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.

Birthday boy

Brandon turns 26 today. I have only known him for three of those years but with all of our adventures together it feels like I have known him for much longer. I'm so happy to be with him and here are just a few things I admire about him:

He has fabulous hair

He is a great brother (most of the time)

He has awesome dance moves

His sense of fashion

His ability to adapt to any situation

I love you, little Brandon! Happy birthday.

Shirts (first attempt)

Poodle showed me some embellished shirts that she wanted, so I tried one on my own. Unfortunately, the store only had black or white shirts, so I got black and the flowers are a silvery purple. I think it turned out pretty well, although the flowers could be a little bigger. I haven't attatched them to the shirt yet, so I can still change those. If Poodle likes it, she can have it. If not, I can make new flowers, or find more shirt colors, or some other small girl can take it. But I will definitely be making more of these; I think they are pretty cute.With one more flower (and some loose strings to be fixed):

Pillows

Here are the first two pillows for Mom's bed. I finished two more, so they are almost all done. They are in the crib for now because they match the baby's room. In the background is the dresser that I painted blue. I think it works. And don't worry, we won't actually keep pillows in the crib with the baby. We know all about suffocation hazards.

Diagnosis, please

I know how much mom loves diagnosing people, so I am wondering if she can diagnose a couple of people that I see at work sometimes. I'm not sure there are medically accepted conditions for these people, but there should be.

First, there's the guy who will only speak in third person. I am not kidding. I thought he was joking at first, but I have seen him at least 10 times and have never heard him use the pronouns "I" or "me."

Then, there is the bag lady. She wears plastic grocery bags over her hands and keeps extras in another plastic bag, which she carries. When she orders food, she makes us take the entire tray out so that she can pick the biggest one, and she will spend up to 5 minutes deliberating about which brownie is the biggest.

Seriously, I have been wondering about these people for a long time.

Sick

I officially ready to have this baby. I have been sick with a cold the past couple of days and I am very congested. Combined with the baby crushing my lungs, it makes breathing a real pain. It would really help out if she got out of my belly so that I can breathe again, as long as she doesn't come as fast as little Leah did. For now I am stuck deciding if I want to breathe through my nose (very labor-intensive) or breathe through my mouth (very dry and makes me drool).

What would you do?

What would you do if you had no job, no school, no kids, and very little money? That's where I am stuck right now. I feel like Mom, only I am in Provo instead of Mexico and I can't fly up and visit people every month. I am making a list of things to fill my time before the baby arrives.

1. Get a library card, as Fernash suggested. A good idea since the only books in our apartment have titles like Applied Hydrogeology.
2. Sew pillows for Mom's bed. The only thing between me and those pillows is not being able to find the perfect shade of purple at the fabric store. Life is tough.
3. Learn how to cook. Maybe if I start baking cookies all the time, people will want to be my friend. After all, Bexar is one popular girl.
4. Start editing our thousands of pictures. We have a brand-new computer; I just need to find someone who has photoshop.
5. Learn how to paint again, because after 4 years of not doing it, I really suck. I think I will start with the painting that Brandon started that he will now have no time to finish.

baby pic!

Here is the ultrasound. Definitely my lips and nose.

More on baby

Yesterday I went in for another ultrasound and I learned a lot about our little baby. She is super active (well, I already knew that) and she already has lots of hair. I was pretty surprised by that; I always expected a bald baby. She had hiccups, but she gets those a lot. She is still about a week smaller than she should be (they estimated her weight at 4 lbs, 3 oz) but she is doing fine. They had a good shot of her face so they showed me a 3D ultrasound. Brandon and I think she looks like me, so Fernash might have to stop calling her "Sad Eyes." I guess we will find out sometime in the next six weeks.

Did I say that?

This week at BYU is Education Week, meaning that tons of people come from all over the country to get BYU brownies (with the excuse that they are attending classes). They all wear name tags with their home town printed under their name. Today at work I saw someone from a certain town in Utah and I remembered that my mom's uncle lives there. I was about to ask him if he knew my mom's uncle when I realized that I would be saying "Do you know Dick Fagg?" to a complete stranger. Fearing a gross misunderstanding, I held my tongue.

