My attempt at taking pictures of our zany boy

Last week I decided it was really time to take some more pictures of our sweet little boy. Well it's not so easy anymore. He'd be right where I wanted him so I'd snap a shot and by the time the picture actually was taken, he'd be half way across the room. Okay that's an exaggeration, but that's what it felt like. I'm not used to him being so fast! He really wanted the camera. Unfortunately for him, he did not get his way:) Maybe I'll have to get him a pretend one. 

He is crawling like a champ! He loves cruising around using furniture for support, but he's not all that interested in walking yet. Whenever we try to practice with him he just collapses his legs. But he did stand up by himself for a second yesterday. I loved the look on his face! I could tell that it was a strange feeling for him. Slowly but surely he is making progress. Don't worry, it doesn't stop him from getting into everything! Last week Brad babyproofed the cupboards and drawers in the kitchen by putting those latch things on them. Landon was throwing fits for a couple of days when he realized he couldn't open them because he had loved opening the drawers and cupboards and emptying them out. We are mean parents, aren't we?! 

We thought he was ready to switch over to one nap a day, but after trying it for five days, we decided he's not quite ready. He was so sleepy by lunch and dinner that he would hardly eat. He would just fuss and rub his eyes. And he wasn't sleeping as soundly at night. So back to two naps a day. 

We just love this little boy to pieces. It tugs at my heart when he waves and says "Daaad" (I'm trying to teach him mom, but I think it's adorable the way he says dad:)).  I can't believe he's getting into the toddler stage. Everyday I just think about how I need to capture these moments because they move to the next stage so quickly. I love when he reaches his little hands up to my face pulls me to look at him. It reminds me to be in the moment and enjoy the present. Kids are so good at that. I am learning from him all the time.

Family Pictures August 2011

Back in the middle of August we had some family pictures taken. With the move and everything I got too busy to post them. Well I'm finally getting around to it, but I must warn you...I'm posting lots of pictures! Narrowing things down was never my forte. So lots and lots of pictures for your viewing pleasure:) These  pictures were taken by my friend Bethany Cook, back in Twin Falls. Her business is called Set in Time Photography. I've always been very happy with her work. She does a great job!

Getting Settled

We've been here in Peoria for just over two weeks and so far we are liking it. It took forever for us to finally get someone out here to set up our internet so that's why it's taken me so long to get around to an update. We like the home we are renting a lot and we are slowly but surely getting it organized the way we like it. At least it's functional for the most part at this point. It has a nice big family room in the basement which we have used a lot for storing stuff as we've been settling in and for Landon to have a lot of room to crawl around and explore. It's going to be our exercise/craft/play/TV room. We already bought a table and set up my sewing machine on it last night. Now no more excuses for me! The basement also has a decent sized laundry room with a fair amount of shelving (which I'm using to store most of our food since the kitchen is quite small). There's also a basement bathroom and a room that could potentially be a small storage room. It is a very creepy room that we are worried about flooding so everything is going to have to be in plastic bins since there is no shelving. Anyway, the main floor has three same-sized bedrooms and a bathroom, a living room area that leads right into the dining area, and then a pretty small kitchen. It's all hard wood flooring upstairs except in the kitchen and bathroom, which are tile. Landon's had some pretty good head bonks as he's gotten used to the floors. There is also a detached two car garage. One of the garage doors opens manually and it likes to come off its tracks. The day after we moved in it came down and was like an inch from smashing into the back window of the Corolla. We'll keep our fingers crossed for upgraded garage doors soon. 

We've met our neighbors on both sides of our home and they are very nice and friendly. One of the couples is newlyweds and I think they are close to our age so we'll probably be good friends with them. We've already been to a couple of get togethers with the ward and everyone has been very friendly and helpful. It seems like a very organized ward and I feel like it will be pretty easy for us to get involved. It's so nice to have people take you under their wing when you move to a new place and we really feel like that is how it is here. 

The move went fairly well, thanks to my parents coming to help us out for a few days. As any parent knows, trying to pack with a busy one year old is not very efficient. So with the time crunch we were under, my parents were life savers. My mom pretty much cleaned the whole house by herself while I was packing odds and ends and it looked great by the time we left. So we can thank my mom for us getting our deposit back! And my dad had the yard looking better than ever by the time we left. Plus they both helped with the packing, taking care of Landon, getting food on the table, etc. So thanks Mom and Dad! Couldn't have done this without your help.

