Happy Birthday, Mom!

It's embarassing...I've almost been gone a month. I'll try to do better! Anyway, my Mom celebrated her 70th birthday on Saturday! We had a big birthday tea party for her with her closest friends and 3 of her sisters from Iowa flew out to surprise her! We had such a fun time pulling a fast one on my mom. I took off from work on Friday and was there to help my sisters (who did pretty much all of the planning) with the decorating and last minute stuff! My dad took my mom away Friday night and my sisters and I went to pick up my aunts from the airport. Saturday morning when my mom arrived to her party, who was sitting at the table?...her sisters! It was so much fun!

Me with my 3 sisters and my 3 aunts

Jen, Jill, Mom, Julie, Jani

So, in the above picture, you see my mom and you might be saying...there's no way she's 70! I agree! I think my mom looks so great! I think she needs to be in one of those articles like 50 is the new 30, well 70 is the new 50! I am so thankful for my mom and that I get to talk to her everyday! She is truly the greatest mom in the world and everyday I thank God for her!

Onto some baby updates...I believe I felt movement this past weekend! It has to be it because I've felt it a few times and even if it's not it, I think it is and I guess that's what matters! Also, today was the first day someone asked me if I was expecting! One of my students' parents asked. I definitely know that I'm starting to show but I still don't think it's obvious enough to be questioned...what if I was just putting on a little extra holiday weight? Anyway, I guess it kind of confirmed that the bump is not just something those who know see anymore!

Day Off

In honor of Veteran's Day, I had the day off today. My poor husband had to go into work but I got to stay home! It was a FABULOUS day! I stayed in my pajamas until 1:30 when I finally decided to shower, I scrapbooked like crazy (I'm SO far behind), I watched shows like 90210 and One Tree Hill, and just throughly enjoyed my day off! I love these "bonus" days. Saturdays are nice but it's typically laundry day and cleaning day around the house...on a day like today, that's done and I can just do whatever I want! This weekend was a nice one too. We went to Redlands Sunday to celebrate my sister, Jill's, birthday and had a fun time hanging out with family. I tell you...it's crazy when my family is together with all those kiddos. Fun, but crazy! When everyone leaves, Eric and I sit there with my parents and just kind of soak in the silence! We love them all and LOVE seeing them grow but it's a bit of chaos when we're all together!

Exhaustion

I'm wondering when this "tired phase" of pregnancy is supposed to be over. I mean, I realize it probably never really ends but I feel like I can't function some days because I'm so tired. I've heard it's supposed to get better in the second trimester but I've arrived there and it's no different! Anyway, that's my excuse also for not having written in so long. My spare time is always spent lying on the couch these days! The past week has been a good one. I went to Palm Springs with Kelly last Saturday night and we had such a fun time getting away. It was her first night away from Cameron and she did such a great job! She seemed to thoroughly enjoy herself and I was happy about that! We ate yummy food, layed out, painted our toes, and of course, went to bed early! Oh, let's not forget about shopping too! She took pictures and there on her blog if you care to see them! Friday night, Eric and I went to our friends' Keith and Carmen so Eric could help move their bedroom furniture into their remodeled room. After dinner, they did the big move and then we stayed and played dominos! I laugh at this because Eric and I always play dominos with my parents when we're in Redlands and here we are, 2 young couples enjoying some Mexican Train! We played way too late and were all sleepy and silly by the time we finished but had a great time. We are so thankful for the wonderful couple friendship we have with Keith and Carmen! I always hoped when I got married we would have that couple friendship where both sets really get along and we have it with them! Carmen is pregnant also and due 6 weeks before me so I'm sure we're in for many more fun times together! Anyway, that's the latest with me. I'll try not to wait so long before I post again! Oh...I do want to show off a little bit! For Halloween, my oldest niece, Anneke, and 3 oldest nephews, Billy, Grant and Nate, were Dorothy, Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow. The 3 younger kiddos, Luke, Alyssa, and Maria, were ladybugs and a bumblebee. Kaitlin was adorable as Nemo but I haven't gotten a picture of her yet...I'll post it when I get it!

Nate, Billy, Anneke, Grant

Alyssa, Luke, Maria

Latest Happenings

This past weekend was a fun one. Grant and Anneke (our nephew and niece) came over Friday night and we had a great slumber party! We went to a pizza parlor and won some "awesome" prizes, got candy and watched Aladdin on Friday night and then on Saturday we went to this random place in Costa Mesa. I found it on the Internet and the third weekend of the month, this place runs their miniature trains and you get to ride them for free. The kids loved it and it was really a fun time.

