Labor Post

So like I said in the last post, this one will be mostly for me, but you can read it if you want.

Charlotte Kaye Higham

We called the hospital at 6:30 AM the morning of January 25th, and we were told to call back because they were just changing shifts and weren't sure when they would be able to have me come in. So I called back at 8:00 and they told me to be there at 9. So we packed Savannah down to the car, and headed out.

Just as we went over the first speed bump to get out of our condos I told Dave I was feeling terribly sick, so he pulled over after the third speed bump and I threw up. Then we were on our way again, after determining that I was done with that bout of nausea and vomiting. Savannah went to my mom's house and got to spend the weekend there.

When we got to the hospital our stubborn baby refused to stay on the monitor! I could feel her moving so I wasn't concerned about her. The problem with her refusing to keep her heartbeat on the monitor is that they can't start you on a pitocin drip until they have 20 minutes of continuous readings for the baby.

The nurse finally decided to quit trying to get her heartbeat on the external monitors and called the doctor to come in and break my water so they could put the internal monitors on and get the readings that way so I could be started on the pitocin.

At around 10:30, the doctor came in and broke my water. Things were finally getting started, and after 20 minutes of monitoring babies heartbeat, we were moving right along! I was dilated to a 3 and 60% effaced when they started me on the pitocin. Every hour they came in and turned the pitocin up which made the contractions harder and longer to keep me progressing.

The contractions weren't super hard, so I was handling them with just breathing. My father in law came to visit and both he and Dave kept telling me that since I was getting an epidural anyway I should just get it and not deal with the pain that I didn't have to feel. I was stubborn though and I kept going until the contractions were really bothering me, to the point that I really wanted them to be done. So I called the nurse in and she called the anesthesiologist.

Getting the epidural hurt really bad. I almost wished I hadn't asked for it while they were putting it in. They give you a local where they are going to thread the catheter in, but for some reason it was just really hurting me. Anyway, he had a hard time even getting the epidural in, which is part of why it hurt so bad. After he finally got it in, he asked if it was starting to work, and I could feel tingles in my leg, so I said yes.

He told me to push the button 15 minutes after he left that delivers an extra dose, so I did that, but for some reason I could still feel all of the contractions, my entire left leg, and my right calf and foot. Well, this went on for quite a while, and I was complaining a lot. Dave was so patient with me though.

The contractions were strong enough that I felt like I should be pushing every time one came! And I was so frustrated that I was still feeling them even after I had an epidural! I told Dave that I needed to push and he just kept saying "Don't push! Don't push!" After hearing that a ridiculous number of times, I completely lost my cool and I became one of those crazy pregnant women who yells at her husband while she is in labor! I felt awful about that later, and now it is something I laugh about.

He kept telling me not to push and my response to him was "The next time you really need to poop, just DON'T PUSH okay?!?!" (I still get a kick out of this, not sure it even remotely compares to the feelings of labor though...) Then the yelling part was all over.

The nurse came in and we told her I was still feeling the contractions and that I was having the urge to push, so she checked me and I was only dilated to a 6! They called the anesthesiologist in and he gave me a dose of something that is 2.5 times stronger than the phentanyl they put in an epidural to help. Well, that sucker didn't work either!

He came back an hour and a half after the epidural had originally gone in and said that sometimes you develop scar tissue in your back after having an epidural before and I asked if that meant that I was going to have to have my baby naturally. His answer was "possibly", I was freaking out!

He said he may need to pull it out and try again, but that it would hurt again and that it may not work, or he could try just pulling the catheter out a little and seeing what that would do. So he pulled the catheter out 2 centimeters, and it is amazing what a difference 2 stinkin' centimeters makes!

I could finally relax through labor, and I was super happy! At around 5:30 the nurse came in and I was close enough that she called my doctor to come in because we were super close to pushing! I was dilated to a 10, but not quite fully effaced. Well, I was ready to push before the doctor got there because of rush hour traffic!

When he finally got there around 6:15 he told the nursery nurse to come quick because we were having a baby, and he told her we were going to race and have the baby before she got there. Well, sure enough, we had a baby before the nurse got there!

