We had a wonderful 4th of July we spent it with some of Ben's family that came up from Utah and had a yummy dinner and watched the fireworks. Last weekend we went down to Idaho Falls to deliver some of Ben's 4G devices he sold people. Work has Ben insane for him! But it's nice to have a little extra cash in the paychecks coming up :) One night he worked from about 1pm to 12am...in addition to getting paid hourly he made a commission of over $200 in one night!! WOWOO Way to go Ben! you just bought us a crib :) We actually have a list of things we will need to buy and a timeline so we don't get overwhelmed with everything. My work has been good, busy, but stressful. My morning sickness is virtually gone so that has been very pleasant!
Because my morning sickness is gone I have really decided that we needed to start planning out our meals for the week. We were spending so much money on groceries but I felt like we didn't have anything to show for it. Thankfully we finally listened to the BILLION of people that told us we needed to go down to WinCo in Idaho Falls for grocery shopping. I was very skeptical but I am completely converted. WinCo is amazing! We literally got our groceries for two weeks for less then the cost of one week if we would have gotten them here in Rexburg. It is definitely worth the 30 minute drive down there! So a little over a week ago I made a goal that I was going to plan out all of our meals for the week and make sure I make every one. I am happy to say I DID IT!! Yes, Ben has been very well fed once again. But it's seriously all thanks to Tasty Planner I kept all my recipes there, they have a handy little planner so you can see your week, and get this once you add a recipe to the planner it automatically adds it to a grocery list for you. So all I had to do edit it to take out the things that we already had.
Weekly Menu w/ links to all the recipes:
Saturday: Chicken Supreme
Sunday: Italian Chicken and Potatoes and Cookies and Cream Parfaits
Monday: French Toast with bacon, eggs, and hash browns
Tuesday: Penne all'arrabbiata and Garlic Bread
Thursday: BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches and pasta salad
T MINUS 2 weeks and 3 days till we head on over to the Dr's and find out if we are going to be parents to a hilarious little boy or a cute baby girl! We have a list of 20 names, yea I know we are crazy. But picking out a name is the funnest part. I'm going to be keeping them a secret though until we are completely decided on one so ya'll are going to have to wait till we find out! :)
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
School
So one day I was browsing online what classes I needed to finish my degree and then I was like maybe I should just try to add them, I honestly didn't think that registration for Fall classes had even been opened up. Well apparently they did. And I was about a week late. So I got most of the classes that I needed but there was one that is a pre-requisite for another 3 classes so I couldn't take any of them. I'm going to try to add it at the beginning of the semester, and since I know the teacher and have taken 2 classes from him and see him just about every week at T-bell I'm not to scared. I can always bride him with tacos!
There is more good news. My major is sociology so there are NO online classes available. However my minor is business and they pretty much offer every class online. So instead of deferring when our lil' bebe is born I'm going to be a full time student and do online classes. I'll be able to finish up all the classes for my minor that semester. So thankfully I will be FINALLY graduating in April 2013. It took me a year longer then it should have but I didn't exactly know what I wanted to do, and just took classes that I didn't need and couldn't be used in my degree audit.
So yea being able to take online classes is just such a blessing! I know it will still be hard especially with a newborn baby, but I really want to graduate as soon as possible. It works out pretty nice because I will be home all Winter semester, and Spring I'm off track. I'm planning on not working for at least 3 months after the peanut is born. But Ben works during the day (as soon as he get's out of class Monday-Friday 1-6) So when I go back to work it will only be at night time. I've been reading a lot of books and I just really want to bond with my baby. We've also been going back and forth on whether I should get an epidural. I've heard some positives, like your not as exhausted and it's easier for you to breastfeed and there is a quicker recovery. And I've heard the negatives- some people say that you don't really experience the euphoria that comes after birth (In my own opinion though people who assume this may never have had a child or an epidural, because everyone I have talked to has said that they were completely coherent). Honestly we're probably going to get an epidural because being able to nurse my bebe is SO IMPORTANT to me. Who knows really though, we have plenty of time till D-day.
The BIG DAY is scheduled! July 22 we will be able to put a name to this little one inside of me when we find out if it's a boy or a girl. I say girl- Ben says boy. We bet a foot rub for whoever wins. So everyone cross your fingers because my feet are ACHIN'.
