27 Weeks- Third Trimester Woot Woot!

In all my Christmas Cheer...

Less busy so you can really see how large I am!!!

And just for grins I included a pic of D in a sweater. He never dresses up so I always snap away when he does!

25 Weeks

Just a pic:

Boooooo

Pregnancy insomnia sucks. Especially when I have to be at work in 3 hours. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Ultrasound Pics- 23 Weeks

22 Weeks and growing...

Wowza! Compare these to my 13 week belly:

The Room

The Prep:

(OK, the real prep involved me spending two hours creating an excel spreadsheet so my stripes would be equal and symmetrical... and I printed it out so we would have a map to follow.....yes, I know I am OCD but it REALLY helped!)



BTW- check out D's total Farmer Tan. Isn't he supposed to be brown all over!?! Tee hee hee.



The Painting:
(ignore my flabby hanging-outtie flesh... it got HOT with all that painting! And I couldn't turn on the fan b/c when I was painting the top of the wall there was a weird strobe effect that made me want to vomit.....)

The Finished Project:

Now I just have to make his bedding.... who wants to help!?!? And what are our thoughts on bumpers? Necessary or SIDS danger????

20 Weeks

Just documenting my bump for posterity. :)

...and the name is.......

Kason Michael Niko

*Please keep negative comments about the name to yourself. I reserve the right to kick some A if I don't like your comment about my Baby Boy's name!!! :)

It's a Boy!

Can't argue with that! D is SOOOO proud...and a little jealous!!!!

18 weeks....

Wow... wonder when it will look like there's a baby in there? I think I'm just getting thicker all over!?!? We find out what we're having a week from Monday on October 26- we can't wait!!!

He certainly changed some things!

I was already seriously annoyed by Obama's "Peace Prize" when I saw a commercial on TBS last night. Obama is in a commercial for George Lopez' new late night talk show. Seriously! A president promoting a talk show?!?!? I'm so glad he's upholding the high standards of the Oval Office! I hope this is what his voters had in mind for "change".

Popcorn Popping?

I'm 17 weeks today and I think I felt the baby moving last night! I totally thought it was gas at first, but then realized it must be Baby Niko! Do you ladies remember feeling your first baby move? Did it feel like popcorn popping!?!


Do YOU think I felt baby or just gas!?!?!

The IntelliGender Challenge

So this nifty little device thinks D and I are expecting a little girl! Three more weeks until we confirm with our developmental ultrasound. My friend Jennifer swore this was accurate with both her pregnancies, (both boys) so we'll see how well it predicts girls!!!!! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!

What is that?!?!?

Nope- I'm not "Rockin' The Beer Gut", it's my 13-week baby bump!!! (I took this about 1/2 hour after I ate in order to get the bump in all it's full-belly glory)

That's right- D and I are expecting Baby Niko on March 20!

We wanted to keep it on the DL until after the first trimester- since sometimes I can't even tell if anything is going on in there! I had a couple weeks of nausea and a lot of weeks of tiredness and an general feeling of Uck!, but overall I've been fine. My poor sister is preggers too, and she is deathly ill! 8 months and only gained like 12 pounds (she gained 38 with each of the last two!) cause she pukes all the time- even with anti-nausea meds. Guess I'm super lucky!

I still can't stand the thought or smell of beef, chicken, eggs, or anything that's smoked or barbecued. Yuck! Wheat Thins have been my favorite go-to snack, especially coupled with those delicious BlueBel soft cheese wedges. And thank goodness- I have eliminated Diet Cokes completely. Strangely enough, the ONLY thing I want to drink is iced tea- which puts me in quite the predicament. I haven't given in yet so pray for me to stay strong!!!

I just told everyone at work last week and for some reason I am super embarrassed that everyone is talking about it. Maybe it's my hormones? Or the fact that now everyone knows FOR SURE that my hubby (of 5 years!) and I "do it" (or at least "did it")? Hmmm. SOOOOO- if I act not excited or shy about this to any of you- ignore me. I'm a nut.

Anyway- hopefully this explains any oddball behavior D and I have been exhibiting... I'm sure there is loads more to come... :)

Anyone Free Tomorrow Night???

