Blueberries

We all went blueberry picking this week! At a local blueberry farm, you're allowed to eat as many blueberries as you want as you fill your buckets and pay by the pound. Empty buckets :( (Thank you Carla for the pictures!) 2 hours and almost 16 pounds of blueberries later, full buckets and full tummies! We've really been enjoying them in smoothies, on french toast, in fruit salads, etc. all week!

The Girls

Its been fun having a little sister around again. We took a girls' afternoon and went to get Amberlee's ears pierced yesterday. She was getting pretty worried and nervous on the chair, but after the gun went off on one ear, immediately exclaimed, "That's all!?"

Us at the zoo.

Audrey Hepburn-style hairdo for church

Maybe what Evan thinks of there being more girls in the house :)

The Greatest Things about Living with the Gutkes:

• We get to stay with family
• I have company during the day
• 3 adorable kids
• Ammon calls me "Uncle Camille"
• Delicious family meals
• A beautiful guest room
• An opportunity to learn from a great cook and homemaker
• A chance to really get to know the in-laws I had met once or twice before this summer
• And the best part: access to home videos of Jason as a teenager

19 & 22

I know you've all been thinking, "Hmm its been more than a month since we've seen any fat pictures. What's the deal?" So here's a couple for his fan club:

19 weeks

22 weeks

And now for his close-up:

For the first time, a stranger asked me when I was due! Hopefully that means I'm out of the 'is she pregnant, or is she just eating too many cookies?' category.

Step Stools, Swimming, and Surprises

I love being able to help out with cooking and watching the kids, but I'm so short in this 'tall person' house! I need help reaching the tupperware, the pantry food, Ammon's diapers, etc. We'll have to pull out a step stool for when I'm babysitting without a full-size adult in the house :)

One of the sisters in Carla's ward does a water aerobics class every M, W, F at 5:15am!! Its early, but I love having a workout program since I'm not training for a marathon this summer. Turns out, I LOVE water aerobics! Our instructor makes it a great workout and I think it relieves some of the pressure on my squishes organs. I love feeling like I'm working every muscle in my body well and not by pounding the pavement or stressing out the meatball.

Speaking of the little one, Jason finally was able to feel him kick last night!! All week, I've been like, "You can't feel this?" with his hand on my belly, but last night, the baby was moving like crazy and I could prove that I haven't been making this pregnancy up!

Here's his kicking leg. How does he have all that room to extend it all the way?!

The CFA

Jason took the dreaded CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) exam yesterday! He's been studying for months for this $1000 6-hour test, and was able to change the test location to Houston instead of having to fly back to Utah for it. He doesn't get the results until August, but I'm sure he did great! I decorated his study books to make it more fun :)

I'm so happy to have him back on evenings and weekends now! Jeff played and dedicated "I Just Don't Know What to do With Myself" last night for Jason.

Happy & Relieved

Reunited and it Feels so Good

I love when my things are featured on other blogs! http://annakaycreations.blogspot.com/2010/06/handmade-picks-lime-or-apple-green.html

My etsy account has been very abondoned the last few weeks, but I'm so lucky to have my machine with me in Houston! I brought a bag of scraps and 20-some purse handles (found at a closing craft store for $.20), so we can have some fun sewing days while I'm here and hopefully sell some purses.

PS -- I love it here! Jason and I had a happy reunion and its so good to be together again! He says I grew huge since our separation. Since we're staying with the Gutke's, I get little brothers and sisters again! Me and Amberlee have a blast being 'girly' together since I know how it feels growing up surrounded by boys. I have all these dreams lately where I revert back to my 8-year-old self and I'm fighting with my brothers again.

Show Off

Our 20 week ultrasound was great! He's healthy, right on schedule, and "quite a performer".

At the end, he looked at the camera and posed. Yup, he must be our son!

Baby Tux

I get to see my husband again tomorrow!! Its been a long time. This weekend was the worst, being without my computer too. Travis called me a "pregnant Amish widow"; fairly accurate. Well, one weekend project was the baby tux! I spent $12 in fabric & buttons, but couldn't find a pattern for the coat anywhere, so I pulled out my tissue paper and made one up, thank you Advanced Patternmaking 387.

(Its a small hanger, so perhaps it looks larger than it actually is) Let's hope he's still a boy at my ultrasound in a couple hours!

From the Newest Ex-Teacher

Today was the last day of school! 19 years of continuous 'first' and 'last' days of school, and I still don't know which one I get more excited about. It was a little sad taking down my classroom and saying goodbye to the students and staff, but I can't wait for what's to come our way.

We had a teacher's luncheon with a nice 'goodbye' for the 5 of us leaving. Our principal is leaving to go to the high school, one teacher had to transfer schools because of the budget, one teacher lost her job because of the budget, and 2 of us are leaving to have babies, which is so much the reason I'd prefer.

