St. George!

This past weekend Shane and I were able to take a little vacation down to St. George. Originally, we had tried planning a trip just the two of us, but with the hotel it seemed to be just a bit too expensive. Shortly after we decided we couldn't afford it, my parents told us they were going down to St. George for a weekend and were going to stay at a friend's condo. They invited us to come with, so we had to accept!

We left Thursday after work, arriving at the condo around 11pm. Shane crashed very quickly, I stayed up and visited with my parents for a little while.

Friday we went to Gunlock lake to see the beautiful waterfalls. . . unfortunately, there wasn't enough rain this year and all of the waterfalls were dried up. Bummer. We then went to Swig, where Shane got a tiger's blood shaved ice, and I got a mango bubble tea and a cherry limeade diet coke. It all was so amazing!

That night we went to The Pizza Factory for dinner. Mmmm, it was delicious! After dinner Shane and I went swimming with Brooklyn, (my little sister,) and her friend Bella. It was a lot of fun, and really relaxing!

Saturday we got some frozen custard from Nielsen's Frozen Custard, and then we shopped at the outlets. Later Shane and I went to dinner, just the two of us, to Outback Steakhouse. We got a bloomin' onion, (and may or may not have eaten the whole thing,) and then Shane got a salad and I got grilled salmon. It was expensive, but super worth it.

Around 11pm that night, we all decided to play some games. We played Mad Gab, (mom was way too good at it,) and a game called Headbandz. It was a great way to end our vacation!

Sunday came way too fast, we were so sad to leave the warm weather and beautiful views. We're so in love with St. George, it was so depressing to say goodbye.

It was a perfect weekend and a great last vacation baby-free! We really appreciate my parents and them letting us crash their vacation and stay with them, we wouldn't have been able to go any other way. We really love my family and enjoy spending time with them!

And now for pictures. . .

 On the drive down, (we were so excited!!)

 At Gunlock where the waterfalls were supposed to be.

 The huge bed we stayed in.

 The family room, with Shane napping on the couch.

The kitchen!

 On our way to Pizza Factory.

 One for Shane, one for me, one for baby! ;)

 Mom photo bombed us.

 And then BOTH my parents photo bombed us.

(I have the coolest parents!)

 Saturday morning.

Nielsen's Frozen Custard!

Shane tried cookie dough and I had to have maraschino cherry!

 Our bloomin' onion from Outback Steakhouse.

It was amazing!

Brooklyn and Bella.

 Mom and dad.

 Us of course!
(Shane looks kinda crazy in this picture. . . hahaha!)

Sunday morning.

Our not so cute sad faces!

This Man I Call My Husband

Ok people, I just have to tell you something. 

I am so in love.

My husband is amazing and does so much for me and Valarie. I am so grateful for him, for everything he's done for our relationship, and for everything he continues to do. He is one of a kind, he really is! How I was able to snatch him up and steal him from every other woman forever first I have no idea, but I am so happy I did and I'm so lucky he's mine!

Shane is hilarious. He has the best sense of humor and he knows how to make others laugh. His jokes are about as random as they come, so random in fact, that sometimes I have a hard time understanding them. That just makes them even funnier though. He's also huge on prank calls, he's my jokester. 

Shane is such a creative guy! He's able to take something simple and turn it into something awesome. See that duct tape band? Yeah, he makes those and has been for years, (before duct tape was considered "cool.") He's can make pretty much anything on a wrist band, I am always so impressed with how amazing they look when he shows me the finished product!

Shane truly is a kid at heart. He plays with action figures and nerf guns, he watches cartoons, he listens to kid music, and he plays with kids willingly, (my nieces adore him!) While your man is watching The Walking Dead, mine is watching Phineas and Ferb. He has yet to grow up, and honestly, I hope he never does. He's so much fun to be married to, and he's going to be the most amazing dad to our children!

Shane's love for the gospel is stronger than anyone else I know. (I know he doesn't look happy in the above picture, but I promise you, he loved his mission. It really was the best two years of his life.) He keeps me going when I feel like I can't anymore, he motivates me to be a better person, and he has the strongest, most amazing testimony! I am so happy I married a man with such a love for Christ and the church. He has helped me become closer to God than I have ever been in my life. He is an amazing man. 

Shane definitely keeps my life interesting. Not only is he a sleep walker and talker, but he comes up with the goofiest ideas everywhere we go. Sometimes I'm hesitant to follow through with his ideas because they're a little too crazy for me, but he almost always does them and I love that about him! He's not afraid to be himself anywhere he is. He's a funny, funny man!

Shane loves me. I can tell by the way he talks to me, looks at me, and acts with me. He's never once said a bad thing about me and refuses to let anyone else if he's within ear shot of them. I've never once doubted his love for me, and I love that. I've always been insecure, but with him I just don't have to be. I trust him, I love him, and I know he would never do anything to hurt me, just like I'd never do anything to hurt him. 

