August

August was *quite* a busy month! Here are some highlights a summary:

The month started with Rebekah's last ballet class of the summer. A class that started with 12 girls only had 5 at the end, but I think it's partly because some of the 5 year olds had started school. One of the moms brought cupcakes to share with everyone. After that, I took the kids to Chick'fil'a. Those lines were CRAZY! But it was a wonderful experience. Everyone was very kind and helpful - I didn't bring the stroller in because I knew it would be crowded, but it was so crowded that I couldn't set Josiah down even for a second. So I put him in a high chair and pushed him around, instead. The people in line behind me were happy to hold my place when I had to help Rebekah to the bathroom and to and from the play area. I ran into several friends, including Tom - a co-worker from my year teaching high school. It was great to see him. I thought it was very interesting that the whole time I was there everyone was so cheerful. Even when they had to start asking people to show receipts so they could fill orders because the computers erased orders that weren't filled quickly enough, no one complained. There were tables with purses sitting unattended, no fear of theft. We were crammed together like sardines, but I did not hear an unkind word the hours I was there. It was pretty awesome. I was happy to have the cupcakes from ballet, because it kept the kids occupied and happy while we waited for our food for over an hour. :)

We went to Phoenix the first weekend of August. My MIL was out of town for a trip to Alaska, so I stayed with my dad at my brother's house (my brother's family was also out of town). It was really nice to have some one-on-one time with my dad, both for me and for my kids! We went to 2 birthday parties for Rebekah's friends and had a blast, and came home that Sunday, to give Daryn Saturday night to work on his final paper for a class he's been working on. We managed to leave just before my mom came into town with my siblings, as they were moving in and getting ready to start school that week. Also, Micaela turned 17! And she's a senior this year! :D Exciting times!

Since Daryn has Friday's off, I've made it a goal to start doing family activities on Friday morning. Aug 10 we went to the zoo, and it was super fun. :) We even got to see the elephants in their swimming hole! I had soccer that night. Saturday Daryn was out and about helping a family in the ward move out, then attending a pool party for the scouts. I went to a Stampin' Up party and visited with some friends WITHOUT children in tow. I really needed that!

Rebekah started preschool Monday Aug 13. It's a 2 hour a day, 2x a week program at the community center near our house. A parent has to stay at the center, but in another room during preschool mainly because it used to be a drop-off program, but commercial day-cares saw it as a threat and tried to shut it down, so asking a parent to stay was their work-around to keep the program (it's free) open. They do it on a raffle system and only take 28 kids - 14 for MW and 14 for T/R. I invited my friend Lindy to bring her son Alex to the preschool and she did, so I have a friend to chat with while I chase Josiah around and keep him out of trouble for 2 hours on Mon and Wed. That Tuesday I went to the zoo with my sister Kati and her 3 youngest. We had a great time - Rebekah LOVES to see her cousins, and while in the past she mostly played with Nate, she and Brelee have become much closer lately- especially after Brelee came and stayed with us over Bekah's birthday!

Wednesday the 15th I had an appointment with my midwife. She was a little concerned that I hadn't gained any weight, but Daryn pointed out that I started soccer right around the time of my previous appointment, and so that probably made a difference.

Family Friday the 17th we went to the splash pad and had a great time. Daryn was happy that even *I* got wet. :) Usually we're there as a family for Bekah's birthday, and I'm entertaining guests etc, so I don't go in (that, and I'm just a stick in the mud :P). But we were playing together as a FAMILY, and we had fun. :) I like our Family Fridays!

The rest of that weekend we did a LOT of work, because we didn't have other plans. We didn't accomplish nearly as much as I wanted, but we got a good amount done and it helped me feel better about the state of our house. It's amazing how quickly things pile up! (I'm still tired pretty much all the time....so getting house work done is very inconsistent.)

