Grandpa Roy

Roy Clifford Dudley, Father to my Dino-Dad, passed away January 11, 2011 just days shy of his 90th birthday.   I know this post is slightly delayed, but I just want to always remember how much I love him and will miss him, even if it's been 4 years since I last saw him.  This isn't really a traumatizing experience for me, and I don't know if I should be ashamed in saying that.  He's in heaven with Dad, and as long as I picture them together I feel at peace.

In celebration of his birthday we released several balloons with birthday notes attached to them from Dad's cemetery.  Hopefully Grandpa knows we were thinking of him, and hopefully the little boy who finds balloons all over his yard will forgive us.

I love you, Grandpa!

Couple Quiz

 So I saw this when reading a friend's blog and thought it would be fun to fill out.



1. How long have you been together?
About a year and a half.

2. How long did you know each other before you started dating?
Around three months.


3. Who asked who out?
Alan volunteered to come help with Mom's half marathon.  It wasn't really a first date, but after three months of emailing and phone calls, it was really neat to meet this guy in person.

4. How old are each of you?
Alan: 23 Hannah: 21

5. Whose siblings do you see the most?
Alan's family lives in the same valley as us, so we see them more frequently.

6. Do you have children together?
We have our first one cooking.

7. What about pets?
We had Fish for a while, but he's now with a family who fully appreciates his fishiness.

8. Did you go to the same school?
We go to the same college, though my classes are online and his are traditional lectures.  I've been lucky enough to work on campus which means he can visit me between classes.

9. Are you from the same town?
No, Sir/Ma'am.

10. Who is the smartest?
Alan claims me, I claim him.....to be the smartest that is.

11. Who is the most sensitive?
Pregnant woman FTW!

12. Where do you eat out most as a couple?
Angies is right across the intersection from our apartment, which is convenient for when I haven't made it grocery shopping in a few weeks.

13. Where is the farthest place you have traveled as a couple
Pagosa Springs, Colorado.  Honeymoon Local <3

14. Who has the craziest exes?
Hannah. 

15. Who has the worst temper?
We're both pretty mellow and or equally matched in this area.....

16. Who does most of the cooking?
Lately, Alan.  He makes a mean PBJ.

17. Who is more social?
Hannah

18. Who is the neat freak?
I wish one of us was...

19. Who is more stubborn?
Frank Sinatra, that beast.

20. Who hogs the bed?
Alan winds up with most of the blankets, including the extra ones he puts on his side.  Other than that, we share rather equally.

21. Who wakes up earlier?
Hannah wakes up the easiest, Alan likes to contemplate the idea of being awake for quite a while before moving.

22. Where was your first date?
The conference center. 

23. Who has the bigger family?
Both families are the same size, though Annette [Alan's older sister] has two little ones.

24. Do you get flowers often?
Periodically.  Always a surprise when Alan brings some home.

25. How do you spend the holidays?
With family, we try to see both families for the holidays so nobody feels left out.

26. Who is more jealous?
Jealous?  Jealous of what, exactly?  Alan likes to drool over gadgets....but I don't know that he covets them.

27. Who does the laundry?
Team effort.  Alan's been a saint and switches loads while I lay down and try not to throw up, bless his soul.

28. Who is better with the computer?


Mac or PC?

29. Who drives when you are together?
If it's just around the town, Alan usually drives.  I drive the longer distances most of the time.

30. Is your family still growing?
We're just getting started with the growing game.


The end.  Thanks for playing

Moab?!

 

We went to Moab over Christmas Break.  Mom and the boys came with us.  

 

I loved the ice crystals.

 

Mom and I enjoyed the trip in our traditional manner.

Morning 1 in Moab.  45 degrees, slight breeze, and adventure in the air!

The 18 mile search for petroglyphs! (Mom took most of these)

 

The bikes we rented were of the Trek brand.  So, logically, each bike was named after Star Trek! I had Picard, Alan had Bones, Greg had Warf, Reed had Scotty, and Mom was the classic Star Trek.

 

They're so tough... they'd have to be.  After hours on those bike seats our bums were quite tender.

 

Morning two: Rainy.  All day was rain, cold rain.  So we found a different source of entertainment: Bowling!

Morning Three:

Blizzard.  I've never experienced Arches quite like this.  It was fun taking pictures in the snow, Mom and I had a set up with an umbrella to keep the camera dry.  Unfortunately, being outside for longer than 30 minutes resulted in cold, stiff fingers, so we don't have very many snow pictures.  We drove home this day and it took us 7 1/2 hours to get from Moab to Salt Lake due to the weather.  The three boys spent their time playing computer games while Mom and I chatted and sang to Billy Joel.  

Moab was so much fun! What a great way to spend the week between Christmas and New Years.

First Trimester

Part of me really wants to be a good Mormon girl and keep a record of everything that goes on, a journal so to speak.  To be honest, though, after standing on my feet for 8+ hours a day I'm usually exhausted by the time I get home and I have a house to tend to and homework to do.  So the journal idea, I don't do so well with it.  

However, here is another attempt.  We are officially on week 15 of our pregnancy, which means we are into the second trimester.  The first trimester was an adventure.  Morning sickness is a 24/7 experience for me.  I've thrown up at work, thrown up in several parking lots, thrown up in a national park, and I have thrown up next to a restaurant's welcome mat (I don't think the people at the first table were too excited about it, but I honestly was too busy to notice).  I've learned that when one throws up violently multiple times in one day, he or she will have many blood vessels break around his or her eyes (found it intriguing, personally).

Work has been a challenge.  I work for USU Dining Services as an Area Manager in The Hub.  Taco Time is my area, I've been there every day of business for nearly a year.  Let me tell you, though, pregnant nose is not my friend when I'm around ground beef, fried goods, and "all natural" customers day in and day out.  Now that I'm showing, my balance is off a bit, and after four hours of standing I start to waddle around the building.  Laying down seems to be the best solution to not throwing up, especially if eating more isn't an option.  Most of our nights are spent with Alan on the computer and me on the floor because I'm not ready to leave him.


My favorite part of all this is my "nausea medication."  The doctor perscirbed it to us with the description, "it's affordable but often makes people drowsy." Now that I've taken it a few times I will tell you this, it doesn't help with the nausea so much as it knocks one out so she's not awake to witness it.  I've fallen asleep in the middle of conversations after taking this pill, and then after sleeping for 10 hours, I'm still groggy.  Alan's even taken it when he can't sleep. Never the less, I keep this bottle of pills with me at all times just in case.

With all that said, I still feel like I'm blessed as a pregnant woman.  My mom had a hard time with most of her pregnancies and has mentioned being bedridden at week 6 for most of them.  Between her history and the accounts I've found online, I'm grateful to still be capable of working 40 hours a week and of keeping most of my meals down.

We've seen our baby once, and I'm sure he/she looks just like any other child at this point, but it's incredible how much love I already have for this little person.  I'm excited to see him/her again.