The Turkish Delight

Tay Park

2012-01-13T00:38:00.000-08:00

Lately Asher has been really into animals. When we see dogs or cats he screeches and starts kicking his legs really fast. We decided to go find more animals for him to see. Right down the street from our house we have a "Tay Park" which means colt. It is adorable! There are mini horses just walking around in their corrals and they are not afraid of people.

Asher LOVES his daddy.

Connected to the park there is a small Vet Clinic with a few animals. Rabbits, goats, lambs and some cats. They were so fun to look at and Asher loved every second. He was diving at the animals and wanted to touch them really bad.

They are the cutest little buddies.

Christmas

2012-01-13T00:15:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas morning! We brought Asher out for his first Christmas and set him in front of the couch with all of his new toys. At first he sat there and stared but then he decided to grab things one by one and drop them on the ground. He loved to bang the new tubber ware bowls on the ground that mimi sent him and he loved to eat his new gerber puffs.

Ryan got new shoes and a watch from Santa and Asher loved his chocolate Santa.

Ryan got me another charm for my necklace! He got me an "A" for Asher. I also got a new GPS watch that I am obsessed with!

I gave Ryan a bunch of pieces of paper....with gifts written on them. He is going to be getting all of his gifts when we get home in the summer.

His biggest gift being that he gets to buy a new gun this summer.

When we needed to leave for church we had our hands full with food, trays and bags. Ryan had the great idea of putting Asher in his basketball bag to carry him down. Asher sat in the bag and held perfectly still the entire time. I think he was a little confused!

Our branch on Christmas day! We had such a yummy feast and I ate my heart out!

We ended the day with a Basketball game!

It was a great day! Christmas is definitely more fun with a little one.

This year Christmas kept on giving because we just received a package from my mom! The post office decided to keep it there for three weeks without letting us even know it was there. Way to go postal service! I've been ruining my New Year's Resolutions everyday since we got the package. See's candies and peppermint chocolates are causing me to run a few more miles at the gym.

Christmas Eve

2012-01-09T01:59:00.000-08:00

We had a low key Christmas Eve. A night at our apartment with some friends. It was perfect. We invited Brian and Misty over and had breakfast for dinner! We can't get a ham and all of the traditional food so I decided to make homemade cinnamon rolls. They were yummy! I think you would have been proud mom. We were lucky enough to have some bacon and it was on the plate for about .02 seconds. When you can't have it regularly, you want it even more! We had a fun evening and loved watching Asher open gifts for the first time.

Starting him on the tradition of opening Christmas jammies!

Ryan and I attempted at putting together our Christmas pajamas. He wore his green team sweats and I wore a GAP shirt that is supposed to be a candy cane. Next year I'll have to start buying us pajamas. Our attempt didn't quite cut it.

Brian and Misty were nice enough to bring Asher a Christmas gift. They got him rubber duckies and a fishing game to play in the tub. He is obsessed with both. Every time he hears the ducks squeak he starts to laugh and makes a squeaking noise back. Thanks you guys!

My favorite is that Ryan told Brian and Misty to come over in pajamas and so Brian wore his team sweats and a red shirt. Love it! Of course a 7 foot guy doesn't own any "pajamas."

Christmas post to follow...

Who?

2012-01-09T00:12:00.000-08:00

Guess who is 8 months old!

You guessed it...

Asher is 8 months old.

He is...playing nonstop

laughing more and more and has discovered his screaming voice and clicking with his tongue

eating absolutely everything that his gums can chew (loves yogurt and green smoothies) and he is sprouting more teeth

He is into everything! Pulling, tugging, dropping and throwing.

He attended his first playgroup! He played so hard that by the end he had worked up a good sweat and when we got home he took a 3 1/2 hour nap.

and he is still a thumb sucker!

We love our little buddy.

Leading up...

2011-12-28T12:15:00.000-08:00

Here is a random post of events leading up to Christmas.

First, meet Ashley...I mean Asher. He is definitely not happy to be dressed in pink. We're borrowing more warm jammies from a friend here that has a little girl. Asher wanted me to tell you he is so embarrassed I posted this picture!

We didn't have stockings this year and so I decided to go back to 1st grade. I pulled out the construction paper, tape and scissors! It did the trick.

As a friend/neighbor gift we made homemade fudge. It was DELICIOUS! Thank you Pinterest.

I love capturing Ryan enjoying my treats!

Yes, I do know I look beautiful. No need to leave a comment expressing how jealous you are of my greasy/wavy hair.

I had to capture this picture. Asher and Ryan were wrestling and laughing when all of a sudden Asher made a big sigh noise and then started sucking his thumb mid wrestling move. "Dad, I need a minute."

His "My First Christmas" hat that is for a tiny newborn. Didn't quite fit. You get the idea!

And Asher has been crawling like a MAD MAN. He crawls, pulls himself up onto everything and is loving to be tickled, wrestled, thrown and is even loving hide and go seek. Can't believe he is almost 8 months old.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T12:11:00.001-08:00

Basketball & Article

2011-12-23T13:42:00.000-08:00

Ryan had a great game last week! He had 29 points and got player #4 of the week. He is doing very well and we're really enjoying this season! He has a game Christmas day and New Year's Eve! We're actually excited because one of them is against Ryan's old team here in Turkey and we miss all of the people!

I got an email from the writer of a Basketball magazine. He wanted to make sure I saw this article he wrote about Ryan two years ago. Kind of random because it was a long time ago but I was happy he wrote me because I hadn't seen it! I wanted to make sure and post this to show our kids!

Forgotten Legends Series: Ryan Toolson

In the latest installment in his "Forgotten Legends" interview series CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with Ryan Toolson, the greatest player in Utah Valley history. After his time at Utah Valley, Toolson left as the school's all-time leader in points, assists, three-pointers made and free throw percentage just to name a few categories. Toolson is now playing professionally in Turkey.

Jon Teitel: In 2003 at Gilbert (AZ) High you were named Arizona Player of the Year. Why did you choose to go to Utah Valley?

Ryan Toolson: In high school I was not highly recruited because I did not go to many AAU tournaments until the summer before my senior year. I had a few good schools interested in me after that but I chose to sign before my senior season started. UVU felt like a good choice because I thought coach Dick Hunsaker could help me progress the most. UVU was just transferring from a JC to a D-1 program, and it was in a great area where there are a lot of members of my faith.

JT: You served an LDS church mission to Guatemala City. What role does your faith play in your life, and what lessons did you learn from your mission?

RT: The LDS faith means everything to me. It has helped me become the man I am today and teaches great principles that every family should want to have in their own lives. On my mission I grew from being a boy to being a man; that was the time in my life where they "cut the umbilical cord" (so to speak) from my parents. In the two years I spent in Guatemala I only spoke with my family twice a year: once on Christmas Day and once on Mother's Day. I wrote home via email once a week but other than that I did not have a lot of contact with anybody from home. The quote that describes my mission perfectly is, "Pray as though everything depends on God; work as though everything depended on you." My family was not there to help me through my problems so it helped me rely on the man upstairs.

JT: In 2007 you led the nation in free throw shooting with 97% (96-of-99). Did you feel like you were going to make every free throw you took that season, and do you still remember the three you missed?

RT: When it comes to shooting I am a very confident person. Every time I shoot I think the ball is going in. I guess I always thought that is how you should think if you want to be good, and that is the approach I also take when it comes to free throws. For me missed free throws haunt me more than missed buzzer-beaters because you should not miss free throws. During a game there are so many things that can impede you from getting a good shot or prevent you from even getting a shot off, but during a free throw you have ten seconds to shoot a wide-open shot right in front of the hoop. I do remember the three I missed. I missed the front-end of a 1-and-1 in a game at Southern Utah, and then I actually missed two in a row in a game at South Dakota State. The two in a row were actually the second of two free throws followed by the front-end of a 1-and-1 later in the game.

JT: In 2008 you led the nation in free throw shooting for the second straight year (95.1%) and were named Division I Independent Player of the Year. What did it mean to you to win such an outstanding individual honor?

RT: Winning the Player of the Year award did not really mean a whole lot other than the fact that I played on a good team. You are not a good player unless you have other good players around you.

JT: After the 2008 season you got married. What was it like to be married while still in college, and do you think it had any effect on your game?

RT: Getting married in college was the greatest decision I ever made. I found the girl of my dreams and knew that she was the one for me so there was no point in wasting time. Being married also helped my game. No more parties until 2 AM or staying up late with your buddies doing who-knows-what! I had time to focus on my studies, basketball, and her, and that is the way I wanted it.

JT: In 2009 you had 12 rebounds and scored a school-record/NCAA season-high 63 points in 60 minutes in a quadruple-overtime win at Chicago State (the tenth-highest total in NCAA history). How did you have any energy left for each successive overtime period, and how has that one game changed your life?

RT: I finally got the respect that I thought I deserved after the CSU game. Pro scouts knew that I was pretty good but I needed a performance like that to catch their attention and help them realize that I could play at the next level. I was playing on pure adrenaline in the overtime periods because after every play I thought to myself that I was finished and could not go up and down the court one more time. Somehow we managed to win it and it felt amazing.

JT: In 2009 you led the nation in free throw shooting for the third straight season (92.7%), and you finished your career ranked second all-time in NCAA history in career free throw shooting (93.9%). How were you able to maintain your focus over your entire career, and what is your secret for free throw shooting?

RT: For me free throws are more mental than anything else. I remember arguing with my uncle Danny Ainge about why big guys cannot make free throws and why the average free throw percentage in the NBA is so low. He tried to tell me that it is like putting in golf...but I think he used this example because he knew that I sucked at golf! My counter-argument was that the putting greens on every course are different and even the same green can be different in the morning vs. the evening, which basically makes for a hard putt every time. A free throw is the only thing that has not changed in basketball. Three-point lines have changed a few times, along with the length and width of the court from college to the NBA, but the free throw line has never changed. The floor is flat, the hoop is 10-feet high/15-feet away from you with nobody guarding you, and you have 10 seconds to put it in. If I missed a putt I could say that the grass was too wet or dry, or sloped too much, or whatever. There are no excuses for missing a free throw.

JT: You graduated as the all-time leading scorer in school history, and you also hold the school record for career assists. Did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and how were you able to balance your scoring with your passing?

RT: During my junior and senior years all the attention was on me. I was double-teamed coming off screens every time or just had a box-and-one on me the whole game. Due to that happening so much I was able to free up a lot of my teammates for easy shots. However, being a shooting guard I never thought that I would set the assist record.

JT: You went overseas to play in Turkey, where you currently lead your team in scoring and made your first All-Star game. What have you learned from this experience, and how does it compare to college basketball?

RT: Right now I am on a very young team that relies on their foreign players (like me) a lot. I guess that I just came to the right situation during my rookie year and it has helped me make a good transition to the European style. The difference from college to the pros is the athleticism of the players and the speed of the game: here you get up and down the floor a lot faster than in America. They love shooters too. They even want their centers to be able to shoot well which makes the need for teamwork on both offense and defense an absolute necessity.

