Haley Dance Class

So, we enrolled Haley at a great studio located in Orem, UT. We just started with the summer session, but she LOVES Miss Kim!!!! This is just a quick video of her in the tap portion of her class. Her class is a combo Ballet, Tap and Jazz class. She just loves it!!!!!

Fun Stuff at the Hilgendorf House

I know to some of you, these next couple things are so small that you're wondering "why is she blogging about these???!!!". I guess I am just easily pleased! About a month ago my mom and dad came out for a quick visit. My cousin got married, so they decided to make a trip out of it. They were out here for almost a week, and in that time, my dad started work on putting stairs down into our crawl space. For those of you who don't know, we do not have a basement...but a 9 foot tall crawl space. The entrance to it was located under our stairs where we would store a few things and there was a hole and a ladder to get down into the crawl space. We figured it would be a TON easier to store things down there if we had stairs instead of a 4x4 hole. So, Dad really did a great job of getting things together and did A LOT of work! Chris had a lot of photo shoots that week, but along with Steve & Glen, all 4 of them helped finish it all out! It is GREAT to have stairs that go downstairs to our "basement". Here's a picture of our finished product! The stairs are so well built that if an earthquake hits, the stairs will be the only thing left standing!

Another thing that I'm really exicted about is my new air conditioner! Yes, we do have central air, BUT when I'm working graveyards I feel it very wasteful to cool down the entire house when I'm only in my bedroom sleeping. I had a commission check from my Travel Business last month, so guess what I did with it.....bought myself a brand new wall unit air conditioner!!!!! It is SO nice having the cooled room when I sleep and not have to worry about cooling the entire house. Here's a picture of my new air conditioner!

Driving Miss Haley

So, Haley is just super funny. She's always saying and doing things that just crack Chris and I up! The other day I was driving and she was in her car seat. I stepped on the gas to get through a light and she says... "Woah! Slow Down Kiddo!" I think she got that one from Chris. She also won't let us even leave the driveway without REMINDING us to put on our seatbelt. She's funny, and safe. She also reminds us when we're at a stop light or stop sign that we "have to wait for the cars to get out of the way" or "we need to turn right" (usually because that's where a playground or fast food plase with a play area). She just cracks me up!

The Tag

A-Attached or Single: Attached----happily married :)
B-Best Friend: can't decide
C-Cake or Pie: Cheesecake
D-Day of Choice: any day I get to spend with my family
E-Essential Item: flip flops
F-Favorite Color(s): recently....pink....it's all over the place in our house....
G-Gummy Bears or Worms: Gummy Bears
H-Hometown: Glendora, CA
I-Indulgences: TV/movies, my nails & DISNEY!!!!!
J-January or July: January
K-Kids- Love them, have 1 and 1 on the way!!! (hence the reason for all the pink in the house---both girls)
L-Life Is: Crazy, but lovin it!
M-Marriage Date: 11/10/2001
N-Number of siblings: 2 brothers, 2 sisters
O-Oranges or Apples: tangerines LOL, i would say that's in the orange family
P-Phobias or Fears: Not really anything
Q-Quote: The end is just the beginning of a whole new race!
R-Ring size: dunno....changes when I'm pregnant
S-Season: Spring
T-Tag 3: Cali, Deb & Angela
U-Unknown fact about me: I used to dance....some know, some don't...but now you all do!
V-Very Favorite Store: Target!!!!!!!!!
W-Worst Habit: why don't you tell me? always good to know the truth about myself
X-X-Ray or Ultrasound: Ultrasound
Y-Your Favorite Food: changes with this pregnancy
Z-Zodiac: Libra

Grandma's Wall

So, a couple weeks ago Rachel, Glen and I had fun at Grandma's house in Provo. For Mother's day my mom wanted to re-do her picture wall. Since she doesn't live up here, Rachel and I put a plan together and then recruited Glen to assist. We painted her walls in the hallway, bought some new picture frames and got some new pictures. Here are some pics of our progress.

This is a picture of Glen and Rachel sanding the walls a bit before we painted. The walls were super smooth and they needed a bit of texture before we put some paint on them.

This is Steph and Glen starting the painting process.

And, here's the finished product....for the most part. Some of the pictures hadn't gotten to us yet, so most of the pictures are different than what you see here. I'll update it as soon as it's all done. The vinal lettering on top says "All because two people fell in love" Then there's the picture of Grandma and Grandpa. Then there's the pictures of all their kids. At the bottom it says "our eternal family"

We had a blast doing this, and it was even better when we got phone calls from Grandma. I could hardly understand what she was saying because she was crying.

Haley Fishing and Bike Riding

So, a couple weeks ago we went to a graduation party that was at a pond. People had brought their fishing poles and were catching fish. Haley was loving it! She kept saying that she wanted a fishing pole. Chris loved that, so what did he do....went out and bought her a fishing pole and then bought a fishing license so they could go fishing! Here's a picture of Chris and Haley fishing at Salem Pond. She loves casting and reeling the line in.

