6 months later

I can't believe it's been 6 months since my last post! #2 is getting sooo big! He loves it when I sings to him. I started singing the song from The Princess and the Frog called When We're Human and he just busts up laughing! I'm going to learn more songs for the little guy. #1 really could care less when I sing to her. E2 has such a sense of humor and he's so ticklish. I wish I could spend more time with him. He's started on solids, but is having a hard time adjusting to them. I'll give him a spoonful and he'll keep it on his tongue and sit there with his mouth open refusing to swallow. If the food slides back towards his throat he'll start gagging. It's funny and stressful.

Works are going good. I work 2 jobs, Scheduling for Pinnacle Security and cashiering for WalMart. Last semester was so stressful for Casey and I. I think Casey has to retake a few of his classes, I was working two jobs, Casey was working and going to school and dealing with a new baby. Yeah, it was stressful. So I am working two jobs while he just concentrates on school and kids. It's working well! We're also looking at moving closer to school this month! We have an apartment all ready to go and everything! It'll be a lot closer to school and one of my jobs. We're going to get the kids in the school daycare this semester. It's so stressful having to deal with babysitters and wondering if they can take the kids. I wish I could stay home with the kidlets but, alas, it's not possible. So, we're doing the next best thing, getting them in a regular daycare. :)

Espen is growing like Crazy too! She loves to run around and jabber. Sometimes she'll say things we understand but most of the time even I can't understand her. She loves to watch Wallace and Grommit with us and will sometimes run around begging us to turn it on for her. "Wallace Grommit?" "Wallace Grommit?" So cute! Her hair is starting to get thicker, she got her first haircut shortly before her birthday. Today I put it in a little tiny bun for church, she looked soo stinkin' cute!

Welcome baby #2! He was born on 10/7/10 at 7:28 am. He weighed 7 lbs and was 19 inches long! Welcome little one!!!

two weeks left

*le sigh* I have just over two weeks left of being prego. I'm very happy about that. Now, I know that this baby needs to stay in for as long as possible, but I can't help but pray that he comes early. This pregnancy has been harder than the last one. I think it's been harder because I've been working the two jobs and the second job was cashiering at Wal-Mart. It was hard to stand on my feet for an additional 4-6 hours every evening. My hips, back, legs and feet would be killing me at the end of every night and I wasn't getting very much sleep. I was so exhausted. But, my LOA from Walmart started yesterday, so I am done there for a while. My LOA from Pinnacle starts in 13 days and just a few days after that, I'll be having this baby!

Hey! I got MVP in my department for August! I got a $30 gift card, and apparently I might be getting a jacket too! sweet! This will look good on my resume!

We still can't decide on this baby's middle name. His first name is Ean. We've got a few choices in the air: Conner, Collin, McKay, Christopher....Lots of C's as you can see. I guess we'll figure it out.

Lots of stuff....

So, lots of stuff has happened since February! Well, the reason the doctor's couldn't do much about the gall bladder attacks except prevent them is because I am preggo! So yeah, I'm sure all those who read this blog already know that so I'll dispense with the details. Long story short, due date Oct. 13th, having a boy, name will be Ean (something) Hall.... WHEEEE!!!!

I'm now working two jobs, I'm still working mornings at Pinnacle in scheduling. I applied for a job as a Field Service Coordinator and I hope that at least I get an interview. I think I'd like the job and I'd do really well at it. :) My other job is cashiering at Walmart. Just in the evenings and part time. I'm really tired quite often but, I gotta do what I gotta do.

Today is Casey's 30th birthday and my 27th is just around the corner. This year I am actually looking forward to it. Last year I DID NOT want to turn 26, it was so unwanted. I mean, it was a turning point for me, I was closer to 30 than 20. But, now that I'm past that I'm ready to have fun this year! I actually took the day of this year and I'm only hoping that I get to sleep in, that is ALL that I want this year. Yay! I made Casey a german chocolate/reeses peanut butter cup cake! And I bought us a couple of steaks and we're having baked potatoes, I think I'll steam some broccoli and maybe a salad. Oh, so yummy! :)

I'm back to watching scrubs again. lol. I got scrubbed out, but an 18 month break has made it all funny again. yay!

