I Want To Ride My Bicycle!

Kelly and his bike partner, Freeman.



After Surgery....Yes, that is a pin sticking out of the top!



10 Weeks later!

First of all, for those who have speakers and can hear the song playing, it is a song by Queen. Kelly has adopted it as his theme song!  While you listen, try and imagine Kelly riding his bicycle all over town! It is kind of funny.

Anyway, 10 weeks ago Kelly broke his finger and had surgery to repair it. He has been on light duty at work and has been going to physical therapy twice a week. His therapy is going well. He has gotten most of the movement back. Now he just has to work on getting the strength back. It has been quite the ordeal for just an index finger! However, we have loved having him work the day shift Monday - Thursday! I remember what having a "normal" work schedule is like.

I will be sad when he returns to normal duty and the royal treatment will be over! I have enjoyed having him at night to help get the kids to bed or so I can attend enrichment or other evening activities. Kelly is looking forward to getting back to work so he can, as the kids say, "catch the bad guys." He really loves his work and he enjoys working with his bike partner. They have a pretty good time together! I think Freeman will be glad to get back into action too!

Three more weeks (hopefully) of therapy and Officer Zierse reports back to duty!

Do I Really Have A Five Year Old?

I remember the day I found out I was pregnant with Connor. I went to the the store to buy a test. Kelly insisted we just buy a generic, since it was cheaper. We went home and it indicated I was pregnant. Could it really be right? It was a generic after all. A short time later I found myself at Walgreens, this time buying a named brand test. Luckily this one had a "bonus" test included. It was a good thing because I still didn't believe it and I had to take the "bonus" test as well! So, about $50 and 5 tests later, I finally convinced myself that they were all accurate. I was really pregnant!

I was especially excited to be pregnant, as you are with your first. Checking and reading in every book, to make sure what I was feeling was normal. I remember taking a birthing class with Kelly and being totally freaked out. Could I really deliver this child? Couldn't he just stay inside? My water broke at midnight and we rushed to the hospital, just like the book says. We were living at Grandpa Roush's condo in Salt Lake, so luckily, we were only a short distance to LDS Hospital. After 12 hours of labor (I don't know why we rushed to get there,) we had our first little baby, Connor Kelly Zierse! After being home for one day, Connor had to back to the hospital because of dehydration. He had some difficulty learning how to nurse. After being in Primary Children's Hospital for 24 hours, and having lots of frustration, we got things figured out. I remember being so exhausted and overwhelmed. Kelly and I were young and didn't know anything about babies. We were so scared and wanted to do everything right. I was glad when we could go home with our new family! Weeks following, you would have never known Connor had any trouble eating!

Something I learned from my mom was to keep a journal for my kids, until they can do it for themselves. My mom kept one for each of us. It was full of things we did and said while we were young. I am glad that I have continued that on with my kids. I can look back and read some of my favorite things about my kids when they were babies.

One of my most favorite memories of Connor was how he used to say daddy. He used to call Kelly, "Daddin." I thought it was so cute and original. I had never heard any other child call their dad that. I remember being so sad when he finally said daddy! I think I might have even tried telling him, "no it's Daddin, not Daddy!"

Another memory was when he was about 8 months old. The back of his head was a little flat so we decided to do "helmet therapy." We got lots of stares and odd questions during that time. Like, "oh, does he have seizures?" Or, "did he just have brain surgery?" Really, who asks someone that when they are standing in line at the grocery store? Wearing a helmet actually came in handy when he started to crawl. How many infants get to wear head protection when they are learning to crawl and walk? It kept him from getting bumps and bruises on his head!

Something else about Connor is that he has always been so happy and friendly. He can make a friend wherever he goes!

Connor has been such a blessing to us. He has brought so much love and laughter to our home! Happy Birthday Con-Man! We love you!!!!



Seeing my new baby for the first time! I was able to get him out after all!



This was Connor the morning after being in Primary Children's. He was 5 days old.



