Hodge Podge of fun

There is no order to the following pictures but they are sure cute!

So flexible. These toes are delicious!

He has already lettered in football! Way to go champ!

New winter hat. I think he looks like a little puppy with droopy ears.

Trying to run away from the camera and more pictures

So close to sitting up!

First haircut. And I think we were past due.

Watching football on a Saturday. Like father, like son.

New toy! "Hey mom, put the camera down and let me play!"

Just can't get enough of this little face.

In other news, Mark has started his new job and really enjoys it. I am adjusting to the new schedule and not having him around as much. (We sure miss him). My job is going along just great and our wonderful nanny sure loves Shortstop. He likes her too but still gets a little nervous each time she comes. So life here is great and we are looking forward to all the fun holidays and vacations coming up!

PS: Sorry for the picture quality. I am not a fan of my camera right now. Guess I know what I will be asking Santa Claus for Christmas!

Eat every carrot and pea on your plate

We started Shortstop on carrots tonight. Here is how it went in pictures.

All done!

"Shhh, shh, shh...you hear that? It's the winds of change"

A lot has changed in our home this past week and all of it is exciting. Mark graduated in April and has since been looking for a job. He has had a few offers but not exactly what he wanted. Because of my job, we had the luxury of being picky with what he accepted or turned down. Well, a couple of weeks ago he went to the BYU career fair and found what he was looking for. It is a company called Boostability. He talked with them, gave his resume and a week later got a call for a phone interview. One thing lead to another and a few more interviews later, he got the job! Yay! I am so proud of him! It is an on line advertising consluting agency for Search Engine Optimization. I just type it, I don't know what it means.
When we thought about graduation and the next step, we had hoped and dreamed to go up to Seattle or some far away big city since he is in advertising. But that was in a different economic time. Since then it has not been a great time to job hunt. So we decided that no matter where the job was, if it was the right fit, we would take it. So...the job he just got is in American Fork. Not as far out of Utah as we had hoped but again, we are just grateful. He starts next week and we can't wait.
Because it is not a long commute we decided I would stay a hall advisor for a few reasons: 1) to save money, 2) to make sure this is what he wants to do before we uproot our lives and lose benefits and a steady paycheck and 3) because it is easier to stay here and try one new thing at a time. Well, with that came another change. Mark's previous part time job allowed him to make his own hours and come home to be with Shortstop anytime I had meetings. So now that he has a regular 8-5 career, I needed to start looking for a nanny. I wanted to get someone who could be consistent during the week and even on call for evenings so Mark and I could have regular dates. I posted on care.com and within 36 hours had 16 responses. Another blessing! And as fate would have it one of those responses was a girl I know because she was an RA last year. It eased my fears so much hiring someone who has been a nanny and someone I already know I can trust. She will be here for 3 hours a day, 4 days a week so not too long but it will help me immensely.
So there are the changes in our lives. We are happy to have so many blessings all within 2 days time. It is nice that I actually like my job too or this would not be fun. My residents this year are great and my RAs awesome as well so that helps. Mark can't wait to start, work hard and move up in the company quickly. :) Thanks for those who have been praying for us and wishing us the best of luck!

5 months old on 10-10-10

Shortstop is 5 months old as of yesterday. What a fun day to turn 5 months. I can't wait until his 5th birthday as it falls on 5-10-15!

He is so much fun! He went through a rough couple of weeks of not wanting to nap in his crib and this is what we would end up with.

Somedays I would lay him in bed in the morning and just try to get things done only to walk out to this...

Or Mark would come home to this...

There was just something about his crib and being away from mom so if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. But he is doing so good now. I got some great advice from my parenting panel (my sisters and mom) and now he takes at least two solid naps, goes down for bed like he used to and sleeps through the night. Hallelujah!

The other day we pulled out this jacket.

He got this back in July from a nice lady at a Mariners games and now it fits! Isn't he such a cute little ball player?!

Saturday was the BYU homecoming game and parade. We live on the street it goes down so we slept in, went out in our pjs and hoodies with blankets and hot cocoa and watch it from the front of our building. Shortstop loved it, especially all the music.

We were going to watch the game that afternoon at a cousins house but I wanted him to take a nap first. So Mark went over before kickoff and I said I would join them. 3 and a half hours later, Shortstop woke up from his nap and the game was over and won. So I did not get to watch it with Mark but my TV was on with the game while I did stuff around the house. Go cougars!!! (Finally)

I think he might be teething but it has not been that bad yet. And who knows when those teeth will even pop through. He could be teething for months, or so I have heard! Thank goodness for teething tablets and mommy's fingers. He loves to chew on both!

Bath-time and being outside are some of his favorite things. He still is nervous around anyone but Mark and I and a few select people. He is very ticklish, loves to laugh and gets excited when we get him up from naps or in the morning. Soon we will start him on veggies but until then he has been happy with rice cereal. He likes to make funny noises with his mouth and has a smirk that cracks me up. We are close to having a baby who sits up on his own but we are not quite there. Life with our little 5 month old is pretty darn wonderful!

Why I do my job

As a Hall Advisor there are many days I think "Really? Why do I do this to myself?" Cleaning checks, behavioral issues, pranks and so many other things can raise that question quickly. But the days when I think "This is why I love my job" come around much more. Some of those may include one of my Resident Assistants telling me how they connected to a resident for the first time, a letter from a past resident on a mission thanking me for being patient with him, or just staff meetings with a lot of laughing and story sharing. I had one of those moments this past weekend. Let me share it with you, if I may.

