it's getting hot in here...

I can't say anything before I give a HUGE thank you to Ryan's dad and stepmom Lori! 

They let us borrow their AC window units and life is much more cool. 

{see what I did there?}

Ryan and I have never lived on a top floor before. Our apartments have always been fairly cool and comfortable. Love life at Murray Place but not so much in the summer! It can get up to 95 degrees in our little humble abode; also my pregnant body no likey. 

Again, thanks to the parentals, it stays in the 70's which is perfect. 

I LOVE COLD AIR AND I DON'T CARE WHO KNOWS IT.

Now on to more summer adventures

{Adventures 1-5 can be found here}: 

Adventure #6

{Hogle Zoo}

..................................................

Ryan's stepmom Lori and stepsister Brookell were around the area and asked Blaire and I if we wanted to go to the Hogle Zoo. Of course we said yes. Besides the fact Blaire hates loathes DESPISES her stroller, it was great! 

She was adorable. She wouldn't stop jabbering, laughing, pointing, or smiling at everything she saw! We think her favorite was the monkeys and the polar bear because of how much she screamed with excitement. It was very entertaining and perfect. 

It was pretty roasty outside so we had her play in this splash pad place at the zoo. I think we were quite jealous she got to do that haha. 

Lori is so giving and great! Blaire loved being around her and Brookell. We are so thankful for how kind her family has been and welcoming to all of us crazy kids. WE LOVE YOU GUYS! :) 

Adventure #7

{Ryan's Birfday}

..................................................

In past posts, I have talked about Ryan having an off the wall work schedule. Because of this he took a 4 day break this week. We weren't complaining! :) It just so happened this time fell during his birthday...smart move @ryben3 

His birthday started out with homemade breakfast burritos. HOWEVER, I was bummed because we didn't have any more strawberries for strawberry waffles {Ry's favorite}. Thankfully, he loves Mexican food so it worked out great.  

We then got ready for the day awaiting the time for our one-hour relaxation massage. 

IT WAS HEAVENLY {understatement}. 

We couldn't do them at the same time so Ryan went first and then I got mine. Both of us had never been graced with one before, they will probably be a more regular thing in our life. When Ryan came out he had this "massage drunk" look on his face, haha he was loving life. 

Right after my massage we went to drop off Blaire at my cousin Aaron and Caitlins house. They were very generous to watch Blaire for us because they gave us a one-night stay at a hotel in downtown Salt Lake. I had been watching their kids for sometime and they kept offering to do this for us. We didn't think we deserved it by any means but they kept pushing for us to use it. So thank you Caitlin and Aaron! :) VERY much appreciated. 

By that time we were hungry for dinner and the birthday boy chose none other than SUSHI. We ate at Simply Sushi, which was litereally 10 seconds away from our hotel haha. Worked out perfect. I am personally not a fan of sushi and just order the breaded vegtables everytime. I do however like watching what people get, there are cool names and crazy colored foods haha. Ryan had 4 rolls and loved everybite. Oh, our server's name was Nemo. He was pretty legit. 

After dinner, we took the trax to temple square and walked around. We also found the family history center in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and Ryan learned some knew things about the program! It was fun. It also was a goregous and beautiful day. And a perfect day because the time we got to spend talking and reminicising. You don't get that time very often alone when kids come into the picture. They do make life better of course but it is nice to have time together.

It was getting late so we ended the day relaxing at the hotel. We even got the hot tub to ourselves!

I am very thankful for Ryan and all he does for our family, he deserved a good day :) 

Adventure #8

{America's Birfday}

..................................................

America day started outside our apartment watching the parade. Yeah, we lasted 30 minutes. The child wouldn't sit still for too long and anyways it was almost 90 degrees by 9:30. But hey, we did get some salt water taffy's. 

 I usually go with my mom's family to party all day. So this year we of course we had the fam BBQ, and end the night going to Stadium of Fire. This year Carrie Underwood came. No I am not a fan of country, but she does a good job singing. And I do admit I sang along with the songs that I knew {Jesus Take the Wheel, All-American Girl, and the beloved Before He Cheats!}. 

Oh and she has a rockin bod! 

