Our Life

2012-01-10T15:13:00.001-07:00

Another free picture slideshow by Smilebox

Have you heard...

2011-12-15T10:57:00.006-07:00

Preston Pugmire? He performed for Judd's Christmas work party last week. He is truly amazing, a one-man band who does everything himself. Also he sounds so much better in person. This is the best video I could find. Right when we got home the first thing I did was go get his album off Amazon. Seriously I am hooked. I listen to him all of the time, and yet I can't get enough.

Another year...

2011-12-09T14:49:00.002-07:00

Another Elf Yourself. Enjoy!!

You know your a mom when...

2011-11-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

your dishwasher isn't just for dishes anymore.

Name that fungus

2011-11-24T00:05:00.000-07:00

OK, just for fun- The first person who can correctly identify this here fungus I found growing in my yard will receive an autographed copy of a children's book written by yours truly and illustrated by my dad.

Uncanny

2011-11-17T16:28:00.001-07:00

Check out these cute pictures of Mckay!!

Did it fool you? This is NOT my baby. I found this little fellow here:

In real life, and at the same angle he looks so much more like this Pampers baby. I know all babies kind of look the same, but wow...

Why Hello, what brings you here?

2011-11-17T12:02:00.000-07:00

OK, so every now and then I look at the stats of this blog just for fun. Today I was looking at the "search keywords" that sent people here. And to my surprise this was one of them... "useless information about poop" Hmm. Guess I have a poopy blog. Well, whatever the reason you check out our little blog, poop or no poop... welcome!

My little chemo patient

2011-11-12T14:55:00.000-07:00

Before

After.

My two baldies.

OK. Not really. More like my little haircut experiment. Needless to say I won't be cutting his hair again. Ever. I think it's worth the 5-10 bucks to have someone else cut it. I was actually doing a really good job, and was just about done when he moved and I cut a big chunk off in the back. So I did what we do for Judd, I buzzed it. Judd has dark hair and so doesn't look bald. But Levi has white blond hair so he looks very bald. To make things worse I cut a relatively large piece of his ear with the trimmers. I felt so bad. Him sitting there with blood dripping down his ear and the worst hair cut ever. Sorry little dude. I still think you look cute... And not just because I am your mother.

I paid 8.26

2011-11-08T15:23:00.001-07:00

For all of this!!

4 packs of Huggies baby wipes
2 containers Darigold cottage cheese
3 things of Similac formula
10 cans of Dole fruit
5 Revlon nail clippers
3 packs Sargento cheese
8 packs of Betty Crocker cookie mix
1 2-liter of Squirt
5 tubes of Carmex
13 jars of Season all
5 packs of Carefree
1 Dole fruit juice
1 pack Orbit gum
1 foot scrubber
4 cans beans

Babies are Expensive

2011-11-05T11:33:00.000-06:00

Both Kennedy and Levi cost us a grand total of 100 a piece for the whole pregnancy/labor etc... These are just a handful of the bills from Mckay. Woof.

October in a nut shell... Or egg shell.

2011-11-03T13:52:00.003-06:00

I've been watching a LOT of Conan O'Brien lately. Not to mention Chopped, reruns of the office, The little couple.. To be honest, pretty much anything on TLC or the cooking channel. I guess that's what happens when you are awake half the night with a newborn. feeding, burping, changing diapers.
I have tried for the last couple weeks to blog but every time I click on "new post" and stare at the empty screen I lose all motivation. Maybe it is from lack of sleep, or maybe my brain is fried from too much late night television and I just can't bring myself to make out complete sentences. Or maybe because I have too much to blog about, that is seems so overwhelming.
Whatever the reason, I am posting now. And yes I am also watching Conan.
So now for an update.
Mckay is now over a MONTH old. With each baby time seems to slip away so much faster than the last. Maybe that is because more of my day is spent wiping bottoms, faces, and hands, kissing "owies" better, and explaining for the 100th time in a day the reason "why?". Also, Mckay has been such a different experience for us. Both Kennedy and Levi were very healthy babies. The labors were easy and without complication. Not the case with Mckay. the labor was...Well, it was. The first night home with Mckay was not much better. I was reading a book to Kennedy that night and I heard Judd screaming my name over and over. I thought to myself "good grief, be patient man". I got up and walked out of Kennedy's room, and there at the door stood Judd holding Mckay who was pale and covered in throw up. He wasn't breathing. I grabbed him from Judd, ran to his room and started suctioning his mouth out with the bulb syringe (aka"booger-sucker"). Thank you Army medic training for the quick reaction. Judd had been walking past his room and heard him gagging so he grabbed him. After he started breathing normally I just held him and sobbed. I was so tired from... well, everything. There are no words to describe the fear and sadness of knowing that you could have lost a child. None. The thoughts that ran through my head: what if Judd hadn't heard him?, what if we had been sleeping, if.. If. I didn't sleep that night. I had Judd move his crib into our room so I could have him right by me. I woke up to even the slightest sounds, and when I would fall asleep I would jerk awake from dreams of Mckay choking. It took a few days for me to calm down enough to feel comfortable just using the baby monitor at night.

At McKay's 2 week check up the doctor found a heart murmur and sent us straight to the cardiologist. We were at the hospital doing tests that day from noon until 5. After the 12 lead EKG the doctor came in and listened to his heart. He said "there are normal and abnormal murmurs. his falls into the category of abnormal." My heart sank. I began to wonder if I somehow caused this... After all I didn't know I was pregnant until I was 2 months along. I was working out like crazy, and I'm pretty sure I was eating sushi :).. All the little things I had done started running through my mind. We then went into another room for an ultrasound of his heart. I was prepared for the worst since the doctor had already told me he had a hole through his ventricle septum. After watching his little heart beat in black and white wondering what went wrong the doctor came in to look at a few structures more closely. He then said that he has a hole between his atria which is normal for babies, but is supposed to close within the first 24 hours after birth. On top of that he had a "kinked" left pulmonary artery, which is actually what was causing the murmur. Both, he said, should hopefully heal without intervention. We just have to watch him very closely for signs of heart failure or difficulty breathing. They'll continue to monitor his heart at his checkups, and if nothing changes within 6 months they are going to talk about what our options are.

Breath. Pictures. Change of subject.

I love baby feet :)

During the ultrasound

In other news Kennedy is loving preschool, and Levi loves the alone time he gets with mommy while she's gone. Judd took me biking for the first time in over a year and a half, and I didn't end up looking like this so I am pretty proud of myself.

Since the weather is getting colder we have been trying to spend as much time outside on the days that are nice. Mostly we ride our bikes :)

On the days we stay inside we find ways of entertaining ourselves. Tortilla chips anyone?

Elephants on parade. I found this little family of elephants in a line all over the house. They are fast little guys, and would make their way from one room to another in a matter of minutes. I can't tell you how many times they were crushed by my rear. Sorry Dumbo, didn't see you there.

Halloween was fun, although it was a lot like last year for me. I spent most of the time inside taking care of Mckay while Judd took the Kennedy and Levi around and handed out candy at the trunk or treat they do on our street. Is it just me or are kids getting more bratty year after year? I couldn't believe how many kids didn't even bother saying trick-or-treat, or thank you. Or how many bad looks I got when I plunked a piece of double bubble into their bags (yes, I know it's no Snickers or Kit Kat) BUT STILL... It was as if I had just stolen their candy and left them with a can of green beans.

Here was the best part of Halloween for me:

When we first put our chicken into his costume... Not too happy.

Off to preschool as a "dinosaur t-rex" She informs Judd that Dinosaurs can open doors. My sister made this costume. I love hand me downs.

Jameson and Kennedy

Our spooktacular (literally) last minute trunk or treat decorations. We went to the dentist before hand so I used their dental floss to hang them. Yes, I am resourceful.

That's all for now. Hope everyone had a wonderful October!

