We got Reed this great new toy. He loves to stand up and he will cry a lot if you don't hold him to do so. After several weeks of this and our backs killing us, we decided it was time to find a toy that would hold him up. So we found this walker on KSL for only 10 bucks! We went and picked it up on Saturday and when we put him in it for the first time he had the best gut laugh for about 5 minutes. He thought it was the greatest thing. Now he just cruises around in this thing and runs into everything. He plans sneak attacks on us. He can figure out how to make it move, but he hasn't figured out quite yet that he can decide where it goes. Anyway, he loves it cause he can push himself or just stand there.
We also started Reed on rice cereal. He hasn't had it more than just a few times now, and frankly, I'm not sure he really likes it much. The first two times, not much actually got in his stomach, he would just kinda spit it out. He doesn't really know how to use the spoon. But he is chunking up nicely as you can see.
I have a few pet peeves, but one tops them all. Air blowing on me. I don't mind the wind really, as long as it doesn't last all day long. I'm talking about breathing on me, air conditioners blowing on me, fans blowing on me, things like that. Maybe I've got sensative skin or something, I just can't stand the feeling of my skin being blown on. It gives me the chills. When Fogg and I got married and we'd get into bed at night, he learned quickly that you must always put a sheet between my shoulder and his face. So then I just started to wear t-shirts to bed. I don't like when I'm in the car with the air conditioning on and the vent is blowing right on me. I don't mind that the air is on, I just don't want it blowing on me! And I loth ceiling fans. Wish I could rip them all out of the ceilings.
So the other night, Reed got up particularly early for his morning feeding - like 5:15. I've been a little sick so I really didn't want to get out of bed to get him and feed him, but I did anyway, cause that's my new life as a mom. Anyway, it's been getting pretty chilly here in the evenings, but when we go to bed, it's still warm, hence why Fogg had not only the window fan on (which I also hate the noise of) but the ceiling fan was also on. Because I wanted to stop my baby from crying, I neglected to turn of either fan when I went to get him and bring him back to bed. I was also just wearing a tank top due to the warm "going to sleep" temp. I start feeding Reed (and to spare you the details, imagine the height of my baby's head if I am feeding him laying down) so I can't put the sheets all the way up to my shoulders cause I would cover the baby's head, therefore making it hard for him to breath. I'm laying so my back is facing Fogg. So I'm already annoyed cause I don't feel good and I have to be awake at 5:15 in the morning. Then the fan is blowing on me. Then Fogg rolls over facing the same direction as me and starts breathing through his nose (the sleep deep breathing) on my back. Then Reed starts breathing through his nose as he is eating right onto my skin. I almost lost it. I'm trying to keep cool cause it's practically the middle of the night and I don't want to be waking up and startling everyone in my family. So I'm trying to not move too much but still get the sheet over my shoulder. Not sure how the whole thing ended, maybe Fogg rolled over or something. It was an exercise is patience for me.
I think that I have about a million other pet peeves, but I am going to categorize them in my "OCD" tendencies instead (like the counter always being clean, crumb-free and free of items). This is the thing that for no other reason, bothers the crap out of me. And I believe that it is called a "pet" because you nuture it and feed it and take care of it as it is part of your life.
I'm not sure why, but it seems that the TV stations are fascinated by people who win the lottery. I've watched 3 shows in the last couple of weeks about people winning the lottery. One show was about "the curse of the lottery" and showcased people that won and lost it all - in other words, idiots. Another won just displayed all of the crap that people bought. And I wondered, why do these people blow all this money on ridiculous stuff. And the reason I came up with is this - generally people who buy lots of lottery tickets, therefore increasing their chance of winning, are people who are not smart with their money or investments. I would consider myself someone that chooses to put my money is "safer" places like investments, bonds, savings, etc. I find it a waste of money to buy a lottery ticket. Sorry if I've offended anyone who reads my blog that buys lottery tickets. Utah doesn't have a lottery so I guess that helps too.
