busy lives! Oliver was so happy all the way up to Gasworks Park but when we got there he completely fell apart. He would not smile and was fussy and difficult. So it goes. Nonetheless, Julie was able to get some good shots. She was probably wondering why she volunteered to do this for us but she was patient and we are so grateful for her willingness to capture our little family. Here are some of my favorites (edited by me).

I love this one.

And this one.

Oliver is 20 months old in these pictures.

And here is one of Julie and Me.

december in arizona

2011-12-31T22:44:00.000-08:00

We hit the ground running when we arrived in Arizona. We barely had enough time to unpack the essentials before we both started work. I just completed week three of my seven week training for my new job with CPS. The training is long and emotionally draining (more on that later) but on the plus side, Wendel works about a mile down the street from where my training is held in downtown Phoenix, so we get to have lunch together almost daily. Having my training in Phoenix has also given me the opportunity to capture some of downtown Phoenix with my camera. Here is a brief look at what December looks like here in Arizona.

Arizona is very different than Washington but it has its own kind of beauty. I remember when I moved to Arizona from Virginia when I was ten, it took quite a while for it to grow on me. All I could think of was the rolling green hills I left behind. I am trying to look for the beauty here and capture it when I can to help along that process of feeling at home here again. The high was 76 degrees today and the expected high for tomorrow is 79 degrees. Oliver and I were both wearing long sleeved shirts when I took him to the park today. It ended up being a short visit as we were both so hot and needed to go home to change into short sleeved shirts. It is beautiful weather but this summer is going to be rough.

It is twenty minutes away from a new year. So much happened this past year; both good and not-so-good. I am ready to move on to 2012 and look forward to the new experiences it will bring. Happy New Year!

goodbye washington

2011-11-22T23:52:00.001-08:00

As we pulled out of Covington on Sunday afternoon, I did not allow myself to think that it was the last time I would be turning onto Highway 18. Instead, I made a mental list of things I will miss but also of things I have to look forward to.

Things I will miss:

Our friends and our ward family. We didn't have the opportunity to say goodbye to many people but of those whom we did, I did okay for the most part (I think because it just didn't seem real yet) but saying goodbye to The Weeds the night before we left pushed me over the edge. Even though our stuff was all packed up before then, it wasn't until those tears fell in their front room that the reality of our move really set in.

Aleisa, Me, and Mel

Katie, Me, and Ashlee

Hugh and Wendel

Oliver and Christine playing on the floor.

Crystal and Me

Me and Jenni

Carter, Amy, and Me

Cute little Oliver

Wendel and Jared

Karly and Oliver

Tracy and Me

Jared, Me, Wendel, and Oliver

(The pictures above were taken at our going away party, hosted by the Faulkners and Broadbents. Of course we forgot our camera that night but the Faulkners were kind enough to let us borrow theirs.)

Living close to my brother, Tyson. I have loved getting to know him better. That was one of my very favorite things about living in Washington and I will miss him a lot.
Covington. I really liked our little community. Strangely this also includes shopping at Fred Meyers. You know how you get to know where everything is in your grocery store and that familiarity makes it very annoying to shop anywhere else? The thought of starting over at a new grocery store makes me sigh right now.
I know it sounds a bit crazy, but I think I will miss school a little bit. Mostly for the people I met in my BASW and MSW programs (colleagues and teachers alike) but I will also miss learning. To be honest, I will also miss bettering myself in such a big way too.
Our photography business. It isn't over for good but it will be on hold for a while. I've known for quite some time that I have just had too much on my plate. Something has to give. Even though school is out of the pictures now (hallelujah!), I will have a new job and a new house and a family to take care of. Hopefully we can come back to it at some point. I will miss it immensely.
Washington's beauty. The trees, the green, the fall leaves, Mt. Rainer, the crisp weather, Seattle's skyline, the water so close to the city, the beautiful overcast light.
The seafood. Before we moved to Washington, I didn't think I liked seafood. I had only really had frozen seafood at that point, and there's just not that much to like about that. When we moved here, I told Wendel I wanted to try fresh seafood. We were living right in downtown Seattle for our first few months in Washington and decided to walk over to Anthony's for Valentine's dinner in 2007. My mind was forever changed about seafood that night. But, it has to be fresh and I really prefer it at a nice restaurant (as opposed to making it myself or having it at a semi-okay restaurant). We are already looking forward to going back to Anthony's in June when we go back for my commencement.
Metropolitan Market. Their salads are divine and I know I will crave them forever more.
Along the same lines, the plethora of vegetarian options available. Pretty much every restaurant has a vegetarian section on the menu. Love that.
97.3 Kiro FM Newstalk radio.

Things I am looking forward to:

Our new house. I am pretty excited about it. I am also excited about the city / community it is in, and the fact that there are two pools, sports courts, and a fitness center in our neighborhood.

Living near family and friends and getting to know them better. I am happy that Oliver will be able to grow up near some of his cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents.
Seventy degree weather in the winter. Luckily, we are moving in the winter so we can acclimate a little before summer hits.
La Grande Orange. As you can tell, I am a food person. I have missed this place over the past five years and have thought of the Sonoma Garden salad fondly.
Pita Jungle. A similar story as the one above.
There is a lot of good thrifting to be had. I have found some amazing treasures at the thrift stores near our old home in Arizona and look forward to many more.
The sunsets in Arizona are spectacular. I love the silhouettes of palm trees and cacti in a deep orange sky. It is a different kind of beauty than the beauty found in Washington but it is pretty amazing.
I love night time in Arizona. When I was in high school, I would sit on our driveway at night and lean against the garage door. I would write in my journal by the light of the street lamp and enjoy the quiet warmth surrounding me. I really missed that and I'm looking forward to many more beautiful, warm evenings on our back porch.
Warm rain. I love that when it rains in Arizona, it's warm rather than cold.
Having non-frizzy hair. My hair is so much more manageable without humidity.
The Mesa Temple holds a special place in my heart. When I was in high school, I was a youth guide at this temple. This was a program for youth (I believe ages 17-19) to be involved missionary work. We gave tours around the temple grounds to visitors, telling them about the significance of the olive trees, the carvings at the top of the temple, Jesus Christ, eternal families, and the Book of Mormon. At the end of the tour, we would invite the visitors to fill out referral cards, which we would then give to the full time missionaries. This was an amazing experience for me and helped prepare me for my own full time mission to Australia when I turned 21. I love that this program required us to read from the scriptures for 1/2 hour every day and get together weekly to touch base and uplift each other. I feel so grateful for this experience and for the friends I met in the program. I also spent a lot of time on the temple grounds when I wasn't giving tours, sitting on the grass, writing in my journal. It will be nice to take Oliver there, especially to see the Christmas lights this year.
Being inspired in different ways with photography.
My new job / my first official job as a social worker. Actually, I am kind of nervous about it, but I am also kind of excited to learn something new. My new supervisor seems pretty great, which helps. It will definitely be a new adventure with a lot of new learning.
Meeting new friends in our community, ward, and jobs.

We will miss Washington. Our experiences there the past five years has been so great. It has felt like home to us and that makes it really difficult to leave. I mentioned this to a friend as we were leaving town and he said, "It's not home anymore." That was not easy to hear.

I really don't think we would have been able to leave if we didn't feel so strongly about our decision to move back to Arizona. I am so thankful for answers to our prayers. It was such a difficult decision and one we could not have made on our own. Here's to many more wonderful experiences and adventures in our new home. To those who have blessed our lives in Washington, we love you and will forever be grateful for your friendship.

vote for oliver's nursery!

2011-10-29T00:12:00.000-07:00

Remember Oliver's nursery? Jan from Unique Baby Gear contacted me last year and asked if she could feature Oliver's nursery on her blog in a contest. I told her sure and then forgot about it. She just emailed me a few days ago and told me it's voting time. So, if you feel so inclined to help me win a $500 Amazon gift card, click here and leave a comment to vote for Oliver's (old) nursery. Or you could just browse through the many nurseries posted and get some inspiration.

*Disclaimer: I did not write the information in the post about his nursery. Jan wrote it as though it is in my voice but she is the one who wrote it. I just had to mention that before sending you over to read the post. :)

i didn't know

2011-10-06T22:02:00.000-07:00

It's funny how you have expectations and plans for you life but then things don't turn out the way you expected at all. It's like that quote, "Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans." One thing that has completely surprised me lately is how much I love the work I'm doing at my practicum. Before I started, I didn't know I would like it and was giving myself pep talks to get through it. I didn't know that I would fall completely in love with it and feel incredibly sad as it is coming to an end. So sad that I have to give myself pep talks to convince myself that leaving the families I've been working with, leaving my mentor and my supervisor whom I have grown to love, leaving a part of myself I always knew was there but hadn't yet fully realized, is okay. I guess I should have known that I would love these families that are struggling to make good choices and reunify because when you serve others and think about them and do all that you can to help them, you love them. You just do.

I didn't know that I would be able to advance my practicum by going full time rather than part time (definitely an exception to the rule). That means I will be done on November 7th! It has flown by. At first, I saw a lot of sadness and it was emotionally exhausting. I still see some of that, but my focus has shifted from how that sadness affects me to what I can to help. It really feels like this is a good fit for me. I can hardly stand to think about leaving.

Speaking of not wanting to leave, we are moving to Arizona at the end of the year (possibly as soon as the end of next month). I thought I would like Washington when we moved here but I didn't know how immediately it would feel like home to us and how I would not want to ever leave. People complain about the rain, lack of sun, chilly weather...I will take it all for the beauty, the green trees, the fresh smell, the ideal photo shoot cloud coverage and beautiful locations, the four seasons but still with a fairly mild winter, the amazing people we have met. Don't get me wrong, Arizona is great and we really liked it when we lived there. We went to high school in Arizona. We met in Arizona. We have family and friends in Arizona. It's warm and there is a pool in our neighborhood and our winter will be spent in 70 degree weather. But to me, it's no longer home.

I think whenever you put your heart and soul into something, you leave a piece of yourself behind when you leave. I felt that way about my mission. I feel that way now. School has been my life since we moved to Washington (let's be honest - since we got married, but really all-consuming since we moved to Washington). I studied hard and jumped through hoops and our marriage was strengthened as we worked through the hard stuff together. Wendel edited every last paper in both my BASW and MSW programs, helped me jump through those hoops, was right by my side through every part of my graduation process for graduate school, and even drove down to my final presentation in my final gradate class to sit in the back and listen (which was a huge surprise to me). We've done the hard things together, which has stretched us and brought us closer. This makes it all the more difficult to leave. I didn't know school would have such positive effects on our marriage.

I kind of want to curl up in a ball and cry (if I wasn't so busy, I probably would). I am taking courage from Katie, who reminds me that "I can do hard things." Life keeps surprising me, so maybe I will fall in love with Arizona again and I will find a job there that I love and our ward will be amazing and I will meet awesome people and I won't be able to imagine not living there. Right?

lately

2011-08-01T23:43:00.000-07:00

Lately, life has been a whirlwind of craziness.
Lately, I am exhausted a lot. I go to bed by 11:00 (not the norm for me, though it should be).
Lately, I work full time. I see a lot of sadness at my practicum. It makes me grateful for my life and the people in it.
Lately, I am reminded of my love for Metropolitan Market. It makes my heart happy that there is one kind of close to my practicum site. It is my favorite. Their salads make my heart race.
Lately, I wonder what the future holds.
Lately, I have seen the goodness of several people. Friends who have helped us out so much, for whom we are so grateful. I am humbled by the Christ-like acts of service rendered to our family.
Lately, I haven't felt the desire or had the time to blog.
Lately, I am a little emotional but also at peace.
Lately, I am grateful to be done with the school work portion of my MSW. I took Oliver to the library the other night and as we walked to our van, we passed by the study room. I looked in and saw people sitting at tables with open books and notebooks in front of them and I literally shuddered. I am so done with that phase of life.
Lately, I feel like we will look back on these days and wonder how we did it. We will know that we could not have made it through school, work, my practicum, and everything else life throws at us without our Heavenly Father's guidance and the friends and family who have helped us with Oliver. (Thank you!)
Lately, our sweet boy does amazing things that make us smile and tell each other how amazing he is.

Oliver June 2011 (15 months old)

Lately, my heart is full of gratitude and I knew I had to record it so I can remember how blessed I am.

white chair

2011-07-16T16:52:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't posted for a while and quite honestly, I don't plan to post for a while longer. We have a lot going on right now. But, I did want to offer a free white office chair to anyone who wants it. It's really cute and sturdy. It looks kind of Pottery Barn-esque. I have a couple of pictures of it in my scrapbook room from a couple of years ago. They aren't great shots but you get the idea. Let me know if you want it.

book suggestions?

