dylan, 19 months

thanks for the shirt from China aunt sarah and uncle adam!

so my ob portion of block 3 is done! only 4 weeks left of this block then on to psyc! woo hoo. this is the first weekend in the last 2 months that i have not had a major exam around the corner so i have been able to take it easy and live the good life! i finally organized a closet that has been driving me crazy since we moved in, i cleaned every room in the house, played all day with my baby, watched a movie with Gene, baked cookies, read something other than my nursing book, and just enjoyed not being a stressed out student for a couple days. Thats pretty much sums up a good life for me;) im learning that even though i spend all day cleaning, it only last until nap time is over, but its worth it for that hour!
today tina and i did a race- she finally talked me into doing one of her adventure races with her. i tried to stay positive, even though i knew it was going to be frikin hot! during the race we had to find check points from looking at a map, and at certain stations we had to do activities like find one word out of a pamphlet, and memorize objects on board. A lot of the check points were up on top of the mountain, which stunk, but for the last portion we were in the river. It was at coon's bluff- and we had to run 1.5 miles with our inner tubes, life jackets, and paddles. eh. i thought my running races i do were hard, but ive never had to carry anything! apparently we did really well, bc we came in 1st for the girls' team. it can easily be attributed to tina's navigation skills, i was just barely able to keep up with her. the river was way fun, and a great way to end the race. im not too burnt either.
so our aerosmith concert is in a couple weeks- ya thats right, i said 'aerosmith'. haha when gene and i were dating something he told me was that it was one of his life's ambition to attend an aerosmith concert. so, naturally, when i found out they were coming to town, i knew what that would mean. of course he was soooo excited- how could i not go with him? not that i dont like aerosmith, they're just not particularly my cup of decaffeinated tea. haha. and i figured they wont be around to do many other concerts so we need to go while theyre still kickin. and we can cross one thing off gene's list while were at it. so i will be posting that shortly;) the best part is- i have clinicals that next morning at 7am!!! i better get some cool wife points for this one.
nothing else is new with us- gene starts school in august, hes not sure what exacltly he wants to do but maybe a PA or NP or something... he has plenty of time to decide.

1st place is better than 2nd

i dont think ive gotten 1st place in many events in my life

but its pretty fun! it was actually 6th overall and 1st for the girl

teams. were soaked bc the last 1.5 miles of the race was down the

river in an inner tube with a paddle.

.

dylan at one with the animals

Dylan is fairly limited on his vocab but loves to imitate animals!

the doc says animal noises count though and its pretty cute:)

ready for the day

most kids refuse to wear stuff like this, but if dylan sees other

people wearing it, he puts it on himself!

labor of love

In school we are doing our pediatric/OB rotation...Its going really good so far! We had clinicals on Monday and I was able to be in the L&D area- I wasnt sure if i was going to like it or not- its not for everyone, ya know. Well right after i got there the nurse i was with asked me if i had eaten breakfast... I said yes, but i have had a baby and i think i will be fine. She insisted that it was different and she has had several students pass out or throw up or something. Haha, well i wasnt too worried about it - nothing could be worse than the movies they made us watch in class! Within an hour our patient was ready to have her baby and the doctor got there just in time...It was so incredible! seeing the little baby take his firsts breath was overwhelming and i was trying not to cry bc i thought that might look silly. Wow, it really is so amazing. It of course reminded me of when i had my baby- they are so sweet. im sure all the moms know exactly what im talking about, and if you dont yet, im sure, or at least i hope, its in store...

the best thing that could ever happen to a girl is this....



"Making the decision to have a child... is to decide forever to have your heart go walking outside your body."
~Elizabeth Stone

Dylan haning out with his gene when he wasnt feeing good :(

See what i mean!? (post)

this pic has nothing to do with father's day, i just liked it;) a walk through NYC at night

for fathers day

So im going to try to have at least one post that doesnt mention anything about nursing school- All that i will say is that its pretty stressful. So enough of that! I dont know if i have even introduced my husband yet...So, Gene. Hes wonderful, so fun, way smart, um i guess i can sum it up with 'perfect'.