Buh bye office

2011-10-12T12:11:00.000-06:00

Instead of trying to put two kids (on very different schedules) into the same room we opted to get rid of our office and turn it into a room for Kennedy. We let her pick the color... Maybe not the best idea. It reminds me a little of a Mexican hacienda. Anyway, she loves it and that's all that matters . Although when the boys start sharing a room we will turn this back into our office, and definitely repaint :)

Because it's a tradition.

2011-10-10T19:47:00.001-06:00

We couldn't bring a baby home without having some type of remodeling going on at our house. It just wouldn't have felt right. Well, not really. I would have preferred that my house was in one piece, but eh what can you do? Our washer and dryer started to putter out so we decided to go get new ones. And we couldn't put those nice shiny things into our old nasty storage room. Here are some before pictures... Well, more like in process pictures of how the room looked.

It really wasn't this messy, I promise. This is after moving everything out of the way so we could move the cabinets.

Gotta love that green floor.

This was our kitchen for 2 weeks while Judd remodeled. It drove my BATTY.

YAY!! After new walls/paint/tile/lights & shelving :)

I'm in awe too Levi. He was entranced by the new dryer.

After I moved everything in from the kitchen.

The kids love running in circles in there.

Ahhh, that's a pretty picture :) Thanks Judd.

A Baby Story

2011-09-29T13:17:00.001-06:00

Have you ever seen that show on TLC? I am addicted to it while I am pregnant, and then as soon as I am all done in the baby department I have no interest in watching. Anyway, here is our "baby story"

I had been having really bad back pain and contractions for a couple weeks. The contractions would be really regular and strong for about an hour then putter out. I was dilated to a 2 and 75% for over two weeks so the Dr decided to strip my membranes (I know, sounds disgusting, and really it is.)
We thought that this would do the trick, but I still went another week before anything really happened.

I was up all Friday night with contractions, but I refused to go to the hospital until I felt like I was going to die. So Saturday morning I hit my "going to die" threshold and we got to the hospital around 7 AM. They had admitted us by 8 because my contractions were so strong and regular. Unfortunately I was STILL dilated to a 2 despite all of the painful contractions. So they decided to break my water, and start me on pitocin to get things moving. DIDN'T work. We were sure that this labor would go like our last 2 kids. We were in and out, and everything went fast and without problems, we were prepared to be out of there by noon... Somewhere in here I got an epidural (thank heaven for modern medicine) By 3 PM I was still at a 2, even though I was on the max dose of pitocin (20). They decided to put in an intrauterine monitor to see how efficient they were, and turns out they were little wimpy non effective contractions, although they were just as painful as effective ones would be. So they increased the pitocin to 30, which was way over the max limit. This got things going, but it also caused the baby to go into distress and have a bowel movement in utero. This was NOT good news. They then discovered that he was posterior and that is why he wasn't making his way down. By 7 PM, I was almost complete but the baby's heart rate was dropping drastically. I started to get really nauseous and made friends with the nice blue emesis bags... Pretty sure I met with 5 of them :O They then decided that the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck.

The doctor had to use forceps to get him out and I was snipped from back to front (OUCH) to help him get out faster. Because he was in distress and he had meconium staining the NICU team was there waiting to take him. After cutting the umbilical cord (that was wrapped around his neck twice) the Dr picks him up and starts going toward the NICU team when he SLIPS!! There was an audible gasp from the 14 plus people in the room and everyone reached out to grab the doctor. He caught the baby upside down by his hips with his head about a foot from the ground. I just tucked my head under the blankets and cried. at this point I had nothing left. I just couldn't handle anymore. It felt like minutes before I heard him cry, I just watched him lay there limply. I have never felt so helpless. Because he wasn't breathing well they had to take him to the NICU and put him on a CPAP. He also was given an IV because he wasn't able to get the cord blood as it was cut while he was still inside me.
They moved me down to mother and baby while Judd stayed with him in the NICU. By this time it was almost midnight. When I finally got to hold my little guy I just broke down. I can't remember the last time I had cried like that. To have him be ok after all of that was for lack of better words the biggest relief.

Kennedy and Levi came the next morning to visit, and to my surprise they were both really good with this new little guy. Levi was extra cute, hopefully I can upload this video of his reaction.
We also had a scare the next morning when the pediatrician told us he might not be able to hear out of his right ear. He didn't pass the hearing exam and they needed to repeat it the next day. He did pass the test the next day, but only because the technician put the probe really far into his ear canal (which is apparently very tiny, and this is the reason he couldn't hear). The good news is that he has all of the right parts, the bad news is that he is most likely going to need to have surgery to open his ear canal farther so that he can hear well and so that his speech develops normally. I am just glad that he CAN hear. It could be a lot worse, and I am really thankful that it isn't.

For dramatic effect. :)

My toes turned into little Vienna sausages. Sooo swollen

My little man. Definitely gave me quite the scare... Hopefully he quits that. I can't handle the stress... Oh, how I am not looking forward to the teenage years.

In the NICU with the CPAP on. :(

This was Levi's reaction to McKay :)

Kennedy loves being a big sister. Unlike last time, she understands a lot more and is excited about him.

Proud daddy

Pointing at (as Kennedy calls him) "baby uhm-kay"

A bike for the boy.

2011-09-15T12:04:00.000-06:00

We got Levi a bike the other day. He actually did really well on it for his first time, (and for being only 16 months old.)

He loved it, and Kennedy was so excited to ride bikes with her brother.

As promised...

2011-09-10T08:58:00.000-06:00

Here are some pictures from our trip to Strawberry for Labor day. The whole Zimmerman crew was there, and as usual I took too many pictures, so here are a few that made the cut.

Uncle Travis and Sam using his duck call. We did dutch oven, so we all sat around the fire until it was done.

Kennedy... I think if there were any ducks around she would have called the mutated ones.

All the grand kids. Sam, Max, Chloe, Kennedy, Levi... And if you look on the couch you'll see Avery and Abbie

I had to get a picture of this. It wasn't planned, but the three girls all wore their dirty dash tees. NERDS :)

From start to finish. Colette is 2 months along (?) Liz is over 5 months (?) and I am a little over 8. Cara had Avery 2 months ago, so we'll all be packing little ones around here soon.

A view from the cabin down to Strawberry

I LOVE this outfit! It also has a little ruffle bottom :)

Uncle Judd driving around with Sam. He was grinning the entire time.

Colette and Brent

Believe it or not Kennedy fell in love with 4 wheeling. She is usually so scared of things like this. She cried on almost every ride at Lagoon. I think she could have done this all day and been perfectly content.

I got some video of her driving, she was screaming (happy screams) the whole time. I think Judd had as much fun as she did.

Nathan and Ereita.

Now for the Wolf Mountain Mayhem...

Judd on the last stretch. he was going too fast for me to get a really good picture.

I could tell that this was Judd by the way he rides. A lot of the other guys just looked so uncomfortable on their bikes, but Judd looked like he was born on one... I can't be sure, and I'll have to check with Ereita, but I think he might have been born on one.

Judd

Levi getting in on the action

Like father like son, chowing down on dutch waffles. Judd's friend Ryan and his wife make these amazing energy waffles, and I have to say they are AMAZING!! I'm pretty sure the two of them ate a whole pack by themselves.

The fam waiting for the race results

And the winner is..... Kennedy in first. OK, not really, she just wanted to stand on one of the blocks wearing daddy's medal :)

Judd got 3rd place in his division and 7th over all. Not bad for riding once a week at best.

Fruit fruit fruit....

Like I said, canning like a mad woman. Peaches in light syrup. Last year i did medium syrup but it was waaaaay too sweet, so this year I toned it down and did light syrup which is much better.

And I still have more to go. I plan on doing these stragglers today.

I also did nectarine jam from the very first nectarines off our tree. I can't wait til next year, I'm excited for my tree to get bigger and produce more.

