oh... there she went...

It's not that I'm MAD at myself or even REALLY shocked. I'd say more disappointed. 

One thing I've been proud of since being pregnant with Layla, was how WELL I took care of myself during those 9 months and after. Unfortunately I can't say the same for this one. Sorry baby. 

I was very determined with my first pregnancy to eat only the best. Fruits and Veggies, whole grain and an appropriate amount of dairy.. yada yada. I kept a food journal, because I'm a journal kind of person anyway. And ate ONE sweet a day. And by one, I mean ONE! On top of eating by the book, I also walked daily. Sometimes twice daily! Once in the morning and once at night. I loved it! I felt so good! I knew I was doing something great for my baby and myself. After Layla was born, I stuck with my good eating and shed the weight instantly. Within the week post delivery, I was in most all of my pre-pregnancy clothes! It was amazing! And now looking back, I HAVE to owe it all to my incredible determination (and breast feeding around the clock definitely helped!)

Now.... I step on the scale periodically and almost fall off in shock of how quickly the pounds have crept on!! I am seriously 3 lbs. away from weighing the same as I did when I delivered Layla! Kinda scary. What is it that makes this time so different?? Layla maybe? I do constantly think about what she's eating or if she's had a snack. And her snacks almost always become mine.... what?? With the economy the way it is, one cannot be wasteful! I've also realized that I am a MUCH better cook and baker than I was 2 years ago. I've mastered many recipes that really do me in... like cookies, cobblers, cupcakes, pancakes, banana bread. I feel like I've found the perfect recipe for so many yummy treats, that it's hard not to delight in it! AND lastly, the lack of exercise. Well, I do walk still a few times a week, but do I do it with the same vigor and excitement that I did before??... umm NO. I often go for half the time or end up taking a convenient short cut "to see the flowers". 

So now. I've come a little past the "half-way point" in my pregnancy and am realizing that I am NOT living my best life OR giving my baby the best I have to offer her. So. What to do. Well I'm making a promise to myself to be healthy. No way would I try to lose weight or do anything dumb and crazy like that. BUT I can be smart. Here are some of my new promises to myself and  new baby:

• I will not eat 6 pancakes at a time. NEVER again. 
• I DEFINITELY will not eat the leftover pancakes for lunch and add some in at dinner too! Eww gross, no way.
• I will do some form of REAL exercise everyday and NOT count things such as dancing with Layla, blow drying and curling my hair, or bringing groceries into the house as my work out for the day.
• I will NOT buy candy and hide it in my pantry for my sneaky fingers to snack on throughout the day. REGARDLESS of candy sales! Actually, I will NOT even look at the candy ailse for a while. 
• I will not eat 4th and 5th meals. I'll stick to the recommended three with healthy snacks. What am I, a big huge man? (that's all I could think of for examples of people who need to eat a LOT of calories)
• No more drive through anything! Except for the bank..... and pharmacies.... and okay maybe shaved ice too.
• I WILL buy a VARIETY of fruits and vegetables. Not just the standard apples and bananas. Maybe I'll buy one new fruit and veggie week. Oh, and make sure to actually eat them.

Well, that's all I can think of for now. Good start right?? I guess I should be asking you to wish me luck. I don't know how I'll keep this up through a move AND while staying at someone else's house...

NO! I hear excusing creeping up already! SHOOO!! I'm a determined Mother who cares about her health and the health of her family!

Play Pretend

Layla is at that great stage, where mere objects become alive and the imagination runs wild. She is so silly, making us laugh all the time. Which really is just what I've needed lately, a good laugh. You know, laughing is like medication for stress. Seriously. Anyway. This time, Layla decided that her "play food" was much more than that.

  "scary mask"

Toothbrush 

(yeah... knives usually make good substitute toothbrushes)

And my favorite... BUBBLES!

Here's a video of her playing bubbles. She did this for about 15 minutes. 

Sorry, it's a bit long.

She came up to Tanner yesterday without a shirt on with a book pressed up to her belly. The page it was on had a big tiger on it. She exclaimed, "Tiger eat tummy!!! AHH"

oh

And she LOVES, I mean she's OBSESSED with playing in the dirt/gravel/rocks next to our yard. She'll make little "cookie piles" and play chef for the longest time. So fun to watch, not so fun to clean. Oh well, you're only a kid once.

Introducing...

Our new baby girl... in my tummy.

This is a shot of her profile, if you couldn't tell. It looks like she's kissing the side of my uterus. The technician said she looks very healthy and has BIG lips. No surprise there. Tanner thinks she has his profile. I think she's perfect and love her to pieces already. Layla holds the pictures saying, "aww, baby sitter" (sister). Cute! Can't wait to meet her!

Sacramento!

Our new home...

(well, it's actually Tanner's new home for the next 3 months)

Tanner got an internship!! YAHOO!! My husband is seriously the most hardworking guy I know and it has been so tough watching him apply for internship after internship with no luck. Heavenly Father is certainly blessing him for his hard work with this new opportunity. Although, that doesn't mean that He makes it EASY. 

One thing I've learned in my semi short life is that most things worth having take sacrifice. Well, it's been a tough decision making process for our family, especially considering the new baby that'll be coming in November. We've finally decided that it'd be best if Layla and I stay with family in Washington and have the baby there. This will help us tremendously! Tanner won't have to worry about his pregnant wife and toddler being alone in Idaho and I will have the help I need with 2 little ones. 

