New Hips!

Why did no one ever tell me that, as a pregnant woman, you acquire new hips? People told me that my hips would change but, I did not realize this meant completely! Due to the cutest child ever growing inside of me, I have not been able to sleep on my tummy since week 4 or 5 of pregnancy. (This caused me a few nights of restlessness because I am a tummy sleeper). I have since adjusted (yet again, another testament to the miracle which is our body) and have been sleeping on my sides. My doctor, friends, various pregnancy websites, and the all-knowing "What To Expect When You're Expecting" book have all suggested sleeping on my left side as that is the best side for cutest-baby-ever to continue to develop throughout the night. Last night my world of sleep shifted once more (scary music in the background...). I was sleeping on my left side, and I woke up with a curious burning sensation in my left hip. To tired to analyze the reason for this new pain, I rolled over to my right side (sorry cutest-baby-ever). About an hour or so later, I woke up with the same burning sensation in my right hip. Confused and sleepy, I tried to roll back to my left side, but I couldn't even sleep this time. So, I slept on my back. All throughout today, my hips have had that burning/growing pain/sore/tired/etc./etc./etc. feeling. At about 1:05pm the inspiration came: I have new hips! This pregnant phenomenon that I had been hearing about is happening to me! My hips are changing! I miss my old hips and yet, I'm really excited for the new ones. New hips mean birth is closer. New hips mean healthier delivery. New hips mean motherhood! Farewell old hips! Hello new hips!

P.S. chocolate pudding with fat-free whip cream is hitting the spot today.

1st Week of School

Whew! So, I made it through my first week of teaching 6th graders! I have the cutest class full of 25 great kids. After my first week, I realized that I have a class full of little Amy's. I say that for 2 reasons:

#1) I have several students who read books ALL THE TIME! (even when I am teaching...)
#2) These kids talk constantly! Everyone in this class loves to chat! :)

(sound like any previous 6th graders you've known, mom & dad?)

Here are some pictures of my classroom -

My bear rug "guards" the books in my classroom library:

Flowers that my principle brought me on my first day:

Our school theme this year:

Wasatch Elementary values:
The view from the doors in my hallway. (My classroom is right after the gray box that is the drinking fountain...right past the 3 chairs...do you see it?)
We sing the Star Spangled Banner & say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning:

Wasatch Elementary is a:

Ode to Teachers

Last Thursday was Back to School Night. Not that there haven't been Back to School Night's in my life before (and with birth being as emminent as it is) there will probably be many more in my life to come. What made this Back to School Night so special was that my role was that of the teacher. Quite the unique perspective.


Due to that experience, I have a very real and urgent desire to contact all of my teachers from elementary school and just THANK them profusely for all of the work that they put into their students. I never knew how hard it was to simply put together a classroom!


Recipe for elementary school classroom:

- Chocolate to fortify myself

- Multiple bulletin board backdrops / backgrounds (butcher paper, fabric, scrapbook paper, etc.)

- More chocolate to help me stay on task

- Bulletin board borders (more than you need because you have to cover top, bottom, and sides)

- Items to place ON bulletin boards (it all needs to be content related...)

- Chocolate ice cream to keep my sanity

- Physically arranging desks (what to do with extra desks, how to arrange, etc.)

- Physically arranging the chocolate in my desk in order to consume quicker

- Name tags for desks (writing names, covering name tags with contact paper)

- Make sure the chocolate in my desk isn't lonely (which it will be - so eat it to keep it company)

- Setting up class library (labeling my books, labeling school books, book club books, inventory)
- Arranging word wall (punching out alphabet letters, spacing them on board, etc.)

- Helping the friends of chocolate feel better by eating them too

- Student cubby holes

- Finish by eating chocolate to celebrate being done! (well, semi-done therefore semi-sweet chocolate)



As you can see, if you bothered to even read that LOOOOOONG list, there is a ton of work to do in order to get ready. That doesn't even mention all of the faculty meetings, team meetings, preparation for lesson plans, working with special education teams for students that have IEP's (individual education plans) within my class, etc., etc., etc.



