Welcome 2011!

2011 New Years Resolutions

Go to bed each night with my house completely clean

Do laundry once a week

Grocery shopping once a week

Be done with EVERYTHING baby related, by Feb 18

lose all baby weight+10 lbs by June 31 (or depending on when Henry comes)

Work out once a day(this is totally do-able people)

Start regular Family Home Evening

Be better at Visiting Teaching

This year it is kind of tricky to do new years resolutions, because I have NO idea what next year will be like with a baby coming. So I stuck with realistic ones. I did very well with my resolutions last year, and the year before, so I am pretty confident going into it this new year.

It is AMAZING to me to think about all the different things 2010 had.

Getting down to my perfect size and buying a new wardrobe

moving into our first home

Our first Kitten, Reesie

Becoming a Certified Personal Trainer

Becoming pregnant

Going to work as a Personal Trainer

Getting our second kitten, Cuddy

My car accident

Awesome dinner party with awesome friends

2nd Anniversary

Finding out our baby is a boy

OCD cleaning of the house

First baby shower

And of course, the holidays

Next year is sure to bring a lot of change, and happiness because of course, we are just waitin on this little guy to arrive. :)

(26 weeks)

Happy New Years everyone!

oh how I love him even more

Jason, you continually give me reasons to add to this list

Jason I loved you because-

because you kiss me like you mean it.

because you always find ways to make me feel special.

you never get tired of my need for your attention.

you are always proud to be seen with me.

you keep all my secrets.

when I am irritable, you are always forgiving.

you know what I meant to say, even if I didn't say it.

when I want to talk, you listen.

when I don't want to talk, you're patient.

it is important to you, that I am happy.

you give yourself to me.

you are just as crazy about me as I am about you.

you have never looked back at what came before me.

you kiss me when you think I am sleeping.

when I reach for you, you move closer.

you show me grace at every turn.

you help me to understand myself.

you try to seduce me when you think no one is watching.

you see the best in me.

I feel safe with you.

you have never asked me to prove myself.

you find me irresistible.

you know how to say difficult things without hurting me.

you chase me around the house.

you support me as I keep changing my mind about when to start a family.

when you realize I am cold, you always find some way to warm me up.

you try to sing all the words to our song.

you are proud of my accomplishments.

Without you, my life would be less than what it has become.

Jason I love you MORE now because-

You let me sleep with the ceiling fan on

you scratch my back almost every night

you know ALL my favorite things

you fit in with my family

you are just like my dad

you understand how my mind works, even when I don't

you know just how to look at me to make me smile

your patient when I am emotional

your relentless support for me eating healthy

the silly things that make you laugh

you never tell me no

you try everything I cook, even if it smells bad

you are so good with our Sunbeams, you'll be the best dad

you put up with my crazy need to plan things that are 20 years away

you work so hard to make sure I am happy

no matter how fat I feel, you make me feel pretty

you think its funny when Henry annoys me

there is nothing you wouldn't give me

Merry Christmas. :)

I am too focused on cleaning right now to blog about Christmas, I am sure one day I will get around to it, but I do want to quickly blog about one of my favorite gifts I got.

This little guy, I call him Steve, is my new irobot Roomba vacuum.

I will admit, before Steve came along I was a skeptic about this little device, I thought there was no way it would do a good enough job to make it worth it.

I was wrong.

Steve starts in the middle of the floor, goes in circles until it detects a wall, then it goes along the walls to clean the corners, baseboards etc, then it spends about 20 mins just going all over the place vacuuming. If it detects more dirt in one area, it spends more time there. The proof is in the pudding, my floors are beautiful, and when I empty Steve there is a bunch of junk in there.

My favorite part about Steve is that he works on tile. NO MORE SWEEPING! Obviously since I am OCD I will occasionally get out the old fashion broom and just do a deep sweep, but Steve can handle the rest.

I love Steve.

PERFECTION!!

This picture is perfection, as much as I hate it.

I am quite fond of this hideous picture, because it depicts exactly how I feel. I used to love getting my picture taken, I was somewhat of a ham, but now I just before to be behind the lens, rather than document what I call my uglyness. Jason respectfully disagrees with me, but he has to.

So in case I have failed over my million blog posts to appropriately convey to you the feelings I have about my appearance, this picture says it all.

on a plus positive note, I have noticed that the more active I am, whether it be working out, cleaning, shopping etc, the better I feel about myself. I have been cautious with activity ever since bedrest, but I have also been more disgusted with myself since then. So I am going to be as active as I can be.

On ANOTHER positive note, the day I decided to be more active and move all day long, I lost 3 lbs! I know you aren't supposed to try and lose weight while pregnant, but its ok as long as that weight is fat, and not baby stuff. Which I am 110% positive it was not baby stuff. ;)

***disclosure***

I am a pretty positive person, in person. :) My blog is grounds for my venting and frustrations. So don't think I mope around all day saying wo is me I am fat, I only do that to my husband. ;)

The REAL truth about pregnancy.

I really should change the name of this blog to Kati's Pregnancy blog. Lets just pretend until April that I have.

and be glad, cause I am sure once Henry gets here I will drop off the face of the earth for a month or so.

Lets talk about my current pregnancy frustration.

I am pregnant 24/7.

