Welcome to the family Adelaide!

Ok I'm sorry this has taken so long to get to. But it's here now. This is the story of how Adelaide made it into the world.

We've been through this before. We know what we're doing. So it's just a waiting game. The Friday of Easter weekend the boys and I were scheduled to go to a special play group Easter egg hunt at 10am. When I woke up at 4 with consistent contractions. They weren't very painful. Mostly just there. Uncomfortable enough I couldn't sleep through them. But also nothing to be terribly excited about. 

A very good friend of mine was "on call" to take the boys should something happen and we needed to go to the hospital. So just before 9am I let her know that I wasn't comfortable going up the canyon for the Easter egg hunt and that she should be ready for a call. I didn't want to be up the canyon with all the kids and start having bad enough contractions I couldn't drive back down safely. But, based on how the boys had come, I was figuring she would come, it would just be an all day event. 

Over the next few hours contractions would speed up and slow way down. Some hours I would be 10 minutes apart and the next would be 20 or 30. I wasn't ready to head in to the hospital but I knew it was coming. I also didn't want to excite my family prematurely, so we decided to hold off telling anyone until we had at least made it to the hospital. We actually changed that until the hospital checked me and said we were staying.

By about 2, my contractions hasn't gotten much more consistent. I was having them anywhere from 2 minutes apart to 15 minutes apart. They were very sporadic. But were slightly more intense. So I decided to get the boys down for a nap and double check their overnight bag was packed. By 3 they were still very random, but I told Cory that they were getting strong enough I'd like to be heading to the hospital soon. So he hurried to jump in the shower. The boys happen to wake up right then, so they jumped in too. Sending clean kids to spend the night with friends seemed like a good idea at the time.

By 4, it was way time. In that hour, I feel like I jumped very quickly from "we should probably leave soon" to "why didn't we leave an hour ago". My friend had taken her kids to a park that happened to be on the way to the hospital. So, we loaded the kids in the car and headed that direction. We dropped the boys and car seats by 4:30 and headed to Loma Linda Hospital in San Bernardino. Technically, there is a hospital about 10 blocks from our home, but I have heard nothing but terrible things about that hospital. And nothing but good things about Loma Linda. So, even though it was over 20 minutes away, Loma Linda was definitely the better choice.

We arrived at the hospital around 5pm and parked in the loading and unloading area. L&D was on the 3rd floor and the hospital parking lot was under construction. So it was a tad crazy trying to get in and where we needed to be. I walked about 50 yards from the car to the front doors where Cory was able to get me into a wheel chair. I would've walked, but my contractions were 3-5 minutes apart and painful enough I couldn't walk through them.

We made it up to the L&D check in. The check in lady handed me some paperwork and told me that it was a pretty busy night and she would have to have a nurse come talk to me to see if we could get into a room. After a couple minutes of paperwork and at least two contractions, she looked at me and said, "a lot of women come in ready to have their babies before they're actually in labor. But I can tell this is the real deal for you. I'm going to bump you up the list and the nurse will be right over." She checked my weight and sure enough, the nurse came right over. The nurse didn't have to do much to decide I needed a room. And within about 5 minutes, I was in a room. Cory left me to get myself changed into a hospital gown and ran to park the car. When he came back, the nurse and I were just getting into my check in. They hadn't actually admitted me, but they were prepping to. 

Our experience here had been so different from in Utah. In Utah they took me to a triage room to be checked and monitored until they decided to admit, then took me to a room. Here in California, they simply took me to a room and that's where I was checked and monitored and eventually delivered. I like that better. Not having to move around was very nice. The nurse initially checked to find me dilated to a 3. Usually they won't admit you until you're at a 4. But she could see that it likely wouldn't be long. So she decided to let me stay while she "did some other things". I don't know what she needed to do, but I feel like that was code for "I'm going to not let them know you're only at a 3 and check you again soon and you'll be able to stay here". By 6:20 I was dilated to a 5 and definitely staying. We let our families know and began the waiting game.

They asked me if I wanted an epidural and I absolutely did. Props to the women who can have a child without it, you're amazing, I can't. I'm a wuss in this department. By 7pm I was practically begging for anything. I was in a good amount of pain. Consistently every 2-3 minutes. Unfortunately, the anesthesiologist was in a c-section and I would have to wait. By 7:30 I was in so much pain (not an unusual amount, like I said, I'm just a bit of a wuss) I was asking the nurse if there was anything they could give me. She said the only thing they could give me was Norco. But it came with some side effects for myself and the baby that didn't sound fun. So I decided to tough it out a bit longer.

A few minutes later, the nurse came back with some bad news. The anesthesiologist would have to run from one c section to another and wouldn't have time to fit me in between. She left me to decide if I wanted the other pain meds. Cory and I talked and still decided we didn't want the possible side effects. I would just wait the extra hour or two for the epidural. I was still only dilated to a 6.

Then a miracle happened only a few short minutes later. The anesthesiologist came in and said, they need a few extra minutes before this other c section and I wanted to get your epidural in while I can. I may not make it back before that baby comes. Praise the heavens! And also thank goodness we declined the Norco. They have to wait at least an hour after the Norco to do an epidural and it had only been about 15 minutes since we declined that. I have never been more handful for an epidural in my life. This had by a long shot, been the longest through labor I'd been without an epidural and it was definitely not my favorite. I love my kids and I don't mind allowing them to have full run of my body, but I also really hate contractions. The epidural is literally my life saver. It does make me a little neaseous though. Always has. So after all that was taken care of, we were able to settle a bit and get a little rest. Not sleep, just rest.

At 9pm I was dilated to a 7 and my water still hadn't broken yet. Loma Linda was really keen on letting my body do what it needed. They discussed having the doctor come break my water, but unlike in Utah it was much more casual. Seeming more like, let's just keep seeing how it goes and if there's a reason we will break it. So that's what we did. We casually (as casual as labor can be) just waited. The nurse had changed shifts at 8 and was steadily checking my dilation every hour.

Although it was 9pm, Cory hadn't eaten any dinner. So I sent him to get food. I was only dilated to 7 and I figured he'd hit a fast food place and be back pretty quick. He ended up going a few miles away to an In and Out. He was gone almost an hour. Right after he got back, my nurse checked again around 10:15pm. She actually said, "wow, you're so dilated I can't even find the cervix. And the baby is extremely low." My water still hadn't broken so the nurse went to get the doctor.

When the doctor came in, she checked and sure enough, my water hadn't broken and the baby was getting ready. She used the little poker to break my water which popped all over her arm and shoulder. She checked the baby again and said she was about 2cm out. Told me not to push and went to the corner to put her birthing attire on. When everyone was ready, we started to push. Not joking, 3  pushes was all it took for miss Adelaide to come into the world at 10:41. Weighing in at 6lbs 11 oz and 19 inches long. She has been an incredible blessing to our family and we are totally in love. The boys are completely smitten and the best and sweetest big brothers. I am so excited for their relationship to grow. 

