LAST LOGAN MOMENTS

The biggest event that happened in our lives this past month: moving out of our beloved Aggie Village. It was so sad! We will miss our wonderful friends, the cinder-block walls, and microscopic oven. We are now on to new adventures!

To recap our month of December: we went to our last USU basketball game as students...

My cute brother went through the Logan Temple in preparation for his mission...

I made little tiny baby bracelets for our baby girl...

Us in our empty apartment on moving day....

I got swollen legs, ankles, and hands (I can no longer wear my wedding ring) for the first time during my pregnancy...

And I am getting huge! The baby is about five pounds this week, and continues to grow! We are so excited for her to join our family!

The most exciting thing by far is that Jared was a trooper and finished his Bachelor's Degree! He is amazing and I am so proud of him!

CATCHING UP...

We thought that it was about time to catch up!! We are happily 29 weeks along, and our baby girl is growing and moving! She is about 2 and a half pounds and 15 inches long! It is so much fun to feel her move more now, and she usually gives us a little kick when Jared talks to her through my belly. Everything is going well with the pregnancy, despite not being able to see my toes anymore. Bending over has gotten quite a bit more difficult the last couple of weeks, so if something drops on the floor then I usually don't bother getting it unless I absolutely need it. Jared has also started helping me put on my shoes. Here's a picture of my ever-growing belly:

And this week, the baby is the size of a... butternut squash! How cute.
These next pictures sum up our last couple of weeks:

For my brother's birthday this year, we all went go-karting (I of course was only the support person who watched). Everyone got a stylish head shield to wear underneath the helmets, and we thought it was photo-worthy. Jared's at the bottom, then my little sister Michelle, my dad, and my brother Pete. They all raced like champs!

Jared and I have discovered a true pleasure in life: Lee's Marketplace French bread. Pregnancy lets you eat half a loaf at a time without thinking twice about it.

A few of my good friends from school and I were able to get together for lunch last week at Cafe Sabor. Good food, but better company. They are fabulous!

One of the absolute best days in the last couple of weeks was the beautiful baby shower given by the Wilcock side of the family. I am so blessed to have such wonderful in-laws who worked so hard to make this shower so fantastic. My mother-in-law even went to the trouble of making sushi!! I had about 8 California rolls and was in heaven. My sister-in-law also set up a scrumptious chocolate fountain. My dream come true. We are so grateful for everyone's generosity and love!

And just in case you want a comparison picture, this is me at 27 weeks.

THE GROWING CONTINUES!!

Baby Girl Wilcock is now a healthy one and a half pounds and 13 and a half inches long!! We are so thankful for the wonderful blessing of families. 15 weeks left until we meet our sweet baby girl!

My growing tummy

Although a very ugly vegetable, this rutabaga is about the size of our very cute baby

BYU HOMECOMING RACE

A couple of weeks ago, my very athletic in-laws competed in the 5K at BYU! They all did amazing and ran at the speed of light. I had the excuse this year of being pregnant, so I didn't have to run... however, my post-pregnancy goal is to run (and actually do well) in next year's race!

Jared and his fabulous sister, Alaina

Our nephew, Nathan, who is displaying his medal proudly!

BABY MOVEMENTS & BUS RIDES

We have officially hit the 22 week mark, and this little girl is a mover! When we went in for our ultrasound, the technician said we would have to get her a pair of running shoes... let me tell you, I can feel her running and doing flips (mostly on my bladder, unfortunately) more and more every day! Although I have been able to feel her sweet little movements since week 15, she was still too tiny for Jared to feel her move. However, yesterday was the first time that Jared was able to feel her kick!! It was so exciting and was such a special day for our little growing family!!

Something miraculous also happened today... I now look pregnant enough for people to offer me their seat on the campus bus, bless their hearts. This reminded me of one of my favorite stories about my little sister, Michelle. When Michelle was 2 or 3 years old, my mom was telling us a story for family home evening about how important it is to think of other people. In the story, there was a crowded bus full of businessmen who had just gotten off of work. Because there were no more seats available, quite a few people had to stand... among these people who were standing was a lady who was 8 months pregnant and a very elderly lady. Although it was a long bus ride, no one offered either of these women a seat. When she was done with the story, my mom stressed the point that when we are in a situation like this, we need to be considerate and think of the needs of others. My sister had been listening intently to the whole story. When my mom was done, she asked, "Now, what did we learn from this?" Without skipping a beat, my little sister piped up and said, "When you get lost in the forest, never talk to strangers." Not quite the point my mom was trying to make, but close enough :)

By the way, the baby is now as long as a spaghetti squash! She is about 11 inches long and weighs about 1 pound!

IT'S A...

GIRL!!!

MY BROTHER'S MISSION CALL!

My little brother Peter has received his mission call to the... Mexico Villahermosa Mission!! He is so excited and we are so proud of him! He will be an amazing missionary!

19 WEEKS!

I felt the baby move for the first time at week 14, so we know he/she is moving and kicking in there! I can definitely see and feel my tummy growing pretty steadily these days!

The baby is the size of... an heirloom tomato!

FROM IOWA TO UTAH... PART II

On our way home, we spent one of our days celebrating our 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!! We spent the whole day in Colorado Springs, and it was so much fun just spending time together.

Our day started out touring the grounds of the Air Force Academy. Our brother-in-law graduated from there, so we had to check it out. It was a beautiful place, and I especially liked seeing the chapel.

We also explored the Garden of the Gods, and although it was rainy it was still beautiful!

Next we walked around the grounds of the Broadmoor Hotel. Our favorite site: a mama deer and two baby deer... after we watched them for awhile they crossed the street, and we figured they were pretty savvy deer because they used the crosswalk!

We finished up our day of fun with going to the Flying W Dude Ranch. The show was awesome and the food was scrumptious!

FROM IOWA TO UTAH... PART I

We were incredibly excited to finally be coming back to Utah, the land of mountains and no humidity! Pregnancy and extremely long car rides don't mix very well, so we were happy to take our time on our trip home.

First, we visited Adam-ondi-Ahman; it was so beautiful and peaceful!

Next, we made our way to Far West and Liberty Jail. We felt so blessed to be able to see these beautiful church history sites. The Spirit was so strong, and it was special to be at each of these places. The temple site was in a quiet, remote area, and you could feel that it was special. Certain parts of the Liberty Jail, such as the dungeon floor, are still the originals; it was mind-blowing and humbling to realize the hardships that occurred there.

One of my best friends in the world is serving in the Missouri Independence Mission, so we were also able to see her!

HELLO, FROGGY!

Do you see that little tiny green frog in there? We discovered him wedged in the frame of our screen door right before we left Iowa... we weren't sure if he was dead or alive, so he is probably still there. The finale of our wildlife adventures in Cedar Rapids!

BIG NEWS!!!

WE ARE HAVING A BABY!!!

We have successfully entered Week 13, leaving the first trimester behind! Our baby is due on February 2, 2011, and we are VERY excited! I have been fortunate in not being very sick, however I have spent the past 3 months sleeping about 12 hours per day!

Changes since I've been pregnant:

• My sense of smell is impeccable!
• The smell of clean laundry makes me sick
• I can eat a LOT
• Corndogs and pickles are my new favorite (unhealthy) snack
• I never knew I would need so many bathroom breaks

Most of all, I'm just ecstatic about having a baby and we are so excited about becoming parents!

Quick story... During our last appointment, we were looking forward to hearing the baby's heartbeat; after the doctor tried to hear the heartbeat for 5 minutes with no result, he brought in an ultra-sound machine. I was in a bit of a panic, but the doctor soon calmed my fears and Jared and I were able to see the baby move! The doc said that everything looks great and the baby looks healthy, and we are so thankful to be expecting!

Currently, the baby is the size of a lime! How cute!

BEAUTIFUL NAUVOO

We were so grateful to have the opportunity to visit Nauvoo while my mom and sister were here. It was such a spiritual and special weekend for each of us and helped our testimonies grow! We were able to visit many of the historic sites in Nauvoo, the Visitors' Center, the Nauvoo Temple, Joseph Smith's grave site, and Carthage Jail. We felt the Spirit so strongly and are so thankful for the sacrifices of the early saints.

My mom, Michelle, and I were able to go back to Nauvoo the next week to do Baptisms for the Dead at the Nauvoo Temple. This was such a wonderful and spiritual experience for all three of us, and it was such a special day. One blessing that we received while at the temple was that we were able to meet Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. He was visiting the temple that evening and came in to meet those doing Baptisms. It was such an amazing blessing!

CHICAGO

My mom and sister were able to come visit us for 10 days this month! It was so great to see them and we were able to do so many fun things. I drove to Chicago to meet them and spend the first few days there (Jared had to stay home and work, bless his heart). We went sight-seeing, shopping, and enjoyed being with each other!

John Hancock Building

Our reflection in "The Bean"

Gehry Amphitheater