Making it to Tulsa

 We made it to Tulsa, but not without jumping through a few hoops.

Things happened much faster than I originally planned. The new practice wanted Scott to get out to Tulsa mid-March. I wasn't quite ready to say good-bye to our house and our friends yet so we had him go out for training a few weeks earlier than I was planning to leave. While he was in Tulsa I would finish packing up the house and spending a little more time with friends and family. I have so much respect for single parents. I only had to do it for 3 weeks and that was hard. 

I forget how much time it takes to get packed. That moment when you think that you are so close, but then several hours later you feel like you still haven't gotten any closer to being done. We got everything loaded up on the truck with some help from the neighbors and then spent the next few nights with Scott's parents. The plan was for Scott and I to drive together and maybe stop for a couple over nights. Last minute our plans changed and Scott needed to fly out to Oklahoma to take a test to finish the last step in the process to get his license to practice in OK. 

I didn't want to drive by myself with 3 kids and my mom volunteered to drive out with me. Scott only had to be in Oklahoma for a few hours to take a test, so we got him a plane ticket to meet us in Denver (roughly halfway to Tulsa). Then we got my mom a plane ticket home from Denver. It was nice having the extra hours with her before having to say good-bye. The drive to Denver was pretty good, until it started to get snowy. I was hopeful that the snow would let up when we got out of the mountains and lower in the elevation.

When we all got to Denver Scott and I were still feeling like we could drive for a bit and the roads weren't very bad. We figure it might be easier to pass some driving time while all 3 kids were asleep. Then only10 minutes into the drive the snow started to stick and it got really dark. We could hardly see a few feet in front of our car and saw several people spin out and off the side of the road. At least we could see their headlights spin off to the side of the road. We decided to stop at the next town and find a place to stay for the night. The only way were were even knowing where we were going was by following the tail lights of the semi-truck in front of us. Turns out they shut down the whole highway about 30 minutes after we got off due to low visibility. The next morning it was a few hours before the roads opened up so we just hung out at the hotel for a bit. 

You can see the road much clearer in the picture than you could in real life. 

Before we got back on the road we stopped at a gas station and bought a snow scraper (even though at the moment we didn't need one). The roads were pretty clear, a little slush between lanes, the passing lane a little less clear than the right lane. We were in the left lane and hit a patch of ice. We started to spin and ended up going off the right side of the highway. We ended up about 50 ft off the highway and about 2 feet from going down a steep hill. I was able to use the ice scraper we bought to dig out the front tires and we were able to get within about 10 feet of the highway before we really got stuck. We were able to call a tow truck and he was there within about 10 minutes. It only took about 30 minutes to get back on the road. My car lost a side bumper piece, but other than that we were in pretty good shape.

 

After that, I kept going over the whole thing in my head over and over again. We really were so lucky. Lucky we didn't roll, lucky we didn't go off of the left side into on-coming traffic, lucky there wasn't anyone near by to take down with us, lucky we didn't slide 2 feet more and down a huge hill that we never would have gotten back up, lucky we stopped for the night and didn't get stranded on the side of the road over night, lucky that my car still worked, lucky that we were able to get back closer to the road so a tow truck could help us back to the road. So many things went just right when so many things could have gone wrong and drastically changed the outlook of our day. 

We got to Tulsa that evening without another hitch. It was a crazy way to get out here, but it's good to finally be here. 

Our decision to shake things up a bit

There is something about being away from family that makes me want to make sure that I keep a record of my life. Maybe it's just being away from the normal, being away from everything that I consider safe and within my comfort zone? Either way, here I am with an update. 

We moved! Honestly, once Scott graduated from dental school I though the most adventurous part of our life was over. We would move to Utah, live a very predictable life, settle and be there for the rest of the life. Well, that's exactly where our life was going. Scott was working as a dentist with his dad. We found the perfect neighborhood with some of the most amazing friends for both us and our kids. I never in a million years would ever thought that we would leave. Then COVID... Scott had just bought into a dental practice and then it got shut down. Some loss of patients is normal when a new doctor comes into an office, but when you add shutting down the office for a couple months due to a worldwide pandemic things didn't turn out quite the way we had envisioned. 