And a ton of peach jam.

Kennedy's first day of Preschool. She Loved it, and she can't wait to go again and again and again :)

I didn't even have to ask her to smile. That's genuine excitement right there folks

And my speeding ticket. Yes I took a picture. I was pretty mad. When he asked where I was going what did I say? "I'm going to the grocery store?!" What was I thinking? I should have poked myself in the eye and told him I was on my way to the hospital because I was going into labor. Traffic school here I come.

And Judd had surgery again. This time for a hernia. It went so much better than the nightmare tonsil surgery last November. He is doing well and is on the mend (although he is totally milking it...)

That's all for now. I am 37 weeks along and if I don't go before, I will be induced on my birthday, another 17 days! CRAZY. I am going to have THREE CHILDREN. Gulp.

Us Lately

2011-09-08T13:59:00.001-06:00

My sister Julia, a MgSGT in the Marine Corps, who lives in VA came out to visit. We all got together at our house for some yummy food and some good conversation.

The only one missing here is Lillian who lives in Colorado.

We went for a hike up Grove Creek. I couldn't find our baby backpack and was stuck lugging Levi on the front in the "baby Bjorn". It really didn't feel very good. But luckily the kids tuckered out before I did, so I didn't have to carry him too long.

He almost hides my 8 month belly... It was funny seeing him dangle out in front there.

I have been enjoying the time I have with just Levi and Kennedy. I am trying to come to terms with the fact that it won't be just the three of us anymore, and that I won't get as much one on one time with my kids. It's sad, but I feel like I am going to miss out on them growing up... At least for the next little while. So anyway, I have been taking advantage of the spare moments I have (when I am not distracted by stuff like blogging) to get some quality time in with the rug rats.

Wahhhhaaa

Loves to swing.

I tried my hand at curling Kennedy's hair for the first time, and I have to say it looked really cute. She loved it and was calling herself a princess all day.

We went to the zoo and spent some family time together. Kennedy loved it, although the dinosaurs freaked her out.

My little gorilla

Kennedy got a sleeping bag for her birthday (which is what she asked for..?) And she LOVES it. The next few days after she took all of her naps in it and even slept in it at night.

In other news: Judd raced a downhill mountain bike race which I will fill you in on when I download the pictures. we also spent Labor day with the family in Strawberry, Kennedy started preschool, Judd had ANOTHER surgery, I got a speeding ticket, and I have been canning like a mad woman....Details and pictures to come!

Sun dried tomatoes

2011-08-30T14:04:00.000-06:00

Or, more appropriately named, dehydrator dried tomatoes.

If you want your tomatoes to keep their color, use some fruit fresh. It works wonders.

Mmmmmm. Perfect on salads. I also found a great recipe for a creamy sun dried tomato sauce, tried and tested and we love it!

And another one bites the dust...

2011-08-25T21:01:00.000-06:00

Literally. This is what happens when you go mountain biking with my husband. Judd's older brother Justin went biking with him the other day and this is how he looked after... Well, this is how he looked after he was cleaned up. It would have been a more comical picture if I took it before he had a chance to clean off all the mud and blood.

Further evidence.

I look OK, but I broke a rib with this one.

Word to the wise: Don't try to keep up with Judd.

Island Birthday & Cake

2011-08-23T09:43:00.001-06:00

We did an "island themed" birthday party for Kennedy (She is THREE!!!) on Saturday. I didn't take a whole lot of pictures, but I managed to get a few.

I tried making a hula girl out of gum paste to sit on the island, but she looked more around 80 years old rather than 3, so I scrapped that idea and made a pineapple, beach towel, star fish, and a beach ball to sit on top. I love the sharks :)

I am THE best at taking pictures where very few people are actually looking at the camera.

Justin, Nathan, Ereita, Abbie, Chloe, Colette and Brent. Travis is hiding in the background.... And the only one looking? Ereita. We had Cafe Rio style sweet pork burritos... Thanks Linda for the amazing recipes. Everyone loved it!

Opening presents. We got Kennedy a sleeping bag (which is what she asked for... She really loves camping)

Most of the kids spent their time in the sandbox.

I wanted to get more pictures, and I'm sad that I didn't. We also did one of those fishing games where you throw the hook (clothes pin) over a sheet and get prizes.... I am pretty sure I had as much fun doing this as the kids did. :)

4 Years

2011-08-21T15:10:00.004-06:00

Wow. I can't believe that it has been four years since we were married. Here's a little math for you just for fun (and fyi, click on the links... Judd read this and was so confused by the 2 adopted children comment):

2.8 children
+
2 adopted children
+
A few bike wrecks
+
Race + Race + Race + Race + Race + Many many more I didn't blog about :)
+
1 House??
+
Too many renovations to count.... Seriously.
+
Us
=

4 amazing years. I wouldn't change a thing.

First "official" camping trip

2011-08-17T13:47:00.000-06:00

A few weeks ago our tire literally fell off of the land cruiser when we were on our way up Provo canyon to go camping. we hadn't traveled very far before Judd and I noticed a weird sound coming from the car and before we could react the back end of the cruiser dropped to the ground as we watched our left rear tire rolling down toward Deer Creek Reservoir. I'm pretty sure my heart dropped about as far as the back end of the car... We spent 5 hours looking for the tire (which was never to be found), putting a new tire on, jumping the cruiser (because on top of it all our alternator went out), and waiting for a tow truck (the guy got lost and took an hour to find us). It was a super hot day, and I was glad that we had a cooler full of ice/drinks/food to keep the kids happy. They were actually so patient and did really well. I wish I had taken pictures of the cruiser, but I didn't dare to since we barely made it to the side of the road to begin with and the end of the car was almost in the road.
The next night we spent the night "camping" in our back yard. We even did a dutch oven dinner and dessert.
After two weeks in the shop we got the car back and we decided to try our luck at another camping trip. I'm sure Judd was bugged with me because the whole way there I kept asking if the noises I was hearing were "normal"... Call me crazy, but I didn't feel like dealing with car problems again....

mmmmm dirt.

I took the kids on a hike so Judd could take a nap. He worked the night before and was really tired.

This is what Levi and Kennedy looked like for the majority of the trip. Covered in dirt.

Roasting mallows

If you look closely, you'll see that they both have marshmallow on their faces. Priceless.

My boys "copping a squat"

I love this picture! They have so much fun with each other and get along so well.

In most of the pictures my kids are carrying around either a fork or spoon, or both. Don't ask me why, but they have a fetish with plastic utensils. I love this picture :)

So here are pictures from our first camping trip. The kids LOVED it! They spent most of their time digging in the dirt, we went on a hike, cooked some dutch oven, played some games, and Kennedy roasted her first marshmallow and had her very first smore. I would call it a success.

Graduation cake...?

2011-08-15T20:38:00.002-06:00

OK, so this is not the best cake that I have ever made, and would be a perfect candidate for cake wrecks . I look at ideas online and always think to myself "that looks so easy"... Not the case. My brother Andrew graduated from BYU last weekend and we had a little celebration for him. He is a wild land firefighter, which explains the shovel, the fire hose (HA!!! Didn't look like one at all), and the outfit (They must have been going through budget cuts because his uniform looks extra stupid.) Anyway, he did an internship at a crisis call center so I thought I would throw a phone and some books on there as well. The fondant was really soft so he ended up with a hunch back and a slouchy face when it started to settle. It definitely tasted better than it looked. I did a milk chocolate cake with cream cheese icing and raspberry filling. ... Long story short I am signing up for some cake decorating lessons.

Seats at the Marriott Center. Thought it was a cool picture.

Kennedy checking out the funky hat.

Paige, Jameson, Andrew, the kids and I. I am 33 weeks pregnant in this picture... I don't realize how pointy my belly is until I see it in pictures.

Grandpa and Levi. Dad drove down from Montana on a few hours notice to be there, now that's love :)

What the heck is that on your head?!

