photos

So I know I'm way behind in posting photos, so here are 2 of Jen & Alex. I'll post some of Daniel when I find a recent one.

Baby Door

Last week when Daniel and I were driving somewhere and I was moaning because of pain he asked if the baby was kicking me. I told him yes and he said, "Mommy, we got to get a bigger baby door." I thought that was cute, but wasn't sure what he meant until Lance told me that while I was at my OB appointment he told Daniel that they were checking to see how big my baby door was and that it needs to get to a 10 before the baby can come. I'm pretty sure Daniel thinks the baby is coming out of my belly button, so I'm not sure what he thinks is going to happen. Being 3 must be an interesting time of life. :)
Just for the record, my baby door is at a 2 and if I've progressed to a 3 by my appointment this Wednesday I'm going to set a day to induce. I'm so tired of the pain and discomfort and I'm ready to get this baby here. Plus, I don't want to spend the 16th in the hospital and knowing my body, I won't go early on my own. So here's hoping and praying for a baby this week!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SNOW!?!

What is up with the snow? It's spring break for the kids and we've got like 2 inches of snow outside. It's so terribly ANNOYING! Last year was cold and wet too for spring break. I wish we could get out of here and head south for the weekend, but Lance isn't finished with the semester yet. I really liked how App State University & the public schools tried to sync their holidays--at least I remember it that way. One would think that with BYU such a big part of the community here, they could all get on the same schedule. For instance, next week is when graduation is and a break for the university students. Why oh why couldn't the public schools wait one week for spring break? We didn't get any days off around Easter anyway, so what's the point.
Anyway, there's my rambling for today.
We went to the Dinosaur Museum at Thanksgiving Point today and we had a fun time. It was a little too much walking for me, but it turned out okay. Tomorrow we'll have another fun indoor activity since the parks aren't an option. Well, gotta go get the kids ready for bed. Joy!

Caffeine

I don't drink caffeine. Ever. But tonight I knew was going to be tough to get through so I had a coke with dinner. It was very helpful but now it's reached the baby and she is doing some serious back flips. I think it's going to be hard to get to sleep. Oh well, it was worth it!!

Movies & stuff

I took Daniel & Alex to see Monsters vs. Aliens today--Jenny didn't want to go so we went while she was still at school. It turned out to be better than I thought it would. Daniel can't really keep the seat down alone, so I had to help him with that, and I need to remember next time to put a very fresh diaper on him right before we go. Yikes, the soda and water we had went right through him!!! Twice! I was impressed.
Anyway, the boys really had a fun time and I don't feel as terrible as I thought I would. So hooray! Tomorrow starts spring break and unfortunately we're supposed to get snow. So we're going to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point, and then Thursday we're going to Jumpin Jacks. I'm still trying to figure out a plan for Friday. I really had hoped that Lance would be able to join us for some of the spring break fun, but he's too busy finishing up the semester. It'll be nice when he can enjoy the kids' spring break too. Last year at this time the Coney's came for a visit. So unless my pregnancy brain has failed me more than I think, it will have been one year since we've seen them. And longer since we've seen Chuck & Donna. We miss all of you family and friends who are far away.

how early?

What time were your kids up this morning? Or tomorrow morning if the Easter Bunny hasn't visited your house yet? Mine were up at 6:45am--ON A SATURDAY!! I don't wake up that early, ever, if I can help it. Curses on the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus who turn a regular morning into craziness. I'm going back to bed and hoping that they'll just play quietly for a few hours leaving me to sleep and Lance to work. I can only hope.
Happy Easter!

Ring on or off?

Well, the swelling has begun to increase. Tonight Lance & I went out for a date and I couldn't get my engagement ring on. Thankfully my wedding band is a tad bigger and it's already on there, although I couldn't get it off. So the question is do I pry the wedding band off before it gets so tight that I lose my finger? Or do I leave it on so I'm not 8 months pregnant with 3 other kids and no ring? (I hate those looks I get from people when I finally have to remove the band.) At least I can still fit into one pair of shoes. I'm hoping that it will warm up so that I can switch to flip flops and ignore the swelling in my feet and ankles. Although then I'll have to start shaving my legs and that's no easy task. Ah, the joys of the final weeks.

35 WEEKS. . .

Tomorrow!!! So close and yet so far away. It's so tricky because those 1st five weeks of pregnancy are almost freebies. You usually don't know that your pregnant and the sickness usually hasn't kicked in. But there is nothing free about the last five! I only hope I am mercifully spared the full 5 weeks. Next week I go in to get checked and see if my body is doing anything to start getting this kid out. I dreamed last night that I had already had her. I think it was because I held Calista's newborn baby and so that carried over into my dreams. What a shocking wake up to still be pregnant. Ahhhhhhh, I'm glad it will be over soon. The kids, Lance & I are getting anxious to meet this little one. :)

weather, reading, moving and other random subjects

I think the weather has more effect on my mood than I'd like to admit. Two weeks ago it was sunny and warm for a few days. And although I didn't really have more energy, I felt better. We've had a cold spell now for the last two weeks with wind, rain and snow and I don't feel as good as I did before. I hope it gets warm soon because I need all the help I can get!

