What We've Been Up To:

Turning 25!
That's right, as of March 11th, Nate is now "a half of a half of a century" as he told me. Whatever makes you feel good Nate... :) I just told him he's closer to 30 now than 20.


We usually like to try and go somewhere since his birthday falls sometime during or around Spring Break, however since we're a little travel-restricted this year, we had a fun birthday celebration in Logan.
The celebration started when I surprised him with a birthday dinner with my family and his parents at FORMOSA. Formosa?? Let's just say that was a big gift from me because he begs me to go there almost weekly and I've never really loved it (Chinese food) and since being pregnant - it makes me gag on thought. I stuck to white rice and egg drop soup and everything turned out ok. The surprise continued with night at Anniversary Inn (gift certificates rock) and a fun filled night of the other thing we've been up to lately...


24!!
(haha not what you thought we'd be doing at Anniversary Inn)


Jack Bauer fever has infected us with a vengeance. Nate's family has been 24 fans for quite some time, but I didn't want to start a new season without seeing the previous ones. This season we gave in and started watching the new ones on TV, and like most people, were hooked instantaneously. Thanks to his parent's collection of previous seasons we're now in the middle of the 3rd season with no plans of slowing down. And yes, that is how we spent our night at the Anniversary Inn. Watching Jack all night long.



Nesting

The instinct is real and like 24, has also hit us hard (that's right, Nate too). We've had Baby's crib painted and set up for quite a while, but I've just recently finished laundering loads of clothes, blankets, and pretty much anything else machine washable. We also finally hung some baby decor, set out the diapers and wipes, and now feel MOSTLY ready for arrival. (stay tuned for pictures in a later post)


Sleepless Nights

I'm aware of all you moms out there snickering and/or rolling your eyes that I'm already complaining about lack of sleep. Believe me, I know it's going to get worse... A LOT WORSE. All I have to say in response is, hopefully then I'll be able to catch my 5 minutes of sleep on my STOMACH! This side sleeping crap is getting old quick! I've never been a side sleeper and now that I have no choice it makes me crazy! Not mention I can only "sleep" on one side for short periods of time before that side of my body is numb and tingly and I have to heave the belly to the other side for less than a half hour, only to repeat the process all night long! Itchy skin is just the icing on top of the cake...and let's not forget the 3 or 4 trips to the bathroom to complete the fun and games.
I've found 3 new essentials that have made the nights a little less uncomfortable however:
And last but not least -


37 Weeks!

Obviously I want Baby Buttars (who yes, is still nameless. we are bad parents already...) to arrive healthy and un-rushed, but I was also crossing my fingers for an early apperance. Which is technically still possible I guess, but at the last Dr. appointment he told me I wasn't dialated and if he were me, he'd plan on going the full 40 weeks, if not a week or so longer. :(
So I guess we've still got a few weeks to prepare. It is getting disturbingly real though!!

It Won't Be Like This For Long

I've always had a thing for Hootie. Hootie and the Blowfish that is. Due in large fact that my mom loved the band, and whenever I hear a certain couple songs I'm taken back to some good memories with her. So when Hootie came roaring back in the country music scene, I was thrilled! (Even though he now goes by his "serious" real name Darius Rucker, he'll always be Hootie to me!)

A few weeks back when this song came on the radio, I was pretty much in love. Not only because I love his soft raspy voice but mainly because of the story in the song. It also made me realize that even though we've been anticipating the arrival of our baby and getting so excited for her to finally be here, we should enjoy these last few weeks of "alone time" so to speak. I don't doubt we'll love the parenting roles but these next four weeks will also be our last as just Nate and Laci.

Before we know it, we'll have the baby and we'll be looking back wishing she was still a newborn, or then still a toddler, and so on. This is why I loved the Hootie song even more. So as for now, I'm just enjoying the present.

uno...dos...tres!

That's right, watching Dora with the nieces and nephews has taught me a few things. Somehow I skipped the Spanish requirements in high school but I did make it out with some basic counting skills. It comes in quite handy when I want to tell Cade how many months he's been gone too.

My knowledge of counting to 20 and being able to ask someone what color their house is (De que color is tu casa?) didn't do to much for me when Nate and I were able to go to Spain 3 1/2 years ago, however, I did come away with something to show from it:That's right, you probably already knew but we got engaged in Spain! Nate's parents had the trip planned and Nate invited me to come along. (after his friend Dave said no that is. What can I say Dave, you missed out on a proposal I guess!)
As you can imagine, I was a bit hesitant when he invited me seeing as we had only been dating for 3 or 4 months, and the trip was planned for another 4 months later. I was just hoping we didn't "break up" in the mean time because that would call for a very awkward vacation...

Those 4 months passed with no break ups, and his parents flew to Spain a week before us. His mom even wore my engagement ring on the trip over so I wouldn't see it! Nate and I had talked about getting married and had been "ring shopping" a time or two. I even joked with Nate on the way over that lots of people had told me they thought we'd get engaged. He slyly covered his tracks by laughing in my face and making me feel slightly dumb for even suggesting it. Romantic, I know. On our 2nd to last day in Spain I was totally convinced this was not going to be an engagement trip and had actually kind of forgotten about it. Little did I know, just about everyone else knew otherwise.

