Some big news!

I'm a little late announcing this on the blog, but we found out that we're having a baby GIRL!!!!!!!!! We are so so excited. We weren't really leaning one way or the other, but when we found out we have a little lady on the way, we were ecstatic!

I'm 20 weeks along already today, and it feels like it has gone so fast! I'm sure the end of it will really slow down because I'll be huge (and most likely uncomfortable) and so anxious for her to get here. Jeff is going to be an amazing dad, and I can't wait to see him step into that role when she's born. He's already well on his way, as he is smitten with our little one already.

We have a few names we're thinking about, but haven't decided anything for sure yet. We're in the process of decorating the nursery, and it is going to be perfect.

We are so blessed. Each day I marvel at the miracle that is going on inside me. It's surreal, but so incredible and fascinating. We can't wait!!

Here is me at 7 weeks, and then at 19 weeks. I tried to get the pictures side by side, but it didn't work out so well.

Welcoming baby, April 2012!

It has been much too long since I've posted. Just recently, our lives have become a lot more exciting, as you can see!

I was about 9 weeks along at this ultrasound. It was so incredible that day as Jeff and I watched the heart beating so fast on the screen. It made it so much more real for both of us. Words truly can't describe the feeling of realizing you have created a little life inside of you.

A month later we were able to actually hear the heartbeat, and we actually recorded it and can listen to it whenever we want! I am now 15 weeks along, and doing great so far. I was so lucky that I didn't have to deal morning sickness. I've felt pretty great all along. Our next appointment is November 22, and we might just get to find out the baby's gender! I can't wait to see how much the baby has grown. This week, it's the size of a navel orange, and growing rapidly! We are so exciting to be welcoming this amazing little addition to our family. I'll be sure to do a better job of blogging along with this new part of our lives! I'm due on or around April 23rd, 2012

Illuminate Wellness

The blog title is the name of my new business! I am currently enrolled in a program at The Institute for Integrative Nutrition, studying to become a Certified Health Coach. This is so exciting for me, as I've been getting more and more passionate about nutrition and healthy eating over the last few years. I am going to be helping clients to reach their health and lifestyle goals, and to feel their absolute best! If you want to check out my website, it's http://www.illuminatewellness.com I'm currently looking for people who are interesting in meeting with me for a free health consultation (even if it's just practice for me) in the near future! Contact me if you or someone you know is interested!

Also, I have a facebook page that can be found at http://www.facebook.com/illuminatewellness

Jeff and I are both doing great, and just celebrated our two year wedding anniversary!

Well, hello!

For some reason I haven't really been on the blogging train as of late. Things have been going great with us! Life is really good. We've both been working away. I've been reading a ton, and Jeff is dying for warmer weather to get out and golf. Thought I'd do this fun little A-Z thing just for fun. It's my day off, after all! 

A. Age: 25
B. Bed size: Queen.
C. Chore you dislike: Probably my least favorite would be cleaning the bathtub.
D. Dogs: I love dogs! We don't have one right now, but will definitely get one when we get a bigger place that has a yard. 
E. Essential start to your day: A healthy breakfast. Never start the day without it!
F. Favorite color: I've always loved green. But it isn't necessarily what looks best on me.
G. Gold or silver: Silver for sure. But it's weird how gold is starting to make a comeback in the jewelery world. I thought it was gone for good.
H. Height: almost 5'6"
I. Instruments you play(ed): As a kid I played the piano, and then the violin briefly. I played the flute for seven years in school, and can still play. I need to actually pick my flute up more than I do so I don't forget it all.
J. Job title: Associate Receptionist at an arthritis clinic.
K. Kids: None for now. We plan on having two, though!
L. Live: Boise, ID
M. Mom’s name: Lori
N. Nicknames: Luli, luligirl, Beewee, Laur, Cheek, lol.
O. Overnight hospital stays: Yes, after our car accident. Hospital for 12 days, which is still amazing to me with all the trauma I went through.
P. Pet peeve: I have quite a few. People that run red lights (Are you really in that much of a hurry that you need to put lives at risk!?), when people use improper English. When someone sends you several different texts in a matter of minutes while you're still trying to respond to the first one!
Q. Quote from a movie: Too hard to choose.
R. Righty or Lefty: Righty!
S. Siblings: Younger sister, Jackie. She'll be 23 in a couple months!
T. Time you wake up: As of late, 5:30 am on weekdays, and around 7:30am on most weekends. What can I say, I'm a morning person.
U. Underwear: uh huh.
V. Vegetables you don’t like: Cauliflower. I like most vegetables, though!
W. What makes you run late: I'm pretty much never late. I hate being late!
X. X-Rays you’ve had: quite a few, I'm sure.
Y. Yummy food you make: Stellar oatmeal in the mornings, stir-fry, various vegetables, fish and chicken recipes.
Z. Zoo animal favorite: Hmm, tigers? I don't really like the idea of zoos anymore, though.

