A Couple of Christensons

2014

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Tue, 06 Jan 2015 21:14:00 +0000

2014 was quite the doozy for us, which is probably why I only blogged once the entire year. Whenever we look back on 2014, the only words we can think of to use is "roller coaster," because it truly was one. It was filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, and I feel like I'm still trying to come up with the words to express everything that happened. But right now I'll do my best and share some pictures and experiences that summarize our 2014.

We started off the year by going to Disneyland with my in-laws over the New Year. It was way too crowded, especially when we had to bring a stroller, but we had so much fun!

When we got back from Disneyland, I sneaked into the Missionary Training Center to give my sister some birthday cookies. One perk about working there for almost 5 years is that I can sneak past security whenever I want!

The first week of February we received a call from my mom that we needed to come home to see my step dad. He's really my step dad, but he has raised me from the time I was 7, so I consider him to be my dad. In November of 2013 he was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. He went through two unsuccessful rounds of chemo that made him very ill and he was constantly getting infections from the scopes and PICC lines that had to be performed and placed frequently. His only hope was a bone marrow transplant, but because of all the infections, he was never healthy enough for it to be an option, so almost 3 months shy of his diagnosis, my mom brought him home so he could be with his family. It was a bittersweet week of many tears & smiles, but I would not have traded it for anything. This picture is my dad with all of his grandchildren in the same room for the first time (plus some siblings & an aunt). He passed away on February 12, 2014. We miss him so much, but I am so grateful for his life and the example that he was to so many people. I consider myself so lucky to have been raised by him, and I know that I will be able to see him again.

When we returned from my dad's funeral, we decided that our lives weren't crazy enough, so we decided to buy a townhouse in Salt Lake County:

And I had strep the week we closed on our house, which was at the end of April. My saintly mother-in-law came to my rescue and watched Max while she packed up almost our whole house. We wouldn't have had any boxes to put in the moving truck if it wasn't for her!

In May we went to New York City with some friends and had the best time exploring the city & appearing in a Today Show segment with Suze Orman. We celebrated our 4 year anniversary & Mark's birthday while we were there. It was such a great trip and we find ourselves talking about NYC often and figuring out how & when we can go back!

In June I complete my first half marathon! I signed up for it back in February, and did my best to train for it. I never thought I would be a runner (and still don't consider myself a runner), but I came to like it! Running it was probably one of the hardest things I've ever done physically & mentally, but I told my dad that I would do it, so I couldn't back out. He was on my mind a lot as I ran down the canyon.

In August I met up with my mom, sisters & aunt for a weekend in Vegas to celebrate my mom's birthday. We had a blast and I finally got to meet my nephew Jackson. We had so much fun that we've decided to make it a yearly tradition!

We also got some updated family pictures in August! (Thanks, Danielle!) It's about time!

In September we went back to Disneyland with my family. We had planned on originally going in May with my dad, but after he passed away, we decided that he would want us to all go, so September it was! We had a blast since it wasn't too crowded, and Max had recently discovered Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, so he had the time of his life seeing Mickey Mouse everywhere! It was so cute! His favorite rides were anything that goes around and around, so I had fun sending Mark to do those ones with Max. He was in heaven!

Also in September we found out that I was pregnant with baby #2! Along with that, came the news at my appointment in October that I have hypothyroidism. A disorder that means that my thyroid is not making enough thyroid hormone. This is definitely something that I plan on expounding upon later, but it has been extremely eye opening and life changing for me.

Later in the year I decided to learn something new and put together a quilt. Learning to quilt had been sort of like jumping off the deep end, but I am learning a lot! I have the quilting done and now I just have to do the binding! It's definitely a "starter" quilt, as in it's pretty uneven & awful in a lot of places, but that's how you learn, right?

We ended the year off with finding out that we're having a little girl in May! We are really really grateful that she is healthy, and everything is okay. I was having the worst anxiety for a few months thinking that something was wrong (neurotic mom alert), but my fears have been calmed, and now I have to work on putting together a girl wardrobe and moving Max to an actual bed over the next few months!

Phew! And with that I'm ready for a nap! I'm hoping to be a better blogger in this coming year. Many times I feel like I am just a boring old soul that no ones wants to listen to, but I'm working on carving out my own corner of the internet, and I hope that you'll stay along for the ride.

An Essay On Honesty, Weight and Change

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 20:04:00 +0000

Hi. My name is Allyson and I have a problem with my weight.

There. I said it. Admitting it is the first step, right?

For as long as I can remember I've always had goals focused on "losing weight" or "being healthy" or something along those lines. Growing up I was never athletic like some of my siblings and never did anything habitual to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Looking back, I think that my current health and lifestyle are suffering because of it and it's time to make a change and more importantly, admit that I have a problem.

My personal problem is laziness. Oh boy, can I be lazy! Laziness is my inner demon and it has taken its toll on me for years and years. It had gotten to the point that it clouded my mental state and caused me to push my weight problem to the back of my mind. I told myself that I didn't have that big of a weight problem. I told myself that I just had a baby and I deserved to sit on the couch for a bit, eat that brownie, nap while the little one naps, and on...and on...and on.

Five years ago I wasn't this way.

I think back to five years ago and wonder what is so different between then and now that let me get so unhealthy and so overweight?

The answer is laziness.

