Happy Quarter Century, Baby!!!

Today, Russ is 25 years old and I think it would be fitting for me to list 25 of the things I love about him:

1. He still uses the Ninja Turtle alarm clock that I bought him at the beginning of college.
2. He puts chocolate chips in his breakfast cereal.
3. He lets me sit and chat with him while he shaves every morning.
4. He drinks a Joe's cup of chocolate milk after every workout (that's 22 oz. and that's why we go through milk so quickly).
5. He gets annoyed when someone misuses "good" when they should say "well." (That's my fault because I'm the grammar person. :)
6. He gets excited about CAD drawings and sprinkler pipes.
7. He loves and protects my sister like she was related to him by blood.
8. He just smiles (and doesn't make comments) when I break out into spontaneous song and dance.
9. He lets me read entire portions of different books to him out loud and then he'll discuss them with me.
10. He reminds me everytime I drop my phone that that is why we have cases and phone insurance.
11. He watches all of the Pixar movies with me.
12. He loves to play with our dogs. 
13. We have "our" friends, not "his" and "her" friends, and it makes it so much more fun to hang out and have game nights.
14. He loves to grill (and he's REALLY good at it).
15. He'll let me take tons of pictures of him even though he hates having his picture taken.
16. He gets cranky if he hasn't worked out in a day or two.
17. He loves to watch an Oklahoma thunder storm roll into the area.
18. He thinks it's fun to watch my belly move as Olivia shifts around.
19. He loves a good margarita on the rocks (no salt, which I like).
20. He received a smoker for Christmas this last year and has created a really yummy rub for ribs.
21. His sarcasm and wit (and ornery streak) always make life interesting.
22. He has five bicycles and swears that there is always room for one more.
23. He reads comic books and then we watch comic book movies. :)
24. He wants us to be able to take lots of vacations throughout the coming years (yay!).
25. His love and strength makes me a better person!

Happy birthday, my beloved!

Leaving Los Alamos

Saturday we're moving back to Oklahoma. I can't quite express all of the emotions that this move has led me to feel. I'm so excited to be moving closer to our friends and family and I feel really good about Russ' new job and his happiness. But it does make me sad to be leaving the job I've had since last June. I've learned so much about what I'm capable of and what I can learn to do on the fly.  I've been blessed with wonderful co-workers who have taken a real interest in me and my family. I'm going to miss them and this job.

Here are some pictures of the last year in Los Alamos:

 

  

 

And there were a ton of things that we saw and did (and places we ate) that I didn't get pictures of.

We will always hold Los Alamos as a special place in our memories because it is where we did a lot of growing up and learning about ourselves. It's where we learned to be a couple without any family or friends near by. And it is where Olivia was first dreamt of. :)

P.S. I hate packing but Russ hates it even more, which has made the last week lots of fun as we've boxed up all of our belongings. (i.e. we've both been whiny.)

Olivia Gifts

I'd like to a take a moment to share some of my favorite gifts from my godmother.

I love this and I was told that my godbrother picked it out. It's so cute!

And, despite Thunder's loss last night, I love this onesie!!!! (These pictures prove that I don't have a fancy camera and can't white balance because I promise that both of them were taken on the same carpet.)

34 Weeks

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 34 weeks on Sunday

Baby size: 19-19.5 inches and 4.5 lbs. About the size of a honeydew melon.

Maternity Clothes: Most of the time, I have a handful of pre-pregnancy dresses and skirts that I can still wear with stretchy shirts.

Gender: Female, Olivia Michele Bainbridge.

Movement: A ton. She had the hiccups in the middle of the night this past Saturday and really, really didn't like them... Which means she'd hiccup and then flail her arms and legs out in hatred for that mean diaphragm spasm.

Cravings: Not really.

Symptoms: Acid reflux, some Braxton Hicks contractions and a fairly constant need to pee.

Grad Weekend

My sister and Russ' brother graduated from high school this past weekend so we went to OKC to celebrate!

Becca and my dear friend Amy.

He doesn't like having his picture taken... but that hasn't stopped me over the past 7 and a half years. :)

All the high school seniors at church. The bishop preached a wonderful sermon to them and even posed in their photo!

Thomas getting his diploma.

Becca getting her diploma.

The kids were all so excited to be graduating that they threw their streamers a little bit before they were supposed to... It still looked cool.

Cheesy gal.

Photo by Amy Smith.

Family pic.



Photo by Amy Smith.



My wonderful Nana.

Photo by Amy Smith.

My funny Papa.



Photo by Amy Smith.



This is me dancing my way out of Sonic (where I went potty because I'm pregnant).

Photo by Amy Smith.

The graduation started 30 minutes before the Thunder game and was held right across the street from the arena - the excitement in the streets was awesome! And, Becca loves Nick Collison so Amy took this picture for her. :)