Been Looking Forward To This

Watch "Swimming!!!" on YouTube

Yes. That's right. We took Warren swimming and it was a great success! I've been prepared for this day since before he was even born, thanks to my best friend who got me swim.diapers and baby swim trunks.

It was so fun. He wasn't even phased by going into the water. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't super warm either. I think they said that the small pool (where we were) is 88 degrees and the large pool is 83 degrees. Warren didn't even really make a sound the whole time. He just looked around as we played with him. He's such a chill kid!!

After about 20 minutes we noticed his jaw starting to chatter so we.realized it was time to come out.

Ray took Warren with him to the change rooms and I guess that's where the adventure began. Turns out Warren HATES showers. Ray said he was screaming hard even though the water was warm and he wasn't getting any in his eyes. Good thing Ray laughs at stuff like that!

I'm so glad we had that experience together as a family. It's so wonderful being all together again, and this time for good.

New Toy!

Well as frustrating as the whole process was, I finally got my phone. My very first smart phone and it seems to have opened up a whole new world to me! For example... I can now blog on the go. This freedom is awesome!

By the time I got my phone, I was pretty sure the world had conspired against me because NOTHING was going smoothly. I went to get my car registered and after the third time going to the office, they finally told me they couldn't do it until my actual green card came. Time. Wasted. Got a letter from immigration welcoming me to the USA and saw that my zip code was wrong. Whoever input that information switched two numbers. When I called to correct it, I realized that would slow down the arrival of my green card. Signed up for the YMCA and they got one of my credit card numbers wrong so I had to fix thY before they tried to charge me for the monthly fee. Had I not realized that had happened I would have had a $20 fee to pay. All the while waiting for my phone to come in the mail. 

So after more than a week of my phone not coming, we found out that it was because there was some money owing on the account and my phone wouldn't ship until it was paid off. We wouldn't have known unless we asked and we'd have just kept waiting endlessly. One the money was paid, the phone was shipped but still... Three days later it wasn't here still. Some overnight shipping eh?? Well Ray got an email that day with a UPS tracking number and when He checked it, it said it had been delivered the day before. Ray went to the apartment office and they said that nothing was there for us and there was nobody in the office that had the name that the tracking number said it was signed for by. So confused. Ray called UPS and as soon as they checked the tracking number they saw that it had been delivered to the wrong address. Ray got the address it was delivered to and instead of letting them deal with it (which would have taken another two weeks) he just went to pick it up on his own. Turns out it was delivered to an actual Sprint store. Makes no sense.

Anyways... After all that I finally got my phone. Complete gong show.

I'm pretty stoked to have a smart phone. Like I said. A whole new freedom. Haha. I feel like I've finally caught up with the rest of the world. Awesome.

Don't Worry. I'm Alive.

Yes. I took a blogging vacation. My loving husband tried to fill in for me, so I appreciate that. Sorry if you were confused by the last post with the sudden change in writing style. It wasn't me. haha. Anywho...

I had a really really REALLY hard time leaving Canada. I didn't want to blog because I didn't want to acknowledge that I was leaving my home, the place where I was raised, forever. The thought of making my home somewhere else was entirely too overwhelming for me. I realized that I would still be going back to Edmonton for visits, but thinking that I would probably never LIVE there again was the cause of many many tears. The thought of being with my husband again was definitely exciting, but I think I almost forgot what it was like. That made moving even harder.

But I tried to be tough, and made it through the packing (I LOATHE packing), the multiple goodbyes, and the hardest goodbye of all with my parents. I love that my relationship with them grew as I stayed with them these past few months, but that just made it that much more difficult for all of us. And to top it off, I felt like the most evil person for taking their grandson away from them. They both love him SOOO much..

Needless to say, my attitude was more on what I was losing and less on what I was gaining. I'm thankful that my parents, the rest of my family and my friends understood that I was doing the right thing by going to be with my husband. We all agreed though with how much it sucked that joining my husband meant being so far away, especially considering that my whole family is all in Edmonton. With the exception of one aunt and two cousins, I'm the only one who's ventured out. The understanding of my loved ones made it a little easier for me to move on.

The morning I left was pretty rough. I've said goodbye to my parents before, but this one was different. I'm not coming back to stay. They were both crying, and I was crying, and it was just not a happy experience. I drove out of the driveway and I didn't wanna look back. I think that would have made things even harder.

So the giant exodus began...

I drove to Calgary, and stopped at their new shopping center, Cross Iron Mills, to feed Warren. He slept the whole way there, so I was pretty lucky. I found the nursing area in that mall, which was insane! It was a room with at least 8 rocking chairs, two changing stations, a microwave, and a big TV playing the Treehouse channel. haha. I wanted to make sure Warren was getting enough attention throughout this road trip because the poor guy would be stuck in the back of the car facing away from me in his carseat for the next three days. So I made sure to play with him at every stop I made and hope that I tuckered him out enough to sleep through the next stretch. It worked relatively well. I think the fact that Warren is such an amazing baby added to how successful we were at travelling together.

Once I was done feeding him, I made a pit stop at Peter's Drive-In. I probably won't be going there anytime soon, so I binged and got two cheeseburgers and a banana-oreo milkshake.

Next stop was Lethbridge. I wasn't so successful at finding such an amazing nursing area there. I went to a mall, but just ended up feeding him in a fitting room in The Bay (department store). I also stocked up on my Canadian Olympic Team swag. I got myself a Canada t-shirt and new gloves, and I got Warren a super adorable Canada track suit. It's still a little big, but babies grow. haha.

After that, I crossed the border. For the first time in two years, I crossed the border without being interrogated. I had all my immigration papers so all I had to do was go inside the building and wait for them to process some papers and stamp my passport. Once they did that, I again had no luck finding a nursing area, so I just fed him in the waiting area. That nursing cover is probably the best investment I have ever made. I'm just glad I crossed the border in the evening. I was the only one there.

