My Evaluation

So, a little over a month ago I decided to go private on my blog. I was feeling self concious about anyone and everyone reading things about my life without knowing who it was. So, like I said I decided to test the waters of "private life" and switch to the other side, and if I hated it, I'd go public again.

So here's the pro's and con's of being private:

Pro's

-You know everyone who reads your blog

-Your blog isn't the first thing to pop up on Google if you Googled your name

-Because you know who's reading your blog you may feel more inclined to share more details of your life: where you live, when your going on vacation, naked pictures of your baby ect. (but to be honest, I don't anyways...)

Cons

-Restricts being able to let people know when your blog has been updated.

-Less readers and less comments. (we all know blogging is all about the readers and the comments!)

-Having to invite people to your blog instead of hoping they just "fall upon it" or having it be word of mouth. Sending out an email (or even finding their email) is just one more thing you have to do.

I can't decide which is better. To be honest, I'm leaning towards going public again. What do you think? I've added a poll to my sidebar. I realize everyone who is able to vote already has access to my blog, thus not really caring either way perhaps, but everyone's got an opinion...and thats all I'm looking for!

The day has arrived

Oh my gosh. It finally happened.

Emmett started to cough and choke a little so I went over to investigate. Squeezed his cheeks and stuck my finger in his mouth to see what was inside. Out popped this...

picture by google

Yes, a dead potato bug. Is it mean to wash your kids' mouth out with soap at this age?

Just kidding. But I think I'm going to go vomit now.

PS. Not 2 seconds after I got done posting the above,... I looked over at his quiet self in the corner and found him holding a tube of medicine that had been sitting on the arm of the couch. (he's got a longer reach than I thought) It looks like a small toothepaste tube, except the difference is the cap doesn't screw on, it's just "placed on". So he'd taken off the cap and was sucking on that. At least he'd decided not to suck on the other end.

AHH!!

We go together, like a wink and a smile...

This morning Emmett was sitting on my lap being cute, so I decided to pull out the camera to see if I could catch anything worth saving. Babies are so sporadic and often I'll see him do something and think "dang I wish I'd caught that on camera".

So anyways, here's a cute video, I just so happened to catch him wink at me!

How cute is that?!

There's proof that sometimes it IS worth pulling out your camera even for the everyday moments!

Update on E

Emmett has changed so much in the last couple months! He is now crawling everywhere, he can pull himself up to a standing position, he can throw a rather hilarious "fit" when he's mad or frustrated, and loves to get into things he's not supposed to, thus resulting in the hilarious fit. He keeps me on my toes every moment he's awake, which has decreased my spare time to only existing during naptime. Here's a little bit about Emmett as an 8 month old:

-He hates the vacuum. Now that he's mobile I have to put him in his crib while I vacuum, otherwise I wouldn't be able to hear him if he got into something bad. When I do, I feel like I'm torturing him, he just cries and cries and gives me this sad little face:

Or this one:

-He loves fun songs like "Row Row Row Your Boat" or "Itsy Bitsy Spider" to be sung to him.

-He loves books, and having anyone read to him.

-He's got some cute little curls coming in the back of his head. I have no idea what side of the family that came from.

-His eyes are still a very grayish color.

-He'll taste and enjoy anything we give him. Pickles, green beans ect.

-He has no sense of height. If he's crawling on the bed he'll head over to the edge and keep on going if we let him.

-He loves being outside anytime, anywhere.

-He's a really, really light sleeper. The slightest creak of a door, or rustling of movement can wake him up.

-He's starting to get the hang of a sippy cup. He's going to totally skip the whole bottle thing.

-He always sleeps with his bum in the air.

-He loves to stand up on his feet and walk around (with help of course). When I try to sit him on his bum again, he locks his knees to stop me. If I do it anyway, it results in the "fit" I mentioned before.

-He's started this new thing of sucking on his bottom lip. He does it all the time.

-He's a tough little kid. Even when he takes a good fall every now and then, it only takes a minute to comfort him.

-His favorite toys are mom and dad's cell phones, or the remote controls. Why do toy companies bother making their toys in bright colors?

-He no longer lets me put a hat on his head. He'll just reach up and take it right off. So if we're outside for a long time I have to lather his whole head and hair with sunscreen. Yuk.

-His favorite room in the house is the bathroom. When he gets into crawling mode he always heads to the bathroom and crawls over to the tub and pulls himself up and looks inside and starts squealing like its the coolest thing ever. The problem is he's strong enough to pull himself up and OVER the tub, landing face first inside. Now we have to keep the bathroom door shut at all times.

Well, I think that gives you an idea of our little Emmett. As busy as he keeps me, its so fun to watch him explore the world and see and learn new things every day. He is such a joy to have around.

Hiatus

Hello again! Its been a loooooong time...

It's been a fun and busy summer, and I can't believe I took that long of a 'blogging vacation'. I feel refreshed though, and I'm ready to begin sharing lots of updates and news as it comes.

There have been so many blog worthy moments these past 2 months that I wish I could've posted about, but instead, here's a few highlights of what I've (and WE've)been up to:

I think my blogging hiatus began when my parents arrived from Korea the end of May...and its pretty much been go-go-go ever since!

- In early June I rode in my very first bike race: "Little Red Riding Hood" in Logan, UT. I did a leisurely 15 miles. Next years goal is 35!

