Honeymooning in Mexico

I realize I haven't written anything about our honeymoon we took this past May, so I figured I'd share a few thoughts regarding one of the greatest weeks of our lives!

We started out going to Six Flags the Saturday before our cruise departed. We met up with some of our best friends out there and it was a blast! I think I forget how terrified I am of heights every time I go to that park. It's super fun, but basically that's as terrified as I get. Blake made me brave enough to ride everything though, so it wasn't so bad with my sweetheart was holding my hand the entire time. 

We had driven straight from Mesa to Six Flags, so we were pretty exhausted. We only stayed in the park until 5pm. We're getting so old!

This is me riding Goliath, my nemesis...

Then we spent all day Sunday just lounging on the beach - and by lounging I mean playing football :)

We ate at my all-time favorite restaurant - Mrs. Knott's Chicken Dinner Restaurant - best. chicken. ever.

Then Monday we packed everything up, made some last minute purchases, and hung out by the pier where they dock the boats. We decided to book the Carnival Inspiration because it was super inexpensive, the perfect length and was one of the only ones traveling when and where we wanted. 

We were able to drop everything off at our state room and explore the boat while everyone was boarding. It was so fun! It was pretty chilly as we waited on the deck for the boat to leave the dock, which took over an hour past when they were supposed to leave, but it wasn't too bad with Blake keeping me warm. 

Tuesday we went on our first excursion - snorkeling in Catalina. The water was beyond freezing, but we had ways of warming up our suits haha, (Blake told me too!). We saw some super cool fish and the instructor had feeding time, where she would throw a handful of food and there would be thousands of fish swarming in that area. It was creepy at first but super cool. I'm not sure what any of the fish were because my face was in the water most of the time she was explaining all the different species, and I'm SUPER bummed I didn't have an underwater camera. Oh well. 

Wednesday morning we went kayaking at the bufadora (blow hole) - again, super bummed I didn't have a water proof camera, because the blow hole was amazing! While kayaking, we saw some sealions, jellyfish and super huge fish, that I'm convinced were sharks, but Blake assured me they weren't. I'm also convinced that the kayaking adventure was meant for experts, because I'm in shape and it was freaking hard! I started to become concerned that the little teenage girls weren't going to make it! They definitely gave up about halfway in. 

Dining was awesome. We both ordered 2 appetizers, 2 entrees and 2 desserts every night (per person). I only ate maybe a quarter of each, but since we're paying for it, we might as well! Lobster and steak for dinner? Yes please! Creme brulee and a brownie sundae for dessert? I'll never say no to that! Our waiter was awesome of course. He was hilarious. We definitely enjoyed our dinners with him. 

Some of my favorite moments on our honeymoon:

• Blake held me super close on his lap one night while we were alone on the deck and sang the Beatles "8 Days a Week" in my ear. It was so sweet!
• A guy played our first dance song by Journey "Faithfully" at the piano bar and dedicated it to us.
• The waiters started playing "That's Amore" at dinner and asked people to get up and dance - Blake asked me to dance and we danced around the table.
• We rented tandem bikes to cruise around Catalina. You definitely need to work up to that ride, because that was freaking hard! But super fun exploring the island with my man.
• Playing chess and getting worked by Blake was not so much a highlight for me, but it was for him so I figured I'd give him a shout out :)
• They had game shows every afternoon and one of them was "The Newlywed Game" where you are asked personal questions and have to answer for your spouse. Blake and I tried to get on stage, but were unsuccessful. I guess that was lucky, because when we answered the questions ourselves in the audience, we got every single one wrong. Haha they were super silly questions, so it didn't bother me. 
• We rented quads and explored Mexico together. It was kind of scary, but I felt safe with Blake there. We had tacos and wrote messages in the sand on the beach. It was so fun!
• They set up a mini golf tournament in the middle of the ship. Blake and I of course had to enter. Not only did I end up beating Blake, but I came in 3rd overall! Go me!
• Formal night was amazing. Not only was it fun to dress up, but my man looks so fine in his suit. I had a hard time keeping my eyes off of him the whole night!
• We fell asleep one afternoon on the deck holding hands in our beach chairs. It was the best nap I've ever had. 
• Blake is definitely not the dancing type, but he danced the night away with me salsa style during the dance party on the deck. It was so romantic!

It was one of the greatest weeks of our marriage and I can't wait to make more memorable moments with the love of my life!

Pregnancy Journal 10-7-13

Not much had changed for the last couple of weeks in my pregnancy. I'm still sick as a dog, I can't eat much and I'm exhausted ALL THE TIME! 

A couple more things have happened though, I've got a pooch now - the pregnant belly that doesn't look quite pregnant yet, it just looks like a food baby, or a horrible period bloating. No one can tell I'm pregnant, I just look like I've gained some weight. Which is very weird for me being as I've been a health freak since high school. I'm not bummed about it or anything, it's just different. Just something new I'll have to get used to for a couple more months :)

Also, we went to the doctor and saw the baby for the first time. I'm a firm believer that technology is a huge blessing, instead of a curse as some believe. This was one of the reasons why. We could see our little baby perfectly. It's little hands and feet, it's big eyes and rapid heartbeat. No genitalia yet, so nothing on the gender reveal, but we'll find that out at our next appointment. The doctor was able to measure everything to check for signs of down syndrome and other possible diseases. The baby is about 5.5cm long right now. Just a little guy. 

The doctor also showed me that my blatter was completely full, which was weird, because I literally just came from the bathroom. Yet another fun pregnancy symptom I've been enjoying haha. 

Blake was there the whole time (except when he ditched me when I had to give blood - worst. moment. ever.) It was so incredible getting to experience that with him. He was in the chair next to the table and he immediately reached over to grab my hand and couldn't stop squeezing it. This would be another moment where Blake was overcome by emotion. Once on our wedding day when he saw me in my dress, the day I told him I was pregnant, and the day we saw the baby for the first time on the ultra sound. I almost wanted to stare at Blake instead of the baby the whole time because I just couldn't help falling more and more in love with him. 

After seeing the baby, it gave me new perspective on things. I had been praying that my sickness would go away, that I would have more energy, that I would be able to eat normal food again and that I could get through an entire day without hanging over the toilet. My prayers have since changed. I pray for one simple thing, that our baby will be healthy and strong. I no longer care about how I feel or what it's doing to my body. All my worries and complaints were put to rest. I didn't think I could love something so much that I've never even met. I didn't realize how much love could be transmitted through an ultra sound screen. But I love him (or her). I love him more than I've ever loved anything besides Blake. I don't mind throwing up daily, or waking up with a throbbing headache, or not being able to sleep because I have to pee every 5 minutes, or not being able to eat whatever I want. I will go through that and a million other symptoms if it meant that he was healthy.

I am so grateful for this wonderful miracle in my life and I am even more grateful that I've got the best husband in the world to help me through it. PS I came home from a 14 hour day at work to a spotless house and fresh flowers on the dinner table. It doesn't get much cuter than him. 

Meet our newest addition for the first time... :)