Friday, December 25, 2009

Christmas Eve and Day

These pictures aren't the best quality, since we took them with the camcorder--our NEW Christmas camcorder, which takes better video than pictures. But we LOVE IT!

After all the new toys she got, all Alice really wanted to play with was the cord to Daddy's Playstation 2. Go figure. Oh, and Alice is wearing her special Christmas jammies that she found under the tree on Christmas Eve. PJ the Christmas Eve Elf as nice enough to leave new jammies for Alice, Mommy, and Daddy.



This is Christmas Eve. Grandma Lori and Grandpa Joe came over to give Alice many, many Christmas goodies. Alice got several new outfits, a couple toys, and these adorable Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls that Aunt Becky made. I know that they want Alice to play with them, but I'm putting them up on a shelf until she's old enough to understand the amount of time, effort, and love that went in to making those dolls and giving them to Alice. Thank you, Aunt Becky! We love you!

We Wish You a Merry Christmas

First up, December in pictures:
Alice seems to love the tree.
I turned around for two seconds, leaving my chocolate-covered raspberry sticks on the ground, half-way across the room from where Alice was playing. This is what I saw when I turned around. Thank goodness she still had her bib on from her snack-time. Alice crawls really quickly if food is involved.
Alice's first taste of graham crackers and her first attempt at a sippy. I think she liked it...

It's a little late, I know. I was so busy this year; I don't really know why. Life hasn't been any different than previous years, but it seemed like there wasn't time for neighbor gifts, family gifts, even Alice gifts, let alone doing anything else Christmas-y. I don't want to complain, because I really do enjoy my calling, but I have to be honest. I don't look forward to Christmas time because it means I have to put together a Christmas program for church. This means from about September to December, I have to beg and plead with people to show up to choir practice, beg them to keep coming, and promise the ones that don't know how to read music that they will be okay, which is usually true. But I don't know what happened this year. Everything seemed to creep up on me at once, and I wasn't ready. I yelled at the Bishop before sacrament meeting, and if you know me, you will know that when I say yell, I am not joking. I gave him the what-for when he really didn't deserve it. But the Christmas program came and went, and I could relax and enjoy at least 5 days of the Christmas season.

Alice has been growing in leaps and bounds. I have been running like a chicken with my head cut-off, so I really didn't notice until school got out, but here's a couple of highlights:
*Alice began crawling since December 8th, and is getting quite proficient. She ventured out onto the tile today, which, until now, has been no-man's land for some reason.
* Alice has her two top teeth coming through. I knew she had been teething for some time, but I didn't know how close she actually was because she won't let me look in her mouth. Ever. She won't even let me feel in there. Finally, I was able to force her lip up, and there they were, about ready to poke through. Poor thing. I've been giving her Motrin and Tylenol to keep her happy. Now that she knows what they are and how they make her feel better, she gets super excited when she sees the medicine bottles.
*The girl is getting a full head of hair. I can actually put little baby clips in it!
*Alice pulled herself up to standing for the first time on Christmas day. I can't believe it! I was really upset about it actually, and she got a very long and teacher-ish lecture about how she needs to slow down a be a baby for a little longer! She is only 7 months old, for heaven's sake!

Even though I find Alice much cuter and much, much more interesting, Joe and I have existed a little bit, this year, too:

Joe is still working at Automenders. It was slow-going there for a while, and things got tight for us. But, thanks to a few icy roads and some stellar morning-commute storms, we're back on top and able to pay off our debts! YAY!

I am still working at Lehi High as the head Sophomore teacher. Being head teacher sounds really important, but it's not really. Basically, all I have to do is make sure none of us are reading the same books with our classes as the other teachers. I also teach Creative Writing and English 11 Honors, both of which are daunting, but fun. Next school year, I finally get my dream schedule: 2 classes of English 10 Honors, 1 class of Creative Writing, and 3 classes of regular English 10. Finally! After six years of sticking with it, I get the 10 honors! Wahoo!

Our lives don't amount to much on paper, but we are so grateful for our lives and the way we live them. We are very happy with our little family, and will forever remember 2009 as the year that brought us our very first miracle: Alice.

Monday, November 30, 2009

Alice in November

Is just as cute as Alice in any other month...

Alice giving Daddy a great big hug. It's true, what her PJs say. Daddy loves Alice, and Alice definitely loves Daddy.