Our teeny tiny baby

Yep, apparently she is really small. Despite what Ashley says about my eating habits, I am pretty small for being 7 months along. The girls I know that are due well after I am already have bigger bellies than I do. I actually lost a little weight since my last doctor's appointment and my belly is the same size as it was two weeks ago. I was pretty freaked out about that at first. So, I am going in next week for an ultrasound just to make sure that she is still growing normally. I am really excited to see her at the ultrasound but I hope she knows that she is not allowed to come while Brandon is out of town. I'm sure everything will be fine.

Cool weather

It appears that we are having an early fall this year. It rained all last night and all morning and it has been in the 60s today. It's beautiful! The only bad part about it is that our slip 'n slide activity had to be cancelled because it's too cold. That's okay. Time for me to start making pumpkin bread and soup!

Visits, plans, and more

I was lucky to have two sisters visit me this week. Fernash fed me lots of food, made fun of my waddle, and attacked my belly in an effort to make the baby kick. Apparently the baby does not like being bossed around, so she didn't respond. Bexar proved that her kids really are as crazy as she says they are and shopped for fabric with me. We also got huckleberry shakes at Arctic Circle. I don't care what anybody says; Arctic Circle shakes are just as good as Iceberg ones.

Brandon is getting ready for the GRE and I am getting ready for his fieldtrip. I made a list of projects to keep me busy while he is gone so our apartment should look great when he gets back. I even looked up how to make a banana face mask last night. I asked Brandon if he wanted to make one with me and he said no, so I will do it when he is gone. I also decided that our baby will wear lots of skirts because they are much easier to sew than pants. That is all for now but I will be sure to blog a lot when Brandon leaves because I will be so bored.

All done

Complete with bottle straps, a cell phone pocket, and a key hook. My head is cropped out because I am making a really unattractive face. I think it turned out pretty well, but the button kind of looks like a puzzle piece from far away. It was really fun to make, though. Brandon helped quite a bit.I got so excited about it that I decided to start another project, so I crocheted a little hat for the baby. Brandon showed me how to do it, but it was my first time doing a hat, so it's a bit lumpy.

Freebies

This weekend has started out great-- Brandon and I are getting tons of free things. It started out with free Cafe Rio and Thai Chili Gardens from Ashley because she is the coolest, free tomatoes and other vegetables from the in-laws, free baby clothes from Sheri, and finally, free tuition from Obama. Awesome!

Also, my diaper bag is coming along nicely. I will post pictures as soon as it's done.

Project/experiment

I have looked at diaper bags lately and came to one conclusion: I hate them all. I just don't like plasticky, bulky totes. The semi-cute ones cost $60 and up. Well, I foud this one online, but it's not a diaper bag. Still, I like it, so I spent this evening cutting out a pattern to sew one that looks like it. I will make it with heavier fabric, line it with something water-resistant, and make it a little roomier inside. The best part is that I can make it in any color I want. It is an experiment but we will see how it turns out, and I'll post pictures of the finished product.

Topaz Mountain and Dugway Geode Beds

We took a rather rural camping trip this weekend. By rural, I mean driving for hours on unmarked dirt roads that even Google Maps couldn't find and not seeing another car. Anyways, we started at Topaz Mountain. Don't be fooled; I'm pretty sure there are no topazes there. We dug for them for quite awhile and all we found were tiny quartz crystals. We had better luck at the geode beds. We didn't find anything spectacular but there were lots of little geodes and other nice rocks. I didn't do much digging at either place because I have a hard time squatting because of my belly. It was a fun trip, and we brought back lots of rock samples.

Geode beds

Topaz Mountain

Since Poodle and Fernash keep asking

I put an updated belly picture. Sad Eyes is getting very big, which is good. As for me, I really like the shirt. And the earrings (thanks, Poodle). Also, my highlights have grown out quite a bit, but I decided I kind of like the brown, so I'm not going to redo them. That's all.

