Soren Update May 26th

Well, I had a nice long break from blogging. Sorry for being a slacker!

Since it has been over a month since my last update, I am going to cover a lot of ground.

At the end of April Soren and I flew up to Utah for a week to visit and celebrate with my family. My mom and dad flew in from Japan the day before we got there, and Soren and I were able to enjoy a couple of quiet days at home with them. We spent a lot of time outside enjoying the beautiful Spring weather in Pleasant View. Flowers and trees were blossoming and the temperature outside was perfect. The rain and cold days of spring waited until the end of the week to show up, so we got a nice taste of each.

We were able to attend both graduations for my siblings. My brother, Jake, graduated from BYU in December with a BA in Japanese and was finally able to walk in the Spring graduation. My sister, Stephi, graduated from BYU with a BS in nursing. It was so special to be able to be there to help celebrate them and their accomplishments. Jake is now well on his way in the seminary teacher's program at BYU and will be student teaching this fall. Stephanie started her first job today as a nurse in a hospital. I am so proud of both of them.

Soren did great during both graduation ceremonies, especially with a lot of help from his uncle Jake and aunts Steph, Jenny and Katie. We did miss the university commencement. I took the chance to pop in on Jake's wife, Mekelle, for a quick intro to Soren's first cousin, Bridget Rae. Mekelle and Jake are such cute parents and little Bridget is a doll. I am glad I got a chance to get to know her - wish we were closer!

After the graduation, we had another big accomplishment to celebrate. My dad celebrated his 50th birthday with a big party for his family. We had planned to celebrate out at the Sandhill, but a cold, windy and rainy day spoiled that plan a little bit. We were able to eat some great food (I am still craving those shishkabobs) and play a few games. My dad's family performed a song written for my dad. Steph, Jenny, Soren and I even whipped out a little number to honor the geezer.

Before heading back to Phoenix, Soren and I had a quick visit with Erik's dad. Between throwing rocks and watching planes, Soren had a great day with Papa.

I can't believe we have been home from our trip for so long already. We have been enjoying the warm summer weather. I picked up a baby pool and we have it set up under the shade of the back patio. Soren and I are out in the water every afternoon for at least an hour. It is great because it has allowed us to stay outside even in the 100 degree plus weather. Official swimming lessons start on Monday. I can't wait. Hopefully a little structured activity every day will make the rest of this summer fly by.

This weekend was a four day weekend for our family, thanks to Erik's 4-10 schedule. It was nice to stay at home and spend time together. We had a pretty laid back weekend. Friday was a beautiful day here, overcast and 77 degrees. We went out to Mesa for my doctor appointment, then decided to enjoy the outdoors and went to the zoo for a few hours. We were able to run a few errands on Saturday. Soren's friend from nursery, Seneca, celebrated her second birthday on Monday. Her family invited over several families for swimming in their pool and a barbeque. We had a ton of fun. It was sad to hear Erik head off to work today. Soren and I really enjoy having him home with us!

I am starting to feel really pregnant. I am 29 weeks now, and officially in the third trimester. The baby moves a lot throughout the day and night. I think I am driving Erik nuts because I can feel myself starting to get nesty... I have been getting obsessive about planning the baby's room and picking out things I want to make my life easier. He is a good sport and pretends to listen when I take 10 minutes explaining why a receiving blanket needs to be 42" by 42" instead of 24" by 24". My pregnancy is now chugging along like normal and I am relieved to be having just the "normal" aches and pains of this stage.

Soren is growing and changing every day. He is very self sufficient. I find myself relying on him to be my helper quite a bit already. His speech is growing clearer and vocabulary is growing as well. I was released from my calling in nursery, and he loves his new teachers. It is funny to hear him say things he learned from other sources. The other night while he was "grubbing" in the big bed with us, he kept telling Erik to "play nice". We couldn't tell what he was saying at first because we hadn't taught him that. He must have picked it up in nursery on Sunday. Although he has his moments of being a stinker two year old, for the most part he is a positive and cheerful guy to have around. His hair has gotten its summer "buzz like bees" cut. His favorite activities right now are playing in the backyard, watching for hummingbirds, webcamming, bouncing on the exercise ball, dancing and cleaning the house (lucky me, right?).

Alright, I will wrap it up for now. Hope you all had a nice Memorial Day weekend.

Ashley