The Smith's

3 years with the man of my dreams

2011-12-20T21:02:00.000-08:00

Zane and I sent two days and a night over in Midway at Johnson Mill. We first went tubing on fake snow (zane's favorite part-not really he wanted real snow) then checked in at our Bed and Breakfast and headed out for dinner. We first tried the snake creek grill since was had a $20 off coupon (and you all know my "frugle" husband. They had on couple in there and 6 tables open within view and the snobbie lady said they were booked and we would have to sit at the counter facing a wall. Well we left. We debated on where to go, finally to heber city to Don Pedros....NEVER EAT THERE....we thought we wouldn't survive the night it was so gross..did i mention my husband had a $10 off coupon here too. We went back to the B&B and i enjoyed the jetted tub.
We had a good time,Zane hates breakfast as he has to sit with strangers and talk knowing they all came here last night for the same purpose...so he thinks
It was my first time being away from my baby that i missed so much (thanks sara, jake and elaina for watching him).
It was a great time with my husband that takes such good care of me. Also did i mention he found a coupon for 10% of the B&B at B&B.com try it sometime soon.

The Nursery is Done!!!

2011-12-20T20:53:00.000-08:00

Zane and I (does anybody else have a hard time getting the husband on board with honey do lists on Saturdays??!!) spent a Saturday afternoon painting Hudsons room getting it ready for our friend jacob to come do some detailing. Hear is the out come.....what do you think?? thanks jacob and elaina for the help!! It's just what I wanted!

Project: Real House

2011-10-30T15:38:00.000-07:00

For the last two and a half years, my room has felt like a cabin. Zane made this awesome log bed before we got married and my mom made him that 'adorable' moose/bear/fish blanket. You may even notice the fish pillow case... cute right?

I've decorated around these items in the last three bedrooms that we've had, but I'm finally demanding a REAL master bedroom. I cannot sleep in the woods any longer. This sad picture is of the bed in the very plain room we now inhabit.

We've been in this house for 9 months and I've had trouble committing to anything. My first priority was that the log bed had to go. I wanted a sleigh bed, but Zane didn't think it was budget worthy- so I spent months watching on KSL for something I could make work. In the meantime, IKEA and I have been good buddies and I found this AMAZING duvet cover!!!! It followed my home and became my inspiration for the rest of the room.

Next, I finally found a bed with potential and set out to fix it up.

There were like seven layers of yellowed-white paint that had to be removed and it was tricky to work on it with a needy toddler so, four months later...

I'm finished! Well, with the bed at least- and I LOVE IT!!

[Pictures of the rest of the room to come... hopefully soon]

Look at me!

2011-09-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

As many of you know, I don't cook. My sister Lacie still makes fun of me for asking how high to turn the stove when boiling water. Although the sign in my kitchen still rings true: 'I kiss better than I cook', I'm actually becoming quick domesticated since being a part time stay at home mom.

In fact... (drum roll please)..... I made bread! And not in a bread maker. In fact, not even with a bosch or kitchenaid. I hand kneaded it. Twice. Its not all in the pic, but I ended up making three loaves, a dozen rolls, and a dozen bread sticks.

I know, I know.... you're impressed right? Me too! Usually I get bored if anything takes longer than 20 minutes. This took literally ALL day and I had a blast. Plus, it tastes divine. I am so stinkin proud of myself! *Thank you to whomever gave me those pastry towels that have sat in a box for 3 years. Sorry I laughed at the thought of using them*

Zane has always been better in the kitchen- thus the following canning projects that have taken every minute of the last month.

Okay, now to admit a not so shining moment. Hudson won't eat very many foods so the doctor suggested hiding things in pancakes. Haha, this was not very well hidden and Hudson would have nothing to do with it.

Happy Birthday Hudson!

2011-09-11T17:03:00.000-07:00

One year ago, this cute little fighter joined our family. Look how much he's grown.

It has been so fun watching his personality emerge. He is stubborn, persistant, and has selective hearing- but he is also snuggly, smiley, giggly, and all boy.

He doesn't do things unless he wants to and he'll dig his heels in if you try to push him. He hasn't showed much interest yet in verbal communication since mom and dad respond exactly how he intended to his grunts and screams. However, he is constantly making sound effects while he plays.

He is a picky eater, hates to get dressed, insists on sleeping in our bed (with his hand over my face). He loves bath time and is obsessed with books.

We use a lot of reverse psychology already since he's only interested in doing things when I say 'no-no'. He is incredibly observant, studying everything without a sound. He's cautious and looks to us for approval before doing anything he's unsure of.

Hudson has made our lives so happy. Yes, being a parent is hard- but somehow even the hard is good and we are so glad he's in our family.

Happy Birthday buddy! We love you!!

Ode to Second Grade

2011-09-09T10:31:00.000-07:00

I love my job! I love second grade. I love second graders. I love teaching children who want to learn. I love working half day. I love being home with Hudson more. I love leaving to work 5 minutes before I have to be there. I love it!

Seriously, I will NEVER go back to teaching 6th grade. Yes, I managed. Yes, I even did I stinkin good job of making those kids behave if I do say so myself. But now that I have experienced bliss, I realize that last year was *#@! and I am never going back.

I have traded in glares for smiles, gossip for giggles, 'you're ruining my life' for 'you're the best teacher ever'. Oh, I just love second graders and their thank you's and obedience, and hugs (every time we transition activities). I'll take thier runny noses and pooping thier pants (yes this has already happened) to thier back talk and passing notes.

Sigh.... I love you second grade.

CUTE

2011-09-09T10:28:00.000-07:00

Is this not the cutest thing you've ever seen. I want one. Oh, wait that's how I got the dog. P.S. he's free to anyone who wants him.

Another Baby

2011-07-15T11:43:00.000-07:00

Hudson gets a little excited around animals. On the fourth of July, there were some bassett hounds at the park in Rexburg. He didn't want to do anything but just sit there with those dogs and get licked. On Monday, we were at the park and Hudson took off crawling half way across the field trying to get to a dog that was on the other end. Since this was getting to be a regular occurance, I decided that he might need a dog.

Despite all of my former "No!"s to his father's requests for a dog. I gave in to this cute little guy

and bought him a puppy. A 7 week old black lab that we named Cole.

So, now I have two babies to train not to chew and whine. Two babies to potty train and teach to listen/obey. Two babies who make messes and drool on me. Two babies who love to be held and walked. Two babies to take for shots and well check-ups. Two babies.....

What was I thinking?!

But then again, he is making my boys so happy.

Mansfield Park

2011-06-28T22:22:00.001-07:00

I first fell in love with Jane Austen's literary genious when I read Pride and Predjudice as a Sophmore (during restitution). I am amazed at the way she uses words in their purest form: making them divinely beautiful. She can convey stronger opinions and feelings in a single sentence, than any other author I've ever seen could do when allowed an essay.

Her stories are so perfectly crafted so that she can convince the reader and unconvince them again like it was our own opinion from the start. Her characters are so real, her scenes so true to life, that you can't help but feel like you have some sort of claim to them from the time you spent together. I know it sounds wierd, but if you've read her you know. She is truly gifted!

Alas, I find old english dialect sneaking into my vocabulary for weeks after I've finished a book. I drive Zane crazy talking about 'what happened to Fanny today' over dinner like it falls in with all the rest of the daily gossip.

To be honest, as much as I respect Jane's writing abilites, I had been slightly disappointed with her other works (Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, Lady Susan, Persuasion, and Emma). Aside from wishing Lady Susan would fall on her face and Emma's pride would be wounded, I didn't much care what happened to most of the characters and the plot lines just weren't as enthraling as Pride and Predjudice. I feared I had read the greatest of them all first, leaving myself open to a disappointment with the others that might have been avoided had I read it last.

But then.... this month I discovered Mansfield Park and my love affair is renewed.

Here I must refrain from expounding for fear of exposing any of the juicy goodness you will find within. So, I make an end by stating that you simply must, must, must read this book. You're life will be forever the better; or at least you're month.

Like This

2011-06-28T20:28:00.000-07:00

School's been out for three weeks and it didn't take long for my little guy to turn "Mama's Boy". I've attributed his being so social to the fact that he has regularly spent time with lots of children and adults. He's never made a fuss about being held by anyone else. After just one week of being home full time with him, he wouldn't let anyone else touch him. Even Zane.

We're pretty tight these days. About a week ago, it was Zane's turn to put Hudson to bed (Yes, he takes 'turns'. Such an awesome husband!) but he was having a hard time. Hudson whimpered and whined for almost 45 min. Finally, frustrated, Zane asked me to give it a try. I walked over, picked him up, and he immediately let out a little sigh, gave me a hug, and then snuggled in and went right to sleep. I melted.

Zane however, took it pretty hard. I tried not to gloat but honestly, I'm loving having a Mama's boy.

He's been making huge improvements too. We have been working with Hudson to roll over for almost four months. I could tell he knew how but he just wouldn't. It's like he was just waiting for me: the first week I was home he starting rolling. I've been home 3.5 weeks now and he is sitting up, pivoting, crawling, pulling himself up to things, and standing with support. He loves to eat, yet he's so active that he's having trouble gaining any weight. He's still only 14.5 lbs but soooo cute!

Celine: My Love

2011-06-17T09:41:00.001-07:00

Best Concert Ever!! My sister Sara and I are slighltly obsessed with Celine Dion, its true. We have been talking about seeing her in concert for many moons now, but with the whole year and a half off to have twins: I was starting to think she was going to have so much fun being a mom that she'd just drop off the radar and it would never happen.

But Celine's back!!!

Zane bought me tickets to her new Show in Vegas for mother's day.

I didn't think it was possible but I love her more now than I did pre-show. It is unreal what she can do with her voice. There were several times where Sara and I would just look at eachother in awe (mouths open and everything). I kept getting goose bumps during the show and I even cried a little when she sang about the power of a mother's love.

I really wanted to buy a Celine t-shirt, but they were all ugly and definately not worth $95 (even if they did say Celine). So we each bought an over priced CD from the 'Celine store' and I bought her signature scent lotion.

I love it.

The CD Sara got is called 'My Love' but I didn't realize that until it showed up on my computer while I was listening. When Sara was talking about it, I thought she was saying "Celine, my love" rather than Celine: My Love. Bha ha! It didn't even phase me cause that's kind of how we refer to her anyway.

She is truly the most talented person ever!

