Baby Friends

We had some visitors this week.  My supervisor at work, Kelsey, was pregnant at the exact same time as me and had her baby 4 days after I did.  How cute is this little boy?  If you are pregnant and don't have any pregnant friends, find some!  It was fun being able to talk to someone who was right where I was (not to mention that there were about 5 other pregnant girls on our row at work.  The poor guys probably got reeeeally sick of pregnancy talk).   Also, then you've already got play date friends for when the baby comes!  It was really funny, they'd do everything at the same time.  Eat, nap, poop, smile, cry.  

Shoes

Conversation from a few mornings ago:

 

Tanner:  "Shoot, its raining.  My feet are going to be soaked."

 

Me (looking at his feet):  "So why don't you wear your other shoes? (the ones not completely full of holes including on the bottom and all but missing the soles)

 

Tanner:  "Because these are my favorite shoes"

 

I love a man who appreciates a pair of well-loved old Vans.  And as much as I roll my eyes, I actually do understand.  It's kind of like a trophy, really.  It takes a long time to get them this way.  I wonder if it will ever become a trend for shoes to actually come this way--like distressed jeans.  Except, I've never actually thought distressed jeans were cool because it's like a fake.  The whole reason torn up, thin jeans are cool is because it means you stuck with that piece of clothing long enough for it to look that way.  Maybe the whole attraction factor is that it screams commitment.  Loyalty. I'll-never-give-up-on-you kind of love.  Maybe? 

Little Boxes

I had a very lovely morning.  

I got approximately 7 1/2 hours of sleep (I love my baby)

Waffles

Banana blueberry orange pineapple spinach smoothie (yes it turns out gray but it still tastes amazing)

Lots and LOTS of smiles from Camryn

a very cute sleepy husband

and this really really awesome music video he showed me that completely made my day.

Little Boxes by Walk Off the Earth

I love everything about this:

Have a lovely morning!

I can't decide which one of these pictures is the cutest. . .

It's REALLY fun dressing a little girl

I'm kind of obsessed with this hat now that it fits

Saturday morning :)

Baby girl got her first shots on Wednesday.  It kind of broke my heart but she took it like a champ!  Also she weighed in at 10 pounds exactly :)

Recipes

I just want to take a moment and share some of my new absolutely favorite recipes. I'm sure any of you who cook and follow cooking blogs already know about Our Best Bites, but I recently discovered it and love them. I got the book, have already tried half of it's recipes, and by now am confident that every single recipe of theirs rocks. I am OBSESSED with these taquitos and so is my husband.
Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

I've probably made them once a week since I discovered them. They are awesome with this dressing.

Creamy Lime-Cilantro Dressing

Also, new favorite:

Spicy Honey Chicken Salad


The chicken is good on its own but better in the salad. Most amazing entree salad I've ever had. Soooo good!

One more. I got this from my friend Shelly's blog and it's the easiest thing in the world and they last for like 10 meals (also Steph, very healthy). I served it over brown rice with cheese and veggies like the recipe says, but they are also good to eat just with tortilla chips, wrapped up in a burrito, or to dip the taquitos in (see above). Thanks Shelly I love these!

Cuban Black Beans

1 lb. black beans

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves minced garlic

6 C. water

1/2 C. olive oil

2-3 tsp. salt

Cook on High 6-8 hours

-It recommends to add 1/4-1/2 C white vinegar about an hour before serving. However, I left this out because it had a ton of flavor without it. It tastes delicious served over brown rice or even quinoa.

We add a little cheese (I like it w/Monterrey Jack,) tomatoes, some sautéed veggies.

I am having grocery budget blues. I'm on a huge try-new-recipes kick and when trying a new recipe I often have zero of the ingredients (spices!) and can spend half my grocery budget for the week buying everything for one new recipe. Besides that my husband and I both have a ridiculous sweet tooth and . . . bottom line we love to eat. A lot. I fantasize about being rich someday and walking through the grocery store putting every single thing that strikes my fancy into the cart. Buying endless fresh produce, expensive meat, name brand everything without time-consuming price comparison. mmm. . . food. . . love it. I dream big huh?

