Life in a Dahl House

The Nursery

2012-02-14T17:18:00.000-07:00

It's finished. Or at least as finished as it's going to be. I'm sure there are additions that will happen as time goes on, but really, the nursery is done. I love that room right now. I think it's so fun. So first I'll show you some of the details that went into putting the room together.

You've already seen the tree, but here's a quick view of the tree with the flowers that I picked out:

I really love the way the flowers add a feminine touch to the tree. I think they are sweet. I wanted a dresser for her, so I found one on KSL and then found a mirror at DI that I thought would work well. Here's the before and after of those:

After:

I painted it and then we added new hardware. Ammon had to fix all of the tracks as well so the drawers would come in and out smoothly and not fall out. He did a great job.

Not a great picture, sorry.

Next I wanted a place to hang up her hair bows. I had seen a frame with chicken wire to hang them on at Kid to Kid, but they wanted nearly $20 for it. Well, we have chicken wire. And we have paint. All I needed was a frame. I found this one at DI for $2.

And then I decided to make a blanket to go in her room as well. The quilt that Ammon's mom is making for this baby girl is beautiful. I based all the colors in the room off of it. I decided that I wanted to bring out some different colors rather than just pink. So I made this afghan a burnt orange.

Here is the cradle (another KSL find, I maybe need more to do or less?). We hung the butterfly mobile right over the top as well.

And just to remind you, this is what this room originally looked like:

Thank you for your patience. And now for the finished product:

It's hard to tell, but the walls are all green. It's called Key Lime green. One of my favorite colors I've ever used. I love it. It's ready for our sweet little girl. I can't wait for her to get here. Only 6 days left to my due date. I sure hope we don't go that long. The clothes are washed and folded. Everything is in it's place. But like the doctor said, if I weren't so prepared she'd be sure to come. Too true.

Baby Shower

2012-02-14T10:38:00.000-07:00

I have awesome friends. I really do. These two lovely ladies got together to throw me a baby shower. It was such a great time. We had a good turn out and all I can say is that this little girl is going to be very well dressed.

Suzanne, Joslyn, and me. These two threw an awesome shower. So glad that I have them.

The shower was thrown in my yoga studio next to the house. It looked amazing. The food was all fantastic as well. So yummy.

Joslyn designed this cake and her sister-in-law made it. So much talent.

Then we got started. Joslyn welcomed everyone and then Suzanne got everyone started on our activity. Instead of shower games we made felt flowers. It was so awesome. It was nice to get a few more fun things to put in this little gals hair as well.

It was wonderful to visit with so many friends and family members. I felt very spoiled, and as you can see we really were showered.

So, growing up my mom used to tell me that I was very expressive. In fact it was sometimes a problem. I wear my emotions right on my face. Which can get me into trouble if I'm annoyed or otherwise in a bad mood. It's something I've been working on. But apparently when opening gifts for little girls I'm not so good at it. I was cracking up as I looked at all the different ridiculous faces I made while opening presents. Check it out:

Funny stuff. It was a really wonderful party. I felt so loved and supported. Now if I could just get this little girl here life would be great. Thanks to everyone who came and showered us with so many wonderful gifts. It was a really great time. And a very big thank you to Joslyn and Suzanne. You guys are the greatest. So glad that I have such wonderful friends.

Gymnastics

2012-02-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

There's this awesome gymnastics gym close to our house that opens up for the general public on Fridays. For one hour every Friday we have been going to this gym to run wild. Several of my good friends come and bring their kids as well. It's perfect. Social hour for mom, and a chance for Cormac to do what he loves best: run, jump, climb, and otherwise move his body.

Photographic evidence:

Jumping on one of the many trampolines.

Climbing over the various pads.

Getting up on the balance beam. This is one of Cormac's favorites.

Walking all by himself on the balance beam.

Big jump on to the soft pad at the end of the trampoline.

Jumping down the trampoline.

Mid jump. I love this one.

Cormac is definitely his father's son. He loves to jump. He jumps all over the house. The other day we were walking into the doctor's office, and Cormac had to pause to jump over every line in the sidewalk. He's a cute one that kid. He jumps from the carpet to the linoleum in our house. And he always enters the house by jumping over the threshold. I think he'll have a proud future in jumping. Especially if he takes after his dad.

Pointless Post

2012-01-31T16:28:00.000-07:00

I feel like most of my posts these days are pointless. Not the kind of pointless like they are a waste of time necessarily (although I'm sure that could be argued), but the kind of pointless where there is simply no point. I just post random pictures and thoughts. The end. But to be truthful it's probably a pretty good representation of my life right now. Meandering and random. Just getting through one day at a time.

I saw the doctor yesterday. Baby girl is growing right on track. And apparently very comfy in there. The doctor will be surprised if she shows up before 39 weeks (I'm 37). Drat. I was hoping to be done. I feel like my life is sort of on hold at the moment. I have managed to accomplish basically everything I wanted to before her arrival. So now I just need her to arrive. While we have been waiting we have been doing a lot of movie watching in our pjs.

I'm not proud of it. But that's about all I have some days. Most days. I'm tired and worn out. Poor Cormac misses his mom I think. I do too.

We did manage to get enough snow to finally take Cormac out in the sled that he got for Christmas. I pulled him down the driveway to the hill. The sled then didn't go down the hill on it's own so I had to pull it both down and up the hill. We only did two trips down the hill before I decided it wasn't worth it. We were back in where it was warm within 15 minutes. Maybe next time Ammon can take him.

We have been preparing for baby girl, of course. In the meantime we dug out all the binkies. Cormac rejected his binkie at 7 months and never looked back, until recently. I had to hide them all again because suddenly he thinks he needs one. Strange kid. And the shoes? Well, Target was having a sale on ruby slippers for less than $4. I couldn't resist. I know she won't be able to wear them until she's 3 or 4, but they were so cute. So I brought them home. They are a couple sizes too big for Cormac, but he found them and needed them. He has been wearing them around the house a lot lately. In fact he wore them during his nap one day because I couldn't get them off of him. Crazy kid. I think Ammon has hidden them away. I have tried to raise his son right. I really have.

And in parting, I tried to get a few pictures of Cormac smiling. He really does smile, but not when you bring out a camera. This is the best that I've gotten.

He's talking more and more. That has been fun for us. The other day I was taking a drink and it went down wrong. As I was coughing to get the water out Cormac came in and started patting the back of my leg and asking, "Are you okay?" I about choked again. He's really growing up these last few weeks. I have a feeling that's going to continue when number 2 arrives.

And that my friends is the conclusion of this random and pointless post. I hope you enjoyed your glance into our little life.

Nursery Preview - The Tree

2012-01-27T09:54:00.001-07:00

A funny thing happened to me last night. Ammon had a basketball game. I usually go to watch him play. I love to watch him play. But the game was at 8:00pm and since Cormac no longer naps (a constant source of anxiety in my life) I thought it'd be best for him to get to bed. I didn't want to deal with a grumpy Cormac all day today. So while Ammon was gone I started making fabric flowers. Earlier in the day I had completed a mobile for the baby's room. I had also started crocheting another hat after finishing my second afghan since learning to read a pattern.

Ammon came in the house after his game (which they won) and sat watching me a minute. Then he said, "You're crafty." I never thought those words would be used to describe me. Then I started thinking about it. Thanks to various craft blogs that I read and Pinterest I suppose I have become crafty. In fact, I think I've become one of those crafty Mormon mommys. If you'd have asked me 10 years ago I never would have seen myself here, but alas here I am. And I wouldn't trade my life for anything. I'm so very happy and blessed. And yes, maybe a little crafty when I want to be (thanks to the brilliant people who post tutorials all over the web).

So when I started planning the nursery I decided I needed a tree. I wanted to do something like this:

I was especially in love with the second picture. How cool to have pop out flowers on the wall. I loved the feel it gave. So I was lamenting to my neighbor one day about this tree. I didn't have a projector to get the image up on the wall for me to trace. I have no skills to free hand something like that (I guess I'm not so much crafty as resourceful maybe). I had been looking into vinyl trees, but they were expensive. Then she volunteered her husband. I wasn't sure how Brandon would feel about that, but as it turned out he's an artist that doesn't get to use his skill as much as he'd like, and he was rather excited to do it.

So after the bustle of the holidays we got to work on The Tree. And by "we" I mean Brandon. Eliza would come and visit with me on the couch, the kids ran around wild and made a glorious mess, and Brandon would go straight to work. We did this for a few hours a few days a week. And the results have been amazing. I'm in love (with the tree, although the Elmers are wonderful too).

The first coat up!

And the finished product.

Another view.

And with a few flowers up.

My challenge now is to decide if I want to put up flowers or not. I made these fabric roses to just test it out. Ammon wasn't a fan. He said it was weird because those flowers would never grow on that kind of tree. Fair enough. He also likes the tree as it is. I like the pop of color, but am not sure either. What do you think? Or maybe I should make a different kind of flower. Something more realistic. Apricot blooms or something.

A close up of my favorite of the flowers.

If you'd like to hire my artist let me know. I'll get you his information. I kind of like thinking I have an artist. The tree is perfect. I love the way it looks. Sometimes I go downstairs just to look at it. And the best part is that it is 100% custom and I did nothing to get it there. So awesome. I guess we are nearly ready for this girl to get here. She certainly couldn't have come before the tree was up.

And for your viewing pleasure (no not a picture of Cormac, I'll post some of those soon) a view of the cute mobile I made. I love how it turned out, this picture doesn't do it justice.

Stay tuned for news of the older brother and all his comings and goings. Also, a full look at the beautiful nursery. It has turned out so very cute. You won't want to miss it. Just 3 weeks and 3 days to go!

Christmas Day

2011-12-27T17:39:00.000-07:00

Christmas was wonderful! A great feature of having a young clueless child is that we were able to sleep in. Since church was at 9:00 am, we decided to just wait to do the present thing after. Each year my wonderful Aunt Harriet sends us home from the Christmas Eve party with cinnamon rolls ready to go in the oven. They are the kind my grandma used to make. They make me homesick for her. I do miss her a lot. So we started the day off with some delicious cinnamon rolls and a little nostalgia. Then it was off to church. The messages were wonderful. I loved the sweet reminder of why we celebrate the season. How blessed we are to have a Savior.

All dressed up and ready for church. When taking pictures with a timer one should do a few test tries to see how the shadows are working in the background. Oh well, you get the idea.

The glorious scene left behind by Santa.

Uncle D and Aunt Bird (my sister and her hubby) made Cormac an official member of the family by initiating him into the "crab tradition." It's a long story, maybe for another time.

I look a bit beached in most of these pictures. Get over it. This little girl has to fit in there somehow.

I got a Kindle Fire!

Cormac could model for Little People. At least he could if we could get him to smile for the camera.

Cormac got a baby to practice with before the real deal gets here. Here he is giving her a kiss and a hug (this was before he ripped all her clothes off and left her naked and cold on the ground).

At first our present opening was rather slow going. Cormac wanted to get out everything and play with it a while. We weren't in a hurry, so it was no big deal to take our time. But eventually Cormac realized that all those boxes under the tree were going to be opened. And that all of those boxes had fun things in them. Then it got exciting. He'd go grab a box and really rip at the paper until it was off. Then we'd open the box and he'd pull whatever it was out. If it wasn't a toy he'd throw it on the ground and run for the next present. If it was a toy he'd linger just a few seconds longer before moving on. It was pretty funny. He was in Heaven all day with his ramp. I've never seen him so occupied for so long. It was really a wonderful day.

Christmas Eve

2011-12-27T17:26:00.000-07:00

Since Ammon and I have started staying home for the Christmas holiday rather than going to our parent's homes we have spent Christmas Eve out at my Aunt Julie's home. It's always a good group of aunts, uncles, and cousins to enjoy and laugh with. Each year we eat delicious homemade pizza, frappe, shrimp, cheese balls, fudge, and toffee. So yummy.

After a spiritual message we do a white elephant gift exchange (aka the crass potty humor exchange). It's always a riot. Lots of laughs and lots of fun.

Cormac did sit for about 3.5 seconds of the spiritual message.

The rest of the message he tried to get a better look at the camera. It is requisite that he makes faces such as these when doing the closer inspection.

Hunter wanted to give Cormac a loving hug. Cormac wasn't sure what was going on. We need to work on that.

Shea opened the first gift. It was a lovely neck pillow.

Jesse opened the singing Santa hat. The top flipped back and forth. It was rather entertaining.

Then the potty humor began.

There were others, but these were the ones I got pictures of. Lots of entertaining gifts.

I gave away this stylish basket. To make it better I added some toffee to the inside.

Along with my toilet paper and reach extender that I scored I got these pants. I think my weight loss plan is looking pretty good even for being 8 months pregnant.

Ammon joined me in the other pant leg. I think this is a great maternity picture of us.

We had a wonderful time. We really don't spend enough time with our family that lives close. That's my fault. But I'm glad that we are able to join in on this tradition each year. It has been a highlight of our Christmas season.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-27T17:14:00.000-07:00

In case you haven't noticed I'm a bit behind these days. Not just with my blogging to be honest. My house cleaning is always a bit behind. Dinner is often behind. The only thing I seem to be keeping up on is sleep. And I only do that through making sure I get a nap in when Cormac does. So, we sleep a lot. Anyway, I have a few pictures from Thanksgiving that I wanted to share.

These first few are from the talent show. Cormac is a great marksman, but he actually showed off his skills at rooting on the Cougars. I didn't take pictures of all of the talents, but let me just say that we have a very talented group of nieces and nephews.

This is the first trip we've taken out to see the family when I felt that Cormac actually enjoyed all the attention he usually gets. The cousins all get along great and love each other. Cormac really loved playing with them. He did a lot of time on his own as well.

The highlight for Cormac was definitely the buggy rides. Grandpa got out his team Anne and Andy and even let Cormac ride up front. He loved it.

Ammon and I loved the chance to visit and play games with his parents, siblings, and siblings-in-law. It was a wonderful time. Dinner was amazing (as usual). I discovered how uncomfortable overeating can be when you are very pregnant. It about killed me. But as usual, the food was wonderful and plentiful, and the conversation was lively and entertaining.

Ammon's parents were recently called to the Nauvoo, Illinois mission. They will be leaving at the beginning of March. We are certainly going to miss them, but are excited that they will be able to serve.

