Monday To-Do List

I feel that I've had somewhat of "pregnancy brain" lately and I've been forgetful. So, last night I made myself a to-do list of important things I needed to get done today. 1) Call Comcast and figure out e-mail 2) Pay rent 3) Go to my bank appointment 4) Fix inseam on maternity jeans 5) Take pregnancy pictures The day had been going really well. I woke up at 7:45 am with my husband to eat breakfast. Once he left for work at 8, I went back to bed and took a morning nap. Then, when I woke up again I got right to work. I fixed things with Comcast, walked my rent check down to the office, and then I proceeded to walk down and across the street to the bank. As I walked out of my apartment complex, a woman in a car pulled up alongside of me. She rolled down her window and asked me if I'd ever read this magazine before (as she handed me an "Awake" pamphlet). It's really not the Johava's Witnesses that bother me here. I'm all about sharing your religion and discussing beliefs. It was the front cover. The title of the issue was "Abortion: What's the Issue Here?"  The rest of my walk was spent on brainstorming which angle to take in writing about this and I can honestly say I'm speechless! I mean, do I look like a person who is even considering abortion?! I'm okay with a stranger wanting to share their message on religion, but why not hand me a pamphlet, "Drinking: What are the Dangers?" or "Chat Rooms: What Should I Know About Them?" All I can say is, I've never been a victim of real-life irony. Giving an abortion pamphlet to a pregnant woman...I think that's irony? Whatever you call it, I'm laughing to myself now because I'm so excited to have a baby, I'm almost to the third trimester.  As far as my to-do list goes, I finished my inseams when I got home and I took a few pregnancy photos. So, this is me around 24 weeks! There's a baby the size of an eggplant in my belly!

Post Recall

Okay, so my sister informed me that my last post might have been a little harsh. Let's just chalk that one up to hormones. I guess the one stranger guy who gave me 20 minutes of advice just rubbed me the wrong way. I really do appreciate advice! I just don't want to be scared going into parenthood. So, keep the advice coming, but keep it mostly upbeat and positive!

I found this widget online through a link from a parenting site. It shows you how big the baby is at certain weeks (see to the right.) For me, it's far more exciting this way because I can visualize how big she is and what shape of fruit she is this week (haha, just kidding! Hopefully she's always in the shape of a baby, but I can still get and idea of what size she is.)

The last I was able to read was about at the 10 week mark when she was the size of a cashew. (My favorite type of nut!) My little cashew baby is growing so fast! I can feel her kicking and moving around a ton...especially at night.

I love her and can't wait to meet her!

Also, I'm now excepting ideas or suggestions of favorite girl names. We have a few picked out, but I'm craving more!

Lego' My Prego'

I didn't think it would happen to me, but it did. I was folding clothing at work when a stranger walked up and proceeded to ask me about the various Levi's we had on stock. I politely engaged in some conversation on the difference between "recreational" jeans and the more professional looking jeans-the ones you can wear to work with a nice blazer or suit jacket.

Little did I know, it was just this gentleman's way of starting a conversation in which it continued with one minute of him discretely finding out that I am pregnant and then 20 minutes of him giving me advice. (It's the hardest thing you'll ever do; don't think it's easy; you think one is hard, try having 4; go swimming a lot, maybe even buy a tube and fall asleep in the pool as long as your husband is watching that you don't drown; etc.) I smiled for the first 5 minutes, spent the next 5 hoping my supervisors weren't watching, then prayed for 5 minutes that I wouldn't lose my job over this guy, and the last 5 minutes finding the right exit strategy.

Finally, one of my supervisors did come to my rescue. The man said his parting goodbyes, brought up the jeans again, and then left.

I don't mind pregnant advice from strangers...if: (A) it comes from a woman; (B) it can be summed up in two or less sentences; (C) it's not about how hard it's going to be; and (D) they don't assume that I don't know anything about babies or children. For example, a woman who came through my line a couple days ago with her one year old gave me the good advice to drink a lot of fluids, maybe cranberry juice and definitely water. Simple, polite, woman to woman advice.

The only two significant things I can relay to others about advice giving are keep it simple and it's better and much more appreciated when it's asked for. Think of it like a new sport. I'm an athlete and there's nothing worse than trying something new, and someone coaching you from every angle. Before you can even try it out or try to get good at it, someone's telling you how to hold your hands, correcting your posture, it's all in the hips, follow through, etc., etc. It makes you hate the sport!

I'm going to hate parenting before I'm ever a parent if there's too much advice coming from all angles. Let me try to be a mom first! If I have questions along the way, I'm going to ask my family and family-in-laws, aunts, doctor, close friends, and my husband. I got lucky marrying a guy who's the third of eight kids, having a father who is the fifth of ten children, and having a mother of 5 kids who also did daycare and teaching.

I don't mean to be rude, but I've got plenty of amazing sources for advice. And, who knows, maybe you strangers out there know how to do the parenting thing like a pro. In which case, I fully support you in writing a book, blogging it, or twittering daily tweets all about it!

