Dear Blog...

I'm sorry you've been so sorely neglected. You see, I have two kids now, and they come first. In my defense, Caleb did hide my camera card about a month ago. I can't find it anywhere. This has prevented me from uploading Parker's first pictures. And you know how I hate to do things out of order. I may need to get over that.
I'm kind of freaking out about it actually. All of the hospital pictures are on it, and we can't lose those. I keep praying it will turn up. I had to buy a new one so I could take current pictures.
In the meantime, it's time to move on. Time to send you out into the world (so to speak) to be read again. So here we go.

This is Parker.

Parker is 2 months and 9 days old. He weighs 9 pounds and 15 ounces and is 23 inches long. To you this may seem very small, but to us it is very big. Caleb was not this big till almost 5 months. Parker is quiet and serious, and loves to be held up where he can observe the world around him. He is extremely strong; he could even hold up his head the minute he was born.

But sometimes he gets tired. Just recently he has started to smile the biggest, happiest smiles. We haven't caught one on camera yet, not for lack of trying. Caleb loves Parker, or "baby", as he calls him. He likes to point out that baby has a nose. And a head, and ears, and eyes. Parker isn't always the biggest fan of this game, but he tolerates it pretty well. They seem to like being brothers.


Sometimes they even chill on the couch together and watch Up. In their diapers. While Mommy blogs.



P.S. Caleb removed said diaper two minutes later.

Parker Aten Nielson

On February 19, 2010, at 7:01 am, Parker Aten Nielson joined our family. He weighed in at 6 lbs 13 oz and 19 1/4 inches long. Mommy and baby are home now, and doing great. Caleb is fascinated with his little brother. Soon to come: pictures, the birth story, and the what's behind the name.

Caleb introduces his best buddy, Mr. Tickle, to Parker

A Face to Put with that Name

At our ultrasound today we got a great shot of our baby boy's face. And we found out that he is 100% healthy! It was a good day.

Surviving the Madness

I thought that once there was a lull in the madness that has been our lives lately, I would post. But obviously if I wait for things to calm down, I'll never post again! So here's a quick list of what we've been up to the last two months:

December 10 - Rachel comes home!

My sister Rachel arrives home from her mission in Geneva, Switzerland. Lots of hugging and tears. One confused toddler.


December 16: Tim comes home!

My brother Tim comes home from his mission in Jackson, Mississippi. More hugging and more tears. One still confused toddler.


December 24: Christmas Eve

We go to Christmas Eve Dinner (a very big deal in my family) at my parents. We leave early when Caleb suddenly spikes a fever.

December 25: Christmas Day

We open presents at our house with a very sick little boy. He loves everything but won't leave Daddy's lap. We consider canceling our vacation.

December 27: Mission Reports and Midnight Drives

Rachel and Tim both give their mission reports in my parent's ward. Even more tears. With a nurse's okay, we pack up the car and drive through the night to Anaheim.

December 28-January 1: Disneyland

Caleb's first trip to Disneyland. He hates the lines and loves the rides. In typical Caleb fashion, he is completely unfazed by the scary stuff. We spend all our time on kid's stuff. I can't go on the big rides anyway. Caleb throws a monumental tantrum on day 2. Mommy and Daddy get the message loud and clear - all the nonstop excitement of the last month has been too much. He just wants his routine back.

January 8: Caleb turns two!

Nothing too exciting happens. Caleb gets a quiet day at home with Mommy. We play cars and duplos and watch Monsters, Inc.

January 11: Michael goes back to school

And the 8 month countdown to graduation begins. 3 quarters left. We've come this far. We can do this, right?

January 13: Three Years of Marriage

We celebrate our third anniversary. We decide we're too exhausted to do gifts and a weekend away. But Michael shows up with two dozen roses and takes me out for a perfect evening. And I'm happy.

January 16: Caleb's birthday party

We have a very small party for Caleb with just immediate family. This year he totally gets that this is all about him. He still needs help blowing out his candles, even though he's been practicing for three months.

Which brings us to...

Today:

I'm 33 1/2 weeks pregnant. I've reached the 'so over this' phase of pregnancy. I feel completely unprepared. I still have tons to do for the nursery. Caleb is sleeping in his toddler bed pretty well, but still naps in the crib. Michael is still at the office, and will probably be up all night doing homework. This is the toughest quarter he's had his whole time at Neumont. We have an ultrasound at 7:40 am. It's the only appointment I could get that we could both make. I'm too tired to find my camera to add more pictures to this post. BUT...tomorrow is another day, and at least the dishes are done.

