Apparently after you pass your due date, the baby countdown starts counting up! I'm not quite sure what this means. Is it going to count back up 9 months to let me know it's time to get pregnant again?!? I sure hope not! I need some acknowledgement of my overdue-ness. Oh well, Trae was 1 week late, I might as well plan on all my babies being late, which is OK. That way we get big babies with lots of hair!! Heck, if this baby is a girl, maybe we can leave the hospital with a pony tail! :) If we wait long enough, maybe my baby can get it's first haircut before we leave the hospital and donate those 6 inches to Locks of Love! Well, now I just sound like I've lost it! Just wanted to report no contractions....yet!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WINNI!!



Today is Winni's 3rd Birthday! We had crepes for breakfast. We made the mistake of giving her her present before she ate her breakfast, so it just sat there. She was afraid of blowing the candles out by herself, so Walter helped her, as you can see. Since we sang to her with burning candles, she will only let us sing to her if there are candles! She has been so funny today. Oh I love this little girl! So far, she won't be sharing her birthday, let's just hope it stays that way! :)

Winni decided she wanted a corndog for lunch, but it had to have candles in it. I think we might have started something!!! Julie and Eli showed up just in time to help me sing to her and for Eli to help her blow the candles out. I'm pretty sure she will only want dinner tonight if we put candles in her dinner and sing to her. She might be a little confused, but she sure is fun!

Well, another storm and no contractions! I think my baby is too smart to come during a storm, that's when it's cold!! Either this baby is on Walter's side and is waiting for tomorrow, so it can share a birthday with Winni, or it is listening to its mother and waiting for this weekend, so it can have the spotlight all to itself! Either way, I'm sure I'll be glad. I do have a strong desire to get my house clean and in order again, but I'm resisting it! Slowly I will get things done, but if I get too crazy I step on shovels and then I'm sitting around again! So, with these cravings to clean, I'll turn to my ice cream craving and take care of that one instead!

I do look forward to labor. For some reason, in that moment there is no where else I'd rather be. I think it's because I know it's almost over. 9 long months of waiting, and it's almost over. It's kind of like when you are planning for a vacation. I think my favorite part of the vacation is getting to the airport or getting to wherever we are going. Just the anticipation of the fun to come. I'm pretty sure I'm psychotic, but I don't think I'm alone in this one.

Winni is behind me eating lunch. I was just listening to her conversation with her fork and spoon, make that her fork and 2 spoons. Apparently the forks are the parents. She was holding a fork and spoon and had them facing each other. They are saying things like, "I'm so happy to see you, baby!" "I missed you" "I'm so proud of you!" "I love you so much!" I can't believe she will be 3 tomorrow. She is growing up so fast! She has been asking me to sing Happy Birthday to her all day today. They sang to her in church yesterday, so now she knows it's on! She is even giving herself presents, like the fingernail clippers she found and some hot pads.

My husband loves me!!



Walter took me out last night on a date! He asked me what I wanted to do and my answer was this....Dinner and a special trip to Wal-Mart! I know, so romantic!! Since I've been sitting around a lot lately, I've been working on my Wal-Mart list, but I knew I didn't want to go alone! So, after dinner at Zupas, including their wonderful chocolate fondue dessert, we headed to Wal-Mart. We made sure to pick one that we don't usually go to, and one that the chances of running into someone we know is minimal. Thankfully, Kamille wasn't shopping at her local Wal-Mart last night!! Well, my loving husband followed me around the store looking like this! It was pretty fun! These things turn on a dime and they stop really fast, we found out! Walter almost ran me over with the cart a few times. I think from now on I'll do my Wal-Mart shopping this way! It was so fun, except it's kind of hard to reach the things up high, and after a while my foot started aching, so I elevated my foot on the cart and cruised along. I know I turned a few heads! But it gets even better, YOU BEEP WHEN YOU BACK UP!! I've always wanted to beep when I back up, and now I'm big enough and broken enough to do so! What a great date night! I even felt younger after last night. It reminded me of some of the dumb things I did in High School with my friends. We thought we were so funny! The only difference now is I go home to 2 kids and a babysitter I have to pay! Oh yeah, and the cute boy I've been flirting with all night gets to stay!

Brandann, your link isn't working anymore. What's the deal, yo?!?

The daily update for my Mom!!

Well, my midwife says I'm going to have a baby, and I believe her! I am dilated to a 3 and 70% effaced! Woo hoo! I absolutely love dilating without much pain. It's the best! We set my induction for Feb 5th for real, but hoping this baby comes on its own. I love my midwife. She is the best!! Walter came with me to my appt. today and he was being a dork, so she told me, "Well, thanks for bringing your husband in today. You won't need to again!!" hahahaha For those of you who know Julie Jones, she is hilarious! Anyway, it is obvious that this baby has to come out sometime, so we just wait.

