Christmas 2013

We had a good Christmas at home.  The kids didn't wake up until almost 6:30, and Matthew was excited to see what Santa brought him.  We didn't have Michael this year for Christmas, he was in Colorado.

Megan had a good 1st Christmas full of lots of interactive toys.

I think Matthew liked playing with Megan's toys more then his own. :)

His big present from Santa.

My little cutie pie.

The kids loved showing their Christmas presents to Grandpa and Grandma.

Shane put training wheels on one of Michael's old bikes.  This is the first time Matthew has had a bike where he uses pedals.  He's been riding a Strider bike for the past 2 years (it doesn't have pedals).

Lil' Miss Megan

Spending Fall Break in Utah...

The two kids and I went to visit my family in Utah for two weeks.  I braved the plane ride with two little ones, it really wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  Taking Matthew potty on the plane while holding Megan will always be memorable. 

We took Matthew to the Treehouse Museum on Ogden.

My little Rootin' Tootin' Cowboy.

He loved the trains the best, and could have spent the whole time in this one spot!

It's too bad my Dad didn't have a big smile like Miss Megan (tongue sticking out and all). :)

I rarely get to be apart of baptisms or most family functions because we live the farthest away.  It just so happened my niece Brianna was getting baptized when we were in Utah.  So it was nice to be a part of her special day and to be with family again.

Matthew couldn't get enough of playing with his cousins!

My brother Trent and his family came down from Idaho for the baptism, so we went swimming at their hotel with them.

Matthew loves his cousin Sam, and Sam has always been so good with Matthew.

This is his cousin Olivia.  These two got along really well, Matthew tends to play more with girls.  At least at school he does.

Matthew loved playing with his cousin Ethan too.

I was able meet up with my roommate KayLynn from college, back when we were going to Utah State.  We were roommates for 3+ years, and have stayed in touch.  We hadn't seen each other for 4 years.  It was good to catch up, and I know she loved teasing me again!!

We went to the Dinosaur Park in Ogden.

This was a cute picture of my Dad and Matthew.

Matthew got to go to a Halloween Carnival with some of his cousins!

I can't get enough of this cute little smile, sometimes a little mischievous.  We had a lot of fun in Utah, and I was glad my family got to meet Megan for the first time.  I appreciated my husband holding down the fort while I took a much needed break, needless to say he was glad to have us home.  We had some wonderful friends that helped out with Michael too, it was greatly appreciated!!

This is a short video of Matthew's Pre-K class singing Happy Birthday to him and another girl.

The Birthday Boys

Michael and Matthew have birthdays just a couple days apart, so we have been throwing two parties in one weekend.

First off was Matthew's party in our backyard.  We invited many of his close friends over to our house for a pool party.  They had fun playing on the slip 'n slide.

The pool was nice and refreshing!

I would like to hope that they will get married some day.....it could happen. ;)  His friend Brooke shares the same birthday.  They are cute together, and Matthew loves to hold her hand.

My pizza l'ovin boy!

Shane set up his new canopy for shade, we thought it worked out nicely.

Grandma Chism came to visit for their birthdays, and to see her new Granddaughter.  Matthew got a lot of nice gifts, he loved opening them all up.

We need to work on his blowing out the candle skills, his Dad ended up helping him after he kept spitting.

Next off was Michael's party.  We were going to have his at the Sierra Morado pool, but it started storming around the time everyone was supposed to arrive. Luckily we still had everything set up from Matthew's party, so the kids just played in our backyard.

Grandma Chism bought the boys a trampoline for their birthdays.  So Shane and Michael set that up for his party.

Michael had fun with his friends, and eating lots of cake.  We had ordered pizza, but the delivery guy couldn't get to our house because of the storm.  Sooooo the kids enjoyed fish crackers, cake, and soda. :)

Michael blowing out his candles.

Michael was so excited with all the wonderful gifts he got, and he couldn't wait to take everyone inside to play Skylanders.

Another fun gift.

They made some fun memories, and had a great time with friends!  Thanks to all those families that took time out of their weekend to come and hang out with us.

I almost forgot to add this cute picture of Grandma Chism and our little Megan...

