18th Anniversary

This weekend Jaremy and I celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary!  It was fun to get away together, relax, plan, and just enjoy being together.  We stayed at a hotel close to home for financial reasons and so we could be close to the kids in case they needed us.  We ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant, let the kids come swimming at the hotel, looked at model homes in DayBreak (with Jaremy's Mom who we amazingly bumped into), ate lunch at Costa Vida, and enjoyed just relaxing together.

I'm so blessed to have Jaremy!  He is wonderful, selfless, hardworking, and fun!  And a million more amazing things.  We are so blessed to be sealed for time and all eternity.  We are so blessed to have 9 beautiful children!  God be praised for our wonderful marriage and life together!

Contractions

Braxton Hicks contractions have started in earnest.  I'm excited my body is preparing.  For the next 10 weeks it will ramp up contractions and get my uterus fit.  It is a bit exhausting though.  Everytime I get up or move around it seems to trigger a contraction.  They are painless, but make me winded and make me feel like sitting back down.  I am so ridiculously tired.  I can't sleep at night.  I sometimes just cry because I'm so tired but my body won't let me sleep.  I'm starting to dread the night.  Last night I tried everything I could think of for hours then I just gave up and did the dishes at 3:45am.  After that and a cup of warm milk I was able to sleep for a few hours.  Oh, how nice that was!  But now the day is upon me.  There is so much to do!  And I feel like just going back to bed.  And every time I do get up and start going so do my contractions and I just feel like a big wimp.  I pray Heavenly Father will help me.  It is hard to keep my spirits up when I feel so tired and useless, but I'm grateful for this challenge.  Thank goodness it is about nap time.  Of course, that doesn't mean my legs won't torture me and make sleep impossible, but it is worth a try.

Pillows

What a tender mercy pillows are when you are pregnant!  Nights are very difficult! But I have hot baths, lots of pillows, a warm house, an indoor bathroom, a place to stretch and jog, vitamins, and oils.  All of which help me get a bit of sleep.  Heavenly Father has blessed us with so many luxuries that help get us through.  I'm so grateful!

Skype

Skype can drive us crazy sometimes.  But I'm so grateful we have it.  It was so nice to be able to talk as a family to Jaremy in China yesterday.  It seems he has been gone so much lately.  Literally, 25% of his time this year has been spent in China.  And even when he is home he has been working 90 weeks.  I know sometimes are just like this.  And that's okay, we are fine.  But I sure hope it doesn't last too long.  It's starting to wear on us.  We all miss him.  Hopefully, there will be some big breakthroughs at work and a big pay increase.  We are holding on to that hope.  But in case it doesn't work out we are keeping other options open (like moving to the great state of Texas).  I'm grateful to Heavenly Father for the excitement of this life.  I'm grateful He has blessed us with technology that lets our family communicate instantly even from around the world.  We are so amazingly blessed.

Mulch

We do not produce enough manure and organic matter on our tiny half acre to feed our gardens.  So we simply asked our neighbors if they had extra grass clippings, manure, branches, leaves, etc. we could use for mulch.  They have been so sweet.  We have lots coming in.  Some are very grateful to get rid of the stuff.  Most people in our area don't garden much, let alone organically.  I'm grateful Heavenly Father has commanded us to garden.  I love it!  I'm also grateful the Lord has placed us in a wonderful neighborhood.

Terrific Day

We have worked hard together today!  We have gotten a lot done and have enjoyed the time.  The kids are in the kitchen putting freshly painted cabinet doors back.  They are gorgeous red!  The kitchen is looking better all the time!  All the nasty carpet has been ripped out of my bedroom, the hallways, and stairway.  Hurray!  It takes for ever to remove all the staples and nails and repair the trim paint.  Everything isn't done, but at least my bed isn't covered in grim and buried in stuff tonight!  Things are really coming along.  I hope Jaremy will be pleased.  He works so hard for us!

Heavenly Father has given us such a good life!  I'm grateful He has blessed me with the colors I love right in my own kitchen.  So fun!

Focus

Life is full of many distractions.  Should we move, should we change jobs, should we buy this or that, movies, news, phone calls, etc. I'm grateful that Heavenly Father helps me realize what needs to be worked on today.  When I pray for His help as I study and decide what to do today He helps me simplify and be realistic.  He helps remind me it's not just about accomplishing, but about showing lots of love along the way.  We can get a lot done on the to-do list, but it I've been ornery with the kids, we've gone backwards.  So I pray today as we paint and rip out carpet that I can remember to be sweet and kind with my dear ones.