Merry Christmas!

Still no baby...

But we still managed to have a great Christmas together! 

Tyler had to work on Christmas Eve, but he got to leave a little early. We had dinner with Carly and Brad- (Carly had made some amazing, fancy turkey wrap) and we also had potatoes, stuffing, corn, rolls, salad, and...FLUFF! (a traditional dish from Tyler's family that really is called fluff!) 

We then had our choice of poke cake, pumpkin pie, or Oreo chocolate balls for dessert. We definitely had PLENTY of food! 

After eating, Carly, Brad and I played a few Christmas "duets" on violin and cello (There were only 2 parts, but 3 of us- so they got creative!) It had been a little while since I last played my cello- so it was actually fun to see how the cello fit on my big belly! I wish I made more time for playing- I really do enjoy it! 

On Christmas morning we got to video chat with Elder Lance from Spain! It was fun to see how excited he is about missionary work and hear about his experiences. The rest of my family were on the video chat as well, so we talked with them after Lance logged off. We then had hot chocolate and cinnamon rolls and opened some presents. After, we talked with Jenny and Blake Jones and their family in England. We took a little nap and then video chatted with Tyler's family in Idaho-- so by mid afternoon we had managed to say Merry Christmas to everyone in both of our families! The rest of the day was filled with playing Jenga, eating, watching a Christmas movie, eating more, going for a walk and playing some Wii games (yes- we might be encouraging this little guy to come SOON!) 

It was a great relaxing day and I was so grateful to get to spend it with someone I love so much! 

It's beginning to look like...A BABY'S on the way!!! :)

      

Santa Claus BABY is coming to town!!! 

Tyler's work had a Christmas party at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building in SLC. It was fun to meet some of his coworkers and they all had great things to say about what a hard worker Tyler is! 

We walked around Temple Square
to see the lights while we were
up there. I never get tired of taking
pictures in front of the temple...
especially because it reminds me
 that I get to be with
Tyler FOREVER! Ü
There was a small nativity with
Mary, Joseph, and Jesus set up in
the reflecting pool in front of the
temple-which added the perfect
touch to the evening...
We're getting SO excited to
 have our own little boy to
 love and hold! 

We've had some fun decorating our apartment for Christmas (or at least I have and Tyler joins in to keep me happy!) We are staying in Provo because we don't want to be too far away when our little man decides he's ready and Tyler wants to be able to take days off of work when he comes, (he only gets Christmas Day off) ...so it's just going to be us for Christmas. It will be different not being with family, but we're hoping to still make it fun and maybe start some new traditions! We have lots of lights up and little things around the apartment- plus a miniature Christmas tree! :) We did get together with my siblings before finals started to decorate Christmas cookies and watch The Santa Clause- which was fun.

*The little missionary cookie is in honor of Lance- on his mission in Spain. We are excited to get to talk to him soon! 

So-with that being our current situation, what a better way to really focus on the true spirit of Christmas, right?! Well, I hate to admit it, but it's still been a little challenging for me.  

As my first semester as a graduate student was wrapping up and my brain power was getting pretty low on fuel (and I can't even blame it all on being pregnant)-I was being asked with even more frequency, "What are you doing next semester?" and feeling more and more stressed about it. My dilemma is still the same: I don't want to have to choose. I grew up knowing I wanted to be a full-time mom and pictured myself surrounded by kids. However, I also feel like I have a wonderful opportunity to become qualified to do something that I also am passionate about and that will give me future options- whether doing stuff privately while I have kids or working part-time in a school or other facility when they are older...or even just helping my OWN kids with speech (after my own history of not saying my /r/s...it could come in handy!)

