Got Balls?

Rylee update

2012-02-12T21:05:00.000-08:00

I haven't done a Rylee update in a while so I thought it would write down some stuff I want to remember

Rylee 8 1/2 months old

Loves to give kisses. She has to grab your face and with open mouth on your mouth or noise then holds it for at least 10 seconds.
Now says Uh-oh when she drops something.. or throws something over the edge
Has to always be jumping. Now in her hair chair she can scoot it forward because she is jumping around so much
Wiggles so much its hard to hold on to her
Loves peas. She laughs the whole time she eats them. I guess it's funny to catch it and eat it
Understands sign for more and eat but isn't close to doing them
Laughs when you bark like a dog
Loves "Down on grandpa's farm" and "Old McDonald" and "Bingo"and "Baby Beluga" when played on youtube
Loves her puzzle book with farm animals
Loves going on walks at night
Not a fan of baby food. She wants to feed herself
Eats bananas, yams, green beans, bread, yum yums, peas, anything really
Loves to drink water hates juice
Fake laughs to get peoples attention
Has to have everyone look at her
Knows how to make people smile
Finally has hair to put bows in and leaves them in
"talks" like crazy
Growls at us.. don't know where that came from
Thinks Daddy is sooo funny no matter what
Happiest when both mom and dad are home
Still sleeps through the night
Gets slap happy at night and laughs like crazy
Found her toes and will eat them
Has to have a diaper in her hands when we change her
Loves bath time or taking a shower. Washes her own hair. Drinks the water out of her wash cloth
Hates getting dressed
Hates her car seat
Will snuggle when tired
Pushes her lips out and makes angry faces
Will imitate any noise we make
Copied us blowing on hot food and will blow on her food sometimes
HATES Tummy time
Still not mobile
Now rolls over again when put on tummy
Trying to pull self up but hasn't yet
Loves her magnets
Loves pulling the books of her shelf
Understands ledges and will scoot to get over or throw something off
When she is done eating will pull her food a part into small pieces and throw it off her high chair
Loves cords and yarn balls
Has 2 bottom teeth
Shakes her head all the time
Loves to pull stuff out of the diaper bag or toy box
Just started putting things back into bag or box
Pretty much happy all the time. Only cries when tired and thirsty

We LOVE being Rylee's parents. We had one night where we think her ear hurt. She wouldn't lay down at all and kept touching her ear. I fed her and fell asleep around 10-12 with BJ playing with her. Woke up to her crying and I tried putting her to sleep but she was not happy. We gave her some meds but she just wanted to snuggle. I walked around the house (SOO happy to have a house I can walk around in!) for an hour. I passed her off to BJ to sit down for a minute but she just wanted me. I sent BJ to bed at 2 turned on Beauty and the Beast. She isn't into TV but loves music now. She fell asleep snuggling me so I slept in my rocking chair. She woke up crying every 45 minutes and I would walk around with her until she fell back asleep. She woke up around 6 happy and wide awake. I woke up BJ and passed her off and fell asleep until 9:30. I woke up to them asleep in the rocking chair. It was a long night but not that bad.

We love watching her learn new things and we laugh all day long at funny things she does. She is such a ham these days and always fun to be around.

Project Table

2012-02-12T12:29:00.000-08:00

I sanded down my table. That took a long time. I did it all by hand.

I think it turned out good. I didn't take a close up of the table because it isn't done yet. My sister Kim said to try stain to make it the color I want. We haven't found the right stain yet. Hopefully our next trip into IF I will be able to finish it. I think it is fun having a bright spot in my dining room. I love how my chair turned out too.

This is where I got my idea from. My sister Kim sent me the Ball picture for Christmas. I loved the color of it so thats why I painted my table blue. My mom also gave me a blue tinted Ball jar for my wedding that I have always loved. I love my dining room. Now I just need to do something with the rest of the place!

New place

2012-02-01T21:47:00.000-08:00

Our living room is HUGE! It is about the size of my old living room, dining room, and kitchen put together!!! I love the fireplace, which we can't use for some reason, and built ins. The heat comes from the ceiling. I guess there are a bunch of coils that heat up and send it down into the room. It feels like the sun shining down on you. I just hope it doesn't cost too much to use!

Our stuff looks so tiny in this huge room! I also found drapes at the thrift store for my big window. The table is not in this room we were just moving stuff around.

Our dining room. I love how big it is! The built in china cabinet is awesome! I got a ton of white serving dishes when we got married so now I can display them! We also put our desk in this room. Its nice to have a place for the printer now.

My kitchen is already amazing! It didn't have a dishwasher so we sold our old snow tires and got a portable one. Its nice because I can push it off to the side and fill it up then bring it to the sink and turn it on. It also acts like an island for extra space when cooking.

This is 3rd bedroom space. It doesn't have a heater so we just use it as our storage/ pantry room. I'm going to set up my sewing machine in here too.

The laundry room is shared and downstairs but it is large and nice to have.

The backyard isn't fenced but there is a ton of space. We are hoping the lady lets us put in a garden this spring.

I have my linen closet! Our room is about the same size as our last place but Rylee's room is bigger. We finally tracked down 2 dressers to use. Why do they have to cost so much?!? Thankfully we found great deals at D.I. and other thrift stores.

The tub is bigger than the last place and has cool little shelves too.

I found these gems at the thrift store. I'm painting my table blue so these will be perfect to add some color to my china cabinet! $5 for a set of 6. You can't go wrong with that!

We bought new chairs because we broke 2 of our chairs that go with the table. I upholstered the seats to match my table.

BJ found this fabric and I was so excited. It reminds me of things I see on HGTV.

In the process of sanding and painting. So far the blue I picked is brighter than I wanted so I'm trying to find ways to mute it a little. I still think it will be an awesome pop of color though.

All in all we love this new place. Rylee adjusted really quick. She loves that she can play with her toys in the living room and still see me in the kitchen and vise versa. We have already had our neighbors come visit us too. An older lady lives under us in the basement and she is kind of crazy but we rarely see her. Unless of course we park on her side. She will come tell us to move every single time. If you want our new address let me know!

SUPER BOWL

2012-01-22T20:04:00.000-08:00

Giants going to the super bowl! YEAH BOY!

prince amukamara #20 DB

I still say he owes me for all those ankles I taped, all the ice bags I made, all the heat packs, filling all those water bottles.

Way to make Apollo High School proud!

Super bowl party here we come!

Internship

2012-01-10T10:02:00.000-08:00

In my Child 310 class we were asked why we picked Early Childhood Development as our major. I thought about it and at first I thought, " Well I like kids. I do well with kids. That's why!" Then I had to dig deeper and I wondered why I did choose to learn about children.

I realized that the real reason I wanted a bachelors in this major was because I feel that children deserve the best. If we can enrich their lives early on then we can help them to become more successful and achieve more later in life. We need to give them the best foundation possible. Everyone knows how to play with children but not everyone knows what milestones they should reach when and why and what to do if they don't or how to disciple in the best way. There is no set right way how to raise a child but there is a for sure set way on how to NOT raise a child. I want to help children be able to grow up in happy non abuses homes. It's not enough to just raise my children that way. I want to help my community as well.

Idaho has a great program called Parents as Teachers. When you have a child they ask if you want to sign up for it. I did and love it! What is it you ask?

http://www.parentsasteachers.org/about/what-we-do is a website that explains it better. Mostly you get home visits each month and someone will bring information on the age of the child to help you better connect, raise, and play with your child.

I found out that they were doing training here in Rexburg for the first time in 8 years and I could do it as an internship! I get trained in Feburary then I will get 5 families that just had a baby and I get to take information to them each month and help them give their child the best resources that they might not have been able to give them otherwise.

I am so excited.This is the reason I am still in school. I'm kind of over the whole nursing thing. Mostly because I HATE being away from Rylee the 5 hours I am at school. BJ has been a great help but for some reasons Dad's just aren't as good at the Mom job. He is great with Rylee but can't seem to figure out the whole keeping up with the house part too. I told him since we are both in school and working we needed to split the house work too. He agreed but I still seem to stay up doing everything. I think its funny listening to him say how hard it was to make phone calls with Rylee yelling at him. I think its good that he gets to see why I have been struggling figuring out how to do stuff. He gets it now. I just chuckle when I come home and do the dishes he said he was going to do 2 days ago. At least he will never be the husband that asks what I've done all day =]

School

2012-01-02T21:32:00.000-08:00

This is the first semester in my entire life that I have not wanted to start school. It makes me sad but then I do homework at night and realize that it's ok to be over the whole school thing.

I know I will finish even if in my head I am already done. It has taken me sooooo long to do school. Its my fault for moving around so much but goodness I didn't realize how much it would take out of me.

After a day of cleaning and taking care of BJ and Rylee I really don't want to spend hours on the computer doing homework. I want to read my book and do nothing. Tis not so anymore.

I started reread the whole Inheritance Cycle again. The 4th book was released in November and my brother in law Matt had the whole collection so I figured I'd read it over Christmas break. Since it has been a year or so since I read the other 3 I re read them and sadly I realized I can't read like I used too. I can sit and read an entire book with only food and pee breaks. It took me 2 weeks to read 3 books. It never takes me that long. Now I am on the 4th book which is the one I haven't read and school has started. I'm sad it will take me all semester to read it. I've never had to read a book so slowly before. I hope I don't lose interest in it. The only reason I read Eragon was because everyone said it only had 3 books and I wanted a quick read at the time. Since I hate books that aren't in series it was perfect. I got to the end of the 3rd book and realized there was going to be another and I was mad. Now that it is out it is going to take forever to get through it. Oh well maybe this will help me learn to read a book in more then 3 days.

I recommend the series if you like magic and olden days with elves and such. I'm not a huge fan like Lord of the Rings but these books are fun because its about a kid learning to be an adult so quickly and learning about the world. I like them even if I skip whole paragraphs at a time because I don't care what the sunset looked like.

I think I also am doing an internship this semester too. I need to make sure I still can. BJ dropped some classes so that he can help take care of Rylee and milk cows too. Plus he didn't get good grades last semester so we figured it would be best to go slowly and get good grades then fast and get bad grades.

Lets hope we make it through until April!

Christmas

2011-12-30T14:23:00.000-08:00

Rylee's Christmas dress was from her cousin Lili. We went through her old clothes and found this. I'm glad Lili was the first grandbaby and that Kim kept all her clothes so Rylee can have cute stuff.

She is such a ham these days. Sticking her tongue is normal around here.

BJ had Rylee help him decorate the tree. She loved it!

She played with tree almost everyday. She broke one of the ornaments by accident but that was my fault since I have her a wooden one to play with and it flew out of her hand on accident.

Christmas Eve we went sledding. She didn't mind as long as someone was pulling her while the other sled down the hill. We had a lot of fun. There was hardly any snow but it was perfect for sledding. We then rented Cars 2 and Super 8 to watch that night.

Christmas morning was fun. Rylee loves grabbing everything so we just put her gift in front of her and she grabbed it and once we got it open she played with each thing before she opened the next gift. She loved the boxes too. I love how she learns so quickly. Kerri sent her a train that you push a button and balls go around inside. It took her less than a day to figure out how to push the button to make the balls go around. At first they went to fast for her to grab but she figured out all she had to do was push it over and they would roll out. I love watching her play with it.

We had fun opening presents from our family. BJ got his gift early which was shot gun and .22 bullets. I got my steam mop and have been loving it! Aunt Marsha gave us money for an exersaucer and with some money we got from my parents we went for the jumping one. She loves to jump and she figured out how to turn around and play with each toy. Whenever she jumps it plays music. She loves it!

For Christmas Eve we wanted hamburgers so we went and got a camping grill. We made Cheeseburgers on ciabatta bread with Henry Whinehart Rootbeer. I'm pretty sure we will do this every year!!!

Christmas day we went to Church which was amazing! We had our own concert with french horns, violins, cello, oboes, piano, with amazing singers. I was so impressed! We came home and had lasagna with Matt and Camelle (who by the way are having a girl!!!!! and Marie is having a boy and and girl!). We had a lot of fun and enjoyed our time as a family. We hope we can make it down to Phoenix next year since we wont get to be there this summer.

I wanted to take pictures out in the snow but there wasn't really very much. It hasn't snowed in awhile and right now there is non to be found at all.

Biggest Winner

2011-12-09T11:47:00.001-08:00

Chase (Trainer), Natalia, Mary, Me, Elizabeth, Angela (Trainer) not pictured Hannah

The Biggest Winner team that WON!

After a semester of working out and having many ups and downs I lost 10 pounds. Everyone asked me if I felt stronger and better during my work outs and all I could say was no. I guess the program was different for me. Most of the people have taken a life time of not working out and being unhealthy that this program changed their life. Me, I just had 9 months of growing a baby and am not close to being back to my active healthy lifestyle. This program was a great jump start but it didn't change my life. I wish I would have realized this half way through. I had many many many complaints about the program and ways it wasn't working for me. After the closing ceremony and listening to a girl go on and on about finally getting healthy and feeling good about herself for the first time, I realized oh that was the point of this. For example, she was over the moon excited that she could run a mile in 11 minutes and I was super depressed that I ran my 5k with 10 minute miles. The point of this program wasn't shed as many pounds as you can and work out as hard as you can. It was learning to be happy with your body and to see that you can do hard things. Even though I was far above everyone in the workout sense and wished for better work outs and more weight lose, I had a good time.

Our team some how won the whole thing. Mary, my teammate, also lost 22 pounds and 3% body fat! We got a backpack, a single serve blender, and a water bottle. I gave mine to Chase my trainer since they were one short. But I did get a shirt and that is by far better than anything. I love getting shirts!!

Overall I made great friends and I'm working on getting back to pre pregnant Krystal. I'm getting there and it is fun to see results!

Thanksgiving

2011-12-01T21:32:00.001-08:00

Rylee loved her uncle "cookie" (garrett tried to get me to name her cookie and when i didn't he became her uncle cookie. My sister kim has her kids call him bubba and kerri has her kids call him nacho. It confusing but he loves it)

Jessica's boyfriend justin joined us this year.

My favorite part is when we go around and say what we are thankful for. It always starts out funny then gets cheesy then really touching. I love it! I look forward to it every year. This year we did it a day late so BJ and I could join them and it wasn't our normal game filled pool diving day. I liked it though. We all were together and enjoying our time but didn't have the pressure to make it THANKGIVING cuz it wasn't but was for us.

Of course we sang happy birthday to Garrett and ate chocolate cake.

This year we went Black Friday shopping. BJ got money to buy new jeans and he had some left over money so of course the princess got a toy with it. Grandma had some blocks and Rylee loved pushing them over so we got her some blocks to play with.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday with family. Well other than the 4th of July. I'm thankful I have amazing family who love us and we always have fun.

I am also thankful for my little family. I am super blessed to have my husband and daughter and couldn't ask for a better family!

Balls family reunion day 1

2011-11-23T17:17:00.001-08:00

We had a family birthday party for BJ, Rachel, and Caleb. Rylee got her first taste of cousin time! She got pushed over for the first time and cried. I thought it was awesome! It is baby boom time in the Balls family. I love it!

The Balls family reunion started today. A couple of families made it and we were getting the rules told to us. As i looked around the room and told BJ that this wasn't even close to the number that was going to be there ( close to 70) and it probably was more then my entire family including both sides. This is just one side and not everyone (even close) is going to make it. I love that I married into a large family. I had no idea what it was like. My family is super tiny compared to his. I got to experience the Quigely side last summer now the Balls. I only know about .25% of their names but it is so much fun!

Cousin time

Livvy is 1 month older than rylee. She crawls Rylee sits.

Rylee tried getting on her terms. She wasn't impressed

They love looking at each other and talking. It makes me so happy that she has a cousin her age! Plus many more close to her

We had Josh ( a second cousin) get his mission call so we all gathered to open it.

He just read Pennsylvania. He wasn't very excited until he read he was leaving Jan 18 then they all broke and looked up everything about PA! It was so fun to be apart of this! My favorite quote from the newest missionary, " I was starving but now I can't eat!!!!"

