Goodbye...

Goodbye heart burn.

Goodbye 3am potty trips.

Goodbye compression stockings.

Goodbye man hands and poor circulation.

Goodbye breathlessness.

Goodbye pregnancy!!

Hello Baby Hazel!!

Hazel made her grand entrance into the world on December 21st. and did she ever come in with a BANG! Our origional due date was the 17th. We had no idea she'd take all the time in the world to come. Luckily, our doctor tentatively scheduled an induction for the 21st so we wouldn't have to spend Christmas in the hospital. The morning of the 21st (yes, the first day of winter), we woke up to piles and piles of snow. We were late getting to the hospital because it took some serious time digging out the truck. Of course it was a process getting going at the hospital. For hours and hours there was no sign of progress. And still... it kept storming and we kept waiting for something interesting to happen. And happen it did. no baby. but the power went off...in the hospital. Casey and I exchanged worried glances, and the generators soon kicked in. Luckily it was only off for 15-20 min.

So we kept waiting. The nurses kept predicting a midnight baby. We were going nowhere, and we were getting bored. I finally sent Casey home to get a movie to entertain us at about one in the afternoon. And, of course, that's when the magic started to happen. At about three o'clock, we were only minutes into A Christmas Story when I told Casey to shut it off. The contractions were coming fast. Too fast. The nurses had to turn the pitosin down so the baby could rest in between. But they didn't slow down, they only got stronger. Soon the nurse decided she better check me, and I was fully dialated. At that point it was just a rush to get the doc there in time. It was a few moments of chaos and scrambling, and shortly after (4:16), Baby Hazel was born. Healthy and beautiful, and we love her!!

Our families had to wait a day to come up and see her because the roads we TERRIBLE. In fact, Provo Canyon closed at one point. It was so great to have both of our parents at the hospital the next day.

Just before leaving for the hospital...

Right after she got cleaned up. We couldn't believe all of her hair after they had washed it. We almost made the nurses check her feet tags to be sure she was ours.

Dillon's first encounter with Hazel. He likes her, but sometimes won't acknowledge her at all. She's just not a big deal to him.

The proud papa. I love him!!

Love this picture... a tender moment Christmas eve morning, just after Dillon had opened his Christmas jammies. He wasn't at all disappointed in his new tractor apparel, by the way.

We really just adore her! Christmas was a little different this year, of course. But it was great to have a few days with just our little family. Casey had several days off from work, and it was so nice to just sit at home and enjoy our new addition. That extra help from Casey was also much appreciated. I couldn't have done it without him...

"Jolly" Old Saint Nicholas?

He is jolly, right? Why is my child so scared of him? From a distance Dillon is all about Father Christmas. He's sure everything with a red and white Santa hat says, "ho-o, ho." Needless to say...our little meet and greet with Santa did not go over so well. We went to meet him in Gunnison, and I've gotta say...I love small towns. They just know how to make these kind of events: Santa's arrival in a fire truck, cookies to wait in line, a GIANT mail box for all letters to Santa, and a goody bag to go. Really, does it get any better?

We're really getting in to the Christmas spirit! I love it! Everything about it is so exciting, and it's great to have a child that loves all the lights and goodies too. This one's for all my siblings. Remember this old thing? It still works! And it's in great hands! For some reason Dillon doesn't like when it lights up, plays music, and moves. He just likes to sit and admire it. If only he played this gentle with everything...

Has it already been two months???

Who doesn't love Halloween??? For as long as I can remember I've loved decorating sugar cookies, carving pumpkins, getting dressed up (although Casey and I are lame and don't do that anymore), and trick-or-treating. I never knew it would get even better when I had a child who was excited about all of it too. I really wanted to make Dillon's costume this year, but... I dropped the ball and ended up buying one instead. This is sort of how our decision was made in the costume store:

Me: Dillon look at dog! See the monster!

Dillon: (nothing)

Me: Look at the monkey. Do you want to be a monkey?

Dillon (nodding his head up and down): ee-ee-ee-ee (giving me his best monkey impression).

And so the decision was made. He looked really cute too. Every time we got dressed up to go somewhere in costume he was thrilled. I think he would wear the costume all day, every day if he could.

