Doctor appointments and Halloween

      Wow, this past week has been way super busy. We pretty much had something every single day, which tended to make for a very tired/worn out Mama. Some of the things happen every week, so I'm not going to write much about those. However, Jessica and I both had doctor appointments this week, and I figured people might like some numbers. My appointment, (technically with the midwife, not a doctor) was on Monday and started out interesting, considering that they had a power outage when I got there. Luckily it came back on right before they called me back, cause that would have been interesting. As far as stats go: I have gained 9 pounds since the start of my pregnancy, but seeing as I lost 5 to start with, I've actually gained 14. I am currently at 24 weeks (or 5 1/2 months) and everything is perfect. (as far as the baby goes, yes I have my complaints about what my body is doing, but what pregnant lady doesn't have some of those) My uterus measured 23 cm, which, seeing as I was 23 weeks and 2 days, was right on track. Jacob's heartbeat measured around the 150s, which also is just about right. And the couple of stress-related pains I'd had, were explained, and were nothing, just don't stress as much right? ;)

 

Okay, so here's the picture of me at 24 weeks. Sorry, my photo editor died on me a couple days ago, so I couldn't edit any of these pictures for you. And yes, I am still in my pajamas, it was taken this morning, and it is currently only 6:30 am, of course I'm in pjs. You're only supposed to be seeing the size of the belly anyway. I actually find it kinda amusing. My belly got really big really fast, but then it seems to have stopped growing for the last month to allow my uterus and baby to catch up. So, hopefully, in about 4 weeks, when I take another one, there will be a change (also, hopefully my photo editor will work)

      Tuesday was Jessica's 2-year well-child visit. We were going to also get her 1 vaccine, and the flu vaccine for both of us, but apparently we were 8 days before it was due. Now, that wouldn't be an issue with the vaccine. Unfortunately, insurance companies don't see it that way. They will only pay if you are 7 or fewer days early. So we were 1 day too early on that. So we'll be going back in this week to get those. I figured I'd do the flu vaccines at the same time, especially because then she can see me get a shot first. So, we just had the poking and prodding that is normal. Jessica did very well. Last time (6 months ago) she was screaming the whole time. This time, she was nervous, but wasn't freaking out. She started to with the stethoscope, but I was able to convince her it was okay, by telling her that the doctor just wanted to hear her heart, like we had heard Jacob's the day before. She's very healthy, and the doctor seemed pleasantly surprised that she is forming sentences. As far as her numbers... She was measured at 36 inches tall, which puts her in the 95th percentile, and makes it so I needed to turn her carseat around. (36 is the upper limit on ours for rear facing). She weighed in at 29.6 pounds, which puts her in the 80th percentile. The doctor and I were both very happy about that. Coming from losing weight a year ago to being slender, but very definitely a healthy weight, its good. (and I don't really give her sweets/junk food, so it is actually a healthy weight). And her head is 20 inches around, which puts that in the 100th percentile. LOL. Someday she may catch up to that head. For now, I like to think that its because she's so smart. Yesterday she was complaining that I wasn't reading a book anymore. Well, that book she wanted me to read was book 11 in the Wheel of Time series. Definitely not a toddler picture book. And we had that Les Mis story from last time.  

      So, here are some pictures take by me this last week, so... unofficial 2-year pictures:

 

Again, sorry, I would have cropped it, but my photo editor... *grumbles about needing to fix a computer*

 

These two were actually taken on Thursday, right before we went to get her official pictures taken.

     So, as I said, Thursday, I wanted to get Halloween pictures taken, and depending on how they turned out, I figured I may make them be her 2-year portraits. They were gorgeous again! So, here are the pictures I ordered prints of. Technically, I don't have the rights to the photos, so I can't let you make copies, but I figured since I bought prints, and at that point I could either scan them in, or take a photo of them, I can post the ones I ordered on my blog.  (Spirit of the law, not letter of the law legal).

 

These 2 are my absolute favorites, even though Jessica wasn't terribly happy in them. I was not planning on being in the pictures myself, but after taking the first 3 (ish) pictures, the photographer used a pig noise to try to get Jessica to smile. It had the opposite effect. (Jessica doesn't seem to like louder/unknown noises) So we spent the rest of the shoot trying to keep her happy, and keep her from clinging to me. We improvised a bit, and so I'm in some. Luckily, the ones that showed my face turned out alright, even without makeup or edits. I was rather pleased.

