A Hawaiian Christmas

Yes, it's been 2+months since we posted a blog. Andrew has been dutifully composing Nathan's birth story (soon to be posted). Hopefully, most of you got the email about Nathan's birth. He was born exactly on his due date weighing in at 10.1 pounds and measuring 22 inches! He just had his 2 month check up and now weighs 18.1 pounds and is 25 3/4 inches long! We have a very sturdy and adorable 2 month old. Recovery has been harder than I thought, but little Nathan is definitely worth it.

We were able to go to Hawaii, which really helped me feel better. I went with my parents on Dec. 11 and we made it in time to see my sister Hannah graduate from BYU-Hawaii. Andrew's sister Leilani also graduated but he had to stay and work. He came out on Dec. 18th in time for Christmas. I was able to spend a week with my family in our time share on Waikiki. It was really fun to see my brother, sister-in-law, niece, and Hannah because I hadn't seen them since last Christmas. Jake, my brother, flies for Continental and is based out of Guam for a short time. Riley, my niece, loved baby Nathan and was always concerned with his well being. She would constantly bring him a pacifier or blanket to make sure he had what he needed. Anytime we bought anything for him she would also put it right next to him to let him know it was his. She is 2 1/2 going on 14.

The sun and 80 degree weather didn't feel much like Christmas but we tried to do Christmas things like bake cookies, see the downtown lights, go shopping, and even see Santa Claus. Grandma Glidewell also came out for a short while and we were able to spend some quality time with her. It was my mom's birthday on the 14th and we all celebrated with a salmon picnic that we had on the BYUH campus. When we weren't busy with Christmas things or celebrations, we were at the beach. Little Nathan took to the water quite well. We only put him in waist deep, but he seemed pretty content to sit and enjoy the water because it cooled him off. My brother would always comment on how big he was.

When Andrew came out, we went to the North Shore to be with his family. His parents and youngest sister Leilani still live in Laie. His older sisters Kimberly and Tina were also able to come out along with Tina's new baby Emmalia and husband John. We also did Christmas festivities over there (complete with the famous cookie decorating extravaganza), but most of the time was spent taking pictures of and playing with our babies who are almost exactly a month apart. They seemed to be instant friends and whenever we sat them next to each other they cooed, smiled, kicked and were very active. We also celebrated Andrew's birthday on the 22nd and had a barbecue with some of his old friends.

We also had some spiritual moments on this vacation. My sister Hannah is going to serve a mission of for our church- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in February. Before going, she is required to take out her endowments in the temple. She did this in the Laie temple and Andrew, my dad, mom, and I as well as several of her friends were able to attend. My sister Doree babysat little Nathan. It was a wonderful experience to see my family in the temple and to watch my sister take this momentous step in her life. We also blessed Nathan. Our friends, the Murphy's, let us borrow their son's blessing outfit. The shirt looked kind of like a midriff on Nathan, but it worked. (Later, we put Emmalia in her blessing dress and took pictures- it looked kind of like a baby wedding!) Both of our families were able to be there and see little Nathan get blessed. Our fathers stood in the circle and Andrew gave a really wonderful blessing. He talked a lot about the meaning of Nathan's name and that Nathanial means "gift from God" but Nathan actually means "giver" and that he should follow Christ's example of giving service. My husband is often a very profound speaker and many people commented on what a neat blessing it was.

That day (Dec. 23rd) was also my dad's birthday so we celebrated with my family and took pictures in front of the Waikiki Christmas tree. We spent the night with them and then woke up on Christmas Eve to take a beautiful hike to Manoa Falls. It was quite an awesome experience greeting everyone with a "Merry Christmas" as we were hiking among the beautiful foliage of Hawaii in 80 degree weather. I kept saying "this is the life!" We then drove back to the North Shore to celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with Andrew's family. It seemed like a lot of back and forth but Andrew and I were able to enjoy each other's company and the beautiful scenery of the drive. That night we lit the luminarias and put them along the driveway. We also went to PCC (the Polynesian Cultural Center) to listen to some festive holiday music Hawaiian style and do some shopping. We read the Christmas story, put on our new PJ's and hopped into bed.

The next day we opened some nice gifts (Nathan slept in my arms through all of the present opening). We also had a nice family lunch together. Then Andrew and I were off again to see my family. We opened presents there and had another nice meal. That evening all of us kids, including Leilani, were given a gift to see Cirque du Soleil. It was Hawaii's version of it and after we got over the bad Elvis impersonator, the show was quite extravagant and on the edge of your seat kind of entertainment. My favorite was the lady that could change clothes in the blink of an eye. The next day we had to say goodbye to Jake, Ali, Riley, and Ali's parents who were there for Christmas as well. Sadly our vacation was coming to a close. Andrew and I got to celebrate one more event- our anniversary. We got a gift card to the Cheesecake Factory and enjoyed a nice meal among the palm trees of Waikiki. What a wonderful trip! We were able to catch up with old friends, celebrate graduation, birthdays, and our anniversary and most of all make memories with both our families! Now, back to reality. Mele Kalikimaka and a Happy New Year! For more pics of our trip, check out the "Christmas in Hawaii" link on the left of our blog.

