Merry Christmas!

 2011 has been great for the Haws family! I started the year with my first dental hygiene job. I'd been subbing for the summer and fall since I had graduated, but I took a job at a periodontal office just a few minutes from our little apartment, and I absolutely love it. It has been a huge learning experience to work strictly on perio patients and has honed my skills as a hygienist! Sterling started the year by taking the first half of organic chemistry, studied like crazy and did a fabulous job! In February we celebrated our first anniversary by buying a chest freezer, which I love. We were on the married's committee at the Weber State institute for that semester and had a lot of fun planning activities, dances, and dinners. In May we took a trip to Arches National Park, and a little stop at Canyonlands. I was seven months pregnant, so we carried a LOT of water and took it pretty slow, but managed about six-eight miles a day, which meant we saw just about every accessible arch and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (minus the outhouse at our campsite!). We did a lot of hiking throughout the rest of the summer, although it got somewhat more limited towards our baby's due date.  Also in May, Sterling's little sister Bridget got home from her mission in the Philippines. Since I had only met her briefly before her mission, we had a fun weekend up at a friend's cabin spending time with the family and getting to know her better. The end of July was the Rasmussen Reunion, and I'm not sure I ever want to go tent-camping while nine months pregnant again, but it was a lot of fun! Sterling and I were AMAZING and won this years karaoke contest which can be watched here. Soon after our awesome performance, we welcomed our beautiful baby Ruth Renae Haws into the world! We scheduled a c-section because she was breech, but luckily she flipped for us and everything went wonderfully. I had a seven week maternity leave, three of which Sterling was at home with me before he started school, and that was wonderful (although he did work), and then he started the second half of organic chemistry and I started back to work just two days a week. Life since then has FLOWN by! Ruth is an angel and has slept through the night for a long time now. She just got two bottom teeth that are really sharp, and she likes to squawk really loud, especially at church. Sterling worked really, really hard this semester but did a fabulous job in all of his classes and got in the top 1 percent of the nation in the standardized organic chemistry test. With this semester over he is feeling like medical school is a surety instead of just a dream, and  is spending Christmas break floating in the clouds. We are so thankful for our wonderful families, our beautiful, healthy baby girl, our jobs that we both enjoy so much, and for all of the wonderful opportunities we have had this year! We are looking forward to another wonderful year! 

Ooh and Aah

Mondays Joys:

I'm not sure I need anything more than that adorable little bundle with those cute stripey tights! Although a few less blow-out diapers from her would be nice. Last night Sterling and I came home and since we had a little sparkling cider left over from our date night the previous evening, we semi-reenacted it by watching another episode of Bones. Its my favorite show. I have started restricting myself from watching it so that I can savor and drag out all the episodes--haahaa! Its also nice, because Sterling gets home from work too late for me to watch an entire movie, but one short episode is perfect! Anyway, back to the story. Sipping sparkling cider, crying away about the Bones episode (this is not a common occurrence, but it was about an abused child....enough said) and then out of nowhere, my leg went to sleep, from my hip down. So I stood up to fix the problem. It was sending painful/shooting tingles all the way down my leg. So, I hopped around a little bit. Then I danced a little bit. Then I cried out in agony a little bit. And just when I thought I might die, Sterling stood up. And started mimicking me. And turned it all into a line dance. And I was laughing so hard I couldn't stand up straight. Which led to more shooting pains, which led to more groaning, which was quite difficult when you are laughing so hard you can't breathe. So I tried to stomp on my foot to make the tingles go away. Sterling thought I was doing the bathroom dance. He continued mimicking. He continued the line dance. I waved my arm at him to stop so I could breathe, and continue living. He added the arm wave into the line dance. I would have stopped moving so that he didn't have any more ideas for his dance, but my leg was still tingling like CRAZY...the hurting kind of tingle. So I continued to shake my leg out to the side of my body. Sterling has the longest legs of anyone I have ever met, and let me tell you, it is one funny spectacle to see him shake his leg out to the side of his body. Eventually I think my sleeping leg woke up. I don't know if the rest of me will ever fully recover though. Haahaaa!

