The Ruffner Family

Birthoween 2011

2011-11-08T14:36:00.000-08:00

Anslie turned 4 this Halloween and it was by far the most fun birthday we have had yet! Not so much because we had a crazy party, although her party was great, or because we did anything super special. I just think that age 4 is really going to be wonderful with Anslie! It's no secret that Anslie and I have both struggled since she was born finding our groove and getting along. But something has happened over the last couple of months and I think we are both learning, growing, and changing. I have had so much fun with Anslie lately and watching her her enjoy Kevin and I spoiling her and making her feel special felt amazing! I think Anslie and I are both going to love age 4!

We started Anslie's birthday out with lots of pampering! I curled her hair, put makeup on her, and painted her finger and toe nails. Then we headed downstairs where Kevin had pink doughnuts waiting for us. We popped a candle in Anslie's and sang her happy birthday. Next up was pumpkin carving and painting. Both Anslie and Zachary liked the hands-on gooey mess! After we cleaned up, we took Anslie on a "shopping spree" and let her pick out a toy from Toys R Us. From there we went to the Pizza Factory for a delicious pizza and salad buffet and lots of arcade games. During Zac's nap, Anslie helped me make cupcakes and then she opened up her birthday gifts from the family. She got new clothes for her Barbies and baby dolls and a darling hair dresser's vanity complete with hair washing station, flat iron, and hair dryer. I think that was her favorite gift as she started in on all of our hair right away!

After a quick dinner we got everyone ready for Trick-or-Treating and headed on out! Both kids had a lot of fun and I think this was the first year that Anslie truly enjoyed herself! We only went around the block, but that was enough to fill the kids' baskets and we made it home in time to still be able to pass candy out to our own trick-or-treaters. Anslie and Zac took turns filling the kids' baskets and Anslie especially liked being able to tell some people to take what they wanted and selecting what candy she put in others' bags. Stinker. ;)

Anslie's birthday party was held the following weekend. We didn't have anything special planned. We just let the kids play in the backyard the majority of the time while the adults munched on goodies. The kids make their own pizzas and then scarfed the gorgeous cake I ordered from Leesa Booker. Seriously, I think the cake was my favorite part of Anslie's birthday! It was perfect for her princess-themed party!

I think the whole family enjoyed Anslie's birthday, especially her! I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to make her feel so very special, on her special day!

Look who we watched this week!

2011-08-02T20:51:00.000-07:00

Dexter is my friend's 8 week old Bichon Frise. We had the pleasure of his company this week while they were on vacation. Such a cute puppy! He brought a lot of joy to our home and gave us all a great puppy fix!

More Backyard Fun

2011-08-01T21:35:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned a few posts ago, we've been slowly accumulating backyard patio furniture. This weekend we added a picnic table!!! Those of you who know Kevin and I know that we are neither crafty nor handy but we have aspirations of becoming both. Kevin built this table himself with plans we found on www.ana-white.com. I'm so proud of him! He still has some sanding and finishing work to do, but the point is that we have a picnic table that only cost us $75 to build and now we can enjoy meals in the comfort of our own backyard! And not sitting on the ground!!! We will eventually make either two benches and two chairs or one bench and four chairs to go with it to complete the set, but until then we have our $8 plastic patio chairs from Target. Whatever works, right? And just for the fun of it, there's a few more pictures of my babies there too, just in case you forgot what they look like! :)

Farm Friends

2011-08-01T18:27:00.000-07:00

Anslie's little friend, Cassidy, had a birthday party a couple of weeks ago and at her party she invited some of her farm friends. Cassidy's grandma and grandpa have a farm with lots of animals and they brought a bunch to Cassidy's house for her guests to participate in a petting zoo in the backyard. Anslie loved all of the animals! There were a bunch of kids there Anslie's age, most of them girls, and they all loved carrying the chickens around. Cassidy's mom joked that the girls were carrying the chickens like they were accessories, living hand bags or something! Ha, ha! The girls had fun swapping the chickens around and comparing colors. So cute! Anslie's favorite chicken was of course the biggest one, which was made even more funny because she is by far the smallest of all of her friends!

Lots of Slideshows!

2011-08-01T15:09:00.000-07:00

We have had a very busy summer and pictures are worth 1,000 words, right? Here are a few slideshows of all of our summer-y adventures!

We actually washed our cars a couple times this summer! Of course the kids loved playing in the water!

We visited the Birch Aquarium in La Jolla for the first (and last) time...

I took the kids to the Wild Animal Park a couple of times...

We went to visit Kevin's family in Chicago where we:

*Went to Lego Land

*Went to the Chicago Children's Museum and Navy Pier

*Met up with some old friends at the park

*Celebrated Zachary's 1st birthday

*Had lots of fun in the sun with Grandma and Grandpa!

Zachary learned how to walk...and Kevin learned how to videotape...:)

And my cousin and her best friend stayed with us while auditioning for American Idol and had an 80's dance party with Anslie!

As you see, we've had quite a full summer! We have had ups and downs and lots of fun! And even though I have been horrible about updating this blog, I haven't actually missed a beat! Enjoy!!!

Beach Babies

2011-07-31T21:38:00.000-07:00

It's now nearing the end of summer and we haven't really had and official beach trip (meaning that we haven't set out for the day specifically packed and dressed to spend time at the beach). But we have spent quite a lot of time there in hourly patches. If any of you have followed my photography blog, then you know what a busy summer I've had! I was blessed to second shoot for some wonderful photographers, as well as book several of my own big events. I have learned and grown so much, sewn some wild oats, and discovered my limits. My work took me to San Diego most of the time so Kevin and I tried to make a day of it, even if the "day" consisted of a couple of hours beyond my job for us to spend time together at the beach because my whole family absolutely loves it there. I hope to be able to have a real trip before summer's end, but until then, I guess we'll just be happy with an hour here and there, basking in the sunshine and rolling in the sand.

And if you're wondering why there aren't as many pictures of Anslie as there are of Zachary, it's not for lack of trying on my part! Anslie still does not like to have her picture taken, and Zac isn't fast enough to run away from me yet. :) I'll take what I can get!!!

Zachary's 1st Birthday

2011-07-31T15:52:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little baby is such a big boy now! Zachary turned 1 on June 12th and we were really lucky to be able to spend his birthday with family in Chicago. We threw a luau themed party complete with fruity drinks, kalua pork, Hawaiian music, and tiki torches! Connie did such an amazing job making the food and gathering all of the decorations and I think everyone, especially Zac, had a wonderful time at the party! The weather almost cooperated with us and we at least didn't get rained out. Fortunately our party-goers were good sports and made the best of an outdoor luau on a cloudy day. Zac and Anslie were completely spoiled with such generous gifts! I wish that one year olds could remember their birthday, because this was definitely a party I would never want to forget!

The Backyard

2011-07-31T15:29:00.000-07:00

When we first moved into our home a little over a year ago, our backyard was a shoulder-high wild wilderness of weeds. At some point Kevin attempted to brave it and try to kill some of those weeds with poison. It didn't affect them at all! So we knew we had to bring in the big guns and hire a professional. Our landscapers saved our backyard and also planted some beautiful sod. We loved having grass back there, and it was much better than those horrible weeds!

This summer we have been consumed with the upkeep of the yard and with getting a few small pieces of outdoor furniture to make it more comfortable. Our budget is limited so we have had to be a little handy and crafty. We found some great adirondack chairs at Home Depot that we assembled and stained ourselves. It's been nice having something other than grass or concrete to sit on.

The best part of having a nice backyard is the breezy summer evenings we spend out there together as a family. My kids LOVE to be outside! When the kids hear the back door open they make a bee line straight for it. We usually open up the french doors, as many as we can (we have 5 sets of them that lead to the back yard!!!) and let the breeze cool down the house right after dinner and the kids run around outside and entertain themselves with sidewalk chalk, making mud pies, or digging around in the flower bed. We play catch, chase the dog around, and of course, I LOVE taking snapshots of my kids being kids.

Although the upkeep can be overwhelming at times, I'm so grateful to have a little slice of outdoor heaven to raise my family in. And I am so excited to continue working, building, and refining our yard!

The Ruffner Family

2011-07-31T14:49:00.000-07:00

Back in June we made a trip out to Chicago to visit Kevin's family. We had a BLAST while we were there and (I don't know why we've never done this before!!!) we even took a little time to do our own extended family portraits! It was really wonderful to be able to offer some beautiful pictures of my babies with their adoring grandparents and Aunt and Uncles to them and to have for ourselves. I'm sure it was a little comical watching me run back and forth between my camera on a tripod and the group, but it was worth every ounce of effort!!! Presenting: The Ruffner Family!

The Orchid

2011-05-23T13:03:00.000-07:00

I like to receive flowers, but let's be honest; they're kind of a waste of money. They're expensive and if you're lucky, you might get a weeks worth of enjoyment from them. I can think of a million things that I would rather do with the money that's wasted on flowers.

My husband is smart though. He knows how I feel about spending money on a gift that's going to stop giving in a few days time, so for Mother's Day he bought me a living plant instead! That's my guy! I really like orchids and have been tempted to buy one in the past, but they're awfully expensive. So this ended up being such a thoughtful present from my sweetheart!

Kevin made me take pictures of the plant because he was so impressed with his taste in flowers ;) It took me a while to get around to it, but I'm really glad that I did! I'm thinking about printing one of the pictures and hanging it in our house.

Here's where you come in: I need help making my choice! Take a look at the photos below and tell me which one is your favorite by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post. And if you would like to check out a black and white version of each image, head on over to my photography blog and do the same! Thanks for all your help!

Videos

2011-05-22T16:23:00.000-07:00

Here are a few fun video clips that I've taken of the kids! These are from February and March. Zac is 8-9 months old, Anslie about 3 1/2. Enjoy!

It's Good To Be Little

2011-05-18T21:15:00.000-07:00

When you're little you get to wear your pj's all day long, or wear mismatched shoes, have messy hair, or wear polka dots with stripes. You get to run around half naked, sometimes all the way naked, and nobody cares! Because you're little and no one expects too much of you. But the best part of being little is being able to play in the mud without any judgement at all. Seriously, what would you do if you saw an adult digging around in the mud, flinging it all over the place, rubbing it in their hair, or even eating it? So I say, "rock on little ones!" Make all the mud pies you can, while you can!

Denver Trip

2011-05-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

At the end of March I packed up the two kids and the three of us headed out to Colorado to visit my sister, Tera. (Kev stayed home because he had to work.) Tera and her family have since moved to New York, so it was kind of a farewell visit for us. Not that distance can keep us apart :)

We had a lot of fun just letting the kids play together. We honestly didn't do too much besides care for our children side by side. We had a lot of time to talk and that was really wonderful! The slideshow below are some pictures from our trip. Some of the fun things we did (that you will see pictures of) is a trip to the Denver Museum of Natural History, a trip to a fun kid's play place called Monkey Business, Girl's Night Out dinner to The Melting Pot, Tera getting her facial hair threaded for the first time, and some pictures of the CRAZY unpredictable weather in that part of the country! The photos of the snow and of Anslie and Ethan stripped down to their diapers, and then snow again were literally taken in consecutive days!

Overall we had a great trip! I would say that I will miss my sister, but really we'll see each other just as often as before. It's kind of like that song, " Ain't no mountain high enough...." Love ya, sis!

Easter 2011

2011-05-18T17:19:00.000-07:00

Easter was pretty low-key for our family this year. My dad and step mom were visiting and it was nice to have the company and extra bodies to cook for :) We started our morning early with church at 8:30am. Church always feels like the right place to be on a Holiday like this.

Zac fell asleep in the car on the way home so we rushed him up to his room and then surprised Anslie with her Easter basket. She was really excited about all of the candy! She is definitely a candy-aholic, so I made sure to find her a basket that wasn't filled with much else. I knew she would really appreciate that!

Once Zachary woke up we gave him his basket. I was surprised to see that, especially at his age, he was interested in the toys as much as the Easter grass inside of the basket! No candy for him though, which, if he knew any better, he would have probably been bummed about.

Almost everyone was able to get a good Sunday nap in and I was able to cook our Easter feast in peace. We had the traditional ham, a potato casserole, artichokes, and Hawaiian roles. Simple, but very delicious. We finished up with an apple pie and then headed outside for an Easter egg hunt.

Anslie had so much fun searching for all of the eggs hidden around our front yard that we had to re-hide the eggs over and over again. And I had a blast snagging a couple photos of the kids in the gorgeous spring evening light! Overall, it was a really nice day!

Family Update

2011-05-12T07:07:00.000-07:00

It seems like I can't get my blogging act together this year! I guess now that Zachary is so much more active and my little goal to let my photography business "be what it will be," has actually kept me busier than I thought. So I'm very overdue for a blog update and I want to catch things up this week!

I guess we'll start from the oldest and go to the youngest? Kevin is working hard as always. He's joined a new group at work and his hours are changing a lot. It gets frustrating at times, never knowing what is schedule or days of will be from week to week, not to mention the fact that he gets paid a lot less if he has to work days, but we are managing. He still makes time for his family and that's what is really important.

I remember being really frustrated with not having a lot of business last year. Looking back, it really was for the best. I mean, come on! I had just had a baby, among other things. So I had resolved not to even try this year to get new business. Ha, ha! I love how we think our lives are going in one direction and God laughs in our face and sends us spinning in another. I have been busier this year than I have ever been! And it's a good thing too, with Kevin losing some income from his new detail. I've been able to help pitch in with the finances and it feels great to be able to help out with the family while doing something I am passionate about. I've made several new contacts and have been honored to work with some really wonderful photographers on weddings and I am growing in ways that I never would have been able to on my own.

