he's here!

Parker Daniel Rucks.
December 24, 2010.
6 pounds 7 ounces 18 inches long.
Perfect.

here's his story:

Friday December 24 we had a doctors appointment in the morning. i was feeling really bummed out that he still wasnt here when three other girls i knew who were all due around the same time as me had each already had their babies. i was keeping my fingers crossed that we had made some progress and would be heading to the hospital but, no such luck. we hadnt progressed any. we scheduled an appointment to be induced monday, the 27th at 7:30 am, went over to the hospital to pre-register and home we went.

we decided to go out to lunch around 11:30am as kind of a last-date-just-the-two-of-us kind of thing. my contractions had started to feel very different, but were still coming 15, 20 and 30 minutes apart. after we got home i laid down in bed and turned the tv on. my contractions started to come closer and closer together and were getting strong... nothing too horrible though.

i remember texting my mom "im not sure if we are going to make it to monday..." then at 1:45 i got a VERY strong contraction... 5 minutes later, another one.... i decided to take a bath and when i got into the tub they seemed to come stronger and faster.... jared had gone to help his brother move a few things so when he got home i told him to call the hospital... they told him to have me lay on my left side and drink 2 cold glasses of water and see what happens... i was too uncomfortable and they were coming so fast i couldnt drink any water... i debated back and forth about going to the hospital cause i didnt want to get turned away....

but i couldnt take the pain any longer... and i told jared if this is "false labor" i dont want to know what "real labor is." that drive from idaho falls to rexburg was LONG! every time i had a contraction i would get really hot so we would turn the AC on, then after it passed i would freeze so we would turn it back to hot. we go to the hospital around 4:00 pm the nurse checked me, and i was already dilated 5 cm and 100% effaced... things went WAY fast from there as they began hooking up iv's and monitors... i begged and pleaded for them to get me an epidural and when that man came in and put something wonderful in me all was okay in the world again. i dont know why or how any woman would not want to have one, but props to them... i couldnt do it.

my doctor showed up and immediately told me things werent looking good for the baby and he was 90% sure were going to have to have a c-section... i remember just crying.

finally things seemed to calm down a little and they had me lying flat on my back with a pillow propping me up on one side... they kept coming in every now and then and having me switch sides to see if that would help calm baby down. i kept asking how he was looking and my nurse would say, better but still not great.

at 10:00pm my nurse sadie, who was awesome, checked and said "looks like you're complete! let's start pushing!" i was SO relieved not to have a c-section. we got set up and started pushing at 10:10pm, my doctor showed up at 11:00 and by 11:15pm Parker made his debut into the world!

he is perfect and we love him. he has been the center of attention with my sisters and mom and jared's mom since we've been hom. he gets held constantly by one of them during the day, but i dont think he minds :)

ready, set, GO?

okay so maybe i was a little off thinking "any day now." here we are 38 weeks and still pregnant. i know pregnancy is 40 weeks (or maybe even longer) but im ready to be done. this whole pregnancy has really flown by but now that im not working anymore, these last few weeks are going SO SLOW. from the beginning we kind of just assumed he would come "early" and now that "early" is here and he is not, im kind of bummed out. i wouldnt be so stressed out about having him come early if we werent packing up and moving to colorado at the end of the month.

we went to the doctor on friday. i really hate the doctors but these last few months havent been bad... its the same thing every time, weight, blood pressure, urine sample, listen for the heart beat, measure belly, questions, call it good. this time i thought they were going to be checking under the hood for dilation so of course i was nervous all morning. when they checked my blood pressure it was a little high so they checked it again... still high. i told them i was nervous for them to check me and they told me they werent going to be checking this appointment which made me calm way down so they check my blood pressure again and it was back to normal. i cant help but get nervous when it comes to things like this... im not sure how im going to get through labor and delivery and keep my blood pressure down.

