December

A few pictures from the last few weeks:

Annabelles 4 month appt. 17 pounds and 26 inches long. Love our chunky girl!

Visiting daddy at work 

Santas reindeer

Luca and Thomas play day. Thomas seriously loves Luca so much. He asks for him multiple times a week. I love how much they love each other!

Utah vs. BYU 

New cars from Grandpa Troy 

So far she's tried sweet potatos and squash. And these baby mum mum crackers. She is loving food!

Cuddles are happening more and more. They love each other so so much. 

Annual Santa visit. I don't think Thomas will ever like him. 

Annabelle Grace

After not sleeping much the night before little Annie came, we got a call at 5:30 telling us to be at the hospital by 6:30. We got up and ready and Thomas stayed sleeping, thanks to my mom who came over early to be with him. He woke up and ate breakfast with her then went to my parents house with all his cousins. I guess he was an angel and napped great so I am thankful for that! Anyways. 

We made it to the hospital and got all checked in. They put my IV in, which made me almost pass out. I am such a wimp. Needles make my blood pressure drop like crazy, it went down to 70/30!! After I came out of that, they started the pitocin and shortly after the doctor came in to break my water. SO much liquid. With Thomas, my water broke after my epidural so I didn't feel any of it. It made me grateful that my water has never gushed in public. 

My last huge belly picture of pregnancy with Annabelle. 

I thought it would take awhile for painful contractions to start, but by 9ish I was at a 5 almost and I literally felt like I was dying. JT handled my meanness like the good husband he is and pushed on my knees through every contraction, trying to talk me through them and help me despite me constantly telling him to stop talking. He is the best. I love him. After about half an hour of really painful contractions the anesthesiologist finally came and started me on the epidural. Anyone who can go natural is amazing. I however never will. 

Things progressed really fast from there-I was at an 8 by 10, and when she came to check me at 1040ish I was ready and at a 10! She called the doctor in and Annabelle came at 11:18 am, after 4 pushes. Somehow I got a 10 pound 2 oz 21 inch long baby out like it was nothing. I ripped a tiny bit. After one push she was already crowning!! JT got to cut the cord and the doctors and nurses were all in shock and taking guesses on what she would weigh. Nobody could believe how smoothly my labor went for such a big baby. 

I am so thankful for this labor experience. Thomas was so hard, pushing three hours and having him get stuck. This experience was the complete opposite and she was so much bigger then he was. The recovery has been easy too, almost no pain. She's started latching to breastfeed today, again something Thomas and I really struggled with. I'm hoping these are all good signs that she will be an easy going baby. We are so in love with her! I'm anxious to get home and see how I can handle life with two little ones. 

Night at a basketball game.

JT seems to make friends instantly with whoever he talks too. We hadn't met our neighbors on one side after living here two months or so. I went outside one day to see JT talking to an older man, both deeply into their conversation of sports and other things. I am usually really reserved and have occasionally hidden when new people come around...sad I know. I'm totally an introvert and shy and quiet, so I love this about JT. He is so so good for me. Thanks to him we have met some amazing people in our neighborhood and we love them all. When this nice older man learned we were from Utah, he instantly offered us basketball tickets to the Jazz and trailblazers game without even asking if we were free that night. So nice right? Of course we said yes and we have been excited for the last month to have something to look forward too. It started close to Thomas's bed time but he surprisingly lasted almost the whole game! And I think he even had a good time for the most part. 

The loudness and hundreds of people freaked him out at first and he just cuddled. And jumped every time the stadium clapped. But he warmed up soon enough and joined in the cheering. 

I'm not sure why his blanket was in his mouth. But he kept it there a good minute or so. He loves his blankies. 

He also really loves his daddy. 

Id say we wore him out! And the Jazz even ended up winning. 

Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm

Oh it's just 4 in the morning again. Why is insomnia part of pregnancy?! At least I'm  blogging more. 

Yesterday we drove about 45 minutes outside portland to the Wooden Shoe tulip farm. I pictured this being just like the tulip festival at Thanksgiving point-it was beautiful. But not the same at all. Literally a huge farm in the middle of nowhere with tulips as far as you can see. Which resulted in SO. MUCH. MUD. No paved walkways at all. We slipped and trudged through that mud and just laughed the whole time, I'm surprised none of us wiped out. I was wearing sandals-bad idea. And thomas was dressed all cute, I thought we would get pictures among the tulips and it would be wonderful and perfect. Instead I just gave up and his church shoes are now more brown then grey. Oops. Isn't that how life usually works out? JT didn't wear a coat and it ended up being freezing way out there. But we had fun and it really was so pretty. My mom would have loved this place. The northwest is one of the prettiest places. 

23 weeks today!!

See all that mud and water? Our stroller wheels were caked in it, along with my toes and Thomas's everything. 

They had a big area set up with music and blow up inflatable things and sandboxes and slides for the kids. It really was so fun and Thomas didn't know how to handle all the excitement going on around him. He just walked around taking it all in. 

