A Much Needed Break

For the past couple of months, and even more intensely the past couple of weeks, John has been studying for the GMAT (the entrance exam for MBA schools) which he takes TOMORROW!! His nights have been spent taking practice quizes on the computer, or studing from one of his numerous books. He has also been taking 4 hour practice tests every Saturday for the last couple of weeks. Throughout this process, I have tried to play the role of "supportive and loving wife", but I have to admit sometimes it has been hard. Of course I love Makenna more than anything, but sometimes I just need a break, and those have been harder to come by since John needs to study more than I "need" a break.

However, last Saturday we were both able to get a break from our normal routines, and go wakeboarding at my parent's lake. It was only my second time wakeboarding, so I am still quite shaky, but I did get up, and even went outside of the wake. (I know that probably sounds rediculous to some people, but I was excited.) My sister Amanda was in town, visiting from Utah, so we hung out at my parent's house all day watching football and in John's case taking long naps.

(I should note that while I have been typing this post, John has been playing with Makenna, and is now giving her a bath even though his test is tomorrow...I have a pretty good husband!)

I would like to introduce...

my second part-time job:

Aiden

He is a 2 month old little baby who lives across the hall from us. His mom went back to work in the evenings, so I will be watching Aiden on Tuesdays and Thursdays for about an hour and a half inbetween when his mom leaves for work and when his dad gets home.

When Aiden's mom asked if I could watch him, I hesitated at first since I already have one part-time job. (I work from home for the company at which I worked full-time when we lived in Vancouver, WA. It has been a really great part-time job for me because the hours are flexible, I work from home, and my bosses are great. However, it does take up a lot of what would be free-time, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to have another "job".) But I thought that since it was for such a short amount of time, it would probably be fine.

So far I have only watched Aiden 3 times; 2 of which went really well. The first day I watched him, Makenna and Aiden both took naps, and I was able able to make dinner and clean up while they slept. I thought, "this is gonna be a piece of cake, I can handle 2 kids"! Of course the next time I watched him was not so easy. Both Makenna and Aiden cried off and on for the first half hour while I struggled to get Makenna down for a nap while tending to Aiden. Luckily, this past Thursday when I watched him, it was really fun. Makenna was so excited to see Aiden, and just wanted to touch him and give him kisses. I kept him in his car seat (for his protection), and just tried to keep Makenna from crawling in with him.

She also spotted his binkie, and was then on a mission to put it in his mouth.

It amazes me how big Makenna is getting. She is almost 10 months old now, and has changed so much in the last month or two. She is now crawling all over the place, standing up by herself, "walking" the furniture, poining at things to communicate what she wants, and is even initiating "come and get me" games with us (which is so cute). I am really enjoying this stage, although she does get into EVERYTHING! Here are a couple of her favorites:

the dishwasher

and the old VHS tapes

Go Cougs!

On Saturday morning, I awoke with a dilemma...

Do I dress Makenna in NE clothes, or BYU clothes? (My life is tough, I know.) Since we were actually going to be able to watch the BYU game on tv, I decided to have Makenna wear her BYU t-shirt that her Uncle Dan bought for her.

Makenna enjoyed watching the game from John's lap, although she did get startled a few times when the game got exciting, and Daddy got loud.

On Friday night, we also took Makenna to her first football game. We went and watched my brother Morgan play. Makenna had a great time feeding us food, and pointing to everyone around her. I am happy to report that both of "our" teams won.

Lollipop Lollipop...

Oh Lolli Lolli Lolli Lollipop...

Makenna was one happy baby when Daddy gave her a Lollipop.