WE ARE HAVING A......

Last Wednesday Paul and I went in for our 22 week doctors appointment and ultrasound to find out what sex our baby is! I have been so extremely nervous for this appointment, because at this appointment the doctor counts the chambers of the heart, looks at the different parts of the brain, spinal chord, he counts fingers and toes, and just makes sure that the baby is devoloping normally. I was so worried that something was going to be wrong with our baby, but luckily the doctor said that everything looked great! Thank goodness!! He did tell us that our baby was 4 days smaller than average, but that was nothing to worry about. He also told us that our baby is.......A BABY BOY!!!!!

We are so extremely excited and couldn't be happier! It is so much fun because when I go shopping for baby things I can buy blues instead of yellows and greens!!!!!! It was so exciting to see the ultrasound and to see that our baby actually looks like a baby. It was a big change from our last ultrasound when the baby looked like a gummy bear. We saw our baby yawn and suck it's thumb..it was absolutely adorable and I kept thinking the whole time that this is Pauls and my baby.. we created this beautiful baby boy! It was such an incredible feeling.. I can't even describe it! I just love our baby boy so much already and I can't wait until I finally get to meet him! A down side of the appointment was that we had brought in a cd and a dvd to copy our baby on, but when we got there, they told us that they could only copy on VHS videos. Who uses VHS videos anymore?? So, we will make sure that we bring in a VHS movie for our next ultrasound so that we can get a video of our boy! We did get a couple of pictures of the different features of our baby boy! ENJOY!!

If you look closely right in the middle of this picture, you can tell that yes, he really is a baby boy! :-)

His little hand is cupping and right above his arm, you can see the umbilical cord

I thought it was so much fun to see a picture of his tiny leg and feet! Sooooo cute!!

This picture was my favorite because you can see his whole head. I thought it was fun to see that he has a very distinct little chin and a cute nose!

MY OBSESSIONS!!

Ok, so about half a month ago Kristen Johnson tagged me on my 8 obsessions. I totally missed my name at the bottom of her list, so I am so sorry Kristen that this has taken me so long, but here I go. Better late than never I guess! :)

MY 8 OBSESSIONS:

1. Travel- Travel is my absolute #1 passion. I would honestly travel everyday the rest of my life if I could. There is something about different cultures and people, different lands, different languages, different foods, etc. that totally invigorates me. I have had the opportunity in my life to travel tons and have visited well over 20 countries. My longer experiences in travel include: spending 7 months in London, England in a study abroad program with BYU, 1 1/2 years total (4 times back and forth from Utah)teaching english to children ages 3-18 in and traveling around Russia, and my 8th grade school year in Askim, Norway. My dream is to visit Italy and Africa.. SOMEDAY :-)

2. Soccer- Soccer is the #1 best sport in the world, hands down. There is nothing like running around up and down a field with a soccerball. I could do it everyday, all day!!! I really miss being in High School where I played soccer about 5 hours everyday!

3. Black Licorice- I would honestly travel to Scandinavia and back just to get a bag of Scandinavian black licorice. I will honestly suck on a piece of licorice for 10 minutes or more just to savor the taste. There is nothing more tastey out there. YUUUMMMYY!!!

4. Christmas- Christmas and the Christmas season is my favorite time of the year. I start counting down for Christmas in February! :-) It is just such a cozy holiday full of love, joy, giving and sharing. I love having a time each year to remember Christ and his birth and how it brings families together. It just seems like everyone is a lot more happy and thoughtful during the Christmas season. ONLY 2 MONTHS TO GO! :-)

5. Sleeping- If there is ever some free time in my day, you will almost always find me curled up in my bed fast asleep! I just LOVE sleep! I don't understand these people, like Paul, that can survive on like receiving 5 hours of sleep a night....give me 10 or more, and I'm happy!

6. Running- a lot of people call me crazy, but I LOVE running!! Whenever I am stressed out, I take off for a run, and I feel calm instantly. I especially love running in the rain! I have ran 1 half marathon(Provo River), and two full marathons (Salt Lake, and Ogden). I am planning on running the Top of Utah marathon next year.

7. Cooking- I absolutely love trying new recipes and new cooking ideas. I'm not that great of a cook, but I have a lot of fun!! It's also a lot of fun to taste what creations you have made afterwards.

