Wouldn't it be easier....

if we just decided to enjoy the holidays instead of stressing over all the fuss? :) haha Loved this :P



I *can proudly say I've got my lights up, decorations filling the house, presents not only bought but *wrapped under the tree, I'm trying to teach Kade about the *true meaning of Christmas, and I'm planning on baking this Sunday :)

If I don't get everything done early, I'm the type of person that can't enjoy the holidays. Hope y'all are loving this season! :)

Trusting in Trying

One of my favorite people was Marjorie Pay Hinckley :) I apologize if I quote from her and her husband so much, but they truly have taught me many profound things through simple, loving words.

Today my thoughts are these:

I love the life I have been taught.

Sister Hinckley questioned, "How can we know if this gospel is a thing of God if we do not do the works of God? The only way we can know whether or not this is the true church is to try it out for ourselves. Until we give it a fair chance, we are hardly in a position to pass judgment. We will come to know that the gospel is true by trying it out."

I was raised as a Latter-day Saint. I have been taught those teachings from the day I could comprehend. My parents were diligent in having scripture study every morning, whether you were excited to roll out of bed or not. :P We did it, every morning. We attended church every Sunday, and many times if we were out of town--or even out of state--we went. We'd pack up church clothes and just go :) I distinctly remember sitting in a meeting in Hawaii and having the bishop getting up and saying "ALOOOOOOHA!" to the congregation and asking us to repeat back "ALOOOOOOOHA!" to start Sunday services, which was pretty different to me :P But once that meeting started,nothing was different. All the same things I knew and loved. We practiced our religion just the same :)

Since Mondays were so hard for all of us to be together due to conflicting schedules between piano lessons, dance lessons, soccer practices, school activities (you name it :P), my parents made sure we gathered as a family on Sundays to have our Family Home Evening. I really will admit that I loved that. We got to take turns "conducting" the meeting, or helping with the lesson, or saying the prayer, or making the treat for afterwards. It was basically just a nice time for our family to reconnect, to learn, and to love spending time with each other.

As far as family prayers, we'd say one together every morning after our scripture study, before dad left for work and we kids moped off to another torturous day of what teachers called "school". :P But we did it. At nights, we'd say our evening prayer incorporated in our dinner meal. These two prayers were always kneeling down, no matter how hard the wood floor hurt our knees :P It showed respect, for Whom we were talking to, and my parents knew very well that what they were giving their children was the gift of a beginning testimony for something we'd come to love and cherish as we were older....

I mention all this not to pat our own backs, because heaven knows that as kids, we were just like any other kid who complained about the getting up early, the rounding us up at nights, of maybe wanting to play with other kids when our parents were trying to give us time together as a family... but I say this because those early habits that were formed *because my parents' diligence stuck. It helped me become who I am. It made me prepared for what I'd later have to decide for *myself... and that is to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

It is a choice to do such. Yet, in my mind, it is a *privilege. I was eight when I got that chance. Others, I know, were much later. It doesn't matter when. It matters of your preparation, your understanding, or maybe even your introduction into the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I have mentioned many times how much my religion means to me, so I don't feel I need to always express something so deeply sacred to me on a blog post. What I *would like to express is my gratitude that my parents didn't give up on us. That they helped *me "try" to learn something they knew was so important. Now that doesn't mean we were always willing, or good, or totally understanding of every teaching, but we *tried.

I've read Sister Hinckley's words before, but today, they seemed important to share on here. If there is something we are looking for, whether it be in a job, education, religion, whatever... we need to try. Merely hearing what the subject is about doesn't merit understanding. You need to try it, work on it, come to *understand it. We know faith without works is dead. If we seek, we will know. Then we do as President Hinckley always counseled us and "get on your feet and go to work". In the case of understanding how a Latter-day Saint lives, it might be confusing, it might sound *crazy, but if someone knew the true character of the religion I hold *so dear to my heart... you'd know *nothing but good comes from *or out of it. It is based on the purest love there is, the love of Christ.