Day 1 down 2 more to go!

Prescott

2011-11-23T17:14:00.001-08:00

First time in a high chair and she loved it!!

I love you from my head to the tips of my toes!

She loved playing with Grandma and Grandpa.

When I went to get a picture with grandma Rylee threw up on grandma's face. i was laughing to hard to get the picture. We love you grandma!

We met up with the Listers at the mall and Rylee snuggled up to uncle kevin. She was in heaven while in his arms. Too cute!!

6 month birthday

2011-11-23T17:11:00.001-08:00

Today Rylee is 6 months old.

I love this face!

I let her have the time of her life with her banana. She pretty much ate the entire thing and sat in her high chair for a good hour. I love watching her do new things!!

Happy Birthday

2011-11-21T09:56:00.001-08:00

Happy 25th Birthday to the greatest Daddy a girl could ever ask for!

6 months

2011-11-15T22:14:00.001-08:00

Next week my not so little baby turns 6 months old! I for one love watching her grow up and seeing all the new stuff she can do each day.

I wish I had a recent picture to post but my camera is dead and has been dead for awhile now.

We are coming down to AZ next week for thanksgiving so my camera will be up and running again so I can take lots of pictures.

Rylee is so much fun! She has mastered sitting up by herself which makes my life so much easier! I don't want this phase to end!! Sacrament is now super easy! First time I have taken it without having a very sad baby and wishing it would go faster. She just sits on the floors and plays. SO NICE! I also get to sleep longer in the mornings. I bring her to our bed and sit her with a toy between me and BJ and she will play for a good 30 minutes while we sleep. I also can do both my hair and make-up while she plays with a toy!!

She has developed a whinny noise now. I try not to tend to her when she makes it so I'm hoping it passes real soon. It drives me nuts! She also has a little cough but she like the sound so she fake coughs 3-5 times after a real cough. I never know which one is real or fake unless I see her smiling while she coughs.

She is now getting clingy to me. (its a secret but I really do love it!!!) She spends a hour or so with her daddy every night so I can go work out and is always super happy when I come home. If she could have it her way both of us would be home all day with her. She is way happier when we are both home.

Rylee now loves the mirror. At first the mirror scared her and she would always cry when we put her in front of it. Now I have brought my mirror downstairs and she makes it goobery every day.

This week Rylee learned how to give kisses! It melts my heart!!! She now gives herself kisses and daddy. I'm not so much a fan of how wet they are so I just stick to kissing her.

She has mastered the Johnny Jumper. She gets some good air in it too. She loves it but not for very long.

She now hates her car seat. I use food and her juice cup to get her into the car without too much crying.

She still loves food. Bananas are great. She loves butternut squish. I made a ton and froze it and she is already two bags into my stash. She likes applesauce so her and daddy eat it together (YUCK!). Yum-Yum rice rusks are still a big hit. She will grab anything off my place and eat it if I let her. She sucked on broccoli today and loved it. She likes baby oatmeal I'm just not great at always making it. Apple juice in her training sippy cup is always a hit as well as prune juice. Ritz crackers are favs but we are thinking those cause constipation so we are stopping them. She like the rod pretzels and bread. She hates when she gets a big chunk and I have to fish it out of her mouth.

She still isn't interested in being on her tummy but she doesn't mind being on her back if she has a toy.

She is still my happy lovable baby! We are super blessed to have her in our family. Even with the once a week where she wont sleep for more then 2 hours at a time is worth it because she sleeps 9-10 hours the rest of the week. She always has us laughing at her many facial expression, babbling noises, and getting into everything even if she isn't mobile.

bath time

2011-11-09T17:51:00.000-08:00

Rylee was never a fan of taking baths. She loved showers though. If she was upset a shower always calmed her down. She is getting super wiggly and wanting to grab everything. Showers with the husband and baby have just gotten too hard. I finally filled the tub and grabbed the toy off the swing we no longer use and put her in the tub. At first she wasn't sure but the toy was too cool to pass up. She stayed in there until the water got cold. I was very surprised. She is getting so big. She only fell over once too. I love my baby girl!

Videos

2011-11-01T19:02:00.000-07:00

We take lots of video of our Little Miss Rylee and I never post them so here are a bunch.

ENJOY!

BJ loves making her chops move. Now she knows to start making noise when he does it and it makes us giggle!

She loves sitting up. Notice she even can catch herself when she starts to fall. As long as she doesn't have a toy she is pro and staying up right now.

Just Dance 3. Enough said!

I love that she copies everything BJ does. He taught her to scrunch her nose. She is such a ham!

Some pictures I never posted

She thought snow was pretty cool

She isn't a fan of stuffed animals that don't make noise but I try.

BJ put his sweat band on her and man she is cute!

The listers sent her this cute outfit! I loooove it!

Hallowwen

2011-10-31T18:46:00.000-07:00

We started off our celebrations by carving pumpkins. Rylee wasn't sure about that but once she got her hands on the guts she was happy. We now try to do fun things but they are a lot harder to do. Keeping knifes away from a grabby baby who has to be right in the middle of things was tough. I think I yelled at everyone to be careful at least 3 times.

Cody carved a goat. He was super proud of himself. He loves goats. They want to own a goat farm someday. I also am looking for a stuffed goat toy for their baby Crue when he is born. If you see any let me know!!

NaElle did Jack from a Nightmare before Christmas (I still have yet to see that movie).

Rylee like hanging with NaElle and sitting in her camping chair.

I was excited to take a picture of her in my pumpkin. The bush behind her is my favorite. It is super bright red for about a month. I love coming home and seeing how pretty it is. Fall up here is so pretty with so many different colors that changing every 2 weeks. I love it!

BJ is the far left. He was so proud that he did a real pumpkin for the first time.

I threw this is to show that Rylee really does love our green cups. She knows what they are and how to drink out of it. BJ gives her a small sip every dinner and now we hand one to her and she tries to drink from it. It's amazing how fast she catches on to things.

The Stinnetts invited us to a party and said to bring a treat. Pinterest is killing with all the great ideas on there. I have always wanted to make a trifle and NaElle had this big trifle bowl so I borrowed it and made a Peanut Butter cup Brownie Trifle. SO YUM! I had a total of 4 bites (I lost 4 pound that week and wasn't about to waste it on one thing!) I just had fun making it!

Rylee was a ball this year. My mom is amazing and makes all her grandkids' costumes. Notice her socks?! They have monster toes on them and they were a huge hit! BJ said if he had a pair he would wear them every single day. Everyone made a comment about them. They don't really have anything to do with being a ball but we had to put them on her. Friday- Monday she had some type of Halloween attire on. I love having a baby to dress up!

We played JUST DANCE 3 and it is my new favorite game. Get ready to dance family because Thanksgiving we are playing this game! It was made for the Lister, Nys, Hebner, Balls clan!!!

The basketball team with their ball!

Cutest ball I've ever seen! I even did my own corn rows since I was a baller!

Daddy pretending to shoot hoops

She loved it!

Our complex did their own Trunk and treat with chilli and hot coco. It was in the low 40's out so my mom's smart costume with pants, long sleeves, and a head cover made Rylee nice and toasty and she enjoyed watching all the kids the whole time.

I am trying very hard to work out and lose all that baby weight and am down 5 pounds. Halloween always gets me off my goal so this year I said no candy! Where we live all the kids are between the ages of in the belly to 8 being the oldest. Average is 2-4. At that age they don't need a ton of candy and the parents get most of it anyways. So we went to the store and got party favors instead. We had a bowl of let the kids pick what toy they wanted. There were glasses with the big nose to whistles, rings, tops, jumping frogs and lots more. The parents all were amazed and were so excited they weren't getting more candy. The kids loved it! I was a little worried but it was all worth it when one kid said, " I get a toy?!! I LOVE toys!!! A top!?! YES!!!" They kids loved it and the parents were grateful. It kept candy out of my house too. I only had 3 pieces of candy this whole Halloween weekend, 1 cup of coco, 1 cupcake, and a few bites of my trifle. With working out each day! Most successfull Halloween I've ever had!

Rylee got to keep one of they toys and that was the highlight of her night!

5 months old

2011-10-20T21:12:00.000-07:00

Rylee is 5 months old... in a few days.

She is so much fun! Someone asked me what my favorite thing is about her. That smile warms my heart!!

She loves to smile. She can be super upset and we will make a funny noise and she can't help but smile at us.

She stares at anyone she doesn't know but she will always give them a smile. That of course makes them stay around longer.

When she wakes up she will start to cry and as soon as she sees me a huge smiles breaks out on her face. I love it so much! She loves to laugh too. We had a few weeks where she would make a weird noise and not laugh but now the giggles are back.

She is now in the stage where she has to have everything I have. At dinner time she will stare us down unless we give her a spoon. She also loves our green cups and gets her own at dinner time too. She loves food. I haven't given her very much variety but baby oatmeal is always a hit. She will be upset and I'll feed her a bite and she is instant smiles and laughs until she is down eating. I love it. She wont even grab for the spoon until she is finished. She loves graham crackers but they are super messy so I switched over to Rice Rucks which are sticky but she likes them.

She is now a pro at rolling over. She hates being on her stomach. One night she got so mad at me she rolled over and now that she understand she can get off her tummy she will stay there for about a minute then just roll over.

She now likes to lay on her back and play with toys. I love watching her grab things and play with her toes. Her hands are still her favorite thing though.

She loves anything that makes noise. My mom sent me a bunch of stuff so I could make her some taggies. I made one with crinkly ribbon and bells and she loves it. She loves wrappers too. On the way to church I ate a string cheese and put the wrapper in the diaper bag. Her favorite thing is to pull stuff out of the bag and instead of grabbing her toy she grabbed the wrapper and sat and played with it for 5 minutes.

She gets into everything. If anything is next to her she will grab it. I have to be careful putting her next to things now. She loves cords which are every where so I have to figure out how to hide them. We went over to Uncle Matt's and I was looking at something on their TV and Rylee knocked off their mail. Oops

Oh and my sister in law Camille is PREGNANT! She is due May 20th! =]

She also tries to get out of her bumbo now. She leans back and almost pops out of it. One of these days I'm going to find her next to it!

She is still a great sleeper. She has been going to bed early now which means she wants to get up earlier. Its been a rough few days. I think I have finally found a good time to get her to sleep but she goes to sleep when she wants.

Rylee loves her dad! She was yelling at me right before he called me so I put him on speaker phone and she was searching all around for him. She grabbed the phone and kept looking at me then the phone then me. She can't figure out why she can hear her dad but not see him. I can't wait until she is mobile. Whenever BJ leaves the room she watches him leave then looks at me like "where did dad go?" I can't wait for her to chase him down.

Rylee loves to talk now. She is always babbling. When she wakes up happy she will just lay there and talk to herself until she gets bored. I love listening to her noises!

She is pretty much the best baby ever and we love her so much!

When In Idaho

2011-10-16T11:49:00.000-07:00

You go pick potatoes!!

Some turn green if in the sun to long

Some grow weird tumors

Some are teenie tiny

Some are regular

They all grow in HUGE fields that go on for miles and miles!

It is harvest time up here. The farms have big trucks that drive over the fields and unearth them. Then another on drives over them and shoots them into a truck driving next to it. They then haul them off and store them in big barns. There are tons that don't get picked up and they just leave them out there. Any one is free to go to the fields and pick as many as you want. NaElle and I went out to a farm a mile from us and we found the field they had just finished plowing. It looked like they hadn't even touched the field yet! There were so many potatoes left over. I couldn't believe they had already finished the section. I guess they grew so many that its okay to have so many left over.

Rylee loved it because she got to be outside. We grabbed a bag full and came home and made twice baked potatoes. They were yummy Idaho potatoes!! The only difference I saw was they were a whole lot easier to clean. They came right from the dirt and didn't sit three years in the barn. Did you know that the ones you buy in the store can be up to 3 years old!! The dirt came off with very little scrubbing. Did you also know that the ones they can't sell in the store like the green ones and sun bleached ones turn into flakes and potato pearls.

We had a lot of fun picking them! We now feel like real Idahoians!

Happy Halloween

2011-10-08T12:40:00.000-07:00

My mom always decorates for every holiday. That was one of my favorite things growing up. When I got married I told BJ I was going to decorate just like my mom. Well not just like my mom.. she has cute stuff and is 1000 times more creative than I am. Since I'm on a student budget I had to make all my decorations with stuff I had laying around the house.

In the dinning room I put up paper triangles and made some paper ghosts with oranges scarfs.

I also made a cute haunted house to put in my dinning room.

My mom is amazing and last year she made me this super cute sign for my kitchen.

This year she sent me a very cute witches boot. Maybe by the time Rylee is older she will have made me enough stuff to decorate like her!!

Last year she made a banner with my wedding colors so I thought I would add letters too it. Oh and on the couch is Rylee's halloween costume. She is going to be a basketball and we are going to be basketball players! My mom did a fabulous job!

I did the letters free hand. While Rylee took a nap. I also sewed the edges because some were getting stringy. This is did with Rylee on my lap and she only grabbed for it twice so it went pretty fast. Who knew I could sew with a baby on my lap!

When I was in Phoenix my sister in law Michele had a super saturday so I went and made this cute sign with her. I have 4 things I can change during the year. I really liked how my pumpkin turned out though so I was excited to put it up!

Snow time

2011-10-08T12:31:00.000-07:00

We woke up and it was snowing!!! We bundled Rylee up for her first adventure out into the snow. She didn't seem to mind but I think it had more to do with the graham cracker daddy gave her than being in snow.

It came down pretty good. It snowed for a full day. People even made snowmen out of it.

We went to a rodeo and thought it was going to be outside. Thankfully Rylee's cousin Forrest gave us his snowsuit. Since its all blue we dressed it up with a flower Aunt Kim made for her.

I love fog. I think it is so cool! Thankfully it has warmed back up and the rain has stopped. One of BJ's teacher said this was a warning snow and we will have 2 more weeks of nice weather then winter will hit full throttle. I'm ok with snow but Rylee already had a hard time staying inside during the first snow fall. I even wrapped her up in a blanket and stood outside for 10 minutes. She just laid her head on my shoulder and sang a song to herself. She just loves being outside. I for see many cold days sitting out on my porch so Rylee can be outside!

Cards

2011-10-03T22:37:00.000-07:00

We have been playing tons of cards this last week or so. Rylee has highly enjoyed it because she thinks shuffling cards is amazing! Before this video Uncle Matt was trying to give Rylee her toy and I was shuffling the deck. I tried getting her attention so she could watch but she was more interested in Uncle Matt. I start to shuffle them and she did a double take, dropped her toy, and tried to lunge for the cards. When it stopped she went back to looking at her Uncle and when she heard it again did another double take. It was too cute! We tired getting in on camera but she was getting tired and just wanted her mama. You can still see how intrigued she is in the cards though.

Friends

2011-10-03T22:28:00.000-07:00

Remember when we went to the Rodeo? Look in the top right corner and you will see a guy with a cowboy hat and a girl next to him in a blue shirt and shorts. This is the day we found out that Cody and NaElle Stinnett live in Rexburg. Cody was in my ward when I was in primary and then he moved to BJ's ward. NaElle told Cody to go say hi and boy am I glad she did! They are our newest best friends! We see them several times a week. NaElle is 19 weeks pregnant so that gives us reasons to do things like make yummy food when we get together.

They came over to hang out and we wanted a dessert and thanks to Pinterest I had the idea to make a cake I saw on there. It was easy and super cheap!

Double layer chocolate oreo cream cake! It was soooo yummy!!! This was my first layer cake and man was it amazing! NaElle and I made it while the boys watched TV and entertained Rylee. When they left they told us to keep the left overs. I am participating in "The Biggest Winner" (just like the biggest loser but BYU-I does a positive spin on things). The school offers trainers and nutritional people to help us lose weight. We even have team challenges! Since I'm trying to be good and lose all my baby weight before the snow comes I took the left overs to my brother in law. The single boys enjoyed it too! Recipe Here

We love having friends up here. We went to the nature park and walked around one day.

