Ooh Baby Baby!!!!

Yesterday I graduated from UVU, and my in-laws were SO kind to let us crash their house for a graduation party last night. Basically my whole family and Logan's whole family was there, and it was so fun to just hang out and eat some great food (Thanks again, Deana!).

I'm now 20 weeks, and last week we decided to pull a little trick on everyone. Originally I was to have my 20 week appointment on Tuesday, and then schedule the ultra sound for the next week, so I wouldn't be able to know the gender until after graduation. However, as it got closer, I decided I just couldn't wait long enough and called the doctor's office to see if they could pull a few strings for me and get me in sooner for my ultrasound. The nurse that answered the phone thought it would be super fun to help me find out before graduation so I could tell everyone at the barbeque, so she let me schedule the ultrasound for this past Monday, rather than the next week.

Logan and I kept it a secret from everyone in the fam (which, if you know me, is SOOOOOO hard, I am a terrible secret keeper when it comes to stuff like this), and got the ultrasound and found out the gender. Then we had to keep playing off like our ultrasound wouldn't be until the next Monday, which was soooooooooo hard to keep from my mommy.

Finally Friday rolled around....

We took my first belly picture together.

Hooray, I'm getting out of the awkward chubby-maybe pregnant stage!

(But not quite into the big-as-a-barn and so uncomfortable stage)

Logan and I decided to make cupcakes together, which were delicious if I do say so myself :). We frosted half of the tops with pink, and half with blue, but filled the cupcake with the color that would really tell what the gender was. Then we passed them out to everyone and had everyone take a bite...

And it was pink!!!!

We are having a baby girl!!!!

Everyone was so excited to hear the news, but really, I don't think anyone's excitement could have topped Logan's during the ultrasound. He was just giddy to find out that this little baby is a little lady and that he will have his very own little girl to cuddle in just 4 months. He is so sweet to her already, he always wants to talk to her, and wants to feel her move SOOOO badly. She already has him wrapped around her tiny fetus fingers, I can only imagine what kind of mess he's going to be when she's actually OUTSIDE of me and he can hold her himself. Or when she's walking and talking...or *gasp* when she's 16 asking for the keys to his car. I love Logan so much, and I love watching him just fall in love with our baby girl, he is going to be the best dad in the world, I just know it.

Endings, New Beginnings, and Predictions

The end is near...for my college degree that is. Yesterday was the dreaded dress rehearsal and opening show for our senior capstone concert, a show where all the seniors in the dance department choreograph pieces and produce an entire concert in one semester. It has been a challenging class, that is for sure! There have been multiple mishaps throughout the semester for my pieces...from complete music changes and having to gut the whole choreography 2 months into rehearsal, to having the girl in both of my pieces break her hand 8 days before the concert opened. I've resolved most everything--switched to a song that I could re-chunk all my choreographed movement into in a different order more or less, and finding a last minute replacement for both pieces--a miracle girl who learned the whole 3 1/2 min cha-cha routine in about 2 hours of rehearsal, and myself being able to disguise my baby bump enough to pull off dancing my foxtrot non-prego looking, and have had to relearn the process of calming down and not overly stressing the small stuff. That, in and of itself, is one DIFFICULT lesson for me, since I seem to get rounds of trials to remind me of what I should have already learned years ago.

However, last night's concert went fantastic. Tonight my mother in law, sister in law, and husband will be in the audience, which is wonderfully exciting because I love having people I know in the audience, and tomorrow my family will be coming to the show as well. I am relieved that the show is almost over, but a bit sad that I won't be spending time with all the women I have made friends with throughout my degree. In a week from today, I will be graduated, and everyone will be moving away, getting married, starting new adventures, and I'm sure we will all lose touch a bit as we all go our separate ways. I have learned a lot from these women in the department, and it's been fun to watch us grow and change as we have worked our way through the program.

I am so very much looking forward to our new adventures after graduation though. In only 21 weeks I will have a small thing to snuggle and love on. I am both terrified and ecstatic at this prospect. I'm sure that's normal. It will be a lot of change. Good change, but change--which is scary. I'm currently 19 weeks prego, and just this past week or so I've been starting to feel little flutters from this little one, making this whole pregnancy feel just that much more real. Next week will be half way, I can't believe how fast it has gone. At my appointment next week I will be able to schedule my ultra sound, which probably won't be until the week after graduation, but just knowing that in only a week and a half I will know if this little one will be a she baby or a he baby is so exciting to me.

