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.

Scary

This poor man was attacked by a mountain lion last week while hiking with his wife in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. I first heard about the attack when I received an email from our homeowners association president (no, we aren't homeowners but own land in the community). Apparently the couple have a home in the same neighborhood.

I have walked this area numerous times. My mom had actually planned on taking her sister, who is visiting, through the same area. After the attack game wardens closed the park and sent dogs out to search for the lion. They were able to kill two lions in the park. One ended up being the lion that attacked this man. Moral of the story, never hike alone and if you think like me, always bring a weapon.

Random

I have been meaning to update my blog but am having trouble uploading pictures. I updated my Kodak Easy Share gallery and now it won't let me upload my pictures. It's so annoying!

Have you ever tried frozen grapes? They are very addicting. I buy a big plastic container of grapes at Costco and then break them up into bundles to fit in sandwich size bags. Then I put them in the freezer and eat them for a snack. I love them.

Ammon has been Superman for the last few weeks. He watches Superman Returns everyday and acts out each scene. I will post a video of it when I get my computer back in sync with my camera. The other day I was making orange juice and he came in the kitchen right as the concentrate fell out of the can and said, "That was amazing!" I let him stir the orange juice and when he was done he said, "Can I have a dollar now?" I asked him why he wanted a dollar and he told me, "Because I made the orange juice." I asked him if someone else had paid him money for doing something and he said, "Lindsey gave me a dollar when I helped her with Isobel." I love this age. He is starting to catch on to how the world works. I really didn't know how to respond so I said, "Well are you going to give me a dollar for making you dinner?" then he said, "No I don't have that."

My stomach is growing, Jody is still waiting to hear back about the job and he is addicted to The Office.

Why do I even bother?

Back when Lindsey was here we watched Oprah one night. The show that night was about how often use should get new pillows, wash your sheets, and basically keep your home clean and free of dust mites and bacteria that can make you sick. One lady on the show had 6,000 more times harmful bacteria in and around her sink than she did in her toilet. Gross! I don't know about Lindsey but I have been doing a lot more cleaning and washing lately. Today I got out the ammonia and scrubbed my sink, counters and table really good. I also swept and mopped my floor. Only 10 minutes later Cohen threw his left over lunch on the floor. Then Ammon put on his shoes to get ready for school, walked across the floor and covered it in dirt! I ended up sweeping three times before 12:00 just to keep it clean for a few hours. UR!

Yesterday Jody watched the boys while I took in Dreamgirls at the movie theater. I don't understand why it took so long to come to our theater. I really enjoyed the movie and especially thought Jennifer Hudson was amazing in it. She has the most unbelievable voice and is a wonderful actress. I look forward to seeing her in more flicks. Beyonce looked beautiful and the music was amazing. Go see it.

Cravings

This is the part of my pregnancy when I start gaining weight and really begin looking pregnant. Interesting that I began having intense cravings this weekend for sweets. While we were in Medford this past weekend I got the best sugar cookie I have ever had at a store in the mall called the Cookie Connection. I took one bite and quickly returned to buy another. Now I am kicking myself for not buying every sugar cookie in the entire bakery. What was I thinking? I had saved half of one to eat today. When I woke up from my nap I suddenly remembered the cookie and frantically began searching our place for it. Some how it disappeared. I blamed Jody for eating it and then Ammon but no one fessed up. I believe Jody because he knows not to mess with my food. So here I am remembering the perfect taste of that sugar cookie with the most perfect frosting and amount of sprinkles on it. I hate the drive to Medford but today I could be coaxed into driving right back to that mall just to buy those cookies. Jody asked me why I don't just make some but that's my other problem right now, laziness! How much do you love me mom?

Gone Again

Tomorrow we are leaving again to go to the temple in Medford. We are staying in a hotel so at least we won't have to drive up and back in one day. My new job is going great. Time goes by pretty quickly and it's nice to get out and have something to do.

Jody had an interview last week in Santa Rosa and now he is waiting to hear back for a second interview. He has also talked to a guy from a medical sales company in southern California and is suppose to hear from him again soon. So we are crossing our fingers that he will get hired. He is getting a little restless with not much to do at work and hanging out with the kids twice a week.