My kids had their well visits today, also. Winni weighs 24 lbs and Trae weighs 23 lb 10 oz! So, again we get to take Winni to Primary's for blood work and an x-ray to make sure everything is OK. I'm sure she is fine, but if she were an adult, the curve she is following says she will only be 5'1"! Which, doesn't exactly go with her gene pool! So, more Dr. visits for us! Trae is healthy and growing. His growth curve follows his Dad, so another short kid!! I'm hoping he'll jump curves and come to my curve and be a tall kid, but I guess his Dad isn't so bad! I mean, after all, I married him!! :)

GREAT NEWS! I'm 1 week into healing and I don't need surgery!! woo hoo! We just got back from the Dr and he said they see this kind of break all the time, maybe 3 or 4 a day even! He said this is the ideal bone to break, so good job to me!! I will be in my walking boot for about 6 weeks, but I am supposed to/allowed to put weight on it. As long as it doesn't hurt. So, in 3 weeks we will re x-ray and see how it's healing. They might decide then for surgery, but most likely NO SURGERY! So, I'm excited! It's a beautiful day, my children are perfect, I'm still pregnant, my wonderful husband skipped class to take me to the Dr., and I even got to take a shower today. My life couldn't get any better!! Alright, now it's time for a fantastic bowl of cereal! :)

WOW! What a beautiful day to have a baby, for some!! So, I have 2 friends who have been enjoying pregnancy with me. For one, Melinda, this is her 6th in 6, almost 7 years, and for the other, Amy, it is her 3rd in 2 1/2 years. So basically we are all crazy! Well, CONGRATULATIONS TO BOTH!! They both had their babies today! I'm so excited for them. They don't know each other, but I know them both, so this is totally cool. Melinda had her baby girl, Rachel Jennifer Cole, at 5:45 AM and Amy had her baby boy, Mason or Shane Goeckeritz (with some middle name, I'm sure), at 1:20 PM, so whatever I have, they have a same-gendered friend their age. SWEET! This gets me a little more excited to have my baby NOW! I know I want to wait til I'm healed a little more, but why not just have the baby and combine the healing time, right? Well, we'll see what the Lord and this little one have in mind.

Alright....tomorrow night, the 22nd, everybody needs to watch American Idol. Even if you don't like the show, you still need to watch. OK, only if you want to, but my neighbor, David Archuletta, is trying out in front of "The Judges!" From what I hear, he makes it to Hollywood!! Sorry to spoil the surprise, but watch him, he's great!!

So, as long as I'm doing nothing, I figured I could catch up on my blogging! Here we are at the beginning of January. We took the kids swimming at the Murray Park Center. Trae wasn't too sure of swimming, but Winni loves it! She went down the big slide with Walter and Billy over and over again. The faster the better!



We had so much fun. We joined the club and now we can go whenever we want! We took the kids swimming for the 2nd time and Trae had no fear. He walked right into the pool and loved it, until his head got wet!!

EERRRRRRRRRRRT!! Well, if this morning didn't put a damper on my plans.....After yesterdays post, my brother was at my house, like he is most nights, but last night was different. He was here at dinner time. He was impressed that I was making breadsticks from scratch! I know, very impressive!! He made the comment, "wow! you have a complex life!" AMEN!! It was so nice to hear someone say that. It reminded me to take a deep breath and be nice to my kids. So, after baths we sat down and read books for like an hour!! Winni was so into the books. It was great! Then during my nightly prayers, I prayed for more patience. OOPS!! I recently heard someone say that if you pray for patience, you will not all of a sudden be more patient with what you have, you will be given the opportunity to increase you patience. I guess I should have been more specific in my prayer. So, this morning, my prayer was answered. On my 3rd trip out to the garage I started down the stairs as usual. I missed turning on the light, but I was only going to the fridge, so I figured I'd just make it quick. Little did I know there was a surprise at the bottom of the steps.... a nice little gardening shovel. I stepped right on it and as I went down I heard a crack! I started screaming for Walter and banging on the door. He came out and rescued me. We went to the hospital and after 3 x-rays.....dum dah dah dah!!!!





I broke my foot!! I have never broken a bone in my body!! What part of being 38 weeks pregnant and "nesting" does this fit into? So, next week I find out if I'll need surgery, after the baby. I have fallen way too many times this pregnancy, which makes me believe this baby is a boy, because a girl would never make me this un-graceful!! I'm thinking the Lord is trying to tell me that health insurance is a must for this child.....and we should find a house without stairs!!

2 toddlers + 2 hours in a car = ornery fat momma!!

