In my bones and in my soul

It is definitely still Spring. We got some snow (just a little) this morning and now the sun is shining through my windows. One moment the weather is sunny, blue skies and beautiful and the next the dark clouds are threatening ugly weather. Some people can feel the rain in their bones. I can feel the sun and warmth in my bones and in my soul. I can feel it coming. Summer is around the corner. Well, not exactly. I guess we do have another couple months of Spring. The first official day of Summer is not until June 21, but I feel it! I am ready for predictable weather. Some of my greatest memories are from the Summer and I am excited for the memories we will make this Summer. Only 55 days until the Summer fun begins! (But who is counting?!) Yesterday we decided to go on a little hike up the Battle Creek Trail in Pleasant Grove. We got about half way up the trail and those dark, mean clouds began to drizzle. We barely made it back down before we heard thunder and it began to pour. Too bad. Sage was a good sport in the Moby. We will have to give it another try again soon.

Late night dialogue

3:00 a.m- Sage begins to squirm
Michelle: Taylor could you please go fix her a bottle?
Taylor: Do you know the ingredients?
Michelle: Do I know what?! A bottle! The baby needs a bottle! 4 oz of water and 2 scoops of formula!

Got to love it!

Easter in Paradise

Today is Easter! I think it just may be one of my favorite celebrations! What great news it is to know that the Lord is risen and that He lives! Isn't it wonderful? Yesterday we all went up to Paradise and spent the day together and celebrated Easter on the way up Taylor, Sage and I stopped in Brigham City to see the Temple that is under construction. It brought back a lot of feelings I had experiences during the construction and dedication of the California Newport Beach Temple. Temples truly are the Houses of the Lord. We had such a fun time. Jeanne always puts so much time and effort into our family parties and we really appreciate it. The kids colored eggs, played pin the tail on the bunny, played a bunny horseshoe game and had an egg. hunt. All the kids got cute little Easter Baskets. Sage's had 2 cute onsies, formula, a soft, green bunny and some headbands. Jeanne shared with them the reason we celebrate Easter and gave all the kids a scripture case and their own Book of Mormon. She also prepared a yummy turkey meal. After the prayer to bless the food Jill passed around a little Easter treat to everyone. It was a plastic egg with chocolate inside and on the outside it read "Set to hatch December 9, 2011." We are SO excited for Dan, Jill and Lacey. We are so happy for another little friend for Sage. She can't have enough! We took a few cute pictures of Sage, Kaylee and Presley. They are all going to be such good friends. It was fun to visit and to watch all the cousins run around and play together. We gave Jill and Lacey a ride back from Paradise. Lacey is so cute with Sage. You can see her holding Sage's hand on the ride home in one of the pictures below. So cute. What a fun day it was. We love spending time with family and are grateful for the knowledge and testimonies which we have that families can be together forever. Our hearts are especially grateful at this time to know that our Savior lives and that because He lives we may also live! We are grateful for the Plan of Salvation and the comfort it brings to our hearts.

