Pediatrician

Jaycee had her 15 month check-up today. It was a bad experience for me, but the doctor was really neato! The office is in Waterville which is about 20 miles from us. I had left the house with 30 minutes to drive there and find the office. It was 3:40 when I was getting really frustrated. I was SO lost and couldn't find the street. I was at that point 10 minutes late and I hate when patients are late. I called the office to give them a heads up and asked for directions. They asked where I was and then said...Hold on. I waited for 5 minutes on hold while still driving around looking for their office. By this time, I was even more frustrated and finally found the street and hung up. I had to drive down the street for about 5 miles, passed the building, then flip around to find it. FINALLY, I pulled in at 3:55....25 minutes late! I felt really bad, but very frustrated no one on the phone even cared I was lost. I went to the desk to check in and the lady says...You're late! I'll ask the doctor if she'll see you! She was so rude. I sat in the waiting room for a good 5 minutes before anyone said anything. I was about ready to walk out. THEN, a nurse comes out and says "I tried calling your phone" I looked at her and said, "No one called" Then she said "It said out of service" So then I said, "Did you dial 801 as the area code, not 207" Ya...that's what I thought! I also told her I called to let you guys know I was late and needed directions because I was totally lost. I've lived in Maine for a whole 3 months...give me a break. She gives me a dirty look and says "I'll be right back. I'll go talk to the doctor" K by this time, I wanted to cry because I just got yelled at, felt retarded, on top of feeling bad for being late, frustrated for getting lost. I wanted to walk out and say...I'll take my daughter where she is wanted. Just as I was ready to leave, they took me back in the room. They rushed me through her stats and then said, "The doctor will be seeing the 4:00 patients and will get to you when she's done. You're just going to have to wait" Seriously, I understand, I was late. Quit treating me like dirt. We waited about 20 minutes for the doctor. She was so good. I was very impressed. She seemed like she really wanted to get to know Jaycee and I and asked lots of questions. Also just seemed like she really enjoyed her job. Jaycee did so good and let her do her check-up without crying or anything. She even gave Jaycee a book to take home for being good. Jaycee is 23.6 pounds=50% for her weight, and she was 60% for her height. She also got 2 shots and only cried for a brief second. My baby is such a good girl! Now I'm torn because I don't want to go back because of the staff being so rude, but I loved the doctor even more than the one in Utah. Hmmmm....I'll ponder this. That was our trip to the pediatrician.

Egg Festival

Jaycee at the Karnival


Playing on the swings at the park


She loves the swings


5k here I come!


Nice pose hun!


Tired and wet! But overall....a good time!


At the parade...it was a little wet!








Brayden's favorite part of the parade


At the carnival they had a petting zoo that Kleinschmidt sponsored. Jaycee loved petting the goats and even gave one a kiss. We laughed so hard.