When I first started this position I came from a previous job at a residential treatment center for teenage girls. I had to be pretty tough and pretty stone faced when working with them. We weren't to tell them too much personal information, get emotional or show fear. I listened to more backgrounds that were not just horror stories but real life events that could last me a lifetime. There were times I would physically be holding a girl down to the ground while she attempted to pull her own hair out or hurt herself but ended up kicking me in the face and tearing at my arms and I could not show her I was angry or even terrified. So when I got into this job I was pretty strict and quick to hold residents accountable. I have not changed the fact that my kids need to keep the rules and be accountable but I go about it all differently now. I get to know them, talk with them, laugh with them, validate their emotions and let them tell me what they were thinking or going through before calling them out. But that first year, oh boy would I do things different.

The funny thing is, I had the rowdiest group of boys in one of my halls that I have ever had and I was brand new. Baptism by fire. There were two apartments in particular that pulled more pranks, pushed the line more and questioned more than anyone I have worked with. It was good for me and I learned a lot. But I was a rookie HA straight out of a treatment center environment. I did not know how to reach them. By the end of the year we had a mutual respect for one another and I felt like they didn't hate me. But I never knew. I wondered if I was too hard, or if there was more I could have done to let them know I truly cared about them and not the "rules" at BYU. They always talked about having a reunion on 10-10-10. I did not think I would still be here but two weeks ago I looked at the dates coming up and I thought "Oh boy...they might be coming back." Would missions, life, college or marriage have changed them? Would my tires be slashed? Did I want to even say hello? Of course I did but did they want to see me?

Sunday night I heard a small group outside my apartment in the lobby and knew those voices from 3 years ago oh so well. I walked out, smiled and said "What do you think you are doing here?" in a teasing voice. They turned, smiled and all of them in unison said "JACQUE!" One by one they hugged me and I remembered each of their names. I asked what they had been up to the last few years, they asked how I had been and all about Shortstop, we shared memories, they confessed other pranks I never knew about, we laughed and took pictures. And one by one they said "We are so sorry for what we put you through. Thanks for not hating us." 45 minutes went by and I left them to their apartment reunion. They once again said thank you and yelled out "You're the best Hall Advisor we ever had!" (Of course I was the only one, but I'll take it.) I walked into my apartment and with a huge smile and even tears in my eyes I said to Mark, "And this is why we live in a tiny apartment and why I am okay with cinderblock walls and doing cleaning checks each month." A weight was lifted. I was not as bad as I thought I was. They knew everything I did was for their benefit and although at the time they didn't get it, years later, they knew that. They changed the way I do my job and I am better because of them. I hope they can say the same about me.

Come listen to a Prophet's voice

This weekend was General Conference for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I love the first weekends in April and October for this very reason. No matter how good life is or how smoothly things are going, or whether or not you are in the midst of a trial, it is always good to listen to our prophet, President Thomas S. Monson's, voice. And this conference is not limited to members of the LDS church..oh no! It is for the world. And President Monson is not the prophet for just the LDS church but the prophet for the World! But we do not worship him. He is the mouthpiece for God on the earth today. So if you missed it, have never heard of it, or are just curious, by all means, read the articles that were given as talks.
It was a new experience watching conference with a baby. I did not hear as many talks, I did not ever fall asleep on accident, but I did feel wonderful and felt the Spirit as topics were discussed and testimonies shared. I have heard a few people saying how upset they were at the "harshness" of some of the apostles words, that their timing was bad and that makes me sad. I think the time to speak on being faithful, diligent and righteous amidst the turmoil of the world is every day! Noah did not say "hey everyone, there might be some rain so if you want you can take a boat ride with me...no big deal though." He spoke with conviction for what he knew was right and for what he knew was being done wrong. Mark and I had a long talk about this and are grateful for words today that are not popular in the world's eyes, that help us be better and stronger and closer to the Savior. I am not trying to preach nor am I trying to say that I am perfect or that I have never wondered about certain things, but I do know that as we listen to a prophet's voice, as we pray and learn for ourselves whether or not he is called of God, that we will get an answer and know that what he speaks is from a loving Father in Heaven.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, with or without conference. I am glad to say mine was richly blessed because of conference and Mark and I are resolved to be better, serve more and love those around us, including ourselves*, more unconditionally.

*"It may seem odd to think of having a relationship with ourselves, but we do. Some people can’t get along with themselves. They criticize and belittle themselves all day long until they begin to hate themselves. …Walk in nature, watch a sunrise, enjoy God’s creations, ponder the truths of the restored gospel, and find out what they mean for you personally. Learn to see yourself as Heavenly Father sees you–as His precious daughter or son with divine potential."

-President Deiter F. Uchtdorf

Mmmm...solids

Today was a big day for our family. Shortstop had rice cereal for the first time! I still cannot believe he is old enough for this but he LOVED it. We got him a little travel high chair to attach to our kitchen chairs, which he also enjoyed sitting in.

He loves sitting up but can't quite do it without support. I ordered a Boon Spoon on line and can't wait for it to get here! But we did want to use a very special spoon for his first meal. His Aunt Rachel, Mark's older sister, bought him a silver spoon with a baseball mitt handle from Tiffany's when he was first born.

Wow! Isn't it great?! (My son has something in a little blue box and I still don't.) We love this spoon! It is such a perfect gift from Aunt Rae. So although our apartment is small, and although we may still shop at IKEA, Shortstop will always be able to say he took his first bite from a silver spoon.

Mark and I loved feeding him and taking turns. It was so fun to watch him get the hang of it. He even got mad at me when it was all gone so I made him some more and he basically inhaled it. I think I have a good eater on my hands. We have all entered a very new, and much messier, stage in life.