Before Carrie and the BIG firework show, they have little things here and there for entertainment. They always have the american flag come into the staidum by skydivers! It is pretty neat :) And Studio C came from BYU. It was alright, just more corny than funny with their skits and stuff. People are really obsessed with it though. A little side theme was superheroes so they had Batman, Superman, and some other superhero greats, do a jumping acrobatic trick show. It was fun to watch. The only thing I think we wish we could change was the traffic. It takes a way long time to get out of parking, very annoying haha but you know you have to deal with it. 

It was great to celebrate America's birthday! I love the reminder of the freedoms we do have, the history of it all. Just feels good to have pride on this day. #murica
(everyone loved saying this for some reason haha did u notice? Didn't know we turned to hicks)

Adventure #9
{I Hate Goodbyes}
..................................................

Ryan's bro Glen got into medical school up in Yakima, Washington! So we had a surprise get together to say goodbye and hang out before they left us for awhile. We spent the day going to lunch, talking, relaxing, just normal stuff. It was harder than I thought to be honest to send them off. I didn't think I would cry, it wasn't because I was preggers either. Just the idea that they are farther away and we won't get to see little Olive and them as much is very bittersweet. Happy for them, but selfishly want them to stay close! :) WE WILL MISS YOU GUYS!!! :) LOVE YOU!

Adventure #10
{July 24th}
..................................................

Utah loves this holiday and for a good reason! In Idaho I just remember going to a simple field of wards/stakes that had booths and food. In Utah, people get the day off, everyone has parades, its a huge party all over! I went to the Mapleton parade with the babe and my moms family. My uncle built a WWII authentic jeep and he was in the parade. He does all those Saints and Soldiers movies, he loves the war stuff. So it is always fun seeing someone you know in a parade makes it more exciting! Blaire was actually pretty good at this parade, MAINLY because I had my aunt Stacy literally chasing her around the whole afternoon at the park and all the festivities. I don't know how I could have done it without my family. Being pregnant you can't run around as much haha. I was so thankful!! Blaire kept running away from Stacy though saying no over and over again because she of course wanted to venture on her own. Typical but I love that little personality of hers :)

It was a good first official Utah Pioneer Day for me and I loved it! Hot, but fun to be with loved ones.

Adventure #11

{Graduate School}

..................................................

Well, this adventure has been a challenge. Ryan worked really hard in trying to get in his top choice schools, unfortunately to simply put it he didn't get in after taking part in the whole process even after the interview. It was hard because he did all he could and felt discouraged, defeated, etc. I don't like seeing him like that. HOWEVER, I have never seen him more encouraged to try again. He took a week to think about his next step in achieving this goal and found a solution. He talked with the University of Phoenix and went through their submission process for an MBA with an emphasis in Marketing and he GOT IN! :) No, it isn't the way he thought he would be getting his MBA, but he didn't want to put off another year of time wasted when he could have been in school. 

I totally supported his decision and couldn't be more proud of him. It was a struggle for him at first but he realized that his goals are possible and everything does happen for a reason. 

Faith definitely played a role in this process, as well as prayer and support from many family members. It was a neat perspective because we had that support but the end result didn't rule in our favor. Sometimes it is easy to think "oh we are doing everything right...etc...so it will all work out a this or that way." This experience was a good reminder that the Lord truly is always there for us and knows what is best at the time even though we can't see the whole picture.

 It is a great comfort to know that we have the Savior to lean on if we allow ourselves to do so, why wouldn't we want to have that type of perspective in our life. FAITH is very very key in this life. And I have learned that more being married to Ryan and the experiences we have shared. 

SO...September 30th is the first day of school for the hubs. :) He will take one class for 6 weeks, and move on to the next for a year and a half and then finish out that second year working on his emphasis. He will work full-time while going, but work is very lenient and support him going to school 100%. I am thankful that I will be able to still stay home with Blaire and the future babe still. Seriously, Ryan is my hero haha as corny as that sounds. No,  life isn't perfect we are poor, we want things we don't need, we need things we can't get, but I wouldn't change it for anything. Love you sweetie! :) 

Thanks for bearing with me with all these words, I can't get my pictures to load so this post may have been a lot to take in! :) If you read the whole thing, thank you. If you didn't, understandable because I don't know if I would have haha.

Until next time!

