Merry Christmas

Simplify Christmas

The gift of Christmas isn't wrapped up in presents or parties.
The gift of Christmas is Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten of the Father,the Son of God.
As you follow Him, you put people first.
You may spend less time in lines and
more time serving others.
You may spend less money on-and more time with-
the people you love.
You may lose yourself and you may find everything
else that matters.
(from http://www.lds.org/)
Merry Christmas.

Here she is....

First Family photo, but Brynlee is hiding


Our Little Angel


On our way home from the hospital


4 days old

Brynlee Ann Sundberg arrived Monday, Novemeber 2nd at 5:32 p.m. She weighed 6lbs 11oz and was 19in long. We can't imagine life without her. She was breech so a c-section was scheduled. I went back at 5:00 and 30 minutes later she was here. It was hard to relax until I heard her sweet little cry. Once they showed her to us we were overjoyed. Jon kept saying she is beautiful, with tear filled eyes. Due to the swine flu spread we were only allowed to have 2 visitors at a time, which included Jon. In shifts our parents and sisters (Shyenne and Heather), came and held little Brynlee. I was lucky and had a speedy recovery and was home Wednesday afternoon. It was so nice to have my mom stay with us the first few days. Jon took her to the airport Friday afternoon. I don't know who shed more tears, me or her. She said, "who knew 9 months ago when you found out you were pregnant, that she was going to be exactly what our family needed." After so many funerals it is fun to have this beautiful little girl fill our hearts back up with love. We have Grandma and Grandpa Sundberg here this weekend and are so grateful for everyone's help. We love our little angel and are grateful she had some time with Grandma and Grandpa Ellsworth before she came to us. We love you Brynlee.

Grandma Gwen

High School Graduation


Utah College of Dental Hygiene Graduation

I lost this amazing woman last night. We had no idea that this was coming. Her health was good until we discovered some heart complications last month. We were told that it was caught early and that with surgery she would probably have 15 more years. I knew she missed my grandpa, but I thought they wouldn't reunite for many more years. I know that she was greeted in Heaven by many loved ones. She is able to be with her parents, husband, brother, grandson, and children (Blake and Sheri). Although they are happy to be together again there is a lot of heart ache here on Earth.

I was so blessed to grow up close to my grandparents. I always knew that they loved their grandchildren. I have been told that my grandma is in Heaven rocking my baby and that she is probably warning her about my card playing and how many times she had to purchase "Old Maid," because I destroyed it. I loved playing cards with my grandparents. When I was in high school I would go to their house and play almost every Sunday night. I missed those Sundays once I moved away to college. My grandma was so good about taking us to our various activities, but she often ran a little behind. I'll never forget the time I told her if I was more than 10 minutes late to ballet I had to sit out. She was determined to get me there on time, and drove 90mph down the Lewisville Hwy. I made it!

Grandma loved her garden and it got bigger and bigger every year. This fall i bottled 18 pints of salsa with tomatoes that she grew in her garden. I will miss walking in and hearing her play the piano. My grandma was an amazing pianist. I love my grandma with all of my heart. It is my grandparents together who made my dad the man that he is. I am so lucky to have such an amazing father and I hope that I can be there for him. I can't even comprehend what he and his siblings are going through. Losing both parents in just a few short months is one of the most difficult things I can imagine. I love my family and am so grateful for each and every member of it.

I LOVE YOU GRANDMA GWENNIE!

Where has the time gone?

Megan and me at my baby shower

I can't believe it has been almost 3 months since my last post. It has been busy, but probably not that busy. I will try and catch everyone up on what we have been up to.

August- Jon and I finished our lamaze class. We learned a lot, but there are some things that I wish I could have just not learned about or seen. I had a harder time watching the videos than Jon did. Jon started going back to school full time at Salt Lake Community College. He still works M-F from 8-5 then goes to school M-T from 5:30-7:00 or 5:30-10:00. He is doing very well and I am so proud of him for all of his hard work.

