She is crazy.

funny boy

Just so everyone knows, Brandon posted the comment on Poodle's blog about taking me and Violet to Canada before he ever told me about it. I didn't find out until Friday night when he told me on the way to our ward Christmas party. And then I didn't believe him until I came home and read it for myself. Surprise! We are going to Canada.

What a great communicator. I just love him.

bff

A few weeks ago I was talking to Brandon about high school and I kept thinking about all the fun I had with Jennifer. Then last night I realized that with all those memories, I at least owe her a blog post. So here are just a few of the fun times we had:

-photo shoots

-the time when we went to dinner on the riverwalk, and felt so devious because it was a school night and our parents didn't know

-going to Firehouse Subs and for some reason trying to hide from her mom on the way home

-being late to school because we got breakfast tacos (or something like that, I mainly remember asking for a tardy pass from her English teacher)

-dressing up as twins during Homecoming week, then hearing some guys behind us refer to us as "hot twins" (we were so proud)

-trying out every restaurant in the San Antonio area

-Film club, and every other club at our high school

-picking jalapenos

-Jennifer calling my parents "Sister Reed and Brother Reed" because she thought it was funny

-going to Austin together and eating at the Denny's Diner

-always starting our Spanish essays with "Hoy en dia"

-staying up till 4 AM the night before I got married to make my wedding cake

-going kayaking together and rescuing some tubers that were stranded

-learning how to sing "Jesus en Pesebre" with my family on Christmas eve

-drawing pictures and writing notes in our classes

-"Girls' Night Out" with the moms at Paloma Blanca (we are totally doing it again next time I come visit, but this time Violet has to come)

And so many more. I miss you!

What have I become?

I never thought I would be a pushover with babies. When I babysat a spoiled baby in high school, I sat him on the floor and let him cry until he learned how to entertain himself, because I thought he needed to develop some self-soothing skills. Then Violet came and I can't listen to her cry for more than 2 seconds. I walk her around the apartment for hours if she's fussy, I take naps with her, I let her sleep on me all the time, and I take her everywhere with me. Brandon says I spoil her and I tell him, "Baby 411 says you can't spoil a newborn." Maybe this is why I have no idea how people have more than one kid. I can't imagine taking care of two of these.

But who wouldn't want to hold something this cute all the time?

More on Thanksgiving

Brandon did a great job recapping our Thanksgiving break on his blog, but he left out the best story. After Thanksgiving dinner, Brandon's little brother said something about not being hungry anymore, so his dad told him to run around outside naked and see if that made him hungry again. So he did, in the snow. Actually, I convinced him to keep his underpants on. We caught it on video but I think his parents would kill me if I put it on the internet. I guess 17-year-olds just like to do things like that.

Things I learned this weekend

-Motherhood isn't nearly as limiting as people make it seem. I can take Violet anywhere. If it's loud, she falls asleep. If it's outside, she is too distracted by the scenery to care.

-I really shouldn't worry about looking like a mom because two sixteen-year-old girls told me how much they love my shoes. They said they liked how shiny they are.

-Fifteen quarts of feijoada goes a long way, and dad enjoyed making it almost as much as he enjoyed making Violet smile.

-If you ask for Mom's help, she does the whole thing for you. I didn't have to do a single thing this weekend.

-Violet loves her sling, and so do I. It is great to have 2 hands again.

-Brandon can sleep through anything, so I don't even leave the room to feed her at night anymore.

-Dad will do pretty much anything to not have to get a hotel. I still can't believe they slept on our tiny couches all weekend.
-Poodle is never satisfied. But since her birthday is this week, I'll post more pictures just for her.

Violet's blessing

Violet had a really fun time with Reed and Papa this weekend. She was smiling a lot for Papa (she thought his gray hair was funny) and it made Reed jealous, because everything is a competition for her. Violet has made me really appreciate the great outdoors because any time we go outside, she stops crying. It doesn't matter if it's 30 degrees out; she doesn't seem to mind. Only Cooper gets more excited about going on walks. Here she is posing like Hulk Hogan.

Today was her blessing day and it was great. She looked very cute for it, but her legs are so long that the dress looked more like a shirt on her.

Here is one of our first family pictures, even though Brandon doesn't know how to smile.

And this one is from the luncheon-- I have never seen a girl as excited to be an aunt as Mia.

It was a great weekend. Thanks for helping out, mom and dad!

Baby blue

Here are those big blue eyes that Brandon was talking about. She looks a little puzzled here. She is very alert. The ladies in the geology office always come and oogle her when we bring lunch to Brandon. They told me that I have to keep bringing her every day so they can see her grow, but I warned them that I won't be able to walk to campus anymore when it starts snowing. At least we can enjoy the mild weather for now.

