While you were in my tummy...

Dear Annabelle, 

We are thankful for the opportunity we have to be your parents and can only pray that you will always choose to live a righteous and virtuous life as a daughter of your Heavenly Father.  You've been moving a lot lately in my tummy as I'm 36 weeks already into this pregnancy and it just makes me laugh when you go about your ways in there!  Fortunately this pregnancy has been pretty easy compared to what most girls go through.  I think my biggest complaint would just be the non-stop going to the bathroom and my back hurting.  Regardless the pain I know it will be all worth it.

Food Cravings:
 
1. Crepes with yogurt, cottage cheese, fruit, granola and whip cream on top
2. Waffle Pies (waffles with strawberries and whip cream)
3. Chocolate Milk
4. Hot Wings
5. Cereal at anytime during the day
6. Ice Cream
7. French Toast
8. Pancakes
9. Popcorn with parmesan cheese

I really haven't craved anything too weird and Dad has only taken me on one run to Mc Donald's for some french fries.  I've been a bit cautious about how much I'm eating just because prior to getting prego I was chunky!

TV Shows we watched while I was preg:
 
1. Master Chef
2. So You Think You Can Dance
3. Bachelorette
4. Oprah
5. Morning Talk Shows
6. Restaurant Impossible
7.  Project Runway

Random Facts:
  
1.  I'm 36 weeks and have only put on 20 lbs so far
2.  You always seemed to hang out on the right side of my tummy and for a long time you were really high and I would always press down on you
3.  On 8/1/11 the Doctor told me I was dilated 3 cm's but we shall see when you want to come
4.  Luckily, up until this point I haven't gotten any stretch marks
5.  My feet are starting to really swell and my toes look like little sausages, Dad laughs at me all the time because of this
6.  While being preg I haven't had the chance to get new garments so the ones I'm wearing do not cover my tummy at all
7.  You will be the 1st grand daughter on the Shaver side, my Mom and Dad are so excited for you to come!
8.  Dad is sweet and says that I still look cute even though my tummy is huge
9.  I have to say that I am not a big fan of the prego clothes and miss my Buckle jeans...I hope I fit into them again one day
10.  Mostly what I have been wearing are Dad's old t-shirts, black yoga pants, white prego pants, and my 2 pairs of prego jeans

What I think you will look like:
 
Hmmmmm...well I know you will have dark hair because me and Dad both do.  I  picture you looking a bit like me when I was a baby with chubby cheeks and lots of hair. I can see you being a bit darker in skin because of your Hawaiian heritage and I hope you have long dark eyelashes!  For some reason since I haven't put on that much weight I think you will be a smaller baby which is fine by me!  I think you will have a cute button nose and small ears.  No matter what you look like you will be perfect in our eyes.

Your Name:  Annabelle Alexandra Schaub
 
We've managed to keep your name a secret because we want it to be a surprise for everyone.  This has been fun for Jeff and I to only know it!  We originally loved the name Isabelle but it's been so trendy lately that we wanted to change it to something pretty and unique and Dad thought of Annabelle.  We want to call you Belle when you come just like the princess you will be! Dad has already started calling you Annabees! Another reason we didn't want to share the name with everyone was because we didn't want to hear their opinions on it and have that change our minds. 

Your middle name Alexandra is after mine.  I got the middle name Alexandra after my Dad because his is Alexander, so it holds some history!

Well that's all for now, I'm actually getting uncomfortable sitting in this computer chair. I'm going to have Dad write you a letter too.  I love you so much already and can't wait to meet you and be best friends!!

Rewind...Utah Trip April 2011

Yes, it's true...only cool people post about their General Conference Trip they took in April in August!  I had been to Salt Lake City for conference a couple of times and Jeff had never been so I wanted him to experience it.  It can be hard to get tickets for any of the sessions but thankfully when I called the guy in our stake he had some.  We started to plan our trip and after considering all the expenses with the hotel and gas we figured it just wasn't going to work out and would cost too much.  I called him back and told him that after much consideration we wouldn't need the tickets.

Our good friends Deri and Cherylee Maggard lived in UT but they were going to be gone that weekend.  One day while I was at work I was texting Cherylee and she said that the plans they had to come to AZ weren't going to work out and that they would be in town and offered for us to stay with them.  Yipee, it was an answer to my prayers...I just felt that it would be so awesome for Jeff and I to go to conference and now we could since there was an open room at Hotel Maggard!!! I think it was meant to be, because when I called the guy back he said the family who had reserved the tickets I gave back never picked them up and they were all ours again.    

If you can try and book a room at Hotel Maggard, they had incredible service and all the meals we were fed were home made!  You can't beat the fresh sweet laundry smell on the towels either...reminded me of when Cheryl and I used to live together.  We made pretty good time (12 hours) to Utah and surprisingly I didn't have to make that many potty stops, but we ran into some bad traffic when we reached Provo.

Right when we got to their place in Lehi they were cooking from scratch orange chicken and rice, it was so YUMMY!!!  We hardly had to go out to eat because they literally had a menu all set up for the days we were there.  Some of the plates included; fancy fajitas with meat that Deri grilled, waffles for my prego cravings, biscuits and gravy from scratch, and Cherylee's famous sugar cookies!  Our last night there we treated them to dinner at the Spaghetti Factory!

