Daddy's Helper

Aaron loves to do yardwork and he loves to be with is son. He's found a way to do both!

More food please!!

Miles love to eat! He also loves to put his hands in his mouth. I have perfected the "hold Miles's hands down while feeding him" move; Aaron has not. Here is what Miles often looks like after Daddy gets done feeding him.



We love to feed him because he has yet to not eat something we give him. He is a good little eater and really enjoys his food.

Adventures in teething

On July 22nd, I was at at "Grandma Ru's" house with Miles. We were enjoying just hanging out before heading to a Relief Society activity. Miles has always like to chew on our fingers and he pulled mine into his mount and started gnawing. OUCH!!!! Something sharp was in there! Sure enough, a little bottom tooth was poking out. He exhibited no signs of teething except for drooling, but that's been normal for him for a long time now! That Saturday the second bottom tooth showed up. At five months old, he already had 2 teeth. Oh my! Isn't that too young?

Then I thought---"Wow! This teething thing is easy. We are going to have no problems at all." Fast forward three weeks. Nope, not so easy this time around. One Monday he was so fussy and uncomfortable that I had to come home from work to relieve Aaron because he couldn't deal with the constant crying (1 1/2 hours is enough to put anyone in the loony bin.). Once he finally slept for awhile that day, he was a little better. He ran a fever all day and was just not his happy self. He would play some and then get a really sad look on his face and just rest. Isn't this look on his face enough to break your heart?


We still don't have any more teeth, but thankfully, we haven't had any more days like the one I just talked about, although we do go through moments like that. Plus, he drools buckets, which would be nice if that stopped! Aaron jokes that we just need to hook a hose up to him to water our lawn. :o) And the fun has just begun!!

Happy half-birthday Mr. Miles!

Miles is 6 months old today! I can't believe he's that old already! I keep reminding him that I didn't give him permission to grow up so fast, but he isn't listening. :o) He now weighs 17 pounds, 8 ounces and is a whopping 29 inches tall. He grew two inches in two months and is currently "off the chart for height" according to Dr. Mulder, his pediatrician. He's my tall boy! Everyone at Aaron's work jokes that he'll be in the NBA because he's already so tall.




Miles--you are such an amazing baby and we are so blessed to have you in our home. Your sweet disposition makes parenthood a joy. We love you more every day! We can't believe that you have already been with us for 6 months. It doesn't seem like it has been that long. Yet, I can't remember my life without you. Thanks for being my son.

Updates GALORE!!

So, I can't believe it has been 4 months since this blog has been updated! Can you tell I'm a busy mom?!??!??! :o) I am now setting aside Sunday afternoons to update our comings and goings and show off our little guy. Bear with me as I add everything and try to keep the dates straight!

Toes

Miles discovered his toes this month. It is so cute to watch him always playing with them. Who needs toys---he has his toes. He has now discovered how to get them into his mouth and tries earnestly to do so. Sometimes his hand is in the way and he ends up sucking his thumb while still trying to suck on his toes. This morning, the sleeper he slept in had snap issues and when we went in to get him up, one of his legs was out of the sleeper completely and he was playing contentedly with his toes! (Wish I would have gotten a picture!!) He is too cute and every day is an adventure!

New fence

At the beginning of the summer, a strong wind and rain storm came and knocked down our back fence. We had to wait until the end of July before we could afford to buy the materials to replace it. It is finally complete!! Last weekend (Aug 14) Mike Bayron and Jon Nielsen (our home teachers) as well as Robert and Jared Mortensen came to help. They chopped down several trees before putting in the fence posts. It was humorous to me to come home from running errands and to see 5 men in the back yard being "manly" with chain saws. Originally, they were only supposed to chop down the large aspen that was in the middle of our yard and had been dead since we moved in. Well, then they had to get rid of all the little dead ones around the perimeter of the yard. Oh, and then there were some along the fence line that might cause problems. How grateful I am to these men and the overflowing of testosterone because our yard looked great once they were done. We just had to wait for the posts to set and "cure" before finishing it.



Today, my brother Ryan and the full time missionaries serving in our ward came to nail up the planks. Thanks to my brother Jeremy who lent us his nail gun and air compressor, they were able to get it done quickly.

