blah-g

I haven't felt much like blogging lately. Mostly because the only thing really happening lately in my life is steady weight gain. And that's just no fun to document.

We're trying to get everything ready for the baby's arrival, which always seems to take more energy than I have at any given moment. I keep vacillating between feeling like she'll never come and fearing that she'll come three weeks early in one of those freak 10-minute labors.

But I was reading in a birth book today about taking things one day at a time. Then in labor, taking things one contraction at a time. And when that gets too much to bear, taking things one breath at a time. This, for some reason, really spoke to me (maybe because currently I'm taking things one pound at a time).

hip hip hooray

Woke up Valentine's morning to this.

Dave couldn't find a vase. Classic ingenuity! Then he proceeded to give me the best gift ever: finishing school. That's right: Dave is officially finished with his last classes at AMU, giving him a bachelor's degree in Intelligence Studies. He'll walk in D.C. in May (where we hope to sneak a lunch in with Lex) and we'll get to steal back his free time (as well as get some of my own).

So, congrats Davey-Dave! Who essentially went from an associates to a bachelor's degree in one year (via non-stop 8 week online courses).

Now on to planning a fat celebration!

lexi leaves us

I flew solo-parent style on the flight out to bid Lex farewell. All I have to say is thank goodness for portable DVD players. I've always been one of those people who scoffed at such a device's interference with a child's right to imagine or--heaven forbid--be bored. But its use in this case was a blessing. A necessity. A hypocritical anomaly--sort of like how I consider myself a feminist but take secret delight in a television marathon of Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders: Making the Team.

Anyway, the whole fam was together (a rare occasion these days) and it was an overall delightful time (another rare occasion. hee hee). So we took advantage by taking some family pics (stay tuned) courtesy of my talented friend, Becky. Lex has been gone nearly a week now and I miss her already!

Last day at the salon.
I'm pretty sure every relation in Utah Valley came out for a haircut. It was a front-bang frenzy as we all said goodbye to our favorite stylist and hello to being frumpy for the next year and a half.

Canyon & Peeps dress up as high-maintenance sister missionaries

Then sit on Lex to try and get her to stay...

My sisters

Just like a prom corsage...

All the farewell-bidding fam at the Missionary Training Center.

Love you, Lex!