ohhhhhh england....

ENGLAND.... you NEVER cease to amaze me. Really, though??? It's New Year's Eve and everything but pubs closes at 8 tops??? Really? Is that what's happening right now? WOW.

Haha CANNOT wait to go back to the land of 24/7!!!!!!!!!! And even if things ever do close early, it'll be by such a small chunk of time!

OOHHH my word... (huuugggee sigh)

ODE to miss house!

This post is dedicated to my love and good friend Melissa Ray House!

We were both trying to get a hold of each other yesterday on Skype and it didn't happen. :< I was very sad. But I got to thinking about how much of a gem she is and I wanted to write this post about her!!! Here are some facts and memories of mah grl, organized into a very messy 'ode' hah.

Ode to Melissa House:

-She is the FLYEST dancer. It's just INSANE how much she brings it. She wows errbody on that dance flo!
-She is the tytest thang to ever hit REXBURGGG Idaho. I don't even know how that hero lasted there that long with all them zeros!
-She knows almost as much about rap as my big brother. I try to be as cool as her but it is pretty much a pointless goal!
-Whenever I hear JT's 'Chop Me Up', I think about us getting down in the Jack in the Box drive through to it blasting in my car. :>
-She is so forgiving and understanding. She puts up with my stressy self.
-Melissa House saved me at a horrible time in my life when I was at BYUI. I had some mad drama that she helped me through like nothing else. I tear up when I think about how much I needed her and how selfless she was at ALWAYS being there for me. SHE IS IN MAH HEART!!!!!
-Melissa almost made my dreams come true when she was dating someone that I very very very much love. My dream was for love and marriage. But it didn't work out. But I still love her and it's okay that my dream didn't pan out. :P
-MELIZITCHKA is SO talented. It's unreal. She is rocking it out almost graduating at the hardest med school ever, Johns Hopkins, as a nurse. She can sew up anything or create anything in the world. She is SO crafty. She is SO brilliant!!! She made my baby son the most adorable quilt and I love it so much! I will treasure it for life.
-Melis and I had the most infamous time partying it up in PARIS, FRANCE!!!!!!!!!!!! It was an unforgettable time. With the canckles and the crazy Chinese hostel and the yummy food and the Louvre and the photoshoots and the HOW FAR DO I HAVE TO GO TO GET TO YOU?? SHOW ME THE MILES! NAUTICAL MILES!! Hahahah it was so amazing to be there with her!
-Melissy just gets me. And she did from the very start. From the like second minute that I met her.
-Her heart is too big. TOO big, she is so caring and rips her self apart if someone she loves is in trubs or has any problem.
-Last but not least, with Melissa House and I, it was just plain jane true love from the start! We have so much fun together and I know she'll be a bffe fo lyfe.

I ain't no homo. I just love my boo Melissa Ray House!

Mr. Giles' First CHRISTMAS!!!!

This post is about my baby's first Christmas!
It's been such an exciting time preparing for Christmas! I've loved shopping this year soooo much. We've had a bit more money this year and I've loved to buy nice things for my loved ones without feeling sick to my stomach about not being able to get a lot. Oh, don't get me wrong, we did spend more than we should have hah but it truly is so great to give, much better than to receive. So I've loved getting things this year! Giles really is a gem in shops, too. He is so good, he rarely whines and he is usually so chill.

For Giles' first Christmas, we bought him a floor piano that he can kick at or tap at on his tummy. It plays in piano, trumpet, drums, and violin. We bought it so he can enjoy his tummy time more. He is getting better at it but yeah he does get fed up still sometimes hah. He's very strong with his head and arms and lifting himself up, but sometimes still after a while he wants to roll onto his back.
We got him this little musical trumpet thing, a 'First Christmas' book, some finger puppet books (one's Old MacDonald with animal fingers and the other is Noah's Ark with animals and Noah on the thumb hehe), a Sunday sweater and collared shirt, and some other things. Josh's co-worker for secret Santa also got us a 'Baby's First Christmas' Hand print set. We took his hand and foot print and carved the date and his name! So preshhhh!

