Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Giveaway
My friend Hannah is having a fun pie kit giveaway on her blog Sherbet Blossom Studio. Her blog is so fun... talking about fashions, decor, cooking, baking, lots of hand bags and shoes and also a little bit of photography. Such a fun blog. Check it out! Oh yeah, and she is also a graphic designer, she did my blog design, and would LOVE to do more!!
Sunday, January 04, 2009
10 months...
Probably the funnest thing about Sayer is his crawling. He is such a deliberate crawler. I don't know how else to describe it. He is just so fast, and so precise with his hand/knee placement. It's like he's a perfect crawler. It is just so funny to watch. All I know is that this kid is going to be a riot. He has so much personality. Along with that though, I imagine will come his fierce little temper that we get glimpses of every once in a while. It is very different from how Asher ever was. But something tells me that he will be just as challenging. Fabulous.
Oh yeah, one more thing. I think Sayer's first word is "Asher". We noticed him saying "A-der" a lot, and when we would repeat "Asher", he would say it again. It makes sense if you think about it... why wouldn't "Asher" be his first word when that is what he hears being said all day long... "Asher, don't do that", "Asher, that was naughty", "Asher sit down and eat your food", "Asher, it's time to go to bed"... and on and on and on. It's pretty precious. We will have to try and get it on video sometime so we can get a second opinion.
Celebrity sighting... in Sacrament meeting??
Today was our first day back in the Lincoln Square Chapel, which was so great. It's so much easier to get to and is so much nicer. Not to mention that it is all on one floor instead of spread out over 3 or 4 floors. Anyway... guess who was in Sacrament meeting today???
......
No guesses??
Ok, since the suspense is just killing you, I'm sure, I will just tell you...
Ace Young from American Idol.
He has been playing the part of Kinicke in the Broadway production of Grease, which closes today. The girl he was with bore her testimony, and she said she was an actor and the show she has been in for the past 2 years was closing today, so I imagine that is how she knows him. Not that I talked to him. I was never a big fan of Ace myself. He past right by me while I was putting things in the stroller, so I got a good look at him... in real life he is pretty short and skinny. His muscles are super cut, and he has a TINY waist. I guess that's the look they go for. Regardless of my lack of support for him on A.I., it was cool to see him in our Sacrament meeting. I couldn't help wondering what he was thinking about it.
Oh yeah, and Nate thinks that I should mention that Marlin K. Jenson from the Quorum of the Seventy and Richard Bushman, author of Rough Stone Rolling, were also in our ward today. Richard Bushman is actually in our ward, which is cool.
Together at last
This is their first night together. Asher was so excited to have Sayer sleeping in his room. He is so cute, he knows he needs to "be very quiet" when Sayer is already sleeping. What a good big brother.
I have finally made the huge leap of putting Asher and Sayer in the same room to sleep at night. I have been so nervous to do this as Sayer usually doesn't sleep well when he is sick and/or teething. But he has been sleeping pretty solidly for the past few weeks, so I decided to try it out and see how it went. Well, to my surprise, things have been going great. Sayer has been sleeping better than ever, and so far, neither of the boys have woken each other up, which is very surprising to me. Usually one of them wakes up first in the morning, but they never wake up the other one, which is fabulous. I think Sayer likes his new crib better than the pack & play, as it is more comfy and spacious. For all I know, he could still be waking up and talking, but neither of them are crying out, so it doesn't bother me. I have been sleeping so much better as a result. Now I remember why I NEVER had Asher (or Sayer, until we moved here) sleep in our room. Kids know when you are in a room with them, and they will milk it for all it's worth. I think I will finally start to get caught up on my sleep now, which is fabulous, and much needed.
