tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10676167205038775012024-03-13T06:52:15.365-06:00Team D&Ggiuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.comBlogger265125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-63753816896463171262015-01-25T00:00:00.001-07:002015-01-25T00:08:09.247-07:00Welcome Home<div style="text-align: center;">
When we arrived home from the hospital we were greeted by Jenette, Ashley, and Azalia- who was so excited to see baby that she could barely contain herself.</div>
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These lovely ladies left for their homes that afternoon but stocked our fridge, freezer, and pantry with meals and snacks. Bless them.<br />
A few hours later my mom pulled in, hopped out of the car and said, "David, help me pull this freezer out and put it in the shop. I'm going to fill this thing up while I'm here." Have mercy. She did just that. Bless her. </div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-86995509424708468042015-01-24T23:54:00.001-07:002015-01-25T00:07:14.861-07:00Going Home<div style="text-align: center;">
We decided to use the full amount of hospital days insurance allowed and stayed until Tuesday. That morning we packed up and loaded our stuff, did all of the necessary training/paperwork/etc. and got our lil' man (still nameless) ready to go. </div>
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Picture overload of the process:</div>
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It's amazing to look at these pictures and see how much our boy has grown! He certainly doesn't fit in those clothes anymore and he's practically spilling out of his carseat now. He's getting too big too fast! Makes me want to have another one soon just to experience all that littleness again. :) God designed it this way on purpose so women forget about labor and delivery and just think about wanting another sweet tiny baby. He's smart, God. </div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-598854638257162222014-12-22T12:16:00.001-07:002014-12-22T12:22:17.630-07:00First Visitors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Ashley, Azalia, and Jenette came to visit Sunday evening. We didn't get any pictures with them, but they took pictures of us!</div>
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After Ashley and Jenette left the hospital (they went to our house and took care of things there for us) Uncle Colin and Aunt Jean came to visit. Colin snatched that baby up and plopped on his chest and snuggled down right away. He didn't want to give him up; only let Jean hold him for the last 10 minutes or so that they were there. ha! I was still pretty out of it from not sleeping for days. Colin was laughing at/worried about me- I guess I looked pretty beat up still.</div>
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And then Brandon and Janet came too. </div>
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After all of our visitors we both finally got settled in for some much needed sleep. I think my bed was a little bit more comfortable than this one. </div>
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Holy smokes! Sleep never felt so good!!!! I felt a million times better Monday morning. My throat was pretty raspy and sore from all my moaning and groaning during labor, and it felt back to normal Monday. My head was clear; no longer rummy-headed and dizzy from not sleeping for days. The worst pain I had was my in arms. My left was sore and tender from the lock line; my right was bruised from a blood draw.</div>
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Monday evening we had some surprise visitors! We knew that Nessie, Felicia, and Chelsie were coming, but we were shocked to see Preston march in first followed by Papa. So fun!</div>
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Looking much better after some beauty rest.</div>
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<br />giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-40907967930999201112014-12-21T23:29:00.000-07:002014-12-22T00:15:54.717-07:00The Bulge part III<div class="p1">
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<span class="s1">October 7 came and went without any excitement. Just another day at school/work and getting school projects and assignments done. The rest of the week was the same. Wednesday I was able to work at the horticulture department’s “Come Alive Outside” event in the gardens. It was so fun! Fresh made pizzas cooked in the brick oven at Patsy’s Porch (one of the mini gardens); rope swings, zip lines, and slack lines in the trees; potato bar; apple press; zumba; I don’t even know what else. And I got extra credit in one of my classes for working the potato bar. :) Friday I went to class and turned in 3 big projects for 2 different classes (finished them early so I didn't have to worry about them during or after baby's arrival). I was going to go to work for the afternoon, but David and I decided the night before that heck, this baby hasn't made any sign of coming down the chute, our freezer is empty from last year's harvest, we didn't get any Nevada tags, so let's go hunting! David's still a Nevada resident, but I'm an Idaho resident now so I can get an over-the-counter tag for cheap. So yes, it was me with the license and me with the rifle; I wasn't just going along for the ride. :) As soon as David finished taking a test we loaded up and headed out Friday afternoon for the desert hills north of Rexburg. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">The roads were nice and bumpy. I wasn't bothered by them at first. We got out and hiked around. I'm usually able to keep pace with David just fine when we're hiking but I admit I was a little slower and it was awkward going up hills as I could only get my legs to step up so far (not very far) in front of me what with my belly getting in the way. We saw a few elk tracks, a lot of moose tracks and beds, and a moose. Yes a moose. In the desert sandy hills. We were shocked. Not one deer. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">We hiked back to the jeep and decided to check out a different area. The roads were definitely rough and as we headed back down the mountain after the sun set (and not seeing anything but cows) I was definitely aware of every bump and jolt. But I felt great when we got home, other than tired after staying up absurdly late every night working on school stuff, and I told David that I would be good to head out in the morning and try again. Morning hunts are always better and we were looking forward to it. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">That night I decided I should finally pack our hospital bags; I was 4 days "overdue" after all. I was so focused on school stuff that packing was on the bottom of my to-do list. Before he went to bed (I stayed up longer to pack) David said I was giving the baby permission to finally come. I laughed thinking that things were so not going to happen within the next 24 hours. When I finished packing hospital bags I put together snacks etc. for heading out to hunt in the morning and then finally crawled into bed just before midnight (after staying up well past midnight the night before to finish school projects). Two hours later I woke up to a lovely contraction. I knew right away what it was. It came and went (not mildly) and I quickly went back to sleep thinking if this was the real thing that I probably had at least another 30 minutes before another came, but that it was probably just a one time deal for the night and I would be up in a few hours to get back to the hunt. 15 minutes later I was jerked from sleep with another. Ugh. And so the night/early morning hours went. Because I was bone-tired from the long week I stayed in bed and tried to sleep a little between contractions that lasted about a minute or more. I woke David up around 3:30 to have him rub and put pressure on my lower back during contractions. Pretty sure he slept through and missed a few, but that's ok. :) Needless to say, we didn't go hunting in the morning as planned. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Around 9:00AM, I think, I finally got out of bed after a sleepless and uncomfortable night. I got started on some Saturday cleaning and just worked through contractions, typically running to David as I felt one coming on so he could put pressure on my lower back. They were coming every 10-15 minutes; the time between them hadn’t decreased. By Saturday afternoon and 12+ hours of contractions I started telling myself it must be some tortuous form of false labor because contractions weren't getting any closer but they were plenty strong enough. I remained calm though and didn't feel like anything was wrong or that we needed to go to the hospital or call the midwives. I didn’t feel like eating much, but I made sure to drink plenty of water during the day and got down a bowl of home-brewed chicken broth. I crawled in the bath Saturday afternoon, and that helped a little but it definitely didn't encourage things to slow down/go away (if it really was false labor) or move things along any faster. I actually had a nice little chat with Grandmama while I was in the tub. I don’t think she noticed when I’d zone out of the conversation during a contraction. Haha.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Saturday evening, after being in labor all day and not sleeping much the previous two days, I was tired and really just wanted to sleeeeep. Fat chance of that happening with a lovely strong contraction coming at me every 10-15 minutes. Regardless, we were both really calm and felt like everything was just fine. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">And so the night went: a 1-minute contraction every 10-15 minutes. At one point I sat on the exercise ball in front of the mirror and braided my hair all fancy like- not sure how I did that through contractions.Ha! When I finished my hair I curled up in bed for a few hours looking for any sleep I could get. No sleep for me but it did feel nice to just lay there and close my eyes when I wasn’t working through a contraction. However, laying down was not the most comfortable position to be in. Around 2AM (Sunday, the 12th), a whopping 24 hours later, things changed. Contractions were a little more intense on the discomfort scale and they finally were closer together. I moved to the exercise ball. I was now only getting 7-8 minute breaks between contractions, and as the early morning hours marched on those breaks got shorter and shorter. We were in the bedroom and I was working through contractions on the exercise ball and David was right next to me in a chair, ready to help me through each contraction. He pulled out my stopwatch and a notepad and took note of when each contraction started. He even included the time of when I threw up- 3:30AM. He kept my water mug filled and was ready to bring the straw right to my mouth whenever I croaked out, “Water.” He continued to be the best water boy during the whole process, all the way through post delivery. We were both nodding off during our break times. The kind of nodding off like when you're in class and don't realize you're slowly drifting toward sleep until the sudden whiplash of your head wakes you up. Ughhh. Nodding off is the worst because it just makes you more tired and all you can think about is going home (if you're in class) and taking a good nap. And when you realize that a good nap is just not going to happen it makes you even more tiredddd. Anyway... we continued to work through contractions. I would switch between laboring on the exercise ball, to straddling the chair (David would move to the ball or bed when I commandeered the chair) with me facing the back and leaning over the backside, to laboring on my hands and knees, to kneeling on the ground and laying my upper body on the bed or the chair. At one point David said to me that he was so sorry that I was in so much pain. I got kind of cross with him and said, “I don’t need your sympathy. I just need you to work with me.” And he did just that.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Around 5AM we finally hit the 4-1-1 mark, the cue to leave for the hospital for most people. 1 minute long contractions about 4 minutes apart for 1 hour. Even so, I felt like things weren't intense enough yet to call the midwives or change what we we're doing. I told myself that at 6AM we would call and see what the midwife said. We made it to 6AM and contractions were anywhere from 1,2,3, or 4 minutes apart but I still didn’t feel any need to leave for the hospital. My water and mucus plug were still intact and I felt good about just staying home. [I had towels laid out for when my water did break: a towel in the kitchen, a towel on the exercise ball, a towel on the bed, a towel in the car…] We called the midwife at 6 to let her know what was going on and that she could expect to be at the hospital with us sometime today. She encouraged us to stay home as long as we could and then just let her know when we were heading to the hospital. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">After getting off the phone with her (David did the talking), my next goal was to make it until sunrise. The sun started streaming through our window after 7:30. As the sunshine fell on us and woke our tired bodies and minds, I decided I wanted to get outside and take a walk. I needed to get out of the house, out of that bedroom; I needed to do something different; I needed a change of scenery. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">It took a few contractions to get dressed, shoes laced up, and out the door. The sunshine and brisk morning air felt great. It was just past 8AM; 30 hours of labor. We slowly made our way out of the driveway and onto the street. I don’t think I was waddling, just moving slow, but you’d have to have David confirm that. We headed west and just did one lap around the block: down 4th W to 5th S over to 2nd W then back to 3rd S and home. I had to stop about every 50 yards to work through a contraction. Sometimes I would drop into a low squat and pull on David’s arms; sometimes I stood and leaned into David’s side or back; a few times I was able to just keep walking (very slowly) when another rush would hit. As it was a Sunday morning, and our ward doesn’t meet until 1:30PM, the streets were very quiet, for which David was grateful that he didn’t have to wave to anyone we know and explain that everything was okay even though his wife looked crazy. :) </span></div>
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<span class="s1">We made it back to the house before 9AM and I was ready to go to the hospital. I wanted to get in the big laboring jacuzzi tub; I wanted the midwife to guide us through different labor positions; I so wanted to be done. We called the midwife and loaded the car. Let me tell you- sitting in the passenger seat of a moving vehicle might be the most uncomfortable way to work through contractions. We arrived at the hospital around 9:15 and made our way up to labor and delivery. As soon as the nurses saw us they came out to meet/greet us. I leaned over the counter and worked through a contraction or two as they got my name and info. Since I was obviously in labor and because I was the only L&D patient on the floor that morning, I got to forego the triage room and head straight to a labor and delivery suite.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I slipped into the lovely hospital gown and onto the bed for the required 20 minutes of fetal heart rate monitoring. During this time they put the lock line in my forearm- which took the nurse two pokes to get it in there. Ugh. And they checked my cervix. I had [kindly] refused to be checked at all my appointments as I didn’t feel it was necessary, so I have no idea if I was at all dilated before real labor started. My biggest fear while I was laboring at home was that when we arrived at the hospital I would only be dilated to a 2 or something ridiculous for how long I had been in labor. But oh happy, happy day. The nurse proudly said I was at a 7 or 8 and 90% effaced and looked at me like I was a rock star. Glory hallelujah I had done it! My midwife wasn’t there yet, but the doctor from the same medical group was there heard that and smiled and said, “Awesome!” Go me! I was well over half-way and past the point of no return, meaning that it would be silly for me to get an epidural now after doing all of this work already without it and that baby would be here in no time. At least that was one of things I kept telling myself as I labored for another 6 hours. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">As soon as my 20 minutes on the bed with monitoring were over I was up and the midwife escorted me to the jacuzzi. I wanted that jet stream of water on my back. I was in the water for almost 2 hours. There were handles built in to each side of the tub that I pulled on as I bent over and had David pour water down my back. A few times the nurse came in to get a fetal heart rate reading. She had a hand-held device and just got her hands where they needed to be regardless of what position I was in or what I was doing. I’m sure she got all wet trying to get to my belly under the water, but she didn’t complain or ask me to move. Awesome nurse! The midwife quietly stood at the foot of the tub and encouraged me through contractions. Her mantra was, “Stay with it,” said in a low sing-song voice. David later told me that it was really annoying him. Ha! But whenever I started breathing too fast she would repeat, “Stay with it,” and I would force myself to take longer breaths. I wasn’t annoyed. It helped me stay focused and not hyperventilate because of the pain. When I was all wrinkly and the water was past the point of being warm, my midwife suggested that we get out and head back to our room. I crawled out of the tub and the midwife and David put my gown back on me. David loves this part. Apparently I didn’t care to wait for them to tie the back of my gown before I went out the door and into the hallway. And you better believe that a good contraction came down before I made it back to the room. So there I was in the hallway, squatted down and pulling on the edge of the nurses desk, with my backside open for all to see. I didn’t care. The midwife laughed. David, I’m sure, was red in the face for me and shaking his head (with a smile). When I could walk again I made it to the room. I reached the bed just as another contraction came so I was squatting down again and pulling on the bed.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">After getting through that one I made my way to the bathroom and as I was relieving myself my mucus plug finally let loose. I bet it would have sooner, but I think the water pressure while I was in the tub kept it intact. So maybe if I hadn’t got in the tub, things would have progressed a little faster? I don’t know. Oh well. A few contractions later I made it back to the bed. I crawled onto the bed so they could do another fetal heart rate monitoring session. During this time, the midwife checked my progress. As she did, my water broke [I don’t know if she did that on purpose or not]. </span><span class="s2">Wowza</span><span class="s1"> what a sensation. Fluid, fluid everywhere. I was at a 8/9 and completely effaced. I was a little discouraged by this. I was expecting to hear, “All done and ready to push.” I was so, so, so tired and just wanted to be done. If it took 2+ hours of hard labor to progress from a 7/8ish to just barely 9 that meant I had another 2 more hours at least. Ughhh. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I stayed on the bed for a few contractions laboring on my side, but that just wasn’t doing it for me. So the midwife suggested I get in the shower with the birthing ball. I sat on the exercise ball and bent over as the hot water hit my back. Eventually I was kneeling on a bunch of towels, bent over and hugging the bench attached to the shower wall. All the while with David by my side putting pressure on my back as I asked for it, the midwife quietly watching in the corner and reminding me to “stay with it,” and the nurse (pretty much soaking herself) getting a fetal heart rate reading every now and then. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Several times I cried to David that I was done, I just wanted to be done, I wanted it to be over, I was so tired, I just wanted to sleep. He had tears in his eyes too as he reminded me that I was so close, that I could do this, that I was almost done. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Close to 2 hours later the midwife asked if I felt like pushing. I groaned, “I don’t know.” After a few more contractions she informed me that I was definitely pushing through contractions now and that we should move back to the bed. My breathing with the contractions transformed on their own into pushing back into the contraction without me realizing. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">I got on the bed and she had me reclined on my back and holding my knees as I pushed. This wasn’t working. My legs were so tired and my knees were almost numb from kneeling on them for so long in the shower that I just didn’t have the strength to hold them up, even with David trying to help me. So we positioned the bed to a more upright position, like a chair, and they got the squat bar out and attached to the end of the bed. It fit on each side of the bed and came up just past the height of my head as I sat in the bed/chair. The nurse and midwife got my legs up and feet planted so that I was in a supported squat position while sitting in the bed (I guess I like the squat position; sorry if you’re tired of reading that word. squat!). I pulled on the bar during each push and then rested/hung from it during breaks. During this phase I really was just in the zone. I was not aware of much of what was going on around me; I don’t even know what David was doing during this time besides getting me water on my request. At some point though I noticed that the midwife backed away and put on her delivery coveralls and gloves and the nurse set out a pad on the ground beneath me. I interpreted this as: we must be close; I am almost done. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">David says I pushed for about 30 minutes after getting out of the shower. Pushing was a lot of work. I was soooo tired. I really gave it all that I had each time, thinking that the harder I pushed the sooner I could be done. But I felt like the pushing was doing nothing. I wasn’t feeling anything moving down, or the “ring of fire,” yada yada. After one push some “air” was also definitely released, and I looked at my nurse and asked, “Did I just shart myself, or was that just a nasty fart?” because I honestly couldn’t tell. She just laughed and laughed and didn’t really answer me. David has since informed that I did, indeed, shart- but just a little bit. A few more pushes later and finally, finally!, I could feel that intense pressure and baby starting to crown. The ring of fire wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. It was there, but I think the release from it was the weirdest thing. One moment it was like, “WTH- OUCH!” and the next moment I was already pushing again and with that push baby practically exploded out. (Sorry, this hasn’t been a very sentimental or rose-colored depiction of birth has it?) Sweet release! One of the strangest sensations everrrr. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Baby let out a good wail or two and was immediately placed on my belly; I tried to pull him up to my chest and everybody told me to stop- he was still attached to the cord and I was tugging on the placenta. So baby lay there and I cried and sobbed with relief as we waited for the cord to stop pulsing. After about 15 minutes David cut the cord. I was so happy and shocked that he did! We hadn’t really talked about it and I thought he wouldn’t want to given his history of wooziness when in the presence of bodily fluids. But he didn’t even hesitate. As soon as the cord was cut baby was placed on my chest. I was so exhausted I could barely keep my eyes open long enough to get a good look at him. After staring at him for about 30 seconds I closed my eyes and kept them closed and just held that baby. A few minutes later he started rooting around. I was weak from exhaustion and shaky from the adrenaline rush and my arms couldn’t quite maneuver how I wanted them to, so the nurse helped baby get to the breast. He latched right on. When he was finished he lifted his head up and just stared. And that is what happened the next four hours. Baby stayed on my chest; he would lift and hold his head and stare repeatedly; he nursed; never cried, just did some grunting. :)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">During this time we also delivered the placenta. I got stitched up from the 2nd degree tear I received while pushing. And David fed me the chicken fingers, fries, and milkshake I ordered- I no longer needed to worry about diabetes and blood glucose levels and I enjoyed those calories and carbs and sugars like nothing I had ever enjoyed before (I also shared this meal with David, as he was hungry and sleep deprived as well). </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Around 6PM I finally let the nurse take the baby (not that she was pesky or pressuring, just around 6PM she asked and I said sure) to weigh and measure and clean him up. </span></div>
