Leap year ;)

Today is leap year! It's the last day of february and we have had a great month.
This weekend was a nice and relaxing one. On Friday night Marlin and I just relaxed at home and went to sleep at like nine thirty. Marlin woke up the next morning and made us eggs for breakfast. Then he went to the library to study for a test. later around 1140 he had a bball game at the church. I went to go visiting teaching with Camille. Afterwards, I stopped at Rachels house and her parents were visiting so I hung out there for a couple hours. Meanwhile marlin was taking a math test. When he got done we headed back to the church foranother game....it was the stake tournament. I watched the first game but went to leathas for the second because cante wasnt having very much fun. That night, we ate at del taco, got some groceries then went home.
On Sunday we went to church and afterwards ate dinner at becky and britts place. We had ham and mashed potatoes. Sarah is the one who organized it all. Marlin stayed home and I took cante. Everyone loved seeing her. We played loaded questions.
Monday night Marlin made dinner and went to class. we did fhe when he got home.the lesson was on reading scriptures as a family. It was a good reminder to us. We are perry good about doing it but it was a nice reminder. I got the lesson out of thw family home evening guide .It's a really great resource.
Last night we went to mutual. The young men practiced bball for their game on sat. We did personal progress.
Marlin had class all day today so I picked cante up from the sitter. We came home and I made spaghetti. By the time I cooked, ate, and cleaned the apt. Marlin was home.  Cante and I had fun together in between. Whenmarlin got home we bathed cante and put her to sleep. Now marylin is putt playing bball.

Cante is so cute lately. She is crawling super fast, pulling her self up, av and getting into everything. She likes being chased but doesnt always look where shes going so she has run into the wall a couple of times lol. Lately when she smiles she'll scunch her nose up..kind of how tacoma used to do. Shes still turning the pages when we read her a book. She looooves doing that. She also claps her hands a lot. Her teeth are coming in more and her hair is getting long...but she still has the widows peak. Everyone says she is starting to look more like me and I agree:) I am so grateful to be cantes mom. She has such a sweet little spirit. I love seeing her grow and develop.

Family visit Part II

After our trip to Pheonix, Erin, Aaron, Heather, Michael, and the kids drove up to visit us in Utah. We got back on Monday night and they got in on Tuesday night. It was Valentine's Day. I had mutual that night...our girls were babysitting for the kids in our ward so the parents could go out on dates. Erin and Aaron went to visit Josh Acre, so they dropped Tacoma and Kaimaia off at the church to stay with me. We had about 15 kids that night! we stayed pretty busy. Marlin got us all little heart cookies that said our name. There was one for me and each of the kids. :)
I decided to take Wednesday off which was so nice! Erin and I took the kids to Burger Supreme then met up with Meredith Schram at the University mall. Afterwards, we went to visit Rachel, Brystol, Britney, and Becky over at Rachel's place. When we got home, Erin and I went to get a pedicure! We went to the salon right up the street just next to Harmons. They pedicure was so nice...the masage was amazing! Wednesday night we just hung out at the house..Marlin went to get pizza and panda express...lol. Later his cousin Joseph from Australia came to visit with Marei.
Thursday I went to work and when I got home, Erin, the kids, and I went to Meredith's house. We ate dinner there and just visited.
Erin came to school with me Friday morning. My kids were so happy and excited to
see her. It was nice of her to come with me to school. I had her help with reading groups. I enjoyed showing her around my class and school. Aaron came and picked her up from my school around 11 and they left that afternoon to go back to California.
Their stay seemed so short. I was really sad to see them go. Its like whenever I see my family, its as they never left. Then when they leave, its so sad because you get used to being with them. Then after my family left, Marlin went with his young men on a camping trip over night! Luckily Cante and I were exhausted from the week and so we went to sleep pretty early. Now I am looking forward to when I get to see my family again! I also have other things to look forward to...like spending time with Marlin and Cante, holidays, vacations, visits with friends.
I feel blessed to have such a happy and enjoyable life. I love my family. I love my job. I love my church and calling. I have awesome friends in Utah. My family is healthy. All of my needs are taken care of. What more can someone really ask for?

