Tennessee Gudmundsons

Photos of our new home...

2010-10-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

I promised photos of our move, so here they are. The only room I really have photos of all cleaned up is Gabby's room. Someday I may take photos of the other rooms, but until then you can see what it looked like after all the boxes were moved in.

Where have the Tennessee Gudmundsons gone?

2010-10-14T11:37:00.000-07:00

I think a better question is where we haven't been (besides on the internet). Since May we have ... moved to our new home, been to lots of hospital & doctor visits, found out we were going to have a second child (not my idea, I promise, one was plenty for me), gotten new callings at church, started Gabby's official first year of kindergarten, learned how to cook some pretty tasty sodium-free foods, found out that second child was to be a girl (little Izzie will be here sometime between late December and early January), had Tim's parents in town staying with us, celebrated a couple birthdays, won the lottery (okay, so that didn't really happen, but I wanted to see if you were really paying attention), and washed lots & lots of laundry. I think that sums up our lives lately. We don't have internet in our house at the moment, so that's why we haven't been on here in several months. But I promise to try to post an update at least once a month till the baby comes. We love you all!

Our Fun New Diet...

2010-05-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's really not fun, but it is new. Gabby was put on a sodium free diet. Basically, if it isn't naturally found in the food, like some veggies, she can't have it. Everything has to be bought specially for her or be home-made with out sodium. Did you know there are almost twenty different forms of sodium found in food other than just salt, like baking powder & baking soda. We read lots of food labels now, and most the time we decide it's much cheaper just to make it from scratch. I'm too lazy to grind my own peanut butter, so I fork out the money for it, but almost everything else she eats I have found a way to make with out any forms of sodium in them. I have even started making my own breads, thanks to a generous donation of a breadmaker from the Strickland family in our ward. My sister-in-law teased me by saying it was the Lord's way of telling me I have to cook, whether I want to or not. She's probably right, but it doesn't make me like cooking any more.

More photos of our place...

2010-05-09T10:00:00.000-07:00

So here are some photos of the bedrooms. First is Gabby's room...

Then next up is the scrapbook/storage/office room...

Last is mine & Tim's bedroom...

That's it for now. Maybe next week I will post some pictures of the outside.

Our Brand New Place...

2010-05-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

...literaly, it's not even finished being built. We found a great place within walking distance from Tim's work, the church, & some shopping. It has three bedrooms, two baths, a good amount of storage space, and plenty of windows. We will also have a laundry closet again (which will hopefully be filled with a washer & dryer sometime soon). The place will be finished at the end of June, and we can move in July 1st. I took some photos, and we upload more as things progress. Right now there are just walls & doors.

Anyways, here is a grand tour (which requires a lot of imagination since it is still under construction). Here is the view of the living room when you enter. The kitchen is directly behind it and then the dining room.

Another view of the living room...

Our kitchen with the cabinets piled in the middle (I've been assured they will be put along the walls very soon)...

This is the view of the kitchen from the dining area...

Our dining area & back door...

The laundry closet that desperately needs a washer & dryer...

And last for today, one of two identical storage closets in the hallway...

For the rest of the photos, you will have to come back next week.

Tim & Gabby's Puppet Show

2010-04-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

I filmed this at that Children's museum we went to a few weeks ago. The sound isn't the best, and there is a lot of background noise, but I still think it's pretty cute.

Easter Photos...

2010-04-18T10:00:00.000-07:00

Here's our photos of Easter morning (a couple weeks late).

More Stay-cation Photos

2010-04-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

So Saturday of our little trip to Chatanooga, we spent at the Children's Discovery Museum. There Gabby got to dig up dinosaur bones, pretend to be a doctor, play various music intruments, do a puppet show with dad, make some crafts, hula-hoop, and blow bubbles, among other things. We even attended a cooking & an art class. We even attended a cooking class & an art class. Gabby's favorite was probably the water play area. We had a really great time.

