The Oaks

Easter 2011

2011-05-22T15:26:00.000-07:00

I know I am behind whenever I post but better late than never. We went down to my parents and really had a great time. The weather was bad so we couldn't go out to the desert but I really wanted Matthew to experience rolling easter eggs so we did it in front of my parents house it was so cute to watch. We also dyed easter eggs and had an easter egg hunt that Matthew didn't really get but it was still fun.

James had a great first Easter (can you beat that smile, ha)

These are at the Easter Egg hunt at school he liked putting the eggs in and out of the bucket.

Home Is Where the Heart Is

2011-03-03T19:16:00.000-08:00

I have had six weeks of maternity leave from work it has been amazing! I was so excited this past week when I didn't have to take two kids out in this:

Instead I got to stay home with these two little cuties:

Matt sure keeps me busy we have a lot of this going on:Oh the terrible twos (sigh), gotta love them.

Baby James

2011-02-17T10:27:00.000-08:00

James was born on Jan 25th so I am a little behind on this. It didn't take very long, once I went into labor finally. I had a good night sleep woke up in the morning at 6:30 with my first contraction. I got Hyrum and Matthew up just after 7:00 we got to the hospital at 8:00. Hyrum dropped me off at the front door I walked up to labor and delivery and I don't think the receptionist lady thought I was very far a long because she was taking her sweet time (or perhaps it just seemed like it because I wasn't feeling very peachy) when they found someone to check me she found out I was a nine. Then... he was born at 10:33 he weighed 8 lbs 13 ounces he was huge compared to my little 4 lb 2 ounce premmie. It really was wonderful to see a healthy big boy with everything all right.

Matthew really likes him he says Ba Ba ohhhhh points to him and gives a really cheesy smile it is pretty cute.

He is such a good baby he is hungry a lot but very mild mannered and loves to look around. We love him so much.Matthew trying to reach up to get his brother, he reached so far his drawers dropped (lol).

Our cute chunky cheek boy
Matthew trying to share his Binky with James

Waiting

2011-01-23T18:05:00.000-08:00

Just a little complaint out into blogland. Here I am 9 months pregnant I am 4 days past due and I am ready for my little baby. Who would have thought I would make it past due, nobody including my doctors. Initially the doctors said there was no way I would make it to my due date, they thought I was ready to go at Christmas time, nope, on Wednesday the doctor said 24 hours, nope. It is not necessarily the fact that I am overdue that is annoying its being told its going to happen and it doesn't. I imagine this child holding on to the sides of my stomach for dear life, I figure eventually he will have to let go! I would post pictures but the camera is in the car already so we are ready at a moments notice, because PS the doctor said I need to sprint to the hospital if my water broke (that was 3 weeks ago). Anyhoo, hopefully there will be an exciting update soon.

Brother get out of there

Christmas 2010

2011-01-15T10:48:00.000-08:00

Once again late but better late than never. Our Christmas was interesting right before Christmas my doctor told me to be careful because I was already dilated and could go into labor so I was nervous I was going to labor on Christmas the whole time. Then Matthew got sick with something on Christmas Eve and had a really high temperature we couldn't get down so he didn't feel good. The worse day of the whole year to get sick is Christmas Eve/ Christmas Day, apart from the obvious of it being Christmas, doctors offices are closed and you can't get seen. I knew it was something small but his temperature kept getting so high we had to take him to the emergency room the day after Christmas so we could get some medicine for him. When he felt good we opened presents he did like ripping the paper and playing with the toys a little bit. Oh well, at least he was still young enough that he didn't really care that he was sick on Christmas.

Halloween

2010-11-08T17:40:00.000-08:00

We had a great Halloween!!! Matthew absolutely loved pumpkin land, Hyrum liked doing the Halloween Half Marathon, and I loved going trick or treating with Matthew.

The Big Hungry Caterpillar

Castle of Mirrors (Matt liked the draw bridge the best)

Matthew dancing in the big pumpkin

Looking at the bunnies. There were also goats, chickens, doves, and I think a few others but I can't remember them right now.

