Annual Trip with ma mamma

This past week, my mom and I took out annual trip. This year, we decided to stay closer to home just because of the bebe and I don't have a ton of PTO for work right now. We went up the coast and had such a good time. It was so relaxing because we didn't really have a set plan and just kind of did whatever. Our only big plans were to go to Hearst castle.

THe first day, we drove up to Solvang and spent the day up there. It is such a beautiful and unique place to go. We spent hours just looking at all their fun shops and bakeries and book stores and everything else they have. We spend like 2 hours in a craft store and bought some way cool homemade paper to make cards with. We stayed in a cute little hotel out of town that night and just had a relaxing day.

The next day, we drove a couple of hours of the coast and went to Hearst castle. That place is amazing. Seriously one of the coolest places I've been. It is so ridiculously gaudy, like a European castle but so incredible. The amount of art there is in there is staggering. Most of the decor is from the 15th and 16th century and it's so cool so look at. He also mixed cultures together like ancient asian pieces with roman and french and even had Egyptian sculptures from B.C. It was just so unique.

Saturday was a pretty chill day. We headed down to Ojai where my mom grew up and she gave me the grand tour because it had been like 10 years since the last time I was there. We met up with my uncle Brad and aunt Crystal at Ojai days, a festival in downtown Ojai and hung out with them for the day. It was fun to just see where she grew up. It was such a pretty place to grow up. Overall, such a fun trip. It was just a little guy but I love that time we get to have together just the tow of us every year.

Weeks 19-22

Weeks 19-22

These last couple have weeks have been up and down as far as how I have been feeling. My whole pregnancy has been pretty uneventful except for these random headaches that I get that get pretty bad. They haven’t been super common and I have been grateful that I haven’t had anything work than a headache. Then, last week, I woke up on Thursday morning feeling so out of it. I was just exhausted and didn’t even want to get out of bed. It was weird I was just wasted. The night before, I had tried to do my homework and ended up falling asleep at like 8:30 at night and woke up for long enough to tell my work I wasn’t coming in and ended up sleeping until like 4:30. It was nuts, I didn’t know I had the ability to sleep that long! The next day was the same thing. Just so tired and out of it and I just felt strange. But I slept and rested and Jered took good care of me and that night we were able to go out to dinner and I felt ok. Saturday I had Super Saturday all day (activities committee) and was kind of nervous for that but it went ok and although I was way tired by the end of it, I was still able to do stuff that night. Today I’m back at work and I feel good, so who knows what was going on.

Other things I’ve noticed the past few weeks:

It’s getting increasingly harder to bend straight down for stuff, especially when I’m sitting down. All my air gets blocked and I’m like gasping for air by the time I reach whatever I am trying to get.

My dreams are WEIRD.. and scary. I remember reading before I got pregnant that you have weird dreams but I always wondered what made the difference between being pregnant or not. I still don’t know what the difference is but am definitely a believer in the fact that it happens!

I crave gross food. I mean hamburgers and French fries but not even the good ones, like Mcdonalds nasty stuff and pop tarts and little kids candy like sour patch kids and skittles. Weird..

I get this weird piercing pain by my ribs every once in a while. It’s always in the same place and it literally takes my breath away it hurts so bad. People keep telling me it’s the baby but it seems really high for such a little guy.

I am finally starting to feel the baby kick. It is down super low (it feels like he is giving little pokes to my bladder all the time) but I love it. Last night I was listening to a bunch of new music on itunes and baby was kicking away. I it such a cool thing and makes me feel so much more connected to him. I told Jered we were having bonding time over the new Tony Bennet duets album. I can’t wait for him to start kicking on the outside so Jered can feel him.

I can’t believe I’m 22 weeks! This morning at work I had someone call about a baby that had been born at 25 weeks. What?! How is that even possible. That would be like me having a baby 3 weeks from now! I can’t imagine how tiny that baby must have been. Like just a little over a pound. Nuts that they can save a babies life that tiny. Anyway, I feel so blessed to have this little guy growing healthy in there.

