FYI

I'm still getting my list of blogs together...it's not done...so if yours isn't there, it will be soon!! And if it isn't, please bring it to my attention.

My guy...

Chris and I are celebrating our seventh wedding anniversary today! I guess we aren't really doing the actual celebrating today, we'll probably just go out as a family or something, and my fabulously supportive parents will take the kids all next weekend so we can really have some nice time just the two of us.

This is a collage I made for him in high school.

Anyway, we have quite a story! We were high school sweethearts...eventually. After being good friends for two years, he was my best friend our Junior year and we started our official high school relationship that summer on August 1st at 1:00 AM when he kissed me for the briefest half-second while standing in his driveway. My family was heading to McCall for most of August, and we'd been holding hands for like a month so my girlfriends Leisha and Jenn told me that I HAD to have "the talk" with him before leaving for the month. I made him a little August calendar with something written on every day for him to do, like "Call my home phone just to make sure I'm not there" and "write Rebecca a letter and mail it to..." Anyway, it was his birthday on August 1st, and my curfew prohibited me from giving him his present ON his birthday and my family was driving off to McCall at the crack of dawn, so I snuck out, took the car and drove the twenty minutes to his house where he was waiting.

So that was the start...back in 1994, and he asked me to marry him in that same driveway over 7 years later...and seven more years later we have two kids and our own driveway, no curfew, our own road trips to McCall and many long kisses between us.

This is a random picture of us probably about a year after Ruby was born.

We are polar opposites. He likes one song (okay, one genre) and I like all music. He doesn't do romantic movies and I love a good chick flick. He hates reality TV and I can't be entertained by today's scripted shows. He wants to spend every minute of his life being super productive, and I wouldn't mind if I had a week stretching before me with nothing on the agenda. He figures if he hasn't talked to someone in six months they aren't a friend anymore, and I keep in touch with two elementary school teachers and several kids from my kindergarten class. My favorite pizza is the gourmet veggie from Papa Murphey's and his is the Meat Lovers. I'm a morning person, he's not. His side of the closet is orderly and all the sleeves face the same way, the work shirts and dress shirts separate...you get the picture, the only things hanging on my side are things that no longer fit, and some of them are inside out or on children's hangars for all I care.

Us in front of our first house (his bachelor pad). I was very pregnant with R in this picture.

We share the most important things in life: faith, family and our future, and I think he's worth all the compromise! I think I am an easy laugh, I don't mean pity laugh, but I laugh at most anything. Anyway, he is funny enough to make me truly laugh hard almost every day, and I love that about him.

Not the best pic of our wedding day, but it was the easiest to find.

We know how to get under each other's skin, and we do it intentionally for fun...often. What amazes me is that we are both so skilled at it that we both still fall for each other's efforts EVERY TIME! He knows that if he wakes up on a Saturday morning and says, "Okay, lets talk about our plan for the day," he's going to get an eye roll, and that's what he wants. I know that on his way home from work on Friday night if I say, "Okay, so we are all packed and we'll just leave for my parents house when you get home, right?" that there will be a long pause in our conversation, which is what I want. I can also get him with claiming I got a bargain. So if I was garage sale-ing and lets say I bought a sled for $5...I'd leave it in the middle of the floor of his carefully organized garage, and he'd ask, "where'd you get this and where can I put it?" and I'd say, "It was so cheap, I got it for $30 at a garage sale today!" and he totally falls for it. He loves to inch the truck forward when I'm at the door trying to open it, or honk the horn when I'm right in front of his truck, and even though I know the reaction he's going for, I can't help but give it to him. If he is ever on the phone, I'm always curious who he's talking to and what they talked about. So for example if he's on the phone with his folks and I decide to put the kids to bed, I'll ask later, "So, what did your parents have to say?" and he'll respond, "Nothing." Just to drive me crazy! He also likes to position himself so he's "mooning" me and then he'll call my attention. I'm actually catching on to this one, and he doesn't get me as often, but he still tries. Another one that I'm practically immune to is when we are staying somewhere with other people ie: the cabin, his parents house, etc., he'll have one of his brothers come to the door when I'm fresh out of the shower on the other side. He'll have them out of sight, but they'll say, "Chris?" and Chris will open the door and come walking in. It makes me think that the person with the voice is walking in on me! He intentionally pretends to bang (hard, loud and dramatically clutching his supposed injury) into all signs, door jams, telephone poles, or otherwise. I don't think he does this anymore to get a laugh out of me, but he still laughs himself, and the kids think it's hilarious...he likes the reaction he gets from concerned onlookers.

