Visit with Santa (and Mrs. Clause)!!!

We got a suprise visit from Santa Clause and his wife on Dec. 6th  (HAPPY B-DAY DAD!!!)  They stopped by to check on Karlie and make sure she was behaving and being a good helper(hahaha).  She was totally suprised.  We got a gingerbread house to build and decorate (I will get pics of that posted once we get it finished). Karlie got a cute baby that counts and sings the ABC's.  James got a bunch of clothes and a bouncy seat with a screen cover on it to keep the bugs out.  Grandma Gloria and Grandpa Ty were here that day to give Jim and me a much needed break to get some stuff done that we hadn't had a chance to do.  (Thanks again!)  Karlie also got her first haircut that weekend.  I will have to get pics of that on here also...  So much to do, so little time....  We got family pics this last weekend and they turned out really cute.  Hopefully I will have a chance to post them also...  Well I better run...time to feed the baby and get Karlie in bed.

A year at a glance...

Things have been a little crazy the past few months to say the least, but here is a glance at what has been happening since October 2008. 

Oct. 2008

Karlie and Jim picking out a pumkin last year.

Halloween 2008- We got to spend Halloween with Aunt Tasha and Hunter out of town.  (Before we rushed down to Utah.)

Nov. 2008

We had Thanksgiving @ my parent's home in Utah and went to the Zoo on the way home.

Dec. 2008

Karlie with Santa @ Jim's Aunt's House.

March 2009

We found out I was pregnant!!!  Karlie and I went to Vancouver, WA & Portland, OR with my Mom, Nicolet, Katrina, and Katrina's boyfriend, Bently.  Karlie had a blast @ OMSI in Portland.  We celebrated Katrina's b-day while we were on vacation and Karlie's when we got home.  She turned 2!!!

April 2009

Karlie in her Easter Dress.  (Her teddy bear had a matching one.)

May 2009- Karlie's first fish!!!  She loves to go fishing with her Daddy!!  She kept tryng to feed the fish grass, it was pretty funny!

June 2009-Jim and I finally took a "real" vacation to Las Vegas while my parents watched Karlie for a few days.  We had a good time for the most part although we were exhausted and started really missing Karlie so we cut the trip a day short and went back to my parents to visit with my family.   We had an ultrasound done in Utah on the way home to find out that we were having a BOY!

July 2009- Karlie was a little too wild with the sparklers this year.  We did fireworks a few days early because Jim got to go fishing in Alaska and wasn't home on the 4th.  We had fun hanging out with Jim's family.

August 2009-Karlie loves having her friend Alyvia over to play.  They were dressing up and acting so cute this day!

September 2009-This month was very hard for us.  Jim's Dad passed away unexpectedly from a heart attack at the age of 59.  He will always be in our hearts.

October 2009-My birthday was on the 9th, but I was sick with a sinus infection.  It was not one of my best birthdays.  Jim left very early on the 14th to go hunting and I started having bad cramps from about one o'clock in the afternoon on.  The just kept getting worse so that night I went in to the hospital thinking I was in labor, but I was not dialating at all and the nurse told me to go home and take a sleeping pill...  I was not very happy to here this because by this point it was 11 p.m. and I was beyond miserable.  My mother in law couldn't believe they were sending me home and I just felt like a baby for going in when I wasn't progressing.  I was scheduled for a c-section Nov. 4th and didn't want to bother Jim or his family if it was nothing. Jim's mom stayed with me that night and I started bleeding at 3:00 a.m. and didn't sleep the rest of the night.  At 5:00 a.m. I couldn't take it any more and went back to the hospital.  Thank goodness Jim got cell phone service for a few minutes and called his brother Dan who told him what was happening.  He got back just in time for me to go have and emergency c-section.  As soon as they started it they realized I was having an abruption and was bleeding internally.  It was a little scarry.  Our baby boy was born Oct. 15th, 2009 at 11:00 a.m.  He was 5lbs 10oz and 19 inches long.  After a little debate... we chose to name him James Everett ********,III.(After Jim and his Dad)  He was having a hard time breathing so they took him to the NICU where he had to be hooked up to a ventilator.  We were very scared the first few days...we finally got to hold him a week later when he got off the vent and the pda in his heart closed.  He was able to get off the blood pressure meds and breathe on his own and then it took him about another week and a half to tolerate the feedings.  It was very exhausting going back and forth and trying to divide my attention and time with the pumping and visits to the hospital and taking care of Karlie. 


 Thank goodness my mom and Grandma N were able to help me out so much.  Karlie  was able to have a little fun on Halloween... Jim took her to a trunk or treat carnival with her cousins and to the neighbors houses.  (Doesn't she look cute in her bee costume with glasses and a mustache?!) 

 Nov. 1st, 2009- We finally got to bring him home from the hospital!!!!!!! This is the first time Karlie had seen him!

First real bath!!!

Our prayers are being answered!!!

First of all I would like to thank everyone that has had Joseph in their prayers... He has done very well today!!! He is off the respirator, feeding tube, and sedation!!! He was able to say a few things to my brother Ryan today. He still cannot have anything to drink (for fear that he will aspirate it), but was able to try eating a few things and have ice chips. He is still very nauseous and tired but seems to be improving, which I consider a miracle after how crazy the beginning of this week was for him. We are still not sure when/if he will be transferring back to his base or if he will be able to come home to rest for a while. I would love to see him and give him a big hug!!! My Dad said that he will most likely be out of the ICU and into a regular room tomorrow as long as he is continuing to improve like he has been. We are going to continue praying that he keeps going in this direction even if it is in baby steps!!! Thank you again for keeping Joe in your prayers!