Other gifts he received were a monkey hand puppet, a Noah's ark boat with stuffed animals and a stuffed Noah inside, a Bible pop-up book, a Greg Olsen Savior book, a foot cosy for his stroller to keep his feet warm, a hilarious t-shirt from my sister, a musical puzzle, aaannnnddd..... A MANCHESTER UNITED FOOTBALL KIT!!!!!!!!!!!! We were so excited that Dave and Lorna got him one. He is our proper British boy now with his football jersey, shorts, and Nike socks! He'll play for England one day! hah!

Giles was okay during Christmas, he's been having a bit of a rough time lately. He is starting to teethe really bad now. We can tell it's paining him now, it's not just the excess drooling anymore. He really chomps hard on things and whines a lot. Poor poor baby :<. So he wasn't the happiest on Christmas! He also had constipation a bit so he was a bit off and on. But I'm sure he will enjoy his new toys a lot!

Josh and I had a really great Christmas with his family as well. It was a nice happy day with good food and good company! For Christmas, I bought Josh 2 DVDs, Inception and How to Train Your Dragon. I also surprised him and bought him a fancy Superdry Hoodie. He really loved it and was so happy to have it. He shined up my wedding rings for Christmas, he bought me a huge Toblerone, an awesome Muppets t-shirt, the 'It's Complicated' DVD, and GORGEOUS glittery festive red flowers. The gifts were really sweet, he is so good to me!

We also got a gym membership for the remaining time we're going to be in England, we got sweatpants, a cute Union Jack frame and pillow, new scarves, sneakers for Josh, a pretty purple jade and ameythest necklace and earrings for me, an HMV gift card, and we also received tickets for a date out! Dave and Lorn got us tickets to attend a classical music concert on New Year's Day. So that will be fun to have a date together!
My mother mailed us a package of Christmas jammies and American candies, but stupidly IT GOT STOLEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yep, she mailed it like 2 months ago, and we haven't received it, so pretty much it's gone! But she did get us money so Josh and I could get some clothes, and she mailed Giles some more clothes because the little sprout is growing so fast out of his clothes he has already!

Totally aside from the gifts we received, we really had a lovely holiday remembering our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, his birth, his life, and all that he did for us. On Christmas Eve, we read from the Bible, watched the church DVD Joy to the World, and had a lovely devotional. Christmas Day we also had a little devotional together. I tried hard to keep Him in my heart extra much! The reason for the season (forgive the rhyme haha) is Jesus Christ, and I think this year I've realized most that that important fact is SO completely hidden from the world today. Christmas to the world is SO SO SO very much unconcerned with the Savior. It is about shopping and bling and money. This is my first Christmas as a mother, and I've realized that I have to work very hard for my kids to really know that Christmas is about the Savior, Heavenly Father's gift to us.

It has been such a lovely season. I have loved spending extra time with Josh and I've loved being with my gorgeous little boy Giles! It has been a great first Christmas as parents and I am SO ecstatic to celebrate many more and with more kiddies coming in the future and our family and our traditions building up and up and up!
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR, ALL!

xx

mah little man

GILES UPDATEEEEE:

-He is still nuts about standing up. He loves it and would rather do that than try to roll over or anything of the sort. Maybe he'll skip crawling and go to walking. I know that happened to this little baby girl I used to babysit. She just up and walked one day haha!
-Lorna bought me this dancing and singing reindeer guy that sings 'Jingle Bells'. And Giles LOVES it haha! He always smiles at it and wants to hold it.
-There is this show here on CBeebies (Children's BBC) called Waybaloo. I always make fun of it because it's like the new Teletubbies. So freaky and weird. But when I was doing my makeup this morning, I saw Giles smiling huge behind me in the mirror. I walked up and he was smiling his face off at this creepy Waybaloo show!!!! HAHAH! I guess I can't make fun of it because he really likes it!
-He is still going bald :<. Within a space of 3 days, his whole cute little spiky quiff fell out and he is still thinning. I hope his real hair comes in soon hah but he is still just adorable any which way.
-He discovered his feet a while back, but he's loving them more now and always grabs at them all day.
-Giles is going through a crazy separation anxiety phase. When I go even 1 ft. out of his eyesight he bursts out crying. And when I come back again he bursts out laughing. Talk about bipolar haha! Hope he grows out of it soon because it can be exhausting!

Well, that's my little man for ya.

And for the record, there is a little bit more to my life than my baby Giles, haha. I know it's all I write about on here, but he is just too fab and too cute and too precious so it's hard not to, ya know??

