The Wilhelmsen Botanical Blog

Hey, a friend of mine from Kappa is giving away 3 free photo sessions on her blog.  Head on over and check it out!

We had a busy week.

Tuesday evening we went to a surprise birthday for a friend of mine.  Aiden loved running around at the clubhouse where the party was held and opening and closing multiple doors.

Wednesday we took Aiden to Wild Wednesday (free day) at Hogle Zoo.  He loved running around and seemed to be most interested in the monkey’s/apes.

Thursday was my 30 week appt. with the obgyn.  I am still measuring  a week and a half big but had only gained one pound.  Total weight gain so far 11 pounds!  THANK GOODNESS!  My goal is to gain a total of 20 for this pregnancy.  (I gained 40 with Aiden and started out this pregnancy ten pounds heavier.)  He also listened to the heartbeat and felt my stomach to see if he could tell whether Lucas is head up or head down.  Good news!  Lucas is head down and the likelihood of him flipping to head up this late in the game is very small.  Good news all around!

Friday evening we went to Bountiful to help celebrate the 1st birthday of my cousin’s daughter.  It was busy and I was having dog allergies and struggling to breathe but it was fun to see family and to have a chance to visit.

Saturday we headed up to my dad’s in the morning so that we could empty out our storage unit and store it in Aiden’s old room at my dad’s house.  Aiden was very excited to see grandpa and we ended up going to lunch with my dad before shopping for Aiden’s birthday party meal.  When it came time to leave Aiden had a meltdown, he did not want to put his coat on and I think that he was a little bit confused.  My theory is that it finally occurred to him that grandpa wasn’t moving with us and that we were not on a vacation and going to return “home” to grandpa’s.  It was also the first time that my dad was home when we brought Aiden over.  As a result the reality that it was grandpa’s home and that our new place is our home probably rocked his world a little bit.  He was still a little shaky and had another melt down when it got to be nap time and I had to put him to bed.  He has been ok today though.

Later on during dinner prayer Aiden loudly declared, “Mommy farted.” and in reality no one had farted.  Truth be told I had a hard time finishing the prayer because I was laughing.  After dinner we took Aiden to the dino play area at the mall.  He really enjoyed running around and going down the slide multiple times.  While he played I ran to get a drink and because I thought somebody was trying to get my attention and following me I bypassed the drinking fountain and went into the bathroom.  After finishing my business I grabbed some toilet paper and when I went to pull it off I yanked so hard that the door to the toilet paper holder popped open and the roll fell on the floor releasing about 3 feet of toilet paper.  The worst part is that someone else was in the bathroom and I felt so embarrassed.  The thought that went through my head was, “Oh great.  How embarrassing.”  Then of course I had to laugh.  I did put the roll back in it’s proper place and close the door to the holder and in my defense it didn’t latch properly so it could have happened to anyone.

In the late evening when Brandon was changing Aiden for bed I asked him, “Aiden, which came first the chicken or the egg?”  To which he replied, “Chicken or egg?”  So Brandon clarified by saying, “Yes, but which was first the chicken; or the egg?”  Aiden’s answer, “Egg.”  So Brandon asked him is he had any evidence to support his answer and Aiden said, “We’re washing the eggs.”  So there you are, Aiden has solved one of life’s little mysteries.  I should ask him the meaning to life to see if he can clear that up for us as well.

In other news we have completed week one of veggies around the world.  We had sweet potato bread, sweet potato waffles, and sweet potato croquettes this week (on separate nights, we aren’t crazy).  I must say all three were a success!  If anybody ever wants a recipe for something that we try feel free to comment on our post and I will e-mail it to you.  This upcoming week we will be trying out two brussels sprouts recipes!  Don’t grimace just yet, those brussels sprouts have such a bad rap because nobody ever does anything except steam them.  We will reveal our recipes to you next week and let you know how work out.

Lastly, Aiden is to the point (height and dexterity wise) where he can pretty much open any door knob that stands in his way.  So if we ever come over to your house then consider yourself adequately warned!  :)  Have a good week!  Thanks for reading.