So today, I'm proud that I go to church on Sundays because to me three hours out of my Sabbath isn't a big deal, or that I don't watch "R" rated movies, that I believe in modesty, that I can sing every Article of Faith :P, that I listen to a modern-day prophet, that I only have one piercing in my ears, that "Oh my heck!" is my idea of swearing :P, that I go visit teaching, that I believe in the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman, that I didn't date before I was sixteen :P, that I decided a temple marriage was for me, that I know what AP, PPI, BYC, EFY, YC, CTR, and BYU all stand for :P, that I consider a "date night" as attending the temple to do work for the dead, that because of fasting once a month going 24 hours without eating is no longer a challenging thing :P, that I treat Sundays as a different day...a day to rest and to reflect on what is *truly most important in my life, that if ever I've been out of the state and someone hears where I'm from their *immediate question is usually "Are you a Mormon?" :P, that I worked on and received my Young Women's award while a teenager, that drinking root beer out of the old-time bottle is the closest thing I'll ever come to looking like I'm drinking beer :P, that I have religious art in my home... etc., etc.

But most of all? I'm glad that I know what I've been taught, what I seeked after, what I've prayed about, what I discovered for *myself... is true.


"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of it myself." ~John 7:17



:)

Thankfulness in All Things

Today I'm just really loving the spirit of Thanksgiving. I think this time of year is one that can easily be overlooked with the Christmas season approaching, but to forget our blessings is something that I compare to forgetting that even the air we breathe is a gift from God. We need to remember how truly blessed we are.

I love a thought that Sister Marjorie Pay Hinckley shared in her book "Small and Simple Things". It reads, "It is good to kneel as a family and to hear daily expressions of gratitude to our Heavenly Father for the blessings we enjoy. The Lord intended His children to enjoy the good things of life. With all that we have, we must also have grateful hearts. We must teach our children not to take all that they have for granted. Thank you is a wonderful phrase. Use it. It will add stature to your soul. Never let a day go by without saying thank you to someone for something--and especially to your Heavenly Father."

If we challenged ourselves to every day think of something (at *least one thing) that we were thankful for, I believe we'd be surprised to see how evident the Lord's hand truly is in our lives. Whether big or small, we have much to show gratitude for. If we ever get down about the bad things happening in our life, try to remember how many *good things there are... It is a humbling experience. And many times, you forget what that first concern was all about anyways. Count your blessings, name them one by one :)

D&C 78:19 "And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more."

SYTYCD!!!

Let's just start off by saying I LOVE this show!! I've watched my "fair share" of dancing shows, all wonderful mind you, but this one? I always come back to :) I love that it fuses old and new styles together on the same stage, I love that the show is so young in it's styling, and let's face it, I think I *just might not be only me that loves it for its entertainment... :P

So for last season, season 5, Greg and I went to the tour a little over a week ago. Remember Jeanine? Brandon? Kayla? Evan? Yeah... I thought so :P *Awesomely talented dancers. We didn't know quite what to expect, seeing that we've never gone to a concert of them, but I definitely wasn't disappointed. SO much entertainment! Totally worth it if you ever decide to attend a future performance.

Waiting for the show to begin, I look down and there is just a *massive section front and center on the floor of people holding a huge sign up that reads, "Randi's Fan Section!!" My picture here (along with others you'll tell) is blurry, so some aren't quite as clear as others, sadly, this is one of them. But I tried :P



The cheering dies down, the lights go up, and the cast of Season 5 dances its way onto the stage. After an opening number, they introduce themselves. I find out, and I don't know *how I didn't remember, but Randi... is actually *from Orem, Utah! How cool right? :) When she introduces herself, the crowd goes *WILD.... It was SO noisy, I couldn't believe it. And it just *didn't *stop! She put her hand over her mouth and started getting emotional that they were cheering so long and loud for her... Here's the kicker though... MY stupid eyes started crying!

I was CRYING for crying out loud! :P

(These pregnancy hormones I tell ya....) As I'm wiping my eyes (how embarrassing right?) Greg is laughing at me :P But I couldn't help it! It was so touching. *Truly.