The Random Happenings of Late (AKA our Christmas Card)

2011-12-20T23:07:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to write an update for a while. I truly have. But it's been busy around these parts. Our weeknights are constantly being taken up by something or other. My days are filled with the various ins and outs of taking care of a toddler and a house. Life is busy. But so very wonderful. We are very blessed.

Since life has been busy we decided not to send out a Christmas card this year, but to count this instead. So here you have it. Ammon said I should tell you all "hi" from him. We will probably send out birth announcements as our "Christmas" cards this year, so you can look out for those later.

Ammon is still serving as our ward's Elders Quorum President which keeps him on his toes. A few months ago I was released from cub scouts and called to be one of three advisors in the Mia Maids. So that has definitely made our lives busy. Ammon's job is going well. He is working part time on the big freeway core project that is going on here in Utah County. He works on the schedule and enjoys it. The other part of the time he is up in Draper working at the main office for Wadsworth Brothers. He's a busy man in high demand.

Our pregnancy is going well. I'm tired. Very tired. And I'm getting uncomfortable. Other than that it has been a very easy pregnancy. Much better than the first time around. When Cormac was still residing inside of me he would move away any time we would try to touch him. But this little girl is the total opposite. She likes to play. It's fun to push back when she pushes (although she is really strong and it can really hurt) and to have her interact. We are really looking forward to meeting her in about 2 months give or take a few days.

Cormac is as crazy as ever. He cracks me up so much. He is starting to become a bit more snugly, which I love. He gives great kisses and hugs. He is saying a few more words, but very few. He is more concerned that we understand him when he is communicating, but he still mostly speaks his own language. He does understand us. So I guess he'll come around in his own due time. Maybe when the new baby starts learning to speak he'll join in. Cormac is getting so tall. I really can't call him a baby anymore. He doesn't even look as much like a toddler as he used to. He's really starting to look like a little person. He's a little boy, and I miss the days when he was tiny, but I am really loving this stage.

And for your viewing pleasure, here are some pictures. The first was at a recent work party for Ammon (which Cormac was not in attendance). The second is a few months back of our darling boy, but what can I say it's one of my favorites.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you. We hope your holiday is filled with love, happiness, working furnaces, and lots of chocolate. We are thankful for this time of year and the reminder of our Savior. May we all remember the true meaning of the holiday.

Love to all,
The Dahls

New Guest Bedroom

2011-12-05T16:09:00.001-07:00

It's been a long time since I've posted any new pictures of our home. It's still a work in progress, but something you may or may not know about us is that we are excellent at starting projects but not so great at finishing them. So there hasn't been much to post. Well, with the birth of this new little one getting closer I have been wanting to create a nursery. I never really got a chance to do that with Cormac, so I thought I'd take advantage this time around. I decided that the first bedroom downstairs would make the perfect spot, but I had already turned that into our guest bedroom. This is what that room looked like if you recall.

In order to make this room the nursery I decided to move the guest bedroom into the other bedroom downstairs. That bedroom originally looked like this:

But I had painted it purple and turned it into a craft room. However, I never really finished that project, and so I never took or posted pictures. I decided that lavender wasn't a great color for a guest room, so I painted this room to be the same green as the old guest bedroom (I adore that color). This is the finished product:

It's still set up so I can craft in this room when we aren't entertaining folks. I think it turned out really nice. I'm happy with our thrown together project. Next I need to finish up the nursery. But first we have to get through Christmas.

Thanksgiving Craft

2011-11-18T09:51:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I saw a cute little art project that my friend had posted on her blog. She and her toddler had made these cute signs:

Well, after I put away my Halloween decorations I broke out the Thanksgiving decor. Let's just say the collection was dismal. We needed something else. So I thought we'd get crafty. Jenny had made hers on cardboard using art paint. Well, I didn't have cardboard, and I didn't want to buy paint. But if there is something we have around here it's lots and lots of random pieces of wood and board and more paint than we know what to do with. I used paint samples on a piece of plywood type stuff that I found outside. Worked pretty well. But next time we'll wait until it's nice outside and we can do it in the grass. My floor was a mess!

I tried to cut out the shape of a leaf in potatoes. Yeah, that was horrible. But Cormac just wanted to swirl the paint anyway, so my failed artistic ability didn't really matter too much in the end.

I dipped the first potato in paint and handed it to Cormac. What did he do? Put it in his mouth of course. Then dropped it on his foot while spitting everywhere. It drives me crazy. At dinner I'll try to give him something new to try and he won't let it close to his mouth. He acts like I'm trying to poison him. Then I hand him something like a raw potato with paint and without even thinking he shoves it in his mouth. Crazy little boy.

If you've ever seen my paint clothes, or seen me after a paint project you know that I can't do anything (even just a touch up job) that involves paint without getting it all over myself. I'm so proud of my son. He has learned well as you can clearly see.

And the finished product. I think it adds a nice festive flare. It was a lot of fun. Cormac loved every minute of it. Even the bath and shower afterward.

Just a Couple Pictures

2011-11-14T10:09:00.001-07:00

This post does not have a story line. I just felt the need to share a couple pictures. Cormac loves his new boots, pictured above. He even wears them with his pajamas. It's very fashionable.

He also loves to be a big helper around the house. Especially if he gets to help his dad. Lately when I put on my apron to begin my culinary arts he needs an apron as well. He loves to watch the mixer go. He also enjoys seeing water boil. But he hates to get his hands dirty. I thought he'd enjoy helping me gut a pumpkin the other day. He did not. If it's not dirt I guess it shouldn't be in his hands. Funny boy.

And because I don't write about anything other than Cormac these days I have a story that does not involve him for you. Lately when I go shopping I catch myself not unloading the car all the way when we get home. If the large package of whatever it is isn't perishable why get it out right away? So the other day I bought toilet paper and left it in the trunk for later. Well, later came and the toilet paper was needed. It was very late one night and extremely dark. Ammon was sweet enough to go out in the cold to retrieve the package. When he reached the trunk of the car he saw the package of toilet paper and at first glance thought the the package read "Adventure Pack." Unfortunately it isn't nearly as awesome as that, it's just an "Advantage Pack," but it begs the question, why don't they make "Adventure Packs" for toilet paper. I mean, why not right?

Hee Haw Farms

2011-11-14T09:54:00.001-07:00

Because we are typically lame and cheap, we don't go places very often. But since we didn't have much of a birthday for Cormac and weren't planning to trick-or-treat much we decided to hit up the Hee Haw Farms here close-by when we found a coupon for it. To be honest it is over priced, even with a coupon. The place is a dump. But they had animals and hay rides and things. Cormac had a good time, so it was worth it.

Cormac loved this slide. It was enormous. I went down with him once. It was a little intense for my pregnant belly because we hit a big bump on the way down. But Cormac was in heaven.

Another favorite was the various tractor type things he could climb on. He had a great time just sitting on this thing. He was very offended when we decided to move on.

I think he enjoyed the hayrides and this little tractor pull ride the most. I know you can't tell by the expression on his face, but he really did love it.

This was the best we could do for a family picture. It's hard to get a toddler to sit still long enough to snap a picture when there are so many things to look at. And sitting like this is not flattering to my pregnant body, but for the sake of allowing the world to see that we are a complete family here we are.

I know, my shadow is in the way, but I had to snap this picture fast before he moved on. Anyway, it was a fun time for the most part. At least through the eyes of our toddler it was fun. We picked out a couple pumpkins for Halloween and played in the box full of corn. Then we watched the BYU football game (actually Cormac and I napped and Ammon watched the game). Not a bad day all said and done.

Cormac turned 2 last month

2011-11-02T20:04:00.000-06:00

Our boy is getting older. He's such a funny kid. He makes me laugh every single day. I'm so glad he's here. His birthday was pretty low key this year. Cormac has a horrible time sharing his toys. I had thought about a party, but realized that he would just be upset and in trouble the whole time since there would be kids there playing with his toys. Rather than have my son in time out for his entire birthday party we decided to skip the traditional party. Instead Cormac and I met a few friends and their mom's at the park to play and eat cupcakes:

Cormac really loved the cake part but didn't like the frosting on top. All the other kids ate the frosting and left the rest of their cupcake. Such a strange boy. He loves his chocolate.

That night I made homemade macaroni and cheese because Cormac loves mac and cheese. He wouldn't eat any of it. I guess he only likes it from a box. Then we broke out more cupcakes and put a couple candles in one. When Ammon and I started singing Happy Birthday Cormac fell apart. He just started bawling until we stopped singing. I wish I would have gotten it recorded. It was so funny. Poor boy. He just wanted his cupcake.

For his birthday Cormac got an awesome tricycle. The kid is in Heaven every time he gets a chance to ride on it. It's an outside toy, but luckily it has been a pretty nice Fall and we've had a lot of chances to go outside for him to ride.

Things about Cormac that I want to remember at age 2:
~Still not speaking hardly any English. But sure is speaking. He'll talk your ear off; you just can't understand him.
~Cormac loves trains. He loves making the train noise. He says "chupta, chupta, chupta, choo, choo." Half the time he makes the "choo, choo" noise in the back of his throat.
~He is still a picky eater. I can always tell when he's going through a growth spurt because he'll actually eat, but for the most part he eats very few foods which drives me crazy.
~ He can do summersaults.
~ Cormac is learning to jump. He gets his upper body really into it, but his feet barely leave the ground.
~ He is in the 95th percentile for height at 37.5 inches, 50th for weight at 28 lbs.
~ Cormac loves to have his teeth brushed and flossed. So much so that if we forget one of them he gets extremely offended.
~ This boy has mastered fit throwing. He gets over it faster than he used to, but he can sure throw a good fit when he feels his life is not in harmony with how he wants it.
~ Cormac loves to play with cars.
~ He's very curious and likes to figure things out.
~ He listens well and throws things away when asked, picks up his toys when asked, and even lays down in the right spot when you tell him it's time to change his diaper.
~ This boy loves to be tickled. A lot. And any time he can climb on Daddy he's happy.
~Speaking of his daddy, Cormac loves to follow Ammon around and "help" with all his projects and imitate all his actions.
~He's very affectionate. He gives hugs and kisses when asked. And he'll just spontaneously run up and hug your leg when he feels like it. He also likes to give kisses to the random kitchen appliances and various doors around the house.

And we are so glad he's here. I think he's going to be an awesome big brother once he gets used to the idea. He loves to be helpful. He is sure a sweet boy. I'm so glad he's mine.

Remember how I destroyed Ammon's hair once. . .

2011-11-02T19:45:00.000-06:00

Do you remember a couple years ago when I wrote this post about cutting Ammon's hair way way way too short? I mentioned in that post that perhaps I should never cut Cormac's hair after that mess. Well, Cormac was bald for a long time so it wasn't a concern. Then he needed his first haircut and Ammon took the scissors and did an amazing job. But it was time for a cut again:

He wasn't very happy with me when I took this picture, but you can see that his hair is long. It was coming over his ears. We had been putting off the haircut when one day I decided that I had had enough. I got out the clippers, put on an attachment that I thought would be sufficiently long for his little head, and then took a pass at the back of his head. Oops. He was nearly bald in that spot. So I went up a size and finished the job. When I told Ammon the sizes I used he just laughed at me.

It is safe to assume that I will not be opening a barber shop anytime soon. Cormac still looks handsome. Actually the short cut makes him look so much older. But it's still much shorter than I had ever intended. Oh well. It grows.

For Great Grandma Garrison

2011-09-22T06:11:00.001-06:00

My grandma, Cormac's Great Grandma, recently took a spill that required surgery. She's doing well from what I understand, but as we all know or have heard, recovery from surgery is miserable. I know for me, one of the things that makes me feel better is this little boy I have running around my house here. I figured it might do the same for her. I mean, how could looking at her darling great grandson do anything else right? Besides, I have been horrible at keeping up this summer and thought you might all enjoy a little preview of what the hot months of summer held for us.

Cormac is obsessed with shoes. Especially Daddy's.

We hiked up to this awesome little natural hot springs up the canyon in Spanish Fork. It was really fun. There are water falls and little man made pools (made with rocks) to catch the warm and cold water for little dips that are just the right temperature. Cormac loves water. We were planning just to wade in it, but we couldn't keep him out of it, so we figured we should just let him go for it.

This is where he discovered mud at the bottom of the pool. A little boy's dream come true. Bathtub warm water in the great outdoors and mud. What more could a kid ask for?

He had it everywhere. And that poor diaper was so full. We didn't bring a swim diaper, but since we weren't alone we left the diaper on. Those things really absorb, I'm surprised he could walk.

Cormac loves to be helpful. Here are a few shots from when we were out visiting Ammon's parents in Nevada. Cormac helped Grandma pick the green beans for dinner from the green house.

Not the greatest picture since the bush is blocking Coralee and Cormac is clearly in his own world, but it's the best I got of both of them paying attention to the camera (sort of).

Cormac loves to climb. He, unfortunately, figured out how to climb up the slide. As you can see it's a tall one. Once he got to the top he'd get scared and need help making it to a sitting position. My solution was to go inside and pretend the slide wasn't there anymore after I'd gone down with him a few times. But Ammon is a little more creative.

Cormac really wanted to ride this tricycle, but he was a bit small. I had pulled him around for a while and got tired of bending over him, so I went into Mark's shop and found a rope to tie to the handle bars. Just like leading a horse around. . . right? I also got tired of that activity, but lucky for Cormac he had Grandma there to take over. Spoiled little guy. He sure loves attention.

Cormac with the two Ammon's. Little Ammon is not so little. He is nearly a year younger than Cormac and has caught up to him in weight. Just like his namesake. You know, big and round.

Another great thing about Grandma and Grandpa's is that there are plenty of hats to be found. Cormac found this one and we found Cormac wearing it around the house. So cute.

At home again. Helping out with the laundry. I think he looks good in Daddy's shirt.

We often have to hide Cormac's helmet. He loves to go on bike rides. He'll find his helmet, get it on, and then head for the door. Next summer I think he'll be needing a tricycle of his own.

