Weekends together :-)

Once again, Daniel and I have been really enjoying our last few weekends together before our lives change forever.

Martin Luther King Day weekend was spent doing all sorts of fun and exciting things.

On Friday Jan. 13, 2012 we ate at Carrburrito with Jennie, Martin, Kelten, and Sally. We live in Carrboro and Carrburrito is a burrito place--clearly. The name is irresistible haha and the line to eat there was super long, meaning that it's good! After dinner we all played a game together.

Saturday Jan. 14, 2012 Daniel, Sally, and I drove to the beach. We walked for hours along the shore in the sunshine and just enjoyed being outside and listening to the waves. Talk about relaxing. We also ate at a restaurant called the Oceanic. It's right on the beach and has a pier that goes straight into the water. Delicious! I got fish a chips--wasn't what I was expecting (I had pretty high expectations after living in Scotland for a summer), but it was really good none the less. Next time I go there, I'm getting shrimp and grits. That's what Daniel got and it was so good.

Sunday Jan. 15, 2012 Daniel and I hosted a "Waffle Brunch" with a couple from church. With the start of the new year, our meetings don't start until 1:00pm, so instead of feeling like we've wasted the entire morning, we wanted to accomplish something fun beforehand. We ate waffles and scrambled eggs and then played Ticket to Ride.

I had off work Monday Jan. 16, 2012 (to celebrate the man who had a dream!) so Daniel and I woke up early and went to the Sunrise Biscuit restaurant (it's just a drive-thru, but it supposedly has the best biscuits in North Carolina) It was good, but I don't think I would say it's the best. Great service though! From there, we went and got our hairs cut. Big change for me: I got bangs. I liked them at first, but now I don't. Oh well.

Then we ran all sorts of errands. In the afternoon, Daniel went and played tennis with a friend and I stayed home and watched Gnomeo and Juliet. It was cute. I also took a nap :-). Then Daniel and I had the missionaries over for jalapeno popper grilled cheese sandwiches. Yum. Unfortunately, the food didn't sit well with my stomach and I woke up at 1:45am and spent the rest of the night thinking I was going into premature labor. It was awful. I sat on the floor of my bedroom with a bowl in front of me, pressing my head against the bed. I could not get the pain in my belly to go away (which was made worse by the Braxton Hicks contractions I was experiencing). I even tried all the pressure point pain relief tactics that I learned in my birthing class. Nothing worked. I finally just accepted the fact that it was there to stay for the night and fell asleep around 4:45am. I woke up at 6:30am, got in bed (from the floor) and just laid there with a terrible tummy ache. Daniel slept through it all haha.


The next weekend....

We spent Friday Jan. 20, 2012 eating pizza and playing games with Mattie and Matt Stevens. Daniel and I always have a lot of fun over there. We played Bohnanza (aka The Bean Game) and Chinese checkers. Just for memory sake... Everybody thought Matt was dominating at The Bean Game... and he was for the entire first half. However, at the end of the game, when we counted up points, he ended up losing. For whatever reason, that struck me as hilarious and I laughed so hard at his loss. I'm such a jerk. Matt, in case you ever read this... I'm so sorry haha.

Saturday Jan. 21, 2012 Daniel and I woke up early and drove to the Raleigh temple. It was exactly what we... I needed. Who would have thought that I would be so comforted about the birthing process through the words spoken in the temple? I definitely had never thought of the actual physical birthing process before while in there. But the experience confirmed to me that the Lord knows my needs. That He provides comfort in many ways, and that He is well aware of how freaked out I am about becoming a mother in five weeks-- freaked out about anticipating the exact date that my baby will arrive, freaked out about going into labor, freaked out about post partum, freaked out about having a baby in the apartment, and freaked out about it no longer being just me and Daniel to come and go as we please. But as I sat in the celestial room alone for a few minutes, all I could picture was a little girl, pulling herself up on our white couches and turning her little head around as if to see if anybody saw her accomplishment. Then, when she sees me, she gets the biggest grin on her little face. That image comforted me completely. I know that that time is months away, but it is now going to be my vision mantra during labor. I am very excited to meet this little girl. I even practiced reading a story book to Daniel-- he laughed the whole time, but I made him point out colors and answer extra questions about each picture haha. He's such a good sport.