Brigham City Temple ground breaking ceremony

It turned out to be serendipitous that we were in Utah for Aaron's family reunion when the Brigham City Temple's groundbreaking was. Since I grew up in the Brigham City area, this temple is special to me. We left Aaron's family early Saturday morning and headed north. We went to my parents and then traveled to their stake center to watch the ceremony. We wanted to go to the temple site but we didn't have tickets and fighting the crowds with my mom's bad back and knees is not something any of us wanted to do.

What an amazing ceremony! President Packer, who is from Brigham City, presided. He talked about how the God had prepared the temple site for years. It used to be an elementary school. They tore it down in the late 90's. Since that time, they have tried to develop it into a strip mall of sorts, but it never worked out and has been a vacant lot for over around 10 years. He said that this temple site has been waiting for the time when this area was ready. And now it is!

"I am home," said President Boyd K. Packer in his opening remarks at the Brigham City Utah Temple groundbreaking held Saturday, July 31. President Packer, president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, and his wife Donna are natives of Brigham City. President Packer had attended elementary school 80 years before on the very site where he stood. He continued, "I can see in my mind's eye a temple sitting here in about two years time. It will be gorgeous, it will be white. You will see in the design of it reflections of previous temples that have been built, particularly the Salt Lake Temple. It will be a beacon from all over the valley."

Here are some picture highlights from www.ldschurchtemples.com.

Van de Merwe Family Reunion

At the end of July, we were able to go to Utah for the Van de Merwe Family Reunion. We flew out and Miles travels like a pro! He was such a good baby! For the trip I found the neatest thing on Craig's List--it's a backpack, chair, and stroller all in one. It was so nice to have a non-bulky stroller while we were in the airport as well as during our adventures in Utah. Unfortunately, we forgot our camera so there are no exciting pictures.

It was so good to see all of Aaron's siblings and extended family! This was the first time that any of them had met Mr. Miles. He sure did enjoy meeting all his cousins and his aunts and uncles and 2nd cousins and great aunts, great-uncles, and great grandparents. What a great time! We hung out at East Canyon and enjoyed the beautiful weather. We also had the opportunity to go to Deer Valley and hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir perform with the Utah Symphony. That was really special--thanks Grandpa Van de Merwe for making it possible.

July

It was wonderful to celebrate the freedoms we enjoy this month. We even got patriotic in our clothes! Look how cute Miles and Aaron are in their matching shirts!!


He rolled over for the first time from his belly to his back on July 3. I didn’t quite believe it so I put him on his belly several times and he rolled right over---until I got his daddy to come see and he decided that he had had enough! A few days later, Aaron was able to see it as well.

He loves his "Johnny Jump Up" chair (it's a chair/swing that attaches to the door frame--thanks Tiffani). He is quite content to sit and watch the world around him and bounce around.





Miles is such a good little eater! He loves any food that we give him. I try to make our own baby food since it's so expensive. So far he has had green beans, carrots, and broccoli. The carrots are his favorites so far. Let's hope he continues to be such a good eater.

JUNE

At four months old, Miles is a growing boy! When we took him in for his appointment, he weighed 14 pounds (which is "normal" for his age) and was 27 inches tall. Yes, 27 inches!!! They measured him 3 times! He is SO tall! We also had to start feeding him solid food at the end of the month. (June 21--rice cereal)It seemed a little early, but he needed it and really likes it!



Aaron celebrated his first Father's Day as a father this year. He got to speak in church as well. He did a wonderful job and I am so proud that he is my husband and Miles's daddy. He didn't type out his talk except for the joke he shared at the beginning.

As men we have a right to be proud of our selves
Here are a couple reasons why we have a right to be proud of our selves

1. A five day trip requires a small suite case, besides that we can open our own jars
2. we never have to learn to spell a new last name
3. we can kill our own food and eat it
4. we get credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness
5. and men know wedding plans take care of themselves they don’t have to worry
6. and if someone forgets to invite us to something they can still be our friend
7. we are not expected to know the name of more than five different colors
8. We can sit for hours watching television with a friend and not say a word with out thinking,” I wonder if he is mad at me”?
9. and we are totally unable to see wrinkles in our clothes
10. Your buddies will never tap you with do you notice anything different today?
11. The same hair style last can last for years maybe even decades
12. our belies usually hide our big hips
13. one wallet one pair of shoes one color for all season long
14. and we can even do our nails with a pocket knife

Happy Father's Day!!! For Aaron's Father's Day gift, I made a collage of pictures of him and Miles from our family picture photo shoot in May. Here is a picture of it:

May

Miles turned three months old this month. He is such a happy baby and we are so blessed. He has discovered his hands and loves playing with his fingers. “Whoa! They move! This is cool!”