There is more good news. My major is sociology so there are NO online classes available. However my minor is business and they pretty much offer every class online. So instead of deferring when our lil' bebe is born I'm going to be a full time student and do online classes. I'll be able to finish up all the classes for my minor that semester. So thankfully I will be FINALLY graduating in April 2013. It took me a year longer then it should have but I didn't exactly know what I wanted to do, and just took classes that I didn't need and couldn't be used in my degree audit.
So yea being able to take online classes is just such a blessing! I know it will still be hard especially with a newborn baby, but I really want to graduate as soon as possible. It works out pretty nice because I will be home all Winter semester, and Spring I'm off track. I'm planning on not working for at least 3 months after the peanut is born. But Ben works during the day (as soon as he get's out of class Monday-Friday 1-6) So when I go back to work it will only be at night time. I've been reading a lot of books and I just really want to bond with my baby. We've also been going back and forth on whether I should get an epidural. I've heard some positives, like your not as exhausted and it's easier for you to breastfeed and there is a quicker recovery. And I've heard the negatives- some people say that you don't really experience the euphoria that comes after birth (In my own opinion though people who assume this may never have had a child or an epidural, because everyone I have talked to has said that they were completely coherent). Honestly we're probably going to get an epidural because being able to nurse my bebe is SO IMPORTANT to me. Who knows really though, we have plenty of time till D-day.
The BIG DAY is scheduled! July 22 we will be able to put a name to this little one inside of me when we find out if it's a boy or a girl. I say girl- Ben says boy. We bet a foot rub for whoever wins. So everyone cross your fingers because my feet are ACHIN'.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Update
So really being off track has been quite boring for me! I cut back on my hours at work because standing all day long on my feet smelling taco meat is not my favorite thing to do.
Really it's been a really quiet Spring. Ben's in school and keeping BUTT! And he's working super hard at his new job. He can proudly say that he no longer works at Wal-Mart and has a cool new job at this company called Freedom. It's a third party sales company that provides internet, cable, and phone services. He's done some sales (which is a plus because you get commission) but he works a lot in the office billing customers and following up with services. He really enjoys it and has a great group of co-workers. It's a really small business and they only have 4 office workers and like 20 sales employees. Funny thing is that all the guys who work in the office (including the owner) there wives are all pregnant. I bet work sometimes seems like a relief! :)
Other then work I've just had BABY on the mind. All the time! I have convinced myself that we are going to have a girl but we can't find out until the first week of August. Feels so far away! We have a few neutral onesies, and then I have bought a few girly clothes too (nothing so far for a boy). The closer we get to finding out the more excited we get! A girl would be adorable and so fun to dress and I only have sisters, and pretty much have only babysat girls lol so I think I would feel a little bit more prepared if we may a girl. BUT A BOY! Oh he would be so MUCH FUN! I can only imagine a little Ben and that just makes me crack up. Little boys love there moms and it would be so fun! Either way we are excited for either one!
I got to thinking the other night that we should probably start buying the essential baby items slowly now before we are far into the pregnancy. Today I went onto Amazon Mom and we got some diapers, bulk baby wipes, bulk baby cream, a first year book, and bulk nursing cream. The nice thing about Amazon Mom is you actually save money! They have free 2 day shipping which is pretty nice, after I did the math we saved a little over $20. So you have to research some items to see if you will actually save money.
So I spent almost 2 hours today all on different websites researching what exactly a newborn needs and the little things that you don't realize it until you bring the baby home, and what some people said that they couldn't live without. I made a huge wish list on Amazon and slowly every two weeks we are going to get stuff. That way we are paying as we go and not just dropping a huge amount of money at once. It's a little easier on our bank account and allows us to budget better for the expenses.
