oh hey it's 2018

I can't believe I have neglected this poor blog for so long. I was posting to instagram for a while to keep up with all our little daily adventures. But I have missed the format of a blog.

Since Maela's birth two years ago, a lot has happened.....




Enjoying the warm fall weather






Maela learned to laugh and smile and has always been the happiest little girl!


We have kept up the tradition of attending the Nativity Celebration, and had to dress up.


Bliss Wives Lunch.


For Christmas 2016 we were able to travel to Arizona! We spent so much time with family, I barely took any pictures. All the Grandkids were able to convince Nana to make gingerbread cookies on Christmas eve. They all helped mix the ingredients, roll out the dough, cut, and frost all the cookies. I loved watching my boys interact with  Nana and Anna. There is something special about making cookies on Christmas eve, I am so glad they were able to experience the magic.



Christmas Morning, I made our traditional Christmas breakfast Abel skivers and Buttermilk syrup! They were delicious, we managed to all eat breakfast, run out to catch Church. Then back home to open presents. We made sure to let Santa know we would be away for Christmas and to forward our gifts to Nana's house. The boys loved every gift they received! And I loved being with family!


After Christmas when my family had to return to work and normal life, we escaped to Cottonwood to visit with Jared's Family. luckily Kevin's family and David joined us, we spent a few days in Cottonwood then headed up to Flagstaff to enjoy the Snow!


All my life I thought people who went tubing in their jeans were crazy and should plan better. I was able to eat my words, my poor babies only lasted so long before we were too cold to play. Regardless we had fun!










While we were in Flagstaff we were able to wake up to a fresh blanket of snow almost every morning. I have always loved my snowy hometown and was so happy it snowed while we were there. I have missed seeing and playing in real snow that doesn't turn to ice like it does here in Missouri. We welcomed the New Year in Flagstaff, we didn't dare venture out into the cold weather to celebrate instead went to bed early and when we woke up snacked on some gummy worms to celebrate before breakfast. After a week in Arizona we were ready to head home to Missouri.

2017



We started 2017 off with a bang, Maela won the  Tubby Todd Tubby Baby Contest, she had so many rolls and was so chubby. We also found out that Logan's youngest brother David was engaged to be married and we were able to visit Arizona again. The kids and I were able to drive out a few week before the wedding and spend time with family. The boys were able to run on the rock formations at their Great Grandma Sally's home in Cameron with some extended family. They loved being free and throwing every rock in sight.




While I was in Arizona I knew I wanted to Visit my Grandmother in Inscription house on the Navajo Reservation. It was so weird yet welcoming to visit again after being away for so long. As a kid my family spent countless holidays/weekends running to the sand dunes, snuggling up by the fireplace, exploring on the four wheelers, watch Grandma tend to her sheep. It was so fun to see my kids being able to do the same.




When I was a little younger my Great Grandmother and Great Grandfather held me in their arms in the exact same spot as a baby. I was sure to recreate the memory while we visited.


After spending time in Northern Arizona the kids and I traveled down south to pick up my mom and drive out to San Diego To meet up with Logan and the rest of the Bliss Bunch.


We were sure to snag a Bliss Wives Breakfast in while we were all together. We were so excited to see all the Bliss Wives after being apart and meeting Katia for the first time. She was the sweetest girl, I am so glad David found her!


David and Katia were Married in the San Diego Temple on March 17! It was a beautiful warm windy day.


These three sillies were ready for some partying!


While in San Diego we were able to attend Audrey's baptism!


2017 was the year of plenty of Silver Dollar Visits, James reached the height limit for his first big roller coaster, turns out he's not a big fan.




Both boys loved this ride and rode it dozens of times!


Sweet Maela grew like a weed, all her milestones were a joy to experience, it was so fun to experience all the fun things I did with James and Boston but this time with a little girl!


James designed his own Valentine's Day box, a monster with lots of eyes, sharp teeth, drooling goo, stretchy arms, robot legs and a rocket pack.


For Easter weekend the weather was amazing so the Blisses all decided we would camp in Stockton. Maela did surprisingly well for her first time camping and the boys loved camping! Saturday morning we made sure to do an egg hunt then pack up and head home to wash off all the camp fire and dirt.


