4th of July Anyone?

The pictures are a little late, but who is counting really?

Our day consisted of breakfast at Sonic (since our ward didn't do a 4th of July breakfast). Then we headed down to the parade and later on in the day finished up with dinner and fireworks down at the river.

Watching the parade.

Looking cute in the "flag" shirt.

Brynnlee's favorite part had to be the endless Oreos... it makes for a lovely smile.

Kaden and Andrea snuggling.

Cat's Outta the Bag!

So the big secret is out.

Finally!

My sister, Alicia, is engaged!

We couldn't be more excited for November 1st to roll around.

Looks like another Halloween in Utard!

A Letter

Dear "Vern"

I know you want to know the top secret surprise really, really bad. I'm ready to be rid of the secret too, however, that special moment just hasn't come yet.

Although, maybe I could be persuaded to tell you early if you fly me to CO and pamper me with your "new to the block chocolate chip cookies" and abundant supply of Pert Plus in the guest bathroom. Maybe.

heather
xoxo

PS and now that I see you and Randi are doing a lunch together I would FOR SURE tell you the secret in exchange for food.

The $25 Extravaganza

I know you are all curious to know what last weeks gift card purchase entailed. I did have to shell out a few dollars of my own, but not much.

Item #1 - Candy Corn Kisses. Have you ever heard of such a thing?? Me neither. The verdict- they are ok, but next time I'll save myself the extra money and calories and just go with the original candy corns.

Item #2 - Comfortable shoes to get me through the upcoming Sundays. Let me tell you, finding anything non-heeled or strappy is tough. Found these little gems in the girls section. When I pulled them out Jeremy said "Man those look huge." They are a little girls size 5, not really huge.

Item #3 - Footies to keep my shoes from stinking. Sad part is this was supposed to have 2 pairs. I only got one. I hope someone is keeping their shoes nice and fresh with my stolen pair.

Item #4 - Mascara. I just needed a new bottle. The bottle claimed to hold magic curling power... a tale that I foolishly bought into. My lashes are no more curly than last week, but they have color so it can't be a total loss.

Marriage is a Journey

Here is the cake from this weekend.

The lovely bride went with a lemon & lime theme, hence the green.

The green was so fun to work with and different than the other wedding cakes we have worked on. This cake was the first wedding cake that we have actually had "issues". But all in all, it was a great learning experience and we now officially have a square wedding cake under our belts.

And this picture is just for payback...

token post

I know, I know. My blogging is sporadic. Here few good reasons I've been away this week:

*i shredded and froze 20 cups of zuchinni
*i've been vacuuming window sills and return air intakes
*blanched and froze green beans
*i made jeremy take apart the lint trap in the dryer so I could vacuum it out (so not like me)
*blanched and froze summer squash (so industrious!)
* i've been in the kitchen working on a wedding cake
*we spent wednesday at the fair: too much food, walking, money, but never too much fun
*I totally got run over and bootie-grazed by a NFL player (no joke, it was probably more traumatizing for him than me)
*i spent my lovely gift card
*i started reading Breaking Dawn (i'm very unsure of my thoughts on the book thus far)
*i'm TIRED and pregnant....

Articles of Faith Part II

He's finally finished! Yesterday he recited all of them to Grandma and Grandpa Beck. Grandpa Beck promised Kaden 5 dollars if he could do them all. Afterwards Grandma Beck told Kaden he had a gift for memorizing just like President Monson. He came over to me with the biggest eyes and grin and said "Mom I have a gift." which he most certainly does.

Brynnlee was having a hard time not being in the spotlight. She doesn't give up easily so she decided she would sing so please excuse her singing in the background. It tends to get louder as the video goes on.

Chuck E. Cheese here we come!

Monday's Update

{UPDATE: The video has been posted on the family blog}

I won!

And I know exactly what I'm going to spend my loot on. Saturday I was so embarrased to be wearing flip flops to a baptism, but it was 107 and I was so swollen nothing else was going to fit. And since I was playing the piano, I HAD to go.

