Spring is here! It is so wonderful to walk through our beautiful park and see the grass becoming so green and the animals out and flowers starting to peek out of the earth.

I don't know what I love best about spring. I love longer days (tonight the sun didn't set until close to 7:30), I love daffodils, I love leaving the house with a light sweater, I love budding trees, I love the relief that the dark cold winter is over. I don't think I've ever greeted a spring with more excitement than this one.

We took Reggie walking in the park the other day. His favorite thing is to chase the birds and watch them scatter. We worried a little about letting him chase the geese because they can be down right nasty, but these ones were still green enough that our little monster scared them away. He was thrilled at the effect.

GK has loved having our new little camera. It's so handy we can take it everywhere... and he does. He takes pictures of everything. Some time soon I'll make him do a post showing you all the pictures he took at the Met. Every time he saw something he really liked, he would stop and takeabout fifteen pictures of it. We didn't get through

very much of the museum, but we had a very good time! Anyway, he seems to like to take a lot of pictures of me, which I'm sure I'll appreciate some day... or at least my kids will. He took this one at the park and when I saw it I said, "Oh my goodness, I look pregnant!" Until this week, it was pretty much my little secret, but it's out and here's proof for those of you asking.

The placement of Easter in the Spring couldn't be more perfect in my opinion. What better way to help us understand the importance of the restoration of life than to see it all around us? I'm grateful all of the forms of new life that are surrounding us at this time of year. For the earth's renewal, for this increasingly active little man in my belly, for a promise that all of these things are types to remind us of a perfect plan.

We're back in the game

If I ever had regular readers to my silly blog, I'm sure they've all given up on me by now. But I can't really apologize for my lack of writing because GK and I took a long needed and much enjoyed trip to see his family in California.


We left on the morning of February 22 when New York got several inches of snow. It was an adventure. We took a car to the subway to the Long Island Railroad to MacArthur airport on Long Island (because we flew SWA). Once on the plane we stopped in Chicago, Las Vegas and FINALLY landed in Los Angeles. Whew! (And Reggie made the whole trip in his little bag, coming out only to go through security. What a champ!)

But once there, our trip was relaxed and wonderful. We just got to relax and enjoy 80 degree weather, and go to the beach and enjoy family. At the end of the week we went to our friend Jackie's wedding and reception... a truly wonderful occasion.



Then we were able to spend a couple of days at the Beach with my two brothers and their wonderful families. This is a picture of GK and my bro Nathan (and scantily clad Little Paul) burrying Maren... no, that's not just a pink hat in the sand, that is what is left of Maren.


All in all it was a wonderful trip and we were a little sorry to see it end. But once on the ground here and in our city we were happy to see that the weather was warm, the sun was out and the days seemed to have gotten a little longer. We felt refreshed and happy to face real life.


And I guess it helped that the morning after we got back, we had an appointment for our ultrasound... what they call here the "anatomy scan". I should let GK write about it, he describes it as sort of like winning a video game... you watch the screen, the nurse clicks and then the screen lights up with MALE! That's right... it's a boy, and we are absolutely thrilled.


That very basically brings us up to date. But we're back in reality... and got a beautiful new little camera (thanks Cherrie!) so we'll try to make our posts a little more colorful.

Out of Our System... We Hope

This morning after taking care of GK for a few days. Making sure he had enough fluids, making sure he stayed in bed and didn't push it, making sure he had enough theraflu, kleenex, vaporub, etc. He seemed to be feeling a little better this morning, but Reggie was acting funny.

We'd heard that bugs we get can be transferred into our furry friends, and today I swear... Reggie had the dreaded flu. He was lethargic and slow this morning (and very cuddly as you can see above) He wouldn't eat. I even cut up a little piece of an apple because that's his favorite treat and he didn't eat it. When he yawned his little mouth barely opened as if his throat was hurting. His mouth was dry and when he tried to swallow it looked painful.

