Off-Roading

How you can you explain the excitement, the joy, the whole feeling of being home for Christmas? I looked forward for a year to going home to Oklahoma for the holidays and spending time with family. As the time grew closer my excitement magnified and I could barely contain myself!

The drive was very long and the roads were slick. So slick in fact that as we were rounding a corner to enter a turnpike, our wheels just wouldn't have it. They decided to slip off the road and slide sideways down the dead grass, wet, icy, muddy, mushy, 20 feet steep hill! The car worked relentlessly to work its way back up this unforgiving hill in hopes to make it back on the not-so-kind road (for it would literally die if it missed the BYU bowl game.) After getting stuck a couple times, mud covering our car, and several attempts to 'gun' it up the hill, our car finally made its way to the top of the road, unharmed, yet with a new, darker appearance. Maybe it thought it was some sort of off-roading vehicle, made to defeat the rugged terrain!

We're still here in Oklahoma and don't want to go back to Tucson! Going home just means going back to work and waiting another 6 months for the baby to come.

Christmas Cheer

Mom, Cassie, Lisa, Kolby, Michelle

Last Christmas my mom was working part-time occasional in admissions at a hospital here in Oklahoma. She loved it because she pretty much got to choose when she worked and didn't work. Perfect for a mom putting herself back into the world of work after 27 years at home raising children. She still needed her freedom and time. Well, the Christmas schedule came out and of course she wasn't on it, though she felt bad for those who were. One particular lady who told she wouldn't have to work on Christmas, was indeed scheduled to work first thing Christmas morning. This may not seems as horrible as it was if you didn't consider she was a single mother of 2 little boys. In a frenzy she emailed everyone in the area she worked begging for a miracle. My mom's first thought was "Phew I'm glad it's not me that has to work!" But her conscience got the better of her. After consoling with my dad, they decided that my mom would offer to work for this woman Christmas Day. Since my 12 and 16 year old sisters, 21 year old brother, and dad were home, they also decided to take part in going to the hospital. They wanted to bring Christmas cheer to some of the patients there. They borrowed some elf costumes from some people in our ward, (which were actual costumes from the movie ELF) and went on their way with a guitar, songs, and goodies. They absolutely loved the experience and have decided to make this a tradition on Christmas morning. Thus, the pictures of the elves Christmas morning 2007!!!



Cassie and Michelle

Lisa and Kolby

Our Baby

Well I've been waiting for something exciting to happen so I could post again. Seems like the only exciting things going on around here are, well, nothing really. But I did go to the doctor today and I did get to see my little baby through the ultrasound! Now I realize this is not quite as exciting to you as it is to Richie and me. But here's what we saw.


The baby seems somewhat real now. The only thing that really felt different before was the constant (no not just morning) but continuous nausea. I am really enjoying it.
We got 3 pics, so why not share them all? Picture number 2:



Wow not much different hu? Well it is when you're watching it live! Yeah, we saw it moving its...can I call it arms and legs?...appendages I suppose may be a better description for now. It even turned a little, and we saw its little heart beating! Richie thinks it's a boy and keeps calling it "him" and "little dude." I really have no clue what it is, but I'm going to say girl so I have a 50% chance of being right and saying, "See! I told you! I knew it all along!" It feels so good to be right sometimes.
Here's the last picture. Thanks for reading!