life

I think the anticipation of a baby coming makes life slow down a little bit...we know the big due date...count down the weeks...prepare the nursery...gain weight (yahoo!)...etc. I have just about a month left and it will be a very long month, the end of every pregnancy goes by a little slower than the rest because tasks zap more energy out of me and I feel like I move around like a turtle. I love to stay busy, and I look forward to having projects to do, anything to keep my mind off of the obvious and the uncomfortable. So I have a few things that won't take much time, but still will help me keep my eye off the goal. It also doesn't help that my cold has moved down my throat...practically down in my lungs. Now from just being stuffy and sore, I'm coughing too. Cali is growing and doing well...I need to kick this cold before she arrives, and get my kids on the same healthy track so our home can be happy and feeling groovy for her big debut.

This cold + pregnancy has put me into the dead among the living mode. The days Bryanna doesn't go to preschool, I sometimes stay in my pj's til I know Mark is coming home from work. Although I could stay (and some days do) locked up in the house all day, I get a little stir crazy and would LOVE to go shopping...that for some reason always brings sunshine to a rather dull day.

And talk about shopping, last friday I was going through my make-up drawer and found a $25 gift card to Kohl's and a $50 gift card to The Cheesecake Factory!!! Now its really game on!! It's like finding a $20 bill in your back pocket of some jeans you haven't worn in a while...jack pot!!

Thank goodness for crafts to keep the kids happy. They really are getting so big and I just can't believe how much older they have been behaving. I have tried to stay consistent with discipline, which help them know the limits and boundaries, although Bryanna likes to test them occasionally. Maddox just gives right in and is easier to coax.

cold

so I have this darn sore throat and its creeping up into my ears. I know, adults shouldn't get ear aches, but then explain why my ears hurt so much, along with my throat and my neck? Being sick totally stinks. Remind me to never get sick again. I'm hoping the antibiotic kicks in fast, it hasn't felt like its made a difference yet, so we'll see. I can't remember feeling so miserable before.

Any suggestions for kicking a cold fast?

deepest influence & 300th post!!

"Motherhood has its marvelous power-blended pain and joy-and the deepest influence in the world. That it brings joy no one can doubt sees the mutual love of mother and child. Perhaps its chief grace lies in the fact that it is a ministry in which there is blended purposeful self-sacrifice with the confident expression of love in its purest quality."
-The New York Times, May 10, 1929

That quote was on my little daily calendar over the weekend, and I have kept thinking about it. How eloquently put. I think about my own mom and all the wonderful things she has done for me in my life, being an amazing cheerleader, encouraging me to no end. Watching her sacrifice growing up, but at the time just thought that's how life was, and now older and realizing she worked her tail off for us.

I hope I can be the mom I had. She is still the sounding board of advice.

Here's to the 300th post and to a fabulous Valentine's Day, one of my favorite holidays. Ever.

Mark arranged the entire date, lasting 6 hours! It was all a mystery to me, and I was VERY curious as to exactly what we were doing. Mark is very predictable, which is one of my favorite things about him because I can count on him with his word. But he doesn't give any clues when he has something up his sleeve, and that's the part that I can't stand! Anyway...on to the date...

We first headed to get a massage. They call Mark back first. My massage therapist takes me back to the room and she stares at me. Then she asks, "Did you just have a baby?" I'm thinking she's kidding, and by the look on her face I can tell she's not. I reply, "No, I'm still pregnant." Then to clarify she says, "You are pregnant?"

I'm just getting it now, and hoping that my stomach doesn't naturally hang out this far after the baby comes.

Mark forgot to mention when he made our appointments that I'm pregnant and to schedule a licensed prenatal therapist. But, since he was already "in session" I didn't know what his appointment scheduling conversation was. It was a bit awkward having to tell the manager and all the receptionist that yes, indeed, I am pregnant, and explaining the obvious is such a ridiculous feeling. And that my husband better know I'm pregnant at this point and why wouldn't he say so when he called in. The licensed prenatal therapist was already booked for that hour and so I got to sit in the lobby while Mark got his massage. And it really wasn't so bad. I read a few articles in the Golf Digest magazine.