Walk 'till he drops

Molly is 39 1/2 weeks. We're anxious, excited, and ready for him to come. Everyone says walking helps get the baby out, so walk we did--over three miles. Afterwards, Molly said everything was sore except her belly. I guess this baby will come when he's good and ready. We walked around Greenbelt Lake, which is starting to have some beautiful fall foliage. Molly wore my "Miller Construction Services" t-shirt. You could say it's her current occupation.

In Honor of Columbus Day

In honor of Columbus Day, Molly and I decided to be explorers and go somewhere new and wondrous. For us, that meant getting out of man-made DC and enjoying God's beautiful creations. So we went to Shenandoah National Park and Luray Caverns. In a
small way, we were adventurous like Columbus, considering Molly was 2 1/2 weeks from her due date and we went 3 hours away from home and hundreds of feet underground. We made plans the night before and Molly hesitated the morning of, but I said, "It's my holiday and we're going." We did, however, take note of all the hospitals along the way, keeping track of which one was closest--just in case.



Shenandoah is a long, narrow park along the ridge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Skyline Drive runs 105 miles along the ridge and is supposed to be one of the most scenic drives in the East. It was cloudy that day, but we still got some good views. I had fun being like my Dad, trying to take stunning pictures. They didn't come out like his would have, but they make for fond memories.



The speed limit was 35 miles the whole way, but we didn't mind. We were there for the journey, not the destination. It would have taken 3 hours to drive the whole thing, but we had a picnic lunch about an hour in and cut out early to go to the Luray Caverns.

Outside the cavern we saw what they call the Singing Tower, a huge, stone bell tower. It still operates and they give "concerts," but only on the weekends, so we only got to see it.



The Luray Caverns is one of those stalagtite/stalagmite caves. It is the biggest in the East and one of the biggest in the nation. Its claim to fame, however, has to be the "Stalagpipe Organ." Cave explores discovered that when you strike certain formations with a rubber mallet it makes a musical tone, like a xylophone. A physicist who loved music designed electronic hammer devices that he strapped to formations of various sizes to make different notes, then hooked all the devices to an organ terminal. The result is an actual, playable organ. We took one look and thought, "Now this is were the Phantom of the Opera must live." They didn't let us play it, but they played an automated song so we could hear it--"A Might Fortress is Our God." The room it was in is called the Cathedral Room, partially because of its size and shape and partially because several weddings have been held there.



Another highlight of the cavern was what they call Mirror Lake. It's a shallow lake--about 6-8 inches at its deepest--but because the water is so still the reflection looks as deep as the ceiling is tall. It was hard to get a picture because with the flash you couldn't see the reflection and without the flash it came out a little blurry--but here it is. Kind of Halloween-ish.



Also kind of Halloween-ish was Pluto's Ghost. It's a formation that was in a central location, so the first explores kept passing by it again and again as they explored the cave's many tunnels. They felt like it was a ghost following them, so they named it Pluto's Ghost after that Roman god Pluto, lord of the underworld. (Sorry, no picture of that one.)

Finally, at the end of the cavern was what they call the Wishing Well. As the name suggests, they let people throw in coins. People throwing coins might hope their wish comes true, but the real wishes come true for other people. Every year they take all the coins out and donate the money to charity. You might think that coins don't add up to much, but they do. In 2006 they collected $750,000. Since they've been doing it they've collected millions. The shiny coins and the greenish color of the water made for a cool picture.



Well, that was our fun adventure. Molly and I decided we would make a tradition out of exploring something new every Columbus Day (but maybe not when Molly is so pregnant).

36 weeks and counting!

I can't believe October is finally here! This baby sure takes a long time to cook. I went to the doctor a week after this picture was taken (this past Wednesday) and he said that I am full term (37 weeks) so I could deliver any time now! That night I couldn't sleep because I was psyching myself out thinking I might go into labor. Of course I didn't, but we are sure getting anxious. The "baby room" is finished, meaning that we set up the changing table and bassinet in our room-yes we are going to have a baby in a one bedroom apartment. Many experienced moms think we're crazy, but we'll make do until we actually do go crazy. It kind of feels like Christmas without knowing the actual time or date. We are so excited and hopefully he is just as excited to be a part of our family so he will come sooner rather than later. We'll let everyone know!