Wow, where did that year even go?

Holy cow, has it really been almost a year since I've written here? That is kind of awful on my part. Let's see if I can do some justice of catching up.

So, quick re-cap, then some more detailed of the most recent happenings. A year ago we sold our home and moved into an apartment. The plan was to live in the apartment for roughly a year and decide what we wanted to do and where we wanted to be on a more permanent basis and (hopefully) build a home. That plan was going great. We were loving our apartment and loving the area we were in.

Unfortunately, one key thing Cory was not loving, his job. He actually quite enjoyed the work he was doing, but the environment had become toxic for him and he simply didn't enjoy going anymore. So toward the end of the summer, he revamped his resume and started putting some feelers out. Nothing very serious came about. But, we had hopes that something would come up. In October we decided that he had had enough and decided that it was time. He put in a month notice (his job would be difficult to fill and train in simply two weeks) and a huge weight seemed to be lifted from his shoulders. Before the month was up, his boss decided his heart wasn't in it anymore and they parted ways earlier than expected.

Before the month was up, he had another offer. A really really great offer. With a small catch. It was in southern California. Mr. "I'll never move to California" was now accepting a job and uprooting our family to move. We were both excited and nervous. But we were in for a change and thrilled for the opportunity.

So we started making plans to move to Beaumont, California. We eventually rented a house, sight unseen, as we had no time and limited options before we were supposed to move. A couple days after Christmas, we headed out for our adventure. We were planning to stop in St George for a few days and move into our new home January 2nd. Just in time for Cory's 30th birthday. Which was kind of a planning bummer as I was going to have a big party and invite everyone Cory had ever met, but I guess a new job and a new place to live would have to suffice.

So here we are in April and Cory is loving his new job and we are really enjoying life in the warm California sun. We recently made our first trip to Disneyland on a Tuesday while staying in Anaheim for the week. Cory had some work events and we decided to just make a family trip of it. And it was pretty awesome.

Aceson could not have been more excited to go. He really didn't understand until we made our way to Toon Town and he got to meet some of his favorite people, Pluto, Goofy, and of course, Mickey Mouse. He gave hugs and kisses and didn't want to leave their sides. It was adorable. First we met Goofy. After standing in line for about 15 minutes, and having to chase him and bring him to our spot in line multiple times, we finally had our turn. He gave Goofy a huge hug and would not let go. After some convincing he finally turned around so I could take his picture and bade Goofy a "See you later." Next we went to Mickey's house to meet him. After a longer wait of about 30 minutes, they ushered us into the "Studio" with about 10 other kids and their parents to meet Mickey. Aceson had no regard for lines and went straight into Mickey's arms. After an extended hug, he pulled back and gave Mickey a huge kiss. The genuine adoration and excitement was adorable. We snapped a few pictures and told Mickey we would come back another time. On our way back to meet up with Cory and a hopefully sleeping Kinnick, Pluto was headed for a break, we hurried and gave him a hug and snapped a selfie. It was certainly a highlight of the week.

Cory's parents were slated to come in later Friday evening, but surprised us by meeting us at Disneyland Friday morning. The kids were ecstatic to see them and even more excited to be able to go to Disneyland again, with Grandma and Grandpa Junck.

The fun didn't stop there. A couple weeks back, Cory had found a groupon deal for some race tickets and bought the whole family one. So on Sunday, we all went to our very first, live NASCAR event in Fontana, California. It was pretty fun. But very loud. We had ear covers for the boys and they weren't nearly as excited as I thought they might be, noting our recent obsession with the movie "Cars". But it was fun none the less. Kinnick actually fell asleep. Then again, he has always been the kid that naps at nap time, no matter where he is.

For Easter, we went with some friends to their Evangelical church. Their son plays drums in the band. And does an absolutely amazing job at it. Church was fun. Definitely a different experience than the church we are used to. They played a lot of fun songs to open up. Everyone was up on their feet either singing and clapping along or dancing. Then the pastor gave his Easter lesson, which I thought was an excellent lesson. Then they played a couple more fun, rocking closing songs and everyone went outside to experience the Easter fun. They had an egg search set up for the kids, train rides, live, on the spot baptisms. It was neat. Then we went and hung out at our friends house for an excellent Easter meal and a day full of peeps, chocolate, and friends. We didn't make it home until almost midnight. And there was definitely a hangover effect from the long and eventful day.

We are loving our time out here in California and Cory is loving his new job and the freedoms it is affording him. Like being home with his family almost every day, and traveling to far off lands, like Columbia. We will keep you posted on what else the year brings.

2 months, House sold, and Prepping to move.

Kinnick is now 2 months old. And what a charmer. He is such a great baby. There was a few minutes of colic like tummy trouble crying. But a strict regiment of Gripe water for a few weeks knocked that right out. But really, he is an awesome baby. He sleeps mostly through the night. He is usually up once around 3, then up for the morning at about 6:30. Which, coincidently, is the same time Ace gets up for the day. Kinnick has slipped right into our lives just perfectly. And Ace totally loves him. He is always kissing and hugging on him. It's quite cute. Kinnick is growing like a weed and I cannot believe how big he is getting.

We have had our house for sale since December and after a few offers fell through, we were feeling a bit discouraged. Then, we got an offer, a real one. As it stands, we are currently under contract and prepping to close in about 2 weeks. It's been a long process (not as long as it could be, but still) and definitely an emotional one. Barring anything crazy, we should be good to go. And we are excited.

Selling means moving. We found a great little place to rent that will be super close to Cory's work and a lot closer to family and friends. When we bought our house, we didn't realize how inconvenient it would be to commute 30 minutes to just about everything we love to do. Our new place will be temporary. Hopefully not too much longer than a year. We will be able to get our savings built up and hopefully be able to get into a much better house where we plan to stay for a lot of years.

Life is certainly crazy right now, and if all goes well, it will equally calm down and get even crazier in the coming months. Particularly when Kinnick becomes mobile. I feel like I will be spending all my time chasing crazy boys. I cannot wait. Even though I am super outnumbered in my family, I wouldn't have it any other way. I love my boys, all 3 of them. I'm so looking forward to a summer of fun!

Welcome Kinnick!!

Well he finally made it. And thank goodness. I was definitely done with that whole pregnancy thing. Like I said in my last post, this one was pretty rough on me, and I got out of it 10 days early!

Well I am sure you are all wondering about the details. So here they are. It all started Friday the 7th. I had a doctor appointment, just a normal check up. And he decided that because he was the doctor on call for the weekend, he would strip my membranes (for those who don't know what that is, it can sometimes encourage labor, look it up if you want more details). I wasn't very hopeful. We had done this a few times with my last pregnancy and it didn't ever do anything. So I went about my business like usual, not expecting anything.

Saturday Cory decided to go golfing. It was a beautiful warm day and Ace and I decided to go visit my parents for a couple hours to get out of the house. A little after noon, while at my parents house, I started getting sporadic contractions. Nothing very painful or consistent, so I didn't pay much attention. I mean, I had had Braxton Hicks contractions before and really didn't think this was anything unusual... Until a little later that is.