Rylee really likes them too. She stares at Cody for the first 15 minutes then she flirts with him the rest of the time. She loves NaElle too. They also offer to watch her so we can go on dates now! NaElle and I attend institute on Tuesday nights and we are starting a weekly temple date too.

Daddy always picks me flowers when he sees them and Rylee attacked mine so he picked one for her too

She was happy about that!

General Conference was AMAZING! I watched with several questions and had many answers. I personally loved the talk about fathers and Rylee just happened to be smiling at her daddy during that talk.

Some of the things I learned were

1. Its okay to be poor. Its okay to be struggling. We are doing what we should be and the Lord is looking out for us we just need to take our turn pinching pennies. We still are very blessed each and every day even though life seems rough financially.

2. It is okay that I am a stay at home mom. It is okay to want to have more kids later on and not have to wait until after we graduate.

3. Finding time to attend the temple is important. One way to fill time while at home is to try to do family history then do their work at the temple.

4. He knows I am trying my best and working on being better. He accepts me and my efforts.

5. I can move to Star Valley Wyoming now!

It seems silly now to think about the weeks and weeks I have been struggling with these things and how heavily laden I was with worry. Conference really brought me peace.

It makes me wonder how different life would have been for me as a teenager if I had gotten this concept of watching conference with question back then.

Rylee liked watching conference too!

I have a tradition of making a big breakfast and then fajitas for dinner on Sunday conference but we were too poor to do that this year. Instead we saved our BLT pitas we had planned with the Stinnetts for Sunday. We packed a picnic and fed ducks. Danny joined us too.

Rylee really wanted to play Frisbee. She thought it was super cool.

Cody thought it was funny that I would freak out when the ducks came to close. Here he is trying to lead a trail of bread to me.

BJ wanted rylee to feed the ducks. She wasn't too impressed with them.

This duck was way bigger then Rylee. I was scared the goose was going to come over and chomp her but it wasn't interested in us! THANKFULLY!

Oh and Rylee traded in her summer clothes for some winter clothes. It has been raining the last few days so I put her in a jumpsuit. I can't get over how stinking cute she is!

Apple Orchard

2011-09-15T22:20:00.000-07:00

BYU-I has an apple orchard and everyone is free to pick apple. It cost 50 cents a pound and they have over 100 different kinds of apples.

All the popular apples were gone but some had apple really high up so BJ climbed a tree or two to get some apples

We didn't find many we liked but we found one that has a hint of strawberry. Super yummy! Rylee had fun until she got hungry.

This one is just cute and I had to post it. I think it is in our genes that we need to sleep with our arm over our head. She has to have at least one arm up by her head which means her arms are always cold. Long sleeve shirts and sleepers are coming out!

Fancy toys

2011-09-15T20:03:00.000-07:00

We don't need fancy toys around here. BJ was suppose to be doing homework and I was watching Rylee while rearranging our living room. She was not happy being pushed into a corner while i moved the couch. The people we sent kettle corn too brought back our bowl so BJ grabbed Rylee and stuck her in the bowl. She stopped crying and BJ can't help but play with her.

She also loves playing with paper. I found that out when she was upset after we left the store so I was hurrying and put my wallet, keys, and receipt in her car seat with her. I left all but the keys and she was magically happy all the way to our next stop. When I went to pull her out she was amazed at the sound the paper made when she grabbed it. I love that she knows how to use her hands now. However she now wants whatever I'm holding. I love watching her learn new things! She has us laughing all day now.

Favorite baby

2011-09-11T18:17:00.000-07:00

Rylee playing at the park

I finally got my camera back! We left the battery charger in Phoenix so I haven't taken in pictures. This one shows how much Rylee really loves being outside. Just minutes before this picture she was inside crying then we relocated outside and she was all smiles for 20 minutes. I'm only a tad worried about what we will do when it snows next month!

I realized I haven't posted much about Rylee so here is what she has been up too

~ At her 3 month app she was 12 lbs which was in the 48-50%

~She was 25.5 inches long which was in the 98%

~ Oh and her head was like 50% too

~ Her favorite thing to do is smile. She will smile at anyone who talks to her.

~ She is almost 4 months old and is mastering the art of grabbing.

~ I love watching her play with toys now. She loves to hug them then chew on them after.

~ She loves reading books. She will look at a book for 20 minutes then read another one.

~ She is ALWAYS kicking. She can't help but kick her feet.

~ She learned to yell at us. If we leave the room she will yell at us until we come back.

~ She still hates to be on her tummy but is now able to hold her head up until she gives up and face plants and cries until I roll her over

~ She will roll over but only if she is wants too

~ My new favorite thing is when she looks up at me and smiles.

~ She will not sleep in her pack and play so she sleeps on a twin size bed. (no clue what I'll do when she is mobile!)

~ She is still a great sleeper. She will sleep for 8 hours but after that is up every hour until I finally just wake her up

~ She loves her daddy! He picks on her like crazy she just takes it

~ I swear she says Hi. I'm not even kidding

~ She only takes cat naps during the day. 30 minutes tops unless I lay with her

~Blowing bubbles is her favorite

~ She is drools like crazy. She is soaking wet all day long

~She still loves showers and hates baths

~She still is the best baby ever!

Canning Peaches

2011-09-03T21:36:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a Utah peach? They are super yummy! Peaches from the store just don't match a fresh picked Utah peach. We were driving to Wal Mart and saw a guy on the side of the road selling Utah Peaches! We pulled over and the guy let us try a slice of one and we were sold! I said we should just buy half a box and even then we couldn't eat them all. BJ said they were worth getting a whole box and we should just can them. I have never canned anything before and had no idea where to even begin. I first called my sister in law Camille to see if she wanted to do it with me then I called my mother in law for a step by step on what I needed and what to do.

I went and bought some Ball jars (I couldn't bring myself to buy the Kerr ones. I had to have Ball which tend to be more expensive but we found a 15% off canning supply sale so I got my Ball jars for the same price as Kerr!) I also got the jar lifter upper, magnetic lid grabber, and a funnel. Helen suggested I get a steam canner but I wasn't feeling spending a lot for only being able to can one box of peaches. I looked up how to do water bath canning and instead buying the cool pot I just used my biggest pot and my steaming pan from my pressure cooker.

BJ and Matt went over to Camille's grandmothers house to do some work and Camille came over to help me can. She never had done peaches before so we just followed what Helen told me and what the internet said. Rylee slept for the first half so we were able to wash all the jars (24 pint jars) and peal all the skins off. Most of the skins came off in the boiling water so it went pretty fast. We made the syrup really light. It said 3 cups of sugar to 6 cups of water for light but I was low on sugar and didn't want to go to the store so I did 2 cups of sugar to 8 cups of water. The peaches were already sweet so it didn't need to much sweetener. Once we canned all the peaches I spent the rest of the day putting 4 jars at a time in my pot and doing the water bath.

Thankfully it was a success! 6 of them didn't seal so I put them in the fridge to eat and they ended up sealing up just fine. The peaches are so tasty! I love that I have canned food in my pantry and I canned them! Maybe next summer I'll be able to do make my own jam! That would be so sweet!!

When it's hot

2011-08-30T13:54:00.000-07:00

It got up to 90 here and since we don't have A/C it got pretty warm in our house. We opened the windows and put on the fans.

Wish we all looked this cute in bloomers and shoe socks! We had friends over so we put her dress back on but it got warmer with more bodies so she rocked this look. I think she pulled it off.

Upstairs was even hotter and we could not sleep even with a fan on. So we camped out in the living room.

I also found a Johnny Jumper for Rylee! She is always kicking her legs so I thought I'd give her some exercise since she hates tummy time. My bet she is one of those kids who skips crawling and goes right to walking. I'm trying to do better and making sure she does tummy time but it only lasts a few minutes. She gets super super upset and since she never cries I feel bad when she does her real cry when she is on her tummy. We'll keep working on it.

Yellowstone

2011-08-26T09:52:00.000-07:00

BJ has been everywhere and done everything. Since we live so close to Yellowstone BJ is always talking about it. So we figured it was time to take a trip over there. I wasn't sure what it was going to be like but I knew I would get to camp to I was all for it.

Its only a 2 hour drive from our house and this was our first stop. The fountain paint pot was really cool. It smelled oh so gross and the steam coming off the pools was so hot. It was pretty cool.

Rylee wasn't a fan of the stem but she didn't mind because it meant getting out of her car seat.

This is the mud bubbling up. It looked so cool just boiling mud everywhere. Its one of those things you wanna touch and play in but shouldn't and well can't

This was my first geyser. It was cool seeing the water just spray out like a whale.

This is the Grand Prismatic Spring. You can't really see it but the middle is bright blue then turns green then yellow then orange. It really is amazing.

Rylee always gets a lot of attention and she is very giving with her smiles. I love it.

I think the colors are amazing.

This is old faithful.

We got there and Rylee needed to eat so we sat in the car and feed her then wandered over to wait for it to go off. BJ kept saying we needed to find the sign when it goes off. I just said we should sit and wait. There was a big crowd so I figured it hadn't gone off yet. We waited like 5 minutes and it went off. It was fun watching it get taller and taller. I heard someone say "WOW that really was worth a 2 hour wait!" I thought he was kidding until we went inside the visiting center and saw the next time it would go off was 9:58 pm. It goes off about every 93 minutes. I was soooo glad we got there just in time to see it! I also talked BJ into buying Yellowstone T-shirts.

I learned about how it works in the visiting center. I'm just so amazed how this place works.

Rylee's first camping trip!!

See how bundled she is! She had four layers on because it was freezing at night and when I finally changed her I saw she had wet through all four layers! The first night I didn't sleep at all.

Isn't she too cute!!! The pants I put on her for the day are my favorite but I guess they are her poop pants because she explodes EVERY TIME I put them on her. Its not fun having poopy pants while camping.

One our way to the next spot there was a hold up. This bison was walking along the road and would switch between the lanes.

This isn't on zoom. We drove right up next to this HUGE guy! I was amazed! First bison I've ever seen.

Rylee wanted some attention since the bison had our she felt left out.

So daddy took pictures of her to make her happy.

We came over the ridge and found this!

All those dark spots..yup its bison. They covered every where!

They were super close to the road and all the way out past the trees. It was very cool to see so many at once!

This is one of the falls

I've never seen a waterfall this big. It was fun to see so much water cascading down the mountain.

This tree fell in the road minutes before we got here. People were freaking out. See that motorcycle on the left.. he wasn't letting a tree get in his way and just road right over. We sat wondering what was going to happen.

Then this SUV put a tow rope on the tree and pulled it off the road.

BJ kept saying the Rangers were going to be so mad when they saw it on the side of the road but we got through in less than 5 minutes! I'm just glad we weren't driving through when it fell. On family said they drove past and it fell just as they passed it. CRAZY!

This is tower falls. We set up our camp in this area. This is the only thing around this area so we took a nap then got some ice cream and hiked to see the falls.

I loved the waterfalls. so pretty. This spot reminded me of the ride at Disneyland with the train.

This was our last stop at Mammoth Hot Springs. I was really impressed with it. I wanted to walk up the steps. BJ said he wished it was back in the 1900's so he could go set in the springs.

Oops. Rylee was the life of the party as always. Everyone stopped us to say hi to her. She will smile at anyone which makes them stay longer to get more smiles. My favorite are kids wanted to see her. This one Asian kid kept trying to look around BJ so he could see Rylee. I had her in the carrier and saw him looking around BJ. When I got up to him he walked right to me and said, "Cute baby!" I bent down a bit so he could see her and he had to rub her tummy and touch her feet. His parents came over and tried pulling him away and he couldn't stop pointing at her. I love it!!

On our way out I got hungry so I pulled off by a lake to eat lunch. BJ took rylee down to see the water while I made the sandwiches. When I walked out I saw them sitting together watching the lake.

How cute is this!!! I love it!!

We sat and ate lunch then headed home. It was a great trip. The thing I like was camping with something to do. All the attractions are at least 12-18 miles a part so you have to drive to each thing and stay about 10 minutes then off driving to the next. We did it in 2 1/2 days but it could have been done in 1 1/2. We figured that out as we just hung out at camp the second night. I didn't mind because I just like to camp but it gave us something to do during the day. It was pretty around the lakes. We saw a lot of animals too. I want to go during the spring and winter too. All I need is a pop up tent or RV because I froze at night and it is summer time! I'm glad I finally got to and see the amazing place that Yellowstone is!!

Rodeo!!!

2011-08-20T15:43:00.000-07:00

Rylee's first Rodeo happened this weekend. I wish I had boots and an outfit for her! Someday!

Madison county put on a free rodeo and the first night was a kid rodeo. Kids ages 2-16 competed. The first picture has a calf with $1 bills on it and all kids ages 1-8 come out and chased it down for the money. It was sooooo funny! I had so much fun watching the kids Friday night. My all time favorite was the mutton bustin' which is tiny kids ages 2-6 hold on to sheep for the longest time. They had an 18 month old do it! SOOO cute!

I got to wear my cowboy boots again! Rodeos mean cowboy attire! I love my belt with buckles and my boots. Rylee now needs some!!

Daddy dressed her the second day. I can't get enough of her in that hat! I love it! She gets so much attention where ever we go! Saturday we went to a car show which had 6 cars and BJ won the drawing for a free shirt!! We watch the 4-H club action and it wouldn't be an Idaho rodeo without a free potato bar!!! They know how to do potatoes! We ate our free lunch while watching the Rancher Rodeo. We ran into one of BJ's old friend and enjoyed the day!

Small town

2011-08-19T14:29:00.000-07:00

I love living in a small town. Right now school is out so there is hardly anyone here. I love in between semester time! We found out that this weekend was the county fair! Everything is free and there is even a rodeo. We love love love Rodeos!!!

There was even a parade! I love parades. It was super small and only had horses and last all of 5 minutes but it was a parade nonetheless.

Rylee's first parade!

She loved it because it was outside... her favorite place to be!

The last set of horse men asked if we wanted to pet the horses. I made Bruce go pet it so i could take a picture. I got freaked out though because this horse seemed to like rylee but I didn't want it to touch her!!! Thankfully daddy put his arm between the horse and rylee before it could nuzzle her. Got a cool picture though =]

Blessing day

2011-08-19T14:23:00.000-07:00

This is way overdue but we did bless Rylee on the 24th of July. It was a super sweet experience. She had lots of Priesthood support and even though she cried through the whole thing I know she was happy to be surrounded with so many men who will love and be there for her. Thanks for everything who came and supported her!

We are HOME!!

2011-08-19T14:18:00.000-07:00

We are home and have internet again!!! YAY!! Rylee has also adjusted and finally taking more than a 30 minute nap! WHOO!!!

A few things we did the last week being in Phoenix...

We played with second cousins once removed (not sure that's right)

Got ready for beach fun

Went out to eat with cousin's and had cactus for the first time

Took lots of family beach pictures

Got ice cream on the Santa Monica Pier

Got buried in the sand and made into a mermaid

Hung out with the soon to be bride and groom

Attended Matt and Camille's Sealing

Rylee stole the show at the reception! I'm sure there will be more pictures of her and video then the couple

Stopped at Downtown Disney and got disappointed they took down the CALIFORNIA!

Rylee got in a good nap but wouldn't sleep in the car (we had to say in a motel on the way home)

Hung out with a cousin who is a month older

Got super interested in books

Danced with nieces.. no not Kaci but same blonde hair

Babysat my old Athletic trainer's kids like old time

Got my hair cut

Stopped to see Papa and Bruce got to try his famous oh so yummy spaghetti finally! And see why I eat spaghetti with a spoon!

Stopped to say good bye mom and dad and had fun with the Lister's as we all tried to shoot the $10 with the bow. Uncle Kevin won but Bruce got the 10! Thanks Kevin!!

