Not much going on

My cousin, Heather, came and stayed with us for a couple days last week. But it wasn't all play. In fact, most of it was hard work...frustrating work. Heather and I have been brainstorming for a while now about what she should do for her 1 year anniversary. We finally made a decision and planned out what we needed to do to get it ready. Anyways, it was a lot of work but we're almost finished. Sorry, but I can't share what it is. I will leave that to Heather should she wish to share. All I have to say is I know for a fact that Brock will love it. It is the perfect gift for Heather to give and for Brock to receive.

She left on a Thursday morning and Daniel and I headed up to Reno that night after work. Danny, the trooper, stayed awake the entire 7 hour drive...while I slept for 3-4 hours. It was really difficult for him to stay awake once I had dozed off. But we made it safely. Good job, babe.

The next day Danny and his brother, Joe started their day with a workout while I went to Wal-Mart to get milk (Joe's wife, Shaela, had to work at her new job). After we were all ready we went and did a tour of UNR's new medical facility for the students (Joe's a pre-med student). It was really impressive. It was all new and was decorated with clean, modern lines and colors. The worst part about the whole experience were all the mannequins they have in their simulation rooms. Kailyn is not a fan of statues, mannequins, or anything that looks lifelike. Even the cut up brains and stuff didn't bug me. After a quick tour of the school, lunch at a diner, and a few errands we went out to dinner (with Shae) at a mexican restaurant. It was starting to get stormy outside so the lights flickered for a while in the restaurant...haha. That was interesting. When we got home we saw a couple places where lightning had struck the ground. We drove out to get a better look and there were literally cars lined up and down both sides of the street to watch the fire. It was nuts! Thankfully it wasn't to close to the condo.

The next day we headed to Lake Tahoe after some shopping for the girls and working out for the boys...HOLY HUGE LAKE!!! And blue! It was just like the beach except the water seemed colder and ducks and geese were waddling everywhere. Kailyn has never been around that large a body of water. And she took to it like a fish! She kept insisting someone take her to the water. She didn't even mind the freezing waves that hit up to her chest. The day started out overcast with mild breezes but eventually it got to be too sunny and hot for Kailyn and I too sit their and bake our bodies.

We ate at a casino (I can't remember the name of) buffet which was really, REALLY good. They didn't have a huge selection but what they had was really good stuff. Of course, Kailyn only at rice...typical Asian :)

That night we walked the "strip" in Reno and saw the river that ran through it. We came across this guy who was just jamming away on the guitar in a little park. He didn't even have his guitar case open for money or acknowledge people who passed by. He was in the zone and was not coming out anytime soon. He seriously had to be one of the best musicians I've heard in a long time.

The next morning we went to breakfast with a couple new friends of Joe and Shae's. We got an AMAZING breakfast! I got a short stack which is basically 2 super fluffy pancakes 12 inches round. So glad I decided on that because I almost go the full stack. After breakfast we headed home. And the weather was NUTS! It was windy the whole way home and raining for the larger half of it. The roads out to Reno are in no way prepared for flash flooding and are 2 lanes. We hit a rough patch where the roads were flooded and almost hit one at full speed but the semi truck coming the opposite direction flashed his high beams at us which gave Daniel enough warning to slow down to about 60 MPH. We definitely hydroplaned. It honestly sounded like we had run over hundreds of rocks. There cars behind us were far enough back that no one would have even come close to hitting us, but I sure hope they were close enough that they saw us slow down because they were all traveling within close proximity of each other.

And, after passing a ghost town and a couple of whore houses, we made it back to Vegas. Whew! It was an crazy, fun trip but I'm definitely glad to be home and takin' easy in the hot, Vegas weather. So, that's what's been happening here.

