19 September 2012

Boy or Girl?


It feels like we have been waiting to know the answer to this question forever. I don't know if it was dumb luck or or what, but we found out about Baby Squire earlier than usual. I was probably somewhere between 2-3 weeks along.

With the first trimester, I was concentrating on not letting others notice how tired and terrible I felt, and being right in the middle of a move, and looking forward to just telling people, that it seemed to go by pretty quickly. But now that the news is out and life has slowed down, the days tick by slowly and I probably spend way too much time thinking about what we might be having.

The thought of having a girl terrifies me. Sometimes when I think back on what kind of little girl I was, I have to think that my parents must have wondered what in the world they were handed. I often cried to my mom that being a girl was no fun. I wanted to climb trees, throw rocks, and built forts like my brothers. I wanted G.I. Joes to play with in the tub, and can label each scar to a competition or dare. Bruises and breaks don't scare me. Boy talk and emotions do. So what would I want for my little girl if I were given one? And how in the world do I raise a child, boy or girl, once they pass the age of 5?

To help get my mind off of obsessing over what gender our baby might be, I have been thinking about what I would want for our baby, whether The Nugget is a boy or girl.

-Confidence: It kills me to see so may girls and boys put so much worth into looks and how many compliments (facebook friends, likes on a photo, or attention)they get from others, and not the very voice inside their head and the feeling we are so abundantly blessed with. The thing I will work hardest at as a mother will be helping my children (boys or girls) discover confidence in themselves. For my child to know themselves and find absolute strength in that, would bring me more happiness than any other thing they could do.

Passion: It can be hard discovering your passion in life. I am sure during childhood their interests and passions will change nearly everyday, but I would rather have our children explore them early, so they would know what to pursue later on in life.

A Love for Learning: I was meant to be born when President Hinckley continually urged the youth to get as much education as possible. I hope my kids would find excitement at the possibility or learning and experiences that education can bring. Whether it's learning through a telescope lens or from a book, I hope learning is exciting! I was able to meet people, go places, and see things I dreamed about because of my education. I look forward to the day I can continue my education and hope that my kids will take every opportunity education can give them.

Kindness: This is something I personally have to put hard work into, but I know how happy it makes me when I know I have helped someone else. I hope my children learn how helping others and showing them kindness will bring them happiness.

and of course A Personal Relationship with God: There are only so many things Ronnie and I can do as parents, but one set of parents is never enough. Our children will need their Heavenly Father more than us at times. He can do much better than us, and there may be times we just have to turn things over to Him, but I can help them learn how to get to know Him.

This next little part might be strange to some, but I find it completely normal think about and consider. (I have been working in this field and know it is always a possibility). What if our baby doesn't come as expected? What if the ten fingers and toes come with a complicated and rare syndrome, or an extra dose of unexpected?

Of course it will be a shock, and a struggle, but I know we would love our baby no matter what. I know my family would celebrate the perfection of our baby, no matter what form perfection comes in. The abundance of love from those we love would help us get through the unexpected, and our dreams may be a little different, but I would still want all of the above for our child. Learning may look different, but it will still be just as important. Confidence, kindness, and passion will be things I learn more perfectly than I could possibly teach.

So with just one week left, it is time to get your guesses in!Comment and let me know what you think we are having, and I always love hearing why!


18 September 2012

Another cabin retreat

This weekend we retreated back into nature, but this time, in Wyoming. One of Ronnie's favorite friends from his masters program was going to his family's cabin just an hour and a half drive away from us. Matt and his wife Val were kind enough to invite us along and Matt's family willingly let these two unknowns join the party. Within minutes of meeting everyone, we felt right at home.
Matt and Val are expecting their second little girl in November and we fell in love with their other spit fire little girl, Berkley. All weekend long, we kept saying, "We wouldnt' mind a all if we have a girl and she is as fun as Berkely." Val is a talented photographer and pulled Ronnie and me out into the beautiful fall leaves and snapped a few photos of us. (I promise my belly isn't a massive as it looks, the shirt I was wearing is pretty tent like and exaggerated the round happening everywhere)
It was fun being able to sleep in, relax, stay up way too late talking about Mexican food, go canoeing, and go swimming at a pretty amazing Rec center. We had so much fun with the Dahlin's and left the weekend feeling like we had another set of wonderful friends and loved ones. Thanks so much Dahlin clan and we hope to see you again soon!