The Story of the Gall Bladder

So, I started having pain in my abdomen about a year ago. I went to the ER but they couldn't diagnose it. I think it's because I was having a hard time breathing and they were more concerned about that. After a CT scan and a few lortab later, I was walked out the door. Well, since then I have had probably anywhere between 10-15 more of these attacks. Ugh, they were awful! The worst one before yesterdays was the day I did Heather's engagement pictures. I was soooooo stinkin' sick. I was throwing up, and just hunched over in pain, but when it came time to do the pictures, I was feeling better and everything went off without a hitch and we got some great shots. At this point, I thought I had a peptic ulcer because I was taking advil regularly because my back was hurting me. Anyways, I was treating it with acid reducers and trying to eat a healthier diet. It seemed to work quite well! I hadn't had an attack for a couple of months! Well, a couple of weeks ago, two weeks exactly actually, I ended up having another one of these attacks. Due to some other incidences w/in the family and discussions with my mom we figured that I was havin gall bladder attacks. Casey took me to the ER and I started describing the pain and the first thing the ER tech asked me was "Do you still have your gall bladder?" I said that I did. Well, they did an ultra sound and lo and behold, I had gall stones. Well, there wasn't much we could do for them right now....so, we decided to try and prevent gall bladder attacks from happening. Now that we knew what I had, it should be that much easier, right? WRONG! Well, Wednesday night, I went home from my mom's in pain and I knew I was having a gall bladder attack, so I just kept waiting for it to subside, as they usually did after a few hours. But, it never did. I called my parents, we went to the ER, they gave me pain killers, which didn't help, and refered me to a surgeon. So the next day, first thing in the morning, we got a surgical consult and the Doc knew, from the first minute he pressed down on my stomach that I had a sick gall bladder. I was getting the surgery the same day. Keep in mind that the pain was still going on, it was not going away. I had been in intense pain, from 8pm wednesday night clear until 2:45pm thursday afternoon. I was in so much pain and so nauseated that I had been throwing up, and I couldn't eat anything. It was awful! So, I had my gall bladder removed. I guess you could say I'm a mutant, I'm one organ short! lol. The Doc told my parents that my gall bladder was sick and it wasn't going to get better, so doing this surgery was the best thing that could have happened.

I feel 110% better. I'm in no pain because of it, aside from pain of surgery. I do need to watch my diet for the next couple of weeks, no jumping back into hamburgers and french fries tomorrow! But, I should feel great! Yay! My parents and family and husband have been so helpful through everything. They have provided me with so much support and comfort and help. I love them all so much! C has been a wonderful husband through it all, not freaking out and he's still been able to go to work, with all the help from my mom. I was really worried that C would just be freaking out and so worried that he would be beyong functioning, but he's been really awesome and supportive. My sis in law, B, took our baby for the night, the first night. Oh my gosh, that was so helpful. I was in a lot of pain from the surgery. My sis in law, J, brought our family dinner tonight, which was awesome. Everyone has just been super helpful and I am really grateful to have them in my life. Thank you so much to everyone.

Happy Birthday E!!

Yep, it's that time of year again! E joined our family one year ago! She has grown so much! Sometimes, it's still hard for me to believe we have a baby! She is sooooo much fun and always so cheerful and funny. She has a sense of humor and I don't think she knows it. She is starting to talk, well make sounds. She started with mama then progressed to dada and baba and more. She's now expanded her repertoire with tete. I remember the first thing she started imitating was Casey blowing raspberries. That was fun at first, then we had to help her UN-learn it. Every once in a while she still does it and it's cute, but I have to remind her that it's not polite. She's walking now! Of course, she still prefers to move by crawling but, she will walk. She likes it when we tickle her sides. She loves to snuggle when she sleeps and she loves when we read to her at bedtime. She is so patient we we read the scriptures to her.

Her birthday was a lot of fun. We took her to California Pizza Kitchen and we had a Shrimp Scampi pizza, she didn't eat any shrimp though. (I'm going to try and imitate that pizza because it was really good.) We told them it was her birthday and they made her a hot fudge sundae, complete with a cherry and birthday candle on top! we sang her happy birthday and gave her her first taste of ice cream and fudge. She loved it, of course! I even gave her bits of cherry and found those bits in her diaper the next day! lol. Then we took her to Build a Bear and we made her a bunny dressed in pink and named it Princess Penelope. Then, because the pizza was so small, we went to walmart and got ingredients for french bread pizza and had more pizza at home. We also bought these little frozen molten lava cakes and man, I really would compare them to molten lava! I accidentally dumped mine off my plate and into my lap and it BURNED like crazy! OUCH! I survived and am no worse for wear. Overall, it was a lot of fun and I'm excited to see what the next year brings!!!!

Bipedal

Yay! It's true! E is now bipedal! It has been fun! I love that she's starting to tottle around!

Unprivate

So... I have decided to make my blog un-private.

The reasons to making it private were that my mom suggested it and to protect my family and friends. But really, I don't post anything if it's private and if I use "internet smarts" there is no need to make it private. SO, I am slowly going to go through my blog and edit out names and change them to something else just to protect us. BUT, I'm sure those who know me will know who and where I'm talking about. Maybe somebody else will enjoy the stories too. *shrugs*

FUN FUN FUN

More fun in the Hall household. I don't know how many of you heard: Casey recently lost his job. But, you know, it's okay. He was getting tired of Applebee's. It was great while it lasted (on good nights he could averaged $23/ hour, on bad nights, $5/ hour). But, it wasn't consistent and his work hours started to diminish for the last month and a half and it was an unreliable source of income. So yes, I'm now the bread winner. Until he finds another job. Please pray for Casey to find another job.