It hurts my heart a little, thinking that Tanner may not be there for the birth of our second child, but I truly feel that Sacramento is where he is supposed to be. I know that this is only a brief period of our lives and we will be blessed in the long run for following the promptings that we receive. I hope that Layla survives all the traveling that's ahead!! 

Here's a rough travel schedule:

1st: Drive from Rexburg to Washington. (Get myself set up with a Doctor and bring all of the things we'll need to live there for a few months... crib, clothes, baby supplies, etc...)

2nd: Drive (or fly) to Sacramento, CA for Tanner's internship. We'll be going with him at first just to help him get settled and have a little fun as a family.

3rd: Layla and I will fly back to WA and get settled and ready to have a baby.

(Hopefully Tanner will be able to fly up to WA in time to be with us for the birth)

4th: Tanner will then travel up to WA to be with us for Christmas and then prepare us to...

5th: Drive back to Rexburg!!

CRAZY!! But it's exciting too! Well we aren't ready yet, but hopefully we'll be close to it by the time we need to go. I'm going to miss my friends in Rexburg while we're gone and it really makes me sad to think that some people will be moving away while we're gone! Thankfully we have the internet to keep us all linked! So that's that...

Wish us luck!

Swimming Video

The Layla Shark

We went to Rigby Lake this morning and had a lot of fun. I was a little skeptical about the cleanliness and overall appeal, since I'd never been, but it turned out to be a great spot for summer fun! Layla was so excited to go to the "wake" but had no idea what it was. When we got there, she immediately exclaimed, "Whoa, water!". 

She was very hesitant about actually playing in the water for the first hour or so and settled with scooping sand and rocks with someone else's shovel. Tanner and I both kept taking turns with her, coaxing her further in, it was finally Tanner who got her LOVING it! I have a video too, but I'll post it separately. I was SO relieved that she finally enjoyed the lake the way it was meant to be enjoyed on a hot day.

(When I bathe Layla, one of the only ways I can get her to lie back and rinse the shampoo out of her hair is to say she's just like a shark. I tried "fish" at first, but shark was much more affective for some reason. She loves it and will now always call herself a "Waywa shark" anytime in water.)

COOOOOLD!

 One of Layla's favorite treats these days are Otter Pops. Layla calls them lollipops most of the time. Close, I guess. Here, she thought it was really funny to say "cold" as loud as she could. I love her silly personality.

Kiddie pool??

Who needs a pool, when you have a big plastic bin full of water?

Okay, so maybe it'd be a bit more spacious.

But does this look like a face that cares?

More summer fun...

We've been having a lot of fun this summer, just finding little local spots to hang. Layla loves feeding the ducks and usually picks out a favorite each time. This one was it! I'm trying to do as many fun things with her as I possibly can, before this next baby comes and steals some of the spotlight.

Here's a BIG bow I made for her and think is cute... but Layla begs to differ sometimes. She's taken it off a few times and says, "too big, Mom." Maybe she's right :)

We hit the splash park today, lots of fun! It was SO nice to get together with our friends Olivia and Lola. The girls got along fine and I really think it helped Layla to have Lola there. Lola is so adorable, she'd be running and splashing through all the water obstacles. Even stuck her face in a fountain. She must have sparked a little more bravery in Layla, because she too stuck her face in the water! Here they are, both enjoying a yummy ring pop, thanks to Olivia. 

Layla did have some trouble staying at the water. She loves the other playground and got tempted a few times. I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked, probably because I actually had a friend with me this time to talk to. After we got home, Layla kept asking for "Wo wa" We'll definitely have to do that again!

Dancing on the table

Ike and Layla had a lot of fun on the 4th. He may have been teaching her a few tricks that I wish she wouldn't have learned... but that's what cousins are for!

Fabulous Fourth

We decided last minute that it'd be a lot of fun to spend the 4th with Tanner's sister Leah and her family. We drove down to Ogden, UT the morning of the 4th, during Layla's naptime, and got there around 2? I can't quite remember... maybe it's because our car's air conditioning stopped working halfway there. That's about and hour and a half of driving in the scorching heat of Utah. I think I might have blacked out a bit or lost a little brain functioning or something. Anyway, we made it and had so much fun hanging out with the Knighton's!

Layla and Ike are at the age where they can really have a lot of fun together. I realized that people need to make a "doggie door"  big enough for toddlers, because they want in and out all the time! Here's a picture of the two of them trapped outside :)

Gotta love the smooshed faces here. Silly kids.

Every time I took the camera out, Ike would demand a picture taken. This was the best one.

Out of all the yummy food, Layla's favorite snack was ice in a cup. 

Ike is such the comedian, chucking rocks out into the yard. Layla couldn't get enough.

Our day consisted of eating till we were stuffed, playing games, watching Cars, and just relaxing. There is a big fireworks show in Kaysville that started around 10pm. I was very surprised that Layla stayed awake for it! I kept asking her all day if she wanted to see the fireworks and she'd say, "Yeah, Fowerworks!!" Last year was a nightmare for us (well mostly her and I because Tanner had a blast lighting them off all night). SO... I was anxious to see if she'd have the same reaction. Thankfully, she LOVED them! She was SOOOO excited to see them going off and even more excited that there were "pink fowerworks!". 

Most of my pictures looked like this... kind of resembling jellyfish.

Pink fowerwork

This was her expression throughout most of the show. We were all bummed, because Ike slept through the whole thing and was probably the one MOST excited. All in all, it was a very fun filled day. We left around 11:20 and got back into Rexburg around 3am. Late night, but well worth it!