My siblings have been AMAZING here in Provo and told me all of their schedules for next semester and when they might be able to watch the little guy while I'm in class. It almost seemed too good to be true. It wouldn't be easy, and there would be a lot of juggling required, but someone was available for almost every time I'd be in class! I even contacted the professors for next semester and let them know I'd probably miss the first few weeks of class and they said I'd have to work hard to stay on top of getting notes/keeping up on my own, but they'd work with me. So Tyler and I are thinking: This might work! Of course- not the most ideal situation- but- just maybe...

Well- I went in for my 37 week doctor's appointment and expected it to last about 2 minutes just like all my other appointments have. After waiting for over an hour to even be seen, they told me our little guy was breech and that I had 3 options: hope he'd turn on his own, try to turn him and hope it worked and didn't require an emergency C-section, or just plan on having a C-section (PLUS- I had high blood pressure that they were also concerned about and wanted me to be on bed rest-- HA! Luckily I only had one more day of classes and then I just had to work on submitting my finals the next week). Well, that's not the news I wanted to hear. I have had a remarkably "easy" pregnancy in my mind, especially when I hear about what others go through, so I was really hoping/expecting to just finish it out without any other real complications. 

*Now, before I go on any more- I have to say that I realize there are a LOT worse things that could have happened and both Tyler and I truly did feel blessed to have made it this far without any other problems. It really was a miracle that we had such a healthy baby boy on the way, recognizing some never even have that opportunity. Working with those in the field of special education and with URLEND and the cases I see of families with special health care needs-- again, there are a lot of other situations that could bring more "devastating news". But- this is me admitting some of my MANY weaknesses and how I had quite the "poor me" moment when I really didn't have any room to complain at all. 

The doctor told me that the procedure to turn the baby was only successful about 50% of the time and just feeling my belly, he didn't know that I had a lot of  room for them to try. He also said it could be quite uncomfortable for me, as they externally push on my abdomen to try to force him to flip...which brings with it the risk of causing the baby distress and then needing to perform an emergency C-section (though- they reassured me that was a rare occurrence-but why they have to do the procedure in the hospital). So, Tyler and I had to decide what we wanted to do. I was feeling pretty upset and immediately started thinking of "worse-case-scenarios". I have an almost irrational fear of anesthesia and pray constantly that I won't have to have major surgery, as the fear of being put under might just do me in. (Again, I should have realized how lucky I've been to NOT have had to have major surgery up to this point). I knew that C-sections involve a whole different recovery process- including more time- which I then was thinking: there's no way I could think about doing classes. I was also upset when I realized the entire birth experience would be different having a C-section. I even jumped ahead (yes, this is how my brain works- I really do start thinking about ANYTHING related)- how I've heard that once you have a C-section, that might be the only way to deliver in the future and that it could actually limit how many pregnancies one can have. More devastation. Not only had I just convinced myself in a few short hours that I might die in the delivery process now, or, IF I lived- we would already be limited to the number of kids we could have. I know...I was being irrational and over-dramatic. In hindsight, I'm embarrassed to admit all this, but, I'm being honest about what I was thinking. 

I got a blessing from Tyler and my brother, Ben, that evening. It really helped me feel calm and even though there were no guarantees mentioned- I was promised that I could rely on my Savior to help me through this and that He did understand any pain and discomfort I might have. At least I can honestly say that I was grateful for the Priesthood in my home, and for having a knowledge of the Atonement (even if I obviously need to increase my faith and personal application of it).  

I still had long conversations with my mom and sister, Rachel, about our options, to whom I sincerely apologize for taking up so much of their time complaining. I told both of them that I didn't know if I could be as excited as I wanted to be about having a baby if it wasn't the way I imagined it would be. My sister was trying so hard to help me stay positive and both told me that in the end, the most important thing was that we'd have a baby! It didn't REALLY matter HOW he had to come. I also feel bad and apologize to my mom-- here I was complaining to HER about things not turning out how I had imagined...when SHE was the one who chose to be a full time mom rather than do her Masters program and her second baby changed the rest of her life in ways she never could have imagined...our entire family in fact. And yet, I NEVER heard her complain. She is an incredible example to me of accepting the Lord's will and plan, maybe without knowing all the answers for the "whys" and "hows", but having the faith to move forward. I hope one day I can have even an ounce of the faith she has. I'm grateful for our loving families that immediately were praying for us, and especially my mom and sister that just let me vent and have a selfish "me" moment. I know- this is a lot of personal information for a silly blog, but, I felt bad after talking to them, that I was giving the impression that if I couldn't have the "perfect" pregnancy, then I was no longer excited to have a baby. 