The last leg of the day was to Great Falls, MT. Nothing to see there. haha. I checked into a hotel and got a room with a King size bed. What I learned about King size beds is that they're too big because when I put Warren in the middle of it, I couldn't reach him without crawling onto the bed myself. haha.

The next day of travelling was BORING. I was driving through Montana and Wyoming. Nuff said. I really just wanted to go the rest of the way that day, but Warren definitely let me know it was time to stop when we did. I made it to Casper, WY on the second day.

The last day was the shortest day of travelling at six hours. I made one stop in Cheyenne, WY. From there, you just have to drive through Ft Collins and Denver, then it's a 45 minute to Colorado Springs. It was the Denver part that was the hardest. I ended up getting there at around 3:00 and it was already full on rush hour traffic. Stop and go for a whole hour. Warren doesn't like stop and go. He just likes go because he sleeps. As soon as you stop, he wakes up, and that's just not always the happiest experience for him or I. So the whole hour it took me to drive through Denver, I was trying to calm Warren, keep his soother in his mouth, and pay attention to traffic. Ugh... It's an experience I would rather never repeat. Actually... This whole road trip doesn't ever need to happen again.

I made it though. An hour late, but I made it to my husband and my new home.

He was so happy to see us both. Warren didn't show any signs that he recognized his dad, but they were only together for a week after he was born. It didn't take long for Warren to become reacquainted with his Daddy.

So now I'm here. Colorado Springs is where I call home. I have so much more to talk about but there's so much to say that I'm just gonna spread it all out.

I love being with my husband. He makes me so happy. Despite leaving my family back home, my own family is once again together, and that's how it should be.

I needed that.

Finally decided to make a appearance on this blog!

I would like to tell you about a awesome experience that happened this weekend. On friday night I was contacted by Kayla Muraya. She was someone that found the gospel because we shared it with her. It was an amazing story of faith and action. We found her tracting the first week of the transfer and she was baptized within 6 weeks. As a missionary in the south, it was a miracle! As time went on she got married and has traveled the country with her husband Steve. Who is from Kenya. Way cool, I know. We spent a couple hours catching up over food. During our visit we went through my mission journals seeing what I wrote giving them my perspective of what happened. Which helped me realize the power of what I had done while a missionary. On your mission the whole point is to invite everyone that you see to come unto Christ. Hopefully that bears some sort of fruit. Since I came home I have thought a lot about that. I really want my life to be a example of living the gospel, touching peoples lives, and enjoying everything that happens along the way. The hard part about looking back is you cant see the end until it is the end. I have had times where I have felt my efforts didn't add up to much, outside of what it did for me. So, when Kayla said "If it wasn't for Stewart and you, I wouldn't be where I am now." She continued to elaborate on that explaining that because she joined the church. She went to Virginia selling pest control, which took her to Vegas, where she met her husband. Which has brought her a lot of joy. Just because Elder Stewart and I went tracking in our own apartment complex after planning meeting. A apartment complex that was tracted every time there were new Elders in the area. In fact we had to hide from the apartments managers from seeing us. We overcame the stigma that it had already been all knocked out. Because we did it caused this huge reaction that I wouldn't and couldn't have seen there or after my mission. The ripple effects of what happened aren't even done! That's what is crazy! I am so thankful for Steve & Kayla coming over! Its good to remember. 

-Ray

Too Fast

Pretty sure I'm in denial about moving... Every time I think about it, I push the thought away and out of my head. I'm afraid that in doing so I'm gonna have one big giant melt down, instead of just letting myself cry it out whenever the thought comes up.

I have stuff to blog about with my going to the Matthew Good concert on Tuesday, but I'm afraid that in doing so that's acknowledging my leaving Edmonton. That concert was so much about how my friendship with Monie has come full circle since our friendship really solidified because of concerts, particularly Matthew Good concerts. I guess I'm just not ready to let go of my home here in Canada yet, and writing about the things that I'm doing for the last time and to say goodbye make it too real that I'm leaving. Bah...

Ignoring things is just easier for now.

Monday is coming too fast...

How Do People Do It?

I don't get it. People move away from home all the time and I'm sure it's hard for them, but I'm seriously freaking out right now.

I've decided that I'm officially starting my trek to Colorado on November 21. That means in two weeks I'll be leaving my home, the place where I grew up, forever. To be perfectly honest, I'm more terrified than excited right now. Don't get me wrong. I'm way happy to be with my husband for good now and to have our little family together again, but it's really hard to be here in Canada and seeing the pain in my family's eyes when they're around me. They're all happy that I'm with them and that they get to play with Warren, but I can see it. In the back of their minds they're thinking about how they won't be able to see me in person and they won't be able to hold Warren soon. It breaks my heart to see the pain that me leaving is causing.

I'm so grateful for the understanding that everyone has that I need to be with my husband, but I'm so sorry for the hurt that it's causing them. I'm so thankful for technology that will be able to keep us connected. I will rely on that a lot.

Tonight we had a family dinner at my Grandma and Grandpa's and it was amazing. I had such a good time. Things like that are what I'm going to miss the most. I love being able to get together with my whole family each Sunday and just laugh and enjoy each other's company. It's going to be up to me to start new traditions with my family in Colorado but I fear it'll feel empty without the people I've had around me my whole life.

So how do people make it through this transition? How can I do this and not be so sad?? Bless my husband for being willing to put up with me post-family separation. He's a good man.

I'm so thankful at times like this for the Church because of the instant family it provides. Ray keeps telling me how excited the Ward is for me to be there, and I'm so thankful for people who are fully prepared to totally embrace me, both those I already know and love and those I don't but soon will.

These next two weeks will be full of emotion. I take comfort in the fact that I know I'll be coming back home to visit in September though to celebrate the homecoming of my amazing little missionary brother. Maybe if we're lucky, we might even be able to celebrate Warren's first birthday up here too. I can make it to September, and by then I'll have had more time to adjust to my new life and find joy in where I'm at.