*About 3 more months on my pregnancy to go and then Jet will be here :)

The little white arrow on the screen

So this is a few days late and I'm sure all my relatives know this by now but I'm pregnant with a boy! He is due the second week in November and will be named Joseph Jet Wray. We will be calling him by his middle name since his Uncle's name is Joseph (although I have always been opposed to calling your child by their middle name). We are all REALLY excited about having a boy for several reasons...which are:

1. It'll be nice knowing that no matter what happens we will have one boy and one girl.

2. Joseph is a family name that came attached to a blessing from the prophet Joseph Smith as long as 1 child in each generation was named Joseph. Daniel was given the rights to use that name by his own brother, Joseph.

3. Kailyn was the first child in her generation to have the last name Wray but now we will have a boy who can carry on the family name.

4. On the Shunn side of the family there are currently 9 grandchildren: 3 boys and 6 girls. All the boys belong to my sister, Karena, as well as one girl. We've all been wondering who was going to relieve my sister from her duty of bearing sons. Well, I'm happy to say that I was able to break the chain. I was determined to be the one to do it and lo and behold! it was me after all.

5. On the Wray side of the family Kailyn is the first grandchild. Now Daniel's parents will have a granddaughter and a grandson to spoil.

6. I've been nervous about this for some time. I knew that if I had 2 girls in a row that I would be totally lost if we ever had a boy. I would get stuck in a girly rut and never want to have a boy. Now I'll be able to have a boy, go through the motions, and it will help me feel prepared for whatever comes next. Especially since I've always had a harder time with boys.

7. Once when Kailyn was "playing" with the baby (rubbing my tummy, saying hi, giving it hugs and kisses, etc) I had a quick image, almost like a memory, of Kailyn holding a baby boy, talking to him, and giving him kisses. I tried really hard to get the image out of my head so that I would be open to the possibility of a girl but I ended up saying "he" whenever referring to the baby without even realizing it. I'm glad that I had that impression and that feminine intuition (or revelation) really do work.

8. I am SO excited for Danny to have a son. He is so amazing with Kailyn. They are best buds. He has patience with her when all mine is spent. He can just reach her in a way I can't. Those 2 are the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. And now that he has a son on the way I know he is going to be the same amazing dad with a twist because it'll be "his boy". Father and son. It's going to be great to watch the differences.

There are plenty of reasons to be excited. I could think of a million more little things to say. "I know he's going to be handsome" and "I can buy cute boy clothes". But the all around best thing about us having a boy is that it will be a whole new adventure. I'm nervous and excited about a getting to know this little boy. To find out what makes him happy and what makes him sad. How long will it take him to walk? When will he start smiling? I'm just so grateful that our little boy is coming to join our family and make it a little closer to being complete.

Wow...

It's been a long time. I am so bad at this...but my excuse is that my computer was infected with 20 different viruses so I was out a computer for a few months until we decided it was time to get it fixed. So, I'm back :)



Here are some things that have happened since Kailyn's birthday (sorry, no pix):

Got pregnant right after Christmas

Danny got a job at Papa John's to work around his school schedule

Had a miscarriage in February

Took a pregnancy test 4 weeks after miscarriage: POSITIVE

Danny and I were sealed to Kailyn on March 26, 2011

Danny had surgery on right foot to correct extremely flat feet at the end of April

Kailyn stayed in Utah while Danny and I went to New Hampshire, New Jersey, and New York at the beginning on June

Had an ultrasound on June 19 and found out the baby is due November 5, 2011

Danny had surgery on his left foot June 21

I finally updated my blog on June 23



As far as things to come it's mostly just that my brother, Craig, is getting married next weekend to Breanna. I'll be going up to Utah with Kailyn for the wedding and we'll be leaving Daddy at home to recover.

Well, I hope I can be better at this blogging. It's lots of fun when I keep up on it and it's a huge pain when I don't do it for a long time. We'll see :)

Happy Birthday, Kailyn!

Well, Kailyn made it. Or rather Daniel and I made it. Kailyn is one year old. It's so bizarre. It seems like it's only been a couple of months since we were in the hospital and Daniel delivered Kailyn and then set her in my arms. She was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen.