This is what we are going to be getting in 2 weeks. I'm so excited!! Isn't it adorable! It has awesome reviews and was recommend by Fit Pregnancy and American Baby and one of the best swings of the year. Even better, right now Amazon is selling for $80 less then retail. It has an electric swings that can swing head to toe or side to side. Two sound effects and 14 songs, 6 different soothing lullabies and 8 musical tracks. The swing is one of the items that everybody has told is worth a little extra $
Really it's been a really quiet Spring. Ben's in school and keeping BUTT! And he's working super hard at his new job. He can proudly say that he no longer works at Wal-Mart and has a cool new job at this company called Freedom. It's a third party sales company that provides internet, cable, and phone services. He's done some sales (which is a plus because you get commission) but he works a lot in the office billing customers and following up with services. He really enjoys it and has a great group of co-workers. It's a really small business and they only have 4 office workers and like 20 sales employees. Funny thing is that all the guys who work in the office (including the owner) there wives are all pregnant. I bet work sometimes seems like a relief! :)
Other then work I've just had BABY on the mind. All the time! I have convinced myself that we are going to have a girl but we can't find out until the first week of August. Feels so far away! We have a few neutral onesies, and then I have bought a few girly clothes too (nothing so far for a boy). The closer we get to finding out the more excited we get! A girl would be adorable and so fun to dress and I only have sisters, and pretty much have only babysat girls lol so I think I would feel a little bit more prepared if we may a girl. BUT A BOY! Oh he would be so MUCH FUN! I can only imagine a little Ben and that just makes me crack up. Little boys love there moms and it would be so fun! Either way we are excited for either one!
I got to thinking the other night that we should probably start buying the essential baby items slowly now before we are far into the pregnancy. Today I went onto Amazon Mom and we got some diapers, bulk baby wipes, bulk baby cream, a first year book, and bulk nursing cream. The nice thing about Amazon Mom is you actually save money! They have free 2 day shipping which is pretty nice, after I did the math we saved a little over $20. So you have to research some items to see if you will actually save money.
So I spent almost 2 hours today all on different websites researching what exactly a newborn needs and the little things that you don't realize it until you bring the baby home, and what some people said that they couldn't live without. I made a huge wish list on Amazon and slowly every two weeks we are going to get stuff. That way we are paying as we go and not just dropping a huge amount of money at once. It's a little easier on our bank account and allows us to budget better for the expenses.
This is what we are going to be getting in 2 weeks. I'm so excited!! Isn't it adorable! It has awesome reviews and was recommend by Fit Pregnancy and American Baby and one of the best swings of the year. Even better, right now Amazon is selling for $80 less then retail. It has an electric swings that can swing head to toe or side to side. Two sound effects and 14 songs, 6 different soothing lullabies and 8 musical tracks. The swing is one of the items that everybody has told is worth a little extra $
Friday, May 13, 2011
Our BIG News!
So after about 6 months of trying to get pregnant we finally have some good news!!!!
We are expecting!
(text color does not indicate gender)
Honestly we couldn't be anymore exciting! And for some odd reason I'm not scared at all! Just super happy.
Here are the most common questions that I have been asked:
1. Are far along am I?
Well I'm 9 weeks and 1 day :)
2. How long have we known?
I knew I was pregnant the day I missed my period. I waited a
week because I was to nervous.
3. Was it planned?
To everyones surprise....YES! We actually have been trying
for quite a while
4. Why are you telling people this early?
We went to the Dr.'s and we got to hear the heart beat!
She said that rarely do people miscarry after there is
such a strong heart beat.
Plus......I throw up all the time and it seriously
grosses people out. So I'm like you can't catch pregnant, people
don't usually run away from me dry heaving
5. Have you had any morning sickness?
Morning sickness is an understatement. It's all morning, day, and night sickness for this lil' mama! Seriously though I have had a rough go off it so far. I was put on Zolfran at 7 weeks to help with it but unfortunately it did NOTHING for me. After literally 5 days of throwing up everything that I ate and DRANK I finally went into my Dr's. The minute I got there she had me pee in a cup (Too Much Info, I know) and took one look at it and was like "I'm surprised your standing right now and not passed out on the floor!" But thankfully the pain of getting 2 IV's was dulled because we got to see out little cashew on the ultrasound!! I was there
for about 3 hours getting pumped full of fluids. I'm on Phenergan now, but I only take 1/2 a dose because
it makes me so tired. I am feeling a lot better! Still really sick, BUT BETTER! :)
I have to keep telling myself that it's a good sign because it means that
my hormones are high and that's good for the development
of our little baby.
