Tobi's adorable Christmas pics!

Aren't they so cute? I think he's the cutest baby boy in the whole world! I adore his Christmas pictures. Can you guess who took these perfect photos? That's right! The fabulous Chelsea! Thank you so much, I love love love them!!!

www.lulubellephotography.blogspot.com

Newborn pictures

Here are Tobi's newborn pictures, taken at two weeks. Chelsea did an amazing job and I love every single one of them. Thank you so much Chelsea!

www.lulubellephotography.blogspot.com

One Month Old!

Our baby boy is now one month old!......and boy did that month go fast. It's so crazy to look at these pictures and then look at his newborn pics from the hospital, he's getting so big! He's such a sweet little boy and we love him so much. It's so nice to be able to hold him and snuggle him and when he goes to sleep I'm always so excited for him to wake up. He's more alert and loves to just sit and check stuff out. I can't wait for him to start grinning at me...he's so close!

Just some of Tobi's latest pictures.....so cute!

Tobi's First Thanksgiving

Cousin Noah helping Jordan burp Tobi.

Tobi had his first Thanksgiving and it went great! I was nervous because he's been getting tummy aches and I was afraid he would be fussy. We were out for most of the day and he did SO good. We put him in his cute Thanksgiving day outfit and everyone loved the SUPER cute hat that Chelsea made for him. So ADORABLE! He let several family members hold him without fussing and slept really well.
We had turkey dinner at Sean and Brynn's and it was fantastic! The food was perfect and it was so nice to get together with all the family. Plus Tobi got to finally meet them! With the exception of a few who couldn't make it of course.
After dinner we went to my Grandma Coates's house in American Fork to visit with my family. Tobi got to meet Grandpa Coates and his second cousin Amber. She was so excited to see him and he was really good while she held him and fed him. We had some of my mom's super yummy homemade pumpkin pie and then we went home for the night. It turned out to be a really good holiday for all three of us.

Our baby is cordless!

Tobi lost his cord....finally....on wednesday this week and I am so excited! We no longer have to fold his diaper down in the front and he doesn't have that awkward bump under his clothes. :)

Oh how I love thee...

I've been meaning to do this for a few weeks now and just haven't had the time. There are some people in my life who I may or may not have told how much I love and appreciate them. I'd like to take the opportunity to do so now.

1. The first is my wonderful husband, Jordan. You work so hard to make sure we can pay our bills and you've done so well at Moxtek so far. You're so supportive of everything I do and you're always there for me when I need you. You're so good with Jessa and so sweet and gentle with Tobi, you're the best husband a girl could ask for. I love you so much!
2. Next would be my mom and dad. You guys have been so caring and so helpful with Jordan and me. I'm so grateful that you have the room and the tolerance to let us live with you guys right now, especially since we have a new baby. The two of you are fantastic grandparents and Tobi is going to adore both of you, he's already so spoiled and so loved. Dad, I'm so grateful for your sound advice and for your goofy sense of humor. Mom, I'm so grateful for the talks we have when we're both feeling down and need a friend.
3. Brynn! I am SO thankful that we have you in our lives. You and Sean both have helped us to get through our hardest moments this past year and I can't thank you enough. You were there for me every step of the way through my pregnancy and I'm so happy to have finally made you an aunt. Thank you so much for your love and support.
4. Chace, you are the funniest kid and I'm so glad I have you to keep me smiling. You're going to be a rockstar uncle and I'm so proud that Tobi is going to have you in his life. I couldn't ask for a better brother.
5. Andrew, I'm so glad that you've found such a fabulous match in Bronwyn. She's a wonderful girl and we are all so excited for her to join the fam! I'm so grateful for the two of you keeping me company on the nights that Jordan had to work. The wii is so much more fun when you have someone else to play with.

Hasta la vista Bili

We got to call Intermountain Health Care today and tell them we were DONE with the evil bili lights. So exciting! Poor Tobi did not sleep well on them at all and by the third day we were at our wits end. We are so happy to be sending those lights out the door today! And even better, no more daily foot pokes at the hospital! Yay Tobi!

Tobias Wendim Leavitt...has arrived!

He makes me laugh so hard when he sleeps, he loves to stretch out (something he couldn't do in my belly) and gets the funniest expressions on his sweet little face.
Here he is with Auntie Brynn the day we got to take him home, this was her first time getting to hold him and I can tell he already adores her. :)

He latched onto Daddy's thumb the other night, this kid has quite a grip!

This is probably my favorite picture of him so far. Everytime I look at it I laugh, he's such a joy.

Tobi and Daddy (a very tired Daddy) right before bedtime.

As many of you know, and for those who may not know....I had my sweet baby boy on Friday, November 6th. He weighed 7lbs and 15oz, and measured at 181/2" long. I delivered via c-section which was scary but also very fun. We went in friday for my amnio and there wasn't enough fluid, so they went straight to induction. My body wasn't ready to have a baby and they gave me the choice of trying to go through a labor that could very well go through 36 hours, or I could have a c-section. We were worried about the fluid so Jordan and I decided it would be safer to go ahead with the c-section.

