Ta-Da!!

Sorry... no baby :( But we FiNaLLy have pics of the nursery to post!! Yea! Tiff gives me a hard time because a few months ago I was telling her that we probably wouldn't worry about decorating a nursery. I have very few creative/decorative bones in my body and absolutely NO ideas on how to make a baby room cute. Well, somehow things started snowballing and I'm so excited for how it all turned out! Of course, this was a baby room on a budget.... all the furniture is used and refinished. Trav is amazing and with no complaining (well, very little complaining :) he sanded, primed and painted just about everything in this room. What a guy! :) I'm really so grateful, because the lady at Home Depot gave me a stern scolding when she thought I would be the one using the primer I was buying. So with no further ado, here is Collin/Dallyn/Jonathan/Jesse James' room!! =)

This dresser was left in our basement by the previous owners. I wanted to throw it out when we moved in, but because of procrastination, it never got done, and now I'm so glad we kept it!

BeFoRe

AfTeR

We bought this rocking chair at a garage sale back in August. It was chillin' next to some porn magazines and the tatoo-covered mom who was trying to get rid of it. I felt it needed to be refinished just to get her "essence" off of it. Much to Travis's dismay, I took on the project of sanding it last week. What a pain in the patootie!! I was seriously regretting my decision three hours into sanding. Trav put a couple hours into sanding my leftovers and then two coats of stain later.....

BeFoRe

Middle...

AfTeR!
I love the new color and even though it was less than fun to do, I'm glad we refinished it!

The crib we found on Craig's list for $55! It's old, but actually didn't look bad at all as it was, but I wanted to refinish it to match the dresser. Trav even let me help sand and paint it too :)
BeFoRe

AfTeR!

I have to give a big thanks to Megan Shaheen for helping me do this. She taught me the art of "antiquing" and spent a good 8 hours of her time at my house, over the course of two days, distressing the crib and dresser. Thanks Megan!

I didn't think to take a "before" shot of the table, but this was another scratched up beauty that was left behind in the basement of our house.

The drawers also didn't look bad as they were, we just thought it would look better for them to match the room. I sanded, primed (don't judge me), and painted these bad boys. Again, not that fun, but not as bad as the chair for sure!

BeFoRe

AfTeR!

Ok, here is the room before we started on anything. I just called it my "dressing room". I ironed and did my hair and makeup in here. It was also kind of the junk room.

The FiNaL PRoDuCt!

Yes, I actually did sew these curtains... amazing for me I know. Even though it just means sewing rectangles in a straight line. :) I copied an idea from Pottery Barn and I'm fairly happy with them, I'm just not in love with the color of blue... but it's growing on me :)

I am, however, in love with this saying... I had to wait a whole week for it to come in the mail, and was so excited when I saw the delivery man drop it off that I ran outside to grab it and shouted Thank You to his behind as he rounded the corner! It was the finishing touch!

Here are some action shots of us taping off and painting the stripes on the walls. The Shaw's sacrificed their Saturday night and came to help us with the project. Aren't they awesome friends??!!

Gomer Fudd came to help too... :)

I gave him a kiss for his time :)

So there you have it! I honestly didn't think we would get it done before our little guy came, but I guess he wants to cook a bit longer than his due date, so we had extra time. I feel bad to think that he's probably the only one of our kids that's going to get this kind of welcome. I even started a baby book for him. I guess these are privileges that come with being first. The poor fifth child will be lucky to have pictures taken of him :)

Just a waiting game...

So this morning we had another sonogram done. At my last doctor's appt. on Monday, I was only dialated to a 1 and 50% effaced. I was also still measuring really small at 36 weeks instead of the actual 39 weeks. So he ordered another ultrasound to make sure all was OK. I was definitely not OK as I waited though! Well, according to the sonogram, he weighs in at a healthy 7lbs 7 oz! YEAH! Trav just about rolled his eyes when they told me that everything looked fine. He was not in the least worried. You see, we went through this whole ordeal two months ago when they said I was too small and the ultrasound proved otherwise. Leave it to the mom to stress and the dad to play it cool :) They said the head is down and in position and the placenta is full term, so it's any time now! So I feel a bit like Rachel on FRIENDS when I look at sonogram pictures.... anyone know what episode I'm referring to? Sometimes I just can't "see" it. What I see looks more like an alien.... but I liked this first one because of his chubby cheeks. I can't wait to squeeze 'em!