I loved how they did all the favorite dances from the season, but I also really enjoyed the dialogue they did in between pieces. They were pretty funny :P I think one of my favorites was of Kupono putting in an *obvious plug for the SYTYCD DVD workouts :P (Of course on purpose to make you laugh.) You'll see a pic of him below in a *total 70's workout getup :P I laughed so hard :P I wish I would have taped it :P



Another thing they kept joking about through the WHOLE night was the Russian Folk dance that Jeanine and Phillip were FORCED to do during the regular season... and then laughed at :P No lie, I about *DIED laughing at all their puns :P Any time the dialogue would mention "dances from around the world" or such, those two would sneek onto the stage and try to get down with the Russian Folk :P haha I LOVED it :P They kept shunning them for trying, but at the end of the show, as Jeanine and Phillip try *ONE more time to steal the spotlight, they hit the big ol' boombox and out runs ALL the contestants dancing the Russian Folk dance! haha! It made me about cry from *laughter (that time :P). Just hilarious to me :P Wish I could replay my memory of it to y'all. I'm cheesing it thinking about it again :P What can I say though, I'm easily entertained :P So funny :P











They also did some extra group dances and highlighted each dancer with their own solo. Usually there is just the top 10 that get to tour, but this season, they asked two others to come back because either their dance with one of the top 10 was so good it had to be part of the show or in the case below, HE IS JUST AWESOME!!!!!!!! :P I *seriously heart Phillip :P He is a popper from Houston, Texas. And if I was just a *bit younger and single.... ;) haha :P (Totally kidding.)

Really though, I can't tell you how excited I was to see that they invited him to the tour. He's sooo talented. I just can't even believe half the stuff he does with his body. Blows my mind. You can bet your buttons I was cheering PRETTY loud during his solo :P I've seen him dance before this show and just always have been impressed with him. So without further adieu, here's a taste of Phillip for you. Seriously sick!



Recap of the night...

I also had the extreme treat of meeting up with one of my very best friends *ever :) Lindsay and I met in my yearly years at college, and I haven't been able to let her go since :) She is one of the sweetest, most caring people I've ever met, and I truly feel blessed that she came into my life. Throughout the years, I've never met anyone that could replace her, and I know there never will be one :) I'm so glad that she and Larissa (Lindsay's sister, not like you can't tell :P) were there for the fun too. Isn't she so cute? :P I'm feeling quite jealous next to her gorgeous face :P haha

LOVE YOU LINZ!!!! :)




There *are a couple of dances I just can't forget. They were so touching that I could watch them over and over again. I think it's amazing that music and dance can affect you so much. When you know the meaning behind a piece, it seems to be brought to life. It takes on an experience of its own and somehow, you seem to relate. These were a couple of Greg and I's all-time favorites.

"Addiction". This piece is set to Sarah McLachlan's "Gravity". When they first performed this, Mia Michaels, the choreographer, explained that it was a piece about struggling with addiction, with its consuming grasp, you see as Kupono portrays himself as the addiction for Kayla. Kupono had explained that many of his close friends had struggled with this, and for him, he did *not want to play this part.. He could not hold back tears with his emotions over being the one thing that had been the destruction and downfall of people close to him. It was so touching, that I can't help but cry watching this now. Because I knew how close it was to his heart, and yet, I knew how many people in this world probably feel what this dance portrays... The struggle of overcoming.