They let me eat breakfast that morning so we had to wait eight hours before doing the c-section which put me at 5:00pm and I was admitted around noon. Brynn and I relaxed while they did my IV and took my vitals, then when Jordan got there we watched You've Got Mail while we were waiting for 5:00 to arrive. 5:00 on the dot they came and took me back into their freezing cold OR. I had to curl in a ball on the table so they could inject my spinal and I had to hold very still which was hard. I was shaking all over my body from fear and cold. Once the spinal was in they helped me lay down and started putting up the curtain so I couldn't see. They gave me an oxygen mask to help me breath and then Jordan was brought in. I felt the pressure when they took Tobi out but other than that it was super quick and totally painless. I didn't have to do any work at all lol. Jordan went with Tobi down to the nursery while the doctors finished sewing me back up. I waited in recovery for an hour, where they told me Tobi had been moved to the NICU and hooked up to a c-pap machine to help strengthen his lungs. I was released on Monday night and Tuesday morning I was able to take my baby home. Walking out of that hospital monday night without my baby is by far the hardest thing I have ever done in my life.

Being in the hospital and coming home to recover from my c-section made me so much more grateful for my fabulous husband. There is absolutely NO way I could have done it without him. He has been so helpful and so patient in dealing with my very crazy hormones. I couldn't have picked a better man to spend my life with and I'm so proud to have a baby boy that looks just like him. I love my husband so much and I'm so glad I made it through my pregnancy and delivery without serious complications. P.S....my blood sugar and Tobi's blood sugar are both stable and totally fine...HUGE relief.

The first day and night that we had Tobi was probably both the easiest and the hardest. It was easy because Tobi slept the whole day and night, waking up to eat and have his diaper changed. It was the hardest because Jordan and I both were terrified to fall asleep without someone watching him. I slept for about an hour total that night. The next night was a little harder because Tobi was a little bit fussier and being new parents, we didn't quite know how to handle it. Don't worry...we survived. Thursday I had to take Tobi to the hospital to have his biliruben checked. It was higher than desired and bilibed lights were delivered to our home within the hour. He did okay on the lights thursday night but friday night he was starting to be a lot fussier and I was exhausted to the point of tears. Luckily, we live with Grandma and Grandpa and they were happy to take over so that I could sleep and the rest of this weekend has gone by much easier. We went through two more biliruben checks and it looks like he's down to the low risk area and today should be the last day dealing with them (the doctor will touch base with us on that tomorrow).

It's very weird thinking of myself as a mom now and each day I become more confident and more comfortable with Tobi. I no longer jump at every little noise he makes and I'm comfortable sleeping now when he sleeps. He's already growing fast and changing in his looks, it's so crazy! It makes me want to take lots and lots of pics every day so that we don't miss anything. Especially Jordan, since he has to work and I don't. I want to make sure that Jordan is involved with EVERYTHING. He's such a proud papa and I can tell that he adores Tobi. He's so good about changing him and feeding him and he likes to sit and hold him before bedtime. It's good bonding time. It's crazy because I knew that I would love this little guy no matter what, but it's shocking how deep that love runs. There are no words. I look at him sometimes and I want to cry because I'm so completely happy. I'm so excited to watch him grow and read him stories. I'm excited to get to know his personality and see how that changes over time. He's already so spoiled and loved living at Grandma and Grandpa's house. I'm just glad that my family can see him and hold him now that he's out of the NICU. It was hard not being able to share him with the people I love most in my life right away, but the wait has definitely been worth it.

Are you ready?

I had another ultrasound last week and Tobi is doing great! He's starting to pack on the weight which makes me nervous but once he gets here...it will ALL be worth it. We're still finishing a few things in his nursery, hopefully that will be done by the end of the day today. Jordan (along with the rest of the fam) is finally getting his H1N1 today. We went to the health department yesterday and got our vouchers. Huge relief! My NSTs are still doing great. It makes me so grateful that I haven't had any serious problems so far with my diabetes. As far as they can tell Tobi is totally healthy AND happy.

As of last Tuesday he weighs 6lbs and 13oz. They took his measurements and he's averaging two weeks ahead (again...made me nervous) which mostly just made me laugh because my belly is still measuring right where it should be. At first I was confused because it seemed like my belly should measure big if he's measuring big, but after thinking about it a little more it made sense. I can feel that I carry Tobi more in my back than in my front, so it's very possible for him to be big and yet have my tummy measure right on track. As a result, I've decided not to put too much stock in the measurements. They're not worried that he's measuring bigger at this point because we have the amnio scheduled for Friday. As long as the pro's aren't worried....I'm not worried. Mostly, I want that amnio to come through with the lungs being mature. I'm so ready to have this baby!

