Moving: What I'll miss and what I won't

I apologize that it's been more than 4 months since I updated this blog. Obviously there has been a lot going on in my life, and a lot of noteworthy things. The biggest thing lately has been our search for a new home, which was so much more stressful than I needed it to be. We saw more than a dozen rental properties in the last month or so, and they all lacked something important. Closeness to campus, cleanliness, natural light, storage, affordability, privacy, etc. There was so much potential compromise going on in my mind, and it was driving me insane. In the end it was the easiest thing. Our good friends, who live less than a block away in a beautiful home with a pool told us there was a possibility that their upstairs renter would be moving. And she did, last week! It's a two bedroom apartment, but there is plenty of hidden storage so we'll be ok with that, even though Stephen's office will still have to share our bedroom. The biggest thing that we're just going to have to "deal with" is that it's up almost 2 flights of outdoor stairs. That could get tricky carrying babies to and from the car. And groceries. It's almost winter. They are covered, but it wouldn't be hard for a little wind to blow snow all over them. But the location is right, the neighbors are awesome, the indoor space is what we need, and the price is a steal. And HELLO... there is a SWIMMING POOL. Granted, we might not even be there over the summer. It depends on more things to come.

So, in honor of finding a new place to call home, I've been keeping a mental tally of things I'll miss about our first Provo home together, and things I won't.

What I'll Miss:
-We have so many memories here! I know I won't actually miss the memories, because they are mine for good, but I will miss the place where they were made. This is the house we brought two babies home to, and watched them learn and grow.
-The window in the front room. It lets in so much light, and so much beauty. I've spent hours sitting on the couch under that window and watching lightening or snow, or rain, or leaves falling. Or just soaking up the suns warmth. It's a perfect window.
-Our front porch. Mostly for the same reasons I'll miss the window.
-My own laundry room. Hopefully I won't have to miss this for very long.
-The heating system. Those old hot water space heaters are amazing.
-The windchimes that Mike just barely put up.
-Our own yard.
-Our landlord. Not that we expect to have a bad experience, but Mike has been great. Until he decided not to renew our lease because he wants the apartment for himself. I can't wait to see what the remodel does for the place though!
-Being on the main floor.

What I Won't Miss:
-Our kitchen. All of it. Specifically -
  -The fridge. It's way too big for the kitchen and I can't even open the door all the way. And it's missing a shelf and a drawer, so it's pretty useless. But at least its cold. We tried to convince ourselves for weeks that the other fridge wasn't broken. We were wrong.
  -The complete lack of counter space.
  -The complete lack of cupboard space.
  -The round table in the tiny kitchen.
  -Having to keep our huge double stroller in the tiny kitchen.
-Not being able to see my babies from the kitchen.
-Having to walk upstairs to use the bathroom from my bedroom.
-Having one baby sleep in the basement and one upstairs.
-Neighbors that don't sleep at night. (disclaimer - we LOVE our neighbors. Just not their sleeping habits.)
-Not knowing when someone is at the door.
-The entertainment center which is way too big for our front room.
-The tiny spot where we have to enter our huge driveway.
-Not having a dishwasher.

The same kind of list will exist, I am sure when we leave our new apartment, but for now I am so grateful to have found a place that works for us. Move in day is Friday, and I'm pretty darn excited!

4 days over due

Seriously? This girl was in such a hurry to join our family 9 months ago, but now she seems to be taking her sweet time. I know that 4 days overdue is really not that long. But it is 17 days longer than I was pregnant with Hannah, and my doctor thought for some reason it would be a good idea to tell me he expected the time frame would be about the same with this baby. My bishop's wife was due Sunday. She had her baby early this morning and she was 9.5 lbs. According to my doctor, my baby #2 has been bigger than Hannah was at birth for at least a month now. Which I'm totally in favor of. Hannah was so tiny. But at the same time, yikes.

Mom has been here for almost 2 weeks, just waiting. I feel like life is totally on hold while we just wait around for me to go into labor. We eat, we walk, we shop a little, we watch netflix. Stephen works. But we're all totally bored. And mom goes home in 11 days no matter how much longer we wait. That's what I feel worst about. I wouldn't be impatient at all except that it seems silly for mom to be here longer before the baby than after, and now we've reached that point. Lucky for me, my relief society is awesome, and provides 7 meals for new moms, which can start whenever I ask them to. So that's a good week that Stephen won't have to eat cold cereal and ramen for dinner after mom leaves.

I wasn't dilated at all at my 40 week appointment. Since then I've had 2 non-stress tests, and this baby is not stressed. Every morning I wake up disappointed that I didn't go into labor during the night. I've had my issues with emotionally coming to terms with the idea of two babies to take care of, but I'm as ready as I'm going to be. I'm no longer resisting the idea, or the responsibility. I'm ready to try it out. But with a little help at the beginning. Granted, I know I'm not just going to be left alone by everybody as soon as my mom leaves. I'm never alone. My husband is awesome. I have super great friends close to me who are just waiting to help out. It's just going to be easiest while mom is here. Also, every day she doesn't come is another day I won't have to recover before I hop on a plane to Maryland in less than 5 weeks from now.