Sorry to disappoint everyone out there but i really have the best husband- you all can stop looking now, he's taken;) We were set up kinda on a blind date by my sister who knows his cousin...(thanks again tina and caroline/natalie!) so we dated for 4 months then got engaged.
Now we have been married 3 months and since then i think i have done laundry...twice? he always gets to it before i have a chance! i dont think i have ever come home to dirty dishes. he is so helpful and so supportive for me during school. There have been times when I have had to make him go watch sports center for a while and stop cleaning, no complaints from him there;) (although, usually, he does remember to watch it even when i dont remind him haha;) [on that note about sports center- i actually indirectly love sports center! I am able to study while sitting next to gene and not be distracted by any of it! and its never anything bad, just sports:] anyway!

he makes me laugh all the time, whether its about the fact that he likes watching old Bruce Lee movies or that hes trying to iron the new sheets we bought for our bed;) he always plugs in my phone bc i always forget and he always orders me fries when i say i dont want any- haha hes learning. Everyday i feel blessed that he wants to be with me! I love him more than i could ever explain in a post. I could go on but i know everyone is enraged with jealously by now so i'll stop- haha jk but i haven't even got to the 'dad' part yet-

he is so cute with dylan, he loves him, and is always concerned about him. while im at school they go shopping together, go swimming, play with puzzles, read books, watch baseball, they have fun. Dylan loves him to pieces too- its so cute. The new father role for him is so natural, its wonderful. i dont know what ive done in my life to deserve to actually live in a dream world. i couldnt ask for anything more perfect than these two boys in my life- i havent always felt that life has been wonderful, but now, at the very least, life has been overly generous and i couldn't ask for more, only that it stays the same, everyday. The best part about my Gene is that he loves me back;)

An other "Dad" in my life is Daryl. I am so grateful that him and my mom found each other- they are so perfect together. Daryl is such a good grandpa (papa)! He is definitely on Dylan's fav 5 list haha. He is so quick to help anyone in need, he is such a great example to everyone around him. Thanks for being a wonderful dad and papa!

This post wouldnt be complete without mentioning all the dads in my life- i have a new one now- Gene (Gene's dad;) he is so great with dylan, its so cute. It makes me laugh when i notice all the similarities between my gene and his dad. big gene is such a great example of a worthy priesthood holder and i am so proud that hes my husband's dad. He is a good man.


Happy Father's Day!!!!


"I viewed with regret the many hours I have spent in indulgence, and now sorely feel the want of that information that those hours would have given me had they been judiciously expended. But since they are past and cannot be recalled, I dash from me the gloomy thought and resolve to double my exertions, or in future, live for mankind as I have hereto lived for myself."
~Meriwether Lewis

at last!

So i finally finished block 2! yea;) i didnt even want to post anything until i knew i passed haha- i wouldnt enjoy spreading any bad news! but i actually got a "B" (anything below 76% is failing in nursing school and a "B" is a 84-92%, cruel, i know!) now on to block 3 which i love so far- our content is pediatric care and ob...its only been two days of lecture and we already have our 1st test on wed! :/ that's ok tho- im just looking forward to graduation in December.

So Dylan is doing so great- hes sooo big and very independent. his new fav words are "no!" and "mine!" wow- so it starts already! when hes not trying to eat my chap stick or wear my mascara, hes actually a very lovey baby. he gives hugs and kisses all the time and pats me on my back:) thats my favorite! he dances when he knows im getting him milk, sings in the car seat and laughs when he finds his bellybutton:D I once had a lesson in church about being a mom and one of the things that was said that really stuck with me was,"moms, put down the dishes and hold your babies!" I have always tried to do that. Dylan does want to be held a lot, and i have realized that he is not always going to want me to hold him, so i will get away with it as long as i can. Also, the stage he is in right now (1-3 years) developmentally is one of the most critical period of their lives (next to the birth-3 month stage). He needs an excess of love and positivity to feel secure in his own little world. i know im preaching to the choir for most of the moms reading. Oh and an other thought about that...im sure you were listening in conference when pres monson made the comment about the fact that all too soon there will be no tiny hand prints to clean off the windows. That made me sad! not that im going to just let my place go to crap but as i am cleaning up his little messes i want to remember that these are the few moments in this short life that i will be cleaning up the art work off the tile, folding cute little baby clothes, or hearing "oh no!" when he dumps his yogurt on his head. I know everyone thinks im crazy or maybe you just relate entirely. just trying to make the best of every stage of life...

boston/new york

Anyway on to Boston!! So we left on a sunday night and got there monday- i just have to say that that is probably the coolest place i have ever been. if the winters werent so atrocious i would love to be there. its so clean and there is so much history! gene and i are way into american history so it was a dream come true for us. the city is so easily accessible and user friendly with the local subway (t-stations) you can go anywhere for $2 one way. the entire week we never rented a car, we just took advantage of every public mode of transportation known to man. Between boston/new york we: walked (for sometimes up to 5-6 hours a day!), took the subway, a train, a taxi (thought i was going to die might i add!), airplane, ferry(to ellis island) a gondolla thingy (to get to new york city from rosevelt island), a bus...cant think of anything else. anyway
we went to 2 red sox games (if you werent able to guess whose idea that was, i'll give you a hint...it wasnt mine!) ha. it actually was so much fun. both games were incredible, seriously the entire town had to be there and acted as though those games were life or death. It was so cool.

we saw everything in boston! china town. little italy, bunker hill, harvard, paul revere's house and grave site, site of the boston tea party, wow too much to remember. this is a park about 5 min walking distance from our hotel.

we also went to salem, ma where the witch trials were. it was only a 20 min train ride from boston, we had to! it atucally was a beatiful little town with green grass and white picket fences. only a few actual original buildings intact- most were restored. while we were there we had the famous east coast clam chowder- super good!