Balancing home life with mine and Kevin's jobs is always tricky. Fortunately we have great kids and it seems to work out. Anslie is growing up to be such a sweet little kid. I think she's finally starting to grow out of her terrible twos. She's now three and a half years old, and such a princess! Don't get me wrong...we still have lots of tantrums and refusals to do anything I ask her to do. But every so often I get an "okay, mommy...." She's a great help to me with entertaining Zac, as well as a wonderful instigator of mischief. Her thing right now is calling Kevin and I by our first names. It's a little jarring at times, but I know if I just let her get it out of her system she'll get over it. It can be pretty funny at times though. Her favorite things to do are paint and cut (paper with scissors). She'll entertain herself for quite some time with arts and crafts. She also loves music and dancing. She's my little buddy when I watch shows on TV like American Idol and The Voice. Since she doesn't nap anymore, we enjoy quiet afternoons together while Zac naps, watching movies, tv, doing art, or she'll even play by herself in the play room for a bit. Anslie is becoming really vocal with her imagination. I love to hear what she is thinking as she plays with her dolls or play kitchen. She is really creative and so smart! She has a really great memory, too, so we have to be careful about what goes on around her. Kevin was amazed the other day when he took her to the grocery store with him and she asked to be weighed in the produce scale. When she was younger and we were so worried about her weight gain, we used to take her to the store and plop her on the scale to check her weight. That was when she was around the age of one! Amazing. Anslie is so sweet and wonderful and a little devil all rolled up into one. So I guess she is the consummate toddler!

Zachary has grown so much! He is 21lbs, which isn't huge, but I swear the doctor's scales are off! He feels so much heavier to me! Not only is he crawling like a madman, he's also starting to walk! I will post some videos at another time. He can stand on his own without holding onto anything and will take a couple steps before tumbling over. It's so cute! He says "Da, da" and "Ma, ma" but I'm not sure if he understands what he's saying or if they're just noises still. That's not to say that he doesn't communicate. He will shake his head "no" if he doesn't want something. If he's hungry and sitting in his high chair and wants a bite, he'll rock back and forth and click his tongue as if to say, "put that in my mouth." He's actually really vocal and quite loud! Zac also can wave hello and goodbye and give high fives. He's also a little comedian. He does silly things and then laughs. When we laugh, he does it again. He has this face that he makes that I am in love with! He squints his eyes and wrinkles his nose and gives me a big cheesy grin while tossing his head back. It's so sweet! Zac is certainly a mama's boy but he loves his daddy too. He will claw himself out of my arms or crawl over to the baby gate up in the hallway and shake it and shout until Kevin says hello to him when he gets home from work. This kid is so affectionate and doesn't have any problems telling you he loves you. He's quick to laugh and for the most part easy to please. Such a blessing to have in our home!

Our family is doing well. Nothing really big is happening, but I'm honestly okay with that. We're enjoying our lives, our home, and our community. I'm excited for this summer and all of the fun we'll have now that I'm not pregnant and Zac isn't such a small baby. I'm sure I'll have tons more to post about all of our adventures! (If I can keep my act together, that is:)

For any of you wondering if Zac is Kevin's child....

2011-04-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

What a horrible name for a blog post! Okay, so NOBODY should be wondering what the answer to that questions is!!! Anyway, here's the reason for the obscure title: When Kevin's parents came to visit, they brought some of his baby pictures to compare to Zachary. Ummm....ya, they are spitting images of each other at the same age!

Kevin is 33!

2011-03-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

Kevin had a birthday at the end of February! I love watching my college sweetheart maturing into such a handsome and wonderful man! I think the 30's will be a great decade for him!

Kevin's parents were in town for his birthday and treated both of us to babysitting while we went to The Melting Pot for dinner. It was a really nice evening, especially with being able to eat our food without holding kids, kids touching us and/or our food, and while it was hot.

Happy birthday, honey!

And don't forget the delicious cake I made for Kevin: Butter cake with raspberry cream cheese filling and fudge frosting. Yum!

Love these pics!

2011-03-25T11:51:00.001-07:00

I just love funny pictures of babies covered in the food they're experiencing for the first time. Here's some of Zac and baked beans. This boy really liked what he was putting in his mouth....and all over his face!

Bowling and Pizza

2011-03-25T11:48:00.000-07:00

A fun activity the kids and I participated in this month was going to a local bowling alley for a game of bowling and making our own pizzas. Anslie had fun, for the most part. She always gets a little overwhelmed when there's lots of people around and pressure to perform. We stayed long enough for her to bowl a couple times and put the toppings on her pizza, but after an angry three year slammed a spoonfull of pizza sauce in my face we went home to think about our actions. Hopefully we can enjoy the entire experience next time around!

Scary

2011-03-25T11:45:00.000-07:00

"Ding, dong," went the doorbell. Over and over. I was getting really irritated. Not only does my husband usually sleep during the day, I also have a baby who naps. Really? Was it really necessary for the kid selling candy bars to ring my door bell over and over again? I didn't answer the door the first time he rang it. Why did he continue to ring it and risk waking my husband and child up? I was annoyed. Really annoyed.

Lucky for him and my husband and baby, noone was sleeping. Or playing in our backyard. And that last part is significant because the kid ringing our doorbell over and over again? He wasn't selling candy bars. He was trying to tell us that he and his buddy saw a baby rattle snake crawl into one of our drainage pipes that leads to our backyard. Bad news if little people or doggies are in the backyard when the snake surfaces.
Our neighbor helped Kevin flush the snake out of the pipe and then Kevin took a shovel to the it. Yuck. Better him than us, though.

Sundays

2011-03-02T19:55:00.000-08:00

Sundays can be rough sometimes. Especially right now with Kevin's work schedule as it is. We have church so early in the morning and Kevin doesn't get home until about an hour before church ends, if he's lucky. So the task of getting myself and two kids ready for church in the morning is left to me. Add having to prepare a lesson to teach in Primary every other week, trying to keep the sabbath day holy, and the solitude of the rest of the day because Kevin is sleeping because he either has to work again, or he's exhausted from the previous night's shift, and you have one hectic, yet boring, day. Don't get me wrong, I love church. I'm a devout member. But Sundays are not my favorite day of the week...Except for moments like this...

Kevin was napping on the couch when Anslie crawled on top of him and started to snuggle. The weekdays can get so busy sometimes, and of course, Kevin is sleeping during the day so he's not around for Anslie to be with. So, on our quiet Sunday afternoons, after all of the craziness of church has passed, when we have nothing better to do than spend time with each other, there is always a stolen moment of tenderness to be had.

And that is my favorite part of this day of the week.

The Zoo and Other Things

2011-02-10T22:40:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things about living in Southern California is all of the wonderful, family-friendly things there are to do. Our most favorite thing to do as a family is visit the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. We are season pass holders and have been ever since we moved here. Last month we packed the kids and our lunches up and headed out for another fun day trip to our favorite spot.

I was so bummed that I didn't hit the right button to vidoe tape the antics of the baby gorilla. There were a ton of people watching him and his family eat when all of a sudden he came up to the glass and started pounding on it, running back and forth, doing flips, and "playing" with all of the onlookers. Kev and I agree that it was hands down the most amazing thing we have ever seen at a zoo. I don't normally like monkeys and gorillas. They kinda freak me out. They are just too human-like and it does weird things to my brain to watch them. But that little guy may have swayed me just a little bit in his favor. (Just a little bit.) This is a little video of the gorilla baby that I was able to catch.

After tromping around the zoo for a few hours we headed out to Seaport Village to enjoy the remaining sunlight. Kevin thought it would be a great idea to bring along the leftover popcorn purchased at the zoo to feed to the seagulls at the Village. Now we all know why there are signs posted all over the place warning not to feed the birds. I was pretty sure we were all going to die from either catching bird flu or being buried alive in poo. So gross.

I'm pretty sure I have no idea why anyone would consider a giant sculpture of fish bones art.

It was such a fun and relaxing day. The kids were great and everyone was super worn out. That's the tell tale sign of a great family outing!

Another fun thing we did in January was attend Anslie's friend's birthday party! Caleb has very creative parents who are also very brave and allowed all of his friends to run rampant at his dad's heavy machinery yard. It was pretty awesome that they turned a tractor into a kiddie ride by attaching a swing to it. All of the kids loved it. And there were an abundance of mini four wheelers, atv's, and other power wheels for the kids to run around wild with. Anslie had a great time hitching a ride with her buddy Trevor. She talked about Caleb's birthday for weeks after the event!

The last things I have to share are two funny videos of Anslie. The first is when we met up with my step brother and his family at their hotel for a visit when they were in town. Anslie fell asleep in the car and was OUT! Nathan, my step brother, has 5 kids, the four oldest being boys. Not even they could wake her up!

This next video shows Anslie's creative flare with music and lyrics. We were sitting in a doctor's office waiting for the doc to come in (for over an hour!!!) and Anslie was entertaining herself by running around and singing. I love how she adds the garbage can to the list of things when she sings "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes." She is one funny kid. Happy Thursday!

Beet Face and Kitchen Drag Racing

2011-02-02T20:21:00.000-08:00

I love my kids! They can be so hilarious. I love how Zac's face turns beet red any time there is pressure on his head...like when he laughs really hard....or poops.....

I was cleaning up after dinner when I looked down just in time to avoid certain disaster when Anslie and Zac decided to have a grand 'ole time chasing each other around the island. So cute! Hahahahahaha! They totally crack me up!

It's so hilarious to watch Anslie run circles around Zachary! The highlight of my day!

A little more love

2011-02-01T15:01:00.000-08:00

This year I am focusing on being a little kinder, a little more patient, a little more loving....

Our Family Home Evening last night was centered on God's commandement to "Love one another, as I have loved you." The lesson took about 10 minutes to run through, the appropriate length for my 3 year old audience. It was amazing how in just that short amount of time, I could feel the Spirit enter my home and wrap my family in His loving arms. And what says home and family better than a homemade caramel apple pie?

In other news, Zachary can entertain himself...sometimes.... (do we have a future percussionist on our hands?!)

And it was my turn to teach Anslie's co-op preschool this morning. Imagine....5 little Anslies running around the house. But we had a great time learning all about the letter "Qq", the color "pink", the shape "star", and the number "6". I ended up with 5 beautiful little "Queens" on my hands, carrying "star" shaped scepters, crowns sporting the letter of the day with "6" sparkly pom poms, and radiant beaded necklaces with a "pink" pom pom as the focal point. What fun!

Anslie's Curls

2011-01-31T15:33:00.000-08:00

I've discovered sponge rollers and all of the cuteness they can bring to a toddler's hair. Especially a toddler's hair that is straight as a stick! Anslie is really good about not pulling the rollers out, which I think is a small miracle! I loved her little Jerry-Curls so much that I had to take a picture of her, and to my astonishment, she actually sat still and smiled! I think I can count on one hand how many times that has happened in her life! And of course I had to take a couple of Zac for good measure...

Best Birthday Ever!

2011-01-30T16:39:00.000-08:00

My 28th birthday celebration began with a visit from my dear friend, Diane, and her two kids on the Wednesday before. It was so wonderful to catch up with her and to get our kids together. Her son, Andrew, was born a couple months after Anslie, and her daughter, Catherine, was born about a week after Zachary. So fun! The kids played together wonderfully, which was a gift in and of itself. Diane treated me to a scrumptious lunch at the Spicy Pickle and then she had to get her little family home. This is a picture of all four of the kids (Catherine in the 3rd row of my car so you can't see her) packed into my car with their carseats. Remind me never to have that many kids in carseats at one time! :)

My kids gave me the GREATEST gift ever, and that was Zac sleeping from 9:30pm-5:45am straight, and then going back to sleep after nursing until 8:00am, and Anslie sleeping in until 8:00am. I savored the scrumptious sleepy present and opportunity to get ready for the day without two unhappy kids underfoot.

Around 10am, my friend, Amberlyn, picked me up and treated me to bananas foster french toast. Yummy! We had fun chit chatting over breakfast without kids (our husbands were watching our kids for us). After breakfast, Amberlyn dropped me off at a salon and day spa where Kevin surprised me with a facial and pedicure. DIVINE!!! Oh, my gosh! The facial was AH-mazing and the break from the kids was a much needed respite!

The next event I was surprised with was a fun dinner at a local teppanyaki restaurant with all of my friends and their hubbies...sans children! (that was THE best part of the whole day!!!) We enjoyed delicious steak, chicken, (some of us calamari), fried rice, and freshly cooked noodles and veggies. And of course, the preparation is always entertaining.

We finished the evening at a Country Western Dancing club and bar called the Stampede in Temecula. Oh, what a night! I haven't been line dancing since I was probably 10 years old! I even got to ride a mechanical bull -free because it was my birthday!!! Yippee! (or not) But most of my friends were good sports and did it too.

We met quite a few characters while at Stampede: The first was an older gentleman whom you would have thought owned the place. In fact, I'm pretty sure he thought he did. He was not shy telling our group where we could sit, dance, and eat. So annoying. I was about to get pretty sarcastic with him at one point, but I changed my mind when I thought he might punch me for doing so. You know those red-neck cowboy types :) j/k

Trisha and I were hit on by a couple of young boys (I almost said teenagers, but you had to be 21 to get in) and that was A-W-K-W-A-R-D. They wanted us to dance with them and didn't get the hint (besides the wedding rings on our fingers) that we were unavailable, even after I told the boy talking to me that I needed to ask my HUSBAND for permission before I could dance with him. At one point, I even yelled toward Kevin, "Honey - I've got a date! Is that okay with you?" They eventually took off after Trisha and I continued trying to learn the line dance on the sidelines and ignored their offers for partnership. Kevin and the rest of the group were having a good laugh at our expense, and then later commented on how high these guys set their sights with Trisha and I, compared to the ladies they ended up with at the end of the night :) So funny!

The last was a couple of girls who apparently forgot to get dressed before they came to dance. One was wearing short shorts, what I call cootchie cutters, and a corset that was laced in the front with nothing underneath - and there was about a 2-3 inch gap between the sides of the corset, so everything from cleavage to navel was exposed. Classy. Her girlfriend wasn't much better off. With possibly the shortest cootchie cutters I have EVER seen and a tank top that exposed half of her abdomen, one that was NOT tone at all (at least her friend with the corset was thin) decided to ride the mechanical bull. Watching her get on the bull was nauseating, most of the guys in our group heading back to our table so they didn't have to witness any more. Watching her ride the bull was gag-inducing. But the crowning moment was when she flipped off and landed on her back, spread eagle, knees to her chest, almost like she was giving birth, with little more than a small strip of fabric from her shorts covering the parts that count. We were dying laughing, and the groans roared through the crowd that gathered to the sidelines...probably in disgust of her choice in wardrobe and precarious pose. She looked so ridiculous that I tried to covertly videotape her bull ride, but accidentally took a flash picture of her instead. Way to be subtle.