Dear Mom,

I found a countdown widget that doesn't have a "creepy rotating baby." I hope you like it; it's just for you.

Work

Yes, that is all I'm doing lately, so that's what everyone gets to hear about. Apparently, not a lot of people that buy ice cream are very smart. I always get people asking for ice cream on a cone with a topping. I always ask them if they want it in a bowl instead, and they look at me like they are really confused. I guess they don't realize that toppings don't stay on cones; they fall off. I'm pretty sure everyone is familiar with the shape of an ice cream cone so it should just be logical that toppings do not stay on a rounded surface without anything to catch them. It is especially annoying when they ask for something like caramel or raspberry topping. One of these days I am tempted to just put in on there and give it to them and let it drip all over their hands and say "Well, what did you think would happen?" As Bill Murray said in What about Bob, that was NOT SMART.

Relief

It has been a little hot here lately. I know, Texas is hotter, but we don't have AC in our apartment OR our car, so it is pretty bad. I am especially hot right when I get to work because I have to walk there, and going up a hill when I weigh 20 lbs more than normal is hard. Then I get to put on long pants, closed-toed shoes, and a sexy apron just in case I'm not hot enough.

Well this week I had enough of that, so now when I get to work I come in a little early and sit in our ice cream freezer. It is about as big as our extra bedroom and it is kept at -10 degrees. Needless to say, it feels nice. Getting samples once in awhile is nice, too, but we are down to a pathetic EIGHT FLAVORS since the Creamery STILL hasn't been rebuilt. They are telling us that it will be running again in October, but if we don't get Graham Canyon back before I have my baby, I might just go into labor right there at the store.

So pretty

Sometimes Brandon and I go to Lowes and just to look around and see what things we would like to have in our house. I always get stuck in the tile section and stare at the pretty glass tiles like these ones. They make me want to have a house so I can tile a kitchen backsplash or bathroom. Or maybe just find a big mirror and tile the frame around it so it looks interesting. Oh well, it will be awhile.

Dear Poodle,

Remember those earrings that you stole from me four years ago? I really want them back. I get sad every time I check my mail and they're not there. I miss them.

Love, Shady

What has been going on

Last week:
Buying $4 maternity jeans
Not being able to sleep because my back hurts when I lie down
Driving to Idaho in 100 degree weather and no AC in the car
Going to Brandon's family reunion
Climbing up a huge rock; Mom would have freaked out if she saw me
Putting together our crib

This week:
Figuring out that if I sleep with a pillow under my legs, my back doesn't hurt
Wishing I could figure out a way to make my back not hurt at work
Only having 4 more weeks of work
Still not knowing how to cut my hair

In two weeks:
Brandon's little brother staying with us for the week while he is at soccer camp, hoping he doesn't stink up our apartment

Three weeks:
Fernash visiting, going out to eat with her, getting half of my food boxed up in advance because my stomach is so squished by the baby

Five weeks:
Brandon going on his field trip; me not having anything to do

Ten weeks:
My baby is full term! I can pop her out anytime after that.

Big long road trip

This week Brandon and I went on a trip with his family and his uncle's family. We went to Indio, California. It is pretty much in the middle of the desert, so it was around 115 degrees the entire time we were there. Brandon and the older kids were brave enough to go golfing in that weather. I don't like golfing that much. Luckily, I found other things to do.

At night I showed the little kids how to hunt for toads. This was the first one I caught. They were all fascinated. Playing by the pool was fun, too, and pretty much the only thing to do during the day. This picture is for Ashley.

I also helped Brandon and McKay grill some potatoes and hamburgers. McKay was excited because grilling makes him feel manly.

Also, when McKay walked into our apartment to pick us up he looked at me and said, "Look how fat you are!" That was great.

