No Shame

Real men CAN eat their candy necklace and wear it too!

Pizza Night!

Tonight Berkeley and I had a lot of fun with all of our friends/neighbors. Scott and Mickelle invited all of us over for dinner. She made us all veggie pizza and it was amazingly good! Our party consisted of Scott & Mickelle, Dantley and Erin, Liz and Grant, Jenny & Dave, and Berkeley & me. I love our little neighborhood of friends. Here is a picture and video of the evening.

Thank you Scott and Mickelle for the food and the fun!

Let the Organizing Begin!

I'm sorry that lately all of my posts have been about babies or pregnancy, but really that is all that consumes my thoughts right now. I am proud to say that I have finally begun to organize the hodge-podge of baby stuff that has been filling our extra bedroom for the last 4 months. Here is what I have so done so far.

And here is what I have left...
Yeah, we still have a long way to go.

Last, here is another terribly flattering picture of me that I know my friends will appreciate...yes, especially you, Lexi. This is me at 37 weeks. We have finally made it into the ninth month! Just ignore the look of shock on my face and my total morning hair. Berkeley thinks I'm hot and that is all that matters. Enjoy!

Welcome Bryson!! Don't Be Fooled...I am Still Pregnant.

Cade is only a month old, and now our family has already added another little addition!! My brother Scott and his wife Jen had their baby boy about a week ago, and they named him Bryson. I have not had the chance to meet him yet because he has been in the NICU, but he is doing very well and should be going home any day now. He weighs 6 lbs 7 oz and he looks like he has frosted tips to his hair. Very cute! Welcome to our family and congrats to Scott and Jen. We love you guys.

I'm sorry, what?

I am now on weekly doctor visits and I went in this morning for my 35 week check-up. I have gotten used to the routine of...
1. Pee in a cup and put it in that weird little door in the wall where it magically disappears.
2. Sit in the chair, pull up my sleeve, have that blood pressure cuff cut off the circulation to my lower arm and hand.
3. Take off shoes and stand on the scale to be weighed.

So far, I have had no big surprises with weight gain. In fact, I am proud to say that at my appt last week, I had only gained about 16 lbs total which up until today has kept me under Berkeley's weight. Today, I stepped on the scale but did not look down. I heard the nurse say my current weight as she jotted the number down in my chart. By this time, I was already off the scale and I blurted out...."I'm sorry, but what did you say?" She repeated my weight. I got back on the scale to double check. I had gained like 5 lbs in 6 days!! Is that normal? The nurse assured me that all is well and women who don't gain fast in the beginning make up for it in the end. So much for weighing less than Berkeley. On the bright side, maybe our little boy won't be a runt afterall!

The Decision is Final.

Last Wednesday Berkeley swore in as a member of the Utah Air National Guard. It is something that we have been studying, fasting, and praying about for a long time now but it is still surreal that he is now in the military. We both had good feelings about him joining and still feel the decision was correct, but it is a hard thing to face. Now it is real that he will have to be away from me and our baby for certain amounts of time over the next 6 years. I spent the whole morning after he swore in battling my emotions...which is highly difficult when you throw 8 months of pregnancy into the mix...but after crying it out, I have felt fairly peaceful about it. I know I'll always have those nagging worries and fears that must go along with having a spouse in the military, but I know that our Heavenly Father is looking out for us and wants only the best for our family. Please keep us in your prayers. If you want to know more about what Berkeley signed up for, then keep reading.

What commitment is expected from Air Guard members?
For new Air Guard members, the commitment involves working one weekend a month and a few weeks a year at a minimum for a period of 6 years. They must attend Basic Military Training at Lackland AFB in Texas for approximately 8 1/2 weeks, followed by Technical School for the career field they have chosen. Tech schools range in length from 6 to over 50 weeks, depending on the job.

Where will they work?
One of the primary benefits of joining the Air Guard is being part of your Hometown Air Force. Ordinarily, a person joins the unit closest to where they live, and after the initial training, they return to begin working the one weekend a month and a few weeks a year from that location. On occasion - typically during the annual training periods (two to three weeks a year) - units try to travel to varied locations to complete a more comprehensive training program. When this occurs, all of our members are provided transportation to and from that location as well as room and board.

Will my loved one be deployed?
There is always the possibility of being tasked for deployment. The current posture for the Air Guard is to support the needs of the Air Force on an as-needed basis. It is almost impossible to predict or determine whether, when or for how long a person may be deployed, but every effort is made to use volunteers first, and in some cases a person is tasked to deploy when volunteers are not available to meet the mission’s requirements.