Haley also is now too big for her Tricycle that we got over year ago for her 2nd birthday/Christmas. Her legs were just getting too long. SO....Chris went out and bought her a new bicycle! It's a big girl bicycle with training wheels. She'll be able to use it for a LONG time. The seat here is at the lowest position.

She also got a new helmet. Her head is too big for the 3+ size. She had to go with 5+!!! Also, guess what kind she choose....HANNA MONTANA!!! Are you kidding me!!!! I never have that stuff on in the house so I have NO IDEA how she even knew who she was! Oh Well...It's still a cute helmet and it keeps her head safe.

And the Ultrasound Results are......

SO!!!! After a long wait....we finally had our ultrasound!!!! I'll attach pictures later, but from what the Doctor says, it looks like we'll be having another GIRL!!!! We're so excited!!!!!

Haley Writing

So, Haley is such a big girl! We got a book to have her start to practice writing her numbers and letters. It's great for when she goes to the sitter because they have a 6 year old who has "homework time". Now Haley has her "homework", too. Chris brought it out 2 nights ago for the first time and she picked it up just great! Here's a video and picture.

ONE MORE WEEK!

So, we only have one more week until we find out what we're having! I'll be 23 weeks on May 19 and at 4pm, if all goes well and if baby cooporates, we'll be able to find out if we'll have a little girl or a little boy. I never really had a feeling or dream or anything like that with Haley. I had no clue what she was going to be. This time I did have one dream. About 2 weeks ago, I had a dream that we were in getting the ultrasound and that it was a girl. We'll see if this dream comes true! LOL

Also, in Church, on Mother's day, Haley had her first experience in performing in Sacrament Meeting. She got up with the rest of the Primary to sing to the Mom's for Mother's day. She didn't know all the words, but she was super cute anyways! Also, I normally feel the baby on either side of my stomach, either right side or left side. All of a sudden, I get this huge WHAM in my spine...like the baby was sitting front to back. It didn't hurt, but it made me jump. Chris thought I had fallen asleep. It was quite funny.

When God Created the Dispatcher

For those of you who don't know what I do on a daily basis, this pretty much sums it up. Someone passed it out at work a couple weeks ago. Pretty dead on!

THE ANGEL WALKED IN AND FOUND THE LORD WALKING AROUND IN A SMALL CIRCLE AND MUTTERING TO HIMSELF. "WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON LORD?" HE ASKED. "WELL, I FINISHED CREATING A PEACE OFFICER, NOW I'M WORKING ON A DISPATCHER." SINCE THE ANGEL COULD SEE NOTHING IN THE ROOM, HE ASKED GOD TO TELL HIM ABOUT IT.

"IT'S SOMEWHAT LIKE THE POLICE OFFICER MODEL, IT HAS FIVE HANDS - ONE FOR ANSWERING THE PHONE, TWO FOR TYPING, ONE FOR ANSWERING THE RADIO AND ONE FOR GRABBING A CUP OF COFFEE.

THE ARMS HAD TO BE PLACED FAIRLY CAREFULLY SINCE ALL THE TASKS A DISPATCHER DOES, HAVE TO BE DONE SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM IS A LITTLE COMPLICATED, SINCE IT RUNS OF COFFEE, AND FOOD THAT CAN BE DELIVERED, BUT SELDOM NEEDS TO GET UP TO USE THE RESTROOM. I MADE THE SKIN OF A TEMPERED DURALITE COVERED WITH TEFLON. A DISPATCHERS HIDE HAS TO BE TOUGH ENOUGH TO WITHSTAND DARTS FROM CRANKY OFFICERS, JABS FROM CITIZENS, AND LACK OF ATTENTION BY ADMINISTRATION, BUT NOT SHOW ANY SIGNS OF WEAR AND TEAR.

UNLIKE A POLICE OFFICER, IT ONLY NEEDS ONE PAIR OF EYES, SO THAT LEFT EXTRA ROOM FOR THE EARS. THERE ARE FIVE SETS OF EARS, ONE SET FOR THE TELEPHONE, ONE FOR THE MAIN RADIO, TWO FOR THE OTHER RADIOS IT HAS TO MONITOR, AND ONE TO HEAR EVERYTHING ELSE GOING ON AROUND IT. THEY FIT ALL RIGHT ON THE HEAD, SINCE IT HAS TO BE EXTRA LARGE FOR THE BRAIN.

