I know a lot of guys whose wives started getting a little "baby hungry", so they bought them puppies. This isn't always the case but I've seen it a lot. Fortunately for me, I'll never know if Joe would have done that because it was my idea to get this litte [big] guy. 

I just woke up one day and thought about all of the reasons having a puppy in my life would be beneficial. Like how I work from home so it'd be nice to have a buddy. And on the nights Joe had to work late, I wouldn't be scared because I'd have a dog protecting me. And I could finally go running on trails or in the dark and not be scared of being taken.

Careful not to let myself get carried away, I took the next day to think about all of the challenges I would face being a puppy owner. Like having to pick up dog poops in little baggies because we live in the city. And worrying about getting the dog enough exercise. And where it would sleep and how much food and vaccines would cost.

And I realized I could handle it. No problem. I told Joe (we were engaged at the time) and he was into it so that weekend (Mother's Day, how appropriate, right?) we drove down to Ephraim and fell in love with a chubby, fuzzy, freshly bathed little gray Labrador puppy. He slept the whole 2 hour ride home.

Cancun Honeymoon | Part 1

I'm not sure yet how many parts there will be to this honeymoon series but for now, this is part 1 and will include the first couple of days.

Our flight left Utah around 7AM which meant it was a really early morning for us. We had a quick layover in Phoenix and then arrived in Mexico around 3PM-ish. The whole customs experience was brand new to both of us, plus my Spanish is NOT great so I was terrified they'd ask me something I wouldn't answer correctly and cause issues. But we made it through and somehow my Spanish was able to get us to the correct shuttle to our resort. We could only hope the resort was as nice as the photos and reviews we'd seen so we basically just had to cross our fingers. We passed several resorts that I would never want to stay at (scary/old looking) and I breathed a sigh of relief everytime they didn't call our names.

At some point, we came upon a huge gate which led to a gated community collection of resorts. Already I was feeling better about the situation. Everything was clean and the vegetation was beautiful and green. And then we got to an even more amazing gate that looked like the entrance to a fancy compound, and I saw the plaque that said Playa Mujeres Excellence Club. I was so excited! It was gorgeous. We were greeted with water and juice and lots of smiles as we entered the lobby and excitedly made our way to our building and room.

As you can see above and below, we had the most incredible 2 floor suite which included a rooftop and our own personal patio & pool. Heaven! I spent SO much time up there. Our door had the cutest little "Honeymoon" banner that made us feel special every time we came back to the room. And then of course there were the treats and surprises everyday.

We spent most of the first day exploring the grounds, our room, blocking all of the porn channels on our TV and trying to get ahold of my mom to send us our marriage certificate (in order to take advantage of some honeymoon specials). The wifi was so slow that our communication was rough but eventually we got it figured out.

That evening, we had dinner at the asian fusion restaurant called Spice. The service was awful which made the food taste mediocre. But we stayed positive and enjoyed a little Mexican dance show on our way back to the room.

Day 2 was Saturday August 2nd and we headed down to the breakfast buffet restaurant which was probably some of my favorite food of the trip. Croissants and custom omelets galore? Yum. After breakfast, we went kayaking (my first time!) until we felt a little seasick and then went back to the room and took a long nap. We headed back to the beach to watch the sunset which was magical every single night.

That evening we had dinner at Agave, the mexican restaurant at the resort. I thought it was delicious and I don't usually like mexican food.

On our way back to the room, we watched a fire dancing presentation, I sipped yet another of my favorite coco rosa drinks! Yum! Then we played pool at some outdoor tables in the courtyard.

Part 2 coming soon

That Summer Wedding Day

I figure we've been married for 7 months now, the least I can do is finally write about the wedding and our honeymoon for posterity's sake (lets face it, my memory's sake).

We got married the morning of Thursday, July 31st. It had been raining and was unusually chilly for July that week so I was nervous about having our wedding outside, up the canyon (where its usually 20 degrees colder), in the morning. But the location of our ceremony gets busy in the summer when it warms up so we wanted to be sure we wouldn't have any unexpected guests.

Our plan for an LDS temple sealing didn't go through the way we planned due to a long waiting process for a sealing cancellation (basically a church divorce from my ex-husband) so we figured the next best thing would be to get married in the beautiful mountains. We were waiting to find out about the sealing until the last minute so we weren't able to really plan a reception or party. I did have a couple of bridal showers to celebrate with friends though so that was nice. Also, considering we were paying for everything ourselves, it just made more sense to celebrate with our immediate families and save our money for all of the adventures of marriage. We missed having everyone there but honestly it was such a stress-free, beautiful day that I don't really regret it. Besides, those friends of ours know how special they are to us and they were with us in spirit!