The life of a teacher is CRAZY! :)



On this - Sunday evening - I am now faced with the last night of not having taught my own public education class. I am feeling very anxious and very excited. Very confident and VERY unsure of myself. In our first faculty meeting each teacher was to introduce him or herself with a title from a book/movie/song/etc... I ended up choosing "What to Expect When You're Expecting" because I feel like that sums up my life pretty well right now!



A) Expecting a child (HUGE EXPECTATION - not even including the physical hugeness...)

B) Expectations for this coming school year

C) Expectations for more chocolate cravings (can you tell where my mind REALLY is? :) )

D) Expectations of myself as a mother

E) Expectations of myself as a child of God

F) Expectations of myself as a wife

G) Etc., Etc., Etc., Etc...



Ok. This post feels jumbled and disconnected. I think it's because it's taken me about 3 days to write. So, I'm going to close now with an excited 'Adieu' as I get ready to head over with my husband to some friends house to play card games. :)

For better or for worse: this is my post. :)

Voting is a Constitutional Right...

So, down below there are the 4 choices for boys names and 4 choices for girls names that Jer and I painstakingly chose yesterday (over a 3 hour period). We find out Oct. 7th so - cast your votes soon! :)

3 Months Preggers:

- Ignore the outfit. Remember, whatever is comfortable to a constantly sick pregnant woman is always fashionable...

Blog Believer

Hello Family & Friends!

I have finally succumbed to the latest facet of technology (at least in my world :) and begun a blog. I figured with a lot of new things coming in the next little while, it would be easier to update everyone at once with a blog than call each of the 38 phone numbers in my cell phone to update people individually (and just think - those 38 #'s are just my mother's side of the family! :) Sorry to ignore the individual aspect - time is of the essence these days! :)

So - quick (or maybe not so quick) update. For those of you who have not heard, Jer and I are preggers! (a.k.a. pregnant). We are 12 weeks and 2 days along (I won't give hours or minutes...). Last Thursday we went to our 2nd doctors appointment and heard our baby's heartbeat for the first time! It was very exciting! The nurse told us not to panic because it usually took a couple of minutes to find the heartbeat. (Which makes sense - inspite of the picture you see, our child is roughly the size of a walnut.) She began doing her nursing thing and, sure enough, it took a couple of minutes. Even though she told me not to panic (her name was Lou - she was very nice), I could still feel the beginnings of a mild panic attack begin to form. For my own sanity I had to ask, "We are pregnant, right? I mean, this isn't just all in my head is it?" She smiled (in that patient way that said she had been asked similar questions many times before) and replied, "Oh, you're pregnant all right." (Hmmmm - was the weight gain what tipped her off?) She soon found my heartbeat (nice to know it's still working) and then, moments later, found another heartbeat. All joking aside, I wish I could describe how that moment felt. I am a mother. I have a child inside of me. I am privileged and blessed to be carrying my first-born son/daughter. My Father in Heaven trusts me with one of His precious, sweet spirits. What an incredibly spiritual moment that was. (Plus, a relieving one! All these symptoms I'd been feeling for 3 months were real! :)

I am so grateful for this opportunity to be preparing for motherhood. I am grateful for this child growing inside of me. All the symptoms I have been feeling are worth it. I was talking with my visiting teachers today (yea for that program in our church!) and the thought came that maybe, one of the reasons women go through pregnancy symptoms, is to help us prepare for having that child on the outside of us. (That sounds wierd so let me explain...). At least for me, I feel as though I have little choice about the sacrifices I am making right now. I don't choose when I throw up. I don't choose what foods smell bad, or taste bad. I don't choose when or how my feet swell, or when the backaches happen. When that precious child comes into the world, I will have a choice as to how I make sacrifices for him/her. Maybe all of the sacrifices I am making now will help me when I have the opportunity to choose how/what I sacrifice. Hopefully that makes sense. If not, well, I'm pregnant. :)