Every once in a while, during the last 4 years (especially after a tight month financially) Scott would throw out the idea of leaving Utah to practice somewhere else. Usually it was just his way of letting me know he was frustrated about how things were going at the office. The conversation never went past that. 2020 was a strange year for everyone. Mid-January Scott threw out the same comment about maybe looking elsewhere. This time we jumped online just to get an idea of what was out there, buying a practice, working for a practice? In Utah and out of Utah. We looked to see what the salaries are for dentists in other states. We figured that it would be better if we were at least informed about what our choices were if we ever actually NEEDED to find another dental job elsewhere. 

There happened to be a dentist from Oklahoma looking for a new associate. He was making a trip out to Utah a week later and we decided to meet up with him to see what this opportunity could be. After the meeting Scott and I felt really good about the opportunity. We didn't think it would happen as fast as it did, but the way things happened it didn't really allow for things to progress much slower than they did. Mid-February Scott and I both flew out to Tulsa to check out the area and see if it was a place that we could see ourselves. A couple weeks later we listed out house for sale, a week after that Scott moved to Tulsa while I finished packing. It's crazy how in a couple months life can be completely re-directed. There are so many things that I already miss, but we are excited to see where this adventure takes us.

30 Seems so Old

This September I turn 30, which seems crazy to me. Can this really be the last 6 months of my 20's? I mean, I still have no idea what I am doing half of the time and 30 seems so grown up. When I really think about it, I think that it is insane that I have 2 kids. When did I get so old? Not that 30 is OLD, but it just sounds so much bigger than 20. 

With this whole getting old thing on my mind lately I have been thinking about everything that I want to accomplish before I turn 30. There are plenty of things that I want to work towards, losing weight, eating better, budgeting better, keeping my home clean. I have made a list of 30 things I would liek to accomplish before I turn 30. One of the things on my list is to enjoy this stage of life, enjoy the last 5 months of my 20's.

There are so many pieces of my daily life that I never want to forget. The way Hailey says button but-non and how Lacey says wussie-bum instead of wedgie. I want to remember how Hailey can sing most of I am a Child of God with us even if she can't say most of the words. I want to remember that Lacey will only wear dresses and how I have to bribe her to put pants on. I want to remember that Lacey thinks 5 is a big number so she always asks for 5 of everything (bedtime stories, candies, snacks, etc). I want to remember how Hailey can't go more than a few feet before getting the urge to stop and twirl. These are the moments that make being a mom fun. These are the little things that fill my life with smiles and get me through the rest of the day. 

I miss being able to go back and look over what has been going on with our family. I am sad that I don't have a record of the last year of our life. I'm going to be better. My girls are growing up way to quickly to let this time go by without creating memories. Since 30 is my number this year I am going to write 30 blog post before I turn 30.

We're back!

There are so many things that I need to catch up on. So much has happened in our lives since my last blog post. Our girls are both getting so big and independent, Scott graduated from dental school, and we moved back to Utah. It is so crazy thinking how much our life has changed over the last four years. There are so many things that I need to record so that I never forget some of the best times of our lives so far.

In Milwaukee we kept my computer on a desk in Hailey's room. For the most part the only time that I really had to sit down and blog would be while she was napping. Which means I wouldn't have access to the computer unless I wanted to risk waking her up. Now that we are all moved in to our new place in Utah I have the computer set up in our bedroom so I can hopefully have the time to keep on top of all the things going on in our life.

It is so strange being back here. Four years doesn't seem like THAT long, but it sure feels that way now that we are back. Everything out here has grown and changed so much. We have been back for 3 weeks exactly but I still feel like we are just here on vacation. I don't know if I have really come to terms with the fact that we left our Wisconsin family... for good. That this is our new home, and we aren't going anywhere. It feels strange driving down streets that used to be so familiar but they just don't feel the same as they used to four years ago.

I'm happy to be back, closer to family and the friends that I grew up with. I just feel like we left a HUGE part of us behind when we left Wisconsin. It doesn't seem real yet.