I want to go see Julie and Julia- anyone else wanna join me???? 7:10 at Rosenberg Cinemark. Let me know cuz I won't go if I think I'll be alone!!!!

Sorry!

I've been so busy lately I haven't had time to sit down and blog a bit! What have I been doing, you ask? Well- I got off my big behind and found a job (this is written with a lot of sarcasm since I've been actively searching for over 5 months!). Yay! I work at National Oilwell Varco (NOV) and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the people I work with. I also started taking class(es) for my MBA. Well, I signed up for four classes.... but then I got scared, so I dropped three- ha! I kept my Financial Accounting class and pretty much regretted it from day 1. It's an online course through University of Houston- Victoria. I'm a big dummy so it took me two weeks to figure out the email system (they have an email-email, and a class email...which don't connect to each other... so we had group homework due and I'm emailing these fools in my group and getting so mad when they don't respond.....only to find out that those "fools" have been emailing ME (through the class email system), thinking I was the flake!). I finally took my final yesterday, so I don't have to study or procrastinate on another 30 page paper for a while (BTW, totally scored a 100% on my 30 page, professionally bound paper- yay! It might have been my fabulous pink tables and graphs!). So I had every intention of signing up for two more classes for this semester, but I lost all motivation- MBA classes are way harder than undergrad....even though I still don't study....or read the books....but whatever.

I also went to girl's camp the last week of June. I had such an amazing time- I really got to know the girls in the stake- they are SO amazing. The best part of camp was when we spotted a cougar! I know most of ya'll have heard the story, but I'll tell it one more time for posterity...

So I was leading a bunch of girls back from archery at like 4:30 in the afternoon... we come around a corner and see this big something crossing the trail right next to the second years' camp, about a football field length ahead of us. So I grabbed Kim O. (who was walking at my side) and held up my hand to the 15 to 20 girls who were walking about a little way behind us so they would stop and shut up. Bless them, they did. Kim and I strained our eyes to see what it was- we knew it was an animal, but it was huge, so we thought it might be a dog.... but man, that dog had some slinky shoulders! The more we watched it move, the more convinced we became that it was some sort of cat. We waited for the cat to slink across the trail and go into the woods... and gave it an extra two or three minutes for good measure... and made the girls walk in a big huddle past the area. I immediately told Sister Melia B. about it and she called the stake camp director (out of earshot of the girls, of course) and told her about the big bobcat-a-ma-jigger we saw. When I was describing the cat to Melia, I showed her that the cat's head was about up to my mid thigh, and she said- "That's way too big for a bobcat! Was it a cougar!?!?" Since my idea of roughing-it involves 4 stars, I had no idea... I did remember that the cat's ears were kind of flat... much like the BYU cougar! So I said "Maybe!" The main camp directors then drove by to see where the cat was spotted. Kim O. and I went with them so we could show them which trail, etc. Well apparently girls are dumb and aren't able to accurately describe an animal because they kept telling us we didn't see a cat that big (cuz there weren't any cats around that were that big, duh) and the cat we saw MUST have had pointy ears and spots, even though we insisted it didn't. I can see if they think I'm lying or exaggerating, but Kim O. was there with me, and she is super-duper sweet and honest! So the camp peeps thought it was a harmless little bobcat.... and made Kim O. and I question what we saw... :(

Luckily, the stake camp leaders 100% believed us and we dug up some pictures of cats online. This is what we saw:

This is what those boys said we saw:

Um.... the bobcat is little and spunky and the cougar is long and lanky- we definitely knew we saw a cougar after doing that research! It is apparently pretty rare to see cougars... in the daytime... in 100+ degree weather... that close to a bunch of loud, screaming girls... I relish my close encounter!!! On a more serious note, the stake leaders took the sighting very seriously and made sure all the girls were safe, so no need to worry!

So that's what I've been up to. I hope you were entertained by my "I Survived" cougar story....and I'll try to post more often. Peace!

Greaseball

Yesterday after A and I made our 8:00 AM rounds (aka walked Waterside) we both noticed I had black specks on my face.

Weird.

Upon further CSI-style investigation, I discovered that the black specks were gnats.

