Monstrous Saliva

So, I've been feeling the need to childproof our apartment, but didn't know where to start. I mean, most of the cords we've got are "hidden" behind things, only the things I don't mind Andrew getting into are down in the lower areas of our apartment, and our plugs all have covers on them.

Maybe that's not the kind of childproofing I need. Apparently not.

Sometimes I just leave things close to Andrew, and his mouth finds it. Which equals making the thing not work anymore. For example:

About two months ago, I was uploading pictures to the computer and didn't bother taking the USB cable out of the computer. Well, Andrew was on the floor, and the end of it was Andrew's new toy! Ahhh! I took it out, set it on the computer desk, and didn't think anything of it. I mean, stuff like that should still work when it dries, right?

A month later (so about a month ago), I was trying to upload pictures to the computer. I barely pulled it off. The computer kept having issues figuring out that what was connected to it was a camera. And today, I connect the cord to my camera, and it doesn't figure it out at all. Grrrr...

Another example:

Our beloved iPod was brought with us on our trip to Portland and kept us entertained for quite a few hours. Unfortunately, I had been in charge and was sitting in the back seat with Andrew. Instead of doing the smart thing and putting it away in my book bag after we stopped listening to it, I put it in the cup holder in Andrew's car seat, because it was oh-so-much easier.

We stopped at a gas station, we all got out for a few seconds, and when we came back from stretching to get Andrew out of the car... that's right. You guessed it. The iPod was Andrew's new chew toy, and now our iPod won't play. We tried fixing it on our own when we got home, but alas, we fixed nothing.

And to make things worse, I ruined something myself. I have crocs, and I love them because they're my only slip-on shoes (other than dress shoes), and while they're ugly, they're comfy! Anyway, to clean them, I put them in the dishwasher. Funny, I know, but it works! ...as long as they're on the top rack. That's what I discovered today, when I went to get them out of the bottom rack, and they had shrunk! They used to be pretty roomy, just the way I like them, and now they barely fit on my feet! Ahhhhh! So now I have to wear tennis shoes everywhere. In the middle of summer. With a baby. Yuck-E.

Sorry about all the complaining. It's just that sometimes when people write on their blogs about their kids and lives, everything seems so cheery and perfect, and I can't help but feel like my life is not normal. I mean, come on people. Life is crazy. Share some of those experiences too! It's alright to be a human being.

Graduation, Portland, Relaxing

I don't have pictures on the computer of anything yet, so you won't see any today. So sorry. Maybe tomorrow?

Well, the spring semester is officially over. It ended last Thursday. I was supposed to take a final that day, but I decided not to. No, I'm not crazy! lol. My teacher gave 5 exams over the course of the semester, but only keeps the 4 highest scores. The final was the last exam and counted like a normal exam. Even my teacher said that if we were ok with our grade we wouldn't need to come in to take the final. I just don't think he wanted to show up to class either! Haha. Anyway, I didn't take the final, so I have a B+ in the class. Yay Geography!

Geography and the Geography lab were my last two classes I needed to take for my degree, so I also graduated on Thursday! Hurray! I walked in Commencement - the speaker was Bishop Richard C. Edgley, the 1st councilor in the Presiding Bishopric:

Then received my diploma cover in Convocation. I won't get my diploma until... well, probably a month from now. *sigh* Oh well. I graduated! That's all that matters, right?

The next morning, Jason, Andrew and I woke up at 4am (YIKES!!!). This is definitely not something we want to make a habit of, but our musical fireside group, From The Heart, was leaving to go on a tour to Portland, Oregon! It was a loooooong drive, to say the least, but we enjoyed ourselves once we got there. What was crazy was that it was 100°+ pretty much the entire time we were there. It was so stinkin' hot, I couldn't believe it. And the car we drove around it had no air conditioning. Talk about uncomfortable. The good thing is that we were able to go to the beach, but if you've ever been to the beach in the northwest, it's cold. The wind was blowing, and I felt like I had gone from sauna to early spring!

We got back Monday night - well, more like Tuesday morning - at 2am. That was ouchy. The good thing was that we had no set plans for Tuesday, so we just relaaaaaaxed. We had to babysit these three girls for a few hours, but outside of that, nothing. It was lovely. :)

Now Jason's starting to study HARD for the LSAT, and trying to work more, so it's back to the hubbub of daily life. *sigh*

Face-Making

Jason and I are going to a dinner with the stake presidency and high councilmen tonight (a benefit of him being a stake assistant executive secretary), and Jason forwarded the email they sent about it to me today. We're going to be playing this game, I'm not sure how it'll go exactly, but they wanted us to answer a few questions about ourselves, and one of them brought back a memory I thought would be funny to share.

When I was in younger, my younger sister Carrie and I didn't get along very well. My family considers Susette to be the peacemaker because she would always stop our fights and get things good again. When Susette went out to Utah for college, Carrie and I had to fend for ourselves.

I was a sophomore in high school and Carrie was in 8th grade. We'd watch tv to relax after school, so we found ourselves doing homework at the same time in the living room. Usually we'd argue about which music to listen to or find something to get each other with, but there was one night where I decided to stare at her and see how long it took her to notice. It took a while, but when she looked at me, I made a face. And that was just the beginning.

We kept doing this over and over again until it was almost like a contest - trying to see who could make the funniest face. Then sounds started working their way into it. Believe me, it was a sight to be seen! And heard! We ended up cracking each other up and instead of fighting, we'd be laughing.