my doctor told me im measuring small, but ive been consistent every time so we're just going to have a small baby. he is predicting he will be in the 6 pound range, (but probably no bigger than 7.5 pounds) which is okay with me! he did tell me though that he has seen girls as small as me deliver 10 pounders! YIKES!

we go back in on friday to see if i have started making any progress. i dont wanna get my hopes up too high though for good news. everyone keeps telling me to just enjoy this time right now cause he is going to be here before we know it.... which is true, but im finding it hard to enjoy my time when all i constantly think about is going into labor.

if i could send my little dude a message, id tell him "ready.... set.... GO!"
here's hoping my next post will be of pictures of our new bundle of joy!

any day now right?

i think its safe to say that this little dude of ours could really come any day now... people keep asking me if im ready for him to come.... im ready to be done being pregnant and to have my body back, but im not ready to keep him and take care of him (does that make me sound like such a bad mom?) he is so much easier to take care of in my tummy. im starting to really stress out and get nervous about this whole thing. im scared outta my mind for labor and delivery, and i have no idea what to do with him once he is here.... i know hundreds of million of women have gone through it and survived, so i think ill survive too. i think im just ready for the anticipation to be over

36 weeks!

every year since i can remember my mom always got us these advent calendars... you know the ones with the chocolate behind each door.... jared and i decided that instead of counting down to christmas, we are going to count down to our little dude. so we will start eating our chocolates on december 2. then if he decides by some miracle to come early, we can just eat the rest of the chocolates!
24 chocolate days till Parker.... yup we are going to name our little dude Parker.... before we were even pregnant i had told jared i liked the name parker for a boy... well i changed my mind and decided i didnt like parker anymore, but jared my sister and her husband called our little dude parker before we even knew it was a boy! so for the last 8 months we (they) have referred to him as parker.... i finally just gave up and gave in and i cant imagine calling him anything else. his full name will be Parker Daniel Rucks. daniel is jared's middle name. so the three of us will be the PB&J family.... parker, brielle & jared :)

with parker on his way, jared and i finally decided it was time to part with our BMW... we figured with a new baby we should probably have a new reliable car that actually had a working heater for the cold winter, and a working air conditioner for the hot summer... so we said good bye to our beamer and hello to this beauty:2010 hyundai sonata. cute. small. comfy. i love it.

student teaching has officially ended and it's one of the best feelings to be done! i went back to visit my class one last time. they were such good kids... i didnt realize how much of an impact they had on my life. as much as some of them drove me crazy, im really going to miss them! i hope i did something helpful for them!
they had all made me cards. i thought this one was too funny:
in case you cant read it it says: "Dear Mrs. Rucks, thank you for teaching. that is really nice of you! you are cute that is why Mr. Rucks marid (married) you. HAHAHA some of the things these kids would say cracked me up... they definitely were the reason why i kept going.

so now we are playing the waiting game... i hate not knowing when he's going to come. is it going to be next week? or will he wait till his due date? after his due date? tomorrow? i have a doctors appointment on saturday and ill be just one day shy of 37 weeks... the doctor told me they wouldnt start checking me for dilation till probably 38 weeks, which kind of bummed me out, but didnt at the same time. all i know is im nervous to have him, anxious to meet him, and scared to keep him.

as for jared, he has 3 weeks left of school. parker is probably going to decide to come during one of jared's finals. I think jared is excited for the semester to end and for parker to come. im glad i have jared right by my side to do this whole thing with me. i hope our little dude looks just like him!

(wow, this ended up being a novel!)