More details to come on Caleb's birthday and our anniversary. And some previews of what the boy's room will (hopefully) look like when it's done.

Eric Bana as Nero

bringing a whole new meaning to "you're not hardcore unless you live hardcore".

Back soon.

Halloween/Birthday

This year for Halloween we actually got to go out with friends, which was a lot of fun. Caleb hung out with his Grandma and Grandpa. He was actually pretty grumpy that night and didn't even want to try trick-or-treating. He also wouldn't wear his hood on his costume. Oh well!

Michael had a pretty hardcore Fu Manchu mustache. He spent almost a month growing it out before he shaved it into the Fu Manchu. He's not wearing his cowboy shirt in this picture, but he actually looked pretty scary authentic.


I was Artemis, Greek goddess of fertility (and the hunt, hence the bow).


My sister Mary Elizabeth as Penelope. She looked perfect!


We went to a midnight play, so we spent the night at my parents. The next day we celebrated my
24th
birthday. I'm officially in my mid-twenties now. Weird.


Special thanks to my sis, who still throws me a killer Disney princess party, no matter my age.

The next night Michael took me out for a special evening at our favorite restaurant, and showered me with perfectly picked out gifts, including Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the Julia Child cookbook from this movie.

I can't wait to try it out.

Hero in a Half Shell

The wait is over. The verdict is in.

And when Michael called his parents to give them the news he said, "It's a ninja turtle. Not a My Little Pony."

Which is our little way of saying that #2 is 100%

boy!

We are quite thrilled.

Dear baby,

It's your mommy. Your daddy and I already love you so much. Your big brother loves you, too. Did you know that he likes to touch my belly and say 'baby'? He loves other kids, especially babies. We are all so excited to meet you! Did you know that you have already made your mommy a better person? That's right. I'm eating healthier! Want to know a secret? I've never been very good at the whole eating healthy thing. Bacon and chocolate are staples in my diet. Vegetables...less so. But thanks to your aversion to meat (so unlike me), I've seriously cut down on the red meat. Also, chicken is totally out. Not that that helps. But do you know what you make me crave? Carrot sticks and ranch. I can't get enough. Thanks to you baby, I get more than my five fruits and vegetables a day. So here's to you, #2, for making this family bigger and better.

Love,

Mommy

P.S. We can't wait to find out what you are in just 3 days!
P.P.S. High five! We made it to the halfway mark!

Cuttin' It Off

Okay, okay, so my blogging skills as of late have been...pathetic. Truthfully, I'm just feeling pregnant and sometimes a little cranky. I just haven't felt like mustering the brain power to find something witty to say. I've also gone back to school! I'm taking a few classes this semester, desperately trying to get this degree out of the way! Meanwhile my family and my belly are changing more every. Here are just a few of the things that have happened in the last couple of months:

• Caleb got his two year old molars
• Michael got an awesome raise after his boss found out he had an offer from another company
• I started wearing maternity clothes
• My littlest sister left for BYU-Idaho
• Michael won a coding competition. Regionals are on Halloween day, and if they win that (cross your fingers, okay?) they go to China for the world comp.
• My missionary siblings got their release dates- December 10th and 16th, respectively

And Caleb got his first haircut! This was a big one for me. I stubbornly held out till 21 months. Granted he was bald till he was almost one, but still. I thought I would get really emotional when he got it cut, but I was okay. At least until the next day when I nearly cried at the sight of him and thought, "Ahhhh! What have we done to my baby's curls?!". I guess I'm just finally having to accept that he is not a baby anymore. I do get another one in a few months, though. So here are some pictures of the big event.

He loved the slide at the salon



The Before
You can't really tell, but in back there's a mini mullet



The "What is this lady doing to me?" Hysterical During



The After
He looks so big now! He is such a little boy.


P.S. We find out what the baby is in two weeks!

Stay Tuned

Back in Business, at least in theory

So my computer has been broken for awhile due to the fact that my graphics card literally exploded. But thanks to husband, I'm up and running again, so more blogging is on the way. That's the good news.