But no matter how "smart" you are with your money or who you are, everyone, yes I mean you too, dreams about what you would do if you won, let's say 121 million dollars. So because I've watched a couple of these shows and it's a fun game to play, Fogg and I have been dreaming up what we'd do with all that money. And yes, some of these things are ridiculous, but we are talking about fake money, so no holds bar. Here is what I would do with my money if I won the lottery:
First and foremost, I would quit my job. (people who say that they would still work if they were set financially are liars)
I would go on a great vacation. Probably for a couple of months and I would go to all the places I've always wanted to go - France, Nepal, Italy, Spain, Germany, Scotland. And I'd do it big - nice hotels, nice restaurants, nice rental cars, and I'd definitely fly first class.
I'd get two cars - a Dodge Charger (the new one looks so cool to me) and a Land Rover (for the winter driving). I'd probably get myself a nice motorcycle too. And since I'm not working, I'd have time to take the motorcycle class.
I'd sell my house and find a house on more property and I'd probably pay to have all the nice things put into it. Now, I wouldn't buy a multimillion dollar home, I'd buy something that is big enough but not too big that I couldn't clean it. And yes, I'd still clean it, I have a control issue with cleaning, I couldn't let anyone else do it. It would be cool to have land to drive dirtbikes and mountain bikes and fun things on it.
I'd pay off my parents and my in-laws houses for them (or help them move where they'd want to be instead). And since I have theoretical money here, I'd buy them cars they want if they didn't already have them. And I'd give them enough money that they wouldn't have to work anymore.
I'd invest a large chunk so that Reed (and any other of my children) are set for their lives and for their children. Enough money that they could go to college and pursue their dreams.
I'd treat my friends to nice dinners and fun things.
I'd give money to my church to build more locations and support ministries.
I might buy a vacation home somewhere - but I don't know where yet, maybe I'd figure that out while on my travels.
I'd go heliskiing in Alaska.
I'd get myself a bracelet that I've been eying for 5 years that is $3K.
I'd hire a personal trainer to help me get the rest of my baby weight off.
What would you do with money if you won the lottery?
Yesterday, our friend Steve Roberts passed away. Steve was quite an amazing person and Fogg and I are blessed to have known him, if only for a short time. We first met Steve this winter with his equally amazing wife Suzanne. What made Steve so amazing is that he has battled cancer for the past 10 years. I'm not going to give his story any justice at all but I'll attempt it. He was doing a routine health exam for life insurance when they found a deadly form of cancer and he was given only a few short months to live. 10 years and many, many cancers, diagnosis' and "only months to live" he finally passed. What made Steve so awesome is that his faith only grew with each diagnosis and battle. He sought the most advanced care and gave his body for trials on new medications. He touched so many people's lives during his last few years, sharing his story to anyone that would listen (probably to those that didn't want to too). His final battle was with some brain tumors that proved to have beat him this time around. Up to the end he was helping his family out, by taking in their small granddaughter. Fogg and I made the trip to church on Sunday hoping to run into Steve and thankfully we did and were able to see him standing and talking as Steve always does. On his last weekend on earth, he went to church with his family. What a guy. We will miss Steve, he was an amazing dude!
Because I have now entered "mom" status, I have to share some of my new favorite "mom" things. By the way, I still find it weird to be called a "mom". My mom is a mom, how could I be a mom?
Thing #1: babysteals.com This is a one deal at a time site that gives you one really cool baby thing a day. Some are gender specific, most things are just some cool mom or baby things. If you are expecting, this is a site to check daily, you could pick up some of your necessities super cheap.
Thing #2: coolmompicks.com I just stumbled across this, but I really like it. Good ideas, neat things.
Ok, that's all I've got for now. Next on the blog list is pet peeves and the lottery.
So we just went to Maine, via Boston, for a week. The purpose of the trip was to visit with family that is getting a bit older and haven't met Reed yet. We were hoping to see Fogg's great uncle Bill one more time as he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. Unfortunately, though he lasted much longer than the doctors had predicted, he passed away before we were able to get out there. The fortunate thing is that we were able to spend time with his widow - Aunt Sa. Sa told us tons of great stories about Bill and showed us lots of pictures. It was great to bond with her that way.
