South Dakota

Well my little one it’s amazing to me that it’s been almost five months since you where born.  I’m laying here next to you and it is amazing just how much you have grown and changed, my little brand new baby is growing up.  I was just watching videos of when we brought you home from the hospital, you where so full of wonder and awe, you still are but now you smile and giggle and coo, I love you so much. 

            Some of your milestones are that you love to stand and have for about a month and a half, you would like it if we would just let you be on your feet all the time.  You are just starting baby food and for the most part you like it, prunes and bananas are on your favorite list although the only other thing we’ve tried are peaches:) You are rolling over by yourself and you know your such a big girl, you also screech and scream just to make sure that we don’t forget you.  You have some little toys that we put above your carseat that amaze and fascinate you.  Everyday you just get more and more fun and I fall deeper and deeper in love with you.

We are in South Dakota right now AIing cows, correct that John is in AIing, Maggie and I may go out for short little time frames and then we are in the house lol.  We’ve taken a few walks and played on the swing set at the schoolyard, we spend a lot of time playing peekaboo.  The first few days we where here Maggie was just plain pooped, she slept a lot and got caught up on her rest, that makes all the difference in the world on how happy she is!  The trip here wasn’t to bad, we did it over a three day time period, by about 7:30 Maggie is done for the night on traveling and is ready just to play.

            John is crazy about her.  As soon as he walks in the door he’s all about Maggie and is quite the little mother hen, he tells me often what I need to do for our little Pumpkin Pie!  We took a ride with Ken up to Thunder Butte last night, Maggie fell fast asleep in the truck.  It was hot about 100 degree’s and the truck wouldn’t stay cooled down, John still wanted to hold his little love bug and took her and put her over his shoulder.  She knows him and loves him.  How blessed I am to have this much love in our home.  I’ve come to the realization that nothing else really matters as long as I have my family.  Each day I want to live the best I can so I can teach Maggie all she needs to know and raise her to be a good person.  So much hope and promise lies in this little baby.  I really never realized how entwined my heart would be in loving her.

            Utah is on fire right now, it’s so dry and we need rain so badly.  I can tell by dad’s voice that he’s over the top with worry.  Utah’s soil had only 5 % humidity about two weeks ago, that was the lowest in the Nation.  They have evacuated towns and are pushing cattle off of the forest.  We just went to the forest yesterday, I pray that the cattle will be watched over and protected.

            John has been crazy busy here, they leave every morning at about 4:30 and don’t get home until about nine, I don’t know how he’s still functioning.  One day they AI’d about 125, they where all zombies by the time they came in the house.  He stays my sweetheart John, I never realized just how happy I could be.  He’s my whole world.

            Maggie on the other hand sleeps till about 9:00 every morning and then wakes up as happy as can be but would like a nap shortly after that.

            We are going to go to Utah in a few weeks, I can’t wait!  It’s time just to be home in my beautiful Beaver valley, I’m so glad that I’ve got a husband that loves me otherwise there is no way in HELL that I would stay in South Dakota:) My hat goes off to the women that call this home year round!  Well I’m going to get the boys breakfast they are fixing to come in for a bit this morning to feed the hunger.  I’ll try and get back to this later,  Maggie is just waking up!

Jeannie

May 7th

Well you my little one are sound asleep, mornings is your time to snooze and you usually wake up about six to eat and then fall right back to sleep for a few hours.  This morning I am tempted to go snuggle back up with youJ Your dad and I made a video of you in the shower last night, he loves you so much, I’ll bet he’s watched it fifty times.  I always hope you feel how much love he and I have for you!

Another week has flown by, where does it go?  It seems like everything is moving at super speed and my little baby isn’t a baby anymore.  She is getting so big, she is just over three months right now and her legs are long enough that she can where six month clothes.  She’s filling out, with a little double chin and chubby little legs and the cutest little bum you ever did see.  I never realized you could love anything as much as I love her.