JT: Your family has a very impressive athletic lineage. Your cousin Andy played for the Utah Jazz, and your uncle Danny is the only person to be a high school First Team All-American in football, basketball, and baseball. Is it a coincidence that you have such an athletic family, or do you credit at least some of your success to genetics?

RT: My lineage is not as strong as everybody thinks. I am not actually related to Danny by blood; he just married my dad's sister Michelle when he was at BYU. Everybody thinks that we are related because we are both shooters and we look alike, but that is where it ends. My dad's side of the family has Andy but my mom's side of the family is mostly cowboys, so I am leaning more towards coincidence and a little bit of a competitive drive.

bubbles

2011-12-22T12:46:00.000-08:00

When we went to meet Santa a couple of weeks ago he gave Asher bubbles. Way to go Santa because Asher has LOVED the bubbles. We've been throwing the bubbles in the bottom of the stroller and when we walk outside we're sure to let some loose. Asher is starting to understand how to "POP" them.

I was so tempted to buy this little rocking horse for Asher but then remembered I have to get everything home at the end of the season. Bummer. It was adorable.

Asher watching his favorite show "Yo Gabba Gabba" and sucking his thumb.

Birthday Celebration

2011-12-22T12:24:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago we were able to find a night to celebrate my Birthday! We went to one of my favorite restaurants here called Paprica and then we did something I've been wanting to do forever now...

Asher enjoying his applesauce at dinner.

Porcini fettucini, greek salad and a margherita pizza. Hit the spot!

What I have been wanting to do FOREVER is do a blind taste test. What ice cream is better, McDonald's or Burger King? We had to do the test! We tested Hot Fudge Sundaes and Chocolate Milkshakes. It was so much fun! Now we have been doing blind taste tests with everything! Juices, chocolate bars and gum! Try it!

What won you ask? McDonald's sundae AND McDonald's shake TAKES THE CAKE!

Ryan even put a candle in my half eaten sundae.

Happy Birthday to me!

Not a whole lot...

2011-12-15T13:29:00.000-08:00

There isn't a whole lot going on over here! Asher has been really sick with a virus and Ryan is out of town. I thought I would do a small recap...

A few weeks ago I hosted our Branch FHE. I decided it would be fun to do something with Christmas in mind. We made paper chains and combined it with somewhat of an advent calendar. With the help of my sister Kim we came up with this fun idea! Everyone made a countdown and on each chain they put an activity for that day. Some of mine included get a peppermint hot chocolate, listen to Christmas music, make a gingerbread house, put up a tree, take a walk along the water, write a friend an email and watch a Christmas movie! We've done an activity each day this month! After we made our paper chains we turned on Elf and I made homemade crepes with nutella, bananas and fresh raspberry whipped cream. Yum!

Joel and Robert

Showing off our chain!

Asher has discovered a new trick. Two weeks ago he began pulling himself up in his crib. This is really cute but also terribly annoying because he doesn't know how to get back down. He starts off playing, giggling and screeching and then it turns into screaming and crying. He can't get down and so he feels stuck. I go in to put him down and he immediately stands back up. This has turned into a vicious cycle and has pretty much ruined Asher's great sleeping schedule. I now realize how amazing it was having him lay right down and go to sleep! I do have to say that it's incredibly cute having him reach up and grab for me when I walk in the room!

We partially completed one of our Christmas tasks. We found gingerbread houses at Ikea! So great! We built them one night and then we were going to decorate them the next day so it could set. BIG mistake. It was raining the night we put them together and we woke up in the morning to a pile of gingerbread. The whole house got so soft it fell apart. So, we never got to the best part but it was still fun just building!

PARTY!

2011-12-08T07:18:00.001-08:00

Today we went to a Children's Christmas Party over at the Swiss Hotel. It was such a fun morning. Asher was able to meet Santa and he made some new friends. They had cookies, pizza, hot chocolate, cupcakes and presents for each child. I enjoyed Asher's food and he enjoyed a Christmas cookie! Asher's gift from Santa was a huge tube of bubbles! It was great to meet more foreign moms living here in Izmir and also learn that there are some people here that celebrate Christmas! YAY!

Asher and Jackson

Asher loved the ornaments

Asher and Alysse from Germany. She's adorable!

Asher and Santa. Asher tried to tug on his beard and I couldn't help but laugh at the very homemade Santa outfit. At least it was a great attempt and the kids didn't even notice! The funny part was how all of the children started screaming and crying when Santa came skipping in yelling "HO HO HO!"

On the right is Pinar. She is the one that put this entire party together! She did a great job!

Most of the group. It's impossible to get a decent group photo with a bunch of kids!

Asher was obsessed with his bubbles and loved to watch this little boy suck on his pizza.

Jen just moved here from the States! YAY!

Catching the ferry to go home.

My other friend Pinar (I met today!) and her daughter Leva and then Addie!

It was a great day and I was so happy to attend my first party all for Asher! Merry Christmas from a place that was 60 degrees and sunshine today!

Granola

2011-12-04T11:09:00.001-08:00

This is too good not to share. I have now made this homemade granola a few times and it is so delicious. I thought it would be a fun Christmas gift for neighbors or even better, just keep it to enjoy all by yourself. I literally ate granola and yogurt for two days straight while Ryan was out of town. I love to eat this with natural yogurt, bananas, kiwi, apples, pomegranate, pineapple or anything I have in my fridge at the moment. They have delicious granola in the stores here but it is so expensive and is so sweet! This is the right amount of honey flavor but the best part is the roasted flavor it gets after baking in the oven.

Here are a few tips:

1: I googled how to make your granola chunky. If you like chunky granola also, here is how. Take an egg white and whisk it until frothy. Make your granola recipe as follows but before you bake it you mix in the egg white THEN bake. Let it completely cool on the pan over night and in the morning you have huge chunks of granola. Perfect.

2: When I baked mine the first time I was worried that it was burning so be sure to stir it every 15 minutes. My oven cooks very unevenly so I know that is a major part of the problem. After I ate the whole batch by myself the first time I realized that the roasted/burnt flavor is actually something I really enjoyed! So, let it get a little toasty looking! The best part is the almonds with the roasted flavor.

3: I only chop up dried figs and dried apricots for mine. I think it's the perfect combination. My mouth is watering.

Hope you enjoy!

Christmas Prep/Birthday

2011-12-03T05:36:00.001-08:00

It never feels like Christmas season until I have my Christmas tree up and ready. I've been waiting and waiting for the day to come that we put up our tree. We got so lucky this year because my friend Laura that is here had an extra tree! She is letting us borrow her tree so all we had to buy was the decorations. So nice of her since we have now left behind two Christmas trees at the end of each season. Thursday night was what I like to call the perfect holiday night. We started off the night at Ikea to buy some decorations. Ikea always pulls through for me. In a country that doesn't celebrate Christmas it is so fun to show up and see an entire Christmas section at Ikea. We loaded up on ornaments and then of course had to indulge in some swedish meatballs. I'm never too big of a fan but Ryan loves them! I like the french fries dipped in the gravy! Healthy, I know. After Ikea we went to Kipa to find ANOTHER Christmas section! WOO HOO! Next we indulged in what I would consider one of the best parts of the night....Starbucks! A peppermint hot chocolate and a salted caramel hot chocolate. Both were delicious and we can never decide what we like better so we get both and share! After an evening out in the crisp, cool air we headed home to decorate our tree.

We got home, put Asher to bed and turned on Home Alone. Let the decorating begin...

Yes, that's a paper snowflake as our tree topper. I had to get crafty! I actually like it!

Asher woke up the next morning and was so excited when he saw the tree. He loves the lights and is constantly trying to stand up and pull the tree down.

I had a Birthday! Unfortunately Ryan was out of town for my Birthday. It actually wasn't a big deal because I was able to go enjoy some Christmas festivities with Asher. We had our own little date night. We got all dressed up to go to the International Women's group Dinner at the Swiss Hotel. We rode over to Alsincak on the ferry with my friend, Devon. The Swiss Hotel was decorated so beautifully! I didn't stay for the dinner because it would have been hard with Asher. I just went and shopped around at the booths they had set up before the dinner. I bought Asher some fun wooden toys and met some other American, Australian and German women! After the dinner I met up with some NATO families and went to the Anglican church for their Christmas tree lighting. This was the perfect ending to our holiday night. Asher loved the huge, beautiful tree and made gasping sounds when they turned on the lights. I'll admit, I got a little teary eyed singing Christmas carols with other people who celebrate the birth of our Savior around a beautiful tree. The chapel was beautiful, I felt the spirit as we sang and what's more fun then enjoying these things for the first time with Asher! The only thing that could have made it more fun is if Ryan were there.

The gingerbread house at the Swiss Hotel. Made out of REAL gingerbread, frosting and candy! It was amazing!

One of the booths had cake pops, adorable cakes and sugar cookies! I know who will make Asher's 1st year cake!

Asher wanting the cake pop. I may have given him a bite...

The ballroom decorated for the dinner. Wish I could have stayed! It was lovely.

The tree lighting

Asher loved to touch the ornaments and lights.

Asher made a new friend! They giggled, poked each other and hugged for about fifteen minutes.

Some of the NATO families kids. I have met some amazing families and am really enjoying getting to know them. Their kids are so sweet with Asher and it's refreshing to speak in english and carry on a normal conversation. Such kind people and I'm grateful to have met them!

It was a great Birthday!

7 months

2011-12-03T00:56:00.001-08:00

This little munchkin is now seven months old. I can't say it enough, the time is FLYING! Please slow down! This month brought some milestone with it. Asher is now crawling but still chooses the army crawl more. He starts out crawling and then after about 10 strides he drops back down to his belly. He gets around faster sliding his belly along the ground. He pulls himself up on things to a standing position. Yikes! That has brought along some falls and bonking his head with it! He enjoys cruising around in his walker and pulling everything off of shelves, the couch or knocking things over. He has tried more foods, he is into everything, he sleeps great minus a couple of teething nights and he is in awe by Christmas lights and decorations. Such a fun time! Now I know why parents get so excited to take their kids to Disneyland!

I can't tell you how many times I have looked into Asher's stroller to find his eyes completely covered by his hat. He just sits there and doesn't make a sound. Silly boy.

These are the best pictures I could get of a little man that never wants to sit still!

Thanksgiving x 3

2011-12-01T06:05:00.001-08:00

This year we were lucky enough to celebrate Thanksgiving THREE times. I usually have a rough time around this season and Christmas because it's just not the same as being at home. This year I wanted to do things different and go to the extreme to make up for distance between us and family. We had our own Thanksgiving just the 3 of us, a huge Thanksgiving that I hosted with a friend and then celebrated with our branch. It was definitely enough celebrating and it was a special year!

Thanksgiving day! We woke up to a little Turkey in our home!

A scaled down Thanksgiving feast since we're a little group. Chicken instead of turkey, no rolls (too much work for 2 of us) and roasted carrots instead of sweet potatoes. It was still delicious!

