My Business Idea...

Alright, I have had an idea, and I need input to see if it is a good one or not. So please read through it and leave a comment or email me to let me know what you think.

We want to stay in our house, but are needing to find a way to do so, while lowering our payment somehow. So we are thinking that we can live in the upstairs, and then do something different with the downstairs. We originally had the idea to just make it into it's own apartment and rent it out (which might still happen). There are good things with that idea, but then some negative too. So the other morning, while I was feeding Thomas, I had an epiphany. Are you ready for it?

What if we made it into a business? I was influenced by a new family that moved into the neighborhood and they are opening a preschool downstairs. She is going to be like an administrator, and not the teacher however. She will be hiring a teacher, maintaining enrollment, purchasing supplies, and cleaning. So I was trying to think what kind of business I could do. Preschool is not what I would like to do. Although I love teaching, I think I would get kind of tired of taking care of other people's kids all the time. And I want to have some more flexibility. So....

What do we like to do that we could turn into a business? I like to scrapbook. So that was my idea. Turn downstairs into something like a Crop Corner or a ScrapNook (I have been thinking of names, can you tell?). We would turn the current family room into a room with tables and chairs and scrapbooking "toys." Then I would turn one of the bedrooms into a kid friendly room with toys and such so moms can come and bring their kids to play while they scrap. Another of the rooms I would turn into a TV room. Then not sure about the other bedroom, that might become storage or another scrap room. There is a bathroom down there already. Then we could charge a per visit fee, or buy a punchcard and get a discount, or get a monthly membership. I would not be planning to sell supplies, just provide a mom friendly atmosphere to come and scrapbook. I would have several trimmers, and cutting machines (like the Wishblade and the Cricut) and photo printers (they would have to be an additional fee if they were used). I would also have punches and cropadile and similar kinds of "toys" but would not plan on selling items that are not reusable. I would also have scrapbooking magazines and idea books. I would also try to have a small kitchenette in the main room, so people could bring meals or a snack to give them sustenance while scrapping.

In addition, I would also try to get some independent distributors (like Stampin Up, Creative Memories, I Remember When, etc. Reps) to come and advertise. I would allow them to bring their product that they can then sell and have parties there.

I would not want to be open all the time, but would shoot for 3 days a week, and then 2 weekends a month probably. I could also be open "by appointment" if people wanted to come at a time I wasn't planning on being open. We could also open for Midnight Crops occasionally. There could also be classes of techniques and how to's.

I know these are a lot of ideas, but I have just been having so many go around my head, that I needed a place to put them all down, and to get feedback from.

So, the things I would like to hear from you all, is:
1)Would you be interested in going to a place like this?
2) What would you want to have available to use?
3)What would you be willing to pay to come to a place like this? (I have been thinking something like $5-$10 for 2-3 hours, or like a $25-$50 membership fee for a month- I really have no idea)
4)Do you think a place like this would do well financially? (I am not really in it to make tons of money, just need to be able to net about $1300-$1500/month to help cover our mortgage payment and a little bit extra for the day to day cost of items).
5) Any other suggestions, ideas, or concerns that you would have that I haven't thought of.

We are just looking into seeing if this could be a reality and want to get a feel for it before we would go a head and start on it. We have to do something, and I would love to be able to do something I think would be enjoyable. So leave a comment and let me know!

More Park Pics

Well, it snowed and snowed this past weekend. But the day before it did, it was something like 60 degrees out there, and we were out at the park enjoying it, as you can see from the kids faces. We were not that excited the next day when we saw the snow that fell all day long. I think we got like 2 foot here at our house! Aren't they both hams? Our rule is, if you climb up, you have to be able to climb down. So Keith has been climbing higher and higher on the little "rock walls" and other paraphanalia. And Rachel will climb up on her "throne," but then she calls for help to get down. I don't physically help her, but I do recommend good footholds as she descends.
This picture of me and Thomas was actually taken today at the Wasilla Sports Complex. I took it, by holding the camera out. I figured I needed a picture of Thomas and myself, so this was about the best that I could do. This is an indoor turf soccer field that they bring toys out for kids to go and run and play. Today we had lots of fun playing "soccer" with our own rules. Mostly just kicking a ball back and forth into the goal. But we all had fun. Even Thomas. He might not look like it in this picture though!
Hope all of you all are doing well, but as usually, it is very late and I need to go to bed- but hark, i think Thomas is awake and probalby hungry, so he will get fed first, then off to dreamland...oh but wait, maybe a shower first. A mothers time to herself is almost never during normal hours of the day! Do you find that to be true too?

PS- BTW- if you didn't catch the reason for all those house pictures, my brother and his family are moving back here this summer, and I went to this open house for them and took pictures. When they are done looking at the pictures, I will delete them so you don't get all bogged down with them all.