Rylee entertained Grandma during to shooting

Jess took pictures of scary faces

Loved on Brookie

Daddy and Rylee finally relaxing on our own couch!

Daddy finally got to watch cable tv again!

Rylee tried out her bumbo and loved it! I now can cook dinner with two hands!!

Rylee also thinks she is old enough to feed herself

AND

Rylee rolled over for the first time today!!!!

(no picture cuz I was watching a leopard carry a dead carcass up a tree and when I looked down at Rylee she was rolling onto her tummy!)

We had lots of fun in Phoenix and we are glad family and friends got to meet Rylee and play with us. We had planned on coming home for Thanksgiving but that was before we looked at the price. Sooo we don't know when we will be back again.

one BIG post

2011-07-17T12:44:00.000-07:00

We don't have internet so I have to post everything all at once while I have some time.

MY sister Kerri has an underwater camera and when BJ saw it when they visited he just had to have one.

My nephew sam helped us break in our new camera!

You can't really see it but she has on a polo. I love the cute collar on her!

She always holds her bink when she sleeps. She has done this since she was born. I love it!

Aunt Michele has a swing in her yard but I think Rylee is still a tad to small to play though

Rylee was spoiled and got 3 4th of july outfits. This one my cousin Jessica made for her. We wore one each day of the weekend.

I love when she eats and holds her arm up like this. I think it's so cute

She smiles all the time now! I LOVE IT!!!

I love that face!!

Aunt Kim made her some super cute bows. This is her 2nd outfit from GG topped off with her festive head band by kim!

Dad getting ready for the fireworks

We spend the day in Prescott and had a blast! and Really really yummy food!

Family photo... I know we are so cute haha

Bubba held Rylee during the fireworks so I got to enjoy the show!

Rylee working on her tan

Mom gave me this swim suit. It says for 12 months but it fits better then her 3 month one. baby clothes are so weird.

I've been able to hang out with my friends Tasha and Jessica and Tasha has a little girl that is a few months older than Rylee. They liked sleeping together =]

Cutest picture ever! Dad bought her this cute pink dress and tights. I topped it off with one of Kim's headbands and pink shoes! LOVE IT!

Tasha and Allie!!! We have LOVED being able to spend time with these girls!

My old house on Keim that I grew up in. They put up fences and made it look so different. How I miss that house!!

LOVE that she smiles and laughs!

All time favorite picture!

She is just starting to like looking at toys but not for too long

This was the other outfit from misty! BJ loves it and puts her in it all the time

I was watching a soccer game and she wanted to watch too. She kept arching her head back to watch it so I picked her up and then she was interested. When I put her back down then she wanted to watch again. I guess it was a better game watching it upside down =]

All in one

2011-06-25T19:18:00.000-07:00

I hate putting a bunch of posts all in one but I'm short on internet time and not holding rylee time.

She fell asleep with Aunt karen with her feet up on her

Aunt karen was nice enough to be a cozy chair for her =]

Misty and Aunt Sandy and Uncle George came over and spoiled Rylee with cute outfits and a baby carrier! I am so excited to use it! I've been wanting one so bad! i can't wait!!

Dad got her a swim suit so we tried swimming out. She loves water! Her swim suit is super cute and a tad big. Her bottoms slip right off her tiny booty! I couldn't get in the water yet and BJ can't get is 7 stitches wet. (Fun story, BJ sliced his finer with a pocket knife the day we were packing to come to AZ. I rushed him to the student health care center and then he sat with rylee while I did all the packing and putting things in the car and driving to Salt lake. He can't do something but he is still a big help!)

Father's day!

Isn't daddy and Rylee so cute!! I didn't get anything on mothers day but I wanted BJ to have something. We went to the drive ins and saw X MEN and Fast five. It was awesome. Rylee did great sleeping with us on the air mattress in the back of our car. I also asked him what he wanted for dinner and he wanted home made pizza, fresh squeezed lemonade and cheesecake. Well fathers day came and Rylee wasn't happy (she never is on sundays. even when I was pregnant sundays were my worst days. werid I know). Thankfully Danny came over and helped BJ make all his stuff and Rylee and I got to enjoy them after our 3 hour nap =] We also went for a walk and got to see people from our old ward. It was a good day.

This is the first and prolly only time she can wear those cute white shoes. She got all dressed up for daddy.To bad her feet are huge but at least she got to wear shoes once. This was her first time ever wearing shoes too =]

Being back in AZ is hard but We love seeing everyone. Dad got her a cute dress and sock shoes for her one month birthday. This week we are taking her one month pictures and I plan to dress her in that. I'm glad Rylee got to meet dad while she was still tiny! Grammy (mother in law) was very excited to hold her she ran up from working out just to hold her. Grandpa had her but Helen took her right away!! =] Her aunts were so excited to see her. Maire showed her off to all her co workers. Michele treated us to dinner at Olive Garden. Sadly Rylee doesn't like being in places that are loud and overcrowed so I didn't get to eat my meal until I got home. It was good though. She also got very spoiled by her cousins and now has lots of clothes to wear while down here that are summer clothes! Thanks misty, jessica, and eva!!!

Newborn Shoot

2011-06-19T09:37:00.000-07:00

This is my second favorite! So precious!

Classic Rylee face! I love it!

She wouldn't let us take that bink out

She didn't like the bowl.. Can you tell I just stole the bink?!

See not happy at all!

You can take the girl out of the hood but you can't take the hood out of the girl!

Classic Rylee with her arm over her head.

Always has the hands by her face

One of the girls up here is doing a newborn project for her photography class and she willingly took pictures for free. We tried 2 different days but Rylee just was not into having her picture taken. I didn't get nearly any of the the pictures I wanted but I was just happy she got some at least. I saved my favorite one because I plan on sending out some newborn announcements and I didn't want to spoil it on here. Once I get it all put together I'll post it. Rylee may not have a future career in modeling but she sure is a cutie!

Oh the fun

2011-06-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

Rylee has slowly been helping us become parents. She gave us a few weeks to get used to her then she started the fun!

Her first "blow out" was a little spot on her outfit. Nothing big so I didn't think anything of it. Since then Dad has gotten pooped on several times and I'm understanding why people say babies go through a lot of outfits during the day. One day she went through 4!!! Oh and the best part... BJ pulled her out of her car seat and the next thing we know I'm rinsing out his shirt and her shirt and pants. 4 hours later and several car rides later I look at her car seat and see the side is covered in poop! I didn't have time to clean it (on the way to hospital... story coming up next) and before I could clean it my future sister in law saw it and called me on it! DANG! I now change her diaper whenever it looks big and have extra clothes with me.

She is also starting to spit up after she eats a lot. I now always have a burp cloth with me and have worn the "mom sign" (spit up all over) to several places. I think BJ has gone through more outfit changes because of her then I have and I'm more then ok with that!

I now have a classic first time mom story that you always hear about. I hadn't experienced anything that was too hard or made me all frazzled until last night.

My brother in law Dan had a choir concert so we got dressed up and headed over. Once we got there I saw on the ticket that no one under the age of 6 was allowed in. That meant Mom and Rylee had to go home. The first of many events to come that mom wont be able to attend I guess. Rylee fell asleep on the ride home and was out cold so I figured I'd get to have my own hot shower! I set her next to the door in the hallway and left the door open in case she woke up. I was so excited to get a hot long shower and planned on washing my hair AND shaving my legs! I got to the conditioner part and was just soaping up when I hear the fire alarms go off. At first I didn't know what it was then I realized it and wondered if there was a fire in my house!!!! Then of course Rylee starts crying and I jump out of the shower and try to fan the alarms to get it stop. Thank goodness I didn't have the blinds open that day! My carpet got soaking wet as I try to calm her down and stop the alarm. I then jumped back into the shower to rinse off quickly and got out and grabbed Rylee.

She calmed down enough to let me get dressed and I tried on 4-5 different pairs of pants. I almost fit into my jeans but not just yet. Sad day! I then grabbed BJ's jersey and everything I needed from upstairs and headed down to drink some water and feed hungry baby. I get everything ready and see that I have 30 minutes until I have to pick up BJ and just start to feed Rylee when my phone rings. I get up and BJ tells me I have to get him RIGHT NOW cuz Matt just had another seizure. I made rylee a bottle put her in the car seat grab some pants throw everything into the diaper bag and rush off to get him then off to the hospital. After he is all checked in we then head over to BJ's basketball game which sadly they lost.

Man what a hectic night. Thankfully Rylee calmed down in the car (her favorite spot other than the shower) and Matt was ok. I only forgot one bag and Rylee did really well in the ER waiting room. (Don't worry DAD the ER up here has zero people in it and we weren't there very long) Needless to say we both slept really well last night. I even found 10 minutes to make a binki clip for her. I don't know why it took me 3 1/2 weeks to make one. Dropping the binki 100 times a day and looking for it non stop is not fun. And the going to walmart at 10 pm because Mom lost the binki and having to buy another one is not fun either.

Oh and my daughter is balding. She cute head of hair is now almost all gone on top. I need to take more pictures and post the ones I have I just haven't downloaded them yet. My computer time is very limited these days.

And BJ and I will be heading to Phoenix next week. He will be working for his dad and we will be there for Matt's wedding. The Fireworks stand is a no go sadly and we get to endure the awful heat now.

Every day changes

2011-06-08T17:27:00.000-07:00

This is usually me but today Daddy got a turn!

Rylee does something new everyday. I haven't had the same time schedule since we left the hospital. One day she will sleep all day long and the next she wont sleep at all. I don't get it. Today is a no sleep day. She usually gets at least a 3-4 hour nap in the mid to late evening but today she has woken up every half hour and has eaten every 2 hours!! She is also super super attached to me. I for one love it, but it makes it really really hard to do stuff I want to do. I'm learning that I no longer get to do what i want when I want. It all depends on her now. That has been hard for me but I'm learning. Today she wont sleep longer than 30 minutes unless I'm holding her. After about an hour I'm spent on holding her so I'll try to lay her down then she gets mad and wakes up and is up forever and cranky. I finally gave up and sat in the rocking chair figuring I'd sleep with her and take me usual 2 hour nap but I had to go to the restroom so I passed her off to dad. Thankfully she was so tuckered out she hasn't woken up yet. When I saw BJ passed out with her I couldn't help but smile.

Some days are super easy. Some days are super hard. Some days are in between. Its never the same.

I wish someone would have told me to practice doing things one handed my whole pregnancy. I am no where close to being able to do anything while holding her. My sister Kerri sent me her Moby wrap but Rylee SCREAMS whenever we try it. I gotta keep practicing though cuz I need both arms!! Have you ever tried to open a new bag of cereal and new bottle of milk with one hand?! Its hard! And when you just can't do it and you hold baby over bowl (really large mug because all the bowls were dirty and washing one handed was not goin to happen this morning) and she starts to kick your heart stops as you try to save bowl (mug) and cereal from falling to the floor. I'm getting better but man is it hard!

well there goes my free hour and half. feeding time. peace out

Things we do

2011-06-05T18:18:00.000-07:00

The weather is starting to get really nice here. Its driving me nuts sitting in the house all day so I thought it would be nice to go on a picnic.

mom is super crafty and hand stitched this. I love it! green and purple are my favorite colors.

I found this website http://blogs.babycenter.com/mom_stories/7-signs-of-a-new-mom/ and it talks about the 7 signs that you are a new mom. i'm pretty sure i'm the luckiest first time mom ever.
1. she is wearing yoga pants.- I'm wearing my maternity pants and my husbands button up shirts. Button up is so much easier when nursing!
2.no make-up - I actually get ready now. I gave that up around my third trimester but since she's come I've done my hair every day and worn make-up!
3.dark circles under the eye- I haven't had this much sleep since i got pregnant! I was worried about the no sleep part but Rylee sleeps great! The first week she slept for 3 hours at a time. The last few days she has slept for 7 straight hours!! As long as i'm sleeping next to her she sleeps great! I do take a nap with her around 3 every day so I'm doing great!
4.hair in pony- only today for church cuz she slept in and we took a shower so i didn't have time to do my hair
5.wanting to talk to adults- my husband and mom are with me 24/7 so thats not a problem
6.spit up every where- Rylee doesn't spit up. She has maybe 5 times and it just dribbles out when we burp her. it doesn't even get on her clothes
7. all of the above

I'm sure i'll get my turn at some point with all of these things but for now i'm super lucky to have the best baby ever. She is awake a ton during the day and still eats great. I tried out my cloth diapers and they work great for poopy but not pee. she is still too small for them so i have to wait a bit. she loves loves loves the shower and cries when we get out. She is always chill but in the shower she is the happiest. she likes the colder weather. her paci is her best friend. When daddy holds her she is always wide awake the whole time. When I hold her she is out like a light. BJ says this is because he is fun and i'm boring lol. typing one handed is kind of hard! i also leaked through my shirt for the first time on Saturday. it is still weird to me to feel something wet and realize i'm leaking. i have yet to figure out the stupid pads. They always move and I still get all wet. Nursing is easy its the bra and clothes that are hard to work.

We also went to a soccer game. We go to daddy's basketball games and his other teams game and i finally found time to watch a soccer match!

1 week at Dr

2011-05-31T18:14:00.000-07:00

Her cute hands always have to be out of the blanket. No swaddling this girl. She is always putting her hands in some cute way. I love when she is nursing she will hold my boob or hang on to my bra. I love it!

8 days old

8.44 lbs 67%

21 in. 86%

head- 14 in. 54%

We have a cute cute baby! We are still learning but loving it! Found out today that i didn't get into the nursing program. I was a tad disappointed but hugely relieved that i don't have to worry about that right now. I'll leave it on the back burner. Now I have to figure out if I want to go to school next semester or wait til Jan.

Fun story... I always put down something, towel changing pad, when i change Rylee's diaper. I just know i always need something just in case. today we got back from the doctors (i saw one i didn't care for. I wish i was rich so i could get off the schools insurance and get a good one that allowed me to not go to a clinic. Oh well I at least know i like one of three so far) and she needed a diaper changed. Lately she hasn't liked changing time and after screaming her lungs out at the docs i tried going fast. We were on the love sac and i was changing one of her bigger ones when she starts pooping! On the sac! On the cover i just washed 2 days ago! I just laughed and tried catching as much as I could with a wipe. Figures the one time I don't put something down she poops. Gotta love it!!

Rylees first week

2011-05-29T14:43:00.000-07:00

Daddy with his glow worm baby. She is the princess of the house. The love sac is now her's =]

She loves her car seat but hates being swaddled

GG bought this dress the day we found out we were having a girl.

We went to sacrament today so she got dressed up

Daddy was playing with her and took lots of pictures

These pictures don't even come close to capturing how cute she really is!

Her face is starting to fill out. she loves her milk =]

This is their silly faces =]

She only had to be our glow worm to 2 days after the hospital. I was glad to take it back because now I can cuddle with her!

Oh and this is my placenta! The midwife saved it for me so I could get a good look at it. I put on a glove and BJ and I poked and played with it for a bit. I just think the placenta is so cool!

Rylee will be 1 week old tomorrow. I can't get over how cute she is. She hears it all day everyday! I just love that little face!! My favorite time is when I burp her. She is always milk drunk and makes the cutest faces.

Once my milk came in she couldn't get enough of it. She eats a ton then sleeps it all off. She sleeps for a good 3-4 hours then is up for about an hour to two hours eating and looking around. It works out great but can be hard when I'm read for bed and she is ready to be awake. But then she sleeps great so I can't complain. She really is the best baby! We are lucky parents to have her!

I feel great. I have to remind myself that even though I finally have energy I have to take my time. I just want to go go go but then I get really tired and sore.

BJ and I are loving being parents. Its everything and more then what we thought!

Now BJ just needs to get a job and life will be perfect!!!!

more pictures

2011-05-25T11:52:00.000-07:00

Daddy holding his daughter for the first time

We got to snuggle for awhile

(she is about 5 minutes old here. I was still in shock!! She didn't cry at all. She is very chill)

First family photo

Uncles and Aunt coming to say hi

Grandma Verdi and Rylee

We got a stake dinner with shrimp and the works

We had planned on leaving Wednesday morning but she ended up being really jaundice.

