Christmas with our Little Miss

Last year I was writing about how weird it was to do the whole Christmas thing without kiddos.  Now, one year and one kiddo later...it is still weird.  Haha, for some reason, a 3 1/2 month old just doesn't get all jazzed up about opening gifts.  I'm thinking by next year she'll probably like all the boxes more than the presents.  

(Note to self...only get Sadie boxes for Christmas next year, kidding.)

Honestly, maybe we are bad parents, but we really only got Sadie one outfit this year, but she didn't seem to mind because she got spoiled rotten by all her grandparents and aunts and uncles.  She loves things that light up, make noise, and are shiny, and she sure got lots of all those things.  

Logan spoiled me with "The Help" on DVD, some makeup, and a super cute sweater he picked out himself (this is a rarity, people).  Poor Logan got undies and socks, which were much needed, but still...boring.  I got him a copy of our apartment key...boring but needed.  I also took stamps of Sadie's feet into the shape of a heart, and framed it, which he did really like. (thank you pinterest)

Most of all, we have been spoiled by this little girl coming into our family:

She really is our favorite gift.

We found out she was coming a little after New Years last year...I feel like 2011 has been the great baby adventure.  I'm excited to see what 2012 brings!!

 Mommy and Sadie in front of the tree.

She's so excited...not.

 Logan and Mini-Logan

The rest of the day was filled with family, food, and fun.  I seriously am the most blessed girl ever to have such a wonderful life.  Here's to making 2012 as wonderful as 2011 has been!

Sadie meets her BFF (#1)

Autumn had her sweet baby girl on Tuesday!  That means two of the three girl cousin triplets are here!  Brynn (number 3 baby girl is still baking in her tummy) said she imagined Avery coming down "Saturday's Warrior" style...you know, when the spirit stands on the platform and dissolves as they are being born...leaving her baby girl all alone up there.  Don't worry Girly, you'll be down here too in about a month (we're all super excited to meet you)!  I seriously think these three girls must be the best of friends, since they all decided to come into the same family within 5 months of each other.  What lucky little girls to have the opportunity to be best friends and cousins.  I hardly know any of my cousins, but I'm glad that my babies will know theirs.

Anyhoo...Avery is here, and she is precious beyond words. Almost (but not quite) as cute as Sadie was when she was brand new...but I mean, as her mommy, I'm bound to be biased :).  She has the cutest chubby little cheeks, and the brightest eyes; she cries like a kitten, and has long fingers and toes.  She was a breech baby too, so she is always trying to get her feet up by her head since that's how she grew, which I find both adorable and amusing.  And this girl, she already loves her binkie.  She can hold it in a thousand times better than Sadie.  (Maybe Avery will teach Sadie a new trick)

Avery Lyn

It is really fun for me to snuggle on Avery and think back on when Sadie was that tiny.  Even though it wasn't even 4 months ago, I feel like Sadie has been here forever, so it seems like it's been a lot longer.

Also...everyone comments on how tiny my Sadie Lady still is...but now that I've seen her up next to a smaller, newer baby, I feel like my baby has magically gotten ginormous.  How quickly we forget how tiny they are when they come.  I mean, look at this picture...Sadie looks huge next to teensy little Avery!!

I am so grateful Avery is here, safe and sound, and healthy as can be.  I am seriously ecstatic for Sadie to have her friend here!  In only 5 more weeks, we'll have another sweet little spirit in our family, and the triplet cousins will be reunited!  (Dude, how humongous is my baby girl going to look next to the new baby then?!)

To My Sweet 3 Month Old Baby Girl

My Little Sweetums,

I literally call you "Sweetums" so many times a day, you are probably confused at what your name is.  I can't help myself because you really are the sweetest thing in my world.  I am that annoying mother who thinks their child is the most perfect being to grace the planet...except I don't think, I know you actually are.  Don't let it go to your head little one.

This month we had...constipation issues.  Yes, it is true.  Thank goodness for brave Grandma Ilene, who came to your rescue many a time to help you poop with torturous ways like glycerin suppositories.  I'm sorry, your mommy is a chicken still...but Grandma is brave, brave, brave.  I think we are on the up and up on that issue, though.  You are pooping more regularly...please keep it up.  And please don't hate me in the future for posting about your potty habits on the web.  Thank you dear one.

You are seriously the dang cutest thing I have ever laid eyes on.  When you came home from the hospital, I swore you would NEVER be as cute as you were those first few days, and I seriously mourned that you would get bigger and not be as cute.  Oh my, was I ever wrong.  Yes, Sweetums, you were darling then, but you are sooooooo much cuter now than I could have ever imagined.  You smile ALL THE TIME.  Your most favorite things to smile at this month are Christmas Lights, Daddy and me, and other little kids.  You love your cousins, especially Bailey and Avery (my side of the family's Avery, not the one that is coming down from heaven next week).  They are both almost 2 years old, and love to giggle, love, and snuggle on you, and you love smiling at them.  Yesterday while I was reading the mail, you were squealing at the pictures of them on their Christmas cards on the fridge.  I love that you already love other babies and children.  I feel like you still remember all your siblings up in Heaven, and you are excited to have other children in your life more regularly.  Give your parents a few years to get our feet back under us again from having you though, please.  But trust me, I'm excited to meet them too.  I'm sure they are just as awesome as you.

You are usually sleeping through the night now!!  You go down at around 8, wake up at 11 to eat, and then don't wake up again until 7:30 the next morning.  It rocks my world.  I am seriously loving it!  I am so proud of you for sleeping for so long!