This week's events

-Having my whole apartment clean for the first time since we moved in (there was always one dirty room)
-Remembering Brother's birthday, which I always forget. Happy birthday, Brother!
-Buying tons of pastries because they were half off last night, and I can't pass up a good deal (mom would have been proud)
-Eating them all
-Getting two coupons just beacuse the student manager is afraid of me, and I made him feel bad about making me come in to work early
-Having a freakishly lumpy belly because Sad Eyes likes to put herself in weird positions
-Finishing a few sewing projects
-Trying to replace a zipper on a dress, and realizing that the dress is now way too small for me
-Getting our crib sheets delievered, but no crib
-Brandon finishing our picture
-Packing to go to California with the Harpdogs tomorrow; there will be a pool at our condo so I am excited

This weekend's new thing

Today Brandon and I decided to splurge and we went shopping for a rocker for the baby's room. First we went to Babies r Us, and the only fully upholstered rockers were $400. Even the cheaper wooden ones that just have cushions on them were $250 and up. So we went to a furniture store to see if they were any cheaper there. One store was having a big clearance sale and we found this nice, comfortable, leather rocker/recliner for $199. I looked at Brandon and said "I want it" and it was sold. Also, I promise my belly is bigger than it looks in this picture. And I think I need to get my hair cut again soon.

All done!

I took all of my spring term finals today, which means all I have left of school is a 1-credit class in the fall, then I graduate. I am so happy about that! Now I can just sit back, relax, and have a baby. Because after the baby comes, there will be no more relaxing. Ever.

Today we went and got fabric for the baby's room. We tried to do that on Monday, but when I found out that the fabric I wanted cost too much, I started crying and we had to leave. That is how hormonal I am these days. Believe me, it's not fun.

We are bold

Well, at least when it comes to colors. Here are some of the projects we have been working on the last few weeks. The headboard is the one that I found in our dumpster and cleaned up. When I found it, it was silver and had a missing knob on the corner. So we sprayed it bronze and replaced the knob with a curtain rod knob. The dresser was this weekend's project. It is a hand-me-down from Brandon's family and it used to have mismatched handles and ugly milky white stain. On the other hand, it is a really good dresser since it has solid wood construction and dovetail joints. So we sprayed the handles bronze to match our bed and painted it LIME green. You can't tell from this picture, but there is a little bit of lime green on our comforter, so that's where the weird color comes from. Anyways, we really like it and I am excited to get started on decorating the baby's room. The baby has been busy lately with kicking Brandon in the face and making me eat weird things. She is a little hyperactive, but at least she will be athletic.

The rocks

About a year ago, I was in a geology class and my professor used to bring rock samples to class. It always amazed me that every time we talked about a certain rock, he could magically pull out 5 different samples of the rock. It made me wonder how he did it. Do all geologists have magic rock collections that they can pull out of nowhere?

Then Brandon became a geology major. Now every time we go hiking, our rock collection increases by 15 lbs. It started taking over our apartment so we bought Brandon a 6-foot tall shelf just for his rocks. He has already filled half of it. He spent last night dilligently washing his rocks and scrubbing them with a toothbrush so that they will look pretty for the shelf. It was very cute. He could easily teach a college course with the samples that he has, not to mention the 500+ pictures he took of things like convolute bedding and cross stratification. Now I know that geologists aren't magic; they're just nerds. And I am SO glad he is majoring in something he loves so much. Maybe someday he will love me as much as he loves his rocks. (just kidding)

the ultimate burgers... yum

Lately the baby has been making me crave spicy things even more than I already do.

Today I was wanting burgers and fries, and I made some that were awesome! I was so proud of them that I had to take a picture. Mine had bacon, pepper jack cheese, grilled onions and a grilled serrano pepper. I think I should have added 3 more serrano peppers but it was still good. So here are my pretty little creations (Brandon did make the buns, so it wasn't all me).

Birthday shopping

Of course, I couldn't go without showing off what Brandon got me for my birthday. He got me these shoes (yes, they are zebra-striped AND shiny) and the toenail polish that I am wearing. When I got them, I said, "Great! I have been worried about looking too mature lately." Being pregnant was beginning to make me feel old. These will definitely reverse that, along with realizing that I am only 21. We also got more plants to put in our little garden. Now we have basil, thyme, serrano pepper, tomato (growing out of the fish's mouth), and jalapeno. Brandon made the fish pot in our ceramics class.