Connor and his helmet!



Our first Thanksgiving with Connor.



Connor's first love with swimming pools!



Our first appartment in Phoenix.



Connor giving his soon to be brother a hug and kiss!



Connor got this crown from nursery. He wore it a lot!



Mommy and her boys!



Connor and Mommy!

Bring On The Heat!!

The days are starting to warm up around here. After living in Phoenix for almost 4 years, I still haven't gotten used to it! I sometimes wonder if I ever will! Now that it is heating up, we can enjoy the outdoor pool. Yesterday was one of those days. We took the kids swimming, and of course, they had a great time! People always ask what we do for fun when it is so hot. Well, I suppose we spend a lot of time at the pool!

There are good and bad things about the weather here. For one, we don't have to shovel snow or scrape ice from our car windows. We don't have to wait for the heater in the car to finally be hot, but we do have to wait for the air conditioner to finally be cold! We also don't have to bundle up the kids just to get to the car. However, we do have to keep track of hats, sunglasses, sunscreen, flip flops, and water bottles. We also don't have to worry about snow in April. We do have to walk as quickly as possible through the parking lot, to finally reach an air conditioned store (and so our feet don't burn on the pavement!) I guess we just went from one extreme to another when we moved here! I can't decide which is best! I wish we could become snowbirds and enjoy the best of both worlds! Maybe when Kelly reaches retirement!



Kelly instructing the boys on some sort of game they had just come up with!



Kate looking longingly at the nice refreshing water!



Mom and Katelyn sat this one out. It was sort of windy and the temperature of the water wasn't really up to mom's liking!



Our chunky Katie Bug! By the way, she is seven months and in size 4 diapers! Carson never got out of size 3 at 2 1/2 years! She is pretty fun to squeeze! She also looks a lot like Connor did. We call her our red headed Connor!



The boys in the pool!


More fun with Daddy in the pool!

A New Look!

So, I decided to get a blog makeover! I was just messing around and picked a new template and added a new page element. I decided to add a place where I can put some of the funny things my boys say and do! The first to make the page was something Connor said today at the pool. Now I can share some of the funny things they say with all of you. Since my mom lives several hundred miles away, I have to call her a lot. Kelly always laughs at me because I call her the minute one of the kids says or does something cute. So, now the rest of you can enjoy these precious moments too!

Here are some recent pictures of our kids! I love to see all of your new pictures and hope you enjoy our new ones as well!



Kelly holding all the kids! He couldn't possibly just have one on his lap! (Please ignore the mess in the background!)



Connor and Katelyn sitting on the Love Sack. Connor loves to hold Katelyn.



Katelyn before church, sporting her new bow mommy made!

Enjoying These Days!

We only have a handful of days with pleasant weather. In a few short weeks, we will be headed for triple digits! We have decided that since the weather is still bearable, we will try and make the most of it!

This past weekend we found this wonderful park in Scottsdale. It is called McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park. This park was so fun! It had a huge playground that was covered with a nice canopy. There were a lot of grassy areas with benches and tables. The kids had a great time at a playground designed like an old western scene. It had a jail, saloon, bank, grocery store, and other play ground equipment. Kelly even had a trail of little boys chasing him around. As one little boy was leaving, he said to his mom, "that is a fun dad!" I had to smile! Kelly is a fun dad!

This park also had a carousel and train that you could ride. Katelyn enjoyed some firsts. She had her first carousel and train ride. She also loved her first time in a swing!

At the end of it all we had fun sitting on a bench and having an ice cream cone. The kids did not want to leave. They were having such a fun time! This will definitely be one of our favorite spots! Kelly and I love to discover new things to do in this large valley! The next time we have visitors, we will probably have to take them here!



Katelyn loving the swing!



Having an ice cream cone!


Katelyn taking a lunch break!



Connor and Carson playing on the old western scene.



The boys waiting for the train to start. All aboard!



Katelyn just being cute!