Aron and Erin's visit

Aaron and Erin came to visit this past week! They flew into California then we all met in Pheonix for the hoop dance competition. Marlin, Cante, and I left around 5 on Friday night and stopped in Vegas for about an hour to visit with Marlin's family. They were there for the Rugby tournament. We met up with them in a parking lot. It was really nice to see them. Rei and her girls hadn't seen her since she was just 2 weeks old. Cante loved seeing Reiana. She was just staring and smiling at her. :)

That night we stayed in Kingmon and drove to Pheonix in the morning. We didn't pull up to the Heard Museum until about 11 that morning. My dad had registered me to compete earlier that morning. This year the competition was different. Usually, the dancers know ahead of time what the order will be. This year, they called dancers at random. So when I got to the museum, the adult session had just begun. I hurried and got dressed (I used Erin's regalia) and by the time I got back, they called my name to dance after Erin. I was expecting to have time to practice. There were like 20 dancers and I ended up being the 3rd or 4th. I literally had no idea what routine I was going to do...I didn't even know how many hoops I should use. I actually ended up using Michael's...lol.. I had left mine in the car on accident and didn't have time to go back. So they called me out and I just had a smile on my face like...okay lets see what happens...lol. It didn't end up being that bad, I was just flustered because I felt so rushed. Oh well. We had fun. Erin even danced and she is pregnant! Neither one of us made it to the 2nd round, but Michael and my dad did. Michael took 6th in the adult division and my dad took 3rd in the seniors. Michael was so excited! We were really happy for him too.

It was fun seeing all the dancers and spending time with family. We stayed in the Hyatt hotel which was just right down the street. The weather was suuuuper nice! Marlin and I both came back with tan lines. On Sat. night we went to Ramona's house for dinner. Sandra came too. We ate pulled pork sandwhiches. By that time, we were all exhausted. I think the drive the night before and just being in the sun all day wore us out. Sunday morning my dad and Michael had to compete in the finals. They each had to compete twice. We all gave Michael tips on things he could do to improve his routine. He really stepped it up in the second round. After seeing Michael dance in the 2nd round, we found a church and went to Sacrament. The building was like .9 miles away from the Heard. We thought it was funny because all this time we could have been going but we just never realized how close the church was. Now we know for future reference.

Marlin and I drove back on Sunday night and stayed in Page. Gerald was able to get us a room for 20 dollars which was so nice! We stopped that morning and ate breakfast at a little cafe then got back to Orem around 4. We returned our rental car that we had gotten and then Marlin went to his class. I was glad that we ended up going. We had a really good time. It was nice to have all of our family together again. It was also nice to see Marlin's family even though it was for a short time.

Here is Cante crawling around in our Hotel room.

Cante- 7 Months

Cante is already 7 1/2 months old. I cannot believe how big she has gotten and how fast the time has flown by. I litterally love her more and more each day. She is at my favorite stage right now, although I am sad that she is growing up so fast. Where do I start?

She started eating solids in Decemeber. We started her off with rice cereal right before our trip to California but she got really constipated....like REALLy constipated. We tried everything. Apple juice, prune juice, prunes...if you can think of it we tried it. Nothing worked. Finally we called the doctor. She perscribed a laxative..and a few days later she was fine. After that we were afraid to give her any more rice cereal so we just gave her baby food. She is so funny though...she doesn't even like fruits! They are too sour for her...but she looves sweet potatoes and squash. HAH. She will eat veggies too..just not fruits. I shouldn't complain, but I have to say that I was a little sad. I was just so excited to give her fruits...and then she didn't even like them.

Next. She can officially crawl as of like 3 days ago. She started by sitting up on her own in the beginning of December. Then when we took her to California, she started moving around more by rolling and scooting. Eventually she moved to the army crawl (which was really cute) and just a few days ago she started the full-on crawl. lol. She loves moving around and exploring new things. She even pulled herself up twice this past week. Before we know it, she will be able to stand...then walk! I don't know if I am ready for my baby to be so grown-up!

Cante is also getting MORE teeth! She started getting her"fangs" about a month ago..but this past week we noticed that she is also getting her front two top teeth! So right now, she has four teeth that are coming in. That makes six teeth altogether! Isn't that crazy? Little Tamatoa doesn't have any teeth and he is only a month behind....she has been really good about it. She has not been too fussy..she just puts everything in her mouth!

