9 months of pregnancy-Anniversary

So Today, Feb. 23rd, is my mom and nieces birthday. It's also the 1 year anniversary of when we found out that we were pregnant with Bryce. So I thought we would take a little trip down memory lane of those 9 months of pregnancy.

Lets see what I remember:

My first, about 6 weeks, were great! Then I got the morning sickness at night. Miserable. I remember I felt sooooo bad once that I came home from work and went to sleep at 4:30PM and didn't wake up until 8:30AM the next day. I slept for 16 hours!!! I felt amazing that weekend though ;) I do feel blessed that it all wasn't as bad as my sweet sister must endure with all of her pregnancies. What else, I caught a bug during the first three months and that wiped me out for a few days. It was awful! Then one weekend I spotted the whole weekend and I was just beside myself with worry that I was having a miscarriage. My mom and all my sisters had miscarriages frequently. That worried me even more! Oh that was a dark, troublesome couple days. The spotting stopped and we were reassured we had a baby still when we had our first ultrasound. My thoughts during the first trimester were just pure shock. I could not believe that women could have more than one child willingly. I just couldn't fathom someone knowingly putting themselves through this torture. I had no idea what it would being pregnant would be like and it was so much worse than people made it out to be. People would always tell me that you forget how bad it is and that is how one can do it again. I haven't forgotten in the way I thought they meant because I totally remember the misery. However, my memory has left me enough that looking back I think, I can do that again. Ha Ha! I'll be eating those words someday, right?

Then the second trimester was really quite good. I was huge with baby very early, I thought. I was fatigued and less flexible. I didn't get as nauseous as much though. I started getting bad pain in my pelvis area which made it hard to walk. That pain lasted all the rest of my pregnancy.

The third trimester was really decent. I was still just very tired, even less flexible, and EXTREMELY swollen. Hmmm....is this really all I can recall? I know there was so much more. See, this is the reason one should keep a journal. You just don't remember things like you think you will. So frustrating for me. So, let me do an exercise and see if I can jog my memory. Let me make a list of symptoms I remember having... in no particular order:

• vomiting
• worsening of eye sight
• worsening of hearing
• ridiculously swollen feet, hands, and face. Couldn't where my rings anymore.
• Lots of pain when I walked
• super sensitive to smells
• Tons of food aversions; including vegetables because they tasted like soil, literally like dirt
• lose of appetite
• minor weight lose in the first trimester
• Super Sensitive to touch- like loose strings on your clothes or strands of hair etc.
• I had to go to the bathroom ALL the time!
• craving for McDonalds vanilla ice cream cone in my third trimester. (the only true craving I had)
• Anxiety for the health of the baby
• Anxiety about the labor and delivery (had good reason for that one eh? hee hee.)
• Really strong "pregnancy mask" on my face
• (Maybe not something I should post so publicly) My belly got all hairy
• (Maybe another something I should not post so publicly) I got a billion stretch marks all over the front and sides of my belly really late in my pregnancy
• I had the worst metallic (like coins) taste in my mouth for practically the whole pregnancy. It was not constant, but completely consistent. (I can't believe I almost forgot that one! It was disgusting.)
• Heartburn
• stress, stress, and more stress
• How do I explain this one: I was so sensitive & picky & annoyed with regards to noise and motion, including TV, movies, car drives etc.
• headaches
• a sense of unreality about having a baby inside of me-disbelief
• fatigue
• Super forgetful without the ability to recall things at all- and I'm still like that ;)
• scattered thinking
• trouble concentrating
• restless and indecisiveness
• achy in my abdomen
• Really bad backaches
• Charley Horses!
• Oh yeah! I got tendonitis and trigger finger in my third trimester. OUCH!
• Absentmindedness (that hasn't left either)
• Itchy abdomen
• Shortness of breath
• Difficulty sleeping
• So uncomfortable
• Strange crazy dreams
• Emotional and physical oversensitivity about random things

Well, there we have it. Thats all I can recall right now. That exercise really helped. Good thing I'm not planning on another baby quite yet. This post would be a bit discouraging =D ha ha ha!

The day before we knew!-1 month

The day we found out! Feb. 23, 2009 (repeat video from a former post)

(below) At Christina's Wedding-2 months along

(below) First midwife appointment- 2.5 months

exactly 3 months

Picture of the 4th month is on my phone =( I have no idea how to get it off. Bummer!

(below) At church- 5 months

(below) 6 months

Mini Photo Shoot- just over 6 months

Beginning of my 7th month

At my Baby Shower- 8 months

9th month

Middle of the 9th month

October 30, 2009-40 weeks, end of my nine months!

(below) day my labor began- 41 weeks and 1 day

(The blissful result of those 9 months =D )

My FAVORITE... Christmas Tradition!!!