2011-05-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

It's t-11 days until we leave for Hawaii. Yay for sleeping in and relaxing on the beach. We can't wait! It's hard to picture time for leisure reading right now, in the midst of the last week and a half of my final college classes, but I must plan ahead. Tell me - what books should I take with me? What are some must-reads that I have missed out on the past few years? I do plan to take Mockingjay (I'm excited to finally read it). I've heard The Help and These Is My Words are good so I might see if I can reserve those (unless anyone has them who would be willing to let me borrow them?). Any others?

Also, I tried on my new, cute bathing suit tonight. I ordered it from DownEast Basics last year when it was on sale. Slight problem though - last year my chest was a bit bigger than it is now. You know how that's the first place you lose weight? So now my cute tankini doesn't fit quite right anymore. Not sure what to do about that. I guess if that's the least of my problems, I'm doing okay.

In other news, I am no longer working. I was really sad to leave Children's Home Society. I have worked there for the past two years and I really loved my job. It's very nice to have less on my plate but it's weird not to go to work on Mondays and Wednesdays.

I am off to write another paper. I am almost done and I couldn't be happier about it! Hopefully I can make it through this last week and a half with my sanity in tact. Wish me luck!

feeling inspired

2011-05-04T23:36:00.000-07:00

A few things I've been inspired by lately that you should check out:

1. Motherhood Matters I love this campaign. The challenges have already started but you can still join in.

From their site: "Popular culture promises that by recognizing and focusing on our own needs, we will find empowerment. In reality it creates a culture of comparison, distraction and discontent, none of which lead to empowerment. The act of mothering … caring for, teaching, and nurturing, has just the opposite effect. It emboldens us with confidence, contentment and purpose."

Being a mother is the most amazing thing ever. I love that this campaign recognizes and celebrates motherhood.
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2. Paper Coterie If you know me, you know I am all about record keeping. This site is full of inspiration in that department. They are generously giving $40 of product to everyone who wants it - for free. You only pay shipping. This is good until Friday. How cool is that? I am loving the Prompt Me book. But even more inspirational than their products is the video they share here, of Dr. Brene Brown. It is kind of long (24 minutes) and I almost didn't watch it for that reason. But I gave it a shot, mostly in the background while I was doing other things. But what she was saying really resonated with me, so I kept pushing pause and typing out what I was hearing. I found myself nodding in agreement and feeling inspired. You really should go and watch / listen to it. It is good stuff. She is a vulnerability researcher. She talks about moving from scarcity to joy. Here are a few things that stood out to me:

"I really think today, to cultivate purpose and meaning and joy in our lives, you have to break a lot of the rules about who you think you're supposed to be."

"Joy is born from ordinary moments."

Dr. Brown researched people who have been through difficult times. One person said, "What got me through was the reservoir of joyful moments I had in my life."

"The first and the biggest thing we do to combat scarcity...is to practice gratitude in some way. In those minutes when we are complaining because everything doesn't look like the catalog and our kids are out of control and we're still twenty pounds away from wanting to have our picture taken...in those exact moments when that is happening, we are probably actively squandering the joy that is right in front of us that we're gonna need because nobody rides for free. Hard times are going to happen. They're a part of our lives. We're going to get that phone call that we never wish we did and there are going to be difficult struggles. I think the most dangerous thing we do is we don't allow ourselves to soften into joy and gratitude out of the fear that those moments are coming."

She talked about picturing the worst-case scenario. I could relate a lot to this because I do that all the time. Constantly. She said we do this because "we're trying to beat vulnerability to the punch...we're trying to practice vulnerability and sorrow to prepare ourselves, almost as if we think about it and it happens, it will hurt less. The only thing that's certain is we're not taking advantage of an incredible moment."

"Another way to combat scarcity is to make room for play in our lives." "Play is time spent without purpose...in our culture, that is an anxiety attack...we have even turned play into purpose."

I love her Venn diagram idea - have everyone in the family write down what play looks like to them and then see where they intersect and then incorporate that into family together time.

She concludes by saying, "To move out of scarcity, we need to look at ourselves and say 'I'm enough.' What I have is not only enough, it's remarkable - if I stop and be grateful for it."
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Her comments resonate with me so much. This is partially why I keep records, keep a gratitude journal, keep a blog, write letters to Oliver, take photos...to experience joy through gratitude. What a powerful video.

3. Lastly, a few things that I've found via Pinterest that have been inspiring me lately (click on the link and then click on the images to take you to the original source):

Car Trunk Organization (I've been wanting to do something like this for a while now)

Kitchen Freezer Organization (I really need to do this at some point)

Great idea for keeping bugs out of drinks. Cute too.

Awesome laundry tip.

Color sorting activity for kids

ABC box activity - such a fun idea for kids

These homemade popsicles would be perfect for Summer. And these. And this Strawberry Pineapple Limeade.

This cool under-the-sink idea.

Okay, you get the point. Lots of inspiration on Pinterest. It really is my unwinding time. After a long day of work or studying / school, I come home and set the timer (this is key, lest I get sucked into a vortex where time does not exist), and just relax while gathering inspiration. It helps me unwind.

Speaking of which, there are only five weeks of school left! That is both exciting and scary (there is so much to do in that five weeks). I also only have two more weeks left at work. We are interviewing for my position and that just feels weird. I feel like I did at the end of my mission...so tired and worn out, so grateful for the experiences I had and the relationships I built...but so needing to be done only because my body was calling it quits. It's that conflict of loving what I'm doing and not wanting to let that go in some ways, but in other ways being so ready for the next phase of life...the one where I can spend more time with my little guy, get our home in order, focus on our family's history a little more...recuperate from the last...well, seven years of being in school since we've been married (but even more before that). I'm finding that I really have to push myself to get through these last five weeks of college classes (of all time). Lots of self-talk ("You can do this...just a little longer...keep going...") Lots of sighing. Occasional headaches. Wanting to finish on a high note but fearing that I don't have the energy to do that. So many thoughts and feelings attached to this huge milestone. Sure, I will still have my practicum next year, but it's not the same as being in class, turning in assignments, getting a grade, being on campus. Yay for feeling inspired by so many good things and being excited about my future!

a new perspective

2011-04-25T01:21:00.000-07:00

In honor of Easter, I wanted to share this video. I've shared it here before but it was a while ago. This song is meaningful to me because I listened to it on my mission and it brings back so many memories from that time. It is so inspirational and always brings tears to my eyes when I hear it.

I've been thinking this weekend about what is really important in life; specifically, how we treat others and how our Savior would treat others if he were here with us. I think it is so easy to get caught up in our lives and not think about other people who are living close to us but may be living in drastically different circumstances. So many people are going through difficult times right now. It is so easy to judge others or to make assumptions when we don't have all of the facts. I am reminded of a quote I read once by Ian Percy that states, "We judge others by their behavior. We judge ourselves by our intentions." I guess I've sort of had this reminder this weekend about needing to reach outside of myself more, put myself in others' shoes, not to be quick to judge, and to remember to keep my priorities in order. It can be so easy for them to get out of order, even due to good things.

I am grateful for Easter, as it is symbolic of starting new. It not only brings hope for warm weather and new life, but it also brings an assurance that we will be resurrected because of our Savior. It brings hope that death is not the end. That is such an amazing thing to know! I know that my Savior lives and I am forever grateful for Him.

I will leave you with a current picture of my little cutie in his Easter outfit that his grandma sent him.

confession

2011-04-08T23:51:00.000-07:00

I have a confession to make. I am a little bit addicted to Pinterest. It's kind of amazing. I love that I can catalog cool things that I see online to reference later. Before, when I would find something cool, like a cute activity to do with kids that I wanted to save for future reference, I would email it to myself and tag that email with something like "kids." But I would forget what I emailed myself because I didn't have a visual. With Pinterest, I log in and there are all of my inspiration boards, right there in front of me. It's brilliant. This is what my boards look like:

Then when I click on one of my boards (or categories), I can see everything I've saved under that category. When I click on the image I've saved, it takes me to the site where I originally found my source of inspiration. I love "pinning" when I have a few minutes of down time. You should try it - but I have to warn you that it is a bit addicting. You can follow me on Pinterest here.

makes me smile

2011-04-04T00:53:00.000-07:00

I attended Kali Leenstra's Photography Workshop last Saturday. It was an anniversary gift from W last year. I planned to attend last Spring but I got the flu the night before the workshop, which I was so sad about. Then I was going to attend the next one last November, but I was working on my Senior Capstone Project and I had a big deadline looming. So last Saturday I was on my break from school, and somehow all of the stars aligned and I had a babysitter and was able to attend. Yay! I'm so glad I was finally able to go. It was so great. I loved spending the day with other photographers who are as passionate about photography as I am. Kali is wonderful and her workshop was really fantastic. If you're interested in photography, you should check it out. She has a beginners workshop as well. Kali lined up some amazing models for us to shoot. They made our jobs so easy! It makes me smile as I look at these pictures. It felt so great to get out and shoot again.

I had a very difficult time narrowing down my favorites, so be prepared to continue scrolling down for a while. Let me know which ones are your favorites.

a little thing called pride

2011-03-30T21:25:00.001-07:00

So the last time I posted was my last day of class last quarter. I had such good intentions of blogging here over my break, catching up on Oliver's blog, working on his baby book, and organizing our home. I would love to say that I did at least one of those things...I guess I started organizing Oliver's baby clothes and rearranging his room, but I did not have time to finish so I had to leave it in a disastrous state.

The good news? This is the beginning of the end. Tomorrow is the first day of my last quarter of college classes ever. My heart started beating a little faster as I typed those words. I will be done in June. Then, I will only have a part-time practicum to complete next year, and I then I will have my MSW! I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and it's beautiful.

I finally finished up my Senior Capstone Project (equivalent to a thesis in my field). I worked so hard on that project and I'm so glad it's done! I got a 4.0 on it, which I am happy about. The night I turned it in, W and I met up at Red Lobster after class to celebrate (my mom was in town at the time so she was at home with Oliver). W brought me some balloons and flowers to the restaurant, which was so sweet of him.

The last time I posted, I mentioned that I had been feeling prideful about school. I've been thinking about how I got to this point. While I was working on my BASW, I finally found the thing that clicked - the thing I felt passionately about. Where was social work when I first started my college "career" in 1998? Why did I not know about this amazing field and how I would fall completely in love with it? So fast forward to 2007 when I was finally able to start the Social Work Program. I had several years of college under my belt (as in nine) so I knew how to do the student thing. Now that I didn't have to deal with annoying classes like Math and Chemistry, I could really excel at academia. Plus, I was motivated to get good grades in the event that I decided to apply to grad school, which I thought was pretty likely. Therefore, I became super competitive (which, in most cases, I am quite the opposite of competitive - I would rather my sports team lose and see the other team win, if that gives you an idea). I worked very hard. I got As in all of my classes and graduated with honors. I liked that I was a good student and was respected by my professors and peers. I liked that my writing had improved over the course of my Bachelor's Program (one of my professors even told me I would be crazy not to apply to Law School - which I think is so funny because that is the last thing I would ever want to do). I felt really confident in my abilities as a student (at least as far as social work courses are concerned. Biology is another story).

So then I started graduate school in 2010, to work on my MSW. W and I talked about how there wouldn't be as much pressure now that I wasn't competing for grades to get into grad school. Who cares what my grades are now, as long as they are somewhat decent, right? Wrong. I was still stuck in that competitive "I will get amazing grades and impress my professors and peers and graduate with honors again" mode. And that? That is prideful. I didn't even think of it in this way at all until it was lovingly pointed out to me. Once it was, I immediately realized that this has been the case. Instead of focusing on things that are more important, I have spent countless hours "perfecting my final project." Of course, this is a good thing to do, but maybe not the absolute best possible use of my time when I have so much on my plate, including the most amazing little boy whom my heart aches to be with when I am not. I just got so caught up in it. Playing the role, getting praise from my professors, having them expect the best from me, not wanting to disappoint them. So now, as I begin my final quarter, I am finally getting my act together. I am finally putting school lower on the priority list. I have part two of my research class to take, and I'm not looking forward to it. But, I'm taking it pass/fail and I'm not going to put the pressure on myself to get a 4.0 in the class when all I have to do is pass (like I did with my Policy class in the Fall...I took it pass/fail and I ended up with a 4.0 because I'm such a perfectionist. Ridiculous.)

Lately, I have also been thinking about this:

It's so true. I can be an amazing student, I can be an amazing mom, I can turn a struggling program around at work and make it into something huge that impacts peoples' lives for the better, I can join a goal group and be in a fitness challenge, I can make healthy, homemade meals for my family, I can keep records for my family and blog and take pictures and have a photography business...but I can't do it all at the same time. This has been one of the biggest lessons I have learned while being in graduate school. It is something that I really needed to learn, and I can't believe it took me so long to realize it. I was trying to juggle school (not just school - being a perfect student in school), work (did I mention that while I like my job, it is incredibly stressful and I have probably lost at least a year of my life from the stress?), my family, my house (which gets the brunt of the craziness), and this fitness challenge (starting an hour and twenty minute workout at 11:00 pm and not seeing W for more than ten minutes a day because "I have to keep up with the fitness challenge" is the opposite of healthy), spiritual nourishment, and a little r&r (ie. blog reading like a zombie because I'm too tired to move or do anything else). And all of this? This is also prideful. It really is.