Anyway, we are probably only cut out for each other, and I think most people who know us as a couple are pretty sure of that. One thing that's good for us is that I have a high tolerance for public humiliation and he likes to publicly humiliate. Like when we played 2 truths and a lie at our friends' Halloween party with like 20 other couples.

His list:
1. I went to a NKOTB concert in sixth grade
2. I like to eat my toenails
3. I was married briefly once before I was married to Rebecca

All eyes on me. All I could say was, "I know he doesn't like to eat his toenails!" I mean, how is it possible that I would fall for something as ridiculous as that? But I did! I was thinking, "well, we didn't have a lot of contact for like five years, and he could have pulled a Britney Spears 24 hour vegas marriage for all I know!" Nope! Just a ploy to make me squirm, and I squirmed and laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed. I think everyone else in the room was just plain uncomfortable, but not us.

Anyway, maybe these are the quirks that indicate that we did in fact start our relationship when we were seventeen years old. Happy Anniversary to us.

Love that quilt...

See the banner to the right? There are more giveaways happening for Mia, you can be entered to win it by donating $1 (or more) and/or posting the banner on your own blog...and some other things. Anyway, I love the items they are giving away!

Flaky or lucky?

Great. This is going to be the second post in a row where I show how scatterbrained I can be.

So R had her first formal recital for piano. It was the Christmas recital and she was all set to go with her newly learned songs, including "Jingle Bells" for Christmas. All her other recitals have been with just her class at her teacher's house, but this was at a local church and with all the students Mrs. S teaches. Big deal. Ruby was excited, and I knew given her personality that she'd perform with flair and she'd introduce herself loud enough for everyone to hear, and she was going to just love it. My mom drove down for it and everything.

On our drive there, I was frantically calling 411 looking for some local church with the word "Trinity" in it and not having a lot of luck. We were literally going to arrive just in time, and I was thinking about how I wish I were one of those people who always arrived with 30 minutes to spare everywhere they went. If only. I figured walking in at 7PM we'd be the last ones there, but in good time to enjoy the show.

When we walked in at ten to 7 (thanks to 411 and a good nav), I could hear the piano was being played. My friend Julie saw my frantic face and I mouthed, "did it start at 6:30?" and she said, "No, it started at 6:00"! WE WERE AN HOUR LATE! She told me that we had just missed Ruby's spot by a few minutes. I knew we'd still get her up there, but I was embarrassed that people had been doing the whole, "Ruby?! Where's Ruby? Ruby's not here" thing. So after three or four little piano minutes by other children, it was announced "Ruby is here now" and she went up for her two minutes of glory (and it is glorious when it is your child, let me tell you).

So...after being there for ten minutes, it was over. We wished happy holidays to our friends and Mrs. S ate some quick break and we were out the door! I'm going to have to say that I didn't so much mind missing the rest of it. Next time, I'll just advise Mrs. S to put Ruby dead last, and we'll plan to be 45 minutes late instead of 50. He, he.

P.S. I was determined to post my first video, so I didn't get pics of her playing. I took video and hassled with it forever and got NOWHERE. I hate that!

Tabs on my tabs...

So a few weeks ago, it occurred to me that it had been a long time since I had gotten new tabs. I thought, "I think they were due in October." So I went outside to check. This is what I saw (on November 20th):Yes, they were due in June. I couldn't believe it! It still took a few weeks to get the new ones (thank you, Chris) and now we are all good to go (not that we stopped going in the meantime).

New blog address...

