February Part 1

A while back Caleb and Brettley moved Ty in with them, so we had a room that wasn't doing anything. The boys and I talked together and decided we wanted a designated school room. So thanks to John and a few friends, we took out the bed that was in there and moved the desks, bookcase and organizers to our new school room. I like having it a lot more than I liked being in the living room or in the dining room.

My friend decided that she wasn't letting me miss out on a concert I was so disappointed to miss last time, so we got our tickets to Queen + Adam Lambert for July. I am very excited to go with her.

I had a few setbacks with my mental health, but I also had a few victories as well, which is awesome. I braved Costco and was able to get through all 3 hours of church the other weekend. Those are major wins after how tough things have been.

This past week John and I went on a double date with our friends to (finally) see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. I loved it. They did an amazing job and it was so refreshing to go in to that movie with no expectations from reading the book first.

The boys and I have also been rewatching the Harry Potter movies since Caleb and Tyrell and both reading the books for free reading during school.

Brettley turned 6 years old on Saturday. The day before he went on his special outting with Grandma and Grandpa to West Edmonton Mall. They went mini golfing, had lunch, went to the Disney store and a few other things. For his birthday he got night vision goggles, beginner Snap Circuits, Classic Lego, money, a lego tank kit, and a Batman shirt.

Brettley has grown so much since he was born 7 weeks early. It's hard to remember now that I was terrified of him when he was first born. He was so tiny and I was so scared I'd somehow manage to break him. Mind you, all of the wires he had that I needed to navigate didn't help much. He is now the sweetest little guy with such a kind heart. He loves the colour red, pizza, PAW Patrol, Frozen and trains. He has taken to reading like a fish to water. I am so impressed with how easily he learns new things. I sure love him. He was the best surprise I've ever had.

Best Christmas Present EVER!

2 posts within 8 days, *GASP*! My tree went up, YAY! More exciting though, is that I got the best Christmas present ever on Tuesday from my favourite crazy. I gave her the present I'd bought for her back in October, because I wanted her to be able to enjoy it all winter (she'd become used to mild Pacific coast winters). I had bought her a Gryffindor scarf, which matches the one I've had for almost 7 years now. I'd mentioned in passing that night that one day I'd love to have a Weasley sweater or a Ravenclaw scarf. (If you don't know your Harry Potter, I apologize for the confused expression on your face at this point) Anyway, so we went out for a late meal on Tuesday after I was done Young Women and she handed me a wrapped box. Inside was a Ravenclaw scarf that she knit for me herself. It's special because 1) I'm a Ravenclaw at heart, 2) It was knit just for me, 3) It was knit by my bestest friend who is practically my sister, and 4) I know it took her a lot of time to make it and she is NOT someone who has a lot of spare time, which means she has been using a lot of the little amount of it that she has making something just for me. I feel so special and loved! So I just wanted to share that little story and make sure I have it documented for my own sake. Happy Christmas season!

Also, it came with a card which my adorable 2 year old 'niece' insisted on drawing a picture inside of for me because she loves her 'Aunt' Nikki.

Most Productive Dessert Date Ever

This is an extremely heavy post that I'm doing solely for my own benefit. I had a friend ask me out for dessert on Wednesday. She knew something was wrong with me (cause she's amazing) and called me out on it. I broke down and a whole lot came out about what I've been struggling with. One of those things was a man who 20 years ago broke my self esteem and it hasn't been repaired since. My friend was the first person in the whole 20 years to look my straight in the eyes and say "He was wrong, Nikki. He was wrong." I don't want to go into a lot of details about what happened because there are other people involved in the story that I don't want to talk about in this situation, but I've been carrying an obscene amount of baggage because of this man and it felt so good to FINALLY have someone tell me straight up that he was wrong.

She also said something that I've kind of replayed in my head a lot since. We were talking about how I don't know how to see good in myself and how I can only see my flaws due to my self esteem issues. She said "I wish that you could see yourself the way I see you" and went on to tell me some of the things she really appreciates about me that I don't recognize in myself.

