He is Legal & Licensed

This afternoon we went down to the Supreme Court in the Capital for Jeff's swearing in as a Legal Licensed Intern. It was exciting & I was very proud of him! This will allow him a limited license to practice law under the attorney he works for, & will hopefully give him a great deal of experience during his final year in law school.

Jeff took the legal licensed intern exam at the end of the semester & passed. He was just waiting for his grades to come out & for the Oklahoma Bar to set the swearing in date. He did seem a little anxious... not so much nervous as just the whole mix of emotions, mostly excitement.

Hannah was so busy during the whole thing that it was hard for me to get good pictures during the actual swearing in & to give it my full attention. Well once it was over she just wanted to get out of there & was exceptionally shy when we did pictures and the judge actually spoke to her. But after we left she kept talking about how she saw a judge.

The Big Girl Bed

When Jeff's parents were here they got the mattress for Hannah's Big Girl Bed. We had been talking about this new change & she really seemed ready for the transition. I knew I wouldn't make the switch while they were still here, so the day after they left was a Saturday & we rearranged the room putting up the new bed. So on June 9th Hannah had her first night in her new bed. She was very excited & made the transition beautifully. She stayed in the bed, just as she was told & went right to sleep. And when she woke up in the morning she didn't even get out of bed. She just yelled for us, informing us that she was awake & ready to get out. It was such a relief that the change went so smoothly, but it was sad to think that my baby is now in a bed!

I didn't get a picture that night or the following morning, but I did get one when she woke up from her nap on Sunday.

Happy Father's Day...

To all of you dad's out there! I hope you get to take it easy today & you enjoy any special treatment you receive.

I really slacked off on my daily posts about Jeff this week. It was harder than I had anticipated, not so much coming up with things, but having Hannah sick. That threw our whole routine out the window, so despite the fact that Jeff is an enormous help around the house & a "hands-on" dad, it was all we could do to just survive the week. Neither of us did much of anything that didn't HAVE to be done, because of our exhaustion & focused efforts on Hannah.

As I think back to the events of the week I am reminded of what a wonderful support he is & how important his efforts are to my daily survival. He is a great listener, & I use him for that often when I just need to vent or talk & don't need advice or any kind of fixing. He has great shoulders to cry on. He is light-hearted & gives me perspective, since I tend to take things too seriously. And despite the fact that when he makes a huge mess weekend mornings cooking breakfast & playing with Hannah, I know that they are both having a good time! That is what really matters right? So I love the balance that he brings into my uptight, overly obsessive mannerisms, & more importantly the balance he brings into our partnership as parents.

The Best Man I Ever Knew

The Best Man I Ever Knew

When we married,

I saw you as perfect,

The ideal husband and more;

I thought I knew all about you,

All the things to love and adore.
But when you became a father,

I saw new qualities to treasure.

You enrich all our lives in fresh ways;

As a dad, you bring so much pleasure.
Our children are forever blessed

To have a father like you,

And I love you more than ever,

You’re the best man I ever knew.

By Joanna Fuchs

It's Official....

Hannah is back!

She actually was doing better yesterday, but still lacking energy & had a belly ache a few times that required her to just lay there... (so not normal for a 2 year old!) Yesterday she did feel good enough that she noticed we had been cooped up in the house for too long & requested that we go out. I asked her where & she just said she wanted to get in the car & go. So we got in the car with some snacks & headed out on a drive. I decided to head over to the temple, it's far enough, but close enough... and we could get out & walk around being that it was a sunny day. She was so excited when we pulled up. I took a few pictures of her on the temple grounds. By the time we made one lap around the small grounds she was ready to get back in the car.

She still tires quickly, but that can be expected after a week of being so sick & doing nothing. She has her appetite back & she has been her happy smiling self! And I couldn't believe how much I missed her smile & laugh. She even managed to be naughty enough to color on her door with a crayon (no worries, we have a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser.) It was so nice to sleep all night in my own bed, rather than taking shifts with Jeff in Hannah's room. We will all spend this weekend catching up on some much needed Zzz's.

Any man can be a father...

"Any man can be a father, it takes someone special to be a dad!" - author unknown

Without going into personal details I will simply say that one of the important qualities I knew I needed in a husband was that of a man who would become an amazing dad. I didn't care if it meant he himself had an amazing father as an example or he was bound & determined to be an amazing father despite his poor example. It didn't matter the road that was taken as long as the end result was the same, & I can safely say that Jeff exceeds my expectations of fatherhood. He had a great example growing up & being the hard worker that he is, I feel he took it a step further & not just being a great dad... he is an AMAZING dad! And though he has been great from the start, he has only improved in the last 2 1/2 years. Thank you Jeff for being "someone special" & being the amazing dad that you are!

A father and a dad are not the same

Since Hannah is still in the middle of a nasty case of the stomach flu, I am a little too tired to think clearly. So I am taking the easy road on today's daddy post.... (So sorry, it doesn't mean I don't think you're great!)

A father and a dad are not the same:
One can be a dad and not a father,
Or one can be a father and not bother
To earn through love the more endearing name.
Some find fatherhood a bit too tame,
Leaving all the details to the mother,
Or dumping the sweet burden on another
Man with just a passing twinge of shame.
You have been a dad a few years
You've become the landscape that is home,
The mountain that we look to from afar.
No matter where we go we're not alone,
For you remain within to still our fears
And be the word that tells us who we are.

