it's a wonderful life.

being a mom is the best thing in the world. period. looking back at my pregnancy, that was hard. but don't get me wrong, it was totally worth it... just like they say. the moment Max was born, i had so many emotions. i was even a little scared of the responsibility that comes with being a mom. however, i'm mostly grateful for the opportunity that i have to have a healthy, sweet baby boy. a short 3 weeks ago, i was in the hospital bursting with excitement and not able to sleep because i just wanted to hold my baby all the time. i've always liked holding new babies, but there's something different about holding your very own. i totally don't mind waking up several times throughout the night to feed him. he's so precious. he's perfect. i don't ever want to take this time for granted. i want my little Max to be exactly that forever...little. but, we all know that that's not what's in store for him. he's on this earth for a special purpose, just like the rest of us. he needs to grow, and learn. no matter how much i don't want that to happen. i'm so grateful for Max and the special spirit that he brings into our home. he really is a child of god. we are seriously blessed.

xoxo, the Harrison's

2 weeks old!

Max is 2 weeks old today! I can't believe it. We went to his 2 week appt this morning and he's almost gained a WHOLE POUND. Let me tell ya, this little man likes to eat. We are loving the extra noise in our home and the sweet facial expressions we get from our little peanut. It's been a crazy adjustment but it gets better everyday! He's a wonderful baby and we are so lucky to be his parents <3

xoxo, the Harrison's

ps. Who do you think Max looks like? We can't pin point who he looks like at all. We know he still has a lot of changing to do though! I wish he'd stay this little forever.

Meet Max.

Our sweet little Max is here! I need to take some time to write down my experience so that I won't forget what a wonderful time this is for my little family. On February 1st, our little one was due. However, he had other plans for us. After weeks of doctors visits, my body had not been preparing itself for labor. At my 40 week appointment, my doctor discovered that I didn't have enough fluid to sustain my baby's health. After that discussion, my doctor brought to our attention that it would be best to induce me. On Thursday February 2nd, I went into the hospital at 8:30pm. They started me out with some medication that got me contracting throughout the night. The next morning, they started me on pitocin to really get my labor in full force. By 10 am, I got my epidural and MAN was that awesome. I felt so good after that. As time went on that day, my water broke on its own around 1pm. By 3:55 I started pushing. Let me just say, I had one awesome nurse! And my husband was such a huge support. Finally, at 5:19pm, Max James entered the world. We were all shocked at the size of our baby. My mom and his mom had both had pretty small/average sized babies. I didn't get to hold my sweet boy right away because when he came out, he wasn't breathing. That was some of the scariest moments of my life. I kept asking the nurses why he wasn't crying but no one would answer me. When Max started crying, I immediately had tears streaming down my face knowing that he was here and healthy. He is the most handsome baby I have ever seen and the instant love that I had for him was incredible. I'm so grateful to have had a healthy pregnancy and delivery. I love being a mother and the things that I have learned from this whole experience. I love my little family <3

bags are packed for the hospital.

first time in my arms.

our sweet little chunk.

love,the harrisons

p.s. we had our newborn appt today for Max {now 5 days old} and he's only 1 oz away from his birth weight. this boy likes to EAT!

it's been 2 months?

i can't believe i haven't updated in 2 months! that's how crazy busy we've been. mike and i finished up our semester the second week of december. we were very ready for a break! Christmas was a great success, we spent the night at my parents house Christmas Eve and woke up bright n early with my little siblings, went to church and spent lots of time with family. {p.s. i don't know why my christmas pictures always come out blurry}

2nd exciting update: i'm 35 weeks as of YESTERDAY! Which means, i can FINALLY count on one hand how many weeks i have left. i've been feeling pretty good, minus the lack of sleep from being pregnant. {i'm worried my baby's going to be a night owl, as soon as i lay down for the day, he goes nuts} I cannot wait till Max gets here! we are SO ready.

{the letters are to add color, painting's such a hassle in an apt!}

{our $20 goodwill find :)}

i recently put in my 2 weeks at the gym, and quite nannying a couple of weeks ago. {i was nannying a 2 and 1 year old and with a big belly it was getting really difficult lifting them and chasing after them!} so now it's time for me to prepare as much as i can while i have the time!

mike's going to be the greatest daddy.

xoxo, the Harrison's

grateful hearts.

words cannot explain how grateful i am.

i don't know why this hit me so hard today, but i'm really content right now. yeah, there's some things here and there that could be better, but there i really need to remain positive because i have been blessed with soo much. [really].