What are the benefits?
Currently enlistees may be eligible for up to a $20,000 cash signing bonus for select careers. Receive up to $32,000 for your college education through the Montgomery G.I. Bill and other incentive programs.
The Air Guard offers many federal benefits/entitlements to their unit members and their families such as the Base Exchange, Commissary, use of Morale Welfare And Recreation facilities, and up to $400,000 life insurance at reduced rates You can also take advantage of Tricare Reserve Select Health Insurance and Tricare Dental. Both of these Health Insurance programs offer low cost premiums that round out the benefits necessary for you to maintain good health.
Federal education benefits through the Montgomery G.I. Bill are available to most unit members provided they enlist for 6 years. These benefits are available to our members after completion of basic training and technical school. This program is a non-contributory benefit, meaning no payment or reduction in pay is required to receive these benefits. Federal benefits received: Montgomery GI Bill chapter 1606; up to $317 per month to offset college cost of attending college fulltime. Other Air Guard Education Benefits for members enlisting for six years in a critical skills job: Montgomery GI Bill kicker up to $350 per month for full-time college enrollment, Student loan repayment program; up to $20,000 paid throughout enlistment. If you have prior military service and elected the active duty MGIB, you may still take advantage of this benefit up to a maximum of 48 months of combined benefits at the full-time rate.
In addition to the federal benefits listed above, each state may offer additional benefits for their members such as: up to 100% tuition assistance, state tax deferment, and reduced auto license fees.

Poor BYU

Wowza.

So if any of you have ever wished you had curly hair, think again. Sometimes it is really nice to just put mousse in my hair and use a defuser because I am ready in 10 minutes but on the days I want to straighten my hair it is a whole different story! Here is a picture of my blow-dried hair before I take hair spray and a straightener to it....

How many of you still wish you had curly hair??? It takes a LONG time to straighten out this mess and then I live with dirty hair for like 3 days before washing it again just so I can enjoy the straightness as long as possible. Yeah...I guess we all want what we can't have. For me, it is straight hair.

The Best Thing About School

The best thing about school has been the friendships that I've been able to make. I have spent the last year with the same group of people and have gotten used to spending time with them every day. It has been a bitter-sweet change to not be in school this semester. This is the first break away I have had since graduation so I am soaking up the relaxation time, but I am so sad to not be a part of my cohort anymore. This morning I woke up and checked my e-mail. In my inbox, I found an e-mail from my three closest friends from school. They wrote me a quick message letting me know first how bored they are at school right now and that they missed me. They included a photo...


From left to right: Tauna Huntsman, Nicole Miller, Audra Moorey. Thanks you guys for thinking of me and making me feel missed because I miss you guys!! Lets get together soon!!

There is nothing better than good friends.

Here is the Dealio.

My blog is boring. I really need to get back into the blogging spirit, but I feel like lately I haven't had much to talk about. Nothing interesting anyway. I just decided that a lame post is sometimes better than no post, so I thought I'd write a quick update on us. I am a very lucky girl right now because Berkeley is my sugar daddy while I stay home...no work and no school. It has been quite an adjustment for me to go from being crazy busy all day to planning my schedule when I wake up each morning. Each day is different, but usually contains some cleaning project which I love. It is nice to have time to clean without feeling guilty because I should be doing homework. Berkeley is working hard every day. He is still working for Zimmer Orthopedic in SLC. I feel bad sometimes because he has long hours and by the time he gets home, he has 3 hours of free time before bedtime rolls around. He rarely complains though. (Unlike me...I'm a total whiner) We are trying to make some big decisions about our life...career paths, where to live, financial choices, etc. We will keep you posted on those decisions when they are finalized. Last, we are looking forward to having our baby boy next month. We are 6 weeks away from my due date and my feelings are on a roller coaster. I am so scared and so excited at the same time. I just want to be a great mom and I feel so ill-prepared. I will learn soon enough though...ready or not...here he comes. We love all you guys. We miss all of you friends out there that we don't get to see. Thanks for all of your love and support.

Welcome Baby Cade!!

My sister Kimberly had her baby boy on Dec. 30. He was born 3 weeks early and weighs 4 lbs 13 oz. He is doing well. He is in the NICU until he gets to be a pro at eating, but overall is a happy, healthy little guy. He is adorable and I am so excited for my sister and her husband to have their little guy here already. Kim is sore but recovering very well. She should be going home today, but Cade will stay in the NICU for a couple more weeks. Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure.