Doctor Doctor

Yesterday was my first doctor's appointment as a pregnant women. When I made the appointment back in April, the nurse guessed a due date of November 2nd. I was shocked, I was pretty sure I wouldn't be due until January. So yesterday was a fun visit, lots of filling out papers, getting my blood work done, and the best two things: talking to the doctor and getting an ultrasound.

The Doctor made both Eric and I happy when he told me I was fine to continue dirt biking, going to the hot pots, and doing anything I'd normally do. He said, "if it doesn't typically hurt you, it won't hurt your baby. Don't throw yourself in front of a bus, because that would hurt you, so it would hurt your baby. But your fine to perm your hair, drink caffeine, exercise, and do anything else you might normally do." Though his information contradicted everything I read in What to Expect When You're Expecting, I liked him and his info. Funny thing is, he actually said, "NEVER read the book What to Expect When You're Expecting, if you look at it, it has no bibliography and isn't based on any studies." I laughed, since I've already read most of it.

I know I don't feel like living like normal right now, with feeling nauseous and all, but hopefully once that passes, I can get back into normal life. Start running again, and being a bit crazier on the dirt bike.

So NOW for the BEST part.....I had my ultrasound. I was pretty right on, DUH I KNOW MY BODY, and my baby is actually due January 8. Our baby is the first one so far, at the office we go to, that is due in 2009. That is perfect!!! This way I can go to school both Summer and Fall semesters before the baby comes. And I'll only have like 1 1/2 semesters left. That will be a RELIEF!!! It was SO COOL, we got to look at the little seahorse and it's heart beating, and we got to hear the heart beat. It is pretty dang amazing that such a small little baby can already have a beating heart. It was only 7 weeks, 5 days old. Anyway, it was really cool! I love the little thing already!!

Snow?

We woke up this morning to SNOW at our house. Uh...pretty sure I'm ready for the warmth to stay. In case you don't believe me, I'll add a picture later, I can't find my camera cord at the moment.

Food Aversion

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a BIG fan of food and anything to do with it (cooking, grocery shopping, eating, running so I can eat more, etc...) Well for the last two weeks food has completely turned me off. When I cook, the smells make me nauseous, and then I have the hardest time eating the food. I have continued gagging down the food, for fear that I won't get enough nutrients and calories for my growing bambino. Luckily I don't throw up very easily, so my stomach can feel sick as a dog, and the food will still usually stay down. The bad thing is---I've only lost weight since I've been prego, not exactly what I'm wanting to do at this point in time.

What foods can I still stomach? Fruit snacks, frozen yogurt, saltines, lettuce, some kinds of cheese, refried and black beans, grapefruit, avocados, cereal, strawberries, and potatoes. Even apples, one of my normal staples, don't tickle my fancy. Vegetables & Fruits (other than the ones previously mentioned) seem to be a no go, and meat makes me want to puke. SAD I know, especially because Eric just got me an amazing BBQ grill for my birthday. Typically I am very excited to get my daily menu emails from Allrecipes.com, but lately I don't even want to open them, for fear that the thought of the recipes in the email will make me more nauseous. The one actual meal I still crave, but pretty much only in the mornings, is Spaghetti. Guess I'll whip some up tonight and see if it works out.

Happy Mothers' Day!!

First off, this is my mom, not my sister :) Anyone that knows my mom, knows that she is an angel. Growing up, she was always the first one I'd go to when I was feeling a bit sheepish, having a sAd day, had a secret to tell, AdViCe to gain, or needed an EAR to listen. My mom is the most giving person I know. She would sacrifice anything for the good of her family or to make someone's load a little bit lighter. She is very intelligent, an amazingly hard worker, a strong member of the church, a terrific friend, and the most loving mother/wife/grandmother/daughter/friend I know of. I have learned so much from my mom. She has taught me how to love and how to serve. She has taught me the important things in life and has shaped my personality into who I am today. She is optimistic and has taught our family how to love and enjoy life. Mom, thank you for being SO amazing, you are BEAUTIFUL!!! You have brought so much FuN and happiness into my life!! I hope I can be even half the mother to my kids as you have been to me! I am so glad I was able to spend Mothers' Day with you yesterday!! I LOVE YOU MOM!!!

Prego!!

We're STOKED!!! To say the least!
Pray for a healthy baby!!