You are still a petite little thing.  Haven't gained much weight or length from your 2 month appointment, the doctor told us to keep an eye on that for next month (you have barely cracked 10 pounds, and are 22 inches long).  But you eat lots, and you don't spit up a ton, so I don't know where all this milk is going!  Grow my little one! (But at the same time, not too fast)

You laughed a little at Daddy yesterday.  He was singing Alvin and the Chipmunk's "Christmas Song" to you, and whenever he would sing the words "hula hoop" you would laugh at him.  We basically melted with joy over this.  It was seriously the cutest, most bestest sound I have ever heard in this life.  I look forward to when you giggle more, sweet thing.

You snuggle lots.  You are recognizing other people.  You love watching Baby Einstein videos.  You love having us read books to you.  You go back and forth about liking or detesting your binkie.  You are a full fledged hand sucker...we tried to deter you from that, but you fought us on that, and won the battle.  You are very, very sweet.  Most of all, you are probably the most loved baby I have ever met, and don't you forget it!!  I say this all the time, but seriously, thank you for coming to our family.  I can't even imagine my life without you in it anymore.  I am so stoked I get to be your mommy forever!!

Love,
Your #1 Fan,
Mommy

Sadie and Santa

Our ward Christmas party was this past weekend.  Santa was even kind enough to come down from the North Pole and visit all the children personally (I mean, seriously, how legit is this Santa?!), and braved our hysterical Sadie.

Oh, you don't think she looks hysterical here?  Well, she was, until the second I placed her in his arms, and then she turned into a complete angel baby, and was totally fascinated with his beard.  Don't worry, she continued her little freak out the second I picked her back up.

Oh, I see Sadie, you'd rather be with the magical man with the soft snuggly suit than your own mother?  Well, at least your first Santa picture turned out adorable!

Christmas Lights at Temple Square

 We went up to Temple Square with the whole Spence Family.  Sadie LOVES our Christmas tree at home, and will stare at the lights forever, so we thought she would maybe like to see lots and lots of trees all lit up.  We bundled her up to a ridiculous degree...think Ralphie on "A Christmas Story" that falls over and can't get up because he's wearing so many layers.  But she stayed warm, and seemed to enjoy it a little.  Honestly, she fell asleep through most of it, and woke up for the very end to take a peek, but she really liked the 5 minutes she was awake for!  I think next year she'll get a little more excited about the whole idea.

Our little family.  

Look at her pink fluffy legs...they are only really half that size, she was bundled up LOTS.

 Her sweet eyes taking a peek.

Most adorable thing ever, yes?

This was on our way out into the cold.  We had just woken her up to get her in her snow suit and hat, and she was less than thrilled about it.  Her face just cracks me up here...she looks like one of those cats with the squished up faces!!  Oh my, I am just so in love with my baby!!

Guest Blogger for Adoption

I was asked to be a guest blogger for an adoption blog called "My Angels from Heaven."
I wrote about my experience of growing up knowing I was adopted, reuniting with my birthparents and their families, and how it has affected me as an adult and as a mommy.

If you want to check out my post, you can find it HERE!

Adoption is amazing, people!!

Baby's First Thanksgiving

We celebrated Sadie's first Thanksgiving with Logan's family this year.  Alicia's family had dinner with us, and it was so great spending a whole afternoon with them and their silly kids.
Sadie basically thought the food was totally uneventful, and slept through the whole dinner.  However, she sure does love going to Grandma Deana's because she gets passed around the whole time.  She's a social butterfly and loves to snuggle, smile, and talk to everyone around her.  The food was great, but the company was even better!

We had a game and pie night at Grandma Belnap's later that evening, which was super fun.  As long as I can remember, PIE has been the big to do at Thanksgiving with the Belnaps...not turkey...it's all about the pie, and there are always close to a dozen varieties to choose from.  It was fun to be able to see both sides of our family on that day.  I LOVE OUR FAMILY!!!

As we sat down for dinner, I leaned over to Logan and asked him if last year at Thanksgiving dinner he thought we would be parents by the next year.  We thought maybe we might be pregnant, or still even trying to get pregnant by the next holiday season, but we didn't think that she would already be here!  I am so glad she came when she did, because she is the best thing in our lives.

I am so grateful for my sweet husband and for the wonderful job he has to provide for us.  I am grateful for the opportunities we have had to get us through school almost debt free.  I am grateful for our apartment we live in, for the shelter it provides, and the loving landlords we have upstairs.  I am grateful for our neighborhood and the friendships we have made since living there.  I am grateful that we have a running car that has good gas mileage, and has been so great for our little family.  I am grateful that I have been able to continue teaching dance after having Sadie, my boss is amazing and so supportive of me.  I am so grateful that we have all of our family so close so we can visit them often.  I am grateful that Sadie will grow up knowing her family and being close to her cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.  Most of all, I am grateful that I have the gospel in my life, for the joy and peace it brings, and the knowledge that I can be sealed to my family forever.  I am so grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ, and for the love he has for me, individually.  I know he knows who I am, and that he loves me, and I love him.

We are so incredibly blessed, and I am so grateful for the life I am living, and all of the wonderful things in it.

Blessing Day

November 6, 2011 Sadie had her baby blessing.  Her daddy gave a wonderful blessing, and Sadie was so well behaved during the blessing.  It was a sweet day, especially for me, because ALL of my family was there to support her--my family, my birthmom and her family, my birthdad and his family, and all of my in laws.  I am still just blown away at how many people love and spoil this little girl of mine.  She is so blessed!!