Now we are living in Vineyard. Everything here is brand new. We are renting a town home that was finished being built just days before we moved in. It is amazing, it feels huge, and is so luxurious compared to what we were used to in Milwaukee. I honestly can't complain about what we had in Milwaukee, it was perfect for us while we were there. This new town home almost seems too good to be true. The girls are still adjusting to being away from our friends in Milwaukee, especially Lacey. She is always asking us if we can go to her home. I've tried to explain to her that this is our NEW home, but she misses her friends. She's not the only one who misses her friends. I still get a little teary just thinking about all the friends we had to leave. I'm hoping that it won't be too long before we all get to see each other again.

I haven't needed to know all the fun kid-friendly places in Utah so I feel like I don't know what to do with the girls all day. In Milwaukee there were so many things to do and so many parks to visit that we never got bored. I need to find a list of things and places to go here so we can get out of the house and experience everything that Utah has to offer. If anyone has any great places I need to know about please let me know!

Big Changes

A couple weeks ago we put Lacey down for the nap and were cleaning up our house. I turned around to the most adorable little girl standing behind me. She was so proud of herself for being able to get out of her room by herself. We put her back into her bed, and sure enough she was out within a couple of minutes. This is one thing I wasn't really prepared for. She hasn't ever tried to climb out before, so I was hoping I would get lucky and not have to deal with her climbing out. We immediately dropped her her mattress down to the floor and we thought that solved the problem. 

A couple days ago she figured out how to climb out, even with the mattress a good 8 inches lower. We considered getting a tent to go over the top of the crib... those were like $200 so that went to the bottom of the list. We thought about maybe turning the crib around so the higher side wasn't against the wall anymore. We ultimately decided to see how she would do without the crib. I bought her a little teepee for her birthday just last week so we stuck her mattress in there and took down the crib. Turns out that was the best decision (knock on wood). 

I had to sneak in to see if she was actually sleeping on her bed or where she fell asleep

She is sleeping better now than she has been in the last few weeks. She doesn't try to get out of the bed, she doesn't cry, and she is sleeping really well. She loves being a big girl... maybe it's time to potty train?

Worries and To-dos

My best friend out here in Milwaukee was due 2.5 weeks before me. We were so excited to have our babies so close together! She ended up having her little boy, Kaden, last week (2.5 weeks early). Although I'm pretty sure that my baby won't be coming early it kind of got me thinking about how unprepared I am for this one.

I have a to-do list about a mile long. I want to have my whole apartment deep cleaned before I bring home the baby. I want to organize all of our stuff in our basement so I don't have to when we move in like 10 months. The room that will be the baby's room is currently more like a storage room then a bedroom. So I need to go through and pack up everything to put it in the basement. I wanted to make this baby a quilt, but that isn't looking like it is going to happen before the baby gets here. I am just feeling a tad overwhelmed by how much stuff I have going on. 

Then, on the other hand, I am sitting here panicked about how little time I have with just Lacey. I'm rushing around trying to check off everything on my to-do list, and I've forgotten to enjoy the last couple weeks of it just being me and Lacey all day. I feel guilty. I feel like I should be using my time to make sure she knows how loved she is. Make sure we get out of the house as often as we can because I don't know how often we will be going out once the baby arrives. It's probably silly to feel like such a failure, it isn't like I'm going to completely ignore Lacey once the baby comes. I just know that my relationship with her is going to be different, and that scares me a little. 

I love that my world can usually revolve all around her. I love that she is a mommy's girl. I love that I can usually drop what I am doing to play with her or help her. I love that she trusts me, and wants me when she is in pain. In the next month, I don't know if I will be able to do those things and be those things for her anymore. 

I hate being sick

I have a sinus infection. I was really hoping that it would go away on it's own, but it was just getting worse. I decided to quickly get in to see the doctor on Friday to get some antibiotics before the long weekend. The plan was to wait a day or two to see if it would start feeling better, but I started the antibiotics right away.

On Sunday my head hurt so bad. I can't remember the last time I had a headache so bad in my life. I came home from church early and was in tears... note to self, crying does not help a sinus pressure headache. Monday wasn't much better, but I think that might have been due to the fact that we were outside playing all day and the sun really doesn't help with a headache.

Today I am finally starting to feel like a normal human being again!

