A Special Week

Kason had his 6-month wellness check on Monday! He is 21 pounds 3 ounces (95%) and 29 ¼ inches long (99%). His head is also in the 96^th percentile! We still have a big boy! He hasn’t gained any weight in the last couple weeks, but he is feeling better, so he should start eating better! He has been eating lots of meats and vegetables this week! He also liked little pieces of bread and tortillas.  It is fun to see him eat new foods, although he is a little pickier than we expected! He takes a little while to get used to new foods, but we now have expanded our menu to beans, squash, sweet potatoes, turkey, chicken, and ham.  He got his 6 month shots on Wednesday and actually did great compared to what I expected! We also had Brandi Simmons take Kason’s 6-month pictures! I can’t wait to get them back! He was such a stinker and didn’t want to smile, but I’m hoping they still look alright! He is much more active now. He is really good at getting from the sitting position to his hands/knees.  He is getting back to his happy personality although the past 3 weeks of coddling hasn’t helped! He seems to always want to be held! He had an awful week of sleeping except for last night finally! We let him cry for only 15 minutes, and he slept from 10 until 6. We are hoping that continues as we all woke up much happier today! He also loves spending time with his cousins and watching the older ones run around.  He is entertained for a long time when they are around.  Kamrie is great about entertaining Kason; she will bring every toy to Kason and hold it in front of him while telling him about it.  He loves Kamrie!

This week we finished watching the 6-year old boy from our ward.  We watched him while his mom was out of town.  His dad dropped him off at 6:00 AM, and then we took him to school at 8.  Kolt was great to get up with him, as he is quite energetic in the morning! I took him to school when Kolt has class this week.  Kolt is excited for the day when Kason is old enough to be a fun playmate!

We had our first week of school this week.  Kolt enjoyed his classes, and I worked on my online classes.  I think we are both struggling to get motivated, but we will get there! I got the 1099s sent out this week at work.  My schedule works nicely where I still go in 3 days a week and Kolt is home to watch him Mondays and Fridays while I work, so I only have to take Kason with me on Wednesdays.  

We also got to watch Brand’s first basketball games this week.  He had a team scrimmage on Monday and then played Sandcreek on Thursday.  He did great in both games! He has really improved on his ball handling and does well inside.  It will be fun to see him grow as a player through the season.  Kolt and I both enjoy going to Rocky Mountain Middle School and reliving some of our memories in the school and on the court.  It is neat to be back in that gym!

On Monday evening I played in my volleyball league in Rexburg again.  We had 2 players missing, so my mom came with us to play.  We won both games in 3 even with only 5 players! It was pretty fun, and I enjoy playing and not being pregnant.  It helps my vertical! Kolt came to watch this week, and Kason slept the entire 2 hours, which didn’t help his ability to sleep through the night!

On Thursday evening after Brand’s game, Kason and I went with Kolt to Pocatello to his lab class once a week.  The class was only 30 minutes, and then we drove down to Arimo to look at a saddle.  Kolt has been wanting his own saddle for a long time, so when we found a good deal, we got it.  The guy who sold it to us was a nice guy who knew Grandpa Monte Piquet.  It is fun to have connections. Kolt loves his saddle! He is looking forward to having one of his own.  

On Saturday, we watched Evan play basketball at 11:30.  We also took a couple of quizzes for class, rode horses, and cleaned house.  I am enjoying my Saturdays before club volleyball begins. On Saturday night we went to Stake Adult Session of Stake Conference.  Grandpa & Grandma Piquet watched Kason and took him to Rope’s game.  He did really well, but didn’t seem to like the noise when it went into double OT. 

Kolt and I haven’t been to many Adult Sessions before we were married, but have been to a few since we got married.  We have both discussed how much we love the Adult session.  It may be due to the fact that we don’t have to fight Kason during the meeting, but it also seems to have great messages. I wanted to share some of the things I learned during the meeting and during the general session today because I felt very inspired by the messages.  We were instructed to love your spouse, neighbors and others simply because of who we are.  We learned 6 different blessings from doing missionary work, one of which is that families can be blessed with peace from heaven as we do.  The speaker emphasized that the things of less importance disappear when we do missionary work.  That really touched me because in a world where there is so many things to do and a mother tries to decide what her family should spend her time doing, we can know that as we do the things that matter most, missionary work, family history, scriptures and prayers, the things of less importance will disappear.  