I have finally made the huge leap of putting Asher and Sayer in the same room to sleep at night. I have been so nervous to do this as Sayer usually doesn't sleep well when he is sick and/or teething. But he has been sleeping pretty solidly for the past few weeks, so I decided to try it out and see how it went. Well, to my surprise, things have been going great. Sayer has been sleeping better than ever, and so far, neither of the boys have woken each other up, which is very surprising to me. Usually one of them wakes up first in the morning, but they never wake up the other one, which is fabulous. I think Sayer likes his new crib better than the pack & play, as it is more comfy and spacious. For all I know, he could still be waking up and talking, but neither of them are crying out, so it doesn't bother me. I have been sleeping so much better as a result. Now I remember why I NEVER had Asher (or Sayer, until we moved here) sleep in our room. Kids know when you are in a room with them, and they will milk it for all it's worth. I think I will finally start to get caught up on my sleep now, which is fabulous, and much needed.
Sometimes they laugh and talk to each other. It's pretty cute. We've had one relatively bad night where they both kept each other up for a while, and it made Sayer cranky, but to make up for it, he slept until almost 9 am. Thank heaven for good sleepers!! Plus, doesn't he look so cute in his big crib? He gets so excited whenever you put him in there.

Saturday, December 27, 2008
Christmas Day
Christmas morning was a lot of fun with Asher. He was so excited to open presents, and even more excited when he saw what was in them. He of course wanted to open everything immediately so he could play with it. Which was nice, as it gave me and Nate some spaces to open our own gifts. I got a much needed warm puffy coat which I love, a purse from China, a cute winter hat, some classic movies, and then Nate got my the Elizabeth Gaskell collection which includes, Cranford, North and South, and Wives and Daughters. I can't wait to watch them. Asher got some Thomas the trains and tracks, Blue Clues dvd and Thomas dvd, some clothes and a LOTS of matchbox cars, which he was so excited about. Nate got some jeans, shoes, movies, a running jacket, and amazon gift cards. We also got a nice air mattress to make your visit here more comfortable!
We had a nice quiet day at home. I made some rolls and a yummy fruit salad to take to a potluck with some friends in our ward that were also still in town for Christmas. It was so nice to be able to be with people for Christmas. We had a nice dinner, good conversation, and then Nate and Clark played some Christmas bluegrass for us to sing to. Sayer was in great spirits and was such a little show off. He had great fun playing around on the couch and flirting with all the ladies, and just laughed and played all night. Asher was a little sick, so he was in rather low spirits, but still a trooper. It was all great fun. Sadly, we had to leave before the game playing began... those darn kids and their early bedtimes!
We had a nice quiet day at home. I made some rolls and a yummy fruit salad to take to a potluck with some friends in our ward that were also still in town for Christmas. It was so nice to be able to be with people for Christmas. We had a nice dinner, good conversation, and then Nate and Clark played some Christmas bluegrass for us to sing to. Sayer was in great spirits and was such a little show off. He had great fun playing around on the couch and flirting with all the ladies, and just laughed and played all night. Asher was a little sick, so he was in rather low spirits, but still a trooper. It was all great fun. Sadly, we had to leave before the game playing began... those darn kids and their early bedtimes!
Christmas Eve
I'm not gonna lie... Christmas Eve started out terribly. Asher woke up with a horrible cold and was in a really bad mood. I did not get enough sleep, so I was in a terrible mood as well. Nate and I discovered that we are not very good at having Christmas on our own yet. We don't have any traditions of our own yet, and quite frankly, we were both a little too lazy to do too much about it. Part of the reason is that it has been very quiet and lonely around here, which just reminds us even more that we are not with our families, which made me very sad. But thankfully, we were able to straighten out our attitudes, and ended up having a wonderful Christmas Eve. We headed over to the East side, to the Church of Heavenly Rest Christmas pageant and live nativity. I was so glad that we went, as it really helped to put me in the spirit of Christmas. The spirit was there in abundance, and just the simple singing of Christmas hymns brought tears to my eyes. The chapel was beautiful and there was even a live donkey that Asher got to sit on and pet.
