Merry Christmas...IT'S A...

GIRL!!!!!!!

We decided to do a family gift this year...The kids got a Wii! There was a lot of screaming!

Dan's new Disc and Belt Sander. He's a happy boy.

Kids new PJ's. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Johnson!

HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAYS!

34 weeks...

Look at that belly! Holy cow! I am getting so excited and impatient for this little one to arrive! I also can't wait to let everyone know what this baby is! Dan and I finally decided how we would tell the kids what we are having Christmas Morning. I will fill you in on all the details Christmas Day, so stay tuned ;) It's getting very difficult to keep this a secret as it's becoming so real! I want to refer to what this baby is all the time, and have to make a huge effort to NOT say he or she.

Since getting over the terrible cough I had a month ago, things have gotten so much better! I still fight getting good sleep. I usually get insomnia in the last couple of months before baby comes. I average 2-4 hours of sleep each night. If I sleep during the day, it gets worse, so I walk around with bags under my eyes and everyone asks if I'm okay. The crazy thing is I feel pretty good. It's so weird. I miss exercise the most. I miss being able to move quickly, to run or take stairs two at a time. That probably seems weird, but this moving slow business is for the birds. My left hip gives out if I get up too quickly, lol! I feel like an old woman! I am totally in love with carbs right now! Any kind of bread, pasta, rice, you name it, I love it! It's been difficult for me to love meat during this pregnancy. My favorite thing right now is not chocolate and not the packaged stuff...I have to make my own :) 1-2 tablespoons of cocoa in a large glass, rice milk (yes seems weird, but I love it), a pinch of cinnamon, and 7-8 drops of stevia. It's so yummy!

This baby is a mover. None of my kids moved as much as this one! The most active time is during the night, although it moves a lot during the day as well, especially from 9 to 11 and then again in the afternoon a bunch. If you push on my tummy, then he/she pushes back. The last visit I had with the doc, this baby was breech. I know that he/she has turned a few times since then. I'm very worried about have a c-section. I've never had one, and am desperately praying that I don't. So keep us in your prayers, please?!

My next visit is on New Years Eve. My doc is nervous about how quickly my babies come, so I will be almost 36 weeks and I'm interested to know if I will be dilated, and how much. Usually I'm at least dilated to a 4 and 80% effaced. Crazy, I know. I am very curious to know if this one will be different. I've exercised regularly and watched my weight over the last 5 years, where I didn't do much of that with the other kids. I know that I have carried this baby differently as well. As much as I would love to have this baby now, I also don't want to deal with my water breaking 5 weeks early as it did with Hailey. She was 5 pounds and that was scary! I hope this little one stays in there for at least another 3-4 weeks, if not to term.

Well, next post Christmas Day... stay tuned!

Rachel's 7th Birthday

Every year I tell the kids their story. I had a doctors appointment in the late afternoon December 11th. I was 37, almost 38 weeks along. The doctor was already delivering a baby and so the nurse checked me. I was dilated to a 6! I couldn't believe it! She was worried about a prolapse cord, because Rachels head moved from her hand and that could cause the cord to come out first. Dan was working across the street from our doctors office, so he met me there and we went to the hospital together. My Mom took the other kids. I was very excited! For some reason my body doesn't contract steadily on it's own, but I manage to dilate easily...lucky me ;) Rachel was born just after 10:00 p.m. It took about 4 hours to have her. She was my first baby natural, with no pain meds. It was tough! I was sold though. It was so much easier to recover afterwards. I hate not being able to control my own body. Rachel weighed 6 lb's 7 oz. She had blonde hair and super big blue (later green) eyes. She is such a sweet girl! She is so feisty but super sweet! I love her sweet spirit! Happy Birthday Rachel...We Love You!

Being Thankful at 30 Weeks!

For those of you who had the privilege of reading my rant, I'm sorry! I am changing it ;) Who wants to read a blog that is depressing, not I! I am 30 weeks along in my pregnancy. I technically have 10 weeks left. I have never gone to my due date. Hailey was 5 weeks early, Abby was 3 weeks early, Rachel was 2 weeks early and Joe was 1 week early. Everyone teases me that this one will go to it's due date. I don't think so. This pregnancy feels a lot like it did with Abby. With Hailey and Abby, my water broke. With Rachel and Joe, I had my babies natural. I'm always dilated to a 4,5, or 6 when checked at 36 weeks. We'll see how this one goes. It's been a rough couple of weeks...had a horrible cold/cough and no energy. I'm keeping in perspective the fact that I'm happy this cold is before baby and not after baby. I'm anxious to feel more like myself. I'm very happy I'm on the home stretch, what's a couple of more months, especially when Christmas is on the horizon! These next 4-5 weeks will fly by!