I love my husband. I really love him so much. I love spending time with him, and I love getting texts, emails, notes, and calls from him. I love being around him, I love the way he makes me feel, and I love who I am with him. I am so happy I get to spend eternity with him, I wouldn't choose to spend it with anybody else. He's an incredible man, he's MY incredible man. 

Frustration of the Day

I am so happy I'm pregnant, I really feel so blessed that I'm able to do such an amazing thing, and I do feel for those who struggle with conceiving, (I'm not trying to make anyone feel bad or think I don't appreciate being able to get pregnant.)

I am not complaining about being pregnant, I know I'm lucky and blessed that I can do such a thing.

I just feel a little bummed at the moment is all.

I hardly feel my baby. I can feel a little movement a couple times a day, but for the most part I don't feel much.

Knowing so many pregnant women right now I can't help but compare how my pregnancy is going to theirs. (I know, comparing is never a good thing, but I just can't help it!!) I feel like they've all been feeling their babies since 18 weeks and they wake up to their babies going crazy and can't sleep and can't sit comfortably because of them, etc. I just started feeling mine a little while ago, but it's only little pops, and has never been uncomfortable, (besides occasionally sitting in my ribs,) been so hard they hurt, or kept me up at night.

Baby is just too mellow and sitting too far back. I want her to be hyper, I want to feel the little stinker more! And everything I try to get her to move doesn't work.

Not caffeine or sugar.
Not loud music.
Not flashlights.
Not pressing on and poking my belly.
Not cold water.

I guess I just have to wait until she's born to really start enjoying all her little movements. . . .

Just an Ordinary Day

Yesterday was a plain old boring day. I didn't do anything extraordinary. I worked, ate food, visited family, and baked. Yeah, normal day. But for some reason I felt like taking pictures yesterday. Of everything I did. Pretty much. They're not exciting pictures, they're not interesting pictures, they are plain old, normal, ordinary pictures.

So now, I present to you, almost everything I did yesterday in pictures.

 On my way to work I saw a duck. 

 I spent most of my day at work staring at my growing belly.

I tried rinsing my water bottle out with hot water. I underestimated just how hot the water was, and it totally warped one side of my bottle. Oops!

I had a gift card to Zupas so I enjoyed a turkey, bacon, and avocado panini and mangoberry salad for dinner. Complete with a Diet Coke with Lime. Mmmmm!

 I visited my parents and played with Chip for a while. The little buggar wouldn't sit still for a photo, so the best I could do was this. I apologize for him looking like a headless ball of fluff with a tail.

My nieces were at my parent's house, so I played out in the front yard with them for a while.

I also had some nice conversations with my mom and dad, but I didn't photograph that.

I went to Walmart for some groceries. No photo of that either. (Bummer 'cause I know how bad you all want to see a picture of some groceries!!)

I used my grandma's recipe to make some amazing chocolate chip cookies! 

I forgot just how many cookies that recipe makes. I made 80 cookies, (yes I counted, and yes, exactly 80,) and still had cookie dough left over for Shane to eat when he got home. 

Most of the cookies went into the freezer, (frozen cookies rock!!) 

Some went into a bag on the counter.

And some went into my mouth.

I ate five cookies. No judging. 

Shane's been wanting salad, (CRAZY I know!) So I made some salads for him to take to work for lunch.

I also cut up some strawberries. Yum!!

And I washed and froze some grapes to eat later. (Frozen grapes, mmmm!)

Once Shane got home we watched an episode of Phineas and Ferb and then went to bed. Looking back on my day I can see that most of what I did involved food. I'm a little obsessed with food right now, and not afraid to admit it. I'm pregnant, getting thicker and rounder everyday, I can't really stop it, so I'm going to work on embracing it.

That being said, here is a picture of two pictures that were taken this morning. It really shows the difference a jacket can make. Man I'm getting thick! This baby better love me because pregnancy is not easy haha. 

Almost 31 weeks. 

I'm growing and I'm only going to keep getting bigger!

20 Q's About My Man, Cause I Can!

All about my handsome husband, because I'm bored and I love him so much!

1. Full Name: Shane Clark Randall.

2. How long have you been married? Almost a year and a half.

3. How long did you date? We dated for one month and one day before getting engaged, and the engagement was just short of three months.

4. Who said 'I love you' first? Pretty sure he said it first, but I told him I was falling in love with him first.

5. Who is taller? Shane of course!

6. Who sings better? Oh Shane does definitely! I love his voice! He raps pretty well, too!

7. Who is smarter? HA! Shane is.

8. Who does the laundry? I do it when Shane is working late and I really need something washed, but most of the time Shane does it, (it's the one chore I hate more than anything, and he knows that!)

9. Who pays the bills? I do all the finances.

10. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Shane does, my OCD makes me always have to be on his left side, (with a few exceptions, like in the car when I'm forced to be passenger.)

11. Who mows the lawn? What lawn?

12. Who cooks dinner? Cooks? What is this word? Ha, when we do cook once in a blue moon, it's usually me, but Shane helps out with whatever he can. (And he does occasionally cook me a good meal!)