In other news, we're still just waiting for baby #2. Only six more weeks! I'm realizing all of the sudden that six weeks isn't very long with all the preparations that need to be made for a baby and Christmas. I'm getting really anxious. With all the babies being born lately, I just can't wait to have mine here. Although, she still doesn't have a name...YIKES! We're so bad at that part... So, we're open for suggestions...

My husband hunts...

.....so, while he hunts, Dillon and I visit home. Along with playing with cousins, feeding the horse, four-wheeling, and sitting on the front porch we get to...

...can apples from my grandpa's amazing apple tree. Nobody knows what kind of apple tree it is, but they are the best apples around!...perfect for apple pie and applesauce. By the way, this little gadget is a miracle worker; nobody in his right mind would can apples without one (believe me, I've tried).

...play in my parents corn field, complete with a four-wheel ride from Grandpa. We also got to freeze some of this fabulous corn. I LOVE IT!

...and finally, visit the Kanosh park, but not before loading up on treats a the famous Kanosh Merc. Grandma always loads the kids up with penny candies and goodies, then we stroll onto the park.

There truly is no place like home, and Dillon loves it. Of course we wish Casey the best of luck with his hunt, which he has been anticipating since last August. With any luck, soon I will create a post showing off the big trophy buck, shot with his bow.

On a side note, did I mention that we saw Lion King at capitol theater...not really typical of Casey and me (especially Casey). I LOVED it! and what's even greater...Casey enjoyed it too!! I wish everyone could see it. The talent was fantastic, the costuming...unbelievable, and the entire show... phenomenal. We had such a fun evening out on the town as a couple. Have tickets? You won't be disappointed.

"Who's your favorite???"

Connor (Casey's little brother) just left for the MTC this week. He's off to Fresno, California. We're so excited for him, but we're all going to miss him. He always tests all of the nieces and nephews with this question, "Who's your favorite?" They always know the right answer: "Connor!" The kids LOVE him! He's always the most fun to play with, and he always keeps all of us laughing..

For one last fling, we all went to Seven Peaks to spend the day. It was a blast! We all loved it! This is Connor with Dillon.

Dillon and Talan, the little water buddies.

Annette, Payton, and Porter.

Dillon and Rilee. Rilee is soooo good to Dillon. At five years old, she is already one of the best baby sitters I know!!
Oh...and Dillon LOVED the kiddie slides. I truly believe he would spend the whole day on them if we let him. Casey spent a lot of the day right here, at the bottom of the slide.

Seven Peaks is great! It was a great way to send Connor off into the mission field! Good luck, Connor! We'll miss you!!!

I love county fairs...

Seriously...Is there anything better than lots of fried food, cotton candy, and rides that spin 'til you vomit? There's just something so summery about county fairs. I really love the carnivals! So this year we decided to give Dillon the ultimate carnival experience.

The excitement before the ride; rushing to get the best car...

During the ride; with three other random children...

And...after the ride. Can they ever get enough???

The Merry-Go-Round (an absolute must!)

And finally...Leaving the fair. None of us were disappointed. Turns out, Dillon loved the flashing lights, spinning rides, and excitement too...

There's still time...

If you haven't already been feasting on the incredible talent of these six dancers...it isn't too late. I don't follow many shows in the summer, but So You Think You Can Dance is one I won't miss. Watch it. You won't be disappointed. This is one of my favorite dances of the season. Unfortunately, Alex injured his achilles and is no longer on the show. So now all I can say is "Go Kent and Adechike!!"

Any one for mosquitoes and sunburns???

I LOVE camping. The only person who might love it more is Casey. He would rather be camping than in Disneyland!!! Not me! But I really do love it. Why do we love it? I'm not always really sure. We never get much sleep. The mosquitoes always feast on us. And we usually come home red as lobsters. Believe it or not... there are many things that outweigh the bad. We took a trip with my family this last weekend. It was awesome.

We all had a great time on the four wheelers; camping just wouldn't be the same without a good four-wheel ride. Dillon also LOVED the four-wheelers. He loves anything on wheels (I guess it's a boy thing). He seriously spent more than half of the trip sitting on a four-wheeler, standing behind the wheel of our truck, or driving the little red car.

By the way, see the little bug bit on Dillon's forehead? The next morning he woke up with an entirely misshapen head. He must have had some allergic reaction to the mosquitoes. He had one huge swollen bump on the front of his head, one on the back, and one on his fore arm. Poor kid! He looked like Popeye, after he just had is head slammed in a door...