When she asked me out for dessert, I don't think she knew that I was going to start deeply searching and trying to change a huge thing in my life after. I think we just missed hanging out with each other (cause she's the Harry to my Ron). I also know that there's no way she could have known when she asked "How are you doing, really?" just how much was going to come out. It's amazing, though, how much difference one person with a kind a sincere heart can make. I've been grateful for a while now that Heavenly Father brought her into my life, but now that gratitude is beyond words. I am so thankful that He has blessed me with her friendship at this time and has given me a friend who realizes just how much I need someone to help me feel like I'm of worth.

I guess the point I wanted to make, other than having these important things recorded for me to go back to, was to never underestimate what you could end up meaning to someone else just by caring about them.

Post 2: It's About Me

I decided to do one of those quiz things just to add some fun facts about myself on here, since it is my blog and all...

WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? My middle name is also the middle name of both of my grandmothers

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? Wednesday night I had a full out cry but ended up getting a lot out of it.

 WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Roasted Turkey or Honey Ham. Also, I hate bologna with a passion.

DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Yes, I have 3. (Caleb is almost 6, Ty is almost 4 and Brett is about 19 months)

IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Yes and no. I come with a lot of baggage that can be frustrating, but I'm an extremely loyal friend and I love to listen.

DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? I tend to be an extremely sarcastic person. Witty sarcasm is my favourite kind of humour.

DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? I don't. They came out right before I turned 10 and should have been out YEARS before that.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? I don't eat a lot of cereal, but I love things like Quaker Harvest Crunch and Honey Bunches of Oats.

DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Only if I need to in order to get them off of my foot.

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Physically, no. Emotionally this is a frustrating thing for me because I've had to do things that make people think that I'm strong (and I hate people telling me that I am), but I personally don't feel that I am.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? I love Haggen Daaz Cookie Dough Dynamo, the PC brand of Cotton Candy and Marble Slab's Cheesecake.

WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? I notice shoes a lot, actually. And hair.

WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? Physically, my underdeveloped chin (which is a VERY sore spot with me after years and years of teasing). As a whole, I'd have to say my bipolar.

WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? My father-in-law, who passed away in March and was one of the most amazing people I've ever met.

WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? Eggs

WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Dora the Explorer that Ty is watching.

IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Pink

FAVORITE SMELLS? Lilacs, vanilla and cinnamon.

FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Hockey, Soccer and Curling

HAIR COLOR? My hair is, medium brown? I think...

EYE COLOR? Fun cause I recently learned a term for this. It's Glasz. My eye color changes all the time between blue, green, grey and even a bit of yellow on occasion. Today they are a bluish grey.

DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No, but I am trying to wear my glasses more.

FAVORITE FOOD? I like a good lasagna or chicken parmesan. 

LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? The Hunger Games

FAVORITE SEASON? I think it's a tie between spring and fall.

FAVORITE DESSERT? Either cheesecake or sticky toffee pudding.

COMPUTER OR TELEVISION? I use my phone or computer for most things, including Netflix.

WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? I just finished The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell by Chris Colfer. Today I'm starting Fishers of Men by Gerald N Lund.

 FAVORITE SOUND? Running water (river, rain...) or just a good song

WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Nova Scotia for distance, Utah for out of country.

DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT? I'm really good at planning things out in detail. Execution is another story.

WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Nova Scotia, Canada

WHERE ARE YOU LIVING NOW? Alberta, Canada
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BOOK? So everyone's expecting a Harry Potter book, right? I'd have to say, though that Behold The Man by Gerald N Lund is my favorite.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE? Again, it's not HP. My favorite movie is Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (the extended version).

"Who I Am Hates Who I've Been"

I can't believe it's been over a month since I posted. Okay, I can, but it still seems odd. I just never seem to have anything to write about. My brother got married this month and it was a great day with a fair few tears on my part. Caleb was a great ring bearer and took his duty very seriously. I even got to dance that night, which I hadn't got to do in OH SO LONG and really missed. I included my favourite picture of the day (myself, Caleb and my dad).

It's actually been a pretty tough month for me. I've realized that I haven't forgiven myself for something that everyone else (including Heavenly Father) has forgiven me for, which is the life I lead (before I joined the church) that ended up in my becoming a birth mother. I haven't been able to forgive myself for all of the pain that I ended up causing myself and other people as well. At least now I realize how I actually feel and am working on the problem. Forgiving ourselves, I think, is a lot harder than forgiving anyone else and I know that I'm in for a long and emotional process. It will be worth it, though.

