Thursday, November 21, 2013

Gratitude List

A lot of my friends on Facebook have been posting something each day that they are thankful for. I thought instead of doing that, I would put my whole list in one place and write it down now in case I don't have a chance to later. Some are more serious, others not so much, but am nonetheless grateful for.


30 Things I am grateful for:

1. First and foremost: A Heavenly Father who loves me, a Savior who atoned for me, and the Holy Ghost who guides me and protects me.

2. Being a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, having a knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, being led by a modern-day prophet and his apostles and other leaders, having the scriptures to go to...and all the other blessings that come from the Gospel.

3. My husband who never ceases to amaze me. He is one of the most patient people I know, he always makes me laugh, he serves me so willingly and tirelessly and puts up with me, his devotion to the Lord is inspiring, and I just keep falling more in love with him the longer we are married. And let's be honest, he is going to make one adorable daddy. I can hardly wait to see him and our little boy together.



4. Parents who have supported and loved me my whole life, and have lead great examples to me in so many ways.





5. My baby. Feeling him move inside me and seeing him on an ultrasound have been some of the most amazing experiences I have ever had. The closer I get to D-day, the more amazed I am at the miracle that life is.

6. Modern medicine that keeps me alive and comfortable--inhalers for my asthma, antacids and Zofran for my pregnancy, antidepressants, Nyquil/Dayquil, dramamine....you name it.

7. My home. Seriously, snagging this apartment was meant to be. The carpet is brand new, it has a washer/dryer (yay for no more coin op!!!!), a dishwasher, and so much space. I even have an art room AND a nursery. Did I mention utilities are included in the rent? I love our landlady.

8. The opportunity to serve a mission. By far the hardest thing I've ever done, and it pushed me to limits I didn't even know I had. Totally worth it.




9. Talents, both my own and those of others. Seriously, I'm glad there are people that know how to computer program so that I don't have to figure it out.

10. Opportunities to travel. Travel is one of the best teachers. Also, that New York wind-blown look is lookin' pretty smokin' if I do say so my list. Places I've been to: NYC, Washington D.C., Hawaii, the Caribbean, Mexico, Italy, England, Wales, Paraguay. Places I'd like to go to: France, Czech Republic, Austria, Canada, Alaska, Egypt, China, Macchu Pichu (sp?), Iguazu Falls, Sweden, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Japan, Taiwan, I could go on....



11. My siblings and their children. Look at these goobers. How could you not love them? And their parents are pretty cool too.



12. My education. So grateful I got to go to college! Also grateful though that I finally graduated. I am especially grateful as I see bleary-eyed, backback laden students trudge their way to and from campus. Suckers. (Just kidding.)


13. Nature. It's gorgeous. 



14. The temple. Isn't it beautiful?



15. Teachers. Seriously, where would be without them? 

16. Oreos. Heaven bless the individual that invented them.

17. Technology. And the people that understand it more than I do.

18. Good books. Some favorites: Les Miserables, The Count of Monte Cristo, Harry Potter, The Five People You Meet in Heaven, Influencer, Cheaper by the Dozen (not even on the same bar as the movie. Don't be fooled), the Poisonwood Bible and anything by Roald Dahl

19. The ocean. Or as my husband's family calls it, the Lotion. Never do I miss it more than in the middle of a frigid Utah winter.

20. My grandparents. Seriously the two coolest people over the age of 60 you'll ever meet. Your argument is invalid.



21. Food. Please tell me there is food in heaven, because it just wouldn't be the same.

22. Friends. Friends that make me pee my pants from laughing so hard, friends that listen when I need to vent, friends that offer a shoulder when I need to cry, friends that just "get me." Friends that no matter how long it's been since we've talked, I can instantly connect with again and it's like no time has passed.

23. Chocolate. I know this is a food. But it deserved its own number. I think you'll agree.

24. Music.  

25. Humor. Because laughing is good for you.


26. The fact that mistakes aren't the end of the world, and that I can learn from them and become better.

27. Etch-a-sketches. So much entertainment.


28. My body pillow. One of the many dear friends of a pregnant woman.

29. Holidays and traditions. Particularly Christmas and the 4th of July. I love all the smells, sights, colors, music, and memories associated with them.



30. Paint, paintbrushes, fancy paper....putting me in an art store is like Belle in a library. I'm just nerdy like that. But we all have our thing.

What are you grateful for?


Thursday, November 7, 2013

40/100: The birthday guest

This darling girl is simply "The Birthday Guest" because I actually don't know who she is, but I took a picture of her at a birthday party. This is graphite on brown sketch paper. Usually I really struggle with children's faces but I'm pretty happy with how this one turned out. 

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

On the home stretch...

We are about 3 weeks away from our due date. I am trying really hard to not be the typical anxious pregnant woman....but I'd be lying if I said we aren't super excited for our little boy to get here.

Here are the typical things I am told as a pregnant woman, along with my mental response:


"Enjoy it now! He's a lot easier to take care of in there!"
     If I wanted him to stay in there...I wouldn't have gotten pregnant....

"You are 8 months??? You are tiny!!!"
    I only look tiny. Because my two girls up top are so huge that it makes my stomach only appear small. I've already gained 30 pounds, JUST in my torso. 

"Get your sleep now!"
      Oh I am. Oh how I am.

"Remember to sleep when the baby sleeps!"
     That will definitely not be a problem! I hope....

"Bless your heart!"
    I have no idea how to respond to that, as usually I hear that phrase followed by something...er...not as kind sounding 

"You're eating for two!"
    Trust me. A fetus doesn't need to eat this much. But thank you for the excuse, which I will happily use (as much as my squished up stomach will allow!)


I am feeling so very blessed right now. Winter didn't rob Autumn of it's beautiful appearance this year. Our ward is awesome. I'm in love with our apartment. I've been able to focus on my art a lot. And despite being more than 8 months pregnant, this is the best I have felt my whole pregnancy (shout out to my friends Zofran and Prevacid for making this possible!) I am definitely feeling very penguin-like with my increasing waddle though. Oh well, it comes with the territory. I was surprised to find that I avoided some common pregnancy symptoms during the last eight months--my feet only sort of swelled up once, and I never had any true cravings. Although slurpees and McFlurries sounded better than usual. But when don't those sound good? Mmmmm....

But I have had some MAJOR cramping. Like, knees-to-floor-pain kind of cramping. But the doc said that's just my body prepping. Let's just say I have learned that my pain tolerance is already not great. Gulp. But Doc also said that the ultrasound weight estimate could be off...so here's to hoping that I don't birth a giant. Also, when the baby's hand or foot moves around, I am reminded of this scene from The Mummy:



Today I also felt my "nesting" instincts kick in for the first time, but not in the way I was expecting. I was looking at Pinterest and saw some pins about disaster prep. Suddenly, I HAD to put our 72-hour kits together. Not tomorrow. Not today. YESTERDAY. I went to the Creamery and bought a couple of their empty humungo ice cream buckets (only 50 cents each!), one to put our kit in, and another one just in case. Because what if we got snowed into our basement and the plumbing stopped working and we needed a makeshift toilet???? When hubby got home our bathroom looked like a war-zone. But folks, we are PREPARED. (Special thanks to people from my home stake who gave us emergency prep wedding gifts.)

Anyway, happy November! Don't let the early Christmas songs get you down!


39/100: Ashley

I was really craving some portrait drawing today and I pulled out a list of people I had long ago told I would draw. I then did some Facebook stalking and found a lovely picture of my old co-worker and thought it was perfect. This is done in conte crayon and charcoal on brown sketch paper. Sorry the eyes are a little bit skewed :/ 

38/100: Mickey Mouse

I painted this for my nursery since I am doing a Mickey Mouse theme :) I whipped it out while husband was playing basketball using acrylics. 

Friday, November 1, 2013

Halloween and Another Ultrasound

So, our Halloween this year was sort of lame. Especially because Hubster and I really really really like Halloween. But we got more of a trick than a treat this year because my poor sweetie had to have a minor surgery today, and so most of his afternoon and evening was spent in the horizontal position. And our ward decided to be mega lame and not do anything for Halloween. And we live in a basement apartment, so trick-or-treaters are unaware of our existence.

But that's okay. Hubbie's brother was awesome and brought him some Little Caesar's to cheer him up and we got to see his awesome get-up as Mr. Frederickson from Up, complete with a grape soda pin, walker with tennis balls, and a framed picture of Ellie. And then we watched Clue. Because that movie is awesome. And tomorrow all of the Halloween candy will be on sale, so you can bet that this pregnant gal is getting her sugar fix and pampering her man with chocolatey goodness.

And you know what--NEXT Halloween is going to be the BEST Halloween ever, because we will have our own little trick-or-treater to dress up, and he won't be old enough to have an opinion of what he wants to be, so we will get to plan some genius family costume. And I will get to eat the greater part of his candy hoard. Muahahaha.

Anyway, yesterday I had my fourth, yes fourth, ultrasound. I have low-lying placenta, which means if it doesn't move out of the way, I will need a C-section. Otherwise I could bleed to death during delivery. Nothing big. Right now we still aren't sure what is going to happen, because it is right on the borderline of where it needs to be. But honestly, as long as we end up with a healthy baby, I don't really mind how he gets here.

Oh, we also found out that our little man already weighs 7 pounds 1 ounce according to the ultrasound. This kid is a monster. That's already heavier than my birth weight, and I still have a month to go! Yikes. If this guy comes on his due date, he will seriously weigh at least 9 pounds. Merciful heavens. I am praying that he comes just a little bit early.

Happy Halloween!