Thanks

We had a great Thanksgiving! It was nice to stay here and relax a bit. Tyler and I both had lots to do school-wise, but we had fun and enjoyed a break from classes. We had Thanksgiving with Aunt Dana and the gang- a small gathering with just 7 of us, but it was so great. We even went up to Park City and did some other Black Friday shopping- our Christmas shopping is finished!! I'm pretty sure I won't want to be waddling around the mall after finals when I'm 3 weeks away from having a baby. No thank you! So it's nice to be done with that.

Now all we have to focus on is finishing the semester! 8 days of classes left and then finals week. I'm pretty sure it was just September, but I'm excited to be done.

We had a little scare yesterday, thinking maybe Peanut was as anxious to meet us as we are to meet her. As anxious as we are, we're glad she decided to stay where she belongs for the next few weeks. I was told to take it easy from here on out and come back if these contractions get any more intense or painful. Peanut, just hang in there a bit longer! I want those cheeks nice and chubby and kissable. And I'd like to at least get through finals without going into labor. Okay? Okay.

p.s. I FINALLY saw The Help on Saturday with Dana and Natty and Gabby... why did it take me so long? I loved the movie. Made me want to read the book again. So good!

33 weeks, with Lindsay

It was so fun to have Linds and Kenny and their adorable kiddos here with us on Friday and Saturday! We only wish they lived closer so we could see them more often. We were busy having fun together and neglected to take any pictures, except right before they left. Had to get a belly picture, right?? It's so fun to have sisters that are pregnant too! If only Kim would have been there to add her belly to the mix.

Our dad always used to say "Back to back!" whenever we talked about our heights. We thought we'd look at width this time instead of height... 

We had a fun weekend with them here. We ate some Cafe Rio and had BYU Creamery ice cream- something they don't have out in Cleveland and we just like to eat. Other than that we just enjoyed visiting and being together! Ben and Charlotte came over for a bit on Saturday and it was great to see them. 

p.s. I had another dream last night that Peanut was a boy. Should I take these seriously?? I'm tempted to ask for another ultrasound... dreams are so funny. He was a super-cute little boy though! I also had a dream this week that I was in labor and Peanut started twisting around and around and I could see her twisting from the outside. So strange!

One more reason

I am so glad it's the holiday season, if only because these commercials have begun airing again!

Not sure why I find her so hilarious. I once went to IHOP with some family on the day after Thanksgiving and saw a group of middle-aged women- all in expensive-looking track suits and looking extremely tired. One of them had her hand over her face for a while, and when she finally took it down, I saw a nice long scratch from just below her eye to her jaw! I'm sure the other lady looked worse.

These ladies seemed a little bit extreme, but I have to admit... I love Black Friday shopping!! We'll hopefully head to Park City again this year. Can't wait!

Also, Lindsay and her cute fam are coming this weekend... we are so excited! Plus, I rocked my statistics exam today, taking me down to only one more test before I get to relax for Thanksgiving. Great week? I think so!!

Breakdown, pickup

Today has been a weird day, and it's only partly over.

This morning brought nausea. I've been feeling nauseous in the mornings the last few weeks, but never like this morning. I think I even remember saying something to Tyler about putting our bedroom on a roller coaster? Everything was spinning and I could not move- I felt like I was going to fall off the bed. What's weird is that even in the first trimester, I never had morning sickness! I only felt sick at night, so this is new for me. I have to say, I'm not a huge fan. I'll keep the night sickness, thank you. So of course Tyler was so sweet and brought me water and a mint and a bucket. :) Yep, he's a keeper. By the time he got home from work, I was just sick of it. Of everything. Tyler let me cry on his shoulder and complain about school, being pregnant, feeling crappy, being a complainer/cryer, and whatever else came out of my mouth. It was silly. But he is so encouraging and loving- he reminded me that there are only a few weeks left, and then school is over and Peanut will be here. I'm so thankful for him. And also super embarrassed at what a wimp I am. I've had a really great pregnancy and haven't been sick very much! I should be more grateful.

But the day is looking up. I have eaten finally and went to my class this afternoon. Tonight is Piper's 1st birthday party, and we're excited to see everyone.

Other good stuff: being pleasantly surprised by how much we liked eating at Village Inn on Saturday; I finally got my pumpkin oreo shake Saturday afternoon; crepe night with Jeff and Robin yesterday; catching up in my reading for our bishop's Book of Mormon challenge. Also, the fact that 3/4 of the things I just listed included food. That's awesome.

Oh, and these! I cannot wait to see both of these movies!!

Collection of random thoughts

-The weather may be getting colder, but I am still craving a pumpkin oreo shake from Arctic Circle. My cravings are the type that don't go away until they're satisfied... we'd better get to "where the good stuff is" pretty soon!

-I know it wasn't very long ago that I gushed about Tyler, but I just can't help it. Walking from home to campus as much as I was all semester was starting to get to be a little much for Peanut and I. So you know what Tyler does? 2 days a week, he leaves for work 15 minutes earlier (that's 6:30, mind you) to take me to campus. The other 3 days he gets to work AT 6:30 so that he can get off early enough to take me to my afternoon classes. What would I do without him? I can't wait to tell our little girl all about her superhero dad and all the things he did for me and her before she was even here.

-A girl in my ward had a baby about a week ago- the baby came 7 weeks early! Scary stuff. Luckily their baby girl is doing well- she only had to have breathing support for 24 hours and will only be in the hospital until she learns to eat. As I was making dinner to take to them last night, I couldn't help but think about all the things that could go wrong in a pregnancy and delivery. The fact that this process goes right as often as it does is a miracle! I'm so grateful that so far Peanut and I have both been healthy.

-This post is a lot about Peanut, but I finally realized yesterday that those little spasms I feel once or twice a day are hiccups! Can't believe I didn't figure that out before. I hope for her sake that her hiccups aren't painful like her mom's... how cute is it that she gets hiccups? She's totally a little person already. That blows my mind.

-Tyler and I went to Park City with Cari and Ryan and their kiddos and had a blast! We shopped around a bit (I found 2 outfits for Peanut... couldn't resist) and ate at the Loco Lizard, I think it was called. It was delish and we loved spending time with Cari and Ryan. Grace and Jaac told the best knock-knock jokes- they make us so excited to have kids that age! We're going to miss them all so much when we leave in April.

-Not including holidays, we only have 3.5 weeks of classes left. That means we can probably definitely make it, right? Just kidding... it's all going by so fast!

But who's counting?

-21 days til Thanksgiving

-43 days til the end of the semester

-52 days til Christmas

-59 days til my birthday

-66 days til Peanut's due date

So many exciting things ahead... trying hard to remember to appreciate each day until all this exciting stuff. Because I know all the craziness of the holidays/finals/baby-ness will make a part of me miss these quiet evenings with Tyler, not having much to worry about besides homework. 

But it doesn't hurt to be excited, right??

First things first

I think I could listen to Christmas music all year long... it makes my heart feel so warm and happy! But I only let myself listen to it from Nov. 1st through New Year's. So of course, today is the day I start. Before I get too caught up in Christmas, I thought I'd give a shout-out to Thanksgiving by listening to probably one of my favorite Josh Groban songs ever! [Even if it is on his Christmas CD]

There are so many things I have to be grateful for, but I've been especially grateful for family lately. The family I was born into, the family I married into, and the family Tyler and I began over 2 years ago. I'm grateful for this little Peanut growing inside me and for the joy she already brings to us. I feel so lucky and blessed and happy! What a great time of year!