"If It Kills Me" Jason Mraz. This piece is pretty explanatory. The relationship between a guy and a girl who are trying to figure out their feelings. Friendship, love, frustration, happiness. I just love this song :) I love how Travis Wall, the choreographer and previous contestant on SYTYCD, made Jason and Jeanine dance with the heart shaped necklace. Jason tries to give it to her many times, she rejects him, she tries to give it back, but eventually, his heart is around her neck :) Ahh :) Just how love feels many times. And just romantic :)



Breast Cancer Awareness dance. "This Woman's Work" by Maxwell. Choreographed by Tyce Diorio. I am so glad this was already posted because I accidentally erased my own tape of it. I can't even begin to explain what this piece makes me feel... Tyce introduced it to the performers, Ade and Melissa, by explaining he made this piece for a friend of his that was struggling with breast cancer.... He talked about her struggle, all the emotions that go with it. I just can't even *imagine... So it was a tribute to this friend. On the night that Melissa and Ade went to perform it for the very first time, Tyce announced that his friend had called him that morning and told him she was in remission. Cancer free... I do have more than one person in my family who passed on from breast cancer. The one I was closest to was my Aunt Lola. I remember going with my dad to see her after her mastectomy. I can't tell you how hard it was to look at her, knowing she wasn't doing well, knowing she was struggling, and yet, still joking, still laughing... She really loved my dad. And he was so good to visit her. I'm thankful that I knew her through him. I do miss her jokes :) She was a good woman. We loved her so much. So this piece just tugs at my heart. It shows the struggle of a woman who is fighting, fighting, and just wants to let go.. So much pain, so much suffering, still trying with what little she has in her. That fight, to free herself.



So many emotions, so much fun :) I hope if you ever get the chance to go to one of their tours, you'll go. It was just such a good time! I loved it :) I'm also thankful to Greg for going with me. He's such a good sport. I'm sure if you asked him years ago if he'd ever go to a DANCING tour... He'd have laughed :P But I honestly think he likes it now. We had a lot of fun and went home pretty deaf :P

Good times, good times :)

The Pumpkinaze!

Kade's preschool class went to the Pumpkinaze for a field trip. It was kinda a cold overcast day, but that didn't stop the kids from having fun :)

They started off posing in the Halloween cutouts (which Kade and *most of the kids were too short for...). Then they were off to play some fun fall games. The pumpkinaze is known for the huge corn maze though, so naturally, we had to go through it :P Since it was cold, we kinda took the short route :P Greg kept telling Kade that we were following the trail of the super heroes (since Kade is *OBSESSED with the Super Hero Squad :P) It was really funny because Greg would tell Kade about "clues" he spotted that they must have gone that way :P This pic demonstrates a path that the Hulk had brushed up against because some of the cornstalks were still green :P Kade is doing his best Hulk impression here :P Oh it makes me smile :P haha



After the maze, all the kids wanted to go down the haystack slides. Since it was so wet and cold, the slides had a lot of water on them. Kade didn't want to go down by himself the first time, so Greg went with him. Both of their bums were sopping wet by the time they got down :P It was really funny :P The trip was ended with cider and doughnuts, I don't think anything could have made Kade happier :P

This was a cute idea, and I know despite the weather Kade had a blast :) I'm so glad he loves preschool :)

Who Dunnit?

We did another murder mystery dinner last weekend. I love these, I swear :P I just think it's so fun to be silly and have an actual reason :P (Silliness, comes natural actually. In fact, I usually am on a daily basis, but here, it's *okay to do it :P)

So we had some friends over and played How to Host a Murder's "The Good, the Bad, & the Guilty". It was a lot of fun, and I'm thankful for our good friends who came :)

Our friends Steve "Wyatt Hertz" and Stacy "Butch Chastity" we met the first year of being married. They lived in our same apartments, and in fact, *many times, I'd come home from working at the Health Department and Steve would be there :P I'd have to call Stacy to come over and hang out with the three of us :P Eventually, they moved to San Diego for Steve to go to law school, and I missed them so much. I'm just so thankful that we kept in touch after all this time. They are great friends :)



Jake "Chief Breaking Wind" and Erin "Dee Adela Muerte" :) I love Jake's face here :P We met Jake and Erin after moving into the family ward. For the first little bit while living in our house, we had gone to a student ward, but once I was going to have Kade, we decided to make the shift to the family ward. Erin and Jake moved into their house just about the same time, so we were both "new" at church together :) Soon after I was partnered with Erin to visit teach. We've been together since then, so it must have worked :) I'm thankful for these two who have helped me so much, especially once Greg started working more. Many times Erin has watched Kade for me, or Jake has cooked us dinner, or Erin has reminded me what a good friend she is to me. I'm thankful for their friendship :)