Much Love,

JPB

Baby Update:

August is going to be amazing because a babe is on the way very soon! I am due the 5th which has already passed, haha it is the 7th today. I was expecting this to happen so I was already prepared for it. I haven't had contractions, or other signs he is coming. Besides the fact I have to pee a lot more and kicks me in my crotch constantly. Silly kid. But I am hoping by Sunday I will start progressing more. I haven't these past two weeks. Still at a 2, same effaced percentage. So we will see. Our life will be changing in a great way though I KNOW FOR SURE the 14th of August! That day I will be induced. On the 11th I go in for a stress test to see if the baby is still functioning okay, if not I will be induced that day. The reason for the 14th is because Tuesday and Wednesday is full of women already taking up time to be induced. There is a lot more people in Utah than Rexburg, Idaho. Especially at IHC haha. But SERIOUSLY WE can't wait!!! :) 

As for cravings: mainly ice cream, Neapolitan which is strange haha but I love it maybe too much. Also, re-watching The Office for the 4th or 5th time in my life. Seriously the greatest.
Domestically: went crazy with the nesting. Cleaned out my whole house it feels great haha. And I sewed a car seat cover that I love. I did one for Blaire so I figured I shouldn't use the girly one for the baby boy.
Names: No idea. Sad, but true. You will all know his name right when we do! :)

so it begins...

Summer is finally here, shout praises! 

We have had so many adventures already and there is still 

much more to come! :) 

Let us begin with:

Adventure #1

{Memorial Day}

.............................................

I didn't document much, but Ryan's little brother Koy had a soccer tournament all weekend in the Layton area. All of us got together and partied all weekend! We shopped, swam, and made Hailey {Ryan's brother Glen's wife} watch Saturday's Warrior for the first time. Wish I would have gotten a picture of her reaction to all of us singing the songs, more like belting them, through-out the movie. She loved it. 

{Wolverine hair at Olive Garden}

{Grandma Nae getting
Birthday kisses}

{Blaire and cousin Ellie}

{The Crew}

Adventure #2

{Graduation}

.............................................

My mom's family is always supporting one another in everything! Graduation is one of those times. My cousin Chelsey graduated about a month ago from BYU and will be an amazing history teacher. Chandler graduated from PG high school and will play hockey somewhere, lots of offers for his amazing talent, watch out NHL! Happy for you both! Can't wait to see what you do next! 

 

Adventure #3

{June 12th}

............................................

My birthday! I had a great time! Sadly Ryan was still working like crazy but he took me out to Olive Garden for lunch. Delicious of course. Then I met up with my aunt Stacy! Her birthday is June 12th too! This was the first time we have ever been able to celebrate together. She gave me a sugar cookie from Swigs. Seriously the best. Then we went shopping! And later we had to see a movie of course, Fault in Our Stars. Really good and made us have sad tears but not because our birthday was bad. That movie screams cry when you watch me. Then I went home and waited for the hubs! Just a good relaxing day and I got to spend it with one of my favorite people! She truly is a great example to me. She always has a positive attitude, a strong testimony, and overcomes her battles with great courage. I am very lucky to know her and am glad we get to share this day together! 

Love you Stacy! 

{Didn't get any pics of us together, but it was on a Thursday so here is some #tbt photos to celebrate!}

{Stacy and Mi Madre}

{My first bday!}

Adventure #4

{Father's Day}

.............................................

That Friday after my birthday I got to party with the Adams family at their Relay for Life in Blackfoot. Their father/uncle/grandpa/etc. Dave passed away from cancer a couple years back and they always support the event in honor of him. They go all out and never disappoint! This years theme was about superhero's, hence the capes, and the camo for Dave serving his country! I am always glad to be apart of it and thankful they invite me. It always makes me think about my grandpa who lost his long battle to Lupus in his 50's. Thankful for the plan of salvation and that we get to see our loved ones again. Miss you gramps! :) 

The rest of the weekend we partied at Gary and Lori's house for food, fun, and games of course! It was a relaxing and nice to be with family. I didn't get to party with my dad though :( but I love the time when we get to talk and catch up on things. I will always be a daddy's girl no matter how far apart we live. I have much to be thankful for because of him, mainly my testimony and faith in the gospel. Thanks for that light dad! Love you! AND of course I missed my Ry! He was in Utah getting ready to leave that next week to Park City for work. Blaire and our future kiddos are lucky to have him as a father. I couldn't be more happy to learn from him and be at his side on our journey that has really just begun. Hooray for Dad's! :)

{Happy Father's Day G$!} 

{Watching Daniel Tiger with
Uncle Wade and Uncle Ty!}

{Going on a walk with my favorite peeps!
Karly loves the camera haha}

{Koy decided to run over my child in the
street to catch a frisbee, bloody mess}

 

{One of the happiest little
girls I know! WE LOVE IVY MAE}

{That cute niece of ours Ivy Mae we love so much was sick all weekend and the next couple days everyone got her stomach flu. There was possibly some other things we got but weren't sure where they came from, but we all survived!}

Adventure #5

{Idahome}

.............................................