6 weeks left

well folks, here we are..... 34 weeks along, 6 weeks left, and feeling very large!

for as big as i think i am, everyone tells me im still so little and they cant believe i am a month and a half away from having this baby! but at every doctor's appointment they have told me im measuring right on track.

i had a baby shower yesterday that my mother in law through me and we got more things for this little dude. i am starting to get very anxious to meet him! i have said this over and over but its true.... i really have enjoyed being pregnant but i told jared last night im ready to be done. im starting to feel very uncomfortable, and none of my clothes are fitting me comfortably anymore. luckily this is my LAST WEEK of student teaching, and then i can hang out at home all day in my pajamas and wait for him to make his debut into this world. which i really wish he would let us know exactly when that will be... because i really want him here for christmas.

halloween festivities

this halloween is jared and mine's 4th halloween together! that sounds so crazy to me, where has the time gone? we did do some fun things for halloween this year. the weekend before halloween we convinced my sister to go to a haunted house.... (sorry carissa, we will never make you go again!)we did have two 10 year old boys walk through with us, they seemed to lighten the mood a little bit and would always tell us where not to step so things wouldnt jump out. they were funny.jared saw his ex-girlfriend while we were waiting in line.

then for school, we had a "spook parade" during our halloween party. all the kiddos dressed up in their costumes and paraded around the school. it was fun to see all the cute and creative costumes some of the kids came up with... i wish i would have remembered to take my camera!

this is the outfit i came up with. i remember my cute friend trista did this to her belly last halloween when she was pregnant.

friday night jared got to dress up for work:he says he wants to dress up every day for work because people were giving him really good tips!

now that halloween is over, im so excited and anxious for the holidays to start! student teaching ends in 3 weeks and i could not be more excited to finally be finished! our little dude is just 8 weeks away from making his debut into this world. we are actually keeping our fingers crossed and hoping its really only 6 weeks away so he can be here for christmas, and so we can be ready to move to colorado by the end of december.

pregnancy update: people always told me that by the third trimester, i would start to get uncomfortable... i didnt really believe them, but holy hannah, i am starting to feel very uncomfortable. i cant bend over very easily anymore, and he loves to kick the right side of my rib cage, which im pretty sure is bruised. he also likes to push his little body out as far as he can. almost like he is stretching... my stomach will get really hard, and it actually hurts a little sometimes. i really shouldnt be complaining though. i have loved being pregnant, it will be weird to not be pregnant anymore i think...

counting down

i feel like my whole life all i have ever done is "count down" to things....
it seems to have started when i was counting down the days till i turned 12 to go to young womens at church....

next came the count down to turning 16 to get my drivers license.....

then we started the count down to high school graduation.....

graduation came and went, and i started counting down the days till i left for college....

college started and i soon found myself counting down the days (okay really years) to that graduation....

during college i met jared, we became engaged and i started yet another countdown to our wedding day.....

the wedding came and went, i was still counting down semesters to my college graduation, and soon realized i had to add his graduation to my count down list......

now my college graduation has come and gone (the walking part of it at least) and i cant count down the days fast enough to student teaching ending....

because with student teaching ending, my count down to having my little dude come will be even smaller........

am i the only one that seems to always be counting down to something? i know it is probably not a very good habit, and i really should stop and enjoy what im doing at that exact moment, but i get too excited for new things to happen in my life.

with our countdown sitting at only 10 weeks left till out little dude arrives, i am getting more and more nervous by the second! i am anxious for him to get here and to meet him, but a little part of me is absolutely terrified, okay a BIG part of me is terrified! everyone says this last trimester is so uncomfortable, but i have loved feeling him move almost constantly throughout the day... sure he has figured out he loves to kick my ribs, and kick them hard, but it lets me know he is still doing okay in there. the other day i think he had the hiccups cause i felt a constant "kick like" feeling for over 10 minutes in the same place.
so here we are.... 30 weeks.... "and counting"

holy hannah!

holy hannah hello october! i couldnt be more excited that it is finally October!

i cant believe that i am already 28 weeks along and in my last trimester! in 12 weeks we will officially be a family of 3..... that's crazy! i still feel great and cant complain one bit about pregnancy. i did my 3 hour glucose test the other weekend and my results came out normal! yay! they just told me to lay off the oreos and kit-kats.... bummer.

we ordered our car seat and stroller and finally got it! i love it i cant wait to put my little dude inside instead of this stuffed animal.

things are still moving along for us! i wish i could say i am enjoying student teaching, but im really not. i dread waking up and going every morning. i just keep telling myself, if i can just make it to halloween ill be okay. poor jared has to hear me complain everyday about how much i hate it. i try to have a positive attitude, but its been hard. 6 more weeks.... just 6 more weeks!

jared is still plugging away at school. he only has class twice a week, but he says its hard to find motivation to do his homework the days he doesnt go to school. i think we are both looking forward to the semester ending!