He laughed out loud for the first time this month—May 20th to be exact! I remember thinking that I must be hearing things but sure enough, I bounced him and he did it again. He loves to be bounced and that’s when we get the best laughs out of him. Disclaimer: This video was taken on our phone and does not have the best picture quality, but you can sure hear him giggle!


We had family pictures taken by a professional photographer in our ward. Her gift to us when Miles was born was a photo shoot. OH MY!!! We got some wonderful pictures. Here is just a very SMALL sampling. Thank you Diane!

Mother's Day

I celebrated my first Mother's Day as a mother this year. What a joyous day that I have waited for for so long. I turned 30 a few days before. It's interesting to think that by the time I was 30, I wanted to be done having my family. Instead I just started. My topic was on what I have learned so far about being a mother. It was a challenge, but I made it through (tearfully) and feel like I did a pretty good job. Here is my talk:

I have learned that good things come to those who wait. As most of you know, our journey to parenthood has been a long and trying one. We will be celebrating our 7th anniversary in June. Five and a half of those years were spent in mighty prayer, supplication, heartbreak, tears, tests and all the other emotions that come from infertility. I have learned that although our Heavenly Father loves us, he loves us enough to not give us what we want exactly when we want it. In the end, it always turns out to be a blessing because He knows the end from the beginning. I am a better mother because of the journey that brought us to this point.

One of my favorite quotes from C. S. Lewis illustrates this beautifully: "Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that he is building quite a different house than the one you thought of—throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were going to be made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace"

Through this “remodeling” experience, I have now learned something else: I learned that I rejoice in motherhood and will do everything in my power to be a full time mommy and be able to be home with my children. President Hinckley has said “Women for the most part see their greatest fulfillment, their greatest happiness in home and family. God planted within women something divine that expresses itself in quiet strength, in refinement, in peace, in goodness, in virtue, in truth, in love. And all of these remarkable qualities find their truest and most satisfying expression in motherhood.” I now know this to be true. Growing up and even after Aaron and I got married, I never wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. I just wasn’t for me. I was too social of a person. I needed my “me” time. I needed the recognition that comes from a “job well done” in the work place.

In her book, I am a Mother, Jane Clayson, a former national television news anchor, talks about a banquet she went to with mostly LDS couples. As everyone introduced themselves, she noticed a trend among the women. They were “just mothers.” She states that she heard some variation of the phrase "I'm just a mother" repeated, almost apologetically, over and over again. I never wanted to be “just a mom.” Well, now I would give anything to be able to be with my little Miles all the time.

God's definition of motherhood and the world's definition are vastly different. And sometimes—probably all too often—the challenges, daily physical and emotional exhaustion, and occasional self-doubt that come along with being a mother cause many of us to buy into an inaccurate and destructive understanding of our role. There just doesn't seem to be a lot of joy—or fulfillment—associated with the world's interpretation of motherhood.

But when we trust in the arm of the Lord rather than the voices of the world, everything changes. Elder Neal A. Maxwell observed, "When the real history of mankind is fully disclosed, will it feature the echoes of gunfire or the shaping sound of lullabies? The great armistices made by military men or the peacemaking of women in homes and in neighborhoods? Will what happened in cradles and kitchens prove to be more controlling than what happened in congresses?"

Sherri Dew stated: “No woman who understands the gospel would ever think that any other work is more important or would ever say, "I am just a mother," for mothers heal the souls of men.”

Circumstances being what they are, I’m not able to be “just a mom” at this time but we are working towards that. And, thankfully, we were able to work it out so that Miles in always with his mommy or his daddy while the other one is at work. Heavenly Father knows our hearts and he will help us to achieve our goals and the worthy desires of those hearts. I’ve learned that as well.