So, I have decided to cut back. This is really difficult for a perfectionist to do, you know. So I'm taking little steps. Instead of working out for 1 hour and 20 minutes to get my max. points for the fitness challenge, I only work out for 40 minutes a night and get the minimum points...but I also clean my kitchen and spend more than ten minutes with my husband. Instead of striving for a 4.0 in my Research class, I am all about scraping by. Luckily, I have a professor for this class whom I have not had in the past, so she does not have high expectations of me, and therefore, I will not be letting her down (yes, I am also a people-pleaser, which I have also realized over the past few years, being in school).

It's refreshing to feel this way. To realize that I don't have to do it all and be everything all at once, while doing it perfectly. I think that as women, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. I am giving myself permission to let some things go. It's about time! Here's to a halfhearted effort in my final quarter of classes ever. Bring it on!

today

2011-03-10T23:43:00.000-08:00

Praying for: Friends who are going through a difficult time

Wearing: Jeans and a black shirt with 3/4 sleeves and a fun necklace

Working on: Getting to bed by 11:00 (so difficult and so far, unsuccessful considering that I don't usually start working out until at least that time)

Eating: Lots of veggie wraps lately, consisting of a high fiber whole wheat wrap, hummus, avocado, spinach, arugula, grape tomatoes, red bell pepper, a little bit of Tillamook medium cheddar cheese, some green onion, a little bit of whole grain mustard and some salt and pepper. I have this for lunch and dinner on a lot of days.

Dreaming of: three things: 1. My graduation 2. Going to Hawaii this Summer 3. Our much-needed bedroom makeover

Realizing: I have been somewhat prideful lately and I really want to change. I plan to write more about this in my next post, which will be about school...no guarantees as to how soon I will post it, but it's on my mind.

Impatiently waiting: For a new episode of Parenthood. It was a re-run this week. Bummer.

Anticipating: Losing 1/2 a pound more so I can hit my goal weight and go into maintenance (with Weight Watchers)

Loving: Oliver's cute little chatter.

Stalking: My school email account to see if I am the recipient of a scholarship I applied for

Feeling: Happy that the quarter is over but also grateful for the opportunity to be in school, and sad to say goodbye to a friend tonight (whom I will likely not see again, at least not for a while)

the school "dream"

2011-02-22T01:30:00.000-08:00

It happened again. I had the dream. The one where everything is moving along nicely...I've been working hard in my classes, doing well, and the quarter is just about over. Just before it ends, I realize there is a class I was enrolled in that I haven't attended all quarter. Panic washes over me. (Hence the fact that the word "dream," which implies something pleasant ("something of an unreal beauty, charm, or excellence" according to www.dictionary.com), is in quotations.)

In this particular dream, I was walking on campus (not my campus, but some random campus that was supposed to be my campus) with my friend Crystal. We were apparently in school together. We just got out of class and we were going to do something fun to take our minds off of school. She mentioned that we should just ditch our next class. "What class...?" Enter panic mode. Oh, yeah. The class I signed up for at the beginning of the quarter and then completely forgot about until now...that class. Is it too late? Can I save my grade? Who is the teacher? When is the final? How could I forget about something so important?!?

And so it goes. I actually haven't had this dream in several quarters (I think my subconscious was a bit preoccupied with me trying to juggle a family, including a new baby, graduate school, and work...it had other things to think about that could easily bring me into panic mode). Why must I dream such dreams? Nothing productive comes of it. Only stress. Next quarter is my last quarter of college (other than my part-time practicum that I will be doing next year, but that's like working part-time without taking any classes, or writing any papers, or stepping foot on campus, so it's not the same thing at all in my mind. To me, I will pretty much be done with college after next quarter. That is HUGE! Words cannot express how I felt as I typed that sentence.)
____________________________________________________________________________

In other news, I am co-facilitating a goal-setting workshop for foster youth tomorrow. I am kind of excited about it. This is part of my Senior Capstone Project that I wrote about here.

One more noteworthy comment: Thanks to Weight Watcher's and Jenni's fitness challenge (which I have a love / hate relationship with), I have lost 10 pounds! Yay for that! I am down to my pre-pregnancy weight and wearing my pre-pregnancy clothes, which I had put into a box, thinking they might remain there for a very long time. (By the way, watching Gilmore Girls reruns makes working out go by so fast. It's even more motivating than music. Thank you Loreli and Rory!) Of course, my body doesn't quite look like it did before I was pregnant, but that's okay. Worth it. (That's an understatement.)

Okay, I'm going to bed now.

the difference a year makes

2011-02-08T02:16:00.000-08:00

A year ago I was feeling very sore and tired. I was uncomfortable all of the time. I was about three weeks away from delivering Oliver, and I was feeling it. My feet were swollen, my stomach itched, and my back hurt all the time. I felt like I couldn't possibly get any bigger (but somehow I did). I couldn't sleep well and waddled when I walked.

It's amazing how much can change in a year. Our sweet little guy has changed our lives so much. I really love being a Mom and think it's the greatest thing ever.

In reviewing our photos from January, I realized that I hadn't taken very many of Oliver (actually, not very many photos at all of anyone or anything), so I pulled out the camera last week and took quite a few. I thought I would share some here.


On the one sunny day we had last week, I took Oliver on a walk. He loved it.

He is actually happy, not crying in this picture.


Playing with Tupperware is an all-time favorite.

Playing with pots & pans is another favorite.


Playing with Dad is fun. Oliver squeals when Wendel gets home.

Getting ready to take a bath. Oliver loves baths.

I love this little kick he's doing in excitement for his bath.

He seems to think that opening and closing doors is pretty cool. (Yes, that is food on his face.)

I cannot believe that Oliver will be a year old in less than a month. It is amazing to me how much he has grown and changed over the past year. We sure love this kid.

loving

2011-01-31T01:03:00.000-08:00

Oliver on Thanksgiving Day 2010

*Loving how my cute little guy is learning and growing so much. He is wanting to be independent lately. It's pretty cute to watch him trying to do things on his own. He is amazing.
*Loving the fact that I finally completed the majority of my Senior Capstone Project (akin to a thesis in my field). It was 50 pages and so much work. It doesn't help that I'm a perfectionist, and overachiever, and a people-pleaser. These are things I've learned about myself these past few years being in school. They are both blessings and curses but in the end, they are good qualities to have as a student. I'm actually really, really excited about my project. I'm expanding Independent Living services for foster youth who are about to age out of the system to the area where I live (currently there aren't services available for them here). That includes finding a location to hold the workshops, putting together workshop curriculum, and doing lots of outreach to inform foster youth, foster parents, and service providers about these workshops. I'm also contributing to a website that is a great resource for emancipating foster youth. The 50 pages I just turned in last Thursday was all of the research that backs up this project that I'm implementing. I've been working on it since September. I'm very passionate about it and excited to help foster youth in my area.
*Loving that, thanks to a fitness challenge and Weight Watchers, I feel so much healthier lately. I have lost some weight, which is great, but I also just feel really healthy. (Part of the fitness challenge is that I can only eat out once a week and I have to drink 64 ounces of water a day...these are not easy goals for me - the eating out is hard because I'm always on the go, and the water is difficult because I am a sipper and just can't finish that much water in a day comfortably (but I'm doing it).
*Loving our new mini van. We got a used Toyota Sienna. It is so nice having extra space.
*Loving this blog. I admire this girl's faith and have really enjoyed reading about her conversion. Start here.

One thing I'm not loving is how I stay up really late on Sunday nights because I don't want the weekend to end, and then I am super tired on Mondays. It is not a good pattern but it happens over and over again. And on that note, I'm going to bed.

I need your help

2011-01-22T21:47:00.000-08:00

It's not as dramatic as it may sound. I just want to do something different with my hair. Any suggestions? It's driving me crazy! Should I cut it? Color it? Cut bangs? Do something drastic? Inspire me!

sweet giveaway

2011-01-14T00:56:00.000-08:00

No, not here. Head over to The Weed for a gift card to The Cheesecake Factory - oh, and a Little Thumper as well. And if you've never checked out his blog, prepare to laugh. It is not only funny but well written and highly entertaining. There's really no reason not to click on the link to The Weed. You will thank me. I promise.

2010 recap

2011-01-03T00:48:00.000-08:00

This past year was one of the most difficult years of my life but also one of the most amazing years of my life. Here's a quick recap of 2010 in the form of a questionnaire I found online:

1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before? Gave birth to a child.
2. Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? I honestly can't remember what my New Year's resolutions were other than to go to graduate school, which I did. Yes, I am in the process of making resolutions for this year. I haven't solidified them yet but I'm working on a short, meaningful list that won't be too overwhelming.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth? Other than me, I had several friends give birth this year.
4. Did anyone close to you die? Wendel's grandmother died in June. We went to Arizona for her funeral. Though it was sad to see her go, the funeral was a beautiful tribute to her life.
5. What countries did you visit? None
6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010? A MSW degree
7. What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? March 2nd, the day Oliver was born. Being a mother is incredible.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Making it through the quarter right after Oliver was born - passing my Biology class and getting an A in my Research class - both of which were incredibly difficult, especially while adjusting to motherhood, dealing with nursing issues, hives, shingles, post-postpartum depression, and lack of sleep. Having made it through that, I feel like I can make it through almost anything.
9. What was your biggest failure? No big regrets
10. Did you suffer illness or injury? Nothing serious
11. What was the best thing you bought? It is a toss up between our baby monitor, our glider, and our minivan (which we have yet to pick up but we did purchase it in 2010).
12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Oliver's, of course. We love celebrating each of his milestones.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Political leaders - elections depress me with all of the lying candidates do about each other.
14. Where did most of your money go? Graduate school
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? The birth of our son

16. What song will always remind you of 2010? Little Sack of Sugar by Elizabeth Mitchell
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Happier. Oliver has brought so much happiness to us.
b) thinner or fatter? Fatter but it's worth it.
c) richer or poorer? Richer, both with money and with blessings.
18. What do you wish you’d done more of? My family history (scrapbooking, journaling, blogging, etc.). Prioritizing family and school leaves little time for much else. I'm okay with it but I'm pretty excited to get back to it when I'm done with school.
19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Nothing. No regrets.
20. How did you spend Christmas? With my family in a condo in Deer Valley, Utah. It was perfect.
21. Did you fall in love in 2010? Yes, with my sweet son.
22. What was your favorite TV program? Parenthood
23. What was the best book you read? The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins (I actually haven't read the third book yet...no time but I can't wait to read it).
24. What was your greatest musical discovery? Mumford & Sons is pretty cool and I really like Dustin Kensrue's Christmas album.
25. What did you want and get? A baby
26. What did you want and not get? To be done with school
27. What was your favorite film of this year? I didn't see any amazing movies. Sad, but true. I didn't see many movies at all, so that's not saying much.
28. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? I turned 31. Wendel got me a treadmill (two actually - one for each of us so we can work out at the same time). My mom was in town so I got to go out for Thai food with my mom, brother, Wendel, and Oliver.
29. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Not having to take Biology.
30. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010? Hmm. Lacking.
31. What kept you sane? Wendel.
32. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? None of them really.
33. What political issue stirred you the most? Health Care was a big one.
34. Who did you miss? My family.
35. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010: To sacrifice is to make something sacred
36. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year: "'Cause when push comes to shove you find what you're made of, you might bend till you break 'cause it's all you can take, on your knees you look up, decide you've had enough, you get mad, you get strong, wipe your hands, shake it off, then you stand, yeah, you stand" - Rascal Flats [It was a rough year but we made it through and we're stronger for it. My schooling experiences have really brought us together and I'm so grateful for that. They have given us numerous opportunities to serve each other, have in-depth discussions, unite in prayer and fasting, and appreciate the sacredness of the struggles and accomplishments.]

I'm looking forward to 2011. There are so many great things to look forward to. I will be done with classes in June! Oliver turns one in March. I will only have a part-time internship after June - no job and no classes. Amazing! It's going to be a great year.

[Photos taken by Kali Lu Photography]

is this my new reality?

2010-12-17T00:37:00.000-08:00

For the sake of one last post in the year 2010, I am finally posting something. Does anyone else feel like the older you get, the busier the holidays are and the more difficult they are to enjoy? The days and weeks fly by and I am left feeling rushed and out of breath with everything that I am trying to keep up with. Sometimes I miss the days when Christmas seemed like forever away, and I would look forward to the advent each day leading up to it. Such simpler times. Now I am constantly saying, "It can't be December already...not our party already...not time to do Christmas shopping already...send out cards? What? Already?!?" And then it is suddenly here and gone and the very high-speed countdown begins for next year. I sometimes wonder if I will ever enjoy it again. Maybe once I'm done with school? Or is this my new reality?