My super talented mommy made her gorgeous blessing dress, hair bow, and blanket for her big day.  The dress is so beautiful, with beading to add "bling" around the bottom, and lace, ribbons, and flowers galore.  Super girly, and I LOVE it. (We couldn't get a good picture of the details of the dress...when we put her in it, she just kick-kick-kicks away at the skirt and all the pictures are super blurry! Haha!)  She was so beautiful in the dress, it made me a little emotional--I will blink and she will be in her white baptism dress--then I will blink again and she will be in her white wedding dress.

She is just so sweet, we are just soaking in every moment.  I am so incredibly blessed to be this baby girl's mommy.  I am so grateful she chose to come to our family!

To My Sweet 2 Month Old Baby Girl

My Sweet Sadiebug,

You are two months old.  When did this happen?  Half of me feels like we've had you forever and ever, and half of me feels like just ten minutes ago I was feeling you move around in my tummy.

This month you started to smile real, honest to goodness smiles, and you talk to us a little.  You are starting to get more on a schedule, which I am loving because I can predict your day a bit better than I could at the beginning.  You wake up around 7:30, eat, get a diaper change, and then we play.  You usually take 2 shorter naps in the morning, and then one longer and one shorter nap in the afternoon.  We pick up Daddy from work at 7, and you are so nice to stay awake and play with him until around 8:30, and then you go to sleep for the night.  You usually sleep until about 2 or 3, which means I am getting more sleep too (thank you), but I am still just awaiting the day you decide to sleep through the night.

You are so friendly and love to be held, talked to, and played with.  Last week Grandma Deana gave you a toy rattle and you actually held on to it, and cooed with delight.  You love the bouncer seat with the toy bar above it, and you love to bat at the little toy animals that hang down.  You talk to them too, like they are your friends.  You have started to sit up in your Bumbo, and love to sit in that while I cook dinner, watching me walk all around the kitchen.  This month you also discovered the Minnie Mouse magnet on our fridge, and love to sit close to her and look at her.  This, sweet Sadie, makes me so happy.  You may look like your daddy, but perhaps you have my personality in there, and with it a deep love for all things Disney.

Speaking of Disney, you were dressed up as Tinkerbell for Halloween, and you were the darn cutest little fairy I have ever seen.  I wish I could have bottled up your cuteness that day, because it made me extra giddy seeing you in your little costume.

You are holding your head up so good.  I seriously can't believe how strong you are getting!!  You always like to look around, checking the place out, and already do not like being held laying down because I don't think you can see as much.  When you are tired, and I'm holding you over my shoulder, you love to lift your head up, look around the room, and then snuggle your little head on my shoulder for a little rest.  I melt every single time you do this.  It never gets old.

You had your baby blessing this past Sunday.  Grandma Ilene made your blessing dress, and you were so gorgeous in it.  You were so good for the blessing, didn't make a peep the whole time.  Your daddy was nervous to give you his first blessing, but he did a wonderful job, and the spirit was so strong.  All eight of your grandparents came for the blessing, along with all your aunts, uncles, and cousins.  You are so loved by so many people, you lucky duck baby girl.

You got your two month shots yesterday afternoon, and I cried in the doctor's office longer than you did.  You got poked, and did a very loud scream, and I started to bawl.  By the time I picked you up and snuggled you, you had stopped crying, but it wasn't until after I had fed you, gotten you dressed, and back in your car seat that I finally stopped crying myself.  Later that night, though, was a different story.  You broke out in a fever, and cried hysterically for two hours straight.  It was no fun to watch you not feel well, knowing there wasn't anything I could do to take the pain away from you.  I snuggled with you all evening, hoping that maybe it would make you more comfortable and help you not feel alone.  When I am sick, I still want my mommy, so I wanted to be there for you. Just so you know, I will always be there for you, no matter what.

You are the most perfect little girl I could have ever asked for to be my daughter.  You have such a strong, sweet, and loving spirit.  Your personality is starting to show, and I can't wait to get to know you better this month.  I love you one billion percent, my sweet angel!

Love,
Mommy

Halloween...first holiday with a baby!

Honestly, I'm not the most festive person when it comes to Halloween.  I love the idea of being festive, but I'm just not.  I have no big traditions for the holiday, but I would love to adopt a few.  I love dressing up in costumes, but I hate trying to figure out what to be, and then getting the costume together--yeah right.  I especially love the idea of forcing convincing Logan to do a cutesy couple-y costume with me, but I'm too lazy to put in the effort.


Logan did get in a bit of the spirit and dressed as a Pharmacy Tech who is a dad...complete with Smith-Rexall scrubs and spit up all down his chest, courteous of our most favorite baby.  Woo, party with the Spences', I know.

I think it will become more fun as Sadie gets older and gets excited about more than milk and fresh diapers.  When I have someone to be festive for, I think it will be more exciting to decorate the whole house, figure out her costumes, and go trick or treating, so I have not given up on the holiday quite yet.

My parents bought Sadie this adorable costume in Disneyland.  I love Disney, I love my baby, and I love having my baby dressed up as a Disney character.

I always think she is cute, but I literally squealed, giggled, and squished her little cheeks about one million times after dressing her in this.  I mean, come on, isn't she the cutest little Tinkerbell you have EVER seen?

The costume even came with wings that velcro on and off, you know, for car seat purposes.

We trick or treated to Grandmas' houses, then went home to watch "Young Frankenstein," a movie I had forgotten was so funny.  