She now is our glow worm baby!

She is really yellow so she has to lay on this bed of lights all day to get her biliruben count down. We also had to supplement her with formula to help her have more dirty diapers to get it out of her system faster.

she has to wear cool glasses to protect her eyes

She is one cool kid!

Birth story

2011-05-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

Rylee Aden Balls

8lbs 6oz

20 1/2 in long

May 23, 2011

2:52 pm

Some of the details are starting to get fuzzy but I want to get down what I remember before too late.

Sunday I was getting ready to get everything done on Monday so we would be all ready for Tuesday. Sunday night rolled around and I kept having little signs that I was going to go into labor on Monday. I had my mental list of stuff to do. I was going to wait to do everything so I would have stuff to do to pass the day on Monday. I had thank you notes I needed to get out and planned on waiting but I ended up being not lazy and writing and getting them into the mail box. Then I finished my book so I started to read one that my mom had picked up and the dog in the book was named... Riley! I thought it was interesting. Then my husband started to oil the doors because I asked him to do them on Monday since every door squeaked and I didn't want the smell in the house when we brought the baby home. Randomly later that night he went and oiled all the hinges and I thought it was weird. It kept popping into my mind that I was going to go into labor but I wasn't going to fall for it again. I wasn't even having pains. My sister Kim texted me at 2:50 am asking if I was in labor. I told her no but I was having this weird sharp pain I had never felt before. I wanted to tell her that yeah I was most likely in labor but again, I wasn't going to fall for it. I woke up through out the night with those pains and having to pee. They weren't super strong but they were way different than anything I had felt before.

I woke up at 6 am with a big pain and sat up in bed. BJ woke up and sat up with me and said, "You are in labor huh?!" I wasn't sure but we got the ipod out and the contraction timer and they were lasting 46- 60 seconds each and coming at least every 3-4 minutes. After about 30 minutes I had BJ start making a big breakfast that we had planned for Tuesday. I sat and breathed through the contractions and then they started getting stronger. I woke up my mom and had her take over making food so BJ and I could get everything we needed. I ended up eating about 2 bites of my food. We left to go to the hospital at about 7:30 am.

They checked me and I was at a 4 1/2. They left me hooked up to the machine to get Rylee's heart rate for about an hour then finally took me into my room. I had to stay on the monitors but I sat on the birthing ball and had BJ rub my back. Rylee hadn't woken up yet so I tried drinking OJ to get her going. After awhile the contractions started to get stronger and I was not liking them at all. I started thinking that I just went through 41 weeks of being in pain and uncomfortable why am I going through this?!? They made epidurals for a reason! But I knew I didn't want one so I tried breathing through them. I told BJ that I was done but he was truly amazing and helped me through everything. Finally I was done and asked BJ to call the nurse to get me an epidural. The midwife then reminded me I could try the jazzuzi tub. So they checked me and I was at a 6 by about 11ish. I got into the tub and they were getting worse. I had to wait for my IV to get down to a 5 so I waited it out but I still wanted an epidural. By the time I got back to my room I was done. Walking and having a contraction is the worst possible combination ever!!!!! I got back and they had me go pee before I got my epidural. I ended up throwing up the few bites of food I had that morning. I wasn't hungry though! I then got into the bed to wait for the guy to get there and the contractions were at their worse! I was crying and yelling through them. I didn't get much down time because there were some that were 30 secs apart some 1 minute apart. The doctor finally got there and we got the epidural in place. I started to feel better and then only felt pressure in my booty. It was around 12 and the midwife checked me once the epidural was in full effect and I was a 10 and 100% and as she was checked me my water broke. Rylee was still in a stage -1 so they let me have more contractions to get further down before I tried to push.

I waited for about an hour and they even gave me some shot to slow down the contractions because they were so close together. At 1 we started to try pushing. I did not like the way my body felt. I was numb from my boobs down and tingly. I couldn't really lift my legs or move. I felt nothing so it made pushing really hard. I didn't really know what to do. We tried laying on my back and laying on each side. The nurse even brought in a mirror to try and help me push. After an hour my arms started to get tired because I was holding onto the bed rails to try and push harder to get her out. 2:30 came around and my midwife finally came into the room who was delivering another baby and we tried different things to make me push harder. I was starting to get my feeling in my legs which helped but she still wasn't coming out! They got really concerned because Rylee's heart rate kept raising. They finally called a doctor to do a vacuum to help get her out. Her heart rate got up to about 200. I had been pushing every other contraction because they were so close I wouldn't have had any rest in between. I changed to every contraction along with the vacuum. I still took 3 contractions and finally her head came out.

One last contraction and 4 pushes later she finally came out! She had meinconium in the womb meaning she pooped inside, so they tired not to make her cry in order to get it out of her before she sucked in all into her lungs. I couldn't believe it when she was laying on top of me. I was in shock really and they took her off to the side to clean her and I watched as the placenta was delivered. They then handed her back to me and we cuddled while I was sewn up. It took a long time because I tore in a bunch of little places. I just snuggled her and once I was done we tried breastfeeding. I was worried how that would go but she latched on perfectly and ate on both sides with no problems. I was amazed! I passed her off and ate my hamburger then I was able to take a quick shower and head to my other room.

The epidural wore off but I still felt good. I was glad the itchy tingly feeling was gone! If I hadn't got the epidural she prolly would have come a lot earlier than 2:52 but I didn't know that. Next kid I'll try to remember to wait out the last half hour. I was so set on natural but was and still am fine that I got the epidural. It made the hour waiting to push so much better and gave me the strength to push for 2 hours. Who knows if I hadn't got on if it still would have to push for that long but I'm glad I didn't try. She still might have needed the vacuum who knows. Over all I am very pleased with how labor went and was super grateful I didn't have to be induced.

I couldn't have made it through without my husband. He rubbed my back non stop for 5 hours. He helped me breath through those horrible contractions. He made sure I was okay getting an epidural and tried to help do everything I could without one. He has been amazing with Rylee too. I'm grateful I have him! I'm also super grateful for the power of prayer and feeling close to the Savior throughout the whole thing. It really was a huge comfort to me.

Even now, I day later I can't believe I'm a mom. I think Rylee is the cutest baby I have ever seen! She makes me laugh with the cute little noises she makes. She doesn't really cry unless you don't respond to the squeaks she makes. I love them! It makes my heart happy to see her cute little face. I think she is so tiny! I love her!

Rylee Aden Balls

8lbs 6oz

20 1/2 in long

May 23, 2011

2:52 pm

Like I said, Cutest baby ever!!!!

I love love love her huge feet!

The date

2011-05-18T18:08:00.000-07:00

She will for sure come out on May 24th.

I knew my midwives would wait until after week 41 to induce me. We checked to see if there was any progress and I was a "loose 3". She said she couldn't make me a 4 but the head was still engaged. She then said it was up to me what I wanted to do. The 27th was the latest she said she would let me go and would have to make an appointment to induce by then. So I figured I'd give my body some chance and go with the 26th. Turns out every pregnant lady up here wants their baby on the 26th so we had to pick a different day. She gave me the choice and I liked the number 24 so she set it up for us. I'm to wake up at 6 am and call the hospital so they can set up my room. I was told I wont get turned down because I will be in my 41st week and it is now a "medical issue" so other women will get bumped. I am to eat breakfast (I'm going all out for my last real meal before they only let me eat ice chips!) then make it to the hospital by 7. I will start my IV and then hopefully wait an hour or 2 before they break my water. We'll see how long it will take for her to finally come out.

I'm a bit (ok hugely!) disappointed that my body wont get things going on its own. I've always wanted to experience my water breaking in a random situation. As my sister in law said its my first and my body just doesn't know whats going on. There will be more chances with future kids. Now that I know for sure that I will be in labor in 6 days I have mixed feelings. I took the scooter out by myself and realized it will be awhile before I can go out and about freely. Everyone keeps telling me to "live it up" but to be honest I'm so bored these days. I've given up so much being pregnant that I'm ready to have something to do again. I'm getting anxious about labor too. I've been in pain for awhile but thats going to be real pain for a long time and I'm forcing myself into that pain. Its scary to think about. Whenever I let my mind think about it I start to freak out a bit and think "I'm to young to be doing this!!" Then I change the subject and try not to think about it but about holding a cute little (ok huge!) baby.

I'm excited to finally know she will be here. I'm excited to go to the hospital. Its kind of nice being able to plan it out. I don't feel guilty for inducing since I've given her all the time she needs to grow. I'm excited to see her. I'm excited to watch BJ during the whole process. I'm excited for him to become a dad. I'm just plain excited! With of course a lot of anxiety, worry, and freaking out along with it!

Wide load

2011-05-17T19:38:00.000-07:00

WOW this picture makes a want to gag!

Can we say WIDE LOAD COMING THROUGH?!?!

sick!

It doesn't look much better from the front either

40 weeks and counting...

Kerri came to play

2011-05-15T21:14:00.000-07:00

My sister finally blogged about her stay here so now I can steal her pictures to put on my blog for those that don't read hers.

I was soooooo excited to have Kerri come play for the week. When both of my sisters were pregnant in Hawaii I flew out for 2 months to play and help out once the baby got there. I was really sad that I was the youngest and no one was going to come play with me since they already had families they had to take care of. Thankfully Kerri's sister in law got married in Utah so she would only be 4 hours from me and because she is amazing she was willing to trek up here by herself with her two2 tag a longs to play!

Bruce was excited because he LOVES having visitors. My niece Kaci just loves him. I was worried she was going to steal him away at my wedding =].

notice the braid. we did our hair the same this day =]

BJ bought me stuff to dye eggs for Easter and we never got around to doing it. BJ hates hard boiled eggs so I waited until Kaci got there so he would have fun dying them with her and wouldn't care how many eggs we used. Kerri and I got to enjoy eating all the egg sandwiches!

The first night they got there BJ pulled out the guitar and sang the famous Balls camp songs to her.

Whenever the Balls get together to go camping or are sitting around the piano they have a list of songs that they always sing. BJ sang the great big feather bed for Kaci. That is the family favorite. I don't know the words because I never sing around the Balls but Kaci got a kick out of it. I'm sure I'll learn it soon enough because our family will have that same list and I'll throw some of my favorites in too.

We all went swimming and it was Forrest's first time in the pool. Funny how Kaci was a Hawaiian baby and was at the beach weeks within being born and Forrest is an Alaska baby is was 7 months before he set foot into a pool. I love the way swimming feels so I was all for going.

Kerri must have brought the cold with her because it was windy and even snowed while she was here. The day after she left the sun came out and the wind stopped. We haven't gotten that cold since! We spent a lot of time in doors and just chilling. I was ok with it but Kerri didn't really get to experience Idaho. Maybe next trip she will be able to have more fun.

Thanks Calls for coming and playing. We really do need to live in the same state at least!!!! (i'd prefer same stake though!)

39 weeks

2011-05-10T23:37:00.000-07:00

I've been really worried about what my hair will look like in the pictures of me holding my baby after she is born. I've been stressing really. Doing my hair is the last thing on my mind and it was looking really really bad. Finally I brought it up to my husband and he said to cut it. I've been growing it out since we started dating (2 years ago!!) because he likes "princess hair". And I have always wanted to have hair long enough to cover my boobs completely. Weird I know. I couldn't take my hair being ugly and my bangs were driving me crazy.

I was worried to go get it cut because last hair appointment I just cried in the chair when she finished. I warned the girl this could happen and this time I was super vocal and explained in great detail what I wanted and made her keep going until I loved it.

What do you think?!

I woke up this morning and looking in the mirror and i didn't think "wow my hair sucks." I hope once my fat face goes away it will look even cuter on me. BJ approves it too!

* I'm still not use to being in an LDS community. I have never sat in a hair salon and truly expressed how I felt when I was preparing to serve a mission and how my testimony grew the most during that time. And I've never been offered the Ensign to read while I wait to get my hair cut. It still catches me off guard but I kind of like it! Its not in your face but its there.*

I am HUGE!

~ Going walking hurts but I keep going then I feel better. UGH

~ This is one of the only outfits that fits me still. My cute grey dress shows off my fat suit now and is no longer cute. Most days its naked time all day long and I dread leaving the house. I'm really really hoping she gets here soon before guests arrive and I shed some weight to fit in clothes again so I don't have to wear the same thing every day while people are here. My mom might just have to endure naked time though.

~ I have pain all day every day.. well at least the past 2 days. I think its finally the start and then it goes away and I feel just fine. Its getting hard to deal with emotionally. I don't know how much more pain I can go through then feel fine then pain and so on. Its really hard to deal with.

~ She is so very heavy to carry!!!

~ I'm starting to feel bad for her. She feels so scrunched inside of me. There is something that she rubs her foot over that sends pains down my side. It happens 3-4 times a day. I can't hunch over ever either.

~If I go to long without eating (i don't know how long it varies which makes it harder) I start to over heat and get really really bad stomach pains and I start shaking. Its weird.

~ If I don't sleep well or get enough my pains are worse.

~ I know this sounds like all complaints but I just want to write it down so I can compare with future kids. I'm really really nervous for her to get here. I know I wont sleep and that scares me. I worry about walking up and down the stairs with her. I worry about not taking enough pictures. I worry about my husband. I worry I will have way too many nights of not knowing what the heck to do.

~ I just can't wait to hold her. I can't wait to see BJ meet his daughter for the first time. I can't wait to change diapers and run out of clean clothes for everyone and be over my head. What an adventure! I just want to experience all of it to the fullest!!

What do you do when its raining and 39 weeks pregnant and not working?

We find a craft to do.

We learned how to tie hemp bracelets and necklaces.

After going to the library for BJ to do some work for his dad, We had nothing else to do. TV gets old fast we found out. BJ said we should do a craft. He wanted to tie dye some shirts. Some day we will! We keep trying and it never ends up happening. We went to the craft store and ended up leaving with hemp.

We spent 4-5 hours today learning how to do it. We both now have ankle bracelets and matching necklaces. It was fun and we have lots to make more when we get bored.

Mini Baby shower

2011-05-05T22:02:00.000-07:00

So I wasn't planning any baby showers since I know zero people here and I'm away from family and friends. My sister Kerri has sent me a few packages with stuff I needed and I got a surprise package from my mom one day.

As I was opening them I thought to myself " This is like a mini baby shower!"

Then I read a note from my mom and it said," Hope you enjoy your 'mini baby shower'!"

I told BJ and he just laughed and said "You are your mom, you know that!" =]

My mom is by far the greatest. She can sew like no one knows. Remember this beauty..

When shopping for wedding stuff we came across this sheer daisy fabric. I fell in love and knew that I needed that for my wedding dress. Dad didn't want Mom to make my dress because it would just be more for her plate but I did not like the way any dress fit me in the stores. Plus we found an easy-ish pattern. My mom said she was up for it and made my dream dress! I can't even tell you how much that dress made my wedding.

She did it again folks. My mom out did herself!

This is Rylee's blessing gown!

Cutest, Greatest Dress she will ever own!

When I pulled it out I got tears in my eyes. How perfect that my mom used the left over fabric from my dress to make my daughter her blessing gown! I love love love love LOVE it!

She didn't stop there either!

This is the fabric from my dress and the braids maid dresses. I fell in love with these colors when I found them and even though the fabric was a pain to make into dresses I still LOVED them!

I don't know if Rylee will ever really use this blanket. I might just keep it for myself but I still love it!

If I do a hope chest for her it will be put in there.

My mom's amazingness doesn't end there either.

A Giraffe diaper bag!

Not only that but a matching nursing cover, diaper changing pad, snack bag, and a car seat insert.

I was searching for a giraffe diaper bag and they all cost so much so I figured I could just make one. After finding everything I asked my mom if she would be up for it and she had already made this one!

