another year over, a new one just begun

it seems i get mushy about my husband fairly regularly on here lately, but i feel justified today. three years ago, the dashing jesse jones (unwittingly) married awkward little me. i am still shocked and thrilled about it. the last three years have been the most wonderful adventure of my life. i can't wait for the next three (and the three after that).

jesse: i'll eat you up, i love you so.

busy times call for busy photos

full heart

ovember is one of my favorite months. it is a wonderful season for reflection -- an opportunity to be grateful for things we have been blessed with (and boy, have we ever been blessed!). and though i know there is so much i already have to be grateful for, i am overwhelmed by the cool opportunities ahead of us that keep me so very optimistic about the several weeks ahead.

on our schedule:

seeing these guys in concert in a couple of weeks.

a well-earned thanksgiving break for the mister.

our third wedding anniversary.

gestating the little one and enjoying all the little squirms and not-so-little jabs in the ribs. (it seems like this opportunity would be blessing enough.)

jesse acting as opening speaker for this guy at an upcoming stake conference (a super cool story i will have to share in more detail later).

with so much excitement on the horizon, you would think that i wouldn't need anything else these days. really, i don't need anything else. but with the most wonderful friends in the world, i have gotten TWO packages in the mail this week. you read that right. Dos. Zwei. Deux. (and i even stole the idea for the lovely drop cap at the beginning of this post from one of the lovely ladies. it's shameless, really.)

so, i really could try to make this post a bit more witty or interesting, but my heart is just too full. i am grateful for that. and i can't wait to find ways to share it with other people. until next time, may your november be merry and bright.

oh, this husband of mine...

he keeps me in stitches.

you know those days where you get all bent out of shape by the fact that you can't really bend over like a normal person, and you grunt like a hippo when you try to get that second leg into your pants in the morning? and then you remember it's just going to get worse over the next three and a half months? no? i do. all the time.

sidetrack: somedays i am amazed that even though i really wanted to be pregnant, and i dreamt of it and prayed for it, i still act like i'm going through a ridiculous and unexpected second puberty. "what?!? my body does what?!? but i don't want to get zitty! i don't want my butt to get bigger! i don't like leg cramps! i don't want to get the worst haircut of all time!" (though the last one isn't attributed to my baby, i am blaming my stylist's pregnancy. so it is all related.) someone in this house tends to act like a baby. and it tends to be the person carrying the baby.

back on track: jesse shrugs it off. and sometimes it is irritating. but tonight, after a dinner where i complain for about 30 minutes, jesse says, "let's make like the germans and get the french out of here. I JUST MADE THAT UP! that was completely unfunny but hilarious! let's see who can think of the worst way to say we should leave..." (we do this kind of "let's see who can make the least funny joke possible" competition on a fairly regular basis.)

then all the way out to the car, i hear a rambling that consists of the following:

let's make like the operator of a sewage treatment plant and get the crap out of here.

let's make like the lakers and get the jazz out of here.

let's make like an exorcist and get the hell out of here. (he was getting quite excited by this point in time.)

let's make like ex-lax and...

you get the idea. for ten minutes. and of course, i had nothing. i am not that quick anymore, and i -- continuing the pity party -- say to the husband, "i can't do this, honey. the word games are not so easy for me these days. i'm just not that smart."

"that's not true," he replies. "you are very good at math!"

and that's when i remembered one of the many reasons i married him. you need someone who can make you laugh at yourself. and he does it for me all the time.

(demonstration of jesse cracking me up at our engagement photo shoot)

what a blessing. i hope it never changes.

our weekend and warm wishes

(and for your viewing pleasure, one of my favorite television Halloween moments)

good night, moon

it's 9:36 p.m. and i am ready for bed.

just plain tuckered out. but really, with so much excitement, how could you blame me?

what excitement? (you say)

oh, you know, hoping i can figure out how to be one of these little guys for halloween,

it's an entire guild dedicated to lollipops!

learning that the little one likes online shoe shopping (for her, of course),

planning to celebrate the completion of another test for the devoted pharmacy student tomorrow evening,

knowing jonesy doesn't have another test for more than a week (it's a miracle!),

and hoping that the husband will take me somewhere cheesy and fall-themed this weekend.

aren't you exhausted just thinking about it all? i know i am. i think it's time we all turn in.

against all odds

evidence this child could be male:

jesse has all boys in his family. his dad has seven brothers. my dad has four brothers. i have three brothers. you could say we come from a line of male-dominated families.

out of the ten previous davis grandchildren (offspring of my immediate family), seven are boys.

the chinese lunar calendar predicted it would be a boy.

my all-knowing supermom sister told me i had to have a boy so our children could be BFFs.

all nicknames given to the baby have been male-oriented (such as "shank" and "moon doggie").

this baby kicks. hard. it makes its presence known.

i just had "that feeling" that it was a boy.

but, against all odds, we are thrilled to know we are having a beautiful BABY GIRL!

(which has to be announced in green because, according to gilmore girls, everyone knows that green is the new pink.)