About dang time!

So if anyone actually reads my blog, you know that it has been a LONG time since I have posted anything. I do have an excuse, maybe not a good one but at least its an excuse! It it tons easier for me to update my blog when we are on the road because we typically have internet where we go but at home we do not. If I want to use the internet I have to go over to my inlaws house which ends up being a hassle because I have to find something to do with Rylee and then I have to use their computer. I am much more comfortable doing it from my own computer and its a lot fast because I know how to use mine! So here is a brief update on life!

So much has happend since New York. We came home on April 1st when Rylee was 6 weeks old. The first big thing that happened is that Rylee slept through the night the FIRST night we were home and she has been doing it every night since! I really think that all she wanted was to be in her own room and own crib. As far as Justin and I go, he went back to working at the lake house a lot and being away a lot with that. It was hard on both Rylee and me not having him home as much, however I am so THANKFUL that I have a husband who works so hard to support his family and gives me the opportunity to stay at home and raise our daughter. However, it was still hard having him away, but thankfully I was blessed with a pretty well natured baby so I didnt go too crazy doing the single mom thing. I was VERY grateful when the lake house job was over and I was able to have my husband back.

Rylee has grown so much and so fast. I cant seem to get over how fast this has all went. It seems like yesterday I delivered her and looked into her beautiful blue eyes for the first time and thought "well I guess there is no turning back now." My life has changed so much just because of her. I love everything about her...well almost everything, she does seem to have an attitude. Justin says she gets it from me but I dont agree with him. At exactly 4 months and 2 days she started rolling and from then on she rolls everywhere (including off my bed!) Somewhere after she hit 5 months she was sitting up. I dont have an exact date on this because I was so nervous about her falling over that I was constantly surrounding her with pillows. She was pretty unsteady at first but now she is a sitting pro. On October ninth she had the biggest day of her life so far. She started playing patty cake, and she signed the word "more" and "all done" and she pulled herself into the standing position for the first time. I think I have a very smart child but it was like she woke up one day and she was a little smarter :) Oh yeah, she crawls now too. She knows how to crawl the standard crawl however she prefers to army crawl everywhere and she is getting faster and faster at doing it. And she has also started recently going from laying, to sitting, back to laying and so forth. She is becoming so interactive and I just love it!

As for other things, we havent done anything too special. In August we were blessed with an opportunity to go out to Utah and see our best friends Joe and Jess. We had a blast there however the drive was LONG! It didnt help that a highway was closed for flooding so we had to detour which seemed to add hours onto the trip. However the 24 hours in the car was so worth it! We had such a great time just hanging out with them. Of course Rylee was able to meet her future husband Lincoln. But dont worry, the two were supervised the whole time. There was no hanky panky going on! :) It was so fun getting to see Lincoln again and introduce the Scott family to Rylee. We were there for Joey's birthday which seems to be a pattern for our vacations with them. Every time we plan a vacation it seems to be either mine or Joey's birthday. Also it seems like either me or Jess are pregnant at the time. One day, neither of us will be pregnant and Jess and I are going to leave the kids with their daddy's and we are going to go ride roller coasters or something that we cant do when we are pregnant, maybe even go to a "club" and get a groove on...maybe one day! On the way back from Utah we had the opportunity to stop through Maryville and see my dear friends Scott and Kelli. I was so thrilled to be able to stop through and introduce Rylee to them and to, well, just see them again! We tried to make it there a little earlier so we could go to church and see all my other Maryville friends but the drive took too long and we missed church by like 5 minutes! Oh well, gives us an excuse to go back up there for another visit!

Another fun thing that we did this summer was take Rylee to the lake for the first time. She first went when she was about 4 months old. It was so much fun and that is where we found out that she is a total water baby! This little girl is just like her momma. I have a DEEP love for the water and so does she! I hope she stays like that forever! We have taken her a few times since and the last time she went, Justin was able to go with us and the three of us road the tube together. It was a blast and she loved it!

Here are a few other things that are definitely worth mentioning. One of my best friends, Linsey, got married in August. I had the opportunity to be in the wedding with her and to share that special day with her. It was great to see and spend time with my friends from high school. That was also the first time EVER that I spent the night away from my baby. She went to stay with my mom while I did the wedding stuff. It was hard for me but it was good for me to get away for a bit! I also had the chance to go to Worlds of Fun with my husband, siblings, and cousin Shawn. It was so much fun. We had a blast there even though it rained for a few hours. And the best part is the tickets were free and we were even able to ride the rip cord for free. Thanks, Sara for knowing someone who has the authority to get us free tickets!

In June, Justin's sister came out with her family to visit for a week. It was so great getting to see my nieces and having them so close. I wish they could live closer so we could see them more! We had Christmas in June and the girls thought that was the coolest thing so I think this will be a tradition. While they were there we also had the opportunity to bless our little girl. I have always dreamed of the day when my husband would be able to bless our baby. To have a husband who is worthy to hold the priesthood to be able to perform this blessing meant the world to me. It was awesome to be surrounded by family and have so much family and friends there to witness this special day. In August, we took a trip to the river with Justin's parents and we took the dogs with us. Sadi is a GREAT camper. She did so good and Rylee did pretty good too! However the trip home would end up being one of the worst trips home EVER! We were about two hours away from home and Justin's truck break down. The rear end went out which happens to be a very expensive fix! He was without a truck for a little over a month which meant he had to drive my Jeep until we got the money to fix it. I am so happy that it is fixed now and he has his vehicle back and I have mine back!

Oh yeah, last thing and then I swear I am done. So in June, Justin challenged me to a bet. I am a VERY competitive person so naturally I took him up on her challenge. The challenge was that I had to work out everyday for the next six weeks and my goal was to lose 16 pounds. Justin's end was that he had to bulk up and get ripped. Whoever won was able to spend $300 on whatever they wanted to. So I worked my butt off the whole time and lost a total of 10 pounds. Not my goal of 16 but I would take 10 any day! Justin quit about half way through so even though I didnt hit my 16 he still says I won...I am not going to argue! So this is how I spent my money. First, I decided that I wanted to feel pretty again so I went and got my hair done. This is the first time I have cut my hair short since Justin and I have been married so I was a little nervous but LOVE the results! I also got highlights put in it. Next, I went and threw away all of my makeup (most of it I had from when Justin and I got married which I know is NO GOOD) I replaced it with brand new makeup that I LOVE! then I went and bought some new jeans to go with my new hair, new make up, and new body! Thank you Justin for knowing how to get me to start something and stick with it, just wave a bet in my face and some money and I will stick to anything! I have an awesome husband for so many reason but I really love him for motivating to make changes that make me feel so much better about myself. I am still working on the rest of the 16 pounds. Slowly but surely I am getting there!
I will post pictures soon!