Asher was really excited about all of the food placed around him. He was lucky enough to try mashed potatoes and he loved them! I made stuffing from scratch for the first time. I'm still a "Stove Top" fan.

As we were trying to take a picture Asher was more focused on getting some food then smiling for the picture...

Success! See the carrot in his little fingers? I love his face. "What mom?"

Ryan showing off our very special box of See's chocolates I brought over with me from the States. We have been waiting and waiting for the day to open them. It was well worth the wait. YUM!

On Saturday night my friend Laura and I hosted a huge Thanksgiving for all of the American families we know here in Izmir. It turned into a group of about 40 people! It was such a great time. We had so much food and I think everyone had a great time getting together, being able to speak English, enjoying delicious food, playing some fun games and the opportunity to meet new people! The best part of this party was that we were able to eat TURKEY and ham! You would think that turkey would be easy to come by in a country called Turkey. Well, it isn't! It tasted delicious even though the lady cooking it showed up 2 1/2 hours late due to cooking the turkey on broil for the entire day! I love my friend Dianne. She's hilarious! Luckily the turkey was covered in foil and wasn't burned and when we were able to eat the big bird it was well worth the wait! Talk about stressing out a hostess though! Also, I learned on this day how much easier it is to cook with your mom and sisters. I woke up at 7am and cooked until 6pm. I made pumpkin chocolate chip bread, lemon bars, apple crisp, creamed corn, waldorf salad, mashed potatoes and gravy! My hands hurt the next day. Literally. But it was delicious!

All of the pictures I took of the entire group are so blurry and dark they aren't even worth posting. Here are a few pics.

Some of the men and Misty enjoying a conversation with full tummies.

Adorable Abby and Asher. Abby is sweet and loves to carry around Asher for me and babysit him. I need to hire her!

Our dessert table. I easily gained two pounds just from the desserts. The picture of all the food didn't turn out but we had A TON!

Brian (one of Ryan's team mates) and Misty his fiance.

One of the signs I made for the party. I was actually impressed with my pilgrim turkey!

On Sunday we went to church and then enjoyed another Thanksgiving dinner with the branch.

Asher is always more then happy to take pictures with Ryan...

then when it comes to me he does faces like this. Silly boy.

Our amazing spread of food just for the seven of us! We had enough food for 20.

Joel (far right) cooked the best turkey I have EVER had in my entire life. In the bag, under 300 degrees for EIGHT hours. It literally fell off the bone. I've never eaten so much turkey in my life. No offense mom, your turkey is great too!

We hope that you enjoyed your Thanksgiving! We enjoyed ours!

Now onto the Christmas season!

Aliaga vs. Besiktas

2011-11-26T02:34:00.001-08:00

First things first. Ryan was picked again this week to be "Top Performing Player #6" in Turkey. He played last weekend and ended with 28 points and a WIN! He's working so hard and doing so well. Proud of him!

ALSO...

As many of you may know (or have no clue/don't care) there is an NBA lockout going on right now. Because of the lockout a TON of NBA players have made the jump to overseas Basketball. Before the lockout a lot of NBA players would come to Europe if they got cut, weren't signed, retired from the NBA etc. Well, this season has been different. A lot of BIG named players have made their way over to still make money while the issues in the States are resolved. Players such as Deron Williams, Sasha Vujacic, Tony Parker, Mehmet Okur, Omri Casspi and many more are currently playing overseas. There are plenty more still talking about coming overseas if an agreement isn't worked out some time soon such as Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant. It's fun for Ryan to play against a lot of high profile names giving him the chance to prove he can compete with these guys. Last night for example his team played Besiktas. Deron Williams is currently playing for Besiktas. Ryan was guarded the entire game by Deron Williams himself. Ryan had 15 points and played really well against him! It was such an amazing game with an awesome atmosphere. Crazy, screaming and whistling fans were jammed into the arena. More people were standing then sitting. Unfortunately, we lost but Aliaga didn't go down without a fight and it was a really great game! This is definitely something we'll remember forever. Ryan playing against the best point guard in the NBA.

Way to go Ryan!!

Monday morning

2011-11-23T06:23:00.001-08:00

Monday morning Asher decided to wake up and stay up at 7. By 8am Ryan was also awake. Usually our mornings are pretty low key until Asher takes his nap and Ryan heads out the door for his first practice. Monday was different. Ryan woke up with the genius idea of heading to McDonald's for breakfast. YUM! There are a ton of McDonald's in our area but only one location serves breakfast. AND it's the only location that has sausage. The reason for that is because here in Turkey any sort of pig is almost impossible to come by. In the muslim religion they don't eat any pork. That's why we ran so quickly at the idea of going! We got on our sweats, threw on coats, we didn't brush our hair but we did brush our teeth! We looked pretty sketchy to say the least. Actually, I looked pretty sketchy.

Asher ready for his first trip to McDonald's!

Loading into the car

Asher with the one happy face he gave me the whole drive. He hates his car seat.

(this is for Kim to get an idea of what our streets look like)

Then we were there 10 minutes later. The crazy streets of Karsiyaka at 8:30am

We were the first customers of the morning. We arrived just as the doors open.

Our delicious Sausage and Egg McMuffins. YUM YUM!

Trust me, I know I look horrible but I'm not ashamed. It was well worth looking awful for. I'm also not afraid to admit I look like this more often then not! I'm loving the fluffy hair on the side. That's taken me years of practice to perfect.

This is a very ordinary sight to see in Turkey. Incredibly fresh produce just driving down the street. The merchant will pick a random street corner to sell his fruits/veggies right out of his truck. I love it!

The damage was done. It tasted even better then we hoped.

Heading back home...tummies full!

Grateful

2011-11-20T06:05:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving week!

I am grateful for...

A wonderful, loving husband that is kind to me always and loves me just the way I am

A sweet baby that has changed my life forever and is teaching me to love like I have never loved before

Supportive family members that are constantly making sure we know they love us and care for us from thousands of miles away

Parents that care about our lives and are always checking in to see if there is anything we need

Siblings that are always there for me and never too busy to talk

Friends that treat me the same when I come home and the amazing friend I have that talks to me at least 3 times a week on the phone

The gospel that is with us no matter where in the world we live and the blessings it brings into our lives

The opportunity I have to live in beautiful, interesting and at times chaotic countries

Food. I love food

Prayer

I truly am grateful for trials that remind me to rely on our Heavenly Father

Skype that saves me day after day and makes the time away a little bit easier

My body and health. I feel like I finally appreciate how incredible our bodies are

Ryan's body and health along with the opportunity he has to work in an industry that he is so passionate about

Grateful that Ryan has a job at a time when many overseas players have been replaced by NBA players (NBA lockout)

Asher's health (when you live in a Foreign country it feels like your world is coming to an end the second your baby coughs)

The opportunity to attend church even if there are six people

Kind people that smile at me in a culture where it's abnormal to make eye contact. This is random I know but I need interaction and I love to smile

The opportunity I have to live this life even though it is very difficult at times (holiday season) and the incredible adventures that come our way year after year

A dryer! Usually you have to hang dry your clothes but luckily the team bought us a brand new dryer

Another year of challenges that help us grow, successes that makes us grateful and for blessings that don't go unnoticed.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving festivities and time with family and friends!

Asher

2011-11-20T02:32:00.001-08:00

Here are even more photos of our little man. I'm not going to apologize for all of the pictures because this is how I keep our families informed with all that Asher is doing. We love him!

Full of smiles

Sucking his thumb and toes at the same time

Our Nascar driver on Halloween....

Then he gets his hands on a water bottle...

his favorite toy...

then POP!!! He unscrewed the lid. He was in a little bit of shock! We've learned no more lids for Asher. Choking hazard!

On the way to church. He hates shoes and kicks them off after 3 seconds of having them on.

He loves to look over your shoulder and look at everything behind him as you walk by.

Joel (a branch member) is the only one that can do this trick with Asher.

Asher just chillin' at Ryan's game waiting for it to start. He watches Ryan warm up. Very serious about watching his dad.

AMAZING! He fell asleep at half time or what I call coffee/smoke time because the arena EMPTIES out for everyone to smoke. Asher stayed asleep the whole 3rd quarter. I think he was in shock by the crazy fans and loud noises.

Out for Chinese

Asher hasn't been feeling very well so for him to just fall asleep on me was pure heaven. This never happens! He's been so fussy and uncomfortable the last few days which has been rough. He won't even really snuggle with us anymore so having him sick and in the mood to snuggle is actually enjoyable. He now does the "throw my head back and arch as hard as I can." It's quite sad! I'm missing the sit and snuggle days. When he's awake it's go, go, go! Keeps us entertained!

Teething baby

2011-11-14T11:03:00.001-08:00

We went in to check on Asher the other night.

Think he is teething? And yes, he is sleeping!

Out of place...

2011-11-08T12:26:00.000-08:00

Notice anything that looks a little out of place?

Sorry about the incredibly bright picture. Again, I don't know how to use my camera.

Yes, that is our bed IN the family room. Why? Let me explain. First off, there is usually only one AC unit in the whole apartment when you live in Europe. We've become used to this over the last couple years. When we first moved in it was incredibly hot! What do you do? Bring the bed to the AC unit. Now you're probably wondering why we haven't moved the bed back to our bedroom since we no longer turn on the AC. Easy explanation. There is no internet connection in our room which means no American TV watching in our room which means ruining our nighttime ritual. It's as easy as that! We have to watch our TV shows together when we get in bed at night so this bed will most likely stay in here until we have visitors and then we'll maybe consider moving our bed back. This might sound a little crazy but trust me, it's not.

Thought I'd show you our irregularly LONG kitchen. Isn't that so long? Welcome to our corridor...I mean kitchen.

Just because...

2011-11-08T12:08:00.000-08:00

I have noticed that my posts have a lot of pictures. Actually, a lot of pictures of Asher. I just can't help myself! He is into so many things and cracks me up all day long. I wanted to share! Also, what better way to document his changes then to blog about him. After all, this is our journal!

Ryan likes to eat a snickers bar before bed. This one had been a little bit melted which left a wonderful surprise for Asher. Melted caramel and chocolate on the inside of the wrapper! Let's just say that he licked the wrapper perfectly clean and maybe enjoyed it a little too much. When I finally took the wrapper away he started to cry. That was the first time he has ever gotten mad at something being taken away from him. uh oh! This baby knows what is good for him!

Now that Asher is army crawling he gets himself into a lot of things. We like to call him our "wounded soldier" because he always leaves one leg dragging behind quite lifeless. He lifts himself up and over anything. Lately his favorite is our electronics. DVD player, speakers, Satellite box and chords. I finally just unplugged everything and let him have at it! Now he probably won't be as into since I've stopped paying so much attention to him when he goes over there.