John is in love with her, she’s his girl and he has a hold of her every chance that we get.  I’m so grateful that I get to be his wife, he is such an awesome man, perfect husband and great father.  Maggie and I went out and helped him breed cows last night.  He holds her on the 4-Wheeler while he gets in the heifers, she cuddles into him as tight as she can and just takes it all in.  She is his little “Pumpkin Pie” and he tells me everyday almost that he’s going to kiss her a million times before she’s one.  He always says when he’s holding her “who is this crazy man that keeps kissing me:)” I love him more than anything.  We are best friends and lovers and I really never realized that life could be this perfect.  I’m happier right now then I have ever been and I thank my Heavenly Father everyday for giving me so many blessings.  John is the best thing that has ever happened in my life.

Maggie still sleeps with us every night.  We have got oodles of advice that we need to stop, but having her in bed with us has been one of the funnest things we’ve doneJ``

Tornados for real, who invented those?

Well my little Pumkin Pie, your laying asleep on my lap right now, you are so much fun.  I really never knew that my heart was capable of loving anything as much as I love you.  Your just starting to giggle and everyday is so knew and full of wonder.
Right now you are the boss, 100% I went to the city yesterday and you cried the whole way there and the whole way back, do not tell your dad:)  As soon as I got you out you where as happy as a meadow lark and all smiles.  You sleep with your dad and I every night and cuddle into me just as close as you possibly can.  We put you in the shower and you LOVE it!  Your smile just as big and as proud as you can.
All your aunties came out to see you, it was pretty darn hard to let them all go back home.  I miss my girls and would give anything in the world to live closer to them.  I tell John all the time it's a dang good thing I love him as much as I do or else I don't think I could stand to be away from all my family.  We hunted frogs, went to the zoo, laughed, giggled, and talked, I miss them...
We have now had both bull sales for the year, those are such a relief to have over and done.  A tornado came through Woodward the night after the sale, I was FREAKED out just a little, in case you don't know we don't have tornado's in Utah, a huge plus:) We spent a little time in the hotel lobby after John informed me everything was fine.....the power went out.....the police was running down the hall pounding on doors telling everyone to get to the first floor.....I grabbed maggie....my bra.....no shoes.....And we went to the Lobby.
John is just picking Maggie and I up to go and check bullers so I'm going to sign off, I'll try to write on this more often.

just so you all know I'm pretty goo goo in love with Maggie and John!

Well my little Maggie you are almost two months old, how has it went so fast, there is so many things that I want you to know and to tell you.

  You decided that you would be breach, you had absolutly no desire in the world to turn the right way, we tried to do inversion which I will say hurt like mad, you still did not want to turn.  I was crying, your dad was crying, I had two doctors pushing for all they were worth on my belly and you were plain flat out stubborn, you where staying in place.  Your dad watched the Denver heifer show while we waited for your little heartbeat to calm back down.

All your aunts came down to Oklahoma for "the arrival of Maggie."  I was miserable, I never realized just how much my whole body would hurt everywhere, my bones, my hips, my muscles, everything hurt.  It hurt to walk, it was uncomfortable to be, sleeping was getting hard, I was ready for you to come.

  Finally the day came for you to enter this world, I will admit I was more than a little scared, we woke up early.  Lori Ann curled my hair and I did my makeup.  I was so swollen that my shoes wouldn't fit, I had to wear Em's boots to the hospital, I was swollen everywhere and weighed in at about 165 compared to my 120 before you came:)  

   We drove to the hospital, we were a little late as you can imagine:)  They took me in and gave me an epidural, and then your dad came in looking a bit like a smurf all dressed from head to to in blue hospital garb.  He held my hand while they cut you out, they had asked what our names were, we were not real sure on a boy name but thought probably Garret.  Well out you came and the Doctor said, it's a Maggie Ann.  I started to cry, heck I'm crying now, we were so excited you where hear.  Your daddy left me and went right over to you and I think fell in love at that moment, he's been crazy about you ever since:)  He called your grandma and said, "Mamma it's a girl, it's a little girl," he was crying the whole time.  Everyone was pretty gagga over you, you where so anticipated and had plenty of love at the hospital waiting for you to arrive.  Your dad didn't leave your side the whole time, they kept you in our room and he slept in a green rocking chair or next to us on the bed, he held you and loved you and was by you whenever the nurses took you out of the room.  

