39 weeks

In the past, once I deliver and hold our baby, I am always struck with

wonder and amazement about how they ever fit in my tummy.

I've taken pictures towards the end of every pregnancy,

and without fail, when I go back and look at them months later I can't help but exclaim,

"Holy Cow! Look at the size of that!"

Staying true with tradition,

here I am today at 39 weeks.

So if you're thinking to yourself that I look huge, that's ok,

I'll be sharing your sentiments in a few months when I look back at these pictures.

I've had a few sporadic contractions and I'm definitely waddling but over all I'm feeling pretty good.

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It's been a while since my last post, so I wanted to include just a few pictures from some

of the things we've done the last couple of weeks.

Grandma made the girls pioneer/caroling outfits (for the Christmas program) but with

Halloween approaching I decided to have these be their costumes as well.

They looked super cute, and it was so nice to not have to stress about it.

Mike was in charge of decorating our car for the trunk-or-treat,

he whipped something together the afternoon before the activity, and it was a big hit. 

There's something about blood that kids think is so cool.

Having easy access to medical equipment can come in handy!

We had Mike's brother Vance and his family visit for a few days.

They have two little girls the ages of Raquel and Elena.  Needless to say

my girls LOVE it when they come.  Besides playing here non-stop,

we were able to sneak an afternoon at Laguna Beach.

Sunset over Catalina Island as seen from Laguna Beach.

Stay put for my next post as we anxiously await our new arrival.

Moved in and preparing for baby

Well, for the most part, it's done. We did it.  Our 8th move. And I don't want to do it again for a while. 

I was happy with the house before moving in, but in the 2+ weeks here I'm really really loving it.

The kitchen has a breakfast bar, so prior to moving in I went on the hunt for bar stools.  I came across a counter-high dinner set on craigslist.  Super sturdy, solid wood, with 8 counter-high chairs, and only $175 for the whole thing!  We had a really small table at our other home due to lack of space, so I figured I'd put 3 of the chairs at the counter in the kitchen and use the rest of the set for our dinning area.  I emailed the guy with little hope of getting it.  I was thrilled when he got back to me the next day and was on the road in lighting speed to get it before it got snatched.

I love it! Even Mike-the-king-of-good-deals was impressed with my find.

The girls are enjoying the backyard.  We have a lot more trees, which means a lot more shade. 

We've had this swing set for a while, but since it's not under direct heat anymore, it's gotten a lot more use.

I love the covered patio. As do the girls.

We feel blessed to have found a home that will work so well for us.

We had our first visitors last weekend. Mike's sister, Raquel, and her husband

spent a couple of days with us.  We went to New Port Beach on one of the days.

It's a good thing people come visit us, because we don't make it out there enough on our own.

Craig got little Raquel to boogie board.

And a boogie board is now on her wish-list.

Speaking of wish-lists.  I went to my OB appointment this week and he did another ultrasound.

There was a certain appendage that was not visible on the first ultrasound. 

So obvious that I don't know how it was previously missed.

That's right.  There is a little man coming into the picture.

Lucky kid he'll be indeed.  We are very excited,

but when we first found out there were definitely mixed emotions. 

We had mentally prepared ourselves for 4 girls.

4 girls would have been less complicated in so many ways. 

And if we never had a boy, I was really Ok with it. 

Though I would have always wondered what it might have been like

to have a little guy in the mix.  I now get to find out.

July Happenings

This month is flying by and Summer will be over in no time.

We only have a few weeks left before school gets going again.

This month has been spent looking for a place closer to the hospital. 

We finally found a nice house that will work and we'll be moving the first week in August. 

I'm not looking forward to moving, but it'll be worth Mike's mile-long commute.

Early in the month we celebrated the 4th of July at our ward's breakfast and primary water activity.

The girls had a great time.

I put this picture of Raquel chasing a boy because yesterday she asked me if it was ok for a 7 year old to have a crush on a boy.  I told her that Heavenly Father made it so that we liked boys so that we'd want to marry them someday.  It was ok to have a crush.  She just couldn't hold their hand, kiss them, or date them until she is way way way way older. 

After I got done explaining this I asked,

So who do you have a crush on?  

She made me promise not to tell so I won't tell you,

but after she told me who it was I responded,

Isn't that the boy that talks funny?

Last night when I told Mike the story he replied,

That kid? He's a goob.

Poor Raquel, she's going to have problems when she gets older.

We planted a couple of tomato plants a few months back

and we've been enjoying ripe tomatoes almost daily this month.

The girls have really enjoyed the whole process.

We had Mike's brother Daniel and his new fiancee Caroline visit last week.

She is from Brazil.  The girls loved having them here. 

We are very happy and excited for them.

As for me, this month has been a lot better.  I had been somewhat absent from homemaking duties the last couple of months, but the nausea is finally gone and I have a lot more energy.

My family is getting more home-cooked meals and the girls are getting more of my regular mothering.

Which they may or may not be grateful for.

Beating the Odds

Did you know that in the U.S. the odds of having a boy

are higher than those of having a girl?

Roughly 105 boys are born for every 100 girls.

So when it comes to having kids in a row of the same gender,

A streak of girls are rarer than those of boys.

The odds of having 4 girls in a row is

1 in 17.56--to be exact.

And so it looks that come November...

we will beat the odds

when baby GIRL #4 makes her debut.

Speaking of birth-days, we celebrated this man's birthday this month.

Lucky ladies we are indeed to have him in our lives.

And before you start feeling sorry for him

because he will soon be the only male in a sea of females,

these girls (myself included) adore him,

and will always take care of him.

Plus having another girl appeals to his sense of thriftiness. ;)

Small Sacrifice

Mike says he can always tell when I'm pregnant because I no longer laugh at his jokes. 

In its place is a what? that was supposed to be funny? look.

Which is really not how I feel in a non-pregnant state. 

Mike is one of the funniest persons I know.

I can always tell when I'm pregnant (besides the obvious signs) because I'm more snappish.

I don't like it. I told Mike it's pregnancy induced temperament.

Under non-pregnant circumstances, I consider myself pretty even-chill and constant.

But both aforementioned defects boil down to the wave of nausea that drowns my days

starting at about 7 weeks.  Its pervasive and unyielding until 17-20 weeks.

So I've begun the countdown to relief.  Only 9-11 weeks to go!

So I'm not-amused, barky, and barfy. 

Count your blessings for not living close to us.

I wake up wondering how I ever willingly put myself up for this.  Again.
Yet I know that somehow, in just a few months,
when this has passed I'll think the small sacrifice was worth it. 

Because really, it's pretty hard not to when you have this
to look forward to...

P.S.  Thank you for all the nice comments and well wishes in the previous post, they help remind me during this nauseating stage how great this really is.