While it sounds kinda stupid, I really do think it was a blessing that we started doing that. Carrie and I get along much better now, and I think that may have been the beginning of us becoming more than just sisters. We became friends.

Yay for random memories.

6-month checkup and a wedding!

We had Andrew's 6-month checkup today, two weeks late, as usual. He'll be 6 1/2 months old on Wednesday, but this was when it was scheduled.

Andrew was, thank heaven, feeling better today than he was a week ago. He was happy and smiling at the nurses like the merciless flirt he is. Haha. The doctor said everything looked great, that he was a happy, healthy baby. Hurray!

They weighed him - 22 lbs 3 oz (97th percentile), measured his height - 28.3 inches (92nd percentile), and measured his head - 18.3 inches (96th percentile). So pretty much Andrew is a giant, but a well-proportioned giant.

They also gave him vaccinations, which are never fun, but he reacted pretty well and has been pretty chipper since. I am so blessed to have such a "mellow" baby, as all of Jason's siblings were saying this last weekend.

Jason's brother Nathan got married last Friday, and we were able to make it to Seattle for it! The trips there and back weren't that bad, and the time there was so fun. I loved it. It had been since our wedding almost 2 years ago that we had seen them all together, and we were with them all for the weekend. The sealing was sweet, the receptions were great, and the time together with everyone was the best. Yay for family!

I'll post pictures from the wedding later.

Sick!

Andrew started acting weird yesterday - he was calm. He would sit still, and would cuddle against us when we held him. That was my first clue that something was wrong. Haha.

He took a late afternoon nap, and when he woke up, he was burning. I took his temperature to make sure he didn't have a fever, and the temp was above 103°! I took it with two different thermometers just to make sure.

Why is it that babies always have to get sick after the pediatrician's office is closed for the evening?

Anyway, we called the after-hours nurse to ask for advice, and we followed it pretty religiously all night. This morning, he was feeling less hot and was acting much happier, but I made an appointment to see the doctor anyway, just to make sure everything was ok.

I thought he had some sort of infection, but the doctor said that he probably has some sort of virus. Andrew was acting all happy at the office, like he wasn't sick at all (even though his temperature was still 102°), so they didn't give him any medicine. He just said to keep doing what we were doing for him, and call if he got worse.

We came home, and it was like the instant we got here (and since), Andrew's been crying his little eyes out and really irritable. I really wish there was more I could do, and it makes me want to cry that he's feeling so bad. I finally put him in his jumper just now, and he seems to be a little happier.

What's worrying me is that the three of us are taking off for Seattle tomorrow - driving to Boise, then catching a flight from there to Seattle. Jason's brother Nathan is getting married on Friday. Yay! Anyway, I'm crossing my fingers that Andrew will feel better tomorrow, otherwise this whole weekend will be less fun than we were expecting. :(

Wish us luck!

4th of July and Stuff

I figured since I have some time, I should spend it updating!

Well, the last time I updated was June 29th. Since then, Andrew turned 6 months old! I can't believe that he's getting so big and so old already. It seems like yesterday I was holding him in my arms for the first time, so happy he was here, and so scared because I didn't really know how to take care of him. He has turned into such a happy little boy, and I am so blessed to have him around.

That same day, Jason and I spent 3 hours recording with our choir From The Heart. It felt like so much longer! I like the songs we're singing, it's just difficult to stand for that long without much of a break. And since being pregnant with Andrew, my back just hasn't been the same!

We had Thursday and Friday off from school, which was heavenly. Jason did homework on Thursday for a while, and then we left to go to Idaho Falls to spend time with my grandparents. They had bought Andrew an outfit some time ago, but because we hadn't seen them since January before this trip down, the outfit wouldn't have fit him anymore. It's a good thing I told them, because they gave it to another grandson that was born more recently, and bought Andrew a new one. This one was an 18-month size, sure to be huge on him, right? Well, here he is wearing it (with his new stuffed lizard):

As you can see, it fits him just about perfectly! There's room to grow, thank goodness, but when we put it on him to see how it fit, my jaw just about dropped to the floor.

My baby. Is. HUGE. I think the sizing may be a little off on that outfit just a teensy bit.

We spent the evening with my grandparents, and the night as well. The next morning, Grandpa and Jason went around to a couple different mechanics because our car was having issues with its starter. It was more expensive there than it was in Rexburg, so we just went home and Jason took the car to be fixed.

We then proceeded to eat 4 meals in a row with our friends Mark and Sam and their baby Dillon. And spend pretty much the entirety of the 4th of July with them. Our ward had a breakfast, then we walked to the parade. Andrew enjoyed being outside, I think.

We went to the water park at Porter Park, but Andrew did NOT like it at all.

We first put his hand in some water that was shooting out from the ground, and that's when the crying began. I think it was too cold for his liking. We set him down in the water to see if he would like spashing in it, and he just bawled his little eyes out. That's when I decided we were done. He was much happier when he was dry and we were out playing in the grass.

And now the weekend is over. *sigh* I loved it. I'm really looking forward to the 7-week break so that Jason will be home with us most of the time (when he's not working or studying for the LSAT). We'll be able to go to the park more often to walk around and play in the grass, play frisbee, and maybe even try the water park again. Maybe Andrew will like it better next time?

Our happy little family (looking a little more fuzzy than normal):