Losing my Mind!

School has been busy, to say the least. Work has been more requiring of me lately, and I've had lots of other stuff going on! This week has been the worst of it. For some reason my teachers find it pretty cool to pile on all the homework right when the end is in sight. Not sure if they know this, but I'm on track until July! That means that when this semester ends in about 4 weeks, I still have 3 more months of classes with only a week break in between. So this week, I've had a lot more homework than usual. My coworkers decided to the take a day off, so the clinic has been extremely busy. And there was a test in the class I TA for. Now the test wouldn't have been a huge deal if it hadn't been moved. I planned 2 study groups, one Monday one Tuesday and the test was Wednesday. We didn't get through all the information, so the test was moved to Friday. So now I have a study group Monday - Thursday and I'm tutoring someone. So I had 2 study things Monday. 2 Tuesday. 2 Wednesday. 2 Thursday. All this on top of my homework and work at the clinic and taking care of Ivan and seeing Michael in there somewhere. Man, I am done. So done. But the week isn't over yet. I have 5 assignments due tomorrow and a test to take. I also have to work in the morning at the clinic and I am covering someone's shift over the weekend and cleaning kennels all weekend. That part wouldn't be so bad, but I have to go in twice a day so the dogs can go potty more than just once. Plus I have a billion things due Monday and a test! A real one, not like the one tomorrow. I actually have to study for this. And you know what? I haven't read any of the chapters and the teacher didn't even talk about half the stuff we're tested on. Awesome. I also have a test Wednesday. A more real test then than Monday. The Wednesday test is over parasites, all sorts of them, and I have to know everything there is to know about them. I mean the life cycle, what they look like in a fecal sample, what to give the animal to get rid of it. Seriously losing my mind right now. If anyone would like to watch Ivan, it would probably help out a ton. Here's some pictures.

Thanks Nana for the cute vest! 

Don't let him fool ya, he's a Gap model in the making!