One of the saddest parts was giving back my laptop. Now I'm not only without a husband and a job, but also the internet for the next 5 days. This is me at a kiosk in the provo library. I'll be biking here everyday about this time, except for when its closed Sunday and Monday. AHHH I am so internet-dependent!

Darth Jason

Jason got to play "Darth Vader" at our nephew Evan's birthday party this weekend! (He told me it was actually a lot of fun, answering the door and chasing the kids around) I wish I could have been there!

Mondays

I was GOING to be early to school as I got into Jason's beast of a car in the pouring rain this morning, until it wouldn't start and I realized it was going to be one of those. Some big problem I'm sure, because its not the battery. I called my cousin Gary, who is holding my brother's car for the summer while he's in Alaska, but when he went down to pick me up, Travis' car wouldn't start either. It was wedged between two other cars so they couldn't reach it to jumpstart. So my other kind cousin Carl offered his car this morning, but without heat in the car, I had to hold a hair-dryer-type-heater to the windshield as I drove through the SNOWSTORM so I could even see the road. Seriously, there was snow covering the ground on May 24th. Of course, I was late to work and ran in to see the principal teaching my first period class. Thank you everyone! We'll see how the car does in the morning. Just 4 more days of school, Smelly Nelly, then I'll leave you alone and I won't put so much pressure on you to perform.

Rachel's Run

A sweet girl from our ward was diagnosed with cancer recently, and since Jason and I both have good reasons to hate cancer, we wanted to help in the effort raise money for treatments with "Rachel's Run" this morning! Since Jason's still gone (11 more days till we're together!), best friend Natalie ran it with me in his place! Well, actually we played it safe and did the wimpy 1-mile walk, but we did it briskly!

Blue Beauties

Blue was certainly the color of the season. Here are the 4 dresses I made for this year's Prom. They designed some beautiful things! I can't wait for next year's Prom!Melissa from ArkansasCarson from Ohio

Jamie from Iowa

and Katrina from Ohio (with my studly brother Derek)

You look beautiful, girls!

Men and their Meat

I really miss Jason :( A week and a half down, two and a half to go. I miss my car too, but I kindof like driving his beastly Oldsmobile because it reminds me of him. I used to get really excited every time I saw his car, because it meant he was home, and so now, I see his car all the time, he's not home, but I still get excited when I see it. And I wear his bathrobe around the house because it smells like him. And I keep making meals that turn out to be way too much food for one person, so I end up eating them for the whole week. Alone.

Before Jason left, he cooked up these yummy ribs. I think cooking meat on his grill is one of his absolute favorite things to do! He's really good at it--he should cook for you sometime. Mega Ribs

He Ain't Heavy

Despite this HUGE belly, I haven't gained a single pound this month (and only 2 pounds for this whole pregnancy). Ridiculous, because I feel like I'm eating absolutley ALL THE TIME. If I haven't gained atleast 3 pounds before my next appointment in 3 weeks, my doctor is gonna be so mad! Forget the frozen yogurt. Ice cream, anyone?

16 weeks17 weeks

Teaching Scrapbook

Well, despite what it may appear, I do have a day job. Teaching for the last 2 years has been rewarding beyond belief. I never would have thought I'd be a teacher growing up. I was set on doing Music/Dance/Theater (to perform) or Nursing (to help people), and settled on something kindof in the middle where I get to do both: Teaching. I get to perform in front of 30+ audience members every day, always finding better ways to keep their attention and give the right message, and in the most entertaining way. AND I get to help people. (Just a warning, this is going to be the biggest blog entry you have ever read. Its more of a way to document the experieces for myself, a kind of yearbook for me.) One of the classes I teach is called CTE (Career and Technical Education). I teach a quarter of it, the Family & Consumer Science portion, on rotation, so I get to see a majority of the 7th grade. Its required by the State of Utah, so I get an even number of boys and girls, all darling and scared to be in junior high. The first thing I teach is cooking!! I posted these pictures before, but here shows the difference between boys and girls in their table settings.

We make caramel popcorn, breakfast burritos, and then put on a restaurant! We interview for the positions of manager, cashier, hostess, cooks, waiters, bussers, etc. The one half works while the other half are customers, and then we switch. We make smoothies and breadsticks with different choices of sauces.

My mentor and friend, Lenora, has helped me so much to learn the ropes!

Sewing

Then we sew adorable reversible drawstring bags. Some of my best sew-ers tend to be boys.

They get to sew on brand new Berninas; I'm so jealous.

I love seeing these show up all over the school, carrying books, or gym clothes, or lunches.

Pre-school

We learn about laundry, and textiles, and then about childcare. We organize a period-long preschool where the sevies can bring in their little siblings or neighbors. We do art projects, sing songs, play games, have snack, and one awesome puppet show.