Five years ago this past November I returned home from an 18 month full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Italy. During my mission, I didn't have the time to be lazy. Every minute of my day was planned out, including exercise first thing in the morning. Like I mentioned before, I hadn't been diligent with exercising or eating healthy before my mission, so I wasn't very intense at first with exercising when I arrived in Italy. That all changed when I was forced to lead an active lifestyle as a missionary...always on-the-go, and doing a lot of walking. I started exercising with more intensity and started feeling better about my body. After I had been in Italy for a year, I was transferred to a city where I traveled by bicycle instead of walking or riding a bus. At first I was terrified of the bike. Terrified of falling, getting hit by a car, running into pedestrians, etc. It was the worst experience at first. Covered in bruises, I would ask myself what the heck I was doing at the end of each day. It was painful to learn to ride a bike all over again, but after a few weeks I was amazed that I got the hang of it. I was even more amazed that I was starting to enjoy riding my bike! I was even more impressed with how much that bicycle whipped my body into the best shape it had ever been! I was working out more intensely each morning, and I felt great.

When I returned home from Italy I was in the best shape of my life. I continued to work out, jumping rope for 30 minutes without stopping, cycling, and going on the occasional run. I kept it up for a few months, but then my old friend laziness came crawling back into my life. Working out and eating healthy got pushed aside while laziness took its toll, and over the past five years it has become worse and worse.

So here we are. Or at least here I am. Five years later and I've gained back all the weight I lost in Italy and then some.

But now is the time for me to change. Enough is enough, and I'm blogging about this so that I can be more accountable to myself and be more consistent with making a lifestyle change that will last. In the past I never let those changes stick because I didn't share them with enough people. I felt like if I didn't tell anyone, it wasn't that big of a deal, and when I failed at something I was only accountable to myself, so I could just go back to being lazy and no one had to know. But I have finally realized that it's my health and it's a huge deal, so I am determined to succeed!

So here it is, out in the open. Me, committing myself to change my habits and become healthy this year. My goal is to lose 100 pounds. More than that, I want to gain back my confidence and the ability to combat laziness and lead a healthy lifestyle.

So please join me on this grand journey of mine. I know it won't be easy, but I know that it will be worth it.

As of Late...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Wed, 20 Nov 2013 21:00:00 +0000

Yikes. This whole time flying by thing is proving to be a real thing that is greatly affecting this here blog. It makes me sad, and I'm really really going to focus on keeping it up to date.

Things have been pretty crazy around here. Not necessarily that we're constantly busy, but crazy in the fact that we live in a very transient state and it just feels like we get these crazy, itching, burning desires for change all the time. We talk about moving all the time, buying new furniture all the time, selling one of our cars all the time, etc., and it definitely makes life interesting, that's for sure! Speaking of change, our little Mr. Max is now 11 months old and is as busy as ever. I got a new phone yesterday and was moving my pictures from my phone onto my computer and I could not believe how much he has changed in just 11 months. It made me a little sad to relive his little newborn hiccups, but yet I get so much joy out of his current stage of fake-laughing at everything and trying to whistle. He is my favorite and I absolutely love discovering the world through his eyes. It is the raddest thing ever.

My husband is also pretty rad, as evidenced by his recent promotion at work. He has been working so hard so that I can stay at home with Max, and I am nothing but grateful for that. We are so excited around here for new possibilities, but it also means that his current commute of 35 minutes one-way is more of a permanent thing. This is probably the reason why we talk about moving all the time, and now that Mark's promotion is permanent, I find myself looking a new digs with more of a purpose. If that translates to us digging out our moving boxes from under our bed in a couple of months, I'm not sure yet, but we will soon find out. And yes, the only things that are under our bed are moving boxes. When you've moved as often as we have, it's just easier to hold on to all those boxes!

And now for some photos!

I went to Arizona to visit my family, and while it was a long long time to be away from Mark, I'm glad that I was able to spend that time with family and watch Max interact with my parents. In light of recent family things that have happened in the last couple of weeks, I wouldn't trade that time with my family for anything.

My mom harvested this raw honey. And she'll probably never do it again, based on hearing her talk about how messy and time consuming it was.

We went on a bit of a celebratory road trip with our friends Bobby & Leigh. We celebrated promotions and my birthday, and it was so fun! Beatles Love was so rad, and while I'm sure there were many diseases in the bathroom underneath Serendipidy 3, I had to take a selfie and document my good hair day since they are few and far between.

And I also had to document the Caravan Shoppe craft night that Juliet & I attended. I made this little guy and we were sent home with a plethora of crafts to finish up! The ladies behind Caravan are the nicest and most generous ladies, and it was so fun to connect with them! I also hear that they are having a sale & giveaway if you follow them on Instagram (@caravanshoppe)!

That concludes the longest update ever. Now who's going to Bijou Market with me this weekend?

Downtown SLC Video Contest

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:44:00 +0000

Every year Downtown Salt Lake City hosts a video contest for their "I Am Downtown" campaign. This year my talented husband teamed up with another talented co-worker to make a video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glNN1whi9ZM&sns=em

This is the link to their video...it's only 90 seconds long, and I guess the number of views counts towards determining the finalists, so please watch it and pass it along!

Thanks everyone!!

A Great Big Catch-up!

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:56:00 +0000

It seems that I've been a little {ahem} MIA for a while, but I'm going to get caught up and promise some new and exciting blog posts! Yay!

I think the main reason why I haven't posted in a while is because I think that I lead a pretty mundane life and all I have to talk about is my child. I don't want this to turn into a blog about Max, and while I think that would be an awesome thing, I don't think the general population would agree.

But I digress. I'm here to vomit upon you a whole lotta iPhone photos, because, let's face it: by the time I go and grab my fancy-schmancy camera that super cute thing that Max has done has suddenly morphed into a whiney-cry-scream type of a thing because I've left the room. So that's why I mostly take pictures of Max with my phone. It's all about convenience.

I've digressed again. Let's talk about Max, shall we? He's now 6 months old, and, not to brag or anything, but he's pretty much the cutest baby out there, along with any other child of anyone else who blogs. True, no? But Max is really cute. And he has his bottom two front teeth, as pictured above! You might have to squint to see them, but they're there. Believe me. They feel like tiny daggers. He's had them for a few weeks now, and I'm so glad that they came quickly because he never. slept. while. they. came. in. Ugggg.