Oh and she's cute! I mean personality. She kept getting embarrased when people would clap too long or loudly and she has amazing stage presence.They did some awesome stuff during the show:

They made a hologram of her and she sang a duet with herself.

The stage moved; the singers would just start floating to other parts of the stage. Cool!

During the last song, she was lifted in the air on a pedestal and water danced around her.

She sang other songs, not just hers. My favs were a jazz/blues song and Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror. It sounded better when she sang it then when he did! They didn't allow cameras so these google pics will have to do.

Okay, I'll stop. I warned you I was obsessed.

Tales of Teaching

2011-02-18T19:06:00.000-08:00

I really hope Hudson just skips right over being 11. Don't get me wrong, I love those kids... most of the time. However, I find myself wanting to scream on a daily basis. Of course that's when I'm not laughing, crying, or staring in disbelief.

I wish I had thought to keep track of what they say earlier, but here's the latest:

- Did you know fish can drown? Its true! I read it on the internet.

- If I work really hard today, can I have my peice of cardboard back?

- Student: I testified against my little sisters dad yesterday and he broke into our house. My mom doesn't feel safe here so we're moving to Compton to be close to her boyfriend while he's in jail.
Me: I thought he was in jail in Georgia.
Student: No that's my dad

- There's a sock on my floor; who's is it? No really guys, who's missing a sock? (No one claimed it!)

- I don't feel good, can I have another cookie?

- Wanna hear my favorite guitar set? Neener NEEner, Neener NEEner, Neener NEEner....(3 min later).... Neener NEEner.....

- I like pizza. (Every day for the past four months)

- I'm just not good at thinking.

- I can do nothing for a really long time.

- Coloring is hard; I'll just take a zero.

- If there weren't cops, I'd do whatever I wanted all the time.

- Hey, this is just like DT! (I was taking role)

- I can't do my homework. You forgot to tell me what I learned!

We Bought A House!

2010-12-29T22:03:00.000-08:00

Feb. 1st we'll be moving into our very own home in Eagle Mountain. I guess this means we're staying in Utah for awhile!!!

Zane has been wanting to be in 'his own house' for quite a while. I've been a little bit hesitant and have occasionally been touring homes to humor him. I honestly didn't plan on looking seriously until I was at least finished with this school year. However, in the midst of my humoring him, we came across a deal we just couldn't turn down. I agreed to place an offer and didn't think anymore about it.

Monday morning we received a call from our realitor letting us know that our offer was accepted. It was the weirdest feeling I've ever had. We started laughing, hugged eachother, and danced around. Then... I started dry heaving.

Its going to mean a lot of big changes over the next six months till I'm out of school but it will be so nice to be home owners. The house is perfect.

Its a wonderful neighborhood, almost new (4 yrs), and there's tons of room to grow. As you can tell from the picture the yard needs a ton of work (which zane is thrilled about- hopefully we don't end up with a pond). We are thrilled to be home owners. Hope to see you all staying over soon!

Thanks Jentry and Drue!

2010-12-19T11:54:00.000-08:00

My cousin Jentry has been watching Hudson for me and it has been such a blessing. Leaving my baby to someone else all day is challenging; but knowing he is being taken care of and loved is so comforting.

Jentry has a little girl named Drue who is almost two. She absolutely adores Hudson and it is so much fun to watch them. He definately recognizes her and she is so protective of him.

(Dure sharing her goldfish)

A week ago, Zane picked Hudson up and when he was gone Drue started looking around confused. She asked where her baby was. Jentry told her that he went home with his dad and she got angry. "No! My baby," she said.

I think it has been so good for both of them to be around another child. Thank you Jentry and Drue for taking such good care of my little boy!

P.S. She also takes amazing pictures. Here's one she took of Hudson

Best Two Years

2010-12-19T11:20:00.000-08:00

Zane and I have been married for two years today. While he and my cute baby snooze, I can't help but think how lucky I am to have them both. The last two years have taken us so many places. . .

We started out in St. George/Hurricane, moved to Rexburg, finished school, swore off Walmart, moved to Salt Lake, I did my student teaching, we waited for real jobs while I did hair and he sold cars, got real jobs (in our fields!), we had a baby, and had a million laughs along the way.

Growing together has been one of the sweetest experiences I've ever had. I am so lucky to have someone who loves me so much. The longer we are together the more I am convinced that there could be absolutly no one more perfectly matched for me. Two years ago I made the best decision of my life and each day is better than the last because of it. I'm so glad the many ahead will find us facing life together!

It's beginning to smell a lot like Christmas

2010-12-12T11:37:00.001-08:00

We put up our Christmas tree yesterday and now it officially feels like Christmas. Zane and I talked a lot about investing in a fake tree but I just can't bring myself to do it. I LOVE the way the real ones smell. As soon as we had it in the house I was glad we decided to go real. Like magic, just having the smell of pine in the house makes it feel like Christmas is really here.

Our first year I suggested that, since our anniversary is so close to Christmas, we make a point to go somewhere and bring back an ornament from that place so that it was actually special rather than annoying. Zane decided that it was such a good idea, he wanted one for everyplace we went that year- so we've collected ornaments from every major trip we've taken since we've been married. Then last year, we decided to turn a peice of the trunk of each years tree into an ornament with the year on it. So between anniversary, vacation, tree trunks, and a few ornaments I found 60% off at Shopko... I think our tree looks pretty darn cute!

I love being a mom

2010-12-12T10:58:00.000-08:00

Hudson just keeps getting funner! He is becoming super social and will stare at me for hours at a time while i sing or talk to him. He thinks everything I do is funny, and he's always smiling. He's starting to produce tears and pout when he cries. So cute! I laugh every time.

He loves bath time.

My favorite part of the day is nap. I've always been a snuggler and although I know we're not supposed to co-sleep, I can't help it- I love how cuddly he is!

My sister Lacie gave him this little suit (Pretend you can't see me messy house int he background). I'm really hoping we can still squeeze him into it when we finally bless him in February.

I am so lucky to be this cute little guys mom!

Whining

2010-12-02T18:44:00.000-08:00

Just when I think I hate my job enough to walk out, one of those kids tugs at my heartstrings. Yesterday one of my students came up to me and started stuttering. He's pretty shy and has only been at our school for two weeks so I haven't heard him talk a lot. I've never heard him stutter so I was making the most confused face.

I could tell he felt stupid for stuttering and the look I was giving him just made him more nervous. By the time I realized I was being a jerk, he finally spit it out. He was trying to tell me that I looked pretty that day. How sweet! And I thank the poor kid by looking at him like he's an idiot. Doh! Add that to the list of moments I wish I could do over.

I love teaching but sometimes I feel like I spend so much time nagging, lecturing, and disciplining that I never get to teach. Then the tests come back and there is no sign whatsoever that the kids understood even a smiggin of what I actually taught.

I'm tired of teaching; I'm sick of failing; and I want to sleep in.

Life since baby

2010-11-24T15:40:00.000-08:00

I've been back in scool for three weeks now. Remind me why I wanted to hangout with 75 eleven year olds everyday?

I get the rest of the week to hang out with my cute boys.

Hudson is now twice his birth weight and growing out of his preemie clothes. I took some more pictures of him next to the same objects so we can compare....starting to wish I'd chosen a cuter object like a stuffed animal. oh well.

This is of him in the same newborn outfit. The first was taken at the end of october and the second was yesterday. Its crazy how fast he grows!

Zane is loving being a dad and is such a lifesaver.

Between SEP conferences and getting sick twice in the last week, I have needed a lot of help with night shifts. Zane has been so sweet to take over. Poor guy is pretty tired though. He sat down for two seconds too long and was out cold.

The rest of these are just some favorites... aren't they cute?

Talking back already

2010-11-01T08:48:00.000-07:00

I am absolutely loving having my little man home! He makes me laugh everyday with all the faces he pulls and his giant attitude.

He grunts. a lot. The other night Zane grunted back and suddenly Hudson balled up his little fists and grunted so hard I thought his eyes would pop out. Oh my he has attitude! I'm afraid we're in for an adventure with this one.

I love the way his shifty little eyes are so alert to everything.

That his smile is crooked.

But most of all I love the blue steal look!

How can so much personality be in such a tiny baby?

Growing on Us

2010-10-18T14:57:00.000-07:00

Just got back from the Ped's office and Hudson has gained 8 oz this week (an oz a day!!) for a total of 4 lbs 5 oz. Way to go buddy! We're so glad you're home.

These newborn clothes still drown him

P.S. We are working on getting a camera that takes decent pictures. Hopefully we'll be able to post some soon.

He's Home!!

2010-10-12T17:52:00.000-07:00

Hudson came home on Sunday night and we are loving it.

Ready or not: here I come

2010-10-09T16:27:00.000-07:00

The next morning I told Zane it was silly for him to miss work just to watch me lay there for three days, so off he went. I spent the morning having a stress test done. I needed to use the bathroom but they said it would be easier to get the pictures if my bladder was full so they asked me to wait.

Upstairs, the nurse finished the ultra sound, said the doctor wanted to see me, and left the room. A half an hour later another nurse entered, did the same test, said she wanted the doctors opinion, and left. I laid there for over an hour- still having to pee. Finally, another nurse came through the door in a panic. "Oh there you are! We've been searching the entire hospital for you."

What? They lost me?! No wonder I had been left there so long. I asked the nurse why the first two nurses didn't tell her where I was and she said, "Oh, they're both at lunch." Again, What!?! They just went to lunch and left me there?! I was extremely irritated.

Back in my room, I laid there for another two hours. Great, I thought, I've been forgotten again. Finally, my doctor showed up with the results. He explained that the baby had stopped getting any nutrients and had actually lost weight from the ultra sound performed two days before. They needed to take him immediately so that he could continue to grow.

"I know this isn't what you had in mind, but we did give you both the steroid shots which will help with his lungs. We have every reason to believe everything else is developed and should be just fine." He said that the baby didn't seem to be under too much distress so they were going to induce me and just watch his levels. He explained that I needed to be mentally prepared for a c-section since it was very likely that labor would be too much for the baby to handle.

Up to this point I hadn't been really impressed with the man. He didn't necessarily do anything wrong, I just didn't love the guy. He was distant and I felt like I was just a number. As he told me the test results, that changed. He sat with me, he held my hand, and he let me cry.

A specialist from the NICU came in and talked about what to expect with a preemie baby. My mind was reeling. A week ago I had thought I still had nearly two months till baby. Three weeks, two days, now. Each time the news came I had to completely readjust my mindset. I was terrified; I felt completely unprepared.

