Coming Together

So we went to Dallas this weekend to see if we could tie up all the loose ends and get everything set for the big move in a few weeks. We really wanted to purchase a small home, because it is a less expensive monthly payment than a rental. Unfortunately, I will not qualify for a loan because I will be paid on a commission. So we found a little tiny rental. It is cute and in a nice neighborhood. It will be even cuter after we add some nice paint and personal touches. There are other upgrades I would like to add, like tile in the bathrooms, but we'll have to see if Corey has any time to do so. It is dirt cheap for the area, so we cannot complain. Hopefully we will be able to save all the money we would've spent on nicer housing and put that toward future housing or business expenses. Things seem to be lining up nicely for my job. Again, it is just kind of a leap of faith. It is different than being guaranteed a set salary. But capitalism allows a much greater income potential than does a set salary. We'll just hope and pray that it pans out.

It was weird celebrating my birthday away from friends and family. Corey was extremely sweet and patient as we drove from one end of Dallas to the other looking for a restaraunt without a 3 hour wait. We settled on Cheesecake Factory. Mmmmm.....Godiva chocolate cheesecake never lets me down! I gave Corey a hard time about not bringing my present. He said that with not checking baggage, there was not enough room in the carry-ons. (There are lots of things that don't take up much space-- keys to a new Lexus, gift certificates, plane tickets to Italy, to name a few!) I guess it's my fault for being so cheap. I have trained him too well!! (Though I doubt he'll make that mistake again!) At least he got me this nice hotel room at the Hyatt.

To be fair, he changed all of Zach's diapers the entire day, which was nice. Poor Zach has been sick for awhile now. He rarely gets ill, but when he does, he makes it count. He's had a fever between 101 and 103 for 3-4 nights now. He has some kind of respiratory infection/sinus infection. He's been as sweet and snuggly as can be, though.

I just had to mention that the other morning in the hotel room, Corey and I were waiting for Zach to wake up after a long, feverish night. We are not usually present when he arises in his bedroom at home, and we usually just go get him when we hear him crying to get out. So we were surprised when, after a few moments of thrashing in the bed, he popped up into sitting position, blinked his eyes, and wide-awake, said, "Huh?", just like he'd been in the middle of the conversation with us. You had to be there, but it was hilarious to Corey and me.

It's Rented!

We just signed a contract with a nice little family to rent out our house for the next year. They are about our age, the wife is an RN, the husband works from home doing loan modifications, etc, and they have 3 cute kids, ages 2, 4 and 6. I hope everything works out with this. It is really hard to let someone take resposibility for one of our most prized and expensive possessions. I really hope they take good care of it.

We will be sad to leave. It is such a wonderful, warm place. We brought our little Zachary home to it, celebrated holidays, and have made countless other memories within these walls. There is nothing to compare this location and view to in Dallas. We will be visiting Dallas next week to look for housing there. Now all I need is my job contract...

Decisions, decisions

WHY am I so hesitant to go forward with our move to Texas?

There are a lot of factors. I do not yet have a firm contract for my job there. Our house is not yet rented out. We do not have a place to live out there yet. Texas is ugly. No offense, but compared to Utah, Idaho, Oregon, Hawaii, etc, it is just plain flat and ugly. I think the main problem is that I have just not truly received an inspired confirmation that Texas is where we should be going. We felt really good about Oregon, but nothing seemed to point that it made any sense to move there. When I say we felt good, hmmmm, I don't know that I could said it was an inspired good, it just was beautiful, close to home, the mountains, and the beach, etc. And I can't say I feel like we shouldn't go to Texas, or should go anywhere else. But it also doen't make any sense to stay here. We are excited to get on with Corey's education. Confusion...

When we were deciding on where to attend dental school, Corey and I were Gospel Doctrine teachers. In the midst of our decision, while preparing for our lesson, we seriously came across a scripture in the Doctrine and Covenants that says, "Go to the Ohio." Answers don't come more straightforward than that!

Why can't we get a similar answer for Texas? (I already checked the Topical Guide and Index- there are no references for either OR or TX!)

