Family Photos 2010

Family Photos 2010

I've come to realize...TAG

(I am not tagging anyone in particular, just everyone who wants to participate.)

1. I've come to realize that my chest-size ...has grown in quantity and decreassed in quality.

2. I've come to realize that my job...is the absolute most rewarding & important thing I could ever be doing with my time. Love being a wife & mom

3. I've come to realize that when I'm driving...I am usually going one of 4 places. The gym, my church, the store or home

4. I've come to realize that I need....My husband. He is like water for me. Just talking to him on the phone makes me feel refreshed and keeps everything in perspective.

5. I've come to realize that I have lost...a lot of time worrying about things that now seem so silly & selfish.

6. I've come to realize that I hate it when...I loose my patience with my 2 year old. I have to constantly remind myself that he is a baby too. It's just so hard to deal with the tantrums sometimes.

7. I've come to realize that if I'm drunk… then i'm not trying to get pregnant, pregnant or nursing...so it's been a few years.

8. I've come to realize that money...Comes and goes. Steve getting laid off for those 8 months really gave us a reality check. One minute you have a home & security & a well paying job and at any minute it can all be gone! Family, health, love & faith are what truly give you security and they are enough to sustain you! But getting that job back DEF showed us how much easier things are when you are not under so much pressure and gave us a whole new appriciation for the abilty to have a job right now!

9. I've come to realize that certain people...hold grudges. I am not one of them and I have always had a hard time understanding people who do. Especially over really small, un important things!

10. I've come to realize that I'll always ... cherish photos of my kids. They change everyday and I love being able to re visit the baby fat and chubby cheeks and all the other changes that come down the road.

11. I've come to realize that my sibling(s)...is one of my very best friends. He gets me and I get him. We have been through a lot together. And when everything in our lives was rocky and confussing we were eachothers only constant.

12. I've come to realize that my mom...Is never gunna change but I love her anyways. I might not agree with her choices and may never understand her priorities, but they truly are a reflection of who she is. I have to get past how they differ from my own priorities and appriciate that she is who she is and always has been and will be.

13. I've come to realize that my cell phone...Is such a piece of crap! But there are a million things i'd rather have than a better phone so I just keep it.

14. I've come to realize that when I woke up this morning...I was exhausted. I was in the hospital all day yesterday from severe dehydration a heart rate of 141 and blood pressure of 82/54 AND falling down the stairs & hurting my neck & back. Not to mention I have a 2 year old and a 2 month old AND my husband is gone 50% of the month. He happens to be gone right now. I feel like I can't take the pain medicine bacause I have to be alert to be a mom. Of course my mom is very busy and i'm on my own. If only the baby would sleep thru the night tonite I would be so happy!!!!!!! Ok, ok enough feeling bad for myself.

15. I've come to realize that last night before I went to sleep...I prayed extra hard for my cousin and her new baby.

16. I've come to realize that right now I am thinking...That I REALLY need to go to bed!

17. I've come to realize that my dad...Is a very genuine person and that he did the best he could. He has a big heart and good intentions. I am greatful that he and I have gotten so close as I have become and adult. I see a deeper side of him than most other people do. Who is is and how he acts differ a lot of the time and he regrets a lot of choices he has made. I respect & appriciate that he is open about things he wishes he would have done differntly.

18. I've come to realize that when I get on Facebook...I am usualy nursing the baby and make tons of typos since I am just using one hand.

19. I've come to realize that today... I am really needing my husband's help. i'm in so much pain and the kids need so much.

20. I've come to realize that tonight...I am hurting so bad and probably wont sleep

21. I've come to realize that tomorrow...means that Steve comes home in 6 days

23. I've come to realize that the person who is most likely to re-post this is...No clue

24. I've come to realize that life...is just packed full of blessings. It is so important to stop and count them constantly!

25. I've come to realize that this weekend...I have to get my house work caught up from 3 dyas of being sick.

26. I've come to realize that marriage...is the best part of my life. Marriage to Steve is the most comforting, secure, safe, fun, happy, exciting & beautiful thing in my life. I am so blessed to be married to soemone who is so much more that a husband or a best friend to me. I can't even put words to what he means to me.

