Day 4. Something I'm looking forward to.

Christmas in California! We leave in 2 days and I'm exstatic. We'll be there for a week and a half and are splitting our time between Rancho Cucamonga, Palmdale and San Diego. I haven't been home for Christmas since before Scotty and I were married.  I miss my family so much around the holidays. I miss all our traditions and just spending time with one another. So I am totally looking forward to this Christmas. We are also blessing Chloe there the day after Christmas. Scott's parents are even coming to California too, so Jaxon and Chloe will get to spend Christmas with all their Grandparents! It's going to be a grand time.

I can't wait to see my family and friends! Better finish packing....oh and Christmas shopping!

Hope you all have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Day 3. Parents and Siblings.

I love my family tremendously. It's very hard on me to live so far from so many of them. I've been debating all day, how much detail to go into on here. I could go on and on about each and every one of them. But because I don't know if they'd each like so many details put up here about them individually, I will sum it up.

My parents:

Barry and Michelle. (mom and step dad) Live in Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Johnny and Stacy. (dad and step mom) Live in Palmdale, CA

Sibblings: Oldest to youngest
Ryan. Attorney. Lives in Miami.
Sharee. Married to Chad and have 2 beautiful daughters. Lives in New Mexio.
Kassi. Married to Barry. They have 2 cute boys and an adorable daughter. Lives in FL.
Cameron. Working and going to school. Lives in Palmdale, CA.
Chelsea. Married to Justin. Lives in Provo, UT.
Carson. Working and going to school. Lives in Palmdale, CA.
Mikael. Attends UCLA. Lives in Los Angeles, CA.
Madison. Working and going to school. Lives in Irvine, CA.
Jayce. Going to school and loves playing sports. Lives in Palmdale, CA.

Like I said, I could go on and on about each one of them. But in respect to their privacy I won't. But I will say that I love them all and feel very blessed to have them in my life. I'm excited to see (some) of them in just a couple days. I will get to see all of them that live in CA and can't wait. Wish I was going to see the rest of them, but they'll be in FL celebrating the season.

Here's a few pictures for your viewing pleasure:

 The Peterson gang. At Chelsea's wedding Aug 2009. Everyone except Chad.

 The Alvey clan. Right after Jaxon's blessing. Jan 2010. Everyone except Mikael.

 Carson and I. Jazz game. Jan 2010

 Jax with uncle Cammy. Easter 2010.

 Cameron. Jax. Carson. July 2010

 December 2010. (Don't you love Jaxon's hair?. It was a long day for him. He was fast asleep.)

Park City. Jan 2010

Day 2 - Stress

Day 2 - Something that stresses me out?

 

Breastfeeding. Now, I am happy that I am able to breastfeed Chloe. But that doesn't mean I have to like it. Because to be honest, I don't. It's hard. And so unattractive. And time consuming. And painful. And inconveinient. But it's free. (and I know first hand how much formula costs!) It's better for the baby. and it helps you ...blah blah blah (all the other stuff they promise you so that you will do it. - it helps your uterus shrink, helps you lose weight, helps you bond with the baby....) While you're pregnant everyone tells you how great breast feeding is. But no one tells you how hard it is. No one tells you how much time it takes out of your day. No one tells you about the anxiety you will have because you never know how 'much' the baby is getting. No one tells you that your one year old son will see you feed his sister and suddenly become all confused as he was never breastfed. No one tells you how hard it is to 'cover up'. No one mentions leaking. No one tells you how much nursing bras suck! No one tells you how often you'll be taking your clothes on and off throughout the day. No one tells you how it will put time restraints on your entire daily schedule. No one mentions all of the breaks you will take on a road trip to feed. And how much longer that road trip will now take.

 

Aren't I positive tonight? Truthfully  really am grateful that I am able to breastfeed Chloe. But I am also very grateful for my new pump. I'm really not one for feeding in front of anyone. (except Scotty) You will NEVER see me nursing in public. It's just not my style. So while out on the town the whole day (as we were yesterday) or driving to California (as we will be doing next week), I'm happy to have a pump. It takes so much less time. And I won't have to constantly find an empty room to excuse myself to for 45 min at a time. Instead it will just be for 7 min. Much better.

