I have lost it all!

Every picture since 2005 after we got married... gone! I am still in shock really, I honestly can't believe this has happened to us. A few weeks ago our computer all of a sudden started bogging down and running completely and horribly slow. It would take hours to load a webpage, or to open a folder and retrieve a document. We were planning on taking it in to be looked at when we got paid again, but before that time came the computer crashed altogether. The hard drive, we found out later, was corrupt and the information on it lost.

There is still hope yet though, because there is a company in town that claims that can retrieve any information off any hard drive, no matter how corrupt. However, this hope comes with a hefty pricetag. It will cost anywhere from $200 to $2,500 to get all the information we want i.e. all our memories.

Lets say though, that for some reason this company can't get our pictures and videos recovered, all is not lost even then. I am so grateful that I have, for the most part, been a faithful blogger. I may not post that often, but when I do post I post everything that we have done as of late, a mass post if you will. Worst comes to worst, I will get all the pictures off of my blog and print them off. So far I have been able to print our pictures up to the summer of 2009, so I am missing 2 years worth of pictures in a hard copy. Also, my mom has taken quite a few pics of our family and different events, and there are pictures on facebook and our family websites.

What have we learned from this fiasco? Back your computer up in a viable way. Our computer used to be backed up on an external hard drive, but that hard drive crashed a few months back and we never got around to replacing it. We are investing in an online backup program that automatically backs all information up on your computer when you use it.

All that aside, I luckily had 300 photos on my camera that have been sitting on there during our computer mess... and now guess what time it is? Thats right, Tiffany's mass posting:) I'll start off with 2 quick pics of my baby Zach when he was about one month. I stuffed him into a newborn outfit when he was definitely too big for it. I had to though, the outfit was so darn cute, and he hadn't worn it yet.



The second picture is from a photo shoot that he had with mommy, lots of camera flashes and cooing trying to get him to smile. I love spending time with this little guy, he is so fun!

Motherhood Is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)

Motherhood Is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)
I saw this article on Facebook on a friends page and it struck home so deeply, I have read it twice today. I needed this article, especially now as I have had several women at grocery stores and around town comment to me "Gee, you have your hands full don't you." Now I know exactly what to say and will no longer return home after receiving these comments frustrated and upset. Read the article and you will see what I mean:)

I chose motherhood. I chose to have three children and will be having more in the future. I chose not to pursue a career in the field that I graduated in. I chose to live on one income (really 1/2 an income because Mike is in school). I chose today to dance, paint, laugh, and play with my boys instead of making sure that my home is spotless. I choose every day (sometimes it is a struggle) to put my children's value ahead of mine. I am a mother, it is my calling, it is hard work, but in being a mother I am fulfilled and find joy each and every day.

A quarter of a century...

I have gained 25 years of wisdom, experience, and memories...
I don't feel old at all, what I feel is gratitude for 25 years...
and I look forward to the next 25...

I had a wonderful birthday this year, very relaxing and enjoyable. Mike treated me to a lovely buttermilk pancake breakfast, delicious! I spent the whole day at home with my boys while Mike worked. We played on the slip-n-slide for a good majority of that afternoon, what a grand time that was! A good friend of mine, Shawna Morissey, brought us a spaghetti dinner and a cake. Mike made me cupcakes, and we had a little birthday celebration with the boys.

Zach didn't care that I was about to blow out candles,
he wanted to nurse:)

Kimball and Brandon helped me blow out the candles

Mor-mor took the boys that night for a sleepover, and Mike and I went out for ice cream and then rented a movie.

Here is hoping that the next 25 years finds me many more days as relaxing and fun as my birthday was!

Grammy and Grampy time!!

We are very excited to say that we once again live very close to Mike's parents! Grammy and Grampy Matusek made the move from Florida to Utah, hopefully for the last time. Kimball and Brandon could not be happier that we live so close to them! They are anxiously awaiting their special trip to Utah so they can spend the weekend with Grammy and Grampy... without Mommy and Daddy there!

We had a wonderful time visiting with them on July 8th when they took a break from unpacking boxes to come and meet their newest grandson. They spent the whole day with us at our home visiting, and playing with their grandkids. Kimball was SO bummed when they left, he wanted to go home with them, cute kid.

