The Anatomy of a Name

Yep, that is me...and you wonder why I'm addicted to soda!!

Names are a tricky thing. I take them very seriously. I really feel like each name I have given to my children has truly "fit" them. Sometimes I think about other names that were in the running and think, "wow, that name totally doesn't fit her". I also don't believe in nicknames. If you give someone a name, that is what they should go by, don't you think? Sometimes Ray calls Elliot "Eli", mostly just because he knows it bugs me. I like the name Eli, but if I wanted my son to be called Eli, that is what I would've named him. Anyway, I know a lot of people don't agree with me, and that is fine....I know I'm right (kidding :) ).

So, my whole life I have been called Becky, but my name is Rebecca. Don't get me wrong, I like the name Becky, but I love the name Rebecca. If you had the choice, wouldn't you want to be known as a Rebecca? Seriously?! I have always wished that I could go by Rebecca. I have even tried to switch a time or two. I have yet to be successful, mostly because I was too wishy washy when people who knew me as "Becky" would ask me what I really wanted to be called. The people pleaser in me would say "Oh, whatever you want", while I was really thinking "REBECCA"!! And I wouldn't correct people when they called me Becky.

You may be asking yourself the question, "So why didn't you switch with one of your many moves?" Good question, I've asked myself the same thing many times. Kicked myself many times. Here's the thing. I love my given name, but when people call me by it, it feels weird. A 34 year habit is hard to break. It feels formal and distant, like they don't really know me. Except for Ray, who calls me Rebecca all the time. I've stopped trying to figure out my brain. But, I think after a couple uncomfortable months I, and everyone else, would get used to it. And then I could be Rebecca.

So, a few months ago I was having this discussion with my visiting teacher who has successfully transitioned from Becky to Rebecca. She told me that she was going to spread the word that I wanted to make the change. So she did. And people started asking me what I wanted to be called. And I said, "Oh, whatever you want, either way is fine". What is wrong with me?? But the last few weeks something in me has changed. I feel like it's time for a rebirth. I'm done having kids, I am realizing that I can reach goals that I never thought I would (I'm gong to run a marathon, for pete's sake!!), I feel like a new chapter of my life has begun, and I'm now feeling like I am ready to say, "you know, I really prefer Rebecca". (It doesn't sound that mean, does it?) I realize that my family may never completely be on board, and that's okay. But, soon I will be Rebecca.

5 Years Ago

5 years ago today I became a mom for the second time. Elliot Towner was born.

By far the easiest labor and delivery of all, even though he was the biggest of all! I was induced on his due date, and about 4 hours later he was born. He was a big boy!!

And he turned out to be such a good baby. I was a little nervous because Grace had been a fussy baby, and they were only 21 months apart. Turns out I had nothing to worry about. Elliot was so calm and happy. Such a blessing.

Grace instantly fell in love and turned into a little mommy to her baby brother. He loved his pacifier from day 1...3 years down the road I wasn't so grateful for it, but he just loved it so much!

He soon earned the nickname "Mr. Chubbsie", and it stuck. We still call him that today, even though he is far from chubby now!

Sweet baby boy...where has the time gone? We love you SO MUCH!

Happy Birthday, Elliot!

Party Girl

We had a little party for the party girl on Saturday. Just family, like we usually do for birthday #1.

Oh my goodness, the cake was so good. I used this recipe from Bakerella. Semi-homemade, just my style. I made the frosting from the recipe, too. I discovered that the reason I never really like the buttercream frosting I make is because I wasn't using enough BUTTER!! Yummm, it was so good!

Grace and Elliot really wanted to get party hats, so we did. Everyone loved them, except Naomi :)

The first touch...

Sweet baby girl...

And that was that! She didn't get too messy. She dropped most of her cake on the floor for Max to eat :)

Happy Birthday Naomi!

One Year Ago

One year ago today I became a mom for the fourth time. I gave birth to our beautiful little Naomi Sage. It was the fourth time, we pretty much knew what to expect. But that didn't make it any less special and magical. Every baby born is a miracle. If you really think about what it took for that baby to get to that point of breathing on her own, it is truly amazing. It is truly evidence that we are all intelligent creations of a loving God.



I remember her coming out and screaming in anger, such a sweet sound! I remember her being put in my arms for the first time, her skin still moist. I remember looking into her blurry little eyes. I just knew that she was going to be something special, and I have not been disappointed. I was just trying to soak it all in because I knew it would be the last time.

Naomi has been such a blessing to our family. Her happiness is infectious. Her brothers and sisters have all learned about love and responsibility from her. I have seen every one of them lovingly take care of their baby sister. I have seen them all talk sweetly to her, trying to calm her down.





She has brought out the best in every one of us. This last year has been full of firsts and lasts-many of them bittersweet and exciting at the same time. And here we have another. Happy Birthday my sweet little Naomi.

Thoughts on the Gym, Part II

Now that Christmas is over I feel like I have nothing to blog about. So I'm going to blog about my boring life, and right now that includes 5x/week 5:30am workouts. Things have changed a lot since my last post about the gym...

