They really are darling. :)
Monday, January 13, 2014
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
This year has been so crazy! I can't believe 2013 is coming to an end. Looking back over the past 12 months, I feel like not only has a lot changed within our family, but a lot has changed within myself. I have grown so much and I am so grateful for the opportunities I have been given throughout this year that helped me to grow.
From January to the beginning of May, our family continued living in Provo. We loved our basement apartment and our ward and would have been okay with staying there for several years. Unfortunately we had to move when the landlord decided to come from South Carolina and move into the home. We spent some time looking at other apartments and then we were approached with the idea of moving into my grandmother's basement and being there to help her. It was a hard decision for me because I knew how much it would change not only what I did with my time each day, but also possibly my relationship with my grandmother. I would be more than just a grand-daughter visiting, I would be a caregiver. And that's not always easy. But we prayed long and hard and Heavenly Father told me over and over (just to make sure I got the point) that I should do this. He also told me that this move was NOT for me, but for others.
Moving in with Grandma was an adjustment of course, but it has been so wonderful. Jamison has loved adding visiting Grandma and helping her with things to our daily routine. He is always asking to help with everything so I find ways for him to contribute to the care giving. And Grandma has taught me so much. We've both adjusted to working with each other and learning together how we can best make this work. She has helped me to learn and grow in so many ways. I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have been given to serve and learn from my grandmother.
In July, Tyler's job description changed and he was given new responsibilities at work. He is still doing Tech Support but now he does the phone systems and wireless security throughout the district instead of just fixing problems at a few assigned schools. In the space of two weeks, he technically received two promotions. He now has the job he had hoped to have if he continued working for the Provo School District for five or more years. I am so happy for, and proud of, my husband!
August 10th we welcomed a new baby boy to our family. Gregory Steven Dennis. He is growing in leaps and bounds already and we love him so much. Jamison has had his ups and downs with having a baby brother but he is a kind and loving big brother for the most part. It's fun to watch a relationship develop between the two boys.
Tyler started school in November. He found the perfect program for him through an online college called Western Governor's University. It's affordable and he can go his pace, which is so perfect! He's learning a lot already and talking about pursuing a Master's Degree after he finishes his Bachelors.
This is such a brief summary of the events in our lives this year. I have learned so much about family, love, service, attitude, parenting, perseverance, and faith this year. I look forward to what next year will bring.
From January to the beginning of May, our family continued living in Provo. We loved our basement apartment and our ward and would have been okay with staying there for several years. Unfortunately we had to move when the landlord decided to come from South Carolina and move into the home. We spent some time looking at other apartments and then we were approached with the idea of moving into my grandmother's basement and being there to help her. It was a hard decision for me because I knew how much it would change not only what I did with my time each day, but also possibly my relationship with my grandmother. I would be more than just a grand-daughter visiting, I would be a caregiver. And that's not always easy. But we prayed long and hard and Heavenly Father told me over and over (just to make sure I got the point) that I should do this. He also told me that this move was NOT for me, but for others.
Moving in with Grandma was an adjustment of course, but it has been so wonderful. Jamison has loved adding visiting Grandma and helping her with things to our daily routine. He is always asking to help with everything so I find ways for him to contribute to the care giving. And Grandma has taught me so much. We've both adjusted to working with each other and learning together how we can best make this work. She has helped me to learn and grow in so many ways. I'm so grateful for the opportunity I have been given to serve and learn from my grandmother.
In July, Tyler's job description changed and he was given new responsibilities at work. He is still doing Tech Support but now he does the phone systems and wireless security throughout the district instead of just fixing problems at a few assigned schools. In the space of two weeks, he technically received two promotions. He now has the job he had hoped to have if he continued working for the Provo School District for five or more years. I am so happy for, and proud of, my husband!