Last minute plans

today as we were getting our shoes on to make a trip to Costco I saw how beat up Scott's shoes had gotten. He is required to wear white shoes while he is in clinic and he has used the same pair for the past three years. It was time for him to get some new ones. Instead of going to our normal Costco we decided to go down to the outlet mall that is 45 minutes from us. What we didn't realize is the fact the it is Memorial Day weekend. It was absolutely crazy. We had Lacey in her stroller and it took us twice as long to get anywhere because there were so many people. We were able to find so many good deals. Scott has a couple new pairs of shoes and Lacey has a new wardrobe.

It was a pretty great day. We hardly ever decide to do anything last minute, so this was a fun change. To top it off, Scott even made dinner and cleaned the kitchen.

This Stage...

Every new stage that Lacey goes through is my favorite. I love how giggly she is. I love how she loves to be tickled. I love that she is learning to communicate. I love that she will run up and give Scott a huge hug when he gets home. I love that she loves being outside. I love that she know all her animals and tries to do their sounds. I love that she always says "I you" (I love you) all the time without being prompted. I love that she always says please and thank you. I love that she will swing for hours if we let her. I love that she is interested in books. I love that she gives lots of kisses. I love that she has to kiss her own hands after she falls. I love that she loves watching bugs. I love how she says "cupcake."  I love that she says "twinkle twinkle" when she wants to sing songs. I love that she know all the actions to popcorn popping. I love this age... But I'm not sure I love the tantrums and the "mine" mentality.

There is a first for everything

Today was exhausting.

Lacey has had a cold for the past few days and is now in the lingering cough phase. Last night we had a dinner with our Landlord and a bunch of his tenants. Lacey had a cough, but we didn't think too much of it until we were on our way to the restaurant and she started throwing up. At first it was just a little, but then it was everything! Every time we gave her a sip of water it would come back up. We were driving one of our neighbors so we decided to go and just tough it out. We figured it wouldn't be a problem since Lacey was as happy as could be after that and her stomach was completely empty by that point.

We decided to give her a couple pieces of bread to see if she would be able to keep it down. Nope. Then a little water. Still didn't keep it down. We had already ordered our food but I didn't think it was a good idea to stay much longer so I asked a neighbor to give Scott a ride home so I could take Lacey. Luckily we were on the look out, so every time she threw up we caught it in one of their little to go trays. I had a couple in my hand when I walked out just in case I needed them on the way to the car.

Fast forward to today. Lacey was so happy when she woke up. She ate breakfast like a champ and she was being so cute. We decided to go to the Zoo with one of our friends. She loved it and was in a great mood the entire time. Then on our way home she started coughing. I was worried it would turn into throwing up so I handed Lacey one of the trays that we used the night before (a clean one). She did her best on the drive home to throw up into the tray but she doesn't quite understand the whole concept of holding the tray horizontally instead of vertically. She threw up into the tray and it just ran down and into her lap. When I got home she was covered, the car seat was covered, as soon as I picked her up I was streaked with throw up. I got her cleaned up and down for a nap.

I was so stressed out about how I was going to make it to my nanny job in a little over an hour. I hurried and took off her carseat cover and washed it the best that I could in the sink and then dried it. I was just so overwhelmed and I was still covered in Lacey's vomit. Then I texted the parents and asked if any other arrangements could be made. They are the most amazing and understanding people ever. They took care of it and I was able to stay home with Lacey and help her to feel a little better. This was the first time since Lacey was born that I had tears because I was so overwhelmed and grateful. I'm just hoping she gets better soon!

Beach Time

It was actually warm out today, so a bunch of us girls decided to go to the beach... (the beach of the midwest... Lake Michigan) This was Lacey's first time, and she wasn't really sure what to think when we first got there. She didn't like the feeling of sand under her feet and just wanted to be held for a while. Then we went down to the lake and it was FREEZING. There were like 20 little kids running around and splashing in the water so I thought it would be warmer than it was, but no... it was COLD.

Once Lacey had a few minutes she decided that she loved it. She loved the sand, and the rocks, and the water, and the other kids. She loves to be outside and playing. It was great being able to be outside and not feel freezing. We didn't even need to wear a sweatshirt! Lacey found a little cup and played in the sand for a good 30 minutes without running off. I think that is the longest amount of time that she has ever been content hanging out in the same spot. It was wonderful to be able to sit and socialize with some of the other moms.