Alice love her "Tubby Time." She loves playing with the bubbles, and to Mommy's dismay, eating the bubbles. In fact, the other day, she put her face directly in the water and took a huge breath. She realized she couldn't breathe and started to panic. I pulled her out of the tub and thumped her on the back a couple of times. She finally started breathing. I don't think she'll try that again anytime soon.


Happy Thanksgiving! We went to Grandma Lori and Grandpa Joe's house for Thanksgiving this year, and as usual, Alice was queen of the bounty.

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

Alice's First Halloween

Look at this hot chick... that was painful. In case you haven't noticed in the past, I'm not one for puns or slapstick. But I had to throw it in there. I know I will live to regret my journey into bad jokes, but there it is.


Look at Alice's new trick! She loves being on her hands and knees. She can't get here on her own yet, but when we put her on her knees, she tries incredibly hard to move. She sways back and forth and then tentatively tries to move and arm. She falls every time, but she tries. She is so super smart!


In case you think I missed something, I didn't. Joe and I don't dress up, for several reasons. 1, it's not a battle I want to fight. Joe doesn't really like it, and I'm not about to force him. 2, I'm too fat to wear any of my normal clothes, let alone try to scare up something to fit me that would suffice as a costume. Maybe next year. So this Halloween was all about Alice. She got some candy, and since she's 6 months old (today!), that really means that Daddy got some candy. We saw Grandma in Sandy and Grandma in Lehi. We also spent some time with the Libres:


Good ol' Matt and Laura. They even clenched for us...

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Going Private

Coming in November.
If I can figure out how. Mostly because I don't want to mention anyone's name that doesn't want me to. Please email me at cutiebing@gmail.com with your name and email to get an invite!

Friday, October 16, 2009

Alice is 5 Months (on October 3rd)


Yay for Alice! Five months has been a fun stage so far. Alice's personality has really started to take shape. All about Alice:
* Alice loves to look around and explore. She has been doing this since day one. Now that she is a little more mobile, she gets a little more hands on. Here she is with one of my People magazines (yes, I have a subscription. I have to, now that Kristin is gone):


* Alice has learned that if she wants to stay up, her best bet is with Daddy. All she has to do is smile and do a trick like this: Works every time.

*Alice can roll on her tummy, and just today, has figured out how to roll on her back! It's about time. I was getting tired of her whining because she didn't want to be on her tummy anymore.
* Alice is trying to get her legs underneath her when she's on her tummy, but she hasn't quite figured out that she needs her arms under her, too. She either gets her leg under her or her arms. One of these days, she'll master both.
* Alice can't sit up without assistance. I keep trying to show that if she bends her legs, she can balance, but she'll have none of it. She wants her legs straight. She thinks sitting is the same thing as standing.
* Alice is so good to lay in her crib and play before we get her up in the morning. There have been many times I have been awakened by the sound of Alice talking to herself and laughing. We usually find her head wedged in the furthest corner of her crib with her blankets over her head.
* She LOVES it when Daddy comes home! She perks up and smiles when she hears his voice. Mostly because Mommy is boring.
* She LOVES Darby from My Friends Tigger and Pooh. She laughs every time Darby gets a close-up
* Alice's favorite person outside of Mommy and Daddy is her oldest cousin, Taylor. All Taylor has to do is smile, and Alice goes nuts. She screams, laughs, gabs, and kicks like crazy! This is an affection I highly approve of (I actually highly approve of any of her cousins). Taylor is the funniest and the cutest kid ever, and she is such a good big sister. She is the oldest cousin, and she takes that responsibility seriously.
* I think Alice is teething. She has gotten really whiny and clingy. She drools constantly, and she puts anything she can in her mouth. She loves her frozen chew toys and her binky when I put it in the freezer.
* Love my Alice!

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Remember September, October, November, the Wonderful Months of Fall...

Anyone remember Janeen Brady? My mom had all those CDs when we were growing up, and now we have them for Alice. I remember my favorite song was
"Remember September, October November,
the wonderful months of fall (repeat)
The days get short, the nights get cool
the leaves turn gold and down they swirl
and all the kids go back to school
Remember September, October November,
the wonderful months of fall."
Simple song. It was always my favorite because it talked about September (by birthday). Now I like it because first and foremost, it keeps Alice quiet, and second, because I like the fall the best. Anyway, Remember September....

We went hiking on Labor Day. Aren't we cute?