The week of July 24 was the Central Maine Egg Festival which is celebrated in Pittsfield. There were people everywhere which is crazy for our little town. They had a lot of events going on including: concert in the park, window painting contest, softball game, Little chick contest, parade, fireworks, Quiche & cheesecake baking contest, fireworks, and our credit union hosted a 5k, and much more. When I found out about the big events we invited Dathan and Kel up for a fun weekend. Also I decided to dive right in to the festivities. I entered Jaycee into the Little Chick photo contest. There were at least 30 pictures and to vote people put $ in a slot where the picture was posted at the local grocery store. She didn't win, but it's hard because we don't have lots of family to go vote for her. It was still fun. I also made a cheesecake for the baking contest. I didn't win on that either, but the competition was stiff. The one that won was seriously a gourmet cheesecake out of a magazine! How can I compete with that! My oreo cheesecake was still yummy and had cute pink egg sprinkles on top. I was glad I still participated and even met a nice family. Saturday (24th) was the last day of the festivities. I signed Craig and I up to run the 5k in the morning. Ever since we got married we always talk about wanting to run in one. He never has and I have only once. Last year was rough because I was nursing and Jaycee was just a newborn, so that didn't happen. So without Craig knowing until a week before I signed us up. We only had a week to prepare, but we weren't nervous considering we go jogging at least once a week and usually do at least 2.5 miles. We woke up that morning @ 6:30 and it was cloudy and overcast. I was so excited cuz I love jogging in the rain. Only bad thing is we couldn't take Jaycee in the stroller because she would get soaked. She stayed home with Kel and Dathan. We ended jogging 3.1 miles and when we saw the layout of where we were running, it was quite familiar. We did almost that same jog the week before. There were only about 50 people there since it was raining. The whole last mile was pretty tough because it was a gradual increase with a big hill at the end. BUT we endured and crossed the finish line @ 30.31. I'm not proud of that time by any means and want to do better, but for the first one in a long time I was glad we finished. We didn't stop at all and Craig was a big help. I think Craig would've done it faster but he stayed behind with me. It was really fun and I'm itching to do another one soon.
We got back from the run and then headed up the street for the parade. By this time it was really wet outside, but people were ready for a parade. Brayden got a lot of candy and enjoyed it. After the parade we went back home to get everyone and head over to the park for the Karnival. We hung out there for a bit and visited with some friends. On the way back we HAD to take them to Big Bills and get some ice cream. We then walked our .4 miles back home and everyone except Kel and I crashed. My legs were pretty sore from running that morning and then walking so much so it was nice to rest a bit. Haylie and Jaycee had such a fun time the whole weekend. They acted like best friends and followed each other and copied each other. It was so cute. We then busted out all the stuff for our traditional Alfredo BBQ Chicken Pizza and then played Catan. At about 9 we heard the fireworks going off at the park and could actually see them pretty well from our house. All-in-all it was a fun day! The next day we took them to church with us and came home and made Navajo Tacos for dinner. Then of course before they left we had to play Catan again! It's fun to sit around the table and play and laugh and be goofy. I love our Catan playing! At church I got a new calling....I just barely got called to be a Relief Society instructor and only taught 2 times. I guess the Lord has other places for me to be. I haven't been sustained yet, so you'll have to just keep reading until I tell what my new calling is :) All I can say is...I'm very excited. Teaching relief society stressed me out!
That was our weekend and it was a great one. Jaycee has her 15 month checkup appointment today (yes, she is overdue considering she is almost 17 months). We had to wait until our insurance started and then the pediatrician had to "approve" her to be seen. That took about 2 weeks to get back to us. Kinda dumb. She doesn't know what's coming...shots!!!
Tomorrow I'm going with the Sister Missionaries again to teach an investigator who is planning on getting baptized next month. I told the sisters I would love going with them every week if I could. I love the spirit I feel, and also I love sharing what I know to be true :) Brother Brown is an awesome example to me.
THEN!.... on Friday we are headed to Dathan and Kel's house again. On Saturday is our Branch Temple Trip so we asked if they'd babysit Jaycee and then decided to just stay down there for the weekend. I love that they live pretty close and that our kids get along so well. Also it's nice to see Dathan calm down from working to hang out. So the least we can do is relax him a bit. I'm really excited.
The family is doing well. Craig is very happy with his job still. We very fortunate to be able to work for Kleinschmidt. We also feel very blessed from Heavenly Father who constantly blesses our family. We took a HUGE leap of faith coming out here. We recently found out Craig's best friend Joe got laid off from ARW (Craig's old work). We felt so bad for him and his family and took that in account to our life. What if we hadn't moved,...would that happen to us? Luckily, Joe did find a new job quickly and we hope the best for him! I still remember the day in church when Craig came up to me and said, " I'm going to sign the offer letter and have faith everything will work out" And things did! There is so much opportunity with this company for Craig to grow and advance. Also we are so excited we'll be able to move back to the west coast closer to family. Oh, and another thing with Craig that I'm so proud...we started our "diet" a little bit ago...he's lost 9 pounds! He's looking so good and it's so nice having support for helping me to lose my baby pounds. I'm jealous he can loose it so quick, but life isn't fair I guess. I've only lost 5 pounds, but hey, it's a start. Nothing new with me really. Just loving life with being home. I've been trying to be more domestic. It's so much fun. Last week I made Tuna Casserole for the first time. Craig and Jaycee loved it! Also I made banana bread and we took it over to our neighbor Jackie and gave a loaf to our landlords who were up for the weekend. I really want to pick up a new hobby. I bought a Sudoku book and loved it so much I finished them all in about a week. I'm going to start my scrapbooking again and want to learn to crochet or cross-stitch. Just an idea. Jaycee is getting so big! She tells us all the time that she wants a baby brother/sister ;) but we tell her...NOT YET! She's into this monkey stage where she climbs on everything. She thinks she's such a big girl when she climbs up on the couch and give a cheesy grin. She absolutely loves Izzy to pieces. They're pretty much best friends. Well except with Izzy eats her food. The best part is that Izzy lets her do anything to her. Jaycee loves to sit in her lap when Izzy lays down. That's the cutest thing ever. Jaycee also is really into watching movies. She'll go sit in front of the TV and sign "movie" and I usually give in. But only once a day. She loves her "My Little Pony" one the best....THANKS DALYNNE! She's definetly a little girl and loves twirling and dancing.
Craig and I bought our plane tickets last week. We got a great deal...we think. We found tickets going out to SLC for $134 and coming back to Manchester for $134. I can't believe being so close to Christmas how plane tickets are EXPENSIVE! The cheapest I ever found them was $159 going out and $300 coming back. We jumped right on this great deal when I saw the price. We fly out the morning of December 14 and get into Utah around 5:00 pm. I hope Jaycee does good on the airplane. We then fly back on my birthday January 4. We can't wait to visit and be back at "home" with family!