One morning Cheryl went out and brought us back some donuts from this local Bakery in Lehi and they are by far the most dee-lish-ous donuts we have ever had!  I don't know what they put in them but the texture, flavoring, and icing are perfect!  On our way home we did make a pit stop at the Bakery and bought some donuts...it made the ride much more enjoyable! Is it funny that I didn't take a pic of the actual donuts??? Whoopsies!!

*s*n*o*w* is falling all around...
Even though it was April when we were in UT we woke up one morning to snow!!  We were so excited just to see a change in the weather!  Cheryl had the cutest snow suit for Lincoln so we went out and played in it...he had fun for a bit but after his fall I think he was done entertaining us... :)  Jeff caught his emotions perfectly in these pictures...

Their little boy Linky Poo (Lincoln) quickly became one of my favorites...especially when he would wake up in the morning and make Chewbacca sounds with his Daddy!  He was such a sweet boy and so fun to be around.

(Sorry these pics are all distored...it was my first time using the collage design in Photobucket and I was getting impatient)

General Conference April 2011
We had tickets for the Saturday morning and Sunday afternoon sessions.  A powerful moment that stands out from conference was at our Saturday session.  The congregation was asked to stand and sing the opening Hymn "I Know That My Redeemer Lives", and there is just something so touching when you are singing that song with thousands of members and also the apostles and Prophet.  It was like we were all singing our testimonies about the gospel and at one point tears were just streaming down my face and I stopped singing so I could take it all in.  How precious and sensitive the spirit was that day at conference, I was so thankful to be there in that moment and to partake of it with Jeff.

Unfortunately we didn't leave enough time to park and walk to the Conference Center on Sunday morning and missed the session.  It was kinda ridiculous because even though we had tickets they told us you were not guaranteed a seat, so we waited outside for about an hour and it started to snow and they would not let us in.  We ended up driving back to watch the session with Deri and Cheryl.  Lesson learned: you need to show up at least an hour and a half early for conference and leave time for walking!  We both were bummed but knew it was our fault for not leaving in time.

I would have loved to do a session at the SLC Temple but a lot of the places were closed that weekend so we just walked around.  It was so amazing to be surrounded by such beautiful scenery.

The Sweets
Back in the day us 3 girls were inseparable, we did everything together.  In our single days we would hang out with a group of Show Low boys and they started to refer to us as their *sweets*  I was Caramel, Jenny was Cupcake and Cheryl was Rice Krispie. Jenny was fortunately in town for Conference with her young women group from Fresno, CA so we got to meet up with her.  These girls definitely warm my heart!

Rummikub & Buttered M&M Popcorn
One thing that quickly became a tradition for us to play every night was the game Rummikub...I after a while didn't think it was fun anymore to come up with strategies and game plans of how to rearrange the entire game to win.  The strategy award definitely went to Derick as he spent 20 minutes each turn carefully planning his attack, but then the winning award went to Jeff of course...that kid wins everything!  Then I get the whiny award cause at one point I just didn't want to play, so that leaves Cheryl with the patient award! :)

One night we decided to make some popcorn and we threw some M&M's in there too, but for some reason it tasted a bit odd...I think it was because we put too much butter, the boys kept laughing at us about it.  Come on people...I know some of you have enjoyed popcorn and M&M's too right??

Our last days there Derick wanted to take us to this waterfall so Jeff could take some family pics of them.  I just love how everything is so green in Utah, and the place we went to was so pretty and the weather was perfect.  Linky looked so cute that day too for the fam pics!

{Thank you}
It was so fun to have some girly time with Cherylee and to just chill and relax with them.  I've known Deri since my EA years and although at first I was skeptical to be his friend I decided to give him a chance because he was one of the popular kids on campus...it worked out...I got hooked on his randomness quick! :)  It's great when you have 2 good friends get married...because then it's double fun times!  Thanks again guys for all the mems and for opening your casa to us, we had a spectacular, and phenomenal time!  Let's plan our next trip...;)

Next Stop...Kingman Arizona!

Lots has happened since I last blogged, so this will be an update of our life in the last month!  I should be posting more since I get to be a stay at home Mom/Blogger now! :)  See details below...

Jeffrey did it...he graduated from ASU on May 13, 2011!!!!  Hip hip HOORAY for him!!!  Not only was I impressed with his hard working pioneer qualities prior to us even dating, but I'm still in awe of everything he has done and continues to do for our little family.  I'm strengthened by his ability to always get everything done no matter the time it takes to tackle the challenge.  He was the *cutest graduate* in the world, and I was so very proud of him that day!  He received his Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering with an emphasis on automotive.

Jeff's parents have been a constant support to him while in school, thank you 

for setting the example of how important education is! 

My sweet parents also traveled down from Sierra Vista to be there that day for Jeff, thank you for coming and for supporting us!