All Done! and What's To Come

Okay, it is WAY past my bedtime, but I told Tyson I would post some pictures so I did. But I have got to get to bed, but I hope you all leave comments and let us know how you all are doing! We love to check in with you and find what's going on with you.

By the way, we are taking a trip down to Utah and Idaho in May. We know that we won't be able to visit all of you, but would like to try to visit with some of you while we are down there. We will be flying into Las Vegas, and then heading to Cedar City to spend time with Tyson's family. We aren't sure exactly what will be happening while we are down there because we know the Little Bundy reunion is around that time, but we will have to leave on Memorial Day and drive up to Idaho so we can visit with Sarah and Chris before Tyson leaves the next day. He has to fly out to get back up here, so he can go to work. But the kids and I will be sticking around for a bit longer. We are still waiting to hear if we can borrow my sister's car while we are in Idaho (they are having it checked out), but if we can get a car, we will be able to travel a bit to visit people. So if you are in that neck of the woods and will be around and the stars all align properly, let me know and we would love to see you!

Now I am really off to bed, so good night all!

Baby Blessing

Thomas was blessed on March 30. It was a very nice blessing. Tyson's parents and sister, Megan, came up for it. Tyson gave the blessing, and we had my dad and his dad, and my sister in law's dad, and our Bishop who was released that day and my brother in law stand in the blessing circle.

We haven't been very good in the picture department for the other kids on their blessing days, so we made sure to get some this time. We only got one family picture, but at least we got one!

I think about the only picture I have of Keith on his blessing day is of Wendel, Tyson's dad, holding him, so I am glad that I have this one too. For Rachel's blessing, I don't think we got any on the actual day, but about a week afterwards, I dressed her in her blessing dress again, and we took pictures.



Okay, so I didn't pick the best pictures necessarily to post, but those thumbnails are so small! Tyson has been having fun playing with our camera that we got for Christmas too, so we have tons and tons of pictures that only the expression changes. He likes to take sequence shots, so that when you flip/scroll through them, you get a mini video. It is nice to have ones to choose from, but it is a bit hard when I am just looking at the thumbnail view of what to post here. Just know that he was a very handsome little boy who was very loved! The outfit that he was wearing was given by our friends the Evans to my sister when she had her baby boy about 3 years ago, but they never got to use it. She gave it to us, and it worked perfectly. Don't you think?

What Can You Memorize?

Keith and Rachel have been on a game kick lately. I think it might have to do with Tyson's parents and sister coming up to visit, and we played quite a few games. But this is one that they like, and is also challenging for us adults. Keith is really good at it. He is a very visual learner, so he does well. He calls it "memorize" and he likes to get it going. I think we have finally got Rachel to realize that she has to watch in order to know where the ones that other people have turned over so that she can get a match. She is doing better. These kinds of games are more my thing than Tyson's. He likes games like chess where you have to strategize.

Thomas' Sleepy Talent

I tried and tried with the other kids to see if they would end up sucking their fingers. I kind of gave up on Thomas, but as you can see, he is figuring it out himself. The two pics of him in the swing were last night. I went upstairs and was getting ready for bed and checked on him, and saw that he had fallen asleep with his fingers (or it might have been thumb, it was pretty dark- these pics were with the night setting on the camera) in his mouth. So I grabbed the camera to take the pic. When babies can pacify themselves, it is so nice! I know that sucked my thumb, and Sarah sucked her finger, but I think that is all of my siblings that did that. He doesn't tend to do it as much when he is wide awake, just when he is sleepy.

And yes, Thomas does spend part of every night in the swing. He just does so much better in it, and will go up to 7 hours without eating. Now, he isn't always sleeping all that time, but he does for most of it. We try not to ruin a good thing!

Imaginarium Trip

We did a preschool trip ( I was in charge and we were doing the sky- stars, planets, weather) to the Imaginarium on Monday. The kids loved it. We were there for something like 3 hours. They spent a great deal of time on the slide (I thought it was a glacier slide, so that is what I called it but then later saw a sign saying it was a sea cave- oh well). We also got to touch sea creatures with the help of an employee. We played in the "planetarium" room (there weren't any constellations or anything, just a dark room with black light and lots of pictures). This picture of Keith with his hands on the electric ball was in that room.


We also got to play with the bubbles, and as you can see, Keith got a really great one. Rachel was never able to get it much past her shoulders. But she did go play with the bubble table, with the bubble wands. Shortly after I took this picture, somehow she inhaled instead of blowing, and she swallowed some. She didn't like that much, but Mommy to the rescue! I had a bottle of water with me and gave her a drink and she was back ready to go!

