The newest member of our family!

I seriously can't believe we took the plunge and bought a puppy! Just a month ago I was saying, "we will never get a dog...and if we do it won't be a puppy and I will be done having babies." Well, the girls kept begging, and we would tell them that we would get a dog when we bought a new house with a big yard. Then we went to Target one day and someone was selling a pug puppy. We fell in love. Chad is a huge dog lover, so of course he was all over the idea. I then started researching all different breeds of dogs. I wanted one that didn't shed, but when we looked at those breeds, I didn't feel like they were the right fit for us. My friend told me that they had recently bought a puggle, which I had never heard of. They are a cross breed between a Pug and a Beagle. They are great dogs with kids, don't get too big, and have short hair. Well, we found someone with a litter, went and looked at them, and we were sold. Usually these dogs are tan or carmel color, but these were mostly black and adorable! They look more beagle than pug. It was hard to decide which one, but the girls and I fell in love with the smallest girl in the bunch, and she had white paws. I was in turmoil over the whole thing and really struggled with the decision of taking on a puppy. Part of me knows I am a little crazy and that this will be really hard, but the other part knows this will be great for the girls (especially Katelyn). Plus it's neat because this is our first adventure as a family. We are excited to add this little girl to our family! Katelyn named her Leah. We tried suggesting other names, and she demanded that her name was Leah, so Leah it is!

The Dentist

Yesterday I took the girls to the dentist (my brother in law). It was Taylor's first visit, and Katelyn's third. Taylor was perfect! She was so curious about the whole thing, asking tons of questions, and opening her mouth nice and big. She would ask what a tool was, the lady would explain, and then Taylor would say, "Ok, you can put that in my mouth" and open big! Katelyn's first trip was a nightmare, so I was nervous about this. Katelyn is finally ok with someone looking in her mouth, so the trip was a success!

Can you tell how tired Katelyn is? Those little bags under her eyes are from hardly getting any sleep because we were up late looking at puppies. Then she couldn't sleep all night in anticipation of bringing one home!

I am so proud of myself!

I feel like I am slowly coming back to myself. I still am dizzy and have headaches regularly, and I had migraines every week, but now I have drugs that actually help with them. I am seeing a chiropractor tomorrow to work on my neck, and I see a neurologist regularly. I haven't been able to exercise in 2 months and it has been killing me. Last week I decided to try some workout videos at home and survived, but had a migraine shortly after...grrrrr! Well, today I decided I was just going to keep pushing forward, and try to ignore my symptoms (not an easy task). I went to the gym and got on the treadmill. My goal was run a mile. I have a lot of anxiety with getting my heart rate up because I feel a lot of pressure in my chest and light headed (I do have something plastic in there you know!). Well, I hit a mile and was actually feeling pretty good, so I kept going. I ran 2.5 miles! I felt great, until I stopped. It took me about an hour to feel like the room wasn't spinning, but it was worth it. I am so proud of myself and hope I can continue moving forward.

Trip to CA

For President's Day we headed to sunny CA, and Chad was able to join us this time! The weather was perfect (sunny and 75 degrees) and I just couldn't get enough of the sun. It amazing how much you miss it when it's GONE! We spent everyday outside and enjoyed spending time with family. It was nice to not have any real plans, and to just relax. We were there for Carson's 1st birthday party, and he is so adorable! He doesn't remember me though, and would cry every time I tried to hold him. That was heartbreaking and I hope it doesn't last long and he decides he likes me again soon! It was also fun to see little Kara. She is getting so big and it's cute to see her and Taylor together.

One of Taylor's obsessions is collecting things. She loves to go outside and collect sticks. It's like a game to see how many she can hold in her little hands-and then she holds on to them for hours!

Saturday night we celebrated Valentines Day with Marci and Julio and my parents. We went to a yummy Italian restaurant and then went to see Valentines Day. The movie wasn't very good, but was a good flick to see on Valentines Day. Then we ended the night with cold stone-yum!

We spent Valentines Day laying on a blanket at Ventura Beach eating the most delicious strawberries ever! That's another thing that Utah is lacking right now-produce! I couldn't get enough of the fruit from the Ventura fruit stands.

My wonderful parents came along for the ride!

The same spot we took our engagement pictures!

We also went to the LA zoo with Marci and her boys. It was fun to watch the cousins get together and play. Katelyn and Jordan get along so well and are cute to watch together.

My adorable mother sent the girls on a Valentines Scavenger Hunt. They LOVED running around the house looking for clues. Every since we got back home Katelyn has begged to go on another scavenger hunt. I have sent them on several and have decided it's a great, inexpensive way to entertain the kids. Hide anything (fruit snacks, etc)-they are excited to find anything! Then write a couple simple clues and voila!

And of course we had to get our Love Sushi fix! That stuff is DIVINE! So, the weekend was perfect, and it was really hard to come back! I was also grateful that my migraine medication was working so that I could enjoy the weekend. I loved being home and I love my family!

The ice cream man came down the street and of course we had to buy some! I can't believe it's warm enough to sit on the grass and eat ice cream! The kids were in heaven!

A haircut

We went to a carnival/fair a couple of weeks ago, and a children's haircutting place was there offering cuts. I was so excited to get it done, without having to make an extra trip out. The girls both did great and sat so still. Then they did their hair really cute and sprayed glitter in it, which was the girl's favorite part. This was Taylor's first haircut, and they really needed to even everything out. Katelyn just really needed a trim. She has very fine hair, and when I try to grow it long it just looks stringy. It looks much better at her shoulders.

Pictures

I have been waiting to hang up these pictures in our new house, but we are still in the same house, and have not sold it yet. It's been frustrating to see the house we want to buy, and to not be able to buy it. So, I decided to put these pictures up anyway, and it makes me feel much better! So, in the meantime I can smile at these pictures while I PATIENTLY wait for a buyer!