I Get My Chocolate Therapy!

Many people know I love Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. My absolute favorite flavor is Chocolate Therapy. I was so disappointed when they took the shop out of Brigham's Landing in Provo. I had to go up to the Gateway to get some after that happened. Then I moved to Iowa where there is not a Ben & Jerry's anywhere close by.

A couple weeks ago I got an email from my Ben & Jerry's newsletter telling me Chocolate Therapy would not just be sold in the Scoop Shop. They were now selling it in pints at the grocery store! YIPEE

So what did I do? I went to Wal-Mart and got me 2 pints of Chocolate Therapy. I had to buy 2 because I knew Cory would eat most of my ice cream unless I got him one of his own.

I couldn't be happier.

My New Favorite Blog

So I haven't been feeling that great about all my new stretch marks. Last night I decided to search them on Pinterest in hopes of finding some magical cream or inspirational quotes. I happened to stumble upon this blog-- http://womeninthescriptures.blogspot.com/. There is an amazing post about why this woman loves her stretch marks. In the post she quoted Elder Bruce C. Hafen of the First Quorum of the Seventy and his wife Marie K. Hafen. They said,


Just as a mother's body may be permanently marked with the signs of pregnancy and childbirth, [the Savior] said, 'I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands' (1 Ne. 21:15–16). For both a mother and the Savior, those marks memorialize a wrenching sacrifice--the sacrifice of begetting life--for her, physical birth; for him, spiritual rebirth" ("'Eve Heard All These Things and Was Glad': Grace and Learning by Experience," in Dawn Hall Anderson and Susette Fletcher Green, eds.,Women in the Covenant of Grace: Talks Selected from the 1993 Women's Conference [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1994], p. 29)." 


The Savior has too has marks on his hands, feet, and side. Those are His marks for giving his life for me. Just as I have marks that represent the life I gave to Carson. As women, our bodies are beautiful. This has been so hard for me to remember lately. But now every time I see my tiger striped tummy, I think of the Savior and His sacrifice for me. This post definitely made me feel a whole lot better about myself.


This amazing woman has many other great posts. But so far my favorite one is "The Importance of Birth." I think everyone should read it! Her outlook on things is amazing! I quoted some of my favorite parts.



"The first veil that all mankind passes through is the veil of birth in which man is born into the world by water, blood and the spirit. Women have a stewardship over this first veil. When Eve partook of the tree of knowledge she became more like God, knowing good from evil and gaining the capacity to bear children. Eve's transgression "opened the matrix", as it says in Exodus 34:19, the womb, the gateway through which the souls of all mankind would pass through into the mortal world. The only possible way to enter this mortal world is through the body of a woman and by the shedding of her blood... there is no other way."

"...many of Satan's tactics are directed at women and at the structure which protects and guards the first veil... the family. Satan is doing everything in his power to convince women that their bodies, which are the gateway through the first veil, are dirty, ugly, imperfect, dysfunctional and of no importance. He is doing everything he can to distract and confuse women so that they abandon their responsibility as the guardians of life into this world. If he can destroy women's faith in their bodies and help them lose sight of the importance of the first veil---and the power and sanctity of conception, pregnancy and birth--- then he is well on his way to thwarting God's plan."

"I believe that how women birth and how children come into this world matters deeply to God. I feel that He expects the processes of conception, pregnancy and birth to be treated with the same type of reverence and faith with which we approach priesthood ordinances. I also believe that He expects women to protect their wombs, honor their ability to give life, and to participate in cultural and medical practices which bear witness to the divinity and power of women's bodies and the birth process."

"...no child comes into this world unaccompanied and that God sends angels to be with them as they enter this world. I also know that God sends angels to laboring women to help them as they birth His children into the light of the world. The veil is thin for a woman in labor and if she is listening she is able to feel the power of God in an incredibly powerful way. For a few hours she becomes a wide open portal into heaven, foreordained from the foundations of the world to bring the children of heaven into this mortal world. What a great blessing it is that God has such faith in His daughters to entrust them with such a great power!"

I get goosebumps every time I go back and read this. The woman's body is so sacred. I understand this more fully after reading this post.  Heavenly Father loves His daughters. That first moment when Carson was born was the most miraculous feeling. I can't wait to have another sweet little angel to add to our family.

-A Note To All-

A few months ago I received an email from Apple telling me they were having some kind of recall of Ipod Nanos (something about them catching fire?) and to check to see if my registered Ipod was part of the replacement program. Huh??? I registered my Ipod when I got it in high school? I never register anything. When I see the question,"Do you want to register your product now, or later?" I always click later.

Well, I checked out the numbers and sure enough my Ipod was included in the recall. Sweet! My Ipod didn't even work--not because of the recall. I think it was the battery. It completely broke down a couple years ago and I have just used Cory's Ipod. I couldn't get myself to throw it out. It was sitting in a tin box all this time. Thank goodness I kept it! So I shipped it off last month and you know what I got in the mail today? A BRAND NEW IPOD! Sweeeeeet!

I went from this,

to this,

all because I took the time to register--which is very unlike me. Now I need to register our tv, washer & dryer, and whatever else I can think of in case something like this ever happens again. Register your stuff people!

Eccentric Feelings.

