Our Journey Continues...

Second Trimester

Week 13 was a lot like weeks 12 for me, not much better and not any worse, just the same.  People always say that second trimester is a fabulous trimester because you regain your energy, you are not normally sick, and you all around just feel good.  Well I was waiting for that and it wasn’t coming.  I wanted my energy back, I was tired of not having the stamina I needed to get things done, and after all, I was into my second trimester already.  Then I thought to myself, maybe it take more then just a week to feel better.  

Week 14 is when I started to notice I was getting some of my stamina back, I had more energy, and I wasn’t feeling sick anymore.  I was actually feeling pretty good. 

This is the week I really noticed that I was uncomfortable in my clothing.  I had been wearing maternity shirts and pants every once in a while, for the reason of they just fit better.  But this week made me realize that I was losing the battle with my pants and they were actually making me feel more pregnant then I was or even looked.  They were also hurting my belly after a while, actually everything, if it was too tight, would.  So I told Mike that I think I need to go get a couple more pairs of maternity pants and some more maternity shirts so I have things to wear.

Week 15 is when I felt as though I finally hit the second trimester glory, I was feeling really good.  I had regained some energy and my stamina had greatly improved.  Besides that, nothing really had changed.

Week 16 I was feeling great, but with the baby growing it caused my body to stretch and change.  Over the last few weeks I started noticing that I felt like my stomach was going to rip in half.  Knowing it was probably just my body stretching to accommodate the growing baby, it was still uncomfortable.  So, I talked to my OB and he said as long as it subsides quickly it is entirely normal and said it will continue throughout most of my pregnancy. 

Week 17 was much like the last couple of weeks, not much of a change which at this point is a good thing.

This week is also the week I gave in and went and bought more maternity clothes.  I was tired of not having anything comfortable to wear and I needed more then one pair of pants to wear.

Week 18 I was still feeling great.  I still hadn’t felt the baby move, but I was sure everything was OK and I am looking forward to the day when I do feel baby move.

Anatomy Ultrasound

October 10, 2012 was the big day, the day we could find out if this baby was going to be a girl or boy.  We were very excited, so excited that we started counting down the days a week before the appointment.  It was exciting to think that we were going to be able to see if our baby was still growing and developing like it should be and how big it was at this point.  It was exciting knowing that we were going to be able to see our baby in general.  It is fun listening to the heart beat, but it was really cool to see our baby and see where it is now compared to where it was the last time we saw it. 

The appointment itself took about 40 minutes and was very interesting.  The ultrasound tech measured my cervix and how much amniotic fluid was surrounding the baby and she also took a bunch of measurements on baby.  She measured baby’s head, the abdomen, the femur, and the length of the feet.  She also looked at baby’s brain, the spine, the kidneys, the 4 chambers of the heart, the diaphragm, the arms and legs, and the umbilical cord.  And although I am sure she looked and or measured more, that is all she pointed out or that I remember. 

All in all the appointment was very cool and it was very cool to see our baby move around, but the thing we remember the most about this appointment was finding out that we are having a baby BOY!!! Yep, a boy!!!  Our little boy weighs in at a whole 9 ounces, the length of his little foot measured a whole 1 inch, and he still had a good strong heart beat, so as far as we know he got a clean bill of health.  I did ask the ultrasound tech if she thought everything looked good, knowing she couldn’t tell me anything but I figured I would try, she said Dr. England would be able to give me all the results when we went in for our next appointment, so, I guess we will have to wait until October 22, 2012 to know officially if everything looks good, but as far as I could tell everything did.

It is crazy to think about, but we only have about 21 weeks left until we can bring home our little boy!    

Week 19 was a fun week, we started calling our baby a baby boy and we started looked for things to buy and although we didn’t buy anything this week it was fun to start thinking about nursery colors, bedding, furniture, and thinking about how to arrange all the furniture in the nursery.    As far as how I was feeling, I was feeling really good.

Week 20 was a lot like the last few weeks as far as how I was feeling.  I decided that I really like second trimester and realized why every other pregnant women does too. 

We bought our little man’s bedding on October 20^th.  It is made by Lambs and Ivy and it called Bow Wow.  My original thought was that I wanted to go with more of a color scheme instead of doing a themed room, but as I started looking at bedding, I noticed there isn’t a fantastic selection of bedding for boys that include more them a couple of colors.  So, ultimately I went with the bedding I did for the colors I could pull from to decorate the nursery.  Let the process of decorating begin!

