Well, we're officially into the waiting portion of this pregnancy. The baby's just fattening up; he's all done developing, and all his organs are "ready for life outside." As happy as I am about that, I wish I could just get it over with. It's kind of depressing knowing he has to get fat(ter) before I can attempt to push him out...
We had a doctor's appointment today. It went well! I really like the midwives i'm seeing. They're very "calm, cool, and collected." I've seen doctors before that I swear are trying to scare you the whole time. Not these ladies. They are wonderful and encouraging, and SO easygoing! She checked me, and i'm at a one (woot...) and 70% effaced. Nothing really to brag about, but at least we're not total Stonewall Jackson down there! At least something's happening!
(I guess this is a little graphic if you're a guy...I don't think many guys read this, though. Oh well!)
The Primary Program was on Sunday; our 100+ primary children did beautifully, and sang much better than they had in any of the practices, which I was SO grateful for! AND, we only had ONE of our thirty-something three year-olds burst into tears. It was adorable and funny and kind of sad all at the same time...I guess having hundreds of people stare at you is intimidating when you're three!
We were also told that we have 18 new kiddos turning 3 and moving up to Primary from the Nursery in 2011, and only 3 turning 12 and moving up to youth group. Hmmm...the numbers aren't quite crunching...I have no idea where we're going to put them all!
My first block classes ended on Friday. Whew!! It doesn't help that they were my three easiest classes, and I still have all my hardest ones for the rest of the semester, but it gives me less to have to get done in a week, so it's all good! Now I'm only doing online classes, which is nice.
It also snowed for the first time two days ago, then again yesterday. We're not talking much snow here, but Mitch had to scrape our car this morning for our dr's appointment. It's kind of depressing seeing it all on the windshield! Especially because I don't have a coat that will zip anymore!! I better have this baby before it gets TOO cold!!
Mitch has hit the ground running with piano tuning. He was taught by the same man that tunes my family's pianos and has for years. This guy's amazing. He put himself through med school tuning and rebuilding pianos, and we're hoping Mitch can learn the same trade to help us through grad school. He's tuned several already, and the electronic tuner's almost paid for itself! There are tons of pianos here in Rexburg, and since he's new at it, he's also cheap! It amazes me how fast he picks things up :o)
My mom comes in ONE week! I'm so excited, but I hope we have a baby to show her soon after she gets here so I don't feel like i'm wasting her time, when she's SO needed at home! :o)
Well, that's about all that's happening around here!
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Tagged
My lovely sister in law tagged me with these questions; we all know i'm addicted to Blogger, so I have no qualms about spending some extra time on here! (Especially when ALL homework is done for the weekend!)
1. What is your favorite holiday tradition?
Probably one of the only ones we had growing up, where we build a "tent" in the living room with blankets kitchen chairs, hairties, and whatever else we can find. We'd make a Blockbuster run and rent all the movies we hadn't gotten a chance to see that year. Mom would make us rootbeer floats and lots of yummy treats, then retreat upstairs to a bed all to herself. We'd "camp out" in sleeping bags with dad and have a movie night!
2. Who is your biggest role model and why?
Honestly, probably my husband. He impresses and amazes me every day. He recently took up piano tuning after spending only two days being apprenticed by a professional. He has grasped the concept so quickly and finds it very easy. I am just so impressed that whatever he tries, he pretty much always succeeds at. I guess he completes me! :o) He has done so much for me during this pregnancy, and I don't know if I could've kept going through everything without him!
3. What is your favorite thing to do with your husband and why?
We love to take walks. It started as my "exercise during pregnancy" efforts tried their hardest not to fail. He's so much fun to talk to, and is such a good listener (even to everything I have to say!) We just walk and walk; I don't know what we're going to do this winter when we're cooped up with a newborn!
4. What is one place you want to travel to, when, why?
I'm not a huge traveler. I guess it comes from growing up and living in one place during my entire childhood. I would love to be able to go home to Kansas City more. I sure miss my family and all our friends, and we don't get to see them often. Hopefully one day we'll live some equal distance between our families so we can see them both!
(Good thing Mitch's family is so great or I think i'd be in some awfully depressed state!)
5. What is your all time favorite band?
Hmmm...I really need to update my music! I have been a One Republic fan for a long time. I finally got their latest album and i'm loving every minute of it!
