Introducing

Emmalyn Mills!

6 lbs 3 oz
21 inches long

(Don't quote me on the details.  This is the story, as I have pieced it together)

Little Emma arrived last night after the easiest labor I have ever heard of! Sherice was already dialated to a 6 when she arrived at the hospital, even though she was not in labor. They gave her an epidural, and she rested until her doctor arrived. They broke her water at 9:00, and the doctor thought it was still going to be awhile, so he went home. Well, at 9:30 Sherice was ready to push! She had Emma without any trouble and both mom and baby are healthy and happy.

It was about 10:30 when we heard the news, so we grabbed Kate out of bed and headed to the hospital. When I got there, I asked Sherice how it went and she said "That was easy!" What? Aren't you so jealous of her?

 Congratulations Sherice!  You did an awesome job!

Congratulations you guys!  You're going to be amazing parents!

Humility

It all started about 2 weeks ago. During our evening prayers, Dustin asked for humility so that "we may realize what is important in our lives". After the prayer was over I immediately scolded him for praying for such a thing. I know it's not a bad thing to pray for, but I'm just not one of those people who purposely pray for trials to be given to me. I said, "I hope something bad isn't going to happen now" and went to bed.

The next day Dustin was ran off the road while merging onto the 101 freeway. He remarkably survived unscathed. He didn't hit anyone, but we did have to replace 2 tires. I'm so thankful that Dustin knows how to drive well, because I know I probably would have died in that same situation. The car almost skidded into traffic, but he was able to pull out of it and pull onto the side of the road- where there is a cliff. I shudder to think of what would have happened if he hadn't managed to pull out of the skid.

I thanked the Lord for sparing my husband and teaching me my lesson in humility.

About a week later, we noticed a very strange spot had appeared on Dustin's leg.

Now I'm no expert, but I know that if a dark mass appears out of nowhere on your body- you need to get that checked out.  We tried to ignore the problem for about a week and just watch for improvement.  When none came, I scheduled an appointment with a dermatologist.

It's amazing how something so small can be so scary.  What if this was cancerous?  What if it was fatal?  What would I do without my husband?  Have we prepared for such a situation?  It was hard not to imagine the worst, but I did. 

Were we overreacting a little?  Probably.  But I think this is how the Lord wanted us to react.  Over the next few days we were more patient with one another, held each other a little closer, and spent a lot of time just being together.  It's amazing how the unknown can make you realize just how important family is.  Nothing else matters.

This morning we went to the dermatologist.  I was so nervous I hardly slept last night. 

We arrived at the dermatologist at 10:00, saw the doctor at 10:30 and left at 10:35.  She took one look at the mark, said it was completely benign but we did the right thing by coming in and sent us on our way.  I was completely relieved (and a little irked because we just paid $40 for 5 minutes of time).

So folks, the moral of this story is to love your family and be grateful for what you have, because you never know when your life could change.  I am so grateful for my amazing husband.  I love him so much and I don't know what I would do without him.  I am SO GRATEFUL that nothing is wrong with my husband, and I am thankful for what this week has taught me.  Even though life may be hard sometimes, in the end all that really matters are those that you love.



In happier news-  Sherice is having her baby as I type this!  I will be an Aunt again soon!

Just because

I don't need an excuse to take pictures of my daughter do I?

I found this tutu while cleaning the other day.  It's the same tutu she wore to Sherice's wedding last year.  She was just 2 months old!  Anyway, Kate loved playing in it!  She thought it was the greatest thing!

Don't let this sweet face fool you....

She's crazy!

4th of July!

{warning: picture overload! But I've organized them neatly for you!}

For the 4th of July this year, we stayed here in the valley. We usually go up to the White Mountains but Sherice is too pregnant, Jaron and Beth had to teach lessons on Sunday, and half of my family was at Scout Camp. So...we had a lot of fun here! On Saturday we went swimming at Aunt Reese's house.







Kate is such a little diva!




Then on Sunday we had everyone over for dinner, games, and fireworks. I made buffalo ranch chicken sandwiches and banana cream pie.  The kids were fascinated the pop-its we bought.

We played the "Things" game (always hilarious). Then we all went upstairs and watched the fireworks from our bedroom window! Our window conveniently faces Schnepf Farms, so we got to watch a great show all from our air conditioned house! It was pretty awesome!

It was an amazing 4th of July!

One year older and wiser too...

Yesterday was my birthday.

