Home Again

Abby and I made it home after a rather intense and stressful flight. On the flight to Utah I was able to carry on her car seat because the flight wans't full which seemed to work and the flight went pretty smoothly. However the flight was full on the way home and I had to hold her on my lap. She screamed 75% of the time and sucked her fingers the rest. Not to mention she was a little sick and had not slept well at all the night before or for her nap. Needless to say, I was sweating bullets by the time the plane even took off and I basically held her in a death grip the entire flight. But we are home safe. I have so many pictures to sort through and share. So check back soon.

Abby Jay and I at Summerfest


Abby At Summerfest


Abby at the BYU creamery


The Kids having fun!

Still in UTAH

Hey All. Most people know Abby and I were supposed to be home from Utah on Tuesday, But I have extended my stay a few days so I will be home next week instead. My mom and grandma came to town for a bit so we have been super busy. I have so many pictures that I don't know how to choose which ones I will post when I return. There are over 150 right now and I still have several days to go. We are having a good time enjoying the weather and time with family.

Utah

Abby and I before heading to church with Codee and Jay

Abby and I are in Utah right now. We have been staying busy and trying to do a lot while we are here. There are so many pictures but I can't upload them since Codee doesn't have a slot for my memory card. Thus, I stole some from her computer.
We have visited friends and family, hiked the Y, gone swimming a few times, done some shopping and hair, been to a spin class, walked around BYU, went to the bean museum, Orem's summer fest carnival, and been exhausted. Its definitely keeping my mind busy. My mom and grandma are driving up tomorrow and then we will take a trip to see the salt lake sites. But thats it for now. I come home next week which seems too soon, Utah is a very appealing state :)

Jay and I in the Ambulance at Summerfest

My new hair! Codee talked me into coloring and cutting my hair, its a bit darker with some layers. I needed a change, subtle but different.

Going to UTAH!!!

Hey all, thanks for all the support during this rough patch. I just wanted everyone to know that I am leaving for Utah today and wont be back for two weeks. I highly doubt I will be posting while I am up there. I am going to visit my Sister and her family along with a cousin and an Aunt and their families. I need a break from Texas for a few weeks :)

Look at how cute Abby looks in her new glasses!

Thoughts

I know I haven't posted anything of significance in a while. I just wanted to say keep checking and I am sure I might find myself in the mood soon. Unfortunately sometimes life throws you curve balls and you don't even know your playing baseball.

Abby is getting so big and it is her smile that I see on a daily basis that makes me happy.

Here is a pic of Abby playing the the baby pool and papa at nana's house.

Tag your it!

I have been tagged by my sister codesloth...

The rules:
1. Pick up the nearest book (at least 123 pages).
2. Turn to page 123.
3. Find the 5th sentence.
4. Post the 5th sentence on your blog.
5. Tag 5 people.

"You OK?" I asked.

I know what a totally life changing line. Its from "Sams letters to Jennifer" by James Patterson, great book, but I think "Suzannes diary for Nicolas" might be better.

I tag: Maegan, Megan, Sarah, Jamie, and Natalie

Appreciation

I have been thinking a lot about being appreciative for the things and people we have in our lives. Mostly this train of thought was brought about by a book I am reading called Searching the Scriptures by Gene R. Cook. In an effort to get a better understanding of the gospel and get more out of the time I spend reading the Bible and the Book of Mormon, Cheri (my mother-in-law) gave me this book. I am only a few chapters in so far and it has already changed the perspective with which I go into my personal study time. Mostly being appreciative for the sacrifices of so many to bring about the sacred works that we have today. It talks of people such as John Wycliffe who wanted the Bible translated into English and was shunned and excommunicated from his Church for it. The hatred ran so deep that when he died, people dug him up and burned him. And then there was William Tyndale who, when the printing press was invented, wanted to provide a printed English Bible. He had to do this in secret under alias's and he was eventually captured, in a dungeon for 16 months and then strangled and burned at the stake. Then, of course, is Joseph Smith who went through so many trails, persecutions and hardships eventually being martyred for wanting to do the will of the Lord and not deny him. So as depressing as all that sounds, even though I already knew theses things, this time it actually changed the way I think. I am much more appreciative for the availability of the Scriptures and that we can buy them so easily. To know that so many have died in order for us to read the words of the Lord makes me thus, appreciative.
But, this also translates into many other aspects of life. The struggles of the pioneers, the many wars of the worlds, political strife, all so that we can live as we do today. So we need to be appreciative for the the many lives lost and consider ourselves lucky to live in a day in age where we can worship freely any religion that we chose.
This also makes me appreciative for the little things in life, like the smile on Abby's face, since medical advancements made it possible to make it through a rough beginning. For air conditioning and electricity. But also for marriage, and the sanctity of it. To know that what is bound on earth is also bound in heaven and that "Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord"(1 Corinthians 11:11). To know that families are forever is such a wonderful thing and the knowledge that marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God. Gives me a new perspective on many things.
So with that said I can say I am Appreciative for Seth and all that he does for our family. For the hard work and dedication it takes to support us, and of course putting up with me. Who can be quite mouthy at times. For also being a good dad and husband. And for Abby and the great Joy she brings into our family. Of course, also included are Moms, Dads, Sisters, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, In-laws and those who (most of the time anyway :)) make our lives easier and make us feel loved.
I am appreciative for all I have and all I have available to me.

