Update

So it only took us (who have no car maintenance experience) one look under the hood to figure out the power steering problem. There is no way to get to the headlights without moving the power steering tank and after the shop was done with the deadlights it wasn't put back properly. We figured it bounced around a lot and a hose came loose. This was later confirmed by the professional.

The fix was free and we appreciated the service.
L

Fishy

A couple weeks ago we noticed that one of the headlights on our car was burnt out and so Brad took it in to get fixed (I know, we probably could have replaced it ourselves but didn't feel like it), where they inform him that actually both headlights are burnt out. What? We for sure had one headlight the night before which means that either during the night while we were sleeping or on the drive over that morning we lost the second one. That makes no sense to us but they actually showed him the burnt out light so he couldn't exactly argued it. We replaced both lights and moved on. This was on Wednesday of this week.

Well this morning our car made some funny noises but we brushed it off until later this afternoon when the power steering quit working! It seems so strange that it happened so close to the last repair and makes me more than a little suspicious. To top it all off, wouldn't you know it but our warranty expired earlier this month. Grr
L

Mae

Okay, so I may be overdoing the Mae promotion (and Mom will hate this post) but I was excited to hear the two missed songs and just in case you are too you can listen to them below.
L

The House the Fire Built


Boomerang

New Music

Every once in a while I'll have a moment where I think, "That artisit hasn't come out with a new album for a while... I should look into that".

Generally it leads to me finding out a new album release date that I can start looking forward to. Today the band I thought of was one of my favorites, Mae. Turns out they've decided to dedicate themselves to helping good causes so every month they're releasing a new song on their website. You can purchase the song and all the proceeds go to charity. I appreciate their efforts, look forward to new music and am so sad I miss two songs already. To prevent that from happending again I've added the song to my blog, hopefully the one song doesn't get super annoying. We'll see how it goes.

I hope you enjoy Mae.
L

Tips are Welcome

I thought my jeans were so tight because they were fresh from the wash… turns out that's not the case, they're just tight.

I've implemented the elastic, thanks for the tip pregnant friends, it's making them bearable.
L

Cheating

At lunch time at work I used to sit with a bunch of women and we'd have a great time visiting but slowly one-by-one they all left the company so now I eat lunch alone. It's no big deal and I don't mind but an hour is a long time to fill with just lunch.

To solve my boredom problem I went and got a new library card and have really enjoyed my time reading at lunch but it often seems that when you solve one problems another comes along though.

I'm no longer bored at lunch but now I have to find books at the library, a daunting task. Usually I have at least one ore two specific books I'm interested in and then as filler I'll scan the shelves around that author and see what else jumps out at me. This plan usually works just fine but there's just one hang-up… I'll pick up a book that looks interesting and start to read the synopsis on the back. I get about half way through and then I feel guilty, like I’m cheating and spoiling the book so I stop reading, take the book home and then realize as I start that I have no idea what the book is about.

This method has resulted in me reading some really random books that I wouldn't normally have picked up, some have been great some have been incredibly stupid.

As an example, I'm currently working on The Olive Readers by Christine Aziz and although I'm enjoying it, it's not at all what I expected.

I need to somehow convince myself that it's okay to read the synopsis, they don't give away the book, really.
L

14 Weeks and Our Own Personal Doppler

At our last doctor's appointment we tried to hear our dinosaur's heartbeat but instead all we ended up hearing was mine. The doctor warned that it still might be too early at our next appointment so I didn't ever get my hopes up. I expected it to be difficult to find if he was able at all but as soon as he put the Doppler on my stomach Brad stood and came closer so he could better hear the fast little horse galloping inside me. It was such an unexpected, lovely sound and a perfect start to our day.

Our doctor happened to mention that you can buy your own Doppler's these days. Out of curiosity I looked it up and you can buy them for as little as $50, so in a short three weeks we can expect our very own Doppler to show up in the mail… I’M KIDDING! No Doppler was purchased nor will be. Who needs that? Though I'll admit a recording would be fun.
L

Late to the Party

So I know this video is all over YouTube and if you're anything like me you thought, "Sheep LED? Random, I'll watch it some other time." And then before you know it three weeks have gone by.