There are so many mixed feelings that come with her birthday. A sadness for time lost or wasted, overwhelming happiness that we have a happy, healthy baby, a desire to continue having children, and a determination to get to the temple so we can always have our baby girl with us. I've decided that we've lost our sense of focus with all the job searching and schooling that's been going on in our house. We've gone out of town, had guests over, and have simply become distracted. Daniel and I have talked about it recently and have decided that it's time to buckle down and get it done. We have to do it for Kailyn. For our family.

Well, I'll post again with her birthday pictures and how her party went when I get her pictures. But this one's for Kailyn:

Viva Las Vegas!

I LOVE LIVING IN LAS VEGAS!

Yes, the weather is hot, the traffic his hectic, and the people are bizarre...but the shows are amazing! Daniel's family buys tickets on a fairly regular basis at discounted prices so we take every opportunity to go see them.

THE BEATLES: LOVE

I love listening to The Beatles. It's even more fun to listen to when you've got people dressed up as crazies doing insane stunts! This is a Cirque de Soleil show and The Beatles is the theme. It was very entertaining. I think that the best was Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds...but that's my favorite song. There are 2 pieces of fabric hanging from the ceiling clear down to the floor and "Lucy" is doing flips and turns in and out of the fabric while flying up and down. It's like a free fall back and forth while holding onto this elasticized fabric. It was crazy cool!

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

Daniel surprised me with Phantom for HIS birthday. We had planned to get gussied up and walk the strip since I hadn't done it in a long time. Daniel came and picked me up at my hotel (I wasn't living here yet) and we were off. Daniel was focused on parking and I was confused as to why he seemed so rushed since it was still light outside. I blindly followed him through the parking garage to the casino because he said it was the best was to get to the strip. We went down the escalators and then Daniel said, "Wait, I think it's back this way," and led me to the theater behind the escalators. It took me a few seconds to realize where we were going. I even said, "Babe, I don't think this is the way out. This is for Phantom of the Opera." Then he smiled and I was all, " Oh my gosh, no way! Oh my gosh, oh my gosh. Really?" Needless to say we were both extremely excited.

The show was fantastic! It was the best show I have ever seen! We were on the left side, 5th row, and I had the aisle seat! The chandelier at the beginning was spectacular! The music was just as perfect as it has always been. I was mouthing the words the entire time. And Daniel smiled the entire night because I loved the surprise so much. I had always loved the show and promised myself that I would see it one day...and Daniel, at 20 years old, gave me the perfect gift. What a great guy!

FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS

This was Daniel's birthday present this year. These guys are HILARIOUS! They are from New Zealand and had their own show of the same name. They perform really funny songs but they are honestly very talented. It wasn't a big spectacle kind of a show. They just sit there with their guitars and just make stupid jokes the whole time. But the delivery of the jokes and the words in the music are what make the show. I strongly suggest you look up "It's business time" on you tube if you have never heard of them.

BRITNEY SPEARS: CIRCUS

Daniel got these tickets from a friend who, again, got them for free. I was going to go with my sister in-law but I ended up having to work so she took her husband. Apparently, the show was amazing, but kind of weird. Of course, the whole concept of a REAL circus is weird, too. They told me that one of the performers had no legs...head to butt was all she had. And she jumped on a trampoline and did flips and tricks and other weird stuff. 2 things ran through my mind when they told me about this particular performer. First: Good for her. If you're going to lose your legs at least you've become somewhat successful by performing with Britney Spears. Second: That's kind of creepy.



AC/DC

This is another show I didn't see. This is my father in-law's favorite band so he took his 2 boys out to see them. Daniel said that it was really amazing. They have this train engine on the stage and at some point in the show they inflate a giant woman to sit on top of it...I don't really care for AC/DC like they do, but I'm really glad they were able to enjoy it.

ZEN MAGIC

These to girls are from Japan and perform in a cultural folk lore sort of way. It's still flashy and ridiculously over the top, but it seems like it was all based on legends. Almost every trick was easy to figure out (one time the lighting accidentally flashed was was going on behind the curtain) but it was entertaining. I was a really good family show. And we got our pictures taken with them. Yay!

