Thnksgiving was over a month ago?

Yeeeaaahhh... All my intentions of catching up on this blog went right out the window this last week. Talk about a crazy holiday! So, to summarize, I went back to work for 2 weeks to help out with the holiday rush (more on that later! I have important news to share!) So most nights, Bryant would come home just as I was rushing out the door. Then, Bryant and I both caught that horribly nasty stomach bug that's making the rounds. Thankfully, both kids seemed to avoid it, knock on wood! And then there was Christmas, and then I've spent DAYS trying to recover my house and get it back to normal.

So yeah. Blogging kind of got stuck on the back burner. Anyways, I completely forgot to post about Thanksgiving! Whaaa! So, I'll make this quick.

Onwards and upwards folks!

For Thanksgiving this year, we were able to spend it with Bryant's parents, brother and grandma out in Mt. Shasta. The last time we had Thanksgiving with them was back in 2008 and we were still dating. It was my first time in Mt. Shasta and It was also the first time I really got to know Bryant's family. I felt bad because I had to be back to work on black Friday, so we flew out, made his parents drive 4 hours to Reno to pick us up, then 4 hours home, and then they did it again to take us back to the airport. Then, I tried to make a pie that was a complete disaster. I thought for sure they were going to think I was not suitable for their son, but they must have liked me because here we are, 5 years later and they spoil me :-)

It was a quiet Thanksgiving. The boys spent a lot of time playing video games, The kids got a lot of Grandma time, and I got a lot of nap time. Bryant and I even snuck in a date! I'm really hoping from now on, we can swap off Christmas and Thanksgiving with both families. Last year was the first Christmas we had spent with his family in all our time being together. Thats way too long to go without being home for the holidays!

 

The next day, we drove out to Reno and attended the BYU devotional at a church. The cultural hall and gym were completely packed! I would say a good chunk of the people attending were missionaries, and it was a lot of fun! After the devotional, we all went out to a nice dinner, then came back to the hotel and crashed. Savannah thought the hotel was just the greatest thing ever, especially since she had that giant bed all to herself!

The next day we went to the BYU vs. Nevada game. We got there early and got great seats! Deagan was a little fussy because he was hungry and the bottle I brought was cold, so he wouldn't eat it. Savannah liked playing with some of Ed and Robyn's friends who had come from Mt. Shasta too to watch the game, and she even caught a t-shirt! Which, I'm totally wearing as I type this...

Right after the game we said our goodbyes and headed home. It's always really sad to leave Ed and Robyn. I'm really lucky to have the greatest in-laws ever and as I've said numerous times, Mt. Shasta is one of my absolute favorite places ever. I might have even been looking in the newspaper for homes for sale while we were there... Just saying...

Wow, I still have so much to write about. I've got a post coming up about Savannah's trip to the ER, that was funny. And of course Christmas. And, I have a few really exciting announcements to make, probably within the next week or so. (no, not another baby. I had you all going there didn't I? :-)

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Christmas! And Happy New Year!

The last couple of weeks

I just finished my biggest paper of the semester. Well, it needs a little polishing and I need to incorporate it into 3 other people's papers to create 1 collaborative paper tomorrow, but I'm going to call it done for now! Just 2 small opinion papers left. One on which type of government is my favorite, and one on why I am either a conservative or a democrat. Easy-peesy! I should be able to whip both those up in under a half hour.

So here are just some bits and pieces from the last little while to keep people updated. 

Thanksgiving at my grandparents house was great! Even though I had horrible morning sickness that day, I managed to enjoy dinner and keep it all down!

 

Christmas decorations are up! We were going to get a live tree this year, but I decided not too. First of all, we won't be here for Christmas, we are spending it this year in Mt. Shasta! So we would have only been able to enjoy it for a couple of weeks. Second, I didn't really want to spend money on one. I'm cheap like that. And Third, I wouldn't have enough ornaments to decorate one. You see that little tiny tree on my coffee table in the picture? Yeah, only one small strip of it actually has decorations on it, the rest is bare...

We spent an evening at the Festival of Trees! Savy liked the Sesame Street tree, the Owl tree is my cousin Alyssa and her family's and of course, a coke tree for you grandma!

Raspberries on mommy's cheek. She just learned to say "I love you!" (it sounds like "I yuh-you!")

And of course I had to add a picture of a silly face by my favorite silly girl!

In other news, I had another doctors appointment. We finally got to hear the heatbeat and everything sounds good! Also, I have not gained a single pound this entire 15 weeks! But my stomach has been growing ridiculously fast. My only explanation is that my flabby stomach is stretching, but already had the weight on there, so It's not like I'm gaining more, since it was already there. Make sense? Also, I've lost a bit of weight in my arms and face (I wish it would in my thighs, holy cow!)