 

So yes. Breastfeeding stresses me out. It did before I had Chloe. Then I stressed about being able to do so. And now I stress because I can. Man, I'm just never satisfied. It's just all new. I never did this with Jaxon. I took for granted how easy it was just to 'make a bottle'. But in closing, I am 'trying' to stay positive about all of this.

15 days of Amanda...

I have seen this done on a few blogs that I follow and thought it would be fun to do as well. Yes this may seem a little narcissistic. But that's the fun about having a personal blog. Isn't the point of it to be a little narcissistic? Plus I really enjoy reading about my friends (and the random people I come across and blog stalk) so I'm sure that someone enjoys reading about me....right? Anyways...here's what's to come for the next 15 days:

Day 1 - 15 facts about you and a Self-Portrait

Day 2 - Something that stresses you out

Day 3 - Your siblings and parents
Day 4 - Something you're looking forward to
Day 5 - Pictures of things that make you happy
Day 6 - A song that makes you cry and why
Day 7 - Favorite movies
Day 8 - A place you've traveled to
Day 9 - Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs
Day 10 - Something you're afraid of
Day 11 - Favorite TV shows
Day 12 - What you believe

Day 13 - Goals

Day 14 - Some pictures you love

Day 15 - Pictures of your dream house

Being that Christmas is less than 2 weeks away I am going to really try to post everyday. However I make no promises. Especially because we are going to be in California. So the 15 days of me might be spread out to like 20 or 25 days of me.

And so it begins...

Day 1 - 15 facts about you and a Self-Portrait.

How is it that on day 1, I don't want to complete the assignment? (Jeanette this is all your fault.) You changed it and I am going to as well. Instead of writing facts about herself, my friend Jeanette wrote about things/items that have made her happy lately. And I think that still counts as facts. So here are some of my favorite things/items/people as of late:

1. My Christmas Tree. It's been up for over a month already and I am loving it. I love to sit in my glider while rocking either Jaxon or Chloe and just stare at the tree. (With the fireplace going of course!) I don't think the feeling of love can get any more prominate than in moments like these.

2. Jaxon & Chloe. I couldn't have a list like this and not have them on it. They make me so happy everyday. Jaxon is so funny and I love that he's my little buddy. We have so much fun! Chloe is my sweet baby girl. I love just holding her and staring at her. She's such a good baby and I love looking at her delicate features. I know I should probably put her down at some point, so I can get things done. But really, clean the house? Or cuddle a precious baby? Is there even a choice?

 3. Lights at Temple Square. One of my favorite things about Christmas is the lights. I'm like a little kid. I love to drive up and down streets checking out the lights. And the Temple lights downtown are always so beautiful. We took the kids tonight and had a great time. We met up wth some friends and walked around and went for hot chocolate and dessert after. It was great. Chloe slept through the whole thing and Jaxon loved the lights! Last year he was just a couple weeks old so he slept through the whole thing as Chloe did tonight. So it was fun to see him get excited and check out all the lights.

4. Honeycrisp apples and string cheese. This is my snack of choice lately. And Jaxon's and Scotty's too. String cheese is always delicious. And have you had honeycrisp apples??? They are soooo juicy. But prefectly crisp at the same time. They are a little harder to find and cost more than the rest, but so worth it.

5. Escalante, UT. Oh how I love Escalante. And I love the drive in to Escalante. It's so beautiful. I'm sure most have you have never even heard of this little town with less than 1,000 residents but I must tell you that you are missing out. This is where my grandparents and my Dad grew up. I lived there until I was 3 and we moved to California. Almost all of our family vacations growing up were to Escalante. I have so many fond memories of that place. We went last week for my grandma's funeral. Although it was extremely hard to be there without her, I was overwhelmed with emotions and memories of times spent there over the years. It was a sad realization that Jax, Chloe and Scotty will never get to fully enjoy Escalante as I have over the years.