I have his diaper bag all packed for the hospital so now I just need to pack my own. Any suggestions on what I should put in? Besides the obvious of course. :)

Maternity Pictures

Jordan and I got to have our pictures taken a few weeks ago and I LOVE them! They were done by Lulu Belle Photography and the photographer, Chelsea, is fantastic. I love her pictures and I've been so excited my whole pregnancy for her to take my pictures. If you're interested in having your pictures taken, her website can be found at http://www.lulubellephotography.blogspot.com/.

Thank you Chelsea, they turned out so great!

H1N1

I got my shot last week for the swine flu, I only had to wait in line for about thirty minutes (they were moving fast) which was a lot shorter than what I expected. I couldn't get there before my NST and I was so nervous they would be out already. It was weird being there with all the kids getting their shots, I haven't had a flu shot since I was a kid. It totally gave me flashbacks to tantrums, crying, begging, pleading....all of the above really. There was a couple with what looked to be a six year old getting her shot and they totally had to restrain her. She was fighting like crazy and screaming. There was another couple waiting in front of me with a little one year old who was starting to get fussy because of all the other kids freaking out. It was hilarious.

I'm glad I got my shot because everyone seems to be in a panic over the swine flu and I have to admit....it's starting to get to me. My doctors office has notes posted everywhere saying that patients are no longer allowed to bring their kids with them and at the hospital, you can only bring one person with you to NSTs and Ultrasounds (that one person being totally healthy of course). It got me thinking and now I'm worried that Jordan will be the only person allowed in delivery with me. We had planned on having both Brynn and my mom there and thanks to all this swine flu crap....I don't know if that will happen. I'll be great as long as my Jordan is there with me, I just really wanted to share the experience with the two other people I love most in this world.

I'm also nervous because I don't know if they'll be allowing visitors. Which is probably for the best, I don't want my Tobi exposed to anything before he even gets home, I'll just feel bad if we have family members that come from further away to see him just to find out they can't. It makes me scared for the whole winter season really. A month ago I was confident that I could take Tobi out with me a little as he gets bigger....but now I'm scared to leave the house at all and he's not even here yet! I'm nervous for the holidays and I don't want to be cooped up inside, but I can't risk the health of my sweet baby either. We'll just have to see how it goes I guess.

GOOD NEWS!

Greatest news ever!......well almost ha ha. I saw my doctor this week and I asked him about getting a temporary handicap parking pass. I have tickets to So You Think You Can Dance in SLC for November 7th and we were worried about parking and me having to walk far. The doctor kind of frowned and was like...."well, that's cutting it a little close so we'll have to play it by ear." I was a little disappointed but then it got so much better. He told me that my amnio is going to be scheduled at the beginning of that week and if the results come out positive for the lungs being developed........they're going to induce me that day!!!!!

AWESOME!

I am so ready to get this baby out of me ha ha. I'm so big and so uncomfortable and I want to see what he looks like so bad. We just painted his nursery (pics are coming soon) and I can't wait to be using it. I've been washing all of his things and getting everything ready. Everyone cross your fingers for me!

The Olson Baby Shower

I know this post is very late but...here we go. :)

My mom hosted my second baby shower this month and it was so fun! She planned some really great games and we had family come that I hadn't seen in quite a while, it was so nice. I had class that morning so I wasn't able to help her set up but when I got there it looked FaBuLoUs! Turns out Chace was the mastermind behind the decorating (I think he actually did my reception too now that I think about it) and it turned out great. I told him he was hired. He will be doing my party decorating for all future events.....forever. He's such a chill kid, not only did he help set up but he stayed and took all the pictures for us too. If that doesn't make him a man I don't know what does, lol. He's the greatest!

We had some yummy muffins and yogurt with fruit and just kind of visited while everyone showed up. I got to see my Aunt Lisa who I haven't seen in a very long time, along with Aunt Carol, Gail, DeAnne, Pam, Becky, Shanny (and her newest little girl Lexi, so cute!), Cari and the list goes on. I told my mom that it was so nice to see everyone and there were a few that drove quite a while to get there which really inspired me to try harder when I'm invited to receptions and showers. A lot of times I don't go because I don't have gas or this or that....well I'm totally turning over a new leaf and anxiously awaiting my next invite so I can do better.

We played some fantastic games, one of which required everyone to hold a paper plate on their head and draw a baby in under a minute. This one was my favorite because it was so hilarious. Everyone is drawing their babies while looking at everyone else so as not to feel silly, it was great! After the games we did the gifts, Noah and Cooper were great little helpers, and Tobi got a lot of really great stuff. We have some more super cute outfits, a totally awesome diaper bag full of goodies, diapers, toys, blankets....I just can't wait for this baby boy to get here and meet these family members that already care so much. I also got a gift certificate for LuluBelle Photography, good for my maternity session and newborn session...so excited for that one!!

It went very well and I'm glad that everyone seemed to have fun. Thank you so much to everyone who came and thank you notes are on their way!

32 weeks!

