Emily's Blessing

Well, it has been a while, but these are the pictures I have of Emily's blessing.  We had tons of family here, and it was so nice.  I only have a few pictures of her dress, and we didn't get a picture of the family all together.  Oh well. 

We've Moved

Just around the corner!  We have been casually looking for a place to move for a while now, the old house was getting a little small with a new little one.  Our firends who lived behind us and one to the north were moving in August and we looked at their house and decided it would be a great move.  But then they got kicked out because their landlady needed the house for her mother, who had cancer, to live in.  So we were out of a place to move, so we continued to look around.  We looked at a place out in Spingville, but it just didn't feel right, it was a very nice house, and really nice people who would be renting it.  They even called us after we looked at it and asked if we were still interested because they had really liked us.  But, like I said, it just didn't feel right.  I kept looking online, whistfully wishing a miracle would happen and the backdoor house would open back up.  And I will tell you, miracles do happen.  I was looking on the rental agency's site, and one day, it was on there.  I filled out an application and took it in, and seeing as how it had only been up for an hour or so, we were the only applicants and we got the house.  We've been here about a month, and we love it.  We got to stay in the same neighborhood, and ward which we are really glad about, but we get about twice the amount of space.  Here are some pictures from when we moved in to demonstrate!

This is the front room, from the doorway.  The bedrooms and bathroom are just off this room on the left.  It only has two bedrooms still, and they are about the same size as the old house, but it works just fine, as you will see in the next few pictures...

The little laundry area in the hallway.  (Yes, it actually had a designated spot for laundry and hookups!)

The ginormous kitchen!

And this is our favorite part (though the kitchen is a close second).  This is the added room, and it is huge.  You can see how tiny Isaac looks in the picture.  It really is that big.  Isaac has been in heaven with all the space.  He loves to be able to run around and not have to worry about smacking into something. 

Things really worked out for the best for us.  I do feel bad for our friends who had to move out, and then move again in August to NY.  But they did find a really nice place and they really like their ward, so it worked out for them as well.  The Lord really has our best intrests in store for us, if we just put our faith in Him. 

Grandma

Even though this was like 2 months ago, my mom did come out just after Emily was born to help out.  She was a lifesaver.  She was able to stay for like 3 weeks, and I was so spoiled.  Actually, I think Isaac and Emily were more spoiled, but you get the picture.  Here they are blowing bubbles. 

While she was here she took us to the Zoo.  We all had a blast, even though it was a little chilly.  Isaac loves the Zoo no matter what he weather. 

The first animals you almost always see are the turkeys.  Isaac wanted to go pet them, but I warned him they don't like people getting too close.  So now he always reminds me about that whenever turkeys are mentioned. 

This was Emily all bundled up.  I don't think she got much out of it, but she was really good the whole time, she just slept!

This was the baby giraffe, who has sinced passed away due to failure to thirve.  It's kind of sad to think that we saw him only a few weeks before he died.  He sure was a cute giraffe.

Isaac being the ham that he is...

We were so glad she was able to come down and spend so much time here.  She was even willing to put up with our tiny house and an air mattress just for us. 

My mom is such an amazing person, though she would deflect any praise.  She has always been such an awesome example of strength and determination.  I have learned so much from her, a lot of which I am slowly realizing as I raise my own kids.  I feel so blessed to have her as a mom, and I love her more than words can tell. 

THANKS GRANDMA!

Catch up

Well, a lot has happened in the last little while, and I am finally just now downloading the 200 some pictures off our camera.  Here are some random pictures just to get started on the whole catching up thing!

He was pretending to be asleep, except he couldn't keep from smiling!

He absolutely loves her!

He came out of his room, and goes, "Look mom, I'm a robot!"  I died laughing.

He often tucks monkey into bed and then tells me to be quiet so monkey can sleep.

This is his reward for not going potty in his pants.  He loves it, of course.

She's ready to hit the cold weather!