James learned how to jump hay bales, one of Logan's childhood favorites.


Spring time arrived early and we were able to enjoy afternoons outside!






James turned 6!! Boston, Maela and I surprised him with Lunch at school!


Miss Maela learned to crawl!




Climbing Grandma Bliss's trees.


And eating her grass.




We finally took the boys fishing and they loved it!





Strawberry Picking our family tradition! I have loved picking strawberries since we've moved to Missouri. Luckily I have also raised strawberry lovers.




James learned to ride a bike without training wheels! Boston mastered his balance bike and is sometimes still faster than James.



On the road again to Arizona, for the Johnson Family Reunion.

I am so sad I was not able to take as many pictures as I would have wanted. There were so many fun games, there was tug o war, stink bug racing, watermelon eating contest, a lip sync battle and so many more....






After returning from Arizona before the summer was over we snuck in a trip to Six Flags in St Louis.




To keep track of our summer shenanigans I made a Bucket list, we were able to cross off almost all of the activities or trips, one of which was a flour fight.









Zoo Trip with Friends



Lake Day













When Logan needed new photos for work we posed in the backyard and snagged some.





Both James and Boss became pros at UNO and loved playing Grandma each time they visited her house.




We had plenty of Halloween Parties to attend, one Maela dressed up as her favorite movie character, Moana


Thanksgiving was spent in Ohio with Jase and his Family, it was cold and far but worth the trip!




The night we got home from Ohio, we pulled out the tree before unpacking our suitcases, we were ready for Christmas!


We were sure to enjoy the Christmas magic and look at Christmas lights










On Christmas day all the Blisses Gathered and were able to take a family photo, it has been over a decade since the last photo was taken without missing anyone!




Wooo! 2017 was a year of trips, lots of family and so many memories! We loved every bit, but made sure not to plan any big road trips for 2018.

Maela's Blessing Day

We had been planning Maela's blessing for awhile, we knew we wanted to wait for a little after she was born, so my mom could attend her blessing. The last time she visited Missouri she only came for the weekend and had to Fly back Sunday morning, planning a blessing around a flight was a bit difficult, so we decided to wait. Luckily she said she would be back in September, we held off on planning everything out until we knew for sure she would be returning. As September approached we figured we should get everything squared away, after booking her flight, we scheduled the blessing. Maela would be blessed September 18. We shared with family members the date hoping they could make it.
While in church a few weeks before her big blessing day I was asked to give a talk for the same day! I was to speak in teaching our children the commandments. "Oh my", was all that kept running through my head, not only did I have to prepare a blessing dress (I knew I wanted to make a special blessing dress for her. I wanted to design it, pick out the fabric and sew it) I now had to write and give a talk! I started planning my talk a week before, I read many references that included talks, scriptures and church manuals every day trying to find out what direction to take.
When my mom arrived, I explained what I wanted and the next day we were off to the store. I wanted a dress with a Peter Pan collar, cuffed long sleeves, buttons on the back and front, scallops along the bottom and a bonnet. We found the perfect white cotton with polka dots. We then washed, dried, ironed, made a pattern and started cutting. We were up until 2 am figuring things out. Once the top was done we were off to bed, the bottom half was finished the next day. The final dress was beautiful, my Mom worked her magic and it was exactly what I wanted. While we were sewing and cutting Maela took some nice long naps.








When Sunday finally came, the boys wore coordinating bow ties of course Logan also joined the fun and wore a matching tie. Maela was the last to get dressed, she was absolutely adorable dressed in white! We arrived early at church to take pictures with family, many of them needed to leave after Sacrament meeting, so we arranged to do pictures before.



Maela received a beautiful blessing from Logan. While receiving her blessing she was surrounded by many who already love her. Grandpa and Great Grandpa were present, Uncles who live in town were able to be present and friends we have grown to love like family. I am so thankful for the power of the priesthood, it has definitely made its impact in our life multiple times, including today. While growing up I never had the priesthood in my home, my mom was the only active member while I was younger, so knowing Logan holds the priesthood worthily and can bless our family with its power if we need, comforts me.
 My talk went as good as it could have gone. I was full of nerves so I rushed through it, but was happy with the end result. We were also blessed to hear a sweet message from Logan's grandfather, I love to hear counsel from those who have seen and experienced so much. Especially when it's from someone who Logan and I already admire. After sacrament we sent those who had to leave off with plenty of hugs.
I am so grateful that our family could be present to be a part of such a special day for our little girl. She truly is a Child of God, who we are so grateful for and love dearly.