Max is a darling kid who loves to babble on and on all the time. A few nights ago he even laid his head on my shoulder and talked himself to sleep. He squeals at high pitched frequencies (especially during church), and repeats syllables. I'm really in denial about how quickly he is growing. It's maddening and I keep wondering who I talk to about slowing down or stopping time in general. It's moving too quickly!!

The first few times that I put Max in the swings this is what would happen. Cute, huh?

And this is my darling sister Keri, and my adorable nephew Tommy. We went to check out Provo's new rec center and went to J dawgs afterwards. Tommy is so cute with Max. He always kisses him on the head and says "muah" after he does it. Darling!

We went to Burger Bar in Roy when we were up north over the Memorial Day weekend. Gigantic burgers. Oh my.

We've also discovered Max's love for prunes and sweet potatoes. And momentary hatred for bananas. When he was trying to figure out how this whole "feeding solid foods" thing works, he wanted to do it himself, and it was hilarious. Now that he gets it he lets me feed him and he's a lot less messy during mealtime :)

We took Max swimming for the first time, and the jury is still out on whether or not he likes it. He sure is cute in a swimsuit!

And another one of his cute laugh, just because.

We got a pass to Thanksgiving Point because we live right by it. It was definitely a good investment, because we've only been a handful of times and it has already paid for itself! And anyone who wants to come with us gets half off! We tried to get a picture in front of the waterfalls, but Max was so captivated by them that he kept looking behind himself instead of at the camera. We had to turn around to solve that problem! We love going to the gardens and the Farm Country to see the baby goats. Max doesn't know it, but he loves it too.

And one last photo of Max, obviously. But he's with cousin Juliet, so it's not all about Max :)
We had fun at their place for dinner and an NBA Finals game. Max was the center of attention, of course, but that's mostly because he whines when he's not, so that's how our lives work right now. Oh, and that's not all drool on his shirt...it's mostly spit up, because he still spits up. All the time. We're hoping that he grows out of it by the time he moves out, but some days I'm not so sure. Kidding.

And there's your re-cap of our goings on over the past few months! And feel free to follow me over on Instagram (@allychristenson), where I come up with semi-witty hashtags and try my hardest not to use the Walden filter on all of my photos.

The end. Phew!

Father's Day

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 05:02:00 +0000

I love me some fathers in my life, and in honor of Father's Day I couldn't let too much time pass by before I saluted those who have such a fatherly influence in my life.

My own father (pictured above) has taught me so many things. He could talk your ear off about cars, cameras, bicycles, anything really. I think he is the king of DIY, as evidenced by his gifts to us of his famous homemade soap. His philosophy is that if you can make it yourself, why buy it? Before he and my mom divorced we never bought bread, pasta or jam. My dad would always make it.

One of my favorite memories of my dad is when my sister went up to Utah to visit him and he was making homemade root beer. (Am I right in saying that homemade root beer is waaaaay better than the store bought stuff?) He was using dry ice to carbonate it and he had just capped one bottle when I heard a loud bang! I ran upstairs to find the bottle had exploded in the kitchen! There was root beer everywhere, and the cap had shot straight up through the ceiling! It was quite a mess!

I can't mention fathers without talking about my step-father (pictured above). Even though he isn't my birth father, he came into my life when I was 7 and I like to tell people that I hit the jackpot step-father wise. He is one of the funniest, kindest, selfless, and hard-working people I know. He bought the company he runs from his own dad just a year or two after he served a mission in Taiwan and has built it up into a fantastic software company that employs more than 20 people. He works harder than anyone I know, but is always thinking of others. He is always serving others and is willing to give without expecting anything in return.

I love this picture of the two of us because I'm guessing that it was taken shortly after he told me some kind of joke. He is always joking around, and has a not-so-hidden talent of coming up with new lyrics to songs. He is famous for singing songs to us daughters at our weddings, which are full of jokes and sweet memories that have us all in tears by the end. It's really no wonder why he's at the top of the list of those that I go to when I need some advice! He's the bees knees!

And I obviously have to gush about my own baby daddy, Mark. The moment that he became a father is easily the second greatest moment of my life, and it keeps getting better each day. I clearly remember Mark having the largest grin on his face the day that Max was born, and he was beaming with pride as he showed off our little Mr. Max. Both he and Max light up whenever their eyes meet, and my heart bursts each time that it happens. Mark works so hard to take care of our family, and I am eternally grateful for that gift, and it means the world to me.

So here's to all of the fathers in my life, you have made me a lucky, lucky girl.

This post is part of a promotion with FamilySearch.

Arizona

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 07:00:00 +0000

Max and I arrived in Arizona just in time to spend time with family before my

younger brother Jared flew off to Guatemala.

As I mentioned in my last post, Jared is now serving a full-time mission for our Church

and he will be gone for 2 years. Having served a full-time mission myself

(I can't believe I've been home for over 4 years!), it's easy to be so happy for him.

I'm happy for the decision he made to be an instrument in the Lord's hands for 2 years,

I'm happy for the people that he will meet, serve and love,

I'm happy that he will learn Spanish,

I'm happy that he will get to learn about the Guatemalan culture,

and I'm happy about the person that he will become over the next 2 years.

I digress...

We were in Arizona for 4 days before Mark drove down to be with us.

We had so much fun!

There was much relaxing, going on walks, visiting with family and friends,

and eating at all of our favorite places.

It was a much needed visit, since I can't remember the last time we were there longer than 3 days.

Max must have enjoyed it too since he finally started sleeping better when we got to Arizona!

We stayed there with Mark for another week before we drove out to San Diego with my parents,

my brother Josh and his family, but I'll save that for another post!