Some Friendly Opinions Needed...

Okay so Craig and I keep having this decision and we can't decide what to do. I'm posting this to see what other people think and their opinions. So please leave a comment or email AmandaJo1485@hotmail.com to see what your take is.

So last year in May Craig and I bought a Kawasaki Brute Force 650 4 Wheeler for killer deal. We've enjoyed it a lot and have paid down our loan on it. We currently owe $2,300. Maine is a big 4 wheeling state so we know we would enjoy it here, but since Jaycee has come along she's isn't old enough to take. We keep thinking about selling it for about $4,500 to make some $ and get out of debt. But on the other hand, it will be paid off in about a year and when Jaycee is a little older she'll love having it. Also we hear in Oregon they also are into 4 wheelers and trails. But it would be nice to make almost $2,000 to put towards Craig's truck and Christmas and plane tickets. Hmmmm...such a tough decision. When we bought it we were in a totally different situation, and then Craig's hours & pay got cut. We've debated selling it a lot, but then we go play. Another thing is we can't take it camping anymore because we don't have a trailor to carry it. So when we do take it, we load it up in the truck, hence leaving no room for camping stuff. It's all decked out including a hard seat for passengers, saddle bags, hand warmers, wench, feet pegs for passengers, throttle extender, and a cover. In 10 years from now when our kids would enjoy it, I don't know if we'll be in the situation to buy another one because by then hopefully we'll be living in our dream house with a nightmare mortgage....ha ha. I'm torn on what to do....

Relief Society

So I think I post everyday, but owell. On Saturday our branch had a Relief Society English Garden Party. I wasn't too excited to go because I was sad with my mom & dad leaving, but decided I need to get out and meet ladies! I was so glad I went. Sister Kea Lowe gave a "lesson" and there was something she said that really hit home. I'm not sure if this is the exact quote but it was similiar and the same meaning:

Thomas S. Monson

"Daydreaming of the past and longing for the future may provide comfort but will not take the place of living in the present. Professor Harold Hill, in Meredith Willson’s The Music Man, cautioned: “You pile up enough tomorrows, and you’ll find you’ve collected a lot of empty yesterdays.” There is no tomorrow to remember if we don’t do something today, and to live most fully today, we must do that which is of greatest importance."

Gospel Library > Magazines > Liahona > May 2003

So I've kept that on my mind, and instead of dwelling on how sad it is to be away from my best friend Aimee, or family & sisters I've kept my outlook on living TODAY! I'm so thankful we had this opportunity to take this job and also to move out of my comfort zone. It's been a struggle with finding friends who I feel comfortable around or things in common, but that's okay. If I'm looking for friends, they'll come. Even if it is the missionaries :) I always seem to be friends and doing a lot with them. But that's okay too! So I'm going to enjoy today and everything in my life that is great!

Picture OVERLOAD!

Jaycee found Brayden's ball. Surprise, Surprise. Jaycee LOVES playing with balls!


We had quite the eventful 8 days! My mom & dad came into town for Kamryn's baby blessing and also to visit us. We drove down to Pelham (Aimee: this is where Dathan lives :) he he) to spend Friday-Sunday with them. We hung out Friday night at their house. Saturday we played in the pool @ Dathan's, went shopping at the mall with mom & dad, and then had a delicious at a new favorite restaurant 99. If the Boston Red Socks win then every kids meal is free with an adult meal. I had a steak w/shrimp & Craig got haddock. Then after we went to Dathan's to do our fireworks. Maine doesn't allow fireworks so we bought them in New Hampshire and they were AWESOME. It's amazing the fireworks they had and were legal. It was quite the show. We all went to bed, then up again Sunday for the blessing. Kamryn Grace Allen was blessed by her proud daddy Dathan, and was quite funny cuz she farted/pooped through the whole thing. The guys were laughing when they sat back down. Kamryn had both her grandparents and us there to share her special day. We headed back to NH (Dathan's church is in Massachusetts) for a BBQ and a 3 hour game of Catan. We left about 8 to head back home with Mom & Dad. The 3 hour drive went SO fast and it was so fun to have mom & dad in our home for the next 4 days. Oh and another surprise...on Wednesday we found out their flight was Friday morning. We thought it was Thursday so I was extra happy to get one more day with them.




Haylie posing for the camera. Mom said Haylie was so clingy to her. She loved having grandma there for the week.


Meet Kamryn (Kami) Grace Allen! She looks just like her big brother and sister. Except that she has long skinny legs, fingers, and toes. She's such a quiet and cute baby! Congrats Kel & big brother!


