Learning to Photoshop

I love to photoshop pictures! I kept seeing cute edited photos on other friends blogs and so I asked Jonna how she did it and she told me the secret! It was so easy and I'm addicted!

Baby update:

I feel like my belly has reached its maximum stretching capabilities...can I really get any bigger? Today I began week 30 of the pregnancy which means about 8 weeks until I'm considered full term. I have been enjoying swimming a few days a week now that the weather has permitted it. I had to go back for the 3 hour glucose screening test last week...what a nightmare! They haven't called me so I'm assuming everything is okay. I have been working at my old job in Huntington Beach as the office manager just for a couple weeks while an employee is out of town. I'm finding it hard to find clothes that fit me. I'm so excited to have the baby! My sister-in-law Natalie just gave birth to her 4th child early Saturday morning. Devin and I went to visit her and her cute baby girl, Kyla, and it hit me that the next time I'd be in the hospital holding a newborn would be when I deliver. Holy moly! It just doesn't feel real. When does the reality of it all finally hit?

6 months and growing!

I start the third trimester tomorrow! Holy Cow! I weigh a whopping 120 pounds! I am feeling great! I have had high energy and I haven't felt sick or tired at all. I am not looking forward to future aches and pains that come with a growing belly, but for now I am enjoying the pregnancy. Today I took the glucose screening test, (where they make you drink the orange nasty sugar water that tries to fake you out like it will taste like cactus cooler soda and really tastes likes flat soda barf!) and also had blood work done to check if I am anemic. Hopefully everything will look as good as I feel. The bottom picture is from Saturday when Devin and I played some tennis with his sister, Chanel, and his parents. It was so much fun and I was not too shabby for a pregnant gal.

Phantom of the Opera!

Phantom at the Venetian
The Bellagio water show

Grandma and Grandpa Dickson

On our way home from Utah we stopped in Vegas for a few days to visit Devin's grandparents that live there. While we were there we celebrated Grandma Dickson's birthday and enjoyed dinner with them at PF Chang's. Another night Grandma bought Devin and I tickets to see Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian. It was a great musical and my favorite Vegas show yet! Thanks Grandma, you sure did spoil us!

Utah to visit Devon + Whitney

I love the picture of my brother below. We had just finished watching the movie Australia and were soooo tired. Gotta love those "cheeky bulls" and "ms. boss"!

We finally made it to Utah to visit my brother Devon and his awesome wife Whitney. We were supposed to go up there for a family vacation right after Christmas but couldn't make it because of my crazy morning sickness. They live in a super cute duplex in Provo and we had a lot of fun hanging out with them for a few days. The Devin/ons went snowboarding, we did some shopping, and my favorite was when we ate at the brazilian steakhouse Tucano's. Thanks you guys for letting us party with you! We also got to see a few Hawaii friends; Jared, who's living in Provo now, and Dan, Jonna, and baby Brighton who were visiting family in Bountiful.

SeaWorld

A couple weeks ago we went to SeaWorld with my sister-in-law Dawn and Natalie and each of their 3 kids. Devin's mom and sister, Chanel, were there too and it was so cute to watch the our nieces and nephews have so much fun. We were so exhausted by the end of the day!

My childhood SeaWorld memory-

When I was about 6 years old at SeaWorld with my family I was eating a churro and a seagull swooped down, clawed my face (leaving a scratch), and stole my churro from me. I started crying and some people crowded around me, including my parents, asking if I was okay. I cried, but only because I wanted another churro!

Getting Adjusted!

A few weeks ago we went to play some games with Janae and Taylor at Taylor's parents house. We had a ton of fun! (Janae you'll have to help me out with the names of the games because I can't remember what they're called) I think one was a version of murder in the dark and the other may have been called "who sir, me sir?" We enjoyed hanging out with the Holland family and learned that Taylor's dad is a chiropractor. He offered to adjust me for my FIRST time! It was the coolest thing ever! My hips usually hurt from sleeping on my sides and they felt relief for a good week! He also adjusted my neck and it relieved me of a headache. I love my dad, but I sure do wish he could have been a chiropractor. Thanks John, you crack me up! (pun intended)

Friends Visit + Baby Update

Our friends Dan and Jonna from Hawaii are visiting the mainland along with their cute baby girl Brighton. Brighton was born about 2 weeks after we moved to the mainland so I thought I would never get to see her! I was so excited when I got a call from Jonna saying they were coming to the LA area for a few days!!! Yesterday we met up with them at Pedro's Tacos in San Clemente. We went to the rip curl outlet for some shopping and then Devin and Dan surfed T-Street. Brighton was such a good baby....the cutest thing was Brighton smiling for me. Jonna told me the trick was to talk in a really high voice and it worked within seconds. She had the most cute chubby cheeks and she really liked Devin, so naturally he loved her! We were so stoked to see Dan, Jonna, and Brighton and hope that they, along with all of our other Hawaii friends, (you know who you are) move to southern California someday!