8. Taking surveys- So ever since my friend Dave introduced me to the joys of taking surveys and getting paid for it, I have been very obsessed and always squeeze in time to take a couple of surveys daily. Hey.. why not.. it's easy and you get paid! :-)

WOOHOO.. I am done and I tag: Cerra Hawkins, Haylee Skaggs, and Cheryl Rasband

~TAG~
I am: Proud to be a Norwegian American
I am sad: That my husband is feeling so sick
I think: About traveling to Europe again way too much
I know: That Russia is an amazing country
I am: Extremely tired and have a headache
I want: It to snow so that I can go ice skating and skiing
I have: The most bestest husband in the whole world
I dislike: How hard it is to sleep when you are pregnant
I miss: My Norwegian family and my friends in Russia
I fear: The dark and heights
I feel: Extremely pregnant
I hear: My husband talking on the phone to his sister
I smell: Nothing, I'm sick and my nose is all stuffed up
I crave: Egg nog and celery sticks dipped in ranch
I cry: All the time now that I am pregnant.. even from watching some silly commerical on TV
I search: Almost everyday for keys that I misplace
I wonder: If my baby is a boy or a girl
I regret: Eating too much pizza for dinner
I wish: That is was Christmas
I love: My husband sooooooo much
I care: A lot about sleep
I always: Enjoy traveling
I worry: All the time about my baby
I am not: Very patient
I remember: The last time I was with my Grandpa before he died
I believe: That I am very lucky to live in a free country
I sing: Every morning in the shower
I don’t: Clean my house as much as I should
I argue: Over the stupidest things
I write: Down yummy recipes all the time
I win: Every time I play Monopoly if I play with the shoe
I lose: When I play Mario Kart with my husband
I listen: To Russian and Norwegian music
I don’t understand: Why it is still 80 degrees outside when it's almost the end of October
I can usually be found: Asleep in my bed
I need: A massage
I forget: Where I place my cell phone and car keys very easily

I saw this tag on Latu's blog and thought it would be fun to do. Everyone that reads this blog entry is now tagged! Have fun! :)

~MY CONFESSIONS~

First of all, I just had to let everyone know that we are exactly half way (plus 5 days) done with our pregnancy!!!! WE ARE SO EXCITED!! Just a little over 4 months left and our baby will be here. To celebrate our half way mark, I went shopping and bought a baby crib mattress cover, top sheets, and about 5 packages of diapers!! :) We are also anxious to find out in a week from today what the sex of our baby will be. I am debating whether or not I should just go to the mall and find out the sex at Fetal Foto.. but I guess I can hold off for one more week. I have been pretty nervous for out next doctors appointment because we find out if the baby is growing and developing properly (brain and heart development, etc.) I will also be able to count fingers and toes so hopefully all the baby parts will be there, and everything will look normal! :) Everything with the pregnancy is going very well. I have had the most energy that I have had throughout the pregnancy so far, and I am feeling very good!! I am having some troubles sleeping, but I guess that goes along with every pregnancy. I also have an enormous appetite, (but I'm not going to complain about that!) :) It has been so wonderful to feel the baby moving around in there. I feel the baby move almost every day now and that has been so special to me. I am just so excited to meet our little baby!!

Ok, Cerra tagged me wanting me to tell the whole world about 3 confessions that I have. I have been putting these off for well over a week, but I guess they need to come out sometime.. so here they are!! :)

1. While I am going to the bathroom, I play bathroom games to try and keep my attention during the ordeal. If there are tiles on the wall I try and guess how many there are without counting them first, and then count them afterwards to see how close I was. I also play scramble with any words or quotes on the walls.

2. I am still totally scared of the dark when I am alone. When Paul leaves for work at 2:30 in the morning, I almost always turn on the light and sleep with it on the rest of the night..not even a night light will do the trick. Whenever I am home and have to go downstairs by myself to grab something, I always take the dog with me!! If I have to use the restroom in the middle of the night, I either try and hold it the whole night, or sprint to the bathroom and back as fast as I can to avoid being in the dark by myself.

3. I have total anxiety from working in an adolescent treatment center. Whenever I go to a grocery store or a resteraunt, I am constantly trying to stay as far away from people as I can.. thinking to myself "They might have a weapon or be dangerous in someway.. wondering which one of them should be in a treatment center that's not...

I have the most amazing husband in the world!! :)

I just wanted to let you all know how incredibly thankful I am to my Heavenly Father for such a loving and kind husband!! He is truely the most amazing man in the world!! I honestly don't know what I have ever done to deserve such a wonderful man! I've been thinking about the hundreds and millions of things that I love about Paul. Here is a tiny list of 100 reasons why I love my husband!

1. He lets me call him by his pet names no matter who is around.
2. He plays with my hair when I cant sleep or when he knows that I am stressed.
3. He comes home and asks me how my day was. Not just so he can tell me how his was either.
4. Makes me laugh even if I’m having the worst day ever, sometimes by only saying one word.
5. He gets me flowers for no reason at all.
6. He is very affectionate.