An indescribable feeling

An indescribable feeling is how Taylor says he feels about the past couple days. It is still so surreal to him, but he is a BYU grad! He did it! We are all so proud of him. He graduated in the Family Life department with his Bachelors of Science in Marriage & Family Therapy. It has been a fun few days. Wednesday Taylor took his last final and we decided to celebrate and go out for sushi at Happy Sumo. Sooo good. We got lettuce wraps and edamame Taylor ordered the bacon crunch role and I got a California role. Thursday was commencement at the Marriott Center. Taylor decided to sit with me and Sage instead of wearing his cap and gown and sitting with the other grads. We both just really wanted to hear Elder Scott speak, which was so uplifting and inspiring. We are both very hopeful about our future as we start a new chapter in our lives. We celebrated once again by going to dinner to the Texas Roadhouse. (We usually do not eat out very much so it was a treat!) We got a baby blossom which is so delicious! Taylor of course got his favorite Chicken Critters and got a Grilled Chicken Salad. Texas Roadhouse is a favorite of ours. Today (Friday) Taylor's parents and Grandma Sargent came for convocation. (We missed Grandma Fenton, but hope she gets feeling better soon.) When we arrived the place was already packed and there were a ton of people who had whole rows saved and there wasn't anywhere to sit. We finally found two whole rows that were being saved and nobody in sight so we decided to sit. We moved the one jacket over. A few minutes later an irate women came to us and was upset we took her seats and said that we were so rude. And wanted to know what we did with all her stuff she had on the seats and how it was rude for us to throw her things around. It one was coat we placed on another seat! We told her that it was rude for her to save twenty some seats! She said she came early to save them. We came early too so we should be able to get a seat. It's one thing to save a few seats, but come on lady! Rows?! Get real. We didn't move. When the rest of her party arrived just a few minutes before the program started I explained to the lady next to me what had happened and asked her if she would apologize for us afterwards because I did not think she would want to hear from us herself. The lady in her party was really nice and apologized for her and explained that she was from Oregon! Figures! Haha Sorry Dan! Anyways, One thing I really liked that was shared during the program was the message that "Life is hard, but we can do hard things." Dr. Dean Busby talked to the grads about not being an "expert monster." He said in the field of Family and Social Sciences that many times graduates from this program think they are experts and know everything. I do not feel this is the case with Taylor, but when I asked him what he got from the program he said for him to remember to not be a know it all. I think he is a know it all, but in a good way! After the program we came back to our home and ate sandwiches, chips, and relishes. We had a yummy Razzleberry Pie. Thank you Tony and Jeanne for bringing everything! We had a nice time visiting and were so glad that Taylor's brother Tony came by too. The rest of the day has been so relaxing. We all took a nap, watched some Lost and ate some yummy leftovers. Life is oh so good and even better now that we are both done with school for a while!

We are your greatest fans! We are so proud of you!

Sage says, "I love you Daddy!"

Yesterday and Today

Yesterday was such a nice day. We wanted to wait for RSV season to pass, so yesterday was Sage's first Sunday at church. Well, she was at church last week for her cousin Kaylee's baby blessing, but it was her first Sunday in our ward and for all three hours. She was a little angel. It was so nice to be back at church. I have been released as a Relief Society Instructor. Taylor noticed on the online ward directory that it did not have that as my calling any longer. I spoke with my Relief Society President because I was planning on teaching that week and she said that I had been released so I could spend time with Sage. I do not really mind, but it would have been nice if they would have let me know before replacing me. Anyways, after church we went up to BYU campus and walked around near the new stream. It was so nice outside. Today is rainy. Sage napped and I read my scriptures. I love the new study notebook on the church website. She woke up and we got her ready for the day, sang some songs, read a book, took some pictures of her, fed her and then she started to get sleepy. I put her in the Moby while I cleaned the kitchen, washed her bottles, folded some laundry that Taylor started, vacuumed and dusted. She fell fast asleep and there she sleeps as I update our blog. I don't think I will attempt to move her right now. She is my little kangaroo. I think I am going to make Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner and then curl up with a book until Taylor gets home. Some days I wish I could do more with Sage, but today I am enjoying just cuddling up with and loving her.

Change

Baby, graduations, move, new jobs

• Sage brings an added happiness to our home. Now that she is 6 weeks old we are beginning to sleep train her. Wish us luck! We were going to wait until next week because according to "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child" sleep training can begin 6 weeks from the due date and since there was some discrepancy in my due date we were going to go with my latest due date. However, our little girl does not sleep and gets herself so overtired and considering she came on March 2 closer to her Feb 26 due date and not the March 11 due date, we decided to go ahead and consider her 6 weeks and let the training begin! There are lots of changes in our home lately and lots of changes to come. We are excited for what these changes will bring.


• Taylor graduates in less than a week. It has been a busy few weeks for him trying to finish everything and study, which has not been the easiest thing to do with a new baby in our lives. But he is doing it! And is almost done! Jeanne came and hung out with us for a couple days so Taylor could focus on finishing some assignments. It was nice to have the extra support and help. Sage enjoyed cuddling with her grandma and Taylor and I enjoyed watching movies, visiting, and going shopping with her. She sure is loved.