The nurse said that they expect women to gain 5 lbs in the first trimester, but that as long as I didn't lose any, we are good. Also, no more antibiotics, yay!

My morning sickness is nearly gone. I still get sick if I don't eat, but I haven't taken my medication for it in 2 days, and I'm feeling good so far!

I also saw a physical therapist for my sciatic nerve pain. She said my SI joint in my hip had dislocated, so she popped it back into place. Then I had no pain in my back or legs until last night, when I cleaned my bathrooms and mopped my floors. I overdid it I think. I go back this week again, so I'll see if I dislocated it again. She also said my muscles were extremely tight in my lower back, and that was what was pinching that nerve. Looks like I need to take a trip to the massage therapists!

I also have been able to feel a few tiny kicks here and there! About 2 weeks earlier than I felt them with Savannah. I LOVE it!

We also had our first pregnancy scare 2 nights ago. I began bleeding lightly. I knew it was probably nothing, but we went to check it out anyway. My OB's office was closed, and they have no one on-call to talk to. Their voice-mail said if you had a problem, to go to the ER or to Labor and Delivery. Which I wasn't about to do and pay tons of money for. So I just went to the urgent care. The doctor did an exam and listened for the heartbeat. It was nice and strong and he said there was nothing to worry about, that occasional light bleeding was really normal, and to go to labor and delivery if it continued and got worse. It stopped within a half hour of starting, and I had no cramping or anything, and today I felt a couple little kicks, so I think we are OK.

Well, that's all for now. I think we are going to do a bit of Christmas shopping tonight, then possibly take Savannah to see the Rise of the Guardians. Then I'll come home and write up those last 2 papers, and I'll call it a day!

Thanksgiving!

I have a bad habit that when I pray, I tend to just ask for things I need. I always give thanks for things, but its usually rushed to get to the things I need and want. I decided to give a prayer of only thanks and my prayer seriously took soooo long to say and I realized how good I felt to give thanks, and I realized how many things I had to be grateful for. I decided that in honor of Thanksgiving today, I would post just a few of them.

1. MY HUSBAND- I am so incredibly grateful for Bryant. In the past 3 1/2 years that I've known him and the last year and a half we have been married, I've come to realize that there is no one else in this world who is more perfect for me than him. To put it simply, he puts up with me. He handles all my stress and breakdowns and tears with ease and is my support throughout everything. Even after a year and a half, I still miss him when he's at work and still get butterflies in my stomach when he sneaks a peck on my cheek when I'm falling asleep. I love him so much and I'm so happy we were able to find each other here on this massive earth out of 6 billion other people.
(Bryant told me not to put this picture up cause his eyes are closed, but I still like it!)

2. MY WIGGLY BABY GIRL- I am already so in love with her and she's not even here yet! And I can't help but have this feeling that she already loves me too. Even just this morning, I was laying in bed and I suddenly got worried, I hadn't felt her move since I had gotten off work the night before and lately she's been waking me up in the middle of the night with her kicking. I was suddenly terrified that something had happened and just as I was about to get up and begin really panicking, I felt a whole series of really strong kicks. It was almost like she was saying "hey mom, calm down! I'm fine!"

I am so grateful to become a mother. Even though when I sit down and really think about it, I start to get worried that I won't be a good mother, that I won't have the time or the energy, that my schooling may take a lot longer than planned, that I don't have space for her, I always get a calming reassurance that God never gives you anything you can't handle. He knew that my heart desired a child and felt that I was ready to take care of one. She really is such a blessing in my life!

3-MY FAMILY- I'm the luckiest person on the planet when it comes to family. My family is such a strong support system to me and they are always there when I need them. They are the best and I wouldn't trade them for any other family ever!

4-MY IN-LAWS- Speaking of family... You know all those jokes about in-laws and you always here people complain about their in-laws? So NOT true! My in-laws are THE BEST! They have welcomed me into their family and have made me feel so comfortable and welcome around them!

5-SCHOOL- There are so many times, especially now with work getting busy and a baby on the way that I just want to quit school. I just want to throw my hands up and yell "I'm done! I'm never coming back!" but then I realize that out of every person on the planet, I'm a lucky one. I have been given the opportunity to go to college when so many, many people in this world don't get the chance to even go to grade school. When I realize this, it makes me all the more determined to finish school. "so what?" I think "There are tons of parents, even single mothers, who work a whole lot more than I do and finish school. So can I!"

6.-MY JOB- I love my job. I may get tired and worn out a lot faster now and I may complain about a rough day or an angry customer, but I really do love it at the bookstore and I realize that my job is another blessing in my life, especially during these hard times in the economy when so many people have lost theirs.

7-ACE- Of course I have to add my puppy to this list. Ace is a good buddy to have around and even though he is such a stinker, he is a good and loyal and protective of me, and such a sweetheart.