We ended up back at my house to enjoy a yummy cake made by my dear husband -fudge cake with chocolate chips, cream cheese frosting, and chocolate drizzled over the top. I was in heaven! After our friends left, Kevin gave me some clues for a scavenger hunt he set up through the house where I found various coupons for service from him ranging from a weeks work of laundry, vacuuming, or dish duty, to a full body massage, foot rub, and night out with the girls. Did my man do well or what?!

This was definitely a birthday to remember! I had more fun than I have had in a long time! The day was perfect - time with friends, time to relax on my own, time to be with my sweetheart. I will always cherish the wonderful day that Kevin planned just for me!

Simmer Down!

2011-01-26T22:32:00.000-08:00

On Christmas night, after all of the gifts were opened, wrapping paper tossed, toys played with, dinner eaten and cleaned up, and dessert devoured, my family and I settled down for a fun game of Catch Phrase. Have you ever played that game? It one of my family's favorites! The players consisted of Kevin and I, my mom and step-dad, and my sister, Audra, and her fiancee, Mike. We played several rounds, each time switching up teams. Finally it came down to boys vs. girls. I'm sad to admit that the boys won, so of course the girls wanted a re-match! My step-dad, Richard, wanted to place a bet. The bets were pretty benign, however, Audra wanted to place a personal bet with Mike. Mike agreed to her terms. The girls creamed the boys. Check out what happened to Mike.

How could I not love them back?

2011-01-26T22:22:00.000-08:00

Late one afternoon when my friend asked me, "So what are your big plans for tonight?" I thought it a little random and then described the dilemma I had with a new recipe I had planned for dinner that night. She gave me a funny look and didn't really say much about it. But it was only polite that I asked her the same question in return. She described the New Year's party she and her family were attending and what she was making as a dish to share.

Oh ya. It happened to be New Year's Eve. Duh.

New Year's is not a very celebrated holiday in my household. Even while Kevin and I were dating we didn't really make a big deal over a night where the main event was a count down; where you had to stay up to watch a ball slowly drop out of the sky, freezing your butt off in the cold. We have never been to a New Year's Eve party. And honestly, I don't really care if we ever do. I like my sleep. And staying up past midnight just for the sake of it does not sound like fun to me!

Our New Year's Day is usually just as common as our New Year's Eve. Just another day of the week and another date on the calendar. So I was super surprised when Kevin brought this home with him after work:

So cute, right? I don't get flowers very often, mostly because I think it's a waste of money. But I have to admit that I do love them as a gift "just because." And seriously, how could I not love my family back?! Just look at them!

A Forgotten Adventure

2011-01-26T17:27:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I forgot to share one of the biggest things that happened for Anslie's 3rd Birthday!!! My sweet friend, Golda, was able to offer my family free admission to the park and it was such an amazing experience! Anslie is finally at the age to appreciate what Disneyland has to offer. She loved meeting some of the characters, riding the rides, and seeing all of the wonderful attractions. Her favorite rides were the Dumbo ride and the Casey Jr. train ride. She talked about riding the train for a long time after that. The highlight of our trip, besides that fact that Golda and her family and Kevin's parents were able to experience it with us, was a dancing street parade at the end of the night. Anslie just lit up with all of the music and dancing. She even got brave enough to join some of the performers in the street for a little shin-digging. It was so awesome! What a wonderful way to spend your child's birthday!

My Little Man and Other Things

2011-01-25T21:45:00.000-08:00

Zachary is now 7 months old (!!!) and the sweetest baby EVER! He is so cuddly and cute, expressive, busy, and darling. Pretty much just think of every positive word that can describe a baby and that is him.

Zac is officially crawling and is even pulling up on things and starting to cruise around. It's the cutest thing I have ever seen. Kevin says he was walking by 10 months and I think Zac is going to follow in his daddy's footsteps! He also has four teeth, the middle two on the bottom and each k-9 on the top. (So he looks like a little vampire) Luckily he has never used his teeth on me!

Zac just had tubes put in his ears and two mucoceles removed from his bottom lip. The surgery went quickly and was successful. We are dealing with the post-op drainage now (yuck!) but I think we are going to have a much happier and healthier baby on our hands now. The doctor told us he actually had an ear infection, his 5th since birth, while they were putting the tubes in. Poor guy!

I am enjoying mostly restful nights these days! I can usually count on Zac only waking up once or twice a night. So awesome! And I'm sure he loves the rest too :) Zac has started eating solids so I'm sure that contributes to our good nights. I usually only feed him solids once a day, right before bed. He will chow down 7 ounces of baby food with rice cereal mixed into it to the consistency of mashed potatoes. And then suck a couple graham crackers down with it. And then nurse himself to sleep. No wonder he's such a big boy! (almost 19 pounds)

Anslie is such a great big sister to Zachary! Every now and then we have to remind her to share her toys, but other than that she is so loving and gentle with her little brother. Sometimes the two of them play together, Anslie making silly noises and getting Zac to giggle. It KILLS me it's so cute!

Kevin is still working hard, back on the line at work. He has been acting as a temporary supervisor which is wonderful experience for him. Kevin passed the supervisor's exam so he is now eligible to apply for a position if/when one opens, but I think he is going to do the test again to see if he can get a better score and improve his chances. Regardless, I am so proud of him and all of his hard work!

I have been busy trying not to be so busy lately. Life got really hectic last year (two moves, buying a house, having a baby, working hard on my photography business, etc) so one of my new year's resolutions was to kind of let things settle down and not push so much. Focus more on the happiness of my children and husband (and myself). I have to remind myself every day to relax, especially when it comes to my appetite for all things photography. I feel sad every now and then because I love what I do. But I remember my sweet little ones and it keeps me on track. I'm trying to figure it all out and manage my time appropriately so that everyone's needs are met. It's a learning process, but so far so good. Wish me luck :)

I think we are on track for a good year in 2011. I'm looking forward to all this year may hold, whatever that may be. We had a lot of BIG things happen last year, so it might be nice to have an easy, quiet year, just to focus on us.

December Whirlwind

2011-01-22T15:30:00.000-08:00

So, I have totally been blog slacking. Big time. I'm so far behind that I don't even know where to begin. So I will start with our big Christmas trip in December. We went to Utah to visit lots of old friends and family. It was a BLAST! We had so much fun catching up with some really awesome people! We drove from our house to St. George and stayed the night with the Rawson family, then from there to Salem to stay a night with the Kirk family. We got the chance to poke around Provo and Orem, where Kevin and I spent most of our dating years and the first two years of our marriage. So fun! After that, we met up with my long time friend, Melissa, and her family in South Jordan, and then camped out at my little sister, Audra's house in West Jordan for the next few days. We spent Christmas Day itself at my mom's house in Roy. Lots of driving, eating out, packing, unpacking, shopping, picture taking, and fun! It was the first family vacation we have taken in a year, so it was definitely warranted! These are my favorite pictures from our trip, taken with my awesome Christmas present...a new point and shoot camera.... and beneath that are some of the other great pictures from our trip!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-15T13:28:00.001-08:00

Late Night Giggles and Christmas Carols

2010-12-15T12:27:00.000-08:00

Anslie's 3rd Birthday

2010-12-11T19:53:00.000-08:00

Since Anslie's birthday is on Halloween, it's always a fun challenge to try to combine her birthday party theme with her Halloween costume. This year, we decided to go with a Peter Pan theme: Anslie was Tinkerbell, Zachary was Peter Pan, Kevin was Captain Hook, and I dressed up as Wendy. Anslie was THE perfect little Tink! We had a great time at her party and were so happy that many of our friends and family took us up on our invitation to dress up as pirates, lost boys, or indians!

The kids had fun hunting for treasure, coloring pirate ship and skull and cross bones cutouts, and decorating Indian headdresses. I attempted to make a cake and decorate it with fondant...you be the judge of how it turned out. All I can say is that it was made with love! Everyone had a great time and Anslie loved all of the love, attention, and gifts she was showered with! We are so grateful for the love and support our friends and family provide!

Not Such a Baby Anymore

2010-12-11T19:43:00.000-08:00

It was really hard for me to take these photos...not just because Anslie hates having her picture taken, but because my little baby is no longer a baby! She is 3! I can't believe how quickly time has passed (I know, I know. Every parent says it. It's still unbelievable when it happens!)

My little girl is filled with vim and vinegar! I have no doubt in my mind that she knows who she is and what she wants! Anslie loves being with her friends (already!) and really enjoys the co-op preschool that she attends once a week. She did not, however, enjoy her dance class, so she is no longer enrolled. I'm a little sad about that, but it just gives us the opportunity to try something else. And we can always try dance again when she's a little older.

Anslie is a die-hard candy fan. She likes treats of other sorts as well, but candy is by far her favorite. And interestingly enough, the candy she most often picked out of her loot from trick-or-treating was peppermint patties. What an odd choice for a three year old. But don't worry - Kevin covered all the fruity stuff while I devoured the rest of the chocolaty treats. :)

A big development for her was transitioning to a "big girl" bed. The day after her birthday we brought home a full-sized mattress for her to sleep on. She was SO excited! We kept it on the floor while we waited for the headboard and footboard to arrive a week later and that gave her a chance to get used to sleeping on it before it was suspended in air. She has done really well, never once falling out of bed! We decorated her bedroom (pictures to follow in another post) and it's perfect for our little princess!

Chatty Kathy would be a great alias for Anslie! She has a wonderful vocabulary for a child her age and I often can't believe some of the things that come out of her mouth. She's hilarious! Mix that with her intelligence, stubborn streak (which she gets from Kevin) and her independence (which she gets from me) and you have got one tiny firecracker! But she is a joy and keeps us hopping at all times. Life would definitely be dull without this little girl in it!

Carving Pumpkins

2010-12-11T17:50:00.001-08:00

Just a few pics of our family fun carving pumpkins. Anslie was able to participate this year, coloring on the little gourde she picked out at the pumpkin patch, so that was really fun for her. This definitely wasn't our best year for creative jack-o-lanterns, but with how busy our life has bee, (obviously, since it's taken me two months to find the time to blog about it!!!) it was a small miracle that we had anything carved! The tears only came when it was time for us to clean up and, of course, Anslie wasn't ready. Sigh. Oh well. We can't expect it to be all fun and games with a toddler in the house, right?!

Zachary

2010-11-16T17:30:00.000-08:00

I wanted to do this photo with Zachary because I shot the same photo of Anslie at the same age, on the same backdrop before I really got into photography. Firstly, how cute are my kids?! Secondly, they totally look alike at this age. And thirdly, I have come so far in just 2 1/2 years. I love watching my family grow in every way!

Anslie at 5 months

Zachary at 5 months

Anslie

2010-11-16T15:01:00.000-08:00

Kevin

2010-11-11T15:21:00.001-08:00

Cute Conversation

2010-10-28T12:57:00.000-07:00

Anslie: "This is him's seat." (referring to the Bumbo)
Kevin: "Who is 'him'?"
Anslie: "Zachary."
Kevin: "And what do we call Zachary for short?"
Anslie: "Short little man."

The Pumpkin Patch That Wasn't

2010-10-27T10:26:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to the pumpkin patch last night to pick out pumpkins to carve for the upcoming Halloween holiday. We went to the first patch we remembered, the one by our mall...and they didn't sell ANY pumpkins. Or, if they did, they didn't have many. This pumpkin patch seemed to have more of a focus on carnival games and rides than anything else. I'm sure Anslie would have had fun, but our goal was to come home with pumpkins.

We went down the street to another pumpkin patch. This location did have pumpkins, but still not the mounds of pumpkins that patches had when I was a kid. Pumpkin patches are so strange these days! Don't get me wrong; I appreciate the emphasis on making the pumpking-picking experience fun for all ages, but the whole point is to find a PUMPKIN. TO CARVE. FOR HALLOWEEN. Patch #2 had lots of rides, bounce houses, carnival games, treats, mazes, and a petting zoo. Strewn around all of these things were pumpkins for sale. Where were the rows and rows of pumpkins to search through, the perfect one just waiting to be discovered?

Anslie spent most of the night in the petting zoo, which is where all of our pictures come from. When we finally got around to trying to find pumpkins to take home, we realized how wrong we were for going to a pumpkin patch for it! Does this sound like an oxymoron to anyone else?! The cheapest carving pumpkin they sold was $7.00. At is was small. Like, so small you would be hard-pressed trying to carve it at all. Lame. So we let Anslie pick out a little gourd for 99 cents and got frozen yogurt instead.

Now we are off to Target or Walmart to find a much more reasonably priced pumpkin to carve!

Yes, what looks like is about to happen in this next picture almost did!

Z at 4 months

2010-10-18T22:57:00.000-07:00

It's incredible how much faster time moves when you have another child! In some ways I feel like I have been able to enjoy having a baby more this time around just because there isn't as much to learn. I have done this all before with my first so I'm not in shock. My body and mind have healed more quickly and my patience has grown.

At the same time, there is twice as much work to do and half as much time to do it in. It's sad that some of the things I got to do with my first baby, my second baby is robbed of. Like timely updates on what my new little one is up to.

With Anslie, I had an essay written every month about every single detail of her growth and development... with pictures to go along with it. Not so much with Zachary. That doesn't mean I don't love him as much. Quite the contrary. It just takes a little more effort to share the joy of mothering him with the rest of the world.

I can't promise that I will be as faithful as I was with Anslie about getting monthly updates of Zac on the blog. But I will promise that I will try my hardest to make sure that everyone who cares about him has as much access to him as I can give.

Zachary is a joy! A true cherub in every sense. He is sweet, happy, easy to please, and a pleasure to be around. Of course he has his moments, but those are easy to get past. He still eats well and on most nights only wakes once or twice to nurse.

I feel like my little man is turning into just that...a little man already. At 4 months of age, Zac has already cut his first tooth and is working on a second! Incredible and very sad for me. I love toothless baby grins! :( He is also rolling over, mostly from back to tummy, but he goes the other way sometimes too. Zachary likes to be upright as much as he can so he can explore the world around him. And if propped up in the right way, he can even sit up by himself, balancing his upper body on his hands. He has great neck control and his coordination for grabbing things and bringing them to his mouth is really improving.

