The Ericksen's

Ryker's Surgery

2010-03-24T12:21:00.000-07:00

So our little Ryker had his surgery on Monday. His surgery was for Hypospadias which is a birth defect. The surgery went really well and he did good with his anathesia. His recovery took a while cause he was so tired and wouldn't wake up to eat. We finally got him to drink some pedialyte and then they sent us home. His surgery was at 8:30 am and we got home around 2 pm. He was really fussy Monday and Tuesday and it was so sad to see him scream and cry and know that I couldn't do anything to help him. He has been on pain medication which makes him sleep alot. He seems to be feeling alot better today and we were finally able to give him a bath today. The soaking seemed to help. I think he will be much better within a couple of days.

Old, New & Soon to Come

2010-02-26T14:41:00.000-08:00

I've been slacking on updating the blog so lets catch up....sorry if the subject change is random :)

Ryker has been rolling over for a while now..one day he started and then the next day he was a pro...it's amazing how fast he picked it up.

He loves to chew on his feet and suck on mommy and daddy's fingers. He figured out that if he shakes his rattles that they make noise...so now he just sits there and shakes shakes shakes and I love it! When he gets excited he opens his eyes really wide and squeals and then starts kicking like crazy, it is adorable. He also likes to pound on things...he is always hitting something with his hand...counter tops, furniture, his legs and sometimes mommy's face hehehe...he loves to feel the textures of things and will scratch them and rub his hand across them. Sometimes when I am holding Ryker while I am feeding him he will reach his hand up and rub my cheek and run his fingers through my hair..it's so cute...of course he usually ends up pulling the hair. He loves to laugh and recently he has had some really long giggles. He laughs when we make funny faces, play peek-a-boo, make noises and tickle him. He is such a happy baby unless he is hungry, tired or bored LOL.

Ryker has started to sit up on his own...im sure soon he wont be tipping over anymore and then next comes crawling...YIKES!! Time is flying by.

Last Sunday Ryker ended up getting sick with an Intestinal Flu. It was so scary..I went to bed sunday with a bad feeling but wasn't sure what it was well I couldn't fall asleep because of it. At 1 am I heard over the moniter a gurgle sound that sounded like him throwing up so I sent Dustin in to check on him, sure enough he had thrown up..and not just a little...ALOT, it was all over his face, in his eyes, all over his head and blankets. From the looks of it he had thrown up earlier but didn't cry so we didn't know and it had dried on to his face :( So we gave him a bath and put some new jammies on him and then he threw up again..he continues throwing up and started to go really pale so I took his temperature and it was really low. We ended up taking him to the Hospital to make sure he was ok. We got some nausea medicine for him and some pedialyte and he was better after a couple of days. It was so hard to see him sick like that.

Today Ryker started playing peek-a-boo with me! He would pull his blanket up over his face and I would say "Where's Ryker" and he would hurry and pull it down and I would say "Boo" and then he would start giggling and repeat it over and over again..it was so cute and fun! Well Ryker is almost 6 months old now which means his surgery is coming up, it is scheduled for March 22, I'm scared. He is having surgery for his Hypospadia and I hope it goes smoothly. Also Ryker is getting to be so big..he is extreamly tall but still so very cute. Here he is with his 4 yr. old cousin Sage.

We just love him to pieces! Also a new thing that has happened is we are just talked to our park manager about selling our mobile home...so next week we are packing alot of our stuff up and putting it into storage so that we can finish painting and doing the final touching so we can put it up for sell. We are expecting to have it sold and into be into a new house within the next month!! Wish Us Luck!!

A Little Bit Of Everything!

2010-01-28T13:26:00.000-08:00

So I haven't posted anything for a while so here is a recap of everything that has been going on lately.

So Ryker has been teething for a while now. His new favortie thing to do is grab your hand and shove any part of it he can into his mouth. He loves to chew on fingers more then any teething toy. He has been getting more fussy lately and it could be possibly because of the teething..my pooor guy

At Ryker's 4 month checkup we got his new stats, he is in the 95 percentile for height...the 75 percentile for weight..and his head is normal sized. Also at his appointment his doctor said we could start him on solids. Ryker has yet to sleep through the night and we thought solids might help. They haven't so far but I am hopeful!