• Taylor and I have applied to Alpine Storage for a resident manager position, which is where Dan and Jill are working/living. I would work in the office 2.5 hours a day, a little longer on Fridays and would get one Friday off a month and have to work one Saturday a month. We would be compensated with free rent and utilities, but the best thing is that I would be able to have Sage with me. It is a great opportunity and we are hoping and praying we will get it. It would also be nice to be up in Salt Lake. We would be neighbors with Dan, Jill and Lacey, we would be close to the grandmas, Michael is up there and we do not get to see enough of his face, and we would be a little closer to Paradise where Tony and Jeanne are. Also, our apartment would be nicer and a little larger than our place now. We would actually have kitchen and bathroom counter space! What would that be like? If we get it, training would be the week of May 9th and we could move in that next week. We'll see! Either way we need to find another place to live. As much as we have enjoyed our time here we are ready for a change.


• Although I finished in December and already have my degree I have decided to go ahead and walk for my family. Grandma and Papa and my dad will be coming May 5th. Also, our good friends Donny and Donna will be coming. We will have Sage's blessing Saturday, May 7th.


• Taylor has also applied to Farmers insurance. He will be getting one of his licences in the next couple weeks and then can begin selling some policies so he can start making some money and then get his other licenses. In the meantime he will continue to work at NewHaven until he can work for Farmers full time. We have been very impressed with Farmers persistence with him in calling and following up with him and helping him get started. We think he will be happy working for them and Taylor is getting really excited and we are both getting really excited for this new chapter in our lives.

The Many Faces of Sage

Can't ask for more!

I will go ahead and brag! Wouldn't you? Is that not the sweetest picture of Sage loving her daddy? And I had to snap this picture of Taylor doing the dishes as he carried Sage in the Moby as I got ready to go out with my sisters in law. These moments are an often occurance and I am so grateful for him. He makes life oh so happy.

General Conference weekend

Not only did our Sage turn 1 month this past weekend, but it was General Conference. We started the weekend by going to our mission reunions. We went to Taylor's for a little while and then went to mine. I think Taylor would agree with me in saying how grateful we are for the missions we served. Seeing those I served with is a great reminder of the love I have for them, but also for the great love I have for the people of Spain, missionary work, the gospel and our Savior. We spent the weekend up in Paradise with Tony & Jeanne. We enjoyed spending time with them and listening to Conference. I feel like Conference is like a new year... time to set new goals! Time to be better. Sister Beck once said, "You are better than you think you are, but you can be even better!"

1 month

You are 1 month! We feel like you have been with us forever and can't imagine our lives without you. You are a great blessing! At your 2 week appointment you weighed 7 lbs 4 oz. Now at 1 month you weigh 8 lbs 11.5 oz! You are such a good baby. This past month you have had lots of visitors. You have so many people who love you so much and that are always asking about you. Your Great Grandma Jackie and Grandpa Davey are always texting mom "more pics". Mom is constantly sending them picture mail of you. Your favorite thing is cuddling with us and sleeping in our bed. You usually start the night out in your crib, but end up in ours. Most nights you wake up about 12, 3 and 6 to eat. You do not like to be swaddled because you like having your arms. Your hands are always by your sweet face. You can often be found sleeping with your arms up above your head. You suck your little fist and snort like a little piglet when you are getting hungry and cry if we do not get you a bottle fast enough. You usually drink about 3 oz every 2-3 hours. You like your binkie. You love taking showers with us and love getting out with a warm towel, just out of the dryer, wrapped around you. You also love having the small space heater we have on your changing table blowing warm air on you as we change you. Car rides do not seem to bother you, although you do not like getting into your car seat and you sometimes fuss at red lights or when the sun is in your face. You spit up a lot. You are still wearing newborn diapers and your newborn clothes are just starting to get a little snug. You like listening to Colby Caillat. You do not mind the swing and often fall asleep swinging. You like falling asleep in our arms or laying on our chests and we have to very carefully put you down in your crib. If we put you down too soon you wake up and cry and fuss for a while. You like the Moby. You get the hiccups a lot. You still sleep a lot, but when you are awake we try to sing to you and read you books. Every night we read Book of Mormon Stories with you and say prayers with you. You are getting strong. When on your tummy you are getting pretty good at lifting your head. You are getting good at following things with your eyes. You hold our fingers when we hold you or even grab hold of our shirt collars. You are so loved. We love you so much!

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