He even took me to get some body spray, but they were out of the kind that I liked. Oh well. I still love my birthday presents!

A little birthday miracle

I had a great birthday yesterday. Brandon posted about everything we did, so I won't repeat anything. But he did leave out one part. After we had dinner at Tucanos, we came home and found a dryer sitting out by the dumpster. Well, in 2 weeks, we are moving into an apartment with washer/dryer hookups and we already have a washer from Brandon's parents. All we needed was a dryer, and we were going to buy one on Monday. As I was calling my friend to help us move it, the owner of the mysterious dryer drove by and informed me that it worked very well but they had just gotten a new one, so it was up for grabs. So I sat on it and Brandon rode in circles on my bike for about 30 minutes until our friend got here and helped Brandon carry it into our kitchen. While sitting by a dumpster on a dryer wasn't what I had in mind for finishing my birthday, I am very glad that we found it. And now Brandon and I will have a dryer to make our kids sit on when they get in trouble. Thanks, mommy, for staying for my birthday and making it awesome. And thanks, Brandon, for sharing me with her.

More naming fun

By now, everyone knows about the joke that Bethany played on me with my baby name. That episode reminded me of another naming joke she played on me years ago.

I was 12, and I had just gotten a new rabbit. Bethany thought it would be really funny to convince me to name him Herpes. I fell for it.

Unfortunately, Ashley gave it away by giggling and saying, "When I have a rabbit, I'm going to name it HIV-Positive." I DID know what HIV was. After that I figured out that Herpes was an STD, but not until after I had been calling him Herpes for at least a week.

It's a girl!

And she is beautiful. I saw her little face, hands, feet, and her four-chambered heart. So, everything is there, except for a penis. She is a little small for her age, but I kind of expected Brandon and I to produce a very small child. She moves a lot and she yawned at us. I couldn't tell if she has sad eyes yet. Anyways, we are so excited!!!

Also: Yes, we have a name picked out. No, we aren't telling anyone what it is. So don't ask.

Our eventful weekend

Actually, our weekend started out being pretty uneventful. But on Saturday, Brandon had a filling fall out, so we had to make an emergency trip to Idaho to get that fixed (his uncle is a dentist). We got to Idaho at around 1 AM that night. Mother's day was fun-- Brandon and Mia brought me breakfast in bed and I got a tomato plant at church (they were giving out plants to all the women for mother's day). After church I asked all the little Harpdogs what kind of baby they thought I was going to have. I got the best response from Cameron-- "If he's a girl, then he won't be very fun." We shall see. I called Mom the Bomb and we planned out what we are doing this week when she is here. That night, we drove home and now I am just getting ready for Mom to come. This weekend will be even more fun!

So excited

I am very excited about this week. Mom the bomb is coming to Utah and we are going to party. In fact, I have been telling everyone that I work with how excited I am to see her every day. Sometimes I even start jumping up and down because I am so excited. On Thursday, we are going to my doctor to find out if I'm having a boy or a girl (please vote on what you think it will be on the side). Mom will even be here for my birthday! I think it is going to be a great two weeks.

Dear Bethy,

Here is the room I would like to stay in.

Beds with just a headboard always look comfortable, and they are cheaper than the headboard/footboard set. This one is courtesy of Pottery Barn. The seagrass gives it a good texture. If you want a footboard alternative then you can put a bench on the end.

I like this comforter from Target. It is a fun color but not too bright and it compliments the brown really well. I wouldn't go with the matching sheet set, though. Too geometric. I would stick with solids.

If you are looking for accessories, lamps are an easy way to go, especially in a fun color like this one from Pier 1.I would end with sheer drapes (floor-length), because I like how much light they let in.

If you are painting, I have ideas for that too.

Of course, these are just suggestions.