This was his favorite thing to do by far. JT went to get us some food and Thomas didn't move from here for a good half an hour. We need a sand box I guess! And more big trucks. Whenever he sees a truck driving he asks over and over again "what's that?" Trucks and airplanes are his thing. 

Our new mattress came today too. We caved and bought a king size bed. We were used to it back in Utah and our queen was a million years old and so uncomfortable that we were using here. I blame my pregnant body/insomnia for that random purchase right now-but it is heavenly to have my own sleep bubble back. And it is so nice to have with kids, especially a new baby! So even though I'm awake at least I'm comfy.  

And finally-the Rec center had a free swim night so we took Thomas tonight. We haven't been since last summer-i thought he would love it. He hated it for the first 20 minutes! But I refused to give up and leave, so we gave him a ball and sat him on this raft and he was okay. But only on the raft-with as many balls as possible. 

"Give me all the balls mom!!"

We will have to keep trying so he loves it more. 

And now-sleep I hope! 9 am church comes way too early sometimes. 

3 years!

3 years ago JT and I got married. It seems like we've been married FOREVER, in a good way obviously, but it also seems crazy that three years is already here. 

He is my best friend. I truly don't know what I would do without him in my life. He is my rock and the glue that holds our family together. He has a way of keeping me sane and also much more relaxed and easy going. We talk often about how uptight and stressed I was in our early dating days, certain little things would get under my skin and I would turn into this crazy person. Or every little thing would be something huge and dramatic and ridiculously hard to handle. I really can see a difference in myself since meeting him, and I know I have grown a lot but I truly do have him to thank for a lot of it. I feel so blessed to have him as my husband and dad for our kids. He knows exactly when I just need a hug, or a break, or some chocolate, or someone to tell me I look pretty. I love him so so much and I can't wait to see what the rest of our lives have in store for us! 

Since moving to Washington we have yet to leave Thomas with anyone. We haven't really found a babysitter and I have never left him with anyone other then family, so for awhile he gets to be our little date buddy! I decided we would celebrate today as not only our anniversary, but also our "family birth day" and start of our family! JT came home early with some flowers and the sweetest note, right when thomas went down for a nap. So we took a nice long long nap too, then woke up and went to an early dinner at a place called Saltys, right on the Columbia River. 

Thomas was an angel, surprising after his rough morning, and now we are home watching the Voice. We seriously love this show-I think JT asks a few times a week when the next episode is on. It was a perfect day, or I should say afternoon, little stinker-and I am so grateful for my eternal marriage and family! 

Seattle!

We went to Seattle this past weekend just for the day and we had so much fun! It's a little over two hours away from us so we spent awhile in the car, but Thomas did great and it was fun to make the drive. Seattle is especially fun for us since JT served his mission there, so as soon as we started seeing his old areas he was reminiscing and telling old mission stories. We also went to Mt. Rainier on our honeymoon and came into Seattle one day of it, AND came back again shortly after we got married for a baptism of someone JT taught on his mission. So basically we really love this place! It is such an amazing city, unlike any other that I've been too before with all of the ports right along the coast. 

We went to early lunch at MOD pizza. Which is seriously to die for. They have them in portland too but we could eat there daily if we were rich enough. It's basically a chipotle type place but with pizza instead. 

After lunch we hiked a few blocks down to Pikes Place market and the Oceanside attractions. Pikes Place is always packed but is full of fresh fruit and veggies and flowers and tons of little vendors and restaurants. It's probably the most touristy thing to do in the city. 

When we came on our honeymoon we bought these little cheesecakes that we have honestly thought about multiple times since we first got them. So of course we got them again! From a little vendor called The Confectional. So so yummy. 

We thought it would be fun to take a ferry ride, especially for Thomas. I also wanted to see what the islands are like out there! We just went there and came straight back, but Bainbridge Island was amazing. Gorgeous homes right on the water, I would love to visit there in the summer and stay a few nights! 

It was so cold and windy out on the decks! Thomas wasn't sure about it. 

Eventually he fell asleep in his stroller, I'm sure he was so exhausted all day. He loved all the commotion of the city though. Watching the dogs and birds everywhere was his favorite thing. 

The city from the island. 

That's Mt. Rainier on the left! 

After we explored and walked around for hours, my legs were hurting and my ever growing belly was cramping so we headed back to the car. I read a lot about a local ice cream place called Molly Moons so we went there for another treat and it was so good!

I originally got their salted caramel flavor because I had read so many good reviews about it. Let me just say-ew. So gross and salty. So I was a baby about it until JT went up and asked if we could have a different flavor haha. He is the best. Chocolate fudge brownie was much better. 

We stopped for dinner in Tacoma at a little Mexican place and then made the drive home! It was a long day, and we definitely ate way too much food, but it was just the adventure I had been craving. I can't wait to go back again sometime soon!