Santa and Grand Central Station
The day before Christmas Eve, we made it down to Macy's to see Santa. It was not nearly as crazy as the day after Thanksgiving, which was nice, but it was still a bit of a mad house. It was so worth it though. Going to see Santa in NY is a big deal. You go up to the 8th floor and get in line. It normally takes about 20-30 minutes to get inside the train, but luckily for us, it wasn't too busy so it took about 10 minutes. I almost didn't make it in because I thought it would take longer, so I went to get a sandwich as I hadn't eaten a single thing all day, and it was almost noon. Apparently, they are super strict and don't let you get back in line once you get into the train. Thankfully, Nate and the boys had JUST gone in, so she let me past... but she almost didn't. Inside the "train" was so cool. It was like another little world in there, with trains, singing and dancing teddy bears and polar bears, and toy making factories, Christmas trees... it was so fun. Asher could not get enough of the trains. He kept asking to see more. We were probably only in there for about 20 minutes or so. People in line are so funny, or annoying, one of those. Clearly, there is no where to go. The line moves at it's own slow pace, so when the person in front of you moves forward, it's not like you have to rush to catch up to them. Well, we were taking our time, (not too far behind the people in front of us) taking pictures, showing Asher the toys, etc etc. Then some lady behind us has to ruin our fun by saying quite rudely: "could we move it along here?!" Well, excuse me for wanting to give my child a fun experience and not just rush through the line. I was so bugged, but decided to just let it go. When you get to where Santa's houses are... yes, housES... there are 5 from what I hear, they direct you to a certain one. One is black, one is Latino, maybe an Asian one, and then of course a white one, maybe two. I thought that was really funny at first, but it makes sense I think. We got a white one, obviously. He was very kind and jolly and asked Asher what he wanted for Christmas. Asher just sat there looking so confused. At least he didn't cry. Sayer was having a grand old time. He loved Santa and his beard and just looked around smiling and charming all of Santa's helpers. It was really fun though, and I am glad we made the trek down there to see him.
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Rockefeller Center
Nate is finally finished with classes for the semester, and now has a whole month off. I am so excited to be able to do some more things as a family. Especially these next few days before Christmas. We are really going to try to make this a nice, fun, memorable Christmas, even though we are not going to be with family. Which I have to say, so far, it's been a little depressing. But this last Thursday, Nate and I managed to get out to see the window displays on 5th avenue and the tree at Rockefeller Center. It was cold and Christmasy, and just what I needed. I loved it!
The window displays were so awesome. My favorites were the Disney store
and Bergdorfs
Check out these"knockers" in the Juicy Coutoure window...
I got a lot of good ideas for decorating in the future
and just enjoyed the holiday atmosphere.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
A must see...
On Friday night I turned on the tv to the edited version of Bridget Jones Diary. I am a huge fan of Colin Firth, so after watching it, I was craving to watch something else with him in it. Well, normally I would just pop in the good old BBC Pride & Prejudice, but Nate some how convinced me not to bring our VCR, thus making it pointless to bring our VHS tapes... sad, I know. Anyhoo, so last night I was perusing through the instant movies on Netflix and remembered a recommendation from my friend Lark. She said that North and South was a remarkable movie and Pride and Prejudice-esque, so I decided to watch it. Wow... I was not disappointed. Don't worry that I stayed up until two in the morning to finish it. Nate got up around then to get a drink or something and was totally mocking me. When I got into bed, I told him that I wasn't even sorry for being so unwise in staying up so late.
I honestly think that it is better than Pride & Prejudice. The acting is phenomenal, the music beautiful and perfect, wonderfully flowing story line with great emotional as well as romantic twists and turns. I honestly think that this is one of the most romantic movies ever made. The final scene is absolutely perfect. Often I am very disappointed by the climax of a movie as the acting makes it terrible, but not with this movie. There was no cringing at terribly delivered lines or poorly written scripts. That is actually one of my biggest problems with the new Pride & Prejudice... I think the acting is terrible. There are some worthy scenes, but the more I watch it, the more disappointed I am. Anyway... the point of the post is to tell you that if you are a hopeless romantic like me, you need to watch this movie. You will not regret it. It is definitely one that I can and will watch again and again. I think I just made Nate's job of getting me a Christmas gift MUCH easier!