Fifth appointment

October 22, 2012 we went to see Dr. England again.  He went over the anatomy ultrasound findings and said that everything looked good and that he wasn’t worried about anything.  We did get to listen to the heart beat and his little heart was beating 151 beats per minute.  Dr. England said that he would expect that I would continue to progress as I have and he would see me at my next appointment.  Our next appointment will be on November 19^th.  

Week 21 is the week that my dad bought our crib and mattress.  It was fun buying what I would expect to be the biggest purchase made for this baby and although we haven’t set it up yet, we still have it and that is one thing we can check off our list. 

Week 22 was much like the past few weeks, still feeling pretty good with nothing new to report. 

Week 23 was a pretty good week as far as how I was feeling, there were a couple of days that I felt like I reverted back into first trimester as far as being tired, but overall it was a good week. 

On November 10^th we went to Home Depot to see if they could color match the bedding instead of having to look at tons of paint swatches and still not finding the right color and we got lucky because they were able to color match the bedding so we were able to get the paint and although we probably won’t paint for a couple of weeks, we have it and that is what matters. 

Week 24 I was back to feeling good again, however, I have noticed that I am getting tired more easily then I was a few weeks ago.  Don’t get me wrong it is nothing like first trimester; I still have energy and feel pretty good, I just get tired quicker then my normal. 

As of yet, I still haven’t felt any movements that are undoubtedly baby moving, I am sure he is moving around.  I do feel movement in my belly every once in a while and with this being my first baby and me not knowing what it feels like when a baby moves, I could be feeling him and passing it off as gas or something.    

Sixth appointment

November 19, 2012 we went to see Dr. England again and he said everything looked good.  The heart beat was 148 beats per minute and sounded strong.  I have heard people compare the sound of a baby’s heart beat to the sound of running horses and I heard that at this appointment.  So, that makes me think our little man is closer to the surface then he has been because I have never heard the heart beat sound like that, it was pretty cool to hear. 

Dr. England told me that at our next appointment, which will be on December 17, 2012, I would be doing testing for Gestational Diabetes.  I have heard this test isn’t one to look forward too so it should be interesting.   

Week 25 was a good week for me, I only had to work 3 days this week and it was the week of Thanksgiving.  I had been feeling more tired lately so I was really looking forward to having a few days off where I could just hangout and relax.

I have been feeling more movement in my belly this week, so I am starting to think the things I have been feeling have been the baby moving around, but I am still not 100% positive.    

We bought some pajamas for our little man this week and it was actually the only thing we bought over the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Week 26 is when I officially knew that I was feeling our little guy move around, making the first noticeable kick happening on Thanksgiving night.  I still don’t feel him all that often, but I feel him often enough to know it is him. 

It is crazy to think that I only have one more trimester to go and our little boy will be here.  Second trimester was good to me and I hope third is just as good.  We still have a lot to get done before this little one makes his arrival, but knowing how I get when a deadline is approaching, it will all get done.

Our Journey continued...

First Trimester 

I told myself before I was pregnant, that since we had to work so hard to get pregnant that I wouldn't complain about being pregnant. I hear women complain about the struggles they go through when they are pregnant and I always thought to myself, if they ever had to struggle to get pregnant or to stay pregnant they wouldn't complain about the things they experience while they are pregnant. There are so many people in this world that can’t get pregnant, have been pregnant many times with no success of carrying a child past a few weeks, and many people that try for years and years that would give anything to go through the struggles that pregnant women go through. So with that being said, I don’t want this to sound as though I am complaining I just know if I don’t write this down, some day I will wish that I would have wrote down what is was like to be pregnant and the things that I went through while being pregnant.

My first trimester was interesting to say the least and all I can I say is holy cow! I think girls in general and used to their bodies changing slightly every month, but being pregnant is crazy. My body has gone through so many changes already and I feel like it continues to change everyday.

Week 6 is the week I found out I was pregnant and both Mike and I were over the moon excited. At this point I wasn't feeling nauseas and food still sounded good, but I was feeling “off” and tired. All I can compare it too is, I felt like I had the flu and all I wanted to do is sleep. But all in all I was feeling pretty good.

