My Crazy Pregnant Mind

Yesterday was a highly anticipated day for me. It was Gerberta's scheduled ultrasound. I couldn't wait to find out what she was having. (I was already assuming it was a healthy baby, so I was mostly thinking about the gender.) Gerb was predicting that whatever she's having, I'm having the same. So we would either both continue our preset patterns (hers is boy-girl-girl, boy-girl-girl, and you know what mine is!) by having girls, or we would both break our patterns with a boy this time.

I didn't get a chance to talk to Gerb before I went to an Enrichment Meeting/Christmas party last night. And of course, everyone I talked to was asking The Question. It all just added to the anticipation of talking to Gerberta. As soon as the closing prayer was said, I was out the door, in my car, calling Gerberta to hear the news. And it was an exciting conversation. However, as soon as I hung up with Gerberta, I experienced an unexpected sensation: a deep void of anticipation. Now that I knew, it was still exciting, but, I knew.

So, I started having these crazy thoughts....maybe I don't want to experience that "void" again next week. Maybe I want to continue to let the anticipation build and build, and keep everyone (including myself) curious and anxious to find out whether we're going to have a boy or a girl.

Am I nuts??? Am I even myself?!

A True Compliment

This morning, Hannah crawled into bed with me for the last few minutes of sleepy time, as she does almost every morning. I enjoy our morning cuddle time. Sometimes Lauren joins us, but today it was just me and Hannah. Most mornings, I have to pry my eyes open with a great surge of will power, and drag myself out of bed. But this morning I was awake before Hannah joined me. She lay down next to me with her head on my arm, and we looked at each other and smiled. She took a deep breath, and then said, "You smell good. You smell like a Mom." I so appreciate those sweet little moments!
I don't have the most keen sense of smell, but there are certain aromas that are sentimental for me. Like the smell of my Grandma. A couple of months after my Grandma Davies passed away, I went to the temple, and I encountered a lady there who smelled exactly like my grandma used to. This lady, who was a stranger to me, probably wondered why I was teary-eyed and and, at the same time, grinning from ear to ear while I was talking to her briefly. But it was just that familiar smell that made me feel nostalgic in a really good way. I'm so glad to know that my aroma (whatever it may be) has that same sort of effect on Hannah.

First Snow

Meet Bob.

Poor old Bob didn't live long. He spent one Saturday afternoon in the falling snow, watching Doug and the girls have a snowball fight.



But by the next morning, Bob had met his demise. The girls believe it was the work of our pesky neighbors, the Raccoons. Perhaps they were after his carrot nose?



But by Sunday evening, Mother Nature finished him off, for good. It has been pouring rain for almost 24 hours now, and I'm wishing that instead of building Bob, we had built an ark. It might come in handy soon.

Boy or Girl?

That's the big question right now. At least one of my Beehives asks me that question every single Sunday and Wednesday: "Do you know yet if it's a boy or a girl?" It's beginning to remind me of that road trip question, "Are we there yet?", except that this question does not annoy me. In fact, I'm happy to talk about it and get people's guesses and opinions. If you were here to have the conversation with me, here's how it would go...

You: Are you hoping for a boy this time?
Me: Well, it is true that in our deliberations on the subject of whether or not to have another child, I may have been overheard to say, "If I knew it would be a boy, I would go ahead and do it." However, we made the decision to have this baby without any revealed knowledge of its gender. We knew full well that it could very well be a girl, and still, we decided to go ahead with baby #5. Not because we're trying for a boy, but because we are excited to add another member to our family. I will be thrilled if it's a boy (not to mention terrified, curious, ready to shop, as well as unsure about how we'll all fit into the bedrooms we have in this house, in the long run). I will also be ecstatic if it's another girl. I ADORE my daughters. My sis-in-law, Kaelyn, tells me that I wished so hard for a girl the first time around, that's all I get now. If that's the case, then lucky me. I am so glad to have girls!! So, coming back to the question, my bottom line answer is, I'm not necessarily hoping for a boy, but I am definitely anxious to find out! It will be a fun announcement either way. Remember that Doug has eight brothers, and no sisters, so another girl would not surprise me, and would be a fun way for our family to be recognized. But then, in my family, there are four girls, and one boy. Hmmmm...

