Where I've been

 Here:

Liam is LOVING the smartphones and eating cereal (in milk) by himself!

In other news, he knows his body parts, some shapes, and several songs.  Smart little bugger.

He talks a lot and wants to draw all day long.  Which means I have to watch him all day long, unless I want to paint every room in the house.

Ahem.

Here:

Per Angie's recommendation, I am preparing myself for childbirth via Hypnobabies.  So far so good.

It still reminds me (eerily) of Inception every time though.

Here:

Center Stage, here we come!

Of course, here:

and here:

But MOST OF ALL, here:

Ten days ago I scored a few GARBAGE BAGS FULL of skeins of yarn.  All kinds!

 A lady was giving them away at a yard sale, and I happened to stop by .....

and now I am eating, sleeping, and drinking the crochet.  

This is why I don't crochet.

(I can't stop.)

Reaching New Heights

in Technology:

pics coming to you from this phone

For the first time ever, Slice bought himself a cell phone.  He has previously used only hand-me-down phones; I have used only the free-after-rebate kind.  (He picked the Google phone for me and I.LOVE.IT.)

Phones with picture messaging and Facebook?

We are moving up in the world.

in Domesticity:

fantastic cantaloupe bread/muffins I made for Slice to take to work

sewing machine I bought after using my mom's for 20 (or so) years

See also: previous post.

and in Disgruntledness: 

You can't really see the tractor parked back there in this picture.

Um, who told these people they could park their construction equipment ON OUR BACK LOT??  Because we sure didn't.

And they are leaking some kind of fluid.....

as if the noise and inconvenience weren't enough.

Young

Isn't it funny how "age" and "experience" are all relative?  Your (and my) concept of age is based mainly on cultural, familial, and occasionally personal expectations - rarely on physical limits or historical traditions.  But the stereotypes tell such a different story.

I grew up hearing that Brigham Young University was simply a marriage factory.  (From non-family members, of course.  We are the "friend from high school"- marrying type.)  When I decided to pursue my degree there, people teased me about getting my Mrs. degree at the B.Y.Woo, etc. etc.  You won't last a year there!  I'm sure you've heard it all before.  It's an old stereotype that, in my experience, could not be less true.

My fellow BYU students have married later than my friends at every other university in the state.  Out of the twenty roommates I had over 11 semesters - all older than me! - I was the one who got married first.  Two months shy of 21 years, with a semester in Europe and almost-a-BA-degree behind me.
(I have my theories about this phenomenon.)

Still, I felt slightly cheated.  My oldest sister served a mission before getting married; my next-oldest sister at least had a mission call before her plans changed.

Then I moved back to the Basin, where a different culture prevails.  I realized that fellow high school classmates had married and had one, even two children in the time that I spent at school.  They were in a different stage of life.  It made me think twice about my previous expectations, and perhaps learn to judge a little bit less.

Now my college friends are getting married and pregnant for the first time.  As the youngest of the bunch, I get to play the part of the old, wise friend with years of experience.
Not a part I ever asked for ... but a pretty fun one, in any case!

(And I am SO EXCITED for you three!)

Guest guess

I am needing your advice.

Since my brother moved out of our basement a week ago (YAY!), we now have an empty bedroom.  Slice thinks we should put Liam down there when the baby comes but there is NO WAY I am doing that, so ....  guest bedroom it is.

Major problem: we cannot fit a queen-size box spring down the staircase.  (Old house, remember.)

SO.  If you are going to stay at someone's house, which of the following would you prefer?
A) a full-size mattress with a good box spring
B) a hide-a-bed mattress (technically "queen" size but we all know it's smaller)
C) a double chamber queen-size air mattress on the floor
D) something else that I will tell you in the comments

I would love to put a futon or frame like this down there eventually, but it's not at the top of the list, seeing as we still need to buy a crib for our unborn child.  Among other things.

Ideas?

obligatory pictures

We took Liam to the zoo on Monday.  We've been wanting to forever, and I thought we better do it before it gets cold and we have another baby and I never want to leave the house again, etc.  Slice and I were definitely more excited about it than Liam was.

I think the favorites were the monkeys and elephants ... lots of construction and NO BUTTERFLY HOUSE??  LAME.

Anyway, good times all around.  I just think I have the cutest kid in the world.

As we rural dwellers do, we made the most of the trip.  Siegfried's for lunch, RCWilley for a kitchen table, Provo Canyon for a photo shoot, Sprint kiosk in the mall for a new phone plan.  It's exhausting, but we've got to do it.

In other news, Slice has switched his schedule so he won't have to work Thanksgiving or Christmas.  For the first time ever, we can make plans for Thanksgiving!  (With no guarantees though - I'm due two weeks later.)  Hopefully we'll get to see some family this year.