My BACK!

I tweaked my back a few weeks ago...well, what I thought was just a tweak turned into much, much worse in a short period of time. Within a few days, I became floor-bound.

 After taking pain pills and muscle relaxers, seeing no improvement, and telling Conner that if I got any worse, he would have to call an ambulance to take me to the hospital on a stretcher, we finally decided to go to the emergency room.  They took an x-ray and we had to wait 3 hours for it to be read. Our nurse finally came in and said, "I'm sorry you have been waiting...a trauma came in and the doctor has been very busy. Since you are a nurse, I figured you would understand." She figured wrong! I was so upset. Before the doctor came in, I was sobbing over the fact that we just switched to high-deductible plan and that this visit was going to cost a fortune. When the doctor finally came in and saw my tear-stained face, he said, "wow, you must be in a lot of pain!" I really was just mad that it took him so long to see me!

 Conner was very concerned while at the hospital...concerned about the game!

When we were finally discharged, the doctor sent me home with steroids in addition to the pain killers and muscle relaxers. (It would take an entire week to be moving somewhat normally again, but they really helped. I guess it was worth going to the hospital after all.)

 It was late and we were supposed to pick up McCrae from my parent's house. He had fallen to sleep so we decided to just stay the night. This sleepover turned into a 3-night camp out while my mom cared for all three of us. Conner would feed the baby early in the morning then head off to work. After that, my mom had the two of us until he came home. She was, and is, so amazing. She brought me my food and pills while I laid on the floor, was McCrae's full-time nanny, and had dinner ready when Conner came home from work.

McCrae LOVED staying at Grammy's...she always kept him entertained and NEVER let him cry.

My mom's sweet neighbor, Linda, dropped these cookies on the porch. OH MY DELICIOUS!!!

Pastrami on rye-Conner decided to come home for lunch after he heard about this one... I'm telling you, my mom treated us right! And as always, she included a sprig of grapes. I'm glad to say that I have carried on this tradition. It makes a great side dish.

Getting the mail with Papa.

My mom had to work on Thursday so we had to move the infirmary to Jerrie's. My mom and I cried when we left. Not sure why...I guess we like being around eacthother 24/7. I'm crying as I write this as well-she was just too good to us all! Even Conner said, "Ya know? This has been a really FUN three days!"

Jerrie was great to have us over as well. And a momentous thing happened while we were there-McCrae found his feet!

Marissa even sent a cute card when I told her I was injured. It made me cry!

A month later, I am still working on exercises to strengthen my lower back. Carrying around a baby all day isn't helping but I'm feeling much better. We are so lucky to be surrounded by family and friends who are looking out for us. I'm not sure what we would have done without them!

5 months

McCrae is five months old today. I can't believe it! He is turning into quite the little boy. I feel like the baby days are over. He smiles, laughs, and even hold his own bottle. He loves to chew on everything especially his little squeaky monkey that Grammy gave him. He laughs at everything. I will be in the other room and I will hear him cackling while he is playing with his toys in the other room. I look over to see what he is laughing at, and he is just staring at the light fixture. He is just so smart! Ha ha. He is a has decided that nursing is boring and he would rather make sounds with his lips. He either puckers his lips and blows air through them, or puffs up his cheeks and puffs the air out. It's funny, but frustrating to a breast-feeding mom. He can never stay focused… He will nurse for five seconds and then make funny sounds for a minute. I think he thinks he is pretty funny. Probably the most monumental thing that has happened in the last month is introducing baby food. He isn't sure what he thinks about vegetables, but he is a good sport and swallows them all gone. It has been so fun watching him grow. I feel like he gets bigger every day. He is such a cute boy and is full of personality and spunk. He is sleeping much better. About 9:00 pm to 5:30 am every night. This makes me very happy!

I have a lot of pictures with my boys asleep, but this could be the most precious.

Watching Grammy GG's DVD, and loving it.

Tummy time is becoming much easier.

Doesn't love it, but is still smiling!

I love seeing his little hand reach out of the crib to say, "Good morning!"

Tasting better?

5 months old. Today!

