random

WARNING: Picture overload!
I haven't blogged in quite sometime so I think this is going to be a Hodge-podge of events from the past month. For starters I never posted any Fathers Day pics:

Brynlee painting my belly button

Brynn's hand print on my belly. She likes to help me! Brynn helping me make breakfast for Jared and Mike. She is such a good helper!Jared being Jared. Eating his Father's Day breakfast and giving Baby Princess an interesting glare.I think he's pretty excited to become a daddy! He actually asks/offers to hold other people's babies which I have never seen him do before! The card has my belly button print, Brynlee's hand print and a pretend baby foot print.

Felisha was involved in all of this but I don't have any pics to prove it.

The 4th of July was fun! We BBQed at our apt pool and swam in the rain. Then headed to the beach for fireworks and didn't quite make it but stopped on a bridge to watch. It actually turned out quite perfect!

Bryn and I makin' fish faces in our red, white, and blue!

Jared, Mike, and Brynlee stacked 3 high in the pool!A shot of us watching the fireworks
The Rindi's at the firework show.

During the long days that our hubbies are working us wives (yes I am aware that we sound like polygamists) have recipes exchange. We all bring a dish to share and either watch the bachelorette or just chat and play with kids. We have had some great one's including learning how to make sushi, dessert night, breakfast, Mexican, and Italian!

This is what the kids do during recipe exchange! ( Bailee, Tommy, and Afton.) Sushi taught to us by Megan. It was yummy!

Kellee burritos (that's what Jared has names them) on Mexican night.And this awesome looking drink that makes drinking watermelon possible!

Another post should be coming soon now that I have Internet again.

Fair

Life isn't fair. It never has been, it never will be but it always catches me off guard. I used to complain to my mom, "that's not fair!" She always replied "life's not fair." And she was right. Things hardly ever turn out the way we think they are supposed to but they do turn out. Sometimes the way things turn make you want to scream, cry, or sometimes laugh. I still believe life isn't fair but I do think it all gets worked out in the end.

I don't know why bad things happen to good people other than that it is the Lord's will. I don't understand everything that he does and why but I do know there is a purpose and plan.

I know the Lord loves every single soul on this earth and he has a plan for each of us. Please pray for family and friends that you know are in need of comfort, love, and understanding.

Third and final!

I am so excited to be nearly in the third trimester! I'm not sure exactly why. Maybe it's because that means pregnancy will be over soon! Maybe it's because I will *soon* get back to my old body...or close to it. But more than likely it's because I want to see and hold my baby girl!
I feel her kick and squirm and more recently, hiccup! I want to watch her do all those things! I want to dress her up, give her baths, kiss her little fingers and toes, and feel her in my arms! I am so in love with her already and can't wait!

Is it weird to be excited about the delivery part? Don't get me wrong, I'm not excited for the pain and hours of misery I assume will come but I'm so excited for the excitement of it all! I'm already excited for the end of the summer and returning to Utah because it all means the day is inching closer. What day we can't be sure of but everyday is one day closer!

Here are a few pics for those people who enjoy watching me get fat:

Horay for the last and shortest trimester!!

My Marine Man

My husband is in LOVE with the ocean!! He seriously could and does spend hours and hours just swimming and floating on the water looking for anything and everything he can find in the deep blue. Felisha asked him yesterday what he loved more, going to the beach or going camping? For anyone who knows Jared in the slightest knows he would chose to be a mountain man 24/7 if he could but he actually had to stop and think about it. Camping won but not by much. I have to say, I like the beach but am kind of glad we don't live anywhere near one normally or my hubby would be MIA!

Here he is playing football in the water while holding his diving gear (he can only stop adventuring for so long).

We have been to the beach at least 5 or 6 times since moving to Florida and I'm pretty sure Jared has discovered something new to show me or tell me about every time he returns from his voyage in the waters! He has also convinced me to snorkel which I have never done (I'm slightly hydrophobic I think). I loved it! He has shown me how amazing the water can be and I am so happy I am married to a man that can teach and show me new things!
Here are just a few of the things J has caught while venturing in the ocean:
A lovely crab @ Boca Raton.A little fish that looked like it was dying and Jared tried to save it.A sand dollar that is almost completely whole!Yeah, a freakin' jelly fish!! Yikes!A lobster @ Key West that put up quite a fight. I actually participated with this one!

