Jack is here

Just a few pictures to announce the arrival of Jack born on June 2 weighing a whopping 10 lbs 14 oz and 22.5 inches long. Both Jack and Lajuana are doing well and are due to come home Saturday morning. Jack is a very mild baby so far and it has been nothing but a treat to have him join our family. Lajuana is amazing having delivered Jack all natural. His hair is light brown almost reddish, exactly how Garrett's hair was when he was born. So we are expecting Jack will have nice blond hair like Garrett or maybe a little darker.

At Last

I'm very pleased to say that I (John) found a great job! After interviewing around the country I ended up finding a great fit with a company called Nalco. I'm in the global headquarters which happens to be of all places right here in our town! So no moving any time soon for us. My position is Product Manager, basically managing the marketing and strategy of industrial products that are used in water systems. Without getting too detailed I'll be able to combine my heating and cooling, engineering, and MBA experience for this position...exactly what I was hoping for.

I started the job on Monday of this week but something else very important happened Saturday May 15, my graduation! After a stressful 18 months with no breaks, I finished my MBA at the University of Notre Dame. When I began the program I asked our Heavenly Father to help me out so that I can do well and take the most from this opportunity to learn. The experiences and friendships I have gained have truly been a blessing to me. My class was cohort style so I took all my classes with the same group of people who became a close group of friends and teammates. I'm on the right side of the group picture with my head above the others.

I never would have thought it but I guess the windows of heaven were opened because I was blessed to do well in my classes and ended up graduating Magna Cum Laude and inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society.

I have to say that none of this would have been even remotely possible without the amazing support and constant sacrifice that Lajuana and the kids have made. Lajuana never ever made me feel that I was less of a father or husband because of the extreme time devotion I had to spend getting that project done, prepare for a presentation, or get ready for that impossible exam. She is an amazing woman and I truly believe I am who I am because of her. The business school sanctioned the use of an honorary certificate called the "Master of Patience", she earned it with Summa Cum Laude honors.



To celebrate my graduation we had my entire family come in from across the country. It was a blast seeing my family and having them stay with us. My younger brother Jason was in Iraq when I graduated with my bachelors degree and so this is the first time we could all be together in 8 years! Below is a picture of my brothers and my sister. The one below that is of the entire family. We sure did have a great time.

We are here, we are here!

I’ve been taking it real easy the last few months, which translates into I’ve been even lazier than usual. The biggest change is that John was laid off on Feb 1, and has therefore been home all day almost every day. Since before, we were lucky to see him two times a week, this has been an adjustment we were happy to make. After the initial shock and stress, we have really been enjoying our time together. I think if I were not pregnant, I would be even less stressed and not worry at all. But we’re taking full advantage of John being around all the time: we were able to take time to go visit my parents in St. George, UT and John has done a million projects around the house. He has spent hours and hours in searching, applying, and interviewing for new jobs. We have some promising ones, but I don’t want to count my chickens before they’re hatched, so I’m not going to say anything until we have some firm offers in our hands. John has been really hands-on with the kids, playing with them and helping them with homework and projects. SO NICE FOR ME, since I’m pretty tired of explaining fractions and gluing things.

My Mom and Dad are doing pretty well--we put my dad in a home in January and he has been fine there. My mom can't drive or hear very well (brain damage from tumors)but is happy to be living at home and has help come in 3 times a week to take her places and help her clean. She misses Dad, but is a lot less stressed now that the burden of his care is mostly on other people. She complains that they aren't taking as good care of him as she would like (they don't shave him everyday, and lose his socks), but they are mostly doing as good a job as you can expect from people not related to him.

I'm doing well physically and emotionally. I feel huge and my mom even said I already looked 9 months pregnant and a man at church asked if I was having twins. But I try not to take it too much to heart, especially since I've only gained 14 pounds so far with 6 weeks to go. The kids love to feel when the baby is kicking, and especially when he has hiccups. Hannah has reconciled herself to having yet another brother, but she also keeps telling me "they could be wrong and it's a girl." So I told her if it is, we'll name her Hope because Hannah has never lost hope.

John is getting ready to graduate with his MBA from Notre Dame and he is so excited! So are we! He has worked really hard and has earned great grades. I'm really proud of him. His whole family is coming for the graduation on May 15th. Anyone else who wants to drop in would be welcome. It's a beautiful time of year in Chicago.