So, with that, place your final predictions. I've had probably about half and half of people saying it's a boy or girl. I have no idea what it is. At first I was dead set that it HAD to be a girl, but then a few weeks in I thought it could definitely be a boy, and now I'm just right in the middle. I've had dreams about having both. Logan doesn't have any feelings either way either. We just want to know so we can start getting ready, and I know we will be just so excited about either. Just thinking about it makes me so giddy.

So, if you want to make any guesses, it's now or never...because in just a few short days we will know! I am so excited!!!

Laugh or Cry

Today I was reminded that God really does have a sense of humor, and he sure is a funny guy.

Logan and I have been in the process of applying for medicaid for prenatal coverage for this baby. It was going pretty smoothly, until they went to pull up my file, and under my social security number, was listed a DIFFERENT PERSON. They officially put me through the ringer to get it straightened out, and they did fix it all, and cleared that other person from my records, and it's all fine and dandy NOW, but AT THE TIME, it was mega, mega, mega stressful.

I don't handle stress well.

The week before our wedding I was in the hospital with an ulcer.

Again, I do NOT handle stress well.

I know it's something I need to work on.

Apparently, when you are stressed, your body releases toxins. When toxins are released, it stresses the baby out. When lots are released at once, your body wigs out. These toxins decided to set up camp in my right shoulder, trap muscle, and neck. A week ago, I was sore, and had head aches, but as the week went on, the pain got much more intense, and by Friday I could barely lift my arm, or turn my head. I couldn't get from laying down to sitting up or visa versa without Logan helping me, and I couldn't roll over without help either. I was in pain, folks. So, after several nights of not sleeping well, and hurting all the time, I went back to my doctor to get it checked out. My muscle kept doing this weird charley horse thing, so they put cortizone in the muscle via 3 shots, prescribed me a low dosage of lortab to help me sleep, and put me in this sexy, sexy neck brace to help my muscles relax.

Don't lie, I know you are super jealous.

So today, when I'm finally starting to feel better, I'm craving egg salad sandwiches, like bad. I start to boil eggs, which I've done before without problems. I go through the whole process, and when I'm done I start to peel the eggs....and the yolks are mushy runny. I get on my trusty Google and see how to salvage the other 5 eggs. Some lady said she sometimes microwaved her eggs at the very end to finish cooking the yolk. 2 minutes at 50% she said. Cover with saran wrap she said. Google has never failed me yet, I said, and decided to give it a try.

I placed them in a bowl, covered in saran wrap, and got those little eggies in the microwave. I went to the bedroom to continue with some homework, and KAAAAAAABBBBLAAAMMMOOOO!! A huge crash came from the kitchen. I thought the microwave somehow fell off the counter.

WRONGO!!!!

All 5 eggs spontaneously exploded in the microwave, out the doors, and across my kitchen, splattering the wall ACROSS THE ROOM over my oven. It was on the fridge, down the cabinets, in the sink, all over the floor. And when I opened the microwave, I found this...

So I had a choice people, I could laugh or cry.

And I, Camille Marie Spence, in my neck brace of sexiness,

sat down in the middle of the egg mess,

and laughed my freaking head off.

And then I took pictures. And then I texted my husband. And then I called my mom, who also laughed, to the point of nearly peeing her pants.

Sometimes you can only laugh or cry,

But laughing is MUCH MORE FUN.

Chicken Roll Ups

School is kicking my trash. Well, that and being pregnant, I feel sucked dry for energy. On better news...I still have not thrown up, but I think I'm making up for that with migraines, so I don't know which is worse. And my birthday was 6 days ago, and it was swell, and I will post about it sometime. That, and my amazing Wingers knock offs I made over the weekend.

But for now, Chicken Roll Ups. A wonderous pocket of yummy in your tummy.

I don't remember why, or what was going on in life, but Sister Terry, a lady that lived up the street from my family in Orem called our house one day. My mom wasn't home, but she asked me if she had dinner ready yet. She didn't, so she then asked if she could bring us some, because she just "randomly" had extra. I said that would be fine, my parents were stressed out about something that I can't remember because I was like 10 I think. So Sis. Terry came by with Chicken Roll Ups, steamed veggies, a side salad, and a box of Twinkies. She helped me set the table all fancy for my parents, and when they got home, they were so surprised. I think my mom may have cried. I just remember how nice I thought it was that this kind woman in our neighborhood thought of us in a time that my family needed a little tender mercy. Whenever I make these, I think of Sister Terry and her kindness to our family. She probably doesn't even remember that day, but I definitely do, and she made an impact on my tender little 10 year old heart.