Cute things cante has been doing lately:
-Squirming around when we change her diaper. (Okay maybe its not that cute when it's happening)
-Clapping her hands
-Sticking her finger in her mouth
-Putting the pacifier in her mouth on her own.
-Smiling for the camera!
-Playing for 30-45 minutes with her toys...just content
-Turning the pages when we read to her
-Standing on her own
-Kneeling on her knees
-Laughing with mommy
-She is actually starting to be cuddly!!! YAY! She'll lay her head on your chest when she gets tired.
-Grabbing mom's nose and face while drinking bottle
-Hongi (She puts her face close to ours to show her love...well thats what we like to think anyways)

Cante loooves reading books! She likes some better than others. The ones she doesn't like to read, she will push away. If she does like the book, she will just stare at the pictures as we read to her.

Hmm.. I feel like I'm missing something..but that will have to do.

As for me and Marlin, we are staying very busy. Marlin is the first counselor in the Young Men's program and I am the first counselor in the Young Womens. We both really enjoy our callings and working with the youth. We enjoy taking Cante with us to mutual each week and the kids enjoy seeing her.

We just recently decided to get rid of our T.V. There are several things that led us to make this decision, but overall we don't feel that having a T.V. is helping us to become the people we want to be. I am really excited about our decision! One, because our living room will be bigger and I can re-arrange and re-decorate. Two, I feel like the spirit will be stronger in our home. Lately, I have been thinking about how I want our home to be a refuge from the world. I want our home to be pure and clean; a place where the spirit can dwell. I don't want an "unclean" thing to enter it. I feel like the media has just gotten so bad....TV shows, commercials, advertisements, etc. It is not something that I want myself, husband, or daughter exposed to. Marlin and I want to replace the time we spend watching TV with reading scriptures or books, spending time as a family, scrapbooking, cooking, talking to and teaching Cante, developing talents, exercising, magnifying our callings etc. Does this mean that we will never have a TV again? We're not sure, but this is what we feel is right for us at this time in our lives. I know that it will be a blessing in our lives and I am so looking forward to it!

Things we did this weekend:
-Marlin and Marei went to the temple while Leatha and I stayed home and watched the kids.
-Marlin had a game today
- I went to a camp training from 9 to 130
- We ate at Panda express
-Marlin went to Walmart because we lost all of Cante's pacifiers..and she LITERALLY cannot sleep without them...uh oh...
-Skyped with Eric (who is in Montreal with Cirque Du Solei)
Here are a few pics of little miss Cante

Cante's first month

  

Cante had jaundice when she was born. Her level when we took her home from the hospital was at about an 18. So we had to take her to the lab everyday to get blood drawn. The first time we took her, she didn't even cry! She just stared at Marlin like nothing was even happening. However, all the times after that, she cried. It was so hard to watch the nurse prick her cute little heel. Heather came with us once and cried when she saw Cante crying. We had to get a bed with lights for her to lay in everyday. She did pretty good at lying on the bed. It didn't seem to bother her. We also got a wand to use when we were holding her. After about 7 days, her level went below a 10 and we got the okay to stop with the testing and the lights. I was so glad when that was over. In her pictures, you can see the yellow in her skin and especially her eyes.

We got home from the hospital on Saturday morning and my parents came to visit on Sunday night. They were so excited to meet Cante!! My dad pulled out his camera right away and started snapping hundreds of pictures. My dad and Michael stayed with Heather and Antioni that night and my mom stayed with us. I had a rough night that night. First of all I was exhausted from giving birth, taking care of the baby, lack of sleep, visiting with people, etc. Then I was in pain from the delivery and breastfeeding. So that night, I was trying to feed Cante and she would NOT latch on! She was really hungry and was screaming. I was crying from being overwhelmed, frustrated, discouraged..etc. So that night, we decided to give her a bottle of formula. She took it right away. The next day I tried feeding her again and we had the same problem. I talked to my sister Erin and she suggested that I get a pump. So my mom and Heather went to the store to buy me one. It was so nice and easy to pump in comparison to breastfeeding. At that point, I decided that I would just give cante formula and then pump as much as I could. However, a couple days later after my body had healed, I decided to try breastfeeding again. I didn't think that Cante would latch on..but she did! I was so happy. Things went MUCh better the 2nd time around. I have still been giving her one or two bottles of formula a day. When I go back to work, Marlin will give her formula in the day and I will breastfeed her at night. I actually enjoy breastfeeding now. I feel like its a good bonding moment for Cante and I :)