We learned that there is no sure way to defend yourself against the adversary than to immerse yourself in searching out your ancestors.  We also learned that those not of our faith need an invitation to be a part of our wards.  My favorite part of the conference was when we learned about 3 important teaching moments in our homes.  First, the refrigerator door can provide teaching moments for our children.  We learned that mothers can post powerful quotes and pictures on the door of the fridge in which we can know that our children, specifically teenage boys who visit the fridge often, will see many times a day.  He talked about a family who had this quote pinned to their fridge, “Average people talk about people.  Great people talk about ideas.” He testified that this family lived the quote they put on their fridge.  The second teaching moment in our home is the dinner table.  He talked about the importance of teaching at the dinner table where parents have the full attention of their children. He talked about how fast food and being in a hurry is very contradictory to the idea of families sharing meals together and edifying each other.  The last place he discussed was the walls of our homes.  Elder Schwitzer of the Seventy spoke about how the walls of our home can be teaching moments.  He talked about a boy who wanted to live on the sea, and his mother realized that she had pictures of ships in her home.  She immediately took them down and replaced them with other pictures.  I felt strongly that I want to have a picture of the temple in every room in my house, including Kason’s room.  He challenged each of us to do a spiritual audit of our home and raise the bar.  I am anxious to do that this week and “make home base strong” for my children.

I love the gospel. I know that families can be together through the temple, and I’m so grateful for that knowledge.  I know we are blessed as we follow even the little commandments. I took on the challenge extended from Bishop Bodily to avoid social media this week and increase spiritual moments with our families for 1 week.  Although I don’t think that social media is a bad thing, I have felt for a while that I needed to do this as a way to focus on the things that really matter.  I have felt many blessings this week as the peace in my home has increased and relationships have grown stronger. Most importantly, I have found that I am more receptive to the Spirit as I am more attentive to those in my presence.  I feel like I have been more attentive in Kason’s life and been able to spend more quality time with my family.  I read somewhere that spiritual moments should be lived in, not posted about.  I feel like I have been blessed as I strived to do that most this week.  Although I will probably go back to social media in the near future, I know I have been made stronger because of this experience, and I now know the blessings of enjoying the moment with those I love.

First Swim!!

We have been enjoying our last week before the spring semester starts! Kason is feeling much better.  After reducing the number of treatments each day, he stopped vomiting and seemed much happier.  We are excited to go to the doctor tomorrow and follow up on his progress.  He has been just a little spoiled this week! Since he has been sick, he has spent a lot of time with his mom and dad.  He spent even more time over the break with us, since we didn’t have school.  For the first time this week, he has seemed to be very much a momma’s boy.  He isn’t quite the social butterfly that he has been, but we are hoping with school starting this next week that we can work on getting him a little more social again! Kason has started interacting with his toys a little more and really strains to reach them.  He likes to sit on the floor and have a LOT of toys around.  He will eventually get onto his belly and scoot around to different toys.  He gets tired pretty quickly though, and we are anxious for the day when he realizes he can move farther distances and places all by himself. 

He has regressed quite a bit this week with sleeping and eating.  He is doing great with the 30 minute naps and hour long intervals at night! We are tired ALL the time! Kason also had his first well-balanced meal with rice cereal, chicken, beans, and bananas. He is skeptical of any new foods and only eats them if I mix them with bananas! We are anxious to get back to our usual routine hopefully soon! Kason also untied Grandpa’s shoes this week all by himself! He also got a new basketball hoop this week, and he thought he was pretty cool when he grabbed the rim for the first time.  It is fun to see babies learn new things!

Monday night I started my Women’s volleyball league at The Zone in Rexburg.  It is my 3^rd year playing in that league, and I love it! It is great to get back to playing volleyball, and it’s a good workout too! Natalie is also on our team this year!  It sure makes me miss playing in high school and college.  