We are headed to Chuck E. Cheese tonight since someone passed off his 13th Article of Faith. Look for the video on the family blog, I'll be posting it soon. Hearing a 4 year old say "admonition" just may be the cutest thing ever, at least in my opinion.

I went to the Dr. this morning and she told me she thought I was doing great on my weight and not to be worried about it. Seriously, that was good to hear since the last time I was at this weight during pregnancy a certain Dr. specifically told me I needed to cut calories and try loosing weight. No pregnant lady likes to hear that, especially me. So Dr. B is my new best friend- love her.

And for our South African friend Chell Candy Corn in all it's sugary glory.

No Good Title

So, I didn't bring up the "secret status" to intentionally drive you insane despite all your thoughts otherwise. I'm just not a big secret keeper... so it's a lot of work. It is a secret I can and will share soon, so the torture will not last forever. Cross my heart, to hope to die.

Yesterday I bought candy corns. Yes, I DID. It's mid-August, I'm pregnant, and those are my fall weakness. They were really soft, ya know, because they probably just made them 3 days ago. Well worth the 99 cents I paid.

Today it's hot. It's supposed to be 103. Which is great when you have both a birthday BBQ & outdoor wedding to go to. Anyone have a portable fan and water mister you want to loan me? I may not survive the day without one.

Enjoy your weekend...

Burden & Blessing

The most fun thing in the world:

Knowing a secret that you are forbidden to share with the world.

The most un-fun thing in the world:

Knowing a secret that you are forbidden to share with the world.

Is It Just Me?

Mothers, tell me. Have you ever felt this?

I dropped Kaden off for a playdate the other day. His friend's momma just had a little girl a few weeks ago. As I sat there and watched her hold this tiny baby it came to me: That will be me soon. A little late for that realization? Yes.

But seriously, I can't envision myself with a newborn. Isn't that weird? I mean, I have had two kids already. I should be able to imagine how it will all go down. But for some reason I just can't wrap my head around what life will be like when this little girl finally arrives. It honestly doesn't feel real to me. I'm at the point in pregnancy where it just feels like I'm going to be pregnant for.ev.er.

There is a lot of kicking and pushing going on, but can there really be a baby inside just waiting for the right moment to make her grand entrance? As of now I'm still kind of in denial. I better get working on that...

Fe for Me

I'm anemic. No surprise.

The phone call letting me know the doctor wanted me to start an extra iron supplement was no surprise either.

Picking up the prescription and reading the information label, however, gave me a HUGE surprise. The instructions stated that iron was best absorbed on an empty stomach. Therefore, you should take the pill one hour before or two hours after eating.

Really? That would require a 3-hour stretch with no food. Do they think when I'm pregnant I can really go that long? I'm surely not convinced. Needless to say finding a good time to take this pill has been a bit tricky.

Simpsonize Me

Tell me the profile picture isn't totally hilarious and somewhat accurate. I've never been a huge Simpsons fan, but when I saw the chance to make myself look like a funky yellow member of the family I couldn't resist. If you wanna be cool like me check it out here.

Product Info for the Curious

It's a Chi knockoff and about 1/2 the price. Go here.

Life is Changed

All because I finally got a GREAT flat iron. The Wal*Mart cheapo I have been nursing along just was not cutting it anymore.

Yeah, if you are thinking "How lame, that's not life changing." You obviously have never dealt with wack-o curly hair. Yeah, my hair is nothing short of insane. But this little number makes it super-straight in a matter of mins. My flat ironing time is now down to about 20 mins, rather than the 45 it used to take. I'm in heaven.

And the plain black iron wasn't in stock, so I went with cherries.

Kaden's vote was for the pink camo iron, but I needed something a little more sublte.

It may not be the exciting life change you were guessing, but this is my life... flat irons and pregnancy. Jealous??

???

This weekend I'm going to make a

life-changing

{I'm using this term pretty loosely}

purchase.

Care to make a guess as to what will completely alter my existence?