Happy Birthday Calvin Scott!

Life gets exponentially busier with each child that you add to the mix. So although this is almost two months late, I am grateful to have a quiet moment this Sunday to write about Calvin's first birthday and reflect on everything that he's brought to our family.

I couldn't have asked for a better little brother for Olivia. Ever since he was born, Calvin has been quite, happy, patient and mild. He is a great balance to Olivia's feisty independence. They are still learning how to play nicely with each other, but you can always tell how much they love each other.

At one year old, Calvin is 22 pounds (53 percentile) and 30.3 inches tall (64 percentile). And yes, his head is still in the 90th percentile. Big head, big brains, that what we always say. :)

Here are some of my favorite things about Calvin:

When he gets excited or thinks that you're chasing him he will crawl to you, roll on his back and then wait to be tickled or picked up. He looks at you with such giddy anticipation that you just can't help but comply.

He is a BIG nuzzler, and I love it!  He just lays his head on your chest and sits there for a few minutes, long enough to soak it all in.

He learned early how to throw a tantrum and is definitely playing the younger sibling card. When Liv takes his toy or does something he doesn't like, boy does he let us know! I am just now learning that all of his cries aren't justified. Sorry Liv.

He can say dada, mama and nana (banana) as well as multiple grunts and screams.

He loves all plugs and will pull out your computer plug so fast you won't realize it until you run out of battery. (Our computers are dinosaurs so that happens fast.)

He has four teeth and is getting a little more hair. I finally cut the mullet that was starting at the back of his head and can I just say, he looks good!

He gets hangry, just like his mama. Don't mess with him when he's hungry. Just get food fast!

Speaking of food, he is a bottomless pit. He is a great eater and will usually down anything you give him.

Although he is definitely getting more opinionated with age, he is still generally our quite, happy, adorable baby boy!

A Tiny Girl Turns Two!

Can you believe that this girl is two years old?!?

Hillary Muelleck Photography

On May 29th we celebrated another year with this cutie! Olivia has become a little spitfire. She has such a fun personality blossoming every day. (These are a few of her classic faces)

Here are a few things we love about Liv:

1. She loves dancing to Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars (anything with a good beat really).

2. She is great at puzzles (both real and on the iPad, thanks to Babbo)

3. She still has a mild temperament but she's becoming more and more opinionated. She is very independent and likes to do things all by herself. 

4. She loves being outside and no matter how long we've stayed at the park she will always cry when it's time to go home.

5. For the first year of her life it seems as if she didn't know other kids existed. ;) She is learning how to have friends and she loves it.

6. She is starting to talk but it seems she picks and chooses the words she wants to learn. Only the delicious and fun words (chocolate, strawberry, bubbles, hammock, kite, etc.)

7. We just learned that Olivia is the "alpha female" in nursery. If she sees something she wants she will just take it. We are working on that as Calvin can attest that she thinks she is the alpha female at home too.

We sure do love our Livvy Loo! She is a great big sister, a wonderful daughter, and the best little two year old we know! Happy Birthday!

The Hills go to The Hill

Chris recently had a week off for spring break and we decided to take advantage of this time and travel to one of the greatest cities in our nation -- Washington DC!  We grabbed a few of our friends and drove the 2.5 hours for a great three-day vacay.

Our first stop was Mt. Vernon - the home and estate of our first president, George Washington. The estate consists of a gorgeous home, many gardens, and a working farm. We spent the entire morning exploring everything, from the upper gardens all the way down to the wharf on the Potomac river. It was beautiful and very interesting to learn more about this founding father. (They even have the very bed that President Washington died in! A little gross...but very cool.)

A little family photo outside Washington's home.

Washington's very own buggy.

Liv loved the sheep grazing in the fields!

A great shot of Washington's home. (We always seem to travel when construction is going on...)

The upper gardens and greenhouse.

While it was drizzling a little in the morning, that afternoon turned out to be a beautiful 75 degrees! So we took advantage of the weather and decided to walk the National Mall and visit the monuments.

The family outside the Washington Monument. Calvin was just sleeping away.

Hillary and I at the WWII monument.