13. Who drives? 9 out of 10 times, Shane.

14. Who is more stubborn? I am for sure. Shane just goes with the flow and is so great about everything. I'm almost the complete opposite. I'm so lucky he still loves me. :)

15. Who kissed who first? He kissed me first, but I don't remember the first kiss. I was too shocked and happy that he FINALLY did it, that it was all kind of a blur. Haha.

16. Who asked who out first? He friended me on facebook first, he commented on a status of mine first, he asked for my number first, he texted me first, and he asked me out first. Wow. He does all the firsts.

17. Who proposed? Oh Shane did of course. I'm all for traditional, I would never propose.

18. Who has more siblings? We both have four siblings, we're both the exact middle child. He just has three brothers and one sister, and I have two brothers and two sisters.

19. Who wears the pants? I feel like I do since becoming pregnant, but before I was pregnant we were pretty equal about everything. I try to be now, but there are some things I just have to control right now haha. I'm sure it will go back to how it was before once the baby is here. Sorry Shane, I love you, thanks for loving me!

20. What is your favorite thing about your spouse? His sense of humor. Seriously. It's ridiculously funny. Yes, sometimes he does too much, but I just take things too seriously. His humor is teaching me not to take life so seriously and to enjoy the little moments. I sure love him!

20 Things Never to Say to a Pregnant Woman

I have heard quite a few of these, it really is starting to surprise me the things people will say to you! Hahaha. (Taken from here.)

1. Are you SURE you're not carrying twins?

2. Wow ... you're taking this whole 'eating for two' thing to a new level, aren't you?

3. Be happy you only have morning sickness. It was much worse for me.

4. So you're due next week, right? Oh ... you're only three months along? Well. I guess pregnancy looks different on everybody.

5. I was in my size 4s after delivery!

6. Oh, be careful. I had a friend whose friend whose cousin had a baby with [insert horrible complication here]. Let's hope YOUR baby doesn't have it.

7. You ARE breastfeeding, aren't you?

8. You AREN'T breastfeeding, are you?

9. Labor was the most intense, grueling pain I've felt in my entire life. I'd rather die than go through labor again.

10. My friend's cousin's friend's mother nearly died in labor. Actually, maybe she did die. Or it was a plot on Melrose Place. I can't remember.

11. You should REALLY look into birth control.

12. Let's hope he doesn't get your husband's nose. Sheesh! What a honker that is!

13. Um, that was the name I was going to use for MY baby even though I'm not pregnant. You can't use it. Ever.

14. You think you're not sleeping now? HA! Just WAIT until the baby gets here.

15. Well *I* was still running 60 miles a week when I was x far along.

16. I only gained 10 pounds during my entire pregnancy.

17. I breastfed those extra 10 pounds right off!

18. How dare you complain about not feeling good. Didn't you WANT to be pregnant?

19. My labor only lasted 15 minutes. I think it was because I was in such great shape after running 60 miles a day.

20. So, how DO you get your shoes on?

Here and There

I am 30 weeks pregnant! Do you know what that means? I can't count how many weeks I have left on both my hands! It's coming so fast, but still feels so far away! I just need this little girl here!

By 30 weeks I should be feeling Valarie around 10 times an hour I'm told. . . well I feel her maybe once an hour, but definitely 10 times an hour at night, (she's active at night, super mellow during the day.) Yesterday I felt her once the entire day. Yes, the ENTIRE DAY! You can imagine how freaked out I was. I went to bed super worried about her, and decided I'd call the doctor Tuesday if I didn't feel her today at all either. I woke up this morning and pressed on my belly. I was greeted with a little kick from her. What a stinker she is!! I sure love her though!

Woke up Saturday with an aching ear, it felt like an ear infection. Woke up Sunday with an aching mouth also, uh oh. Now it's sounding like a tooth infection. Woke up this morning with an insane headache combined with the other pains, yeah it blows. I have a doctor appointment Thursday and if they say it's not an ear infection then it looks like I'll be taking a trip to the dentist. Bummer. (I need to go anyway, I haven't been in forever and it's important to take extra good care of my teeth while pregnant.)

I'm working 60 hours this week. Pretty excited since 20 hours of it is doing what I love and with the job I'll be keeping after baby is here!

So Shane and I were trying to plan a weekend trip to St. George, and we had decided to look for cheaper places to stay from April 4-7th. Well when I went and visited my parents the other day they told me they're going out of town soon. I asked where and when, and they said St. George from April 4-7th! Holy crap! So I told them about our plans, and now we're all going together! It'll be a great getaway before baby comes, and I can't wait to have so much time to spend with the husband!!

Shane's last week at Arctic Circle is this week. Forever. He's done. No more second job for him! My honey is going back to school! He has about a year left of his Bachelors, so he decided to go ahead and do it. I am so proud of him and can't wait for him to get his degree! He's such an amazing guy!

We got to meet our Izzy, Caity and Ben's baby this past Saturday. She is a beautiful little thing! SO sweet! I just wanted to take her home!!!