Now for some pictures!!

We stopped to check out the construction of the new Gilbert Temple...gorgeous! // One night Max didn't sleep so well, and I had laid him on this blanket and couldn't believe it when he fell asleep! He never falls asleep like that!

My niece Ella with my brother the night before he flew to Guatemala // Max got to meet his cousin Isaac! They're only 11 days apart!

My mom Nonna, holding two of her grandbabies.

My sister-in-law Merideth & Isaac.

Max got to meet his great grandpa for the first time!

Max's Blessing Day

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 07:00:00 +0000

On March 3, 2013 Mark had the privilege to bless Max in our Church.

It was such a beautiful experience that I will never forget.

We were so blessed and grateful to have so many family and friends

there to support our little family, and we couldn't have been happier!

My mom put in a lot of time and effort to make Max's white blessing outfit and it was gorgeous!

I never got a picture of just him in his outfit, so maybe I'd better get him back into it and do a photo shoot before he gets too big!

After the meeting, we had everyone squished in our humble abode for food and visiting.

It was a little crazy since it was a rainy day and we couldn't go outside,

but it was so lovely to see everyone!

My parents were kind enough to come up from Arizona for the weekend

and it was the first time that my step-dad got to meet Max.

We were so glad and grateful that they were able to come!

A couple of hours after the blessing Max and I flew down to Arizona with my parents

so that I could spend time with my family before my younger brother flew to Guatemala

to begin his 2 year service as a full-time missionary for our Church.

Having to skip out early on the festivities made things a little hectic, but it was a fantastic weekend!

My step-dad meeting Max for the first time!

I, being the crazy person that I am, made 100 rolls for the lunch after the blessing.

That's a lot of rolls!

With my parents

My gorgeous sister Keri

With Mark's parents

Mark's mom with Max, and her sister Deanna with her newest grandson Lincoln

Max's Birth Announcements

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 07:00:00 +0000

I'm finally getting around to sharing Max's Birth Announcements with you!

I had so much fun making these, and I'm so happy with how they turned out. It's crazy how much he's grown even from when this picture was taken!

I love our bald little boy!

Heartbreaker

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 03:39:00 +0000

I can't believe this kid's smile...what a heartbreaker!

I also can't believe that he's 3 months old...who knows how to stop this whole time thing, or at least slow it down a bit?!?

I also need to apologize for my lack of posting the past couple of months. It's been rather difficult to figure out this whole newborn thing when your newborn wouldn't sleep anywhere except for your arms during the day and would wake up every hour at night. Thank goodness he's grown out of that phase (we hope), so I can actually get things done during the day, including blogging!

I have some awesome things to share with you all...it's been a fun few weeks around here!

Thoughts on being a new mom

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 02:50:00 +0000

As of today our little Max is a month old. I know it’s cliché to say I can’t believe that he’s already a month old, but for me I can’t believe that I’ve kept this tiny human alive for that long!

I’m only slightly kidding.

Over the past month I’ve gathered a few thoughts about being a new mom and getting to raise Max:

As a new mom I’ve become quite good at three things: doing things with one hand (this morning I made and ate breakfast with one hand, and put dinner in the crockpot), having my hair in some form of top knot 24 hours a day (Max loves his hands and loves to grab my hair, especially while he’s eating, which is hard enough without him pulling out all my hair!), and falling asleep with the loudest white noise playing in our bedroom.

As a new mom I’m amazed at how strong tiny humans are. I find myself having to use some muscle to get his arms into a swaddle!

As a new mom I’m pretty paranoid about every noise that he makes, especially while he’s sleeping. This was definitely the case when we were in the hospital, but I’m getting a little better. I think that giving birth and having a tiny human all to yourself to take care of and keep safe would make anyone paranoid!

As a new mom I think that every little noise that he makes is the cutest thing ever, and the cutest thing that any baby has done, ever. Max gives us huge grins, and I swear that he laughs too. He also does this audible sigh that makes me laugh every time.

As a new mom I’m learning patience. Lots of it. I’m sure all new moms can agree.

As a new mom I see now see my own mom as the greatest super hero who ever lived. I was so grateful that my mom was able to stay with us for a week after Max was born, and I’m not kidding when I say that I bawled just thinking about her leaving us. Now that I have a child of my own, I can only slightly comprehend the sacrifices that my own mom has made ever since my oldest brother was born.

As a new mom my heart has grown exponentially. I feel so much love for little Max, and love for my Heavenly Father, who has trusted me to raise him to be a good person. I feel so much gratitude that Max is ours forever, and even though this past month has felt like the most emotional roller coaster I’ve ever been on, if it means that I’ve earned the privilege to be called his mom forever and ever, then I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Introducing...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 00:07:00 +0000

We are so happy that our little Max is finally here! To say we are in love is a huge understatement, and words cannot express how grateful we are to be his parents.

What follows is the obligatory birth story, so if you’re not into that, feel free to just skip to the bottom and look at the photos…that’s what you want to see, right? I’m just writing it out for my own sake, and for any family that may want to know all of the details, so sorry for the length of this post.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the world's greatest pregnancy. I was so grateful to be pregnant, for sure, and I know that many will never have that opportunity. I loved feeling him move within me, and I loved knowing that there was a child of God, one of His spirits, growing inside of me. I had been plagued with migraines for the majority of my pregnancy, and somewhere around 20 weeks or so I think a combination of a pulled muscle along with where Max was positioned caused me extreme pain in my left hip joint. I thought my leg was going to come out of the socket and I had wicked pains in that hip/leg for the rest of my pregnancy that made it difficult to walk, get out of bed, move, function, etc. My Doctor was also watching me closely for signs of Pre-eclampsia and towards the end of my pregnancy I was doing weekly non stress tests. Thankfully the baby was healthy as can be, but I was grateful that my due date was only a couple of weeks out.