Another reason we love camping...We all love to fish! Especially when the fishing is as good as it was! Casey is an avid fisherman, but everyone (including the kids) had luck fishing. Below are my cute nieces and nephew with Dillon: Ellie, Brooklynn, and Kempton.

The food, the games, and the company also added to the trip. We're hoping to fit in another trip before the summer is over, but where is the time going? Believe it or not...I'm going to miss the triple digit weather. I swear we can never fit everything in...

You'll never believe it...

We got the internet!! For my birthday, several months ago, Casey surprised me with a new laptop. My very own. I've never had one before, and let me tell you, I was SHOCKED!! I was altogether elated to see my new toy, but had to get one crucial question out of the way first: "Does this mean we're getting internet?" We have been living in the dark ages for two years. Did you get that? TWO YEARS with out internet! Luckily we live very close to our county library, but using there internet was just getting harder and harder. Every time I went there Dillon would find the closest book shelf and unload all of the books. Let me tell you, it was always a lot of fun... I can't even begin to say how wonderful life has been with the internet! At first I

seriously wondered, "What do people do all day online?" The only thing I knew to do was check my emails, which I get very few of (I guess I can't expect emails if I don't send emails...) Wow, but I quickly learned what to do with my time online. I found this website melskitchencafe.com. Got to say, I LOVE it! I have tried several of her recipes and loved all of them so far.

Anyway, so hopefully this means I back to the blogging world (although I'm making no guarantees). So, most recently, here's what's going on in our lives...

I GRADUATED!!

Yes, it actually happened. My laptop and the internet were also part of my graduation gift. Both would have been very useful during school, nevertheless...I made it. A lot because of Casey, really. I got discouraged many, many times, but he always really supported me, besides paying thousands of dollars in tuition for me to finish! Graduation was great though. My parents and Casey's both made the trek to the land of the Aggies. And to top things off, we ended the day with a fabulous meal at Maddox. I love that place.

WE HAD A ROMANTIC GET-AWAY TO CAPTAIN GUNNISON

We spent a fabulous weekend at lake powell with all the Dyrengs. About thirty-five of us stayed aboard captain gunnison for about 5 days. Dillon stayed at gramma and grandpa Christensen's (thankyou, thankyou, thankyou), and Casey and I soaked in the sun! Well...I soaked, Casey water skied(below). The highlight of the trip was watching the boys build the 50 yd slip-n-slide. They seriously spent at least a days work building the thing. But, it dominated every slip-n-slide I've seen to date. Lake Powell may be the best place on earth:)

IS THAT LIKE MAD COW DISEASE???

Dillon contracted hand, foot, mouth disease. Sounds awful, right? Apparently most children get it when they are young. But it was pretty bad. At times his temperature was at 104. YIKES!! This is how he spent most of his days: with the binki (and absolute soother), his blanket, the bike (a new favorite since visiting gramma and grandpa's), and some cartoons (Super Why to be specific). I never knew having sick children could be so miserable. There is one good part: Dillon (who avoids cuddling at all costs) always loves to be held at this time. I hope my next child is a snuggler...

LAST BUT NOT LEAST: FIREWORKS!!

Gunnison has a great celebration for the Fourth of July. This year the festivities included a concert by a Neil Diamond impersonator. He was AWESOME!! He even wore a silky shirt, rhinestones included! The fireworks began during his last song: "We're Coming to America." You can't beat that!! It really was a lot of fun! Dillon didn't quite understand the objective of the parade: scramble for as much candy as you can get your hands on. After he got a sucker, he couldn't figure out what all the fuss was about! Maybe next year;)

I don't deserve to be called a blogger anymore...

I can't believe it has been six months since I've posted. I probably still wouldn't be posting, but I wanted all my family (especially the ones who live far away) to see these pics. Dillon is just over a year now! Can't believe how fast time flies.

Everything else is great! I only have three more weeks of student teaching until I get my degree! HOORAY!! I thought the day would never come! I don't think I'll do anything for weeks after I'm finished except sit on my couch, watch movies, and eat bon bons (oh, and probably lay out at the pool)...

Anyway, until next time... happy spring from the soon to be college grad!!!

I love this one above! He looks so sneaky...

These were the only smile pics we got. The last thing Dillon wanted to do was sit still so someone could take his picture.

Above is Dillon's "I'm in trouble" face;)