They also had this big wooden polar bear that i put Keith and Rachel on just before we left (they had been asking for awhile) and took their picture up there.

This is the glacier slide/sea cave. They LOVED it! Keith's face was so red and he had sweat just pouring off his head!

Towards the end, they had a live chick demonstration. They had incubated and hatched some chicks, and let the kids sit on the ground with their feet touching and let the chicks run around in their "corrals." Keith and Rachel didn't have very thick legs and a jumpy little chick, so their chick kept jumping out of his corral. And I had Thomas (he had been in the front pack earlier, but I had taken him out to feed him and change his diaper, so he was just being held, so I wasn't much help to run after their renegade chick. So theirs was the first one put away, which was hard for Keith. But I tried to get him to hold it the last time it ran away, and he jumped up and ran away. I think he was a bit nervous about it. Anyway, it was lots of fun.

Sunny Day at the Park

Pics of my kids and their cousins at the park. We ran into lots of other people that we knew there too. Don't worry, none of us got hurt! Must have been the place to be!

Well, spring is definately on it's way, but still not here solidly yet. But today it was hitting 50 and the sun was shining, and it was too nice to stay in. So we headed over to Blockbuster Park (as we call it) and took some bikes, and the kids got to run and play and bike outside, wearing tennis shoes instead of snow boots, and sweatshirts instead of winter coats! It was beautiful!

Our Story

This is another one of those "blog entries" that I have been meaning to do, and since I'm still downloading pictures, I figured this would be a good time!

How did you meet your spouse? Well, if you ask him, (which is more accurate, I just don't really remember it), I had been asked to direct the musical "My Turn On Earth" as my calling in the Singles Ward. I had asked someone else to direct the choir for a few numbers, since I was doing everything else. He had heard the announcement that we needed volunteers to participate, thought I looked cute, so he came to offer his help, and gave me his phone number. Well I passed his number off to my choir director, but he never got a call, so he figured I wasn't interested (in all fairness, I was dating someone else at the time- but not for much longer!)
My story where I remember meeting him, was when I was moving. I had decided to stay and work for a year before heading to grad school in Hawaii, but knew that I couldn't live at home, so I was moving in with a friend. I needed some help to move my things, and went to Garcia's where I knew some Singles' were hanging out, and saw my friend, Greg, there and asked if he could bring his truck and help me move my stuff ( I think my folks were gone to the cabin then)and he said sure, and tyson could help too because he had a truck. so they both came the next morning to help me haul my stuff to my new apartment. they were impressed because i had everything packed up, except my waterbed. i would have had that too, but my sister wanted to sleep on it one more time before i took it and moved. so i had to drain it that morning. so after we got it all moved, they helped me set up the bed, and i offered to make them dinner in thanks for helping me move. when they came over for dinner, we were talking about the state fair that was going on at the time and it had turned out that tyson had been stood up (complicated story) and hadn't gone yet, and i wanted to go, so i asked if i could take him to the state fair. that was our first date, and i guess as they say about the rest....

How long have you been together? We started dating the end of summer 2000, and got married spring 2001

How long have you been married ? 7 years this past March

Who said I love you first? I'm not actually sure, I'll have to ask Tyson!

Who is taller? Depends on the shoes, but flat footed, we are the same.

Who sings better? Well, I sing better soprano and alto, and he sings better bass and tenor- just look at his face when i try to sing those! It makes him laugh.

Who is smarter? Well, academically probably me, but in normal everyday street smarts kinds of things, definately him

Who does the laundry? I do, but when he is on the slope, then he does his own!

Who does the dishes? I do the majority of the time, but when I need help, he is willing to help out. He tells me all I have to do is ask, so I do when I need help.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Standing at the foot of the bed, I usually sleep on the right, but we have traded off now and then.

Who mows the lawn? Usually people that feel sorry for us that our grass is too long! Jonathon, Sarah...I have once, but usually Tyson, but I feel terrible when he does it because his allergies are so bad it wipes him out for the rest of the day when he does it.

Who cooks dinner? Usually me, but I enjoy it. When I need a break, I just have to ask and Tyson will do it. The only thing that is Tyson's domain (because I ruin things too much in my opinion) is the grill. I also ask his advice a lot for seasonings and cooking meat because he is much better at those than I am.

Who drives when you are together? Usually him, but now and then I do. We take turns and share, isn't that so good of us?

Who is the first to admit when they're wrong? I think we both are pretty good at apologizing, in my opinion, he apologizes even when there isn't something for him to apologize about, like when i am just emotional

Whose parents do you see the most? Mine, because we live just down the road from them. We still love Tyson's parents lots and try to talk to them on the phone often, and head down to see them about once a year.