I honestly think that it is better than Pride & Prejudice. The acting is phenomenal, the music beautiful and perfect, wonderfully flowing story line with great emotional as well as romantic twists and turns. I honestly think that this is one of the most romantic movies ever made. The final scene is absolutely perfect. Often I am very disappointed by the climax of a movie as the acting makes it terrible, but not with this movie. There was no cringing at terribly delivered lines or poorly written scripts. That is actually one of my biggest problems with the new Pride & Prejudice... I think the acting is terrible. There are some worthy scenes, but the more I watch it, the more disappointed I am. Anyway... the point of the post is to tell you that if you are a hopeless romantic like me, you need to watch this movie. You will not regret it. It is definitely one that I can and will watch again and again. I think I just made Nate's job of getting me a Christmas gift MUCH easier!
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
What's the difference??
The other day I did a radio interview over the phone. It was kind of random... a mom of one of Nate's old students thought it would be an interesting topic to talk to me about moving from a spacious house to a tiny apartment in the city with 2 young boys. Well, I felt really bad, because I didn't feel like I did a very good job of explaining the changes that we have made and the challenges that come with those changes. Part of the reason was that the questions focused more on the "things" that we left behind or have been doing without, and which "things" I miss the most and couldn't do without, etc. To be honest, it's not so much about the lack of "stuff" that makes our move harder... living in a small space IN the city is the challenge. I don't think it would be too much different to live in a small apartment in Provo vs living in our house in Provo, but in the CITY... things are VERY different. So while I really do miss Asher's changing table and matching crib, my queen sized bed with memory foam topper, super comfy couches, all my Christmas decorations and dishes, my nice serving ware, our Oster steamer (THE best!), our dishwasher and garbage disposal, a washer and dryer just steps away, a vacuum cleaner, two-sided sink, the fridge IN the kitchen, etc etc... only a few of those things really contribute to the completely different lifestyle that we are living here.
So here are some of my thoughts on the differences in living in the city vs living in the suburbs...
1. I am WAY more tired. This is probably the biggest thing I have noticed. All of the following things will help you see why.
2. I am literally doing dishes all day long. Nate made fun of me for saying that the other day because he thought I was being dramatic, but it really is the truth (although Nate is trying to start helping more with that). Due to the unfortunate size of my kitchen, I HAVE to stay on top of the dishes, or else there is no way that I will be able to accomplish anything in there. And we don't have a dishwasher or garbage disposal, so it's all hand washing for me baby, and not to sound prissy (because I am NOT), but having to pick up soggy food from the dishes in the sink and take it to the garbage is really not pleasant. Blah!
3. Going to the Grocery store is very physically and mentally draining. Maybe after I have been doing this for a year or so, it won't be such a big deal, but having to go to the grocery store 3 or 4 times a week with children in tow, and then having to carry and/or push added pounds back home is really not fun. I have to make sure I have snacks and water for Asher to avoid screaming and crying, as well as hurry through the store so as not to push my luck with him. And Nate wonders why I don't love grocery shopping as much as he does?! Oh, and not to mention that it is a pretty steep uphill ALL the way home. Especially right when you turn onto my street, that's where it's the steepest. Awesome! All I have to say is that I better have some HOT calves after living here for 3 years.... HOT!!
4. I feel like I am having to entertain Asher more, being in such a small space. Part of that is that there is really no where else for me to go other than the family room, so if Asher is playing in there, I just naturally spend more time with him. He still does really well, but I think when he sees me he'll sometimes get out of his playing groove and all of the sudden realize that he is hungry or wants to read books with me or whatever. Plus there is really just no way for me to get anything done while he is awake... when I'm on the computer, he wants to type, or look at pictures, or watch Thomas snippets... or if I'm eating, he has to eat my food, and when I am cooking or baking or doing the dishes he has to help, or at the very least, see what I am doing. And don't even think about getting craft stuff out. So I wait until he is asleep to do most things, which makes it very hard to get everything done that I need to, because lets face it, when the kids go down, all I want to do is relax. And then of course, it's a small space, so he feels couped up a lot more, and just needs to get out. Hope that all made sense. This is very educational for me to write all this down, by the way. It's helpful to think about why I am so tired and what really is so different about living here.