Well today I was sick of seeing the video and not understanding or thinking I'll watch it later.

The video is just so much more awesome than I could have imagined. I think it's the music that really pushes it over the top but if you haven't watched it yet you should, because it's awesome.
L

Bladder Control

I think my uterus expanded well into my bladder last night… I've already peed 3 times this morning!

Makes me miss my old building where I sat just outside of the bathroom.
L

Pregnancy Brain

I’m not sure I believe in what many women call pregnancy brain and have suspected it’s just a myth to explain silly everyday behavior but I’m finding it harder to deny these days.

It was my Mother-in-law’s birthday so that means we all get together for dinner and plans are made through a mass email chain. The plans were set for Monday (yesterday) and we were excited.

Sunday my Father-in-law calls to confirm that I’m making a cake for dessert… what? A cake? This is definitely the first I’ve heard of it and I must not have got that email. Brad knew about it but said he forgot to mention it. It’s okay, Father-in-law has a back-up and I’m off the hook.

The thought of this cake keeps coming back though and I keep wondering how I missed the email, so I double check… I definitely did get the email and I’m certain I even read it; the cake part just went in one ear and out the other. Didn’t sound familiar and I made no initial plans, that’s definitely not like me.

Then today, I’m working on a project and later in the morning I try to confirm some details, only the person I confirm with has no idea what I’m talking about. It’s not their project at all and despite me clearly remembering talking to her about it, it really wasn’t her.

I need to pull myself together, this is getting embarrassing.
L

Crunch

Betty's eating chips at her desk and it is the most delicious satisfying sound I've ever heard and if I don't get some chips right now someones in trouble.

So I'm heading to the vending machine.

Pregnancy craving or Thursday craving… you decide.
L

Gasp!

My dentist is leaving the practice! I'm so sad to lose her, she's been my best dentist to date. She remembers me and is the sweetest woman and would have been excited to hear that I'm pregnant. She's removed my wisdom teeth and took care of the tiny cavity I needed filled. She was even sweet to me when right before my wedding I had some pain and couldn't tell if it was just a little canker sore or an actual problem (turned out it was a canker sore). I'm a little more devastated than I had expected to be. I don't want to see Dr. K, I don't know who Dr. K is! I need a wisdom tooth pulled, that's a big deal, I trust Dr. Kostyk.

What a tragic discovery. And to top it off they're both working really lousy hours until April.
L

Baby Boy

According to an Old Wives Quiz we're having a boy.

Taken with a grain of salt, since it's so early I did have to make up the important answers. Like, are you carrying high or low? Is the baby's heart rate over 140 or under 140 bpm.

I could answer the questions like do you eat the heel of the loaf of bread and which direction does your pillow face.
L

Celebrate

It's my favorite day of the year… it's Middle Name Pride Day!

The baby exhaustion means that there will be no celebration to mark the occasion, you'll have to celebrate in your own homes tonight.

Enjoy the day!
L

iPod Hero

One thing I've noticed and been surprised by is the amount of really vivid dreams I've been having lately.

There was the one where my Sister-in-law was pregnant from some random guy, the one where I stood up to the iPod thief (at camp) and the one where I became a pop superstar (right!). I even had one where I had an awful growth on my hand.

I've never been a big dreamer and I usually can't remember them so it's been really odd to remember them in such detail. I've heard that some women dream more vividly during pregnancy and it definitely seems to be the case for me.
L

Awkward

How do you tell someone something so life changing?

I've found I'm surprisingly awkward about it. I thought when March 1st came I'd be quick to spread the news, but that just hasn't been the case.

Some people have opened the conversation so I can smoothly fit it in but for most I've awkwardly and suddenly blurted it out.

So blog friends, I blurt… I'm pregnant!

I'm due September 17th so I'm just shy of 2 months along. To quote a friend of mine, "Now you start talking in weeks and none of us understand you anymore." So I'm' going to try to refer to my time in months.

We're so excited for this new phase of life and can't wait to see the changes that come.

