New Beginnings...

It is official we no longer live in Vegas! It was a HUGE transition moving to Nebraska but we did it! I won't lie either we both love it here! I know people always mock "cow and corn country" but it is beautiful here and we can go outside and not feel like we are going to die! It is fabulous! We didn't get pictures of the group who helped drive us out from Vegas to Bellevue but we did document some of the scenery.  I failed to capture the multiple cows we saw inseminating each other... but hey!

 I have to explain this.... this would be the fridge at our Las Vegas house the last week or so that I was there alone... you have to have the staples to survive especially being pregnant! Frosting, oreos, mountain dew, gogurt, milk, chocolate, and water.  Laugh as you will but these things have been my saving grace for my cravings :)

The weekend before leaving I got to meet up with two pregnant friends in California for lunch and we are all due in October! So fun and no we didn't plan the matching outfits! But they are gems and it was so fun to meet up and chat!

Leaving St. George it was a beautiful day and the clouds were spectacular!

 This was Wyoming... the most boring part of the drive... people will tell you that Nebraska is bad I would beg to differ that Wyoming was way worse.... nothing is there. 

 Nebraska was dreary and overcast almost the entire time we were driving through it, we passed this cool bridge on I-80 and it was the most random sight to come across in the middle of nowhere...interesting though

It was only customary that we take a picture of the Cabela's headquarters for my little brother who used to work there.  I thought it would be bigger !

 Upon arriving to our house we were met by the movers, oh yeah we had to leave by 5:30 in the morning in order to be there when the moving company was going to arrive at our house. Sleep deprivation, new environment, uncomfortable pregnancy, hormones, exhaustion make for a miserable day.  They unpacked us and left us with the mess to finish up for the next few days and my major goal was to have the house done or mostly finished by the time that Mike got into town Friday night.  This is the view from our backyard.  

It has finally come together and we have a house!! These are the finished products of the 110 boxes of stuff we brought from Vegas.

Just a few details of the nursery, we kept it simple seeing as though we will be moving next July.

It seems like yesterday in January that we had a positive pregnancy test.  Time has both flown by and dragged by.

Anyone that knows me or my mother knows that we both knit (though I will never be as good as my mother to any extent.)  This would be the blessing outfit that we will bless Adi in in December. 

And to the big one... yes one... we made it to our first year anniversary on Sunday the 18th! We celebrated on the 17th because Sunday we had church and knew Mike had to study for his advanced life support class on sedation.  I can't believe it was a year ago that I married this man for eternity and started our lives together.  It is unbelievable how much we have changed and how much we have experienced over the last year with each other and how much has happened to us.  We didn't know what we were in for I think when it all was happening last summer.  I never in a million years thought I would have a little girl in the next year or be living in Nebraska. I never thought it would be as hard as it has been.  I would be lying if I said that marriage was way easier than dating.  Anyone that tells you they have the perfect marriage is an absolute liar.  I wouldn't want a perfect marriage, we would not have grown if it weren't for our trials and tribulations.  It is amazing how much can change for a couple and for an individual.  Mike has always sworn by the saying "Happy wife, happy life".  It is amazing how ridiculous I thought that was for almost the entire first year, but it rings so true for him and I.  He almost always never complains about anything, if he is stressed or upset about something he is a professional about keeping it to himself or not making a big deal about it.  I on the otherhand am irrational and ridiculous.  Being pregnant doesn't help at all.  Anyone that tells you they love pregnancy is not me.  It has been the absolute hardest trial I have had to personally endure and it has been the hardest thing I have ever gone through.  I really will not sugar coat it for anyone expressing they want to get pregnant I wish them the best and hope to heaven that they don't have a pregnancy like me.  Not only has it been a trial physically but emotionally as well.  I would not recommend moving halfway across the country without your spouse... EVER. But I wouldn't change it because our little girl is healthy and kicking away more than ever and it is amazing to feel each and every one of those little kicks.  I complain all the time to this poor guy and have really tried to be more positive and appreciative of everything he is doing for our family.  Our marriage is so much better when I am happy and that saying is absolutely true in our house.  I never thought we would be where we are but in the last year we have moved (I have moved twice), Mike finished up dental school, attended commissioned officer training, started residency, rescued a dog, lost a dog, bought a car, having a baby, moved to Nebraska, and we grew together.  I can honestly say he is my best friend and every day that I have with him I thank the Lord for every blessing we have.  We are extremely blessed both physically and spiritually.  We are doing great financially and are living the dream essentially.  We don't fight, yes we disagree but nothing turns into an argument or fight.  We communicate better than we ever have and I look at him with pure admiration and am so blessed to have this great man as my eternal companion and to have him be the father of my children.  I can never express how hard the first year was but also how amazing it has been.  I look forward to many more and am so excited to have our little girl here already.

 Adventures in Nebraska... I guess I could separate this but don't feel the necessity to do so.  We did end up moving here with another dental student from UNLV and his family.  His wife and kids happen to be some of the funnest people to hang around and I am glad that I have the opportunity to make new friends here and build new relationships.  I went with Melissa and her kids to the Winter Quarters Temple in downtown Omaha and visited the Mormon Trail Center.  It was fun to come back and revisit some of the same places I was with my family a little over five years ago.  It is amazing the feelings the temple brings of serenity and peace.  I am so glad I get to live close to one and receive blessings through it.  This temple is tiny compared to the Utah temples I am used to but it is still beautiful. 

An update on the pregnancy... This is one of the last few updates... less than six!

How far along? 34 weeks

Total weight gain/loss: I am no longer sharing this number but I do still fit in XS and S maternity :)
Maternity clothes? Pants and leggings
Stretch marks? Not yet!
Sleep: Is okay, but I wake up a lot through the night
Best moment this week: Starting to see an end in sight we are at under fifty days 
Have you told family and friends: Yes!
Miss Anything? Being skinny
Movement: She kicks all day everyday
Food cravings:  Not really anything at this point
Anything making you queasy or sick: Nope not really
Have you started to show yet:  I look like I have a basketball 
Gender prediction: Girl
Labor Signs: I have contractions quite a bit and am ordered to lay down anytime I have them some sort of modified bed rest but it just depends on what I am doing
Belly Button in or out? It is like halfway to nowhere at this point
Wedding rings on or off? On
Happy or Moody most of the time: Happy Happy Happy but exhausted
Looking forward to: October lol!