The Martin Family

love my bubs

2011-09-30T07:55:00.001-07:00

eli is 12 weeks old and such a wonderful addition to our family. I was so nervous about having a boy, and thought I may not know how to be a 'boy mom'....but this little man has melted my heart and I couldn't imagine my life without him!!

Little cuddle bugs

2011-08-01T10:56:00.001-07:00

Emma has decided that we "can keep him" and also this week she has stopped calling eli "it" and started calling him "he" or "eli"...we r making progress :)

twins?

2011-07-28T10:21:00.001-07:00

Emma and eli side pofiles

birth story

2011-07-23T14:47:00.001-07:00

It has taken me a while to get this posted because it has been a crazy couple weeks at the martin house! But here it is as promised.
At my 39 week visit my doctor and I discussed induction dates after she checked me and I was only 1cm and 50% effaced. So being 'not so favorable' meant the little dude got to keep cooking away for another week. We set induction for the 6th or july but also wait listed me for the 5th. My wonderful doctor was moving to chicago the 10th, so we wanted to make sure she got to deliver our little one.
The 4th of july rolled around and I thought for sure we would go into labor on our own after long walks, and accupressure! But no such luck.
On the 5th, we had our bags packed and every couple hours the labor and delivery unit would call and say they were too full for us. At 6 pm (after deciding it wasn't happening today and beng ok with it), they called and said to be there by 8 pm! Ah! I was so nervous and excited!
Brandon and I drove up to the hospital after leaving emma with my mom and sis at our house. It took awhile to get situated in the hospital room and get all hooked up to my iv. The good news was that the nurse started my iv in one attempt this time (instead of 4, like with emma). I took that as a good omen and tried to relax.

The didn't get pitocin started until about 11 pm. They had checked me first and surprisingly, I was dilated to a 2 and 70% effaced. So they started the pitocin and I opted to wait as long as possible before the epidural because I felt so crappy with it when I had emma. Brandon picked out some movies for us from the L&D units locked VHS movie closet..haha...he picked stargate and happy gilmore...

We watched both movies and in between we took walks in the hallways to try and tough out the contractions. Eventually we had to stop watching movies because they had turned the pitocin up all the way and I still hadnt had any pain meds. Brandon was awesome and was doing counter pressure on my lower back to help ease the contractions. But, by about 730 am, I was dilated to a 4, and they had broken my water so the contractions were pretty intense...so I decided to have the epidural

Well, just like with emma, only the right side of my body was numb...I could feel everything on the left side and even the right side wasnt fully numb. But my right leg was totally dead, so i couldnt move it or position myself very well. And just like with emma, Eli's heart rate started dropping so I had to lay on my side and wear oxygen. After I got as comfortable as i could, I let Brandon get some sleep because I thought we had a long day of laboring ahead of us. Around 11 am the babies heart rate kept dropping pretty low and the nurse came in to try and position me to help him get more oxygen. I was in lots and lots of pain and felt tons of pressure. she checked me and i was at a 5. She had the anesthesiologist come in and put more medicine in my epidural, but even after that I felt tons and tons of pain that was constant....so she checked me again (this was about 5 min after the first check) and i was a 7 and then went to an 8 while she was checking. The babies heart rate was in the 70's at this point so she yelled for some doctors, (my doctor was on her way but not there yet), so the anesthesiologist and 3 docs and 2 nurses are in the room. They were all scrambling around, putting the internal monitor on Eli's scalp and prepping the room. They started talking c section cuz his HR was so low and maybe needing a pediatrician to check him as soon as he was born. I started to get really nervous, and just wanted him out. Well my body must have listened to me cuz I felt the urge to push and told the nurse. Sure enough, they checked me and i was 10! I pushed 2 contractions and our little man was out! He looked a little pale but overall just great. His apgar scores were 8 and 9! Just like his big sister! He weighed in at 7lbs and 7 oz, 20 inches long. I got to hold him right away and he started nursing like a champ. My doctor managed to walk in the room right after he was born and she helped the other doctor stitch me up after (only 2 stitches, awesome). So, I went from 5 cm to 10 cm in about 10 minutes. haha, crazy!

Anyway, Brandon and I both fell in love with our little Eli right away. He was (and is) such a good little baby and we can't imagine our family without him!! I'd have to say that except for the small scare at the end of my delivery, the overall experience was very pleasant. I felt great after and the recovery so far has been awesome.

Welcome to the world Eli Ezra Martin!! We can't wait to see what the future has in store for you!!

Dadda holding eli for the first time

Eli Ezra Martin has arrived!!

2011-07-11T19:16:00.001-07:00

On july 5th, I went to the hospital to be induced. All went smoothly (will post birth story later) and at 11:25am on July 6th Eli Ezra Martin made his grand appearance!! Weighing in at 7lbs 7oz and 20 inches long. He is a sweet sweet baby and looks just like his dadda and big sister emma! Welcome to our family Eli. We love you so much!!