Jared or both of us have also seen pike fish, tuna, little colorful tropical fish, sea urchins, clam shells, Jared has collected so many pretty sea shells, and has seen a few sting rays that he has actually thought about catching, crazy guy! I actually think if he saw a shark he would swim TOWARDS it!

And this is typical Jared after a day of swimming and adventuring at an office BBQ hoovering down a 5 patty *with cheese burger! Sick!!

Crafty? Me?

If you know me you know I am not a very artsy/crafty kind of person. However, I am going to have a daughter and unless I want her to look like a total rag-a-muffin, homeless child, orphan, etc, etc (which I'm sure she still will sometimes) I decided I needed to learn the crafty mother way. So Mrs. Rindi taught myself, along with several other lovely wives here in FL, how to make "toppings" for our little girls head's, or ourselves in some cases. Here are my two products thus far. I am very proud and so was my teacher!Jared sporting said crafts with an uber creepy look on his face (typical)! And here are a couple pics for those people who would like to keep up on my fatness:
Just over 6 months now! Some days it feels like I have been pregnant FOREVER! And other days I can't believe I only have 3 (actually closer to 4 if ya wanna get technical) months until I get to hold and look at my baby girl!!

Adventures in cooking

I love to bake, cook, eat. Basically if it involves food I enjoy it! I actually missed cooking, not only for myself but for others, while I was sick. Lo and behold I arrive in sunny Florida feeling much better than the previous 4 months so I have been on a cooking spree! I began this baking binge with my sister, Meghan's, whole wheat bread recipe. The picture pretty much says it all but let's just say it was an oven I'd never used and I got distracted during "rise time!" I just laughed but kind of wanted to cry when I opened the oven door and saw this!

They were edible just not very pretty.

My second attempt I knew how to use the oven, I am now aware of Florida and it's lack of altitude and I had this cute little helper! It made a world of difference!

I love Meg's recipe (thanks again!) and so does Jared! The loaves turned out pretty and very soft!
After the first week here I realized how quickly bananas go bad and decided to whip up some banana bread. Well my 3 bad bananas turned into 11 somehow and I made 3 loaves with different toppings (plain, chocolate chip (which turned into chocolate smear), and brown sugar pecan. They were all made with whole wheat flour which made me feel a little less guilty as I shoveled in my 3rd piece of nutty deliciousness!

Then there was the craving that had to be satisfied! I crave pretzels! Not just any pretzels. I'm talking mall pretzels that are salty, buttery, and scrumptious. And they HAVE to have the HOT cheese for dipping otherwise the whole thing is ca put! Well for some odd reason, that is completely unknown to me, Florida doesn't have a Pretzel Time or anything remotely close within a 50 mile radius! So the ladies (fellow Floridian wives) and I decided a baking session would be our best bet! We found a promising recipe that included ingredients we already mostly had and began this new cooking adventure.

Pretzel dough is quite tough to knead and dries out quickly, just FYI.

Again we had cute little helpers that wanted to help make the "snakes!"

Pretzel dough also shrinks back pretty quickly so ya gotta get the "snakes" pretty long. Brynn, Tommy, and a little someone named Michelle liked to steal pieces of dough!

My craving was satisfied! But now I just want to make them again!

These babies were enjoyed by all, as you can see.

To recap: I heart food and everything involved with it. I just wish I had all the ingredients and all the know how already to make anything and everything I desired!

Half way

It feels good and surreal to be half way through pregnancy. On one hand I still have to remind myself regularly that I am pregnant. On the other hand being so sick at the beginning made it drag on and on for what seemed like forever! So here I am just over 20 weeks and I already want to hold our baby girl but I am savoring this time Jared and I have while it's still just us.
Pictures make blogging better so here's to half way!