This is the path I chose. I just didn't expect it to be so difficult. But I know Heavenly Father will help me along the way.

My Kid is Fun

So now that Warren has reached a stage where he's actually interactive, I've started recording videos of him. I'm such a typical mother. haha.

This week Warren has started playing in the tub. He used to just lay there in the water and look at me with this "what the heck are you doing to me" look. Now he's discovered that when he kicks, something actually happens. He's actually a bit camera shy in this video but normally, he's got a look of complete bliss on his face when he's kicking around in the water. But this video is still ridiculously cute.

I also went to Babies R Us yesterday to find a rattle for Warren. They have pink rattles, but they don't have any boy rattles. I was disappointed. They DID however have JOLLY JUMPERS!!! Those things are the best, and I know when I was really little that I LOVED it. So because it was on sale, my agency was taken away and I HAD to buy it. hahaha. It took him a little bit, but he eventually started figuring it out. Enjoy. My kid is amazing.

Final Step. Calgary.

My kid is already more travelled than his father. He's two months old. Thank you immigration(???).

Yesterday was a big day. I drove to Calgary at 3:30am in order to make it to the US Consulate there for my 8:30 appointment. Yes I realize I left 5 hours early, but I knew I would be stopping to feed Warren before we got there, and I also knew I would be dealing with rush hour traffic on Deerfoot Trail... It made sense to me. Good thing too. I ended up getting to the Consulate at 7:50. Perfect timing because I wanted to be there by 8:00am at the latest. I needed to report Warren's birth as a US citizen born outside of the US, apply for his passport and his social security number.

The drive there was... dark... 3:30am is a time I'm not usually acquainted with, especially on the road. There was minimal traffic, so things went pretty smoothly. Warren was out cold in his carseat thanks to my amazing mom who tried her hardest to keep him awake in the hours before we left while I got in some much needed preparatory sleep.

I stopped in Red Deer, parked in a deserted Staples parking lot (because it was 5:30am) to feed Warren and decided that I would just try to find a place in Calgary to change him. That plan was good in theory. After continuing on the rest of the trip, with Warren falling into a milk coma almost immediately, I had to deal with my first snow storm of the year. It was scary... and dark... so all the snow flakes reflecting the light from my headlights and those of the pre rush hour traffic didn't help with my visibility. I was a trooper though. A responsible one at that. I slowed down to ensure the safety of me and my child. I feel like I experienced the protective mother instinct in full force as I was driving through that crazy snow storm. I hit full on rush hour traffic once I got to Balzac. (That's right. Balzac. My favourite place to celebrate with my friends via text. "BALZAC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!") Thanks to my handy dandy GPS, I was directed exactly to where I needed to go.

Since I'm not too familiar with Calgary unless it's to get to Peter's Drive In or getting to Banff, I couldn't tell by the address that the Consulate was right in the middle of downtown until I got there. Downtown = Terrible parking. I was simultaneously trying to figure out which building it was after the GPS told me I had arrived at the destination and trying to find parking. I ended up pulling into this random private parking lot just to get my bearings and prepare for my next attempt at finding public parking. Then a security guard came up to me because I had invaded his territory. haha. I told him I was looking for the Consulate and he said I was close and would direct me to the right place. Then he stopped and thought a bit, then told me I could park there and directed me to a stall. After getting everything situated and prepared to get into the Consulate (baby in sling, papers, diapers and wipes, wallet in purse) the security guard pointed to the building and told me it would be $10 to park there. I kinda did a double take, and then thought to myself that he was probably just gonna pocket that $10 for himself. haha. But I thought, whatever. It would be just as expensive no matter where I parked. Good on that guy for seizing the opportunity.

So the building that the Consulate is in is completely unmarked. The address isn't even on the outside of the building. Dad said that's probably done on purpose to deter anti-Americans. haha. I guess... You can always count on Americans to be overly cautious with their security.

My plan was to try to feed Warren a bit and change him before I went in so he would be happy, but that ended up not happening. A line was already starting to form when I got there and I learned in Montreal that you don't wanna be far back in the line because that means more waiting. More waiting with a little baby = potentially bad. I was told that I wasn't allowed to bring any bags or purses inside the Consulate, and could check it at this deli place that was across the hall. I didn't really have any choice, even though I had made sure to take only what I needed and put it in my purse before I went in. I went to the deli place and emptied everything out of my purse (wallet, papers, diapers, nursing cover, and spit up blanket) and had to pay $5 for them to hold my empty purse. Dealing with all that loose stuff and a baby isn't the easiest thing ever...

I had to go through airport equivalent security, which meant taking Warren out of the sling, and going through a metal detector, then going to sign in with a lady that told me I needed an Express Post envelope so the things I was applying for could get mailed back to me. So I went to another place in the lobby of the building where I paid $15 for this envelope. After telling all this to my Dad, he said "Wow. Their economy must REALLY be struggling then". haha. Anyways. I went back to the Consulate and they made me go through the metal detector AGAIN, so I had to take Warren out of the sling, blah blah blah, all over again. The difficulty level was increased by the amount of loose things I had to hold on to because of my lack of purse.

I was lead by another security guard to the elevators, and once I got off, oh guess what... ANOTHER METAL DETECTOR!!! This guy was nice though and didn't make me take Warren out of the sling again. He gave me a number, and FINALLY I was in. I had the second number so my wait wasn't very long.  When I was called up, I was quite pleased that the lady that was helping me was very kind. She asked for all of the stuff she needed, and thanks to my experience in Montreal, I was fully equipped. When she asked for the proof that Ray has lived in the States for at least 5 years of his life (which is what I didn't have in Montreal), I handed over this stack of papers that Ray had sent to me, and she got wide eyed. haha. It was awesome. She was impressed with my preparedness. She went to photocopy everything, and I went to pay for everything (not cheap), then I had to sign some things and TAH DAH!!! All finished! I was told that the passport and report of birth certificate would be mailed to me within two weeks and his social security card will be mailed to our apartment in Colorado in a couple months.