About two and a half weeks ago I had another terrible migraine. I was so nauseated that I couldn’t keep anything down and nothing seemed to help. My doctor wanted me to do more labs just to make sure everything was ok. I waited anxiously for the results hoping that everything looked good. I had not heard anything by Friday, so I called them just to see if they had gotten the results back. The Doctor called on Friday afternoon to tell me that my numbers had gone up from the last time I did the pre-eclampsia labs (back in September), and that he needed me to get to the hospital as soon as I could to be induced.

This is the point where I started to freak out. I was still at work, and hadn’t even trained my replacement yet! I hadn’t packed my bags yet! Mark was at work still! I was going to have a baby! There were so many thoughts going through my head and it was hard to process everything. We had just had a Christmas luncheon in the clinic and we celebrated my co-worker Kalli’s last day, but how did I know that it would be my last day too? I had been at the MTC for 4 wonderful years, and I couldn’t believe that I was leaving like this. I was absurdly emotional, to say the least, blubbering my good-byes to everyone and feeling really guilty to be leaving like that.

Mark got home before I did and he packed up our bags. I showered and we grabbed some dinner on the way to the hospital. When we got there we found out that no one knew we were coming, which was the opposite of what I was told on the phone, and they were crazy busy as it was, so they put us in a triage room while they did a non stress test and checked me out. I was at a 1 and 70% effaced, so it wasn’t the worst-case scenario, but I still had a long ways to go. The on-call Doctor came in and gave me the option to stay, get things started and have a pretty sleepless night, or go home and start things the next morning. I was already exhausted from working all day, so I chose to go home and get some sleep while I could, and I’m glad I did.

We showed up the next morning and got the process going around 10am. They stared me on cytotec, a pill that dilates the cervix. After being on that for 5 hours they checked me again, and I was only at a 2. Bummer! So I got another dose of cytotec, and they would see how things were progressing after 4 more hours. Luckily the nurse was able to find some food for me, since I hadn’t eaten in a long while and I was starving.

At 7pm, the Doctor came to check me again and I was still only at a 2, so he decided to insert a catheter to help dilate me, which would fall out once I was at a 3. I was pretty bummed at this point, but I trusted the Doctor to do what was best to help things progress. After the catheter was inserted it promptly came out once I stood up to walk around. The Doctor came back in to insert another catheter and realized that I was at a 3. He must have stripped my membranes and stirred things up the last time he checked me. I was really grateful, because I was not looking forward to another catheter. At this point he broke my water and they started the pitocin and antibiotics, since my group B strep had come back positive.

After being on the pitocin for about an hour the contractions were coming on strong and fast. I knew they would only get worse, and I thought, who am I kidding? Just get the epidural. So I did. And for a couple of hours it was great. By 11:30 I was only at a 4, and I could feel the contractions again. I kept pressing my epidural button to get more, but nothing was happening. The anesthesiologist came and gave me a stronger dose that felt like the first and it pretty much knocked me out for the time being.

About 2 hours later the contractions woke me up again. Holy cow were they intense! I pressed the epidural dose button again and again, only to find that nothing was happening again. I could move my legs pretty well, so I knew that something was wrong with this epidural. The anesthesiologist came back and decided to re-do the epidural. Not a pleasant experience.

After re-doing the epidural I could barely move my legs. After the first one I could move them enough to have the Doctor check me and move around in bed, but after this one, there was no hope for me to move on my own. Such a weird feeling! The Doctor checked me and I had finally gotten to 5 cm. I turned over onto my side and tried to get some rest.

Three hours later, at 6:30am, I woke up and felt weird. Like I knew it was time. I could feel my heart start to beat faster and all of the nerves in my body were suddenly on edge. I was about to call for the nurse when she came in. She checked me and said, “It’s time for you to have this baby!” Commence freak out. It all happened within a minute and I started to cry because I was so scared about what I was about to do. The nurse reassured me that all would be well. There was suddenly all manner of commotion in our room. Mark had to wake up and I was shouting commands at him to get his phone and my camera so he could take pictures while the nurses were paging the Doctor (who I’m sure was sleeping while I was!) and turning on those giant bright lights.

The Doctor came, got everything ready, and it was finally time to start pushing. Apparently Mark was a little dehydrated and suddenly thought that he was going to pass out and he couldn’t hold my leg anymore. Ha. My first thought was “Seriously?” I think that’s what I ended up saying to him. I’m pushing a tiny human out of my body, and concentrating on my breathing and you’re the one who’s going to pass out? He sat down in between contractions, but still managed to be helpful.

25 minutes of pushing later Max was born. The Doctor put him on my chest, and my first thought was, “It’s a mini-Mark!” He looked just like his father, and he was so perfect, this tiny child of God. He didn’t start crying right away, he was just whimpering a little so they took him from me and had to clean out his lungs. They weighed him and brought him back to me and he was still having problems breathing so they took him again after Mark took a few pictures of us. The nurses took him up to the nursery and had to call a respiratory specialist just to make sure everything was ok. I was still being stitched up and going through after-birth stuff so Mark called me from the nursery to tell me that everything was alright, and that his lungs were great. That was a relief!

Soon after, we were moved down to the recovery room. Mark got our little Max from the nursery to join us, and we’ve been in adoration of him ever since. I can't believe that it's already been 2 weeks since he was born, and I feel like he's already changed so much from when he was first born. He is so sweet and we are enjoying his presence in our home. We have definitely learned that there is a huge learning curve when bringing home a newborn, and it has been quite the adjustment over at our home. It's by far the hardest but most rewarding thing I have ever done, but we are learning lots of patience and his gassy smiles, baby hiccups and baby sneezes have made it all worth it.

