Happy Halloween!

   Seriously... This is great - I'll just pop in on a major holiday every five or six months to say hello... sounds like a plan.  Lol, sorry for another long absence!  Life has been steadily moving all around us, but we are doing just fantastic.  Kathryn is growing so beautifully and so fast!  She went trick-or-treating for the very first time tonight, and had a great time collecting fistfuls of treats.  She was dressed up as Snow White in a perfect costume that her Grandma Kunz made -- it was sooo adorable!  We just went to a few houses around the neighborhood before Kathryn got too cold, and then stopped by Grandma & Grandpa's house (who were delighted to see her all dressed up).  It was pretty much a perfect Halloween : )
   Work is going well and keeping Jacob and I busy, but we still find time to do lots of fun stuff.  Kathryn and I are now taking swimming lessons on Saturday mornings, our first lesson was last week and it went pretty well.  Kathryn is a bit clingy and nervous, but that's something we think she will overcome with the swimming lessons. School is also going very well.  I'm in my second half of the semester already, and I'm just taking one class and a lab, so I feel really good this semester.  I can't believe that I'm almost finished with pre-req's, just a couple more classes and I'll be done - yay!  Then comes the real work...  Nursing School.  I'm so glad to be doing it though, it'll be so worth it!
   Well, that's pretty much it, but I do have some family pictures from this summer that I want to post.  They were taken around Kathryn's first birthday.  Hope you enjoy them!

 We love you!
  Take care,

Love:  Ally, Jacob & Kathryn

Happy Mother's Day!

  Today has been a really great day.  I told Jacob that I have been waiting for this day for over 27 years, because it's my very first Mother's day as a mommy!  It has been so nice and I've been very spoiled.  Jacob and Kathryn let me sleep in, then Kathryn woke me up by crawling all over me in the bed and making the cutest sounds and giving adorable little smiles.  Then they gave me a very sweet card (that made me cry of course) and the gift that I wanted, which was Anne of Green Gables on DVD.  Jacob did one better, he bought me the entire trilogy... I have the best husband!
    After that, we went to church then came home and kicked back as a family (and turned on my new movie) then had a good dinner and I went off to work.  That's where I am now actually, but things are slow at the moment, so I decided to add a post and do some decorating of my blog.  Finally, the fall blinkie and background are gone!  Unfortunately, I keep kind of busy and don't often take time to maintain my blog.  Hopefully it doesn't bother anyone too much!
   Speaking of busy, I have a little news.  After much consideration, I have decided to go back to school and become a Registered Nurse!  I will be starting classes in about a week to finish up some outstanding prerequisites that I need to do before applying for the nursing program.  So, life will be getting busier than ever, but I'm excited to be working toward a lifetime goal.
  
Well... guess I better get back to work now.

Happy Mother's Day!
Love Ally

What's new in March...

    Hello again finally ~

  Well... hopefully my infrequent posts haven't been too frustrating to anyone.  If so, sorry!  Things have been going great for us.  The holidays were absolutely wonderful.  Having Kathryn just made everything brighter and happier (even though she's too small to understand any of it). We can't wait until next year when she's a little bigger and can enjoy it a little more.  So, now we're gearing up for spring and warmer weather.  The garden is already tilled and the peas are planted - woohoo!!  Last week the weather was so fair that I made a new spring wreath for the front door.  I finished it, hung it on the door and bam! it snowed the whole next day -  After a week or more of clear, beautiful weather.  Isn't that just my luck?  Oh well ;)
   Kathryn is doing very well.  She is progressing perfectly.  She now weighs 17 pounds and is around 28 inches, so she's very long and thin.  Her hair is coming in more quickly now, but it's very light and thin so everyone thinks she's bald. She is happily blurting out her first word 'dada' to Jacob's absolute delight.  No 'mama' yet, but we're working on it.  There is also no turning our backs since she is crawling everywhere and getting into everything, plus this week she has mastered going up the stairs!  She is so adorable and guilty when she gets caught getting into something she shouldn't... I think she kind of enjoys keeping us on our toes.  She makes life so happy for us, we just adore her. 
  Work is great.  I've been working in Labor and Delivery for a while now.  In fact, I have a six-month review coming up and I'll be off of my probationary period - yippee!  I have no intention of leaving for a very long time.  I think I've gotten to a point in my life where things have revolved to a really good place, and I'd like to stay put for a while.  I feel so blessed that everything has worked out so well.  It's just more proof that Kathryn was meant to be here with us. Heavenly Father has truly provided ways for Jacob and especially me to be with her as much as possible and I am so thankful.  I have been working mostly graveyard shifts (7pm - 7:30am) and surprisingly, I really like it.  There have been adjustments to make, but it's so beneficial for our family and meets our various needs.  I just catch up on sleep when I can, it's only three shifts a week.  
   I'm excited to spend Easter with Kathryn and Jacob.  We bought her a cute Easter basket and have filled it with some goodies, but still need to make a trip to Build-a-Bear workshop for a new Easter friend.  It will either be an adorable monkey or a bunny with long, floppy ears.  We also got her a new dress that is sooo cute!  I just love having a little girl to dress up whenever I like.  Anway, I think that's about it. 

Thanks for stopping by!
We wish you the very best.

