Baby Update: 26 weeks.

26 weeks today people!! Look at that belly. Oh and sporting the maternity jeans (helooo fall). 

I was all excited that I could finally say that I was 6 months pregnant but I guess there is some debacle over the subject on google over how many "said" weeks actually equals "said" months. Supposedly there are many different ways to measure a pregnancy--who knew-- and all the mommy forums which seem to be the only source say 26 weeks equals 6 1/2 months and some even say 7 months. And then there is that whole thing about full term really being 42 weeks. Umm what? Are there any other soon to be mamas confused by this way of counting. It should be wayyy simpler if you ask me. But I guess I'll just stick with the weeks. 

So with 26 weeks down, the fact that we only have 14 more to go (or should I say more), is so surreal. 14 weeks doesn't sound that far down the road. And we couldn't be more excited. 

This little guy has been growing and moving like crazy in the past few weeks. In between 20 weeks and 24 weeks, baby boy and my ever growing belly hit a growth spur of some massive proportions and at our 24 week check up the doctor flipped when I measured 3 weeks earlier than my original due date. That means that there is a possibility that baby boy could come on his mama's birthday! Exactly 3 weeks prior to January 6th (his original due date) happens to be December 16th-- not only my birthday but my mama's birthday as well. As cool as it would be to have 3 generations born on the same date, not to mention meet our little man earlier than expected, it could have just been a fluke and the doctor will confirm if the due date needs to be changed at our next appointment. That doesn't mean we're not crossing our fingers over here.

Other than that, baby boy's kicks have gotten extra hard lately and it's not unusual to see me jump and flail about like a crazy lady when he does. Now if only he could try to keep it soft in there when mama's falling asleep, but we are working on it... train them early right? 

Now whether I'm 6, 6 1/2, or 7 months pregnant (someone please help me out here) I'm loving being pregnant with this little guy. Yes, I'm still sick from time to time and that sciatic nerve of mine is giving me a run for my money but I wouldn't change this for anything. Also, I've found the key to masking the inconveniences of pregnancy is to stay busy, busy, busy! Lately, it's been with working, being trying to be an awesome wife, and picking out.... duh, duh, duh: strollers. 

Now strollers are a whole other story for another day. 

Our Bay Area Summer in Photos.

Palo Alto, CA was our home for the Summer while Tanner interned for Facebook HQ as a spiffy business intern.

Facebook was more than gracious and set us up in the nicest apartment we had lived in during our newly-married lives on the famous Sandhill Road.

50 minutes from Napa Valley, 30 minutes south of San Fran, 15 minutes from the beach, 5 minute walk to Stanford Campus, and minutes away from something cool to do (and really good food) in every direction, it was a dream.

...but, we probably went on 1/4 of the adventures that we wanted to because this mama was sick as a dog all day everyday. Cue the sad snoopy tune from Arrested Development right about...yep now.

But let these photos be our proof that we did indeed go on some fun adventures. We went to cool places, we did some cool things, and we ate some darn good food (which anyone who truly knows me, knows this was the most important), and we made memories even if I was hurling in most of them.

Thanks for the good times Bay Area.

celebrate.

We celebrated two years of marriage in July while we were in Northern California. 

TWO YEARS, people! 

July 1st, 2011 will always be one of the absolute best days of my life and because of that we like to partyyyy it up when it comes around. So, like any special day in our house we (or maybe just me -- Tanner's learning) love to make it a week long celebration. 

To kick it off, we headed to the one and only Ritz Carlton in Half Moon Bay. The views and the atmosphere were breathtaking.

And that sunset mixed with the ocean and those cliffs... no words, people. Good thing I happen to have a video right?! And those bagpipes playing in the background...unreal. 

The actual day of our anniversary fell on Monday. I think that should be illegal, or we should at least get free passes from the realities of Monday but we still partied hard and celebrated at the cutest italian restaurant in downtown Palo Alto. Perfect patio weather, perfect food, and perfect man. What could be better?

One word: BEYONCE. My husband loves me so much and is so secure with our relationship (and his manliness) that he was totally okay to share our anniversary with my woman-crush the Queen B herself and surprised me with tickets to her Mrs. Carter show in San Jose. Besides being a little too over stimulating for this nauseous mama to be, it was a blast and just the way to end our 2 year anniversary celebration.  

I love that man of mine. Here's to many many many more celebrations with you, my Tan man. 

Our Plus One {part II}.

At 19 weeks, I had my mid-pregnancy ultrasound (oh how I love ultrasounds--nothing more exciting than seeing our little one flip around) and OF COURSE we found out the gender. We found out that our little one is in fact a little baby boy! We couldn't be more excited. More than that, he is a healthy baby boy, which eased this mama's heart.