6. How is Ben?
Absolutely AMAZING! Seriously I couldn't ask for a better husband. Every time I throw up at home
he stops whatever he's doing and holds my hair back and rubs my back. He's super excited and
we always talk about the baby and what it's going to be like.
He's a keeper.
7. Any cravings?
Absolutely nothing! In fact I usually have to force myself
to eat something because food just disgusts me right now.
Our baby likes carrots, yogurt, string cheese, and dry toast.
Pretty exciting diet I know.
8. How are those mood swings treating you?
Well unfortunately I don't have a job that just sticks me in a
cubicle where I can spend my day. I am constantly talking to people
and trying to be hospitable and friendly. It's only happened a couple
of times where I have lost my couple, but it was super embarrassing every time.
Let me just say, I'm working on it.
8. How are those mood swings treating you?
Well unfortunately I don't have a job that just sticks me in a
cubicle where I can spend my day. I am constantly talking to people
and trying to be hospitable and friendly. It's only happened a couple
of times where I have lost my couple, but it was super embarrassing every time.
Let me just say, I'm working on it.
I look at the picture of our ultrasound like 5 times
a day. It's so tiny! But you can see the little legs and
arms have formed. I think it's the cutest little picture ever!
It's such a blessing to be able to care for this amazing child
of God. I still can't believe that Heavenly Father is trusting
us to love, teach, and raise such a precious little thing.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Better After
So have you ever seen something that you immediately thought that could be so much cuter! Ya know, it's just not living up to the potential that it has. Well that's exactly what I thought when I saw this chair
Has a ton of potential minus the flowers....and the color of the chair really isn't that bad but it didn't match our decor AT ALL, plus the seat is super comfy but was uber dirty.
So I worked my magic.
Sanded, spraypainted, reupholstered the cushion,
and VIOLA.....
Just what I needed. Even better was that it was only $10 to do all of this! :)
And that's how I get my crafty fix for the month!
Has a ton of potential minus the flowers....and the color of the chair really isn't that bad but it didn't match our decor AT ALL, plus the seat is super comfy but was uber dirty.
So I worked my magic.
Sanded, spraypainted, reupholstered the cushion,
and VIOLA.....
Just what I needed. Even better was that it was only $10 to do all of this! :)
And that's how I get my crafty fix for the month!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Fun with Finances
This semester I'm taking a personal finance class which has completely opened up my eyes! In my opinion I don't think you should be able to graduate from college without taking a class like this. It really opens up your eyes, and everyday I leave being like....I'm so glad I know this now!
Our book for class Guide to Money & Investing, which you can get for just 20 buckaroos is a really great book about personal finances.
On top of that, nothing beats One for the Money! This is an awesome book through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that offers advice and counsel to everybody. The principles in here are not just for the wealthy but for people of all financial circumstances. There is also a debt elimination calendar and budget spreadsheet that is to die for.
Since we are both getting closer to graduating and want to grow our family sooner rather than later ;) we have really decided that we needed to get a better hold on our finances.
What better way to figure out what's up with your finances then to see where you are spending them! So found out that we spend WAY to much money eating out. More then we definitely should. So we are using this website Budget Tracker, the basic stuff is free which is really all we need. It allows you to put in your month expected income. Then schedule all your bills that you have each month (i.e. rent, gas, electric, credit cards). After that we made a budget for stuff like gas, food, dining out, dates, and school expenses. The point of this is to get you to really commit to not spending more then you need to. So when we go grocery shopping we go through the fridge and find out the basic stuff that we need. With the left over $ we plan out what we are specifically going to eat for the week, and make sure it doesn't go over our budget. Then we take only $50 to the grocery store. That's actually quite a bit too for two people, so we usually don't have to put stuff back.
The trick is to literally track everything you spend. Sounds a little anal right? Well, if you do it for a little bit it gets easier every day. The point of a budget is to get you to only buy within your means and to be frugal. It's not about restricting you, it's about you managing your finances and not your finances manage you. So pay for stuff in cash only. Me and Ben both get $10 a week to eat out. Between his long days at work, and my days on campus it isn't realistic to not spend a few bucks to eat out. So we each get a $10 bill every monday and it has to last us until the next monday. Works out pretty well.