So being the romantic that he is, Nate proposed over a man-hole cover on the beach and the rest is history... Haha ok, I'll explain. The man-hole cover was actually a huge cement THING that stuck out of the sand about 6 or 7 feet. It had a little ledge all the way around it and we had noticed on one of our trips to the beach that people had climbed up it and placed all sorts of shells on the top of the cover. On our last night, I drug him down to the beach because I wanted to take some shells home for souvenirs. When I wasn't looking Nate climbed up on the cement ledge and placed my ring on top of the man-hole cover, then oh-so-cleverly suggested I should take some of the shells we'd seen on top the day before. With a little help from my cell phone light I was able to find a few souvenirs as well as a even better surprise!
It's 3 years later and my Spanish vocabulary hasn't grown much but my love for Nate definitely has!

So even though I'm a few days late, I want to wish Nate "Happy Anniversary!"
(It was was on the 22nd - which by the way, was overcast and gray as usual. See last year's anniversary post for clarification.)

Happy 3rd Nathan - te queiro mucho!!

V Day and 33 weeks

(Don't mind the camera strap)
33 weeks and 7 to go! We found out at the last appointment that Baby is breach (breech?) right now. (I can feel her head up by my ribs) The Dr. said that 90% of babies have flipped (head down) by now and of the 10% left, 80% of them will flip before labor, but if she doesn't then we'll have to schedule another appointment to try and get her turned. If that doesn't work...C-section it is!

Happy Valentine's
Pretty pretty flowers. There are some lilies in there too you can't see very well from the picture.
Love you Nathan!

Shower Power

Last Saturday was my (our? mine and Baby's?) first baby shower. My good friend Bobbie threw a great diaper shower and I was so excited to see lots of my high school and other close friends. It was suggested that everyone bring a package of diapers/wipes as their gift and lots of people even added something else like a cute outfit or bows. Nate and I were actually very excited, as weird as it might sound, to stock up on some necessities, such as diapers, and we definitely scored big time!

This is only a pic of half the diapers, the rest are in Baby's room ready to be pooped on!

I wish I were more dedicated at taking pictures, probably because I hate seeing myself in them after, therefore I didn't take near as many photos as I would have liked. So if you by chance got some pictures you'd like to send my way (Mallory) feel free to do so. :)
Thanks again to everyone who made it, especially if you traveled from far away lands - Ann ! - and also for all the gifts. We really APPRECIATE it! Also to Bobbie - Thanks for all the work in putting it together. I know you had a crazy week but we are so THANKFUL to you as well!

Also...

We've had some trouble in the name department. But we've narrowed it down to 2 choices (we think). I've added a poll to the side...let us know what you think. We're leaning towards one a little more lately but I don't want to say which. I want to hear what people think. Just curious. I'll admit, I'm the type that if 80% are saying one thing, I might just pick the other 20% to be different. Don't go stealing our names either, chances are the un-used name will be first choice for the next girl. (had to throw that in there to be safe...just in case) :)

Navi
or
Presli
???

All Good Things Must Come to an End

The last week of January was something I had been looking forward to for quite sometime. Now here I sit on February 1st, back at home and missing the 75 + degree weather of southern California. You see, Nate's parents gave all the kids and grandkids a sweet "SoCal" pass for Christmas and we spent a week in Newport Beach visiting all the tourist spots. (Disneyland, Seaworld, Universal Studios, and San Diego Zoo to be exact)

Even though "Expectant mothers should not ride" seemed to be the phrase of the trip, I'm such a Disney freak that just being there was still fun. We lived it up on the rides I was allowed on however, like Pirates, Buzz Lightyear, Finding Nemo, and Soarin' over California - my favorite!! I also made a great stroller slash baby sitter while the others took their turns.

Our trip to L.A. and surrounding areas was a double bonus because it is also where Nate served his mission. (Arcadia, CA) So he played tour guide while we visited the old stomping grounds.

Today when we flew into Salt Lake the air was a crisp 34 degree wake up call. Now, back at home, he's busy cramming for a test tomorrow and I'm dreading going back to work. Ahh, real life.

So here's our little vacay recap...and keep in mind I'm feeling especially chubby these days, from my face to my feet. So please try to look past the pudge. (9 weeks to go!)

And of course, I couldn't end this post without a shout-out to the in-laws...Thanks again Darrell and Marianne!!! It took lots of work (and money) to get the trip all planned and put together, we appreciate it and had lots of fun!

~*Also, the private plan is still on, so anyone still wanting to get in let me know. The count down is on.*~

Capital "P" to the rivate

So, it's been on my mind for quite some time...I just kept thinking "when we have the baby"...but after hearing some people in a restaurant talk about blog stalking, I finally decided it was time. Don't get me wrong, I can blog stalk with the best of them, but for some reason it kinda scared me.

WE'RE GOING PRIVATE


So whether you're a family member, close friend, long-lost friend, or friend who peeks in from time to time; give me your email!!

I'll leave it open for a week or so (we'll be out of town) and when I get back I'll plan on getting it set.

Thanks!