The Times, They Are A Changin'

As most of you know, Taylor and I are expecting a wonderful addition to our family in February.  We found out last week that it's a little boy and we've decided to name him Daniel Bryan.  Daniel for Taylor's middle name and Bryan for one of Taylor's beloved mentors.  We couldn't be happier. I can't quite put into words all of the feelings that I'm having about this life-changing event.  I'm terrified but excited.  Overjoyed yet doubtful.  And I suppose that every new mother goes through these emotions. 
It's fun to experience all of the little flutters that Daniel makes.  And literally see him grow, even if the only evidence is my continuously bulging stomach.  And I try to relish the feeling of it all.  To enjoy every last moment because I'm so scared that it will all just...go away.  And it's hard not to think like that.  It's hard not to remember that I could have already been a mommy.  And it's silly to mourn a child that really wasn't there, but it was real for me.  I try not to think about it, but when you feel a kick at 3:30 in the morning that wakes you up from an already fitful sleep your mind tends to wander.
But the point of this isn't to be depressing or gloomy.  I had to share the darkness of my worries and thoughts to really help you understand how grateful I am.
It's hard to believe that I have the opportunity to be a mom.  I know that there are women out there that are far more qualified and deserving.  Not that I'm a terrible person, but I know that I'm a very selfish person.  Years alone and having to take care of myself have nurtured that awful characteristic.  Taylor has been so patient with me over the past few years (can't believe that next week will be our 3 year anniversary).  But even with his patience, I'm still leagues behind what is necessary for what most would call a good mother.  However, I am going to continue to try and learn.  If there's one thing I hate, it's being stagnant.  I love the challenge that change brings.  I enjoy the opportunity to grow.  So though I may not feel worthy right now, I know that I've been blessed with a wonderful opportunity to become a good mom.  I realize that it's going to take a lot of humility on my part.  I know that I can't do this on my own.  There's no possible way that I can have all the answers without having ever done this.  I'm grateful for a husband that is loving and kind.  For his excitement of becoming a father and his dedication to such a call.  I don't know what I would do without his support.  I love that he willingly comes with me to my appointments and makes sure that I'm doing what is necessary for the baby.  I love that he loves this child, as it is right now, as much as I do.  I know that with him, I'm not alone in not only the joys of this pregnancy, but the woes as well.  I'm also especially grateful for the many family members and friends that have lent their support, ears, and hearts.  It's great to have such a network of knowledge and experience. 
Most important, I'm grateful for a Heavenly Father that has faith in me and loves me.  The scariest part of this, is knowing that though Daniel will be my son, he is His son too.  And with that comes a huge responsibility.  To know that what I do in the rearing up of my children can effect the chances of having them with me throughout eternity is nerve-wracking.  But it does provide excellent motivation to strive constantly to have His spirit with me.  To seek His counsel and guidance. 
I'm amazed at the capacity of love I feel for this baby.  I'm astounded by the desire he instills in me to be better.  Obviously I want to be a good person for my own benefit.  But I want to become a great mom for my family.  As I stated before, I cherish every little moment of the life growing inside of me.  I'm not going to take it for granted, even though I may complain about it sometimes.  I'm excited for the adventure that lays before us, and not just for Taylor and I.  I'm excited for both sets of our parents to experience being grand-parents.  To hear the joy in their voices is honestly one of the most gratifying sounds.  The proud words from a parent to child (even a child-in-law) is something that many of us strive to hear.  
Life for us is taking on new responsibilities and new meaning.  Things are changing and I think we're finally ready to see what it all has in store for us. 

Full Albums

Today a guy I work with said that (paraphrase) "Every album ever only has two or three good songs, and the rest is just filler." I very fully disagree with this statement, so I quickly ran down the list of albums on my Google Music account and the list of albums on which I enjoy every song grew quickly. I do mean EVERY song. I deliberately left out every album that was a soundtrack, compilation, greatest hits, or live performance. The list also would have been about five times longer if I had included albums with only one or two songs I normally skip or that aren't good. Also keep in mind that my google account only holds about half of my music collection, so there are sure to be quite a few albums left out.

DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL - A MARK, A MISSION, A BRAND, A SCAR

MXPX - BEFORE EVERYTHING AND AFTER

DISTURBED – BELIEVE

BILLY TALENT - BILLY TALENT

BILLY TALENT - BILLY TALENT II

BLINK-182 - BLINK-182

BOSTON – BOSTON

CPM 22 - CHEGOU A HORA DE RECOMEÇAR

CONDITIONS - CONDITIONS EP

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE - DANGER DAYS: THE TRUE LIVES OF THE FABULOUS KILLJOYS

BRAND NEW - DEJA ENTENDU

MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK - EVEN IF IT KILLS ME

FALL OUT BOY - FROM UNDER THE CORK TREE

HOOBASTANK – HOOBASTANK

LINKIN PARK - HYBRID THEORY

MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK - I AM THE MOVIE

COHEED AND CAMBRIA - IN KEEPING SECRETS OF SILENT EARTH: 3

SENSES FAIL - LET IT ENFOLD YOU

RUFIO - MCMLXXXV (1985)

LINKIN PARK – METEORA

MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK - MY DINOSAUR LIFE

COUNT THE STARS - NEVER BE TAKEN ALIVE

OFF BY ONE - OFF BY ONE

SAY ANYTHING - SAY ANYTHING

AFI - SING THE SORROW

RISE AGAINST - SIREN SONG OF THE COUNTER CULTURE

ARMOR FOR SLEEP - SMILE FOR THEM

NEW FOUND GLORY - STICKS AND STONES

DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL - SWISS ARMY ROMANCE

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE - THE BLACK PARADE

BRAND NEW - THE DEVIL AND GOD ARE RAGING INSIDE ME

MAE - THE EVERGLOW

FURTHER SEEMS FOREVER - THE MOON IS DOWN

DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL - THE PLACES YOU HAVE COME TO FEAR THE MOST

RACE THE SUN - THE REST OF OUR LIVES IS TONIGHT

COHEED AND CAMBRIA - THE SECOND STAGE TURBINE BLADE

ARCADE FIRE - THE SUBURBS

BAYSIDE - THE WALKING WOUNDED

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE - THREE CHEERS FOR SWEET REVENGE

WEEZER - WEEZER (BLUE ALBUM)

FINCH - WHAT IT IS TO BURN

CONDITIONS - YOU ARE FORGOTTEN

TAKING BACK SUNDAY – TELL ALL YOUR FRIENDS

DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE – PLANS

BRAND NEW – YOUR FAVORITE WEAPON

The Brian Setzer Orchestra - The Dirty Boogie

CONDITIONS - FLUORESCENT YOUTH

FALL OUT BOY – TAKE THIS TO YOUR GRAVE

HOOTIE AND THE BLOWFISH – CRACKED REAR VIEW

JACK JOHNSON – CURIOUS GEORGE

SPYRA GYRA – MOST OF THEIR MANY ALBUMS

THE USED – THE USED

THE USED - IN LOVE AND DEATH

Mini Vacations

Well, I guess since it looks like Rikki has given up on writing any blog posts, I'll guess I'll be filling one in. Over the last few weekends we've been able to do little mini vacations with family and friends. Over memorial day weekend we went up to Bountiful and spent it at quite a few different family gatherings. Before we could leave on Friday night however, we had to invest quite a bit into long overdue car repairs. We put on a new windshield, two new tires, flushed the transmission and changed the oil. Then while we were doing the safety check for the registration, the latch that holds the hood down broke and quit working completely, and they wouldn't pass it. So we just ended up riding up with my parents which was fine.

Saturday early afternoon we had my grandma's 75th birthday, and it was great to see all of my extended family. I ended up spending most of the time playing horse with my cousins. After the party, I made a quick trip to Lagoon with Sierra and Kiera, and Rikki went shopping with parents and grandparents. It ended up pouring rain the entire time we were at the park and we only ended up getting on a few rides. Still nice to spend time with my sisters.

Sunday we went to church early, and then headed up to my Uncle Steve's house for a celebration of all the Klemm May birthdays, and there are quite a few of them. The food was awesome as always, hamburgers and bbq chicken. So in the two days we got to see pretty much all of my extended family. The next morning, most of those same women got together for my cousin's baby shower. My dad and I were supposed to be having a nice golf outing, but when we woke up to snow we scrapped that and went to IHOP instead. Not as good as golf, but still quite nice.