We've made some new friends! Another American couple with a 15 month old little girl. It has been great to make some new friends and I'm not complaining about the toys Asher has been able to borrow. They are letting Asher borrow Adi's walker and he is obsessed! He doesn't even mind that it's pink with butterflies and flowers all over. He gets around so quick! He slides passed the doorways when he gets going and then scoots his little legs in reverse to turn the corner. He gets really excited and makes screeching noises when he gets cruisin' too fast.

Ryan has a teammate that has a dog named "Turk." Asher loves him. I feel like they both know they're babies and so they have an instant connection. Asher loves to pet him and have Turk lick his fingers.

Moms out there! Have you seen these things? They are the BEST! My mother in law bought Asher these little gadgets. You stick food in them (apples, pears, carrots etc.) and then the baby can sink their teeth into it and suck and gnaw to their hearts content. It keeps Asher busy for a good half hour. He is loving them just as much as me. Amazing for a teething baby!

Asher has discovered his tongue.

Have you heard of the mini show "Small Potatoes?" It's our favorite! My sister Kim introduced us to these little episodes and they are perfect! They're 4 or 5 minutes and Asher loves every second! Check them out! They are adorable! We just watch them on YouTube.

It's about time...

2011-11-02T23:22:00.000-07:00

I thought it was about time I blog about this Basketball season! The season is under way and has gone well so far! In the preseason there was the first round of the Turkish Cup which is a huge tournament that is amongst all 16 teams in Turkey. It is the next biggest thing to playoffs at the end of the season. All 16 teams participate and if you qualify for the next rounds they take place throughout the season. Ryan's team Aliaga Petkim lost their first game to Ryan's previous team in Turkey, Karsiyaka but then they came back and beat one of the top teams named Turk Telekom! Ryan got MVP of this game and had 22 points! The next day would say if they were able to move on in the tournament or not. Of course, they had to play the #1 team Anadolu Efes. Well, guess what! Ryan's team beat them! Aliaga made it to the next round of the Turkish cup which will be in January. I was so bummed that all of this went on while I was in the states visiting family. I always have the worst luck with booking trips to go home and then something huge happens! At least Asher and I will travel to the next round FOR SURE! Ryan played incredible and had fun in the tournament! If you are an NBA fan then you may know these players. He played against Mehmet Okur and Sasha Vujacic in these games. Mehmet Okur even told Ryan he was a an incredible shooter, which is pretty cool! Ryan would be embarrassed if he knew I told you that!

The first game of the actual season was October 16th. They have played 3 games so far this season (including Efes again but this time the lost in another hard game.) Ryan has been playing really well and is really enjoying this year. In this last game he had 20 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists and they won! He was made the 4th best player in Turkey this week and is in the top 10 in the country for assists per game. I am so proud of him and his team!

Asher and I love being at the games! And yes, Asher wears these headphones! The first game we didn't have them and he screamed the whole time because the fans were so loud! Then, next game he wore them and didn't even make a sound! He even watches Ryan run up and down the court!

Ryan works so hard and I love that he is able to fulfill his dream of playing Pro Basketball. He is such an amazing father and husband! He commutes 30 minutes to and from practice everyday so that we can live in the same city that we lived in the first year. He has two practices a day about 3 times a week and he never complains about all of the traveling. It makes his days so much longer but he is amazing and sacrifices rest so that Asher and I can have more to do and live in a place where we have friends! I am so grateful for Ryan's hard work and dedication and doing everything he can to provide for our family! We love you Ryan!

Here are a couple pieces of articles on eurobasket.com
Aliaga - Tofas 74-73

The most surprising game was the first loss of undefeated Tofas (2-1) on the court of twelfth ranked Aliagaon Sunday night. Visitors were edged by Aliaga 74-73. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Tofas. Tofas was trailing by 9 points at halftime but managed to get 2-point lead after three quarters before a 17-14 charge of Aliaga, which allowed them to win the game. It was a great evening for American guard Ryan Toolson (193-85, college: Utah Valley St.) who led his team to a victory scoring 20 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists (on 7-of-8 shooting from the field). Serbian guard Branislav Ratkovica (193-85, agency: Beo Basket) helped adding 15 points and 4 assists. Aliaga's coach used a ten-player rotation in such tough game. The best for the losing side was American forward Bradley Buckman (203-84, college:Texas) with 22 points and 8 rebounds and the other American import point guard Ronald Steele (187-86, college: Alabama, agency: SportsTalent) scored 7 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Aliaga (1-2) left bottom position moving up to eighth place, which they share with 5 other teams. Tofas at the other side keeps the fifth position with one game lost. They share it with Turk Telekom and Mersin. Aliaga is looking forward to face bottom-ranked Trabzonspor (#16) on the road in the next round and are hoping to win another game. Tofas will play against Olin Edirne (#10) and is hoping to win this game.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Ryan Toolson (193-G-85) of Aliaga - 20 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists

6 months

2011-11-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that Asher is already 6 months old. The time has passed so quickly that it feels like he was born just yesterday! This past month has been a big one. He has changed so much!

He is now army crawling all over the place

Has popped two teeth- we didn't even know he was teething with the first

He is a major thumb sucker and we love it

He has been able to sit up for quite some time now but he definitely prefers to be on his tummy

Is getting heavier and chubbier! Last doctor appointment about a month ago he was 19 pounds but he is always measure high 90th percentile for height and low 90's or 80th percentile for weight just like his daddy, long but skinny

He loves to playing with packaging, wrappers, boxes, empty water bottles and paper towel rolls

We think he is possibly left handed

He licked a snicker's wrapper CLEAN. He loved the melted chocolate and carmel. oops!

He has now tried rice cereal, carrots, peas and banana. He only likes bananas and eats a TON of it. Takes after his daddy by not loving vegetables.

He flirts with all of the ladies. He loves to go to the gym and get a ton of attention at daycare

He gets passed around from person to person at Ryan's games because he just smiles the whole time

He is a sweatin' baby. His bald head often times has beads of sweat by the ears. Cracks me up

He can pull himself up onto the mattress that is on the floor about 8" high

He loves walks in the stroller as long as he is sitting up so he can see everything around him

Sometimes he stares at people so long I begin to feel awkward

He can flip himself out of the bumbo (this causes some problems)

Still loves bath time

He sleeps in the stink bug position

He loves to have one hand wrapped around a blankie and his thumb in his mouth

I love that he reaches up and plays with my lips while he eats

His absolute favorite toy is "Sophie" the giraffe

He loves when Ryan throws him in the air

He giggles when we tickle him. I am excited for a full on laugh!

He has traveled more places then a lot of people. All over Italy, San Diego, Arizona, St. George, Turkey (2 times) and Mexico. Luckily, he does pretty well with traveling (minus the nightmare home to the states by myself.)

We had to lower the crib so that he couldn't pull himself over the ledge. He liked to get both of his hands on the railing and then bounce on his bum as if trying to stand up

He sleeps like a champ! Bed time is 8pm sleeps until 6am then eats and back to sleep until 8:30. Then he takes two really long naps and then a cat nap in the evening. He likes sleep as much as his parents and often times he dives at his crib.

I now know what it feels like to be completely obsessed with something. I run to his crib when I hear him make a sound! Ryan and I have races down the hallway pretty much everyday to get to him first. He makes this adventure of living overseas a lot more enjoyable. I have a constant buddy and Ryan has another fan and someone else that is so excited every time he walks in the door! He is definitely obsessed with his daddy and kicks his legs and arms all over when Ryan gets home and makes a squealing noise. I love when we go to get him out of his crib he immediately gives us a huge grin. Sometimes Ryan and I go in to his room in the middle of the night and hold him because we miss him! He has such a sweet personality and I can't wait to watch him continue to change and grow! I would just love it if he would slow down a little bit...

Doing his dive out of the bumbo. It's when he's on tile that I get nervous.

See his two teeth?

Then he was done with pictures

And here are a few more pictures just because....

Thumb sucker

Trying peas...you can see how much he enjoyed them

He now has a high chair and loves it as long as food is coming

Love that grin

This is also a favorite toy "My First Sports Bag" with a basketball, football, baseball and soccer ball inside. He rips it open and slams the balls on the ground.

Check out that lint! I don't know what it is but he always gets lint in his toes. This is an unusual amount though, no worries!

He loves his daddy!

We love you Asher!

A trip across the border

2011-10-31T02:42:00.000-07:00

In October we went on a vacation with my family to Punta Mita, Mexico. This is one of my most favorite vacation spots so you better believe I wasn't about to miss out on this trip. Asher and I made our way home from Turkey, got adjusted to the time change for a few days and then off we were to spend some time in the sun. Actually, now that I think about it. I should say to spend some time in the shade in a place where it is sunny. You don't spend much time basking in the sun when you have a baby! Fine by me...I didn't come home with too much of a tan but let's call it a nice "glow."

Asher took a few naps out in the tropical breeze in a pack n' play they would set up for him. He looked like he was in heaven! Treatment of a king.

Cody and Benton floating around the lazy river.

We spent a lot of time in the dipping pool at our house before nap time or in the evening. The kids loved it and I enjoyed a couple naps out there myself.

Asher loved the water!

Asher and Gammie

Stylin' Lulu! Love this girl.

Iguanas were everywhere!! My dad knows all of their hiding spots because he comes to this same place twice a year. A walk to the pool or beach was quite an adventure spotting all the ginormous iguanas.

Bumpa, Gammie and Asher enjoying a nice cruise around the pool.

Told you...he loved the water! Most of the time he would play for ten minutes and then start sucking his thumb and fall asleep on my shoulder. I loved it.

Out to dinner. I enjoyed the most incredible Pink Snapper with homemade tortillas. Wow!

Picking out our fish in the morning. You pick it in the morning and they cook it for you in the evening.

Asher working his magic. Such a flirt.

Lulu was sad Alycia was holding Asher. We may have been taunting this to happen.

My mom built me a flotation device. I loved it!

Ready to go around the lazy river! My mom takes the lazy river the opposite way for exercise. We would sit in tubes and she would drag us around. Exercise on vacation? nah...

My camera would fog up every time we came outside. oops.

Asher enjoying another nap.

I love this picture of the cousins. Isn't that cute?

Cody fishing.

We missed Ryan. That's one downfall to Ryan's work. No such thing as vacation time or sick days!

Tyler fishing.

He's discovered this new spitting thing. He thinks it's quite entertaining.

Asher exhausted from a long day at the pool. Dinners were hit or miss on if he would sit like this or fuss until he'd give up and fall asleep.

Mom and dad enjoying their 3 o'clock gelato! The bell would ring and we would run! Shave ice was at 2! Better believe we didn't miss that either.

Isn't his bum so cute? I had to include this.

Kimki and T-spice

Benton woke up from a nap at the pool a little out of it. I had to capture the image. His face is classic!

Asher loved taking baths outside on my parents balcony. He would lay perfectly still the whole time in complete relaxation. That is not normal for him in the tub!

The only entire group picture I took the whole trip. Bummer!

Cody in his ARMY hat he got for free when he was like 16. We have seen this hat for years! It's pretty much the only thing that Cody hasn't lost ;)

Benton loved pushing Asher in the stroller!