I'm SOOO relieved that everything is finally finished. I've got all my papers, and Warren's are coming right away. I can officially start planning my great exodus... That's not without lots of emotions ranging the entire spectrum though. I'm so happy to finally be able to be with my husband permanently, but I'm freaked out more than I can express at the thought of being away from my mom, the rest of my family and my friends that I've had for years. I'm gonna suddenly change rolls and I'll be the one in charge of Sunday meals. No more showing up at my parents and being fed. I feel like I'm just walking into a lot of responsibility and change all at once, so it's really overwhelming. I'm just glad I'll have my husband to support me, and our little family will be able to grow together. I know I've already got great friends in Colorado waiting for me, and I know I'll make great new friends. It's just a lot of scary change that's freaking me out pretty bad...

But life must go on. And as of now I'm tentatively planning on leaving on November 21. I'm driving down, and plan on making it a 3 day trip, which means I'll be there to celebrate American Thanksgiving. Since Warren needs to eat every four hours, it'll be a good way to make sure I stop and rest. He's such an amazing traveller. I'm really blessed to have the baby I do.

I'll accept any and all prayers asking for strength to make this transition smoothly. I need all the strength I can get. Thanks friends. :)

The Best Part of Montreal

Let me just clarify. I'm sure Montreal doesn't suck. I'm just not in the right phase of life to have really enjoyed it. Currently my life is all about my baby. Elevators and ramps and stroller friendly places are my friend. Since Montreal is severely lacking in all those areas, it made me really mad. I want to be able to enjoy things with my baby, and when things are set up that prevent me from being able to include him, I get frustrated. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

I'm not ready to entertain the idea of going back there yet though. Montreal was never really on my list of places I wanted to go. Once I move to Colorado, there will be other places in Canada that I wanna visit that get a much higher priority. So if you decide to go to Montreal, please don't let my negative experience influence you. I'm sure you'll have a great time (as long as you're not pushing a stroller and have a rain coat).

The Interview

As most of you already know, the interview I had to get my immigration visa was successful. Let me tell you what a gong show that whole experience was though...

So I had an appointment letter saying my interview was scheduled for 8:00am. My initial plan was to take a cab to the Consulate because I didn't wanna have to worry about getting lost in downtown Montreal all by my lonesome. Mom and I tried to find the Consulate before the day came just so that I knew what building to look for, and it ended up being a really good thing we did. Posted on the door is a sign that says you can't bring in large bags, large strollers, liquids, electronics of any kind, and all sorts of ridiculous things like that. Had we not found the building beforehand, I woulda shown up with my giant stroller and diaperbag. Since I couldn't bring the stroller, that meant I couldn't bring the carseat, so I had to come up with an alternative.

Throughout the week mom and I had taken the bus a few times downtown because we learned the hard way that the Metro was just not gonna work for us with all the stairs and crap. Because we'd taken the bus a few times, I felt comfortable enough to take it on my own the morning of the interview. That meant I was gonna have to take Warren in the sling I brought. Good thing I brought that too. I would have been screwed if I didn't have it.

I woke up at 5:00am (eastern time, so technically it was 3:00am mountain time.. ugh) to give me enough time to get ready, feed Warren before we left, and catch the bus. Things went surprisingly flawless so I was quite pleased. I got on and off the bus without incident, and got to the Consulate at 7:25 that morning. As I got to the building, there were people lined up outside the door, because apparently the doors weren't open yet. There were about 15 people in front of me, and people consistently kept coming and I'm pretty sure the line doubled by the time people were starting to get let in.

I had to go through the equivalent of airport security to get in the building though. Empty pockets, take off my hoodie, take Warren out of the sling, put my purse through an x-ray machine, and walk through a metal detector. I was directed down some stairs to a waiting room, which just kept on getting more and more full. Eventually the security guard told people to pile in the elevator and go up to the 19th floor. When the elevator doors opened, all people's manners went out the window, and were just concerned with themselves getting on the elevator before everyone else. Nobody seemed to care that I was carrying a tiny baby in my arms, so I kept getting pushed back behind people and went up with the second batch of people.

When we got off the elevator, we had to go check in with this lady, and she started giving us numbers. It was at this point I realized that the 8:00 interview time was a complete lie. Everyone there had a letter saying they had an interview at 8:00. I knew it sounded too organized to be for real... So people kept pushing past one another to get the lowest numbers.. It was chaos. I was not pleased.

My plan, since I was there, was to report Warren's birth. Since he's a US citizen born outside of the US, I had to report his birth at the Consulate so that they'll issue a certificate that proves his US citizenship and allows me to take him across the border with me. The lady asked me where my husband was, and I told her that he was in Colorado, and she just stared at me then informed me that she can't do anything without him there. I told her that I was not aware of that, and as far as I understood, that as long as I had a notarized letter of authorization from my husband (which I did have), it was just as good. She again stared at me, then told me that it says on the website that my husband needed to be there. I read that website a thousand times and nowhere did I read that he needed to be there. It just said that parent(s) need to be present with the child when reporting a birth. So she went to talk to her supervisor. When she came back, she asked me for my marriage certificate, which I didn't have because the interview people had it. Then she told me that my husband needed to be there for my interview too (which I knew he didn't need to be) and then she asked me "Did you even LOOK at the website??" Oh man... My blood started boiling... I hate getting treated like an idiot... She went and got her supervisor though, and she was a lot more reasonable. The supervisor explained to me that in order for me to report Warren's birth without Ray present, I needed to bring proof that Ray has lived in the States for at least 5 years so I needed a school record or pay stub, or something along those lines. I had brought something that proved he was living there right now, because I had read that on the website, but apparently I misunderstood what it meant. The supervisor was a lot less condescending though, so when she explained to me that unfortunately they can't process the report of birth without those documents, I was mildy irritated and less infuriated. She said that as soon as I had those documents that I could make an appointment at the Consulate in Calgary and get it taken care of there. It's still inconvenient, but it's manageable to go to Calgary.