I have learned that Heavenly Father guides us continually in our parenting journey if we listen. As a new mom, I expected to be so overwhelmed and feel lost a lot, especially since I could no longer dictate my own schedule. Surprisingly, I don’t feel out of sorts at all. I have been rather calm. When I have a concern or question I receive guidance from good friends and from the spirit. Nothing has been too little for that guidance to come. Shortly after Miles was born, he had a really hard time sleeping at night. I was doing everything all the “books” say to do and it still wasn’t helping. He would usually only sleep for an hour and a half at a time and cry a lot. As I was rocking him early one morning, the thought came that maybe he was too warm. So, I quit bundling him quite so much and he started sleeping better. Such a little, seemingly inconsequential thought to a tired mom. I didn’t even realize it was inspiration until a few days later as I started thinking about it. Heavenly Father sent us these children and He is there to help us rear them in righteousness. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland explained it perfectly: "You are doing God's work. You are doing it wonderfully well. He is blessing you, and He will bless you, even—no, especially—when your days and your nights may be most challenging. Like the woman who anonymously, meekly, perhaps even with hesitation and some embarrassment, fought her way through the crowd just to touch the hem of the Master's garment, so Christ will say to the women who worry and wonder and weep over their responsibility as mothers, 'Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.' And it will make your children whole as well". May I say to mothers collectively, in the name of the Lord, you are magnificent. You are doing terrifically well. The very fact that you have been given such a responsibility is everlasting evidence of the trust your Father in Heaven has in you. He knows that your giving birth to a child does not immediately propel you into the circle of the omniscient. If you and your husband will strive to love God and live the gospel yourselves; if you will plead for that guidance and comfort of the Holy Spirit promised to the faithful; if you will go to the temple to both make and claim the promises of the most sacred covenants a woman or man can make in this world; if you will show others, including your children, the same caring, compassionate, forgiving heart you want heaven to show you; if you try your best to be the best parent you can be, you will have done all that a human being can do and all that God expects you to do.”

I have learned that being a mother is the greatest privilege in the world. Our baby is a gift from our Heavenly Father. He was with Him such a short time ago and we feel that every time we are with him. President Packer has called women, by nature, co-creators with God. Giving birth to Miles was one of the most spiritual experiences in our life. I have never felt the spirit more strongly then I did as he took his first breath. I could feel his spirit rejoicing as he joined our family. I finally understand how our Father in Heaven can love us so unconditionally because I too now feel that unconditional love. I never thought I could love my husband more than I did, but the moment he held little Miles, my love grew exponentially. He helped me create this miracle. He is going to be an example of the priesthood to our little boy and I hope that Miles grows up to be just like his daddy because his daddy is the most amazing man I have ever met.

My heavenly Father has blessed me so much and I am so grateful to Him for my amazing husband and my beautiful baby. I am so grateful that our Heavenly Father created a plan where we can be with our families forever. I know that our Heavenly Father loves us and wants what is best for us. He does hear and answer our prayers. He sent his son, even Jesus Christ, to suffer and die to make it possible for us to live with our families again forever. I am so grateful to be a mother and for the trust that my Heavenly Father has placed in me and Aaron as he sent Miles into our home. I know that all of us can be successful parents if we lean on the Lord and follow the teachings of the gospel.

Miles's Baby Blessing

We blessed Baby Miles on May 2, 2010. My parents and Aaron's parents wer able to come from Utah and my brothers and their families, who also live in Colorado, came down to spend the weekend with us as well. What an incredible experience it was to be surrounded by family and to give our little miracle a name and a blessing through the preisthood. Aaron did an amazing job and we were both choked up throughout the meeting. I don't see Aaron cry very often and it was so tender to watch him gaze at our little guy with tears streaming down his face.

Here are some pictures we took after the event: (Didn't get any of my family--sorry Johnsons!!)

Proud Conner Grandparents


My mom made this blessing outfit. Isn't she amazing?





3 Generations of Conner Men

April 2010

General conference and Easter fell on the same weekend this year. What a great weekend it was! It was so wonderful to listen to the prophet and other leaders of the church teach and tesitify of Jesus Christ. There was an outpouring of the spirit. I am so grategul that I KNOW the my Redeemer lives! What a blessing to have that knowledge and the knowledge that we are children of our Heavenly Father and that Christ made it possible for us to return to Him. It's become even more real to me as I have become a mother.

On Easter Sunday, we did a little photo shoot for Miles. Here aer some of the cutest pictures we got:




I went back to work the end of April. What a hard thing it was to leave my precious Miles. But we are so blessed! I work from 7:00 am to 1:00 pm and Aaron works from 2:30 pm to 11:00 pm. We never get to see each other, but it is so much easier leaving my precious baby when he’s in the very capable hands of his daddy. Hopefully by the end of the summer, I will be working completely from home so I can spend time with my favorite men.

