It's Been a Long Time

Wow!  It has been a while.  Luckily, I've kept a few notes of funny things that have happened .

• Tate and I have found a new favorite spot.  The BYU Outdoor Track.  It is perfect...a big cage Tate can run around in.  It is nice, because I can let him run around and I know he can't run into the street and there is a big grass area he likes to play in.  The first time we went was on a Saturday and we just played on the track.  Tate explored all the hurdles and steeplechase equipment.  He spent probably 10 minutes playing on a hurdle.  Then we went another day and went on the grass field.  There are short sprint tracks on the grass and next to one of them is a sand area (I have no idea why), but Tate played in the sand for SO long.  At one point he grabbed a stick and would dip the stick in the sand and lick it and do it again.  He also loved just eating handfuls of sand, which I thought was kind of gross, so I tried to stop him from doing it.  Mostly, he would just sit in the sand and pick up handfuls of sand and then drop them.  Over and over and over again.  Then he pushed his car on the track for a while. I took Josh with us and we ran around together.  Seriously, we've been there a lot the past few weeks.  It's awesome.  And I feel like it's my field/track, because we had soccer camps there so I practically lived on those fields every summer for 5 years and we would do our early morning workouts around the track.
• Tate has a new favorite thing he loves to do.  He loves running down hills.  At the track there is a hill (this place really has everything) and Tate and I walk up the hill and run down and Tate loves it.  It is so funny when he does it, because he kind of bounces down.  
• A few days ago, I was cutting vegetables in the kitchen and all of a sudden Tate fell down hard on his back.  I think he was holding on to the oven handle and the door opened and he fell.  Well, then after that any time he saw the oven he would scream.  And the oven can be seen from almost any position in our apartment, so he saw it a lot.  Then a day or two later, Tate hugged the oven.  So I think things are okay between them.  Or he just saw his reflection and wanted a hug.  
• Tate is good at hugs.  If I hold out a toy to him and ask for a hug, he'll walk over and hug it.  It is so cute.  And when he gives me a hug, he always pats my back.  
• Whenever Josh or I come home, Tate does this happy dance where he stomps his feet and turns in a circle.  Then he runs away.  It is really funny.
• Before he went to bed two nights ago, he was on the couch with me looking out the window and he was talking and pointing at things outside.  Sometimes I wonder what he thinks he is saying.  He did it for probably 15 minutes, just talking and pointing.  I think Tate will be fun to listen to when he can use words.  
• We have hit a small bump in the road recently.  Tate is really good at screaming really loud.  It is a complicated issue.  Part of me feels bad for him, because it is probably really frustrating for him to not be able to talk and sometimes I have no idea what he wants.  So that would be hard.  Another part of me is frustrated, because it is frustrating having someone scream at you.  And part of me has no idea what to do, because Tate will scream and I know what he wants, but he can't have it, so he'll scream. We tried splashing him with water in the face every time he screamed, but that didn't really work.  So I am going to try a different tactic, and see if it works.  But last night, and actually all of yesterday, was just terrible.  Tate screamed so loud for so long.  And by the end of the day I was losing it.  He didn't want to eat his dinner, even though he was actually eating it.  So he would scream and then eat and scream and then eat.   So I just did the dished and ignored it, while he screamed.  I heard a knock on the door and it was our neighbors asking if I wanted a break.  And I started crying.  Haha.  Right in front of them.  It was really really embarrassing.  So embarrassing.  And Tate was still screaming haha. I said no thanks (through my tears) and later they brought me some baked goods,which would make anyone feel better, and luckily by that point I had stopped crying.  I was just embarrassed they could hear Tate and I was already frustrated and I felt like a bad mom.  I have realized I have judged so many moms in the past.  Never again!  If someone has a screaming child, they probably have had a really hard day and they are trying everything they know to get him/her to stop.  Before I had Tate I would wonder if the mom realized her child was screaming and I always thought, "my kids will never do that."  Now I know, of course the mom knew her child was screaming and she probably thought her kids would never do that either.  I have judged those moms and now I am one of them.  Mom's of screaming children (which is probably every mom) should have a support group where we can all cry together haha.  But really.  But today has been better and as my high school motto says, "ever upward and onward."
• I went to women's conference with my friend Heather.  It was awesome!  It was fun to see all the primary and YW aged girls.  I loved loved loved everything that was said and sung.  I loved it when everyone sang together during Sister Wixom's talk.  I was sitting next to a mom and her 4 or 5 daughters and it was so fun to see the younger ones stand up and sing.  And the few times I have been to the conference center I just get blown away that I am in the same room as the prophet!  I mean, how incredible is that!      

