So long sweet summer.

Goodbye to spontaneous weeknight dates to the ballpark. . .

Hello to a new (second to last!) semester of college (undergraduate, that is. . .) for hubbylove.

JD started a new year of school at Utah Valley University (UVU) this week and, boy, has he got a busy few months ahead of him! He's taking the dreaded Organic Chemistry he's been putting off since he enrolled. . . not to mention a slew of other classes too. He's currently serving as the Pre-PA club president and he's in the middle of training for his new job as a CNA at a long-term rehab facility in Provo. On top of his CNA job, until the snow cramps his style, he's going to continue teaching tennis on the weekends (he loves that time to play and teach and make a little extra money!) We also just got called to teach Sunday School to the 14 year-olds at church, so we'll be thinking about and preparing for weekly lessons. He's planning on volunteering a lot and shadowing doctors and PAs to continue building his resume for grad school. Oh! And did I mention he's entering into a new endeavor called parenthood sometime in the next 6 weeks? 

. . .we'll sure miss you, lazy summer days!

Oh, hey, baby bump!

Baby girl is movin' and groovin' these days. She gives daddy hard, definitive kicks and punches all the time. Although, I still can't really tell which body parts are which and how she is positioned in there. Things are still going relatively smoothly for me, aside from the scary fall I took last weekend when I misjudged the height of a curb. Before I knew it, I was falling and only had a few seconds to decide what to do. Instinctively, I rotated my body to spare a straight crash on my belly and scraped up my shin and knee pretty decently. It was gushing blood and hurting like crazy, but I didn't start crying until 10 minutes after the fact when I realized the damage I could've done. I was so grateful I was able to avoid falling on my tummy and our precious girl. They say pregnant women lose their sense of balance a bit near the end and I  kinda thought that was bogus-shmogus, but I guess I was evidence it can happen! Also, I don't know if it's pregnancy related or not, but I had to leave work today because of a nasty tummyache and case of the vomits. I can count the days I've been sick during this pregnancy on one hand, so it took me a bit by surprise. 

In other news, JD and I finished the birthing class we've been attending for the past 5 weeks. We feel pretty educated now about how this whole labor and delivery thing goes down. I am pumped for the experience and feel beyond blessed to have JD as my partner and support. He's so good at reading me, knowing what I need, and responding. I love having him as a provider and caretaker and am so over-the-moon excited to watch him grow into his role as a father. 

We have about six weeks left on this journey before we meet our little one. We are preparing all the time for her arrival- praying, sewing, reading, painting, learning, organizing, sanding, buying, thinking, designing, and hoping. My body feels like it's not really mine anymore. . . this big ball of a belly seems to be more in the way everyday. 

I'm pretty stoked to stop saying, "Oh, hey, baby bump! and start saying "Oh, hey, baby girl!" 

Pictures taken mid-August at a cousin's wedding reception. Please note this baby bump in all its' glory.

Cute SILs, Jessica and Tiff.

California Trip

JD and I took a trip to California two weekends ago to celebrate our third wedding anniversary.  It was sort of spontaneous and was a nice getaway for us. My dear friend, Jocelyn, let us sleep at  her place (bah! we didn't get any pictures together. . .) and we  spent the weekend hanging out at the beach and being tourists. I'm so lucky to have him as a travel companion- he's the best!

Last night, we spent a little longer than we probably should've playing around on iMovie and trying to make this re-cap video of our vacation. So many clips in here just make me bust up laughing. Ha, we're pretty proud of this project ;) Enjoy!

23rd Birthday

I had another birthday at the end of July (already?!) Some of our sweet friends, the Skousens, had us and the Williams over for a little dinner celebration. I didn't have a crazy party or receive any extravagant gifts, but it was wonderful to share in the simple delight of friendship. So grateful for good people and good food and the gift of knowing I am loved.

Reel time.

JD has spent the last few months taking trips up to his parents' house to build some foldable kayaks with his dad. He finished the final step, painting his masterpiece, last week (I still need to paint mine!) and so we decided to put these babies to use. We spent a few hours up American Fork Canyon on Saturday kayaking, fishing, and enjoying the beautiful mountain scenery. JD named his kayak "Reel Time," meaning real time is when he's reeling in fish. He's such a mountainman and I love to see him in his happy place. I'm so proud of the work he put in to these kayaks and know we'll make some good memories using them again and again. 

Blessings.

JD and I have been SO blessed since we moved to Lehi. We live with an awesome family! We feel so lucky that our lives have crossed with these folks. They are kind to us. They are easy to talk to. They make us feel so welcome in their home. Together, we share meals and treats. We borrow stuff from each other. We play games. We go out together. We take their kids fishing. We laugh and talk. We play rock band. JD and I feel inspired and moved and motivated by their family dynamics. We want to create a home environment as loving and welcoming and warm and happy as the one we're experiencing here. We thank Heavenly Father daily for the opportunity we have to live here, right now, at this time in our lives. Of course, we are antsy and anxious and excited to own our own place someday. . . but for now, things are just perfect.

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Sweet summertime.

No doubt about it. . . it's summertime! We've been riding bikes, feeding horses, going to parades, attending baseball games, watching fireworks, eating watermelon, stopping at taco stands, and soaking in the sun. I'm 27 weeks pregnant and definitely have the baby belly to prove it! I feel our precious girl squirming around all the time now and just absolutely love it. Weird (and wonderful!) to think we'll have a little one with us this time next summer.

We fed some veggies to the horses in our neighborhood.

We went to the Orem Owls baseball game last week.

So happy to spend time with these sweet ladies!

Tacos at Lehi Days festival.

July 4th Fireworks!