Anticipation

So much to come...my mind is just filled with things to come! These next few weeks are going to be pretty busy and filled with much anticipation. Let me fill you in...

Back in February we bought a townhome! It hasn't seemed real though because we still are not in the townhome. They have been in the process of building them and they are finally finished! We have our walk-through this Monday and then we close on Friday. We have loved our apartment but we are so excited to have more space and I abosuletly love the townhome! We have been spoiled having a brand new apartment and we will continue to be spoiled with a brand new townhome. I am excited to move but dreading it at the same time. Since the townhome is ours, we can do whatever we want to it so some of the things my mind has been filled with are paint colors, decorating, BABY J's room, new furniture, etc. Decorating overwhelms me at times. I want everything to look nice but don't know really what I am doing...I need my Mom haha. I am also having a hard time deciding on how to do Baby's nursery. Decisions, decisions, decisions! (Something I'm not good at haha) I should also start packing. I need to actually do and not think! The time has finally come!

A work in progress still...

The almost finished product!

10244 Red Currant Court...our soon to be called home!

The school year is also finishing up which means I almost done with work. I had told my boss that I could finish out the school year and then I would be done. This next week is my last week of teaching my Stretch-n-Grow classes and then the week after that my little cheerleaders have their pep rallies! So my mind has been filled with cheers, pink, and stars as well. I just pray the pep rallies go well and that everyone likes them! The girls are so cute and most of them are around 4 years old so I figure it's ok if they are not perfect. :) I had one girl have a breakdown last week though because they had to do their cheers in front of their class. I was so surprised she freaked out because she is one of my most outgoing and crazy girls! Hopefully she will be ok for the pep rally because she cracks me up everytime she does her cheers. I have a feeling when I am done with work, I am really going to miss these kids!

Luckily I have a vacation to fill the void though! June 9th: official last day of work, and then June 11th: fly to Utah! I have been so excited to come and visit my family and friends and have just been counting down the days. I just wish it would come already!

And of course, my mind is always thinking of this little boy growing inside of me! I got to see him this week although he was snoozing and we couldn't get him to show his face! He always seems to be sleeping when I have the ultrasounds. Otherwise he is moving like crazy and kicking all the time. I will just sit and watch my stomach move as he throws punches and kicks. I guess he needs more room haha. He weighs 1 1b. 10 oz and seems to be healthy!

Me and baby today at 24, almost 25 weeks!

Way to go Mom and Dad!

Yesterday was my parents 40th wedding anniversary!! I am so proud of my parents. When I think 40 years, all I think is wow! My parents don't seem that old to me so it seemed weird that they have been married that long already. It seems like they just had their 25th! I am so grateful for my parents though and their marriage. Sadly, it is rare now to see couples married for that long. They have been such a great example to me and I thank them for honoring their marriage and keeping it strong.

I think of all that they have accomplished in 40 years of marriage and the greatest thing of all is the family they created. It all began with one son, four daughters then grew to two son-in-laws, eight grandchildren-and one more on the way :). Our family will only continue to grow but it all started with them and I am forever thankful for them for bringing me up in a family that was surrounded by love and care. They always worked so hard and still do to make sure we had everything we needed and I have never known someone to be so devoted to their family and their spouse. Thank you Mom and Dad for loving each other and us so much! Here are to many more wonderful years of marriage! :)

My beautiful Mom and handsome Dad :)

I look at this picture and it just gives me so much joy. Love you both!

It's a BOY!!!

We finally know!! We are going to have a bebecito! Everyone guessed a girl except my parents and Jeff. My first impression was a boy but then everyone around me was having girls! We will have a boy though now to balance it out. :)

I would have to say finding out the gender has been the best part of this pregnancy yet. We just went to an ultrasound center because otherwise we would have had to wait until May to find out and I did not want to wait that long! I was so eager while we were in the room waiting to see something then all of a sudden she started typing and "It's a Boy" appeared up on the screen! Jeff started celebrating and I was trying to fight back tears (not because I was sad, it's just so overwhelming!). The whole process is just so amazing and it is so neat to be able to see your baby. I had no idea what we were looking at so I was surprised when she wrote up there it was a boy. I didn't know she had found something! I know longer have to call him "it" though and now I can really start planning. We are extremely excited and can't wait to have our little boy with us.