August 10th we welcomed a new baby boy to our family. Gregory Steven Dennis. He is growing in leaps and bounds already and we love him so much. Jamison has had his ups and downs with having a baby brother but he is a kind and loving big brother for the most part. It's fun to watch a relationship develop between the two boys.
Tyler started school in November. He found the perfect program for him through an online college called Western Governor's University. It's affordable and he can go his pace, which is so perfect! He's learning a lot already and talking about pursuing a Master's Degree after he finishes his Bachelors.
This is such a brief summary of the events in our lives this year. I have learned so much about family, love, service, attitude, parenting, perseverance, and faith this year. I look forward to what next year will bring.
Friday, December 13, 2013
When you haven't posted in over two months....where do you even begin? I really don't even know what to say, which is why I haven't blogged in so long. I stay super busy taking care of my children, my grandma, my husband....and at the end of the day, I just want to relax. So blogging, (along with pretty much everything else I should be doing) rarely gets done. When I try to tell people what's going on in my life, I can't even think of anything specific to say. I just...stay busy all day every day doing....stuff. You know?
Well I can say this. My children are growing so fast! Jamison is potty trained now and I feel like he aged 5 years once he figured out how to use the bathroom. And I was telling Tyler just tonight that I almost can't remember what Jamison was like before he could talk in full sentences. He is ALWAYS talking. And his imagination cracks me up. All week long he's been handing me imaginary presents to unwrap. And they always require scissors to open. We also get stuck in the mud a lot at our house, and have to use a rope to get out.
And Gregory? Good grief, it feels like the child never stops eating! He's currently wearing 6-9 month clothes. He just turned 4 months old this week. Next week he goes to the doctor and I will find out just how big he is! I love his little personality. He's chatting and smiling and so much fun! He loves sitting in his exersaucer and watching me vacuum which is so funny because Jamison has always been scared of the vacuum. And today, for the first time, he rolled over!!!
The two boys are getting along pretty well. Jamison went through a phase where he'd hit Gregory every opportunity he had and Gregory would cry any time Jamison came near him. Luckily they are mostly over that. Jamison has started telling me that he thinks Gregory is cute. And tonight when Jamison tried playing with Gregory...he actually got a laugh out of his little brother! I'm so excited for the day when they can REALLY play together. I hope they will be best friends.
I'll try to do better about blogging but I'm not making any promises. Until next time...enjoy some pictures of my darling children. :)
Well I can say this. My children are growing so fast! Jamison is potty trained now and I feel like he aged 5 years once he figured out how to use the bathroom. And I was telling Tyler just tonight that I almost can't remember what Jamison was like before he could talk in full sentences. He is ALWAYS talking. And his imagination cracks me up. All week long he's been handing me imaginary presents to unwrap. And they always require scissors to open. We also get stuck in the mud a lot at our house, and have to use a rope to get out.
And Gregory? Good grief, it feels like the child never stops eating! He's currently wearing 6-9 month clothes. He just turned 4 months old this week. Next week he goes to the doctor and I will find out just how big he is! I love his little personality. He's chatting and smiling and so much fun! He loves sitting in his exersaucer and watching me vacuum which is so funny because Jamison has always been scared of the vacuum. And today, for the first time, he rolled over!!!
The two boys are getting along pretty well. Jamison went through a phase where he'd hit Gregory every opportunity he had and Gregory would cry any time Jamison came near him. Luckily they are mostly over that. Jamison has started telling me that he thinks Gregory is cute. And tonight when Jamison tried playing with Gregory...he actually got a laugh out of his little brother! I'm so excited for the day when they can REALLY play together. I hope they will be best friends.
I'll try to do better about blogging but I'm not making any promises. Until next time...enjoy some pictures of my darling children. :)
Friday, October 4, 2013
Having two kids and Grandma to take care of doesn't leave me with much personal time. And let's be honest, when I do get personal time...my first thought isn't, "oh, I should blog!" But tonight I realized I was long over-due for an update because my children grow so fast and you miss out on a lot in just a month and a bit.