5. We walk everywhere. Except when we take the subway or the bus. The subway is pretty easy... when I am with Nate. First let me explain to you my trip to target by myself last night...
**After I wrestled Asher into his coat, shoes an threw him in the stroller (Maclaren), and got all the snacks, water, diapers, etc gathered into the diaper bag. Put my shoes and coat on. Strapped Sayer in the bjorn. We walked to the subway station. There is an escalator on 125th, so that wasn't a problem. Once you get in the subway station, there is another set of stairs to get on to the platform. A random stranger helped me carry the stroller up... so nice! Get on the subway. Get off the subway 100 blocks later. Get Asher out of the stroller, fold it up and carry it. Pick up Asher and carry him and the stroller down, while Sayer is strapped in the bjorn. At the bottom of the stairs, put Asher back in the stroller, walk a couple blocks to Target. Done with Target. Walk back to the Subway station. Take Asher out of the stroller, take off all of the bags now hung on the stroller, fold it up. Carry stroller, bags, Asher and Sayer up the 3 flights of stairs to the platform. Thank you random strangers for your help and for not getting annoyed with me. Asher doesn't want to get back in the stroller, so I let him play around on the train... it's pretty empty. My shoulders are starting to lose feeling from the bjorn, and I start to feel a little light headed. No biggie! Put Asher back in the stroller, we get off the train. Kind stranger helps me carry Asher in stroller down first set of steps. Of course, the escalator going down is not working, so I take Asher out of the stroller again, and proceed to fold up stroller and all my junk. Nice man helped me with my stroller. Thanks buddy! Put Asher back into the stroller and walk home... uphill. By the time I got home I had a full on headache from wearing the bjorn for so long, and was exhausted from the physical labor, as well as the anxiety of stressing over getting the stroller and Asher up and down the stairs without being a huge inconvenience to people. Seriously.
Now let me tell you what we do every Sunday to get to church...
**Follow similar pattern to the target story... Asher in maclaren, Sayer in bjorn, books, toys, snacks, blah blah blah. Walk to the bus stop on 123rd. Wait until the last possible second, then get Asher out of the stroller, take everything out of the basket and off the handles so that I can fold it up. Get out my metro card while juggling all of the stuff that was once on or in the stroller while also herding Asher onto the bus. Swipe my card and go sit down. Asher loves the bus, so luckily he is very well behaved and happy. Get off the bus. Grab Asher before he goes running into the street, put him back in the stroller, along with all the other crap that we had to remove in order to fold up the stroller. Why they make you take your child out of the stroller and fold it up is beyond me. Ok, so that's a lie. If you have ever been on a bus in NYC, you know exactly why they make you do that. People are packed like sardines into those busses. There is literally no room for people, let a lone strollers. But just because I understand, doesn't make it any less annoying. It is the biggest pain in the rear. So where was I... oh yes, we put Asher back in the stroller and walk a few blocks to the church. On the way home we do the same thing, except the busses are a lot more full, so it causes a little more anxiety. I know it doesn't sound like that big of a hassle, but it is. It is physically, emotionally, and mentally draining. I cannot wait until January 4th when we will be moving back into the Lincoln Center building. We will just be able to roll our stroller on to the train, roll it off, and take the elevator to street level, and that's all. It's simple, it's straight forward, and it doesn't require any thinking or packing bags in a certain way like I do when we take the bus.
6. Sayer now sleeps in our room, and we are being woken up by little coughs, sniffles, and lone cries much more frequently. I am not a fan.
7. The kids have been sick a lot more, due to playing in the community toy room in the basement, due to the cold weather. Sick kids = less sleep.
8. Getting together for play dates is a little more stressful, as we are in smaller spaces, which makes for more toy stealing and hitting. Asher has actually been doing really well with sharing and not hitting as much, but it still gives me some anxiety when we all get our kids together to play. Some parents take it pretty hard when their child is the victim of hitting, pushing, or toy stealing, so I have to pay a lot more attention to Asher and intervene quickly at times when I normally wouldn't. Not saying that I would normally let Asher hit kids, but I think it's important for kids to learn to stand up for themselves and understand that mommy is not always going to come to the rescue.