The three amigos

Introducing the Matusek boys!! Life is crazy with 3, but let me tell you about how my older boys have taken to having a new little brother around.


This is what I heard constantly from Kimball for about 2 weeks after he came home from Rexburg: "Can I hold baby Zachary?" Kimball is a great big brother! Besides being a great friend and playmate to Brandon, he is Zach's "Guardian." He has to be there for everything, runs to his aide if he starts to fuss, talks to him, and comments on any little thing that Zach does. It is amazing to watch how he interacts with Zach.

"Mom, I gave Zach my bunny!"

Kimball is so proud of his brother Zach

Brandon has adjusted so well to being a big brother. It was his reaction to a new baby that we were concerned about, but we were both pleasantly surprised when he warmed right up to Zachary. He likes to be around Zachary and show him some of his toys. If mommy asks, he will go and put Zach's pacifier in (or attempt to). He likes to sit by Zachary and look at his face and watch his movements. He will hold Zach, but doesn't beg us like Kimball does. He is a caring big brother, Zach is lucky to have Brandon!

Brandon watching Zach

Stars and Stripes

Enjoying private fireworks in front yard

I hate blogger sometimes! When I upload pictures in chronological order, they always upload disorganized. Grrr!!

Well our Fourth of July was AWESOME! We enjoyed our time with my parents and my brothers Corey and Matt and their families. We hosted a super fun BBQ at our house on July 3rd. This is the day we got our boys back from Corey and Daymi, we were ready for them! They were so excited to see Zach again, they stood around his swing with their cousins for a while when they arrived (see 3rd picture).
For the BBQ we had Corey's Badminton set up, the slip-n-slide set up on the hill in the backyard, the pool set up, lots of delicious food, and a large shade tree providing cool relief on a 97 degree day!

The crew enjoying the afternoon

The kids swam all afternoon

Adoring Zach upon arrival

After all the fun of the day, it was time to get the fireworks out and have some fun in the dark! We started in the back yard with sparklers (see last pic of the post). After the sun had fully set we headed to the front yard to enjoy a private fireworks show (See pic at top of post).

On July 4th, I took Kaydien and Kimball and Brandon to see the parade. Mike was gracious enough to stay with Zach, plus he was trying to help his parents with directions because they were stuck in Missouri on their road trip out west.

Brandon in awe at the Parade

Shortly after the parade we headed to Idaho Falls to enjoy the company of my extended family at my Grandparent's house. We enjoyed our time their, although I spent most of my time on the bench nursing Zachary:)

Mike jumping on the tramp with the Kiddos

We headed home early from that party, missing a good game of Wiffle ball, so we could relax a little and get ready for the big fireworks show in Pocatello. The park right across the street has the perfect view of the fireworks show that is set off at the fairgrounds here in Pocatello. It is the place to be if you do not want to fight crowds!! Matt's family came over to enjoy the works with us, and I heard later on the next day that it was a good show. I, of course, had to leave the park before it was even dark because Zach was fussy and wouldn't calm down. Trying to get him to calm down under a nursing cover, at dusk, in a park is kinda hard. Oh well:)

All the kiddos enjoying the big
fireworks show at the park

Kaydien and Kimball with sparklers

We feel nothing but pride and gratitude for our country, and when we see the stars and stripes, it reminds me of all the freedoms that I enjoy! It was a grand few days enjoying our family and remembering those freedoms and the men and women who have fought to keep our freedoms intact.

Zach's first week

We had a good stay at the hospital, short and to the point. We left on Sunday at 5:00, so we were only there for one night. While at the hospital we had a few visitors from Rexburg, my brother Corey, his wife Daymi, and two of their three children. It was good to see them and introduce them to Zachary.

Corey and little Zach

Kimball and Brandon came twice to the hospital to see their little brother. They were very excited to see him, and wanted to watch and hold him. We were very happy with their reaction to Zach's arrival.
My mom was very gracious to make us a few meals in our first week with Zach. When we got home on Sunday night, she met us at home soon after with a nice hot pot roast! Yummo! We didn't get a lot of sleep those first few nights, but hey, we knew that would happen. Kimball and Brandon went back to Rexburg with Corey and Daymi for a whole week, so that made the lack of sleep manageable. We missed our boys but were grateful for the time that we had to adjust to life with a newborn again, to have that time to get to know our little Zach.