Jamison: I love this boy to death. He is so funny, so creative, so...stubborn. The terrible twos were a little sporadic and for a while I thought they weren't that terrible but they have hit HARD since having to share his mom with a little brother. Oh he's a darling brother though. He will go to Gregory when he cries and say, "What's wrong Gregory? It's okay." He loves to hug him and will tell me about twenty times a day that he likes him. On the flip side...he sometimes smashes him, drives cars on his face, hits him....you know, beats on him older brother style.
Jamison is always so full of words (except when he's mad, then he just screams). I love to just sit and listen to him, sometimes. He's always chatting. When I shower I turn on Curious George to keep him occupied and he'll still come into the bathroom because he has to tell me what's happening on the show.
He's always been a picky eater but he's finally starting to branch out and try new foods. Since moving in with Grandma, Jamison has begun eating some foods that I never expected him to like. He especially loves oatmeal, toast, and (this is the craziest one to me) Grapefruit!
We are working on potty-training right now. He's shown signs of readiness for a while now, but after half-heartedly attempting two months ago with no success, I wasn't anxious to try again. Then Sam's Club ran out of his diapers and didn't know when they'd get more in. I didn't want to try a new brand so...potty training it was! The first day my mom sat with him for an hour and a half before he finally went on the toilet. He did fantastic for two days and then completely regressed. Today he absolutely refused to use the toilet. He kept telling me he wanted a diaper. At one point he even said to me, "I'm going to pee on the carpet" and proceeded to do just that. He's killing me! But we can only go uphill from here, right?!
Gregory: My sweet baby about killed me his first week home. He was a terrible sleeper. The first night he was up every 20 minutes. But it got a little better every night and now at almost two months old...he sleeps about 4 hours at a time most nights. Such a blessing!
Gregory has been growing like crazy. He's almost outgrown his 3 month sleepers because he's so long! At his 2 week check up he was in the 75th percentile for height and weight. Two weeks after that I measured him and if I did it right...he had jumped up to the 95th percentile! I should probably measure him again...
Unlike Jamison, Gregory isn't much of a talker. He's only recently discovered his voice and he doesn't use it much beyond grunting when he's hungry and of course crying! I love when he does talk though, I'm so in love with baby talk! And I love when he graces me with a smile (also not a super common thing...though it's getting more and more common).
So that's my boys. They are constantly growing, and keeping me oh so busy!
Oh, and Tyler! He's loving his job and now he's actually working on starting school next month. Just last week he took some sort of computer certification and passed (woot woot!). It was the last thing he needed before he could apply for school. So now his life will get even busier than it has been and we'll probably only see each other when we crawl into bed at night. Just thinking about it makes me shudder. I can't WAIT to be past the student stage of life. I'm so proud of him, though, for not giving up and for going back to school even with all his other responsibilities.
Love my family!
Jamison: I love this boy to death. He is so funny, so creative, so...stubborn. The terrible twos were a little sporadic and for a while I thought they weren't that terrible but they have hit HARD since having to share his mom with a little brother. Oh he's a darling brother though. He will go to Gregory when he cries and say, "What's wrong Gregory? It's okay." He loves to hug him and will tell me about twenty times a day that he likes him. On the flip side...he sometimes smashes him, drives cars on his face, hits him....you know, beats on him older brother style.
Jamison is always so full of words (except when he's mad, then he just screams). I love to just sit and listen to him, sometimes. He's always chatting. When I shower I turn on Curious George to keep him occupied and he'll still come into the bathroom because he has to tell me what's happening on the show.
He's always been a picky eater but he's finally starting to branch out and try new foods. Since moving in with Grandma, Jamison has begun eating some foods that I never expected him to like. He especially loves oatmeal, toast, and (this is the craziest one to me) Grapefruit!