September- Jon and I both had family reunions in September. Mine was Labor Day Weekend and his was the following weekend. It was so good to see a lot of family that we only see a few times each year. I stayed at my parents house for a week and handed out resumes in Southeast Idaho. It is one of two places that we are hoping to get to move to in December. On September 26th, my cousin Megan threw me a baby shower. It was so much fun and so cute. We lucked out and got a lot of great gifts. I didn't think we would need more than my car to go home, but I was wrong! Luckily we had some friends coming to Utah in a truck the next day and they brought some of the larger items. Megan is so creative and it was decorated so well. Thanks again Megan, it was perfect.

October- We went to Frightmares at Lagoon for the first time on October 3rd. It was fun and the weather was perfect. I love to ride rides and had a hard time sitting out. I took my fair share of rides on the train and the sky ride. :) They had a hypnotist and our friends and I told Jon he should volunteer. He went on stage and it was hilarious! My mom would have been so proud. I wish they would have sold a dvd of it, it would be awesome black mail. He got to show us his many talents: butt drumming, beauty pageant contestant (not a good loser), and the best Village Person! Jon took me through one of the haunted houses and enjoyed hearing me scream a few times. I don't like people jumping out at me or following me, especially in the dark. This past weekend we went to visit our friends Tyler and Amber who moved to Cedar City a couple of months ago. We had a great time. We went shopping, to In&Out, went to the St. George temple (witnessed a bride get cold feet), went to the movie Couples Retreat and Amber and I enjoyed girl talks while the boys played Xbox. We had such a great time and are so lucky to have such good friends. I am having one more baby shower in Utah on October 24th. My mom and grandma are going to come a day early and help me get some things ready for the baby.

Baby Update- I am officially 36 weeks today. We are very excited, but wish our baby would turn and get ready for her debut! She is breech. I am in the 10% of people whose baby is still breech at this point. At 39 weeks only 5% are usually still breech, so there is still a chance. Next week we will go to the hospital and my OB will try and turn her by pushing on my stomach. I heard it is very uncomfortable, but we are willing to give it a try. He monitors her heart rate and watches with an ultrasound the entire time. They do it at the hospital, because her heart rate could drop significantly or the cord could wrap around her neck which would both require an emergency C Section. There is also a chance that it could put me into labor. The chances that it will work are less than 50% but we think it is worth it. If it doesn't work we will schedule a c section and our OB will check each week and just make sure she hasn't turned on her own. I was sad when I first found out I would probably have to have a c section, but luckily there are some benefits: My mom and dad will be in town and I can pick her birthday (which will be during week 39 :)).

I hope everyone is having a great fall and I promise to post pictures as soon as she gets here!

What a Year!!!

Here is the dreaded pregnancy picture. This is me on my birthday at 23 weeks!

I can't believe what a year it has been. On my birthday I was looking back at all that has happened and thought I'd post a summary of my year.

August 08- met Jon, went to Mexico with my friends Brianne and Amber

September- started my fourth year of college

October- Jon and I were engaged on 10-09-08, fast, I know

November- went on a cruise to the Western Caribbean with Jon, my parents, Blake, Shyenne, and my Grandma and Grandpa Olsen

December- was married to Jon on New Year's Eve

January- beginning of my last semester of college

February- lost one of my best friend's/cousin Kyle, Jon was in a wreck while on the job (not his fault)

March- found out that we were expecting, so much for the 2 year plan, and I took my National Dental Hygiene written boards

April- my brother entered the MTC, I graduated with my BS in Dental Hygiene

May- I took both my clinical and anesthesia boards, found out that I passed all of my boards and was licensed by the end of the month

June- found out that we are having a GIRL!, lost my Grandpa, I miss him so much

July- Blake left the MTC for France, went to Las Vegas with my mom, Shyenne, Kristy, and Grandma Linda, and celebrated my 22nd birthday

I can't believe what a crazy year it has been. There have definitely been a lot of UPs and DOWNs. I am grateful for the blessing of having eternal families and for my amazing husband. I don't know how I would have survived all of this without him, granted a lot of it wouldn't have happened without him ;). I love all of my family and am grateful for their love and support. What would we do without family?

Pink or Blue? Boy or Girl?

It's a GIRL!!!! We are so excited. It was so much fun to see her moving all over the place. I am so excited to start shopping. Jon and I are going to Park City this weekend to start collecting girl clothes. Sorry this is so short, but it has been an eventful day.

It's a .................