A star for each fallen or missing soldier in WWII

Chris and Jason resting at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial. (Jason is actually kind of smiling. It's a miracle!)

Liv's favorite part of the day? Running up and down the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

Chris snapped this great shot of the Washington Memorial on our way back to the metro. It could have been even more beautiful if the cherry blossoms were in full bloom, but alas, we were a week or two too early.

That night we ate a half-smoked at the famous Ben's Chili Bowl. I had to be a tourist and get a picture. 

The next day the weather wasn't quite so cooperative. It was a little rainy and windy so we decided to stay inside and explore the museums. We were able to make our way through the Smithsonian's Museum of Natural History, Air and Space Museum, and the National Gallery of Art.

The zoologist in Chris definitely came out as he showed Olivia the wonder of the natural world.

We even paid a little extra to go into the butterfly pavilion. Turns out Liv likes pictures of butterflies much better than she likes the real things. She kept shaking her head and saying no when one flew too close. 

Chris and Calvin marveling at the huge planes in the Air and Space Museum. The picture is a little fuzzy but I needed proof that Calvin actually came with us on this vacation!

That night we went to the Washington DC temple to do a session. As this is the closest temple to us we don't get to visit as often as we would like. It was great to feel the spirit (and to rest our weary feet!).

Saturday was our last day in DC. We had planned to visit the National Zoo, but the weather was FREEZING! It looked nice and sunny outside but the wind was killer. We decided we just couldn't hack it so we went to the National Geographic museum instead. We got to learn all about the gigantic fish that live in rivers and the existence of the still debated Spinosaurus. (Unfortunately no pictures)

Although the cherry blossoms were not yet in bloom, the Cherry Blossom festival was still going forward in full force. We had been looking forward to the kite flying festival and competition all week. So we decided we could brave the weather for just a little bit in order to fly a kite on the grounds of the Washington Monument.

Chris and Liv getting the kite ready!

Christ masterfully flying the kite!

We could only stand the cold for about half an hour, but that was good enough for all of us. We decided to call it a day and head back to PA. Of course, on our way back we had to stop at the nearest Cafe Rio, which is in Baltimore. Any chance I get to devour one of their pork salads, I will definitely take! And Chris even bought me some of their delicious tortillas to take home. Yum!

All in all it was a wonderful vacation! I'm glad Chris could take a little bit of time off and that we could explore some of the treasures of the east coast. Looking forward to many more adventures in the future!

Heart Problems...

Growing up I never thought I would have heart problems. I didn't think I would need to know what an MI was or the progression of coronary artery disease. I didn't know that for the last five weeks of my life I would have some serious heart problems.

But today is a great day. Finally, after nights of endless research, physicals, and drug regimens, my heart problems have come to an end.

That's right, Christopher's cardiology block is over!
Click here for my reaction.

This block has been crazy! Let me preface this by saying that Chris's professors basically told everyone that if they weren't studying for ten hours a day (outside of class) they were not going to pass the exam. Thanks for the words of encouragement, professor.

Even though Chris was the one with the endless nights of studying, I tried to help out where I could. Finding articles, pretending to be a patient so he can work on his clinical skills, and looking up drug effects. But mostly I cooked, cleaned and took care of his two cute kids so he could really focus on this block.

Now we have a glorious two week break, and it couldn't have come at a better time. The weather is finally starting to warm up. We are now at a balmy 45 degrees instead of the bone-chilling 12 degrees we've been experiencing. We have a fun three day trip planned to DC and we are excited to have a few days of true relaxation. 

So let me be the first to wish a fond farewell to cardiology and all my heart problems! ;)

Czech This Out!

Most of you know that Chris and I both served a mission in the Czech Republic. That is where we first met and we still hold strong ties to the country, language, and especially the FOOD! But honestly, we have been a little nervous to try and replicate this delicious Czech fare partly because we don't have all of the ingredients readily available here in the States and partly because, let's be honest, can anything we cook up really be as great as a Czech babicka's cooking? (Shout out to Pani Turkova!)