I have gotten much better at pilates! I can tell my core is stronger, but I don't notice it much in my pant size, *sigh*

I figured out why I like watching ESPN when I am working out. They are showing the best of the best plays. It is inspiring to see people excel so much in their sport. It pumps you up, people. And every once in a while they discuss BSU football, woot! On an aside, as I was watching a recap of the BCS championship game this morning I felt so bad for that freshman from Texas who had to take over for Colt McCoy after he got injured early in the game. He didn't do so well. Then I was thinking about how that is why Boise State is so flippin' awesome. They are truly a TEAM. If one of their stars gets injured, they are just fine, someone else is there to pick up the slack. Just my opinion, don't rage on me!!

I can definitely tell that I am in much better shape than I was back in August when I started working out again, for real. I am running now, which I felt like I was going to die doing back in August. But, alas, the weight is SO SLOW coming off. I have lost about 10 pounds in the last 3 months, but I definitely fell off the wagon during Nov/Dec as far as eating goes. But I'm back on now, so the weight can start falling off any time...

I haven't had caffeine for a week, go me! (I'm going to stop this time, FOR REAL. I figured out how much we were spending on soda every month, about $50, and that was enough to convince me!) The first time I worked out after I quit was really hard. My head felt fuzzy and I felt slow. The second day was a little better, today I feel back to normal.

The gym is a great place to people-watch. I love it when someone spontaneously sings or dances whilst listening to their mp3 player. That is awesome.

My ipod got stolen out of my car last week. Luckily that is the only thing they took. Lesson learned, I will always lock my car from now on. Have fun with that 3 year old ipod with my name engraved on the back, by the way. Running was SO HARD without it, at first, but today wasn't so bad. I found a cheap one online, waiting for it to get here in the mail is torture!

I wear the same pair of pants to work out in every day. I am in serious need of some new workout clothes, but oh well....

And lastly, **GULP**, I am running a marathon in May. I start training next week. I have always wanted to do it, and now feels like the right time. I second guess myself and go through periods of anxiety over the whole thing, but then I realize that people like me do it all the time. You don't have to be an ultra-elite athlete to run a marathon. I have 18 weeks to train, and I will be fine. Any advice you have on shoes, clothes, music, special tips would be much appreciated. I read that 95% of a marathon is run in your mind. Good thoughts...

Christmas Unwrapped

Warning, this is gonna be a long one. If my kids don't call you grandma and grandpa you may get bored...

Christmas Eve presents!

Surprise! It's pj's!

The presents finally got to be put under the tree on Christmas Eve...after the kids went to bed.

Santa totally delivered, he may have grumbled a bit about the minor assembly required, but he sure did deliver!

TOTALLY delivered, mama's gonna be lovin' this one in the spring...MAJOR assembly required, Santa, sorry :)

Christmas morn, waiting for that darn Elliot to wake up! You may notice that Naomi does, in fact, have on different pj's than she went to bed in. That is because she started throwing up at about midnight Christmas morning. Needless to say, Santa's elves didn't get a whole lot of sleep on Christmas eve.

Elliot got JUST what he has been asking for for a couple of months! He is thrilled with his new guitar!

Little mommy Maggie immediately put her baby in the high chair and began feeding her :)

Just what our little soon-to-be walker needs. Santa is really smart and knew that our old walker is buried in the garage somewhere and he just knew that chances were very slim that mom would ever go out and dig through the boxes to find it.

OH MY GOODNESS!! A candy jewelry maker!! Just what Grace wanted!

The antlers were a big hit, they made the rounds.

Graces l.o.v.e.s. her pink fluffy vest from Valerie. Thanks girl!!

I am the coolest wife ever and got Ray a plane ticket to Phoenix (thank you frequent flyer miles) and a ticket to the Fiesta Bowl so he can watch his beloved Broncos play.

I don't know why I have never bought my kids Memory before now, but they just can't get enough of it!

Hope your Christmas was as special as ours.

For your entertainment:

See These Two?

Thumb suckers no longer.

Let's just say that I get it. I understand thumb sucking, I sucked mine until I was 10-you're welcome Dr. Orthodontist (can't remember his name for the life of me). I know it sounds strange, but I can almost feel the comfort it gives. So I guess I just never felt the need to push the stopping of the thumb sucking with Grace. But, I know she is getting to the age where other kids will notice and probably make fun. So, when I told Grace that her cousin Colby, 2 years her junior, had stopped sucking his thumb, she decided that it was time. We ordered the yucky stuff to paint on her thumb, same stuff Colby used, of course. She was very diligent to keep it painted on.

She hated the taste.

And so did everyone else who tried to eat chips from the same bag as her, if you know what I mean. A few days later, viola! No more thumb sucking! 6+ years of bad habit, broken. We haven't seen so much as a little suck for about a week! We're so proud of you, Grace!

(and a little sad...she is officially all grown up now :( )