I am now 32 weeks and getting more and more excited as each day passes. I have to admit, I'm crazy exhausted and slightly regretting my decision to go to school, but I'm managing. I still have to prick my finger seven times a day to check blood sugar and I'm taking insulin shots at every meal to manage the gestational diabetes. I don't know how many of you saw the news the other night, but there was this lady that gave birth to a 19 pound baby! She had diabetes, I'm assuming it wasn't managed because the doctors at the hospital are very confident that I can still have an average sized baby. They're watching me VERY closely. I've been meeting with a dietician once a week to check my blood sugar numbers and I'll continue to do that right up until the end of my pregnancy. This week I'm also starting my Non Stress Tests which will be done twice a week from here on out, and my doctor's office has started me on my weekly appointments already. CRAZY! And somehow I still make it to all my classes and finish my homework on time. I don't quite know yet how I'm doing it so I'll have to get back to everyone on that.

I'm doing pretty good, I can't believe that September is pretty much over! I feel like I missed it completely, where did it go? I just have to get through October and when November hits, I'm going to be a total wreck! We're having my maternity pictures taken in October so I'm very excited about that, Chelsea does amazing photos and I'm so grateful that she's agreed to do my pictures. We get to paint our nursery next week....FINALLY! I'm so so excited for that and I'll be posting pictures as soon as it's put together. It's going to be adorable!

FAME!

Yesterday Brynn and I got to go to the movies...just us girls...while the guys watched the kiddos and played games. We took our super cool Cinemark anniversary cups so we got our drinks and popcorn for cheap (how often can you say that at a theater?) and we even had some treats that we snuck in via Brynn's purse. The movie was really cute and had some amazing music and choreography. It reminded me a little of the movie Step Up, it's another one of my favorite dance type movies.

When the movie ended we went to Target so that I could pick up some icecream, and we almost forgot the icecream because we got so busy looking at EVERYTHING else lol. It was so nice and relaxing for the two of us to go to Target and look at things at our own leisure. Brynn picked out a super cute headband for both her and Ellie and I picked up my halloween costume (it's a surprise so I won't say what it is). We had a lot of fun looking at baby stuff (my FAVORITE) and my list of wants keeps growing. We found a super cute elephant and giraffe that will go so good in Tobi's nursery, I told Jordan that we HAVE to go back for them. I think I just need to inherit a million bucks. Anyone got a million bucks lying around that they'd like to get rid of? That would be cool. :)

We went back to the house after shopping and had some yummy brats, salsa and veggies for dinner. Sean and Brynn always cook the best food, Jordan and I love it when they invite us over. Plus it's nice to get out of my parent's house once in a while. The guys popped in Ghostbusters II so Brynn and I got looking at some nursing covers online, and decided we'd whip one up to see how hard it is. About thirty minutes later, I had a complete nursing cover! We were both so excited at how easy it was and we're totally going to make some more as soon as I can go fabric shopping. I'm so excited. Brynn is a craft queen!

Thanks Brynn for the super fun weekend!

The Leavitt Baby Shower

Both pregnant couples with the hostess and SIL, Brynn

All of Rachel and Tobi's gifts :D

Best. Game. Ever. We had to dress the baby with our hands tied and we laughed the whole time!

The game and food table under the tent, everything was put together so nice! Brynn did an amazing job.

Last weekend we got to attend the first of my two baby showers. It was thrown by my SIL Brynn and ended up being a double shower since my other SIL, Kelly, is also pregnant. Brynn opted to go with a family shower which I thought was a great idea, why not give the dad's a little recognition too eh? We had brunch after everyone arrived and the food was great! Tanya brought a pizza quiche that was super yummy (and low carb so I could totally eat it!) and then we had muffins, bagels, fruit and a yummy homemade fruit dip of Brynn's.

We played some really fun games (my favorite thing about showers), one of which is pictured above. Both pregnant couples had their hands tied and had to dress a baby...simple right? NO! Jordan and I started and totally had the diaper on backwards (our only experience with diapers so far are doggie diapers, which are applied backward, in our defense) so we had to hurry and switch it. Then we had pants, a t-shirt and little shoes. We did pretty good until we got to the t-shirt and we couldn't get both his arms in right away. The end result? His pants hung down to his knees with his diaper hanging out and one of his arms totally looked broken or dislocated, plus one of his shoes fell off. I don't think I've laughed that hard my whole pregnancy!

After the games we opened gifts and I have to say...Tobi is spoiled! We got lots of super cute outfits and blankets, scrapbook paper, toys....all kinds of super cool stuff. The family spoiled us and we are SO grateful. It was fun too because Jordan and I are having a boy, and Tyler and Kelly are having a girl, so there was quite the assortment of gifts.

After the shower, Grandma Bourne took Kelly and me to Babies R Us (we had some money from the shower that we wanted to use) and I found several more super cute baby outfits that were on sale for way good prices!