Last, but not least, on the 12th Eric and I took the day off and we had our first ultrasound! It was so fun to see our little baby...it looks like a peanut but it's beautiful to us! My dad's comment upon seeing the picture was, "that's it?" I said..."Yes, Dad, but isn't it beautiful!" It was finally proof of life! The ultrasound lady was on my stomach FOREVER before we finally got to look at the baby. She was trying to get it to move so I laughed and sure enough, it waved it's arm and leg! It was a very fun day. We then went down to Laguna and had lunch and walked around before heading home so I could nap, what else!

Happy Anniversary!

Today marks 2 years that I've been married to the love of my life! I love being married to Eric and getting to share in day to day life with him. He is such a wonderful, thoughtful, hilarious and generous husband and every day I'm thankful I get to come home to him! We went to BJ's for dinner tonight and were sorely disappointed. It was one of those nights where service was really bad and they forgot to put our name in when they gave us the pager so we sat and waited way too long. Our waitress was a disaster and my pizza was cold! To give it a Kelly rating, probably only a 4! However, we didn't let it spoil what we were celebrating. What's even more exciting about this anniversary is that it's our last one as just us 2! Around May 12, we're going to become parents!! Yes...I'm PREGNANT!!!! We are so excited and we can hardly believe it sometimes! I'll put pictures up soon of our ultrasound which we have on Friday. So, I'm technically in my 10th week and feeling ok for the most part. I've had my share of trips to the bathroom but I really can't complain too much! We've had fun telling our families and friends. We even made a little poem for Eric to put in the teacher's lounge and let all of them know!

Telling Eric's Family

Telling my family

Eric's Poem at school

10 Years!

Last night was my 10 year reunion. It was a fun time and it was so great to see people I actually haven't seen in 10 years. Some people have changed a lot and some not so much! We had the reunion at the Mission Inn in Riverside and it was such a beautiful spot. Eric got to hang out with Chris and seemed to enjoy himself as well! My graduating class was VERY small, only like 50 people and I think we had about half show up which wasn't bad!

The Class of 1997

Wednesdays

I always find myself happy that it's Wednesday--half way through the work week. In Kindergarten we do the calendar everyday and when we together figure out that tomorrow is Thursday, I think, "That's not so bad...I'm almost to the weekend!" Is that bad? Today is an especially exciting Wednesday as it's the finale of Top Chef! I LOVE that show! Last night we went to WoodRanch with our good friends Keith and Carmen. I know, I should have taken a picture. Carmen was the first person I really bonded with when I became a part of Eric's world. I'm so thankful for her friendship and they are totally the kind of couple you can just hang out with! In upcoming news...it is our anniversary on Monday...2 years! We're going to take off work the following Friday to celebrate so I'll be sure to take some pictures. OK...off to read my new book for my book club--"Five Quarters of the Orange", I'll let you know how I like it!

Fall

I love the fall! I think my love with the season started when I was in Boston in the fall and it was absolutely beautiful there! My anniversary is also in fall and that may add to it too! I love that it is cooler out (I know, I'll be wishing for summer come January). I love wearing sweatshirts and jeans again and I really love the smell of fall...the pumpkin spice! I also enjoy decorating the house a bit, I bring out my fall tablecloth and candles to enjoy! And yes, of course there is football! Eric absolutely loves this time of year. We laugh because it's a bitter-sweet time of year for us as teachers...school begins but college football does also! For those of you that don't know, Eric is a HUGE USC football fan. No, he did not attend there but he has loved it for years. He goes to a couple games a year and I usually go to one. They are fun and I love the atmosphere...tailgating before hand, eating "football" food, hearing the band play, and the game...I actually do like to watch a football game here and there, especially when they're exciting! My complaint about USC football is that all the games I go to, USC seems to cream the other team (not the case tonight however, as I watch, it's pretty close!) Anyway, last weekend was my weekend to go to the game. The game was at 5 and I'm accustomed to going early to tailgate and even if it's earlier then I like, I hold my tongue. It's once a year! SO, guess what time we left on Saturday!! 10:40! YES, in the morning! Eric even said it was too early for him but I just laughed at how crazy they all were and went! It was fun and I took my usual pre-game nap in my chair! We had a little rain while tailgating and Eric got pretty wet trying to save our food and it rained a little more during the game but all in all, it was a fun night!