Week 7 is when I started to feel sick and lost my ability to eat just anything. Eating quickly became something I had to do rather then something I looked forward to doing. Even drinking water was a challenge. I was also feeling really tired and being out in the sun would take everything out of me. On the positive side, when I did have energy I felt pretty good.

Weeks 8 and 9 were a lot like week 7 except my nausea was no longer being controlled by food and I was feeling sick about 98% of my day. I could no longer drink water on an empty stomach, eat food that didn't sound good, or even smell food that didn't sound good. I would come home from work being so hungry but couldn't eat because nothing sounded good or I was so over hungry that nothing sounded good. I noticed quickly that sweet things were not going to be part of my diet, well at least not in this trimester. When I did eat sweet things it made me sick almost instantly. When I say sweet things I mean jams, yogurt, juice, etc… not just baked good and candy. I did find out that my go to food when nothing else sounded good was, toasted peanut and honey sandwiches and a glass of milk. I could have them any time of the day and eat multiples of them.

Week 10 was a split week for me. There were days that I would feel great and then there were days that weren't any different from the weeks before. I always took extra food with me to work so when I would get hungry I would have something to tie me over until it was time to eat again. There would be some days that I would eat everything I would bring for snacks and still need something else and then there were days that I didn't need to eat anything extra. I was still pretty tired and I didn't have that much energy, but I was regaining some energy, not a lot, but some.

This week was also the week we told our families we were expecting a baby.

Week 11 I feel like things started to shift. I started to notice that I would feel pretty good in the morning up until after lunch then sometime around 1-3 I would start to get sick again. I was still bringing snacks with me every day and much like week 10, some days I would eat everything and some days I would take food home.

Week 12 there were more days I would feel good the whole day then there were days I would fill sick in the afternoon. The shift in me taking food home was greater then the days I would take an empty lunch box home. I still didn't have a ton of energy, but I had more energy throughout the day. When I got home and relaxed for the night is when I noticed how tired I really was. Before I was pregnant my bed time was most always at 10:30, while being pregnant, most days I am ready for bed at 9:30 and go to bed around 10. All in all I was feeling better and food was again becoming something I could enjoy.

This week we also started telling close friends that we were excepting a baby.

Well we made it through the first trimester, we had some up and downs, but we made it through. We learned a lot and at each doctors appointment our baby got a clean bill of health. Our baby was growing and developing and we only have to wait 2 more trimesters to meet him or her.

Fourth Appointment

September 20, 2012, was our fourth appointment and once again baby got a clean bill of health. Although we didn't have an ultrasound this time we did get to hear the heartbeat and it was beating at 153 beats per minute and sounded nice and strong. Dr. England did give me the order form to call and schedule the anatomy ultrasound for about 3 weeks or around 19 weeks, but not before 19 weeks. So we will be able to find out what our baby is on October 10, 2012 and I also scheduled my next appointment with Dr England for October 22, 2012.

Our Journey

July 11, 2012 was the day I found out that I was pregnant again. I took a pregnancy test around 7:30am because I had been feeling a little strange but I was still surprised when I looked down a minute later and it said pregnant. I have had the feeling of looked down two other times and seeing the words pregnant spelled out for me and being so excited, but this time was different, this time I was scared and nervous. In reality I had been thinking for a week or two that I could be pregnant, but kept denying the feelings because how could I be pregnant? We really hadn't been trying and I have always only gotten pregnant on medication and I hadn't been taking any meds. Could this be real?

I took a picture of the test with my phone and sent it to Mike with a question mark under the picture. He texted back, “I told you!!!!” He had been telling me to take a test for at least a week, but I kept saying, “It’s just side effects from Peru. I am not pregnant”. So, on my lunch break I called Utah Fertility Center to tell them I was pretty sure I was pregnant and needed to know what I should do from here. They called back and told me that I needed to come in the next morning to have my blood drawn to check my HCG level. I went in the following morning and they called me later that afternoon and said, “Your HCG level is at 8026, that means you are very pregnant. Congratulations.” So I scheduled an ultrasound for the 25th of July to make sure everything was developing correctly and to hopefully hear a heartbeat. With our first pregnancy we never heard a heartbeat and with our second pregnancy we lost it before we ever made it to the doctors, so we were really praying to hear something.