Sorry to get you excited. We don't find out for 13 more days, but want to get everyone's guesses, so we posted a poll on the right side of our blog. Let us know what you think and hopefully we will all know whether the baby is a boy or a girl on June 3rd!

I Passed!!!

So, the WREB(testing) people were nice and only made me wait 1.5 weeks instead of 4 and I passed my clinical boards. I am so grateful to be done playing the waiting game. All that I have to do now is apply for my license which will take 1 to 2 weeks.

We had an appointment with our OB tonight. Everything looks good and we get to find out the gender in 3 weeks! We are getting so excited, and just WANT TO KNOW!!!! This process has made me realize how impatient I am. We will let everyone know when we find out, because I can't keep a secret like that. Thanks for everyone's love and support. Rachael....I will post a prego picture sometime this week. It is crazy how you wake up one morning and have a belly. Jon says he likes it but I'm still a little unsure about it all.

My Mom...Better one day late than never :)

One of the many times my mom and I were asked if we were sisters, celebrating my 19th birthday in VEGAS!

Words cannot express how much I love my mom. She is absolutely amazing. I hope and pray that my children will love me as much as I love her. I have always considered her to be my best friend. She has always been very stylish and I would much rather have her pick out my clothes than me. She looks great for her age, not that she is old, she just doesn't look like she could be a grandma! On several occasions we have been asked if we are sisters. My first response is to inform them that she is my mom not my sister, but then I let her enjoy the compliment. This happens often when my mom, sister and I go out. The waiter will ask who wants the check and Shy and I look at each other like here we go again. We kindly tell the waiter that our mom would love it. :) When they tell us they don't believe it we tease her and say they just want a big tip. My mom, grandma, and I went to get manicures and pedicures the day of my graduation. The lady who was painting my nails said, "so are you two sisters with your mother." I said, "she is my mom and she is my grandma." The lady was completely confused. She did not believe me and insisted that lady was not old enough to have a daughter who was married. I think she would have fainted if I told her she was also soon to be a grandma. Anyone who has had my mom as a nurse knows that she is the best. Her bedside manner is unbelievable. I know that her patients are always well taken care of. I am grateful for all of the many important lessons she has taught me and for all of the love she always shows. I am grateful to be a part of the family that I am and I wouldn't trade it for the world. Thanks MOM! I love you!!!

Graduation

With Shyenne and the hilarious card she gave me

Jon and me

Grandpa and Grandma Olsen with me

My Dad, Grandma Ellsworth, me and Aunt Nancy

Jon, my in-laws, and me

My parents and me

Shyenne, Grandma Linda, Me, My Mom

My Grandma Linda and Me

It is bad when your mom tells you that you need to update your blog. I'm done.....well, almost. I graduated last Monday, and can't believe how quickly the past 4 years have gone by. I took my anesthesia boards 2 days later (Wednesday) and passed. This is the only board that we find out our results the day we take it. On Thursday, I found out that our entire class passed the National written boards (350 questions and 8 hours long) that we took in March. I am so proud of my classmates. We have really worked together to help each other succeed. I surprised myself and did better than I imagined. I received an 85% and was above the national average. On Friday I took my clinical board. I had to "clean" 1/4 of a patient's mouth in 2.5 hours. This seems simple, but you have no idea what a person can build up in their mouth having never had their teeth cleaned in 27 years. My patient was very reliable and funny. When I would ask if he was okay he would tell me "I'm fine, but are you okay?" I have to wait 4 weeks to get the results of my clinical board. If I pass, I just have to apply for my license and I can finally start practicing. I am so grateful for everyone's love, support, and prayers. Thank You!! Today has been such a great day. I was able to work out, run errands, clean and I'm going to make dinner! It feels weird to not have to study. I hope everyone is having a great Monday.

I'm missing him

As most of you know, my brother entered the MTC last Wednesday. I had no idea how hard this was going to be. He is such a great guy and he is being missed by many. He has only been gone 12 days and we have heard from several sources that he is doing awesome. His French teacher is Jacob Quinn who I went through school with (kindergarten-senior year). Blake really likes him and Jacob sent me an email letting me know what a stud Blake is. He said he is a "rock" for his district. It is hard having him so close to me and not being able to see him. I have thought about doing a session at the Provo temple on his temple day, but they advise against that :( Blake, doesn't do anything that he doesn't want to, so I know that it was his choice to serve a mission and that he will work hard every day. I am so grateful for the sacrifice he is making. I know my family will miss him every day. We all have a great sense of humor, but none of us are as funny and quick witted as Blake. I love him so much. He loves letters more than anything, so if anyone would like to write him, let me know and I will get you his address. Good News: I heard that our family is going to get him in Paris. I guess even though I'll have a little one I'm still invited ;)

Our Crazy Life

I thought life was going to be so easy once we were married, but it seems that in the short 3 months that we have been married a lot has gone on.

