A Very Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from the Valentines!!

I won't bore you with all the details of our holiday, however I will show off the homemade gifts I gave.

I made this Halloween decoration for my mom, whose true self shines in the month of October.

And of course, stockings. I love them!

31 Weeks Down...

...nine to go. There are times when I walk by a mirror and see my protruding stomach that I think, "Oh my gosh, this is really happening." There are times when it's uncomfortable to bend over and tie my shoe that I think, "Ugh, how am I going to get bigger and still be able to do things?" Then there are other times (most times) when I feel something rolling inside of me that I think, "Yes! Oh, I can't WAIT to hold this teeny little baby and know it's mine."

I'm feeling really good. So far, this pregnancy has been super easy! We're down to the home stretch. :) :)

The House

So, a little explanation about the house. Chris has completely ripped out the ceiling in the kitchen and living room because he is planning on creating a cathedral ceiling in those two rooms. It will open up the space nicely, but is definitely adding a lot of work. It will be several weeks before we have a ceiling, and then we'll feel like we're getting somewhere with our home. But until then, we plug away...

I learned how to use a power-washer this weekend! Don't be fooled by the grin; I was actually quite a baby and whined maybe a little too much about getting my pants wet. But now we can say that our house is no longer covered in mildew (I can't take credit for it - Chris did all the hardest parts like a good man should).

He also installed deadbolts on all three doors leading outside. Now that no one can break in, this means we can't either - guess we'll have to start remembering to bring a key!

Thankful

As soon as the deed for the house was signed, the demolition began. We have gotten so much done on the house already. Thanks to a few boys from church who helped Chris rip out the ceilings and all of the family that have come by (even on Thanksgiving) to lend us a hand, we filled an entire dumpster in only 4 days.

The yard that used to look like this...

(this doesn't even show the worst of it; there were loads of trash and rotting wood along with years worth of leaves and tall grass)

...now looks a little cleaner.

And the kitchen that used to look like this...

...now looks a little dirtier.

A Special Request

Dear Baby Valentine,

Your father and I would like to remind you that your due date is February 18th. We would like to ask that you remain where you are until this time. Come later if you must, but no earlier. This may sound like an odd request, however we are certain you will understand.

You see, today we bought you a house.

As you can see, the house needs a lot of work. And we need all the time we can get before you arrive.

Love,

Mom & Dad-to-be

(More pictures and plenty of updates to come!)

The Skirt Fits

I bought a white skirt several years ago that I really love to wear. But it's never fit; I've always had to pin it because it's too big. I haven't worn it for a couple months. This morning, getting ready for church, I pulled it out of the closet. For the first time, the skirt fit.

Trunk or Treat 2010

For those of you who believe babies have to be born in order to enjoy Halloween:

We went to the Trunk or Treat tonight. I went as myself, bringing the baby along of course. And Chris went as himself as well - only, deader.

He was totally creative with decorating our trunk this year.

He built this coffin an hour before the party and hung Aunt Em's awesomely haunted chandelier from the rear door. The picture doesn't do it justice; with only a small flashing light and the candles burning (yes, real candles) in the chandelier this was very dark and scary. Go Chris, for making little kids scream tonight :)

Baby Valentine

The baby was curled up so tight last week at our ultrasound that it was really difficult to get a good picture. Look at that cute little pointy nose!!

Birthdays Are Soooooo Nice

What's one of the coolest animals you could spend your day with on your 25th birthday??

A penguin.

We spent the afternoon at the New England Aquarium in Boston.

I LOVE fish tanks. The beautiful colors, the strange looking creatures, the magical mysterious underwater world (I used to wish I was a mermaid).

My favorite was the turtle. He had an extremely huggable neck and arm area.

We found out at the end of the day that the penguins who were in a "relationship" with one another had matching arm bands. The penguins on this rock were all couples. They were perfectly content to stand still next to one another all day long. These penguins, and my pleasant day with Chris, made me think of a quote from the movie Big Fish:

"A man might travel his entire life and never find a place so inviting.

My journey had scarcely begun and I had arrived.

I can't imagine any place better than here."

The Bump

When I first learned that I was pregnant, 18 weeks ago, I was ecstatic. Yes, I couldn't wait to become a mother. But there was another much more selfish reason: pregnant women are beautiful. I COULDN'T WAIT to begin growing that bump that lets the world know you're carrying a baby; the bump that says, "I'm tired, but strong. I'm scared, but ready. I'm irritable, but happy. I'm 25 pounds heavier than I was several months ago, and I've never looked more beautiful."

Okay, so my bump is far from looking like the bump I long for. But still, I think it's finally worthy of a picture on the blog.

Nisula Girl

I have a dear, sweet, bright niece who is turning 6 this month. As most of you who read this are my family members, I'm sure you would agree. I was watching her and her siblings last night when I was told by my nephew that he found a mouse in Bella's bed in the garage. Well, this niece started wiggling her body, shaking her hands, and jumping up and down. With a scrunched up face she said, "Eew, eew, eew, I HATE INSECTS!"

All I have to say is, you don't have to carry the last name to be a Nisula girl at heart. :)

My Love for the Heirloom Tomato

If you were to watch me during the day, every once in a while you would see me stop suddenly and hold my body very still. A smile would glide across my face. I would wait: feeling, searching, wondering. And the moment would pass as I return to my task. You would be witnessing my reaction to feeling the tiny being inside of me knocking at the inner parts of my tummy. Each time I feel it I'm amazed that there is a baby in there. It does not happen too frequently yet, so whenever it does I am left yearning for more. This morning as the baby let me know three times in a row that he/she was awake I felt the elation that comes with its tapping. And I realized I am falling in love.

