18 Months, 27 Weeks, Easter and The Move

Hold on. Rewind to exactly a month ago and you'd find this:

I think she was saying "Oiii."

This past month has flown by. Norah and I spent a good three weeks with my Mom and Grandma in New Jersey. We had this trip planned months ago, although it happened to fall at the exact time we would move to Virginia. That means that my amazing husband put his excellent packing skills to good work and did the whole thing without us! He had a lot of help though and I need to give a BIG thanks to those that did help him. After driving the 36+ hours from Utah to Virginia, unpacking and getting to work the next day, he then drove the 4 hours to my parents house to spend Easter with us. It was a great reunion of sorts and Norah was thrilled to see him, of course. So over the course of the last few weeks, Norah has turned 18 months and is a little ball of love. She has turned into a little parrot and will repeat pretty much anything you say to her. Her first sentence was "Here you go Momma" when she hands me something and "Thank you Momma" when I hand her something. She is so fun!

I passed the 27 week mark in this pregnancy and am in the "good" phase of pregnancy where I am (finally) past being sick, yet not uncomfortable quite yet. The little man is growing like a weed though and I can start to feel and distinguish his little feet from his bum, etc. I'm starting to get a little - OK, a lot - anxious about having two kids. Not so much the amount of work it's going to be, because I'm already preparing myself for that, but I'm trying to comprehend how I'm possibly going to love two kids the way I love Norah. I know I will love "the boy," but how will I keep on loving Norah the way I do? It's hard to explain and it makes me sad to think about. I read a blog recently (can't remember where) where a mother had similar feelings. Her conclusion was to "love the lamb you're with." That's what I'm going to do - and it will all work out in the end.

So here we are - a new place, new people, a new adjustment. We like it (Joe, actually has said he "could live the rest of his life here") so far and we are excited to see what the future brings. Here are some pictures taken on Easter..

Norah and Nay Nay (my Mom)

Norah and GG (my Grandma)

To Live For

You know, I'm the kind of person who eats to live, not lives to eat. But, Norah and I are in Jersey and all I know is that I'm getting all that I possibly can of this..and these..and these..

and this..

Oh how I've missed you, food.

You non-East Coasters don't know what you're missing.

The End.

I Love Gauchos

When I was pregnant with Norah pretty much all I wore were gaucho pants and comfy skirts. It was summertime and those were the two things I was most comfortable in, all the time. For some reason I had a heck of a hard time finding more gaucho pants at the time (guess they were "out of style" or something). So this time around, I've been on the lookout for more.

Here's the deal you don't want to miss: Target's "daily deal" (meaning, today only!) is BUY ONE GET ONE FREE Junior's gaucho pants (go here). Not only that, but you get free shipping AND an extra 20% off (enter the code URTYJLI8 at checkout). Do the math people, that comes to $4 each. You have to buy two to get the deal. SWEET! So go before they're gone!

Update: Just a couple of hours after I made this post, they completely sold out! Crazy! I guess I'm lucky I snagged two pairs!

An Update

Now that our blog is "private," I feel more at ease enough to delve into the very detail of our lives. Ok, maybe not so much, but I do feel more comfortable sharing more about our experiences! Remember, this post? Yeah, that I'm-so-grateful-for-everything-I-have post? The day after I wrote that post (get this, day after), our landlord informed us that we had 30 days to move out of our duplex due to major renovations they want to pursue. Lesson learned: when life seems too comfortable, get ready for a curve ball! My immediate reaction was dangit, I like it here, we pay an amazing price, we won't be able to find anything like this for this price, etc. (I think I might have slipped something out like, "Do they REALIZE they are throwing out a PREGNANT woman?!") But, I accepted it and began to look for alternative places to live. Within a week of that time, Joe was informed that due to downsizing at work, he was being "let go." WHAT? I was in shock. When I told my Mom, she replied, "Really, could there be a worse situation for you guys right now?" It took me a couple hours to "marinate" the situation - when it clicked. After which I welcomed that huge blessing with open arms! Joe has been looking for another job for some time, he just didn't have much time to interview and really pursue options. This was the "push" he needed to really get him moving in the right direction (although, it was an ugly push because no one likes to be "let go"). Another blessing? We had no rental contract tying us down - we could go anywhere! There are other blessings that have followed, including several job opportunities. After much prayer, we feel that we've made the right decision. So, short story long - we are moving to Virginia! Yes, folks, this will be the 5th state we've lived in in the 3 years we have been married. Yes, this is our 9th move.

We will settle down and grow some roots, someday.

Right now we are enjoying the ride our Heavenly Father has set in front of us and realizing each step of the way that "all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good." (Doctrine & Covenants 122:7).

One Dolla

If you are lucky enough to live within driving distance of an Ikea store, I highly suggest you make the trip this weekend. They are offering their Swedish meatball plate which includes 10 meatballs, mashed potatoes and their amazing lingonberry sauce for $1 from now through Sunday. If you haven't had them before, you need to try them. They are amazing. The end.