Where's the pumpkin?

Have y'all (no, I am not from TX) heard about the canned pumpkin shortage going on in the country right now? Here's a news article about it if you haven't. I read about it a few days ago and went to the local Fry's to see if I could grab a few cans. Sure enough, the area of the shelf where canned pumpkin can normally be found was emptied out. I am totally bummed! I have a few very tasty recipes that I love making in the fall for which I need canned pumpkin. I have a couple of cans, but I feel like I need to save them for a special occasion now, just in case I can't procure anymore.

Is anyone else totally bummed about this? If I find any canned pumpkin I will be buying it in quantity and keeping it as part of my food storage. If any of you local readers find some and aren't going to buy out the whole shelf for yourself, call me or buy it for me and I'll pay you back. I am totally serious about that. I love my canned pumpkin recipes. I suppose I can just buy a pumpkin and bake and puree it. However, I understand it just never turns out tasting quite right that way. Desperate times my call for desperate measures though.

Swaddling Revisited

So, Chase hadn't been a big fan of swaddling up until this point. He just seemed to get too hot, even if we turned up the A/C or swaddled him with only a diaper and a thin blanket. We hadn't tried it in a while though and he still was only going 3 hour stretches between feedings at night, mostly. He's a big kid and I was pretty sure his stomach could last a little longer. I decided we needed to revisit the swaddle. Luckily, one of Brett's sisters sent us a couple of great thin, large blankets, perfect for swaddling. We decided to give it a go. We were a little rusty in our swaddling technique the first couple of days, so he would pop out of his swaddle after a couple of hours still. However, last night, we got him good and swaddled. He went from 9 pm to 3 am without waking up. Victory! This comes after a somewhat challenging week and very little sleep. What a blessed event. I hope it continues. It still took him about 2 hours to eat and get back to sleep after that stretch, but I was so happy I didn't even mind. I feel like I might start to feel a little sane again :)

Here he is in all his swaddled glory. Of course, next to him are the toy bears Adie felt she needed to provide him for his entertainment. She's always so thoughtful, sharing things with him (we just have to stealthily remove them when she doesn't notice so he doesn't suffocate on the toys, blankets and shirts she likes to share with him).

Chaseman

Not to be outdone by his sister, let's check in on Chase at one month. He has already gained 3.5+ lbs and 4.5 inches if his birth length was accurate, though we question that. He routinely eats 6+ ounces at a single feeding (eating every 2.5 hours or so). He continues to not like laying on his back. We give him back time as opposed to tummy time. Occasionally it takes him 2.5 hours to eat and get settled again. Fortunately he chooses a time convenient for him, usually between the hours of 10 PM and 8 AM to pursue this habit. The poor kid has a herniated belly button. We are told this doesn't hurt him and is not a problem. It should take care of itself. However, it protrudes at least half an inch. Maybe one day we'll post a picture.

He still doesn't enjoy his swing or bouncer, though we've been able to get him sitting in his bouncer for up to 30 minutes at a time. He usually prefers to be snuggled up next to someone. Thank goodness for a wrap. It's a lot harder to put him to sleep, since he doesn't go for the methods we learned with Adie, such as shooshing or swaddling or swinging. Luckily he does like a binky, so a little ride in the wrap with a binky will usually do the trick. Eventually. We think he's starting to see things and tends to stare at you when he's awake. Here are a couple pictures for your viewing pleasure. Amazingly enough, Brett has not been camera happy this time around.

The Adster

Oh Adie, Dear Adie, in the past you've been such a mellow child, not getting into much trouble. You were maybe a little clingy or shy at times, but generally, I could count on you to not get into things you weren't supposed to. We hardly had to childproof the house. You didn't even really have tantrums for more than a couple of minutes at a time, and they were fairly rare. We could always reason with you, even long after you turned 2. You were a cinch to potty train and rarely had an accident.

Then, you had to share the attention we give you and, wow did your attitude change. Maybe it would have whether or not Chase had come. Maybe you've just hit your testing my boundaries stage. Maybe your body really did suddenly go from needing around 12-14 hours of sleep per day to only needing 8-10 (although somehow I doubt it). I can't imagine how hard it is on you to have such a huge change come into your life. I know someday you'll thank us for giving you a sibling, even if it isn't until you are adults ;)

This post, though, is in honor of all the things you do and say that still make us smile and laugh.

-You are a great counter. You consistently count from 1-10 (sometimes skipping 8) and you can get up to 18 with only a little prompting (we have 18 stairs).

-You can sing the ABC's and are starting to identify the letters and their sounds. You are really good at identifying A, D, H, M, O and S.

-Whenever someone seems sad or is crying, you run to them to give them hugs of comfort. You have always been very affectionate.

-You still love to draw and are somewhat starting to understand the idea of coloring in the lines (well sort of). You also love playdough.