A pretty boring holiday, but dang we had one cutie patootie baby to dress up.  I just love her to pieces.

To My Sweet 1 Month Old Baby Girl

My Sweet Sadie,

One month ago I became your mommy.  This month has been seriously the fastest month of my life!!  Half of me feels like we've had you forever, and I can hardly remember what my life was like before you, but the other half of me feels like you were just born 10 minutes ago, and the thought that you are already a month old boggles my brains.

You are still the sweetest, most precious baby EVER.  You love to cuddle.  You love to be talked to.  You love being around people, and get lonely if you're in your bassinet or in a room by yourself.  You might have smiled your first smile yesterday, but I'm not sure.

You sometimes sleep 4-5 hours in a row at night, and I love that.  However, sometimes you sleep for only 2 hours in a row at night, and I don't so much love that.  You have had a few rough days this month with baby gas.  Sometimes you fart and scare yourself awake, and cry and cry and cry.  I'm not going to lie, your daddy and I laugh a little, but we snuggle you until you feel better so you don't think we're mean.

You are more awake now, and like to look around.  You love to wiggle your little legs and arms all over the place, like you're figuring out how to work your body.  You love your binky, but only if Daddy or I hold in in for you.  You love sitting up against our tummies and checking the place out.  You love getting passed around the family and getting snuggly loves from everyone.  You are so girly already and love getting primped and pampered--you love taking baths, getting your hair washed, and having your nails clipped.  You hate having your diaper changed, or having shirts pulled over your head.  You also hate being put down, which makes it hard for me to get things done around the house, but luckily you love your baby sling, so we do our chores together with you snuggled against my chest.  You  make so many little grunts and squeaks.  You snore when you sleep, but you sound like a little puppy.  It's basically the most adorable thing ever.

You already weigh 8 lbs. 2 oz. and are 22 inches long.  85% for height, 25% for weight--you are our tall and skinny girl.  No surprise there, your daddy is also very tall and skinny!

I am so excited that it is starting to get chilly, you have so many cute Fall and Halloween clothing, I love dressing you up every day.  You are my real life dolly.  I don't even really mind when you blow out your diaper or spit up all over yourself, because then I get to dress you up all over again!!

Thank you so much for choosing me as your mommy.  I'm learning, and you are patient, and for that I am grateful.  On a scale from 1 to 10, I love you one billion.

Love,
Mommy

The Day I Became "Mommy"

Do you see this face?

This is the most precious, beautiful, sweet face I have ever seen.

 My heart is so full of love for this little girl, and it has only been 16 days since I laid eyes on her.  I can't believe how lucky and blessed I am to be her mommy.

Last week was my due date, but I am so glad she decided to come a bit early.  She is so much more fun on the outside than in! 

Our little adventure to get that sweet little girl here started Friday, September 2, 2011.  I had been experiencing a few contractions here and there for a few days, but nothing to be really concerned about.  Logan and I had been telling our nephew, Braxton, that we would have him over for a sleepover sometime that summer before the baby was born.  All of the sudden, September was here, and we decided we BETTER have that sleepover quick, because we were hoping that by the next weekend I would be in the hospital delivering our sweet little girl.  That day I guess Braxtie wasn't feeling so well, and wanted to stay home from school, but his mommy told him if he did, he would miss the sleepover, so he sucked it up and went.  That evening when we picked him up, he seemed his normal, energetic, happy self.  Before we left, his parents gave him some cough syrup to help him sleep through the night without coughing, and we took off to our little apartment. 

While watching "Over the Hedge" and baking brownies, Braxton said he felt like he was getting "all hot like a fever."  We gave him a half a Tylenol, wrapped things up, and got him all set up on the couch.  Nighty Night, Braxtie...

I wasn't sleeping well anyway, between contractions and having to go to the bathroom every hour or so.  Around 3:30 a.m. Braxton started to whimper, and the cough, and then cry.  Logan and I went to go check on him, and we found him curled up in a ball coughing so dang hard, lips turning blue because he wasn't able to breathe in really well with out coughing it all back out, and crying that his throat and head were hurting really bad.  He was burning up with a fever, and just shaking.  We called his parents, told him we were bringing him back, and Logan wrapped him up in a blanket really tight while I gathered all his things.  We got him home, laid him back down to sleep, and Logan and his dad gave him a Priesthood Blessing to help him through the night.  We got home a little before 5, and I was too awake to get back to sleep.

Later that morning, Logan was playing tennis with his friend Wyatt.  We headed to the park, where I was set up to watch with my camping chair, reading book, water, etc.  I was talking to my mom on the phone while they were playing, when a pretty strong contraction hit.  Afterwards, I felt a gush...and started wondering if my water had broken.  I told my mom I had to go, called my sister in law Brynn to see if she thought maybe I might be going into labor, and then decided maybe we should go to the hospital just to make sure.  I called over the boys, and told them they had to cut their set short (and that I was sorry).