I went to go sit back down, and no sooner after I did that, my number for the interview came up. So I went to the place they told me to go, where they took my fingerprints and looked through all the paperwork they had from us. It was nothing like I pictured it would be. I wasn't sitting across from someone at a desk, I was standing on the other side of a glass panel with a dude on the other side in front of his computer. The guy doing the interview was really nice though. I'm pretty sure he was gay too. haha. That made it even more enjoyable. He was all smiley and said "Sooooo... Tell me about yourself! You married an American. You obviously just had an adorable little baby. How did all of this come about???" haha!!! So I told him "our story" and he just smiled and asked me a couple more questions about where I worked before and where I would be living in the States. Turns out he graduated High School in Colorado Springs too. Small world eh? But because of everything I had just gone through with Warren's paperwork, my mind was totally somewhere else and I didn't even think to ask him what school it was he graduated from. Then he just said, "Well. I've approved your visa! Welcome to the United States!" I was kind of taken off guard because there was no warning. He just said it out of the blue! And again, since I was still processing all the stuff to do with Warren, I didn't give him the reaction I think he was expecting. I just said "Oh. Thanks." hahahahaha... He looked at me a little confused, but he continued on and explained to me that he was gonna keep my passport so they could stick the visa sticker inside of it and courier it back to me.

That was it! All done. Just like that. All this waiting and having to make the special trip to Montreal just for that. Yeesh.. They really need to get more than one Consulate capable of doing immigrant visa interviews. At least it was over though, and I didn't have to go back to that Consulate for Warren's stuff. So I got my marriage certificate back, and I was free to go.

By that time, I had been at the Consulate for three hours. I was in the first batch of people to get there in the morning though which ended up being a better thing than I woulda thought. By the time my interview was done, there were prolly around 200 people left waiting for their numbers to come up. I had number 11. Whew.

I brought a bottle to feed Warren, so I did that before I left and I also changed his diaper. That diaper change was pretty eventful and hilarious though. The change table was in the handicap stall, so I got him all situated and when I was in between taking the old diaper off and putting the new one on, he began to pee. My first reaction was to grab his leg and point him away from me, which meant he was pointing to the wall. He had a pretty impressive range too! He cleared everything and just hit the wall. HAHA!!! I didn't have anything to clean up other than the few drips he got on his leg. He just peed on the wall. Oh man. I was laughing pretty hard, and I was actually kinda proud of him. Hahahaha...

So that was my interview adventure. I talked to Ray as soon as I could after I got back to the place we were staying at and told him what I needed from him in order to report Warren's birth. We flew back to Edmonton the next day, and I got the papers I needed from Ray the day after that. So I've got the appointment scheduled in Calgary for Halloween morning. Here's hoping that everything goes well this time! I already got my passport back, so I have all the documents I need to cross the border, I just need this certificate for Warren to cross the border now. They print the certificates in the US, so it'll have to be mailed to me. So I've prolly got about three weeks left in Canada. That's both exciting and terrifying. haha.

Here's hoping all goes well in Calgary!! It's the last step!!!

My Analysis of Montreal

So I've been here for a whole 24 hours now, which by no means give me the ability to tell you everything about this place, but I've definitely come to some of my own conclusions already. haha.

First thing I noticed, and it's prolly THE most frustrating thing ever... THERE'S NO ELEVATORS ANYWHERE!!!!!!!! So when you're pushing a stroller around town, it increases the difficulty level immensely. ESPECIALLY when you use the Metro. It's not like those trains are just a few steps underground. It's more like you're going on a caving expedition when you decide to take the train. There's a couple stations we were at today that had escalators, and those are doable, but there's never any escalators taking you out of the station completely. It's like a great big tease. You get off the train and are pleasantly surprised that there's an elevator. You go up only to discover that around the corner where the street exit is, there's 20 more stairs and no elevator or escalator. Let me tell you... Lugging a stroller and a baby up and down stairs is NOT easy. Fail, Montreal... Great big giant FAIL.

I must give credit to the few nice people that helped us when they saw us struggling with the stairs. That was great, but it still doesn't make up for the fact that the access to places here suck. What about the other mothers? Are they just condemned to driving and paying the ridiculous parking costs? Not to mention those confined to wheelchairs.. Grrr... I never realized that something like this would ignite such fire within me...

Dear Montreal. Fix it. The End.

Anyways......

I've also noticed that there's an abnormally large amount of people who smoke. There's a constant stench of cigarette smoke downtown, and people carry cigarettes in their hands inside in anticipation to smoke them outside. Yuck.

The people here are also very stylish. Some more oddly styled than others, but it's quite clear that image matters to these Francophones. This is not a negative observation. haha.

Also... French is EVERYWHERE. Obviously... But it's kind of a lot overwhelming for me. I don't ever know where I am, so the French street signs and billboards add to the frustration of trying to navigate. Everyone we've talked to has a French accent too. I don't know if anyone could live here without knowing the language. Come to think of it, I wonder if anyone who does live here DOESN'T have an accent. Just a thought.

The apartments here are interesting too. I think the area where our place is that we're staying is very European. Each building is very different, so the streets are really interesting and full of character. But the entrances to the apartments seem to be by fire escape-looking stairs. I'll take pictures.