It actually fun to keep track of your money and to build up savings, and get out of debt. That's our goal when we leave here in December to have a great budget and to be saving money for the future.
Managing your finances though isn't just for the wife. Ladies get your husband excited about finances! Elder Marvin G. Ashton said "In the home, money management between husband and wife should be on a partnership basis, with both parties having a voice in decision- and policy-making".
In my Family Foundations class we talk about about money management in the family, and it surprises me how many people don't really sit down and go over it. Every night we track the money (if we spend any) and we talk about how we can improve, upcoming bills and if we are in need of anything that we didn't budget for (like a haircut or medicine). It's going to become a tradition for us, we've just started doing this at the beginning of the week but I have seen as soon as today from less stress and more knowledge.
Our goal isn't to turn into this
So much as to have a little more of this
So we can avoid this
And start having some of this ;)
Our book for class Guide to Money & Investing, which you can get for just 20 buckaroos is a really great book about personal finances.
On top of that, nothing beats One for the Money! This is an awesome book through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints that offers advice and counsel to everybody. The principles in here are not just for the wealthy but for people of all financial circumstances. There is also a debt elimination calendar and budget spreadsheet that is to die for.
Since we are both getting closer to graduating and want to grow our family sooner rather than later ;) we have really decided that we needed to get a better hold on our finances.
What better way to figure out what's up with your finances then to see where you are spending them! So found out that we spend WAY to much money eating out. More then we definitely should. So we are using this website Budget Tracker, the basic stuff is free which is really all we need. It allows you to put in your month expected income. Then schedule all your bills that you have each month (i.e. rent, gas, electric, credit cards). After that we made a budget for stuff like gas, food, dining out, dates, and school expenses. The point of this is to get you to really commit to not spending more then you need to. So when we go grocery shopping we go through the fridge and find out the basic stuff that we need. With the left over $ we plan out what we are specifically going to eat for the week, and make sure it doesn't go over our budget. Then we take only $50 to the grocery store. That's actually quite a bit too for two people, so we usually don't have to put stuff back.
The trick is to literally track everything you spend. Sounds a little anal right? Well, if you do it for a little bit it gets easier every day. The point of a budget is to get you to only buy within your means and to be frugal. It's not about restricting you, it's about you managing your finances and not your finances manage you. So pay for stuff in cash only. Me and Ben both get $10 a week to eat out. Between his long days at work, and my days on campus it isn't realistic to not spend a few bucks to eat out. So we each get a $10 bill every monday and it has to last us until the next monday. Works out pretty well.
It actually fun to keep track of your money and to build up savings, and get out of debt. That's our goal when we leave here in December to have a great budget and to be saving money for the future.
Managing your finances though isn't just for the wife. Ladies get your husband excited about finances! Elder Marvin G. Ashton said "In the home, money management between husband and wife should be on a partnership basis, with both parties having a voice in decision- and policy-making".
In my Family Foundations class we talk about about money management in the family, and it surprises me how many people don't really sit down and go over it. Every night we track the money (if we spend any) and we talk about how we can improve, upcoming bills and if we are in need of anything that we didn't budget for (like a haircut or medicine). It's going to become a tradition for us, we've just started doing this at the beginning of the week but I have seen as soon as today from less stress and more knowledge.
Our goal isn't to turn into this
Friday, March 11, 2011
Oh what a deal!
So......I'm NOT one to brag but I'm going to. If your looking for a romantic getaway in Salt Lake City or Boise then you should head on over to Anniversary Inn.
It was 11 months ago yesterday that me and the Hubs were sealed for eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple! We had an amazing day filled with love and celebration. Since both of us don't live in Salt Lake City we were kind of nervous about staying at a hotel that we've never ever seen before. But me being the dutiful planner that I am research every hotel in Salt Lake City. When we came across the Anniversary Inn I got so excited! They didn't have a single bad review, so we booked it! Now here's how nice Anniversary Inn is! There was some mix up with the reservations when we wanted to add an extra night. Apparently somehow they just deleted our entire reservation. OH MY! Picture this I'm sitting in my wedding dress in the car not knowing why it's taking so long as Ben is checking in. He is such a charmer....he explained that this was our wedding night and that we NEEDED a room. Guess what they did....