We went home in time for Ace to nap and meet back up at the house with Cory. I was still having sporadic contractions, but they were anywhere from 10 minutes to 50 minutes apart and anywhere from a 1 on a pain scale to a 3. Not very convincing that a hospital trip was in order. Also, my water broke at home last time, so I was kind of waiting for a pretty serious sign. The last thing I wanted was to go to the hospital and be sent home without a baby.

So I didn't say much, and figured resting would eventually make them stop. Around dinner time, things got a little more interesting. I started timing the contractions and they had gotten more consistent. About 10 minutes apart. But only for an hour, then they stopped. Another hour past and they started up again. Another hour and they stopped. This continued for several hours. Although I thought this was a little odd, I still wasn't convinced it was time to go. So I waited. We went to bed, and I think Cory secretly knew we would end up at the hospital, we got into bed where we would normally look at funny youtube videos or talk about funny things that had happened that day, and instead, he rolled over and went straight to bed.

I, however, was not so lucky. I couldn't sleep. I was still contracting and although not very painful, annoying enough to make it impossible to sleep. So I played some mind numbing phone games for an hour or so until the contractions stopped. I finally drifted off to sleep around 12 or so. 2 glorious hours later, I woke up to use the bathroom and the contractions were back, this time with a vengeance.

Again, being as stubborn as I was, I didn't want to wake the family up and head to the hospital for no reason, and since my water hadn't broken yet, I was thinking this was still just my body practicing. So I waited and timed and cringed. After about an hour and contractions consistently 5-10 minutes apart and getting more painful as it went, I woke Cory. If nothing else, maybe the hospital would give me some pain meds or something that would ease the contractions.

So we got up and got a few things packed, just in case, and headed to the hospital. We decided to keep Ace with us rather than dropping him at my parents. At least this way if we got sent home with nothing, no one else would have gotten excited for nothing. In we went. Upon arrival I was put in a triage room, hooked up to the monitors, and checked. I was definitely contracting, my water definitely had not broke, and I was dilated to a 4. They decided to observe me for an hour and see if anything changed. If nothing happened, the plan was to get some pain killers and head home.

A little over an hour later (now a little after 5am) the nurses came back in to check on me. I was definitely still contracting, my water still hadn't broke, but I was now dilated to a 5. They called the doctor and the anesthesiologist, it was a very slow night and both were away from the hospital on-call. I was staying, and probably going home with a baby! Wahoo, no useless trips to the hospital this go around. So I called me dad to come get Ace and told him we still had some time so he should go get some rest and try and get Ace to rest too. It had certainly been a long night for him.

A little over an hour later, Cory decided it was time for some breakfast. I'm sure he was starving and exhausted and so he headed out to go find himself some food. While he was gone, I got my epidural, finally. By this point the contractions were quite taxing and I was looking forward to the reprieve I would get from the epidural, and the rest that came with it. Cory made it back with his breakfast and I was just getting comfortable. A little too comfortable, and then, lots uncomfortable in the other direction. An alarm started beeping loudly, and I had to get Cory to get me a nausea bag.

The nurse came in and explained that sometimes an epidural can lower your blood pressure too much, which is what was happening. She pushed some drugs into my IV to help bring it back up. After a few minutes I was feeling better. Still very tired though, so Cory and I both decided to try and get some sleep while waiting for the right time.

Unfortunately that didn't last too long. Roughly another hour passed, making it near 8am and my blood pressure dropped again. Same ritual, my body tried to throw up, but it was empty from last time, and the nurse came in to help bring it back up. By now the doctor had also arrived and had come in to say hi and check things out. Since my water hadn't broken on it's own yet, the doctor needed to do it. Easy enough, and I didn't even feel a thing, well, a gush is all. I was still at a 5 and the doctor and nurse talked about using Pitocin to help induce steadier contractions to get the ball rolling. We decided to wait a little longer to see how things looked. The doctor and nurse left and Cory fell asleep almost instantly. I fell half asleep. I was too close to the noise making monitors for any real sleep.

The nurse came back to check periodically and because I was making progress on my own, we decided to still hold off on the Pitocin. A little after 10:30am the nurse came back in to check again. She asked if I had to push the button on my epidural yet, and I told her I just had minutes before she walked in. The contractions were starting to get a lot stronger, and because I am a wuss when it comes to them, I wanted to feel as little of them as I could. She nodded as she went about her checks. "Looks like you're ready," she said, "Let's try a couple practice pushes." So we did. One. To which she exclaimed, "Don't do that again, I'm going to go grab the doctor." Ah ha. That usually means things will be moving rather quickly.

It took a few minutes to get the doctor and get all the things in the room ready to go. Then it was game on. Literally 6 pushes later, and we had a(nother) healthy baby boy. I was so thrilled that it went so smoothly, not only because that meant less work for me, but I was already exhausted from being up all night, and a little woozy from the blood pressure stuff. But all was well, and this was done! Kinnick Emerson Junck was born 10:54am, March 9, 2014.

Because it all happened so fast, no one had arrived at the hospital yet. The nurses handed me the baby and after a quick clean up, they all left. It was nice to just have a little time just the three of us (Ace was with my dad). Cory made a comment about how Kinnick didn't look as "alien" as Aceson had. Which was to be expected. 6 pushes vs. 2 and a half hours of pushing. Poor Ace did look like an alien.

It wasn't too long before we were moved into our other room and family started arriving to say hi. Most of them giving me a very hard time because I suggested not rushing based on our previous birth experience. All were still very excited, particularly my little brothers who actually timed how long the other held the baby and got upset when they didn't get the same amount of time.

We couldn't be happier with Kinnick. And we couldn't be more proud of how Aceson has handled the situation. With the exception of small outbursts brought on by lack of sleep and/or food, he has done a remarkable job adjusting. And he certainly cannot stop giving his brother kisses.

5 weeks and counting!

5 weeks (give or take) is all we have left until our new little man joins our family. We are so so so excited. But man has this one been so different.

When I was pregnant the first time, I was sick enough to not be able to keep food down for about 6 weeks. The doctor put me on some drugs and I was more or less fine for those 6 weeks.

This time, I was sick for over 5 months. And the drugs did not help as much. Even on morning sickness drugs, I was throwing up at least twice a day. I tried everything. Teas, herbal supplements, prescriptions. Some things helped more than others, but certainly nothing seemed to fix it.

My first pregnancy, I spent the second trimester in bliss. I wasn't sick anymore. I wasn't uncomfortable yet. I didn't show until after 5 months, so no one could really really tell I was pregnant.

Again, this second time was different. I went straight from throwing up to being super uncomfortable. Turns out this second baby is sitting a little differently and sometimes he pinches off my sciatic nerve causing my hips to hurt so much I can barely move or my legs go mostly numb. Sleeping is awkward too. I get about 20 minutes of comfort on either side before I need to switch.

