Yes, We are still alive!

Wow! It has been a really long time since I last posted anything here. I blame it mostly on the fact that I now have a SIX MONTH old, and a husband who is now at home...I will explain. Since the beginning of the summer until now, we have been GO, GO, GO. Now that Christmas is upon us, I thought I would stop for a moment and ponder all of the great things that have been happening in our lives.

So, when I left you last, Sawyer had just turned three months old. That was August. Over Labor Day weekend we moved out of Brian's parents home (Who we are so grateful to)to the nearby town of Kooskia (Pronounced Koo-ski). We totally scored when my sister-in-law's, Michelle, in-laws needed someone to stay at their newly remodelled home while the went on their mission to the Canary Islands. The house is so nice, and we love the fact that it is just US.

Brian continued to work for Northwest Management, a company based in Moscow, ID, through the rest of the summer and fall. The job was good in that he got a lot of great experience cruising timber, but he was gone during the week. So this is why I now say my husband is at home. He would get up at 4:30ish on Monday morning, drive about 2 hours to Moscow, get his weekly assignment, and then drive to where ever he was needed for that week. He spent a lot of time in Montana and Northern Idaho. Most of his days were spent either hiking through the woods measuring trees and working on prescribed fires, or driving. He would usually make it home in the later evening on Fridays. Saturdays were usually a blurr, and then Sunday was usually a race to get packed after church, and make it to bed by 11:00.
As of the week before Thanksgiving he has been Laid Off. Which was totally expected. So for now he is working at his uncles tire store "Busting Tire", and is happily home every night. I have to admit that having him home has been a bit of an adjustment. For most of the fall I had resorted back to college instincts of eating cereal for dinner, running the dishwasher once a week, and staying up late watching my girly movies. Now, I run a full load of dishes almost daily. Dinner takes a little more planning and preparation. And he is a bit on the messy side. BUT I love having him home. SO does Sawyer. It is so nice to know that I don't have to go to bed in an empty house, wake up in an empty house, eat meals alone, and pretty much be alone 24/7. WE just love being together again.
As for me, I have taken on a part time receptionist job at the local cedar mill. Our friends own it, so I can come and go pretty much as I please, and even take Sawyer to work with me. He is a really good baby, so it makes it easy to do that. WE are so grateful to our friends for allowing me to work for them. I have also taken on another side job of Clerking for another friend's auction company. It is really fun, especially since I was raised browsing in antique shops, second hand stores, and flea markets. I have a lot of fun, and I try my darnedest not to spend the money I am earning.
Now, on to Sawyer. What can I say...He is the light of our lives. I know I am so cheesy, but I think everyday either Brian or I comment on how much we love our CUTE little boy. He started rolling over in September...the way we found this out was when we left him on a bed and then came back to find him on the floor. This little incident led to a visit to the ER...just to make sure he was okay. (We might be a little overprotective). He loves to play with his toys and watch Baby Einstein or Elmo, while I take a few moments to shower and get ready for the day. He loves to smile and giggle and kick and flap his arms. And just recently he started eating baby food. He is really moving up in the world. He loves his Grandma Jolene. He gets so excited when she comes to visit. And he loves other kids. He could watch other kids play for hours.
Anyways, That is just a summary of what we have been up to. I promise to post later about all of the fun things we have been doing and have done.
As for now Adios!

Sawyer is 3 MONTHS Old! My, how time flies!

I know I am a terrible blogger. I say it every time I make a post. But I knew that I had to post something today because my little Sawyer Boy is turning 3 months old. CRAZY! I know most of you, my pals, already have older kids, so 3 months is no biggie, but I can't believe how fast they grow up.


I took Sawyer out in the yard today for a little photo shoot. I know they're not the greatest, but it is the best I could do with my little pink camera.
Sawyer has grown so much in the past few weeks.

- He thinks the sound of his own voice is Hillarious and would rather talk than eat.