(pics are on facebook of these weeks, for some reason they won't let me upload them onto my blog)

A Belated birthday post

My birthday was on September 22nd and I wrote this post like three weeks after, I'm just a little slow posting it..

The night before my birthday, I came out to get something and Jered had put the cutest decal on my computer. It is from the book the Giving Tree, one of my favorite books from when I was little. I had seen it on Pinterest a couple of weeks ago and LOVED it. Jered is so good at listening to little things like that about stuff I want… he listens and remembers.
The morning of my birthday, I went out to my car to go to work and a CD was sitting in my car that said Happy Birthday boo
Highlights from my birthday:
Getting a present 3 weeks early. We went to the broadway version of Lion King in Vegas, it was amazing. I loved how they kept the whole thing simplistic and organic (for lack of a better word) and so creative. It surprised me the whole time.

-Getting the Giving Tree sticker for my computer the night before my birthday. I found it on Pinterest a few weeks ago and Jered sneakily remembered me liking it and ordered it online. I loved that book when I was a kid and I think it’s the cutest idea.
-Walking out to my car to go to work and finding a burned CD (brought me right back to highschool) with the words "Happy Birthday Boo" written on it and putting it in only to be delighted as I heard the first chords of the new Beatles album (yes I do love the Beatles)
-Coming into work to a bunch of happy birthdays from coworkers only to turn around and see balloons, a card and yummy cupcakes.
-Feeling even more grateful for my sweet coworkers when other ones came up and sang happy birthday and had made my favorite cookie treat and gotten me a cake!
-Eating at the Crabshack with Jered and his dad for lunch
-Going to my in-laws for a family party and seeing how much effort Jered had put into everything; flowers on the table, decorations, dinner (everyone helped with that) and this awesome Disney game he like created complete with a power point and Disney character assignments for everyone (yes.. I love Disney but no I won’t dress my baby or myself in their paraphernalia)
-Getting awesome presents from aunts, uncles cousins and brother and sister-in-laws.. thanks guys!
-Coming home to find a package from my family and getting a gift card to in-and-out and to Costco photography to have a canvas made of one of our wedding pictures (finally!)
-Going shopping with my mother-in-law and aunt for whatever I wanted for my present from her and finding tons of fun baby stuff.
-Phone calls from friends and family
It was just such a fun day and I felt so loved. I am so grateful for a husband who goes out of his way to let me know I’m loved. It means so much to me that he takes the time to do stuff that he thinks I’ll like. He’s just the best. I love that he does stuff that is out of the ordinary and doesn’t just get me “safe presents”, he gets me stuff he knows I’ll love… and he knows me too well. What a great day

Weeks 15-17

Baby Update:
Week 14 1/2:

This week has been a little rocky, not too bad though. I am definetly getting over the worst of the first trimester (not like my 1st was anything horrible). A few things about this week On Monday, we went to this little ultra sound place in costa mesa and got an ultra sound to find out the sex of the baby. We found out we are having a BOY. I have to say I was a little shocked. I didn’t fully realize til the next couple of days, but apparently I have always imagined myself having a girl first. I have thought about every part of motherhood as having a girl from the clothes to the little white blessing dress to the nursery to the toys, everything. Since I was young not just since I was married or found out I was pregnant. So, to find out I was having a boy, it wasn’t like it was devastating or anything, I am just realizing I have to change the way I’ve been thinking. So, for the past few days I have been doing things like looking up cute baby boy pictures on the internet and baby boy nurseries.. and they are adorable. The day we found out, I hadn’t really said anything to my or jered’s parents about it except that I was excited. That night when we went to bed, Jered asked me how I really felt. I was so glad he did because I was able to express how I had always imagined a girl and it wasn’t that I wasn't excited just to have any kind of a baby, but how I really am going to have to change my way of thinking about a baby from always being a girl to being a boy. He was so sweet. He reminded me that this isn’t just by chance that we got a boy first, that this little spirit comes from our Heavenly Father and that he wanted him here for a reason. He talked about what a privilege it will be to raise this spirit that will come down in the last days, a priesthood holder saved until the end. It really changed how I thought about things. Made me realize I had been thinking about it the wrong way. But, at the same time I was so grateful he took the time to ask me how I was really feeling about everything because I was able to sit and tell him what I was really thinking and that it was kind of hard for me because right now it isn’t a relationship I have with the baby, it is just a gender. So right now it’s hard that the gender isn’t a girl, but i have no doubt that by the time this sweet baby is born that I will be 100% over that and probably wont be able to imagine having a girl first. I am so grateful for a husband who is so in tune with the Spirit and with my and what I need. He always tells me just what I need to hear and he is 100% sincere. As my pregnancy progresses, it becomes more and more of a spiritual thing for me. I feel closer to the Lord knowing that one of his precious Spirits will soon be part of our family and that we are taking part in that creation. There are so many things I want to teach this little one. I want to study and pray and be as close to the Lord as I can so that I will be guided in my parenting. I don’t think it has ever been more important. I am so grateful that I was raised with a mother who helped me to understand the divine role of motherhood. That I understand the importance of being there for your children, and that raising them is more fulfilling than any career or monetary thing I could have. I am grateful that I am able to still do most of what I did before, that I am not so sick that it limits me from playing with Jered this last summer we have just the two of us. I feel very blessed.

