Birthday Recap

I turned 28 a little over a week ago. Apparently this is a big deal because this morning Jansen suddenly exclaimed, "I can't believe Mom is 28!"
Monica was so sweet and made sure I had a birthday cake...she claims it got massacred in the car ride over, but it sure tasted like heaven.

I went out to dinner at Cap City Diner with a few friends and it was one of those nights that ends with your cheeks and mouth hurting from smiling and laughing so much.

 

Annie, it was too kind of you to give me Jillian's 30 Minute Shred. I can't wait for my new body after this baby. :)

This is how every 30 minute shred workout should begin:

Ahhhhh, so fun to be with great company.

And Nate did it again with a fabulous and thoughtful birthday present. He spent a lot of time on it. He put together a photo album of our 4 years in Ohio. It begins with photos of our first apartment out here and continues from there in chronological order. He did an amazing job choosing photos that tell a memory or that have significance...even if only to me. He tried to choose lots that aren't on the blog, and there is such a variety of photos of parks, restaurants, friends, rooms in our house, big events, small events, crazy moments, and some sad ones. It was such a special gift, and we definitely plan on making one for every place we live.

Sometimes I Do This

At night, I sit on my bum with my knees pulled up to my chin and I look up at my pantry.

Praying to see something that I feel like eating.

See those Doritos in the  upper right hand corner of the picture? I choose those a lot.

And since I'm pregnant, if nothing looks good, I get in the car and drive up and down Hilliard-Rome Road until I see something that I want. Like Chick-Fil-A. Or Chipotle. Or Smoothie King. Or I consider driving 20 minutes to a Sonic. Sometimes I do this.

Sleepovers

Jansen had his first sleepover a few nights ago.

Do you want to know who's idea it was? Nate's. I love that.
 No problem convincing these two that it was a good idea.

Nate set up a tent in the living room and the boys spent the night camping in. This sleepover was actually a rehearsal because a few nights later, Nate took Jansen on his first campout along with Aiden and his dad. They didn't take the camera with them, so I don't have any pictures from the memorable trip, but they had a GREAT time. Nate was more than willing to take Natalie as well (I love that about him) but there was no way in Guam I was going to let him.

All this caused me to reflect on my long history of unsuccessful sleepovers. I did not handle sleepovers well. I got SO homesick. I would get excited about them, show up, enjoy the evening watching The Little Mermaid and eating Laffy Taffy, but when bedtime came I got hit with a major case of homesickness. I specifically remember one time laying in my sleeping bag, crying, and when my little 2nd grade friend asked what was wrong I told her, "Oh...my eyes just always water at night." A likely story right? And maybe I was a little homesick the night after I got married too...but no one needs to hear about that.

Match Day

Although we have known since December that we would be doing a residency in Las Vegas, all other 4th year medical students not matching through the military found out last week. We went to the event to celebrate with everyone and to enjoy the atmosphere. Here are all the medical students going up to get their envelopes to be opened simultaneously at 12:00.

Nate still had an envelope to open even though we already knew where we had matched.

Scott is also graduating this year. He and Nate went to BYU together.

It is incredibly hard to believe that this chapter of our life is coming to a close. I remember the moment I opened the envelope that said that we would NOT be going to medical school at the University of Utah...which meant we would be moving across the country...I cried and cried. And here we are completing our last year of medical school at Ohio State University...and I have cried and cried. Time sure flies.

The Racketeer

Is this the face of a hardened criminal?

Got kicked out of nursery yesterday for being a mean little rat.

Yeah, she's totally capable of that.

Why You Have That Bug in Yo Hair?

Let me start by telling you that Natalie is ridiculously afraid of little "fuzzes." You know, the little bits of this and that you find on the carpet, clinging to your shirt, you find them pretty much everywhere. She sees them and screams, "Whaaaat is thaaaat!? It's a buuuuuug!" Then we have to pick it up and show her that it's nothing, definitely not a bug, and to not flip out about it. I try to explain to her that it's going to be a long life if she has that reaction with every bit of lint that crosses her path. With this as a background...

A few days ago we are sitting at the kitchen table and she tilts her head and says, "Why you have a bug in your hair?"

Me, imagining some small piece of nothing stuck in my hair, "I don't. It's nothing." I keep eating.

Natalie, very calmly: "Why you have a bug in yo hair?"

Me: "It's not a bug Natalie." Eat more.

She keeps looking, I start to get curious. "What color is it Natalie?"

"Pink and white," she says.

I have to see for myself. I walk over to a mirror and squeal as I catch sight of something very buglike clinging to my hair. I scream and twist and yell for Nate to come help. He runs down the stairs and at first glance assures me there is nothing. At second glance he sees IT and furiously swipes at my hair. One of these!!!

It is now in my best interest to take Natalie seriously when she cries bug.