The next weekend we headed down to Vegas for a friend's wedding. We got in late Thursday, and early Friday my dad and I finally got around to that golf. We played a course called Rio Secco, and it was without a doubt the nicest course that I've ever played. A lot of holes were built into the natural cliffs, and quite a few had gorgeous views overlooking the whole city. It was Really REALLY nice. That evening was the wedding, and it was quite nice too. Congrats again to Josh and Stephanie. It was awesome to see how happy the experience made him. Saturday we spent pretty much the whole day visiting old friends and with Rikki's family. Sunday was church early again, then a nice family dinner with both mine and Rikki's family. Then the long drive back.

(We've been listening to The Hunger Games audiobooks as we've been doing all this driving, and I have to say I'm convinced.)

Then finally this past weekend we were invited by our friend April to go up to her family's cabin at Mammoth Creek, up above Cedar City. It was quite seriously the nicest cabin I've ever seen. We spent the weekend riding ATVs, playing board games, and watching movies. We had nothing we had to do and no one we had to see, and we just had the whole weekend to relax. It was great, not to mention that the food was awesome. Hope we can go back again sometime, they were all awesome people.

Hopefully Rikki will update soon with all the projects that we've been working on around the house...painting and redoing the yard mostly.

Interesting to say the least.

I've been meaning to update this.  I really have.  Unfortunately, I get too side-tracked to do so.  Well, now I have a bit more time on my hands, so maybe I can keep up with this.
Golly, I don't really know where to start with this.  I suppose I could just share what's been lingering on my mind the past few weeks.
Well, Taylor and I had been trying to get pregnant for some months now.  It's been quite the trial for me seeing as how I was told as a teenager that any attempt for me to have a baby would be a difficult one.  Shortly after our two year anniversary, I found out that I was pregnant.  But just as quickly as it happened, I had a miscarriage.  So that was quite a blow for me.  Taylors been great about it, so sweet and consoling.  I'm doing better about it now though, especially after being laid off from my job.  A blessing in disguise.
Now it's just a matter of starting the hunt again.  Looking for a job that is going to help support Taylor that way he can finish school.  Nothing is more important than that one goal at this point.
As far as work is concerned though, I know what I want to do.  It's just a matter of gaining the experience needed to do it though.  Hopefully I can find something at a design firm, start from the bottom and work my way up.  My job gave me a small severance to tide us over til the new year at least, so that allows for some time to find something.
Other than that, things are well.  Taylor is working at BYU Broadcasting and is loving it.  He's also doing very well in school.  We miss our family a lot.  I know that I'm certainly looking forward to Christmas so we can go to Vegas.
Oh, and for those that have yet to see Deathly Hallows.  DO IT. NOW!  It was phenomenal.  The best thus far.
Thankfully I have lots of craft ideas to help keep me busy and sane, so I'll be doing a lot of that too.  If any of it is good enough, I'll post it on here.  :)

Gettin crafty!!!

So a couple of our dear friends that we met over the summer just a baby boy (as of 11:30 this morning), and I wanted to make them something special for his arrival. So on Saturday morning, before I went into work, I drove down to Michaels and got all of the necessary materials. And this was the end result...

 

I really hope Gabi and Nick like it and that it didn't come out too girly.  I personally love it cause it has all of my favourite things (ie. argyle, stripes, and polka dots) the only thing that's missing is plaid.  Anywho, that was just one of my many projects that I've done thus far.  So many babies and weddings coming up that I fear I'm gonna be a very busy girl. 

OH! And any input or suggestions that you may have would be great. 

I loved my Cherry Coke!

So, tonight, me and the wife went to see Avatar in 3D for a much needed date night. The movie was amazing, one of the top i've ever seen, but that's not why i'm writing this blog.

Before we went in to the movie, we each got drinks. I a Mr. Pibb, Rikki a Cherry Coke. I put them on a tray which we took into the theater with us. Somehow, the two got switched when we sat down...i noticed when i took a sip and it was a lot sweeter then i had expected. I then wished i had gotten Cherry Coke, it hit the spot very well. I looked over, and Rikki seemed to be enjoying the pibb, so i left it alone.

On the drive home, we were talking about how awesome the movie was, then Rikki says, "...and man, i really enjoyed my Cherry Coke!" I busted up laughing, not only that she hadn't noticed that the drinks were switched, but had enjoyed it so much. When i told her what had happened, she got upset at me for not telling her right away, but neither of us could stop laughing for a few minutes.

This doesn't seem as funny as i type it, but it was hilarious. Let me know if it's funny or not.