The kids playing on the edge of the infinity pool.

I love this picture!

Asher turned 5 months old! And he had to borrow Benton's shirt that we like to call the "Mexico or Hawaii ONLY shirt."

In case you haven't noticed, I have a thumb sucker and I LOVE IT!

Bumpa and Asher

A few nights we were tired and didn't feel like getting all dressed up for dinner so we ordered in! Let's just say it was quite a feast! We would eat amazing food in our robes. I think I ate enough chips and guacamole for 30 people while we were there.

Loved every minute of this vacation! We missed the family that couldn't join us!

Thanks mom and dad for another memorable vacation!

Halloween Party

2011-10-29T12:05:00.000-07:00

When Asher and I were visiting home a couple weeks ago we decided to have a Halloween party! We wanted to take advantage of all the Campbell cousins being together. We had my moms delicious chili, pumpkin chocolate chip muffins, salad, apples and carmel with different toppings. YUMMY!

Asher was a Nascar driver. Pretty much he was wearing GAP jammies that I counted as his costume.

My beautiful aunt and her girls. LOVE THEM!

Gammie and Asher

He loves his toes.

Family playing minute to win it games and laughing at how much cheating strategy was going on to win.

Yes, I get intense.

I always get a kick out of trying to get pictures of babies together. Look at the next few pictures of Asher and Dylan. Cracks me up!

Then comes lulu!

Then Asher had to end the night with giving granny kisses.

Loved our early party! Makes me feel better about the people in Turkey not celebrating Halloween. Enjoy your Fall Festivities!

Uplifting

2011-10-29T04:34:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling a little bit "behind" the last couple of weeks. I rarely have a completely clean house, it's a major accomplishment to get Asher and me out the door to the gym, I am nonstop doing laundry, I'm missing family and friends (the dreaded months of holidays are coming) and I just don't quite feel like I have IT all together. I find myself spending time looking at other peoples blogs (which gets me more behind!) and wishing I were as "crafty" as her or "oh dear, her house is so clean!" or "I have some work to do! She had her baby 2 months ago and looks great!" Luckily, I came across this talk by Dieter F. Uchtdorf today as I was trying to catch up on conference. If you haven't read it then you definitely should. It gave me a little pep in my step today! It's always great to be reminded of what is important in life. I realized that I am doing my job of being a full time mommy and that is very important. I am accomplishing things by spending every waking hour caring for a husband and baby. The other stuff may fall behind but Heavenly Father knows I am trying my best and that I love knowing that I am "important" is His eyes. So are YOU! Happy Saturday!

A Visit Home

2011-10-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

It's always so nice to come home and visit. This time we came home to go on vacation with my family to Mexico and also so that I could meet Stef's baby Riglee! Before I left to Mexico we had a little get together at Happy Sumo for Stef. I wanted to celebrate Stef and Riglee but cute Stef made it very clear that I wasn't allowed to have another shower. Instead we celebrated at her favorite restaurant and enjoyed a delicious meal!

Stef has now had her baby. Riglee is adorable and luckily Stef had an easy and perfect delivery. YAY!

I love my little bug.

After Mexico we came home and were greeted with such a fun group of people! First, Danielle came with Sadie and Sam! They were on Fall Break and so they came up to visit. Sam and Sadie were so cute with Asher. Love those kids.

Sam snuggling with Asher. Does it get more precious?

Asher had a special visit from his Mimi and Papa Mike. They came all of the way from Arizona for a day in order to see Asher. It was such a great day! Asher played and played and even started army crawling just for them! He took a little nap on mimi and then laughed and laughed while papa mike tickled his tummy. THANK YOU for coming. Asher loves his mimi and papa. Now I am kicking myself because I didn't take more pictures of their visit.

This picture cracks me up of the grandkids minus lulu. Look at Asher down in the left hand corner. He sat in a high chair for the first time while in Utah. Let's just say he thought that was pretty cool.

Can we say double chin? This baby is one silly guy. And yes, I know this picture is kind of creepy of my child. I had to put it up to give you a giggle and his chubby chin.

And who knows what this face is? At least it is cute of Sadie. He cracks me up.

My dad had a Birthday! We surprised him with breakfast one morning. You would never guess his age. I was years off when I guessed how old he turned. Yes, that's right. I didn't even know the real age of my dad. My dad has been stuck at one age for the last 6 years. He ages VERY well. Isn't he handsome? Love my pops.

A picture of Gramps with Asher and Dylan. Love visiting granny and gramps down in Spanish Fork. Asher is their 17th great grandchild!

And of course...a story for my books.

This was my first time traveling home by myself with Asher from Turkey. I wasn't nervous at all for the days leading up to the trip until the night before we left. Asher started coughing and had such a bad runny nose. I figured it was just a cold and that it would be okay to travel. He slept horrible the night before we left and was being so fussy. We arrived at the Izmir airport to leave and I was sick to my stomach about traveling by myself with a sick baby. I debated back and forth if I should even go or not. We checked his temperature and he wasn't running a fever so we left. We took the hour flight to Istanbul and then the nightmare began. Asher was feeling so hot! I checked his temperature and it was 101. I turned on my Turkish cell phone to call Ryan and the phone was asking me for a pin. I've never set a pin. I couldn't even get to my contacts list! I don't have Ryan's number memorized and so I couldn't even pick up a pay phone to call him. I was trying to find wifi to use my phone from the States so that I could skype him. No such luck! I knew Ryan was going to have a heart attack that I wasn't calling from Istanbul. I was pretty much panicking because the flight from Istanbul to JFK isn't a short little jump across the ocean. We're talking an 11 hour flight. I broke down in the bathroom and when I walked out there was an answer to my prayers. An American couple sitting on a bench. I walked right up to them and asked if by chance if they knew how I could get a calling card or something. Long story short, the man was a doctor. He told me that the best thing to do would be to get on the plane and get home. What was I going to do in Istanbul and not able to get a hold of anyone! That's what I did. About an hour into the flight I was second guessing the choice. Asher now had a temperature of 103 and was moaning/crying. I could tell he was so uncomfortable and I was feeling awful. I hadn't ever seen him acting this way. I gave him some more tylenol and every 4 hours on the dot the temperature would shoot back up. I held him the entire 11 hours. Any time I would lay him down in his bassinet or put him in his car seat on his seat he would start to cry. He slept maybe 30 minutes the entire time. The flight attendants were angels. At one point I started crying in the back of the plane when one of them asked me how he was doing. I had tried and tried to keep it in and then when she asked what his temperature was I broke down. I know that for many people this is no big deal. Babies get temperatures all of the time. I just have to say that this was Asher's very first temperature and I was all alone flying for what seemed like an eternity. We made it to New York. I had a million missed calls on my American phone from Ryan. When I finally talked to him he was a nervous wreck! He thought that something had happened to us in Istanbul and was assuming the very worst. Poor guy! We had a 2 hour layover which then was delayed to 3 hours. I ran into some friends and they were lifesavers. My friend Stacy actually got Asher to sleep and they helped me board the plane with my millions of bags, stroller, car seat etc. We got on the plane and then we pushed back from the gate only to find out that our left engine wouldn't start. Well, after 3 1/2 hours of sitting on the plane and not being able to get off they finally fixed the engine. A 4 hour flight turned into another 7 1/2 hour flight. Asher was actually great on this portion. His fever had broken after about 3 hours on the plane. After dripping sweat for a few minutes he fell asleep and then would wake up and just flirt with every single person around him. He was back to being himself. It was the most amazing feeling getting off of the plane and seeing my cute brother Cody there to greet me. He got all of my luggage, held Asher and gave me a huge hug. I was so grateful to be with someone from my family! Love him. The trip should have taken 18 hours but instead took 27. Long would be an understatement BUT we survived! I do have to say that the trip back over was amazing. Asher did great. Slept in his bassinet the entire time and didn't even make a sound. Such a good little guy. He is getting this whole traveling routine down. Good thing because there is a lot more to come.

Rice Cereal

2011-09-20T01:29:00.000-07:00

Asher tried rice cereal for the first time last night! I thought that he would love a change up in his diet. Milk seems like it would get a little old, right? Once I started mixing the rice cereal I wondered how any baby would even enjoy this mush. But, we started off great. Asher was ready in his bumbo with his tray and was looking around wondering what was going on. He was intrigued with the new accessory around his neck. Then the eating began...

The the first bite came. He hated it. The second that I put the spoon up to his mouth he didn't quite know what to do. One thing he did know was that he didn't like the taste. His faces were hilarious. I don't even think he swallowed any. He would push it all out with tongue and wanted nothing to do with it.

We were very entertained! We laughed and laughed!

What a cutie.

Oh and...look what I found in our sheets!

Happy weekend

2011-09-17T06:24:00.000-07:00

Just a small post for the weekend.

Ryan is out of town and so Asher and I are taking it easy. Here are some pictures from this week.

Getting ready to take Asher for a walk. Doesn't he look big?

Our first attempt at taking Asher to the park. Well, let's just say it was a little premature. He's still too small for everything. He sure enjoyed watching the other kids run around though. He was pretty much hypnotize by kids going down the slide. Great week!

Turkish Bazaar

2011-09-15T08:48:00.000-07:00

One of the many things I love about living in Turkey is the incredible bazaar. I look forward to going every Wednesday to purchase my produce for the week. Everything is so fresh and it really is picked the day before the bazaar. Did I mention it is so cheap? Each stand has such a unique group selling their produce. Most of the time it is a family ranging from the Grandpa, his son, their brother, his wife, her sister and their 4 kids or babies. No joke. I love it. In fact, yesterday I had about a 5 year old boy help me pick my peppers. He knew just what to look for!

The bazaar is about the size of a football field. One half is produce and the other half is any other random item you can think of. See below.

Sunglasses galore. Reminds me of the streets in NYC.

I always buy a new polish color each week. They are 1 Turkish Lira which converts to about .75 cents! Hard to beat.

Apron anyone?

All sorts of random kitchen appliances, sweaters, toys, purses and of course underwear.

Socks

and more socks...

Perfume. Never smells like the real stuff. Probably either watered down or fake! They sure sale like crazy though!

My favorite!! They taste like pretzels but better. They are amazing when warm.

Ryan with all of our loot. Onions, peppers, peaches, nectarines, garlic, carrots, bananas and of course blinding hot pink nailpolish.

My buddy

2011-09-12T05:51:00.000-07:00

Living overseas leaves me with a lot of free time. When I say a lot I mean a TON. Previous years I would spend a bunch of time baking, cooking, exercising, skyping with friends/family and watching way too much TV. Now, things have changed. For the better. I still have all of the time in the world but luckily it is now spent with this cute guy. I am one lucky mommy. I love him. We enjoy playing, going on a lot of walks, reading books, bath time, singing and even more playing. The days go quickly and I'm trying to soak up every moment with this little man.

This summer.

On the train in Izmir.

At our first apartment here in Izmir.