Latest Updates

They decided to keep me on at Costco! I'm excited, but also questioned myself on whether they are keeping me because I'm expecting and they feel bad, or if it's because I'm a genuinely hard worker and good employee? Hopefully it's the latter. So, I'll keep up shop there for the next 3 months or as long as I can before my feet and legs start to swell, my stomach gets in the way of carts and members, or I'm so tired I can't make it through my 4 hour shifts. I will also add that I've been extremely bored and have gotten several cases of cabin fever sitting in my apartment all week. (Which is why I am even more excited to start part-time this next week.) How have I kept myself busy? (A) I've watched and almost finished every Mary-Kate and Ashley movie-to-home-videos there are on Netflix; (B) I've searched the world wide web for available early morning jobs hiring for part-time work; (C) I've alphabetized the spice rack; (D) I've stalked 50% of my friends on Facebook (in detail) and caught up on their lives; (E) and I finished a baby quilt! Let me rephrase that, I finished sewing the top part and now all I have to do is quilt the backing, the batting, and the top together. Stay tuned for a picture of the finished product! Having so much free time is bound to help me find new outlets, new hobbies, and unfinished projects dying for a chance to become a masterpiece.

It's a Girl!

Pregnancy is an interesting thing. Half the time, the women who are pregnant will tell you they don't want to be pregnant, that they just want the baby to come already, they're tired of feeling like a blimp, and all the extra hormones, cravings, sickness, and weight in new places can all take a hike. But, on top of that, they have the added "oooh's" and "ahhhh's" of adoring strangers. I have the most adorable sister-in-law who has two very cute boys of her own (2 years and a 5 month-old) who has told me some of her pregnancy stories. The most shocking, yet the most common that I've heard from her and others is when strangers approach a pregnant belly and proceed to rub and baby talk directly to the bloated area. It's one thing for friends and family to feel, but a complete stranger? Maybe my feelings on the subject are different than others'; but, if a stranger walks up to me and begins to feel my belly, give me unsolicited advice about parenting and breastfeeding, or ask when my baby is due without knowing me, I might just give them a disgusted look and say something like, "Excuse me? That is extremely rude. I'm not pregnant. I happen to have a rare case of IBS that makes my stomach bloat." It would be fun to see their reactions. But, for all those who haven't heard or whom I have yet the chance to tell, my husband and I ARE expecting a baby in late spring (90% sure of which it's a girl)! So, don't feel bad if you've seen me lately and wondered, maybe even had to ask yourself, "Wow, she's really let herself go since she got married. I wonder if that's holiday weight?" We are very excited!

Adventures at Costco

I recently got hired on as a seasonal worker at the Parker Costco warehouse. The job is great, it's low stress, the other workers are fun and friendly, and all in all it's a good place to work. I would really like to be held on as a permanent employee, so we'll see at the end of my "try out" in three weeks.

Everyone should try working at Costco at least once in their lifetime. The greatest thing about working there is the free samples. Of course the free samples are great even if you're just a member, but because I am there a couple days out of the week, I get free samples on lunch breaks, 15 minute breaks, and in between running from the front end to the back end on member requests.

I think my chances of staying on are pretty good, though I see some cons to every pro that supports managment's decision to keep me on the core staff.

1) Pro: Management likes my good attitude, how I smile a lot, and my personality.

Con: For the first week, management thought my name was "McKenzie".

2) Pro: Management asked me to extend my 4 hour shift to an 8 hour shift last week.

Neutral: They also asked the rest of staff if they would extend their shifts (later I found because two guys from corporate were coming to check things out at our store.)

3) Pro: Management has been putting me in a lot of different positions (front end assistant, door checker, self-checkout helper, go-backs, etc.) and teaching me a lot of new things.

Con: The other 75% of the time they don't know where to put me, so they send me to clothing to fold for the rest of the 6 hours.

The bottom line is, I actually really enjoy this job. Whether or not they keep me on, it's been a great experience. It makes for some good stories, I've made great friends and I'm basically eating for free daily.

Time to grow up? Cast your votes

I haven't written on my blog for far too long. I'm up at BYU-Idaho with a client. We went to McDonald's, and because this is our last time together I let her choose whether to play computer games or card games. She chose computer, so I finally have access to the Internet.

I'm leaving the beautiful state of Idaho in one week. It's sad, but I'm excited to be living in the same home as my husband!

The inspiration for this entry was a nice birthday present one of my old roommates gave me. I think the people that know me the best know that I have a pretty good sense of humor, and one way I keep it fresh is by keeping up on my daily Peanuts' comics. I have many Peanuts' memorabilia, and this is cause to ask myself, "Is it time to grow up?"

My old roommate got my a canister of Spiced Hot Cocoa and on the front of the tin can is Snoopy and Woodstock around a festive Thanksgiving centerpiece. I'm 24 years old and I don't think I could have asked for anything cuter!



But, I am 24 years old. Is it time to grow up? Is it time to replace my coffee table comic books with photography books of the mountains, or a Time's magazine or the newspaper with current events? Is it time to collect my stuffed Snoopy, my Snoopy mug, the several Peanuts' t-shirts, and Peanuts' mint tins and store them away in a Tupperware in the basement?

Personally, I think no. I've got a good 2, 3, or 55 years left in me before it's time to start growing up! Like my dad has said, "Growing old is mandatory. Growing up is a choice!"