And we're back

So we did it. Brandon and I went camping for 5 days in southern Utah and Colorado. It was fun, but there were definitely points where I wondered what I was thinking when I agreed to spending 5 days outdoors when I'm 4 months pregnant. Oh well, we got through it and it was definitely worth it. Here are some pictures: Bryce Canyon hoodoos. This was the prettiest place we went to, but it was in the 40s for alot of our visit, and I was pretty grumpy.

Okachomo bridge, in Bridges National Monument.

Brandon, cooking dinner over the fire. We camped in La Sal National Forest, and it got into the 20s that night. Again, I was very grumpy.

Canyonlands National Park. This was at the end of our 6-mile hike. I was pretty tired. And this was a waterfall that we found near our campsite in Canyonlands.

Other highlights included:

Almost crying because we had to drive down a really scary cliff (seriously, I was freaked out)

Realizing that Moab is a horrible place to camp because it is crowded and they charge alot for sites

Being kept up all night by a crying toddler in the site next to us

Learning that a 4-year-old girl CAN go down ladders and walk along cliffs as long as she is on a leash

Learning that ooid, loes, and facie really are words

Having so many mood swings that Brandon didn't know what to do with me

Running out of a slot canyon because we were afraid of a flash flood

And many, many more stories.

Yay, spring

Spring is finally here. I am done with all of my finals but one and the weather is nice. Yesterday Brandon and I went hiking and I realized that I will have lots of things to do when I'm not in school. I'm excited about everything I will get to do this summer. I need to:

Learn how to sew
Learn how to take good pictures
Learn how to use photoshop well
Plant tomatoes and maybe a few other things
Move into our new, TWO bedroom apartment
Figure out how to decorate baby's room using only gender-neutral colors
Find a place to keep Brandon's rock collection (it gets 10 lbs bigger every time we go hiking)
Learn how to cook
And lots of other things.

As for this week, Brandon and I are taking advantage of the break to go on a road trip. We will hit Arches, Canyonlands, Mesa Verde, Escalante, and either Capitol Reef or Bryce Canyon. It will be fun, and there will be rocks. Lots of rocks.

Ridiculous

Normally, I'm not a Utah-hater like the rest of my family. There are several things I like about it. I like the mountains, the national parks, getting free food from Grandma, and the ice cream. But waking up to this in the middle of April really makes me want to kick Utah in the face and run back to Texas. I think I will spend the rest of my day shopping for plane tickets.

Our little Easter

I was very excited for Easter this year because it is the first holiday that Brandon and I have been able to celebrate all by ourselves. In the morning we looked for Easter baskets. I must say, I was impressed with what Brandon got me. I tried to pick something out of it to eat and I just didn't know where to start. It all looked so good. After church I started making dinner and put the ham in the oven. To my surprise, Brandon started throwing things together and made a glaze. It made the ham DELICIOUS. I never knew I could like ham so much. I was impressed again. So here is a picture of our baskets: Yesterday I had to walk around with my pants unbuttoned all day because my belly is starting to stick out. So that I don't flash people, today I got a belly band to cover it up. I don't know whether to blame this on the baby or on Brandon and his delicious Easter goodies. Actually, it's probably my fault for wearing super tight jeans. Anyways, Fernash has been asking for a picture so here's one, belly band and all. It doesn't look like much yet.


Brandon went on a field trip on Saturday. When he got back, I found this scandalous picture on the camera: I asked him about it and his response was: I had to put something in there for scale.

I didn't ask who brought their barbie doll on the trip.

Good old Daily Universe

Last week, BYU's trusty newspaper "the Daily Universe" had a typo. It was the issue that covers General Conference, but on the front page, instead of saying something about the LDS church's quorum of the twelve apostles, it called them the quorum of the twelve apostates. It was obviously a mistake, and I thought it was pretty funny.

Apparently, though, the DU did not have a sense of humor about it. As soon as they found out, every single newspaper bin was cleaned out and replaced with a sign that said "paper recalled because of a printing error." I was surprised that no one followed me home to steal and burn the copy that I had from that morning. I was expecting an apology to be issued in the next day's paper, but there was none to be found. I also expected there to be a few Readers Forum letters about the typo the next day, but they didn't publish any of those, either. They sure tried to destroy the evidence.