Since Ryan was gone all week I stayed in Pocatello/Idaho Falls. I was able to stay with my mom and party with her for a couple days. For my birthday dinner we went to Butterburs, seriously delicious. I also got to see some friends for sushi. No I do not eat that nasty stuff but it is fun to see what everyone gets. I just get veggies haha. I mean, fish eggs, that's just gross. Kelsey and Wes were brave enough to let them swim around in their mouth. Yuck. 

I headed up to Idaho Falls on Wednesday to stay with Ryan's mom. Danielle and Ellie were able to come too! We got pedicures and it was worth it. The nail techs are hilarious, don't know what they are saying half the time but they mean well haha. 

{Even Ellie got one!}

{The massage is the best part!}

The next day, Thursday, we went up to Rexburg to see Katee! I was excited to go despite being very stressed that morning for some reason. Hate that when being pregnant. I was just overwhelmed all of a sudden and felt like I couldn't do anything right. The family was nice and accepting of my craziness and helped me as much as I would let them. Thank you for your patience! haha Anyways, I tried to visit all the people I worked for when we got to the burg but no one was in their office. Sad day! Danielle hadn't seen all the changes on campus as of recent so it was neat to see what she thought as a first time perspective. It was fun to go back up there though and think of all the good things that came out of BYU-Idaho. I do miss it :)

{Picking up Katee after her test!}

Danielle and Ellie had to head back home but Renae, the babe, and I met up with Karly and Wade at Mckenzie River Pizza! Too bad afterwards Renae locked the keys in the car haha it was actually hilarious. Karly finished taking some pictures outside and the rest of us had just been walking around outside waiting for her to be done. Then Renae realized the keys were not in her pocket. Thankfully the window was slightly rolled down. Wade was trying a bunch of things and I finally went in the restaurant to ask for a wire hanger. They had one oddly, and finally we got the doors unlocked and made it home. 

Oh, don't worry, I returned the hanger.

Friday came and Renae got the sickness from everyone that weekend before. It was pretty bad. Since Glen, Hailey, and Ryan were coming later that day I had to get dinner ready and do some other things for Renae. Everyone got to the house safe and sound though and dinner was delicious! It was Hailey's birthday too! Didn't do much but just chilled around the house that night. 

Saturday was the adventurous day! That morning Karly and our friend Nicole ran their first half marathon. They wanted to beat their time of 2 hours and 30 minutes and did it in 2 hours and 20 minutes? or 21 minutes. Katee made some fun signs too! 

Anyways, all that matters is they reached their goal! 

It was fun to go cheer them on and celebrate their finish! 

{Almost there guys!}

{Hailey and baby Olive!}

{Hailey, Katee, and her
roomie Janae!}

{Blaire loved the
Chic Fil A Cow}

{Yeah!! She did it! :)}

Later, Glen had an alumni baseball tournament for Hillcrest Highschool. Hailey and I had never seen him play before so it was fun to watch him doing what he loves! Later, we went to Maleficent and that movie theater felt so nice after being in the hot sun all day. I was really impressed! Loved Angelina and the story line, I suggest you go watch it.

{Batter up, AND yes he did hit
a home run in the game!}

{Cuties Glen and Hails!}

All of us left Renae's and wanted to go stay at Gary and Lori's. Glen, Hailey, and Ryan had never seen their house before. We actually stayed in Idaho Falls for a little longer and had dinner at the park with Gary and Lori. We played whiffle ball, well our version of it and then headed to p-town.

 

{Ryan's sister Karly took some of these pics thanks! haha}

{Katee and Wade ready to play haha}

{My main man! Reunited at last!}

{Love these peeps! Yes, you too Janae!}

{Blaire enjoyed everyone running
around and loved cheering us all on!}

{Lori was knockin' em
out there!}

{Derek and Tash swinging!}

{Love the Leavitts!}

{My other favorite little
person/niece Olive!}

{All of us, minus the Thompsons, Laven and
Brookell! We missed you!}

{Always need to do a silly one :)}

On Sunday, we headed to church, Hailey did our nails {loved}, and we watched USA in the world cup. Usually the only time we will watch soccer on TV haha. 