We also went to a Kids Exchange where we got lots of baby things and then we had dinner at Jennie and Martins, played a game, and watched Captain America. :-) We didn't get home until late.

Sunday, Jan 22, 2012: We slept in, sat in a freezing couch with a single person blanket and played Ticket to Ride on his iPod. We made lunch, went to church, stayed for choir practice, came home, talked with family, ate dinner, watched the end of some football game and the start of another, watched Once Upon a Time, read scriptures, got ready for bed, tried to go to bed, ended up watching the rest of the 2nd football game, and then went to bed. The point of listing everything? We did everything together and we didn't argue or fight at all (not just on Sunday, but the whole weekend!)



These are my favorite kind of weekends.



BUT I'll save all the gushy "I love Daniel" stuff for my written journal. Last time I put anything like that in here, Daniel made me cry by an insensitive comment haha. (It's okay, we laugh about it now. I am pregnant and clearly hormonal haha.) But for the record, I don't care if he ever gets beat up or teased at school for something sweet written by his loving wife. In fact, I encourage it.

Baird Christmas 2011 + New Years 2012

Daniel and I had to leave my parents house the day after Christmas and our flight was at 7am-- so we had to leave at 5:00am thus making us say most of our "goodbyes" on Christmas Day.  Rough. 

My first goodbye was to Miss Abigail.  She was being put to bed entirely too early (in my opinion) by her father.  She had gotten into the habit of staying up until 10:00pm because she didn't want to miss any of the party and Jesse said that that had to stop haha so around 8:00pm, she was taken down stairs.  I cried and cried. And I'm tearing up now just thinking about it.

I hated the idea of leaving, but even more specifically... leaving the little girls (Claire and Abigail).  They grow so fast and the next time I see them they won't remember me.  They won't remember all our little "inside jokes" and the little songs that I sang to them to make them smile.  The thing that broke my heart the most though was with Abigail.  Jani once told me that after her surgeries, her little eyes panic when an unrecognizable face walks into the hospital recovery room--she's a smart little girl and knows that new faces often equal pain (shots, tests, etc.) What if she was afraid of me if I was able to visit her?!  The thought is almost too much for me to handle.  I love that little girl too much.

So anyways.  This year, goodbyes equaled lots and lots of tears. (I'm pregnant! Leave me alone.)

After arriving in Hickory, Daniel decided to stay with his family Tuesday - Thursday while I was working in Chapel Hill (about 2.5 hours away).  It didn't make sense for him to be home alone for 8 hours, when I was at work, while his entire family was in town.  It was a lonely time... especially because I went from a house filled with 17 people, to an apartment all alone.  But I made it work.  I set up my computer in my bedroom and watched chick flicks haha (Never Been Kissed).

Right after work on Thursday, I drove back to Hickory for the Baird "Ukrainian Christmas Dinner."  The dinner is a multi-course meal.  We eat by candle light and can only whisper.  I don't remember all of the other symbolic things, but it's really cool. I will say that it was definitely a lot harder to have a quiet dinner with a baby... haha I'm sure next year will be even worse, if not impossible, with Baby Baird around! (Well, only if she's like her dad haha)

On December 30th, 2011, we had a second Christmas morning!  Once we all woke up, we went and sat around the tree and opened our gifts one by one.  Paul brought me home pearls from India and I also got a pair of hiking/camping/water sandals from Sally.  Daniel and I also got a couple games AND a yogurt maker amongst other things.  Pretty cool stuff.  We then had Christmas breakfast (golden rod eggs with fresh bread).  It was really cool to have a second Christmas. It helps with the Christmas "hang over" as Daniel likes to put it.

In the afternoon, the boys worked on the bathroom (they were remodeling it) and watched football.  The girls went to the movies :-).  I finally got to see Breaking Dawn Part I.  It was a very unique experience with a large range of emotions.  I felt awkwardness, joy, horror, and sick--I even started gagging( the part where Bella drinks blood and it stains her teeth... gross). Overall, I enjoyed it and I can't wait to make Daniel watch it as well.