#1: my husband. he's handsome, loveable, and just OH so perfect for me. he always knows how to cheer me up, how to make me blush, and all around how be a better person. the other night we were talking about how much our relationship has developed over the past year of marriage. and really, we have gotten to know each other so much more. we have had so many wonderful experiences together, and we're going to continue to have these forever.. even bad ones! but i wouldn't want to experience these things with anyone else. he's truly, an amazing guy. i adore him. and can you believe we're approaching a year of marriage? crazyyy.

#2: sweet little max. we are so blessed to become parents soon. i can't even begin to explain the excitement that we both have for the day that our baby boy comes into this world. we feel so lucky to be able to have healthy bodies to provide for our mini us. throughout this pregnancy, i've had a real tough time with some body image issues. it's strange because never before have a been self conscious of my body. but as time goes on, and i look way more pregnant, the worry has turned into a blessing. i'm aware that some people aren't able to have their own children and keep reminding myself, "it'll all be worth it". our baby boy is quite active lately, and i just love him so much already. we are more than ready to become parents and are so grateful that Heavenly Father would send down one of His children for us to guide here on this earth. [100 days to go!]

#3: the gospel. wow, where would i be without the church. i'm so lucky to be a member of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints. i've been a life-long member, and continue to see the good that it has brought me into my life. i have received so much peace and love from my Father in Heaven for trying to make the right decisions in my life. I know my Savior lives. he wants the best for all of His children. and i'm well aware of the blessings that have come in my life for obeying his commandments.

#4: families. another HUGE blessing in our lives is our families. every once and a while i get a urge to move back to Idaho and continue my schooling there. but then i realize what a huge blessing it is for mike and i to literally live less than 5 miles away from us [both of them!]. they are all such great examples to us and we enjoy their company. they have helped us so much in the past year, with getting our lives together and on our own i don't know how we would have done it without them! they are truly the best <3

#5: jobs. it's hard to say, but we're so very blessed to have good jobs. as our country is struggling, and tons of people are without work, we were able to hold some jobs that will take us through school and help us raise our family. yeah, we're extremely busy [especially mike] but we do know that we are doing everything we can to start out right. as our baby arrives, we will be very lucky to have me stay home with our baby. that is a major blessing right there.

#6: education. so this is really hard to count education as a blessing sometimes. most of the time i just want to quit. but i know that when we work towards something, we will be blessed in the long run. also, our prophets tell us over and over again that we must further our education in today's world. so i'm going to listen, because i want to see the blessings that going to school will bring!

#7: the temple. we have a temple so close to our house. it takes us no longer than 15 minutes to get there. sometimes, it's hard to make it there with our crazy schedules. but when we do, i feel an amazing peace inside that is unlike any other feeling. the spirit there is so strong, and i feel so close to my heavenly father. even when we're just walking on temple grounds. i'm also very excited to see the progress on the new Gilbert Temple! which will also be less than 15 minutes away. wow, so blessed.

looking at the good makes me forget about bad. yes, we've had our stressful, not-so-good days. but when we look at all the blessings that surround us. the bad seems so minute.

i'm forever grateful for these blessings.

xoxo, the Harrison's

crafting fun

Wooohooo! I finally made a cupcake liner wreath. I'm absolutly in love with the way that it turned out. Since Mike is at school every night, i've had a LOT of crafting time (that probably should be homework time). This was in fact inspired by pinterest. Surprise there. Funnny thing is is that my husband actually asked me the other day while I was on the computer, "are you pinning?" haha. He even knows the lingo!

What's new with us?

No much... just the same old work and school. We are loving our new apartment and new ward. We were called to be primary teachers (CTR 6). We have been warned by the whole ward that these are the most challenging kids. Thankfully, we have found some ways to calm them down! They have even taught us some!

My next doctors appt is September 29th and hopefully will be the day we get confirmation on our baby BOY :)

That's all for now,

xoxo, the Harrison's

the craze: pinterest

need a fast, cheap & fun craft?

I made these coasters for our home, and got the idea from Pinterest.
And this is how they turned out! I'm very pleased :)

xoxo, the Harrison's