Happy Birthday Eric!!

I realize that this post is late.....Eric's birthday was on April 28. We had a BBQ celebration with friends and family on Sunday! Eric is wonderful! Eric is honest, loyal, handsome, a hard worker, he excels in the things he does, he is fun, adventurous, daring , and is the nicest and most thoughtful person around. Eric never ceases to amaze me with the love he has for people and the generosity and thoughtfulness he puts into his interactions with them. I love you Eric!

Down South

Over the weekend we joined Jeremiah, Micah, Rachel, and Nicole on an overnighter to St. George. We enjoyed spending time with them swimming, motorcycle riding to Tuacahn and through Zions, and squeezing into Jeremiah's truck on the way home :) Thanks for the FUN!

Capitol Reef

This past weekend was fantastic! Wednesday evening consisted of dinner at the Mountain House Grill (one of my favorites) and lots of Guitar Hero with Daniel, Amber, and Mom & Dad Ellis. Thursday was full of snowmobiling with Dan and Dad Ellis and going to a BBQ with all the Ellis'. On Friday we celebrated Amber's graduation from Dental Hygiene school by having lunch at CPK. After lunch, Eric and I took off to spend the rest of the weekend with my family in Capitol Reef.

Our fun Subi and trailer

Eric was READY to ride as soon as we got there!

The guys in the family went on a CRAZY dirtbiking ride. Racing down a wash! Some manly competition is always good :) Riding with the men is much different than riding with your wife :)

Eric got on top of the arch. Cool pic looking down.

BEAUTIFUL

Me, Eric, and Camla went on a hike. She is probably the best little hiker I know. Not a complaint escaped her lips, and she did a fantastic job hopping from rock to rock. We nicknamed her "spider monkey". We love her!

Elle, Annie, Camla, and Me

How I Enjoy Your Warmth

The latest addition to our home!!

No more FREEZING cold mornings and no more campfire smell :)

I was standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona...

I hope you all know the song "Take it Easy" by the Eagles. A few weeks ago, Eric texted me a hint of where we were going to go on vacation that weekend. The text said, "Take it Easy by The Eagles". I sang through the song and figured it out -- WINSLOW, AZ. Neither of us had ever been there before. We actually didn't spend much time in Winslow, but we made sure to get our pictures taken on "The Corner" in Winslow, AZ.
Our plan was to sleep in our tent, and even though it was FREEZING we still should have. Once we decided that we'd stay in a tent, due to the inclement weather, I wanted the cheapest one possible! Eric told me we could stay at the motel we were currently parked at or we could drive a few minutes to nicer hotel (which would cost more). I decided we would stay at the cheap motel. Not such a good idea. The place hadn't even been cleaned, I won't go into details, but GROSS!!! And the heater didn't work, so we paid $35 bucks to stay in a dirtier and just as cold place as our tent. The second night we were much smarter, we stayed in our tent a Lake Powell! MUCH better!!!

Now for some Pics...

At the Dam

Cool Ruins, even had a base of a bathtub

There were a ton of old cars out in a field. As Eric was getting in this one, he yelled and jumped back....and then a jack rabbit quickly hopped out of the car! Funny!

Um....don't ever go to this crater. Just look at this picture and you will be equally excited. We spent $15 each to get in to see this crater, formed by a meteor. Oh my BORING!!! All their advertisements make it so you feel justified paying the steep entrance fee. And then you enter, and your ready to leave. So BORING!!!

Ever been to Jack Rabbit, AZ? This is the highlight of the dusty town.

Perhaps the coolest cave I've ever seen. It looks small from the road, but Eric wanted to hike up and check it out. SO amazing! It opens up into a bunch of rooms. I have no clue if this was part of a mine or if it is an old Indian dwelling, either way, it was Fascinating!!

Our Arizona trip was full of adventures and funniness. Thank You Eric for being the best Husband and Friend EVER!!!

YUM

Thanks for the fun and tasty BBQ yesterday Mom, Dad, Aubrey, Jeremy, Don, Camla, Chelsea, and Eli!! We love you! This weekend is gonna be a BLAST!!

