earning my cake

birthdays had a very specific tradition growing up in the davis household. we would all gather together with cake, presents and family to honor the day's special someone. and while we all stared at the lovely, sweet cake, my parents would spend about thirty minutes sharing all of their loving memories of their child. (but when you are waiting to consume cake, it was actually about 290 minutes.) when they were done with their sweet words, we went around in the circle and shared a memory or two of the honoree.

when it got to us kids, our memories were generally quite brief in an attempt to expedite the period before cake consumption. you would usually hear "yeah, so, you're usually pretty nice i guess. and i remember one time you got mad at me for something. but i got over it, because i love you. next?"

this took about 400 cake-time minutes (six kids, you know). when it got to my grandparents, it increased to about 3,000 cake-time minutes. (yep, that's 50 hours. can you tell a pregnant diabetic is writing today's post?) after a total of 3,690 cake-time minutes, we would finally open gifts (add another 70 of those minutes) and eat CAKE.

well, as we have all sort of grown up and kind of moved on, we don't do this very much anymore.

today, my brother cameron would have turned 30 years old (what an old man!) and i have been thinking about him a lot this week. and missing him. and dreading today.

but i was blessed to have a wonderful and thankful attitude today. so i will share my memory (if you have made it this far, you have already lived through 45 cake minutes. nice work.)

exhibit a: cameron looking suspiciously sweet with jil circa 1984.

cameron used to look like a sweet, unsuspecting child. but i always knew he was something more than that. something much darker. something that fed my barbie dolls to our mean dog. something that perfected the art of the "indian burn." something that paraded jil's new supergirl underwear in front of all his friends. something that had a brain too quick and a tongue too sharp for my own good.

he kept us all on our toes. it was wonderful.

one time, my oldest brother tried explaining who satan was -- a deeply perplexing concept to five-year-old boo. after a frustrating period of time, he finally blurted, "he's just the meanest, worst person you can imagine." stunned, i replied, "what?!? worse than CAMERON?" it resonated. but i was still recruited to be the president of The Official Cameron Fan Club during one long road trip. it is still an office i wish i could put on my resume as one of my greatest achievements.

over time, cameron grew up to be a bigger child who was a little worse at hiding how soft his heart was. he made me lunch (sugar cookies and sausage) when my parents were out of town. he gave my friends nicknames. he booby-trapped my door a little less. he stopped being the enemy and became my ally.

exhibit b: cameron looking deceivingly tough with his three sisters circa 1998.

the last thanksgiving we spent together, cameron and i had been watching an inappropriate amount of celebrity gossip television. we got endless entertainment from the fact that a recently separated britney spears and justin timberlake had a dance off at a local club. later that day, at the movie theater, cameron challenged me to a dance-off on a video game. in his camo pants, white t-shirt and mohawk, he completely annihilated me. and entertained everyone in the lobby. what a guy.

so, cameron, happy happy birthday. i know you are still keeping everyone on their toes here and on the other side. i can't wait to see what antics you have planned for when i see you next.

(after a brief 340 cake minutes) let's eat some cake.

p.s. i plan on posting some new photos of me/baby/some projects i have been working on this weekend. you know, if you're interested.

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.

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.)

I'm Back!

Dearest Readers:

I'm sure the worry about my whereabouts has most of you deeply concerned. Fret not. I intend to take this opportunity to thoroughly update you on my recent doings and goings.

First of all, Spring Break came! Huzzah! My parents came for a few days, and we celebrated Easter at their condo here in Boise. We ate food, watched my nephews participate in an Easter egg hunt, and made merry. I wanted to document the occassion, so Jesse and I went to take a picture. My nephew Heath is Jesse's bff, and he was quite uncomfortable that he wasn't part of the picture, so he ran out to join us. Anywhere that Heath goes, his little brother Wade also has to go. His little legs brought him waddling right behind Heath (with no shoes on!), hence our picture as a lovely family of four... On Tuesday we went to Idaho Falls to spend some time with Jesse's family. Our timing was perfect as our new niece, Isabelle, came early on Easter Sunday. We were so excited to meet her, and we were not disappointed. She is absolutely gorgeous, even at two days old (I think she gets it from her Aunt Becca--even though we are technically only related through marriage).

Jesse is officially in L.O.V.E. I think it's because they have the same haircut.

(Exhibit A: Jesse and Izzie sporting the same hairstyle)
The Davis family also received a new addition on Wednesday. My brother and his wife welcomed their third child, Deacon (click on his name for a pic of the sweet baby). I have yet to meet him, but I am quite certain that he is absolutely charming! I happen to love babies, so two in one week is pretty exciting in my book (and apparently my family is trying to outbreed all of your families...).

Finally, dear reader, during my absence the most exciting thing happened. Jesse and I were looking forward to getting our mail when we arrived back in Boise as we are still waiting to hear back from some pharmacy schools. Jesse was forlorn to find he had not received anything from ISU (his first choice out of all the schools he applied to). About an hour later we decided to check our mail again, in case we received anything new and exciting. Lo and behold, Jesse had a letter from ISU. Lo and behold, he was accepted! I am so proud of him!I guess this means that we are headed to Pocatello sometime this summer... So, is this sufficient information, readers? Can we continue our love of blogging together?