Zac is a BIG boy, measuring in the 95th percentile in all of his measurements. (He has a checkup on Friday so I will know those numbers then.) And as such, I feel like it won't be long before he will want to start eating solids. That's another sad thing for me. I want my baby to stay small for as long as he can and it's become bittersweet for me to watch him grow and move on to the next phase in his development. Everything was so new a exciting with Anslie that sometimes it seemed like it took forever for something to happen. With Zac, I just can't get a handle on time. And it seems like he is developing so much more quickly!

This little one is also a giggler. He is happy pretty much all the time (unless he is hungry, tired, or sick) and is always ready with a smile or laugh. I love it! The best feeling in the world is his sweet little hands on my face while he gives me sloppy baby kisses on the cheek and coos and giggles in my ear. That memory will melt my heart forever.

Words just can't express how much I love my son. He is my joy. He is my baby. I am proud to be his mommy.

An Apple a Day

2010-10-18T22:16:00.000-07:00

One of the fond memories I have from my youth is running off to Tehachapi with my dad to pick apples and watch the trains that seemed like they stretched to eternity chug by from a mountain-top vantage point. I'm sure I gave my dad plenty of attitude as most preteens and teenagers do about doing dorky things like that, but I can honestly say that I really did enjoy it. Even if I wouldn't admit it as a kid.

When my dad told me it was apple-picking season again and my sister invited us out to my home town to watch the pro street gocart racing event, I was excited to be able to spend quality time with family and to share one of the things I loved to do as a kid with my own children.

These are a few snapshots from our adventure. I want to share the fun that we had, as well as some of the funny things that were accidentally caught on camera. Look in the background of some of the images and you will see what I am talking about.

Excited much?

Got our bucket and we're ready to go!

Here's a nice boob shot of Rachelle...

Anslie loved carrying this stick around more than anything else.

Anslie likes to hold sticks, Zac likes to eat them.

Love the large woman with the tie-dye shirt in this one!

The spoils from which I have made:
A dutch apple pie
apple sauce
apple butter
apple bread
apple crepes

After apple picking it was back to Lancaster for us. Nice capture of my dad on this one.

Boney Hawk the skateboarding bulldog

And just me messing around

Fun trip. Funnier pictures! :) Happy Monday!

BP Fair

2010-10-18T19:06:00.000-07:00

Still playing catch-up :) We went to a community fair that Kevin's work held back in September with our friends, the Russells. The kids had a ton of fun! Home Depot was there and had a bunch of really cute projects for the kids to work on.

This next picture kills me!!! I die laughing every time I look at it! It totally looks like little Eli is coming after me with a hammer because he's sick of me taking pictures. I'm sure my family can completely sympathize...

Anslie was a bit of a stinker that day (nothing unusual for a toddler her age...) and you can see how happy she was about sitting on the horse. Stink face all the way!

She wasn't too happy about the face paint either...

Or shooting the pepper-ball guns...

But overall we all had a great time. And it didn't cost us a dime, which is right in our price range! Thanks, Kevin's work, for a great Saturday activity that was family and community friendly!

Veggie Garden

2010-10-13T21:13:00.000-07:00

We have decided to step outside of our little box and try something new...and that something new is gardening. We (and when I say "we" I really mean "I") planted a little vegetable garden in the planter in our backyard. We planted acorn squash, tomatoes, lettuce, basil, parsley, oregano, thyme, green onions, cauliflower, and broccoli. So far so good on keeping everything alive :) It seems like black thumbs run in our family. Hopefully with the help of a timed drip system we can keep our little plants alive and be able to literally taste the fruits of our (and when I say "our" I mean "my") labor! Next up are some citrus trees and aloe vera plants that my stepmom is giving us soon!

Random Slide Show

2010-10-13T20:06:00.000-07:00

I am going through my hard drive to make sure I have blogged all of our goings-on and I came across a few random family trips that I don't think I have shared. The first few pictures are from a trip to the Wild Animal Park just a few weeks after Zachary was born. I can't believe how much he has changed! Next there are a couple pictures from a Family Movie Night we had with the kids. It made a HUGE impression on Anslie and she still talks about getting a sheet and pillows and eating popcorn and candy in the living room while watching a movie. Probably because she isn't allowed to have food in the living room normally. But it was a good time just the same. There's a quick picture of a nasty spider that surprised Anslie and I as we were heading out into the garage. It started hopping toward us and shaking it's nasty, hairy legs at us...until I squished it with Kevin's shoe. Finally, a couple snapshots of a trip to the zoo with the kiddos. Fun times!

Go Live!

2010-10-10T17:48:00.000-07:00

Just an FYI -- my new photography website will be live within the next couple of days. Check it out and let me know what you think!

www.shillawnaruffner.com

Also, my photography blog address has changed! You can now follow me at:

www.shillawnaruffnerblog.com

Newsworthy News!

2010-10-07T17:25:00.000-07:00

Times are changing and so is my website! I'm getting ready to launch my new and improved website, so keep your eyes open for it!

In honor of this exciting news, I am going to give away a free portrait session! If you win, you can use your session for:

Family Portraits

Engagement Photos

Senior Pictures

Baby Pictures

Bridal Session

Or anything else you want (excluding weddings:)

To enter the drawing, leave a comment on this post on my photography blog: www.shillawnaruffnerphotography.com. You can enter 1 additional time for becoming a fan of Shillawna Ruffner Photography on Facebook and 1 additional time for emailing this announcement to everyone in your contact list (that's three entries!). Make sure to leave me a comment when you become a fan (or if you already are a fan) and another comment when you have spammed all your friends :) Winners of the free photo session will be announced on Thursday, October 22nd! Locations for your shoot must be within 30 miles of Menifee, CA. Good luck and happy commenting!!!

-More to come on the Christmas Special so stay tuned!

Just a few.

2010-10-03T20:07:00.000-07:00

Just a few photos Kevin snapped of Zachary and I in the backyard while our family was playing. I love my precious boy!

Jump!

2010-10-03T19:50:00.000-07:00

I was thinking that today would be a great day for blogging and then I was a little bummed because I thought I didn't have any pictures to blog with. And then I went through my hard drive and realized that I had TONS of stuff that I haven't blogged about yet! So here's the first post of many: Jump!

My friend, Amberlyn, invited us one Saturday afternoon to meet her and her family at a park for jump pictures. Her husband bought his first dSLR camera and he was super excited to use it. Jump pictures are something Amberlyn and her family have done many times for fun, and now I can see why! They were so much fun!

We started off at the little lake at the park, Eric snapping some pictures of the kids with his shiny new camera.

And then we fed the ducks and other wildlife bread crumbs and popcorn. The ducks didn't care much for the popcorn we brought, but this little guy sure liked it!

And then on to our jump pictures. Our mutual friends, the Thunstrom family, met us at the park as well. I have to say, they definitely had the best jump pics! And Paige was really, really pregnant too!

A great lesson I think we all need to learn in life is how to laugh at ourselves. And I am totally dying laughing at the expression on my face in each of these photos. What the heck?! And what's up with Amberlyn's leg?!

I think you should try your own jump picture day too! I would love to see what you and your family come up with!

Finger Painting Fun

2010-09-25T07:29:00.000-07:00

As promised in the previous blog, here are some lovely little shots of Anslie finger painting for the first time. She LOVED it! We went through so much paper and she still wanted to paint after we ran out! We have actually had to hide the paints from her because it's the first thing she asks for when she wakes up in the morning, and as much as I would love it if she were self-occupied for most of the day, there are other things we have to do besides paint. Drawing with crayons, markers, chalk, color pencils, paints...that's what this little girl's favorite thing to do is. And don't even think about insulting her with a coloring book full of other people's pictures to color. Anslie wants blank paper for her artistic creations. Whether it's true or not, I would like to believe I have a little prodigy on my hands.

Can you believe it?!

2010-09-24T19:24:00.001-07:00

I snapped this picture of Zachary while he is enduring double ear infections (one side ruptured), a combo staph/yeast infection in all of his little rolls (because he is so fat and sweats so much and I can't keep him clean and dry), and a lingering viral chest infection that is now requiring breathing treatments 4 times per day. What a sweet baby! And he has only woken up once during each of the last 3 nights to eat. Have I been doing everything to help him get better? Yes. Do I still feel like the worst mom in the entire world for letting his problems get this bad? Completely. Adding 7 medications with differing dosing schedules that have required me to write down a daily schedule will hopefully improve this little guy's health and heal my broken heart.

Adding insult to injury, this little girl decided to grab the paring knife that I was feeding her pear from (another SMotY - Stupid Mom of the Year - move) and sliced her left index finger. That required a trip to the ER, where all they could do was clean the wound and glue her finger back together. Later that night, Anslie's finger was bothering her so much that she had a blast finger painting (more pictures from that event to come soon). At least she isn't scarred for life. Can't say the same for myself though.

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

2010-09-12T16:26:00.000-07:00

My son was born with lots of hair.

Hair that would make women and bald men alike, jealous.

When anyone saw him or a picture of him, they couldn't help but comment on his beautiful hair.

My in-laws joked that the angels styled his hair before he was born.

Thick, perfectly coiffed, ends that looked like they had been frosted.

Unfortunately Zachary's hair did what most newborns' hair does....it began to fall out.
I was soooo sad! I loved his hair! But what do you have to do when strangers start asking you if you gave your baby a mow hawk on purpose!? Buzz it, of course. Under his patchy tresses lay what looked like a cracked desert floor. His cradle cap was out of control and I simple couldn't get to it to help it come off. So, here's our bald little man receiving his first hair cut. Who knew it would be when he was only 3 months old?!

I always knew he was a big baby with a big head. But now that it isn't covered with any hair, Zachary definitely looks like a bruiser. I think we'll have to call him "Bam Bam" from now on. :)

Click to view more...

2010-08-25T15:50:00.001-07:00

Click HERE to see a few more "family portraits" we shot last night...

Dancer in the Making

2010-08-25T09:39:00.000-07:00

I was worried she wouldn't like it. Not so much because I wanted to live vicariously through her...but that she would be too shy or intimidated to enjoy something I enjoyed so much as a young girl. To my relief, Anslie LOVES her dance class! For her first two classes she pretty much just stood there and watched what the teachers and other students (most of them had already completed a year of dance) were doing. On her third class, however, she started to join in on the fun. She is such a cutie and really loves dancing! On the way to her class the other day she told me, "mama, I'm 'cited for my dance class. I'm 'cited for my teacher. She's pretty!" It warms my heart knowing that we have found an extra-curricular activity that she can look forward to each week. And it's even more fun that I am able to share something with her that I have such a deep love for. And if I do a little living vicariously, as long as she is having fun, what's the harm in that?!

The slide show below is full of pictures from her first dance class. I tried to document her entire experience from the time she woke up to the end of her class. I will also include a couple videos once I can get them formatted properly (so check out this post in a few days).

Zachary's Blessing

2010-08-20T14:59:00.000-07:00

We were surrounded by friends and family. The spirit was strong. My husband was inspired. My baby was beautiful.

What a wonderful day! Zachary was given and name and a blessing on August 8th and it was such a sweet moment! Zac was as darling as always and amazed everyone in the circle with his sweet cooing and yawning as Kevin blessed him with strength, health, happiness, a desire to live the Gospel and to serve a mission, the ability to take his future bride to the temple, and to have a love of learning and a testimony of the scriptures.

I was a proud mama and so happy that we were able to have so many of our loved ones share the experience with our family. And what do proud mamas do best? Feed the people they love!

After the blessing we invited everyone over to our house to enjoy grilled chicken, caesar and pasta salads, hummus and pita bread, fresh fruit, and a delicious chocolate fountain.

With our spirits and our bellies nourished, it turned out to be one memorable moment in our son's life.

My Two Kids

2010-08-16T14:13:00.000-07:00

Another excuse to post pictures of my two adorable babies! What can I say? I love my kids and I think they are cute. And I also think it's funny how the progression of pictures tells a tale of sibling rivalry, even at their young ages. Too funny.

It starts with me trying to take a picture of Zachary...and guess who wants in the picture too?

So I let Anslie in and all of a sudden she's no longer happy to be part of the project.

Zac's more than happy to oblige me while Anslie proves to be difficult.

Now she's starting to warm up....

See how she's peeking at Zac through the corner of her eye? What is she planning?!

Alright! There's my girl and her beautiful smile! But wait...see how he's sneaking a peek back? Uh oh...

Yup, I knew that was coming! Guess Zac showed Anslie. That's what she gets for stealing his lime light.

I guess I should be prepared for a lifetime of this stuff, right?! :)

Taking a Break...

2010-08-15T20:15:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of photo editing to do and even more to blog about. We have had an insanely busy two weeks and I have so much to share! Stay tuned for several new blog posts. Until then, I will leave you with these two photos. Have you ever wondered if an almost-three-year-old's inability to color within the lines would carry over to painting toe nails? The answer is YES.

We Have a Smiler!

2010-08-04T15:49:00.000-07:00

Zac has been officially smiling for about a week and a half now. I was finally able to catch it on "film"! Isn't he so stinkin' cute?!?!?!?

Read it if you like. I mean no offense by it. But it's true.

2010-07-27T14:47:00.000-07:00

A photographer-friend of mine posted about this article on Facebook. I was curious and read it and couldn't help giving the author a standing ovation in my head. I'm not saying that I'm the bee's knees or anything, but when she talks about professionals pouring their souls into their training, research, and craft and that being the difference between a pro and an enthusiast with a nice digital camera, I wanted shout "here, here!!!" Yes, the camera makes a difference in the "quality" of an image...but it's the photographer who makes the image into art.

http://www.erinfarrellphotography.com/theblog/?p=817

There's Little a Nap and Sunshine Won't Cure

2010-07-26T20:42:00.000-07:00

This is how my afternoon started...

(I know it's hard to tell in this picture, but Anslie was throwing a tantrum.)

But once we I got this one subdued...

and asleep...

(with a foot picture for good luck..because I love his toes, lint and all)

And this one outside...

We had a much happier day ahead of us.

And yes, if you were wondering, this post was just an excuse to post some more cute pictures of my kids.