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<span class="s1">His stats were: 7 pounds 12 ounces</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>20 1/2 inches</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span><span class="Apple-tab-span"> </span>10-12-14</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Pure, sweet, perfect, precious baby. My baby! I am so in love with him. </span></div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-14097685616133830402014-10-06T00:48:00.000-06:002014-10-06T12:56:35.734-06:00September 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Baby shower was September 4. So I guess that should be included in this post. But me and my pregnant brain included it in August. Whatever. </div>
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Partied it up in Henderson with this cute thing for her 4th birthday.</div>
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I flew back to Rexburg from Las Vegas by myself. A one hour plane ride for $38 sounded so much more pleasant than a 10+ hour car ride. This also left David free to stay in Panaca and hunt longer. He drove back on Saturday up the 93. The I-15 was closed off due to flooding that literally took the road away in Logandale, NV. I would write more about that craziness, but it's getting late. Suffice it say, Panaca- little, old, little, little Panaca- became a boom town for a while as traffic was diverted up to and through it's Main Street. bumper to bumper for days. Days is not an exaggeration.</div>
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The week that I was home by my lonesome, I ate some really yummy food. And took pictures of it, because what else do you do when you're home alone? I would go out each night and pick a few things from the garden to add to my dinner plate. It was heavenly. And delicious.</div>
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Zucchini crust pizza. (Actually I think this one was back in August. Whatever. It was dang yummy)<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pT2RxU2ioHo/VCa6jqotl4I/AAAAAAAAD9I/vyXEFD-SVxQ/s1600/0826141940.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pT2RxU2ioHo/VCa6jqotl4I/AAAAAAAAD9I/vyXEFD-SVxQ/s1600/0826141940.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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Chicken with zucchini and peppers saute.</div>
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Bread. Nom.</div>
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Cucumber, onion, pepper, and tomato salad. </div>
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And then Wednesday night, the 10th, a nasty frost rolled through. The temperature dropped to 25 degrees that night. I knew a frost was coming through, so I went out late that evening and threw a "water blanket" down hoping that would be enough. Um no. Not for 25 degrees! I was 8 months pregnant and didn't want to lay down row covers by myself. I should have. My two rows of tomatoes with fat green and ripening tomatoes, my pumpkin patch, corn, peppers, everything- gone! It was very sad. But now I guess it's kind of a blessing because I would be spending a lot of time right now/ the past few weeks harvesting and preserving things from the garden instead of working on school stuff. And I definitely have more than enough school assignments to be working on and knocking out before baby comes. Blessings in disguise? I'm glad I enjoyed my garden this year while it lasted, I just wish I could have got more out of it and saved from it. Oh well. Se la vie.</div>
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School started September 15, and things have been crazy and nonstop busy ever since. </div>
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David's classes: range management, ecology, biostatistics, doctrine and covenants</div>
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Giulia's classes: deciduous i.d., interioscaping, pest management, practicum (running the horticulture business for the semester)</div>
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A few nights before school started we checked our schedules again. We signed up for classes way back in May so we thought we should reacquaint ourselves with our classes. We had everything lined up perfectly and we didn't have class at the same time for when baby comes. But as we were reviewing everything I noticed that there was an hour in the mornings that overlapped. I asked David about it, and he said I was crazy because that class of his wasn't until 10:15. Turns out, the class he was signed up for... the teacher left. The school assigned a new teacher and a different class time and didn't care to let anybody know. Kind of frustrating. So we both have a class from 7:45-8:45. My class doesn't get out until 10. Luckily, it's a first block class and will be over on October 29. Hopefully we'll have David's mother here still to help us with the little one until then and get us through October. </div>
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A few days into the semester I was informed that the evergreen i.d. class that runs the second block, which I was signed up for, has a week-long field trip to Arizona. I'm going to have a weeks old baby when that rolls around. I can't go on a week long field trip. Why is this information not posted on the course requirements/ course description when registering for classes!? Argh! </div>
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I dropped that class and replaced it with interioscaping for the second block. The class was full but I went and talked to the teacher and he added me anyway. :) [I'm grateful I've taken the time the last year to get to know my professors and make sure they know who I am. This is done by: 1- I'm a good student. 2- I typically make 1-2 or more visits during their office hours to ask questions so they know me outside of class. Those of you new to the college game- take the time to know your professors] Unfortunately, this class is from 11:30-1:30 (...I think...) And David also has class from 11:30-12:30. So we'll need to find someone to watch our lil' man cub for us during that hour. Ugh! Not what we wanted and we worked so hard to avoid this. We just keep telling ourselves that everything will work out! It will all work out. </div>
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This month we also took a childbirth education class. I'm so glad we did. I feel like both David and I are on the same page now about what will happen during labor and we are better prepared to be a great labor and birth team. We got this!</div>
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September has quickly moved into October. Baby will be here in no time. Parenthood here we come!</div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-33321776523440116782014-10-06T00:09:00.000-06:002014-12-22T00:12:32.074-07:00The Bulge part II<div style="text-align: center;">
It's looking like "The Bulge" series will only receive two posts, maybe three if I include a postpartum story/ L&D story. I really was horrible at documenting this whole first pregnancy thing. I've been busy, and [obviously] taking bump photos or writing things down was not high on the priority list. </div>
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Since last taking a bump photo in July with my awesome phone, we didn't take one bump shot. </div>
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To make up for it I asked our friend from Henderson, Dessa Selch, to whip out her fancy camera and come play with me during a maternity photo shoot. We got more than a few good pictures and it was a lot fun. I'm glad I asked her. These are all unedited. When Janet gets back from Florida I'll have her doctor a few of them up so they're more photo-frame worthy. But even without fancy editing work, Dessa did a great job!</div>
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We took these September 19, at 37 weeks:</div>
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Here's a list of birth books that I've read and recommend:</div>
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The Bradley Method</div>
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Ina May's Guide to Childbirth</div>
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The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding</div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=going%20to%20the%20motherland" target="_blank">Going to the Motherland</a></div>
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Birth Book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Doctor-Midwife-Fearless-Giving-Series-ebook/dp/B00EBV7HE6" target="_blank">#1</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Birth-Proven-Healthier-studies-providers-ebook/dp/B00IX5861E/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1412574433&sr=1-1&keywords=birth+book+%232+blight" target="_blank">2</a> </div>
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Gift-Giving-Life-Rediscovering/dp/0615622526" target="_blank">The Gift of Giving Life</a></div>
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...and that's all I can think of at this moment... These have been super informative and have hopefully :) prepared us for this new adventure. I'll admit, I'm a "birth junkie," and love reading the literature and research surrounding maternity care, labor & delivery, home vs. hospital birth, etc. I'm constantly amazed at how uninformed women are about birth and how easily they sign themselves over to the system of hospitalized birth without knowing what their options are. Being a woman, I've known my whole life, essentially, that I would one day carry, birth, and raise children of my own. Growing up I heard stories of my mother being a rock star and being the crazy lady at the hospital that refused an epidural and just wanted people to get away from her with their needles and machines and let her do her own thing. As I got older I realized how unusual this was (she is a peculiar lady... in the best meaning of the word). And I think, maybe, that's when my interest was piqued and I found myself diving into information about maternity care in the U.S. I'm glad I'm informed and as ready as I can be for the birth of baby numero uno. I really am excited and looking forward to labor and delivery. Now...just gotta get the hospital bags packed... I keep putting that off. I think it's because I tell myself that I can just do that while I'm laboring at home. It will give me something to focus on. But hey, we got my toenails painted up nice and pretty yesterday. And by we I mean we. Meaning David did the paint job and I sat on my fancy new exercise ball while listening to the afternoon session of general conference.</div>
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Here's a copy and paste from an email we sent to family at the end of September. It's the best journaling I have to offer, and this way I don't have to think about and type things twice:</div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: start;">Soooo....we're getting close, really close, to baby's arrival. (Ah! I have a million things to do still!) I've yet to hit the, "I'm so pregnant and pregnantly miserable (and miserably pregnant) I want this baby out of me yesterday." So that's good! Baby can stay put as long as he wants as far as I'm concerned. I caught my reflection in a window as I was running at the indoor track yesterday and was shocked to see how </span><i style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: start;">pregnant</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; text-align: start;"> I looked. So strange! How has it been 9 months already? (By the way- getting lapped by the pregnant lady....awkward for you, awesome for me!)</span></div>
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I just know that you all are dying to know what the latest news is.<br />
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Well, nothing really. :) I don't think I've had any contractions yet. Sometimes my toesies swell up at night after letting them dangle for hours in this high kitchen chair as I work on assignments. I hike around the gardens on campus in the morning three days a week identifying trees for one of my classes. I've controlled my diabetes really well and our midwife today said that I just have a perfect size belly and healthy, smallish (average? 7lb) baby in there/here. </div>
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[Oh yah, I've never mentioned gestational diabetes on the blog. Yep, I gots it. At first it was hard and annoying and I cried the day I was diagnosed. But after a week of poking my finger the whole thing hasn't been that bad. It's actually been really good. I've definitely been a better eater during the last half of this pregnancy than I would have been and as a result have maintained a great weight and kept baby at a healthy weight as well. Given my family history I've alway known that I could be at risk for diabetes, and this has opened my eyes to how important it is that we continue to be healthy and active and eat good foods- not fake foods. I didn't have to do the medication/insulin route because we did so well with managing my sugar levels just through diet and exercise.]</div>
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One of the huge risks of gestational diabetes is the baby accumulating too much fat in the upper body and having a shoulder dystocia during birth. But because everything is looking so good we're not worried so much about that. Yay! </div>
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However, because I am labeled as a gestational diabetic, if during the process of labor and delivery we get to a point where a forceps or vacuum assist is necessary, they won't do it because there's a higher risk of pulling the baby into a dystocia. So if we get to that point it would be an automatic C-section. Boo! </div>
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As you know, I'm planning and ready for a natural birth with no interventions. This is even more important now with the diabetes stuff because of the shoulder dystocia and C-section risks (which we're not super worried about, but...). </div>
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Let me lead you down the cascade of interventions associated with a typical hospital birth that I need to not happen in order to prevent a C-section:</div>
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-- hiring a doctor or midwife that gets scared if baby isn't here right at 40 weeks and scares patients into unnatural induction methods. (Granted, inductions are necessary and do save lives when appropriate)</div>
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-Check! Our midwife said she'll "start" getting "worried" at 41 weeks and 6 days. That puts us at October 20. (estimated due date October 7... I have a mid-term on October 3rd, so anytime after that is fine with me. I'm thinking somewhere around the 15th though.)</div>
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-- going to the hospital too soon. If we get to the hospital before I'm dilated to 6 ish cm a few things could happen:</div>
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- labor could slow down (unfamiliar place, triage, etc. could spook my body into stopping)</div>
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-- if labor slows down, nurses want to start it back up with pitocin. If I'm hooked up to pitocin, I'm very limited in labor positions. If I'm limited in labor positions, labor is more painful. If labor gets too intense because the dang pitocin makes it worse than it should be, I get an epidural. With an epidural I'm definitely stuck in bed. Laying (lying?) in a bed is possibly the worst position to give birth in as it reduces the size of the birth canal by 30% (that's what I read last anyway... statistics, they're all made up...<img class="CToWUd" goomoji="330" src="https://mail.google.com/mail/e/330" style="margin: 0px 0.2ex; vertical-align: middle;" />) Also, since you can't feel much with an epidural, I won't be able to push effectively. All of this (this is a shortened, explain it one breath, version) leads to a vacuum or forceps assisted delivery, which they won't do because of my gestational diabetes and risk of dystocia and I'll just get sent out for a C-section. Whew! </div>
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***now here's where we need your help with prayers and good thoughts***</div>
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-staying at home and laboring as long as possible.</div>
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--Midwife said, "When you feel like you're at death's door, go to the hospital." Awesome. Hopefully by then I'll be past the point of no return (name that musical!) and will progress into transition and pushing at the hospital without interventions. </div>
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---So*** pray that David and I will be an effective labor team at home and know when the time is right to leave the house. Or if we do go to the hospital too soon, that we'll know if it will be okay for us to stay or better for us to go back home.</div>
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---And then*** when we get there that things will continue to progress and go well. </div>
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That's not too much to ask for, is it? :) </div>
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A natural, drug-free birth is what I'll need in order to recover the quickest and get back to my classes as soon as possible. I'm crazy, I know! It also lends itself to the best start for breastfeeding- another crucial aspect as I try to jump back into classes. We want baby to be exclusively breastfed, but know that won't be possible when I'm in class. So I'll be pumping and feeding. Milk cow mama here I come. </div>
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I think that's it. We had another of our now weekly appointments this afternoon and will continue to do so until baby comes. We'll let you know if something is different next week. </div>
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In other news, I ran the teleprompter for Elder Holland's devotional address here on campus on Tuesday. So that was cool. :) </div>
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And from another email dated October 3:</div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">We just got back from our weekly appointment with the midwife. Nothing to report. Which is great! :) I was able to finish my midterm exam this morning and not be in labor. Now my goal is to get through until Monday without any excitement. I'm meeting with the weed control office in Fremont County to collect weeds for a project in my integrated pest management class. So it would be great if I could get this project done before baby arrives. It will be okay if I don't, but I will be much less stressed postpartum if I do! Side note- last week for pest management we went to Krupp's Hallow scout camp (for those who know where that is) and blew up gopher holes. Ha!</span></div>
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"Due date" is Tuesday, October 7th- 4 days away! Baby's head is still down and his heart-rate is great. No contractions that I'm aware of. But maybe I'm sleeping through them? I wouldn't be surprised; I've always been a good sleeper. I've heard of some people doing that and waking up while baby is crowning. Wouldn't that be awesome!? That's the way to get through labor. I stopped running last week because I noticed that after that particular activity baby's head was pushing downnn. And seeing how I'm content with him just hanging out in-utero for at least another week (he's very easy to take care of this way), I decided I better stop all the running in order to help prolong his womb sentence and allow me to get more school projects done! I have four big projects due in October that I want finished or mostly finished by the time he arrives. Wish me luck!</div>
I feel great and continue to shock and awe with my "pregnancy pass-" I don't look pregnant until you pass me and see me from the side or front. Mwahahaha. Haters gonna hate...</div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">That's it for now. Hopefully you'll get an update next week with the same story. Well, I'm sure some of you want a different story, like an update with pictures of a baby. We'll see what happens!</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: center;">And one more snippet from an email today:</span></div>
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I know I'm going to struggle with taking it slow [post-delivery]. I only want to do the minimum with school stuff after delivery, which is why I'm trying to get so much done now. The last three weeks have been crazy crazy crazy as I've worked around the clock to finish what I can now and not have to worry about it when babe is here. I have all of my farmer's market hours in; I have all of my apple orchard hours done (both of which are usually strung out until the end of the semester in December); I've been doing well on my bi-weekly quizes for deciduous i.d. and my mid-term so my grade is high enough that I have some wiggle worm for that class. That's the one that ends on the 29th. And that's the one that I'm worried most about getting right back to (as we go over 50+ new specimens a week with a quiz on Monday and Friday). But that craziness will only last a few more weeks. I signed up to do my critical review presentation early for my pest management class and finished that last week. And I've somehow been putting 15-20 hours in at work on campus. Whewee! Now my focus is getting these dang projects finished today and tomorrow so I can have those marked off my to-do list and can be as worry free as possible when babe arrives. </div>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Wowza, seeing all of that written out makes me tired. But I know that it will be far more tiring and stressful to get all of that done with a baby. So I'll just keep workin' the clock!</span></div>
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Tomorrow, tomorrow! Is Monday, the 6th. Baby's 'due date' is October 7th. <strike>Tomorrow I'm collecting a variety of weeds for my pest management class</strike>. [That just got pushed back to Tuesday morning. So baby, Tuesday evening. Let's just make it through 'til Tuesday before you start any excitement.] I have so many other school things I can get done if lil' man cub will just stay put for another week. I know I'm crazy and that most first time mothers cannot wait for baby to come. I really don't care if I'm "overdue". In fact, I would prefer it (for previously mentioned reasons). I think 10-12-14 would be a great birthday-- easy to remember. </div>
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I leave you with photos from this evening. </div>
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Business in the back:</div>
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Party in the front:</div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-3795042181917916382014-09-27T08:46:00.000-06:002014-09-27T08:51:17.725-06:00August 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
Driving home from work we saw a bear!