It may be wrong but one of my first thoughts was, "What does this mean for my blog?" I don't want to suddenly shift to a Mommy blog since I think I'll lose half my readers. As a solution I've started a second blog that is dedicated to Baby Wiebe. This site will include all of my baby related thoughts while my current blog will remain as is. Feel free to visit both sites if you're interested, it's okay if you're not.

I can't guarantee I'll keep both blogs, one day they'll probably combine but for now I think it's a good plan.

So blog friends and strangers, celebrate with us and head over to Baby Wiebe.
L

Welcome

I'm excited to make this blog public. I started this site shortly after Brad and I decided to start trying to have a baby and it was a great tool in helping me keep the news private when we were finally pregnant.

I've added some links to some Mommy blogs I read and also some baby products I love, I'm sure both these lists will increase as I get further along.

One way this blog differs from Laura Thoughts is you may get the occasional post from Brad as well.

I hope you enjoy sharing this experience with us.
L

This One's for Jenny

If we were regular friends I'd call you but since we're blog friends I blog you.

On your recommendation I just finished The Book of Lights and read The Chosen not too long ago. While I enjoyed both books I have to admit I was surprised by them. Your impression of them was so strong that I expected to feel more passionate towards them. Until the last 5 pages of The Book of Lights (where I cried) I wasn't really sure how I felt about it. I wondered if you would share your impressions of them, you said that, "It will change your life. Or, in the words of A.S., it will start your life" and I definitely didn't feel that much pull from them.

Book of Lights did made me think about the history of the world and uselessness and cruelty of war and I feel like I know more about the routines of Judaism than ever before but other than that I don't think it's a book I would pick up and read again.

I'm definitely open to more reading suggestions though.
L

Tip of the Day

It's a random tip, one I hadn't thought about for 8 or 9 years and then this week I've given it out twice. And it's just so handy and obscure that I thought I'd share for two reasons:

1. So you'd be impressed with my brilliance; and
2. So you could use this tip if the need ever arises.

So here it is...

What do you do if someone has written on your dry/erase board with a permanent marker. Or today's slight variation, what happens if someone writes on your fridge with a permanent marker.

The obvious remedies probably come to mind, rubbing alcohol, nail polish remover but I promise nothing works as well as mine.

Take a regular dry/erase marker, scribble over the permanent marker until it's completely covered and then just wipe it all away. You're thinking that silly, it doesn't make sense, the dry/erase will wipe off and the other will stay but you're wrong. They both wipe away cleanly with no elbow grease.

Enjoy, share, marvel.
L

Starting to Sink In

Yesterday we finally were able to start telling people about our Dinosaur and it's definitely made it start to feel more real. It was fun to tell Brad's siblings and see how excited for us they were.

I'm looking forward to then end of this first trimester, my poor house needs some attention but I just have no energy to take care of it.
L

Commitment

For the past couple weeks there has been an announcement in our ward bulletin about a Stake Easter Choir Cantata. It's being organized and conducted by a women in our ward who we really like and who's been supportive of Brad's choir director calling, plus we thought it sounded like fun so we decided to go.

The evening for the first practice came along and we ended up having to miss as we had a big family gathering to go to. We weren't worried though, we'd just go the next week. Until a family gather was planned for the following week as well. We both really wanted to participate in the choir though so we figured we'd just leave the gathering to go the practice and once it was done we'd go back. Practice starts at 6:45, we'll be back by 8 ish we figure.

So we get to practice and there are lots of people there and lots of them have water bottles, seems pretty hard core for the hour or so I was expecting… until I notice the folder of music. There's LOTS of it, and then the girl next to me mentions that the previous week they practiced until 9:00… with no breaks. And then we find out that some of the practices are on Saturdays not Sundays and this thing is HARD CORE!

We tried to discreetly slip out early to return to our evening plans, the conductor looks at Brad and says, "Where are you going?" (she's kidding though, not being rude).

So we've reevaluated our dedication to this choir now that we really know what we're getting in to. We've decided we're still interested though so this week we have some catching up to do and from here on out we're committed.

One other thing we discovered… our singing voices are both out of shape and man our breath control is lousy.
L