The Hunt

Sorry that I haven't posted in a week. It's taken a little time for me to wrap my head around this whole jobless-ness thing. Not that I fully (not even close) understand what went on, or what I/we are going to do now. But I've come to accept that (once again) I can't/ don’t have to know each and every thing that is going to happen in my life.
So with that I have been enjoying my time with Mallory! She and I have been going on long runs (which is great because I have no where that I then have to be at at any particular time), going to the park, working in the yard and in the house, hanging out with my mom, and doing some arts/crafts. It feels like a little home vacation. :) I have also revamped my resume and written a few cover letters and sent them all over to Brie who graciously edited them (and it's a good thing I did, because as a professor she knows how things should be done/writing/worded and kept me from looking like an idiot). What, humors not appropriate in a resume? (Just kidding, I'm not that bad). I now have my letters of recommendation from Dr. Dave, so... Let the hunt begin (after I go and buy some time resume paper to print it all out on)!

BAM! POW! KA-BOOM!

I feel as though I have been sucker punched!
BAM!
Right to my gut!
Yesterday, without warning I was 'let go' from my job! My job that I love. Apparently not for anything that I did or didn't do (not that I was told at least), but because money is so bad.
The poor economy has finally hit my little perfect bubble world.
So here I am at home on a Tuesday afternoon.
I have cleaned, ran, gardened, washed the dog, played with/fed/cared for Mallory, updated my resume, written 2 cover letters and FINALLY have stopped crying. Yesterday I was like a leaky faucet... water was pouring out of my eyes and nose (ewww). Pretty sure that my eyes are still swollen to about ½ their normal size.
But everything happens for a reason. God has a plan. Now I just have to listen to/for it.
Even with the reassurance that I KNOW I'll land on my feet, it doesn't make it any easier.
Sigh.
Pray for me, please.

Preston Thomas Scott

This weekend I was blessed! I got to be a part of an experience that I will NEVER forget! There may be nothing that is as amazing as actually delivering your own baby.... but being part of the delivery itself comes very, very close!

One of my closest friends, Brianna Scott, asked if I wanted to be past of her birthing team. Ok, she didn't really say it like that, it was more like, 'hey you can be in the room if you want.' But in my head it was like she was bestowing some great hidden secret to me... and I was SOOOOOO excited! I mean excited to the point that I couldn't sleep the night before her induction!!!! Her silly little man was 3 days late and showing NO signs of wanting to exit. So Friday night she and Brian (her hubby) checked into the hospital to try and 'smoke' the baby out... a.k.a induce labor. I got the to hospital at 9 am Saturday morning all ready for the great adventure. As the amount of Pitocin was upped and upped we all would get more and more anxious. Convinced that with THIS increase real labor was bound to start. After 6 hours of a lot of nothin' but the regular contractions she had been having all day, I left for about 2 1/2 hours to eat, rest and see my family. Then I got a text saying they had broke her water!!!! Woohoo! I had Matthew rush me over (we were grocery shopping), leaving my poor husband with groceries and a hungry and very wet baby! But being part of Bries baby adventure was my top priority at that point!

Brie was a champ! She labored for only 2 hours (once the water was broke). She and Brian were a perfect pair, they would hug onto each other and breath together while I rubbed her back/sides/arms.... any body part that I had access too. :) Brie has had 2 beautiful kids already, so she knows how to labor and is a total pro at pushing these notoriously big babies out... but for both of those she had an epidural. This time, for whatever reason she didn't! And let me tell you she was AMAZING! Her composure, her focus, her ability to follow directions! She was a true champion! I'll save you all the details, since it's not my story to fully tell, but both she and Brian were wonderful!

And in the end they were holding a perfect 9 pound 6 ounce 22 inch long baby! I was overcome with emotion, watching a baby enter the world has got to be one of the most phenomenal things ever! It is a true miracle! I now see why my mom loves her job so much. I felt like I was on such a natural high afterwards. I was tired, yet wide awake and I couldn't stop smiling!

Brie, thank you for letting me be there and be a part of the beautiful birth of Preston! I feel so honored!

Hoppy Easter

Our little Love Bunny

We had a wonderful Easter! Mallory was no longer sick, so she was her joyful, talkative self and as always the hit of the party!

After church 'everyone' came over to my parents house to enjoy visiting with each other, a huge lunch and of course an Easter egg hunt for the kids. Though there really aren't many 'kids' any more. They all have grown up! Mallory couldn't crawl very well in her dress (she kept getting caught up in the tulle and ruffles) so she had a costume change in time for the egg hunt. Good thing too, because that little one found all her eggs! (granted they were all within 1-2 feet of her) :)

I can't wait until next year when she is actually running around looking for the eggs (knowing her she'll be more interested in finding/petting/pulling on the Easter bunny)!