This picture is from my 13 week ultrasound but it is my favorite one because you can see him so well! I love the profile shots :)

I am 18 weeks here and a few days after we found out.

I will be 20 weeks this next week and half way there! I already feel like I have been pregnant forever though and there is still so much more to come. My stomach already feels so stretched and I can't imagine that it has even more to stretch! I thought I was going to like being pregnant, but to be honest, I actually don't enjoy it very much. (I feel horrible saying that!) I just never quite feel that good and I miss being able to really move and dance and function without having to go to the bathroom every 3o minutes haha. They say the second trimester is the honeymoon stage but I am still waiting for that honeymoon to come. I am thrilled though that I am having this baby and I wouldn't change that fact! I am just trying to be as positive as possible and know that my body won't be like this forever. On a more positive note, I have been able to feel the baby's kicks for the past couple of weeks and they are getting really strong. Jeff finally was able to feel some this past week and I love that! I love this little baby even if he makes me feel sick and I can't wait to kiss his little cheeks!

Cruisin'

Jeff and I had the most wonderful opportunity to go on a cruise the beginning of February. It was our Christmas/Valentine's Day present to each other and it was the best gift ever! I had never been on a cruise before so I was so excited and I am definitely a fan now! I would recommend it to anyone (unless you get horrible motion sickness). It is one of the best vacations because once you buy your ticket everything else is pretty much provided for you! I was a little nervous about going and being pregnant because I was not feeling very well but I actually felt better on the cruise! I only got sick a few times the whole trip! I was so relieved because I didn't want to ruin the whole trip with me being draped over the toilet. It was actually a great trip being pregnant though because I didn't have to worry about cleaning or cooking. It was all done for me and I loved the special treatment. :) It was an overload of food but I think Baby liked it since I didn't get sick much! The entertainment was great too and there was something different to do each night like ice skating/dancing shows, newly wed game show, comedians, karaoke...it was all fabulous!

Royal Caribbean was the cruise line and ours was a four night cruise. We left from Miami and then sailed to Cozumel, Mexico then back. Here are just a few pics!

Bon voyage! Leaving Miami

Back on land in Cozumel! We just rented a scooter for the day and drove around to see all the sights. It was so much fun!! I really liked Cozumel and I loved being around all the people and speaking Spanish. Well, Jeff did most of the talking but I was able to squeeze in a few words too! I realized how much I missed speaking Spanish! This picture just makes me laugh though.

The water in Cozumel was GORGEOUS! I think it is some of the most beautiful water I have ever seen. It was the purest blue and green and you could see right through it. It was mesmerizing!

Adios Mexico! Back on the ship and on our way back (boo).

Jeff and I on the formal night. It was fun to get dressed up and as everyone sipped their complimentary champagne we sipped our complimentary shirley temples!
It was a wonderful trip and I enjoyed dancing, dining, and just getting some good R&R with my sweetie!

Our family is growing!

Once again it's been forever since I have posted anything and it's not like I haven't had anything to blog about because I do! I think most everyone knows but we have a BABY on the way!! My due date is September 7th and I will be 12 weeks on Tuesday. I am so happy and I get so excited when I think I am going to be a mommy! Sometimes I feel like I am not actually pregnant because there is no tummy yet but then I know I normally don't feel nasueas and so lethargic so something has to be going on! It is just an amazing thing a baby can develop and grow inside of you!

Jeff and I decided we were ready to start a family and Heavenly Father must have agreed because it seemed to happen the instant we made that decision haha. I wasn't expecting to get pregnant that fast and I actually thought something else was wrong me and that I wasn't pregnant! I found out the beginning of January and was so stunned when the test said PREGNANT. I secretly was hoping that it would but I didn't want to be disappointed so I kept telling myself no, you're not pregnant. I was happy to prove myself wrong!

Jeff is so excited as well and I can't wait to see him as a daddy. I know he will be a great father and I am so thankful that I have him as we embark on this new adventure in our lives. He has been working so hard for us so we can provide for this little one! He has been so supportive of me too and loving as I go through my not so wonderful days. Having a strong gag reflux himself, he has been so sweet to still come in and rub my back as I throw up or deal with me throwing up in bags as we drive in the car. He just turns his back so he can't see what comes out! I love him and appreciate him so much! Luckily I have been starting to feel a little bit better so hopefully those not so wonderful days will start to dwindle.

