Finishing up my 2nd to last Semester!

     

  This semester is finally coming to an end, which means two things:
1. A ton of projects and tests + extreme lack of sleep for both Garth and I
2. One of us will get sick. Without fail, this is becoming our lovely trend haha.

This semester has been a good one. Its been stressful with being sick and missing classes, Garth's 3 jobs, etc--but we've found a lot of time to enjoy things so it hasn't been a negative experience.
Garth and I see each other more consistently than we ever have while being in school. When he officiates basketball games I go watch when I can so that we are together at night too.

For anyone who knows Garth, they know that he requires about 6 meals a day to be sufficiently full. We've tried many things. We pack left overs, snacks, huge meals--but he ends up eating it all after work at 7am for breakfast and then starves all day or caves and buys something from the cafeteria. I would have to be in the kitchen all day to truly fill this man to his capacity lol. Garth has discovered though that if he takes his bike, and comes home after work he can eat a big breakfast and get some things done before class. He then rides his bike back home for 2 hour lunch break and he's full! This makes me happy, because then we get to eat breakfast AND lunch AND dinner together everyday. Its actually been a huge blessing. And sometimes I get spoiled and he makes me eggs for breakfast and we actually sit down and enjoy a big meal before my 8am class. He frequently spoils me.

It's interesting to look back on just our first year of marriage and see how much we have grown together in even that short period of time. I know I personally have grown a lot as an individual. My trust for my husband has grown exponentially. We work so much more like a team than we did in the beginning. Not that we ever were at odds, we just understand our roles and each other so much more than we did before. I know so many women who have husbands who won't lift a finger, or won't try anything in the kitchen, or who play video games for hours--and hey whatever works for you works for you. I'm just grateful Garth and I are able to shift roles and responsibilities when necessary. If he has a test and a lot to do I know what roles to fill to help him out. If I have a paper or am overwhelmed Garth immediately offers to make dinner. We just work with each others schedules--I love it.

Its been interesting to watch people I know from high school or even people I meet up here on campus. The idea of companionship and even what a man or woman's role is has shifted so much. Sometimes my heart aches for how confused the world can be, and for how much people are missing out on. Yesterday I felt like facebook and the internet was blowing up with confusion and opinions. I literally couldn't sleep I felt so sick to my stomach. I'm grateful for the perspective Garth and I have been blessed with--and for the simplicity in our relationship and life together.

Plus Garth's just cute. There have been a few times he wakes at the night rolls over, looks at me, and thinking I'm asleep, sits up and makes sure I'm tucked in and all the blankets are pulled up over me before going back to sleep. I think its the cutest thing in the world!
I love him--and I want what we have for everyone I know. 
He also felt the baby again and got extremely excited. He put his hand on my stomach just for a second and the baby kicked pretty hard twice. He immediately jumped up and said "I FELT IT! THAT TIME WAS SO MUCH HARDER THAN LAST TIME!!" I just laughed and him kind of shocked by how excited he was, and he just kept telling me, "BABE I FELT IT! I FELT IT!"
haha--its the little things [:

Little Baby Kicks

So for a little while now I have been feeling little different movements in my belly, but I was never positive that it really was our baby moving. I would tell Garth almost sheepishly that MAYBE I had felt the baby move, but I wasn't sure yet because I didn't want to be wrong.
Well Monday I was sitting in class and felt a definite little thud. It made me laugh out loud and I basically wanted to jump up and tell everyone I KNEW my baby had just kicked me--but I decided against it.
Tuesday night I went to the gym and walked the track for a good while. When I came home I drank a whole bottle of water and got in bed to read. Garth fell asleep quickly, as he always does, but he had his hand stretched out across my stomach.
After a little while I started to feel little taps and realized the baby was kicking/moving right under Garth's hand. I pictured our baby trying to wake daddy up and it made me laugh. Garth was dead asleep so I moved his hand and put mine in its place. I was so surprised that I could feel the baby moving from the outside too! I didn't think that it was time for that yet. Baby was super active that night and I laughed and just followed him/her around feeling the movements with my hand on the outside. It made me completely ecstatic to say the least. I sat in bed just smiling wishing that I could wake Garth up, but knowing if I did he wouldn't actually be coherent enough to understand and feel the baby move. I just shared in our little secret and excitement by myself, and decided Garth would get to feel the movements the next day.

Well the next day baby just didn't want to move for dad. I must have made him sit with his hand on my stomach like 4 times, but he was patient and didn't express out-loud the annoyance his face showed [: He wasn't sure he'd be able to feel it yet anyways.
Then, sitting in the same class as Monday, the baby started moving during the hymn. Of course when I was far away from Garth and unable to feel my belly with my hand.
But I felt movement a couple times during dinner too, so I was getting excited that there was yet hope for Garth.
That night I was laying on my back in bed reading and the baby started moving. I quickly put Garth's hands over the spot and he said "I don't feel anything". I just held it there HOPING the baby would move again. Then as I went to say "did you feel it?" he said "OH! I felt that one!"
Garth says that it feels like a little heart beat--that only beats once haha.
Still little movements, as we are only 18 weeks tomorrow. But I'm happy, and I constantly laugh. The baby seems to always be active during my classes. Garth says its a sign that our baby is tired of hearing Shakespeare...[:

update on life

I realize I updated this not too long ago but I was just so excited that I finally updated my chalkboard too... I'll be 18 weeks this Friday. So close to finding out gender and so close to hopefully soon feeling some kicks!?
I can tell my stomach is changing. But so far not a whole lot changing that's noticeable with all my clothes covering it. But you can tell in the tank top pic its starting to maybe poke out a little right?