26 weeks and diabetic?

i really cannot believe i am 26 weeks along! this pregnancy has gone by so fast, and im sure these last 3 months are going to go even faster! i went in this morning for my glucose test (to test for gestational diabetes). well my results came back and i held my tears back as the nurse told me i had failed it and how i would now have to go in later this week for a 3 hour test to see if it was just a fluke, or if i really have developed gestational diabetes. so im a little bit stressed, a lot worried, and completely bummed. i almost feel like i have already failed at this "mothering" thing... all i have to do is stay healthy to let this baby grow and develop the way it should, and i cant even do that. but im trying to stay positive, and hoping i hear good news later this week!26 weeks!

i had a baby shower with my family a few weekends ago and got so many cute things for my little guy! jared and i were talking to the other night about how some days we think, "at the end of this semester we are going to have a baby!" then other days we think, "at the end of this semester we are going to have a BABY?????" its still very surreal for both of us.

other than baby news.... student teaching is still going. im almost half way done and couldnt be happier to finish. jared only goes to school tuesdays and thursdays. i think he is enjoying class, and not so much the homework. but who can blame him?

lots and lots!

i feel like i have so much to update on, but at the same time we havent really been up to too much.....

the week after school got out, we went to colorado to visit my family. my dad retired from the air force, so we had a little ceremony for him. the next week, we headed to flaming gorge reservoir, and rented a house boat and ski boat for the week! it was a very fun vacation and a much needed break from school! jared had a fun time jumping and diving off the top of the house boat!

i never put up pictures of our little guy from his 3rd photo shoot!i think he is so so cute and love him so much already! i really have enjoyed being pregnant, and now that i feel my little buddy moving more and more i get so excited and anxious for decemeber to get here. i was keeping my fingers crossed and praying for a little girl, but the more i think about this little guy, the more excited i get to be having a boy. and im still secretly excited to still be the only girl in my family! jared has been able to feel him kick quite a few times, but as soon as jared puts his hand on my stomach, he seems to 'swim' away...^22 weeks and 3 days... first day of school as a 4th grade teacher!

and finally i started school! i met my new fourth graders today. we have 14 boys and 6 girls in my class. i am excited to get going and to learn more about my students, but lets be honest, im ready to be done so i can have my baby!

jared doesnt start school for 2 more weeks, so he has just been working and hanging out. thats about all from our end... we are just "patiently" waiting for our new addition to arrive

it's a........

BOY!

jared was beyond excited when we found out our little one is a boy! as much as i love the color pink and was keeping my fingers crossed for a little girl, im not upset at all to find out we are having a boy! growing up with all girls i dont know the first thing about raising a boy, but i know this little buddy of ours will be the perfect addition to our family. and hey, i'll always be the prettiest one in my little family of three :) ill post some picture soon, he was so cute to look at!

we cant wait to meet him!

growing up and out

Growing Up:

wow! i cant believe my time here at BYU-Idaho has come to a end, and have i graduated with a degree in my hand. i never thought i would graduate from college, especially with a bachelors degree. i came to school because everyone else was, not really having a plan, and just here to have fun... but......

8 semesters
48 classes
3 retaken classes
13 roommates
a few minor breakdowns
1 wedding
1 baby on the way
and 130 credits later....
im a college graduate!