Our Stay-cation

2010-04-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

So we took a stay-cation down to Chattanooga Friday & Saturday. We stayed at the Chattanooga Choo-Choo. After arriving Friday afternoon, Tim & Gabby went swimming, then we ate dinner on an old train before heading out to explore downtown. We found a little cupcake shop where we had dessert, and then we ended the evening by walking across the river and exploring an old river boat.

Our new favorite words...

2010-03-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

S-T-O-P and G-O. That what she shouts at us all day long. She loves to show off that she can spell stop and go.

Gabby's 1st Talk

2010-03-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

Gabby gave her first talk in Primary today. She was supposed to give one last year, but she just stood there and waited for me to say everything. Today, however, she actually gave her talk. Tim stood up there with her and helped to prompt her, but she did really well. She talked about Isaiah and how he prophesied of Christ. She held up the picture in the new Gospel Art Book that shows Isaiah's vision of Christ's birth. We were really proud of her.

Photo Taking

2010-03-07T10:00:00.000-08:00

This is what happens when your child gets ahold of the camera when you are busy on the phone. She took many other pictures, but this was one of the few with my entire face in it (even if it isn't a pretty face).

To get even I took photos of her sleeping. Some how her photos turned out much more adorable. This doesn't seem very fair. Oh well, I guess that's just life.

What to say...

2010-02-28T10:00:00.000-08:00

... I think the photos says it all. We're just being our usual, silly selves this week. Don't worry I don't let her go out in public in that. On another note, I started another blog, because I keep up with the other two I have so well (Emily, one day I will scrapbook again, and when that day comes I will edit my scrapblog again), this one however is meant to be more of a journal and list of favorites to reference for our homeschooling adventures. If you want to view it it's megabbyandsomebooks.blogspot.com . There is also a link on the side too.

Where Have We Been?

2010-02-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

We fell off a cliff... okay, no we didn't really, we have just been really busy. Tim keeps pretty busy with the criminals of Sevier County, and I have been busy with homeschool stuff for Gabby. Yes, to all our friends who we have not gotten around to mentioning it to yet, we are in fact homeschooling.We know that some of you will not approve (don't worry not all of our family approves either), but we know you all understand that when the Lord directs your path a certain way, you just follow faithfully. We are very excited to start this new journey and have been trying to gain all the information we can. Luckily our current ward is refered to often as the homeschooling ward (about 1/3 of all the kids are homeschooled), so we have lots of helpful parents around to glean knowledge from.

Our 5th Anniversary

2010-01-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

Tim & I celebrated our 5th anniversary this past week. And for once we didn't spend it with his family, hooray! (It was about time we spent one anniversary just the two of us.) We went up to the Smokey Mountains and ate dinner at the Old Mill Cafe, which had the world's best salad dressing (avocado ranch, yumm...). Then we spent a Gabby free evening in a hotel room with a fireplace. (By the way I know the photos are blurry, we took them with Tim's phone.)

Christmas Day

2009-12-25T10:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning Gabby woke to find that Santa had eaten his cookies and the reindeer enjoyed their carrot (although I'm not sure why Santa got several cookies, but all the reindeer had to share one carrot). And she must have made it on the nice list this year, because Santa did not disappoint. He brought her play dough (curse him), a doll with pj's that matched hers & lots of other accessories, and a stocking full of Tinkerbell stuff. Tim was more excited about candy and his ties than the Star Wars Clone Wars movies I got him. And I was just excited to finally read the books I bought my self a month ago.

Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T23:00:00.000-08:00

Nathan & Emilie invited everyone over for Christmas Eve this year. We had a big dinner, then the kids decorated cookies and opened presents from the grandparents. We ended the evening by reading the Christmas story and singing some Christmas carols.

