Waiting Patiently

Ok-well maybe not that patiently. At the end of every day I am disappointed our son is not here yet!! We are very anxious to hold our new baby. I will spare you my woes with being 8 1/2 months pregnant-anyone who has kids already knows. But the foot is doing better. I am off crutches and just hobbling around in a boot. It is healing slower than I would like but it has improved some. I was talking to my mom today and she asked if I was any bigger so I decided it is time to post some pics of me at my biggest. I made it through the end of school which was good and Cole is done with finals!!! We have been greatly enjoying our break but are very anxious to have a baby to enjoy it with. You can see in one of the pics that we put up our very small tree but we are very happy that the holidays are here and that we get to celebrate it by adding to our family!! (hopefully soon!!)

Ratcliffe Update

Just when I thought being an 8 1/2 months pregnant lady was about as bad as it could get-it got worse. I am now an 8 1/2 months pregnant lady hobbling around on crutches! Oh and it is quite a funny sight! I was walking out to the car Monday morning to go to school and I slipped on the ice. I sprained a major tendon in my foot. So just to add to my awkwardness and uncomfortableness I have crutches and a boot in addition to my very large belly. I guess I have been humbled-I feel like I should have never complained about anything before this incident! But not to worry-I am in good hands. Cole is doing a master job of taking care of me and helping me with everything I could possibly need-not to mention his own load of school work.
The latest on the baby-head is down and I am about 3cm dilated already! The doctor said she could almost guarantee a 2007 baby and that it really would not surprise her if he came any time now! My goal is to make it till the 19th. That is my last real teaching day before our break starts and about the time Cole will finish finals.
It has been a very busy month for Cole and I-sub plans for all of January, getting baby stuff ready, finals, grad school applications, and then classes and teaching all day! We have barely even thought about Christmas coming! But we are getting through it and look forward to our upcoming son! (We are so curious about his hair color! Kind of hoping he does not get his mother's genes!)

Once upon a time I was tagged...

So I think I have been tagged for this by three different people quite a while ago so I am now finally getting to it. I wanted to list things that are not that obvious and that people maybe would not know but it was hard. I had Cole help me so here it goes:

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1. Teeth: I really like to take care of my teeth. I like brushing and do several times a day. I like flossing which I do most days of the week. I love to go the the dentist for cleanings. Running out of toothpaste is kind of an emergency. I still wear my retainers from when I got my braces off faithfully every night. (Kinda a shocker for Cole when we first got married because they glow in the dark!) I am very concerned that they will go crooked again. I think this stems from working on teeth over the past several summers at my dad's orthodontic offices.

2. Pills: I know this is quite childish but I still have a hard time swallowing pills! I hate it! Little ones I am able to barely get down with lots of concentration. For bigger ones like vitamins and things I usually take them with a spoonful of applesauce-oh it makes it so much easier!!! I always have applesauce on hand just in case.

3. Phone: I really do not enjoy talking on the phone. In high school I never spent hours on the phone like most girls did. I just really find is so much easier and less awkward sometimes to just talk face to face. That is what I prefer. Obviously, that is not always possible but if I had my choice I would always prefer face to face. If I have ever returned your phone call-feel special. If not-sorry its not you!! I just hate calling people!

4. Decisions: I am an extremely indecisive person! When I lived at home I remember my mom getting so frustrated with me when we would go shopping because I have a hard time making decisions! I am somewhat practical and so I also think about what the more practical option would be. But then sometimes it is fun to frivolous! Now this is not just for shopping-this usually goes for just about anything! I just don't make decisions very fast! How do you choose between 2 good options sometimes?! Cole is trying to help me with this!

5. Terminology: Sometimes I use funny terminology for random things. I believe this stems from my family. I grew up with some of these so I never thought they were weird until I left for college and other people would question what I meant by something. Here are a few examples.
Fruit snacks: Fun fruits
Kix Cereal: Balls
Ramen with an egg in it: noodly with egg
This yummy dinner with chicken and stuffing: chicken with guts
When something has alot of flavor: it has a-zip-a-zing!
The very last drops of some drink: the grodies!!
Any non-full bathroom like a powder bathroom: the teeny bathroom
The remote control: the clicker
and telling someone they are a "good egg" is a compliment!

I hope my mom enjoyed that. These are the effects from living in the Black household!! Shan if you think of more make a comment!

6. Food: I really like eating! I am really not a picky eater and am usually willing to try new things. It has been so annoying to me that since I have been pregnant I have turned into a high maintaince eater. I have to have certain things at certain times, things I normally like I have not, and other things I would rather not prefer I have wanted! But normally I am not picky!

By this point most of all my blogger friends have been tagged! It took me so long to do it so I am afraid to retag someone so I will just tag a few: Mandy Miller, Debbie & Greg Allen, Katie Black, and Aria Litherland! Happy blogging!

Thanksgiving Break

Here are a few pics from the Thanksgiving break. It was a much needed break!

Here we are at the BYU vs Utah game. It was such an exciting game! This is the group we always sit with: Cole and I, Jeff and Melissa, Melissa's sister Jan, Jeff's brother Paul and his wife Courtney and their friend. (Shan and Matthew were in TX).

Cole and the rest of Provo rushed the field after we won.

