What the HAIL???

It's a very good thing that I don't believe in omens! Sure I believe in ghosts and the field of paranormal investigation, but Omens are something that I hold no credibility to. That being said, yesterday morning was still a little hard to shake off.

Yesterday Mrs. Nutz and I were scrambling around the house trying to get ready to go to the hospital and have our baby girl. We know that we were going to be having a C-section, so we had woken up with plenty of time to get loaded in the car and off to the hospital. I needed to go and vacuum out the car so that we could remove dog hair from the seats before loading up the baby car seat, and decided that I would run to a car wash to do so.

While I was sitting at a light waiting to turn left, I could see inky black clouds looming over the great Salt Lake, and they were flying my direction. I raced to beat the storm, and was successful up until I started vacuuming. That's when the pea-sized hail forced me to abandon the still running vacuum for the shelter of the car (75 cents I'll never see again...)

I quickly drove back to the house, and by the time I got there the storm had passed and the clouds were parting. All started looking better until we got to the hospital and it started snowing like mad.

I guess I could look at it as a metaphor for the events of the day, more explicitly the emotional ride that I took that day as I witnessed the birth of my daughter. Since we got pregnant, countless fathers have tried to explain the emotions that you feel when you see and hold your daughter for the first time, and as all of them have stated: it really is impossible to put into words. The feeling of seeing and holding my daughter is the most powerful and wonderful feeling that I have ever had. She is now the most precious and beautiful thing to me!

I realize this post has become one of the more sentimental posts I have made, but I can't think of anything else at this time to comment on. (besides, I think I'm doing good for only getting a good 2 hours of sleep last night!)

From All of Us to All of You, MERRY CHRISTMAS

Once again it's Christmas Eve, which is my favorite day of the year. This year we actually get the day off from work, so I thought I would let Mrs. Nutz sleep in while I take care of the dog and finish up this blog entry. Posting on Christmas Eve has apparently become somewhat of a tradition for me, but I won't complain.

Actually I started creating the header 2 nights ago, and was going to get this written and posted last night after we got home from work and errands, but Mrs. Nutz started playing Roller Coaster Tycoon after I got absorbed in saving the Kingdom of Hyrule, so both of us spent the evening in our computer/game room relaxing instead. Darn.

This has been an amazing year for both of us as we prepare to welcome a new squirrel to the Nutz House. Our daughter is set to be born sometime in March or early April. We've been hoping for an April 1 baby, so that she'll share her birthday with my Grandpa who will be 95 that day, but we're pretty sure that the birthdate is going to be in March.

Yes, I did gloss over a big piece of information. We did finally find out that we are going to have a little girl, and both of us are ecstatic about that. I originally intended to post about that earlier, but school, work, and sleep took priority. Besides, most of my readers are close friends and family (I do keep toying with the thought that some readers randomly run across this blog on Google and become fans that way, but I'm sure that is not the case.) Anyway, I figured that most people who read this blog already were told in person, and that really is the most important thing.

Our nursery is already painted, the crib and changing table are built, and everything seems to be on track for the arrival of our little one. We had heard horror stories about pregnancy, what with sickness and back pain and all. Mrs. Nutz has had back problems for years, and we were nervous that she would be put on bed-rest; however, this has been a surprisingly mild pregnancy. We're now getting to the point that we can feel our little one kicking, making this an amazing time for the two of us. It's crazy to think that next year by this time my daughter will already be moving around, and according to the baby books, trying to walk around.

This has been a most unusual Christmas season for us. All of our gifts have been wrapped for over a week, and everything is ready to go for the big day. Tonight we will be going to our annual Christmas Eve celebration with my family, and then will be spending the night at my parents house, so that we can be there for Christmas morning. I am excited, as we will be able to join in another family tradition that we have been absent for these past 4 years. After going to my Grandpa's house, we go to my folks house and watch White Christmas; however these last few years we have not stayed to watch the show, as we live 45 minutes away and would not want to be driving home so late. With us staying over this year we will be able to join in that tradition as well.

Well, I think it's time for me to wrap this entry up. We have stuff to do to get ready to go to my parents house tonight, and not much time to do it in. To all of our friends and family, thank you for everything you do. We love you and wish you a very Merry Christmas, and a happy 2011!

"God as My Witness, I Thought Turkeys Could Fly."