With my first, my water broke at home at about 3 in the morning and I spent 8 hours in labor, 2 and a half pushing, then we had a beautiful little perfect baby boy to take home. Thank goodness we didn't have any complications.

With this pregnancy, well, that remains to be seen, but I can only hope for the best right?

Aceson was due on the 19th and came on the 20th. We had a friend who Cory guessed their baby would be born the 20th, and he was. Baby #2 is due on the 19th and we are hoping for the 20th. Ironically, that is Cory's favorite and lucky number. He's 2/2 with a pending 3rd.

Mostly we are just very excited and I am super anxious. If you are a parent, particular a mom, you know these last few weeks go the slowest. The anticipation is killer. But so worth it in the end. We are so excited that our family is getting bigger and seriously can't wait for this baby. Not only for the baby, but because of how excited we are for Aceson to have a little brother.

Here's to a quick 5 (ish) weeks!

2013 in Review

It certainly was a very busy year. Some of the key things that happened include: celebrated our 3rd anniversary, celebrating a first birthday, me spending 2 months in Kentucky becoming a medic, coaching my soccer team to another state championship, finding out we will be 4, finding out it will be a 3 on 1 ratio, celebrated our second Christmas with children and deciding to sell our house and better our lives.

We have been married for 3 years, as of May 1st. It's weird to look back and think that even when we first met, there was something there that told me I would know Cory for a very long time. That saying "when you know, you know" hits home with this one. Technically we didn't really "date" until we had decided to get married. It wasn't one of those crazy fast meet and get married stories, but he did live a few states away and when we were talking about how our future would go, he was very clear that he wasn't moving to Utah to "mess around for a few months and then break up." Which was basically him saying that by moving to Utah, we were most likely going to get married. I was of course ok with that. I am greatly looking forward to this next year and the many more we will have.

Ok so here is some more detail on those. Let's start at the top. Ace turned 1 in May. He is growing up so fast. He has started becoming quite the little talker. He knows quite a few words, and tries to pick up a new one about every other day. When he doesn't know words, he sure tries to tell you anyway. At the beginning of the year we were pretty good with signs and trying to get him to talk a little. Now we don't use signs and can rarely get him to quiet down. He's pretty amazing.

I spent two months in Kentucky. It was awesome and horrible all at the same time. I have wanted to become a medic ever since I had a full time job with the Army National Guard's Medical Unit a few years back, but one thing or another happened (having a baby...) and it was just not the right timing. They called me in June and said if I wanted a spot I could have one, but I had to leave in July. After some rushing around and trying to decide, things fell into place and we went for it. Cory's mom came to stay with Aceson while I was gone and he was working all day. The training was amazing and I am so happy I did it, but being gone for so long and only being able to Skype at nights was extremely hard on me. Gave me a very new and very real appreciation for people that sacrifice being away from their families, particularly deployed soldiers who don't get Skype calls every night.

Being in Kentucky made me miss the first 3 weeks coaching my soccer team. The second I got back, I got right into it though. And eventually we made it to The Big Game. And we won that game. I have been coaching at Timpanogos High for 6 years. We have had 3 state championships in those 3 years. 1 runner-up, and many many important memories and friends made. I am currently planning to take a few years off. I will miss it on an extreme level, but with another baby due and some other plans and changes for the coming year, I think it's just going to be better. I will still enjoy going to watch the girls play and keep in touch with most of them, but my commitment will not be so extreme.

While in Kentucky (seems a lot of things involve Kentucky) I found out that 3 will become 4. Very exciting. This pregnancy hit the ground running and I spent 7 of the 8 weeks trying not to be sick and let anyone know. They would've sent me home if they found out, too much of a liability. Because I was so sick for so long, everyone thought it was a girl. I was excited for a girl. Even out the numbers a little. I think he was offended and kept me much more sick than I was with Aceson. And our numbers will certainly not be even. Baby boy Junck #2 will be making his grand appearance in March. Cory and I are both betting the 20th, but only time will tell.

Christmas 2013 was a great one. Aceson was spoiled rotten by all his grandparents. As if we expected anything else. He always is. Then again, so was I. Cory decided to surprise me with Real Salt Lake season tickets. Awesome! Now, we will just have to find a weekly sitter for two little boys so we can get out just the two of us. The one downside, we set a budget, and blew it completely out of the water. But still managed to find a way to actually save money this month... Hmm, don't know how we did it, but I'm ok with it.

Last, but certainly not least, and really not last either. Many things happened this year that I am just not writing about. Anyway, we have decided to sell our house. Not because we have to but because we want to, and it will make our lives infinitely better. As most Americans are, we owe people money. Credit cards, student loans, cars. Mostly the usual. And we are sick of it. Because we bought our home as a foreclosure, we have a bit of equity. The plan is to sell our home, use the equity to pay off our debts, rent for about a year and then evaluate getting into another home. We should be able to get completely out of debt in that time. Which will be awesome because we can really start taking advantage of the wonderful jobs and schedules that we have.

And that is our 2013 in review. We are so excited for this next year. Here's to the New Year!

Happy Birthday! and New family pictures.

Holy cow. I cannot believe my little man is already one year old. It is almost shocking. We went and took some really great pictures and I am so excited to share some with you.

Here's the catch. That is going to be all you get for now. I'm not sure how best to display these. I want to order a large canvas, but we have so many already and we are running out of wall space. Plus I think Cory will kill me. So until I figure out what I am going to do, you just get this little teaser.

Easter style Color Festival

For Easter every year, the Hari Krishna temple in Spanish Fork has a Color Festival. Basically they make a ton of colored corn starch and throw it around making a huge mess and raising all kinds of money for the next year. It's surprisingly fun. The whiter the clothes you wear, the better.

What better way to celebrate Ace's first Easter than to experience some colored corn starch. Yeah. I took my 10 month old to the festival. It was fun. He was safe. We stayed in the back. Don't judge me (see super cute picture below, how can you not want some of that?)

Most people were super respectful and would either drop a little color on his back, or ask me if they could drop some on him. I was very impressed with the people. Ace seemed a bit skeptical. He is a people watcher and very much enjoyed watching all the people. Grandma Juls came with us and we had a super great time! I very much would love to do it again next year. I don't think I would take a little baby, but a 10 month old who can walk (and stay in the back) is probably not a big deal.

Broken

Yep, my age is finally getting to me. I still think I am super woman. I love playing soccer and probably always will, I just need to learn to do it like I'm getting older, not like I am still 17. On a side note, I did stop the guy from scoring... Just saying.

Ok so here's the story. I broke my shoulder. That sounds worse than it actually is. I broke my arm bone, near the shoulder. I went to dive, awkwardly, really awkwardly, and heard a very loud, very painful "POP". And then screamed.

We spent the better part of a few hours at the ER. Which wouldn't be so bad if our game wasn't an 11 o'clock game. We didn't get home until about 2am. But I was drugged and fell right asleep. I woke up grouchy and in pain, but what can you expect?