Aug 20th my friends started our walking routine again. It was soooo humid that I was thinking I'd wait longer to keep going, but it got better a week later. Tues the 21st I went to the splash pad with my kids and my neighbor Joyce and her daughter to meet a play group from my old ward. It was nice to seem some old friends, but unfortunately Bekah's ballet started up and it conflicts with the play group so we won't be seeing them anytime soon. (BTW, I thought it was funny that 2 weeks in a row I did a family activity with Daryn and then that next Tuesday I went to the same activity with someone else.)

Ammon came down from Utah for a week to see friends and family in AZ before the school year started for him. Poor guy's van broke down on the way, but it didn't keep him from borrowing a car to visit friends and family in Tucson! So we had a nice dinner with him at Kati's house on Wed the 22nd. Apparently he has a girlfriend now. I look forward to hearing more about her, and maybe meeting her sometime! It's 'bout time he started dating. :P (Ammon, if you're reading this, sorry if everyone gives you flack about this. You just had so many girls fawning over you in high school I was surprised you never really dated anyone back then. You're just such a stud!)

The next day I drove to Phoenix to see Brittany who was only in town for one day between leaving Utah and going to NAU. I love my siblings, and I'm glad I got to see most of them this last month! Now if only I could arrange some time to see Amy.... but Idaho is just so far! :(

I sent Daryn to the doctor to get a physical, we got Pebbles in to her vet and we went to an Elder's Quorum party that Friday (and I drove home from Phoenix!) and then left the party early to go to my last soccer game of the season. I felt bad that we had to leave the party because 1) it was at the home of some members who own a custom built house that is just plain incredible and very fun to visit - even for the littlest children. and 2) we were really enjoying our time with people from church in a social setting, which doesn't happen very often (seeing them in the social setting, not the enjoyment part).

In fact, because it doesn't happen often, Lindy and I plotted to make it happen that Saturday morning, before we ever heard about the EQ party. We invited several new couples who had moved into our ward as well as some more established couples with children in primary to a park for fruit and donuts. It was pretty fun, but still a little too hot to be a 'wild' success. We plan on doing another activity soon, though, because we did enjoy getting to know people a bit better.

August 27th found us at the 3 week of preschool, 2nd week of walking in the mornings, and first week of fall ballet and gymnastics! It's funny, actually, because Tuesday is ballet and I thought it was at 9 but it was at 10, so we were there WAY early. Fortunately, the building has a TV with cable so Bekah was very entertained and Josiah took a bit of a nap for me. That afternoon, Lindy 'borrowed' my children because her boys really wanted to play with Bekah, and her youngest, Alexander, has been asking to bring a baby home. So, she figured that since he still counts Josiah as a baby, she'd give me the afternoon off. It was awesome! I got a lot of chores done that had been left undone for a while, including mopping my floors and switching out my skinny clothes for my maternity clothes. Thanks Lindy!

Wednesday the 29th, Rebekah went on her very first field trip! We went to Peter Piper Pizza for a tour that ended with the kids making their own mini-pizza. The kids had a blast. :) Rebekah even found 2 tokens on the ground, so she shared one with Alex and they played a little game and earned a couple tickets before we left.

Thursday the 30th was gymnastics. Rebekah has a different teacher than over the summer. I hope they'll be patient with her creativity of getting stuck in icky-sticky glue 1/2 way across the floor sometimes... or that she realizes that's not the appropriate time to make-believe.

Friday morning we took off for Phoenix, and had lunch with Jen and her family. Her kids are very close in age to mine, so everyone had a fun time, even the dads. :) (I think!) Then we loaned the expedition to my dad so he could have a car with air conditioning on his trip to Utah to get things out of his storage unit, and visited my mom at my brother's house until we went to dinner - Cheesecake Factory with our friend Lyn! :D We REALLY enjoyed catching up with her, and I even got to enjoy some of the conversation because my MIL watched Bekah (who didn't want to come with us) so I only had one baby to care for at the restaurant.