See I told you she was amazing!

As soon as I pulled it out BJ commented that I was one lucky girl and all the ladies up here were going to be so jealous of my cute bag. =] So true so true!

Thanks Mom! You are the best!

BJ's side of the family did end up throwing me a baby shower last weekend. I have pictures of that to post as soon as I get un lazy and go through my packed hospital bag to find the camera.

(at 37 weeks I thought I should pack my hospital bag and now its driving me nuts having it packed because I keep getting into for stuff!)

Updates

~My unofficial due date is the 7th. BJ keeps telling me that she will come by then. I'm sticking with the 15th so I don't feel super overdue.

~38 weeks and I don't know for sure if I'm dilated or not. I have been losing my mucus plug so that must mean something is happening. My midwife didn't even ask if I wanted to be checked, which I didn't. No point in knowing if I'm not even having contractions.(Plus I hear it hurts to be checked. I'm in enough pain as it is!)

~ Sunday I had contractions for 40 minutes. They were 5 minutes a part and getting stronger. Then they stopped and I haven't felt anything since then.

~ I lost 4 lbs this last appointment. I guess walking 2 miles everyday and playing full on basketball means you shed some pounds. I hope its that easy after she gets here!

~BJ made one of the JV basketball teams. After an up down week of trying out he made the team and has been going to practice at 6am. He is super excited to play and I can't wait to go cheer him on!

Full Term

2011-04-27T21:59:00.000-07:00

I never got around to taking maternity pictures. I should have took them at like 30 weeks when I was big but didn't feel like I had 20 layers of fat on me yet. I didn't know that. I also could care less to put make up on ever and its minimal what goes on for church even. So no cute pictures for me. There is website my sister Kim got me hooked on called Pinterest. I love it and there were a ton of cute maternity ideas. Since my sister Kerri is here I had her take some to see how they would turn out.

There was one with the boy holding a pumpkin and it was the same size as her belly. So stinkin cute.

My belly is bigger then this seedless watermelon and not nearly as cute as the one I saw.

This is a work in progress. Once the baby gets here we'll take another one in this same shirt and hold her in front of me. We'll see how it turns out.

There are other ones I wanted to try and do but I just don't have the means to do them and I don't feel like paying someone to take pictures of just my belly.

Updates

~ Nothing new same old same old

~ Having my sister Kerri here has been fun! I am now in her shoes that she was in almost 4 years ago! Its been fun to see the other side. I have loved every minute of her being here and playing with Kaci and Forrest. Uncle Bruce is the favorite sadly but since I'm not too much fun these days I'm just glad he is around to play with them and make them happy. Kaci loves Bruce. Its so cute to watch them play.

~I lost most of my mucus plug so that means some of my pain has been worth it.

~ The first night I woke up to Forrest crying I realized I think I can wait a little bit longer for my baby to get here. Then I started to hurt and I'm worried about the no sleep but I'm ready to be done.

~ My midwife said I need to exercise and lay off the sweets so instead of changing my eating habits I just walked a few miles each day while BJ played basketball. I ended up losing a pound. Go me!!!

~ My sister in law had her baby Tuesday night. They always wait to be surprised on the gender and she had a little girl!!!!! I am so happy my daughter will have a girl cousin to play with that is only a few days to weeks older than her! I hope they will become the best of friends but if not at least they will have someone to play with at family gatherings.

Happy birthday to me!

2011-04-21T08:42:00.000-07:00

This year I wasn't really all into my birthday coming. First time ever! It ended up being amazing thanks to my wonderful husband!

~He let me sleep in since we have been waking up early everyday the past weekend.

~ After we dropped off my mother in law we got to go shopping at my favorite grocery store WINCO!

~I ate half of an amazingly good chocolate muffin!

~ My sister in law Liz sent me a gift card for Applebee's so we got to go have a very yummy lunch!!( and dinner because we had left overs)

~ I got to pick what show I wanted to watch while I drifted off to my nap
~Thanks to my Dad, mom, and friend Jessica I got a fancy pedicure. Since people sent me money I went for the fancy one which included getting my toes done, getting a yummy fancy drink, a plate of chocolates and candies, and a nice warm neck thingy. It was a great pedicure. They did so much that I'm not used too. My toes turned out really cute too.

Me at 36 weeks. Nothing really eventful has happened this last week. Thanks to my mother in law we got everything moved in to our new place and everything is unpacked. She is still getting bigger and the midwife finally said I needed to stay away from sweets and try to slow down the weight gain. eek! I want to spend the rest of the week getting her room ready then I want her here! BJ told me about a dream he had of her and ever since all I can think about is her and what it will be like once she finally gets here!!!!!

BJ got me flowers too. He had them in the car when he picked me up from my pedicure

I also got my diapers in the mail that day!

The spa place even gave me all the scrubby tools they used on me and flip flops

We had Danny, Matt, and Camille over for cake and ice cream. I wanted to make it look cute so I used my serving dishes. They sang to me and then we watched Eagle eye that I fell asleep in.

I told BJ that my 22nd year was the most eventful year I have prolly ever had.

I got married

I got pregnant

I moved to Idaho

I worked full time, went to school full time, and was pregnant

Thats a lot! I'm looking forward to my 23rd year as it will be my first year as a parent!

I. CAN. NOT. WAIT!!!

Midwives

2011-04-13T19:27:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking of switching over to the midwives up here then sticking it out with the doctor that wants to cut me up. But I wasn't sure how to go about doing it, and I felt weird changing doctors yet again.

After talking it over with lots of people I felt justified in at least getting a second opinion. So I had a consultation with one of the midwives today.

As soon as I told her what my doctor said her mouth dropped, she starting shaking her head and said "oh no honey we make sure everyone gives it "the old college try" before we even think of slicing you open".

We talked for a long time about it and she made me feel so much better that I wasn't going to be putting my child in harms way by wanting to avoid a c-section.

She then asked if she could measure my belly. She had my lay down and felt around for the baby. She told me where the head was and that it wasn't engaged yet. She pointed out her back and where her little booty was (it was what the ultrasound lady said and the midwife was just feeling my stomach!).

Then she said "I would guess 5 1/2 maybe 6 lbs." I measured between 35-36 weeks. She looked at me and said " Honey I wouldn't even do an ultrasound on you. You measure spot on and I'm not even worried she would be more then maybe 8 lbs."

I must say I love that lady! She kept looking at me and saying "poor thing to have the doctor scare you like that for no reason!"

She even set it up to where I just signed a paper and they do all the dirty work and I don't have to feel like I'm 5 inches tall and tell them I'm switching.

Talking to her was the most I've done at any of my doctors appointments. I had more of my questions answered without even having to ask. She also said that the midwives stay with you from active labor until the baby and I are set and able to get some rest. I don't have to worry about talking to nurses I've never seen and be in labor with random people and only see the doctor when I'm pushing. That made me feel a lot better about going into labor. Plus 70% of their patients do natural so they are willing to work with me and help me get through it without meds.

Thanks to all my sisters and sister in laws for helping get a second opinion. I feel lots lots better now!

belly

2011-04-12T11:40:00.000-07:00

This is the only shot I've been able to get of my lopsided belly I still think its so funny when she does this!

week 35

2011-04-11T18:43:00.000-07:00

~ A little over a month left to go. I pray every night (and morning and just about every minute I think of it) that this little girl feels the best time to come will be the last week of April or my 37th week.

~ We decided to move up the road into a townhouse at the married student housing the school offers. There were a lot of pros and cons about the move and it took me a few days after signing the contract that I felt right about it, but I'm exited.

Pros

- Its a TOWNHOUSE! It has house in its name! No more apartment, more homey feeling.

-Lots and LOTS more storage (this place has zero and I was getting worried)

- Closer to campus we don't have to drive meaning no more parking passes

-The church building is down hill and closer so we wont be as sweaty by the time we get to church!

(so can not WAIT to walk to church every Sunday!!!)

- Separate living room from dining room and kitchen so you can actually entertain people

- Same price we are paying now

- We can wash clothes or run the dishwasher as any time of the day and not have to wait until 11 pm!

( so much better since I'm doing cloth diapers!)

- Bigger washer and dryer

- Has real tile and soft carpet you actually want your feet to touch

- Has a playground close to our building

- We will have a pantry that is huge!

- 1 and a half bath so guest have one downstairs too

Cons

- We have to supply our own washer and dryer

-stairs take up living room space and I have to climb them more

- Kitchen is smaller and still not many cabinets

-Long and skinny and not open

- no covered parking for winter

- no assigned parking

- moving again and unpacking again

All in all it was a good trade. I'm glad I put our names on the waiting list last semester and that BJ was on top of things and called to get us in. We scored big time getting a townhouse. There aren't as many and the flats aren't worth the trade off. So I'm a happy girl even if I have to move again while pregnant.

~ I'm having many days of pain. One girl at church freaked out and asked if I was in labor and if I needed my husband. No I'm not in labor just a whole lot of pain.

~She is perfecting her dance moves. She is getting better at them everyday and never fails to put on a show when music is playing that she likes such as church music and rock.

~ We finished our birthing classes. The last class she gave us baby dolls and walked us through how to give our baby a bath. The dads were the ones practicing and it made my heart happy to watch BJ be super gentle with the baby doll and carefully follow each instruction. He was the only dad that actually did each step. He also grabbed the biggest baby in the pile by passing the smallest one. He said that baby was more realistic for his daughter. haha so true.

~ I was going to use this week to make the baby's room all cute and ready for her but now everything is in boxes. I guess I'll do her room next week.

~The closer it gets the farther away it seems! I keep daydreaming of cuddling with her. BJ keeps telling me all the things that will be different once she gets here. I think he is a tad worried he will lose his partner in crime but I keep trying to reassure him he just will have 2 now instead of one. =]

~ Realized today that I am so so glad we were sent a little girl. I finally got to see Tangled and BJ could not stay out of my face the whole movie. I can't even count how many times he got in front of me and covered the screen. I realized having a boy would mean double that. We shall see how much this girly follows her daddy. Hopefully not too much! lol

~ I am now taking one class this next semester. As I tried to defer they informed it was not a good choice and by taking at least one class I can do fast grad and not have to worry about starting to pay off my student loans. I thought I had to take 8 credits but w realized it would just be cheaper to pay out of pocket for 2 credits. I think I can handle one class!

~ My birthday is in a week! BJ's mom is bringing Danny up for school and will be here this weekend and she flys back on the 18th so BJ said he would take me out to eat at a real restaurant (IF has lots Rexburg has 2) and then I can go to this tiny spa up here and get my toes done. Thanks to my friend Jessica Clerc for spending me money I get to do the fancy pedicure and I couldn't be more excited!!!!!!!!

End of the semester

2011-04-09T17:45:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you the end of the semester ends on a THURSDAY!!??!

I woke up Friday morning and thought "hey no school = book reading time that isn't a textbook!"

So I pulled BJ out of bed and we head off to the library for me to find a new series to read. I only really like reading series because I always get so sad when the book ends. I'm one of those creepy people that get really attached to the characters in the book and if there isn't a series where it keeps going it hits faster and I don't like that!

Its a cute story. Its from the Young Adult section because that is all I like to read. It is only a trilogy but that's fine with me. I read the book in one day. Easy reading but that meant I had to go back and get the other 2 since the library wont be open on Sunday.

What did BJ do all day?

This was like his favorite game growing up and he found a way to download it onto his computer. He played the whole time I read. He is still playing and loving it.

We also took time to clean which we stopped for finals. We also started packing up the place because BJ scored lots of boxes. I took all my decorations down and I'm hating all the white walls. I do not know how people live this way! I'm getting excited for our move! I think it was a very good choice even if we might (most likely we will) lose some money in the long run.

SCHOOL IS OUT! NO SCHOOL UNTIL FALL! I decided to defer for next semester. I was starting to get worried I wasn't going to be able to handle giving birth and taking care of a newborn with a full load of school work plus moving to Vegas for the summer. I was going to because the money we would have gotten was going to be our safety net until BJ started working (I find out more each time I go to the doctor how much money goes into having a child). Then I found out I'd only get money to cover tuition and books and we wouldn't have our safety net. That made it easy for me to "use wisdom in deferring my one semester of choice". I think having baby is worth deferring. It sets me back yet another semester but I might get on Fast Grad during the fall and go right thorough until I graduate.

Here is to lazy days of sleep and reading until baby girl completely consumes my life! wooo hoo!!!!

34 weeks

2011-04-05T11:41:00.000-07:00

~ Hands down the hardest week of my pregnancy. Even including all those weeks of being sick. My belly is just so heavy these days I hurt after 3 steps of walking. It feels like some kicked me in the crotch every single day. Any time she moves it comes with pain somewhere. You name it and it hurts!

~ Tried figuring out what contractions were this week. I'm pretty sure I'm having either braxton hicks or they are the real deal.

~ The doctor told me I was still big and next appointment he was going to do another ultrasound to see if she will be a 10 pound baby. He then said they would prolly do a c-section. After that all questions went out of my head and I forgot to ask about contractions.

~ After a day of crying my eyes out I figured I'd just change over to the midwife if the doctor feels a c-section is the way to go. I am not for that at all! So I will talk to my birthing class teacher who has worked with all of them and see what she says.

~ Pushing out a 10 pound baby sounds fun huh!

~ Toured the hospital! Its super nice! They have everything and do pretty much anything for you. All rooms are private. The labor room is huge! They have tubs I can sit in during labor and after if I want!

~ Took 2 baths today because I just hurt. They felt amazing and I will prolly take one every day from now on... if not more!

~ Finally figured it was time to wash all of her clothes and blankets. This picture pretty much makes my heart happy! It drives me NUTS when people fold their clothes and leave it on the couch. I refuse to fold my clothes there but it made me feel all grown up. Plus I don't have anywhere to put her stuff yet because we have yet to prepare her room for her!

~ LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL!!!!!!! I made it through my hell hole of a week and only had one melt down. I'm so proud of myself. I went 11 weeks of school being pregnant and had only one melt down and being stressed about school. One melt down is unheard of for me!

~ Checked out "The motherly way of breastfeeding" this week. My birthing class said, "If you haven't read a book on breastfeeding you are behind and need to get one tomorrow. NO matter what!" I guess I was pulling the rookie card thinking you have a baby and she latches on and eats. The more I learn the more I think WOW becoming a mom is hard work and takes so much out you! Its no walk in the park! We now are signed up for a breastfeeding class this next week or two.

~ I'm already leaking! Its not huge leaks but BJ thinks it is so funny. It started awhile ago but only happened a few times I didn't think anything of it. All I have to do is touch my boob and stuff comes out. Its kind of weird.

~

This song is by India Arie. Pretty much gets me through everything! I love it!

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

I tried to call my mother, but
She didn’t get where I was going
I called my boyfriend and he said
Call me back a little later baby
I hung up the phone, I felt so alone
Started to feel a little pity
That’s when I realized that I
Gotta find the joy inside of me

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

I’m gonna take off all my clothes
Look at myself in the mirror
We’re gonna have a conversation
We’re gonna heal the disconnection
I don’t remember when it started
But this is where it’s gonna end
My body is beautiful and sacred
And I’m gonna celebrate it

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

All my life (all my life)
I’ve been looking for (I’ve been looking for)
Somebody else (else)
To make me whole (ooo)
But I had to learn the hard way (ooo)
True love began with me (ooo)
This is not ego or vanity (ooo)
I’m just celebrating me

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

Sometimes I’m alone but never lonely
That’s what I’ve come to realize
I’ve learned to love the quiet moments
The Sunday mornings of life
Where I can reach deep down inside
Or out into the universe
I can laugh until I cry
Or I can cry away the hurt

I’m having a private party
Ain’t no body here but me, my angels, and my guitar singin’ baby look how far we’ve come here
I’m havin’ a private party
Learning how to love me
Celebrating the woman I’ve become, yeah

Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday
Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday to me
Happy birthday

Lets go fly a kite

2011-04-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

Everyone here has been dying for spring to come. I've been sad that the snow was going away. It was pretty much was gone, even the HUGE piles in the parking lots were tiny old things now. I was super sad.