Charlotte Kaye Higham made her debut into the world at 6:34 PM on January 25, 2013. The doctor said because the nurse wasn't there her first APGAR got to be a 10, but the labor and delivery nurse said no, she had to be a 9 so she didn't end up in the NICU. Both APGAR scores turned out to be a 9! She was healthy in every way, and just beautiful!

Savannah loves her sister!

Savannah got to come in and meet her sister, and she was so stinking cute about it! She loves Charly to pieces!

The Pregnancy

Oh wow... It has been almost a year since I have written and published anything on my blog! And it is incredible how much has happened in that time period! The most major being we have a new baby in our family! Because I kind of want to document this just for me, I'm going to write down how that came about, and maybe later I'll write down the birth story, which would again be just for me really.

After having my second miscarriage on Christmas of 2011, my doctor and I decided that if I still wanted to get pregnant I should start taking progesterone every month starting on day 21 of my cycle, then taking a pregnancy test on day 28, then again on day 31. If it was still negative on day 31, then I was supposed to stop taking it, because it will prevent your body from having a period if you are taking it. 

So I started taking the pills, and testing every month became something I dreaded, because I didn't want to see any more negative pregnancy tests. I wanted a baby so badly! Seeing a negative test was like a stab to my heart each time. I tried really hard not to get my hopes up every month, but that is much easier to say than it is to actually do.

Well, during the month of May (end of May, beginning of June), I took the test on day 28 of my cycle and it was negative, so I waited until day 31 and it was still negative, so I stopped taking the pills. A couple days later I still hadn't started my period so I called the doctor. His nurse told me to take another test, so I did and to my surprise, it was positive! I wasted no time calling the doctor to set up my first prenatal appointment. Also, I started taking the progesterone again in hopes that it would help me carry this baby to term. (Progesterone is supposed to help strengthen the uterine lining during pregnancy as sometimes this can be a cause of miscarriage. We never knew a cause for my miscarriages, as most women often don't, but my doctor wanted to give me the best possible chance for a healthy pregnancy.)

At my first visit I was 8 weeks along, and so excited I could burst! The doctor came into the room with his little Doppler machine that lets you listen to your baby's heartbeat. Well, they couldn't find it with the Doppler, but I was told not to worry because often, it's too early for the Doppler to pick it up. My doctor being the amazing doctor he is though sent me for an ultrasound because he knew I wouldn't be able to relax until I knew my baby was okay. This is the point in both of my pregnancies that ended in miscarriage where we discovered something was wrong, so I was nervous anyway.

We went in for the ultrasound and we saw our little peanut! Everything looked good, the heart was beating, and the placenta looked great! Huge weight off our shoulders.

The next appointment was at 12 weeks. Again, the doctor couldn't find the heartbeat with the Doppler, and this time I was more worried than the first time. I was farther along, he should have been able to find it! He sent me for another ultrasound, and we were so relieved to see that the heart was beating strongly and things were still going well. 

The next couple appointments were uneventful. At 20 weeks, we went for an anatomy scan and our little peanut was modest! We couldn't get the baby to move so we could reveal gender at all! We got to go back for another scan and we finally got to find out that we were having another baby girl! Up until this point I had been determined that it was a boy because I was so sick all the time! 

There's nothing really exciting that happened during any of my appointments, but the closer we got to my due date (Feb. 7), the more miserable I was. I really wanted to be one of those women who loved being pregnant, but I am not. I had slipped and fallen twice during the month of January and I just could not get comfortable. My hips and pelvis were constantly aching and I was still throwing up and nauseous. 

Every time we went to the doctor in the month of January I was hoping to hear the words "Go to the hospital! Have a baby!" The one time, I told the doctor that's what I wanted to hear and he said "Okay, go the hospital! Have a baby!" Too bad he was only kidding. They kept checking my progress, but everything was at a stand still. Dilated 3 cm and 60% effaced. My body just was NOT cooperating with what I wanted. 

On the 24th of January I told my doctor I really didn't want to be pregnant anymore and that if he told me to go to the hospital and have a baby I wouldn't complain. When he told me he couldn't I almost cried. I begged him to let me have this baby because I was still feeling awful. I couldn't sleep at night because I was so miserable. Well, he looked at my chart and had mercy on me because he told me I could go the next day to be induced! 