I spent a lot of time at work this week printing checks and getting 1099s ready to send out.  I was grateful to be able to keep Kason at home with Kolt, so he could get better.  I am excited for my last semester because all of my classes are online.  I have 2 online classes, an independent study, and an internship which I am doing at the Post Register.  It will be great not to have to leave Kason, but also a challenge to find time to focus and do my homework.  I am welcoming this challenge! Kolt has another tough semester this year, but his schedule worked out really nice, and it looks like he will even be home to take Kason a couple days, so I can have some time to work as well. 

On Friday, Kolt helped at ISU’s Freshman Orientation at the IF campus.  Afterwards, we went into town and did some shopping and hit dinner at Sizzler.  We had a good time together! On Saturday morning, we watched Rope play basketball at 7:30 and Evan play at 8:30.  Both boys did great! Rope had a couple nice baskets, and Evan made a basket too! The highlight of Evan’s game might have been the boy on his team who was running in circles around the court to avoid his defender! Kids are sure cute at that age! After the games, we went up to Green Canyon with my parents.  We met Kristi & Bryant there and went on a snowmobile ride.  It was sure pretty up in the mountains! While Kolt went on a big ride with Bryant, the rest of us went swimming.  Kason had a great time swimming for the first time.  He kicked and kicked and even liked Grandpa Lindley’s dunks.  He never even cried! I think he was trying to keep up with his cousin Kamrie! He sure liked watching her.  After swimming, we had some dinner and let Kolt warm up in the pool.  We had so much fun up there and are very grateful for Kristi & Bryant inviting us up! 

We had a great Sunday.  I played the organ and Kolt taught the Sunday school lesson.  Kason is getting to be a little more of a handful during meetings, but we made it through! We had a great block of meetings, and we are anxious for the Stake-split next week! We are looking forward to a good evening of dinner with family and celebrating Grandpa Lindley’s birthday.  We sure love him!

RSV to Start the New Year

We have had a sick week at our house! Last Saturday night, Kason started a pretty good cough and congestion. We didn't think much of it until it continued consistently to Friday.  He has slowed down his eating quite a bit and his demeanor had obviously changed.  On Friday morning, Kolt and I decided to take him into the doctor.  I had started the same symptoms on Monday evening, so I figured we could both be treated.  After listening to his lungs for just a few seconds, Dr. Southwick said it sounded like RSV.  My lungs also sounded the same.  I did a strep test that came back negative which surprised the doctor.  They also took some blood work and found that my levels were consistent with a virus, which confirmed Dr. Southwick's feeling that Kason had RSV.  They gave Kason albuterol through a nebulizer to help clear out his lungs which increased his oxygen levels and then sent us to the hospital to get an RSV test and a chest x-ray.  The tests confirmed that Kason had RSV and the check x-ray showed signs of RSV in his lungs. Since he is already 6 months old, he is past the really scary RSV age which is a blessing, but we are anxious to get him feeling better.  We have continued the breathing treatments twice a day, but suspect that they are making him sick.  He hasn't been able to keep down much of anything since we left the doctors and continued the treatments.  The doctor said to continue the treatments, so we will just keep being really careful and work on keeping him hydrated.  Kason is really pretty good with the breathing treatment.  He doesn't mind it the first 5 minutes, but the next 10 he is pretty hard to entertain.  Kolt and I take turns, one holding Kason and the nebulizer and the other putting on a show in front of him to distract him! We feel pretty blessed to have a happy baby who doesn't seem very sick most of the time. We never sleep because he is up most of the night coughing or too congested, but that seems pretty minor to us.  We are grateful that we are able to treat him at home and hope to get him back to his usual self soon! Oh, and Kason hit his 6-month milestone this week! It is hard to believe he is already 6 months old!