Week 17:
Things in the world of pregnancy is going splendidly. I am so grateful that I have yet to get any of the particularly nasty symptoms I hear friends and fellow bloggers talking about. Things like terrible heart burn and bloody noses.
Things I've noticed this week:
-I am hungry.. always but I can’t eat a lot in one sitting
-Both fruits and vegetables now sound good thank goodness; makes my resolve to eat healthy a little easier. I am, however, always wanting a treat these days.
-I keep thinking I feel the baby kick but I’m not sure if I’m just psyching myself out or not. I don’t really know what it’s supposed to feel like
- Me and the bathroom are besties
- I am getting really excited about a boy. My mom came down to visit last week, the little sweetheart, and we went baby clothes shopping and bought some really cute things, my favorite being these little teddy bear newborn slippers. For some reason those little slippers won me over. They are so adorable and I cant wait to put them on little chubby feet.
- It is starting to feel uncomfortable to bend straight down to pick something up. Even though I’m sure it’s in my head, I feel like I’m squishing the poor babe.
- I feel like I’ve ages 15 years. Not much when I’m sitting working all day, but when I’m walking around all day
- My waist is no more. Rip..
- I have gained 3.5 pounds… not sure how to feel an entire body shape can change and only add 3.5 pounds to the bulk
- I find myself becoming a lot more aware of what I’m listening to and saying now that I know the babe can hear our voices. Jered likes to talk directly into my stomach… like when you give rasberries only he talks. The baby is going to thing his dad talks like Casey from the bachelor pad.. zing!

13 Weeks

Pregnancy these days is going great. I have some hard days sometimes (like yesterday.. I got home and couldn’t get off the couch and I had so much to do!) but for the most part my energy is back and as long as I eat.. constantly.. I feel pretty good. I am starting to get a serious belly. Forever I couldn’t tell if it was just my extra padding around the middle I’ve acquired over that past couple of years or if it’s really getting bigger. About two days ago when Jered couldn’t keep his eyes off my belly and was telling me how big it had gotten this week and after looking in the mirror and realizing I could no longer suck in the excess, I came to the conclusion it was starting to become an official "bump." I’m glad for that because after already being pregnant for 3 1/2 months without anyone being able to tell is getting old. I bought some really cute maternity clothes last week and I’m excited for them to start fitting better.

As far as symptoms I don’t really notice a whole lot.. I have been so lucky that way. I mean there is the nausea in the mornings, the exhaustion and the hunger pretty much throughout the day, and use the bathroom every 30 min, but other than that I feel very normal.