New Post

I'm sorry it's been so long. I seem to have found a few extra things to do with me time lately. I'm sure it's boring to hear what school and work keeps me busy, but for records sake, here it is. I picked up a few extra shifts at the vet clinic because the girl they hired to fill in for me didn't work out. So I work there Thursday and Friday mornings and every other Saturday. This weekend I had the pleasure of "doing kennels" (meaning I feed, water, and exercise the dogs) because the girl that normally does it wanted a break. That was pretty fun. It's actually way easier to do kennels when I'm there by myself and I'm not supposed to answer the phone instead of during normal business hours when I've got all these other things to do. Besides that, my TA job has been quite the handful lately. There have been a few tests for lecture and I am in charge of making the lab practical for the midterm in lab. Since there have been so many tests, I've been having 3 study sessions a week rather than the normal 1 that I usually have. I have enjoyed making the test, but it's a lot of work. Plus, I've made the test fill in the blank, so grading it will take forever. Michael and I just finished up our computer class, thank goodness for block classes! So that lightened the load a little. It's still pretty tough though. We're thinking for next semester we'll both just go part time. That way Michael can keep his full time job throughout the semester and until the next one starts (January) and he'll be able to do well in his 2 classes he takes. I only have to take 8 credits to graduate and would really like to play soccer in Idaho Falls this summer so having less classes would make that possible. I'm still undecided on what to do because I won't have the TA job and my hours will be cut back at the vet clinic because there's another girl there going to school and won't be during the summer. Thankfully, she'll take my shifts while still leaving me a job (every other Saturday). So all around, next semester will be easier. The only reason I would take enough credits to be full time (14) would be to get all my scholarships and grants, which make such a difference to us. We'll see what happens. 
So far, I have A's in all my classes and Michael has A's and 1 B. I think we're doing pretty well for as much as we're doing. Ivan is doing well. He likes all his baby sitters. This week was a little different for him. We were out of school Monday, but I had to work all day. So Ivan saw Amber and Megan for a little bit. Tuesday & Wednesday he was with his regular, Katelyn. Thursday Katelyn had asked for the day off, and since we don't pay her anything, we figured we might as well let her do what she wanted. So Lisa watched Ivan while I was at work. This was the first time she watched him, not because I don't trust her, Ivan just has his regulars already. She had a blast watching him! She has this huge fake mustache that she put on him and took pictures, it's so cute! Then Friday Ivan was with Kristin in the morning and Amber in the afternoon. Yep, that's 5 baby sitters in one week. We've been super blessed this semester to have so many people able and willing to watch Ivan for us. We try to compensate them in whatever ways we can, but for the most part, they don't ask us for anything. Thank you to everyone that watches Ivan! You'll get what you deserve at some point. Wow, that sounded mean, but doing good things gives you blessings!
I have learned a few things about myself this semester. I found that I have an anger issue. Sorry to those of you who know that... I especially noticed that I'm the worst when I'm in class. I only have 15 classmates in my vet tech classes and I've had classes with them for 3 semesters now. There are a few who I have a really hard time getting along with, a few that I don't know very well at all, and a few that are my close friends. Those few that I don't get along with, I really really don't get along with. I like to think that this is for justifiable reasons, but is that good enough to fill my life with dislike and hate and anger because I have a good reason to not like them? Probably not. At least that's what I feel like lately. So in January when I noticed all my bad feelings coming back and I couldn't blame it on pregnancy, I decided to do something about it. I think I'm in better control now, as long as I have something to snack on (that way my mouth is busy enough not to talk) then I'm good. That will probably make me fat at some point, but until I graduate I think I'll be fine. I also take deep breaths and count and I've learned to laugh at a lot of things that would normally make me angry. 
Along with that whole anger thing, I found I'm not very open to closed minded people. Going to a church school you'd expect there isn't much diversity. People choose to come to this school so they can be with like minded people who share their beliefs, values and morals. However, that does not mean that the people here all have to think the exact same way and if you don't think that way then you shouldn't go here. I have a few online classes that require discussion boards on the weekly topics. One class in particular really ticks me off. It's a class directed at difficult moral issues and ethical dilemmas. Things like border issues, in vitro fertilization, and whether a girl should stay with her fiance even though he has an addiction to porn, just to name a few. In our discussion boards, we're supposed to say what we would do in that situation where we had to choose. I am so appalled at how many people are so closed minded and unwilling to give people a chance. I know that we are taught in church that you need to stand up for what you believe in and that you should avoid the appearance of evil, but what happened to being Christ like? What happened to being charitable and willing to help others? In each of these discussion boards I lean more towards what's for the better good of the most people rather than what is the most dangerous situation to put myself in (spiritually dangerous). And every week I get negative feedback on my decisions because people only see one thing, they see someone doing something wrong and you're not supposed to surround yourself with wrong doers. Well, maybe I have a deeper understanding of the gospel and I know what's more important, I know that I have a strong testimony, and I know that helping others is what we are sent here to do. Otherwise, we would be tested without anyone else here. 
Those are just some of the things on my mind lately. Posts will be few and far between for the next couple weeks, at least til April, then I have a week to catch everything back up. Here's some pictures.

P.S. Laura, I didn't copy you, I had no idea Lisa had this mustache, but you are the first person (and Ben) that I thought of when I saw these pictures!

Ivan is 4 months!