The first 3 pictures are from Sunny St. George (you can see how huge I am--can I get any bigger?), and the last two are the before and after pictures from our kitchen.

The big news

My facebook friends may already know, but for the rest of you, I’m keeping you in suspense. I went to get my first (and hopefully only) ultrasound on Thursday. Everything looked great with the baby, placenta, umbilical cord, etc. I was extremely relieved because I’ve been having this weird feeling that *something* is going to go wrong and for some reason that translated to me as “you’re going to have placenta previa and need a c-section.” Not so! I practically danced out of the room I was so relieved and happy. I know there are still things that can go wrong, but I’m not worried anymore and have my “protective bubble” tight around me now. No bad thoughts will enter in here!

The technician was able to find out the gender and I had her write it down and seal it in an envelope. She didn’t tell me (or Kevin who was with me) what it was.

A little background: the gender lines have been clearly drawn in our household, with the boys wanting a boy, and Hannah wanting a girl. But Hannah REALLY wants a sister, and the boys want a boy mostly because it’s expected that they should want another boy. As for me, I have felt there is another girl for our family, ever since I found out Kevin was a boy. I’ve always assumed this would be a girl, born in the same month (or close to it at least) as our other girl. I have saved most of our girl stuff, while liberally giving away most of our boy stuff when we moved here. You see where this is going, don't you? John was kind of hoping for a girl, though he didn't say anything about it to the kids. Hannah had worked herself into a frenzy, making pictures of me holding a baby girl, talking to the baby and telling it to be a girl “PLEASE!” and yesterday she told all her friends we were finding out the gender and they all made her cards saying “Good luck!” or “Congratulations I hope it’s a girl!” I love my four sisters (heck I share a house with one), and I couldn’t imagine life without ANY of them. I really wanted a sister for Hannah, though I knew she eventually might regret having a pesky little sis getting into all her stuff. After my miscarriage last summer, Hannah cried and asked if that was “the girl baby” that died. It was just heart-breaking, I was as sad for her as I was for myself.

So when John got home, we hurried him through dinner so we could open the envelope. Should we take video of us opening it? I said no, because if it’s a boy, there will be some weeping and wailing that might hurt the future Sapp’s feelings (but a little voice in my head said, wouldn’t it be precious to have her reaction on video if it is a girl—luckily I ignored that voice). Hannah was dancing around the room, dizzy with excitement. I opened the envelope and read aloud “It’s a boy!” with as much happiness as I dared. She immediately started sobbing, wailing, crying—her face was filled with anguish. It made me start crying too. I held her and tried to comfort her but she was literally inconsolable. I talked to her about how much we’ll love this baby, even though it’s a boy. I told her I was sorry and I was hoping for a girl too. Still crying. John said there’s not much difference between boys and girls when they’re babies anyway. And Hannah replied “But when it grows up it will STILL be a boy and I’ll have ALL BOYS in my family, WAHHHH! I will NEVER have a sister now! WAHHHH!” Yeah, she knows that this is her last shot because I’m done after this baby.

I talked to her about names, said she needs to help me pick out a name. Still sobbing. Then I said, “Hannah, I need your help. Do you remember what Dad wants to name a boy?” She slowed her sobbing and nodded. John wants to use an old family name, I think it’s German. The name is Topliff. Ewww. We fought about it a lot a few months ago until I finally said let’s put our arguments aside until we know the gender, thinking it would be a moot point anyway since we’re having a girl. So I continued to Hannah with a low urgent voice, “You have GOT to help me talk Dad out of that name. I do NOT like that name.” She stopped crying and said vehemently “Me neither!” John came to sit by us at that point and she told him that it was her job to not let him name the baby Topliff. He thought that was pretty funny. She was still in the post-crying hiccupping stage, but John called his sister and let Hannah talk to her. “Well, Aunt Renee, it’s a boy” with dripping disdain. Poor Renee had the same problem in her family but not only does she have 2 younger brothers, but THREE. She told Hannah how sad she was when John and their other brother were born. She told some funny stories that actually made her LAUGH. The crisis was over. I hope she will be happy, I know she’ll be a great big sister again. My reaction: I’m sad for Hannah, but happy for me because my boys have been relatively easy once they can walk. My girl has gotten harder as she gets older, which I imagine will continue into pre-teen and teenage years. Do I still feel there is still a girl waiting for our family? Ask me again in a year or so. But don’t get your hopes up.