30 Weeks...

2011-07-27T23:42:00.000-06:00

Thar she blows! Not really, although I feel like it. I am actually a lot smaller than I was with both of my other kids, so here is hoping that it lasts. Here is a picture of me pregnant with Kennedy around the same time for your viewing pleasure. HUGE difference.

Glad I'm not this guy...

2011-07-24T23:28:00.000-06:00

Montana in pictures

2011-07-21T20:14:00.001-06:00

If you click on the slide show it will take you to another page where you can view the pictures better. They are a tad on the small side here, plus you can't see all of the captions which took me forever to add.

What big sisters are for

2011-07-03T16:18:00.001-06:00

Belly band product review

2011-06-27T14:08:00.000-06:00

I borrowed this "belly band" from my friend Jana so I could go running without my belly flopping around. I have to say that it worked GREAT! It stayed in place, and I didn't feel pregnant while I was running. I went a little over 2 miles and I loved it! Can't wait to run tomorrow. Why did I not get one of these with my first two babies?!!!!

Judd-slash-Dad

2011-06-24T14:06:00.000-06:00

For fathers day Judd got new mountain biking shoes....

a sweet card I made at tiny prints....

And a vasectomy. HAAAA Only I would think this is funny (and take pictures).

To the guy whos genius has no bounds. Here he is squeezing some limes for me. (I don't have a juicer/citrus squeezer)

So handy...

hilarious...

Just plain fabulous.

Looks great in white.

Always good for some snuggles

and some stories

To my wonderful husband, I love you!

The death of the pines...

2011-06-21T20:00:00.000-06:00

So Judd decided he was done with sap, pine needles, and pine cones and murdered our pine trees. My brother Andrew (he came in handy) and Judd cut them down. Actually, Judd did the second tree by himself.

Just like a man to cut the tree down FIRST then take the bird house out of the tree.

Tree numero uno

Judd in tree number two.

The unimog REALLY came in handy. It only took 2 trips to the green dumps as opposed to the first tree that took 5 trips.

And then there were none. We are going to grind out the tree stumps this Saturday and put sod over the top.

Kennedy in her pj's in front of a teeny tiny bit of the wood. We have SO much! Now we need to get out and do a lot of camping.

How much wood could a wood chuck chuck?

We aren't total anti-earth people. We ordered a Tulip poplar and an Autumn Blaze Maple. I thought they would be a tad bit bigger, but they are supposed to grow pretty quickly.

More wood.

Time for a little color

2011-06-16T18:54:00.000-06:00

I have had this thrift store find crib bumper since before Kennedy was born. It's always been plain white. Pretty boring, but it did the job. I finally decided to re-vamp it and give it a little color. As I was looking through old pictures I couldn't believe how fast my kids have grown. SAD :(

Kennedy used to sleep like this with her bum in the air.

Back during a craftier time I made that mobile.

I think it turned out pretty cute!

He was so confused when I laid him down for bed then took his picture.

After the rain...

2011-06-14T14:06:00.001-06:00

Finally the bad weather has stopped and we have been able to get outside more. Here are a few pictures from our walk up the Provo River. Levi loves hanging out in the stroller, as you can see... Well, as long as he is being pushed.

Levi showing off his new walking ability. He has been walking for a few weeks now, but has really stepped it up (get it?) this last week.

Piggy back ride. We walked from Glen Canyon to Vivian Park and by the time we got to Vivian Kennedy was worn out from riding her bike so Judd gave her a lift.

Taking a break from the sun at Vivan :)

On the way down Kennedy got to meet the pavement. Luckily dad was right there and caught her shirt so she only hit her knee. She was a trooper and wanted to get back on and ride though. Here she is sowing us her "owie".

And putting on a brave smile with tears in her eyes.

Grandma Z made Levi a new blanket for his birthday. It was a hit! Thanks :)

From the Alpine loop.... There should NOT be that much snow up there (at the end of MAY)!

My latest attempt at house wifery...

2011-06-13T23:07:00.001-06:00

So I'm sure anyone with kids has this same problem: You sweep and mop your floor just to feed your kid a half hour later and you are left with a sticky mess under their chair/highchair. Well, I have created a solution. A sort of baby "drop cloth" if you will.

I used patterned flannel fabric, to hide any stains and so that it was thick enough to stop most of the goop from getting through to the floor.

I sewed a washer into this little square. On one side is the flannel, on the other some non-slip material to help keep it from sliding around on the floor. I put snaps on it so that I could un-snap the weight from the main piece and throw it into the washer when it gets dirty.

I've been meaning to post this for a while so I have had a few weeks to try it out and I LOVE it!! It makes cleaning up after a meal much more simple. Just pick up the cloth and shake it out into the trash, then wash it when it gets dirty.

Sundance Showdown

2011-05-31T16:09:00.000-06:00

I raced my first race this year at Sundance on Saturday. Here is the race summary. The race went pretty well, I thought for sure we would be racing in the mud but the trails were actually pretty nice. I also thought I was going to be racing in the rain a couple times but luckily it just teased. I have biked Sundance quite a bit so I already knew the course but I forgot about the very last turn onto the road and how much of a game player that one is. Should have practiced just that turn a few times. In the actual race I was feeling really good throughout the run until that very last turn. I mess that one up and it put me back about 30 sec. Would have placed 1st in the class I was racing and my time was fast enough to take at least 2nd in the expert class or 1st. If I would have actually done some endurance training before I also would have had a fast enough time to place 2nd or 3rd in the pro class. That last turn gets to me but all in all I raced pretty good and am pretty happy with the way I rode the rest of the course. I think Kennedy won the award for most improved rider though. She is getting stinking fast. It's time to get a brake for her bike because her feet don't do the job anymore.

Kennedy brought her bike and rode around at the base of the mountain until the race started. She is getting so fast, that I have to run to keep up with her.

This moose was only about 40 feet from us.

Judd coming across the finish line. The last part of the course is a long steep incline... Didn't look like fun to me.

Yup...He looks TIRED. Doesn't look like fun.

Waiting for dad, playing in the dirt.

Rain... BOO

A few pictures while we waited for the results.

Eating crackers in the truck waiting for dad.

Magical floating babies

2011-05-26T22:59:00.000-06:00

Check out my new "baby ticker"... (to your right), if you go to their web site you can add as many babies as you like... I had to restrain myself from adding more. I DIED laughing to see all those babies floating around in there. Thank heavens there really isn't four! I think I might have an early mid-life crisis.

A year in pictures

2011-05-25T10:06:00.000-06:00

It goes by so fast....

Voting is now closed.

2011-05-22T12:24:00.000-06:00

According to the ultrasound we are going to have a boy, so 70% of voters were right. This is the third baby I've had an ultrasound with, and the strange awe of it still gets to me. To see the little guy in there moving and kicking is such an amazing thing. From the looks of it he will has a large arse like Levi, and we also got a picture of him giving us a thumbs up! I will post pictures as soon as I reconnect my scanner. Well, let's be honest I hate doing things like that, so as soon as JUDD reconnects the scanner. Judd has a name he likes, but I really haven't found anything that I like enough, so any suggestions would be welcomed :)

Help Me Grow

2011-05-16T09:01:00.000-06:00

A while ago I donated just over two thousand of the children's books I wrote to a program called Help Me Grow. We went to their annual family event at UVU, where they were giving out some of the books. Here are some pictures that I stole off of their Facebook page. Kennedy loved it, and selfishly I loved seeing my books being given to families who need them.

The killing of a baby turtle.

2011-05-13T11:21:00.002-06:00

I can't believe he is ONE!! It has gone by so quickly.

Always smiling.... Unless he is hungry, then he isn't so sweet.

Before

During

After :)

I was cleaning red velvet cake out of his ear for days. He didn't eat a bite of the cake, he just wanted to play in it.