So here's a Mall and Josh update, I guess:

-We're almost done Christmas shopping. I already know what Josh is getting me, he is getting my wedding ring and my engagement ring cleaned and replated (it's white gold so needs to be re-sparkled up about every year). I am ring-less at the moment and it does feel a bit weird.
-Haven't heard back about Josh's visa for a couple weeks. They need to tell us about when his interview at the embassy in London will be, and when to schedule a medical appointment for him to enter in to the US. Hopefully they give us a date soon. We are pretty sure that that is the final step and then his visa will be in our hands! We're still hoping for a month to three months before we can finally get over.


TTFN. Ta ta for now. Yeah, I just quoted Winnie the Pooh. And yes, that is allowed. I am a mom now, so I'm allowed to know all the goofy things of life. :P

ohh the zzzz's, the glorious zzzz's!

This blog post is to celebrate a significant event in my short life of motherhood so far: Giles' first sleep through the entire night.

It happened on October 30th, one month ago from today!

Motherhood takes on a whole new sugar coating when your baby sleeps through the night. It seriously transforms you into a new person haha. To finally get a full stretch of sleep, longer than the normal 3 or 4 hour stretch for a new baby, is just incredible. To go about three or four months with interrupted nights really wears you down. So I want to celebrate this whole month of sleep and to celebrate my gorgeous, happy baby boy, Mr. Giles Spencer!

baby baby oh baby!!!

Giles' studio portraits. ERRMMM YEAHHH caaahuuuutteee???? YES YES YES!!!

ZUMBA!

I've bought the Zumba DVD kit recently. I have never bought anything from an infomercial before, so I was a bit reserved. But the Zumba program looked really nice and worthwhile, so I took a gamble and I bought it.
I've had it about 5 days now. I make sure to do it every single day so I get my money's worth and so I don't become lazy or unmotivated.
Today is the hardest day so far haha I am just so tired! I really don't want to do it right now. Nevertheless, I shall get off my bum and get shakin!

It really is a fun program. I love to dance, although I can't really dance with much skill hahh. Zumba takes fun dancing and stretches it a little bit more into it being a real workout. It's really a good buy, I do recommend it.

Now off of the computer and time to start shimmying. Haha

x

studio

Just a quick little post about something that happened this past week. Giles went to get his first studio portraits done!

Every momma that has a baby in England gets something called a Bounty pack. It has free samples, coupons and deals, baby and new mum magazines, etc. Well every Bounty pack has free vouchers to get your baby's photo done every 6 months at Pixifoto, with one free 8 by 10 included. Well we went this past Tuesday and it was a great experience!

As ya'll know, I dabble in photography. But of course, I don't have the benefits of having a studio. So I was excited to get some studio lighting and props and all that in some pictures.

Giles did SOO well! The photographer was really nice, she was a nice girl, about my age or maybe a little older. She got him to smile well and she complimented Giles on how happy and smiley he was for just a 4 month old. Said the smiles came out easily and that he is just gorgeous (of course I agreed completely :P). We got the free shot, and, of course, when you see all the other adorable shots you just cannot help yourself. So Josh said it was okay to buy some more shots. I spent £100 (yeah we don't drop our little bit of cash too easily haha so you know these pictures must be cute! haha) but yeah we got 2 more 8 by 10's and one 10 by 20 with three pictures in centered and spaced in the middle.

I get to pick the prints up at the end of the month! I'm so excited! I'll definitely scan them in and put one on the blog! YAYY!! I love my gorgeous boy.

baby gi

Recent things Giles has been doing lately:

-He just HAS to stand nowadays (with help obviously! hah). He loves to stand, wobble around, and take in everything. He's always been so alert, so standing is his new favorite viewpoint.
-Giles is just drooling more and more. It's getting quite bad hah! He is definitely in the teething stages. No signs of a tooth yet, but it will probably just pop up one day.
-He talks all day long. He is always going 'woo woo woo woo woo woo woo', ALL day haha. But he throws in some high pitched squeals and laughs when he's especially delighted. I just love his high pitched sounds hahah. I crack up everytime!
-Giles is getting very good being on his tummy. He lifts his head wayyy up now, and can hold it up for a long time, about 2 or 3 minutes. He lifts his legs up at the same time as well and he looks like a dolphin at Sea World haha.
-He is developing a little mind of his own more and more. Gone are the days of little soft baby you can easily do anything with like swaddling him up, putting him in his car seat, holding him calmly on your lap or in your arms, etc. He is getting so strong and he will thrash around if he doesn't want to do something haha. This means he's getting a bit more difficult at church haha. He used to just chill or even sleep most of the way through. But I've had to take him out a few times for being too noisy, etc.