6. Grandma Betty. My Grandma Alvey passed away on December 2nd. This may seem like a weird choice for a list of favorites as she has just passed. But over the last 2 weeks I can't stop thinking about her and all of the memories that I will cherish. I loved her so much. It was very hard for myself, my family and all that knew her to see her go. She's was the worlds best friend. She took care of so many people down there in Escalante. She was always trying to help those around her and she stayed so active over the years. Although it was very hard to see her go, it was a wonderful time for our family to all be together and to remember her. We all spent the few days we were there recounting stories and memories of her. I will forever remember: her amazing homemade mustard and her famous rolls. Her ability to play the piano by ear. She was amazing and never was able to read sheet music a day in her life. How proud she was of her family. What a great friend she was. Trips to the 'dump' to find toys. All of the songs she would teach us and make all us grandkids sing for any visitor that came over. Her love for basketball. Specifically for the Utah Jazz and the Escalante Moquis. She was the best host. Whenever anyone arrived at her home, even un-announced she would have a full spread on the table in minutes. I love you Grandma. I miss you tremendously.

7. Clinique. Even Better Clinical Dark Spot Corrector. I was a lucky girl and developed melasma while I was pregnant with Chloe. In  an attempt to reverse this I purchased this dark spot serum. I've been using it everyday for about 5 weeks and I'm starting to see a difference. It states that it takes 6-12 weeks for best results, so I'm hoping that I will continue to see improvements. Oh how I love being pregnant. Ha.

8. Visitors. Over the past few weeks we've had some friends over to visit us and the baby. And I can't tell you how much it means to me. I love the company and all your support during this transition into a family of 4. Especially with my family all gone back to California now, I love when I get a call or text from a friend asking if they can stop by. YES! Always yes. Please visit us. The adult conversation is always a nice break from the mumbling and singing with Jaxon.

9. Christmas Music. I don't even think this needs much explanation. Who doesn't enjoy a little (or a lot) of festive music this time of year? If you don't, then you must be the Grinch!

10. Michael Buble. I have a confession. I JUST found out who he was a couple weeks ago. Whenever I heard his name I associated it with a very old oprah singing type. And that was that. No interest. But then I saw him on the Today show and was shocked. I've actually heard alot of him and like it. Just didn't know who it was. My mom was over when I came to this realization and she just laughed at me. I told Scotty when he got home that I wanted some of his music. Scotty then told me that it was all already on my ipod. Yup. It was. Apparently I am the only person who didn't know who this guy was. So lately, Jaxon and I have been rocking out to Mr. Buble and loving it.

11. Scotty's Customers. It amazes me at some of the repeat customers that my husband has at Five Guys. My husband is a friendly guy and his customers love him. They are so good to us! When I had Jaxon, Scotty came home often with gifts from 'a customer'. Even the ladies at the bank gave Jaxon sweet gifts. And now with Chloe the same thing has happened. And now for Christmas, Scotty is bringing home more loot. We've been given blankets, baby toys, clothes, picture frames, baby dishes, all sorts of food and movie passes. I'm extrememly grateful for these awesome people. Is this normal though? Maybe I need to be better about being friendly to the people who work where we eat. Should I be bringing them gifts? Or is my husband just super friendly and likeable? I think the latter, but it still makes me feel a little guilty that these people have been so generous to our family.

12. Sons of Anarchy. This is one of the few shows that both Scotty and I enjoy. And I'll be honest, if Scotty were to want to buy a bike and join an MC...I might just be all for it. And...I might have a crush on Jax. (The main character. NOT my son silly.-although he too is a blonde blue eyed beauty.)

13. Family. With the holidays and the new baby and the two funerals we've had in the last month, we've been fortunate to spend alot of time with our families. It has been awesome and I can't tell you how much I love each and every one of them. It's hard for me, being so far from my family, so I fully appreciate any chance I get to see them.

14. Netflix. I love love love the online streaming with Netflix. So often there is NOTHING on TV. Especially when I'm up in the middle of the night with the babes. So netflix and I have become pretty tight. We are however getting a DVR in 2 days. (I know! It's taken us forever!) But I'm super excited and I'm sure that a little of my love for Netflix will be transfered to the DVR...