Dustin, Ryker and I went down to Cedar City this last weekend for my brother's wedding. We also did all the decorations for his wedding since I own a wedding decor business. I think it turned out beautiful even though it was alot of work. At least I got alot of help with setting up from my family. This was Ryker's first trip and he did okay but he had a hard time sleeping. He had to take his naps in his carseat and then sleep in his pack-n-play at night...needless to say by the end of the trip we were all very tired.

And just for fun I am adding a final picture of Dustin and our friend Nathan taking care of the little ones while the mommies go to work!!! Wait doesn't this seem reversed roles? LOL

Ryker also rolled over by himself for the first time a couple of days ago. I don't have a picture because he did it at my office while I was working...but it was awesome. He rolled from his tummy to his back. He also did it again when Dustin came to pick him up...so Dustin was excited that he did a repeat for him. It's amazing how fast they grow. Ryker will be walking and talking before we know it!!

Just Hanging Out

2009-12-14T18:03:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of us just hanging out at home with cute baby Ryker!

"Oh Christmas Tree"

2009-12-14T17:59:00.000-08:00

So I got our Christmas Tree decorated early this year and was way excited that it turned out just like I wanted! I borrowed the ornaments from my mom this year since we don't have many and they are beautiful!! Thanks MOM!!

Ryker's Baby Blessing

2009-12-14T17:55:00.001-08:00

Ryker recieved his baby blessing on December 6th. It was such a special blessing and Dustin did such a wonderful job. Afterwards we had a little Potato Bar Lunch with our family and friends. We are so grateful for everyones support!! Here are a few pictures of Ryker on his special day!

Ryker...2 Months

2009-11-09T14:13:00.000-08:00

Wow time goes by so fast. I can't believe Ryker is already 2 months old. He is such a cute little baby. For Halloween we dressed him up as a Pea in the Pod and then of course we dressed up as well, Dustin was a Doctor and I was "The World's Greatest Mom". It was fun to take him Trick or Treating with his half sister Emma who was placed for adoption. She dressed up as a witch and was so adorable :0) We are so glad Emma's parents invited us up. So he has made a little progress on the sleeping a bit. So far he hasn't slept through the night but he is going about 3-4 hours. He smiles all the time and loves it when you talk to him. He also loves to kick his little feet around all day long :) We are loving every minute of parenthood!!

Family Photos!

2009-10-26T16:51:00.001-07:00

Here are some new family photos with our new addition :)

Ryker James Ericksen!!!

2009-09-09T15:39:00.000-07:00

He is here...Our precious little boy has finally joined us!! He was born on his due date which I think it pretty cool!! He was born September 4th at 2:49 a.m he was 8 lbs. 6 oz and 20 in. He is so cute and loveable and we are both very proud parents. Here are a few pictures, I will post more later!!

Nursery Pictures

2009-08-31T19:45:00.000-07:00

Ok so I finally got it done :) I only have a few things left to put away but they are just being stored in the closet for now!!! I also want to hang a few things on the wall but I won't be doing that for a while!! I am so excited for Ryker to come....hopefully sooner than later ;) Enjoy the pictures!!!

Painting the Nursery

2009-08-25T18:10:00.000-07:00

Oh what a project this has been....We are finally almost done with the Nursery and i can't wait to finally be able to put the room together. We spent about 5 hours on Saturday painting and priming. We had a few friends show up and help us Matt & Angie, Mark & Andrea, and my Mom....Thanks to all who helped :) We also spent about 6 hrs. yesterday finishing the final paint. Here is some pictures of our work!!

Take a Guess!!!

2009-08-21T10:46:00.000-07:00

So I copied this from my friend Andrea... :) But go to this link and post a guess on when you think baby Ryker will come!!!

Family BBQ!!!!

2009-08-19T11:24:00.000-07:00

So a couple of weeks ago my family got together for a bbq! It ended up being super fun with alot of laughs, jokes and good fun!! We had the bbq because my sister Andrea had just got back from being in Texas all summer and also my brother Daniel was in town with his recently engaged to fiance Janette!! We all really enjoyed our time together and I hope we get to do this more often!! Here are some photos of our awesome day :)

Me and my love!