We are also heading to Georgia next month. Luckily we were able to get tickets out of McKinleyville. I can't wait to see everyone and I am excited to get my hair done by my sister in law because it's disgusting right now!

Does anyone know how long American Idol is going to have auditions? I am getting sick of these horrible singers.

Growing

Pregnancy is so weird. First you are excited to be pregnant and to start being able to wear maternity clothes, then by the time you do you feel disgusting! I started feeling the baby move about a week ago and each day I feel her more and more. Now my body is changing. Things are getting bigger, especially the parts that Jody likes. My belly is starting to poke and I have been unbuttoning my pants in the car and when I am at home. I refuse to wear maternity clothes until it is absolutely necessary because after twenty weeks I get really sick of them. I am so white that I look sick in this picture but I feel better than I look.


I think I have had the same name for our first girl before I even married Jody. When both of my sisters were pregnant with girls last year both of their husbands, I think, joked about using it. We are naming our baby girl Rylee Alexandra. We still aren't sure about the spelling so any suggestions would be much appreciated.

I went shopping for girl clothes for the first time yesterday. Yahoo! I just had to get that out there. I found this onesie and HAD to get it.

Some pics we took before we said farewell to Lindsey and Izzy. I look hideous!

It's a .............

Girl, Girl, GIRL!!! I seriously can't believe it! Words can't describe how excited I am. Yesterday we drove to San Francisco to reluctantly drop Lindsey and Iz off at the airport. After we left we drove to Palo Alto to spend the evening and today with Tasha. Janelle, Tasha's sister in-law and a family friend is also pregnant and a couple weeks ahead of me. They had made appointments for both of us to go to a ultrasound place to find out what we were both having. I let Janelle go first because I was too nervous. She found out she is having a boy. Then it was my turn. I put Jody on speaker phone and within 10 seconds the tech stopped the ultrasound and asked if I wanted to know what I was having. I was so nervous and thought he would say boy because he knew so quickly. When he said you are having a girl my mom and I both screamed and started crying. I feel so blessed to have two little boys that will take care of their baby sister. Life couldn't get any better.

p.s. This isn't my baby just a picture I downloaded off the website.

Birthday Present?

I have always been interested in getting this makeup but never wanted to order it before I tried it. Today my mom, Lindsey, Izzy and I went to a salon and got bare minerals makeovers. I loved feeling like I didn't have makeup on my face but seeing that my face looked fresh and my skin tones were more unified. Since I won't be buying any clothes anytime soon I have decided that this is what I want for my birthday in March.

I am heading back to the bay area today. Lindsey is flying home to London on Tuesday. I am leaving Ammon here and taking Cohen (I wish it were the other way around because Ammon is much easier than Cohen). We will stay in Vacaville two nights and then in Stanford the last night when we go to visit Tasha and Makynna.

One more thing. A guy in our ward who is a podiatrist asked me to work in his office two afternoons a week from 1:30 to 5:00. Jody says that he can watch the kids while I'm there. I want to do it for some extra money but I hate the thought of being tied down twice a week. I am also nervous about being tired because I get really exhausted in the afternoons. It sounds pretty low key. So any advice on the matter would be much appreciated!

Loved It

If you like romantic comedies and you think Jude Law is hot then you must see this movie! Me, mom, Kasey and Alex went last week and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am not always a fan of Cameron Diaz but I liked her in this movie and though they could have picked a better person for Jack Black's part he didn't ruin it for me.

Happy New Year!

We have had a very busy week. Christmas came and went and it all seems to be a blur now. So I will skip through the details and post lots of pictures! We already miss Kasey, Matt and their kids who left today. My parents three bedroom, two bathroom rental was a little cramped for all of us but it was worth it. I know I've said this before but the best part of getting all of us together is seeing the kids play together. Each one of them is just so adorable and unique from any of the other kids.

Hello

So first I must apologize to everyone. I have not been checking or commenting on any of your blogs lately. So, sorry but this could be a good thing. It means I may actually have a life! I am not suppose to be up for too long so I will try to get going with the details of my life lately.

