Hi, Goodbye, and Big Girl Pants

You may have noticed the lack of blog post for the last few weeks.  I apologize and do have a lot to catch up on since last we spoke, Carrigan celebrated the 2 month mark, we celebrated the 4th of July, Colvin marked turning 6 with a slip-n-slide party, and Carrigan was blessed.  In addition to all that craziness (which I promise I will get around to over the next few weeks),  Jeremy's parent, Jensen, Bryce, Emily, Kai, and my Dad all came and went (along with my mom) and that is what I want to talk about today.  I hope you will forgive me because I am still processing all of this and this blog post promises to be more rambling than anything else and without pictures, despite the fact that I have lots of pictures from the other events mentioned above.

Over the course of our marriage, Jeremy and I have never been blessed to live by both sides of the family at the same time.  For the first six years of our marriage we lived mostly by Jeremy's family in Arizona (I did have one sister and extended family close by) and the last two years we have lived by most of my family in Oregon.  The problem with this is you are always saying goodbye and missing someone or lots of someones as the case my be.

The last few weeks were no exception to this rule.  Due to the holiday and Carrigan's blessing we had a whole slew of visitors and what followed was several amazing days of family time, and once again I will catch you up on those in the day and weeks to come, but as always happens, the vacations came to an end.  First Jeremy's family left,  followed by Emily and Kai.  Then, just a few short days later, my parent left to begin their new life and adventure in India.

If I am being honest I am not very good at goodbye's.  Once when Jeremy and I were dating we broke up for a week and despite the fact that I was the one who initiated the break up, I mostly cried all week long.  While these goodbyes have not brought constant tears, I have shed my fair share.  This is the first time since we have been married that we have not lived by one set of grandparents and after having lived with my parents for the last two years, I have really become accustomed to having them around...which leads me the last part of my blog title "big girl pants".

Except under rare circumstances, when you live with someone, whether it be a spouse, parent, or roommate, over time there tends to be a natural division of labor that occurs.  Each person takes on certain tasks and while it may not be formally talked about, those become their responsibility.  That has been the case for us these last few years living with my parents.  Some things, like cleaning up after dinner while we got the kids ready for bed my parents took care of.  Well, now my parents are gone and while we are perfectly capable of doing these type of tasks, we just have to adjust to the change and step up and do them.  So Jeremy and I have gotten into the habit of teasing each other that we need to put on our big girl/boy pants when something like having to check the thermostat, which oddly enough neither of us has done in the last two years, comes up.

Anyway, I will stop rambling now.  I guess at the end of all this I will just say that I am really grateful for eternal families.  I look forward to being with my family forever and no longer having to say goodbye.

Helping Hands

So this is a bit of a serious post, but I thought this picture was really funny and went well with the "hands" theme, so there you go.

This week has been the definition of crazy.  As most everyone knows, and as I have mentioned before, my parents are in the middle of a move to India.  My dad is already there and having a great adventure (you should read his blog if you are not already doing so).  My mom is working hard to sort and pack or sell all their earthly possessions and it is a bit overwhelming to say the least.

Last Sunday things seemed particularly challenging and we were able to have a sweet experience as Jeremy was able to give my mom a priesthood blessing.  I won't go into it too much, but he told her that her family and friends really wanted to help and all she had to do was ask.

It was amazing to watch this week as this promise came to pass.  All week family and friends have descended on the house ready to help.  We have sorted through the vast majority of the house and while there is still a lot more to do, the progress has been phenomenal.

I know my mom still feels overwhelmed and like the weight of all of this is still on her shoulders, but I also know she, as well as the rest of the family, appreciate those that are trying to help ease her burden.  My mom has always been quick to provide a helping hand to those around her and has always been a great example to me of selfless service.  It is nice to see others serving her.

Graduation Day(s)

Today is Father's Day so I would be remiss if I did not wish a Happy Father's Day to Jeremy, my dad, and Jeff.  I so appreciate their love, support, and wisdom and want to thank them for being the truly great men that they are.

Now on to the original subject of this post.  This week was a big one for Merrick.  It was graduation time at preschool and when your mom and Nana own and run the preschool and you are drug along for the ride you get to be apart of all of the classes and therefore all of the graduation festivities.  We had a small little ceremony for each of the classes where we called each child to the front for a hug, a certificate and a spotlight moment.  Since the vast majority of those who will read this blog were not in attendance, here are the things we shared about Merrick:

-His favorite color is green and when given the choice of color of paper, crayons, markers, etc, he will always choose green.
-He was everyone's friend.  He was willing to play with anyone and everyone liked to play with him.
-He was the youngest (in the afternoon class) but he fit right in.
-He was the only lefty
-He loved to dress up and was part of the "fire fighter crew"
-He made great progress over the course of the year in his cutting and coloring

While that is all we shared as part of the ceremonies, I could says so much more about him.  He has been such a trooper all year long; being apart of all classes, prep, and clean-up.  He has learned so much and come so far.  I am unbelievably proud of him as both his preschool teacher and his mom.