So we went home and tried to get everything ready to have a baby the next day! (For the record, you are never ready to have a baby...) We cleaned the house, got Savannah ready for a sleep over with grandma and got ourselves ready for a trip to the hospital. I had one of my dearest and best friends come over to braid my hair for labor because I didn't want it hanging in my face.

The next morning we had to call the hospital at 6:30 AM to find out what time to be at the hospital. They made me call back at 8, and I was told to be there at 9! This was really happening! I was so excited. We got everything loaded into the car, were pulling out of the condos parking lot when I had to make Dave pull over so I could throw up. The full 38 weeks that I was pregnant I was throwing up! 

We dropped Savannah off at my parents' house and then off we went to the hospital.

Day 25 - Ideal

Day 25 - What do you want your future to be like?

Ideally, I would like my future to hold more children, and less schooling for me and Dave. I would like us to have more time together as a family and less time that is consumed by homework and classes. I would like my children to grow strong in their testimonies of the gospel, and I would like to grow stronger in my testimony of the gospel.

I would like my future to be debt free! Included in this is not having to worry about finances and where our money was coming from. I would like to live in a wonderful home (that is not this condo), and in a great neighborhood. I would like my closest friends to move to the same neighborhood as me. (Are you listening gnomies?!) 

Someday, I would like to go on a couples mission with Dave.

This is all I can think of right now that I feel like sharing...

Day 24 - Hypothetical...

So, the prompt for today is something you wonder "what if.." about. There are so many things.

I have spent probably half an hour typing up "what if" questions and then deciding they are kind of morose and more depressing than I really want this post to be...

So, for some lighthearted fun, what if the earth were made of entirely delicious edible things? You know, like that room in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory where they can eat the grass, and the flowers and the dishes and everything... 

Day 23 - Longing...

Prompt for day 23 - Something you miss.

I miss being pregnant... I don't remember being especially grateful for the experience of being pregnant the first time I was... I wish I could go back and change that. Of course there are downsides to being pregnant (no one likes to puke...), but I wish I could go back and make it so that every day I was grateful for that life growing inside of me. I think the second and third pregnancies I was more grateful, but I wonder still if that was even enough then. I want to be pregnant more than just about anything right now. I don't feel like my family is complete... So there it is, I miss being pregnant.

I skipped yesterday on purpose, but right now I think I'll put a blip about it, since I am already kind of leading in to it.

Yesterday's prompt was "Your opinion about your body and how comfortable you are with it". This prompt is deeply personal for me, and I'm not going to share all of my thoughts and feelings about my body, but I will say this.

I wish that doctor's knew why my body is rejecting pregnancies. I wish I knew if it was a defect with the baby, or if it was something wrong with me. I wish I knew if there were something I could do to prevent me from having another one. I know two miscarriages doesn't seem like very many from the outside looking in, and I remember feeling like that. I remember thinking that it isn't that hard to have a miscarriage, but until you've been there, try not to think that. It's one of the hardest things I've ever done in my life. And I've had to do it twice...

I'm deeply dissatisfied in that regard to my body. I don't even know that it is my body that is the problem, but there are things that I see in my body that don't reflect the healthiest of lifestyles, and that will always make me wonder. There are things I should be doing that I am not currently doing, and that will always be a curiosity for me as well.

So there you have it. Some thoughts about my body and what I feel about it...

Day 21 - These are a few of my favorite things...

Prompt for day 21 - 20 of your favorite things

1. Dr. Pepper
2. Double dates with best friends
3. Single dates with the hubster
4. Spring weather
5. My kindle
6. Colors, specifically pink, green and purple
7. Bubble baths
8. Crafting with friends (not alone)
9. Books
10. Good Deals 
11. Laundry detergent that smells fabulous
12. Having a house to live in
13. Cheetos with Cream Cheese
14. Late night trips to Smith's with my gnomies that end up with cupcakes
15. Cupcakes in general
16. Swing sets
17. Heartburn medicine 
18. Scentsy
19. Ticket to Ride - pretty much a fabulous game
20. A clean house (which with a 19 month old does not happen often. She is a weapon of MASS destruction.)