THE BRAIN HAS TO BE ENORMOUS SO IT CAN REMEMBER A FULL SET OF TEN CODES, PHONETIC ALPHABET, AT LEAST TWO HUNDRED DIFFERENT VOICES, THE ENTIRE CONTENTS OF THREE DIFFERENT SOP MANUALS, TWO TELETYPE MANUALS, AND AN NCIC CODE BOOK. OF COURSE I LEFT ENOUGH EXTRA SPACE FOR IT TO LEARN THE INDIVIDUAL QUIRKS OF EVERY DIFFERENT SERGEANT, LIEUTENANT, SHIFT COMMANDER, FIRE CHIEF, AND OTHER SUPERVISOR, AND THE ABILITY TO KEEP THEM ALL STRAIGHT.

THERE ALSO HAS TO BE ROOM FOR IT TO LEARN WHICH SITUATIONS NEED AN OFFICER AND WHICH DON'T, AND ALSO THE ABILITY TO DETERMINE, IN LESS THAN TWO MINUTES, WHAT TO DO FOR ANY GIVEN EVENT.

THERE IS A BUILT IN CONDENSER SO IT CAN TAKE AN HOUR LONG EXPLANATION, PUT IT INTO 30 SECONDS WORTH OF RADIO TRANSMISSION, BUT STILL GET THE WHOLE STORY ACROSS.

THOSE SWITCHES ON THE FRONT ARE FOR THE EMOTIONS. IT HAS TO BE ABLE TO TALK TO A MOTHER WHOSE CHILD HAS JUST DIED WITHOUT PAIN, A RAPE VICTIM WITH EMPATHY, A SUICIDAL PERSON WITH CALMNESS AND RE-ASSURANCE, AND AN ABUSIVE DRUNK WITHOUT GETTING ANGRY.

WHEN ONE OF THE OFFICERS YELLS FOR HELP, IT CAN'T PANIC, AND WHEN SOMEONE DOESN'T MAKE IT, THE DISPATCHERS HEART MUSTN'T BREAK.

THE LITTLE SOFT SPOT JUST TO THE LEFT OF THE EMOTION SWITCH IS FOR ABANDONED ANIMALS, FRIGHTENED CHILDREN, AND LITTLE OLD LADIES WHO ARE LONELY AND JUST WANT TO TALK TO SOMEONE FOR A FEW MINUTES.

THE DISPATCHER HAS TO CARE VERY MUCH FOR THE OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS IT SERVES, WITHOUT GETTING PERSONALLY INVOLVED WITH ANY OF THEM, SO I ADDED ANOTHER SWITCH FOR THAT. PLUS, OF COURSE THE DISPATCHER CAN'T HAVE ANY OF IT'S OWN ISSUES TO WORRY ABOUT WHILE ITS ON DUTY, SO THAT LAST SWITCH TURNS THEM OFF.

THE PATIENCE SWITCH IS TURNED UP TO HIGH ALL THE TIME ON THE DISPATCHER MODEL, AND I'VE ADDED AN EXTRA FUSE TO THOSE TO HANDLE THE OVERLOAD. A DISPATCHER HAS TO BE ABLE TO FUNCTION EFFICIENTLY UNDER LESS THAN GOOD PHYSICAL CONDITIONS, AND BE FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO WITHSTAND WHATEVER THE ADMINISTRATION COMES UP WITH, WHILE STILL RETAINING IT'S GENERAL SHAPE AND FORM.

THAT WARM AND FUZZY SHOULDER IS THERE FOR OFFICERS TO USE WHEN THEY GRIPE, FOR OFFICERS AND OTHER DISPATCHERS WHEN THEY HURT, AND FOR THOSE WHO ARE SHELL SHOCKED BY HORRIBLE CALLS AND JUST NEED SOMEONE TO BE THERE.

THE VOICE GAVE ME A LITTLE TROUBLE. IT HAS TO BE CLEAR AND EASY TO UNDERSTAND, CALM AND EVEN WHEN EVERYONE ELSE IS SCREAMING, BUT STILL ABLE TO CONVEY EMPATHY AND CARING WHILE REMAINING TOTALLY PROFESSIONAL.

IT RUNS FOR A FULL 12 HOURS ON VERY LITTLE SLEEP, REQUIRES ALMOST NO DAYS OFF, AND GETS PAID LESS THAN AN EXECUTIVE SECRETARY.

"THE DISPATCHER SOUNDS WONDERFUL LORD" SAID THE ANGEL. "WHERE IS THIS AMAZING CREATION?"

"WELL YOU SEE ..." ANSWERED THE SUPREME BEING. "DISPATCHERS ARE INVISIBLE UNLESS THEY MAKE A MISTAKE. SO IT'S PRACTICALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO TELL WHEN THEY ARE RUN DOWN, WORN OUT OR IN NEED OF REPAIR. NOW THAT I HAVE CREATED THEM -- I CAN'T SEE THE ORIGINAL MODEL TO MAKE ENOUGH OF THEM TO GO AROUND"

-ANONYMOUS