Sounds Duh right?

but really, I never thought about it before I got pregnant, and wasnt frustrated with it until recently, but seriously. I am ALWAYS pregnant. At first its fine, you've only been pregnant for 5-10 weeks, so you figure you will just power through it. sure. You get to 15 weeks and the REAL symptoms begin. Sure, people tell you about the nausea, peeing, and tiredness, but those aren't the real ones. Not to me anyway. I would much rather deal with those. Lets go through the real ones. and I will tell you the truth, the REAL truth.

Hormones- You wouldn't think this could affect you so much, or at least so harshly. Sure, you've had a period, you know what its like to be moody, but not on this scale. I find myself in the middle of the kitchen tonight bawling my eyes out, because my husband went to go help someone move. what?! Yes. Then after you finish crying, you sit there and wonder how crazy you much be that you were crying in the first place. It plays with your mind.

The waddle- There is no such thing as gracefully walking when you've got the waddle. I thought the waddle comes when your huge, but little did I know it just comes with your joints have loosened, which for me happened early. And to add to it, because you have this human weighing down on your legs, your strides aren't as long. So you take short, waddled steps. If you need to go faster, to keep up with hubby, you gotta waddle faster, looking like a penguin. Graceful.

Sciatic nerve- Not all women suffer from this, but I think a good percent do. If you don't know what a sciatic nerve is, or how it affects you during pregnancy, just google it. I have a friend who's SN(Sciatic Nerve) is really bad during pregnancy, and she used to tell me all about it. The only thing I could think while she was talking was I hope to heavens I don't have issues with it. Thanks to the car accident, I do. I can't do long grocery trips, or mall outings, because if I am on my feet walking for longer than 20 mins, my left leg goes numb, tingles, is freezing, and starts cramping. Then I waddle, and limp. :/

Nipples- Yep. Obviously they go through changes, and you can never imagine what it will be like, even if one describes it to you. So I won't try and describe the change, I will just warn you of the fall out. Whatever is happening to your nipples, the effect the frigid cold has on them is deadly. The first time it got really cold here, and I went outside, I really thought someone was stabbing them with a knife, or rubbing sandpaper on them. Stock up on Lanolin Oil, it has saved my life.

Leg Cramps- Sounds simple. Sounds easy to deal with, just rub it out! No. I wish it were so. I don't know if leg cramps are tied to my SN, but I don't think so since a lot of pregos get them. It would be a whole different story if I got said leg cramps during the day, but when it comes at 3:42 am, and is so shooting painful that it sends you straight out of bed thinking someone has just stabbed your leg, its awful. Its pure torture. The only thing going through your mind is looking at your sleeping husband wanting to smack him in the face with a pillow for peacefully laying there.

The husband- Yes, I said it, the husband. Obviously unless your husband is a jerk, he has done nothing wrong, but its just so frustrating that he has no idea what it is like. What it is like to be pregnant 24/7. You don't get a break, you can't just take off the belly for 15 mins, eat sushi and take a hot bath, and it certainly doesn't just end all symptoms once you go to bed at night. There is no way for him to know what its like, and its certainly not his fault and he is doing everything he can to make it better for you, but emotionally its very taxing that you can't convey or have him experience your pregnant frustrations.

The bathroom visits- Let me just tell you, I won't go into too much detail, but peeing is not the only pregnancy bathroom issue. Number 2 is just as bad, probably worse. If you would like the nitty details about the day I will always remember regarding this, let me know and I will send you a link to where its at, otherwise, just wait. You will see.

Sex- Yes, I am talking about making love, ladies. If you are a lucky one like me, your sex drive goes into total overdrive and you can't get enough of it. Whats wrong with that?! I WILL TELL YOU!!! It, for me at least, is painful after, at this point in my pregnancy. Along with that, your uterus contracts and is rock hard after, sending you into paranoia about how your little one is doing.

Braxton Hicks Contractions- These aren't as bad as everyone made them out to be, but they are very inconvenient. Whenever you, I, have one I have to stop what I am doing and bend over. Its hard to explain what these feel like, but for me I just get this crampy airy uncomfortableness that will only go away after a few minutes of bending over.

So if you are in the store longer that 20 mins and you get one, you are now a bent over, waddling, limping, graceful looking idiot.

:)

But they tell me it will all be worth it in the end.

(On a positive side note, I do love my little bugger. His kicks are becoming more and more enjoyable as I connect to the idea that he is my cute little baby in there. I certainly can not wait to meet him.)

I knew I forgot something

I keep feeling like there is something I am forgetting to blog and there is!

Its on the pregnancy front so if your tired of it, ignore.

There has been some development in the delivery day details. Its a little early to be talking about that, but my Dr. wanted me to know about a possible complication. I haven an anterior placenta.

See here:

So, basically the placenta is supposed to form behind the baby, in between your insides and baby. Mine is growing in front of baby, on the outside of my stomach. There is nothing wrong with this during pregnancy, the only complication comes during delivery. It is possible with anterior placentas that the placenta could fall to the bottom, closing off the cervix and birth canal. If that does happen, it will mean I can't deliver vaginally, and will need a C-Section. We won't know until delivery if it has fallen, and he did say it is possible for it to move to the correct position, but that its not something to worry about. I just don't want the 6 weeks recovery that comes with a C-Section. :( That will break my heart. so cross your fingers for me!

26th week of pregnancy.

Pregnancy stats:

weeks pregnant: 25

number of times going to bathroom at night: 3

average length of daily naps: 2 hours

bra size changes: 2

emotional break downs about being fat: 5

trips to Taco Bell for soft tacos: 6

Some new weird little bits of info for those who are curious.

