Friday Favorites

1. Wednesday was not the best day. But lots of it was actually really great. Jason and I went shoe shopping (I desperately needed snow boots), we test-drove a Range Rover (just for fun), and we priced tires for our car. We spent a lot of time together and except for my little meltdown in the evening, I feel (looking back with 2 days perspective) like we had a really good day.
2. I love my husband. He loves me so much, and he's so patient with me. I don't want to give any sort of impression that he's TOTALLY perfect, but he's close. I'm glad I married him.
3. I got my eyebrows waxed on Monday! Just a little thing, and probably no one notices but me, but it makes me feel a lot better about my appearance.
4. I lifted weights at home on Thursday and I felt so GOOD afterwards! I timed my workout (using my heart rate monitor) and it only took 21 minutes to do 3 sets of 8 repetitions of the dumbbell workout I chose to do. Um, there is NO reason why I can't do this 3 days per week! So that's my goal: weights, at home, three days per week. I'll let you know how it goes in next week's Friday Favorites.
5. I made it to the gym three times this week besides working out once at home. I feel like I'm starting to slow down, which isn't the best feeling, but four workouts in one week isn't too shabby for being due in 8 weeks, wouldn't you say?
6. I have slept SO MUCH this week! It's ridiculous. I'm not going to complain about it, because it's nice, but Monday and Tuesday I took 2+ hour naps, and Thursday I woke up at 7:30, went back to sleep around 9:30 and didn't wake up again until almost 2PM! I couldn't believe it. I'm going to relish every minute, though, because in not so very long I expect sleep to be a rare commodity around here.
7. My visiting teachers came over on Wednesday and we had a nice visit. They are planning a ward baby shower for me!
8. Jason takes his last final today!
9. I am going to glaze that bowl I made on my birthday this afternoon, and I'm so excited!
10. I made whole wheat pancakes for breakfast this morning, and they were GOOD.
11. Christmas is in one week!
12. I can't think of much else right now. I want to go get some laundry done before I go to do the pottery thing this afternoon. I hope everyone has a great weekend!

A Christmas Story

I guess it's really more of a Thanksgiving story, and it's long, but I couldn't stop reading. It made me cry. It's wonderful. Take 7 minutes and read it.

http://the-exponent.com/2009/12/17/cruelest-month/

Wednesday Blahs

Sometimes I am just not a good wife.

I'm sure none of you have ever had this experience.

But I have it more often than I'd like -- especially since I've been pregnant. It's not anything major. I just have semi-psycho emotions and when they flare up, it's miserable for anyone nearby and usually "anyone" is my husband. Poor guy.

I need to get better at this. Go lock myself in the closet or something. Because I can't keep feeling like the World's Worst Wife for the next two months. And I hear breastfeeding hormones aren't any better. Awesome.

Basically, if I'd just stop crying, complaining, and feeling sad and/or lonely, or maybe just not miss my husband so much when he's gone, or maybe be a little less needy when he's around because I miss him so much when he IS gone, I wouldn't have this problem. But I haven't mastered all of that yet.

I think he would say that on the whole, he's glad he married me, and let me tell you: he's truly THE best husband, EVER. Sorry you guys all missed out. Usually we're fine. Great. Better than great.

But today wasn't one of those days.

Blah.

Awesome Monday

I'm having such a fabulous day!

I had a prenatal appointment this morning, and the doctor told me I'm having a "perfect pregnancy." He's really happy with my weight gain; my iron levels are good, no protein in my urine, and the glucose test I took last week came back in the safe range. This was the first appointment I've gone to without Jason, and while I usually sit and talk with the doctor for 15-20 minutes, today we chatted about various baby-related things for over forty minues! I really, really, REALLY like my doctor.

Afterwards I went to the library and got some new books, and then I had an appointment to get my eyebrows waxed (they look SO much better now). AND my hairdresser had my BPA-free water bottle that I thought I'd lost forever ago! So now I have that back, which makes going to the gym w/ water so much easier.

When I got home there were two packages for me on the porch! One was a Christmas box from my grandmother (which is now resting unopened under the tree), and the other was some vitamins I ordered a week or so ago.