I got back from Stanford Tuesday night and got the best welcome home from my family. Ammon screamed, "Mommy" when I walked through the door and Cohen gave me tons of kisses, which is not like him, and kept laughing and smiling at me. So Wednesday morning I got up and got right back into my regular routine. Feeding the kids, changing Cohen's diapers, bathing, cleaning up the apartment, etc. Well I was feeling a little bit of pain in the lower part of my pelvis and didn't really let it slow me down. I thought maybe it was just one of those, have to go to the bathroom, type of pains. So I sat down to pluck my eyebrows, finished and got up to get a snack when I felt a sudden gush of blood run down my legs. It was a lot. I instantly starting saying, "no, no, no" and unbuttoned my paints to see that it had soaked through my jeans. I was shaking and trying to call Jody and the Dr.'s office. I finally got myself under control got on the toilet and called both. Jody came right home, went and got Alex to watch the kids, and then gave me a blessing. We obviously had to head straight to my Doctor's office. So the whole way their I had a flood of emotions. I was crying a lot. I mean once you get to 14 weeks you think, okay I am in the clear of the miscarrying thing now, and had started even thinking about when we would find out what the baby was. I never realized how emotional something like this is. To feel like you are pregnant one second and not the next is really, really emotionally disturbing.

So we got to the office and I was bleeding a lot. Then I went into the room and waited for my doctor. When he came in he made it seem like it wasn't a big deal, he thought it was because we had intercourse or something like that. Then he left the room so I could get undressed and he could do an examination. Well when I took my pants off I started bleeding like crazy again and he came back in while Jody and I were trying to clean it all up and looked very worried. He did the exam and then said he needed an ultrasound right away to see exactly what was going on. Luckily they have a machine in their office. So we walked around the corner and waited about 20 minutes for the tech to come do the ultrasound. Meanwhile I was bleeding all over the chair I was sitting on and Jody was giving me gobs of paper towels every minute to try to clean it up. It was so stressful waiting there. I just didn't know what I was going to see on the screen and didn't really want to see but wanted to know what was going on. So she came in and asked me a few questions and then started the ultrasound. I was shocked when she quickly said,"well something is definitely moving around in there." Then we saw our little baby moving and trying to grab his/her feet. We saw a good heartbeat, a perfect placenta, a closed cervix, and absolutely no reason for so much bleeding or any bleeding at all. When she was done she said everything looked perfect inside and around the baby. You have no idea what a relief this was to me. A few minutes before I was sure that I was losing our baby.

So we waited two more hours to talk to my doctor who was in a C-section at the hospital. But I didn't care. I was just so happy to still be pregnant and to see our sweet little baby. When we finally talked to him he said that once in a while this happens and that it probably has something to do with my cervix changing. At this point there is no medication he could give me to stop or control the bleeding. So I have to basically rest a lot and not do anything. I am still bleeding but it is not as often and as much. It should stop in the next few days and things will hopefully get back to normal. I have so many things to do! Finish Christmas shopping, make goodies for friends, wrap presents, clean, plan a Christmas party I am co-hosting with a friend tomorrow night, take stuff to my visiting teachers, get stuff for the family we are doing the 12 days of Xmas for, I could go on and on. But right now all I want for Christmas is to have a healthy baby in June and so for now I will sit and relax and let my body heal.

Joseph Edmondson: Bachelor of Science

I am so proud of Jody. He took his last two finals Thursday and is done with school forever! (Unless he decides to get his masters at some point, which I could see him doing.) I am so glad that he stuck with it and didn't get pulled away by other ways of making money. School is a wonderful thing and having your degree gives you so many more options. I am excited to have a husband around on Saturdays and in the evenings during the week! He is excited to be able to concentrate on two things, work and family. No more studying!

Janelle, Alex and I drove down to Stanford yesterday to spend some time with Tasha and Makynna. Tasha has been stuck in the hospital alone since Thursday and needed to see some familiar faces. Makynna is doing so good. She is such a trooper. She finished her last round of chemo yesterday and will have the bone marrow transplant on Wednesday. They are having a ward fast for her on Wednesday so if any of you would like to take part in it please do! I will post pictures when I get home.

Ammon's Christmas