nine months update

After Emma's appointment, we went to the Boise zoo. The babies were asleep when we got there, and Jesse woke up as soon as I opened the door. I crawled into the back seat and fed him, then got the stroller out and Emma decided to wake and want food too! So I hopped back into the back seat and fed Emma, then got the babes in the stroller and on our way. Almost to the gate Jason called and said he would meet me just outside the gate, because he was on his way back to work from class. It was nice to chat with him for a few minutes and he was able to see Emma (several days a week he doesn't get home early enough to see her before she is in bed again.)



They didn't care much for the real animals, but liked the statues. I think they need to be able to get a little closer to the animals to really be interested. But, we had fun anyways.

At Emma's appointment we learned that she has grown only 1/4 inch in the last two months. And, shes gained less than a pound in those two months. I thought this was the case, because I haven't switched out clothes for her in a while and her 6 month sleepers still fit. Dr Freeman isn't concerned at all, she is still growing and learning new things. She is just growing a lot slower than a few months ago (when she gained two pounds in a little more than three weeks!)

She is getting more confident walking around furniture, and has started to bear crawl around on our new rug. I found the rug on sale at walmart for 20$ and was so excited. It matches the tile we have around the fireplace and kitchen backsplash and fits the floor well. It's 4x7ft so it doesn't hide all the hardwood but it is big enough that it will keep babies warmer, and my toes warmer when it starts to cool off in a month or so. With the extra grip of the rug Emma is getting a little faster. Its cute to see her grip her toes and walk on her hands and feet.

Because she is almost a year old, and Jesse will be one in just a few days, I installed Emma's big girl car seat in the car. But first, I made a much cuter and easier to wash car seat cover for it.





She has already fallen asleep in the car in it, and I think she likes sitting a little more upright in this seat instead of laying back in the infant carrier. Besides, its cute. I have a teal blue patterned one cut that just needs to be sewn so i will have two to switch between.

I know you are all super curious how jury duty panned out for me, right? Well, my number was called the first day, and I was given a green tag when I walked in the courthouse. After sitting in a crowded room for an hour, we all watched a little movie about how jury duty works, then a few minutes later all the blue tags were taken upstairs to begin the jury selection process for their case. The greens waited. And waited. Around ten thirty we were taken upstairs and that's when we found out that we were there for a criminal jury trial for a man charged with second degree murder. I was shocked. This was not what I wanted to be doing. I am not qualified. But after an hour of questioning 38 of us and replacing people as they were removed for different reasons, I was the last of 14 jurors chosen (there are twelve voting jurors in the end, but two extras are chosen to hear the case so that if something happens during the trial to one of the jurors there are still twelve in the end to vote.) We had lunch then began the case. It lasted for three days, the morning of the third day we heard closing arguments and began deliberation around eleven. It was a little after seven when we all came to an agreement and reentered the courtroom to conclude. I am SO GLAD it is over, but also very glad that I had the jurors with me that I did. I gained a little confidence in the jury system, and I feel like after we left, we made the right choice.

Being on this case was exhausting. I didn't get to run in the evenings, or all day, because I was busy with things that didn't get accomplished earlier. In the last three weeks, I have gained five pounds back, and I'm not thrilled about it. So- I made my decision this morning to go back to my stand by diet shake. its a little boring, but it gives me something dependable and takes some of the decision making out of the way for me. I also want to get back to DOING something every day. A walk around the block with Emma for ten minutes totally counts. I just need to DO something. That is my plan and I will let you know how it goes after a week or two goes by.

We are all busy lately, and getting stressed. Emma has a cold this week, she started getting snively yesterday and last night woke up at one am feeling terrible. Jason's neck is hurting him, he doesn't usually complain much but has been pretty pouty the last couple days. He is also taking two classes this semester, one of them is busy work (that just peeves him to have to complete) and the other has a prof who is so intelligent he cant get his point across without distracting himself. So Jason's reading the book to teach himself. This is his first real semester of classes and just a taste of what life will be like for the next several years. Be praying for us. :)