Gnats. On my face.

What's worse? They were sodden....and dead.

As I walked through the annoying clouds of gnats by the lake, they drowned on my greaseball, sweaty face. That's right, the poor little innocent gnats DROWNED in the puddles of sweat collecting on my face. Call me Gnatzilla.

uuuugggghhhhh!

Just one of those days.

Five Years Already

Exactly five years ago D and I were in beautiful Kauai eloping. We found this "minister" online (ha!) and had booked her for June 1 at 2:00pm to perform our ceremony. D and I decided to eat a nice brunch and get to the spot we were meeting the minister early. Unfortunately (and yet I can't seem to regret it) I discovered delicious Lappert's Coconut Ice Cream the day before. I decided that since it was MY wedding day, I MUST get an ice cream cone before the ceremony....and maybe after, too! If any of you have ever been to Hawaii, you know that the pace is much slower there than here in Texas! We took way too long getting my ice cream and barely had time to get ready for our wedding...which is why my hair is all funky (I prioritize makeup over hair ALWAYS). So we ran (literally late for our own wedding) to meet our minister.

We booked a cute little package deal that came with ceremonial leis, photographs, and a cake. I had spoken to our minister on the phone several times and was a little nervous because she seemed very detached (detached= nice word for airhead). When we finally met she was very nice. She brought the photographer (her daughter- in dreads with hairy legs and armpits!) and showed us the way to a private little cove where we would say our vows. We began thinking we might have been a little hasty with the internet minister when she started pointing out little areas where she "could leave us to make love" if we wanted... we didn't! Ew!!!

After the vows

The ceremony was short and sweet and exactly what we wanted. We were barefoot on a gorgeous beach in Hawaii, what more could we ask for? How about a marriage certificate that spells our names correctly? (BTW- Hawaii is ridonkulously bureaucratic and it was very difficult to get things corrected!!!)

After the ceremony, we learned about the photographer and her friends, the "bliss-ninnies" .... these are big groups of hippies (with armpit and leg hair, presumably) that sit around smoking weed and touching each other. In short, ninnies for bliss!. The Bliss-Ninny also kept trying to get us to make out for the camera! (We all know she was hoping we'd go find a private cove!!!---GROSS!)

Bliss-Ninny on left

If nothing else, we will definitely remember our wedding in Hawaii!

I love you, D!!!!!!

Best. Book. Ever.

I read ahead of the Enrichment Book Club schedule. Way ahead. And I found a new favorite book!!! I posted about it before, but hadn't gotten around to reading it then. I JUST NOW finished it and am totally depressed it's over! The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is the cutest, saddest, quirkiest, funnest ("funnest" = real word in my world) book, EVER! I can't believe how much I enjoyed reading it- I was a little thrown off by the writing style (all personal letters between the characters), but am now amazed at the creativity of the author(s) for pulling it off! I just want to encourage everyone who has heard of this book or even just walked by it at some point to pick it up and read it! CV, tell your mom THANK YOU for recommending it- I'm so happy she did! My copy is available to anyone who wants to borrow it, but beware:

"If you borrow me, I pray,
Treat me as a friend;
Keep me by your fireside,
And to no others lend.

Guard my leaves and keep them clean,
Do not turn them down;
With no pencil marks deface,
Nor with thumb-marks brown."

or...

"Look ye, my friend
If this booke I lend,
Be sure to return
Or in H will ye burn!"

or...

"Solemnly do you swear
This same book, not to tear,
Nor dirty, nor fray?
For your soul will I pray,
If the return you delay"

or even better...

"Steal not this book, my worthy friend,
For fear the gallows will be your end;
Up the ladder and down the rope,
There you'll hang until you choke!
Then I'll come along and say--
"Where's that book you stole away?"



Ha ha, so I got slightly distracted looking for clever book-borrower warnings. I invite everyone to find one and post it in the comments---or better yet, make up your own and post that! Now what was this post originally about?????

Quote of the Day- Courtesy Liz Pabst

"I'm not easily offended. You'd have to literally yank a donut out of my hand to offend me!"
-Liz Pabst, 2009 Richmond Ward Memorial Day Breakfast


I heart you, Liz!

