So much baby:)

I honestly never thought I would be pregnant again! 

 Every day I feel so blessed to have this chance to bring another little baby into this world.  

This weekend I had the chance to celebrate with some of my new WA friends. 

My friend Kay was so sweet to throw me a baby shower!!

 So much yummy food!

So many great ladies!!

 So many adorable gifts!

 And so much belly:)

My Absent-Minded Professor...I mean husband.

You know those characters in movies that are brilliant, yet chronically absent-minded?  Well that is my husband...and we never let him forget it.  He has a mind full of smarts, which doesn't always leave room for those every day things that he seems to always forget.  This weekend, he had not just one, but TWO absent-minded moments...so I have to share:)

We had to pick up some furniture, so Mike rented a pick up truck on Saturday.  I drove him to pick it up, and he said "don't leave until I've done all the paper work."  I then said, "just make sure to come tell me before you leave."  He chuckled and said "wouldn't that be funny?"  So I waited, for what seemed like forever.  I sent a text "are you almost done?" and got no response.  I waited longer, still not done.  Finally I called him, and guess what?  Yeah, he already left and was on his way home!!  Seriously?!  I JUST reminded him. 

Next one was even better!!

Sunday morning, Mike had an early meeting, so he had to drive himself to church an hour before the rest of us.  So, I drove the kids and we enjoyed our three hour block of meetings.  After church was over, I looked all over for Mike and couldn't find him.  I knew some friends were coming over straight from church so I thought, I would just take the kids home and Mike could drive himself home as soon as he was done.  Well, apparently he saw us driving away and while wondering why we left without him, scrambled to find a ride home.  When he got home, we reminded him that he had his own car at the church...parked right in front of the door--how did he not see it?!  So, he had to get a ride back to the church to pick up his car:(

While sometimes, it's annoying when Mike forgets those day to day things, sometimes it is just plain FUNNY:)

Seriously Mom?

I remember the first day I dropped my oldest off at Kindergarten.   But more than the drop off, I remember picking her up.  I was so excited to hear everything she had done in the SIX hours she spent away from me....after all, I was used to knowing, seeing and experiencing just about every minute of every day with her since the day she was born.

First Day of Kindergarten

 

I found out, as a lot of other moms have found, that there is a huge gap between what you want to hear, and what they actually tell you!  I wanted to hear a play-by-play of the entire day.  What did you do first?  Then what?  What friends did you meet?  What were their names?  What was your teacher like?  What art project did you do?  How did you feel?  Were you home sick?  Did you eat your lunch?  Did you get lost?  Was anyone mean to you?  I wanted to hear it all.  But what I got from my little normally-talkative 5 year old was more like this "It was so much fun!"  The end.  That's it!!  Nothing else!  Now, when she was five, I could ask a lot of questions to get to the bottom of things.  I could ask her just about any of the questions I had and she would usually answer, unless she was busy playing or just plain tired.

Playing at the big-kid playground

So, fast forward 8 years and we get my now 7th grade, 13 year old daughter.  And, guess what?  I still have all those same questions...and then some.  Only now, my response from my teenager about how her day was is usually "fine."  The end.  That's it!!  She will usually humor me with answering a few questions, but it only takes about 2 or 3 and she's rolling her eyes asking me why I am asking a million questions.  Gosh.  Don't get me wrong, there are some times she comes home just bursting with information and I LOVE it.  But sometimes, I just want to know more.  I guess I am just nosey:)  I just want to know every detail of her life, but I can't.  The older they get, the more time they spend without me.  I just need her to fill in the gaps.  Good thing we still have five more years before she graduates and leaves for college.  Wait....ONLY FIVE MORE YEARS?!  How am I going to do this?

7th Grade, and so grown up!!

The Future Careers of Mr. Tyson

Tyson:  "Mom, there are some things I like about being a boy and some things I don't"

Mom:  "What are some of the things you don't like?"

Tyson:  "I don't like that I will have to go on a mission for two whole years, or pass the sacrament at church, or work all day and not get to see my kids"

I'm not sure why, but that last thought of Tyson's has been on his mind lately.  Here are some of the careers Tyson has wanted...lately:

Lawyer--until we told him that he'd have to read and write a lot in law school:)

Doctor--this one comes and goes (because he knows doctors make a lot of money).  But he only wants to be a doctor of something "not gross" like shoulders or knees...definitely not a doctor that delivers babies or works with the stomach or intestines:)

Bookstore Owner--last summer I listed to Tyson and his cousin Ben talk about building a store (in Ben's back yard) and selling all their old books....a few problems with this plan:)

Coffee Stand Owner--since moving to WA, Tyson has seen a lot of drive-thru coffee stands.  He thinks he would like to build one of his own, be his own boss, and make a lot of money selling coffee, because everyone drinks coffee (strange, since we don't drink coffee)!

Farmer--just recently Tyson told me that he wanted to own a farm, so he could grow all his own food, kill all his own animals for meat, and not have to buy anything from the store.  Although, today on the way home from school he said "I really want to have a farm, but I don't want to do all that work"

Work at Microsoft--of course, Tyson wants to be like his dad.  He wants to make video games...and play them all day:)

I wonder what my little boy will actually choose to be when the time comes.  Whatever it is, I'm sure he'll be fabulous at it!!