People are always asking me about cravings. I haven’t had any crazy ones yet. I’ll crave something and it will either taste delicious like I can’t get enough or I’ll get over it really quickly. Like yesterday I really wanted pizza but I didn’t want a WHOLE pizza. So I went to one of those part Taco Bell part Pizza Hut things for lunch and got a personal pan like I used to in elementary. I ate two little pieces and was done and felt sick for the next hour. No bueno. Healthy almost always sounds better (except late night ice cream) and fruit always sounds good. We went to the fair last week with Jered’s parents and his aunt and uncle and it was greesy food city. Baby wasn’t having it. The only thing that really tasted good to me was a berry milkshake.

Yesterday, we went to our 3^rd check up with the OB. We are going to Dr. Akerman who we both really like. He is Columbiano and super funny. I like that he keeps everything light and talks to both of us instead of just me. Both times we him, we had ultra sounds but the awkward up in there kind that required me to undress from the waste down. I’ll tell you it’s pretty awkward meeting a doctor for the first time with nothing more than a sheet over your privies. So we did that the first two visits and then yesterday we saw his nurse practitioner Debbie. I really liked her too. Had more of a mom approach and I felt more like she had been there but she didn’t involve Jered as much. So pros and cons of both. Yesterday though, for the first time, we were able to hear the heart beat just through my tummy. It was soo cool. The babies heart beat was about 160 beats per minutes which if you believe that old wives tale means there’s a good chance it’s a girl! (good thing because both my mom and I have already bought girl clothes.. ha.) One thing that surprised me was that she said for my height I should only gain about 20 pounds. That’s not very much! So far, I have gained 0 pounds which is the worlds biggest mystery. I have increased at least one cup size and my stomach as previously established is definitely bigger, plus I eat constantly. How is it that I have not gained so much as a pound? Jered is ticked about the whole thing.. ha. He thinks it’s ridiculous that I eat whenever and whatever I want with no consequences.

I am SOO excited to start feeling the baby move. I think that will really make this whole thing start to feel more real. I get more excited every day and can’t wait to find out the sex to I can start going crazy and also learn how to sew. (with no previous experience I plan to make at the least a baby blanket and a mobile with adorable birds on it.. wish me luck) For now, February seems like forever but I’m sure it’s going to start flying by!

These are a few of my favorite Summer things

Riding Bikes to the beach!

Seeing Dierks Bentley at the Angels game! 

Trip to Lake Mead!

A few weeks ago, we headed down to Lake Mead with some of
our friends for the weekend.  It was a lot of driving and quite the
adventure but way fun none-the-less.  The kids we went with
are a good time.

Four of the 6 boys (and two girls) who went

Some other friends from BYU we met up with, they had like
15 people on that one boat for 3 days straight

  

The name of the boat.. very fitting

 

The twins being born!

                                Jered took these for a baby shower invitation.. they are precious!

                                                                 Such a cute family

Going to the Farmers Market

Going to the Orange County Fair!

                                Lori my aunt and Lynda and Grant my mother and father in law stuffing        
                                themselves full of yummy fair food.. they are the people to go to the fair with
                                when it comes to trying any food you've ever wanted to

                                             The Peeking Acrobats.. one of my favorites

                                We saw Bill Cosby.. such a funny man.  I LOVED seeing him live.

Some of our Summer ticket stubs

Big Brother

Going to Utah (see previous post)

Pageant of the Masters

                                          One of the most amazing things I've seen!

And so many other wonderful things I don't have pictures of like staying in a goreous beach house in Ventura with the Robinson, going to the Huntington Beach Festival, the swap meet, staying in a hotel in Costa Mesa just for fun, Wild Rivers, having my parents come to play and going to Griffith Park Observatory and Santa Monica Pier and I'm sure other things I forgot.  Sumer 2011... you have been good to us! 

Pregnant!!!!!!!!!!!

I wrote this post on June 5, the night we found out we were pregnant at like 1:00 am.  I'm glad that I wrote this because it was exactly how I was feeling when I found out.  I know this is pretty lengthy but I am going to try to keep a pretty consistent pregnancy journal on here so this is mostly for posterity...

