Grandma Carmen - mother of 16!

Michael's maternal grandma, Karriemen, had 16 children of her own, so when she blesses me with her touch and prayers, I indeed feel very blessed.  

Over Easter, we visited Grandma Carmen at her home in the small valley town of Fowler.  She was pretty tired, and in bed (I would be too after 16 children!).  She is so modest, she insisted we not take her picture because she wasn't dressed up - she is beautiful anyways!  So we agreed to have the picture blur her out of focus.  Above: Grandma Carmen's hand on Maren's baby belly.

Grandma's story is interesting.  She was in an arranged marriage at the age of 14.  All 16 of her children all living, and she has over 45 grandchildren, not to mention many great-grandchildren and even a few great-great-grandchildren.  To really get an idea of what her life was like, imagine being pregnant with your youngest, while your oldest son's wife is pregnant.  

We are so blessed to have her in our lives and we can't wait for her to hold our baby girl!

Our last wedding as a "trio".

This last Saturday we shot our last wedding as a "trio".  Maren was 8 months pregnant, but still getting down on the ground to get the best angle!  We had fun, and we will miss Baby B at our next scheduled wedding on August 22 - she will most likely be with grammy Julia!  

To see more pictures from the wedding, check out our photography blog.

Earth angel.

About 6 weeks ago, Michael and I took a little trip down to Venice Beach in Southern California.  We walked the famous (infamous?) sidewalk, eyeing all the interesting people and their wares for sale.  After about 1 mile of walking in my flip-flops, my feet were KILLING me! Even worse was we had to walk all the way back.  My feet basically didn't recover for weeks.  That is until my mom bought me a new pair of flip-flops: enter Earth Exer-Fit divine-creations-from-heaven.  I admit, they aren't the coolest looking shoes in the world, but that hasn't stopped me from wearing them EVERY day!  I even wore them to a wedding we shot last weekend.  (Normally, I wouldn't do this, but since the groom was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, I felt at ease expressing my own comfortable-sensibilities.)  Here's to Earth shoes, my new love!  (I wonder if I can get sponsored by them?  Would the sponsorship run out when I cease to be pregnant?)

7.5 month update

I continue to feel great!  My back doesn't ache, I am able to sleep fairly well, I feel rested, I'm not grumpy, I'm eating well, I don't have to pee every 20 minutes, and I can still see my toes!  I don't even know I am pregnant except for when I feel a little kick on my bladder or some other internal organ!  She is moving around a lot, and now that she is bigger, when she kicks it hurts sometimes!  That is my biggest complaint, the jabs her growing body is able to perform on my insides.  It is really fun being able to see her move from the outside though.  Sometimes, I will find myself just staring at my own belly, totally entertained, watching her make shapes and deform the round circle of my abdomen. 

3.5 months

5.5. months

7.5 months

Mother's Day

I didn't really know how to take Mother's Day.  People began calling, texting, even sent letters, but I felt like a sort of fraud.  Am I really a mother yet?  I haven't really done anything but let this little pea inside me grow.  Does that count?  

Even though I don't think I've been through the war that makes me worthy to be awarded mother day praise, I do know enough about fostering a child to already be ever-more indebted to my mothers (Peggy-biological, grandmas, mother-in-law, etc.), but especially the one who carried me in her womb.  So, once again, thank you mom for all you did for me, have done for me, and will do for me.  I love you!

So here's to all the "real" mothers!  

Pregnancy Photo Shoot!

While in Fresno, Michael pulled me outside one evening onto the glorious street in front of my parent's house.  Though the scenery wasn't exactly stunning, it was fun having pictures taken of me - expressly because of my big belly.  

Seriously, one of the best things about being pregnant is not having to suck-it-in anymore.  The day I found out I was pregnant, I was like "Woo hoo, now I can let it hang out" even though the baby was only the size of a blueberry at that time!  

Week 31

For those of you who don't click on the baby countdown (in the right side column) to see how she is growing, here's an excerpt from this week (week 31):

"From this week on, your baby will continue to gain around ½ pound a week until
shortly before birth (even though it may feel like a whole lot more with every
step you take). Other highlights this week: Due to increasing space constraints,
your baby's arms and legs stay drawn up close to the body now, known as the
fetal position (oh, so that's where that name came from!). Plus, your baby can
now process information from all five senses..."

Isn't that cool?!? Well, the gaining a half a pound a week is a little scary, but the 5 senses thing is awesome!