Afterward, Alice was really tired. She had learned how to roll over that weekend, so it was new, and a novelty. She refused to stay on her back at any length of time. As you can see, she even slept on her tummy.

My 28th birthday was on September 9th. I look horrible in this picture because I don't have any glasses, and my eyes needed a break. But isn't the cake Joe surprised me with so pretty? He chose purple, because as a teacher at Lehi High, there is no such thing as too much purple.

This is the first picture we have ever taken of Alice in the tubby. I don't know why we waited this log, but isn't she so cute? A special thanks to Mr. Froggy, who works hard to keep our Alice nice and warm.

I believe this is the best picture of the bunch! Alice's favorite part of her tubby is getting wrapped up in a towel and going to see the "bundle baby" in the mirror. It's something silly I came up with to keep her from crying, but now she gets so excited to go see the baby bundled. She laughs and giggles every time.

Daddy and Alice at the Mascot Bowl. Every year, Lehi High hosts mascots from all over the country. We're talking the Jazz Bear, the Chicago Bulls Bull, Barney )can't figure that one out), the Sonic's cat or whatever he is, etc. This was our first year going, and I didn't think to get any pictures, but Alice loved being around all the people and all the music. It was so fun!

Alice has been branching out into more than just cereal--she's mastered green beans, peas, and she's on to squash. We're working our way toward fruits. She loves dinner time, but she also loves to look at EVERYTHING. She is usually very messy by the end of dinner, not because of anything she does, but because she won't hold still. Mommy frequently misses the target, and then she looks some where else so I can't scrape the yuck off her face. In this instance, she took a head dive into the spoon on her way to suck on the tray of her chair.

It has been a fabulous month. I am sad that I am back to work; I feel like I miss so much, but I love coming home to my sweet girl, who always has a big grin for Mommy.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

New Blog

I've started a new blog about how fat I am and how I'm going to fix it. But not the mean. It's just a place where I can document and share my struggles, triumphs, recipes, and thoughts about the weight-loss journey. Feel free to visit and make comments. The link is on my blog list.

Monday, August 31, 2009

Goodbye, August; Hello September

Well, school began this August, and is well under-way, but that's not all that has been happening for me this month.  I had the most wonderful experience this month: I had the opportunity to sing in the Oquirrh Mountain dedication choir.  Not only that, but my choir got to sing in the very first dedication session.  It was so exciting to think that when I entered the temple on Friday morning, August 21, 2009, the temple was just another building.  But when I left, it was a Temple, dedicated to the Lord where sacred ordinances were to be performed.  I don't cry a lot in church meetings, unless I am the one speaking, but I cried the whole way through the session.  The feeling I got when I entered the Celestial room and began to sing the words to our first song, "Let the mountains shout for joy!  Let they valleys sing and the hills rejoice!  Let them all break forth into song, let them shout and be glad before the Lord!"  I had an overwhelming feeling that the mountains and the valleys really were shouting for joy, as were the spirits whose work will be performed in that beautiful building.  I was so overwhelmed by the brightness and the spirit in the Celestial room, that as soon as I left, I cried and cried and cried.  Luckily, we didn't sing again for about 30 minutes while the Prophet went outside to do the Cornerstone ceremony.  The Hosanna Anthem was the crowning moment of that day, along with the up-close-and-personal view I got of Pres. Uchdorf's hair (nice and thick).  When everyone sang "The Spirit of God," I knew that He was there in His house, glad and well pleased with all of us who visit the temple so much that there was  need for this one in the Oquirrh Mountains.  It was the second time in my life that I have sang for a prophet, and I believe it will be my last; I am so grateful for that opportunity!

Alice is my sweet little girl, and she has gotten to be so fun lately!  I do believe that she is like her mommy in that she wants to be a big girl right now, and do all the things big girls do (I was too anxious to grow up, and always ready for the next "adult" move that came my way).  Her first attempt at being a big girl was brushing her teeth:

She enjoyed it so much that she cried when we finally had to put the toothbrush down. Her next big-girl attempt is cereal. I know that the calendar says that it's a little early to start food, but Alice doesn't seem to care what the calendar says, she is ready right now. She watched Joe and me like a hawk when we bring food to our mouths. She almost started crying tonight when Joe wouldn't let her touch his can of root beer. She finally got a handle on it and PETTED it. She is fascinated with what we put in our mouths. She doesn't like to eat laying down anymore. She would rather recline slightly. And she wants to be in charge--she always holds, not the bottle, but the nipple which gets annoying because she either suffocates herself, or she pushes the nipple out of her mouth. I finally got frustrated enough on Sunday to go ahead and give her a taste of rice cereal mush. And, as you can see, she thoroughly enjoyed it, although she couldn't figure out how to eat and not suck. She is four months going on 3 years, apparently.



