Deadwood Trip/ Mount Rushmore!

Brock's company does an employee appreciation party in Deadwood South Dakota for employees and their families every February. We decided to go this year and partake of the madness. They send all the Montana folks there by bus and with the recent incline in fuel prices, Brock and I decided to ride the bus.
Now we should have seen the red flags when people who had gone the year before by bus were opting out of riding the bus again. Anyway, it was a big bus with a toilet and t.v's so that made the trip down okay. It wasn't packed in with a ton of people so we were able to spread out which was nice.
When we arrived they put us in a nice hotel in downtown Deadwood and they bused us to and from the main lodge to our hotel.
 On Saturday they bused us to the Stone Face Winery and to Mount Rushmore. Obviously we were not too impressed with the winery. Mount Rushmore was awesome though! Even though the wind was cold and brutal, it was so cool to see the monument. The bus ride back from Mt. Rushmore was BRUTAL! We were so sick of hearing the tour guide's voice and some cackling old ladies who were so loud the whole trip. I felt trapped with a bunch of idiots on the ride back. Brock and I started to feel tired of the whole bus thing.
Saturday night we had the big banquet at the lodge which was nice. Brock received a sales award for his high sales for 2011- I was so proud! They served a nice dinner for those who like Prime Rib (not me but I gave Brock my slice) and an interesting dessert.
During the entertainment we overheard someone saying that there was a HUGE blizzard outside and that the shuttle buses couldn't make it up the mountain to the lodge. They also said that the last bus was leaving soon. Needless to say we booked it out to the bus because we didn't want to get stuck up at the lodge with all the other hundreds of people.
We got on the bus which was overloaded with desperate people trying to leave too. Seriously, there were people standing in the isle from the front to the back of the bus on the ride down. I was trying really hard not to have a FREAK OUT! It didn't make me feel good to be driving down a steep icy mountain hill in an overloaded bus with some dude's booty in my face. Luckily we made it and I only swore at people in  my head.
Sunday morning we sat on our bus to leave home for an hour and a half before it was decided that we were snowed in. So we got to spend another day on the company in Deadwood. We didn't do much because we had NO transportation but we enjoyed spending time at the lodge with yummy food, movies and Brock's co-workers.
Monday we got to leave but the ride home was brutal! We were so worn out on buses that it was really hard to make ourselves get back on the bus. After about 9 hours, 2 lousy meals at McDonald's and a lifetime's worth of lame kid movies we decided: 1. Deadwood South Dakota is a really neat Old West town 2. We will NEVER go on a bus trip like that EVER AGAIN!

The dreaded bus!

Brock and I waiting on the bus at the lodge before the Rushmore trip.

Us outside the winery while other folks were sampling their beverages.



Enterance to Mt. Rushmore!

It was sooo windy and cold!

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16 Week Check Point & Other Stuff

We are finally to our 16 week check point in this pregnancy! We've been looking forward to getting to this point because I had my 16 week check up with the Doctor. I went in on Friday and after a ridiculous wait, urine sample, blood pressure check, weigh in and a series redundant questions; we finally got to hear the little critter's heartbeat!
It is seriously the coolest thing ever! The little thing kept moving so the doc was having to move around to keep a steady heartbeat. It was so reassuring to hear the baby and to have my check up go good. I am so thankful that things are going well thus far and we pray that they will continue to go well.
During this week I spent some time in Utah with my family. I decided to got shopping for maternity clothing while I was there since there isn't much of a selection around these parts. The idea was to buy some clothes so that I would have them on hand when I needed them. Although I can still fit into my jeans and some of my shirts, it has been rather uncomfortable. I didn't realize how uncomfortable I actually was until I slipped on some maternity jeans. It was so nice not to have my gut pinched or to be gasping for air while I bend over. The shirts are nice too because I don't feel like I have to "suck it in" and I feel comfy. Also, I thought the jeans were super cute and my shirts were really cute too. I always thought maternity clothes were ugly but I think I found some cute stuff. I just wish I would have bought more! I am still wearing my regular jeans with a Bellaband but I am loving my pregnant people clothes!
Brock and I also bought a crib and a dresser for the little bambino today which was totally exciting. We've been looking at this set at Costco for a few weeks that we really liked but we thought we better shop around. Well, Bozeman literally has ONE store that sells cribs and they are beautiful but are also ridiculously expensive. We also looked online but I am totally a touchy person and I can't bring myself to purchase something that expensive without seeing and touching it in person. So we went back to Costco and they had marked down both the crib & dresser by a couple hundred dollars. So we went back this morning to pick up the LAST one they had! I feel like we scored an awesome dealio! Now we just have to clean out the guest room so we can set up the crib:)
In other weird news, I am thinking that I am starting to feel the baby move. I'm not totally sure but it definitely feels a little different sometimes. The doc said she wouldn't be surprised if I was because the baby was moving all over the when she was looking for a heartbeat.
Overall I am feeling really good right now. I rarely feel sick and I have most of my energy back. I do have some slight heartburn but I will take that over nausea any day! It has been so fun to be experiencing these changes and things that I honestly thought I never would have the opportunity to experience. I feel very grateful:)

Crib, dresser & Brock's filthy truck

I actually went down to Utah to celebrate my sister's birthday with her at the Lady Antebellum concert at the ESA. The concert was AMAZING and the baby really enjoyed it too. We were pretty much at the top of the building but that was okay- it was still awesome. (I didn't get any good pics) They are awesome performers and they really do put on a great show.