Turtle birthday cake

2011-05-09T09:51:00.000-06:00

I made these turtle cakes for Levi's birthday. I had extra cake so I made him a little turtle (complete with a binky) to smash. I'll post pictures from his birthday soon.

Saving some green

2011-05-04T10:08:00.000-06:00

Take a look at this receipt, I think it speaks for itself.
This is what I got today:
27 packages of pasta
8 bottles of Nivea body wash
2 boxes of Ritz crackers
2 boxes cheeze-its crackers
5 packages of Mr Clean magic erasers
1 carton Silk almond milk

ALL OF THIS FOR 9.39! Not a bad day at the store. I was bummed that the tooth brushes I wanted were gone, I would have gotten 16 of them for FREE. I like the fact that I can give extra stuff like that to shelters.

BBQ Cupcakes

2011-05-02T10:14:00.005-06:00

This is a fun thing to do with your kids for Summer. I made them for Fathers day last year and gave them to neighbors and friends, but you can make them for any occasion. The pictures basically explain how to make them. I used Swedish fish (for the kebabs), gold fish, hot tamales (hot dogs), and caramels that I cut up into smaller peices. I used crunched up butterfinger for the embers, and black frosting to make the grill marks and the grill. Also you can get silver cupcake liners to make them look even better.

Summer... Please?

2011-04-27T12:44:00.000-06:00

As much as I love the winter and the fun stuff that comes with it I can't wait for the warmer days of Summer to get here.

Snowboarding
It was -6 degrees that day.

You & Me & Baby Makes....

2011-04-15T19:24:00.001-06:00

FIVE?!! Thank you Paragard http://www.paragard.com/home.php .... For nothing.

He'll be driving 6 white horses when he comes.

2011-04-13T12:47:00.004-06:00

Ok, maybe he was driving a Mazda... Without fail when Grandpa Andy comes to town the house is filled with the sounds of his banjo and children laughing. It always reminds me of the times when I was young and he would play and sing while my brothers and sisters and I would sing (squawk) and dance. Thanks for sharing your talent grandpa!

Levi was providing the percussion :)

Gettin' Dirty

2011-04-12T10:09:00.001-06:00

Levi 'helping' dad put a lift on the Land cruiser.

2011-04-09T13:03:00.002-06:00

Spaghetti and meatballs have never been more exciting. I asked Kennedy what we were having for dinner and this was her response (along with an anatomy lesson). Enjoy!

Bean Museum & the Living Planet Aquarium

2011-04-06T11:14:00.005-06:00

For those not from Utah, no it is not a museum featuring lentils. It is named after a Mr. Bean, although not the funny PBS one. We met up with my sister Paige and her son Jamison and wandered around the museum for about 2 hours until it was certain that Kennedy had seen every last animal and insect in the building. She loved it! We also recently met up with some friends at the Living Planet Aquarium. This was also a hit. For the next 3 days after Kennedy was talking about the penguins. Perhaps if my computer will be nice to me I will post a video of her laughing at them swimming by :)

Yes, I am juvenile.. I think the name of this fish is funny :)

Last, but not least.

2011-04-05T12:52:00.006-06:00

We have finally finished every room in our house. We ripped it apart from top to bottom and spent the last two plus years putting it back together. This is what our living room looked like when we moved in.

We painted it and left it at that since the other rooms needed more urgent attention.

I found a great deal on the furniture and the carpet. Here is the finished product. I have to say it is much more welcoming than the parkay floor.

My dirty laundry....

2011-02-10T11:06:00.000-07:00

A message from Judd to his guys at work... Angry much?

2011-02-07T23:37:00.017-07:00

I think I have figured it out everyone. I don’t think we have an issue with putting allens back, we have an AEM (allen eating mouse) taking and eating the allens. I opened the draws today to find this (the following picture).

These were brand new sets last week and the creature has already had at them. It’s picky about what it likes though. It sticks to only those we use and need. It pulled the 5/64 allen out, but must not have liked that taste of it this time because it left it under the pliers spot (Of course it is spelled wrong in the picture) and tried to hide it under the torx 7 wrench rather than putting it back where it goes. It obviously doesn’t know how attentive the operators around here are or it would have put them back to avoid detection. It didn’t even bother to go through the effort of putting the allens back into the perfectly cut out shapes for each set. It must not have liked the 2.5mm wrench either. The odd thing is it went to the trouble of putting it back, just upside down. Talk about one lazy mouse! You would think it would try and hide its tracks. It’s as if it’s mocking everyone saying “Hey look at me, I’m eating your allen wrenches and making a mess of your draws and you can’t do anything about it. HAHAHA!” Maybe we should set a mouse trap with a piece of an allen wrench on it to catch the little critter. Or maybe we should cover them with rat poison. That’ll get it. However if it’s able to eat allen wrenches it could be much bigger than a mouse. Maybe something bigger like a cage trap…..or a bear trap would be needed, although people might find that idea cruel. Maybe it’s a mutated machine shop mouse with carbide teeth. A mouse trap just wouldn’t do then... It would chew right through the trap before it could even close down on it. Being a mutated rat, poison probably wouldn’t work either. And a cage trap just won’t do for something of that caliber. If anyone can think of something to catch it let me know. I don’t know what could hold up to mutated carbide mouse teeth though. Yikes!

Now until we figure out our mutated mouse problem could people try and put the tools back where they go? I know it can be difficult to figure out just how those darn things fit back into those shapes that are cut out for them. I know I get confused and put them backwards a lot. Just have to laugh at myself hahahaha. What I like to do is practice at home matching shapes. I use the little shape puzzles my kids have, you know the ones with the triangles and the squares and the……oh what’s the shape……pa…..pi……pe……pen……pentagon. I always have a hard time with that one. Maybe this picture will help you guys like it does me.

This mouse is also freakishly strong. Look at what it did to this allen wrench!
Twisted the end of it like it was play dough! The only other way I can think of that happening is by making the insert screw way too tight. I mean tight like Zeus himself came down and tightened it with his lighting throwing arms of his. Have you ever seen the artist rendition of him? Man he had some guns. I guess you’d have to be that big to be able not only throw lightning, but just hold on to it. OUCH! Anyway I’m getting off track here. We’ve got some pretty strong operators here but come on now, we don’t’ have any Zues’s working here…. or do we? Hercules was half man half god son of Zeus. Maybe we was immortal too? Oh my gosh we could have Hercules working for us! That would explain the twisted wrenches! Maybe he can catch the mouse! He did beat that snake headed monster lady thing way back when... and snakes eat mice. Hercules if you are reading this email please help us catch our pest!!!

But until Hercules comes out of his hiding spot……PUT THINGS BACK WHERE THEY BELONG!!!! That would be great. Thanks.

Judd Zimmerman
Bearings Graveyard Teamlead

Tonsils Schmonsils

2011-02-05T21:21:00.002-07:00

So, I forgot to post this... Probably because it ended up being a semi-disaster, and I spent the next few weeks taking care of three kids who were either sick or doped up. These are all before pictures from when Judd had his tonsils taken out a couple weeks before Thanksgiving (I wish I took after photos, but things were a tad hectic). It is supposed to be a quick in and out, hour long surgery, which was not the case here. It was a 3 hour long surgery and we spent the rest of the day in the hospital... Turns out (they told me when I came to get him) that he had stopped breathing when they gave him Morphine at the end of surgery. He is either a) super sensitive to morphine or b) was given too large of a dose. They had to give him Narcan http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naloxone , basically this bumps the Morphine off of the pain receptor sites, leaving him with no pain killer in his system. We spent the rest of the day trying to get his blood pressure down from 200/160. They gave him multiple meds one after the other, but it still wouldn't come down. After spending about 8 hours in the hospital we were finally released with the warning to return if his blood pressure didn't return to normal within the next few hours. (I have a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope at home... I know... I know.. I'm weird.) It finally started coming down that night, and was normal by the end of the next night.
Judd spent the next two weeks eating (slurping) Jello. He lost a good 15 pounds, MAN what a great diet!! Not to worry though, he put it all back on plus some as soon as he could wrap his grubby little paws around some Costa Vida.