And then my sister-in-law Megan was a sweetheart and drove out here with us since Brad was driving the U-haul, towing the car, and I was driving the van. She took care of Landon during the drive and even drove for a few hours. It made the drive go so smoothly considering that we had a one year old. Then once we got here she tended Landon a lot so we could get our house put together. She's a natural born nurturer and knew right when to pitch in. Plus she was great company. She might just be the sweetest person I've ever met. I'm glad we got to spend some time together because she leaves on her mission this week. She will do great work in Canada. Thank you, thank you, Megan! I couldn't have asked for a better person to come out here with us!

I really couldn't have made it without some assistance because it seemed like one thing after another kept happening. First I had a sinus and ear infection, so I got on some antibiotics because I knew I needed a quick recovery for the move. Then I noticed I had developed a painful cyst on my knee (I had my dad check this out, but it will have to be surgically removed if I ever want to take up kneeling again:)). Then I acquired a case of hot tub folliculitis from my in-law's new hot tub which I understand is not uncommon with new hot tubs. This showed up the day before we left Twin Falls. This bacteria seemed to be resistant to the antibiotic I was already on because I still got a pretty decent rash. And the bacteria decided to take up residency in my heel (random, I know). Any pressure on my heel was quite painful so I couldn't put much weight on my heel for a couple of days. I got started on another antibiotic for this (fortunate to have a podiatrist for a dad!) and it improved pretty rapidly. But little did I know that I am highly sensitive to Bactrim, a sulfa-based antibiotic. So after a week of taking it I started feeling sick to my stomach and was having severe cramps and muscle aches and basically felt like I had the flu. Then the next day I broke out with a rash which kept spreading and ended up with me being red from my ears to the bottoms of my feet. Once I noticed the rash I headed into an urgent care center here and sure enough I was having a pretty intense reaction to the antibiotic. I had every side effect on the list, including no appetite (which rarely happens to me), nausea, neck pain, aching joints and muscles, hot flashes, chills, rash from head to toe, upset stomach. So I started taking regular doses of Benadryl for a few days (which meant that I had to wean Landon abruptly...just a morning and evening feeding to cut out, but kind of sad for me) and had a prescription strength cream for the rash. I basically just had to rest for a few days while I waited for my body to flush it out. As much as you can rest when you have a one year old in a house that's not yet baby-proofed. It was too bad that I got sick just as Megan was leaving. There were a few rough days, but with Brad's help it didn't get too crazy around here. It's times like that that make me appreciate the days when I feel pretty good and have enough energy to take on projects. So now I know...no more sulfa drugs for me! Oh, and dare I mention that my debit card got scammed and I lost my cell phone off the top of the van the week before we left? Hey at least we got cool new phones out of it:)

We are getting into a good routine. Brad asked me to come up with a workout program for him since he sits at a desk 8+ hours a day. I love seeing him workout! Plus he's my first client so it's good practice for me:). Brad works second shift so I'm contemplating finding work as a personal trainer during the day when he can be home with Landon. I have a second interview this week with a cool small gym that focuses mainly on strength training. I feel like it could be a very good thing for us so here's hoping something comes from this second meeting. If not, I'll apply at some of the bigger gyms. I don't want a lot of hours. I'm thinking like 10-12 hours a week would be doable. We'll see how it works out. Brad supports me in it and I feel like the timing is right if I want to do something with this personal training certification I worked so hard to get.  

Well now, this has turned into one loooong post. Sorry to bore you. Lots to catch up on. I'm excited to go to the Nauvoo Temple tomorrow. I've never been to a session there so I'm really looking forward to it. Okay I'm done. This post is coming to a close, I promise. 

 One last visit with family at Aunt Brenda's before the move. Isn't my sister just gorgeous?! She obviously got all the olive skin genes:) LOVE her!

 Aunt Megan tending Landon in the basement. She spent many hours down here with him. What a trooper she is! He was obsessed with putting this green wheel thing from a cereal box in his mouth. Silly boy! 

Good luck to Megan with her final mission preparations! 

We're Moving!

Guest Blogger: Brad

I figured since I am the one moving our family that I would post the story.