I feel so blessed to have this opportunity to carry this, our very own baby. I pray everyday that it will grow and be healthy and that I may be prepared to take care of this little spirit!

Whether it's a girl or a boy we will be happy! I just can't wait to hold my baby in my arms!!!

A Thankful Thanksgiving

I can't believe Thanksgiving has passed and it is almost December! Florida has me all confused what time of the year it is because the weather doesn't change! It was rainy before Thanksgiving though which I liked because it reminded me of Thanksgiving growing up in California. It was a different Thanksgiving though because it was my first in Florida and my first away from my family. It was still a wonderful Thanksgiving though and I have gained new family and it was great to spend it with them. Jeff and I couldn't go anywhere for Thanksgiving so Jeff's parents came down to us and we celebrated together! We cooked all the food in our apartment and then we took it down to Siesta Key where we ate with our little old lady friend, Jane. She is the sweetest lady you will ever meet! Her health is not very good and she was going to be all alone and we couldn't let that be so we went to her. I had never done a Thanksgiving meal before myself but thank goodness for Jeff's mom! She is a machine and knows how to get it done! I would have been lost without her!

The table

Did you ever make these? My mom used to make these little turkeys for us so I decided to do some!

Our spread of food

The gang!

It was a great Thanksgiving and as always on Thanksgiving, you have to say what you are thankful for! There are many, many things I am thankful for but the thing that I am most grateful for this year is the ability we have to communicate and travel. Being away from family has made me realize how grateful I am for cars, planes, phones, computers, even texting! I know it may sound silly but it wasn't too long ago that I wouldn't have been able to communicate with my family the way we can today. I can hop on a plane and see my family in a day if I wanted although they live thousand miles away! Jeff's parents were able to come down here and be with us and we were able to drive to be with Jane. It truly is a blessing in my life and I am grateful people are willing to come and visit us too! :)

I also learned something else this Thanksgiving. I was missing my family terribly and wanting to cry but as we were sitting at the dinner table and Jeff was next to me with his arm around me, a wave of comfort came over me and I realized that all I need is him. Although I wished my family could have been there and wanted to be with them so bad, I was ok because he was with me. I have always known you are to "cling unto your spouse" and that all I need is him but this was a true testament of that to me and I am so thankful I have him to "cling to." He is my rock!


Well, I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving and I guess it's time to pull out those Christmas decorations! Happy Holidays! :)

Company!

I don't know why I have the hardest time keeping up with blogging but back in October my mom and sis came to visit us here in Florida and it was so fun! It was good to have them here and for them to finally see where we are living and everything. I wish they could have stayed a little longer but we tried to squeeze in as much as we could! Here is a quick overview of what we did...

We went to a USF football game

We went to the beach. The first time we went it was a little too cold so we didn't stay very long but we went again and the weather was much better!

We took them to The Old Salty Dog of course...

We went to Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. There were no lines so we were able to cover most of the rides and I was so proud of my mom. She went on every ride despite the outcome of her hairdo haha. I love her.

Some of my favorite pics :)

We ate tons! We tried some new restaurants and some Jeff and I had been to already. My mom loves key lime pie so we tried many different kinds of key lime pie, humongous cookies from Universal, multiple desserts from Berns Steakhouse dessert room (which were actually a disapointment), and fried chicken and pies from Yoder's (another restaurant from Man vs Food). My family has an incredible ability to eat haha and this doesn't even cover half of what we ate.

Dinner at one restaurant...

on to dessert at the next!

The time went all too quickly though and I had to say good-bye. It was so hard for me! It was almost harder saying good-bye then than when we moved! After I dropped them off at the airport, I literally cried all the way home. I felt like a part of me had been taken away and I haven't felt like that in a long time or not since Jeff and I had gone through our break-ups. I think I felt so sad because I have everything here in Florida I want except my family. It is easier for me to leave Utah because I am going back to Jeff but this time they were leaving me! To help ease my pain, Jeff told me to plan a trip home so I bought a ticket after they left and I'm going back in January! I wish Florida wasn't so far from them but I am thankful that they were able to come and that I was able to spend the time that I did with them! I love my family!