15. Scotty. I love this man. He's my best friend. Any of you watch Real Housewives of Beverly Hills? Yeah, sooo not my favorite of the Housewives but on a recent episode Taylor and Kyle were at lunch talking about their husbands. Taylor asked Kyle how long it took for her and Mauricio to become best friends. Kyle said she wouldn't have married him if they weren't already best friends. (Taylor's relationship is a joke!) Anyways...I so agree with Kyle on everything she was saying. Scotty and I are best friends. He always has my back. And I his. We always have 100% support for each other. He makes me happy and there isn't a person in the world I'd rather spend everyday with.

As far as a self portrait, see above. That was taken today.

Day 1 was a long one. Thanks to those of you who got through the whole post. :)

3 weeks. Already?

It's hard to believe that it's already been 3 weeks since little baby Chloe arrived. But then again I already can't imagine my life without her. It's such a wonderful feeling to have a newborn in the house. Everything just feels so much more 'homey' and the spirit is so strong in our house. It being Christmas, sitting by the fire in front of the Christmas tree just makes it that much more special. I know I've said it before, but I LOVE being a mother. Nothing could be more rewarding to me.

Here's Chloe today at 3 weeks.

Little baby Chloe is such a good baby! Jax was, and still is a very good baby. My whole pregnancy everyone joked that because Jaxon was so good, Chloe was going to be horrible and so hard. And to be honest I was a little worried. But Chloe is an angel. I hesitate to say this and jinx myself but she's even easier than Jaxon was. She's a much better sleeper for sure, and she's hardly ever fussy. If she is it's only because she's hungry. The whole breastfeeding thing, so didn't work for Jaxon, but Chloe is a champ.

And Jaxon is adjusting very well. He's young enough that he doesn't really understand what's going on. Which is nice because he doesn't get jealous at all. He's still as happy as can be and he gets so excited when he see's Chloe, its adorable. Things are going much better than I thought. I thought I was in for many sleepless nights. And I've only had 2. (Right at the begining). I imagined it was going to be alot harder than it is. That's not to say it isn't hard. Being a mom is tough. My life consists of diapers, feedings, baths, lots of laundry, picking up after Jaxon and repeat. I'm not about to try to cart both kids all around the town on my own yet. But we're doing great.

The past 3 weeks have been very eventful for us. In an attempt to journal a little bit (for my own sake) here's a rundown of our lives the past 3 weeks:

• Mom, Barry, Cameron and Carson came to visit 11/24/10
• Birthday party for Jaxon and Scotty 11/24/10

• Thanksgiving 11/25/10 


• BYU vs Utah game.

• Jazz vs. Lakers game. (Me and my mom stayed with the babies, but Scotty had a great time out with the guys) 11/26/10
• Welcome Chloe open house 11/28/10

• Two trips to the hospital to check Chloe's bilirubin
• 2 doctor appts each for both Jaxon and Chloe
• Health dept for Jaxon's immunizations
• The passing and funeral proceedings for Scotty's uncle Robert.
• Newborn pics for Chloe and family pics for Christmas 12/02/10

• Thanksgiving round 2 at Tom and Debs 12/03/10
• Trip to Escalante for the passing and funeral proceedings of my Grandma Alvey

That pretty much covers the big stuff I think. I could add in the many shopping trips out with my mom. (The mall a few times, costco a few times, Target and the American Crafts warehouse sale!) Oh and our Audi back in the shop for a week! We've also had many visitors which we have loved. Thank you all for the company and the dinners! It has been much appreciated!

It's been a busy 3 weeks. Its been hard with the loss of 2 great family members. But having our sweet Chloe and Jaxon here has made it easier. We've really come to be thankful for the circle of life, and the knowledge that we will be with our family again. We sure had a lot to give thanks for this year.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving! And guess what? Only 15 days for Christmas!

P.S. Today is the FIRST day since coming home from the hospital that I've spent the entire day at home. It's been nice. (Crossing my fingers that I don't have to go anywhere later this evening)