First Ultrasound

July 25, 2012 was our first ultrasound and baby got a clean bill of health. The heartbeat was 148 beats per minute, measuring 7 weeks and 6 days, and the Physician’s Assistant said that the baby looked to be implanted in a good place on my uterus. It was so crazy to see the tiny chest rise and fall in rhythm with the heartbeat and then when we heard the heartbeat, it was like nothing else. At that moment, this pregnancy suddenly became very real and very exciting. We had a new found hope that this pregnancy was going to last and we were really going to be able to bring a child into this world; we were going to be parents!

As we left the doctors office we scheduled our second Ultrasound and were told that if everything looked good I would “graduate” and be able to go back to my regular OBGYN.



Second Ultrasound

August 6, 2012 we went in for our second ultrasound and once again baby got a clean bill of health. The heartbeat was 166 beats per minute and Dr. Gurtcheff said the baby was measuring perfectly and everything looked really good. We weren't told what the baby was measuring, but assumed since we were told everything was measuring well, baby was measuring right on track. Dr. Gurtcheff gave me the thumbs up to go a head and schedule an appointment to see my regular OBGYN; I “graduated” from Utah Fertility Center, what a feeling!

I received great care and learned a lot while at Utah Fertility Center, but I was glad to be going back to see Dr. England. I knew that Utah Fertility Center wouldn't send me back to my regular OBGYN if they had any doubt that this pregnancy was going to have early complication, but I also know that Dr. England will take great care of me and this growing baby.


Third Ultrasound

August 23, 2012, was our third ultrasound and our first appointment seeing Dr. England. I was really excited to see him, but one thing I remembered quickly is that, unlike Dr. Gurtcheff at Utah Fertility Center, he does deliveries and is often very late to his appointments, but I also respect that because he makes delivering his patients a priority.

This appointment was a little different then our other two appointments, just for the fact that I had to get labs drawn, they took a blood pressure, and they also got my weight. Utah Fertility Center only follows patients up until a certain week of pregnancy and then they send you back to your regular OBGYN so they don’t do the entire lab work up that a normal OBGYN does on your first prenatal appointment.

Although it was nice to catch up with Dr. England, the best part of the appointment was the ultrasound. Our growing baby measured at 12 weeks and 2 days, was a little over 5cm long (head to rump), and the heartbeat was 167 beats per minutes. So once again our baby got a clean bill of health. It was fun and reassuring to hear the heartbeat again, but it was really cool to see our baby move around like it was. Dr. England even said, “How am I expected to get a picture of this baby if it won’t stop moving?” It was moving all over the place and it is so wired to me that I can’t feel any of it, but that will come soon enough.

Our next doctor’s appointment is on September 20th and we will be around 16 weeks at that time.

Worst Couple Days of Our Lives

Friday, March 4 started the worst day of my life. As I got up to get ready for work I realized I was bleeding a little bit, I know that some bleeding during pregnancy can be normal, but I didn't feel right about it. Unfortunately, it was 20 minutes before I was suppose to be at work so I pulled myself together and left for work. I was trying to hold myself together but the longer I was there the less I was able to accomplish that task. I finally told the charge nurse that I thought I was having a miscarriage and she sent me home around 10:30am. I came home and went back to bed until Mike was able to get home around 2:00pm. When Mike got home he made me call the doctors office and they told me if my bleeding got worse and if I stated cramping that I needed to head to the ER. As I went to bed on Friday night I had no cramping and the bleeding didn't seem to be getting any worse.

Saturday, March 5 around 3:00am I had the urge to go to the bathroom and that started the second worst day of my life. I started having severe cramps and my bleeding was out of control. I knew we were about to loose the baby we had worked so hard for. My biggest fear was coming true. Miscarriages run ramped in my family and I was hoping that I would be able to escape that fact at least until after my first baby was born. Around 4:00am my baby was gone. I was in physical pain and I felt as though my heart had been ripped from my chest, I was in so much pain. I had never experienced pain like that. I had always felt sympathy for people that had miscarriages but never understood what they went through until that precise moment. I went from an extreme high to an extreme low in a matter of 24 hours.

From the moment we started trying to get pregnant we prayed that my body would be able to carry the pregnancy and that everything would be ok with the baby. All we wanted was a health baby and for mom to be healthy too. I thought that since we were tried with the process of having a child that we would some how escape the startling statistic that more the 25% of pregnancies end in a miscarriage. When I found out I was pregnant I thought my trial was over. Throughout the process of trying to get pregnant people would always ask me would I rather not be pregnant or go through what could possibly be many miscarriages. My answer, I rather not be pregnant because I think a miscarriage would destroy me.