Favorite toy #1. I love hearing his gums squeak on the rubber when he chews.

Favorite toy #2. He loves how it makes a crinkling noise. The red feather is the one that he always chews. Funny boy.

We had the honor of playing Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus for the Primary's sharing time. It was awesome.

I love those little feet straight out of the bath tub.

Shannon and the girls meeting McCrae for the first time. I think they like him.

One night, we went with Conner's family to the Zoo Lights. We drove all the way to the Zoo and it was insanely busy so, instead, we drove to Draper to visit "The Tree of Life." It was a lot of driving for one tree...but this tree was INCREDIBLE so it was worth it!

Christmastime

We started off the holidays with a visit to Santa Clause. As always, McCrae did not disappoint. With one click of the camera, we got a picture that Conner would say is "one for the books." 

Unloading this year's Christmas tree... 

Sinterklaas was good to us this year...I still can't get over how cute the mini wooden shoe slippers are.

Conner insisted that we had a Christmas activity EVERY night (we tried anyway). One night we made some Christmas sugar cookies since Conner can't stand the nutmeg and anise cookies my dad makes every year. They turned out terrible but we had fun frosting them anyway. The poor neighbors who received a plate of these cookies on their doorstep-I hope they didn't break a tooth.

We stepped it up this year and put lights on a couple trees.

The Grammy party. Let the festivities begin!

We made sure to have Jon and Jenny's family skype in.

The crowd continues to grow.

Have you ever seen a cuter face in your life?.Conner was so worried to let anyone hold him. He was convinced everyone was going to get him sick.

Grammy insists that everyone is quiet before she begins...the kids try so hard to behave so they can get their Christmas bag.

Yay! McCrae's very first Grammy bag.

 We are sure lucky to have Gram in our lives. She is such an example to us all-always giving and caring for others. A true disciple of Christ.

The Egbert party. It sure wasn't the same without Grandpa there but the show had to go on. It kind of felt like there was an elephant in the room since we went about the program without him, but I'm sure that's what he would expect us to do.

And just as Grandpa would have us do, all the missionaries sang "Silent Night' in their missionary tongue.

My dad did a little makeshift program. No one else wanted to speak...we never have a hard time getting my dad to speak. Although he did a great job, I was really starting to miss Grandpa.

But grandma seemed happy as ever. Although she put up a good fight, we insisted on a picture with her.

The Christmas Eve party at the Nielsens. After a delicious dinner, the kids presented the nativity while Grandpa Craig read from the scriptures.

Guess who had the honor of playing baby Jesus?

Ironically, it looks like baby Jesus has a halo!

T'was the Night Before Christmas. During the story we could hear Santa's bells!

He dropped his bag down the chimney...

with a present for everyone!

Christmas jammies for one and all.

Time for the gift exchange! We had Doug and Jami's family this year. Conner and Doug are planning on building themselves new mountain bikes so Conner got Doug (and himself) mechanic shirts with their nicknames embroidered on the chest. It was a huge hit.

JRA Cycling Co. (Just Ridin' Along)

A darling hat from Grandma and Grandpa

And his very own stocking!

Christmas morning.

Santa came!

And Conner gave me a shopping spree-tucked inside Christmas lights. It was quite the setup.

Opening presents with Grammy and Papa on Christmas morning. They came for breakfast since they are officially empty nesters. It was fun to have them.

 Although McCrae may not remember his first Christmas, we will never forget it. He is the greatest gift we could ever receive. I can't explain the joy he brings into our lives. I still have to pinch myself to remind me that he is really ours. We are so lucky.

Later that day, we were able to go up to my parents to talk to Marissa. Its always crazy with 20 people trying to talk to her at once, but it was great to hear her voice. She is doing great...but we can't wait for her to come home!

Although we had a great time going to all of our Christmas parties and spending time with family, I think the most memorable day for me was the Sunday before Christmas. Sacrament meeting was incredible. I have never felt so grateful to my Savior for coming to this world knowing that he would have to sacrifice himself so that we may all live with our Father in Heaven again. I was so emotional and grateful for the life He has allowed me to have here on earth. It truly was a very merry Christmas.