It is now April 13th.  I think I wrote everything above me on the 3rd or 4th.  Wow how time has flown.  This week Tate and I were outside all the time.  He is pretty tan and really blonde.  And extra cute.  I was watching Tate play outside and I was hit by a ton of love and amazement for him.  He is so awesome.  He can do so much and he is so fun and loves to learn new things.  I was just blown away that he is his own little person.  I love him so much.

Today Tate did so well at church!  We were a little worried, because the last time we were at church (2 weeks ago b/c of conference) it was a disaster!  He was so good during the first two hours especially.  R.S. things got kind of rocky, but only because I think he was really antsy.  He wanted to play in the curtains at the front of the room, play the piano, hit the table, shake the table, etc.  Pretty much anything but sit down.  It was cute, because he hugged this other little girl and she hugged him back, so they just stood there hugging each other for a while.  Then Tate started showing her how to play in the curtains and such.  I was so happy when the last amen was said (is that bad?).

Tate is just growing up so fast.  And I'm sure it only goes by faster.  He loves to pretend to talk on the phone.  He likes Mac n Cheese and vegetables, especially cooked carrots, and fruit.  He loves having his back tickled.  He loves loves loves putting the car key in the door knob key hole.  He loves being outside and swimming.  He likes eating dirt and sand.  He plays hide and seek.  He loves pushing his car around.

Today it is April 18th.  This is going to be a LONG post.  I haven't been able to upload my pictures and videos, so I am delaying actually posting this.  Two nights ago we were trying to get Tate to do his high pitched bubble-blowing sound.  He used to do it all the time when he was younger, but he has stopped.  So Josh and I would do it and then Tate would try.  He could do it at a lower pitch, but he couldn't remember how to do it like he used to (at a really high pitch).  He would try and then Josh and I would laugh and then Tate would start to kind of laugh.  But he was trying to keep himself from laughing and then we would all start laughing together.  He did it again and again.  He knew he wasn't doing it quite right, because he would start laughing after he would try and then try not to laugh so he could do it again,  Tate seemed so much older.  It was like he was 2 or 3.  I felt like I was seeing Tate in the future.  Josh and I talked about it for a while afterwards, just how funny it was and how old Tate seemed.

We have had great weather this week and we have been able to meet Josh for lunch and have little picnics everyday.  It's been so great and Tate loves being outside.

Doug taught Tate how to go down the stairs correctly (backwards, not forward).  So that was a huge accomplishment.  

April 23, 2014
The long post continues.  Here are some of our highlights since the last update (probably not in chronological order, since I can't remember)

• We got family pictures take.  Nathan and Sarah took them with their awesome camera.  There are a lot of really really cute ones.  Tate looked adorable!!  He is getting so big and looks like a little boy.  I got pretty hot and was sweating (of course-I am known for having the uncomfortable gift of sweating more than the average man), but luckily only one picture shows my unfortunate situation.  
• Easter!!  My grandma had an Easter Egg Hunt Saturday night.  A few days before I taught Tate how to "find the egg."   I would show him the egg, hide it, kind of help him find it, and then give him lots of positive reinforcement for finding the egg.  We did a trial run outside the morning of and it was a success.  And he did great under the pressure of the actual hunt.  He found the eggs, put them in our bag, and then we would take them out and he would find them again.  Then he realized he could unwrap the eggs and that they were chocolate and we lost him after that.  Sunday we went to Grandma and Grandpa Clark's house.  It was really fun!  Tate had lots of cousins to play with (they aren't technically cousins, they are Josh's, but I don't know the official term...so they're cousins). 
• Tate woke up today and decided he wanted to pinch my arm fat.  I really appreciated that.