Sleeping at night has become somewhat of a frustrated laugh riot for me. I am turner, I toss and turn during my sleep, and I think its just because I like, not because of mattress problems. I turn probably 5-10 times a night. When you have a soccer ball attached to your stomach, weighing you down, it is not so easy to turn. Its quite difficult, I have to wake up, hoist myself up, pull myself around, then reposition myself on the other side, and then fall back to sleep.

The other night frustration, is the constant potty breaks. I have NEVER in my adult life had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. I have always either been able to hold it til morning, or just not needed to go. I have to pee about twice a night now. usually around 2 am, and 4 am, which baffles me because I drink nothing in between the two times! When you're pregnant, you can only hold it for so long before it becomes uncomfortable to the point of painful, and it wakes you up at night.

I have no idea how much I've gained, and I don't want to know. I close my eyes at the Dr, and have put away the scales in my house. My Dr. hasn't mentioned it, and until he does I am going to try not to worry about it. I know I am gaining weight, or at least inches which is the worst part for me. My hips are wider and that makes me sad. :( I still can't get my mind to make the connection, but I did decide today, that if I lose the weight and get back in shape after Henry is born, I think the next pregnancy I won't be so worried about it. I am just paranoid I will be one of those moms who make excuses, and 2 years later still have their "baby weight."

Being 6, almost 7 months pregnant, I ALWAYS feel full. I just don't feel like there is any room for food, liquids, etc. So eating is bittersweet, because although foods may taste good, its like when you've eaten too much, and you just keep eating. And along the lines of food, I have always loved milk, but I just can not get enough milk right now. It just tastes sooo good. lol

I'm pretty much in the third trimester. Opinions vary so differently on what week the third trimester begins, but getting into the third trimester is not as exciting as getting into the second was, so I don't really care when the technical time starts.

Speaking of the first trimester, the tiredness I experienced during weeks 8-11, is back. I nap twice a day. I wake up with Jason around 645, then go back to sleep at 8, til he calls around 10-10:30, then I nap again from 1ish-3. And I am still tired by the time its bedtime! I really don't know how women work full time while being pregnant, I would be sooo cranky all the time. This is another reason I am grateful for my husband. :)

When/if you are pregnant, DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT look at pictures of yourself before you were pregnant. I promise you, it will just depress you. You think its a good idea, cause it will make you feel better about what you used to look like and you know you can do it again, but until there isn't a baby inside you, its pointless. Look at those pictures the week you give birth. :)

OH MY GOODNESS! K, please tell me I am not alone in this. My boobs have grown, again, and the back fat look in the back called for a new bra. so I go bra shopping, to only 2 different places mind you but many different brands. This irritates me to no end, you find the cup size you need, but the bust size is one size too small, so you go up one size in the bust size, SAME CUP size, but yet all of a sudden the cup size is too big! This was my problem the entire time, I didn't think it was possible to be in between bra sizes, but I must be because I left both store empty-handed(well not really, I bought a lot of baby clothes, but no bras). I just can't win.

Broken Record

I am sorry, I know I have talked about this before, but its what is on my mind, all the time. And I would like to know if I am alone in this.

I feel fat.

I know, I know, I am pregnant, there is a baby in there, "its beautiful", yada yada.

Trust me, I have heard it all, and I KNOW IT ALL!

I just can not for the life of me, get my mind to make the connection when I look in the mirror.

I don't see a baby bump, I see a beer belly.

Its really messing me up I think. Everyone said just wait until you pop and then you will feel pregnant instead of fat, and I have popped, and they lied. LIARS!! ;)

Maybe I haven't "connected" to my pregnancy in the way that gives you that feeling, or maybe with my weight history I will just never be able to pack on pounds and be ok with it, whatever the reason, its a problem.

The only comfort I take from it, is knowing that there is no way after the baby is born that I will not be in the gym as fast as possible.

The EXTREMELY annoying this is, when I talk to other moms about this, and I tell them the only comfort I have is knowing I will go back to the gym, they have the nerve to tell me that when the baby comes I won't want to go to the gym! ?! Excuse me? Here I am telling you how miserable being fat makes me and there is one thing that makes me feel better and you have the nerve to try and tell me it won't happen? Have you met me? I am sorry, I love my child, I adore him already, but I know that in order for me to be the best mom, I need to be the best me, which means I need to feel good about myself. My husband is 110% supportive of me getting right back in the gym, this is my moms first grandchild so she will be oober obsessed with babysitting, plus you can workout, eat healthy and get in shape with your child there! Its not like I plan on abandoning my child for 6 hours a day to work out, but I have no issues with taking time for myself. Try and tell me different and you will not be on my Christmas list. :D

(Don't you just hate it when you are talking to someone about your thoughts and opinions and the only thing they wanna do is tell you why you're wrong cause "they've been there"?)

oopsies

It occurred to me I never posted Henry's recent ultrasound! GASP!

Well this isn't his most recent, and I think everyone that reads my blog is on my Facebook so its probably nothing new, but here is our little guy 1 month ago up close:

I just loooove this picture of him. I love seeing his little profile and his little button nose already. Everytime I went for an ultrasound, this was the image I would hope for. So I am glad I finally got it. :)

In utero, he looks something like this:

Except I can tell you that he is breach. He was breach at my last appointment, and he had not moved much cause his kicks were still in the lower region. I think maybe he has moved now, but I won't bore you with the reasons why I think that. ;)

And this is what Henry looks like from the outside:

I think my bump is funny shaped, but oh well.

nothing new to report, just trucking along. 14 weeks left. holy cow all of a sudden that doesn't seem like a lot.

