LOOK OUT!!!

Feel free to say a pray or two in behalf of my children today. I seem to have woken up on the WRONG side of the bed today, and everything they do seems to set me off! I'm not sure what's wrong with me or what to do about it. I keep trying to count to 10 (or 100, as the case may be) but they usually set me off again before I get to the designated number.

Suffice it to say, the wicked witch of the west would be a better mother today than I think I'm on target to be.

Maybe I'll just turn them loose outside and aim for some peace and quiet in the house for an hour or so. Maybe that will do the trick. (At least until they come back inside:-)

1st prenatal visit

Well, yesterday I went in for my first prenatal appt. I (we) decided this time to go with a midwife instead of my usually family practice Doctor. Dr. Berry delivered all 3 of my kids, and I really like him as a person and over all as a doctor, but as Bryan was being born Tim made a comment that stuck with me. he said, "it seems like they (Dr. and staff) are in a bigger hurry every time. Why can't they just let things happen as they happen naturally?" (Quote isn't exact, but close enough in context to what he said.)

After talking to multiple friends who use midwives, I found a group covered by our insurance and made myself an appt. It is the New Beginnings clinic in Orem, and they work under the direction of 2 OB's, and they deliver in the Orem Community Hospital. (just what I want. The security of a hospital delivery, the knowledge of an expect if needed, and the more natural, personal, and laid back attitude of the midwives.) There are 4 midwives (plus a midwife nurse practitioner) in the group, and if my experience with the first one I met yesterday is any indication - I think I made the right choice. I loved the CNM that did my initial exam. Very thorough, certainly knew what she was doing. I never love having the full female physical - but it was nice to have a woman. (I've always had male doctors.)

Everything is progressing fine. I heard the baby's heartbeat and they scheduled me for the 20 week ultrasound for the end of July. In a way, it's hard to believe I'm almost 1/2 way done. (I've been counting from conception date, not last menstrual cycle, so I got to jump up 2 weeks.) This is the time of pregnancy that is the best for me. I'm not sick all the time, and I'm not too big and fat yet so I can still move around and do what I want to do. I do still get tired and my back hurts and I have to get up several times a night to use the bathroom, but it's not too bad.

The CNM took one look at my varicose veins and told me I need to wear my super-sucker hose again. I HATE them! They are SO SO SO tight - and in the summer they just add to my already skyrocketing temperature. Oh well - if it helps me not get killer blood clots, I guess I can take it.

That's about that.

Fun at Thanksgiving Point

Well - it was a fun weekend. Saturday was Tim's company party, which was held at Thanksgiving Point this year. They gave everyone passes to all of the attractions, and even though it was a SUPER HOT (100+), we had a good time.

We started out in the gardens (my choice since they are my favorite and I wanted to go before it got too too too hot) I love to just walk around and enjoy the peace and quiet and beauty. (A little more difficult to do with 3 energetic children, but in the beautiful environment, still possible.) The first photo is one Aaron took of Tim and I at the bottom of the Italian garden fountain. The kids always have a good time in the children's garden, playing in the water and exploring the maze and bear cave, so by 12:30 we were all hot tired, and ready for lunch.

Lunch was delicious and a nice break from the sun, and they had big inflatable slides and a climbing wall for the kids to play on. The only downside here was that Tim didn't win a prize in the drawing (they had some nice prizes too. oh well, maybe next time:)

After lunch we went up to the Dinosaur museum (Officially called the North American Museum of Ancient Life, or something like that.) We had family passes to T. Point last year, so the kids have been several times before, but they love it. (Here are pictures of Trina and Aaron (and Tim) playing on the erosion table, which I love probably as much as the kids. I have to be careful to not let myself get carried away and take over the "playing.")

Included in the passes were one viewing on the Xango giant screen, so the kids and Tim went to see the 3D movie about Dinosaurs . Bryan was asleep, so I didn't go in to the movie. When Bry woke up I wandered around the museum with him. He was SO adorable to watch. I was pregnant with him when we got our passes before, so he doesn't ever remember going. He ran from one thing to the next exclaiming "wow" or "awesome" over and over. I loved it!

After the movie was over, we went to Farm Country. I think it's pretty dull, but the kids seem to enjoy it. They all got to ride the ponies, and feed some animals etc... And we took a picture of them in the only jail I hope they spend time in.


The company gave each child a "goodie bag" that included a disposable camera. My kids used up every picture on their cameras - including taking ones of the gas pump when we stopped for gas on the way home. I'm not really that excited to PAY to get these pictures developed, but the kids can't wait to see "THEIR" pictures.