As the nurse talked about the possibilities of his lungs collapsing, his eyes being damaged by the oxygen he would need, his small size (3 lbs. 5 oz), and other trials that I would need to be prepared for, I just cried. She asked if I was okay and if I had questions. I remember looking at her like those where the silliest questions in the world. What choice did I have? I had to be okay. What questions should I ask? I was still trying to process what was happening- my baby was coming and neither of us was ready for it.

I kept thinking of my mom telling me how she regretted not holding my older brother when he was born. She had said that the nurses had been so insistent on caring for him that he was gone before she got to hold him. This was my biggest fear. If my baby was going to die, I wanted to hold him first. I wanted to bond with my baby before he was gone. The nurse assured me that they would definitely hand him to me first if that’s what I wanted. She urged me to speak up and not be afraid to tell the doctors and nurses what I wanted.

I called Zane and told him we were having the baby. They expected that since my body wasn't ready to have the baby I would be in labor a long time. The doctor said that the earliest he expected me to deliver was the next morning. They started me on some pill that was supposed to soften the cervix and Zane called all of the family members to let them know baby was on his way.

Karen and the cop were there within a couple of hours. Mike and Tammie left immediately. Mom wanted to be able to stay and help out for a few days so she ran around convincing her professors to let her miss a week of classes. She didn't make it on the road until about 6 pm.

Meanwhile, I was reacting extremely well to the medication and was experiencing labor. I thought I still had at least a month so I hadn't taken any birthing classes and had absolutely no idea what to expect. I started freaking out and called my sister Lacie to have her walk me through it. I wanted to know what I was in for and knew she wouldn't sugar coat anything.

As the pain progressed I wanted my mom. I kept calling and calling, but her phone was at home and she was still on campus. I could tell that I was moving a lot faster than they had told me I would and I started to worry that she wouldn’t make it in time.

Around six another doctor came in and explained that the baby was in distress and they were going to do an emergency c-section. My doctor had gone home thinking it would be morning before I delivered so we had to wait for him to get back. No one had even checked me so I finally said something. He was shocked at how well I had progressed in just the four hours since receiving the pill, but said I was still too tight and the baby needed to come fast.

The c-section was awful. My body was so cold and I couldn't stop shaking. Zane was so cute to sit and hold my hand. I begged him to keep talking to keep my mind busy. It was so hard to just lay there and feel helpless- I wanted to be doing something, anything. I kept thrashing my head back and forth.

Cute Zane just kept talking. At one point I realized he was talking about finances and insurance and I wanted to get mad at him for thinking of those at a time like this. But then it hit me: he didn't know what to talk about either. I had asked him to keep talking so he was saying whatever came to mind.

The doctors acted so casual, discussing their weekend plans as they worked. I listened, glad for something to focus on and think about. Every once in awhile they would say something related to the surgery like, "Oh wow, look how thin the cervix is. Those pills worked really fast," or, "Sara, I think I broke the staple gun. Can you find me a new one?"

Each time my mind would go crazy and I'd think something like, "Oh my gosh, they're stapling me?!" The worst was when blood would splatter on the curtain in front of my face. Poor Zane; I bet that was hard for him too. Doctors: if you are going to leave patients conscious during such a mentally traumatic experience, the least you can do is give them a math problem or riddle to solve so their mind is busy.

I’ve always hated the feeling of being numb and the spinal block was the pits. Whenever I’ve been numbed at the doctor’s office, it takes forever to kick in. They usually have to give me five shots and then they still start drilling before I’m completely numb. I was terrified that my body would react similar and I would feel it when they started cutting. Luckily the only thing I could feel was my skin being tugged. It was all a mentally exhausting experience.

When the baby was taken out they told Zane to stand up so he could see the baby as it was whisked away. Zane said, “Weird. He looks like a shriveled little blueberry.” The doctors then all commented on how good it was that he cried when they cleaned out his throat and that he had lots of energy (flinging his arms). I thought of my concern to hold him before they took him away, but I was in such anxiety that I didn’t want to hold him when I was feeling like that. For a moment, I wasn’t sure what to do. Then suddenly, I knew it was okay. I could let him go and everything would be okay. I felt so calm and peaceful.

As soon as the surgery was over they wheeled me back in to my room. Mom still wasn’t there. My Aunt Calleen had come. I had tons of energy and we all laughed and told stories about how men and women are so different. I was so glad they were all there. I felt so overcome with gratitude for the people that loved me enough to drop everything and be there- for me.They then wheeled my bed into the NICU and I was able to see my baby for the first time, but I couldn’t touch him. He was covered in so many tubes and wires I couldn’t even tell what he looked like.

They moved me to a room upstairs where I would stay for the next four days and I fell right to sleep. I woke up when mom came in the room around eleven, hugged her, cried and told her how scared I had been without her there, and then fell back to sleep.

It's Time!

2010-10-06T10:40:00.000-07:00

I am officially past being patient. They've had my baby for a month; I want him back. Yesterday I seriously considered just unplugging the cords and walking out with him. They have to let me right?

He's holding his own temperature, he doesn't need oxygen. Really, none of their monitors are doing anything for him right now. The only reason he is still there is because they are working him back up on his feeds. Can't I do that on my own? At my own house? Seriously- if I notice anything wrong I'll bring him back in. Promise.

It's time. I need my baby to come home.

You know you're jealous!

2010-10-04T21:28:00.000-07:00

Chrissy and Melissa came up this last weekend and we all went to the Hansen concert!!!! I had so much fun hanging out with the girls. I was a little nervous that they would have outgrown thier talent now that their voices have matured. However, they did awesome. Alot of artists sound awful live but the Hansen brothers are really talented. It is quite possible that I like them more now then I did when they were popular.

You can see how much fun we had here.

As small as a . . .

2010-10-03T17:46:00.000-07:00

It's hard to tell just how small Hudson is from the pictures we have posted so i took some comparison pictures using basic household items.

My breast pad is bigger than his head

His body is about the length of a toothbrush

Yes, this is a normal size wash cloth

So tiny and yet so cute!

I have a secret (Shhh...)

2010-10-03T17:18:00.000-07:00

Zane is so hard to suprise! I love concerts, but we have never gone to one because we have such different tastes in music. I finally found a country artist I figured I could stand for an entire evening, so I decided to suprise Zane with tickets to Brad Paisley and Darius Rucker. He kept trying to plan things for that weekend, so I no choice but to tell him I already had something planned. From then on he wouldn't stop trying to figure out what it was.

I got Tammie and Mike

in on it and we did pretty good at keeping it a secret. However, when Hudson came I wasn't sure whether we should still try to go so I told Zane what it was so we could decide together. I'm so glad we decided to still go; it was fun to forget about everything for a night. Well kind of. . .

{Hudson was learning to nurse so we had to figure out how to work around his schedule. Also, I had to pump a couple times while we were there. Awful!! The first time I had to sit on the floor of the nasty public bathroom in between the sinks and have people look at me all sorts of wierd. Then, the bathroom was beyond nasty so I sat in the mud behind one of the buildings and as I was finishing a drunk woman came up to me wanting to chat about not letting Tammie give in to men. Bha haha! Drunk people are crazy!}

Anyway- the concert was a blast and now I have a new secret. I am in love with Darius Rucker. It's true. I have one of those silly celebrity crushes where I totally go weak at the knees when his songs come on the radio. As much as I enjoy Brad Paisley's music I have to say he isn't a great performer. Sorry Brad, but Darius stole the show.

Hudson's cutest ever.

2010-10-01T21:52:00.000-07:00

Well little Hudson is doing great. He weighs in at 3 lbs and 9 oz almost has gained 1 pound since birth. he is breathing on his own too, holds his own body temperature. If he continues to eat well, he'll be home in no time. Thanks for all of your prayers and gifts.

Update on our little man

2010-09-29T09:22:00.000-07:00

Hudson has been learning to take all of his feedings by mouth. There are four stages and he was cruzing through them- he had made it to stage three in just three days. Then, Saturday the nurses found blood in his stools. They made the decision to stop his feeds and give him all nutrients through an IV until they knew what was causing the blood. They started him on antibiotics which will last until this Saturday.

(Poor thing has had an empty belly for five days and he is trying so hard to be pleasant about it. His binky has been his best friend this week.)

His IVs keep going bad and they've poked him so many times that he was running out of viens for them to use. We decided to have a PICC line put in. The PICC line is basically a permanent IV. They thread a tube through one of his main veins and up to his heart. It can be pretty dangerous but the x-rays show that everything went okay. The good news is that the PICC line can last up to 30 days without going bad so little Hudson will have a break from being poked so much.

On a happy note: Hudson has completely weened off oxygen and is breathing room air. This is a big deal to us since the oxygen he would be sent home on is 100% whereas they dilude it in the hospital. 100% oxygen can be bad for babies eyes. Yay for not coming home on oxygen!

He is also gaining weight (starting to look plump and healthy), maintaining his own body temperature, and definately remembers eating. As soon as he is able to, I have a feeling he'll be cruzing through the stages again.

(P.S.) Here's what Peggy's scrapbook page looks like when its not in pieces:

But I feel fine!

2010-09-28T10:54:00.000-07:00

I had a rough start at first, struggling with morning sickness for almost 5 months. Months 6 and 7 were pretty fun as the sickness disappeared and Hudson started to move around.

I didn't ever really look pregnant. We figured that with this being my first baby, neither of us being very large in stature, and my uterus being tipped- I was probably just carrying deep and it was normal for me to look small.

At my 28 week appointment I noticed that the urine strip was discolored, but when I gave it to the nurse she didn't even make a note of it. She made a comment that my blood pressure was high, but she didn't seem to think it was a big deal. I told her, "You spend all day with seventy-five 6th graders and see if your blood pressure isn't a little high."

The doctor had been called to an emergency c-section so the nurse finished the appointment. When she measured me she looked concerned. She left the room and returned with another nurse. I was measured three more times and then they stood there arguing whether or not I should wait for the doctor to get back. They finally decided that it could be hours before he returned and I was probably fine.

Two weeks later I went back in and once again my urine strip was discolored. This time I picked up the bottle and found out what it meant. When I handed it to the nurse she quickly glanced and threw it away-just like last time. I bent back down, pulled it out of the garbage, and showed it to her again.