But, after almost four years of marriage, we decided to finally tackle the famous Czech entree, Svickova (beef sirloin with cream sauce and bread dumplings) and the Czech dessert, Medovnik (honey cake). We found the blog of this really funny Czech lady who now lives in the States. She has mastered most of the famous Czech dishes using American ingredients. (Czech Cookbook) We decided to try her recipes. And, because we don't do anything half way, we decided to invite a bunch of friends over to experience this with us! We had six of Chris's medical school friends join us for dinner!

Getting ready for this night turned out to be a week-long process. Chris planned out what we needed to accomplish each day of the week in order for this dinner party to be a success. Some ingredients needed to be prepped a few days in advance, and the cake needed to refrigerate for at least a day in order for all the goodness to soak together. It was a busy but very fun week. I made bread dumplings for the first time, Chris tackled the honey cake, and we worked together to whip up the svickova.

Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of the night and all our friends. I was just too busy enjoying the evening! The svickova was wonderful and tasted very close to the real thing. But, I have to say that the star of the night was Chris's medovnik! It was DELICIOUS!!! I probably could have eaten the entire cake all by myself!

We had a ton of fun and I'm sure we will do this again soon! Here are the few pictures I got of the event.

Chris working on the honey cake

I didn't get a picture of the finished cake, but it looked a lot like this.

Svickova - The finished product! 

C.S. Hill the 2nd

Calvin will be three months old tomorrow. Crazy!

In the past three months Calvin has

• started to smile and laugh. He has this big goofy grin that is adorable!
• started to hold his head up on tummy time, even though he hates tummy time more than almost anything. 
• become the super pooper! I have scrubbed more poop out of clothes than I care to admit.
• been beaten up by his sister too many times to count. She loves him but hasn't quite mastered 'soft and gentle' quite yet. 
• had two colds already! Darn this winter!
• started sleeping about five to six hours a night. I'll take that. :)
• flown on an airplane already! We got to visit all the family this Christmas and he was adored by all.
• already been given his first stuffed animal - an adorable Hobbes tiger! (Even though Liv has taken this over and it will be hard to convince her that it isn't hers in a few months.)
• been growing like a champ! He had his two month check up last week and here are the stats! (My office doesn't usually tell us the percentile babies fit into, so I got these percentages from the World Health Organization calculator. Pretty cool!)
• Height: 23.9 = 84%
• Weight: 12.9 = 61.8%
• Head: 16.5 = 99%
• Yes, that's right everyone, he has a huge head! "It's like an orange on a toothpick!" Actually, it doesn't look that big to me, but apparently he's giving his brain plenty of room to grow.

We love this little munchkin and can't explain all the love and fun he has brought to our home. 

A New Year...

"I cannot go back to yesterday 
                         because I was a different person then."
                                   -Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
     

I'll be honest, coming up with resolutions for this year has been a little difficult. I feel like I have a lot of self improvement to do, but I'm not quite sure where to start. There are holes in my life that need filling. I feel the need for greater spirituality, better self-control, and more creativity. Frankly, I don't know how I am going to accomplish filling these holes, so my 2015 goals are going to be malleable and may change throughout the year, but this is where I am going to start:

Spirituality

1. Say my personal prayers every day. 
I believe that having a personal relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Chris leads to greater self confidence and a healthy respect for life and for those relationships we create during this life. Prayer helps set the tone for our day and gives us a greater perspective. So I created a good, old-fashioned, paper calendar where I will mark off my progress. It is helpful to have something so concrete to look at. I don't want to see any blanks squares amid all of my X's.

2. Read the Book of Mormon as a family.
Hearing the stories in the scriptures reminds me of the "great things the Lord has done for [my] fathers" and also helps give an eternal perspective to this life. We have recently started to incorporate reading the Book of Mormon into our bedtime routine with Liv. This has been helpful for the whole family because as we strive to teach Liv, we learn ourselves.