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Went down and visited Grandmama in Salt Lake. She loved feelin' the belly.</div>
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Took an evening drive to Packsaddle Lake.</div>
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We had a little weinie roast and then the boys fished and the girls took a little dip in the lake. It was lovely.</div>
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One day I showed David a picture of a bookcase made out of pallets. I said I wanted something like it for the living room, as we had sold our entertainment center that shelved all of our books in order to make room for baby in bedroom #2. The next day he gave me this!</div>
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And then he stained it and we brought it in and it looks fabulous! I love it!</div>
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He also made a bookshelf for baby's room. It is darling!</div>
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And then we bought this hunk of junk.</div>
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And David turned it into this beauty! It's in baby's room and will be used for dresser/changing table.</div>
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Our last shift at Henrys Lake!</div>
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We weren't catching anythingggg. And then right before we headed in, David brought up a big ol' cutthroat. It was great way to end our last night on the lake.</div>
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We also went huckleberry picking sometime in August and I have a picture of that....need to find and put up later. :)</div>
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Produce from my garden! I picked all of this before we headed south to share with family and friends in Henderson. Yum.</div>
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The yard looks 1000 times better than it did last summer. And look! We inherited a cute outdoor swing. The neighbor sold her house. When Chris and Shelly lived here, Chris built this swing for her. David saw her at the car dealership service center and she told him to go get the swing and put it in our yard. I love it!</div>
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After our last Henrys Lake shift, we packed up and headed for home the next day. We went down to Preston's football game Friday night (I don't know why we didn't take ANY pictures. Preston did awesome) and then spent a few days in Panaca. I hung out at the house and got my craft on while David was out elk hunting with his Dad. </div>
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The only pictures I have from my time in Panaca: Stretching after a run and sewing with pineapple blonde hair (we were mid-process of getting me back to my blonde).</div>
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As I was stretching and chatting with Grandmama (we were shocked to find that Grandmama was there visiting as well!), I heard giggling behind me. I turn around to see David and Nessie snapping photos of my behind. I didn't realize you could see my belly hanging down. But the funny part is the antler set that happened to be on the floor and I happened to line up my head inside them. </div>
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And then I made my way down to Henderson. I got to hang out and enjoy being back in my Mamma's kitchen. I think that's one of the things I miss most about being so far away from home. Mom always has something good in her fridge (like peaches'n'cream cake, have mercy!), and the right things on hand to whip up a tasty meal in no time. </div>
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While I was there we had a little baby shower. It was great to see family and friends again. Thank you, Felicia, and everyone else who helped put it together. And thank you, Liz, for letting us in your home! Sadly, I didn't get any pictures of the decorations, etc. It was all so cute! Oh well. </div>
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Ooh, but I did get a picture of this piece of art Felicia created. </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-46534721887509658702014-08-01T19:51:00.001-06:002014-08-01T20:06:36.964-06:00July 2014 part 2<div style="text-align: center;">
The annual GAS reunion was up here as well. We definitely lucked out and had all our family come to us this summer. It was awesome! :) We should do that every summer, because really, Idaho is the bessst. </div>
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Oh, before reunions got under way, it was Jenette's birthday. And I have these pictures that should be shared of that sweet and sassy sister of mine! :)<br />
Prom 2008- we we're in the same date group and everytang! </div>
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And now pictures from the Gas reunion:</div>
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Thursday we just hung out and waited for everyone to come in. </div>
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Shooting bows </div>
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David the jungle gym</div>
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Had a little surprise baby shower! It was so sweet and unexpected. </div>
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My little helpers showing off these adorable onesies that Keri made: </div>
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("I like big bucks" and "Idahome Boy")</div>
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Handsome David</div>
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It ain't a secret that David is always the favorite. :) </div>
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Made ice cream and explored the property </div>
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We stayed at a cabin in Island Park and also had camp set up on my parent's property a few miles away from the rented cabin. My Dad certainly knows how to set up a camp in the middle of nowhere. </div>
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All the grandkiddos (except Josh who was sleeping)</div>
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Friday was spent exploring Yellowstone and West Yellowstone (again, but with different people this time, so it's all good). </div>
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Old Faithful </div>
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Grand Prismatic Lake- we hadn't been to this area of the geyser basin before. The contrast in colors was amazing!</div>
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Babies babies babies!</div>
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^This picture of Wyatt could be made into some sort of meme.</div>
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And then we went to camp and had dinner and celebrated Spencer's birthday. The day before as gifts we're being brought out for the mini baby shower, Spencer was convinced that all those gift bags were for him...until he realized they weren't. Poor guy! So we really wanted to make sure to get him something special. When we were exploring West Yellowstone Spencer saw an orange camo knife that he really wanted. So when he wasn't looking we got him the knife. It was fun to watch him open it up.</div>
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^ And Nonnie got buffalo teeth necklaces for the kids. ^</div>
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Finally got to love on this ball of mush. Being so far away is hard after being so close.<br />
And holy moly it looks a bowling ball is stuffed in my shirt. Ha! Being pregnant is weird. </div>
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Spencer trying out his birthday kite. </div>
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babies in camp! </div>
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The girls were so cute keeping Liv and Wyatt entertained playing Peek-a-Boo.</div>
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Camp bath from Liv. ^ <br />
Saturday we pretty much just packed up and headed out. It went by too fast! </div>
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We went out to dinner at Big Jud's (where the burgers are bigger than your face!) and then Frostop for root beer floats in Ashton with friends one night after floating the river in tubes. (Idaho, we love you and your perfect summer weather! Not too hot, not too cold.)</div>
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And if your main squeeze doesn't know his way around a set of tools, then you should find a different man. JK. kind of. Tuesday night I showed David a picture of a bookcase made out of pallets that I want to put in the living room. Wednesday night- we have a bookcase!</div>
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Love it! and him.</div>
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We finally got the 2nd bedroom cleaned out and are now working on turning it into a nursery. Eeek! So excited! Goodbye July, hello August and baby preppin'!</div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-57940478405290267232014-07-24T14:50:00.000-06:002014-08-01T20:01:43.281-06:00July 2014 part 1<div style="text-align: center;">
This month has been busy, busy, busy. We've been gone playing with family or working more than we've been home. So it's a good thing we worked around the clock in June doing house and yard projects while we could, because now I'm in baby prep mode and will be focusing on my projects for October. Pretty much I have one month to get it all done. Ah! </div>
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Back to July.</div>
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We were the lucky ones that got to work the 4th of July weekend. Ugh. But we made the best of it! Our sweet friends- Brandon and Janet- came up to visit us Friday night. We fished on the lake. Roasted burgers and hot dogs, and lit our own fireworks.</div>
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A day after we got home from work we had our first four visitors arrive Tuesday night. Scott and Finis (Papa and Nessie) showed up with Amelia and James. </div>
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Wednesday we went to the Legacy Flight Museum in town. James was in love and couldn't get over all the airplanes everywhere. "Airplane, airplane, airplane, airplane, zoom zoom!" </div>
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His little arm doing the "zoom, zoom!"</div>
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Content as can be in the cockpit and waving goodbye.</div>
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Bye bye!</div>
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WWII Willys Jeep</div>
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After the museum we went to campus for lunch and to the wildlife museum, greenhouses, and gardens.</div>
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James hauled all these pillows in this box afterwards and took a little a rest. He must have been tired from all that playing!</div>
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That evening we went to the splash pad at the park and then waited for Joe and Felicia to arrive.</div>
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Thursday we went to Bear World. (we had a free pass for a car load from our friends)</div>
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Husky grizzly. </div>
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Big ol' big brown bear. Seriously, he was huge. And he left nose smears on the car he got so close.</div>
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Bears, bears everywhere! + an albino elk- pretty cool.</div>
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Then we picked up Zach from the airport and headed to our campsite in Island Park.</div>
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The boys did a lot of fishin'.<br />
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We played in camp, floated and played in the river, and went to Yellowstone!</div>
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We didn't have much time so we just hit a few spots on the west side of the central loop.</div>
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First stop- Gibbon Falls!</div>
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Then on to the Norris Geyser Basin.</div>
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Where Amelia got a sliver in her finger and her uncles thought it hilarious to have her show <i>everybody</i>.</div>
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And where we saw the Steamboat Geyser sputtering (apparently it's bigger than Old Faithful). We were here last year on July 27. They never know when this one's going to blow, and it had been over 20 years since it last went off. Apparently it last went off July 31, 2013. We were shocked! We just missed it last year. Crazy.</div>
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Oh and there's Old Faithful in the bottom right. </div>
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Also where the forest is resurfacing after a fire and the trees are baby elf size. It was so cute. </div>
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Saw a few buffalo. This one looked like a rock just sitting there and we almost missed it.</div>
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It was so fun to play with family; we didn't want to see them leave. We were so sad that Chelsie and Preston couldn't come. Hopefully next year everybody's schedule will work a little better.</div>
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And lastly: produce from the garden! Yum. </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-32800060808937166162014-07-15T14:09:00.001-06:002014-08-01T15:34:41.202-06:00The Bulge I<div style="text-align: center;">
When school started again in January I got hit with the ever common cold. And I just.couldn't. kick.it. After a few days of having a sore sore throat and having it swell to the point that I felt like I was gagging, I knew I needed to go to the doc and get an antibiotic prescription. You know what's really annoying? Knowing what's wrong and the prescription you need, but you still have to pay for the doctor visit AND the prescription. Plus my student health insurance hadn't been set up yet, so paying all out of pocket makes it really really annoying. Anyway, I got my antibiotic prescription, picked it up, and headed home. All while feeling extremely nauseous and tired and just not good. I started taking the prescription. My cold symptoms started to clear up, but I was still nauseous and feverish all the time time. ugggh. </div>
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Then things got really fun. One day in class I noticed I was super itchy from head to toe. I did my best to ignore it and got through class and work for the day. When I got home that evening and finally took a good look at myself I saw small red bumps coming through my skin. Ughhhh. I've never taken the antibiotic amoxicillin before. Turns out I'm allergic to it and I broke out in a rash that covered my scalp, cheeks, neck, chest,....my whole body. So for the next fourish days I sludged through classes and work trying not to go crazy from being itchy on top of the constant nausea. It was easier to get up and moving and out of the house instead of staying home being focused on how miserable I was. When I got home David would hand me some benedryl and then rub me down with coconut oil and lavender essential oil to calm the itching. uggggh. So that's how January went down. Awesome! </div>
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February came and after my cycle being two weeks late I started getting suspicious. I'm typically pretty regular, but since our miscarriage in September things haven't been as predictable. I know I haven't written about that before. A surprise pregnancy, found out in July, followed by a miscarriage- happened just a few days before fall semester started- just isn't something you want to announce to the world, you know? But I'll put some details up about that so that I don't forget. When we went in for our first appointment in beg/mid-August we were told that for whatever reason the baby stopped developing around 6 weeks, the once forming placenta was collapsing in instead of filling out, and that my body would abort everything in the coming weeks. So the rest of August and September I lugged through working on the house still feeling nauseous and tired and hungry all the time while waiting for my body to miscarry. I don't know what's worse- knowing that something is wrong and having to wait for it to happen, or not knowing and not being prepared for when it suddenly does. I didn't want to take any drugs to induce myself and I didn't want a procedure in the doctor's office, so I waited and waited at home- thankful to have a place to call home. And then one morning I woke up feeling like I do when my cycle is getting underway- clammy, hot, light-headed, and not knowing if I need to kneel at or sit on the toilet. I got out of bed and started making breakfast for David and my Dad (who was up working on the house- we were finishing everything in the basement at this time). I didn't quite finish making breakfast before I got too light-headed and the cramps too intense to stand on my feet any longer and had to have David finish so I could go lay down. And what I experienced the next few hours is what I imagine some stage of labor will feel like. I started having contractions, I guess, that would rise in intensity and then slide back long enough for me to get a quick rest before they came back. I just laid on the couch and tried to relax through them, but I must have sounded like I was in pain because Dad and David frequently checked in on me to see if I was okay. Every hour or so I would haul myself over to the bathroom and gush out more blood than I have ever seen in my life. Around noon the contraction sessions slowed down and I was able to be up and moving around helping clean up construction messes in between frequent trips to the bathroom to clean up the latest gush of blood. That got a little t.m.i. Oh well. If nothing else I'm grateful that I got a mini taste of what labor is like from this experience.</div>
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Back to February. Two weeks in I decided to go to the dollar store and get a pregnancy test. (By the way, the dollar store tests have never been wrong, and I've used quite a few the last 4 years. No need to pay $20 for a stick to pee on) For the second time in my life I was beyond shocked to see those two pink lines. Again, not trying to get pregnant (we've always just had the attitude that when it's suppose to happen it will). A few days later while walking home from school with David I just blurted out to him that I was pregnant. He was shocked but happy. I think he ran/skidded on the icy road the rest of the way home. We set up an appointment in March. In the meantime I was preparing myself for the same news we got in the doctor's office last time. Not the most pleasant state of mind to be in. Regardless, David made me strip down after the gym one night to take pictures. </div>