Emily came into town for the break so we had a fun little get together. Alisa, Emily and I were in the education program together. Alisa and Ryan are on the left and Emily and Landon are on the right. We had dinner and then just chatted and caught up while the boys watched whatever game was on. I was so excited to see Emily's new baby girl Mylee. She was so precious! I had Cole hold her so he could start practicing! Thanks girls for a fun party!

Pee-Pee Teepee

When my mom was here earlier this week she brought with her a prize for her future grandson. It was a perfect gift considering I come from a family of girls. With being the oldest of the girls I am very accustomed to changing diapers. But there is a slight difference when changing diapers on boys rather than on girls. This gift is designed to protect an unsuspecting new mother. We all got a pretty good kick out of it! Here is what the directions say:

Instructions: Hold feet with one hand so legs are at a 90 degree angle and place pee-pee teepee on wee wee during diaper changes.

A Time for Family

My Grandpa Black passed away a week ago today. He was an amazing man who accomplished a lot in his 73 years. He was a very upbeat person, very involved in service and ran scores of races including 6 marathons. My family and extended family flew in and services were held earlier this week. I have been blessed in that I have not had many family members pass on and this was the first of my four grandparents to pass. Although it was sad to see him go it was a very positive experience because of the spirit that was present and the strength a family can have when pulled together. The funeral was a beautiful service filled with stories and the many lessons Grandpa Black taught us. It really was a celebration of his life. His life was in order and he did not fear to leave this earth. I hope to have that same strength and knowledge in my later years-to know that I have done everything required of me and can leave this earth in peace.

Although we were sad to have to gather for Grandpa Black's passing, I very much enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with family members especially those I don't get the chance to see very much. I am very thankful for my family-immediate and extended and for the fun memories and experiences we are able to share.

The Black side of the family at the grave site. Grandma, her 3 sons and spouses, all the grandchildren and one great-grandchild in my tummy!

The girls of the Mike Black family! (Plus his future grandson!)

All the grandchildren practicing for our song to sing at the service. We sang "I Love To See the Temple". Grandpa loved the temple and he loved this song.

Royal Update!

It has been forever since I did a post so here is a basic update on everything!

Baby update: Well I am at the point now where I will start having my doctor's appointments every 2 weeks instead of 4! Wow-I feel like that is a big step!

Good news: I don't have gestational diabetes, my weight gain and growth is normal, baby's heart beat is good, no major swelling yet, and we are much closer to a name now! Shan also gave me a great baby shower a while ago which was so much fun! Boy stuff can be just as cute as girl stuff! Thanks Shan! (I still need to get the pictures from it though.)

Bad news: Still have pretty bad tailbone pain, always hungry, and still pretty cranky at night. Poor Cole-but he is doing a great job of putting up with me! I also get those Braxton Hicks contraction things all the time which was making me worried. But my doctor said as long as they are not painful and they go away when I sit down then it should be ok.

Update on Cole: Well Cole is finishing his last year at BYU and should graduate in April. Yesterday he took the GRE test for grad school! He did pretty good but may end up taking it again. In January he will start applying for graduate schools for the Marriage and Family Therapy program. Right now some of the top choices are Kansas State, Virginia Tech, and Auburn. There is a lot he is looking at like funding, masters and doctorate program opportunities, and also what the program will generally offer. So the plan as of right now is that sometime next summer we will be moving to a new state to start grad school. That is the extent of the plan right now-not sure what I will be doing regarding baby and teaching.

Our newest addition: We got rid of Cole's car (which we were very anxious to do) and have a new car! It was kind of scary because it was our first really big financial decision we have made together but we are very excited about it! It is a Kia Sorento. It has 4 wheel drive so Shan and I can travel the 30 min to our schools in the snow with somewhat more peace of mind for us and the husbands. It also will fit a car seat in the back very comfortably! Doesn't it look like a great family car!

Teaching: Teaching is going very well. Last week was the end of the term. (There are 4 in the year). So on Monday I will send home report cards. I am very nervous about this because I know I am going to get some angry parents calling surprised that their precious angels don't have top scores in everything. But with the start of the new term on Monday I am going to start implementing some more programs and management techniques. It takes most of my time and is so much work but I am really enjoying teaching. Although I have so much to learn and so much to improve on I feel like I have accomplished something I have worked so hard to do!

Murder Mystery Night: So my cousin got this murder mystery game like forever ago and has been wanted to play it for a really long time. So about a month ago we planned for this murder mystery night. It was at my grandparents house with all our cousins and spouses in the area.(except Cole-he was hunting!) He dropped off invitations at our houses with a specific character on it. We needed to come dressed as that part. Throughout the night at specific points we had to read more information about our character and about the other characters and talk about it with the rest of the group. Dinner was part of the night but our conversations had to be in character. We had to ask other characters questions and somehow come up with who we thought did the murder, how, and with what motive. It was really fun! Shan ended up being the murderer and she did a great job fooling the rest of us!

Left to Right: Daniel (genius guy who was a tease) Grandma (the owner of the mansion we were all at), Shanna (soccer mom-also the murderer), Matthew (mystery writer), Grandpa (successful business man), Me (neurosurgeon), Laura(maid), Paul (his game and he hosted it as the Butler), Scott (fisherman), Gen (movie star).