Greg "P'elvis Swagarin" and Dana "Helena Handcart". What can I say, except thank you Mom for letting me borrow your bonnet and skirt from trek :P Greg's getup just made me laugh so hard :P He picked his character, and later regretted it (for reasons I won't share because if you ever play this game, which I recommend you try them! I don't want to give away any clues) :) You find out about your character along the way, as the storyline unfolds, so poor Greg, it was hilarious :P He's a great sport :) Just a lot of fun :)



Mike "Elias Truist-Heath" and Tai "Elvira-Lynn Fekshin" are actually my family thanks to Greg :) Mike is Greg's older brother. I honestly love these two. They are the best "in-laws" I think I could have asked for. Mike is absolutely hilarious, and Tai is SUCH a good friend to me. I really appreciate that. I have to be honest, I still get a bit shy around large groups, it's easier for me to be quiet and not stand out, but these two just make me smile :) They make me feel so comfortable in the Smith family, and I'm really grateful for that.



Kade "The Cowboy" (He wanted to be called this :P) Kade got to hang out with us (for lack of a babysitter :P) but he was so good. I dressed him up since he was jealous that we all had costumes :P I *am kinda scared about that bloody Halloween knife he loved to show me though... He actually shows it to me when he's mad at me :P Because he knows I hate *real blood I guess :P (Kinda funny he thinks that way :P) I think I need to hide it now that Halloween is over. Back to the costume closet it goes :P



We have a tradition with Erin and Jake that every Halloween for the last three? years, we watch "Army of Darkness" with them...... This Halloween we missed it, just too much going on. So that evening they stayed, and this *HORRID movie had "play" pushed :P I won't lie, it's stupid :P I mostly get a kick out of Jake and Greg laughing their heads off about it :P Erin's a better sport than me about it :P There are a couple of funny lines in it though, like, "Give me some sugar baby!" or "Hey, She-B@*!@" I will admit I laugh at that :P But, every year like clockwork, it enters my DVD player :P So I've kinda submitted to it :P

This year, I apologize that I just fell asleep. (Dang it....) :P This pregnancy thing is messing me up bigtime :P When I'm awake, I'm sick. When I'm asleep, I'm uncomfortable :P And half the time when I *am awake, I'm trying NOT to sleep! haha It's really different for me :P I'm guessing this baby is gonna love me A LOT for putting me through all this.... ;)

This Is Halloween!

Halloween. The holiday I decorate *second best all year long :) (Meaning I'm already getting antsy to put out my Christmas decor... haha). I love any chance at dressing up and having fun. This is true :) In fact, I got SO excited this year, that I had posted my costume ideas for a *very indecisive girl named Dana...(ahem :P) My gracious friends voted for me, which in essence, made up my mind for me. Clever, eh? I thought so :P Little Red Riding Hood won by a *landslide... I bought the costume, got excited, and then realized one very major detail.... I wasn't fitting into my costume with a preggo belly :P See, that sexy little number just *doooesn't quite fit with a miniature Santa's belly :P No siree.

So I nixed my costume and listened to the pro. Namely Kade :P Kade's costume this year was Darth Vader. He's been SO excited for this! Star Wars has still got it I guess :P So Leah is the quick fix to my Halloween blunder. (No, not the slave princess...that would just offend some minds thinking about *that one :P) White dress? Check. Wrap my hair in buns over my ears? Check. Slapped on a gold belt around my waist (okay, let's not lie here, it was below the said "bump" that mocked my Red Riding Hood costume...) Never in a million years would I opt for Leah, but this year, it worked :P And heck, Kade was all smiles :) To top it off, Greg had a storm trooper costume from two years ago, so we were decked to the nines :)





We started our night off at Greg's parents house where the kids received awards for their costumes as they arrived. Kade loved saying "LUKE! I am your FATHER!!" :P Our nieces that helped Grams throw the party loved that their cousin Kade's parents dressed up with him. So we are "officially cool" :P Unfortunately, this photo is our *only one together, and it didn't turn out so good, so I'm not loving it. It's blurry :( But, you get the jist I'm sure.