- He loved meeting new people, and tends to carry on long drawn out conversations with them. (Now where did he get that from)

- He now weighs 15+ pounds (I know! But he is solid, not too chubby. Just long)And loves to Kick, Kick, Kick when he is naked.

- He can hold his head up really well, and likes to do what I call "Standies".

- He has discovered that his toes can be inserted into his mouth.

- He has learned that stiffening his body into a ridgid ironing board makes it more difficult for Mom and Dad to put him in his car seat. But he also his pretty happy once he is in the car seat because he get to talk to his to best friends, Larry the Lion and Berty the Butterfly.

- Sawyer loves it when his daddy comes home from his 10 day rotations at work. He absolutely loves to fall asleep on Brian's chest. Isn't that cute.

- Sawyer loves it when Grizz gives him kisses on his toes, and hands, and sometimes face.

- And to make-up for the fact that he is not a very good napper, he sleeps pretty darn good at night, and always greets Mom with a smile when she comes to get him out of bed.

- He now rides face forward in the stroller, which makes working-out with Mom a lot more fun. Plus his buddy Monty the Monkey is there too. (Aunt Brenda named all of his toys)

- I am usually the photographer, so today I had to take a few pics of me and the boy. Plus he was wearing my favorite shirt (Thanks Leslie), so we had to do some mommy and me photos.




This is Grizz's attempt at being part of the photo shoot. He did a pretty good job, wouldn't ya say?



Over the past few months we have been busy running Hither and Thither.
We went to the Rupp Family Reunion in June at Dworsak Reseviour (where he took a bath in metal pot), had our first family picture taken, and then ended the weekend by having Sawyer blessed by his daddy, grandpas, uncles, and close friends.








Then Sawyer and I drove 14 hours to visit Grandma Lynn and Papa Tom in Utah for three weeks in July. While there he played with cousins, went to his first rodeo, and got to take his first plane ride home.










We spent most of July hanging out at Grandma Jolene's and are now making plans to move to Kooskia in September. For those of you that are not familiar the area we live, Kooskia is 7 miles South East of Kamiah...basically, somewhere in the mountains near the Clearwater River.
Well, Sawyer is getting hungry, so I better sign off. Hope you enjoyed this random, yet informative post.

Sawyer Kent Rupp 6 Weeks Old

Here are a few of Sawyer's latest pictures. I had a coupon so a ran over to Target' and had some quick pics done. (Sorry to all of my friends who are photographers, I had to get something done in a hurry before he grew)
Sawyer really is a very smiley baby, but with the car ride and the lack of being able to eat enough, he came out looking pretty somber. What a kid.






The mug shot

BiRtHdAy BoY!

So, I can't believe it...My little baby boy is one month old. I don't mean to get all sentimental, but where did that month go? Sawyer is growing like a weed and has started smiling a bit. Here are a few pics I thought I should share. Enjoy!

Sawyer is Here!

Okay, I know it has been an eternity since I last posted...and to top it off a lot of major big stuff has happened over the past 3 months. The biggest of these events would have to be the arrival of Sawyer Kent Rupp. Our little man made his way into the world five days late, on May 19th. He was a whopping 9lbs 8oz, and 21 inches long. He was definitely fully "cooked".
When Sawyer was first was born all I could think of was how much he looked like Brian. If you want to see a tough guy melt you need to see Brian with this little guy. I just love to watch them together, and Brian can't wait until he is big enough to "work" with him. He is one proud Papa.

About a week before Sawyer was born I went to the Doctor and basically begged him to induce me. But he and my dear "sweet" hubby thought that it would be best if we just let him come on his own. Those two had no idea how uncomfortable I was, but anyways...the first thing the Doctor says after they weighed Sawyer was, "boy, I am glad we induced you today and didn't let him come on his own." Can you imagine how huge he would have been?

Anyways, labor and delivery went great. I was induced at about 10:00 a.m. and by 10:12 p.m. we had our little man. The delivery was really quite fun... no lie. I was feeling pretty good because of my epidural... so between pushes we were all laughing and cracking jokes (Me, Brian, the Doc, and the nurse).

So after our little ones arrival, we made the big move to Kamiah, Idaho, to move in with Brian's parents for the summer. So far we are all doing well. I am adjusting to motherhood, and I seriously think I have the sweetest little baby in the world.

So now that things have started to settle down hopefully I can get back on the blogging wagon. We have a ton of other things to share with all of you, like Brian's graduation and logger sports, and many other fun things we have been doing, so stay tuned for more posts.

Hillbillies, Babyshowers, and the Best Weekend on Record

Sorry it has taken me so long to get these pictures posted. I have been a bit busy. But anyhow....A few weekends ago I had the best weekend on record.
It all started on Thurday night...I came home from a long day of work. I cleaned my house, took a shower, and prepared my self for a fun filled weekend of activities. My sister-in-law, Nichole, was supposed to be arriving in Pullman the next day for my baby shower that was taking place on Saturday. I was exhausted, so I popped in an episode of M*A*S*H to unwind. (For those of you who don't know, we don't have cable, and Brian has turned me into a MASH fan)
Well, me being my exhausted pregnant self, I fell asleep on the couch. The next thing I knew I could hear our dog Griz barking, and then I heard some voices and the coo of a baby. Was I dreaming? What time was it? Is that Amy (my neighbor)? And then I sat up to see what all of the commotion was about. There in my living room, in Pullman,Washington, was my sister, mom, and baby nephew. IN MY LIVING ROOM! SURPRISE! They flew up from Utah, just to come to may baby shower. How awesome is that?!!
We stayed up and talked for a while, until the excitement wore off and then we all went to bed. The next morning, Mom,Traci, and Colter, all drove to Spokane to pick up Nichole, while I went to work for a few hours. The rest of the day was spent showing them the sights of Pullman. Basically visiting the newly rennovated CUB and Cougar Football Stadium (Grandpa Wendell would be proud). Then we headed to Moscow for a stake talent show....
Introducing, "Hillbilly Rock". My dear, sweet hubby has been learning to play the guitar for about a year and a half, and finally was talked into a performance. Our buddies Todd and Josh, are a little more experienced in the area of public performances, but asked Brian if he would be part of their "group" for the stake talent show. They practiced a couple of tunes for about a month and turned themselves into what is now known as "Hillbilly Rock". And boy did they rock. It was a great performance by all three, especially Brian. It is a good thing his charms make up for his guitar playing abilitie. You can check out the live performance in the post below.





The next day was the baby shower. And boy was it cute! Jerica and Amy out did themselves. They themed the party around a tea party. We had awesome food and a great atmosphere. Amy made table runners and Jerica, who drove over that morning from the Tri-Cities, brought roses in little tea tins. They seriously planned the shower to a "tea". I am so lucky to have such sweet friends.

We got some awesome stuff, including some of Brian's old baby things. His mom was so sweet to bring his old blankets, overalls, and even his blessing outfit. Which, by the way, his mom said they had to SQUEEZE him into. My dad gave us a baby wipes warmer 'cause he always feels bad for babies when you have to wipe their little bums with cold wipes. He is so funny. My cute Grandma Bessie made us one of her famous "great-grand baby blankets". But I have to say the best gift of all was seeing all of my dear friends, and especially having my mom and sisters there. It was so fun!

Here are a few more pics of all the great people that came to the party.


Jen and Tara- You guys are so great! They came down from Spokane just for me.


Look out Martha Stewart- Amy and Jerica- The best hostesses EVER!


The Grandma's- Granny Jolene and Grandma Lynn


Nichole, My Mama, Me, Traci, and Colter Boy. I love you Guys!


Isn't he so cute! I only hope our little guy is as cute and as sweet as Colter.

I just want to thank everybody again for the great weekend. It was AMAZING!

Hillbilly Rock

Brian and a couple of his buddies debuted their new "band", Hillbilly Rock, at the last stake talent show. Bri is the one in the middle. This was just the beginning of a really fun weekend...so stay tuned for more updates.