Tiny Dancer

2010-07-23T20:06:00.000-07:00

We signed Anslie up for a dance class today! To say that I am excited would be a major understatement! I am a dance LOVER and took ballet for many years growing up. I didn't start dancing until I was 12, which is pretty old for most people if you want to do anything professional with it...so that dream was unattainable for me (I was most definitely not a child prodigy). Not that I am planning on pressuring Anslie to pursue dance if she doesn't like it, nor am I living vicariously through her. I just want to give her the opportunity to choose what she wants to do by giving her the tools she needs to discover if she is passionate for and/or has a talent for dance.

Anyway, her class is once a week for an hour and it's a combo class which includes ballet, tap, jazz, and motor skills. It's pretty much the latter that she will develop most at this age. I hope she loves it! She loves watching So You Think You Can Dance on TV with me and usually dances around the living room while the dancers on TV are performing. She LOVES music! I think she'll have fun. We'll see! Classes start on August 5th!

Here are a few snapshots I took with my phone of her being fitted for her first pair of ballet and tap shoes. I sure wish I had my camera with me...but don't you worry... I'm sure I will design some kind of photo shoot around her and her new dance gear.

I think I found Heaven.

2010-07-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

Kevin and I have never had a backyard (no, I don't count the patch of earth that we had in our townehome in Utah a backyard) since our youth. It's something we have longed for: A place for the dog to do her business. A place to entertain friends and family. A place to BBQ. A place to spend lazy summer afternoons, basking in the sun in privacy. And now, a place for our children to live out their childhood fantasies in safety.

One of the things I insisted on spending money on right away when we bought our home was landscaping the backyard. I was NOT going to spend this summer cooped up inside with a two year old and a brand new baby! Today was the first time we were able to fully enjoy our money well spent!

My friend brought her two boys over and we had a swim party in the backyard! It was so much fun for the kids and so absolutely wonderful to be able to enjoy the sun and let them play without having to worry about anything. We were out there for HOURS. SOooo awesome! What a wonderful afternoon!

KdBuggie Boutique: Mingle Mondays

2010-07-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I am not that great about leaving comments on other peoples' blogs, participating in contests, or really even joining in on all of the potentially exciting things that are going on in internet land. A big part of that is because I have two little kids at home, a household to manage, and a budding photography business that consumes any free time that might be left over. But I have kept an eye on someone who probably has no idea that I have been. Granted, she is family, albeit through marriage to a cousin whom I don't keep as closely in contact with as I should. Anyway, she also has two little ones at home, manages not only her household but an entire apartment complex, and still has had the time to start her own budding cottage industry. My cousin's wife, Katy, is the creator of KdBuggie Boutique and makes the most darling infant gear I have seen. I was given a few of her items as a shower gift when my son was born a few weeks ago and I have just loved them! Obviously this piqued my interest even more and I began following her blog even more closely. And that brings me to this post: Katy participates in something called "Mingle Mondays" for "blog hopping" which I am still not really sure of what that is. But, I thought I would give this a try since Katie has done such a wonderful job of building her business and creating a community. So, here's a little attempt at reaching out there and socializing with the internet universe to not only continue growing through my own blogging adventures, but through others' as well. And hopefully I will inspire, be inspired, and have the opportunity to share with an even wider audience the things I am most passionate about. Happy mingling! (oh-and if you would like to check out my other blog, click HERE)

I love Summertime Rainstorms!

2010-07-16T09:10:00.000-07:00

Has it already been a month?!

2010-07-13T14:51:00.000-07:00

Yes, time flies by when you're having...fun? If you think stretch marks, flabbiness, stitches, and tears are...fun.

But, really, the first month that we have had Zachary in our home has been amazing! It feels like he has always been a part of our family. There wasn't really any "adjusting" to having two kids. Sure, I have to figure out a new daily routine, how to juggle two little ones who need both me and different things at the same time, and do all of this while properly managing our home. I'm not there 100% yet, but I'm on my way.

Everything I feared about having a second child hasn't come true: not being able to bond with Zac because I'm too busy with Anslie; not being able to be a good parent to Anslie because I'm too busy with the baby; not being a good wife to Kevin because I'm too busy with the kids; my house being a total wreck all the time because I can't keep up with life's demands; not having any time to myself to enjoy the other things I love, like blogging, photography, etc; most of all, not having a big enough heart to love everyone as much as they deserve.

If I had to sum Zac up in one word, it would be "precious." He still sleeps most of the day which has been great! And he follows a really nice rhythm of "sleep, eat, awake" so it has been really easy to anticipate and take care of his needs. On good nights, he's up only twice; not so good nights, three or four times. Fortunately for both of us I am an experienced nursing mother and can catch a few zzz's by nursing him while laying in bed. During the day he is on a 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 hour feeding schedule which allows enough time for me to get things done. Zachary is starting to become a little bit more alert so it's been fun to look into his deep blue eyes and try to get a smile out of him. And yes, I know that he is a little young for me to expect a meaningful response, but I SWEAR he has smiled in response to my baby talk at least twice in the last few days.

Anslie has been an absolute angel over the last week an a half and I have had more fun with her than I have had in a long time. She loves to carry her baby dolls around now more than ever and will often sit and "nurse" her babies right along side me. Soooo cute! Her vocabulary has exploded and she puts fulls paragraphs together. She is a little girl who knows just what she wants and now she is finally able to express exactly what that is in words.

Kevin is back at work but longs to be home with his two darling kids instead. He came home from work one day promising me to learn photography so that he could quit his job and we could be a photography power couple like Jasmine Star and her hubby. It made me laugh...maybe someday.... Kevin's a hard worker and a loving husband and father as always and he has been a major part in making the last month as enjoyable as it has been.

I feel like the biggest changes have come over me and my temperament. Life was rough after Anslie was born and most of that was due to my attitude. I chalk a lot of that up to wacky hormones, sleep deprivation, and maybe even a little postpartum depression. And it didn't help that Anslie was so sick and unhappy. It really took a toll on my marriage. My biggest fear of all about having another baby was having to go through that difficult time in my life all over again. Happily, I feel like Zac's presence has made me a little more patient, loving, and kind...mostly toward Kevin...and I can feel the love growing and abounding through my home. What a relief!

So, that's us in a nutshell...the Ruffner family is officially a family of four!

The good, the bad, and the uuuuugly!

2010-07-10T21:50:00.000-07:00

What do you do when your 1 hour "road trip" turns into a 3+ hour road trip due to traffic?
I take pictures:

Anslie screams her head off:

In all reality, both kids were actually pretty stellar considering the circumstances: I needed to turn a lens in for repair and the nearest Canon repair center is in Irvine. Google maps said it would take us about an hour to get from our house to the repair center...and it mostly did. We hit a little bit of traffic on the way there (weird, because it was 10:30/11:00am-ish on a Friday afternoon) which extended our drive by about 30 minutes. Not too big of a deal.

It was the start of Kevin's weekend so we decided to stay in OC and enjoy one of our favorite restaurant's cuisine from the time we spent in Utah (Cafe Rio -- I know all of you who no longer live in Utah and don't have a location near you are jealous! They just opened this location in Lake Forest fairly recently) and then walked around the Irvine Spectrum and enjoyed the sun and the shopping.

We headed home not at the best time of day for rush hour... but we had no idea how bad it would be.
It took us over 2 hours to go 10 miles on the 91 fwy!!! Ya, not so fun. Again, considering we had been out the entire day, everyone was hungry, road rage was abounding, and we got home and had dinner about 2 hours later than we had originally planned, (plus Anslie also missed her nap because we were out and about), the fact that Anslie only cried for the last 30 minutes of the trip was a small miracle.

While Kevin was talking to a friend on the phone today (who is familiar with the freeways in the area) and recanted our experience, he told us that you should never travel on the 91 before 11am or after 4pm because the traffic is horrible. Thanks, Owen. It would have been GREAT to know that beforehand :)

Zac and Anslie: Sensory Time

2010-07-07T16:23:00.000-07:00

My friend took us to this great kid's play place called Sensory Time a few weeks ago. Anslie loved it so much we are making it a frequent fun destination for our weekly down time. Sensory time is perfect for kids Anslie's age! She has so much fun playing with all of the toys, climbing equipment, slides, etc (and it's indoors which is really nice for our hot, hot, hot summer temperatures)! I braved the outdoors with two kids today and took them for a couple of hours. Zachary slept the whole time, of course, and Anslie was an angel!
This is what I get when I tell Anslie to smile and look at the camera. Pretty.

Of course, no post would be complete without some artsy shots...

And I couldn't resist snapping a few shots of my darling little ones when we got home.

Anslie has been surprisingly well behaved over the last few days. Today could have gone miserably wrong, but because of her sweet temperament and obedience, we had a really nice day! You know the saying, "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."? Well, I've discovered that it's more like, "If the kids ain't happy, everybody else is miserable!!!" I am really grateful that both kids have been awesome and easy on me during my first few days of parenting two by myself. That makes a HUGE difference, I think!

A few more (because I'm obsessed!)

2010-06-27T14:39:00.000-07:00

My new friend, Leanne Price of Price Family Photography, invited Zac and I over for a shoot in her studio. I am not a studio photographer, but it was really fun to see all of her equipment and watch her and her husband play with the lighting. They had some fantastic props for us to use as well! It was a really fun experience and all I can lay claim over is the baby, pushing the button on the camera, and the post processing. The rest was Leanne! Thanks to her and her husband for treating Zac and I to a once in a lifetime treat!

Okay, here's the rest.

2010-06-24T20:13:00.000-07:00

Click on this link to view Zachary's photo collection on my web-blog! www.shillawnaruffnerphotography.com

I just can't help myself!!!

2010-06-22T22:16:00.000-07:00

I am totally and completely head over heals in love with Zachary! I know that all parents say this about their kids, but I really, truly am. I just can't get enough of him! I think it helps that he is such a mellow baby...he's a good eater, a good sleeper...nothing I have experienced before with an infant his age. Don't get me wrong - Anslie is my heart walking around outside of my body. I would sacrifice everything for her happiness and well-being. It's just different this time. Chalk it up to experience. I had to learn how to be a mom with Anslie and everything was so new and scary when she was born. There's something to be said for experience; it has given me the opportunity to enjoy my new baby.

Anyway, the purpose for me writing this post is to share one of my favorite photos of Zac from his newborn photo shoot I did with him on Saturday. He was 8 days old and 100% precious. I have a ton of photos that I absolutely ADORE from this shoot, but I can't decide if I want to post them now or wait until I send out his birth announcements. So, I have decided to share just one because I can't keep them to myself any longer!

Night Time Antics

2010-06-19T10:49:00.001-07:00

Kevin went into Anslie's room the other night to check on her before we went to bed and this is what he found:

Talk about a parent's worst nightmare! Anslie was NOT in her bed and Kevin couldn't find her! He did a quick search of her closet because she likes to play in there sometimes, and nothing. As his eye adjusted to the darkness, he finally found her here:

Apparently Anslie climbed out of her crib (which she has never done before) and made herself cozy in her rocking chair with a good book. Pretty cute, except for the fact that she could fall out of her crib and break her neck at any given point! Kevin picked her up and put her back in bed and the night went on without a peep from her.

We asked her the next morning to show us how she climbs out of her crib and she couldn't do it and she hasn't climbed out since. Maybe it was a one-time fluke? Or maybe it's time to think about getting a toddler bed? Time will tell....

Sea World Clip

2010-06-18T18:54:00.000-07:00

My good friend, Catherine, and her husband were awesome and took Anslie to Sea World while Kevin and I were in the hospital delivering Zachary. This is a little video clip Catherine took of Anslie playing in the water fountains. It's absolutely hilarious how the water just comes up and smacks her right in the face and Anslie doesn't even care! Toddlers are hilarious!

Knocking Around the House Post Partum

2010-06-18T18:42:00.000-07:00

The week since Zac was born has been long and yet it went by so quickly. Tera brought her youngest daughter, Brynna, with her to keep Anslie company and she was a welcome distraction! Tera and Kevin were great about thinking of things to do to occupy the girls time. One of these things was roasting marshmallows Whiskey Tango style on the BBQ and making s'mores.

We have some very thoughtful friends who haven't forgotten about Anslie in the gift-bestowing department!

Mostly our days have been filled with baby-holding

And lots of naps!

I think I'll stick this one here....

2010-06-18T16:25:00.000-07:00

I was compiling all of the pictures we have taken over the last week and came across a few snapshots from a ward activity we went to a few weeks ago. We had a tailgate party with a bunch of people from church and then enjoyed a semi-pro baseball game afterward (Diamondbacks vs. Jet Hawks who happen to be from my home town).
This is Anslie with her new BFF, Caleb.

And a couple of our family before it expanded.

Zachary's Birth Story

2010-06-18T16:01:00.000-07:00

Is a week a long time coming to share the pictures and story Zachary's birth? This is literally the first time I have been able to sit at the computer and write and work on pictures since his birth. (sigh) Needless to say I am (we are all) exhausted! But we are doing well and there are lots of pictures and stories to tell that will not all be included in this post. So, here's part I: Zachary's Birth Story.

I woke up at around 1am on the morning of the 11th (2 days after my latest due date) with contractions that were pretty regular (2-3 minutes apart) but only lasting about 20-30 seconds long. They were painful enough to wake me up and I definitely couldn't go back to sleep. And painful enough for me to call Kevin home from work. In the two hours it took him to get home, I prepared the last few things we needed to take with us to the hospital, Anslie's overnight bag, and I showered. I honestly had no idea if I was really in labor because as I was up and moving around, although the pain never lessened, the length and distance between contractions was constantly changing. It was so frustrating! Mostly because I had gone into false labor twice before this and it was like someone was dangling a carrot in front of my nose; a very painful, exhausting, and emotionally draining carrot.

I called my sister, Tera, who was going to try to get here from Colorado in time for the baby's birth and put her on alert. Even if this was another false labor, with my state being what it was (my checkup the day before showed that I was dilated to 3 cm but my cervix could be stretched to 5 1/2 cm and was 90-100% effaced) I could go into real labor at any moment.

By 6:45am, almost 6 hours after waking up with contractions - contractions that sucked my breath away and that I really had to concentrate to get through the pain - my progress stopped. I was devastated! I know that might sound a little funny, but I was so DONE being pregnant, with all of the aches, pains, and other discomforts that come with it. I just wanted this baby OUT! I sat on the living room floor and sobbed while Kevin tried to comfort me because I felt like I had been tortured for hours without anything to show for it. I was drained. So I went upstairs and took a nap for a couple of hours.