Anyway, our families and our wedding officiant gathered together in the magical little grove. Joe took his place with everyone waiting and my dad hung back with me as we prepared to walk the boardwalk. It was so special to have those quiet moments with my dad as we made our way toward the music and my future husband.

 I could just feel a flood of love as we turned the corner (pictured above) and saw everyone gathered there, smiling at us. I tried to look at everyone but I was mostly focused on Joe and I almost started to cry right then.
Our officiant said the sweetest things, most of which I can't remember, and Joe and I just stared & smiled at one another.

We laughed. And cried. And promised to love and cherish each other forever. It was so special. After we kissed, our families surprised us by throwing rice puffs! It was so unexpected and so fun!

Next we took photos and gave lots of hugs and promised to see everyone at the dinner that evening.

We came home, changed clothes and picked up Jackson from daycare. We knew we wouldn't see him for a week so we wanted to spend some time with him before we headed off on our honeymoon. We did some last minute packing, got ready for dinner and met up with our families at our wedding dinner at Market Street Grill in Cottonwood Heights. 

Having our first dinner and spending the evening with our most loved ones was the best way to end a magical day. We dropped off baby Jackson with Joe's family and spent our wedding night at Hotel Monaco (which we LOVED! its the coolest hotel). We stayed in the majestic suite and it was huge and so chic! There was a dining room, a huge living room, an incredible huge bathroom complete with jacuzzi tub, plus the beautiful bedroom. Its amazing. I'd choose that place over The Grand America anyday.

Obviously we acted fancy enough for the room...

Our flight to Cancun left at 7AM the next morning which meant we had to be at the airport around 5AM-ish. Cancun Day 1 post coming soon!

Husband Brag

I married such an incredible man. 

Everyday he does things that just completely move me and it humbles me to know how fortunate I am to have him. 

There are the nights I fall asleep to him rubbing my back. Without me asking. For which I'm especially grateful for now with this pregnancy. There are the early, freezing mornings (every day) that he wakes up to take Jackson outside and never, ever complains or asks me to take a turn. There are the days he packs a lunch with random stuff found in the refrigerator and never makes me feel guilty for not cooking the night before. There's his patience whenever I take too long doing any number of things (which happens a lot) like asking him to take 100 belly bump photos of me. And his sincerity when he thanks me for my love and support. There's the genuine love (and silence) he shows when I throw tantrums and his soothing voice that calms me in a gentle way when I need it. 

And then there's that time yesterday when my brother came for dinner. 

At one point before he arrived, I casually mentioned to Joe that I was overwhelmed with how much there was to do. Not just for dinner, but around the house in general. Usually I deep clean and vacuum and do laundry on Saturdays but this last Saturday I spent my day brunching and shopping with friends instead and the Saturday before that, stuff just came up so I was feeling really behind. All of that along with prepping and cooking dinner within a couple of hours just seemed like alot. My superhero husband came to the rescue and picked up around the house, folded 2 weeks worth of laundry, helped me prep dinner, walked the dog, and totally cleaned up the kitchen after dinner and even packed up leftovers for my brother to take home. And at the end of the night, he just had a smile on his face and told me he was glad I had time to bond and hang out with my brother a little and that he was happy to help. 

I am just feeling so eternally grateful for him and I am so happy our lives came together when they did. He is the best thing that has ever happened to me and I wanted to write this all down to make it concrete instead of just fleeting thoughts in my mind that will get forgotten. I want to be able to come back to this entry and remember these feelings and be able to share them with our children and friends in the future so that his wonderful spirit and personality and humility are never ever forgotten. 

16 Weeks

PICTURE COMING SOON!
Yay for my first pregnancy update post

How far along: 16 Weeks

Gender: We find out March 17th!

Total weight gain: 7 LBS...feels like 20!

Maternity clothes: I bought a few shirts (hoping they'd be long enough to cover the rubber-band on the jeans button situation) and bought a pair of maternity tights last week. I wore the tights out on our Valentine's date night to the ballet and I've never been so comfortable! Trying to find a couple of pairs of cute maternity jeans now, hoping that they are as comfortable as those tights!