Nette and I before the concert grabbing a bite at Hot Dog On A Stick!

Darius Rucker-I'm so mad I used my only picture on him because I don't really like him.

While I was there I spent a couple days in SLC with my parents and then I spent the rest of the time in Tooele with my sister's family and my brother's family. It was really nice to see everyone and I especially loved babysitting my two little nieces while Jon and Heather were out working.

I can't get over her cute chubby arms!

It was a really fun trip that unfortunately ended kinda sour. I was suppose to come home Wednesday but the weather was bad and I was pretty bummed because I was really ready to come home. However, it turns out it was a blessing that I couldn't leave because my Grandma had a stroke that afternoon. Luckily, my brother and his wife were visiting Grandma when it happened or else she would have been alone.

She had recently undergone a procedure in in her spine and was just recovering from that. She's had a history of blood clots so she has been on blood thinners, which she had to go off of for a couple days for her surgery. I'm not sure if the clot that caused the stroke is related to her being off of her meds but I kinda think it is.

They tried to do a procedure that has to be done within the first 3 hours of the stroke to try to break up the blood clot in her brain. Unfortunately it didn't work and the clot is still there and she is paralyzed on her left side.

I was able to go see her in ICU on Wednesday night and she looked horrible (everyone said she was looking much better than earlier in the day) and I had a really hard time seeing her like that. Her mind is all there and she's completely with it and can speak for the most part. She was doing better that night and having feeling and movement in her leg so we all were getting hopeful.

Yesterday morning she took a turn for the worse. Any feeling she was having is gone and the left side of her throat is now paralyzed so she can't swallow to eat. They had to hook her up to a feeding tube last night to keep her fed. Because she can't swallow she has gotten fluids in her lungs which is also very serious. They were hopeful that she would be moved out of ICU soon but since the recent developments she is still there.

My heart is so sad that she is going through this after already having had a really rough year. I hope and pray she can recover but at this point it is not looking good. I wish I could be there to hold her hand and spend precious time with her.

On a Happier Note.....These are my awesome Valentine's Day flowers from Brock in a very LARGE vase! Love them and I love him!

Pop goes the Weasel!

Last week I was getting ready for work and noticed that my belly seemed to have popped overnight. Before that point I felt that I just looked like I had eaten 15 Hamburgers (hmmm...that sounds good). I thought it was interesting how much I grew from the first part of the week so I snapped some pics. I shouldn't have been too surprised because I was really feeling it grow all week. It's kinda like the show "Freaky Friday" where they wake up and look like something different. It was just like that except it was Thursday:)

This weekend I had that moment...the one where I went to put on my freshly washed jeans that I had worn just days before and they wouldn't zip up. I burst into tears for probably the first time in my pregnancy because I felt so bummed. It didn't help that Brock witnessed the whole thing and laughed hysterically at me. Oh the comforts of a compassionate husband!

Spring in February?

We have had a wildly warm winter so far and this last weekend was especially nice. It totally felt like spring outside so Brock and I decided to take the opportunity to soak up some rays.

We ran out to the Madison River for a picnic and a walk with the puppies. It was such a lovely and warm afternoon, we really enjoyed being outside. (even though I'm kinda worried about not having enough snow for the year).

Normally this river is chuck full of ice this time of the year.

Isn't this totally what you picture when you think about Montana?

Is this weird?

I'm not sure how I feel about taking these kind of pictures and then posting them. I feel a little silly about it because I'm not one that loves to take pictures of myself.  However, I thought it would be fun to watch myself get fat over the next several months. (not fun in the haha way but in the bwahaha way).

So here are a few random pictures I've taken thus far. Notice that I'm not on a particular picture taking rotation. I have just been snapping a pic when I feel like I'm getting thicker.

Lately I've been feeling like my gut is growing like crazy. It seems like when I wake up in the morning that I've grown a ton overnight. (Even though I know it is still "relatively small" I feel "large in the margin").

As of right now I am still sporting my regular clothing but they are starting to get a little snug. I'm finding that my selections are getting a little more limited these days. My jeans no longer need belts but rather I am usually unbuttoned when I am home. I'm not quite sure what to do. I'm certainly not ready for spandex maternity pants but I can't really go out in public in my robe either. I guess that's why they say I'm in the "in between time" and nothing fits. It's like playing that game..."fat or pregnant?".

Oh yeah, welcome to my bedroom. I guess I should change the scenery sometime soon?...probably not:) You'll notice Brutus in every picture, he is really involved with my life and has  to be with me 24/7!