Dinner was then served, no stops, followed by a round of trick or treating among the hills of Posh Town :P (Which also doubled as my workout for the day seeing as I got *quite tired going up and down those hills, oh yeah, the driveways were just about as bad :P Can we say "Richie Rich"? :P

Seriously though, it was so nice to be with everyone, and I *know Kade loved trick or treating with his cousins. (Let's face it, parents just *aren't as cool...) He kept wanting to catch up with them as they ran from one house to the next collecting loot in their hot little hands :P

Our evening finished off back at the Smith's for donuts and drinks. Just a fun, fun night. Thank you again for making it a great holiday for us this year!

Last, but *certainly not least, our pumpkins for 2009 :) We kinda didn't get around to carving them until the day *of Halloween, so classic triangles it was :) Still made Kade smile though :) I just love their masks to be honest :)

Fire It Up

This was Kade's first field trip with his preschool class. A trip to the local fire department :)

It was a lot of fun for the kids to see all the engines, they taught them some basic fire safety, and even handed out fire hats for them at the end of it all :) *Heaven :)

I took *quite a few pics there... (haha) But I just thought they looked so cute! I loved how Kade and Liberty kept hugging each other. It was so funny to me :P Another thing that cracked me up was Kade's "poses" :P I'd say, "Kade! Smile for me!" It only took once :P He would looks at me, smile for the camera, and I even got some GQ sit down with one leg up poses every once in a while :P HA! It seriously made me snicker :P

I think I have this kid trained I tell ya :P I notice that he smiles sometimes *waiting for me to whip out the camera now! (Does this say anything about my camera usage? Hmm.... :P)

One cute kid :)

Kade's Big Day :)

This is a random pic, but it is the day he gave his big talk in *sacrament :) A couple of months ago, he was asked to give a talk in Primary in front of all the kids. Some kids get a bit worried about this, Kade on the other hand *revels in it :P He LOVES to be a part of the spotlight :)

After he was done, I had a couple of the ladies in the Primary presidency ask me if I wouldn't mind hanging on to Kade's talk so he could give it as part of the Primary program in sacrament. The BIG league folks ;)

The program was really cute. It focused on how we can strengthen our families, through the daily things we do. All the kids did a great job. The songs were cute. (I honestly couldn't wait for the day when Kade was big enough to be a part of this because I love being the mom that sits in the row and smiles and tries not to cry at how cute her kid is :P)

So not only did Kade get to sing the songs with them, but the Sunbeam class (Kade's class) got to give a small speaking part, and then I helped him with his talk :) He loved it :)

Sitting watching him, I couldn't help but laugh as he did all the things the leaders asked kids *not to do... Like waving to your parents, or winking at them... I even got a thumbs up from Kade :P haha Hey, he was happy :P It's hard for a kid to sit on the stand for the hour and a half he's supposed to and not have *some wiggles :)

So yes, this is the proud mama boasting of her son post :P For all he was asked to do, he did great :) I love him so much and am so proud of him :)

(P.S. This pic is what he colored in his primary class later that day. He reaalllly wanted to show it to me, so we took a pic of it.) :)

Meet Chloe :)

Yes, we got a dog. Yes, she's six months and already huge :P (She weighs 48 lbs. already :P) Yes, she tried to escape the first night but was too scared to actually *go anywhere.. I found her hanging out in our front yard when I woke up to go to work :P (haha) And *yes, she's a sweetie who loves to be loved :)


She loves playing fetch, although she already "gets" that it's funny to get close to give you the ball and then run away from you... You can tell she thinks she's *hilarious :P Kade loves to chase her anyways :P
Chloe loves to sit in your lap to be petted. She also loves when you say "You want the belly?" She'll flip over and want you to scratch her stomach :)