Her Name

For months we searched for the perfect name for our baby girl. Even before we found out she was a girl we were looking, mostly Logan because I was just sure I was going to be a boy mama forever and was giving up on the idea daughters. But I still kept track of my favorite girls names. Ella Reece was to be James's name is he was a girl it was a name Logan and I both fell in love with, but it just did not feel right any more so it was scratched off the list. Kaitlyn Alicia was deeply considered Logan wanted her to have my first name and Kaitlyn for both our mothers Kathleen and Lynnie, I love the reasoning but was not a big fan of the names. I really loved the name Ellis or Elli for short, Logan disagreed, Breeja, Eloise, Hollis, Marielle, Aila and many more were on my list of names I liked. I spent one afternoon looking through thousands of names and Logan denied them all so he took a chance and tried, he came up with Layla and Jessa I was not a fan of either, so we decided to take a break and try searching later.
With no luck after a month, one night while sitting on the couch we both decided we would look and pick one. Finally Logan said we should just make up a name we like, which lead to mixing all sorts of sounds hoping to come up with a beautiful name. I then asked who are some inspiring women in our lives we would like to honor. We both said our mothers, grandmothers and a few leaders. We sorted through the list and we chose our mothers. Both our moms don't actually go by their legal first names. My mom's is Herlinda and Logan's Shirley, as much as we love our moms we were just not in love with their first names so off to middle names Mae and Kathleen. We tried to merge the two, coming up with some odd combinations. Using Mae seemed to short and wanted something with a little more to it. Finally I mentioned Maelle we could call her Mae, Elle or Ellie, Logan still wasn't sold. I then mentioned Maela (pronounced Mae-LA), Logan loved it and I did too.
We knew if we chose one mothers name we had to use both. So we really liked Kate as a short version of Kathleen. But after much thought and discussion with family we decided Kate just didn't seem to be a good and chose Kathleen. Our baby girl's name would be Maela Kathleen after two women who have loved us, helped us grow both physically and spiritually, cared for us, taught us right from wrong, how to show love towards others and so much more. Each of our mothers play a significant role in our lives and there was no better way we could honor and thank them for all that they have done for us as children and now as adults and grandmothers.
I hope our sweet Maela Kathleen will know that she is named after such wonderful women who we both love and adore and are so thankful for.

Maela's birth story: part 2

[Part 1 can be read here]


By 9:31 am we were admitted, blood was drawn, monitors were hooked up I was ready! My contractions were getting more painful! And was ready for an epidural. I had always tried to handle the pain and try for an unmedicated delivery, but this time I new my body just couldn't do it especially if she was a big baby like her brothers. After the epidural was placed my legs were instantly numb, I couldn't feel anything waist down. The lights were dimmed and I tried to nap Logan was catching up on a tv show. I reached 6 cm at 1:48. Labor was progressing slowly so petocin was added to the IV at 2:15. Labor progressed painlessly, so far everything was easier this time around. 3:59 my water was broken and I reached 8 cm. At 4:30 pm I was checked again, I had reached 10 cm, fully effaced and head was making its way down. My doctor was called.
Carts were rolled in nurses were dressed and prepping everything for delivery. My legs were in the stirrups and the nurse mentioned you could see her hair. I snuck a peak and was shocked I could see her while she was still inside of me. Logan wanted to help out in everyday possible, he had talked to the nurses and my doctor about helping in the delivery. He wanted to help catch her, so my doctor said once the head was delivered he could delivery everything else. Our baby girl was pretty much pushing her was out a nurse held her head in place until the doctor came in to be sure she didn't arrive on her own. Within minutes the doctor arrived and dressed quickly and with one push At 5:35 pm weighing 6 pounds 11 ounces 19 inches long with a head circumference of 13 1/4 inches Meala Kathleen joined our family! She was placed on my chest and I was instantly in love with my sweet little girl, she was so small, adorable and finally all mine. I snuggled her while Logan cut the cord. I have wanted a little girl since I was little, I could not believe it had happened, the tears started rolling, she was here, she was safe, and adorable!