This one shows his nostrils, haha. My little piggy :)

And we didn't even have to wait for him to be born to make sure he has all his fingers and toes! Well, actually Trav pointed out that this is just one foot. He could have six toes on the other one, sigh. :)

So I've been off work for almost two weeks now and finally feel like my "checklist" is complete. I just need to run to Target to buy the camera I decided on and return some stuff to Hobby Lobby. Also, the nursery is complete, minus one rocking chair and the vinyl lettering I ordered. I just can't post pics til its totally done! The other night I got in bed and took my two prenatal vitamins,washed down by two Tums, applied my chapstick and snuggled in with my body pillow between my legs. Trav had to chuckle at my "routine". I've been feeling pretty good except that after I've been sitting for a while, it takes a few minutes of bent-over hobbling to work it out and walk "normal".

So this is random, but here's a pic of what we entertained ourselves with Sunday night. We played Buzz word with some friends, then somehow the guys got into a "wedding ring spinning contest" You can see the trepidation on the guy's faces as they rooted their ring on. Us girls loyally cheered our men on! Not. But we endured the noise without too much complaining :)

Last Wednesday I went to my first SuRpRiSe PaRtY! I naively went to Tiff's house for mutual and opened the door to all the YW shouting Surprise! And I was definitely surprised.

We had lots of yummy treats..

And played some fun games... The girls tried helping me name the baby in one game. They had to come up with one name per letter in the alphabet. Some suggestions included JC Penny and Oreo :) I also got some cute onsies, bibs, a blanket, and lot's of free babysitting coupons! Thanks YW and Tiffany for such a fun night!

Valentine's Day

Well the Valentine's festivities started Friday night with the ward party. They had lots of good treats and even some dancing! The video I took was of one line dance that I thought was hilarious. It almost looks more like a cardio routine, and for some reason, "old" people dancing like this is so funny to me. (Rach- you aren't included in the "old" category! :)

Here are the Shaw's showin' us up!

You've heard of the youth being told to keep it "a Book of Mormon" apart? Well, a baby belly does the trick too.

Trav found it easier to just dance with my protruding appendage.

On actual Valentine's day, Trav and I both woke up pretty sick. We had been fighting it for a few days, but it finally got the best of us. Thus, a morning in bed was deemed necessary. Although, we got up enough energy to make it to Cheesecake Factory for lunch. Delicious! Trav got my favorite: Chicken stuffed tortillas and I got the Navajo Taco. My mouth is watering all over again! Here are my presents... The book is one that was recommended in our birthing class about how to calm a crying baby. I was SO excited for my rain boots! I've been stylin' some pretty cute moon boots this winter. :) And then Buzz Word will be a nice addition to our game collection! Thanks babe!

I decided on giving Trav a week's worth of surprises, each tucked into his backpack. On Monday, I cut his sandwich into a heart and left a note... On Tuesday, he got his favorite candy bar, Toblerone and an N'SYNC valentine! (He was so excited =)

On Wednesday he got a box of chocolates...

On Thursday he got a mailbox full of his favorite heart-shaped cookies- Snickerdoodles.... and Friday's gift will not be shared! :) Our last gift for ourselves is a camera, but we can't decide on a good one. Any suggestions!!!! I want one that recovers quickly after taking a picture, so it's ready to take another one fast. We just aren't sure what brand or style is best... help!

Saturday night we were invited to a V-day party thrown by Crescent and Dave. We had a delicious "Thanksgiving" dinner and lots of good V-day candy and treats! (Crescent is due just a couple weeks after me with another girl! )

Here's the whole gang.

During dinner we were each given two words that we had to develop into a poem to read for everyone. Here is Doug, delivering his poem in a rap. Trav's two words were: snoring and hot. His poem went as follows:

Sitting through class that's oh so boring...

Trying to pay attention over Jacob's snoring...

I picture my hot wife, and my thoughts turn to scoring!

Needless to say, my face was bright red with embarrassment. Luckily, he wasn't the only husband who had a unique imagination. His poem wasn't even the "worst" of the night!

Then we played some really fun games, like the Newlywed Game and tried to win some sexy prizes! Katie was SO excited her husband picked out a book from the stack of presents! Not such a bad book after all! :)

We played a game where you try to unwrap and eat a piece of candy with just your mouths. Not our best sport, apparently! We had such a fun time with everyone. Thanks so much Crescent and Dave for a great night!

INTRODUCING......