Who kissed who first? I think it was pretty mutual, but I think I was more the instigator.

Who proposed? We had talked about marriage and knew we were going to get married, but it was definately Tyson that proposed, on the red cliffs in St. George. with Subway sandwiches.

Who is more sensitive? I think it probably depends on the subject. But emotional? That would definately be me.

Who has more siblings? Neither. We both have 5. I am second in line of my 5 siblings, and he is 3rd in line of his 5 siblings.



Okay, I think that is it. If you want to copy and paste these questions on your blog, I would love to see your answers! And the pictures are done, so after i go through them and pick some, you will get to see them too!

20, 10, 5, 3, 1, now, soon...

While I am waiting for pictures to download (I have 748 of them- I have got to do that more often!), I figured I would post some of these fun "blog" entries that I have seen on other peoples blogs. I think they are kind of fun!

20 years ago....1988...10 years old...had moved with family from arizona to kentucky for my dad's ortho residency...baby brother was born

10 years ago...1998...20 years old...had graduated from high school two years previously...had graduated from Ricks College (a 2 year school at the time) in 18 months, had great roommates and was sad to be heading to the BIG school, BYU in Provo, UT in January...found out that BYU wasn't really so bad, but was glad I had gone to Ricks first...received a letter from BYU telling me that I HAD to pick a major, because I had just about maxed out on General Ed classes...came home for summer and worked at dad's ortho office...when i went back to BYU in the fall, my major was declared as ASLP (Audiology and Speech Language Pathology)...enjoyed living in a house with 5 other girls (was supposed to have one of my roommates from Ricks, but she went and got married that summer, but I was happy for her)

5 years ago...2003...25 years old...had graduated from BYU with a BA in ASLP in 2000, had been accepted to grad school at the University of Hawaii, and wanted to go, but something didn't seem right, so decided to wait a year, then after I had decided to stay, I met my hubby and knew why I was supposed to stay...got married 2001 in St. George, UT, but he loved it up here, so we live up here...bought a house that fall...quit working full time at my dad's office in Jan 2003 because Keith was born in Feb, continued to do models and bookkeeping though...enjoyed being a first time mom...Keith was a very happy, calm, peaceful baby...tyson's family came up for his blessing may/june and we had fun while they were here...his grandmother passed away as they were driving home, and we were able to go down for the funeral...octoberish was my grandparents 50th anniversary, so we went down there for that, and made a side trip to utah at the same time

3 year ago...2005...27 years old...had a new addition to the family, rachel, in the fall of previous year...now i was a mother of two little ones and it took some adjustment, but still loved being a mom...sometime around now, i turned the bookkeeping at my dad's office over to my mom, and turned the models over to becca to do...we were able to go to utah for our somewhat traditional thanksgiving...i had been serving in primary since we had been married going from achievement day leader and primary teacher to chorister to counselor in presidency to primary president, but at beginning of 2005, was released...tyson was serving as elder's quorum president at the time (he was called just shortly before rachel was born)...sometime in 2005 I was called as ward choir director- was nervous, but had great pianist that helped me not be quite so nervous as i would have been without her (thanks andrea!)

1 year ago...2007...29 years old...Tyson had changed jobs beginning of previous year to work for a slope company, and April 2006 was his first time up there, and continued going back and forth...extended DeKay family went on trip to Mexicon March 2006 and we LOVED it (kids keep asking when we are going back!)...had two sisters get married in 2007 and we were there for both of them, Becca in ID (we threw in a trip down to Utah while we were there and I finally got to participate-or really just watch- a branding- tyson had said when he was younger he wasn't going to marry someone who couldn't handle a branding, and i am pleased to announce that i passed the test!) and Sarah up here in AK...found out in the summer that we were expecting a new baby the next february...didn't make it for the thanksgiving ut trip, since we had been there that spring, and wanted to go after the baby was born...tyson was working on the slope for thanksgiving instead...he worked for almost 7 weeks right before Christmas- a very long and hard time for me...i did a home preschool where we rotate between the kids homes who participate and i was doing it at our house for a month around october/november time

NOW...2008...30 (at least I will be this summer)...still living here in ak...have 3 kids now, Keith, Rachel, Thomas (our Valentines' baby)...Tyson still working on the slope, but for the first time since being up there he has a regular rotation (YEAH!)...we had his mom, dad, and sister up for baby blessing in march/april...lots of stake/ward changes, no longer in eagle river ward, now in bear mountain ward...dad is bishop...becca's hubby is deployed...participate in a lunch time book club that is lots of fun...like to scrapbook, but don't get to do it as often as i would like...hosting my last week of preschool (this week!)...i still love being a mom, but i do need a little time for just me now and then

SOON...Future...??...We are going to UT/ID to visit family and friends, tyson will be with us on the trip down, but i will be flying home by myself...Robert and Bethany are moving back this summer...we want to go camping and rafting this summer...we might be turning our downstairs into an apartment and rent it out while we live in the upstairs so that we can afford to stay in this house while tyson tries to get on with APD...I hope to hear from you all about how you all are doing soon!