I've pretty much had enough galavanting to last me for a while though. Finding the medical office for my exam today was an absolute gong show, and I'm dreading having to brave the Metro and downtown again... but I have to... twice... blech. But I have until Friday to regain my nerve. That's when I have to go back to the medical office and pick up the results of all the stuff that happened today (blood work, chest x-rays, and physical exam) so I can take them to my interview on Monday. They sure don't make things easy. I even had to get a flu shot and now my arm is sore... :(

It's a little unnerving that through this whole process I've provided the government with EVERYTHING about me. Past and present, inside and out... literally... So bring it on interview. I'm ready for you. I've given them all this personal information already that I've pretty much got nothing left share. All that's left is to convince them that I'm legitimately in love with my husband. But since I don't just go around making babies with anyone, I'm sure it'll be a breeze. haha!

Oh by the way. My son is the best travelling baby ever. He barely made a sound while we were on the 4 hour plane ride. Woot! Just thought you should know. haha.

Thank You

So it's just barely starting to sink in how close I am to moving to Colorado, and to be honest, it's kinda freaking me out... a lot... This whole process I've been so focused on being with my husband that it never really crossed my mind that I'm leaving people I love too.

Despite my complaints about living at home with my parents these past 10 months, it really has been a great blessing. The greatest thing that has come out of this is the great relationship I've gained with my Mom. Throughout my pregnancy and having little Warren around, my mom and I have been able to bond in a way that we never have been able to before. My own motherhood has given us more to relate to one another with. This time has been precious to me, and the more I think about it, the more I realize how Heavenly Father made sure everything happened the way it needed to.

I was thinking about how if I would have gotten pregnant with my first kid and not have had Mom here to help me though it, I would have hated being pregnant even more than I already did. My mom had complete understanding of what I was going through. It was what gave me the strength to keep on pushing through all the sickness and be as strong as I could because I knew she did it too. Going through my first pregnancy alone would have been the worst thing that could have happened to me. Heavenly Father knew that so He made sure I didn't have to go through it without her.

I've really enjoyed being able to talk with my mom about things more openly than I ever have. She's pretty amazing, and I regret not being more open with her as I grew up.

I'm usually really good at describing how I feel in writing, but all I seem to be able to say is that I have so much love and appreciation for my mom, and that of all the people that I'm leaving, it's going to be hardest to say goodbye to her.

This is where I remember how thankful I am for technology because I'm pretty positive I'm gonna be on Skype with my Mom everyday. I'm also gonna have to show her how to text on her iPod. She's definitely gonna be more tech savvy because of me. Dad's gonna be proud of her.

Speaking of my Dad. Seeing how Warren completely melts his heart has brought me so much joy. I guess I was a little scared how he would react to him, but my worries were put to rest pretty quick. That little guy makes my Dad light up. It's wonderful. So really, being at home has done nothing but improve things between me and my parents.

I guess I just wanted to say thank you to them and this is the best way I know how... I love them so much and I appreciate all they've done for me... because they've sure done a lot.

Adventures of Motherhood

This evening was crazy!! Warren just did one thing after another, and when I thought he wouldn't pull out any more surprises, more came.. Holy moly...

Here's the chronological list of events.

- I was going to change his diaper, so I put him down at the end of my bed to do it because I don't have a change table.

- Opened his diaper to see what I had to deal with.

- He started peeing before I took the diaper off, so I let him finish.

- Took off the diaper and started wiping him down, and he decided he wasn't finished and peed even more... all over my bed. Luckily I wasn't hit. But my comforter sure was so in the wash that went.

- Decided that I should just give him a bath right then because I was gonna do that tonight anyways.

- Got the kid all naked, wrapped him up in a towel, took him to the bathroom and filled up the tub.

- Discovered that he peed in the towel he was wrapped up in while I was filling the tub... Seriously... How much can one baby pee in a five minute span?! But I was prepared and had another towel handy just in case.

- Washed him all off in the tub.

- Just when I was about to take him out of the tub, totally without warning, he pooped!!!

- Grabbed the baby out of the water ASAP, and wrapped him up in the back up towel.

- Realized that I had to re-bathe him because he was in poo water...

- Emptied the bath and washed out the poo.

- Called out to my dad to ask him to get a new towel because I didn't wanna dry Warren off on a towel that had poo water on it.

- Refilled the bath and rewashed my baby. This time he only peed in the water. I'm not so concerned about pee in the bath. But really?! He already peed so much!!!

- Finished cleaning him, got him out of the bath without anymore poo, and dressed him without further incident.

Seriously!!!!! I don't know what else could have gone wrong! I thought I was all prepared with an extra towel, but NO!!! Yeesh...

Good thing he's so freaking cute... and that he didn't pee on me...

"What's wrong Mommy??... I had a good time."

Canadian Thanksgiving 2011

This year Thanksgiving was fantastic. I really wanted to learn how to make a whole Thanksgiving dinner because next time I'm not gonna be in Canada to have my mom to make it all for me. I need to be a grown up and make dinner for my own family now. Next month will be American Thanksgiving and I'll be in Colorado for good by then! How convenient that I get to have a practice run before I have to do it alone! It was a really good experience to prepare dinner with my mom though. We had some great quality time together. She really enjoyed the help and I really enjoyed the conversation. My mom is the best.

Preparations started last night. We made apple pie and pumpkin pie (including the crust), stuffing/dressing (whatever you call it), and cranberry sauce. This morning we put the 16ish pound turkey in the oven, and had some down time. Mom made buns (rolls for you Americans). I figured that since I'll be in a city that's 5000 ft higher than here, practice making buns would be pointless. The altitude does stupid things to my cookies, let alone bread...  That's something I'll have to work up to in the future.

Preparing the vegetables is pretty straightforward, and I missed out on helping peel and chop things because I was feeding Warren at that time. Good thing I'm smart and know how to make mashed potatoes and salad already. haha. But when I was done I made corn scallop, which is a delicious corn casserole type thing. It's my favorite. I also learned Dad's secret to making the perfect gravy. Somehow gravy making became my Dad's responsibility in our family. I guess it's because he's really good at it and it's one less thing for Mom to do. haha.