You: When will you find out?
Me: My ultrasound is scheduled for December 20th. (That is less than 3 weeks from now, people!) When the ultrasound technician asks me if we'd like to know the gender, I'll say "yes and no". I've never had the patience to outweigh my curiosity at the time of the ultrasound. Nor have I had the desire. I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything when the baby is born and the doctor says "It's a ____!" There are plenty of other surprises that will be revealed on the birth day, such as "What color hair?", "Who does she look like?", and "Does she have Doug's toes?" Back to my point....We don't want to wait until Spring to find out the gender of this baby, but we do want to wait until Christmas. Even waiting those 5 days will be hard for me. (Maybe 4 days...we can open a present on Christmas Eve, right?) But I think it will be fun to have the gender sealed in a gift box and opened as a family on Christmas this year. So, if you're as anxious as I am for this news, you can call us on Christmas day, or check my blog. I promise I'll post it here.

Now, if "You" were my midwife, "You" would say, at my last appointment, "Well, the chances aren't great that you'll have a boy, but if you do, how do you feel about having him circumcised? (Around here, the ObGyn does that procedure, not the pediatrician. Is that odd?)

If "You" were my kids' pediatrician, you would say to me, "Wow, Doug might really be outnumbered, huh?"

If "You" were my mother, you would tell me that 12 ladies in your ward are pregnant. 10 have already had ultrasounds, and 9 of those 10 are having girls.

And if "You" were Hannah, you would have had this conversation with me, several times, exactly the same way, during the last several weeks:

Me: What should we call the baby if it's a girl?
H: Bidia.
Me. Oh, wow. What if it's a boy?
H: It's a girl.
Me: But what if it's a boy?
H: Then I'll call it a girl.

Doug tried to tickle-torture her into saying that it's a boy, and his name (for now) is Spike. (Lauren suggested that one, and we all use it now.) That worked on Hannah, but only for half a day. She is convinced it's a girl.

So, what do YOU think? Cast your predictions! I'd love to hear them.

Birthday Girl

Guess why I'm so excited!

I just turned 3!!!

I like to answer the phone, draw on anything and everything, put on make-up and dress-ups, go to the store with Mommy, and play with my big sisters. I do not like to wear pants--only pretty dresses. My Aunt Jennifer just gave me a haircut, and even though Daddy likes to joke about it, you can see that it is very cute...as long as Mommy works with it a little bit! Oh yeah, and as long as I leave my barrettes in (which isn't usually very long).

I may not be the baby of the family for much longer, but at least I am the boss. :)

Turkey

What is it about turkey that's supposed to make you sleepy? I'm not even going to try to type that word, but you know what I'm talking about, right? Well, I didn't eat an exhorbitant amount of turkey on Thanksgiving, but I have been sleeping a lot during the last 36 hours! Maybe it has more to do with all the excitement of the week, and less to do with food.

I had a strange moment this week, when I realized that I'm actually an adult--at least in some respects. I hosted Thanksgiving dinner at my house, and for the first time ever, I had to set up a kids' table! We had eight adults and eight children. It was fantastic! I loved it! Crazy, sometimes, but absolutely wonderful!

My parents and sister Sarah arrived last Sunday night, and the excitement began. We played games, ate food, shopped, laughed, watched movies, went for walks...It is always so much fun to have Grandpa and Grandma and aunts with us. I was also very grateful to have my dad here for a major glitch in the car repair. Short story: after 5 days at the dealership, my van was returned to my posession, still broken. Brake lights and turn signals weren't working. They said it was the fault of whoever installed the tow hitch (which was done earlier this year, and hasn't caused any problems up to this point). Dad worked on it and encouraged us to take it to another dealership nearby the next morning, and guess what--they replaced a blown fuse and had it working in 30 minutes.