The bad news is I have been completely overtaken by morning sickness. Since it was absent the first few weeks, I thought I might escape it this time. But nooooo. It's back in full force and I'm having flashbacks to when I was pregnant with Caleb. Let's just say spending my days throwing up with a toddler kicking the bathroom door- not at the top of my list. In the last two weeks I've dropped eight pounds and had days where I can't even keep down water. Needless to say, I do not want to go down that road again, so at my doctor's appointment next week I'm going to ask for something for it.

In the meantime, I have lots to do, including ten more table toppers for a wedding next Saturday and planning Michael's birthday. Wish me luck.

#2

That's right kids. Number 2 should be making his/her appearance in late February.

Shocked?

Us too.

Belle of the Ball

Last Saturday was my sister Mary Elizabeth's Senior Ball. I spent the week before the dance frantically making her a dress. Friday night I was up till 4 AM with Mary Elizabeth, my mom, and my mother in law finishing the dress (thank you for the help!). This included a rolling on the floor hysterical laughing fit over the dance marathon episode of Gilmore Girls. But I finished! She looked beautiful. Here are the results:


I did her hair and makeup too, and I think she looked just gorgeous (if I do say so myself). Her date was really sweet, and I think she had a great time. It was a lot of fun doing something like that for my sister. Still, I'm glad I won't be doing it again any time soon!

London Calling

Home flat

Home tube station


Gloucester Road
home of my school, my internet cafe, my laundromat, my heart



Best pub



Camden Town Market
if you can't find it here...it doesn't exist



Nightlife, baby



Leicester Square candy store
Willy Wonka's got nothing on you



I'm really homesick.

Is it noticeable?

Feeling Vintagey

So loving:

My "new" vintage gloves
Courtesy of Man in the Moon Antiques


So wanting:
These adorable Darlybird earrings


They would go nicely together, don't you think?

Little Rascal

What happens when you leave a one year old alone in the living room for ten minutes?

And does he feel guilty?

Not one bit.

Yesssssss!!!

I just found out that Billy Joel and Elton John are coming to Salt Lake in November! Let me just say right now that no power on earth can keep me from this concert.

Boy is Rachel going to be mad she's missing this...

Yay for...

• Michael's wonderful new job
• Our new car
• St. Patrick's Day being Tuesday
• Caleb's sweet hugs
• Great friends

Egg Shaped Goodness

It's about that time again. Easter candy is out. You know how some people gain five pounds over Christmas? That's me at Easter. I love Easter candy. Cadbury creme eggs, mini eggs, robins eggs, Lindt bunnies. Oh, dear. I just bought a bunch at the store two days ago and I've already eaten half of it. Now I'm going to go eat some Cadbury mini eggs while I make dinner.

Happy Aniversary!

Today marks two years since I married the man that I love. I can't tell you how amazing it is, and how many fun (and funny) times we've had.

But how great is he? These are just a few of the awesome things he does:

1. Always takes the trash out.
2. Spoons me so I can fall asleep.
3. Tells me he loves me literally 100 times a day.
4. Remembers to get me chocolate when he gets a Mt. Dew.
5. Gives Caleb baths and reads to him.

Yep, I love him, love him, love him. I met Michael when I was 15 and a freshman in high school. I could tell he was a bona fide hottie, so I let him kiss me. We had a little fling and went our separate ways.
Then we both ended up on the ballroom team. We hung out with the same group of friends. He helped his best friend ask me to prom. We played cards at his house and drove around in his Karmann Ghia. But we were always arguing and claimed to hate each other.
He graduated and went to the University of Utah. I went on study abroad in London. Upon my return, I attended his mission farewell. And off he went to serve in Colorado Springs.
I didn't write him once. He loves to bug me about that. I went to UVU and studied History.
Then, July 2006, he comes home. Four days later we run into each other at a party we were both dragged to. He gets my number and the next day calls me to hang out.
Our first "date" consisted of getting Slurpees from 7-Eleven and watching Empire Records at my apartment. I hyperventilated the whole time because his hand was so close to my knee.
A week later we were dating. And for the first time in a relationship I was being challanged. Michael was the first to say I love you, the first to mention marriage.
And on October 11, he planned the perfect proposal and asked me to be his wife.
We were married January 13, 2007.

Perfect love story? I think so. Perfect for us.

I love you, Hottie!

One

One year ago today I give birth to this little angel:

Three weeks before my due date, and after 30 hours of labor I got

Caleb Michael Nielson

He weighed in at 5 lbs and 9 oz and was 18 inches tall. Since that second he has been the light and love of our lives. And now he is one and

This little monkey.

Happy Birthday!