Pretty much it was a huge success. Everything was super delicious and I was proud of myself for what I did, and Mom was just super happy that she didn't have to do it all alone this time. I didn't take any pictures of the food because I'm just not a food picture taker-er.

Next step is for me to write down all the dishes and recipes so that I can remember how to do it all next month! I'm excited. It's so fulfilling to make awesome food, especially for people other than yourself and your husband. Maybe it's a matter of pride. I dunno. haha. All I know is that I like it when I feed lots of people good food.

Watch out American Thanksgiving! I'm armed with new found cooking skills, and I'm gonna whip them out next month. November 24. I'll be there.

What I do take pictures of are babies. So since my niece was there, I took the opportunity to snap some shots of the two little ones.

Nap time for the little burritos!!

Quality Grandpa/Grandson time :)

Great Grandma with Great Grandchild #1

My kid makes the most awesome faces ever.

And he's way relaxed and just looks around at everything.

hehehe... More awesome faces.

Great Grandma with Great Grandchild #2

Lily's cantaloupe sized head

My mom wanted this picture. Last Christmas the Elders that were living with my parents made a piñata version of my little brother. Their thought was that it would keep my parents company while he was out serving his mission. haha. It works. So the two babies got a picture with their uncle this Thanksgiving. haha! 

Victory!!!

I'm a genius... I just figured out that I can avoid the whole going to the Calgary Consulate thing. I dunno why it took me this long to realize it though. haha. I'm smart.

So you schedule appointments online to report births of US citizens "abroad" and apply for their US passports and social security cards. Up until now I was just planning on scheduling it in Calgary a couple days after I got back from Montreal. But duh... I had an epiphany that I could just see if I could schedule the appointment in Montreal for the same day as my interview. Yeesh... I've sure been using my noggin...

I looked into it and there's an opening to schedule what I need for Warren that's two and a half hours after my interview. I have no idea how long my interview will last, and how long it'll take for me to get all my original documents back. I kinda need them in order to apply for Warren's stuff. Hopefully two and a half hours will be enough time for me to finish up my stuff in time to do Warren's stuff.

I'm just glad I shaved even more time off of this whole process. It's all happening so soon!!!

WOOT!!!

My Awesome Childhood

Recently I was watching TV with my mom and we were just flipping through channels. We found Jem on the kids TV station.

I sure hope you know what Jem is. Here's a reminder.

That show was one of the many that carried me through my childhood. My generation really did have the best entertainment ever. So I decided that it was necessary to compile a list of shows and movies that I loved as a kid so that I could share them with Warren as he grows. I'll teach him that even though the styles were whacked, and the graphics weren't the quality they are today, it's still quality TV. He's going to appreciate the 90's.

Funny story. I stayed at my uncle and aunts house for a couple of days last week, and my aunt and I were watching ALF. My 13 year old cousin came to see what we were watching, and after a few minutes he gave us the greatest "what the crap is this" look I've ever seen in my life. Clearly he hasn't been educated about the awesomeness that is the 90's. haha...

I put a post on Facebook asking my friends to suggest amazing shows and movies from the 90's so that I could start compiling this list for Warren's future. Here's a bit of what we came up with.

Yeah... I think that's a good start. There's plenty more on the list, but these are the ones I'm most excited about. haha! My kid is gonna be the most awesome kid ever!!!

He Eats. Then He eats.

And oh yeah. He eats some more!!!

I was pretty proud of myself for getting Warren on a four hour sleeping schedule, but the last day or so he's been hungry way more often and more fussy than usual and I had no idea what that was all about. So thanks to the trusty internet, I found out that he's going through his first growth spurt.

I guess it makes sense. His cheeks are definitely chubbier, and he's no longer curling up into a little ball like he used to do all the time. He's starting to stretch out more, which I find entertaining because his little legs are still scrawny and way cute. He's also filling out his clothes better, even though he still only fits in newborn size clothes. Compared to when he was a week old when his onesies were still pretty loose, now they look like they're actually the right size. The clothes that are the 0-3 month size are still too big though. haha. But who knows. Maybe he'll be fitting into them soon. That kinda freaks me out though... I like him small and I don't want him to start growing THAT fast.. Yeesh... Some things I just can't stop though.

Right now I don't know how much he weighs. When I took him for his two week check up, he was 7 lbs 6 oz, but that was almost two weeks ago, so he's got to be at least 8 lbs by now. I might go find out soonish how much he weighs though. I have to stop by a Public Health Center to pick up my immunization record which they need for the immigration interview. Conveniently that's the place where they weigh babies too. I figure while I'm there I might as well get him weighed to satisfy my curiosity.

Thankfully this growth spurt only lasts a couple days. Feeding him twice as much for twice as long is... painful... Good thing he's so dang cute.

Here's a comparison so you can see his growth.

One Week old 

Three Weeks old

The onesies are the same brand an same size so you can totally see how two weeks ago they were super loose and now, not so much. haha.

Anyways.. Can I just state how satisfying it is when researching things to find the exact answers? Because when I was trying to figure out what was going on with Warren, what I was reading described EXACTLY what was going on. It was pretty awesome. I didn't even have to say that was mostly what was going on. Every single symptom or behavior that was described was exactly fitting for Warren. I was so satisfied. I hope as he continues to grow that I'll be able to keep finding such helpful information. (Hey. I can dream.)

Progress

I've been checking my email like a mad woman this week because my interview for the green card was supposed to be scheduled this week. To my delight, the email finally came on Wednesday!! I have an interview scheduled for October 24th!!!!! WOOT!!!!! So that means that this whole process will come to a long awaited end and I can finally look forward to being with my husband PERMANENTLY.