Once again we reach that time of year where the calendar is almost worn out, and we prepare to place ourselves into a turkey induced coma that will last until Christmas. Actually by the time this entry is finished it will be after the festivities, so hopefully the turkey doesn’t knock me out until I have a chance to actually post this....

My last post came after our Yellowstone vacation, and featured the announcement that we were pregnant. I am ecstatic to post that all is still going very well. The baby is developing with a strong heartbeat, and we are starting to get to the point where we can feel the baby moving. This morning we realized that the baby really likes hot chocolate, as it’s been doing backflips in Mrs. Nutz tummy. (I can’t vouche for this comment, I am taking Mrs. Nutz word for it.)

Unfortunately we still have not found out what we’re having, and if the child does not co-operate by our next doctor’s appointment, I fear that he or she is going to get a very stern lecture from their mother! Both of us are hoping that we’re going to have a girl, but we will be happy as can be if it turns out to be a boy as well. We’re just excited that we will be parents soon. We just want to know so that we can start getting the nursery decorated (lady bugs if it’s a girl, and pirate if it’s a boy.)

Mr. and Mrs. Munk had their little chipmunk, whom I will dub Dotty Munk. She’s now starting to smile and chatter, which has been really cute to see. The other night we had the Munk family over for a movie and it was really fun to see little Dotty looking around and, well, being a baby. It was especially fun to watch the dog and cat freak out at the baby, and Iola kept giving us a look that indicated she wanted us to make Dotty leave. They’ll just have to deal with it, because in 4 months there’s going to be a new squirrel in the house full time!

Well now that it’s Thanksgiving, that means that Christmas is just around that corner. It seems like it comes earlier each year... though that is partially to blame on the media. I was walking through a store one evening and I saw them decorating for Christmas. The sad thing is that this was in the middle of September. I shook my head as I turned and walked out of the store. With each year it seems that we collectively ignore that that there is a holiday between Halloween and Christmas... and an important one at that. Now stores are opening up for black Friday sales earlier in the Day on Thanksgiving, which really begs the question of whether or not we are turning the shopping day into a holiday on it’s own (some of the women I work with believe that it is.) I made a previous post two years ago that expresses why I would choose to steer away from such a move.

Most TV shows today will run a Christmas special, as well as a Halloween special, but there are very few that do the Turkey day. Friends was dependable, as they had one for each of their ten seasons. Charlie Brown has a classic thought-provoking film (two in fact) that honor this great day, but I don’t know of too many beyond that.

Then again, one of the best all time moments of TV history (as determined by TV Guide) was a classic episode of WKRP in Cincinatti. While their Thanksgiving tribute is rather grim... it is a day where we celebrate over the carcass of a large bird, so I guess it could be worse (though the line about bags of wet cement did make me laugh out loud. Oh the humanity!!)

This morning we got up to start watching the parade, and we opted to cook the turkey for our dinner with Mrs.Nutz family, so the house now smells like turkey. She’s just getting ready so that we can leave, and I am left alone to reflect on my blessings this year. I have much to be thankful for this year, and this is one of the best places that I can express those.

I am thankful for my beautiful wife. She means everything to me, and it’s been a wonderful 4 years together, and I look forward to a lifetime more together. I am so thankful for the little child on the way, it’s been two years coming and I am so glad that everything worked out this time.

I am thankful for my families (both of them) for being there to support Mrs. Nutz and I wherever we need it. Comedy movies always tell horror stories about in-laws, but Mrs. Nutz and I both lucked out in that department. Both of our sets of parents and siblings support us where and however they can, and for that I am eternally grateful.

I also would like to say how thankful I am to have such great friends, especially the close kinship we have with the Munks. It’s been great having them so close that we can periodically say hi, and get together and enjoy one another’s company. It’s going to be so much fun to see that in a few months we will be able to give Dotty a little playtmate.

I am also thankful for all of our extended family and friends, you all enrich our lives in your own way.

Well, I think that’s enough for right now. I have more coming, so stay tuned...

Just a Quick Note Before I Retire...

Just a short post for tonight, because I am tired.

It has been an emotional few weeks since we got home from Yellowstone, and in all fairness I was misleading to my readers, but in a good way.

I can now officially announce to the world that we are pregnant! We are at 9 weeks, and have had our first ultrasound. Everything looks great, and our child has a strong heartbeat (175 bpm.)