Mike kept me really busy the rest of Saturday in order to keep my mind off of the fact that we had just lost our baby. Saturday night came along and I realized my nephews baby blessing was the next day and thought I should tell my family before the blessing to ensure I would not take away from the joy of that day, so slowly but surely I told my family and relived that very painful hour every time the words came out of my mouth. People would ask me what they could do to help me and my answer was unless you can bring my baby back to me, there was nothing they could do.

I cried for days and days and nothing people said or did helped. I wanted my baby back and that was not possible.

Tuesday, March 8 was the first day I was alone at my house and alone with my thoughts. By the end of the day I literally was hiding in the back of my closest, covered by clothes and just wanted to be left alone. I am not usually a depressive person but the fact I was not pregnant anymore was eating me alive. I felt like I should be ok because Mike was not showing signs of being sad. Mike was telling people that I was ok, so people would not ask me how I was doing, so I should be ok right. Wrong! I was hurting and needed him to hurt too. I wanted someone to cry with and he was not crying. I wanted someone to feel the way I was feeling and didn't think Mike was feeling that way. I was sick of him being tough, I wanted him to be weak with me. How was I going to deal with this?

By Friday, March 11, I was starting to feel ok, time was passing and I was dealing with the fact that we would have to start again. Was time really helping me? It was, I was getting better every day. My friend Chellese texted me a song to listen to, she said that she would listen to it over and over again if she was dealing with something hard. So I downloaded the song and it quickly become my bedtime song, the song I listened to on my way to work, on lunch break, pretty much anytime that I felt I needed a little pick me up. You always hear that music is a powerful tool in changing emotions and it is so true. I felt like that song was written just for me and the funny thing is we listened to this song in college all the time and I was thinking about that song a few weeks before and could not remember the name of the song, Chellese was an answer to my prayers.

I don't think I am an outwardly spiritual person but I didn't know what I was suppose to be learning from this and the more and more I thought about it the only thing I could think of was, I needed to learn patience, I needed to trust in Heavenly Fathers plan and realize that He knows and sees more than I do, I needed to learn perseverance, and faith.

It has been one month and if I still think about the loose I went through I still cry and wish I was still caring a baby, but I know that someday we will be blessed with a baby and I know that we will love that baby more than we have ever loved anything before.

First Dr. Appointment

We went to our first Dr. appointment today and found out we weren't as far along as we thought. We thought we would be about 10 weeks but found out we are only measuring about 5 weeks and 6 days. So we are going back to the doctors in 2 weeks and hopefully we will have a little more news to share.

Finally!

January 20, 2011, Mike and I found out we were pregnant after a grueling 18 months of trying to get pregnant. We started trying August 2009 and went on fertility meds in April 2010 due to some problems with my body. 8 months later we were over the moon to finally get a positive pregnancy test. I didn't even know what to do when the test showed positive because I was so used to seeing not pregnant. We finally get our little bundle of joy instead of being happy for everyone one else and secretly wishing it was us. On February 25 we go to the first doctors appointment and hopefully will be able to here the heart beat.

Marry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas from the Nelsons!

We are all married now

In college I met five girls that I will always be able to call my best friends and on November 6, 2010 all six of us gathered together to share in the event of the last of us to be married. The first one to get married was Dano.

Dano married Jer on April 20, 2007

The second one to get married was me.

I married Mike on August 1, 2008

The third one to get married was Chellese.

Chellese married Evan on August 16, 2008

The fourth one to get married was Whitney.

Whitney married Monty on August 7, 2009

The fifth one to get married was Tina.

Tina married Colby on December 18, 2009

The sixth on to get married was Amy.

Amy married Aaron on November 6, 2010

All of our weddings were different but we all shared them in the same way, with the people we love the most. I am so lucky to call these girls my best friends. We have all been through a lot together, some of us have had our struggles but in the end we are all best friends. I will love these girls forever! Congratulations to all of us!