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Normal:</div>
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Pushing it out: </div>
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And just for my own records/motivation post October- what I looked like in December before break. I was doing the LiveFit program on bodybuilding.com :</div>
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I don't know if I should leave this up or not? A little too much skin for the www. But at the same time I want to see these and be like- hot dang, let's do some work! Humunuh. Delete or stay...?<br />
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March we had our first appointment and I was surprised/relieved to find that everything was ok and that baby was developing right on schedule. </div>
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Waiting for appointment to start: </div>
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A week after our first appointment I woke up with blood in my unders. I was freaking out thinking that another miscarriage was underway and crying as I called the doctor and set up a time to come in that morning and have things checked out. I was relieved again to be told that everything appeared to be fine and that it's possible that a blood vessel just got nicked as the placenta was forming. </div>
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The rest of March I continued to feel nauseous, hungry, and tired. I never did have to throw up, but I felt like I could have all day long. I also could eat all day- I never could get enough food. And I felt like I hadn't slept a day in my life- hibernation sounded perfect. My favorite part of the day was coming home from classes and work and crawling in bed. David was a rock star and would make breakfast when he got home from work (this started in January when I wasn't feeling well) and would wake me up with food. He would also pack my lunch and snacks for the day. It was fabulous! However, I still had doubts in the back of my mind that something was wrong and every appointment I would go in anticipating bad news. Having had the miscarriage in September, the unexpected bleeding scare, and what with me being a worry-wort, we didn't tell family (just parents, siblings, and grandparents) until Easter, when I was wellinto the second trimester. (Although we did tell my mom- I needed her to pick up some baby gear that I got sweet deals on in Henderson and have her load it in Dad's truck when he came up in March- Dad didn't know. haha. He thought he was hauling baby stuff for "a friend of mine" up here. We also told my internship employers, the Bradys, as mentioned previously.) And then we didn't do the big facebook announcement until I was about 20 weeks and we knew it was a boy. </div>
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April I started my internship, and in the back of my mind I always worried that I was working too hard or doing too much and that something would go wrong. And every appointment when we heard that heartbeat I was reassured that everything was ok. It hasn't been until the last month or so that those thoughts have stopped as I can feel baby moving all the time. </div>
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I used to think that I would be that pregnant mama that took weekly pictures, etc. Turns out I'm not. At all. David practically has to force me in front of the camera when he wants to take a pic. I did, however, take pics for him when I was gone during the week for my internship. So those really are the only bump growth pics we have plus whatever pics taken during any of our adventures this summer. Sorry baby, your womb life has not been documented very well. </div>
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Without further ado- whatever bump pics we happened to take, mostly with my phone:<br />
April 27 </div>
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(notice my lack of clothing variety. I packed light. Work clothes- 2 sets. Running clothes- 1 set. Pajamas- 1 set. "Normal" clothes to occasionally go into town- 1 set. And since these are what I would send to David and maybe a few other family members and friends, I wasn't shy about lifting the shirt and showing some belly skin!)</div>
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May 1- first starting to show after a run </div>
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May 14</div>
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May 16- David came to visit and thought the difference between my tan arms and white belly to be hysterical)</div>
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May 22- starting to become more noticeable</div>
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Put something other than work clothes or pajamas on to go out with Klain and Elaine and was shocked to find that my clothes were more than just a little tight!</div>
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May 24</div>
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June 3</div>
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June 15: finally home!<br />
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July 3: holy moly! really starting to get out there!<br />
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And since taking the above photo I feel like the bulge has gotten even bigger. I don't understand how it will just keep getting bigger. Ah!</div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-50665499039487952072014-07-06T14:57:00.000-06:002014-08-01T15:32:26.411-06:00June 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
June flew by as I finished my internship, David kept up with online classes and taking care of the yard and garden.</div>
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We put in a fire pit! We love it! We went with the cheap way to put it together and used cinder blocks, that cut the price down about $100. :) </div>
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My garden!!! </div>
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Grass is coming in ok. Better than it used to look at least. :)</div>
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And the crab-apple tree is looking much healthier than it did last year. </div>
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After a day of boat inspections we ventured a little further north into Montana and checked out Cliff and Wade lakes. They are sooo beautiful! We decided to cook dinner at the lake and enjoy it for as long as we could. We will definitely be going back. With a boat and swimsuits next time. </div>
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I made Uncle Klain's birthday cake! 70 years young!<br />
We weren't really into celebrating birthdays, and we definitely never did chocolate cakes in the house I grew up in, so this was my first time making a chocolate cake. It turned out pretty good! <br />
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I finished my internship on June 14! It felt so good to come home and just be able to be home...until we left for another 3-day shift at the lake.</div>
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Floated the river with ward and my sweet visiting teachee took this awful photo! haha. I clearly didn't know where to look. David and I were the last ones in as we took our sweet time and fished the way down instead of paddling like crazy. <br />
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Headed over to Driggs for the Hunstman fireworks show.</div>
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Before the fireworks we drove into the Teton mountain range and hiked up to the Darby wind caves. It was great to be outside surrounded by beauty. </div>
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My sweet friend, Janet!<br />
And oh yah, I'm 6 months pregnant!</div>
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Such a great show! One of the best I've seen. We definitely recommend it. </div>
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<br />giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-46039792849285109272014-06-29T23:37:00.001-06:002014-06-30T00:03:15.820-06:00May 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
As noted previously, I spent all of May about two hours south. Here's what we did on my quick weekends at home:</div>
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No pictures, but we got the garden planted when I was home, most of it anyway. I would pull in Saturday night around 7:30 with seeds and starts from the greenhouse and we would get right to work until it was too dark to work anymore. </div>
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Took a Sunday drive to Mesa Falls.</div>
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Found out that our lil' gummy bear is a boy! It was too exciting not to, so we made the news facebook official.</div>
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I would have loved to be a little more creative on the announcing part, but you can only do so much when you're home for about 48 hours, sleep time included. </div>
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I couldn't resist this 'stache and bow tie balloon.</div>
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Kind of starting to show! I'll do a bump growth post later. </div>
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David hitched a ride and met me in Downey so that we could head to Jerrick's wedding reception in Utah. I wrapped my hair with paper towels to get a rag curl (thank you girls camp for teaching me valuable things like rag curls) on the ends, and then had a wet one wipe down in the car to make myself more wedding appropriate. Who needs running water and power to go from greenhouse grunge to wedding glam? </div>
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After the reception we went to the Boondocks to play with whatever family could make it. </div>
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Mini golf, go-carts, batting cages, arcade, and the bumper boats- where Joseph lost his glasses in the pool. I think it was David, or maybe it was Uncle Joe, that shot his glasses off his face and down they went. It was pretty hilarious. We had a night full of laughs. It was great to hang out with family.</div>
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Visited all the family sites in the Blackfoot cemetery for Memorial Day with Uncle Klain and Aunt Elaine. I hadn't been here since 2001 for Grandma's funeral. It was great to visit when I am older and more appreciative of my family history. </div>
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I put together the geranium wraps before leaving the greenhouses for the day. Pinks for Grandma Azalia and Red,White, & Blue for Grandpa Dean. </div>
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Aunt Elaine had flowers for each site.</div>
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Baby Anne</div>
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We started our summer jobs. We're doing the same thing as last year- boat inspections at Henrys Lake. So for the weeks we had to be at Henrys- one weekend in May and one in June before I finished my internship- I only worked 5 days at the greenhouse instead of 6. So those weeks where I was working both I put in close to 80 hours. That was fun. Okay, maybe not so much. But you do what you gotta do! </div>
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The real fun part was taking the boat out again.</div>
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First voyage of 2014!</div>
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...And just because...</div>
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More photos from our photobooth session with our cute blue balloon.</div>
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David was pretty ecstatic it's a boy. :) </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-85486528334379140182014-06-28T10:23:00.001-06:002014-06-28T10:46:12.673-06:00Internship!<div style="text-align: center;">
April 14- June 14 I was in Downey, Idaho (south of Pocatello) completing my internship. I worked at Brady's Plant Ranch Monday-Saturday from 9am-6pm. I stayed with my sweet Uncle Klain and Aunt Elaine in Arimo. We couldn't find a job for David down there so we decided that he would stay in Rexburg and keep house, keep his campus job, maintain the yard, work on his online classes. I would come home Saturday night and head back down early Monday morning. I want to say it was a long 9 weeks. But it went by really fast. It definitely wasn't the happiest 9 weeks of my life- working in hot greenhouses, pregnant, away from my husband and my home. But it was a good 9 weeks of learning and gaining the experience I needed and wanted in the field of horticulture. </div>
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The horticulture department requires a 400-hour internship. I wanted to complete my internship next spring after I had more of the horticulture classes completed. In December, Brady's came to the school and gave a presentation. I really liked what they do/how they do things so I interviewed with them just to introduce myself and talk about future possibilities of working with them (like a year out). </div>
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In January I really felt like I needed to complete my internship this spring. I really didn't want to. But I kept feeling like I really should. I knew the Brady's already had a BYU-I student lined up to intern with them for the spring and so I was scratching my head wondering what I could do and where I could complete my internship that was relatively close to home. I felt like I needed to contact the Brady's again. But they already had an intern lined up. But if I was going to do this I really wanted to get my hours in at Brady's. I was frustrated and confused. And not feeling well, ever. (Pregnant and didn't know!)</div>
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One day while working in the drafting design lab, I overhead the girl that was going to intern at Brady's say that it just wasn't going to work out, blah, blah, blah. I found my in. I contacted Brady's that night asking if they would be willing to take me and all my inexperience on. Seeing that they suddenly had an open spot, they said sure! Heavenly choirs singing! </div>
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I still didn't know why I was doing this so soon, but I got it all set up. A few weeks later of still never feeling good, I peed on a stick and was shocked to see two pink lines (mid February). Beginning of March we went in for the doctor appointment and sure enough I was pregnant. Click, click, click- that's why I'd been feeling nasty all the time, that's why I felt like I should set up my internship for this spring instead of next, that's why I gathered my courage and asked Brady's to hire someone with no greenhouse experience. Don't you just love it when things work out? </div>
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After getting the doctor's confirmation that there was a little person growing in my tummy, I told my mom....and then I called Karen Brady and told her the situation and if they would still be willing to hire me. She said yes and I was so relieved. She told me that when I contacted them about doing my internship this year instead of later she figured that I was pregnant and needed to get my internship done now. It's a lot easier to do that when a little person is inside of you instead of running outside of you- her words, not mine. We had a nice conversation about when we are listening the Lord will lead us down the road we wouldn't have chose for ourselves but the road we need to be on, even when we don't understand why. Could I have found better employers? I think not. </div>
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I'm working on my final report right now and should be ready to submit it to my adviser soon. I'm so glad that I have my internship done and I can just focus on school, especially with little boy on the way. I will graduate before I die dangit! And having the internship part completed makes this goal much more attainable. :)<br />
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Brady's Plant Ranch is the largest greenhouse grower in southeast Idaho. They have 11 greenhouses. The growing houses open up in March as they get production started. When retail opens in April and the stock in the growing houses empty into retail, the ground in the growing houses is tilled and planted. The retail house shuts down at the end of June and Brady Market Days begin every Friday. They sell all the produce from the garden and growing houses- tomatoes, onions, peppers, corn, raspberries.... In the fall/winter they shut the houses down and let mother nature do her job of eliminating pests and diseases. They bring hogs in to winter in the greenhouses. The hogs snout and root and tear up and eat the plants/stalks. And then they house chickens to fertilize the soil. How cool of a cycle is that? They also have a floral shop as well as raise grass-fed/finished beef. You should stop in if you're passing by this summer! You can see the greenhouses from the interstate, to the east just north of exit 36 on the I-15. </div>
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And now a few pictures of my time at Brady's Plant Ranch: </div>
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Stocked, watered, dead-headed, maintained retail: </div>
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1- Floral arrangement for Ashley's birthday! I was able to do a few other cut flower arrangements as well. I'm so glad I took the floral design class! 2-Kitten in a tomato tree. 3 & 4- Custom plantings (two of many) </div>
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Top- planted hanging basket recipes- about 3,000! Bottom left- lots of pruning, pinching, dead-heading. Bottom right- filling lots of trays, pots, buckets, and baskets with soil. I went through the soil bin, which holds about a 1/2 ton of soil, about 4 times in my first two weeks alone. I can shovel some dirt seriously fast now. </div>
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Seeded and transplanted lots of things. Here is one set that I kind of kept track of. I seeded these tomatoes. Top- seeded trays in the germination chamber. Bottom left- I didn't kill them! Bottom right- transplanted into 1202 packs. </div>
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When I'm done with my report maybe I'll put it up here with better pictures, more details of how I spent my time. But then again, maybe not. We'll see. This at least gives you a taste. :)</div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-19171300984625440872014-06-25T21:33:00.001-06:002015-12-22T18:58:43.178-07:00April 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
Tore the whole dash out of the jeep....again. Ugh. But David got things fixed.