February: We moved into our new apartment, Jon was in a wreck in his work van and we found out we were going to be parents.

March: the beginning of Birthday madness, Blake the 24th, Chase the 25th, and Jon the 3oth, I took my national written dental hygiene boards on the 24th (8 hours 200 multiple choice questions and 150 questions from 14 case studies), and we attended the funeral of one of my best friends who is my cousin Kyle.

April is just getting started and it is going to be extremely busy: Mom's birthday the 15th (we also have our first OB appt this day), Dad's birthday the 19th, and Shyenne's the 25th, not to mention Easter the 12th which is also the day of Blake's mission farewell (at the Lewisville church building at 11a.m.), On the 22nd we take Blake to the MTC, I graduate the 27th :), I have my anesthesia boards on the 29th and my clinical boards May 1st. I'm sure I have left some things out but you get the idea.

Don't get me wrong we've had some fun times while we've been married, I was even lucky enough to have Jon be my patient. My parents came down and were my patients as well, and Blake and Jesse were patients for a friend of mine. We went to our niece Maddi's dance competition in Logan last weekend. She is so fun to watch. Sorry about all the random pictures I'm posting but I hope you enjoy.

Emotional Roller Coaster

So, you would think Jon's wreck would be enough for us to take on right now. I guess not. He went back to work the Monday following the accident to find that his perfectly fine car (he was in his work van in the wreck) had the F word spray painted all over it. I don't understand vandalizing other people's property.

Then, the past 2 weeks I have been having some abdominal pain. I didn't think much of it until the past few nights when I have been waking up crying. Jon insisted that I go to the doctor tonight. I explain to the doctor where the pain is and that I've had an ovarian cyst and this pain is very similar. He decided to get a urine sample and came back and told me that I didn't have any kind of bladder infection but he asked when my last period was. I told him almost 4 weeks ago and he said "well, I did a pregnancy test.........................................and you're PREGNANT." There was a long period of silence and i broke out in tears and asked if he was kidding. I have been taking birth control, I did miss a couple of pills, and I thought there was no way. So, if that was not a big enough shock he explained to us that he thought I was having pain because it was and ectopic/tubal pregnancy (this is when the baby is in your fallopian tube rather than your uterus). He emphasized that it was life-threatening and he said we should go to the ER. After talking to my mom and her calling a dr, we headed to the ER. After 2 hours of blood tests, ultrasounds, and another urine test the doctor told us that everything looked good, but that he wanted to run some additional tests on Monday. Oh my goodness.......we have only been married 2 months, and I am 4 weeks along. We have cried so many tears tonight, but are definitely happy and excited now.

Time with Jon

Today Jon and I are just chilling at home. He was in a car wreck yesterday in the work van and I have to watch him for 24 hours as part of the neurological evaluation. (He hit is head pretty hard, but we can't decide what he hit it on because there are red lines right where he hit). He's doing great neurologically.

I'll give you the scenario. Jon was following a car yesterday at about 12:30, he was about 200ft behind when the driver pulled of to the side of the road. Jon continued down the road at about 45 mph when he noticed that car making a u-turn. He swerved out of the way so that they didn't t-bone and she hit is right rear tire. It flipped him around and his work van was on two tires. I was at the UDA convention and happened to look at my phone and he was calling me which never happens while he is at work so I thought I'd better answer it. He sounded upset and told me what had happened. He said his neck and back were killing him. My friends and I left the convention and picked him up at the car dealership where the van had been towed to.