#IBelievethatwewillwin #USA #Worldcup2014

 

We finally headed home but what a great week and half Blaire and I got to spend with family. And to have it end with Ryan back safe and sound to us. Also thankful for the love we have from our family. I wouldn't have it any other way, and it keeps growing by the minute! Little boy can you get here soon please? :)

Thanks everyone for letting us be apart of it all and accepting our craziness. Let's do it again soon! 

Much Love,

JPB 

PS: Baby Update

Everything is measuring perfectly! He is still "due" August 5. Guessing it won't be that day with my record haha but you never know. I am 34 weeks, and either this 6 weeks will go by fast or really slow. We aren't set on any names yet but the list is growing. More details with that soon. He is moving a lot more especially at night. I am getting more tired as the days go by :( I don't like that because it is hard to have energy to play with BQ. By 3 I want to pass out everyday haha. However, I wouldn't change having Blaire's energy to entertain me for anything else. I love having the time we get together before the baby comes. I am sure at times I will miss it. Maybe it is a bittersweet thing, we will see. I love the idea of having another child around though. I want to see what he looks like, his little cry, if he has hair, if he looks like Ryan, if he looks like Blaire, if he will sleep at night haha so much to think about 

AHH! I love it! :) 

Still not craving much except these beautiful things: 

I am so glad Costco is around the corner. 

april through may...

A lot has happened within two months. I figured snapshots of our life would be easiest to start out with and end with some recent thoughts :)

Easter 

{Weekend Celebration:} 

..........................................

{BYU Easter Egg Hunt = Crazy}

{Easter Sunday} 

{uncle grants}

Park Time With a Cute Babe

{Family Favorites:}

..........................................

{Loves playing with dad} 

{Believe it or not she does sit
down for a quick second break}

{She saw ducks in the water
and wanted to see them but
cried every time they got
close to us. It was quite
hilarious.} 

Recent Thoughts

{Laa Dee Daa:}

.....................................

Our home has been somewhat out of place as of late. About a month ago Ry was always gone at the library after working studying for the GMAT until he took the test. Now he is preparing for his work Summit in Park City. He has recently had a higher work load with some changes that have happened in the office. Me and the babe don't get to see him until about bedtime. It is hard but

I AM VERY PROUD OF HIM. 

He has been pushing himself a lot lately. It wasn't the easiest adjustment, almost feels like college again with never seeing each other but with a kid in the mix this time. I have always loved his work ethic. Hours are long but he loves what he does. The most I can do is support him and do my best to make things simple and relaxing at home. The best part is how happy Blaire is when he gets home. The time they get to spend together is so precious and I am thankful that Ryan knows that. All this time he spends doing what he loves in all aspects of his live will be worth it one way or another. Only 3 more weeks of this craziness!

US GIRLS LUCKED OUT WITH RYBEN3. 

I am also lucky for him to be a father to our 2nd babe! 

Baby boy B is growing and moving around like crazy! It is actually my favorite part of pregnancy. :) I forgot how much I amazed by it. He is sitting fairly lower than Blaire did so I am cramping a lot more this time around.

I am 30/31 weeks, don't really crave anything haha not that exciting. I am still nauseous here and there. Typical. I don't have GD (that test really isn't that bad, tastes like gatorade) but I am very anemic this time around. I notice it too because I am really really tired and my bruises don't go away (I am the biggest klutz every in the world especially as a pregnant gal). I pulled some stomach muscles and my ribs on both sides are out of place constantly. This is one thing I don't like, but comes with the package in my case. 

HOWEVER,

ribs out of place or not, I am very thankful to have this experience again. Some days are better than others but to be blessed with the ability to carry my own children is something I don't take for granted. It could all be over any second too, every moment counts! :) 

{And no we do not have a name yet. And no, we are not naming him Braun after Lebron James. Regardless of what my adorable husband thinks. So far we agree on Brooks but don't really want to do a theme thing like 'B' names for our kiddos. Who knows, it changes everyday with what we like. Technically we have nothing as of now.} 

Anyways, in the next couple weeks I will be visiting family and having little adventures here and there. I will have more to write about. Stay tuned friends! 

Much Love,

JPB

{ps: Ryan and I are obsessed with Scandal. What the addicting}