  

This one is gorgeous, and though you can't really tell, I am in it too. The screen she was against wasn't black. That's my arm. 

 

I just thought this one was beautiful, with her wing looking like a mask. 

 

And these 2 were taken right near the beginning, while she was still happy and cooperative. My adorable little fairy. 

 

Yes, I know, and as some of you know, we had been going to have her be a zombie-fairy. It ended up being too much time and effort to do anything to the costume to make it look zombie-ish, and I really don't know how to do makeup to make her look like a zombie. So, maybe she a stylish zombie-fairy.  It is a true story that the other day when Nathaniel and I were discussing what I just told you, Jessica heard me say zombie-fairy, and so, she decided to pipe into the conversation with "fairy, brains!" It was HILARIOUS! I would say that a fairy who wants brains would qualify as a zombie, even if they look stylish. ;)

     Saturday, we had the Hiatt Halloween party (and then my ward's Trunk or Treat). We started out at a carnival that Eagle Mountain was doing...

 

but we didn't stay for very long. It was cold, and we had other things planned, and none of the parents really wanted their kids trick-or-treating here as well as at school, and trunk-or-treats, and then again on Monday.  So we headed to my Sister-in-Law's house, and the kids painted pumpkins. 

 Well, okay, the older kids painted pumpkins. Jessica was content to just color a pumpkin on a paper. It was great fun, and there wasn't too much sugar involved (which was good) but it was right over the top of naptime. Luckily, Jessica was able to sleep for about an hour in the car. Yes Mom, I said an hour. Yes, I know it only takes 30 minutes to get from Rob and Sarah's to my house. We stayed in the car an extra half-hour, with me reading, so that we could do 2 things, 1-finish the chapter, 2-let Jessica sleep as long as possible.
    
     Then we got ready for the trunk-or-treat, which included very last minute, thrown-together costumes for Nathaniel and I, using things we've had from previous years, and we went. Jessica loved walking around and getting candy to put in her bucket, but she didn't even really try to eat the candy while we were there. She tried opening 1 or 2 pieces, but I convinced her to stop, because we'd get some when we went home. My goodness! her bucket was almost full! And, our candy bowl, which I had thought might last us through Monday night as well... empty. I now get to decide how much I want to participate in trick-or-treating. Maybe we'll go visit grandparents again, or maybe I'll run to the store tomorrow, and buy more treats. But that was our week, and it was pretty good, except for Jessica and I coming down with colds.

Pictures and Videos

Okay, well, I did get pictures from Jessica's gifts (from us) on Sunday, so I will post those today, and I'm going to try to post the videos as well, we'll see how it goes. Here's hoping you get a nice treat.


This video is of Jessica opening with her gift from John and Kristi. I'm thinking Blogger only allows one video in a post, which would kinda make sense, and the fun video (of her flinging her arms about as she unwraps the gifts from my parents) is also really long (7 minutes) so I'm not sure how well it will upload. I tried and it didn't work.

 Okay, so, here are the photos I have then. I'm currently trying to see if I have the ability (mainly a computer program to do it) to cut the longer video down to a more manageable (and uploadable) size. So for now, and probably at least until tomorrow, you just get the one video and the pictures. Sorry

 

So, here we have Grandpa Hiatt reading to Jessica and a cousin (blog isn't private so I'm not putting names). This is basically my only photo from Saturday.

 

Now, From Sunday, This is Jessica with her little stuffed monster that I made for her. She seems quite enthralled with the button eyes.

 

And you can start to see some of the mess from her trying to open gifts, but the main thing is the slippers, also homemade. (trying to save money here) I thought they turned out pretty cute.

 

And next we have a puzzle.

 

This one more shows the extent of her opening her gifts. You can see her flipping her hand around trying to get the wrapping paper off.

 

And her big gift all put together. It is a toy box/bench. 

And while the bench may have been the big gift, the books were the favorite. So here she is swinging her feet, and reading one of the books

 

And here she is sitting in the toy box, again reading one of the books.

So, that is all I have for now, we'll see if I can figure out the video stuff.

Happy Birthday!

      My goodness! My little girl turns 2 today! That's really crazy to me. I still want to say that's how long Nathaniel and I have been married, but no, we've been married over 3 years. My precious little girl who has gone from this...