Brandon is going on a field trip tomorrow, so we get to have "girls' night in" all weekend. It will be fun. I think I am going to eat soup and ice cream every day and go shopping for some non-maternity jeans. Violet will probably have no clue what's going on, but I can pretend that she enjoys it.

Right now she is starting to wake up from her nap. I can always tell when she is about to wake up because she grunts and farts. It's really funny, she will grunt and fart for about 5 minutes before she finally opens her eyes.

Help

If I cut my hair short(ish), would that make me look like a mom? Because I think it's time for a change, but I really don't want to look like a mom. Being one is quite enough for me.

Decisions, decisions

Brandon is starting to apply to grad schools. We could end up in a number of places: Houston, Austin, Utah, Colorado, or Wisconsin. Each place has its advantages. Texas is close to family, Colorado focuses exclusively on geology, Wisconsin has great cheese, and BYU is a favorite with recruiters. It will be interesting to see where we go, but ultimately I want him to go to whatever school makes him the best offer. Too bad it will be several months before that happens.

Halloween!

Our Halloween was great. We were in charge of a cake walk at our ward party and we won the award for spiciest chili in the chili contest. Since I wasn't up to making any costumes, I went generic and decided to be a kitty.

Today Violet looked really cute in her little dress. We tried to take a picture of it, but she was hungry so she wasn't being very cooperative.

And here she is as a little mummy. I can't help it, I just think she is adorable.

Two weeks

I can't believe that just two weeks ago, I hardly knew how to change a diaper or hold a baby. In fact, everyone was still calling me baby. Now everyone calls me mom (which is kind of weird-- I am only one person's mom, and she can't talk yet) and the amount of tasks that I can accomplish with one hand grows every day. Yes, I have come a long way.

Dance, dance, dance: part II

Today while Violet was having tummy time Brandon tried to show her even more dance moves. Here they are practicing together. If you can't tell, Violet has her legs and head in the air.

Outings

Violet had her first few outings this weekend. On Friday, we brought lunch to Brandon on campus. I never realized how difficult it is to push a stroller up a steep hill but I learned quickly. Brandon loved it because he got to show her off to his teacher and all of his classmates stopped and told us how cute she is.

Today we went on a hike in Santaquin so that Brandon could see some rocks from the field trip that he missed last Friday. Violet was good the entire time and loves her little baby carrier.

Here are some cute pictures:

Dance, dance, dance

Brandon thinks little Violet is tons of fun. He really enjoys dancing with her and last night he was making her moonwalk across our table. I laughed until I almost wet my pants and I took this picture of them.

So cute

Today we took Violet to get her bilirubin levels checked and decided to have her wear the little hat that I made for her. She doesn't look too thrilled to be wearing it (it's probably just her sad eyes). Her levels were great, though, so she doesn't have to go back again. She has been doing great. She eats well, loves to cuddle, and sleeps like a rock. We just love having her here.

It's about time!

Today I am going to the hospital and I'm not coming back without a baby. Wish me luck.

All lies

We probably all know not to believe everything we read on the internet, but during my pregnancy I have seen some REALLY weird stuff. I have read things from signs of labor to how to induce labor-- all seriously wrong. Here are some of my favorites:

If your poop is soft, you are about to go into labor. (Wrong)

A day or so before you go into labor, you will have a sudden burst of energy and start nesting. (True for some women, but in my case, Mom has done the nesting for me.)

Your baby will "drop" during your last trimester before you go into labor. (Also false for me. She was pretty far down there from the beginning, so I don't know how she could get any lower without actually coming out.)

Walking induces labor. (Walking only works if true labor has already started. Even then, it only speeds up contractions. I walked 5 miles on Sunday and I'm still not in labor.)

Accupressure has been proven to induce labor. (We looked it up and they claim that it stimulates the small intestine, which wraps around the uterus. In other words, the small intestine acts like a boa constrictor and squeezes your baby out. That made me laugh pretty hard.)

Belly dancing induces labor. (I haven't done that one, but I can guarantee that NO ONE wants to see me try.)

Farting induces labor. (I'm not sure if Ashley got this one off the internet or if she was just trying to be funny, but it hasn't worked so far.)

Polls

Congrats, I made it to my due date. Apparently this baby is not coming on time, so I put a poll up and everyone can vote on when she will arrive. The last possible day is next Friday, because the doctor is starting an induction on Thursday if she's not here by then.

Alpine loop

Today we decided to take a little drive along the alpine loop. The leaves were especially pretty and it was overcast, so it was a great day for pictures. We stopped at Cascade Springs while we drove through the forest. Brandon had lots of fun

My belly looked especially large

And mom looked especially cute.

On the way home we tried to bounce the baby out on all the bumps on the road. That didn't work, but we did find the hospital where I am supposed to deliver so that we won't get lost when I am actually in labor.