So what actually happened? My super strong shoulder ligaments tore the bone from where they connect to my arm bone. Sounds painful? Is painful. Here's to a few months recovering and praying that the ligaments themselves aren't torn.

New jobs means mom gets to be home more!

So Cory got a new job over the holiday season and started the 2nd of January. Which means that mom got a new job too. We actually switched jobs, kinda. Cory got a really good job with doTERRA as the Diamond Club Project Manager.

Which meant a few things: a) we needed someone to watch the baby, and b) my dad was out an employee. LIGHTBULB! I can come home and work for my dad. Thus eliminating the need for a babysitter and my dad won't be down an employee. Double score. I decided to still go in to doTERRA Wednesday's when Juls could babysit and Fridays when Lynne could.

The extra cool thing about this: we have essentially doubled our income. Which is extra awesome because we dug a small hole while I wasn't working after the baby was born. We won't recover overnight, but I can see it on the horizon.

Also, Cory's parents have been out to see us. They absolutely love being able to spend time with their grandkids (and kids) they spoil us rotten. From M&M's for me, to dad time for Cory, to small to-do's around the house, to more clothes and toys for Ace than we know what to do with. We sure do enjoy having them around, not just because they spoil us, but because it is nice to be around family. I wish Cory's family wasn't so far and scattered. I think he gets a little overwhelmed with my family being here and around all the time.

Aceson has mastered the army crawl. He is really quick too. It's only a matter of time before we are going to have to get some gates and lock this kid in.

December: The busiest month EVER

So let's run down the list of things we have done this month. Family pictures with the Hill's. It's been years, well maybe we never have, since we have done good family pictures and we decided to make a big, huge canvas for grandma Millie. I am actually super excited. Now that she has grown kids, and grown grandkids, and even quite a few great grands, it's about time she has a good family picture to look at and show off. The only person who couldn't make it was little Riker. Good thing Alesha is pretty good with editing and added him in like he had been there the whole time. No one will be able to tell he wasn't there for real.

Next we had my work dinner. Which was a lot of fun. Like usual. Giveaway's. Drawings. Good food. Good friends. Cute babies. Sounds like a great time. And it was.

Ace is trying to crawl. Yep, trying. He's not quite there yet, but if I put things in front of him and just out of reach, he stretches and twists and tries with all his might. He is able to scoot a few inches forward and gets better and better every day.

Hill family Christmas party. Baby's first Christmas is fast approaching. We opened our first presents and mostly Ace was interested in the paper (shocking right). Grandma opened her picture and loved it. She was so excited and happy to have a family picture. She said she hasn't had anything like that ever. So I am very glad that is what we decided to do.

Grandma Juls stayed the night Christmas eve because she had no where else to go. I am glad she did. I think it was really special for her to be around for Ace's first Christmas. Cory basically set him in the middle of the room and every time we opened a present he threw the paper in a pile around him. It was entertaining for a while, then the pile got bigger and Ace got less comfortable. He had a pretty good time though. Talk about spoiled. All of us really. We got a lot of things we didn't need or deserve, but are grateful for non the less.

Thanks everyone for making our first real "family" Christmas a really great one.

September/October/November

September:
This month, Cory (and Ace) had their very first real temple experiences. We went to the open house of the new Brigham City Temple with Heath and Linlea West. Then of course went out for some breakfast afterwards. It is a gorgeous temple. And Cory really enjoyed getting to see the inside for the first time.

We also got Aceson blessed this month. Grandpa Ron did the blessing. Ace cried, well screamed, the whole time. Then we had a great family bbq. Cory's parents were in town so we had all the families together. For as much strife as we were expecting, there really wasn't much.

October:
Ace is finally coming to terms with the carseat. As long as we can get a bink in his mouth (which he's starting to like also) and maybe a noisy toy above his head. Sometimes he plays and sometimes he falls asleep. There is a lot less screaming anymore.

We also experienced the baby's first snow this month. We woke up to almost 2 inches one morning and had to run out to take a picture. Ace was looking around and smiling and not really quite sure what to think. We might just have a snow bunny on our hands.

November:
Mobility! Yep the little man is starting to roll tactically. I mean he has been rolling for a while, but he is finally starting to realize that he can roll to actually get somewhere or something, not just to roll.

Dad and Ace planned out a great birthday for me this year. Took me out to dinner with our wonderful friends, the West's. Then for breakfast we went over to Kneader's for their wonderful cinnamon bread french toast. THEN Danaca and Phil watched the baby so we could have a night out at dinner and a movie. I am so lucky to have such a great hubby.

June/July/August

June:

Possibly one of the funniest moments with mom and dad and the whole diaper changing idea. I posted about it on Facebook. Here's what I said, "Little man peed all over the couch while getting his bum changed. So we decided it was a great time for a bath. Immediately after putting a diaper on, he proceeded to fill it. While dad was changing him, he decided to pee all over. Again. I love being a mom." But truly, I do.

I'm starting to make piles of clothes the little man has outgrown. I literally cried when I was pulling things out of the dresser. Cory laughs because he thinks I am too emotional about this sort of thing. Which might be a little true. But it is sad for me as a mom that my little baby is outgrowing newborn stuff. It's barely been 3 weeks.

July:

The little man is starting to sleep through the night. Which is a wonderful thing. It's not every night, but it's great when it happens. Most nights he gets up to nurse around 3:30 or 4. And with a 9 pm bedtime, that is a solid 6 hours. I also caught him laughing, yeah, full on laughing in his sleep. It was glorious.

Soccer season is starting up again and I am super excited. Although. We only have 20 spots on the varsity team, and two of them are for keepers, 16 spots on the JV team, and about 50 girls at try-outs. But with all the talent we have, it is going to be a wonderful season. I am very excited.

August:

I headed back to work this month. The good news is, it will only be part time every day. 10:30-2:30. And extra lucky for us, dad gets to stay home and be with you. The schedule actually works out well. He can meet me in Orem just in time for me to nurse for a bit, then onto soccer. The girls absolutely love having a mini-mascot around. We got Ace matching onzies to the team's t-shirts. 

Family Photos

I'm not sure exactly how Cory felt about going to get pictures before we did it, but I certainly know that he is very happy with how they turned out.

Baby Time

He made it. It took 40 weeks and 1 day, but he finally made it. Aceson George Junck. Born Sunday May 20, 2012 at 11:24am. Weighing in at 8lbs 4oz. 20" long.

 And on to the part most of you want to hear. You know, the whole story. I'll start all the way back to 2 weeks ago. Monday the 7th. It started off as a completely normal Monday. Wake up. Shower. Head to work. Ugh. Whatever. I'm technically only scheduled till Friday. Shouldn't be that bad right? WRONG. Oh man. About an hour into work, so 9 ish in the morning, I started hurting. Not like a contraction. More like full on cramping. But bad. Really bad. Like I could hardly move bad. So of course. I hurry and call to get a ride and tell my boss I am leaving. And head into the hospital.