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Conference Sunday made donuts. So delicious!</div>
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Soaked up some sun while studying. (The yard is much more green now)</div>
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Joe and Felicia and kids came up at the end of the semester to visit and then took David home with them to play while I started my internship. He didn't have to work that week so the timing was perfect. </div>
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We've had these red leather boots in the closet for years. James' PJ outfit was begging for them to be pulled out. Can that red-head get any cuter???</div>
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I finished my first week of my internship and headed down to Salt Lake to meet up with David and family for Easter weekend. </div>
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Dying eggs. </div>
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And sweet Chelsie started the process of bringing my hair back to blonde. </div>
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While there we finally announced the news about our growing lil' gummy bear. It was too good of an opportunity to pass up with everyone in one spot and getting to see the big reaction. Plus we concocted a fun way to spill the beans that worked well with the easter season.There's a video somewhere, but all you can hear is Nessie screaming. haha. </div>
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We gave Amelia a puzzle (of a cute yellow chick) with a note on the back that said there's another egg to find with a big surprise inside. We got everyone outside and David hid the egg (which looked like a cute yellow chick). When everyone came back in it was a mad house. I've never seen an apartment torn apart so fast. Sorry, Felicia. Finally the egg was found! Nessie opened it and ignored the black and white picture (she said she thought it was a map or something to another egg) and began reading the back which said: "We're EGGspecting this chick to hatch in October!" She stumbled over the EGGspecting part and then it clicked before she could finish reading and she was screaming and jumping and down. It was pretty great. </div>
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We also sent the same message in an egg with some candy via snail mail to our grandparents and all my siblings to be opened Easter weekend. It was fun getting all their sweet messages of surprise and excitement as the weekend rolled out. And it was nice to be around family without David reminding me to, "Suck it in!"<br />
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Cute boys sending me some love during my first week of my internship. <br />
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I should also mention that David made it through his second chemistry class! These classes are repeated more often than not, but mister D got through them both in one try. Oh happy day! </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-55415387403878580772014-06-25T21:01:00.001-06:002014-06-25T21:40:03.002-06:00March 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
Final project for my floral design class:
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Celebrated my birthday with friends at Snake Bite. So yummy! We told them at dinner that there was a bun in the oven. At this point we had only told my mother and my future employers for my internship. So it was an exciting night. We see Brandon and Janet a lot and David, okay me too, was struggling to keep our little secret a secret for much longer. (photo taken outside restaurant. Downtown IF has random very large...art? pieces. Like skateboards, bikes, and other items that I can't remember right now...)</div>
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Came home from dinner to this beautifully arranged fruit pizza from David and Reed's Dairy ice cream from the Peacock's. Yum!</div>
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Went on a field trip with my horticulture propagation class to USU and drove by Pedro's house in Preston, ID on the way back. We got to meet with professors at USU and talk about their research, etc. We also stopped at the ISU extension site in Aberdeen to see the research work being done there. Lots of cool stuff and the only picture I took was of Pedro's house. ha! I was worried about this field trip all semester because I had been nauseous and tired and nauseous the last three months. But by the end of March, right in time for this trip, I was finally feeling ok again. It was a much appreciated blessing to not have to worry about being sick and still trying to be perky and act not pregnant alllll day with my peers and professor. I also got to see Ashley and Azalia when we stopped for lunch. It was great!</div>
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Finished my shirt for my clothing construction class.</div>
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When I measured myself for this shirt, it was going to fit perfectly. By the time I finished it I was three months pregnant and it was a little snug. Needless to say, I've only worn it once. </div>
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Finally got serious about putting some pictures and decor up. </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-61018012977918073812014-03-03T22:31:00.003-07:002014-03-03T22:31:48.955-07:00<div style="text-align: center;">
Found these on my thumb drive and figured I'd put them on here just for me. But you might think they're cool too. This was one of two final design projects for my landscape design class last semester. (My design won! eee!) We were given a plan view of the house and property with dimensions, a sleuth of problems with the property (the most cumbersome being the large rise in elevation), and a list of what the client wanted- which was a lot for a tiny amount of space, no backyard. We had to draw and color everything on paper as well as create a 3-D model on the computer. I have video of the model where you can "walk through" the yard essentially, but the format isn't compatible to anything except the design program- so it won't play on my computer, or anyone's computer for that matter that doesn't have VizTerra. But these pictures are fun to look at. </div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-56432717930014933962014-03-02T20:46:00.001-07:002014-03-03T22:47:46.540-07:00February 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
February. We did some stuff. And if I didn't have pictures I wouldn't remember it. </div>
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But first, a few things about the fun classes I'm taking this semester.</div>
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Here is one of my attempts at a corsage. Floral design is part of the required work for the Hort major, otherwise I don't think I would have taken this class, but I really love it. And I have complete and total respect for florists now. Wooza. So much skill is involved in seemingly simple things, I could never be a floral designer. </div>
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Obviously, part of the class is flower i.d. Honestly, I could probably identify maybe 5 flowers before this class, but I'm getting close to the 100 mark now, and I think that's pretty cool. </div>
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My second fun class this semester is clothing construction, but it is actually really hard and stressful. Here is my shirt pattern all laid out and ready to cut. </div>
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And here's a pair of PJ pants I made. This was our second project, the shirt is our third, and we'll be finishing the semester with a skirt. </div>
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But seriously, the class is hard. The teacher looks at every stitch and measures everything and ahhhhh. Kind of takes the fun out of sewing, but I've learned a lot and that's what I wanted. </div>
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David totally won at Valentine's Day this year. I don't care what your husband did or how much he spent, David still totally wins. The only thing we planned was trying out Chiz's- a small restaurant in St.Anthony. We drove up to St.Anthony to find that the place is beyond packed, duh, so we drove back to Rexburg and just went to Arby's. (But we did try Chiz's last weekend and it was glorious.) We went home and contemplated going to see Thor at the cheap theater. But then David whips out a treasure hunt for me! He had little clues hidden all around the house and shop attached to something- a stack of pallets he collected (I have a few projects on my to do list), a throw pillow (you can see some of it in the picture below), new boots that he got a stealer deal on (see RV photo below), and this sign that he made!</div>
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I was so shocked to see this and everything else. And then to see that he made this whole thing himself just brought me to tears. This is one of my favorite songs from the musical "Guys and Dolls" and I'll sing it to my mister every now and then. He found these boards, put them together, stained them, mixed paint until he had the perfect color, laid out stencils, and painted the letters in. Ohhhh my heart, my heart, be still. It is seriously so perfectly adorable and so well made. I love it so much. I should have been tipped off though because earlier in the week I texted him a line of this song (I love you, a bushel and a peck), and he responded right back with the next phrase (And a hug around the neck). So I texted the next phrase (and a barrel and a heap), and he got right back with the line after that one (and I'm talkin' in my sleep about you!). Because he'd looked up the words and was painting them totally under my nose. The other thing that totally surprised me about how he did so much, and I had no idea, is that he also had a chemistry test on Valentine's Day that he had been studying for all week. Not only was he working hard to do well on that (and he did sooo well on it!) but he was creating this thing of beauty for me. My oh my if I didn't pick a good one. </div>
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Our friend, Janet, works for Bisch's RV, so we went to visit her at the RV show in IF on our Monday off. They had this darling little photo booth set up. My mind was BLOWN AWAY with how fancy RV's and trailers are these days. Holy moly. </div>
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Speaking of our friends (yes, we made friends!), we tried to make an igloo in the front yard with Brandon and Janet. We got the snow all piled up in one place, and then you have to wait to let it "compact." At least, that's Brandon the igloo building expert said. And of course after we get our mountain built we don't have snow for 2 weeks and everything melts. Sigh. But it did snow all day yesterday, and it's supposed to be colder this week, so maybe we'll get to dig out our igloo after all.</div>
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AND THEN we had a spontaneous trip down to Utah. We really wanted to play with family, and we'd been thinking heading down there for a quick weekend for a while. And then Friday morning we got a text from Joseph saying that we should come down and pick him up from the SLC airport (as he had a job interview in Salt Lake that weekend). So we decided to go for it. And it was great. We finished classes and work on Friday and got to Provo around 10 that night. We played hard on Saturday and then just hung out on Sunday. And it just so happened that my brother, Daniel, and his wife, Tricia, were singing in sacrament mtg for their ward and I was able to be their piano accompanist on Sunday. No wonder we felt so good about bugging out of town. We got to see a lot of family and offer some of our services- taxi, child care, and piano skills. Pretty much, it's a really sad situation if we're not your aunt, uncle, brother, or sister. ;)</div>
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I got to hang out with these guys all day on Saturday as we rode the train up to Salt Lake and then played in the city. (David was grabbing Joe from the airport and they went to the BYU basketball game) Afterwards we met up with everyone for dinner. We got to see Daniel's family and Jenette and just enjoy being with the fam. </div>
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Krugh was beyond excited to ride the train, always saying things from Thomas the Train- clickety clack down the track.... </div>
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And Jade is beyond adorable always. </div>
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Just look at that face!!!! (not mine) She kind of looks like she's from Whoville in this picture. tehehe.</div>
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And we finally got to see this new little one. She is such a doll! Such a happy, happy, girl that just smiles at you all day long. (I didn't think to get a picture of her when she was actually awake.) </div>
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Good gravy, I wanted to take her home with us. </div>
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<br />giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-50140767875087477192014-02-16T23:20:00.001-07:002014-02-24T19:43:27.127-07:00December 2013/ January 2014<div style="text-align: center;">
We finished our first semester in Idaho. David made it through chemistry and his other multiple difficult fun classes. And then we wandered down to Panaca and stayed there for a week. And then we went farther south to Henderson and stayed there almost a week. And then we wandered back on up to Rexburg to start another semester. It was so lovely to relax and play with family. We managed to stop in and see all of our siblings and grandparents up and down the I-15. Unfortunately, we didn't manage to get pictures with everyone. <br />
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Before we left Rexburg: Snow, snow everywhere!<br />
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We didn't
get a tree, again, but the good ol' Charlie Brown tree worked just
great, again! Thanks Mom (connie) for handing that over to me a few
years ago. </div>
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Pictures from Panaca:</div>
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This one picture deserves a full on story. Suffice it to say that David and Preston could not call it quits on the one-ups, and this is how it ended-- locked out! (Also, please check out David's on trend style of pants tucked in to boots. ha!)</div>
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Annual ice-fishin' trip where lil' Miss caught her first fish!</div>
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I thought for sure I would win this thing as I had two fish out before any of the men hooked anything. But then I had a whole lot of nothing til' the end, and by then it was too late. Papa and David: 9 Giulia: 4. I don't remember what everybody else got. I think Zach got up to 5. (I do know that I did not come in last. But I won't mention names.)</div>
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Family Pictures!</div>
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Not many people can say that they seriously LOVE their inlaws. I am one lucky girl. </div>
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Spotlighting</div>
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Catchin' cats! (We weren't there for this, but David did help P set up his traps so we were pretty excited to see these pictures. Ch has a bobcat and P has a fox)<br />
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We left P-town on Sunday and headed over to Cedar City to listen to Ryan's homecoming address! It was great because we were able to catch all of the Robbins in one place. He talked about being truly converted to the Gospel. It was a great talk.</div>
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After the homecoming party we headed to Henderson where we played with some of my family and whoever from the Robbins that we could. Cough cough, no pictures. We were reallllly hoping that Shelly would have baby #4 while we there. Ah well. Also, a couple hundo later, David was able to replace the exhaust manifold on the jeep that busted on our way down. We're glad it decided to break when we were in Henderson so David had access to Grandpa's shop and tools to fix it himself. </div>
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The day before we left Nevada we stole Felicia and the kiddos from her inlaws and spent the afternoon at Chicken Shack, Ethel M's, and the airport runway watching planes take off and land. </div>
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It was such a lovely afternoon! Good company and beautiful weather! I think it was in the 60's that day. It felt so nice and got us excited about spring up north.</div>
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We then started the journey back north. We stayed at Grandpa and Grandma Young's for the evening and Jenette got to come over and hang out. The next morning we went to Ikea- our first time! And then we visited with Grandmama for a bit.<br />
By that evening we found ourselves in Logan, UT playing with this sweet thing.<br />
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It was close to her birthday and we went to the Elk Reserve to celebrate. <br />
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I've never been that close to an elk before. Very cool! The elk are free to come and go as they please. This is just a place for them to winter so they don't go down the canyon and get hit by a car or destroy lawns, meet a tragic end, etc. One of the elk they had tagged came in from Jackson, WY. I never realized that these guys move so far! <br />
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Big horsies!<br />
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This was a poster in the window of the visitor's center. It made me giggle! It says, "Catch 'em, keep 'em. Well, maybe it's little more complicated than that, but research shows that people who fish are more successful in relationships. Fishing licenses make great holiday gifts!" Harharhar. <br />
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We made it back to Rexburg and started the winter semester two days later. We're both just under 12 credits- it's our off semester and we grabbed as many classes as we could. It's nice not being as stressed and busy as last semester when we were both taking 15 credits. We're so not stressed that we've had time to finally put the trim up around the hall closet doors, and we also put up the decorative trim around my cute little command center. </div>
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And we've had time to decorate a little. This little house is becoming our home. </div>
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And baby Wyatt finally arrived! This is nephew #6 for us. We can't wait to meet him!</div>
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That pretty much covers us through January. </div>
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Happy New Year! and Happy 4 year anniversary! </div>
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2013 was a good year filled with a lot of highs and enough lows to keep us balanced. :) I don't really intend to make our lives look rosy and perfect, but I just realized that I do tend to only write about the fun things that we did/happened. I'm a good forgetter and easily forget about the fun times we had if I don't have pictures of it. I'm also good at forgetting the reasons why I get upset- this is great for David. ;) And pictures don't generally get taken at particularly sad moments. And what I have pictures of is generally what I put on here in order for us to keep a family photo album. So, keep in mind all five of you readers out there: our life isn't rosy all the time, nor some of the time. It's full of early mornings and late nights working (on school or at work) and worrying about x,y,z. But at the end of the day, we choose to be happy. And that's what we'll continue to do and share here: happiness. </div>
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Bring on 2014! </div>
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<ol>
<li>A Sense of Purpose. More specifically, an eternal sense of purpose. We have to know where we want to go to get on and stay on the correct path. Because of the restoration of the gospel through Joseph Smith, we know that we are literal spirit children of our Heavenly Father, and as such we each have a divine nature and destiny. That divine destiny is to return to the presence of God and to become like him. Having an accurate sense of purpose is fundamental to making the best decisions and staying the course, no matter how difficult it becomes. Knowing we are children of Deity with divine potential ought to give us some staying power when the strait and narrow path gets steeper, rockier, and more obscure than we might like.</li>
<li>The Ability to Plan. Planning is how we affect the future rather than just be affected by it. "In nothing does man come closer to God-like activity than in planning." In Moses 6:62 the Father states: "I say unto you: This is the <i>plan</i> of salvation unto all men, through the blood of mine only Begotten." If your plans keep you headed in the right direction, it's unlikely that you'll make any big mistakes.</li>
<li>Maintain Perspective. With physical objects, we're pretty comfortable with the idea that something can remain constant while our view changes. We might have an easier time in life if we could apply that same understanding to the non-physical world, to what we perceive emotionally, interpersonally, and spiritually. Compared to how they really are, our problems, challenges, interactions, and even decisions sometimes appear too large or too small to us. This proportion distortion can be dangerous to our spiritual health. It can cause us to become discouraged or angry enough to want to give up our efforts at living righteously or it can cause us to be cavalier about some of our choices and fail to give them proper attention. You know that you will make mistakes in your life. Viewing your life with an eternal perspective helps with the final P-</li>