On New Years Eve Daniel, Jared, and I went to the NLM Party (a neighborhood gang... if you will haha)and around 10:00pm we left to attend the Running of the Lights Race.  Some of us ran a 5.5k to bring in the new year. Others, such as myself, walked.  It was fun.  I was definitely exhausted, but at least I was awake to watch the ball drop and I got to kiss my sweetheart to welcome the new year.  That's something that is still fun for me.

Note: My first thought and comment of 2012, "We're having a baby this year!"
It's becoming more and more real and I love lil Miss Baird already.

Overall, 2011 was a FANTASTIC year:

January- I started my blog! haha
February-  Daniel got accepted to the Edinburgh internship.
March-  I "quit" my job and we got ready for our overseas move. McKaysters was born!
April- Daniel graduated from BYU!
May- We moved to SCOTLAND!
June- Daniel's parents came to visit us. We went to Ireland and the Preston, England temple. My first niece, Claire, was born.
July- I spent my 23rd birthday in London and Daniel and I had a second "honeymoon" in Spain! Baby Abigailey was born!
August- Grandpa Alexander's 80th birthday/ Family reunion.  Daniel and I moved to NC for grad school. We celebrated our one year wedding anniversary together.
September- Daniel and I found out we were having a BABY GIRL!
October- We made some great friends, settled into our new routines, and I constantly grew a baby.
November- Daniel and I made our first Thanksgiving dinner.
December- Best Christmases ever

Whoooshh... A year goes by so much faster these days.

Getting back into the swing of things after the holiday is always hard, but it's nice to have a "routine" again. Daniel and I both miss our family members a lot, but we are so excited to welcome our little girl in February.

  

Christmas 2011

I'm embarrassed. 

It's already January 9, 2012 and I have yet to update my blog regarding my fabulous 2011 Christmas and New Years Eve celebration. Whoops.

But here ya have it:

Daniel and I flew to Utah on December 18th.  Note: being pregnant makes airplane rides even more uncomfortable than they already are. I couldn't sleep at all.  Grandpa Baird picked us up, took us to the Village Inn for a quick bite to eat and a quick visit, and then we went to my parents house. 

The "homecoming" celebration was... casual haha.  My parents hired a professional to hang their Christmas lights so that was fun to see and once inside the house, the few people who were upstairs gave me hugs, my mother ran straight to my belly (it was the first time she had seen me pregnant and showing haha), and everybody else was watching a movie.  I interrupted it to say hello and we all visited. However, the two stars that I really wanted to see.... Claire and Abigail.... were already in bed :-(

The next few days were filled with lots of Christmas shopping, playing with nieces and nephews, and random outings.  One thing I don't miss about Utah... smog.  Daniel and I didn't see the sun or the mountains for the first three days we were there!  Gross.

Activities Accomplished (not in any order):

Temple Square- Daniel, me, James, Rinda, Jesse, Jani and Jesse's little sister, Liz, made a late night trek to SLC to see the Temple Square lights. It was fun. I made everybody take lots of pictures and I'm glad I did. My camera isn't the best, but some of them turned out really nice! Because it was so cold, the trip turned into a brisk walk, a few stops at the different nativity scenes, and then a nice long break inside the Joseph Smith memorial building. Can't complain--it's beautiful in there too. We were going to stop for hot chocolate, but all the fun places (minus Maverik) were already closed.

Lunch with Danny and Claire- Daniel and I were able to squeeze out of the house for a couple hours and meet up with our intern friends we met in Scotland.  It was really fun to catch up with them and reminisce about the crazy summer we all shared together.  I miss them.  I'm pretty sure we'll keep in touch for a long time.

Decorate Sugar Cookies-  Daniel and April really took charge of this event.  They did everything--from mixing the dough to icing the cookies. I helped decorate. For whatever reason,  the rest of clan just didn't find the true joy in this activity haha. Although, my dad did come up to the table, find the broken cookies, dip them in icing and eat them...  I guess that counts.  He was technically frosting them.