A picture is worth....

2011-01-30T20:46:00.001-07:00

A new sweater.

Baby got back

2011-01-13T23:11:00.004-07:00

Alternative title for this post *I like big butts and I cannot lie.

Would you look at that gigantic tush? Good heavens, you would think he was half Jabba the Hut. All I can say is that he gets it from his dad.

He doesn't like the feeling of his knees on the floor, so he "crawls" like this a lot of the time.

Bowl throwing at its finest

2011-01-12T23:41:00.004-07:00

If I only knew that all they needed was a blue plastic solo bowl to make them this happy I could have saved a wad of cash on their Christmas presents. Maybe I'll skip birthday presents this year and get them some plastic plates and what the heck, I might even throw in some plastic cutlery.... To be a kid again would be nice wouldn't it? Where your only worries consisted of getting to the "good kickball" before the other kids at recess, and making sure your troll dolls were properly outfitted.

For those of you who miss Christmas.....

2011-01-12T23:18:00.004-07:00

I forgot to post this. Kennedy wouldn't have anything to do with the Jolly ol' Saint Nick, luckily they had a horse she could sit on instead.

Christmas

2011-01-02T22:26:00.003-07:00

They say that the more kids you get, the less pictures you take. I think that is true, as much as I don't want it to be. Sadly I eeked out the Christmas season with only a few pictures to show for it. BUT I did take a WHOLE lot of video :)

This is Levi surrounded by my moms collection of Christmas bears. He was trapped by his cousin Jameson... Easy target I guess. He didn't seem to mind.

Um... What is going on? What are these things you are making me unwrap? Can I go back to bed now? Honestly, you people are weird.

This picture doesn't do the Roy City lights any justice. They are so amazing, every branch on every tree is lit.

I'm sure people were looking at me funny when I was taking a picture of the under side of the tree, but I think it's pretty :)

Kennedy and Levi dressed in their new Christmas PJ's. Kennedy walked around the whole night rubbing her jammies and saying "I have soft jammies on"

Graham cracker houses

2010-12-24T13:03:00.004-07:00

It's that time of year again when the Watson family gets together and makes graham cracker houses. Mostly we just eat the candy (check out Ted in the background) and talk, but we did manage to make some pretty sweet creations (literally).

Paige and Kyle

Brays Reindeer

This is Paige and Kyles creation. I have to say it is my favorite.

My little cottage.

Reindeer poop... I am so juvenile

Julia, Ted, Sara and Jessica came out from Virginia to visit. It was so nice to see them. Here is Levi with Julia.

A few pictures from Thanksgiving

2010-12-12T15:26:00.004-07:00

Justin and Liz were nice enough to invite the whole Zimmerman family over to their new house for Thanksgiving dinner. We ate, chatted, played games (those of us who can stand games....Not Justin), the little ones watched a Christmas movie and tore the house apart, all in all it was a great day!

My mom is old.

2010-12-08T21:21:00.003-07:00

I planned a birthday party for my mom a few weeks ago. My sister Lillian was visiting for Thanksgiving and it seemed like a good idea at the time.... Until mom got sick, and a bunch of guests were snowed in.
Regardless, we had a good time with family. I made a pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing I call it a "chalkboard cake" for my mom who is a 5th grade teacher.

Uncle Andrew with Kennedy, Jocelyn, and Charlotte who is 2 days younger than Levi, but is half his size.

Jeremy, Elena, Kaia, and Jamison are all saying "I'm making a mess" as per my request :)

Playing games with the fam... Sorry Ryan, I had to put this picture in... I couldn't resist it since you look like a giant, clothed praying mantis.
Here is the cake! I made the apple, books, and the chalk out of fondant, the border is Twix and raspberry sticks (which made cutting the cake a bit of a chore) But it was sooo good.

And this is Lillian's masterpiece.

A little Christmas cheer.

2010-12-01T19:21:00.004-07:00

Unfortunately this is rapidly becoming a family tradition to do this....

Pet Cemetery?

2010-11-23T11:49:00.004-07:00

I meant to post these pictures at Halloween, but obviously I am a little behind lately... This miniature graveyard is on the side of a house in Clinton Utah. If I was bored enough I would have actually counted how many crosses there are, but I am guessing that there are well over 50 of these little wooden crosses. Things that make you go hmmmm? This is a year round sight, not just up for Halloween (I took this picture in July).

I assume that these people either have really bad luck with pets, or they are ahem.... psycho.

So glad they aren't my neighbors!

Halloween and stuff.

2010-11-03T14:02:00.004-06:00

So this blog is a little late, messy, and a combination of a few things. That seems to be the way my life has been lately... A little late, crazy and a mess of different things. Andrew and I ran the Halloween half marathon, and despite our legs being out of commission for a week, we both decided that we were up for more punishment and registered for the Salt Lake Marathon in April. I have done 7 half's, and never have my legs felt so awful after a race. I'm thinking that this is due to the steep down grade of the race. Here are a few pictures of our costumes.

Kennedy and Levi dressed as glow in the dark skeletons for Halloween. Kennedy did her first round of official "trick or treating" and loved it! I'm so glad that she forgot about that pumpkin full of candy that sits up in our cupboard.... She was obsessed with it for a few days. We have pictures of them dressed up somewhere, but I can't seem to find them.

Judd finally had his tonsils out last Friday. He is still stuck in bed most of the time, but that will be over soon. Poor guy can't eat anything and I am pretty sure he has lost a good 15 pounds. If only all diets were that easy ;)

My book is still not in print... I have an investor who wants to foot the bill to print, but I would really like to find a publisher so that I don't have to worry about distribution/sales/marketing etc... So no book for now.

An ode to my friend.

2010-10-07T20:01:00.007-06:00

Although you have only been in my life for five years, it feels like you have always been there. I'll miss you, but I know that your life in New York will be an amazing adventure.

These are a few of the reasons I adore you (I couldn't possibly list them all.... Just not enough time)

1- You order your food in Japanese when we go out for sushi.
2- The laugh you get when you really think something is funny...
3- Your ability to make friends wherever you go.
4- Best white chop stick user I have ever seen ;)
5- You are SO generous.
6- You have THE most amazing singing voice.
7- Best roommate EVER!
8- You can just tell when I am not OK.
9- Because you like random
10- Because tennis is your middle name... I think.
11- You are so strong and stoic in the face of adversity.
12- You always try to make others feel welcome.

13- You have an extensive disco-skating wardrobe, and you aren't afraid to flaunt it.
14- Just because you are you.
I miss you already. Although our lives have already taken different paths, just know that I am immensely grateful for your friendship. I would not be the person I am today with out you. You have always been there when I needed to talk, or a shoulder to cry on.

I made my cake... And ate it too.

2010-10-04T13:36:00.004-06:00

As promised, here are pictures of the cake I made for my 28th birthday. I guess there is some rule out there floating around which states "a person can not make their own cake". Well I have never been one to concern myself much with rules, besides I wanted to make it!
I did a chocolate cake with butter cream frosting, and my very first try at fondant.
I have to say that I love fondant! It's like playing with play doh... Only fondant tastes better.
This is my version of a "hobby cake". Complete with mountain bike, racing bib and finish line, stethoscope, band aid, lacrosse stick, fish, and fishing pond. The fishing pole has real fishing line on it :)

I had a ton of fun making it and I can't wait for a reason to make the next one.

Long Over Due

2010-09-10T10:50:00.018-06:00

Yes, this blog is long over due... But in all fairness, I have been busy.

First off, our computer decided that it was done with this life and hopped on over to the other side to computer heaven. We didn't get a new one until today.