The Battle

I have things like this staring me in the face:

But all I really want to do is this:

The battle is ongoing...it is constant...and it usually ends with me sitting on the couch, legs crossed, with my blanky, sucking my thumb. It's just easier.

Mr. Incredible and His New Bike

Although the movie has proven to still be a little too "scary" for him, Jansen has really been into the Incredibles lately. He loves to lift heavy things, "move around a lot" so that he can get more muscles, and eat lots of food so that he will be strong. Here he is lifting one of the couches:

And the coffee table. Hold on Rescue Heroes figure!

We probably put off getting Jansen a new bike a little too long. Jansen has been riding his Fisher Price plastic tricycle for like 3 years now...and what a courageous and wonderful "bike" it was...he even completely wore a big hole in the front wheel. But this past Saturday we picked out this one and he has been so so excited.

It cracks me up that the bike says Major Damage on it. If this isn't positively beaming, I don't know what is.

From the man himself:

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Money Well Spent

When I saw these little gardening tools in the Target dollar section a few months ago, I knew I would not regret picking a few up. I love those mother-moments when you KNOW you are making a great decision, based on how well you know your kids and the things that will keep them busy. They have been well used already, as I knew they would be.

We have special instincts, mothers do. I am smiling to myself as I remember a couple years ago suggesting to Nate that we get Jansen his first train set. Nate said to me, "Don't you think it will just be one of those things he never really plays with?" Mothers know best.

The REAL Truth About Kiki's Visit

This post was mostly created for Kiki's husband, Ben, and her sweet children, Booker, Lincoln, and Maizie. I just wanted to let them know the REAL truth about Kiki's trip out here. It's only fair. While she missed each of you dearly, it was quite apparent to me that what she longed for most was the responsibilities at home like laundry, cleaning, cooking, and paying bills. You will see lots of smiles in these photos, but don't be fooled.

We had a heck of a time convincing her to come with us to historic downtown Powell on a sunny day and to look in cute, cute shops and buy a couple things and eat muffins. She just wanted to stay at my house and go over the family finances on her laptop.

She's smiling here, but it's not real. She misses her stain remover and her mop.

You should have seen us trying to get her to come to Jeni's so we could eat this: Brown Butter Almond Brittle: based on the traditional Norwegian dessert krokan. Browned butter gives depth to salty, sweet almond brittle. It was like pulling teeth. She insisted that there were socks that needed to be mated and pots to be scrubbed.

Ben, I really truly hoped that this picture from her trip would not surface. For reasons I will not go into here, and under circumstances beyond my control, it is appearing in this post. You will see what appears to be a very attractive man in the bushes. It was simply a moment of weakness on Kiki's part --- a moment of seduction --- I want you to know that I was there though and NOTHING HAPPENED.

I don't have pictures of all the events, but one night we went to dinner at Figlio's and I just KNOW she was miserable having to eat authentic Italian fare, engaging in only adult conversation, having someone cook her meal and clean her dishes. It was painful to watch.

One night we even gathered at my house and ate chocolate covered strawberries and potato chips and lounged on the couch, just us girls. Poor Kiki, she just had this look in her eyes all night long that said, "I just wish I could clean up dinner right now and then bathe my kids and then brush their teeth and then make them go to bed and then pick up the house instead of sit here and talk and eat food with my girlfriends."

You want to know the kicker? It about killed her to sit through a sacrament meeting with her only responsibility being to hold sweetness known as Bexley. She longed to dig through a bag to find something to quiet a crying child or to run someone out in the hall before piercing screams filled the chapel.

I'm hoping someday, somehow, I can convince her to take a girls' trip again. I just don't know if it will happen though. Well, Kiki, I know I had fun anway! And remember how I told you that the laundry and dishes can wait...that they would be right where you left them (no offense Ben) when you got back? I was right wasn't I? :)

Expecting

I'm really not sure what you were expecting to read in this post.

Maybe you were expecting to find out that we made an offer on a house in Las Vegas. (We did!)

Or it could be that you were expecting to hear all about one stinkin' fun weekend I had while Kiki was visiting. (More pictures later!)

It's certainly possible you were expecting to hear more about the Chili Chocolate Cook Off and maybe get the recipe for that yummy chocolate cake Nate made. (SOOOO good.)

It's always reasonable for you to be expecting to read about these two.

Oh, wait. You were probably expecting something more along these lines.

I'm glad I didn't disappoint you! I am coming up on 11 weeks and we are so happy. I had an ultrasound last week and things look great. I had some heavy bleeding a few weeks back and was pretty sure I had miscarried, but after having some blood work done I found out I was still pregnant. Due date is September 30. That will be all 3 kids' birthdays within about 30 days! Yikes. So far there is no reason to believe I would be at high risk for any complications or problems. It will be nice to get past about 22-26 weeks so that I can relax and feel confident about a successful pregnancy. Each and every little baby is such a miracle and blessing...we are so grateful to have the opportunity to have another one.