We, Ivan and I, had the most interesting doctors visit on Thursday. As you all know, or at least you will soon, I absolutely love Ivan's pediatrician. Dr. Jones is such a nice guy and he'll sit in the room with you as long as you want. He does a great job of explaining everything that he checks in a check-up and let's you know what's normal and what to expect, and let's face it, for a new mom that's the best thing ever. This visit was a little bit different than that. Dr. Jones has an intern in his office right now. A physician's assistant intern. This intern's name is Clay. The PA that is interning there is named Clay. Did I mention his name was Clay? Annoying right? This is what Clay did to me at the appointment. Dr Jones introduced him and Clay introduced himself 3, THREE, times. Dr Jones let Clay do some of the check up stuff, like looking in the ears, checking muscle strength and listening to his heart. The entire time he is doing this, Dr Jones is talking to me. And so is Clay. Any time Dr Jones would talk, Clay would too. Then Dr Jones said something about eye color, cuz I'm really curious if Ivan's eyes will stay green, and he said that he has seen children's eyes change colors up to age 2. Clay did not believe this and began vehemently protesting to what had just been said. How rude is that?! I really wish I would have said something to this guy about the fact that I specifically request to see Dr Jones for Ivan's appointments and stupid Clay is not who I want to see, he is not whose opinion I trust, and he's super annoying. But, I decided to keep my mouth shut, something about the talk I read for my religion class about the Tongue of Angels. Anyway, the nurses came in shortly after that and gave Ivan his juice and 2 shots. He was quite a trooper! He didn't cry right away when they poked him, I'm sure it took a minute to register, but when he did cry it was for less than 30 seconds! The nurses, when they have to give shots, come in the room, administer it, and run out as fast as they can. Ivan cried and was smiling again before the nurses left the room. Can you believe that?! I hope every doctor's visit goes like that! I sure do love this little guy. Ivan is also pretty good at wearing clothes that are supposed to be his size. He has kept up pretty good with the 3-6 months clothes, and hopefully he won't decide to grow too fast and can stay in these clothes for a little while longer. We recently got Ivan a Johnny Jump-Up. It's a jumper that hangs from a doorway. We have a perfect doorway that leads to our hallway that even has a ledge made just for the jumper to hang securely. Ivan likes it most of the time, he really wants you to sit in front of him and watch him do all his cool moves.

School and Updates

Well, it's been a busy month so far. January always seems to be that way, maybe it has more to do with recovering from holidays and travelling, maybe it's just school. Anyway...
I am taking 14 credits this semester here's my schedule
computer basics
essentials of human nutrition
family foundations
foundations capstones
veterinary clinical pathology 2    MW 10:15-11:15 and lab T 7:45-8:45
veterinary surgical nursing 1       MW 11:30-12:30 and lab T 3:15-6:15
large animal nursing                   F       1:30-3:30 with lab alternately every other week

The classes that don't have times are all online. Yay. I'm also a teacher's aide for animal anatomy and physiology so I attend that class MWF from 9-10 and I am in charge of teaching lab Tuesdays 11:30-1:30. I also hold a couple study groups a week for that class and grade lots of papers and lab books. I really enjoy it and I can get as many hours up to 20 as I want. So as long as I do the minimal amount, I can work as little or much as I like. I really enjoy doing this, I've done it before, I'm good at it, and I will always remember the specifics of anatomy and physiology because I've been able to teach it so much. I'm still working at Cedar Ridge, although I'm only working every other Saturday from 8-12, because I'm a nice person. It's a long story...

Michael is also in school this semester. He is taking 14 credits as well. He decided probably 2 or 3 days into the semester that maybe business wasn't for him. He liked some aspects of it, but when it came down to the important stuff, like financial reports and budgets, he'd rather not be there for it. So he switched into the Ecology, Range, Wildlife, and Fisheries major, well all those words in some sort of order anyway. He is planning on doing fish and game or park ranger or something. So he gets to take classes with me! Some of them anyway, I was able to help him squeeze into the anatomy class I am TA'ing for, so we get to see each other then. It's been kind of a challenge for me to have him in that class, I want so bad to just take the quiz or test for him, but I can't. And heaven forbid I know what the quiz has on it ahead of time... Oh man, it's so hard not to tell him everything it says. But I figure I probably shouldn't give him an advantage over the rest of the class. So I should just tell everyone what the quiz says! Maybe not. Back to Michael. His schedule looks like this:
animal anatomy and physiology    MWF 9-10 and lab T 3:15-5:15
english                                         MWF 11:30-12:30
college algebra                            W       5-6:30
biology orientation                       T         12:45-1:45
computer basics
family foundations