Happy Halloween

Every year at Mike's work they have a costume party for Halloween and every year, all year long, I rack my brain on what he could be for Halloween. This costume party is not a normal costume party there is a lot at stake. See there is this girl named Emilee and Emilee comes up with the most elegant costumes every year and no one can beat her costumes. If you know me at all you know I am a little competitive and after I found out this tidbit of information it has became my goal to beat her. Halloween 2009 Mike tied Emilee for first place and this year I thought Mike's costume for sure would beat her. In college I had a pretty creative roommate named Tina and she came up with the idea of a costume that another one of my roommates, Chellese, wore for Halloween one year and won a costume party. That costume was a bag of marshmallows. I thought if anything people would vote for Mike even if it was just out of sympathy and although Mike took second Emilee still won. So my internal drive to beat Emilee will continue at least for one more year.

Don't Forget to wear your "REDNECK" Shirt!

On August 21, 2010 Mike and I joined my Dad and Stepmom for a night out at the Fair. Growing up my Dad would take me to Monster Truck Shows, Tractor Pulls and to Demolition Derbies so I grew to love going to these events. Mike and the other had had never been to one, before tonight so it was going to be something that we, my parents and I, would be able to experience with him for his first time. Needless to say he loved it and really how could you not love it. Who doesn't love watching cars smash into each other over and over again? As my Dad would say, "This is one event that you can pull out and wear your "REDNECK" shirt and fit right in."

Two Years and Couting!

Two years ago on August 1, 2008 I was sitting across the alter being sealed to the love of my life for time and all eternity. We were surrounded by the people we love and who love us the most, we were on cloud nine. Now two years later, I look back and say where did those two years go, time goes by so fast.

Last year at this time we were boarding a flight back from Hawaii where we spent 12 glorious days in paradise. We didn't go there strictly for our anniversary, it just happened to be our anniversary while we were there. See Mike's parents took Me, Mike, Kristy and Aaron (Mike's sister and husband) to Hawaii for a family vacation and it just happened to work out that we were there for our anniversary.
This year to celebrate our Anniversary we went camping up American Fork Canyon to a place called Granite Flats. Some of my family joined us to help celebrate our anniversary. We spent 2 relaxing days fishing, playing cards and just enjoying the mountains. Mike not only made me my favorite breakfast on Sunday but he made his own favorite breakfast also (We don't like the same kinds of breakfast foods). We had a good weekend and a good anniversary.

Happy Anniversary Baby!!

Fun for all ages!

July 27, 2010 was our niece Shayna's 3rd birthday and for her 3rd birthday Allison, her mom, rented a bounce house and it ended up being the highlight of the party. As Shayna and her little friends were opening presents me, Mike, Kristy and Angie (Mike's sisters) decided we would try the bounce house out. Well one of the first trials was getting in the thing. Angie went first, she went to step on what we thought was the stair to get into the house, ended up not being a stair for people that weigh more than 40lbs. Needless to say, the step collapsed and Angie faced planted into the bounce house. Mike decided he would try it and did the exact same thing. I went next and instead of stepping on the non step I hurled myself through the tiny opening, Kristy did the same thing as I and got in just fine. Angie tried to do what Kristy and I just did and failed so then she just stuck her arms in and Kristy and I pulled her in. Mike succeeded with entrance Kristy and I had done. All of this while Shayna was opening her presents, needless to say the attention was not on Shayna, even the camera was directed to us.

After all of us were in and jumping we looked over at Angie and she had gotten a little to close to the edge and the edge had collapsed on her bending her in half. Kristy and I couldn't stop laughing even after we noticed she really needed help because she could get out. After we saved Angie we decided to exit the house. Mike went first and some how literally fail out of the house and ate dirt. Angie, Kristy and I got out with no problem. From that moment on any time there were no kids in the bounce house the adults would take their turn and although we could never stay in for very long because it is very tiring and we were laughing to hard, it was still fun.

Later that night as Steve and Mike were putting the bounce house away, they found something new to do with the bounce house. Steve was on one side and Mike jumped on the other side throwing Steve off the corner he was on and landing on the grass. After finding out that this was fun, Steve came inside and had me and Allison come outside and try it. After doing it a few times we went inside and got Kristy to come try. The fun finally stopped when it started to pour.

I think it is safe to say, to have any kind of family get together/ family party without a bounce house of some kind will just not cut it anymore.

Ephraim/ Manti Weekend

So if you haven't figured this out by now you will understand by the end of this post how much we love 4-wheeling. I have to admit we don't do it that often, but when we do go we remember why we love it.