Long time, no blog!

So, I haven't been so good about blogging lately. I feel like we haven't taken any good pictures recently, and let's face it, a blog is definitely less interesting without pictures. I'll get some up soon. In just over a week, we'll be celebrating 5 years together (married for 1 and a 1/2 years). I can't believe it's been that long! It has just flown by. Soon we'll both be another year older, and that seems crazy too. When we met I was 19, and he was only 22. Oh well, time flies when you're having fun! Sorry to pull out such an over-used saying, but it's true. We decided to do a progressive dinner to celebrate. He's picking the place for the appetizers and drinks, we'll both pick the spot for dinner, and I'm picking the place for dessert! It should be fun, and I'll definitely get some pictures then.

It's been a while!

I feel bad for not posting in a long time! I'm sure it's okay, though, because it's not like anyone is dying to read my blog. Anyway, summer is in full swing, and things have been great. We've had a few little trips, mostly with family, but now it'll be nice to be home for the most part.

It's been so hot the last couple weeks, Jeff and I will try to go on a walk when it cools off around 8:30pm or so. Yesterday was a different story. It was still 90 degrees at 9 o'clock! Needless to say, we spent the whole day indoors. We did go see Toy Story 3 with Jeff's family (his sister and nephew are here visiting.) It was such a cute movie! I'm not going to lie, I actually teared up a little at the end, ha ha.

Not much else to report, really. I do have quite a few pictures I need to post, but I don't really feel like it right now. Plus, the camera is dead.

I haven't updated the blog in a while it seems, so here it goes! We had a great time a few weeks ago spending time with my family at a cabin in Montana. There was a golf course right by the condo we stayed at, and Jeff loved that! He played with my dad and Cam (our brother-in-law), and of course hit several buckets of balls. It was mostly rainy while we were there, so we spent quite a bit of time inside playing games, and watching a few movies. There were deer everywhere--they would be eating the shrubs right outside our door. We had a nice relaxing time overall, and are glad we got to go.

We have a lot coming up in the next few weeks as well. This weekend we will be in McCall for a wedding of one of Jeff's friends from college. We'll be hanging out at the Church family cabin w/ Jeff's parents for the whole weekend, so that will be a great time. Then the Tuesday after that we are going to a Jakob Dylan concert!! (Bob Dylan's son and former lead singer for The Wallflowers). We are very excited about this, because we have really loved his recent solo stuff. Can't wait! Then that weekend we are driving w/ Jeff's parents to Salem to visit his sister, brother-in-law and nephew. It is always great to see them, and crazy to see how much Kaden has changed each time we see him. The very next weekend we are driving to Idaho Falls to visit my parents, as the 4th of July is my dad's birthday! So that's what's going on with us. Busy busy! It'll be nice to get away each weekend though after each work week. Besides all this, we're just enjoying life and the nice weather that we finally have!

Workin' it out!