My cute little pumpkin
Hyrum running at the Halloween Half Trick or treating with Mom, Dad, and Grandma Oaks (he was well protected against anything spooky;) Once he figured out the candy went in the bag he kept trying to go back for more every one thought he was so cute that they let him do it, needless to say he got a lot of candy even though we just went around the block.

I'm Back Again

2010-09-21T19:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I just get burned out and blogging gets put towards the end of the to do list. I do have an excuse though I am pregnant with baby number two. I am due in January and I am having a boy.We are really excited for Matthew to have a brother and hopeful they will become friends and not enemies.

Matthew has grown up quite a bit since I last blogged he is now walking and really thinks he is big stuff, he is in to that toddler independent mode which has really made life exciting.

He had his jaw surgery a few weeks ago it went really well, he thought he was superman and wanted to do everything right after he had surgery you would have thought nothing would have happened it was really crazy.

He also has gotten a really cute of sense of humor and does some of the silliest things. I will post some pictures bellow of this.He also really loves playing with his daddy especially airplane

He also thinks he has to eat everything we are eating sometimes it doesn't turn out so well.

I will have to dig through some old photos to give more updates and maybe I will get brave and post a prego one of me, maybe.

Old Pictures

2010-05-09T19:46:00.000-07:00

I found some old pictures that I wanted to share, some of them are pretty cute.

Future Missionary

Momma the chew toy, this is a daily occurance.
Peek a BooMatthew loves getting inside laundry baskets and vrooming around the house, this is when he was little and he just liked sitting in them.
I love this picture!

Hippity Hoppity

2010-05-02T19:32:00.000-07:00

I know that these are really late but I am finally getting around to posting them. Matthew had a great Easter he got a shape sorter toy from the Easter bunny, Daddy gave him M&Ms, and he saw the Easter Bunny ( I know, he looks kind of evil in the picture, Matthew wasn't quite sure about him).

Water

2010-05-02T19:13:00.000-07:00

Matthew had a water day at school and loved it! His teacher came and got me so I could see, he was so funny, he kept splashing everybody.

The Reveal

2010-02-28T09:30:00.000-08:00

Way back in November I posted pictures of my parents remodel and I said that I would show the end result, so I am keeping my promise. My parents don't have a blog so this way those faraway sisters can see there new living room.

The Happiest Place on Earth

2010-02-14T18:54:00.000-08:00

Wahoo! We went to Disney World recently with my parents and brother, and we had a blast! It is huge therefore it was a little bit crazy to get through but we enjoyed every minute. I was a little woried about how Matthew would do on the plane and at the park, but he did great, he is such a good baby! The first day he took about a 10 min cat nap and that's it he wanted to see everything there was so much going on, I thought this would make him really annory but once again he surprised us all. We spent our first day in Disney Hollywood Studios, Second at Epcot, Third at Magic Kingdom, and Fourth at Universal Studios. As my Dad would say we really went over on the fun meter.

Matthews favorite things were the fireworks over the castle, Currious George at Universal studios, and the Currious George and Barney playgrounds at Universal Studios. The only ride he really didn't like was Pirates of the Caribbean he screamed after the boat went over the hill.

Raquel's favorites were the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Mickey's PhillarMagic, and the world showcase at Epcot. Although really the whole atmosphere of the whole Disney Park thing really is magical, it smells, looks, feels, sounds, tastes amazing. It is hard to pick only a few.

Hyrum loves any and all thrill rides. He could probably just continually go back forth on all the roller coasters and that would keep him happy. His favorites were probably Space Mountain, and The Mummy ride at Universal Studios (he rode this 4 times).

Matthews Birthday

2010-02-14T18:17:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I didn't do this earlier but life happens. We had Hyrum's parents over to our house to celebrate Matthew's birthday. Matthew ate a whole cupcake by himself it was hilarious. He got a lot of new clothes, Elmo, and a bubble machine from Mom and Dad. Grandma and Grandpa Oaks gave him a new ball toy and clothes. He is so funny with the ball toy he likes to just rest his had on it and look through to the other side. After eating we played guitar hero even Grandma Oaks got into it.