As much as i have hated school, now that it is all said and done and over, i am SO glad jared pushed me to finish, and now, if i ever need it, i have a degree to fall back on... and i do have to say, i am quite proud of myself :)

where i spent all my time on campus.the girls that made this last semester possible!sisters :)
proud grandparents! im the 2nd grandchild to graduate from collegeproud parents! im the 1st child in my family to graduate from college
and of course, a proud husband! i dont know who is more excited that im done with school me or jared, cause he wont have to listen to me complain about it anymore!

Growing OUT!

this was taken the night of graduation at 17 weeks and 5 days!

I am now 18 weeks and 1 day along and things seem to be going great! we had our 17 week appointment last week, and i was so nervous to go because a few girls i have talked to said they felt their first baby move around 16 and 17 weeks, and i hadnt felt anything yet. everything that i had read said that you usually feel your first one move around 20 weeks, and then it gets earlier and and earlier with each one. so i was relieved when they were able to find the heartbeat! we are going to be out of town the week they wanted to do the gender ultrasound so we have to wait another whole week to find out, but aug 16 is the date! i will be 21 weeks along then! jared, my sister and her husband all think its a boy and even have named "him" so gave in and just assume its already a boy!

fun-filled weekend

fourth of july is one of my favorite holidays. i love spending time outside, BBQing, watching parades and fireworks and enjoying summer. on saturday i went to the rexburg parade with my sister carissa and her husband kyle, then we went down to the fireworks in idaho falls, jared joined us after he got off work. the fireworks were great like always, and we had perfect seats, we could see them light them off! sunday after church we packed up all our camping gear picked up kyle and carissa and headed out to spend the night in the wilderness. ^kyle and carissa in a very packed car!^Our cute little campsite... poor carissa had bad allergies^we went on a little hike^and waited for our tin foil dinners to cook

^they were very yummy
Monday we spent all day outside swimming and frying like lobsters. it was a great weekend, and tuesday and school came all too quickly. luckily we only 2 more weeks left, then its GRADUATION time! i cant wait.

i did end my weekend with some sad news. i learned one of my old roommates (who was married the same summer as i was, and just had a baby girl in february) husband passed away over the weekend. ive been thinking a lot about her and her little girl this week, and it really makes you stop and think about how precious and short life is. i need to stop complaining about the daily tasks i need to do everyday and just enjoy being alive and healthy, married to a wonderful man and expecting a little one this year.

speaking of little ones, things are still moving along great (as far as i know)! i can tell my belly is growing every week, and i cannot wait to be able to feel this little one move!

birthday & beats

monday the 21st was my birthday! i love birthdays. i only had one class, and the girls in my class remembered it was my birthday and brought me a birthday treat. they even gave me a pink candle to put in it... they know me too well :) that night we had my sister carissa and her husband kyle over for dinner. jared made some yummy ziti and we had some cake. i got a new swim suit to fit into with my belly when we go on our family boating trip in august to flaming gorge. and carissa made me a very cute craft to put in my living room, and i got lots of cards from family and friends. it was a great birthday.

today we had our 2nd doctors appointment! they had to draw my blood but i survived. when they went to listen to the heart beat all they could hear was mine cause it was so loud! so the doctor told me we would do an ultrasound to find the heart beat and make sure everything was going good, but that all the ultrasound rooms were being used at the moment so she would come get us when one was open. that was the longest 15 minute wait of my entire life! but the baby popped right up on the screen, and oh man has it changed and grown SO much... it's little legs and arms were just moving around everywhere. im so glad we got to see our baby again so soon! everything is moving along just fine. it is still pretty unreal to me that i am having a baby, but im so excited!

here's baby ruck's at 13 weeks! it does have legs and arms i promise...i saw them! this angle shot just got its upper body!