Last night in the State of the Union Address Obama mentioned, “To make college more affordable, this bill will finally end the unwarranted taxpayer subsidies that go to banks for student loans. Instead, let’s take that money and give families a $10,000 tax credit for four years of college and increase Pell Grants.”  When Brandon told me about this I immediately shook my head and said, “psh.”  If we take away a banks subsidies for student loans, then where is their incentive to give out said loans?  They already have to charge a lower interest rate for student loans, also the repayment rate for student loans is lower (meaning that many people default on these loans).  If I was in the banking industry, I wouldn’t be too gung ho about passing out those loans and even less so now that I don’t get any kind of incentive for it.  If the banks aren’t granting student loans then where are students going to get the money to pay for college?  $10,000 in tax payer credit isn’t going to cover even a year of school at Harvard, and will only cover 2 years at a school like the University of Utah.  If high school graduates aren’t attending college because they cant afford it, then they aren’t entering the “white collar” work force.  Which means in a decade or two, when people are retiring there will be no one educated enough to fill those positions.  Which in turn will be a detriment to the economy.  Am I wrong?

So, Aiden really, REALLY likes to give my friends baby daughter hugs and kisses.  Every time we go upstairs to swap laundry, go out back, or leave the house he wants to, “Give baby kisses.”  Well, today he kissed her really sweetly and then hugged her tight around the neck and was squishing her cheek.  I was holding him and his toy so I had to put his toy down so that I could extricate him from her.  I then took him downstairs at which time he asked, “Where is the baby doll?”  So we had to find the baby doll and when we did he gave it a nice hug and a kiss.  A little bit later he rocked it a little bit and then laid it down with his bear and covered it with his blanket.  I have a sweet little boy.

Well, this week is very (and I mean VERY) low on photos.  All I have are a few of my ever growing belly.  Here is what we have been up to this week…

Monday I went to the dentist to get a cavity filled and then over to my grandma’s for scrapbooking.  It was fun to have some time to myself but my mouth was numb for like 6 hours and I bit the inside of my cheek multiple times.  I was able to get some cute cards made and they are up on my online boutique which can be found here.  The food was tasty and the company was wonderful as is the norm with my extended family.

We spent two hours on Sunday and Monday evenings watching the newest season of 24.  They never waste any time jumping right into things and being intense.  I am eagerly looking forward to Lost as well!

This week I made the curtains for our bedroom and we got them hung up.  We are getting ever closer to being organized and having everything in its place.  I did finally unpack in the kitchen but it is still a little cluttered due to some things not have a place to live yet.  Our room still needs some work and there is just a couple of boxes and some clutter in the living room (we have to make a D.I. run to drop things off) and we have some large boxes that need to go to a dump or something.  The end is in sight though!  Hallelujah!  We have also been to the library a few times and Aiden and I have been spending 30-60 mins. nearly each day outside in the backyard!  It is SO nice to have a safe outdoor space for Aiden to run around in.

Thursday evening the boys went to get their hair cut.  I will have to get some pics. and post them later.  I ended up holding Aiden on my lap while they cut his hair.  We both had on barbering capes but I still ended up COVERED in his little tiny hairs.  He did really well, a bit wiggly but he didn’t fuss or get upset.  He always looks more grown up after a haircut.

Saturday morning we went to the aquarium, I just let Aiden lead the way and he went quickly through.  After we had “seen” everything he sat and “drove” the boat a couple of times.  The program wasn’t working but Aiden didn’t care, he just wanted to steer the wheel around.  He enjoyed “driving” the boat so much that he talked about it the whole way home.

In the afternoon Brandon and I went to see Twilight at Desert Star.  It was funny.  They took the song “The telephone hour” from Bye Bye Birdie and changed the words to fit the show.  IT WAS GREAT!  They pulled it off wonderfully.  Later on in the show they used, “I am I Don Quixote, the man of La Mancha.” and change those lyrics for the show as well.  I loved it!  It never ceases to amaze me how they can think of the perfect show tune and then change the words around to fit the show they have written.  It takes a creative genius!  :)  Thanks mom for baby sitting!