I want it to be in writing that I couldn't be more excited. Tyler has always been so good about remaining positive and believing that things will work out in the end as they are meant to. He has such faith and trust in the Lord, I feel so blessed to have him by my side. He let me cry on his shoulder and held me in his arms, while telling me what I already knew: we were weeks away from having a little baby boy to hold- OUR little boy. THAT was the important thing. He was concerned for my safety and acknowledged my fears, and once again, let me lean on his faith to believe that things would work out- even if it was different than both of us imagined. (In case it wasn't clear before, I LOVE him so much!) One of the things that was most upsetting to me about a C-section was that I was afraid I'd be "missing out" on the real experience of labor and that it wouldn't feel as "real" to me not going through all that. (To which those that have experienced IT have reassured me- it would still feel real enough either way!) It's just ironic, because just a few short years ago I had told my mom I might not be able to hold my newborn for a week or so afraid of it looking too "alienesque" for me to really love...and here I was saying that's now why I was upset- that I wouldn't GET to immediately hold my newborn "alien" baby!!! Ü Yes. I have had a change of heart being pregnant these last 9 months and feeling his (sometimes not-so-little) movements inside of me! There has been a living person inside of me...and now I can't WAIT to see him (I haven't ever really been able to tell what they're pointing at on the ultrasound screens!). Even though I try to imagine the feeling of being handed our son for the first time, I'm afraid it's something that can't be imagined and is just one of those things that must be experienced first-hand to really understand the magic of that moment...which is something I can't wait for! 

(And this is why I shouldn't blog- I just get long-winded!) 

Tyler and I decided to give the procedure a try, so after only finishing 1 1/2 of my finals, (it was harder than I thought it would be to stay focused and work with this on my mind!) and praying we wouldn't be the small percentage of  those who required a C-section so I could still finish my finals by Friday- we went in on Wednesday morning to see if this little guy would cooperate! I had to be hooked up to an IV and the doctor was running late (performing a C-section)- so we just had to wait for a good 2 hours before he came in. They took one look on the ultrasound and confirmed he was head up, but the doctor was pleasantly surprised to see there was a good amount of amniotic fluid- which would make it easier to turn him. After getting medicine to relax my muscles, and being warned it might get uncomfortable- the doctor pushed on my stomach for less than a minute and then- FLIP- he said "Well, he's head down now!" What!? All THAT- for less than a minute?! I couldn't believe it! They monitored his heart beat for almost an hour after, to make sure things remained stable, but it had worked! He got his feet taken out from under him, but he cooperated! *They told me there was a chance he'd flip around again, seeing how easily they were able to turn him, but there's nothing more I can do to keep him head down...it's just a waiting game now.

Final analysis: I flunked. If this was just a little "test" to see how I react to any little disturbance or "bump" in the road- yup, as you now know, I failed miserably. I have a lot of room for improvement in strengthening my faith and my trust in the Lord. I have new admiration for those that actually DO have trials and are able to go through them with so much more grace and humility than I did. There is still not a guarantee that things will go smoothly (though- we can hope and pray they will!)- but I feel that this was an important lesson I needed to learn and a "wake-up" call for the future...for whatever challenges may come.  

One little "hidden blessing" of going in for this procedure-
we got to see where to go in the hospital and see what the
delivery room will be like! Now we'll be ready for the REAL thing!