Levi is now almost 5 months old, and the size of Kennedy when she was a year old... After all his favorite thing to do is eat, and he does it A LOT. I'll post some pictures of him so you can see all the wonderful chub :)

Here is a picture of the kids doing what they do most often... Levi drooling and Kennedy Jumping. I swear that girl has pogo sticks for legs, remember those? She is always jumping.

Kennedy turned 2 :(. We had a Curious George party for her. I made my very first "non-rectangular" cake, and I have to say it looked and tasted amazing, I thought that I got a picture of it when it was all done, but I didn't. This was before I put George and the other monkeys on. She made out in the gift department, basically she got spoiled rotten. We got her one of those play kitchens, complete with pots and pans that make boiling/frying noises. Now she cooks dinner with her plastic food while I am cooking, unfortunately sometimes both dinners come out tasting the same.

I painted the house. Literally. I just couldn't stand how sad and dreary looking it was. It looked like a slightly under decorated haunted house. I have to say that our house is much more inviting now.

BEFORE

AFTER

Our bathroom is FINISHED! This was the very last room in the house which needed to be conquered. And conquer we did. We did hang a mirror after I took these pictures, but eh, I'm too lazy to take more pictures.
I will let the BEFORE and AFTER pictures speak for themselves.

BEFORE

AFTER

I started school again. It takes so much longer to do school when things like cooking dinner, changing diapers, laundry, changing more diapers, and doing more laundry get in the way. I should have been done with my BS (Love that it's called this :O) degree 2 years ago, but I took a much needed detour into motherhood. Only 6 more classes and I will be done, so look for a graduation announcement about 3 years from now.

Judd and I are now the proud owners of a fishing license. My dad left his little farm in Montana for a couple days to come down and take me fishing. I packed both kids with me, and even though you could hear the kids for miles away, and Kennedy spent most of the day wading through the water, we still managed to catch our limit. Judd caught his VERY FIRST FISH. Yea, the man is almost 30 years old and had never caught a fish. The look on his face was priceless, I felt as if I were looking at a 6 year old boy reeling in his first catch. We spend most of our free time fishing now, Judd has become addicted.
Our first fishing trip. Judd: one. Leslie: seven. :)

Judd's first fish!!!

My dad finished the illustrations for the children's book I wrote. Planning on getting it published, hopefully by Christmas, but who knows how long it will really take. Here is one of the finished pictures.

I have been training for a few half marathons. Last weekend my brother and I ran 10 miles through Provo canyon. Here is a picture of us after... He died along the way, it was nice to finally beat him at something (not that I am competitive or anything) I ran my first half marathon since having Levi, and I can't say that I was super happy with the time of 1:58.... Almost 20 minutes slower than my normal time. Oh well, wish me luck on the next one and hopefully I don't putter out and die... at least not until I cross the finish.

All in all things are going well here at the Zimmerman house.

Recent Life

2010-07-01T11:44:00.003-06:00

Sorry I have not posted lately. We had our camera stolen so there was a period of time where we didn't have one :( BOO. But, on the bright side, we now have a new one. and here are some of the recent pictures of our kiddos.
I made the slide show weird. If you want to see the pictures and the captions then you should click on "view all images"

Levi Cole Zimmerman

2010-05-13T10:52:00.006-06:00

Levi Cole decided to make his late appearance after two weeks of contractions at 7 pounds 11 ounces and 20 inches long. Luckily the active labor was a WHOLE LOT faster. According to Judd (I wasn't really paying attention to the clock) it only took about 3 minutes of pushing and the little guy was out..... Now if only the weeks following would go by as quickly :)... One can only hope right? Levi is now over a week old and he is doing well. Here are some pictures of him.
Little tree frog

I was sick and had pink eye... So much fun!
Giving "bruhver Wevi" hugs :)
The family

Look at that giant big toe! So cute.
I would be mad too.

Baby Shower

2010-05-13T10:44:00.003-06:00

I am a little bit late posting this, but you'll all forgive me right? I have a really good excuse, I promise ;). Mistee and Jana (my two amazing running partners) threw me a shower about a month ago. We went to Los Hermanos.... MMMMMM. And I was spoiled rotten. Here are a few pictures.

Out for a Walk

2010-04-22T09:08:00.002-06:00

Kennedy and I went for a walk the other day, and saw this wonderful little jewel, thought I would share. It was tied to a barren looking tree. I think that it speaks for itself. It fits in great with this site called Passive Aggressive Notes... Take a look, they are FUNNY :) http://www.passiveaggressivenotes.com/

For my blog stalker Katie:

2010-04-01T14:07:00.005-06:00

Hmmph :( How did she get so big?

Giving daddy "bonks"

Peach yogurt anyone? I walked out of the room for a second and this is what happened. I think it was her way of protesting that I had left :). The picture doesn't do the mess justice, it was EVERYWHERE.

We went to feed the ducks at BYU the other day with my nephew Jameson. We discovered that they aren't big fans of stale Triscuts, and that Zesta crackers make for a good meal for both the ducks and Kennedy.

MMMMM... Saltine crackers. She didn't quite get that she was supposed to give the crackers to the ducks and not eat them.

Chasing the ducks :)

More chasing of the ducks. She LOVED it. She ran around pointing at them and quacking like a duck.

Goldfish.... Great for what ails ya.

Laying on mom.

32 weeks prego. Kennedy thinks I'm comfy :)

Wearing dads shoes

Our new toy!!!! I sold my single running stroller (which I will miss dearly) and we got a double wide :) It has attachments for running and for biking so we will be doing a lot of both this summer! I can't wait to RUN.

"Swim-eeem Swim-eem" Kennedy's new favorite word. We go at least twice a week to the indoor pool at the rec center. She loves wearing her "swim soup" and I love seeing how excited she gets... Everybody wins :)

This about sums up my pregnancy....

2010-03-14T10:50:00.002-06:00

Heart Attack

2010-03-10T12:32:00.002-07:00

So I got a novel in the mail last week from T Mobile. I was thinking that it was just a very in depth explanation of our service, but when I opened it, this is what I found.... A BILL for 872.84!!!! I have never seen such a high phone bill, this is about how much it would cost for a whole year of service. Anyway, after having a mini-stroke I called them and got it all straightened out. Turns out that they messed up our "unlimited text" feature, so we were charged for EVERY single text.... And we text A LOT.

Colors

2010-03-08T18:36:00.002-07:00

I have been wanting to record this for a while, but I never seem to have my camera handy. She has a stuffy nose so she sounds a tad funny. Enjoy!

Random pictures

2010-03-01T09:11:00.007-07:00

We took Kennedy swimming at the Rec center the other day. We have taken her a few times before, but she wasn't really old enough to enjoy it. It is so fun watching her grow and learn. Her favorite part of swimming... Playing in the lockers after we were all done. She really hated when Judd would go underwater, it scared her a bit.

Swimming with dad. I would put a picture of Kennedy and I but Leslie + pregnant = Not a pretty picture ;)

At Discovery park.

Helping dad, she loves to tag along with her dad.

Looking all chewed up at 28 weeks.... Why didn't someone tell me I look so old and tired?

Helping mom coach YW basketball.... Actually, she just donated some slobber for the whistle. She loves going to the games, but HATES the buzzer. She cries every time it goes off.

Her new trick- Climbing up the oven. A nightmare for any mother, especially now that she has figured out how to hold herself up with one hand while reaching on top of the stove with the other.

Hiking in the snow :)

I have CABIN FEVER!!! Any time it is sunny I try to get outside and go for a hike with Kennedy. I get some funny looks packing Kennedy through the snow at 7+ months pregnant. I really can't wait for the summer, and I am so excited that I won't be pregnant through the whole thing like I was with Kennedy. My running shoes and my bike have been calling my name...
Judd is getting ready for bike racing season, he has cabin fever just about as bad as me.

Just a cute picture.

