Happy Feet

In my last post, I mentioned the logic behind the phrase "barefoot and pregnant" and how, after your feet swell to monstrous proportions, being barefoot becomes a necessity because all of the shoes in your closet cower in fear of the day you might actually try to cram those oversized sausage toes into them. Well, recently I have stumbled upon a weapon to combat pregnancy induced bigfoot syndrome. My awesome mother-in-law!

I was complaining about my chipped toenail polish the other day and my inability to reach my toes and rectify the situation when Keaton's mom, Paula, said she wouldn't mind painting them for me. What I didn't know is that when she went to beauty school before her kids came along, pedicures were part of her course of study. I went to her house with a little bottle of polish expecting just to have my toes painted and instead I was treated to a hot, scented foot bath, a foot and leg massage and a full-out pedicure. It was wonderful on my achy swollen feet! Turns out, she doesn't like to do them much so I feel doubly lucky she took pity on me. Not only that, but she bought me a pair of cushy fuzzy slippers, slip on tennies so I don't have to bend down and tie the dang things, and those marshmallow airwalk clogs--not the prettiest things on the block (like my feet) but soooo comfortable, especially for work when I spend half my time shoeless anyway. (My coworkers will probably cheer to see me wearing shoes on a regular basis.) Needless to say, though I can't hardly see them, I have some happy feet!

Big Baby

I had another appointment today and my doctor told me to steer away from any of the newborn clothes because this boy is going to be BIG. And incidentally, so am I! My last appointment I had an ultrasound where she said he was measuring two weeks ahead of schedule. I wasn't surprised because, quite frankly, I feel like a tank. (When I told Keaton this he laughed and said I was more like an APC--an armored personnel carrier. I guess without the armor!) My next appointment she said she'll do another ultrasound and reevaluate my due date. I have to say, I'm glad he's healthy but I'm all little nervous about how my rolly polly little guy is going to get here! I liked Carolanne's theory--have 'em small, then fatten them up when they get here. Not gonna happen for us! Too bad he likes cookies so much, he keeps making me eat them. :)

Also, I've come to realize that the term "barefoot and pregnant" isn't just some saying. Being barefoot is a necessity because none of my shoes fit my big swollen feet! I'd post a picture but it is just to graphic. Not for the faint-hearted. :)

So today is 31 weeks for me--9 (or if I'm lucky, less) weeks to go! I wonder if by then I'll have a gravitational pull and they'll have to name me as a new planet. We shall see!

Yes, we're still alive

It has been forever since I've posted, I know! But it has been a hectic few weeks. I had my first shower a week or two ago, and we've also gotten about halfway through our kitchen cabinet renovations and the baby room fix-up. I've also done several photo shoots (with my awkward belly! You should see me trying to hunker down to get a good angle, its hilarious.) and yesterday was our 3rd anniversary. To commemorate our honeymoon, we took an overnight trip to St. George to relive our Tuacahn experience. This year was Les Mis! It was awesome, but no trip is without extra bumps--we got a major flat outside of Cedar City on our way down and had to buy two new tires. That was our anniversary present to each other...his and hers tires, how romantic! I just have to say how lucky I am to have married such an amazing man, he is my perfect match and I know that our baby couldn't ask for a better daddy. I love him so much, spending all those hours in the car normally wouldn't be any fun at all but I almost enjoyed the drive as much as the destination. He is the BEST!

Pictures coming soon, I'm too tired tonight!

The Projects

So I know I haven't posted in a while, its just that life has gotten so busy! Now that we're the proud owners of a house and soon-to-be parents, it seems like the list of things we need to do just keeps getting bigger and bigger. Here are some of the things we're currently working on.

Refinishing our 70's era kitchen cabinets:



No more ugly brown!

Taming the jungle that is our garden: (Keaton did all this today. See that pile? Overgrown sunflowers!)

Fix the sprinklers that decided to stop rotating: (Keaton also did this today. Isn't he handy?)

Create a new movable above ground sprinkler to get the spots the underground ones sometimes missed. (Again, Keaton)

Check out our raspberries! Yum
And lastly, work on Squirt's new room. His current quarters are nice (I do my best to keep him comfortably cushioned) but it won't be long before the little tyke needs an upgrade.

This has been my own project--that is why it is so very unfinished. That's right. Keaton doesn't do EVERYTHING around here. Just most of it. :)

The goal is to turn this:
Into this! Or some near approximation. :)

Work work work work work!

Baby Bump Debut

You asked for it, so here it is! Yep, baby Smith is definitely making himself known. I think I've doubled in size the last two weeks. I never realized pregnancy could feel this awkward. It used to seem so glamorous, now I know...it's just uncomfortable about 87% of the time!

Thanks to Carma for the picture.

Called to Serve

The last couple weeks have been big in both my family and Keaton's! On the 10th my little brother Brandon left for the Brazilian MTC. It was so cool to see him off at the airport, I just kept thinking, "Wow! Can he really be this old?" But I think he is ready and from what he's said in his first email he is doing just fine, he even lucked out and got issued his own personal fan. (He can't sleep without one! )

Then, this past Thursday, Keaton's sister Amy got her call...to Bucharest Romania! Whoa. That's all I have to say. It is pretty cool because their great grandparents came from Romania. In fact, Paula's maiden name, Popa, is supposed to be as common there as Smith is here. Hard to believe, but we'll see.

Good luck to both of you!

Deleted

So for the sake of my continued employment, I have deleted the bitter diatribe that was my last post, "venting." It's like one of those letters you have to write and then throw away. Sometimes you just have to get stuff out.

There is a moral to this story, however. Don't mess with an overly emotional pregnant birthday girl with a penchant for writing descriptive essays and who has access to a public forum. It can't end well.