This has been a long time coming, and we are ecstatic to be able to tell the world now.

I will post more later, but we wanted to make it official tonight: Baby Nutz due April 2011!!

Four Squirrels Drive Into a Forest (I Love This Joke...)

Growing up in the Nutz family there are two major vacation destinations that are a staple to our lives. First would be a Disney theme park vacation which I personally would consider to be my top choice preference. Unfortunately my casual readers who don't know me well would not be able to discern the depth of my Disney obsession just by reading this blog. It truly runs deep in me, and to my family. Mrs. Nutz once noted that I was at my happiest when I was in Disneyland, which is both sweet, and slightly disturbing (surely I am at my happiest when I am with her!)

The second preferred vacation destination for my family would be the fantastic Yellowstone National Park.

Growing up Yellowstone was always an odd vacation for me. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy being there; but most of the trip is spent driving through forests and looking through binoculars, all while battling an onslaught of motion-sickness courtesy of the books and magazines that I brought with me on the trip. (I will admit that mostly they were picture and comic books, I read a lot more seriously now than I did when I was a kid.)

As I grew older, I developed a respect for the park, though my personal preferences were more into the geysers and hot springs (and yes, the gift shops) than into looking for Grizzly Bears and Moose on the side of a hill only visible through a spotting scope. While my juvenile perspective would maintain that all my opinions and preferences were ignored and overruled by the rest of the family, I would be very wrong if I still thought so. Frankly if all we did was what I had wanted to do at that time (and I will admit, that time even ranged to the teen years) then our trips would have been very short and meaningless. How glad I am that my family had me experience all that the park had to offer!

Mrs. Nutz on the other hand, hadn't been to the park in 15-20 years, and her only memory of the park was riding in her grandparents RV and getting in trouble for getting the gum in her bubble-gum ice cream all over their curtains. She was ready to see the park again for the first time.

We left Thursday after work and stayed the night in Idaho Falls. Our meal that first night was another Nutz family tradition: Flags West Diner and Truck Stop in Downey Idaho. Yes, it really is as glamorous as it looks, but the scones are great!

The next morning we made our way to the park. On arrival my Dad, Grumpy Nutz, told us to be on the lookout for moose, since it had been years since it had been a few years since we had last seen one. I often underestimate my wife's penchant for hidden games. When we are at Disneyland (or WDW) she really gets into looking for the Hidden Mickeys in the parks, and is generally faster than I at finding them, even when I know where to look and she doesn't. She attributes this to her love of Where's Waldo and I-Spy books when she was younger. It comes as no surprise that on the road from Madison to Old Faithful, she would spot the lone moose that we saw this trip, (not counting Stiltz in Yellowstone Bear World of course.)

He was obviously a younger moose, and when he saw us back up, he got a frightened look on his face and ran off. None of us could get our cameras ready even, but it was a great spot by Mrs. Nutz. She reminded me that she's good luck, so I told her that her next job was to conjure up the mother Grizzly Bear with four cubs that my Brother and his wife saw on their recent trip. She got us half-way there: A mother with two cubs. It had to be the closest I have ever seen a Grizzly in the wild.

There were also the Buffalo, Elk, Deer, a lone Coyote, and a Wolf (as seen through the spotting scope) to behold, which is the usual fodder that Yellowstone has to offer. Not to mention the squirrels (SQUIRREL) that we saw... y'know, ignoring the four of us that is. Thanks to the movie UP shouting out "Squirrel" became something of a game for us (though more likely for me than anyone else in the car who merely got to enjoy my amusing myself.)

We of course did the usual tourist spots: Old Faithful, Dragon's Mouth and the Mud Volcano, Lower Falls, Mammoth, Roosevelt, etc. All in all it was a great and relaxing vacation, though I'm sure my Dad would complain that it was too relaxing for me, as I slept through a sizable chunk of the drive.

It was such a nice trip that we really weren't ready to come home, knowing that we had a busy week ahead of us. Yesterday we hosted (or more appropriately Mrs. Nutz hosted while I hid in the house on the computer) a baby shower for Mrs. Munk, who is due in just a few weeks. We are so happy for them, despite the bittersweet feeling we have due to our own misfortune in starting a family on our own. We work to stay optimistic for the future, but it does come difficult at times.