STEVE WYRICK: REAL MAGIC

This was the best magic show I've ever been to. It was very entertaining and the "magic" was very convincing. It was sometimes a little cheesy but he really did a good job at keeping us entertained and confused. What I really liked about this show is that a lot of it is sentimental. It reenacts his childhood and family a lot throughout the show. It's almost like a story. The show is called "Real Magic" in reference to life and family. At the very end, for the grand finale, he makes an entire plane appear on the stage in a matter of seconds. It was and awesome show.

BLUE MAN GROUP

Daniel and I saw this together back when we first started dating. It was such an amazing show. We saw it again about a week ago and it was JUST as amazing! I love how talented these guys are...in both their music and comedy. It is a show I would definitely recommend seeing at least once for the experience. If you ever go to the show in Las Vegas wear as much white as possible :)

CHEAP TRICK

This is, by far, the best concert I have ever been to. The music, the lights, the band, the men's choir, the millions of paper hearts that fell from the ceiling during "All you need is love"....these guys just really know how to put on a show! I had never really heard of Cheap Trick. I knew the songs "I want you to want me" and "Surrender" but I didn't associate them with the band. Their Beatles songs were just on the spot. They really are one of the best bands simply because their music compliments THE best band. The lead singer has one of the most talented voices ever.



JAY LENO

These tickets were given to us by one of our regular customers...and he got them for free. But I actually enjoyed this show a lot more than I thought. He really fits his own stereotype. He wobbles his head, he points and makes points using his whole hand, he talks like an antsy henchmen to a kingpin, and he walks in place. His jokes were pretty funny, too. He only had a couple that were off color, but all around it was fun to go and have a good laugh.

Welcome Home, Sweetheart!!!

Daniel's Story:

When he first got there he was soon singled out as the only person without any medical background. After they all arrived he was the last to introduce himself to the group and lead doctor. When he told them he was going to major in English the doctor asked several times (through her translator) "Why are you here?" He was so embarrassed and immediately wanted to come home. He emailed me and told me how miserable he was and that he's shouldn't be there. After I told him that he paid money to volunteer he decided that it didn't matter what the doctor thought. He was there to serve people and not to worry about one person's opinion. He was constantly mistreated by their lead doctor but he stayed positive and made it a group joke with his peers. He was able to make some good friends because of it. He was able to call home and email constantly. While there in Costa Rica the group was able to go down a zip line that was (if I remember correctly) 2-3 miles down the rain forest. People reportedly saw sleeping bats, birds, monkeys, and even large wildcats.

The next week he told me that they were traveling to an indigenous village in the middle of the rain forest and then moving on to Panama. Phone conversations were very limited. The village was hard to get to, hard to live through, and hard to come back from. His group had to hike 2 hours in the heat and humidity to get there. While there they helped a lot of people who had parasites that, if not treated early, ensured death. Most everyone had it, including children. The symptoms left open sores all over their body. And even those who had the parasites taken care of would always have the scars to remind them. It was difficult for Danny to see little children living with something so terrible. It made him think of and appreciate Kailyn.

After they left the village they went to Panama. I think they only did a clinic once. Then they had another play day. Danny got to go see Dolphins (his favorite). He loves how intelligent and unified they are. Me? I'm a shark person. So, he brought me home the perfect souvenir: A necklace with a shark tooth! I know that they've been popular before but mine is the best because it's not a fashion statement. It has real sentimental value. He hates sharks but loves me enough to get me something I will always love. For Kailyn, he bought a key chain of a cute yarn doll that reminded him of her. What a sweetheart!

The next day they all traveled back to Costa Rica and the next morning they flew out for an all day trip back home. When I saw him come around the corner at the airport he smiled his perfect smile and I melted. He was home. And he looked AMAZING! He was wearing one of the local shirts he purchased. My man looked like he's been living in Costa Rica his whole life. So tan and healthy looking. Anyways, Kailyn spent the night at her grandparents to that we could clean him up and inspect his body for any open wounds. We wanted to make sure that he didn't pass anything to Kailyn. And that was it. We spent the night without worrying that Kailyn would disrupt our night together. It was a really good experience for him. It was a really good experience for me. And it has made our relationship that much better.