At 10am I was again awakened with some serious contractions, contractions that were still very irregular and hard to "diagnose" as real labor. I went downstairs and Kevin got us some lunch while I worked through each painful crest, debating whether or not to run for the hospital. We had tickets to a VIP party at Sea World that night that Kevin and I were dying to take Anslie to so we decided to pack up and head for San Diego. If my labor stopped we would beat rush hour traffic and spend the evening at Sea World. If not, we would be close to the hospital I was to deliver at.

We were getting in the car to head out when my mom called (who is an RN who has worked in Labor and Delivery, the Newborn Nursery, and is also a Lactation Consultant). I let her know what was going on and my frustrations with not knowing for sure if I was really in labor. I worked through a couple contractions with her on the phone and upon confirmation of the length of the contraction, the level of pain, and the fact that there was some spotting, my mom told us to GET TO THE HOSPITAL! It was finally time!

When we checked into triage at 2:30pm we discovered that I was dilated to a 6 and that I was 100% effaced. The baby was still at a -2 station (so there was still some time before he would arrive) but it was the perfect time for us to get to the hospital!

From there on out I labored...and boy did I labor! I was thrilled to not have to be put on pitocin and I was given a heplock instead of an IV. The doctors and nursing staff were awesome about letting me do my thing. Everyone expected the labor and delivery to be very quick and.....it wasn't. The nurses had the room prepared for delivery by 5pm and it was another 7 hours before the baby was born!

I lived on cranberry juice and this fabulous crushed ice throughout the entire delivery and hospital stay. I still crave it!

Dilated to a 7 at 5pm and the room was prepped for baby
By the time I hit transitional labor I had been laboring for 19 hours, running on about 2 hours of sleep. I was exhausted! I made the decision to have my water broken at that point because we were all hoping that it would get me through to 10 cm and pushing within the hour. And it didn't. It just amped up the pain to the point I was no longer in control. It was just too much and after threatening my nurse and punching Kevin in the head, screaming profanities, and asking to die, it was clear that I needed an epidural. I wanted Zac to be born in a calm and loving environment and I was in a state of panic.

After 2 hours with an epidural and plenty of time to gather myself together, we hit 10 cm and were ready to push!

The anesthesiologist gave me a mild dose of medication so that the edge was taken off the contractions, but I could still feel when they were coming, I could feel the pressure and the urge to push, and the tugging, stretching, and movement from the baby's progress.

After 22 hours of labor and an hour of pushing, our not so little baby was born! My OB took a guess at his weight about a week before I delivered and he said there was no way Zac was going to be more than 8lbs. Ha! The OB who delivered me commented on the fact that no one anticipated him being as big as he was. Zac's shoulders got stuck and it took the doctor + three nurses to wrestle him out (another reason I was happy that I got the epidural after all). I did tear a bit (2nd degree downward and into the labia)and it took the doc about an hour to stitch me up, but other than that, things were perfect!

The awesome thing about Zac's delivery was that I was able to hold him immediately after birth, skin to skin, for over an hour before the nursing staff took him to do measurements and tests. I didn't have that experience with Anslie because she was showing signs of respiratory distress after birth. That hour of bonding time really makes a difference! I was able to get Zac latched on for breast feeding on the first try and all has been smooth sailing ever since!

Zachary is absolutely gorgeous and I can't get over his hair and size, just like everyone else! He is a darling baby and we fell in love the minute we set eyes on him.

First bath at the hospital

We are so grateful to my sister, Tera, who missed the birth but made it for the crucial period postpartum to take care of my little family while I could not. She and her family made such great sacrifices to be there for us. We are so thankful for all of our friends and family who offer support and love! You are all awesome! Thanks to Catherine and John for taking care of my sweet baby girl while Kevin and I were at the hospital! It was such a comfort knowing that she was in good hands. And to Amberlyn and Eric for watching our pooch while we were away. There was comfort in that as well, knowing that things at home were being taken care of for us. Stay tuned for part II (not sure what the title will be yet, but this story is far from over!)

Loading Zac up for the car ride home

First bath at home

Introducing Anslie to her new baby brother

Anslie's cousin, Brynna, is a pro at holding babies!

Just One For Now

2010-06-12T13:03:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! I had just a second to sneak a picture onto our blog of our new baby. Here he is: the anxiously awaited Zachary James Ruffner:

He was born at 12:03 am on Saturday the 12th after 10 hours of labor at the hospital (+ 12 hours at home off and on starting at 1 am on Friday morning). Zac weighed in at a whopping 9 pounds, 2 ounces and was 21 inches long! Yowza!!!

Everything went really smoothly! I received an epidural for the last 3 hours of labor to help take the edge off of transitional labor and pushed for an hour to get this little linebacker out. Everyone is healthy and happy and quite exhausted! Please feel free to email or text Kevin and I. We have email access via our laptop and I will check occassionally as I am able to.

DeJong's Dairy

2010-06-03T14:52:00.001-07:00

We are so happy to have made friends with a really fun family, The Russells. Amberlyn invited Anslie and I to join her and her two boys, Eli and Caleb (sorry, Amberlyn, I don't know how you spell his name) at a local dairy farm today. She has a mom's group that she belongs to and this is a regular destination for them. Anslie had a lot of fun feeding the farm animals and crawling around on the haystacks. She also had a TON of fun hanging out with Caleb, her new BFF. He is so sweet to her and she literally SCREAMED for probably 45 minutes when Amberlyn dropped us off at home because Anslie said she missed him. Here are a few shots from our super fun outing!

Just Call Me Fire Crotch

2010-06-02T16:37:00.000-07:00

Anslie was born on October 31, 2007. If you look back at SoCal history, you will find that approximately a week or so before she was born was when the big Wildfires hit San Diego. We were voluntarily evacuated from our home (I was really sick with a bronchial infection and since we didn't have an air conditioner with an air filter to filter out the smoke, I couldn't breathe and so we left our home to stay with friends across town who were much further away from the smoke and falling ashes than our home was). It was really scary and stressful to say the least to be evacuated from my home a week before I was supposed to give birth to my first child (or any child for that matter!!!). Fortunately we were able to return to our home a few days after leaving (nothing was damaged by the fires) and Anslie was born about a week later (late-we were not living in our apartment on my due date).

Memorial Day, 2010: Approximately 1 week before my due date with this new baby...I am sitting on the couch in the living room watching TV and folding laundry. I get up to get something and glance out the window into my back yard and notice some black smoke over the horizon. So I get a chair and stand on it so that I can see over my block wall fence, and this is what I find:

(The patch of dirt is my backyard)

I call 911 and they tell me that there are officials on the scene and that the police will let the residents of the community know if/when to evacuate. About 20-30 minutes later a police officer drives his car down the streets of the neighborhood announcing on his loudspeaker that we all need to evacuate our homes. Seriously?!?!?! AGAIN?!?!?! Is it just coincidence that about a week before both of my due dates we are ordered to evacuate due to a wild fire?!

I wake Kevin up and tell him what is going on and of course we start loading irreplaceable items into our car (birth certificates, loan documents, insurance info, pictures, the dog...Anslie) and just before we are about to leave, we check the progress of the fires and it looks like they are pretty much out. Phew!

We never ended up leaving our house which I was happy about, but we still went through the trouble of packing bags and loading them into the car. A. NNOY. ING. That's the (physically) hard part anyway.

Needless to say, I'm super thankful for the quick response of the fire fighters and police! It would have been so sad to lose our new home and all that we have filled it with!!! Talk about an EVENTFUL Memorial Day!

Congratulations Rachelle!

2010-05-25T22:07:00.000-07:00

My sister, Rachelle, graduated from CSUN on the 18th with her bachelor's degree in Math and her teaching credentials so she can teach Jr. High and High School students. Here are a few snapshots from her special day! A bunch of family came into town to share this event and it was so fun to see everyone and catch up. Congrats, Rachelle! We're all proud of you...now go out there and change the world!

Oh, Baby!

2010-05-23T08:45:00.000-07:00

This last week was such a fun yet BUSY week! A bunch of my family was coming in town for my oldest sister, Rachelle's, graduation from CSUN and she was kind enough to let me steal some of her thunder and schedule my baby shower for the weekend before so that they could attend that as well.

My sweet friends, Kenna and Catherine, threw me such a great shower! The decorations were super cute, the food was delicious, and I made out like a bandit!!! It was such a special experience to be able to have my sisters, mom, aunt, and cousins all attend my baby shower!

We played three fun games: (and if you know me, you know I am not a fan of shower games, so if I say they were fun, they were!!!) The first was a list of personality traits and physical features that my guests had to guess whether I would want the new baby to have from either Kevin or me. It's a pretty good thing that nature decides these kinds of things, otherwise this kid might look pretty funny! Rachelle won first place, and my other sister, Tera, came in second.

The second game involved lots of fun just for me! I had to taste test different baby foods and guess what they were. Not a big deal because when Anslie was eating baby food I always tasted anything I put into her mouth (BTW, baby food bananas are delicious!!!) and I actually guessed all but one right! The worst of the bunch was the turkey. It was disgusting when I fed it to Anslie and it still is! I totally gagged!

The last game, of course, was trying to guess the size of my tummy with a piece of yarn. My mom won that game...not a big surprise since she works with pregnant moms and new babies for a living!

My favorite gifts included a Sit and Stand stroller, a Moby Wrap, an Utter Cover nursing cover, several custom hand made baby blankets, a Boppy nursing pillow, hand made and personalized bunny stuffed animals for both the baby and Anslie, and of course, all of the darling baby clothes!

I feel so blessed to have people in my life that not only love me and my family, but are so supportive of us as well! I can't believe the generosity of my friends and family and I am grateful for all that is done for us! We are officially ready to welcome this baby boy into our lives and are even more excited to raise both he and Anslie within the wonderful community of family and friends that surround us!

PS-- I am 37 weeks along. I had my last checkup on the 20th and there hasn't been any progress from the checkup the week before that. Still 1-2 cm dilated and 50% effaced. We have some time to go before this boy is ready! (I keep telling myself that so that I don't get my hopes up.)

Our Newest Addition

2010-05-21T17:55:00.001-07:00

I'll give you a tip: It has nothing to do with babies.

Here's our new couches! Love 'em!!!

An {old} video

2010-05-14T05:47:00.000-07:00

Kevin had to use our point and shoot camera yesterday for a little project (gasp!!!) and when he downloaded the pictures to the computer I found this little video clip. Anslie is a total mess in the video and the lighting is horrible, but I LOVE it just the same! It just made me smile and smile. Enjoy! (PS- notice the super saggy diaper. Yummy.)

36 Weeks???

2010-05-12T18:33:00.000-07:00

The question marks are because I have now had 4, count 'em, 4 due dates! I finally was able to see my actual OB instead of the nurse practitioner today and asked him what due date he was going by and he said June 9th. That was the first I had ever heard that date before! I've heard the 3rd, 5th, and 7th. But I am happy with the 9th because there will be much less pressure for an induction if things start to run past due.

HOWEVER....

Things changed for me this week. I could feel it. The end of last week and beginning of this week I was officially MISERABLE! My lower back and sciatic nerve pain had gotten so bad that I was literally shuffling around, often times my legs giving out to the stress. When sitting down I could lift my right leg, but my left was WAY too painful to even get an inch off the chair. I woke up feeling the pain, went throughout the day with it, limped into bed at night with it. Not fun.

I have also had Braxton Hicks contractions since about 5 months along (same with Anslie's pregnancy) but they have started to get stronger, longer, closer together, and much more painful. A few nights ago they were coming on so regularly and were getting so uncomfortable that I almost started timing them!

After complete physical misery for at least a week, all of a sudden, yesterday afternoon, I just felt better. And I could BREATHE. Glorious air filled my lungs again and I was able to read to Anslie at bed time without having to catch my breath between sentences. I was able to eat an entire meal without feeling like my skin was going to rip open on my abdomen. Something HAD to be different.

I had my checkup today and the doctor confirmed that the baby is VERY low and that I am already dilated 1 1/2 cm. He said that for me to only be 36-37 weeks along and to already be experiencing a change in my contractions, the baby dropping, and dilation, he would be surprised if I made it to my due date, even venturing to say that he expects me to have a May baby. Ummm....check your calendars people! There's only about two weeks left in May!!! Totally crazy!

I would be lying if I said I were disappointed by this news. Although life is going to be challenging with two kids instead of one, I feel ready to tackle the job and I just want to be able to move again. It is impossible to properly parent a 2 year old if you can't get up to chase after them, pick them up, etc. So yes, let's all pray for a May baby!

Of course, I am not counting this news as a promise. I walked around for almost 3 weeks dilated to 2 1/2 cm with Anslie and I still never went into labor by myself. But the doc seems confident (and I feel confident) that my body is much more in tune with what is supposed to happen this time around. Thank goodness!

Hopefully this will be the last belly picture I have to put up!

And, just because Anslie actually asked me to take a picture of her, here's one of her:

My Crowning Acheivment

2010-05-09T16:50:00.000-07:00

My Mother's Day gift is this: having the opportunity to sit on my butt all day and mess around with photos, check my email, blog, read, watch TV, and completely ignore all of my motherly duties. It's the best gift I could ever ask for! My husband is amazing!

Something I have wanted to do for a long time is put an update about Anslie on the blog. I haven't taken pictures of her since her 1st birthday (okay, I've taken lots of pictures of her, but none that are worthy of bragging about and making it to a picture frame) and I know that life will be out of control once the baby is born in a few weeks. I wanted to take the opportunity to remember Anslie at this age, before life gets a little more involved.

So here it is, my Crowning Acheivement in life: Anslie

All About Anslie

Favorites:

Food - watermelon, strawberries, cheese, CANDY, ICE CREAM, spinach, chicken, FRUIT SNACKS

Toys - Babies and Books

Activities - Swimming, running around outside, going to the park, swings, coloring, bubbles, taking baths, talking on the phone

TV shows - Elmo (Sesame Street), Wonder Pets, Mickey Mouse Club House, Little Einsteins

Phrases - "You crack me up!", "Happy bir day!", "Go way!", "No!", "Sshhhh...baby's seeping.", "Watch me!", "I wan canny!", "Hold you me."