While we weren't ready to come home, our cat Emma was so glad to have us back. Mrs. Nutz sister (woodland critter name yet to be determined) was house-sitting, and she and Emma don't get along very well. Add to that the fact that Emma is still recovering from her declawing surgery, and it sounds like she ha a traumatic weekend... not that my Sister-in-Law did anything to antagonize her.

The saddest part about Emma now is that I think we broke the cat. She used to be real hyper and full of energy, but all she does now is move from one napping spot to another. It's really sad to see that she's not the same anymore, and we're hoping that it passes. I think it's depression, but I doubt that we'll be able to give our cat a dose of Zoloft.

Well, that should be enough for now. Three updates on July, that's a good sign. Hopefully I can keep it up!

Ramblings From A Tired Squirrel!

I had every intention of making a new post on Monday, and I have already received flack from the Munks for not accomplishing this task. So if anyone else feels slighted that I did not make a post, I apologize.

This past week my and Mrs. Nutz's nephews were in town visiting their Father (woodland critter moniker yet to be decided) and we tried to spend as much time as possible with them. Sunday, the 4th, was their last night in Utah, and the family was determined to finish this visit with a bang... literally. When we do dinners with my wife's family we generally assign out part of the meal, and her father was assigned the task of buying the fireworks. Mrs. Nutz and I, while doing our grocery shopping, saw an inexpensive bucket of fireworks that we decided to add to the pot (ironically it was the exact same bucket that was one of the kits her Dad bought.) Apparently other members of the family felt the same way, so we had a HUGE amount of fireworks to launch, and we sure had a great time doing it.

Monday it was time for the boys to go back to their mother in Louisiana, and Mrs. Nutz was volunteered to fly them back. Their Father is going to be moving out of state at the end of the month to be closer to the boys, and is working as much as he can to save up for the journey, so he only had a week vacation available. In order to spend more time with the boys here, he asked that someone escort them home, so of course we were happy to help. Mrs. Nutz flew with the boys to meet their Mom in Houston, then flew home the next day.

The downside to this trip was the toll that it's taken on us. I have never especially enjoyed being home alone, but being separated from my best half is downright lousy. I maybe got 4 hours of sleep that night, and I was lucky to get that. (I even thought about writing this update while I was fighting with insomnia, but with how tired I was, I have no idea what kind of ramblings would be posted.) Mrs. Nutz told me that she too barely got any sleep Monday night, so she also was exhausted when she got home yesterday.

Here's the kicker: we got plenty sleep last night, so I can't explain why on Earth we are so much more tired today that we were yesterday.

So things have been pretty busy since my second to last update. Summer semesters have a reputation for being fairly easy; but when you do a math class that is usually takes 16 weeks in 7... well lets just say I've spent a lot of time doing Algebra the past weeks. If it wasn't for the fact that I only have 2 weeks left, I would probably be burning out right now. I feel like I'm turning Mrs. Nutz into a homework widow (though she is getting caught up on her viewing of chick flicks.)

Last month I had my 30th birthday, and for my present from my wife, I got a Wii game I've been wanting, and the cat got declawed. Happy birthday to me! While getting the house ready for the family party associated with my birthday, I indulged my inner child by renting the film adaptation of the children's book Where the Wild Things Are. My feelings were really mixed as the credits rolled, and I spent the next couple of hours trying to sort out my impression of the movie. I finally came to the conclusion that it was one of the most depressing movies I have ever seen. I hated this movie (Mrs. Nutz has no opinion to interject as she did not watch the movie with me.)

The movie wasn't necessarily sad, but it wasn't upbeat and positive. Obviously the screen writer had to take some creative liberties when writing the film, since the book only has around 26 words in it. But the book was more pleasant and fun to me, while the movie was, well... I can only describe it as melancholy.

Fortunately the last movie we saw, Eclipse, was very well done. By far the best film in the Twilight series so far. If you are a fan of the books, you will love this move (and you should enjoy this if you're only accompanying a fan of the story.)

Well, unfortunately the time has come for me to sign off again. I hope to be able to post another update soon, but time will tell.

Happy Birthday America!!

This is only going to be a short post today, and I will get more up tomorrow when I have a little more time. As we celebrate our nations birthday it only seems appropriate that I say thank you to all those who have fought (and are still fighting) for our freedoms. Without your sacrifices we would not be able to enjoy the freedoms that we have today. Thank you, and God bless you and your families!

Thanks for reading check again tomorrow for a longer update!