There has been some healthy eating going on in the Church household! We've been focusing on eating much less processed food, and mainly sticking to things in their natural state. More veggies, fruit, and lots of lean protein. And lots of oatmeal for breakfast! I've learned a lot recently about healthy foods that keep you full longer, so you don't end up craving junk later on. Also, I've very glad to say that both of us have majorly upped our water intake. My whole life, I think I've been on the dehydrated side. I have just never been huge on drinking water, but I know now how important it is and have been making a huge effort to drink more of it! I also just started the 30 Day Shred (workout video) and it is kicking my butt! We've both been doing more cardio, and are excited to get outdoors to walk and ride bikes since the weather is getting nice.

Anniversary Trip

Jeff and I had a wonderfully relaxing time in McCall celebrating our first year as a married couple. We breakfasted at a local (and cute, I might add) coffee shop, and browsed the shops in the area. It was too cold to do anything out on the water, but we still had a great time relaxing and enjoying the time together. We reminisced about our time together (can't believe it'll be FIVE YEARS! in September). This first year of marriage has been wonderful. So many people told us: "The first year is always the hardest," but that hasn't been the case at all. Really, it's been a cake-walk. Here's to all our future anniversaries!! And here are some of the pictures from our trip.

Our year old cake was surprisingly fantastic!! It was wrapped up so well, that it literally was like no time had passed. Tasted just like it did on our wedding day. We brought the leftovers back home, of course.

  

This last weekend Jeff and I had a great visit with my parents at their house. We celebrated my mom's birthday early, and just had a great time relaxing at their house. Thanks for having us, mom and dad!

As we were driving back from Idaho Falls, my sister called and asked if I could go with her the next morning to put our family dog, Bandit, to sleep. You see, when my parents moved to Idaho Falls about a year ago, my sister Jackie and her husband offered to keep Bandit at their house in Boise. They had been talking about putting him down for a few weeks since Banny had lost his bladder control and was pretty much destroying their house---and making it smell terrible too! Plus he was getting pretty old! He was about 14 years old so he had a good run. I told Jackie to bring some dog treats with her, and I even put a little tiny bit of meat loaf in a tupperware to give to Bandit. I just felt the need to spoil the heck out of him. Let me tell you, he enjoyed that! Jackie and I got to spend a few minutes in a room with Bandit to say bye. It started to really hit us then, and we were crying a lot. We then had to hand him off to one of the girls at the veterinary office. As we were walking out, we really started to bawl. We didn't expect to either. But just being the ones to actually take him there made it really hard. I've had that dog since I was 11. We got him not long after my family's car accident, in which we lost our puppy Cody, who was only a few months old. He was a special dog to us, because really he partially symbolized us getting on with our lives after the accident. Forward motion, you know. Banny was always the sweetest dog. I still remember when we went and picked him out at the breeder's house. He was so adorable! We debated for the entire rest of the day what we would name him. Some of the suggested names were: Buddy and Shiloh (from a popular book and movie around that time). There were so many more that I can't remember fourteen years later. The breeder told us: "We named him Columbus--because he likes to explore." Well, there was no way that was going to be his name! Lame. We will miss you Bandit! aka Bandito, Ban-boy, Banny...

This weekend we're going golfing with Jeff's parents! Well, I'll pretty much just be watching, since I'm terrible, but at least I'll be out in the fresh air with great company! On Saturday night we're having our friends over for dinner. I still don't know what I'm going to make--guess it's time to hit up the grocery store. And we're also going to see a show this weekend put on by Idaho Dance Theatre. It will be a full weekend!

Sick! Sick! Sick!

Jeff and I caught a flu bug that's been going around. I left work an hour early because I wasn't feeling well, and after only being home for about 15 minutes, I had gotten sick. On his way home from work, Jeff picked me up some of the typical "settle your stomach" type stuff. A little bit after he got home, he was feeling sick too. The following 12 hours were horrific. Couldn't even keep any liquids down. I started to worry about dehydration. By about 4 in the morning, we were finally able to keep some water down. Then we graduated to Gatorade. We have slowly been feeling much better today, and are now able to eat actual food. So glad this thing is nearly over. My oh my it was awful. And neither of us have had the flu literally in years. It hit us hard! Here's to feeling normal tomorrow!