PS- still doing pictures, but now on 609 of 798!

Life is Passing Me By...

Well, it has been about a month since our little Thomas was born, and life just keeps on going. I seem to be in a sleep deprived fog, so why you ask am I up now typing here? I don't know. Except I need to do some things to keep connected or I loose my sanity! Tyson has been away on the slope for 2 weeks now, and we are coping, but I will be so happy when he gets home a week from today! Overall things are going well, just not too much sleep. And I know Tyson has not had a lot of sleep up on the slope either. So when he gets home, we'll have to tag team to try and get some good rest. Although that won't be completely fair, since he doesn't have to wake up to feed a baby! Not that I would trade our cute little boy! Or his siblings. They are ready for summer so they can go outside and play. Keith keeps asking when summer is going to be here because he wants to eat outside and lay in the sun. I tell him I can sure empathize!


Although this isn't the best picture of Keith, Thomas, or myself, I wanted to get a picture on here of Keith and Thomas. Keith is such a good big brother. He is always wanting to hold Thomas and make him happy. He is the first responder if Thomas is fussy or crying. He lets me know when he things that Thomas needs a diaper change or needs to eat. He has assigned himself diaper patrol, and whenever a diaper has been changed, he is right there to throw it away for me. He does such a good job, I just wish I had more patience for him. He has been quite whiny lately. I'm pretty sure a good portion of that is that he doesn't go to sleep at night. Some nights he will stay up for a good hour or two after he has been tucked into bed. Sometimes he is doing things in his room like reading books, or playing with hammers and nails, and other times, he is just laying there. Staying up late hasn't seemed to translate into sleeping in late though. So he still gets up pretty early and so I think his body just needs some more sleep. But we don't know how to acheive that. Today I made him have mandatory quiet time in his room for about an hour and a half while Thomas was sleeping and Rachel was at Nana's for her "preschool." I got a little bit of sleep, but when he asked every 10 minutes if he could wake up yet, it wasn't that restful!

We had some Oreo's with red cream instead of the white the other day, and Rachel really got into it. She has always been a full body experience eater, which is the opposite of Keith who was asking for napkins at a very young age!

One day this past week, the sun was shining, and it was so nice up at my parents house (they have tons of windows). It was like 20 degrees outside, but as you can see, we had to strip Thomas of some of his layers so that he wouldn't roast!

This picture is taken at PetZoo. Before Tyson left, we took a family trip there to see the animals. Everything is in a tank of some kind. Gone are the days of having kittens and puppies at pet stores that you can go and pet and play with. But they do have free popcorn, and the kids are always asking if we can go and see the animals at the store. So we had a special family outing to do so.

Happy Belated Valentines Day!

Well, it has been a busy time these last few weeks. So I haven't been able to post here (mostly due to lack of sleep), but I know that I really needed to get this posted. After all, Valentines came and went, and I didn't get to post our big surprise! That's right, we had our little baby boy on Valentine's Day. It was a week early. And there were lots of things that conspired to happen all at once, so if you want to hear about them, just sit back and keep reading!

The Tuesday before Valentines, the kids and I were up at my parents' house watching a movie. During the movie, it felt like I was having contractions, but I wasn't sure. I had lots of Braxton Hicks with this pregnancy, and let me tell you, it makes it hard to know when you are really in labor. Tyson was still on the slope and was scheduled to be on the first flight in the morning. He originally wasn't coming home until Friday, but wanted to come home early, so he asked and they let him. I was so scared I was going into labor without him there! We had figured I would have the baby on my due date, and Tyson would be home a week before that happened. So this was more than a week early! We stayed at my parents that night, and I called Tyson, and talked to him, and while I was talking to him, I laid down and the contractions went away. False alarm. Whew!