Out on a walk in Aliaga. Then what Asher does best. DROOL.

And this guy is still and always will be my buddy. I'm a happy girl!

Shower Day

2011-09-10T23:40:00.000-07:00

When we got back from Italy my sweet friends Stef, Lauren and Megs threw Asher and me a baby shower. It was absolutely adorable and definitely filled the void I had been feeling of my friends not being able to see Asher right when he was born. I couldn't wait for everyone to meet my little guy! It was fun actually having the baby AT the baby shower! It was so great to see my friends and spend time with them. The theme was so cute and so much time went into all of the details. It was Ice cream parlor themed! Stef knew just the way to my tummy.

Stef being so cute and prego herself. She is just the sweetest friend ever.

All of the girls!

Megs and Asher. She is gorgeous! (And looks great with a baby don't ya think?)

Thank you for the shower! I'm so grateful for supportive and thoughtful best friends. It truly is the best feeling to know that even when I'm gone for 10 months I can count on my best friends to act like I didn't miss a thing.

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Asher didn't complain about being loved on for a few straight hours. Asher received the most adorable clothes, great toys that he is obsessed with and we are both loving the fun books. He appreciates everything! As do I.

Thanks again!

Sunday Walks

2011-09-08T04:45:00.000-07:00

I love Sundays in Turkey for a few reasons. A few of them are that Ryan actually gets the day off where last year he didn't and I love being able to go to church together! We love taking time on Sunday to enjoy a nice stroll along the ocean right by our house, eat huge Sunday dinners always accompanied by desserts. Pretty much just being able to enjoy a whole day as a family. Sundays also always include nap time and snuggle time. It's a must.

4 months old...

2011-09-01T11:59:00.000-07:00

Our sweet baby is now 4 months old! I am getting slightly depressed that he is growing up so fast and I feel like I'll be sending him on his mission like tomorrow. He is the funnest little guy ever and he makes me laugh all day long. He is rolling all over the place, grabs everything, flirts with everyone, smiles all the time and is just about to start laughing. He would eat all day long if I'd let him and he is a really great sleeper! The only thing that's wrong is...pictures are becoming more difficult! He doesn't sit still for me anymore.

Adorable picture...

Goofy picture. This face cracks me up!

Adorable picture...

Mom, I'm sick of these pictures so I'm putting an end to this.

I'm sure you can't read the paper in any of the pictures but I did what I could with a pen and a piece of lined paper! Just says 4 months old, the date and Izmir, Turkey.

He loves bath time! He wiggles and splashes the entire time.

He is also learning to love his jumper. He is such a busy baby always wanting to move his legs so this is the best thing for us! He just doesn't quite have the hang of it but he enjoys twirling around and bouncing a little bit. YAY!

I am loving Asher more then I ever could have imagined. Love my little man.

Happy 4 months!

Sandy Eggo

2011-09-01T02:59:00.000-07:00

Every summer we go with the Toolson side to San Diego! We have such a fun time and I look forward to this vacation every year. Not only is it pretty much the only time we get to see everyone but we also fill the week with beach, food, shopping, pedicures, swimming and as always...more food. Just what I like. They sure know how to party! It was fun having Asher along this year! He was able to meet all of the family and he was such an amazing baby on the entire trip. Here is how the week went...

Asher was finally able to meet his Uncle Sean! I think Asher liked him a little bit...he just snuggled right up to him.

Then Aunt Colbi! The cutest pregnant girl I have EVER seen. Asher loved her too. She is going to be such a cute mommy.

Beach time! Asher was great at the beach for the first day. He just slept for about 3 hours on Grandma Toolson. I enjoyed this time by getting tossed around in the water attempting to body surf, went over to watch people jump off the bridge and got a little bit of sun! After the first day Asher enjoyed lounging at the pool better. I don't think he enjoyed the sand that I would find in his chunky legs and eyebrows.

Ryan playing with adorable Livy! She is such a cutie...

Ryan and Johnny were found doing anything to do with snails or something "boyish" all week!

We went paddle boarding! Mckell is such a blast to be around. Love her. We just screamed and laughed the whole time as we were being pushed out of the bay by the current.Liv was so adorable with Asher. In the morning I would hear her in the hallway "Where's baby Ashow. I wanna play baby Ashow!" She would give him kisses and hold him all the time. Such a good cousin!

Here is nanny Mckell. I called Mckell my nanny all week because she was the BIGGEST helper! She would come take Asher from me in the morning and I would go back to sleep, she would constantly hold him and snuggle him all day, change his diapers, loved the smell of his spit up and hung right there with me when I gave him a suppository! Maybe TMI but, oh well. Let's just say by the end of the week Asher was confused on who his mommy was.

Three cousins all born within a month of each other. Small, Medium and Large huh!

Papa Mike took Asher out on a walk a few times and Asher loved it! He loves his Papa Mike!

We took family pictures for this years Christmas card

Pictures of Mimi and Papa Mike with the grandkids.

Yes, Ryan has stitches. Story below

And to top off the week, Mike took us out to celebrate his Birthday at the most amazing restaurant. We went to Jake's! It is easily one of my top 5 favorite meals I've EVER had. I got the surf n' turf and ate every last morsel on my plate. But, don't be fooled into thinking that's all I ate. I enjoyed the most amazing bread, ahi tuna rolls, calamari, a pear and walnut salad and then after all of that a macadamia nut ice cream pie covered in Fudge. Yep, now you understand why I loved everything. I left looking 40 weeks pregnant again but felt great! THANK YOU MIKE!

Here are a few more memories from the trip.

-Ryan hit heads with his cousin Cooper while playing Basketball and they both had to get stitches over their left eye in the exact same place.

-Mckell stood up for me in the movie theatre when we went to see Crazy Stupid Love. I was going to make this quick but quick just won't do it justice. I walked in with Asher sound asleep. I am well aware of the fact that no one wants to have a baby sit next to them in a movie theatre, airplane or restaurant BUT because since I try to be aware I react very quickly the second Asher even sighs. Ryan and I had been to many movies this summer and Asher sleeps through the entire thing and people after the movie make comments that they didn't even know a baby was in the theatre. The theatre for this movie was practically full. Mckell and I sat down next to two ladies and Ryan and John went to go find seats somewhere else. Everyone around was saying how cute Asher was and I was making sure to tell the people around that I would leave if he made a squeak. Well, the two ladies I sat next to were huffing and puffing and making sure to talk so loud about me that I would hear. I finally looked at the lady right next to me and said "Excuse me, is there a problem?" She of course responded with "UH YA!!! What kind of irresponsible parent brings their baby into a movie!!? We paid good money to be here and the last thing I want is to sit by a newborn." I told her that I promised I would leave the second he made a noise and that she wouldn't even notice he was in there. Let's just say that Mckell wasn't happy with their tone. She stepped right in there to give them her two cents. She told them we were here from out of town without a pump or anyone to babysit. We're going to sit right here and if you want to get up and move then go right ahead! It kept them quiet for a couple minutes until they decided to continue talking about me very rudely and I couldn't believe that the grown women would be so disrespectful. I was now feeling really uncomfortable and I wanted to feed Asher to guarantee he would stay asleep. I moved the armrest up between Mckell and me and grabbed my nursing cover. I was sitting as close to Mckell as possible as was trying to be very discreet. "YOU'RE NOT SERIOUSLY GOING TO BREASTFEED YOUR BABY RIGHT NEXT TO ME ARE YOU???" The lady yelled at me so disgusted and as if she had never seen a mother nurse before. I was done. I told Mckell I wanted to leave so I got up and walked down with tears in my eyes. I was humiliated! Well, here comes Mckell to the rescue again. She told them that she couldn't believe that two women would make a new young mom feel so uncomfortable. I am finally able to get out and have some fun and there is no way that I could have left my baby with a babysitter because we didn't have a pump. She was telling them how she couldn't believe women like them even exist. They should at least just give the baby a chance and once there is a problem THEN they can complain about something. Long story short, Mckell handed it to them. I was trying to find Ryan somewhere in the theatre. I went and found him and had tears streaming down because I was so embarrassed! Mind you, Asher is still sound asleep. I told Ryan that I didn't have a place to sit because those women didn't want to sit by me. Ryan jumps up out of his seat and starts storming down the stairs asking me to show him who it was. I knew I couldn't show him or it would turn into even more of a scene. Meanwhile two of the sweetest women had told Mckell they saw the whole thing and couldn't believe how rude those other women were. They told us they wanted to switch us seats because there was no reason why I couldn't be in here to enjoy the movie also. There ARE nice people in the world! So, we switched seats and both Mckell and me were still so fired up. Luckily, I sat down to the nicest girl ever! The second I sat down I told her I promised I would leave if Asher made a single sound. She replied with "Oh girl, you just sit on down and relax!! We're gonna love this movie and have a good old time! Don't even think for a second about me!" Ahhhh. Loved her. The movie was great and I did enjoy myself! Asher slept the ENTIRE time and honestly didn't even move. The second the lights came on I saw the women still staring at me. They were one row down from me and so when they walked by I had to say something to defend myself. I should be the bigger person and just let it slide but all I said was "I'm sorry my baby was so disruptive that you couldn't even enjoy yourselves!" Of course they had to reply with all sorts of jibber jabber. Here comes Ryan running through the theatre trying to get over to us to have a few words with them. The women scurried on out of the theatre before Ryan could get to them. Mind you this whole time Mckell is still defending me and shutting down every single thing they said to me. As we were exiting the theatre there they were wanting to talk to us. Oh dear. Ryan and Mckell walked over to them and talked to them until they realized these women were never going to be wrong in their book. They were now a waste of our time! We finally left with Ryan and Mckell yelling at them that they were scum. It was hilarious! As we pulled out of the parking lot we saw a group of other women around the rude ladies yelling at them with hands in the air and fingers pointing about 2 mm's from their faces. Let's just say we knew we had won the battle when even other people in the theatre were waiting in line to give them their feelings on the matter!

"Make it work!" Tim Gunn

2011-08-27T01:44:00.000-07:00

Well, we have been in transition. We first got here to Turkey and were in a temporary apartment until the team helped us find the apartment that we wanted to live in. This meant that Asher had no crib. We tried everything. Laying him on the floor on a blanket. Fail. He rolls over now and so he would wake up crying because he would be face down on carpet. We then tried the stroller. Fail. He would roll in that and hit his face etc. So then for a few nights he slept with us. I hate this. I don't sleep well and neither does Ryan. I had enough of this co-sleeping (although I do love to snuggle for nap time. oops!) and came up with a plan. I turned one of our suitcases into a crib. I padded it with about 6 blankets and tried to make it as comfy as possible and plopped him on in. It worked! He slept so much longer and I woke up actually feeling like I had gotten a full night of sleep. Luckily we only had to do that for a few nights because we found the place we wanted and got Asher all set up. He now has his first somewhat of a nursery. I feel bad for the baby. He has never had a decked out nursery. I think this is something I feel sad about and he will never even have a clue about. Someday I will be in one place for longer then 9 months right? Until then, make a little feel like a lot!