Funny story, Michael was supposed to take Biology Orientation as a prerequisite for many of his other classes. Well, someone decided they wanted to go on a vacation, which might have actually been a teaching mission to another country or something, and the person that was supposed to make this class unavailable, since the person on vacation was the teacher of the class. So Michael gets to class, no teacher, lots of other students there, and his class got combined with some other orientation class. Now he gets to learn about pharmacists, business men, and maybe even a fish and game officer.
Other updates, Michael is still working at the front desk at the Marriott, but he did change positions a little. He is now called the night auditor, cool huh? Probably not, he now gets the privilege of working 5 nights a week from 11 pm to 7 am, Sunday through Thursday. Now he sleeps during the evening, except when he has class and does his homework at work. In other news, my computer has decided to die. Lately I've been receiving updates from my computer saying the "battery is reaching the end of its usable life." Encouraging, right? I had lost a few buttons a while back, some were able to be reattached, others just got thrown away. Today it took a turn for the worst. Michael turned my computer off, to get it out of the way, and when I turned it on an hour or so later, it did not turn on. Now this had happened a time or two before and I always waited a little bit and turned it back on and it would always work. Knowing that my computer was quickly degenerating, we bought an external hard drive to backup everything on my computer. So here I am, all weekend, trying to get things ready, particularly pictures and recipes, to be added to the hard drive. I deleted probably a 1000 pictures or more just going through and getting rid of duplicates or stupid things I didn't want. And I only made it from 2008 to the middle of 2009, I have a lot of pictures! So today when I couldn't get my computer to start up, I was so SO upset! I called around to see what computer places in town could get the information off my computer and onto my external hard drive and found a place that would do it for 50 bucks. That's not too steep a price to pay for my precious memories, cuz let's face it, I won't be able to remember forever. I was finally able to get my computer to start and have backing up all my files since. I think I'm going to try leaving my computer on all the whole time and trying to make it live a little longer. We'll see.

Ivan has been doing rather well with all the changes. He's been rotating through babysitters the past week and this week while his regular sitter is out of town. He has learned how to roll from back to front, just after he forgot how to roll from front to back. So once he rolls over, he's stuck. But I haven't seen him roll the past couple days, maybe he's learned he doesn't really like it. Who knows. Today I got him to laugh a whole bunch! He's so dang cute and this is the first time I've never seen him laugh so much. We also just got new couches, yay! We've been sitting on a futon and a couch we found for free. Not the most comfortable and definitely not the most seating. So we got a couch and a love seat from O'Dells after much searching. We're pretty picky and if we were getting something different, it was going to be awesome. And it is, they're microfiber with a protective sealant on it, and an awesome warranty on any stains. We were able to get rid of our free couch pretty quick, we put it up on Craigslist for free and it was gone within the hour. Our futon on the other hand... Well, let's just say we haven't been able to find a home for it yet. We're enjoying our little home, other than the fact that it's kinda chilly, except in Ivan's room where the space heater is, and we have a cat trapped under the house.

That's all for now, but here's a picture of our couches and a video of Ivan laughing.

Family Pictures

On one of our many visits to Utah in December, we were able to get pictures done by Janneke, Michael's cousin's wife. I am a big fan of her photography and I had actually wanted her to do our pictures at the temple, but she had prior obligations. So we were finally able to get her to take some pictures of us. We went down to Provo on Friday, picked her up and went to the BYU campus to take some pictures. Ivan was super cute, as usual. And we had a lot of fun doing it. Here's the proof!

What a cute little cough

So sad! He was ready for a nap

Thank you again, Janneke, I love love LOVE the pictures!

Tennessee

I'm not sure how many posts I have titled Tennessee or how many I'll have over the span of my blogging life, but here is another. 