6. What is your favorite book?
Last semester in Young Adult Lit (the last time I read a book) my favorite was The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt. I need to find it cheap on Amazon and just buy it! It's a hilarious story about a little boy who swears his third grade teacher hates him; he's so sweet, funny, and endearing; you can't help loving him! The author very convincingly writes from the point of view of a third grader!
7. Who is your closest friend and why?
I've really gotten close to our neighbor, Amy. Our husbands hit it off right away, and we've been able to hit it off as well. I prayed so hard for new friends when we moved here from Wyoming, and it took awhile, but i'm so glad to have her! She's always so easy to talk to and can always give me straightforward, yet uplifting, advice!
8. What is your favorite trait about yourself?
Hmmm...considering my self-esteem is in the worst shape it's been in awhile (it's nothing traumatic, just pregnancy hormones...), I'm really not sure. I like to smile. My smile's improved tremendously since braces came off a few years ago, so I feel a lot better about smiling than I did growing up.
9. Tagged:
I would like to tag Dani Allee and Karissa Dodds, if you guys have time! (same questions)
Probably one of the only ones we had growing up, where we build a "tent" in the living room with blankets kitchen chairs, hairties, and whatever else we can find. We'd make a Blockbuster run and rent all the movies we hadn't gotten a chance to see that year. Mom would make us rootbeer floats and lots of yummy treats, then retreat upstairs to a bed all to herself. We'd "camp out" in sleeping bags with dad and have a movie night!
2. Who is your biggest role model and why?
Honestly, probably my husband. He impresses and amazes me every day. He recently took up piano tuning after spending only two days being apprenticed by a professional. He has grasped the concept so quickly and finds it very easy. I am just so impressed that whatever he tries, he pretty much always succeeds at. I guess he completes me! :o) He has done so much for me during this pregnancy, and I don't know if I could've kept going through everything without him!
3. What is your favorite thing to do with your husband and why?
We love to take walks. It started as my "exercise during pregnancy" efforts tried their hardest not to fail. He's so much fun to talk to, and is such a good listener (even to everything I have to say!) We just walk and walk; I don't know what we're going to do this winter when we're cooped up with a newborn!
4. What is one place you want to travel to, when, why?
I'm not a huge traveler. I guess it comes from growing up and living in one place during my entire childhood. I would love to be able to go home to Kansas City more. I sure miss my family and all our friends, and we don't get to see them often. Hopefully one day we'll live some equal distance between our families so we can see them both!
(Good thing Mitch's family is so great or I think i'd be in some awfully depressed state!)
5. What is your all time favorite band?
Hmmm...I really need to update my music! I have been a One Republic fan for a long time. I finally got their latest album and i'm loving every minute of it!
6. What is your favorite book?
Last semester in Young Adult Lit (the last time I read a book) my favorite was The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt. I need to find it cheap on Amazon and just buy it! It's a hilarious story about a little boy who swears his third grade teacher hates him; he's so sweet, funny, and endearing; you can't help loving him! The author very convincingly writes from the point of view of a third grader!
7. Who is your closest friend and why?
I've really gotten close to our neighbor, Amy. Our husbands hit it off right away, and we've been able to hit it off as well. I prayed so hard for new friends when we moved here from Wyoming, and it took awhile, but i'm so glad to have her! She's always so easy to talk to and can always give me straightforward, yet uplifting, advice!
8. What is your favorite trait about yourself?
Hmmm...considering my self-esteem is in the worst shape it's been in awhile (it's nothing traumatic, just pregnancy hormones...), I'm really not sure. I like to smile. My smile's improved tremendously since braces came off a few years ago, so I feel a lot better about smiling than I did growing up.
9. Tagged:
I would like to tag Dani Allee and Karissa Dodds, if you guys have time! (same questions)
Thursday, October 21, 2010
What a day...
This has probably been the craziest of all Mitch's and I days since we've been married. It was INSANE.
Mitch works as a student event coordinator on campus. During certain times he's in charge of all the events that happen, and making sure they have everything they need, that the A/V people are in their places, people know what they're doing, etc. I work on campus as an usher for the ticket office. I've done this ever since my very first semester here and I love it. So, because we both have these jobs (that are sort of related), the only time we saw each other before 9 pm was at a Forum on campus (Jon M. Huntsman, Sr...he's the most amazing, charitable millionaire, look him up!)