He is just growing up so so so fast. I love spending my days with him, playing with him and trying to stimulate his brain. He just loves books still and he loves interaction. He is so alert and so happy, he really is rarely fussy. I find I am just kissing him all day long haha! You never know before motherhood exactly how much you're going to love your child. You really can't fully fathom that love! I just love my little Giles and I feel SO blessed that he is healthy and doing well. :P

the life of a (temporary) housewife...

Since about a month and a half before Giles was born, I went on maternity leave at my work.

My job was at good ol' Pizza Hut. I got the job there right after Josh and I were married and had our own place. Josh was struggling finding a full time job. It was right when the recession hit full force and it was hard everywhere. I took any job I could get, and with my Pizza Hut wage and tips, along with random work Josh was able to get, we made it through till he found his job 3 months later. Yes, Pizza Hut. Not the most glamorous job. But it did well for me while I was at university. DANG it was hard to run around as a waitress later on being sick and pregnant, and later to being huge and pregnant waddling around. But I'm a trooper and I did it! The pay off was getting my maternity leave and pay.

So I began my leave. It was before my final exams and finishing up of university, so it was great to just have to worry about that and finish everything off. Then, I was left with a few weeks before Giles was due to just chill and get some much needed rest before the chaos of the birth and parenthood. So that was reallyyy good.
Giles is 4 months old now, and I'm still on maternity leave. Maternity leave and pay are brilliant here in England, much better than in the States that I've heard. My maternity leave lasts till June 2011, but my pay ends mid-February 2011. So I'm being paid for leave from mid-May 2010 to mid-Feb! Completely great! It's been a huge blessing to have the pay and to have this time off with my baby. Although I get restless a bit at times, I really do relish this time I have with my baby before I become a working mum when we move to the States.


So what is the life of a temporary housewife like??? Well, JUST in case you wanted to know, haha, I will tell you:

1. Taking care of my baby obviously!!!


Giles takes up 80% of my day at the least. He is on a 4 hour schedule, that I learned from the book Baby Wise. He eats, plays, and sleeps, all day long in a cycle. He is such a happy baby, Baby Wise teaches you to establish sleep patterns because a well-rested baby is a happy one, they say. And I really see that it has worked! He's always talking and laughing. He adores me and it makes me SOO happy! Just how he smiles at me makes all the tiredness and worry and stress worth it times a million. During the day I read books to him, making him laugh, play with his toys with him, etc etc etc.

2. A little bit of TV
When Giles is napping, or winding down to take a nap, I might put on the tele. Josh and I never had TV, we didn't pay for it and we just watched our DVDs. But now we're living at his parents house (to save up money and clear our debts for our big move to the US), well they have TV so I indulge a little.
Some shows I watch:
Homes Under the Hammer
This show finds derelict properties around the UK that are going to be sold at auction. They film the selling and then the presenters interview the buyers at the property to see what they are going to do to renovate it, what they plan to do afterwards whether they will rent it or sell it or live in it themselves, etc. Sounds boring eh? Haha sometimes it is. I just like to watch it to see the 'before and afters'. It is interesting to see what it takes to redo a whole property, how much stuff like that costs, how much homes in general cost. I have no idea about those things. I hope to be a home owner one day, so it is good to know bits a bobs.


How Clean Is Your House
The two ladies, Kim and Agie go around to the absolute most disgusting excuses for residences and show the dirty birds how to clean. A team of cleaners and the two ladies help to turn the place around and reveal a clean, lovely living space. This show motivates me to be clean hah. To not be an unimaginable pig. Kim and Agie also give really cool cleaning tips. Like using ketchup to polish old silver. Crazy, but the things the put forward work, so that is interesting.


Supernanny
My all-time favorite show, I've decided. This may sound silly, but Supernanny has taught me a lot about parenting! Kids' behavioral problems always boil down to the parents. It is so fascinating, and supernanny Jo Frost is teaching me quite a lot. Like if you find your kids are aggressive and disrespectful, look at you and your husband. Do you yell or discipline them aggressively? Do you bully them, or treat them respectfully, as human beings? Not as friends, because they need to know you're the one in charge, but speaking to them at people. Jo Frost is just brilliant. She gets along with any kid and gets to the root of any problem lickety split. She's just fab!


Enough of TV. I honestly don't watch it that much. Just a bit here and there. Now on to number 3. It's an obvious one.

3. Taking care of errands
Every week I try to go to the health clinic to get Giles weighed. We also often walk into town to window shop or get necessary things. When Josh doesn't take the car into work, I'll go out to ASDA (it's the UK version of Walmart). You know your life is changed forever when going to the grocery store is officially entertainment haha. That's when you know there's no turning back haha. I just walk around there, slowly, looking at everything, buying little things we need, etc. Giles is always very good in stores. He has only ever cried a lot once. He usually is just asleep, or awake staring at everything he catches a glimpse of from the cart.

4. Other day to day activities
Scripture study, bits of cleaning and organizing, laundry here and there. Cooking dinners (Lorna, Josh's mom, and I alternate nights). I'm also starting to sort out all of our stuff for our move. I'm trying to sort what needs to come with us, and all that we'll have to leave for the time being. And then, from all the stuff we have to leave, then trying to sort out what needs to come over next, so that Josh's parents or whoever comes to visit next can grab it and bring it over.


So there you have it. To all my friends and my fam bam who I don't get to speak to that often on the phone, now you know what my life is like at the moment. Just a plain ol' housewife. I really really love all the time I have with Giles. But, nevertheless, I do relish the fact that this state of being is only temporary.
I must admit, that even after mommyhood, I love to work. I feel that drive, that ambition to get out and do something on the side. I feel satisfied making money and contributing to my family.

The only challenge now is, when I begin to job hunt, I MUST find something that I will find worthwhile. Something good enough to leave my little angel for just that little bit each day. If that doesn't happen, then yes it will stink leaving my baby. So that is something to think about.

funny bunny

Funny things that Giles has been doing lately:

-He literally laughs in my face when I try to feed him normally. I started combination feeding him at 9 weeks and he was fine with nursing and bottles. He didn't care either which way. Now he is definitely learning that the bottle is easier for him and he won't have me anymore!! Whenever I try to nurse him, he just pulls away, smiles, laughs, trying to play with me instead. Haha he mocks me and then cries till he gets his bottle. I've been pretty upset about it but I've tried every single method to coax him and it's all got splat. Soooo there it is! hah
-He tries to punk us at his nap time now! He will start talking and laughing, trying to smart his way out of the nap haha. It takes a while longer to get him to calm down and close his eyes hah. He is just being the most hilarious boy lately!
-He has always been a very talkative baby, but it's at its peak at the moment! He is ALWAYS yelling, gooing, gahing, even started screaming now haha! He goes really high sometimes as well, haha it makes Josh and I die laughing haha.
-He is in the early stages of teething. He is always drooling and always chomping on his hand hah, he is SO happy when his fist, or even both fists, are in his mouth. He hasn't been super cranky or ill from it yet so I'm very glad!
-He is discovering his feet. He has tried to put them in his mouth before, and he also laughs his head off if I bite his feet or hit my head or face with them.
-His grandparents just bought a Bumbo chair for him and he sits up in it now! It is so cute, he's just growing too fast!

That is all!

i must've done something good...

Nothing comes from nothing, nothing ever could. So somewhere in my youth or childhood, I must've done something good.

AHHHH glorious quote from Maria (Julie Andrews) in the Sound of Music. It has always been my favorite film. Just look at the RICH quality of the film, the colors, the shadows, ah I ADORE film film movies. Everything about that film is PERFECT. The cast, the songs, the LOVE STORYYY!!! the scenery...

which brings me to the star of this blog post...

SALZBURG!!!

Salzburg, as you know, is where the bulk of the Sound of Music is set. And the glorious film was the driving force behind mine and Josh's recent holiday to MUNICH, GERMANY and SALZBURG, AUSTRIA!!!!!!

