This Week

-  My husband has been home the past two nights! It has been amazing and almost as good as vacation.

- I hit the third trimester and am feeling pretty good with the pregnancy. I have to do my glucose test on Thursday and am looking forward to getting it over with.

- Natalie is talking up a storm. She loves to copy cat and is a very agreeable child. We ran errands all morning and she was very content to sit in her stroller or cart and wait patiently for me. We will see if that lasts.

- Got the fourth book in "The Walk" series by Richard Paul Evans from the library today. My goal is to finish this series before the baby gets here. I need some good reading time.

- Have been working diligently on a wheat order for our Stake and doing lots of food storage research. I forgot how much time and effort it takes to learn, but it is always worth it.

-  I planted seeds in some pots on my porch last Thursday. They are beginning to sprout through. Last week at a Relief Society Activity the speaker described her seeds sprouting as "magical." I agree, it is amazing what something so tiny can do with proper care.

- Spring is here with warm weather.

- Natalie goes to her first dentist visit Thursday, it will be interesting to see how it goes.

- Looking forward to an impromptu Stake Conference this Sunday with a visiting General Authority.

- Made a delicious BBQ Chicken Salad for dinner tonight. It had black beans, corn, avocado, tomato, lime juice, cilantro and ranch mixed together, on lettuce with chicken as a topping. Justin had his in a tortilla as he never eats lettuce.

-My bathrooms got cleaned today and the floor mopped, which means I can check this off my to do list and rest peacefully tonight. Hope you are having a great week!

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

81 Years

It was this amazing ladies birthday today. She is 81 years old and still has a radiating smile.
A couple of weeks ago I got news that she was in the hospital with pneumonia. Things were not looking very good for her. I packed mine and Natalie's suitcases and was out the door a couple of hours later. We made the 6.5 hour drive to Ontario and got there at about 8:30 that night. Grandma was doing a bit better than she had been that morning.

Over the period of her week long hospital stay she improved a lot. However, it had become apparent that she could no longer live at home by herself. The hard decision was made and I helped move her into an assisted living facility. It is a nice new facility, with a large room and she seems to be doing well.

 It is so hard to go through changes in life. Our brains so easily get to a point where we feel that things will stay the same forever, people will always be there for us and never age. However, the opposite is quite true. A lot of life changes come in such tiny increments that we don't recognize what is happening until it brings about a reality that is totally different than what you have always thought it would be.

I love my Grandma very much and look up to her. I am glad things are going as well as they can be in her new place. I am especially grateful I was able to spend a week helping her and my parents with the transitions life has brought.

Happy Birthday Grandma Corn! You have been such an example to me of positive thinking, living life with a smile, creating strong family traditions, and always learning. We miss you and wish we could have been there to sing Happy Birthday and to eat an ice cream bar with you!


Justin and Ruth Blazzard

25 Weeks

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Facetime and Potty

 When Justin was given the offer for his job in 2012, we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. It has been a great thing for our family, but has been hard with all the travel it requires. 

Many of our nights are spent like this.

 Thank goodness for face time!

 One of Natalie's favorite games is to play pretend sleeping right now. She even snores! I don't know where she learned that, but does a great impression. Tonight she was happy to report to Daddy that she had went number 2 on the potty. I was happy too. 

The three day potty method worked really well for us.  (Let me know if you are interested I can send you the short ebook to read on it)

The first two days were really intense. Lots of accidents and only getting her to go in the toilet twice each day. The first night she also wet the bed and that was no fun for her. The second night she stayed dry though. At the end of the second day I reread the short book and realized I needed to improve some of my teaching habits. 

I made a few adjustments and by the third day around noon she really started getting it. That was good, because I was really starting to dislike the lady who wrote the method, haha.
No, really I was quite pleased with the method. It reinforces positivity, consistency and follow through. All things that I believe to be good traits of good parents.
 

We only had two accidents that third day and the second one was really because I wasn't watching close enough. 

She continued to have dry nights through the weekend and 95% dry days. 

This week she has done great and finally tonight mastered the pooping on the toilet. 

We have not used a diaper for 11 days now. It is wonderful! I am so proud of Natalie and am grateful she has caught on so well and wants to be big and use the toilet. I know that there will probably still be some accidents in the future, but am hoping for the best that this really sticks with her.

Natalie has been enjoying all the extra stories we have been reading while she sits on the potty.

I am starting to build my collection of diapers for our baby and buying for two would make me cry. I can't believe she is old enough to do it, but am glad we have got it done!

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Turning 2

This little girl turned 2 on March 9th! I can and cannot believe it at the same time. She has brought so much joy into our lives and I am so grateful to get to spend each day with her. This is how her birthday went.

Waffles with Strawberries and Whip Cream for Breakfast. She thought the candles were a nice addition, still not quite sure about blowing them out.

We hurried along with breakfast so we could make it to the zoo. 

Justin took the day off work so we could be together as a family.

I did a tiny bit of decorating to make the day a little more special. She appreciated the banner.

 We packed our lunch and took it in with us. We paused by the elephants to eat. She was packing around this apple and all I could think was, 

"I hope she doesn't drop it because she will still want to eat it." 

Well, I held it for her for a minute, and I dropped it. Yep, she still wanted it, but don't worry we threw it away. Clumsy mama...

 What to do for a two year old's birthday? I thought the zoo would be a nice outing since we had not been there in a year. Well, she did alright, but really wasn't overly enthused at it. Justin and I both got bored about 30 minutes into it. We were happy when we made it around the map.

 She did enjoy staring at this big kitty across the glass. I thought it was rather creepy.

After the Zoo we came home for a nap for the Birthday girl and food preparations for the parents.

 

 I have never been a very good cake decorator, but was pleased with my work here. Not perfect I know, but for me they were pretty. Those are Mickey Mouse stand ups in the center. She LOVES Mickey and Frozen right now. 

We had our good friends Garrett and Nicole, and Rick over for dinner that night. I didn't invite any of Natalie's friends because I feel like friend birthday parties for two year olds are hard. Our company was perfect for the circumstances and Natalie had a blast. We had hamburgers, french fries and fruit salad for dinner. Then presents, playing and cupcakes. 

We got her a baby doll for her birthday, and two of our friends did as well. Each is a little different and she plays with all of them. One can take a bath, one can drink a bottle, and one is little enough to pack in most places. She is a good momma to them and will be a great big sister. 

 Grandma Blazzard got her those darling pink John Deere Cowboy boots. She loves them!

This picture pretty much sums up her party and interests in life right now. Princess and Frozen gear, baby dolls, and chocolate cake!

This little red head has so much life and love in her. She is smart, loves books, is fairly obedient, loves her family, Jesus Christ, watching youtube videos, playing with other kids, driving the car, and playing chase. We continue to learn from her every day and I am so grateful she made me a momma. Happy Birthday Ms. Natalie. I look forward to celebrating many more with you!

Justin and Ruth Blazzard