My sister Jill and her husband and kids arrived on Wednesday, as well. They had been cruising around the Northwest in a rented motor home. Having them here added more excitement to our Thanksgiving celebration. We got babysitters for the kids and planned an adult temple trip and dinner outing on Wednesday evening. Just as we were going out the door on our way to the temple, we called and found out that the temple was closed for the day. (My plans, and my patience, were being tested this week!) So we ended up just going downtown and having a more leisurely dinner, which was really nice.

Turkey day started out with a 5K. (See my "Appetizer" post.) That was so much fun to plan and carry off! Dad's pies and Mom's rolls made our dinner perfect. We ate early in the day, and spent the afternoon and evening playing games, eating snacks, and even having a Karaoke contest. That provided some good laughs!

Jill's family left that night, making their way slowly back home. The rest of us got a few hours of sleep, and then it was time for Mom, Dad, and Sarah to head to the airport and fly home, too. Getting up to see them off gave me an extra incentive to go to the early bird sales at a few stores. It was fun to have Jen come with me this year. But I waited in longer lines than ever, and didn't really go with any big ticket items on my list, so I was questioning my sanity at about 6:15 am. Do you know what I brought home on Black Friday this year? Mostly, it was maternity clothes! Silly, right? Oh well. It's just part of my tradition. Every year I tell myself I'm not going to participate in that craziness next year, but every new year, I head out shopping in the dark, cold, early morning hours again.

So, maybe waking up at 3:45 am had something to do with how tired I was yesterday. But I believe it was the result of my pure satisfaction with a very exciting, very sweet Thanksgiving week, surrounded by my family.

Appetizer

For a little taste of how much fun we've been having this week, read this. That should tide you over (you=all of my loyal readers!! ;) until I can manage to give you the "full meal deal". But for now, I'm off to nibble on some left-overs...

The Cars We Love

When Doug and I were dating, we walked, borrowed bikes, bummed rides, and used public transportation to get wherever we needed to go. (That's why most of our Friday night dates consisted of renting a movie and buying bagel sandwiches at Mama's Cafe, and spending the evening on the velvety gold couch of Doug's pink house apartment.) So we appreciate the cars we have owned since then.



By the time we got married, Doug had inherited a VW Rabbit from his brother and sister-in-law, and my parents had handed down to me the family station wagon. You can imagine the comments people made when we returned from our honeymoon, moved into on-campus married student housing (aka. "The Rabbit Hutches"), and drove a station wagon! Since we both lived, worked, and studied on campus, and we didn't want to pay to insure and maintain both cars, we sold the Rabbit. (Well, ok, we practically gave it away. We're much better at buying than selling cars!)



A few years later, the station wagon was starting to show signs of old age, and maybe a little abuse. So we decided it was time to buy something newer. After searching for a while, we found a car we fell in love with:


Our '95 Ford Contour. It was beautiful. Only two years old, low miles, snazzy leather interior, tinted windows (it wasn't until a few years later that my cousin made fun of me for their purplish tint...I hadn't really noticed), and a sporty 5-speed manual transmission! Woohoo! We were going to trade in our station wagon, but when my dad heard what the dealership was going to offer us for it (peanuts, you might say), he decided he wanted to buy it back from us instead. (Uh, yeah...he bought the car from us that he had given freely a few years prior. I promise, it was his idea, not mine! But that's beside the point.)



We loved driving our cool new car. I must say, it was probably a source of unrighteous pride for me. I remember taking my brother for a spin one night soon after we got the Contour. He was so jealous that I had a stick shift, and he didn't. But he made fun of my driving, because I was still getting used to the clutch. Then we pulled over, and I let him drive. Guess who was laughing then!



I also laughed, a few months later, at the Jiffy Lube technician who finished the oil change, tried to pull it out to the parking lot, and got stuck in the middle of a busy road because he couldn't figure out how to get it into reverse. (There is a little trick.)