So I'm a huge music junkie. I don't mean "I like to listen to music" or "I enjoy playing an instrument or singing", I mean "Music is my rock, has been for years and years and is my crutch in any given difficult situation". Naturally, I'm always wanting new music. So I asked one of the YW in our ward for some suggestions. I knew she was the kind of person that would suggest stuff that I'd probably actually like and relate to instead stuff I can just appreciate. One of the bands she recommended was Relient K. So I searched them on iTunes and had 2 thoughts as I listened to one of their songs. 1)This band plays a style of music that I absolutely love; and 2) This song title sums up EXACTLY how I've been feeling this last month, "Who I Am Hates Who I've Been". It boils down to me being grateful for having music in my life and the strength that it brings me. I may not be able to sing or to play, but I have an intense passion for music, and that in and of itself is a gift in my eyes.

Tomorrow is the Harry Potter party, which I'm pretty excited about. Also, Caleb starts grade 1 next week, which we're BOTH really looking forward to. I think September is going to be a much better month. Now to pack my trunk for Hogwarts...

Goings On And What Not

I've been a horrible blogger lately and haven't been posting much about anything. I'm still loving my calling as the Beehive adviser and am super excited to go to camp in a couple of months. Tomorrow will by the last day of my last personal progress experience, so I will be done it as of Thursday morning :) It's been an amazing experience and I'm so glad that I decided to do it.

I am currently entered for a giveaway from Geekling Designs, which I have completely fallen in love with. I think I may end up spending a fortune on their stuff whenever we get pregnant next time.

My friends and I are currently planning a Harry Potter party, which I am LOVING! Caleb has also chosen Harry Potter as the theme for his birthday this year, so I'll be able to double up on decorations. Ty chose Angry Birds for his birthday.

Bretts had his eye surgery 2 weeks ago and his eyes are majorly improved. He goes for his follow up with his opthalmologist this afternoon. He had his hearing test last Thursday and he has normal hearing. That day he learned to say "hello", which is so adorable. He also started climbing the stairs that evening. It was quite the day for him. Yesterday he was saying "three" because John was counting to 3 while doing something with him. I love seeing him progress like this and catch up to where he should be.

We are setting things up right now for Caleb to start taking piano lessons in the fall. He is VERY excited about it.

Yesterday we had a BBQ with some friends which we really enjoyed. Life is going pretty good at the Bly house.

Goodbye To The Last 9 1/2 Years

In December of 2001, I went and saw Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone with my brother and our friend, Scott. I had not read the books yet because I still had a hard time reading anything fantasy like. I came out of that movie entirely hooked. Over Christmas hols I devoured the first 4 books (not literally). It felt like falling in love. That month was followed by waiting for movie and book releases. It shook me in book 5 when Sirius died, he was my favorite character. I wanted to scream at the Prisoner of Azkaban movie as it's my favorite of the books and the movie was the worst of them all. In July 2007 John went out and bought me the last book right at midnight. I bawled my eyes out at the death of Fred Weasley (the book has been out for almost 4 years, surely you know by now that he dies even if you haven't read it). It was bittersweet finishing that book. There was no story left, but as a diehard (obsessed) fan, I still had the movies to look forward to.

My emotions have been all over the place the past few months anticipating this movie. I have been excited like a little kid again at one point and then feeling indifferent at other points. I had no idea what to expect from this movie that would end my 9 1/2 years of waiting for the next Potter event. Yesterday morning things got even crazier when at the last minute I needed to find someone to go with me. There was only 1 person I wanted to ask, though, and thankfully she couldn't turn it down. As we stood in line for about an hour or so it felt so unreal and so exciting. I was jealous of the people in full costume. I tried, but my sweater doesn't fit at the moment and things didn't look right without it, so I just wore the tie in my hair instead and wore my muggle clothes (it is summer hols for Hogwarts right now, right?). John said I looked really cute, though:)

I won't spoil the movie for anyone, but I will say the following: My hat is off to you to, David Yates. You definitely did the finale better than any other movie I've ever watched. I could watch it over and over again (I'm sure I will when it's released on DVD/Blue-ray). Also, I must mention Alan Rickman. You were the perfect man for the role and your portrayal of the bravest man in the series is absolutely astounding. You did it justice and them some. It's been a long time since I cried like that at a movie, but by golly, you deserved it.