<li>Perseverance. Perseverance must be important, or we wouldn't have so many scriptures admonishing us to endure to the end. None of them say, "slide to the end" or "sail to the end," so that must mean our Father recognizes it isn't easy to do all that is required of us. But what a wonderful reward awaits if we do. [D&C 14:7] "And, if you keep my commandments and endure to the end you shall have eternal life, which gift is the greatest of all the gifts of God." A great example of a perseverant attitude is found in Paul in Phillippians 3:13, "But this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." Our perseverance leads us to the greatest of all the gifts of God.</li>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-40295881668738293422014-02-03T21:50:00.000-07:002014-02-03T23:32:50.176-07:00November 2013<div style="text-align: center;">
Playing catch up 'round here.</div>
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We left off at David's birthday. </div>
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We celebrated by actually going out to eat. This is a rare event indeed. We dined at The Hickory here in town. It was tasty and affordable. </div>
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He requested a pizookie, or fruit pizza, instead of a cake or what have you, and I think it turned out darling! </div>
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We ate that whole thing within a matter of days. Two and a half to be precise. We are not ashamed. ;)</div>
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We decided to do our own little Thanksgiving dinner, just the two of us. 1) driving somewhere to meet family sounded exhausting. 2) We could have gone to the Erickson's and crashed their party, but I really wanted to try cooking a full-out thanksgiving spread on my own for the first time. 3) I wanted to make it a paleo meal. IT WAS DELICIOUS!!!!!! </div>
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As I made messes in the kitchen David one-cut his hair super short; it's never been that short before, and two- tried to keep up with cleaning all the dishes I was dirtying as I cooked. It was a great team effort. After we barely even made a dent in all that food, we had some friends over for dessert. I made <a href="http://popularpaleo.com/2013/07/08/lemon-bars/" target="_blank">these lemon bars</a>, and they are the best lemon bars I've ever had. I don't have much of a sweet tooth, and these are more lemony/citrus than sweet. Did I mention no sugar and no flour? Score! Try it out! </div>
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Part of our preparations for going home for the two-week Christmas break was boiling our deer heads so we could bleach them out. This was David's Tuesdays project. It takes a while to boil the head and then peel and clean out everything. And we had two heads to get done. I say "we". David did all work. Tuesdays I'm gone all day.</div>
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And this just makes me giggle.</div>
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On one side of the counter we have the wildlife biologist student's project, and on the other side of the counter is the horticulture student's bonsai (and a coconut, haha).</div>
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Other than David's birthday and Thanksgiving, November flew by as we hunkered down for the end of the semester rush.</div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-51401283193302712442013-12-18T12:21:00.000-07:002014-01-01T23:26:29.960-07:00The Family: A Proclamation to the WorldAs part of the university's required course work, all students must take FDREL 200- Family Foundations. We have spent the entire semester studying a document that was read by President Gordon B. Hinckley as part of his message at the General Relief Society Meeting held September 23, 1995. It is titled, "The Family: A Proclamation to the World." I believe these words to be prophetic, and the counsel found therein to be critical to be able to raise a family in an increasingly amoral world. We had the opportunity to memorize and recite this proclamation as part of our final exam, 9 paragraphs total. I passed this off in November and have thought about making a video recording myself reciting the proclamation in its entirety, but I really hate hearing myself on video, so I decided to just type it out from memory instead. The more places this document can be found on the world-wide internets the better! So, here we go:<br />
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Started typing at 12:02 p.m. with freezing cold fingers.<br />
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WE the First Presidency and the Council of the Twelve Apostles of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints solemnly proclaim that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God and that the family is central to the Creator's plan for the eternal destiny of His children.<br />
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ALL human beings- male and female, are created in the image of God. Each is a beloved spirit son or daughter of heavenly parents and as such, each has a divine destiny and nature. Gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.<br />
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IN the premortal realm, spirit sons and daughters knew and worshiped God as their Eternal Father and accepted His plan by which His children could obtain a physical body and gain earthly experience to progress toward perfection and ultimately realize their divine destiny as heirs of eternal life. The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred covenants and ordinances available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God, and for families to be united eternally.<br />
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THE first commandment that God gave to Adam and Eve pertained to their potential for parenthood as husband and wife. We declare that God's commandment for His children to multiply and replenish the earth remains in force. We further declare that God has commanded that the sacred powers of procreation are to be employed only between man and woman lawfully wedded as husband and wife.<br />
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WE declare the means by which mortal life is created to be divinely appointed. We affirm the sanctity of life and of its importance in God's eternal plan.<br />
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Husband and wife have a solemn responsibility to love and care for each other and for their children. "Children are an heritage of the Lord" (Psalm 127:3). Parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness, to provide for their physical and spiritual needs, and to teach them to love and serve one another, observe the commandments of God, and be law-abiding citizens wherever they live. Husbands and wives- mothers and fathers- will be held accountable before God for the discharge of these obligations.<br />
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THE family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities. By divine design fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, father and mothers are obligated to help one other as equal partners. Disability, death, or other circumstances may necessitate individual adaptation. Extended families should lend support when needed.<br />
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WE warn that individuals who violate covenants of chastity, who abuse spouse or offspring, or who fail to fulfill family responsibilities, will one day stand accountable before God. Further, we warn that the disintegration of the family will bring upon individuals, communities, and nations that calamities foretold by ancient and modern prophets.<br />
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WE call upon responsible citizens and officers of government everywhere to promote those measures designed to maintain and strengthen the family as the fundamental unit of society.<br />
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Finished typing at 12:13 p.m. with still frozen fingers. Why is it so cold in this classroom????<br />
There might be a few errors or punctuation differences, but the bulk of it is up there. I was kind of intimidated at the beginning of the semester upon seeing in the syllabus that we had to memorize all of that. But I took it a paragraph at a time- carrying around note cards all semester and working on it whenever I had a few minutes. Breaking it up in small chunks made it seem less daunting and in a matter of two short months I had the whole memorized without being overwhelmed or staying up late reciting it over and over.<br />
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I think my family is really cool. Each of my parent's awesome children have turned out to be responsible, independent, hard-working, contributing members of society. I attribute the success and happiness of our family to my parents and their adherence to the teachings found in this document.giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-15205829724011358232013-12-18T01:36:00.001-07:002013-12-18T01:36:50.162-07:00It's been a litte dry 'round here. Time for a CC review. *** tried to post this several days ago but Blogger and/or Firefox was having issues and I didn't even try to fight it.***<br />
I've been meaning to do a CC review for a while, alas time is not on my side. Naturally, a perfect time to finally do this is after staying up a wee late to write a paper (that's not even due until Wednesday- go Me!!!).<br />
I captioned this address mid-Novemberish and I frequently find myself still thinking about it. There is a great power that comes with knowing that you can and will make it through whatever currently ails or troubles you. That knowledge is found through the Savior, Jesus Christ, and his atoning sacrifice for all. Because He lives we too shall live, and we too can endure and overcome any obstacle before us. Hopefully you can understand the relevance of that, my thoughts, and the following from the address. Without further ado, here we go:<br />
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(main points only; not every sentence; copy and pasted from the time stamp captions = why they are spaced so and I don't want to take the time to fix it right now)<br />
Elder Ronald J. Hammond,<br />
an Area Seventy, October 2, 2007.<br />
<br />In courts of law, a first-person witness<br />
<br />
is always preferred.<br />
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The testimony of one who was there,<br />
<br />
saw it, heard it, and remembers<br />
<br />
is a powerful witness.<br />
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So too in matters of faith.<br />
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Second-person faith is good.<br />
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For instance, "You know God will help you."<br />
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Third-person faith is also good.<br />
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For example, "They know the Lord will bless them."<br />
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But, however good they may be,<br />
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second and third-person faith are not enough.<br />
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Faith in God, on the first-person level<br />
<br />
is essential now and will be<br />
<br />
increasingly so in days to come.<br />
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You may know.<br />
<br />
He, she, or it may be sure.<br />
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But, unless I know and until I am sure,<br />
<br />
I remain vulnerable to doubt and despair.<br />
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To the Master, one of the multitude<br />
<br />
brought his son, his only child, who was<br />
<br />
afflicted with a dumb spirit.<br />
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The father explained to Jesus that this<br />
<br />
evil spirit had often cast his boy into the fire<br />
<br />
and into the waters to destroy him.<br />
<br />
Then, with all the tenderness of<br />
<br />
an emotionally wrung out parent, the father pleaded,<br />
<br />
"If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us,<br />
<br />
and help us."<br />
<br />
Note that he said, "us."<br />
<br />
This was not simply an issue with the lad.<br />
<br />
No, this was en entire family in distress.<br />
<br />
Can you even begin to imagine the stigma<br />
<br />
levied against this boy and his parents?<br />
<br />
Neighbors warning their children not to go<br />
<br />
near that house because that is where<br />
<br />
"you know who" lives.<br />
<br />
Ostracism and exclusion everywhere they went<br />
<br />
and biting remarks on every hand.<br />
<br />
We don't know where the mother was<br />
<br />
on this occasion; maybe she had<br />
<br />
had all she could take.<br />
<br />
Perhaps she simply could not bring herself<br />
<br />
to face one more glare of scorn<br />
<br />
or one more word of derision.<br />
<br />
We don't know those details but we do know<br />
<br />
that the father was not seeking help<br />
<br />
for the boy alone but for "us,"<br />
<br />
the whole little family of three.<br />
<br />
Jesus said, "If thou canst believe,<br />
<br />
all things are possible to him that believeth."<br />
<br />
And, "Straightway the father of the child<br />
<br />
cried out, and said with tears,<br />
<br />
'Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.'"<br />
<br />
I have pondered much on this<br />
<br />
father's cry of the soul.<br />
<br />
It is a paradox.<br />
<br />
"I believe; help thou mine unbelief."<br />
<br />
What does it mean?<br />
<br />
While I am sure there are other ways<br />
<br />
of explaining it, it has been helpful to me<br />
<br />
to think of the father's reply in terms of<br />
<br />
"generalized" versus "personal" faith.<br />
<br />
"Jesus, I believe thou art all-powerful.<br />
<br />
Thou canst make the blind to see,<br />
<br />
the deaf to hear and the lame to walk<br />
<br />
and thou hast done so.<br />
<br />
Thou canst calm tempests, command the elements,<br />
<br />
and raise the dead to life<br />
<br />
and thou hast done so.<br />
<br />
Thou art the sovereign God of the universe<br />
<br />
and canst do all things for other people<br />
<br />
in other circumstances.<br />
<br />
But Jesus, I know my boy.<br />
<br />
Can you really pull this one off for us?"<br />
<br />
Like so many then and so many now,<br />
<br />
the father of the boy had generalized faith<br />
<br />
in Jesus' love and unlimited power.<br />
<br />
He knew that the<br />
<br />
"Master of ocean and earth and skies"<br />
<br />
could, generally speaking, command and calm<br />
<br />
in order to bless the general masses;<br />
<br />
but could he really, might he actually,<br />
<br />
deliver this seemingly insignificant<br />
<br />
little threesome from a life of perpetual despair?<br />
<br />
Progression from "I believe-"<br />
<br />
generally speaking to, "Help thou mine unbelief-"<br />
<br />
personally speaking, is the substance<br />
<br />
of our devotional walk together this afternoon.<br />
<br />
A walk on the path called,<br />
<br />
"First-person faith in God."<br />
<br />
It is a worthy and timely subject for our discussion.<br />
<br />
Our faith must grow steadily<br />
<br />
and it must be personalized- my faith in my God.<br />
<br />
May I share with you four principles<br />
<br />
regarding the development of<br />
<br />
first-person faith in Christ?<br />
<br />
Principle Number One: Developing First-Person<br />
<br />
Faith in God Refers to a Process.<br />
<br />
The oil of first-person faith is added<br />
<br />
to our lamps drop by drop.<br />
<br />
It is a process not an event,<br />
<br />
and if you understand and really believe this,<br />
<br />
then you will move with surprising serenity<br />
<br />
through life's experiences that do not turn out<br />
<br />
as you had planned.<br />
<br />
What happens, for instance, when you desperately<br />
<br />
want to be delivered from a trial,<br />
<br />
and you pray and fast and ratchet up your worthiness-<br />
<br />
but nothing?<br />
<br />
At such times, brothers and sisters,<br />
<br />
knowing that faith development is a process,<br />
<br />
will let you let the process take its course.<br />
<br />
Otherwise, impatience might persuade you<br />
<br />
to make some well meaning but very foolish<br />
<br />
demands of God.<br />
<br />
Consider, for example, the<br />
<br />
"Parable of the Impatient Expectant."<br />
<br />
The woman learned she was going<br />
<br />
to have her first baby.<br />
<br />
She and her husband were overjoyed<br />
<br />
with the prospect of becoming parents.<br />
<br />
With each passing day, the young wife became<br />
<br />
more anxious for the baby's arrival.<br />
<br />
During the day she would imagine<br />
<br />
and during the night she would dream<br />
<br />
of how it would be to hold and love<br />
<br />
and nurture her little one.<br />
<br />
Two months into the pregnancy she went<br />
<br />
to see her doctor.<br />
<br />
She explained that she simply could not stand<br />
<br />
the waiting any longer, and insisted that<br />
<br />
he deliver the baby that very day.<br />
<br />
The doctor kindly refused explaining that<br />
<br />
were he to do so, it would be abortion,<br />
<br />
not delivery.<br />
<br />
The woman understood, continued to wait,<br />
<br />
to learn, to grow, and in due time<br />
<br />
her baby was born.<br />
<br />
Your delivery from trial is important<br />
<br />
to Heavenly Father but so too is the growth<br />
<br />
you make while awaiting that relief.<br />
<br />
If all deliveries came immediately upon demand,<br />
<br />
the process of developing first-person faith<br />
<br />
would be aborted.<br />
<br />
To the impatient mother-to-be<br />
<br />
and to all of us who want God to deliever<br />
<br />
according to our terms and timing,<br />
<br />
Paul wisely counsels, "For ye have need<br />
<br />
of patience, that, after ye have done<br />
<br />
the will of God, ye might receive the promise."<br />
<br />
Understanding that faith development<br />
<br />
is a process gives staying power<br />
<br />
in times of adversity.<br />
<br />
The natural man is an enemy to God<br />
<br />
as well as to God's plans for our development.<br />
<br />
God is working to develop the man's faith-<br />
here a trial, there an adversity-<br />
<br />
but all the natural man sees is God<br />
<br />
repeatedly picking on him.<br />
<br />
True disciples on the other hand<br />
<br />
know that "charging God foolishly"<br />
<br />
will abort the faith development process<br />
<br />
and so meekly allow the process to continue.<br />
<br />
They understand that as long as they obediently<br />
<br />
seek the Lord's will, seeming setbacks can<br />
<br />
actually be steps forward in their faith development.<br />
<br />
Like the man who is asked to move back one seat<br />
<br />
in a bus that is speeding forward on the freeway.<br />
<br />
Inside the bus, it looks like a move backwards,<br />
<br />
but observing the bus from a distance,<br />
<br />
the man's forward progress is clearly evident.<br />
<br />
Naaman, the leprous captain of the Syrian host<br />
<br />
was insulted when the Lord's prophet told him<br />
<br />
to dip seven times in the River Jordan to be healed.<br />
<br />
Persuaded by his servants, however,<br />
<br />
Naaman relented and obeyed.<br />
<br />
Healing did not occur with the first dip,<br />
<br />
but Naaman did not let the disappointment<br />
<br />
of the moment abort possibilities for the future.<br />
<br />
And so, he continued the process.<br />
<br />
Naaman's objective was to heal his skin.<br />
<br />
The Lord's objective was to grow his faith.<br />
<br />
And, for Naaman, both objectives were met.<br />
<br />
The now healed Syrian became also<br />
<br />
the now converted Syrian exclaiming,<br />
<br />
"Behold, now I know that there is no God<br />
<br />
in all the earth, but in Israel."<br />
<br />
As he did with Naaman, the Lord will invite you<br />
<br />
to experience life's challenges in order<br />
<br />
to grow your faith.<br />
<br />
Your objective is to get through the trial.<br />
The Lord's objective is to grow your faith.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Principle Number Two: Developing First-Person<br />
<br />
Faith in God Requires Personal Involvement.<br />
<br />
Faith without works is dead-<br />
<br />
and the works cannot be vicarious.<br />
<br />
Even for Nephi of old, whose very name<br />
<br />
many of us equate with faith in God,<br />
<br />
first-person faith could only be developed<br />
<br />
through first-hand works.<br />
<br />
With heaven expecting him to build a ship,<br />
<br />
Nephi's faith in God could not have grown<br />
<br />
with him in a hammock and Sam and Jacob<br />
<br />
doing all the work.<br />
<br />
Nephi, himself, had to be personally involed<br />
<br />
in building the ship-<br />
<br />
sunburn, wood splinters, and all.<br />
<br />
Surely the Lord could have had a fine<br />
<br />
ocean-worthy ship waiting for Lehi's family<br />
<br />
when they came to the ocean shore.<br />
<br />
But He did not.<br />
<br />
Then, as always, personal faith needs<br />
<br />
personal involvement to grow.<br />
<br />
Note in the following verses,<br />
<br />
Nephi's generous use of first-person pronouns:<br />
<br />
"Now I, Nephi, did not work the timbers<br />
<br />
after the manner which was learned by men,<br />
<br />
neither did I build the ship<br />
<br />
after the manner of men;<br />
<br />
but I did build it after the manner<br />
<br />
which the Lord had shown unto me.<br />