Tonight we had our first official Family Home Evening, complete with a song, prayer, lesson, and a Living Scriptures cartoon to round out the hour. I was sure that Alice would zonk out during the movie, which was about 25 minutes long, but boy, was I wrong! That little girl was glued to the screen, from beginning to end. She oohed and ahhed at all the right times (when the angel stopped Laman and Lemuel from beating up Nephi) and even shrieked her disapproval whenever Laban was on the screen, and then she would look at us, hoping that we, too acknowledged her scream. I am not kidding about that, nor am I exaggerating. I should have gotten it on camera, because I don't know if anyone will really believe me when I say that she really didn't like Laban. We couldn't believe it! Every time Laban appeared or talked, she would squeal. She knew he was a bad guy. She was really happy when she saw the angel, though: she LAUGHED. I think we have a very special spirit on our hands. I hope I don't screw her up.

As previously mentioned, I have also gone back to school, and have been going full time now for about a week and a half. Once I get to school I am a very productive adult. On my way to school, I cry like a little kid not wanting to leave her mommy on the first day of Kindergarten, only I'm the mommy and the little kid doesn't mind Mommy leaving. You can see here that she loves going to Lisa's to see her a Kyler.


It is hard to go back, but every day I find myself saying, yes, it's hard, but I would miss this. I have a wonderful new addition to my classroom:

I don't know if you can tell, but that, my friends, is a magnet board, four feet by four feet, and attached to my wall. Joe made this for me, and I am the envy of the school. I keep telling Joe that he should sell these in different sizes because teachers are crazy and will pay for stuff like this, but he is reluctant. I can't exactly explain why, but he is. Joe took one of my Lehi jackets to work, had the painter match the exact color of purple, and had another friend create the vinyl. It's actually two huge sheets of metal. I love it, and it makes my classroom not look so dirty and gross. (It's dirty because of the previous owner, not me. I should decorate the room, but I have better things to do, like teach).

So, there goes August, and here comes September, the last of the hot summer months, and the last breather before the onslaught of holidays. Yay, September! Here I come, to start a new year of school, my 28th year of life (born September 9, 1981), and a new phase in my life called Working Mommy. Ready or not, I must go.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

First Week Back...

Well, I survived my first week back to school, and I only cried a couple of times!  I had meetings Monday and Tuesday, with a half-day on Wednesday, and the first day of school Thursday.  When I dropped my sweet girl off at my mom's on Monday, I didn't cry until I got back in the car. I cried all the way to the school, got myself under control, and walked in, fairly confident that I could keep it together for the day.  That was until Brenda, the department head, looked at me and said, "Have you cried yet?"  Then I started bawling again.  

I don't know if this week really counts, though.  My mom had Alice Monday through Wednesday, and Wednesday doesn't really count was a half-day.  And I cheated and took her to work with me.  And Friday I sang in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Dedication choir, so Alice was only at Lisa's until 11:00.  Next week is my real first week away, with no cheating.  I really have to be gone all day, everyday.  Thank goodness for my student teacher--I only have to plan like two weeks worth of lessons until she takes over.  In the meantime, I will look at pictures of my little Alice and race home right at 2:45 to see her.  As a side note, she loves Kyler and Lisa, and doesn't seem to care that I'm not with her, although she was very clingy on Saturday--something that is new.  I don't know if it's because it's just a stage, or if it's because she missed me.  I prefer to think it's because she missed me.

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Happy Anniversary!