Alex has discovered the Magic Treehouse series and he is loving reading alone. I was hesitant at first as to whether or not he would be able to read them by himself, but he seems to be doing fine. The first book he read out loud to me and the second he read to himself. I'm not sure he got 100% of the words, but he understood the meaning of the book and that is good enough. He's in Kindergarten!! Jenny is also reading book after book by herself. I think she's in the middle of about 4 at the moment. It is so gratifing to me to have two kids who love to read and can read so well. Being literate opens up so many doors to wonderful adventures. The coolest thing is that Lance & I didn't really teach them to read. We just read to them over and over, played games with the alphabet and encouraged them in reading activities and they picked it up. Daniel is coming right along too. He's been a little slower getting going, mostly because he's too busy climbing, jumping and running, but he's starting to memorize & "read" books back to me. I hope they will always love to read!

We talked to our landlords a week ago and they are wanting to move back into this house as soon as May. We have a contract until July 31, but we've been considering moving early. Right now we're in the thinking and praying stage trying to decide when the best time to move would be. Moving in a few weeks would make it so that we didn't have to move with a new baby--a definite plus, but we're also unsure about a job for Lance so we're not sure where to move. There are many nice rentals all over the valley but if we go south and Lance gets a job up North, we'll be in trouble. So we're leaning towards staying here at least for May (that way Jen & Alex can finish school) and then we'll go from there. We'll be sad to leave this ward, we've made some good friends, but we always knew that this was a temporary location.

General Conference is today and tomorrow. I love listening to the prophet and other leaders of my church talk. There were several talks on adversity and being happy through adversity because of the hope of Christ. I was uplifted and inspired to do better and to be more positive during the last 6 weeks of this pregnancy. And then I made dinner and emptied the dishwasher and ended up in tears because of exhaustion. Pregnancy is an interesting thing. It's so physically demanding. Not to mention emotionally draining. I'll be glad when I've gotten through this trial/blessing. I say both of them because I realize what a priviledge it is to be able to carry and have a baby. I know so many wonderful people who aren't able to have kids and it makes me sad. So I'm trying to appreciate the gift of a baby more than the pain of pregnancy. It is not easy.

Lance will be done with this semester in less than 3 weeks. We are so looking forward to his finishing this last full semester of very hard classes. After this he's still got a few hard things to finish-like his dissertation--but no more statistics class!!!!!! He's worked so hard the last year and a half and we're looking forward for him to finish, get a job and be done with homework! I can't wait!

I hope to post some pictures soon. I need to take some first! :) The other day both Jen & Alex drew a picture and in both of them I was in bed. I think they are enjoying the extra T.V. time they get when I rest. I keep telling myself it won't kill them, and it won't. :) 6 more weeks to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's a girl!

Tracy & Ryan had a girl today!! Her name is Mya and she was 7lbs 14oz--same as Jenny and 20 something inches long--sorry Tracy, I forgot the exact length, it's my pregnancy brain.
There are cute photos on their blog, I'm pretty sure there's a link right next to where I'm posting this.
Congrats to them and to Emmalyn on becoming a big sister!

Birthday

I wanted to send a big THANK YOU to everyone who made my birthday wonderful! I received so many emails, phone calls, treats and good wishes. Thanks for being my friends, thanks for taking the time to say Happy B-day. I really had a great day!
The best part was going with Lance & the kids & the De Vries to the Draper Temple Open House, and then out to dinner with them and my parents. It was really neat to show the kids all the different rooms in the temple. They loved the high ceilings and the chandeliers. And the bus ride from the church to the temple was sickening to me and thrilling to the kids. They are so fun!
Well thanks again!!!