Changes

2011-06-28T13:27:00.001-07:00

Well its been a fun summer so far! Emma and dadda are best buds and having a blast while I'm on modified bed rest. Emma loves to swim and play with her cousins. We had her first dance recital and it was a blast. Emma decided to potty train herself a couple weeks ago and the timing couldn't be more perfect.

As for the pregnancy, we are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our little eli. Can't wait to see what he looks like! I'm on modified bed rest due to some pre clampsia concerns. Its hard to relax when we have so much to do to prepare but brandon is a huge help!

My emma

2011-05-04T14:48:00.001-07:00

Thought it might be time to update on our little emmabean...she is 2 and a half...going on 5. She has a varied and impressive vocabulary and somehow is picking up spanish pretty effectively from watching cartoons. I frequently don't understand when she throws a spanish word into her conversation haha. She loves her dadda, doesn't like sharing her mama and is a super picky eater. She is a super skinny minny and we are hoping she hits 30 lbs sometime in the year...or two....hhaha..she is a super sweet girl and we couldn't imagine our lives without her!!

PASS

2011-05-04T14:42:00.001-07:00

I am happy to say that I passed my 3 hr glucose test. How awesome. The stuff I had to drink was nasty, I felt sick the rest of the day and am so glad I passed. :) Here's hoping the rest of this pregnancy goes smoothly

FAIL

2011-04-16T11:24:00.000-07:00

Yes, I indeed failed my 1 hour glucose test. I passed it easily when I was pregnant with emma, and thought for sure I would pass it with our little baby Eli, however my body had other plans....

This doesn't mean that I have gestational diabetes, it just means now I have the priviledge of spending 3 hours of my life next saturday at the u of u hospital lab getting my blood drawn every hour for 3 hours...

I have already started researching the GD diet plans and have decided to pre-emptively change my eating habits and decrease my carbs to help the process along. Ill probably stick to this eating plan for the rest of pregnancy regardless of the results because you eat 6 times a day- little meals and snacks. For me, its really easy to forget to eat because I am so busy with work and a toddler. I have gained alot less weight with this pregnancy than i did with emma, so I am still a little surprised at my results.

It seems like this pregnancy has been full of all sorts of craziness...well as long as Eli arrives healthy and happy in about 10 or so weeks, Ill be a happy mama. We are so grateful for the blessing of having a baby boy on the way...although I can't make any promises about a 3rd child for us at this point ;)

Wish me luck on my test next saturday....I really dont want gestational diabetes and the possibility of a 10+ pound baby! ah!

My baby girl

2011-03-09T09:23:00.001-08:00

I can't believe how time flies...I remember when she was so tiny and would sit on my lap and cuddle for hours (probably cuz she wasn't mobile yet so she didn't really have a choice, haha)..now our little sweetheart is two and a half years old...I still have her in the crib upstairs in the nursery, although she does have a big girl bed and her own room on the main floor. Im not quite ready to have her sleeping downstairs yet though...Part of me wants to hold onto that little baby girl as long as I can.

The other day emma looked in the mirror at herself and exclaimed "Mom!! A little girl!!" it was so cute but also kinda heartbreaking at the same time cuz she usually refers to herself as "the baby"

I love the little person she is becoming and I cherish the little baby girl she used to be....

I just wish I could slow down time a little before this too is a distant memory of my sweet baby girl.......

Baby Dreams

2011-02-23T12:45:00.001-08:00

soooo...I guess the name game continues for us...
Last night I had a dream that we named our baby Sawyer instead of Eli...interesting...
I think its a totally cute name but we have been pretty stuck on Eli for a long time.
I think the baby is trying to tell me something..call me crazy!

So, what do you think of the new name choices:

1. Eli Sawyer Martin
2. Sawyer Eli Martin
3. Sawyer Elijah Martin

Any input from anyone- even if i dont know you and you are a blog stalker is welcome!!!

I Believe...

2011-02-14T09:30:00.000-08:00

I believe....

I believe that we are magic

that all things are possible

that life is precious

that peace is reasonable

that laughter is special

that blessings are divine

that love is grand...

and that you are the best thing thats ever happened to me!

I love you!

Over 5 years years ago I was lucky enough to marry my best friend. I am so lucky and still so in love :) Happy valentines day to a great husband and father!

Belly Shots- approx 20 weeks

2011-02-10T08:15:00.000-08:00

For the sake of documenting the gigantic, enormous boy growing inside of me, I have taken a couple belly shots. According to our last ultrasound he is growing fast, and big..haha..I left my pregnancy ticker at our original due date..but most likely he is coming in june instead of july. I have been able to feel him move for a couple weeks now and I look forward to it everyday. I already love this little guy so much and sometimes I get teary-eyed thinking about how amazing it will be having another precious child in our family.....cant wait to meet him!!!

The name game..........