We headed over to the hospital, they hooked me up, and we waited an hour.  My contractions were picking up, and we started to get excited that maybe we could be meeting our little girl that weekend.  They checked my progress, and I had gone from a 2.5 to a 3, so they wanted me to walk to see if I could progress enough for them to keep me.  So we walked for an hour.  Labor and Delivery at my hospital isn't that big, we must have done about 4 million laps around that place, all while some teen mom going natural was pushing in Rm. 9, screaming her head off, and freaking me out.  At the end of my hour, I was checked again.  Almost to a 4, and definitely in early labor, but they didn't want to keep me yet, so they sent me home to labor, and told me to come back "when it hurt so bad I couldn't breathe well."  (yikes)

We went home to pack our bags...our little girl was coming within the next few days!!  I finally was tired enough to fall asleep (kind of) for a few hours, and then we headed up to visit my parents, and to be closer to the hospital, you know, just in case.  We walked around the neighborhood a LOT, and my contractions were coming every 2 minutes, and they were starting to hurt pretty bad, so we thought maybe we should head back to the hospital.  We went back to my parents' house, and as I sat on the couch to catch my breath, my contractions STOPPED.  Not spread out, not get less painful, FULL ON STOPPED.  I cried.  We went back home to get some rest, and hope that maybe we'd have to go back to the hospital sooner rather than later.

The next morning we got ready for church, went, taught our lesson in primary, and went back home.  Nothing.  No more contractions, and I was frustrated.  We decided to visit Logan's parents and walk laps around the park behind their house to see if maybe we could get things started up again.  3 miles later, I suddenly had the worst back pressure of my life.  I was hurting so bad it was hard to breathe...hooray!!  And off to the hospital we went.

They checked me again, but whoops, she felt a "hand" and went to go get an ultrasound machine to check the situation out.  The plan was to break my water, push the hand back behind the head, and I would deliver like normal.  However, once they checked me with the ultrasound, it was not our little girl's hand, but her FOOT.  We had thought she had been head down this whole time, but it turns out every time they checked my progress and felt her "head," it was actually her little bum.  Not only were her feet down, but her umbilical cord had also pooled up at the bottom of my uterus, which could be a bad sign--if my water were to break, the cord would be flushed out, followed by a foot, which would pinch her oxygen supply off.

My doctor came and checked me out too, and gave me my options of where to go from there.  He thought maybe we could do an external aversion, where they turn the baby around by pushing on her on the outside, or I could have a c-section that night and get her out, or we could wait a few days and see if she would flip on her own.  However, after seeing that I was already dialated to 4 centimeters, "waiting it out" was off the table, as was an external aversion, since the chances of my water breaking were too high, and I would have to be put under for a panicked emergency c-section.  My only option to make sure our baby got here safely was to go through with the c-section.  Out of all of this, I will never forget how kind and loving my doctor was towards Logan and me.  I remember asking him, "If I was your daughter, what would you have me do?"  He assured me that they would keep both me and my baby safe, and that this was for the best.  (To my sister in laws--thank you for sending me Dr. Liddle's way, he really is the best)

My whole pregnancy I was scared of getting an episiotomy, and here I was facing a much larger, much deeper cut through my abdomen.  I was terrified!!  I called my daddy, and had him come down to the hospital to help Logan give me a priesthood blessing.  Amidst all this, Logan filled his parents in on the plan, and they also came down to the hospital.  There were twins being delivered before me, so we had about an hour to chat and try to calm down. 

At 11:40 p.m., Sadie Marie came into this world.  Logan, who had previously said he did not want to watch her come out, stood up and looked over the blue curtain thing and watched them pull her out of me.  I remember looking up at his face, and he was in complete awe.  He was smiling from ear to ear when he first laid eyes on her.  After she was out, he did not leave her side until she was back with me in my room.  He was already so protective and watchful over her.

Welcoming our Sweet Sadie into the world

Our first family picture

Our hospital stay after that was a bit of a blur.  Visitors came in and out, nurses checked my vitals probably about a billion times, and I was in quite a bit of pain from the c-section.  But I could not get enough of my little girl.  I could not stop looking at her, holding her, kissing her, snuggling her, loving on her.

On Thursday, September 8, we brought our baby girl home.  She is the sweetest, most precious and perfect thing I have ever seen.  Logan and I are so in love with her we can hardly stand it.  I knew I would love my child, but I did not understand HOW MUCH I would love her.  It is like a glimpse into how God must feel about us--I think Sadie is so amazing, smart, beautiful, and full of so much wonderful potential--I know God feels this way about us too, only to a much larger extent that I can not comprehend.

I love being a mommy.  I love waking up to her sweet face.  I love doing all that I can to make sure she is comfortable and happy.  I love watching her daddy with her.  I am trying my best to soak in all of the moments, to snuggle her and try to remember everything I can, because I'm going to blink and she'll be all grown up.  But really, there's not much I can do about that, so I am enjoying every moment.

36 and 38 Weeks Baby Bump

I haven't been as dedicated at taking "Bump Pics" as I thought I would be. No real reason why...except laziness, and extreme pregnancy brain, where I forget EVERYTHING. I can't believe how much I stick out when I look at these. My body is stretch marked, sore, and exhausted from being pregnant, but I know this little girl will be totally worth it. I bet she's growing all cute in there. I'm almost done...I'm almost done...I'm almost done...

And then I start on Phase II, PARENTHOOD. Which I'm sure is going to be one heck of a ride!

36 Weeks
38 Weeks

Team Geeks

We've all heard of

"Like Father, Like Daughter..."

But what about

"Like Uncle, Like Niece."

?????

What geeks.

(Cutest geeks ever)

Steamboat Springs, CO

Logan's parents have a timeshare, and we are lucky enough to use it and take family vacations together. Last weekend we went to Steamboat Springs with the gang, and it was so fun!

We hiked to Fish Creek Falls,

Which was gorgeous.

Mostly we hung out at the pool A LOT.

Something about being in the pool 7 months pregnant is WONDERFUL.

We had a KILLER game of "Monkey in the Middle" going on, with everyone, I mean everyone, even Deana :). It was so fun!