Tender Mercies

Today has been one of the best days this year. Nothing radical or amazingly exciting happened, rather an extraordinary blessing was bestowed upon Taylor and I.
As most of you know, Taylor and I have been struggling to find employment since we returned home to Utah at the beginning of November. Living off of savings and the kindness of friends and family, we had run out of any possible income to get us through January. As you can assume or maybe you yourself have experienced, I was rather worried and distraught. Prayers became more pleading and fasting became quite frequent. It wasn't until a couple of weeks ago that a glimmer of hope was restored. We met with the bishop for tithing settlement and were instantly comforted. He gave us wonderful words of hope, reminded us of great promises, and shared valuable experiences with us that not only filled our hearts but strengthened our testimonies. I can't tell you how truly grateful we are to have such a bishop as a newlywed couple and as members of the church. So after meeting with the bishop, we finally started getting calls for interviews. As a matter of fact, Taylor had four in that first week. I started getting more legitimate leads for places to apply. Though it wasn't a job offer, it was still a step closer than we were before, we were moving forward.
After I dropped off a friend at work this morning, I felt the need to check our mail since I hadn't done so in quite a few days. In my mind, I made a simple joke "It's not like someone sent us a check." Once I got home with the mail, Taylor and I sifted through it. We received a couple of Christmas cards from family and of course the infamous 'ads'. But as Taylor was reading the annual Christmas letter from his parents, I found a letter from my old insurance company. Confused, I opened and found attached to it a check for $500. I was so overwhelmed that I started to cry. I had heard stories and testimonies given about Christmas miracles such as this, but never really expected to really have my own. In my hands was a tender mercy from the Lord.
The check was a reimbursement from a minor accident that I had in June of last year. A gentleman rear ended me damaging my rear bumper. It was a good thing that a month prior to the minor collision, I added the 'uninsured motorist' coverage to my policy, because this guy didn't have insurance. So, needless to say that when I called my insurance company to report the accident they told me that I would have to pay the $500 deductible myself unless they could somehow convince this guy to pay it. I was left with no hope. They did however send me a check, at that time, to cover the damages totaling over $1300. I put that check towards the principle balance on my car, allowing me to pay it off sooner. However, my company dropped my coverage after that. I still had a damaged bumper but at least I was closer to owning my vehicle. So the fact that I get a check, a year and a half later from them really amazes me. As I said to Taylor's parents, I knew from whom this check had really come from. It reminded me of a talk given by Elder David A. Bednar in general conference a few years ago, in it he said:

"Some may count this experience as simply a nice coincidence, but I testify that the tender mercies of the Lord are real and that they do not occur randomly or merely by coincidence. Often, the Lord’s timing of His tender mercies helps us to both discern and acknowledge them."

I know that this was not a coincidence. When the accident first occurred and I was worrying about how to handle it, I am sure the Lord was there teaching me patience. Taylor and I feel, that in a way, that accident happened so that we would be blessed, in time. Thanks to the first initial check and the generosity from Ron and Anne, we own our vehicle. I know that the Lord provided todays check for us when we needed it most. When we would not take it for granted, nor when it would go unrecognized. He provided this for us that we might be reminded of His watchful eye, His constant care, and His unconditional eternal love. I am thankful to not only have a Heavenly Father that knows me and my needs but also that he instills renewed hope. What a blessing it was, to open that letter and to feel His love in telling me, "I am here. I know. And you will be okay."  I am also thankful for a loving and supportive family who's faith, prayers, and fasting have been such a blessing to us during these tough times.  Families are eternal and, today especially, I was reminded of how lucky I am to be a part of this one.

During the Christmas season, it's easy to get lost in the luster of bright lights, never ending shopping, and constant stress.  But I testify that if we focus our hearts on it's true meaning, the birth of the Savior Jesus Christ, the spirit of Christmas will be intensified in our lives and our homes.  If we "make room, and let Him in", we will find in that a peace and joy so wonderful and amazing.  If we do that, then we will be able to experience our very own Christmas miracle.  I am so grateful that the Savior humbly came to the world, gave the perfect example, and provided a way that even I, as imperfect I as I am, can return home to my Father in Heaven.


We thank you sincerely for all that you've done for us, most in ways that you don't realize how deeply it effects us.  We love and miss you all.  May you all have a safe and beautiful Christmas.