Jason has felt him kick.

I have come to terms, sort of, with the weight gain.

the nursery is 50% complete, the goal is 100% by January 31.

at my shower I got diapers, and its so weird to have diapers in the house.

On that topic, I got a lot of baby stuff at the shower that when I went to go put away, I started panicking cause I don't know where they go!!! Like bibs, obviously we need bibs, but clearly they have to go in the kitchen, and I don't have a bib drawer! I started freaking out realizing I was going to need to re-organize my kitchen cupboards.

14 weeks....

Baby Shower #1

My sweet friend Kourtney hosted my first baby shower. She lives in lehi, so we had the shower at my house and I had so much fun with everyone. This shower was with all of my friends and I just love getting them all together in one place and letting them get to know each other. my friends really are awesome.

Would you believe I didn't get any pictures after guests arrived? I was kind of shocked when I realized that after everyone left.

She had an amazing spread of treats, fun games, and a cute baby onesie making station.

My friends know me so well and made sure Henry will be dressed in style and not animals. ;)

And I love all the onesies that each of my guests made for me, I wish I knew who made which!

Here are some pre-guests pictures of the loveliness that she created.

It was perfect, thank you Kourtney!

I still have a few more showers to go, but those won't be til next year. A good friend of mine is moving to California in January so I wanted to have this shower earlier. :)

Feeling ready.

So far in this pregnancy I haven't felt ready for baby to come yet. I just haven't felt like I was completely prepared, and not that you ever can be, but as much as I could be.

I now feel ready for him to come.

I don't have everything figured out.

His nursery isn't done.

the house isn't baby proofed.

I have no idea what diapers to buy.

I don't know how I will even touch the umbilical cord belly button. (gross)

I am scared spitless of bathing him.

I haven't finished reading all my books.

But I feel ready.

I feel comforted in knowing what my role will be, and I feel a sense of confidence in knowing that I will know what to do, or who to turn to if I don't. I can't explain it, although I am sure all you mothers out there know the feeling, I just feel an overwhelming peace about it.

I have about 15 weeks left until he comes. (cause he better come early) ;).

Its funny how full circle pregnancy goes. In the beginning I could not wait to get in the double digit weeks, and now I can't wait to get into the single digits for weeks left.

Pregnancy for the last month at least has been easy, aside from having some sort of cold bug, and the ever annoying back problems that is. I don't feel tired, sick, etc.

gratitude

Funny thing about the holidays. I know Thanksgiving is the time to be grateful and what not, but I seem to be filled with more gratitude during the Christmas season. Maybe its because of all the worldly hype going on, and seeing how little or hard others have it. So allow me to post a sappy post all about the things I am grateful for.

I am so grateful for my husband. I believe everyones spouse is the best spouse, for that person. Jason is no doubt the man that was meant for me, in every way. There is not a single minute I am with him that I am tired of him, or would rather be alone. He does sooo much for me, and does it naturally. I am grateful for how hard Jason has worked, literally since he was in Jr. High, to provide a nice lifestyle for his family. He got the best grades in jr, high, and high school, to get into the best college in the state, got the best grades there, to get the best job anyone can have. I am so lucky to have him. He knows exactly how to make me laugh, and knows exactly when I need it. Its so wonderful how our completely different personalities just work together, and compliment each other. He makes me a better person.

I am ever so grateful for my family. Growing up I gave my family a really hard time. I was a wild child, and a rebellious teen, but yet my family has been so amazing to me. They have truly become my best friends. My sisters are so amazing, and really my role models. My older sister and I have always had our differences, but with her being pregnant now, I think its going to help us bond and get closer. And my parents, words can not express the gratitude I have for my parents. They are so amazing, wonderful, inspiring and everything else. I honestly can say I do not know where I would be were it not for the support of my parents.

I love my house. I am so grateful for the house we have, and that we can afford to live in a house we want, in an area we want, without it being stressful on us. I am grateful that we can make it our home, a place where our children will grow up some and remember fondly.

I have so much appreciation for my body. Its been a challenge, this pregnancy, but through it I have learned to listen deeper to my body, and to appreciate its ability to create life. Sure, Jason's swimmers played a part in the initial creation, but it is MY body that is creating this life, this person, and I am truly grateful for the ability to do it. I will never take it for granted.

I LOVE MY FRIENDS!! I love all of my friends, and I love the way we came to be friends. I love the old friends, and the new friends. I love that there were people in high school who I just knew of, that have now become sweet dear friends via Facebook or Blogs. I love it. I love that I have so many people that I can talk to about different things, and so many that are so thoughtful and caring. Seriously, thank you to all my friends, and if your reading this, it means you. :)

I oh so looove my calling. Its not the most fun sometimes, and its annoying that I have to be there every sunday or get a sub(which is impossible), but it is so worth it when I get to be with my Sunbeams and hear the adorable things they say. When we got the calling we told the bishop we didn't think there was anything we could learn from it, cause come on, its Sunbeams, but boy were we wrong. We may not learn deep doctrine, or living the gospel, but the things the kids teach are things we could only learn in Sunbeams. We get a new batch of Sunbeams in January, and I am super sad. I hope the current kids will always say hi to me. :)

I am grateful for the gospel, and all it has done in my life. It is so forgiving, and so comforting, that I really don't know how people can fall away from it for too long. I love my Savior, and hope I make him proud.