When we got home, we let Gabby open her gifts from her other grandparents. She was really excited about the Barbie & the Tinkerbell book from Grandma & Grandpa Gudmundson. And I didn't think she'd ever go to sleep after she saw the craft stuff from Grandma & Grandpa Mitchell (what can I say, we girls love crafts). Tim & I also opened our gifts from Web & Yvonne. Tim was thrilled about his new Spanish scriptures and I can't wait to use my gift card to Pebbles (thanks Yvonne). Of course Gabby made sure to put out some snacks for Santa and hang her socks (literally) before going to bed.

Waiting for Santa...

2009-12-13T10:00:00.000-08:00

Gabby is a little confused about when Santa is coming. She told me "When it snows, that means it's Christmas. Or if you see the midnight marauder, but don't shot him down because he's really Santa." (If you want to know all about the midnight marauder, you will have to go watch Merry Madagascar.) I think poor Gabby is going to be in for a real shock when she realizes that it rarely snows here at Christmas.

Sickness & Snow...

2009-12-06T10:00:00.000-08:00

Gabby has been running a fever since Monday. On Wednesday we had to rush Gabby to the Children's Hospital because she had a fever of 105.3 that would not respond to any over the counter medicine. They ran lots of tests and tried a couple other medications. Turns out she had a UTI and so she was sent home with a nasty tasting prescription. By Friday she was doing just fine.

Which is good because we got snow Saturday morning. Tim & Gabby went out and played in it. I stayed in the warm house like any sane person would do. But it melted by mid-afternoon, horray for me!

Fantasy of Trees

2009-11-29T10:00:00.000-08:00

Every year the local children's hospital does a Christmas fundraiser called the Fantasy of Trees. Local people and businesses donate uniquely decorated trees and gingerbread houses that you can go see before they are sold. They also have little crafts for kids, performances from local musicians & dancers, and of course Santa. We decided to take Gabby to see it this year. Gabby had fun in the preschool play area, while Tim & I enjoyed the beautiful decorations (I loved the Harry Potter tree, while Tim was excited about the many Vols themed trees). Gabby told Santa she wants a bear, last week it was a playdough ice cream maker, who knows what it will be next week.

Feast with the Beasts

2009-11-26T10:00:00.000-08:00

Gabby made her own Thanksgiving picnic on my bed for all her stuffed animals and baby dolls. They had Gabby's favorite foods: hotdogs, fruit, ice cream, and pizza.

Court Sessions & Midnight Movies

2009-11-22T10:00:00.000-08:00

As of the 19th, Tim is officially a licensed attorney in the state of Tennessee. That morning we attended his swearing in ceremony at the courthouse in downtown Knoxville. It was a really special experience. Each new attorney had to have a sponsor, a practicing attorney, come in front of the state Supreme Court Justices and make a motion to have them admitted in. The sponsors talk about you and your character and how you will be an asset to the field of law. Tim's sponsor, Charles Poole (the attorney he is working with in Sevierville), talked a little about Tim's fluency in Spanish and his mission. Once the sponsor is done one of the Justices will grant the motion. Following that the new attorneys stand and take an oath together. Then the Justices took a minute to give some words of advice. One thing they all seemed to emphasize was the importance of your reputation, they said every attorney will have one, so make sure yours is a good one. It really was a shame our family members could not attend. The ceremony was very unique and personal, since unlike a graduation you get an opportunity to hear about each individual.

Of course that evening (or early the next morning) at 12:01 was also the premiere of NEW MOON!!!! It was great, of course it wasn't as good as the book, but it was far better than the first movie. I dressed up as Alice (the oufit from the voting scene) to go see it. I think for the next movie I might have to dress as Victoria, she was amazing in this movie. Loved it, can't wait to see Eclipse this summer!

The Waffle Crisis...

2009-11-18T10:00:00.000-08:00

I don't usually make more than one post a week, but this is an emergency. My daughter may only survive two more days because we have only four more waffles in the house. Due to the waffle crisis in our nation, my daughter may have to start eating something that is semi-tasty and nutritious for breakfast. All this time Americans have been wasting worrying about swine flu, what we really should have been concerned with was Eggo Waffles. I am told my daughter may have to go without for up to 8 months. I'm worried during this time that poor Gabby may have to eat such things as fresh fruit, eggs, or even oatmeal. Oh the horrors! It's a sad time, but hopefully we will make it through it.