Thank you so much for the shower Brynn, and thank you's to the family as well for such a great turnout. We love you all!

St. George

This last weekend I got to go to St. George for the very first time! Brynn invited me to go down with her and the kids and stay a couple days with her grandparents. She picked me up friday morning and we hit the road after delivering a few baby shower invites to the fam. We stopped in Cedar City for some lunch. We'd both been craving Panda Express so we called Sean to find out where it was. Sadly, it didn't really hit the spot for either one of us the way we'd hoped and poor Noah ended up spilling his milk all down his front and we had to change his clothes. After that, Ellie's diaper leaked right before we hit St. George and she needed a change of clothes too, lol. We had to do some laundry when we got there so that the kids would have clean clothes the whole weekend. It was a pretty good drive and went by really fast, I was surprised out how good the kids were on the way up. Just a little bit of the usual crankiness after being in the car for three hours, they were both troopers. It's so fun for me to spend time with Brynn AND the kids because I get to see how she handles stuff and I feel like I get a really good example from her. I think I'm definitely a lot more nervous to have a little toddler than I am to have a baby....as long as you meet a baby's basic needs, they seem happy. Toddlers though....it's a completely different playground lol.


We relaxed the first day we were there and had some yummy lasagna for dinner. We took a really nice walk to a park a few blocks down the street and let the kids play for a little while. Noah showed how strong he is and how he's able to climb the equipment all on his own. He's so tough. I couldn't believe how hot it was out there! We walked back to the house and visited a while longer before going to bed. Brynn's grandparents were so sweet the whole time we were there. They were so welcoming and so nice, I didn't feel uncomfortable at all.


The next day we had a yummy scrambled egg dish for breakfast and Sara came over to shop the outlets with us. So Sara, Jordynn, Brynn, me and the kids went down to the shopping center for some fun. We stopped in Downeast so I could get some new maternity shirts and then we took the kids to a pretty cool toy store to pick out some toys. We went to Oshkosh where Brynn got some really cute shirts for the kids and then we went to Urban Wear where Brynn found a super cute polka dot shirt and I found a really cute new wallet. We drove back to the house to relax a little before dinner.


We had some yummy steaks and then we played Scattergories with Sara and Jordynn. I wasn't very good at it but I still had a lot of fun. We said our goodbyes Sunday morning and started the drive home, which always seems to go by a little quicker. We could tell the kiddos were ready to be home and we made it without totally loosing our crackers, lol. Overall it was a really good trip, nice and relaxing and exactly what I needed. Brynn's grandparents were absolutely wonderful people. They had us laughing the whole weekend and I'm so glad that I was able to go.


Thank you so much Brynn, you've been amazing through my pregnancy and I couldn't ask for a better friend.

My first Murder Mystery

Thursday night last week I went with my friends, Jocelyn and Steve, over to Luke's house for a murder mystery night. The theme was 1800's and everyone dressed up in some very cool outfits. I was a little boring as I was limited to my maternity wardrobe, but it didn't hamper my night like I thought it would. Luke was the host and he made the main dish, some kind of curry chicken I think over rice, and everyone else brought in food to pitch in. We played while we ate dinner and it was so much fun!

For those of you who have never played, this game consisted of eight players. We were each assigned a character and given helpful hints on how to dress for that character. We got character booklets during the game that were broken into four rounds followed by the solution round. Each round we would find out facts about ourselves that we did NOT want known and facts about other players that we HAD to make known that round. Accusations were flown across the table and once all the information and clues had been given, we moved on to the next round. At the end, you put in your guess as to who the murderer is and whoever gets it right, wins the game.

I've decided to order a few games of my own and next month I plan on hosting a couple games for my family and Jordan's family.



So be ready for your invites!

Tobi's latest

These are Tobi's latest outfits. We went for a visit at Aunt Brynn's and Noah surprised us with the blue pj outfit, he picked it out himself. He's such a sweetheart and he did an amazing job picking clothes for his new cousin. This just might be the outfit that he comes home in. :)

After our nice surprise, Brynn and I went to Costco to print the shower invites while Jordan watched the kids. We totally got sidetracked with the tables of baby clothes (we always do) and I couldn't help but pick out the Snuggle Saurus outfit for him for next summer. We're planning a road trip and this outfit would be perfect! Then Brynn decided that he needed the dinosaur pj's, we couldn't say no to the smiling happy dinosaur feet. He's gonna look so cute!

I have to admit that lately, buying baby clothes is my favorite. There are just so many and it's so hard for me to use some self control. I figure baby's go through clothes so fast though that it's good for him to have lots of outfits. Plus I plan on keeping him super clean in public which will require a couple back up outfits in the diaper bag....we'll see how it goes!

The Lukara Foostival

The Golden Gate Bridge, First Place
The Eiffel Tower, Third Place Winner

Stonehenge, Second Place Winner

Disney Concert Hall, Fourth Place Winner

Our first attempt at the Eiffel Tower, yummy right?