COLORADO!

back in the beginning of june jared went to colorado to talk with some accounting firms and to see if he could get an internship with any of them for tax season next year. well today he got a call back from one of the companies and they offered him a place at their company! he will be working in denver colorado and his building sits right on a golf course! he starts february 1, but he has to take a few classes from denver university in january (which the company is paying for) so as soon as this little one decides to come we'll be off to colorado! i couldnt be more proud of jared and i know he will be great!

we have our 2nd doctors appointment on wednesday and we get to hear the heart beat! i cant wait but im also really nervous! i hope everything is still moving along just fine. i still feel great! ive been sick twice but both times i took my prenatal vitamins on an empty stomach, and medicine in my empty tummy never sits well, pregnant or not pregnant! im not really showing quite yet. i can tell i have gotten a little bigger, but no one else really can.

we only have 5 more weeks left of school and i couldnt be any happier to finish and GRADUATE in 34 days! i have made some really good friends this semester in my education classes and ill miss those girls but i know they will all make great teachers! jared is doing good in school also but i know he is looking forward to the semester ending too.

things are great in the rucks home, now if we could just convince the weather that it is JUNE and not OCTOBER things would be perfect! :)

Cinnamon Bear?

looks like jared and i are going to have a BABY! i am 11 weeks along and due december 26! when we showed my parents the ultrasound picture, we told them we thought it looked like a gummy bear, and they all said it's bigger than a gummy bear now, its the size of a cinnamon bear! for journaling purposes here is our story so far:

on friday may 21, in my 5th grade class we got to watch the "maturation" video. i started to think, hmmm... its been a couple months since i last had my 'gift'. This happend last year too, but it was just stress and i figured it was the samething this time around, but i couldnt get it out of the back of my head all weekend, so sunday i took a test and sure enough, it popped up pregnant! i couldnt believe it. i had no signs of pregnancy besides the obvious one, and i thought i had to be sick cause i only hear horror stories of how sick girls were, and how they couldnt eat anything because it sounded too gross to them, and i was (and still am) the complete opposite! i scheduled an appointment for an ultrasound and sure enough there was this little peanut inside! and they told me i was already 9 weeks along! i am so glad i have not been sick. and i can still eat what i want.

at our next appointment we get to hear the heart beat which i am very excited for but is it normal to be worried there wont be a heart beat anymore? or am i just being overly paranoid?

anyways, we are very excited, a little nervous, and have absolutely no idea what to expect! but we are hoping it comes before christmas so we can enjoy the best christmas gift ever!

we're moving!

... but dont worry, we'll be back. our time is rexburg isnt up quite yet! this last week i got my student teaching placement and i got lucky enough to be sent to blackfoot, idaho which is about an hour south of rexburg. since jared will still be going to school here in rexburg in the fall, we are going to move to idaho falls so then we will both have a half hour commute everyday. they put me in a 4th grade classroom and i am excited but extremely nervous to start.

school is going pretty good for both of us. i have really enjoyed the 5th grade classroom i go to, but i come home exhausted everyday. i really do have a great class and they keep me entertained all day. jared stays busy with school, homework, and work. with his new work schedule, i find myself home alone a lot, and it gets kinda lonely and boring. but im grateful for the job he has, and what little income it brings in.

i am actually excited to move, so we can get out of our tiny apartment. oh and i will NOT miss our very LOUD neighbors who live above us. can we buy a house yet?

5th Grade

tuesday we started yet ANOTHER semester of school. it's gonna be a tough semester for both of us. I have 18 credits and jared has 17! I am taking my senior practicum this semester and I got put in a 5th grade classroom and just finished my first day today, and i LOVED it. i definitely want to teach older kids for sure. it's kind of a crazy time to be in the schools since it's the end of the school year and they just have a bunch of fun activities coming up. i have to teach 10 lessons in the next 4 weeks then school is out. so im a little stressed. also my cooperating teacher told me i can teach whatever i want, cause they are done learning new concepts, which is nice, but i cant think of anything to teach....

jared got a new work schedule to fit with his classes and he works nights, and i hate being home by myself, but at least i can get some homework done.....(ya right) i had to quit my job at the elementary school, and it was the first time i was ever sad to leave a job.