Wow. I don't sound excited at all. I just sound annoyed. I don't want it to be like that, but the truth is that my excitement, while certainly present, is buried under a lot of other things that I wish could just disappear. I was only excited for Hannah - it was anxiety that I felt was missing before she came. Now it's the other way around, and I feel terrible about that. I guess that's mostly because I know now what an emotional basket case I was for at least a month after Hannah was born, and I'm not sure I can handle life like that again so soon. Yes, that's exactly it. I have no resistance or resentment or even anxiety towards having another baby. I love babies. I'm just afraid of myself. Afraid that I won't be able to take care of anyone if I'm not in control of my emotional health. But I firmly believe that everything is going to be ok when she comes and I finally get to meet her. She'll bring as much joy as Hannah did, and even more.

Feeling like a time bomb...

It's 11 days before my due date! My doctor was expecting baby to come this week, just based on when Hannah came, but it looks like she's going to prove him wrong. That's ok. He also thought Hannah was going to be 8 lbs. I hadn't started dilating at all when he checked me on Monday, and I fully expect to make it to another appointment next week. Mom will be here Saturday though, so we have an understanding that any time after that is a good time for baby to make her debut. That's what I told Hannah about general conference, and we know how that went.

Hannah and I have been enjoying summer this week, which is to say this afternoon was the third since Monday that we've spent in our swimming suits, and we'll do the same tomorrow. Monday we went swimming at the BC with Liz and Aiden, which is funny because Liz and I were room mates there. I spent one summer there and went swimming all the time, but it was funny to get a bunch of strange looks since I was pregnant and had Hannah playing in the pool with me. Yesterday we went swimming  with Megan and Ashlyn in their pool. It was nice and warm, and I think Hannah liked that better. Even though she didn't think the salt water tasted very good. Today we went with Margrethe and Lars to the splash pad in Springville. Hannah got way more into it than last time. She sat in the little river/ditch and splashed and made friends with an older girl sitting nearby. Lars wasn't quite as excited about the water and the multitude of kids. I didn't realize it was the Springville City festival this week. There were tons of people everywhere. Tomorrow we'll go to the provo splash pad with Kristy and Landon. We need to get in as much water fun as possible because I'm going to be missing out on water for most of the summer. Hopefully I'll be able to go swimming by the time we go home to Maryland, but it's not guaranteed.

3 Weeks to go! And ALWAYS pay your tithing.

I can't believe that May is now coming to a close. 7 months ago I was a little in shock, having just found out that our family would be growing a little sooner than I imagined. Those seven months have gone by so quickly, because nothing makes time go faster than watching your baby grow before your eyes. My due date is 23 days away, but lets review how Hannah came 13 days early. That makes 10 days before I start wondering every moment if today is the day. My doctor keeps telling me that this girl is likely bigger than Hannah was already from what he can tell, and that women tend to have their babies in patterns, so if my first was early and I went into labor naturally (as in nothing happened to make my water break) then the same will probably be the case this time. Mom will be here in 14 days. I'm kind of hoping we get to have a little fun together for a day or two. Or a week.

Just watch me make it all the way to 40 weeks this time. Which is fine with me. Yes, I'm physically ready to not be pregnant anymore. But the easiest way to take care of two babies is if one of them is still inside me. And there is a lot to do. I've told everyone who asks that I know I need to be getting ready for baby to arrive, but I don't even know what there is to do because I'm so focused on Hannah. That's the hardest part. Also, I feel like I have a contraction every time I bend over and stand back up. So cleaning is not much of an option for me.

This week Aunt Holly came to help get the basement in order. Stephen had moved furniture so that we could fit the pack n'play in our room. He got rid of his desk in favor of a smaller one. We also got rid of the love seat (so Hannah can't eat couch fluff out of the tears in the arms anymore) and we bought a recliner. It's the first new piece of furniture we have ever bought. The cheapest one at RC Willey, but still too expensive, really. But I kind of need it. Anyway, when Aunt Holly came on Tuesday it was mostly Stephen that got to work. I guess he decided that he needed to be the one to go through all those tubs of his stuff that haven't been gone through since before we got married. It was amazing. We ended up with three tubs of trash, one for DI, and a whole bunch of empty ones. And we had a miracle. Aunt Holly found $200 in one of Stephen's old suits. Only Aunt Holly would check the pockets. And only Stephen could possibly leave $200 in a suit having no idea where it came from something like 8 years later. I almost cried. It was too good to be true. Always pay your tithing folks. Always.

Aunt Holly came back on Thursday and we finished getting pretty much everything in the basement cleaned and put away. It's amazing to have a place for everything, and even room to spare. My stress has been immensely relieved. Now there is a clean place for baby to sleep, so I won't panic when it's time to bring her home. My wonderful mother in law is coming to help next week with cleaning the main floor, and getting a few freezer meals ready. I wish I could make a ton of freezer meals, but not many will fit in my freezer.