She's already learned a couple of tricks too. Such a good dog :)

Makes Me Smile :)

This is just a little heart warmer, for me :) Every time I drop Kade off at preschool, I can't help but smile. I can't believe he's big enough to go to "school", and I can't believe how dang cute it is when he meets his friends and they run down together to class :P It's like glimpsing into something that is just starting for him. Peers :P I love to hear him and his little friends yell each other's names.... "AVERIE!" "BRIELLE!" "DANIEL!" "KADE!" (whoever) :) as they see each other upon the moms' dropoff :)

Speaking of which, Averie, is pictured here below. This is Kade's preschool "girlfriend" :P I love that she tries to take care of him :P I've seen her grab his hand and walk Kade down the path to the classroom :P So one day, I asked her if I could take a pic of her and Kade :) Don't you love the height difference? :P It *also makes me smile... :P

A Little Late....

I had a birthday the first of this month. Yes, I'm *that behind :P I'm now the age everyone wants to be for the rest of their lives, so I figure, hey, this is gonna be a GOOD YEAR!! :)

So far, I believe it has been :) I found out I'm pregnant with my second child, which is CRAZY :P Especially since it's been so long since I was last expecting. But I could not be any more *thrilled about it :)

I had a pretty relaxed birthday, which is fine with me. My parents were sweet and took me out to eat before my birthday, my mom took me shopping, which was *really nice since I don't do that much? :P I got things that wouldn't push on my belly since it KILLS lately... (think stretchy people :P) a dress, a skirt, and some exercise capris which are PANTS on me :P Hey, it works :P So comfy :)

On my actual day, Greg was very sweet to have taken it off to be with me. I was very thankful for this because, let's face it, I'm feeling pretty crappy lately due to pregnancy :P And this day was no exception :P So it was nice just chilling. He took me out to eat and bought me NEW CAMERA folks, yep, I now have a screen that you can actually *see what you are taking a pic of. Whereas before, I'd just tell whoever was using my camera to just point and shoot and that if there were people in the pic, "we'll just squeeze together" :P (haha)

I have to say thank you to all my sweet friends who sent or brought me things too. I'm not a real big "present" person...makes me feel weird, but it really was nice that y'all thought of me. I couldn't ask for better friends :) I even got some pretty flowers from Liberty (via her mom :P), Kade's little friend :) She picked them out herself :)


My yummy strawberry cheesecake Greg gave me (Strawberries sound so good right about now :P)


I have wonderful family and great friends :) It means everything to me. Thank you for all the birthday wishes! It just was a nice day to feel like you are cared about, so thank you to all :)

Answers...

Thank you so much for the overwhelming congratulations I've received from all of you, be it through facebook, an email, a phone call, I've even had a SINGING message... ;) (I love you Lisa!) It has made my day.

I know that some of you have got to be thinking, "She's serious?" :P For different reasons, I have not been pregnant for 4 1/2 years... Many people find that strange. I myself would have loved for this to come true years ago, I love being a mom :) But among other things, it has just not been right, or timing wasn't good, etc. The worst thing I've felt during that span though? Is the questioning... or the feelings I've felt *from the questioning.. like I would ever NOT want another child. It made me feel very selfish. So with that in mind, I secluded myself from that area of my life. It hurt too much to think about and in a way, I was a bit bitter. I felt no one understood what I was going through. So being the private person I am, I kept it to myself, lived my life, and have tried every day to be happy. Because I *am a happy person! :)

Maybe a bit of background will help. Everyone knows my Kade :) If you looked at him today, you'd never know what his beginnings were like. There I was, a happy, excited young mother, 7 1/2 months pregnant, just loving life. I went to work one day, didn't feel right, talked to my co-workers who were already moms, explained how I was feeling, and they convinced me I needed to get to the hospital. Never having a child before, I didn't know what "normal" was, so I took their advice.