2011-01-31T12:54:00.001-08:00

So now that we know we are having a little boy..the name game is on!!
We are debating between two names...one that I prefere and one that brandon prefers..I won't say which is which...but would love to have your input...so here they are

1. Daniel Elijah Martin
OR
2. Eli Daniel Martin

Which do you like best? :)

Scary Day..

2011-01-19T09:22:00.000-08:00

So monday morning I woke up and felt a little cramping on my left side...I thought nothing of it, dismissed it as probably round ligament pain and headed off to work. Once at work the pain got substantially worse and I could hardly stand. I was doubled over in my office..there was no way I could see a full day of patients. I quickly called my husband to take me to the ER (note: if you need to go to the ER- ALWAYS go to the U OF U). He drove me up to the u of u..the whole time we were noticeably nervous..what the heck was happening? Could something be wrong with the baby? I didnt know if I could handle losing another one....

Well they got me back pretty quickly, gave me some IV morphine, got labs, and then wheeled the ultrasound machine in..and thank goodness the baby was doing great!!! kicking and moving, great heart rate. Whatever was wrong with me wasnt the baby. I figured I could handle the pain as long as I knew our little guy was ok.

We spent the whole day in the ER and finally got a diagnosis of: KIDNEY STONES. wow..who saw that coming? definitely not me. Anyway..when they say that kidney stones feel like labor..yes..it is 100% correct. It is sooo painful. so they sent me home with pain meds because any other treatment options could hurt the baby.

So I have spent the last two days waiting...and waiting for this to be over...it is getting slowly better so I think the end is in sight. However, i must say that my husband has been absolutely wonderful- making me food, taking care of me when I throw up from the pain and watching little emma. He is great and deserves a treat when this is all over. Because seriously? A pregnant wife with kidney stones sounds like a mans worst nightmare to me..haha..

Anyway, I would like to end by saying that my kidney stones are really a blessing because I was so terrified that something was wrong with our little peanut...I would gladly deal with this anyday and cant wait to have him safely in my arms in about 5 months :)

It's a..............

2011-01-06T17:55:00.000-08:00

BOY!!!

We couldnt be more thrilled!

We went in for an ultrasound today to check on some concerns my doctor had..everything checked out ok. AND..the tech was able to tell the gender of our baby!! The baby basically flashed us the money shot and it was pretty obvious what it was once she pointed it out to me!!

The baby is also measuring big, which is great news. he measured at 15 weeks today and based on my due date i should only be 14 weeks 3 days...Well Im so grateful that things are going well for us so far this time.

Hopefully this sweet little boy continues to grow and be healthy, We can't wait to welcome him into our family in late june/early july!!!!!

Blog Stalking...OK or just plain creepy?

2011-01-03T11:23:00.000-08:00

Soo...blog stalking has been on my mind lately. I love reading my friends blogs and seeing what they are up to, especially since alot of my friends live in different states. Well, sometimes I notice an interesting title or post in their friends list..so I check out the blog. Most of the time its someone that I have met or at least is an aquaintance.
But sometimes its a total stranger and I read their post and move on...sometimes though their stories are really intruiging and even have moved me to tears at times. Its amazing how we all have a story..a heartbreak... a tragedy..and of course..joy....

Is it totally creepy to look at other peoples blogs or is it ok? Is there anyone out there that follows our blog (highly doubtful..Im pretty boring). If so..feel free to post so we know who you are and can check out ur blog too ;)

2010-12-30T10:00:00.000-08:00

Love these two!!!

New Calling

2010-12-29T14:03:00.000-08:00

We we just got released from being the co-chairs of the activities committee...it was so fun to work with Brandon and I was hoping that our next calling would be together as well.... and we LUCKED OUT!!

Last night we found out that we are getting called to be Den leaders in Cub scouts!!! How fun is that?! I am sooo super excited to plan fun activities and get to know the cute little guys that will be our scouts! Plus we get to go to DAY CAMP!! awesome!!

Brandon is super into scouting and totally thrives in a calling like this, so I will definitley be looking to him for advice and ideas. :)

Hope everyones holidays have been fantastic and fun filled. Have a safe and healthy new years

My Christmas Miracle

2010-12-22T12:24:00.000-08:00

Well well well...my heart is bursting with love and excitement..although I am still feeling cautious because of our loss of a pregnancy in August. We were blessed to become pregnant again right away after and have been keeping it a secret, however, now that its christmas I just can't keep this little miracle a secret any longer! Please pray for us that this baby will be healthy and will be able to join our family. We are about 12 and a half weeks and due between July 2nd and July 4th (it keeps changing).

Merry Christmas everyone! May your hearts be as full as ours :)

Christmas!!!!

2010-12-22T08:45:00.000-08:00

Its finally Christmas Week!! We are so excited to have a marathon christmas this year because Emma is so excited and finally grasps the concept of christmas, santa, presents, etc. Our christmas starts with a bang this week as my dad flies in from chicago to spend a week with us! We have the annual martin family party downtown tomorrow night then spend christmas eve and christmas at Brandon's families house and then the day after christmas is off to the Grand America for brunch and our own christmas at our house.

