Thoughts

So I'm now down to the single digits ... only 9 days til my due date! Crazy how time flies. Today was a sad day. I got my first stretch marks :( Totally happened overnight. Not big ones or anything, (though I assume they'll just increase until I deliver) but I'm still pretty sad. I was starting to assume I was going to be one of the lucky ones and not get any, but I guess it's all part of the motherhood initiation. I suppose my belly must have finally reached its limit of hugeness. Oh well. Bring on the lotion!

Otherwise pregnancy is fine. Uncomfortable and sometimes a bit boring, but just fine. I'm excited to not be so huge anymore, to be able to sit up in bed without having to first employ several tricky maneuvers, and also to eventually go running! Meeting our little boy will undoubtedly be the highlight of no-longer being pregnant, but for right now it's still very surreal!

35 Weeks

This week I hit 35 weeks! Though not much has changed, I feel incrementally more uncomfortable as the days pass. I'm getting more used to a sub-par night's sleep and am having to switch sides more frequently, but not much difference in anything else. Weirdly, I don't feel bigger than I did a couple of months ago, but I'm sure you'll agree from the evidence that I've gotten MUCH larger!

Me at 25 weeks!

Me at just over 35 weeks! 

And in other news...

I've been terrible at blogging recently. I just have no desire. But here are some pictures of the last month or so to give you an idea of what we're up to... 

Brian in the apron my mum bought him for Christmas. He's been amazing since I've been pregnant! I don't have time to list the ways right now, but he's been so good and I am one spoiled pregnant lady!

I've mostly felt amazing since about week 19 or 20. I'm really grateful for that. I do get moody when tired or hungry but otherwise I'm still in that wonderful middle phase of pregnancy ... although maybe for not much longer! I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts!

Great friends! It was so fun catching up with these guys. I got to watch Nicole and Ali play some football (soccer) a couple of weeks ago and it was great fun! This pic was taken at Zupas afterwards.

More good friends! It was Angie's birthday in March and we got to go down to Draper to help celebrate. Don't ask what I'm doing... just know we had fun! It was especially wonderful to catch up with Angie's family who I hadn't seen in years. They are awesome and helped me out a ton over the years.

Brian studying... he naughtily tricked me into thinking he was going to get C's this past semester and then just yesterday we saw his grades... straight A's and A minuses!!! I was so proud, but a little mad he'd made me worry the whole semester!!!

Brian wanted to send this shot of me to our landlord... This is our bathroom. Note the two large plastic buckets on the floor filling with water coming from our vent. 

It got pretty bad. Both those buckets would fill over night. It lasted about 5 or 6 days total and was so gross. Worst of it was that it happened to be over Easter weekend when we had Brian's parents staying with from the Fri-Monday! One soggy bathroom for four people isn't fun. Thankfully they were kind enough to take us out A LOT while they were here so we didn't have to spend much time there. 

Me in my catsuit onesie. (This is mostly for my sister who I promised pictures to along time ago of us in them!)

Brian's is a monkey! The feet say "cheeky monkey!" Love them!! Thanks Lisa! they were probably the most exciting Christmas presents we got!

Me and my mother-in-law Kathy. Thanks for the Easter basket! 

It was filled with candy, toys (which Brian loved), lotion, a CD, a puzzle, and lots of other stuff I can't remember!
While they were here we got to do so many things! Several museums, a plethora of delicious places to eat (including my first-time trip to Magleby's!), WinCo (first time!), my baby shower, a BYU campus tour, a picnic, a couple of walks, the "aquarium" at BYU, played games, watched movies, and some shopping! It really was a fun-filled weekend! Thanks Kathy and David!

April has been a lot of fun and I can't believe it's almost May! I'm due May 31st, mum arrives on the 30th, we might be moving again on the 8th... it's going to be a fun month!!

Happy Thoughts :)

1. Knowing I have a box in my cupboard :)
2.   (My new Pinterest.)
3.   Finals... (Brian's) that they'll be over in a few days :)
4. 45 days til my Mum arrives :)
5.  46 days til Baby arrives... theoretically!

My Life List

On the ferry travelling to an island off the coast of Scotland

Inspired by this lady and this book, I have decided to compile a life list! (Also referred to as a bucket list, but agreeably less morbid.) 

It's random, disorganized, and definitely not set in stone but I think it'll help me keep life fun and exciting over the next few years of raising children! 

