Happy Halloween!

Wow I think this is the longest I have gone in between blog posts. Luckily life isn't too thrilling so there isn't much to catch up on. =)

Here is a belly shot from today after church. I'm 29.5 weeks along. I'm feeling great and baby is doing well.

I spent some time last week in Arizona and my sister and her baby came out from Ohio to meet me there. It was a great break from work. Arizona is still so hot. While I was there it was 104 degrees. Yikes. I love Utah in the fall. A few months of snow in the winter and I'll be wishing I were back in Arizona. It was a great visit.

Me and baby William

A couple nights ago our ward had a Halloween Party. It was a lot of fun. I dressed as a lady bug and Sean was my "Man Bug". Both our costumes were completely homemade and created about 2 hours before the party. We did our best with what we had in the house.

A cheesy "man bug" smile and our pumpkin cat.

The "man bug" cape. When I asked Sean if I could make him some wings for his costume he said, "Since I invented the man bug, I get to decide how it flies. This bug only flies with a cape, not some sissy wings." This is what we came up with from scratch fabric and a hankie.

Me and my good friend Jennifer, the nun. So cute.

I passed the pregnancy glucose screening test which I'm glad about. That orange drink was not too pleasant. I got three shots within one week--regular flu shot, H1N1 flu shot, and a rhogam shot. The rhogam was by far the worst. I'm grateful for modern medicine and technology to help keep us safe and healthy. I know so many people who have had the flu lately and I'm really trying to stay healthy.

Sleeping is getting more difficult because my arms go numb when I lay on my side all night and I've been having the craziest dreams lately. Wow, I can't believe it. I feel like I don't even get any sleep because the dreams are so active and wild and real. They say pregnancy hormones actually cause more dreams and help you remember them more when you're awake. I certainly agree. I'm doing great though. Life is good for us folks.

Happy Halloween to everyone!! Enjoy the holiday and eat lots of candy.

Recently

It's been a while since I posted anything. Sean is knee-deep in his last semester of undergraduate work. He's taking a huge load so he can be done in December rather than April. I'm still working full time and enjoying most of it. Patients have started to ask if I'm pregnant (yes they can tell even through our big green scrubs). It's weird when I have a triage patient whose due date is close to mine. Scary! I hope I don't need to go to the hospital for any reason anytime soon.

I can't fit into my regular pants and shorts anymore but most maternity stuff still seems kind of baggy. Maternity clothes are expensive. Goodness I don't like the idea of having to buy a whole new wardrobe. I've picked up a few clearance items here and there and will try to make things work as long as possible.

I've felt the baby move a lot now and it's so exciting. Sometimes I forget I'm pregnant (when there are no mirrors around and I'm busy) and then he'll give a big kick and I'll remember that I have a baby inside of me. It's fun. Sean has been able to feel him move a few times. Yesterday I was talking on the phone to my mom and baby was really active. I motioned for Sean to come near me and just watch my tummy. We could see from the outside the little bulges and kicks going on inside.

Remember that bad hair cut I got a few months ago? Well I finally went and had it fixed. I should have done it a long time ago but oh well. When I got there the lady could totally tell and said, "wow, the back really is longer than the front and she went a little crazy on the sides." It's evened up now and I think it'll be better.

Me at 24 weeks.
Me at 22 weeks.

This is the only pair of maternity shorts I own so I will probably be wearing them in every picture until winter comes and it's cool enough for pants. =) Sorry, no variety.

No crazy cravings yet. I do really enjoy fruit, especially red grapes. Yum. I could eat lots of them every day. I don't really think that's related to pregnancy though.

As far as names go, we're still trying to decide. We have a few in mind. It's hard to agree on names. We'll see when it gets closer to delivery time.

Here's What's Going on in Our Neck of the Woods

Here's a peak at what's been happening lately in our neck of the woods.

1. Our high school friend Dallin came to visit us for a few days.

Sean and Dallin had lots of fun hiking the Y.
We all went out to lunch once and while we were waiting for our table we found this quaint little area. We did not match on purpose and weren't planning a photo shoot but this is what we got. Bad lighting I know.

We went goofy golfing at sunset and the weather was perfect.

2. Sean and I celebrated our second anniversary!!!

It's been a wonderful two years and I look forward to many more. To celebrate we went to an adorable bed and breakfast up north. It was great to get away and relax.

3. We had a play date with our favorite family from Michigan. Mary and the boys were in town so we had a picnic and played at the park.

4. My birthday

Unfortunately I had to work a 12 hour shift on my birthday which was a bummer but I came home to a delicious dinner on the table. Then we opened presents, got free birthday ice cream at coldstone, rented a movie, and crashed on the couch. It was a good birthday.

Inside that large green box (in the last picture) was this present. Sean made me a beautiful wooden jewelry box!! He did all this without a garage or power tools and kept it all a secret from me in our tiny apartment. That's impressive. I love it Sean, thanks.

5. Our baby is growing well.

We had our official 20 week ultrasound and everything looks great. It's still a boy!! He's measuring a little small for my dates but not enough to switch the due date.

Me at 19 weeks. I feel bigger than I look.

Pure Michigan

Have you seen those commercials advertising the great lake state of Michigan? They want you to come and boost their economy and see what "pure Michigan" has to offer. Well about a month ago we did just that--although it was to visit family we haven't seen in 2 years, not to boost their economy. =)

We had a terrific time and did not want to leave. Here are some of the adventures we enjoyed.

1. Canoeing on the beautiful Huron River
2. Swimming lessons for two very excited boys, Caleb and Andrew

3. Adoring our beautiful nephew Aaron whom we had never met even though he is 1.5 years old

4. Walking the trails of the metro parks and seeing the scenery

5. Listening to the outdoor concert at the park on a cool Friday evening

6. Gardening in the backyard

7. Good old-fashioned family time (Mary, Aaron, Matt, Caleb, & Andrew)

Thanks Matt and Mary for such a great trip. It was wonderful to see you guys after a long 2 years. (The last time we saw them was at our wedding.) Michigan is so beautiful, at least in the summer.

Today was a good day

We woke up, got ready, and were at our ultrasound appointment by 8am. The ultrasonographer checked out our little baby from head to toe and things seem to be looking great. We heard that beautiful little heart beating away and saw our babe sucking it's thumb. Baby was kicking and moving all over but I can't feel a thing. Maybe in the next few weeks I'll be able to tell when the baby moves. We are so grateful things are looking good and our little peanut is growing well. The tech asked us if we'd like to find out the gender and I quickly said, "yes, please." Baby wasn't cooperating at first and the position made it a little hard.

Finally we saw one leg, then another leg, and a bum. Well folks, it's a boy!! We're thrilled, especially Sean. =) I love knowing what's inside me. It makes me feel like I can bond so much more with our child. I can talk to him and refer to him as "my son". I love it.

Here's me at 17 weeks.

Just kidding. Here's me at 16 weeks with a playground ball stuffed under my shirt.

Here's me at 17 weeks. Not nearly as exciting as the last picture. =)

I always liked seeing "belly pictures" of other gals throughout their pregnancies and wondered why people didn't post more of them. Now I realize why. You feel kind of stupid showing the world how your clothes are fitting tighter, your tummy is getting rounder, and the numbers on the scale are increasing. Oh well, years from now I'll probably be glad for the silly "belly pics" right?

A boy or a girl?

We have our premonitions but what do you think? Is our baby a boy or a girl? We have an appointment on Tuesday, July 28th to find out the gender of our little bundle of joy. We're so excited and will be happy either way. I don't know how people can be patient enough to have it be a surprise at delivery. That amazes me. I guess I'm not very patient or not into surprises very much. As long as baby cooperates, we're finding out the gender.

Ohio!

Since Sean has been gone for an internship, I decided to make good use of my time and travel. I flew to Ohio to visit my sister and her family. It was so terrific to see everyone and meet my beautiful new nephew William. We went hiking, had picnics, visited a museum, played at parks, shopped, and had a blast.

The two Elizabeths posing for a pic before begining our hike down to the river.

Laura, baby William, and me down at the bottom of the canyon. At only 3 weeks old, William loves nature and didn't make a peep the whole time we hiked. =)

These kids make me laugh so much. Dallin and Elizabeth playing shoe dress up from mom's closet. The thigh-high boots look great with just a swimsuit don't you think?

Adoring my beautiful nephew William David

I could just hold him all day long.

It was hard to say goodbye to these faces. I was sad to leave them for sure. When I left, Elizabeth said, "I don't want you to go. You're my best friend." Then that night (after I was gone) she said she prayed that I would come back to their house. How sweet. It was a terrific visit and I can't wait to see them again, whenever that may be.