Gainfully Employed

As you may or may not know, I graduated this past May from the University of Maryland with an MA in Communication. (That was before we had a blog, and I’m not good at posting new information, let alone writing about past events.) After two years of being imbued with normative theories of public communication, I have dreams of an exciting, substantive career. However, for three months following graduation, I slogged through an unfruitful, somewhat frustrating job search. Then, on August 15, as a birthday present for Molly and a blessing for the both of us, I got a job as an Associate of Corporate Research for the US Chamber of Commerce.

“What is the US Chamber of Commerce?” you may ask. Well, for starters, it is not a government agency as some people mistakenly assume. That would be the US Department of Commerce. The Chamber is a private, non-profit organization whose mission is “To advance human progress through an economic, political and social system based on individual freedom, incentive, initiative, opportunity, and responsibility.” In other words, it advances the interests of business and free enterprise before Congress, the White House, regulatory agencies, the courts, the court of public opinion, and governments around the world. (Go to its Web site for more information.)

“OK, so what does an Associate of Corporate Research do?” Basically, I do mid-market research and analysis for new member acquisition. For those of you to whom that makes no sense, ask me in person and I’ll explain it better. I don’t want to write it all out. Although the work is not particularly exciting, it is interesting and keeps me engaged. I like my co-workers, and the hours are regular. So far it’s been a good gig.

But alas, it is a temporary position. The Chamber is experimenting with a program that will outsource some of its mid-market research. I was brought on to help manage the work load while the experiment is under way. By the first week in October it will determine whether or not my position will be made permanent. If not, there is a good possibility that I could be transferred to a different department of the Chamber. Even if that is the case, however, I see my work at the Chamber as short term. It’s not something I want to make a career out of. I will continue my job search, although not with the same intensity and urgency, and when I find something that is a better fit for me I will switch.

Until then, I am content with my work at the Chamber. I like to eat lunch in Lafayette Park, which is right across the street from the Chamber. On the other side of Lafayette Park is the White House. One day, while eating lunch, I witnessed a small political rally on Pennsylvania Avenue. Being so close to the nation’s seat of power and working in the middle of everything makes things exciting.

Molly = 26 years, Baby = 30 weeks

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOLLY! Today, Molly is 26 years and the baby is 30 weeks. Aren't they cute? The week count is based on her original due date, October 24th. However, the due date has been moved up twice since then and is now, unofficially, the 13th. Plus, as some of you may know, Molly has been diagnosed with gestational diabetes, which usually results in bigger babies and sooner deliveries. So who knows when he is coming, but we're both very excited.

Ocean City

Well, we finally decided to write about other exciting things in our lives besides our baby. He is doing very well, by the way, and is growing and moving right on schedule. Andrew and I were able to take a few days off, after I was done with school, to go to the beach. We were not expecting much from a beach in Maryland, coming from Hawaii, but we were pretty impressed with Ocean City. We stayed in a $90 hotel that seemed like it might cave in on us because it was so old, but we were in a good location at the South end of the boardwalk. We got there on a Thursday morning after only 3 hours of driving and went straight to the beach. It was gorgeous! The sand was really fine and the weather was perfect. When we got really hot, we decided to jump in the water. The water was not what we expected and it was freezing cold! We blew up some rafts and decided to float around instead of swimming. After getting yelled at by the lifeguards that we were too close to the pier, we sunbathed for awhile. That night, after getting plenty of sun and R&R, we decided to try out the local favorite restaurant- Seacrets. The atmosphere was fun because all of the tables and chairs were in the sand, and some stools were even in the ocean for people to sit at. Although we had to move 3 times to get away from smoke (I'm really anal about that because of my sweet baby), our waitress finally found us and gave us our "Jamaican food". It wasn't very authentic, but it was fun. After dinner, we walked along the boardwalk for a bit, got ice cream, and rode on the ferris wheel. We also walked along the pier and on the nice cool sand. The night life there goes on for awhile, but we decided to call it a night. Our hotel was right next to the carnival rides, so we decided we would find a movie to watch on TV since sleeping was out of the question. The next day, we woke up bright and early to head for the beach again. Another lovely day at the beach. We then walked along the boardwalk to get their famous ice cream and boardwalk fries! MMmmm good! I have never had better fries in my life- you put apple cider vinegar on them instead of ketchup and they are amazing!!!! We also walked a bit down the boardwalk to "people watch" and we saw an ambulance pick up a young guy off of the beach who had an injury from "surfing" (the waves are not very big) and we saw a wedding right on the beach! We give Ocean City an A! That was our first summer adventure for 2007. Stay tuned for more. Also, check out more PICTURES on our Picasa Web Album, and see the new section on our sidebar with links to all our picture albums.