We spent Monday at home relaxing, and then went to see his doctor, Dr. West, that evening. Tuesday was the same story, except it didn't end so happily for Zach. Zach had his circumcision performed at the Dr's office on Tuesday evening, and he was in pain for about 2 hours afterwards. He wore himself out pretty good in screaming, and slept pretty well for a number of hours.

Zach and dad at the Dr

We spent lots of time admiring our son, so grateful to have him in our family and to get to know him. He is a good baby, and is calm for 23 hours of the day. Right after dinner between 7-8 he gets really bad gas, but only at this time of day. Minor colic issues, but other than that he sleeps like soundly, eats soundly, and keeps all his food down.

Dad with Zach

Mom and Zach

We had some more visitors on Tuesday, from Idaho Falls. My grandparents came down to see our new addition, and we had a good visit with them. It is always good to see my dear grandparents, it is indeed a great blessing to have them as close as we do.
Mor-mor is in love with this little guy, and would hold him all day long if she could! We are so blessed to have her living in Pocatello, it was a great experience to have her in the labor/delivery and to see her interact with Zach in these few weeks since he was born. She has so much on her plate already and yet she was making meals for us and inviting us over to her place, watching the boys so we could go on a date to see Harry Potter.... what an angel she is!

Mor-mor and zach

All things considered our first week was amazing, and we are very proud parents of 3 handsome boys!

06/25/2011 Special Delivery

I will tell you now, I put a few pics on here that are not "modest" in the sense that I view the word, but I did not put anything that would embarrass either myself or you...

With that said, I guess I'll just share our Labor and Delivery story for our 3rd son, Zachary Abram Matusek.

It all started at midnight on June 25th, contractions started coming regularly at 10 minutes apart. At 4:00 in the morning they were 7 minutes apart, and that is when I decided to call my midwife. She told me to keep trying to rest in between as long as I could. So I did, I stayed in bed til 5:00, and then decided to take a shower. I ate a hearty breakfast (I knew I would need the energy!!) and then decided that I had better wake my hubby up. My midwife called me back and told me to meet her at the office at 8:00, so we did. She checked my cervix, which was dilated to a 4 and fully effaced... we knew that we were having a baby, and soon:) We left the office, and went home. We had decided to labor some more in the comfort of our home and then meet Julie, our midwife at the hospital at 11:00. Contractions started picking up as we walked around the backyard. My husband and a tree trunk became my lifeline back there:)

I was exhausted by 10:15, so I sat on the couch, with my husband beside me, tennis ball in hand. I would doze in between contractions, and I would cue him in when another contraction came and he would massage my lower back with the ball... which was another lifeline during labor. The funny thing is, in between contractions when I was dozing off, Mike had to make sure he kept a firm grip on the hem of my shirt, so I didn't fall forward off the couch... that gave us a good laugh afterward!

We headed to the hospital at 11:00 to meet Julie. We got right into our room, and the nurses got me into a "back door wide open" hospital gown... I loathe those things. Because I was group B strep positive I had to have an IV placed with antibiotics. The hospital also is required to have at least 20 minutes of continual fetal monitoring. For these two reasons I was in bed for the first forty five minutes. As soon as the last drip of antibiotic was in me, I wanted out of that bed!! My contractions had slowed down, and that was the last thing I wanted. I needed the contractions to get longer, more powerful, and to speed up so I could get Zach here.

Once out of bed, I was on the birthing ball while the jetted tub filled up. That was my first experience on the birthing ball and I will never labor again without it... loved it! Mike was by my side the whole time, getting me ice, rubbing my back, encouraging me through the whole ordeal, and most importantly he stayed silent (he learned this in our first labor with Kimball). How grateful I am for a husband that is there for me every step of the way, he makes me stronger that I am alone. My mother was in the room as well, she took the role of photographer, witness to a miracle, and silent support.