The boys loved this slide. It had rollers on it that made it extra fun!


Carson loving the swing too! Who doesn't love the swing?


Katelyn's first time in a swing!



Ready for the carousel!



Daddy and Baby Kate on her first carousel ride!



Connor and Carson put in jail!



The boys having a good time on the playground!

My 28 years!

As my 28th birthday fast approaches, I thought I would write a post about some of my earliest and favorite memories. There isn't anything spectacular about turning 28, besides being two years away from 30! I have just been thinking about all the good times life has afforded me and thought I would share some of them with you!

First of all, one of my earliest memories was when I was 2. I was with my mom and oldest brother, Justin. We were going to K-Mart to birthday shop for my brother Josh. In 1982, seat belt wearing wasn't terribly advocated. I remember standing in between the driver and passenger seat. The next part, thankfully, I don't remember. We were hit head on by a drunk driver. The only other thing I remember was a lot of bright lights and people frantically moving about. Gratefully, we were all okay. The man who hit us lost his life. I can't even imagine letting my kids stand in the front of the car!

On a happier note, another early memory was when I was 3 and my youngest brother was born. All I remember was getting my hands washed so that I could see my baby brother!

I have a lot of memories of friends and neighbors. Some of my first friends in the neighborhood were Sarah and Lori Larsen and Kathy Castro. We had many a sleepover, girls camp adventures, boy talk, and other girly escapades! My mom has told me that I was always able to make friends easily. Friends were very important to me. Probably because I didn't have sisters to gossip with or to share clothes with! I was very lucky to have had many good friends in my life!

Family vacations! My family was very fortunate to have seen many great places. From amusement parks to historical sites and from big cities to national parks, I have seen a lot of things. I have been to 27 states and two countries (if going to Tijuana for a couple of hours counts!)

Watching my brothers play soccer all the way through their senior year of High school.

Dancing! I danced for 20 years! I still have my jazz shoes just in case I am lucky enough to use them again!

Having Grandparents! I have been fortunate to have known 2 grandmas, a grandpa, and a great grandma. I have so many memories of having them in my life!

High school. Mostly the meeting and dating of Kelly!

Being able to wait for Kelly while he served a mission. Running to the mailbox everyday to check for a letter and putting a sticker on his countdown chart!

Getting married to my High school sweetheart!

Having children! There is something so wonderful in seeing this person that has been inside you for 9 (sometimes very long months!)

Being able to continue my favorite memories with my own kids. Vacations, friends, sports, Grandparents,etc.

My life is full of memories! I could go on and on! I look forward to my kids having similar experiences in their life!

My Little Fish!

Some of you know that my boys are quite the swimmers. They love the water and show no fear when in the pool. We have a membership to Lifetime Fitness. The kids love to go swimming and the pools there are perfect for them. They have the beach entry, which is great for little kids. They also have a little slide and fountain type things. The pool isn't terribly deep and Connor can touch pretty much everywhere. Carson can go down the slide and touch at the bottom. This makes it nice because he can go down the slide and I don't have to wait to catch him over and over again!

We went swimming yesterday and Kelly took the boys into the deeper part and was trying to teach them how to swim down to the bottom and touch his feet. Well, this turned into the kids teaching themselves to do flips. It was quite amusing! Seeing little Carson doing a flip in the water was kind of impressive! I figured that Kelly had just started flipping them and taught them to do it themselves. I had no idea that they did it on their own. I thought it was pretty cool.

Katelyn has begun to love the pool as well. She isn't quite doing flips with daddy, but she loves to sit in the shallow part and splash. She also gets a kick out of watching other kids play in the water. She has a pretty cute bathing suit too! It is nice to live in a climate where swimming is easily accessible.
We love it!

By the way, Carson was pretty much done with taking pictures. I kept taking them over and over, trying to get one where everyone was looking at the camera. By this point, in a very impatient tone, he was just saying, "CHEEEEEESE!"