Date Night :)

First of all, the weather over the weekend was just what I needed! I LOVE the SUN!! After spending all of the day Saturday getting sunburned (yahoo - a little color - the red will fade) while installing a trailer hitch, trimming scrub oak shoots from our driveway, and hauling bags of wood pellets, Eric & I treated ourselves to a fun date night. First we met up with Whitney & Chris Taylor and Whit's friend Stephanie at Gloria's Little Italy - good food, awesome waitress with a 1/2 Spanish Fork and 1/2 Italian accent, HA, what more could you ask for?? It was fun to catch up with Whitney & Chris, and talk them into coming to Capitol Reef with us this next weekend. Didn't take much ;) We're SOOOOO excited for them to join us on the trip!!!!
After enjoying some good eats, we headed up South Fork to a big bon fire. It was sweet, there were tons of funny people to watch. I'm very much a people watcher, so this was extremely enjoyable for me. Our other pals, Micah, Rachel, and Jeremiah met up with us as well. We always enjoy their company!

Thank you for the pics Whit!!

10 am - WHY???

As soon as the clock hits 10:00 a.m. I am ready for lunch? Is this just me or does everyone experience the hunger pangs that accompany 10 a.m.?

New Mexico - Another FUN weekend!

On Thursday evening we decided that the last weekend was so much fun that we ought to plan another fun trip for the upcoming weekend. Eric did all the research and decided we'd drive down to Los Alamos, NM and spend the weekend there. Of course it was another amazing trip!

I must let everyone know that there is nobody more suited for me than my husband Eric. Everyone that knows me would know this to be true. I won't go into details, because then you'd have a novel to read, so simply put, Eric is completely PERFECT for me!!! We have too much fun together!!

This trip was full of exploration. The greatest thing about these trips is that we have no set agenda. We stopped at all kinds of places on our way to New Mexico and a bunch of other places on our way home. Instead of boring you with my non-exciting way of writing, I'll just add some pictures from our trip.

Cool ladders leading up to some Indian ruins - breathtaking, literally and figuratively


I had to add this one. Eric's face is priceless!



Chimney Rock- and yes, my arm looks disgusting :)

This is why you don't consume alcohol while on the road :)

We had the BEST weekend/I LOVE how spontaneous my husband is!!!

First off, I love spontaneity and my husband is the king of this word. Our original plans for this weekend were to go dirt biking with my family at the sand dunes on Saturday, weather took a turn for the worse so the plans were canceled Friday evening. We were both bummed, but Eric was definitely more bummed than I. Eric went up to bed, upset that our plans were canceled. I soon went upstairs and thought he was asleep so I quietly got into bed and tried to make myself sleepy. After a bit of tossing and turning on my part, Eric sat up and said, "You wanna do something?" I didn't know what he had in mind but said, "Sure." He said, "Are you positive? Are you in?" Knowing Eric is always full of good ideas, I trusted my instincts and said that I was in. He said, "K, your job is to pack a suitcase of clothes for us. Pack a couple of everything." I hurried and packed while he went downstairs and made some phone calls.

It felt like Christmas Eve, I was so excited for this mystery trip Eric had in mind. I love surprises!!! So after packing up really quick, we got in the Subi and started our journey. Eric wouldn't tell me where we were going but he did tell me that the only thing that was planned was where we were going to have breakfast, but whatever we did from there was up in the air. Well, after a night's drive, we showed up in Vegas at about 5 am. We went to Eric's sister Kristen's house and spent the night, (which was like two hours). When we woke up we got to hang out with Kristen, her husband Bryan, and our cute nieces Lily and Elyse. Bryan made us a delicious breakfast, and we all enjoyed visiting.

At around 10, Eric and I got back in the car and drove to Newport Beach. Our friend Jeremiah was there on a business trip so we met up with him, cruised around in his convertible and just had tons of fun!!! On Saturday evening we rented beach cruisers and rode from Newport Beach to Huntington Beach and back. It was gorgeous, we got to see the sunset, and it was very enjoyable. After our ride was over we went first to a Corndog place and got hand dipped corndogs (our appetizer) and then to Crab Cooker and got really tasty seafood (the main course). We went back to our hotel right after dinner and crashed, we were so worn out.