This was our schedule today, from start to finish:
10:45-12:45 Alaina works a Classroom Discussion on campus
12:00-4:00 Mitch works on campus (he had quite a few events today; I won't mention them all)
1:00-3:00 Alaina works the Jon Huntsman Forum on campus
3:15-3:45 Alaina attends one of her last on-campus classes for the semester (it went until 4:15 but had to leave early, because...)
4:00-6:00 Alaina has the Primary Program Practice at church (in our church the "Primary kids," ranging from ages 3-11 prepare all year for a program for the entire congregation. I'm the "Primary Chorister" so i'm in charge of teaching them the nine songs they needed to learn for this program. Their theme is "I Know My Savior Lives." Today we had a two-hour practice (with over 100 children) for their program performance this Sunday.
5:15-7:45 Mitch has his Human Anatomy & Physiology lab
6:30-8:45 Alaina works a percussion event on campus
...so, we didn't get to see each other all day, but somehow we managed to get through all this with just one car, and eating twice on campus, which we try to avoid (it gets expensive! We left our cooler in Gillette, though, on Mitch's family's kitchen counter, so we really had no choice!).
Plus we had at least two hours each of homework for our online classes to do "when we had time."
I hope to not have another day like this until after I have this baby! I just don't have the energy that I usually do right now! All the standing ups and sitting downs of the Primary practice alone wore me out! All the teachers (sitting on the stage to help children be "reverent" and pay attention) said my face was really red by the end. I sure felt worn out! I really haven't felt very pregnant until today. I've had it pretty easy, in comparison with others I've talked to, and I've tried not to complain about things too much, since I've been so blessed with this pregnancy! Today was pretty overwhelming, though!
Oh, to end the day, Mitch and I went to Coldstone for a little treat (we had a coupon: woot!)...it was a disappointment. There were over THIRTY people in line and ONE person working. The last straw, the reason we just walked out, was when the one person working STOPPED helping people so he could hear an engagement story of a couple that had just gotten engaged that night. Fun fun. So, we tried Arctic Circle. Our Arctic Circle in Rexburg is going WAAAAY downhill. Tonight was the last time we will ever go; there was trash everywhere, children running barefoot (in and out of the supposedly CLOSED play area, which was also filthy), and there was grease all over the inside of the windows. The trash can was overflowing and everything was disgusting.
What a day...I'm so glad to have Mitch here to help me through days like this! Physically+emotionally exhausting events, one after another, in addition to being 9+ months pregnant do not leave me in such a great mood anymore!
...the due date is two weeks from Sunday, by the way :o) I can't tell if I'm excited or if I just want him to stay in there because he's so low-maintenance right now!! Is that horrible!?
Mitch works as a student event coordinator on campus. During certain times he's in charge of all the events that happen, and making sure they have everything they need, that the A/V people are in their places, people know what they're doing, etc. I work on campus as an usher for the ticket office. I've done this ever since my very first semester here and I love it. So, because we both have these jobs (that are sort of related), the only time we saw each other before 9 pm was at a Forum on campus (Jon M. Huntsman, Sr...he's the most amazing, charitable millionaire, look him up!)
This was our schedule today, from start to finish:
10:45-12:45 Alaina works a Classroom Discussion on campus
12:00-4:00 Mitch works on campus (he had quite a few events today; I won't mention them all)
1:00-3:00 Alaina works the Jon Huntsman Forum on campus
3:15-3:45 Alaina attends one of her last on-campus classes for the semester (it went until 4:15 but had to leave early, because...)
4:00-6:00 Alaina has the Primary Program Practice at church (in our church the "Primary kids," ranging from ages 3-11 prepare all year for a program for the entire congregation. I'm the "Primary Chorister" so i'm in charge of teaching them the nine songs they needed to learn for this program. Their theme is "I Know My Savior Lives." Today we had a two-hour practice (with over 100 children) for their program performance this Sunday.
5:15-7:45 Mitch has his Human Anatomy & Physiology lab
6:30-8:45 Alaina works a percussion event on campus
...so, we didn't get to see each other all day, but somehow we managed to get through all this with just one car, and eating twice on campus, which we try to avoid (it gets expensive! We left our cooler in Gillette, though, on Mitch's family's kitchen counter, so we really had no choice!).