About a week ago I had the great honor of attending Luke and Sarah's Food Festival (Lukara Foostival) where I participated in a cake decorating contest. I was put on Jocelyn and Steve's team and they had picked the Eiffel Tower for their cake. The theme was architecture and we were being judged on the folling criteria...

1. Representation of theme
2. Creativity
3. Taste

The contest started at 6:00pm and we had until 9:00pm to finish. We gathered at Luke's house with our cake supplies and got right to work. We were using sponge cake and rice krispies treats and Jocelyn had made her own fondant to use on the outside of the cake. We got the base for our Eiffel Tower started and after about an hour it became clear that our strategy was not going to work. After much agonized debating we decided to scrap our first attempt and start over, we had plenty of cake left to do so, we just needed more frosting.

Jocelyn and Steve ran to the store while I stayed behind to see what could be salvaged of our idea. With the help of some extra long bbq skewers I was able to put together a pretty decent looking Eiffel Tower. Jocelyn and Steve finished it up with the frosting and another group was kind enough to donate their extra fondant for us to use as grass around the base. We finished just in time for the judges to arrive.

Luke's grandma and three of her friends sent us out of the room to begin judging and after an hour of judging....our cake took third place out of four. Not too bad considering! Everyone had a lot of fun and some of the cakes turned out very cool. I'm glad that I was invited.

Thanks Jocelyn!

Death by ROUS (rodents of unusual size)

Jordan and I both had a bit of a rough night last night. First of all...we didn't get to bed until well after one in the morning. I was trying to finish a guava cake that I promised a few people at work and was feeling very sick. Plus! My feet were swollen beyond recognition. I'm telling you...they did not look like my feet at all. So I finish my cake right before deciding that if my feet were still swollen in the morning, I would not be going in to work. We played a few Mario Kart races online, Jordan is trying to get gold status with the Wii Wheel....very hard! Then finally I called it a night and went to bed.

I woke up around five in the morning to the sound of thunder and flashes of lightning, but it wasn't quite raining yet. Jordan started to wake up a little and my feet still hurt so I asked him if he would mind taking Jessa out to go potty before it started raining (the little fart won't go outside if it means she'll be getting wet). He let out a big sigh but picked her up anyway to haul her outside. A few minutes later he comes running back in the room and closes the door behind him. He wasn't gone long so I asked him if she was quick about her business this time....

"No, well...I didn't even put her down. We almost died just now...hang on....I need to calm down." He sits down on the bed next to me.

"What happened?"

"Well I took her out the back door and I could hear this growling noise. At first I just thought it was the dogs or the cats duking it out so I started walking out to the grass. Then! Four big shapes came out from under the barbecue and came right at me!!"

You should see his face at this point...he was so freaked out. He then tells me he put on his most ferocious grizzly bear growl and lifted his arms high to be intimidating...causing the critters to scatter. So he grabs Jessa and runs in the house as fast as he can. He finishes telling me what happened and we're both quiet for a few minutes....then I just start laughing and then he starts laughing and we're both talking about how hilarious it is that a bunch of raccoons just scared the tar out of him.

Once he was calm he took Jessa out to the FRONT yard, pretty confident that the raccoon gang wars hadn't reached that part of our territory.

HILARIOUS!!

Cravings

I've had several people ask me lately about pregnancy cravings, just wondering if I've craved anything fun or bizarre. It got me thinking that I should probably record what I have been craving while I can still remember. So far I haven't craved anything outrageous but I have experienced some cravings that definitely hamper my day if they don't get satisfied. I've broken them up into my first and second trimester so far. My first trimester I didn't crave as much because I was so sick, but I still had a few...

First Trimester Cravings:

• Movie Theater popcorn
• Smoothies
• Salad with ranch dressing
• Tomatoes
• Celery
• Carrots
• Strawberries
• Grapes
• Fried chicken from a deli
• French fries

Second Trimester Cravings:

• Pickles and cheese
• Steak
• McDonald's Big Mac
• Watermelon
• Arby's Turkey Bacon & Ranch Marketfresh Sandwich
• Crab salad and croissants
• Grandma C's macaroni salad
• BBQ hot dogs and hamburgers
• Potato chips
• Salted peanuts
• Apples with caramel dip
• Yogurt
• Chuck-A-Rama (probably my weirdest)
• French toast
• Chocolate milk

I think that's about it for cravings so far. It seems like I ate nothing but fruits and vegetables my first trimester because they were the only foods that stayed true to flavor. A lot of my meals had to be homecooked, I couldn't handle anything processed or microwaveable. I still struggle with processed foods actually.

I'd also like to announce that I am over my aversion to eggs! My dad had fried eggs for dinner the other night and as I walked by I thought...wow those look good. So the next day I decided to give it a try and it was great! I'm so relieved because I really really love fried eggs.

My pregnancy at 23 weeks...