Disney on Ice

Tanner and I went to Disney on Ice: Toy Story 3 last Saturday night. The tickets were Tanner's birthday present. (kind of juvenile, I know, but my husband is kind of juvenile. . .) Tanner's family was kind enough to watch Camryn while we got our first date night out since becoming new parents. I'm pretty sure we were the only people there without a child in tow and it was quite the night for people watching. It was weird observing this demographic as an outsider on the very brink of entering the club: people with kids. People who have probably watched their toy story 3 DVD 800 times. People who spend $18 on a red foam cowgirl hat with a Jessie braid (that probably only cost 10 cents to manufacture) just to watch the recipient complain that she wants the Woody one that her brother got. People who miss half of the show because their 4 year old (who takes stairs very slowly) has to go to the bathroom. twice. People who are completely oblivious to the fact that the little girl sitting on their lap has a very unnaturally blue colored food all over her face. And hands. And clothes. And hair. People who listen to plea after tearful plea for them to spend their money on completely pointless and overpriced cheap toys and/or toy shaped sugar coated treats. People who give in and leave the show cross-eyed because the light up spinny whirly toy they purchased is already out of batteries 1 hour later. People who get harassed for ice skating lessons for weeks after Disney on Ice.

I'm not quite one of those people yet. Just a wide-eyed stranger prepping myself.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Quotes

These are just some quotes I've picked up here and there. . . 

"Leap year is one of those things you think they'd have fixed by now"

-David Letterman

"Wait, Mrs. Prestwhich, you mean Obama is real?"

-Boy in my friend Alissa's 1st grade class

"We must prioritize our choices to match our goals [. . .] or risk being blown from one time-wasting activity to another"

-Ian S. Arden

"I want to be an outrageous old woman . . . I want to get leaner and meaner, sharp-edged and earth-colored ’till I fade away from pure joy"

-Unknown. But since it's unknown, I'll give my friend Lauren credit since I found it on her blog

"In his seventies, he discovered skateboarding"

Unbroken, said of Louis Zamperini

Unbroken

I just finished this book and can't recommend it highly enough!  It's the best book I've read in a long time.  I decided some time ago that historical novels are my favorite kind of reading.  You get to read a story that's interesting and easy to read, but get a history lesson at the same time (one that doesn't feel like a history lesson at all since it's a novel, see?)  This mans story is incredible, inspirational, and drop-your-jaw unbelievable.  At one point he is floating on a raft in the middle of the Pacific ocean literally kicking sharks away.
Ya know how when you were a little kid and you went to a pro baseball game, piano concert, ballet, or saw olympic gymnasts on t.v. and all of a sudden you were begging your parents for lessons and it was completely 100% your life ambition to be a baseball player, pianist, ballerina, or gymnast?  Just because what you saw them doing was that cool?  Well, this book inspired the writer in me.  Because someday I would love to be able to produce a piece of writing that is this cool.  And that, I think, is quite the compliment to Laura Hillenbrand.

Baby Sling

I got this baby sling on etsy.com and I love it. I thought it would be nice for taking her to the grocery store, on short errands where I don't want to lug a stroller around, or for just carrying her around when I'm trying to make dinner or something and she wants to be held. Great idea, right? Except that the first time I put her in it (after watching and studying several youtube video demos) Camryn went ballistic. I'm not talking just cried for a little bit or just didn't really like it. I'm talking face purple, screaming her guts out, banging her head against my chest ballistic--expressing to her mother in every way, shape and form she knows how GET ME OUT OF HERE. She was in total hysterics for the rest of the evening--even after taking her out of the sling. Ironically, one of the selling points of the sling is that babies carried in slings cry less.

After several more tries, and much convincing from mom (countless repetitions of "Isn't this fun? We like the baby sling. Ya, this is great huh?") we have successfully spent significant amounts of time in the sling without a tantrum. I may even take her to the library in it today, we'll see.

So here are my thoughts on baby carriers. The woman selling them was saying that while it's not as popular here in our western culture, in many cultures carrying babies around like this is very common. Babies like it because they are wrapped up tight close to their mother and to them it's similar to being in the womb. They are said to cry less, develop better, etc. And if you think about it, in primitive cultures mothers have little choice but to carry their baby with them everywhere they go (think hunter/gatherer, African bushmen, Eve) Isn't it interesting then that we have invented all sorts of things to make it possible for us to not have to hold our babies? We've got car seats, rocking swings, bouncy chairs, strollers. Places where we can put the baby down and hope that they will be calm enough that we don't actually have to pick them up and care for them ourselves.