I was able to visit my family for Christmas this year. It's only fair to trade holidays, we had Wamplers for Thanksgiving, so it's Roney time! Michael got the time off he needed, a little last minute, so he came too! Yay for being a family! This was the first time we had taken Ivan on a plane and we were a little anxious to see how it would go. Luckily we have breed an immaculate little man and he was perfect on every flight. We got to the airport a little early, thinking it would be super busy, and it was. We didn't wait for long and were able to board our flight. One of our friends gave us the advice to board the plane as late as possible, that way Ivan would spend very little time on the plane waiting for take off and building anxiety. We listened and that is some of the best advice I've ever received. We sat pretty far back on the plane and got some interesting looks as we boarded with an infant. But Ivan ate a bottle as we were taking off and slept the entire time. Our next flight was delayed by about 40 minutes and Ivan was awake the whole layover and repeated his first flight experience. The flights going home to Idaho were the same. Since we had a baby, and we didn't buy our tickets at the same time, we requested seats beside each other. We were assigned seats just prior to boarding. On one of our flights, we got on the plane and someone was in Michael's seat. We asked if he was assigned that seat and he said yes. So Michael had the flight attendant come and figure things out. Then she noticed that the guy in our seat was not assigned to that seat, he just sat there. Now his reasoning was that his wife and 2 kids were in the row in front of us and his other kid was in the seat beside him. So he needed to sit by his minor son and help with the other kids. The kid that was in our row was at least 12 if not older, so it's not like it was a 3 year old unattended. AND, his wife was just in the row in front of him. So he got sent to his original seat, only 2 more rows back (not super far away) and all we heard the rest of the flight was his wife complain about the hassle and ordeal she had been put through. The boy in our row was named Michael, now how's that for irony. But that lady turned around at one point and said to her son, well I'm going to make them give you free TV for the inconvenience they have put us through. She was really mad. I didn't think it was a big deal. Plus, it's harder to take care of a baby by yourself than a 12 year old. Grow up people. 

Once we got to TN, it was a little crazy. I was getting all these home sick feelings and didn't ever want to leave. Well, until we walked outside. It was raining and about 40 degrees. So it was way, way humid. I forgot! And it just hits you like you've never felt humidity before, especially when it's raining and especially when you fly. I sure do like the weather here. 

While we were in Tennessee, my niece and nephews were able to meet their cousin, my siblings were able to meet their nephew, and I was able to catch up with all my family. I really miss them. Especially my dad. He's such a cool guy and I really wish Ivan could get to know his Papa better. His Nana and aunts and uncles too, but if my dad is my favorite, I'm sure Ivan will just love him. We played tons of games from poker to nertz to rock band. We had family pictures professionally done. We hadn't taken family pictures since I was 2, so about 20 years had gone by without an updated photo. And now we have wives, husbands, grandbabies and all that to show off too. It's always a little crazy going back to a place I knew and still know so well and realizing I don't live there. It's so easy to fall back into sort of a routine, especially with seeing so many people you know. We had a get together with all the single adults from when we used to live there. Everybody is married now and half of us have babies. It's so crazy! And it's amazing how quickly things can change and people can change when you move away. We had Christmas too, we opened some presents, even though most of our stuff got mailed out here. Packing everything back up was fun. I took a scale and put just enough stuff in our suitcase to make it weigh 50 lbs. (50 lbs is the weight limit for a checked bag before they charge you an extra 50 bucks for it) And we still had to have my parents mail stuff to us! It was a fun trip though. 

This is Emma, she was just so excited to see Ivan.

This is Emma, Paul Jr., and Ryan.

Paul Jr.

My brother Erich and his little doggie Buddy. 

Since Michael served his mission there, we were especially motivated to see some people we knew from the ward. We saw 3 families in particular and I just miss them so much. I'm always impressed by their example and the influence they have over me in just the 30 minutes we were able to spend with them. It's so fun seeing people I used to see all the time and showing them my baby. I can't help but be super proud of him! 

Family dinner. 

Me and my Momma!

