A Graduate of B.S.

After seven years (yes, I know I should be a doctor by now), I am finally a BYU-Idaho graduate. At least I think I am. The degrees are conferred by President Clark according to the Commencement program, and my name was not in it. Instead, one girl's name was in it twice, and mine was not in there at all. My name would have been in its own section since I was the only one graduating with a Bachelor of Science in English Education Composite. And even more irritating is that I happen to know that the girl whose name was in my place didn't complete her student teaching and didn't graduate. At first I didn't care. Then I was mildly annoyed. Then I was really frustrated. Now, several days later, I am back to mildly annoyed. I'm pretty sure that in the next day or two I won't care anymore.

I am pretty sure that graduation cap and gown was designed by either a complete idiot or a jerk who believed women shouldn't graduate. There is no possible way to look cute in a cap and gown. The man who handed me my gown took one look at my belly and upped the size. Then I had the ever-so-annoying experience of trying to keep my cap on my head. Finally I called Stephanie, and she came to the rescue with a hair clip to keep it secured.

The "graduation candidates," as they are called, are contained in a 10-court gym and told to stand in line. I was reminded of my elementary school days when we were told to stay in line and after about a minute, everyone has scattered and mixed. It was incredibly uncomfortable for me to stand in one spot. I only survived by rocking back and forth.

I had contractions all through graduation, and they got progressively harder, but they stopped around 10:00 when we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner.

Elder Ballard was the Commencement speaker. One of the things that I loved so much about his talk was how hopeful he was about the future. He said that although times are tough right now, we will begin to see things turn for the better. Of course this doesn't mean we shouldn't be prepared for more hard times, but we need to turn our fears about the future into faith. We have been blessed to go to such a wonderful university where we have been taught by the Spirit, and with such an education we can do great things.

By the time we got to Convocation, I was ready to be done with the night. However, it did feel so good to walk across the stage in the Manwaring Center Grand Ballroom and receive my diploma.....cover. I think it's silly that we go through the formality of receiving a folder that doesn't even have a diploma in it. The professor handing out the diploma covers was Brother Bennion, my Shakespeare teacher. The last time he saw me, only a couple semesters ago, I was engaged, and now I have a balloon in my belly and a waddle in my step.

My parents can now say that they have successfully graduated all five of their children with Bachelor's degrees. It is truly amazing that although neither of them graduated from college, every one of their children has, and two of them so far are currently attending graduate school. My graduation from college, in many ways, is a greater reflection of their dedication to education and to their children.

I am also so proud of Jon. Over the last three semesters he has stayed beside me, sometimes pushing, sometimes pulling, and sometimes picking me up and carrying me. He has been a real trooper through my anxiety attacks, morning sickness, and mood swings. The stress has been unbearable at times, and I surely would not have gotten through the last stretch of my college education without him. I love you Jonny!

Week Thirty-Seven's Baby Bump

I've made it to term, and I am SOOO ready to be done!

Week Thirty-Six's Baby Bump

The last week has been a whirlwind. We finished packing up all of our belongings from my parents' house and--with the much needed help of Dad Phelps, Josh, Sam, and Marianne--moved to a tiny one-bedroom apartment in the heart of downtown St. Anthony. The first few days were very emotional for me because I had had a lot of contractions and a nurse at Madison Hospital told me to stay in bed for a couple days. We didn't have TV or Internet, so we completely missed General Conference, and I felt like I couldn't move. I thought I would enjoy "having" to stay in bed, but I was miserable. Every time Jon came in the room I'd break out into tears. I'm sure that did wonders for his self esteem. :) On Monday I had my first doctor's appointment with Dr. Meredith in Rexburg (before moving to Utah I had only seen a nurse practitioner), and he said the baby is over six pounds and should be good to go anytime. He assured me not to be afraid of contractions because although I'm still considered "preterm," the baby is big enough and developed enough to make her entrance.

Jon has been a real trouper through all of this. He has set up the majority of the apartment on his own. He won't let me lift anything, and in the last couple days, any moving or lifting of items more than a few pounds has been somewhat painful for me anyway. So I have been finding other ways of occupying my time. We made lemonade the other day and then decided to make cherry limeade ice cubes. I spent several minutes pouring the juice into ice trays and even absorbing some of the juice when it came up a little too high in the tray so that each ice cube would look perfect. Initially the ice cubes in the lemonade looked really fun, but after the ice cubes mostly melted into the juice, it looked more like blood and it lost it's appeal. But there you go. These are the kinds of things you do when you have a time bomb in your stomach and are trying to keep busy.