We let a few of Doug's brothers use it for hot dates during their college years, and I'm told that there were a few historic kisses that took place in our beloved Contour. (I won't name names...) I can't blame them--it was a very swank spot.



Within a few years, it was time to add a second family vehicle, and thus began my life as a mini-van mom. The Contour officially became "Doug's car", but I still loved driving it whenever I got the chance.



Then we moved to Washington, and for the first time, our precious Contour started to give us trouble. In fact, neither one of our vehicles enjoyed this place very much, I guess. The minivan bit the dust back in 2006, and I got my second minivan, but the Contour kept going. She was getting old, and worn down, but she was still trusty. She would go through every little repair like a champ. And even though her trunk got leaky and moldy, and she lost a seatbelt, and she suffered a few exterior scratches, and her driver's seat electronic adjustment buttons started to stick, and she was testy about letting you open her driver side door....She was still a decent drive, if you could look past all that...



...Until recently, that is. Our poor little Contour has lived a good life. She has given so much. But now, she's got a terminal illness, and it's time to let her rest. Farewell, fine friend. We'll miss you. (Well, at least I will. Don't listen to Doug. And don't read the rest of this post...)



So on Wednesday, we brought home Doug's new car. There are a few similarities to our car-buying experience of one decade ago. Doug's new car is two years old. It's got low miles. It's got tinted windows (but they are not purple.) But there's one big difference this decade. We are going Japanese. When we told our mechanic (whom we adore and trust) that we'd get a new car instead of fixing the Contour, he recommended a Toyota, or a Honda. Our new van is a Toyota, and it's been great. And now Doug's driving a Honda.

We were feeling pretty happy about our wheels...for about 24 hours.

Last night, Doug took the van to the Cannery to bring home a large load of food storage. On his way home, he called me. There was something wrong with our van. The van that is a TOYOTA, and less than 2 years old, and just had an oil change 2 days ago, and has run perfectly up until that minute. It suddenly decided it didn't want to leave the Cannery parking lot.

Am I cursed? We now own 3 cars, and only one of them is driveable. What the hey?

We managed to get the van to the dealership. Whatever the problem is, it is certainly under warranty. But they're not sure they can even look at it today. They're booking a week out, they say. At the TOYOTA service department, mind you. And remember, our Ford Contour never had any issues until it was about 9 years old. Something is wrong with this scenario, I think.

Tribute

Ok, so it's not that I don't have anything to blog about lately...I just haven't taken the time to do it. So now I'm "backblogged"! I'll see what I can do to catch up with myself.

I attended the Veteran's Day assembly at the elementary school last Friday. Emily really wanted me to be there, because she and Katelyn were singing with the school choir, and also, because Emily's class had learned The Pledge of Allegiance in Sign Language. So, Hannah and I went. And a mom of one of Katelyn's classmates was pretty rude to me about sitting in her "saved" row of seats (which wasn't even true--the people next to her had slid down a seat to make room for me), and that almost brought me to tears (I'm hormonal!) but I maintained my composure.

However, I did let a few tears slip later in the program. They had encouraged any student who knew a veteran to bring that person to the assembly so the school could honor them. There were probably a dozen or so who came. Mostly parents and grandparents of students at the school. My favorite was a gentleman who was elderly, who had dressed up in his long army winter dress coat, and had a medal around his neck, and a scrapbook under his arm. I'm guessing he served in WWII. It made me cry because it looked like he was ready to share some stories, and I would have loved to hear what he had to say, but during the assembly, he only got to be introduced by name and which branch of the military he had served in, and then sit back down. For me, that introduction stirred up feelings of respect and gratitude for this great country, and for generations of people who were more grateful and respectful on an every-day basis than most of us are today, even on a holiday designed to help us be grateful and show respect. (Did that sentence make sense?)