Well...to move on to a more positive note...the things I'm enjoying right now ;) (My Thanksgiving Grateful List)

Kids are off track, this is a good thing actually. I have lots of little helpers. I can't tell you how many times Hailey takes out the garbage. Abby is a great at cleaning bathrooms. My kids really are awesome! I just love them to death! They have been pretty patient with me and I'm grateful to them for that.

Dan is awesome! He is blessed to hear me whine constantly. He just listens. Poor guy. He put up our Christmas lights this year and put up our insanely easy to put up artificial Christmas Tree. I appreciate him so much!

Although I hate pregnancy, the one thing I do love and marvel at is the fact that I have a baby in me that weighs approx. 3 lbs. That's amazing! I love to feel him/her move. I love it that I only have a couple of months to go and that I'm not in the beginning stage. I'm nervous to deliver this one, it's been 5 years. It's crazy what you forget in that time. I'm also so very excited to have this baby! I can't wait!

I'm grateful that my husband has a great job! I'm so grateful for him and the time he spends supporting us!

I'm so grateful for online shopping, it makes life so much easier!

I'm grateful to my awesome Mom who helps with the kids and makes life so much easier!

I'm grateful for Shawn, who makes me laugh, understands my love for video games, likes to hang out with his old, huge sister and helps me bring in groceries and put them away. He's the best!

I'm grateful for all of my family in general and that I live near most of them. I miss Dan's family and wish we could see them more often. I miss the old days when we would get together and play games.

I'm grateful for my wonderful friends! Just to mention a few...Tricia, I can always go months without talking to her and we just pick up where we left off! I love it that age doesn't matter, she older than I and I always enjoy hearing her words of wisdom. Melba, my GBFF (gym best friend forever) for making exercise/lifting one of the most fun things I've ever done! I can't wait to get back! Rayna, my old college buddy, who introduced me to some good country music to which I would never have been a fan of. Mark and Trish, my game buddies. Nicole, my visiting teaching buddy, mia maid buddy, jewelry buddy, and healthy food fanatic. Chi-Wen, how I miss my old friend from Portland/Taiwan. I miss her cooking, her smile, her constant stream of compliments and always positive attitude and her love for the Lord. I've never met a person, not of my faith that is more honest and true. She is my Mom's age and I love how age has no relevance when it comes to friendship. The list goes on...I'm very blessed to have such wonderful friends in my life!

I am so grateful for my Savior. I'm grateful for my eternal family!

I truly am blessed! Thanksgiving was a great day! It was pretty crazy when the family all got together around 5 p.m. for dinner, but it's always fun to see my brothers and to visit and laugh with them. They are such good guys!

I hope Thanksgiving was wonderful for all of you! Bring on Christmas!!!

Goodbye Blankie

I just walked into the kitchen to find Joe's baby blanket that he carries around with him everywhere in the garbage! I asked Joe why it was in the garbage and he said "because it's really old". How sad! I seriously feel like crying! My baby is growing up!

Date Nights

We recently started up our "old" tradition of taking each child out on a "date". Every Thursday Dan and I take turns with each of our children. For the month of October, we decided to take them out on an "expensive" date. This was a great opportunity to do something with them that we just don't do very often because of cost. We also thought it would be a good idea to teach the kids a little about manners in restraunts and things like that. Hailey went first. She went out on a date with me (Mom). She had been wanting to go and check out that new store Rue 21. We had a lot of fun trying on clothes (she tried on clothes, not me...lol). We found a few cute shirts. We then went out for fast food at Wendy's. I had a lot of fun having one on one time with her. She is growing so fast!

The next week Dan took Abby out to "Desert Star". It's a melodramatic theater where they do spoofs on movies/stories. Abby went to see "Snooty and the Beast". Dan and I had just recently seen this on our date night a few weeks earlier and thought Abby would love it! Abby loves acting/singing/dancing. We also found a great class called "Up With Kids" for Abby to attend once a week. She will perform in a play called Wicked/The Wizard of Oz in May. She has been loving this class! She learns how to perform and also all about acting. On her date Dan, they ordered pizza and hollared and hooted with the rest of the crowd during this fun play. I was super jealous Dan got to take her out, I really wanted to watch her face as they performed. Dan had a lot of fun with Abby.

The following week it was my turn again and I took out Rachel. She has been begging me to get her ears pierced. So we took a trip to Claires. She chose some very cute star earrings. She was a little nervous but did really well! She loves her new earrings! She then wanted to go out to Applebee's for dinner. I had so much fun with her! She is such a sweet little lady. We talked and laughed and took lots of pictures!

Joe changed his mind about a hundred times on where he wanted to go on his date with Dad. At first it was riding motorcycles, then it was bowling, movies...but he finally settled on Chucky Cheeses..LOL! I was so glad that it was Dan's turn! I wish we had pictures of Hailey and Joe but didn't take our camera with us on these dates. Dan said Joe earned like 300 tickets and was really excited to "buy" a little toy gun with his tickets.