I just recently finished a great book, and for my next one I've chosen to re-read a book I read my last semester of college. It's Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast, and it's wonderful! Such great description of food and people. The great part of it is, it's a memoir that centers around Hemingway and his contemporaries in the 1920's in Paris. It's also in large part about him and his writing. The process he would go through and such. Here is one of my favorite sections about that. It's what he would tell himself when he was having trouble getting started on a story, or how to continue a story. "Do not worry. You have always written before and you will write now. All you have to do is write one true sentence, and then go on from there. It was easy then because there was always one true  sentence that I knew or had seen or had heard someone say." He makes it sound so simple. Maybe I'll try to practice his technique.

I'm sick, and it's kicking my butt. It's really just a horribly, horribly sore throat, and general body weakness. I've had a lot of colds and I'm usually a champ, just going about my normal day, feeling crappy. But this in particular has been really bad. Jeff has been so sweet. Last night we hung out with our friends (this was before I was feeling totally awful.) We went to dinner at The Reef, which was delicious, and then went to see The Blindside at the cheap theater. Jeff and I had already seen it once, but it was awhile ago and we totally loved it, so were happy to go again! The movie was great, but as it went on, my throat got worse and worse, til I was cringing with every swallow. Even though it was almost midnight, Jeff insisted on going to the store to get the works--cough drops, chloraseptic and Nyquil. I laid on the couch a lot today, and would doze on and off. And apparently, I snored. A lot. That tends to happen with a stuffy nose. Earlier he got me a frosty, in hopes that it would sooth my throat --and it did! And, he made dinner. All he wanted me to do was rest. What a sweetie. Here's hoping I feel better tomorrow!

This weather has really been great this weekend! Feels like we're getting our first taste of spring. Jeff and I went for a walk on the Greenbelt yesterday, and later on we walked around downtown for a bit. I do love winter, but I can't tell you how happy I am to have this great weather headed our way.

So I can't believe we're already approaching our 1 year anniversary! It has gone by so incredibly fast. So to celebrate, in a little less than two months, we'll be headed to McCall to spend our anniversary weekend. It'll be so nice to get away just for a couple days. We'll bring the top of the cake from our wedding that we saved specifically for this occasion. It has been such a great great year, and I wouldn't change a thing. I am so blessed to have such an incredible husband!!

Motivation, I found you!

I have become so motivated to get in shape. I mean really really in shape! Mostly muscle toning, but there is no denying I'm a few pounds heavier than I used to be. So that's what I'm working on. I have been doing pilates and leg work like crazy, and also eating smarter, and drinking tons more water. That was a big problem I had--I'm sure I was slightly dehydrated quite a bit. I am taking a multi-vitamin now, and I think that is helping too. For a while now I have been working on my push-ups. I literally used to be able to do like 2. Basically no upper body strength whatsoever. It's still pretty sad how many I can do, but it is a BIG improvement. It's so great to see results with something you've been working on. I know I need to get some cardio in there consistently  too, and I can't wait til it gets warm enough to walk and ride bikes. So, here's to motivation! After just a couple days, I feel so much better in many ways. More energy, and just all-around healthier.

It's the weekend again!

We already had a great start to the weekend! Went bowling last night with our friends from church. I was horrible, of course, and Jeff did pretty awesome--rolling quite a few strikes. After bowling we went out to Dairy Queen with everyone and indulged in some Reeses Blizzards. A good time was had by all. Today Jeff is going golfing with Jeremy, and I'm going have a self-proclaimed "Reading Day!" I'm quite excited. I'll also be getting stuff together for Valentine's Day! I think tonight we might go out to a movie. Don't know what we're doing yet for Valentine's Day, but it will be fun! Ahh, thank goodness for the weekend!!