So back in April of this year I took the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam at Idaho State University. I passed! So in May when I found out I passed I felt like I should update my resume on my Monster.com account. I had also recieved an email from Monster telling me that I hadn't used my account for 1 year. So I updated my resume that night and the next morning I recieved a phone call from a staffing agency out of Boston. He told me he was looking for someone with experience in Unigraphics NX (a common CAD program used in engineering). He said he found my resume online and sure enough I had what he was looking for. He said he was going to pass my name along to the company he was recruiting for and that I could expect to hear from them in 1-3 weeks. Well, the phone call never came. I heard from the staffing agency about 6 weeks later telling me that the company was moving their headquarters from Indiana to Chicago. They were tight on their budget so it turned out that it wouldn't be until October or November that they would be hiring again. I was a little bummed since I really wanted to start my engineering career. I was enjoying my time at Jamba Juice, but my personality was not fitting the business mold needed to do a really good job. If you've met me before you know that I am not the social bug. I am an engineer. I would love to design equipment and do complicated math rather than socialize at a party or whatever the situation may be.

Anyway, back to my story. The staffing agency told me they had two other jobs that would fit my qualifications and that they would like to try and get me some more interviews. The first came quickly. It was a job in Connecticut with a semiconductor company (ASML). On a scale of 1-10, 1 being the easiest interview and 10 being the hardest, this was a ten. I was sweating bullets as they grilled me and my education. When it ended I felt like crying becuase of the feeling of failure. I wondered, maybe I didn't get the best education, maybe I am not cut out for engineering? Thoughts of doubt wouldn't leave my mind. It was a rough night's sleep. The next morning I got another call from the staffing agency telling me that ASML thought I did a remarkably good job on the interview and that they were seriously considering me for the position (my jaw hit the ground). I was beyond shocked. I didn't get a job offer though. They found another candidate in New Jersey that could go there for a face to face interview and it was easier for them to hire locally. I was really bummed again, but I had another job interview coming up that I had to prepare for.

Kress Corporation located in Peoria, Illinois was looking for a mechanical engineer that could start soon and catch on quickly. I knew I could do the job and after hearing that I did well on the previous interview, my confidence waxed strong (I try :) ). This interview ranked a 4 on toughness and after the other interview I was well prepared. I got the job offer and accepted.

So, after this long story, you now know that Shanna, Landon, and I are moving to Peoria, Illinois. It is going to be a great move for our little family. Shanna and I couldn't be happier about this opportunity. We are both going to miss Twin Falls, Jamba Juice, and being close to our families, but we know that this is where we are supposed to be moving.

When I graduated in April, 2010, the economy was still recovering and jobs were difficult to come across. I have been so grateful for the opportunity I've had to work at Jamba Juice with my brother-in-law. I have learned some great skills while at Jamba. One of the best skills I gained was solving concerns among my employees. It is so important to have a strong team and be able to work well together. These management skills I have gained will benefit me for the rest of my life. I have also learned a lot about myself. I know better now who I am and I've gained some self confidence. I have never regretted my decision to join the Jamba Team and will take these skills and many more with me as we move forward in my engineering career.

I grew up in Madison, Wisconsin which is about 4 hours north of Peoria. I am excited to be going back to the Midwest. We have already found a place to live and have made multiple contacts with our new ward (it's actually a really cool story that we will have to tell later).

Landon: Our 1 Year Old

Photos taken by Bethany Cook, Set in Time Photography

More to come!

Earlier this week I took Landon in for his 1 year checkup. The doctor said he is healthy, growing well, and developing normally. He weighed in at 20 lbs 2 oz and his height was 29.5 inches. He's on the smaller side, but the doctor said that his growth patterns look great.

He really likes feeding himself so I've been giving him a lot more of what we eat, just ripping it into small pieces. Sometimes he surprises me with how much he eats. Then other days, he just isn't all that interested. It's funny. He likes spicy foods and he adores yogurt. I'm in the process of weaning him from breastfeeding. Yesterday I cut out the last middle of the day nursing, so now I'm just down to a morning and an evening nursing session. It feels weird going that long without nursing! But he seems to be handling the transition just fine. It's hard for me to imagine the day when I won't nurse him at all. Hard to believe it's just around the corner. I'm going to miss that special bonding time that we get each day. I'll just have to find other ways to get it.