27. I've come to realize that my (close) friends... are people who's priorities and values are simmilar to mine.

28. I've come to realize that this year...has strengthend my relationship with Christ. It has been a year of tremendous emotional and spiritual growth for me.

29. I've come to realize that my ex... and I would have never worked out! He was a great friend but we are so different in a lot of really important ways!

30. I've come to realize that maybe I should...join M.O.P.S. I have been invited lots of times and just never commit. I'm sure I would like it and it would be good for me & for Griffin. I need to just do it.

31. I've come to realize that I love...T.V I am seriously addicted. I really really love it.

32. I've come to realize that I don't understand...People who are still supporting obama. I just don'y get it. AT ALL

33. I've come to realize my past...was mostly fun & happy. I can't really complain.

34. I've come to realize that parties...are more fun if you don't have to get dressed up! I love hanging out with our close friends in my sweats!

35. I've come to realize that I'm totally terrified... of mice. I absolutly can't stand them. They sick me out more than anything! I used to think that nothing was worse than grass hoppers but mice really are!

Merry Christmas

Ho Ho Ho. We hope that everyone had a very Merry Christmas. We sure had a special one, since it was Holden's first Christmas. It was also the first Christmas where Griffin "got it". He knew who Santa was (although he called him Tanta). I took Griffin to to see Santa on Christmas Eve, thinking that if nothing else I could get a photo of him with Tanta. To my suprise and delight Griffin not only recognized and greeted him he did not cry and was so excited. He hopped right up on him lap and stared and smiled. When Santa asked him what he wanted for Christmas he patted his head and said "a hat". To Griffin a hat is a helmet. He loves to wear helmets and try to do all of the things that Steve does. He will go and get into the bindings on Steve snow board (so we got him his own) or the skate board or the paraglider. So i knew that Santa had not finnished Christmas shopping yet and he better make a stop and get Griffy a helmet. He must have done so, because on Christmas morning there was a "hat" waiting for Griffin with a bunch of other things he must have wanted!


This pic was from Christmas afternoon between jammie changes, but I love it and could not help snapping a shot of Holden's darling little face!



This year was Griffin's 3rd Christmas. On his first Christmas Eve Steve and I started our family tradition of Christmas Jammies. We all get new PJ's that we get to open on Christmas Eve. I tried like 10 times to get a picture of my babies in their Christmas Jammies and everytime I snapped, Griffin leaned in to kiss Holden. So I guess THAT is the way the picture is meant to be!





As most know, Steve got laid off in Feb of 2009. It was hard and it got harded when I got pregnant after 17 months of trying and then deciding to wait...(of course). Well, in October our prayers were answered and Steve got a call asking him to come back to the oil field to work for Shell drilling! While he was out of work he had gotten his EMT and that must have given him a leg up, since thousands of guys were laid off and 6 were called back! This blessing came at the right time, just a few weeks before the baby was born. He had to choose between being home for the birth of our son and being home for Christams & Thanksgiving. He chose to be here for Holden's birth. So needless to say, we celebrated the birth of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ, without Steve. I will admit that I cried on Christmas morning when we were not togther and few times throughout the day when Griffin got excited or either of the boys did something cute. Luckily I had stayed the night at my Mom's house on Christmas Eve, so at least I was surrounded by family Christmas morning, but it was not the same. So the solution is that when Steve gets home of New Years Eve, we are going to pretend it's Christmas Eve and do it all again. I gave each of the boys 2 of their gifts from us on Christmas so they will still have more presents to open and I am going to cook a prime rib dinner. That way we can still have some family memories and photo that include daddy!

I also want to take a minute and express my love for Christ and how greatful I am to God for sending a savior to ransom me. What an amazing blessing Faith is. I am astounded by how much love is in my life because of my relationship with Christ. I am so blessed to have my family, my beautiful-healthy children, a husband whom I love more every minute and can't seem to ever get enough of, and most of all to have a Heavenly Father who loves us all enough to send his son to be born on Christmas day to die for us.