I am eternally grateful for my child. He already has such personality, and I love being apart of this process. Being a newlywed a woman becomes baby hungry, but let me tell you, I can not wait for the toddler stage. Jason and I are both just so excited to get this little person out and start interacting with him and becoming a family. I hope he always knows how much we love him.

Am I normal?

I am nervous.

to be a mom.

I explained this to my husband on our anniversary, but those feelings still linger.

The details:

Growing up LDS I knew from early on that I was meant to be a mom, I knew I wanted to be a mom. It wasn't until I got married that I realized what being a mom meant. I realized its a job. Not only is it a job, it is the most important job I will ever do in my life. Its a little perplexing that the most important job there is, does not have more training! I feel so unprepared. I know how much I learned, researched, studied and was trained to be able to be a Personal Trainer, and how important is that?! Yet to be a mom, anyone can do it, its encouraged, its popular, yet I feel like I am being thrown into an ocean of other moms who know what they are doing, and are expecting me to keep up the pace. Its so nerve wracking to me. Sometimes I wonder if I take being a parent too seriously, but its not that I am taking it too seriously in a overbearing sort of way, like not letting my kids play outside or things like that, its more the pressure I am putting on myself to perform and be the mom I know I can be, and want to be. Did anyone else feel this way before their first baby, or am I just too hard on myself?

The other obstacle I face, besides myself, is my husband. Obviously that needs explaining. For me, I approach parenthood with the idea of what I want my children and my family to be like in 20 years, and I go back from there. Jason on the other hand takes the approach of we will deal with things as they come up. I think both are suitable ways of handling things, its just hard for my OCD-must-plan-things-out mind to not plan things out more. Of course I know you can't plan everything, things will change, different kids have different needs, but I feel a blue print is necessary.

So I ask you, is this normal?

boring update.

so I am little pissed and frustrated. Nice way to start a post don't you think?

Here is my reasoning.

I am healthy 90% of the time. I eat well, I exercise, and I enjoy a daily treat. I do pilates. I stretch. I take care of myself, more than I think most women do.

I am pissed because despite all of that, the car accident has made this pregnancy that much harder. I am convinced if it wasn't for the blasted car accident, my back wouldn't hurt yet, my buldging disc wouldn't have herniated causing insane numbness and pain in my leg, and my SI Joint would not be injured causing that much more pain.

So its frustrating, that I can take such good care of myself, IN PREPERATION for pregnancy, and yet it is useless. It makes me think I should have just milked it like a lot of other woman and just sat lazily by getting fat and depressed. I mean, that would have been easier.

Really I shouldn't complain. In the spectrum of pregnancies it hasn't been that bad. I haven't thrown up, I am not huge, my face hasn't gotten fat, and I don't milk the craving thing.

But recently, its gotten to the uncomfortable stage. It feels weird to bend over for something, or tie my shoe, it takes way more effort to get up from the couch or bed, and my belly is not submerged at all during bath time. Which is weird because my center of gravity hasn't shifted all that much, yes I have a bump/belly, but I can still see my toes, and it doesn't stick out that far, but yet my balance is all sorts of off.

Baby bump/belly thus far:

23 weeks

Its weird to think that technically my baby could be born right now, and survive. Obviously that is not ideal, and I am sure he would have a lot of issues, but its still weird to think. There are 17 weeks left in this little journey of mine, and I CAN NOT wait for it to be over, but at the same time I can, because I don't feel ready for a baby quite yet, but I feel so ready to be done being pregnant. ya know?!

I have to brag for a minute. A while ago I asked my hubby if I could have a certain amount of money after I lost the baby weight to buy a new wardrobe, and yesterday he told me he has decided to over DOUBLE that budget for me! He said he thinks I deserve it since this pregnancy has been so painful with the car accident problems. :) What a freaking sweetie I have.

Pregnancy Tidbits:

Its hilarious to me how much my belly shrinks after I go pee.

baby is SO active at night when I am trying to sleep. luckily I have learned to ignore him.

If I stretch really far, I can feel him being squished.

I looove my one pair of maternity jeans. the only pair I have found that I love.

the hormones are crazy. 1 minute I am happy, and the next I feel totally depressed.

I love wearing skirts and heels. looove it.

his movement and kicks still feel like heartbeats.

I have a nice collection of maternity tops, that i love.

I looove fresh food. tomatoes, fruits, etc. I love it. gives me so much energy.

Christmas is coming up so much faster, when its not what my countdown is for.

There is a human residing in me. That is still SO weird.

Well I thought I would give you another pregnancy picture since bedrest seemed to make me pop.

22 weeks:

Last week when I did some spring cleaning in the closets, I came across some books that I had totally forgotten I had, but really liked. So I have started reading them again, and I thought I'd share with you why I like them.

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work.

I grabbed this book because a blog friend of mine recommended it, and I have loved it. I dislike reading books that are stories, I like the self help books because I would rather get something productive out of reading rather than a story. This book is pretty awesome. I got this book not because we needed marriage help, but because I wanted to know every little thing I could be doing to make our marriage even better. This book talks about the different ways people solve problems, communicate, and it gives you ways to correct bad form. I recommend it for people who need marriage help, but also people who were like me and just wanted to make it that much better.

