Dance

This is my complete costume. The belly dancing I do is different from the Hollywood type of belly dancing. Let me explain how many layers I am wearing. I have a T-shirt and harem pants (they are poofy, but not see-through) on top of any under clothes I wear. Then I put a decorated bra (I know, it sounds weird) on the outside of my T-shirt, with a vest over my shoulders and a stretchy scarf over my tummy. Then, I put 2 long silk scarfs and a decorated-with-moving-objects hip scarf around my hips. Then, I add jewelry and makeup. All in all, it probably takes me about an hour to get completely dressed and made-up.
So you don't have to worry about me being inappropriately dressed or showing my tummy. (As though I would WANT anyone to see my stretch marks.)




This is the group I perform with. We are called Iron Maiden Belly Dancers (IMBD). From left to right: Cori, Michelle, me, Fred, Debbe, Tamara (the teacher), Karen, Trish, and Tara. We have others that perform with us, or that have joined since.

This is a close-up of me talking to Debbe. Although it looks like we are glaring at each other, we really aren't.


I'm really enjoying my dance class. The exercise is great, I really like the people I dance with, and it is nice to have something different to tell people. I am taking it slower, since I'm pregnant, but I will probably keep dancing as long as I think I can. I'm staying away from the crunching and stretching of the stomach, and the rest helps keep me in shape.

Singing

Katie sings a lot now. It is so adorable. I recorded her at dinner last night. I don't know WHAT she was singing, but it is so cute. Also, at the end, she does this arms-stretched-out-thing to finish the song. First time we've seen that.

Katie's onsies are getting way too small for her, so I have started just putting a shirt on her. (Versus the onsie, then the shirt on top.) The first day I did, she pulled up her shirt and tickled herself. She does this cute little ksksks sound for tickle. It made me laugh.
Then, a day or two later, Grandma Paula was playing with her. Katie pulled up her shirt, and Grandma reached over and "took" some of her tummy and ate it. Katie just looked at her with this weird expression, and then indicated that Mom needed to give it back. So, Mom, being a good sport, "spit" out Katie's tummy (while trying very hard not to laugh) and put it back. Then Katie was happy. What a strange girl. We "eat" her tummy all the time, which apparently isn't nearly as serious as when you "take" her tummy. :)
The weather has been so nice the last couple of days. I think it actually got up to about 60 degrees today! It feels so wonderful to be outside and have the warm sun shining on us. Katie just followed me around the yard yesterday while we looked at the new plants coming up, and inspected the trees. I think we will have a fun summer.

Sunglasses

You might not be able to tell in this picture, but Katie's hair is long enough to put it all in pigtails. It is so cute. She loves these sunglasses. Her Grandma Irma gave them to her. Katie is still spending most of her time entertaining me.
She is currently on a granola and yogurt diet. She wants it for most meals. I am limiting it to just breakfast and a snack per day, but she really enjoys it. The granola has raspberries in it, and she tries to say raspberries. It is cute. After all, raspberry is a long, complicated word, so when it comes out as "rabspr" I think it is pretty close. Okay, it might not even be that close. But I know what she means, so it is easy to interpret is as such. Ryan heard it, and didn't have a clue what she had said.

We got so much snow Wednesday. Ryan hasn't been feeling well, (his throat hurts, he has a cold or something) so he couldn't shovel the driveway before he left for work yesterday, and the snow showed tracks from the bottom of the car on it. So, it was at least as high as the undercarriage of the car.

I have been following the advice of Elder Eyring. I write a few lines each night that show how God has shown His hand in my life for that day. I think it is a great idea. It helps me go to bed feeling grateful for ALL that God has done for me and my family. On the downside, I haven't felt like writing much here, because most of the good stuff is in my notebook, and who wants to read a blog that isn't upbeat or positive?

Also, we are expecting our 2nd baby, and I just really haven't felt much like doing anything. We are very excited, but I'm a little scared that I have forgotten how to take care of a baby, and when it comes, I'll forget to hold it's head or something. I guess I'll only forget once, right? :)

Anyways, the winter is never a really energizing time for me, along with the lack of energy that the baby is draining from me has proved to be a slightly depressing combination. Luckily, the sun is shining more, and the first trimester is over. I am feeling happier and have more energy. My outlook is better, I feel like Spring will actually come, and I'm more positive about the baby. Life is good again. Of course, it is always good. I'm going to have another baby! Hurray!

Downtime

Not much has been going on since Christmas. We've been taking it easy. In fact, we still have Christmas decorations up. Ryan doesn't see the need to take them down, and I'm truly not very motivated to do it by myself. And believe me, the help I would get from Katie would just make things incredibly difficult.
She is being so "helpful" lately. I think she says "I do it" more than any other phrase right now. It is really cute, and I'm glad she is learning to be independent and helpful. It is funny when I try to do anything, and she is right there, wanting to do it for me. Just thinking about it makes me laugh, although it is usually a bit trying by the end of the day.
She is also very particular about most things. One day she kept pointing under a chair saying "Uh oh" over and over. I could NOT figure out what was wrong, since there wasn't anything under the chair. I finally moved it, thinking she could see something I couldn't. No, she just wanted to dance on that specific square of carpet that the chair was covering. She is pretty funny. I love being with her every day. I love the cute little things she does each day, and the kisses and hugs she gives fairly willingly. Being a mother is such a fabulous thing.

Christmas and such

This is our Christmas Picture. We try to get one each year.




Katie had a fun Christmas. She really liked opening presents, which she figured out after the first one. She even wanted to sit on our laps to help us open our presents. It was cute.

I made the pajamas she has on. She wanted to wear them all day. The doll house behind her was filled with mini Star Wars characters. She really likes them. They're kind of like dolls, right?

She got lots of presents, but the highlights are a stroller from the Evans Grandparents, and a laptop from the Bowman Grandparents. These are probably her favorite presents right now.

She was pretty worn out when the Holidays were over. I think it was on Tuesday, Jan 2nd, that I asked her if she wanted to go somewhere, and she shook her head violently no. She had had enough of visiting. She just wanted to stay home. Of course, she also threw up for most of the afternoon and night, so maybe it was because she was sick. She got over the flu, or whatever it is, but now she has a loud croupy cough. She really scared me last night. She was wheezing really bad, and her cough sounded awful. We brought her into bed with us, because I knew I wouldn't sleep if I thought she couldn't breathe, and I couldn't see or touch her. I still didn't sleep, (surely it had nothing to do with Ryan snoring and Katie wheezing) but at least she seemed to do better. Medicine and some Vicks helped her breathe better.

After she has been in bed with us for about 2 hours, she was flailing about, and her arms and head were hitting me. She started whining, and I asked her if she wanted to go back to her bed. She did, so we all got to sleep the rest of the night.







Ryan occasionally wears caps, and this is one that Katie seems to like. We thought she looked so adorable, plus she posed for it. :)

What a cutie!