Anslie usually wakes up between 7am and 8am and will currently take 2 hour naps starting around 2pm. Bed time is between 7pm and 8pm depending on whether or not she has had a nap. She LOVES babies and is definitely one SPIRITED child! She is on the go, go, go from the moment she wakes up until her head hits the pillow at bed time.

This kid has personality! She loves to laugh at her own jokes and make silly faces. Anslie also loves to sing songs. She will often climb on top of the highest thing she can and belt songs out at the top of her lungs. She is independent and sassy, just like her mama.

Breakfast is Anslie's least favorite meal of the day, dessert her most! She can be such a big helper around the house, always wanting to sweep, wash, scrub, and dust right along side mom. One of her favorite chores is helping me put the laundry in the washing machine.

I can't wait for her to be a big sister! Anslie is so sweet with babies and can't wait to get her hands on them the moment she sees one. She will be great at bringing diapers, blankets, and wipes to me, alerting me when baby is unhappy, and generally being a big sister!

Even though life with a toddler can be a little hectic (a lot hectic most of the time) I wouldn't take her out of my life for one minute! She is my friend, my sidekick, my heart walking around outside of my body. I love her to death and she really is the best thing I have ever created in my life!

The Wests Came to Visit!

2010-05-06T18:40:00.000-07:00

Our dear friends, family really, came for a visit from New Mexico this week. It was so fun to see them and hang out! Owen and Kevin have known each other since High School and Britni and I of course met each other through our husbands (then, boyfriends). Britni and Owen have a very sweet 4 1/2 year old girl, Mia, who was really good to Anslie (wish I could say the same about Anslie). It was great to have someone for Anslie to play with and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit with our dear friends, the Wests.

One of the fun things we did was a "beach" trip to Lake Elsinore, which happily ended up only being 15 minutes away from our house! It wasn't a San Diego beach, but it was fun, warm, sunny, and wet! Hopefully we will get to see our dear friends again soon!

Owen, Britni, and Mia

I think this was supposed to be a picture of Anslie and Mia hugging, but neither one got the concept of looking at the camera.

Anslie's personal Lake Elsinore

Cutie Pie Mia

I didn't know there were such things as fresh water whales?!?!?

We had a fun day!

I am in love!

2010-05-04T08:20:00.000-07:00

Never before have I come in contact with something so easy to use, so trustworthy, so gentle yet effective, so everything it's label and advertising claims! Let me introduce to you my new favorite cleaning product:

My step mother recommended Folex for the carpet in our home. Since we purchased a Bank-Owned property, not a single thing in the house was cleaned before we moved in. Walls were disgusting, appliances needed scrubbing, and let's not even talk about the horrors that spotted the carpet. (Let me be fair by saying that, although our house wasn't spotless, it was actually pretty pristine compared to a lot of the foreclosed homes that we looked at. But still way below my standards of "clean.")

I was pretty skeptical that anything could take out the dark spots and stains that riddled the family room and hallways. Especially when the directions for use on the bottle literally say, "Simply apply a generous amount on the spot, agitate with finger tips and blot with absorbent cloth. SPOT WILL DISAPPEAR INSTANTLY." Really. Instantly? We'll see about that.

Last night Kevin and I got on our hands and knees to put this baby to the test. We did as the directions told us and to our amazement, the spots literally disappeared before our eyes! We were shocked! Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of this mini-miracle in action, but trust me...there were dark brown, almost BLACK, spots leading from the garage entrance down the hallway and HUGE black spots in the family room that we joked around looked like someone had changed a tire in there. Gone. Completely gone! And the bottle guarantees that the removed spots will not return.

So, for what it's worth, this product has my official stamp of approval. And FYI, it can also be used for walls, upholstery, and in a carpet cleaning machines (not just for spot removal). I am looking forward to having much cleaner carpets in the future! And at only around $15 for a 1 gallon bottle, who can't afford to have clean carpets?!?!?!

Click on the link below to find out where you can buy your very own bottle of Folex!

http://www.folexcompany.com/find_us.html

What do you do when....

2010-04-30T10:14:00.000-07:00

You have an adorable two and a half year old girl who:

Is funny and cute
Has LOTS of personality
Has LOTS and LOTS of energy to burn
Likes to talk a lot
Is a joy and a blessing

And Also....

Likes to hit other kids
Likes to spank her mom's butt and mouth off when scolded
Thinks that time-outs are great because she can jump on her bed and sing
Says "no" to everything
And can't follow through on the simplest request?

On another note......

My friend Catherine and her daughter Ashlynn and little boy Brayden had a sleepover with us last night. (All were brave for weathering Anslie's storm.) For the most part the two girls had fun playing in the play room and watching movies and eating popcorn. We gave ourselves and the girls pedicures and Anslie and Ashlynn finished the evening off with a super duper bubble bath in my giant jetted tub. Here are a few of the photos from the highlight of the night!

Fighting for Naps

2010-04-26T14:41:00.000-07:00

Napping is something Anslie has ALWAYS fought me on. I remember when I was trying to get her on some semblance of a schedule when she was an infant, getting her to nap was a three-ringed circus. At one point I would swaddle her, take her into the bathroom (the darkest room in the house), turn off the light, turn on a hair dryer for white noise, rock and bounce and walk her until she was sleepy, then strap her in her bouncy seat with the vibrator on to simulate the rocking and bouncing, and tuck her in with a t-shirt I had slept in so that she could smell me while she napped (she never took a pacifier, otherwise that would have been involved too). Even then, she still would only nap for 30-45 minutes at a time.

As she got older her naps condensed from several a day to two (maybe around her first b-day?) and you would think that each nap's length would increase since there were fewer of them. Nope. 30-45 minutes, twice a day. Finally, I don't remember at what age, she was ready for one nap a day (I think it was pretty early, maybe 1 1/2?). I knew it was time to cut her second nap because she would wake up from it hysterical and it would take hours to calm her down.

When she was only napping once a day, I could expect her to sleep for an hour to an hour and half. That's IT. Every once in a while she would surprise me and sleep for 2+ hours, but I bet I could count on my fingers how many times that has happened over the last year.

Anslie is now 2 1/2. And she fights me EVERY. DAY. to take a nap. There are days when I don't put her down because we are out and about, or frankly, I just don't feel like fighting. (Those days I put her to bed an hour early at night) She does just fine missing her nap... until the evening time. And then we have a little tazmanian devil on our hands. Anslie becomes defiant, HYPERACTIVE, she won't eat, she hits, throws things, and is generally not a very pleasant kid to be around. (And the best part is she thinks her behavior is FUNNY and laughs and giggles as we try to enforce rules and implement dicipline.) So I feel like she still needs her nap to temper her behavior in the evening.

Here's the catch though. Not only does she fight me tooth and nail EVERY. DAY. to go down for a nap, I can't even trick her into falling asleep in the car and transferring her into her bed. I've driven around town for over 20 minutes when I KNOW she is struggling not to fall asleep, but she fights it every time. Some days it takes 40+ minutes of me rocking her, singing, soothing, and even sometimes threatening and spanking to get her to fall asleep...just for her to rest (and me to get a break from her) for an hour to an hour and a half. And even after all that (today is the perfect example) once I do get her to fall asleep, she will often get up about 5-10 minutes after I leave the room (as if she is faking me out, pretending to be asleep so I will leave) and play, sing to herself, scream my name to come and get her over and over again at the top of her lungs, or, best of all, take her clothes and (ocassionally poopy) diapers off.

So I just don't know what to do. I have a kid whom I think still needs a nap. She refuses to sleep. If she does go down it's a fight (and it's getting harder and harder for me to carry her and rock her with my due date quickly approaching. Not just hard, but physically painful.) Do I let her give up naps now, along with any hope of her napping once the baby is born so that I can get a break from my kids during the day, so that I don't have to fight her and put up with her bad behavior in the evening, or do I keep fighting the good fight and just hope I can get her to "nap" for the next few months to get her the rest she needs so she can be a happy, well adjusted, and productive kid, and until baby and I have recovered and I can get him on a schedule of his own?

Let me just say that some parents have already suggested that I still put her in her bed for an hour or two of "quiet" time instead of nap time, but the risk that I take by doing that is leaving her unsupervised to 1. smear poop all over everything like she did the one time I tried that, 2. figure out how to climb out of her crib and break her neck, 3. destroy her room if she does get out of her crib because really, what 2 1/2 year old can be left for any length of time unsupervised without ruining something.

If you have any advice, please post a comment. I am just at my whit's end and I don't know if I can fight any more. I will have to fight at some point during the day, I just don't what time is best. I'm desperate. And feeling violent. Your thoughts are welcome.

Pima County Fair

2010-04-25T15:02:00.000-07:00

Our last family hoo-rah before Anslie and I leave Tucson on Tuesday was a trip to the Pima County Fair. It was a cute little fair but, oh so expensive! They lure you in with a $7 entry fee and then assault your wallet with the cost of the rides and games! We had fun walking around enjoying all of the idiosyncrasies of fair culture, especially since we went with our friends, Jeff and Hilary, who are not experienced fair-goers. It was fun to see a fair their fresh eyes, confusion, and disbelief at all that a fair can and will offer it's patrons. Especially when it came to all of the livestock! Anslie had a great time looking at the animals and even more fun in the petting zoo. Thankfully Hilary brought her camera (I forgot mine at home) and was able to catch a few snapshots for me of Anslie with the animals. The other fun experience we had at the fair was Jeff and Hilary bungee jumping. It was Hilary's first time and she was a brave girl! Can't say I will EVER follow in her footsteps, though!

Old Tucson Studio

2010-04-22T21:01:00.000-07:00

Kevin had today off of work so we took advantage and spent the day hanging out as a family. We went to the Old Tucson Studio, which is a location in Tucson where western movies have been filmed since the 30's. It was surprisingly large and the buildings all look authentic, but to my knowledge everything was props. Some of the most famous western have been filmed at this location including many John Wayne movies.

The only bad part about our excursion was that we went on the one day of the year that it rains in southern Arizona. It was about 50 degrees and because of the inclement weather, a lot of the games, booths, and other activities were closed. Huge bummer! We had fun though with a train ride, carousel ride, "horseless carriage" ride, a stunt show, dancing can can girls, a tour of a "mine" that was directed by the funniest and cutest old man I have ever met, and a pony ride!

The other bad part of our trip to the Studio was our lunch. Be forewarned: if you ever go for a visit, eat before you go or bring a sack lunch! We ate at the BBQ restaurant so highly recommended on their website and the food was so gross that none of us finished! The beef brisket, prickly pear chicken, and BBQ chicken sandwich must have been cooked earlier in the morning and then left in a hot pan or something all day so that it dried out and had a burned under flavor. Kevin's biscuit and Anslie's corn on the cob were even over cooked. The only thing that was actually tasty was the thousand island dressing that I had with my salad (that included a really old, wilted slice of tomato). And at about $12-$15 per plate, that is just not acceptable!

Besides the pony ride, I think Anslie's favorite part was the saloon show at the end of our trip. She loved the can can girls and was itching to get up and dance with them the entire time! At the end of the show the girls stuck around to pose for pictures and Anslie was the first to run up for hugs and pictures. One of the girls was really sweet and stayed late to hang out and dance with Anslie for a while.

This experience was a new one for our family and we had a fun time! I'm glad we went!

Tucson Botanical Gardens

2010-04-20T17:18:00.000-07:00

Today Anslie and I (okay, I) decided to go to the Tucson Botanical Gardens to see their butterfly exhibit. I will spare everyone the details of what a nightmare it was to get Anslie out of the house this morning (i.e. temper-tantrums, power struggles, refusals to eat, stuborness, etc) and just say we got there, all limbs intact.

We didn't stay long because said two-year-old chose to continue her behavior to the point that I became one of those mothers. You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones who can't say anything nicely to their child, yell after them, make outspoken threats, and drag their kids around by their arms. Basically I was a total HAG and decided to leave before Anslie and I embarrassed ourselves any more. So, we paid what I considered an exhoribitant amount of money for what the Gardens offered for 45 minutes of me coming within an inch of killing my kid. Fun.

I tried to grab some pictures, but it was a little hard to get some of Anslie since she was traveling at warp speed and I was literally chasing after her, stroller filled to the brim with my purse, our lunch, and my camera bag, and hauling an extra 30 lbs of not-so-discreet baby weight. So, here's what I got. It's a shame it was such a rough trip because the Botanical Gardens were quite lovely and peaceful. Well, as long as we weren't there.

Fun at the Tucson Zoo

2010-04-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday I took Anslie to the Zoo. We met with our new friends, Jessica and her daughter Tristan, and Melissa and Juan and their son Alvaro. Jessica's husband, Matt, went through the academy with Kevin and we met Juan and Melissa last summer when Juan and Kevin were teaching in Roswell.

We had SO much fun! Anslie and I started our visit off with a special little activity for pre-schoolers. We met with our zoo keepers and they took us to a special classroom where we listened to all kinds of animal sounds and tried to guess what animals they were. Then we colored pictures of Macaws and glued feathers and eyes on. Anslie had a blast using the glue stick and coloring is one of her favorite activities. Story time was then followed by a show and touch series where the zoo keepers brought out a guinea pig, a hedge hog, and a chicken for the kids to touch. Anslie loved seeing the animals but did NOT want to pet them. The final activity was a parade to the aviary where the keepers threw bird seed and live crickets out for the birds to eat while the kiddos watched. It was great fun!

After our activity, we met up with the others at the giraffes for our giraffe encounter. We got to feed them biscuits and lettuce and Anslie thought that was something special. She liked touching the giraffe's tongue and thought it was funny once she finally let go of the bicuits.

We walked around the zoo to see all of the animals of course, but the crowning moment was when Jessica and I took Tristan and Anslie to the water area and let them play (for Anslie and I, a couple of hours). I don't think I have seen Anslie have that much fun in a long time! And the best part was that no one got sunburned!!! Yay!

Anslie and I shared an ice cream cone and some rock candy as we walked back to the giraffes to say goodbye for the day. I bought her a little stuffed giraffe to remind her of our special zoo day and then we headed home. It was truly one of the most fun days Anslie and I have spent together!