Nathan caught these picture of the ducks midflight

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Happy St. Patrick's Day

3/17
Today Tate and I were playing Ring Around the Rosie and when it was time for us to fall down I fell down and laid all the way down.  Tate kind of looked at me, walked over, and sat on my face.  Total bum to the face.

Gwen and Heather came over.  First, when Tate saw Heather he walked over and gave her a hug.  Then when he saw Gwen he walked over, crouched low, and said "dee dee dee."  A few minutes later he started petting and patting her head.  After that all of their interactions were mostly Tate screaming if Gwen touched a toy he wanted.  He made Gwen almost cry a few times.  And I made a sandwich for Tate and Gwen ate almost the whole thing, but it's okay because Tate ate almost all of her goldfish.  Whenever it's the four of us, Gwen and Tate run/crawl wild while Heather and I talk.  We must talk pretty loudly, because at one point I noticed whenever Heather and I started talking, Tate and Gwen would yell and fake laugh.  Trying to be just like us, loud and funny.

Saturday Josh and I went a saw three apartments.  One of the apartments I had to text the owner a few times, and every time she would put an exclamation point at the end of her sentences.  So I thought she must be pretty nice, since most people I text about their apartments are guys and don't add happy punctuation.  When we got to her apartment, she opened the door and it was a girl from my major!  We just looked at each other and started laughing, because really what are the odds I would look at her apartment?  I told her I knew she was nice because she sent nicely punctuated texts.

Yesterday at the Jacksons, Doug was talking to Josh and I and Tate was playing with Sharon.  Tate randomly started pointing and talking and talking, going on a long, loud rant.  We think he was copying Doug, because he was kind of pointing when he was talking.  We all thought it was really funny, and Tate seemed pleased to have everyone's attention.

This morning Tate and I went for a walk, and these days our walks are both of us walking, not me pushing Tate in the stroller.  On our walk, a lady that lives close by came up to us with her dog.  Tate starting say "woo woo" for "woof woof."  He pet the dog and then the dog licked his mouth.  I thought it was kind of disgusting, but Tate was happy.

After I put Tate down for his nap this afternoon I started doing stuff in the kitchen and I noticed he was laughing.  So I went to the door and listened and Tate would talk a little bit and then start laughing.  I'm not sure what was so funny, but it was really cute to hear him entertain himself.  He probably was playing with something he had stashed away under his mattress.

I forgot until just now that it is St. Patrick's Day.  I didn't wear green, but so far no pinches.  I don't think Josh remembered either.

Yesterday I was holding Tate getting ready for his nap and he said "nah nah," meaning "nose" and he stuck his finger up my nose.  I started laughing and took it out and he did it again on the other nostril.  So be wary when Tate wants to show you where your nose is.

3/19
This morning Tate and I went swimming.  We were the only ones in the kid area, so it was just us, the lifeguards, and the people doing water aerobics.  Water aerobics looks awesome.  It is all older people in the class.  They blast music I wouldn't think people that age would like and the instructor yells and counts the reps and stuff.  Tate watched them for a while.  Then some people walk around in the lazy river and Tate liked watching them go around.  One guy waved every time and learned his name and gave Tate high fives.  When I told him what Tate's name is, he looked a little confused so I spelled out "T-A-T-E."  Then he kind of thought about it and said, "my friend had that as a last nae.  Tate, I like it."  After that they were friends. 

3/21
Yesterday was a rough day.  It started out beautifully.  Then I started making a gift online for my Dad's birthday.  I started when Tate was asleep during his nap, thinking I would be able to finish.  5 hours later I finally finished.  The internet totally died.  Thankfully my neighbor came over and somehow got it to work.  Mostly the website I was using was driving me crazy.  It was being really frustrating.  Once I was done I called Josh and asked him to come home early.  He did and we went to the park.  That made everything better.  We played a game with Tate where I would hold him and run and Josh would chase us.  Tate loved it!  Unfortunately, it is hard to run with Tate, so we couldn't play for very long.