You know that weird feeling you get when you randomly start thinking about someone you haven't seen in awhile and a few days later you see them? Or the bazaar feeling when you have deja vu? I recently had one of these freaky feelings.

I was holding Carson and he kept pulling this face that sparked my memory of something. (Might I add that he was swaddled up in his blue Swaddle Me.) When he made this specific face he looked like someone--or something. I could not put my finger on it though. I got on the computer to have my daily Pinterest fix. After a few minutes, I narrowed it down to something I had seen in a book. For some reason squiggly lines would pop in my head. It was driving me crazy that I could not think of what this book was! A few minutes later I saw this pinned:

That was it! This is the book I was trying to remember! Who pins this? And how crazy is it that I happened to see it?!? I had that weird, freaky feeling.

Anyhoo, Carson totally looks like Harold--IMO. We have to get this book now.

i never thought i would say this...

I'm ready for Fall! I'm not looking forward to the cold weather. But it seems like after the 4th, things seem to go by really slow. I have been catching myself looking at Halloween and Christmas decorations. I am really tempted to start a Christmas craft. Christmas in July right??? I just can't wait to make pumpkin treats and make Halloween decorations. Maybe a Fall Scentsy will make Autumn come faster? And of course the fact that our baby is coming in December has nothing to do with my excitement.......... I honestly cannot wait for fall to come!

Going Private!

Unfortunately, the time has come. We need to go private. If you read this blog, give me your email address so I can invite you once the blog is private.

I love Iowa but...

I miss a few things in Utah.

Do you know what I want right now more than anything? Mexican food. Specifically Costa Vida. I want a grilled chicken burrito with pinto beans and medium sauce. Smothered please.

My second pick would definitely be Rubio's.

I would take almost anything from here. Which is very uncommon for me.

Los 3 Amigos. Trashy. Sooooo good. I'll take a #3 please.

Besides Mexican food I really miss Wingers. I know, I know, it's unbelievable there is not a Wingers close by.

I do love their sticky fingers. But my favorite thing on the menu? Sticky finger quesadilla. Yum!

And of course I miss,

All of which are not located in the Quad Cities. Bummer. There is nothing to eat out here. There is an Applebee's on about every corner. There is a Chili's. Which is ok. Not fabulous though. An Olive Garden. A T.G.I.F. And....... That's about it. No good Mexican places we found. The Mexican restaurants out here serve ground beef with taco seasoning. That is not Mexican. Not to mention repulsing. So I have been trying to think of ways to satisfy my cravings. I have found a few recipes I'm going to try. Hopefully they will be impressive.

Free Time!

I've always loved watching movies. When I was younger I absolutely loved going to blockbuster to pick out a movie. I got lucky if I could convince my mom to rent more than one. I had tons and tons I wanted to see. I even love collecting movies. Gray Whale is my greatest weakness. If I go in there, I almost ALWAYS have a movie in my hand if not three on the way out. The very thought of cuddling up in a blanket to watch a movie makes me happy.

It seems as though Cory has found a love similar to mine. Video games. Don't get me wrong, he's not addicted. But he loves playing his new racing game just as much as I love watching movies. This has been working out great. Of course we have our time together when we get home from work. We love each other very much. But once it hits 8 or 9 o'clock.... we gradually start doing the other things we love. So we both take our seats on our separate couches. He plays GT. And I watch Netflix. PERFECT. We set our limits. But we love it!

This week I started a new series. Desparate Housewives. My guilty pleasure. I love it. I don't know why I didn't start watching it until now. It's great.

I honestly love this time in our lives. Neither one of us are in school at the moment, so we don't have homework. Once work is through, we can just play. It's been SO fun. So for now, we are going to take advantage of every moment we have. Because this won't last long...

Sock

Last week during my twice a month visit to the laundry mat, I found something. I really hate doing laundry. And I especially hate doing laundry in a public place. But this specific day made the event a bit more enjoyable. Once all four loads were drying in the dryer, I happened to look up above the counter on a half wall behind the washers. I noticed something that looked familiar. A black sock. There are tons of black socks in the world. Really. There are. But it seems most people wear white socks. I only wear black socks. I do not know why I decided to pick the sock up to examine it. I usually try not to touch too many things at the laundry mat. But I did. And to my surprise, it happened to say "no nonsense" on it. Which is one of the same brands I have. I also happened to be missing one of my "no nonsense" socks. So I took it home with me! I know there is a chance it is not my sock. Which is why I am going to wash it thoroughly. But really? How could it not be my sock? It's definitely mine. And finding this sock brightened my day a little. Now only if I could find my little brown face towel I lost at the laundry mat...

fat.

I never understood what it was like to feel overweight... until now. I thought I would never gain weight. Ever. Then somewhere in the last few months, I began to feel my stomach jiggle while driving down University Ave. I am very surprised by my little pooch. (That's what she said) People who haven't seen me in awhile probably are surprised as well since I have only gained weight on my stomach it seems. And I can't help but wonder what these people think of me now that Cory and I have moved to a 2 bedroom apartment... I am just so thankful for my thoughtful husband who bought me all 3 Kim Kardashian workout DVDs for Mother's Day. I love him. I love Kim. Tony Horton, not so much. Now this way while Cory is doing his kenpo, I can be doing my Kim PO.