We decided to share that moment just us two together at the doctor's office, but we wanted to do something fun for our families to tell them the news. So we did the old cupcake trick and had my family eat the ones on the left and hired my cousin to make the ones on the right for Tanner's family in California. Of course they were filled with baby blue frosting. It was so much fun to see their reactions when they bit into the cupcakes.

These last 5 weeks or so of my pregnancy have been the funnest. I'm actually starting to get that baby bump that I always wanted instead of looking like I ate a few too many doughnuts and we are starting to feel our little man move around in there. That's right we. I started feeling those little movements around 18 weeks. But once I hit 20 weeks, I started feeling them more and more consistently and not to mention harder (he's one strong baby boy). Then that day that Tanner and I both had been waiting for came at 21 weeks, when Tanner felt his little boy kick for the first time. It was the best feeling in the world to know number one that it wasn't all in my head (phew!) but to share one of my favorite things-the evidence of our very active baby boy-with Tanner. At that moment, it got so much more real and we might have become those parents who occasionally try to have full on conversations with our little man. Yikes, I never thought we'd become one of those crazies but we have and we secretly love it. At least we don't do it in front of anyone else, right? Or I'm pretty sure we would lose quite a few of our friends. Anywho...

Before I forget, since I've already failed at documenting this pregnancy, I've only taken 3 of those typical but very much needed "baby bump pictures" but even with these three it is so cool to see how much that tummy of mine has grown. And can you sense a trend, since being pregnant I live in skirts. But I finally invested in some cute maternity jeans that will be making an appearance as soon as Utah decides to embrace my favorite season: fall.

12 weeks:

18 weeks:

23 weeks:

And that's it folks. My very reader's digest version of my pregnancy so far. I'm going to try to update this blog weekly (or so) with quick baby rhodes updates, just for my own record. I want to remember this special moment in our lives because before we know it baby boy will be here!

p.s. it feels really good to be back, blogging world. 

Our Plus One {part I}.

It's been a dream come true.

The day I found out I was pregnant, it wasn't really a surprise to me at all. We had had a whirlwind of crazy weeks prior filled with finals, moving out of our second apartment together, my BYU graduation, having family in town, and then going to California to visit Tanner's family. Now, I know people cringe in awkwardness (myself more than anyone) when they hear people say that they have been "trying" to get pregnant. Well, folks we were those people. After my false reality of getting pregnant right away was shattered and I realized with every good thing in life you have to muster up a little bit of patience (which is not my forte), it happened. Thankfully my patience wasn't tried as hard as it could have and I feel for those women who have to experience much more waiting because when you are ready to start a family, even one month of no good news is one month too many. But it was in California when in a moment of random exhaustion and slight nausea that I laid there and knew something was different. I was going to be a mother.

The very moment we got home back in Utah, I took the test and thankfully I wasn't surprised. I remember a flood of emotions going through me. Every emotion you could think of, I had. But more than anything I felt excitement. Excitement to tell my partner in crime, my love who waited every minute for this blessing with me, that he was going to be a father. Now sidenote*, I feel like my life is full of these kind of moments where for years and years I've imagined in my perfect movie script mind how it will play out. From what I would say, to my elegant hand gestures, and the picture perfect tear in my eye to what he would say in response. But like all the other moments in my life, it always happens a little more like real life (cue my "aha" moment). Yes, so my perfect dramatic timing was thrown off by me being so darn excited and my words came out a little too clumsy but still, it was perfect. It was a real moment shared with no other than my perfect husband, and I will never forget that moment we shared together.

Now that week was flawless. I couldn't wait to tell my best friend the news--my very own Mama--especially since she had been with me through all my disappointment and to share my excitement with her was the funnest thing imaginable. But telling my Dad was one of the sweetest experiences of my life and the look on his face was something I'll never forget. There is no doubt in my mind that that man will be the most loving grandpa in the world, just like I was blessed to have. And then Tanner and I had way too much fun seeing the absolute shock of Tanner's family and my siblings when we told them the news. To top it off, I felt GREAT. I was almost worried at how amazing I was feeling. But that worry seemed to disappear quite quickly.

When I hit 6 weeks pregnant, to the day, the nausea hit me full force. And to make a very very long story short, the nausea and all that fun stuff that comes with it didn't leave till I hit around 20 weeks. Yep, you heard that right that's about 4 months straight of absolute misery.  And even now, at 23 weeks, it comes and goes in waves. But now at least it is somewhat manageable and I can actually attempt to function normally. Oh you can bet this little one is going to hear about all it put it's mama through. Thanks little one.