By the time we got to the hospital, the cramping was not nearly as bad and I was having fairly steady contractions. Not terribly painful ones, but consistent ones. They took us into a triage room and hooked me up to monitors. I was only dilated to a 2. And the contractions weren't too painful. So after a couple hours, they sent us home with the instructions, "If it gets worse or your water breaks come back immediately." No luck. Didn't get worse. Water stayed in tact. So off to work for another 2 WEEKS. Ugh.

But it started again Saturday the 19th. Which happened to be my due date. Cory had made plans to go golfing (of course) with a good friend. He asked if I wanted to tag along. I do that sometimes just because it's fun to spend time with him and he golfs every free minute he has. So I might as well tag along. Get some fresh air, keep score, basically be a riding buddy. Well not too long before we went out I started feeling kinda... off. Not bad, not hurting, just off.

Well the boys were doing 18 and by the time we had finished 9 I was done. Tired. And sore. And needing to lay down. So I went home and the boys kept playing. As the evening went on, I started cramping and getting contractions more and more consistently. Sorry mom. I may have lied to you at this point. I didn't want anyone getting excited for another scare like we had had 2 weeks earlier. So when people called or txted to ask how I was doing I told them I was doing just fine. I lied. I wasn't so fine.

By the time we were ready for bed I was really crampy and contracting pretty solidly. But They weren't too consistent. Anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes apart. I didn't want to go into the hospital again and get sent home again. So I wanted to wait till something actually happened. We didn't have to wait too long. Just before 3am my water broke. It was on. Time to go. Cory jumped up out of bed and we headed to the hospital.

At the hospital we got into the triage room and got hooked up to the monitors. My contractions were very consistent and starting to get pretty strong. They came in and checked me, I was dilated to a 5. So they decided to get me all checked in so we could get the epidural plugged in. Or not... Too bad the anesthesiologist had to go help with an emergency c-section. So we had to wait. A little over an hour for the epidural. And by then the contractions were pretty darn painful.

Finally got the epidural and I decided it was time for a nap. I had been up almost all night and I was going to need my strength. So I slept. Only for a couple hours, but it was still sleep. A couple hours later, I started feeling like the epidural was wearing off. So we called in the anesthesiologist and got a little booster. It seemed to help. The nurse also decided to check and see what kind of progress I was making. It was about 8:30am and some family had started showing up. I was dilated to a 9 so I called the family that had decided to wait a while and told them to get on the way if they wanted to be there.

By 9 I was ready to go. So we started pushing. And pushing. And pushing. And pushing. And pushing. Two and a half hours later the little guy decided to make his grand appearance. And grand it was. He hardly cried at all. Just enough to let us know he was breathing and doing just fine. Family came in to see what all the fuss was about. Everyone was just so excited.

Cory went with the nurse to the nursery to get Aceson bathed and I got all cleaned up and up to our room. A few minutes after I ad gotten upstairs, Cory came in with the baby. And let's be honest, that is when the crazy started. Everyone wanted to come say hi and see the baby. And they did. For the next 2 days it was an almost constant stream of people during the day and rough nights trying to sleep while getting checked and trying to feed the baby every couple hours. Tuesday morning we got up and decided it was time to go home.

 On a side note. Wednesday morning we had to go back and take a bilirubin test. To test his jaundice. We brought him home from the hospital and he was at and 11. Which is the high end of normal. By Wednesday morning he was a 17. Which apparently is close to the high end of high. So they brought us a light bed. Pretty cool as far as what it can do, but Aceson doesn't like it too much. So we try to use the little blanket piece as much as we can and not so much with the bed. That way we can still hold him.

Alright. So here is what you really wanted. Photo's:

19 Days? That's it?

So I just decided to glance at my blog page before I wrote this post. I noticed the little baby counter that I had forgotten I'd put up. 19 days. Wow. That is not a lot of time at all. I also noticed how much room that little baby seems to have. Let me comment on that fact, HA. Yeah right. Still floating like he's in a pool? I think not. Squished is more like it. And constantly punching my bladder and kicking my ribs out. I wish there was still that much room in there. That would be nice. As many of you have experienced, I am well into that very uncomfortable third trimester. And for those who don't know, you will. As the carrier, or the spouse, you'll experience it. It is... less than fun. But the last hard time before your little one comes to meet you. Which is most likely the only thing that keeps people during this time from doing some crazy things. Or maybe not (anyone tried castor oil...)

Anyways. I thought I'd get on and update everyone. You know, since it's been months. But I also wanted to put up some pictures up for those friends and family who aren't around to see me or the baby room they are probably so curious about. So let's get started.

This is me at 37 weeks. Some people are not convinced it's a baby, but more convinced I am simply hiding a soccer ball under there. Trust me. It's a baby. A very very wiggly little baby boy. Who I am so excited to meet (hopefully sooner than later).

And on to the nursery. We decided to go a little... unconventional. But regardless, I absolutely love it. Besides. It's my baby's room. Not yours. So if you don't like the boldness, decorate your baby's room differently. Plus, if we end up staying here a while, we won't have to worry about an older kid stuck in a room for a baby.

This is the view from the door. NOTE: I did actually use some of my own talents. I made the curtains and the crib set. I love the colors. They are fun and exciting, but still very manly.

Floating book shelves. I found these at Ikea. $15. Awesome. The one I really wanted looked like a side view of stairs. Unfortunately Ikea stopped making them (apparently) long before I was looking to buy. So I had to go with plain flat ones. But no worries. They're offset so as to match the "urban" design of the rest of the room. Plus the red matches as perfectly as you can get without actually having used the same paint.

Good looking crib set huh? And artwork.Yep, his name will be Aceson. Think of it like Mason, but without the "M". So A Son. And that reaction you had is more or less what we were going for. A different and uncommon name, but still a name. Not a fruit or a flavor or a brand.

I have a buddy from high school who is studying graphic design and kinda specializes in more a graffiti type design. We asked him to do this for us. He actually did it on some art paper. Then Cory and I scanned that onto the computer and projected it up on the wall. Then we painted it all ourselves. I'm really glad it looks so good, because it was not easy. And even though we have a few more names (my friend did a boy and girl name, and our last name, each in about 3 different styles) we most likely will not be doing this again. It was a little lot more difficult than we originally thought.

 Oh what a good looking crib set. Where did you find it? No biggie, I made it. Of course I had a lot of help from my wonderful Grandma Linda. But still. I did most of it.

So there you have it. Picture of me, pictures of baby's room, pictures of baby. Oh wait. Scratch that last one. You're going to have to wait a few more weeks for that. Although I'd really like to be able to post those right now. Well I know I promise this almost every post, but I really mean it this time. I will be better at posting. Plus with this new addition to the family that I am super excited to show off, I think I will have more to post about. I will try and avoid the parts about the first time he throws up, or the first time he eats at home. We'll try and stick with actually interesting stuff. Like the first time dad throws up from changing a stinky diaper. The first time baby smiles. I apologize in advance if I change my mind and post about something that seems so uninteresting to those of you without kids. If you ever have kids you might change your mind.

