Pregnancy Update

Now that I have "binge blogged" and you are up to date on everything, I will blog in real time. Today I am 29 weeks, 3 days- only 10 1/2 weeks to go! I went to the doctor last week for my routine check up. I stepped on the scale and was in disbelief when I saw that I had gained 8 pounds in one month! No wonder my back is hurting and it's getting harder to be comfortable enough to sleep at night. I didn't realize that I had such a ferocious appetite! All my measurements are right on though and the baby's heartbeat was 145. He is very active and I'm starting to feel like a human punching bag. It's so amazing to feel how strong he is getting! I go back to the doctor next week- already time to start going every two weeks. I am surprised at how fast the time has gone by. Before I know it, it will be January and I'll be rushing to get everything just perfect for our new arrival.

28 weeks and growing!


Rob always laughs because the minute that he gets out of bed (which is well before it's light outside), I make myself incredibly comfortable. I steal his pillows and lay right in the middle of the bed. What is under that mess of blankets is a cluster of pillows; there's one supporting my belly, one between my knees, one behind my back and, of course, my favorite feather pillow that I rest my head on. The best two hours of sleep that I get everyday :)

Rob's Birthday!

Happy Birthday Rob!



Here is the cake that Rob's mom made- Spooky!

Mmmm- delicious!

It was a pretty relaxed day. I made Rob German pancakes for breakfast- just so you know eggbeaters don't work because they don't get poofy like a German Pancake should. It was a very interesting mix of flour, eggs and milk. Rob said it was very similar to french toast and ate it all gone- what a sweet guy. I thought it tasted more like scrambled eggs with a touch of flour, drenched in syrup and powdered sugar, not exactly to my liking. We watched a little college football and Rob took a short nap. Later in the afternoon, we did some clothes/shoe shopping then we went to Goodwood for dinner and had some delicious BBQ. We made it home in time to watch the Boise State game on TV. They beat Southern Mississippi. That is Rob's idea of a near perfect birthday. On Sunday, we went to his parent's house for dinner and birthday cake. All in all, I think that it was a good birthday. Maybe next year we can actually have a party.

Rob relaxing, watching football. As happy as a clam.

Zwetschgenknodel

Zwetschgenknodel= plum dumplings!

Rob's family is good friends with the family across the street from them. The dad in the family, Gunter, is from Austria. Gunter and his wife, Gloria grow plums in their backyard. Every year when the fruit is ready they make Knodel. I didn't know that it was so delicious! Let me describe it for you: it is a ripe plum baked inside of a doughy dumpling, you roll it in toasted bread crumbs, then top with sugar! Everytime you cut into one, the plum juice squirts out and you mop up your juicy plate with bread crumbs sugar and more Knodel! Wash all that down with a glass of milk and you have the perfect German meal!!!
This is Zwetschgenknodel. I just couldn't get enough. I didn't think that I even liked plums. I look forward to next fall when I get to partake in this tradition again. Nothing like getting in touch with my good old German roots.

Spokane

The Spokane, WA Temple.My step-brother Tyler, was called to serve an LDS mission in Uruguay. His farewell was in Spokane, so we decided that we would go and see everyone especially because we won't be traveling for the holidays. It was fun to see my dad and Zach and Noah and spend time with my sisters again. And, of course, it was good to see Tyler before he left the country for two years! Somehow, we didn't get around to taking pictures of any of the family, but we did stop by the temple and take some pictures there.
Me (and the baby) in front of the temple.

Rob in front of the temple.

The Baby Shower

The baby shower was so much fun! Cassie came from Olympia, WA; Christy from Coeur d' Alene; Tracy came from Tricities, WA; Marie came all the way from Missoula, MT; and Rob's sisters, Kiely and Kate came up from Salt Lake. It was so fun to have them all here. Cass, Christy, Tracy and Marie all stay at my apartment and we had some super fun girl time just playing around and talking. It was great. Here I am holding the delicious chocolate cake. We also had some yummy peach pie and some berry crisp. It was like a dessert buffet-tasty!

As you can see, there were lots of gifts for our little boy. There are few things left to buy, which is wonderful! We got some adorable clothes, toys and blankets. One of the things that I loved the most is that we got some amazing homemade gifts- blankets, knitted hats, burp clothes, a carseat cover, a boppy, and a nursing cover-talk about being domestic. You will probably see pictures of most of these things once the baby is born and I take pictures of him looking so cute in them and on his blankets. We have several friends that we met in Pocatello that now live in Boise that were able to come to the shower. It was great to see all of them too.

The return of the floating heads! This is a picture of Cassie, Marie and Christy all wrapped in a warm blanket on this chilly, rainy evening. Cassie has a picture of the five of us girls that I should get from her to post, but you see how silly these girls are and why I have such a blast with them! Thank you girls so much for coming and making my baby shower so wonderful!

What a great day! I can hardly wait to use all the things that I got and dress my little boy in all the cute clothes!

BSU Homecoming '08

This will just be a quick one, but fun. We have season tickets to Boise State football -our friends (and neighbors) Kale and Kyle hooked us up, so the four of us get to go to all the games together. It will be a great season! Last Saturday was homecoming we played Bowling Green. We went to the parade then to the game. And, of course, BSU won. The first picture is of us right after the game. You gotta love that blue turf!
This picture was taken at the parade. I LOVE the marching band and who doesn't love the tubas?! I think a band is what makes college football so exciting.
This is the BSU semi that hauls all of the football team's equipment. They must have lots of it!

Rob had a grand old time at the game! Here he is showing just how excited he is...

9/11 in Remembrance

Marie and Jeannie both did posts about 9/11, so I thought that I would too. 9/11 is a day that no one in our generation will ever forget. I remember that day. I was still living with my parents, it was about 7:30am and my dad came into my room and said "Amanda, they bombed the Twin Towers! Come and see." As I stumbled out of bed, my mind was racing- is dad crazy, who bombed the towers, etc. As I watched the TV, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Never in my life had I seen America harmed! New York was so far away and it all seemed so surreal. At the same time, I was so scared.

I went to class that day, but I couldn't concentrate, neither could most of the professors, so most classes were cancelled. I was glued to the TV all day watching in horror as the towers fell, the Pentagon was hit, and everyone was wondering where the terrorists would strike next.

Rob was in Argentina serving his mission at the time. Last night was the first time that he had seen a lot of the footage from 9/11/2001. I couldn't bear to watch it. My heart aches for all those who lost loved ones. The images of the rescuers brings tears to my eyes as they fought to save as many lives as they could; then seeing the anguish and awe on their faces as the towers fell. America prayed together and many relied on faith to get them through this most terrible time. It was a time when Americans looked to one another for strength and were truly UNITED.

No matter who the next president is, it's important that we all stand together to strengthen our nation. I hope that we can all remember how proud we were to be Americans following 9/11 and how blessed we are to live in these United States of America!