I did hear, though, that the typo made the evening news in Salt Lake. So much for covering your tracks, DU. I think an apology would have been more effective.

Bouquet

If anyone was wondering what the flowers on my blog are from, that is the bouquet that I made for my bridals on Tuesday. I was so excited to find roses in my colors, then I almost peed my pants when I found ranunculuses, too. I was very proud of this bouquet.




So I had a fun little romp in my wedding dress, but I decided that's the last time I am going to put it on. It is getting pretty tight. At least the pictures turned out well, and Brandon had a fun time staring at me for two hours.

Dear Bexar,

I nominate you for Best Blog award. Not only did you title your post about having another baby "Oops, I did it again," but you topped it off by telling everyone that we are trying to populate the world all by ourselves and that's just how we roll. I laughed out loud. Keep up the good work.

Love, Shady

Dear Fernash,

I am not a pushover anymore. In fact, I'm a jerk sometimes. But that's only when people do stupid things. So if you want to see me confront someone, just call me "ghetto booty" or "cankles" one more time, and I'll come all the way to Dallas just to kick your butt.

Fired?

Yesterday I was looking at my bank account and I realized that I hadn't been paid in 7 weeks. I normally get paid every 2 weeks, so this was a little alarming. I talked to my managers about it and they said they would find out what was wrong. Well, they figured it out-- the Cougareat secretary had apparently fired me in January and hadn't told me or anyone else. (I'm assuming this was a mistake. She isn't even in charge of our store.) So, my managers had to re-hire me and have me look at the schedules for the last couple of months and tell them when I had worked. They were very apologetic, even though I wasn't mad at them-- they had no idea I was fired. But if the secretary fires me again without telling me, I am going to have to have a talk with her. That's just rude.

Go Brandon go

I wanted to take another post to brag about how cool Brandon is. He got invited to do research for the geology department this year. He also wrote a paper that was so good, his professor said that if he edited it well, he might publish it. Oh, I can see him becoming more employable every day. It makes me happy.

What doesn't make me happy is that he has a geology field trip this weekend and I will be all alone on Friday and Saturday.

No, stoop dogs, it wasn't an accident

I think I am going to punch the next person who asks if my pregnancy was planned. It bugs me to realize how nosy people are. What difference would it make if it were planned or not? It seems like any time someone finds out that I'm pregnant they say, "Really? Did you plan this?" as if they want to say, "Whoa, this must be an accident. Do you have any idea what you're doing?" Hey, it's my first baby. OF COURSE I don't have any idea what I'm doing.

Redo on the pic

Remember this picture? Well, I kind of lied in my caption. This isn't really how Brandon feels about school. This is the face Brandon made when he found out I was pregnant.



Don't be fooled; he really is excited. He even changed his gmail chat status to say "Brandon is pregnant." He might be sympathizing with me a little too much. His friend saw it and congratulated him. He congratulated her back. Ever since he found out that pregnancy is measured from the first day of a cycle instead of from conception, he has this theory that all women are pregnant all the time. Most girls get pretty mad when he tells them that.

I had my first appointment today and heard the baby's heart beat. So yes, Ashley, I DO have proof that I'm pregnant. I hope you believe me now. As if being sick all the time wasn't proof enough.

Dear Cougareat customers,

We do not accept Bookstore gift cards. If you ask me why we don't accept them, I will look you in the face and say, "Because we're NOT THE BOOKSTORE." This will make you look really stupid in front of your friends. And believe me, I won't feel bad about it. I'm not as nice as the other employees. I won't go check with a supervisor just to make sure you can't use them. I am a supervisor, so that would be a really stupid thing for me to do. So next time you order a dozen brownies, make sure you have an alternate method of payment.

Windy

Today I walked outside and was literally almost blown over by the wind. I had to regain my balance so that I wouldn't fall. I love days like this.

Impulsive

I went to get my hair cut today. With my last ounce of bravery, I told the stylist to give me full-on bangs-- a style I haven't sported since 4th grade. I still have mixed feelings about them, but I think they'll work.