Jason is gone taking finals all day (he's sitting for one even as I type), and I'm going to clean for an hour or two and then just veg out and read -- after I eat some leftover black bean chili for lunch.

I hope you guys have a great Monday, too!

31 weeks

It's been another good Sunday. I taught Relief Society today (on the martyrdom of Joseph Smith) and came home and took a nap with Jason. I've spent some time working on a photo album of my high school pictures, cooking, and reading. Jason is gone now (last minute study group for his hardest final scheduled for tomorrow morning) and before he left I asked him to take another picture. I'm not especially happy with it ... I didn't realize how much I'd grown compared to the last photo at 27 weeks. Oh well. I'm pregnant! Plus my face looks really red; not sure what that's all about. It doesn't look that red in the mirror. Anyway. At least I like my candy cane pajama pants. Next week (or the next time we take a picture) I'll do it before I nap and take off my Sunday clothes. Then maybe I'd feel better about posting it for everyone to see.

Also, we had major snow today. More like slush, which turned out to be even slicker than regular snow. It took us 45 minutes to get our car into the driveway after church (we live 1/2 a mile from the chapel), after getting stuck about half a dozen times. Finally a big truck tied a cable to our car and pulled it further up the hill so we could just slide down into our driveway. And then Jason has to drive off to that study group ... hopefully he can get in okay later on tonight.

Anyway. Enjoy your snow (or lack of it, if you're so lucky). I'm going to go read.

Friday Favorites

1. Yesterday Jason stayed home all morning. I know I wrote this already. What I didn't write was that we spent a lot of time with the baby, too. What I mean is, the baby was doing his regular kicking, but this time Jason was able to feel and SEE it. And I loved how excited he was! He also was talking a lot about getting to hold the baby, and wondering if the baby would want to sleep in his arms, etc. Awwww. I think he's finally starting to "get" that we're actually having a child -- and SOON. He's seriously going to be the best Dad. I can't wait!
2. I fell this week. In the snow, in our front yard. I'm fine (really) but when I told Jason he freaked -- worried about both me and the baby. He first insisted that I wasn't allowed to walk outdoors until all the snow melted (what, until April?) but then realized that proper snow boots probably would suffice. So I think that's what I'm getting for Christmas. The boots I have now are four years old, not very waterproof, and basically have no tread anymore. Not safe.
3. I talked to my sister today online for a long time.
4. I spent the early evening on Thursday eating pancakes & orange juice at Jana's house and I had fun. Plus her son gave me like 6 pictures. I think he likes me.
5. I've gotten the chance to rest a lot more this week than usual. My house isn't as clean as it normally is (and should be), but I think the next few months are just going to have to be that way.
6. I think I'm going to get my eyebrows waxed this weekend ... they really need it.
7. Jason and I put our t-shirt material sheets on the bed this week, and they are SO much warmer than the smooth cotton ones. We call them our "winter sheets."
8. I don't think I ever mentioned that last Saturday night we got to see BYU's production of "Christmas Around the World" and it was AMAZING. I loved it!
9. I'm feeling tired and distracted as I attempt to type this. I've had a generally good week. I really want to clean my house some today so that I can focus the evening and a large portion of the day tomorrow to finishing my lesson prep for Relief Society on Sunday; topic: The Martyrdom of Joseph Smith. Yeah ... maybe there will be so much snow they'll cancel church? Doubtful. But that sort of thing used to happen in Missouri!

Quinoa & Bean Salad (plus the BEST morning ever)

First, I'll share what I made for lunch today.

To prepare the quinoa (pronounced "keen-wah"):

2 cups water, 1 cup rinsed and drained quinoa, 1/4 tsp salt; Place all ingredients in a pot, cover, and bring to a boil. Once the mixture is boiling, turn down the heat to a very low simmer for about 15 minutes. The quinoa should be translucent and the germ ring should be visible. Fluff with a fork and serve or store in the fridge. It can be eaten hot or cold. FYI, I usually buy this in the bulk bins at the health food store. It's one of the only plant sources of complete protein, and it's really yummy. If you've never tried it, you should!

