A Ray of Hope

Sending this out for my parents. Those fantastic souls are about to brave a miserable 15 hour drive through the most boring section of the United States. To get them through the pain I took a few shots today of the end prize. EYE ON THE PRIZE GUYS!

Look at me being all Suzy Homemaker

So if you'll remember last spring I learned how to make freezer jam. I actually went to a farm picked the strawberries and made my own jam. Yum. I learned a few things. The picking part sucked. It would have been better without two whiny kids. The picked strawberries also made a really watery jam consistency. They tasted fantastic, but more soupy. My friend Jill taught me to mix half picked and half Sam's Club. I also attempted to make Peach Strawberry- total bust. There are so many reasons why it could have gone wrong that I am left stupid on that one. I also attempted to do blueberry syrup. It didn't go well either, but I am more optimistic about that in the future. This year I was all ready to send Jeff to go pick me some strawberries, I so wasn't gonna go picking berries pregnant. Then we got flooded and ruined all the local strawberries. Sad, but I moved on and made it all Sam's Club style. This is the result. Yum!

In the last few years I, along with everyone else, have fallen in love with Basil. Isn't it great? So yummy and smells so good. I have tried to grow it for the last two years with limited success. I barely had enough to make anything at any time. This year after a rough start, the plants have gone gang busters! Today I celebrated by making homemade Pesto! How cool is that? Yeah, I know probably not that cool, but I feel totally awesome about it so there.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my dad. If he lived here I would actually make the stupid loaves for church this morning. As it is, I ordered him a personalized steak brander from William Sonoma cause hey, they they barbecue a lot and they even raise their own cow so they deserve one to let every one know whose meat that is. Max reminds me a lot of my dad. Everyone likes Max and everyone likes my dad. They are just good guys. Happy Father's Day dad!

p.s. oh yeah and that moment I was talking about in the last post, gone with a stinky diaper and a whine about TV programming, but at least Jeff is still asleep.

Moments

I think it was President Monson or one of the Tweleve who recently said that parenting is about moments of happiness. Right now I am having a moment. Mae is walking around in an adorable tank top and short get up that is a smidge too small for her making her look extra chubby cute. She is clutching her sippy cup, which she has been doing a lot recently, and just exploring the room occasionally stopping in front of the t.v. to watch the puppet parts of Baby Noah. Max has made a fort in the climber in our living room and debating with me whether or not to change Spike's name to Spiderman or Doctor Octopus. Jeff is asleep on the couch and so far Mae has not slammed her sippy cup in his face, so good Father's Day for him. Oh now Mae is trying to hide in the entertainment unit. I know that by the time I finish this entry someone will have an issue and crying will probably be involved, but right at this moment things are good.

Unexpected Consequence

So as many of you have noticed from my posts and just from talking to me, I have been quite miserable for the past few weeks. Blame it on the weather, the pregnancy, the nasty colds, or all of the above; regardless I have just felt like crap. Today was a new day. The morning was a bit rough, I was still super doped and tired, but Jeff and I dropped the kids off at my visiting teacher's and went to the doctor's visit. The doctor didn't really give me any good news, like why I had the contractions or any change of dates, but that's okay. When I got home I just crashed and slept for over an hour. It felt amazing. When I got up I suddenly felt like I had the stuff to make it through the next two weeks. Jeff took the kids to run errands and for the first time in a long time I was able to just sit and relax without worrying about getting something done. My kitchen is SPOTLESS thanks to my visiting teacher who scrubbed every surface so hard that I am frankly embarrassed that someone knows how nasty it was in the first place. My friend was nice enough to bring over dinner despite not feeling super herself. I feel like a new person; like I am Mario and have been given the big mushroom just in time to finish off the level. I even have less aches and pains thanks to the super muscle relaxant they gave me last night. So even though last night was utterly miserable, things are maybe taking a turn for the better.

Best Husband Ever!

Jeff has been a bit tired today. I asked what was up and he confessed that he had been up all evening watching my breathing to make sure I wasn't going to go into labor. BEST HUSBAND EVER!

Last Night

So yesterday wasn't the best day. I had some mild contractions all day and lots of errands to run. By the time that Jeff came home the contractions had come pretty close together. I was having them every three minuets for over an hour. We packed a bag and went to the hospital. Grrrr so much pain from around 6 p.m. til they sent us home at 10 p.m. Unfortunately although I was having painful contractions every three min for four hours they weren't doing much to dial ate me. They gave me a shot to calm my uterus and some pills to help me sleep. The contractions did eventually stop about and hour later, although they are back more softly and sporadically this morning. The killer part was the sleeping medicine though. It was awful. I felt like those poor people who go under for surgery and can't move or talk but are TOTALLY AWAKE! Jeff thought I was out last night but I was awake almost the entire night. Only when the drugs started to wear off in the morning was I able to get some actual sleep. Uggg as if the evening wasn't bad enough. To top it all off I got a preview of my new crappy hospital. It would seem that, through choices that are not my own, I am going to hit all the hospitals in the area. This time I am at the crummiest. I have visited people here before and was always glad I wasn't in one of those closets. Well now it's my turn, but not last night. Should be interesting to see how the next few days and weeks go.

P.S. props to Jeff for always saying and doing the right thing. I was worried that my visiting teacher would be doing the dishes or cleaning while she was watching the kids last night. When I was brought home by Jeff I was only half aware of anything and asked him if she had cleaned. He said no, and I was so relieved only to come in to a spotless kitchen this morning. He said he told me what I needed to hear to get to bed. Too True. Just another reason he is gonna be Jeffrey Spike.