The principal of the school impressed me with his reverence for the holiday and his gentle ways of explaining to the students what this holiday is all about, and what they could do to celebrate and honor this day. I realized that I, myself, have never really thought about doing anything to celebrate this holiday before. And I decided that I would take the principal's challenge this weekend, and honor the veterans I know.


First of all, Thank You, Grandpa, for serving as a pilot in World War II. Thank you for being an example of humility and bravery, and for sharing your stories with us.

Secondly, Thank You, Doug's Dad, for serving during the Vietnam War. Thank you for teaching your sons to be disciplined and hard-working.

Thank you, Doug's Mom, for taking care of two little boys and giving birth to a third (Doug!) while your husband was away on military duty. That's just one of the reasons we love and admire you, and in honor of your 60th Birthday, here are 59 more:

1. You joined the church and changed the course of your life as a young teenager.

2. You married Gary and turned us all into Larsons!

3. You left your sunny California home and followed your husband to places like Mississippi and Indiana. (I feel your pain! ;)

4. You gave life to NINE BOYS.

5. You even welcomed your sons and in-laws into the delivery room once! Brave!

6. You learned to not sweat the small stuff that comes along with NINE BOYS.

7. You spent 20 years of your life changing diapers and/or potty training.

8. You lived frugally, and met their needs.

9. You taught your sons to work.

10. You taught your sons to serve the Lord.

11. You kept the peace in the home.

12. You kept a clean home.

13. You sent off NINE faithful missionary sons.

14. You wrote to them regularly.

15. You have never stopped worrying about your sons.

16. You talk honestly about your concerns.

17. You welcomed daughters-in-law to your home, even if you didn't feel ready!

18. You love babies and children.

19. You love being a grandma.

20. You helped make it possible for me to graduate from college after Katelyn was born, driving to Provo to pick her up and babysit her one day a week.

21. We had good talks about what I was studying when I would come pick up Katelyn at the end of the day.

22. You are willing to sacrifice your own comfort, possessions, and desires for your family.

23. You made your way back to our beloved California, and created the best family resort: CasaLarson!

24. You keep in touch with your family.

25. You took care of your mother until her passing.

26. You don't complain.

27. You play imaginative games with your grandkids.

28. You send postcards and notes to them.

29. Sometimes you even include a dollar, for a trip to the dollar store.

30. You pamper us!

31.You always have my favorite ice cream in the freezer when we come for a visit.

32. A trip to your house is a true vacation. You work hard while everyone around you relaxes.

33. You join in the fun.

34. You get crazy at family parties!

35. You make us laugh, and you laugh with us.

36. You celebrate our successes.

37. You forgive us for stupid mistakes.

38. You have pets so we don't have to.

39. You buy chicks for our fun.

40. You let us collect the eggs.

41. You come to Disneyland and go on rides, no matter how dizzying they might be.

42. You are pretty!

43. You are patient.

44. You are devoted.

45. You are tender and gentle.

46. You make us all feel cute/handsome/beautiful...as the case may be.

47. You love the beach.

48. But you didn't sell CasaLarson and move there. :)

49. You are a good wife.

50. You do your family history work.

51. You keep us all connected.

52. You like to share recipes.

53. Your mind is always busy.

54. You handle trials and obstacles gracefully.

55. You treasure your family above all else.

56. You treat everyone kindly.

57. You work with kids who have challenges and struggles.

58. You supported your sons through 7 Bachelor Degrees, 3 Master's Degrees, 2 J.D.'s and 1 M.D....and that's not the end!

59. You've celebrated 60 birthdays, and there is still so much in store. We can't wait to see what's yet to come!

*Sorry that tribute is a week late. I've been thinking about doing it for longer than a week. Does the thought count?*

And finally, a tribute to Emily.

Emily just finished her soccer season. She played with a great team and had a good coach who helped her develop her soccer skills over the last few months. I think it's amazing that not one of Emily's games got rained out. In fact, I don't think we experienced anything more than a drizzle, and that was only once or twice. It was cold, don't get me wrong. But I think it's quite lucky to be dry around here.