tomorrow morning i take the PRAXIS test, which is the test teachers have to take to become certified to teach. i am actually not nervous for it, but im not looking forward to taking it because really lets be honest, who likes taking tests?

wedding weekend

my little sister got married on friday, april 9, in the bountiful utah temple... i took my last finals on thursday morning and we were going to head down to utah when i got off work at 5. i was packing before i left for work and got my temple recommend out and saw it was EXPIRED.... AHHHHH! it was 1:45, and i had to go to work at 2:00 and we were leaving at 5, i FREAKED out. i had a few different numbers for the bishop and after finally getting a hold of him he told me he could meet with me at 7 that night. he gave me the number for a member of the stake presidency, i called him and he said he could meet with me at 7:30 at his house in sugar city, the opposite direction we were heading in, but i said OK lets do it! im so glad i got a hold of them and they were so kind enough to meet with me! we didnt get down to utah till late, but im glad i noticed my expired recommend before we got down there!

the wedding was beautiful and carissa was beaming from ear to ear all day. they got married in the morning so taking pictures afterwards it was a little chilly, but it warmed up in the afternoon. they had a VERY yummy luncheon at this nice place and then had a reception that night. it turned out great and lots of people came. now the happy couple is soaking up the rays in cancun and jared and i are back in cold rexburg :( it was so fun to see my family and hang out all weekend with them though. I didnt take too many pictures but here are a few.this is at the luncheon its kind of dark but this was the only picture i got of jared and me that day
they were so happy to be married finally!she looked so pretty
jared and i had fun playing with this bundle of joy all week-end. my aunt and uncle adpoted him in july and he has gotten so big. jared says he wants our baby to come out at this age :)

jared and i also celebrated our 2 year anniversary on sunday the 11th! cant believe its been 2 years! the best 2 years of my life :) love you jared!

it was a fun weekend. on our way back to rexburg we stopped in pocatello to see our good friends trae and candice and robby and zenna. it was fun to catch up for a little bit. now we have a week before school starts AGAIN... and i am dreading it. i hope it goes by fast! hard to believe its my LAST semester... my LAST one... thank GOODNESS!

crafty?

im not really that good at it, or that creative when it comes to being crafty, but i LOVE to make crafts. i could spend a lot of money at porters buying supplies to make cute things for my house but i have no money. i was looking at this blog lyndseyscraftspot.blogspot.com and saw she had made these cute wooden easter eggs covered in scrapbook paper, and i thought we have wood jared got for free and i have lots of scrapbook paper so i thought i'd try it out! we used jared's dad's wood cutting tools to cut out the egg shape and then i decorated them.

don't judge I'm still learning!


i want to find (or make) a cute sign that says happy easter on it or something like that... we'll see what i can come up with. so...to be continued... hopefully.

if you have any cute/easy/cheap easter craft ideas, let me know, i wanna craft some more, and it keeps me away from homework :)

spring?

Some of you might not think the picture below is very pretty, but to me, it's the prettiest thing ive seen outside in a long time!

I love that the snow is almost all the way melted outside our apartment and we can see the GRASS. i love summers in rexburg and im anxious for it to grace us with its presence once again.

we havent really been up to too much (surprise surprise). jared's grandpa passed away last sunday and we had the funeral last Wednesday. jared's extended family is HUGE. there's a total of 101 grandkids and great grandkids. its crazy! his brother and sister-in-law from washington came down and we had a fun week playing games with his family in idaho falls.

we're both registered for classes for next semester... kind of... im on a waiting list to get into a class i HAVE to have in order to student teach, so im a little stressed, i know they'll add me, but until then...

jared really likes working at jimmy johns. he's made about 80 dollars in tips in the last 2 weeks that he brings home and puts in a little tin jar... i always tease him we're saving it up for a crib :) i havent minded the sandwiches he brings home either they sure are tasty! my personal favorite is the country club loaded with ham, turkey cheese lettuce and tomatoes and mayo. its making me drool just thinking about it.... maybe ill run over to jimmy johns for lunch today?

im looking forward the the semester ending in a few weeks cause then we get to go to utah (real exciting i know) for my sisters wedding and im SO excited to see my family!

friendly reminders

i was going to title this post lessons i learned this week, but they really arent lessons i learned, just htings i already knew and was reminded of cause i never learn them.