Chicken Roll Ups

Makes 16 rolls, or 8 servings

2 cans large biscuit dough (with 8 biscuits in each can)

1 package cream cheese, softened

1/4 c. chopped onions

1 stalk chopped celery

1 large-ish chicken breast, cooked, and shredded

1/2 t. ground sage

Melted Butter

Bread Crumbs

Preheat oven to temperature on instructions on biscuit dough can, a

Mix cream cheese, onions, celery, chicken, and sage together in a medium bowl.

Open up biscuits, take one biscuit at time, and flatten it slightly. Add about a tablespoon of mixture to the middle of the dough. Fold over the mixture, pinching edges, and then pull the dough around the cream cheese, pinching closed the ends, making like a balloon of dough with the cheese stuff inside. Then, dip the opposite, non pinched off side in the melted butter, then bread crumbs, and then place pinched side down in a casserole dish.

Repeat with all other biscuits until your pan is filled up, then bake in the oven for about 16-18 minutes, or until biscuits are fully baked and it's all golden brown and yummy on top.

While the roll ups are baking, make the "gravy" by mixing 1 can of Cream of Chicken soup with 1 can full of chicken broth.

After you pull the roll ups out of the oven, let sit for a while to cool off or you'll burn your mouth off. Serve with the gravy poured over the top.

So yummy, and they make great left over lunches the next day too.

New News (Big Time News) for Team Spence!!

Logan and I are going to have a baby!

This baby is due September 15, 2011.

We're super excited.

Super duper excited.

So far I'm 10 weeks along, almost 11. I haven't been TOO sick, which has been a blessing.

Now if I could just get myself through my very last semester at UVU, so we can start getting ready for this sweet baby!! (senioritis is running rampant at our house)

With any luck, our baby will look something like this:

I would just die of happiness.

Logan was the cutest-patootist baby.

Christmas Morning 2010 Spence Style

I know, failure for not posting about Christmas until almost Valentine's Day. My apologies.

Santa brought quite the loot this year, including a pretty clock to hang in our kitchen

and some new pillows for our bed.

Christmas is bizarre when you're married with no children, folks.

Bill and Deana (and this year Aaron) go to each of their married children's homes to check out what Santa brought to each of them. Since we were severely uneventful, having no kids to watch get excited about Christmas morning and the magic of it all, we invited them over for breakfast. That morning we made biscuits and sausage gravy, scrambled eggs, and juice, which might just have to be a yearly tradition because it was delicious!!

Logan's favorite gift was his Seinfeild Soup Nazi shirt I gave to him.

He looks mighty handsome in it, if I do say so myself.

And my most FAVORITE gift (ever!!!) is my candy apple red Kitchen Aid mixer.

My husband freaking rocks.

And well, happy holidays yo.

Spence Family Christmas Party 2010

Every year on Christmas Eve, Logan's parents host a Christmas Eve party for their whole family. I always love going because it's a change to see EVERYONE at the SAME TIME and the SAME PLACE. Also, the amazing food, great company, and hilarious kids certainly rock too.

Every year we rotate family names and one family will give to another family. This year we had The Losee Family. Gavin and Kyson are 3 and 1 and the most boyish boys I have ever met. They love tools, trains, trucks, dinosaurs, monsters, anything that just screams "boy." They are super easy to please, and Logan and I had so much fun searching for just the right present for them. They get so excited about everything, and we were so highly anticipating seeing their faces when they opened up their presents. We made them both twinner little coloring books that I made with family pictures that I learned how to make here. The pages were actually pictures of them, their cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and their mommy and daddy. They turned out super-dooper cute. Along with their coloring books, we gave Gavin a race car track. You can make the track whatever shape you want. It comes with bridges, gates, and two battery operated cars that speed around the track.

He was pretty excited. Brynn and Casey said they woke up to him playing with it on Christmas Morning before they went down to open their own presents.
That night at the party, they told him he had to wait until they were home to open it up. He dragged that box around with him EVERYWHERE, and even used it as a little bench while he watched the rest of the family open up their presents. It was pretty darn cute.

Kyson has been loving tools, hard hats, and anything that has to do with construction and building things. We found him this little tool belt, complete with hard hat.

He is such a tiny dude, he looked so cute playing dress up with them.

But of course, what did he really have more fun with that night?

The netted bag that the tool set came in.

Silly Boy.

Aaron gave gifts to our little family. He is a smarty pants, and gave us the perfect gift...two gift certificates to two of our favorite restaurants so we can go on dates. We are looking forward to using them very soon!! Thanks Aaron!!