Blessed Nail Growth!

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 16:00:00 +0000

All my life I've had ugly finger nails. Uuuuugly. I've never been able to grow them out, and would spend my teenage years pining after the long claw-like nails of my younger sister Jana.

I never thought there was hope for a person like me, and even when people said that my nails would grow like crazy once I started growing a human and taking vitamins every day, I still didn't believe them.

I mean, my nails have been ugly my whole life. That whole nail growth thing has to be a myth for someone like me, right?

Wrong!

You guys! This nail growth this is for real! It is so true and I can't believe it! I feel like I'm promoting Oxy Clean or some other ridiculous infomercial product, but watching my nails transform has been so great, almost life-changing, really.

May I present to you Exhibit A:

These are my nails. Lovely, no? Do you happen to notice the lovely out-growth from the bottom of the polish to my nail bed? That, my friends is from only a week ago! A week people! That kind of growth used to take me a month to achieve, at least.

This is one of those pregnancy symptoms that I would like to stick around with me for the rest of my life, please and thank you.

Holiday Time Is Upon Us!

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 02 Nov 2012 20:17:00 +0000


Via Relatively Unique.

How lovely are these twig snowflakes? This picture gives me the desire to drive up the canyon tomorrow and hunt for some twigs so that I can fill my home with these adorable handmade snowflakes. Who wants to join me?

I know it's only the second day of November, but when I've got a bambino that could make an appearance at anytime right before, during, or right after Christmas, I decided to take some time away from my usual perusing of DIY nursery tutorials and spend some time getting my gift lists together. I want to be sufficiently prepared in order to avoid any last-minute gift wrapping stresses that could send me into labor! Ha!

So now I've got holidays on the brain. Gratefully our families have done the name exchanging early this year, so I'm already on the hunt for gifts, and making lists for Mark's approval. I've been searching the internets high and low for some awesome ideas to make gift giving extra special this year, and I wanted to share a couple of those ideas with you today!

1) For those of you who live in Utah, Bijou Market will be here in a couple of weeks! This is a seasonal event featuring tons and tons of vendors who come together and sell their pretty creations to people like me. They have the most adorable selection of gifts for everyone, and I'm always a sucker for their toys. This year I'll be on the lookout for a cuddly creature for our little bambino. And please let me know if you want to come oogle at adorable things with me! I'd love to go with you and support local handmade vendors!

2) Design Mom started posting gift guides today, and if you love her style as much as I do, you'll be sure to find a gift for anyone on your list.

3) The geniuses behind The Craft Pack (Alison from The Alison Show and Susan from Freshly Picked - and yes, I'm coveting every flavor of those moccasins that Susan makes) have launched a digital craft book that is making me drool. A Hip Handmade Holiday is perfect for making holiday crafts on a budget that are memorable and hip. And it's only $10, which is a downright steal for what you get.

Any other ideas that you've stumbled upon to make these holidays a little more awesome yet more economical than usual? I'd love to hear them!

30 Down, 10 To Go

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 17:14:00 +0000

You guys! I can't believe that I've been at this whole pregnancy thing for 30 weeks!

It's weird to think that everything will change in 10 short weeks, and to be honest,
we are no where near ready. The only thing that's in our little bambino's
room is a rocker, and a crib that hasn't been put together.
Oh, and tiny clothes in the closet.

It seemed like an eternity ago that we waited and waited until I was 10 weeks along.
What a milestone that was, and it seemed to take us forever to get there!
It's so bizarre that those first 10 weeks could take so incredibly long to pass,
but somehow, I know that these last 10 are going to fly by.

Time is a funny, funny thing, isn't it?

I suppose it's time for an update of sorts, since I swear I updated this thing yesterday,
but no, it's actually been a month and a half.

At the beginning of September I received a call that my sweet sweet Grandma Mecham

passed away in her sleep.

She is such a sweet and classy woman, the kind of woman that I want to be like when I grow up.

Gratefully, both Mark and I had the opportunity to drive down to Arizona for the funeral.

It was a quick trip, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. I was in Italy when my Grandpa Mecham passed away, so there was no way that I was going to miss her funeral.

The funeral was beautiful, and I learned so many things about her that

I can tell my own children about. The Spirit was very strong, and it was very apparent that

my Grandma Florence was reunited with her sweetheart again.

This is Grandma Florence. How classy are those glasses?

This was my Grandpa's pin from being a member of the Caterpillar Club.

Membership in the Club is for those who bail out aircrafts and survive.

My Grandpa was a POW in World War II and was shot down in Germany.

After he was rescued and recuperated, he returned to the States and married my Grandma.

This is my Grandma Florence's student pilot license.

I learned at the funeral that she took flying lessons before she married my Grandpa,

and apparently she flew solo a few times!

We were also lucky to spend time with family while we were in Arizona.

This is my niece Kacie, and oh my, she has the cutest baby chub I've ever seen.

We were also able to visit the grounds of the new Phoenix Temple.

It was just our luck that they had just placed the frame for the spire,

and what a sight it was! I am so excited for a temple to be built right down the

street from my parents. It will be such a blessing to everyone there!

When we got back to Utah we went to Salt Lake and searched for the address that was

on my Grandma's flight license. I guess she used to live here! On C Street!

I wonder if it has changed all that much since 1944.

And this is my go-to road trip snack. I was introduced to this stuff by a

mission companion, and I have to look for it at every gas station that I go to.

It's hard to find, so I rejoice when I do find it...it's that good!

The rest of September flew by with a blur, and October has brought us nothing but blessings.

We got a quick visit from my parents,

I finally set up my sewing machine (a Christmas gift from 15 years ago)

so I can make our bambino cute baby things,

Mark is having a great month at work,

we have a healthy baby, and I've had a healthy pregnancy,

we've heard great news about miracle babies from good friends,

and I'm getting things ironed out at work so I don't have to go back

to work after maternity leave (and I don't have to find a sitter for a month!).