Feel better? I'm pretty sure that face can cure almost anything that ails you. I know it works wonders for me. He just turned 23 months. Can you believe it? We are about to have a 2 year old. But this poor little boy is in for a shock when his little SISTER gets here. That's right, we are expecting a girl. At least we are 90% sure we are. Her foot was in the way during the ultrasound, but from what we could see both the tech and the doctor (during two different ultrasounds) independently thought it was a girl. And both Ammon and I have thought girl the whole time. So, we are now buying pink. This little girl is super active. She wouldn't hold still during the ultrasound, and for the last 2 weeks now I've been able to feel her move. I have a feeling she's going to cause me some internal pain here in another month or so. But she's got to keep up with her big brother somehow. Thank you for joining me on this journey. Pregnancy has returned insomnia to me, so maybe I'll get better at updating my blog. I've always been better at updating in the middle of the night for some reason.

Get better Grandma. We love you and hope your recovery is speedy.

Our Ranch Trip/Picture Overload

2011-08-18T10:32:00.000-06:00

At the end of July our family was supposed to have a big family reunion up at my grandparent's home in Helmer, ID. But before that happened my mom had a catering accident and burned the living daylights out of her hands. I'll keep this next picture small, skip over it if you are squeamish. This is one of the less offensive ones for the record.

Anyway, her hands were bad. Cormac and I decided we ought to go up and help. This was right at the beginning of this pregnancy and I was rather sick. I didn't think I'd be much help, and I was right. But Cormac was a nice diversion for my mom. Plus Cormac got some quality time with his Grandpa and Uncle Nick. It was nice. Let's just say that the drive was less than awesome. Twelve hours in the car with a toddler and morning sickness is hard. But we did it. Unfortunately we didn't make it back for the reunion. But we really enjoyed the time we did have. And now, for the pictures.

Great Grandma spent time pulling Cormac around in the wagon. He was in heaven.

These next pictures are Cormac making faces at Uncle Nick. I didn't get the best expressions. As soon as the camera came out he toned it down a lot. So sad. But I got a few. I'm sad this one is so blurry, but I love it so much I had to share it anyway.

While we were there we got to visit Troy Days. The parade was probably Cormac's favorite. That or the park. He got to gather up candy and see the sites. At one point he ran across the street for a piece of candy and stopped the parade. Oops. Luckily Papa was right behind to rescue him.

Cormac gave a good portion of the candy he gathered up to these kids. I think they liked having him close.

While we were there the men folk were putting down a new sidewalk for my grandparents. Cormac was excited to help out. Below you can see my cousin Jared in the background hard at work. Though probably not working as hard as Cormac:)

And Uncle Nick also trying to keep up with Cormac.

Papa taught Cormac how to drink out of the hose. Great Grandma let him indulge in it as long as he wanted. Cormac would take a drink and then he would insist that Great Grandma take a drink. We had some very wet diapers that day.

It was a good time. Not included in pictures: Cormac loved the horses and would say goodbye to them whenever he saw them. He also loved the 4-wheeler. Both Papa and Great Grandpa took him out and he loved that. His favorite game while we were there was "Go Fish" with Grammie. The best part was probably having so many different people around for him to get attention from. We also got to release a turtle into the pond. He really loved watching the turtle.

I enjoyed visiting with everyone, resting, and the cool weather. I got very little done for my mom, but she was sweet enough to just let me be pregnant and miserable. Next time we go up we'll hope everyone will be feeling better.

The Haircut

2011-08-15T15:37:00.000-06:00

So I have to admit that I avoid this blog lately. Before I had kids I was certain I would still blog about things other than Cormac. But I have nothing else to blog about to be honest. And truth be told, you all probably just come here for pictures of Cormac anyway. So I suppose I should stop ignoring this blog and just post the pictures you want to see.

Anyway, we finally gave Cormac his first haircut back at the beginning of July. I loved his wispy little curls at the back and side of his head. They were so adorable. But it was time. Ammon did the cut and I think he did a great job. I'll let you see the before and after.

Before:

After:

Cormac's Secret

2011-08-08T12:13:00.001-06:00

I'm 12 weeks today. It has been a long, sickly 12 weeks.

When I first tried to get a picture of Cormac in his Big Brother shirt this is the look I got:

Perhaps this is a bit more accurate? I guess time will tell.

Eating with a spoon and other such adventures

2011-06-05T12:12:00.001-06:00

Sorry mom, it took me a whole week longer to get this up than I had planned. We are busy bees around here. Please ignore my messy house. And even worse, my in-need-of-love yard. We are whittling away at our to-do list. But there are some things that are constant (read weeds).

And just in case you are wondering, things are good here. We are nearly finished with the yoga studio. Well, finished enough that I'm going to hold a Grand Opening Party soon and begin to advertise. I do have a few regular students attending right now, but am anxious to grow the business. I love how it has turned out. I never would have guessed it would look so great. Pictures will be up when I announce the Grand Opening.

Ammon is working three jobs with only one pay. He is very in demand. Fortunately he's brilliant and is able to handle all the work load that has been dumped in his lap. But it does make for some long days for him. And for Cormac and me as well. We miss him when he's gone.

Cormac has decided he hates going to nursery. He screams when we drop him off. But apparently cheers as the days goes on. It's hard to leave our screaming child though. I don't care for that much. Cormac still isn't saying much, but he is communicating effectively with body language. Correction, Cormac says a lot, but very little of it can actually be understood. The kid cracks us up regularly.

Anyway, I just discovered a video that I made last summer that I never shared. It was of the two family reunions we went to. (I think we went to more than two, but these are pictures from just two). It's fun to look at the pictures and see how much the kids have grown. So I think I'll share it here as well. Happy Sunday.

To the Zoo

2011-05-18T20:20:00.000-06:00

I'm sorry I'm no good at keeping up this blog. I have very little to say these days I suppose. We are just doing what we do. Fixing up the house, yoga studio, and yard (well, starting projects, we never finish them). Ammon is working a ton of hours. Between that and his church calling we see very little of him. That has been hard on Cormac and me. But it is wonderful when he is around.

In other news, Cormac and I met these lovely folks:

Ruben, Liliana, Marcos, and Olivia

for a day at the zoo recently. It was a lot of fun. My favorite part was hearing Marcos make the animal noises. He also did a wonderful imitation of another child who was throwing a temper tantrum (miraculously it wasn't my child throwing the tantrum). Here are some more pictures from our adventure at the zoo.

All Grown Up

2011-04-25T11:04:00.000-06:00

Cormac is growing at the speed of light. He enjoyed his first Easter Egg hunt yesterday morning. And Ammon and I enjoyed our first Sunday in a long time without Cormac climbing all over us during Sunday school and Priesthood/Relief Society. Aaahhh.

That's right friends, our little man has reached the magical age of 18 months. And even though I felt guilty and like I was getting away with something during Sunday School, I'm pretty excited that Cormac can finally burn some energy and I can conserve some during church (it was a lot of work to keep that kid quiet).

So here are some Cormac things for you to know:

~ It is difficult to get a picture of this kid.
~ On that same topic, Cormac loves to glare at the camera. He is very careful not to smile (which is funny because a year ago he was such a ham. When we'd get out the camera he'd start to smile for it).
~ The kid is growing.
   ~ 27.5 pounds (about 75th percentile)
   ~ 34.25 inches (about the 95th percentile)
   ~ 18.75 head circumference (about 50th percentile)
~ Cormac loves to climb. His new favorite is climbing up in a kitchen chair and using the table to hold his sippy cup in between sips.
~ He loves to be outside. It can get very dramatic around here when it's time to go in.
~ He says: bye bye, mama, dada, uh-oh, no no no no (he can't just say it once), gang go (thank you), and occasionally eeee (please). He has also attempted saying things like all done, basketball, and whack-a-mole (don't ask).
~ If he's thirsty he goes to the fridge and waits for me to open and get his sippy cup.
~ If he's hungry he goes to the pantry door and knocks.
~ Cormac likes to close doors. He hasn't figured out how to open them just yet, but he's close.
~ He loves slides and swings.
~ Cormac likes to play Ring Around the Rosies by himself (he doesn't like it when I try to play with him, he just wants me to sing).
~ He's finally getting a lot of hair (and it's much lighter than I expected).
~ This kid has perfected the art of fit throwing (to all those moms who were judged by me in the past because your kid was throwing a tantrum in public please consider this my formal apology).
~ He is one funny boy.

I love how hard he is concentrating on the bear in this picture. He cracks me up. One more thing, Cormac loves to try to figure out how things work and he is very independent. He loves an audience, but he wants to do things by himself. And when he is trying to figure out how to do things and is concentrating hard he looks exactly like his daddy. Who, by-the-way, he loves to follow around. When Ammon was putting the floor in the yoga studio (more on that later) Cormac just wanted to use the hammer on the floor right next to his daddy. And the play hammer was only good enough for a couple minutes.

He's sure a handsome little man. He's growing up too fast. But with each new stage I have been having so much fun. It's amazing how some days he wakes up and just seems so much older than he was the day before. But he is a good boy and we are so glad to have him.

Lazy Days

2011-03-14T13:59:00.000-06:00

Around Our House

2011-03-09T08:40:00.000-07:00

Cormac has an impressive lower lip. He has started jutting it out as far as he can right before a break down. I think it's pretty adorable. Does that make me a bad mom?

We have had visitors from time to time. This time it was Taft who came to play. My friend Heidi was in town and she brought over her two little boys. Luke was only a month old. So tiny. Taft and Cormac got along pretty well for the most part. As long as Taft wasn't trying to play with Cormac's 4-wheeler or his Xylophone they did okay. We are going to have to work on sharing.

Cormac has this crazy weird hair growth going on right now. At the sides he has hair that is growing a lot longer than the hair around and below it. It sort of fans out and wraps around his ears now. It might be getting time for a haircut, but there is still so little to cut. My mom told me that getting that first haircut really transforms a baby into toddler. I'm not ready for that.

I can't play the piano solo anymore. It is always a duet. Cormac loves the piano. What's not to love? It makes noise, you can bang on it, and it is usually off limits.

The weather has been nuts this year. We get dumped on with tons and tons of snow and by afternoon it is gone. This was taken in the morning. In some places there was nearly a foot and a half of snow. By afternoon it was all gone. Even in the shady places.

Cormac has a new found love of his belly button. He pulls up his shirt to show it off to me all the time. He also takes off when I'm trying to dress him and it's time to put a shirt on. He loves to have his shoes on, but would rather show off his manly torso.

This picture makes me smile. He was chasing me around with the animal crackers box (which is nearly as big as he is), and I was running for my camera rather than opening it up to get him what he wanted. He's a pretty funny boy.

Puppy Love

2011-03-08T10:13:00.000-07:00

Thanks Londyn and Taylor for the awesome puppy. Cormac loves to snuggle with it,

Explore it,

Squeeze it,

Sit with it,

And occasionally throw it.

Finger Painting

2011-03-06T10:27:00.001-07:00

I recommend waiting until you are planning to mop the floor anyway before engaging in this particular activity. But it was a lot of fun. All you need is some pudding and food coloring.

On a side note, the scabs on Cormac's forehead and nose are from a nasty run in with the pavement outside. He kicked the garage wall and went down. Neither of us had time to react. He didn't even have time to get his hands under him before his face made contact. Poor little man, but he is on the mend and this picture actually looks a million times better than he did right after the accident. The bloody nose was the worst part. But he only cried for about a minute and then was just annoyed that I was still fussing over him. He's one tough kid.

The Park

2011-03-06T10:19:00.000-07:00

Cormac loves slides.

The Glove

2011-03-06T10:15:00.003-07:00

Cormac has discovered the joy of gloves. He likes to put them on. One day he refused to take one glove off all day. Thus we have the following.

Construction

2011-03-06T10:12:00.000-07:00

When construction is underway it is important to have the appropriate safety gear. Bright colors are encouraged (thanks Grammie and Papa for the cool pjs). If you can't find two safety gloves a winter glove will work just fine. Shades can double for safety glasses in a pinch.

It is important to exercise your face muscles while you work,

otherwise they will not be as in shape as the rest of your muscles.

The shop is going to be a pretty neat thing once we are done with it. The Cormac likes it because he gets to be outside. And there used to be tons of sawdust to play in. But we have successfully cleaned all of that out. Poor kid. I guess he'll just have to play with the wood stove instead (just kidding, Coralee).

The Mass Update

2011-03-06T09:56:00.001-07:00

So, what has been up at the Dahl house you ask? Much. We have been a busy group these days. We have been projecting. Our list of projects currently underway includes (but is not limited to):

~ the kitchen
~ the bathroom
~ the shop
~ the chicken coop
~ the basement
~ the sunroom
~ the yard

This is what happens when you buy a fixer upper. It's also what happens when you start new projects before you've finished the old. We are not very good at finishing. We are excellent at starting. We are still living with a blanket for a bedroom wall. And you may have noticed that the bedroom has not made the list of projects underway yet. We may never have a bedroom wall.

Ammon is a busy guy. He was just called to be the Elders' Quorum President in our ward. It's a big job. But he's doing a fine job. He is also still the man in charge of the sports in our ward. Between the two callings, his full time day job, and his work here at home in the evenings we haven't had the chance to just zone out for an entire movie for nearly a month.

I am doing well. Cormac had RSV this last week. By the time Friday came I was ready to get on a ship and sail away. Dealing with a very grumpy baby for so long is challenging. But Ammon has been home to help this weekend. Cormac seems to be on the mend. But, of course, now I have it. And I think Ammon has it as well. I'm getting ready to start teaching yoga here in the near future, which I'm excited about (let me know if you want to get in on it). My health continues to baffle all of us, but I'm doing alright.

Cormac is nuts. He is a busy boy. I am very proud of him for learning to say "thank you" before he learned to say "no." In fact, he hardly says "no" even now. When you ask him for kisses he puts his cheek on your lips and then says "mmmmmah." But he very rarely gives an actual kiss. Which is really okay since he hasn't figured out the closed lip kiss. He still gives the baby open mouth slobber (sometimes with teeth, he left a mark on my forehead the other day from a "kiss").

Cormac also has an obsession with closing his eyes and doing things. He tries to walk with eyes closed. It's pretty comical. He also tries to eat with his eyes shut tight. I'm not really sure where he learned this. When we ask him to fold his arms for the prayer he folds them and then starts clapping to congratulate himself for the good job he is doing.

We now have to make sure we only use the words "bye, bye" when we are actually on our way out the door. This boy loves to go outside. If I say "bye, bye" and we don't actually go anywhere there will be a full blown melt down immediately after.

Cormac loves to be outside. But he is terrified of the neighbor's goose (justly so). So when we walk out the front door he freezes to figure out where the goose is and to make sure I'm not too far away so he can grab my hand if he feels sufficiently threatened.

This is getting long, so I will end it here, but stay tuned for a picture overload. I know all those Cormac fans out there have been cursing me for not keeping up with this better, so I will deliver.

Aquarium

2011-03-06T08:29:00.000-07:00

It is possible that I may become a binge blogger. Many posts all at once. Anyway, we bought a season pass to the aquarium in Sandy. Cormac's favorite part is the sting ray pond. Just the pond. He can't reach the sting rays, but he loves to play in the water (and then suck the salt off his hands if I'm not fast enough to clean them, yum). So without further ado, I present Cormac and the Aquarium for your viewing pleasure.

Basketball Star

2011-02-14T14:52:00.000-07:00

Happy Valentine's Day

Bed Head

2011-02-02T22:07:00.000-07:00

Look who's hair is finally long enough to get messy. Yep, he's one cool dude.

6th Anniversary

2011-01-26T15:01:00.000-07:00

Last year I shared a story about Ammon and myself that I thought was a good representation of our relationship. I've been really trying to come up with something good for this year, and since it is now 5 days past our anniversary I suppose you can assume that I haven't been too successful.

So instead I thought I'd share what Ammon and I dream of. First off, our dream involves a lot of land. Enough land that we can have a runway for our airplane or flying car (or both?). I also want acres and acres of raspberries. The house will be nice, but not too big. And there will be a shop for Ammon to putter. Sometimes we talk about having a boutique where we sell flowers and raspberries that we grow, things Ammon made while puttering, and maybe some pumpkins. And then there's the yoga studio that would accompany the boutique. Naturally we will be wealthy enough to pay someone to take care of most of this while we take our plane and travel the world. The location of this property has not yet been decided, but it will be warm. No more winters. We can just visit the snow when we feel a longing for it.

Anyway, that's just one of our fantasies that we weave when we are weaving. It might not be everyone's dream life, but I think it would suit us just fine. Just so long as it involves a lot of time together for a long time. You see, we really like being together. We don't really have many friends. I think it's because we are enough for each other. So, here's to 6 years. And since we have decided that we think we have at least 2 more years in us, here's to the next 2 as well (at that point we can reassess:) I love you, Ammon.

My Fans

2011-01-25T14:33:00.000-07:00

This is to Heidi, the only person to comment on this blog since October. You rock my socks Heidi.

I know I haven't been updating as much as I could. Let's just say I do better with an audience. I'll try to be better.

P.S. Heidi, because I love you I refrained from digging in my Russia archives for a photo :)

Christmas and New Years

2011-01-14T08:42:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the rather late post about Christmas, but I wanted to share a few pictures really fast. We started off the Christmas holiday by spending Christmas Eve with my extended family. We ate delicious homemade pizza, had a white elephant gift exchange, and acted out the nativity.

Cormac was a wise man. This was the best I could come up with. I think the golden cup adds a lot.

On Christmas morning Santa had left Cormac a basketball hoop and a basketball. Ammon showed him how to make a basket once and then we moved on to other things. But after a while Cormac found his ball when we weren't paying much attention. He walked right up to his hoop and dunked it (it's just a little over his head). We were shocked, but excited.

It took us a really long time to get through our small pile of presents. We had to stop to play with things. We also took a break for breakfast and diaper changes. But we did eventually get through, it just took us a few hours. It was fun that Cormac enjoyed opening the gifts and then was interested in playing with the toys inside.

Here are my boys, taking a break from their morning labors to explore a barrel of monkeys.

The rest of Christmas was rather low key. We all took a nap. I made a few yummy things to eat, but since we were all sick with a nasty cold we mostly just snacked and were lazy. It was a great day.

After Christmas we headed out to Nevada to celebrate the new year with Ammon's family. Our nephew, Morgan, was baptized on New Years Day. It was an excellent way to bring in the New Year.

Cormac didn't appreciate me interrupting story time with Grandma to take this picture.

Every year Ammon's siblings do a drawing to exchange gifts. This year we had the Cobian family. I made each of the kids a hat and matching scarf. Aren't they cute? The kids, not the scarves.

And a trip to Nevada wouldn't be complete if we didn't get a picture of Ammon with his namesake. This little boy has really grown (not my Ammon, but the other one).

So even though I'm a little late, I want to wish you all a happy new year.

PRC Express

2011-01-11T22:04:00.000-07:00

I wanted to quickly share a few fun pictures from our adventure aboard the PRC Express. Ammon is currently employed by Wadsworth Brothers Construction who is part of the joint venture known as Provo River Constructors (PRC for short). They are working on the freeway here in Utah county. Each year the Heber Creeper (an old train out in Heber) transforms to become the Polar Express. PRC bought out the train for all the employees one day and fed us all dinner on the train. Mrs. Clause (the scariest woman we have ever seen) and Santa both made appearances. We had a lot of fun.

So Santa had just walked in, and apparently I was more excited about it than Cormac. The eyebrows don't lie.

Cormac wasn't so sure about Santa. When Santa came in close for a picture Cormac started to cry. Santa backed up pretty fast. It was rather comical. Cormac took the bell, but then he wanted to give it back to Santa. I think Santa was confused. When he asked what Cormac wanted for Christmas we said we thought probably just some wrapping to tear up. When he asked what Mommy and Daddy wanted I said a good night's sleep. Cormac has been sleeping through the night ever since. I guess that big guy is magical after all.

Being a Mom

2010-12-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

I had promised myself that once Cormac was born I wouldn't devote my entire blog to posts about him. I would, of course, update you on the little lad, but I was going to continue to write other things. If you've been reading this blog (which I have been horrible at updating lately, sorry) you probably know that I have not kept that promise. I pretty much only write about Cormac. But then, he is my life. I am a mother. And that's about all I do and have to write about.

I have some funny stories of our little man that I wanted to share. You know Cormac has been threatening to walk for a while now. Well, a week ago (on Tuesday the 7th) Cormac discovered that he no longer needed help from people or furniture to stand fully upright. Since then he has become an exclusive walker. He won't crawl anymore. It doesn't matter how short the distance. If he falls then he stands up and walks the extra couple of steps. And he is so proud of himself as a walker. He just beams as he moves from room to room with no other purpose than to walk.

Cormac has become very possessive of his father. It's okay for Mom to hold other babies and children (as long as she isn't giving them a bottle), but it is not okay for Dad. We were visiting with family about a week ago and Ammon was helping our little cousin, Hunter (who's just a few months younger than Cormac), stand. Hunter was holding on to Ammon's hand. Cormac went over to see what was going on. He started to touch Hunter's face, which he normally does when he meets a new kid. I was telling him to be soft when he suddenly grabbed Hunter's face in his hand and pushed him on the ground and then demanded that Ammon pick him up (it was a rather nice tackle, maybe he'll be a football player if we channel it right). Fortunately Hunter's mom has a sense of humor about it. It was kind of funny that he acted that way. But not so funny that he acted that way. You know. I felt (and still feel) horrible that my kid was such a bully.

Well, yesterday when Ammon came home from work Cormac lit up like he normally does. Ammon was holding him when I went over to get a kiss from our returning hero. Cormac gave me a dirty look and as soon as I moved back a little he grabbed my face and pushed me away. We laughed and then I decided to show him who was boss and gave Ammon another kiss. After which he pushed my face away. Cormac gets dibs on his daddy apparently. And maybe I'm not the boss after all. Either way, Cormac adores his father.

Cormac has learned to say uh-oh. In fact, he purposely throws things on the ground or knocks things over just so he can say uh-oh. He has also learned to say hi. Which he intonates like a valley girl for some strange reason. It's hilarious. He has been using our old cell phone to practice. Actually, he won't talk into the phone, but he says "hi, hi, hi" as he puts the phone up to my ear. He'll keep repeating "hi" with the "i" drawn out nice and long until I finally say hi into the phone. Little nut.

We sometimes struggle with getting Cormac to eat. He likes to feed himself and he likes to throw food. So it's a hard balance of trying not to get too much on the ground and at least a little bit into his mouth. Lately we have been giving him the spoon and having him put it in his own mouth. Then he hands back the spoon and we reload it. But that hasn't been good enough lately. So today I held his bowl so he couldn't dump it out but so that he could reach it, and he loaded up his own spoon. I was surprised at how skilled he is at it. But it's so funny to watch as he sticks the spoon into the bowl, moves it back and forth really fast a few times, and then sticks it back in his mouth.

I was thinking about how much fun it has been lately to watch my little man grow and learn. He has changed and learned so much in the last two months. As I was watching him load up his spoon this morning I realized how lucky I am to be able to be home to witness his progress. I'm so lucky that I get to be the one watching him learn and grow and not have to be told about it by someone who could never love him like I do. I am so thankful for my husband today and for what a wonderful man he is. I'm so thankful that he goes to work every day and puts in the long hours that he does so that I can stay home with Cormac and see him grow. I'm a very blessed woman. And so while I didn't live up to my promise to keep blogging about things other than my son, you should know that I blog about my life and what is most important to me. Because most of all, I am a mother.

Snowmobile

2010-12-07T20:31:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. The food was divine, the company was good, and we made it to our destination and back in safety (though it was rather uncertain at times, the roads were horrible). One of the best parts was playing in the snow. That's always a favorite.

My family has two kayaks and one extremely large canoe. We like to use them to sled. They make excellent sleds in fact. The canoe wasn't as good this year as it has been in the past, but the kayaks were great. We took them down the hill then had snowmobiles tow us back up. That's really the only way to sled. All the fun, none of the work. I suppose it negates any workout that may come out of it. Oh well.

Ammon and I had decided to try again on the kayak (we wiped out hard the first time down the hill resulting in me getting run over by the kayak and Ammon). I shifted my weight to my left foot and the snow sort of gave out. I rolled my ankle. It was pathetic. I had wrecked several times going down the hill and even once on the snowmobile that day and I managed to get hurt while standing. I rolled it again on my birthday a few days later. It is still swollen and really sore. Maybe Santa will bring me a new ankle for Christmas. I could use it.

Anyway, Cormac also got to have his first experience in snow. He made this face pretty much the whole time. We didn't keep him out too long. But he was fascinated.

Then my dad took Cormac on his first snowmobile ride. My dad has been looking forward to this event since he found out I was pregnant. I think Cormac liked it. Being the good girl that I am I took my camera with me to the party, but then the only pictures I took were of Cormac in the snow. So enjoy.

Pictures of your favorite Dahl

2010-11-22T10:21:00.001-07:00

Because I'm too lazy to write a blog post I figured I'd share a few pictures. I've not been very good at updating on here lately. I'm sorry. Cormac and I are sitting here listening to Christmas music and watching Baby Einstein without sound. Cormac keeps taking my hands off the keyboard and placing them on his stomach so that I'll tickle him. Then he laughs a lot. He's a character.

Here he is enjoying a green drink, yum.

Hanging out with cousin Ruby. She's just a little over a month younger than Cormac. She's so cute. They already enjoy playing together a little. Or at least seem fascinated with each other.

And Cormac's "pipe" which is actually a little hammer. What a nut. He kept crawling around with this in his mouth. It was extremely hilarious.

In other news, the boy is still not walking on his own yet. At least not unless there is someone to catch him at the end. But soon, very soon.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Happy Veterans Day

2010-11-11T16:33:00.002-07:00

In my family we happen to have quite a few soldiers. I'm thankful for all of them. I worry about those who are currently away, but am so proud and thankful for them. I am lucky to be related to such wonderful and devoted people.

My Great Grandpa is one of our Veterans, and he's still with us. I'm thankful for him. Just this last October my family went to see him. We wanted Cormac to meet his Great Great Grandpa. Grandpa was rather taken with Cormac. I think Cormac was a fan of Grandpa as well.

This plaque hangs on the wall next to a plaque with all of the other stories of the veterans living at the facility where my grandpa stays.

It reads: "Harlen Garrison, U.S. Army WWII

"Harlen Garrison enlisted in the Army at the age of twenty three, even though he had a wife and four children at the time. He volunteered to be a paratrooper, jumping from C-47 aircraft so he could earn an additional fifty dollars a month to send back to his wife and family. Harlen was aboard the McAndrews, a troop carrier, with 1,900 soldiers on board when it collided with a French aircraft carrier. "It was like going to hell" Harlen said. According to news reports the collision tore a hole in the side of the ship, and sent 135 soldiers into the cold, choppy water. Sadly, rescue efforts were only able to save 14 of the 135 soldiers who went overboard. After surviving the collision on the McAndrews, Harlen was then shipped to England and later went on to France. From France, Harlen travelled to Germany via boxcar. While in Germany, Garrison joined a machine gun squad as a rifleman and they were given assignments to clean up towns. Before leaving Germany Garrison had the opportunity to see the remains of Hitler's bombed house. Harlen still wears his 82nd Airborne wings around his neck."

And here we are, five generations of Garrisons.

Grandpa and Cormac checking each other out. Grandpa kept saying what a "good one" Cormac was.

It was a really neat experience to see Great Grandpa and to be all together as a family. Happy Veterans Day to all those who have served and are serving our country.

One year recap

2010-11-08T14:39:00.002-07:00

Yesterday Cormac started taking steps on his own. Up until now he wouldn't dare take a single step without something to hold on to. So in celebration of my baby growing up I have made this movie. It's a recap of my little guy going from new born to toddler. As you know, I'm not great with videos, but I think it works for those fans of Cormac who don't see him often.

The songs are by Mindy Gledhill and I love them. I may or may not cry when I hear the second one and think of my little boy.

Happy Halloween

2010-11-01T13:35:00.000-06:00

We hope you had a wonderful holiday with lots of sweet treats.

One Year Old

2010-10-27T13:14:00.000-06:00

Well folks, it's true. One week ago our little man decided to turn one. I won't bore you with how incredibly fast the time has flown for me, just know that it has. And let me just say that it is horribly difficult to get a picture of this little guy these days. He is busy. Thus, we had to wait until Ammon got home from work and I had to hold him in place in order to get this picture. At one year Cormac:

~ loves to say rawr, boo, mama, and dad.
~ wants to walk so bad. He won't let us set him down on his bum anymore, he must be set down on his feet close to something he can grab onto. He's still a little chicken to venture out on his own though.
~ enjoys eating bananas and anything off of Mommy's plate.
~ crawls at turbo speed.
~ has a mischievous side. He gets this little look on his face when he knows he is about to do something I would not approve of and then goes for it as fast as he can.
~ jabbers a lot.
~ walks like a drunk sailor (with assistance of course).
~ has 8 teeth.
~ is finally getting hair. I mean, enough that other people can even tell, not just me.
~ loves to laugh and smile (but he still makes you work for it some).
~ is wary of strangers.
~ love, love, loves to play peekaboo.
~ enjoys helping Mommy paint (It's pretty cute too. He dips his dry brush into the dry paint pan and then moves to whatever object he has chosen and starts painting.).
~ still not sleeping through the night.
~ needs attention. He sure likes an audience (he gets it from his dad:)
~ is the sweetest and funniest little guy ever.

No really, he cracks me up routinely. We are so thankful to have Cormac in our family. I really can't imagine my life without him. I just adore this little boy more than I can say. And look at what a change a year has had on this little guy:

The requisite family pictures when your child turns one

2010-10-20T12:39:00.001-06:00

A year ago today Cormac finally decided to show up after 2 days of labor. I remember feeling panicked because he wasn't crying as much as I thought he should. He made up for it during the nights following us bringing him home. Last night Ammon and I were talking about how it seemed only a few days ago that Cormac was born, and yet at the same time it felt like he had always been part of our family. Either way, I'm happy to say that we have a most adorable, mischievous little man here who has managed to survive an entire year of me.

A few months ago I entered a blog giveaway and somehow won. It was a miracle. What did I win? A photo shoot with the amazing Staci D. I love her work and am glad that I was introduced to her by our mutual friend Heidi. Here's a sneak peak.

We had the pictures taken in Midway. Isn't it beautiful? Incidentally we also lost our only car key while we were out there, and after searching for it for nearly an hour in the dark, tall grass we ended up having to call a shuttle to come pick us up and take us all the way back to Lindon. It's a long story and one I'm sure we'll laugh at some day. But I think the pictures are worth it.

I may have won the giveaway, but Staci has won a client out of me. I love these pictures. There are more that you can see on Staci's blog. I didn't post them all.

New Things

2010-10-01T11:59:00.000-06:00

New things at the Dahl House:

~ Cormac had his first ear infection.

~ Cormac threw up for the first time.

~ Ammon started a new job. He is now involved in the hated road construction.

~ Melanee gets to eat tomatoes tomorrow for the first time in weeks.

~ It's October! Holy Cow!

And because I was wasting time, for your viewing pleasure:

Eleven Months Old

2010-09-24T08:20:00.000-06:00

Cormac has now reached the grand age of elven months. We are all a little shocked over here considering he will be one so soon. Can it really have been a year? But enough with the cliche comments of how fast time flies, let me tell you about our boy. First off, it is hard to get a picture of this busy, busy, busy guy. Most of the pictures look like this:

He's on the move with tons to do and say. But that's not new. At eleven months Cormac:

~ loves to play and play and play.

~ needs a lot of attention.

~ has 5 teeth.

~ repeats a lot of the things we say (like uh oh, dada, mama, all done, bye bye, and others).

~ is completely binkie free.

~ loves raspberries and peaches.

~ has figured out how to turn the water on in the tub and is obsessed with trying it whenever possible.

~ cruises on all the furniture.

~ can bend over to pick things up off the ground rather than having to sit down on his bum to get things.

~ enjoys wrestling. Especially with Daddy and his big stuffed bear.

~ is a pro at grabbing things, particularly Mommy's eyelashes.

~ is finally growing some hair see:

It's there. I promise. Well, we will soon have a toddler instead of a baby. Bring it on. We love you Cormac.

Monopod

2010-09-15T10:04:00.000-06:00

Cormac's pj's are a little big on him. But he grows so fast who can blame me for getting them large? Anyway, this morning he managed to become a monopod. It's hard to see from the above photo, so here's another:

My one legged son. He was so annoyed that he couldn't get around very well. Instead of helping him, I ran for my camera. Some mom. We did finally get him all situated and he is now the proud owner of two legs once again.

Living Room

2010-09-08T12:43:00.001-06:00

The living room has been a rather slow project. There is still a lot I want to do with the room, but I finally got it far enough along that I wanted to show off my progress.

So here is the before, complete with bug spray on the fireplace and little green bowl on the floor.

Before:

After:

The fireplace is still there, I just wasn't backed up enough. Please ignore the paint samples on the wall in the hall (I like to rhyme). I haven't gotten that far yet.

Things I'm still working on:
~ refinishing the piano.
~ reupholstering couches and chairs.
~ replacing the ceiling light and fan.
~ finishing the ceiling.

Here are some detailed pictures of the room:

I want to replace this bookshelf here with a small entry table or something of that sort. Someday.

My little art project over my piano.

The drapes I made myself and the funny little ladder that was left here. I think Ammon thinks I'm strange for bringing it in the house but I love it. The drapes need a few more clips on top so they hang just right, but I haven't done that yet either.

Ammon took this picture and we had it blown up. I found the frame complete with mat and glass at DI for $5. I painted it and there you have it. Cheap and easy. We did actually break the original glass and had to replace it, but other than that, it was a pretty good deal. At least I thought so. I am proud of my thrift.

And the view going the other way. Still working on the ceiling and the kitchen and dinning room area, but we are making progress. Slowly, but surely as they say.

And finally, one more look at the before and after:

Side by side:

F is for Football. . . and fall

2010-09-07T09:03:00.000-06:00

Fall is in the air. Summer is good and wonderful. It was too short this year. But I love fall. I get excited for it every year. This year is no different. Fall brings so many wonderful things:

~ Fallen leaves.
~ Lots of color. I love color.
~ The renewed desire to work on our house.
~ Cider.
~ Holidays.
~ Football.

The football season started off with a bang. Thanks Cougars for not letting us down! We are excited for the new season.

Back-Up Plan

2010-08-31T09:34:00.001-06:00

We have had a series of unfortunate events the last few weeks at the Dahl House. One of which involved our favorite furry friends, Sandy and Charlie. We have been having trouble keeping them contained ever since we moved here, but they finally crossed the line. They killed the neighbor's turkey and some other large bird (we still don't know who it belonged to). So, it was time to part ways. I have been sad and heart broken about it. Still, ever since we had Cormac I really haven't been spending as much time with them and they are probably happier with new families. But I do miss them from time to time. I sure did this morning.

Every morning when Cormac wakes up I bring him in bed with me to feed him his bottle. It gives us both a chance to wake up a little more slowly. Ammon is usually already gone to work when we do this. This morning Ammon had left as usual and about a half hour later I had Cormac snuggled up to me in bed when I heard the front door open and close. I assumed it must be Ammon. He must have forgotten something. But still... what if it wasn't Ammon? My mind started to race. My plan in case of break-in has always been to somehow get Charlie in between me and whoever is breaking in. My dogs may have been spazy, but they loved me and would protect me. But I no longer had a Charlie. I panicked. I didn't know what to do. I kept looking to see if Ammon would come around the corner. Rather than do anything active I just stayed in bed.

Then the doorbell rang. ? I carefully left Cormac tucked in bed and cautiously walked to the door. I peeked around the corner only to see a lady in a short pink bathrobe standing at the door. My first thought was that she used to know Preston (the previous owner of the house) and must have just walked in. When she realized it was no longer his home she bolted and then decided to find out where he was. Wrong. She was looking for a pool a friend of hers told her she could swim in. I had no idea what to tell her, but since we are pool-less I sent her on her way.

Once again my first thought through all of this was that I needed my dogs back. But since that isn't really a likely option I need to come up with a back up plan. Want to hear the really scary part? Ammon locked the door before he left this morning and yet this woman walked right into our house. I guess our first line of action will be a trip to the Home Depot tonight to invest in some better door knobs and locks.

I miss you Sandy and Charlie.

10 Months Old

2010-08-29T13:18:00.000-06:00

I can't believe it, but it is true. Cormac is officially 10 months old (as of a little over a week ago, I'm a bit late). He is such a sweetie. At 10 months Cormac:

~ is into everything.
~ crawls and cruises all over the place. He has even started to climb (uh oh).
~ HATES to have his diaper changed.
~ loves to play peekaboo.
~ is so loud. He loves to sing and jabber all the time.
~ still spits a lot.
~ has finally slowed down a little in the growth department. He is still 25 lbs and has only grown half an inch making him 29.5 inches long.
~ is about to get his 5th tooth through.
~ likes to make funny faces, like sucking in his cheeks or biting his bottom lip.
~ still bites everything. He has chewed up his crib.
~ enjoys eating paper (little twerp).
~ still has amazing eyes.
~ likes small ping pong balls. He likes to have one in each hand.
~ bangs his hands and head on everything.
~ is fascinated with books (but more in the ripping them up than the reading them up stage).
~ does not know what "I'm going to get you" means. He thinks it means "attack."
~ is fearless.
~ likes to put his face in the water in the tub (what baby does that?).
~ when you go to chase him he turns and comes after you.
~ lights up when he sees his parents.
~ loves it when Daddy comes home.
~ cracks us up on a regular basis.

This boy is so much fun. We just adore him. I can't believe my little boy is closing in on one year so quickly. Oh, and did I mention he says "mom" and "mama" all the time? Yeah, he likes me. And I adore him.

Bad Aunt

2010-08-21T08:17:00.000-06:00

I'm embarrassed and ashamed that I failed to acknowledge the newest addition to our Dahl extended family. Things have been extremely insane around here. More on that later. Either way I'm not the best of aunts, but I do want to introduce you all to someone special. Finally Ammon can tell the world where he got his name. He is named after his adorable nephew.

Ammon Alejandro Cobian:

Isn't he sweet? We are so excited that Cormac has another cousin and that we have another nephew. We can't wait to meet little Ammon.

What we've been up to, in pictures

2010-08-18T11:33:00.000-06:00

Lots of family reunions, work, working on our house, working on other people's homes, chasing Cormac, colds, and other things. Busy, busy.

The Cricket and The Case of the Missing Binkies

2010-08-05T14:06:00.000-06:00

Cormac has started to rub his feet together really fast when he gets excited. When I come in to get him after a nap he's usually standing (see above picture), but he'll gracefully sit himself down and start rubbing his feet back and forth on the mattress really fast. It's adorable. I think we may start calling him cricket.

About every other night I have to go in search of Cormac's binkies. He's really not a huge fan, but at night he does like them while going to sleep. Since we are just now starting to get him sleeping through the night I will do just about anything to facilitate his sleeping, thus he gets his binkie. Most nights when I search for the binkies I find them stashed away between the wall and the crib. It's sort of comical.

The other night Ammon said, "Today it's binkies, tomorrow he'll be stashing away rocks and other treasures." I'm excited for those days. Even if I have to clean up the treasure stashes.

9 Months Old

2010-07-28T10:13:00.000-06:00

I couldn't help myself. This series of pictures was just too funny. As you can see our little man is on the move. He doesn't sit still for long these days. Well, he never really sat still, but now he's into everything. I can't believe that he is already 9 months old. The time sure flies. At 9 months Cormac:

~ sleeps through the night about half the time!! (He is still likely to be an only child though. I am too dependent on my sleep to do this again.)
~ loves to sing and yell and scream and just make noise.
~ enjoys banging his head on everything. The other day he was sitting on the ground in front of the couch and kept banging his head over and over and over again against the couch cushion. He hurts himself all the time doing this. Crazy kid.
~ is fascinated by the sound of him hitting various surfaces.
~ smiles when I walk into a room. Oh that just melts my heart and makes being a mom so awesome.
~ loves his daddy. He really lights up when Ammon gets home.
~ is starting to be shy around others. I love it because he snuggles up close to me. Anything for those snuggles.
~ is so strong. He can almost do a chin up!
~ crawls and pulls himself up on everything.
~ is learning to cruise along the furniture and up and down on Mom and Dad. His favorite is pulling himself up by Ammon's leg hair! I'm so glad I shave.
~ our big boy is now 25 lbs! Time for a new car seat. He is also 29 inches long. Tall kid, but mostly heavy.
~ loves to feed himself, he's a fan of finger food.
~ is not very patient. He gets that from his mother.
~ has a curious streak, he's into everything.
~ is very smart. When I give him water from a straw he has figured out that if he blows instead of sucks it will shoot out the end.
~ still loves to spit.
~ likes to be tickled.
~ loves to laugh.

What a boy. He makes me happy. I'm so glad I have him.

Private

2010-07-26T17:49:00.000-06:00

I'm thrilled about the attention my new blog Mirror Health is getting, but I'm a bit nervous about our privacy here. So I have decided that we are going to take the blog private again. If you would like to continue reading send me an email to melanee.dahl@yahoo.com with your email or leave me a comment with your email and I'll make sure you get added.

Kitchen Remodel - Stage One

2010-07-26T14:06:00.002-06:00

Did you hear the angels singing Friday around 7:00 pm Mountain Standard Time? The chorus was beautiful. Here's why there was so much rejoicing.

This is what our kitchen looked like the day we moved in. Nice right. It was good of them to clean up for us.

Before:

Current:

So we've been busy bees. I finally refinished my cabinets. I also ripped down the ugly back splash and painted. We replaced the stove and the dishwasher. We ripped down the mess that was above the ceiling. I'm so thrilled with how it is turning out.

We still have the top of the cabinets to finish and the ceiling. We are hoping to get working on that in the next few weeks, but we'll see. Eventually we are going to put handles on all the cabinets. Ammon is going to make me a beautiful concrete counter top that will be a shiny black. We also want to replace the floor, but we haven't decided what finish we are going to do there yet. It will be amazing though.

It has been so nice to have a fully functioning kitchen. It is really amazing. Although I find that I often forget to close the cabinets doors. We went a long time without them.

The Amazing Ammon

2010-07-20T07:34:00.001-06:00

Today is my handsome husband's birthday and I would be remiss if I did not sing his praises. I could fill volumes with praising my husband, but since the magic number today is 27 I think I'll give you that many facts about Ammon in no particular order.

1. Ammon is kind.
2. He is so incredibly handsome and good looking.
3. I have never met someone more intelligent.
4. He is an amazing father. This picture says it all:

5. Ammon loves to build things.
6. He also loves to invent.
7. Ammon has an incredible sense of humor.
8. He is a natural leader.
9. This boy can jump! Did you know that his PR is 6'11"? That's 5 inches over his own head.
10. Tall. Ammon is tall.
11. Have you seen Ammon smile? He has an infectious smile.
12. Ammon will not rest until he has figured out the best way to make something work.
13. I love having a handy husband. Ammon can fix anything. If he doesn't know how to fix it he will figure it out.
14. Ammon has the best laugh.
15. I have never ever met anyone who didn't like Ammon.
16. It is impossible to fight with Ammon.
17. There is no one on Earth that possesses the patience that Ammon has.
18. Ammon enjoys playing basketball and he is very good at it.
19. This guy possesses many talents from being capable on a horse to being a skilled writer.
20. Ammon is a good brother and son.
21. Ammon has an incredible testimony.
22. There is a certain love for adventure that Ammon has that is so attractive.
23. Despite how incredible Ammon is he is incredibly humble.
24. Ammon is dedicated.
25. He makes me happy. Ammon makes me feel beautiful and intelligent. He makes me want to be a better person.
26. Ammon is so much fun.

27. And he is adored by both Cormac and me.

Shine on me

2010-07-16T11:31:00.000-06:00

When Cormac was still in my belly I knew I was in trouble. He moved so much all the time. That suspicion has only been confirmed as we've gone along. Now he's on the move. He crawls everywhere, but that's not good enough for Cormac, he has to try to walk as well. He is pulling himself up on everything. And now he has his first black eye.

Notice the bruise under the eye. He also has a mark on his nose that I'm not sure where it came from. Then this morning he hit his cheek on the bookshelf to complete the look. I'm in trouble. But this is one tough kid. He didn't cry about his cheek and only cried for about a minute with his eye. He is rough and tumble, that's for sure.

He sure is cute. What's a mom to do? I really do try to keep him safe. I guess I'll just have to accept that this one is always going to be a bit bruised. When you play like Cormac you're bound to get some bumps. I just don't know if I'm ready for that. Lucky for me he's tough. Here we go...

Alligator Tears

2010-07-13T12:04:00.001-06:00

My grandma with her brand new son, Leonard.

I remember how sad I was when Cormac started crying actual tears. It's one thing to have a baby crying. It's another thing entirely to have tears. I told Cormac how sad I was to see his alligator tears. I'd been calling them that for a few days when Ammon finally asked me why I called them alligator tears. I stopped for a minute to think. I couldn't come up with a reason other than that is what my mom used to call them.

The next time my mom was visiting I asked her why she called our tears alligator tears when we were growing up. Her answer? Her mom used to call them that.

Dorothy Lister Wilson

My grandma passed away a few years ago. I miss her. I've been missing her a lot lately Maybe it's because every time I walk through my house I see her beautiful table and chairs (thank you so much Aunt Harriet for giving us these).

Maybe it's because becoming a mom has made me think more about the moms that went before me.

Dorothy hugging her oldest, Harriet.

Maybe it's because I did her life story and there were so many unanswered questions. Maybe it's because I've been cleaning out my computer lately and backing up old files, many of which are pictures from her life. I don't know what it is, but either way, I really do miss her lately.

Dorothy and Jesse Wilson on their wedding day.

My grandma was an amazing woman. She is a legend in my family for her work ethic. It is common knowledge that no can pluck a chicken, shuck corn, or peel a potato as fast as my grandma could. She was handed a lot to deal with in her life and she did it so well. I admire her for the life she lived. I hope to be the kind of woman she was.

Me, Christie (my mom), Nick (my brother), Sera (my sister), and Dorothy (my grandma) in Hawaii.

So, I don't know why I'm missing my grandma so much at this particular junction in my life, but I am. It's good to know that we will see our loved ones again. I know when I see my grandma I'm going to make sure to ask her why she called them alligator tears.

Silverware and Kitchen Bliss

2010-07-12T16:43:00.000-06:00

A momentous thing happened this week in the Dahl House. We finally have a silverware drawer. Now this may not seem a big thing to any of you, but we moved in back in October and have been without one since that time. Instead we had to walk all the way back into the pantry to get our goods. But not anymore. Behold:

I'm so excited to have it done. I'm still working on the doors for the cabinets, but the remodel is coming along nicely. Here is just a quick teaser. I hope to have more to show soon.

Busy

2010-07-08T10:57:00.000-06:00

We have all been super super busy around here. Our kitchen is still in the works of being remodeled, as is our bathroom. Our yard needs mowed...again... Work is keeping us all rather busy. Even Cormac has been a busy bee. He officially has 4 teeth now. He broke the top two yesterday. Not only that, but the little one has officially started a traditional crawl as of yesterday. He gets around just fine by throwing his body in all different ways. But yesterday he finally figured out how to move in the way we often think babies should. So, here we go. As if I wasn't busy enough, now this boy can really move and my life just took on a whole new dynamic. Bring it on.

The many faces of Cormac

2010-07-02T13:58:00.001-06:00

I couldn't help myself. He's just so cute. That and I'm avoiding getting to work. This is my first movie I've ever made and there are mistakes, so you movie buffs go easy on me please.

This is especially for you Grandpa G since you don't see much of our boy. It's a little long. I got carried away. But if you make it to the end there's a special treat. You'll get to see those pearly whites. Enjoy!

Mirror Health

2010-07-01T12:36:00.001-06:00

I would like to tell you all about a new project I'm working on. I hesitated to share it with the world. My original intent was to only share this new project with strangers, but I felt that in the end that wasn't really what I wanted. I have started a new blog called Mirror Health. This is a blog all about my personal journey to learn to accept and love myself where I am at while trying to achieve health and wellness for myself and my family.

It really is no secret that I have always had low self esteem and never thought too highly of my body. Then, as you all probably know, I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. The pain I sometimes have is terrible. But I have learned that by living healthy and well I can usually cope with the pain. Sometimes I would rather be lazy though and not live healthy. This blog is an attempt to move past that laziness and to document my journey along the way.

As part of this whole journey I have decided that I want to start teaching yoga again. So, I am going to be offering a free yoga class in the park. This class will be held on the border of Orem and Lindon, UT. I hope that many of you locals will make your way there. I am really looking forward to sharing something that I love with others. The class is open to all levels and age groups. Children are encouraged to attend or to just come and play while their parents participate. I hope it will be a rewarding experience for all of us.

Oh, and did I mention it is free? That's right, this is going to be a FREE class.

Check out all the details on the new blog. I hope that maybe my journey can help someone else along their own journey while giving me the motivation (and possibly some support from readers) to follow through on my goals.

Visiting

2010-06-24T16:05:00.001-06:00

This gorgeous lady is my mum. She is an amazing person. I mean, how many women do you know who have lived in a tent for more than a couple of days? My mom did it for several weeks and kept our family together and sane during it.

Mum came and stayed with us for a week. She is terrified of snakes, but she still stayed in my house. What a trooper. During her stay we had a little work party with my aunts Harriet and Julie. I had planned on having them most of the day and feeding them dinner. We ended up just having lunch. I couldn't believe how fast these three women can work. I've hear stories of how hard and fast my grandma could work. I guess she raised her children well. I told my mom I was surprised at how fast it was going and she just said, "We're Wilsons." True.

During our party we spotted 4 snakes and killed 3. That brings our grand total up to 15 dead snakes. Wow. Anyway, I would like everyone to join me in a round of applause for my mum because she stayed with me for 4 more nights. I'm impressed. I thought she would be gone. She's a brave woman.

We miss her. She spoils us rotten when she is here buying and making us yummy food. Bringing Cormac new clothes (he's wearing 18 month outfits now!), and buying Cormac books to chew on. And much to my shame and sorrow, she was the first to notice Cormac's new tooth. But I did discover it on my own without her saying anything. I just didn't discover it first. Oh well. Thanks for spoiling us rotten mum.

Isn't she beautiful.

8 Months Old

2010-06-22T14:54:00.002-06:00

Or in other words, 2/3 of a year. We can't believe it over here. Cormac has been busy this month. It has been exciting. He turned 8 months old on Father's Day and he celebrated by breaking his first tooth (finally) and starting to go from lying down to sitting up all on his own. He has even started attempts at pulling himself up. What a boy. At 8 months Cormac:

~has his bottom front left tooth!
~can almost crawl. He is sort of going backward now. He is so so so so so close.
~is all over my house and in to everything despite his not crawling.
~loves books. This kid was born into the right family.
~sings and yells all day long.
~MOVES! We had a family reunion and Cormac sat next to his cousin Ruby the whole afternoon. Ruby is a month younger than Cormac. At one point Ruby's father, Tabor, said that Cormac had moved more in the last hour than Ruby moves in a day.
~has become good friends with Sandy. He laughs at her and she tries to lick him (Sandy is one of our dogs in case you aren't sure who I'm talking about).
~is ticklish under his arm and under his chin.
~smiles and laughs a lot.
~has an incredibly high tolerance for pain.
~loves to eat bread.
~is extremely curious.
~is super super tall. Our boy is now 29 inches long! He is also weighing in at about 20 lbs 5 oz.
~has the most infectious laugh and winning smile.
~can read and write. Or at least Ammon swears he can. Makes sense to me. It would explain why he loves books so much.
~still isn't sleeping through the night and seems to be getting worse at taking naps. Although we are finally on a schedule and that seems to be helping.
~loves his mommy. We like each other.
~loves his daddy.

And is still the most handsome little man around. I get so many compliments on my handsome little boy. He's a real winner. I'm just hoping his sisters get those eyelashes too. Cormac is so much fun. I love having a son who just adores me exactly how I am. I'm trying to enjoy it while it lasts. I sure love my boy.

Ammon's First

2010-06-21T19:30:00.004-06:00

I had such a wonderful Mother's Day. It was a very special day for me. I wanted to make Ammon's Father's Day really special as well. So, Cormac and I made a tie for Ammon with Cormac's footprints on it. Actually it took my brother, my mom, Cormac, and me to accomplish the task, but we got it done. Then we made Ammon a special breakfast, a special dinner, and a special cake:

Our shrimp boil was a great success.

So was our Father's Day cake.

I have loved Ammon for a very long time. But until I saw Ammon hold our baby in his arms I don't think I really appreciated him. Especially on those long first nights when the baby would be crying and crying and crying and Ammon would get up and hold him so I could get a few minutes of sleep. Even though he had to get up early for work the next day.

The first time Ammon held Cormac.

We moved into our crazy house here in Lindon only a week after Cormac was born. We had so much going on. Ammon would go to work all day and then come home and work on our house all evening and into the night. At one point we had ripped out all of our bathroom. We had no shower. So Ammon was working tirelessly to at least get us a bathtub up and running, but when you have to rip the walls, floors, and everything else out of a bathroom and then start over there is a lot to do. Especially for just one man. After working all day it was late and we were tired. It was time for bed. Then Ammon pointed out to me that he hadn't even held Cormac once that day. I had just assumed that holding the baby would just get in the way at that point. I thought it would be better to just keep out of Ammon's way so he could work. But he wanted to hold his baby. So, Ammon sat on the couch with the sleeping Cormac and just held him for half an hour before putting him down and then climbing into bed exhausted himself. I love how much he loves his boy.

Cormac adores his daddy. They have a lot of fun together already. Ammon is giving Cormac crawling lessons. They also build forts together.

I really am thankful that I have these two handsome men in my life. Ammon is an amazing father. I love to watch his face light up when he sees his son. I love to watch his son's face light up in return. Cormac is taking after his daddy in many ways. Like his height. And his winning smile. These boys are so much fun. I'm glad I get to be in the middle of this.

Happy Father's day, Ammon. Cormac and I love you. You are a wonderful father and we are both so glad that we have you!

My Dad

2010-06-21T18:56:00.001-06:00

I would be remiss if I failed to make mention of my father this Father's Day. I struggle to put down how I feel about my dad. He is a good man. I love him a lot. But how to convey that is something I struggle with. So instead I thought I'd just tell you a little about him. Growing up my dad would wrestle with us. I'm sure many fathers do this, but it was special to my sister, brother, and me. Especially because dad was so busy. He took time to be with us when we were young. He was the coolest. I remember telling some of my friends in school that my dad could drive a car with the fingernail of his pinky finger when we got in a fight about whose father was a better driver. Obviously mine was. He was also the strongest, smartest, most fun, etc. When Dad would tuck Sera and me in at night we would do everything in our power not to move for as long as possible so we "wouldn't mess the tuck up."

When we got a little older my dad would wake us up every Saturday morning by blaring Queen over the stereo. Then he would come in and practice his diving techniques on to our beds where we were trying to pretend like we didn't hear the music or see the crazy man about to leap on top of us. We would have to get up and get to work. But working with my dad was often a lot of fun. He was good to teach us lessons as we went. I remember driving over the hill into Wendover with my dad and him teaching me about the curvature of the Earth. Every time I come over that mountain and see the Salt Flats spread out and see how the Earth curves I think of my dad (and we make that trip fairly often since Ammon's family is in Nevada).

Anyway, most of this is just me rambling on about my pa, but he really was and is an amazing guy. I'm thankful that I had the coolest, strongest, handsomest, funnest (yes I know that's not a word), awesomest dad growing up. Yup, he's better than your dad. And he can beat your dad up too.

The Guest Bedroom

2010-06-16T09:02:00.002-06:00

Walk with me down the stairs of our home. We only have a half basement. It is small, but kind of fun. With the warmer weather it's so nice to have the basement where it is always cool. Our basement consists of the smallest little hallway you could imagine, two large storage closets under the stairs, and two bedrooms. I decided to make the first bedroom a guest bedroom.

Here is the before:

Then Ammon tore out the carpet and we had it replaced:

It's really hard to tell from this picture, but the carpet is nicer. I finally got around to painting and fixing up this room back in March I believe it was. My mom was coming to town for the week while Ammon was out of town. I had been meaning to fix up the guest bedroom forever and felt that this would be a good excuse to just get it done. I would like to say that I was able to do a little fixing on the walls, fix the trim, paint the trim, and paint the walls all in one day. I've still got it.