Also, let me say that yesterday was Abraham Lincoln's birthday. He was born 201 years ago! In honor of that, I'm posting a picture of an Abe Lincoln poster board my friend Bonnie and I made in 5th grade. I just recently threw this relic of the past away, but made sure to take plenty of pictures before I did. For some reason, I could not get the picture to rotate!! Oh well.

Birthday!

The present Jeff got me is awesome! It is so me! The little framed cards are original collectors cards from both 1933 and 1936. Cards of different celebrities and social figures used to come with a pack of cigarettes back in the day. Like collectors items. And now I have four of Fred Astaire! (Ginger Rogers is in one of them, too) Check it out:

____________________
Jeff took me out a couple days before for my birthday dinner--a night when it randomly dumped snow for an hour so. We decided to go to Lucky 13, which was actually where we had our first date. Then he gave me the above present later that night because he couldn't wait any longer!
So for my actual birthday my sister and her husband had Jeff and I over for dinner (delicious tacos) and cake (that Jackie baked of course!) We had a great time hanging out with them. My birthday was complete with my parent's singing "Happy Birthday" to me via Skype. Then they watched me blow out my 24 candles!  Then tonight, Jeff's parents are taking us out to dinner for my birthday. Boy, have I been spoiled this year! I didn't get any pictures as usual--I need to work on that.

A conversation in Sears...

This is my most random post yet, but I thought it was too funny not to share. Jeff and I went to Sears yesterday to get a spice rack with some birthday money I had from my mom and grandma (I'm finding as I get older I want more and more practical things). As we were walking through the exercise sections, there were two little boys playing on the treadmills. I'd say they were probably 6 or 7 years old. Right as we're walking by I overhear this conversation between the two:

"Are you a boy or a girl?"

      "A boy"

"I'm a boy too."..."I'm from another country"........"I live in two countries."

And that was all there was. It cracked me up at the time. The first boy totally wasn't trying to be mean by asking if he was a boy or girl, it seemed he honestly hadn't really differentiated between the opposite sexes yet. And he was just full of information about himself, wasn't he?

I'll have another post soon with a picture of the awesome gift my sweet husband got me. (He gave it to me early). And I'll talk about my birthday festivities --actual birthday is tomorrow, so I don't have to post it yet.

Nostalgia

Yesterday morning Jeff and I went over to my parent's old house (the one they are getting ready to put on the market since they moved to Idaho Falls.) The house is entirely empty now, there is just some stuff left in the garage. My parents had been asking me to go over and get the last of my stuff. It's all childhood memory stuff that I had saved. So I worked for an hour or so deciding what to toss and what to keep. I kept all the important stuff--from old stories I had written, to little toys that meant a lot to me when I was young. We made a lot of progress and got almost all of my stuff out of there. When we were leaving, it finally hit me. We were out on the driveway and totally started to tear up thinking about my sister and I playing out on the driveway when were little. I hadn't been really emotional this whole time about my parents moving, and not having that house anymore. It starting getting more and more teary as we drove away. It was sad, just thinking of all the memories there--over 15 years worth!

So we didn't end up going skiing last night. Jeff's wrist has really been hurting him the last few days--it bothers him really bad every now and then. But anyway, our weekend was great! Last night Jeff took me on a dinner date, and later that night we went out for ice cream. Thanks, love!

Weekend

This is shaping up to be a fun weekend! Last night we went to a wedding of some friends from our small group from church. We're having such a great time getting to know our new friends from that group. They're all such fun people. Tonight we're going over to Josh and Bonnie's for dinner. I think we're going to have some Wii battles over there. Then tomorrow afternoon we're going skiing! I'm a little nervous since I did so bad last time; but I think as long as I don't try to go on the steeper slopes, I should be able to get the hang of it again. I plan on working my way up! Maybe I'll have some pictures to post after tonight and tomorrow.