After arriving at the hospital, and finding that my doctor was out of TOWN....(freaked me out I must say) I waited patiently for the doctor on-call. While waiting, I went into labor... being only 34 1/2 weeks along, I was scared, very scared. I didn't know anything about having a child, I knew it was not even CLOSE to when I was supposed to HAVE mine, and yet, there I was..in labor. My water broke at 11:00 AM. After I'd been checked, I was told that I was not only going to be put on bed rest, but that I was one of the lucky mothers that is Rh negative... and that my baby (Kade) was Rh positive...meaning our blood types aren't compatible and my body could make antibodies to go attack my baby's blood... Scary huh? LOVELY that I was that lucky :P It only occurs in typically 15% of women. (Like I said, aren't I lucky?)

So they try to get me from going fully into labor, that doesn't work. They soon realize I've lost ALL fluid and, it is now a danger to my son. They need me to have that baby NOW. They tell me they will give me a shot of pitocin to encourage labor...no need. My body is doing it all FOR me. Before they know it I'm dialating so quickly, that they have to call my nurse (one of my best friends who was going to be called in for me) and my husband (who went home to get things for me since I came straight from work and this WASN'T expected) because I'm going so fast that they are afraid they will miss it! At this point I'm freaking out a bit. I'm scared. I'm scared for my baby, I'm scared for me, I don't know what I'm doing. They rush me into the ER, and if you can believe it, 43 minutes later I have a baby. No lie. One of the nurses joked with me that I better be careful next time because usually a first birth is NOT that quick. She laughed that next time I'd be having it in an elevator. Not cool nurse. Not cool.

After this whole ordeal, they take Kade and put him in an incubator, which he would stay for almost three weeks in the Newborn Intensive Care Unit or NICU. Do you know how *hard it is to not take your baby home? Or to look at them in a plastic tube with IV's and such taped all over him? :( It was something I'd like never to repeat, but I will eternally be grateful for. If we didn't have this technology, I know I would not have my baby. Kade was a healthy little guy despite all this. He was born at 4 lbs. 14 oz. *Tiny. You could see his little ribs :( But nothing was wrong with him, his lungs were developed (which they worry about at that little) and he was mine, and I couldn't have loved anything more :)

I tell you all this because now, being pregnant with baby #2...you could see this all would be a worry for me. I was told after giving birth to Kade that this quite possibly could happen to me again :(

WHEN I found out I was pregnant, I say that because I did not know for some time, I woke up early morning, around 4:00 and had so much pain in my stomach that I thought I was dying. Literally. Best part? It was my birthday :P I had talked to my mom previously about my nausea, my being tired, and she suggested taking a pregnancy test. I laughed at that and didn't do it. "I can't be pregnant." But that night, waking up in so much pain, I did. In fact, I took *three.... all of which told me I was going to be a mother again...

I called a nurse the next day, told her of my pain, and she explained that I needed to watch this very closely. If I experienced *any more like that, I was to go directly to the emergency room, because this could be a tubal pregnancy. I hope my friends understand *why I would not want to share my being pregnant until I knew everything was okay. I did not want to share excitement, only to be set up for regret :( So that is why I have kept it to myself.

I was not able to get into the doctor until this last Friday, the 23rd. At which point, they teased me with things like "Nice to see you again, Dana" and "Thanks for FINALLY coming in!" A joke since I've gone so long between babies and because I found out that I'm 11 weeks along, to their best guess. So I'm basically almost done with my first trimester...oops :P

So they have set my due date for May 13th :) With my history, they spoke to me of prevention from having another pre-term delivery, meaning I get additional shots :P "Yay." I hate shots :P Although, if that is what it takes, I will do it. I'd do anything. I want to take my baby home healthy.

When Kade was given a due date, it was May 31st...and I had him April 18th instead. 5 1/2 weeks early. So we will see on this next arrival. Wish me luck :)

I've been sick as a dog, very unlike what I experienced with Kade since I was NEVER sick with him. So this is all new for me. I apologize for not being able to be my full self with my responsibilities in work, church, etc. But I truly thank you for your understanding. This is huge for me. Thanks again for all your support. It means a lot :)