Memorial Day- Please come!

I know ya'll are sick of hearing about walking, but I must mention that Laurie Stephens and I will be heading up the "Richmond Ward Memorial Day Fun Walk". Please, please, Puh-LEASE come out at 7am on Monday morning to walk around Waterside with us. I know it's early, but it will make everyone feel less guilty about eating the Memorial Day treats and barbecues later in the day. Also, I totally plan on stopping at Shipley's for a donut-to-go! :) We'll be leaving Sonic at 7am-ish. Let me know if you're planning on coming and I'll be sure to wait for you.

*******************Strollers Welcome***********************

Walking Waterside

If any of you ladies are interested....

We have started walking the Waterside loop at around 8 am on weekday mornings. We start at Lewisville and Waterside Estates Circle and make our way around towards the bridge, so anyone is welcome to meet us along the way. Give me a call if you have questions or need more details!!!

The Healthy Bandwagon

OK, OK. I've finally decided to join some of you foolios and start getting healthy and fit.
I spent most of my life participating in sports and I was totally burned out after college track. (I'm second from the right. Look how skinny!)

Since then I have only played a little recreational tennis... I haven't run or sprinted or lifted weights or ANYTHING. I have a real hard time motivating myself without someone yelling at me. I can't seem to work with personal trainers because I usually end up knowing more about weight-lifting and cardio than they do! Stupid college athletics. You'd think it would help me stay active throughout my life, but really I'm just lazy and resentful about exercising.

ANYWAY, to combat my lazy, fatty ways I've decided to start walking a couple of miles a day. But I need serious peer pressure and commitment to keep me going. Any of you ladies interested in walking Waterside three or four mornings a week?

Comment and let me know your thoughts and ideas.

I touched a celebrity!

I went to my first-ever book signing last night for one of my favorite authors, Jen Lancaster. She's totally irrreverent and not LDS-appropriate, but super funny cuz she says what I think....except I would NEVER admit to most of it! I mean, we should be BFF's. That's what I told her last night but she still hasn't emailed me back. Hmmmmm.

Anyhoo, D was a super sport and came with me to the signing... which means he had to stand around for 2 and a half hours with a bunch of pushy, over-zealous, Jenae-wannabes while I elbowed my way into line. He was in charge of taking a picture of me and Jen (BFF's are on a first-name basis) with explicit instructions to make sure I looked skinny. Hmmmm. I will NOT be posting the picture he took of Jen Lancaster and some random fat girl. BUT, I will post the below of my Grease-ball self in line. I literally showered like three hours before this picture was taken and yet I still look like a piece of pizza that needs to be dabbed with a napkin... I LOVE Houston!

Hope to see some of you guys on Friday!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

For those of you at the book club meeting yesterday (or if you plan on coming in the future):

I've been looking up all the books online to find good deals and came across an interesting sweepstakes. Win a trip to Guernsey for you and your Book Club (5 friends)! I know we probably won't win, BUT, it never hurts to try! All of ya'll should enter just in case! Click Here .

I would love to go to Guernsey! Expecially since I fully expect to enjoy the book after the glowing recommend from Sister Sudholt!


Since I'm bringing this to your attention- I BETTER be one of the 5 friends you take if you win!!!!!

IMPORTANT information to avoid Swine Flu!!!

Whatever you do, don't do this!!!!!






Ha ha ha ha ha!

Oh no! A/C problems!

Yikes!! Our A/C compressor just went caput. The unit is still under warranty (thank goodness!) but I have to pay for labor- $355!!! Doesn't that seem excessive? Does anyone know someone who has experience with A/C units that can offer guidance and let me know if I'm getting ripped off?!?

Thanks!!!

Again with the calories...

What are these?

Heavenly little pillows of bliss???

Close. Homemade Marshmallows (taaaa daaaah!). I happened to be looking for a coupon (Thanks, Alisha!) for marshmallows when I came across a recipe from my favorite Food Network host, Alton Brown. Amazingly, I had everything I needed to make marshmallows. Even a great coupon can't beat don't-get-dressed-or-pay-money, so I made them from scratch. Nevermind the fact that I didn't actually NEED the marshmallows. I just like to keep them on hand for emergencies.... like Brownie Sundae Deliciousness or "Igloos"*. So the homemade version is SUPER easy to make and BEYOND delicious. You can find the recipe here.