Saturday we went to the temple. We were supposed to meet with my friend Kara, but she didn't show. We did meet with the Romney's and go to lunch with them after. My mom babysat the kids for us. Daryn went home with the Romneys and had a fun bachelor weekend, as far as I can tell. I stayed in Phoenix to wait for my dad to bring back our expedition. I bounced between my MIL's house and my brother's house, and we had fun visiting with family.

The sad/crazy part is that Monday afternoon my dad called to say that our car died near Page, AZ and he needed a tow. :( THAT was not fun news. I stayed in town until Tuesday when my mom drove me home (after driving up there to get my dad and the trailer he'd been towing, b/c the tow truck charged extra to tow it and it's not money any of us had to spend). We stopped at my sister's house in Marana to give her some of the maternity clothes she loaned me that I wasn't going to wear (oh, don't worry, I still have plenty! Kati is so nice to share with me!) and let the kids play for a bit.

Since then I've been trying to clean up my house. It's a never ending cycle! But, I decided it had been too long since I wrote in my 'journal' and unloaded pictures from my camera. Sorry they're not on here, but at least with this text I can match pictures to events when I go to make scrap books.

I don't know exactly what's gonna happen next.... we'll see how much it costs to fix the expedition (my FIL is using his AAA miles to get it towed to Phoenix to a guy he really trusts with his cars). It's going to make budgeting even more challenging, but we'll figure it out! I know that we'll have what we need, because we're doing our best to obey our Heavenly Father, and He blesses those who keep His commandments.

Also, I managed to do all this today because my awesome friend Linday has "borrowed" my children again for the afternoon. She gave Bekah a ride to preschool and then picked Josiah up after at about 12:45. Now my husband's home from work (holiday week he works four 8 hour shifts instead of four 10s because HR won't give him 10 hours of holiday pay or let him use 2 hours of vacation on top of 8 of holiday pay and just work three 10 hour days) and I need to think up what we'll have for dinner! Yay for catching up on things! (I'm also working on sorting Josiah's wardrobe to move him into 18 month clothes. Busy busy!)

Brelee and Birthdays

The last week of July, Daryn asked for Wednesday off because Rebekah was supposed to have her last ballet and gymnastics classes, and that's the class the parents get to come in with the kids and watch them perform. Well, he decided to ask for that Thursday off, too, and turn it into a nice little vacation.

Because ballet was cancelled one week, though, there was a make-up class the first week of Aug, so Daryn didn't get to sit in for ballet. After ballet, we took the kids to the mall (not the one we usually go to) and had a nice picnic lunch that we had packed supplemented with a big Jamba Juice (yum!). After that was gymnastics, which was super cute. And that night, my sister brought over her daughter Brelee, and she stayed with us until Saturday night!

Thursday Daryn played D&D with some friends, and Friday I babysat a friend's daughter, so I had 3 little girls for part of the day. That night we went to soccer and it was cute when Brelee saw her brother with another family (my sister sent the kids to different houses while she drove up to Utah and back for my brother-in-laws bike race). Poor Brelee was SO sad at the end of the game when we had to leave Nathan. She told me she wanted to go to the other family's house. I reassured her that her mom was coming back the next day and she'd see all her brothers then. We also cheered her up with some ice cream, in honor of Bekah's birthday.

Saturday was Bekah's actual birthday. We made French Toast for breakfast, and took the girls to the mall to play. Bekah wanted a big cookie from Mrs. Fields so we got her one that she and Brelee could share. It was only a 5 in diameter cookie but it had tons of frosting and the girls loved it. :)

I feel bad I didn't take more pictures of the girls playing together. For the most part they cycled from the My Little Ponies to the dress ups to playing in the sandbox and back around. We had a great time and Rebekah was VERY sad when she woke up Sunday and Brelee had gone home. We love having my sister and her family so close by - cousins are awesome!

Just Life

(Written Aug 16th)

The afternoon/evening of Bekah's party, Daryn went to Ft. Huachuca to have one last great visit with our friend Merrick, since he's moving to New York. We're going to miss him and Priscilla visiting! We know we'll see them in November for their Vow Renewal, but after that, who knows? Good thing they have plenty of friends in AZ to entice them back during vacation time. (I hope!)

