utah baby shower

when my family planned this shower it seemed SO far away.  i can't believe the date has arrived and this baby is going to be here soon...its crazy cool!

my amazing family who took time out of their lives, time off work, and even left a family outing to throw this shower for me: bailey, carrie, mom, chandie, tanaya

they made it SO fun and decorated SO cute.  these adorable paper balloons and streamers were hung throughout the house. the food was delicious and displayed so cute

i love this watermelon baby carriage :)

janet - who made me a special shortbread in the shape of a baby carriage. she's such a cutie

the shower was open house style which was great for those that were only able to stop by for a minute and those that could spend time visiting.  i saw so many family and friends that i haven't seen for years. it was a very cool day

thanks you guys - love you!

pallets: i love my wife...i love my wife

girls camp

 Young Women's Stake Girls Camp 2012 

i was asked to be the camp director for tanaya's girls camp this year, which meant i got to go to camp with her. she wasn't totally thrilled with the idea at first, but i told her i'd keep my distance and at camp i wouldn't be her 'mom'. it was really hard not to hug and kiss her for a week but with the exception of one mishap i succeeded.  by the end of camp she said it wasn't that bad that i was there :)

 camp was held at camp zarahemla this year, which is up immigration canyon.  the girls were in a cabin and the leaders were in a tent. the girls were all so amazing and fun to be around.  there was no fighting or drama - just lots of playing and good times. i was so proud of them.  

the theme was pirates so we named ourselves the 'knotty angels'.  with the other wards coming up with churchy pirate names we made some heads turn when we announced our name. and for that we were a bit of the rebels of the group, but of course i was okay with that. 

our ward with our 'knotty angel' pirate flag

the girls decorating their cabin. pirates with an attitude! :)

the inside of their cabin on the first day.  this is the cleanest it ever was

a view from our fire pit to the back of the cabin.  all the white stuff is cotton from the cotton trees.

flag ceremony

i made a list of survival skills the girls could pass off and for each one they passed off they earned a bead. they could do the same skill as many times as they wanted to earn an unlimited amount of beads. some girls, like kanasha (in the blue), took this to the extreme without any hesitation.

her favorite survival skill was bug eating. i lost count after 6.  she ate a box elder bug, a potato bug, a warm, a spider...made me so happy :)

another survival skill was the polar dip.  for each dip they did, staying in up to their chest for 30 seconds, they earned a bead. tanaya was another extremest and this was her favorite survival skill.  she did it 3-4 times everyday and the water was SO cold! (that's my girl!) 

hanging out at the bridge

craft time: they made t-shirt bracelets

the hike:  the younger girls did a 3 mile hike and the older girls were thrilled they got to do a 5 mile hike ;)

tanaya cut up parts of her camp t-shirt and tied knots and twist all over it.  once everyone saw how cute it was they all wanted her to teach them how to do it.  she's such a trend setter, i love it!

tanaya draws a pirate patch on the girls in preparation for our skit

the girls with their props

their skit.  it turned out amazingly cute.

the camp fire. they look so tired and worn out don't they?

umm...not so much :) the girls were so loud other wards heard them and came over to join in. they were having SO much fun and even though it was after hours i just couldn't stop them. we were eventually asked to quite it down :)  oops! ;)

prepping for the marshmallow gun fight

and with such team work and procession the mighty 'knotty angels' conquered!

and then they ate the marshmallows and got a sugar high

the service project: it was SO hot and they worked hard picking weeds and grooming the trees.

the water slide:  a great way to cool off after a working so hard

another survival skill:  fire building with a flint and stone

(a proud mom moment i couldn't resist) tanaya was the only one able to start her fire and keep it going - and she did it on her first try!  yep...i'm one proud momma!

the snype hunt:  the poor first years :)

no surprise that tanaya received the 'chatty camper' award.  i love this girl!

harry potter room

the loves of my life! are they not so adorable?! i smile and cry when i look at these pictures. they mean so much to me.

john made tanaya a 'harry potter' room when we married and moved in, but he just totally revamped it and made it so dang cool for her!  tanaya has already had tons of friends over to watch movies in here and had sleepovers with cousins.  she has slept in here every night since its completion and i have had to make her come out so we can see her :) it is her little sanctuary.  and yes, the piggy back rides were supposed to stop along time ago, but tanaya has a way of sweet talking john :) he loves her.

the 'secret entrance'

the inside - complete with a futon and tempur-pedic mattress for ultimate comfort

the huge t.v. and many dvd's and videos, along with the players & several necessary plugs for her phone, laptop computer, light, and whatever else she may want to plug in

and a shelf for her drinks & treats - that ARE NOT allowed in the room :)

32 weeks prego

32 weeks - oh my :) 

its crazy how fast time flies when there is so much to do.

 i am loving my baby belly.  it is SO fun to feel baby move! and baby LOVES to move. it rolls around like crazy...& punches...& kicks...& does some elbow punch thing to the ribs...HARD!  this kid is an animal :)

so much has happened the past few weeks.  it turns out the snapple drink wasn't such a fluke after all and i have gestational diabetes. fun stuff. it was a bit stressful at first but once we met with a nutritionist & figured out how to manage & test my sugar levels it hasn't been that bad. 

and i haven't been gaining weight and my tummy is still measuring small so we had an ultrasound to make sure baby is growing on track...and baby is. its just me that isn't. doctor said i've been controlling my diabetes too well (whatever that means) and i need to eat more of the foods that wont effect my sugar levels...like protein & veggies...to gain weight.  this last visit i gained 2 pounds in one week. yeah for me! :)

during the ultrasound we found out i have marginal placenta previa. this baby better love its momma! :)  we have an ultrasound in a month and at that time they will decide if i will be allowed to deliver vaginally or if a c-section will be necessary.

at 34 weeks we start going to the hospital twice a week to have the baby's heart monitored - for about 30 minutes each session.  because of the diabetes the doctor wants to monitor baby's heart rate to make sure it isn't stressed.  if baby shows signs of stress they will induce me and have me deliver early.  if what the doctors say is a true, 'a moving baby is a happy baby' then this baby is very, very happy and things will be just fine! :)

   

and momma will be very, very happy as long as we make to the neil diamond concert :)

john bday celebration

we left for chicago the day of johns bday so his birthday celebration was a bit spread out, but it was nice that he was able to celebrate with his family & friends in chicago, then back in utah with my family and us

birthday morning tanaya and i woke up VERY early to sing happy birthday to john & give him his presents before he went to work. we must have been pathetic because john laughed and sent us back to bed :) 

bike shorts - yeppie!

i didn't get any chicago pictures but his friends celebrated his day with a bbq and a birthday cake. very cool

back in utah we celebrated him with a family dinner 

make a wish!

then i took him on a date to celebrate his day.  we went to dinner and then on a walk up city creek canyon

i LOVE him

a lot!

then we stopped for dessert at the Bakery in SLC.  happy birthday sexy man!