I honestly don't know what I would do without Ikea. It saves me year after year. I know the pictures aren't exactly hung straight. I had to use previously punched nail holes. I don't think Asher cares if his pictures are a little ski-wompis.

He doesn't seem to mind too much! He's a happy little guy.

Blessing Day

2011-08-20T10:53:00.001-07:00

Sunday June 12th, 2011 was Asher's very special day. It was his blessing day! He was given his full name of Asher Michael Toolson after his awesome Papa Mike. Ryan did an amazing job with such a heartfelt and important blessing. Asher just looked up at everyone during the entire blessing and didn't even make a sound. I was emotional the entire time. I started crying when we sang "I am a Child of God" before Ryan even started the blessing! I was a wreck I tell ya! The Spirit was strong and the room was filled with love! I am so happy to know that Ryan is a worthy Priesthood holder and is able to give our children such important blessings.

My mom helping me get Asher all dressed for his debut. She was a busy Martha Stewart getting everything ready for his blessing! She made the most amazing food and did everything in an "Italian" theme.

Danielle and Kim (no pics with Kim?) were amazing helping my mom put the entire day together! They were lifesavers!

He looks Angelic.

All of the Toolson side that came to be there for Asher.

And the Campbell/Hansen side.

And of course more family...STEF! Thank you friends Stef and Allen, Lauren and Whitney and Jordan for coming!

The feast! We served my mom's scrumptious homemade lasagna, caesar salad, melon with prosciutto and baguettes. Of course there was dessert! It was ice cream with nutella and berries and to top it off delicious cookies that had red and green m&m's! So creative!

Thank you everyone for the love and support on Asher's special day!

Summer 2011

2011-08-20T10:22:00.000-07:00

We arrived back in the U.S. of A. on June 1st and immediately went down to St. George for a little reunion with the Campbell side. It is a very rare occasion for us to all be together in one place at one time so it was extremely fun! We enjoyed boating, swimming, tennis, walks, delicious food and my mom had the genius idea of celebrating all of our Birthdays! We are rarely together to celebrate Birthdays and so each day was a new groups special day. On your day your group was able to choose the activity of the day, where we ate and what we had for dessert! What a party! You're such a party animal mom!

Thanks dad for a fun day on the lake!

Our attempt at a "some of the cousins" picture!

St. George was such a fun vacation and I loved having everyone all together in the same Country, same State AND same City for just a little while.

When we got home from St. George we were able to continue the fun! Mimi, Papa Mike and Grandma Baker came to meet Asher! They came in town for his Blessing and Asher was definitely excited to meet them! Mimi and Grandma got some big smiles out of Asher and he loved snuggling up on them.

We're back and running

2011-08-12T07:20:00.000-07:00

We had a really fast and crazy summer! I didn't have a second to breathe because we wanted to spend as much time as possible with our family and friends. We are now back over in Turkey! The same city as before just playing for a different team. Team name is Aliaga Petkim. Asher did absolutely amazing on the total of 14 hours of flying. I prayed and prayed that he would be good and he was!! Thank goodness. I will be playing catch up in order to blog about the summer events but just wanted to get some fun pictures up really quick!

Amazing pictures that my brother in law Josh took. Love them!

Asher's first ride in a stroller.

The Campbell family ALL reunited from various parts of the world! St. George trip

Asher on his Blessing Day June 12th, 2011.

My best friends threw me the most adorable "Ice Cream Parlor" themed baby shower. Loved every minute!

Cody and Alycia brought home these amazing outfits from India! So beautiful!

We spent a lot of time at the pool! Asher loves the water!

Asher is 3 months old, loves to smile, stand, snuggle, suck on his hands, rollover and sleep!

Beautiful vacation to San Diego with the Toolson's! The time always passes way too quickly!

This is a small summary of our summary! More to come!

Arrivederci Italia

2011-05-28T15:15:00.000-07:00

Another Basketball season has come and gone. This year in Italy has included a lot of new experiences! We started in Treviso then moved to Montegranaro. We tried (I'm not nearly as good as Ryan) to learn Italian. But the best part of this year is the new addition to our family. Asher has already changed our lives so much and definitely for the better. We are loving being parents! I can't help but just sit and stare him every chance I get. One of my favorite things to do is sit and watch Ryan talk to him and hold him. Another great thing about having Asher is enjoying all of the visitors! We have had an amazing time with all of the family who has come to see us. Right now my parents along with Kim and Tyler are here visiting. We started off here in Montegranaro then traveled to Assisi, Siena, Florence, Genoa, Portofino, Cinque Terra and now we're off to Venice! We'll be coming home in the next couple of days and could not be more excited to introduce Asher to all of our friends and family back in the States. I don't have many pictures and they aren't that great. My brother in law was the trip photographer. Better pictures to come!

Lunch in Montegranaro

Then off to Assisi

In Assisi this random guy cleaning at the Basilica stopped us when he saw Asher. He said that he wanted to give Asher a gift. He said that babies remind him of the Restoration and so he wanted to give Asher a coat hook that he had restored out of incredibly old wood. It was very random but also very sweet.

Lion King anyone?

Then we moved on to Siena

The boys hanging out in Centro of Siena. Beautiful!

Hanging out and reading about the area

We kept track of how many gelato's we ate on the trip. I won't mention how many it was!

Then we moved on to Florence

Asher turned 3 weeks in Florence! He's getting so old!

Playing cards outside our hotel

The view from our hotel room in Florence

Gammie and Bumpa hanging out with Asher

Hanging out on the Ponte Vecchio

Then off to Cinque Terra...BEAUTIFUL!

Just a couple adorable pictures of our little buddy on the trip. He was absolutely perfect. He made it easy to travel all around with a 3 week old newborn. Love him!

Catch Up

2011-05-16T02:02:00.000-07:00

The days are passing quickly and to be honest it is making me sad! I already have a two week old baby and he is growing and changing so much. We have been lucky to have a baby who loves to sleep and eat. He lets me get at least 5 hours of straight sleep at night and then wants to eat but goes right back to sleep. I'm definitely not complaining!

Asher at ONE WEEK OLD! May 8th, 2011. Mother's Day!

Celebrating my very first Mother's Day! Ryan made my mom and me German Pancakes in the morning. Delicious! Then we relaxed all day- Heaven! At night we went to Casa de Campo, our favorite restaurant. It was perfect!

Asher's first sponge bath. He loved every second!

Asher and daddy laying out to get rid of Asher's jaundice. It worked! It's gone!

Our little bundle of joy!

They love snuggle time!

Asher's first Basketball game! Wearing his perfect gift from John and Mckell. A onesie with "Toolson" and "22." It was so cute and everyone loved Asher. He was the star of the game!

TWO WEEKS OLD! My goodness. My little newborn has already changed. He is awake more throughout the day, his eyes wander more and when he tries to focus on something he goes cross-eyed. It's hilarious! We love Asher to pieces and we are enjoying every second of him being in our lives!

THE Labor Story

2011-05-10T04:56:00.000-07:00

Here I am going to tell my labor story! Before you read, know that I consider this blog as my personal journal. A lot of people have been asking about the story so here it is! I am going to tell the whole story with no "sugar coating" and I will spare no details. Read at your own risk! It is a novel.

My due date was April 27th, 2011. That day came and passed without any contractions or any signs of labor. It was actually great because my mom had just barely arrived the 26th and so this gave us a couple days just to spend time with one another. Then the next two days passed. I was starting to feel frustrated. We were walking hours a day, doing acupressure, drinking raspberry tea, eating spicy foods and still there were no signs of labor. I went in for a monitoring appointment on the 28th and they told me that everything was looking fine and that I just needed to hang in there. After one week and a day I would be induced. I didn't even want to think of being pregnant that much longer. I couldn’t wait any longer to meet our little guy! They scheduled me for another monitoring appointment to take place Saturday April 30th.

April 29th at exactly 10:04pm contractions began. I wasn't sure if these were just Braxton Hicks or if they were going to be something consistent. Ryan and my mom immediately began recording the time between the contractions and we were already getting very excited. I was walking around the couch in circles to keep me moving and doing different things to see if the contractions stayed consistent. They began 20 minutes apart and quickly went down to 10 minutes apart.

The hospital that I chose to deliver at is in a city called Ancona. It is a 40-minute drive from my house. I chose this hospital for two reasons. First, it is one of the best Children's Hospitals in all of Italy. It is only for children and labor/delivery. Second, they do epidurals! I have been planning most of my pregnancy to do this delivery natural because that is how they do it over here. In Treviso an epidural was not even an option whatsoever and in this area Ancona is the only hospital to offer them. They are never used though! The women are incredible. I had been told by my doctor to come to the hospital when my contractions were 5 minutes apart for 1 hour or if my water broke. When my contractions went down to 8 minutes apart we started skyping family telling them the time was coming and that we would most likely have the baby very soon! I took a shower and yelled out to Ryan every time I had a contraction so that he could record my timing. After my shower the contractions went back to 10 minutes apart. I decided to try and get some sleep. We went to bed but could barely sleep due to excitement and pain that I thought was bad at the time. How little did I know about pain! At 3am my contractions began to be 5 minutes apart. We waited one hour and woke my mom up so we could head out the door. We made the drive and arrived at the hospital at about 5:15.

The second I stepped out of the car I had a surprise. "Uh Ryan? I am peeing my pants and it doesn't stop even when I squeeze my legs together!" It was a very fast and strong flow! Well, my water broke! Wahoo! This is going to be easy and fast! I have contractions 5 minutes apart AND my water broke. Bring it on.

We walked into the hospital. It was a complete ghost town. There wasn't even a person at the "Pronto Soccorso" desk, which is the emergency desk. We decided to walk upstairs to the Maternity ward. We walked the hallways to not find a single nurse, doctor, cleaner or anyone! All of the rooms were full of sleeping women with their babies. My contractions were getting stronger and my pants were completely soaked from my water breaking.

We're standing in the hallway and I'm almost in tears when finally a nurse comes walking towards us. She was lucky because Ryan was about to start a scene. She told us that every delivery room is full and every nurse and doctor is in on a delivery. We must wait until someone is finished! She let us in a room where I have done appointments so that I could have a seat. About 30 minutes later a doctor finally came to see us. I was excited because for sure I was going to be dilated to a 3 or 4. She gave me the news. Dilated to a....ONE! Bummer. We filled out some paperwork and then she sent us up to the floor above in order to fill out MORE paperwork and be done checking in.

We were finally put into a room with one other girl. We were exhausted. I immediately changed into my nightgown and my mom helped me get situated. Here in Italy, you bring everything you and the baby will need. Everything. Even your own toilet paper. I was only allowed to have one person in the room with me at a time so my mom and Ryan took turns in the room with me and the other person would try to get some rest on a chair in the hallway. My contractions were still a consistent 5 minutes apart and getting stronger. My mom or Ryan would help me count through the minute and try to breathe in order to stay calm. It was now about 8am. 10 hours into labor. No I.V. No pain medicine. Nothing.Different nurses were coming in and out doing monitoring and every hour they would check me for dilation. Still nothing.