July 15th I taught Sunbeams. I enjoy teaching them. Sometimes I get frustrated with Bekah being so clingy but for the most part their sweet spirits are just awesome to be with, and I can really feel the Spirit when I teach them the simple, beautiful truths we share with such young hearts. It probably helps that I'm pregnant, but I cry pretty much every time I bear them my testimony, even though it's about 3 sentences long.

Monday after swim I dropped the kids off with my friend Michelle - Josiah decided recently that he really likes her, so he doesn't cry and scream for her - and I went to get a sonogram to double check my due date. We are officially due January 29. I'd share the sono pictures, but I haven't scanned them into the computer. On my way home I dropped by to meet the newest Stratton, and that was nice. I love little babies! So cute!

Tuesday was swim, and grocery shopping and a trip to the mall play area with Michelle and her daughter Heather. Wednesday was swim, ballet, a visit with the Strattons for the girls to play together, then gymnastics. Thursday was that crazy rough day I wrote about in my last post. Daryn was invited to go out with friends that night, but he cancelled to stay home with me. He is such a great guy, and knows when I need him! (Most of the time. :P He's not a mind reader!) Later that night, though, he went to Ft Huachuca to help our friends pack up their moving truck. Apparently a few too many people bailed on helping them pack and they weren't going to get it done in a timely manner. Daryn is such a great friend. :D He re-packed some of the truck so it would all fit better, and they even had room left over at the end. Then he headed back home and slept a good deal of the morning before getting his Friday going.

Friday was tough because Daryn went camping with the Scouts and I had an 8:40pm game on the other side of town. Michelle was great to babysit my kids again, but Josiah took a late nap so he was definitely giving everyone trouble. Even though I was bummed, it turned out for the best when we were rained out after 15-20 minutes of playing our game, so I could go and pick up my babies and my friends could get some sleep!

July 22 we went to Binghampton Ward to see the Strattons bless their son, Guage. (Not to be confused with Gage, my friend Tiffany's son!) Then we invited everyone to our place for delicious food and good company. That week we also fed the missionaries, and then we had a fun second half of the week, which deserves it's own post because it has video and photos. :D

Painful

This is my third draft of this post. The first one has screen-caps of the entire conversation taking place on 3 different people's walls as well as in PMs between me and another person. I originally wrote it that way because I wanted you, my readers, to have all the facts and not just hear my take on the situation. But, I want to focus on the incident, not the people involved, and while I DID blot out all names and replace them with a color attributed to each person, I thought that the dissection was a bit much and did not focus on the point I was trying to make. It focused more on how hurt I was. But I want to use this more to make a point. (Which I will explain at the end.)

This week, I was called a bigoted, know-it-all Mormon who lives to cause Facebook drama and a poor thing that needs more attention at home. I cried for hours, mostly because this came from a person I had wanted to be friends with and had greatly respected. Then I couldn't keep from crying in front of my precious daughter, who wanted nothing more than to help Mommy be happy, and it was this stark contrast of her sweet innocence against these cruel words that made me cry even more for the world to which she will eventually be exposed.

I was called this because I dared to defend the religious rights of a man who believes in the sanctity of marriage, and uses money from his profitable business to support programs that provide marriage counseling and oppose homosexual marriages.

IN THE SAME POST, I defended the right of all people to protest that with which they disagree. If you don't like where a business man puts his money, I say good for you for not giving business to that man/company. Way to stick to your principles.

I respect your right to believe differently than I do. I don't believe anyone should feel ashamed of what they believe in. I respect those who stand up for their beliefs in a civilized way, even when those beliefs are contrary to mine.*

(*I'm sure we could debate what is considered civilized, but that's not the point right now.)

In fact, if I choose to express the fact that I disagree, it's because I think highly of you and believe that you will take my opinion in stride, and hopefully civilly discuss with me our differing viewpoints. I don't just go around saying that I disagree to anyone - that would be ridiculous and cause a lot of anger and arguments.