Then we went to New York- it was way cool but i dont have any big aspirations to go back there...it was cool to see once- but it was kinda dirty. slightly cooler than vegas in my book- (which i dont think is very cool at all ha) actually, we did have a ton of fun in ny. we got tickets to the letterman show, we went to ellis island (a must see- it was overwhelmingly amazing) we spent 2 hours there and probably saw 20% of what we wanted to see...but gene has learned that when the wifes hungry, nobody is happy haha, so we left. yea my fav pic!

ok so now im officially blogged out.

bath time!

bath time is his favorite time of the day!

happy belated easter;)

I know Easter has come and gone and my blog was never updated! i finally found some time now that my exam 4 is out of the way. I'll be finishing up this block in about 2 weeks. Wow, it is going by so fast! Nothing else new to report except that everyone is great and dylan had a wonderful easter playing with his new cousins! i love this picture with his cousin Racheal- they're so sweet. I'll have plenty more to post after my Boston trip in a few weeks!

ps....

so- i probably should also mention that gene and i got married 2 weeks ago...and this is my official apology to everyone who had to find out through my blog that i got married! nothin but love for all of you:) we moved our date up-our sealing paperwork is taking longer than we expected, unfourtunatley. So we just got married civily for now...but if its any consilation it was SUPER small (i think there were like 15 people there) and when we go to the temple we will have a much bigger ceremony. to be honest- personally, i just wanted to elope but i had the hardest time deciding if i should wear a dress to the court house???awkard! haha. for now were just being patient and looking forward to the day we can be sealed:) i really hope there are no hard feelings! thanks for your understanding! xoxo

the newly family

schools going...well its just going! its pretty hard- were going over neurologic injuries and disorders right now. who would have thought the brain is important? hm. haha anyway dylan is getting so big! he loves climbing- he climbed all the way on top of his changing table! and tried to get in his crib from the table- i think im going to need some Xanax (antianxiety med) with this kid! hes 23 pounds now and considered a toddler/ preschooler! genes working a lot for now until he starts school in january after i graduate in december- at least thats the plan for now. i think i want to work in the pediatric intensive care unit- hopefully i can get in! so theres an other splash & dash may 7th and gene said he would do this one with me:) oh and were going to boston in may too! yea, finally our honeymoon!

go usc!

gene's so proud of the new fan!

madness!

Its been a busy time for me these days ;) when im not in school, im playing with my baby and when im not playing with my baby, im at work, and Gene fits in there somwhere:) he's a good sport. Nothing else is new besides the added intensity of block 2 nursing- if i was complaining last block about how hard it was... ha! its nothing compared to this bock. im surviving somehow though;) Dylan, Gene and running help keep me saine- even if i do the opposite for them! oh and i started playing volleyball on monday nights....its fun. wish me luck!

dylan, 14 months

Dylan is getting so big! he loves acting like a big person and doing thing like wearing these sunglasses, sitting at the table (in the big chairs) and wearing shoes all the time. He is so fun and makes me laugh all the time!

Gene asked me to marry him on our snowboarding trip on the lift- it was so perfect! so its official:) Besides that, nothing else is really new- im just enjoying my break with my boys (dylan and gene:) school starts in less than 2 weeks! i'm ready- the sooner i start the sooner it will be over.

the big ?

um...of course I said 'yes'! who wouldn't?

FYI

Just thought I'd let everyone know that im

engaged:) now you cant get mad for me not telling

you!

cousin nolan's bday party

curious dylan

YOU!

Dylans latest is pointing. He doesnt exactly point with his finger yet...almost though. its so stinkin cute!

child labor

hmmm. i wonder how he learned this! im so excited:)

He loves being a free man!

finally the final

I'm finished with first block of nursing school:) oh and i passed- its very exciting. I am just going to be working as much as i can this Christmas break- i may even try snowboarding for the 1st time with Gene:) Im mainly going enjoy not studying for a couple weeks! Besides that Dylan is keeping me plenty busy. We go to the park as often as possible- he loves running around like a free man. My little baby is 1 now! His bday was on the 5th and we had a little get together for him. He g0t lots of cool stuff! Wow i think this means he's a toddler. aw, he's so big. Oh ya and that whole Christmas thing is comming up...I need to put it in my planner- haha.


"Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own."
~Robert Heinlein

Its December! Wow this year has been crazy. Dylan is turning 1 on December 5th! he is so big. He is definitely becoming his own person. He makes me laugh all the time. His latest is being outside. There is nothing better on this Earth for him than being outside. Ha. Anyway school is almost done! Just one final left then I'm off to my break...I only have plans to work at this point. So i finished the Turkey Trot! Finally. 2 years ago i wanted to do it, but i flaked out and said i would do it the next year. Well the next year I was 8 months prego so skipped out last year. I had no excuse this year...so I did it and it was kinda hard! I loved it though- I came in at 56 minutes and I was 334 out of like 2800 people. I think i might take a break from running for a bit-im getting old! I think i am going to swim for a few months and we'll see if im up for the half marathon next year:) Wish me luck on my final!

big boy!

he gets so happy when his clothes are off! haha

ya i'm a little behind on my halloween posting but whatever! School is going good- i really like it. its so interesting. The transformation is already in process, i can tell. Im turning into a sicko already- noticing people with scoleosis, arguing with my step dad about getting a flu shot, making sure i clean real good between my babies toes (the skin is the thinest there) looking at eyes when talking to people and checking to see if their puplis are round and equal, practicing theraputic questioning techniques... haha. I guess i am learning something- even when i dont feel like it! Tomorrow is my first day of hospital clinicals...this will be interesting! Dylan is doing so great- he was a UPS delivery man for halloween- i loved it! he hated his hat and would not leave it on. he is walking everywhere now- still working on the coordination- he kinda looks drunk sometimes but its so cute! i guess he has the pot belly to go along with it too;) ha- i was driving my nephew (Aden, 5) home earlier and he said, "I like your car, Makenna..." thanks "....even though its dirty." haha thanks even more!

"If you want to catch something, running after it isn't always the best way. "
Lois McMaster Bujold,
"Borders of Infinity", 1989

ok its been a while since ive updated! I know you all are dying to know what's been going on with me! totally joking:) anyway things are good- Dylan is so stinkin cute- sometimes i wonder if he couldn't be cuter and he always can be! he says hi! and he is taking some steps! he hates diaper changes and being left alone. almost 4 teeth on top and two on the bottom. He LOVES books! he has even started reading them to himself. School is crazy. We start clinicals next week. its so crazy how much we've gone over- i can't even believe it. I love it and hate it;) its hard to decide. The turkey trot is coming up...but i think thats my next race. Its too cold to swim these days and i not to crazy about biking...so i'll stick to running. the 1/2 marathon is coming up in january!! it will be so fun.

"A man can stand a lot as long as he can stand himself. "
~Axel Munthe

i need some oxygenation

School is crazy busy. Right now we are covering...hmmm lets see...health assesments, sleep, nurtition, drug administration, NJ/NG tube insertion, hypoxia, oxygenation, critical thinking, injections, insulin, diabetes...i am going to stop bc its making me overwhelmed again! thats all been this week too! (oh and thankfully we are learning about deep breathing!) When dylan is awake i try to spend as much time with him as i can- i dont want him to ever think i am too busy for him. Hes getting so big! i bet he will be walking by the end of next month at 10 months. he is busier than school though!

look what i can do!

Dylan is showing me how he can wave now...

and how independant he is! And thats

just the begining!

I havent yet figured out exactly what hes doing, but i think

its way cute! sometimes he just whispers mamama.

So San Diego didn't happen either- but thats ok i really needed a break! I shouldn't even be posting anything right now...theres a quiz in pharmacology tomorrow :/ so my first actual race is next week- practice is really hard and i have wanted to quit at i think every one of them but i always feel fantastic when im not there! The little guy is getting to be a big little guy! he hasnt broke 20 pounds yet though...and his latest favorite toy is mom's wallet :/ and he always wants me to hold him:) i think its cute-

Anything you're good at contributes to happiness.
Bertrand Russell

baby+nursing school+running-social life=me!

Nursing school is too easy- its gona be a breeze. Yea Right!! Totally joking! Its only been 2 days and i have so much to do! Its even the basics and I am swamped. Its all very interesting stuff that we are learning though. I am going to love it even though it will be crazy and I probably wont have a life. So I am actually not going to be running this race on Saturday- my paper work hasnt been processed yet... and thats fine by me! I will be running next Saturday though- its in San Diego. So far I really enjoy being on the cross country team. We have pictures on Friday in our uniforms and I feel like 9th grade all over again but thats ok. I have made a few friends- I do think i am the oldest on the team by about 3 or 4 years! Thats ok. Practices are at 5:30am monday-saturday! Anyway, Dylan is doing so good and getting so big! hes more vocal everyday;) so cute:)