some pics

ok I made a quick stop at home and am uploading some pics from our little camera for all to see! yay

Em is doing great and we would like to introduce everyone to.... Kamryn Melissa Mollenhauer!!

Post from the hospital- Prebirth

so this is Lance, and I am sitting here in Em's pre-birth hospital room, or rather it is the room that she is going to be giving birth in but it just hasn't happened yet. Anyways we were a little nervous about today as we had the induction scheduled on Monday and we got a heads up from Em's doctor that because of the volume of patients that the hospital was seeing yesterday, we might be bumped...and we were totally bummed. Her doc said that the hospital would let us know at 6:00 am today if we were bumped or not...and at 6:00 am we got a call that we were being bumped back...to...8:00 am! which in my opinion was even better, cause we all know how morningtime and I do not agree. So I turned over and slept for another hour this morning while Emali got up and did stuff cause apparently she can't sleep anymore. So at 7 we (Gracie and I) got up and got ready and went on with the plan.
At 8:00 we walked into the hospital and were shown right to our massive birthing suite (sweet!) and got all hooked up to monitors and put in LOST. Em's doc came in after an hour and broke her water, and BAM contractions have been going ever since. Em is also having Pitocin, and an epidural that actually is working ( which I got to watch be put in and it is amazing, and kind of scary and fascinating now that I know what is actually happening in her back, plus the anesthesiologist was treating me as a colleague which is fun/funny for me). Anyways, now Em is in la-la land listening to Jane Monheit, and it should be a couple of hours until the baby comes. We still like the name Kamyrn but we will see what she looks like to make a final call.
On another note, I would just like to say how grateful I am for my wonderful wife. She is such a good person, and although I tease her so much that most of the time that she is mad at me, she is still a sweetheart and I love her so much. She goes through so much ( is going through so much at this particular moment) for this family and is truly
the rock of my life.
ok Em just told me that she feels like her leg feels like a log or a big piece of meat! too funny! alrighty then more later

THE TIME HAS COME!

I swear I thought the baby was going to come this last weekend. I contracted ALL NIGHT on Saturday night and finally stopping timing around 4 or 5 in the morning. It was a LONG night. But, I went to the dr. yesterday and I am going to get induced on FRIDAY!! I can't believe I talked my dr. into inducing me at the beginning of the holiday weekend instead of after! I can handle waiting a couple more days!! YEAH for baby time!! I can't wait!

PS keeps us in your prayers, poor gracie has gotten another double ear infection and perforated one of her ear drums--OUCH!

CONGRATS TO THE NEW WSCC SECRETARY!

Props to Brian for the idea! But Lance totally went crazy making campaign posters. They were all pretty funny. Yeah for a paid position! (especially when he was attending and helping out with events anyways) Love you babe, and congrats!

Mother Dear I love you so, your happy smiling face!

Here's a tribute to the one's that got us here and keep us going!! We are so thankful for our Moms! Happy Mother's Day and we love you!

This is an old picture (from last year) but a happy memory nonetheless.

I guess old college pics are the theme, since we can't find a whole lot of really good mom pictures.

And here is my Emi, the best mom my 1.95 kids could ask for.

Made it Safely

Wheww...we're back home and with no new baby...yeah! We survived the flight, in fact Gracie was a doll and slept the WHOLE way home! But boy did we enjoy our time in AZ! It was so good to visit (THANKS BELLA AND GRUMPA FOR PROVIDING A WAY!) I really felt I needed to be there for Michelle's funeral and to see my family too! We feel so blessed that we are close enough and have enough support that I can leave on such short notice, and be home (the AZ home) in a couple of hours with a bed (or 2) to sleep in, and plenty of food for my prego tummy.

Some vacation we had! We did everything from swimming, jumping on the tramp, hanging with friends, packing my bro's house, going out to lunch, taking walks around Bella's flower garden, shopping; you name it, we did it. We had such a blast!

Please forgive the pics, I didn't want to travel with my good camera.
Please also forgive me posting my very-large-and-ready-to-deliver self:

I think this pic will give you a good laugh. The Pews and Dewitts took us to Amazing Jake's to celebrate Brian finishing his finals. TONS OF FUN!! Although the teacups are not made to fit expecting moms!!! I could barely squeeze into the little teacup and poor Gracie didn't know what to think, she has never been on a ride before. Enjoy!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SKY!