We are working on potty-training right now. He's shown signs of readiness for a while now, but after half-heartedly attempting two months ago with no success, I wasn't anxious to try again. Then Sam's Club ran out of his diapers and didn't know when they'd get more in. I didn't want to try a new brand so...potty training it was! The first day my mom sat with him for an hour and a half before he finally went on the toilet. He did fantastic for two days and then completely regressed. Today he absolutely refused to use the toilet. He kept telling me he wanted a diaper. At one point he even said to me, "I'm going to pee on the carpet" and proceeded to do just that. He's killing me! But we can only go uphill from here, right?!
Gregory: My sweet baby about killed me his first week home. He was a terrible sleeper. The first night he was up every 20 minutes. But it got a little better every night and now at almost two months old...he sleeps about 4 hours at a time most nights. Such a blessing!
Gregory has been growing like crazy. He's almost outgrown his 3 month sleepers because he's so long! At his 2 week check up he was in the 75th percentile for height and weight. Two weeks after that I measured him and if I did it right...he had jumped up to the 95th percentile! I should probably measure him again...
Unlike Jamison, Gregory isn't much of a talker. He's only recently discovered his voice and he doesn't use it much beyond grunting when he's hungry and of course crying! I love when he does talk though, I'm so in love with baby talk! And I love when he graces me with a smile (also not a super common thing...though it's getting more and more common).
So that's my boys. They are constantly growing, and keeping me oh so busy!
Oh, and Tyler! He's loving his job and now he's actually working on starting school next month. Just last week he took some sort of computer certification and passed (woot woot!). It was the last thing he needed before he could apply for school. So now his life will get even busier than it has been and we'll probably only see each other when we crawl into bed at night. Just thinking about it makes me shudder. I can't WAIT to be past the student stage of life. I'm so proud of him, though, for not giving up and for going back to school even with all his other responsibilities.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
You've probably already heard but...at 7:27 p.m. on August 10th, Gregory Steven Dennis joined our family. He was 8 pounds 2 ounces and 19 inches long. It was an incredibly long and difficult labor but I successfully did a VBAC. It was scary towards the end because I got a fever and Gregory was in distress. They had to give me an episiotomy and use forceps. The doctor kept warning me that Gregory would likely have to go to the NICU. He swallowed some meconium which gave both of us a fever. Luckily, after some skin to skin time, Gregory's breathing was normal and his heart rate had slowed to normal. So no NICU although we had a longer hospital stay while we both took antibiotics.
Jamison has adjusted really well to his baby brother. He loves to help and he will always hug Gregory if he is crying. He tries to share his toys and gets frustrated when Gregory won't take what he offers. I'm trying to help Jamison understand that Gregory can't do much on his own yet. My heart melts though, because Jamison is such a sweet big brother. And I am a super blessed mother.
Sorry all the pictures are at the end without captions, I'm using the blogger app instead of my computer so I don't know the tricks! The pictures are fairly self explanatory though.
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Jamison blows my mind. This boy is constantly doing funny things and surprising me with his growing skills. He changes every day. Sometimes it feels like he changes every time I turn around! He is speaking up a storm these days. The child almost never stops talking and we're not just getting two word sentences anymore, he is talking in full-blown sentences. He works hard to say words right and have good diction, so his sentences (and words) are choppy, but so cute!
He is still dressing himself, and he asks to help with everything. Sometimes I have to be pretty creative to let him be helpful. For example? He wants to help me when I check Grandma's blood sugar and do her insulin. So we take turns. After I check the blood sugar, I let Jamison take the monitor and go through the motions of checking it. With the insulin? Well, I let him hand me the cap for the needle. With housework, everything takes twice as long and is twice as messy but my child just wants to help and I'm not going to discourage that! It's getting to the point now that he even tries to help Grandma push her walker. I have to keep a close eye so that helping doesn't become a danger. I just love how sweet my child is though, and how much he wants to help. It's darling.