Not Much Here...

2009-11-15T10:00:00.000-08:00

So not much going on here. Tim took a big test in Nashville this week to be a court interpreter. Still not a hundred percent sure why he took a test be an interpreter which only pays up to $50 an hour, when come Thursday he will be an attorney and able to charge clients over $100 an hour. Who knows?

Regardless, I finished my Christmas shopping this week (which is driving Tim nuts because he wants to know what I got him). He tried to play 21 questions to guess it, but I'm not telling & he won't be able to guess it anyway.

Gabby has been having an on again off again relationship with the common cold the past few weeks. And I am so over it, she just needs to get over it and move on... as long as she doesn't move on to the swine flu...

And of course none of this has anything to do with the photos of us raking mom's yard with Torri.

Falling Leaves

2009-11-08T10:00:00.000-08:00

Gabby & I played in the leaves one day this week and I took these funny photos with my feet (while listening to my ipod). Yes, I know I'm so talented (or was it special, definitely one of the two).

This is Halloween...

2009-11-01T10:00:00.000-08:00

This is Gabby's 'non-flying' Rosetta fairy costume. Instead of paying $80 for the real rosetta costume at the disney store, I found this one at children's place for $25 and the leggings can be used again with several of her skirts. Gabby was convinced that the other fairy costumes make you fly because they have a red button on them (I'm pretty sure this is all in her head)! But once she got candy, she forgot all about that.

Gabby & Ramey

2009-10-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

Two summers ago Gabby & I came to Tennessee to visit for 6 weeks. During that time Gabby made friends with Ramey. When we got back to California she named a bouncy ball Ramey and took it with her everywhere for a few months. Now that we are back in Knoxville, I have set up a few play dates with the real Ramey. I think she's more fun to play with, even if she doesn't bounce very high.

And the results are in...

2009-10-18T10:00:00.000-07:00

So it's the moment you all have been waiting for... Tim got his bar results... and he didn't fail miserably after all, in fact he passed! And he has decided to work with Charles Poole in Sevierville. He will be commuting there for a few months, then once we have a little money saved up (hopefully around the first of the year), we will start looking for a place out that way.

Bowling

2009-10-11T10:00:00.000-07:00

In Knox County, every year the school kids sell coupon books for $10 that are filled with discounts for local shops and entertainment. This year they had a free game of bowling down at the UT campus student center. So Tim & I took Torri & Gabby for an afternoon. Gabby was bored after two frames but the rest of us had fun.

Gabby's Bike

2009-10-04T10:00:00.000-07:00

Despite how these photos may appear, Gabby has no love for her new bike. She liked it the first week, then she scraped her knee. Now whenever we ask her if she wants to go for a bike ride she says "no thanks". I'm hoping she will get over it, but she hasn't yet

When It Rains... It Pours...

2009-09-27T10:00:00.000-07:00

It's true about a lot of things in our life right now. For one it has literally rained (and flooded) this past week in Knoxville. Yesterday I took Torri out with me to do some errands and we had to walk through about 2 inches of water outside Old Navy. We also saw lots of flooding on the sides of the road. But what I really wanted to tell you all about is this... Tim has finally gotten a job offer, and probably two more. It's hard to believe that you can go almost six months with out a single job offer, then get three at once.

The position he was officially offered is in Sevierville (it's in the Smokey Mountains, near Dollywood) to be an associate. It is contingent on him passing the bar, but Tim gets his results in about three weeks. And then he could start work immediately after. He would paid per case, and if he puts in lots of work, he could make a lot of money there.

The second is also an associate position in Johnson City. Tim is one of two people being considered and has a final interview with the firm in early October. This is the one I would love. It's far enough away from family to have our own lives, but close enough to see them at least once a month. The pay is 10% more then the one in Sevierville, along with having a boss who agrees that family should come before work. But again he would have to work long hard hours.