07 September 2012

Labor Day Weekend

Since the beginning of time, at least in my life, the Webbs have retreated to the mountains for Labor Day weekend. We have lots of birthdays around that time and my parents always rent a cabin or two (to fit all of us) and we have a blast being together in one of my favorite places on earth.

After Alabama and a few trips to see Andrew in Colorado Springs at the Air Force Academy, we kind of lost the tradition. When my parents announced we were going back to the mountains this year, 7 of us 8 kids made it there. It was a blast being all together and breathing in the fresh mountain air.

Between my dad's love for vehicles of every kind and brothers with the same passions, we has several razors and jeeps to go off-roading in. It was fun to drive up mountain trails and take in the beauty. And then there was the pool. When the Webb clan goes to the pool, there are so many of us, we usually drive away most everyone else there. I wish I could say I felt more guilty about that than I do. One of my favorite things about getting the whole family together, is watching all the nieces and nephews together. They are best of friends and I love imagining the trouble they will get into together someday. I also love hearing the little voices call out for Ronnie. They love him! They call him Uncle Boots because of his leg braces and I love seeing them gather around him because they love to tease with him or need a hug after a bang or a bump. When we got to the "cabin" mansion my parents rented, little Dean heard Ronnie was there and started yelling "Unc Boots! I coming!" Dean hasn't seen much of us but he definitely remembered he loves his "Unc Boots".

Here are a few pictures to enjoy of our weekend in Colorado:






17-almost 18 weeks

I know it has been a couple weeks, but the pregnancy has been pretty much the same: congestion, occasional bloody noses, sudden strong hunger, you know, the joys. But I have been getting more used to it and have been sleeping much better at night.

I finally got to meet my Dr. and he seems very friendly and great! He is 1 of 2 (yes 2) OBGYN's here in Rock Springs. I didn't really have much choice but he seems like he will be great. He even offered to write Ronnie a prescription to be extra nice a baby me. Ronnie does pretty well but there were some moments when I wished I could hand him one of those in the first trimester. And most exciting of all, we get to find out what we are having on Sept. 26th at 9:50 am! Can you tell I am excited? Sometimes I have to keep myself from thinking about it too much because it seems to far off and I can hardly wait!

Some of you may be wondering what we do up here other than dream of Baby Squire. Ronnie is loving his job. He works hard and I know his clients love him. They come find us when we are out and about and say hello. These are drug addicts, so for them to recognize Ronnie in public and want to say hello is not an easy thing to do. I love hearing how he plans for the groups he leads and how happy it makes him to be the provider for out family. The other day I thanked him for the wonderful life he gives me and he was BEAMING. He loves being a man, and doing his manly duty.

I had originally accepted a job as a special ed. teacher for preschool aged children, but after we found out we were having a baby, I couldn't feel right about talking the job only to then take maternity leave, and then quit as soon as the school year was over. It would be hard on the school, especially the students. At first I had a hard time not working those first few weeks. I have never turned down a job, even if it meant working a couple at a time while in school. After some adjustment time, I am loving my house wife duties and being able to cook actual meals, do laundry before we are desperate for clean clothes, and spend more time catching up with friends and family over the phone. I am working on getting paperwork in to be a substitute teacher. Wyoming's educational system is actually pretty darn good, so you have to jump through a lot of hoops to work in the schools. It is good to know they don't just let anyone step in the school. It will be nice to have something felixible to do that allows me to earn some extra cash, but take off out of town when we want to.

PS. Do you feel fall in the air? It is definitely arriving here! And check out this gorgeous Wyoming sunset