My Dad had asked us if we would like to go 4-wheeling with Him and my Stepmom for the weekend and we accepted. So after I got off work on Thursday, July 15, 2010 we packed up are things and headed towards Ephraim. We got into town around 9:30pm and after some planning with my parents on what time we would be up to eat breakfast and to leave, we hit the sack.

Friday, July 16, 2010, around 9:00am we headed up Ephraim Canyon. The first trial we took was a short ride down to Grassy Flats Reservoir. This reservoir was tucked away down a mountain path and was one of those place that you would never know existed unless you knew it was there.

After our short break at the reservoir we head back to the trail and just road. We road along Skyline Drive for a while, took some side road trails, saw some wild life, mostly sheep, and just enjoyed the day. We did run across some snow so my Dad said I should make a snow angel and send it to our missionaries, so I did. Needless to say the snow was very wet and cold, looking back on it now however it did feel good.

After 7 good hours of 4-wheeling, we head down off the mountain to eat dinner, shower and go to bed.

Saturday, July 17, 2010
After loading up the 4-wheelers and eating breakfast we headed to Manti where we would be 4-wheeling for the day. We started off the day heading towards Duck Fork Reservoir and can I say getting to this stop was one of the most beautiful rides I have ever been on. We had every kind of terrain possible, we road through beautiful meadows, thick dense forest, open ranges, we climbed over rocks, tree roots, road straight up hill, and road straight down hill. We saw deer, sheep, and best yet, very little people.

After stopping at Duck Fork we headed to Snow Lake and getting there was also a beautiful ride, we passed fields of wild flowers and other small little reservoirs along the way.
After Snow Lake we started making our way down off the mountain. Making our way down off the mountain took a couple more hours of cool riding, lots of mud puddles and rock to climb over but the coolest was the final minutes of the ride, straight down. When I say straight down, I mean we were going straight down, weaving in and out of trees and making sharp turns it was fun. Also on our way down we saw the Manti Valley come into view, can I say what a beautiful little valley.

We had a great weekend! Beautiful riding, beautiful things to look at, great weather and great company.

American Fork Steel Day's

After running the Freedom 5K on July 5, my Mom asked us if we would be interested in running the American Fork Steel Day's 5k on July 10 with the rest of the family. I was a little hesitant just because it had only been 4 day since the previous race, but said yes anyways. So on the morning of Saturday July 10, we woke up at 5:30am got ourselves ready and headed towards are next 5K. Mike improved his time finishing around 37 minutes and I lengthened my time finishing around 42 minutes. This race was really hard on me, my shins hurt from the last race and were just starting to feel better on Friday. I had a great start on this race, however, not long after my great start the pain of the last race and the new pains of this race hit me and stopped me in my tracks, needless to say I walked my fair share of this race.

I know I should think more about the fact that I am improving my health and finishing 5K's then dwell on the fact that I have yet to finish a race with a quicker time than the last, but it would be nice to finish at least one race with a quicker time the the previous. Our next 5k will be August 14 so I have one month to solidify my 3.2 miles and improve my time. Wish me luck!

4th of July Weekend

Friday, July 2, 2010 we helped Allison and Steve sod their backyard but just like their backyard, the whole day was filled with bumps and hills that needed to be smoothed out. First hill that needed to be smoothed out was the one left by the forklift that sunk while dropping off the sod. Second bump that needed to be smoothed out was figuring out what we were going to do with all the rocks that had been tilled up and also the rock hard ground that couldn't be tilled up. Third was the fact that we had 2000 sq. feet of sod sitting outside in the blazing heat that we didn't know if we would be able to lay. Fourth was finding a company to deliver topsoil on extremely short notice. Fifth was figuring out how to spread all the topsoil and sixth waiting to see how Mike was going to run the Bobcat that was rented to help fix all of the problems we were having.
So what it boils down to is that we spent all day smoothing out hills, filling in holes, moving rocks, spreading topsoil and laying 2000 sq. feet of topsoil and then realizing that we didn't take one pictures of this very rocky day.

Saturday, July 3, 2010 we had a BBQ with Allison and Steve, watched the UFC fight, and relaxed from the previous day.

Sunday, July 4, 2010 we went to my Moms and had dinner then came back home to help my Dad load our 4-wheeler into his truck so we could go 4-wheeling the next day.