Not too happy about being in the snow, but she looks cute :)

That's all for now. Sorry I am such a slacker with the blog thing.

Our Bathroom is.... FINISHED.

2010-01-29T12:51:00.004-07:00

Ok, so these first pictures are of the main bathroom because we forgot to take before pictures of the master bath. So imagine something 10 times worse when you look at these pictures and that is what the master bath looked like.

BEFORE

AFTER

It's so nice to finally have a nice bathroom. Judd did everything! My favorite part is the tile shower which is actually larger than what the picture makes it seem.

Animal Sounds... Because I Like Them.

2010-01-19T17:55:00.003-07:00

Because I Love Pictures...

2010-01-19T17:24:00.004-07:00

Kennedy giving her big dog a hug.

Who knew Scattergories could be so fun? Well, if you have dirty minds like my in laws it can. :]

Kennedy loves to wear her bike helmet EVERYWHERE... She even gets a little bugged when you take it off.

I HATE that she can get on the table. I think she loves that I hate it.

Playing Peek-a-boo behind the curtains

K and dad.

Christmas

2009-12-30T14:11:00.004-07:00

My idea plus Judd's craftiness. We made these for the Cara and Grandma Z, plus one for us :) Gone are the days of randomly floating Christmas cards throughout the house or cluttering the piano.

Playing in Nana's Christmas bears.

Dad and Kennedy, both wearing new Christmas presents. Kennedy got PJ's that say I love dad and a pair that say I love mom.

Checking out cousin Chloe's present.

Toys GALORE

A new apron for mom. I also got a mixer and a rolling pin to add to my arsenal of kitchen tools.

Santa

2009-12-30T13:57:00.002-07:00

At the ward Christmas party with our neighbor Kwin.

After seeing Santa. Needless to say I think that he scared her just a little. Before she got a foot away she had her feet kicking in the air and was screaming bloody murder... Ah the things we subject our children to...

The reason that our tree was only decorated on the top half by the time Christmas rolled around.

Graham Cracker Houses

2009-12-30T13:37:00.002-07:00

My masterpiece... Well, not quite. I got sick of mine falling over so I made a "labrynth" I was going to put a tight wearing David Bowie at the end but none of the jelly beans made the cut. His tights are hard to fill.

Judds house. He only took about 10 minutes to make this, where mine took about 4 times that and it looks like a 6 year old did it.

We do this as a family every year at Christmas time. The best part by far is eating the candy.

The nephews

Kennedys first ever graham cracker house. I may have helped her on all of it, but there is no proof of that.

Just a Month Late....

2009-12-30T13:25:00.003-07:00

A few pictures from Thanksgiving... I know I am a tad behind on this but oh well...

Kennedy covered in yuck and enjoying her crackers.
THE most complicated game in the world.
We had Thanksgiving at the church with about 30 family members.
G & G Zimmerman
Hair? What's wrong with my hair?
Cousin Jocelyn and her olives :)

Food glorious food! It was sooooo good! Thanks Natasha for setting everything up.

I'm right! No... No, I AM RIGHT. NO! I am right... Looks like they are in a heated debate, really just waiting for the food :)

Math

2009-12-05T13:00:00.004-07:00

143 pairs of socks

56 pairs of gloves

104 knit hats

20 scarves

22 infant clothes

74 sweaters

25 winter coats

7 snow suits

40 toddler clothes

3 blankets

38 teen clothes

BOXES

$1,200.xx

Afghani Children

A little help from friends

Patience

Warm and happy kids in Afghanistan.

*Pictures coming soon*

Useless Information

2009-11-21T15:15:00.002-07:00

I borrowed my moms treadmill for the winter so I don't have to drag myself out into the cold to run.

I HATE the cold. Let's move someplace eternally warm.

Kennedy pretends to talk on the phone if she sees one or if one rings. She puts the back of her hand to her ear and babbles. It's so cute.

Kennedy is pretty darn good at hide and seek. She'll find a book, sit down in a corner and silently flip through pages while I frantically shuffle around the house looking for her.

It's usually not a good thing if I don't hear her making noise... This usually means that she is doing something she is not supposed to.

Judd is almost done with our master bathroom!!!! I'll post pictures when it's all finished.

It took me 2 days to rake the front and back yard. Not because I am slow. Can I cut the trees down?

I want a dog, no a cat. no dog. cat. dog. I can never make up my mind. When I do I think about scooping poop and I quickly change to not wanting any animal. Too bad there aren't poop-less animals, after all they have hairless ones.

I miss my power steering. It's been out for 2 months. It's a killer trying to park at the university.

We should own stock in Home Depot. We have spent WAY too much there.

AT&T is a rip off. Magic Jack is great, 20 dollars a year and you can call free long distance and international to anyone who has a Magic Jack.

I am going to run a full marathon this next summer... If I don't die trying.

Life changes too quickly. I wish there was a rewind. It's so easy to take things for granted until they are gone.

My neighbor has chickens and gives us fresh eggs every week, how cool is that?

If I could have any talent, I would like to be an amazing chef.

That's all for this installment of useless information.

Halloween

2009-11-04T14:08:00.005-07:00

Our little bumble bee :)

I took Q-tips and colored them black them hot-glued yellow puff balls onto the ends to make her antennae

I also made my costume..... I was supposed to be a flower.... Get it? A bumble bee and a flower... Anyway, my pedals were a little limp so I looked more like a clown than a flower.... Oh well, I knew what I was.

Lady Gaga stopped by.

I didn't ask, but I'm pretty sure that Amber was a punk rocker? Don't hate me if I'm wrong.

Chad was a bar code. He made this costume himself, which is very impressive considering I could't get Judd within 10 feet of putting on a costume.

Amber made Conners little monkey costume

Sidewalk Chalk

2009-11-04T14:05:00.001-07:00

She got more chalk on her bum and in her mouth than she did on the sidewalk.

Take a Hike

2009-11-04T13:58:00.003-07:00

Fun. Hiking. Pictures.
Here is one of Kennedy pulling Judds hair..... So funny :)

I love the Fall... So many beautiful colors.

Playing in the rocks.... Like usual.

The Big 2. 7.

2009-10-04T17:15:00.004-06:00

After Danes home coming Judds parents, Cara, Travis, Chloe and Abbie came over for some cake and ice cream to celebrate my 27th. Cara made the cake and it was D- licious :) Here are a few pictures...
I can't get Judd to NOT stick out his tongue in pictures.

Uncle Trav being over-run by little girls. (Doesn't he look sooooo excited?)

There are way too many candles on that cake.

Little Mess Maker

2009-10-04T17:12:00.002-06:00

Kennedy likes to eat leaves.....

Lots and lots of leaves.

Playing with dads climbing ropes in the back yard.

The aftermath of Kennedy digging through every last piece of fabric I own :) She looks so innocent doesn't she?

She loves to stand on her head... I guess Judd did that a lot when he was a kid. Maybe it is hereditary?

Utah State Fair

2009-10-02T23:12:00.007-06:00

Kennedy and I went to the Utah State Fair with my sister Camille and her sons. It was so much fun! They had sharks, a live bear show, and tons of exhibits to see.... But the best part was "Little hands on the farm".

You go into a "barn" and put on a teeny apron and grab a basket. As you go through the farm there are successive buildings with different activities...
ie; you take corn to a (plastic) mooing cow and then milk (water) the cow. In return they give you a bottle of milk.

You pick apples from a tree, plant seeds in a garden, pick vegetables, gather wooden eggs from fake chickens, collect wool from a sheep etc...

Petting the sheep :)

And at the end you trade all of the things you have collected in return for a fake dollar.
They have a little store set up at the end where you can buy any one thing with your dollar. Kennedy had so much fun, but I think next year she might like it a little more, and maybe she won't be afraid of the chickens :)

OK, so I look like I am going to eat someone, but I was really being a newscaster :)

Watching the Bear show.