Emma has been a little turkey the last couple weeks and raids the house looking for her presents- mainly my closet..so that led to me being super organized (haha yeah right) and wrapping ALL the presents and putting them under the tree over a week ago. haha. She asked for a 'Puter' (computer) for christmas. Dadda gives her a special present every year so he got a a pink vtech lap top with a pink mouse thats designed for 2-4 year olds (sounds fancy but is extremely affordable :) She is going to freak out when she sees it!!

I love christmas time. I love the sounds and the smells and the lights. Its so romantic and cozy. Our house if fully decked out this year and its fun to get back some of that magic of christmas you feel as a child when you have young little ones in your home. Every year I try to find a Christmas Miracle thats happening around me or in my life...whats yours this year? I think there are some pretty big christmas miracles happening in our family this year... Ill let you know....

Giving Thanks

2010-09-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

Fall has always been my favorite season. Theres just something refreshing and a little romantic about the cold crisp air, changing leaves and cozy sweaters. I love dressing up for halloween and planning fun activities for our little family. Fall is a season of reflection and for being grateful for the blessings that we have been given.

Our little family has endured some hard trials lately, but as we have gone through this process together, we have found our bonds renewed and strengthened. I really do think there is a lot to be said about "putting positive energy out there"...because I find that when I do that, positive things come back to me...

I have decided that there is no more room in my life for negativity..negative energy is draining..and really..why waste time being negative? It doesn't accomplish anything execpt bringing people down.

Anyway, I am going to focus my energy this fall season on the wonderful things I have in my life.. We have so much to be grateful for..and I think we dont even realize it

Sad Day for the Martin Family

2010-08-04T07:37:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday we had our first ultrasound for the new baby. The baby measured at 9 weeks but they couldn't see or hear a heartbeat. So, they told us that the baby hasn't survived and that we should expect to lose the baby in the next few days. It was pretty sad news. I guess I am still kind of in shock because nothing has happened yet. But I also take comfort in knowing that things like this usually happen for a reason. I am so grateful for my sweet baby girl and loving husband. I am trying to take time to reflect on all the many blessings (and there truly are sooo many) I have in my life.

We will keep trying for another baby, but I think I want to take a break for a minute and just play and have some fun with Emma and Brandon.

Blog slacker and exciting news

2010-07-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

Well I know I am a blog slacker, but I promise to try and do better! We just got back from Chicago for a family vacation and we had a blast! We also have exciting news!!
We are expecting baby #2!!! We are due March 6th, 2011!! Stay tuned for updates

Emma Beanz Bowtique has an Etsy Site

2010-03-21T10:15:00.000-07:00

We are pleased to Announce that Emma Beanz Bowtique now has an ETSY site. This will make ordering our products much easier! We only have a few items listed currently but if you dont see what you want- contact us- we LOVE custom orders!!

site: http://www.etsy.com/shop/EmmaBeanz

shopname: Emmabeanz

Updates....

2010-03-04T10:08:00.000-08:00

Hand crocheted headband $20

Wow! What a blog slacker I am! So here is an update on our little family! Emma continues to grow like a weed. She is 22 lbs and 33.75 inches tall! At her Well child check up that put her height over the 99th percentile (off the chart) and her weight at the 25th percentile. Tall and skinny! She also is developmentally at a 2.5 year old level! Wow, emma! She has lots of words, some sentences and can draw circles! She is the sweetest little girl. Her favorite things are: her dadda, her kitties, visiting mama at work and animals. Her favorite foods are indian and italian. She can eat hotter curry than I can! She is such a trooper, she goes everywhere with us, she loves eating out and she has been on 6 airplane rides already! She loves playing with her cousins and visiting grammas and grampas. We are so lucky to have Emma in our little family and we just enjoy everyday we get to spend with her. We are so blessed to have a healthy and happy child.

As for us, Brandon is getting ready to Graduate with his MASTERS DEGREE (YAHOOO) on May 7th from the university of utah's MBA program. I am hoping that he will find a fantastic job, because I am working as a Nurse practitioner at 3 different places right now plus running my hair business. We are definitley a busy little family but we enjoy it. I am working at Aspen Cosmetic Dermatology in Bountiful (and yes, we are taking new patients and most insurances), ATM counseling and medical services, and Alpine Center for Personal Growth. My hair business is growing, emma beanz is now sold at our first retail location : Grow Up Great Pediatrics in Bountiful Utah!! YAY! Check out our blog for some new fun hair stuff for adults and girls.

emmabeanzbowtique.blogspot.com

Bows bows bows

2009-11-19T11:32:00.000-08:00

We are starting a business!! I have been crocheting since I was little, and finally decided to start a small business making cute hair accessories! I have posted a few items on our site, but more are definitely coming soon. I have recently made a TON of holiday clips.

Don't forget we have a family and friends discount!! email me if you see something you want! :)

I can customize anything, so if you want a specific color or center or number of petals, whatever, let me know. you can even send me pics of your outfits and I can make them match! :)

emmabeanzbowtique.blogspot.com

Emma's First birthday

2009-11-04T20:28:00.000-08:00

Ok...so I have turned into a serious blogging slacker..but in August Brandon went back to school and I started working a second job at a med spa doing fun stuff like botox and laser hair removal. So we have been very bust. But, not too busy to plan a really fun party for emma's 1st birthday!! She turned one August 20th, and we had the party two days after her birthday. We had a splash party with lots of her little friends and cousins. She had a blast! We love Emma so much and its so fun to watch her grow and learn more every day!

2009-08-17T07:54:00.000-07:00

Weigh In

current weight- 135

goal- 120

We started training for 5ks with the hope of doing a marathon or half marathon next summer. I am trying to run everyday but thats not happening. So this week i will do better! We ran a 5k last saturday and I am happy to say that I finished it! I didn't place very high, but at least I finished. and its good motivation to keep training!! :)

Eleven Months old!!

2009-08-04T09:14:00.000-07:00

Wow! Time sure flies when your having fun with your baby!! Emma is 11 months old now and we are preparing for the big first birthday bash!! She is such a sweet girl, it almost makes me sad to know that she is almost a toddler...I wish I could just keep her as my little baby for a little longer. Emma officially took her first steps on the fourth of july and broke her two top teeth on that day as well! She is such a big girl!

I am so happy that little Emma is so happy and healthy. Being a mom is the best thing that has ever happened to me (besides finding my awesome husband). Sometimes I feel overwhelmed by the amount of blessings in my life! i am thankful everyday......

Chicago Vacation

2009-07-16T21:32:00.000-07:00

We went to chicago in the beginning of June and we had a blast! We saw my dad, emma's greatgrandma's on my side, and my cousins Jamie and Kevin. We went to the brookfield zoo- which emma loved, played at Aunty Jamies house and over just had a blast. Emma did great on the airplane..she slept most of the way there and back! what an awesome little traveler!! here are some pics from our fun first big vacation with our little emma beans.

2009-07-13T09:15:00.000-07:00

Weight Loss Challenge

Ok..progress is still really slow, but at least its happening.

Current weight: 136

Previous:140

Goal: 117-120

Weight I was when I was pregnant with emma: 175

2009-07-02T11:06:00.000-07:00

WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE UPDATE

So I fell of the wagon.. we had a vacation to chicago, plus emma was sick for a while. anyway, none of the above are good excuses, but it's been super hard to lose weight. I am glad to say that for the past week and a half I have been back on the wagon and have lost the re-gained vacation pounds plus some. please cross your fingers and say a prayer for me that I can survive the 4th weekend without too much damage!!

Current Weight- 137 pounds
Starting weight- 140 pounds
Goal weight- 117-120 pounds

2009-05-25T18:30:00.000-07:00

MONDAY MORNING WEIGH IN

139.0

NO CHANGE

AHHHHHHHHHH

Maybe next week will be better

2009-05-19T09:20:00.000-07:00

Weight Loss Challenge Issues

So..I have been doing the weight loss challenge for a week and i have managed to lose a pound. Yay! but.. I have noticed that my breast milk supply has dramatically reduced..which is not good considering my little one will only drink breast milk..hates all food except water and those rice puffs. So...any advice? How do I continue to lose weight but still have breast milk supply...any thoughts or advice would be greatly appreciated!

2009-05-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

WEIGHT LOSS CHALLENGE
MONDAY MORNING WEIGH IN

WEIGHT- 139 LBS
PREVIOUS-140
GOAL-117-120

ITS A SLOW START. HOPE FOR BETTER RESULTS NEXT WEEK.

Weight Loss CHALLENGE

2009-05-11T08:15:00.000-07:00

Well, I think it's time. My baby girl is almost 9 months old now, so there are no excuses left. If I post this on my blog and have to be accountable, then hopefully I will get the weight off so I don't have to continue to post the same weight over and over on my monday morning weigh ins. So.. the story...When I got pregnant with my little girl I weighed between 117 and 120 pounds..I am 5' 5", so that put me at a comfortable size 2-4. I thought pregnancy would be easy and I would only gain the recommended 20-30 pounds. hahaha...thats pretty funny. By the time I delivered emma (8 days late, mind you), I had reached a whopping....wait..are you ready for it..? 175 pounds....... haha just thinking about it makes me laugh. totally ridiculous. Since that time I have lost 35 pounds, but seem to be stuck at the 140 lb mark. I refuse to buy new clothes and am stuck in the few pairs of size 6 pants that I have. So, the time is now...I have too many cute summer clothes packed away to waste them!!