(Doug makes a funny "sea monster" when he's trying to get the ball from you. Terrifying, in a laugh your head off way)

Also, the boys thought it would be cool to make a 4 man tower.

And they were successful....

Most hilarious moment ever.

Check out Doug's face...hahaha.

And this is for Autumn...her and her cute baby.

Bailey was so dang funny in the pool with us, I stinking love her guts.

We had such a great time up there, it was so relaxing, and full of lots and lots of laughs. Thanks Mom and Dad Spence for inviting us up! We really enjoyed our weekend there!

Daddy Logan

We're getting the nursery ready for the baby.

Logan set up the crib today.

It's feeling a lot more real being able to walk in and see the room coming together.

This baby is so lucky to have Logan as a daddy.

He is so great with kids.

He loves playing with our nieces and nephews.

He loves running with them, tackling them, wrestling them, snuggling them, throwing them in the air, he just loves them all a whole bunch.

He's got a special little attachment to Bailey.

She loves him back. A lot.

I love watching him play with her, it's like "practice" for our baby.

He seriously adores her to pieces.

We joke around that if his niece can get him so wrapped up around her little finger,

he's going to be A TOTAL MESS when he has a daughter.

(I bet it will take about 3 seconds after her being in his arms that he will be a melty, goopy, in love with his daughter mess)

But for now he keeps practicing on Bailey.

He can't help himself...she's just so darn cute!

(Her mama's real pretty too.)

4th of July 2011

The 4th of July, to the Belnap family, is practically our summer Christmas. It's a huge deal. I love, love, love the 4th of July. Every year for as long as I can remember, we go up to my parents' hometown for a chuck wagon breakfast, then watch a parade, and then we have a big family bbq and swim party at my grandma's sister's house. This year we got to celebrate with my family on the Saturday before, and I forgot to take pictures...but it was a lot of fun!

The actual 4th, we went to a hot air balloon launch with Logan's family. It was kind of windy, and they weren't actually able to get the balloons off the ground, but they still blew them up and let us walk around. Logan loved the Darth Vadar balloon the best :)

Ever since I was little I have LOVED hot air balloons, so this festival is so fun for me every year.

Later that day we had a bbq with Logan's family, and I made this delicious "Fruit of July Pizza" that made me feel uber-domestic, and was really fun to make. As my mother in law put it...strawberries, blueberries, and chocolate, how does it get better than that!?

That night we went to watch fireworks with my parents, and it was a great show. Baby Spence was so jumpy the whole time, she does NOT like loud noises I guess.

It was a great 4th...all the way up until Logan decided to give us another fireworks display and throw up all over my parents' bushes in their front yard. Kid never gets sick, so it was kind of scary to see him not feeling well, but two days later he was fit as a fiddle.

It was a great year, and I'm so excited for next year to be able to dress our baby girl up all patriotic and be able to watch her experience her first 4th of July (even if she won't remember it at all).

Wish List

We are loved. A lot, and by a lot of people, and we are super duper blessed by all these people. We have been given so many things for this baby already, and have been really lucky to find wonderful deals on things like a crib and stroller, and Logan's sisters have been wonderful to let me borrow things like a swing and a bassinet for when this little girl arrives.

My dad has a younger brother who is actually closer in age to me than to him. He's married to a seriously awesome gal. They have two little girls, one almost 6, and one who will be 1 in a few days, and they are adorable. When they found out we were having a girl, they so kindly gave us all their baby clothes that their baby is so quickly growing out of.

And then I have a friend from school who also gave me some hand me down clothes after her sweet little girls grew out of them.

And then my birthdad Mark and his cool wife Angie had a baby last June, and they are done with the having kids thing too...and gave us all of their (practically new) clothes, along with some other things like a baby bathtub, a play mat, and such.

We are BLESSED to have received all of these things. I will admit, we are poor, struggling college students just trying to do what we feel is right for our family, and trying our darndest to follow what God has in plan for us. We are not "settled" in a career or a home or really anything. But we realize that we have been so blessed by those around us, who love us, and support us. These kind acts are only a few of about one billion that have already happened, and we are so grateful to all the support we have received.

Since we have been given so many things already, there are things we don't really need (like clothing), so my dear mother asked me to post a list of things we still need for our little girl, so if you are another wonderful person who loves us, and want an idea for what we are still needing (for shower gifts and such), here you go (and thank you so much!!)--

-Diapers and Wipes

-Baby Shampoo, Soap, Lotion, etc.

-Diaper cream, powder, vaseline

-Baby Thermometer

-Baby medicines--Tylenol, Gas Drops, Motrin, etc.

-Medicine dropper or spoon

-Swaddling/Receiving blankets

-Burp cloths/wash cloths

-Humidifier

-Hooded Towels

-Diaper Genie

-Changing Pad and Covers

-Crib sheets

-Baby hangers

-Breast Pump

-Bottles, Milk storage containers/bags

-Nursing Pads

-Lanolin Lotion

-Bottle brushes/drier rack

-Bibs

-Snack containers, sippies, dinner ware

-High Chair

-Organization bins/baskets/jars

-Umbrella Stroller

-Toys

-Children Books

We're also registered at Babies 'R Us and Target. And of course, we would put gift cards to good use :)

Like I said, we have been so incredibly blessed to have already been given so many things for this baby. She is already so loved by everyone, and is seriously the luckiest girl I know to have the extended family and friends that she will have.