Ok.. so, I'm feeling a little sureal right now.  I don't even really know how to explain how I feel.I guess i should explain why i'm feeling this way.  Back in February, I went off birth control.  Jered and i had talked about it and we had decided we were ready to start trying to get pregnant.  The thing was, I had been wanting to try for already like 5 months but that was what we compromised on.  So I was all gung ho once I went off birth control and was thinking I would get pregnant hopefully in the next two months.  Two months came and went and no baby.  And I was reading into it WAY more than I should have been but after those two month I was still ok.  But when April came and went and it was still no dice, I was started to freak out a bit.  I was frustrated by trying to figure out my ovulation and felt like I was doing everything right so what was the problem.  In May, I bought the little ovulation tester thingys to take out some of the guess work but they looked the same to me every day.  So we did our best but I was starting to be resigned to the fact that this was going to take a lot longer than I originally thought.  Anyway, last week, I started counting down to the days until my period.  This week, I knew I was supposed to start on Thursday or Friday and I was going to try to wait until I officially missed my period but by Wednesday I was so antsy I took the test anyway.  I just wanted to know if I wasn't pregnant so I could start accepting the fact that it wouldn't be this month so I could stop worrying about it.  The test was negative.  It was what I had expected, but I was still sad.  Jered was really sweet and when I came home he had bought me flowers and cleaned up and hugged me and told me he was sorry and that we would try next month.  Alright I thought, then let me just start my period already.  Thursday came and went and nothing.  By the end of the day, my co-worker convinced me to take one of the fancy doctor tests just to make sure and sure enough, it says negative right away.  Well, Friday came and went and still nothing.  Saturday too.. then, Saturday night about 10 oclock, after still nothing, I decided I would take my last pregnancy test just to make triple sure (I know, I'm a nut case) The test was one of those really cheapy ones that barely shows up the negative line let alone the positive.  I took it and one line showed up right away.  "That's it" I thought.  No more tests, just wait until you start!! Well, as I walked out of the bathroom, I saw the faintest glimpse of a crossing pink line over the negative one (if you're preggo, it makes a plus, if not just one straight line) I looked at it again thinking it must be the lighting and had Jered come look at it.  Does that look like a line?  I asked.  I think so, he said unsure.  We let it sit another minute and looked again. yeah, he said, that's definitely a line.  I don't believe it, I said doubtfully. Should we buy another one just to make sure?  Yeah.. he said, lets buy another one. We walked out to our car in silence, both a little unsure of what was going on.  Hadn't I already done this twice and it had said no?  What was going on.  This is the LAST thing I was expecting.  We bought the really expensive test that digitally flashes pregnant or not pregnant and I went into the bathroom telling myself the whole time not to get my hopes up it was probably a mistake and that I was never going to buy a cheapy pregnancy test again. Well, I took the test with baited breath.. watched as the little moniter blinked a hour glass, and screamed when it flashed pregnant.  There was no denying it.  This was the real thing.
Now, as I sit here, I feel different than I thought I would.  I feel so calm, and not even super excited or happy.  Just calm.  I think it's because i'm still waiting for someone to yell april fools or to take another test that says negative. i am 2 and 2.  I was looking up stuff about the first trimester tonight and it seemed like i was just doing it for some day when I would be pregnant.  Weird.  I don't think it will really sink in until i hear the babies heart beat for the first time. For now, I have felt 0 symptoms.  I'm not sure how to take that.  But for now, I just feel an enormous amount of relief and a little but of shock.  I am so grateful that I didn't have to wait a year like I thought I might.
More to come. .

                                 Pretty sunflowers my boo bought before we knew..

                                 Gotta show the pee stick right?  All part of the pregnancy post!

An Eventful Trip to Utah

I haven't had my SD card for my camera for about a month now due to leaving it in Utah, but there has been much happening in the Robinson home.. as Jered said to me earlier today.. "We've been partying hard"

On the 11th, we flew into Utah avoiding the normal pesky 12 hour drive and left immediately for Moab.  We got there Saturday night and stayed until Wednesday.  It was such a fun trip, one last hurrah before three of the five kids went to opposite ends of the country and world; us to California, Tay and Ash to Nebraska, and Cam to the Philippines.  