Monday, July 5, 2010 we got up at 5 am in order to be Allison house no later than 5:45 am and be in Provo no later than 6:45 am so we could be at the start line for the Freedom 5k we would be running. That's right our second 5K of the summer! Once again we all finished, Allison coming in first with a time of 36.23, Mike coming in second with a time of 39.19 and me coming in third with a time of 41.52. Although all of our times increased from our first race, I don't think they were bad considering the last leg of the race was all up hill. Although I finished with a slower time, I loved this race, I loved running with thousands of people, it kept me moving. (Click on the links below to see photos of Mike and I during the race.)
View Photos from Freedom Run - America's Freedom Festival at Provo
View Photos from Freedom Run - America's Freedom Festival at Provo

After the race we headed straight to my Dads house to go 4-wheeling. We ended up riding in Levan at a place called Chicken Creek which by the way was a beautiful ride. I love 4-Wheeling! We had a great time and will be heading Manti next week for another 4-wheeling weekend.

Pool Time

So Allison and I have been going to the pool lately and last week I took some pictures of Shayna and Alex while we were there. Shayna loves going to the pool but won't go in past her knees. Alex also loves the pool, he loves to splash, however he doesn't like his floaty.

It is so fun watching them, Alex gets this surprised look on his face when he splashes and the water hits him and Shayna just loves being there. She will play with toys and throw balls into the water and I will get them and throw them back to her. Shayna always makes comments like, "Nesha you are such a good swimmer" and it helps you feel so great about yourself. This week at the pool she was introducing Allison and I to the other little kids, which is so cute because she has the softest little voice and she didn't even look at the kids when she said, "This is my Mom and this is my Nesha". Shayna is so smart that some times it is hard to believe that she isn't even 3 yet.

Father's Day Weekend

Friday, June 18, 2010, Mike only worked a half day and I didn't work, so after running some errands, we decided to break out the 4-wheeler and go for a ride. We decided to ride Mineral Fork trail, which is up Big Cottonwood Canyon, because we have been on it before and it is a short ride, we started riding around 5:30pm. Previously when we have rode this trail, we have never made it to the top, for various reasons, but this time all the way to the top we went. When we got to the top we found an old mine and even some snow, but along the way were some really pretty waterfalls and some breathtaking views. It is always nice to escape the city and the heat by going 4-wheeling, all while enjoying the mountain fresh air.

Saturday, June 19, 2010, I volunteered to help out with the Community Health Fair that Riverton Hospital, where I work, hosted. I took part in testing total cholesterol and blood glucose. So, while I was at work, Mike went to a golf tournament with a few guys from work. Later that evening we went to Allison's, Mikes sister, to watch Alex, our nephew, while Allison, Steve and Shayna, our niece, went out for Father's Day.

Sunday, June 20, 2010 Happy Father's Day.
Since Scott, Mike's dad, is serving a mission in Peru and since my dad was just getting back from a long two weeks of annual training for the Guard, we went to Karl and Iara's house, Mike's uncle and aunt, for again another amazing Brazilian BBQ. We also watched Brazil win against Ivory Coast in the World Cup. After leaving there, we headed to Allison's so I could take some pictures of their family and for another BBQ. Although I talked to my Dad on Fathers Day, it was weird not splitting time between Mikes Dad and my Dad on their day. Although we missed them, they both know we love them very much and hope they had a great day.

Do you like Grandpa?

The other day I was watching Shayna and Alex and after Allison got home we were asking Shayna names of people in our family. Example, Nesha and ? Bike!, Kristy and ? Aaron!, What is your Dads name? Steve!, What is your Moms name? Allison! and after we went through the ones she knows really well, we asked her ones she isn't to sure on yet, like, What is Grandpas name? Uhmm..., after a little help, Scott! Do you like Grandpa? Yes, because he makes funny faces! I started to laugh so hard because it is completely true and also because Shayna hides from Grandpa every time she sees him, so to hear her say that was so funny. She has to be the cutest little girl ever.

On another occasion as I was watching Shayna and Alex, Shayne wanted to go the the park, so being the good aunt I am, I loaded the diaper bag and we headed to the park. Shayna loves the park, I seriously think, no I know, she could spend hours there. She loves to go down the slides, so since Grandma and Grandpa are gone I thought I would take pictures of her, for them.

I love watching Shayna and Alex, they are so stinking cute! I am so glad that I have Sister-in-laws that have kids because nieces and nephews are so much fun. I love them all.