We were also give 4 passes to the megaplex movie theatre, and we considered 1)taking the kids to a movie or 2) taking the kids to my mom's and then Tim and I having a little movie date night - but in the end we decided we were DONE having fun and we just wanted to go home and rest! (We're trying to plan another time to go back and use those passes)

All in all, we had a great day, and we were totally worn out by the time we got home. Okay - at least TIM and I were totally worn out. Somehow the kids found energy reserves and ran out to find friends to play with. Trina wandered home around 8:15 and was content to snuggle with Mom and watch a movie, but Aaron didn't wander in until after 9:30. I normally go out to gather them around 8:30, but I was simply too tired to get up and do it, so I'm glad he finally came home. ( I was actually heading out to get him when he came home - so I'm not a total and complete slacker mom...)

GO ME!!!

The title above is a "FLYlady" saying. The general message is to be proud of every accomplishment in our lives - even the ones that we might have a tendency to think are insignificant. For example:

I ate a healthy breakfast and lunch today - two healthy meals in a row... GO ME!!!

I've had 4 glasses of water so far, so I'm on track to meet my daily water requirement.. GO ME!!

I picked something for dinner and it is in the crockpot even as I sit here celebrating... GO ME!!!

I got all the dishes done and the sink clean and shiny this morning... GO ME!!!

I got up and made my bed right away... GO ME!!! (this has been a bit harder to do ever since we moved the bed downstairs. We moved it downstairs because it's so much cooler down there and I can sleep a bit better. However, it is harder to get the bed made since Bryan is often still sleeping in it when I get up, and with the bed downstairs I don't really see it again once I leave the room...)

That's about it, but I'm having so much fun celebrating my accomplishments, that I'm feeling a bit inspired to go do a some more.

GO ME!!!!!

the grass is always greener...

I'm thinking right now about Charlotte's comment on my last post. I'm pondering why it is that everyone else's life seems so much more interesting and exciting etc... than my own. I'm wondering why it is that we always seem to be looking at others and always measuring ourselves up against them. When (and how) do we get to the point when we are just okay with ourselves and we don't compare ourselves constantly???

I think Melissa might be pretty close to being there. She seems really confident and secure in who and what she is, she feels completely free to openly express any emotion she is feeling - and she expresses them with FEELING!!! - See, here I go again, comparing my 'emotional abilities' with what I perceive to be Melissa's abilities.
In my "logical" mind, I know that we only see what people put out for us to see. We don't see the inner struggles and turmoils. We only seem to compare our weakness to another person's strengths.

Yet - even knowing these thing "logically" - I can't seem to stop myself from doing the comparing thing. Oh well - I still have lots of years to work on it, and I can see that I am making PROGRESS in this area, so I guess that's something.

Another thing - I think it's important to recognize the strengths of others so that we can model our own behavior and attitudes after those people we admire. I just find there is a fine line between admiring people in a healthy and productive way, and comparing ourselves to others in a negative, tear ourselves down way. Ya know what I mean?

Well - that's enough pondering for today. I have been INCREDIBLY lazy all morning, and now I have GOT to get up and get some stuff done!

(with the photo - I was going for a "grass is greener on the other side of the fence" kind of thing, but this one got picked because 1 - it had green grass, 2 - it had a fence, and 3 - it kind of reminded me of the trip Charlotte and I took to New England the October before I got married. The autumn leaves were BEAUTIFUL!!!)

Nothing to post...

I don't really have anything specific to post today, but just wanted to check in and say things are going well. I am feeling much better and I have more and more energy. Today I might even get some good housecleaning done. (or not, but if it doesn't get done it be more a product of laziness than of morning/all-day sickness and pregnancy exhaustion.)

I wish I was more like Charlotte and could just come up with fun RANDOM things to post, but my brain doesn't seem to work that way...YET. Maybe in time... Ya'll have a great day!

Burial for Jack

Well - it's been a long week, and I was hoping to take the kids swimming yesterday to both cool off from the 90+ degree heat and to relax from everything that's been going on around here. Instead, we had a crisis in which the pet rabbit (Jack) somehow got out of his cage (I suspect it didn't get latched properly after Aaron feed and watered him, but we'll never know). Our dog Jasmine was outside and found Jack first and did some damage.

We rushed Jack to the vet, but before they could even start to treat him for the severe shock he was in and do a little damage control, Jack died. This may sound terrible, but if he was going to die, I am glad he died BEFORE they started treating him and running up a bill. As it was, they didn't charge me for the emergency visit and we just put Jack in a box and brought him back home for a little burial service. One of my projects today will be to carve his name into the "headstone" (a big flat rock).

Tim is out with the scouts this morning doing a 20 mile bike ride, but he said if he has any energy at all left this afternoon, we'll take the kids swimming then.