Moving Woes...

I sooo wish we had a truck. With moving Stephen and I have decided to get some real things for the apartment. Not that the things we have are fake, but they are old, ugly, and shabby. We decided that we want to get a newer couch, a newer bed (including bed frame, mattress, box spring etc., plus we need these because we've spent the last almost three years sleeping in a full sized bed. note: we are not thin. Plus, Taylors sleep funny with their elbows flying all over the place, a queen bed is badly needed), a baby dresser (instead of just piling James' clothes on his changing table), and we'll need a washer and dryer as well. (We were going to get James a new crib, but with all these other things we need I think we'll just stick with the one we got on freecycle.) I say newer, because we couldn't afford brand new things, so they we're looking for gently used. The problem is we don't have a truck. So, I have been looking on KSL and Craig's list to time it right so that when we rent the moving truck we can pick things up with it and then come back home and pack the rest of the stuff in. The problem is that nice gently used things are limited in the first place. Secondly (is that a word?) everything that we want is far away. Finally I had found a nice couch located in North Orem. Not as close as I'd like, 15 minute drive, but closer than most. We set up an appointment to go look at it and guess what? When we get there she's like "oh sorry, we just sold it." hmmm....thanks brat face. You could have called and let us know so we could save 30 minutes of our day! Not a big deal you say. Well, we've already spent so much time driving around to several different places to look at couches realizing when we get there that they looked a lot better in the pictures than they do in person. Another woe, we're moving 4th of July weekend, meaning we won't get to celebrate the holiday as much and, not as many people will be able to help because it's a holiday. I can't wait for this month to end.

Time Flies

I came across this video in our camera. I didn't even know Stephen had taken it. It was taken about a week after James was born. Time flies, and now he's almost one. Agh!


Change topics, I cut my own hair. Two weeks ago I did, and it looked like this.


Then I decided two days ago my bangs weren't short enough, now they are halfway up my forehead. I look like Jim Carey on Dumb and Dumber. yep, it's pretty bad. BTW, I'm holding a sppon because I'm an Amelie wanna be. That's who I was trying to cut my hair like.

What's new?

Hurray!! Finally. James is a crawler!!! He crawled , like a real crawl, once at 9 months, but after that he didn't do it again. We kept working on it and finally the day before his 10 month mark he did it and stuck with it, and he's been a speed demon ever since. Here he is:


Other tidbits of information: The Sunday that James turned 10 months was my last day of pumping. Hurray! I had originally wanted to go to 12 months, (because that's how long I had planned on breastfeeding him before he was born) but the more James become mobile the more difficult it became, plus the cruise kind of threw off my schedule; plus, I wanted to really start losing weight. I don't know why, but for some reason the woman in my family cannot diet when we're producing milk. To be honest, I used to think that was just something my sisters said as an excuse to eat what they wanted without feeling guilty. Then I tried it (dieting) somewhere after Thanksgiving and before Christmas, and my supply went way down. I started drinking more water, but still nothing. Then when I was in the mother's lounge at church I overheard this one woman that was nursing her baby complain about how she couldn't diet, or even eat reasonably healthy because her milk would dry up really fast and her baby would be so fussy and hungry. So, I stopped trying to diet, and just ate what I wanted, when I was hungry, and it went up again. Plus, because I pumped it was soo much easier to see the visible difference between when I would eat small/normal portions, or even a salad, and when I would eat a good lumber-mill-man-sized portions. That's how much I would have to eat. It was so crazy, especially since there are lots of woman that can just eat normally when they are breastfeeding. After eating Ice Cream I was like the Dairy Queen.
Other news, we're moving. Ever since Stephen's work moved him to Sales and gave him Salary instead of hourly he was working from 8-5. Right when traffic is at it's peak. He would spend 1-1.5 hours on the road everyday, plus he would have to workout every day for over an hour to try and prepare himself for if he makes the CHP. Finally, I got fed up with never seeing him, so we decided to start looking at places closer to his work. Despite the fact that he gets Salary, it's still not a whole lot of money. Lucky for us we found a place less than a mile from his work called Mayflower Harbor. It's one of those limited income housing complexes. In other words, it's one of the projects. But it looks really nice and safe, and the first month's rent is free and it has a kiddy playground. Not to mention a big playground across the street. The best part is that we'll get to spend more time together, and even eat lunch together everyday. Another plus is that we'll live closer to Karl and Megan and company. The downside is, THERE IS NOTHING IN LEHI, UTAH. Literally. American Fork is close enough, and it has lots of restaurants, etc, it's only 5 minutes away. But still... there's nothing in Lehi. Except Thanksgiving Point and Cabella's. Stephen is way exicted about that, that's a man's candyland. But I'll be further from Joanns. SAD FACE. :( The closest one is in Draper. But... since we are so close to Stephen's work, he's going to ride his bike and I can have the car. Everyday. A luxury I've never had, and which will be especially nice in the winter time. Originally we were going to move at the end of July, but Stephen's work is sending him to Dallas, TX for a week. I'll be alone. Then the day after he gets back they're sending him to Las Vegas, NV, and I think one other place later in the summer. SAD SAD FACE!! With him being gone so much I'm still trying to decide when to have James' Birthday Party, since the weekend before we're going to Idaho/Washingon for the Brinton Reunion. hmmmm...
Other news, we have a treadmill. Hurray! My papa-in-law found it for $15 at a garage sale, after my gripping that he always found the things I wanted for way cheap, sometimes free. Now I can have a way to keep my excerising up during the wintertime. Last month I forgot to mention that my neice Emma Rose Brinton turned 8 on May 7th, and I forgot to wish her a Happy Birthday. (She's the oldest, w/ the red hat) She got baptized on her birthday as well, HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMMA, and CONGRATULATIONS!!! Also, this month my was my neice Camryn Karen Taylor's birthday. If you're on the Taylor side you already know, but here are some pictures and video's we took at that happy event. Happy Birthday again. This is the dress I made her, though you can't see it very well in the pix.

