It's Christmas time in Syracuse.....

Well, this has been a wonderful Christmas. We did lots of family outings this week and really had a nice time. I even started feeling better by Christmas Eve so that was great!

On the 23rd we went to the Martin Christmas party at the JSMB and took the train to avoid the hassle of parking. It was fun to see cousins and have some yummy Hawaiian food. Near the end of the night Timmy was starting to melt down so we decided to try and make it on the 7:57 PM Frontrunner train but we were quickly running out of time. We got to the Salt Lake station at about 8:00 PM and surprisingly the train was still there (they only go every hour at night so we were lucky). We ran like crazy and were able to get on the train and make it home an hour earlier, yay! We weren't the only ones running like fools to make it on the train but they were nice and waited for us.

Timmy loved the train ride, Allie was asleep.

Then on the 24th Justin had the day off so I snuck out in the morning to fill a prescription and go to the mall to get a new shirt for me for Christmas. Surprisingly Motherhood Maternity was empty, ha ha! Then I stopped at Target and got a toy for Timmy that I was debating on getting. We had a nice afternoon with our family and then headed to my Dad's for Christmas Eve. We ate a nice roast dinner and had a crazy time opening presents and talking and eating! We headed home around 8 PM and our kids fell asleep on the way home. We got them into bed and then Santa visited. It sure took longer to put together Timmy's racetrack than I anticipated and it is basically a piece of junk because it falls apart and breaks really easily. Oh well, I expected that from a cheap toy. We got to bed at 11:15 and were watching a show when Timmy woke up and saw that Santa had come. We made him go back to bed and he was sad. Then Allie woke up at 1:00 AM and then again at 2:00 AM and really wanted to sleep with her new Strawberry Shortcake doll so I let her go get it and go to bed. She went to sleep with a cute smile on her face!

No more kids after that but I kept waking up anyway, I think I was just so excited to see my kids so happy that I had a hard time resting. Next thing I knew, it was 6:45 AM and I woke up and got ready with the camera and starting turning on lights and making noise so the kids would wake up. They did of course and we had a wonderful morning opening presents and playing together. Timmy's main gifts were the racetrack, a dart gun and an R/C car. Allie got a Strawberry Shortcake Berry Cafe, Ariel doll, cash register, and baby doll bed. I gave Justin some new luggage, slippers, an electricity tester and jeans. Justin gave me a food processor, a car charger, seatbelt cover, music, planner, makeup, Uno Attack game, and new calendar. We also bought a Wii as a family gift this year, something we haven't ever done before.

We got ready for the day and headed to the McMurray's for aebleskivers and sausage. We ate breakfast, opened more gifts and spent time with family. Then we went to my Mom's and did more present opening and visited with my Martin grandparents and Dennis.

Then we drove home and cleaned up a bit and had my Dad, Sherri, Rusty and Liz over for dinner and games since my Mom went to Wales for the weekend with Dennis. We ate yummy pasta and then played Uno Attack which is hilarious but takes forever to play! Allie was the grand winner and Sherri the grand loser! Then we got the kids to bed and played The Game of Things which was so funny! I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. I can't believe how much I enjoyed Christmas.

Usually Christmas evening is pretty boring but with my family here, it just went on and on and we laughed and laughed. What a wonderful Christmas, probably one of the best I've ever had!

Here are some pictures from our adventures this week:

Allie Santa Baby

Kids in their Christmas clothes

Timmy's dirt Lightning McQueen

Allie's nail polish

Allie's Ariel chapstick

Timmy's Lightning McQueen card game

Allie's cash register

Mario Kart :)

Allie's doll bed

Timmy's R/C truck

Timmy's nerf basketball hoop

Allie's Strawberry Shortcake movie

Timmy's Mario shirt

Timmy's racecar shirt, Allie's Ariel jewelry

Allie's Mickey Mouse book

Toy Story 3

Allie's Ariel doll

Timmy's race track

Mine and Justin's stuff

The Wii

Merry Christmas Allie!

Merry Christmas Timmy!

Santa came to visit!

Problem solved!

I am feeling so relieved right now! I wrote just over a week ago that I was feeling really crappy and truly, it has not really gone away. I know that I'm pregnant and it has several side effects, but I just felt like something else was going on in my body that needed to be checked out. I finally decided to go see a doctor today. My OB and regular family practice doctor were out today so I went to see another family doctor today whom I've seen before. I told him all of my crazy symptoms, upset stomach, extreme sudden urges to urinate, pain in my stomach and chest, and a general sense of uneasiness.

He of course had me tested for a urinary tract infection and it came back positive! I am so glad to know that I have something else going on in my body that can be alleviated with medication so that I can just feel better finally. I am happy to know that I won't continue to feel so terrible for the last 3 months of my pregnancy. Happy relief!!

A more happy update!

After writing my last post about struggling with pregnancy, I decided it's time to write a positive post of the things going on my life. I have cut back on sugar and treats (in fact, I don't really have any in my house and when I want one, I can't even have one!) and feeling a bit better. I even stopped taking my Zofran pills and while I feel tired and nauseated some times, I am feeling better digestively ;) I haven't refilled my prescription so I don't even have them around for when I'm feeling weak. Going on day 3 and really not that bad!