In conclusion, time goes by too fast when you're a grown-up. Make it slow down please!

cute gratitude project

2010-11-04T22:15:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for a cute gratitude project to do with your family, check this out. There are also lots of good ideas in the comments, so be sure to read through those. If you start a gratitude project, leave a comment here so we can check it out.

My family is coming into town for Thanksgiving so maybe I will give one of those ideas a try. A couple of years ago I had each family member write what they were grateful for and then compiled it into a book with pictures from Thanksgiving weekend and gave everyone a copy.

One thing I do throughout the year is keep a gratitude journal (you can see some pictures and a few thoughts about it here - scroll down to the bottom of the post).

When I was going to Ricks College (about a million years ago - am I still in school? Yes, yes I am.) my roommates and I taped several poster boards together and wrote "Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude" at the top. We then had everyone who came into our apartment write what they were grateful for. It was uplifting to read the gratitude board.

Please share any other ideas you have around gratitude. Let's inspire each other.

Okay, I have lots of homework to do and have been procrastinating long enough. Signing off.

the schultz pride

2010-10-31T21:56:00.000-07:00

Our little lion looked so cute. I love how Squeak is looking at him in this picture. Squeak has totally accepted him in as part of his pride. It's so cute - when Oliver cries, Squeak runs over to see what's wrong. He even put his paws up on the bathtub ledge and looked over the edge once when Oliver was crying in the bath. Oliver squeals with joy whenever he sees Squeak. I love that they're friends. So cute.

church and state can come together after all

2010-10-21T23:14:00.000-07:00

On Monday I shadowed Senator Claudia Kauffman at a luncheon / meet n' greet. At this event, each of the candidates representing several districts got a few minutes to speak, to inform those in attendance about their campaign and why they should vote for them. It was kind of interesting. The thing that really stuck out to me though, was that they started the meeting with a prayer. The person who prayed addressed Heavenly Father and asked that they have clear minds to make good decisions with integrity that are in the best interest of the public. Afterward there was a resounding amen. I was so impressed. It seems I am often in contact with people (mostly at school) who don't believe in God. It was so nice to see our policy makers and leaders (and potential policy makers and leaders) uniting in prayer for guidance to make good decisions in our behalf. I felt the Spirit strongly during that prayer. It gives me hope.

my seven-month-old and some other random stuff

2010-10-18T00:24:00.000-07:00

Oliver is pretty much amazing. He is so much fun. He is happy 90% of the time. I love it. Today in church he was flirting with Jackie, who was sitting behind me. He kept laughing at her - not just a giggle but seriously laughing so loudly. I had to take him out of the room (Gospel Doctrine) because he was disrupting the class with his laughing. So cute.

Life is crazy since school started a couple of weeks ago. I work part time 2 1/2 days a week, have class two nights a week (for 2 1/2 hours each class). Not too bad. The tough part is finding time to do the reading, write papers (there is always a paper to write) and do things like shadow policy makers and submit position papers to local newspapers. This quarter I'm starting my senior capstone project (which is basically a huge project that is the culmination of my graduate experience). My teacher started an agency for her project when she was in grad school. It's a little intimidating. I think I figured out what I'm going to do though, and I'm excited about it. It has to do with foster kids. More to come on that later.

Here is a random fact for you. Did you know that dolphins sleep with one eye closed so that side of their brain can rest while the other eye stays open to watch for predators? Also, one eye can see to the side while the other eye looks straight ahead. Very cool. (We are watching a documentary on dolphins right now. Dolphins are pretty cool.)

My poor husband is on call and has had to work all night the past two nights and just got paged again. I feel so bad for him.

A few cute things I've seen online (I usually spend time online while I'm working out - yes, I take my laptop on the treadmill with me and allow myself computer time while I'm getting a workout. It's working so far).

These trick-or-treat bags are super cute. Not that we need one anytime soon.

These journals are lovely, as are these.

I think that's about it for now. I've got to get to sleep so I can face another busy week.

my lds stake app and general conference

2010-10-04T00:47:00.000-07:00

I am sharing this link a bit late since it's promoting a special that is good through General Conference weekend, but I still wanted to let you know about the product. Many of you have probably heard about it - a ward / stake directory app for your iphone or ipad. It looks pretty cool and would be very convenient. It was created by a couple of people in my ward, which is even cooler. Check it out here.

By the way, General Conference was wonderful. I feel rejuvenated. I especially liked President Monson's talk about gratitude. I'm excited for the Conference edition of the Ensign so I can review the talks and underline things that stand out to me (I'm a visual person so I do better being able to read a talk and take notes on it rather than listen to it). I'm grateful to have a prophet on the earth who is a mouthpiece for our Heavenly Father. I really believe that and my testimony was only strengthened after hearing him speak today.

I am really not ready to face this coming week. Must...go...to...bed...

organization

2010-10-03T21:59:00.000-07:00

I really enjoy having organization in our home and I also enjoy the process of organizing. I have zero time for organizing while I'm in school, but I recently had a blissful five-week break from school and managed to squeeze some in.


It is now easier to find stuff in our junk drawer. A lot easier.

Our medicine cabinet was a mess. I don't have a before picture, but imagine stuff everywhere - papers, books, various medicine and vitamin bottles - some tipped over, etc. You get the idea. It was driving me crazy. Now everything has a place. All of the baby medicine is in the little container and the adult medicine is in the big container. It makes me happy to open this cupboard.

Our tupperware cupboard was out of control. I rarely could find a lid that matched a container. I don't have a before picture for this one either, but imagine complete chaos. Again, this drove me crazy. Oliver was hanging out with me when I organized this one and he loved playing with the lids and containers. I grouped containers and their matching lids in bins to keep them together. I get a little excited when we have leftovers and I can pull out the appropriate container to put them in within a matter of seconds. (It's the little things, right?)

I also worked on our bedroom a little but it's not done. I can't wait to get it all organized and get a new bed, bedspread, paint the walls, and finally decorate in there (it's been 3 1/2 years since we moved in and there is only one picture hanging in our room. Sad but true.). I am hoping to do this project over Christmas break, with a possible jump start over Thanksgiving weekend. We'll see.

Remember when I used to do OPAM (One Project a Month) and post before and after pictures? Maybe I will get back to that after I graduate. I have so many projects waiting but they will just have to keep waiting for another year or so. At least I can feel good about my medicine cupboard, tupperware cupboard, and junk drawer. I'll take it for now.

project life and whole foods

2010-09-29T22:51:00.000-07:00

1. Have you heard of Project Life? If you're a scrapbooker, you've probably heard of Becky Higgins. She has this great product called Project Life that makes scrapbooking so simple and easy. The basic idea is that you take a picture everyday of something going on in your life - maybe it's of your son helping you make cookies or your daughter playing in the rain or your garden that's progressing...then you put it in it's slot and write out your journaling and it's done. It's so easy! The kit comes with everything you need, including the album, and it's all very adorable. There is none of the time consuming stuff (which can be fun but not always possible). People who don't consider themselves scrapbookers but want to preserve memories of your family might also be interested in this simple approach. There is also a digital version, which I really like. If you feel that committing to a picture a day is a bit much, you could take a handful of pictures a month and do it that way instead (which is kind of the concept I'm going for with Oliver's baby book - which I will share eventually. The kit I'm using to make his book is also designed by Becky). Anyway, I mention Project Life because it's $10 off through the end of this month (which is tomorrow). This would also make a great gift.

2. I went to a Whole Foods grocery store yesterday for the first time ever and I was like a kid in a candy store. Every isle was so exciting! There was even a salad and hot food bar right there in the store (with ten vegetarian soup options - ten!). I had to make myself leave the store. It's probably a good thing that this store is in Seattle and not too close to my house.

3. I start school tomorrow. I am a bit nervous, mostly about balancing everything (school, work, baby, house, etc.) but I'm hopeful that somehow it will work out. Wish me luck.

two things

2010-09-24T00:49:00.000-07:00

Two things:

1. This is the cutest little hat. It is so tempting to buy it for Oliver for Halloween but we already have a little pumpkin costume for him and this hat is expensive. Wendel feels that this hat is weird and it's weird to blog about it but I think it's cute. (Wendel stands by his comments.)

2. Restaurant.com has 80% off of their $25 gift certificates right now, making them only $2 for a $25 gift certificate. Stock up on Christmas gifts.

newport, oregon

2010-09-18T00:59:00.000-07:00

We took a much needed 5-day vacation to Newport last week. It was perfect in every way. We stayed in a condo by the beach. It was beautiful and had a gorgeous view. The first two photos are the view from our balcony at sunrise. This is a photo of our living room.

Britney (Wendel's sister), Ron & Connor came up the first day we were there (they live in Portland). It was fun hanging out with them for a day and wish they could have stayed longer.

We saw some sea lions. Oliver was interested, which was cute.

From what I understand, these cages are for feeding the sea lions but they like to hang out in them, even when it's not feeding time. I thought it was so funny to see one squirm his way up from the bottom of the pile, and all of the others got mad at him for disturbing them.

We took Oliver to the Undersea Gardens, where he got to touch a starfish. He is really into textures lately, so I think that was kind of cool for him.

On the dock with Dad after visiting the Undersea Gardens.

We also went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium.

Checking out a huge turtle.

Oliver seemed most interested in the jellyfish. They were pretty cool.

You can't tell too well, but there are sea lions in the water behind us.

Aquarium Village (where I found the book Where The Wild Things Are for $1.00!).

We also took turns sleeping in (Wendel made a big breakfast one morning for me while I slept in - amazing!), Wendel went golfing, I went shopping, we ate yummy seafood, went swimming and hung out in the hot tub, Wendel worked on a puzzle, and I read The Hunger Games. (It was so good! I'm on the second book right now and I'm loving it. Wendel started reading it on our way home from Newport and finished it in less than 24 hours.) We also had fun reading with Oliver.

It was so sad to leave. We both concluded that before having a child, 4-5 days of vacation was plenty - more than that and we would start to go stir-cray. But with a baby, there wasn't as much downtime, so a week is our new minimum vacation time.
It's good we had this break though. I start school in a week and I think it's going to be a difficult quarter. I loved our little break.

a few thoughts at the beginning the journey

2010-09-05T23:49:00.000-07:00

"Of all the joys of life, none other equals that of happy parenthood. Of all the responsibilities with which we struggle, none other is so serious. To rear children in an atmosphere of love, security, and faith is the most rewarding of all challenges. The good result from such efforts becomes life's most satisfying compensation." - Gordon B. Hinckley

_______________________________________________

I think this quote will sink in and have different meaning to me throughout my life as I experience different seasons of parenthood. For now, the first part rings true to me - that parenthood has brought me such joy. The first few months of Oliver's life were so difficult. I had a rough recovery from his birth, nursing issues, side effects of depression, anxiety and loss of bladder control from medication that I was taking to increase my milk supply, hives from the Fenugreek that I was also taking to increase my milk supply, shingles from stress, little sleep, and research and bio classes on top of it all. I felt like I would never be in a different place and I would be stuck in that little time warp forever, surrounded by papers filled with feeding times to remind myself of when he last ate, pamphlets about nursing, and books about healthy sleep habbits .

It's amazing how much changes in three months. It was like Oliver hit his three month mark and suddenly he became this little person who smiled a lot, interacted, and brought a whole lot of joy to us on a daily basis. My thoughts on parenthood now? I love it. I love my little 6-month-old and just can't get enough of him, even with his fussy teething spells and waking up to comfort him in the night. I know that being a mother is a divine calling that is meant to teach me and help me learn and grow, but also to bring me immense joy. I think that is why this quote stood out to me so much when Wendel and I read it the other night.

The second part of that quote is kind of daunting - out of every responsibility we will have in life, none will be as serious as being a parent. This reminds me of another quote that I really love by Harold B. Lee: "The most important work you will ever do will be within the walls of your own home." I think about that a lot these days. I'm trying to do my best to make my role as a parent (and wife) the most important thing that I do, while still balancing school, work, housework, exercise, spirituality, etc.

[Photos taken by Wendel and me on August 22, 2010 in our backyard after church.]

Even with the weight of this great responsibility on my shoulders, I am grateful to be starting this incredible (and undoubtedly difficult) journey.

impromptu self-portraits

2010-08-15T22:34:00.000-07:00

It is quite a task trying to take a decent picture with my SLR in one hand while holding a squirmy 5-month-old in another. These photos are far from being technically perfect but I absolutely love them because they capture me and him right now. I can't look at them without smiling. Any photo that can make me do that is perfect to me.

someday

2010-08-11T22:42:00.000-07:00

Someday I will have an amazing bedroom that is cute and clean and actually feels like a sanctuary. I can picture it in my mind and I'm pretty excited about it.

Someday I will *usually* have a clean kitchen without any clutter (as opposed to usually having a messy kitchen with dishes in the sink).

