The Verdict.....

I have been dieing to blog but I have not had access to a computer for the last few days. We found out Monday morning that Jody got the job! I am so happy for him. He worked really hard to get it and lost a lot of sleep over it. So we will be moving in a month or so. It all depends on his training and everything.

We are having a great time in Georgia. I got to see my grandparents Sunday and Monday and then we went to Pigeon Forge Monday evening and stayed in a 14 bedroom 12 bathroom cabin. We are here until Sunday so I will post pictures soon.

Congrats to Stephanie who gave birth to Dillon, her fourth baby on Valentines Day! You guys have got to read this article about the birth.

Yuck!

Me at 22 weeks. Not the best picture but when I promise I deliver. I will post more when I get to Georgia.

Busy!

Sorry for slacking people. I do have pictures, vidoeo and events to post about but I don't have time! We got home late Monday night from San Francisco and I took Tuesday off from cleaning, unpacking, blogging, etc. because I was exhausted! Since Tuesday I have been on the go nonstop. I am working from 8-5:30 today and tomorrow. My dad's secretary is out of town and I am filling in for her as much as I can for some extra cash.

Meanwhile... Jody got a call back yesterday from AstraZeneca and the manager told him that he is being considered for the job but that he needs to submit a 30-60-90 day plan of what he would do once he got the job. Luckily my mom is off work this week and is helping out with the kids. Remember we are leaving for Georgia Saturday so Jody will submit his plan before we leave and then we will find out next week. I have cleaning, packing, haircutting, and errands to run but have no time! It will be nice to finally get to Georgia and take a breath.

I will post pictures of the belly before I leave. I am officially in maternity clothes now. Not so much fun. Hope you all had a great Valentines Day!

Events

For the last month we have anxiously been waiting for a call from the manager of a pharmaceutical company to schedule a second interview with Jody. Just when I was about to give up he got a call.

We are back down in the Bay area this weekend. His interview is Monday afternoon but we drove down here Saturday and have spent the weekend with Tasha and Craig. Makynna is doing great. If everything continues to go smoothly they will be home at the end of March. We have missed them so much! Ammon is having a blast with his girlfriend Lex and best friend Jake (of course the best friend thing is one sided, Jake is 6 and Ammon is 3 1/2). Ammon just idolizes him.

We will be back Monday night and then head to Georgia on Saturday. Wish Jody luck!

Ammon and Lex are obviously faking it!

Pictures

We have had beautiful weather the last few days. I think if I woke up to sunshine and blue skies every morning I would have energy to get more done. I love the way good weather uplifts and motivates me. I need to move to Hawaii or something.

Confirmation

When I found out we were having a girl I was beyond excited. But over the weeks I have begun to question the ultrasound. Lots of people find out they are having one sex only to deliver the opposite. Luckily for me we have an ultrasound tech in our ward. On Sunday I showed her my ultrasound picture and she told me to just come in and get an ultrasound from her today.

So we did and she confirmed that we are having a girl. Okay so maybe now I can finally start to buy some girl clothes!

Think you can tell the difference between a boy or girl? Try this quiz.

relief and reflection

If you've never heard of AFP screening before, it is a screening that is done for pregnant women to detect abnormalities in the fetus. Between 15 and 20 weeks of pregnancy a woman can elect to have a simple blood test taken to determine whether the baby could have certain birth defects such as, Down syndrome, trisomy18, neural tube defects and a few others. I have always elected not to have the test because whether there was a problem or not I knew I would not abort the baby. This test is also known for false-positive results. Leading expectant mother to worry for absolutely no reason. When a mother gets a positive result a follow up test will almost always come out negative. So why do it? I chose to have the test taken this time because my doctor urged me to. He said that because we live in such a remote area it would be best to give birth to a child with birth defects at a better hospital. I also chose to do it because if my child did have an abnormality it would be nice to prepare myself for it.

I had the test taken two weeks ago and thought on and off about it over the last few weeks. Today I called my doctor's office and was relieved to hear the nurse say that the test came out clear. Then I got to thinking what if it hadn't? How do women handle these types of situations when they are already exhausted and hormonal because they are carrying a child who could possibly have a birth defect? I have always felt that if I had a child like this that it would be a special child sent to enrich and better our lives. But if these thoughts became reality would I truly feel like that? Mothers or future mothers what do you think?

After watching a great episode of Grey's last night I walked upstairs to go to bed and stopped in the boys room to watch them sleep. I was filled with an overwhelming sense of gratitude to be a mother of these sweet little boys. I stopped and looked at each one and for the millionth time in my life thought how amazing it was that these our my children, that I have been blessed to be their mother. What a wonderful gift I have been given. Now as I reflect upon the things I have just written I realize that no matter what the outcome I would love any of my children just the same and the urgency I feel to protect them and take care of them would be just a strong.