Gingerbread House Competition-  This years competition was intense and everybody brought their A-game.  The rules were very simple:

          1. Frosting and graham crackers are provided. 

          2. Each team is responsible for their own decor. (Pantry/fridge is fair game)

          3. Build

Naturally, we all complained about having to buy our own candy haha that stuff is expensive! but that's what gives the competition an "edge".  Most of us went in on the candy together and only had a few things that were "individualized" for our own unique housing purposes.  Well, except for Don (Dad) & Kathy (Mom). Kath was very competitive this year and wouldn't let anybody near her candy purchases, claiming that "it was a competition!"  That was until, she saw some of the things in our candy pot that she wanted and exclaimed sorrowfully, "I wish I hadn't been so competitive" when we wouldn't share with her team haha it was really fun. The whole event lasted hours.

We were all in the kitchen, there was a Christmas movie playing in the background, Edison was running around stealing candy off of each house (as pictured above...he even stole two snowmen from my "yard!"), and we were just having a grand old time.  Considering that we were all in the same area, I was really surprised at how unique each house turned out and how little "copying" there was. 

Mom & Dad: We called theirs the "Community Center".  It was huge and very creative.  A little sloppy this year and the grape vine trees with the "snow" and "Christmas lights" are getting old (Come on guys! You've used that three years in a row now--well, if you include the Ward Christmas Party haha.)  BUT I will give them props on the fact that they used no structural support (cardboard) AND they used frosted mini-wheats for siding. It was really good.

Ryan & Chelsea: This was the "Gated Community."  It was flawless.  Each house was crisp, clean, and color coordinated.  Amazing.  I also loved the little Santa Gummy Bear that was on the roof of one of them--a special touch by Ryan.

Nate & April:  Inspired by their eldest son, this couple made the "Holiday Train," complete with animal cages (and there were animal crackers inside the pretzel cages!) and a conductors cabin.  My favorite part of this one was the track and the steam coming from the locomotive.

James & Rinda: Unfortunately, this team was unable to finish due to a fussy baby and a collapsing roof.

Jani & Jesse:  "The Chapel of Love"  With it's rainbow roof and its bell steeple, this church looked like one you'd see in Vegas or a very small abandoned town haha.  Creative touch:  A snowfall right before judging compliments of Reddi Whip!

Mandi & Daniel: "The Old-Timers"  This comfy little house looks like one in which a loving couple would celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary.  Creative touch:  Hot Coco Powder for the trail leading to the front door--Daniel's a genius.

Sarah & Alex:  For their first entry in the family competition, they did a fabulous job.  We liked to call theirs the "Community's Culture."  After a small mishap, their lovely house turned into a Japanese Pagoda completed with a delicate touch of Disney Characters.... okay. haha  

Our judge was less than a professional this year, so even though he did say that mine and Daniel's won the prize, I'll go ahead and admit that everybody was a winner (well minus Sarah and Alex.... haha as Skylar [the 17 year old neighbor who was our judge] so kindly exclaimed, "that one's not winning"  while pointing to theirs haha). This tradition is a keeper.  And let's just say that Daniel and I are already drafting blue prints for next seasons house.. Southern Plantation... I think so.

I don't have the Santa picture, but here are all the
grandkids in their fancy Christmas getup.

Santa Christmas Picture-  This was my parent's first Christmas with more than one grandchild.  So, we decided it would be a good idea to take the four little ones (Edison, McKay, Claire, and Abigail) to meet Santa together.  We went to the mall.  The mall was PACKED and Santa's line was so long.  Even though the little kids looked super cute in their Christmas suits and dresses, we decided it wasn't worth waiting. BUT as we were leaving, one of the workers came up to Jani, noticing that Abigail was on oxygen, and asked if we were leaving because of her.  Although it wasn't specifically because of Abigail, Jani did mention that it wasn't very smart to have her exposed to so many people for such a long time, especially little kids. Holiday miracle: we got a first class ticket to the front of the line.  It was very sweet of them to let us do that, totally unexpected, and not all together necessary, but wonderful none the less. 