I have never left a Harry Potter movie without complaints before. However, when I walked out last night, it was just "WOW!". There's no complaints here. Bang on, Yates, bang on!

8 Sleeps Until Magrath

We had a really fun FHE on Monday about the Plan of Salvation. I printed out the pictures from a lesson that I found online and John told what each picture meant as I put it down. The boys really enjoyed it. If I were rich I'd have all of the lessons from Crafty Copies. However, I'm not, so I'm searching the net to find some good ones online that people don't charge you for. Today we printed off ones for Fire Safety, The First Vision and The Word of Wisdom. That will last me until we come back from Magrath. I'm pretty sure we're coming back on the 6th, but I keep waffling about staying an extra week. I guess we'll see how things are going closer to the 6th.

I have been counting calories and exercising the last few days. The exercising is exhausting me as I don't sleep properly, but it will be worth it in the long run. The calorie thing is going better than I'd expected. It's always nice when I find low calorie recipes that we really like. Last night we had Foil Bake Taco Chicken Dinners and we really enjoyed them. One plate is only 310 calories, which is awesome.

I'm in the process of trying to figure out a new way to do my blog. My friend, Sami, decided to focus on one thing every day (for example, weigh in Wednesdays). I'm trying to think of something like that. I enjoy blogging frequently and this is my journal, pretty much. So any ideas would be great.

I have a confession to make. I'm not over the moon excited about Harry Potter on Friday. This is really baffling me as I have LOVED the Harry Potter world for over 9 1/2 years now. Maybe it's because I realize that my priorities in life are changing or maybe it's because I feel guilty that I'm spent almost $40 just on 2 tickets to see it. I'm not sure. However, I'm sure I'll enjoy the movie once I'm sat down watching it.

Quick Attitude of Gratitude

I'll try and type this out quickly because Brettley has decided that he's pretty sure he's hungry.

1) I am grateful that the last dose of Brett's caffeine was yesterday and I don't have to remember to give him medication within an hour of 10am every day now. I like medication that's a bit more forgiving if you forget for a couple of hours.

2) I am grateful that Caleb loves his new shirts from Old Navy. He's got one of Phineas from Phineas & Ferb and one with Darth Vader on it. He wants a Stargate shirt as well, but the cheapest one that I've been able to find is $22.50 and I just can't justify spending that on a T-shirt for a 5 year old right now.

3) I am grateful that I got to go visiting teaching on Tuesday. I love my companion and the sister that we went to visit, they are both so awesome. Plus, I finally got another person to agree with me that the Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban film was horrible and a huge disappointment. My VT companion is a fellow HP geek:)

Day 15

PICTURES OF YOUR DREAM HOUSE















I don't actually have any pictures of what the house itself looks like, but here are the floor plans. It's the Heritage by Pacesetter. I don't have all of my colour schemes decided yet, but I would have dark wook cabinetry with light wood flooring and at least one of my rooms (probably my great room) would have an accent wall in a deep red and the other walls would be tan.

The boys' rooms would be the ones in the basement and bedroom #2 upstairs would be our spare room. The lifestyle room would be our hobby/computer room.

There are 2 reasons why this is the house I want. 1) The master ensuite's toilet has a door that closes it off from the rest of the bathroom. 2) Look at that massive storage room that includes a shelving space in the basement! Not to mention I could overflow storage in the utility room if I needed to.

So there you have it, this is the house that I dream of building. It may not be over the top, but it would be a very comfortable sized house for us. Anything more than this would just be more to clean, right?

PS
Someone asked me what bugged me about Harry Potter. Without giving away any plot, there is a short scene that borders on nudity (I would classify it as such). I find it highly inappropriate and unnecessary. It still makes me mad.

Day 14 and Update

SOME PICTURES YOU LOVE THAT YOU'VE TAKEN



















I haven't taken very many pictures that I like, but I do like these two. The first is the Salt Lake Temple's reflection in the Reflecting Pool at Temple Square. The second is just one of Caleb pouring water that I really like. I think it's the action of the water and brightness of the colours that I like the most.