The third firm considering him is also in Sevierville. They are looking for an associate to do mostly paperwork. At that one he would not be doing many cases on his own, so unlike the other two positions it is salaried, not per case.

So we have a lot of choices ahead of us and some rain in the forecast tomorrow...

Family Night

2009-09-20T10:00:00.000-07:00

So my mom got it in her head that she thinks we should have a family home evening together. Since we played games and ate, instead of having a spiritual lesson, I'm pretty sure it was more like game night, but at least we had fun. Tim & I tried to teach my mom & Torri how to play pinochle, then we played dominoes. Gabby started playing with us by making shapes and castles out of dominoes, then she just started sticking them down her shirt.

Gabby's Wild Party

2009-09-13T10:00:00.000-07:00

Gabby & her friends had so much fun at the zoo; they got to see lots of animals, pet some animals, watch the bird show, pretend to run their own zoo, eat cupcakes, open presents, splash in the water, and ride in the wagon when they were tired. Gabby & Ramey even got into some of the presents.

Since Gabby was only getting clothes & bedding for her birthday presents, we had her open them at home with just us.

Lazy Days

2009-09-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

Don't you wish your kid was as cute as mine? She may be the rottenest kid in the whole wide world, but at least she looks adorable while causing all that trouble.

Anyways, not much has been going on this week, just planning for Gabby's big 4th Birthday. We will have it at the Zoo with a few friends and family.

What Have I Gotten Myself Into Now?

2009-08-30T10:00:00.000-07:00

While my post has nothing to do with that photo, it's such a rare occurrence for Gabby to lie still, I just had to put it on here.

So I finally went to meet with the Bishop to get my Temple recommend renewed today (I know, I'm a little behind on things). Well, you know it's never a good idea to walk into his office, because when I walked out I had a calling in the Primary. I tried to tell him I don't really like kids and that's why I only have one, but he thought I was joking. So now I teach the 11 going on 12 year olds. I'm not sure who I feel more sorry for, me or those poor kids who have to listen to me for an hour every week.

Kentucky Splash

2009-08-23T10:00:00.000-07:00

Saturday we drove all the way to Kentucky to go to a water park (sad, I know). My mom's friend Audra had recommended it, so we all piled into two cars and drove up there. Gabby had a blast in the wave pool and kiddie pools, while Tim & I went down some water slides. I'll put photos up when I get them from my mom.

My Birthday Present

2009-08-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

My grandma said my birthday present this year was teaching me how to make home-made noodles with my great grandma's noodle cutter (that old looking tool). She knows I hate to cook, so she must have thought it would sound more exciting if it was a present. Well let me tell you, making noodles is not fun regardless if it's your birthday or not. But they do taste pretty good.

Camp Gudmundson

2009-08-09T10:00:00.000-07:00

So we have spent the last week at Tim's family reunion. There were 30 people (15 adults & 15 kids), which is about 27 people in one house too many. Gabby loved being with all her cousins, Tim loved going outdoors and playing sports with his brothers, and I loved shopping at Pebbles in my Pocket.

The Tennessee Bar

2009-08-02T10:00:00.000-07:00

Tim took the Tennessee Law Bar Exam on Wednesday & Thursday this week. Each day he tested for 6 hours. Wednesday he had 200 multiple choice, then Thursday he wrote 12 essays. Now he is all done with studying and school. But he won't get his results until October 16th, so we will keep you posted.

Glow-in-the-Dark Mini Ball

2009-07-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

As I'm sure you all know, Gabby loves "Mini Ball". So when we found a glow-in-the dark course, we had to take her of course. I just love watching how she plays, it's the best form of entertainmet.