Another fun part of visiting Clarksville is seeing all the doggies. My brother recently got a pomeranian from craigslist. His name is Buddy and he is reddish brown. My mom still has Shadow, Blondie, and Paulie. Paulie just had puppies, fathered by Buddy. They are so cute, and don't tell Michael, but I've already called dibs on the party colored male! Then there is Mina, pronounced mean-ah. She is a purebred German Shepherd of all German lines. She is a beautiful red and black female. Her full name is something like Natasha Wilhelmina. Yep, that's a mouthful, so we say Mina. She's still a puppy, about 8 months, but she's huge. With my vet tech mind, all I could think about was the health of those animals. Shadow has seen better days, Mina had a yeast infection in her ears and Paulie needs a nail trim. But since she just had puppies, I spared her the torture. There's nothing I can do for Shadow. But Mina, oh Mina was in for it. I bought some ear cleaner, not the brand I prefer, but good enough, and cleaned her ears out daily. They were looking pretty good by the time I left, but my dad was supposed to keep cleaning them and I'm not sure if he's up for that. 

Rock Band, can you count all 4 band members?

Mina

Wamplers with Buddy, for the record, this is the most comfortable couch I've ever laid my tush on!

We, of course, ate at some of my favorite places, like Casablanca, oh how I miss the Pollo Ranchero, and a couple other places. We did some shopping, and I found an awesome pair of hiking shoes. I've been looking for a long time, but haven't wanted to spend much money. And I searched for some Sperry knock-offs, but to my dismay, they either didn't have my size or were a little more than I wanted to pay. Oh well. Maybe next time. Well, here's some pictures of our adventures. 

Papa and his grandbaby.

Playing Nertz, it never gets old, well until you have 8 people playing and it's too hard to see!

My older sister Heidi

My little sister Marisa

My sister-in-law Jen, my brother's wife

Party!

I have a tendency to go overboard with things that I really like. It happens. I would like to take this opportunity to associate the responsibility for these tendencies with my mother. She is a fantastic woman that made me love to cook and love to cook a lot.
I like my friends here and since I like to cook so much, what better excuse could I have than to cook things for my friends? So I planned a party for December 22 and began the baking. I started baking things on Monday, did some more on Tuesday and Wednesday, finished on Thursday and did all the cooking of real food then too. Michael helped.

The Menu

Rice Krispie treats

Strawberry topped Brownies

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Gingerbread Cookies

Sugar Cookies

Fudge

Creme Drops

Muddy Buddies

Snickerdoodles

Pepperoni Monkey Bread

Bacon wrapped Lil' Smokies

Bacon Poppers

Veggie Tray

Summer Sausage,CZ, & Crackers

Activities

Nintendo 64

Eat

Decorate cookies

Eat

build Gingerbread houses

Eat

conversate

Having fun

Play Bohnanza & other games

I think everything went well. At least there was plenty of food. We invited about 14 adults and 7 children and 8 adults and 3 children attended. I have to say that was just the right turnout. Had anymore showed up, it would have been a little crowded, had any less, it might not have been as entertaining. We had loads of fun though. We ate a bunch, talked a lot, decorated home made gingerbread houses (which made for interesting creations) and played games. Since we had just received Bohnanza! (thanks Chris and Laura) we played that game. We also played Fluxx. The attendees were: Kristen & Nathaniel Sellers, Sydney & Patrick Kelly, Katy & Taylor Wilson with their wee ones Ava and Sterling, Ben & Natalie Millett with Emma. Oh and we were there with Ivan. Here's some pictures & proof of the fun!

Aw, we're a little plaid family!

Ben and Natalie's House

Patrick & Sydney's Cabin

Nathaniel & Kristen's Mansion

Another view of the Mansion

My Cottage

I didn't get a chance to take a picture of Katy & Taylor's gingerbread house, but it was awesome too. When I made the gingerbread, I didn't really leave any room for error on the cutting. I did print out some templates and followed those, so some styles of the houses were different. But I didn't even think about the fact that the bread would rise in the oven. Well it did, and I left it all out to make it stronger to build with. So then we had really hard gingerbread that wasn't even on any of the sides. Yay! Ben filed down a couple, if not all, of the edges of his house to make it even. Nathaniel used extra pieces to make everything fit and Patrick used cookies to hold the roof up. I let the roof rest on the ground, like an A-line house that would get lots of snow. It all worked out in the end and definitely made us step up our creativity.