I really had to force myself to work to finish up my finals on time- but I did it- just barely! The minute I hit the last "submit" button, Tyler was telling me "Ok, we're ready for him!" And we sure are! 

Even though there have been some "stresses" to get through (and they're still monitoring my high blood pressure) - being pregnant at this time of the year has helped me realize just how blessed we are (and especially how blessed I am!) There is no better gift that could have been given to the world than the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for His life, His example, His sacrifice for all- for ME. Being pregnant with my first at this time sheds new light on the Christmas story for me and yet I still can't even come close to understanding what Mary might have felt knowing she was going to give birth to the Son of God. Even knowing that I have a special child of God inside me just makes me feel overwhelmed with love and gratitude for this opportunity to have a family here on earth and that we can grow and learn from each other and be together, FOREVER. While we may have a small and simple Christmas celebration this year with few actual presents, it couldn't be more perfect! (Even if this little man decides to come on Christmas Day! What a present that will be!) 

MERRY  CHRISTMAS!!!!

So much to be thankful for...

I can't believe how fast the days are flying by...it's almost Thanksgiving!

We have definitely stayed busy- between work and school and baby preparations...in fact- our "To Do" list keeps growing (much to Tyler's dismay- I keep coming up with "projects" for him to do. In fact- I bet he's regretting telling me he had a tool set-- he's put together quite a few things!) However, even though we have been busy- we feel very grateful for the many things we have been blessed with in our lives. This is such a great time of the year to reflect on those things that often get taken for granted (or at least I am guilty of taking a LOT for granted and not being as grateful as I should be). So, we decided for one of our family nights (and yes, sometimes we have trouble gathering the family together to do these-- with all two of us Ü) to write things we are thankful for on cut-out leaves. We quickly ran out of leaves before we ran out of things to write. I didn't think it would be hard- but I was still surprised at just how easy it was to come up with things: we are thankful for opportunities to work and learn, for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our lives and to center our family around, for having our basic needs met and to live fairly comfortably (despite the drips and drafts and cracks... Ü) , for loving and supportive family and friends, and so much more. We really do feel so so blessed and have so much to be thankful for. In fact- I think we might make this a yearly tradition- adding a new bunch of leaves to our chain-- it was fun to take even just a little time out of our busy schedules to do this. We're especially grateful at this time to have a healthy baby boy joining our family soon!

Look at how we're growing! Ü 

              

29.5 Weeks
*Tyler has this tendency to make me look
like a midget when he takes my picture...
he thinks he's being so funny! Ha! :) 

33.5 Weeks
That's a little better! 

34.5 Weeks

*It's been fun seeing how big our little guy is getting (not as much fun seeing me getting bigger everywhere else though!) We're so excited to see him soon! 

Remember our little plants?! Well- the weather was just getting colder and colder and yet we still didn't have any flowers- but we weren't ready to give up on them yet! I hesitated to bring them inside (not sure of what other little critters might be in the pots) but finally, mid-October, inside they came! Then, just a week ago or so- I opened our curtains to find this...a little flower!! I was quite excited! I don't know how well it will continue to do being inside- but we have a flower...even if it took over 3 months to get it! :)  

   

Adventures are underway...

Well, it's been a month since school started- and what a month it has been!

It has been a little bit of an adjustment to get back into a "school routine." Tyler has to leave by about 6:45 am to get to the train station and then doesn't get home until either 6:11 or 6:41 (depending on what train he makes it on-- and yes, we actually have to be THAT exact with our schedule these days!) However, I am leaving for class about 7:30 in the morning and some days, just barely make it back to pick Tyler up from the station on my way home from campus. SO- our dinners have consisted of cereal, grilled-cheese sandwiches and if we're lucky, one day of a "meal" and leftovers for as long as they can last! (And pizza is almost guaranteed at least once a week!)