It's still quite the process though. Not only do I have to go to Montreal (because it's the only Consulate that does Immigrant interviews), but I have to get a medical exam beforehand. I knew that was coming, but what I didn't know is that the medical exam can only be done by "authorized physicians". I thought that all physicians would be authorized to do a medical exam, but apparently they have physicians that are specifically authorized by the Consulate to do medical exams for immigrant purposes. Here's the kicker... THERE'S ONLY FOUR OF THEM IN ALL OF CANADA... There's one in Vancouver, one in Toronto and two in Montreal. So I called one of the ones in Montreal hoping that I could get the medical exam right before the interview and have the results in time so I wouldn't have to make more than one trip. Thankfully they were pretty accommodating, but it extends the trip to Montreal from only a couple days to a whole week.

The soonest they could get me in for the medical exam was Tuesday October 18. The results will be ready for me to pick up three days later on Friday, and then I have to wait through the weekend for my interview on Monday the 24th at 8:00 AM.

Sure it's slightly inconvenient to have to be gone for a whole week, but my mom and possibly my aunt are coming with me so it'll end up being a lot of fun. Especially having Warren around and being able to take him out on walks and stuff. The plane ride with him will be interesting though. haha. good thing he's a good sleeper, and not a loud crier.

After the interview, if they're satisfied, I'll get all the paperwork right there that'll allow me to go to the States right away. The only other thing that I have to do afterward is get Warren's US passport. I have to wait until after the interview to do that though. To get his passport I need to show them the original copy of my marriage certificate which I had to send to the Montreal Consulate a while ago. I'll get it back after the interview. So once I get back from Montreal, I have to take Warren to Calgary to the Consulate there to apply for his US passport. Yeah... They don't make this easy. Every Consulate does everything by appointment so I can't just get everything done for me and him in Montreal. I'll try though. If I end up taking Warren with me to the interview, I wonder if they'll just let me apply for it right there... But I highly doubt it, considering they like to do everything the long and difficult way. So I'm just anticipating having to go to Calgary. That's less of a big deal than Montreal though, so I'm not overly annoyed by having to drive the three hours. Warren will sleep the whole way anyway.

Once his passport comes, then it's home free!! I'll finally be able to go to Colorado and stay there and NEVER have to anticipate being separated from Ray for a long period of time EVER AGAIN. So by November, all of this will finally be over for good! A year and a half of all this craziness is almost over and our family will be whole again. Forever.

What A Year

I don't think I've ever had such an eventful year. I found out that I was pregnant the first week of the year, and that marked the beginning of a whole bunch of changes and new things for me to figure out and get used to.

First I had to get used to throwing up all the time... Then I had to get used to feeling all the hiccups and the kicks. Then figuring out how to sleep with a big belly in the way. Then trying to figure out what I could actually eat. Thankfully the throwing up every day eventually stopped as long as I remembered to take my medication. Being pregnant was definitely an adventure. Now I have an adorable little son to show for it. All the women were right. All the inconveniences of pregnancy and the difficulties I had really were worth it.

I thought it would be kinda cool to show the progression of changes throughout the year. I took periodic pictures to keep track of how big I was getting. It's interesting to look back on, and it totally blows my mind that my body did all that. Heavenly Father really knew what he was doing when He made all of us. Pregnancy and childbirth is nothing short of a miracle.

March 13 - 13 Weeks

March 26 - 15 Weeks

April 12 - 18 Weeks

April 16 - 19 Weeks

May 1 - 22 Weeks 

May 23 - 25 Weeks

July 1 - 31 Weeks

August 2 - 36 Weeks

September 13 - Two weeks old

It still hasn't sunk in that he's a part of me. I almost feel like a babysitter still. haha. But I'm sure once he starts getting bigger and we can see resemblances between him and Ray and I, it'll be easier to believe that he's mine and that I grew him. haha. I love being a mom though. Even if my mind can't wrap itself around being a mom, it's still pretty awesome. I'll think I'll keep the little guy.

My Family (because I have one now!)

Life with a kid is pretty sweet. I'm definitely getting less sleep, but I'm slowing figuring out how I can remedy that. For example, I've learned how to feed him lying down. haha. It's fantastic for the middle of the night feeds. Another thing I've learned is just how many diapers babies go through. I haven't quite figured out the perfect timing for when it's best to change him. I tend to change his diaper and 10 minutes later he's pooped. It's kind of ridiculous. But I guess that's just how it goes. I gave him a soother for the first time two days ago and that's been a lifesaver. Warren no longer cries during diaper changes and it helps him fall asleep faster. He loved the thing right from the start. He didn't have any issues with it. Yay!!!

Yesterday was a pretty crappy day though. Not because of Warren. He's a really good baby. But yesterday I had to say goodbye to Ray... We've said goodbye a lot before, but this time seemed to be the hardest. That's prolly due to the fact that we have Warren, and the thought of taking care of him by myself seems overwhelming, especially at night time. Also, we have no idea how long it'll be until we get to see each other again. All the other times before, we've known when we'd see each other again. So because of those two things, this is kind of a lot rough on me...

The thing that keeps me going though, is how positive Ray is. He's constantly reminding me that Heavenly Father is in control, so because of that, things will work out the best way possible. I definitely need to be reminded of that often, and Ray does a good job. Another good thing is that all the paperwork is submitted, and now we're just waiting to find out when my interview will be. They do all the scheduling for interviews during the second week of the month, which is this week. So hopefully I'll find out when I have to make the trek over to Montreal by the end of the week. After the interview, if they're satisfied, I get all the green card stuff right there and I'll be able to go to Colorado as soon as possible. Woot!! So things really are progressing, and we're actually at the final stretch. And getting Warren's paperwork is simple since he's already entitled to US citizenship. I just have to fill out a form that gets him a US passport and social security card.

Anyways... Here's some pictures of my adorable little man. Ray took most of the pictures, and Monie and her boyfriend came over to take our family pictures. I'm quite pleased with them. It was awesome that we got to take family pictures before Ray left. We have a pretty good looking family. haha.

Hehe... He was sneezing.

Babies make awesome faces.

My favorite!