I am moving to a new blog address. This one is too big to go through and edit, and I wanted to switch addresses anyway. The new one will be public but will not have my kids' names and some other details on it. Please don't comment using their names or our last name, either. This one will become private, but I'm not going to post here anymore, just private to protect info that has already been shared on this blog.

I realize that any pedifiles currently following my blog can easily continue, and know our info...but this is the best I can do. I actually can see the physical locations of the people who read my blog, and I kind of know them all. I'm not searchable on the internet or anything, so I feel pretty safe...but just to be more cautious, you know?

So the new address is www.rebeccaplayinghouse.blogspot.com.

I'll see you there!

Our new blog...

So I've been blogging forever at a different address, but I wanted to switch to a new, more original address...so here we are. Thanks for following. If you want to see the old archive, it's here.

Alice's birth...

So normally, I wouldn't post this randomly, but since I traumatized you all with Ruby's story, I thought I should follow up with Alice's.

I know it will seem odd, but I chose to have the same birth plan with Alice as I had for Ruby. I had to drive an hour 47 miles to every single appt. because we had moved, but we chose our midwives and the whole birth experience because it was what we trusted most, and even though it was a hairy scenario, I knew (because the docs told me so) that had I been in the hospital, I would have had a c-section since my contractions ceased. C-sections are greatly necessary in many instances, but in this case, I was very glad to have managed things a different way.

I think the bottom line with these kinds of choices, is every individual needs to know who they trust and be somewhere where you don't have to question the care you are given. For me, this is a home or birth center environment.

So I was five days overdue with Alice. I was miserable. Ruby had come early, so I'd been counting on having my baby for like four weeks and was SO READY. At this point, sleep is not a possibility, so I usually opt for the couch, since I can lean against the back of it a little and flip the television on anytime I'm tired of pretending to sleep.

I was folding laundry and watching "Spitfire Grill" on TV. First contraction. I don't have any Braxton Hicks contractions or false labor, and being five days overdue, I knew it was the real deal. I watched the clock and had a second contraction five minutes later. After about fifteen minutes, I ran upstairs to wake Chris up and do a dance of joy. I was soooo ready. I told him to go back to sleep and went downstairs to labor a little more. My mind was racing with the details of how we'd get Ruby to my folks (farther from the birth center), etc. Finally, I went upstairs, we woke Ruby, put her in the car and drove to my parents' house so I could labor there and know that Ruby was where she needed to be and that I was then only 20 minutes from the birth center.

I had regular contractions maybe 2 minutes a part the whole drive. They were intense, but I felt good between contractions.

At my parents' Chris got Ruby to bed and I told him to rest in the living room until I needed him. I thought we were at the tip of the ice berg, and I was planning to labor longer on my own and not at the birth center. I WAS SO UNCOMFORTABLE. There was no way to be comfortable, I just felt pain all the time, and a lot of pressure. I decided I needed to be in water. I called my midwife and she said she'd meet me there right away. My mom was listening to me describe how I felt like I had to go to the bathroom, and that I felt all this pressure, and she was like, "LET'S GO!"

So on the drive over, I was thinking all these discouraging thoughts about how I didn't want to do this and how I wanted it cut out of me. I was very uncomfortable, and was annoyed that Chris was driving in the right lane and the car tires were bumping in the sewer drain things, I told him to change lanes for a smoother ride. I didn't imagine at the time that I was in transition, but these negative, "what am I in for" are typical of transition.

Anyway, we got to the birth center and I walked in (whenever I walked, the contractions would cease for like ten minutes). I was chatty and bright eyed and feeling fine on my own two feet. My midwife (Ali, the one from before...I was sooooo glad she was on call, we both felt we needed to have a different experience to heal from the previous one) asked if I wanted her to check me, "YES"!!!