I gave my notice at work today and I'm feeling very good about it. I'm getting ready to start school and I need to have all my work done before Thanksgiving break. I'm feeling motivated now but we'll see what happens once I actually get going. My morning sickness is almost non-existent these days which is absolutely wonderful. I've figured out what I want to do for everybody when Christmas arrives and I plan on having gifts done before Thanksgiving break as well. I figure it will be a lot easier to do it now than it will be when I have a three week old baby boy.
I feel pretty good most days and this morning I was thinking about how different my life is right now than it was at the beginning of the year....

I can no longer bend over, Tobi is sitting very low and bending over for anything is agony.

I can't put on shoes unless they're slip ons.

I can no longer cut my toe nails without being extremely creative (I don't trust anyone to do it for me).

It takes me days to save up enough energy to leave the house once.

I can't sit down comfortably.

I can't lay down comfortably.

I can't stand comfortably.

I walk really, really slow.

I can no longer reach far enough to see the bottom of my tummy.

I still can't eat eggs.

I cry very easily.

I'm very...very cranky.

I have to use the bathroom every thirty minutes.

I avoid caffeine.

No alcohol.

I still have a nose like a bloodhound.

And so far, I think that's about it. However, as annoying as all those things are....it's still such a joy to feel my baby move and I'm finally at a point where Jordan can feel him move. He moves a lot these days, especially when I'm eating. I love it. I can't wait for my next appointment so that I can see how much he's grown.

We've also finally agreed on Tobias Wendim Leavitt for his name and while he is little he will go by Tobi.

Yay to pregnancy!

Birthday Fun!

We went to Sean and Brynn's house last night for a nice birthday dinner. Sean cooked spaghetti that turned out totally amazing, and we brought some cheesy garlic bread that turned out pretty good, I was excited about that. We gave Sean and Jayson their birthday gifts and sang the traditional birthday song when cake time came around. We had key lime pie and Sean's homemade blueberry pie (super yummy) and got to just relax and visit with the whole family...well, almost the whole family. Tyler and Kelly were unable to make it due to the fact they were finding out the gender of their baby...which is a girl. We talked with Kelly for a few minutes on the phone and then people decided it was about time to call it a night.

Brynn busted out her way cute baby boy clothes and we went through those...so fun! I love baby anything these days. She sent us home with some way cute outfits and I'm so excited to see how they look on my sweet baby Tobi. He's gonna be such a stud! She showed me the invite she made for our shower and it's totally awesome. Jordan and I get to go next week and register and I'm so excited...I just hope that people actually use the registry, it's so helpful when they do. After seeing our super cute shower invite, I asked Brynn if she would mind helping me with my mom's shower invites and she totally cranked out the cutest invite for me!!! We're going next week to have them printed and then we'll prep them to be mailed. I'm so relieved, Brynn saved me so much work and money by putting that invite together for me.

Thank you Brynn, you're the best!!

Poor Little Puppy

I feel like the most horrible person in the world today.....

because I dropped my sweet little Jessa off at the clinic this morning to get....fixed.

I know, I know, I'm terrible. I took her food away at seven last night and then Jordan and I got up at six thirty this morning to go drop her off. She was SO excited to be going in the car with us, you could tell she felt like the luckiest dog in the world....which made me feel even worse. She's at the clinic now and we get to pick her up at three thirty today. I'm so excited to go get her. I hope she doesn't hate me and I hope this doesn't ruin her on car rides. I have so many worries and I know that the majority of them are coming from my pregnancy. I almost started crying as we drove away this morning it was so hard! I've been walking around the house doing a few things here and there and it's SOOO weird not having her right behind me. She's my little shadow, she follows me everywhere and I'm already missing her a ton. We decided we're going to stop at Petsmart and get her some yummy treats so that we can totally pamper her when she gets home today....poor little puppy.

More Baby Surprises!

The other day was a rough one for me. It was the start of Jordan's work weekend and neither one of us were feeling that great. He was trying to decide if he had enough vacation time to call in...but ended up going in anyway. We figured he'd better save vacation time for when we really need it. My mom came home, in a fabulous mood, and shouted that she had a surprise for me. I knew it was a baby surprise so I hurried into the kitchen to see what she had picked up.

She pulls out a Bebe Sounds Monitor and hands it to me.

SO COOL!!

For those of you who don't know what that is....it's a small sound monitor connected to headphones that you put on your belly to hear the baby's heartbeat and movements. We've tried it out the past couple of nights (that's when I'm most relaxed and he moves the most) but I couldn't find the heartbeat myself. I'm carrying him extremely low and I remember that the tech had a hard time getting his heartbeat too. The monitor has an extra chord so you can record the sounds you hear, so as soon as we can catch his heartbeat I will be posting it here for all to enjoy. I'm pretty sure it will be a lot easier when he gets a bit bigger.

Thanks Mom!!