This months is free month. It's interesting listening to the kids brainstorm about what they want to do with us on their dates this month. Hailey went shopping to the mall. Our price limit is $5. Hailey found a cute necklace on sale. Dan helped her look. It's fun to see him in action with our girls. He is such a good Daddy.

Abby wanted to make necklaces (I have recently acquired a new fun hobby of making necklaces, watches and earrings). So she chose some beads from my collection and we made a necklace and went out for an ice cream cone.

I'm excited to see what Rachel and Joe will decide to do. This has been the BEST thing for us and our kids! I also love getting in the habit of having time with each one, especially with a new little one arriving in the next few months.

Rachel before her ears were pierced.

Ray after her ears were pierced.
Ray and I at Applebee's

Abby in front of the stage at Desert Star.

Halloween Parade

Rachel (Princess)

Joe at home before parade (Darth Vader)
Hailey (Witch) Blurry, dang it!

Abby (in the middle, Runway Diva)

No Weights

I have low iron...resulting in some not so happy things I'd rather not get into. Well, when baby is stealing it from me, lifting weights will only result in robbing me of more iron. I am not allowed to lift weights for now, and maybe not until this baby is born. I have to tell Melanie (my GBFF). I am sad :(

23 Weeks

I visited my doctor today. She asked me how I was doing and feeling...I told her I felt as though I'd "popped" in the last couple of weeks. She just smiled and took out her measuring tape. I hear a gasp and a "WOW, you did grow!" I am amazed at how easy this pregnancy is in some ways and how hard it is in others. I can't believe I have kept up with my exercise! My only hope is that is makes some difference when it is all said and done. I do know that I've been able to keep my weight down this pregnancy and that is nice! I've gained only 6 lbs total (lol...not counting the 10 I gained before I ever went in to the doc, haha!). Crazy! It has been hard in that I just shut down in the afternoon and evening. I have a great deal of energy in the morning, and then I don't feel like doing anything the rest of the day. It takes all I've got to make dinner, help the kids and anything else planned in the evenings during the week. I feel bad that I'm not more social. This is why...I'm so tired!

We have a list of names for girls and boys and it's cute to hear what the kids think this baby will be and what names they like. I'll share our list with you...

For a Girl:

Lilly

Molly

Ruth

Lucy

For a Boy:

Jessee

Benjamin

Cody (for Joe)

Tell me what you like best and maybe a middle name to go with it;)

One huge difference between this pregnancy and the others is my craving for sour things. I love sugar, as you know. I usually love things that are sour and fruity, not the biggest chocolate fan. But, things are different with this one. I LOVE chocolate. I have to ration it or keep it out of the house all together. I can't stand the thought of eating something sour. I have totally loved the farmers market and seriously ate a whole huge box of peaches and tomatoes on my own. I am lovin my veggies and that is usually another thing I can't handle well during pregnancy.

Well, I hope to update when we are a bit closer. I've tried to keep up on pictures and blogging, but am falling short. I love reading your blogs and love catching up on what all of you are up to!

Baking...Oh the Sweet Temptation!

Is it possible to bake something gooey, sweet, warm, soft, and wickedly delicious without eating it?

PLEASE TELL ME HOW!

All I have to say is I'm the hit of the house right now...with my amazing meals and yummy desserts. Going to the doc will be all sorts of fun in a couple of weeks when they tell me they no longer have a scale big enough for me...

Maybe I'll just bring them in some cinnamon rolls ;)

Cole's Creations

I am a jewelry fanatic! I love it! I've never been a big fan of watches nor am I good at putting styles and colors together...but let me tell you, my friend has started her own business creating the most beautiful and affordable jewelry! I made a watch with her a couple of months ago and it is so comfy and I've had more compliments than I can count! Thanks Nicole! Please check out her site! COLES CREATIONS

Scripture Lessons

We have a new idea in our house, and it all came from Dan! It doesn't involve yelling or grounding or giving chores or anything of that nature...

On our Red Pine Hike, Hailey and Abby were fighting nonstop. They just pick at each other all of the time! I started in on my lecturing and then grounding and then there were tears and finally Dan and I took the back of the trail and he mentioned the idea that when the kids fight they will need to copy some verses from the scriptures. On occasion, we may have them memorize scripture mastery scriptures instead of copying them. We did wonder if this would just make them HATE the scriptures, but I think it's much better than us constantly yelling at them and/or grounding them from involvement with good friends. Another idea we had was to copy the dictionary...lol. So far it's been working great!

It's A...

SURPRISE!!!

LoL! Let me tell you the story...