Strawberry Days 2011

Every summer, Logan's hometown has their summer celebration called "Strawberry Days." I wasn't all that into it before we met, since I didn't grow up in the same town, but Logan's family has completely converted me. It's a week full of carnivals, rodeos, parades, and Logan's Favorite--the doubles tennis tournament.

Logan and his best friend, Max, played in high school together, and the past two years they have competed in this tournament together. They won the B-Division bracket in 2010, and this year they won it again, defending their title. I love watching them at this tourney, they get really into it, and I love seeing Logan get so excited and happy about something he loves.

About 2.8 seconds after Max got his trophy, he promptly dropped it on the ground, snapping the little star thing on top. Nice going Maxy-Boy!!

And no, they are not twins, or brothers, or even related.

But people ask them if they are all the time.

Dang my husband is a sexy man :)

Two Years as Mrs. Spence

Logan and I have been married for two years now. I still can't believe how lucky I am to have this wonderful man as my husband. I am so extremely grateful for him, and I am so glad that we were married in the temple so I can be with him for the rest of eternity. I love him so much!!

Last year we were in Paris, France for our One Year Anniversary, which was so much fun.

I remember just feeling so much more in love with him than on our wedding day, and I couldn't imagine loving him more than I was right then. But I was wrong, every day I just love this man more and more. I can only imagine how my love will grow for him after our little girl comes.

This year we happened to be in Vegas with Logan's family. We actually went to the Paris Hotel there, but being a doofus, totally forgot to take a picture...drat. But we did get this picture of us in the Bellagio Hotel.

We also scored some 5th row seats for a killer deal to Phantom of The Opera (I have a friend who concierges at the New York, New York--It's not what you know, it's WHO you know, haha). The play was amazing, we absolutely loved it! Our favorite parts were all of the special effects built into the theatre at The Venetian. There were so many trap doors the Phantom went down, or firework type effects, or the chandelier coming back together at the beginning and crashing down at the end.

Logan and I have been so blessed to see so many broadway plays together since we've been married, and it's some of our favorite memories. I hope it's a tradition we can keep up over the years :)

I love you Logan!! Here's to a billion-trillion more years together!!

29 Weeks Down, 11 More to Go!!

Do you see this? I look like a legit prego!! I'm actually almost 30 weeks, which means after this week, we'll be down to single digit weeks left on the countdown. Crazy!!

Things as of late:

--Baby Spence is around 3 pounds, and 15 inches long from head to heel. She's getting cramped up in there, and she keeps trying to stretch out into my ribs...which is quite uncomfortable.

--My favorite thing she does when she stretches out, is we can feel her whole back and little baby bum up against my left side. It's so wild, and just feels so weird.

--I have to pee all the time. I mean, seriously, about one billion times a day.

--It's also starting to get hard to sleep, but after getting my "pillow cave" figured out (body pillow along one side, one pillow for my head, and two pillows on the other side in case I roll over...I need to have one in between my knees, and one under my tummy. Logan thinks it's a little high maintenance, but I just do what I gotta do), and my sister in law Autumn told me she took a half a Unisom to help sleep, I've been having much better nights for the past 3-ish nights, which feels great.

--Baby Spence doesn't like fireworks...we were watching some for the 4th and she kept jumping around every time they popped like she was scared. I think she'll probably be a crying mess next year.

--Hands and feet are starting to swell a bit. Not very bad, but enough that sometimes I'm afraid I won't be able to get my wedding ring off at night, when it's the worst.

--HEARTBURN. Constantly, basically no matter what. Equate's Mint Tums are my BFF.

--It's quite warm. I wasn't that heat-tolerant before, but now I hate hate hate being outside. Even walking out to the car to go somewhere is beastly. I'm a huge fan of ice water, the shade, and fans while being outside. Thank goodness we live in a freezing cold basement apartment. AKA, Logan freezes, and I'm in heaven.

Cravings:

--Popsicles, especially Pace's Fruit Bars (Peach and Lime are the best)

--Watermelon

--Strawberries

--Fruit in general

--Occasionally chocolate, except it makes my heartburn TERRIBLE.

I am so grateful everything is going so smoothly. Every time we go to the doctor, everything has been right on track, and we're relatively complication free. Only 2 1/2 months left, and I think they'll fly right by. We're both getting antsy to meet this little girl, so I sure hope it goes by quickly!!

In case you needed a REALLY good laugh today...

I don't usually read this blog, but I found it on my friend's blog and just the title intrigued me...especially since becoming a new parent is definitely on my mind.

Logan and I were laughing so hard we were crying and could barely breath. Hop on over to THIS GUY'S BLOG to read his article "You said WHAT to your kid?"

It's awesome. Laugh away.

23 weeks of babyliciousness

We're 23 weeks now. The little countdown on my e-mail that tells me I have only 17 weeks to get ready for this baby freaks me out a little. So much to do, in what seems like such a short amount of time. My sister in law was saying this summer would probably go by really slowly for me, but it's completely flown by...maybe once Logan goes back for summer semester time will all of the sudden go at a snails pace.

Last night I was having some overwhelming feelings of fear of change. I know we will love her and once she is here, we will not want to trade her for anything, but still, I know it's change, BIG change, and I'm scared. This would be a great time for comforting and reassuring me. Thank you, amen.

I have my next doctors appointment next week. So far everything has been perfect, we're hoping to hear the same old same old everything is right on track from Dr. Liddle. We've definitely been blessed to have such a smooth pregnancy thus far. I hope it just keeps on going like this until the very end.
My cute mother in law found this funny shirt for me. Never mind my goofy face. The shirt says "Babylicious" on it, and that's how I'm starting to feel...most definitely, undeniably babylicious, and no going back now, even though I feel like I'm already stretched to my max, I know I'm going to keep getting bigger and bigger. In fact, I'll probably look back on this in 3 or 4 months and just laugh at myself. But for now, It's really hard to comprehend myself getting even bigger than I am now.