*a clean home is a happy home. i love a clean kitchen and a sink free from dishes
*procrastination will always bring a lot of unwanted stress
*group projects with 6 girls are impossible nothing ever gets accomplished with everyone's different opinions and off topic conversations
*math is hard
*groceries at winco are much cheaper than at broulims
*being a senior in college is hard... even if my major is elementary education
*staying up past my bedtime makes me real tired the next day
*not having to scrape my windows in the morning makes me happy
*its hard to go to school when jared isnt
*having a dinner menu created for the whole month makes cooking a lot less stressful
*online classes are hard. i take one every semester and i never have and never will get a good grade
*basically a lot of things are hard
*i have the best husband in the world who is so patient with me. and still makes me dinner, does the dishes, sweeps the kitchen floor and vacuums even after iv hung up the phone on him cause im stressed and mad and he's the only one i can take it out on.

this was one of the craziest weeks ive had in a long time. all week i felt like i was running around like a chicken with my head cut off. im so sick of school... so so so so so so so sick of it. you know how people talk about hitting a wall when they run a marathon, i think i hit that wall with school. i have no motivation and no desire to do anything. i quit. im dropping out.

(ya right, who are we kidding... jared would never let me)

phew! now that all thats off my chest i feel much better
162 days left till graduation!

golden

jared celebrated his golden birthday last sunday and turned 24 on the 24th of january! my parents spoiled him (us) and gave him a cordless drill AND two gift cards: 1 to texas roadhouse (a family favorite) and 1 to red robin, jared's favorite. Thanks mom and dad, you guys are the best! we went to Idaho falls and had a very yummy birthday dinner with his family. July is going to be a pretty exciting month for my family, with my graduation from BYU-Idaho, my dad is also retiring from 20 years in the Air Force, and we are both counting down... so here's to us dad, another month down to graduation and retire-ation!

here's hoping the month of love brings us less snow and more sunshine!

a few things

i feel like all i ever have to write about is school and work school and work school and work repeat. but today i have a few different things on my mind.

CONGRATULATIONS CARISSA!
in my last post i talked about how there could be a possible wedding for my younger sister this year, i was expecting an august or december wedding, but surprise! she just got engaged last week and they are getting married April 9, just 2 days before our 2 year anniversary! i am so excited for her and kyle. they seem perfect for each other. it will be fun to have them move back up here in April.

NEW JOB!
The sandwich shop jimmy johns is opening here in rexburg. jared applied to be the assistant manager for the store. he didnt get that position, but he did get hired to work there. we aren't sure what he will be doing, but he should start in february. it will be a nice job to have while he goes to school. I think he was a little bummed about not getting the assistant manager job, but we are very grateful that he has something again. He has had a few different substitute jobs, but not enough to pay bills so this is exciting for us!



COLORADO
jared needs to do an intership to graduate, and i have my hopes set on him getting one in colorado. I really want to move to colorado and be closer to my family. call me a baby but i miss them a lot! jared and i have talked about potentially starting his career there, and i would love nothing more than to live in colorado the rest of my life :)

BABIES
i know so many people who are pregnant its ridiculous! okay its not ridiculous but i feel like everyone is having a baby these days. must be the "stage of life" im in, but holy hannah, everyday a new person tells me they are expecting. so congratulations to all of you expecting mommy's! i really hope i can hop on that band wagon some day.

it amazes me how fast time goes. i mean january 17 already?! next thing we know its gonna be the end of another semester!