We woke up Monday morning to the entire town covered in snow! It snowed all day and stuck! It had been snowing but just melted and turned to rain by the end of the day. It made me so very happy to see the town covered in the beautiful white snow! The next morning we woke up to the sun shinning and the snow gone.

Thats when I decided to embrace spring with open arms. Thanks for my last beautiful snow fall!

The locals says it snows up until May but we will see what happen.

The next day the wind was blowing like CRAZY!

For one of our FHE we got free passes to Fat Catz (movies, golf, bowling, arcade place) and while we were waiting for our movie to start we spent $2 to play some games. I got us enough tickets for a small prize. BJ and I both wanted to get the alien parachute guy and 2 small candies. BJ showed me the art of throwing him and I was amazed! We had so much fun throwing him off our stairs before church one day. We were waiting for another windy day to throw him again. We found a really nice one at the store that had a fabric parachute with a real army guy attached but I didn't think he was worth the $5. BJ then said if we couldn't get the cool parachute guy that we should go to the $1 store and get kites.

I've never really flown a kite before. I always break it or it doesn't fly and I give up. But the day was perfect so we got some kites and invited Matt and Camille to come fly kites with us.

I started putting my kite together and.... i broke it =[ I helped BJ put his together and Matt did his. Camille hadn't gotten there yet so I took her kite and tried to fly it. I ended up breaking that one too.

Matt got his up for a bit but ended up breaking his too. He tried putting it back together but it wouldn't stay up very long.

BJ couldn't get his very high up. He kept trying. His was the only intact one by the end of the day.

Then Camille joined us and she got Matt's broken kite up in the air. She got it to the end of her string even! It was a Spring Miracle!! BJ watched her and ended getting his up and got to the end of his string too! It was fun to watch them flying. BJ made me try it one last time and I got it for a bit but couldn't get to the end of my string.

Maybe some day we can get real kites that I can't break so easily and we can master the art of flying a kite.

We drove past Porter park and there were people there! Like a ton of people! Some kids playing on the play stuff, some running the paths, others sitting on blankets, some playing frisbee, others playing games. It made my heart happy to see people out enjoying the sun!

I was amazed and BJ laughed and pointed out that we never see that in AZ. There wasn't 1 jumpy place, there wasn't some corporate event, no fundraiser, no free stuff, no birthday parties, no homeless people.

Wow I never realized that people really use a park for well a park!

I love Rexburg! I'm now finally embracing spring and looking forward to the wonders of the season I have never known. Flowers are even starting to bloom! In random places all over town! Its amazing! I might get to see flowers in full bloom that don't die in a week! BJ says the grass turns green and the trees stay green until fall. WHAT?! This I can't wait to see. Right now it looks like AZ with yellow grass and no leaves on the trees. I do believe it can happen because I've seen little sprigs popping up already.

Spring I might even fall in love with you. Please don't disappoint! =]

33 weeks

2011-03-27T16:53:00.000-07:00

~ Its crazy how one day you can feel completely normal... as far as normal is when prego... and other days you just feel pregnant. I had half and half this week.

~ We went swimming and it felt amazing! I felt great the whole time in the pool then got out and waddled the rest of the night because she just felt really heavy.

~ She found my ribs and has decided that is her new favorite spot. I wouldn't mind so much if it didn't pull my muscle in my back and make it to where I can't breath. Thankfully my husband is strong and can relax the muscle for me since I can't reach it!

~ Its pretty bad but we found out that if BJ pounds on my back when she is hurting me she will move. I guess she doesn't like it. It makes her move though so when all else fails thats what we gotta do.

~ We learned about labor this week in birthing class. Did you know you can have your baby without breaking your water. Never knew that one! Learned what stripping your membranes means too.

For A&P I get extra credit for going to Body World. We went down to IF and Matt and Camille came with us. We had fun looking at all the cool bodies and then went to see the rest of the museum.

The kids place had this cool horse outside.

They had a bunch of different antlers so BJ tried them on

They had some clothes the Indians wore

Matt and Camille both tried some on * note matt's arms*

He got stuck and couldn't get out of his shirt. It was pretty funny

* i wasn't suppose to take pictures. I found out later and had to delete some they saw me take oops*

BJ finally thought he would try out Guitar Hero so I sat and ate my breakfast while he was playing. I think the combo of food and music gave Rylee the thought that she would have her own little dance party. Whenever BJ was playing a song she was kicking like crazy. Then the music would stop and she would stop. The next song she was dancing again. I thought it was super funny.

**Watch the first part really close.

**Don't mind my gross stomach.

**I couldn't believe how much she was dancing.

**Can you see my stomach moving?!

**This is the first of many videos of her that I love and everyone will wonder why I posted them =]

She really likes music. We went to Savior of the World at school and she was awake the whole time. At one point she tried to come out of me through my stomach. She was pressing out more then she has ever done before. It was during a Men's Song. BJ said she is just like me because I'd rather listen to men sing then women. She has good taste in music already!

One week left of classes

Then Finals week

Then a week off

Then my BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!

(this is the first year I can remember I haven't had a count down for my birthday. The count down to her getting here is more important this year.)

I just think this picture is funny. Some day I'm going to put a basketball under this shirt and compare them to see if my stomach really is the size of a basketball lol

Waiting waiting waiting

2011-03-23T08:22:00.000-07:00

I can't stop thinking about labor and the many different ways that could take place. I can't stop thinking about how different my life will be in less than 2 months.

BJ had a seminar that was about 3 hours. I had homework and a quiz to study for but slept instead. We then stayed up and made cookies until midnight. BJ then woke me up at 5:30 am as he was finally going to sleep and I couldn't sleep anymore. I laid in bed for as long as I could and thought about labor. Then I really wanted a great breakfast! Eggs, toast, hashbrowns, bacon, orange juice, a bowl of fruit. We had egss and that was it. So I got up and went to the store to do our weekly shopping and to buy what I needed for my breakfast.

As I was shopping with no one else in the store and the stockers giving me evil eyes as I twisted around them to get the product I needed, I couldn't help but wish that my baby was here and shopping with me. She was awake the whole time I just wanted her in my cart instead of in my tummy. As I came home and made my big meal and ate alone I wished her turning all around and kicking was next to me in a bouncer.

I talked to a guy once about "being ready" for big events in your life. He felt that no one was really ready for marriage until after it happened. He also said no one can be ready to be a parent until the kid is in your arms. I 100% fully disagree! I was more then ready before my wedding day to be married. I also feel that I have been ready to be a parent since the day I got married. I really feel strongly that I'm ready to be this little girls mom. They say you aren't a mom until you push them out but heck I've been caring for this little girl for 33 weeks. I know her, I know her wants, I know her needs, I am her mother!

With each day I can't wait for her to come. I keep telling her she isn't ready to come yet and to not get any ideas but I am so ready for the reality of being a parent. I can't wait for the experience of going through all that pain just to bring her into this world. I can't wait for those loooooong nights and days of no sleep. I can't wait to hear those cries and try my hardest and figure out why she is crying. I can't wait for the day when BJ will come home and we both are crying because I am so over my head I have no clue what to do! I can't wait! I can NOT wait!

I'm going to have a constant little buddy depending on me. I'm going to have to learn to juggle school, husband, wife, mom all at the same time. I'm ready for that. I'm so ready I just want to blink my eyes and have be May!!!!!!!!!

Lastest Ultrasound

2011-03-22T21:47:00.000-07:00

Can you see my sweet girl!?

( yes its is a girl! BJ has been telling me it will come out a boy)

I love ultrasounds!

I went in for my regular monthly appointment today. We got our hamburger first then waited for the actual doctor to get back from delivering a baby. I'm at a women's clinic and so far I have only seen the nurse practitioners. There are 3 doctors and I'm suppose to meet each one because we wont know which one will be on call when the baby comes.

He was super rushed and I didn't get to ask him any of my questions. He measured me and started looking through my file. He asked if I had done a 20 week ultrasound and said non of my records showed it. I guess they forgot to included my last appoinment information in phoneix. He said he wanted do an ultrasound and make sure things were okay and he wanted to see what was going on since they would be delivering the baby anyways. I'm all for doing ultrasounds buts thats money we hadn't planned on spending.

The ultrasound tech lady was super chatty and took her sweet time. I love when they are in the mood to just look at the baby. I haven't seen her since I was 18 weeks and loved every second of the 20 minute ultrasound. It was crazy to see how big and different she looks now. The lady kept commenting that its really hard to do a 20 week scan on a 32 week baby because they are so big. I finally got to see how she was laying and figure out what has been poking me. Her head is down which I knew and I could see her little feet snug under my ribs. Her hands and feet are on my right side and her booty is facing my left. Thats pretty much what I figured. I love when I'm right about her!

She showed me that I was measuring at 34 weeks and that she was 5 pounds. Thats in the 80th percentile.

BJ and I sat down and looked at dates and charts and figured that my real due date should be May 6th. That would be more accurate to my measuring and conception date. I guess we will see what happens. I'm putting out in the universe that she will come the last week of April.

April is the best month anyways!!

32 weeks!

2011-03-20T21:04:00.000-07:00

8 months down 8 weeks left to go! Woo Hoo!

I'm getting excited for these last few weeks to go by. I have finals in 3 weeks then a whole week off! I plan on doing the baby's room that week. I need to move a bunch of stuff around and make it so I can put all the baby's stuff away and still have room for guests to sleep.

We finally got to go shopping for all the little stuff like blankets, wash cloths and such. BJ's cousin Janette went with us and she kept grabbing all pink stuff. I kept putting it back and grabbing yellows and greens. She looked at me and asked "Aren't you having a girl??" lol yup but I don't think girls should be all in pink! I like pink and think its cute but when it comes to buying it I like other stuff.

Does it look like I'm having a boy?? The bright orange yellows and greens are so much cuter then pink and purple. Don't get me wrong I love all that stuff too but I just couldn't bring myself to buy it.

I think I saw a picture of my nephew in a duck sleeper once. My poor little girl is prolly going to be called a boy the first year of her life. Oh well. I think its cute. I have some skirts and dresses I'll put on her but everyone thinks babies are boys anyways.

I did finally find giraffe girly things. Most giraffe stuff is yellow or on blue. I don't get that. I tired getting everything with giraffes on it but everyone vito that idea. They said it was all way to boyish and I had to buy girl things. Dumb but I caved.

This was the only "girly" thing that I bought. I think they are super cute but I wasn't planning on buying them. Janette put them in the cart and said "well you can leave them at the counter if you end up not really wanting them." I felt like that meant I needed something that is for sure for a girl so I bought them.

I love love love all the girly stuff and will gladly dress her up in frilly everything but when it came time to spend my own money on that stuff I didn't want it. I also don't like how girl stuff makes it seem like they are brats and stuck up. Like shirts that say "I know I'm cute!" Thats gay.

We are still loving our birthing classes. I have learned a lot that seemed like such simple things but I realized I wasn't living them. One of the things she taught us was not to hold our breath when we were in pain. She said when you hold your breath, baby holds its breath. Duh right?! Well I realized that I do that exact thing when the baby hurts me. I hold my breath and breath in fast and quick until it goes away. Thats exactly what she told us not to do. When it hurts, take a deep breath and try to relax and be calm. Duh right?! Yeah I can already see the difference when I remember to breath and relax. She told us its important to start trying now with little pains so during labor its what we will try to do instead of waiting and saying thats what we'll do when it comes time. I figured her way was best and I shouldn't wait until labor day to try and deal with pain. Since I'm in pain almost daily I get good practice! Just another way to help me through natural child birth!

Baby Updates

~ She scared the poop out of me this week. I know this little girl very well but the dumb doctor scared me so now I get worried about stuff that didn't worry me before. She has a day once or twice a week where she sleeps pretty much all day long. I call those days her "growing days" Like when you were little and your knees hurt and you were hungry all day and the next day you seemed like 3 inches taller. Well I usually am super tired on those days too and I got up super late. Then I started doing homework and the day slowly slipped by. I realized I hadn't felt her move at all. I commented to BJ and he wasn't worried but then I remembered the doctor saying if I didn't feel her move at all in a day to come in ASAP. So then I started to worry. I drank some OJ and laid down. She loves oranges and usually goes crazy in seconds. I got nothing. So then I was really worried and started shaking my belly and poking her to wake her up. She gave me a few weak kicks and I kept trying to wake her up. She gave me a few stronger ones. She went back to sleep and i figured I had felt her so I didn't need to call the doctor. She slept the entire day then around 7 she woke up and went crazy. She was up the rest of the night and through out the next day. It seemed like she didn't sleep at all. I knew I was right and she was just super tired but that dumb doctor had to put the fear of God in me!

~ Finally figured out that she does not like strawberries. I get sick every time I eat them. I kept eating them because I love them and am tired of oranges but then I gave up. Its not worth getting so sick. BJ doesn't like strawberries either. Can you tell this is his daughter!!

~ She now likes to show off. Not only does she want to be a part of the group talking she has to push out on my stomach and make it look funky to get peoples attention. It works. every. single. time.

~ She loves the sound of a basketball being dribbled. Its funny to watch a game and feel her stop moving as the ball gets closer to me then as it moves away she starts going nuts then calms down as it gets close again. She will prolly be a baller.

~ She hates it when I lay on my left side. They say to lay on your left side for better circulation so I try too. I prefer to sleep on my right side and I guess so does she. She hangs out only on my right side and at night when I lay on my left she will kick me until I turn over. She will chill out if I'm on my right but gets mad when I change back to my left.

~ I can see now why some women say they miss being pregnant. I love feeling her kick and move all around when she isn't hurting me. I'll miss watching my stomach do its own dance.

~ My all time favorite is the fact that when I cuddle up to my husband in the morning he can feel her kicking on his stomach. I love that!

~ I still love that they play the poking kicking game together (she will only do that with BJ). I love being the middle man and listening to him talk to her and give her lovins

~ I have an appointment this week then it starts the going every 2 weeks instead of monthly. Oh joy

Pocatello

2011-03-19T22:13:00.000-07:00

Rexburg has a total of 5 stores. Which means very very limited on anything. People always ask where you got something in Idaho Falls because thats where you have to go if you want to shop.

Well we decided to drive extra and visit some family in Pokey. Its about an hour and a half but BJ has a cousin there. I love hanging out with that family. It like hanging out at the Listers. We stayed with them when we first moved up here and I've been wanting to go back and play.

BJ's cousin is like 40, Janette who is married to Doug. They have 5 kids, Danielle 15, Devanne 13, Paker 11, Alexis 7, and Oliva 4. They all are amazing. They are from the Balls side and are super laid back and funny. I wanted to get all my baby stuff and thought it would be nice to have someone tell me yes get that or no you don't need that.

We drove down and headed over to Costco for some pizza. I have been wanting it forever! It was sooooooo good! We got some stuff then headed back home to meet up with Janette. Then we headed out and went to 4-5 stores looking and getting all the little stuff. Then we went back and had dinner.

I have been dying for some Panda Express but its only in Idaho Falls. Doug is an amazing chief and made homemade orange chicken for me. He fried it and everything! They even made lo mein! It pretty much was the best meal I have had in hmmmmm FOREVER! Then they made homemade custard. Pretty much We all were in a food coma!

Rylee went crazy after I ate. She hasn't tasted such great food ever!! She also was showing off for her cousins by pressing out against my stomach as far as she could. My stomach has never looked that lopsided before. She was going crazy over that food. They tried getting me to eat more but I wasn't about to give her any more and make her even more crazy.

I think I got most of the basic stuff. Now we wont be running to the store every day trying get stuff as we figure out what we need. There are a few things I still want to get but aren't a huge need to have.

All in all it was a great day! I'm glad we got to spend time with family and get to know them better. We might go down again next month depending on how I feel and when the baby comes!