Ok, this has turned into a long post. I'm not surprised really, what can I say? I love to talk.
This is a pretty good list for now, although I'm sure there will be more things to tell about in the future. Oh, and this morning, I had to get a candy thermometer because I couldn't find mine, it took me 2 hours. I guess that's what I get for going to midtown during rush hour... which is 9:00 am. Awesome, huh?!
***I just had to add an addendum, because I was reading over my post and realized that I made myself sound, well, amazing, and I am not. I know that lots of moms are doing the exact same thing here, and probably not complaining about it. But the truth is, I love it here. I know I am lucky to be able to live in the awesome city, so I will definitely take the bad that comes with the loads of awesome-ness. Just wanted to add that!
Sunday, December 07, 2008
Where are you Christmas?
So far, it doesn't really feel like Christmas to me yet. I am very sad about this. Maybe even a little depressed? The other day I was trying to figure out why I wasn't really feeling the Christmas spirit, because you would think that in NYC of all places, you would feel it a ton, but I think it is because where we are, I don't really see any Christmas lights or decorations. I just see a bunch of classrooms from my window, and no one has lights in their windows or anything. The only places to see lights are all the big displays in Midtown, or in Central Park, or other neighborhoods that have trees and displays, but you have to go a ways. It makes me sad that I don't see Christmas lights every time I leave our house.
The other thing that I realized is making it not feel like Christmas, is that it doesn't smell like Christmas outside. No one has fireplaces or chimneys, so there is no lovely scent of smoke filling the air. It still just smells like the city. I don't know what it is about Provo and Sacramento, but it smells SO great during the holidays. It does smell nice and Christmasy in my apartment though... love my scentsy! I have finally gotten my cute little Christmas tree, and put up lights on my balcony, but I still need to put the ornaments on the tree and put up a garland and our stockings. Once I get that all up, I will take pictures and finally post pictures of our apartment. Sorry I haven't before, I keep forgetting. But now I might as well just wait until it looks all cute n' Christmasy.
So anyway, I am going to make more of an effort to play more Christmas music, bake goodies, watch Holiday movies, and get out and enjoy Christmas in the city. And any tips you have for helping induce the Christmas spirit would be greatly appreciated.
The other thing that I realized is making it not feel like Christmas, is that it doesn't smell like Christmas outside. No one has fireplaces or chimneys, so there is no lovely scent of smoke filling the air. It still just smells like the city. I don't know what it is about Provo and Sacramento, but it smells SO great during the holidays. It does smell nice and Christmasy in my apartment though... love my scentsy! I have finally gotten my cute little Christmas tree, and put up lights on my balcony, but I still need to put the ornaments on the tree and put up a garland and our stockings. Once I get that all up, I will take pictures and finally post pictures of our apartment. Sorry I haven't before, I keep forgetting. But now I might as well just wait until it looks all cute n' Christmasy.
So anyway, I am going to make more of an effort to play more Christmas music, bake goodies, watch Holiday movies, and get out and enjoy Christmas in the city. And any tips you have for helping induce the Christmas spirit would be greatly appreciated.
Winter's Eve
Last Monday we went to Lincoln Center for Winter's Eve. We started out at the tree lighting, which usually takes place on the Lincoln Center steps area, but they are doing reconstruction, so they lit a much smaller tree across the street. The whole thing wasn't very good to be honest. The tree was small, and the pre-lighting entertainment was terrible. I'm talking some chick is singing "there's a hero..." and not only is she not good, she is absolutely tone deaf. I am not exaggerating one bit. It was sad. But Asher did get this cool light wand thingy that he loved, so that was cool.
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Sayer Bayer Baby
Sayer is such a happy little guy. He is such a flirt and is so social. He loves to talk and say da-da and other babblings. He still loves to eat and is very vocal when I am not feeding him fast enough. It can get a little over dramatic if you ask me. But he is such a doll and I love him to pieces and can't imagine our life without him.
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