Gabby's Adorable New Bedding Set

2009-07-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

This is the bedding collection we just got Gabby this weekend. She has no idea (it will be her birthday present). She has grown so much since we arrived in Tennessee that she won't be able to use her crib any more once we move in early September (and if your already getting a big bed, you might as well get cute bedding to go with it, right?). In the last two months she has gained about 6 pounds and grown almost three inches (which is a lot when you are as tiny as Gabby). I'm so excited about her room (and a little jelous they don't make hedgehog bean bags in my size).

Pool Time

2009-07-12T10:00:00.001-07:00

Gabby likes to "change skin color with grandma" at the pool. Which to her means laying out for 5 seconds, tossing all the floats in the pool, jumping in her self, throwing the same toys back out, playing with the innertubes on the deck, and then repeating this all over again. So far this tanning routine hasn't been to successful (which may also be because I use spf 100 suncreen on her).

Rocky Top

2009-07-05T10:00:00.000-07:00

Gabby is definitely Tim's kid, not mine. She has no rhythm and she likes Tennessee.

Transformers 2

2009-06-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

So I have to thank Emily & Todd for making me borrow their Transformers DVD, otherwise I never would have watched it in the first place. I loved it (as they knew I would), and watched it about 10 times before I returned it. Therefore, I had to go see the new one on opening day at midnight (because everyone knows that's the best time to see a new movie). So I took Torri to go see her very first midnight movie, where she of course had a blast playing cards for over an hour while we waited for the movie to start; and despite what my mother said, she didn't fall asleep half-way through it.

Daddy Day

2009-06-21T10:00:00.000-07:00

For "daddy day" Gabby and I made Tim some muffins for breakfast. Then we gave him the card and scrapbook we made him. This year Gabby wanted to make a book about her favorite thing to do with daddy, mini-ball (that's what she calls miniature golf). She also picked out the pink paper she wanted the book to be in.

Girl's Weekend

2009-06-14T10:00:00.000-07:00

One of the few things I enjoy about Tennessee is being able to hang out with my girl friends again. We always have fun together, whether we are playing dress-up in Target for 3 hours, going out to eat (when the food is bad), half-way watching movies, learning new games, or breaking and entering (it's okay, Emily's parents don't really mind). No matter what Jennifer, Emily, Karen, & I do, it always ends up being a night full of laughs. It's great to have friends like them (and I don't even mind that they are all so stick thin that they make me look fat)!

Sprinkler Time

2009-06-07T10:00:00.000-07:00

This week Gabby got to play with her younger cousin Emerson. After following each other around the house all morning, the girls were able to go outside and play in the sprinklers in the afternoon. It never got very warm outside, but they had a great time; and I got some adorable photos of it all.

Getting Settled...

2009-05-31T10:00:00.000-07:00

I didn't take a whole lot of exciting pictures this week, so instead I am putting up some funny pictures of Gabby at the hotels we stayed at on the way out here. She had a lot of fun riding on the luggage carts and watching TV in bed. The drive out here wasn't too bad. I drove most of the time, while my mom read Twilight (she's a fanatic now too, in fact I may never see my Twilight DVD again). Speaking of Twilight, there was a funny moment when we got stuck at a Indian Trading Post in the middle of no where during a rain storm, which of course made me think of La Push, except there were no werewovles (that I know of).

Our First Week In San Diego

2009-05-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

We are finally moved in for the summer. Gabby has been busy playing with Aunt Torri in our backyard everyday. Tim reads, reads, and reads all day (and half the night) preparing for the bar. And I have just been trying to finally get some rest after all the packing/moving/unpacking. Our internet connection here is slow, so we may be behind on e-mailing/blogging for a little while.

Tim's Big Graduation

2009-05-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

Tim's Graduation from Thomas Jefferson School of Law was held on May 16th at the Symphony Hall in downtown San Diego. Tim's parent's & grandmother, along with my mother attended the ceremony.

One more week...

2009-05-10T10:00:00.000-07:00

We will be leaving Warm, Sunny, Perfect San Diego in just one week. And then we will begin a new chapter of our lives in Knoxville (one with a paying job, and free babysitting).

Coming Soon...

2009-02-25T10:00:00.000-08:00