I left people out on purpose, just like Lydia did. 

Day 20 - Utterly Delicious

Prompt: Day 20 - Death Row Meal

Honestly, I hope that I never have this situation ever come to pass, and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure it doesn't. But, for the sake of this post, here goes.

If I were on death row, I would probably want some type of comfort food. I would want Dave to make brownies and ice cream for dessert, and I would probably want to have lasagna with green beans and garlic bread for the actual dinner part. And maybe throw in a green salad with some nice crisp cucumbers. Sounds delicious, right?

Day 19 - Wuv, Twue Wuv

Day 19 - 10 ways to win your heart

As a preface, most of these relate in some way to something that Dave does that make me feel particularly loved and make me love him equally in return. He's an amazing husband, and he deserves recognition for the things that he does.

1. Back scratches or back rubs. Dave knows this. Seriously, a back scratch or back rub is seriously one of the best things in the entire world. Especially when I've had a hard day, just to have either of those makes me quite happy. And Dave is just about the best back scratcher ever!
2. Feet rubs. I hate touching other people's feet, so it makes it even more amazing when someone else is willing to rub mine. Dave is also particularly good at this, though he doesn't do it often because he doesn't like touching lotion.
3. Telling me I'm beautiful, and meaning it. I love when Dave just looks at me and tells me that I'm beautiful. Some days, the days where I don't feel like getting out of my pajamas or even crawling out of bed, and I don't feel like I am even a teensy tiny bit cute, to have Dave just look at me with his eyes full of love and say that I am beautiful makes my heart tingle.
4. Watching chick flicks with me and hugging me close when I start crying. Dave always seems to know the exact moment when I am going to start crying, and he just tells me that he loves that I am sensitive enough to cry during a movie.
5. Being willing to share emotions with me. Being strong enough to cry and not be ashamed of it especially. 
6. Calling me just to hear my voice or to say he misses me and loves me. I love hearing Dave tell me he loves me. 
7. Making orange julius drinks at three in the morning simply because I want one.
8. Making me brownies on demand (which is not as often as I think about brownies...)
9. Taking care of me when I am sick. And this is part of that but is kind of dumb. It gives me warm fuzzies when I am not feeling well and Dave kisses my forehead. There is just something about a kiss on the forehead that makes me feel loved and secure, and Dave knows it, so he kisses my forehead when I am sick, and I appreciate it.
10. Wanting to have a family with me. For a long time, I thought that Dave only wanted to have kids because he thought it would make me happy. When we first got pregnant with Savannah he was thrilled, and even more excited when we actually got to hold her and show her off. He is a doting daddy. Then when I got pregnant the second time, and I miscarried, to see the torment Dave felt, and seeing that he was just as upset about it as I was, that meant a lot to me. Then the third pregnancy, that hope that we felt just to have it crushed. It is a poignant memory of being told that I was going to miscarry. And yet, I still didn't realize that Dave really does want to have a family with me. A forever family. It took me telling him that I really wanted another baby and him specifically saying that he did too for me to know. And I never realized how much it would mean to me that Dave wanted me to be the mother of his children and that he wanted those children just as much as I did. 

So there it is. Just a few of the ways that Dave makes my heart all twitterpated. 

Day 18 - Words to Live By

Day 18 prompt - A quote you love

I've been thinking about this all day. There's one that I just read in a book that I really loved and I wanted to pull up the book and type it out, but I loaned out the book Saturday not realizing that I would want it today for the quote, so I don't have the exact quote and I don't want to screw it up by putting it wrong on here, so I'll have to look that one up later.

There is one I have hanging on my fridge that my friend gave me and I look at it and take notice of it a lot. So that's the one I'm going to put on here.

Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live it's whole life believing that it is stupid.  Albert Einstein

Day 17 - Parental Units

Prompt for day 17 - Talk about your parents

My mom is amazing. I love her to pieces. Her name is Susan. Her blog can be found here. She doesn't post very often, but I love to read and see it when she does. She is currently serving as the 1st counselor in their ward Relief Society. She inspires me and makes me want to be a better person. She is and always has been a great role model for me. My life would not be what it is today if it weren't for her.

