August is pretty much over.

It is still incredibly hot and I am so glad that some days I don't have to go anywhere. I just lay in front of the fans, drinking lots, and eating a lot of popsicles.

The stake president came over one night this week and even though I thought for sure he wanted James...it turns out they want me to speak in stake conference in September. I tried to explain that was the same week my baby will come. But, he said we will leave it up to "heavenly father to decide". So, now we all know I will still be big and pregnant while speaking! :) That didn't seem to be very fair, but I guess Pres. Burnham had heard some good reports on my last relief society lesson. I had talked about the community progression model from RA training days and compared it to creating unity in our relationships. So, what is my topic for stake conference? Relationships and being nice. Ha! I spoke at another convert baptism this past weekend...AnneMarie....a really sweet lady who it has sure been fun to get to know. We've gone to gospel principles class every thursday night and I've enjoyed just how friendly and positive she is.

Tommie was walking around my mom's pool on saturday afternoon and fell in. I ran to jump in and get him, and I landed on the steps weird. I must have strained something because now i have lots of cramping and contractions. And, I haven't slept well at all the past 2 nights. If it keeps up, I'll probably call the doctor and see what's wrong. For now, I'll just blame it on being 35 weeks pregnant and assume it had nothing to do with saving tommie.

James and I finished planting the garden on saturday. It always feels so good to just get it done. I was not too much help and sure couldn't even get seeds in the ground. I'm lucky to have a husband that wants to do a lot of work on saturday! For the past week we've had a horrible smell of dead chickens around our house. We kept counting ours and thinking it was the neighbors. I talked to a few of them to check and see if their coops were ok. Turns out, it was us. We had forgotten shaela gave us a chicken and boy ahd the poor thing decomposed. Gross. Ha ha! That's what I get for blaming the neighbors.

I posted Jimmer on some more dog breeding websites and got a lot of calls this past week. Turns out he may be in high demand once again. No one has yet actually brought their dog over, just schedules it then cancels...so we will see. "Fabiola" is supposed to call back today! :)

James and I officially went out every weekend in august....we haven't done that in a while and it was nice to get a babysitter every weekend, no matter what we did. It reminds me I need to make that more of a priority to just be with him, not bring the kids along.

Jackson's had a hard week, trying to learn to deal with his anger. He gets so mad, and a switch flips real fast where he just has major outbursts. We've tried lessons on the hulk, talking about nephi and his brothers, trying to take naps, trying to just get out and run/jump/swim, whatever. It doesn't seem to be working and there has been a lot of yelling at me, and several times he has hit me really hard. I thought James being around over the weekend would help him, but that just sure "fed his rage" and at least he directed his punches at james. It has made me realize I need to try real hard this week to just focus on him and help him. Maybe I haven't been positive enough... but it was probably my hardest parenting week I've had. I'm sure the neighbors are loving all the screaming outside! He is trying harder today though and asking me questions like "was that a nice thing i did?". I am grateful that orange patch preschool is starting next week. He needs an outlet!

One month of pregnancy left.

Lately, when people ask me what I've been doing, I have to actually stop really hard and think. What HAVE I been doing? Well, for starters: 

Tommie Boy is walking...everywhere! :) He was a little wobbly at first, of course, and now he follows me everywhere, backing up, turning around, etc. He can't stand up without pulling up on something yet, but he is close. I remember Jackson being a lot quicker at learning to walk. I remember him trying to run from the very beginning. Tommie is much more slow, cautious, and rarely tries running. But, it still gets me when i see him walking into the room, smiling that he has found me. 

The other day I was mopping the kitchen floor and kept trying to carry him out so he wouldn't slip. Eventually I gave up and let him just keep slipping and bumping his head over and over. He was crying and getting so mad that he laid down on his back just screaming. In a hurry to just finish mopping, i went around him and he discovered that he could push off with his feet and scoot around on his back on the wet floor. He started laughing so hard and kept going in circles. Jackson and I kept the floor wet so he could keep it up. He still tries it and gets frustrated it doesn't work, because the floor isnt wet. 

Of course, every cupboard can now be emptied in 3 seconds, and I pick up the same items so many times everyday. I think this is the majority of what I do. Seriously. 

Spencer started at Westwood this past week. I am not very good about getting up in the morning to make breakfast, see him off, etc... and he doesn't even leave until 7:45! Shows how lazy I am getting! But, I don't get up till  Tommie gets up... and that's usually at 8.  Spence has been late a couple of days but i'm impressed at all he does in the morning. He's even convinced James to lift weights in the garage a few times. It is weird to be "in charge" of a teenager, help him get to church on time, try and answer homework questions, talk about girls, etc.  But, he seriously is so patient with US. I sure hope he doesn't miss home too much! 

Jackson has come a long way in his reading. He knows 9 sight words and several letter sounds, and can read and understand quite a few sentences. It is finally not such a battle to get him to focus because he is excited about how fast he is learning. He still isn't sleeping the best because the nights are just so long. But, I refuse to get out of bed with him at nights, so he does a good job of walking back to his room and laying there till morning. But, without a nap, he is ready for bed by 6:45 every night because he gets so tired. I can't imagine feeling bored at night. 

We still swim just about every day at my moms. Tommie just crawls around the deck and I just sit on the pool steps, but Jackson gets several good laps in a day and has pretty much mastered swimming. Assuming he doesn't forget everything over winter, I'll definitely sign him up for swim team next summer.  I think I need a good soak in the water every day. It sure helps the swelling in my feet and my varicose veins have gotten real bad. 

Thanks to James' new work challenge, we signed up for a half-marathon March 1. Our first! I don't know what I was thinking...probably just done being pregnant and ready to feel like exercising again. Ha! I am now 33 weeks and my last doctors appointment was fine. I actually have too low of blood pressure which causes a lot of my fatigue and dizziness, but not too much I can do at this point. We still can't decide on a name for this new baby. I ask people for suggestions all the time and then just don't like any of them! 

Our mortgage still isn't finalized. We are waiting on another appraisal, but a lot of the paperwork is finally complete. It's amazing how much time and energy that took. We did decide to cut down one of the trees in the front...that sure informed the neighbors that wilford and kathleen must've sold the house.   Honestly, it hung way too much over the roof and I hated all the bird poop everywhere. Not too mention the berries and leaves that needed swept several times a day sometimes. After the last monsoon storm we had, James and I watched all the branches swinging against the roof and said, lets just chop it down. We paid a company to "drop" the top down so we wouldn't hit the house. Then, Jared came over with his big trucks and helped us chop down the rest, chip it up, and haul it off. It was an all day project for the boys and SOOOOO nice of Jared to spend his saturday. I don't have a picture of the messed cleaned up yet. We need to grind the stump down still and replant grass. But, it looks a lot better and I haven't swept once since Saturday night. Not too mention sweeping inside the house from people tracking it in. AND, there is no additional bird poop on the truck which is parked in the driveway....and seriously, that's a miracle! :)