3. Go to the temple three times this year.
The temple is the closest place to heaven besides our own homes. The closest temple to us is the Washington DC temple. We have never lived so far away from a temple (which is still pretty close compared to many of our brothers and sister around the world). Although three times a year doesn't sound like much, I feel that it is going to be enough of a challenge for us while we work with a med school schedule, one car, and two kids. :)

Self-Control

1. No senseless media after 10:00pm on weekdays.
Right now a lot of my nights are wasted on Facebook, Pinterest, and phone games. Generally, after 10:00pm nothing productive happens. I just stay up really late doing silly things and pay for it the next morning. So, the phone goes off at 10:00pm SHARP! I won't watch movies or shows after 10:00. I used the caveat of no "senseless" media after 10:00 because I believe that I can do some productive or useful things on the computer. Blogging, for example. :)

2. Get healthy.
I don't really want to detail my health plan here because this often has the opposite effect for me. The more people who know about my diet/workout/whatever plan, the more likely I am to fail. I had to put this goal out there, but just don't ask me about it. :)

Creativity
Now here is where I really struggle. Being a stay-at-home mom has its challenges in this regard. I am not going to school every day but I still want to expand my mind. I am not working outside the home but I still want to feel productive. So far my creative outlet has been in decorating my home (which many of my friends can attest, is still pretty pathetic). So this section of my goals is where I will be most flexible. I would like to take this year to discover a new (or rediscover an old) talent that I can foster inside my home. So that is my first goal. I have a few other creative or fun goals as well.

1. Discover a new talent.
This will require me to get out of my comfort zone and try new things. Possibilities include: quilting, sewing, sign language, interior design, and anything else that comes my way!

2. Observe, then serve.
What does this have to do with creativity, you ask? I think it takes a lot of creativity to know how to serve someone. It takes more than the rote "Let me know if there's anything I can do" statement. It takes a good amount of thought to do something really helpful to another person. This was a goal I had last year and I failed miserably at it. To help me this year I am going to include another person or family in my personal prayers each day. Hopefully this will help me listen to the spirit to discern how I can best serve them. Then I am going to try to do at least one act of service a week. This could be something as simple as a phone call or as elaborate as helping plant a garden. Who knows what kinds of things I can help with this year!

3.Go on at least four day trips to visit historical sites.
This is a "just for fun" goal, but I think we all need at least one of these! There are soooo many amazing things to do near where we live and I don't want to miss out!  I've already made a list of some of the great places I want to visit: Amish town (Lancaster), Gettysburg, Philadelphia, Washington DC, New York City, Boston, Martha's Vineyard, Falling Waters (for you, Linds), Reading Terminal Market (America's oldest farmers' market), and Strites Orchard just to name a few.
*If any of you east coasters have any suggestions for my list, please let me know!

These goals aren't as concrete as many of my 2014 goals, but I feel that if I keep them in my mind and measure what I can, then I will accomplish many of my goals and develop myself in important and needed ways. Wish me luck!

2014 in Review

Last year I made 14 New Year's Resolutions and put them in writing on this blog. I will say that even though I did not complete all of my goals, I think it was very helpful to have them "visible" and have easy access to review them. So here is my report:

1. Go to the gym at least three times a week.

With my new gym membership to Planet Fitness and high resolve to live healthy, I'm hoping to create good habits that last.

I did a really great job of this while we were living in Utah. I found that I enjoyed going to the gym and having some time to be alone, be active, and work on my personal health. I'll admit when we moved to Pennsylvania (and I was six months pregnant and without a gym) my habit quickly died. This is something I will revisit in 2015, although I will need a new game plan with two kids!

2. Get into med school! 

I see this journey to medical school as a joint journey, so it's one of my resolutions as well. 

Chris was accepted to Penn State's Hershey School of Medicine. We have found this first year of med school to be difficult but also very fulfilling. Chris is doing very well in school and is involved in ophthalmology research with faculty. 

3. Visit parents in Italy. 

Chris and I have talked about going to Europe together since we got married. If it's going to happen before we turn fifty, it's gotta happen now! Plus, what better motivation to have than to see Grammy and Babbo?

After we found out Chris was accepted to medical school, we decided to take the big European trip we had been dreaming about. It was our last hurrah before our grueling ten year med school journey began. We spent two weeks in Italy and France, six of those days with my wonderful parents. It was epic!

4. Read 28 books

This was inspired by my friend's goal last year. 28 books because I am 28 years old. I used to love reading and I haven't done much of it lately. So, first on the list is The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet. 