We are so thankful to have Matthew in our family he is an absolute joy. He is such a good natured baby that can charm just about anybody. I think it's funny to watch people with him because he is such a charming little boy they don't even notice his challenges. I love him so much. Happy Birthday Matthew!

Christmas

2010-01-03T12:38:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas I hope everyone else did as well.
We spent Christmas Eve and morning with the Coxes we went to Grandmas for yummy appetizers on Christmas Eve, Christmas morning Hyrum got a PlayStation for a combined Christmas/ college graduation present, I got blue ray Harry Potter DVDs and a bamboo computer pen, Matthew got more toys than he knows what to do with. Later Christmas day we had a delicious Christmas dinner that my mom cooked! On Christmas night we went to the Oaks and got more presents and played basketball which was both exhausting and funny.
It was a perfect first Christmas for Matthew and I am grateful for having so many family members be apart of it.

Thanksgiving

2009-12-08T21:07:00.000-08:00

This is quite a bit late but I did want to post some of our Thanksgiving pictures.
We spent Thanksgiving with my family this year we went to my Aunt Barbara's house and had an amazing dinner. Later, Matthew had a nice snooze with Grandpa Max and Uncle Ben, Hyrum talked business and politics (his two favorite subjects), and I continued to snack on food and talked with all the girls. It was a great day!

Thanksgiving weekend was really busy I helped my mom organize the basement and put up her Christmas decorations. The boys worked on the living room remodel and went golfing. It was a very productive Thanksgiving I just wish the break could have lasted longer. Thanksgiving Aftermath

Hyrum helping my Dad on the remodel- Anyone else thinking Agent Smith on Matrix?

The last two pictures are of my parents remodel I will post the finished product later so everyone can see the finished product.

Happy Halloween

2009-11-12T17:29:00.000-08:00

I promised Halloween pictures so I keeping to my word. The first two are at school he looked so sweet as a sleeping little bear and I just thought it was funny that he was eating a sheep in his bear costume.
On Halloween day Matthew and I went to the Pumpkin Patch next to our house and he loved it! He was holding on so tight to the stroller bar, he wouldn't lay back and relax he wanted to sit up and look around at everything, it was so cute. We went through the corn maze, saw a bunch of animals, looked at the big pumpkin and castle, and to top it all off went on the swing. He laughed his head off when I put him on my lap and we swung back and forth it was a very Happy Halloween:)

Back by Popular Demand

2009-10-26T17:43:00.000-07:00

So I kind of burned out from blogging for awhile but I am back by popular demand. I didn't realize how many people look at this until I stopped for awhile. Since I last posted Matt had some surgeries he got his double thumb removed, his ear remnant taken off, and his lip stitched, so he looks a little different. We went down to my parents house this weekend and Hyrum and my Dad watched the BYU vs TCU game it ended sadly but Matt was supporting BYU in his attire.

This was me trying to get a cool picture and it only turning into a kinda good one Matt is standing in a really cool pumpkin my mom has it is green and matches his shirt maybe I will do something with it in Photoshop.Grandma and Matt

There was a Halloween Party at my work for all the kids this is Matt in his cute costume don't worry just a preview I plan to have more Halloween cuteness in the near future.

Staycation

2009-08-07T09:13:00.000-07:00

I guess staycations are supposed to be the new thing. The Oaks family joined in on the craze and this week we went on one. Hyrum Parents bought us Salt Lake Connect passes and we went to the Aquarium, Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum, This is The Place Park, The Zoo, Red Butte Gardens, Lion House, and The Planetarium. It was a lot to go to in a day in half but we sure had fun.

Hyrum touching the stingrays

Max and the Big Turtle

Matthew and the Dinosaurs

On the train at This is the Place

Me in front of the Emery County Cabin

All of us at the Zoo

P.S. I don't know why some of the pictures went so blurry when I uploaded them sorry

Yum

2009-07-05T20:33:00.000-07:00

Not only was it Matthews first 4th of July but he also tired cereal for the first time this weekend. He was so cute, he didn't quite know what to think about it at first, but towards the end he seemed to like it.