My friends took us to our house to get our car and we had to go to Jon's work and then to the dr. I hate dr's offices and this was not one of my better experiences. The dr. did a neurological exam and felt all of Jon's aches and pains. She decided they'd better do some x-rays of his back and neck and a urinalysis. He left the room and I was out. I slept the whole time he was gone, which was about 20 minutes. We waited another half and hour for the dr. to come back in the room. She said the x-rays were good, so it was probably a lot of muscle damage and prescribed him percocet and physical therapy. I was given strict orders not to fill the percocet until after my 24 hour neurological exam. Jon has been begging me to go fill it, so I'll go do it as soon as I'm done with this. Once the dr. did her final neurological exam she said we could go. We didn't know this meant go wait in the other room while they fill out all of the workman's comp forms. We finally left there and I was exhausted. I can't imagine how Jon felt. He was in a lot of pain.

I have some sweet pictures of Jon in his hospital gown, which hopefully he'll let me post some day. I feel so bad for him. The only benefit to all of this is that he gets to play x-box. As he was coming to bed last night he looked like a robot. I think I am the worst wife ever. I could not help but sing the Styx song "Mr. Roboto." I only got through about 5 words before we were both laughing hysterically. He has a hard time just relaxing and I get really mad at him when he tries to do stuff around the house.

I have such a great friend. My friend Angie asked what she could do to help and I told her we'd be okay, but she insisted on bringing us dinner. Her husband made his famous spaghetti accompanied with french bread. It was delicious. Thanks Angie and Greg!

7 Interesting Facts About Myself

I was tagged by my mom. I don't know 7 "interesting" facts about myself, but I'll give it a try.

1. I met Jon online. This is weird, I know. I heard it from my dad every day for a couple of months. No matter where we met, I'm glad we did. We were definitely meant to be together. (My dad loves Jon, in fact, I think he loves him more than me.)

2. I love patients who have a lot of build up, "calculus," on their teeth. It is so gratifying to watch it chunk off. I love when the pieces are too big for the suction. It is definitely a great patient education tool. They have a hard time believing that was on their tooth.

3. I love dental hygiene. I thought I wanted to be a dentist for the majority of my life, but changed to dental hygiene during my first semester of college. I am so grateful that I made this choice. I love the interaction with my patients. I love being at their side for hours at a time. I love helping them improve their oral hygiene and help arrest any periodontal diseases they might have.

4. I am very close to my extended family. I know all of my 2nd cousins and a lot of my 3rd cousins. I am one of the oldest grandkids so a lot of people mistake my cousins as my nieces and nephews which is fine by me.

5. I rarely wear makeup to school. (sorry mom!) It's not that I don't want to, I just choose to sleep 15 more minutes instead. I figure if I'm showered that is most important. It's hard to make blue scrubs and a ponytail look cute with or without makeup.

6. I'm currently stressed out of my mind. My board exams are coming up and that is really taking a toll on me. I am usually pretty good about keeping it all together but that has not been the case this week. I leave for school at 7a.m. get home around 6 p.m., work til 8 p.m. then I'm supposed to have the ambition to study. I wish. Hopefully things will slow down a little after this weekend. My national written board is March 24th, anesthesia board April 29th and 30th and my clinical board is May 1st and 2nd. Good news is....I'm almost done with school. Graduation is April 27th :)

7. I am baby hungry! I have told Jon that I want to wait 6 years to have kids. Deep down in my heart it has always been 2 or 3. We babysat the cutest baby about a month ago and it made me so baby hungry. It was all I could think about for 3 days. Reality set in, but I admitted to Jon that I more realistically want to try in 2 rather than 6 years. I now have added motivation to wait. My mom said it would be hard to go to Paris with a baby, so I guess we'll start trying May 2011 :)

I tag: Cathy, Kristy, Olivia, and Kendra

I need your help!

Today I was asked to write the name I want on my diploma. How hard could that be, right? I can't decide. Please vote on which name you think I should use.

1. Cierra Nichole Ellsworth Sundberg

2. Cierra Nichole Sundberg

3. Cierra Ellsworth Sundberg

Thanks for your help!

In Vegas, we went to Phantom of the Opera, hung out on the strip, went to some fun restaurants, and played the nickel slots.

Honeymoon in Vegas

For our wedding gift, my parents gave us a honeymoon to Vegas. They paid for our room (a luxury suite at the Venetian), flights, and rental car. It was a blast and we appreciate their love, support, and generosity!

Cake Cutting

Wedding