You know, God really does work in mysterious ways. First, we didn't have enough money in checking to cover our last rent check....ugh...the next day, Casey got pulled over. That same day, Casey got a message from his Dad that his Grandpa was sending him a check for $1,000! Then, Casey lost his job. Then, we got our earnest money deposit back, $750. So, it's interesting how things work out. I really do believe that God is watching out for us and answering our prayers. He's given us a cushion to use wisely until Casey finds another job. He was preparing us for our touch financial future. It's a big, BIG blessing. I'm not feeling the stress of Casey not having a job because of our cushion. I just hope we can make the right decisions w/ our limited income. What's great too, is that a few people have approached me recently wanting me to take their pictures, and they're wanting to pay me. If you're reading this and you're one of those people. I really appreciate it and I will give you the best work you've ever seen (hopefully! :) )

Tonight Casey and I went out w/ some of our friends. On the way home, we ran into some really....... uhhhh....hummmmm....to put it nicely, INCONSIDERATE drivers. They were driving very dangerously and very inconsiderately. It was a group of cars, the ones that are all tricked out with spoilers and piped and noisy, you know what I'm talking about. Anyways, there was a group of them spread out over all 5 lanes of traffic on the interstate. First, they would slow down to like 40 mph and wait for traffic to get way ahead of them. Then, they'd race! It was so infuriating and annoying and DANGEROUS! Anyways, Casey called the highway patrol on them. I hope at least one of them got pulled over, it'd be nice if they got a ticket too. That would, hopefully, teach them a lesson! I doubt it though, people like that are too selfish to care. Except for the drive home, we had a great time with our friends!

Updates

I haven't posted in a while. I would like to blame my two time crunches...well, three technically. In the most important order. 1. Espen! She has reached so many new mile postes this past month! First, She has learned how to sit up on her own. Not move from the lying down position to sitting, but if I set her on her tush, she can now balance for minutes on end! Second, she has also accomplished rolling over!!!! Not only can she go from her tummy to her back, but she can go from her back to her tummy! She accomplished that feat in a total of like 2 days! YAY! Third, she is now experimenting with all sort of solid foods! She likes pears, squash, applesauce, peas and she's not a big fan of green beans peaches and bananas. And fourth, her biggest accomplishment yet, she is inchworming! Not quite crawling yet, but she's trying so hard! She get up on her hands and knees and she'll rock back and forth, then fall on her face. Lol. She's a good sport, she doesn't cry through any of it. But, alas, no teeth yet. She's still just a gummer!

2. Work! Yes, I got a job. I can't remember if I posted it in my previous entries. I got a job, for now, at Pinnacle Security. Pinnacle security sells home and business alarm systems. I work in their customer service department, taking calls, for customers...dealing with a wide variety of issues. It's an okay job. Nothing of course compared to a dream job, but dream jobs are hard to come by right now and I am SOOOOOOOO happy to just have A JOB! Luckily, Case and I work opposite schedules right now and he's able to be with her (when he's not in class) while I'm at work and I when he's at work!

3. I am a sucker for the sackboy. When I'm not feeding Espen, bathing Espen, playing with Espen or reading a book. I waste my time playing Little Big Planet. Usually, I play in the evenings after Espen has gone to sleep. My friends and I have all discovered the joy of building our own levels and then publishing them for the whole world to play and rate! If you have a PS3 and are looking for a good recommendation for a game. I recommend Little Big Planet. It's so, so silly. And it's probably the best game you could ever find with a "G" rating. Great fun for kids AND adults! So yeah, big time waster! lol

Yes, you heard right, Casey is now in school! I'm so proud of him! School is a big step! He's going to do communications and he want's to be a publicist.

Heather's Bridals

Here is a sample of Heather's Bridals, since I can't post 'em on facebook. Ya know, so her Fiance Traase won't see them. :D

Ha! I knew it!

Yep, so we had a service call on our oven and guess what!? It really wasn't my fault! The oven's coil on the bottom wasn't working! That would explain every problem I had! Also, our AC was running on half capacity! Our apartment's been so hot but we haven't bothered calling a tech because we're moving soon! But, we couldn't handle it anymore! But, it's fixed now and our apartment is now bearable! yay!

I swear it's not my fault!!!