-You like to get into mischief when I am feeding Chase and am less able to watch your every move. Some of the classic things you have done lately:

-Let yourself out of the house at 6 am to watch the construction workers from the porch (ok, this one wasn't funny and didn't make us smile when we discovered you were missing). Good thing we now have locks high up on the front and garage doors.

-Peel all the clementines I had on the counter and leave me a trail of orange peels leading up to the computer, so I could find where you left those little oranges.



-Bring your bathroom stool into the kitchen, climb up onto the counter and peel all our bananas while simultaneously playing with playdough, and our dirty dishes, in the sink.

-Pull every single one of your clothes out of your drawers and throw them on the floor. Plus knock the boxes stacked on top of your little drawers off so you could get to the box of Halloween costumes.



-You say some pretty funny and cute things (don't all parents think that about their children). A couple of my favorites are:

-When we tell you we can't do something at the moment, or something is not possible, you say, "Try hard!" and then make a grunting noise like you are trying to move something really heavy.

-You say, "Miss you too!" and hug people (or objects) you haven't seen for days (or hours) who you miss. You especially like to tell your green shirt that you miss it.

Ads, we love you and hope you get through this transition in one piece. I hope I do too ;) For every difficult moment with you, there are many joyful ones. Thanks for keeping us smiling.

Did you know Urban Meyer attended General Conference?

Well, at least Urban told my brother that he did when he lived in Utah. He sat right next to Orrin Hatch. It turns out, even though he left the U of U after only two excellent seasons, he really liked Utah and was excited to meet my brother who was from there. Some of you may not be interested in this post, if you aren't a fan of college football, or more specifically, the U of Utah or the U of Florida. However, for those of you who may be interested, my brother went to watch a live radio show last night that Urban Meyer did at a restaurant and got to go meet him afterward. It was a huge highlight for my brother because, well, even though he graduated from BYU, his heart is still with Utah. We grew up a stone's throw from the U of U campus and both he and I have been fans for a long time. My brother attends the U of Florida now, so he is doubly excited about Urban Meyer. Anyway, you can read the account of their encounter here. I think it's pretty awesome and seriously a dream come true for my brother. The best part of the story, in my opinion, is the part about relaying a message to Urban from the late Elder Wirthlin. Way to go, Trent!

8 Years Ago

I am sure you all remember 8 years ago today. It's one of those defining moments we all remember. I was at the gym watching CNN. I saw the second plane hit the tower. It is still surreal to me.

Many of you may have already seen the latest Mormon Message about a 9/11 survivor. His message is a message of hope. I think it's a very fitting memorial of that infamous day. Here is the video for any who haven't seen it. It's very well done and I absolutely love the last line, very powerful.



I pray all those who were personally affected by the events that day have found or are finding solace.

Toddler Advice

It's time again to solicit the sage advice of our readers. Adie has, on and off, had sleep issues. However, I'd say, for nearly a year and a half, she had been a good sleeper. Enter Chase into her world and now part of her coping strategy seems to be boycotting going to sleep. Even putting her in a toddler bed only took her a few days to get used to. Now that Chase has come along, she has a whole new way of trying to get attention, I suppose. It's called, sit in my bed and not fall asleep, even when I am extremely tired, and then leave my room after about 20 or 30 minutes and try to sneak around until my parents catch me. She does this both at naptime and bedtime. A couple of days ago, after trying for 2.5 hours to get her to bed, she finally fell asleep around 11 pm. She was up again at 7 am the next day. Eight hours is just about enough for me, but for a 2-yr-old? Not only that, but she refused to nap when she was sooooo cranky and tired all morning. It took over an hour to get her to go down. I know she is not ready to drop her naps because she has been acting like she really needs sleep, rubbing her eyes, acting out, having tantrums at the drop of a hat (which is not normally in her nature)

We have tried a number of tactics - no watching any movies the next day, no treat the next day, no playdough the next day if she leaves her room. She has been "grounded" from these things multiple times (much to my chagrin, since they are great ways to keep her busy if I need her to be distracted for a while) with no change in her behavior. Last night, we finally said, you stay in your room or we'll lock you in. I didn't want to do that and felt bad that she went to sleep on such a poor note, but it worked. Then, naptime struck again today. She has been acting tired since about 10 am, but we had a play group at 11 and after having her calmly sit and relax and read in her bed for about 30 minutes, I decided she was fit to go to that. After play group and lunch though, the battle began. We did our normal naptime routine. She told me she was ready to sleep and I said I didn't want to see her out of her room until after her nap or I'd lock her in. She was great for about 30 minutes. Then, I went to put Chase to bed and I heard her sprinting back to her room as I went up the stairs, so lock her in I did. She was screaming, "No locked in, no locked in!" It's heart-breaking. She used to be so easy to put to bed. She was so compliant, but now it's a battle ground.

Anyway, it's been about 15 minutes and there is no noise coming from the room, which probably means she gave in and went to sleep. Perhaps a few days of this will do the trick. However, I would love a little less harsh way to coax her to sleep, w/o allowing her to manipulate us. Has anyone dealt with this before? Does anyone have any good ideas? I know she is dealing with so much change in her life, so I hate having to be the evil disciplinarian all the time. I am sure she is just looking for reassurance and attention since she isn't getting it in the same quantities as before. How do we communicate to her that we still love her just as much, but the same rules that applied before Chase was born still apply now.