We've had some "fun" little challenges thrown in to our busy schedules this last month: Tyler's car that he leaves in Salt Lake to get from the station to his work suddenly died (of course during the time when I was also up there for URLEND training!) Apparently the alternator (that we had just replaced 7 months earlier for $400) was dead. So we had to get it towed from the hotel we were staying at, then had to try coordinating with the mechanic how to get the part replaced. It was supposedly under warranty, however, conveniently, the mechanic that had replaced it originally couldn't find the receipt confirming the part warranty...Anyways. It took over a week of back-and-forth confusion between Provo and SLC mechanics and replacing additional cables, for the car to STILL need to be jump-started. (Apparently- this new alternator is still not charging the battery properly- because, as luck would have it, there is an occasional "dud" one from the shelf, and OF COURSE, we'd be the "lucky" ones to get that one). So, Tyler had to learn some of the SLC bus routes as well as did some walking between the station, mechanic and work. Now the question is- do we renew the registration (also due this month), crossing our fingers that it can last a few more months or do we just accept the fact that we have completely run out of our luck with this car?! (Not that we ever had any... :) *Tyler had gotten a parking ticket for parking too close to railroad tracks by his work just before all this (even though the tracks haven't been used for YEARS). Yeah, that's been our "luck!"

Meanwhile, I have been trying to juggle my class schedule with having a client I see two times a week with URLEND seminars,clinics, and projects, along with doing some research work and setting up volunteer work on the "side." (It was hard to just "jump in" and be required to have a client already, however, it's helping me get out of my comfort zone and try new things- knowing I won't do it perfectly at first, but I'm learning on the go! I am enjoying most of my classes and am still excited about the prospect of what I'll be able to do in the future to help others with their communication, I'm just still trying to figure out how to balance it all!) Then there are the frequent questions of, "what are your plans for next semester?" and trying to figure out IF there is a "plan!"

We did get a crib and mattress, however, who knows when we will get it out of its box and actually set it up! We are very slowly looking for a carseat/stroller and other "necessities", but we're not making much progress on any "nursery" (Who am I kidding?! That room is our "overflow" storage...I don't know that it will ever be a nursery!) As far as names- we're making more progress on what we're NOT naming him than what his name will be! We keep thinking, "oh, we've got time!" - but these last 6 months have flown by-- we're already to 27 weeks! And he lets us know he's there all the time now- lots of kicking and moving around!! :)

We are so excited to have our little guy join our family, but we'd be lying if we didn't also admit we're a little nervous for how it will all work out. Tyler is enjoying his job (he has been getting more responsibilities and taking over some accounts), but, let's be honest, it isn't very ideal for coordinating a baby and school schedules. There is the realization that if I don't do my program now, it only becomes harder/almost impossible to do later (most SLP graduate programs require that you enroll in a Master's program within 5 years of completing undergraduate work. PLUS- a baby is just going to get older and (hopefully) will have siblings down the road...Ü) We're feeling a little torn between our options: We knew Tyler wanted to get some work experience before applying to an MBA program, we knew if I were to complete my graduate program it would most likely need to be done right away (and without a graduate degree I am not able to do much with speech-therapy), and we knew we wanted to have a family. I don't want to feel like we have to choose between one or the other...but we don't want to be "so busy" that we can't enjoy our little boy either. (We've already had to come to the realization that we can't do everything right now in our lives- such as Tyler isn't doing intramurals and I'm not doing orchestra-- we'd love to be able to "DO IT ALL"- but we're really learning the principle of choosing between good,better, and best options and that there is a "time and a season for everything"). We don't want it to seem like we're complaining, we feel SO blessed to have these options in our lives, we're just trying to figure out what will be best for our family in the long run. It's just that as much as we try to "make a plan," our plan doesn't quite go the way we envisioned. Oh to have a magic crystal ball right now! :) We're just trying to keep moving forward with faith and what we do know and keep our hearts and minds open to whatever the Lord has in store for us. We're learning a lot about patience (as much as we want all the answers now, we just don't seem to get them much in advance!) and humility and submitting our will to the will of the Lord (definitely not easy for ME).