Stretch marks: Nothing new

Sleep: Varies. There were a few weeks there in the  middle of my first trimester that were awful! My legs would get restless and I couldn't get comfortable. Now, most nights I do alright but I definitely toss and turn at least 3-4 times a night. I actually wake up, roll over to the other side, and then fall asleep again. I have to have a pillow on each side to prop my legs up on so that whichever way I end up, the support is there. I've thought about getting one of those huge pregnancy pillows but I don't want to have to deal with storing it after the baby is born. I might end up buying a couple of body pillows though. We'll see if things get worse. :)

Miss Anything: I miss seeing numbers on the scale go DOWN instead of up. I miss alot of my clothes that won't button up (on the chest or waist) and I miss sushi. There are mixed opinions about sushi while pregnant but I'd rather just not take any chances. 

Movement: Nothing yet although I've been told that I just don't know how to recognize it but I probably am feeling flutters. I can't wait! 

Cravings: Most of this pregnancy has been really mild, so I'm guessing that explains why I haven't had strong cravings. The thought of eating sweet, sugary things is appealing but it doesn't feel like "oh my gosh I HAVE to have this RIGHT NOW". Nothing at all like that. And mostly, I just distract myself so that I don't give in. Don't get me wrong, I've definitely been weak a few times and eaten things I definitely shouldn't have in one sitting...but for the most part, it hasn't been bad! 

Symptoms: I am so happy to report that the majority of bloating from the first trimester seems to be gone. That was terrible. My whole body felt huge. I do get really congested with stuffy/runny nose most mornings and sometimes late at night. I've also had some pretty major headaches around week 14 but those seem to be subsiding! 

Belly button in/out: In

Mood: Happy :) Trying my best to get over my worries about weight gain and being able to lose the weight after the baby is here and wanting to just enjoy this experience. 

Looking forward to: Our anatomy & gender ultrasound next month! I think finally seeing our baby on the screen will make all of this more real, as well as knowing if its a boy/girl so that I can start buying stuff. :) Also looking forward to spring break with Joe! Originally we were planning a Disneyland trip but my midwife nixed that idea so our week off will likely be more chill but we're okay with that. 

Exercise: I am going to the gym today for the first time in 2 months! First trimester had me feeling queasy and exhausted all of the time, along with some spotting scares so I took it pretty easy. And then Jackson had his surgery and the complications after that kept me homebound with him for a couple of weeks but I am really happy to get back (hopefully doing some weights training!) today. 

Nutrition: I do pretty good, its weird trying to get grains into my diet after weeding them out before getting pregnant. I definitely don't drink enough water most days but I'm trying to work on that. 

Favorite moments this last week: Dinner & Swan Lake date night with Joe, seeing all of the random acts of kindness on Valentine's Day, staying a couple hours after Bachelor with the girls catching up on chit chat and bonding (missed that alot!) and finally dying my hair dark again!

Oh Baby!

We found out some pretty exciting news in December! We are having a baby (in late July/early August). 

It all started around Thanksgiving when I noticed my "chest" was so sore! My menstrual symptoms are usually pretty mild so this was something totally out of the norm. I was also a few days late but figured I'd be patient with my body because there's no way I could be pregnant so quickly. I waited another week and threw a few tests in with my other groceries that Friday (December 5). I was planning to wait until morning when the tests are more accurate but I thought, what the heck? 

So I took one. 

And it was positive. 

And I was in shock. 

But a happy shock. I probably ran back in the bathroom and looked at that positive test sitting on the counter about 20 times over the next hour. Then I sat down and started coming up with some cute ways that I would tell Joe when he got home from work. That evening, I had plans with my friend Audrey to attend a Christmas in the Nighttime Sky chili feed/firework show. Somehow I made it through the evening without telling my secret. During the firework show, I got a call from my dad that my grandma was being flown into the hospital so I spent the rest of the evening there with gran and my sister. It was super hard not to spill the beans but I wanted Joe to be the first to know.

When I finally got home, Joe was just hanging out watching TV and unwinding from his day. I walked in the door and must have had a funny look on my face because he said something like "What's going on?"...and I stayed silent and he asked "Are you pregnant?" and I told him yes and showed him the test. I took another one (different brand) the next morning and it confirmed the same thing. After a couple more at home tests, we sent this photo to our families:

Everyone was ecstatic and we couldn't be happier!