Sunday morning we woke up and found out that since the time had changed we had like nine minutes to be checked out of our hotel. We hurried and packed up and got out just in time :) After checking out of the hotel, we met up with Jeremiah and went to Huntington Beach. We ate breakfast at a little place called The Sugar Shack, went to a car show with all these sweet old school beach cars, and then laid out on the beach for a bit. We actually got some sun!!! Hallelujah we finally don't look like snowmen.

Outside the Temple on our way to the Beach

We left to go home around 3 pm. It was a good ride home, lots of treats and drinks to keep us awake, and lots of time to talk. When we were stopped at a gas station in Mesquite, Eric called our friend Taylor Warburton and found out he was only 20 miles away from Mesquite, because he was on his way home from Vegas, so we waited for him and we drove together the rest of the way home, kinda fun :)

We got home around 4 this morning, so pretty sure I'm tired, and I'm thinking Eric probably is too :) It was so worth it though. Such an amazing weekend!!! 75 degree sunny weather, with my best friend...Pure Bliss!! Man I'm so glad that Eric is full of good ideas! I wonder what's in store for next weekend.... ;)

What a Weekend!

I am so glad it is Friday, I live for the weekends!!! So, now that it is Friday, and work is slowing down, I have time to write about our wonderful and crazy weekend last week. First of all, Eric took me to this amazing restaurant, Metropolitan, in SLC. Not only was this a celebration of the Valentine holiday, but later we realized it was also our three month anniversary :) I have never been to such a fancy place. The waiters take all of your dishes and silverware between each course so we went through like 25 pieces of silverware each, and who knows how many plates. Ha! It was so cool. Before we ordered I really needed to use the restroom, when the waiter came by I asked if they had a bathroom I could use. His response..."No, just hold it." I thought he was serious, and decided it must not be kosher to ask such a thing in a fancy restaurant. I felt dumb, and then he said he was kidding and showed me where it was. I still felt dumb.

We ate all kinds of interesting, yet delicious food items...wild mushroom tarts, oysters, sweet potato soup, shrimp bisque, lobster, steak, buffalo, some sorbet stuff to "cleanse our pallets" and awesome chocolate fondue. Yum!! It was such a fun experience, and the best part....the whole meal took like two or three hours so Eric and I had plenty of time to just talk.

Oh yeah, on the way up, we were going to stop by Cabela's but then Eric said, "wanna go look at a car in Salt Lake?" (We've been searching for an economical car to replace my gas hog of a Blazer.) I did of course, so we went and looked at it, we both loved it, and we just picked it up on Wednesday. I love it, it is a silver Subaru Impreza. So cool, and perfect since it is all wheel drive.

Eric and I went snowmobiling on Saturday and then since Monday was a holiday we had my brother in law Jeremy up to snowmobile and snowboard. It was a lot of fun but for sure the scariest snowmobiling trip of my life. Eric is fearless, and he does these crazy turns on the snowmobiles that completely lay the sleds on their sides. So, on Monday he was doing them on all these steep hills, which I must say was quite impressive. I stopped at the bottom of a hill, he was doing the turns on, to watch him. All of a sudden the snowmobile started rolling over. It rolled over twice with Eric on it. All I could think of was our neighbor who rolled his four-wheeler over him and is now a paraplegic. I was freaking out, I was screaming his name and I took off running up the hill side. When I got to him both he and the sled were right side up. I asked him if he was okay and all he could say was, "THAT WAS AWESOME!!! And look I didn't even break anything on the snowmobile!" Oh my HECK!!! Scare me to death!!! I guess Eric is justified in his fearlessness, only his leg got a bit bruised.

After the rolling we started heading home but played around on the way back. There was this super steep hill that I didn't want to go up, I didn't think I would be able to make it all the way up because it was seriously SO steep. Eric went up it a couple times and talked me into going up it. I told him I didn't want to jump at the top of the hill and he said that if I slowed down near the top I wouldn't jump. I pinned the gas almost all the way to the top and let go of the gas maybe 20 feet before the top to prevent myself from doing any kind of a jump. Well little did I know, I hit the top going maybe 40 mph and totally flew off the top. I flew forward 30 or 35 feet and got more air than I was excited about. I was freaking out, I almost landed on the downside of the other side of the mountain. Well, I was already in the crying mood because of Eric's rolling his snowmobile over himself, so needless to say, I was bawling by the time I landed. Freaked me out!!! I had the two best adrenaline rushes of probably my whole life in one day. Sweet :)