I'll be sure to post pictures of his trip and all the goodies he brought back.

The 6 C's

Costa Rica-

Daniel is leaving for Costa Rica on Saturday. He and his brother, Joe, will be gone for 2 weeks assisting medical doctors as part of an internship. His brother is a Pre Med Student and had been filling out applications fro different medical schools and is looking for something to put on his transcripts. Daniel will, at some point, need to do the same to get into a good law school so they both decided it was better to go together now than separately.

Joe's wife, Shae, lives just up the street from me so this will be a good opportunity for us to get together and do girl stuff. I'm really excited and know it will be a good experience for him and his brother.



Cleaning-

For the past 2 weeks I have had ants off and on in my house and have come to realize it's because I haven't (really) cleaned my house for a long time. The weirdest part about the ants is that they are mostly in the bathroom which I deep cleaned about a week before they showed up. I've been spraying them every time I see them and they've finally made their way to the kitchen. So, it's just time to do EVERYTHING. So after I get Danny packed and out the door I will be cleaning my entire house. I will probably take before and after pictures so keep an eye out for that in a week or so.



Cutting teeth-

Kailyn is currently cutting her 5th tooth. This one has been the worst. She really handled all four of her teeth very well. A little bit of discomfort and a lot of chewing, but #5 had been a real pain in the mouth for Kailyn and the butt for mommy. She had a fever for about 4 days a couple of weeks ago when she starting cutting and ever since then she's been more whiny, fussy, restless, and sometimes just plain annoying. I think she's learned that if she whines long enough she gets what she wants. Grrrrr! But things have mostly gone back to normal. She sleeps through the night, she takes her naps on time, she's active again...but one thing has changed dramatically and that is the next "C"...



Constipated-

Kailyn has been having some serious issues with her BM's. She's been eating Baby Food for a while now and we've been giving her solids for the last month or so (not a lot, just bits and pieces of what we're eating) and for some reason she just can't seem to go on her own. Every time I hear her grunt or see her face turn red from pushing I have to grab her, lay her down, open her diaper, bend her in half, and help coax it out. She does this heartbreaking, high pitched gasping sound every time. I gave her some Prunes/Baby Food and it didn't make a difference. I kept trying to figure out what had changed and came to the conclusion that it had to be the formula I had switched to when she turned 9 months. I've always used Enfamil and then at 9 months I moved to the next stage, same brand. And then when that run out I went to the store to buy her more and saw that Parent's Choice was 5 dollars cheaper than the one I bought before and gave it a shot. I went through about 1 1/2 25oz cans before there was a real change. So now that I'm almost out of her formula I'm going back to Enfamil. If anyone has any suggestions to help her through her transition please let me know. Thanks!



Crawling-

Kailyn is still just crawling. She's pro at it, that's for sure, but I would love to see some walking. Danny and I worked with her on it last night but she was a little too wound up to focus. We bought her a walker to help her but it's a little short so in order to walk she has to lean forward which doesn't really teach her how to keep her balance, which is her biggest issue. She has the motion down, just not the balance. She would be running if she could just figure out how to keep herself up. But I'm going to work on her the next 2 weeks and see if I can get her walking before daddy comes home...and work on saying dad. She's got mom down.



Conception-

Ok, so not really. I just wanted to see what my sisters would say if they saw "CONCEPTION" on here. But, since we're on the subject, Daniel and I are currently uninsured and most insurances have an 18 month probationary period before you have maternity coverage. So the plan is to sell the store in about 2 months (hopefully less), get insured with the profits from the store, and then get pregnant 18 months after that. However, IF we do get pregnant before then I guess we will have to apply for Medicaid...again. We are really trying to avoid getting pregnant for that reason. So, there you have it. Not planning on getting pregnant in the near future.