Our Bully

While I try and sift through the hundreds, possibly thousands of cute Easter pictures I'll give you all a little story (because apparently some of you are giving me grief for not writing every day.... come on, I know my life is oh so very exciting and all, but geeeeze...) :)

Mallory LOVES to pet things. honest. Anything soft/fluffy/with strings or tassels... shes all over it. Sonny and Krush just happen to be a few of her favorite things to (chase down) and pet, but if Matthews head or my hair is in close enough proximity she'll settle for those too. Most of the time the petting starts out as soft circular rubbing as she babbles to whatever shes touching, it then goes on excited thumping, followed by elated full-blown hair/fur gripping! It's like she gets so excited all she can do is clench her fists and squeal with delight!

Well, when I went to pick Mallory up from Daycare yesterday she had two nice scratches down her face. Apparently Mallory has been 'petting/pulling' other kids hair and they don't really like the pulling part. Not that I blame them. So one of them fought back! :) Lesson learned I hope! Ahhhhh our little Bully

WOW! It Works

You know how Matthew and I have been 'teaching' Mallory sign language from day one, right? Not whole sentences, just little worlds (please, momma, daddy, hungry, more, thank you, water...) you know, the basics. Well, yesterday I had her in her highchair and was getting ready to feed her when she started signing 'more' over and over again and opened her mouth. I thought maybe she was just trying to clap because she was just so excited about eating (do you blame her, sometimes I feel like clapping too). But through the coarse of her meal she did it a few more times. I kept saying, 'more' to her and feeding her a bite each time she did it... but still I was not convinced that she was actually signing that she wanted more food.
But sure enough, this morning as soon as I had fed her her first bite of oatmeal she quickly swallowed, opened her mouth again and signed 'more'! I'm kind of shocked! I know that this is the POINT of teaching babies sign language...you know, getting them to communicate before they can verbally communicate... but I guess I just wasn't really prepared for how cool it would be to have her expressing what she wants without even talking!
Soooo cool!
And speaking of talking.... Mallory's vocabulary is growing all the time. On top of her adorable non-senseical babbling, she now says, Momma, Dada, Baba, Bye-bye, Hi and as of Friday, Book!!!!

Up and Out!

Ok. I've decided that I don't like going to Mallory's doctors appointments any more. No, it's not because the statistics they gave me on Mallory's height and weight are basically equivalent to what you would get if you bred a giraffe to a hippopotamus. Or the fact that there are sick kids in the weighting room. Nope. It's because I'm pretty sure that the cute blond boy Mallory was sitting next to was a bad influence on her. Seriously! Prior to the Dr's visit Mallory would sit in her car seat while I buckled her in (she might not always be happy about it, but at least she would just sit there). Now, after 'talking' with this cute little toe-headed little boy (who was just a little older then her... and therefore much wiser) each time I go to put her in the car seat she arches her back, sticks her legs straight out, throws her arms out to the side and bends her neck backwards! That darn little boy, corrupting my perfect little baby... hey I have to blame it on someone. :)

Ok, on to the 9 month stats! She weights 21 pounds 13 ounces (92%) and is 29 1/2 inches long (90%), while her head is a perfect 50%! The Dr. was telling me that her weight (though seemingly heavy for a 9 month old) is perfect because of the fact she is soooooo tall. Basically Mallory is more like a 12-15 month-er in regards to her high, weight and development. She was shocked at Mallory's standing/walking/talking/straw-drinking/and wonderful appetite.

I can't believe that the next time that we take her into the doctors it going to be for her one year check up!!! WOW!

Cheeeeeeese

Baby-Vision

One of the most fun things about having a kid is watching 'Baby-vision'! It's seriously so much better then t.v. The things she does, the faces she makes, the stuff she gets into, it's all very entertaining! Last night Mallory found the toilet paper! Not only did she have a blast unwinding it/pulling it/ripping it, but she enjoyed eating it as well! :) Silly baby.

She's been sick for 5 days now (102 fever over the weekend, coughing, sneezes, impatience...). Poor girl. So now instead of my constantly joyful baby, Miss Mallory is Mooooody! Combine her sickness with her clingy/neediness for mom and this little lady is a wreck. She fluctuates between smiling and chasing Krush down the hallway, to red-faced crying as she chases me around the house. Poor kid. Hopefully she'll be feeling better soon, really, really, really soon and be back to her joyful-joyful self. :)

Blaah

I love my job. You all know that. But there are some days that I just want to puke or cry or hide out in one of the empty kennels and turn the lights out.

Today is one of those days.