In Aiden news, this week he has said two prayers with our help.  It is super cute!  He does really well repeating what we say.  Today at church he was funny too.  As a woman was finishing up her talk Aiden said, “Christ, Amen. Now sing.”  LOL  He has a pretty good idea of how sacrament meeting goes.  Going to nursery first still has him thrown off a little bit but he will catch on eventually.

As for our opposition we are still waiting to hear from Vangent, Brandon has consistently been working sub jobs which will thankfully cover the basics.  Nevertheless, I am trying really hard not to panic but in the next few months we have to start paying towards a second student loan, register our car, provide for a 2nd baby (incl. circumcision) and continue to pay our current bills.  For whatever reason, everything always comes down to stupid money and there never seems to be enough of it.  GRR.  We have come across a couple of new job ideas but nothing big or that have led to anything worth mentioning.  Please continue to keep us in your prayers.  Thanks for reading…

Well, let’s see if I can remember what went on this week.  We moved Saturday the 9th into our new place.  It is the basement apartment of a longtime friend of mine.  It is nice, Aiden has enjoyed running about in the space and “marking his territory” by tossing his toys and books all about.  I think he likes the extra space.  His room is also darker so he has been sleeping a lot better.

As a result of our move much of this week has been spent unpacking and rearranging.  The end is in sight but we have not done much in the kitchen or our bedroom because we have been waiting for things.  In the kitchen we need to baby proof the drawers and lower cupboards before we can fill them with things because we do not want the hassle of trying to keep Aiden out of them.  In our room we were waiting for a bookshelf from my grandparents so that I can organize my craft supplies onto it.  This coming week I hope to finish the unpacking process and have no more boxes in sight!  This week I have also created a car seat tent (like this only with different fabric), started on our living room curtains, darned a sock, fixed a hole in Aiden’s coat, made oatmeal raisin cookies, and baked a pie.  I have also taken Aiden outside in the backyard to play a few times despite the crummy air quality and he LOVES it.  I love that he has a place to run around in and be a boy.  He has even learned how to climb up the steps to the slide and go down it by himself.

Thursday was my obgyn appt. and glucose test.  Everything seems to be going well.  I have only gained 10 lbs. so far, the baby is moving frequently and his heartbeat is strong.  I haven’t heard back about the glucose test yet, there was a chance I would hear Friday if it came back that my blood sugar levels were off but it could be as late as tomorrow.  If I don’t hear by phone tomorrow then it means that everything came back normal and I can continue eating what I am eating.  As of my appt. I was 28 1/2 weeks along and I am measuring 30 weeks.  The doctor said that he thinks that Brandon and I just make bigger babies.

Thursday evening Brandon, Aiden, and I went swimming at the Oquirrh Park Fitness Center.  It was a bit nerve wracking riding along in the car on such a dark foggy night but we got to and from there safely.  The pool wasn’t a very toddler friendly pool.  The water depth at the bottom of the stairs is 2.5 feet deep.  Aiden didn’t like that we weren’t letting him free to wander about the pool because he didn’t understand that very quickly he would be under water.  We did just a couple times staying right next to him but not touching him to see if he could grasp that he was just to short to be left alone and he never did catch on.  On the upside they have a water slide and Aiden was allowed to go on it as long as Brandon or I caught him.  I caught him the first two times and then sent him down the last.  I could have done without watching him get whipped around by the water and turns in the slide.  He just looked so little and swallowed up by the slide.  Needless to say three times was more then enough for him.  He enjoyed the first two times a lot and was laughing and so proud of himself but after the third time he didn’t ask to go on it again.  Perhaps he had been thrown around enough.

Saturday morning Aiden, Brandon, and I went to my dad’s to try and clean up some more.  We made some good progress but still haven’t even had a chance to sweep of steam clean the floor.  We did manage to get all of our food and food storage though.  After my dad’s we went to my grandma’s to have my grandpa load up a bookshelf and to enlist his help with a small cupboard that we forgot to load up when we moved.  In the afternoon my friend Katie came over and we hung out upstairs with Richelle and just chatted and let the kids play together.  It was fun to  just have some time with the gals and to see Katie one last time before she goes back to Vegas until May.  Well, I think that is all for this week.  Thanks for reading!