I don't like arguments. I like to debate, to discuss. It is through the civil, calm presentation of facts and evidence that we can work together to understand each other's views (btw, we can understand without agreeing) and find a compromise that benefits the greater good of our society. Without proper debate of the issues, we may overlook important information that might actually change how we feel or act.

If I were a bigot, I would not be interested in listening to the other side. And I would have probably used some offensive names, or said I was happy with the poor treatment of people..... but I did none of this.

Now, for the issue of being a know-it-all............... I have been called this before, but not really since Jr High. Most people, when they take the time to get to know me, realize that I simply love knowledge and freely impart what I know not to be a show-off, but because correct information provides for appropriate debate. You can't discuss an issue properly unless you have your facts straight. In fact, I am very reluctant to discuss a topic until I feel that I have at least a basic understanding of the issue, and even then I will admit if I have not researched it thoroughly. Topics I feel VERY comfortable discussing? Pregnancy, Natural birth, Education, and Freedom of Religion. That last one is very much because my religion is often bashed - sometimes on all sides! (But, that's a different topic.) I honestly mean well when I share information.

The rest of the statement is clearly a personal attack that was completely uncalled for. I am continually amazed that people think this kind of talk is ever appropriate. It says a lot about the society we live in that we can smear someone's name so easily, just because they chose to say something we disagree with.

Please recognize that the point of me talking about this is not to shame the person who called me these things. I've kept this completely anonymous because I want to talk about the INCIDENT, NOT to talk about the person. Overall, I know she can be a very good person with good intentions -like I said at the beginning, I had wanted to be her friend and I respected her. Clearly I hit a sore spot and somehow provoked her anger. In any case, I hope that you, those who read my blog, will take it this incident to heart and recognize your own sore spots and try to respond with a DEBATE, not an ARGUMENT, and respond with FACTS, not ATTACKS. This is particularly pertinent with the Presidential Election coming. I have plenty of friends on both sides of the issues being discussed this year. Please share your ideas with others! Please encourage friendly, civilized debate about important issues. Use appropriate sources, share correct information. Don't go calling names and getting angry that someone disagrees with you.

Rebekah and Cairn's birthday party

Just like every year, my friend Carrie and I combined efforts for our daughters' birthdays and had one big party. This year was AMAZING, and it was mostly due to Carrie's incredible hard work. Seriously - she's awesome. She orchestrated all the decorations, all the food and her family took care of the cakes, too. All I did were some party favors and one of the games.

We held it at the church ballpark like we did last year. We decided it was more intimate than the splash pad and more comfortable for all the adults involved - no strangers, more shade, and MISTERS and FANS in the ramada!

The good/bad news about this year was that Carrie had her baby just days before the party! Thus, she was banned from attending by her entire family. We missed having her there! But her presence was certainly felt by all the awesome stuff she contributed. I'll post pictures later and then narrate the party through them. :)

Cool thing: Bekah had all 4 grandparents at her party. I'm really glad that my parents and Daryn's all took the time out of their day to come down for the party - Bekah was thrilled. Also, that's when Daryn's parents gave us the Expedition. Yay new car!

Timing is Everything

(Written Aug 16)

The second week of July was QUITE eventful! I don't know if I'm complained about Insurance on the blog before, but the insurance claim involving Josiah's birth at the birthing center over a year ago was FINALLY settled, and I only had to pay a fraction of what I've been putting aside, so now I have a nice little nest egg to pay for the next birth! : D (And we have better insurance this time, and I already have saved up more than I had to pay last time, so I think we're all set!) That seriously makes me so excited. I'm really happy that I stuck to my savings plan even when it was tempting to spend the money on other things. Now we're a little ahead, and I can continue to place money aside (but not so aggressively!) for medical emergencies and feel prepared. I can also take a portion of it and save for a few other things. Yay for planning! (And for bills being smaller than expected!)

