Monday, June 27, 2011

Share the love


Grandma Vivian

Please let our Vivian come play with us. We are ready to meet her. I am sure you are preparing her for all that is in store for her and I am guessing she is just so darn sweet that you aren't ready to part with her. I know we are 2 weeks from our due date and I know it still could be awhile longer, however I wouldn't be sad in the slightest bit if you kissed her goodbye and sent her on her way. We are thinking that she just loves you so much that she is conflicted about whether or not she is really ready to leave you too. Reassure her though that her parents, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins will take great care of her and are just twiddling their thumbs waiting to spoil her. Oh and we wouldn't mind if you passed your amazing silver hair to her for when she gets your age!!!

xoxo

Friday, June 10, 2011

changes...transitions...

I guess I was a little too confident in one of my previous posts when I said BRING IT ON. I didn't know that would take on a whole new meaning other than just bringing on baby.

Aaron and I will not only be experiencing the changes that come with having a new lil one, but we will also be moving. It happened super suddenly and I have not fully digested it all. Last week Aaron was offered a new job in Orange County. While I am so excited for him and for our family to have Aaron at his new job, I have to be honest and say I am not excited nor am I happy about moving. LA has become more our home I feel than any other place we have lived. Crazy I know since we have lived here for only a bit over 2 years. LA welcomed us with open arms, love, excitement and adventure. It is safe to say that I have become smitten with Los Angeles and the thought of leaving makes me sick.

Now the fact that I am sad to leave LA does not mean that I am not excited for our new adventures, being near some of our other dear friends, and lots of beach days. My sad feelings do not cancel out the positive things in store for us. However, I would not be genuine if I told you I was excited to move and since I would rather be authentic and real I just have to express the real truth.

I am sad and it's okay for me to be sad...I don't need fixing, I don't need to stop my feelings or change them.

I felt ready to take on and face the changes that were on the way with our new lil arrival, however I was not ready for the double wammy!!!

There are so many things that make LA feel like home, here are some of my top favorites:
  • Jeremy living on the same street, laundry, dinner, church, gym, movies, you name it we do it every week with Jer.
  • Westwood 2nd ward. Can't be duplicated. This will receive a post of its own I am sure at some point.
  • My Young Women. The strongest, bravest girls I have met to date. Again will receive more of a post when I am ready to fully process saying goodbye to them.
  • Crossfit gym with our crew
  • Rancho Park days with Bear
  • Food Food Food. LA has some of the best foodie places out.
  • LA temple. Everytime I exit the 10 I drive straight towards the temple and it is always followed by a big ahhhhh I am home.
  • Friends. Even though it seems like everyone is busier in LA and working later hours and don't have as much time to hang out, you always feel like you have family near by. Everyone is pulled in so many ways yet you never feel alone. It's almost as if everyone in LA is just so happy to find someone else in LA they can lean on and be friends with.
Along with the transition of moving I know I am going to be going through an intense transition of my own identity. I knew it was going to happen when we had our lil one. I stopped work two months early so I could get in the groove of not working and having that BE who I am. However, I had YW which kept me just as busy as my full time job and I didn't have to fully face the transition of being a career woman to a full time mom. Not that being a full time mom is not amazing, rewarding, and of upmost importance, so please do not start to read into what I am saying, it is just for me I knew it was going to be tough from going from my thing that I excelled and was amazing at to something new that meant the other part of me would be put on hold for awhile. Now I am still a therapist and can't wait to finish my CA exams so I can figure out private practice (another thing I had almost all the way figured out here in LA, so gotta start over the connections and plan for our new location) however I am on hold for a bit while I raise our lil one and finish my exams. Now with moving from LA and away from YW (yes there were not plans to release me when baby girl came) I am faced with change in identify. I know I am still who I am, just going to be a little different for some time when everything I am used to, love, and am passionate about is taken away. Of course I am reminded I will have lil viv to be passionate about!!!

Is any of this making sense? If you are still reading then I am impressed. I know I just need to get it out at some point so this post is a good starting point for me.

So you may be wondering when is all this taking place? ha GOOD QUESTION!!!

We are thinking after the baby is born we will make the move down south. We will be checking out places this weekend and see what we can find and then after that I will put it all in Aaron's hands to finalize. Number 1 priority for me is to take care of our lil one in my belly for the next 4 weeks and have a healthy delivery. I did pack a ton this week (kitchen and all my clothes) and all the baby stuff is organized, washed and ready so I am not feeling overwhelmed with the physical act of packing, loading up and such. It is the emotional part I am most concerned about.

Here's to the next wild 6 weeks or so.

Monday, June 6, 2011

Fun as of late

The last few weeks have had lots of fun packed in and it really has been nice. I am for sure enjoying these last few weeks before our baby joins our family.

My parents came to visit for Memorial weekend and it was great having them here with us. Here we are at one of my most favorite LA spots...the LA temple. I have to be honest, I love my parents. I love them more now then I ever loved them and I think me becoming a mom has a lot to do with it. I just am realizing all the love that they have for me and my brothers, even though I am not a mom yet, I am already starting to feel a titch of what they feel for the 3 of us.


Me, Bear and Bella have loved having all day everyday with each other lately. I know they are going to be such good big siblings to our lil Viv and it makes me so excited that they will be here to look out for her.


This last weekend my dear friend Amanda threw me a shower down in the OC. It was the most beautiful day as you can tell from the picture. The treats were yummy, no joke the best cake pop I have ever eaten, but more than that it was so awesome to have our friends all in one place. Aaron and I are fortunate to have friends from many different places in So Cal and to have them all in one place together to celebrate was perfect. We took the pic in the end after many had already left, which was my bad (I feel bad ruining the party to take a picture). But you can see a good portion of the group (missing Mia, the Williams, the Palmers, Paige, Campbell's, Laurel and Anna sorry guys I should have just taken it sooner) The best of friends. Aaron and I were so thankful for our friends who came to celebrate such an exciting even with us.


Amanda did a fabulous job and put all this on even with having her lil one to take care of. She is a "get things done" girl and I love that about her. She can take on so much and still get it all done with such grace. She has been one of my biggest supporters since getting pregnant...she has been excited and genuinely happy for me since the beginning. Love her!!!

Me and my Aar Bear!!! Man I freaking LOVE him, like A LOT. I am so excited to be a mom with him and to have him be the father of our Vivian. He is going to be the greatest and I am just dying with excitement to start this adventure with him. Not only is he going to be a great dad but seriously he is a CUTIE. I just love him so dang much and could just squeeze him to death.