Weight goal: 117-120 pounds

Current weight: 140 pounds

wish me luck!!!!!!!!!!

Easter!!

2009-04-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

yummy easter dinner!

hmmm..I can't wait to try corn!!

Brandon, Emma & Grandma!

Cutest bunny on the block!!

Shelley and Sean!

Baby and daddy going on the slide! first time ever

I love to swing!

Bouncing mommy on the trampoline! hahaha

Easter egg hunt!!

I look like a baby who from who-ville!
Opening easter baskets

Not so sure about this dress, mom!!
Emmas easter basket from mommy and daddy

Today was Easter.. and it was so fun I had to make sure I posted pics right away! Emma got to wear her new Easter dress...and cried..haha. But she started loving it after a few minutes. We also went out to Brandon's families house for dinner, Easter baskets and an Easter egg hunt! Emma loves being around all her cousins and just wants to play with them so bad, forgetting she is only 7 months old! We had a blast today..and Emma is one lucky baby- getting Easter baskets from mommy & daddy and grandma and grandpas!!

Baby's First Vacation

2009-04-12T20:01:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we decided it was high time to get out of dodge and go on a vacation. Where else is there to go in the middle of winter except Kanab, Utah? Haha..actually it was a really fun vacation. My cousin and some friends were camping in the Coral pink sand dunes, so we decided to go camping with them. Because it was still pretty cold at night, we got a hotel so emma wouldn't freeze her seven month old butt off. She wasn't too into the camping part of the trip or the sand dunes, BUT she LOVED swimming in the pool in the hotel and playing the jacuzzi in our room. Emma looked so cute in her little baby-kini! Emma's favorite part of the trip was when we spent the day at the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Angel Canyon. She loved looking at all the animals and tolerated the one and a half hour tour like a champ! Overall, the trip was really fun and Emma surprised us because it turns out that she is a great little traveler! Can't wait to go on our chicago trip in a month!

New hair...again

2009-02-27T11:59:00.001-08:00

So I couldn't really do the brown hair thing for very long. It was only a month before my inner blond started wanting to come out again. So I gave in and here is the result! I also chopped about 12 inches (at least) off my hair and I went for a total transformation! haha, I love changing my hair up, its the most fun accessory!

Six month old Girl!!

2009-02-27T10:00:00.000-08:00

Emma is six months old now! She can almost crawl and can almost pull herself up to a standing position. She is so cute and We love her so much!!! :) She also has her first friend "Pia" and they loved having their first play date. They weren't quite sure what to do with each other but they laughed and smiled and pulled each others hair. It was so funny. We also got emma her first baby sunglasses. She looks so cute in them and doesn't mind wearing them at all!

So Big!

2009-02-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

Emma thinks she is SO big now because she can sit up and play all by herself! It is so cute to see her grow and learn so much! She also can stand up on her own if she is holding onto something. She is definitely ahead of the curve and I am convinced that she is our very own baby genious! Emma will be six months old next friday! She is also much better from having the croup after eleven days of being really sick and on steroids. It is heartbreaking to have a sick baby, but now that she is better she is so happy and has so much energy. We spent all day monday playing, I didn't do anything else but play with her all day, it was so much fun!

Emma has Croup

2009-02-04T18:17:00.000-08:00

Dear Emma,
I am so sorry you are sick. I hope you get better soon!
Love, Mommy
P.S. you are cute and I love you ! xoxo

Happy 5 months/baby loves bathtime!

2009-01-21T10:35:00.000-08:00

Emma is officially five months old now! She is a high energy baby with lots of smiles! She loves to play with daddy and mommy! She is finally sleeping almost through the night. She still has no teeth, but I am convinced she is teething. She loves to chew on things and roll over tummy to back and back to tummy! She thinks she can crawl but can't yet. Her favorite time of day is bathtime! we love baby emma!

Christmas 2008 slideshow

2009-01-19T18:27:00.001-08:00

Baby Einstein

2009-01-09T09:11:00.001-08:00

We got Emma a baby Einstein bouncer seat with a bunch of toys that surround it. She is crazy for it and loves to play with all the toys. Its so nice for me that she can finally entertain herself for a few minutes because I can finally get more stuff done around the house!

Lunch time

2008-12-30T13:22:00.000-08:00

Since it is christmas break and Brandon is off of school, he is able to help alot with Emma. So that means mommy gets to work alot more! The best part of my day is when baby and daddy bring me lunch and we get to hang out before I see my afternoon patients. Emma loves getting to spend her days with her daddy and I know she will miss it when school starts up again in a couple weeks!

Four month old girl!!

2008-12-30T11:00:00.000-08:00

Baby Emma turned four months on December 20th, 2008!!!

Sippy cup

2008-12-29T11:59:00.000-08:00

So we decided to start giving Emma some breast milk in a sippy cup since she keeps shoving her hands onto our plates of food during meal times. She totally knew what it was before I even handed her the cup and was so excited to be a big girl drinking from a cup! Now she gets her cup every dinner time so she can eat with mommy and daddy!! Its so cute! Being a mom is the best!