As for my parents, I wrote back in August that they were both happy and dating other people. Well, things have changed a bit. My Dad has since stopped seeing Kari and while I'm sure he's sad, I'm not so sure they were the best couple together. It seems both of them struggled with being completely honest with each other and that is a hard way to build a relationship. On the other hand, my Mom is now engaged (as of Nov. 3) to Dennis and they are hopefully going to be married on February 5th in the SLC temple assuming my Mom and Dad's sealing can be canceled by then. If not, my Mom does not want to get married civily, she would rather wait until the sealing is canceled and then just get married once in the temple. I hope and pray that the sealing is canceled so they can go forward with their marriage plans. She will then move down to Wales, UT and live with him and his family and I will hopefully see her sometimes! It will be a 2+ hour commute each way for me to visit them, ahhhh!

I have continued teaching piano and this fall and winter I have had 4 piano students. I will download the pictures and add them to this post soon. We had a Christmas piano recital this past Monday, December 13 and it was fun to hear them play and then I played the duet Sleigh Ride with my step-cousin Shannon which is so fun to play!

We have really enjoyed having Justin around more and getting to do family things with him so often. We really enjoy going swimming with our kids, they just love going and we have such a good time. Also, a few weeks ago I told Justin he should take a half day and we should go to the Festival of Trees and he said yes and we had a fun time!

After our vacation with so much illness, we haven't had anyone sick since! I think we just have a curse when we go on vacations. Justin has the week off of work after Christmas and we will hopefully get to do some fun family things like go see a movie (probably Tangled) with our kids and help my mom get her house packed up and sorted through.

We are really excited for our busy holiday next week where we have things almost every night. On the 21st it is Justin's grandma's birthday and we will go visit her and family. On the 22nd we will go to the McMurray's and watch the Utes play in their bowl game. On the 23rd it is my mom's Martin family party at the JSMB and then walk around the lights at Temple Square. On the 24th we will go visit my Dad and have dinner with him and play some games for Christmas Eve. Then on Christmas we will play with our kids, then go to the McMurray's for breakfast, then visit my Mom and Dennis at her house and then visit my Dad or have him over Christmas afternoon/evening at our home. What a week to look forward to, it will be great!!

Merry Christmas everyone and I hope you are all doing well and feeling happy :)

Struggling

I haven't posted anything in over a month, but didn't really have much to tell. However, the last week or so, I have been nauseated again and just basically worn out with no energy. My poor husband commented last night that I will likely not go to bed with him anymore until this baby comes because I am so worn out every night. Even when we do go to bed at the same time and turn on a show, I just fall asleep. As a result I haven't been saying my bedtime prayers so I need to start saying them before I get into bed!

Anyway, with it being the Christmas season I have had sooo many treats in my home, and being pregnant, I have allowed myself to indulge in them. However, I wonder if this crappy eating is contributing to the low energy levels and overall sense of yuckiness I am feeling lately. I was only taking Zofran pills every 2-3 days but lately I am taking 1-2 a day like I did at the beginning. They make me constipated which of course doesn't help in the body feeling well so I think I just need to eat better and cut back on the pills so that I feel better (crossing fingers).

I haven't wanted to say much about my pregnancy on Facebook because I have a few good friends who have lost babies and I know complaining about my pregnancy would make them say, "well, at least you are pregnant!" Yes, I know I am pregnant and it truly is a blessing that my pregnancies never have any complications but I feel like sharing some of my thoughts for those of you who read my blog. One of my friends from high school was due at the same time as me and she ended up losing a lot of her amniotic fluid at 21 weeks and when they checked the baby it was fine but she was put on strict bed rest with instructions to drink a ton. Her baby was sadly born at 22 weeks and didn't make it. I am heartbroken for her, so I will refrain from posting much about my pregnancy on Facebook for her to read.

However, I feel that this is my blog and all of you can choose whether to read this post or not :)

To top it off, I feel like I have been really busy lately. Some of it is self inflicted and I am probably just trying to go go go more than I should. I tried exercising a few weeks back but felt more drained than ever instead of feeling more energized and I was just doing basic walking exercises and only for 20-30 minutes so really not overdoing it much in my opinion. I think once choir and Christmas is over, my life will really calm down and I can rest a little more.

Also, with the way I have been feeling I feel like I should be well into the 3rd trimester to be feeling so crappy, but I still have over a week to go until I am! I am not even that big but I feel huge and uncomfortable and just wish this pregnancy had less time to go! Part of it probably has to do with the fact that I have gained more this time around (I'm almost at 30 pounds and only 26 weeks) and I only gained 30 pounds total with my last 2 kids. Because of this higher weight gain in a short amount of time, my feet hurt when I stand for a while and I just have to sit down. I can't wear any sort of heel or they hurt much worse! Luckily I haven't had any swelling yet although my wedding ring is starting to feel a little tight.

Well, I think that's about it for my feelings at this time. I think I am really going to limit sugar, go on simple easy walks with my family and see if it helps. Oh, and by the way, this has not dampened my Christmas spirit, I am very excited for all of the fun things I have coming in the next few weeks and so excited to see my kids' faces on Christmas morning, it's the best!