32 Weeks

Taken on Sunday: 32 weeks exactly (I've realized, in trying to take pics that I have short arms and a long torso, making it fairly difficult for me to get a decent pic with my arms around my belly. so this is what you get. the same dang pose every time. lol sorry..)

I've been feeling pretty good these past few weeks. I had quite a bit of energy for a while up until a day or two ago when I started getting a head cold with gross congestion crap. That and the fact that I gained a few too many pounds over the weekend (we went to visit family in idaho on friday and saturday which always involves delicious food, lol)  are a sure combination for the tiredness and laziness I've been feeling.. oh and the hugeness. can't forget that part. I know it looks like I haven't grown too much in the picture but I assure you that I have. I'm pretty sure I've just gotten a lot WIDER (which I'm not about to take a picture of, haha)..... bleh.

Total Weight Gain/Loss? Lol... numbers don't really matter, do they? It's just a little more than I'd like and hopefully wont be too much more in these last few weeks.... here's hopin'... 

Cravings? The only craving I had these past few weeks was for a big fat juicy bacon cheeseburger from Burger Supreme. We FINALLY went there on saturday and it was everything I had been hoping for. 

Sleep? For some reason my potty brakes have jumped from going 3 times a night to 5 or 6 times a night. and it's like legitimate peeing too.. not just a tinkle hahaa. and an even more annoying thing is I find myself thirstier than EVER in the middle of the night which just makes it worse. yes. so fun. 

Crazy Weird Things? I've become a loud breather... no really. it's starting to annoy the crap out of me. I'll just be sitting there and all I can hear is myself breathing and there is nothing I can do about it. Even if I breathe through my nose. Maybe it's just starting to get to the point that everything I do makes me feel like I'm out of breath and that I have to take annoyingly loud deep breaths in order to actually feel like i'm getting enough oxygen. Hopefully this will change a little when I get down to Houston where the air is nice and thick.
Coolest Thing? Her feet are always kicking on the upper part of my stomach. I know it's her feet bc the doc always tells me she's head down whenever I go in for checkups and I can feel that they are actually little shapes.. usually cute (especially when Sam is around to be able to feel them), sometimes annoying. especially when she finds it necessary to stretch out her legs and stay in that position for minutes at a time. ugh... It's fun though because finally it's to the point that it feels more like a baby and not some little alien thing living inside.

Name? We have it narrowed down to our 2 or 3 favorite ones but I think we will just have to meet her first to know which one for sure. 

Plans for the next few weeks: We are actually moving down to Houston for the summer so Sam can sell again. And being the sweet husband that he is, he would rather me fly down early than have to suffer through a 24 hour drive at 36 weeks pregnant. So I'm flying down April 13th (when I'm 34 weeks) and spending the week at my sister Kelli's until Sam gets there, after he's done with his finals. I'm not terribly worried about him because he will have Max to keep him company while I'm gone and to be his driving buddy on the way down. :) Sam is just worried I will have the baby before he gets there, but I HIGHLY doubt that will happen. She seems pretty comfy in there. We are SO excited to be able to spend this summer in Houston. It's been about 5 years since I've lived there and 7 for Sam.. and it's especially exciting that our baby girl will be a TEXAS baby! woo!

Max's first birthday

Our little pup is growing up so fast! His first birthday was last Tuesday, March 15th (we got him from a breeder so we actually do have on record his real birthday, which i think is pretty cool). In the future we probably won't do much to celebrate his birthdays but just wanted to make the first one special. 

We met up with our friend Landon and his dogs at the park for some good quality playtime. Max always has a blast with his dogs so it was a perfect little birthday party for him. hehe..

Birthday goodies..

Waiting patiently to eat his cupcake.. I used this dog cake recipe to make it (turned out a little smaller than i anticipated but oh well, lol) complete with all his favorite human foods including peanut butter, honey, bananas, and carrots. oh and can't forget the yogurt frosting on top. yummy kinda? well... he thought it was awesome lol:

playing with his new toys. hooray for a new bone! AND a new squeak toy- his favorite..

Baby Shower!

Sam has three aunts on his dad's side that we are pretty close to, two of which live here and we are able to see fairly often (and the third just happened to be visiting).. This past weekend they threw me a baby shower, combined with another cousin who is expecting a boy in April, for friends and family up here in Utah. All I can say is these aunts are serious rockstars and threw this whole thing together in just a week. I love them and I'm so grateful they were able to do this for me!! Anywho, here are some fun pics from the afternoon....

the yummy food! All of it was amazing! especially the delicious angel food cake that i MUST get the recipe for next time I talk to Aunt Patty, lol.. no seriously.

one for baby girl and one for baby boy, hehe:

Susan was able to make it for the first part and it was so fun to see her!! Love you Susan!

With my own relatives from SLC who I haven't seen in forever! Aunt Marillyn, Cathy, and Colleen (from my mom's side).. I was soooo grateful they were able to make it!! It was so much fun to catch up:

With Sam's amazing aunts.. I love love LOVE them! Thanks again Aunt Nancy, Patty, and Ethel for everything!!

Our Best Bites book launch event

If you haven't already heard of this cooking website, I highly recommend it. (Just click on the cookbook and it will take you to their page). These two girls, Kate and Sara, decided to start a blog together a few years back of recipes they come up with and lately they have gotten pretty popular. Their recipes are fairly easy and usually always include ingredients that you either already have in your house, or aren't hard to find at the store.. And most importantly, are ALWAYS yummy!

Anyways, they just recently published their own cookbook and were coming out to SLC for some book launch events and signings, including a cooking demonstration at Orson Gygi. They held drawings on their website and through Deseret Books facebook page for tickets. I entered into both, not expecting much... when lo and behold, someone from Deseret Books messaged me and said I was a winner! Woohoo!! I never win anything so it was pretty exciting. So the event was held last Friday and I had a ticket for myself and a friend. My friend Jennifer was able to go with me and we had a blast!!  They did some cooking demonstrations of a few things from the book, then we were able to get cookbooks signed afterwards. These girls were super fun and actually pretty hilarious. and their recipes are soo yummy!  If you haven't gone out and bought your own copy of the book yet (sold at Deseret Book, Barnes and Noble, or Amazon.com), DO IT! In the book, they included some favorite recipes from their site, along with a ton of originals that they have never posted before.. I can't wait to get cookin'! :)

With Kate and Sara while they sign our books:

Just a couple of my favorite recipes so far include these (click on the picture to go to the recipe):

Rosemary Focaccia Bread

Cadbury Egg Cookies

Max, friends, and snow

The other day we stopped by our friend Landon's house to see their new puppy. It's an 8 week old mini dachshund, just like Max (well not JUST like. his coloring is different of course). it was so fun to see a such a tiny puppy. i don't think Max was ever that small, haha.. Anywho, meet Charles. he is a white piebald (spotted). He is sure a cutie and super playful! I'm sure they will be great friends:

Landon and his wife have 2 other dogs as well.. they have a mix of some sort who is the oldest, then this one is 6 month old Zoey (doberman pinscher). she is GORGEOUS and super sweet. Max has met her before when she was just a tiny puppy too.. i'm sure he was surprised to see how big she is now. haha.. here she is sniffing him out:

Max hasn't seen too many dogs lately bc it's been so cold and there haven't been many who come to the park so this was a fun little playdate. they actually played really well together. it was too funny.. sniffin the pup:

The other day we decided to take a drive up the canyon a little ways and let max run around in the snow at this one park.. he was fully prepared with his parka on, hehe. and i'm pretty sure he had a blast. I just think it is HILARIOUS watching him run through the snow. had to include a couple videos: