update & rant

Well, we finally got to hear the heartbeat of our little bean!! It was amazing. I actually ended up having an ultrasound as well, just to verify how far along I was. According to that, I am a week earlier than they originally thought. So I could have my due date changed, but the dr. has to check everything out, so we won't know until my next appointment what she says. Anyways, thought I would share the picture because I am super excited about it!! I don't have a scanner, so I just took a picture of it from my fridge. :)

It was just crazy to see it moving around in there! And move it did! Wiggly already! Can't wait until I can feel it moving. :)

Ok, on to my rant...maternity clothes. Specifically Old Navy and Gap. Seriously cute stuff. Most of which is available online only, and return by mail only. Which means you pay $7 for shipping to GET it, then another $6 to RETURN it if it doesn't fit. So dumb. It would be one thing if it came with a free returns label, but when you have to pay to return it, that is just bs. And the fact that most of the things I want I won't even be able to see in the store when I do finally get to go shopping is ridiculous too. I totally see where my sis-in-law was coming from when she said maternity clothes shopping stinks. Don't get me wrong, I am excited, but I know I will get plenty frustrated. Another thing that bites is how much it all costs. I guarantee I will have to spend over $30 to get a decent pair of jeans. Ughhhh...oh well, only time will tell! Maybe I'll luck out and find a store with a good selection!! :) Wish me luck.

Sawyer Ben

I took my cousin Sawyer's senior pictures a few weeks ago. He is so photogenic and has the most gorgeous blue eyes! Just wanted to share a few favorites!

long delay!

It has been a crazy month! Hard to believe it's already September! We have been keeping busy, but it still seems like I haven't gotten a lot done. I have hardly scrapbooked at all this summer. :( I've had the same page laying out for like a month, with picture, paper, etc., all ready to go and haven't done any more than set it all on the table.

We do have one good thing to share! We are having a baby! Due on March 29th. So that might explain some of my absence! :) We've been busy telling our families and friends, so the news is out now! I've been feeling really good so far, no morning sickness or anything. I get cramps off and on, and I can tell I'm more tired and hungry at times. I'm about 10 weeks along, and we have our 2nd dr. appt in a couple weeks, which I am super excited about b/c she said we would hopefully be able to hear the heartbeat by then! Since I haven't been feeling icky or anything, it's all been sort of surreal, like there's no evidence that I really am pregnant, so I'm looking forward to hearing that whoosh-whoosh because then it will hit me for sure! I am just excited beyond words to experience being pregnant and can't wait to meet our little one. I am praying that everything goes well and we have a healthy, happy baby next spring!

I took some senior pictures for my cousin Sawyer a couple weeks ago too, and will share a few of those soon too, when I am finished editing them!

baby Aaron

Welcome to the world, Aaron Gregory! Our first nephew was born on August 3...he is almost a week old! He was just a little peanut, 7 lb 3 oz 20 inches long. The girls are loving having a baby brother!

I went to a concert on Saturday night with a friend. It was really fun! The band was called Hairball, and they were an '80's cover band. Right up my alley! Next time I definitely want to take Paul along, he would have had a blast too. It was down at Jackpot Junction Casino, so I ran into a lot of people that I knew from high school. It was fun to see old friends again, it was just too bad we didn't have too  much time to talk or anything.
Fair time is already here this week too. That means no cooking for me 3 out of 5 nights this week! Score! :) Probably not the healthiest, but it's only once a year and we don't really go overboard. The must-haves for me are fresh made fries, a steak sandwich from the cattlemen's tent, pork chop on a stick, and a strawberry shake...mmmmm! Not all on the same night mind you! Lol.
Paul is in the middle of combining wheat with his dad and brother tonight. I know they are done with Paul and Mark's field, so now they are working on getting his dad's finished. Usually I am able to ride with Paul since he's usually running trucks to and from town, but I haven't gotten out there yet this year. Maybe this weekend if they are still going. Sounds like it's a possibility since there are chances of rain all week. Even though it is a stressful time getting the grain off, I think they are getting good yields, so hopefully when all is said and done Paul will be happy with everything. The corn and beans look really good also, but it wouldn't hurt to get some of that rain they are talking about. Sounds contradictory, since they want the rain to stay away to get the wheat off, but on the other hand it would be really helpful for the other crops! I guess that's part of the farming game! Wouldn't have it any other way though. :)

i'm here!

Long break between posts...we have been busy!! July is almost over and it went by just as fast as June did. Ugghhh! I feel like I am missing summer. We haven't even been to the beach yet! But most of the things we've been doing are fun. Friends, family, etc. We did have a good time on vacation though! A few days away from normal life was really nice. I took a bunch of pictures, but they do not do justice! The Black Hills is soooooo gorgeous!! I could go there every year and not get sick of the views. We were only there for 2 1/2 days by time we drove out there and back, and one of those days was spent at Paul's Dad's Cousin's ranch (confused yet?) not too far from the ND border. AKA in the middle of nowhere. I'm talking 45 miles between towns, 3.5 mile dirt trail for a driveway, free-range cattle. It was fun to visit and all, but I could only handle living out there for like a week, and then I'd be ready to see some peeps instead of cows. Ha!

This was right after Paul's hat blew off his head! It was flippin' windy the day we were at the Badlands! We had to make sure we found a Runnings the next day to purchase a new one...it's his special IH cap...

Mount Rushmore

On the Needles highway

Look! Cows! I loved the 'Cattle at Large' signs, but I didn't get a good picture of one b/c someone didn't want to stop for me...

This is the driveway to the ranch we spent the day at. Yeah.

I have this feeling that August is going to fly by like the last two months have...lol. Lots of fun stuff going on though, and I am looking forward to it! Hopefully in the next couple days I will have a new baby nephew to share pictures of! So excited! I attempted making a blanket. It's cute, but not anywhere close to perfect...and if you know me, it annoys me. I wanted to start over, but my mom talked me out of it. I'm glad she did b/c I don't have time to make another one. :) I'll share some pics later once I finish the last couple stitching. Which I should be doing right now!

r&r

Tomorrow we are heading out to the Black Hills for a little vacation, and both Paul and I are pretty excited! Mostly just because we're both looking forward to getting out of here and having a break from work/life. It should be a fun trip, and I am planning on taking a boat load of pictures, so I'll be sure to share when we get home!

Friday at the end of the day at work, we got to go watch some of the guys that work at the hog barns we manage play soccer against one of the dairy teams. That was a pretty good time! Besides being stinkin' hot, that is. We also go some darn good fajitas for supper! The Mexican restaurant in Benson catered the employee supper for them and we got in on it. YUM!! Love that place! Here are a couple pics of the team, and the guys in action!

4th of july weekend

This weekend was a lot of fun. Again, we stayed pretty close to home. The parade in Hancock is always good, and we usually go to that on the 4th. It was extra-fun this year since the girls were there! They make things so much more entertaining!

 
 Pretty cute shades, huh?

The car in the top pic is representing where I work! (Nice signs too, I wonder who made them!?) The girls absolutely LOVED the horses! Especially since there was a baby one. It was pretty dang cute, who can resist any sort of baby animal? We sat pretty close to the beginning of the parade, so there was plenty of candy. I had to sneak any if I wanted it, otherwise it was snatched out of my had before I knew what hit me! Haha!

Saturday night we went uptown to the street dance. That was another great time! The band was really good too. And lets just say it's a good thing we walked home...

On another note, received this lovely package in the mail today! I am super excited to make a mini album. I've never done one before but I think this will be a great start. Now I just have to decide what I'm going to make it about...I'm thinking I'll do our vacation this year to the Black Hills. WHICH, might I add, is only a week away! YES!!!

This awesome little album is from Memories in a Binder, and you can find more here.