Someday I will catch up on Oliver's baby book (working on it but way behind).

I will plan meals and actually have time to prepare them on days other than Sundays.

I will start up our photography business again and get a website up.

Someday I will be done with school. Forever.

Someday we will go to Hawaii. Or on a cruise. Or to Ireland. Or all three.

Someday we will also go to Russia (to visit Wendel's mission) and Australia (to visit my mission). Oh yes, we will.

We will own a mini van.

I will scrapbook again.

Someday I will lose the rest of this lingering baby weight and I will look good in a swimming suit again (okay, maybe that second part is too much to ask for...I will take looking good in jeans again).

Someday I will be an adoption caseworker or work in the adoption field in some capacity (ideally working part time while our kids are in school).

Someday I will read for fun again.

Someday I will never have to write another paper as long as I live (and then I will probably realize that I kind of miss it).

I will be a really good photographer. I will push myself beyond what I am capable of now (or maybe I will just be okay with my current skill level because other things and people will be more important).

Someday I want to learn how to sew and quilt.

But for today, I am really happy with my life. It's a beautiful life and I'm grateful to be living it.

new favorite treat

2010-08-01T23:23:00.001-07:00

I have a new favorite treat: Greek style plain yogurt, strawberries, walnuts, and a drizzle of honey. Divine.

By the way, there are a few new recipes up on my recipe blog for those who are interested.

finding balance

2010-07-25T11:51:00.001-07:00

"The ability to qualify for, receive, and act on personal revelation is the single most important skill that can be acquired in this life." - Julie B. Beck

___________________________________________________

We are home from church today because we are sick, so while Wendel is sleeping I'm watching some General Conference talks from April. Although I've heard these talks before, this quote by Julie Beck, the General Relief Society President, just stood out to me, probably because I could stand to focus on this area of my life a little more.

The single most important skill. That deserves my attention. It's so easy to get caught up in anything but things that qualify us for personal revelation...whether they be other good things (like school) or things that aren't really that uplifting (like certain tv shows that are funny but don't really prepare us to be in a place where we can receive personal revelation).

Often times my scripture reading consists of reading a scripture and quote from Stand a Little Taller before falling asleep. I really want to change that.

This is a reminder to myself to find balance in my life - balance between being a mother, a wife, a student, an employee, a housekeeper, a friend, a daughter, a sister, and above all, a daughter of God (because by remembering and fulfilling my role as a daughter of God, I will be better at all of the other roles in my life).

you know you're stressed out when...

2010-07-24T09:39:00.000-07:00

you're trying to pay for gas at the pump and you can't remember your zip code. Luckily I remembered it after a few minutes.

Um, I am losing my mind.

i want to do that...

2010-07-07T22:38:00.001-07:00

As a huge fan of journal writing, I think this is one of the cutest ideas of all time. This couple inspires me so much.

feeling grateful

2010-07-06T23:12:00.000-07:00

I am feeling so grateful for all of the ways we have been and continue to be blessed. So much service has been rendered in our behalf since Oliver was born. Meals from friends in our ward and friends outside of our ward, so many people helped out by watching Oliver when I was finishing up two difficult (and very crucial) classes last quarter (including my sister-in-law, Bethaney, who lived with us for two months and spent every day with Oliver while I was at the library), my mom visited many times to help out, my brother did yard work for us and watched Oliver several times, a girl in our ward comes over twice a week to make dinner and do some light cleaning (amazing, right?), neighbors have mowed our lawn while we're not home, and friends have been very supportive. I also have to say that I have the best visiting teachers ever. Your kindness is not unappreciated. Thanks for helping us make it through a rough patch.

mirror love

2010-07-01T23:40:00.001-07:00

Oliver loves looking in the mirror. It pretty much guarantees a smile out of this cutie. I snapped these in the bathroom mirror and love how happy we both look. I love my baby so much!

workout music?

2010-06-26T10:24:00.000-07:00

Image via Flickr

I am in that phase of post-pregnancy where I finally have a little time to workout, and a lot of desire to lose the weight. I go on walks with Oliver a few times a week, I am attempting to jump rope in the evenings (um, my calves are killing me...I am so out of shape!), and I'm going walking slash jogging with a friend one night a week. We are also looking for a treadmill. It's not much, but at least it's something. All of this = I need a good playlist for working out.

So tell me, what songs motivate you to work out? Tell me your favorites and help me build my list. Thanks!

biology update

2010-06-23T23:25:00.001-07:00

I passed! I can hardly even believe it. My teacher finally emailed me tonight and told me that I passed. Wendel and Bethaney (his sister who has been here for the past weeks helping me with Oliver while I have been studying all day, who really made passing this class possible) and I went out to celebrate as soon as I got the email. Unfortunately, it was almost 10:00 pm when I got the word, and living in the small town that we do, we didn't have many options. As much as I really don't like Red Robin, it was open, so Red Robin it was. We ordered nachos, which were incredibly sub-par (worse than that, even) and garlic fries (which were good at the time but not worth it). But hey, luckily I didn't work my butt off for the reward of that meal at Red Robin, so who cares. My real reward is being able to move forward in my program! Never again do I have to take a stupid general education class! From here on out, it's all social work classes (um, I thought that was the case a couple of years ago when I started my BASW...). In any event, I'm happy. I'm so glad that horrible experience is behind me. (No, I'm not just being dramatic.) Thanks to those who left kind comments after my ranting post last night. I was a bit frustrated, to say the least. It's nice to know I have supportive friends out there.

don't you hate it when your best isn't good enough?

2010-06-22T22:43:00.002-07:00

Call me crazy, but I like to see the fruits of my labors, especially when I've worked as hard as I have on this [insert frustrated tone] biology class. I consider myself a good student. I study hard. I had a 3.94 GPA in my undergrad. I get the studying thing. I know how to be diligent in my efforts. I have spent countless hours at the public library over the past few months, working on this class. Literally every day of the week (except for Sunday) for the majority of the day. Away from my baby. So why is it that I failed the midterm and probably failed the final? My teacher is pretty much the worst teacher ever. Okay, I have no authority to make that statement, but she's pretty rotten. She doesn't give any sort of direction on what to study - anything in the book can be on the test. That means I have to memorize pretty much everything. She did tell me that there won't be any diagrams, charts or tables on the test that were not in the homework assignments. However, there was one diagram and one chart on the final that were not in any of my homework assignments. Many of the questions from the homework were nowhere to be found in the text, so I had to look them up online, and then got them marked wrong (but she didn't put what the right answer was). It's like if it isn't the answer she had in mind, it's wrong, end of story. Nowhere in the syllabus does it say that spelling counts on exams, and yet when I took the midterm and final, it was written at the top of the tests. She takes days to answer my questions (this is an online class!) and then is often unclear in her responses (and sometimes she hasn't ever responded at all). When I expressed my frustration to her about not knowing what to focus my studying on, she told me, "Just look over the homework assignments, get a good nights sleep and eat some protein a couple of hours before you take the test." Um, false. Just looking over the assignments and expecting to remember that information might work for someone with a photographic memory. I could go on and on. I checked her out on www.ratemyprofessors.com and I at least feel validated after reading comments such as these:

"The workload alone is equivalent to two on-site classes. As an independent study class, it is extremely time consuming and required me to research some of the information online as the assignment asked questions in a way that didn't clearly correlate with the book. Thorough assistance was rare, even when asked."

"She is a horrible teacher. Doesn't explain why things are wrong. Ask questions on homework and tests that could have multiple answers but doesn't know it. Some questions don't even make sense. Uses unreadable pictures that you have to diagram."

"Kathy frustrates students and drives them away from appreciation of the subject. I've taken her online course, which is HIGHLY recommended NOT to do. No study guide given for tests. Basically know the book. From e-mail encounters she appears to have an ego and much pride. There is no rebuttal or points given back on her mistakes for assignments."

"FYI, midterm went into questions not yet covered."

Okay, I'm sure you are all bored and don't really care about my biology woes. It is just so dang frustrating to me because I worked incredibly hard (I studied for about 80 hours for the final...seriously?!? This is a 101 class.) I deserve to pass, and I likely won't.

I took the final last Thursday and had the testing center mail it back to my teacher in an overnight envelope that I provided them with. My teacher consented to email my adviser at UW to let her know if I passed or not by Monday (yesterday), which was the deadline (the deadline for me being able to continue in my program or not due to this class). Of course she didn't do it, and though I have emailed her twice since Thursday inquiring about it, I still haven't heard from her and neither has my adviser. Class started tonight and I didn't know if I should go or not given the circumstances...I went but will have to drop if I failed the test.

Wendel just mentioned to me that it sounds like I am typing furiously. I suppose I am. I think I just need to vent about it. Again. (I already vented to him numerous times.)

In conclusion, I hate stupid policies and jumping through hoops. But I am determined to not let something as lame as a general requirement deter me from getting my MSW. So I will press forward through the minutia. I guess you could call me stubborn. I really feel like I'm following the Spirit and doing what we feel good about. I'm sure that there is some huge learning experience to be had here. Maybe when I'm not so frustrated I will figure out what it is and appreciate the experience. Maybe.

six years

2010-06-16T07:57:00.000-07:00

Today marks six years since the day we were married. At this time on that day, I already had my hair done and was getting ready to leave for the temple. I was nervous and excited. It was the best feeling to walk through those doors and see Wendel standing there and to feel peace wash my nervousness away. Last night we were talking about all of the hurdles we've jumped through since we've been married (mostly having to do with school). I think they've made us stronger. Best decision I've made.

P.S. I thought I'd reach into my scrapbooking archives and post this page that I made several years ago (since I don't actually have time to scrapbook anymore).

oliver's nursery

2010-06-10T10:18:00.000-07:00

I finally finished Oliver's nursery. Remember when it used to be my scrapbook room? I figured I don't need a whole room devoted to a hobby I haven't had time to touch in over a year (so it has now downsized and shares with the guest room). This is the view looking in from the door.

A close up of some items on the shelf. My friend, Nicole, gave him this wood block and each side has something engraved on it (his name, birth information, a quote, etc.). I love it. She got it here. The I Am a Child of God print behind it is from here.

These fun bookends, the dinosaur lamp, and the string of lights (which you will see below) are all from Khols. They were marked down and we had coupons and we just couldn't pass them up. Too cute. We also got a wood growth chart to match for when he is older, which currently hangs on the side of the shelf in his closet.

That's the cute blanket my mom made him that's hanging on his crib, and the sheets are Dwell Studio from Target. One thing I'm really glad I bought is this breathable bumper. It gives me peace of mind that he won't suffocate against it and it still cushions him from hitting his head against the crib. We got ours here. I also love his mobile, and so does he. He seems to be memorized by it, and enjoys babbling and sometimes even giggling at it. It's so cute.

This little string of lights is really fun. They make the room really cozy when all of the other lights are off at night.

My mom bought the changing table for him for our Christmas present last year (from amazon.com, of course). The print above it is from here.

This little stitching hangs above his cd player on the other side of the room. My mom embroidered it for him.

And the tour wouldn't be complete without a little peek in on the little man himself, with a drool soaked onesie and all.

three months old

2010-06-02T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today my baby is three months old! I can hardly believe it. His smile gets me every time and those fat rolls on his legs? Love them! Happy three months little friend. So glad you are here.

randomness

2010-05-16T17:42:00.000-07:00

1. I finally finished my huge research paper. I have been working on this paper for months (it is the same one I was working on when I started having contractions with Oliver). I have worked so hard on it. The topic is the effects of parenting classes among low-income populations, specifically studying the program that I coordinate at Children's Home Society called SPARK (Strong Partners and Relationships for Kids). It is really cool because this research is actually beneficial - it will help the Federal Government decide if they want to continue funding the program, help CHSW better serve their clients, and quite honestly, it has really increased my knowledge about the program and consequently I feel that I will be better at my job now because of it. I finished up around 3:00 this morning. I was actually super nervous to email it to my professor because I kept thinking, "What if I missed something? What if there is a formatting issue or I spelled something wrong and didn't catch it?" All of that hard work and then stupid mistakes would not be cool. I actually still have clammy hands thinking about it. I am kind of a perfectionist with school, I guess, but I work hard and want to reflect that to my professors. Anyway, I am so glad that is behind me! (A special thanks to my sister-in-law, Bethaney, who is here helping us out with Oliver. Without her, I would've failed this class.)

2. So, I have shingles. How lame is that? My doctor said it is from the stress I'm experiencing in my life. Nice. At least now I know why my left leg has been tingly and sensitive for the past few weeks. I was getting worried that it would be a permanent thing.

3. I really don't like pumping.

4. I heard about Today's Letters recently and I checked it out today. I really like the concept of daily letters and I love that this whole site is devoted to strengthening marriages. I especially like this.

5. I've decided that my favorite kinds of food are Indian and Mediterranean. At least for now. Lucky me, I had both this week.