The same day I got the letter that settled the insurance claim, I went to my first appointment with the midwife and heard my newest baby's heartbeat. I'm measuring exactly where I should, heartbeat was healthy, and everything is going well.

Then, that afternoon, I got a phone call. Daryn had fixed the truck the week before and gotten it to pass emissions so he had listed it on craigslist. The man calling wanted to buy the truck RIGHT THEN. He couldn't wait until Daryn got home from work because it was his birthday and they had reservations at a restaurant with his extended family, and he had to go to bed right after that because he gets up very early for work in the morning, and he needed the truck that next morning to get to work. I chatted with Daryn online to discuss what I should do, but we eventually decided it was okay to sell it to this guy. SO, we sold the truck!

I think part of the reason we managed to sell the truck was that I planned a trip to Phoenix! Haha. I was going to leave Wednesday afternoon, but instead waited for Daryn to finish work because I had to give him a ride there and back. Then I slept at my in-laws.

So here's the thing. I planned my trip to Phoenix to last for 2+ days because my mom was in town. I specifically chose not to tell my girlfriends I was there because I wanted to focus on spending time with my mom. After all, my dad had started his job in Oregon that Monday, and Mom was going to join him with my two youngest siblings in a few weeks; this was the last time I would see her for a LONG time! So I was very excited she was in town and wanted to spend all my time with her.

Except, when I called Thursday morning to ask if Mom was up and ready to visit with me (she was staying at my brother's and helping him with his kids while his wife was on book tour) she said, "Yeah, your father and I are both up."

Wha....?

Well, it turns out that Dad felt strongly about coming to Phoenix, so now he has a job in Phoenix and my family has moved back to town! They'll be staying with my brother for a while, but I'm just so excited that they're back in town! So that was a fun surprise. I did some shopping with my mom that afternoon for a wedding gift and for some odds and ends for Bekah's birthday party.

Friday we spent the morning with my parents, and that afternoon I headed home. I actually invited Jeanette to join me, and she took us up on the offer. :) She came and stayed the night, and went home with Gary the next day after the birthday party. Which, I will put into a different post so I can add pictures someday. :P

Ah, Naptime!

Note: I didn't feel like this was finished, but I just looked at how long it was and that I hadn't published it yet (today is 7/19) and I decided I just needed to throw it up!

So, usually I get this updated while Josiah is napping in the afternoon. (Morning naps are for chores!) Only for the last week or two, Josiah's been trying to switch to one nap a day. IF he takes a morning nap, it's super short. Because of that, I've been having a hard time juggling things. Oh, and I have been needing an afternoon nap, so even if I DO get work done in the morning, instead of writing I've been napping. And I still feel tired all the time! I hope this passes with the first trimester! (ie - soon!)

At Daryn's last WW meeting on June 28, he had re-lost all the weight he'd gained plus a little more. He's quite sure it's because he went swimming once that week. He's been swimming at least once a week since then - maybe even twice. The pool that has space for him to have his own lane is $3/visit and the pool that's overcrowded is $1/visit (wonder why...) but if he's going to go every day we might as well get him a pass to a gym with a pool. I'm hoping to adjust the budget a little more to make that happen. Anyway - Daryn's basically been in the program for 2 months and has lost a little more than 15 lbs. I'm hoping the increased exercise this month will help increase that a great deal and inspire him to focus more on inputting his points every day again. I still feel like this is a good investment for now.

GREAT news! My Dad finally has a job. I am super happy for him and my family. Sad part is, it's even further away than before. They are moving to Coos Bay, Oregon. I just keep telling myself it will be a great place to visit. Better start saving now! I know that they're all sad to be leaving Utah - they had a great ward and great friends there, but we are all happy that Dad finally has work.