The picture turned out great.  None of the kids look like they are enjoying themselves.  In fact, Claire wouldn't stop touching Edison's face, Edison kept telling her to stop, and Abigail and McKay were crying, but Santa looks as jolly as ever. Merry Christmas Old Guy -- Love, the Alexander / Dix Children.

 Home Alone Marathon-  Another HUGE success, compliments of James and Rinda.  We started the evening with Little Nero's pizza and Fuller's Pepsi Classic.  We had a Home Alone trivia game, listened to the soundtrack, and "rocked" around the mini Christmas tree that was placed in the center of the room.  (Edison LOVED dancing with Uncle James and it was so cute to see him try and copy the same moves, but be unable to because he hasn't figured out how to coordinate certain muscles yet haha). 

We also sat in a circle and quoted our favorite lines from the movies, (Buzz: Is it true that French girls don’t shave their pits?... Cousin: Some don’t...Buzz: But they got nude beaches...Cousin: Not in the winter. --Submitted by Jesse). We loved every minute of it and laughed a lot.  My dad also popped TONs of movie quality popcorn in his machine. Daniel was so sad that we only utilized that machine once during our stay. 

During Home Alone 2, we paused the movie when Kevin orders ice cream sundaes from room service and went upstairs to make our own.

"Waiter: Two scoops, Sir? Kevin: Two? Make it three. I'm not drivin."  It was such a fun activity.

Baby Shower-  My mom and sisters threw Chelsea and me a baby shower.  It was awesome.  Because it was the holidays, we weren't expecting too many people to be able to make it, but to our surprise almost everybody came!  I got to see my aunts, cousins, grandmother, friends, etc. and it was really sweet of them to help Daniel and I with our upcoming little lady.  She will definitely be well dressed.

 

Night Before Christmas Gift Exchange-

I know I look similar to a beeched whale in this picture.
But please note that nobody looks good haha hence
thre reason I actually posted it.

We also did our Christmas Eve gag gift exchange.  Everybody is responsible for bringing one gift.  We sit in a big circle, sing carols, and then my Dad reads "The Night Before Christmas."  Every time he says the word "the" we pass the present in our hand in one direction.  Which ever gift is in your hand at the end of the story, is yours.  Funny note:  Apparently, 3 years ago Ryan and Chelsea brought some silly straw goggles for their gag gift and my Dad got them.  Well, he randomly gave them to me at some point the following year, and I used them for my gag gift this year and James got them.  It was the gift that was re-gifted twice!  We got a kick out of that.

Christmas Day-  We woke up early, sat in a circle, and opened gifts one by one from youngest to oldest.  We were probably opening gifts for over an hour and a half (that happens when there are 17 people!!)

Edison literally squealed when he first sighted the train set he received, Ryan looked confused when he opened up a pair of very feminine socks that were wrapped and tagged with the wrong name by Dad (they were supposed to go to Rinda, but Ryan still said thank-you!) and my mom cried when she opened up a little gift from Mickey. Actually, there wasn't a dry eye in the room for that gift. It was a little Christmas ornament with Mickey's picture inside and a simple note thanking her for her many years of love and service (if you zoom in on the picture with my parents and the grandkids, you can see the ornament on the tree!)  It was the first time my entire family together acknowledged the death of a very important member of our family... our puppy of almost 16 years, Mickey, who passed away peacefully in his sleep back in October.  Despite the tears, it was a very special moment and one that the Micksters deserved.  He was our family Christmas present back in 1996 and he was truly the best puppy we could have ever ask for.  I'm happy to know that each year he will be with us, especially during the Christmas season, and remembered as we place his picture on the tree. We all really loved him and miss him a lot.

This year, everybody seemed genuinely happy to give and receive.  Christmas is such a magical time and I'm so happy that I got to spend it with my family. It would have been perfect if Christian would have been able to make it, but that's only something to look forward to for our next Alexander Christmas Extravaganza.

Daniel and I were only in Utah for seven days and we did a lot.  I didn't even mention our Cafe Rio trip, our visits with the Tingey's (Daniel's cousins), all my play sessions with Abba-Duba, Claire, McKay, and Edison, and other random outings that filled our afternoons. 

I loved every second of being home with my family.