Also, things I will kill myself if I forget--

Baby Spence loves music. She kicks around anytime it's on in the car, or especially during my dance classes I teach. Her most favorite songs to dance around to are:

Walk This Way by Aerosmith (she's my daddy's granddaughter, what can I say?)

Price Tag by Jessi J

and Look at Me Now by Chris Brown

Why she likes these specific songs beats me, but anytime they're on she just kick-kick-kicks away.

Yesterday I saw Pirates of the Carribean 4 and it must have been loud in there to her too because she was squirming around the whole 2 hours.

She loves it when we're in Primary and singing songs. This little girl likes music!

Logan is (finally) starting to feel her kick on a regular basis.

Logan and I went to the temple to do some sealings and while we were in there she was just rolling around the whole time and would start kicking during the end of every sealing. It was pretty funny to me, like she was telling us she loved being in the temple.

I love being able to feel her move around (ha, can you tell?), it makes me feel like I'm getting to know her personality a little bit before she comes out. I bet she's gonna be the cutest thing I've ever laid eyes on :).

GRADUATION!!

Ta Da!! Proof that I actually did it! Starting college, I never really thought I would actually end up getting a degree. My initial plan was to go to please my parents and (yes, I'll admit it) snag myself a husband. Then I would probably drop out to work to put him through school and make him lots of babies. However, when I met Logan and he told me he wanted to be a dentist, I decided I needed to get my butt in gear because why would a dentist ever want a college drop out? Although my logic throughout the whole process was faulty and immature, I am so glad that I had something to change my mind so I would FINISH.

Thanks Logan, for being such a great motivator, inspiration, and providing an endless amount of support to me to finish what I had started.

My happy parents

(I swear my mom was happy, she has a hard time smiling at the right time for the camera, hahaha)

Bill, Deana, Brynn, and her two kids, Gav and Ky came to watch me walk. I just love this picture because my mommy had made me a candy lei necklace to wear, and Gav was definitely eying it when I came out of graduation. He said he didn't want to smile for a picture, but when I told him I would give him a candy if he smiled, this was the sweet result.

(No, I'm not above bribing my nieces and nephews into doing stuff for me, why do you ask?)

(Also, I swear this kid could pass for my son, and really quite like it because he's just so darn tootin cute.)

I have no idea what I'll actually end up doing with my degree, but I am glad that if nothing else, I taught myself I can finish something, even if it is hard, or takes a long time, I know I am capable to complete the goal!

Now, onto getting ready for this sweet little girl to come into our lives, which is quite an adventure, if you ask me!

Senior Capstone Concert 2011

For my dance degree, I had to take a class called Senior Capstone. It entails all of the seniors in the dance department to come together and produce a dance concert in one semester. It was a fantastic learning experience, but one heck of a stressor during my last semester.

The other degrees (Ballet, Modern, and Dance Education) had to choreograph an 8-10 minute routine, but that is so unpractical for ballroom, so for my degree we are required to do two opposing styles, any length, any thing you really want to do, just as long as they are not the same type of dance. I started my degree with several other dancers, but by the time graduation rolled around for me, most of the dancers had gotten behind, dropped out, or changed their degree, so I was the lone ballroom graduate this year. It definitely had its pros and cons--I could do basically whatever I wanted style wise because I was the only one, but at the same time I felt an ENORMOUS amount of pressure to do a very high quality job to set a good example for my department.

Rehearsals went great all semester, with very few MAJOR stumbling blocks, but SEVEN DAYS before the concert was to open, I got a nightmare of a phone call. I had one girl in both of my pieces, and she was doing so awesome, and I was feeling great about how things were going to be at the concert the next week. That girl had a freak accident dropping her husband's laptop, and tore all the ligaments through her middle and ring fingers to past her wrist in her right hand. Her doctor told her if she was to dance, she would probably further damage her hand, and need major, major surgery and therapy to repair the damage.

I had seven days to find and teach a replacement for two completely separate pieces!!

I made some quick decisions, and found one angel girl who was available for all of the remaining rehearsals and all of the performances, but I felt very shaky about trying to teach two different people numbers in such a short amount of time...when I realized, "Hey, I choreographed it, I could fit into the other costume, I'll just dance it!"

Mind you, I was 19 weeks (About 4 1/2 months) pregnant at that point.

This is me and Abe, my partner for the foxtrot "H.R. Would Have a Fit" which was a story of a secret romance in an office setting. We had to really work hard to hide my baby bump so as to not give off an even MORE scandalous vibe...office romance with a baby on the way? Haha, no.
These are my wonderful cha-cha dancers, Caitlin, Joe, Anna, Abe, Brooke (the replacement girl, she was awesome!), and Cory. This was to "Mad World" by the 80's band Tears for Fears. I love the band, but I do NOT want to hear any of their stuff for at least 6 months, haha. The dance was titled "Trapped" and was about abusive relationships and the abusee not being able to get away from the abuser. It was a pretty intense dance, and was very challenging to do something NOT light and bubbly, which comes so much easier to me after all my years of choreographing for younger kids.

It turned out great, and I felt really awesome about how the concert went after it was all done. I had been dreading that incredibly intimidating class for basically my whole college career, and I was so relieved to have it over, and that it turned out so well!!