All great things, and we are so so grateful.

One of these days I'm going to take a picture of my little bambino bump.

I guess after 30 weeks it's time.

Mark keeps commenting on how cute I am pregnant,

and how "we should do this more often." Ha!

I responded, "As long as you carry the next one."

These men have no idea.

He also went through a phase where if he wanted to feel the baby move

and he wasn't moving, he would start jabbing me in the stomach,

saying, "Wake up baby!"

and it was rather uncomfortable, so I started to do it back to him,

you know, so he would know how it feels.

He has since stopped.

My life is awesome.

Odds and Ends (mainly food) and Weekends

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 14:54:00 +0000

Bruschette is one of my favorite go-to meals during the summer.

It's embarrassingly easy, and yet really delicious.

A while ago, my Italian friend Simona taught me that the secret to even yummier bruschette

is to squeeze the tomatoes over the bread so it soaks up that delicious

tomato juice before you cut up the tomatoes in chunks and put them on the bread.

After this, I usually sprinkle them with a little salt and I'm good to go.

Sometimes, if I have some, I'll cube up some fresh mozzarella and add that as well.

After that, my friends, dinner is done and it is so good! I promise!

Mark likes to put his bread under the broiler for a minute or two

to crisp up his bread before dressing it up.

I'm not a huge fan of crunchy crunchy bread so I do without the broiler.

Anyways, that's for whoever wanted my two cents on bruschette.

Our weekend over in the middle of no where (where we now live) was productive.

Mark was being productive making money,

and I was productive in unpacking the last of the boxes and storing them in hidden places

in the condo. I really do hate to just throw those things away,

especially since I've become a professional mover in my adult life.

The only thing left to do is to hang up our pictures on the walls,

so I guess this means that people can come visit us.

As long as they ignore the gigantic eye sore in the middle of our child's room

that is our old washer and dryer.

(Anyone wanna buy a finely functioning washer and dryer?)

After working hard allllll day long,

we met up for some dinner, and decided to go see a movie.

Since we had 90 minutes to kill we walked around Target

to buy a shower curtain, so you know, all those visitors that are

coming to stay with us can have a proper shower.

After we were done with Target we decided to just bag the whole

"going out to the movies" thing and just Redbox one instead.

Being able to cozy up on the couch and let Mark massage my achy feet

was definitely the better decision.

Happy Monday to all, and I hope that happy things come your way this week!

For me, happiness will come to me in the form of:

Mark having normal work hours most of this week!

Making homemade bread!

Birthdays!

A three day weekend!

Hopefully selling that washer and dryer! (Anyone wanna buy 'em?)

Sunrise

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 19:51:00 +0000

I'm lucky enough to watch the sun rise over the mountains each morning on my way to work.

Lovely.

Checking In...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 15:59:00 +0000

I first have to give a grand thank you to everyone who helped us move.

We definitely couldn't have done it without them,

and I was seriously overwhelmed with all of the

help that was given. I have the most wonderful

family and friends a girl could ever ask for!

I'm just checking in from la la land over here.

I call it la la land because I pretty much do whatever I want these days.

I do that because I have a 40 minute long commute to work now,

I am taking my sweet sweet time unpacking all those boxes,

and the past few weeks have been the most stressful blur you ever did see.

But we did it.

We moved into our lovely condo, and the only thing that would make

life even more wonderful would be for everyone that we love

to be transplanted here to Eagle Mountain with us.

So far we are loving our new digs.

The hallway is longer, the carpet is cushier,

and if you saw that lovely picture at the top, we have a laundry room!

As in a room. With a door and everything!

We also have a pantry, but that's another post for another day.

We are slowly but surely making this place feel like home.

At first I was really hesitant (and to be honest, bitter too) about leaving,

but after being here almost a week,

I can see that God was guiding us and blessing us along the way

so that everything could work out.

Seeing His had in my life right now is definitely something to smile about,

and I know that everything will work out, even if it doesn't seem like it will at the time.

That's definitely a life-long lesson that I'm trying to learn,

and my Heavenly Father is giving me plenty of opportunities to learn it.

Right about now...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 14:16:00 +0000

This is our life right about now...

Boxes, boxes and more boxes.

Due to a super unfortunate situation where out landlord

prematurely told us that she sold our condo,

we've gotta vacate our current residence.

And even though I've had plenty of practice moving

(since first moving to Utah 9 years ago I've lived in

8 different apartments/condos, not to mention moving home

and then living out of a suitcase for 18 months in Italy),

I still hate hate hate it.

Believe you me, we are no where near happy about this.

We were definitely not prepared to leave our lovely home,

lovely ward, and closeness to family this soon

(Mark's sister lives in the building across from ours,

and my sister is a quick jaunt down the freeway).

Yet here we are, with a moving truck and generous family & friends

agreeing to help us load up our junk tomorrow.

We still have so so so much to do,

so I made sure to get plenty of sleep last night

because tonight will be the longest night ever.

Have I mentioned that I hate moving?

Thoughts on being halfway there...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 18:58:00 +0000

I can't believe that it has already been 20 weeks since

this little nugget took complete control over our lives.

We couldn't be happier, though, and it's crazy how fast 20 weeks have flown by,

yet it seems like a lifetime until we reach the end of December,

when we'll have the opportunity to meet our little man-child.

Friday was the most exciting day yet. We finally found out

that we'll have a mini-Mark calling the shots around here,

and seeing him move all over that screen in the Ultrasound room

was the best feeling in the whole world.

I wish I could bottle up that feeling

and share it with everyone,

because it is seriously that good!