Here's the kiddies playing together. It's kind of funny. Camryn is sharing her blocks, picking which ones she wants James to play with and which ones she'd like to keep for her to play with. Ironically enough James wants the ones she has, and not the ones she's giving him. hehehe.
So, sorry this blog was so long. Just wanted to catch up on everything.

The Flutter Frock

...and no, this isn't a give away. I had to post some pictures of this cute cute dress I wore to church today and got no less than 3 compliments.


(Note: No one complimented me when I wore my rock candy dress to church. *sigh* c'est la vie.) First off I cannot take credit for this dress, because I didn't make it, my sister-in-law Becky did, but I did put the cute butterflies on it. It was an attempt to make it look like this blue skirt


from Boden (gosh oh gee I love their clothes!!!). She made it just a little too big. Ok...that's an understatement. When she made this I think she was a size 4, I am between a 12 and a 14 now and it fits me perfectly. I've had that problem myself, but you can't help it when you measure your body correctly and the measurements of the pattern envelope are so ridiculously off. I remember when I was thinner I measured myself to make this dress and it said I was a size 18. I was mortified. Especially since I wore a size 8 at the time. But I decided to do it like it said because the last thing I sewed was a skirt, and I didn't believe I was the size they said so I did it smaller. Needless to say I couldn't wear it until I had lost some weight. Anyways, back to the dress; I brought it to my ward sewing group, and was about to start sewing it together when the lady said I really should try it on first. Surprise, it was huge, she helped me get it down to wear it should be which was between 6 and 8. BTW, if anyone is wondering yes I cute my hair, and no I don't like it. In fact, I have to keep it in a ponytail because it looks like I have a female mullet. Yuck!

Taylors Breed Big

This is very true. All of Stephen's siblings are fairly tall, some more than others, and his dad is tall, too. I am not tall. Luckily, James got more Taylor genes when it comes to height. When I was pregnant with James I signed up to get one of those Gerber Baby Newsletters, the kind that tell you where your baby should be at each month, except mine come two months in advanced. For example, I got "Your Baby at 11 months" when James was 9 months. It gave where your baby should be at, including height and weight, etc. At 11 months 30 and 1/4 inches is considered to be in the 90% percentile for height. So, I was staring at James thinking, "Wow, my baby's pretty tall, I wonder where he's at now." So, I measured him, at 9 months, and he was 31 inches. I thought that maybe I hadn't marked it correctly, but yesterday James had his doctors appointment and he was 31 and 1/4 inches tall (which is actually like the 100% in height for a 11 or 12 month old), 21 lbs. (60% percentile for weight), and for his head circumference he's in the 95% percentile. Yep, tall...big head, he's definitely a Taylor. If he'd taken after me he'd be in the 50-60% for height, and 70-90% for weight.

James was developing a mild diaper rash yesterday, so I'd had some diaper rash ointment I'd left on the coffee table, look who found it.




Not too happy that we confiscated it.

Happy Mother's Day

Mother - that was the bank where we deposited all our hurts and worries. ~T. DeWitt Talmage

First, I would like to say Happy Birthday to Grandma Linda Taylor today. Second, Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there. And thanks to this little guy, for giving me a reason to be grateful I'm a mommy.


James reminds me of Schroeder from Peanuts in this pictures, he loves his little piano.
I made myself a Mother's Day Dress...TADA! I call it "The Rock Candy Dress."





I wish I had some actual rock candy so I could take a picture like this

But holding these, instead of cherry pop.

Ahhh...Happy Mother's Day to me. :D

CHP Update, and more...

Last Weekend Stephen went to California, again, for his CHP testing. We thought that this would be the last visit, but there's still two more tests that hopefully can both be done in the next visit, sometime I think at the end of this month or the beginning of June. The sooner the better. I just want it all to be done. It was so stressful taking care of this little guy without Stephen. He's so needy lately, I think because he's teething, so he want to be held all the time. Agh! It was nice having a car though, I feel so trapped sometimes without a car, especially during the winter time. Anyway...even if the CHP doesn't pan out, Stephen has been moved to the Sales department at his current job. Hurray! they gave him a slight pay increase, and said that if he can keep up the ggod work they'd like to give him a salary pay, instead of hourly. So, at least we have something on the back burner in case it doesn't work out. While he was gone last week James and I stayed with Valerie and Leighton out in Spanish Fork. Ironically enough Chris went out of town the exact same time as Stephen to apply for a job in Alabama. He was offered the job on the spot. Lucky Dawg!!! So they'll be moving in a few weeks. Sad Face. :( Here are some pictures of James' first official sleepover.



Can you tell they just woke up?
Here are some more of James after finishing one of those biter biscuits.


He's a mess. Guess what? His two top teeth are just starting to break through. Pictures Pending.