Last weekend was the first time Justin and I have been out of the house on Friday night in about three months. We went to Jamba Juice and Kohl's, it totaled about one hour. I felt accomplished. We came home and watched the 'Shakiest Gun in the West'. Fun movie and great evening, it ended around 9 p.m. I had to laugh at us going to bed that early. Justin is up early (like by 5:30 a.m. at the latest) every morning and I well, am pregnant and can sleep most any time.

I helped Justin make a power point for work on Saturday of the Grapple Processor product his company is coming out with. It was nice to be able to use my brain and creativity again. I am feeling alot better than I was, but still by the afternoon I am struggling. I still am not working alot because of this and while I really enjoy my time to do whatever I want, sometimes I wish I could use my brain more.

I am so glad fall is here. I love the cool mornings and evenings, and occasional rainy days. We are headed to Utah for Justin's youngest brothers wedding in about two weeks. We are both looking forward to a break, change of scenery, and seeing family.

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

We Are Pregnant

I haven't posted for a while, until this week. That would be because of the title. Since a week after we found out we would be expecting a little one I have not really felt up to the task of writing. So forgive me. The most exciting thing that happened after that and until now is a trip to Ontario to hang out with my family for a couple of days. My sister is supposed to be sending me pictures of our mad wakeboarding skills, so I will try to post those another time.

Other than that and occasionally going to work and church, I have spent my days at home doing as little as possible to minimize the nausea. I have watched far too much television and know more about people from facebook than I should. I am through the worst though and am starting to feel more like myself. Justin has been so supportive through it all.

I found out July 12th that we were pregnant. I was hoping, but wasn't so sure it was going to work out for us that month. Justin was out of town so I waited until the next day to tell him when he got home. I made a trail of little plastic baby rattles down the hall (from the dollar store) that led to the sign, "Dad, Blue or Pink, What do you think? Either way I will be here March 20, 2013." He was very excited and surprised (which is good because I am not very good at surprising him often.)

Justin and I are so grateful for this blessing and little miracle in our lives. We pray we can be good parents. Here are some ultrasound pics from this week. Baby Blazzard at 13 weeks and everything is looking good!

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Baby, Oh Baby!

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Thoughts

"We're not commanded to be loved. Just to love. That's an important key to happiness. . . to quit running around trying to make people love us. To stop, take a deep breath, and to truly and sincerely love others, lifting where we can lift, brightening where we can brighten, and comforting where we can comfort. When we do that, it's amazing how full our life becomes of the only love that really matters in the end - the love that never fails."

One of our old bishops wife posted this as her facebook status the other day and it really made me pause and think.

Then, at church yesterday I snuck out of Sacrament meeting to get a drink of water. A little girl in our ward who is about 6 years old ran up, wrapped her arms around my legs and said, "I love you." I don't really know this little girl that well, really, I have only talked with her once or twice and I don't think she even knows my name, but she made me feel loved.

That moment really drove home that quote and how little children are our best examples of it. They don't look for us to love them, but want to love us. Thank you for that lesson Sophie. I am going to try to be better about loving others and stop worrying if they love me.

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Clackamas County 4-H

I expanded a test bank last week for the Clackamas County 4-H Master Showmanship Contest. It was enjoyable, but took a lot of time. In fact, mostly my face was glued to the computer last weekend working on it. The plus of doing it once, I now know what to expect for next year and how to make the overall test better. I thought I would throw some of the questions on here. See how well you do and you might even just learn something.

Young male Llamas & Alpacas that have been bottle fed and cuddled, and isolated from other Llamas and Alpacas are likely to:


     a. Threaten to spit, spit without any particular reason

     b. Frequently bump into people, charge a fence

     c. Develop Berserk Male Syndrome

     d. All of the above

(Yes, Berserk Male Syndrome is a real Llama disorder, it means they are excessively aggressive to the point of being harmful to humans.)


 Goats are seasonal breeders, what does this mean?


      a. Estrous cycle occurs every 21-28 days

      b. Estrous cycle only occurs when a buck is present

      c. Estrous cycle occurs during a specific season of the year

      d. None of the above

What cattle breed is known for disease-resistance, heat tolerance, and hardiness?


       a. Angus

       b. Shorthorn

       c. Brahman

       d. Dexter



Answers: D, C, C

I guess mostly  I just wanted to share the random knowledge of Berserk Male Syndrome and that Goats are seasonal breeders. At my fair, goat showman and llama showman did not compete as part of the round robin contest. So, I found the information I researched about them fascinating! I am looking forward to see how the kids do on the tests and the overall contest.



Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Car Keys...... Locked in the Car

Last night as I prepared to head out the door from work at 9:45 p.m. I suddenly realized I could not find my car keys. I began thoroughly searching my lunch box, purse, and pockets only to come up empty handed for the keys. Then it hit me, they were safely locked, inside my car.

I hate that moment when  you realize you have done that stupid thing of locking the doors without a way to get back into them. Lucky for me I have a kind, understanding husband who came to my rescue. We bought the car in April and have yet to make a copy of the key. This being the case, we were forced to do the old wire coat hanger trick, but thankfully it worked and didn't take too much time.

One of my stops today is Home Depot to have copies made of that key for the next time. The last time I had this happen was about two months after we got married. I guess I am averaging about once every two years right now. Not to bad if you ask me. Justin and I are actually equal on our experiences of doing this. That always makes me feel better. Good thing we were half way through the week and it wasn't on a Monday, because that would not be a fun way to start off the week.

Justin and Ruth Blazzard

Saturday

You know those Saturdays where you can; sleep in until 9, wake up to sunshine, eat pancakes, sit on the couch for as long as you want if you want to, window shop at stores or farmers markets, joke around, go on a hike, and eat yummy food for dinner?

Yeh, today was one of those days and how needed it was! The last few weeks have been great, but a blur. The slower pace of today was such a blessing. We enjoyed spending time together and I even made a strawberry pie to top off this wonderful summer day.

Justin and Ruth Blazzard