The first couple weeks of Cante's life, we mostly just stayed at home and rested. It was nice to just relax and enjoy our baby girl :) Marlin took a few days off too so it was really nice to be at home with our little family. It took me a while to start getting ready again. I mostly just lounged around in sweats..didn't really do my hair or make-up. You can see in the pictures..lol.

 

We found out very early that Cante looooves to be held. So every night, we swaddled her. She looked so cute in her little swaddle!

                    

One of our first outings was to Iggys to watch the draft!   

Crystal and Spencer came over to visit a few times. We had a good time hanging out with them and Hina. It was nice to have support from Crystal because she could relate to what I was going through since she had just had Hina a year ago.

We also went to visit Grandpa Goedel and Jill in Perry. They were really happy to see the baby! They made lunch for us :) Grandpa, Michael, and my Dad decided to pull out all their instruments and play together like they were a band. Cante and I took a little nap in the meantime.

Mom cooked Pork Chops for us one night. We ate at Heather and Antioni's house. Crystal, Spencer, Eric, and Erica came over too. We played a game where you have to hum a song, and everyone has to guess what it is. We had a good time.

  


Aunt Jean and Chris came up to Utah for the 4th of July weekend. Aunt Jean loooved holding Cante. She paid for me to get a manicure and pedicure at the mall. Then we went to the Freedom Days in Provo. We all sat around at the fair and just ate and talked. Marlin's parents got in that night. So we went to go visit them afterwards.

The next day was July 3rd, which was our 2 year Anniversarry! It was also the day that we decided to bless Cante. Our close friends and family were all there to hear the blessing. My mom and Dad, Marlin's mom and dad, Heather and Antioni, Marei and Leatha with their kids, Rana Sioux, Jean and Chris, Crystal and Spencer, Eric and Erica, Aunt Sherrie, Laura Locklear, Auntie Maioha, Little Maioha and Hoera. It was so nice to have them all there. Marlin gave Cante a beautiful blessing :) Afterwards, we had a barbeque at Heather's apartment complex. We had so much food! A few more people came to the barbeque than the blessing. Aunt Diane and Alice came and so did Becky and Whitney Lucas.

We also took cante to Sione and Courtney's wedding. By that time, Cante was about 3 weeks old. The wedding was so much fun. We enjoyed meeting Marlin's family members, eating food, and being entertained. My parents also joined us for the occassion and Michael and my Dad actually performed at the wedding. Everyone looooved it! Our family members each took turns holding Cante. It was nice to get a break and know that she was well taken care of.

It was so nice and helpful to have my mom and dad stay with us for three weeks! We really enjoyed having them. After they left, Heather and Antioni came over quite often to help before their move to Georgia. They would just hold the baby so I could get a break...get ready..clean..etc. It was soo nice and helpful. Cante had a wonderful first month. She is such a beautiful little girl. She has been such a blessing in our lives. I love her sweet little spirit. I am thankful for the opportunity I have raise her and teach her of her great value and worth. We are just thrilled to have her in our lives.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving break is coming to an end. We had an eventful week. On Wednesday, Marlin and I cleaned the apartment in the morning. Then his parents got into town and stopped by. Right after they got here, I went over to Becky's house to practice for the last ROC show. It will be on December 14th. I will be dancing Jingle, Fancy, and Hoop. I am super excited to dance again. It has already been so much fun going back to practice and spending time with Brit, Becky, and Tish. After ROC practice, my dad and Michael got in.
We celebrated Thanksgiving at Leatha's house. All of Marlins family was here along with Eric, Michael, and Dad from my side. We ate delicious food and just relaxed at Leatha's house. My dad and Michael loved seeing Cante again! Cante loved my dad. He is always good with babies and kids. We were sad to see them leave but enjoyed the short time we had to spend with them.