Penny's First Birthday

Penny's First Birthday from Fesler Films on Vimeo.

Because someday she might wonder what her first birthday was like. She deserves to know.

Giggling Like a Tween

Since I got drug tested Tuesday, we ate poppy seed chicken for dinner yesterday :)

Last night, penny slept in her own room...well at least for a couple of hours. Dave and I were so happy at the option of being loud that we ended up staying up late giggling like school girls at a sleepover.

It began as a confession. I'm a horrible liar and Dave could tell I was hiding something. Well, it's even harder to hide something when you have a shopping bag of things even though you were supposed to be at a church activity all evening. We began laughing so hard because he said that he's always trying to get me to buy things for myself and I felt so guilty because I thought he wanted me to stay for the "will" writing lesson.

Somehow it turned into reminiscing over our first flutterings of attraction towards each other. We admitted to truths that we were too embarrassed to think about before. How we felt when our hug was sabotaged, that my heart skipped a beat when he strolled up to the camp fire, how he texted to see if I were an activity before he made an appearance, how I thought about him while I was on dates with others and gradually stopped trying on those dates. Overall, I married the right guy. We have mutually cared about each other since the first day we met.

Sick and Tired

In this home? We are all tired.

Baby girl has one of those deep, fluid filled coughs that is concerning to any mother. At night, we try to man her together and on our own but by morning we are both exhausted. Dave sent me off to the living room at 3:15am to get a consistent four hours of sleep and I feel like it's the best sleep I've had in years.

My anxiety has been particularly bad and so the potential of RSV is constantly on my mind. Do I take her into the pediatrician when I know that there are a bunch of sick kids in the waiting room? Do I try to figure this out on my own? Should I bath her more often or not at all? Is there more I can be doing?

Tonight, We are Having a Baby

This weekend I got the fine opportunity to spend my weekend with the best group of gals around: my sisters and my mother. We were celebrating my mom's birthday but it really felt like it was all for me because it was everything I learned to love to do. We relaxed to a nice fancy dinner, I fell asleep early on a fantastic bed, woke up to a picturesque view of my sister snuggling her newborn, had a great breakfast and felt weightless as we floated around the pool for a while. When I think back on it, I just remember constant laughter. When we returned to Utah Valley and everyone was ready to disperse, I wasn't ready. I still long to see my family at all times but I've been trying not to dwell on it. 

Knowing when I'm having a baby made that feeling for my family more intense. On Monday evening, I sensed something I have never had an inkling before; I had a true fear of dying. The thing is, the complete desperation was not necessarily that I'm afraid of dying but the anxiety sprung due to the fact not only I wouldn't be able to experience my life with my husband & baby but that I would never see my family again. How do you feel prepared for something like that?

People at work ask me all the time, "Are you nervous?" and I want to respond, "duh. When was the last time you pushed a human out of your body?" but I usually respond with, "Sometimes, I just don't know what to expect." Then, they usually respond with a horror story. Thanks guys. On the upside, I got my performance reviews back from work. What a boost of confidence! They actually like me! They took me to lunch, they paid, they got me presents, they got me clothes and they have all been bidding me farewell with the kindest words/visits. 

I don't know how to feel today. I'm quite optimistic all things considering but mornings are always better than later in the day. I couldn't sleep past 5am but that way, I could watch the sunrise and attempt to look my best for the first time Penny will see me. I love that at 5:40am, Dave rolled over and said, "you would be awake" and that when I texted my mother that I miss her she took no hesitation in driving straight to my house. I'd rather stay this way, either I'm in denial about later this evening or I have too much spark for curiosity. Isn't it interesting that our bodies can go through immense amount of pain but not die? I find it very miraculous. Anyways, God be with you until we meet again my friends.

I believe in miracles.

Update on the Wax

I figured that I don't have many male followers, it's hard for me to picture my brother in laws anxiously waiting to hear about my baby so I thought I could share just a slight bit about brazilian waxing while pregnant.

I don't recommend it but I didn't hate it.

3 Reasons I liked it:
-I feel cleaner-both looks and smells! Hopefully this gesture will also show some appreciation for the 30 people that have to be in the delivery room? Who am I kidding, they don't care but I'd like to think so.
-I found better ways to deal with physical pain and anxious anticipation. Surprisingly, it calmed some of my fears about labor. I'm not saying that waxing is easier than labor but I am saying that I like feeling better prepared.
-I like to prove to myself that I can do hard things. There were quite a few times I was ready to call it quits but I didn't, I got my moneys worth and came out feeling like I could conquer the world.

