My Cool Dad

A few weeks ago my Dad was honored with the highest award given by ISHA (Iowa Speech-Language Hearing Association).  He was awarded Honors of the Association.  I'm very proud of him.  He has been very passionate about his profession and is now working at St. Ambrose University as a professor there.  Although he is 'retired' he still seems to like working a lot!  Yay DAD!

Here is a link to my Dad's website: Sound Principles for Literacy

My Dad :)

Gerard, Susan, Dad, Paige and some dude

Relaxing with Blitz

I wasn't feeling well yesterday and I was talking to the baby a lot.  Blitz curled up next to me and hung out.  I swear he knows I'm pregnant or else just getting fat b/c he will come up to me and lay on me but be very careful of my belly.  Adam says he doesn't know, but I think he does!

Toilet Tally

OK, so today Adam and I tallyed the number of times I went to the bathroom-in 24hrs.  Survey says=19 times!!!   SO LAME!

Family Time

At the end of our trip in San Diego Adam and I spent some time alone with Caden.  We did our ritual of getting breakfast burritos from our favorite taco shop and ate them at the top of Mt. Helix.  It was so nice-we have been doing that ever since we met.  It's our little tradition.  From the top of the mountain you can see all of San Diego.  We eat breakfast there and then pick out all the places we want to live and dream about our life on the ocean.

After breakfast Adam and I spent the day doing a little baby shopping and walking on the beach.  It was really nice out and we were able to walk along the beach in Pacific Beach and hang out on the cliffs in Ocean Beach.  We decided our baby room theme would be the beach.  We got Caden some cute seashells and a picture frame in the shape of a surfboard.

Thanksgiving in San Diego

We spent Thanksgiving at his Aunt and Uncle Jim and Lynn's house.  All his immediate family was there and there was a ton of food, it was the first Thanksgiving I had had with his family-it was so nice and Adam was glad to be back too.  A special guest appearance was made from Adam's little brother-Jeffry-a long standing family joke and guest-he even made a little speech before dinner.

The best part of Thanksgiving was spending time with Adam's family.  We all spent a lot of time together and we enjoyed everyones company.  I miss living close to family, it's the downfall with moving so much for football.  It was really nice to spend time with them though.  Adam and I also got to hit up our favorite restaurants, I have to say eating comes in a close second to my favorite things to do in San Diego.  It was fun to be back in a big city.

Baby Registry

We spent about 2 & 1/2 hours the other day registering for baby gifts at Babies R Us. There are a lot of small things and a lot of big things you need to rasie a baby, lots. There were all kinds of pregnant women, Moms, Dads, and little kids running around there. It made Caden's arrival even more real and a little stressful to think about. It will be quite a challenge, but I am looking forward to it because I also know it will be a lot of fun. We have a lot to get done over the next 4 months while Caden cooks. Mimi is showing more and more. San Diego was cold and rainy the first 3-4 days we were here, but it has cleared up for thanksgiving. I hope everyone has a great thanksgiving whereever you are, take care.

Monday Night Football

Tonight Adam and I, JT, and Raz all went to the Chargers game.  JT is high school buddies with Brandon Siler (linebacker for the Chargers).  We went and sat with his wife Pam at the game.  It was Adam and I's first NFL game we have gone to together.  It was a lot of fun!  Adam was able to go onto the field at the beginning of the game and stay there until kick off.  We had great seats and were so close we could hear the players on the field. Caden was moving a lot during the game-I think he has already turned into a football fan.  The Chargers defeated the Broncos that night 35-14.

CADEN

OK so Adam and I had a revelation...We are now spelling our baby's name Caden.  Adam is part Welsh and it came up as a Welsh spelling and it also means-Spirit of Battle-which Adam LOVES!  So Caden____Clark it is so far!

We're having a great time in SD-Chargers game tonight!

Kayden's first Road Trip

So Kayden is somewhat of a traveler since he was conceived.  I've traveled each month either to Denver or KY via plane, but this will be the first trip pregnant driving.  We are driving today to head back to San Diego for Thanksgiving.  This will be my first Thanksgiving EVER with Adam's family-I'm really excited!  Usually we go back to Iowa for Thanksgiving, more recently having our own Thanksgivings in Denver.  My Dad came out one time and another time we had friends over-it was really fun.  But, this one will be nice to spend with his family.  I haven't seen a lot of them since last summer-so over a year! 

My Dad and Adam last Thanksgiving-Adam making an awesome face

The ride should be really interesting as I have to go to the bathroom about every 30 minutes.  Another coach and his wife-my friend Raz (who is also preggers and 2 weeks behind me) are coming with us as we are giving them a ride to the airport in Tucson.  So, they will ride about 3 hours with us.  We will have quite a car load.  Me, Adam, Blitz, Raz and JT will all be riding.  Java's staying home and guarding the house.

Can't wait to get to the beach and expose Kayden to some good food and some nice sea air!

It's a BOY!!!!!!!!!!!

