So I wasn't able to post any pictures previous to Hockey because they're on the broken computer. Maybe later. Hockey was such a great experience for the boys. Even Porter liked it although he probably wouldn't tell you that. gabe was the beginning skater on the team so it was a challenge but he stuck it out. He is a trooper. He wrote this in his Jornal about hockey,"We won the state championship. I felt like I was king of the world. It was my first year which was even cooler. So my advice is try hockey even if you think you are not goood at it."

Updating the blog

My how time flys. I am going to attempt to go back and update the blog. I can't believe it has been so long. I remember the last time I intended on updating was right after Bela blessing. She is so big now. So- we'll see if I can start there and update some of our big events like moving in to the duplex, hockey and Alaska.

 

Béla 7 Months

Béla is getting so big. She is crawling. Can you believe it? We love her so much! Look how cute.

 

Killing the TV

Life has been busy lately. We blessed Bela. She looked so beautiful. Alex did a great job as usual. I'll post pictures later. We moved into one of the twin homes that Alex built and decided to unhook from the electronic world. No TV, internet or phone. I'm going a little crazy. Dirk came to help us and the silence drove him crazy too. I think I'll have to get the Internet again but were not hooking up the TV. The kids are doing amazingly well and haven't even mentioned it in three weeks. Porter is missing the Internet as much as me. It's hard to blog when you have to take a baby to the library. Alex is working day and night on the twin homes and the Forest Service. We need renters in Payson and Pinedale. I'm in Utah and I miss this beautiful warm spring weather and the flowers. The lilacs are in bloom here. I miss my house in Payson. Pinedale is slowing working its way to warmer weather. Lately it teases me because it looks beautiful and warm outside but when you go out it's still a little chilly. We have a fox den right next to our house and I love walking over and seeing the cute little babies. We had a great Mothers day. Alex took over all the household stuff and made me breakfast. We went to church and after he took us fishing. He and the boys took the canoe out on the sub-Arctic barely unthawed lake. There was a breeze(surprise, surprise, we do live in WY) and I was worried that if they tipped over they would all be dead! I think I drive my husband crazy!!! He just smiled at me and paddled off. Hope all is well and I'll post some updated pictures when I get myself, my camera and the internet all in one place at the same time.

Spreading Kindness with my Hands

Be one of the first 3 people to leave a comment on this post and you will be the lucky recipient of a handmade gift from me some time this year. Here is the catch, you have to post the same thing on your blog and do the same for 3 lucky people.
This is way better than some of the chain mail and if you don't do it nothing bad will happen to you.
Shanoa

Lessons from Béla

These are a few of the wonderful pictures that my friend Liz took. I was so nice of her to help us capture some of Bela little newborn moments. Check out her blog at simplemomentsphotographybyliz.blogspot.com/

Lessons
Bela is already teaching me many things. Thus far she has taught me...
1. To be still
2. Love comes in many ways
3. All we really need to do is eat, sleep and poop
4. Accessories are the best part of an outfit

Questions????
1. Do any ones cloth diapers really stay clean or are stains part of the package?
2. How are the cloth diaper wool soakers?
3. How can you tell if your baby has a milk allergy?

Thoughts
I'm thinking of making my own disposable liners for the cloth diapers. I've accidentally washed a few of Medline Aloetouch Fragrance Free Wipes from the hospital with my diapers. They end up turning into a nice absorbent, soft cloth. They're also quite large and don't shrink up like the huggies wipes. This alleviates the problem of what to do with the wipes when using cloth diapers. What are wipes made of? Are they biodegradable? I'm guessing no! Have any of you used the biodegradable liners?

On a side note for any of you breastfeeding mom's, I'm loving the Lily Pads. They work great.

Hope all is well!

Beautiful Béla

Dancing with Angels, Dreaming of Heaven or is it just gas?

First Bath and she's not loving it. Doesn't she know that all girls love a nice hot bath?

Daddy's little Girl. What a special moment when you can fall asleep with a baby on your chest.

A silly little puppy dog face.

If you didn't read my last post Béla is pronounced Baylah and means white, bright or fair skinned. We gave her the middle name of Madison because we both love the Madison River. The scenery is so beautiful and bright to me it has a golden glow. We took the kids to the Madison campground this fall right after we found out we were having a baby girl. So to me she is beautiful, golden and bright. She is getting bigger each day. She has already gained over a pound!!! She is keeping me busy. I'm either staring at her, feeding her, and changing or washing her diapers. The cloth diapers are going OK. She keeps leaking into her liners. Does that happens with the fitted ones too??? If not I'll buy those next time. I'm loving our time together. And- I'm finally starting to feel like myself again which is nice.

Béla Madison Gardiner

Béla first day home with her big brothers

Béla getting some sun

A view from the pass on the way home from the hospital. It was a beautiful sunny winter day.

Béla at the hospital.

Béla was born at 4:09AM on Wednesday the 28th. She weighed 7 lbs 14 oz., and measured21 inches. The birth was wonderful. Alex was fantastic and was busy rubbing my lower back through the contractions. The nurses and my midwife were great as well. I was worried about being induced it seem so unnatural. It took me about two hours to decide if I was actually going to stay at the hospital. Once I settled in and decided that it was ok to stay everything went very smooth. The nurses inserted a Cervidil strip and contractions started in about an hour. Thankfully there was no need for Pitocin. Bela made her way into the world about 8 hours later. I would like to say that labor and delivery was much easier with #3 and a little medication. I still felt everything, it was still amazing but it was much more manageable. Béla is a wonderful, beautiful and healthy little girl. We are very thankful to our heavenly father for our many blessings.

Bun in the oven

She not quite here but almost! Alex took this picture and said he was going to send it out as an announcement, entitled- The bun is out of the oven. He's cute but I'm not thinking that it's too funny. Although- I have really been enjoying the bread maker he bought me for Christmas. He says its a gift that keeps on giving. It was hard to use at first because of the high elevation but I think the key is adding a little more yeast. That's just my guess. Does anyone know about what your realy suppose to do when cooking at a higher elevation. I really like the Zojirushi fool proof recipe from the Bosch kitchen center.
Were anxiously waiting out February 2 due date. The midwife said that she didn't think I would make it that long. So- I'm guessing sometime next week. I hired a friend of mine thats a doula to help. I feel much better about the drive to Jackson with her following us. Were still not set on a name. It is so hard. I'm leaning toward Bela(pronouced Bay lah) Madison but I'm not in love with it. Other names we're considering are Eva, Willow, Paige, Della, Evie, Guinevere/Gwen. Alex has vetoed- Poppy, Bliss, and Cadence. Any Votes or suggestions?? I getting a little worried. People say that I'll know when she comes out but I don't think so. I think babies all look like babies when they come out. Maybe I'll call her Baby.
I'll keep you posted. Have a wonderful day!