"Doesn't that mean there's protein in my urine?" I asked.

"Oh it is a little off, isn't it? Let's look it up."

She made a note of it and the fact that once again my blood pressure was up. "Uh-oh. You may have preeclampsia. Let me grab the doctor." Off she went.

The doctor ordered a 24 hour urine test, some lab work, and told me to take it easy that weekend. He explained that we were going to try to keep my blood pressure down, but if I had pre-eclampsia I would be having my baby before my due date. He estimated that best case scenerio- I had three weeks before baby.

I spent that night bawling hysterically- thinking of all the possible consequences of having my baby so early. Thank heavens for Casey! The doctor hadn't really taken time to explain anything to me so I was scared to death. I spent nearly three hours on the phone with him while he explained what it was, why it happens, and that it wasn't anything I did wrong or could have prevented.

[Pre-eclampsia is a condition where the placenta is faulty and doesn't allow nutrients to pass through to the baby like they should. For this reason, they can be growth restricted (small). Since blood and nutrient flow is restricted the mothers blood pressure will increase and the body won't absorb protiens so they end up in the urine. While high blood pressure is a symptom it isn't a cause. Along with the danger of the baby not getting nutrients, a mother's blood pressure rising is dangerous for her and the baby since it can cause seizures, harming them both.]

I spent the weekend in St. George with my mom, sisters, and my closest friends. Zane hung out with my dad and brothers seeing historical sites. I mention this because I think it was part of our miracle that Zane and I both went into the next week feeling rested, loved, and supported.

Tuesday I had an ultrasound and found out Hudson was measuring 4 weeks behind. My doctor wasn't in, so another doctor was taking my vitals. Both he and his nurse freaked out- my blood pressure had sky rocketed. He told me that there was no way I was going to make it 3 weeks until delivery and he wanted me to receive steroid shots to help the babies lungs develop incase he came in the next couple days. Once again, I bawled. I wasn’t mentally ready to have my baby already be here.

I received the first shot and was ordered on bed rest. I felt fine so I tried to argue with him about going back to work. He looked at me like I was crazy and said, "I don't think you realize how serious this is." I told him I had left my room a complete disaster and I at least needed to go back that night and get things ready for a sub. He turned to Zane and said, "Don't you dare let her. You take her straight home and put her to bed. You'll be taking care of dinner tonight."

We figured it would be our last chance for awhile if I was going to be on bed rest for three weeks (we still were having a hard time believing the doctors that it would be sooner than that) so we stopped at Wingers for dinner.Other than that, I tried my best to behave.

I stayed in bed all day on Wednesday. I did spend most of it sitting up, working on my laptop, and making phone calls to get my long term leave of absence started 8 weeks early- but I was still in bed doing no strenuous activity, right? I didn't shower, heck I didn't even get dressed until I headed to my doctor’s appointment that afternoon.

At the doctor's office I found out that my blood pressure was up yet again and my lab results were back- showing that I most definitely had pre-eclampsia. My doctor told me that I would not be going home. He wanted me on hospital bed rest so that they could be sure I wasn't getting out of bed. Once again I tried to argue- I felt fine! They gave me the second steroid shot and shipped me off to labor and delivery.

It was killing me to lie in bed. Zane and I couldn't even play cards, because I get competitive and that raised my blood pressure. I tried to finish tying up loose ends at work over the phone. The nurse came in while I was on the phone with a parent about her problem child. She looked at the screen, then at me. Her eyes were wild. She semi-lunged at the phone and then stopped herself. I took the hint and hurriedly ended the phone call. She was not happy. Apparently my pressure had been in the 'should be dead' range and consequently my phone privileges were taken.

It must have made for good nurse gossip, because the next four nurses that came in all scolded me for it. My doctor was even called down and he lectured me about not even thinking about work. I was so confused: how could I have 'should be dead' levels and feel perfectly fine?

I tried even harder to be good, but it turned out that even sitting up raised my levels significantly so... phone gone, unable to even sit up, I stared at the ceiling thinking bitter thoughts about how every doctor should have to experience bed 'a-rest' before they are allowed to prescribe it.

Caution: Journal Approaching

2010-09-28T10:51:00.000-07:00

We have seen so many miracles the past couple of weeks; I just wanted to get them all down. I'm sorry if this is boring, but Zane and I haven't been great at recording our experience. I'm going to use the blog as a journal. This will include what led up to Hudson's early delivery, our experiences in the hospital, and thoughts and impressions we've jotted down along the way. They may show up randomly so be prepared for lots of text and old news.

Ode to Peggy

2010-09-28T08:15:00.000-07:00

The NICU nurses rotate every 12 hours and we are always seeing new faces. We have really struggled with the inconsistancy- it feels like just as one nurse starts to get to know his cues, a new one comes.

We found one nurse in particular that we just love. We have requested her to be one of his primary care nurses which means the three days she works, she's always with Hudson. Did I mention that I love her? She knows just how to calm him down, what positions he likes to be placed in, and she is so patient in answering all our questions and teaching me to take care of his needs.

Yesterday I was really struggling. I haven't felt well and its emotionally hard to see him sick. She was so sweet- taking the time to steal me a pillow and blanket from a labor and delivery room so I could rest without leaving his room.

As Zane and I were leaving she gave me a huge hug and the cutest scrapbook page that she had made on her lunch hour of pictures she had taken of him while I slept.

(Apparently my scanner is smarter than me becuase it wouldn't let me scan the whole page in but kept cropping it instead. Oh well. You can't see how cute the page is but here are some of the peices. You'll have to imagine them all together.)

Hudson is off CPAP.....Hurray...we can see him!!

2010-09-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

Does it look like this girl just had a baby a day ago!!

First fight with oxygen..

Second fight with oxygen...

Doesn't he look so comfortable.

And he's starting to win!

The cutest feet I've ever seen, minus all the cords of coarse!

Thank you all so much for the prayers, i really think he's felt them and the Lord has helped him greatly, besides the fact he follows after his stubborn parents...we're all in trouble!!

Boys weekend while the girls have a baby shower

2010-09-15T11:16:00.000-07:00

While Rach was having a baby shower in St. George Labor Day Weekend, her brothers, dad and I went on a boys trip.
We first stopped at Arches National Park.

Mesa Verde National Park. Pretty Sweet Place.

We stopped at the Four Corners Monument, but we were to cheap to pay the entrance fee.

Finally the North Rim, Grand Canyon National Park.

Glad that we got one more trip in before little man came!

Hudson Zane Smith

2010-09-12T07:21:00.000-07:00

The baby came thursday night (Sept. 9th) at 7:12 pm. They had to do an emergency c section due to high blood pressure and a failing placenta. He came two months early, but was already 4 weeks behind in growth due to Preclampsia. Rach is doing good, Hudson Zane Smith is struggling a little bit. He was 2 lbs, 14 oz and 15 in long. His lungs weren't fully developed, even with the steriods, but they helped greatly.

He's a cute little bugger and he's fighting hard.

Blah!

2010-08-28T08:59:00.000-07:00

Why are dishes the hardest chore in the world to do? I'd rather eat worms.

Uintah Mountains camping at 7 months!

2010-08-23T06:53:00.000-07:00

Rachael says we put too many camping trips on here so she wouldn't do it. I don't think anybody could go camping enough and blog about it!! So here it is.... I went here when i was around 7 and wanted to go back, didn't realize it was so close, though so busy!!
Don't feel to bad for the 7 month pregnant wife, she slept on this air matress, though the second night about 9:30 pm she decided that she wanted to sleep in her own bed, so we packed up and went home.

I'm wierd, i like to see my truck in the mountains rather than the city!

Camp.

Lovely picture of me eating dutch oven chicken and potatoes.

Rach was impressed with my cooking.

Yes my 7 month pregnant wife went on a 1.50 hike up a mountainside with me. She did great and she thought they baby liked it. She didn't even break a sweat!

The hike was for this beautiful view for all the little lakes.

It was packed up there. It was a free camping weekend in all of the campgrounds, unknown to us, but they are all filled before we got there. So we camped off some road which is a our favorite type of camping anyway.

Baby Shower in Bear Lake

2010-08-22T20:27:00.000-07:00

Last month (grin) we had a baby shower in Bear Lake with the Spence clan. It was so much fun to see everybody and get to visit for the weekend. Thanks everyone for coming and for all you did. We are spoiled rotten.

P.S. Gotta love Grandpa

6 Months

2010-08-11T19:47:00.000-07:00

It's a bit blurry, but I thought some of you might like to see my prego-ness since we haven't really posted any pictures. This is me at about 30 weeks.

Back to School

2010-08-05T09:34:00.000-07:00

Only this time I'm supposed to be in charge. So, frankly. . . i'm nervous. Let me know if you have any genius classroom ideas- maybe things that made an impression on you from your school days. What to do if your license still hasn't come. How to get little boys not to give you underwear. You know, the usual.

P.S. Parents-be nice to your child's teacher this year :)

It's a wonderful life!

2010-07-08T10:17:00.000-07:00

I noticed a couple of weeks ago that my bio still said we were living in Rexburg- it is definately time for an update.

Zane and I are both officially college graduates (YAY!!!!!!!!) and are living in the Salt Lake Valley. We just moved out of our apartment in Taylorsville and are living in a basement appartment on the edge of West Valley and Magna. We are loving it here!

We both finally have salaried jobs in our fields! Zane started his new job today (I'm waiting for a phone call to hear if he's liking it). He will be writing and editing saftey manuals/programs for Caterpiller through a company called Browse. That's all I know- if you want more details you'll have to ask him. . .

I will be teaching 6th grade at the elementary school where I did my student teaching (Plymouth). I am thrilled to be working with the same faculty that trained me- they are truly amazing. I have to admit though, the first day of school nightmares have started and its comical to think how different they are from a teachers perspective than from when I was actually in school.

We have pretty much decided on the name Milo so if you totally hate it too bad. However, we are open to suggestions so you have four more months to cast your vote. Isn't that crazy! I am already over half way there. Milo is healthy and active and I am finally enjoying being pregnant. For the most part my morning sickness is MIA and it is so exciting to feel life stirring in there.

My sweet mother in law Karen and her mother Grandma Spence are throwing me a baby shower on the 17th of July up in Bear Lake. I have not been sure whom to invite because I don't want anyone to feel obligated to make that drive, but please know I am serious when I say you are all invited if you are able to make it. If you need directions to G-ma Spence's place let me know.