1. Get a pedicure for the first time
2. Find a French penpal
3. Have a pizza-in-the-park picnic with Brian
4. Write a novel
5. Write a memoir/autobiography 
6. Be part of a bookclub
7. Be involved in local government
8. Take a photo a day for a month
9. Get a professional massage
10. Get married
11. Have children
12. Have a dog
13. Study a religion I'm unfamiliar with
14. Try tofu
15. Take Brian to the UK to meet all my relations
16. Grow (and be able to eat) my own vegetables
17. Grow flowers
18. Take a campus tour at BYU
19. Visit a nursing home and make a new friend
20. Own and run a B&B
21. Make a retirement collage
22. Have a spa day
23. Volunteer with the elderly and/or disabled
24. Memorize the seminary scriptures again
25. Get another degree
26. Really watch a sunset
27. Watch the sunrise from a beautiful spot
28. Memorize the location of every known country
29. Get a driver's licence
30. Write at least two letters every month
31. Live in another city or country with Brian
32. Memorize 3 good jokes
33. Learn to play 5 church hymns from the hymnbook on the piano
34. Learn about clouds
35. Learn to "Master The Moment"
36. Make and send a jigsaw puzzle-letter
37. Improve my vocabulary
38. Be aware of world events by reading the newspaper or regularly checking online
39. Successfully pull off a prank
40. Make a photo collage of my blessings
41. Write a children's book
42. Write a poem
43. Have something I write published
44. Live near the mountains
45. Live near the beach (walking distance)
46. Take a cooking class
47. Learn the names of the most common plants and flowers
48. Travel to 6 of the 7 continents (not so keen on Antarctica) 
49. Learn how to weight-train
50. See a show at the West End (London)
51. See a show on Broadway
52. Learn how to take great pictures
53. Set foot in all 50 States of America
54. Read the Bible in order, cover to cover
55. Run a 5k for a good cause
56. Ride an Elephant
57. Do something awesome and girly during the priesthood session of general conference
58. Holiday in Southern France
59. Holiday in Southern France with Brian
60. Go on a cruise
61. Have a ride in a hot air balloon
62. Watch General Conference in the Conference Center
63. Watch General Conference in the Conference Center with Brian
64. Watch General Conference in the Conference Center with my kids
65. Own my favorite board games
66. Visit the Holy Land
67. Get something for free using coupons
68. Start or be part of a charity whose cause and methods I fully support
69. Get rid of my sarcasm
70. Enjoy a family camping trip
71. Join a club or group that's not through church
72. Keep my French at a decent level
73. Serve a full-time church mission
74. Serve another full-time church mission

Paulo Coelho Rant

source

So sad. You find a book you *LOVE* and then none of the author's other work can compare.

I absolutely loved The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, probably most of you have read it and will agree. Yet when I checked out his other work, I was so disappointed!

All of his other books (please! someone correct me if I'm wrong!) deal quite heavily with sexuality and sexual exploration. The one book I thought was going to be a "clean" read was Veronika Decides to Die, but even that discussed things and portrayed scenes that were way too graphic for my taste. I was able to skip most of it but even the doctor's discussion of sexuality was disturbing to me. I ended up skipping to the last chapter to see whether the story ended how I'd guessed. It did.

If there is another book he's written comparable to The Alchemist I would love to know. But for now I'm just going to have to side-step Mr. Coelho from now on.

Bits and Bobs...

Here's a lightning-fast update on the Earley family!

Big Momma!

Random Pregnancy Fun Facts:

• I'm now coming up to 28 weeks... yay for the last trimester!
• I've started wearing more of Brian's clothes... the shirt in the picture is his :) 
• Isaac (as we've now decided to call him) loves to kick. Especially at night...
• Insomnia. Probably from the kicking.
• Naps. Have hated these since the mission but have become necessary this past week...
• Nose-blowing... quite an increase since becoming pregnant... who knew?
• Pain... mostly in my hips and one side especially of my back... hurray for heating pads!
• Stuff: We now have a crib! And a car seat/stroller combo! All for $105... thank you craigslist! I will post pics of those later.

Also...

• We recycle! These cans could earn us a buck or two! (But probably just one, honestly)
• I am just LOVING Bountiful Baskets! This is the loot from our first time. Today's was just as good, actually probably better... You really can't beat a lettuce that is still alive, roots and all!
• Crepes! We've been eating a lot of them the past few weeks and have loved every single one!
• Brian's cell phone got washed and is now spending a few days with some rice in a ziplock... 
• Limes! We had loads (still do) from BB. It was my first time "zesting" or juicing one. Went well, except for my arthritic fingers afterwards! (I am honestly convinced I have arthritis... just like my Grannie....)
• The delish (ok, we'll say "nice") Coconut Lime Cookies. Quite nice in fact. Not so sweet I want to eat the whole batch, which is a good thing. I love the food blog they came from too.

We made it to the Provo Cemetery! (Another of my Bucketlist items bites the dust!) Turns out we only live 5 or so blocks away. This is how we spent the morning of labor day... or presidents' day... or whichever holiday was most recent :) The picture of Brian and I happened because I still had it on a super zoom... can you tell I'm still an amateur?

The mural is part of series painted across the side of a whole building. It lines the park just north of the cemetery. 

These next two photos are of my favorite grave.

So pretty. 

And that's all for now! 

Valentine's 2012

This year Valentine's was extra fun because Brian and I got to help put together our stake's annual Valentine's Dance!

We were primarily responsible for the decorations. Luckily we had so many wonderful people help us set up. I wish I'd taken more photos!

The doorways were probably the coolest decorations. Originally the strung hearts weren't bunched... it just became necessary when half way through the night they got all tangled. The balloon hearts were fun too! Thanks to the engineering students who assembled them, they lasted all night!

The Photo Booth!! This was a ton of fun and a lot of people got some awesome photos. The most popular props were the mustaches, the bouquet, the hat, and the plastic "feather" boa :)

The backdrop! Thanks Jaime & Cassie for putting it together!

It made for a pretty backdrop. Easy to make, too. Just twinkle lights behind a dollar-store plastic table cloth. Genius! 

Here are some of our photos. The photographers did a great job. Unfortunately I was so incredibly tired by this point. We'd shopped for hours, decorated for hours, and danced for hours... hence not looking my best!

These next pictures are from actual Valentine's day. Brian asked where I wanted to go and on the way there (I think it was originally Cafe Rio) I spotted a Denny's and that's where we ended up! Food is very urgent when you're pregnant...

Waiting for our food at Denny's...

Denny's love...

So I realized after seeing some of these pictures (and a worse one I deleted!) that I'd gotten noticeably chubbier in the face department. Pictures will be taken from above from now on! :)