Whose belly is bigger?

Teresa

Teresa's Boys....Chase, Bridger and Talon

Chad and Stacey

Chad and Stacey's Kids Dallas, Dakota, Shelby, Savanah and Samantha

Andrea

Andrea's kids Sage and Kaylyn

Stephanie and her kids

Stephanie's kids Jacqueline and Shayne

Ricky and Kara

Daniel and his fiance Janette

My sisters!!

Teresa with a cramp in her foot hehehe

Yes...I can still jump while pregnant LOL

My mom and dad

Teresa thinks she is pointing at a UFO...LOL!!

Teresa, Stacey, Andrea, Stephanie, Me, Kara and Janette

Almost There & So Ready!!

2009-08-18T09:09:00.001-07:00

Wow I can't believe I am only about 2 weeks away from my due date!! I am super excited!! I think I have hit the "Nesting" stage....Lately I have been super anxious about getting things ready and have been having the urge to clean all the time. I dream about cleaning, I think about it all day at work and then every night before bed I go through my checklist of things to get done over and over and over in my head till I am so tired that I can stand it. Poor Dustin probably thinks I am being a slave driver cause I have been having him help me do alot of the heavy lifting and organizing, and I guess I am being a little bossy he says LOL! I can't help this urge to get everything ready and it's making me feel totally stressed out. I didn't have this nesting feeling the first time so it's kinda wierd to experience it now. It sure is making me lose sleep LOL! Hopefully I can at least get the necessities done before little Ryker decides to make an appearance!!!

Boredom......

2009-08-13T13:45:00.000-07:00

So I got a little bored at work and decided to test out my paint skills LOL...here is what happens when you have too much time on your hands :D hahaha

Baby Shower

2009-08-09T14:18:00.000-07:00

I had a baby shower on Saturday and it turned out pretty good!! I had a good amount of family and friends that showed up and I really appreciate their support!! He are some photos of the shower and a few pictures of the "LOOT"! Thank You to everyone who came or sent a gift we really appreciate it!!!

Murray Park

2009-08-05T21:56:00.000-07:00

So Dustin and I got to spend some time with Emma and her parents! We had a little BBQ and enjoyed chatting and playing with little Emma! She is 2 now but talks with a much more mature and clear vocabulary! We love spending time with Emma's parents they are super fun and great people to be around! Here are some pictures of our little get together!

Maturnity Photos

2009-08-02T14:50:00.000-07:00

So my good friend Marie is a photographer and she took these amazing photos for us at the Salt Flats. This is my belly at 35 weeks. You can check out Marie's photos at www.mariezamora.net or www.marieslegacy.blogspot.com

33 Weeks!!

2009-07-18T12:59:00.000-07:00

Ok here is the most recent belly picture! I am now 33 weeks along! Only 7 more to go Wooo Hoooo!!!!

My Sweet Husband!!!

2009-07-18T12:51:00.000-07:00

Dustin is such a sweet man...I was having a bad day so he treated me to a pedicure :) He actually did a really good job and even painted my toe nails! He spent at least 2 hours grooming my feet I even got a foot massage :) Here are some pictures for your enjoyment :)

Ensign Peak

2009-07-18T12:37:00.001-07:00

So I decided to go on a short hike with Dustin and his young men in our ward, thinking it would be some good exercise and it wasn't a long hike. Well the hike wasn't long but it was a huge incline the entire way up...oh my I seriously wanted to throw up by the time we were done. I don't think I stayed in good enough shape to do hiking this pregnancy....next time hopefully I can stay a bit more healthy. Here are some pictures of the hike.

4th of July

2009-07-11T18:20:00.001-07:00

So we had an interesting 4th of July! It started out great with a fun trip to Fairview to do some camping with our friends Nathan & Angela. We did a little camp fire cooking and snacking. Then the girls stayed and chatted while the boys went down the trail to do some knife throwing. It was a great morning and we had a great time. Then we decided to head out and go to Provo to watch some fireworks. Well the spot we picked was up on the mountain side and it happpen to be very windy. Well to make a long story short the sagebrush and pollen + wind + pregnancy allergies = major swelling. I ended up getting a piece of a weed blown into my eye and my eye swelled up closed :( We ended up having to leave right as the fireworks started and missed them :( At least we got to enjoy the first half!!!

Steele Cousin Campout

2009-07-09T13:25:00.000-07:00

So we have started an annual Steele Cousin Campout that so far has been a blast the last 2 years that we have done it. Unfortunatly Dustin and I didn't get to stay very long this year because we had to set up a Wedding (which is in the previous post) We arrived late Friday night and then left early Saturday morning.

We arrived right after a big rain storm...just in time to enjoy a little camp fire!

We did a little kareokee....Dustin loves to sing as you can tell!!

Showing my belly to my brother in-law Cole :)

Chilling around the fire!

Cooking Breakfast...yes that is me cooking in the hot sun over a hot grill with lots of bacon grease splashing up!! It was super hot...but so tasty!

Getting ready to say goodbye and head home :(

I can't wait till next year!! Many Thanks to Kim for being an awesome host every year!!!

Another Wedding!!!

2009-06-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

So here are some pictures of our most recent wedding!!!

29 Weeks!!

2009-06-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of the belly at 29 weeks!! Enjoy :)

Free Baby & Maturnity Stuff

2009-06-17T10:25:00.000-07:00

So my sister's sister in-law just gave me and Dustin a bunch of baby, kid and maturnity stuff...like seriously 17 or more big bags full...so friends be prepared to get a call to come get some free stuff...we got stuff for boys & girls :) Here is a picture of the loot.

28 Weeks!!

2009-06-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

Here is my belly at 28 weeks. Pregnancy is going good so far...can't wait for our little guy to be here!!

Our Baby's Crib!!!

2009-06-13T22:53:00.000-07:00

So it is final...we picked out the crib and got it ordered. We decided to go with the one from JCPENNY'S because we got a really good deal on it and it is a beautiful crib too. It is espresso colored with amazing wood work. We ended up going into the store to the catalog desk to order it and they hooked us up with a lot of combined discounts...free shipping, 15% off coupon and also $10.00 off coupon so all together we ended up saving about $200 off our entire crib what a SWEET deal....here is a picture of it from their site. I will post more pictures of it once we pick it up next week and get it set up!!

Getting Ready for the Move!!!

2009-06-02T08:47:00.000-07:00

Busy, Busy, Busy we have been working really hard on getting our yard up to standards so we can get our place sold. So far we have got the deck painted and some flowers planted up at the front. Dustin has also been working on getting the yard patched in the blad spots. What a process, we have so much left to do but at least we have gotten it started. Here is some photos of our recent work :)

26 Weeks

2009-06-01T12:17:00.001-07:00

So I thought I would post a recent picture of the belly...here it is at 26 weeks :)

NEW CAR!!

2009-06-01T12:12:00.000-07:00

So it finally happened....we got a new car. It is a 2005 Acura RL!! This was a much needed car since we only had the one car and it was a 2 door :( not fun when you have a baby to get in and out. We did spend a bit more then we wanted to but it was worth it, it's a much nicer and safer car for just the little extra we had to pay. We have enjoyed it very much so far!!!

Week 24...

2009-05-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

I am 24 weeks along now in my pregnancy. I have been feeling great lately compared to the earlier months. No more morning sickness...YEAY!! I will tell you one thing though, pregnancy sure does wear you out. I will constantly feel this lingering tiredness but at the same time I feel restless and want to be out and about doing things. It sucks cause I hate being stuck inside but I'm so tired too and just want to nap LOL oh the joys of pregnancy.

I'm at that stage right now where people who don't know me can't tell that I am pregnant. I went to the Women's Expo last weekend and when I would tell people that I am pregnant they would say " You Are? " and I think to myself thanks now I just feel fat. I personally think I look pregnant but I guess to strangers I just look like a fatty LOL...I guess I should take that as a compliment and just think hey I'm just skinny...but it's sad when you gain around 15 lbs. and people think you just got a fat tummy. Oh well...give it about one more month and I am sure I will be POPPED right out!!!