My dad is also pretty great. We have not always gotten along. I can remember many nights in high school where I stormed to my room screaming at him that I hated him. I feel insanely bad about this now, because I have never actually hated my dad, nor will I ever. His name is John. He is a jack-of-all-trades. He was just put in as the Elder's Quorum president in their ward. I know I can count on him for anything.

I also am very lucky to have an amazing set of in laws. My mother and father in law are great, seriously. My father in law is wonderful. I remember after my first miscarriage, when I went in for the second ultrasound and I heard the ultrasound tech say "I'm sorry, there's no baby there...", I tried so hard to be strong and brave. I saw my father in law and the compassion and concern in his eyes crumpled my resolve and I sobbed in his arms. I don't know how long I cried, but he just let me. He never made a single move to try and let go. And he gives some pretty good hugs. The ones where you feel like you mean the world to someone. I truly appreciate him being a part of my life.

My mother in law is also great. She is one of those women who has met and faced many adversities and trials in her life. Watching her go through life inspires me. I want to be as strong as she is when I am faced with trials.

All in all, I am a very lucky girl to be blessed with the wonderful parents and in laws that I have. Truly.

Day 16 - Schnookums (not...)

Prompt for day 16 - Nicknames

I have a lot of nicknames, we'll start with the obvious ones; Steph, Stephie, Stepherz, Stepherninny, Step on Me (which I hate, if you use it I will threaten your life...)

Now for some not so obvious ones; Fluff-n-Stuff (don't ask, I don't remember, also previous threat applies), quacklynne, Dave has called me Love since we started dating, hootenanny, Sally-Skint-Nose, my grandfather calls me his long, tall drink of water (i.e., "How are you my long tall drink of water?" while hugging me hello), Daffy...

And, this one might be a tad bit awkward, so I'll explain the back story. One time, Dave and I, and a group of friends decided that we were going to drive to St. George to pick up some repossessed cars for the credit union Dave was working for. So we were all driving down there, listening to some music and just having a super fun time. Then the song Should have Been a Cowboy by Toby Keith came on. I have sung this song wrong for YEARS, literally... I have since been corrected but usually revert to the wrong way. Anyway, the correct lyrics go "Wearing my six shooter, riding my pony on a cattle drive", and I have always sung it "Wearing my sex shoes, riding my pony on a cattle drive"... I don't know why, but for some reason that is what I always sang. What are sex shoes? Who knows...

So, the song came on, and I started singing, and as usual reverted to the incorrect lyrics. Commence teasing. Then we got there and we had walkie talkies to communicate between the four vehicles. We were deciding that we were going to call each other nicknames on the radios. Dave became Schnookums, I was sex shooter (combination of the wrong and right lyrics...), Megan was pig pen, and Chad was Preemie. We now always use these nicknames when we get together, especially when we go bowling. I have gotten very accustomed to hearing "You're up, Sex Shooter"... Also, Dave hates schnookums, so unless you want to die, don't use it, unless you are Megan or Chad.

These are all the nicknames I can think of right now...

Day 15 - Unproductive

Day 15 was supposed to be yesterday. I went to bed instead of blogging, and it is one of the best decisions I have made recently, but yesterday's prompt was Bullet your whole day, so here is how yesterday went down.