Christmas Hat!

2008-12-22T12:15:00.000-08:00

Emm got her christmas hat yesterday and she looks so cute in it! She totally loved it! A cute girl in our ward makes them so I ordered one for emma. You can check out all her stuff at hatsbyash.blogspot.com

Lunch time!

2008-12-21T13:55:00.000-08:00

Emma loves sitting in her bumbo chair and helping mom cook!!

Baby's first jazz game

2008-12-12T09:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, I know. Who takes their four month old baby to a jazz game? In December?! haha, that's right, US! I was pretty skeptical about it at first, but we decided to buy Emma some ear muffs to mute out the noise, and she did just great! We met up with some of Brandon's school friends at Rumbi's in gateway for some pre-game food and then walked over to the ESA to watch the game. We left at half time cuz we had to get Emma home and to bed. Overall, the highlight of the night was all the crazy looks we got from people who were noticing Emma's ear muffs! We probably will not take her to another jazz game until she is a little older!

2008-12-01T17:12:00.001-08:00

2008-12-01T16:53:00.000-08:00

Well the past two weeks have been super full of fun and family. So, I decided that instead of a billion little posts, I would just post a slide show! So in the pics you will see our pics with santa- or at least the cousins getting ready for their pics.
My sister in law, Sharee and my mother in law and I decided that we would start hiding veggies in our meals we make for our families and we got Jessica Seinfeld's cookbook. So we spent all afternoon one day pureeing beets, sweet potatoes, cauliflower, carrots and butternut squash. Last night I made turkey noodle soup and put in cauliflower, carrot and sweet potato puree and it was delicious!
This past week we also had two thanksgivings with our families. My family drove in from South Carolina and it was a really fun week. Emma had her blessing last sunday as well. All in all, it was a really fun thanksgiving and brandon and I celebrated our three year anniversary!

Before and After

2008-11-20T10:28:00.000-08:00

So I decided it was time for a change...and I went from a blond to a brunette! Now the whole family matches! haha. I like it so far, but will probably end up blond again before summer!

Bath time!

2008-11-19T11:32:00.000-08:00

Baby emma loves her bath time..i just had to post this pic cuz she looks so cute! :)

Daddy's girl!

2008-11-17T16:16:00.000-08:00

We all know how little girls love their daddies, but our little girl is just totally crazy for her daddy! She loves to give him smiles and will catapault herself out of my arms and onto him whenever she gets the chance!

Emma loves her toys!

2008-11-17T16:09:00.001-08:00

Emma loves to play with her toys. She could spend all day rotating from her swing, to her bouncer to her lion toy that makes noise. She loves to play...as long as she can still see mommy while she is playing (which means I still can't get anything done!)

Bumbo

2008-11-12T12:32:00.000-08:00

My awesome sister in law, Sharee let us borrow her little boy Brady's bumbo chair for Emma. And she loves it!! She is such a good girl and sits and tries to play with her toys. This is nice for me cuz I can try to get some laundry and dishes done while she is playing! She also loves those toys that make the crinkly sound but I can't find them anywhere, if anybody knows where to find them, let me know!

2008-11-11T09:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterday baby and mom went shopping for baby's first winter coat. We looked at alot of different coats, but finally settled on the pink one with a furry collar of course! She loves it and now will be all toasty warm for winter. Of course, the coat is a 12 month size and baby emma is only three months old! haha..it fits her great though, I have a super human growing baby girl!

Baby loves daddy!

2008-11-08T12:40:00.000-08:00

We love saturday mornings in the Martin Family. Mostly because we get to all sleep in and enjoy the whole day together as a family. This morning I was lucky enough to catch daddy and baby cuddling and yawning together at the same time! It was too cute! Then we went on a walk to get smoothies and......adopted another kitty for our little jay jay to love. What a fun day!

2008-11-07T09:45:00.001-08:00

Emma is now 11 weeks old! She is growing like a weed and is already wearing six to nine month size clothes! She has recently learned to roll over and looks like she is getting ready to start crawling. I swear my baby really is six months old, not two and a half months old!

Baby Girl!

2008-11-07T09:39:00.000-08:00

Ok, I know I am the biggest slacker when it comes to posts. But now that baby emma has arrived, I will try to do better! Baby Emma was born 8/20/2008 and we have loved every minute of having our sweet baby girl in our little family! She is a really happy baby!

My Husband is a Super Genius

2008-04-24T13:28:00.000-07:00

Yahoo!! We just found out that Brandon got accepted to the Masters of Business Administration program here at the University of Utah! The timing couldn't be more perfect! He will start in august- a week after our baby is due!! I will be graduating from my masters program next week, so it seems everything is falling into place for us! We have so many blessings in our lives and are so grateful for them all!