What kind of a brother goes to Tucson to get you your fav drink (Eegee's) on HIS birthday??? That's my bro for you! Thanks for working in Tucson so you could make my day!! LOVE YOU SKY!!

CONGRATS LAURA!!

the cute and smallest preggers on the right is now an ASU grad! YEAH!

(Hmmm, who is due first?? Me, Celynda or Laura?)Our Buddies! Man, I really miss you guys!! I was so happy to see EVERYONE!!! Poor Lance was jealous I got to hang with you all.

(me, the grahams, the petersens, the wilsons, the dewitts)

Let's all hope the next blog isn't 3 weeks away and let's all hope it is VERY SOON to announce the arrival of our little one!!

I wanted to remember

For my dear friend, Michelle:

Each life that touches ours for good

Reflects thine own great mercy, Lord;

Thou sendest blessings from above

Thru words and deeds of those who love.

What greater gift dost thou bestow,

What greater goodness can we know

Than Christlike friends, whose gentle ways

Strengthen our faith, enrich our days.

When such a friend from us departs,

We hold forever in our hearts

A sweet and hallowed memory,

Bringing us nearer, Lord, to thee.

For worthy friends whose lives proclaim

Devotion to the Savior’s name,

Who bless our days with peace and love,

We praise thy goodness, Lord, above.

When words don't say enough, music finds a way. Love you Michelle! Thank you for touching my life. I miss you and can't wait to see you again!

Better Days Ahead...

Almost a month and no posts, I know some of you are very disappointed, all with very good reason. To say we’ve been having a rough time the past couple of weeks is a severe understatement. (By the way this is mostly journaling for me, so you might just want to scroll to the pics! )

We had a fun break from school. It was great having Lance around. We took advantage of the family time and went to the Zoo, OMSI, Tillamook, and Cannon Beach.

If you can't tell by the above and below pics, this is Gracie's fav gal pal: Kaylee (AKA Kaayyyy-eeee)







Three weeks ago was my birthday…YEAH! I had a TERRIFIC birthday. Of course lots of friends, fun, and homemade ice cream. Lance said he was going to post for that week, but school got the best of him-stay tuned for that belated posting.

Thanks Kathy for the photoshoot!!

Two weeks ago I had to take an extra visit to the OB, I’m already starting to dilate along with a few other minor issues…I think it’s thanks to my mornings on the eliptical at the gym. They took some tests and I am NOT at risk for laboring during the next two weeks (although that deadline is up!). Everything is fine, but I have to take it easy…ha ha ha very funny I told the doc, how do you take it easy chasing a toddler?

We did start swim lessons this week!! YAHOO!! Gracie LOVES swimming!!


Let’s reflect on last week:

Monday- nothing too bad…I have a 20 month old who is starting to act like a 2 year old, I can deal, right? Like, undressing herself twice before leaving for the gym, coloring all over the front of my ipod, you know the usual toddler things.

Tuesday-contractions, contraction, contractions…I get them from doing the dishes…I start to laugh and tell Lance too bad he has to finish! ;)

Wednesday- Gracie woke up SCREAMING from her nap and pulling at her right ear. After ONE FULL HOUR of crying I finally was able to shove some Ibuprofen down her throat and she calmed down enough to watch a movie. If you know Gracie well enough, she’s not a big crier unless something is really wrong. I kind of freaked and Lance rushed home from school to help us get to the emergency clinic. Diagnosis: Otitis Media (ear infection). The tube in her right ear fell out (not sure when) and now has ANOTHER EAR INFECTION!!! All I could think of is PLEASE don’t tell me that we have to go through another surgery…(we have our follow-up today) But we ended up opting NOT to take the antibiotics (crazy right??). We took Gracie in to the Chiro clinic and got her adjusted, and her ear stared draining by that night and was cleared up within 24-hours!! (We didn’t even have to give her the ibuprofen.) So needless to say we had to skip swim lessons, poor Gracie!

Thursday- Lance comes home from school not feeling well. Baby Shower!! Thanks to Heather! Our monthly GIRLS NIGHT was turned into a shower for me and it was so fun! The girls used their artistic expertise to design onesies. They are cute and FUNNY! I had such a blast. Thanks everyone!

Friday- Gracie recovering and I woke up with a bloodshot eye that was a little sensitive…We tried to take it easy and watched movies all day long. Trigenics Seminar for Lance all weekend. (LONG HOURS FOR CERTIFICATION AND TESTS!!)