So, for the time being, our response to "what are you going to do?" is this: We're having a baby!...and we'll go from there!

How's that for having adventures?! I still feel a little awkward with having a blog- I don't feel like people want to see that much of US...and unfortunately, there isn't much of baby Davis to see at this point without the awkward pictures of me! I've told myself we'll have GOOD stuff to post in about 3 months- but for the time being, we'll just give an occasional picture update here and there (more to prove baby Davis is growing--and so is his mother-- so no judging!)

21.5 weeks

24.5 weeks

26.5 weeks
(we were up in Idaho Falls and it was COLD- so it added to the "awkward" picture!)

The Spirit of Adventure

I suppose that everyone has their own definition of  what constitutes an adventure-

The good ol' dictionary says: "an adventure is an exciting or unusual experience; it may also be a bold, usually risky undertaking, with an uncertain outcome. Adventures may be activities with some potential for physical danger such as skydiving, mountain climbing or participating in extreme sports. The term also broadly refers to any enterprise that is potentially fraught with physical, financial or psychological risk, such as a business venture, or other major life undertakings."

Well, according to that definition- Tyler and I are embarking on some sort of adventure...we're just not sure exactly what kind it will be! :)

We have made the "bold" and "risky" decision to take on: THE REAL WORLD! Tyler and I graduated in April and thus, it seems, everything has an outcome that is uncertain to us! I suppose the only "physical danger" we are currently in is crossing the railroad tracks every day and Tyler taking the high-speed commuter train up to Salt Lake City (nope, no skydiving for us at this point).

Tyler started a job at VMI Nutrition the end of July as an account manager. It is a company that "specializes in the formulation, blending, packaging and testing of powder nutritional consumer goods." (Yeah, he's in the 'white powder' business :) They make things like protein shakes and pre-workout mixes for other companies to sell and Tyler is in charge of working with the companies and coordinating their products and orders. Right now he's doing a lot of the company reports (he's getting really proficient in Excel spreadsheets!) We moved to a two-bedroom condo in south Provo the middle of July that is just a few blocks from the Provo Frontrunner station, so that is what Tyler has been taking up to work each day. It's about an hour ride and then he drives from the Salt Lake station about 5 miles to his work. (I suppose that's another "risky undertaking" as the station is not located in the best neighborhood in Salt Lake- so we just pray that our dying car is still there each day and makes the short drive :) Tyler hopes this job will give him good "business" work experience so he can apply to business school in a few years for his MBA degree.

As far as our "financial or psychological risks"- I will be starting my Master's program in the Speech-Language Pathology program at BYU in just a few short days and I'm not sure what my psychological state will be within a few weeks!! I have the opportunity to work with a professor doing some research while also participating in a LEND training program. This is a program that is grant funded by the Maternal Child Health Care Bureau as an interdisciplinary Leadership Education of Neurodevelopmental Disorders- so focusing on how to improve the care given to children who have severe disabilities by all the professionals that would be involved- from doctors, special educators and speech pathologists, to therapists and psychologists. I am excited about the program, but between that, graduate school and research work, and, oh yeah- - OUR BABY BOY (expected to come early January 2014)- there will be plenty to do! (Hence, the uncertainty of my future psychological state!) And once again, we fall in the "poor college student" category...saving our pennies and counting it a blessing each month when we can pay rent and our little car keeps running- but that's what this time of our lives is about, right?!

I think we would both agree that the most exciting adventure and "major life undertaking" we are about to begin is: PARENTHOOD! We couldn't be more excited about the opportunity to become parents!! With many other "ventures" underway, we have wondered how it will all work out, but, hey, "uncertain outcomes" are all part of the adventure! We just are going forward with faith that "everything will work out" and we'll find out how along with everyone else! :) Sure there are a LOT of things that we'll both have to learn and I'm sure we'll have even more moments to look back on and laugh at how naive we were- but we are thrilled to have a little boy joining our family and can't wait for what adventures he'll bring! :)

To blog or not?!