Joshua and I just celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary. 2 years married on October the 18th. :>

We were motivated to take a trip because we are moving to the States soon. Europe is soo close and we haven't explored it as a couple because we've been crazy poor. Well, we're still crazy poor but we decided we HAVE to take advantage of Europe before we move away from it. SO I was looking around for cheap deals, and there was a cheap deal to Munich, Germany. Looking into the area and tours more, there was also a cheap tour going for a day trip to Salzburg. SALZBURG!!! Childhood dream of visiting there HAD to be checked off my list! So we booked 2 nights in Germany.

It was our first time leaving Giles. It was really sad. I kept having panic attacks for days before the trip! I just prayed so hard that it would be okay, and that everyone would be safe. My fears were calmed a bit and we headed off. Giles was to stay with his grandparents, Dave and Lorna, for the duration.

We got to Munich Monday night, on our anniversary. We took a train into the city from Munich airport, found our hotel, and went out walking around and exploring. I tell you, I was the quintessential ANNOYING American tourist on that first night! Hahah everything I saw I was like 'WOOOOOOWWW!!' 'OH MY GOSHHH LOOK AT THAT!!! THAT's AAAMMAAAZZZIINNNGGG!!' haha but I did really feel that way, Germany was BEAUTIFUL! Munich was such an amazing city, I strongly recommend everyone to go out of their way to visit it! hehe




The next morning we headed off on our day trip to Salzburg. We met a group of American and some Scottish tourists at the train station in front of the tour company's office. Our tour guide was American as well, he was from Seattle. The train to Salzburg was 2 hours. On the way we saw the gorgeous snowy Alps, and so many picturesque German towns along the route. When we pulled into Salzburg I was SOOO excited. Just the view alone from the train was worth the trip, haha I couldn't wait to explore!



The guide took us around for about an hour and a half, and then Josh and I got to explore for 3 hours. The guide showed us the Sound of Music sites- where Maria and the children were running around singing 'Do Re Mi', where Maria was walking around Salzburg singing 'I Have Confidence', and where the real live abbey was, Maria's abbey! I was a complete nerd, I was so excited. I just adore the film so much! And Ms. Andrews is completely perfect in it. And Captain Von Trapp is too perfect and makes me melt ahhh!!!!

me at Sound of Music sites>





The guide also showed us the medieval fortress that was on the hill top above the town, he took us outside of Mozart's birthplace and childhood home. We went along the main shopping area, where every store had a fancy wrought-iron sign. Salzburg back in the day was the hub for wrought iron work.

Everything in the town was gorgeous. It was a bright, sunny day, only briskly cold, not too bad. It was so perfect, I couldn't have asked for a lovelier day and place to spend it in!

We returned from Salzburg around 6:30 at night in Munich, and we went to our hotel room to rest for a tiny bit. Afterwards we went out onto the town to get some dinner and to see more things.

I was determined to have a REAL German dinner. I am NOT a sausage person. I can have about one or two sausages a year and then I'm set. I just don't like it much, makes me sick most of the time! But the Germans are all about their sausages (and beer, but that's obviously a no no! haha). SO we went to a German pub and I had a sausage platter with mash and SAUERKRAUT! It is pickled cabbage, it's another big German thing haha. It surprisingly was very good! I had the famous Munich white sausage, a Regensburger sausage, a weiner, and hm some other kind, I don't remember. But it was all good, and worked really well with the sauerkraut! I probably won't have sausage again for a couple years haha but it was honestly good. Josh ordered a beef goulash with dumplings and he loved that as well.

The next morning we woke up, checked out of our hotel, and spent our final day officially exploring Munich and going inside of the churches and other buildings (everything was closed when we went round at night). Munich is famous for its rich Rococo decor. I studied Rococo in my degree but I'd never seen anything in real life, so even though it is very over the top and not very nice, haha, it was still cool to see some Rococo interiors.

Since I had my German meal the night before, Josh and I committed the tourist crime and we went to McDonalds. Haha but McDonalds has different things in every country! So that's how we justified it. We both at their '1955' burger. Apparently it was supposed to be like an American diner burger, 1950's style. The McDonalds there also had breaded shrimp! So weird, I've never seen a McD's have that, but it was very good. yummm

We also went to the Viktualienmarkt, the main market in Munich. There were flowers being sold, seafood, German candies, Christmas decorations, breads, dried fruits, sausages, everything. We bought some Munich white sausage to take home to Dave and Lorna.