 

To this...

 

And now, to this...

      She is getting to be so very big! Sorry, no stats this week, her 2-year well-child visit is on Tuesday. So next week I'll try to remember to put in the stats. So, as you can see, this week I finished the skirt for her Halloween costume. I was trying on the skirt and wings to make sure they fit. Sorry the picture's blurry, I really need a new camera. My camera is about 7 1/2 years old, and only 3 mega-pixels, so I use the one on my phone, which tends to blur a lot of the time, especially if I zoom at all. I also, later in the week, finished the pants, so her costume is complete other than face makeup, which means I need to schedule her official photos, which I may use for her 2-year portraits, depending on how they turn out. Maybe not though, because of the makeup. We'll see on that one.
      Yesterday we had her "birthday party". I did it as an open-house, more because I like to invite people over and entertain, and her birthday gave me an excuse. She's only 2, she's not going to remember the party at all. Unfortunately, I had Nathaniel be in charge of pictures, because I was so scatter-brained after spending all day getting ready, and he has this habit of taking only videos. We have 1 picture from the party, (yes Mom, that's a request for the pictures you took) and I can't get it off his phone. I've tried, but it won't work, and he's asleep still. (go figure at 6:30 in the morning on a weekend) We have 4 videos, and they're great, and show her personality a lot better than the photos, but they're really hard to share with people on the blog. Apparently, Nathaniel cannot be the designated photographer. He thinks I mean videographer. ;) Hopefully I can get his help getting the 1 picture off his phone and onto my computer, and maybe even the videos, and I'll do an extra post this week... maybe. We saw how that went last time. Maybe, while we're at it, I'll get his help with the video from Jacob's ultrasound, and we'll just have a picture/video post. How's that sound.
      So, my family all showed up right near the 4 o'clock start time, and we sat and talked, and opened gifts from my parents. Jessica had a grand old time ripping the paper off, and then it would stick to her hand, so she'd flap her arm/hand until the paper flew off. It was hilarious, and Nathaniel did catch it on video, so if we get the videos to work you can see it. However, once she got down to the box, she wasn't sure what to think. She couldn't tell by the picture what it was supposed to be, so we opened up the box for her. At that point my sister's kids decided it would be fun to help (which was fine) so we ended up with lots of little kids playing with it. "It" was a Jessica-sized shopping cart, complete with some groceries to go in it. She also got a toy stroller for her dolls (and I see it being used more for her, or her teddy bears, but whatever. Later in the evening, Jessica decided that the shopping cart was a chair, and kept trying to sit in it, so we did get after her for that. Billy and Melody had to leave right before 5, but then the McBride family (as many as were in Utah) showed up right after 5. So we talked and played some more, and had cake and ice-cream, which was crazy because of all the little kids. Let's see, we had 11(?) kids, ranging from 8 to 3 weeks, most of whom were in the kitchen, clamoring for cake and/or ice cream. It was good though.
       My family left around 5:30, and the McBride's left around 6, but by that point we'd received a call from some of my close friends, saying they were on their way (and asking if it was okay, because their 1-year-old had a cold). It was fine, so, we cleaned up a bit, put the ice-cream in the freezer, and the eggs in the fridge, covered up the cakes, and then I was able to get dinner started and in the oven before they got here. That was nice. And it was nice once they did get here, because we mainly just sat and talked, and Beefy (Brian) read to Jessica, which she loved, because Nathaniel and I have gotten boring with her books, because we know them so well. They left around 8, which technically was an hour after the party ended, but that's okay. That's about when dinner was ready, so we ate, and we got Jessica in bed, and I went to bed.
       It was a really crazy day. I was hoping to sleep in a bit today due to it, but my body had other plans and woke me at my usual time. Oh well. Again, I apologize for the lack of pictures. Hopefully we can get some in the next few days, or even later today.