Upgraded us to one of the nicest rooms and only charged us for the cheapest. Pretty great deal night!
Well since our one year anniversary is the weekend of finals going down to UT didn't seem like it was the smartest thing to do. So we are going down the weekend after! Bonus...Last time we stayed they gave us a $150 gift certificate for another stay!! YES! SCORE! Another Bonus: They have a Special that for $300 you get 2 nights stay with an early check in and....get ready for this one.....$100 gift card to restaurants like the The Roof, an amazing restaurant buffet it's not one of those cheap one's but it really is an amazing buffet with delicious food and looks right at the Salt Lake Temple. And you even have money left over for a cheap lunch at the Garden. They make the best Buffalo Burgers Ever! So with our discount we are paying $175 for pretty much an amazing weekend! Yes, it's a dent in our wallets but this is going to be our last anniversary out west before we move to Minnesota and the Salt Lake Temple holds a very special place in our hearts.
So what do I LOVE about Anniversary Inn??
The Rooms- yes, they are themed and I love it. :) Call me whatever you want but they are so nice and they are NOT TACKY at all! It's a nice little get away! We're staying in the Phantom of the Opera Room! Check out this room
Location, Location, Location- right in the hear of Salt Lake City this beauty is less then a mile away from Temple Square and the best restaurants
Specials- I'm pretty sure they are running all year round, so they are definitely a good deal.
Service- They are so nice and accommodating! Not to mention the delicious breakfast that they deliver to you in the money featuring the best scones and parfaits and fresh squeezed OJ. To top that they deliver cheese cake to your room every night along with a bottle of Martinelli's.
CLEAN- The rooms are impeccable.
So are you and your someone special in need of a little get a way?
It was 11 months ago yesterday that me and the Hubs were sealed for eternity in the Salt Lake City Temple! We had an amazing day filled with love and celebration. Since both of us don't live in Salt Lake City we were kind of nervous about staying at a hotel that we've never ever seen before. But me being the dutiful planner that I am research every hotel in Salt Lake City. When we came across the Anniversary Inn I got so excited! They didn't have a single bad review, so we booked it! Now here's how nice Anniversary Inn is! There was some mix up with the reservations when we wanted to add an extra night. Apparently somehow they just deleted our entire reservation. OH MY! Picture this I'm sitting in my wedding dress in the car not knowing why it's taking so long as Ben is checking in. He is such a charmer....he explained that this was our wedding night and that we NEEDED a room. Guess what they did....
Upgraded us to one of the nicest rooms and only charged us for the cheapest. Pretty great deal night!
Well since our one year anniversary is the weekend of finals going down to UT didn't seem like it was the smartest thing to do. So we are going down the weekend after! Bonus...Last time we stayed they gave us a $150 gift certificate for another stay!! YES! SCORE! Another Bonus: They have a Special that for $300 you get 2 nights stay with an early check in and....get ready for this one.....$100 gift card to restaurants like the The Roof, an amazing restaurant buffet it's not one of those cheap one's but it really is an amazing buffet with delicious food and looks right at the Salt Lake Temple. And you even have money left over for a cheap lunch at the Garden. They make the best Buffalo Burgers Ever! So with our discount we are paying $175 for pretty much an amazing weekend! Yes, it's a dent in our wallets but this is going to be our last anniversary out west before we move to Minnesota and the Salt Lake Temple holds a very special place in our hearts.
So what do I LOVE about Anniversary Inn??
The Rooms- yes, they are themed and I love it. :) Call me whatever you want but they are so nice and they are NOT TACKY at all! It's a nice little get away! We're staying in the Phantom of the Opera Room! Check out this room
Location, Location, Location- right in the hear of Salt Lake City this beauty is less then a mile away from Temple Square and the best restaurants
Specials- I'm pretty sure they are running all year round, so they are definitely a good deal.
Service- They are so nice and accommodating! Not to mention the delicious breakfast that they deliver to you in the money featuring the best scones and parfaits and fresh squeezed OJ. To top that they deliver cheese cake to your room every night along with a bottle of Martinelli's.
CLEAN- The rooms are impeccable.
So are you and your someone special in need of a little get a way?
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