 

This was our cutest little bedroom we stayed in.  The whole condo was adorable and I think we were like the second family to ever stay there.  It was brand new.  

My parents about killed us with all the activities planned.  For starters, it was pushing one hundy outside and Saturday night we hiked some of the arches, i think they are called the two windows.  It was gorgeous but just the beginning of my realization of how our of shape I am!

I LOVE these profile pics I took of my family.  I think it represents everyone so well.  We stayed on those arches until really late, all of us playing with our cameras and chatting about life. It was such a fun night. 

Sunday night, we hiked delicate arch which is always beautiful. The definite highlight of the night was Tay and Ash taking a picture in the middle of the arch kissing when the people on the other side starting hooting and clapping only to have Tay get on one knee and fake propose to Ash.  It was classic.  They were the talk of the look out.  Everyone totally bought it and were asking Ash to see her ring and stuff.  Leave it to Tay 

Monday morning, we rented mountain bikes for all of us.. but these weren’t just any mountain bikes.  They were like the $5,000 mountain bikes that felt like you were sitting on a mini trampoline because of all the suspension goin on.  They were ridicules.  You could go straight up a mountain covered with boulders with those things and it felt like you were on a paved road.  So many times I would see what I was about to go up or down and think..

“Well, it was good while it lasted, I’m a gonner.” And close my eyes and go up or down whatever tretchery there was at the moment and that dang bike would ALWAYS get through it!

   We are serious about biking

The first night, we did some smaller trails just to get a feel for what the bikes were like and then Tuesday after playing in the river, we went to dead horse point and did an amazing trail.  It was so hard and so terrifying and scary but at the same time the scenery was so incredible and it was so fun to be able to do something hard core like that as a family.  I really loved it.  The trail had the perfect variety and was the perfect length, any longer and I think I might have cried a little bit. 

The days are kind of getting jumbled together but I think that night we went to a little community pool.  Good times were had by all and then packed up and left Wednesday morning but not before a three hour journey into the fiery furness.  That place was nuts.  We wound down through the deepest parts of Moab and saw gorgeous slot canyons and learned all about formations for Ranger Dave.  It was a really unique thing that I think you could only experience with a guide because that place is like a maze.  It was a great end to an exhausting but blast of a trip.  

***

 The rest of the week was spent getting ready for the Gould-Hawkins wedding.  We went to a shower for Ash, went to the temple with her when she received her endowments, met the Gould family and did all the last minute running around for the wedding. 

Tay and Ash's actual wedding day went so smoothly. My mom and Ash were extremely organized and had everything ready to go so it made for easy set up.  The sealing was beautiful, they day was gorgeous, and Tay and Ash looked so great.  The luncheon went off without a hitch and the only tricky thing about the reception (besides walking in four inch wedges) was that the weather started to look very threateningly like rain.  I was soo worried about it but no one else seemed to be and for good reason; we didn't get so much as a drop.  

It was fun to see so many people there I hadn't seen in ages and Tay and Ash seemed to genuinely enjoy themselves; a mark of a great night.  For me, the highlight of that night was definitely watching my dear husband dance his little fanny off with a fellow home ward member in her late 50s to a Michael Jackson song (i can't remember which one) that lasted about 8 minutes. That woman was loving life and everyone made a circle around them and bless his heart, Jered danced with her until the last note was played.  It was hilarious.  I wish I would have filmed it because it's something  you have to see to know how funny it was. 

 The picture quality is horrible but i had to kipe these from my mom's blog because I forgot to take pictures that day

***

The next morning, we woke bright and early to get ready for, you guessed it.. Cam's farewell!  The poor kid had to write a talk in the mist of all our chaos and he did wonderfully.  The talk was just so him. He is such a good kid.  He reported July 7th and it has been so fun getting his emails these past two weeks.  He will be a blessing for the Philippines and to his mission president I'm sure.  

Girls.. he's single and totally open to you writing him