3 Reasons I will never wax again while pregnant:
-As far as looks, I did not fit into the "salon" scene at all. I have never felt more like a cow. It didn't help that it took my appointment 45 minutes longer than the average waxing because we had a larger area to cover.
-I was swollen for a few days after. This included shaking for hours after the procedure and contributed to waddling even more than before. Blood flows more. So the most painful part was not the first tug, it was the 30 seconds after.
-Turns out skin rips. Worse, you don't get to choose where it rips.

42 ways to make your kids feel absolutely loved

Which one of these are your favorite? This is from a KSL article btw.

1. Dance.

2. Tell stories from your life. Childhood adventures and youth antics. What you thought the first time you saw your spouse. What you felt on your wedding day and the day your child learned to ride a bike.

3. Kiss them goodnight.

4. Let them climb into bed with you. (Sometimes.)

5. Print pictures of grandparents and great-grandparents, and tell stories from their lives to help build their sense of family identity. We pull our printsout every Christmas.

6. Pick them up from school.

7. Teach them to do something. Read, tie their shoes, shoot a bow and arrow. (My husband has never looked more attractive than when he taught our boys to rainbow loom.)

8. Refer to your family as a team. (Team Braverman, anyone?)

9. Create a family password or handshake. When I was growing up, our family password was our last name spelled backwards. We thought it was the coolest thing ever.

10. Frame and hang photos of them.

11. Give them bubble baths.

12. Watch photo slideshows and family videos clips.

13. Tell them you love them. A lot.

14. Have them lie flat on their bellies and give them back rubs. (Kids love chopsticks.)

15. Maximize time at the dinner table with great dinner conversations.

16. Slip notes into their lunch boxes. Here’s a great resource for lunch box jokes.

17. Read to them, especially favorites from your childhood.

18. Let them get messy.

19. Create a family motto or purpose statement. For examples, check out ours and another great family’s.

20. Make a meal or a treat from your childhood and tell them all about it.

21. Spend time in nature together. Camping, hiking, biking, boating, bird watching …

22. Put down your phone.

23. Over the years, create traditions for each child’s birthdays. This family floats a cake in their pool on their daughter’s birthday. We take our oldest to Panera because that’s where we went the night we learned we were expecting him.

24. Create with them. Bake, craft, construct, experiment.

25. Eat something you grew from the ground.

26. Teach them how amazing their bodies are.

27. Have stay-up-late nights, where one kid gets to stay up an extra 15 minutes (or more, depending on their age) and do a one-on-one activity of their choosing with Mom and Dad.

28. Work together to create a family cheer, or borrowthis one, like we are. It’s really fun!

29. Set goals together.

30. Have a weekly family night. We don’t manage it every week, but we when we do, we try to answer the three questions Bruce Feiler recommends: What did we do well last week? What didn’t go so well? What can we do better this week?

31. Let them lose track of time. (And learn from it, as you try to carve out more room for timelessness and play in your life.)

32. Explore the stars together.

33. Watch them when they’re sleeping and then tell them about it the next day.

34. Say you’re sorry.

35. Have movie and game nights.

36. Get interested in their interests. (Even if that means learning the ins and outs of Minecraft.)

37. Do a fun run together.

38. Love your spouse.

39. Share your faith with them.

40. Listen with empathy when they’re hurting.

41. Watch out for their natural talents.

42. Say great things about them to your spouse when they don’t think you know they’re listening.

Agatha

I wouldn't mind having a baby today.
For the mere fact that it's Agatha Christie's birthday.

In the meantime... watch this

Two Milestones Today

1. Today is Dave's Birthday! Yay! I have been ordered not to make it too big of a deal nor "worry" about ANYTHING today. We'll see if I pass.
2. We have all survived officially to 37 weeks of pregnancy, which is technically full-term! Go team (and yes, it has been a team effort.)

David Jonathan Fesler, the love of my life, is 27 years old. This past year has been the best of our lives! I may say that every year but it's true, being married to him just keeps getting better. What's new: 
-He tried out the mustache for a while
-Jobwise he went from freelancing in New York, then to Imagine Learning and now he's a big hot shot at Infogenix
-We've moved 3 times but it feels like 4 since some were in shifts
-He put a baby in me
-He helped remodel a house
-His choice of food has branched out (it sounds like I'm talking about a toddler in this one but it actually is very impressive)
-He snuggles me while he sleeps now
-We were dog sitters and now want one even more than ever before!
-He's more addicted to the gym than I ever was
And attempting to keep my promise of not making this day a huge deal, I'll stop there...for now.