This week I spent most of my week working, making scrapbooks of our 2012 and 2013 years (I'm a little behind!), and trying to get feeling better.  On Monday evening, Kolt went out to Saydie's 5th birthday party and I went to Bonneville to play volleyball with Kara Bounds, Haylie Keck, Makayla Wilde, Kylee Belnap, and Natalie.  It was great to play again and get ready for my Monday night volleyball league, but also to visit and see Makayla again! I sure miss her lots! I also spent some time talking to Kylee about PA school; Kolt is excited to talk to her and get some help in his application process that he needs to start in the next few months.  On Tuesday, I played the piano at the Museum of Idaho Annual Christmas Display.  I played the piano for an hour while people walked around and looked at the exhibits.  I really enjoy playing Christmas music there every year because it is sometimes the only chance I have to play it all year.  After my hour, I accompanied Sister Bratt & her sisters for the next hour.  I really enjoy the piano and any chance I have to play.  It is a type of therapy for me.  

Kolt spent most of his time watching Kason and trying to ride his horses. It has been nice leaving Kason with Kolt while I go into work.  I seem to work a whole lot more efficiently when he is at home! Kolt rode his new mare for the first time this week.  She isn't quite as mellow as his gelding, but she did well.  I think Kolt riding his horses is a type of therapy for Kolt too! On Friday morning, Kolt babysat Paisley while Shauna had an appointment.  She slept the entire time! She's sure a good girl.  Kolt had a pretty slow week, and I think he is excited to resume school next week.

We had a sick New Year's Eve also and fell asleep at 9:30.  We had planned to go out to Tasha's usual New Year's Eve Party, but didn't feel well enough to go.  We also had a big Saturday planned, but had to reschedule it due to all our sickness! We ended up staying home and trying to recover.  Kolt went to the Bonneville boys game.  They beat Madison in overtime.  It was a good game from what I hear, and Kolt had a good time visiting with Jason Cooper during the game.

On Sunday, I stayed home with Kason and got a sub for the organ.  Kolt taught our new Sunday school class.  He came home very excited about the new kids.  They seem excited to learn.  He introduced the Come Follow Me theme, and the kids seemed to really engage in the lesson.  I am excited to meet the kids next week!  They also announced in Sacrament Meeting that we will be having a Stake Conference in 2 weeks with the Lincoln Stake.  They will be dividing these 2 stakes into 3 stakes.  They also announced that we will be part of the new Iona South Stake.  It seems weird to think we can move stakes without moving houses! It is sure an exciting time though to see the church grow!

I am also sad to say that officially failed the 40-Day Book of Mormon Challenge.  We unfortunately let a few too many things get in the way of some big reading times.  Kolt and I have talked about this a couple of times, and we have decided that while we didn't complete the reading in 40 days, we may have gained something even greater.  We have been reading the scriptures better than we ever have.  There is definitely an increase of the Spirit in our home and in our family.  We feel that we have great moments of personal revelation and that we are a happier family when we read.  We have been reading from the Book of Mormon daily, since we began the Book of Mormon challenge, which may be just exactly what we needed to gain from this challenge.  I am grateful for the gospel and the peace and comfort it gives us.  I'm so grateful for the new year and the chance we have to recommit to our values and goals.  I have spent some time reflecting on our past year.  I have concluded that Kolt and I have had a BIG 18-months.  In August 2012, Kolt came home from his mission, and we got engaged.  In September 2012, we got married in the temple for time and all eternity.  And in July 2013, we had our first baby.  We have sure been blessed this past 18 months and can't wait for the adventures of the new year!

6 MONTHS

-Weighs 21 pounds 10 ounces (No wonder his mom's back hurts!)

-Size 4 diapers
-Says "Mama" over and over all the time, which certainly makes his mother happy

-Likes bath time

-Found out today that he has RSV, but we are thankful he doesn't mind the nebulizer---Hoping for a quick recovery!!

-Loves to smile all the time, including smiling at the camera!

-9 month--12 month clothes

-Likes playing with his new toys from Christmas, including his horses, trucks, and Woody

-Sits up and rocks back and forth ALL THE TIME!

-Sleeps about 8 hours with one or two feedings in between

-Loves to sit up and be part of the action
-Does a little head turn when he wants to go/do something

-Really interested in eating and doing whatever everyone else is doing!

-Grabs your cheeks and gives lots of open-mouthed wet kisses!  Super cute!

-Moved from bumbo to highchair due to his massive thighs!

-Eats lots of rice cereal and bananas and is starting some new foods as of today!!