Later, my doctor finally came in my room to visit me. He told me that when there was a room available downstairs in the pre-delivery room he would have me moved. That was the only time I saw my doctor the entire 4 days. He told me that when I was dilated to 3cm I would get my epidural. I still have not been given any sort of pain medication whatsoever. At home in the States I most likely would have been given morphine or something to cope with the pain of the contractions. Here...nothing. Incredibly strong contractions, 5 minutes apart, ranging on the scale from 10-12 in strength. A 12 is the highest.

2pm something amazing happened. John and Mckell arrived! The second they walked into the room my mom and I burst into tears. It was so refreshing to see them. It is so stressful being in a rough situation and not understanding anything that is going on around you. They were a breath of fresh air! Ryan was trying his very best to speak Italian to every nurse and doctor that came my way. He was trying to see if there was something they could do for the pain but the answer was always no. Mckell had the best idea. Ryan needed to give me a blessing. It was exactly what I needed. It gave me some more energy and helped me to realize again the reason I was going through this pain. It was an amazing experience to have both Ryan and John there and worthy to give me a Priesthood blessing. The Spirit was strong and we all knew that I was being watched over. John and Mckell stayed with us for a few hours. They were so supportive. Breathing with me through my contractions and helping to pass the time by playing cards in between the 5 minutes. Later they left to go get some sleep and be ready to come back the next day.

A few hours passed and there were still no signs of progress. Still not dilated but now my contractions were even more painful (consistent 12) with a lot of back labor and 3 minutes apart. I was now feeling awful. The pain was becoming unbearable. At about 6pm they moved me downstairs to a different pre-delivery room. There were four beds all filled with other women. I was put back in a corner with dividers in between the beds and luckily both my mom and Ryan could stay with me. Neither of them had eaten a single thing all day and had maybe gotten an hour of sleep. They were still there with me being 100% supportive and helping me the best that they could.

This is now when the real fun began. I was screaming every 3 minutes for the next 4 hours. I was gripping everything around me telling Ryan I truly didn't think I could do this. I had been in labor for about 20 hours. I even consider myself to be a tough girl and I am willing to do anything for my sweet baby but honestly I was feeling like this would never end. Girls were coming into the room and leaving within a couple hours to go have their babies. I was feeling like my turn would never come. I was exhausted, fatigued, traumatized and was pleading with Heavenly Father to give me more strength. I had done hypnobirthing and some other natural birth preparation before I found out I would be able to get an epidural. None of that was working. I couldn't even clear my mind for the 2 minutes in between because my body was still aching from the previous contraction and I was now vomiting from the pain. Again, like I said before, I did not have a single ounce of medicine in me. Not even a Tylenol. At one point during a contraction I even yelled, “Will someone please help me!!” This had gone on way too long. Did I mention I was still dilated at a one?

My mom told me to get up. We had to go walking. This was going on way too long and now we had to try something new. We walked the hallways for 15 minutes stopping every 2 minutes for me to have a contraction. I walked so slow it was ridiculous. Pretty sure I scared every single person in the hallway. It would heave me over onto my mom and tears would stream down my face. We're now at 22 hours of labor with about 6 hours of contractions every 3 minutes. My mom would make me take drinks of water because I was becoming dehydrated from vomiting so often. We would get back to the room and Ryan would help me count through the contractions for the next 45 minutes. Then Ryan would get me out walking. Same thing happened 4 times.

At about 10:30pm I was checked again for dilation BUT a new doctor was on shift. Did I mention that even though they offer epidurals not all of the doctors like them? Some don't mind but others really don't like the interfering. I had one of the doctors that didn't like them on shift this night. She now said that I had to be dilated more towards a 4 than a 3. I almost punched her. It had now been 24 hours. The nurse that had been on duty had been trying her very best to help me. She was feeling horrible for me. I had been through 3 shifts of nurses by this time and had watched about 10 other girls from my room come and go. She would rub my face and let me squeeze her hand when she was in the room. She told the doctor I was dilated to a 3 and the doctor said that I had to wait until I was a 4. The nurse helped me more then she will ever know. She told the doctor I was a few contractions away from a 4. I wasn't. I was finally able to get my epidural after 25 hours of completely natural labor.

The anesthesiologist arrived. I literally started crying. My body was shaking and trembling along with having horrible chills. The anesthesiologist said that my body was in shock from all of the pain. He worked quickly to get me the epidural and he was even angry that he hadn't been notified that I had been going through this for so long. He told me that in 20 minutes I would finally be able to get some rest and that I needed to do my best to get some sleep. He explained to me that in America we do epidurals to numb the entire body to the point of no feeling. He wouldn't do this to me. He said he wanted me to have some feeling left in order to be able to push when the time came. I was fine with this. Anything to help even a little bit. The epidural kicked in and I felt like a new person. I was beginning to think clearly again instead of in major survival mode. I was able to relax my body instead of having constant charlie horses in my calves and shoulders from having my entire body clench so tight.

A new nurse came on to shift. All four beds were now empty. My mom and Ryan were emotionally exhausted. They had both been through a lot just having to watch me and support me for the last 26 hours. The nurse let them each take a bed and we were all able to sleep for about 4 hours. This nurse was amazing. She would come and check me for dilation about every half hour. I was still at a 3 for another 6 hours. The doctor and anesthesiologist came in to ask me how I was doing. I had begun to feel my contractions all again. The doctor told me I needed to deal with the pain because she didn't want him to give me more medication. The epidurals are run differently here. It's not on a constant drip. You have to be injected and then it lasts for a few hours before it needs to be replenished. The anesthesiologist watched for the doctor to leave and he hurried and gave me more medicine. He was an Angel. I was able to sleep until 6am. I was checked for dilation and the time had come. I was at an 8!

A new shift of nurses had come on and the anesthesiologist was dismissed. The doctor came in and told the nurses to remove my epidural. Stop the medicine. She told me I would deliver within the hour and that I would stay numb. I didn't even know how to argue with her. The nurses did as they were told. The epidural was stopped.

A midwife came in and began to work with me once I was dilated to a 10. I started pushing at about 8am. I was constantly being monitored to watch the baby’s heart rate and also to watch how strong my contractions were. They had been above a 12 to get me dilated before I could get my epidural and now they were back to a 12 when I was starting my pushing. The epidural was wearing off and it was happening quickly. By 9:30am my feeling was back and I was going to have this baby naturally. At this point I just wanted this to be over with. I went to another place mentally and pushed and pushed for the next hour until they moved me into where I would deliver. At first they had me standing up and I loved this. Gravity was on my side. Then when the time came I was put on the table and I pushed and screamed at the top of my lungs. Ryan encouraged me and tried to comfort me the best that he could. There is no way I would have made it through the delivery without him. My poor mom had to stand right outside the door and all she could do was hear me screaming. Then after a lot of extremely hard pushing and an unbelievable amount of pain the most amazing experience occurred. They put a bunch of sheets on me and then laid my two-second-old baby right on me. Umbilical cord still attached and all! They cut it while he was laying on me. This was the most surreal experience. I was so exhausted and in so much pain but at that moment nothing else mattered. Ryan and I were able to look at our son and one another and just cry. What a miracle. It was over. He was here. He was healthy. I survived and all of the previous chaos was forgotten about the second we saw him. Our lives were changed forever and we couldn’t have been happier. I was now a mommy! Ryan was now a daddy!

It was so great having Ryan able to follow Asher through the whole process of his first bath, being weighed, measured, poked (sad) and all of that kind of stuff. Ryan would walk back and forth telling me the results. I had thought that once I was done delivering the pain would be done. I was wrong! I was stitched up for the next 45 minutes without being numbed completely. It was very long and painful but it had to be done. I had popped a blood vessel from all of the pushing so that had to be stitched up along with then having to use a catheter for the next day to avoid any sort of infection.

Delivering in a different country was quite the experience. It really turned out to be something we will never forget and we are so grateful for a healthy baby. There were a lot of things that I wish would have gone better but truly it turned out fine. The doctors, nurses and staff were so amazing and sweet (minus the ONE grumpy doctor.) They took such great care of me and I couldn’t have asked for more nurturing nurses to work with Asher. They would snuggle him and give him kisses constantly. The midwife that delivered him was so kind and calming to both him and me. I never once felt like I was in the hands of people that didn't know what they were doing. They cared for us and did everything they do here in Italy to make me comfortable. I got lucky and had a room to myself for the next 48 hours even though there was another bed and I should have had a “roomie.” THAT was lucky. Ryan was able to spend one night with me and my mom spent the next. Did I tell you there were no showers? It actually ended up not being a big deal. My sweet mom washed my hair in the sink!

There was a lot of stress and pain involved but I would go through it a million times over to get this little angel of ours. We are so blessed to have him in our lives and we know that our lives have now been changed forever. We’re so grateful for all of the people that were praying for us back at home during this whole process. Everyone has always told me that when you have a newborn it will be one of the most amazing days ever. Well, it was the longest 37 hours of my life but that moment that we first met Asher changed my life forever. It was the best moment of my life. We love you Asher! Thanks for choosing us as your family!

Asher Michael Toolson

2011-05-03T22:30:00.000-07:00

Our sweet baby boy has arrived!

Asher Michael Toolson

8 lbs. 10 oz.

20.5 inches

May 1st, 2011 at 11:07am (Italian time)

Ancona, Italy

He is a perfect baby! We are so thrilled to have him here with us. What a blessing he already is to our lives. The labor story and way more pictures to come!

Really?

2011-04-29T08:52:00.000-07:00

Hate to say it but... I'M OVERDUE!! I was due the 27th and it's the 29th. I have one stubborn baby on my hands! My mom has arrived and we are trying everything you can imagine other than castor oil. We've been on 2 hours walks twice a day, been doing accu-pressure on my feet and hands, been drinking lots of raspberry tea, doing jumping jacks and eating spicy foods! Nothing has been working so far. It's getting frustrating but I keep reminding myself to enjoy the good nights rest while I can. Hopefully in the next post I'll have a baby to make an announcement about!

Until then...any ideas?

Guesses? 39 weeks!

2011-04-20T08:26:00.001-07:00

This picture gives you an idea of how close I am to POPPING!! This is cute Charity- one of Ryan's team mates girlfriends. She had to go back to New York so she won't get to meet the baby :(

Here's for the main purpose of this post!

My best friend Stef told me it would be a fun idea to have people guess on my blog when I'm going to have Asher! I agreed that this would be a fun idea and it might help to pass the time by! Now that I think about it this will probably slow the time down...all well! His actual due date is April 27th. Please be kind and don't guess he won't get here until May 8th.

What do you think...

Day:

Weight:

Length:

Leave your guesses as a comment and there may just be a prize for the winner! Who knows, it could just be a pat on the back! OR something really great! Either way, please play along!