37 Weeks Pregnant, what's new:
-For the most part I have considered myself a very lucky pregnant woman but even as I say that, I wonder if when I'm sitting here thinking how sane I feel, I'm pretty sure Dave has a more realistic idea of how it has progressed. He's the one who pushes my pregnant body out of the bed so I can use the restroom in the middle of the night, he is always willing to massage out restless legs and as far as mood swings Dave has seen the worst of it. If you want the nice version, ask me how I'm doing. If you want the real version, maybe Dave will confide in you.
-Dave doesn't complain about anything pregnancy wise and there is so much that could get on his nerves. I can't express enough appreciation that he doesn't make me feel bad because yes, sometimes I feel like a rotting beached whale.
-Penny seems to show up as "average" in everything. Hopefully this means she's a healthy baby and will continue to develop her great little bod.
-Penny is usually quite timid, if she is kicking me in an uncomfortable spot I can rub the area and she finds a better spot to dance on. This week however, she must have had a growth spurt because she seems very cramped inside and has decided she wants to punch her way through my left side. It must be frustrating to be stuck in such a small space.
-Penny gets the hiccups 2-3 times a day.
-Most of you already know I've had some pretty crazy cravings, I get asked about it a lot but they have slightly intensified on both the edible and non-edible side. Non-edible are mainly cleaning products including but not limited to: laundry detergent, nail polish remover, bleach, my lysol wipes at work always make my day better, dave's body wash...etc I've been taking iron pills to try and combat these cravings.
-I'm getting a brazilian wax. Everyone thinks I'm crazy, believe me, even the salon asked me if I really wanted to have it done. We'll see if I can tough out the whole thing. I can't get the numbing gel and it might induce labor but for some reason it is something I'm really looking forward to.
-I still get dizzy spells but I'm pretty used to and now have found some ways to manage them a bit better. My cardiologist says we're welcome to call him during delivery if anything seems out of place and his office happens to be just across the street. He also said that out of all of the heart conditions I could have, vasovagal is usually the safest for babies. Other than that, I get insomnia maybe once or twice a week and just get tired some nights more than others. The HR department at work thinks my shortness of breath is funny, they say they can tell when I'm pretty fed up with the day depending on how deep I sigh.

Dave and I decided we have great legs. So we decided to name them after the Great Lakes.

I chose "Leg Erie"
Dave chose "Leg Superior"

Love

Ok, I get it. I'm slow. But you get the pictures, right? I love these people in my life. 

Birthing Class

Birthing Class - The First

I was very excited to be there. Questions I've always wondered were answered. I looked over to Dave with his wide eyed puppy dog face. While walking away from the room he said, "I had NO IDEA." This will be good for us :)

Happy 3 Year Anniversary!

The Spelling Bee is similar to The Hunger Games

When sitting in the audience, you can't help but notice some of the brutal realities about the National Spelling Bee. What reminds you of putting a bunch of children barely of age against each other until there is only one survivor? To me, it's the Hunger Games. As a matter of fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if Suzanne Collins watched the Spelling Bee when looking for inspiration for her wildly successful trilogy. 

Don't take me wrong, the Spelling Bee DEFINITELY is good. It encourages your children to gain as much knowledge as possible. These kids are incredibly smart and show an amazing amount of dedication/effort towards this competition. My worries start when I wonder if it is the child's choice to spend such a severe amount of time to studying for the Bee or in fact the parents. I'm never a huge fan of parents that thrust their children into fame, pageants, sports…etc at such an early age because I rarely think it's the child's choice in those cases. We didn't really meet any VICIOUS children or workers so I'm not here to complain about what an awful thing these people go through. Just a few ironic similarities between this event and a dystopian fiction world where kids compete for the entertainment of adults. 

1.One of the main announcers looks exactly like Effie Trinket. She had that superficial smile and an attitude that not only takes herself too seriously but glamorizes every event going on the week of the bee.

2. All of the competitors are young. The age limit is 14 and  in the past, the youngest competitor was 6. 

3. Quite a bit of your success depends on your "sponsors." The bigger the region you are representing, the better your sponsors will be. 

4. When the child is eliminated their face, rank and name are displayed on a huge screen. They might as well should've shot off cannons. 