I can't wait to take her back to the beach when we have another warm day. I am so tired of this cold weather that we have been having. It's May for crying out loud. That means we are going to skip Spring completely and be hit with Summer weather. I will probably regret saying this later, but for now, BRING ON THE HEAT!

The Final Final

It is crazy how fast the past 3 years have gone by. We are just about to go into our final year of dental school.

Scott just took his last final of school EVER. It has been a long week of studying for him, and a long week of me trying to keep my distance and not be too distracting. Now it is done, he is finished. His fourth year is just going to be clinic. He will have to take his licensure exam, but that isn't really a class test.

I am so proud of how hard Scott has worked to get to where he is today. I am so grateful that he is the one who is still in school and not me. I don't think I would be able to do what he does. He spends long days studying and working with patients and then comes home and is a great dad and husband. He helps me around the house, he changes diapers, he takes Lacey to the park. Scott is a freaking Rock Star.

I think he is going to be an amazing dentist... in a year. Weird... he's going to be a dentist. I laugh sometimes when Scott is describing procedures that he did in clinic because it is hard for me to realize that he is actually doing the procedures. He is pulling peoples teeth. He is numbing people up. He is drilling on peoples teeth. He even spends some time in Oral Surgery doing things that are even harder for me to imagine him doing. Next year about this time he will be Dr. Scott Robinson DDS. Mind Blown. How did we get so old? When did we become grown ups?

Here's to no more finals in dental school.

She's the adventuring type

This girl knows what she wants and she will go to whatever lengths she needs to get what she wants.

Today I walked into Lacey's room where she was playing and found her climbing into her crib from the rocking chair that we have in there. She wanted one of her binkies and couldn't reach it from the side so she decided just to climb in by herself. She was so proud of herself. Where do they learn these things?

Lacey went into the kitchen today and she was being super quiet, then I heard some of the cupboards opening. We usually keep the cupboards latched shut, so I wanted to see what she was getting into. She had pushed over one of our kitchen chairs to the counter, climbed onto the counter and was getting into one of our upper cabinets. Seriously?

Today she fell off the kitchen table. I feel so bad that it happened, she was playing with a spoon and a bowl at the table. I figured that I would let her entertain herself for a bit and I left the room. I heard a crash and she was screaming. Scariest thing ever, I had no idea if she hit her head, broke a bone, all I knew is that she was screaming and just wanted to be held. She is usually pretty good about telling me where she hurts but she wouldn't let go of me. She just wanted to cuddle. I checked her head a million times, but I didn't see any type of bruise or bump forming. I guess it is time to gate up the kitchen again.

This was all in one morning. Lacey definitely keeps me on my toes. Hopefully she can stay adventurous without getting into too much trouble.

Go Brewers!

Tonight we went to the Brewers game with some of the students from Scott's clinic. I feel like it is aways such a different feeling hanging out with his classmates then it is hanging out with our normal crowd. We are usually the only ones who have a kid and we are usually the only ones who don't have a beer in our hand. Everyone just ogles over how cute Lacey is. Lacey is going through a stranger danger phase right now, so she isn't sure what to think about all the people coming up to talk to her.

She was a trooper, she didn't fuss too much all night and we stayed out almost 2 hours past her normal bed time. Lacey isn't too fond of sitting in one place for longer then about 30 minutes, she mostly wanted to walk around and explore. Luckily we got to see 3 home runs while we were at the game. The mascot, Bernie, goes down a big yellow slide on the side of the field (Lacey thought that was pretty cool and kept asking us to take her to the slide). They also do a series of fireworks to cheer on the home run. Every time the fireworks stopped Lacey would turn to me and would ask to do it one more time. After the fifth inning we went and grabbed some Dip n' Dots. Lacey thought they were pretty great. The only problem was that she wanted to feed them to herself. Dip n' Dots don't stay on the spoon as well as normal ice ream does, so it was a little messier than I had intended it to be.

The weather was wonderful today, so here are some pictures from earlier in the day. Sometimes I watch a little girl who lives in the building over.

Finally!

Today the weather was finally in the 50's... low 50's but still we were so excited that we could go outside and not freeze! We were able to spend a couple hours outside today, swinging, going down the slide, stepping on ants, and playing with the different toys we have in the cul-de-sac.

Lacey has decided that she has an opinion about everything lately. I will ask her if she wants to do something and she will think about it then usually shakes her head and says "no." Tonight, as I was putting her down to bed she asked me to sing her 1 more song. She stopped me mid-song three times wanting me to sing her a different song. Sometimes she does a great job communicating what she wants, other times she gets frustrated because I don't understand. Every day she is getting better at letting me know what she needs.

My view

Sometimes I forget that I'm pregnant. I'm not super big or uncomfortable and Lacey keeps me pretty busy. Then I get a glimpse of myself as I walk past a mirror or by a window at a store. Yep, there is definitely a bump now. I'll have to take a side view sometime, but for now here is some proof that there really is a baby growing. Even if I don't believe it sometimes.

I can't believe that I'm already 23 weeks along. That just seems crazy to me. Time sure has gone by quicker this pregnancy. I'm a little scared about what having two is going to look like for me. One minute I feel like I can take on the world, but then the next I wondered what I got myself into.

I know we still have plenty of time, but I am starting to worry about what we are going to name this one. It took Scott and I a while to agree on the name Lacey. This time seems to be proving even more difficult. 

Stop dropping your food!!

I know that every child goes through a stage that they drop everything on the floor... but why? Seriously it is so frustrating sometimes. I can't count how many times in a day I have to mop up a sticky mess because Lacey felt like throwing her food off her tray. Scott came home tonight and so I was trying to get the house as clean as possible so I told Lacey that we were trying to make dad happy and she needed to keep her food on the tray. Apparently that did the trick. She would hold a handful of food off the side of her tray and say, "no" then she would put it back over her tray and say "happy." I wish I would have gotten it on camera because it really was kind of funny. No food ended up on the floor during that meal!

That smells good

Lacey has been really into coloring lately. The girl I nanny for has an art set that Lacey is obsessed with. Every time she sees it she asks me to open it for her. It has crayons, pencils, paints, markers. There are a couple markers in the set that are scented and now Lacey has to smell her drawings. It doesn't matter what she is using to color with, she will scribble for a minute and then proceed to lean over and smell her picture. It made sense to me, because I knew why she was doing what she was doing but Scott just thought she was crazy.

Lacey will color for quite a while in one sitting. I wish it was something that would entertain her while I could get something else around the house done, but very close supervision is needed. She loves to color on EVERYTHING... the table, the chairs, the couch, the wall, the floor. I need to keep a close eye on her and tell her, "only on the paper" every couple of minutes. She knows that's the rule too, because she always looks straight at me right before she starts to color where she isn't supposed to.

And now it's his turn

Scott has an away rotation all week. He is spending his time up in Lac Du Flambeau. Somewhere in the middle of nowhere about 5 hours from here. That means that I will be parenting solo for the next 5 days. Right when I get back he has to leave... I'm ready to have my family back. I hope that this week goes by quickly.

Home!

I am so glad to be home. I can't believe how much I missed being away from Lacey and Scott. It was nice to have a little time away, but I appreciate my life a little more now. Yesterday I was all for getting up early and getting home early. I wanted to be back home with my little family. Well, we ended up staying up and talking well into the night. I think it was about 3 in the morning by the time we finally went to bed.

We met some really fun girls whose husbands are going to dental school in San Antonio. They were pretty funny and we had a TON in common. We stayed up laughing and talking for forever. Every time we said we were going to bed the conversation would start up again. I hope that we keep in touch. I know it's silly. We have only known then for a couple days, but I think we could really stay good friends.

I was so anxious the whole way home to get home to Lacey. I was really hoping that Lacey would be excited to see me when I got home, but it was the opposite. Scott and her came to pick me up at one of the girl's houses and Lacey was asleep when they pulled up. I sat in the back next to her, just in case she woke up. She opened her eyes for a second, glared at me and then went back to sleep. After we got home and she was actually awake she was clingy and plain cranky. Everyone said that she was such an angel while I was away. I guess she was saving up all her crankiness for me. Either way, I am so glad to be back home with my little clan.

After 3 nights away, sharing rooms with 3 different people I am happy to be home in my own bed sharing with my one and only.