Other joyful things from this week: watching our karaoke song from this summer over and over again. Its even more hilarious now to watch myself nine months pregnant then. Watching my husband give his little sister a blessing for her surgery this week--its definitely one of the biggest reasons I married him, he is amazing. My baby and her two bottom teeth that poke right into her super huge grin. CHRISTMAS preparations!!!!! And fudge. I finally got it to semi-turn out. It tasted fabulous even if it looked a little suspicious. Talking to Sterling's little sister about a probable upcoming wedding---it makes me giddy about getting married all over again! 

Matchiness

What did it take to get the two above pictures, you ask? I will tell you. It took one morning of getting two babies diapers changed, dressed, and fed. And then situating them for a picture, and right as I reach Ruth out to Devaney, Anders says "she's leaking on you". And then you look down and realize, yes, yes she is. So you take her out of her clothes and realize its all down your leg. So you borrow your sister's scrub pants to wear for the day. Then you have to scrub out the offending substances from a onesie, pants, shirt, and bluejeans. Then you have to start a load of laundry. By that point, both original parties are ready for milk and naps. Three hours later, with the laundry finished, babies, once again awake, fed, and diapers changed....can have a matchy-matchy picture taken! And by the look of the pictures...I'm not really sure it was worth it. 

Photos Around the House

There were two more pictures of us, but I had just gotten home from work, and I like to take off my work clothes to hold my baby in, just because of the nature of the place I work at--a perio office. So I had taken off my shirt, but only had my cap-sleeve undershirt on. Since I agree with my mother that cap-sleeve is not considered modest, I can't show you the other two pictures...which I am REALLY sad about, because Ruth was smiling all big, and you could see the really cute bun in my hair. Sigh. Note to self, put on another shirt before taking pictures!

Rasmussen Family Christmas Party

This was the reindeer song. We went to a nursing home and all the grandkids performed. They did an awesome job, lots of awesome piano solos and great songs!

This shows everyone and the people watching, they loved it!

Dad has always jiggled the grandkids on his knee. I have recently discovered that it is difficult to get a  shot without your child being blurry because of this.

Is this performing time or social hour? Haaha.

I had to take a picture of Ana cause she looked so cute standing there.

Myles got braces right before our party. That means that there are four grandkids with braces now: Myles, Ana, Garrett and Brynne. 

There were lots of people to entertain "the baby" as Devaney calls her. Unfortunately, my baby kicks and moves when she smiles, another challenge to taking a shot without blurriness. Aleesha is letting us borrow her bumbo chair, and Ruthie LOVES it!

Awww...Lynnaea is oh so beautiful!

But Megan, really is the most beautiful of all. This picture doesn't even capture it. She was stunning on Saturday. And if you'd like a more comprehensive look at the party festivities, ask her for pictures, she took lots and she has a better camera than me1

Haws Update

This was taken the other night when I tried and tried to get her to take a bottle. After three weeks of having a hard time, all three days she's been babysat this week, she's had no problem. Hmm... but LOOK at those chubby cheeks! Oh I just LOVE them!

Sterling brought these flowers home the other night. You can't really tell, but that bright red gerber daisy is AMAZING and just pops right out. Its beautiful.

My man and my baby.

Sterling took his last Organic Chemistry test ever. Ever! Check.
Sterling got an A- in organic chemistry. He was a little dissapointed, but for the most failed premed requirement, I'd say he did an AMAZING job! Check!
Sterling took his last final for this semester. Check.
Sterling put the first wrapped present under the Christmas tree. Check. And now I am SO EXCITED FOR CHRISTMAS!
My boss gave us a wreath for our door. Now we look duly festive on the outside. Check.
Ruth got two shots today and an oral vaccination. Check. (It was so, so, so, so, SO sad! I just had to keep reminding myself that it is not one iota as sad as her getting a deathly sickness)
Ruth is 24 and a half inches long, she's grown four and a half inches in four months! It's crazy how fast babies grow! She also now weighs fourteen pounds...no wonder I get tired lugging her carseat around! Check.
Ruth is also pretty much in the fiftieth percentile for everything. She can do everything on the milestone charts, and then some, plus has a tooth already, but still can't roll over. I kinda think she'll crawl first. She doesn't even try to roll over. Haahaa. Check?
Christmas presents for EVERYONE on my list are just about finished. Check.
Started reading our one-a-day Christmas story book last night, so we'll have to play catch-up for a while, but oh so worth it! And I'm carrying on the family tradition of mom crying through every story. Sterling was reading the story last night and looked over and me and just busted up laughing, but it was touching, ok! Check.
My wedding book came in the mail and I am in LOVE with it, totally worth the money. Check.
Try nine month clothes on your four month baby. A lot of them just might fit. Check
Keep nose-sucker close at hand for the next little while. Check.
We've had our share of poo incidents lately, definitely time to upgrade to the next size of diapers. Check.