Walk On

This Monday Mallory started going to an in-home daycare twice a week! I was a little worried about leaving her.... would she be ok? Would she miss me too much? Would the daycare provider give her enough love? Would she cry the entire time? Would she get along with the other kids? All the worry was for not...She LOVES it! Each time that I picked her up, she could have cared less about the fact that I am there hugging her... she just wanted to get back down and play with the others kids and all the toys. The lady (Connie) is great and says that Mallory is soooooo happy and she is shocked by how mobile she is and how she just self entertains. I'm glad that Mallory seems so happy there, but there is a part of me that was a little sad that she didn't seem to need/miss me at all!

:( Silly, I know.

On Monday, after spending her first day with all the other kidd-o's she talked and talked and talked all the way home, telling me all about her time and the friends she made. Then once we got home, she pulled herself up on her (walking) toy... (which up until THAT moment had just been a standing or sitting toy) and started pushing it! It was like she had spent the entire day watching all the other kids walking and figured that now she could/should do it! She walked from the french doors to the garage door 3 times!!!!!! It was incredible!

I kept telling her that she's not even 9 months old and she doesn't have to grow up so quickly... but since she is my daughter, she didn't listen and kept on walking! WOW! What a big girl.

What a Stud!

There are a few things about Rugby that I don't like... actually it's really just one, the post-practice/post-game bar gatherings. And to be honest it's mainly because I'm selfish. There I said it. The thing is, I LOVE hanging out with Matthew and those gatherings keep me from getting to do that (especially now that I'm a mom and it's frowned upon bringing a baby into a bar). :) So I just have to wait at home for him to come back.

But on the other hand, there is a ton about the sport that I do like... Number one is that it makes Matthew happy (and a happy hubby helps to make a happy home), it keeps him in GREAT shape, it's a supper fun/quick game to watch, I LOVE watching Matthew tackle guys, it gives him (some) much needed male-bonding time, and his studdly picture is featured in an online Rugby magazine (how cool is that?)!

(He's probably going to kill me for this post).... Sorry, but I'm proud of you! :)

A First (for me)

Yesterday I experienced a motherhood first... a first but I'm sure not the last. I'm positive that just about all of you have experience and lived through just about the same thing. Here, let me set up the story... Mallory had a heck of a nap yesterday (I'm talking 3 straight hours) and when she woke up she was her happy, joyful snugly-self. She, Sonny and I went for a run, then it was back home for lunch.... and you all know how this girl can eat. You practically just have to say the word food and she opens her mouth. But not yesterday. I had yummy pears and cottage cheese for her, and it was quite a struggle to get her to even eat 5 bites! She acted like she wanted it, but once it was in her mouth she would just roll it around a bit and push it back out. I thought maybe it was bad, but nope, it all tasted juicy and fresh. So I gave up trying to force feed the moose (besides we had errands to run). So I washed her face and picked her up from her highchair and she snuggled right into my arms. Ahhh the baby snuggle, is there anything better. Sigh! She'd only been awake for about an hour but while I was holding/snuggling her, she seemed like she was drifting off to sleep. So I call Matthew to say he could stay where he was (on a run with the rugby guys) because Mallory wanted to nap more. There I was talking to my husband, with my little snuggle-bug in my arms, when she bolted upright, leaned over and vomited! Not just a little, but a ton! Both of us were a little shocked! And she turned to me, wide eyed with a confused look on her face, wondering what the heck just happened, when you guessed it, she opened her mouth and puked again (this time painting me in undigested cottage cheese, and remnants of breakfast... soaking me from the neck down.... literally!) She somehow got my neck, shirt, shorts, one leg and a shoe! I was speechless! Matthew knew something was wrong and told me to get off the phone and take care of whatever it was that was going on and he'd be right home. Just then she projectile vomited over the carpet and right onto Sonny's head (who was now eagerly 'cleaning' the carpet for me... so thoughtful.... gag!). I start rushing her to the bathroom (so at least it would be over tile or the sink), but I wasn't fast enough and she left a trail all the way to the bathroom. As soon as we were in the bathroom, she vomited once more then saw herself in the mirror and started talking to herself. As if nothing happened. As if I wasn't standing there covered in vomit. As if she hadn't just puked up what seemed to be about half her weight in liquid! As if it was just a normal afternoon. I striped both of us down and we both got a much needed shower/bath (as Sonny finished cleaning the floor). She was fine for the remainder of the day. No fever. No more vomiting. No more falling asleep while snuggling in my arms (sad). I don't know what caused it, or what set it off, but YUCK! There's a reason that I work with animals. Their vomit (and other bodily functions) are nowhere are disgusting as human 'stuff'. Ewww. But we both survived.

Just Another Day At The Hospital

Tuesday we (my hospital) got a call from Dr. B asking if he could bring one of the Cheetahs from Safari West in and use our operating room. Ummmmmm, Of course! We all jumped at that opportunity! So after lunch Dr. B, 3 trainers and a 9 year old female cheetah come to play!!!! It was so cool. The Cheetah had been 'off' and Dr. B had palpated a mass in her abdomen. He then did an ultrasound guided tap and got pus out of the mass.