So, lately I've had all sorts of problems baking. I normally have no problems at all! I don't know what it is! First, my bread wasn't cooking right. It was golden and delicious on the top and white on the part that was in the pans. Not only that, but the minute I took them out of the pans they sunk and were doughy! I've never had that problem before! I felt bad I ruined a batch of bread but decided next time I would turn the heat up, because obviously they weren't cooked enough, right? Well, I did that and the same thing happened only this time instead of being golden and delicious on top they were really brown...but still doughy inside!!! I can't tell you how frustrating it is to make such delicious bread for so long then have it fail several times in a row. Next I baked brownies......from a box. Same type of problem, crispy on the edges and gooey in the middle. I thought since I baked them in a stone wear dish maybe it just took longer since the pan was thicker. Well, my mom's birthday was on the 16th and I decided I was going to bake and decorate a cake for her. This is my result:



Okay, what's the deal!? I don't think it's me. It's got to be the oven.

Happy

So, sometimes I get worried about things that don't exist. I was wondering if Espen really is happy and if I'm doing a good job as a mom. Well, I decided to ask her and guess what!? She said yes! Well, okay, she smiled at me and made a sound that sounded like "yesh". I know she'd rather stay up at bedtime and she hates eating with a spoon but, she's happy! lol! Having her smile when I asked her that question was like a small little answer to a prayer. How I love her!

New Job

Yes, yes. I have a new job. This is all I'm going to say about it. Maybe later I'll post more about it.

I take calls from people who signed up for a promotional kit to earn money at home, or to get information about grants, or whatever. The long and short of it is the website says you'll get the kit for $1.95 BUT in the terms and conditions (which no one I talk to reads) it says you'll be charged for things AFTER your three day trial which starts NOW!

What I've learned and want to share with others:

READ THAT FINE PRINT!!! READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS!!! I CANNOT HELP YOU IF YOU DIDN'T READ THEM! PLEASE DON'T CALL ME!

But, I have a job and it will help us in the long run.

Picture of the cute onesie I bought EL

It is just so cute! I love the patterns and colors!

Renna's Challenge continued

Congratulations to those who won "Renna's Challenge"! I have made your prize and I hope you enjoy them! I thought of each and everyone one of you when I designed and made them. Hopefully I can get them in the mail this week! I want one.... Lol!


http://caseyandrachelhallfamily.blogspot.com/2009/02/rennas-challenge.html

Presenting:

Onesie

I bought Espen the cutest onesie! It is a Dr. Suess onesie. It's a light green color and has the fish from The Cat in the Hat book jumping out of water. It's so cute! All the colors are patterned like plaid and flowers! On her behind it says Dr. Suess in pink! So darn cute!!!

The Rain

Wow, the rain is really coming down! Now hail too! This is Espen's first REAL thunder storm. She's seen lightening from a distance and quite thunder but this is really close! So, I took her outside (the bottom of our apartment building stairs) and we watched it rain for a few minutes. The first lightening strike happened and I counted to 5 and explained to Espen what it meant. I told her that there was no reason to be scared of it, but that it was dangerous and I would keep her safe. She loved feeling the splashes of the rain blow onto her face, she laughed! After a couple minutes we went inside and watched it from our window. She was very facsinated with it. Now onto my tornado warning story:

I was living in Gillette and working for a photographer there: George Dunlap ((www.dunlapphoto.com) Thought I put that little plug in there for him. lol) Anyways, it was raining outside quite a bit and I had to make a run to the post office. While I was waiting in line it started to hail! The hail grew bigger and bigger! Then while the lady was weighing the mail, I had lots of pieces, the tornado warning sirens went off! I looked at her and her at me and I was thinking "Okay, I'm sure they have a place we can go to be safe." Ha! She looked at me and said "Well, you're going to have to pay for these we have done and leave." In my head I'm thinking she's crazy! I'm supposed to go back out into the rain and hail and find a safe place when you have a place you can go? Well, it's the USPS, of course I couldn't go behind the counters to where ever because that's the way they are! Security is everything!!! LOL!!! Anyways, the hail is bigger around than quarters! And as I was running to my car I'm thinking "What a day to wear a skirt!" and "I hope my car doesn't get dented" and "Well, this would certainly be an interesting way to die...one I never imagined!" So, drive as fast and safely as possible back to my work. I had to park behind the building and run to the front to enter. GAH!!! Stupid hail! I got knocked in the head and back a few times but, still kept running...well, walking fast, I had heels on. Well, I made it inside and down to the basement with my coworkers. And 10 minutes passed while we were listening to the rain and hail hit the roof and windows. We were all really worried about our cars. Lol...not our lives! Well, we lived. And there was a tornado a couple of miles out of town. It didn't do any damage but still, the thought of a tornado is kinda scary. I kinda wish I'd seen it! Our cars survived, though I was a little worried because I've seen what hail can do to a car! My friend, Jill, had her car damaged pretty severely by some hail. There were a few tornado warnings while I lived there but that was the most exciting one.