Umm...thats about all. I tried making fudge, and failed again. Uncheck. Mom said maybe making two batches at once would work better. I might try it tonight. But I don't want to waste the cream.

There arose such a clatter, I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter!

Sterling woke up at 5:45ish this morning, and as he was getting ready the baby woke up (she had slept all the way from 8:30pm the night before! YAY!) so he brought her in to me to feed her. All of the sudden our apartment shook like we were in the middle of a tornado, so we both just listened for a minute, and then there was a huge SNAP! outside our window, and a bright burst of light. I was duly scared, and wondered what was going on. But, I fed my baby, Sterling went to the gym, we fell back asleep while he was gone, and woke up again when he came back. Then, we drove him to campus. On the way he got a phone call saying something about a "Code Purple" on campus, and to not leave and walk between any of the buildings. Sterling was a little confused...until we got out of our parking lot. (They cancelled all classes today)

There was debri all over the roads. The traffic lights were out. One had fallen completely off its pole. The street signs were wrapped around the poles they were on. As we continued on, it got much worse. There were so many uprooted trees by Weber State Credit Union (a short-cut we normally take to campus) that you could only drive one-way, so it wasn't much of a short-cut. Huge evergreen trees had toppled over, and taken half of the people's lawns up with the roots. Driving past some construction on campus there was more debri than ever. Sterling could hardly get out of the car to walk into the building. He called me straightaway upon getting into the library and told me to go straight home. Unfortunately, I had a 10am appointment, and was already on 25th street. On my way I saw several basketball hoops blown over, a few fences blown into the sides of houses, tons of branches broken off, and several more uprooted trees with the people's lawns mostly pulled up. Sterling heard that a tree landed on a car on Harrison Blvd, and that lots of windows got blown out. Lots of business signs were blown off and broken into smaller bits. I almost couldn't breathe walking into my appt, and kept a tight hold on the blanket over Ruth's face. After that though, it seemed to slowly get better, and by 2 pm the wind was mostly gone in our area. That was a mighty fierce wind!!!

Sterling's story from on campus: He has a friend that studies with them (well, he said he doesn't study with them, but he hangs around the people he studies Organic Chemistry with) and he was walking towards the library and saw a girl struggling to walk. So he went up and linked arms with her to help her get to the building. He was holding his laptop in his other arm. A HUGE gust of wind came, and he started to loose his grip on his laptop, so he let go of the girls hand and ran towards the library, when he turned around the girl had fallen, and the wind had actually made her skid along the pavement. The ambulance came and she had fractures on her arms (elbow? I can't quite remember) CRAZY!!!!!!!!!!! Actually, I heard the ambulance all morning long in my apartment, because we live right next to McKay Dee Hospital.

So instead of running the BILLION errands I had (its the only day I can run errands this week due to work, babysitting, family party, ward party, etc. so it was quite a bummer) I made banana bread, regular bread, and chili. All turned out okay. Except Sterling wanted me to come pick him up this afternoon, and my bread ended up rising WAY too much in the pans, and it got a little scabacious looking. Oh well. Oh yeah, and the snap outside our window was a power line snapping. Lovely. There is still lots of power out in Ogden-Kaysville area (my bro-in-law lives a few blocks away and has no power, and my mother-in-law lives in Kaysville and has no power) and a lot of the traffic lights are still out. We, luckily, have our power.