As far as "pee sticks" go...

I think they are super gross.....but I guess if I have to I have to...

WE ARE HAVING A BABY!

Can't wait! I am 14 weeks along and due January 3rd, 2010.

Much needed VACATION

Last week we were so lucky to take a much much much needed vacation!!!! (Oh my gosh, you really have NO idea how much I needed it). First we drove up to Vancouver, Washington to stay with Jess's brother Casey's family. They were so great (especially Linsdsi) for driving us everywhere and feeding us a ton! We also got to see our friends Cam and Josie while we were up there. Cam owns a bunch of Little Caeser's Pizzas and he was SO NICE to let us come into one of his stores and actually make our OWN pizzas. We also got a chance to drive over to the coast and visit the beach which was not a warm beach by any means, but still fun nonetheless.

After Vancouver we left to go to Coeur d' Alene to visit my family. We were there for a few days pretty much celebrating the existence of my brother (not the I minded...I LOVE that kid). We got to see Tommy graduate high school and get his Eagle Scout award. I am so proud of him! To seal the deal, the family took the 4-wheelers and motorcycles up the mountain for an all-day riding extravaganza. I was really nervous for Jess to ride anything, but he really did well!

The vacation was a lot of fun, but the driving WAS NOT. Thankfully, Jess doesn't mind driving long distances...I just had to put up with listening to ESPN podcasts on the radio...which I probably would have taken the option to drive and listen to country music instead if it was given to me:-)


Swimming at Lindsi's parent's house. Casey, Jess, Cam, and baby Baylee.

We took a walk in downtown Portland. With shopping and dinner included. Out cute nieces Brooklyn and Olivia.

Oh...our nephew Cody...he liked the sand at the beach a little too much :-)
See...told you it was cold.


Our nephew Nathan...he kept his Uncle Jess busy ;)

Story behind the video: While playing in the waves I noticed a little circular sea creature that was breathing out of the sand when the tide was in. I thought that it was a sea anemone, but boy was I wrong. Jess took the shovel and started digging deep in the sand to find out what it was. The deeper the hole got, the bigger the creature got and I was terrified that it was an octupus or something, but the shovel kept making a "cracking" noise when it hit the object, so I figured it was some shelled-humongous-gross sea creature. It....... was a clam with a really big tongue. HA HA. And it died from a shovel slashing to the neck. Poor clam. Jess is a killer.

Making the pizzas at Cam Gentry's Little Caeser's Pizza

The Graduate :-)

The Eagle Scout :-)

4-Wheeling in Horse Haven. I think it was in Coeur d' Alene.

He got major dirty....

At the top of the mountain: Dad. Jess. Tommy

Whitney had to stay in the car most of the time because Payton was napping and it was freezing!

The CUTEST baby!!!!! And my most favoritist MOM.

For Whitney's Viewing Pleasure...

SLURPIE!!!!

Take Me Out to the (Soft)Ball Game

Yesterday Laura and I went to watch Jess play softball. I will admit, I am not the most sporty gal (I really don't know how Jess and I get along), so it really takes a lot of effort to drag me to a baseball, no I mean SOFTball game. So, after being talked into going, I chilled in the FREEZING cold and watched my husband participate in what I think is a wonderful alternative to baseball: not too long, not too short, and more action than Jess ever gets in the outfield playing baseball! Laura and I had fun (besides the fact she mentioned to me she was freezing 1,000 times), but what did we both do...we ate popsicles of course...we both are suckers for any type of treat in any type of form.

(By the way, I am not sure what "rsa" means, but I do know it is a law-firm. No, Jess is not a lawyer, but he is always invited to play with his "lawyer-friends" on all of their leagues.)

Inspired to Share: Harvard Religion Panel

I got the video off of Brandon and Andrea Smith's blog and I loved it so much! I just took a class at BYU about the many religions that exist in our world today. I think its absolutely amazing the similarities that many religions have to my Latter-day Saint religion. There are so many religions out there that have good, true prinicples that people live by. I have come to learn in my life that Heavenly Father loves all His children and that there are portions of divine truth in other religions besides my own. I agree wholeheartedly with this young lady on this video and commend her for informing her audience about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in an honest, respectful, and eloquent way. I agree with her when she says "my religion is my identity". It is that way for me as well, and I am so grateful to know that for myself.

http://www.vimeo.com/2120177

Could be the happiest day EVER

One year of nursing school in my back pocket! I am so happy! Bring on the summer!!!

Religious Item Project

For my "Religion in the Home" class at BYU I made an item for my home that I would use in my life and more specifically for my future family. I decided to make a "Baldwin Family Treasure Chest". In this treasure chest I made a series of children's flipcharts: "How Dad met Mom", "Families can be Together Forever-Sparks Family", "Families can be Together Forever-Baldwin Family", "Latter-day Prophets", "What do I Believe?", and "What am I?" These books took me over 20 hours to make...sheesh, but I am glad I did them. I hope that these books will be useful for my children in them learning more about their family heritage and their religious heritage as well!