Camping. . . again!

2010-07-08T09:03:00.000-07:00

No, it's not just you- we camp alot. I've been teasing Zane that all we ever post on our blog is camping or hiking pictures. I promise we do other things but we only remember to take pictures when we go on these sort of outings so. . . you get to see more nasty pictures of me when I need a shower. Yay!

Yesterday we went up to Big Cottonwood canyon and hiked to three small lakes.

They were gorgous and it was a beautiful day to be outside.

I'm getting a little 'round' so it was difficult to hike but we made it!

We left our map in the car so while we found snow, we lost ourselves a little bit. Sorry to those of you we had to call to un-lose us.

Independence Day!

For the 4th of July we got to go up to Idaho and see the Smiths.

Our nephew Carter was baptized- thanks again Carter for inviting us to be there!

We had a ton of fun but man was it cold! Friday night we lit fireworks with Mike and Tammie and laughed histerically as the dog and duck both came unglued. We spent Saturday night above Swan Valley where we shot Zane's new pistol and visited with Chris and Becky. (We miss you guys!)

We watched fireworks in Driggs where we were listened to Glenn Beck and bought the most expensive cereal I've ever eaten.

Wright Family Reunion

The last weekend in June was spent at my family reunion on Beaver Mountain. Other than Toby (Zane's truck) getting a nail in his tire we had a blast.

I fell asleep on the bank while everyone fished so of course I burned. (My face felt tight that afternoon so I asked Zane if I was burnt. He said no. Within five minutes my aunt walked up to be and yelled, "Oh my word, you are fried!" I turned and just looked at Zane. After a minute he said, "Oh, I guess you are a little pink" Seriously?!?!) I peeled for a week afterward.

Despite his inattention to details like burnt skin, Zane is amazing! Especially with kids. So it was no suprise when he quickly aquired 5 or 6 permanent tag alongs. It was so fun to watch him bait worm after worm, teach them how to cast, and sigh when he'd have to untangle yet another snag. They were all sad to see him go.

We were able to spend some time with my brothers and sisters while we were there. Mom, Dad, and the girls came up for a night and we said goodbye to Anne before she headed back to Thailand the next morning. The boys played in a softball game, I had lunch with Chrissy and Aubrey in town, and Tam took us 4 wheeling. Tam and Chrissy even stopped in to see Grandma and Grandpa Lee in Monroe with us before we headed back home.

It's a . . . Squirrel!

2010-06-05T12:28:00.000-07:00

We found out yesterday morning that we are having a healthy baby BOY!

I guess Zane did get his way. To be honest, as happy as I am, I am completely shocked. I would have put money down that we were expecting a girl. But, the pictures were pretty convincing. . .

I know its hard to see but the above picture is of his boy parts- this frame is the way we announced it to his parents. We thought it was pretty clever until his nephew asked how we knew it was a boy and we had to explain the picture. Haha, a little awkward.

Anyway, we also got a profile picture and while I know I have a little maternal bias I think he's pretty darn cute.

Can't wait till he gets here!

Roxie The Great

2010-05-30T20:40:00.000-07:00

My littlest sister Maggie turned 9 this week and she has been planning her birthday party for the last two months. My mom, being the amazing woman that she is, has always let us kids take ownership and add our own personality to things. Maggie wanted to make her own birthday invitations so my mom stepped back and let it happen. Zane and I recieved ours the first week in May and had to rsvp before we could leave the table.

Mom checked in with Maggie periodically to see what she could help out with, and by the time the party rolled around it had turned into a slumber/craft night. Mom was set with supplies and Maggie was thrilled. However. . . . what mom was not expecting was 23 coed campers. You're not a kiddin!

I got a text from Sara (19) that night asking me to save her from the mad house with this picture attached. They all planned on sleeping over:

Apparently Maggie didn't want to leave anyone out and since she had been making the invitations, mom had no idea how many had been passed out after the initial batch. In fact, it turned out that several of the kids had recieved last minute hand written notes when Maggie realized they had been left out.

My angel of a mother just shook her head and rolled with the punches. Dad was gone for the night (thank heavens or i'm sure we would have lost a few lives) so mom single handedly reined 23 nine year olds from one improvised activity to another. Any normal mother would be pulling thier hair out but you know, that's just my mom: 'Roxie the Great' as Sara calls her. And you know what, this is definately a birthday Maggie will never forget.

Timpanogus caves

2010-05-20T10:12:00.000-07:00

Since it was suppose to be good weather i only worked half a day andw we headed up to Timpanogus caves. It was a great time. It was quite the hike though! Worth seeing. After i wanted to see what else was up the canyon. Glad that we did, we found a nice little resevoir in the mountains. Beautiful place! My new fishing hole!!
Recommend the caves to anyone!!

click on this picture.... is she looking pregnant yet??

Havasupai Trip

2010-05-09T09:24:00.001-07:00

I decided it's hard to choose what pictures to put on here from the 190 pictures that i took! So i really did cut back! We went to Havasupai indian reservation in arizona. Round trip 32 miles of hiking, 35 entry fee (7 people) and 17 per night per person camping fee (stayed 3 nights).
Did i mention that at night one can flash a light at the ground and see if move with cockroaches! nasty!!
The Havasupai tribe word means "people of the blue green water", you'll see why.
This is the new bridge over the hoover dam, though it's not quite done, a must see when it is!

Little lizard, there are a ton of them!!

A check off the bucket list!! I've always wanted to ride in a helicopter and took this opportunity. $160 dollar ticket for two - priceless! (actually several hours of work)!!

Wha hoo!!

Supai Falls

Our swimming hole!!

Mooney falls

Beaver falls

rach and me

mooney falls again

Look close, see the rail one must climb to get up and down that bad boy!! Yep did i mention i'm afraid of heights!! it was rough on me! my knees were a shakin!

Entrance to the fall.

Here's the warning! Shandon's lettin me know of the risk!
the campin troopers

me and the babe

supai falls

A baptist church in the village

A group of hikers a the check in, after eight rough miles of hiking!! That's how we all felt!!

The LDS church

Navajo falls

Jazz game with mom and "the sisters"

2010-05-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

The opening was kind of cool with the fire works. Though as a safety professional, i was concerned! Ba Ha

Mom and me

My two favorite dedicated fans.

The bear on some riser trying to get the crowd goin.

The sisters were so excited we got there an hour early! Yup it's nearly empty, oh but i saw it fill up! But it was fun to spend time with them all they are so fun!

The cutest kids on earth!!

2010-05-03T08:05:00.000-07:00

weekend to idaho April 16th (damiens kids)

Weekend with the boys to St George, Tamrons kids

The trip with the boys (few pictures taken)

Well......

2010-03-25T09:47:00.000-07:00

We're having a baby!! She's due October 16th! We're hoping for a boy, well i am !

weekend to st george

2010-03-11T12:28:00.000-08:00

We had a short trip to st george. These are the only pictures we took. We stayed at Shandon and aubreys new townhome, which is so nice. We visited my grandparents and received a bunch of raspberry jam from grandma (it pays to visit)! Hung out with rachaels family and watched a few movies (2012, okay but out there a little, and marley and me which we liked).
Grandpa suggested going to see these hyrogliffs (indian writings on walls). It was pretty cool. They are on Little Black Mountian.

McKoy and Adds come for a visit...

2010-03-01T15:42:00.000-08:00

We volunteered to watch McKoy and Addison friday thru sunday. It was a ball. McKoy and I headed saturday to the BYU vs UNLV game. OOHHHH it was a good game!!! Though BYU lost in the end.

Addison teaching me and Rach how to sing Head shoulders knees and toes, pretty precious!
We got in the hot tub, played way too much WII ( I wouldn't be a good parent), flew kites, played tennis, soccer, ate pizza ice cream and all of out M&M disappeared! Stayin up till 9:30ish! Man we are the best babysitters ever!! (for a kid, not parents)!!!

Shandon and Aubs visit us

2010-03-01T15:25:00.001-08:00

Rachaels brother shandon and his wife came for a weekend. It was a ball.
We went ice skating and here's som epictures of dome kids with their walkers.

Ma and rach

Aubs

The Olympic Oval rink in Kearns, Utah.

Aubs and rach gettin ready for their men!! Ya right. Gettin ready for themselves!

Now shandon and i got addicted to my wii tank game!!! Hey we beat it after playin for 7 straight hours!! until 5 in the morning!!! (actually we gave up at 5 and continued the next day)

Utes goes wild..

2010-02-18T14:10:00.000-08:00

Mom, Mike, Rachael, and I went to the Utes vs UNLV game. Here's some pics to enjoy...
This is their mascot on stilts trying hard to get the crowd goin..didn't work!

Here's a sneak attack of us.

This is priceless...THis is my little basketball fan ....can ya tell!!

Okay she was bored to death, except for the last 2 minutes. The utes went on to win. THough they played very sloppy. UNLV beat BYU but how they played last night, i don't see how they could have. (we're really byu fans)

They have a cool gym though!

Valentines with the students...what to expect!!

2010-02-18T14:01:00.000-08:00

Well a few days before Valentines Day, i had a few girls in the class come up to me and ask what i would do if this boy in the class asked me to be his valentine. I told then i would pat him on the head and say thats nice.
Well he must have chickened out that day, but he did give me and the classroom teacher a fake rose. This is the rose.

Yep thats the one. THe rose was inside of a plastic tube. After taking the fake rose out of the tube, there were ruffles in the middle. I pulled the ruffle out of the rose and the teacher and i about died from laugher! A red skimpy thong! Poor boy probably had no idea! We took them down to the office and the secretary had all the teachers come down and enjoy the laugh!
If his mom only know what she got her 6th grades sons teachers!

Saturday...breakfast at the Smiths.

2010-02-18T13:54:00.000-08:00

Zane's a pickie eater! He refuses to eat cereal on Saturday morning since we have it all other mornings. Most saturdays he cooks breakfast, this saturday he said breakfast was ready..this was the image that i had when i got to the table...One egg on my plate and EVERYTHING else on his.

He shared kindly with me though! It was so good! Thanks honey!!

Gettin out!!

2010-02-01T10:04:00.001-08:00

I get tired of sitting home so we got out this weekend.
The Sattair Palace. I saw pictures of it in the 60 and 70's, impressive then, not too much now.

We weren't sure where to go to skeet shoot so we drove 30 miles out of town a little past Tooele. This is our land mark picture. It was on the railroads bridge, we were tresspassing for sure.

I'm proud of my sharp shooter! She loves the gun that dad gave us. It's a 4-10, doesn't kick as much as a 12 gauge shot gun.

After we went to the park and had a bbq. It was warm until the breeze picked up. It's got a walking/bike trail at the park which is located right onthe Jordan River.

That night we went to Prove to the BYU - Utah game. I was cheering for utah at the start, but they weren't doing so good so i decided to switch to BYU, then utah started to come back. But i think i'm going to be a byu fan this year. No pictures of it - let the camera in the car in the rush of gettin to the game! Also went to Alta Ski Resort on Friday (i did while rach was teaching) Thanks to Aunt Caleen I went during the free skiing time. It was beautiful up there! No smog!!

New Home Sweet smogged Home

2010-01-17T12:58:00.001-08:00

WEll, i thought since we haven't updated in a while that i should put a blurp on here. We moved to taylorsville, utah on rachael's b-day so she could student teach. She student teaches 6th graders and loves it (even though they are tall as her and mouthy she says). We live 5 blocks from the school. After a week of job searching i got one. I buy cars are a wrecking/recycling place and i help them with OSHA/EPA regulation adherence. I like it, though i'm still on the search for the perfect job.
Rach loves it here. There may be a position for a 6th grade teacher next year and she wants it (and they offered it too). I, on the other hand, hate it here to be honest. Can't see the mountains through all the smog, schools can't even send kids out for recess because it's so bad and I drive 10 miles to work bumper to bumper 4 lanes wide. I don't like traffic. There is a 400 pound man that lives above us in our apartment complex the floor just creeks and his alarm goes off at 4:30 am and he hits snooze till 6 am we have started to beat the ceiling, but by 6 am the traffic on I-215 is so loud we both are wide awake.
Positive side, we are closer to rach's family (which shes visiting them this weekend) and we have spent time with my mom. Also there is alot of stuff to do here that we are excited for to do. We are getting her through school,that the most important thing here! And MOST IMPORTANT Neither of us work for the Wal-marts anymore and never again!!!

Jackson Hole

2009-12-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

Zane and I decided the night before to spend our anniversary in Jackson Hole. So, we called the Antler Motel, packed our bags, and headed out first thing in the morning.

Zane has been wanting to ride the 'Gondola' in Jackson ever since I met him. "I'm not really a watch and see kind of girl" so I haven't exactly jumped at the idea. However, we were in town so I let him buy tickets. We took the tram to the top of the mountain. . . It was COLD! The wind was blowing like crazy, it was cloudy so we couldn't see very far, and my glasses kept fogging. Needless to say, I was thrilled we spent the money. But at least we can say we've done it! Wheet woo!!

We went to a Moose Hockey game that night. I had never been to one and was shocked at how violent they are! Four players were thrown out for swinging fists before the second whatever its called was over. What suprised me the most was how all the players and refs just patiently stood by and waited for them to be done like it was no big deal. Although I will never let me children watch hockey we had a ton of fun and a few laughs at all the characters we sat by.

I have always wanted an old fashioned picture and we did it!(Its a bad picture of a picture but you get the jist)

We rented cross country skis from the ORC on campus and took them with us for the weekend. There wasn't a whole lot of snow anywhere but we finally found some in McCoy Creek. It was my first time on skis and the huge bruises on my knees keep reminding me how incredibly talented I am.

It was so nice to get away from it all and spend some time together. My husband is such a sweetheart and would do anything to make me happy. Its crazy to think we've been married a whole year. Its been a great one! I can't wait to see what the next fifty will bring.

Put a fork in us, we're done!

2009-12-18T15:15:00.000-08:00

Finals are over and we have bachelors degrees!! Well almost, I guess I still have to student teach but I passed both of my State finals so I'm officially certified to teach. Our professors are disappointed we chose not to walk but it just seemed like such a long ceremony to sit through. I told them all, "We're just not the kind that walk. We run." To be honest though I'm kind of sad we chose not to. It just doesn't feel official without all the fuss and family. Maybe it will hit on Monday when we get to sleep in.

Anyway, fuss or not we are graduated,jobless,and wondering where the heck to go from here. Yay us!!!!!!!

What were you doin' on this day last year?

2009-12-18T13:55:00.000-08:00

You were supporting us.....(AND being silly in a booth, and eating our chocolate and drinking my chocolate)....Hard to believe it's already been a YEAR! Thanks for your love and support! Happy Anniversary Us!!
Find your silly self below and see the rest of the crazy family!!

Still Alive

2009-12-11T05:08:00.000-08:00

Here's an update on our lives since it's been forever. We aren't going to Vegas anymore, due to the economy, we didn't think that it was wise to adventure into that city for lack of jobs and a high cost of living. So we both settled for Salt Lake. Actually Taylorsville, Utah. Rachael was assigned to a 6th grade class (funny huh, they'll be tall as her and just as mouthy)! Plymouth Elementary is the school in the granite county school district. We are still working on the apartment transition, think we found one we like. I will transfer walmarts (plesant thoughts), but spend every lasting moment finding a career path in the Occupational Safety and Health field. Probably have a job with the company that i did my internship (InterMech) with in South Carolina in the spring.
We spend a week at rachaels grandparents and got to see lots of family, which many sacrificed time to come see us, which we are grateful for, it was a blast to see them all! (They're all just as crazy as the last time we saw them)! I actually think that i married into one of the coolest families around, they really are so fun! Also on the way to Monroe (Richfield, Ut) we saw some more of rachaels family (aunt calien) and my mom. It was a fun time, but ever good to get home!
We had several friends come over last saturday for gingerbread house making, but they came and went throughout the night. For games and a movie. We're quite the partiers! Okay enough works to read, here's some pictures.
Dusty and melanie Jacobson

Robert and brittany

My wonderful, pleasant homemaker (as you can see) Rachael Lee Smith

Chris, becky, and little carter tanner

Kate and oh boy i forgot um the new fling!

And i had to add my good friend Colby jacobson and his wife Mariah

Sin City Here We Come

2009-09-10T08:40:00.000-07:00

I got accepted to Student Teach in Las Vegas. Yay! We will be there the beginning of January- just in time to escape to the beautiful weather!! I will get the experience of the inner city diversity I wanted and be only two hours from my family.

I'm just a little bit excited and Zane is such a sweetheart about going. However, Zane and I are beginning the search for work and housing which is a little stressful so if anybody has any tips that would be greatly appreciated!

Oh and did I mention- YAY!!!

The Good, The Bad, and The Garden

2009-08-27T19:22:00.000-07:00

Yay!! Zane and I finally have the internet again. It moved on the last day of school with our favorite neighbors and we finally decided to actually pay for it. I love it. It is so nice not to have to plan a special trip to check my email or update the blog.

Unfortunatly, schools starts in a week- so even though I now have the internet, I will be back to two jobs and 12 credits with no time to actually update. Yuck.

What we're up to. . .

Our amazing neighbors let Zane and I have a little corner of their yard to garden and we have been having so much fun with it. We have tons of veggies so if anyone, and I do mean ANYONE, would like to swing by and pick some up we would love to share!

This is of our first little sprouts- we were so proud

Look at it now! All grown up.

Also, my smart shopper husband who works in the wonderful Walmart produce section noticed that a whole bunch of really ripe bananas came in. Of course they had to be discounted and OF COURSE Zane just couldn't let a good deal pass by so . . .

We have way more dried banana chips, banana cream pie, and banana bread than any two people should ever eat. PLEASE let us know if you would be willing to take a loaf of bread off our hands and we would be happy to drop one by.

Yellowstone

2009-08-23T17:07:00.000-07:00

The Lee and McCullough(Rachaels sister)families all went with us to Yellowstone. They all stayed the night in our two bedroom aparatment, all 12 of us! Rach and I slept on our couch hide-a-bed. Wow we definately got that thing at the DI for 25 dollars! Not a wink of sleep, too many bars. Good thing the in-laws didn't sleep on it!

The next day we went to the Teton Dam site, the mesa falls, Island Park Resevoir for a picinic, and then we camped at a site that we didn't have to be around other people and pay. My friend chris and I found this spot two summers ago. It took several dirtroads to refresh my memory of its location, sorry family. Its nestled above Henrys Fork of the Snake River, a gorgeous view.

Next day, we spent all day in Yellowstone seeing the sites. That evening we stayed in West Yellowstone in a resort- thanks to Aunt Shelia and Mom Lee. It was a ball. Since some of the family was Yellowstoned out, only Dad Lee, Sara Lee and i (Zane)went back.(Sara commented that she was "going back to yellowstone with the two tours guides", not nice sara). We went back for Mammoth Hot Springs, but we didn't know that they dried up in 1998, so the trip was a total disappointment.

We had a bar-b-que with my family at their home that night and played games. Then the next morning we picked the Smith Family favorite,huckleberries, along Palisade Resevoir. After a gallon of picking we parted.

Thanks mom and dad lee for the fun week and lacey and casey for coming with us. It was a ball!

The camping squad

My berry pickers (maggie and Ryan)

camp

Toby lovin the life in the woods! (Toby's my truck, i know sad! I love it him!

camp

Rachael and Evie

A bear along the road

Lower Fall of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

Upper Fall

Old Faithful startin to steam

Palisades Upper Lake

2009-08-18T12:22:00.000-07:00

This weekend Zane and I took his brother Cody with us to the Upper Lakes above Swan Valley where he grew up. It turned out to be quite the adventure.

Zane was in such a hurry to get us up there that we didn't take the time to pack things very well. Cody and I had to keep stopping along the way to readjust our packs (I'm sad we didn't get a picture - we all looked pretty funny)

We set up camp just before dark, haha!! There was only one pole in the pack when we unloaded the tent. I've never laughed so hard in my life as when we were trying to make this work:

The door doesn't zip closed so it was cold, we were paranoid of animals crawling in, and our site was anything but flat. So while Cody slept like a rock- Zane and I grumbled and got NO sleep.

It is beautiful up there and we had a blast the next day exploring the emergency cabin and picking huckleberries along the way. There were plenty of little green water snakes and Cody and I had a ball watching Zane squirm.

The lake was gorgeous and the water was amazingly clear. You could see the fish following your lure so it was even more frustrating when they wouldn't bite. Cody caught the only fish of the trip but unfortunately the picture we took of it was on his camera which got lost somehow on the way down.

Haha, this is where we think it may have come off, haha!!