He still takes two naps a day and most of the time he sleeps great at night now. It was rough when his top front tooth was coming through, and then again when he was sick last week. But when he's feeling good and is well rested he sleeps well. Now if only I could get myself to go to bed early enough to feel well rested! (He gave me a few weeks where he slept in until 7:30 or 8:00 am, so I got out of the habit of going to bed early. Lately his wakeup time has been more like 6:15-6:45 am, regardless of what time I put him to bed. Actually when I put him to bed later he wakes up at 6 am! I don't get it. So I just put him to bed between 7:30 and 8:00 pm so I can have a breather in the evenings.)

Landon's been army crawling for the last couple of months. He's gotten really good at it. Just the last couple of weeks he's been starting to try a little regular crawling. Each day he does it a little bit more. So I made sure to take one last video clip of his cute army crawl before he stops doing it. That's what is posted below. He's also become very proficient at pulling himself up to standing over the last couple of weeks. It's made it harder to get him to go to sleep because I lay him down and then he just pops right back up again. Last week when he discovered how much fun this new trick is, he took like 30-40 minutes to fall asleep for his naps for a couple of days while it usually takes him 10. But slowly the novelty of it seems to be wearing off so he's starting to fall asleep more quickly. I have to admit, he looks pretty cute standing there with a big grin, so proud of himself. Oh and now he is cruising along furniture, too. It seems like everything has just clicked recently for him with his gross motor skills. It's been fun to watch this whole learning process.

Did I mention that he is a super busy body and into anything and everything he can get his hands on? Sometimes I feel like my hands are tied when I'm trying to get anything done with this kiddo around. I didn't know how easy I had it for his first 9 months of life! I will definitely appreciate immobility a bit more with the next babe:)

My heart just melts when this little boy says anything that sounds close to "mom". It's usually something like, "mamamum". I'll take it! It seems like he's been saying "yeah" and "no", but it's hard to tell if he means anything or if he just likes the sounds.

I just love this little man to pieces. I can't imagine my world without him. His laugh just makes me so happy I want to cry! He has brought a whole new sense of purpose into my life. What a precious gift we've been given. I've learned so much about life and about myself as I've cared for him this past year. I'm sure he's going to teach me much more in the years to come!

Landon's 1st Birthday Party

Landon turned 1 on July 30th. I can hardly believe we have a 1 year old! We had a little birthday celebration for him a couple of weeks ago and I've been trying to get around to blogging about it since:) We also celebrated Teryl, my father in law's, birthday. It was fun for them to blow out the candles and open gifts together. I felt bad because we were all so caught up in watching Landon with the cake and candle, etc. that we forgot to say Teryl's name when we were singing! He was a good sport about it. I guess when you've had 29 birthdays, you've been sung to a lot:) We couldn't get many smiles out of Landon during the party because he got so distracted with all of the people and the decorations. He was still being cute as always (yes I am biased). It was a nice little family party. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate with us! We appreciate your support and it really made it a memorable day.

Here are many many pictures from the party. Sorry so many, I hate choosing pics. They are backwards in order because of how I uploaded them and my computer is being difficult and not letting me move them around. Oh well! Better to just get it posted than to wait for it to be perfect, right?!

Playing in the hose to clean off the cake and ice cream. He loves playing with the hose!

Brie, Ashlie, and Sophie. They are always fun to have at parties! Maylie, their big sister, was great, too. She blew up all the party balloons for me!

Landon and Grandpa Teryl blowing out the candle.

It was funny. Right after we got done singing, Ashlie came up from the side and blew the candle out for them! I have it on video and it was pretty cute. We lit it again for the guys to give it a try. Landon just stared at it:)

"What's that bright thing?"

Cutie-pie face!

Enjoying a gift, along with all the fun girls!

Family pic

Grandpa Teryl and Landon, The Birthday Boys

Family pic

Brad made a DVD of pictures and video from Landon's first year. Landon loved watching it!

Entranced by the show:)

Landon with Mommy

Chowing down on some dinner. He loved Grandma Roper's deviled eggs!

My first try at a decorative cake. Perfectly imperfect, right?! It's a monkey head, in case you can't tell:)

I made sure to take a picture soon after I frosted it just in case it fell apart. I wasn't too sure the ears would stay on, but thankfully they fared all right. The cake was pretty dense because I baked it in a Pyrex bowl and it took like 90 minutes to bake! It still tasted alright, just not as light and fluffy as the cupcakes. Thankfully we had lots of those because I doubled the cake recipe. We had lots of cake batter!

Landon liked the cake, but he wasn't too sure about ice cream!

Examining his "new" play table. Thankfully he's playing at it right now while I finish this blog post!