Eric...just a little wet!

Hand Slapped

So, I have officially gotten my hand slapped by Kelly for not writing more. She said it's an unofficial rule you have to post at least twice a week! I don't think I can promise that, Kelly, but I'll try to be better! Truthfully, there's not much going on. Tomorrow is Friday and for that I'm thankful! I think I've been dreaming of Saturday morning since I woke up Tuesday! I can't wait to sleep in. My routine lately has been: leave school, drive home, eat a snack, lay on the couch and nap as "Murder, She Wrote" is on tv! It's awesome! Eric is coaching JV flag football so he doesn't make it home until about 5:30 so I use that time to "rest"! Yesterday was his first game and it was kind of funny to see these Junior High boys running around. They got beat pretty bad but they had one good touch down! Better luck next time! Also, on Monday it was my sister, Jani's, birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! OK...not much else but at least it's something new! We're going to the USC game on Saturday so I'll try to have some pictures to post.

Happy Birthday, Jani!

Nintendo

When I met Eric, he had an "old school" nintendo! We still have it but we hadn't played it in forever and actually thought it didn't work until we decided to try it this summer. After much blowing, hitting, blowing some more and hitting reset a bunch of times, we got it going again. It's usually a process to get a game to play but it's always worth the work! My favorite game is Super Mario 3, we have 1 & 2 but they just aren't as great. Just before school started again, we were at our neighbors and noticed they too have nintendo...AND Super Mario 3! We borrowed it and I've been obsessed ever since. I seriously play every chance I get! I've never beat Super Mario 3...it's now something I must do! Tonight Eric was gone and I think I just got done playing it for about 1 1/2 hours! My fingers are sore. I got the furthest I have ever been though, I think I met the final guy. Anyway, it's pathetic and I know it but it is SO fun! I'm sure many of you feel the same way!

This weekend was a really fun one! Kristen was out from Seattle and I got to spend Saturday night and Sunday with her! It was so great to catch up and spend time with each other face to face! I'm thankful for the phone but it just isn't always the same! We also enjoyed two great meals, In and Out and Taco Surf! They were highlights for both of us! This weekend, we also had our niece Kaitlin for Saturday and Sunday night! She's just turned one and is so much fun! We had a great time playing house! Today was back to reality but I have to report things are getting better. They get trained daily and I'm sure each day will be better than the next!

Blogging

So, there's so much I don't know about this...like how do you post your friends' blog sites? I thought I did it but then it didn't work. Maybe Kristen will help me this weekend...yes when I get to see her in a VERY short while! I also think it's fun to play with the back grounds. How do you choose your own lovely background on the top? Sometimes I feel computer savvy but not so much with this whole blogging thing. Anyway, I think I just wanted to post something on this new background. I think I like it better. I heard some exciting news today...my class size is going down from 34 to 30!! I seriously couldn't wipe the smile off my face when she said that! This first week of school has been a rough one. A) they don't know what they're doing, b) the majority don't speak English, c) they don't know what they're doing, d) I have a handful of FOUR year olds, e) did I mention they don't know what they're doing? Seriously, I have a few that don't even respond to their names! YIKES! It's going to be an interesting year but it can only get better from here! I just can't wait until they actually know what's going on and actually "stop and freeze" when I ring the bell. I had another teacher tell me today that she and another teacher were watching me try and get them to do that after recess the other day and they were totally laughing at the lack of response from my children as I'm trying to get them to "stop and freeze!" Sometimes, I like to compare Kindergarten to prison. They have their playtime, we ring a bell, they freeze, they come in and that's their life. I was watching one of those lock down shows on Discovery and totally thought that! We have the fence and everything! OK...that's enough for now! Lets just hope none of my students' parents ever see my blog!

A first...

So, I've decided to start a blog...why? I'm not sure other than I spy on everyone else's life so maybe they should get to spy on mine! I really don't feel my life is that exciting but I will try to share some stories that might be interesting! Because school has officially started, I'll back up a little and tell you about our summer. Eric and I were gone quite a bit...too much almost! We went to Europe for 2 1/2 weeks and then we went to Colorado with some friends for a week and then met up with my sister and her kids for a few days on our way back. When we were with them, we went white water rafting, saw Mesa Verde National Park, 4 corners, and the Grand Canyon. So, here are some pictures!