I am 19 weeks pregnant; one more week and I will be halfway to meeting my first child. Right now the baby is the size of an heirloom tomato - six inches long, 8.5 ounces. Oh, how I cannot wait to hold my little tomato!

Pregnancy Update

I'm officially four months pregnant!! I still don't look too pregnant yet (sometimes with certain outfits) so I'm not going to put a picture up of my belly. We already had our first ultrasound several weeks ago, and we'll probably get another in a few weeks from now. We've decided not to find out the gender of our little one; I LOVE surprises and can't think of a better surprise to wait for. A few days ago I felt the baby move for the first time which was really cool, but really fleeting. I have no complaints - I feel good most of the time and am completely obsessed with talking and reading about the baby growing inside me.

So Long, Motorcycle

Many moons ago, when we left Idaho, we sold two motorcycles and told ourselves that it would be awhile before we ever owned another. Well, a couple months later Chris bought a bike. But this time it would be a special project of his. He spent hours on this bike and enjoyed his time changing the look of it. But when the project was over, so was the desire to own it. So yet again, we are bike-less people. But something tells me that this time it really will be awhile before we get another. Goodbye, motorcycle.

Rock, Rock, Rock

Chris was at it again. During his kayaking man-paddle with our brother-in-law he picked up a bundle of sticks. Not just any sticks - he climbed up on a beaver hut and dam to select the sticks he wanted to use. He made me a rocking chair, and I'm in love with it.

Our cat loves playing with string--as you can see she decided to help Chris make the seat, but he didn't make it so I could rock her. As many already know, and those of you who don't, Chris and I are expecting our first child in February. I'm 11 weeks pregnant and so excited!

Merry Christmas?!?

Every Christmas my Dad gives each of his children and their spouses an envelope with cash to buy something special for ourselves. We've been waiting until this summer to go on a fun weekend trip for our Christmas present. Last weekend we headed up to the White Mountains in New Hampshire. We had soooooo much fun. We did a lot of hiking and found some really beautiful sights.

The cabin we stayed in was perfect. http://www.maplelodgecabins.com/cabins/

Our last day was our biggest hike. Using Tucker's Ravine trail, we hiked about 7 miles round trip - it took 6 hours.
Here we are, 2.4 miles into our hike. See way off into the distance, the top of the ravine on the right hand side of the picture? Yeah, that's our destination.
We crossed over the top of this waterfall to get to the top - I couldn't let myself look down.

Here we are at the top of the ravine. We were only 3/4 of a mile from Mount Washington. My calves were sore for 4 days!! For our next trip to the White Mountains, we're planning to summit Mt. Washington. :)

Happy Birthday, Chris!!

When Chris found out that my sister, Mandy, was going to bake him a cake for his birthday, he immediately texted her, "I want a kayak cake". You see, he's been doing a lot of camping and kayaking the past couple of weeks. So, since she's pretty awesome, she made him an awesome cake.

If...

If both of the batteries for our camera were not dead during the Fourth of July Weekend, you would see these pictures up on our blog:

• Chris' Great Aunt Emily's stuff scattered around the lawn in front of her enormous house across the street from the ocean in Connecticut. (She passed away several months back and we helped out during the estate sale).

• Chris and I snuggling on the beach as fireworks lit up the sky in front of us.

• Chris, surrounded by fearless seagulls, using Aunt Emily's golf club to whack golf balls into the calm ocean waters early in the morning.

• Me, wearing an amazingly tacky beach hat of Aunt Emily's, halfway into the ocean and begging Chris to join because it was 8 in the morning and already wicked hot.

• Chris and I standing in front of the looming skeleton of a dinosaur while visiting the Peabody Museum in Connecticut.

But of course, our batteries were dead that weekend, so I have nothing to share.

Marblehead

Today we took a trip to Marblehead, MA; a quaint old fishing village full of east coast beauty and history. Its narrow streets are lined with houses dating back to the 17 & 1800's.

Here at the very tip of Marblehead Neck, we are standing at Lighthouse Point. Not too far from here there is a large rock, named Castle Rock. It was used as a lookout for fishing fleets and for pirate and enemy ships. Below the rock there is a stony beach.

So naturally, I made Chris take a cute picture. It's my favorite.

Old Burial Hill was the site of Marblehead's first meeting house (which is no longer standing). They buried their dead in the church-yard. It all looks quite sleepy hollow. Here, 600 revolutionary war dead are laid to rest.

On the other side of the hill, sits Redd's Pond. It is named after Wilmont "Mammy" Redd, a town resident accused and convicted of witchcraft in the Salem witch trials. Legend has it that that it is so deep the bottom has never been found. Of course, it's actual depth ranges from 3 to 11 feet. Haha.

Fort Sewall, originally called Gale's Head, protected the people in the village. Here, we are sitting next to the bunkers and underground rooms used to detain prisoners. In one of the rooms, you can peer inside and see an old bed frame and table. Cool!

Lovis Cove is also known as "Screeching Woman's Beach". The locals will tell you that a 17th century pirate ship landed here and murdered a woman from a captured ship. She was buried in a nearby swamp and every year, on the anniversary of her tragic death, you can still hear her distant cries.

After a fun day, we met up with family to eat dinner in celebration of Damen's and Amanda's graduation. They both graduated from Salem State College today. Go team!