By Dimitri Shostakovich

Daddy to the Rescue

I don't know how single parents survive the illness of a child!! Perhaps I'm a wimp, but having Hannah so sick & needy really pays a toll on me. I can't wait for Jeff to walk through the door & give me a break from playing nurse. And of course when he does walk through the door I am so thrilled & quickly hand Hannah over.

Last night he was kind enough to take the first shift with Hannah, & these "shifts" basically involve sleeping in her bed so you aren't having to run in there very time to cries. It's easier to be there with a large bowl in hand to avoid having to clean up any large mess & change the sheets. I know he doesn't sleep any better in her bed than I do, but I'm so grateful that he is so willing to help out so we both can get 1/2 a decent nights sleep.

Today Jeff called me and asked what I wanted for lunch, I was so thrilled that he was going to not only bring me lunch, but to sit & eat it with me. It's only Tuesday, but being stuck in the house for the last two days has me feeling very out of touch with the world. So a nice lunch of fried chicken with all the yummy sides we a nice bonus to some adult conversations.

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

The "REAL" best dad ever!

You know I've seen & heard lots about these great husband/fathers out there. And even though I'm sure they are amazing men, I just don't know if they are the BEST... I mean, how could they be the best when I married the best? Well to give all the amazing dad's out there credit, I will simply say: Aren't there a lot of very fortunate wives...

But I must say that Jeff is THE best EVER! In addition to work & school he seems to balance husbandry & fatherhood into his crazy days beautifully. I seem to have a hard time balancing motherhood & wife most of the time. But he seems to give plenty of time and attention to all. (See, you DO have good organizational skills.. hehe.) He is such a great help around the house, trying to help out in ways that will make m days a little easier. And why is it that sometimes the most simple things are the things that mean the most. Such as emptying the dishwasher, or taking out the trash. I am going to try to spend the week focusing & probably blogging on the great help that he is & the many ways that make him the best dad & husband ever!

Hannah got sick yesterday afternoon & puked all over me & the big red chair we were lounging in. And by the time I had both of us out of our soaked clothing & her in the bath Jeff was in the middle of the real nasty task of cleaning the chair. I know that there are times I feel like these forms of help should be expected, & sadly I do expect a lot out of him. But that is only because he has always been such a hands-on helpful dad that he has set the bar for himself rather high. I know plenty of men who would sit back & finish watching their television program knowing that the mess wasn't going anywhere & the little wife could get around to it later. I'm sure Jeff was trying his hardest not to add to the mess, for some reason I seem to deal with the stench of vomit a little better than he does. But he did it, & come to think of it, I don't know I even told him thanks! So, Thanks Jeff!! You ARE the best!

Overdue for an update

Yes, I know I am overdue for an update on us. And I promise I will get to that, so you'll have to check back later, because we have been busy!

I am one for organization & I like things to be in date order, especially my blog since it is basically my family journal. So thus the reason that I am going to give my update down here...

I last posted on the 29th of May & the few days following that post were spent splitting my time between cleaning my house in preparation for guests & preparing for our quarterly primary activity. (That is my calling, Quarterly Primary Activities... yes, it is the best calling!) Looking back & knowing that I survived them both, it's hard to remember how stressed out I was feeling for a couple of days. But Saturday the 2nd came & despite the fact it was a very busy morning where I was on my feet running about all day, the activity was a hit. I managed to get home in time to do some last minute cleaning & run a few errands before Jeff had to go pick his parents up from the airport that afternoon.

The Taylor's arrived that afternoon & spent a week here with us. Hannah was so thrilled to have people come to her house & she loved showing off her room along with every single toy she owns. We had great weather & a good portion of the week was spent outside, which Hannah also loved.

Jeff & his dad spent most of the week raising & repairing our sinking patio. (I must dig through photos to see if I can find a before picture to post along with an after.) It was a long project, but it turned out great! We still need to paint, but we have had rain a good portion of the time since they left along with way too much humidity. So perhaps when we have some better painting weather we will rent a spraying & go paint the patio along with the shed. (I picked out a nice barn red to paint to give our dull shed a charming little barn look.)

As the week long visit drew to a close I was very tired. I hadn't felt my best all week & had to spend Friday working (I watch my friend's 2 children on Fridays.) Thursday Jeff's parents rented a large SUV so we could take a trip up to Tulsa to go to the aquarium. Before leaving town we went & picked up the mattress to Hannah's "Big Girl Bed" that was purchased earlier in the week. The aquarium was fun, Hannah loved seeing all the different forms of ocean life, & we enjoyed seeing the joy in her face. Friday Hannah spent the morning at home with Jeff & his parents, and when they headed to the airport Jeff brought her up & dropped her off with me.

This was a nice way to kick off our summer, I thought since Hannah enjoyed this visit so much we would count down to when we would be going to Utah to see her other 2 sets of grandparents. I made up a calendar so she could cross off the days, but that is still 35 days away. So we will have to plan a few other activities between now & then that we can count down to as well.