Baby surprises

Baby showers and babies have always been my favorite thing in the world. I love shopping for baby gifts and I'm so excited that it's finally my turn to be having a baby. I've had so many people tell me that they are making me things for our little boy and it makes me so excited and so happy that people are sharing in our joy. I had a very busy day yesterday at work letting everyone know what we were having and work is still very tiring for me. As I was driving home, I was stopped waiting to turn left and I began to feel the *poke* *poke* *poke* that is becoming more and more familiar as each day passes. It just made me smile as I thought "ope...he's awake and playing". I feel him moving so much more lately. I used to just feel him at night when I was relaxed and the past few days or so I feel him moving a lot more during the day. It's funny because it actually makes me more tired. It's no wonder I've been so sick with him moving so much.

I got home and my feet were sore and I was really tired....but happy. I greeted Jordan and flopped down on the bed with a big groan. He just smiled and said he had a surprise for me. I was totally alert. "What! A surprise!" He hands me a bag and inside is the cutest little boy outfit!! And!! Matching shoes. And!! Matching socks. I almost starting crying, I was so happy. I gave Jordan the biggest hug and told him that our baby would be leaving the hospital in this outfit. So I'm happy to announce that our little boy got his first outfit yesterday thanks to his wonderful daddy. I was so proud of Jordan for picking everything out on his own and doing such a great job. I keep looking at this little outfit and I just can't wait to see my baby in it....to hold him and cuddle him and love him.

I really believe that this is the greatest happiness I could ever feel.

It's a BOY!

I had my 'BIG' ultrasound on Monday this week and it was so much fun! I was so excited that I didn't sleep well Sunday night, even after taking my nightly half of Unisom and had crazy dreams about it. Monday I woke up early and waited so patiently for Jordan to wake up. I watched some TV, played some games....anything to make the time go by faster. This was worse than waiting for Christmas morning! Finally Jordan woke up...but we still had a couple hours to go.
We played Super Mario Brothers 3 to pass some more time and I totally kicked his butt! It was great. We haven't played games like that together in a while, so it was really nice and as far as passing the time....it totally worked! Before I knew it, it was finally time to go. We drove to American Fork (that's where my Doctor's office is) and got there at the same time as my parents...pretty good huh? I checked in and waited for my name to be called.

I hadn't actually been to the A.F. office yet, all my visits so far have been in Orem but because they use a different ultrasound machine on this visit, I had to go to A.F. After a really short wait....WOOHOO....they called me back. They took my blood pressure as usual and said it was kind of high. My doctor just kind of smiled and asked me if I was excited. I told him I was so they decided to take it again after just to make sure. The ultrasound room was so much cooler than the one I usually go to. They had the machine but hooked up to the equipment was a totally cool big screen t.v. that totally took up a whole wall! It was great!!! I got to see my baby in style this time.

He started the ultrasound by looking at my baby's brain to make sure that everything looked good there. The ultrasound was in 3D which was AWESOME! He would apply just a tiny bit more pressure and instead of looking at the roundness of the top of my baby's head...we were looking at the brain...and you could see everything! It was perfect. My doctor was really funny and told us that the brain was almost fully developed which was a sign of it being a girl, because boy's brains don't develop until they hit fifteen or sixteen. It was funny. Then he noticed that the hands were up by the face and told us that was another sign of it being a girl because boys hands are usually playing with something else. He was a funny guy. He wasn't my normal doctor, he was another one who works in the same office, but he was pretty cool.

He then moved on to show us that it was a boy and pointed out all his 'goods' so that we knew. Plus he took about six pictures for us, which was also awesome, I love pictures. We got to see everything on our baby, from his fingers and toes to his stomach and kidneys...it was crazy! But everything was healthy and developing very well so that really put me at ease. I worry a lot about the health of my little guy. They took my blood pressure afterwards and it was normal. I had to laugh though because they have to do another ultrasound next time to look at his heart some more. They said it looked great but they couldn't get all the views they wanted because he was moving around like CRAZY! It made me laugh and I'm so happy to be getting another ultrasound for sure next time, then I'll get to see him four weeks bigger!

After the ultrasound we got to visit with Sean and Brynn (they just live down the street from the office) and tell them the good news. Brynn was so suprised because she totally had our baby pegged for a girl. It made me laugh, I love Brynn and her endless amounts of enthusiasm. She said she had pulled out Ellie's old clothes and everything and now she had to put them back and pull out Noah's. But she was still very excited. Noah made us the cutest little pink and blue cupcakes to celebrate the news, it was a really nice visit. Not to mention that Noah is king at guessing baby genders....he's been the right the whole time and he never changed his guess. What a smart little dude.

I sent out lots of texts and many phone calls to let everyone know that we were having a little boy. I spent all day at work yesterday telling everybody and talking about how excited we are. It's so nice to know what we can look at now and actually start buying things. We've finally decided how we're going to do our nursery and I'm SO SO excited. It's going to be super cute and I'll post pictures when it's done!

So I guess I'll wrap this up now and just let everyone know one more time....

IT"S A BOY!!!!!