I'm trying (as per my husbands orders) not to stress out. It's hard, but I'm getting better. I know everything is going to happen when it's supposed to whether I think I'm "ready" or not. It doesn't seem fair that all the stress piles up at the point I am least physically able to do anything about it.

Happy Birthday Hannah!!!!!!!! (a little late)

I can't believe my baby is already 1! This year has FLOWN by, I think mostly due to the fact that not only do I have one baby growing and learning and moving and getting into everything, but in 2 months (probably less) there's going to be ANOTHER one.

I haven't gotten the birthday pictures from Stephen's camera yet, but I do have the ones from his iphone. I wanted to do a little comparison, to see who Hannah looks like more at this point. So here's a little photo treat....

Hannah at 1 year

Meagan at 1 year

Stephen at 1 year

So what do you think? It's funny, looking at her now most people say quickly, "oh, she looks so much like Stephen!" But sometimes when she makes a certain face, her baby pictures and mine could be almost identical. There's definitely a good mix of both of us in there. I wonder how much baby girl #2 will look like Hannah, or not.

We sure do love our 1 year old! She's a happy, growing girl. Her favorite foods are mac&cheese, grapes, and bananas. She gets soooo excited when I pick up her banana in the morning. I can only giver her one grape at a time, because if I put them all on her tray, they will all be in her mouth. I haven't let her feed herself mac and cheese yet because I'm just not ready for that mess. The day after her birthday, I caught her taking a step or two on her own. She can take 5 or 6 if she gets a good start - that is - not on her tip toes. Stephen finally caught a good practice on video today. Hannah still sleeps like an angel. 12 hours at night, 7/7:30 ish pm to the same time in the morning. And 2 naps, one at 9:30am, and the other at 2/2:30pm. It amazes me how regular she is. She loves bathtime. She also loves to hold my keys while we go on walks, now that it's warm enough on some days. She has fun crawling around on the little playground with her friends, but I don't think she likes the swings. We got her a little ride-on giraffe for her bday, which she hasn't quite got the hang of riding yet, but she's very good at using it to climb up on the couch all by herself. No words yet. Not even close as far as I can tell. I feel a little guilty that she has no inclination of the baby sister about to arrive. It seems like it would be more fun if she were old enough to be excited about it. I know Hannah gets kicked by the baby sometimes when I'm feeding her. She probably wonders what's up with that. I guess she'll find out soon enough!

Now baking... banana muffins with Nutella swirl

These sounded like such a good idea that I couldn't even wait to get them out of the oven before blogging about them. This is a recipe I adapted from here.

3 or more bananas (mashed) I used 4
1 cup sugar I'm pretty sure this is a TON of sugar. I did use a whole cup this time, but I bet you could half it and it would still be awesome.
1/4 cup oil or butter (melted) I used coconut oil, but keep in mind it works best if you melt it first.
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 eggs1½ cup flour

Combine sugar, butter, baking soda, salt and eggs; add flour and banana alternating between the two until mixed. (do not over mix) I ignored the mixing instructions... mashed the banana first in my kitchen aid, added sugar, then oil and eggs, the sprinkled the soda and salt over that and added the flour last. 

Then here's the best part. I divided the batter into my muffin tin, and added a little dollop of nutella on each muffin. In hindsight I wish I had melted the nutella a little so that it could be swirled easier. These might turn out more like banana muffins with a dollop of nutella in the middle than a nutella swirl. I did try to swirl it with a knife as best I could. Still a good idea if you ask me. 

Bake about an hour at 350 if making loaf of bread.
Bake about 20-25 minutes if doing muffins

Keep in mind... this is not a healthy recipe. I usually make oatmeal banana muffins with chocolate chips, and that recipe is lots healthier. But when there's nutella in the house, it's just begging to be gotten rid of. 

Valentine's Day 2013

This collage pretty much sums up our Valentine's Day. Heart shaped strawberry nutella stuffed french toast for breakfast, heart shaped cinnamon rolls, strawbery filled cupcakes topped with chocolate strawberries and a heart shaped crochet tag to the girls I visit teach, candle light dinner at the kitchen table, an AWESOME new shower head, a stuffed puppy named Charlie, and one happy Aldridge family.

I have always loved Valentine's Day. Maybe it was the candy, the elementary school valentines mail boxes, the colors, or the overall bright spot in the middle of the coldest season. I don't know. I never had a proper "Valentine" until I was married, but I always made the most of the holiday with my family and friends. Even the one year when I was completely alone because all my room mates were on dates - I remember I had miserably failed an astronomy test and I came home to an empty apartment, where I found a rose on my bed with an anonymous Valentine's note. It was probably from my visiting teacher. I liked to pretend at the time it could have been from my home teacher. But obviously he didn't know which room was mine. It could have been from anyone though, since we never ever locked our door in that apartment. I think not knowing made it all the more sweet and memorable. 

Now that I have my own little family to share Valentine's Day with, I love it even more. I don't usually go this overboard on the craftiness all in one week, and I probably won't always. But it was fun. I love sharing goodies with other people. 

Just remembered... there are leftover chocolate strawberries in the fridge that need to be eaten. Snack time!