Which brings me to breastfeeding. If you haven't heard, new babies are very demanding little humans. If you didn't know, newborns need to be breastfed every 2-3 hours (day and night). So the way God arranged this whole thing, a baby needs to be nurtured by their mother ALL the time. It's a little frustrating sometimes but amazing, really, that the way God arranged it, caring for my baby isn't something that can be passed over to dad when it's 2 a.m. and I'm REALLY tired, or passed over to grandma if I want a vacation. My baby needs me to nurture her in a way that only I can. Every 2-3 hours. That is until the invention of formula. And the breast pump. And binky's and bottles that sooth the baby by tricking them into thinking they've got the real thing. I really don't want to offend any mothers who formula feed, breast pump, or work while their child is in someone elses care. I know amazing mothers who do all of the above and I will be doing those things too when necessity demands. But I just want to throw it out here as food for thought that our society has gone to an awful lot of trouble to eliminate the necessity of a mother being close to and being the primary nurturer of her children. In the not too recent past and for most of history, most of those options weren't options.

Some Pictures for the Aunties

Camryn is 8 weeks old tomorrow and all smiles! She's finally grown out of her newborn clothes and has moved onto her 0-3 month wardrobe. But as you can see, she's drowning in some of those. . .



Thank you Marissa for her adorable new favorite PJ's!


How cute is this to come home to?

Exercise

I have been very very excited to be able to exercise again after pregnancy. You know, exercise like a normal person that doesn't have a 25 pound beach ball strapped to their front. Before yesterday, I was one week shy of not having gone on a run in one entire year. I don't think that's ever happened since I learned how to run. I know the exact date because March 17, 2011 I ran my first half marathon and after that was pretty over running, was busy with work and finals, and then I got my new bike and was suddenly very uninterested in my running shoes. And then I can blame the next 9 months of not running after that on pregnancy (anyone hear about that woman who ran a marathon 9 months pregnant and gave birth like 7 hours after crossing the finish line? she's crazy) So, I gave myself the recommended 6 weeks of post-birthing healing time without exercising except for some walking with Camryn and some small yoga mat exercises here and there, but yesterday I decided--it was time. Time for a run, no matter how feeble, pathetic, and short. And let me tell you--it was feeble, pathetic and short. I knew it would be bad, but it was bad. My body felt so extremely awkward, as if it had never made those motions before--like watching an adult learn how to ski. I made it 3 blocks. And then after walking and looping back, I did 2 more blocks on the way home. It was a serious blast to my ego. I guess recovery is a slowly but surely thing.

I hesitate to even mention this one, but the day before that I went to a 30 minute all-abs class at the gym. Now, I had no delusions going in that I would even come close to completing this workout or be able to do everything-- even on my best days pre-pregnancy, gym classes kick my butt every time. But I wanted to get out of the house and I thought I'd just go (10 minutes late) , find a spot in the back, take it really easy, and get a little start on getting some ab muscles back. I laughed through almost the whole class (which hey, now that I think about it, does build ab muscles, right?). I couldn't even get my body into the positions to even start the exercises that this lady was doing--not even for one rep. Not even kind of. I kept thinking of the time my little brother looked at my pregnant sister, studying her 9 month belly and asked "wait--when your pregnant where do your abs go?" Well, Ryan, they disappear entirely. Like I said, I'll get them back slowly but surely. . .

New Cousin

I have a brand new baby nephew :) We're really happy that Camryn will have cousins so close in age! His name is Nolan and he is the first son of my brother Andrew and his beautiful wife Giannina. He's got an awesome thick mess of dark hair (from mom of course) and let's be honest, this kid is huge! He weighed in at almost 10 pounds at birth. This is him on Sunday (2 weeks old) next to my baby (6 weeks old). We're working really hard at catching her up but there is only so much a momma can do. Congratulations to the happy parents and sisters! We love him already!