I know, I know, I sound crazy. But I was worried. By 4pm or so he still hadn't peed, and I thought "I have got to get some fluids into his little body." So I gave him little pieces of popsicle that he could lick. That had been helpful to numb GK's throat, so I thought I'd give it a go. Success!!! He ate it and a couple of hours later he ate some of his wet food and even took care of his personal business. I was very relieved.

In fact, by the time GK got home from school (also feeling much better), Reggie was ready to play. It's good to have my boys back. They seem to have bonded a little over their illness.

Getting Our Ducks in a Row

We're officially counting down the days until our getaway. Our good friend Jacky is getting married in Los Angeles and we are going to spend a good week with GK's family (and some of mine) while we're in California. We are so excited!

A little over a month ago when we told our families we were expecting Little Riss, we began scheming and dreaming, trying to find a time to go see both our families. It takes a little more coordination than it used to. Of course there are the basics of airline tickets and getting to the airport and not letting GK miss too much school. But then there are those extra things you forget about like a sitter for our car (since it has to be moved at least twice a week for street sweeping), a rabies shot for Reggie just to get him up to date, and so forth.

Well each day things seemed to come together a little more and now we're on the final stretch until trip number one. We leave for California this Friday afternoon, and although we love our little life in Brooklyn, a week of sunshine (we hope) and family and the sweet westcoast waves will be good for the soul(s).

Our last little duck is to get GK feeling better before we put him on that plane. We seem to have been trading bugs over the last couple of weeks and it has hit GK pretty hard this week and he's come down with what looks like pneumonia. So the race is on... four days and counting...

Happy Valentines Day!

So over the past few months, I've been tagged multiple times. And even though I love reading other people's answers, I wondered how much Risser anyone should have to take. Having been warned that an inordinate amount of Risser is to follow, feel free to click away now.

Once we stopped having parties and making Valentine's Day boxes for school, this holiday has been kind of lost on me. Maybe because I didn't really have a Valentine until GK, I just always seemed in transition (or tumult) at that time of year. So lucky for GK, my expectations are pretty low, and lucky for me he is GK and always makes things special. In honor of the day, here is a little bit about him and some about me you may not have known...

My Husband...
What is his name? Gordon Keith Risser III (GK to everyone except phone solicitors and our car mechanic)
How long have you been together? That's a tough one. Married: 18 months. Together before that about 4.5 months (grimace)
How old is he? 31
Who eats more? Him. He's a bottomless pit. When he doesn't eat enough he gets grumpy and has been heard to say "I've been hungry my whole life!"
Who said I love you first? I think I kind of did. It all happened so fast.
Who is taller? GK, thank goodness... I'm only 5'4"
Who sings better? We both love to sing, but he's got a husky singing voice and a ton of raw talent. I'd rather listen to him any day!
Who is smarter? Hmmm. We're different smart. We're very complementary.
Whose temper is worse? It depends on when we last ate and slept. We can both get a little silly sometimes. But usually not unless we're hungry or tired.
Who does the laundry? Me (but GK recognizes moments to step in)
Who does the dishes?Usually me because I'm faster, but since we do A LOT of dishes around here and only anticipate doing more, GK takes his turns.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Well recently we changed the direction of our heads, and GK stayed by the wall and I stayed by the edge.
Who pays the bills? Me
Who mows the lawn? We'll let you know in a few years when we have one!
Who cooks dinner? We alternate. Most nights GK has class so we eat lunch together more often than dinner.
Who drives when you are together? GK
Who is more stubborn? We're both pretty stubborn. And it looks like our child already is too.
Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Me, but I'm wrong more often :)
Whose parents do you see the most? It's about the same. We don't see either one often enough, but we're going home for a visit a week from tomorrow!!!
Who kissed who first? GK kissed me. He came to see me in Denver for the weekend from LA and I told him ahead of time that I didn't think we should kiss (I know! What was I thinking? But to be fair, my previous relationship didn't end so great and I thought it would be good not to let physical attraction stuff confuse the situation). Well GK said, "We'll see." And within 3 hours of being in the same state, he kissed me and that was it.
Who asked who out? I emailed first, after that he made all the moves.
Who proposed? GK. He took me to a beautiful cliff overlooking the ocean and made me breakfast and wrote me a poem. It really was a dream.
Who is more sensitive? We're both pretty sensitive. I cry more.
Who has more friends? It's about the same. We're very blessed.
Who has more siblings? Close. He's the oldest of seven. Six boys and a girl. I'm number four of six living. Four boys and two girls.
Who wears the pants in the family? Um, we have a lot of clothes, so we can usually both manage a pair at the same time.

