July, August... September!

Well, apologies for the long delay on a much needed blog update....
July
July was spent enjoying fireworks, being scared of fireworks and spending time with family. We kicked off the 4th of July by hanging out with Mom, Dad and Abby. Taylor only approved of the smaller fireworks- ones that didn't make noises.


We also enjoyed a Fifita Family Reunion up Payson canyon. The theme was Living the Book of Mormon. It turned out really neat. The pictures of the mountains were taken from a very early morning walk. We also spent the day at the Lake- cool water, perfect weather and plenty of family members. (and yes that is an air mattress we blew up- which already had a hole in it- and yes that is me in the front of it, trying to paddle with a large belly).





August

Since I didn't pass the BOC exam in June, as planned, I had to retake the exam... I felt really confident in passing and was EXTREMELY shocked to find out the results that I had not passed once again. So once again I will be taking this dreadful exam in November.

August was also spent celebrating Salem days. Taylor had a blast at the parade. She loved seeing the different floats- in fact, she had to point out that the Macey's float had a large pig on it, and started to make pig grunts. Her favorite part was all the candy she could handle for one day.


August was also spent counting down the days for Rylie to come... I think when I was pregnant with Taylor I was in school so I kept myself busy to avoid thinking about when she'd be here... but things have been different with Rylie. I was sure miserable for the last few weeks...

I spent most of my time at my mother's house, trying to help her with whatever I could do, while trying to get as much rest as possible. Then I would return home to nest, by cleaning every corner of our house and de-clutter everything as well. I had my hospital bags packed and ready to go (which I jinxed myself when I did that, because it took her 3 weeks from the time they were packed, for her to come).

Finally, after being up with contractions 4 nights in a row, with no water broken and not hard enough contractions... I decided I had had enough. On Sunday, August 30th, I decided to go to the hospital for a labor check. We drove Taylor to my parents house and headed to provo for the hospital. After checking in, they told me they'd check me in an hour for progress, if nothing progressed, they'd call the doctor and ask what he would like to do.

An hour came and went, with no progress. I was dilated to a 3, with constant contractions, but nothing hard and severe for labor. I pleaded with the nurse not to send me home and was prepared to leave... but alas, Dr. Holmes just told her "I have to speak in church at 1 pm, so start her on some medication to speed things up. If she hasn't had her by 1, hold off and I'll be there as soon as I get done." What a relief to me not to have to leave. I started the ptossin to get contractions flowing by 10:30 am. By about 1:30 I was dilated to a 4, then by 2:30 I was ready for an epidural.. By about 3:50 I was fully dilated and ready to start pushing. I had Alice, Lee and Abby from the Murdoch side, and my mom, dad and Melissa from my side- there to support me. I began pushing at 4pm and by 4:11- viola, Rylie Kay Ofa Murdoch was born. (the brown outfit is what she went home in) ")





She weighed 8 lbs, 2 oz and was 19.5 inches long. What an amazing experience this has been! We are so blessed to have her in our lives, and Taylor adores her. I think I speak for almost everyone when I say we grow tired of hearing the phrase "baby wylie" 24/7. Taylor refused to do anything with Rylie in the hospital- probably out of not understanding what was going on (she thought our hospital bracelets were "owies"). But once we were home, she has wanted to help with changing diapers, holding her sister and even swiped the blanket out from underneath Rylie. She has even named every doll in this house "baby wylie" and uses the dish towels as blankets.


Aunt Melissa gave Taylor a blue candy, because Rylie had been getting all kinds of gifts, and she hadn't. She wouldn't let me take a picture of her blue lips, so I had to sneak one!


Taylor loves holding her sister, almost too much. On the way home from my grandmother's, Rylie started to cry. Taylor held her hand and tried talking to her, letting her know it would be okay. What a great big sister!




Daddy and Taylor enjoying Kung Fu Panda. Rylie has now taken over my recliner to take her daily naps in. She quite enjoys it ")

Rylie was very content today, so I decided to pose a few pictures. I borrowed the cute sunglasses from Taylor (without her knowing). I think she looks pretty darn cute in 'em.



We have been blessed to have 2 beautiful daughters in our lives and are grateful for all your prayers and support for us. We love you all! Hope to hear from you soon-

Love, the Murdochs

p.s. This is the proud big sister, holding her new buddy. Enjoy!

June 2009 update

So latest update.... here we go :D

The month of June came and went so quickly! The beginning was spent stressing for my certification exam. After waiting for 2 weeks to find out the results, I now know I didn't pass the first time. However, I am determined to pass this upcoming July/August!

The second week was pretty crazy trying to get Ricky and Sara married. After a stressful Thursday of planning and decorating, Friday, June 12th finally came. It was quite the long day! We had to be in the temple by 10:30, for the sealing at 11 am. The funny part was Sara and her father drove to the wrong temple!! They showed up at the Provo temple, walked all the way up and realized they needed to be at the Mt. Timpanogous temple! They made it just in time, so that was a big relief.
The sealing was beautiful. The sealer was a personal friend of my grandmother's, so that made it even more special. I started crying when Ricky had a few tears running down his cheeks. It was so sweet to watch my younger brother grow up. Of course, we forgot tissues, so I had to wipe away with Craig's shirt. :D
After they finally got out of the temple, pictures were insane! There were so many weddings that we had to take turns, and of course, I am not very patient, let alone when I am pregnant. The photographer had no personality, so that made things even worse.