First Day of School

Michael went into 5th grade, and Matthew went into Pre-K.

Megan Jo Chism

I finally delivered a healthy and beautiful baby girl on June 6, 2013. I had her three weeks early, my actual due date was June 28th. I went into to see the Dr. that afternoon, and she said I was already 4 centimeters dilated. She had dropped significantly and was resting comfortably on my bladder. I expressed my concern that Shane was leaving in two weeks for Utah, and that I didn’t want to have her while he was gone. The Dr. helped to speed things along by stripping my membranes, and she sent me on my way telling me I could have her very soon. I went on with my day as normal, and did some shopping at Target which included buying her a going home outfit. I took Matthew to his speech appointment and to swim lessons. I came home that evening and sat on the couch looking at a book to figure out what to take to the hospital when the time comes. As I got up from the couch my water broke just after 10:00 pm. Shane was in the kitchen, and I very calmly told him that my water just broke. He put down whatever he was doing, and said jokingly “Why do you always do this after 10:00 pm?” The same thing had happened when I had Matthew. Shane hurried and gathered what we needed to go to the hospital with, including bags for Michael and Matthew. We woke them up from their sleep and dropped them off at my friend Emily Jensen’s home. Then we drove 40 minutes to the hospital and my contractions were so strong I thought I was going to have her in the car. Luckily the traffic wasn’t too bad that late at night, but we hit every red light. When we got to the hospital Shane went into get a wheelchair for me, and wheeled me to the Labor and Delivery. It seemed no one was in a hurry to deliver my baby, and Shane explained to them that I come really fast. The nurse wanted me to change into a gown and take a urine sample but there was no time for that. They finally put me up on a bed and checked to see I was already 10 centimeters dilated. So they quickly wheeled me into the delivery room and I had to wait until the on-call Dr. arrived. My Dr. didn't arrive in time. After about 7 pushes, and no epidural she was finally here weighing in at 6 pounds 6 ounces. This was easy to remember since she was also born on 6-6. She came at 11:48 pm, and was just over 18 inches long. I was worried throughout my pregnancy, because when they did an ultra-sound it was noted that I only had a 2-vessel umbilical cord. They told me that could interfere with her growth since umbilical cords are supposed to have 3 vessels. I was so relieved to finally be holding my healthy baby girl. She is such a joy in our lives, and we can’t get enough of her!

Baby 'Girl' Shower

 I had some wonderful friends throw me a baby shower.  Thank you to Emily Jensen, Elisabeth Balderree and Kim Lamont.  The decorations, food, gifts and conversation were all so amazing.

The refreshment table and some of the cute decorations.

The gift table.

The beautiful cake my friend Bren made.

Opening up some of my gifts, my friend Kamry made this cute onesie and hair bow.

I got so many really nice gifts.

From left to right: Emily, Jillian, Elisabeth, Kim, Julie, Kamry, baby Elsie and Jenny

We didn't have anyone else to take the picture, so here is Stephanie in this one.

 Thanks to all who were able to come.  I really appreciated everything that went into throwing me a baby shower, and I'm so grateful for the wonderful friends that I have!

Trip to Zion

We took a 3 day trip to Zion Ponderosa Ranch Resort.  Shane completed a Ragnar relay race, and camped out with his team while the boys and I slept in a nice warm cabin. :)

It wasn't easy trying to entertain two kids alone while being 31 weeks pregnant.  Luckily there were plenty of activities to do around the ranch, like play on the playground.

Michael was able to do the trampoline bungee.

He was being so good, it was very tempting to get on the trampoline with his big brother.

Michael found kids to play with - Ping Pong, Billiards and Tennis.

The pool and hot tub kept the kids entertained, although the water was a bit cold for me.

We thought he would go on the slide, but then he got scared.

Shane taking the plunge into the cold water.

The three boys enjoying the water.

Michael going on the zip line.

Matthew riding the pony.  I only have a couple more months left until our baby girl arrives! :)

He wasn't too sure about getting on the horse at first, but then loved it.

Our last day in Zion, Shane and Michael went on a hike to the totem pole.

He didn't want to go on the hike at first, so he might look a little bored here.  It was nice to get away for a few days and enjoy some cooler weather!