November 2009

I have realized that I am just not going to be that person that gets photos printed and put into an album or scrapbook. I have thousands of photos, and I do see them often as my screensaver, but I am going to try to post a few more photos on this blog to share with firends and family. Someday, maybe I'll even have these blog entries bound into a book or something. So here are some photos chronicling Zach's first birthday party and other November events.


Corey's parents came down the weekend before Zach's birthday and we went on a shopping spree to Toys R Us. Zach had an absolute hayday. It made me realize that we don't get out much. He loved this big T-rex, as well as the blue truck, which we ended up getting him. He really loved all his gifts and has been excited to play with each one of them this week.


We had a Mexican Fiesta theme, enjoying delicious tostadas and a pinata filled with candy and toys. He really liked pulling the tissue paper off the pinata and putting it in his mouth. Adam Jack was appaled that we were "breaking the horsie!"


I made this lovely cake, as well as cupcakes that everyone had the chance to decorate. Zach first just started mushing the cupcake and frosting in his hand. Finally, I had to stick some in his mouth, and then he just kept shoveling it in!! He has never had anything so sugary before, and he loved it!!

He has started pushing objects up to the couch and TV so he can better reach and climb and get into trouble.

Zach and his Aunt Erica

Have you ever seen such a cute dad? He often dresses Zach in clothes that match his own.

They are best buds while I am away at work.

Corey hiked Zach's pants way up.

He loved playing in these gloves. The look on his face is angelic!

I was shocked to find this picture on the camera. Corey threatens me if I dare suggest putting bows on my beautiful boy. Apparently, Zack put this one on himself for the photo op while Corey was watching him!! He would make a cute girl, right?! (Don't tell Corey I said that!)

Zach has learned to climb into the toy chest...

but has trouble getting back out!

And lastly, here is the sunset out the back door last night. I am certainly going to miss this place. We put it up for rent a couple of weeks ago. We have one family that is particularly interested, but nothing is certain yet. I got my Texas dental license, but am patiently waiting for a contract to sign so we can look more seriously for housing. It is a frustrating process. We are planning on moving between Christmas and New Years so Corey can begin the semester in January. Nothing is exactly solid yet, so it doesn't seem quite real. I don't want to harass my new boss, but I am getting a little impatient. We'll keep everyone posted once we make definitive plans.

Zachary's First Birthday

I LOVE this kid! Little did I know one year ago that I could adore something that keeps me up all night!! Zachary has been such a blessing in our lives. The first few months were a little difficult as we tried to figure out what he wanted and needed. He struggled with learning to eat properly, and has only recently grasped the concept of sleeping for long stretches in the night. Once he learned to smile, he never stopped! He is constantly smiling and laughing, and has a genuinely sweet disposition. Zach has always been a go-er. He was doing sit ups at just a couple months old. Then came rolling over and crawling. He's been walking since 10 months, and is now starting to climb upwards- YIKES!!! We have treasured every moment we have with this little angel, and look forward to watching him continue to learn and grow.

Where is Halloween?

Halloween is so much more fun with a little one to dress up. We found this little Yoda costume for Zach, so decided to go with the Star Wars theme this year. Corey was a Jedi, and I wrapped my hair in buns and went as Princess Leia. We won the prize for Best Costumes at the ward party, which was a lot of fun. I'm wishing I would've taken Zach trick-or-treating to a lot more houses, because our candy got entirely cleaned out! He was a sweet little Yoda, waddling around just like the real Jedi!

We also had our first real family photographs on Halloween day. I was really excited to capture the autumn colors, and I think they delivered. These are just a few shots that Corey and I got of each other. I wish we would have brought someone else with us to snap one of all of us, because I'm sure the ones the "Pros" took are not going to be cheap! Can anyone photoshop these and combine the two?!

This One's for the Grandparents

For the grandparents and others that don't get to see him often, here are some videos of Zachary this past month- dancing, playing doctor with his cousin, and putting a bucket on his head. Whatever.

*Hint: Pause the Playlist music on the left and crank the volume up to hear the videos.

Enter Sandman

Zach is over 10 months old. He has been walking all over the place, dancing, eating solids, and a variety of other milestones, but, as of last week, had not yet to fallen asleep on his own and/or slept through the night. He would wake up several times through the night and cry until I came in and fed him. I have not slept more than 4 hours straight since I was about 6 months pregnant!

