Maternity Jeans Don't Count

I recently returned from a weekend jaunt to Tucson and it was great. However, I think it kind of backfired, because my escape to warmer weather has left me in a bit of a funk coming back. This morning was a good morning though, and it helped me think of some things that make me feel happy.

 

My Girls

 

 

They are generally very loving and helpful. It makes me excited to have another one. Plus they are quite the characters, which keeps me entertained on these winter days.

Cici is excited, not only because of her chef's outfit which she randomly wears, but because Sam has gone to preschool and she can finally mess with her sister's new dolls!

 

Country Music

 

 

Sometimes you get tired of music about love/sex. A lot of country music simply celebrates what is good about life. ("There's no dollar sign on peace of mind") Or it reduces life to manageable terms. (e.g.,  "God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy." Not that I condone drinking.) Either way, it makes cleaning the house more tolerable.

 

Living Above the Inversion

 

Photo Credit: Tom Smart, Deseret Morning News

 

Hurray for living on top of a mountain! Every time I have to drive down to the valley I am grateful I live above the pollution. I don't have to breathe this into my lungs on a daily basis. Plus it's actually supposed to be warmer above it.

 

Pregnancy Yoga

 

 

Pregnancy yoga is the best. Sure the kids still like to climb over, under, and on me, but on the whole it's rather relaxing. Unlike normal yoga, where you are actually supposed to exert yourself to feel like you've had a real workout, with prenatal yoga it mostly involves feeling your belly, making big circles with it, laying down, stretching your arms and legs a little, but most of all, breathing and connecting with your unborn child. For those of us who are not naturally inclined to work out, it's pretty much awesome. Disclaimer: I do switch this up every other day with my old person workout routine on TV, which is actually a bit more vigorous.

 

Maternity Jeans That Fit

 

Have I actually experienced this yet? No. The price is a problem. All the really cute-looking jeans seem to be over 100 dollars. The jeans at the maternity stores I can afford are too big and just not flattering. For some reason, maternity designers seem to think women look like this once they get pregnant:  

 

 

The reality is, some of us just put all our weight in front and our legs don't change size!

 

September 2010: A few weeks away from Cici being born!

 

 

I'm not a big fan of shopping online, but my normal jeans are going to fit me for about two more days, so I've made another stab at finding maternity jeans online. I bought size 2 jeans from Gap and was quite saddened when they came and still gave me that saggy-butt look I hate. I was talking to Austin about ordering a size 0, ("Guess what, hun, I haven't been a size 0 since I was 13!") and was summarily informed that maternity jeans "don't count." Whatever. I've ordered a pair of jeans today that will hopefully look cute and up my comfort level with their stretchy waistband. That makes me happy.  

 

Pregnancy

 

Famous midwife Ina May Gaskin said that "Birth matters. The journey through pregnancy and birth offers an irreplaceable way for women to explore their deepest selves." I think most of us have had life-changing experiences that haven't changed our lives. They could have, but they didn't. I didn't want to pass up a life-changing experience this time. 

 

Realistically, I have had pretty much the same complaints as with my last two pregnancies: morning sickness, heartburn, round ligament pain, weird itchiness, etc. But I still tell people that this is my best pregnancy ever, and it is. Why? Because I've prepared and am still preparing this time, and "the essence of childbirth preparation is self-discovery" -Birthing From Within. I've learned so much about myself as a woman as I've prepared for birth, and no matter how the actual birth goes, that has made this pregnancy the best one ever.

 

 



A Permenantly Disheveled State

Cici broke her leg after Christmas, which means she currently lays around the house in her pajamas in a permanently disheveled state, occasionally rousing herself to play with whatever toys happen to be within her grasp.

 

This is our life right now:

 

With Austin traveling I have to be the responsible one and actually put clothes on in the morning, but I do manage to take lots of naps and waste a lot of time. In my defense, I have a lot of time to waste. We don't go out much. It's 2 degrees and hauling around a crippled child when you're already carrying one around inside you gets old fast. So I'm back chipping away at my bête noire, scrapbooking, and while it's depressing how many years behind I am, it's alternatively fun to see how far our family has come in the past 5 years.

                                                                          Sammy

 2009

 

2010

                                     

2011

2012

Cici

2010

2011

2012

Take that, scrapbooking.  I've caught up in one easy blog post.

Why do we even have that lever?

 

  

Are you bored? Annoy someone you love by pressing Ctrl-Alt-Down Arrow on their PC. 

Lofty Goals

I started out my new year by calling our dentist's office and demanding to know why the email I got from them said my appointment was on the 13th. The receptionist calmly explained that the 13th was a Sunday, at which point I realized I was looking at the year part of the date. I could tell she thought I was a total idiot, but I take solace in the knowledge that she said her name was Eunice (I think).  And on that note, Kellie, here's my Bucket List.

Carve something

Okay, I don't really want to carve something. I just want to buy a fertility goddess. No, I haven't gone over the crunchy natural-world cliff, I just love the way a pregnant woman's body looks--it is the embodiment of true womanly sexuality. I equally hate how uncomfortable and dowdy many pregnancy clothes are. If it were 76 degrees warmer here and it were socially acceptable to wander about without clothes on, I would be all for that. But since neither of those things are happening, I want a naked statue. I guess I just want to remind myself I am beautiful. ??? To be honest, I'm not really sure where this is coming from, I just know what I want. Unfortuantely, the best one I found on Etsy costs 500 dollars, and isn't even that amazing. Plus, I'm not sure where I would put it in my house. I may have to carve my own statue with one of the 15 pocket knives Austin owns, never uses, but refuses to let me throw away.

Throw away Austin's pocket knives

Just kidding, hon.

Become a gospel scholar

I will read one church-y book a week. That's 52 books. My Utah library has a bunch, so this shouldn't cost me a lot of money. I will blog if I come across anything worthwhile. (This week I'm reading N. Eldon Tanner's biography. I like biographies and people who initialize their first names, so I think it was a good pick.) I'm not very focused with what I want to read, I just want my religion to become a bigger part of my life on a daily basis. I am open to reading suggestions.

Keep track of my spending

This sounds boring, but I'm actually pretty excited about it. When I don't keep track of my spending, I feel guilty when I buy things, because the money's for the whole family and I'm not sure if we really can afford what I'm buying. With my new keeping track goal I am accountable to myself and can save up for the things I really want. So far I've bought a pregnancy yoga DVD and some maternity tops, and I don't feel guilty about spending the money, because I know what percentage of my total household money for the month my things cost.

Have a baby

And get that baby to sleep through the night much, much sooner than Cici.

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And there you have it. I now have physical, mental, creative, and spiritual goals for the year.