4.The competition is held in a fancy place near the "Capitol." We were exactly 15 minutes from downtown Washington DC.

5. Some have been training to win the spelling bee since birth. Their parents won, their siblings won, it's their turn…

I over heard a conversation between two spellers and one said I only studied 3-4 hours a day and the other speller was like, that's not too bad. There was a kid from Jamaica that would travel two hours one way everyday to meet with a tutor for spelling. I'm telling you, the kids are intense.

6. There can only be one winner….oh wait, except for occasionally. Remember how it was so shocking when there are two winners at the end of the first book? Well, the spelling bee had co-champions this year for the first time in over 50 years. 

Despite these similarities to the Hunger Games, the event is very uplifting and inspiring. This nation CELEBRATES smarts! Isn't that incredible? Children that are shy, passionate about academics and extremely motivated are getting congratulated for their specific strengths. I'm glad there are events like this out there and that people care about children that aren't normally as popular as the others. More than half of the children knew more than one language, a number of them are first generation American's and all of them could spell better than me (remember how I have a college degree?) They deserve so much credit. Good for them. 

Fragile Feet

Yesterday morning Dave asked if I would trim his neck hair, it's a common thing that I'm totally fine doing. When I stood up to accomplish the task, something happened that has never happened before. I began saying "uh oh" several times and less than 15 seconds later I was on the ground, I had fallen because my feet fell asleep and it was quite embarrassing. The tingling was overwhelming but it was also hilarious. 

Today, I looked down at breakfast and my feet were purple. There is something going on with my feet.

I was going to post a song called fragile but I haven't looked through the lyrics to make sure they are appropriate for all ages. So look it up if you want, tech n9ne.

Workman Family

Great family on the website and Facebook. www.feslerfilms.wordpress.com

Dinosaur Knocking at My Door

Guys, I think about this ALL of the time. I don't know why. Worse things have happened. Don't be afraid of it. It's your friend.

64 Facts That Will Make You Feel Happy

Too Good Not to Share

64 Mind-Blowing Facts That Will Make You Feel Incredibly Happy

1. Every year, hundreds of new trees grow because of squirrels forgetting where they buried their nuts.

2. There is a basketball court on the top floor of the U.S. Supreme Court Building. It’s known as the “highest court in the land.”

3. Even if they’ve never been able to witness it themselves, blind people smile when they are happy. Smiling is a basic human instinct.

4. Cows have best friends and they tend to spend most of their time together.

Via Flickr: neilsingapore

5. Otters hold hands when they sleep so they don’t float away from one another.

6. Also, there’s a special pocket in their skin where they carry their favorite rock.

Via Flickr: 16046854@N00

8. Wayne Allwine and Russi Taylor, who respectively voiced Mickey and Minnie Mouse, were married in real life.

9. Rats and mice are ticklish, and even laugh when tickled.

11. The Roman Emperor Caligula once declared war on Neptune, the god of the seas. His men ran to the ocean and stabbed at the water.

12. Caligula then declared victory, and commanded his men to collect seashells as war trophies.

13. The official Space Jam website has not changed since 1996.

Via www2.warnerbros.com

14. The voice of Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, Jim Cummings, calls children’s hospitals in his spare time to cheer up sick children.

15. Blind Willie Johnson was blinded by his mother as a child, and he died of pneumonia in the burnt remains of his house in 1945. In 2004, he became an ambassador for life on Earth when the Voyager I left our solar system with a recording of his song “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground” aboard.

16. The day of his assassination, Martin Luther King Jr. got in a pillow fight in his hotel room.

17. There’s a prison in Washington that offers inmates pet cats for rehabilitation.

Via kptv.com

18. Apollo 17 astronaut Gene Cernan wrote his daughter’s initials on the surface of the moon. The initials “TDC” are still there, and likely will be for tens of thousands of years.

19. A cat version of the corgi exits: the munchkin cat.

Victoria Ristenbatt/Flickr Creative Commons; Clarke Thomas/Flickr Creative Commons

20. A group of flamingos is called a flamboyance.

21. And a group of pugs is called a grumble.

Via google.com

22. A group of kittens is called a kindle.

23. A group of hedgehogs is called a prickle.

Via Flickr: idalingi

24. A group of cats is called a cloudier.

25. And a group of bunnies is called a fluffle.

Via Flickr: firebrat

26. At one point, very briefly, you were the youngest person on the planet.

27. Cuddling can help wounds heal faster, due to the release of oxytocin.

28. It also releases serotonin, which can improve one’s mood and fight depression.

29. Sea horses mate for life and travel holding each other’s tails.

30. Not only do penguins mate for life, but they also spend time finding a pebble to give their mate in order to “propose.”