We've been busy the last few weeks with holidays. My mom and sister both had birthdays and then we had Pioneer Day. For my sister's birthday there is always a theme and this year it was The Hunger Games. There weren't a lot of options for someone Jamison's age and I didn't want to spend a lot on a costume for him so....we made him Haymitch. (If you don't know about the Hunger Games, Haymitch is a drunk....) He helped with his own costume, of course.
And for Pioneer Day, Jamison loved the parade. Well....at first he was a little nervous but by the end he was loving it. And for days afterwards it's all he's talked about. That and the "firetruck works" (also known as fireworks).
Jamison with his baby cousin. I think he's warming up to the idea of a baby brother because he will bring up "the baby" sometimes and talk about his toys. When we pulled out the baby's car seat, Jamison kept talking about how it was for the baby and he seemed a little excited. We'll see if the excitement lasts after his little brother is actually here!
Yesterday Jamison and I went to a pool party with my parents and had a blast. Even though Jamison was up way past his bed time, it was so worth it. He loves water and he was so happy to splash and play. He also said so many funny things that night! When my dad tried to teach Jamison how to blow bubbles in the water, Jamison ended up trying to drink the water. So we explained to him that we don't drink the water we swim in, and I told him "ew, that's gross." Jamison asked his grandpa to blow more bubbles (by saying, "Umpa, drink? Bubbles?") and then when Grandpa obliged, Jamison said, "Ewww, Umpa!" He did this over and over again. He also liked it when my dad would swim under the water and pop up right in front of him and he'd ask him to do that by saying, "behind the water?" Then, when it was time to go...well, of course Jamison didn't want to. So I told him that it was dark and they needed to turn the water off so that everyone could go home and go to bed. This, Jamison decided, was a legitimate reason to leave. So he said goodbye to Nana and Grandpa and without me needing to prompt him said, "thanks for playing in water!" Proudest Mom moment! Oh, and then as we left he continued waving and saying "Bye Nemo!" Which is weird because he's never seen the movie Finding Nemo so I'm not sure where that came from.
I just love my boy so much, and he's doing so much lately. Sorry this post is kind of braggy....but it's going to continue to be because I'm also so proud of my husband who in the past month has gotten not one but TWO promotions at work!!! I couldn't be happier for Tyler. He now has the job he was hoping he'd get if he stuck with the school district for five-ish years. But because the person who had the job got a better offer elsewhere, they have given the job to Tyler. And I know he will blow them away, because he's a fast learner and a hard worker. I can't give you his exact job title, and I'm not even 100% sure what all his responsibilities are but he's still doing computer tech support stuff. He's on call now so that if the network goes down, he has to go to the schools to fix it. The other day he was at work for 12 hours, came home for 4, and had to go back in because the wireless was down. So it's a higher stress job with more responsibility but...he loves it.
I am now 37 weeks along in my pregnancy and I think Gregory is ready to come. He dropped about two weeks ago and then this week, he dropped further (which I didn't even know was possible!) So he's sitting pretty low now. Unfortunately, my body isn't cooperating and I'm not dilated at all. My doctor informed me that I have a strong cervix and it will take a lot of contractions before I'm ready to deliver. So I'm in this weird situation where I want to give myself lots of contractions because if I don't go into labor by 40 weeks...my doctor isn't willing to induce me and I will have to have another c-section. I'm doing what I can to prepare for either option and I'm praying to Heavenly Father that things will work out as is best for myself and my baby...and that whatever way that happens, I can have peace. Because right now? I really, really want a VBAC and it literally makes me cry when I think that it might not happen. So I need the Lord to help me be calm and okay with however my baby can get here healthy and safe.
He is still dressing himself, and he asks to help with everything. Sometimes I have to be pretty creative to let him be helpful. For example? He wants to help me when I check Grandma's blood sugar and do her insulin. So we take turns. After I check the blood sugar, I let Jamison take the monitor and go through the motions of checking it. With the insulin? Well, I let him hand me the cap for the needle. With housework, everything takes twice as long and is twice as messy but my child just wants to help and I'm not going to discourage that! It's getting to the point now that he even tries to help Grandma push her walker. I have to keep a close eye so that helping doesn't become a danger. I just love how sweet my child is though, and how much he wants to help. It's darling.