He tripped (after making fun of howold and slow Zane was)while running down the hill and spread eagled it right it the dirt (he tripped on the large rock behind him). Poor Cody! Hurt his ego more than anything but Zane and I weren't much help for how hard we were laughing.

Fourteen miles later, I am painfully aware of every muscle in my body. But we had fun and the trip was well worth it! Here are a few pictures of just how pretty it is up there.

PackSaddle Lake

2009-08-18T11:49:00.000-07:00

Zane and I went exploring a couple weeks ago... Thank Heavens God loves us! After taking every wrong road possible we were almost out of gas and completely lost. We had no cell phone service and had turned so many times we wouldn't have known where to tell anyone we were anyway.

By the time we got back to a road we recognized we had barely had enough gas left in the truck to make it back to town. There was one road left we hadn't tried and we're stubborn- so we parked the truck, unloaded our bikes and took off again.

The road was terrible! About 100 yards in I parked my bike off to the side and started walking. By the time I found Zane he had dropped his bike right in the middle of the road and was wandering aimlessly.

Just as we were about to turn around and go home we noticed a trail off to the side. Yay!! At the bottom was the prettiest little lake with a rope swing. Look how pretty!

We now know the CORRECT way to get there if anyone wants directions!

Through the woods to Grandmas we went

2009-07-21T20:33:00.000-07:00

This is a few months old, but it's as updated as we have, no other trips yet. I'm suppose to be studing for my two finals tomorrow, but i really don't want to so i decided to make it my turn to do the blog. I will be in trouble for the one picture oh you'll know. Love you all!!! We stopped and camped with my family for two nights in McCoy Crrek then headed for Grand M &P Spence in Bear Lake, Utah.

This is the inside of the Paris Tabernacle. Drove past it all the time as a kid and finally got to go in!

This is grandmas and grandpas house (spence side my mom) We love visiting grndpa and ma.

This is the backside of the Tabernacle.

Front view of tabernacle.

Rach and i in soda springs at the sister to old faithful gysier. Good mineral water, try it some time.

The Smith mofia! That's only half the guns.

Colter (my little bro) Locked himself in the camper, it took them a while to get him to get out! He didn't know how to unlock the door. It was entertaining, atleast for me, i'm not the parent! HA HA

Rach and cody shooting She's actually a good shoot, well at least she got me shen she aimed. bah ah

My little pleasant camper!!

This ones for tamron, i grew up in Swan valley where this store is located. Their store theme, When you cuss, think of us!! The Dam Store, Swan Valley idaho

I'm in Love again

2009-05-10T13:22:00.000-07:00

I know I swore that when Herman died I'd never love again, but . . . I lied. I bought a car!!! Everyone meet Tinka . . or Jaine . . or Lily, or okay okay along with being a liar I'm indecisive.

She's a 2000 Saturn LS 100 (or so I'm told). The pictures make her look long but she's kinda squarish and cute so she needs a short fun name. I've uploaded pictures so you can help me.

Yay for not walking to work and school!!

Sunday 'day' live

2009-05-04T11:15:00.000-07:00

Going against everything I believe, I have recently resorted to bribery to get my husband to do things- (I'm going to be a great mother, haha)

For easter I had given him some peanut butter eggs, which he loves, but had threatened to hide them when he kept eating them for breakfast. On Sunday I was pestering him to get up and bear his testimony, something neither of us had done in a long time. I told him that if he would bear his testimony I would let him have them.

After readily agreeing he turns to me and makes me promise that if he goes up I wont. I thought that was an odd request and laughed inside as I thought, "Succor-you should have dared me back while you had the chance" ... I should have seen it coming.

My stand up comedian of a husband recognized the material he had available, waltzed up there and told the entire congragation of my attempts at bribery. But he doesn't stop there. He continues by telling them of how I asked the bishop for a calling and got us both roped into teaching 8 six year old boys in the primary and something about falling down on the couch to recoup after church was over. He had the whole congragation in tears and bishop was rolling on the ground. He was so proud of himself. He did manage to squeeze in about 30 seconds of actual testimony and doctrine (we'll take what we can get)

Then all day after church I would hear him laughing in the other room and when I asked what was so funny he'd say "Me. They loved me today" Hahaha, is that not so Zane!! He thinks he is the funniest man alive. The problem is, I do too and I probably feed it way too much!

The really funny part of this whole story is that I never hid the eggs in the first place. Zane hid the eggs from himself, hahahaha! When I threatened to hide them he knew I meant it so he hid them first so I wouldn't. Only he forgot where he put them, bha haha! I was laughing the hardest out of everyone at church!!!! Poor boy still doesn't have his peanut butter eggs.

Farewell Herman

2009-04-05T22:29:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon, Herman passed away from internal complications. He had been sick for a while and has seen multiple doctors. He led a good life and will be missed. (And no Tamron he didn't die because I named him Herman)

I adopted Herman two years ago when my brother Tamron left for China. He has been well worth the $100 I paid. I got a little emotional leaving him for the wreckers today. I guess that's what happens when you have a car you have to pep talk everytime you come to a stop light - you can't help bonding.

Anyway, we knew he was fading fast and would probably go soon. He has been 'resting' in the drive way for about a month hoping there was something that could save him. Meanwhile, I rode my bike uphill both ways in 3 feet of snow to get to school and work while my husband sits in his very large, very expensive, very warm truck. :)

Zane's dad has been so helpful and we were taking it to Rigby today to put in a new thermastat we hoped would hold him over for awhile. But . . . he overheated on the way there and the block cracked??? I think that's what they said.

Anyway, the point is, we're car hunting. If anyone hears of a good deal on a cheap car that will last us till we get real jobs, let us know. (I feel like I'm cheating on him, this has got to stop. That's it! The next car doesn't get a name)

He is soooo cute!!!!!!!

2009-02-15T21:26:00.000-08:00

We decided that since we are both not romantic and have no money we would agree to not do anything for Valentines day. The little sneak decided that if it wasn't on Valentines Day it didn't count. . .

Friday night I worked until 11. My truck was parked at the back of the lot and there was ice everywhere so I was looking at the ground trying not to fall until I got right up next to it. My heart melted!! There were petals everywhere. You can't see it very well from the pictures but they were strategically placed all along the lip of the truck bed and the running bar (step). The water in the petals were frozen so they were like glass. I tried to save a couple but the minute I touched them they melted and withered. I drove home as slow as I could so they wouldn't all blow off not wanting it to be over.

When I pulled in I noticed that there was a path of petals leading to the front door, down the entry stairs, and to a candle lit table where dinner and my cute husband in his apron where waiting for me. He had the whole evening planned - coloring books and everything!

Is he not the cutest husband ever!! I am so lucky!! Thanks for everything Honey!

Happy Birthday Tammie!

2009-02-14T16:11:00.000-08:00

Tammie's birthday was on (Friday the 13th) so I didn't dare post it yesterday . . . ok I just didn't get to it. But we wanted to wish you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY and let you know how much we love you! Hope it was amazing!!

Bonfire at Eight O'clock

2009-02-14T14:56:00.000-08:00

Zane turned 24 on Monday- Happy Birthday Hun! On Sunday we had his family come over for dinner, cake, and games. We had a lot of fun and it gave us a good excuse to finally get a table. [We ended up buying the very first one I liked two months ago but Zane said I couldn't have. ]

Carter and McKoy helped me put the candles on; we had to use a whole box! I thought the house would burn down, haha. He felt really old so rub it in when ya can :)

He was a little excited, haha, I love how he starts the singing himself!! Oh, and I couldn't figure out how to slice the video so you get to hear all our random conversation afterwards. :)

On Monday I attempted to make our first real homemade meal (even the birthday cake was out of a box) which didn't turn out half bad. Zane is definately a country boy so I marinated ribeye steaks while we were at school/work and (ok I cheated with the George Foreman) grilled them and made garlic and sage mashed potatoes.

My sister Lacie supplied the marinade recipe:

3 T Ketchup

1 T oil

1 T ch. onion

1 tsp brown sugar

1 tsp Worsterschire sauce

1 clove minced garlic

Dash of pepper

And my wonderful co-worker Amy taught me to make mashed potatoes (haha, yes I am that bad) although I have to say - whoever's idea it was to use a beater . . . . well we'll just say I struggled.

But it turned out well and who knows, I just might attempt cooking again sometime!

Is it over yet!?!

2009-02-06T12:24:00.000-08:00

I guess life thought our last little experience with keys was funny because since then we have been locked out of the house, the garage, my car 3 times, the truck twice, and both of our cars broke.

After our last post, I made Zane make a whole bunch of copies. Zane mentioned that night that his key wouldn't work so I told him to just use one of the others. Next day I came home from work and mine wouldn't work either. We had all the keys but something came loose in the door and none of the keys would work (thanks for your help Colby) and the locksmith ended up having to drill the knob in half to get us in. While he was working on the house lock, I locked my keys in the car. DOPE! I was glad he was still there.

The next day I had Zane bring me something to work right before I got off so we had both cars to drive home from Wally's. I drove off and didn't even notice he couldn't get in the truck. I waited in the drive way for a minute but he never came. I went inside to get my phone and call him to see where he was and locked my keys in MY car so I couldn't go back and get him. A very angry boy had to walk home in -35 and leave his truck at Wal-mart.

A couple days later Zane's truck broke down so I had to bumb rides off everyone. That was humbling, I mean fun :) The DAY we got it fixed, my car broke and . . . the story repeated.

Zane's dad helped fix it in our garage and they had to block the back door of the garage with stuff to get the car in. One of them locked the front door to the garage that night and nobody noticed as we left the next day. So we were locked out of the garage (which we don't have a key for). I had asked my amazing co-worker Amy to drop me off that night (still no car) and luckily she was able to give me a ride to Mike and Tammies where I hung out until Zane could come home and break in the window.

Zane and I have been laughing about the fact that those silly keys have caused more problems in our marriage to this point than anything else, haha. Whew! I hope we're just about done (Knock on wood!!!!!)

When a man thinks he's in charge . . .

2009-01-20T08:38:00.000-08:00

Zane works in Idaho Falls so we switch vehicles to conserve gas. On Friday after he'd left I realized he had both sets of keys, I had no idea where the spare was, and I had only 15 min before class started. I called as soon as I realized but his phone was stilled turned off from classes.

I considered walking to campus but I'm far enough out that class would be close to over by the time I arrived.