6. I wonder if I will ever scrapbook again? I miss it.

7. This picture of Oliver makes me smile. We took him on a walk around the neighborhood the other night and I snapped this after Wendel took him out of his stroller when we got home. His smiles are contagious.

the cutest suits

2010-05-13T05:37:00.000-07:00

DownEast has the cutest swimming suits. Maybe buying one of these will help encourage me to loose this baby weight. [Actually, it's not that I need encouragement as much as I need time. Sigh.]

Check out their whole line here.

thoughts on being a mother

2010-05-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

[Tulips from Wendel for Mother's Day]

"Recognize that the joy of motherhood comes in moments. There will be hard times and frustrating times. But amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and satisfaction." - M. Russell Ballard

.....................................................................................

Mother's Day is extra special to me this year. I finally understand what it means to be a mother. It is amazing and hard and overwhelming and sacred. I like that quote about the joy of motherhood coming in moments. Even though Oliver is still a baby, I think that is so true. I definitely don't feel joy all the time, but I cherish those moments when I do (which is quite often, especially moments that don't occur in the middle of the night).

I want to be the kind of mom who my kids to talk to about anything. I want to have a house of order; a home that is clean and inviting, a place where our kids can bring their friends and feel comfortable spending time. It is hard for me to let that go right now (the clean home part). When Wendel an I made the decision for me to pursue graduate school, we knew there would be sacrifices to make. When we decided to have a baby right as I am beginning my graduate program, we knew there would be even more sacrifices to make, and letting the house get a little messy (or a lot messy, depending on the room and how accessible it is to the public eye) is one of those sacrifices. But I do want an organized, welcoming home one day. I want to be a good homemaker. I want our home to be a house of learning. I want Oliver and our other children to know that education is important, not only secular education, but learning in general.

Yesterday I came home from the library to pump. Oliver was being fussy, as he sometimes is (he has a gassy tummy a lot). I picked him up and he immediately smiled at me, and continued to do so for about ten minutes. It was probably just a coincidence that he was happy all of the sudden, but it made me feel like maybe he actually knows who his mom is and was excited to see me. With so many people caring for him lately while I've been at the library (8-10 hours a day, every day but Sunday), I worry that he might not know who I am. It made me so happy and was exactly what I needed.

Even though I feel like a missionary in the MTC saying "Missions are so amazing," (not really having any idea of what a mission is really like yet) as I am at the beginning of this journey of motherhood, I still want to say that I think motherhood is amazing. It is such an incredible blessing to be trusted by my Heavenly Father with one of his children. I am so grateful for this opportunity to be Oliver's mother.

some favorites

2010-05-03T06:25:00.001-07:00

I am finally able to share some more recent pictures of our little guy.

The following six pictures were taken by my brother's girlfriend, Amalie. She did a fantastic job. I love them. (The most frustrating thing about being a "photographer" is being able to capture candid moments for other families but not your own, so this really was such a great gift to me. Thanks again Amalie!)

The rest of these pictures are random pictures we've taken over the past couple of months, in no particular order.

sad to see her go...

2010-04-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

My mom was here this past week, from last Saturday until tonight. She came to help me out so I could get some school work done. She watched Ollie in the days and stayed up with him at night (all night, every night = bliss for me). She did the dishes and laundry too. It was truly amazing. She is wonderful. On top of all of that, she drove here from Utah by herself so she could help me. I feel so blessed to have her as my mom.

My brother and his girlfriend are also here visiting. It's fun having them here.

This morning I took my Bio midterm. W was sweet and made me an omlet before I left. I studied for roughly 60 hours for that test. I really felt like I lived at the library this past week. I think I did okay. I'm just glad it's over. Now I only have to do that one more time (for the final) and I can put this class behind me.

We had a fun little photo shoot this afternoon of the three of us. I will have to share pictures as soon as I get them back. I'm excited about them.

W and I went on a date tonight - our first date since Oliver's birth. My brother stayed with Oliver while we went out for Indian food (our favorite). It was nice to get out for a bit.

We're sitting in his nursery - W is rocking our sleeping baby and I'm sitting on the floor typing out these thoughts. We're listening to Elizabeth Mitchell's Little Bird cd and singing along every so often (we both pretty much have it memorized now). These are times I don't want to ever forget.

parenthood

2010-04-16T16:20:00.000-07:00

Wow, my life has been a complete whirlwind these past six weeks. Here are a few things I've learned:

* Not all diapers are the same (don't ever buy the Babies R' Us brand).
* Nursing is so much harder than I thought it would be.
* A side effect of Fenugreek is hives. And they itch. A lot.
* Reglan is horrible, horrible stuff.
* I have no idea how stay-at-home moms get anything done (or any moms, for that matter). I start the day with a whole list of stuff to do and maybe get "make the bed" crossed off.
* I can only tell what day of the week it is by what tv show comes on that night.
* It is not uncommon to go through two diapers in ten minutes or less.
* Formula is expensive.
* Somehow baby boys can get their backs or stomachs wet but their diaper is pretty much dry. I just don't get it.
* I am in a time warp. I will feed Oliver and then pump and then he is crying and I wonder why. Then I realize that it has been two hours since I fed him last. If I didn't keep a log of feeding times, I would be lost. Time is so weird these days.
* There is no sense in really getting "dressed" because I will just get milk and likely throw up on my clothes, and I might as well be comfortable, right?
* Everything looks so much worse when you add lack of sleep to the mix.
* Post Pardum Depression sucks.
* The Biology mess turned out to be a blessing. I'm so glad I have school off this quarter. I really could not be in school right now, going to class at night. (What was I thinking?!? I am still trying to finish up course work from last quarter, plus the Biology class, and it's a challenge to say the least).
* Calming my son down after he has been crying is such a sweet feeling.
* Having him snuggle up to me and fall asleep is the best.
* The little noises he makes while he sleeps and eats melt my heart.
* Gripe Water is amazing!
* Nothing prepared me more for motherhood than my mission. I have drawn on my experience as a missionary for strength several times in the past six weeks.
* I was reading through one of my past journals and came across a quote I wrote in there from a General Conference address that said that to sacrifice means to make something sacred: Elder M. Russell Ballard has taught that “the word sacrifice means literally ‘to make sacred,’ or ‘to render sacred’ ” (“The Law of Sacrifice,” Ensign, Oct. 1998, 8; Liahona, Mar. 2002, 13). The words sacred and sacrifice come from the same root. One may not have the sacred without first sacrificing something for it. There can be no sacredness without personal sacrifice. Sacrifice sanctifies the sacred. (The full talk is here.) I think this is so applicable to motherhood, as it is to many aspects of our lives. It really hit home for me right now.
* It is not possible to take too many pictures.
* It is amazing how long it takes to get ourselves together and get out of the house.
* I have no idea what I'm doing. I'm just taking it one day at a time and feeling grateful that I am at this place in my life.

Our computer crashed a couple of weeks after Oliver was born (of course), so that is why I haven't shared many pictures. It is killing me! But I'm taking plenty and hope to share some soon.

P.S. Speaking of parenthood, have you seen the new tv show Parenthood? It is our new favorite.

kitty

2010-03-29T13:20:00.001-07:00

[Picture taken in May 2008]

Kitty has been in my family since I was 19, and then W and I took him when we got married in 2004. That's 11 years that this cat has been a part of my life. Before Oliver was born, we decided that Kitty needed a new home. He is old and grumpy and jealous and we didn't think he would do too well with a baby. We were torn about what to do with him - who wants an old, grumpy, jealous cat? I was stressed out about it because I felt like I was the only person in the world he wasn't scared of. Thankfully, my sister-in-law, Britney, and her husband, Ron, offered to take him for us. It was such a relief! They are cat lovers and he is lucky to be there with them and their two other cats in Portland. I miss him but I'm happy he has a new home where he is loved.

baby half off

2010-03-22T09:06:00.000-07:00

Have you heard about this site? They have one deal a day, and it's half off. Today's deal is super cute. I follow Amalie's blog and she is incredibly talented. Check out her cute scarves and head wraps here and in her etsy shop here.

this is love

2010-03-19T21:08:00.001-07:00

I'm so grateful for such a wonderful husband. Last night I was so tired. W could see this and he suggested that I go to bed, and he stayed up with Oliver all night. I got 8 1/2 hours of blissful sleep. I woke up on my own at 9:30 and was overjoyed. Not only did W tough out the whole night with our little guy, but he did it without power, in the complete dark (our whole block was out of power until 3:30 am). He rocked our little baby and sang hymns to him. I love this man more everyday.

checking in

2010-03-15T10:36:00.000-07:00

[One week photo shoot with dad]

Things are going well since our little guy joined us (two weeks ago from tomorrow). He is the sweetest little baby. I still can't believe how early he came but we're glad he's here. [For those interested in his birth story, it is on my pregnancy blog.]

It was so nice having my mom's help for the first two weeks. She made dinner, kept up with the dishes and laundry, held him a lot, went to the store for me several times, and helped with shifts in the night (and took him all night on her last night here). I am a little nervous about doing it on my own. At least W has the next two weeks off of work. My sister and dad are also coming into town this week and I'm excited to spend time with them.

Aside from adjusting to little sleep, trying to nurse / pump, and figure out what cry means what, I am trying to finish up my quarter. It's all a little crazy, but I'm sure we'll get through it.

introducing oliver

2010-03-07T13:22:00.000-08:00

Samuel Oliver Schultz was born on Tuesday, March 2, 2010 at 4:26 am. He weighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long. We are completely in love with him and we're so excited that he is a part of our little family.

change

2010-02-27T00:29:00.000-08:00

My whole world is about to change. That's so weird to think about. I think because I just haven't had time to think about it much with how busy I've been, it's just now hitting me. I just looked at his most recent ultra sound picture again and for some reason it all seemed more real (also contributing could be the fact that I'm about to pop). I can't believe that in a matter of a couple of weeks I will be holding my son in my arms. I really can't believe it. This pregnancy has flown by but when I look back to July when we found out that I was pregnant, it seems like so long ago. Now here I am with a grown baby inside, ready to make his entrance into the world soon. It just seems kind of surreal. Even though I am really not prepared at all in so many ways, I have been waiting for this for a lot longer than 9 months.

My life has been so stressful lately. My Biology class has to be completed by March 19th, which is two weeks from today. That is not going to happen. It is literally not possible, not only because there aren't enough hours in the day, but also because LSU (which is in Louisiana), where I am taking the class, is very slow with sending things like graded assignments and tests through the mail, so I am stuck until they come, and who knows when that will be (not in enough time to complete the rest of my work in two weeks).

Anyway, due to not completing this class on time, I have to take a leave of absence from my program. (I just sighed as I typed that.) This is actually much better than what I was originally told would happen if I didn't finish on time, which was that I would be kicked out of the program and would have to reapply if I wanted to return (which, if you remember, was a very involved process that I don't care to repeat). Thanks to a professor of mine, who also happens to be my academic adviser, the director of the program has agreed to allow me to take a leave of absence rather than drop me from the program. I am so grateful for this. Even though this is good news compared to the alternative, when I first found out about it, I was completely crushed. In fact, I kind of had a little bit of a breakdown that was not good. We have felt so good about school and it's so hard to think of stepping back from this goal and graduating a year later than anticipated (because the core classes are only offered once a year, I will have to take some of them next year and graduate in 2012 rather than 2011).

As I've had time to process this, I've felt a lot of peace about it, as has W. We both feel that it's going to be okay to do this. Part of me is kind of relieved because now I will have three months, not only off of work, but off of school too, totally devoted to our baby (other than the Biology class, which I still have to work on until it is completed, as I can't re-enter the program until it is done).

I have been killing myself trying to get this class done by the deadline, on top of a huge research project, work in my other class, and working / training my replacement. I have been getting 5-6 hours of sleep each night at the most. It just has not been healthy.

Tonight after work, we went out to eat. We talked about this decision and how we both feel good about it. We came home and watched Bones. I told W it was one of the best nights of my life because I could actually relax, which I really needed. It is amazing how much better I feel.

I will still be stressed out until the baby comes, trying to get things done to wrap up this quarter. I will still spend hours at the library and wonder how I'm going to get everything done that is required of me. But a huge burden has been lifted. I feel so much better.

makes me smile

2010-02-25T22:22:00.000-08:00

I am getting so excited to meet this little guy.

[Ultrasound from last week at 37 weeks to confirm that he turned. Yay!]

little photo shoot | 36 weeks

2010-02-22T00:20:00.000-08:00

My friend Julie took some maternity pictures for me last Saturday at 36 weeks. I had wanted to take these earlier in my pregnancy when I was feeling a bit more comfortable in front of the camera, but life was just too busy (not that it has slowed down, but I'm running out of time). It was raining on and off but we made it work. These were taken across from the campus where I go to school. Here are a few of my favorites.