First we flew into Boston and spent the night with Fogg's uncle Paul and aunt Carol. They cooked us an amazing pasta dinner! The next morning we headed up to the Constitution ship at the navy yard in Boston. It was a fascinating tour.
I do the exact same thing with my eyes when it's sunny...
Next we headed north, stopping in Ogunquit (pronounced O-gone-quit). There was an amazing beach there that we took Reed to. He got to put his feet in the Atlantic for the first time.
We spent the night in Dover, NH, the next morning heading to Freeport. We met up with Dale (Fogg's brother) and Georgette and their daughter Gabby. We then went to a shaker village in Maine, with only 4 remaining members. We looked around a bit and learned some interesting facts about the shakers. According to a map located in the museum, these are the last 4 shakers in existence (I could be wrong about that, but that's what I saw). We then drove up to Gram's house in Bangor. Reed had a rough day this day for some reason so we had to stop for a "sanity check". We learned later that we think he was having some serious gas problems even though he was burping fine after feedings. Poor little guy was just screaming his head off like I've never heard before. So we get to Gram's then head straight over to uncle Bob and aunt Cindy's place (which is about 2 houses away). We caught up with the family and had some dinner. We spent the night there and just hung around the next day at Bob and Cindy's. The boys did some work, bringing firewood to Gram's house. We also walked down to the old John Deere tractor for some pictures of Reed, but he wasn't having it. Reed took a ride with Bob later on the new tractor. The whole fam came over for a BBQ that afternoon and for a surprise birthday for Gram. I believe there was like 18 people there, I won't bore you with exactly who. That night, we slept in the camper with Dale and Georgette where I froze my ass off and got attacked (ok, just jumped on) by Buster the dog in the middle of the night. To say the least, it wasn't the most restful night of sleep I've ever had. The next day, we hung around Gram's for a bit, then went to lunch without the kids (grandma's watched the kiddos). Then we went to the LL Bean outlet where we got some super cute clothes for Reed. Back to Bob and Cindy's to have leftovers for dinner and a bit more hanging out time.
Gram with Gabby and Reed
Bob putting firewood in the truck for Gram
Gabby and Reed
Fogg pooking his head in the old shed at Grams
Side note: we found out during these few days that we got a full price offer on our Layton house (which we had been renting) after only 2 days on the market! We are currently under contract and should close on Oct. 5th!
Georgette with Reed
We spent the night at Bob and Cindy's again, taking a walk on their vast property with the dogs in the morning. We then loaded up and drove to Bar Harbor for some lunch with Dale, Georgette and Gabby. Then to the brewery we all love and over to Aunt Sa's house in Belfast. The boys stopped at Young's Lobster (Lobsta) Pound on the way. We got to spend the evening with Aunt Sa hearing about Uncle Bill's life and funeral/memorial. She showed us pictures and we had a good time remembering such a great guy. I am lucky to have met him a couple of times in the past 5 years. We really enjoyed our time there.
Gabby giving Reed a bath at Aunt Sa's
Aunt Sa talking with Reed
Uncle Dale making Reed laugh
The next morning we were up and driving South to Boston. We were hosted again by Paul and Carol for another fantastic pasta dinner.
Uncle Paul
Aunt Carol
Oh yeah, and the "Bleft" in the title comes from the speech impediment that the GPS had. It would say "Turn Bleft in 300 yards". We laughed every time. And of course you don't drive a "car" you drive a "ca" in the north east.
It was a fun trip and a frustrating one. Tiring and relaxing, long and short. We are so glad we went during this hard time so that we could visit with family. But seriously, I'm going to the beach withOUT family next year...
Reed participated in his very first football season Steeler's game with his dad last night. He had to sport one of his new outfits in support. Notice that he has the outfit, plus Steeler socks and a mini Terrible Towel. He also has a bib that goes with it all. The kid will have no choice for his future team I think... As soon as I get a minute I will upload pictures from our latest adventure to Boston and Maine and tell you about the trip.