Christmas, Hypnobirthing, and Les Mis

      Yes, I know. It's only October, and not even the end of October. Here I am, complaining about stores putting out Christmas stuff, but I'm going to talk about Christmas? I promise there's a difference. ;) The stores are putting out the commercialized stuff, in hopes of making a bigger profit. They didn't even let the other profit-bringing holiday (Halloween) pass first. My house is still decorated with Halloween stuff, and will be decorated with Thanksgiving decorations. Christmas will not go up until the day after Thanksgiving. That being said, I like to make as many of my Christmas gifts as possible. I have the time and ability, so that is my preference. That just means that I've been thinking about Christmas (and working on it somewhat) all year long. However, this past week is when I've really started going on it. I have a LOT of projects that I hope to be able to finish for my family for Christmas, but I'm working on them only 1 or 2 at a time, so that I don't have all of them started and none of them finished by the time December 25th rolls around. So that is what any "spare" moments of my days have been filled with. I've got sewing, crocheting, needlework, and scrapbooking all going. It's awesome. Well, okay, they're all in the plans, not quite so much in the works yet. This would be why there are no pictures this week though, Anything I would have taken a picture of, like the projects, are gifts, so I can't really. That would cause problems because of people reading the blog. This next week is Jessica's birthday though, so that will probably be remedied for the next post. ;)
      The other thing that started this week was my hypnobirthing classes. Yay! So excited. I love hypnobirthing. I am really trying not to make this post into a soapbox though, and I am very passionate about natural birthing, but I don't want to force my views on other people, so I should probably just leave it at that. If you want a bit more of an explanation, or a why, go back to October 2009, and look at the post about Jessica's birthing. Hypnobirthing is amazing! 9lb 8oz baby, and no real pain all throughout labor and delivery. I can handle that.
      The last thing is a cute story (or 2) about Jessica. Fridays a friend of mine comes over (or I go to her house) and we quilt all morning. Well, that means that the gate to my kitchen is down, and Jessica has access. (I haven't baby proofed it yet, that's why she doesn't always have access) She and the other little girl were having a blast, though Jessica was the one making more of a mess (almost 2, compared to a 13-month-old, it makes sense). Well, she was over at my bookcase, pulling out the books. She'd pick one, look at the cover, and drop it (or place it if I got after her) on the floor. Well, then she pulled out Les Miserables (unabridged) and looked at it, and then opened it about halfway, looked at it some more, and then held it out to me. "a-read, Mama's, book?!" She was asking me to read it to her. Oh I busted up laughing. The thought that immediately came to mind was Gaston from Beauty and the Beast "How can you read this, there's no pictures?" My 2-year-old (yes, I'm calling her a 2-year-old, I figure the last month is close enough to count as far as stages are concerned) doesn't need pictures, but he still does.  I told her no, obviously, I don't quite have time in the morning to sit down and read a 1300 page book to her. That and I don't know that the subject matter is especially great for a 2-year-old. Hilarious though. She kept asking! She asked me about 3 times, and then she carried the book into the living room, sat down on the couch, and started turning the pages very gently, looking at the book herself. Fantastic. Girl after my own heart. Seriously.
   As if that weren't enough to prove that she is a girl after my own heart... Later that day... we had on the Broadway online music station. Well one of the songs from Wicked came on (Thank Goodness for those of you who know the musical) and at the very end, she sang the last word with them. It was held out, and she held it out, said the correct word, and was trying (though not successfully) to get the right pitch. She actually held it out the whole way with them though! That is what we found most impressive. Besides, it's a choral number, and even the main singer (Kristin Chenoweth) changes notes a couple times, so I can't really blame Jessica for not finding the right one. As I said, awesome! Reading big books, and singing along with Wicked?... as I said, girl after my own heart.
     And, just because I feel bad about the no pictures, here are some cute ones from the week:

 

This is to showcase some of my sewing that I've been doing. No, I did not make the dress. My sister-in-law bought that for Jessica in August. It's a 4T size, and only about knee length. Crazy tall child. No, I made the leggings to go under it, so that she could wear the dress into the fall, and possibly winter, if I can find some long-sleeved onesies, or simple white shirts.

 

Here, at Grandma's house, my Mom pulled out her little trampoline. Oh, Jessica loved it! She didn't ever jump, but she loved that it bounced under her, and she enjoyed having Grandma or Mama bounce with her. 

changing weather, musical toddler, and autism

     So, there wasn't terribly much that went on this week. As far as daily activities went, it was fairly normal. Friday my friend Katie came over, and we spent the morning quilting, that is a new thing that will probably continue. Other than that, not much beyond the everyday happenings here.
     All these pictures were taken this week. So, (Tuesday I think) we played outside, and as you can see, the weather was pretty warm. Short-sleeves, and a skirt, with flip-flops. Definitely not acceptable with the more recent weather we've been having. 