I had some leftover quinoa in my fridge, so I put 1/2 cup of it in a bowl, then made the bean salad:

1 can great northern beans
1/2 can kidney beans (leftovers; but you could use a full can)
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1.5 avocados, chopped
3 tbsp fresh cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

I mixed the bean stuff together, then dumped them on the quinoa in a dish and mixed it all together, and oh my goodness -- it really is delicious. This recipe makes about four 1-cup servings. And I added about a tablespoon of chopped red onion to the serving I'm eating.


This morning, Jason stayed home until TWO IN THE AFTERNOON (!!!) working on a paper. But it was especially wonderful, because I got to help him with the whole thing! I typed more than he did, and he wandered around thinking and dictating while I helped him figure out the best way to say what he wanted. We've rarely ever spent time doing "teamwork" type stuff together like this, and it was a really great experience. And I think his 9 page paper turned out really, really well. I just loved spending so much time with him today, and helping him to write a great paper. Then I made my lunch. And I really want to take a nap now.

Let me know if you try the salad, and have a great afternoon!

Twilight Spoof

Twilight Years from Tom on Vimeo.

I'm not a huge Twilight fan, but I thought this was funny. It's a spoof of LDS single's wards based on the Twilight story.

no subject

I don't know what to blog about, but I feel like I should post something today.

We've had our first big snow! And our car is not happy about it. We need to get new front tires; they're nearly balding, but the rear tires still have about 90% of their life left. Hopefully we can get that taken care of soon, but definitely by the time baby comes.

I've spent 14 hours in the last few days editing some stuff for a lady in my ward. I'm not a fan of staring at black and white text on the bright computer screen for so long ... but it's finished now and I'm glad.

I'm officially 8 pounds above my pre-pregnancy weight. I had gained a little more, but I found that I lost a couple of pounds since the last time I stepped on the scale when I weighed this morning. But the baby is kicking like crazy, and my stomach is growing, so I'm pretty sure things are okay. We have a doctor appointment on Monday -- he'll let me know if I need to start chowing down more (or exercising less). I feel like I eat all day, though ... not sure what's going on.

Our Christmas tree is up. Have I mentioned that already? I want to get a picture of it this year; we never did last year, and it was our first Christmas! But the tree looks exactly the same this year, so the picture can serve for both.

Okay I guess I'm good. Got my blog fix for the day. I'll try to have a topic next time I post.

terrible news

1. My friend John Jones was killed in a caving accident at Nutty Putty Caves the week of Thanksgiving. He was a medical student in Virginia, and he and his wife have a daughter and are currently expecting their second child. If you'd like to read more about it, click here. I know that some sort of memorial fund has been set up to help his family; if you're interested in contributing even a few dollars for Christmas, let me know and I'll get more information to you.

2. My best friend from high school, Cara Foster Blevins, lost everything in a house fire this morning. She was at work when it happened, but luckily her husband was able to get their two children out and everyone is okay. Again, if you're interested in helping them for Christmas, let me know.

And if you would, please keep these families in your prayers.

Friday Favorites on Saturday

1. I have a new workout buddy! So now, on top of going to spin with Amy on Mondays, I'm going to yoga twice per week and spin 2-3 times per week with another friend. So happy!
2. I've converted someone from drinking cow's milk to almond milk. It made me really happy to have what I think is a positive influence on a friend.
3. This same friend (referenced in both of the above Favorites) is ALSO drinking green smoothies daily with me!
4. And these green smoothies are making me feel incredible. My skin look better, I'm sleeping better, I have more energy, and I just feel GOOD.
5. Jason and I went to Barnes & Noble again for a Friday night date.
6. And tonight we're going to Christmas Around the World at BYU!
7. This morning I went to our ward's Christmas party and donated cans of tuna, yams, and mushroom soup to the food drive, then ate a waffle and some honeydew melon. I had to leave before the program started, though, to make sure Jason got to campus on time.
8. I got a JUICER for my birthday (which you know) and it's amazing. I'm so happy with it.
9. I spent almost two hours at the library yesterday perusing books, and I came home with 20-something. Can't wait to get started on them!
10. I don't really want to blog anymore today. I have a ton more editing to do, stuff to do for my calling, and then in the mid-afternoon I have some appointments, then tonight the dance concert. Busy busy.

Have a happy weekend!

Saturday!

I'm planning to go to this Saturday. Let me know if you're interested!