I'm thankful

Being the week of Thanksgiving, I decided that this week I am going to write one thing I'm grateful for each day. Obviously, I'm thankful for a lot more things than just 6 or 7, but for this purpose I will narrow it down a bit.


Today I am grateful to be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We had our Stake Conference yesterday and today, and it was a wonderful experience. There were many talks and musical numbers which uplifted me and gave me a renewed determination to be a better wife, mother, and overall person. I am far from perfect, but being a member of the Church and using the gift of the Atonement each and every day gives me the opportunity to learn and grow, and to be closer to my Savior and Heavenly Father. I am grateful for the knowledge that families are eternal, and that the blessings I enjoy now can be with me forever. I know it sounds cliche, but honestly, if I didn't have the gospel I don't know where I'd be right now. It has blessed me in so many ways over the years. And now that I'm living in a place where being a member of the Church is less common, I have gained a great appreciation for that blessing. The Church gives me peace and joy in a way that nothing else can, and I am grateful for it.

Braving the cold

So...the afternoon Thanksgiving activity didn't happen, due to my lack of being able to reach any of the ingredients I needed. Instead, Will and I ventured outside for one of his favorite activities - picking crab apples off of the trees by our apartment. I don't know what started this fascination, but Will loves to go and pick at least one crab apple every day. Unfortunately I'm not the photographer that a lot of my friends are, so these pictures aren't that good. Plus after only about 10 minutes, both Will and my hands were practically frozen, which made picture-taking a little hard, and forced us to make a hasty retreat back to the warmth of our house.

Ahh, the joys of pregnancy....NOT!

Don't let the title fool you too much. I really am glad to be pregnant, because it means that I get to have a new baby to love and teach here in a few months. I love feeling her kick and move around inside me, I love looking at cute girl clothes when we go to a store, and I love imagining what great friends she and Will are going to be. However, I am constantly having to remind myself that the journey is worth the end result. Because I seem to have forgotten something in the 3 years since I was last pregnant - Pregnancy is hard and painful! I have not been so tired, or so sore, or so emotional in a very, very long time. It's definitely starting to wear me down. I feel so bad for my family, because they have to see me at my worst. I try and put on a good face when I'm out in public, but the minute I get home again, watch out! I try my best to take care of myself, by making sure I eat right, get enough sleep, and let myself rest as much as possible, but lately it doesn't seem to be doing much good. I just hope I can survive the next 112 days, or however long I have left. Sorry for the depressing post, I just had to get that out. Next post will be the fun Thanksgiving activity I have planned for this afternoon.

To sleep or not to sleep

Lately, unfortunately, Will has chosen not to sleep. He used to be so good about taking at least a 2-hour nap every single day, but for the past month or two, he has decided that naps aren't for him anymore. This creates quite a bit of stress for all of us. For one thing, nap time is pretty much the only time of day that I have to get much done or have quiet time. Also, if Will doesn't take a nap, then by about 6 or 7 that night he is tired and cranky, which makes life hard on all of us. I have tried to read to him quietly and sit with him in his room for 10-15 minutes, but that doesn't seem to be working anymore either, because as soon as I leave he gets right back up again and starts playing. I know how important it is for children to get as much sleep as possible, I just don't know how to fix this problem. Anyone have a suggestion?

Aren't the holidays great!

After being married for almost 5 years to a man who gets slightly frustrated with stores and with people who kind of gloss over Thanksgiving, I've started to inherit some of his way of thinking. So I decided the other day to make a small Thanksgiving decoration for our apartment. I tried to get Will involved as much as I could (hence the hand-shaped turkeys), and I think it turned out well. I just wish I had thought of it a couple of weeks ago so we could have a little more time to enjoy it before all the Christmas stuff goes up. Oh well. Next year maybe I'll be a little more on-the-ball.




Will admiring our handiwork

Going where I have never gone before

Ok, so I've blogged about potty training before. This is because we have tried numerous times to do it without any success. Well I've decided that it's time for a new tactic. I got the idea from a friend of mine the other day who said it has been working for her son. I'm not going to tell you what it is, in case it doesn't work and I'm too ashamed to admit it (and also because I'm not entirely sure my husband will agree with this tactic :-) ) If it works, and if we actually have some success this week, I'm sure a future post will be coming soon. Wish me luck!

Random cuteness

I don't have anything interesting to blog about at the moment, so here is a picture of the bows that my friend JuliAnne and I made this morning. She made the red ones, and I made the white ones. So easy, and with any luck our new little girl will have lots of hair, so she can wear them.


And for the grandparents, here's a picture of our big boy.

The verdict is in

And I am a paranoid mother. Will has nothing worse than a simple cold. He will be fine in a few days, it just means we have to deal with sniffles and a little coughing for a while.

Is there anything worse than having a sick child?

Ok, there probably are lots of things worse...war, famine, a debilitating disease, I could go on and on. For a mother, however, having a sick child is probably in the top 10. There's just something about listening to them cough or sneeze, having to wipe their little nose every five minutes, or seeing their endless energy drop that makes your heart tear. I brag all the time about the fact that Will hasn't gotten anything worse than a cold since the week he spent in the NICU when he was born, so I'm hoping that what he has is just a really bad cold, and not the flu or anything worse. Guess it's time to go get that flu shot we've been meaning to get.

The Miracle of Life

As I'm sitting here feeling our little girl kicking and doing gymnastics all over my stomach, I can't help but think about how miraculous this experience is. Just a few short months ago we didn't even know that she was coming, and all of a sudden in just another few short months, we will be holding her in our arms. I don't know if I've ever fully appreciated the unique role I have in the journeys that our children will take to come to this earth. It kinda puts all my aches and pains into perspective. Being pregnant and being a mother is definitely one of the most challenging things I've ever experienced, but when I look into Will's sweet face, or I think about what my daughter is going to be like, I marvel at how wonderful God's plan is for us, and I'm grateful that I get to be a part of it.