UPDATE
Not too much is new. I had another ultrasound last week plus my first prenatal appointment for this pregnancy. Apparently all is going well. Brettley is kicking lots now. I can feel him kick from the outside, but for some reason John can't yet.

For our date night last week we went to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1. It is so amazing how 1 short scene can ruin an entire movie for you. Less than 30 seconds of something inappropriate killed that whole movie for me, because I loved the rest of it. It was really hard on me, I'm such a Harry Potter geek.

On Saturday night I had some people over for games and snacks. It was a lot of fun and I'm so glad that I had the idea to have the party. I also made a new brownie recipe for the first time and LOVED them!

So yeah, that's pretty much all that's new in the Bly house. I can't believe tomorrow's already the last day of the 15 Day Challenge. I'm going to miss it. Have a good one!

Day 11

FAVOURITE TV SHOWS

I LOVE Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis. They are my top 2 favourites for sure. I also like M*A*S*H. I used to enjoy NUMB3RS, but it got too sexual so I stopped watching it.

With the kids I enjoy watching Phineas & Ferb and Avatar: The Last Airbender. They also love Caillou, but I'm not so much into that one.

Yeah, that's about it. The boys watch a variety of shows, but I don't. I'm not at all a big TV person anymore and am glad that we're cutting off our cable in the next month. It's too much of a time waster.

PS
HAPPY HARRY POTTER DAY!!!

Day 10 & Attitude of Gratitude

SOMETHING YOU'RE SCARED OF

No pictures today because I'm in a rush to get this posted, but mice, bats and birds are big ones. However, my biggest fear would be the unknown.

ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

1) I am grateful for getting to hear Brettley's heartbeat twice this week and knowing that everything's going well with him. Heck, I'm just plain grateful for him, as I shouldn't have been able to have anymore kids and Heavenly Father has blessed me so much that I'm able to have him.

2) I am grateful that I get to go on a double date tomorrow night to go see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows in the IMAX. I've been looking forward to this movie for months and months now, and I'm so excited that it's finally here.

3) I am grateful that I have been able to keep the main floor of my house clean every day since I royally messed up my hip on Monday to get it super duper clean. It's such a nice feeling to go to bed each night knowing that I'll walk downstairs in the morning to a nice clean kitchen, dining room and living room.

Yeah, that's about it for today. It's been a busy one:)

Day 7 and Update

FAVOURITE MOVIES






















Ha ha, like you expected anything other than a Harry Potter movie to be first. This is my favourite of the movies so far, but that could very well change after Friday night. We shall see.



















To be perfectly honest, this one is actually my favourite movie (the extended version, though). I always get choked up when Aragorn says to the hobbits "My friends, you bow to no one".














I also love this movie, which is pretty out of character for me, but the new Batman movies have been done VERY well. I'm really looking forward to when the third one comes out. So there you have my top 3 favourite movies.

UPDATE
Hmm, what's new? Well, we have a few Christmas decorations out. Caleb still can't understand why we're not putting up our tree yet. I'm trying to wait until the first Saturday in December to put it up. We'll see how long I last. I can be worse than a kid about getting excited and getting the Christmas stuff up.

For our date night this week John and I had these pudding things and some diet pop and watched Forgotten Carols together. I love watching it:) John really likes it too.

The not so much fun part of the week was finding out that Ty has bronchitis. He was getting really sick to his stomach, so we took him in. I'm glad we didn't wait any longer and wish we'd taken him sooner. Next time I don't feel right about something, I'll follow my instinct instead of trying to reason it away.

Yesterday I got to go visiting teaching:) I love it. Anyway, this is a month where we get to choose a talk from General Conference or the Relief Societ General Broadcast to use for our message. I chose President Monson's talk from Sunday morning, 'The Divine Gift of Gratitude'. The quote that all of us seemed to love the most was
"My brothers and sisters, to express gratitude is gracious and honorable, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven."

Isn't President Monson so wonderful? Anyway, hope you've had a wonderful weekend and are looking forward to a great week:)

Day 5

PICTURES OF THINGS THAT MAKE YOU HAPPY

Day 4

SOMETHING YOU'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO

1) Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I on the IMAX next Friday. I am WAY excited for this, in case you couldn't tell by the counter on the side of my blog, my blog background and if you have me on Facebook I've been counting down the weeks for well over a month now.

2) Christmas, definately! The whole Christmas season is just so much fun. The spirit in the air, the decorations, the baking, the reminder it gives us about the humble birth of our Savior. It's all just so amazing. Our favourite albums this year are Christmas Carroll by Carroll Baker (mine) and Phineas and Ferb Holiday Favorites (Caleb's, although I love it as well).

3) Brettley Eoin Bly. We are very much looking forward to welcoming him into home and have him here to love even more and enjoy watching him as he grows. Last night I felt him kick my hand for the first time, so John is definately looking forward to getting a boot or two now.

15 Day Challenge

I've decided to take up the challenge to do the following:

Day 1 - Self portrait picture and 15 interesting facts
Day 2 - Something that stresses you out
Day 3 - Your siblings and parents
Day 4 - Something you're looking forward to
Day 5 - Pictures of things that make you happy
Day 6 - A song that makes you cry (or nearly and why)
Day 7- Favourite movies
Day 8 - A place you've travelled to
Day 9 - Put your iPod on shuffle, what are the first 10 songs
Day 10 - Something you're afraid of
Day 11 - Favourite TV shows
Day 12 - What do you believe?
Day 13 - Goals
Day 14 - Some pictures you love
Day 15 - Pictures of your dream house

So here is DAY 1 - SELF PORTRAIT AND 15 INTERESTING FACTS

This was taken last year. I don't have an SD card at the moment, so I can't do a new one.
















1) I listen to 2 of my Christmas albums all year round (Christmas Eve and Other Stories by the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Forgotten Carols by Michael McLean)
2) I don't have my class 5 driver's and keep wishing I could smack the next person who pesters me about it. There are now good reasons why I don't have it.
3) I have craved McDonald's cheeseburgers every single time I've been pregnant.
4) I love my calling. It stresses me out a lot, but I love it. (I'm the Activity Days leader in my ward)
5) I'm still extremely sad that I'll never have a girl of my own but do my best to put on a brave face for the world.
6) It drives me up the wall when people mess up the words when they're singing.
7) I am a recovered alcoholic of almost 7 years now.
8) I talk to my mum almost every single day unless one of us is travelling (and close to it even then).
9) I am doing our stake's challenge of getting the Book of Mormon read before Christmas. I finished Alma 54 this morning and read 3 chapters per day.
10) I'm currently rereading Fishers of Men by Gerald N Lund even though I'm supposed to be reading Persuasion by Jane Austen for our book club before next Thursday. I probably won't get it done, but I'd much rather read something that I find spiritually uplifting.
11) I'm early for everything when I'm not relying on someone other than John to get me there.
12) I tried a jellied salad for the first time ever this past weekend. It was okay, but I think it needed pomegranate seeds.
13) I haven't had visiting teachers come to see me in almost a year. I really miss it. But I enjoy getting out to do my own route because I have a great companion and awesome sisters.
14) I love Harry Potter, it might be bordering on an unhealthy obsession some days. John and I will be dressing up for Deathly Hallows Part 2 next year (I wouldn't fit into much of a costume at the moment with my big baby belly.
15) I dressed up as a jedi for Star Wars Episode III with 2 of my friends. It was awesome!!!

Less than 5 weeks until HP!!!

It's been a busy but not terribly interesting week. We had Activity Days on Wednesday where we made an FHE pack about the Word of Wisdom. John and I were supposed to go to the temple on Thursday, but we both had upset stomachs and weren't able to go. I was pretty sad, I love the temple. On Friday Caleb helped me to clean his and Ty's room, the baby's room and the upstairs hallway really well. I felt a great sense of accomplishment.

On Saturday I ordered Ty's birthday cake. They didn't have a Caillou one, so I had to get Thomas instead, but Ty also really likes trains, so it'll be okay. It's marble with chocolate frosting filling. I can't believe he'll be 2 this Saturday.

Not too much else is really new. Just plugging away. Our next few weekends are busy. This weekend is Ty's birthday and Caleb's first Primary Presentation. The next weekend is Halloween (although I still haven't heard anything about a ward activity). The first weekend in November we're making a super quick trip to Magrath to pick up all of our baby clothes that are stored in the attic of my in-law's garage.

I had a great reminder in church yesterday. As much as I would love to have a baby girl I was reminded by the little boy on the bench in front of us that even baby boys still do all the cute little baby things. I can't believe the poll for the baby's gender has got 12 votes on it. I was expecting about 5. So now I'm curious as to who voted, as I only know of 3 people for sure who did. Have a great week:)

Thoughts and Admissions

I kind of stole this off of C's blog, but I need a pick-me-up at the moment because it's been a long day with cleaning and what not, so here goes:

1) What is your favourite day of the week and why?
It's probably Saturday because John is home from work and gets to spend the day with us. It's more relaxed than Sunday where I spend the majority of Sacrament Meeting fighting with my kids to behave in a remotely acceptable manner.

2) Recount an embarrassing moment.
When Caleb was about 2 or maybe not quite 2 we were in the checkout line at Safeway. He started pushing on my chest and yelling "SQUISHY". I was pretty mortified.

3) What was your favourite toy or game as a child?
I really liked Tinker Toys and I did go through a Barbie phase where I loved to come up with different outfits.

4) What does your name mean?
It's the female version of Nicholas and it means 'Victory of the People'. It's Greek.
For good measure, I'll do the other family names too.
John is Hebrew and means 'God is Gracious'.
Caleb is Hebrew and means 'Rage Like a Dog'.
Tyrell is English and means 'Stubborn'.

5) If you could have any occupation (and you had no limitations of obtaining that occupation), what would it be?
To be honest I don't have a desire to work outside of the home. Maybe a professional traveller, ha ha. Actually, I would love to teach full-time for CES.

6) What is your guilty pleasure?
Harry Potter Fan Fiction

7) If you could change anything about your appearance what would it be?
It used to be my chin, but now it's probably more the size of my tummy (pre-Perry) and the size of my chest. I'd like both to be a bit smaller.

8) If you could raise awareness about one topic (education, poverty, AIDS, etc) what would it be?
This is a tough one for me. I think as much as I love adoption and how wonderful it is, I'm going to have to pick mental illness. I mean to not just get people to admit that it exists, but to TRULY understand what it is and how it affects people. Because let's be honest here, if you don't live with it then you don't truly get it. In our house we understand a lot about OCD and Bipolar because that's what we live with, but there are so many people (us included) who don't understand why people do the things they do when they're living with mental illness and because we in the Bly house live with it we do understand how frustrating it can be when people just don't get it. (Just to be clear, I'm not at all intending to pick on anyone. It's just a topic I'm passionate about, especially after this last year.)
Of course, it would be best if more people understood what the Gospel is and what it can do for them. So can I at least pick 2? The Gospel and Mental Illness

Hope you have a wonderful weekend. I'm going to order Ty's birthday cake tomorrow. Hopefully they'll have a Caillou one, that's his obsession at the moment.

Caleb is 4

Caleb and I had another not-so-fun week. I'm not really sure what to do with him.

On Saturday he turned 4. It's so hard to believe that he's that old already. He had a birthday party with a couple of his cousins. He was very happy with his presents and had a great time. After the party we went to Walmart where he got to spend his gift card from Grandpa M. He was so excited to get to pick his own toys and to give his gift card to the cashier all by himself.

That evening John and I had our date night for the week. We watched Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Since this coming weekend is General Conference, we've decided to do the date on Wednesday. I'm not sure what to do. One of the rules is that you can't do the same thing twice in a month. So far we've eaten a 'special' meal together, played a board game and watched a movie. I guess I'll have to look through the Project 52 blog to get some ideas.

Found out this morning that we're just waiting to hear back on a date from to OB for my first prenatal appointment. That means I'm not mad at my doctor anymore, which feels nice.

The exciting news for the week is that I felt the baby move a couple of different times. That was fun:) Oh, and I officially moved into mat clothes.

Not too much else is new right now though. I hope you all have a wonderful week:)