Love the place you live

I read something on this blog and have been thinking about it ever since: Love the Place you Live. I couldn't agree with her more that "it’s so important to embrace the place where you are living. Even if you’ll only be there for a short time." I would almost say especially if you'll only be there for a short time. I live in a double college town and know a lot of people who will only be living where they live for a short time. Some of them love, embrace, and discover it, and others gripe their way through the entire experience just living for the day when they can get out of here and move on. I try really hard to be one of those first people, and I feel really bad for the second kind. I've been in Provo for almost 5 years now, and let's be honest, I'm looking forward to moving on to somewhere new. But I'm here until my husband finishes school (cross your fingers for April 2013) and I LOVE Provo and have loved living here so much. There isn't anywhere I can go here without being reminded of a memory of something I've done there and someone I've shared it with. That goes for Utah too, not just Provo. The reason I've thought about this so much is because if all goes according to plan, I'll only be living here for another year and a half. It would be easy to wish this time away and constantly be looking forward to wherever we'll be moving, but I know that Utah has a lot to offer and I want to embrace it for the time I have left here. I want to make it a point in my life that wherever I go, I love the place I live. I know quite a few people whose schooling or careers (or their husbands) have taken them to places they didn't expect (or in some cases want). Indiana, Kansas, Texas, Chicago . . . and my husbands goal to go to medical school may very well take me somewhere totally foreign to me (right now he's shooting for medical school in the Caribbean. Yes, really. But I could very well end up in Kansas instead.) and while some places in this world are more desirable than others--find out what makes the place you live in cool, and love it.

Here are some of the things I love about Provo/Utah:

1. Skiing!! GREATEST SNOW ON EARTH. I love love love love to ski. And have at least 6 amazing ski resorts within an hours drive. I know it's expensive, but if you live in Provo for 4 years and do not take at least one opportunity to go skiing or snowboarding, you have made a big big mistake. Do it.

2. Mt. Timpanogos. Probably at least a million times this has escaped my lips: "wow. Mt. Timp is BEAUTIFUL right now" Tell me that the sight of that mountain does not take your breath away every single day.

3. Hiking/Camping. Enough said.

4. $1 Crazy bread at Little Caesars for college students. Seriously going to miss this.

5. BYU sports. Gotta love a good football game at Lavell Edwards stadium.

6. Cherry Lane Boutique. I passed this place a million times before I ever went inside, and when I finally did, I loved it. Check it out--5th North and University Avenue. Cute headbands, bags, clothes, etc. . .

7. The Utah Arts Festival. Is amazing. It's in Salt Lake City every summer (this year June 21-24) and only costs like $5 for a whole day. It features incredible art booths with everything you could imagine from painting, sculpture, pottery, jewelry and photography, to hand-crafted flutes and shoes, to guys that make art from garbage. Not to mention live music, awesome food vendors, and a very fun kids corner. I love it. If you live in Utah, put this on your to do list this summer!

8. Moab. Utah has so many incredible national parks, but there is a special place in my heart for Arches National Park. I've been lucky enough to go there quite a few times in the past few years, including to run a beautiful half marathon last March. It's the coolest town. Think granola, jeeps, red rock, and everyone in sight wearing Chacos sandals and bandanas. For hiking, mountain biking, jeeping, camping, photography, it's great.

9. Having my family close :) Going to miss this for sure!

Now, as if this post isn't already long enough, I made some goals of things I haven't yet experienced in Utah that I want to do before I leave! If you have any suggestions, throw them my way!

1. Provo Farmers Market. I wasn't able to go much last year because of my work schedule, but this summer hopefully I will!

2. Hike Mt. Nebo (highest peak in the wasatch range) Tried last year but the road was blocked.

3. The Shakespearean festival in Cedar City

4. Go to a play at the Tuacahn amphitheater

5. Temples. Want to branch out from Provo and attend Mt. Timp, Draper, Jordan River, Oquirrh Mountain.

6. Goblin valley. Haven't been here since I was a kid. Google it, it's cool.

7. Learn to snowboard. I've been a skier all my life (and always will be first and foremost) but I've snowboarded once and loved it! I want to learn.

8. More hiking/camping. The possibilities are endless.

So Proud

Baby girl slept through he night! I am so excited out of my mind. 11-5:30 :) Nevermind that I woke up at 4 anyway just because my body was used to having to. Or that after feeding her at 5:30 I couldn't go back to sleep because I was so excited (and because I had Camryn on my left hiccuping and Tanner on my right snoring) and so technically I lot less sleep than normal but who cares! My little girl slept through the night! The pride welling up inside of me at 5:30 this morning was out of this world. Wait til she does something truly extraordinary like say her first word, tie her own shoes, or enter the 1st grade. I'll be bursting! For now, I've been lavishing her with praise all morning. Hopefully the positive reinforcement will encourage her to repeat this behavior!