1 Year Anniversary

2009-05-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

Wow one year!! It has gone by so fast....We decided since we will be having a baby soon that we should take a trip for our Anniversary since we won't be able to again any time soon. We decided to go to San Diego. It was a pretty fun trip. We went to the San Diego Zoo and Sea World. We also spent some time in Old Town San Diego, They have some awesome shops there I think that is where we bought all our souvenirs. I am glad we got to take a trip this year and can't wait to go again with our son in the future.

IT'S A BOY

2009-04-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

Dustin and I are excited to announce that we are having a little boy!! We all thought it would be a girl that just goes to show that you can never be sure!! We are so happy to be having a little boy. We don't have a name picked out yet but we still got some time. Here are a few pictures of our little guy!!!

Update!!

2009-04-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

I thought I would give an update on what has been going on. So I am almost 18 weeks now and the pregnancy has been going good. I haven't gained much weight but the doctor said I'm fine and that I have been passing all my tests. I also am over the morning sickness for the most part which has been nice. Dustin and I have set up our ultrasound for April 15th. We are excited to find out what we are having but for some reason me and Dustin both have been calling the baby a she. It will be funny if we find out it's a boy LOL. Also me and Dustin have been trying to buy our first home. We put in an offer on a house in Cedar Hills. We were the highest bidder and now our bid is off to the bank to get approved. We are hoping to find out soon if our offer is approved or not but it's a short sale so it could take some time. I will post again after we find out!!!

Baby On The Way!

2009-03-02T14:43:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I've been on here! I found out on Christmas Day that Dustin and I are expecting our first baby! We are about 13 weeks along now and so far I have been really sick. It's been hard these last couple months but I feel like the nausea is slowing down. We are hoping that it will be gone completly within the next week or so. We are both very excited and can't wait to find out what we are having in April.

Christmas 2008

2009-01-08T09:53:00.001-08:00

I'm a little late but oh well...Christmas was great. Dustin and I spent Christmas morning at our house opening presents. I got an awesome Snowboard and Bindings along with some nice goggles. Dustin got his favorite of course Magic Cards. We also got a lot of other things but I'm not going to list them all. After opening presents we went to Dustin's mom's house and spent some time there. Then we headed down to American Fork to do the traditional gift exchange with my family. Overall I think it was a great Christmas filled with alot of Family, Love, and Christ. I hope everyone's was just as great. Have a Happy New Year!!!

Our First Wedding

2008-12-16T20:38:00.001-08:00

Dustin and I set up our first wedding on Saturday.... it took us about 6 hours to set up because we are still new at this but it looked so beautiful. If you know anyone who needs a decorator send them my way!!

Busy Busy Busy!!!

2008-12-08T13:41:00.001-08:00

So our first gig for my Wedding Decor Business is coming up really soon...It's actually on the 13th, this coming Saturday. Dustin and I spent all day last Saturday doing a test setup to see how we were going to put the backdrops together. Oh my goodness it took all day and so long but in the end the backdrop looked great. I can't wait to get pictures of this coming wedding. It's going to look great! Come back next week to see the pictures!!

Family Photos

2008-11-19T13:40:00.000-08:00

The first year of Marriage!
I decided Dustin and I need to take yearly photos as our family grows!! Hopefully next year we will have a picture with a little one in it!!!!!

November 2008

Wedding Business

2008-10-09T09:33:00.000-07:00

So just the other day I found a Wedding Decorating business for sale. Dustin, Jeremy and I went to check out the stuff that comes with the business and it all looks really good. It is a really good deal and I want to get it but need to find financing for it. This is something I really would enjoy doing as a career and it is something I can do from home so I can be home with our kids. I'm really excited about this and am anxious to start. If you know anyone who is in need of a decorator send them my way!!

Almost done with our house!!

2008-09-15T13:08:00.001-07:00

I'm excited!! We are so close to finishing the touch ups on our house. The only major things we have left is to seal the crown and base boards and paint. Then the next big project is to finish up the outside! I'm so excited and can't wait for it to be done so I don't have to reclean and reclean up the house everytime we work on it :) So if anyone has some spare time in about two weeks we would love some help painting!!