Thanks Julie!

freaking out

2010-02-16T21:30:00.001-08:00

[Picture taken a little over two weeks ago, at 34 weeks]

I can't believe our baby is due so soon. Only 3 1/2 weeks! I am kind of freaking out. I am so not ready and have about a million things to do before then. Hopefully the stress of it all won't cause early labor. Oh my goodness. Seriously. 3 1/2 weeks.

my nemesis

2010-02-09T21:26:00.000-08:00

I hate that I have to take Biology this quarter. It's so lame. Maybe I should come back when I'm not so grumpy.

Utah Baby Shower

2010-02-04T22:14:00.001-08:00

My mom and sister threw me a shower in Utah so my extended family there could get together and see my big pregnant belly and shower me with gifts (as well as a few friends who live in Utah). It was really fun. Here are some of the decorations (this is at my mom's house - isn't it so cute?)

Cute little treat bags for guests to take.

Yummy food.

Prizes for the winners of the games. We played the one where everyone is given a little blue clothes pin to wear and if someone hears you say the words "baby" or "cute" they can take away your pin, and whoever has the most at the end wins (I lost right away...how could I not say the word cute when opening baby clothes?). We also played the one where everyone has to cut off how much string they think will measure my belly and the closest one wins.

I am in love with this blanket my mom made for him. It's perfect.

Grandma and Grandpa Roberts. They both gave very touching advice at my shower (yes, my grandpa came to the shower and stayed the whole time, actively participating in the games and everything. It was really cute).

Heidi and me. We have been friends since 6th grade. I'm so glad she could come to my shower. It was really good to see her.

Lindsey and me

My Grandma and Grandpa Herzog

My mom and me with the blanket she made for our little guy. I absolutely love it! These are going to be the colors of his nursery - green and white with accents of chocolate brown and light blue. I love the fabric that she chose and how it all looks together. This blanket makes me so excited to start putting his nursery together.

I wish I could have gotten more pictures of everyone else who came to the shower but I was a little preoccupied.

Before opening a gift, the person who gave the gift was supposed to give me advice. Here is the advice I got from everyone:

*Don't forget Wendel - Grandma H.
*Sleep when the baby sleeps - Bethaney
*Be flexible with your goals - Taryn
*Have patience. It's okay if you have a fussy baby. Roll with it. -Jenna & Kristi
*Let others spoil you - Krystell
*Don't try to please / impress the neighbors. Stay close to him in the hard times. - Grandma R.
*Use the drugs - Britney
*Don't hesitate to ask for help. - Lindsey
*Plan on giving him (the baby) time. - Diane
*Don't get offended by other people. - Mom
*Pray about things and then do them. - Heidi
*Take time for yourself - Shaunie
*Start using a swing early on. Start FHE before he knows what it is rather than randomly starting it one day when he's older. - Syd
*Remember that there is a time and season for everything. - Neesha
*Stay close to your kids. Teach them about the government and the importance of how it is run. Kids these days don't know about it and don't appreciate it. - Grandpa R.
*It's okay to let them cry...just put in some earplugs and hold them. "Kids are like fruit, they aren't ripe yet." - Kass

Thanks Mom and Linds for the fun shower!

the first week

2010-01-10T17:50:00.000-08:00

I made it through my first week of grad school. The adjustment of going back to school has been a bit difficult, especially since I'm pregnant and working all day, leaving only late night hours (until at least 1:00am or later) to do my reading. There is a lot of reading. I expected that there would be, obviously, but I am blown away by just how much more there is than in my undergrad program. For example, for my next Research class, I have to read five chapters and three e-reserve articles (between 10-20 pages on average for each of them), and know the material enough to discuss it in class and then apply it to my papers. There are a lot of expectations since I am in the "advanced" program. Hopefully I can live up to them.

I believe that I can do this only because I recently found out that I will be able to cut down to part time at my job. This is such a blessing! I actually wanted to only work part time from the very beginning and asked if it would be possible in my initial interview. It wasn't, of course, so I took the job anyway, knowing that I could at least work full time for six months. I asked again a couple of months ago, to see if there was any way that my supervisor could hire someone to take over part of my job and I would still do the other part. Again, he said no, because they just didn't have the money to do that. Recently, I got a new direct supervisor and I was talking to her about this. She told me that one of my co-workers was leaving the SPARK (Strong Partners and Relationships for Kids) Program (which I coordinate) entirely to go full time in Head Start (she was doing half Head Start and half Spark) and that instead of hiring a part time person to fill her role, they would shift things around and hire a full time person to replace my job and then I would do the part time stuff in SPARK. Basically, it is exactly what I have been hoping and praying for. This will allow me to keep my sanity. I am so very thankful. I really feel that Heavenly Father knows me and my situation and that He is mindful of me. On the days that I do go into work, I can take the baby with me, or work from home, so it will work out. Knowing this motivates me to keep going with this crazy schedule, even though it is so hard. I am going straight to class from work and getting very little sleep. Crazy. But at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel soon (the job is being posted this coming week and then they will start the interview process).

I will say that it is nice to be back in school again in a way, especially since the campus is so familiar to me. It almost seems like there was never a seven month break since I was there last. I like learning and thinking of things in different ways, having discussions about issues I feel are important, and getting to know my new cohort (there are only 12 of us so it's a small group). There are six of us in the program who were in the BASW Cohort together, so it's nice to see some familiar faces. One of them is a good friend of mine, which is even better.

One thing I am kind of struggling with right now is the decision I have made to not do homework on Sundays. It's completely a personal decision, one that I made in 1999 while going to Ricks College. A General Authority spoke to us at one of the weekly devotionals and told us that if we would commit to not doing homework on Sundays, but keep the Sabbath as a special day, and a day of rest, that we would be blessed in our educational endeavors and in our lives in general. This isn't something that the LDS Church pushes and I certainly don't look down on people who do homework on Sundays...but way back in 1999 I decided to make that commitment and have stuck to it ever since.

It has never been so tempting, though. I just have so much to do, it's crazy. In class on Saturday, pretty much our whole cohort and professor were talking during our lunch break. One girl said something like, "I don't have much time to get the work done, so Sundays are going to be my day devoted to papers and reading. I'm sure it will be that way for you too, Ashley, right?" "Actually, I choose not to do homework on Sundays." I'm sure everyone in that room thought I was crazy. They just kind of nodded and then went back to their conversation. It sounds ridiculous. Then I started thinking that maybe it is ridiculous. What am I thinking? How can I get it all done if I don't do some of it on Sundays? I am killing myself staying up until 3am and then getting up at 7:30 for work. I will say, though, that I have felt very blessed in my life as I have stuck to this decision. I am going to go forward with it (no photo editing for clients on Sundays, either). I guess it's a way of keeping the sabbath day holy. It's so nice to have this day devoted to thoughts about my Heavenly Father and Savior, attending church, reading the scriptures, thinking about spiritual things, writing in my personal journal, and spending time with family. I also feel so relaxed and rejuvenated when I have a day of rest, which I desperately need. Sundays are my favorite day of the week.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to be in grad school. I know it seems kind of crazy, especially with the timing of having a baby. I wouldn't be doing it if we didn't feel so strongly about it, but we did and we still do, so I'm doing it. Now I just hope and pray that this baby doesn't come early (he's due two days after my last class ends for the quarter).

a few things

2010-01-04T23:59:00.001-08:00

1. I start graduate school tomorrow. I am feeling a little intimidated. For the first half of my undergrad, I didn't work at all and for the second half, I had a very low-key part-time job. It will be interesting to see how this goes. The good thing is that I'm not caring about my GPA as much like I did before, so that takes some pressure off. Overall, I feel pretty good about this next step and I'm even a little excited about it. Bring on the midnight papers. And feedings.

2. I am feeling like I have the energy to go forward because we had a nice, relaxing break over Christmas in Long Beach, WA. We actually opened our Christmas presents at 1:30am on Christmas Eve (because when will we ever be able to do that again? Never.), slept in on Christmas morning (because that is what we love to do), got up and made a yummy breakfast, played some Mario on our Wii (my brother gave us the Mario game for Wii, which is really fun) and then we headed out to Long Beach, where we spent the next five days. We slept in every day, read books (W read Frankenstein, which was really depressing and I read Tuesdays with Morrie, which was very inspirational and touching), we worked on a puzzle, watched Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea, swam in the indoor pool, watched Buffy, made food, went out to eat, went to bed when we were tired, I did yoga, we took pictures...essentially we relaxed, which was so nice and needed. It was fun to have that last little vacation together before our little guy is born.

The scenery was so pretty there, we had to do a little photo shoot with ourselves. We set up our tripod and had some fun.

3. I am finishing up the last of client photo shoots and then we aren't booking any more until I'm done with grad school (other than a few special exceptions). I'm sure I will miss it in a way but I also think it will be good to have a break from it for a while. There is no way it can fit into my life right now. I have been updating our photography site with shoots if you want to take a peek. (Many more to come - I'm very behind with posting.)

4. I still need to post about our 5th Annual Holiday Gala and how special W made Christmas for me this year. Hopefully soon.

christmas service idea

2009-12-08T22:18:00.000-08:00

This is the perfect time of year to look beyond ourselves and brighten the lives of others. My friend Julie is a Mary Kay consultant and she is doing something pretty awesome that I wanted to let you all know about. She is doing an "Adopt a Grandparent" program for Christmas. Basically, you donate $20 and she will create a gift basket to distribute to an elderly person at a nursing home from you. Think of how this will brighten their day! I think it's a great idea. If you have an extra $20 to spare, consider doing this. (Unfortunately, the deadline is December 13th...let me know if you want to participate by then.)

jumping through hoops

2009-12-03T22:45:00.000-08:00

I am going to rant a little so if you don't want to hear it, don't read. I am so sick of jumping through academic hoops. Being a student really is a full-time job in itself with all of the extra stuff you have to do to satisfy "requirements."

I had a mandatory orientation tonight for grad school (which starts in January). As soon as I got there, the adviser came up to me and asked me if I'm currently enrolled in a Biology class or have taken one in the past few months. I told her no, I already took that class as part of my generals. It turns out, I took that class in 1998 (yes, I've been in school forever) and since it's been over ten years, the class no longer counts towards UW's requirments - and this class is a prerequisite for the graduate program. Therefore, they won't let me start classes unless I can show that I am enrolled in a Biology class and I've started the class before classes start on January 5th. Seriously? This is so stupid! It's not even a class that is pertinent to social work. I could understand it more if it was a writing class or a sociology class or something else that would support my learning in the program, but Biology just doesn't fall in that category. This is really not what I need in my life right now. I am already so overwhelmed, I can hardly fathom adding something else to it in the next three weeks. (I don't think it helps that I am pregnant and get irritated and emotional easily these days.)

That being said, I feel so blessed that I was accepted to this extremely competitive program and that I currently have a job in my field. There are six of us from my BASW Cohort who got accepted to the Advanced Standing Program and none of them, other than me, have found jobs. I was talking to one of my friends there tonight and he and his wife are both out of work. He has applied for every social work-related job he has seen since June and only got calls for interviews this past week. He even applied to deliver pizza and didn't get the job. Others from my cohort are frustrated and discouraged with the job market. Not only do I have a job, but it's a pretty good job, I like it, and it pays really well. It is allowing me to save money to pay for grad school. We also have so much work with our photography business, which is also helpful (though I will emphasize the word work). I am also grateful for my family. My co-worker's brother died the other day while she was at work. I can't imagine getting that phone call. I am also grateful for W. He is my favorite person of all time. (Poor guy - it is his birthday and he's stuck at work as I type this (11:00pm). We were supposed to meet for dinner but he couldn't get away so I got take-out and took it to him. We sat in the cafeteria at Amazon for about ten minutes and ate Indian Food. Awesome. This is the busiest time of year for Amazon. Their sales were double on Black Friday and it only gets crazier until Christmas. (But again, I'm grateful Amazon is doing so well so that he has a job.)

If you see me with a dazed look, know that I'm trying to keep up with my life but I'm not always very graceful about it. Sigh. I can do this, right? Grad school, having an infant and working full-time? (If you don't think so, don't tell me.) I'm all about positive affirmation these days.

thanksgiving weekend highlights

2009-11-29T22:28:00.000-08:00

*Rather than having a traditional Thanksgiving, we went to a vegan restaurant, Plum, with my brother in Seattle and then to see New Moon. It was nice not to have to prepare all of that food and do all of those dishes (I think I am re-entering the tired mode of this pregnancy. I am all about simplicity). It was nice to spend time with my brother and W. (And, no pictures to show from Thanksgiving this year - part of that whole simplicity thing, I guess.)

*It was wonderful having Friday off as well. It was a catch-up day. We cleaned our house and I worked on editing, which was very much needed. I now have a very clean shower to show for it, among other things, which makes me happy.