Forever Pregnant

So this morning I'm 28 weeks, 3 days pregnant and I realized that if you add the 13 1/2 weeks I was pregnant last year before the miscarriage I've already passed 40 weeks. No wonder this pregnancy is seeming to last forever. I've passed the gestation period for a human, and I've still got 12 1/2 weeks to go!! So what does that make me? Anyone know the gestational period for an elephant? Am I getting close? I know a giraffe is a lot longer, so I won't compare myself there. But I'll have a 53 1/2 week gestational period when this is all said and done. (okay, so I did have a 3 months break, but it wasn't long enough to let my hormones settle down. No wonder I'm crazy emotional all the time.)
I've been getting a few emails encouraging me to post more frequently. I would love to say that I'll try harder, but let's face it, all my posts will just be about the aches and pains of this pregnancy. The other three were so much easier (and shorter). My whole body is falling apart! My sister posted her top worst things about her pregnancy and I'll give you a few of mine. By the way, remember that I still have 12 1/2 weeks to go, which means these will all get worse and I'm sure there will be more to add.
Where to begin? :)
Number 1: My left hip goes out and I fall at random times. Thankfully I haven't fallen yet outside, and I catch myself most of the time before I hit the ground. But I have fallen twice this month all the way to the ground. Once I was holding Daniel and he came down with me and the other time I was just walking and my hip went out and I fell. It's kind of scary not knowing if one step is going to bring me down. There isn't any warning at all either, I just buckle.
Number 2: Sciatic pain down the outside of both legs along with lower back pain.
Number 3: (this is a favorite): Did you know that you could get varicose veins during your pregnancy? In places that you would never imagine? So mine are on the inside of my leg--very high up on the inner thigh and they make my whole leg numb sometimes and sometimes they just cause pain so bad it's difficult to walk or sit or drive or do anything.
Number 4: Heartburn--tums would be a food group for me Tracy, if I could stand them--I'm downing papaya enzymes and Maalox on a regular basis instead.
Number 5: Crazy emotions and lots of fatigue. I asked Jenny and Alex if they thought I was more happy or more sad recently and Jenny said I was, "overwhelmed and exhausted" (we have one of those emotion magnets on the fridge) and Alex said "happy and sad". So even my kids have noticed my crazy emotions. Joy.
And there you have it. Call it complaining if you want to, this is a hard pregnancy. Some people have it easy--I've had it easy in the past--but not this time. I'm just hoping and praying that my body will hold together for the rest of the pregnancy. I still have such a long time to go.

Anniversary

Lance & I celebrated our 9th anniversary on Thursday. A friend of ours babysat and we went to the Timpanogos Temple together to do sealings. It was wonderful! Then my mom & dad watched the kids from Friday to Saturday so that we could have some alone time. I slept for 10 hours!!!! It was so quiet. We had dinner & breakfast out, watched a movie, played video games, read and enjoyed every minute without our little darlings. Thanks mom & dad! And thanks Frank & Melanie and Cal & Debbie for the gifts! But most of all, thanks Lance for 9 wonderful years together. I look forward to a lifetime of joy with you.

Merry Christmas to all!

So I've decided not to add too many more details to the post below. It will suffice to say that all of us got the stomach flu in one fashion or another. It was a delightful addition to our holiday but we're all better now. Thankfully!
So I've decided that I'm going to post a Merry Christmas 2008 review on my blog rather than printing it out and mailing/emailing it to everyone. I had planned to send cards/emails to all of our friends and family but illness and other factors has ended that hope. Although I did/am sending a few paper cards. So you might still get something in the mail from us, but don't hold your breath!
So here it goes. . .
We had a great Christmas this year!! Shiree's parents moved to Utah last year and this year Joe, Ashley & Marley, and Tracy, Ryan, & Emmalyn were able to join the rest of us here in Utah for a visit. This is the first time in 7 years that Shiree's entire family has been together and it was wonderful! Even with crazy snow storms and sickness all around we had a wonderful time.

