Almost there...

Well, you can see that the walls are a little bare, but I've been getting requests for what the nursery looks like, so I thought I'd at least post what we have so far.
Tonight I was finally able to make our little angel's bed and it looks so cute! The only thing that will make it better is to have her laying in it :)



It's hard not to feel a little bit behind though. I know so many women who seem to have their nurseries all decorated and amazing weeks/months before the due date (mine is Aug. 8 by the way... I can't remember who asked), but for some reason this alleged burst of "nesting" energy has not hit me quite as hard as I would have liked. Perhaps it has something to do with 110 degree heat. Not sure.
As it is, Derek has been working so hard on getting as many of the details ready as he can. Truth be told the room is a little less ready than the pictures indicate. I had to move some of the construction clutter (drill, tape measure etc) to get a suitable shot since we're still working on hanging the curtain rods (they're so cute, with these little butterflies on the end) and curtains, of course, as well as getting some wall decorations. I'm going to do my best but honestly, I may have to settle for this unless I can find a way to transport myself to various decoration stores without stepping into the blistering heat. If you know of any tricks for that, let me know.

Secondhand Serenade

We braved the St. George July on July 24, 2009 for an outdoor concert to see Secondhand Serenade, Parachute and Single File in the Dixie Sunbowl. When we won the tickets through the local radio station back in May Derek and I were so excited (as we both like Secondhand Serenade). However, I remember thinking the date was so far in the future (and so close to the baby's arrival) that it would never really come.
Well, it's come and gone.
We even talked at times about whether we would be able to go to the show or if baby Larson would appear before then. Nothing yet, obviously. So we thoroughly enjoyed the show, despite being 8 3/4 months pregnant :) Thanks to some cloud cover, it was even cooler than I expected -- though I used my water mister to make myself even more comfortable. Derek even ran home before the concert to get it since I'd forgotten to grab it. Such a wonderful husband!

Showered with love

Here I am at 37 weeks

I always love a good party, no matter what the reason. It's just great to mix and mingle with family and friends -- and when they all happen to be there for me, bringing fabulous gifts, well then, count me in! :)
On Saturday, July 18, 2009 we had two fun parties -- one for me and the baby to be and one for my cute niece, Kate Marie Sharp. She turned 3 that day.
First we went to my friend Aaronee's house who had generously offered to throw me a baby shower. Thanks to her efforts, as well as my sister, Karen, and my mom and mother-in-law who all helped with some of the details, the shower was a huge success. At least I thought so :) We had quite a mix of people from my various social and work and church circles. People were so kind to come and so generous with their gifts! So many cute little outfits and other baby essentials. It was great!

Best sister ever!

Quite a haul!

Friends Lisa, Holly, Aaronee and Melissa

Even my Great Aunt Bea (just turned 93) came for the event. Here she is with her daughter Cindy.

After we unloaded the loot at my house we headed to Derek's parent's house where we borrowed their pool for Kate's party. She seemed to love the swimming, the BBQ and the presents. She is such a doll!

My very own sexy pool boy!

My dad and mom don't always swim, but for Kate, anything!

Derek was in charge of balloons. Instead of the 5 I suggested, he got 20! He loves to spoil his niece.

Dilemma of the dress

I actually wrote the following blog for work as part of a story I was
writing on children's ceremonies in different churches. However, since it
has been something on my mind that is also very much baby related, I thought
I should post it here.

Originally published July 17, 2009 titled Babies, blessings ... and the dress? on www.thespectrum.com

As I write this I am just weeks away (hopefully) from delivering our first baby. Naturally all my emotions -- excitement, nervousness, joy and fear -- are in a heightened state and it seems there is an endless list of tasks in need of my immediate attention. After all, we're on a deadline here.
We've bought the crib and changing table. They're set up and looking all-too real in our nursery. The glider chair is ready and waiting for hours of baby feeding and cuddling and the adorable little outfits and other baby supplies are pouring in from wonderfully generous family members and friends.
But even with my husband's and my near-heroic attempts to be prepared for the miracle that will soon bless our lives it seems I have been remiss in my worries in one particular area: A baby blessing dress.
That's right. A dress.
As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the baby blessing is something I am looking forward to as a special time where our daughter will receive a blessing in our church, given by her dad. And it turns out, this is just one of several ways that different religions welcome children into the world -- a topic I've recently learned about while researching a story on children's rituals in the Baptist, Catholic, LDS and Methodist faiths. You can read that story in Saturday's edition of Southern Utah Life or online starting Saturday at http://www.thespectrum.com
Because of this assignment at work, baby blessings -- and christenings and baptisms etc. -- have been on my mind this week, but the dress? To be honest, it's a subject I hadn't considered yet, and frankly still wonder why I have to worry about it before the baby is even here. Luckily I have loving and well-intending family members to add one more item to my list of things in need of my attention and worry, reminding me that this important event in our child's life will be happening within just a few weeks of her birth and so, apparently, outfit selection must be made right now.
After analyzing the situation, there seem to be three options: One, have a dress custom made by a woman our family knows. She's a good friend of my sister's and actually made the blessing dress for my niece, which was beautiful. Here is the reason for immediate attention as this kind of an order does take some time to fill. Second, purchase a little white dress from the store -- I think there's a place in the mall that specializes in these kinds of gowns. Or third, have my daughter wear the dress I was blessed in many years ago.
All appear to be good options and it pretty much comes down to whatever I desire -- at least that's what my husband says. The problem is, decision making of any kind has been a challenge for me during this pregnancy (I've blamed very few things on hormones during this time, refusing to offer that as a copout for any of my behavior, but I have to think my inability to make
even simple decisions lately has to be somehow related to pregnancy. Surely I'm not just losing my mind!)
As my thoughts whirl around this -- dare I say, frivolous? -- topic, I have come realize that it is all too easy to get caught up in logistics that simply don't matter. In a religious sense, the outfit makes very little difference. No matter which faith you follow it is the ceremony that is the most important, not the dress. And so while I invite any advice you might give regarding my current dilemma (even if it's not as important, the child must wear something), I also invite you to reflect, as I am, on which things matter most.

A week with William

Talk about a perk of the job -- if you like theater, that is, which I do! I spent last week going to five of the six plays at the Utah Shakespearean Festival in Cedar City and it was excellent! We saw three Shakespeare plays: "Comedy of Errors," "As You Like It" and "Henry V," as well as two non-Shakespeare offerings: "Private Lives" and "Secret Garden." I am so grateful to have a husband who not only goes to these events with me, he actually enjoys them :)

Derek at the media reception on Monday, July 6.

I've been coming to some of plays each year the past couple of years but this time I decided to try to think more like a tourist while we were there. Instead of just working (I was writing reviews of "Comedy of Errors" and "Secret Garden" for The Spectrum newspaper) I tried to pretend to be on vacation as much as I could. So we took touristy type photos, ate food at the festival the way tourists would (love those raspberry tarts!) and did our best to just relax and enjoy. All the plays were very well done and I'd probably recommend all of them for different reasons. Even though it made for a busy week and lots of driving and sitting (and waiting in restroom lines at intermission as any pregnant lady would be) overall it was a very good week.

Lisa with posters of the plays.

Derek with one of the costume displays.

The Greenshow

Happy Fourth of July!

The fourth of July has always been one of my favorite holidays and this year it marked a day for patriotism, barbecues, fireworks and friends, and it also served as a reminder that we are just five weeks from my due date! Here I am pictured at 35 weeks!

We spent the morning of the 4th working on a variety of home projects. We had to replace the ceiling fan in our bedroom -- broken by me after the simple act of pulling the cord to turn the light on. I blame its age, the thing was archaic.
So after three trips to Lowe's and one trip to Home Depot in two days, we ended up with two beautiful new ceiling fans, one that Derek even crafted to look like a much more expensive version that matches our existing light fixtures for about a third of the cost. Good job honey! In the process we also bought the CUTEST curtain rods for the nursery with a little butterfly on each end. I think it'll match the bedding perfectly.
That evening as I looked around our home I thought to myself: Every room in our house looks so nice, clean and organized... except the nursery. Isn't that where we should have started? Alas, it remains a chaotic rubble. But as Scarlet O'Hara would say: I'll think about that tomorrow.

We spent the evening of the Fourth with our friends, Brett and Collette Merrill, celebrating our nation's independence with a barbecue at our house, followed by a trip to the KONY Country Showdown. It's an "American Idol" type singing contest for would-be country stars followed by the city fireworks. The whole evening was really fun!

Collette Merrill, Lisa and Derek at the showdown

Happy Fourth Derek!

As a side note on the ceiling fans... we installed the new one in our bedroom on Saturday and Sunday morning when I went to adjust the speed of the fan, the new cord broke too! The same thing that happened originally. What am I? The opposite of Midas? It's not like I'm swinging from the cord like Tarzan, I'm simply attempting to use it for its designated purpose. So tonight we are re-installing another new fan (we took the other one back. Clearly it was defective) and Derek purchased a remote control so I don't have to touch the cords. I swear -- I must be cursed. But its kind of funny in an ironic way.