Pregnancy Brain

Back in November we decided to invest in a larger capacity vehicle to accommodate our growing family. Since I swore I would NEVER drive a minivan, we named said vehicle "Magic" and prefer that others who are not on a first name basis with the vehicle refer to it as 'car' rather than 'van' or 'minivan.' All of these details are beside the point, because this is what happened. I had just spent an hour in the grocery store with both of my kids at the end of the day, which means they were about sick of 'being good' and I was about out of patience. We got home and I turned the car off, only I couldn't get the key out. This had never happened to me before. I checked to make sure my head lights were off and the doors were unlocked. Still the keys would not come out of the ignition. By now my kids were unbuckled and ready to get out. Daisy asked me to open the doors and when I pushed the button to open them, nothing happened. I asked her to try to open them manually. The warning alarm began to sound. Now we are in the dark with the warning alarm going off and we can't get out of the car. So...I took a deep breath in order to try to remain calm and got the owner's manual out of the glove compartment. What should I look up? "Stuck in car with two kids and loud alarm?" I started with 'controls.' I found that my vehicle has a handy dandy security system wherein if the key is not recognized the entire system shuts down to prevent theft. Well I wasn't trying to steal Magic, I was trying to get out of her. I was certain that the electrical system had malfunctioned (just my luck) and I would have to call a dealer (no, there are no Honda dealers in my village) to get out of my car. I kept reading to see if there were any further instructions, like: "If you are not trying to steal the vehicle and you can't get out, just push the brake three times and turn on the left blinker to remove the keys." Unfortunately I didn't find any such instructions. By now my children are bouncing of the ceiling and the seats and, oh yes, the alarm is still sounding. I started pushing buttons hoping something would release my keys to me. Then suddenly, it was right before my eyes. I realized exactly what the problem was. As it came to me I closed my eyes and said to myself, "Just blame it on pregnancy brain, you are not going crazy." Then I opened my eyes, calmly moved the gear shift from the 'drive' position to the 'park' position, removed my keys, opened the doors, and entered my house. Simple as that. It occurred to me that it really is a nice feature not to release your keys to you or let you out of the car when it is still in drive. The design engineers at Honda that thought of that one must not have pregnancy brain.

Seventh Heaven

We just celebrated our 7th Anniversary! I met Jeff at college and after he took me horseback riding (it wasn't even a real date) I was in love. I couldn't get enough of him and the amazing thing is that after seven years together I feel even more that way!

We have so much fun together. This is us in Zion in November. We are very best friends and companions. Jeff is the most patient, empathetic man I have ever met. The longer I am with him the more I admire about him. He inspires me to be a better person.

This is us in Arches celebrating our 6th Anniversary last year. Unfortunately we had to forego any plans this year since we were all sick! Thankfully, we are all feeling better now. I can't wait to see what the next seven years brings.

Home Improvements

I've been pondering about some specific goals I want to set for the year. I want to end 2009 a better person than when I started. I want my goals to be specific, challenging, and measurable. When I came across this quote from Julie B. Beck in this month's visiting teaching message, I knew it outlined exactly what I want the end result to be and would provide the framework for my 2009 goals. I remember hearing this talk when she gave it, but I was so grateful to have it right now.

"Latter-day Saint women must be strong and immovable in their faith. They can and should excel in living and sharing their testimonies of the Lord Jesus Christ and His restored gospel. We do this as we:
1. Make and keep covenants with Him.
2. Are worthy and worship in His temples.
3. Study His doctrine in the scriptures and the words of prophets.
4. Qualify for, recognize, and follow the Holy Ghost.
5. Share and defend His gospel.
6. Participate in sincere personal and family prayer.
7. Have family home evening.
8. Live principles of self-reliance and provident living.
These are essential things which must be done before nonessential things. No one can do these things for us - these are personal practices and habits."
("What Latter-day Saint Women Do Best: Stand Strong and Immovable," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 109-10).

I think every single thing I want to work on can be categorized under one of the topics she listed. Now I've just got to get to work!

Moments to Remember Photography

One of my oldest, most adorable, super creative, and beautiful friends in the entire world is a photographer. Check out her website at http://momentstorememberphotography.blogspot.com and leave a comment to win a FREE photoshoot. She is so talented; you will love her stuff.

First Day of School!

Jeff has survived his first day of school! He likes his classes and professors, and felt more comfortable than he anticipated on campus, but he's wondering if he started out with a load that's a little too heavy. Now it's study, study, study! We all laughed when he walked in the door and Daisy said, "Hi school boy!"

While daddy was off braving the halls of higher education the rest of us were home taking unfortunate turns in the bathroom. We have all been sick! Levi started throwing up Saturday night. It was around 1:00 in the morning Monday when I was cleaning up another disaster from him that I started throwing up. Now it's Daisy's turn. We are just praying that Jeff doesn't get it.

We had another ultrasound last week. Everything looks great. And no, we don't know what we are having. We haven't found out with any of our kids...being surprised is way too much fun. I was all excited to post the video but the stubborn kid wouldn't roll over and give us a good show, so I filed the disc instead. I finally gave in and dug the 'maternity clothes' box out of storage. Now Daisy says, "Mom, when are you going to wear those baby pants?" She can't understand why I'm not as excited as she is about maternity fashion (or lack thereof.)