Other football thoughts from the weekend...

The Mountain West Conference (MWC) was a resounding 6-2 with 2 victories over the Big 12. We showed well. One of the most interesting things is the begrudging respect Utah and BYU are starting to have for each other. IF things pan out and BYU goes to the National Championship game, it will be for a number of reasons, one of them being that Utah did so well last year and upped the respect level of the conference. I feel much more of a vibe of "Kill your OOC opponents so the conference looks better even if it means that you're doing well." Where as previously many fans' opinions reflected the saying on a T-shirt I have: "I'm a fan of BYU and anyone who is playing Utah". Anyway, on to other thoughts:

Air Force 72 - Nicholls State 0
I don't care who you are playing, 72-0 is a whooppin. I didn't see the game (to the mtn: Thanks for showing football on opening weekend, too bad it was women's soccer) but what does an Air Force team do when they're up by that much, pass?

Utah 35 - USU 17
Pretty close to what I expected. An improved USU and an uninspired looking Utah. I really do wonder if are uninspired or just played to the level of their competition.

Wyoming 29 - Weber St. 22
Note to Wyoming, loss to a FCS team is grounds for immediate dismissal from the conference (I wish).

New Mexico 6 - Texas A&M 41
This surprised me some. I would have expected around a 17 point victory for A&M. New Mexico just dropped to the near bottom of the conference for me. I had expected them to be better than their preseason ranking this year. At first glance it doesn't look like it.

SDSU 14 - UCLA 33
I watched some of the start of this game. I thought SDSU might have a chance. They've risen slightly and I think they might actually be able to win a few games this year.

UNLV 38 - Sac State 3
I didn't see any of this game (Thanks to the mtn!) but UNLV seemed to be efficient (from the stat line). I see UNLV as the hardest road game for BYU the rest of the year.

CSU 23 - CU 17
Way to go CSU! Didn't expect this, though I figured sooner or later CSU was bound to get better.

Final thoughts: There are still plenty of people trying to discount BYU's win over OU because of the Bradford injury, but there have been a good number of people who point out that OU wasn't winning the game when Bradford was in there and that BYU had at least as many problems/injuries as OU (though it's true that we didn't have a Heisman winning quarterback that we could lose. I think Bronco (coaches et al) did a great job game planning for this. With the depleted O-line they chose to cross train them and not just leave everyone in the same positions (see how that worked for OU?). Anyway, I've reveled in this all weekend, but it is time to go forward, because if BYU chokes at Tulane, this weekend loses a lot of luster.

And that is why we play the game

I didn't give BYU a chance. I really didn't. Ask my coworker who is an Oklahoma fan. I gave BYU about a 10% chance. I actually blame the basketball team losing every year in the tournament for my cynicism. Well that and the fact that BYU hasn't beaten a top 10 team in nearly 2 decades. Maybe it's the aftertaste of the first half of the decade where we performed underwhelmingly.

I didn't realize that the game started at 4 here, not 5. I ran to the store to pick up a couple of things, and returned home around 4:25 to find BYU still hanging 0-0 with Oklahoma. Then McKay Jacobsen fumbled a punt return. My immediate thought was "Well, this where the wheels start to come off." Then UO scored. Definitely was well on my way to being prepared for a BYU loss. I couldn't be happier to be wrong.

Some might try to take something away from BYU because Sam Bradford was injured at the end of the first half. Hate to break it to them, but Oklahoma had scored a touchdown off a muffed BYU punt return. Other than that, they had a 52 yard drive for a field goal. Not much else doing for UO. BYU's defense was fantastic. Surprisingly enough, we found cornerbacks in the off season. They played well all night. BYU also realized that blitzing works if you do it well. And boy did they do it well. I still can't believe the defense.

As a side note, it's going to be hard, really really hard, to keep expectations for BYU's football team down now. In large part because if they go undefeated, there is a good chance (pending every other team losing once) that they get into the national championship game. Yea, I know. A bit over the top, but quite frankly, true.

Here's some pics of our adorable kids:



I admit it, we broke down, bought a TV and got cable for the college football season. It's been worth every penny so far. My only regret, we should have got a DVR...

FYI, if you live nearby, feel free to give us a call and stop by on game day next week or any week.

Progress

Chase is 3 weeks today. Wow, the last half of August flew by. Thank goodness because it won't be so hot soon and Chase should start sleeping better soon. Actually, he is. That's the progress being made. As we speak, I am waiting for him to wake up. It's been 4 hours since I last fed him and he is stirring a little but still pretty fast asleep. I want to see how long he can go. This gives me hope that in the near future, he'll only be waking up once or twice in the night and go right back to sleep. Ah, the light at the end of the tunnel is getting closer.