(He grabbed a baby wipe and began cleaning his slide...he also cleaned the wall, the floor, and his toes)
We've been busy the last few weeks with holidays. My mom and sister both had birthdays and then we had Pioneer Day. For my sister's birthday there is always a theme and this year it was The Hunger Games. There weren't a lot of options for someone Jamison's age and I didn't want to spend a lot on a costume for him so....we made him Haymitch. (If you don't know about the Hunger Games, Haymitch is a drunk....) He helped with his own costume, of course.
Haymitch with Katniss and Peeta
Citizens of the Capitol (My sister is Effie Trinket...the rest of us have no specific identities)
And for Pioneer Day, Jamison loved the parade. Well....at first he was a little nervous but by the end he was loving it. And for days afterwards it's all he's talked about. That and the "firetruck works" (also known as fireworks).
Yesterday Jamison and I went to a pool party with my parents and had a blast. Even though Jamison was up way past his bed time, it was so worth it. He loves water and he was so happy to splash and play. He also said so many funny things that night! When my dad tried to teach Jamison how to blow bubbles in the water, Jamison ended up trying to drink the water. So we explained to him that we don't drink the water we swim in, and I told him "ew, that's gross." Jamison asked his grandpa to blow more bubbles (by saying, "Umpa, drink? Bubbles?") and then when Grandpa obliged, Jamison said, "Ewww, Umpa!" He did this over and over again. He also liked it when my dad would swim under the water and pop up right in front of him and he'd ask him to do that by saying, "behind the water?" Then, when it was time to go...well, of course Jamison didn't want to. So I told him that it was dark and they needed to turn the water off so that everyone could go home and go to bed. This, Jamison decided, was a legitimate reason to leave. So he said goodbye to Nana and Grandpa and without me needing to prompt him said, "thanks for playing in water!" Proudest Mom moment! Oh, and then as we left he continued waving and saying "Bye Nemo!" Which is weird because he's never seen the movie Finding Nemo so I'm not sure where that came from.
I just love my boy so much, and he's doing so much lately. Sorry this post is kind of braggy....but it's going to continue to be because I'm also so proud of my husband who in the past month has gotten not one but TWO promotions at work!!! I couldn't be happier for Tyler. He now has the job he was hoping he'd get if he stuck with the school district for five-ish years. But because the person who had the job got a better offer elsewhere, they have given the job to Tyler. And I know he will blow them away, because he's a fast learner and a hard worker. I can't give you his exact job title, and I'm not even 100% sure what all his responsibilities are but he's still doing computer tech support stuff. He's on call now so that if the network goes down, he has to go to the schools to fix it. The other day he was at work for 12 hours, came home for 4, and had to go back in because the wireless was down. So it's a higher stress job with more responsibility but...he loves it.
I am now 37 weeks along in my pregnancy and I think Gregory is ready to come. He dropped about two weeks ago and then this week, he dropped further (which I didn't even know was possible!) So he's sitting pretty low now. Unfortunately, my body isn't cooperating and I'm not dilated at all. My doctor informed me that I have a strong cervix and it will take a lot of contractions before I'm ready to deliver. So I'm in this weird situation where I want to give myself lots of contractions because if I don't go into labor by 40 weeks...my doctor isn't willing to induce me and I will have to have another c-section. I'm doing what I can to prepare for either option and I'm praying to Heavenly Father that things will work out as is best for myself and my baby...and that whatever way that happens, I can have peace. Because right now? I really, really want a VBAC and it literally makes me cry when I think that it might not happen. So I need the Lord to help me be calm and okay with however my baby can get here healthy and safe.
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