Edwards Haps and Mishaps

I know. I haven’t posted anything in awhile. Life has been busy and we have been gone. We went to Utah to check out BYU’s law school and visit Shaun’s family. It was a fun time, though it is nice to be back and get back into a schedule (only to leave in a few days for another trip…) I always think I like traveling and going places…but with a kid it’s so much more of a hassle than it used to be! Oh well…there will only be more kids so I doubt it’ll get any easier!

Preston had a lot of fun in Utah. He got to see “Papa” and “Gamma” and many other family members. I was glad to see that he warmed up to everyone pretty fast (except for poor Beamer.) Sharing was something we got to work on a lot while out there…so that was good. I can’t say he’s any better, but at least we got in some practice, right?

The one “toy” that Preston didn’t have too hard of a time sharing with Addison was the piano. They loved sitting there and banging on the keys together.

And here’s Preston NOT sharing any of the balls…luckily they are probably covered in Beamer drool and no one wanted to play with them anyway :)

The weather was beautiful and we had a great time hanging out with family!

We have been slowly receiving replies from all the different law schools Shaun applied to. Today he got a call from the dean of admissions at BYU’s law school to extend him an invitation to attend there!!! AWESOME! Now is the hard part…deciding what the best choice is for our family…we have a few options at this point…I don’t like making decisions. Will someone else just tell me what we should do? Wouldn’t that be so much easier? Oh, it would…

Why is it that babies explore the world with their mouths? We had our first experience with Preston getting a hold of markers…well, more like a poster board with marker on it. Shaun and I were both in the family room with him and both doing our own thing. Preston was in between us and when I thought for a minute, “hmm…what is Preston up to?” I looked down and there he was. Poster board in his mouth and marker ALL over his face. We were both RIGHT next to him yet neither of us realized he had been gnawing on the lovely chore chart I started. Luckily Crayola makes those suckers non-toxic!! The picture doesn’t quite capture what a mess he truly was.

This morning we woke up early and went to the stake center for the 2nd annual Citrus Heights Stake 5K!! Fun. My dad and I ran it while Shaun and Preston waited at the finish for us. I was shooting for 10 minute miles so that I wouldn’t be disappointed in my time, but I pushed and ended up finishing in 24:21…so much better than I had thought I would do! I was excited. Poor dad pulled his calf at the 2 mile mark and had to limp all the way back. Before that he was doing 7 minute miles…we are pretty sure he doesn’t realize he is 54!! I used to call him the “get-in-shape-dad” when I was a kid, and he still is. I think that is where I get my love for exercise, thanks pops!!

As we were running, Kelsey stood in line for hours at the Folsom Auto Mall to audition for “Deal or No Deal.” She made it to the second round and now she’s waiting to be interviewed again!! Good luck Kels!

We always catch him sneaking out of, or into, any closed door. What a little mischievous man. Plus, check out those dimply elbows, the little chunker! He may not look it on the outside, but get him in his birthday suit and I am sure he loses snacks in all those rolls :) And speaking of his birthday suit, he seems to have found his “tail,” as Jenelle Whitman refers to it. So every diaper change, his hand head right down to it and every time I pull his little mitts away he laughs and thinks it’s a game…hmmm…boys.

I feel this video describes Preston. What was once a quiet chill baby, is now an energetic loud kid who loves to hear himself and make noise with anything he can get his hands on! Christer, you’re on.

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We just returned from Portland and had a great time! We seemed to have come at the perfect time too…we experience absolutely NO rain!! How did that happen? Apparently the entire winter is usually spent either in the rain or under cloudy skies, but we had beautiful sunny days. Perfect. We stayed with Cooper and Alisha and their two adorable girls, Jenelle and Meri. Preston loved hanging out with other kids, and especially loved chewing up any piece of paper or food that anyone left lying around. He’s a nut, we can’t let him alone for even a minute! My favorite part: while changing Preston’s diaper Jenelle (2 1/2 years old) said, “He has a tail.” She’s a crack up. You can tell she only has a sister!

While up there we also were able to visit Shaun’s grandma and grandpa Edwards and my grandpa McGagin. Now Preston has met all of his great-grandparents! We had fun and took lots of pictures….so I’ll put some up once I get them onto the computer. On our last night we all went to Claim Jumpers and ordered desserts. Shaun and I shared the “I Declair.” It was the BIGGEST eclair I had ever seen…in my life. Probably the size of a football. It was amazing, though we probably don’t want to eat another eclair for a long time. We stuffed ourselves, then kept eating. I hate when I do that, but I just couldn’t stop. Being in Portland was fun…it was fun to see all the places Shaun used to hang out and where he grew up, but it’s also nice to be back in our own bed with Preston in the other room!

Yesterday was Preston’s first trip to the zoo! We went with Jami and Jackson and the day was beautiful. Probably about 70 degrees. Amazing. I was in shorts and a t-shirt…in February…it was lovely. Anyway, Preston got to see monkeys, tigers, bears, mountain lions, coyote, and tons of birds…especially chickens and roosters. The chickens and roosters are all over the place, they don’t have cages or anything, they just roam free anywhere they like around the zoo, city hall, the library…really wherever. There were pretty much unorganized cock-fights happening outside the zoo gates. Jackson kept saying “Chickens scary.” All in all it was a successful trip with only one scraped knee.

There are some more pictures in “our Photos” if anyone is interested!!

What am I doing inside on the computer? It is in the mid 60′s, the sun is out, birds are chirping…yeah ,I really don’t know what I am doing in here! Oh well. Preston is enjoying himself while sitting in his extreme exer-saucer toy and I am hesitant to go over and get him though I know I need to. I have watched him several times turn slightly red while a half grin spread across his face…his “I’m pooping” grin. I know what I am in for once I walk over there…plus the fact that he has been bouncing up and down in that thing after each push…he seems perfectly content though, jabbering and squeaking while sitting in his own filth. I’ll grab him in a minute.

Valentines day is coming up. Is anyone doing anything fun and exciting? We decided last week that we would go up to Portland for the weekend so we’ll spend Valentines Day in the airport…but we are going on a fun trip! I am excited to go up there…we haven’t been back since we were married! This should be a nice little vacation for us.

I get to teach the Laurels tomorrow and the lesson is on preparing to be an eternal companion. I remember being that age and feeling like marriage was so far away and that all this information was great but not applicable to me yet. I hope I can say something that will help them realize that marriage and a family are not as far away as they seem and that you don’t become a whole new person after you walk out of the temple holding hands. I don’t think I consciously thought that I would be different but I know in my head I pictured myself different as a married woman. So much more mature and grown up. But I was still messy and didn’t know much about bills and insurance, taxes or cooking. I am excited to teach tomorrow and hopefully they will get something from the lesson!

Poor Preston is probably rotting over there. I’m going to get him.

I know, I know…you have all been checking our blog every single day wondering when we are going to post something. Many of you live each day wondering what is going on in the lives of Shaun and Janelle…okay, probably not…but it really has been quite some time since I wrote on our blog!! I was quite the addict when we lived in Utah. Maybe because our apartment was small and I was either in the bedroom or in the front room by the computer so it was easier to surf the web…I don’t know. Anyhow, we made it to California and many will be jealous to hear that it is going to be almost 60 degrees this week and sunny. Oh, what a great feeling that is! Shaun was supposed to start his job last Monday but there was a massive, crazy storm when we got here so the police department was busy dealing with the chaos of fallen trees and downed power lines so they couldn’t get his finger prints and background check done. They didn’t want so hoodlum working for them so they postponed his first day until tomorrow. He was able to go out to lunch with the city manager this week and get a tour of the office. Shaun even gets his own cubicle! How fun. His first project begins tomorrow and he will be meeting with a committee to discuss how to fix a parking situation in down town Folsom which is apparently ugly. We’ll let you know how that goes.

Preston has made some huge strides (not literally…) He had been getting up on his hands and knees but mostly just scooting backwards or staying in the same spot. Today we held a toy out in front of him a few feet away and he would get onto his hands and knees, start rocking back and forth, and eventually heave himself forward as many times as he needed to, to get where he wanted!! I seriously think he will be crawling soon! We tried to get a video of him doing this heave-ho thing but once the camera came out he all of the sudden became so interested in everything else EXCEPT his new trick, so we’ll work on getting that documented so all can share these crazy fun times :)

My sister, Kelsey, and I have started training for a half marathon which we are planning on running in April. I am not as out of shape as I thought I would be but she is still running me into the ground!! In the end this will all be worth it, I have to keep telling myself.

We are doing well here so far and miss our family and friends in Utah! We hope you are all doing well! Exciting adventures are in store and I’ll be sure and write every step of the way. LOVE YOU ALL!

Thank you Jami for the tag…I’ve never heard of that before but I’d be happy to tell our story!
Where did you meet your husband?
Well, we were both attending the LDS Business College and one day I was walking into my art History class and he was walking out and we “bumped” into each other. He lived down in the Provo area and so did I so he volunteered to give me a ride up there with his friend Michael Papworth.
What was the first thing you said?
I am pretty sure he used this line that he thought was so clever because it didn’t sound like a pick up line, but started a conversation. Come to find out later, that was his line that semester that he used for all the girls. How sweet. He said, “Hey, where are you going?” I probably said, “uhh…to art history…”
Where was your first date?
Honestly…I have no idea…We dated for a month or so in 2004, but I wouldn’t really say we went on “dates.” Second time around (about a year later) was definitely more of a relationship and I think that first date we drove up Provo Canyon to this girl scout camp and went to Chevy’s with my mom!
Where was your first kiss?
We drove up to Rock Canyon and hiked along the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (I think that is what it’s called) and boom. It happened right there above the city lights. How romantic.
Did you have a long or short courtship/engagement?
I’m not really sure…we dated for about a month then broke things off for a year or so and the rekindled the flame the next year and were married 6 months later.
Where did you get engaged?
There is this gazebo on top of a mountain above Provo and I could never figure out how to get there. He found out the way and so we took a small hike and when we got there he had some friends set out roses and a wedding announcement that he had made and it had our names and our picture. He got down on one knee, pulled out a ring pop, and asked if I would marry him! I thought he was joking, but when I realized it was real I said, “YES.” Our friends were in the bushes taking pictures of the whole thing.
Where did you get married?
Oakland California Temple
How did the reception go?
It was absolutely fantastic!! The house we had it at was adorable and it was the perfect fall wedding! I wouldn’t change a thing!
The Honeymoon?
We drove up through northern California and then up the Oregon coast and ended in Portland for a second reception with Shaun’s friends and family.
Whose turn is next?
How about Alisha Whitman!