Oh hello, Third Trimester.

This Sunday marked the start of my third trimester! 

Can you believe it?

I certainly CANNOT.

Where is time going?

My pregnancy has been pretty awesome. Naturally, I am exhausted. But at least I haven't thrown up and I haven't had any nausea since week 9 or so. I am just getting to the point where sleeping is getting uncomfortable. I wake up in the middle of the night, stand up, crack my back, stumble to and from the bathroom and then pass out again. At least I can fall right back to sleep, right?

At my last appointment the baby was measuring just right and his little heart was beating away. Ew... but this was the same appointment where I had to do the glucose tolerance test. When I first started drinking the sugary orange drink I thought to myself, "oh, this isn't too bad!"... then I kept drinking and it got worse and worse. Eventually, I just chugged the rest of it instead of trying to take it nice and slow. Bleh. They informed me that "no news is good news" and I am happy to report that I haven't heard back from them! Yay for not having gestational diabetes.

Here's to hoping that the rest of the pregnancy goes well!

28 Weeks

[A shout out to my sister, Ruth, for letting me borrow her super cute maternity clothes!]

Manly Minute

I'd been planning on changing the brakes on my car for a long time.  Knowing that my brakes were bad, and  I would have to get a safety and emissions test done in January, it was about time to do it.  The day I decided to get started was the first snowfall we had in weeks. So on a morning that looked like this, I decided to get messy in the garage.

 There are always a few hiccups, but it's best to get those out of the way in the beginning.  The first problem was trying to loosen the bolts on the brakes.  There was a lot of junk on them (probably from all the salt that is thrown on the roads throughout the winter in Utah).

 Libby, being the loving wife that she is, decided to supervise the whole process while trying to do some reading in the freezing cold garage.  Luckily, I knew exactly what I was doing, so she had nothing to worry about.

 When all was finished, I was a mess.  Brakes have a lot of brake dust on the inside of the wheel and all over the braking system.  This is a project in which you stand no chance of staying clean.  It's always fun to do a man's job.

I am blessed.

I completed my first clinical day in the ICU.

It was twelve long, tiresome hours.

However, I gained an appreciation for things I normally take for granted:

1. I can walk without anyone helping me

2. I can breathe without support from a machine

3. I can talk and communicate easily

4. For the most part, my life has been pain free

5. I don't need to poke my finger every two hours to manage my bloodsugar

6. I can eat without the help of tubes going down my nose/throat/stomach

7. I'm not confined to a bed

8. My heart works properly without help from any medications

9. If something gets caught in my throat I can cough it up by myself

10. I don't have to live in fear and confusion because I always know who and where I am.

I was drawn to nursing because I love helping people.

The more I see these individuals struggle, the more grateful I become for my own blessings.

I'm thankful that I'm learning how to take my blessings and make a difference in life.

As much as I complain about the difficulty of the nursing program, I absolute love it.

I love the opportunities it provides for me to learn, grow and help others.

Lastly, I want to share the third verse of Lord, I Would Follow Thee.

A phrase of this is posted in the NLC and it reminds me of why I'm working so hard.

It truly summarizes how I feel as a nurse striving to follow the Savior's example.

"I would be be my brother's keeper, 

I would learn the healer's art.

To the wounded and the weary, 

I would show a gentle heart.

I would be my brother's keeper-

Lord, I would follow thee."

Instead of studying.

I did a lot of schoolwork today.

Now it is time to celebrate those moments when I'm NOT doing schoolwork.

A few weeks ago Paul and I had a date day.

This is similar to a date night... but it lasts all day.

We went to an estate sale, shopped around Macy's, ate at Terra Mia, perused furniture at RC Willey for our "future home", bought a gallon of ice cream and painted with watercolors.

It was an awesome date.

The painting we bought at the Estate Sale

More recently, we drove up to SLC and ate dinner at Biaggi's. 

I ALWAYS get the butternut squash ravioli... it's so good!

Then, we went to a goodbye/birthday party for Brynna.

We're gonna miss her!

When we're not out and about, Paul and I try our best to stay warm in our basement apartment.

(The heat down here is pretty much non-existent.) 

When we can find the time, we enjoy watching HGTV and the DIY network.

We really want a home so we can put our renovation knowledge to the test!

Paul has been busy looking for jobs so we can weigh out all of our options,

and I am busy growing a baby!

26 Weeks

Tonight Paul and I finally got to hang out with some friends in our ward!

Since I'm in primary, I NEVER get to know anyone but the little kidlings.

It was really nice to catch up with Trent and Sheena.

AND

I bowled the best game of my life!

My new high score is 180!

And that has been life outside of school.

Now back to my homework...

Really?!

Dear Lazy Winco Shopper,

Next time you go shopping, please have the decency to put your cart away.
It may have seemed like a good idea to shove your cart in the general direction of the corral.
However, your idea backfired when your cart came crashing into our car instead.
That was probably about the time you ran away.
(Since you were too lazy to put the cart where it goes OR write a note explaining your actions).
Now we have a lovely dent to remind us how much people like you annoy us.

Sincerely,
Paul & Libby