Even though we won't be in this apartment very long, we decided to hang pictures to make it feel a bit more like home. The apartment is coming together now, and I feel like this has been my biggest contribution to making it "ours."

Week Thirty-Five's Baby Bump

With so many free days, I have felt incredibly relaxed. It's been a nice change from the constant stress I was feeling before. We have had a slight change of plans in out moving arrangements. Our manager told us we could move in as early as March 31st, so with the help of Josh and Jeremy (Jon's brothers), we are moving to St. Anthony on Saturday instead of Monday. We have a lot of work to do before then, but I think it will be fine. I'm looking forward to getting there and having a little more space. However, I'm really looking forward to our final move a week or two later when I'll then be able to set up our home and get ready for Netty's arrival.

Yesterday Jon and I visited Andra, one of my former roommates and dear friends. She gave birth to a baby boy, Parker, about two weeks ago. He is such a little sweetheart. I was in heaven holding a new baby. It makes me all the more excited for Netty to come. I'm pretty sure Netty has developed her first crush. She starts jumping around every time I talk about him. When I held him, she kicked nonstop. I said, "Uh-oh, Daddy, we have a little flirt on our hands. You're going to have to keep an eye on her."

Last week, Jon's sister Alyssa gave birth to Bryce, her third child. I am so grateful that Netty has a cousin her age. She just needs a girl cousin closer to her age. Alyssa is the only sibling on Jon's side who can have children, so Jessica? Sarah? Any takers? ;)

Week Thirty-Four's Baby Bump

And I am so happy to say that after seven years, I am finally going to graduate! Today's exit interview went very well, and I have officially been given a "pass" for my student teaching!

Week Thirty-Three's Baby Bump

Seven weeks left. It will be a whirlwind for Jonny and me, though. I have five days of teaching left, followed by two weeks of observations. Then, on the Monday after General Conference, Jon's dad is helping us move to St. Anthony. I am so grateful that we found this place; however, we will have to move twice. Our apartment is getting new carpet, which means that for the first two weeks of April we will be living in a one-bedroom apartment and then moving to the two-bedroom apartment. And then two weeks later, Netty should be arriving. I don't know how it will all work out, but it has to somehow.

Netty is an incredibly active little girl, which makes me happy. Sometimes I just want her to settle down, but I am grateful that she is healthy. My students have suddenly become interested in her, and at least one student each day will ask a question about her. Many of them have been oblivious to the fact that I am pregnant until very recently, but then, eighth graders are pretty self-absorbed anyway. Other people have started asking about my due date, etc., which makes me feel good that at least people aren't looking at me and saying, "Whoa, lose some weight!"

Things are falling into place for us. I can't wait to be past all of this school and moving. I want to be settled in my own home with my own baby. It just can't come soon enough!

Week Thirty-One's Baby Bump

Four navel oranges somersaulting in my belly, jumping on my bladder, making me happy, then hiding from HoneyGram. I love my shy little monkey!

Such a Long Time...

I know it's been a while since I last posted. Jon and I are living in Utah with my parents, and I am student teaching at South Davis Junior High in Bountiful. I teach five classes of eighth graders. I knew it would be difficult, but I didn't know in what ways. I have been dealing with "revenge of the morning sickness," only it's not just morning sickness because it has all come as a result of the anxiety and stress of school. I had an observation today that went really well, so I'm hoping that will propel me forward with more confidence. I am down to twenty-seven days of student teaching, and I am SOOOO excited to be done!

Interestingly enough, my focus to get me through student teaching has not been having my own classroom or the thought of graduating. The only thing getting me through is my baby. When student teaching becomes unbearable, I think about holding my baby girl. The real reward for finishing my student teaching is not to walk at graduation or receive my diploma but being with Netty. Maybe it's a little sad that after all of this hard work and nearly seven years of college graduation is being overshadowed, but I can't feel too bad. I feel so blessed that in one year's time, all that I have ever wanted in life is happening.

The Lord has been good to Jonny and me, and He continues blessing us in ways that we couldn't imagine.

Week Thirty's Baby Bump

Week Twenty-Eight's Baby Bump