Well, until next time (I promise it will be within the next month). I'll keep stalking your blog if you keep stalking mine.

What baby? Oh THAT baby!

So I am finally starting to get a little bit of a baby belly. Which is awesome cause now I actually look pregnant, but not so awesome cause my favorite way to sleep is on my tummy. Guess I won't be doing that for a while. So here is what I look like (well this is about 2 weeks ago, but I am not in the mood to go bet a new picture, so you'll have to deal with this one.) And if you hold your mouse over the picture, you can see what baby look like. Any last minute boy/girl guesses?




Well in case you can't see it... (jk you can't see anything but head, arms, and legs in this picture). It's a boy!!! Yay! We are so so so very excited. Cory, I think, is still secretly doing a happy dance. He is so thrilled that we are having a boy. He's been so nervous about it being a girl and has always wanted a boy first. Guess he got his wish, this time. He will have a girl at some point. But until then, looks like I will be out numbered at home for a while. Happily out numbered of course.

This morning I also felt the very first for sure baby kicks. I think I've felt it a time or two in the last week, but this morning before getting out of bed, I rolled onto my back and laid my hand on my stomach. After a minute I felt like a little flick. I wasn't sure so I kept my hand there. After I felt it 2 more times I decided it was definitely baby kicking. And of course I woke up my husband to fell, which of course didn't happen. He put his hand on my belly and after about 5 minutes of nothing, I decided I needed to get up and get ready for work. No feeling baby this time, but I'm sure there will be more chances. Also now that I know what I am feeling, I'm noticing it more. Even as I sit here relaxed on the couch, I've felt a couple little kicks. Cory might not entirely approve (he wants a football player), but this little boy feels like he might have a great soccer career ahead of him.

Oops. Sorry it's been so long.

So for a while I have been realizing that it has been months and months since my last update, but never remembering when I am actually at home with an extra few minutes to tell you what's been up. Lots. Obviously. Since I've clearly been to busy doing whatever to get on here and tell you about it.

First let's start way back at Labor Day weekend. I have promised Cory that if he keeps winning his golf tournament in North Dakota we can keep going back to play in it. But this year he made an executive decision. No trip. Well really it was "no money" for said trip. We jut couldn't fit it into the budget. It's a long drive and we'd have to rent a car and get a hotel. And with the oil business booming in ND it is almost impossible to find a cheap or even cheapish hotel. Simple solution really. Guess we aren't going. So what will we be doing for the weekend? Well grandma is in Boise and that is only about 5 hours away. Meaning we could do it in my POS car and stay at grandma's. Perfect. Done. It was a great trip. We hung out, relaxed, went to dinner, played football with cousin Mason, and even helped grandma paint her sewing room. It was a great way to spend the weekend.

Ok... what's next... Oooh. Soccer. So as most of you know. I am an assistant coach at Timpanogos High school. And boy did we have a crazy season. Games we should've won by at least 5 goals were decided by one and sometimes even in over-time. Games we should've had a challenging opponent we went out and completely dominated. The girls got emotional and myself and the other coaches got frustrating. But check this, we had one main goal all year, "make it to Rio Tinto" (or the state championship game for those of you unfamiliar with Utah high school soccer.) Ending the season with only one loss, our outlook was promising. Until we got to the quarterfinal game that is. Let me give you a little bit of a highlight/play by play. Less than 10 minutes into the game, boom, we score. Ok not a bad way to start the game. Uh oh, they answer quick by scoring within a couple minutes. Ok there is a lot of time and that was kinda a lucky shot. Well check this out, we'll see your one goal and raise you two more. Score sits at 3-1 for us for most of the game. Until the final 15 minutes of course. 2 more lucky shots (ok they were pretty good shots I guess) and now the game is tied. We're heading into over time. Over time in high school soccer is a little different. It's golden goal. Meaning if you score, you win and the game is over. No pressure right. Well two, ten minute, over time periods go by with nothing exciting happening. Game is still tied. Bet you're thinking, "Now what?" Shoot out. That's what. A shoot out is one player and the goalie. They shoot the ball from 15 yards away from the goal and if the goalie is lucky, the shooter will miss. It's a very one sided kind of game. With the shooter having a huge advantage. Well the other team opts to shoot first. Meaning all the pressure will be on us. So they're up. Goal. We're up. Goal. Them, goal. Us, MISS. Wait what? We missed? Yep, it gets better. Them, goal. Us, MISS. AGAIN!? Oh no. this technically should spell game over. They are up 3-1 heading into the 4th (out of 5) shot. Meaning if they make this the game is over. Mathematically we won't be able to catch up if they miss. Needless to say there might be a little pressure on our goalie to do whatever she can to stop this ball from going in. Here comes the shot and.... IT'S BLOCKED!!! She did it. Our goalie came out huge to make a block. Ok we are still in this for a minute. Our shot, goal. 3-2 for them going into the 5th shot. They make it game over. Their shot, MISS. She missed. Sailed it right over the goal. We just got lucky. If we make this shot we'll go one and one till someone can't match. And the shot is good! Tied 3-3 after 5. So here we go. They miss, we make it. Game over we win. Kinda caught a lucky break and our goalie made a game changing save. She is AMAZING. So we head into the semi-final game. Honestly, we should've lost, but our goalie was playing on her game making save after save. The other team played amazing, but our goalie played better, and we capitalized on one of the few mistakes they made. Winning my the fingertips of a 15 year old girl. Next, State championship. We had made it to our seasons goal. And boy did these girls come ready to play. It wasn't even a great game. Our girls passed circles around the other team like they were standing still. Although we scored our only goal about 5 minutes in, if it wasn't for problems putting it away, and a few great saves by the other teams goalie, we would've scored at least 7 more times. And after such a dominating performance the principal took the whole team out to dinner. What an exciting night for these girls. They felt on top of the world.

So the second to last very exciting thing to happen recently was going to Florida. My parents decided it was time for a DisneyWorld adventure. Ok I'm in. How could you not? Yep, spent the week in Florida. It was great. We went to Universal Studios specifically to visit Harry Potter world. Which was awesome, by the way. Then of course we hit up all the DisneyWorld parks. Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios. I am currently more unable than usual to go on rides and so I enjoyed more of the walking around exploring, like at Harry Potter world and Animal Kingdom. It was Cory's first visit, and he loved it. Or at least he told me he loved it. We both had an absolute blast just people watching.