We tried to follow the "Babywise" routine early on, but it did not work at all. He would just scream and wail when I would try to get him to fall asleep on his own. I was really consistent, but Zach was just not ready. I regretted trying to make him fit into "the box" that so many people swear by. I wish I would have just held him and snuggled him during all those hours that I was trying to "sleep train" him. I think part of it was that he was a bit colicky, and partly that he was just strong willed. Not all babies fit into that mold of being great sleepers, or being ready to sleep through the night early on. I read all the books, and found that there is a little good in all of them, but none of them could work on every baby--especially mine. Plus, being a working mom, I wanted my baby to know that I was there for him during the night when he needed me since I am gone during the day.

But last week, in complete exhaustion, I decided it was time to try again. I read through the book "Sleeping Through the Night," which quoted many studies that showed that putting the baby into its crib before he falls asleep in your arms is the best way to help them learn to soothe themselves into falling asleep. We were worried about letting Zach cry himself to sleep that first night. The book says to expect the crying to last 45-60 minutes the first night, 60-75 minutes the next night, and that it will get progressively shorter, until the baby is not crying at all and is sleeping through the night within 2 weeks. We were skeptical, but desperate for some sleep.

Tuesday night I fed him, rocked him, prayed with him, and sang to him before setting him in the crib at about 9:15. His angry screams lasted 35 minutes, and caused Corey and I as much anguish as it did Zach. I had to awaken him at 4am to feed him, which is what time he usually awakens. Then he slept until 7:30. We were worried about those screams lasting longer for Night 2, but were pleasantly surprised that he tuckered out after just 15 minutes of crying. He awoke around 5 again to eat. On Night 3, I laid him down and didn't hear a sound for ten minutes. At that point, he whimpered for about one minute, and then was silent. Wow! He slept until 6:30 am before awaking to eat. HEAVEN!! Last night he went down without a whimper, and he didn't wake up when I went in to take these photos an hour later. Before, he would wake up at the slightest sound. We kind of miss rocking him to sleep, but we still snuggle him plenty during the waking hours. We love this boy more than anything!!! And we don't mind all of us getting some longer stretches of sleep, too!!

He loves to crawl under the fabric cover of this chair and play peek-a-boo or just hide out.

Corey got him this hat to match his BYU shirt

Zach likes to rock out to music these days. Check out his sweet moves!

All my Exes Live in Texas

To call us indecisive would be an understatement, I know. It's getting to the point that I don't remember who I have and have not told about our moving decisions of late, so I decided to post them.

We went out to Portland/Vancouver over Labor Day to search for housing and a job for me. Now that my National Health Service Corp Loan Repayment Contract obligation is over, I have vowed to do all in my power to only work part time. It has been torture working full time since Zach was 3 months old. Luckily, he's had the best childcare in the world with Tessa, Missy, Corey, and my mom. But still, it has been extremely difficult for me to leave him for four ten-hour-days per week the last 7 months (minus a fair bit of vacation time). I purposely chose a profession that would allow me to provide well for my family working only part time hours, which is great if I can find someone who will hire me part time, or if I want to buy/start my own practice (which often requires more stress and time than working for someone else, at least at first). Eventually I would like to own or be a partner in a practice and work a couple days per week, with a room that my children can be watched in attached to the practice, possibly. Maybe Corey and I can even share office space in the future. But for now, we are not ready to make the huge investment of time, effort, and money required to buy/start a practice, so I am at the mercy of working for someone else.

We visited both Portland and Dallas this summer, and found things we liked about both. The economy is great in Dallas, with dental associate jobs abounding, and a reasonable housing market. The weather and scenery, however, leave much to be desired from those who have enjoyed the beauty of the West.

Portland, on the other hand, has gorgeous surroundings and is much closer to home, but the economy there is extremely poor. Housing is higher and quite unstable, and worse, there are very few dental jobs available. I was offered only one position, and it was at a dingy, outdated office with the managers insisting full time hours.