Emily was a pretty timid player in the beginning, but by the end of the season, she was awesome! She scored a goal in her last game on Saturday (her second goal of the season), which was so satisfying!

Because the team celebration was held at a pizza parlor on Sunday evening, Emily didn't get to attend. So we're making a soccer ball cake and having our own family celebration tonight. I'm so proud of her!

Since this is the season of thanks, I'll have more tributes coming soon! Coming up next: A Tribute to the Contour...

Tagged

I was sort of tagged by Sarah, and since I can't come up with anything better to blog about, here it is...
And if you are also experiencing blogfreeze...consider yourself tagged.

Best thing you cooked last week:
I made a good lasagna last night. I can't remember much past yesterday!

If money and time were no object, where would you go and with whom?
I would spend the entire winter (around here, that means I won't be back until July) on a warm beach with my family.

When was the last time you cried?
Well, I had a good cry on Saturday, and I also had a brief cry on Sunday, but remember: I'm pregnant!

5 things you were doing this month 10 years ago:
1. Driving my cool new car (95 Ford Contour with purplish tinted windows, which Doug still drives), and getting good at shifting gears
2. Finishing my last couple of classes at night at BYU. (ASL 101 and...something else?)
3. Spending my days with 1-year-old Katelyn, reading lots of board books, and sewing dresses for her
4. Daydreaming about the holidays, and whether we should have another baby yet
5. Writing our Christmas newsletter


5 things on your to do list today:
1. Clean the bathrooms
2. Buy milk
3. Clean out the freezer
4. Take a walk
5. Think of something more exciting to add to my list

6 favorite snacks:
1. Cold cereal
2. Nuts
3. Veggies & dip
4. Apples & cheese
5. Halloween candy (sshhhh!)

5 bad habits:
1. Eating Halloween candy
2. Buying things I don't really need, because it's a "bargain"
3. Collecting baby boy clothes, just in case
4. Checking Gerb's blog multiple times a day, knowing that she's tracking me every time I do
5. Sleeping in

5 favorite foods:
1. Anything Mexican
2. Pasta
3. Grandma's cookies
4. Mom's rolls
5. Cold cereal

5 places I've been:
1. In the states: Scottsbluff, Nebraska (may not be exotic, but it is unique!), but nowhere in the south (except Disney World)
2. Spanish-speaking: Puerto Rico, but not Mexico
3.Europe: Germany/Switzerland/Austria, but not France
4. Hawaii: Oahu and Kauai, but not Maui
5. Church History sites: Martin's Cove area, Wyoming; Palmyra, New York; Kirtland, Ohio; All over Utah--but not Nauvoo, Illinois.

6 favorite memories (or more!):
1. Kindergarten: Mr. Bagan's beard; Sneak attacks from Astro; Bringing a candle shaped like an ice cream sundae for Show & Tell; Erika's ice-packed green popsicle snack in her lunchbox
2. Riding in Dad's half-remodeled Model A in the St. Patrick's Day parade, and getting drenched in the pouring rain!
3. Youth activities in the San Ramon II Ward. Singing together. Greater Than Us All. Learning to water ski at Camp Ritchie.
4. Doug: first date, wedding day, Lake Powell together without kids...
5. Planning Doug's big 30th birthday surprise
6. Katelyn, Emily, Lauren, Hannah (that makes millions of memories right there)
7. Visiting CasaLarson: Games with Dad & The Sisters-in-Law; Spending all day swimming; A Happy Birthday Serenade by the Larson Boys; The Grapefruit Gauntlet
8. Creating Nativities: painting figures with Jill in Pennsylvania; molding clay figures with Mom and Kaelyn the day after Thanksgiving; cross-stitching mini pillows for Mom in PR; painting plastic figures with my husband and kids one Christmas Eve.
9. Our first real family vacation in Moab--holed away in a little trailer in the mountains for 3 days, riding 4-wheelers, playing games, visiting Arches, listening to General Conference on the car radio