31. When you shave a guinea pig it looks like a little hippo.

Via bforbel.com

32. Worms communicate by snuggling.

33. Butterflies taste with their feet.

34. Somewhere, someone is having the best day of their life.

35. Norway once knighted a penguin.

(The penguin’s full name is Colonel-in-Chief Sir Nils Olav.) Via Reuters

36. Puffins also mate for life.

37. And baby puffins are called pufflings.

Andreas Mulder / Via andreasmulder.com

38. During the Christmas Truce of 1914, German and British soldiers played a game of soccer in the “no man’s land” between trenches.

39. Seventeen-year-old Jackie Mitchell, one of the first female pitchers in professional baseball, struck out both Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in 1931.

40. Baby echidnas are called puggles.

41. Zach Braff, who played JD on Scrubs, and Donald Faison, who played Turk, are actually best friends in real life.

42. Charlie and the waitress from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are married in real life.

Amanda Edwards / WireImage

43. There have been studies that show that goats, like us, have accents.

44. Male pups will sometimes let female pups “win” when they play-fight so they can get to know them better.

45. Cats bring you dead animals because they think you’re just a crappy cat that can’t survive on its own. Cats bring you presents!

46. The elephant shrew’s closest relative isn’t a shrew — it’s actually an elephant.

Via Flickr: nationalzoo

47. Red pandas can have tails that grow up to 19 inches — despite being the size of a house cat.

48. Dolphins have names for one another.

49. In Welsh folklore, corgis were the preferred method of transportation for fairies.

50. There’s a competition in Sweden called Kaninhoppning, or rabbit show jumping.

Via kaninhoppning.ifokus.se

51. Octopuses actually do make gardens by collecting stones and shiny things and arranging them in the sand. Ringo was right.

52. There is no angry way to say the word “bubbles.”

53. The only member of ZZ Top who does not have a beard is the drummer, Frank Beard.

54. The kingdom of Bhutan uses “gross national happiness” as a key national indicator.

55. When rabbits get really excited and start to jump around, it’s called a binky.

Via onlylolgifs.net

56. Mister Rogers was given the honors of pouring the wax that made the 1,000,000,000th Crayola crayon.

57. Newborn giant pandas are about the size of a stick of butter.

Via pandapandapanda.com

58. No two dogs’ nose prints are the same, much like human fingerprints.

59. Katy Perry has a cat named Kitty Purry.

Via youtube.com

60. Canadians eat more doughnuts than any other country.

61. They also eat the most Kraft Mac and Cheese.

62. In April 1930, the BBC reported that there was no news that day, and played piano music instead.

63. You can tickle a penguin.

youtube.com

64. And always keep in mind, no matter how bad you might feel, you’ll never be as ugly as the world’s ugliest animal: the blobfish.

Easter 2014

Full-time Worker

An interesting thing about attempting to be more honest with your writing is that it tends to be more ego-centric and often negative. Well, simply, I need to work on me before I can expect the world to conform to whatever I hope to accomplish. So bear with my selfish and whiny posts, I'll try to keep them to a minimum. As a matter of fact, I attended a training this past week that I believe will help me recognize where to go from here. 

Things that DON'T ONLY INVOLVE ME:

-The people I work with are awesome, need proof? This is how I was welcomed on my first day of work.

-Other than this, I've been learning a new side of things, asking for production bids, seeing how companies/contractors set realistic budgets (did you know $50,000 for one international video is a GREAT deal? I never would have guessed…I have to force myself to not feel like I've been taken advantage of as a video professional)

-Let's follow up on content, COULD I HAVE PICKED A MORE BENEFICIAL COMPANY TO BE INVOLVED WITH? Seriously, I feel like I'm getting paid for therapy. Every video I've worked on is how to strengthen yourself and build the relationships around you. Let me know if you want to be involved with a training, they take up two full work days but you won't regret it.

April Fools

We put baking soda in Dave's water. With most of the responses we got from the prank it was shock, appalled and then spitting the water out.

Our eyes bugged out when we watched Dave chug the entire glass. He looked at us and said, "what?"

I guess he didn't taste a thing.