So now you know. Happy Valentine's Day!

What is significant about February 11?

For the past few days in various conversations with various people GK will suddenly say, "What is February 11?" Without exception the other person would respond, "I don't know, why? President's day?" No president's day is officially the 12th I think. Although he could never give a good answer as to why the fixation with February 11, he just kept asking hoping that someone would be able to enlighten him.

Well, it's almost 8:00 here in New York City and little of consequence has occurred in my life to make today stand apart (other than the fact that it was FREEZING today). We went to Seminary, came home and took a little nap, woke up and picked up some groceries, made lunch, went into town to see a man about our phones, went and saw the Jack Keroac scroll at the New York City public library, dropped GK off at school, ran some errands purchasing and returning various items, hopped on the train (got a seat the whole ride home, not an easy task at rush hour, and I didn't even have to knock anyone out of the way), made dinner, addressed some valentines and then began catching up on my blogfriends. Actually in review it was a very fun day. It was productive and spontaneously adventurous... the Keroac thing was totally unplanned. But it wasn't the kind of day that GK necessarily should have been looking forward to for three days... Oh well, I suppose we'll never know what the significance of February 11 is, so I'm glad we made our own.

I've realized recently how easy it is to just let the days pass. It's easy to allow life to plow on becoming entrenched and overwhelmed by the daily grind. But life has loveliness to sell. There is so much good. Every once in a while GK (particularly at this time of year) starts going a little stir crazy. He needs to get out and have an adventure. On Saturday, in response to such an occurance we rode our bikes in the cold wind along the shore of Brooklyn down to Coney Island and then rode the train back. It's something we've talked about doing but were waiting for "better" weather to do it in. I'm grateful for my wanderer. I'm glad that he doesn't like to sit still for too long. I'm glad that when we come out of the subway and see the Jack Keroac banner hanging above the library doors that he wants to share it with me. I'm sure those opportunities come more often than I notice, so watch out world... my eyes are open.

Looking on the Bright Side

In our ward in Denver there was a sweet little lady who was a bit eccentric to put it mildly. I didn't know her well, but she struck me as the kind of person who probably didn't have a lot of close friends and family around. Well, one Sunday she stood up in either Fast and Testimony meeting or Relief Society (or maybe both) and said she would like to publicly thank all those who had tried to call on her birthday. She apologized that her phone hadn't been working so she hadn't been able to receive the calls, but she wanted to sincerely thank everyone who had tried to call to wish her a happy day.

As she spoke I got a little weepy and thought of how pure and sweet her gratitude was. She was just sure that everyone had remembered her on her special day. I thought how lucky it probably was that her phone had been broken so she couldn't be disappointed at the lack of calls. Maybe she would have been right, but either way her story made me think about what a beautiful, positive outlook she had.

I missed the main broadcasting of President Hinckley's funeral because I was on a Greyhound bus, but I've seen the replays and recaps on the BYU channel and that was what stuck out to me... what an incredibly positive man he was... and as a result what a dynamic person he was.

I thought of this little lady in Denver today on my birthday. My phone is still broken and though GK ordered new ones while I was out of town (stuff for a different entry) they didn't come in the mail yet. So I thought of how many people would try to call me to tell me they love me and are glad I was born. I did get many text messages and many emails from my family and GK's family. It made me so grateful for my two families.

I'm 29 years old today and this year is going to be a big one. Birthdays all of the sudden mean something really different. So on this February 4, I'm particularly grateful for my mom, for my sweet husband who tried to make every minute of today special, and for the upcoming birthday of our own little one.