We were honestly ready to come out to Portland for Corey to begin school in October, but especially without knowing anyone I trust to care for Zachary, I can't feel good about taking the position there. We figured out how much money we will have from student loans after tuition is paid, and it's a measly $680/mo. That's not even enough to cover a tiny apartment in Vancouver. We could borrow more at an exorbitant interest rate, but it doesn't make sense to do so if I can pay the bills by working just one or two days a week. Plus, I really enjoy what I do and do not want to lose the skills I have worked so hard to attain.

SO. I called up one of the contacts that tentatively offered me a job in Dallas, and the doctor said he was still interested in having me. What's more, he is a member of the church and familiar with my family values and is happy to have me work just two days a week, and offered a generous salary!! To top it off, the dental practice is like walking into a day spa. There are chandeliers, fountains, and you can even have a paraffin hand treatment while you wait in your massaging dental chair! It is a great opportunity for me to learn to do more complex and comprehensive cosmetic procedures while also learning to build and manage an extremely successful practice for both Corey and I.

We are tentatively planning on being in Dallas no later than January, but we may head down a bit sooner.

Of course, don't be surprised if our plans change again, either.... You know us!

...and Climbing

Sorry this one is kind of long- 1 minute- and may take awhile to download. But I thought at least the grandparents would enjoy watching Zach 's new climbing techniques. Enjoy!

He's Up and Running!!

I think with this Little Athlete, we all knew he would run before he could walk, right?! Well, at 9 1/2 months old, he is taking his first quick steps toward things he wants. I'm not sure if we want to encourage this behavior yet--we can barely keep up with him as it is! Man, we love this kid!!

10 Years of Wedded Bliss

We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary last weekend. Corey picked out dozens upon dozens of my favorite flowers and had Meadow create a beautiful arrangement that they brought to my office on Wednesday. It was filled with hydrangeas, lisianthus, Bells of Ireland, and other gorgeous flora. I adore it!!

Thursday morning we left for Las Vegas, where we stayed at the Paris Hotel on the Strip, which was, coincidentally, built the same year we were married.

I LOVED our room! It was on the 30th floor, right across from the Bellagio, so we had a great view of the water shows. I really liked the modern red and black decor.

Zack enjoyed the view, too! He loved playing in the sheer curtains and looking out the windows.

We decided against going to a show due to the cost and having Zach with us. Instead, we hit up the best French buffet in town. It was well worth the $25 price tag for the numerous delicacies. We especially enjoyed the crab legs and dessert bar.

These are views from the top of the Eiffel Tower. We were able to see an entire Bellagio light/water show, which was even more amazing from above. We arrived right at sunset, and enjoyed the lovely views. I was glad we didn't even need to leave the resort to the dirty old Strip in order to have a great time. There is so much trash coming at you from every direction on the Strip. There are also beautiful and amazing architectural and entertainment masterpieces. What a weird place!

I love the intricate decorations around the different hotels in Vegas- look at these sinks!

The next day we went to Corey's sister, Melanie's, house on the northwest end of town. It is like a different world out there. She lives in a lovely home with a giant swimming pool out back. She was kind enough to watch Zach while Corey and I ate at the Cheesecake Factory and went to the temple. We slept over there and headed to the Hoover Dam with the whole family on Saturday. It is an amazing structure. I always knew it was extremely tall- about 700 feet- but I never knew it was nearly as wide as it is tall- about 625 feet!

We drove to St. George to stay the night, and stopped at Bryce Canyon National Park on the way home. It was gorgeous! We were stunned at the beauty that we enjoyed. We took a short hike around the rim with Zach riding in the hiking backpack. He loves it! We had to buy him the fourth sun hat he's had this summer because they keep disappearing. Zach kept taking it off through the whole hike- I guess that explains the mysterious disappearances. Finally I put a blanket on his head to protect him from the sun, and he was fine with that. Go figure!

The way the geology changes so suddenly astounded Corey and I. We were driving along looking at sagebrush and pine trees, when the landscape immediatley changed to the gorgeous red rocks and towering "hoodoo" rock formations, as they are called. It made me want to take a geology course to understand how exactly that happens. Then I remembered that only nerds take geology. Just kidding. It was even free park day, which saved us $25. It's about 3.5 hours from PG, but well worth the side trip.

I had such a great and memorable 10th Anniversary Weekend. Thanks Honey!!