7. He is very supportive
8. He is very giving.
9. He is very loving.
10.He let’s me love him with everything I have
11. He wakes up every day at 2:30 in the morning to go to work, and afterwards heads straight to school without EVER complaining!
12. I can be myself around him at all times and he still calls me “sexy” even when I haven't done my hair.
13. He makes it so easy to love him, I can laugh with him and we can be a pair of kids together.
14. He is extremely responsible and organized.
15. He gives the ABSOLUTE BEST hugs in the whole entire world and always makes me feel safe and protected!!
16. He sings to me constantly, making up the songs as he goes along and has the most beautiful voice.
17. He is extremely intelligent.
18. He is a very talented artist and poet. He writes amazing poetry for me all of the time.
19. He is a better father figure than any man I've ever known.
20. He has dreams and goals and is working towards them.
21. He is extremely knowledgeable about the church and has a very strong testimony.
22. He has a kindness for animals (especially cats) that I love and admire.
23. He is incredibly strong and good-looking.. tall, dark and handsome :)
24. He doesn't laugh at my random ideas and strange thoughts.
25. He has a wonderful gift for learning languages.
26. He has the most adorable smile and laugh...oh his adorable laugh!!!!
27. He is the best Wii nintendo player in the world! :)
28. He is such a handy man and can fix ANYTHING.
29. He gives the greatest massages and back scratches in the world!
30. He makes me feel smart, even though he is 1,000 times smarter.
31. He has an amazing sense of humor and can make anyone laugh at anytime.
32. He usually eats anything that I cook.
33. Is extremely patient with me and my mood swings.
34. Still tells me I am beautiful even with my big pregnant belly.
35. He makes the best spaghetti sauce in the whole entire world.
36. He is very athletic.
37. The way he looks at me from across the room when his eyes say more than words ever could 38. The way his hand always reaches for mine regardless of where we are -- in the car, in the grocery store, on the couch, in bed, he always holds my hand.
39. He makes me want to be a better person.
40. The way that he reaches for me in the middle of the night
41. His soft and gentle kiss and the way that he gives me kisses on the forehead.

42. He watches romantic movies with me.

43. He loves my family.

44. He always has the spirit with him
45. He loves my crazy red hair.

46. He sees himself so clearly and doesn't try and hide his faults.

47. He makes cute sounds when he sleeps

48. He is faithful.

49. He tells me he loves me OFTEN, and makes me feel like I am the most important thing in his life.

50. He has beautiful, beautiful, beautiful hands.

51. He is a genius with computers.

52. He is my best friend.

53. He respects me.

54. He is an excellent listener
55. He loves me without my makeup.

56. He never gives up on me.

57. He is simply irresistible.

58. He IS my better half.

59. He looks extremely sexy in jeans and a button down shirt.

60. He can finish my sentences…and somehow knows what I was going to say.
61. How he forgives me over and over when I do something wrong.

62. How is isn't afraid to speak his mind.

63. He is always completely honest and trustworthy.

64. He thinks I look cute in glasses.

65. He always smells sooo good.

66. He encourages me to become my best self but he’s happy with me the way I am now.

67. He gets rid of spiders for me, even when they’re already dead and I’m still afraid of them

68. He didn't get mad when I got a $200 speeding ticket on our honeymoon.

69. His huge bowls of cold cereal.

70. How my body fits his body so well.

71. The many memories we’ve created together that I cherish and think about with fondness.

72. He’s a good driver.

73. He is a thoughtful, sensitive, and generous lover.

74. He is a wonderful uncle to our nieces and nephews.

75. He is truly a good person. He always tries to do what he thinks is right.

76. He's humble

78. Paul is very forgiving with the people that have wronged him.

79. He is always ready to hold me when I need it.

80. He always goes out of the way to help our families.

81. I love how he always patiently helps me find my everyday misplaced keys and cell phone

82. I love that he always includes me in all of his important decisions.

83. I love that he always calls me on the way home from work and school just to talk to me.

84. He is extremely careful and responsible with our money

85. I love that he accepts my faults

86. I love that I've found in him, the friend and the kind of love that I always dreamed of.

87. He rubs my belly and talks to our baby in utero

88. He is very laid back and easy to please

89. He totally gets my jokes. 90. How he loves the winter and playing in the snow, just like I do.

91. He loves just being with me, no matter what we are doing.

92. He has amazing baby blue eyes.

93. How his rosy cheaks puff up when he smiles

94. I love how he misses me even if I am gone shortly.

95. How he always is a gentleman and opens doors for me. Also whenever we go out to eat he always gets me my drinks and utensils.

96. I love how child like and silly he can be

97. I love that he is my soul mate

98. I love how unique and special he is

99. I love his dark gorgeous curly hair

100.I love that there are so many things to love about my husband that coming up with this list was so incredibly easy.

PAUL, I LOVE YOU WITH ALL OF MY HEART!! Thanks for being such a special husband and my best friend!!