 I thought it was fun that she just went over and sat under the tree, and then looked at me as if to check if it was okay, or to ask me to take a picture.

This one is the next day, while waiting for Grandma to come pick us up for our weekly get-together. Long pants, and full shoes were necessary by this point, and by the end of the day, warm jackets. I remember when Mom dropped us off at 4, it was freezing in our apartment.

 

Friday, we had gone even further to long sleeves, and you can see Nathaniel's heavy jacket on the chair, because it had been used recently. Now, normally Jessica would have also had pants on, but sometimes, she just decides that she doesn't need them, and so they come off, and she won't let me put them back on her. This picture shows some of Jessica's love for music. I had just gotten done practicing the song I need to play today in church, and she decided that it was her turn, so she climbed up on the bench, put her book on the bookstand (it's Dr. Seuss btw) and started to play the piano. I thought it was adorable. Earlier that day, after she had asked for "mu-kak on?" (music on) she had been singing along with the opening song to Lion King (you know, the African one?, so it sounded more like yelling) hilarious and adorable. I definitely got at least one music lover, that's for sure. 

 

Yesterday was the Autism walk. This shows closer to what the weather has actually been like, except that it was warmer Saturday morning than it had been Thursday and Friday. My niece and nephew both have autism, so our family tends to do the autism walk every year, those than can anyway. Nathaniel is now fighting the massive cold that I had the last 2 weeks, so he wasn't able to come. This is Jessica riding on Grandpa's shoulders after she got too tired. However, by this point, she'd walked somewhat close to a mile, and she's not even 2 yet (2 more weeks). I just thought it was funny, because her hands were out to the side like that the entire time. It was like she didn't know what to do with them. Nathaniel has had her ride on his shoulders before, so it wasn't that. Normally her hands will go around Nathaniel's forehead. I think she wasn't sure what to think about the mittens. 

     And that is my week in pictures. There ya go.

Sick Days

      I'm trying to think, and I can't remember really doing a whole lot this week. I've been sick all week, so that may be why. Either I didn't do much outside of the normal, or I just can't think clearly enough to remember. A few highlights:
-The ultrasound (obviously)-I will keep trying to get that video up, but with being sick, I haven't even tried my husband's computer yet
-I finished making jam for the season, topping out with 33 pints of various flavors of jam.
-Nathaniel and I found a bed for Jessica to transition into for only $10 (frame and mattress). The bed is from some friends of ours, so I will actually trust the mattress. They are moving cross-country, and so were getting rid of most things. Yay! for finding good deals!
-General Conference is this weekend, and it has been a beast with a 2-year-old. (Some of my readers are not LDS: General Conference is basically a big meeting for the entire church, all 13 million plus members. It has 4, 2-hour sessions over 2 days, but it is broadcast in the United States, and streamed live online, so you can watch it from your home.) I'm going to try a trick from my sister, and give Jessica crayons and paper this morning to color. Hopefully that will keep her busy, and away from the book I take notes in, for at least... 10-15 minutes at a time. *rolls eyes*
     So, since not much happened this week, I figured I'd just do mainly pictures. I don't think they're all from this week, but hey, everyone like pictures of a cute kid right? *wink*

 

This one was not this past week, but I thought it was cute. Jessica put on my heels, (yes, over her pajamas) just to lay down and cuddle with her blanket. 

 

Also not this past week: This is Jessica's first real experience with coloring. She has in her nursery class, but I don't think she understood very well there. She always came home with 1 or 2 very light lines on the page. As you can see (if you look closely) this paper is COVERED in scribbles. I found it interesting though, she used both hands equally when she was coloring. 

 

This is what happens when I spend all morning in the kitchen making jam. (Monday) Jessica discovers that the couch cushions come off, and that her play phone was hiding in the cracks. So she kept digging to see what else was down there.

 

And here is what happens when I get carried away making jam. I end up with 33 pints of it, for 3 people. That means we each get almost a pint a month to last a year. I don't think we use that much jam.

 

These two (above and below) are both Jessica playing with her newly rediscovered phone (which has since been shoved UNDER the couch, where I can't reach it) She was holding it up, "texting" and that's what I was trying to get a picture of, but obviously it didn't work. Still some cute pictures though.