-Emmett is crawling, sitting, and gets himself up to a standing position by way of moms legs, couch, laundry basket, ect. (More on Emmett saved for another day).

-June 20, Krista (my sister) got married in the Salt Lake temple.

-Family trip to Lagoon

Emmett and Grandpa Winterton going down the water slide:

He didn't like water in his face so much...

-Family trip to Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house.

-Family trip to Island Park for the 4th of July!

We floated the Snake River (twice):

The inner tube was wider than the car itself

Emmett geared up and ready to go!

Aunt Kris and Mom on the kayak

Our beautiful view on the river that included a moose (squint your eyes...you'll see it)

On the 4th, Bills Island does their own little parade. Here's the whole clan (with some missing) while waiting for it to start:

L to R: neighbor friend (don't know his name), Mom, Mike, Me, Krista & Emmett, Nate, Hadlee, Heather, and Phil.

I don't know these kids, but this is what your typical parade entry was like: a 4 wheeler and streamers.

View of the lake at sunset

The night ended with fireworks over the lake.

-The following weekend we went camping (Emmett's 1st) with our good friends, the Fowers

Mike and Curtis fishing

Another beautiful lake at sunset

Katie was the lucky winner that actually caught a fish! (she didn't want to touch it, but it was hers)

-And most recently we just got back from a trip to Star Valley to visit with Mike's family. Mike and I went on a 2 hour, 4-wheeler ride to a pretty place that looked like this

And then went on another float-trip down a river. Which was quite the adventure to say the least and unfortunately too long to tell here...But here is a result of THAT trip:

No people, my husband does NOT have 'b'acne', those are mesquito bites. After my poor sister in law, Jill, had a bad encounter with a huge, nasty bush on the river, and multiple tubes were lost as a result, Mike joined his brother Nick, and Jill to walking along the bank of the river, which ended up being a serious feast for the bugs. I stuck to the river and hung on tight to my tube and only got 10-15 bug bites vs. 200. Needless to say, we've been itching ever since. Next time (if there is one...right Jill?) we won't forget the bug spray, OR a boat!

Last Chance!

Just a reminder, here's your last chance to let me know if you want an invite to my blog! I'm going private in less than 24 hours!

Going Private

I have gone back and forth multiple times for weeks trying to decide whether or not I should go private. And for now...I think I've decided to just do it. (Such a pain, I know). I'm just testing the waters, if I hate it I'll go public again. It has nothing to do with showing pictures of my baby, or family with the world...all it has to do with is me. I've always been a very private person and I think I would feel so much more comfortable knowing who is reading my blog. And in the long run, I'll enjoy blogging more than I have, and I'll feel more comfortable sharing more details of my life!

PLEASE let me send you an invite!!

Send your email address to lisagleue@gmail.com

Or leave your email in my comments.

Don't be bashful... ANYONE is welcome to receive an invite! I'll be going private officially in 1 WEEK, on Sunday July 19.

A Friend in Need...

From L to R: Mike Gleue, James Barnes, Bryan Jensen, Levi Scott, Ryan Hess

Mike moved to Star Valley, WY when he was 16 years old. He would admit that it wasn't the easiest move, coming from Mesa, AZ and at a particularly hard age. However months went by and Mike ended up meeting some of his closest friends while he was there. He thinks the world of them and will always say nobody besides family, truely knows him the way his Star Valley buds do.

One of those friends, Ryan Hess, was recently diagnosed with cancer. I am posting this blog in behalf of a friend in need.

The following is sent from Ryan's wife, Margie:

My name is Margie Hess, my husband Ryan was diagnosed on June 12, 2009 with a rare and aggressive form of Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Since this is an aggressive form of T-Cell Lymphoma, his doctor has put him on an aggressive chemo regimen that will result in him being unable to work for the next 4-6 months and possibly longer. At the time of diagnosis he was finishing up his 1^st year as a Podiatry Resident at the V.A. in Tucson, AZ. Ryan is a devoted husband and fath er of two children, Hallie (5) and Max (2). By the end of this month (June 2009), Ryan will use up the last of his vacation and sick leave and will have to go on unpaid leave. Ryan is the sole provider for our family; I stay at home with both the kids. Without him working we have no income. I need to stay home to help care for him, so I cannot get a job right now, either. As difficult as it is for our family to have to ask for help, we have realized that we must do so at this time. We were told that any federal employee (ie: military, Border Patrol, DEA, FB I, Dept of Justice, EPA etc. EXCEPT Post Office employees) can donate vacation time to be used as sick leave for another Federal employee. We would be so thankful for any number of extra paid days we can accumulate. Thank you so much.

How can you help if you ARE a Federal Employee?

Go to your HR department and request to donate leave to Ryan Hess who works for the VA. (Your HR person will know the form that needs to be filled out- each Federal agency has their own form to donate leave)

Once filled out and signed, the HR person will then need to fax or e-mail the form to:

OLIVIA McCLURE - Benefits Specialist (TUCSON V.A.)

Phone #: (520) 792-1450 x 6076

Fax # : (520) 629-1849

E-Mail : olivia.mcclure@va.gov

ALSO, for those who are federal employees, please print out this message and post it in break/lunch rooms to help get the word out as well as emailing it to co-workers!

How to help if you are NOT a Federal Employee:

PASS this along to ANYONE and EVERYONE that you know and then ask them to pass the message along. Post it on blogs, Facebook...whatever you can think of.

If you know of anyone that might be of help to this wonderful family, please pass it along!