While I was busy at work painting I decided to open the window in order to tape it off a little better. The windows in our basement don't currently have screens, and though the window wells are disgusting and really need cleaned (it's on our mater list) I didn't think much else of it. I opened the window and what should fall in but a little garden snake. Now my long term readers probably remember our little snake problem we had begun just before this project started. This was the fifth snake we had spotted (we have since killed 11). I screamed. I'm not afraid of snakes, but come on. Luckily I was thinking on my feet. The snake was only half in the house so I slammed the window shut hoping that by pinching him like that I'd kill him. Well, it didn't work. So I ran upstairs while the snake was trapped and got a plastic bag. I ran back downstairs and looked around for what to do next. Sitting on the bed in the middle of the room was my hammer. I figured that would do the trick. I opened the window and put my slithery enemy in the bag and threw it on the floor. I grabbed my hammer and beat it to death. Then I felt guilty. Poor little guy. What a way to go. But I wasn't about to let him in my house. My mom is terrified of snakes so she didn't learn of this adventure until after she went home. And I'm very proud of her, she is sleeping in that room right now. I didn't think she would ever stay with me again.

This room was a problem for me. Not only did we have our snake adventure, but I managed to dump almost the entire gallon of paint on the floor. Luckily I had taken the time to lay down a heavy layer of plastic. So I was able to just roll the paint straight from the floor on to the walls. What a day. But when it was all said and done I had this to show:

I made the pillow shams to go with the comforter. I'm just barely learning to sew, so I'm pretty proud of my accomplishment.

That bookshelf was already here, I just painted it white to make it look better.

I also sewed the curtain to adorn this room. It took me a few tries, but they aren't too bad. Just don't look too closely.

I wish the lighting was better. This is one of my favorite colors I have ever used and you really can't see it. It is called Classic Key Lime. It's a very yellow, cool, green. I love it!

As with all rooms in our abode, this one is not yet finished. However, the only element missing is a frame for the bed. Right now it is sitting on the floor. So if you come across a queen size frame that needs to go away let me know.

The Big Blue Ball

2010-06-14T09:09:00.003-06:00

This adorable little boy was the only boy in our small family. He was plagued with two older sisters. It's hard to be the youngest (or so I've been told by Ammon, the youngest of six). It's harder to be the youngest with only older sisters to play with. Luckily for Nick, Sera was a tom boy, and she was closer in age to him than I was. But regardless, Nick spent a lot of time amusing himself. He loved many things, but one of his favorite toys was a big blue ball.

This is not Nick, but it very well could have been.

He loved his ball. But most of the time there was no one to bounce his ball back to him. That didn't deter Nick. He was creative. He came up with a solution. The solution? The stairs! Brilliant. He could bounce the ball up the stairs and then it would roll right back to him where he could again hit it back up the stairs. This pastime allowed him hours of fun. However, there was one hiccup in this game: his oldest sister. Yes, that would be me. You see my bedroom wall happened to also be the wall that bordered the stairwell. Now when I remember this game I remember that it was always played on Sunday afternoon when I was trying to catch a nap. I was a teenager and was always busy with school, sports, choir, band, and having a social life. Thus my nights were often not as filled with sleep as they could have been. So I valued my Sunday nap as a precious opportunity to gear up for the next week. My family remembers that I was always yelling at Nick for playing his innocent game. I feel this is a little harsh considering that they all love their Sunday nap as well and none of them had to listen to the bouncing of a ball against their wall.

The long and short of it all is that I hated Nick's ball. I hated his game. I didn't want to listen to the noise. Why couldn't he just find something else and somewhere else to do it? But alas, that darling little boy has grown into something of a giant and he no longer has a big blue ball that he bounces against walls.

Now I often wish I would have taken more time to bounce Nick's ball back to him. But never fear, there is a new little boy in the family. And my brother and my father are not about to let him live his life without the pleasure of knowing how to have fun with his toys. Behold:

The stairs in my home. That lovely blanket is there acting as the wall to Ammon and my bedroom. By the time Cormac is able to throw a ball around we hope to have a real wall there (notice the words "we hope," it is slow going around here with our projects). As you can see, the situation is very much the same as it was in my brother's time. I am sure that he will not allow Cormac to go unknowing of his Uncle Nick's favorite game.

And conspiring with him is my dad. Who recently sent a little gift for his grandson.

In the words of my mother, "You know that ball is just going to get bigger over time." Yes, I'm sure I'll know it better than anyone else.

Growing Houses

2010-06-04T15:50:00.002-06:00

This is our little house. There is a lot of work to do around here. But since I am currently working 2 part times jobs, have a 7 month old, am attempting to help my family eat healthy meals, go to yoga 3 times a week, and try to have a few minutes here and there with my husband (among other things), most of it is not done. We have so much yard work it makes me want to cry. Our kitchen is still torn apart. Our bathroom isn't finished. And we recently had a minor flood in the basement and so it is a disaster down there as well. Sigh.

Yesterday I decided I was sick and tired of seeing my house so dirty on the outside. I went on the hunt for a hose. I settled Cormac down in the shade, turned the water up so I would have a lot of pressure, and started spraying. I wanted to get the dirt, spider webs, and bird poop off.

As I was spraying away Ammon pulled up from work. He stood a little way off until I stopped splashing so much water and then came over to give me a kiss. Then he said, "I want our house to grow too, but I'm not sure if that's the way to do it." I just love this guy. He makes me smile and laugh all the time. What a guy.

Seven Months Old

2010-05-28T09:33:00.001-06:00

This post is a week late. Sorry. Our little Cormac is growing up so fast. He is so much fun! We just adore this little man. Every day is a new adventure. He is a little sponge soaking up as much as he can. I think he is learning very fast and is such a smart boy. He takes after his dad that way. At seven months Cormac:

~likes to use his head as a battering ram. He bangs his head on everything and then usually laughs afterward. I think he enjoys finding out how things react against his head.

~is finally growing back his hair!

~weighs in at 19 lbs 3 oz and is 28.5 inches tall.

~loves bath time. But is not such a fan of getting dressed and undressed.

~doesn't cuddle as much as he used to.

~is always moving.

~sleeps with his feet up in the air against the side of his crib.

~loves his blocks. He loves knocking down towers that you build for him.

~loves prunes. He is also okay with peas as long as they are mixed in his cereal. He likes sweet potato from a can, not if it's homemade. To be honest, the kid just really doesn't seem to like food that much. Which is so strange to me.

~wants to crawl so so bad. He is close and he tries all the time. He just hasn't figured out how to move all the parts at the same time yet.

~loves to pull hair.

~is teething. Keep a careful watch on your fingers or he'll have them in his mouth and he can bite hard, even without teeth.

~has a death grip. If he wants it he can hold on.

~is fascinated by lights.

~loves Sandy and Charlie.

~loves his daddy and his mommy.

~is not a great napper.

~is still not sleeping through the night.

~loves to hit. Not in a mean way, he just is fascinated by the feel and sound of his hand on any and all surfaces,

~ , k bu b n .yt (this is Cormac's contribution).

~loves to smile and laugh.

And we love to smile and laugh with him. He is so much fun! I can't believe he is growing up on me so fast. But I'm so glad he's here. I can't imagine my life with out him.

Yum

2010-05-19T13:36:00.006-06:00

Tell me I have the cutest baby in the whole world! You know you want to.

Waterfall

2010-05-18T13:44:00.006-06:00

I just wanted to post a few pictures from our little hike that we took on Mother's Day. We just picked a random trail and started walking.

The view was spectacular. And I don't just mean my two handsome men.
And we were surprised to run right into this:
I love waterfalls. We had no idea this one was on the path that we had chosen. It was a nice little surprise.
And it was a fun and wonderful day. Cormac especially enjoyed flashing the camera with his hottest you-can't-touch-this face. What a nut. What a day.

Cormac's Room

2010-05-17T13:56:00.011-06:00

Let me take you on a tour of Cormac's room. We had some fabulous pink carpet and pink curtains that had to go. Sorry this picture is blurry, but this is the best picture that I have. Here is the before:

And the after:
Cormac's closet wall is shared by the bathroom. As you may recall if you followed our bathroom posts from when we moved in (click here), that wall had to be torn out due to dry rot.
We haven't actually finished the closet yet, so you don't get to see pictures, but because of that little fact we had to tear out the carpet and a good chunk of the floor and wall.
This is where Ammon started ripping and tearing. Once he had finished ripping things out, he replaced the floor, and the carpet layers came back to put down something more friendly to little boys.

And now this is where Cormac has his little domain. At some future date I hope to have an actual changing table. We've just been using Cormac's Pack & Play. The giant bean bag is a hit:
I am grateful to my Aunt Harriet for donating that fabulous dresser to our cause. I'm hoping to refinish it one day to match Cormac's crib, but it is just one thing on a list of many:
The quilt on the wall is the one that my mom made for Cormac. Isn't it sweet?
Cormac feels like king of the house. He is the only member of our family that has four walls and door. Ammon and I have yet to finish our room. Well, I guess Sandy and Charlie have four walls and a screen door. But Cormac gets to be in the house, unlike our other children.
I still need to make curtains and paint some trim for Cormac's room. And as I mentioned the closet isn't done yet. But other than that we are finished and enjoying having a place to play, read, sing, and sleep for our little one.

P.S. In regards to the shelves in the office, I know the originals looked nice in the picture, but they weren't. They were very poorly constructed of very cheap materials. They wouldn't have held up 5 books. And it really is an improvement to have them gone despite the picture making them look so good.

My First

2010-05-09T14:30:00.007-06:00

For the past few years (or more) I have spent every Mother's day Sunday avoiding the young men who were handing out Mother's day gifts to all the women over the age of 18. At first it was because I was not even old enough to be a mother despite being in Relief Society. Then I started to avoid it because I so desperately wanted to be a mother and was not. Those last few years were hard. Mother's day was just a reminder of what I felt was already missing in my life. And then This happened:

Now Six months later I stare in awe and wonder at the mothers I have known in my life. I never appreciated my mother until I had a baby. Oh, I can say that I thought I appreciated my mom, but I had no clue. No clue at all what she went through for me. The week Cormac was born she was there for me. She sent me to bed and would hold my baby for me so I could get some sleep. She packed up our entire apartment by herself because Ammon had to work and I was too tired to do more than sit and stare in horror at the task before me. She fed us that whole week too. And then she helped me get moved in. She tirelessly scrubbed my nasty kitchen and helped me to get established enough in my dumpy home that I could at least somewhat function. And then she called often to make sure I was holding up and to offer moral support. What a woman. I wouldn't have made it those first few weeks without her.

But that isn't all. I look back over my life and am humbled by the mother that I had. And I want to know how on Earth she kept her house so clean. Cormac can't even crawl yet and I can't keep my house clean. I could go on, but it would get long fast. And really, I just want her to know that I love her and am so thankful for her. Especially these last few months. It is so comforting to call her up on the phone. She doesn't judge. She encourages me. She is the reason that I want to be a better mother, and she believes that I can be a better mother, and that's motivating.

I have also been blessed with an amazing mother-in-law. I'm always humbled by how much this woman can do and by how talented she is. I don't even want to think about holding up a measuring stick of myself to her. One of the things that I love most about this woman is how much her children love her. I love how much she loves her children and how much she adores her grandchildren. It touches me deeply how thrilled she is to see Cormac every time she does. What is even more special to me is the fact that she wants all of us to be happy. She knew that we struggled to have Cormac. After we had spent the weekend at her home with Cormac when he was 6 weeks old she told me that what she loved most was to see me with my son because she could see how much I adore him. I don't know why that means so much to me. But it does. She notices and she cares.

And at this moment I am thankful for the son she raised. Her children are all amazing in so many different ways. But I got the best.
At this moment Ammon is making me a special dinner. He won't let me help. He is spoiling me rotten. He is making me feel special. I can honestly say that I am a very blessed woman. This picture was the first time Ammon held his son. He adores him. He is so proud of him. We both are. And I am so thankful that Ammon and I get the gift of this little boy. This Mother's day I gladly accepted my little gift from the young men who were handing them out. I am a mother now. I am not perfect. I have so much to learn and such a long way to go. I mess up all the time. Poor Cormac. But I have wonderful examples to learn from. And no one could love this little boy more than I do.

Tulips!

2010-05-04T13:10:00.003-06:00

I love spring! I wanted to share some of our spring pictures. Granted, it was freezing on the day that we took these. But still. Spring was coming out of the ground, if it wasn't in the air.

I'm still trying to lose the baby fat, so go easy on me. Apparently nursing is not the miracle cure for everyone. For me, it has been the opposite. Only 6 more months to go.

In other news, our little Cormac is finally sitting up on his own. It is very exciting. But he is also going through separation anxiety, which has been less than fun. Ah well. He is growing up so fast.

Click on this one to see it up closer. I love Cormac's face. He makes this face all the time. Ammon thought it looked like he might be giving the camera the bird also (he does that a lot for some reason...strange), but I think he is just squirming. Well, the little one thinks I've left him, so I better run. Happy spring!

The Office (No, not the series, the actual office)

2010-04-25T21:36:00.009-06:00

I've been threatening to post pictures of our updates on the house forever. I've been keeping a careful picture account of all of it. But I haven't been good at keeping them organized. So, going through the pictures was a little intimidating. But here we are. The first room that we finished.

The original office:

This is how it originally looked. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I took of it before we tore into it. So, you can't see the fact that the ceiling is coming off and peeling away. But it was. That was something I had to fix. Love that striped carpet.

And then I did this to it:

Fixed the ceiling and painted it. Painted the baseboard. New carpet. Ripped down the awful shelves. Re-textured the ceiling (before paint). Repaired and textured the walls. Then we went with a nice smoky green to finish the product.

Then we added furniture:

And now we have a lovely office that I sometimes struggle to keep clean. It happens to be the room that we like to pile things in. But at least the ceiling isn't falling off. Keep in mind, I did this back in November. Cormac was under a month old. Ammon was working on the bathroom, so this project was entirely done by me. Only a month (and less) after having a baby. Am I proud? Well, I'd be lying if I said no. I like to think that those Garrison genes I have make me tough, and I like to think things like this prove it. Toot toot (that's the sound of my own horn).

P.S. No, the bathroom is not done. Ammon and I like to start projects. We struggle to finish them. We have given up on the bathroom in favor of the massive kitchen re-do that we are currently in the middle of (shudder...more on that later).

Half of a Year

2010-04-21T15:54:00.007-06:00

Attacking the bear. See how mischievous he is.

Okay Mom, I'll do the picture face.

I cannot believe it has been 6 months since I was miserable in the hospital thinking that I would probably die. But as of yesterday, we officially have a 6 month old. I didn't realize how in denial I was about all of this until I wrote out the sign to take Cormac's sixth month picture. I got everything set up and ready to go. Then I looked at the sign I had written. It read "Four Months Old." Uh...