While Logan and I welcomed our new baby, my placenta did not want to detach, after an hour it was still attached. So it had to be manually removed, luckily I had a wonderful epidural, thank goodness for Anesthesiologist they are complete heroes! Later we found out my placenta had attached to my uterus from a hemorrhage I had early on.



We snuggled our sweet Maela for the next few hours, she was a big fan of nursing and latched perfectly! She was so quiet and loved to lay right on mama. Logan's sister, her kids  and his mom were able to visit before we were moved to our postpartum room I was still very numb so when I was ready to be moved I had to be rolled on a bed, Logan followed close behind.
It was about 9 pm and we were both hungry! I was able to get a sandwich and chips, Logan ran out to grab some dinner. Our first night was pretty easy, she slept and nursed. The only down fall was all the routine middle of the night vital checks. But we survived.

The next morning James and Boston came to visit! Boston was a little scared, all the wires and cords seemed to scare him and so he kept his distance. James asked to hold his sister and kept mentioning how cute she was. We snagged our first family photo and they were off to play. We later had plenty of visitors! Since I had to have a catheter because of the epidural, and I also had balloon like ball filled with water placed in my uterus to help slow the bleeding so I could not get out of bed or really move much.



We decided I would stay two nights in the hospital so I could get as much rest and not have to worry about anything at home. James and Boss were switched between family, I'm so grateful for such wonderful Sister in laws who offered to help! On Friday morning I was ready to go home, ready to see my boys, ready to be disconnected from all the cords and wires, ready to take a shower! I had the balloon removed and then the catheter and finally after two days could stand! It felt weird at first but then I was back to normal. I hopped in the shower, changed clothes, fixed my hair! Once clean and ready I snagged some newborn photos of Maela so we could announce her birth.




We were finally discharged around noon, the Boys were already home waiting for us. When we walked in Boston said he wanted to hold her and would not leave her side. He had to make sure she had two hands and feet, two eyes, two ears, a mouth and a nose. He loved her and had to make it known. James was also by her side, he wanted to help hold her talk to her. I am so lucky to have such wonderful boys. Once home everything felt complete, our family was perfect and complete! We were all happy to be with each other finally!

Maela's birth story: part 1

The first sign that Maela was showing signs that delivery was close happened while we were visiting Logan's Parents on the Fourth of July. I had some spotting, Boston was born the morning after I started spotting. So I knew something was happening, we left Mom and Dads that day knowing we would soon have a family of five. When we got home that night I started on laundry and cleaning, I needed to know that at least the main chores were done.
I had been having Braxton hicks contractions for a week now so I just monitored the time and strength of each contraction. The day seemed to fly by but I did manage to clean the boys room, the kitchen, living room, and our bedroom. I was pretty proud! After dinner I noticed that the contractions were growing closer together but still very inconsistent, so I was off to bed. With my previous pregnancies I would always start labor around one or two in the morning. I woke around four and was in pain, they were about 4 mins apart. I managed to labor for another hour and they remained two mins apart. I started packing an overnight bag for the boys, they would be staying with family while we were in the hospital. I also packed my bag, with all that I needed, and what Logan might need and clothes for our new baby girl!
I woke Logan at 5:40 and told him it was time, he needed to get ready. He jumped up and was ready in no time. I braided my hair and got dressed. Woke the boys and changed them so they would be ready for the day. Logan called my sister in law and she was on her way to pick up the boys. Once she arrived we hugged and kissed each one of the boys, then we were off. We arrived at the hospital at 6:54 am and walked up to labor and delivery breathing through contractions. Apparently it was a busy the night before and we were lucky to snag a bed in triage. After some monitoring and a pelvic exam I was only at 4 cm, and the contractions slowed down so we were sent to walk for an hour.
We walked up and down the hall, my contractions had started to make a regular schedule. There would be one at each end of the hall and two in between. I would stop at each designated area and start swaying preparing for each one. The pain was increasing and after an hour I was ready! We were ready to be checked. I had reached 5 cm and could be admitted!



Read Part 2 here.