Plus we had at least two hours each of homework for our online classes to do "when we had time."
I hope to not have another day like this until after I have this baby! I just don't have the energy that I usually do right now! All the standing ups and sitting downs of the Primary practice alone wore me out! All the teachers (sitting on the stage to help children be "reverent" and pay attention) said my face was really red by the end. I sure felt worn out! I really haven't felt very pregnant until today. I've had it pretty easy, in comparison with others I've talked to, and I've tried not to complain about things too much, since I've been so blessed with this pregnancy! Today was pretty overwhelming, though!
Oh, to end the day, Mitch and I went to Coldstone for a little treat (we had a coupon: woot!)...it was a disappointment. There were over THIRTY people in line and ONE person working. The last straw, the reason we just walked out, was when the one person working STOPPED helping people so he could hear an engagement story of a couple that had just gotten engaged that night. Fun fun. So, we tried Arctic Circle. Our Arctic Circle in Rexburg is going WAAAAY downhill. Tonight was the last time we will ever go; there was trash everywhere, children running barefoot (in and out of the supposedly CLOSED play area, which was also filthy), and there was grease all over the inside of the windows. The trash can was overflowing and everything was disgusting.
What a day...I'm so glad to have Mitch here to help me through days like this! Physically+emotionally exhausting events, one after another, in addition to being 9+ months pregnant do not leave me in such a great mood anymore!
...the due date is two weeks from Sunday, by the way :o) I can't tell if I'm excited or if I just want him to stay in there because he's so low-maintenance right now!! Is that horrible!?
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Anticipation...
This is a weird month for us.
This month is the LAST month that Mitch and I will have no children...for the rest of our lives!! We're trying to be spontaneous in just about everything we do. Well, when we're not doing homework, that is.
We've been partying with the neighbors, starting movies at 11 pm "because we can," making unexpected, last-minute trips to Idaho Falls (half an hour each way), etc. I know, not the most exciting life, but we can only be spontaneous when we're not doing homework, remember? :o)
We've also been recalculating our budget. Every semester when a new batch of financial aid comes in we do this as a little "family counsel." If not, there's no way the money would last us. Especially now that we know that yes, BYU-Idaho can (and might again) give us our financial aid a month late. So, this week's project has been setting up a budget that not only plans for emergencies (yay, emergency fund!) but also will last a month longer than we anticipate needing it to. It's not very fun, but we are so grateful for the financial aid we've received, and I don't know how we'd get degrees without it!
My question for the three people (bless your hearts!) that read this is: What do you wish you had done before babies, that you can't do with kids!? We're (hopefully) taking a last-minute-before-the-baby-comes trip to Gillette to see Mitch's family so he can go hunting (yay, elk season on private land!!). We're also getting all the sleep we can, and enjoying sleeping in while we can! (I'm sooo not a morning person!!!)
Any advice would be welcome! :o)
This month is the LAST month that Mitch and I will have no children...for the rest of our lives!! We're trying to be spontaneous in just about everything we do. Well, when we're not doing homework, that is.
We've been partying with the neighbors, starting movies at 11 pm "because we can," making unexpected, last-minute trips to Idaho Falls (half an hour each way), etc. I know, not the most exciting life, but we can only be spontaneous when we're not doing homework, remember? :o)
We've also been recalculating our budget. Every semester when a new batch of financial aid comes in we do this as a little "family counsel." If not, there's no way the money would last us. Especially now that we know that yes, BYU-Idaho can (and might again) give us our financial aid a month late. So, this week's project has been setting up a budget that not only plans for emergencies (yay, emergency fund!) but also will last a month longer than we anticipate needing it to. It's not very fun, but we are so grateful for the financial aid we've received, and I don't know how we'd get degrees without it!
My question for the three people (bless your hearts!) that read this is: What do you wish you had done before babies, that you can't do with kids!? We're (hopefully) taking a last-minute-before-the-baby-comes trip to Gillette to see Mitch's family so he can go hunting (yay, elk season on private land!!). We're also getting all the sleep we can, and enjoying sleeping in while we can! (I'm sooo not a morning person!!!)
Any advice would be welcome! :o)
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