4th of July

2009-07-05T20:17:00.000-07:00

This was Matthew's first Fourth of July I would say that he had a pretty good one. He was in the 4th of July parade at school on Thursday he looked so cute I think he was the smallest one in it and in his moms opinion the cutest. Grandma and Grandpa Cox and Uncle Ben came up and we went to the Fourth of July parade in Provo, had a barbeque, and watched the Staduim of Fire Fireworks on the temple hill.

Utah Valley Marathon

2009-06-20T10:01:00.000-07:00

Yahoo, the marathon is officially over! Hyrum worked his tail off all year long to put this event on and it was a great success, I am so proud of him. There was over 1000 entrants between the marathon and 5k it was amazing.

The slogan for the marathon is 26.2 miles of the pain you enjoy I think the slogan for are little family is 26.2 months of chaos you endure and enjoy after it's done. He started planning for next year race even before this one ended and I am sure it will be even better, although, this year will be hard to beat.

This is the fastest growing Utah marathon

Whats Happening

2009-06-07T07:27:00.000-07:00

Our house is a little crazy right now, for anyone who doesn't know Hyurm is the race director of the Utah Valley Marathon. He has been working his tail off for months gettin it ready and now we are less than a week away.

This is where Hyrum has spent a lot of his time emailing people and creating advertisments. Matthew likes helping him because he gets to look at the bright computer screen.

Matthew has also been busy learning about life it seems like everyday he learns a new trick. He really loves to smile and will now giggle a little bit, it is so cute, he also has discovered his hands. He puts them in front of his face and tries to figure them out, and he likes to suck on them he can fit almost his whole fist in his mouth it is pretty funny.

First Visit to Orangeville

2009-05-28T19:33:00.000-07:00

Matthew had his first visit to Orangeville this past weekend. All three of us loved getting out of the house. Hyrum played Nintendo, went to Transformers, golfed, and actually relaxed. I took a nap (yahoo), watched a movie with mom, and enjoyed having a break. Matthew made friends with Ginger, hung out with grandpa, and just loved looking at everything.

Matthew and I have matching pajamas that my mom got us, aren't they adorable?

My Dad and Matthew are good buds they can't get enough of each other. Matthew smiles and calms right down when Grandpa has him, it is so cute.

Cute

2009-05-17T08:00:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things lately has been to get Matthew up in the morning he is so happy he loves to smile and coo it makes my day. I can get him to do a baby laugh now and it is so adorable he usually does the most in the morning.

He has also been kicking all of his blankets off in the night so I tried putting him in this little Eskimo suit that my mom got him. When he is in it I think of the kid on Christmas Story when he gets all wrapped up to go outside and he keeps saying over and over I can't put my arms down. Except Matthew seems to like the little suit and I double dog dare you to tell me he doesn't look cute.

Mothers Day

2009-05-10T13:34:00.000-07:00

My family came up for Mothers Day and we had such a great weekend we are so lucky to have our families close by us.

This was our Mothers Day dinner as Uncle Jon would say the meal was Unbelievable fresh picked asparagus, steak, garlic potatoes, and a yummy strawberry dessert.

My Mothers Day present in progress

Ben and his faux hawk, awsome.

Ta'da the finished product three beautiful gardening boxes built with love by Hyrum, Dad, and Ben. Thank you so much

Itch

2009-05-09T07:27:00.000-07:00

When a mans got an itch he has got to scratch it. Hyrum's itch was a need for a grill, and sure enough he scratched it and we are now the proud owners of a grill. Last Monday we invited my cousin Lane and his wife Rochelle over for dinner, so Hyrum convinced me that we were going to get a grill since they were coming over. To make the situation better for him my Dad and Mom were up here with the truck so he had the perfect opportunity.

Here he is the Grill Master himself.

While were outside cooking Mom brought Matthew outside he loved looking around at everything.