While we were admiring our little bambino,

I have to admit that I squirted a few tears.

They were mostly tears of gratitude.

Gratitude that we're even pregnant at all.

Gratitude that he's growing right on track, and is as healthy as can be.

Gratitude that I got my wish for a boy.

Gratitude that he was mostly cooperative,

so we get to do this whole thing again in a month.

Gratitude that there's a little miracle growing inside of me.

And even though he's made me oh-so-sick

ever since April,

seeing him and knowing that I get to be his mom forever

makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world.

Oh joy! I finally blogged!

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Mon, 23 Jul 2012 17:59:00 +0000

Confession: There may have been a time when I purposefully forgot

that I had a blog because the task of updating it seemed a little too daunting.

But now I'm seriously going to make an effort to update this here blog thingy more

often (read: more than once a month). I guess I can promise that.

For now, I suppose it's time for an update of sorts, and it's going to be short and sweet,

because let's face it: I could turn this post into a novel,

but then no one would read this blog ever again.

Just know that in April, we found out that we're becoming parents in December.

Oh what a happy day that was! We're anxiously awaiting for the next

3 weeks to pass so that we can find out if our shopping excursions will

be filled with hunting for suspenders and bowties or dresses and bows.

Also, know that in May and June I was constantly sick.

I know I wasn't nearly as sick as some friends

have been, and for that I am grateful,

but still...it was not the most pleasant time of my life.

My parents came for a welcome visit in June, and as soon as they

left, Mark did as well.

Definitely the worst month ever,

and I've made him vow to never leave me again. Ha.

Now that we're back together July has been crazy awesome.

Lots of firework shows, games, and a smartphone that has changed my life

(not sure yet if it's for better or for worse).

And now for 3 pics from said smartphone:

Saturday night fireworks in American Fork

Rummikub with these two. And I lost, big time.

And a movie and drink to keep me company while I tackle

a gigantic pile of laundry.

five years ago today...

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Wed, 30 May 2012 15:55:00 +0000

My mom put that little black name tag on my suit coat.

And my life would never be the same.

(that's me with Giustina, one of my favorite residents of Italy)

Como

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Thu, 03 May 2012 15:29:00 +0000

There was a time in my life where I was a Missionary for my Church. I spent 18 months in Italy, and they were the best, but hardest 18 months in my entire life. I learned about sacrifice, obedience, and how much God loves all of His children. They were an amazing 18 months, and I can't believe how quickly the time has passed since I've been in Italy.

For some reason I can't get Como off of my mind today. I lived there for almost 5 months, from August to December, and I am simply amazed at the beauty contained within this city, even in the bleak winter time. It was so wonderful to sit by the shore of the lake on our Preparation Day - the one day a week that we have to write home and see a little bit of our area - write letters to our loved ones, and eat some Swiss chocolate. Como is right by the Swiss/Italian border, and you better believe that I ate my weight in a combination of chocolate and baguettes while I was there.

So here's to Como, and the beautiful beautiful memories that I have of that lovely place. I hope I get to see it again soon! (And I still have that umbrella that I'm using in that picture...it's been to Italy with me twice, and it still works! I hope it gets to come with me a third time...it's like my little traveling buddy!)

I Went on A Walk, And My Camera Begged to Come Along

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Wed, 02 May 2012 16:08:00 +0000

Even though I live in a condo next to the freeway, you wouldn't know it based on what's a few blocks north of me.

A Little Weekend Re-cap

noreply@blogger.com (Allyson) — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 15:09:00 +0000

Gorgeous double exposure photo by Jon Duenas via This is Colossal

Our weekend was downright stupendous.

I know it's Tuesday, but I couldn't help but share how lovely our weekend was. Sorry that there is no photo documentation of its loveliness.

Friday was Mark's sister's graduation. Even though it was early early in the morning, it was nice to have it done and celebrated before Provo turned into a gigantic traffic jam. We all went out to Texas Roadhouse afterwards, and it was delicious, as usual.

It was a gorgeous day, and we made the most of it by going on a little walk to the park by our condo.

On Saturday I finally bought the supplies to do an overhaul of my recipes. I have this awful habit of printing out recipes at work, bringing them home and then leaving them all over the kitchen. Then when I actually get around to cleaning them up, I just stash them in random binders. It's ridiculous.

Thankfully, they all have a home now, and I'm much happier. We also enjoyed In-N-Out with Trevor & Juliet (who are tying the knot next week!!!) out on the patio and watched the Jazz game. Everyone else but me seemed to be happy about the win. What can I say...I'm a die-hard Suns fan.

Sunday was filled with meetings, interviews, teaching lessons, and a downright hot and stuffy chapel. The heat made it especially hard to concentrate, but we all survived. We had a lovely dinner, got beat at Rummikub and got to Skype with my parents. I've decided that Skype is a God-send. I've also decided that Rummikub is too.

We had plans to end the evening finishing the first Lord of the Rings movie with Alyssa and Jared,

but got distracted by our mutual desire to attend this awards show instead.

We also got a call from our landlord a couple of weeks ago informing us that she is putting our beloved condo on the market. We absolutely love our place, and had plans to stay put for another year and not have to spend another summer settling into a new home. Now our plans are in limbo. And I'm pretty upset about all of it. She called Mark yesterday and told her she was coming over today with a Realtor to take pictures. I don't think our place has been so clean and my back has hurt so badly. Ha. Not only did I clean, but thanks to a time when I had a mental block a few months ago, I got to spend yesterday evening sanding, spackling and painting our window sill. And painting the other one to match it. I'm just glad that Mark wasn't around to laugh at me.

Here's to a week filled with happiness!

Oh, and to those of you interested in Family History, use new.familysearch and have a spare 2 minutes, creating this will blow your mind. Seriously cool.