Josiah is getting 2 more teeth. Also, he's really good at going out the dog door into the back yard, climbing on and getting into everything. Our kitchen chairs fold up, and boy am I glad that they do! We only set them up when we're actually going to sit on them, or else Josiah is there, trying to crack his skull by climbing up and trying to reach the next highest level of furniture to climb on (table, counter etc). When he goes outside, he'll often look back inside and wait for me to come after him - then he runs away to the sandbox. I'm trying to decide if he's waiting to get my attention so I'll follow and hopefully take the lid off the sandbox, or if he's taunting me. It's quite possibly both.

Rebekah is my little sweetheart. Since Jeanette's visit, she's helped me wash dishes multiple times, and I've been working on giving her more responsibility around the house. She is constantly telling me that she loves me. It makes me so happy! Most of the time she is very obedient, and the tantrums from last summer are not nearly so bad this summer. She does get very dramatic, though. Pretty much any disappointment results in tears - they just don't last nearly long enough to consider it a tantrum. Rebekah loves to help - especially cooking. Also, for the last couple days, she's wanted to cuddle with me a lot. She took a nap in my arms the other day, and last night she was begging for me to sleep in her room. I stayed in her room while I put Josiah to sleep, and then I let her sit in my lap while I watched a TV show. She fell asleep and I put her back in bed. I don't normally do that, but I just felt impressed that she really needed some Mommy time, and I need to make sure that I'm making time to do things with her. She needs to feel loved!

We haven't had ballet for the last 2 weeks, and we didn't have any activities last week (gym, ballet and swim were all on break b/c of the holiday) so today started the 2nd half of summer activities for us. I think Bekah is a little disappointed that she has a new swim teacher. She hung her head and pouted at the beginning of lessons. It looked like she had a good time, but at the end she told me she didn't like the new teacher because she got the rules "wrong." So we had a conversation about how different teachers can have different rules, but the class can still be fun and we can be happy. She seemed okay with that, but I can tell she still wants her old teacher.

I mentioned at the beginning how tired I've been lately. The nausea seems to come and go depending on the day. Of course I have to eat every few hours, but some days are better than others when it comes to feeling better. The last week or two has not been kind on that front (and if gender effects how well my pregnancy goes, I think we're having another boy). In fact, I've had a lot of trouble keeping up on the house work, and it's gotten to a point of being overwhelming. Have you noticed that tempers spark more easily in a dirty home? I have! So, last night I called my visiting teacher and asked if she would be willing to come help me catch up on some chores today. It seriously feels so weird to do that - it makes me feel rather inadequate, but I need to put my family's happiness and well being before my pride. Plus, asking for help just means that next time I'll be that much more determined and motivated to keep my house from getting gross so I can avoid it! At least I hope so. I am SO happy that I have a VT who is so willing to help me with things like this. We didn't start out very close, but I've grown to love and appreciate her for who she is!

A little run down of what's been going on around the house since last I posted:
June 27th was the first Wednesday of no ballet, so Rebekah ended up napping before gymnastics and woke up super cranky. She did NOT want to go!

June 29th I was supposed to go to the midwife but didn't because they had so many babies come that day that they didn't have time for all of their appointments. I got rescheduled for July 10, and even then they had to rearrange some schedules to fit me in! (Since it's the first appointment of this pregnancy, it will last longer than most other appointments.) I also played my first soccer game in 7 months and did much better than I thought, but was definitely sore the rest of the weekend! We tied the game, and Daryn did a great job taking care of the kids AND playing with our nephews and niece while Kati and I were on the field.

Last week was pretty crazy with 4th of July being in the very middle of it! We had a pancake breakfast with the ward, then a BBQ lunch with the Strattons and BBQ dinner and games with the Doucets. It was a BLAST. Then Thursday Daryn had his friend Abe over to help us with the truck, which took way less time than we thought it would, so he called his wife and kid over and we played a game of Shadows Over Camelot. Friday was soccer again - this time up in Marana. The family didn't come with me this time, since it was a 6pm game (super hot out) and Kati's family wasn't going to be there to play with.

The truck.

The Book of Mormon. (Father's Day) Going to the Temple.

I have way more to catch up on than I thought!

Also... I need to post pictures.