You were a little odd looking character for a few days, your little neck was cramed from when you where in my tummy and your little ear folded over, I could feel your little head right up under my ribs for about the last two months.  I look at you know, your eating while I write this, it is amazing that you were ever inside of me.  I love you so much it is crazy:)

You were and still are quite the little grunter, you grunt when you wake up in the morning, you grunt when you eat, you grunt when your mad, you grunt all the time, you are not a quite little baby.
Your aunts and grandma demolished and repainted our bathroom while we were gone, it had been a terrible color of blue shiny wallpaper, when I came home it was crisp white.
When we left the hospital I had you all dressed your dad looked at you and said she really is somebody isn't she.  You can't imagine how much he loves you.
I stayed quite doped up on pain killers, breastfeeding you hurt more than you can imagine, it's just to the point where it doesn't kill.
Your aunts, your going to love them, they are crazy about you, there is a letter from each of their names in your name, your a part of them and they are a part of you.  They are such strong women and I pray that you will be strong like them, that you'll be the kind of woman that each of them are.  I want you to know them, to love them, trust them and look to them as "your other moms." If you ever can't talk to me turn to them they are my very best friends and who I turn to whenever I need to talk.  I bawled when they went home, big crocidile tears every time I thought about them even leaving.  Michelle stayed out for for three more days after Lori and Em went home, mom stayed out for two more after that, I bawled every time I took one to the airport.
You have grown so much, your dad comes home and picks you up as soon as he walks in the door, he calls you his little pumpkin pie and has to show me every cute little face you make and listen to every little new sound.  He hates your car seat and calls it your little prison, he informed me yesterday that he's going to soon be your favorite because I'm the one who puts you in it and he's the one who get's you out.  Every morning he gets up with you and holds you, he said he never knew what his tummy was for until he had you but know he's fairly for sure it's just to hold you on.  You curl your little legs up like a little stink bug.  He'll talk to you for a few hours and then he tucks us back into bed and we go back to sleep, sometimes for a very long time:)
You are just starting to smile, we are going to have to finish this in a bit we've got to get lunch for your dad right now:)  I love you Maggie, more than you know and more than I ever imagined possible.  No matter how mad you ever get at me know that I wanted you before I ever knew you, you are my angel, I really believe that.  I hope so much for you, I love you forever,

Jeannie

Time does fly

It is amazing that somehow the months have slipped by so fast!  Here we are almost to the end of this pregnancy.  Little one I must admit that I'm a little scared to have you come into this world.
As of the last few months you have caused me to have gestational diabetes, I must say I'm more than a little excited to be able to eat pasta and potato's again, along with all the Christmas candy that I missed but most of all I hope that we get you here healthy.

John has said three sales and Denver and we'll have a baby, well the three sales are in the past and Denver is going on, very soon we will have a little one in our home.  I'm not so sure that we are ready!  We have a bassinet and a few little clothes.  Ready or not it's going to be time.

This is the first year that John has missed Denver in 31 years, he seems a bit blue that he isn't going to but didn't want to miss the arrival of our little one.  Dad is judging the Maine sale bulls, I would love to be there and get teary eyed just thinking of him back there without me.  I will be the first to admit I'm a little blue for my Utah valley.  This is officially the longest I have ever been away from home.  I miss the mountains, the crisp mornings, my Midgy dog, and of course all of the happenings of being with dad and the girls.

On a brighter note, John is really a perfect husband.  That isn't an exageration, I don't know how I could stand being so far from home without him.  I love him and I'm so glad that I get to do all of this with him.  We were giggling last night about our Denver's to remember.  Our first date took place right about now.  I was sure he must have a DUI on his record.  First of all he couldn't get a rental car at our female sale because his drivers liscence was expired, and I had to go pick him up.  I went with my current boyfriend in tow, it's amazing this all worked like it did:)  Then finally Denver rolled around, and I knew a date was on the agenda but my little Chicken husband was dragging his feet on asking.  Finally I sent a text asking if we were going or not, and we went:)  But for three nights in a row we went in a Taxi cab, he claims it was so his crew would have a ride, I really doubted lol!  I felt like I had known him forever.  Since that first date we have talked everyday and been each other's best friend and confident.  I really know that this was all set up before we came to this world.  I've never felt like I knew someone so well as I knew my John Griswold from the first time I sat across from him.  It didn't take long for him to steal my heart!