I have a bike but it had been dismanteled for the move up here so . . . still in my slacks, I fiddled with the pieces until I figured out what went where and got it put together to ride to campus knowing I'd be late but it was better than nothing. Covered in grease, I hauled it up the stairs of our basement apartment (a chore in itself, haha) and then realized the front tire was flat and we had no tire pump.

He finally got my message and called back to let me know he'd accidently locked the spare key inside the truck. I've been after him to make me my own set but it's a hundred dollar key since it contains a computer chip so he keeps making excuses (maybe this will convince him). He gave me directions on how to break in and I spent the next 30 min sitting on the top of his truck in high heels trying to pry the door open to get a hanger down inside. The tool I was using as a lever broke in half and by then class was over anyway.

Luckily, my boss from the first job let me do some work from home and I had the oh so amazing Kayla come and take me to Wal-mart.

Isn't life fun! Honey, I need my own key!!

Once a man was in Charge!

2009-01-18T21:13:00.001-08:00

Here we are, (I'm in charge now of the blogs since i'm the scrapbooker, ya my wife thiks she knows me, that i have talents that i really don't have). So this is a mans trial and error blog! So for any commentary from peanut gallery, don't waste it on me.

So here we are living in the frozen waste land of rexburg, yep i am climatized to St. George. Really who wants to scrape ice off thier windshield before going to work?! Not me! Don't tell my wife that!

We live in a basement of a house. It's pretty spacious, two bedrooms, one for me and one for Rachael, HA HA. A good sized living room and kitchen. Oh and pantry. Which i filled with food storage, i'm a good husband and wife. Though we have some ugly carpet oh well. It's a starter.

We are both going to school full time. Rachaels studying to be an elementary teacher oh and she thinks that everyday she has to teach me "something" new for the day. I'm studying to be a mans best friend, or an OSHA Officer. We both graduate in December, well Rachael has to do her student teaching in January to April then she's done. She wants to do it in Vegas, but we'll see what we can do.

We're both working too. I work full time at the Idaho Falls Wal-Mart stocking the produce area and feeding idaho while she is a cashier at the rexburg wal-mart in the evenings and she is a secretary for the dean of the business college in between classes. So we're pretty busy old married folks.

Most important we want to let you in on our NEW YEARS RESOLUTION***** GET OUT OF WAL-MART BY 2010***** Pray for us! No we are grateful to be working though...but really pray!!!!!

We like the ward we're in, still getting to know all the old people, they think we're new people every week. Just waiting on rachaels nursery calling! The sad part, we live directly across the street from the church and guess what???????? We're still late!!! I love being married, i'm so patient! Okay i won't lie, you all know me.

Our one month wedding anniversary is tomorrow! Yep lasted a month! She still loves me or at least ive trained her well to say that. Here's some pics of the wedding day to celebrate!

We made it!!

2008-12-26T23:23:00.001-08:00

(Don't you love that it's mis-spelled? I love my brothers)

We made it through the crazy wedding planning and we're finally back to real life. There is so much to catch up on - the wedding plans, the wedding and reception, Christmas, living in hurricane. I'll do my best but bare with me as it comes in scattered pieces.

If I ever have daughters . . .

Dad offered us the money three months ago if we wanted to just take it and run. About three weeks ago I started to seriously question my sanity for not taking it. If I ever have daughters, they better take the money.

Thanks so much to all of the incredible friends and family who helped out with everything.

Jeremy Christensen - staying after work and in on lunch breaks to design and order invitations. We loved em Jer - they felt so unique and just what we were looking for.

Jean Orton - Reading my mind since we had no pictures to go off. I loved my cake!! It was simple, elegant, and Gorgeous!

Mike and Deborah Outz - their brilliant idea for a photobooth and the life it brought to the party. Zane and I won the booth from a drawing at the what women want expo. The Outz's are family friends and have done so much for us. (The pictures from the booth can be seen with the event password: smith)

Lacie Christensen - thank heavens we have the same coloring! Lacie did an amazing job with my make-up for my bridals and the entire day of my wedding (she even helped in the brides room) Thanks Lace!

Kori Dutton - We loved our Pics! Kori did such an amazing job shooting our engagement, bridals, and wedding day. I wish we could post all of them, she is incredibly talented! Our schedules were so crazy and she was so good to work with us and help make it memorable for us.

Mellissa Caldwell - She turned my crazy feather idea and fear of flowers into a beautiful masterpiece. (Thanks Jeff for letting us raid your fly fishing supplies). The first and last pic are of the live bouquet and the middle one is silk.

Mom - Making sure I had the dress of my dreams, humoring my determination to pull off a wedding with no flowers and no round tables and all the stress and headache that came with it.

Lacie McCullough - staying up all night hand sewing my veil, making 100 of the most beautiful cupcakes for my bridal shower (hope your hand isn't still cramping), taking a wet-wipe bath so she could help with with my hair the day of.

Chrissy and Aubrey - spending countless hours pulling together the cutest bridal shower, shopping at every store in town five times each with me for decorations, taking random materials and turning them into stunning centerpieces, patience with me as we explored the concept of a storybook/display table, hours of planning and setup. Girls, I loved it all!!! When I walked into the room it felt and looked EXACTLY how I had hoped. Zane had to shut me up that weekend because I just kept sighing over how happy I was with the way everything turned out.

Tammy - for making the luncheon happen despite the 45 time and location changes, pulling together outfits for everyone, and the beautiful wedding video (we were all in tears).

Mike and Damien - for driving all night to be able to make it to the wedding. It meant so much to have you guys there!

I can't say thank you enough to all who helped out in so many more ways than are possible to mention. We love you all and are far more grateful for your love and support than words can describe!!!!

THANKS AGAIN!!

When it rains . . .

2008-11-14T08:04:00.000-08:00

Thanks to all who came to and threw the shower's, Zane and I enjoyed the chance to visit with all of you and feel your support. We are so lucky to have such amazing friends and family.

The entire weekend was packed - mom and I just can't stand to leave something out. Friday we headed up to idaho (already and 8 hour dr.) and stopped along the way in Provo and Lehi to shop (5 hrs) which is when I'm sure most of you recieved a phone call from a very patient Zane trying to fill the time :) and then finally in Salt Lake to pick up my Aunt Calleen (my mom's older sister) who was able to spend the weekend with us.

If you have never been to Theresa at Shear Elegance, you're missin out. I found her this year after two years in Rexburg of crying after every haircut and love her!! So Saturday along with the shower we squoze in a haircut (4 inches - i love it!!), dentist appointment, and his bachelor party where Zane had an amazing time at dinner with his dad, brother, and friends.

The girls had a ball at the shower. Ashley had the cutest idea; each time I opened a gift I had to say one thing I loved about Zane. It was hard, haha! By about the 20th reason I was stretching. The funniest part to me was that the whole rest of the night after I wasn't under pressure to hurry and think of something, the reasons kept coming. I love you Babe! I won't make you relive all 30 but here are a few of my favorites:

I love . . .

That he's active. He always has something going on. If we're not doing it, he's planning it. We both love the outdoors and most of the time we have spent together has been fishing, hiking, or camping. I love to be busy and the chance to spend so much time outdoors.

That he's sensitive but not sappy. He'll probably kill me for sharing either of these (but remember babe I think you're tough). Ashley, Tammie, and I have had a few good laughs at him as he's tried to flirt, be suave or romantic, or even just give a compliment (the first one I ever recieved was that I was "low maintance" I wanted to cry then but understand now just how big of a compliment that was coming from him, haha). Every attempt seems a little rough around the edges but you'll never find one more sincere and heartfelt.

He'll be the best little mom, haha. My roommates used to tease him that he'd be a better housewife/mom than I will and its true. I'm a germophobe so I love that he is OCD about cleaning. Any of you who have watched him with kids know that he is amazing. He has won my little sister Maggie over - this picture of him reading her a bed time story is one of my favorites.

How hard he tries. When he went to the Jewelers to order my engagement ring, they loved him! He had them all rolling on the ground laughing as he told them, "I tried to listen! I just don't always hear what she's saying!" Its true. No matter what it is, the minute he sees that there is something that needs to be done or any way he can do a little better or add a little extra he does everything he knows how to make sure its done.

He can make me laugh. The faces he pulls, the jokes he tells, not to mention how he laughs at himself (he thinks he's the funniest person alive). I love that he is able to deal with whatever comes at him with a smile and a laugh.

How he loves me. The poor kid has chased pretty hard and has been completely devoted since day one. It means the world to be able to see how much he loves me in everything from the way he looks at me, the fact that he dropped everything and moved to St. George, to the way he is always searching for ways to serve and make me smile.

The weekend ended sunday as we traveled home. We met up in Ogden with Zane's cute mom and her side of the family. We were running a little late and they were so good to wait for us. They all traveled quite a ways to be there and it was greatly appreciated!! It was so much fun to see all those sister's interact, they definately enjoy eachother :) and I felt extremely welcome. Thanks to the Spence sister's for all you did it was so fun to meet everyone!

We also had the chance to stop in and visit my cousin Jentry and her husband Terrell in Ephraim and Grandma and Grandpa Lee in Monroe. This was the first time they had met Zane and fortunately he passed the test, haha (phew). Thank You Grandma for the beautiful quilt!

Thanks again to all who were involved this last weekend! We love and appreciate you more than you know!!

A Long Time Comin'

2008-11-05T21:39:00.000-08:00

Okay so I'm not sure if that title is in reference to the fact that I'm actually creating a blog (contrary to my commitment to never become a facebooker - as if this is any different) or that this blog is in existance because Zane and I are GETTING MARRIED after well . . . I'm sure with the way my fiancee socializes you all know the story (grin) but either way it's been a long time coming and we are so happy to be here.

The date is set and the chaos is underway. On Dec 19th 2008 I will be the next Jane Doe ... I mean Rachael Smith. We recieved our engagement pictures last week (Thanks Kori) which turned out incredible. The invitations have been designed (Thanks to Jeremy for countless hours he's put in!) and we head north this weekend to for two bridal showers (My in-laws are all amazing! Thanks girls!!) We'll hit every bridal shop in the state on the way up to find me a dress to get hitched in and try to sell Zane on the idea of wearing something other than a fishing vest to the reception (Maybe I'll stick a lure in his pocket and he can pretend).

We are so excited for all that is coming up and will do our best to keep everyone updated. I'm kind of a space cadet so we'll see how this goes :)