I'm now officially closer to being 30 than 20. I'm no longer a "young adult". I now have to check boxes marked "26-30 years". I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Yesterday was a good day. Kate was extra cuddly, and that made for an excellent birthday present. Dustin got me stuff to decorate our front room, which until now, has been horribly bare. He got me this frame:

and this mirror:

I'll have to wait for him to hang that. I'm sure it would be a disaster if I tried.

We celebrated by eating dinner at my favorite mexican restaurant, Aribba Mexican Grill. So yummy. We tried to go to Barnes and Noble, but Kate was being a really big stinker, so we just came home and played nintendo instead.

Oh yeah, and I also received season tickets to ASU Gammage!  My mother in law gave them to me and my sisters-in-law for our birthdays this year!  We will be seeing Beauty and the Beast, The Grinch, Shrek, and Fiddler on the Roof.  I am so excited!  You have no idea!  My mother also got me something, but it's a "secret" and I can't know what it is until she brings it down to me.  The suspense is killing me!

All in all, it was a pretty good day!

Last night as I was laying in bed, I thought, "I'm 26 and what have I done with my life?"  At first the thought depressed me, but as I thought about it, I realized I've accomplished lots of things!

-I graduated high school
-I have a college degree (just an associate's, but still!)
-I was sealed in the temple to my wonderful husband
-I worked and provided for us while Dustin went to school
-I went to Disneyland
-I went and graduated from Cosmetology school
-I have an active cosmetology license! 
-I have a beautiful home
-I bought myself a nice camera, and am developing quite a talent for photography!
-I gave birth to my beautiful baby girl
-I am a stay at home mom

So yes, although some days being a mother to a toddler can be very trying, I am so grateful for my life and I wouldn't trade it for anything!!  Heavenly Father has truly blessed me, and I am so thankful for it.



Now if I could only add "traveled to Europe" to that list....

Kate

Kate is 14 months old today. I'm not going to do these month-by-month updates anymore, but I figured it was time for another update on her.

 

 -Kate loves to eat, but will not eat baby food anymore. She absolutely refuses! She loves to eat big girl food.

-She is finally getting more teeth! I looked in her mouth yesterday, and it looks like she's getting her top front teeth and some more molars.

-She can say "mama, dada, vroom vroom, arf arf, thank you, hi, bye, uh oh, jaylee", but she mostly just jabbers all day.

-She tries to dress herself if I've left clothes on the floor

-She loves to play with everything that isn't a toy

-She loves to watch Sesame Street, Curious George and Sid the Science Kid (I hate this one, but they sing alot and I think this is why Kate likes it)

-She loves to make messes

-She loves to play outside and eat rocks

-She LOVES her cousins and is so excited whenever they come over to play

-She loves to play hide and seek, and peek a boo!

-She loves to play with (pull) mommy's hair

-She is a great sleeper! She will take naps at 10:00 and 2:00 and go to bed at 8:00. It's awesome!

-She loves to run, twirl and climb

-She loves to put things where they "belong". I'm staring at diapers in my kitchen cupboards right now. haha.

-She has enough hair in the back for her first pigtails.

-She loves to "help" mommy in the kitchen. I'll put her little apron on and give her a bowl and spoon and she thinks it's great!

-She has a funny sense of humor and will laugh at just about anything.

-She is so adorable and I love her so much. This is such a fun age!

Cousin time!

Dustin and I have finally started to follow the prophet and go on weekly dates :). We watch Jaron and Bethany's kids on Saturday, and they watch our kid on Friday. We've only been doing this for a couple weeks, but so far it's been awesome! I love living by family! Anyway, we watched Maddock and Jaylee on Saturday and it was quite an adventure!

Maddock loves the book "Green Eggs and Ham" only he calls it "The Train Book". He's obsessed with trains, and there are a few pictures of a train in that story. Anyway, he decided he wanted to read it to the little girls.

Speaking of obsessed with trains, Maddock turned our couch into a train! He found anything he could that was circular and made them "wheels". He found a pen and stuck it in the couch and that was his "steering wheel" or whatever you call that on a train. He set all the stuffed animals on the couch (and the little girls) and took us on quite an adventure. This little boy has an amazing imagination! We braved monsters, crashed into the water, and drove really really fast. When Kate would try to stand up he would yell, "Kate, I told you to SIT DOWN on the train!!" Hilarious. This entertained him for about an hour and a half. I guess I know how to keep him entertained from now on!

I love these kids!