Lesson Learned: Always state the obvious. Even when you think they have your required OBGYN's approval note on file.

Mark felt terrible, as I was expecting he would. I actually wasn't too bummed out about not getting my massage and had to let him know not to feel so bad. I rescheduled for tonight anyway!

Mark and I get a babysitter for going to the temple and try not to get one "just because" we feel like seeing a movie or whatever. With the last year of re-adjusting our budget, we've spent a little less on babysitting and take the kids with us. If it were me, I'd love for Mark to take me out every weekend with out the kids.

This is why I love Valentine's Day. Mark makes it extra special and I totally relish in being pampered by him.

After Mark's massage (LOL!!), he took me out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory...which we haven't been in two years. It was delicious, but learned that they discontinued making my favorite cheesecake. Bummer, but not really. Any cheesecake they bake is darn good.

Then he took me to see the movie, Valentine's Day....which I HIGHLY recommend seeing. I was a little cautious thinking the movie might be a hit out of the ball park with so many huge movie stars in it, maybe they need all those movie stars because the plot is lacking...but it was NO disappointment. It was that high flying home run, over the fence hit!! Go see it, even if you have to take your kids with you to the theater!

And to top the night off, Mark took me to a favorite store to stock up on lotions that I was running low of. In fact, I really can't imagine living without these lotions, I got into the habit of lotioning down after I shower (Vegas is a desert) and so now it just seems like something I have to do, kind of like shampooing and conditioning your hair...same with the skin.

I have to say that I had a fabulous date, one of the best in a long time, even despite sitting in the lobby of the massage place. I LOVED going out and getting spoiled by my honey. It was a terrific weekend and I can't say thanks enough.

8 months

Here's to 8 months!! 33 weeks and just a few more to go!! Bryanna took my picture for me, and as you can see, she progressively got better!! She had lots of fun being the picture taker!!

I must say that I sleep much better (when I can finally settle in) at this stage in the pregnancy than I have with the other two. Maybe its because I'm trying to keep up with Bryanna and Maddox? Those kids have so much energy! I have been able to play tennis still, which I'm so grateful for. The first week of league was this past wednesday and I played with my sister. I have to write the score down just to remind myself in years to come, we won 6-1, 6-0. Yes, I'm a little proud of that, but only a pregnant lady would know that moving around chasing after a little yellow ball isn't the easiest of tasks!

32 weeks

oh my goodness...can I just say how uncomfortable I am....all the time? I can't sit still, I feel like a little kid who has ants in their pants, CONSTANTLY!! I remember how the end of all my pregnancies are just sooooooo uncomfortable, but I really did forget how extreme it is for me. The worst part of each day is the evening and into the night. I can hardly sit still even writing this post!!! I can feel every little itch all over my body, and to top it off, I'm running to the bathroom to empty my bladder every hour (sometimes on the half hour). Sheesh...I'm sure all this uncomfortableness makes it that much more pleasurable to be up every few hours with a new born through the night and live on little sleep...let's hope I do get more than 5 hours every night.

I have about 6-7 weeks left (6 weeks if my body decides its time and 7 weeks for inducement) and I am grateful the end is in sight. I feel like I still have a lot to get done before Cali gets here, so I hope I can pass the time wisely and check off my to-do list all in good time!!

Here's a little of what we've been up to...re-organizing the garage, AGAIN, but it always needs organizing for some darn reason!
Some wonderful friends in our ward recently moved out and let us have these amazing wall mounts for the baskets and bikes and the wood shelves. I wish I had before pictures so you could see the clutter improvement!! Boxes were stacked way too high for me to even attempt to find anything, only with Mark's big muscles to manuver things around for me!