Second Trimester and Beautiful Vistas

“Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he’s been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to just be people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is like an old time rail journey…delays…sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling burst of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride.”

― Gordon B. Hinckley

A Beautiful Vista

This is my favorite quote of the week. My life is very very consistently wonderful---but not because its a big party where everything goes right. One of the lessons I'm beginning to learn is that life is great not because of a lack of problems, but because of the many lessons to be learned and the relationships to be had.

Speaking of really great things, I'm officially 20 weeks along and HALFWAY THERE!! I've been singing Bon Jovi's Livin' On a Prayer all day. My exhaustion levels have upgraded from barely twitching zombie to slightly-faster-than-normal sloth. I'm not back to usual but at least I can think about more than when I get to sleep again. This makes school, work, and keeping up with the house soooo much easier.

But the best news is...I LIKE FOOD AGAIN! Halllelllujahhhh!! I haven't been nauseous in over a week and actually enjoy cooking. I've especially enjoyed and wanted fresh foods---such a relief considering how before, looking at a salad could put me in fetal position (kidding...kind of). Maybe this is because my body was beginning to worry about my baby's chemical make up coming primarily from sour gummy worms and pot stickers. The only foods I really don't like are, surprisingly, desserts. This is the first time in my existence that I have not liked sweet things. I've always had to fight with my sweet tooth, and so while its nice to actually want the cucumber over a cookie, I kind of feel like a part of myself is missing. But lets be honest, it'll be back soon :)

As far as cravings go, besides my borderline disturbing love of California's Taco Tree nachos, I have found myself always wanting potatoes. Mashed, baked, whatever, I want them. And as mentioned in a previous post, I won't say no to red meat. Steak...mmmm...Oh and water is always good. Despite my drinking 1.5 oceans a day I STILL feel thirsty.

The only things not so fabulous are just those that come with normal pregnancy. Braxton's are super rude and can sneak up on me in really awkward situations (talking to someone, and suddenly my tummy hardens and squeezes, contorting my face into a constipated-esque grimace). I don't sleep well at night, between the leg cramps and bathroom breaks I'm up, at best, every two hours. Poor Carter has finally gotten used to it...except for when I scream at him at 2 am to come kill a nasty, huge spider by the toilet.

Then there's growing pains. I can tell that this baby is growing a lot because one week I looked fairly normal and the next I was definitely pregnant. And ever since, I've just grown and grown. The ligaments are stretching and my innards are moving! This has made exercise awkward. I don't run anymore because it hurts too bad. My joints ache and I cramp up constantly so I'm calling it quits, at least until this current growth spurt calms down a little. Luckily I've found gentler ways to work out, so I'm not insane yet, but I definitely miss my morning runs. Totally worth it though.

But of course none of this matters because I can consistently feel my baby moving! I love knowing that he/she's actually inside of me all safe, warm, and happily playing. I can't wait until Carter will be able to feel! This is all just so fun!

But anyways, that's enough pregnancy talk. I'm really grateful for this baby and can't wait to meet it. We find out the gender in a month so stay tuned!!

Awesome Dads

In honor of Father's Day weekend I wanted to take a moment and publicly thank all the awesome men in my life. I'm one of those really blessed people to have been raised and surrounded by honorable, fun, strong, kind, loving, brave, and hardworking men. Some of these men have kids of their own and some don't, but each has made an impact in my life.

There are two guys that I especially want to shout out to. First, my own dad. My dad is wonderful. In a million little ways he lets each of his six children know that they are important to him. He's always been my superhero and is still one of my favorite people to share exciting news with. His generosity and hard work are an example to me of what it means to be a "provider". As I grew up, watching how he honored, loved, respected, and cherished my mom taught me how to expect to be treated by a good man. He helped me value my womanhood by holding women in high esteem. I also appreciate all that he taught me, whether it was in a car ride to the store or in FHE, he passed down a lot of wisdom. I may not have seemed interested at the time, but I am so grateful for the time he took  to teach me; so much of who I am has come from those little moments.

My dad with Dallan, Chancey, and I after we climbed the Y

 Next, I wanted to thank my husband. Naturally, I'm crazy about him, and not just because he's ridiculously good looking. 2.5 months into marriage, I told my husband that I was pregnant (I had gotten a blood test and found out I was 4 weeks along). Obviously, we were both more than a little surprised, but instead of being worried about how everything was going to work, he expressed nothing but excitement, love, and gratitude to God. Not once throughout my pregnancy has he been the slightest bit annoyed with my limited capacity to do what I used to. As I've struggled with nausea, fatigue, etc he has always comforted and loved on me, reminding me that I am "turning food into a baby" and have every right to feel exhausted. He has incredible faith that everything will work out, and works harder than anyone that I know. Seriously, this guy is a MAN. I am so grateful for how he has magnified his role as a "father" by taking care of me and everything that we'll need for our baby. I could go on for days about how much I've grown to love and respect him, but this post is already long. Basically, I love my husband and cannot imagine life without him.

Our wedding day