15 Secrets to Happy Home

OMG, this is by far my all time favorite improve your life book. If you only read one self help type book, please let it be this one. I picked this book up after just browsing around in Deseret Book for an hour and it caught my eye. I really hate the title of this book, because although these secrets do make your home happy, this book is way more about making YOU a happy you. Ever since reading this book I have learned and applied so many principles and ideas that have helped me deal with immature relatives, rude co-workers, negative friends etc. I admit I used to somewhat of an angry person in general, and ever since reading this book I have learned how to naturally be happy every single day. This book truly helps you gain a new sense of contentment and happiness. It helps you cope with situations you can't control, and to really make the best of every situation. I really can't say enough good things about this book. It was written by an LDS author, but its not an LDSie book for those of you who aren't members. Also I love it because its an easy read type book, its the bigger font which is just easier to read lets face it. I even keep this book in my scriptures and on Sundays during Sacrament Meeting when I am bored, lol, I read it. GET IT.

Change It Up

This book is along the same type of book as the previous, its just a bit more personal with the author. She tells a lot of her own examples, but the basis of the book is learning to deal with change, any kind of change. Because change in life is what upsets us, death, losing jobs, divorce, moving, etc. Change is going to happen, so you might as well learn to cope and make the most of it. I like, its not as applicable as the previous book, but it definitely has a lot of good points, thought provoking messages, and points out flaws you might not know you have.

Babywise

I haven't finished this book yet, I just like it so far. lol. I have already done a post on this book, so go here if you want to know my thoughts.

I have actually gotten more into reading now that I am expecting, because I want to get as much knowledge as possible. I have a second cousin, who married an awesome lady, and together they adopted the CUTEST baby girl, their blog is here, and she has just done such an amazing job with Hazel that I wanted to know her secrets. So I asked her what her favorite books were and now I have a new list of books to buy and read! They are:

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child

Secrets of the Baby Whisperer (& for toddlers)

I need to go out and get them, but I want to at least finish Babywise first.

I don't intend on birthing my son, and then just winging it from there. I think that will be disastrous. I think you should learn everything you can, before the baby comes, and have a plan to execute when they arrive. I realize things change, things may not work and you have to tweak things, but its better than just bringing baby home from the hospital and being like"ok now what?" I just refuse to do that. I think thats when the first child becomes the practice child, and I won't do that. I say do it right the first time. Take the time, read, learn, ask around, observe, talk about it, and know how you want to parent from the beginning. I especially think you and your spouse should be on the same page before baby arrives, because once you meet baby, and you fall in love with their personality, your judgement might get clouded and you just wanna do whatever to make baby smile or laugh, which may not be whats best for their long term development. ya know?

Bedrest is no fun

This weekend I was put on bedrest.

heres the story.

So last Sunday I woke up feelin a little under the weather. We stayed home from church, I ate soup, and by tuesday felt a lot better. If you will remember from my last post, I did a lot of ''spring cleaning" last week. I didn't feel like I was over exhorting myself but I guess I was. On Friday night while Jason was at the Jazz game I started bleeding. It was dark blood that I had never seen before. I called the on-call Dr who explained that being sick makes your muscles weaker, and when your uterus muscles are weakened, the lining of the sac can tear away. So he said I probably tore my sac a little, but because there was no more bleeding, or cramping that went along with it, he didn't think there was anything to worry about, but that I should be on bedrest for the weekend.

And let me tell you, Jason took this bedrest seriously.

Bedrest is not fun, and I was always worried that I might have to do it at one point or another. It makes me feel lazy, gross, dependent and useless. Jason has been wonderful through it, making all my meals, getting me what I wanted, and getting mad at me when I get up. For Jason to make my meals, that he has no idea how to make and no interest in eating, is big. lol.

So with the pregnancy, the bleeding stopped soon after it started, there were no cramps, no weird pains and at this very moment I can still feel little Henry. In fact I just felt a really strong kick, strongest yet. :) So everything is looking really good, I don't think there is anything to worry about.

Here is my 21 week prego picture for your entertainment.

I love my little bump, even if I am not as big as everyone else is or was, I still feel hugely pregnant.

Prego facts

I can now feel Henry almost all day. a lot in the morning and a lot at night.

I still pee constantly.

no food "Cravings" or weird urges.

I am SUPER excited for my first baby shower, because its one with all my friends and I can't wait to see and talk to them all. I especially can't wait to get a picture with all my friends that are pregnant with me, which I think is like 6 now. I just can't wait to get all their advice and opinions about birth and babylife.

I looove my baths. I always have, but I just love them more now.

I am actually enjoying being patient for him to arrive. I know it sounds weird but I just don't feel ready for him to come yet. I feel like there are still things I need to learn or realize before he gets here, and I am glad I have 3-4 months still to do that.

So yeah. There we go. Theres an update for ya. I am off bedrest tomorrow, but I am sure my husband will require that I still take it easy, but tomorrow I plan on having a meeting with the baseboards in my house.

Cause man are they in trouble.

letting nesting take over

I am an organized nut freak.

