The Beginning

Obviously, this is our biggest bit of news. Bubble Baby should be born on October 8, 2008 and Ria is absolutely sure it will be a boy. The unusual thing for Jess and me is that we really don't care what gender this one is. We really just want a happy healthy baby and if we get that, it will be AWESOME. From our experience with the last two, we know we couldn't possibly love Ria or Kat more if either of them were boys!

The second biggest news as of late is that we three girls have been sick as... well, very sick people! Tuesday, March 4th, both girls had fevers and we three basically stayed in bed all day! I even slept right until Jess came home for lunch and didn't have a thing ready for our family meal. Ria was completely aggravated and upset about that, but Jess took it cool as everything he does. Thankfully, he really seems to understand how sick we are!

I thought the girls were a lot better today. We went to dance class, even. But they seemed worse by nite-nite time. Ria even barfed because of all the phlegm. UGH, I know, right!

So, this pregnancy is just flying by. Of course, it helps that this is my THIRD pretty significant illness. Of course, there's the first trimester sick feeling, but that has paled in comparison to the actual physical illness I've been racked by. It feels like the devil is trying to take this babe!! *sigh* Even if it works, the Lord will bring the child to life when and as He sees fit. I certainly do NOT want to lose a child, but I know it'll all work out in the end. My life has, at least, taught me that truth (and I usually remember it, too).

I'm up late tonight. Trying to stay awake until Jess gets home because he went in to talk to the Steve downstairs about something or other. Here's hoping!

So, I've finally finished my Annual Family News Letter Guide/Map for 2007, but still have to make copies and piece it together. So, it will hopefully be out sometime before June! Seriously, it's a time consuming gift this thing I'm working on.

This past Sunday, I missed my first church services due to illness, since we moved here. I was totally bummed about it because I was going to pick up a little girl who is trying to attend church (even though her whole family does NOT) for the second Sunday and I just couldn't. What a let-down, I have to say.

Ria has finished the reading lessons in How To Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons! We've borrowed a teaching reading book (1st grade level) from the library and she's already read 3 stories from it almost completely on her own! We are so excited. Of course, it helps that she LOVES to watch tv/movies and the only time she gets to (unless we're totally sick like we have been) is after she has reading class! She loves to read.

Probably the biggest deal to her lately is her recent aquisition of her own Book of Mormon. I bought one for her with some of my allowance money when we went to the temple a couple Saturdays ago (actually the same day my Mom went with my sis and her hubbie!). She is just tickled PINK about having her own BoM just like mama's (with D&C and PoGP). And when we read scriptures at night she HAS to read at least one verse from each of the scriptures we're reading right now. (We're not reading the scripture stories at this time, we're only reading the actual scriptures to reduce the time we spend in preparation for nite-nite.)

Ria is absolutely set on owning her own Bible now. She wants me to buy one at the Distribution Center when we go to the temple this month. :) She told me so. Then, she wants me to yarn her a carrying case for her scriptures. Yarning is how Ria referrs to my crocheting. :) I've told her the correct term many times, but I have to admit I really love hers!

Oh, I bought a $0.70 CTR right for her when I bought her BoM and she was just all googoo about it. Totally lost it within a few days and is determined that I need to buy another one. But just today I was looking at something and she saw a CTR ring in the sidebar and was SO excited and pointed it out to me. I honestly wouldn't have even seen it, otherwise. She's so funny.

Kitty Kat is well and happy. I started working on colors with her. She's very excited about them, but not terribly intent on doing what I'm trying to do with them. That's all right. She's DEFINITELY a different girl from her big sister! Kat would rather move, climb, and DO. Ria loves to be active as well, but she can be calm and focused a lot more than Kat has the proclivity to do.

Standard operating procedure for dance class is that BOTH girls have to get attired in dance paraphenalia. Kathryn is still really funny and cute about getting her dance clothes on! She LOVES to dance and aches to get out there and do her thing. She doesn't mimic the actions of the girls very well yet, so I can see she's REALLY not ready, but she has a BIG desire!

Both girls love Nora Jones and tonight I found that Kitty Kat also REALLY enjoys Odis. I have to go on a little weird tangent, for me, for a moment. You guys have GOT to check out Odis! They are sooo cool! I'm not all that INto music groups. I mean, I know what kind of music I like and I can definitely put my finger on things I do NOT enjoy. Well, I heard this group on a talk show and the DJs were totally talkin them up. I was waiting to hear the group, sure that they were puffed up more than they could possibly deserve. And then I heard them. Spread the word... THEY ROCK!!!! Seriously!!!! If you look em up on myspace you can hear their work. MAN are they GOOD! I have a crush. I'm not sure if it's as huge as my crush on Metallica, but it's close. I can't believe I actually said that! Yikes. ahwell, they seriously are awesome!! Kitty was rockin to the very first song on myspace and she doesn't stop to rock to all the tunes she hears! :) Nora Jones now has some competition! hahahaha Jess and Ria like them as well. Jess is actually trying to book them for a gig at The Almond Blossom Cafe in April, I think. Wouldn't that be something else?

Since this is the beginning, I think I'll make it longer than most will be and share a bit about our regular-ish routines. Ok. So, Jess works 2 jobs so I can stay home and do everything pertaining to being a Mama and homemaker. In the morning (lately from about 8am until 2pm) he works at The Almond Blossom Cafe. He comes home at 2:10pm for a lunch with the family, which I almost always have ready and waiting, and then he leaves to go to The Ginn Club in the Hammock at about 2:40pm. He's at the Club from 3pm until wheneever he gets out of there (usually around 11pm) and then home by around 11:15pm or later. He is, as you could imagine, always tired. But he's awesome. He tries not to nap the entire time he is home on a morning or day he actually has off. He has Saturday and Sunday mornings off from The Cafe. We go to church together on Sundays and try to make our temple trip for the month on a Saturday morning. He usually has two nights off from The Club and,when we're lucky, the nights sometimes match up with the mornings and he'll have a whole day off! We LOVE those! Rare lately, though.

Tori, Ria, and Kat kick around the house after Daddy leaves. Mondays are relaxed at home days. FHE in the evenings. Once a month that means driving around to deliver Primary birthday gifts to inactive children. The other days we try to focus on a principle or characteristic that we want to develop and understand better. Tuesday mornings we have Joy School at 10:15am (www.valuesparenting.com/joyschool/) and at night we go to the beach library for crochet class, which mama teaches, though we missed this week due to illness. UGH Wednesday are an easy morning, then dance class at 3:15pm. Thursdays we have story time at 11am and spend time at the playground when the weather permits, either before or after story time. Friday and Saturday are also easy days, no outside activities. In the time not scheduled, when we are well, we have reading class, usually 6 days a week. We also have coloring class, painting (rare because it's sooo messy), cutting class, writing class, and working on numbers/math bit by bit. Of course, I also read to the girls and I'm truing to do some Preschool-type activities with Kitty Kat. Additionally, I have crowns, envelopes, and Spotlight tags to make for my calling with Primary. I color and cut out the crowns and spotlight necklaces. For the spotlight necklaces I also add glitter. The envelopes mostly involve stamping, and putting some pieces together because it is the gift we give the children for their birthday (with a little candy bar that I wrap with Happy Birthday from Primary). It's really sweet. I also try to read and crochet. I have to get working on my newest baby's stuff! I think I'm going to make Tigger for this one. But I'm not sure. And, of course, I need to make the hat, jacket, and blanket that I make for all my own babies. On top of THAT, I need to make my sister and 2 sisters-in-law baby blankets for their new additions! :) We're a reproducing family!!

So, that about covers our life, in general. Any questions?