*Saturday we had a shoot (these are getting more and more difficult as I can no longer lay on my stomach or bend in ways I am used to) and then we bought our tree and started decorating our house. I cannot believe it is Christmastime. I just can't believe it. Wasn't it just Christmas? Where does the time go? The older I get, the faster it goes.

*Today after church we had dinner with some friends and my brother came over to watch Star Trek with us. It was a nice, relaxing day.

It's so difficult to go back to work after nice, long weekends like these.

catching up: my mom and sister's visit

2009-11-29T19:50:00.000-08:00

In October, my mom and sister came to visit. It was so fun having them here. My mom wanted to be here to see Sassy Mei in person since we've been doing that show for a while now (she is super supportive like that). I didn't pull our camera out once the whole weekend but luckily my mom had her point and shoot and got a few pictures.

[At Kent Station after eating at Fondi's.]

[Lindsey, me, Tyson, and my mom]

My mom and sister and I had a fun girls' day in Issaquah at Gardner Village (even though it wasn't quite what we had hoped it would be and the Mexican place we ate at for lunch was absolutely horrible), we played games, and enjoyed spending time together. It was so great having them visit. It's hard living so far apart but so fun to have them visit.

so very thankful

2009-11-12T21:39:00.000-08:00

that this man is in my life.

[Pictures taken at the Puyallup Fair
September 2009]

Thanks to all who left comments on
my last post with your advice about
what to buy (and not buy). It's so
helpful. It makes me even more excited
to welcome this little guy into our
family.

must-have items?

2009-11-01T20:55:00.000-08:00

I posted this on my pregnancy blog but thought I would post it here too.

I wanted to throw this question out to you guys: What baby items would you recommend? What could you not live without? What should I put on my "must-have" list?

I am finally getting into the mode where I'm keeping an eye out for items that we may need. So far we have a crib, a car seat (compliments of Amazon - they give their employees a free car seat), a stroller and a bunch of clothes that I have been collecting when I find really good deals (usually second-hand). My sister-in-law, Britney, sat down with me a few weeks ago and made a list of the things she recommends and it was so helpful. I thought I would get even more feedback from all of you experts out there. Tell me what I can't live without.

ETA: Also, is there anything you bought / received and wish you hadn't?

catching up: krystell's visit

2009-10-18T20:55:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to post about this since June but somehow it never happened (along with many other posts). It is a Sunday evening and W is taking a nap, the house is quiet, and it's the perfect time for a catch-up post like this one.

Back in June, my friend Krystell came to visit from Utah. Krystell was my roommate at Rick's College (back when it was Rick's college) in 2000. The last time I saw her before this visit was at my mission farewell in September of 2001 - eight years ago! We have kept in touch through letters while she was on her mission, email, facebook and each others blogs through all of that time. She had been wanting to come and see the Pacific Northwest for quite some time, so she finally did it. It was really fun having her here. It was perfect timing, too - I had just graduated but hadn't started working yet and was only volunteering a couple of days a week, so I had a free schedule (man, that was nice!).

After I picked her up from the airport, we went to Dash Point Beach and had a picnic (well, it was mostly just pita bread and hummus but it was good).

(Back when I didn't have a big belly)

Krystell really wanted to see a lighthouse so we ventured up the road a bit to where we saw one in the distance. It was kind of a pathetic lighthouse, though.
(Krystell didn't want to be in many pictures so there are lots of me)

The next day we hung out in downtown Seattle. We hit Pike's Place, had lunch at Beecher's Handmade Cheese (yum)  and then went to the library for a tour and then she met up with another friend of hers for the rest of the day.
(Cheese is being made behind us) 

I have been to Pike's place several times (everyone wants to check it out when they come to visit and I don't blame them) but I enjoy it every time.

That night we went to a Mariner's game.

The next day we took a ferry out to Bainbridge Island, where we looked at fun shops, had lunch at a cute little place called The Harbour House, and then had ice-cream at Mora's (thanks to my friends, Dean and Becky, who sent me a gift card there as a graduation gift. Their ice-cream is divine).

Our view while we had lunch.

Our view on the ferry on the way back to Seattle.

Overall, Krystell's visit was really fun. I'm so glad she came!

It's a...

2009-10-14T20:13:00.001-07:00

BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are very excited! I didn't mention this before because I didn't want to sway your decisions when voting, but I thought we were having a boy. I even had a dream when I was 7 1/2 weeks, while we were in Utah, the night we told our families. It was a very vivid dream - I saw a baby boy and I knew he was ours. I can still picture his face. [Not that dreams are always accurate. I am thankful for that, as I have had some crazy dreams during this pregnancy...the kind where I wake up and say "WHAT?!?" Every night I dream about random people in my life who are not likely to show up in my dreams, but there they are.] The little guy was very active today. I could feel him moving around before the appointment, which I was hoping was a good sign. I had 1/2 cup of orange juice to get him going, but then I asked the tech if that is a myth or if it really works and she said it doesn't really work but that some babies are just more active and cooperative than others.

You can see that his most recent photo is blurry - that's because he was moving around so much. It's cool how you can see his spine in this one. I also liked how we could see his little heart beating during the ultra sound. We're grateful for this happy news and especially to know that so far he is a healthy baby. What a great day!

made me laugh...

2009-10-13T21:28:00.001-07:00

Wow, two posts in one night. I just have to share this picture from Karen's blog (the amazing person I took a photography class from last year. I love her blog). This picture made me laugh out loud, which I needed.

By the way, I enjoy reading all of your blogs. I have a routine where I come home from work and take a little break while eating dinner. During that break I check my email and read blogs before moving onto photo editing. Thanks to everyone for the entertainment! Keep blogging away - know that I appreciate it!

brief baby update

2009-10-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

Just stopping in to say that we get to find out the gender of our baby tomorrow morning (bright and early, at 7:45am)! We are pretty excited. Any tips for me? Drink juice? Caffeine? I'm so hoping this little baby is active in the morning! I added a poll to my sidebar. I'm a bit late in adding it but if you want to vote for boy or girl, please do. I would love to see what everyone thinks.

Also, some of you know this but for those who don't, I have a pregnancy blog where I keep track of my thoughts (and pictures of my growing belly) during this pregnancy. I have this blog private but if you want to read it, leave me a comment or email me and I will send you an invite (if I don't already have your email address, leave it for me). It's not too exciting but it's just a fun place to keep all of my baby thoughts together. (I also added a link to it on my sidebar under "My Stuff" for those who follow it and want to get there quickly from my blog.)

feeling overwhelmed...

2009-10-03T17:20:00.001-07:00

I am totally overwhelmed with my life right now. I feel like I go non-stop and only stop to sleep before I'm running out the door again. It's pretty crazy. I am grateful for my job, and my second job slash hobby but I do miss creating pretty things, home improvement projects, reading books, and cooking. In light of these feelings, I want to at least share some pretty things on this blog lest it become a very boring place.

I think it would be fun to spend an afternoon making caramel apples like these.

I love how fun and colorful this porch is.

I saw this cute Fall decoration idea on my friend Marci's blog and I love it.

If you're looking for some lovely blogs to read, check out this one and for good recipes (with amazing pictures / presentation), go here.

I would like to share more but as usual, I am running out the door. Have a great weekend!

sassy mei

2009-09-21T20:36:00.000-07:00

Sassy Mei is coming up! We will have our photography booth set up again this year. There are so many fun and cute things to look at. Plan to attend!

Also, they are doing lots of fun giveaways for free stuff (including a photo shoot with us). Check out their facebook page here and their blog here.

catching up: connor's blessing

2009-09-21T18:24:00.000-07:00

Going back a couple of weeks, we went to Portland for our nephew's baby blessing. It was so nice being there. Connor is such a good baby. He didn't mind being passed around from person to person. I think I only heard him cry once the whole weekend and it was because he was hungry. What a sweet little guy. We're glad to have Connor in our family.

I have some pictures I took of this little cuite with my camera but I am not the most organized person right now. I will have to find them and add them later.

baby emma

2009-09-14T22:29:00.000-07:00

For those who know little Emma, you might be interested to see some photos from her newborn shoot here. What a beautiful baby girl.

first ultrasound

2009-09-10T19:01:00.000-07:00

I had my first ultrasound last week. Ultrasounds are amazing! Seeing an image of our baby appear on the screen was incredible. I was surprised by how much I loved it. The tech I had wasn't too enthusiastic or talkative and W couldn't be there but I decided to just be excited by myself anyway. The baby raised his/her arm up and then brought it down to his/her face and it looked like he/she was sucking on his/her thumb. He/she also extended and bended his/her legs and seemed pretty active the whole time. (I can't wait until we know the sex so I can just say he or she.) I know people always wonder what they're looking at when they see these scans but I think it's pretty amazing.

i couldn't resist...

2009-09-08T21:05:00.000-07:00

Remember the cute little dress in this post? Even though I have no idea if we are having a boy or a girl, and who knows if we will ever have a girl, I finally broke down and bought it. It's just so cute! It arrived today and I'm in love. Someday I want to learn how to sew but until then I will adore the handiwork of others.

the heartbeat

2009-08-31T23:36:00.000-07:00

P.S. Here's our baby's heartbeat, for those interested in this kind of thing. There are a couple of parts where I am laughing (the two loud noises in the beginning) and then we are talking over some of it but you get the idea. What a sweet sound.

Also, today is the first day that I had energy and wasn't extremely exhausted in quite a while. I almost felt like I did before I was pregnant (almost). We even went out to dinner at to a Mariner's game with my brother after work and it was great.

i've been keeping a secret...

2009-08-29T11:01:00.007-07:00

and I'm glad I can finally share it with you! I am pregnant! I am 12 weeks, due March 13th. We are really excited. We got to hear the heartbeat on Wednesday and that was amazing. So far I haven't been sick (please don't hate me, those of you reading who have rough pregnancies). I have been incredibly tired, though, and I get headaches frequently. Working full time, I am especially tired. I am pretty much useless when I come home from work and often go to bed around 9:30 (which, if you know me well, you know is not like me at all). I hear you have more energy in the second trimester so I'm holding onto that hope.

For those of you who are wondering, yes, I'm going to try to go to grad school and have a baby at the same time. It will be crazy. We'll see how it goes.

So that is our happy news. We couldn't be happier about it. (Heather and Katie, I'm glad I'll be in good company. How fun!)

Here is a picture of me at 12 weeks:

Maybe I will get back to more regular blogging if the tiredness really wears off like I've been told it will. No promises though.

yay for plan b!

2009-08-15T12:15:00.000-07:00

I heard back from my second choice for grad school and I got accepted! I am really excited because it is super competitive - only 12 people got in and I'm one of them! This is the same school where I did my undergrad (UWT). It's a great school (third best in the nation for social work), my undgrad program was amazing, and I love the professors there. Even though I was pretty sad about not getting into my first choice, I think this works out better in the end. It starts January 4th and to be honest, I'm glad I have a while before going back to school. Yay!

i'm all about extremes, apparently

2009-08-08T00:11:00.000-07:00

I got a job so I am insanely busy now! I must admit, I was enjoying the relaxing life. My new job is full-time, plus photo shoots on Saturdays, so I have my hands full. I'm so grateful for my job though. It fell right into my lap, thanks to the wonderful people I worked with at CHS, where I've been volunteering / interning this past year. They referred me for an open position at CHS, but at the Auburn office, so I interviewed and got the job. I started the next day! Crazy! I am a program manager over this really cool program for low-income families that strengthens couples and families. So far it is a little overwhelming but I think I'm going to like it. Anyway, I might not be blogging for a while...no time!

a beautiful life

Christmas 2011

Best of 2011

resolutions and family photos

december in arizona

goodbye washington

vote for oliver's nursery!

i didn't know

lately

white chair

book suggestions?

feeling inspired

a new perspective

confession

makes me smile

a little thing called pride

today

the school "dream"

the difference a year makes

*loving*

I need your help

sweet giveaway

2010 recap

is this my new reality?

cute gratitude project

the schultz pride

church and state can come together after all

my seven-month-old and some other random stuff

my lds stake app and general conference

organization

project life and whole foods

two things

newport, oregon

a few thoughts at the beginning the journey

impromptu self-portraits

someday

new favorite treat

finding balance

you know you're stressed out when...

i want to do that...

feeling grateful

mirror love

workout music?

biology update

don't you hate it when your best isn't good enough?

six years

oliver's nursery

three months old

randomness

the cutest suits

thoughts on being a mother

*some favorites*

sad to see her go...

parenthood

kitty

baby half off

this is love

checking in

*introducing oliver*

change

makes me smile

little photo shoot | 36 weeks

*freaking out*

my nemesis

Utah Baby Shower

the first week

a few things

christmas service idea

jumping through hoops

thanksgiving weekend highlights

catching up: my mom and sister's visit

so very thankful

must-have items?

catching up: krystell's visit

It's a...

made me laugh...

brief baby update

feeling overwhelmed...

sassy mei

catching up: connor's blessing

loving

some favorites

introducing oliver

freaking out