Although for some reason the last 11 months I have not been as organized as I would like. When you live in an apartment, there isn't much room for organizing, you kind of just have to cram things where they will go. When we moved into the house it seems we took that mentality with us. Also I have noticed, that we(I) have a few staple rooms in the house that constantly get cleaned. They are: 2 living rooms, the kitchen, the bedroom, and the 2 bathrooms. The rest of the house gets neglected because we never use those rooms, but yet we still stuff things in them. I was going to wait until the third trimester to get all this stuff done, then I got overwhelmed with the ever so growing list of things I want to accomplish third trimester. So today you see, I decided to get on top of that issue. I wrote a list, because I oh so love lists and checking things off, then bright and early I got to work.

The first I decided to tackle was the closets.

This is the top of the hallway closet. And in it was all my purses, random crafts stuff, books, a box with misc items, towels, sheets, games, office stuff, binders and more. This is one of those places in our house where you just know something you want is in there, you just don't know where.

45 mins later you have this:

Then I moved to the coat closet by the door. This housed our 72 hour kits, the stroller, the carseat holder, random craft stuff, coats, mop, broom, frames, flowers, and more. This is the place on our house that is a quick place to shove things.

45 mins later we have this:

The vacuum may also live here, but I can't decide. for now my cats enjoy a hazard free closet floor.

Then, after an afternoon nap, and lunch, I tackled the second biggest project of the house. The first biggest is the downstairs, and you will see what I am talking about when I do that, but for now, THE GARAGE.

Before:

Now, this picture was taken completely before, I hadn't started even a little, so that huge mound of crap in the middle is true. When Jason and I clean out our cars, it all goes to the middle right there. There were shoes, my favorite skirt that I have been searching for, bags of new stuff, socks, random craft stuff(noticing a trend with the craft stuff?), trash etc. To the left side there are tons of soda boxes that were empty!! I had no idea they were empty! my hubby is gonna get it. I mean, its not insanely bad, I have certainly seen worse, but there was no organization and it was messy. So a lot of throwing away, organizing, and sweeping occurred,

and this was my pretty after picture:

Seriously isn't it so pretty now? I mean, as pretty as a garage can get. This actually isn't the most accurate after picture for 2 reasons. 1. the boxes of stuff by the door are not staying, they are full of stuff that need to go inside, but I can't really lift them being prego so I will wait for Jason to do that. 2. I put up a bunch of Jason's Jazz stuff on the back wall so it felt more like his own man cave lol.

Another thing I did for him in the garage, Jason has acquired a lot of tools, but they are sets that have their own containers with the rights shapes and stuff, you know the kind right? Well his also has a lot of misc tools that have no where to go so I went to the store and bought him a real tool box. Its big. :)

Anyway. This is day 1 of this project. I still have to do:

Basement

Nursery

Office

Kitchen drawers

Bathrooms(a real good scrub down)

Backyard

steam clean all carpets

I anticipate this taking at least until wednesday, IF I do it like I did today. The nesting bug hit me today, so I hope it hits me tomorrow and the next day!

Christmas is here, get on board or be a grinch.

Are you one of those people who hate when people decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving?

Do you just feel that Thanksgiving should get "its time?"

If so, this post is not for you. ;)

This is the "coffee table" in our front room and I am not entirely certain I love it yet. I have a plan for the little trees, I just need one more supply. nevertheless, here it is. :

This wall in my house does not photograph well at all. But anyway, I love this wall. :) We don't have a fireplace so the stockings just got hung on the wall. what are ya gonna do?

This might be my favorite Christmas decoration thus far. I got the milk glass bowl at the DI for $1, and the ornaments at all a dollar for...$1!

I just love these ornaments. Who said all ornaments have to go on the tree?

this is kind of like my mantle if you will, since I do not have one. And I looove it.

So there you have it. My house is decked with Christmas cheer and I could not be more happy.

And here is what I have to say to all the early christmas decorating haters:

Its my house, not yours. They are my lights, not yours. They are my decorations, not yours. If I want to put my lights, tree and decorations up early I have every dang right to, and if you don't like it, close your eyes. I am tired of people on Facebook or in stores complaining that things are coming out early. Let me ask you this..WHO CARES?!?! Seriously, Christmas decorations and things are all about the Christmas spirit, which includes a feeling of gratitude, compassion, love, and a Christlike attitude, and here YOU are telling me that I am doing it too early? It is never too early to bring those feels and atmospheres out. Really, if you don't want to decorate until after Thanksgiving, thats your prerogative, but don't you try and insist that the rest of society do things your way. Thanksgiving gets plenty of love on Thanksgiving day, and even Thanksgiving week, but I consider Christmas decoration part of HOLIDAY SEASON decorations, and when people say "happy holidays" they are referring to Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. so my holiday decorations can go up whenever I want.

I put up my tree. :) :) :)

and all other things Christmas in my house.

Jason and I spent our Sunday afternoon decorating our tree, and I quite enjoyed it.

I love going through our ornaments and remembering when or why we got them.

Behold the tree (sorry its so dark)

Each year we each get a new ornament that depicts our year.

Jason got a coca-cola bottle. He says its because he loves coke, I say its to remember the year of all his kidney stones. :)

I chose an SLR camera ornament, for obvious reasons.

Then, of course, we had to get one for our kitties.

I sat on our couch this afternoon and thought for a while about how weird my life is to me now. Not in any sort of bad way, but for 20 years of my life, I lived with my parents, putting up their tree, sitting on their couches, and being a part of their daily lives. Its surreal to me, even still, that I have my own house, with my own stuff, I put up my own tree, with my own ornaments and my own little family. Although daily life seems normal, when I look at everything from a distance, it is still so weird that I am an adult. I wonder when this will feel completely normal. I sure do love my little adult life though.