• 12:00 AM - 3:00 AM: Watch the SWAT team descend on the condos trying to snag a crazy guy who shot his cousin in the face with a shot gun. Watch as stupid 11 year old goes down into the craziness and his mother encourages him. Seriously? What kind of stupid do you have to be to send your kid down when the SWAT team is here?! (Also, un-delete facebook account so I can see the neighborhood gossip about the crazy...)
• 3:00 AM - 4:30 AM: Finish movie that Char and I started before the SWAT team arrived. (Delete facebook again)
• 4:30 AM - 5:00 AM: Read book in bed
• 5:00 AM - 9:15 AM: Sleep, blissful sleep...
• 9:15 AM - 12:00 PM: Hang out with Char, entertain the small child. 
• 12:00 PM - 1:30 PM: Put Savannah down for her nap, played Ticket to Ride with Dave
• 1:30 PM - 1:45 PM: Realize that I need milk for cub scouts, so run to Smith's to get said Milk.
• 1:45 PM - 2:30 PM: Talk with Terra about the psycho who lives beneath her (aforementioned crazy guy)
• 2:30 PM - 3:00 PM: Cub Scouts that should have been happening since 2:00... 
• 3:00 PM - 7:30 PM: Play with Savannah mostly, she hated the bath part though... Also, hung out with Dave
• 7:30 PM - 8:00 PM: Help get Savannah ready for bed, have dinner (late!) and watched TV
• 8:00 PM - 10:00 PM: Wind down, watched Cars 2 for the first time with Dave.
• 10:00 PM - 10:30 PM: Read and finish the book I was reading on my Kindle
• 10:30 PM - 7:30 AM Saturday: Sleep, blissful sleep

So, that's how my day was yesterday, how was yours?

Day 14 - Slumber Party!!!!

So, what I wear to bed really varies based on the season.

Tonight I am going to wear fleece pajama pants and the same shirt I'm wearing right now. I love fleece pajama pants, even though it is ridiculously hot, especially in the summer. But I got this pair for Christmas and I love them. Seriously.

Tonight is different than normal though, because I am having a sleep over. So I have to wear pajamas that are appropriate to wear with my company.

As to what I usually wear to bed, I'll leave that to your imagination. ;-)

Also, this blog post has inspired the best conversation I have ever had. Nathan disagrees.

Day 13 - Major Happenings

Prompt for day 13 - What are the 10 most significant events in your life?

1. Getting married to Dave
2. Getting pregnant with and subsequently having Savannah
3. I'm only counting this as one, though technically it could be two, but both of my miscarriages are pretty significant to me. 
4. Getting baptized
5. Going through the temple for the first time
6. Buying our condo
7. Choosing to go to the Academy of Hospitality and Tourism at Taylorsville, which is where I ultimately met Dave. (The first time I met him in person was in the parking lot during lunch. I was eating McDonald's...)
8. Obtaining an Associate's Degree, then pursuing a Bachelor's degree, then deciding to actually just go back for another Associate's Degree...
9. Being born
10. Getting my driver's license.

Also, on a totally unrelated note, but especially important to me right now, I made Orange Chicken tonight, and in my opinion, it is just as good as Panda Express.

Day 12 - Music

Prompt for day 12 - Put your iPod on shuffle and list the first 10 songs.

Here goes...

1. Love Without End, Amen - George Strait
2. Do You Wanna Make Something of It - Jo Dee Messina
3. I'd Do Anything - Simple Plan
4. So Small - Carrie Underwood
5. Dark as a Dungeon - Dolly Parton
6. People are Crazy - Billy Currington
7. Poor Fool/He Makes me Laugh - The Phantom of the Opera Soundtrack
8. She's in Love with the Boy - Trisha Yearwood
9. My Oh My - Aqua
10. Walk to the Light - Jo Dee Messina

So there it is. There are a TON of other artists and songs that I have on my iPod that I truly love, but there's a small sample of what it includes. I really do need to update it though, I don't have any new music that I've gotten in like that past year on there because I haven't transferred my iTunes from my old broken laptop to the new one and I don't want to lose the music I have on my iPod already...

Day 11 - Shopping

I forgot to post this yesterday, so it's a day late and probably a dollar short, but here goes.

The prompt for day 11 is Your favorite store

This one was relatively easy for me. Automatically when I think of my favorite store I think of Smith's. Not just any Smith's though, my favorite one is the one on 56th West and 41st South. Seriously, I love going there, and I love getting a good deal there.

Also, I love that by shopping at Smith's I save money on my gas. Love it. Truly love it.

And that is the lameness that is me, that my favorite store is a grocery store...

Day 10 - Switched!