We finally made it to the Luau and I spent the rest of the time trying to coordinate the dancers. Melissa danced quite a few numbers for them with the young women of their ward. It turned out just beautiful. The reception was held at Sara's parent's house. It was so beautiful and just right. Sara did a beautiful dance for Ricky. She spent several hours practicing and creating it with Melissa, and surprised everyone with the dance. Then she did the traditional Daddy-daughter dance. That was a treasure. After cutting the cake and dancing one last time, they were off to Mexico.



The next week was spent working sports camps for BYU. It's pretty nice to get paid a few extra dollars for putting a band-aid on kids or ice and sitting the rest of the time. It was quite nice :D (The extra pics of Taylor are her just being herself. At the bottom you'll find a cute video of her just sporadically singing. She is so funny!

Finally, it was Father's day and we had the perfect gift for Lee! He had to read the card first, then we blind folded him and took him to a secret location (Payson high school). We each pitched in and bought him the extra season ticket to the BYU 2009-2010 and a soft chair to sit in. At first he didn't realize that the ticket was right next to the family, so he doesn't get as excited as we had hoped in the movie, but he is sure excited now. Go cougars!



Finally, Craig and Grant went back packing in the Uinta mountains. They started hiking about 10 am Thursday morning, and after a rough night with rain, decided it'd be better if they came home early. Their tents were not right for the amount of rain they got- check out the video and you'll see what they Craig even left his tent up there! But they still had lots of time to enjoy the animals around there. There's some pretty good pictures to follow....

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Well, I had a doctor's appointment this past week, and everything checks out great. I am 30-31 weeks along, and baby sounds healthy. I am getting very hot (temperature wise) and end up wearing basketball shorts and soccer jerseys all day, but at least those help somewhat. Taylor is sure excited to be a big sister. She loves kissing my belly or rubbing it saying "Baby Wylie" (translated to Baby Rylie) and is excited to be a big sister. If you also ask her where her baby is, she tells you "Baby nu-night" aka (Baby sleeping). So cute!! She is also sleeping in her new Ladybug bedroom and loves it! Craig is still working hard, just adjusting to different works hours- he now has to work an extra hour each day, but still has every other Friday off, so that makes it worth it :D

Hope all is well with each of you!
Love, the Muds

Memorial Weekend campout

It has surely been a while since the last update.... What a slacker I have become. This past memorial weekend, we were able to be one of the first up Santaquin Canyon for a camp out. What a blast that was! The original plan was to stay from Thursday night, until Sunday day... however, the weather and rangers changed our plans. First off, the gates were still closed, until early Friday morning. Second, the weather also changed our plans. We arrived bright and early Friday morning, set up camp, went for a drive and enjoyed spending time together. It was Craig, Taylor, my sister Melissa, and I (and Rylie, baby, of course), and of course Tiki. Friday night, we also enjoyed the company of our neighbors for some dinner and snacks.

Our new tent is really neat! There is a swinging door, automatic roll down windows, and a remote controlled light! How much cooler can you get!

My family also joined us Friday night. We had a tent pitched for them, and enjoyed S'mores! Wow, they tasted so good ( in fact, I got a craving for them the other day and had to roast a marshmellow over the stove. It just doesn't taste the same, but still satisfied my craving :D ). After a long night of tossing and turning with Taylor in our bed, it was finally time to start the day.




We were able to go hiking up in the narrows. That was truly an adventure! Trying to get a pregnant woman back there, with a two year old and a puppy. It was actually quite fun. This was actually the place where Craig had proposed, almost 4 years ago! Crazy cool... The scenery was just beautiful, and the overcast weather was just right for a hike. Tiki sure had fun trying to race up to Craig, while I was being dragged behind. The "tub", as some of you may not know, is a little part of the river that people intentionally back up to create a dam. The Murdochs grew up jumping and playing in this freezing cold water, but loved it. None of us jumped in this time, but for those who are curious, it is available if you'd like to go.



We also enjoyed a cool drink from the fresh spring. There's a sweet picture of Taylor doing a superman move to get the right position for the drink. Taylor's new obsession is with bugs lately. She either freaks out or squashes them quickly. Most of the time the reaction is that of freaking out, but a few times along the trail, she'd sit and admire them. Craig and Taylor also found a water snake to keep them entertained. Luckily Tiki didn't attempt to eat it or anything, that would make me sick!!




This is the tub!


Later Saturday afternoon it started to rain on us. We really didn't want to get stuck in the rain all weekend long, so we packed up and came home. Even though it was only one night, we still enjoyed it. Unfortunately we had to take two trips to take all our stuff back down. When Craig was up for the second load, another group of people wanted our spot. Apparently they were so anxious to get in, they started unloading truck loads of pre-set up tents all around the camp site, without allowing Craig to leave first. He came home very frustrated at these people. Oh well, that's what you get when you find the best spot to camp in- everyone wants it!


We decided we are going to name this baby girl Rylie Kay Ofa Murdoch. Kay is my mother's middle name, and Ofa means love in Tongan. We like to have our children have a bit of Tongan in their name, so that is the reason for such a long name, but somehow it works.
My pregnancy is going pretty well, for the baby at least. She is definitely going to be very active when she is born. She is CONSTANTLY kicking, and not just soft kicks, but hard- bruising kicks. She also moves around as much as she can, making me feel very nauseated and sick. But, I am trying to keep her in there for just a few more months.


Lastly, next week I am taking a certification exam to become an Athletic Trainer. It has been quite hard balancing out pregnancy- with extra tiredness, a two year old, and trying to study. Wish me luck as I attempt to pass on the first try!
Hope all is well with each of you! Love you lots!!

Love, the Muds