Ok last but not least. I'm sure you've noticed the new addition to my page. And if you haven't well that's ok. I guess I'll just tell you now. We are expecting!!! YAY!!! We are so so so excited. We had a super fun time telling my parents too. We had a themed dinner (which was mostly unnoticed til dessert) with baby back ribs, baby carrots, baby spinach salad, baby corns. Fun stuff, but the best was definitely dessert. My sister and I decorated cupcakes with binkies and bottles and onsies and "gma" and "gpa". As soon as we set the plate down my dad said, "Hey I think there was a theme to this dinner..." Lynne didn't even noticed for a minute till she noticed that all of us were smiling then she finally looked at the cupcakes and screamed, "Are you serious?" It was definitely worth it. All the soon to be grandparents are very very excited. As are we, and basically everyone around us. Cory wants a boy (surprise). And I want twins, a boy and a girl. I guess we will have to wait and see. We have our first ultra-sound/heartbeat check next week. And hopefully I can talk the Dr. into telling us what it is before Christmas. Either way, I'll keep you posted.

Try-outs, Idaho, 9-year olds, and interviews.

Ah... It's that time of year again. Time for soccer and job searching.  The soccer season started last week, meaning the ever so stressful try-outs. Not only super stressful, but also very encouraging. A few years ago I remember there being a huge split between the talent that showed up to try-outs. There were many who clearly stood out as top tier varsity players, and also people who just wanted to play a high school sport, and very few right in the middle. This year, there were not so many stand outs on either end and about 15 players who could easily be interchanged without consequence. And that is where the biggest problem was. After picking the initial 16 players and deciding that the varsity would only hang onto 19 total, we now had 3 open spots, and 5 girls who equally deserved and earned the spots. After much deliberation and lots and lots of running through all the different options, it was decided to keep all 5 girls. Great choice!

This past weekend, was the annual soccer trip to Idaho. Our head coach has lots of family members in Idaho falls who happen to be out of town every year on this specific weekend. How convenient. So we stay in their house. All he girls sleep in the basement in sleeping bags. Well maybe not sleep, but that's where they stay. We spend 4 days practicing, doing service, attending church and a fireside, and over-all just bonding. It does wonders for the cohesion of the team. The new members of the team often get their protective shell's broken and surprise everyone by how vocal and social they actually are. We came straight home to the very first game of the pre-season. And what a game it was. 1-1 in the first 15 minutes. Followed by 87 minutes of nothing. One of our returning sophomore's scored the winning goal with less than 3 minutes left to play. Not a bad start to the season, and now we know that driving for 5 hours and then playing a soccer game is probably not the very best idea.

Who doesn't love doing cartwheels? I don't. And I especially don't enjoy it on the soccer field. But let's see you try and convince a 9 year old girl to stop doing cartwheels. Yeah I have a hard time with that too. I recently was assigned to help coach a group of 9 year old girls. I'm still not quite sure what I've gotten myself into. Don't get me wrong, these girls are adorable, and already attached. At my second practice they were already running up to me and giving me a welcome to practice hug. That's something my high school girls have never done. But it's really hard to coach soccer to girls who want to do cartwheels and pick flowers. How in the world do you get these kids to pay attention long enough to teach them anything? I certainly have no idea, but I certainly try. I didn't want to come in and be the automatically mean coach. So I am easing into it. I am running practice Friday morning and I think I will be instigating a few new rules not limited to but including, 5 push-ups and 5 sit-ups for each cartwheel, for every minute myself or the other coach has to wait because they are talking while we are explaining something, they will owe us one lap (they have really small fields, one lap is probably not even 300 yrds). I think they can handle this. Plus they might actually learn something about soccer.... Crazy right?

Along with it being soccer season, it is also almost time for my job to be evaluated again. Every year at the end of September my job and performance are evaluated. If they like me and the work I do, I get hired on for another year. If not, it's adios and good luck. Well it's officially that time of year. So I am trying to make sure I'm well liked, while at the same time applying and interviewing for as many jobs as I can find. Not so easy. Especially in this market where it seems like no one has a job and you can't even apply for a job without a bachelor's degree AND three years experience, of which I have neither. So I am relying on friends and the Army. I had an interview yesterday for a Recruiting position with the Army, and another tomorrow for a Supply position. I was supposed to get a call from a friend's company for a receptionists position, but I didn't. Looks like I'll be calling her. Either way, I'm starting to feel that push to find something new. I'm getting the feeling that with budget cuts my job might not exist this coming year. I mean really, how important is Facebook?

I want to move to California... well kinda.

So we spent part of last week in California. It was Lynne's birthday and she wanted to go to the "Pageant of the Master's" in Laguna. Ok why not? Sounds like a few days in California. "Maybe I can find some cool art for my house," I thought while boarding the plane. Um... no. No I can't. I figured $100 might get me a cool vase or a small painting. And yes it would've gotten me a SMALL painting. But really who wants to display something the size of a postage stamp. I mean you'd have to be like 3 inches away to see what it was. Don't get me wrong. There were some very very VERY cool things there. The cheapest of the things I would've liked to bring home was hovering somewhere around the $800 mark. And trust me, there are about a dozen million things I'd rather spend $800 on right now.

Ok how about onto the part about I want to move there. Hello, 75 degrees the whole time. I mean it dipped a little lower than that late in the evenings and Thursday when it was over cast. But think, it's July. It's touching the 100's at home in Utah and it's only 75 in Cali. Love it. Want it. PLEASE?! The downside? Holy expensive. We went to brunch on Balboa Island the morning we got there. My 3 slices of french toast, scrambled eggs, and 2 slices of bacon was $12.95 BEFORE tax and tip. Now add up brunch for 7 people. Ouch... And that is brunch. The least expensive meal of the day. We went to birthday dinner at the art festival before the pageant Cory and I paid $10 to split the Pork chops. Delish! But the extra $10 was the cheap option to a second $25 meal. I think the hefty price of California helps keep the AC going all summer.

The trip home was quite the adventure. We fly standby to most of our destinations (Lynne retired from Delta giving the fam a few benefits). Well because of this, if flights fill up or people with higher priority come along, we get booted. Which we did. 3 times. After the 3rd boot, we decided to explore some other options. Buying tickets would cost a whopping $500 a person (here's a tip: buy your tickets as early as possible. Last minute flights are expensive). Ok there are 6 of us still here (dad took the only open seat on the earliest flight cause he had to be back for work) 6 x's $500 = way too much money. Rent a car. Hey we can do that with a military discount for less than $200 + gas. Ok keep that on the table. We can wait for the next flight which has lots and lots of open seats, but it leaves in 4 hours. Ok keep that on the table too. Too bad we left the terminal to check on rental cars. So it's back to check in to get new tickets and back into the terminal. As we are about to check in, the lady behind the counter says something to the effect of, "You won't get on. Looks like a few flights just got canceled." This means our empty flight will be filled with frustrated travelers who's flights got canceled. Rental car it is. To the dismay of Danaca who had a date scheduled for the evening. So we got in a very nice Chevy Tahoe and headed home. Stopping once for lunch, once for a bathroom break, once for fuel, and once in St George for some dinner at my aunt's house. 12 hours later falling onto my bed and being asleep before my head hit the pillow.

What an adventure. If getting home from California was such a mess I'm super excited to see what it will be like trying to get home from Florida in October. DISNEYWORLD 2011!!! WOOOOO!!!!