So I picked Tyson up at the airport about noon on Wednesday, and felt so relieved that he was there. Now I didn't have to worry, he would be there for the birth of this baby. Thursday was Valentines Day, and I watched my sister's kids so she could go to a doctor's appointment (she had a baby 2 weeks before) and then she and her hubby could go out for a Valentine's lunch date. Then she was going to watch our kids in the afternoon so that I could go to a doctor's appointment and then have a Valentine Date with Tyson. My appointment was at 2:30, and the doctor checked me, said I might be at a one or two, but didn't want to push too hard to check. Then Tyson and I decided to see what movies were playing. We chose the 4:25 show of National Treasure 2, then we were going to go dinner afterwards. Most places were booked up or were a first come first serve during the time that we were looking to eat. I felt like I was having contractions again, but wasn't sure if they were Braxton Hicks or not. They were getting pretty uncomfortable though. We watched the movie, and towards the end, I was grabbing Tyson's wrist a lot to keep an eye on how far apart the pains were and then would count to see how long they were. Tyson was aware of my discomfort though, and would ask me if I was okay or if he could do anything for me. I didn't really answer him for two reasons. One, I couldn't talk through them, and the other was that what could he really do for me? I would just kind of smile. I thought that maybe if we went to the car and I could lay down, and they went away, then I would know they were false labor again. But if not, we would be close to the hospital and we could just head over there. I didn't want to drive back to our home (about 20-25 minutes away) if we were just going to have to turn around and come back. So we headed out to the car, walking very slowly! And stopping here and there. Got in, and laid my seat back, and Tyson headed over to the hospital. The pain didn't let up. And I was starting to shake (which means transition labor for those that don't know- I didn't at the time). So we decided to head into the hospital. Good thing I had finished packing my hospital bag that day and brought it and the carseat with us, 'just in case.' I had also packed overnight bags for the kids and had them by the door at home. So my sister, who had been watching Keith and Rachel, swapped with my parents when they heard we might not be coming home, and they spent the night up there.

(Is this long and detailed enough for you?) So we got the the maternity desk and told them I thought I was in labor, but I had had Braxton Hicks a few nights before, but it would be really sad if this much pain didn't amount to anything! They were really busy. 5 of the 6 rooms were already in use, so we got to use the last one. They told us it would probably be awhile before I would be checked because they were busy. I said okay. I am having contractions 5 minutes apart for about 30-40 seconds long. And it is my 3rd child. They said, okay, get changed and we will have someone come and check you. When the nurse came in, Tyson asked if I could use the Jacuzzi tub because I had liked using it with Keith. And she said, well let's see if she is even staying yet. So she got ready to check me, and it felt like she was having a hard time, so I figured it was a false alarm. Then she said, I was at an 8 and needed to get ready because this baby was coming! Wow! She left to get some things to get the room ready, and while she was gone, Tyson gave me a blessing to give me comfort and support so that I would be able to make it through this delivery. It helped a great deal, because it didn't go the way I had wanted it to go (with an epidural) but it didn't take too long either. And our baby was healthy and strong.

Now you get to hear about the room. The bed would sit up and raise in height, but would not recline or go down. They kept raising it to see if they could get it to go the other way too, but no. It was a small room with a weird shape. The monitors were turned off, and she kept trying to get it on, but couldn't figure it out. Tyson showed her the power switch, and she said she hadn't ever seen one of the monitors turned off before. And one of the machines monitors didn't ever end up working. They didn't have the baby incubator in the room, or any of the other equipment that was needed right at delivery. Sounds, fun, right? Eventually, they did get a bed that worked, and they got almost all of the other stuff they needed. Space was still an issue. So Tyson go to be assistant and open drawers and hand things from one side of the bed to the nurse on the other side.

We got to the hospital around 7, they checked me about 7:15 or so, the doctor showed up about 7:45 or 8, and the baby was born at 8:25 pm on February 14. I had wanted an epidural and the nurse was a bit stressed getting the room ready that nothing really happened with that. Then I mentioned it again after the doctor broke my water (I have had to have it broken with both the others too) and he went and got the anesthesiologist. They told me I might not have enough time for it, but we could do it if I wanted. I wanted. So we were doing all the questions and filling out all the forms. But too late. The baby wanted to come NOW! So without an epidural, Thomas Zachery was born. I was so glad that Tyson was there! Even though he wasn't always able to be there next to me and hold my hand (because the room was so small, hospital staff would need to be in his spot) having his presence made such a difference. He doesn't think so, but I know so. And when he was there next to me, I could handle the pain better.

So the stats were: Thomas Zachery Bundy was born Feb. 14, 2008 at 8:25 pm. He weighed 8 lbs 6 oz, and was 21 1/4 inches long. His APGAR scores were 8 and 9. So you can see, a healthy baby boy. We stayed at the hospital for about 24 hours, then came home. His brother and sister were brought to the hospital by Nana and Papa, and Becca and Shawn (my sister and brother-in-law) came and visited us too. Keith and Rachel have been so excited.

Keith loves his baby brother and is always aware of him and where he is and what he needs. He is a big helper and still has not tired of getting me what I need to take care of the baby. He will sit and hold him for great lengths of time and makes sure to let me know if he thinks the baby needs to eat or needs a diaper change. He is always willing to hand him over for those. But he does want to learn how to change Thomas' diaper.

Rachel also loves Thomas Zachery. If you ask her what his name is, that is what she says. She isn't as prone to want to hold him as Keith, but she does like to have her turn, but only holds him for a minute or two, then she is done. She is also a big helper. It was so nice when we came home, Keith and Rachel had helped Carolyn and my parents clean up the upstairs. And I tell you, that was so nice to walk into a clean house- because it was not that way when we left! I was so grateful, and Keith and Rachel were so excited that they had helped clean. They even made a special point to keep it clean (for a few days anyway!)

I am so grateful that Tyson was able to come home early, because if he had come home when he was scheduled too, he would have been about 18 hours too late! I'm grateful the Lord looked out for me, because it was a huge fear that he wasn't going to be here for the birth. He is a great daddy and loves to hold Thomas- mostly when Thomas is sleeping. Because so far, when Thomas is awake, he is wanting to eat, or needs a diaper change. So Tyson passes him on for those things too! But I do get him to change some of the diapers!

I am doing well, still healing. A bit sore. Sitting for too long is still a problem, but I am getting better. Short on sleep, but what new mother isn't. Thomas is a very good baby. He is happy, and doesn't fuss too much. He averages about 3-4 hours between feedings. He sleeps well. He is very loved and welcomed to our family!

I think that is about all that you probably wanted to know, and even more that you didn't want to necessarily know, but that's okay. I will post some more pictures, but they might need to be on a different entry. But just wanted to let everyone know about our eventful Valentines day!

I HATE MICE!

So, how many of you can relate? We have mice-again! We usually get them about once a year, when they seem to get tired of outside or the garage and want to spread their domain to the rest of the house. Although some of you might scoff at my, shall we say, disgust, for these little rodents, they just creep me out. Keith found a dead mouse a little more than a week ago, but it had been in the wall (we have a small area that doesn't have sheetrock) and he was rescuing some toys. He pulled that out too, and wasn't sure what it was, but when he looked closer he threw it down and came to tell me that there was a mouse in the playroom. I thought he was joking, but had Tyson go and check it out. Sure enough, there was a dead mouse in the middle of the floor of the playroom. Now we hadn't played in there for a few days, but I was still surprised that one would crawl there and then die. Had Keith wash his hands really good after that and the next day he told me that it really came from between the wall. Gross, huh?

Then Tyson told me he thought he saw a mouse run along the wall by the fireplace one night, but wasn't sure. Turns out, he really did see it, but didn't want to freak me out. Too late! So we didn't do anything and he left for the slope. My sister stopped by to get some traps from us and share the woes of the mice at her house, and that night, after the kids were in bed, I was down here at my desk, and I heard noise over by the fireplace. I was naive no longer! Not to mention that a few minutes later I actually saw the furry little beast run behind my shelves against the wall. I called to let Tyson know that it was official that we had mice. I then made the time that I spent downstairs limited, because I didn't want to be around them. I did get two sticky traps that we had and put them down here to try and catch the critters. And the next day, the kids said they saw a mouse run against the wall and the shelves on the other side of the fireplace (where Tyson had first seen the beasts). So we bought more traps on Thursday, put some out, and waited for Tyson to get home on Friday so he could rid us of the vermin. Keith loves to check and see and let us know when they are on the traps, but he is still nervous about them and doesn't want to be all by himself. If he does check it by himself, then he has to work up to it. But he walks around the house and when he hears an unidentifiable noise, he says he thinks he heard a mouse. And he has seen a mouse's nose too peek out from behind things. Can you say that his mother's paranoia is rubbing off? I think so. I try to be brave for him, because I don't want to scare him, but it is hard.

So we have removed 3 little, or as Keith says, medium sized, critters from our home. Hopefully the rest will soon follow! I just hate even thinking about them, but thought I would share with you all why I may not be at my computer very much until they are all gone!

Dipnetting 2007

This summer we were all able to finally go dipnetting after trying for the past several years. One thing or another had come up in the past (usually work for Tyson) and we hadn't been able to make it. But we went this past year. Got way more fish than we needed, so if you want some, just ask, I'm sure we have plenty to spare! We went to one place first that Dad had heard about, and it was perfect. Sunny, not too windy. Soft sand. Not too crowded. The kids were able to dipnet along with everyone else. But....no fish. Shortly after we got there, we noticed lots of boats heading out and setting nets, so we figured we weren't going to get much. So instead of setting up camp, we headed over to the "usual" spot, and set up camp there. Much more crowded. Kids playing on 4 wheelers all night long and close to our tents. Colder. But, fish at the right time. So at about 4 AM Tyson, Dad, and Shawn all headed out to see if they could bring in more fish than any of them really wanted to take home and eat! So when the rest of us woke up, they were about done fishing, and ready to start cleaning them. We fed the kids breakfast and then rode the 4 wheelers down to the beach to "help." I mostly made trips back and forth for items that were at our campsite to those at the waters edge cleaning the fish.