<br />
And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft,<br />
<br />
and I did pray oft unto the Lord;<br />
<br />
wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things."<br />
<br />
Nephi's faith grew with each construction problem<br />
<br />
that was solved and with every step<br />
<br />
of progress that was made.<br />
<br />
That is the essence, the very essence,<br />
<br />
of the Lord's drop by drop,<br />
<br />
line upon line pattern.<br />
<br />
The end result was not just<br />
<br />
a sea-worthy ship of inspired design,<br />
<br />
but a disciple of Christ with faith equal<br />
<br />
to escalating stewardship demands.<br />
<br />
Brothers and sisters, you will hear<br />
<br />
faith-promoting stories about others.<br />
<br />
That will inspire you.<br />
<br />
You will see the Lord's hand working wonders<br />
<br />
in the lives of others.<br />
<br />
That will encourage you.<br />
<br />
But, I witness that the saving kind of faith<br />
<br />
in Christ is a very personal, sweetly private,<br />
<br />
first-person kind of faith developed only<br />
<br />
"in the process" of personal involvement<br />
<br />
in life's challenges.<br />
<br />
To those who went before us,<br />
<br />
we owe so very much.<br />
<br />
What strength is ours today<br />
<br />
because of the faith of our fathers<br />
<br />
and our mothers too, for we do not doubt<br />
<br />
that our mothers knew it.<br />
<br />
Now, may your individual demonstrations of faith<br />
<br />
be such that when your relatives in yet to come<br />
<br />
generations sing, "Faith of our fathers,<br />
<br />
living still," they will be referring to you<br />
<br />
and your steadfast "first-person"<br />
<br />
faith in the Savior.<br />
<br />
<br />
Principle Number Three: Developing First-Person<br />
<br />
Faith in God Involves Remembering Jesus Always.<br />
<br />
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ<br />
<br />
of Latter-day Saints are under covenant<br />
<br />
with the Father to always remember His son,<br />
<br />
Jesus Christ.<br />
<br />
One of the many compelling reasons for doing so<br />
<br />
is that it is essential to an ever-growing<br />
<br />
first-person faith in the Lord.<br />
<br />
Again, we turn to the Book of Mormon for examples.<br />
<br />
Who can forget Nephi's extraordinary demonstration<br />
<br />
of faith when his murderous brothers<br />
<br />
tried to throw him into the ocean?<br />
<br />
Unflinching, Nephi stood his ground and said,<br />
<br />
in so many words, "Touch me, you die."<br />
<br />
And then this unparalleled expression<br />
<br />
of first-person faith literally saturated<br />
<br />
with first-person pronouns:<br />
<br />
"And I said unto them; If God had commanded me<br />
<br />
to do all things I could do them.<br />
<br />
If he should command me that I should say<br />
<br />
unto this water, be thou earth, it should be earth;<br />
<br />
and if I should say it, it would be done."<br />
<br />
How did Nephi do that?<br />
<br />
Where did he get such great faith?<br />
<br />
Brothers and sisters, he did it in the very same way<br />
<br />
that you have and will yet do it.<br />
<br />
He remembered Jesus.<br />
<br />
When Nephi's brothers refused to help him<br />
<br />
build the ship, he began to speak to them.<br />
<br />
Now, he did not know that Laman and Lemuel<br />
<br />
would try to kill him just 25 verses later,<br />
<br />
but the Lord did and he bolstered Nephi's faith<br />
<br />
so it would be sufficient when the crisis came.<br />
<br />
One after another, the Holy Ghost brought<br />
<br />
to Nephi's mind a virtual cascade<br />
<br />
of past experiences wherein the Lord<br />
<br />
saved and strengthened those in need.<br />
<br />
Israel delivered out of bondage,<br />
<br />
the Red Sea parted, Israel saved,<br />
<br />
Pharaoh's armies drowned, manna from heaven,<br />
<br />
water from a rock, day cloud, night pillar,<br />
<br />
cure for fiery serpent venom, and on and on,<br />
<br />
one faith-building memory of Jesus after another.<br />
<br />
Then, when the moment of need came,<br />
<br />
Nephi and his bolstered faith were ready.<br />
<br />
Please note however, that something happened,<br />
<br />
had to happen, in Nephi's mind to connect<br />
<br />
God's involvement in ancient Israel's lives<br />
<br />
to Nephi's, then, present circumstances.<br />
<br />
This was the connection,<br />
<br />
"And now, if the Lord has such great power,<br />
<br />
and has wrought so many mighty miracles<br />
<br />
among the children of men, how is it that<br />
<br />
he cannot instruct me, that I should build a ship?"<br />
<br />
Nephi went from remembering what God<br />
<br />
did for others, all the way to trusting<br />
<br />
He'll do the same for me.<br />
<br />
When life's challenges bear down upon you,<br />
<br />
it is not enough to know that Jesus<br />
<br />
saved ancient Israel and Nephi<br />
<br />
or that He helped your classmate or roommate.<br />
<br />
I know that you know that your Redeemer lives<br />
<br />
must progress to, "I know that my Redeemer lives!"<br />
<br />
Then, when you hear Jesus say, "Peace, be still,"<br />
<br />
you will know He is talking to your own<br />
<br />
personal storms and not just in generalities.<br />
<br />
But there is another very compelling reason<br />
<br />
to remember Jesus always, and it has everything<br />
<br />
to do with the inner peace for which<br />
<br />
every one of us, whether we know it or not,<br />
<br />
is yearning.<br />
<br />
<br />
Principle Number Four: Developing First-Person<br />
<br />
Faith in God Matures Into Doubt Not,<br />
<br />
Fear Not, Only Believe.<br />
<br />
Alma counseled his son Helaman,<br />
<br />
"Look to God and live."<br />
<br />
"In essence son, on a first-person level,<br />
<br />
look to God in every thing, every thought.<br />
<br />
Turn your life and everything about it over to Father.<br />
<br />
Look to Him, doubt not, fear not, only believe."<br />
<br />
I have pondered much about why Alma<br />
<br />
would say to Helaman, and not his other two sons,<br />
<br />
"Look to God and live."<br />
<br />
It seems significant that this is<br />
<br />
the same Helaman who, just eight years or so later,<br />
<br />
would lead a little rag-tag band<br />
<br />
of 2000 believing boys to war.<br />
<br />
Each boy would survive because of first-person faith.<br />
<br />
Each had to know that God would preserve him<br />
<br />
if he looked to God and did not doubt.<br />
<br />
Each had to know he must obey with exactness.<br />
<br />
And when he, scarcely knowing one end<br />
<br />
of a sword from another, lunged into battle,<br />
<br />
each boy had to yield his fears to God.<br />
<br />
It was just that literal- "Look to God and live,"<br />
<br />
or look elsewhere and die.<br />
<br />
And who was their leader?<br />
<br />
Who helped them develop first-person faith in God?<br />
<br />
It was Helaman who was looking to God<br />
<br />
in every thought, doubting not and fearing not,<br />
<br />
because the prophet had told him to.<br />
<br />
When we look to God, we yield to Him everything-<br />
<br />
our fears, our doubts, and our own stern preferences,<br />
<br />
with the meek entreaty, "Thy will, not mine be done."<br />
<br />
And brothers and sisters, it really should be<br />
<br />
a cheerful yielding of the heart.<br />
<br />
Our submission should not be a grumpy<br />
<br />
"giving up" to the universal superpower<br />
<br />
who is going to win the arm wrestle anyway.<br />
<br />
But rather a joyful yielding because we know<br />
<br />
that what God wants is truly the best thing<br />
<br />
that could ever happen to us.<br />
<br />
Therefore, when grappling with life's<br />
<br />
heavyweight trials, don't yell, "Uncle"-<br />
<br />
just pray, "Father!"<br />
<br />
This comes easily, even naturally, when the steps<br />
<br />
ahead are well lit and clearly marked.<br />
<br />
But, for faith to grow, some things must,<br />
<br />
for now, remain unseen.<br />
<br />
What then, do you do when the next step<br />
<br />
of the trial as well as the duration<br />
<br />
and outcome of the trial are hidden?<br />
<br />
You obey God, doubt not, fear not, only believe.<br />
<br />
The scriptures are filled with experiences<br />
<br />
wherein prophets and disciples struggled<br />
<br />
to develop first-person faith in God<br />
<br />
in the face of stifling unknowns.<br />
<br />
How much easier it would have been<br />
<br />
had they known, while in the furnace,<br />
<br />
how things would eventually turn out.<br />
<br />
For example, look with me down<br />
<br />
the long corridor of time.<br />
<br />
We see Father Abraham preparing,<br />
<br />
as God had commanded, to sacrifice his only<br />
<br />
begotten son, Isaac- hot tears matching<br />
<br />
the heat of the fiery trial.<br />
<br />
Then, as he raises the sacrificial dagger,<br />
<br />
you and I call to him down through the millennia,<br />
<br />
"Abraham, O Abraham, don't worry.<br />
<br />
It's all going to be just fine!<br />
<br />
See, I have the book!<br />
<br />
I know how this story ends!<br />
<br />
Abraham, hang in there, don't give up!"<br />
<br />
But Abraham, in the thick of developing<br />
<br />
first-person faith cannot, must not, hear us.<br />
<br />
It must be just Abraham and God.<br />
<br />
Then, after the fiery trial of his faith,<br />
<br />
the miracle occurs, we sigh with relief,<br />
<br />
and Abraham becomes not only the father of millions,<br />
<br />
but the father of the faithful as well.<br />
<br />
And what about those 2000 Lamanite youth<br />
<br />
under Helaman's command?<br />
<br />
The most powerful army of the Lamanites<br />
<br />
pursues them for a couple of days, then silence.<br />
<br />
And then the terrible questions must be answered.<br />
<br />
Questions like: "Do we turn back to help Antipus?<br />
<br />
And, is it an ambush?<br />
<br />
And, could you show me again<br />
<br />
how to hold a cimeter?"<br />
<br />
Back they go, this little band that<br />
<br />
had never before fought an enemy.<br />
<br />
And we call down the corridor of time,<br />
<br />
"Hello! You are going to win<br />
<br />
and not one of you will be killed!<br />
<br />
Here, read Alma Chapters 56 through 58.<br />
<br />
We love you! Thank you for your examples.<br />
<br />
Remember, your team wins!"<br />
<br />
But again, they cannot, must not, hear us.<br />
<br />
It must be each youth and his God.<br />
<br />
Only after the trial of their first-person faith<br />
<br />
was it written, "And now, their preservation<br />
<br />
was astonishing to our whole army,<br />
<br />
yea, that they should be spared while there was<br />
<br />
a thousand of our brethren who were slain.<br />
<br />
And we do justly ascribe it to the miraculous<br />
<br />
power of God, because of their exceeding faith<br />
<br />
in that which they had been taught to believe."<br />
<br />
This is a marvelous but simple faith,<br />
<br />
an unquestioning conviction that the God of Heaven<br />
<br />
in his power will make all things right<br />
<br />
and bring to pass his eternal purposes<br />
<br />
in the lives of his children.<br />
<br />
We need so very, very much<br />
<br />
a strong burning of that faith<br />
<br />
in the living God and in his living,<br />
<br />
resurrected Son, for this was the great<br />
<br />
moving faith of our gospel forebears.<br />
<br />
"When through the deep waters I call thee to go,<br />
<br />
The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o'erflow,<br />
<br />
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,<br />
<br />
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress."<br />
<br />
As it was with Abraham,<br />
<br />
with Helaman's 2000, and with so many, many others<br />
<br />
of whom we read in scriptures and journals,<br />
<br />
so it will and must be with you.<br />
<br />
In your own wine press encounters,<br />
<br />
you must do as Elder Henry B. Eyring<br />
<br />
counseled missionaries in Reynosa, Mexico:<br />
<br />
"Trust the Lord, get some sleep,<br />
<br />
and wake up happy."<br />
<br />
Sooner or later, and better sooner than later,<br />
<br />
you will learn to "trust in the Lord<br />
<br />
with all thine heart and lean not unto thine<br />
<br />
own understanding" and to let him direct your paths.<br />
<br />
And when life's trials become<br />
<br />
particularly challenging for you, then listen.<br />
<br />
Can you hear you- talking to you?<br />
<br />
From a point years in the future,<br />
<br />
you call back down the corridor of time<br />
<br />
to you here in October 2007. (or 2013)<br />
<br />
"Hey me, that's right- you.<br />
<br />
Pretty tough right now is it?<br />
<br />
Oh, don't give up.<br />
<br />
Hang in there.<br />
<br />
Trust the Lord, get some sleep and wake up happy.<br />
<br />
It will all work out.<br />
<br />
See! I've got the book!<br />
<br />
I know what happens next.<br />
<br />
My past is still your future and I know<br />
<br />
everything will be just fine.<br />
<br />
Believe you me!"<br />
<br />
Here and now in the thick<br />
<br />
of first-person faith things,<br />
<br />
you are not allowed to know how or when<br />
<br />
things will turn out, just that they will.<br />
<br />
For now, it is enough to submit eagerly<br />
<br />
to Him whose ways, ideas, and power<br />
<br />
are higher, brighter, and mightier than your own.<br />
<br />
"Where can I turn for peace? Who can understand?"<br />
<br />
The Lord is very concerned about how<br />
<br />
we answer these hymnal questions<br />
<br />
and so should we.<br />
<br />
Our first-person faith depends on<br />
<br />
our answering them correctly.<br />
<br />
"He only" is the only right answer.<br />
<br />
Developing first-person faith in God then:<br />
<br />
one, refers to a process;<br />
<br />
two, requires personal involvement;<br />
<br />
three, involves remembering Jesus always;<br />
<br />
and four, matures into doubt not,<br />
<br />
fear not, only believe.<br />
<br />
"In a world where sorrow ever will be known,<br />
<br />
look up my soul," is very good advice.<br />
<br />
Look up to God and live.<br />
<br />
Faith in Jesus Christ is the<br />
<br />
first principle of the Gospel.<br />
<br />
And it is the first, "first-person" principle as well.<br />
<br />
First-person faith in God will move you past<br />
<br />
His generalized interest in humanity<br />
<br />
to an assurance of His first-person involvement<br />
<br />
in all of the first-person ups and downs of your life.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Wasn't that great??? You can watch it at www.byui.edu/devotionalsandspeechesgiuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-72408528137210021502013-11-15T10:00:00.001-07:002014-02-03T23:35:07.534-07:00One year older<div style="text-align: center;">
And more handsome too!</div>
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David's birthday is tomorrow.</div>
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He's kind of freaking out because he thinks he's getting old or something.<br />
He will be a whopping 2-6.</div>
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I just wanted to quickly write down a few things about this happy man with whom I get to share my days. My 9:00 a.m. class was canceled today, so after driving the Mr. to campus (it is his birthday after all- no walking for the birthday boy!) and then running a quick errand this morning, I have a few minutes before I need to leave for my next class. <br />
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I've been sick the last week (the cough and cold variety), and he's been totally winning at being a husband. I get home from work and school and the laundry is folded and put away, dishes are done, dinner is ready; he comes home from work in the mornings and makes breakfast and wakes me up. I should be sick more often!</div>
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He always has funny stories to share or something to make me laugh.<br />
In conversing with me, he likes to start his sentences with, "Well darlin'..." </div>
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He can be so silly and carefree it makes me smile. For example, I frequently catch him practicing dance moves in the kitchen.</div>
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Speaking of dancing in the kitchen, he loves to pull me close and dance in the kitchen. </div>
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He is working so hard in school. </div>
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He isn't late to work. I don't know how he just wakes up every day at 3:45 a.m. Ugh! </div>
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He is kind to everybody and he's not afraid to jump right in and help someone. For example, several times this semester he's helped a few wheel-chair bound souls get to their destination through the rain, hills, and slick roads. He says at first they tell him they don't need help, but David just starts talking and pushing, and soon enough they are talking back and telling stories and laughing. I wish I could see this.<br />
He can grow an awesome beard. <br />
He has the cutest most perfect feet. Ask him about them next time you see him, he might just show them off to you.<br />
He manages his time sooo well and keeps his focus while working on school. He will plow through assignment after assignment without getting distracted. It puts me to shame. </div>
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He gives me compliments all the time, and isn't shy about staring into my eyes and saying, "You're boooootifoool." </div>
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I really do feel like the luckiest girl in the world because he chose me and I get to be his. </div>
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And now I'm crying (lately that's been happening more than I care to admit... I blame sleep deprivation) so I'll just put up some photos and get out of here and get to class.<br />
<br />
Happy Birthday David Scott version 2.0!!! </div>
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These first three pics are just randoms that are on the photobooth album.</div>
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He's going to kill me after seeing this one. :) </div>
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He certainly is the best Uncle any little girl could ask for. </div>
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And this mirrored picture of Krugh makes me smile so it had to be included. :)</div>
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First day of walking to campus in the snow! (I know you can't see any snow in the picture- it was very wet stuff that day- but I assure you it was snowing!)</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/IMAG0022_zpsc8c65126.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo IMAG0022_zpsc8c65126.jpg" border="0" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/IMAG0022_zpsc8c65126.jpg" height="239" width="400" /></a></div>
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I love you, David!</div>
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giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-7907670604415141422013-11-03T17:49:00.002-07:002013-11-03T20:40:15.939-07:00Trick or Treat- Team D&G style<div style="text-align: center;">
Finally the day arrived that we have been counting down to for months! We both drew tags for Area 7 to hunt mule deer from Oct. 21-Nov. 5. We put in for this north east Nevada area way back in March knowing that we would be in eastern Idaho come hunting season and that we wouldn't have time or gas money to spend on getting down to areas 22-24, the ones David will forever call home. I (Giulia) had 3 bonus points accumulated from previous years so we were pretty confident that this would be my year. David, having drawn almost every year the past 4 years- the lucky son-of-a-gun, had nuttin'. So we put in as a party to 1) help David's odds of getting a tag and 2) if we had a successful draw we would be able to hunt the same area. Well botta boom botta bing! At the end of May we found out that we both had tags. Saweet!!! As we sit here writing about this adventure that we've waited 6+ months for, we're looking at each other like, "Now what?" Just kidding- we are now looking forward to Thanksgiving break which is only a few short weeks away, and then shortly after that it will be Christmas break!! We love this time of year. It goes by so quickly because of all the fun things there are to look forward to.</div>
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For the last week and a half, we have been preparing for our hunt. We worked longer hours each day to be able to get all of our hours in for our jobs; we kept longer nights to get more homework and tests done so that we would be able to miss classes Thursday afternoon and Friday; we sighted in the rifle; we went through gear; and the list goes on. When it came time to leave on Thursday around noon, we were so excited but so exhausted at the same time. The last weekish has been mid-term season which means exams in every class and big projects in others. Looking back now, we're amazed we were able to get everything done. And not just done, but done well AND DONE EARLY so that we could head out of town. After our very first week of school back in September, we looked at the schedules for our classes and test dates and assignment due dates. We had a one weekend gap between the start and end of our hunt where we didn't have any tests scheduled on a Friday. We had plenty of assignments etc. that were due on Friday, but we worked hard to have them submitted before Friday and we completed all of our mid-term exams that had open dates (you could take them throughout the week) finished before we left. We knew we only had one weekend to devote to our hunt and we wanted to make the most of it. Needless to say, it feels soooo great being able to just lay in bed on this Sunday afternoon with nothing more to tackle until we dive back into classes on Monday.</div>