I believe I am officially nesting!! woo hoo!! My house is clean. I have this vision of being the most prepared woman to ever go into labor, leaving behind a houseful of foreign boys. I've got 10 meals in the freezer, I've got this weeks groceries bought, next weeks grocery list made to go along with the menu plan, clothes clean, blah blah blah blah blah blah!! I have a secret desire to vacuum every night, just in case I go into labor in the night, at least I'll leave a clean house. I can't sleep! I keep thinking about what I can get done to make life easier when I get home. I'm as ornery as ever! Nobody can do anything right, especially if they are living in my home and not blood related to me! I think I'm going crazy!! However, I don't remember this part of nesting. The part where you feel like a horrible mother and you convince yourself that the reason you haven't had your baby yet is because your baby doesn't want to come to a family where the mom screams!! We took Walter to the Dentist today in Layton and we waited in the car for him. I didn't know it was going to be 2 hours of me and 2 kids in the car! We made the most of the first hour, we had a picnic of crackers and apples, we sang songs and danced, and we enjoyed our little playhouse on wheels!



That is, until the car battery died!! So, we are 1 hour in, and I'm thinking Walter will be out any minute and we will be on our way. My kids are getting a little tired and ornery from being in the car for so long and I've completely lost my mind!! I've got them in time-out for the umpteenth time and Winni is trying to sneak out of time out! I look at her and start telling her she needs to listen to mommy, then I start crying and I tell her I've lost all patience! By the time Walter got to us, I had buckled the kids back in their carseats and I was sitting in the front seat eating dried mangoes, acting as if nothing was wrong! So, I guess that's everything off of my to-do list and my "I'm nesting" list. Bring on the baby!!

Somewhere along the way, I've taught my kids about seatbelts and safety. Saturday night Walter and I decided to go visit the new hospital to see where we are supposed to go, in the event that I actually have this baby!! Well, we called Blake to have him watch the kids for a minute. So, we put the kids in the car. We didn't buckle them in, just set them in their seats and told them to stay! I know, I'm a horrible mother!! Endangering my kids and all. We back out of our driveway and Winni starts getting worried...."buckle me in!! I'm not buckled in!" We laughed and told her it was ok this time. We continue to back out of our driveway, drive to the next house and pull into their driveway. "We're here!" (lazy parent moments, I know!!) By this time Winni has gotten comfortable with the idea of no car seats and is standing up at the van door. As we pulled into Brockbanks driveway Winni got knocked over and bumped her head on the window! "ouch!" She still thought it was funny. We open the sliding door and I go to get Trae out. The poor child is still terrified! He is sitting in his car seat, sideways, with his arm hugging the shoulder straps of his car seat. He is holding on for dear life, certain that his parents have gone nuts!! I had to talk him into letting go and letting me take him into the house. As soon as we got to the Brockbanks front door he jumped down and took off running! Well, I guess I've trained him right! I'm just not sure how much damage we did to him last night!!

woo hoo!!! only 1 lb of weight gain this week! I'm now up to a total of 43 lbs of baby!! I hope! And....we have started dilating!! yeah! I guess we are taking it slow, but I'm to a 1+. I'll take what I can get! She says the baby is a lot lower and things are progressing! So, I'm happy. Since we made it past yesterday with no baby, I'm willing/wanting to wait til after the 24th, when my family of 12 scales back to only 7. Wish me luck!!

Random Thoughts of a Pregnant Woman

Is it just me, or does that really say only 20 days to go!?!? Woo Hoo!! Well, today is the 9th, the day I told everyone that my baby better come, however I don't think this baby got the message. I was up most of last night with contractions and an occasional kick to the ribs. So, today I'm exhausted, but doing everything I can to get ready for baby. Yesterday I prepared 5 freezer meals, so I feel a little better.

Yesterday at the grocery store I realized it's almost Winni's birthday! I've been so caught up in having this baby that I haven't done any planning for my sweet Winni's birthday! Hopefully she will decide to potty train herself by then and I can buy her some cute princess panties!! She hasn't been enjoying the cloth diapers very much. I'm hoping that will help her realize the potty is the way to go!

Finally, I am so impressed with my children's advanced behavior! Last night as I was putting Trae to bed, he found that he has 2 holes in his nose, which his finger fits up nicely. Maybe 18 months old is the typical age to start nose picking, but I was so proud!! I just can't wait til he discovers how good they taste! yuck!!

When I was in Young Women's, someone gave me this quote that I loved and it made me feel better about myself as a virgin lips club member!! I have always kept it in my scriptures. However, I have since gotten new scriptures and I'm not so sure where the old ones are?!? The other day I was cleaning around my desk and, although I didn't find my scriptures, I found this quote laying on the ground. As I read it, I was reminded of how good it made me feel as a young girl, and still does, as a woman who waited for marriage before intimacy.