As you can see, they did a pretty thourough job cleaning fish. Tyson let the kids hold the eyes and whatever that is that Rachel is holding. I tried to put a picture of Keith holding some fish innards, but I guess I had exceeded my space by then. Just know that he got his hands dirty too! Anyway, after getting all the fish cleaned and packed up, we headed across the way to Seward to vacuum pack the fish at the military facilities there, because Shawn and Becca love us! After that, we headed home. It was a long weekend, but the kids did pretty well. They loved playing on the beach and in the sand. And on the playground while everyone else (except me because I had to watch them) processed the fish. A lot of driving for the weekend, but memories were made and these pictures prove it!

PS- I know some of the pictures are from awhile ago, but now that I am able to look at them, since my computer was recovered, I thought I would share some. I only have the ones from April of this past year on. All the ones before that were irrecoverable. So let me remind everyone, back up your pictures! Don't just put them on an external hard drive while organizing them expecting to have a copy in both places when you are done! You never know when technology will fail you! I have learned my lesson! Twice! I plan on using discs as a means of backing up, just have to figure out how to do that! I am not that computer literate when it comes to some things. New technological things scare me! Especially when there are lots of steps! But never fear, I will conquer!

Our Princess!

A visit to the ER Nature Center Summer 2007. We took some day trips with a little group of friends and this was one of them. A short hike down to the salmon spawning viewing deck. We didn't see any fishes, but we did see some bugs in the water. This big tree is fun to have the kids have their pictures taken in. This was shortly after Keith gave himself and his sister haircuts. You might notice that Rachel's hair is pretty short. It actually looked like a cute hair cut if you didn't look too closely! It was trimmed pretty closely on the right side. Just now is it about to the point that I can almost cut it and make both sides even! LOL!





The two pics of Rachel in the green coat are from a day that my mom and sisters and I went out to Hatcher's Pass with the kids this past summer. We took a picnic and had fun. The kids got lots of exercise running up and down the mountain. Keith was especially a mountain goat. Mom was trying to collect plants to use to make first aid tinctures and such. I just mostly relaxed and took pictures and Becca and Carolyn ran around with the kids. It was beautiful, but a bit windy, hence all the windbreakers we wore.


This picture is from a family hike up Thunderbird Falls also during the summer. Daddy was home, and he hadn't been up there, so we made a trip over there. Not too far from home, and the kids can do the hike by themselves. This is a picture at the top and Rachel is having a snack. She had put the headband on, and wanted to leave it on. We try to encourage her independence, but sometimes it does backfire on us! But I thought she looked pretty cute!

Mommy and Keith's Date

It has been so nice to have Tyson home from work over the holidays. We have been so blessed to have him here all the time. It is a shame that he and Rachel decided they wanted to get sick! But one of the nice things that we have been able to do is have dates with the kids. I took Rachel out to run lots of errands one day (one of which was her to the doctor!) and Tyson and Keith stayed home and played Hide and Seek. One of the kids' favorite games, but one Mommy just doesn't have the energy for lately. Hmmm, wonder why? LOL. But then the next day, Daddy and Rachel did finger painting (which turned out marvelously by the way) and Keith and I went to the park to play. As you can tell, it is still winter here. And I didn't do much playing. But he did get all bundled up and played on the playground equipment. I got some shots with our new camera. (You'll have to bear with me as I learn how to play with it.) Then we walked around the park track because Keith wanted to. We were going to try to do two times, but one was about all I could handle. Then we went to Jitters and colored and played Brain Quest while we had steamers and a special treat. The kids both loved these times. I only wish we could do them more often! I highly recommend taking the kids out on their very own dates. It made such a difference in their attitudes. They were so happy and excited. Of course, they had a hard time understanding that the special time their sibling had with the other parent was equal to their special time with the first parent. They both wanted to be able to do both things! I guess it is good when they want to spend time with us, right?

O Christmas Tree

Well, I posted pics of us getting a tree, so I thought I might add to those with pics of the tree being decorated, then after the holidays were over, us dismembering our tree. Tyson decided that instead of just taking it out and throwing it in our backyard (which is a miniforest) or driving it down to the recycling area in the grocery store parking lot, we would burn most of it.

So we did! Our tree was a very nice one, but towards the end it was raining needles inside. I would sit and read on the couch, and hear the drop of the needles as they fell off. I am not sure why it did it so drastically, because I kept it pretty wet, until the end anyway! Then I figured it was pointless, so I quit!