Our biggest news this year is that we're expecting a baby in May 2009 and it's a GIRL!!! (We were waiting to find out before sending out the Christmas cards.) We are very excited and relieved. :)
Lance has completed another year of school and is close to finishing his coursework. We look forward to him finishing his classes this summer and getting a job. We have no idea where that will take us but we're excited for another adventure. We all enjoyed Lance's lighter class load this summer and spent a lot of time at Seven Peaks Water Park. We also took a trip to Lagoon and 2 trips to the Zoo. In his spare time Lance likes to play the guitar--he borrowed an electric one from a friend and has been enjoying that! He also likes to go for drives on his motorcycle and enjoy the beautiful mountains. He hiked Mount Timpanogoes in early fall. He was called as 2nd Counselor in the Bisphoric a few months ago and that is keeping him busy as well.
Shiree has been keeping busy with 3 very active kids and an entire house to run. She's been teaching Sunday School since March and has enjoyed that very much. She finally feels at home here and enjoys hanging out with her friends. She's been able to spend time helping in Alex's classroom and enjoys that very much. Her favorite things to do are sleep and read--but she's not able to do that as much as she'd like. Her favorite acivities this year were a trip to Salt Lake with Lance and another to Park City. She also loved having Tracy and Emmalyn visit earlier in the year and all the time spent at the park, 7-Peaks, and other fun family adventures. She loves being a mom and feels very lucky that she can stay home with the kids.
Jenny turned 7 this year and started 2nd grade. She loves to read, write, draw and color as well as play. She loves to watch movies, her favorite is Kung-fu Panda. She loves spring & winter and loves swinging on the tree swing outside as well as riding her bike. Her favorite book is Tale of Despereaux and she's excited to see the movie. She also read every Nancy Drew Notebooks book in the library as well as the Magic Treehouse series, Junie B. Jones and lots of other books. She also sings beautifully and is starting to learn to play the guitar. Her favorite thing to do is go to school. She's doing very well in her class and has lots of friends. She's a big help around the house, especially in the mornings helping Daniel stay out of trouble when mommy is still in bed. She is thrilled to have a baby sister coming into the family and will surely be a lot of help. She's excited to turn 8 and get baptized in June. We love having Jenny in our family! (That's her banana/penguin)
Alex turned 5 and started Kindergarten. He loves school so very much!! His favorite thing about school is recess (and everything else too). His favorite movies are Wall-E and Kung-Fu Panda. He loves to read and can read really well. He has too many favorite books to choose one and he also loves to work in his Spiderman, Scooby Doo and Clifford workbooks. He loves to write, draw and color and plays every chance he gets. His favorite season is summer because he loves to ride his bike, climb trees and play in the yard. He learned to ride a bike on two wheels early this summer! He is a sweet boy who is very caring and loving. He is quick to give hugs and notices when others are feeling sad and tries to help them feel better. We are so glad he is in our family and we love him very much!
Daniel turned 2 this year and is a very active little boy! He has to work hard to keep up with Alex & Jenny but he does it! He learned to ride a bike with training wheels and a three-wheeled scooter this summer. He's amazingly fast for a two year old on his bike/scooter and can climb and jump high enough to scare his mommy. His favorite movie is Wall-E. His favorite books are Thomas the Tank Engine books and he also likes any lift the flap books. His favorite thing to do is play with rocket ships and he loves anything with wings or wheels. He is a sweet little boy who keeps us on our toes. He's learning the alphabet and his numbers and colors and he loves to do his "homework" with Jenny & Alex. He loves to see be able to see the Provo Temple from our upstairs window and points out the Angel Moroni statue every time we drive by. He's a joy to have around and brings a lot of energy to our family!
We are thankful for this season that we've had to remember the life of the Savior and we are thankful for His exampel and love and the blessings of peace that we have because of the gift of Jesus Christ. We hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and that 2009 brings you much joy and happiness.
Love,
The Domes

Projectile vomit and Q-Tips

So last night, Jenny projectile vomited carrots and pot roast all over her room. Mostly on the edge of her bed, but from her closet door all the way to the window on the other side of the room. I won't even go into how I (Lance) had to clean (and am still cleaning) it up. Plus, we (mostly Shiree) had to get all of the chunks out of all 10 layers of sheets and blankets Jenny had thrown on her bed. That was not the end of it, Shiree was up 2 more times during the night, and Daniel woke up at 7:30, but I'll let Shiree fill in the terrifying details. So this morning, while I am continuing to spray, wipe, and vaccuum in Jenny's room, Daniel decides to climb on the bathroom counter, get into our cabinet, and starts throwing Q-Tips (name brand, not generic!) all around the house, like the Q-tip fairy. I had to take a picture for posterity. So, enjoy, and give thanks this season that you were not us last night!

Daniel

I (Lance) took this photo of Daniel today. Yes, he is amazingly cute.

Time to go private

I'm thinking that it's time to make my blog private. I've been considering it for awhile and I think for security and peace of mind I'm going to do it. If you haven't received an email from me lately, send me your email so that I include you in my list of invites. And if I miss you , sorry, just send me an email or call. Thanks!

Daniel's Christmas list

Daniel just woke up so here is his list with help from his brother and sister:
puzzle
mickey mouse
buzz light year
big Thomas Train--that you can ride on
Harold the Helicopter
Mario Kart
gamecube
rock n roll CD
money

Jenny's Christmas List

Jenny's Christmas list word for word from her paper:
Dear Santa Clause,
For Christmas I want
A "Mo" Action Figure (from Wall-E)
A gamecube
Lego Star Wars
An electric razor (the scooter kind)
I really want an i-pod.
Roller skates
NO JEWELRY
A little mac--like the one Rich & Julie have
Hungry, Hungry Hippo
The Game of Life
Radio
Maybe a z-phone
Tree house
Maybe a cell phone
100 erasers (or less or more)
a lot of pens
slippers
And my right front tooth.
That's my list, Santa.
Jenny

Alex's Christmas List

Alex wrote his Christmas list today. Here it is for grandparents and anyone else interested:
(I am writing this word for word from Alex)
Christmas Toys
Star Wars Toys--ships, guys, even big light sabers
Lego Star Wars 2 (for gamecube)
Wall-E action figure
Razor (electric) (scooter kind)
Wall-E DVD
Playhouse (for the backyard)
MONEY!!!!!!!!!
Gamecube
slippers

He also drew pictures, but I can't add those. Sorry.