How to raise compassionate children

Actually, I have no idea how to raise compassionate children. My kids are naturally compassionate. For example, here is a typical response from each of my children while I'm violently heaving in the bathroom:

Garrett: Are you ok, Mom? Is there anything I should do?

Hannah: Can I get you something Mom? Some water or a wet washcloth?

Kevin: Are you done throwing up yet? (with a whine) You still didn't fix my transformer!

Of course, it is usually only Kevin home when I'm heaving, so I get SOOO much sympathy.

Lots o' pictures

Just want to catch up a little in between my vomiting spells. Here are some pictures and a little bit of writing.

A beautiful day in October, we went to the park and then walked down to the neighborhood retention pond (actually John took the kids while I took a nap, but then I joined them later and helped take pictures).




We took a (very) quick trip to Ohio to visit John's Mom, unfortunately, our battery died right after we took this picture. We had a great visit and enjoyed beautiful weather.



We got tickets to the Notre Dame vs. Boston College game, and our whole family went and enjoyed the festivities. It was cold, drizzly, and pretty miserable, but ND won and it was an exciting game!





For Halloween Garrett was Huck Finn, Hannah was half angel/half devil (very appropriate for her quickly changing moods) and Kevin was a red Ninja Storm Power Ranger.



Our friend Sarah came over with her family, and we had so much fun catching up with them, and Garrett especially loved playing with little A. I think he would be just as happy with a new little sister as he would with a little brother.



Kevin had his 4th birthday. He was looking forward to it for a long time, and I don't think he was disappointed. He got a lot of presents, and he asked for a "HUGE" cake so I just put it in a sheet cake pan.




Hannah was in a kid's production of "Annie" and she had a total blast. She loved being on stage, acting, and especially singing. She did really well.





Once again, John and Garrett outshone the competition at the pinewood derby. This time, they put battery-operated headlights in it, with a toggle switch to turn it off and on. John taught Garrett all about electricity, relays, and switches, and I'm not really sure what else. The car did not race very well, unfortunately, but you can see his peers thought it was pretty amazing to look at.

Here we go again!

We’re expecting again! This time, I feel more confidence in announcing it since I heard the heartbeat yesterday, and morning sickness is really kicking my rear. I don’t know if you all know this, but I am OLD. 37. And feeling every long year of it. I can’t count how many times I’ve been laying on my bed (or the couch, or the back of the van, or the floor) moaning and wondering what the heck we were thinking. Can I handle this?

This is my first pregnancy that I truly have “morning” sickness (all the others I had “evening” sickness the worst). I fight back the nausea all morning and constantly am ready to race to the toilet. The morning used to be my time to run errands, get things done like laundry and cleaning. Now it is my time to eat a little and lie down a lot. This baby does not like meat. Or sweets. But loves citrus (I’ve never been a huge fan, but now I’m sucking down grapefruits like a fiend) and sugar snap peas. John is so happy that this baby might turn out to be a vegetarian like him. I haven’t found anything that I like to eat in the morning yet. I’ve tried cereal, oatmeal, eggs, toast, nothing is good. Grapefruit is the best thing to have, but obviously does not fill my constantly starving stomach. Any ideas?

Here are a few pictures of some fun things we’ve done over the last month or so. First is when John and I went downtown Chicago for the jazz festival on our anniversary. It was a lot of fun but there were plenty of times I smelled sweet smoke if you know what I mean.


My niece Ashleigh is on the BYU soccer team and they had a game at Northwestern so we went and the kids had a blast cheering and they felt famous when they got to go on the field with a player. Ashleigh also sneaked them onto the team bus when they went out to eat after the game. The kids were in heaven.


We went on an architectural boat tour of downtown Chicago on a beautiful September afternoon. It was TOTALLY worth the $17 per person. So fun. Here is Denise with Hannah and Kevin.


We went to the Shedd Aquarium, which was NOT worth the $25 per person, but still a pretty fun way to spend the morning. Kevin refused to get in this picture because by the end of our time there, he was so cranky and contrary he only wanted to go home.