Kamryn passed out. Seeing and holding her made me even more baby hungry!


Izzy & Suzie in the backyard. I was proud of Izzy. She was such a good dog the whole weekend. It's probably cuz we had a "talk" and I told her to be good or else Daddy will be mad. He he. Oh, and we asked Dathan & Kel to dog-sit her while we come in December to Utah. They said, Ya, why not! We owe you guys! We know she'll be in good hands.


Dathan's new house. So cute!


Well on Monday Craig was off work for the 4th of July. We spent the day in Acadia @ the beach with mommy & daddy. It WAS SO HOT ALL WEEK! It was funny though because when we got to the beach there was a coastal breeze which cooled it off and the water was freezing! It was still nice to go play in the sand.


Jaycee playing


After the beach we took them to Thunder Hole, but unfortunately the tide was too high. I was bummed. While looking out you could see all the lobster cages off the coast. Or should I say LOBSTAH!


Jaycee and I at Thunder Hole

Jaycee was so tired and grandma cuddled her to sleep even in the freakin HOT house!


On Tuesday we had plans to go to Freeport to shop and then go down to Portland for the ball game. Well we found out my parents were actually there for an extra day than planned. We had a late start on the day and it was SO HOT! On the way down to Portland we stopped in Waterville to buy air conditioner units. Craig took off work at 1 to look at some places and everywhere around our house was sold out. This was a big shock for Maine. It's usually not this hot and humid. And I felt so bad because it was a rough night sleep in the heat. We ended up finding a couple left @ Wal-Mart (yes, Wal-Mart gets more of our $) and I was so glad! They were only $98 so we bought 2 and put one in Jaycee's room with mom & dad and one is ours.


Mom at the Portland Sea Dogs game.


Daddy & daughter! She loved the game. She wouldn't sit still so we had to let her run around. She was keeping the crowd entertained during boring parts


Yay for Mommy in Portland, Maine with me!


Hi Dad. He had me sneak in his sunflower seeds in my diaper bag. We made quite the mess. Sorry to all the people who had to clean those up.


Portland Sea Dogs vs. New Hampshire Fisher Cats Sea Dogs lost :( That's okay though cuz it was still a good time


Family Picture! On the way home from the game Dad needed to get gas for the car. He was so shocked that there were no gas stations open. It's seriously ghost town passed 9:00 in Maine! Well maybe not in Portland, but by us it is. We finally found one, and then stopped for ice cream. Ya, this week ruined my diet! I'm on vacation...well not really but that was my excuse.

Shopping in Freeport

Once again we had a late start, but I didn't mind. Vacations are supposed to be relaxing. So we didn't get to the beach again, but we did spend the whole day & night in Freeport. It reminds me of a mini Park City but beach area. They have lots of outlet stores, restaurants, LL Bean, bake shops & touristy shops. I ended up buying a $5 Boston Red Socks hat for Craig & I and a couple other things. I also had to buy my parents a whoopie pie! They are fattening as heck so we shared. Also I bought them some treats to take home to the family.


Jaycee was happy in this pic. She had a rough night!


LL Bean has 4 stores in Freeport. I'd say it looks a lot like Cabellas. This was the tank full of different trout.










Jaycee and I giving our cheesy smiles. Yes, that is a giant boot! Jaycee had a bad night. On our way to the car she threw up. I don't know if it was the heat or just not feeling good. When we got home I gave her med and found out she got her first molar! It all makes sense noW!


Mom all dolled up for the day. She loved the heat & I hated it! Thursday we staying around town. We went to Reny's, Big Bills (ice cream shop) and then picked out our lobstah for dinner.


STEP 1: Fill pot with water...a lot of water


STEP 2: Prepare steaks


STEP 3: Put lobster in pot. Only one screeched. We made Craig do it because they moved a lot. Creepy!



Craig doing the dirty work. They moved a lot!



Eeeewwwa!


Get it mom! I think you scared it!


You're our hero Craig


Last one in and boiling started


STEP 4: Place boiled lobster on plate and enjoy!


The hard part of getting the meat out. I couldn't crack it open...kinda creeped me out. I made Craig do mine. Mom wasn't afraid though


Now that looks tasty


I think Dad enjoyed it too!

Well after dinner it was time to pack up and relax for 4 hours until they had to leave. I was sad to be seeing them leave, but knew they probably were ready to go home. We went on a walk with mom to the park while dad tried to take a nap. We ended up talking and hanging out until 11 and then they drove off. I'll admit that I got a little teary eyed when they drove off, but it's okay. I'm happy to be living here and enjoying this adventure in our life. THANKS DATHAN & KELLIE AND MOM & DAD FOR SUCH A FUN TIME! HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL SOON!