Miles celebrated his two months of being on the earth this month. What a big boy he is! He weighs 11 pounds and is 23 1/2 inches long. He was good during his shots and the only side effect was he wasn't his happy self that afternoon. The biggest milestone of April was he started sleeping through the night! What a blessing when I have to get up at 5:15 to get ready for work. He eats about 9:30 and is in bed by 10:00 pm. He wakes up around 6:00 in the morning. I feed him and put him right back to bed, where he sleeps for another 3 to 4 hours before waking up to spend the morning with his daddy.

Happy One Month Birthday, Miles!

I can't believe that it has been a month already. You've already grown so much--3 inches and 1 pound; you are now 23 inches long and weigh 8 pounds 13 ounces. You are going to be tall just like your daddy.

It seems like just yesterday they were placing you in my arms and we were admiring you for the first time. I never knew how much I could love someone until February 25, 2010 when you arrived. Not only did I love you with my whole heart, but my love for your daddy grew by leaps and bounds. My heart was so full that day and is even fuller now as we watch you grow and change. You recognize our voices now and there is nothing better than getting that rare smile from you. You are such a great baby and we are so blessed to have you in our home and our forever family. I can't imagine life without you.

All my love--Mommy

Miles' " Goin' to Meetin' " clothes

I must admit, I am one of those weird people who insists that you need to look your very best when going to church. This means putting on your "Sunday Best." Now, I hold myself and my family to this standard because it's how I was raised. I was taught that you (as a woman) don't go to church without nylons and men shouldn't be without a dress shirt and tie. Because this has been ingrained in me since childhood, I have this stubborn refusal to let Miles go to church in anything but "dress clothes." So, for his first Sunday to church, he got dressed in his finest. I do have to say that he is the most handsome little man ever--he takes after his Daddy! There is nothing better than seeing a "man" in dress clothes.

First TUB bath

Once Mile's umbilical chord finally fell off, we were so excited to be able to give him his first tub bath. He didn't enjoy the sponge baths we gave him too much so we didn't have high hopes for his enjoyment of being submersed in water. We were right. He actually didn't mind being in the watter too much, it was the actual washing he had a hard time with. Oh well, sometimes we have to do what we don't like!

There is nothing better than a cuddling clean baby freshly slathered in baby lotion!

Daddy Son bonding time

Aaron works evenings now so that when I have to go back to work, we won't have to get a babysitter. It has been such a blessing to be with Aaron and Miles every morning and to watch them interact with each other. Aaron is such a great daddy! He loves holding Miles and playing with him. He has even played the saxaphone for him (which didn't even wake the little guy up! Let's hope he stays that sound of a sleeper!).

One of Aaron's favorite activities is reading to Miles. It is so precious to watch because Miles will just look up at Aaron as he reads. He knows his dady's voice and loves listening to him.

There is nothing better than watching my two favorite men together! I am so blessed!

Mom Conner's visit

The weekend after Miles joined our family, Judi came from St. George to spend the weekend. What a joy it was to have her here with us for the weekend and to watch her marvel at her newest grandchild. She was such a help as she was our diaper duty and baby burper for the whole weekend (we releived her of these duties during the middle of the night! ☺ We didn't do much but just hung out and enjoyed each others company.

The Sunday she was here, Jerm, Nichole and little Xander came to meet Miles and cooked us a phenominal roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy. For those of you who know the Johnson family, we take our food seriously and Jeremy is a great cook. It was a special treat to be able to share a meal with them and to have my mother in law here to enjoy it with us. While they were here, Judi got some cute videos which for some reason are not posting. I will have her email me some pictures from her weekend here because she definitely documented it well. We love you Mom and were so happy to have you here.

Bringing Miles Home

We came home from the hospital on Satuday, February 27th. Two of my really good friends, Ruann and Karen, decorated our house and put signs out front announcing his arrival. Their sweet gesture made these tired parents smile and feel so loved. I feel horrible that we didn't get any pictures!

Aaron and I were very worn out by the time we left the hospital. I have to say that I did not want to post this next picture showing me looking so bedraggled, but decided that for the sake of posterity, I had to show the day we brought him home.



My family in Castle Rock (Ryan, Laurel,, Teyghan, & Kiari) came down to welcome us home. It was so sweet to watch Teyghan and Kiari welcome Miles into the world. He's already so loved!