Prior to opening her up it was thought that maybe she had a pyometra (a really bad uterine infection).

I got to scrub in on the surgery and what we found was that one of her ovaries had turned into a giant pus-bag and the other was full of cysts. So we took them out. Sadly this girl will now not be used for breeding (which was her original propose) since Cheetahs are so endangered... but at least she is alive and not going to die of a nasty ovarian/uterine infection! Plus it was so amazing to work on such a beautiful and powerful animal!

Part 2

Sunday Morning Mallory and I woke up and while most of the other Klein's were still sleeping off the night before, she and I got into the car and drove to a hospital in Reno. Why you ask? Because on Friday, April 1st Janie gave birth to a BEAUTIFUL baby boy, Owen Marcus! He is just perfect! 8 pounds and 20 inches. He has 2 adoring parents and 2 sisters that don't want to leave his side. What a luck little man! Mallory and I got to hang out with Shane, Janie (who looks stunning) and Owen for about 2 hours. I felt so blessed to get to met and hold this little bundle while he was still so very new... (if I didn't drive over there that day, I don't know when I would have been able to get there, then I would have been beating my self up about not being there sooner... isn't guilt great?!). It's amazing how it all worked out. Mallory and I then hopped into the car and drove back to Foresthill to hang with the Klein Clan for a few more hours.... then BACK in the car for our drive home. Mallory was a trooper and would pretty much just happily talk herself to sleep each time. Needless to say it was a long but wonderful weekend.

Our Weekend Part 1

So much has happened in the past few days that I'm not really sure where to start! I guess it only makes sense to start from the beginning...
This past weekend Matthew, Mallory and I drove up to Foresthill to join in on the Klein Family Birthday Weekend Celebration (for Feb and march). As always it was wonderful to see everyone! Auntie Charlotte turned 75 (years young) a few weeks ago... so the celebration really was for her! Happy Birthday!


It is getting more and more difficult to travel with Mallory. When she was really little it was a peice of cake. She would sleep when she was tired and eat when she was hungry. Now she's too distracted to do either and once she finally is asleep she ends up getting woken up by the party-goers. Plus she was SOOOOOO overwhelmed by all the 'new' faces/hands/feet.... that all she wanted to do was snuggle into my shoulder and hide. I don't know if what she has is 'stranger anxiety' (because with only a strangers or two shes fine) I think she was just really overwhelmed by it all! Any tricks to getting her used to the Klein gatherings/large crowds.... ?

A Little Off The Top

Ok so it's not really a little off the top, it's more like a bunch off the bottom! For the past couple weeks I have been itching to cut my hair. I was getting to the point that I was REALLY tempted to take scissors to it myself (which is what I do for a trim).... But I knew things wouldn't turn out so well when I was planing on taking 3/4 of my hair off. So thankfully Brie told me to call her hair guru (Mia) who did an AMAZING job! I love it. It's healthy, shiny, soft and for the moment straight. I feel like I look grown up, professional... Polished! :)

Music Time

I don't know about you guys, but Mallory sure gets more creative when shes naked! :) Pretty sure she may be the next Mozart!!!! (Do you think Mozart played naked?)

Newness

I'm still amazed at how having a child changes... well, everything! Not only in my daily routine, but how I think about things. For instance, I now have no qualms about singing in public. And Lord knows that I don't have some magical voice that people are paying to hear. But Now I'll make up silly little songs about how to pick out the perfect vegetables while grocery shopping or how to figure out what size clothes/diapers she fits in. Mallory loves when I sing and will coo along with me (which makes the strange stares from strangers worth it).
Another thing that I have noticed is that I can now hardly even stomach watching TV shows or the news if it's about kidnapping/death/abuse...of a child. My heart just starts to ache and I get sick to my stomach! It's like I now have some cosmic connection to all other mothers and all of their kids. I just hurt for them when I see/hear about it.
Prior to Mallory when love songs would come on the radio I would always assume that they are all sung to lovers.... now I feel like all love songs are actually sung to babies/children. (Sorry Matthew)
Being a mom has just filled me a newness. It's truly amazing!!!

LIttle Miss

Well Miss Mallory Rose, it's taken 8 months but your daddy has FINALLY come up with a nick-name for you. You've got to understand, Matthew probably has 10 different nick-names for me (anything from Sunshine, to Miss Thang [said with a twang]).... but he didn't know what to call our little girl. He tried calling her some of the names I call her, but they never seemed to flow easily from his lips. He needed to take his time (as he always does) and find the perfect name to fit his little lady. And I do have to admit, it is perfect. "Little Miss" is what he now calls you. The nick-name has perfectly captured your fun yet sassy and independent nature. He loves you so much Mallory Rose. It makes my heart ache with joy to watch him play and snuggle with you. You are one lucky little lady!