Well, despite my brain dead powers, our little man is anything but brain dead. Cormac is growing and changing every day. He is so much fun. Here are a few things about Cormac:

~He LOVES!! to spit. All the time. Well, you know, you saw the previous post.

~He loves to hear his own voice. He sings, hums, yells, babbles, yells, lectures, yells, talks, yells, and occasionally screams. We love to hear his voice too.

~He's teething, blah.

~Cormac loves to be around people. He likes to laugh and giggle, but he makes you work for it.

~He has the most amazing laugh.

~He is once again rejecting the binkie. This time I'm ready for that though and I'm okay with it.

~Still not sleeping through the night.

~We sort of started solids, but then we backed off. So, he's not on solids yet, but his weight is slowing down, so here we go.

~He is one TALL boy at 28 inches. He is only 18 lbs now (but have you seen his dad? I think tall and skinny might be in the forecast for this one).

~He enjoys playing and eating everything he can get his hands on. Especially if it is in Mommy's hands.

~He is super curious. He loves to go places and see what is going on. He even enjoys watching Sandy and Charlie play.

~He rolls all over the place, can sit on his own for a while (until he gets too excited and shoots himself backward), and is closer to crawling than I am ready for.

~Cormac is always, always moving. He loves to bounce, roll, scoot, squirm, anything really, as long as he's in motion.

~He is such a handsome boy. Here, judge for yourself:

And we adore him. Ammon and I are so happy to have him in our family. It has been a crazy, fast, and fun 6 months. Everyone was right, it goes by too fast. But I am loving every minute. Happy half birthday, Cormac.

He's communicating?

2010-04-13T15:06:00.002-06:00

We're so proud.

Spring

2010-04-05T08:42:00.004-06:00

I spotted our first few budding flowers on our tree just a few days ago. Ahhh. Spring is coming. Only one more snow storm to go. Well, in theory. You never do know around here. But what a wonderful way to remember the resurrection. Just looking at this tree budding and coming to life after a long winter sleep makes me thankful to know that we too can and will be resurrected thanks to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

This Easter was not my favorite I can remember. To me, being with family is the most important part of Easter. But alas, duty called my dear husband off on a journey. So, we had Easter morning with a nice breakfast and sent Ammon on his way. Cormac and I did spend the day with my aunts, uncle, and cousins, so it was still a nice day. We just missed our Ammon.
Cormac and I are lonesome without Ammon. He has gone back to the birthplace of his son, Helena, Montana, to see a few last minute details finished up on the project that kept us there all summer. When he returns from this journey Ammon will be taking a new job at a software company. We are really excited that this job appears to be a lot more stable than anything in the construction industry right now. Plus the job is in Orem, thus he can now get to work in 5 mintues rather than the 15 or more that he has previously had. I am thrilled that he will be so close and that he will not have to travel all over the country.
Cormac had no clue what was going on Easter morning. But he loves his duck and his sippy cups that the Easter Bunny brought. I haven't actually put anything in the sippy cups for him to sip yet. But he knows how to use them and what they are for and feels like a big boy when he uses them. The other day I was feeding him with a bottle and he wouldn't take it from me. He finally grabbed it and proceeded to feed himself. My little baby is growing up.

Well, since my husband is abroad, my mother is coming to stay with us so we won't be as lonley. Cormac is excited to have Grammy Garrison here. I am too. But I have a room to paint before our guest arrives. I had better get it in gear. Happy Easter and Welcome Spring.

Slithery

2010-03-26T18:15:00.006-06:00

If you read to the end of the post about our long trip then you already know that we had a snake visitor. If you did not read to the end, I don't blame you. Brevity is not one of my talents, and I know these posts get long. Well, I would like to give a full account here. We returned from a long trip on Monday. We had left the pilot light on our water heater on, but not the actual water heater. We had also turned down the heat, so it was rather chilly. There was one warm spot though. And that was near the pilot light of the water heater. Ammon walked into the laundry room and saw a little garden snake wrapped around the pipe by the pilot light. It saw him too and started to take off. But Ammon was the hero of the day and he nabbed it before it could escape. Then he took it outside and despatched of it while I had a little freak out moment. But then we moved on with our life.

On Wednesday we decided to get back in the yard to get some work done. We had been pruning our fruit trees before we had to leave for our trip, and we had never had a chance to clean it all up. Plus I have been attempting to weed the flower beds so that whatever flower it is that is growing there can do so unimpeded. As Ammon and I were discussing the project Ammon spotted another snake in the sun. I ran to get my camera and the snake took cover under the siding of our house. I was a bit worried that it would try to get into the house, but we once again moved on with our life.

A short while later we saw the snake. Ammon grabbed it and despatched of it. And our lazy dogs just stood there looking. They didn't even react to the intruder.

The weeding was getting a little tough so Ammon went and got a bucket of water to dump on it. Then it happened. He spotted another one. So, he went digging in the flower bed.
And he came out of there with this:
At this point I was starting to get a little more worried about our snake problem. But decided that I should not freak out. If you know me, then you know that I am rather fond of reptiles. Even snakes. But this is different. I like them in cages and domesticated. Or as domesticated as they come. I do not approve of them slinking around in my garden beds, and I am decidedly against them sneaking into my house.

Well, before the day was out there was yet another snake spotted and destroyed. Did you see that patch of flowers that Ammon was searching through? Yeah, I haven't revisited it. Especially with Ammon gone during the days now. Who will take care of the enemy? As you can see, the snakes all met their match when it came to the cinder blocks.
But my aim is not as good as Ammon's. So, our battle with the snakes is Ammon 4, Snakes ?. I'm thinking we should get some geese. Ammon thinks we got them all. I haven't gone looking for more. Yikes. Does anyone have any snake repellent?

Five Months!

2010-03-24T15:28:00.005-06:00

Our little Turkey is growing up. I can't believe he is already 5 months old. He is so much fun. He is growing and changing so much all the time. We love having him around. At five months Cormac:

~can almost sit up on his own. He tries all the time. He really wants to.

~rolls all over the place. He is finally starting to go from stomach to back too.

~can get his knees under him when he is on his stomach and push himself up. He doesn't have the arms figured out yet. But I think we are dangerously close to having a crawler.

~loves to make noises and listen to himself sing. He still makes noises like he's blowing ships out of the water. It is pretty darn cute.

~doesn't blow spit bubbles as much, but he sure likes to drool (possibly teething? we aren't really sure).

~Smiles a lot!

~will laugh if he is in the right mood and you are goofy enough. Interestingly, he loves to laugh a crazy laugh right after Ammon says, "you're nuts!" I think he likes the sound of it, but only if Daddy says it.

~loves bath time. And boy can he splash.

~is still not sleeping through the night. Will it ever happen?

~has slowed down in the growth department. He is about 17 lbs and still 26.5 inches. We are starting solids this week.

~loves to put any and all objects in his mouth.

~love, love, loves to bounce and stand and bounce and stand and bounce...

~is super adorable. We love him so much.

I have realized that using such a large stuffed animal in these pictures was a mistake. You really don't get a good scale. So, I am posting the following pictures to give you a rough idea of how much our little one has grown in five months. These first two were taken at 2 weeks old.
Full body stretch. These were taken in his pack and play.
Same pack and play. Same position as before. But not nearly the room to stretch as he used to have. And look! He's sort of smiling.
We love our Cormac to pieces. He is a strong, handsome boy. I can't imagine my life without him. I don't understand how I could have been content with life before he came. I guess I was not that content. It sure took a lot to get him here. And we are so happy for our little miracle.

The (nearly) two week long trip

2010-03-22T23:19:00.015-06:00

On Tuesday the 9th of this month Ammon got a call from CECO. They wanted to hire him for a few days to go and train some guys up in Seattle. So, we decided to make a family event out of it and we took off the next day. Can you see the excitement?

Cormac enjoyed chewing on his rattle, and anything else that he could get to his mouth. He did great on the trip up to Moscow, Idaho to visit my family. It is a long 12 hour drive. Cormac was awake for most of it, but we just played and had a good time.
We stayed at my grandparents house for three and a half days. We got to hang out with my parents. Cormac was still enjoying chewing on anything he could get his hands on. Most often he just chewed on his hands.
Uncle Nick was able to come and spend a few days with us. That was fun. I don't get to see him as often as I would like. I think Cormac enjoyed hanging out with his Grandparents and his uncle.

This is the back of my grandparents house. My uncle designed it and my father built it. It is pretty neat. Very modern and chic. My mom and I enjoyed going for a walk. It's a beautiful place, even if it is a nightmare to get there.
This picture of these elk was taken inside my grandparents bedroom window. They were so close to the house.
We had a wonderful time with my family. They were a little under the weather, so we just hung out and played games. My mother made us the most delicious food. She spoiled us. It was such a nice trip.

On Sunday the 13th we drove another 6 hours to get to Ammon's sister's house in Seattle. You can read more about our adventures on Thelma's blog. She also has more pictures of her family which I somehow came up short on. Ammon worked two days for CECO. In the meantime, I got to get to know Thelma and her kids better. Out of all of Ammon's family I have gotten to know the Davises the least in the last five years. I had a wonderful time talking with Thelma. I found out that we have a lot in common. I am rather shy and was a little nervous to hang out at my sister-in-law's house with out my hubby, but we had a wonderful time, and they made me feel right at home. I really wish that they lived closer.

We got to go to the beach. My niece, Emma, read the whole time. The boys, Braeden and Mark, worked on a fort. And Thelma and I visited and spotted a seal really close to the shore (he dove before I could get my camera on him). And Cormac liked chewing on his fingers and watching all the people and dogs go by.
After Ammon finished up with CECO, he embarked on a project for Thelma. He tore out the carpet in their master bathroom and laid some tile. As usual, it ended up taking longer than we had anticipated, but the end result is beautiful and I think everyone is pretty happy about it.

Before:

After:
While we were there we got to see a play by the Davis children. It was really fun. The blue shirt is Mark, pink shirt is Emma, and the wolf is Braeden.
Thelma was also very good to us. She fed us amazing food and thrilled us with her skills on the Wii obstacle course. Adam and Thelma treated us to many of their favorite restaurants as well. Everyone in their family made us feel welcome and special. They adored Cormac (who doesn't?) and helped me out with him a lot. Emma sacrificed her bed for us for the entire week, what a trooper.
We had a truly wonderful time. We left on Sunday the 21st. It took us two days to get home. Cormac wasn't as happy these last two days as he was on the way. We were so thrilled when we got home that when Ammon found a snake on our water heater in the house it wasn't even that bad of a shock. Luckily Ammon has fast reflexes and grabbed the culprit and despatched of him before he could hide away. And now we are happy to just be home for a few weeks before we embark on our next adventure. More on that to come.

Neglect

2010-03-18T14:22:00.002-06:00

Although it may seems as though I have forgotten you, dear blog, this is not the case. You see, our life has been a little chaotic of late. I have been doing so many things. I have taken pictures of many of those things to share with you. But I just haven't found the time. So, here are a few things that have been keeping us, at the Dahl House, busy this month:

~Cormac
~Ammon
~Job search
~Sandy and Charlie
~Cormac
~Fruit trees (pruning is a nightmare)
~Rose bushes, weeding, cleaning up the yard
~Laundry
~Our house, it is never done
~Cormac
~Ammon on crutches (he is doing much better now, just a basketball injury to the foot, it is healing up well)
~Traveling (First to Moscow, Idaho to see my family. And right now we are in Seattle, seeing Ammon's sister's family, doing some work for CECO, and putting down tile for Thelma (the sister))
~Cormac
~Headaches and backaches
~Deiting, or at least making an effort and failing
~Yoga
~Enjoying the sunshine
~Walking
~Church Basketball
~And of course: Cormac

So, despite my inattention to you, I have not forgotten. I will post pictures and tell about our adventures soon. In the meantime, Cormac is growing up fast and we love him. Ammon is doing well. Cormac and I enjoy having him around more. And I am still me. Just a busy me.

A Four Month Old

2010-02-23T13:31:00.004-07:00

When I was trying to take this picture Cormac kept grabbing the bear and pulling him closer to him. I suppose he wanted to snuggle. He has been feeling a little crummy since his shots yesterday. Can you believe I have a four month old? I can't. It has been going by so fast. It is so fun to watch Cormac grow and learn. He is such a smart, strong boy.

At four months Cormac:

~weighs 16 lbs 10 oz and is 26.5 inches long!

~has moved on from sucking on the side of his fist to sucking on his index finger. He prefers his left index finger to his right one.

~rolls from his back to his stomach, always over the left side. He also can roll from his stomach to his back, but he only does it on rare occasion. Usually he just gets mad that he's stuck on his stomach.

~loves to make noises! He loves to sing and talk to himself. He also enjoys blowing bubbles out of his mouth and makes noises that sound like he's pretending to blow boats out of the water. He also makes a hissing noise that is truly adorable.

~can grab on to things and can hold on (keep your hair away from this boy, he gets the little hairs at the back of the neck that hurt and won't let go).

~still likes to sleep swaddled.

~only likes the pacifier when it's time to sleep.

~smiles so much and will even laugh on occasion. But he's still pretty serious most of the time.

~loves to splash in the bath.

~has moved on from being fascinated with his hands to being fascinated with his feet.

This boy is so much fun. We love him so much! Now if we can just recover from those nasty shots.

Roll

2010-02-19T15:07:00.003-07:00

Two mornings ago we had an exciting new development in our little family. I was in the living room doing yoga, Ammon was in the kitchen doing dishes, and Cormac was on the floor in the living room. He was in his play yard gazing up at the giraffe and elephant. I guess while I was in down dog Cormac decided that he wanted to do some yoga too. I came up out of down dog to see this:

Cormac hates being on his stomach. But he now loves to roll. So any time he gets turned over he gets upset pretty quick. He can roll back to his back, but has only done it twice and I don't think he has that one all figured out yet. He is also very close to crawling. He has the legs figured out and can scoot himself up, but doesn't have the arms figured out yet. To be honest, I'm not ready for that one yet. He'll be 4 months tomorrow! So here's to our little roller.

Waking Up

2010-02-15T19:56:00.003-07:00

Every time Cormac wakes up he has to stretch. We usually swaddle him up at night (even thought he can get out of it if he wants, and has been able to do that since he was about 3 weeks old). When we unwrap him in the morning he stretches and then inspects his hands.

P.S. Please ignore the laundry that needs folded in the background. I did finally get it done.