Some of you know and some of you may not know that Chris and I struggled to have a baby. (I'm pretty sure you all know because we didn't really keep it a secret, but maybe not.) Anyway, after two years I finally went to see a fertility specialist. It was really hard for me to make that step because it meant that I had to admit to myself that there was a problem, and of course a chance that I'd never get pregnant. The first thing I had to do was have a laparoscopy to remove the endometriosis I had. (NOT something, by the way, that I would recommend!) The recovery was supposed to be only 3 days, but it was 3 days before I could even walk on my own, and another 3 or 4 days until I could walk normal. My doctor hoped that that alone would fix things, but it didn't so we moved onto the next thing. Chlomid. Chlomid increases your chances of pregnancy by making your body produce more eggs at a time. We combined the chlomid with doing an IUI and for four months hoped and prayed it would do the trick. When that didn't work, we finally had nothing left to do but invitro fertilization. This involved lots of drugs (the legal kinds, of course!), 60+ days of shots administered by Chris (some days it was more than one shot, and at one point it was 4), a minor surgical procedure to remove the eggs, and then a minor non surgical procedure to put the embryos back in (which involved lots and lots of water and a very full bladder...NOT FUN!) Then after years of trying, years of heartbreak and crying, months of shots and hormones, and weeks of waiting for the news, we finally got the news we'd been waiting for. I was pregnant!


It took a long time for me to get around to it, but I finally took Ava back to my fertility doctor to get a picture taken of them together. The picture above is of Ava and Dr. Trout. I also got to know the nurses and other staff members really well and have a couple of other pictures below.


So, the point of the story is......


Someday, when Ava is older and starts getting curios and asks the question every parent dreads...."Mom, where do babies come from?" I can proudly say "well, there is this doctor, and she has this small dish called a petri dish....."

Ava and Michelle
















Ava and Melinda

Our ward recently decided to put on a fundraiser for the young men and young women to earn money for camp this year. They decided to do a hoedown theme, and they charged people to get in and then they had an auction to help raise money as well.
So a couple of sunday's ago a friend of mine came up to me and said "I've already talked to chris but I figured I'd better tell the wife too, just to make sure he remembers. " "Okay," I say. "What do I need to remember?" She says "well I'm going dress my kids up as cows and then have people try to rope them. Your husband agreed to teach some people how to rope, so I just wanted to make sure he remembers and you guys come."
A few minutes later I run into Chris. "You know how to rope?" I say. "Of course!" he says back to me. (Like it should be totally obvious. Excuse me, just because you grew up on a ranch doesn't mean you know how to rope. This isn't 1908, it's 2008! Ranchers do things different now.) Anyway, I say "oh" and we move on.
Later, Chris and I are talking about it again and he says "I need to buy a rope so I can learn." "WHAT?" I said. "You said you know how!" Chris says "I know the basics, I just need to practice."
So I'm confused, do you know how to rope or don't you? Well anyway, Chris got his rope, practiced and then at the hoedown did a demonstration and was lucky enough to actually get it on his first try. I wasn't there to witness it (I was in Florida) but I'm taking his word for it.
So when I got back Chris taught me how to rope. I always knew I married a cowboy, but now its official. I'm a cowgirl.
So here is a video of me roping. (unfortunately it's not a cow. that would have been awesome.)

Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Casserole

2 C. diced cooked chicken
8 oz. frozen broccoli cuts, cooked and drained
1/4 C. sour cream
1/4 C. mayo
1/2 tsp chicken bouillon granules, dissolved in 1/4 C. hot water
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 C. shredded cheddar cheese
4 -5 pieces of bacon, friend crisp and chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Place cooked chicken in casserole dish; top with broccoli. Combine: sour cream, mayo, chicken bouillon (dissolved in water), and garlic powder. Pour over chicken & broccoli. Sprinkle with bacon pieces and top with cheese. Bake at 350* for 30 min.

When Ava was born a friend of mine brought us this dinner. It was really good so I asked for the recipe. I thought I'd share it with you all. This is what my kitchen looked like when I made it. But, I had just come home from the grocery store and I was making two new recipe's in one night. My kitchen isn't always a disaster when I cook.

My sister-in-law Lorie used to tell Chris and I all the time "Enjoy not having kids while you can." She loves her kids of course and so do we, but she was right. Having a baby changes everything. We can no longer just pick up and go and do whatever we feel like. I'm constantly thinking "well, she'll need a nap at this time" or "she'll need to eat again at this time" etc. So for the most part we have to entertain ourselves at home. And of course, where else are we going to find amusement except with Ava? So, for some strange reason Chris and I enjoy messing with Ava while she's asleep. Here is a little footage of our amusment. We call it "playing dead".