The growth of the baby bump

2008-04-24T13:23:00.001-07:00

16 weeks preg
19 weeks
19 weeks

6 months from front and the side!

It's a GIRL!!!

2008-04-01T13:53:00.000-07:00

We had our ultrasound a couple weeks ago and found out we are having a sweet baby girl!! We are very excited!!! I'm still measuring big, so we will see if she really holds out until August 12th to come!! We are going to name her Emma Grace Martin...I post nursey pics when we get that underway!! yay!! The pic is my baby belly at 19 weeks!!! We are 21 weeks now and more than half way there!

We are expecting!!

2008-02-01T09:23:00.000-08:00

Brandon and I are expecting our first baby in August of this year!! We are so excited! We are currently three months along. I am so excited to be out of the first trimester!! The morning sickness and heartburn are finally starting to slow down! It's really nice. We will keep posting about the pregnancy and hopefully put up some pics soon, although I don't really look pregnant, I just look like I have been eating too many donuts! haha

The Jacobsen Family

2007-08-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Brandon and I got to go to the Salt Lake Temple and watch my cousin Angela and her family be sealed together. It was an amazing day. I was in tears as I watched Angela and Jeff be sealed together forever..Angela and I have been through everything together and I am so proud of her for working so hard!! It was a great day. I was lucky to have my mom there with me and also my great aunt and uncle. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful eternal family

INCUBUS!!!!

2007-08-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

Check out those clouds behind Bam!!

The drunk frat kids are right behind us.
Our skittles Ammunition

On July 17th Brandon and I went to the Incubus concert! We love incubus and even though we think the new cd is pretty weak, their older music is great! We went to Usana to see them and after we got our blanket all nice and spread out on the grass it started to POUR! There was crazy amounts of lightening and thunder. We got totally soaked, but we toughed it out and stayed for the show. There were about 20 drunk frat kids in front of us that were super entertaining. We took bets on which one would puke and pass out first--I think I won the bet! haha. Brandon and I also got into a skittles war with two little kids that kept ambushing us!! It was an awesome show

LLAMA FEST!!!!

2007-08-20T17:07:00.000-07:00

In July, we decided to go to LLAMA Fest in Spanish Fork. It was a pretty interesting day. We luckily didn't get spit on by any Llamas. Brandon did find a pretty cool hat that he liked. Llama fest was held a Hindu temple that is in the middle of nowhere but it is really cool. I really wanted to get a henna tattoo on my hand but brandon was too freaked out by the crazy hippy lady doing them...so I got a fake tattoo the next week when we went to the rodeo in Idaho! yahooooo..luckily for me we didn't stay at llama fest too long--my sunscreen didn't hold up well. But we did get to see a very entertaining llama race and the llama awards ceremony..It was also pretty enjoyable to see the mormon missionaries and all the hippies living together in perfect llama harmony....yay for llama fest!!

Bathroom remodel

2007-06-28T19:41:00.000-07:00

Last week Brandon noticed our toilet was leaking, so like a good husband, he took his tools to the bathroom to fix the problem. When he tried to tighten a part of the toilet, the enamel cracked! Since we had to replace the toilet, we decided we might as well re-do the whole bathroom...ourselves!! Here is the first pic of what we have done so far!! We have pulled the toilet off the wall, taken out the vanity and sink, and pulled the carpet (sick! Who puts carpet in a bathroom??!!) off the floor!! We hope to get that huge mirror off this weekend and to sand the wallls!! we will keep updated pics on here!! Wish us luck!! :)

SURPRISE!!!!!!!!

2007-06-28T19:31:00.000-07:00

Brandon's birthday isn't until July, but I decided to have a surprise party for him in April. He is always surprising me with things, and its pretty hard for me to get him!! My family was leaving for Delaware for the summer at the beginning of May, so my mom and I spent a few weeks planning a surprise birthday party for him! I managed to pull it off and he was really surprised! We had an island theme and decorated the whole house! Of course he will still be getting another party and more presents in July....

Pimp my Campsite

2007-06-28T19:27:00.000-07:00

We spent the first weekend of our summer vacation camping with friends and family at Goblin Valley. The trip was so much fun! We spent our time hiking, camping, cooking and riding four wheelers. Of course, the boys decided to make the best fire pit ever and 'pimped our campsite'! Haha..the fire pit was huge! Our camp site was awesome. It was the best way to start the summer!!

The Martins

2007-04-21T22:48:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our family webpage!! We are the Martins and right now our little family consists of Brandon and Lauren, Jay (our kitty), four baby finches, two lizards and one hamster! Welcome to the Martin family petting zoo!! Haha.. Right now we are living in Bountiful, Utah in a condo we bought last May. I am half-way through my masters program at the University of Utah and Brandon is finishing up his undergrad at the U of U. We are both working at the University Neuropsychiatric Institute- we actually met there!! Brandon works in medical records and plans to get a PhD in medical informatics. We have been married for a year and a half and love it!