Garth and I are so ready for the semester to be done. We had an overwhelmingly busy last couple of weeks and we just want it to end! 3 weeks left of classes 1 week full of finals. WE CAN DO IT!
The only sad thing is that after that we have 1 week of break and then we are back to a 14 week semester. So lame.
The 7 week break is going to be so great. We are due the end of it, so hopefully Garth won't have to miss class for our baby's arrival.

I'm so excited to find out gender. I tried to convince my doctor to do it earlier but he's leaving town so we had to wait. Lame!
I just want to start planning the nursery and picking our name!
I have a couple favorites for each gender, but Garth won't be a fully active participant until we know gender. (men).

I'm sad to report the sickness actually isn't over. I always think it is because I'm heavily medicated and don't feel sick anymore, but I tried to ween myself off (doc said to start when I thought I was done being sick). We decreased the dose and the first two days I was totally fine which was an improvement. But then it went downhill quickly until I was back to running to the sink. I guess I'm just one of those lame people who don't get magically cured around 12-14 weeks. Oh well [:

Garth and I are doing well beyond the baby. We have been having a stressful semester but also one of the more peaceful semesters. A lot of school work--but we've learned how to manage it really well as a team and to tackle things together. I love the days he comes home for lunch and we get to just talk for a little bit in the middle of the day before going on to our classes.

This is my complaint for the week [: so you may choose to skip it if you'd like haha:
I've learned that miscarrying changes pregnancy for each spouse a little bit. Cramps and pains make you really nervous, especially before you reach that 12 week mark. It makes you cringe when people announce pregnancy really early, It also makes your husband worry more.
First off, Garth is just Garth. He's the type of guy who doesn't let you open your own door, and doesn't like you to carry the heavy things if you don't have to because you're his wife and that's just Garth. Which I love about him. I think its cute and gentlemen-like. But then if you add in our first pregnancy and how active we were, I still ran and swam laps and worked out almost daily (which is fine, its not WHY I miscarried) of course at some point I know Garth wondered if he let me do too much. So now, when you put that all together you have a very attentive husband on the second pregnancy. He doesn't like me to carry the groceries if he can help it (I still help though promise!) he prefers I do things like walk and ride the bike at the gym, and if I get cramps and he can tell oh my goodness I don't get to lift a finger. Lol. Which yes sometimes I have to tell him to just calm down and I'm fine [: BUT that's MY job. There have been a lot of people who tell him to not do this or not feel this way or who roll their eyes or act as though he's weird. He's not weird, he's just had different experiences that make him feel differently about this pregnancy--I wish people understood that. I love him. End of story.

Also question for everyone:
What type of stroller do you have or prefer?
I want a stroller I could go jogging with. But I've been reading that they don't recommend you jog with a baby until they're six months anyways. I've also read about the downsides weight and size wise. So I'm wondering if you have a jogging stroller, would you still want the basic travel systems? Or would you just use your jogging stroller for everything etc?
Just let me know please!!!

A moment to remember

I'm mostly writing this post for my memory--so you'll notice I didn't post the link to facebook.
There are small moments that occur that are probably extremely significant to me, and silly to everyone else--BUT I want to remember them regardless.

Last week Garth and I had an experience where we were trying to make a fairly large decision. Every time one of us decided, the other switched sides or points of view. We discussed it all week and finally realized that we both knew what we were supposed to do but that we were being stubborn. Garth talked on the phone to his dad, while I talked to my mom (it was her birthday) and we were just coincidentally talking to them at the same time it wasn't about anything in particular. After getting off the phone we sat down on our kitchen floor (yes we have a table--it was really late and we were tired). We talked about the decision and laughed about the whole process. I made us scrambled eggs (in the middle of the night remember) and we just sat on the floor and ate and laughed about life and different experiences we have had.
We talked about our future and joked about what kinds of things might come. We comforted each other on some fears we had in the future and we just enjoyed the small moment. It didn't matter that we had to get up early the next day or that we had homework to do, we just enjoyed that moment together laughing and discussing our life, eating our scrambled eggs.

I enjoy these moments because I'm sure they'll be what I miss. When we are more financially stable, or have a more established family it will be these little times that we sat on the floor and laughed together for no reason at all that I cherish from our newly wed life. It'll be that time we went outside and did companion scripture study on a blanket in the grass just because we wanted to. It will be those times that we sat down on the floor to talk (we seem to prefer the floor when we are stressed) and both fell asleep next to each other. It will be the times that we played Super Smash on nintendo 64 like little kids. The simple little moments together are generally so much more important than the planned events.

So next time you're sitting there alone with your spouse just laughing about life or talking about nothing--enjoy it. How often do you get to focus on nothing but just your spouse?

16 Weeks and 4 days.

This below is a lovely shot of my tank top so you can get a better idea of what I look like, 

because my shirt is new and a little loose so I have room to grow [:

So just an update about me:
-I am starting to really enjoy being pregnant.
-I'm having more energy these days.
-I can't wait to have a bump.
-I can still button all of my jeans, but I hate sitting in them in class all day because they're starting to get a little tight so I sometimes cheat and use a scrunchie to close them so that they don't squeeze me.
-I am able to see a difference in my belly for sure.
-I can't wait to find out what gender this baby is! We don't find out til april 3rd though!!