Mad mama Goose...

First and foremost, so many things have happened since I last posted. Thus the reason this blog post is so long. The most important news is this, Abby is fine. Most people don't know but when we took her into her 1 year check up....Stats: 19 1/2 pounds and 30 inches... the doctor heard a heart murmur. That accompanied with the fact that Abby's lips turn blue when she eats prompted the referral to the pediatric cardiologist. Needless to say, that was tough news. All the "what if's" kept racing through my mind. It was hard to sleep at night constantly thinking and praying. Plus I had no idea what they were going to do to her during the test. They did an EKG and a sonogram of her heart and a few other tests I cant think of at the moment. But thankfully many prayers were answered and the cardiologist gave us good news, that there was nothing to indicate that Abby had anything wrong with her. She called it an innocent murmer. She did say that Abby had a PFO which is a tiny hole in the heart but again nothing to worry about considering the fact that 30% of adults have this. Overall Abby did very well during the testing and we were thankful to have that over with and Abigail healthy once again.

We did get to have a little birthday party for Abby with the family and she was very spoiled. She got lots of stuff and it was so funny to watch her eat her cake. She did not like it on her hands so she went for the cake straight to mouth method. Here are some of the pictures...

For the last week we have had some work going on at our house. We replaced the linoleum with tile and it was a big project so Abby and I went to stay at my Dad and Cindy's house. Seth and I also redid our front landscaping which was also a major undertaking. I will post some of the pics when the finishing touches are done. So while we were at my dad we went to see the ducks. Abby loved them. Plus there were little babies all around to oooo and aahhh at. Although there was one mama goose who was not all that nice. She wanted the bread we had and and would hiss at you, frankly she was pretty scary and I did not want her near Abby. Especially since I have been attacked by a rooster myself and seen a turkey go the rounds and Win with my mom. Not to mention all the "When birds go bad" videos I have seen. This lady was even going after the other geese and so I was purposefully chucking the bread really far so she would go away.

These birds were not shy and would come really close. Abby really wanted to hold one.

This is the spawn of Satan herself. As you can she was Hissing at the moment the picture was taken and this was not on zoom, she was that close! If I could interpret.... I would think she is saying "throw me some freakin bread or I will poke your eyes out with my large pointy beak"!

All About Seth!

I was tagged by Codee: All about my HUBBIE!!!

What is his name? Joseph Seth Whitworth

How long have we been together? 5 and a half years counting dating time.

How old is he? 29 on the 18

How long did we date? 15 and a half months before we were married

Who eats more? I would say I do in one sitting, but Seth's a snacker so he snacks all day probably consuming more in a days time.

Who said "I love you" first? He did.

Who is taller? Him, if you didn't notice the whole foot that separates us

Who can sing better? Probably me...but that's hard to say since I have never heard Seth sing a solo or anything, he hardly sings in the car when I am around.

Who is smarter? I think that depends on the subject. Given the classes we took together in college I would say I am, but just in those courses. Overall though I give that one to Seth.

Who does the laundry? Me. Well mostly, I do all of mine and Abby's and most of Seths. But he has more laundry than an elephant would if it wore clothes. I don't understand! So its hard to keep up with his.

Who does the dishes? I would say mostly me with a touch of Seth

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? If you're looking at the bed, me. Who knows why, that's just the way it is.

Who mows the lawn? I used to before we had Abby. You know since Seth "allergies" were so bad :) But now we have someone do it for us and I can say it looks much better than when I did it.

Who cooks dinner? I do.

Who kissed who first? Depends on who you are asking, but Seth was a little timid when it came to that, so I helped him along.

Who proposed? Seth did, he proposed while we were at the botanical gardens, it was very sweet. I had an inkling that it was going to happen and then as the time passed it didn't so I had given up hope. So then when he actually did it I was surprised.

Who is more stubborn? We are both really stubborn, we would fight that one to the end to get an answer.

Who is more sensitive? That would be me, although living with Seth has thickened my skin a bit.

I tag: Maegan and Natalie

Happy Birthday Sweet Abigail

Today is Abby's first birthday! Its amazing to me that we have actually made it to this day. Looking back on her troubled beginning, the stress, the emotion, the actual physical health problems. To think, one year ago today, our little Abby (and I mean little, 3pounds 1 ounce) came into this world. She was in the hospital for 5 weeks, with IVs, Chest Tube, Ventilator, Feeding tube and a whole slew of other things. It was almost hard to bring her home when the time came, knowing there would be no nurses to come to my aid. She was just over 4pounds when she came home. Nevertheless, we have made it. Abby has grown and exceeded all expectations. Not to mention survived living with her parents. There are very little problems now, mostly just that she is anemic which we will see how she has come along on Friday at her next visit with the Doctor. It is so fun to watch her learn new things and how excited we all get that she can sit by herself or make her way from couch to couch. All in all we have had a very blessed year with her. She is definitely Our child. She looks like her dad, is stubborn just like both of us, and throws fits if she doesn't get what she wants (that's just like her dad, wink wink). We look forward to many more memories we have with her and to watch her grow and learn. Look and see her grow.