Yesterday was our 4 year anniversary! It has been the most wonderful four years ever. Most of you know that Joe and I met in March, were engaged in April, and married in August. There wasn't a whole lot of time to be friends. Well, Joe and I have become the best of friends. The past three and a half years we were together were so fun. We went on dates every weekend, we watched movies, we went to sporting events, we went shopping, we went on vacations. We went through fertility treatments, we had family fights and feuds, we got in a lot of fights with each other, and we cried A LOT. We had the most beautiful little girl together.
I can honestly say that Joe is my best friend. He is the first boyfriend I have ever had that didn't expect me to be better than I already was--he thought I was perfect. He is the first boy that I kissed who didn't immediately ditch me afterward. He was my first official boyfriend, and was eager to wear the label. He was the first friend that I felt like I didn't have to pretend about who I was.
I am so grateful that I married this man, because I almost didn't. I didn't know if I loved him--in fact, when I told my mom we were getting married, she said, "do you love him?" I said, "I don't know, but I'm pretty sure I will by August." I had that much confidence in him. And I still do. Joe gets nervous about the future and about providing for our family. I don't worry, because I know he will do what he needs to do to make sure we're okay. There are a lot of things I don't know, but I do know about Joe, and because I know that, I don't worry.
Yesterday was a wonderful day. Joe got Alice up and fed her for me, and he woke my up with a singing card. He presented me with an iPod he got for a killer deal on eBay, and a subscription to People magazine. I made a carrot cake for us, something I have tried to do every year for our anniversary. This is the first year it actually worked out! Unfortunately, I found out that one slice is 15 points-- half of my caloric allowance for the day. Joe came home early from work, and we played Playstation together and went to a friend's house to watch Wipeout and have pizza. It was a wonderful night, and a perfect day. It wasn't glamourous, or glitzy, or as fancy as Joe would have liked it to be, but I thought it was the perfect celebration of our life together: games, food, friends, and laughter.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

Three Months!




It's hard to believe, but it's true. My little Alice is three months old! She is so cute and so fun. I never thought such a little person could make our lives so much happier! So, what can Alice do now that she's three months? Well, Alice can:

*Support weight on her legs, and she LOVES to stand. I can't get her to sit half the time. She loves to stand up, sit down, stand up, sit down, stand up...you get the idea. Over and over again.
*Goo and coo and laugh. When I say goo and coo, what I really mean is squawk and yell. It seems that Alice has inherited Mommy's big voice. I am going to have to take a page out of my mom's book and have to tell Alice to use her "inside voice" in the near future. That is the thing I remember most about my childhood: "Sarah, don't forget to use your inside voice."
* She is packing away the food! She is up to 6 oz every four hours. And I think she wants to start eating big-girl food because every time Joe and I eat, she watches us with very focused intent. The other day, She lunged for Joe's plate of birthday cake and tried to take his fork away from him. Hold on, Little Cutie, you'll get to eat real food soon enough!
* She loves her night light! Her night light is really her baby monitor that sits in her crib, and there have been many nights that I have walked in her room to find her wrist wrapped up in the cord, her head in the corner of the crib, and the night light on her face. We have had to zip tie the cord to the crib so she can't pull it, but it doesn't stop her from wriggling her way to where she is practically laying on top of the light.
* She watches everything SO intently. I can just see the wheels in her head turning, trying to figure everything out.
* She's not a good nap taker, but she is a good night sleeper. We're working on finding a good schedule for naps. It involves a lot of crying. Alice isn't happy about it, either.
* Alice has discovered her fingers.  She sucks on them constantly.  She loves them so much, she gags on them because she stuffs them down her throat so far.  She'll sit under her play gym, suck the fingers on her right hand, and bat at the toys with her left.  She's so funny!


Alice is so cute, and is getting so big! At her last appointment, she was 12 lbs and 24 1/2 inches. She's in the 56% in weight, and 91% in length--yes, she is TALL! And her head is like the 23%. She's gaining wonderfully, and she was such a good girl when she got her shots! It was just the rest of the week she had problems. Happy 3 months, Alice! We are so excited you are here, and we love you so much!

Alice in July

Well, July has come and gone, and before I knew it, it was August. I have to go back to work pretty soon. I have mixed feelings about it--I think I would cry if I weren't going back, and I think I will cry when I can't take Alice with me. Sometimes I wish I could just strap on the Bjorn and teach that way. Alas, it cannot be. Ce la vie.  We didn't do a whole lot on the 4th and the 24th, but Alice sure looked cute in her outfit!
Anyway, we had a very busy July, although I can't really think about what we did....I took a lot of pictures, though.



We went to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house. I am very excited about this dedication because I have the opportunity to sing in the choir. We took Alice with us, and she was so good the whole time. She didn't squawk at all!
Alice has started sleeping in her swing. It doesn't look very comfortable, but whenever I try to put a pillow under her head, she doesn't like it. Whatever. Rest your head on your tray, I don't care.  

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