I love seeing updates of our nieces,nephews and friends on family and friends' blogs or looking up yummy things to eat I wish would just appear on my plate. I enjoy looking at pictures, just not of myself! So I was quite hesitant to start a blog. I wasn't sure what I'd post and I thought it was too much work. However, I also realized Tyler and I are terrible at keeping a journal and soon I was forgetting things that we had done together. So, partly to ease some of my guilty conscience and in an attempt to have some record of what we've been up to, I thought it might be more fun to post little updates in our lives and maybe an occasional picture. Thus, our blog was born.

Now, what to post?
For a long time we joked that we'd be ready for additional family members when we could keep a fish alive. Easy enough, right? WRONG! Sadly, we went through several small goldfish and beta fish, that, despite our loving attention, just did not seem to want to stay in their fish bowls. Yes- we had MULTIPLE fish jump out of their bowls, several that had to be flushed and even one "unaccounted-for mystery disappearance." Even though we had been putting beta water drops in the water, we finally came to the conclusion that the water in Provo was just not suitable for fish (which gave me great comfort thinking we were drinking that same apparently "toxic" water). Recently we took our chances and bought one more fish (but used bottled water- yes, it gets better treatment than us!) AND- we are happy to report that we had success! We were official "fishy parents" :)
Now we're up to 4 pretty beta fish- Look at us go!

Our next "milestone" to reach was getting plants (specifically flowers) to grow from seeds. Our first attempt did not go well as we admittedly got started too late in the summer. However, we weren't ready to give up so easily, so this summer, we set out our plant pots and planted our seeds in late May. Then our landlord decided to water the doors (we're still not sure what she thought she was accomplishing) so our plants got flooded. We tried again. Then we got bugs in the dirt that ate the tiny, just-barely visible seedlings. Hmmm. Replanted- and the hottest summer in Utah came and just scorched our dirt (that attempt really never had a chance of producing plants). Then we moved and I thought, I'll give it one last shot: SUCCESS! Although we don't have any flowers yet, I'm optimistic that we'll get some- but we have green for the time being- more than we've ever had before!




Fish: check. Plants: Check. So- ready or not- we're having a baby! (Our decision to have a baby wasn't really contingent on if we could keep a fish or plants alive, but it is a little more comforting to us to think we can keep things alive, finally!) When we found out a little boy would be joining our family in January- that pretty much made up my mind on starting a blog - - I wanted to be able to give updates and "brag" about our little guy too!! :)

Tyler had just started his job in Salt Lake and didn't think he'd be able to make it for our 20-week ultrasound appointment (August 15). However, he has a very understanding and supportive boss and excited co-workers that basically kicked him out of the office the minute he said the appointment was happening that afternoon. He made it back just in time to surprise me with flowers as I was pulling out to go to the appointment (we were just going to have the technician write down the gender and look at it together later that night). I was so happy he could be there- I don't know what was more fun- seeing the first pictures of our son or seeing Tyler's face filled with so much excitement!! We knew we'd be thrilled with a boy or girl- we just wanted a baby! And I know Tyler would just melt for a little girl, but, I knew he had already pictured watching the BIG GAME with his little boy...and so, we were overjoyed when we could clearly see: It's a BOY! Everything looked great during the ultrasound and he has definitely been very active ever since! I had people telling me that they could start feeling their babies kicking starting at 17 weeks, but I hadn't felt anything (or that I recognized as baby movement at least!) However, within a day or two after seeing our little guy, I clearly felt some little taps and Tyler could feel them too! Now- I think he's running laps or something- I feel him moving around a lot! It still is fun to think- there is a person in there! And we couldn't be more excited and anxious to meet him! Now- to pick out a name... :)