 Prompt: Someone you would want to switch lives with for one day and why

This one was really hard for me, because most days I am truly satisfied and happy with my life. I don't really sit around and wonder what it would be like to be living in another person's shoes. I think part of this is because I realize that other people have just as many, if not more, problems as I do, and just because I don't see them doesn't mean they aren't happening. I think this is also why I try my very hardest to be nice to everyone...

Anyway, after thinking about it since yesterday, I finally decided that I would like to switch places with more a type of person, than any one particular person, but for the purpose of this blog, I'm going to name one specific person.

In case you've been living under a rock, and you don't know who this is, this is Carrie Underwood. I think she is beautiful! I also think she has an amazing voice, and I am somewhat jealous. For just one day, I would like to know what it is like to have that kind of talent, and to be able to reach that kind of audience.

Also, some days I would like to trade places with Dave... what girl hasn't wondered what it would be like to be a guy?

As I said though, most days I am truly content in my own life, even through all the crappy times...

Day 9 - Emotional

Day 9 - A song that makes you cry (or nearly)

There are actually quite a few of them. There is a song by John Michael Montgomery, The Little Girl, and it almost always makes me cry. It's a very touching song. I think one of the things that makes it so much more emotional for me is that I know other people who it makes cry. Most specifically, my uncle. He's a tough dude. He is a Cowboy in every sense of the word, and I can remember it coming on the radio one day while we were driving back to his house so I could have a sleepover with my cousin. He was in tears, he had to keep wiping his cheeks so he could drive, and when it was over he looked at me and told me that it was the same way every time he heard the song. I can remember vividly seeing my uncle in tears every time I hear that song, and it pulls at my heart strings. Plus, the song is one of those that pulls at you anyway.

So, I found a version of it on youtube, the video isn't really important, but if you want to, you can listen to the song.

There are other songs as well that makes me cry, Skin (Sarah Beth) by Rascal Flatts, Streets of Heaven by Sherrie Austin, but none of them that are quite so vivid in my memory.

Some church hymns also bring me to tears, ever since I sang with the Tab Choir in high school whenever I hear We Thank Thee O God for a Prophet I nearly always cry. Because it is associated with such a vivid memory and feeling of peace and love that I got while we were singing it in the Conference center and the entire congregation stood. It was an amazing thing. I needed the reminder of that today, I feel like lately I've been struggling with my testimony lately, so to remember those powerful feelings of confirmation and love that were given to me by the Spirit was a really good thing for me.

Day 8 - Bother and Seesters

The prompt for day 8 - Talk about your siblings

So, I have 3 siblings, one brother and two sisters. They are pretty cool sometimes, but sometimes drive me crazy!

My older sister is Amanda. We are either the best of friends or the worst of enemies, there is no in between for us. She is 24, and is married. She recently got married and I was not invited... Rude. Though, neither was anyone else in our family, so I guess it's okay.

Then the rest of my siblings are younger than me.

My brother's name is Matthew. He is 17 and he's a pretty smart dude. He wants to be a chef. He is notorious for chewing with his mouth open (ARGH!)...

Then there is my little sister. Her name is Sharen. She is almost 16, and can be a huge brat, but I love her anyway. The last I heard she wants to be a nurse. Also, I like her friend Kat.

I don't really want to get hugely into each of my siblings on here, but that's the basic what you need to know about them. Or what you never really did actually need to know, but the prompt told me to. The end.

Day 7 - Sly Piggery

The prompt for day 7 is How you found out about Blogger and why you made a blog

When I was in high school, I had a friend named Amy who convinced me that I needed to join this online forum she was a part of called Sly Piggery. This forum was something that her friend Nathan had created. So I joined Sly Piggery, and I met a ton of cool people! (In fact, if you want to get down to the nitty gritty, I "met" Dave online at Sly Piggery!!) It seemed like all of these people had blogs, and that all of them were at blogger. So I decided I was going to try my hand at it, and I created this blog. Well, actually I created a different blog first, but I forgot what email address I used to create it, and to this day I still don't remember the email or password I used.

Originally when I started, I didn't know how long I was going to last, it was something I was doing because my friends were doing it, and I go in spurts, sometimes going very long periods between when I blog. But here it sits, 5 1/2 years later... Wow!

So, now you know.