I was 10 cm dilated! Woah! I had no idea! I was elated and so full of hope. She wanted me to have one contraction before getting in the water, so I did. I got in the water and eight minutes passed with no contractions. Hmmmmm. She warned me that at 10 minutes she'd want me to get out. I was also told that this time, my body would tell me what to do and that she didn't want any pushing on my own, that I would know when to push. That was it. I felt it, and could do nothing but push. 11 minutes later, I caught my little Alice (2 pounds heavier than Ruby) and pulled her close. She was born 59 minutes after I walked through the birth center doors, healthy as can be. I immediately said, "I WANT TO DO THAT AGAIN!"

I got quickly out out of the tub so Ali could verify that my bleeding was normal. Everything was contracting normally and so I got to nurse Alice while I delivered the placenta.

Three hours later, we were back home all together with our healthy little Alice and of course, my mother who saves my life for a week after I have a baby.

Visit from Grandma and Grandpa P. and Uncle Doug...

While G and G and Uncle Doug were here visiting, we got to do a few fun things, and the men did a lot of hard work making our play structure bigger and better for the kiddos.

We got to see Ruby play at sharing day. She played Lightly Row with both hands together, the whole song! I was so amazed how she took off once I helped her through the first two lines. She knew how to play the whole song through with her hands separate, but she figured out how to combine her hands for the last two lines all by herself. She plays it ALL DAY LONG, she LOVES playing the piano.
The men spent three days working on the big toy in the back yard. We got a slide on craigslist, but after six months of looking, Chris wound up driving to SURREY, BC CANADA to get the slide! He left after work and got home around midnight. These slides retail for $2,500 (no, that is not a typo) and they aren't easy to come by used. We got it for $141 US, and the gas is free. The kids already play on this thing constantly, so I'm excited to see how much fun they have on the new slide. I need to take a finished picture when it's all done. The slide is hung currently and in use.

The girls buried Chris in a heap of throw pillows.

Everyone sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner. I realized that I haven't updated any of the fancy things that you only really buy when you register for your wedding...anyway, the tablecloths I registered for don't fit our bigger table! Oh well, it was a nice meal, and looked pretty enough for us.

On the last day they were here, we did some Christmas decorating after going out to breakfast and having the birthday party. Just a few ornaments are up, but the tree is there...we need to finish tonight. Here's Ruby with Gpa, Gma and Alice. We miss you!

Ruby's parties...

Okay. I will actually manage a post with photos. What is with the bloggers of the world, we are all slacking on the chore of posting! I've noticed it with everyone!

We first celebrated Ruby's birthday early using our free night at Wolf Lodge with my folks. Wolf Lodge is a huge hotel with an indoor water park, and other fun things for kids. I got a free night from Northwest Afternoon (thanks Sand!), and have been plotting carefully for the day when we'd actually use it.

The place is amazing. I'd say it would better suit an older family, say with kids no younger than Ruby, but regardless, we enjoyed it to the fullest. The controlled 87 degree temp in the swim/slide area was perfect, the slides were really fun and then there is the amazing buffet, a great game called MagiQuest that Ruby and I had a lot of fun with (it's a scavenger hunt all over the hotel...it's computerized and you get to wave your wand at things and they turn on, and then it is recorded that you found that item...there are clues and all kinds of things).

Ruby got to open her guitar, a gift from my parents, the one thing she really, really wanted for her birthday. "Mom, I want a guitar so I can have more talents!"

It was a nice time. We ran back into town early so we could be at the adult session of our stake conference with ELDER NELSON, which was amazing. I can't believe I haven't posted about that yet.

Anyway, we celebrated one week later when Chris' parents and "Uncle Doug" was here. Ruby randomly wanted a "pony party". I'll forewarn all mothers of little girls, that "My Little Pony is out" according to the Party City lady. My mother-in-law was very dedicated to finding her the Pony stuff, so after Target and Walmart had nothing, she found a little out of style section at Party City with a few offerings. Meanwhile I was home making the cake.

Ruby loved her little party, never once asked if she was going to be celebrating with her friends, which really surprised me because we ALWAYS have a friend party and she has been to some recently, so I thought she'd wish for one. She got a Leapster2, a music playing snow globe engraved from Grandma and Grandpa, the Addy series of American Girl books and a chandelier for her bedroom. She didn't blow out all the candles at once, but she didn't care!