Munich was a gorgeous, clean, beautiful city! BUT I must say, I was happy to leave it... I had a little boy to get home to!!!!!!!

When we arrived in Manchester, I had Lorna bring Giles in the car with her haha I couldn't wait till home to see him again!! I have NEVER been happier to see anyone in my entire life than I was to see my baby again! I was crazy to leave him haha but I guess I had to have that experience. I don't think I'll leave my babies again, no matter how much fun Josh and I had. I just love my Giles too much! BUT grandma Evans did a fantastic job and all was well. :>


Well there's the gist of our trip. It was so lovely, what a special time to spend those days with my darling Josh. He is such a lovely person, my best friend, and an amazing husband. It really was nice to be with him and to share our special 2 year anniversary!

there's no place like home..

Josh and I watched The Hangover today (NOT the most wholesome film :<). But all during the film, I was just ACHING for my home! I MISS MY TOWWNNNN!!! My home town, Vegas girl and I'm proud! I CANNOT wait to return home soon!!!!!!!!!!

Life is going to be INSANELY different. I haven't lived in the States in two and a half years. I'm so happy to move back but even though I spent 20 1/2 years there, it will still probably take some time to get a groove going. And I HAVEN'T EVEN LIVED 'REAL' LIFE IN THE STATES YET! EVER!! Real life, as in paying my own bills, supporting my family, big girl style.

All my life my parents paid for everything. I know, I was spoiled. But after I married, of course, real life began. And Josh and I have done a pretty alright job so far. We've paid our rent, bills, everything. We haven't had hardly a cent left over, it's true. I've been a poor student, slaving away waitressing, and now I'm graduated and on maternity leave with Giles. Josh has been working full time as a car insurance claims advisor. We've been poor newlyweds, but we've done it, and I'm now comfortable living big girl life now. BUT, that's living it over HERE, in England. It's a whole new game in the States! I don't know how much things cost- taxes, insurance, bills, everything. Can't judge things by when I was living in Hawaii going to BYU-H, because those weren't normal prices, they were expensive Hawaii prices. So yeah, big things coming my way.

My life at home will also be unrecognizable now because, I HAVE A CHILD! :> HUUUGGEEEE life change, right?? So that's something new, I need to get him a doctor, find out how I'm going to pay for that doctor (because I am LOVING England's free National Health Service here. I love paying a tiny bit extra taxes for it because it's amazing. You can't knock the system when you've had a baby on it for absolute free!!). I need to find out public programs and little things to take Giles to, to help him socialize and grow. So many things there! AND sadly, I'll have to worry about leaving my poor boy as I must get a job to pay for my husband's university, our insurance, etc. etc. etc.

Life will definitely be nothing like before. Nevertheless, I see it as enjoying my Vegas in a whole new way.

I loved growing up there, I love my parents, my friends there. Despite all the challenges coming up, I am ready to be home! And both Josh and I are excited to start a new adventure and to see where life takes us. From my experiences living abroad, I really know now that there is no place like the good ol' USA. There's terrible aspects of my country, it's true, but that's just like any country. What's great and what matters is that the USA IS a place of opportunity. Of dreaming and accomplishing whatever you want. From observing life in England, I don't feel that that same optimism, inventiveness, and spirit is here among the people at all. I cannot wait to be back home and to see, with hard work and relying on the Lord, where all the opportunities will lead us to.

Who would have thought that this huge passionate rant would have all stemmed from such a film as 'The Hangover' ? haha

<3 VEGASSSSSSS we'll be there soon! <3

danke schon

^Carsten, Belinda, and my sister-in-law Holly

This past few days there have been some friends of my in-laws from Germany staying at the house. My husband and his family knew them from their days living in Germany. They lived there many years as my father in law worked for the British Army as a dental hygienist. The lovely visiting family were the Stiegelmeyers- dad Carsten, mom Belinda (from Spain originally), and children Tabea (14), Elias (12), and Noelia(10).

I just completely fell in love with the family right away! I had so much fun speaking with them, getting to know them, joking around with the children. The kids were OBSESSED with baby Giles. Like craazzzyyy obsessed! Like, I had to bat them away half the time to keep them from suffocating my little boy haha. But they really were lovely though, they made me laugh! The first time they saw Giles downing a bottle, he had just woken up so he was drinking with his eyes closed and with his hands folded together. From seeing that, the kids started calling him 'baby death-eater'. Death, because he looked like a corpse apparently, with folded hands. And eater, because he was eating hah. So they called him death-eater, in honor of good ol' Harry Potter. What kooky kids, right??? hhaha

The Stiegelmeyers were all very kind, very easygoing, and very intelligent. They spoke many languages! Played many instruments! I definitely want my children to be as well rounded and polite as Tabea, Elias, and Noelia.