It's Official

Well, I can officially sign my name, Michelle Garner RN.  I passed my NCLEX and am now a registered nurse.  Now if only I were going to use it right now...  Not really, I'm happy to be at home and have that license just in case for now!

Life is Good

This was a few weeks ago, but life is still going great. Brandon is as busy as ever, and barely has time to sleep. At least he's a deep sleeper and doesn't hear Emily most of the time during the night so he can get some sleep. My mom went home this last Thur, and we miss her a lot. But we are surviving. Isaac has been very good all things considered. He still adores Emily, and always wants to give her hugs and kisses and hold her. Sometimes I have to tell him to back off. He has been very helpful though, taking diapers to throw away etc. And Emily is still a very good baby. She never cries without a reason, and is easily consoled. She is such a sweet baby and we are so blessed to have her in our family. We are so grateful for all the blessings in our lives. Like I said, life is good!

A Little More Detail

Okay, Sorry this is such a long time in coming, but you're a lot more tired with two than just one.  We have been very busy and any time I do have time, I want to just rest.  But it is so nice to have Grandma here.  She has been a lifesaver. 

Anyway, here is my side of the story of how she was born, with a little more detail.  So Wed I had gotten most of the house clean.  I had cleaned the bathroom, done all the dishes and gotten everything cleaned up.  Then around 8:40 I had a stronger contraction.  (I'd been having tons of smaller ones for a while now.)  So I just kindof figured I would see what else came.  Then about 15 min later I had another one, and I still just wanted to wait and see.  Brandon was getting Isaac ready for bed, and I was just laying on the couch.  Over the next half hour a few more came, and they were getting stronger, but I really didn't want to be in labor, and I didn't want to go into the hospital only to be sent home, so I was waiting to see if they would stop.  We said prayers with Isaac, and Brandon was talking to his mom on Skype about something.  I really didn't want to have to call someone to come watch Isaac and then come back home, so I really wanted to be sure I was in labor.  After about 2 more really strong contractions I decided we needed to go and now.  So we called Brandon's sister, and then we called our neighbors to come immediately while Brittany was on her way.  This was about 9:35.  Luckily we live like 2 min from the hospital.  We got there and got checked in.  Actually, we didn't really get checked in, they just had us sign a permission to treat form and then we went back to the room.  My nurse took a while to get into the room, but once she got into the room she was awesome.  She got into the room and put me into the computer while I was walking around the room groaning in pain.  Finally she was like, okay after your next contraction, lay down so I can check you.  At that point there wasn't really an in between, but I layed down and got checked.  She ran to the door to call, "She's like a 9+"  So everyone rushed into the room and started getting everything ready.  I really wanted an epidural, and my nurse was so awesome.  She was like, "we can get you one, and he'll get you comfortable in like 5-10 min, but I think you will have this baby before then.  You can do it without.  You've done all the hard part."  At that point I responded, "No I haven't the baby's still in there.  I still have to push it out!"  She was so awesome, she just kept telling me I could do it.  And Brandon was awesome too, he was so encouraging.  I am really glad they were cause the baby come 12 min after I got into the room.  The in-house doctor barely had time to get into the room and get his stuff on.  The nurse was like, "Don't worry, if the doctor's not here in time, we'll just catch this baby."  Two real pushes and she was out, thankfully.  It was not what I had planned for, but it all worked out.  It was super fast, but she was perfectly healthy and I didn't have to worry about the after effects of the epidural which was really nice.  And now I know that I can handle pretty much anything else that comes my way. 

Emily is such a sweet baby, she almost never cries.  (Tonight on the way home from dinner was her first time.)  She has been such a blessing in our family.  Isaac absolutely adores her.  He is forever giving her kisses and hugs, and is very concerned when she starts to fuss.  We are so blessed to have such good family and friends who are willing to help us out at a moments notice, literally. 

And here are some more pictures for all to enjoy...  This was right before we left the hospital.

Isaac and Dad visiting at the hospital, Isaac is semi holding her.

Isaac holding her at home.  He got done and then instantly wanted to hold her again.

I think Dad is a little smitten...

This was her first Sunday at church.