* I remember when I was in Primary one of our activities was to make "Igloos". I have no idea what the lesson behind the "Igloos" was, but I like to think it had something to do with building a house upon the ice... or sand.... or rock???? hmmmm. Anyway, our teacher cut an apple in half, cored it, and had all of us spread peanut butter over the skin. Then we took the cute little mini-marshmallows and stuck them in the peanut butter to look like blocks of ice . They were super cute and ever since then I LOVE the combination and eat the snack all the time. Damien thinks I'm a nut cuz in his ward they never ate during Primary.... (Lame!) (totally joking with the Lame just in case we don't eat during Primary in our ward....but if that is the case, we should look into letting a little food in!) Looks like I'll be making Ginormous "Igloos" with these honking blocks of "ice". I'll have to look for bigger apples!

Be of good cheer!

"...fear not. Be of good cheer. The future is as bright as your faith."

- President Thomas S. Monson, 179th Annual General Conference.

I just love this. If you didn't catch this talk, you can read it here .

Pictures of Brownie Sundae Deliciousness

I caved and made another batch for some neighbors and hubby:



Bowl with brownie on top:

Bowl with brownie on bottom:

The brownie is super gooey. Apparently all my desserts taste better than they look. Take my word for it!

"Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels" Hmmmph!

Brownie Sundae Deliciousness
1 box favorite Brownie mix & ingredients to make
2-3 cups FROZEN miniature marshmallows (keeps the marshmallows moist and gooey)
1 cup Heath Toffee Bits (or more for extra deliciousness)
1 jar chocolate fudge frosting
Ice Cream- any flavor that floats your boat

Prepare brownies as indicated on package for 8"x8" glass pan and bake. When brownies have 15 minutes remaining for baking, remove from oven. Top evenly with Heath bits, then marshmallows. You'll want to cover completely- no empty spaces! Return to oven to finish baking. After 15 minutes, remove from oven (brownies will be wiggly and may seem like they are not done- RESIST the urge to return to oven!). Pour frosting into microwave safe bowl and nuke for 15 seconds or until frosting is "drizzle-able". Drizzle all over brownie deliciousness while still hot.
Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes, scoop (cuz it will be gooey!) into bowls and top with ice cream. No pictures because I modified a recipe on the back of a Brownie Box and wasn't sure it would be good. It was delicious and eaten immediately. I don't dare re-create since I will just scarf it all- AGAIN!

Weird that I can't seem to lose weight...

Bangs are the best!- With a picture!

And the BEST thing about bangs?!?!? I don't have to pluck my eyebrows! Ha!

Victory is Mine!

Damien: 0
Jenae: 2

I whooped D's butt in a pushup contest. Twice. Just thought ya'll should know.

A Rant

I spent an hour writing a super-long rant about this. It was much too long, so I decided that everyone would already know where I stand based on the fact that Damien is a police officer and faces difficult situations every day. Needless to say, three page rant evolved into three paragraphs. I ask everyone who reads this to say a prayer for everyone involved in the Oakland tragedy, especially the officers and their families.

I came across this quote on Saturday before I heard about the officer fatalities. I thought it was pretty interesting then. It's even more appropriate after this weekend.

"As parenting declines, the need for policing increases.
There will always be a shortage of police if there is a
shortage of effective parents! Likewise, there will not
be enough prisons if there are not enough good homes."
--Neal A. Maxwell, "Take Especial Care of Your Family," Ensign, May 1994

I did have a list of disclaimers about how parents can't always control the actions of their children and so on, but I decided to let everyone ponder the quote without my two cents.

Ugh. Sorry for the rant. I get really upset when I hear about violence involving police officers. Hits too close to home.

Why I do not eat Crawfish....

It's getting to be that time of year! Tallulah, my little girl beagle, reminded me today why I still refuse to even try crawfish:




I know, huge stretch of my imagination, but every time I go to a boil (bawl), I can't help but think they look like little red puppies. Damien says I'm lame and need help...