(p.s. Please excuse my horrible face on the third picture, it was unfortunately one of our only pictures of the am class graduation...at least Merrick looks cute.)

One Month

This week we celebrated one month of Carrigan being on this earth.  I can't believe how quickly the time has flown by.  Everyday she becomes more alert, more vocal, and more active.  Sometimes she will look at me or look around and I can practically see the wheels turning as she does her best to learn everything about everything.

Here are some of the highlights of Carrigan at one month:
She can roll from her back to her side and her tummy to her side
She can make cute cooing sounds
She can smile an adorable smile (unfortunately I think all her smiles are still gas related at this point)
She can make anyone around her happier in an instant (I dare you to look at the pictures below and not smile)

Happy one month birthday Carrigan!

Love and Family Pictures

Since Carrigan was born, I have been so amazed at how the love we all have for each other has expanded.  It seems like we not only love her so much, but love each other more too.   Despite the changes it has meant for him, Merrick loves her as much as anyone.

Yesterday Carrigan decided to test just how strong Merrick's love really is.  It was first thing in the morning.  I had just finished feeding Carrigan and was working on a burp.  Merrick was sitting on the floor next to the bed playing a game on the iPad.  The burp was being stubborn so I handed her off to Jeremy, he has become the burping pro.  A few seconds later I heard a retching sound as Carrigan projectile vomited over the edge of the bed and all over Merrick.  After having a bath Merrick came to snuggle up with Carrigan and me.  It seems that there is no love lost.

Last weekend we had Carrigan's newborn pictures and family pictures taken.  They turned out really great.  I think I love them so much because you can physically see both her sweetness and the love we have for each other.  I am so grateful to have these pictures to help us always remember this special time in our lives and the love we have for each other as I am sure that yesterday mornings adventure will not be the only time that love is tested.

Big, Big Brother

Last week's blog was all about our sweet Miss Carrigan so it is only fair that this week Merrick gets a little blog love.

Several people told me after Carrigan was born that I would be amazed at how big Merrick seemed. I guess that by comparison it is only natural that he would seem huge, but he also seems so grown up.  He has been so cute and helpful over the last few weeks.   He loves to give Carrigan kisses and bring me diapers, wipes, binkies, and the "bobby" (boppy).

Merrick has also developed the funniest habit since Carrigan was born. He loves to do tricks, like standing on one foot, and say "can babies do this?"  Even he is realizing how big he is and all the things he is able to do that his baby sister is not.

I also can't believe that in four short weeks he will have finished his first year of preschool. It is truly amazing to me how much he has learned and how far he has come.  Last week we got his school pictures back.  Just see for yourself how grown up and handsome he has become.  Who could resist this face?

Carrigan Leigh Clifford

Today is Mother's Day, but my Mother's Day present came just over a week ago.  Last Friday night Jeremy and I were putting Merrick to bed and I was starting to have contractions.  They were pretty consistent (typically about 10 minutes apart) but they were not particularly painful so I figured it was a false alarm.  In fact they were mild enough that after Merrick fell asleep, Jeremy and I watched a movie and then went to sleep ourselves.

At 2:30am I was awoken by some truly painful contractions.  I timed them for half and hour and they were  5-7 minutes apart so I decided it was time to wake Jeremy up and head to the hospital.  It took us a while to get our bundle tied and get out the door.  When we got in the car it was 3:25, I took note because I was having a contraction.

We got to labor and delivery at the hospital about 3:40.  Luckily they did not make me "prove" I was in labor and took me straight to my room.  The nurse asked me about my plan for pain management and I told her I wanted an epidural.  She told me she was going to check me to see where thing were at and then we would work on getting my epidural.  Unfortunately, when she checked me she changed her tune.  She started saying that I was ready to start pushing and that I could have an epidural if there was time but she was not sure.

Before I knew it my room was swarming with nurses and one nurse said she was going to sit at the end of my bed until the doctor could get there.  When the doctor got there it became obvious that an epidural was not going to happen.  I asked the nurse if they could do something else for  the pain and she assured me they could as soon as they got my IV in.  Well, after two failed attempts at getting the IV in, the baby was coming and they gave up on the IV.

I would like to say that I handled what came next with grace and dignity, but that was not the case.  I screamed and yelled that I could not do it, but at the end of the day I did not really have any other choice and we made it through somehow.

In record time, at 4:12am on May 4th, 2013, Carrigan Leigh Clifford joined the world and our family.  She weighed 7lbs 4oz and they measured her at 18 1/2 inches long (although I think she is actually quite a bit longer than that).  She has LOTS of really dark hair and long fingers and toes.  As you can see from the pictures she is beautiful.  She is the perfect addition to our family and we all, including her big brother, love her so much.

In the week she has been home we all have adjusted well.  She eats and sleeps well and is a joy and a blessing in every way.