Progress is definitely being made on little Henry's nursery, slowly but surely. I would post pictures, but I would rather do a big reveal post than tiny as we go posts. The paint is %95 done. The wall decor is all purchased, painted, and put together. I made a rug the other day that I oh so love and would have cost at least $100 if I would have just bought it. The only thing missing, and the only reason it is not completely finished is the crib set. We had a crib set all picked out, then we learned the the 3-in-1 and 4-in-1 cribs were being recalled, or flat out canceled because they were falling apart and children were dying in them. So now we have to find another set that we like and that is certified safe, which %90 of them aren't, sadly.

Well there is nothing much else going on with us. We will be doing our Christmas cards soon so send me your address if you would like one. I am doing something different with mine than others do, so I am really excited about it. It will be the most fun card ever received. :)

Work update

Well the decision on what I am going to do with my career has been a tricky one thus far.

The plan, was for me to work all the way up until delivery, and then if it felt right and I loved it I would go back sometime after the baby comes.

Here are the factors that we now had to consider

1. The 24 Hour Fitness location I work at is 30 mins away, so its a bit of a commute.

2. The car accident I was in really messed up my hips. I injured my SI Joint, and if I walk or stand for too long, it makes my leg numb and tingly.

3. The further into the pregnancy I get, the more uncomfortable I am and the more difficult it becomes to demo exercises for my clients, and set up their weights etc.

4. Its not insanely stressful, but there is a sales side to Personal Training that makes it not as fun as it could be.

5. I loooove my job. Really. I have loved a few of my jobs before, but this is my career, and I am madly in love with it.

6. I loooove my clients. Personal Training for me is really personal. I get to know my clients, they become friends, we text a lot, they bought me baby gifts, I love them and will always always help them with their goals, money involved or not.

7. I love 24 Hour Fitness. I believe in the brand, the goals, and my boss is awesome.

8. It keeps me active. Even though during this pregnancy the more active I am the more my hip hurts, I still love being active and staying somewhat in shape.

9. I have realized the last couple weeks that even though I don't work that many hours, it still affects how productive I am at home. Instead of all my tiny energy going to nesting, getting the house ready, being a good wife etc, its going to work.

The decision that Jason and I made was that I would stop working at the end of December.

Its bittersweet, but in the end we knew I wouldn't need to work when Henry gets here, so a couple months really wouldn't matter. The bottom line is it is getting too physically demanding to do Personal Training, and its not worth it.

So on Thursday I let my boss know that December would be my last month. He understood, and we agreed I would finish out my clients and then be done, which is perfect timing.

I am hoping this will help me be more productive at home, and give me time to prepare for the birth and the baby.

I may go back to Personal Training after the baby comes, like waaay after, but who knows. It really was just so much fun.

so there you have it.

on a plus note, my sweet hubby knows that I have been having a hard time with it, with the weight gain that comes with pregnancy, and feeling not so pretty. so a week ago he brought home costa vida that had a sweet love note in it. The note directed me to him, where he pulled out a nice Morgan Jewelers white box that contained the most shiney diamond earrings ever. He is so sweet, and knows when I need a pick me up. He got them for me so every time I see them I will know how pretty he thinks I am. :) I have been wearing them ever since. :)

They are soooo sparkly, and I feel very nervous wearing them with how expensive they were.

Wish me luck not losing them!! :/

want a baby? Get a kitten.

I really think that all soon to be parents should get a Kitten.

Here are my top 10 reasons why.

Top 10 Reasons to get a cat if you want a kid

1. There are sooo many Kittens that need a good home that you really just can't go wrong, unless you are a cruel to animals. :(

2. Cats, Kittens really teach you patience. You don't just get them home and thats that. You have to be patient as they learn where to use the bathroom, not to knock over the Christmas tree, and not to bring crickets inside.

3. They teach you to control your negative emotion. Cats obviously can't talk and express their reasons for doing things, so I feel bad if I get upset at our cats, like I have hurt their feelings and they can't tell me. I never yell at them, I never swat them, and I give them lots of love.

4. They teach you to find more effective ways of disciplining. You can't just yell at a cat and expect they get it, just like I don't believe you should just yell at a child and expect they get it. You have to make sure they make a connection between the action and consequence.

5. They make you aware of others. They are so tiny, and they run all over and sometimes get under your feet, so it teaches you to be aware of who is around, and to be careful.

6. They teach responsibility. If you don't clean their liter, they poop on the carpet and that is your fault. So you have to be diligent in making sure you are taking care of them.

7. They help you understand how to understand the needs of others. When they meow, I can now tell which type of meow it is. They have a needy pet me meow, a whiny feed me meow, and a I really want that fly meow. I can tell when one of them is upset, annoyed, hungry and tired.

8. Most of all they teach you that although they aren't perfect, and they get into things and frustrate you, the love you have for your little one and the joy they bring far outweighs those little things.

9. If the reason you want a baby is because you want to love someone and have someone love you, Kittens are soooo perfect for that. They just snuggle and purr and love you and its so adorable.

10. They are just so cute. :)

Obviously my child has not yet arrived, but I know all these things will come in handy and have prepared me to be able to be the mother I want to be.

:)

So get a cat.