DIR-TY! That's pronounced "Dear-Tay". Yes, I name my cars. It runs in the family. My mom's suburbans have successively been named, Old Nelly, Michelle, Celeste, and last but not least, Sharon. (That happens to be my mom's name). We roll our eyes, but we admit it's endearing. Well, we have owned this Pathfinder for a few years and I never could think of the right name. After enduring this Buffalo winter, he is now appropriately named Dirty. (Yes, I stole it from Joe Dirt) Now, don't you worry, our car definitely fits in around here. A major casualty of snow is disgusting cars. You just can't help it. He did get a bath last Saturday when the temp. warmed up and rain finally started washing away the snow. Of course, then we drove to Palmyra later that day and his namesake came back to haunt us. :)

On to more Buffaloness... (is that a word?) When we first flew out here to look for a home, our mortgage guy told us of Buffalo's pride and joy when it comes to Mexican food..... The Mighty Taco. Trav and I exchanged looks. Did he just say, Mighty Taco? Well, as much as Trav wanted to go all four years without succumbing to East Coast immitation Mexican food, I made him try it last weekend.

He's smiling for the "before" shot, but he was not impressed with his burrito. I personally don't mind it. I guess the meat drips with grease, but I just get a plain bean burro. Oh, well, we tried. Taco Bell wins.

Valentine's Package!
Yesterday, we got a package in the mail!!! Woohoo! Trav's mom has two other children on missions so we seem to luck out and get holiday packages along with the missionaries. For Christmas she sent a box full of her famous caramel corn. Trav had barely opened the box when I snatched the corn away from him and chowed down. SO GOOD!!!

Well, our Valentine's package was sure not to disappoint! I got some awesome furry slippers and extra long socks! We also got some yummy treats and a gift card to the movies. This time, it was the Cinnamon Bears that I snatched out of Trav's hands and started devouring. Oh my gosh.... SO GOOD!! It's only been a day and the bag is half gone. I'm appropriately ashamed of myself. Thank you Paula for a great surprise!!!

Wait a SeCoNd! Time for a close up! Yes, what you are seeing is not an illusion. Travis decided he missed AZ so much that he would start growing his own cactus. Sigh. Men are funny. My Freudian conclusion was that I was just getting too much attention with my large belly and he needed the spotlight for a while. :) Good news... after two weeks of scratchiness, the intruder is gone!!! In my book, a clean shaven husband = happy wife! :) I guess I will admit though, beard and all, I still think he's the cutest looking guy around!

You HAVE to watch this!!

YouTube - All the single ladies

I just saw this video tonight and laughed my head off. It may be a bit risque, so I apologize if any are offended, but I think it is hilarious! Just his facial expressions crack me up! Just click on the link and it will take you to You Tube. If you haven't seen this Beyonce music video, you may have to watch it first, to fully appreciate the moves this guy pulls off! EnJoY!! :)

Gotta Love the Grand Slam!

I'm a fan of Denny's. So when I heard they were giving away free Grand Slam breakfasts last Tuesday (that's right- sorry if you are just learning about this!), I was all in. I met up with my three breakfast-lovin' friends at 8am, expecting mayhem. We only waited 15 min. to be seated and not too much longer to actually get our food. I gracially shared my bacon and sausage :) and scarfed down my pancakes and eggs. Now granted, a Grand Slam is only 6 bucks, but free food is free food, right? I later found out that our friends (who are BIG Denny's lovers and who shall remain nameless :) woke up at 4:30AM to get to Denny's by 5:30AM (the deal started at 6am), just to be sure and score their free meal. Now that is dedication! (I didn't say worth it, but dedicated- definitely!) Gold star to you- Jacob and Katie! Oops, did that slip :) Haha, we so love you guys!

The Cardinal Sin....

... having a Superbowl party on a Sunday. Well, what other day would it be?! Now, I'll be the first to admit that I'm a fair weather fan, but we had to show our Arizona pride out here when the Cardinals made it to the Superbowl! There are several other native Arizonans out here, so we invited them and anyone else that would support our Cardinals, over to watch the game. The guys went downstairs so they could focus without the wives distracting them :)

My main concern was the food, of course. Everyone brought yummy treats as you can see...

Don't be jealous, but I had to show off our new deep freezer! Haha, when we ran out of room in the freezer we realized we could store the ice in... well, the ice! Or snow, I guess. :) (Check out the depth- that's at least a foot :(

Camille was awesome and brought a fun cake! (Even though her husband gave her grief over the aesthetic quality :)

Us ladies stayed upstairs to watch the game and visit. (I should have taken a picture!). It was fun to chat, but I was surprised at how into the game I got. During the last touchdown, I lost my head and jumped up out of my seat to scream..... I seriously thought the baby had half dropped out of me. I was much more careful about my cheering after that. Oops. I couldn't believe they lost- but at least they gave them a run for their money. Thanks to everyone that came to party with us! We laughed away our tears afterward with an hour episode of The Office (I know, we are such sinners!) It was HiLaRiOuS! If you don't watch this show, I suggest you repent now, an get on it! :)