and the winner is

Megan!

So that means
It's a boy!

And there was no mistaking it. This child is definitely a boy.

We are very excited. We are celebrating tonight with blue peeps and going out for ice cream after I work on my English portfolio.

Kent has already planned to buy him a baby-sized leather jacket and sunglasses.
And he's predicting that our boy will be going to China on his mission.


Of course, I'm a little sad about not being able to buy all the cute Easter dresses for sale right now.
But instead, we get to buy cool things like this: peepee teepee
We already ordered a set.
And cute outfits like this. Adorable!


We think he's pretty cute.

Now we just have to pick a name.

it's time

for a contest.

On Tuesday I am going to the doctor. The hope is that we will be finding out what it is.
A little baby boy, or a little baby girl. We are so excited!

And so, I need you all to guess. Leave your guess as a comment, and out of all of those who guess right, we will hold a drawing for a prize!

Oh, and if you don't have a google account--you can still leave a comment. Click "name/URL" and just type your name in. I want to hear what your guess is! And I know who you all are that read my blog but never comment.... Now is your chance!

I was thinking we'd wait until Wednesday to tell you all.
Because Wednesday is April Fool's Day, and I thought that it would be funny.

But I think I'm going to be too excited to wait.

So, have your guesses in by Monday night at midnight. And I'll let you know what it is and who won on Tuesday.Four days ago I wore my first maternity shirt. (This is me two weeks ago--at 16 weeks.)

lemon poppyseed

butterflies. It took me a few tries to get them right.
Does anyone know what would make cupcakes do this? Other than not using baking powder or baking soda (I used both).
It's a mystery to me. But once I got it right (i.e. used a boxed yellow cake mix and added lemon flavoring and poppyseeds), they were SO good.
The girls I visit teach loved them.

So did I.

sneak peek

of my current cake decorating project. Seashells made out of fondant:

And a thumb covered in cornstarch from four hours in the culinary arts kitchen on campus.

bliss on a blanket

Today I'm blissful.
I layed (lay? lie?) on the finally-dried grass.
The back of my legs got hot in the sunshine.
I could smell someone cooking enchiladas.
I could smell dirt and grass when I stuck my nose down close to the ground.
I watched a plane.
I read about "Writing with Style."
I wore sunglasses and drank orange-passion-guava juice out of a waterbottle.
Beautiful.

the ring that keeps coming back

(I remembered what I was going to post about!)

A year ago, when we had been married only 2 weeks:
Kent lost his wedding ring. See here.

We searched really hard. It seemed the ring was gone forever.

But (a miracle!) my mom found it,
just laying in the driveway on top of the snow.

Then, this winter, the story repeats.
Nearly word for word
(Except now we've been married a year, and I wasn't as worried about it and we didn't look as hard).

And I got a picture on my phone on Wednesday night--it was Kent's ring! My mom found it, just laying on top of the snow-flattened grass.

Amazing. Haunting.
Perhaps it is the "one ring to rule them all," and it calls to Kent.

My precious.

I sat down to write a post

And promptly forgot what it was I was going to write about.

It's a very frustrating feeling,
especially since I had a really good title all figured out,
which I thought of while sitting in "Grad Night"
and listening to President Clark's talk.
It was a great talk.

And now, I'm going to rack my brain until I remember what it was.

Or else it will drive me nuts.

Happy Birthday Sarah!

Today my sister Sarah is 15! I can't believe it. I mean, I know that I'm growing up (mostly), but it seems weird that my family is too. :D

I love my sister! She is such an example to me. It snowed almost 2 feet in Logan on Tuesday, and I was talking to my mom on the phone when she saw Sarah walking home from the bus stop, no coat on, and a big smile on her face. She is just like that--she enjoys everything!

We like to say that while pessismists see the glass as half-empty, optimists see it as half-full, and Sarah is just happy to have a glass! I have never known another person that is so positive and cheerful as my sister. No matter what is going on, we can always count on Sarah to see the good in it. I really hope that I can teach my baby and all of my children to see life as Sarah sees it. She wanted it to be Spring for her birthday today, and while it is sunny, it's only in the 20's. But Sarah, she said to me, "It's a nice cold Spring today for my birthday! Isn't that great!"

Sarah has a beautiful singing voice, plays the flute and piano, and is very talented. She is very friendly, and always willing to talk! She is very responsible, and a great help to my mom. She loves to read, and her bookshelf is so fun for me to borrow from whenever I go home. She also has a very strong testimony, and I know I can always count on her to do the right thing. I love my sister!

Happy birthday, Sarah!

Temples

To read the Church's official statement on an upcoming episode of HBO’s Big Love that is said to depict temple ceremonies, please visit this article in the Newsroom.

love note

A love note in royal icing.

And this is how I'm rewarded.

A royal icing food fight. (I lost.)

I've made a lot of flowers this week.

And a love note.

And a purple icing handprint.

give beauty

Shannon posted this and I'm copying her. I love it.
As children of God, we have the power to create something beautiful. Our talents and gifts have been given to us so that we may uplift and edify all those around us.

"To every man is given a gift by the Spirit of God. . .
"All have not every gift given unto them; for there are many gifts. . .
"To some it is given one, and to some is given another, that all may be profited thereby. . .
"And all these gifts come from God, for the benefit of the children of God."
--Doctrine and Covenants 46:11-29



This month I am going to try and focus on recognizing what I do well, creating what I can, and using that to make the world around me a more beautiful place.