The birthing ball

Mike helping me to the jetted tub

As soon as I knew the tub was filled, I wanted to be in it. Let me tell you, that is another thing that I will not labor without after this experience! It sped up my contractions, it was soothing, and the stress relief oil that we put in the water was SUPER calming and relaxing. Julie and Mike were there with me. Julie listened to the babies heartbeat to make sure he was doing alright. At about 1:30 Julie thought she saw fine hairs in the water, and that made her think that my water might have broken. So she had me get out to check. My water had not broke, but I was dilated to a 9. We decided that on the next contraction she would break my water.
As soon as she broke my water my pain jumped from a 7 to a 10 on a 10 point scale. YAY, the baby was finally coming!!! I turned to my side, with Mike's help and my mom's help and on the next contraction it was time to push. Once I got the head out, it was discovered that the cord was wrapped around his neck twice. That is when his shoulders got stuck. I told my husband that I couldn't push anymore, but he and my mother told me that I had to... and I knew I had to find it in me. It took 4 contractions total to get Zachary here, about 12-15 minutes. He was born at 1:44. Zachary stayed in my arms for one hour, and I cherish that time. Mike was right by me adoring our new born son. We were emotional, and overjoyed at the experience. It was amazing to say the least.
There is a reason why his shoulders got stuck, he was a BIG boy! 9 lbs and 8 oz, 21 1/2 inches long and a head circumference of 14 in. Mike and I had guessed that he would be in the 8 lb range, not the 9 lb range... so much for guessing:)
Hello Zachary, welcome to the Matusek Family! We love you!

Fun with Cousins and Mor-Mor

Whenever I upload pictures to Blogger they are all out of order... oh well! So our fun this last week has been pretty much constant! Brianna and Kaydien and Madison came from Utah on Sunday the 6th to stay for a week. On Monday we went to Rexburg to spend time with Corey's family. The rest of the week we were going fun places (Lunch in the park, the zoo, bowling, nature walking), hanging out, playing games, and laughing! So here are pics in all of their randomness:)

The crew at the Zoo on Friday the 10th

Mor-Mor's special pancakes (Norwegian pancakes)

on Thursday Morning

Eating popcorn at the movies,watching Rio
in Rexburg on Monday

Kaydien, Brandon, Kelvin, Kimball, Madison, and Elena
trying to warm up at the splash park in Rexburg on Monday

One of the two visits to lunch in the park, Friday
June 10th

Summer time just isn't summer time without spending time with Mor-Mor and cousins!

Baby Projects... or Tiff Nesting

Yes, I do believe that this is the most prepared and quite possibly the most anxious for a baby that I have been. I have been a busy momma, lots of projects. Here is a "short" list of all I have done:
-Sanitized all breast pump accessories and bottles
-Cleaned the pack and play/bassinet (Lets just say that Brandon's reflux was bad)
-Ordered all the fun stuff for baby and made Mike set it all up:) (All the hand-me down stuff from Kimball and Brandon had pretty much all broken and fallen apart)
-Sorted through all the baby clothes and threw away half of them (Again, lets just say that Brandon's reflux was REALLY bad)
-Bought a new toddler bed so we could transition Brandon out of the crib
-Bought new chest of drawers for the boys so we could take the baby drawers/changing table into Zach's room
-Sorted through all the boys toys and graduated them from all baby toys
-Washed all bedding, blankets, clothes, and everything in between
-Organized the nursery (this is our FIRST nursery, we couldn't be more excited about that!)
-Made a car seat cover, a fun project to get back into sewing
-Packed the hospital bag
-And last I am almost done with Zach's baby afghan, just have to finish the border!

Pictures? I have a few for proof that I have indeed been busy:) The first five are of Zach's nursery:

Closet Left side (Excited to try the
new nursing pillow... I am so over
the boppy!)

Crib, swing,bouncer

Rocking chair and table (oh and my
nursing stool... yay)

Changing table/chest of drawers, swing again

Closet right side (so happy for
organization!!)

Zach's afghan... almost done!

Car seat cover (Thanks Grandma for
the fabric and Christie Collier for the
directions, it turned out great!)

So there you have it, I do indeed have the nesting bug... any time you want to come Zach we are ready!!