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I love love love this Christmas Tradition in my family. We all meet together and create Graham Cracker Houses. I know a lot of people do this, but it's my absolute favorite! There is just something magical about creating. Seriously, I feel the same way about cooking, BLOGGING, scrapbooking, crafts, and if I knew how to sew I believe I'd feel the same way about that ;-} So, anyway we usually meet together on the Saturday after Christmas and go see the Polar Express in 3-D at the IMAX theater

It was such a FUN tradition! Unfortunately, this year they stopped showing it and it broke our hearts =( So now we still have dinner and make Graham Cracker Houses together as an extended family. YAY for traditions!! This year I had just gotten my PICC line pulled out the previous Wednesday. It was fun to be free from my IV pole outside of my house!

So, in the first picture we have a picture of all the houses expect mine and John's. The second picture is John's creation. John did something untraditional this year. Instead of making a house he did a replica of a Bob Ross painting that we watched him do a couple days prior. Many of you may not know but I absolutely LOVE watching Bob Ross.

I'm so fascinated and awed by his talent and once again the creation involved. It's almost therapeutic to watch him paint. Wow...that is something I wish to try my hand at someday. Anyway, John didn't tell me what he was going to make and he surprised me after it was all done. He asked me to guess what it was and I knew exactly what it was. I couldn't find a picture of the exact painting that he copied, but I found one that is pretty darn close. Go John! The third picture is of my house last year and this year. This year I made a Polynesian Canoe building hut =D Yup, my niece gave me that idea once I was starting to make it. I thought it was a great idea because I didn't exactly know what I was making out of my HAPPY little Graham Crackers ;> And the fourth picture is of Bryce's creation...emotions. Also, his cousins creation... wrestling. Not my favorite tradition =D ha ha ha!

So, the moral of this post is to make and keep traditions of creation. (Thats deep *wink*;-)

Playing with Daddy

Kids are just the cutest things ever! Don't you just love his little voice? I wonder what his first word will be, until then... Enjoy our little Bryce!

CHRISTMAS DAY 2009

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Well, at first I didn't think this post needed any commentary...and it doesn't. BUT, for posterity sake I'll add some detail. This is the first Christmas with a "New to us" BIG Christmas tree. I included a pic of our "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree last year just so you can see how much we moved up in the Christmas tree world! Our new tree is a gift from my dear co-worker Cyndy after they bought a new one last year. THANK YOU! Our family room is pretty darn small so we only put up 3/4 of the tree and the back was flat up against the wall. I thought it was pretty genius on my part =D Ha!

There are my two Polynesian-ish masked friends who we decked out for the season. I love that! I'm totally doing that every year. I think it's hilarious! Hee Hee Hee =D

Also, It was baby Bryce's first Christmas! That sweet little red "Baby's first Christmas" outfit is from Grandma and Grandpa Barlow. To bad his diaper leaked out on his outfit before the day was over. Grandma and Grandpa Barlow helped provide us with a lovely Christmas as well, we didn't have much without them---THANK YOU!

However, we did splurge. For our "BIG" Christmas present we got a used keyboard. I'm thrilled because I really need to practice the piano if I'm going to get anywhere with it. I at least just want to get good enough to serve in church. Relief Society Pianist or Primary Pianist. Is that too much to ask? :) Now I just have to buckle down and practice. ={ eek! Never was good at that. John really loves the keyboard too. He took a music theory class last year and was excited to apply his learning.

Another favorite gift of ours was a picture of Ammon signed by the artist. It is the COOLEST picture EVER!! This was a gift to Bryce from Grandma and Grandpa Barlow. Thank you again!

You can read the story of Ammon as a servant of a Lamanite King. How he protected the King's flocks which resulted in a change to an entire Kingdom!

Just go here: www.scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/17

The main story starts in chapter 17 and goes through chapter 20. WONDERFUL!

So, Merry Christmas to all until next year :}

ABOVE: last year's (2008) "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree

BELOW: Picture of Ammon-- protecting the King's flocks.

So RAD!!!

To read the story of Ammon go here: www.scriptures.lds.org/en/alma/17

The main story starts in chapter 17 and goes through chapter 20.

John's *Etch-A-Sketch* Masterpiece

Great story behind this one. In my paper scrapbook from my teenage years, I have a page dedicated to my cousin Jacob. It is entitled "Jacob's Masterpiece" and it has two pictures of an Etch-A-Sketch drawing he did of a beam coming down from a UFO and burning a city (if my memory serves me correctly). My family kept this picture on the Etch-A-Sketch for ages, until a child unknowingly came and erased it. Well, John has always thought this page was awesome. Apparently, he felt inspired by Jacob as well. So, here is our tribute to John's Masterpiece!
While we were all hanging out at my parents house during the holidays John dutifully "etched" away. He told me he wanted it to be a surprise and did not let me see it until the castle was complete. By that time the night was over and we went home. The next time we were over he continued his masterpiece. This time he added the background, the moat and bridge, and the knights and archers up top, along with detail at the base of the castle and it was a COMPLETED MASTERPIECE! It still sits on top of my parents TV untouched so we can relish in his obvious talent, until a taller child discovers a canvas for creativity ;)**wink** YOU ARE AMAZING JOHN!