Updates on Joseph

My younger brother Joseph, that recently finished boot camp with the Marines, is in the ICU at Columbia University Hospital in Missouri. He went to the hospital last Thursday and started treatment for double pneumonia and was in intensive care on Saturday. He was getting worse and was life flighted to Columbia very early Saturday morning. My parents caught the first flight out to be with him and I am staying with my brother and sisters in Utah. They think that he has an allergy induced pneumonia and he is in critical condition. The doctors put him on a breathing machine, feeding tube and insulin, have done a lung biopsy and had him in a medically induced coma to keep him stable. They are now trying to bring him down slowly off from the sedation and see if he can start breathing on his own. It has been a roller coaster because his vitals get a little crazy when they try to reduce the sedation. The doctors are hopeful that he will continue to improve, although tonight may be a tough night since they are trying to back off the sedation again. Please continue to keep Joseph in your thoughts and prayers!!! Also thank you to all of our friends and family that have been so supportive during such a difficult time.
** For updates please see Niki's Blog under friends and family**

***As a side note I will try to post pics of Karlie from the pumpkin patch and Halloween as soon as I get home or have a chance.***

Fun at the FAIR!

http://www.onetruemedia.com/shared?p=6dea17772134558167adce&skin_id=601&utm_source=otm&utm_medium=text_url

(If the video doesn't post click on this link.)

We had a fun day at the fair on Monday. We went with Jim's eldest brother, Pete, his wife Alisa and there two kids, Brayden and Shelby. It was pretty windy most of the day and a little cooler than usual but we bundled Karlie up and she was content in her stroller for most of the time. She loved feeding the goats.

At the very beginning of the video she says "yum yum" to the goats and would only feed them one piece of grain at a time, even though they kept biting her fingers! She also like the calves and chased a rooster around for a minute or two.

We let her go on the merry-go-round a couple of times and a pony ride.

She liked the pony ride so much that she cried when it stopped and she kept trying to go back and pet the ponies. Every time we would pass Jim she would say "CHEESE!".

She is talking so much now it almost scares me a little... I'm sure she will be talking back to me in no time!!! She said her first full sentence yesterday while we were waiting for Jim to get home from work... She said,"Mommy, when Daddy come home?" (or something close to that) It caught me by surprise because she hasn't grouped her words together like that before. I can't believe how fast it seems like she is growing up!!!

What a CRAZY month!

Sorry for the delay between posts... This month has been a roller coaster ride. I would like to start off by saying Happy (belated) Birthday to Susie (Sophia and Josh), SETH (my youngest brother), and anyone else that I have neglected in the last few months! We have been trying to get on top of bills from Jim's car accident--2 1/2 years ago-- and me being off from work for longer than we had planned to be home with Karlie when she was born. We had alot to do around the house to have it appraised, but we were blessed with a good appraisal and hopefully will now be on top of things in that area of our lives.
This last week has been very physically and emotionally draining for all of us. Last Thursday Karlie came down with the stomach flu(we didn't know until I caught it that she had the flu--we thought it was a bad reaction to milk because we have not been able to get her to stop drinking formula yet), Friday and Saturday we had a yard sale that I couldn't cancel because I had already put the ad in the paper Tuesday Jim had a 2 day appt. out of town that was set up as part of trying to settle for his car accident. Tuesday morning I got the flu and had to leave work... later around 7 p.m. we got tragic news that a very,very close friend of Jim Sr.'s and our family had passed away unexpectedly, so Jim and his dad came back to town that night and Karlie and I packed up and went out of town(about a two hour drive- we got to the hotel about 1am.) We came home Wednesday afternoon and tried to finish out the week with out breaking down too much. Saturday Karlie and I attended a memorial service for our friend(Jim came down with the flu at about 3am and was very upset that he was going to miss it.) Hopefully we will get to take Karlie to the fair tomorrow if it isn't too cold... I will try to get lots of cute pics to post soon. I hope this post doesn't sound too pitiful or like I am rambling... I just have alot on my mind with every thing that has been happening... I will try to have a more positive post tomorrow...

More pictures from the past few weeks...

I just wanted to post a few pics from the last few weeks... Things have still been super busy...

This is Karlie with our puppy we got a couple months ago. We decided to name her Lily. We got her at the local animal shelter when she was about 2 months old. It has been a lot of work trying to potty train her. (My husband likes to remind me that he told me it would be a lot of hard work!) She is a supposed to be a Yorkie/Chihuahua mix.

We visited the TF Temple with my G&G N and Jim's Dad. (Jim Sr.) It was very pretty. I wanted to get some pics of Karlie around the water fountain and flowers by the temple, but Karlie was so tired that she would hardly stay still for these pictures. Hopefully I will get another chance to get some pics the next time my family visits or if we end up taking Jim's mom.

Karlie has started to try to dress herself with whatever she can find. She was so proud of herself for getting the swim diaper and Jim's hat on, that she wore them for about an hour and kept laughing and saying "CUTE".

Karlie LOVES the water. She would stay in it all day if we would let her.

The water park was a blast to visit for cousin Hunter's birthday!(I know I really need a tan!)

Happy Birthday Aunt Tara and Cousin Hunter!!!!!!!!!!(Or "Huntee" as Karlie has been saying constantly since we visited last weekend) We rode up with G&G N and ate at the Cracker Barrel. It was a lot of fun!

I thought the rocking chairs they sold there were adorable. Karlie seemed to like them quite a bit too. Hunter sure is a cutie!