Grandpa's Golfing Buddy

2009-05-02T08:49:00.000-07:00

Matthew got the cutest outfit at one of my baby showers. I was so excited for him to wear it . Well, he has grown enough so he can wear it now he looks downright adorable in my humble opinion. He is now ready to hit the golf course with grandpa, well except without the golf clubs.

I have yet to capture a picture of one of his smiles. This is the best I could do it is right at the end of a smile and I just missed it.

Late Easter Catch Up

2009-04-25T11:54:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a while since I have been able to blog, the memory card on our camera got messed up, but all is well now so I can show some Easter pictures. Matthew was able to make his first social non-doctor visit on Easter. All three of us loved getting out of the house. Hyrum and I had a great time eating a wonderful meal and catching up with the family.

Hyrum could hardly wait to get inside (actually it was just really cold and he was hungry)

Matthew in the cute Easter outfit Grandma Oaks got him

This is Matthews Easter Basket he got some books from Grandma Cox and a fun tummy time toy from Mom and Dad

Drool

2009-04-10T15:08:00.000-07:00

Matthew is back from the hospital and he is doing good. It is so nice not to have the oxygen anymore. The down sides are that he can't suck on his binky or bottle for a few weeks until his mouth heals and he hasn't quite figured out how to swallow with his tongue attached to his lip so this has caused a lot of drool.

Here is Hyrum and Matthew together, oh how sweet.

This is Hyrum after I picked Matthew up. He didn't know what hit him until I picked the baby up and started laughing hysterically. I don't feel to bad for him because the whole front of my shirt was soaked after I let Matthew fall asleep on me earlier. Needless to say Hyrum went and changed his shirt immediately and was not so keen on holding him for awhile.

Surgery Update

2009-04-03T08:46:00.000-07:00

Well, my little boy had his surgery and it went well. He looks pretty bad with his swollen mouth and his sedation, but the medical staff are keeping him as comfortable as possible, and apparently your mouth heals really quickly so it will start looking much better soon. He will be on the vent until next week, and I think think this is the hardest part because we can't pick him up or touch him very much.:( Oh well, this will hopefully be the end to the oxygen tank and that would definitely be worth it. Anyways thanks for your support, this really makes things so much better.:)

Visitors

2009-03-31T13:56:00.001-07:00

This past Sunday my Grandma and Grandpa Larsen came to visit along with my grandmother's sister Aunt Marion. My grandparents were really excited to see the baby, and Hyrum and I were excited to see them.

Annoying

2009-03-30T16:08:00.000-07:00

Hospitals can be so annoying! Mom and I went up this morning for Matthew's surgery, we got him already to go in with his hospital gown and then they canceled his surgery because they didn't have a bed for him when they got done operating. Oh well, there isn't anything we can do now. His surgery has been rescheduled for Thursday, so until then I will get to worry some more- I have been getting really good at that.

Playing

2009-03-28T10:23:00.001-07:00

Matthew and I were busy today coming up with new toys and games we can play together.

I found a book at the library and have been trying some of the suggestions in it. His favorite so far has been the mirror. He got so excited he kept making all of these cute noises I think at one point it was close to a giggle. The picture was after he had been looking at it a while so he isn't quite so excited.

On a more sad note Matthew is going to go in for surgery on Monday to attach his tongue to his lip. This sounds weird I know, but it is this or a tracheotomy, so we are hoping this will help open up his airway so he can breathe by himself. I would appreciate if your thoughts and prayers are with us and I will try to update this blog after surgery so everyone can know how it went. Thanks.

Our Little Model

2009-03-21T18:08:00.000-07:00

As most of you probably know we added a new member to the Oaks family. This is one of the main reasons I decided to start a blog. This way everyone can see how he is growing by just a few simple clicks and lets face it I want to show off how cute he is. Here are few pictures I took today, he can't go out of the house yet so I get to pretend I am a professional photographer which I definitely am not, but hey I tried.

This is an awful angle but this face I think is funny. It looks like he is showing me his baby Zoolander face.