It was just great to be around them, and I am very happy I met them!


^Tabea and Elias with Giles. Didn't get a pic of Noelia! :<

errrr let's try this again....

Welcome to my new venture, my very own family blog. As you can see from my first post, I attempted to start a blog AGES ago, right when I became pregnant in fact, at the end of last year. But I quit because- a. I felt stupid, that I didn't have anything interesting to say. AND b. I had just begun my last year of university and things, of course, got really really REALLY busy.

I was going to document my pregnancy, but afterall, who wants to hear all the gross gory details of a pregnancy, except for your sister really (who was going through the same thing ! :P).

SOO I quit, and the evidence is below. However, I do feel that I am ready now to begin again. I do have much to say, even though 95% of it is about the new addition to our family, Mr. Giles Spencer Evans. He is now nearly 13 weeks old and I want this blog to document the little things he does, mainly for my family's benefit since we are still living far far away in England.

And about our living situation, yes we are actually hoping to move to the States as soon as possible. We've been mulling it over for a long time, and when we went back to Vegas for Christmas this past year for 3 weeks, we both decided we wanted to officially start a life over there. We figured that in the long run, we do want to end up there. And staying over here longer would just be wasting time. Josh couldn't start school really because he'd soon transfer, we wouldn't be able to ever buy a house because we'd still have one foot wanting to come over there, etc. So we put in Josh's visa application and sadly, we're STILL waiting. But it is in the final stages so we're hoping to move end of December, or maybe sometime in January.

As for Giles, he will have dual citizenship! We've recently been down to London to sort out his American side and we just have to turn in our British passport application. Yay for our children never having to wait in customs lines too long! hehe

Giles is nearly 13 weeks old and he is growing up too fast already. Here's some things about our baby boy:

-He no longer has his newborn cry! It's a very grown up, louder wail and it makes me sad that he's newborn no longer!

-He's started to laugh louder and more pronounced laughs. His baby giggles (huhuhuh) are few and far between now and he lets out a huge HA! HA! now :>

-Giles LOVES to talk (well, baby talk that is). He is always gooing and aoeeinngggg.

-He likes to be sung to sleep.

-His favorite toy is this finger puppet lion thing.

-Giles is CRAZY about books already!! Every time I read him a book, he brightens up, gives huge huge smiles, and touches the book and its pages.

-Giles is already starting to be clingy to his momma. He loves for me to hold him, to be as near as possible at all times hah. I'm hoping he'll break that at some point, we are letting him cry it out now and then, rather than picking him up constantly. Hopefully he'll learn!

-He has mixed feelings about the bath, which I think just depends on how tired or alert he is. When he's wide awake, he'll kick around in the bath and really enjoy it. When he's a bit tired he'll fuss.

-And one last thing- Giles, like any little boy, is obsessed with his dad! Everytime Josh calls me at lunchtime, I put the phone to Giles' ear and he will always smile, or widen his eyes and kick around more. He loves playing with him, and most especially cuddling him. Josh has a crazy knack for getting Giles to sleep nearly instantaneously hah!

Life is going really well. I have President Thomas S. Monson's (prophet of my church, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) recent talk on my mind lately, about gratitude. If I have gratitude, I will more fully feel the love of God.

I do try my hardest to be grateful always. I have had such a blessed life! I've been blessed with opportunities of schooling, traveling the world, graduating university, having the best friends on the planet, the best siblings ever that always make me smile and laugh out loud. I have the greatest parents, and in-laws as well. I have two gorgeous grandmas and so many lovely cousins and extended family. I have a handsome, adoring husband, whom yes, I do not deserve! He's too great and always tries to make me happy and comfortable. And I have an incredible, gorgeous son. I feel SO happy in motherhood! It's been amazing. Greatest of all I have the gospel and my Savior Jesus Christ.

Well this is all for now. Thank you for indulging me and for reading this first (well, technically second) blog post of mine!

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