Baby Update:

I began the 24th week of my pregnancy today.

The last week and a half I feel like my energy level is back and I am finally feeling normal, well almost.

My belly has been growing at a rapid pace! I'll have to post some belly shots soon!

The name we are thinking about is Maddox. We aren't for sure though.

He has been judo chopping me in the stomach like crazy lately.

My sister-in-law Natalie set a date for my baby shower...May 30th!

Just to remind everyone, the baby is due on my birthday June 29th.

Family Beach Day!

This weekend my brother Devon and his wife Whitney were in town for a wedding so we got to spend the weekend with them. On Friday night we had family come over to celebrate Whitney's birthday. On Saturday we spent the day at the beach. The boys did some rock climbing at Corona Del Mar and everyone played some volleyball. Then we went to Balboa beach and rented beach cruisers to ride on the bike path. Then we ate at BJ's pizza for dinner and finished the night playing games at my parents house with some of the cousins. It was fun to be with the family! The only thing that could have made it better was if my little brother Cameron, who's in Argentina serving a mission, was there! We definitely missed him!

Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day was perfect. Devin is a sweetheart and he took me to my favorite restaurant Zov's! Dinner was delicious and they have the most decadent desserts! If you haven't been there you need to try it!

The Dance

My little brother, Tanner, and Devin's little sister, Chanel, went to the Brea High School Winter Formal dance together a few weeks ago. They were both styling in their cute outfits and they told us they had alot of fun. Devin and I went to the park to take these pictures of them before the dance.

Baby Eliza's Blessing!

Katie and Brent (our awesome friends from Hawaii) came to California for a wedding and to bless their cute baby girl Eliza. We were so excited to see them and Eliza, who was born less then 2 weeks after we moved back to the mainland. The baby was blessed at Brent's house and Eliza looked adorable in her blessing dress. We also got to hang out with them a few days later and grab dinner. After dinner we got frozen yogurt and played our favorite card game Nerts. It was so fun to hang out with them! We love those guys! (and super miss them)

A week in Carlsbad

My Uncle Richard and Aunt Irena let Devin and I use there timeshare in Carlsbad for a week in mid-January. The weather was perfect and Devin got to enjoy some good surf sessions. We went to Coronado Island for our first time and had a relaxing week. Above is a picture from our room, the sunsets were beautiful! Justin and Natalie joined us for a few days while we were down there and we had alot of fun. I also finally got to see the movie Twilight while we were down there, since I had been sick forever and hadn't had the chance to see it.

First Belly Shot!

Today I got another ultrasound, it was so exciting! They confirmed once again that we are having a baby boy. He was so cute and he seriously had Devin's lips in his profile shot. Our baby is so photogenic, he was moving around perfectly for the ultrasound pics. Besides his cute little face, my favorite was seeing him open up his mouth and watching his cute legs with his cute little feet kicking around. I know I've said cute about 50 times, but seeing his little body in the pictures, I can't help but say was the cutest thing! I am so excited to be a mom! Our little guy on the way has been kicking me like crazy! He just makes me laugh! I can't imagine when he grows even bigger in my tummy!

So here are a couple belly shots. I feel alot bigger than I am. Devin jokes that I already act like I'm 9 months pregnant...boy is he in for a shocker!

I AM PREGNANT!

Surprise! We are having a baby boy! I am already in the second trimester in my 18th week of pregnancy. The morning sickness just started to fade within the last 2 weeks, which is the reason for the previous 2 month blog hiatus. I am not going to lie, it was rough. Nausea and vomiting everyday is not fun. I am so grateful to be pregnant and Devin and I are SO excited to have a son!

Christmas Day!

Christmas morning was spent with the entire Dickson clan. It was so fun to watch our cute nieces and nephews open their presents. I wasn't feeling very well but I wore some sea bands to try to relieve the nausea. We went to the Glassman house for breakfast and to open presents with Tanner. With Cameron serving a mission, and Devon and Whitney in Utah, the house seemed so empty.