"The flower by the roadside that catches the dust of every traveller is not the one to be admired and is seldom, if ever, plucked. But the one blooming away up on the hillside, protected by the perpendicular cliff is the one flower with the pure perfume, the one the boy will almost risk his life to posses."

~ David O. McKay~

I share that quote here so that I can always remember it, and so I know where it is to share with my daughter(s). I shared it with Walter and he laughed!! He said, "they must pass this quote around so the ugly girls feel better about themselves!" ah!! I let him know he married one of those ugly girls! And, if he's lucky, his daughter will grow up to be one of those ugly girls too!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MURILO!! Today is Murilo's, one of our new students from Brazil, birthday. They went snowboarding today and if and when they come back in one piece we will have a little birthday party for him! How fun! Turning 15 in the USA!! sweet!! This just gives me an excuse to make and eat chocolate cake!! woo hoo!!

By the way, the new year has already begun! I found that out this morning as I was rushing my kids to get ready for 9 AM church. We were going to be on time and everything!! Alright, coats on and we are going NOW! Then I thought, gee I can't wait til next week when it's the new year and church starts at 1130! That'll be nice. Of course, then I realized it already is the new year and we are 2 1/2 hours early for church. So, we sit here. Winni refusing to take her boots off because she is going to church, she says she is going to nursery. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we actually get to church. And Trae won't take his coat off! I've programmed little robots who do as I say. Hopefully they will be this excited and still ready for church in a few hours!!

If dreams are any indication of psychosis, or maybe just a readiness to have a baby, I think I might be there!! Today is the day! The day Winni goes to Sunbeams. I was prepping her for it last night before she went to bed. Reminding her that she needs to sit in her seat, on her bottom, listen to her teacher. Stuff like that. I tried to get her excited to learn some new songs, too. I started thinking about all the play time she is going to miss out on, and the snacks!! My sacrament job just got harder!!! I almost started crying again just thinking about her sitting still and not chasing Cody around the nursery. Oh, I'm a basket case!! Anywho, back to dreaming. Last night I dreamed that I dropped Winni off in Primary, took Trae to nursery and for some reason I missed Relief Society. So, I went to Sunday School and sat by myself eating a pork chop!! I'm not sure why I was eating a pork chop, but I knew I wasn't supposed to be eating it because I was trying to hide the fact that I was eating it. You know, slipping bites every once in a while like in school when I'd sneak candy or chips. I don't even really like pork chops, except for Kari's Jamaican Pork Chops. This pork chop was just dry and flavorless!! Walter has told me I am no longer allowed to dream, we'll see if my subconscious listens!!

So, weird story. Last night I had a dream about my 4th grade teacher, Mr. Evans. I'm not sure why I chose him to be in my dream, but there he was. In my dream he was/is a teacher at a charter school. He is driving the school bus/van around picking up the kids for school. He just happens to have some kids on my street. Well, I start talking to him and he tells me about the school. In order to get on the school bus, instead of making sure your name is on the list, you have to bring live insects in your hand. So, all these kids on the bus are carrying spiders and other creepy crawly things. I guess I was trying to see if Winni would like this school, or something. So, I have this weird dream about this weird school. The dream wasn't very long because I didn't get to sleep much last night. Between Trae screaming from 1-2:30 AM and Winni being a furnace in my bed and trying to use me as a pillow, I was up most the night. Which made my dream fairly short. But I remembered it. However, I didn't remember it until I was leaving Costco this morning. I went to put my cart away and low and behold, there was Mr. Evans loading his purchases into his car parked right next to the cart holder thingy! There was nothing wrong with my dream, but still it was so awkward to see him! Oh well, must be pregnancy hormones!! gotta love em!

Today we started my weekly Dr visits. I'm now at a total of 42 lbs!! Hopefully we won't gain any more. My midwife, Julie, says the baby has dropped, I'm 50% effaced, and almost dilated to a 1. At least its something!! Julie told me that before she sees me again, next thursday, I need to have at least scheduled a massage, if not gotten one already. I love my midwife!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! We are so excited for the new year! I guess I'm the most excited because the baby comes this year! I think I'm ready to be done being pregnant. I'd like to be able to walk up the stairs or empty the dishwasher without getting winded!!

I was sitting in the kitchen waiting for dinner to cook when I heard Winni screaming! I jumped up and ran to my room, where they were watching a movie and dancing on my bed. Well, she wasn't on the bed anymore! She was laying on a pile of clothes on the floor. She claims that Trae pushed her off the bed. So I asked Trae if he pushed her and he said "yes." So, I told him to go to timeout. That is when Winni said, "No, he can't go to time out, he has to march with me!" I guess that is his punishment. He has to do what Winni says. So, I sat there for a while to make sure everything was alright. I guess I over-stayed my welcome, because Winni turned to me and said, "Mommy, please go back to the kitchen!" Alright, my lifesaving skills are no longer needed.