Merry Christmas & a very Happy New Year!

Another beautiful son

HOLDEN SCOTT SKARDA
December 9th, 2009











Weight: 7 lbs 6.2 oz
Length: 20 inches
He is wonderful and so sweet. He looks more like Steve than Griffin did...I am amazed that that is even possible, but it is. He is a snugglie and content baby. I am just in love with him and trying to soak up every minute of this newborn phase.

Griffin is just soooo cute with him. He helps me change his diaper and get the binkie and push the swing and always has a kiss for his baby brother, whenever he cries. The other day Holden was crying and Griffin kissed his forehead and said (in the most gentile voice) "you're alright...you have mom". I am so in love with my boys and am delighting in every moment with them.

On the icky side, his birth was VERY rough. I did not think that it could get worse than 52 hours of labor 2.5 hours of pushing, followed by a c-section and loosing 1/3 of my blood...but IT WAS. I was not at all scared when I was told that I would have a sheduled c-section. In fact, I took great comfort in thinking it would be a piece of cake. I could not have been more wrong. I was given a spinal block to numb me during the surgery. I was also given a topical anesthetic on my skin. Well, the spinal did not take and my Dr. nor I found out until after the first cut. I felt the entire surgery. The Dr.s and anesthesiologist had no choice but to proceed to deliver the baby through the pain and my SCREAMING. They had already cut me, so it was too late to flip me over and try the spinal again, and they could not put me under all the way because of the risk to the baby. They worked very fast but that 4 minutes was the worst pain I have ever felt! My poor husband was in room. He was begging them to help me and trying to comfort me but he was as scared as I was. For the next 3 days, I could not walk or feel ANYTHING down my right leg. They had 2 specialists and a physical therapist come and no one knew what was going to happen or IF it would ever be normal again. As it turned out...what had happened was that the spinal some how traveled down a nerve and caused the numbness. It is fine now... but how scary!!!
All in all this recovery has been hard, made harder by the fact that my husband had to go back to the Oil Rig 3 days after for 2 weeks, (which really a huge blessing since only 6 people, out of thousand whom were laid off, where called back to work) but I am getting through it and all thou getting him here was so hard, I have never been happier and have the most delicious feeling of completeness.

We are having another BOY!

We had our ultrasound today and we saw that we are having another baby boy. He was sucking his thumb and flipping all around! We are so excited to meet baby HOLDEN on December 7th.

Baby Girl Names

Since I have been so sick this time around, I am thinking that the baby is a girl. We have never even really talked about girls names since we both felt like we would have all boys. We have boy names but only a few girl names. None of which we can completely agree on. I like Claire & Annie best and Steve is STUCK on Lucy...which I am not crazy about. He won't budge. All I think of is the bratty friend from Charlie Brown. We'll see IF the baby is a girl and IF I can convince my husband that my names are better. Any comments....suggestions???

Easter 2009

This year we spent Easter with Grandma & Grandpa Drisko. We got up and went to Church and then to the Serrano Easter Egg Hunt. It was so cute to see all of the kids in their darling Easter Clothes.

I made a fruit tart for breakfast and it turned out pretty so I took a picture of it. I am such a nerd.






Serrano has a rule, that there are no easter baskets allowed and that each child only gets 12 eggs. So the cute Cammo basket the Easter bunny brought had to stay at home. Instead everyone had to use an empy Egg Carton.









It was a little bit chilly but over all it was a beautiful day. Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jill and the 3 of us all went together. It was Griffin's first Easter egg hunt and at first he just loved looking at the eggs and at the other kids. But with some encouragment from mommy & daddy, he decided to dive in and once he did he had a blast.







That night I made dinner. We had Duck A'L Orange, wild rice, fresh rolls, Asparagus and spinach, pear and candied waknut salad. It was yummy and something different thanhaving the traditional ham...which we had the week before. ooops! It was my favorite Easter so far.