32 Weeks and Counting

2010-04-13T20:00:00.000-07:00

I'm so thrilled to finally be in my third trimester! I am 32 weeks (33 as of tomorrow) and I can't believe I have less than two months left before we will welcome our little boy into our family! Aaaaahhhh! It's such a crazy thought that I will have a newborn again! I will be starting all over....nursing, getting up every two hours, sucking snot out of his nose with those blue suction balls, having a rear-facing car seat, swaddling, worrying about SIDS, leaking through my nursing pads and waking up in the morning in puddles of breast milk (we made sure to get a waterproof mattress cover this time!, going through 12+ diapers a day, etc, etc, etc. All of those little milestones you and baby meet and then forget about!

I'm doing well. I have lots and lots of Braxton Hicks contractions, but that is nothing unusual. With both Anslie's and this pregnancy they started around 5 months and get stronger and longer throughout the rest of my pregnancy. Anslie is keeping me active and I am (somewhat) grateful for that because it's the only exercise I get.

I have a check up on Thursday and hopefully I will not have gained more than 4 or 5 pounds over the last four weeks. If that is the case then I will have gained less than 30lbs at this point in my pregnancy. I don't remember where I was at at this point with Anslie, but I gained 44 lbs total by the end. I'm trying really hard to stay within the 35lbs weight gain recommendation and so far things are looking like they are going in the right direction!

I have been able to hang out with my friend, Melissa, while here in Tucson which has been so much fun. I met her last summer while our husbands taught in Roswell and we became fast friends. She has always loved photography and since I saw her last she's been able to purchase her first dSLR camera. We've been able to spend some time practicing photography techniques and she did a really great job on some cute belly pics for my update this month. Thanks Melissa!

Stay tuned to hear more about my update and other fun things Anslie and I have been able to do on our "extended vacation"!

One of my worst nightmares came true!

2010-04-11T17:05:00.000-07:00

I went to get Anslie out of her pack and play after her nap today and when I walked into the room it totally wreaked of poop. Now, Anslie has pooped during her sleep many, many times in her life. In fact, it is pretty common for that very thing to happen.

But today there was something a little different about this stench. It was much stronger than it normally is. I turned on the light and much to my horror, found Anslie and her crib covered in poop! Apparently Anslie thought it would be fun to take her poopy diaper off and smear it all over her face, hair, and bedding.

I have heard of kids doing this before. My sister, Tera, has a few good stories about it. But this is the first time it has happened to me and hopefully the last! It was sooooo disgusting to clean up! I threw Anslie in the tub and had her stand under the shower to rinse most of it off, and then gave her a bath while I cleaned up her bedding. I'm just glad I didn't throw up!

Anslie and I had a little talk about what happened afterward and she ran around the house for an hour saying,"diaper poopy off. Uhgusting!" She probably doesn't get it. I don't care if she does or doesn't, as long as she never does it again! Maybe I can sleep a little better now that one of my worst nightmares has come true...

Where are the pictures, you ask? I thought I would spare you the horror. You can thank me later.

Thank you for reminding me.

2010-04-09T21:46:00.000-07:00

In light of all that is going on in our crazy lives, it makes sense that something had to be put on the back burner. It couldn't be Anslie. Of all things, she is the most important. It couldn't be Kevin. He is what makes our world go round. It couldn't be the baby that is growing inside of me. He is coming in 8 weeks whether I like it or not. It couldn't be cleaning, cooking, communicating with family, purchasing our home, moving in, unpacking, or church, either. All of those thing HAVE to be done. So what could I give up to lighten my burden? The only answer was photography.

Anyone who knows me knows how passionate I am about photography. A friend of mine called me a photography nerd the other day and you know what, he is completely right! If wearing thick-rimmed glasses with tape around the bridge of the nose, a pocket protector, and high-waters pants would translate efficiently how serious I am about photography, my wardrobe would be changed forever! Understanding that, you must then realize how hard it has been for me not to shoot.

I still take pictures, of course, to document our family life. But it's just not the same as working with a client in the unique situation that provides, creating art, making memories, and most of all, learning from each and every shoot and becoming better at what I do.

At first I was itchy. Itchy, irritable, and aggravated that I didn't have constant stimulation from my work. I didn't have any work at all! And then I got sad and angry. It hurt to be separated from something I hold so dear to my heart. (I know this sounds ridiculous, but if you have a passion, you know what I mean). I was envious of the other photographers I know and follow because they got to do what I so desperately wanted to. I felt like I was being left behind...they were working and progressing and I simply was not. And then I became apathetic. It was easier to give up than to care anymore. I stopped reading photography blogs and articles on the internet, something I spent about an hour every day on. I stopped creating projects for myself. I stopped researching equipment. I just stopped. Everything.

So, yes, it has been by choice that I have not actively pursued clients and built my business. Was that choice an easy one? Yes and no. Yes because my family will always come first. No because being a photographer is part of who I am.

Things have been put on hold with our family life for the time being with Kevin getting sent to Arizona for work for a few weeks and Anslie and I tagging along with him. It has been both a curse and a blessing. Life is hard to manage from afar! But I was given a gift:

While life at home in California demands that I sacrifice what feels like an appendage, life in Arizona has given me the opportunity to narrow my focus and not spread myself so thin. And what that has left me with is some time to pick up my camera again and create.

I have to admit that when my friend Hilary and I discussed shooting a session for her and her husband, Jeff, I was a little....unenthusiastic. I knew in my heart that I had been craving photography. But my head was telling me,"Shillawna, what's the point? You're rusty. You don't have a vision. You're not on fire anymore. You are stuck and anything you do at this point just simply won't be good enough. Why try? If you were meant to be a photographer, then you would be able to push through all that is happening in your personal life and STILL have time for this. Just. Give. Up." But I feigned enthusiasm for the sake of Hilary and my heart and our session was scheduled for yesterday evening.

I have not had the chance to go through Jeff's and Hilary's session with a fine-toothed comb like I normally would before posting my favorites online. I don't have my computer or my software available - just Kevin's PC laptop (which is NOTHING like a Mac desktop) and Picasa instead of Adobe Photoshop to view and edit my photos (which feels like working with archaic tools). But what I have been able to gleam from these photos, as I am able to view them right now, is that I've got IT. I have something. I have not picked up a camera to do a serious photo shoot in quite some time, and yet what I was able to capture moved me.

That flame was re-ignited. That driving force is back. My passion for photography has been restored, and yet, I feel a quiet confidence that all that I want to do doesn't have to happen now. My life is still going on. The demands it is placing on me have not gone away. Photography will have to wait for a little longer to be an integral part of my existence. And that fact has become okay with me.

I am now hearing from my brain,"Not right this second. Just be patient a little longer. Take care of yourself and your family and your passionate companion will be there for you when you are ready once again."

I haven't lost anything by putting photography on the back burner. All that I have worked for is mine to keep. I am glad that I realized that. It's something my friends and family have been trying to tell me but I have not been able to hear. I am so grateful to Jeff and Hilary for the opportunity they gave me to become resolved. And to realize that I am a damn good photographer-something else I have struggled with.

I know that I still have a long way to go...it can be discouraging at times. Am I where I want to be yet? Absolutely not. Have I come a long way? Yes. Am I worth what I ask for in return? There is no doubt in my mind. Do I have IT? Yes, I do. If I take a break from photography to take care of my family and grow a baby, am I ruining my career? I can finally give a resounding NO as my answer. I am a lucky woman to have finally realized that I can have it all...it just might take me a little while to get it. But my life will be richer and I will be a better person for harvesting patience and endurance to acheive all that I want for mine and my family's lives.
And here is the product of my epiphane; Eleven of my favorite images from Jeff's and Hilary's shoot. Very minimal edits have been made to these images due to the fact that my equipment is over 400 miles away (slight color correction and exposure correction). And I can finally say, whether you feel the same way or not, that I LOVE these pictures. I think they are Beautiful. And I am PROUD of them. Thank you for reminding me of who I am, even if I can't be that person right now.

I must give credit where credit is due: Jeff and Hilary - you were incredible to shoot! I have never met another couple who has been so natural and beautiful in front of my camera. I am so thrilled to have been able to capture these moments for you, but it is not without your patience, cooperation, and good looks that they are successful. You guys rock!

Happy Easter, 2010!

2010-04-04T22:24:00.000-07:00

The last year has been one full of new things...mostly new places to live! Since June of 2009 we have lived in 5 different homes!!! Needless to say, we are looking forward to staying put for a while after Kevin is finished with his detail in Tucson!

Soooo.....this Easter was a small celebration for us, seeing as how we are staying in someone else's home, cooking with someone else's dishes, etc. :) We colored Easter eggs with Anslie the night before and she had sooo much fun! We mixed up the easter egg dyes and then handed her a paint brush and she went to town! The eggs were little tye-dyed messes, but the most beautiful things I have ever seen! I think we have a future artist on our hands! We then enjoyed those yummy store-bought pink sugar cookies to finish off our festivities.

Anslie woke up Easter morning to a little basket that the Easter Bunny left for her. She really liked the gifts, including her first Mr. Potato Head and lots of candy. In classic Anslie fashion, she couldn't wait to dig into her treats and Kevin and I were happy to oblige her!

For dinner we invited over a couple BP agents who were missing their families and a dear friend of mine from college who's hubby is also a BP agents, who had to work the holiday as well. I made a delicious ham (of course), mashed potatoes, sauteed green beans, and rolls. (Sorry-no pics...I was too busy cooking.) We had a nice day!

Here are a few snapshots from our little holiday.

10 Things I Don't Miss About Condo-Living (and Renting)

2010-04-03T20:57:00.000-07:00

I have been a home owner for only 4 weeks...and one of those weeks has been spent back in condo-living conditions. Kevin and I are in Tucson, Arizon for another temporary job assignment for Kevin's work. He's here for 6 weeks, Anslie and I are visiting for a little over two.

Anyway, in the three short weeks that I have lived in our new, single family home, it is amazing how quickly I have become accustomed to living that way. Let me explain:

10 Things I don't miss about condo-living (and renting)

10. Hearing people walk through the halls of the complex or even by my front door at all hours, talking and laughing without concern for anyone else's schedule.

9. The smell of my neighbors cooking dinner mixed with my own. Sometimes the scents just don't mix!

8. Being able to track my upstairs neighbor's schedule because I can hear their alarm go off in the morning, hear their shower running, hear them opening and shutting closet and dresser drawers, hear them stomping around the house as they get ready for work, and then listening to it all over again when they come home at the end of the day.

7. Wondering if my upstairs neighbors are elephants and my next door neighbors have never heard of water conservation.

6. My eye constantly being drawn to my window as people walk right by it throughout the day and night.

5. Gardeners and other maintenance crew working at whatever hours are convenient for them, regardless of the time of the morning or whether or not their raking the gravel outside the bedroom window that my child is trying to take a nap in, will wake her up.

4. Having to take the dog for a walk 3+ times per day because we don't have a yard to send her out in to do her business.

3. The fact that condos are generally MUCH, MUCH smaller than a house. It makes storage, entertainment, and clutter a much, much bigger issue.

2. Hearing noises from outside and surrounding apartments and wondering if someone has broken into my house because it sounds like they are in my living room.

1. Constantly hearing toilets flushing over and over again. My neighbors are very regular people!

Sorry, no pictures at this time.:( Wouldn't that be awesome if I had some to accompany this post?!

Needless to say, I am very happy to own my own house...one that has a yard and doesn't share any walls or floors with anyone else. It's really nice not having to worry about someone or something disturbing my family because we are literally living on top of each other, and to be able to distinguish one sound from another in my own home because I can recognize their familiarity.

I do have to admit, though, I love having a pool available to me at all times :)

Because I don't have time for anything else right now...

2010-03-27T18:41:00.001-07:00

I know I am such a slacker for not posting more often these days, but c'mon, give me a break. I'm almost 31 weeks preggo, I am chasing after a two year old, trying to turn the house we just bought into a home, acclimate to our new surroundings including the house, the ward, the city etc., and Kevin just left for a job assignment in Tucson for 6 weeks. So, this is what you get today:

We wanted to turn our old queen bed set into a guest bed for all of the people we are expecting to visit this summer, plus our mattress is getting up there in age, so we decided that one of the first large purchases we would make would be a new king sized bed set. We found a great deal at a local furniture store who not only was having a phenomenal sale on their merchandise, they were also paying the sales tax on purchases for their customers as well. So, with the savings we received we were able to purchase a king size memory foam mattress, the headboard, foot board, and rails, two night stands, and a matching dresser with a mirror for the same price we were planning on spending just for the mattress and bed alone. Awesome! I know that probably no one else cares and I am wasting my time blogging about this, but my blog is every bit as much for me as it is for everyone else and I am excited about our bedroom set! (And it's made out of real wood, not the crappy particle board and laminate stuff we have purchased in the past! We're becoming real adults!!!) So, here's the new bed with one of the night stands and the lovely bedding set we got to go along with it. Yay for us!

New Keys, New Life!

2010-03-15T16:25:00.000-07:00

We have officially moved into our new home! We have lived here for almost a week and we LOVE our little piece of heaven! I have to admit that I really didn't understand what I was up against when it came to cleaning a house this size!!! I have gotten out of bed between 6:30 and 7:30 am and have worked until I go to bed around 10pm and I still haven't gotten this place scrubbed from top to bottom! But, I'm not complaining. It's so nice to have the room and Anslie and I love running around the house all day doing chores. It's rewarding and fulfilling and we are very blessed!

I am officially in my third trimester! I hit 28 weeks last Thursday but was buried under moving boxes so I couldn't put an update up (and we didn't get our internet working until today either). My dad has been in town since Thursday helping us to do some minor repairs around the house and I asked him to take a few belly pictures of me. I just have to say that the pose in the last picture was NOT my idea...but it's a funny picture so I decided to post it anyway.

Anslie has had a blast running around our empty house (empty because we don't own enough to fill it up!!!) and helping out with cleaning and un-boxing. We took a break from our chores today for some Playdoh fun. She made a HUGE mess, but at least it was over linoleum and not carpet, like every other home we have ever lived in has in the dining area. (Such a stupid idea!!!)

All in all, we're doing great and looking forward to our things finding their places and life settling into a routine. And we would love for any and everyone to come for a visit! Hope to see you soon!