St.Patrick's Day

2011-03-18T11:25:00.001-07:00

I woke up knowing that it was St. Patrick's day. I didn't have anything fun planned. My class was cancelled so we thought we would go for another bike ride. BJ wanted to watch March Madness and said that they were going to play all the games up at the school ( He never really knew what it was all about. He has never made a bracket before or anything. I've never really been into the whole thing but he has been so excited learning about it and watching the games that I've had fun watching too. We didn't do a bracket but he said he wants to next year!) We got dressed and rode our bike up to school.

They had a HUGE screen down and projected the games on it! It was amazing! We stayed there pretty much all day watching each game that came on. BJ would watch the other games on his phone. There have been some pretty awesome plays! We got hungry so we left and got some food then came back for the BYU game. It was fun watching it with a ton of people all around cheering and booing. We then left again to eat dinner and went back for the last game. I watched while doing my 13 page take home test and studying.

My A&P teacher gives this HUGE test every semester over the heart. The study guide is like 4 packets long each with at least 5 pages and the test is super hard. He said that most people take 3-4 hours taking it in the testing center. The longest someone took was 5 hours!! I was sooo no looking forward to the test. There was no way I was going to be able to sit in the testing center with no food or water or able to go pee for 3 hours! THANKFULLY heavenly father prompted my teacher's son to ask him on a Disney cruise for a week. That made him willing to give us the test as a take home test! Thank goodness! I've spent 2 days on it so far and still have about 1/4 more to go!

My pregnancy brain almost got me again! I knew it was st patrick's day but while we were getting dressed I forgot about. Half way in to the first game I realized BJ wasn't wearing green and starting pinching him. He then tried to pinch me and I was covered head to toe in green. He got all booty hurt that I didn't tell it was st patrick's day when we were getting dressed. I told him I forgot about until just then. He didn't believe me. IDK why or how I ended up in all green but I did. I truly forgot I was suppose to wear green but thankfully I have a lot of it so take that pregnancy brain!!!!

I also got my pack in play or play yard this week!!! BJ made fun of me because as soon as it arrived I set it all up. He thinks its funny how excited I am for all this baby stuff. I put his mind at ease and took it down. He thought I was going to leave it up til the baby got here. This was the cheapest one I could find. I don't think I'm going to like the changing station part of it. It seems more of a hassle to use it then not but we'll see.

31 weeks

2011-03-13T17:11:00.000-07:00

photo from here

9 weeks left. I'm down to the single digits!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I officially signed up for classes. I have all online courses. 2 seem like they are going to be really hard. They were the only ones I could get into though. So I'll just be relying on the Lord lots this next semester to help me get through it with a newborn!

Tomorrow I turn in my application for the Nursing program. First time I'll ever really go through with applying. It makes me super nervous to actually apply. I really really want to get it in! I also really really don't know if I'll make it through the program if I get in so it makes me not want to get it. My feelings keep going back and forth. BJ is all for it and is making sure I apply. I guess we will see what happens. I will be super sad if I don't get in. But not surprised.

Notice how fat my face is getting?! I told BJ I'm getting rolls on my neck. Idk if she is going to fit inside of me much longer. I really don't know if my stomach can get much bigger.

I realized this week that it is very obvious that I'm pregnant. I put on a shirt I haven't worn in awhile and told BJ it kind of hid my belly. Matt and BJ both looked at me and stated " Nothing can hide your belly!" It hit me that I am huge! No matter where I go or who I talk too someone always comments about pregnancy.

I have added yet another pillow to sleep with. Having a pillow between my legs grantees a good nights rest. Other wise my hips ache all night

I'm so grateful for a husband who willingly makes dinner for me when I can't get off the couch

I realized this week that our lives are going to change. While making eggs one morning she was kicking me and I wondered how I was going to make eggs if she was crying. Then today I woke up starving and took a shower but felt horrible so we both laid back down and slept for another 2 hours. When I woke up she was kicking and I wondered what we would do if she was awake during that time.

Hopefully we get to make it down to real stores and go shopping soon. Since it is finally march I can start buying all the little things she is going to need.

I ordered my pack n play! Should be here this week!

I was talking to my sister Liz and she told me about epi-no.

Anyone ever heard of it or used it? She said she used it with her second and it made a world of difference. I'm looking into it but wonder if its worth the $200.

Great day!

2011-03-11T15:01:00.000-08:00

After a week of school and playing with my brother in law Dan then a weekend of taking care of my brother law Matt on top of 2 tests, 2 projects and little sleep I was pooped!!

I was pretty much done with school by Thursday. My a&p teacher was extremely nice and gave us a take home test for the biggest test of the semester. I played hooky from class since he already gave us the test to start working on. I was able to sleep until my body said get up. My hips didn't hurt at during the night so I slept the full 8 hours! I had enough time to make myself a real breakfast! I even watched an episode of "in plain sight". During which I got a huge craving for a doughnut. I checked the temp outside and it was 45!!

I have been DYING to ride my bike for over 2 weeks now. The snow has started to melt then it would snow again. Its to the point where the snow is almost gone and the sidewalks are finally clear.I talked BJ into riding our bikes to the doughnut shop. It took some talking but I won! We rode our bikes the 2 miles to the doughnut shop

I got a Blueberry crumb doughnut. Most amazing doughnut ever! It tasted pretty much like a muffin. It was exactly what I was looking for!

Then I got hungry so we found a pizza place that had a $5 pizzas. Lucky us the BYU game was on.

Everyone and I mean EVERYONE talks about BYU basketball here and or about Utah State and since we don't have tv and I dont like watching sports we never have a clue whats going on. Since we had free time we ate our pizza and enjoyed the game. ( they won by the way!)

We then rode home and I was pretty much done for. I realized how out of shape I am when I'm dying going up a slight incline. I felt like I had ridden 20 miles instead of 4.

Danny bought guitar hero for the Wii and left it here for us to play. When we came home and I had time to play some before it was time to go to the temple.

Our calling is a sealing couple. We go once a month and do sealings. We have been wanting to do sealings since we got married but never knew how to go about doing them. Now we get to do it once a month. The sealer was a very cute old man. He had a story to tell after each set of sealings. One that was interesting. He said in the year 2010 that temple had done about 1.7 million ordinances. Of those there were only 748 mistakes. That was something like a .04% error. He said they went back and fixed every single one. Crazy that out soooo many there was less than a 1000 that had an error!

After the temple BJ got to go play church ball. He looks forward to it every week. I watch while doing homework most of the time.

All in all it was a great day! I needed a day to step back so I can adjust back to our regular routine!

What a day!

2011-03-07T23:49:00.000-08:00

All three of these pictures plus way way more were me today! What gives?!?!

My first class I was super intense and so into everything the teacher said (not normal that class is a zzzzz)

2nd class I cried the entire time. Some guy commented that as a family they would go camping and it was some of their best memories as a kid. Super touching right?! Yeah bawled my eyes out too.

Went to the grocery store not 5 minutes after class and I seriously wanted to ram my cart into anyone and everyone in the store. If I were a cussing kind of girl I'm sure more then one would have heard the lot from me.

Made a list of the 5 or 6 items I needed for dinner. Looked at it maybe twice before the store, then once while in the middle of shopping. I still forgot 2 items on the list.

I get home and start making dinner and I'm crying again.

Dinner conversation:

Matt: I think I might go to FHE

BJ: Well should I give you a ride or is Camille going to take you?

Matt: Either way is fine. The doctor said not to drive for a bit

Me : (Listening intently and was there when doctor said not to drive for a few days, completely serious) Matt why don't you just take our car?!!!

I blame the hormones!

Fun filled Sunday

2011-03-07T23:05:00.000-08:00

My brother in law Matt sent a scare through us on Sunday. His girlfriend called and told us he was in the hospital after he had a seizure.

We stopped dinner and rushed over there. We then waited for 5 hours or so before they took him to a room to stay over night.

I offered my husband to stay with him. At the time I didn't think anything of it. As I left the hospital alone I realized that my husband and I would be a part for the first time ever at night.

After a mire 5 hours of sleep it wasn't so bad. BJ got to "practice" sleeping on those chairs that pull into a bed. He didn't sleep at all because alarms kept going off.

Matt is doing good now. The doctor doesn't know why this happened but we all agree that he just pushed his body to the max and it shut down. He had been going on 2-3 hours a sleep for a few days and spent the day fasting. On top of being stressed at school, having a girlfriend, and being elder's quorum president, playing hockey, being a single, cleaning the temple late at night, he just needs to rest.

We kidnapped him and are making him spend the next few days at our place. Single life is just not calm and I knew he would try to go right back into the full swing of things.

So all is well, and we get a little bit more time to get to know his girlfriend! Always a plus!

29/ 30 weeks

2011-03-06T14:42:00.000-08:00

I noticed on Friday that my stomach is all of a sudden super super round. I don't know where it came from but its HUGE and ROUND these days!

Baby updates

~ We have liked the name Rylee Aden since we found out it was a girl. Last week I wasn't sure it was what I was going for so I started the search again. Then we got the Wii and I wanted to make a Mii for the baby. Since she didn't have a name I went back to Rylee. Then I met up with BJ while he was in his study group to get the car keys and as I was leaving one of the guys said " Bye Rylee!" It pretty much melted my heart. I'm still not 100% but I am at least 95% now.

~ I signed us up for Birthing classes. I wanted to do hypnobabies but after talking to the lady I realized that her regular class was more my thing. We went to our first one. I was sure it was just going to be review for me and I just wanted BJ to go and understand stuff. However, I learned so much! It was AMAZING!!! She puts a huge emphasis on being able to do everything all naturally and learning to listen to your body and relax during the labor process. We practiced holding ice in our hands and then she gave us pointers and how to overcome the coldness. It really worked and made the time go faster. We also practiced different positions to give birth. I always figured I'd do it just like my sister and be in bed while pushing. After going through different ways and trying to relax I found out that I can't relax at all when I'm on my back. That was a huge eye opener. In the birthing videos people seem the most comfortable when on their backs but looks can be deceiving. Next week we are going over birth plans which I'm all for! I already have mine started so I'm excited to get more insight on stuff I just don't know about! BJ also liked it and learned a lot too.

~ My honeymoon phase is definitely over. I'm tired all the time again. I can be starving but only able to eat half my food. Then I have to wait an hour or so to finish it. My hips ache whenever I lay down for too long which makes sleeping a pain! I also am getting days of queasiness again.

~ Its fun to play games with the baby now. BJ was laying next to me one night and he would squeeze my tummy and she would kick. They went back and forth for a good 10 minutes. BJ then fell asleep and had his head resting on my tummy. She wasn't done playing with her daddy and sat and kicked him. He didn't wake up so she used all her might and did one really big kick. It startled BJ awake! I just laughed!!!

~ I was bored in class one day so I started rocking forward and backwards. I did it three times and she kicked me back three times. I kept doing it and every time she would kick me. I could tell I was making her mad and it just made me laugh. I would bet a million bucks she is going to come out stubborn with a temper. She is for sure her daddy's daughter!

~ Bending over is now really hard to do. Its always been hard if I had pants on but now even in a dress or skirt its hard to put on shoes and socks. Thankfully I have the most helpful husband around and he is always willing to help with the shoes and socks. Its hard though when I'm alone and I drop something. Getting down is easy but the coming up isn't!

~ I'm getting my pay back for always staring and talking about any and every pregnant lady I would see. No matter where I am or what I'm doing someone is watching me and or whispering about me.

~ I have yet to use my "I'm pregnant" card at school. I am very proud of that!

~She still loves the organ! I don't get it but she goes nuts.

~ She also found my ribs for the first time. I'm kind of surprised it took her this long but I'm glad it did. It HURTS!

~ I'm starting to get super anxious for her to get here!

~ I'm in search of a diaper bag. My sister kerri used a backpack with her first and I have always liked that idea. All the backpack ones I've found are ugly. I've found tons of cute bags but I'm not willing to pay so much for them. I'm thinking of making one. I just really want a giraffe bag!

Fun filled week

2011-03-03T14:51:00.000-08:00

We've had a really good last 2 weeks! Starting off with a holiday and it is still going!

The most exciting news was going to the baby store called Mommy n Me. They sell Phil and Ted strollers so we went to ordered from them since we thought they had a pretty good deal going. Their Chicco key fit 30 car seats were expensive and I knew I could find those cheaper so we held off on that one. The next day they called and said they were on back order and wouldn't get my stroller until May 16th! Thats after my due date!! True I don't need it until after my due date but I want it to start taking up space now!!!!! And I want to start pushing it around my house because I want to! So we went online and found an AMAZING deal that ended up being cheaper then Mommy n Me. We got the stroller with the doubles kit and the car seat attachment! OH YEAH!

It is the same one my sister Kim has but they now come in Black instead of red. =]

These strollers only fit certain car seats on them. We looked into all of them. They had the cheap Graco one that can attach. They tend to be the cheapest out there. Then they got up to really expensive car seats. We have done our research and the Chicco Key Fit 30 seemed like a great car seat. It holds the baby up to 30 lbs. Most car seats only go up to like 22 lbs. They are really nicely made but tend to be more expensive. I really liked them because they have a easy adjustable strap that you press a button and pull a string and it moves for the baby. It also goes in and out of the base very easy which some car seats are horrible at doing. So I shopped around and found one for the price of a Graco! WOOT WOOT!!!! And it has green on it! =] =]

I put it all together myself!! It came 2 days early! I love that it takes up space!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BJ also has been looking at cars these past few weeks. Its his thing. Its crazy how much he is into cars and the knowledge he has on that subject. He always is finding a good car for a great price. He even tries to convince me we need it. I have kept him at bay for now but since I got my stroller he seemed to think the rest of the tax money was to play it. I had to remind him we still need diapers and hospital fees and other baby stuff. He still thought he should get a toy. So....

We bought a Wii. I have always wanted one so it wasn't hard to convince me to get it.

We also convinced my brother in law Danny to come play with us for a week. He keeps going back and forth on if he wants to come up here so we planned to show him a good time.

The first night he got here was POND SKIMMING

Basically people sign up to snowboard/ski/sled down this hill and try to make it across a pond of water. We are mormon so you can imagine the creative costumes people wore. Mario, Army men with a tanks, 3 amigos, little swim trunks, bananas, you name it there was someone dressed up in it. There were a lot of wipe outs which are always fun to see. Dan liked seeing all the people and listening to the music. His feet got cold so we left a tad early.

BJ has been in heaven with Danny here. I go to bed early and he stays up til 3 am and with Dan here he had a buddy to play with. Danny is also very VERY into cars. I can't even say how many hours have been spent on the topic of cars and how many cars and parts they have looked up online. I wont be sad when the car conversations stop tomorrow.

BYUI also lets anyone come to class so Dan went to all of BJ's classes. It was good for him to see what school will be like. He will have to take all those ones too so it worked out.

I found out on Tuesday that I really am a big pregnant lady. After my class the boys picked me up and we walked all over in search of housing for Dan. The weather was great so I didn't mind walking. Then we headed up to the school and we showed Dan everything. I had an hour of sitting during devotional then BJ had a meeting with his teacher so I took Dan around the rest of the campus. We also talked to advising and scheduled for him to take tests. After walking all over and up and down stairs I was pretty pooped. BJ had a basketball game so I went and watched while he and Dan played. By the time I got home my public bones felt like jelly. I'm still recovering from it. Wednesday didn't help with it being my long day at school either. BJ and Dan wanted to spend today playing and going swimming. I'm sitting out the playing and prolly wont make until 10 tonight to swim.

I never realized how much energy it took to entertain someone while pregnant. Both of my poor sisters had to entertain me when they were further along than I am!! I didn't think I'd get to experience it since I'm the youngest. I guess having younger in laws means I get to see what my sisters did for me! Its's been fun and I'm glad he came up. I've run my dishwasher and washer more this week then its ever been ran and done more stuff then I have in a long time. I know my husband has enjoyed it. I also only forgot to put my robe on once and that at 4 a.m. so I was safe!! =]