Saturday- Pink eye confirmed!! WHAT THE CRAP?? Since when do you get pink eye as a stay at home mom when your kid didn’t get it first???

Sunday- Another migraine?? Will these ever go away??


Of course these weren’t the only events that happened last week, merely the highlights. I really thought my luck was turning around on Monday when I got a message on my voicemail that we had won a drawing from a baby expo I attended MONTHS ago. I was drawn for a trip for 2 to Reno, or Vancouver, BC or something…but I lost it because we had to verify our income was over a certain amount…BUMMER! (it was probably a scam anyways)

I can’t complain though, through all of the large potholes, bumps, and walls we’ve hit the past couple of weeks we all survived. I know Heavenly Father has taken great care of us. We have been blessed with everything we needed it right when we needed it. My house has been a disaster but it (or anything else) hasn’t stopped us from laughing at all the things that have gone wrong. Gracie has been so cuddly, and sweet. She always wants to give really big tight squeezes and now says, “uuvvvv oohhh” (translation: love you). I think she knows what’s coming and is taking every advantage to get alone time with Mommy and Daddy. We have good friends who have taken care of us here. Thank you for those of you who called, stopped by (some with cookies-YUM), watched Gracie while I ran to the clinic, and just let me vent on my bad days!!

Other Random Pics over the past 3 weeks:

Me in all my prego glory deciding how to go about ripping out the bushes in the backyard.
Nevermind the trampled daffodil! I got it all by myself. Lance did have to come running with the camera because I started out with the shovel and flip flops and successfully ripped out the first bush before resorting to tennis shoes.


33 weeks (2 weeks ago)

For Cory and the Fam: yes, I am betting bigger!

New York Dreams (and a couple of AZ)

Gracie and I got to travel during Lance's finals week. The reason for the trip:

Janey's Wedding!!

I met "Janey" my freshman year of college. We had some rocking music classes together and shared a love of music and dance. We took many a dance classes from our fav, Fleur, and really bonded while Janey helped me get through music theory. I was DEVASTATED when she decided to transfer to U of A the next year! So after much plotting and planning I convinced her to come back to NAU because I needed a roommate in my new apartment. Though her second stay in Flag was brief, she changed my life forever. From the food I eat, the music I listen to, or even they way I organize my closet. I have never been the same! I LOVE YOU JANEY! I am so happy you have found your true love! Thank you for the opportunity to share this special day with you! I felt very honored to be apart of every bit of festivities and would have traveled around the world to be there! To everyone else I can't even explain how much fun I had! The wedding was AMAZING!!!

I took Gracie to AZ to visit fam and stay with the Mollenhauer's while I ventured to NYC. We tried to cram every bit of family and friends into our AZ trip as possible but there were only so many days! THANK YOU TO GRUMPA, BELLA, ALEXA AND BRITT for taking care of my Gracie! She LOVED spending time with you (and sophie-the new puppy). Thank you to my mom and dad for letting us crash as their place for a few days! MUCH FUN! Thank you to friends for taking us to fun places and having us over to play!

Here are the girls that made my trip easier on my wallet (and a TON more fun!!) Gucci, Coach, Tiffany, anyone?? THANKS KYLIE, MALLORY, AND HEATHER!!

This is the view from our fabulous hotel! One of the nicest hotels I've stayed in, and even though the pic is blurry you can tell it had a GREAT view!

All of the Bridesmaids before the CRAZY Bachelorette Party!

Abby, Diana, Jana, Janey (the bride) Marie, Ashlee, Kristy, and me!

The wedding site! CAN YOU BELIEVE THE VIEW??? It was INCREDIBLE!!! This was also the backdrop for their wedding pics. This was the half of the room that was used for holding for the wedding party, the cocktail hour, and then later the other half of the reception.

Our bouquets! Aren't they GORGEOUS!!??

Just awaiting our big entrance

Janey and Me- LOVE YOU GIRL! (thanks for fixing your orange 4 1/2 inch blush work!)

The beautiful Bride and Groom! Congrats Liza and Jon!!

Playing at the Wilson's...this is the ONLY look Jaxon would give me!

Blake and Gracie (yep, she got a little hair cut--thanks NAT!)
Gracie LOVED playing outside with all of the boys! She thought it was the greatest thing to be able to play outside. Thanks to Grandma (Crouse) for providing summer clothes for Gracie to play in!!

Ding, Ding...All Aboard...Here We Go

First:

Then:

and:

We'll miss you Lance!! Good Luck on your finals!!