-Rocks and rocks on his hands and knees until he lunges in the direction he wants to go--not quite crawling yet!

-Likes reading books and listening to voices

-Definitely teething--chews on everything he can get his hands on!

-Happy most all the time, except when he doesn't feel good!

-Growing up too fast for his mommy!

Kason's First Christmas

We have had an extra special week this Christmas week.  Kason really surprised us this week with learning a new word and opening gifts.  We were both happily surprised at how well he opened gifts on Christmas morning.  He would slowly grip a piece of the paper and rip it off slowly.  Of course, he was then too preoccupied with the paper to continue opening, so we would help him by taking it out of his hands. But he was a great sport, and we were happy to let him take his time opening his gifts. It was definitely one of the highlights of our Christmas.  Kason also has continued to say “Mama” repeatedly this week. He says it more and more often.  We have figured out that he associates this word with wanting something, including sleep or food.  We think he might also really know what he’s saying because he does actually look around for his mom when he says it! His mom might just be a little flattered!  He also does this cute little head turn to Grandpa Lindley all the time.  We think it is his way of saying, “Grandpa, let’s play!”

This week also marked my 2 year anniversary at the Post Register.  I am so grateful for that job.  I am able to work with people I really enjoy being around.  It is a great atmosphere at work.  My co-workers also love Kason.  He is one spoiled baby in the office.  They joke that he will be able to do my job better than me before long.  They are so nice to let me bring him in although I know he is not always very quiet.  I’m also so grateful for its flexibility.  I am able to log in to my computer from home and work from home, but I also have flexible hours at work, so I can go in at odd times of the day—whatever fits my schedule.  I really love my job and hope to be able to stay there for a long time!

We have had a very special Christmas this year spent around our family.  We spent Christmas Eve and early Christmas morning with Grandma & Grandpa Piquet.  We had Beef Stew for dinner and worked on a puzzle that evening and all throughout Christmas day.  Kolt and I both really enjoyed doing the puzzle so much that we have done another one at home since.  We watched the Ultimate Gift, one of Kolt’s favorites.  On Christmas Eve, we also had a visit from Santa Clause (Grandpa Piquet, who does many Santa visits throughout the holidays).  It was fun to have Kason sit on Santa’s lap, and I think Santa enjoyed holding both of his grandbabies.  Kason was a great sport, and I think he have recognized Santa’s voice and also like Santa’s beard!

Kason spent all night Christmas Eve awake! He must’ve been listening for reindeer on the roof! So on Christmas morning, we woke up and opened gifts with the Piquet’s.  We enjoyed watching others open the gifts we picked out for them. We also feel very blessed to have Santa stop by and leave lots of things for us also! Some of the highlights on Christmas morning were Kolt’s new hand gun, Susan’s new wardrobe, and Kason’s new baby recliner! I was excited to surprise Kolt with a frame of the ties he exchanged with his mission companions.  After opening gifts, we then ran back to Lindley’s to Skype with Tyler.  It was so neat to have Tyler meet Kason for the first time over Skype.  Kason gave Tyler a great smile! All of the cousins enjoyed talking to Tyler as well.  Kolt was excited that he could understand much of Tyler’s Italian as well.  He looked very happy and healthy over Skype.  What a blessing it is to talk to our missionaries and “see” that they are doing well! We are so glad he is serving the people of Italy at this time and know he is doing what the Lord would have him do!

After our call with Elder Lindley, we went back to Piquet’s to let Kason open his gifts, since he slept through the first round! Great-Grandpa and Grandma Piquet came to visit also! We had a great day resting and working on the puzzle and also having prime rib for lunch! In the evening we came back to Grandma & Grandpa Lindley’s house.  Some of the highlights were our new TV and Kason’s village mat and quiet book.  Grandma Lindley designed the village mat with some of our favorite family places including both grandparents’ houses and Great-Grandpa Piquet’s harness shop.  She also made a great quiet book that is going to be a lifesaver for church!  All throughout the day, Kolt and I couldn’t stop thinking about how blessed we are to have such great family and feel very fortunate to be a part of them.  We had a yummy dinner with the Lindley’s and Natalie’s family and then ended the evening by watching Ephraim’s Rescue.  It was a great end to our Christmas Day!