These are just a few of the things I'm grateful for, I could go on and on all day. But right now, my sister just came down with a plate of yummy divinity to watch the Macys Thanksgiving day parade with me. It's the little things like this that I'm also so thankful for.

I suggest to everyone that when you pray tonight, to really spend some time on your knees giving thanks for all that God has blessed you with. It will really make you feel so good.

Happy Thanksgiving Every One!
Enjoy your family and friends, and of course, the turkey today!

6 Months!

Well, we have been married for 6 months today! Sometimes it feels like we have been married a lot longer than that and some days I think about the day we got married and think "holy cow, it's really been that long?". It's been a really great six months and im so excited to see what the next six months bring.

So i know 6 months is not a HUGE deal or anything, but I still convinced Bryant to take me out to a movie last night. We ended up seeing The Blindside, which I was not too excited to see at first because the football, underdog type movie has been overdone so many times it's burnt to a crisp. But It was surprisingly very good. Definitely one worth seeing.

As for this week, again not much happened. Both of us have been working a lot and I have been able to pick up a few more hours because we are getting into our holiday crunch and the store has been BUSY! Even with the new In-n-out, 5 1/2 hour drive through wait overtaking our parking lot.

On Wednesday, I realized that after 6 months in our ward, our only friends are our 8 year old primary kids, when Rylan unexpectedly showed up at our doorstep, wondering if Bryant wanted to play. It was cute, for sure, but depressing that instead of being invited to ward parties and relief society events, we were being asked to play football by an 8 year old. But I took Ace out and while Rylan, Bryant and the neighbor boy who asked to join tossed a pig skin around, Ace and I had our own football game with his stuffed football.
Needless to say, Ace kicked my Butt.
Rylan had a lot of fun. The neighbor kid got a little competitive so I felt bad, but Bryant was good about keeping it fair. Afterwards, Rylan told us that he would come over every Wednesday to play if that was ok with us.

Today, we went to church and for some reason ALL of our kids were super hyperactive. Noel, one of our girls, didn't want to come to class and her mom asked me if I could go talk to her. I found her out in the lobby and she said she wanted to go home because she had spacers put in her teeth and they really hurt. I knew there was more then that so we spent about 20 minutes just talking and I was asking her about her favorite thanksgiving food and she wanted to know my favorite 2 colors put together. After a while she said she had forgotten that her teeth hurt because she was thinking of other things, and so I told her that coming to the rest of sharing time would help keep her mind off it. So we went back together and I was really happy when the other 2 girls leaned back to her when we sat down and one told her she had a really cute dress on and the other said she really liked her hair. I think that even at 8 years old, people just need a good confidence boost every now and then. After that, she was happy as a clam the rest of the day.

After church, I was able to work on some christmas crafts. Bryant should not let me go to Michaels craft store alone because It's like sending a kid into a candy store. I just worked on a wreath and then I made some pinecone ornaments.

I thought they turned out really cute, but I promised myself I wouldn't put them up until after Thanksgiving (saves me a lot of flack, I know it's not Christmas yet, but when it's cold and snowy, I can't help but get excited...) Oh well, Thursday will be here soon enough.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, my mom made a Turkey with all the fixin's today and we had our neighbors and my parents really good friends the Ostergaards over for a mini-thanksgiving dinner. I think we should have 2 thanksgivings every year!

On kind of a sadder note, which I feel like writing down cause it's been the cause of all my stress this week, I found our that school is going to take me even longer than origionally planned. I went to a counselor last year who admitted me into the History Education program at UVU. He said everything was taken care of and that I was on track to be done next fall if I did classes in the summer too. I was super excited for this and as I was registering for my final secondary education classes (I only have 1 more history to finish) It was saying that I did not have the pre-requisits for the classes I had to do. So I contacted the department chair for the secondary ed program. Come to find out, I AM enrolled in the history education program, however, they didn't tell me that the Secondary Ed program is not technically through UVU. It's an entirely different admissions process and that I had to apply and perform an Interview with the Dean. To make matters worse, I have missed the deadline for spring term, and now have to apply at the end of next semester for FALL semester.

I was really upset about this because I wish the couselor I talked to had told me this. It just set back all of my plans a lot further than I want them to be. And to make matters worse, I will only be able to take 2 classes next semester because I don't need anything else except for those education classes.

I'm really hoping it all works out. Thankfully I'm not the only person who didn't know this. My friend who is in the elementary Ed program said that she didn't know and had to do it all too. UVU's counselors have always been really awful. They don't ever seem to have all the information you need. On the brightside, I'll still be able to get my grant with only 6 credits (origionally I was told I could only get it full time, they were wrong about that too) And I'll be able to work a lot more and save up a lot more money.