Here he is with the cake he made for the Blue and Gold Cub Scout activity.  It was supposed to be a wolf print, but it turned out more like a Blue's Clues print:)

These days, it doesn't take much

Before I had kids, I was not really a crier...at least as far as I remember:)  But since kids, I have been guilty of crying at commercials, movies, songs...and the list goes on and on.  Lately I have noticed that my crying trigger has become even MORE sensitive.  Here's some evidence:

I cried while watching the series finale of iCarly...iCarly...seriously.

I cried reading over an old talk I gave while preparing for my RS lesson.

I cried when I heard U2s "Where the Streets Have no Name" in the car today (ah, the memories).

I cried when I dropped Kya off on her 3-day camp out (and I just about cry every morning when I drop the kids off at school and watch them walk away...no lie)

I cried while telling my sister that I cried during her little baby's blessing.

I think I'm a little overly sensitive these days!  I think it might have something to do with the fact that I am going to be a mommy again.  At least I still am not breaking down in tears in public...although I still have a couple months of pregnancy to go;)

Awkward/Amateur Selfie

(How can that belly get 2 months bigger?!)

Softball in WA

I can't even tell you have happy Kya was when she put on her new softball uniform. 
She has missed it!! 
I think she may request to play fall ball this year as well as spring--yikes!

Her second practice was today...in the pouring rain. 
She didn't mind one bit. 
So happy to see her doing what she loves:)

At least we got to go to Hawaii

Our Exciting/Annoying/Memorable/Tiring Trip to Hawaii:

Day 1

Rushed to the airport so we wouldn't be late after running into some crazy traffic.

Waited for 2 hours until the airline informed us our flight was cancelled.

Waited in line for another 2 hours to get our hotel voucher.

Finally ate dinner at 9pm...and for a pregnant lady who didn't really get lunch, that was BAD, real bad!!

But, at least we were headed to Hawaii...

Day 2

Made it through our 6 1/2 hour flight...barely.

Arrived at our rental house 1 1/2 hours from the airport and realized Kya had lost her Ipod (luckily we called the rental car company and someone had turned it in!!!)

Here's the kiddos at the rental car place...it was so hot and sunny!!  

Only had time to get groceries and head to bed. 

The girls dressed like twins, hanging out in mom and dad's bed at the rental house

But, at least we were in Hawaii...

Day 3

Headed to Turtle Bay for some swimming, snorkeling and soaking in the sun.

 

 

 The girls tried a million times to get this "heart-shaped" pose!!  It still didn't really work, but we have some hilarious pictures from their attempts:)

Named ourselves the "Snowman" family, since we were the whitest ones on the beach.

After 4 hours at the beach, we headed to the Dole Plantation for some Dole Whips and lunch--YUM (for the dole whip, NOT the lunch).

The girls each picked an oyster and opened up their very own pearl (something that I did when I went with my parents to Hawaii)

Realized we were no longer snowmen, but tomatoes:(...and YES we wore SUNSCREEN--ugh.

Poor Jordan!!

But, we were happy to be in Hawaii...

Day 4

Headed to get some world famous shaved ice in North Shore...so yummy.

 

Braved the nasty traffic and our painful sunburns to play with the kids at Waikiki Beach.

Mike, Jordan, and I stayed in the shade as much as possible.

 

Headed to Cheesecake Factory for Jordan's late birthday dinner.

A great day in Hawaii...

Day 5

Spent the entire day at the Polynesian Cultural Center...why did I think it was a good idea to walk around in the hot sun all day while 6 months pregnant?!

Tyson was OBSESSED with buying a coconut to drink out of!!

Had a ton of fun learning...imagine that!!

Finished the day with the AMAZING night show...and a few mosquito bites.

Treated the kids to some ice cream during intermission:)

 

We were exhausted, but thrilled to be in Hawaii...

Day 6

Got up super early to snorkel at Hanauma Bay.

 

Saw tons of awesome fish and snorkeled until I got sea sick:(

Headed to Aloha Stadium for some last day souvenir shopping.

Walked around that stadium for TWO HOURS in the hot sun...once again, not smart for a pregnant lady, but boy did we find some great stuff!!

Kya spent some of her money on this adorable dress.

 

Went home thoroughly exhausted and ready to head home.

But, still happy we got to spend a fun-filled day in Hawaii...

Day 7

Left for the airport at 4am.

Boarded the plane for home, after about 1 1/2 in the air, the pilot turned around to take us all back to Honolulu because it was too icy to land in WA.

Struggled for about an hour to find a hotel anywhere near the airport that had any vacancies.

Ended up spending $300 for one night plus $40 for the taxi to take us to the hotel.

We made the best of it and headed to the beach, the hotel pool, and Outback for dinner.

 

Oh, and Mike finally got to see the sunset:)

 

 

Hey, at least we were in Hawaii...

Day 8

Left for the airport at 6am

Were given a weather warning and told that it looked worse than yesterday.

Boarded the plane and luckily landed in Bellingham during the small window that they were accepting flights.

I have never been so happy to be home...even though it was cold and snowy!!

This is at the airport parking lot.  Our car had about 6 inches of snow on top!  

But, hey, at least we got to go to Hawaii...and made memories we will cherish forever!!

In Full Swing

Pregnancy mode is in full swing at our house:

The belly is growing...a little bigger and faster than anticipated.

 

 

Things that fall on the floor, are getting left on the floor.

 

Browsing for baby stuff online seems to be one of my favorite pass times.  

(Doesn't baby girl NEED a pair of these?!)

 

Cooking is not happening quite as often as it should.

 

Chocolate consumption is at an all time high (maybe that's just because it was Valentine's Day).

 

We are excited and worried all at the same time!!