Tate has been funny today.  We went for a walk this morning and he was exploring every little thing.  He would walk from one thing to the next, squatting and looking at twigs and dipping his block (which he takes every where) in the dirt and licking it.

I have wonderful news.  My computer is working so I can post pictures!  Our stuff has an amazing ability to miraculously heal itself (that's an awkward sentence).  So here are pictures!

Is this not the greatest picture you have ever seen?  No Tate isn't crying, and no he didn't turn into a vampire, he was just being funny.

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The Search Continues

Toothless Tate.  You gotta love it.

Josh and I are on a search.  For an apartment.  I have been looking for a few months and we have seen a lot of places.  I actually don't mind looking and going to see different places.  I think it's kind of fun to see how people live (creepy?).  On Wednesday we went and saw a townhouse I was really excited about.  It was $625 (which is pretty cheap for 2 bedrooms) and it was a "luxury" townhouse, which I figured meant it was really nice.  I was so excited to see it.  We drove up and it was really nice looking, which made me even more excited.  I was sure this was the place we would move to.  We knocked on the door and the girl opened the door and I asked "should we take our shoes off?"  She said we didn't have to then, but when we went downstairs we should.  I thought that was a little weird, since it was carpet on the main floor, so I just took them off.  Then she saw Tate and commented that we have a baby.  I noticed a car seat by the door and I said, "oh do you have a baby too?"  She said no, but the people upstairs did.  And by upstairs she meant upstairs, not in an upper apartment.  She explained that one couple lives in the upstairs and they live in the basement and they share the middle floor (kitchen and family room).  That's why rent is so cheap, because it's actually 1200/month.  Makes sense.  Well, Josh and I mentally decided this wasn't the place for us, but we felt obligated to continue with the tour.  And it turns out the basement isn't even really 2 bedrooms.  I felt tricked.  And really bummed.  So the search continues.

Tate found a new love.  He loves to push his little car around outside.  We walked a few 5 or 6 blocks yesterday.  He loves it.  All he does is push it, but he thinks it's awesome.

This morning (after we went and saw two apartments-we seriously see apartments every day) we were all in Tate's crib.  I don't really know why but Tate thought it was funny.  Josh got out and then Tate started lifting the mattress up on one end.  We thought that was funny.  He kept lifting it up and then he lifted it further back and one of his blankets was underneath the mattress.  He picked it up and put it in his mouth.  Tate is hoarding his stuff under his mattress.  We thought that was hilarious.  What other things is he hiding in there?

Tate's been kind of moody lately.  And when I say "kind of" I mean extremely haha.  I think he just has emotions and doesn't really know how to express them, so he screams and throws himself on the floor.  It probably is frustrating for him, since he can't really tell me what he wants or feels.  So for now we will keep trying to understand the screams.

We went to the park this week with some of the other moms in our ward.  Tate loves the park.  We sat in the wood chips for probably 45 minutes.  Tate would pick up and handful of wood chips and then drop them.  Over and over and over.  My friend has 2 boys and one of them likes to run away.  So while she was chasing him, I was watching Tate and her youngest.  Tate was eating his vegetables and started feeding them to Zac.  It was so cute.  Then the container fell and they both started eating them off the ground.  Whatever works.

Josh and I watched a documentary last night on netflix.  It is called "Linsanity."  It is about Jeremy Lin, the NBA player who currently plays for the Rockets, and his rapid rise to fame.  I loved it.  It might be one of my favorite documentaries.  It's so good because he is a really religious person and is very Christ-centered.  It made me want to be a better person.  And I got caught up in the linsane period a few years ago.

I have been so bad at taking pictures and videos lately.  I never thought I would ever say that, because usually I take too many.  So here's one video we took a few days ago. 

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