I didn't quite read 28 books, but I did read more than I have in years past. The 2014 list consisted of:

*Zornan: Peak Crosser, by Adam Mangum

The Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, by Jamie Ford

Painted Girls, by Cathy Marie Buchanan  (NOT recommended)

The God Who Weeps, by Terryl L. Givens

Teatime for the Firefly, by Shona Patel 

Paper Towns, by John Greene

Inferno, by Dan Brown

*When the Emperor Was Divine, by Julie Otsuka

Divergent, by Veronica Roth

Eragon, by Christopher Paolini

*The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak

Prospero, by Adam Mangum

Fates, by Kayla MacNeille

Mindless Eating, by Brian Wansink

       *my favorites

5. Go to festival of colors.

I lived in Provo, Utah for four years and never attended this Hari Krishna festival! If there's a possibility that we are leaving Utah this year, I need to check this off my bucket list. 

This was definitely a one of a kind experience. I enjoyed it and would probably do it again. But I would be much better prepared!

6. Finish Olivia's baby book.

I love Heritage Makers to preserve memories. Liv is almost one and I would love to have a keepsake to give to her when she is older. 

This is so close to being finished! I finally got some pictures that were stored on my in-laws computer so it will be finished and off to publishing soon.

7. Get to know four neighbors.

This is actually a goal given to our ward by our bishop. This is something that I struggle with (putting myself out there) so I thought I would add it to my list to better myself. 

This was not fulfilled until I moved to Pennsylvania. It has been easier here to get to know people around me. My next door neighbor, Frances, is an amazing grandma who thinks of us often. There are many people on my street who have been so welcoming to us and hopefully I have been kind and welcoming to them as well. :)

8. Read Book of Mormon. 

Another ward goal and it's been a little while since I've read the Book of Mormon cover to cover.

Unfortunately, this did not happen. However, we have started a new bedtime routine with Olivia which includes reading from the Book of Mormon and family prayer every night. We started with the first chapter of First Nephi tonight!

9. Have personal and family prayer every night. 
It's the last part of the goal that I need to work on - consistency. 

Darn that consistency. It was never my friend. So this goal continues. And to help me with this goal I have printed out a small, one-page calendar that has all the months in the year. I am going to mark off each day that I say my prayers so at the end of the year I will have a completely filled in calendar. That is right, I am resorting to elementary school tactics! I may even break out the smiley face stickers! :)

10. Make a quiet book for Liv.

I know it will be a little while before Liv will need a quiet book, but I also know that it will take me a long time to make it. So, I will start now. 

Nope, not even started. I may try to tackle this this year...or I may just buy one. :)

11. Take Chris to the Mona rope swing.

Another bucket list item before we leave Utah. I had fun memories there and I want to share them with Chris. 

We were so busy the summer before we moved to PA, that this just didn't seem to be high enough priority. But I am looking forward to creating more fun and new memories going forward!

12. Disconnect with the phone to be more productive.
I'm not horrible with this, but I could definitely be better. 

I feel that I did a pretty good job with this. During the summer I took Liv on many outside adventures and in the winter I have tackled a lot of home projects. It has been a lot of fun!

13. Choose to be happier.

Especially when I'm hungry and/or sleepy, when trials come, or when my future seems uncertain, I still have agency and can choose to be happy. 

I think I've done a good job of this as well. Not to say that I have been perfectly happy all the time. But medical school has brought a lot of changes for me and for how our family functions. I have tried to be supportive, happy and optimistic about these changes and the new path our life has taken. 

14. Choose to look out for others (observe, then serve).

This was suggested by my relief society teacher and I knew it was something I needed to work on. Mostly the observing part. 

I'm still pretty bad at this. I think I am the worst observer in history! Even to those I am closest with I can be pretty oblivious. I haven't figured out yet how I can make this a measurable goal, but I will work on it. 

So, all in all, I achieved about half of my goals.  And amazingly, I don't feel bad about that! As I said in the beginning, having these goals written down gives me a visual sense of my progress, whereas in years past I have vaguely tried to work on things without much sense of how I was doing. It is fun to see where the year has taken me!