YAYAYAYA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   EXCITING NEWS-WE FINALLY FOUND OUT WE'RE HAVING A BABY BOY!  LITTLE KAYDEN CLARK!  The above picture looks a little weird, his head is on the left and you can see the umbilical cord and then his little butt and his turtle head popping out.  It's so exciting to finally know what is grown inside me.  Adam and I were so happy!  He is about 1lb and he is still on track to be our little April baby.  He is set to come the 2nd of April-so we are still early!  He was moving a ton and and each time the technician tried to get a picture of his face he would either wave or put he hands over his eyes.  It was really cute.  It's so reassuring to see him move around so much-he looks like such a happy baby.  It's nice to know that he will be our little protector for our other kids to come :)

Baby anticipation!

Tomorrow is the day we finally find out what we are having!  I'm so excited!  It feels like Christmas.  I have no preference if it s a girl or boy, I'm just looking forward to finally just putting a name to the little guy/girl growing inside me.  It's so exciting.  Adam is really cute is looking forward to it too.  


He talked to the baby tonight and was tell her stories about this random puppy who had drug problems and then cleaned themselves up and ended up being an outstanding puppy citizen.  It was a very odd story but it was really cute listening to him tell it.  He was actually making himself laugh.  Parenthood will be very interesting!
  

Adam's blanket

This weekend Adam's mom not only brought her lovely presence but some really cute baby gifts.  One of my favorite ones was Adam's baby book and his baby quilt.  It is so adorable.  She brought pictures of him on it too and I can't wait to use it for our baby.

Parents Weekend

Saturday we went to the football game, it was really nice out and Adam's Mom, Dad and Brent were all there to support, they unfortunately lost, but it was a really good game and it was kind of sad to see the season end.

Jill & Brent

Adam's last after game talk

Me & Jill

Adam, his Dad and Brent

YAY!  Husband back!

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End of the Season

Well, my first season as a Head Coach concluded yesterday with another loss. We finished 4-7 and it was my first losing season since my first season of football 20 years ago. They had been 2-8 the last 2 years so we improved in a lot of ways and we were actually 7 points away from being 6-5. We are going in the right direction and I know we will turn this thing around, The kids did a very good job of representing our program and never quitting, I am really proud of them for that. Now time for heavy recruiting. Also, more time to spend with the wifey, which will be nice.

Last game of the year

Lazy Sunday

Last night we had all the coaches over after the game, we usually do this but last night was one last horrah since the season is over.  It was a lot of fun.  Everyone was at ease as they didn't have to work the next day-meaning everyone drank more.  Adam slept in a little the next day while I went to church and then we all got up and went to breakfast.

After breakfast Adam took his fam on a tour of the football office.  Jill took a ton of pictures and Adam acted like he was very important and posed like he was doing work for her.

Adam and his proud parents

After the tour we went to visit the maternity ward.  The woman who gave us the tour was super friendly and it was exciting to see the nursery and the labor rooms.  I was kind of overwhelmed and it all seemed very surreal.  I'm excited though and am looking forward to getting our baby here!  I'm showing more and more everyday.

Going into the maternity ward

a little over 20 weeks!

Drunk Dinner Flat

This weekend Adam's Mom, Dad and Step Dad all came to visit us for Adam's last game.  It was a lot of fun!  Brent and his Mom came Friday night  and we all went out to dinner.  Dinner was great, but after that it was a huge mess!  First of all the town we went to eat in is about 10 min away.  Which is fine b/c it's an easy drive.  But once we started driving, the car started to shake pretty bad.  Adam pulled over and we had a flat.  We went back to the town and he fixed the tire.  It was really fast but I felt bad for him since he was in his dress cloths still and it was cold out.  Not to mention he was very full.  Once we got the tire fixed we got back on the road...Over the hill there were flashing lights.  It was a DUI check point.  There were about 8 cop cars and tons of police officers everywhere.  We stopped and the officer asked Adam what he had to drink.  Adam told him 2 beers at dinner-which was true.  We were all so nervous.  Adam has his commercial drivers license, which makes his legal limit-.02 or something like that.  So the officer asked him for his license and registration-which we found out 2 minutes later had EXPIRED!   They made Adam do the finger test to see if he was drunk and then they left for about 10 minutes.  Adam only had some drinks with dinner and wasn't even near drunk, but he was nervous-We were both very nervous as New Mexico is VERY strict on drinking and driving.  We were kind of laughing about how we never thought Adam would get pulled over for drunk driving with his Mom in the car.

Finally the officer let us go with a warning about our expired plates, we were very lucky and I went home and took the longest pee ever.

1/2 way mark!!!!

I can't believe I'm half way done.  It's really flown by!  I posted a new belly pic on the belly page and he's really starting to grow!  6 more days and I will find out if Lena or Kayden will be on their way.  I can't wait!  I've been feeling really great and we have been talking to the baby more and more.  I've been getting super full really easily, so I can tell the baby is really taking over my stomach area.  No new cravings, just cupcakes still and California rolls (which is no surprise)

Adam's Mom, Dad and step dad come this weekend for the last game of the year so that will be very exciting!  We will have a full house!