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* when you click on a picture it will link you back to our photobucket where you will be able to see all of our pictures from the trip. * </div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040861_zps2c21f352.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040861_zps2c21f352.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040861_zps2c21f352.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040862_zps9cedb892.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040862_zps9cedb892.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040862_zps9cedb892.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We spent our Halloween dressed in camo while bugging out of Rexburg. We got to our area around 5:00 and used what daylight we had left to look around and get a feel for the terrain. We have never hunted this area before, so we really had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. Most people with a tag for 7 hunt the Jarbridge mountains, but we didn't want to travel that far and be in a wilderness restricted area (meaning no motorized nothing, meaning difficult to get to where you want and get out with any game without a horse or pack mule, or need more time than two days to hike in and out) and we didn't want to be in a place where there were hunters everywhere. So David emailed the wildlife biologist for that area and she said to go to Contact, Nevada and hunt either side of highway 93. Contact, like most of Nevada, is a whole lot of nothing. Literally, there is a sign posted with the elevation, and that's it. As we were exploring Thursday night, our prospects of being able to fill a tag were looking dismal. We didn't see any widlife. No tracks. Just sage brush and rocks. This was on the east of the 93. As the sun set we made our way over to the west side of the highway and still didn't see much, but were given some hope after finding a few water holes and game trails. We made camp on a mountain side a few miles west of the highway and went to sleep just hoping to see something more than brush and rocks the next day.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040863_zps3f568e17.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040863_zps3f568e17.jpg" border="0" height="180" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040863_zps3f568e17.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040875_zps0135f13a.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040875_zps0135f13a.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040875_zps0135f13a.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040877_zps2371d2fc.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040877_zps2371d2fc.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040877_zps2371d2fc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Our campsite.</div>
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1) Can you see our red tent? </div>
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2) view from camp</div>
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3) view from camp</div>
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4) home sweet home!</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040881_zpsf8e04e9f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040881_zpsf8e04e9f.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040881_zpsf8e04e9f.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040882_zps2f7ad232.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040882_zps2f7ad232.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040882_zps2f7ad232.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040883_zps2bb214c7.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040883_zps2bb214c7.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040883_zps2bb214c7.jpg" width="320" /></a><a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040884_zps9b7af811.jpg.html" target="_blank"> <img alt=" photo P1040884_zps9b7af811.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040884_zps9b7af811.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Friday morning we rolled out of our sleeping bags after a rough night's sleep- the wind had the tent fly incessantly flapping and our air mattress must have got a hole in it as we slept on rocks most of the night. Giulia had first dibs for Friday, meaning she got to pack the rifle and choose if she wanted to take a shot or pass it on to David. We got to a knob on a hillside and glassed the large mountain to the north of where we sat. The sun wasn't quite up all the way and we weren't seeing a thing. But when the sun's rays finally hit the mountain side, it was like the sunshine ignited a burst of life. So much excitement just to feel disappointed again. All we saw were does, does, and more does. And then finally we saw one little 2 point buck pushing some does up the mountain. Shortly after sighting him, a bigger buck came charging in and pushed the little 2-fer out of the way. The poor little guy ran left and right and up and down trying to attract any doe he could find, and not one doe wanted anything to do with him. We watched the group of deer work their way higher up the mountain, (we were a few miles away watching this- a good scope is nice to have) wanting to see where they would bed down at and maybe put a stalk on the buck. Eventually, the group went over a hill and behind some rocks and we didn't see them come out, so we decided to head over there and get a closer look. And here's some videos to explain the rest of that story: </div>
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I haven't edited any of the video, so I apologize for the annoying wind. Also, will someone please tell that stupid girl to spit her gum out? sheesh.</div>
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video one. </div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/2yqPJnXliYI?rel=0" width="560"></iframe><br /></div>
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video two</div>
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*legally married note: I meant to say "officially married." Before we wed, we joked about how the marriage wouldn't be real until I filled my first deer tag.<br />
**poor guy coughed up (part of) a lung<br />
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040872_zpsdb95ba09.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040872_zpsdb95ba09.jpg" border="0" height="483" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040872_zpsdb95ba09.jpg" width="640" /> </a></div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040873_zpsde8cac1e.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040873_zpsde8cac1e.jpg" border="0" height="480" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040873_zpsde8cac1e.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div>
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If you remember the movie, "Legally Blonde," with Reese Witherspoon, you can share a laugh with me while I say- Shooting a 4-point buck? What, like it's hard? JOKING, joking.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040865_zps23ef5a89.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040865_zps23ef5a89.jpg" border="0" height="480" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040865_zps23ef5a89.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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After quartering him out, we drove to Jackpot, NV, about 15 miles north, to get some ice. And then it was back to the mountains because we still had David's tag to fill. We didn't see anything else that day except a few does and probably that same little 2 point. We headed back to camp when the sun set, had a delicious tin-foil dinner, and snuggled down into our sleeping bags for another windy night on a bed of rocks. In the morning we went to the north side of the mountain where Giulia shot the day before (she shot on the south side). It was similar to the day before- as soon as the sun hit the hillside things came to life. We saw plenty of does, and no bucks. And then out of nowhere this big guy comes charging through trying to attract the ladies. He was a solid 4-point with deep forks, and David was excited. Thinking we were in for a long day on the hillside, we grabbed our packs and bundled up and left the warmth of the jeep. It was a cold and windy morning. And I'm not sure who gave these to us for Christmas last year, but they are awesome! David calls them our ninja masks. </div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040885_zps63a6bf43.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040885_zps63a6bf43.jpg" border="0" height="299" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040885_zps63a6bf43.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Anywho, we crept along this trail that hasn't been used for a while, keeping our sights on this buck. This was about 9 in the morning. At one point the group of deer went up and over a ridge and they were out of sight. As we rounded a bend in the trail David spotted a buck bedded down on the hillside. We dropped down and sighted him in, thinking it was the same "monster" (monster is David's affectionate term for a nice big buck) that we saw drop out of sight. David decided to pull the trigger. He was soooo excited. We got up to him, and David's heart sank. It was not the monster. They look really similar, but sadly this one was not as large and in charge. (You can kind of see his frustration in the video) But good news- it's still a really good size and bigger than anything David's been able to shoot at before. So, hooray! </div>
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<br />
before the sun came up:</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040888_zpsc35fe712.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040888_zpsc35fe712.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040888_zpsc35fe712.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040889_zpse3a1337e.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040889_zpse3a1337e.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040889_zpse3a1337e.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040890_zps405f6c46.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040890_zps405f6c46.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040890_zps405f6c46.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Sunshine! But still cold.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040901_zpsdc3901ab.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040901_zpsdc3901ab.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040901_zpsdc3901ab.jpg" width="320" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040902_zps164f767f.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040902_zps164f767f.jpg" border="0" height="240" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040902_zps164f767f.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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David's video is still loading to YouTube. We'll get it up asap.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040911_zpsab69a785.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040911_zpsab69a785.jpg" border="0" height="480" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040911_zpsab69a785.jpg" width="640" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040923_zps61117485.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040923_zps61117485.jpg" border="0" height="640" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040923_zps61117485.jpg" width="480" /></a></div>
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We got David's deer quartered out and headed back to camp to enjoy lunch next to a warm fire. Then we packed up camp and headed back home to Idaho. We are loving Idaho so far and are glad to call it home.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040932_zps54701595.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040932_zps54701595.jpg" border="0" height="300" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040932_zps54701595.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Shortly after arriving, the shop was turned into a meat locker.</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040934_zps8c961ddc.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040934_zps8c961ddc.jpg" border="0" height="300" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040934_zps8c961ddc.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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And then we celebrated our successful return by cooking up the tenderloins. Yum-o! We had Jake and Kate come up and try it, and they really liked it too. Yay for having food! ( I apologize if any of the above images disturb you, but I promise you that what is pictured is a much more humane process than what the meat that you buy at store goes through; also, much healthier.)</div>
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And to close: you know you go to school in Idaho when, telling your professor that you will miss his Thursday afternoon class because of a hunting trip and asking him what you can do to make up the points missed for that day, your professor tells you that he expects pictures and videos of the hunt on his desk on Monday. hahahaha. Love it!</div>
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<a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040924_zps864198ba.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040924_zps864198ba.jpg" border="0" height="489" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040924_zps864198ba.jpg" width="640" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040925_zps70d59041.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040925_zps70d59041.jpg" border="0" height="480" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040925_zps70d59041.jpg" width="640" /></a> <a href="http://s1268.photobucket.com/user/teamDandG/media/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040928_zps97dfce6e.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img alt=" photo P1040928_zps97dfce6e.jpg" border="0" height="480" src="http://i1268.photobucket.com/albums/jj562/teamDandG/2013%20deer%20hunt/P1040928_zps97dfce6e.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1067616720503877501.post-44757022345835586102013-10-27T22:28:00.000-06:002013-10-29T22:57:31.444-06:00CC round upI think I want to start posting a round up or a summary of what I have the opportunity to close caption at work. I get to hear so much good advice and counsel as I furiously type and sync the captions for devotional addresses, and I frequently find myself thinking, "Everyone needs to hear this!!!" But in the midst of frantically trying to type every.single.word and then rushing to get all the captioned lines synced with the speaker and ready to upload for public content, it's easier to just finish the video and move on to the next one (and inevitably forget about what you just had the privilege of listening to).<br />
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After captioning an address on Saturday afternoon, I went through the caption lines and copy and pasted the meat of a devotional address given by Elder Dennis B. Neuenschwander, Emeritus member of the First
Quorum of the Seventy of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Throughout Elder Neuenshwander's address he gave some wonderful personal
and scriptural stories but what's below are just the main points.
It will be online and ready to view in a few days if anyone is
interested... www.byui/edu/devotionalsandspeeches<br />
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The text and the title of my talk I have taken from the
book of Romans, wherein Paul writes to the Romans that, "I take my
journey." The scriptures are full of references to significant journeys. Be
they of peoples, or families, or individuals. They also describe in some detail
the paths, the ways, the roads, and the highways on which those journeys take
place. To cite just a few examples: there is the path of righteousness, and the
paths of the just and the wicked, there is the strait and narrow path that leads
to the tree of life, as well as the forbidden and unknown paths along the way. There
are also paths of duty, of wisdom, and of virtue. Additionally, we can read of
broad and strange roads as well as plan and strict ones. The Savior taught that
He was the way.</div>
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First, the destination you choose will determine the road
you take. Every journey has a destination. And every destination has a road. The
only way for you to arrive at a pre-determined destination is to walk the road
that takes you there. But destinations are more than a place. And their
attainment is more than completing a checklist of requirements. Lofty
definitions that are of lasting worth to you are composed of intensely personal
dreams, aspirations, and ideas that demand the very best in you to reach them. The
destinations you set for yourself must inflame your imagination, and bring
passion to your life. They must be worthy of the sacrifices that you surely
will make for them. Your destinations are the driving force of your life. They
bring purpose, and focus, and hope, and enthusiasm to the roads that will
eventually bring you to them.</div>
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Your every road in life will be a toll road. The attainment
of a worthwhile destination, whether spiritual or temporal, comes at a cost,
and there is never a short cut to paying it. The essential part of success in
any area of your life is calculating the cost of achieving it. Thereafter
follows the decision regarding the level of your personal commitment in paying
that cost. The Lord poses a really interesting question that illustrates this: "For
which of you," he asks, "intending to build a tower sitteth not down
first and counteth the cost whether he have sufficient to finish it." Money
may be the first thing that comes to mind in calculating cost, but it is not
the only one, and I'm not sure it's even the most important one. Uncompromising
personal commitment to the achievement of a goal by far is the greater cost. Perhaps
these words of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow are familiar to you: "The
heights by great men reached and kept Were not obtained by sudden flight. But
they, while their companions slept, Were toiling upward in the night." When
Bilbo Baggins, the hobbit, returned from his adventures, you may recall what
Gandalf, the wizard, told him. He said that he was not the hobbit that he once
was. So every road you traverse in your lifetime will be a toll road- it will
cost something. The toll is often your personal commitment, perseverance, and
discipline. Set and meet good daily goals in order to achieve your destinations
in the long term. </div>
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Believe in yourself in the face of the challenges along the
road of your life. "Doubt whom you may, but never yourself." Don't
waste your time trying to act, or speak, or dress like someone else. Your time
is better spent focusing and developing your own abilities and talents. This
takes courage. It also takes a willingness to try many things, and to fail at
some. It takes introspection and education. The more you develop your gift, and
the more you discipline it, the richer we all are. Heavenly Father has not
forgotten you. Please realize that He has destinations in mind for you that may
not, for you at the moment, be recognizable.</div>
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Now, just a few words about learning to enjoy your journey. I
say "learn," because not all of us naturally enjoy a difficult road. Our
inclination is often to make things easier. Journeys, by their very nature, are not always
short, easy, or pleasant. Lehi's journey was anything but easy. Yet, his
teachings confirm that God intends, through the Atonement of Christ, that His
children feel His confirming love, and the joy that comes from partaking fully of
the tree of life. (note from Giulia: if you don't know who Lehi is, I'd love to send you his story- let me know.)</div>
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Your destination will decree your road. Make sure your
destinations are worthy of your efforts and your dreams and your aspiration. Second,
that you would be willing to pay the tolls of the roads that you will walk to
those destinations. Third, believe in yourself despite the difficulties, and
the challenges, and the problems that could easily drag you down. And fourth,
learn to enjoy the journey.</div>
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Good stuff! Everything was so applicable to our current situation- being poor college students and the road we took just to get to where we are. </div>
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At the end of his address as Elder Neuenschwander (how's that for a name??? new-en-shwan-der) summed up his four points I was reminded of "The Princess Bride" where Inigo Montoya (spelling...?) is attempting to give Wesley the run down of everything that has happened since he's been dead. And then I saw this on pinterest and I got a good chuckle:<br />
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Anywhoooo...</div>
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I
also captioned an address by Elder Russell M. Nelson earlier this week
that I really enjoyed- "Education is a Religious Responsibility." That
one should already be available online at <a href="http://www.byui.edu/devotionalsandspeeches" target="_blank">www.byui.edu/<wbr></wbr>devotionalsandspeeches</a>
(I think that's the address anyway...) From what I can recall at the
moment, the main points he made are these: we are intelligences and
we have been commanded to acquire more knowledge, and in the pursuit of
knowledge do not discredit or leave out what God has already counseled
or commanded- something which the world is quite adept at doing. :)</div>
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Happy Sunday y'all! </div>
giuliahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15930907122919181717noreply@blogger.com1