Love, Ally

News for November

     Actually, I  don't have much news to report for this month.  Life is just great as we have happily adjusted to all of the many changes.  Kathryn is four months old now and gets more adorable every day.  She is such a good baby that I really have no complaints, just lots of joy. My new job is going very well and I love it so much.  I'm finishing up my new employee orientation this week, I can't believe it's already been six weeks! 
     We had a fun Halloween- we stayed at home with Kathryn and watched Hocus Pocus :)  We also got together with my family the week before and carved pumpkins ... so fun!  I will include some pics below.  My nephew, Corbin is 3 months older than Kathryn and he is the one dressed in the Saint Bernard costume.  We were thrilled that Kathryn just happened to be wearing her kitty-cat jacket  -- aren't they the cutest cousins ever?!  We had a really great time and Kathryn loved seeing Grandma and Grandpa Dean, and Granny Proctor.  We all just got together again on Sunday and took some family pictures.  I'm excited to see how they turned out.  Well, I guess that's all I have to report. 

Have a great day!
Love, Ally

 

Kathryn and Daddy sound asleep :)

 

 

 

"Hi there mommy -- Wanna trade beds?"

 

 

The cutest house pets ever!

 

 

I just love this picture...

 

~ Finally Fall ~

  Don't you just love the fall season?  I'm pretty sure that this is my very favorite time of the whole year, I mean sure we've got Christmas coming up and that's exciting -- but you just can't beat this season with all the fresh produce, fun fall decorations, changing leaves and that slight chill in the air which makes me feel nostalgic and makes home feel so much cozier.  I even love the clothes that I've began digging from the back of my closet.  What's your favorite time of year?  I'd love to know!
   Life has been so good for us, we've just had one blessing after the next. I am happy to announce that I have left the Salt Lake Clinic and I now work in Labor & Delivery at the U!  It has been a change that we prayed for, although it was very unexpected - I was just anxious for a way to be abe to work, but be at home as much as possible with Kathryn.  It is such a wonderful place to work, I absolutely LOVE it!  I mostly assist with deliveries, vaginal and C-Sections but I also help with OB Emergency cases.  The job is very fulfilling yet extremely challenging which is nice for a change.  I feel like I've caught on pretty fast during this first month, but even better I love working three 12 hour shifts, which allows me to be home sooo much more than my previous job.  I think Kathryn likes it too :)  Either way she's stuck with me!
  Kathryn is doing so well!  She is now 3 & 1/2  months old and gets more adorable every single day.  She has started communicating more with us - she babbles and coo's and has discovered the magical pitches of her voice (sometimes deafening to her parents!)  She has some very nice muscle tone and can do kind of a half push-up with her strong little arms!  She has been holding up her own head for a while now, and can roll from her tummy to her back without assistance.  But my favorite thing is her laughter! it's the best sound ever!!  Our efforts to make her do it get a little pathetic I'm sure!  I  can only imagine some of the weird faces I've pulled.  The other day, she started laughing heartily at one of my funny faces and it was so cute that I cracked up, well that just made her laugh harder which made me laugh harder... basically we sat there laughing at each other for about two minutes!  Jacob was very amused as he watched us, lol!  I just love my princess, she's amazing and so sweet.
 That's about it.  Life is good and we are very happy :)  Let us know what's going on in your life too!

Love you!

Ally

September Excitement

So, another month has come and gone, and Fall has pretty much arrived - Hooray!  Our little family is doing so well.  Kathryn is now almost 3 months old and has become very interactive.  She has the cutest smile ever and has started to laugh, which is just the most beautiful sound!  She rolled over by herself the other day and she now weighs about 13 pounds, so she's definitely growing!  I'm also so proud to say that she is officially sleeping through the night (a new mother's dream!) and we all feel like life has definitely settled down a bit. 
  As if we are not blessed enough already... I am glad to announce that I have found a new job!!  I will be working in Labor & Delivery at University Hospital, which is such a wonderful place and they are offering me three 12-hour shifts.  So, I'm really happy that I'll get to be home as much as possible with the family, but have this new and exciting work experience too!  It's just perfect timing for this to come into our lives, so we're thrilled.  Jacob is doing very well too, he's just hanging on for the ride since his work has been pretty busy. 
   I had so much fun last night with my Beehives.  They came to our house and we bottled stewed tomatoes in the pressure cooker.  I also made them a spaghetti dinner so that they could try the tomatoes in a made-from-scratch recipe - which I'm happy to say they loved!  All of the bottles sealed properly in the end, but more importantly I think the girls had fun and learned something.  I've told Jacob that if I'm going to continue to have large groups of people over, we need to expand our kitchen...but for now he just laughs and tells me to keep dreaming.  Sigh* Someday I'll have my dream kitchen.  But regardless, it feels nice to have such sweet girls in our home. 

Well, I better get something done today. But please comment and let me know how you're doing.  I don't even really know who checks out my posts!

Love, Ally

 

Worth the wait...

Hi again!  Wow, the last couple of months have really flown by!  I would officially like to introduce you to the newest member of our family...  Kathryn Ann Kunz!!!  She was born on June 27th and weighed 6 lbs 14 oz.  She is so adorable and sweet and we just love her to pieces!  The delivery was a little rough for both her and myself, but in the end she made it here okay :)  I have been thoroughly enjoying the time at home with her this past month or so, we have definitely kept busy and love our bonding time.  She has her 8-week appointment coming up in just a couple of weeks - I can't believe this much time has already passed by!  Kathryn has also been able to meet the extended family and plenty of friends. It's so exciting and fun.  We are sad to see summer coming to an end, but we're happy for the cooler fall weather and the holidays around the corner. 

Well, sorry for the short post.   Hope you are well!

Love,  Ally