Introducing: Taylor Marie

At 8:34, Taylor Marie entered the world as a feisty, spunky baby, all full of energy. She is alert, smart, adorable and all ours! I simply cannot believe it. She weighs in at 6 lbs. 8 oz. and 19 in. long. You can't see it in this picture (I'll upload more later) but she has a full head of dark, curly hair, chubby cheeks and adorable little fingers and toes that I can't stop kissing.

Kristin couldn't have an epidural, so I learned just how strong and brave she is, even though she kept saying "I'm done being brave." She really was so brave! I love her so much.

I'll post more pictures later, and maybe even a video. Thank you all for your prayers. Mom and baby are doing great!

We got to the hospital about two hours ago. This is the real deal! Check the geolocator below if you don't believe me! I'll update with photos right after the baby is born.

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Rotten Weather with a Silver Lining

Can you believe the weather we're having? This is April! It should be spring showers, not spring "12 inches of snow." Since I came into work so early, traffic wasn't bad, but I had to drive pretty slow on the freeway to keep from hydroplaning.

When I got to work this morning, the parking lot was still completely snow-covered. And I'm not kidding when I say there was about a foot of snow on the ground. The snow plow had made one pass around my side of the building, so I drove in the cleared track looking for a place to park. I ventured parking in the back of the parking lot on my side where it wasn't plowed, but my car wouldn't be in the way. The next thing I know, I'm completely stuck. It was early, so no one was around, and I tried putting the car into neutral and pushing it out myself. Next thing, I'm flat on my back behind the car. That definitely wasn't going to work, so I got back in the car and continued trying to gently ease out of my rut. But that still wasn't working, and the smell of burning rubber was starting to get overpowering.

Just when I thought I was going to spend the next hour stuck in the snow, Adam Bazelle from Testing drove up, jumped out and gave me the push I needed as I pumped the gas pedal. With the synergy of our combined effort, the car eventually creeped out of the rut and I proceeded to the other side of the building where there were rows of parking stalls freshly plowed.

I know Adam probably won't see this, but I just want to thank him. He saved my morning, and even though I'm wet from falling in the snow, this is a good day because I have been reminded of the goodness of people, and how our Heavenly Father uses those around us to bless us.

False Alarm

We're headed home. The nurses don't seem worried about the swelling or headache.

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We just arrived at the hospital. We'll see if they keep us here this time. Kristin started texting me saying that she was having strong contractions and that she had swollen up a lot in her feet and face, which was accompanied by a headache, so they told us to come in. Keep your fingers crossed, everybody!

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I'd like to apologize on behalf of myself and Kristin. Not updating the blog since January? Pathetic! Kristin isn't too into blogging, and I've been trying to get her to post some more updates. If you've been following us on Facebook, then you know that Kristin and the baby (still unborn) are doing great, but we're anxiously awaiting our little girl's arrival. Kristin was due on Saturday and now we're just waiting for things to happen. Hopefully soon.

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Snow, Heroes and a Health Screening

This is a view of the freeway on a typical snowy day during the morning commute. However, there was nothing typical about our commute this morning. I mean, people were for the most part making intelligent decisions! People were driving a reasonable speed for a snowy morning, they were keeping a safe distance between cars and all in all, things were going very well! I couldn't have been happier with this morning's commute. Keep it up, Utah Valley drivers! And I'm very happy that it is snowing! We could really use the precipitation (I don't like the word moisture very much) and it's just not Christmas without a beautiful blanket of snow.

Volume 3 of my favorite show, Heroes, ended last night after only 13 episodes. While I'm disappointed with the length of this season--which can all be blamed on NBC's handling of the writers' strike and their pressuring of Heroes creator, Tim Kring to shorten up season 2--I was very impressed with the direction that the show has taken. Without giving anything away, the depth that they are giving to the relationship between the two main characters, Nathan and Peter Petrelli, is becoming very compelling. I really am looking forward to the next season, Heroes Volume 4: Fugitives. Until then, I'll keep going to NBC.com/Heroes for my fix.
Remember the movie, Gattaca? Well, in case you don't here is a synopsis of what the world of Gattaca is like: in the near future, nothing is left to chance. Parents don't have to worry about their children being born with defects, or not being smart enough, because they are engineered to be top-of-the-line. Because of this, all employers do DNA testing as a screening for employment, which means that as long as you have the right genes, you can get the job. This is starting to happen at my job. In order to qualify for the lowest cost of health benefits for 2009, I had to take part in a health screening. It only took ten minutes, and they say my employer will never see the results, but I can just see things getting more and more invasive and our lives becoming more and more controlled. On the plus side, though, the flabotomist that took my blood did a fabulous job. I didn't even feel a brief sting!
P.S. my finger is doing quite a bit better! I still have to tape it--and will for the next couple of weeks--but I'm already regaining some movement.