Thursday evening we had the Lindley Gift Exchange.  We had ribs for dinner and then exchanged gifts afterwards.  I always enjoy being with my siblings and feel like we grow closer each and every time we get together.  We have great visits, and the cousins sure enjoy playing with each other. 

 

Friday afternoon we went began our trip to Utah.  We started by driving down to Logan and eating dinner at Winger’s.  Winger’s is my favorite restaurant and the one in Idaho Falls closed down! We had a great dinner, and I made a point to eat more than I wanted because I missed it! Kolt and I had a great visit during the drive and during dinner.  We really enjoy talking, and I feel like we learn more about each other all the time.  After dinner, we went to Chris Ransom’s sister’s wedding reception.  We enjoyed seeing the Ransom family and talking with Chris.  Kason was a great sport for most of the reception, but got pretty ready for bed around the end.  Chris is one of Kolt’s best friends, so we love any chance we have to come to Logan and see him.  After the reception, we stayed at Grandma Lindley’s home in Logan.  We watched the BYU game and visited until late.  I sure love my Grandma and am very glad that we get to see her as much as we do.  I look up to her in many ways and am always uplifted by her positive outlook on life.  I find myself wanting to get her advice on my aspects of my life, so it is good to visit her and learn from her example and her Spirit.

On Saturday we attended the Lindley Christmas Party at Scott & Teresa’s home.  We had lunch and then did a gift exchange.  I enjoyed visiting with my cousins, including some who I don’t see very often. Kason has a few second cousins who are close in age. He wanted so badly to be able to crawl around with Blake and Jack who are just a few months older than him.  It is amazing how quickly the family has grown and there is now quite a few young kids and babies in the family.  Families are a great blessing!

After the party, we drove down to Temple Square to meet Candace & Justin Ross.  We walked around Temple Square with my parents before they arrived.  Kason stayed warm in the bundle of blankets and fell asleep as we walked.  It was Kolt and Kason’s first time seeing the lights at Temple Square.  We were both amazed at how many lights they put on a single tree down there.  It is amazing and very beautiful! We walked over to City Creek Mall afterwards for a few minutes until Candace and Justin arrived.  They took us back to our car and then we drove over to Iggy’s for dinner.  I’m not sure even what I ate or who the waitress was because Candace and I just talked and talked.  We sure miss them and loved catching up and remembering memories from WWCC.  It was great to have Kason meet Candace too for the first time.  I am kicking myself for forgetting to take pictures, but of course, we had too much talking to do!

After dinner, we drove down to Springville to go to Magelby’s for dessert.  One of Kolt’s mission companions, Dylan Parkinson, was working that night, so we hit dessert later in the evening, so he would have time to visit.  Kolt loved catching up with Dylan and finding out what happened in the field after he left.  It is fun for me to visit the companions and listen to how life was in the field.  While we were there, Dylan told Kolt that a member family from his mission moved to Provo 15 days ago.  He sent an extra dessert home with us, so we could take it to this family.  We were a little worried showing up at their house at 10 PM, but Kolt assured me they would be glad to see us.  I was amazed at their kindness and generosity.  They were excited to see us to say the least.  They were so sweet and giving and can’t wait to see us again.  They seem to be adjusting well and are busy with school and work.  Kason absolutely loved them and smiled the whole time.  He loved playing with their sweet kids.  You could feel the Spirit so strong in this family’s home.  I felt a little silly not being able to understand the Spanish; however, I understood most of what Kolt said in Spanish, but couldn’t understand their Spanish.  We are excited to visit them again!

We stayed the evening at Corey and Janis’ home in Orem and then headed down to Elberta, Utah with my mom for my cousin, Sarah Hiatt’s mission farewell.  She did a great job speaking and will be a great missionary in Canada.  We enjoyed catching up with the Hiatt family; Kolt hadn’t met many of my Hiatt cousins yet, so it was good to visit and have brunch at their home.  

We are so grateful for wonderful friends and family.  We feel very blessed to be a part of such great families and to have such neat friends.  They bless our lives continually.  We are excited to start the new year. Happy 2014!