Last night Adam and I gave Blitz a bath and tried to give Java a hair cut.  The bath was successful, but poor java is half shaved. 

Bath time for Blitz

Clean puppy!

Muffin Top

OK, well it's not completely a muffin top, more like a half eaten muffin in the front.  MY JEANS DON'T FIT NOW!!!!!!!!!!  I can't zip them up or button them.  One pair I can button but now on all pairs I have to use a hair band to keep them closed-so sad!  My belly has gotten bigger and I'm not used to it.  Last night in my zumba class it actually made me topple over a little, I totally lost my balance.  I also keep running the poor baby into things.  This morning I was sitting at my desk and I squeezed my stomach into my desk too hard (I almost peed my pants).  It's kind of weird having the extra baggage.  I ran into the counter too the other day b/c it was sticking out so much. 

Tomorrow (baby Thursday) is my half way point so I'll be posting another belly pic!

1st time feeling the baby move

Today was the first time I could clearly feel the baby move in Mimi's belly. I had never been quite sure that I was feeling the baby or if it was just a heartbeat or gas before, but I can really tell it is the baby today. It is really neat to feel. We are only 4 months or so away from having a little baby sitting here with us. Everything else is good here, the season is almost over and we are just really working on recruiting. Mimi loves being pregnant, it is really cute.

Work work work

WHY!?!?  I hope that in the next 60 days I can become lottery rich. 

Comments

Oops so I deleted everyone's comments-sorry!  I'm still a virgin blogger.

Sunday / Baby room ideas

Sunday Breakfast

Adam got home from his game last night at about 2am.  He was very tired, but not tired enough to first check all the college scores and watch highlights of the other games.  We slept in until about 8:30am.  After that we took Blitz to the park and then went grocery shopping.  Blitz played with a cute little mutt and we talked to a local about all of her dog problems.  It was so nice out today, about mid 60's but feels a lot warmer in the sun.  We went grocery shopping after that and we picked out some sweets.  I got cupcakes and Adam bought an pumpkin pie and eggnog.  We came back and I made breakfast.




Baby Clark has been moving like crazy.  He/She moves a lot when Adam is around.  His voice is pretty distinguishable so I think the baby is trying to get his/her dad's attention.  It's really cute.  We took a short nap together (all 4 of us-Adam, me, the baby and Blitz) and the baby was so content.  I honestly think the baby fell asleep after Adam debriefed him on the game yesterday.  He told the baby about how the players did and how the team did as a whole.  After Adam left he/she started moving a lot, I think it was trying to tell me that we either needed to eat another cupcake or else try to get Adam back so we could just lay around and do nothing.


Baby Room update:  Ok, I think I may have come up with a theme for our baby room.  I'm thinking a bird / bamboo theme.  Kind of tropical, but very subtle.  I like the cute little birdies on trees and I've found some really cute bamboo furniture.  Also Eco friendly!  Once I find out what sex the baby is I'm going to start painting like crazy.  I can't wait!

Another W for Adam - Mustangs Retain Possession Of Warrior's Helmet

Western New Mexico Mustangs Athletics - Mustangs Retain Possession Of Warrior's Helmet

Sweets!

Happy Cakes Denver

OK so, Adam is defiantly growing inside me.  I've been craving sweets like crazy.  Today I bought a box of ice cream sandwiches and I seriously wanted to eat the entire box.  Instead I just ate one and demonstrated some self control.  Right now I'm listening to Adam's game wishing someone would make me a birthday cake-that sounds so delicious right now.

When I was in Denver Emily and I went to Happy Cakes in Denver and ate a delicious cupcake-I wish I had bought more though.

Adam's first baby gift

So adorable.  So, I came home from my long week in Denver and Adam bought me this cute little card and a baby rattle.  I can't imagine him picking it out, he thinks that all babies should just play with old shoe soles and newspapers.  He was thinking of us though and it was so cute it made me cry.

Studio Bini

Ok, so I couldn't help myself yesterday.  Emily and I went to some really cute baby boutiques in the Highlands and I had to buy this cutest dress ever.  I know I don't know what I'm having yet, but some day I'll have a girl whether we adopt or have one of our own. Emily bought a cute little stuffed dog, it was so soft and cuddly.  She told me she gave it to Jay and he just ignored it and played with the tissue paper.  Haha.

After, we meet Anne and Kase for dinner.  OMG Kase is adorable and he is 1 month and 2 days.  Anne looked so good for having a baby the month before.  He slept and ate while we dinned, VERY cute.

Baby Girl!?

Last night my friend Emily and I did several tests to try to figure out what the sex of the baby was.  We did a needle trick and a quiz online.  Both said girl!  First we took the online test, which was basically a bunch of weird questions like if your leg hair grew longer and if your feet were cold-weird questions basically.  And it said girl.  Next we took a needle and thread and if it went in a circle then it's a girl and if it went back and forth in a line it was a boy.  It went in a circle-we tried it with my wedding ring and with the needle.  Emily also tried it---maybe she's pregnant too, b/c her's was in circles-for girl!  Still no scientific evidence yet though :)

Girl?

Girl?