Thank you Reed, Zacky, Ethan & Megan for taking time out of your busy day to come and support Jeff at the graduation ceremony, it was great having you there! :)  

Later on we had a party at the Schaub's house to celebrate and many of our good friends/family showed up to wish us well, thank you everyone who came!  I wanted to do something sweet for Jeff to show my gratitude towards him.  Since he loves cars I made this little "Journey to Success" table decoration, I thought it turned out pretty cute.

Me and my 2 favorite Dad's!!   

My beautiful Mother who keeps getting skinnier and younger looking! 

Bro. Mooney (he was our Bishop in the singles ward), Jeffrey, & Derald Mullenaux

Jen Mullenaux, baby & Me (she since has had her precious little girl)

Like most graduates Jeff had been applying like crazy for any available jobs in engineering, but with no luck he hadn't heard back from most of them.  With the economy still being down and the competition out there with other unemployed individuals we were getting worried about where Jeff would be able to work.

We had been pondering, searching and praying for an answer of what our future held in store for us.  I just always prayed that no matter the outcome I would have the patience and understanding to continue to move forward with faith.  Jeff had a great professor at ASU who had kept in touch with him after he graduated and was able to give him some job leads, one of which was in Kingman Arizona.  We both wanted him to be able to work in his field and gain that experience in engineering that would hopefully guide us to other opportunities.

The position was for a durability engineer at the proving grounds for Chrysler where he would be testing cars.  He landed the interview and after a couple weeks of anxiously waiting they offered him the job!!  This was a huge blessing for Jeff to get a job offer; considering he had only graduated 2 months before.  We felt very humbled that we had received an answer to our prayers, even though it wasn't the most perfect situation we had to take advantage of this experience.

*SURPRISE*---> we are now residents of Kingman AZ...it's that glorified truck stop right before you get to Vegas! :)   Yes, it's very small and a bit different, and an adjustment for both of us..,but it will be ok.  When I want to sit here and throw a pity party for myself (which I have done many times already) I have to remember that I can't doubt the strong feelings Jeff and I had about moving here and accepting the job.  This was the right decision for us and it's only temporary and we hope to move back to the Valley or somewhere bigger in the next couple of years.  We had been praying that I could stay home with baby girl and hello....who could forget this also meant my time at UNIVERSITY OF PHX CAME TO AN END....FINALLY!!!!!  YAHOO!!!! 


I'm sorry if we were not able to tell you personally that we had moved, but it all happened so fast and they wanted Jeff to start right away.  Jeff has been a huge *Positive Polly* through this all and I'm thankful for his happiness and constant support to me that things will be ok...even if we do see weird people all over the place!!  He loves his job and that's another huge blessing...he gets to play with cars all day long!!  I know that the small sacrifices we make usually result in receiving those precious tender mercies from the Lord too.  The cool thing about living here is that we are only an hour and thirty mins from Vegas and closer to Cali too.  Please make us your pit stop if you are ever headed this way, we welcome any visitors!!

I do love our house that we found to rent, and we got a pretty good deal on it!  It's a lot fancier compared to our old military ASU housing we were at.  I will take more pics of the inside once we are all unpacked and settled in.  It's a 3 bedroom, 2 bath, & 2 car garage.

*Mia the Kia*

Jeff's mustang was having lots of problems and we knew that we needed a dependable car for when we moved because we would be doing lots of traveling.  Plus we needed more of a "family car" for baby too.  Jeff once again researched his little heart out and was able to get a great deal on this Kia Sportage, we needed something that would be covered under warranty for a long time and Kia's definitely are.  We ended up trading in both our cars and are down to only 1 but it works for now, there are not many places to go here in Kingman anyways!

*33 Weeks*

Baby girl will now be born in Kingman, there is no sense in me traveling all the way to Phx to labor there.  They surprisingly have a really nice and new hospital here which I have heard good things about.  I was sad to switch Dr's, but I didn't know what to expect and how things would go anyways during labor, the plus side is we are a lot closer to the hospital here too.  In Phx I was going to deliver at Banner Good Sam and that was 40 mins away from where we lived.  We've also heard that the labor, delivery, and recovery is all done in the same room so that will be nice.  I have my first Dr. appt this week with them.

I'm feeling great still and am fortunate that I've had such a good pregnancy.  I don't think we have mentioned this before, but we are keeping her name a secret...don't worry you will know soon enough!! I mainly wanted to keep her name a surprise because we really love it and I didn't want to hear that someone knew someone who had a dog named that, or that they hated someone with that name, or that it was the name of their mean aunt in Alabama!

I've noticed some kankles starting to form and she has def signed up for her kick boxing classes too!  I love knowing that she is alive and well in my tummy.  At my last Dr's appt in Phx I had only put on 13 lbs...which I am so thankful for because I was overweight to begin with.  Not that I'm eating super healthy or anything, but I'm not using the pregnancy as an excuse to binge.  I hope to not put on more than 20 lbs with her.   Ewwwww...I hate taking pics as I get bigger, but everyone keeps asking so here is the most recent one.

If you made it this far thanks for reading...you can have a free night's stay at Hotel Schaub on your next trip to Veg or UT!! :)  I also wanted to say thanks for all the comments on the cribs, strollers and car seats...it definitely helped us decide on what we wanted.