I was NOT going to find out what we were having, but as you know, we have a full house. We have two rooms to paint and kids to situate and there is just no way I could do that without finding out what this baby was going to be. So, that is my reasoning. However, 3 of our 4 kids didn't want to know what it was. I know that just seems weird and crazy and you're all chomping at the bit, but hey, it's my baby ;) I can do whatever I want...lol! So, we are keeping this little secret to ourselves until this little one is born.

The other day Hailey told me that if this baby is a girl...it will be just one more sister to fight with...lol! Rachel wants a girl to dress-up and Joe is praying for a boy. Abby wants a boy, because Joe needs a BRO. So...I think it will be great for these kids to just wait and see!

Here are a few pics of our healthy little one...

Hiking Red Pine

This was probably the BEST hike I've been on in a long time! Toward the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon is the trail head for White and Red Pine (the lakes are at the top). My brothers and I normally hike up to White Pine lake, because it is a longer hike. I haven't hiked to Red Pine Lake before (well I did as a kid, but don't remember). When you begin this hike, you hike about 3/4's of a mile up to a stream and then the trail splits, one going up to White Pine Lake and one up to Red Pine Lake. Dan has wanted to go on a hike almost all summer, but with being pregnant hiking has become pretty dang hard for me! I normally can hike these trails without a hitch but of course carrying a little one makes me feel like I've never exercised a day in my life...it's depressing! I took the kids on this hike last year and they hiked about half way in, so this year I wanted to take them and see if we could make it to the top.

My Dad decided to come, which made it so nice! He sang songs on the way up and helped us keep the kids going. This hike is GORGEOUS! It's sort of deceiving in that the trail is a nice steady climb until you get half way up ( about the point the kids turned around last year) and then it's a straight up climb, boulder on boulder. The kids did so well! Abby thought she was going to die toward the end, and it just made me laugh. I tried to take some pictures of that. A few of these pics the kid are sitting down. It was funny because they would hike along and then just sit down right in the middle of the trail...lol. I can't even tell you how excited we all were when we reached the lake. What a beautiful lake! It had a great little beach on one side and the kids had fun shooting Dan's sling-shot. It was quite chilly at the top, so we ate a quick lunch and basked in the sun and then started down. The kids couldn't believe how steep it was and that they had just gotten through climbing it. Toward the last couple of miles, all of our feet were aching. We are all feeling it today, but it was a great hike! Below: the road up Little Cottonwood Canyon with the valley in the distance.

Below: Where the trail splits.

The Valley View...the trail has a drop off and it has a part in the tree's and this is an awesome view!

Just past the Stream/River where the trail split. This bridge crosses right over it.

Below: the Mountains are gorgeous with this red stripe along the top.

Rachel was ahead most of the hike :)

Below: I took this of just Abby to show her she actually made it to the top and didn't die...lol.

Birthdays and Reunions

Abby turned 9 on August 16th and Hailey just turned 11 yesterday (September 3rd). Abby decided she wanted a bear from Build-A-Bear. It was so much fun taking her on her birthday as a family to pick out her new "baby". We all had a great time! She thoroughly enjoyed being "princess" for a day...lol. I love this picture below of her after her long day of play.
Grandma and Grandpa Johnson came over and gave both Abby and Hailey their birthday gifts, since they were on their way back to Portland and the girls' birthday is only about 2 weeks apart. Below are the cute outfits. The girls are wayyyyy into clothes right now :)

Last week, my Mom's side of the family celebrated her Dad's 80th birthday. It was such a FABULOUS day! We began by taking an hour in the morning to have a huge family picture! My Grandpa is an amazing photographer and very diligent with his family history and this was probably one of the greatest gifts we could all give him for his birthday...a picture of us all! It was a beautiful day! It was also so fun seeing many family members we haven't seen in ages.

My mom is one of 8 children...so as you can imagine the family is HUGE!

After pictures we met at Grandma and Grandpa's stake property and ate breakfast while he spoke to us, and in turn all of his children reminisced about their Dad and the profound affect he had his family. One of the things that sticks out most to me from the words spoken by my grandpa were...to always remember why we are here; 1 - to gain a body 2- to solve problems 3- to avoid problems (usually brought on by ourselves and sin). It sounds quite simple, doesn't it? I know that to my grandpa it always seemed simple to live as Jesus would. He is an amazing example of that. Of all the memories shared that day, none reflected my grandpa "losing it". He made occasional funny comments about our "damn world" and what it was coming to, LOL (this comment made on 9/11), but other than that it made me realize just how incredible he is and it also made me realize that because of that, no matter how far his children strayed, they all returned and are absolutely amazing people! Below is a picture of my Grandparents and their 8 children. Man...I just love this family!

I had to throw this picture in...this house, that is no longer all ours :( This is my childhood home. After all the talk of moving and combining households, I never put this on...How I'll miss this home and the constant reminders of all the fun memories we all had there.