Lovingly Yours,

Boo

it is February...

so that means that this is likely a wonderful time to discuss love, yes? i have decided that i need to take the time to evaluate all of the things in my life that i love. i have been feeling particularly cynical over the last few months, so in an effort to make my blog (and hopefully my attitude) more upbeat, i have decided to make February the month of bloggly love. if you are uncomfortable with bda (blogging displays of affection), you are welcome to pretend that a friend of mine that none of you know tagged me to do this on their blog--that seems to be the easiest excuse for writing an entirely narcisstic post (i just happen to be a narcissist...). i promise i won't post an annoyingly affectionate confession every day, but these postings over the next few weeks may get sappy, and that tagging excuse might make things less embarrassing.

I have also decided to punctuate like a big girl on my blog this month, so don't be surprised to see a few capitalized letters hanging out.

Love of my Life the First: Diet Soda

I never thought the day would come that I would have such tender feelings for artificially sweetened drinks. I suppose you could say that Diet Soda and I are the typical example of the odd couple. Girl loves sugar and carbohydrates. Girl is nauseated by smell of Diet Soda. Yet, three years ago when my pancreas decided it was time to leave me alone to figure out how to convert sugar from an annoyance hanging out in my blood stream to a usable energy source without its help, I had very few friends that knew how to get me through the troubled time.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciated the help my human friends attempted to lend. Some told me I wasn't worth the emotional investment if I was just going to get sick and die (not that I'm bitter about that comment). Others asked me to try on shirt after shirt for the sick pleasure they got out of realizing that my chest area had essentially disappeared due to drastic weight loss (you know who you are, Libby).

Overall, human friends were mutually supportive, but could do little to satisfy my need for sweetness, consistency, and caffeine in my daily life. Luckily, Diet Soda was there with no carbs, no sugars, no reservations. It's seen me through thick and thin. In my eyes, no meal is truly complete without a delicious Cherry Diet Coke (or Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi) to fulfill my innermost needs.

Sure, the aspertame may or may not be carcinogenic, but I feel that Diet Soda's loyalty has proved that its worth far beyond its possible cancer-inducing abilities. It is this unwavering affection that has made it one of the loves of my life.

*My apologies to Jesse for replacing his face with a can of diet soda in the picture. This is only an outward illustration for an inward feeling. I still love you deeply, husband. More on that to come later...

thanks given

create and ravenously consume feast

check

take mandatory happy picture

check

move on to next holiday

check

the french are glad to die for love

i was glad to mortify myself in front of my class on behalf of the (mrs.) french. sexy lexy. for any of you that attended skyline high school, hopefully you are aware of my halloween role model.

see, i tire very quickly of punk eighteen year-olds constantly telling me that their high school english teacher was really great and really knew what she was doing; therefore, any "advice" i may have about how to do their assignments is null and void. in a form of passive-aggressive retaliation, i elected to come to class as my high school english teacher for halloween (even though i was being evaluated that day... not the best idea?).

unfortunately, i now know how women with hot pink lipstick and moustaches are really treated in the world. apparently no one at boise state university appreciates halloween, and they thought i was being serious. i have never had so many uncomfortable looks in my entire life. a girl sat next to me on the bus, and said something. i looked up to respond, and she spent the rest of the bus ride staring intently at that speck of white stuff on the bus floor. for this purpose, i will be forming yet another organization: CCPMW (concerned citizens for the promotion of moustached women)


luckily, i finished the day off with the culinary delights of my sister, jilene. she earned full points for plating this dish. 'twas spooky, delicious, and certain to make any mouth (hot pink or otherwise becolored) satisfied.

bragging rights

was everyone aware that i own the typewriter on display on this blog? because i totally do.

did you know i took a swimming class in college, and i earned an A despite all predictions that i entirely lack physical coordination/athletic prowess? because i totally did.

were you aware that i drive a stick shift? because i totally can.

was it within your realm of understanding that i was bonneville county top county model (for my age group, of course. my sister also earned the title for her own age group) circa 1995? because i totally was.

is it in your ken that i once stared at claire danes for so long (in real life. i know, right?) in the airport on my way to stephanie's wedding that she actually moved to another terminal, and then i found out later that she was on my flight anyway? because i totally did.

did you know that i just polished off an entire bag of haribo gold-bears by myself in the library in the face of a fallen pancreas and strict rules regarding the consumption of food in the campus library? because i totally polished it.

if you answered no to one or more of these questions, we obviously haven't spent five minutes together in a long time.

*this message brought to you by the Foundation for Building Self-Esteem in Grad Students Gradually Losing Sight of their Long-Term Goals and Sense of Self (FBSEGSGLTGSS)

two weeks down

things survived thus far:


beginning two new jobs
a whole new semester of classes
a parasite
an ambulance ride/ER visit
a terrible chest cold
a deep scrubbing of my entire apartment
two weeks of not touching my husband (see number three)

it seems odd to look at these minor setbacks as accomplishments, but i can't help but feel an eery kinship to this image.

we're gonna make it after all.