This will make you jealous

I got to see mom and dad this weekend, and I only had to drive to St. George to do it! We took mom to Zion because she had never been before. Here are some pictures.
Brandon always loves to stop and ponder the geology.

Mommy and me on the trail!

And a pretty view.

I had lots of fun!

My hero

Yesterday Brandon and I went grocery shopping. Brandon let me buy a huge jar of pickles, grapefruits, burritos, and all the yogurt I could handle. Sometimes I think he'll never understand how much I love him.

Hearing impaired

I'm not a fan of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Some people might gasp and say that I'm going apostate, but I don't care. The reason I don't like it is that it is SO HUGE, I can never hear the words to the song clearly. They also like to divide themselves into tons of parts and rounds and all sing at the same time. This is not good for me beacuse I have a tendency to hear things wrong (Dad will remember me singing "she's got me on the pretzel.") Here are some things I have heard them sing:

Breakfast, breakfast, buns of salt
He's smart, he's smart, he's veeeeeery smart
Ringing in the cheese, ringing in the cheese
Away thy sheets

I did not find out until relatively recently that they are really singing "bringing in the sheaves" and "and we, like sheep." I still have no idea what the first two really say. Until I can read along when they sing, I'm listening to something that's easier to understand.

Pavlovian response

I'm assuming everyone knows about Pavlov's experiment with the bulldogs where he rang a bell when it was feeding time and soon enough they started salivating every time they heard a bell. Well, something similar has happened to me, and it is really annoying. Last semester, I would get home from school every day, take out my keys, go in the house, and go to the bathroom. Apparently I have done this for too long, because now every time I get home from school and take out my keys, I have to pee. Really badly. I am completely fine until I take my keys out, and then it hits me. It doesn't matter what time I get home, either. I don't even notice it until I see my keys. I think I have a pavlovian response to my keys-- they make me have to go to the bathroom because I associate them with the bathroom.

This is problematic because it's February, and our door gets harder to open when it's cold, and I wear snow boots, a scarf, and a huge jacket. It takes me much longer to get into the house, and then shedding all those layers and making it to the bathroom takes even longer. So I am stuck outside my apartment every day doing a "pee pee dance" and trying to get my key in the door. There have been some close calls. This is ridiculous! I am not a bulldog! I shouldn't wet my pants because my keys remind me of the toilet.

I don't know what to do. Should I slap myself every time I see my keys so I associate them with being slapped and not with going to the bathroom? This is annoying.

An update

I went to target and found rugs on sale for $15 each. They were small, so I bought two and put them together to make a big one. It's kind of ghetto, but they are so much prettier than our yucky brownish-gray carpet.

I also found a plane ticket to Houston for $278. I might come the week that Brandon is on his field trip, if we don't drive down before that. I just really don't want to be home alone for 2 weeks in August when Brandon is on his geology outing.

This is how Brandon feels about school right now:

Please help Brandon!

Brandon has a problem. He is double-majoring in civil engineering and geology, but BYU will only award one degree, so when he graduates, he will have a degree in civil engineering with a secondary major in geology. He is worried that any geology company will take one look at his resume, see that he has a degree in civil engineering and not in geology, and throw it out. This would not be good because he doesn't really like engineering and he has done all the requirements for geology, so he should get credit for the major.

I asked him if he could just switch his primary major to geology, and that would be problematic, too. Since geology is a much shorter major than CE, if he switched his primary major to geology, he would have to take a lot of electives to make 120 hours, and he has only taken as many electives as CE requires. In short, he would have to take 2 extra semesters of classes that have nothing to do with either major.

I have now sent myself on a mission to find out how to set up his resume so that geology companies will see that he has the same qualifications as anyone who got a degree in geology. The best format that I have found is this:

B.S. Brigham Young University, April (year)
-Civil Engineering and Geology double major

Would that be good enough? Is it misleading? He is so smart; I would hate to see him not get a job because of a technicality like this. And he loves geology. He even has a blog post about his rock hammer. I need help.