Okay, so I am terrible at this whole blog thing. Not a lot has happened recently but this next year is going to be an exciting one. In May 2015, Sven will graduate from dental school! After that, we are off to who knows where. Sometime between August and September we will find out where we will be spending the first year in the Air Force. We get to list our top ten choices. The Air Force said that almost everyone gets one of those choices. However, ten places is a LOT of places. We have to decide if we want to go somewhere fun, like on a beach at Florida, or NYC, since it will only be for a year... or we have to decide where our family will be the happiest. After graduation, we are hoping Sven goes off to Officer Training (aka weak sauce boot camp for officers) in Alabama for 5 weeks. We just found out what his requirements are. He can pass with 'satisfactory' but in order to get top marks he has to pass the following: run 1.5 miles in 9:15 or under, do 67 push ups, and 48 sit ups (I think). Sven has started lifting weights again ever since he saw these numbers. He broke his collor bone on Thanksgiving and hasn't lifted a weight since. But now he is back full throttle.

As for me, I am going STIR CRAZY! I went from working about 10-12 hours a week to working 3-4 hours. What do I do all day with a one year old?! I have gained 2 pounds in the 4 weeks since I have stopped working. I get so bored that I snack all day. I started doing the Wii Fit last week and every time I get on, I have gained weight. My graph is a constant line going up. It actually makes me laugh. I'm sure it will come back down once I get back in a new routine but it has been 10 days on the Wii Fit with nothing but up. No wonder I don't have many personal training clients right now :-)

As for Amelia, she is growing like mad. She eats as much as I do in a day. She will go get a bib out of her dresser, bring it to me, and go stand by her high chair. One would think that I am starving her, but do not be deceived. I feed this girl a big meal 5 times a day. She is very shy and a very happy girl. Well, that's all about me in Kentucky for now.

Amelia Bedelia's Arrival

     So I guess a lot has happened since I last posted. My life is not very exciting so I apologize if I bore you. I will start with Baby Girl Hoge's arrival. I went through a rough process trying to decide if I should be induced or wait until she came on her own. My doctor gave me a choice to be induced a week before my due date and I told her 'No, I am not ready to have a baby.' That was probably not the best thing to say at 9 months pregnant. My doctor looked at me like a crazy person.
     One week later, on my due date, I had an ultra sound to make sure there was enough fluid. Everything in the ultra sound looked great, except for one thing. The baby was not moving. The ultra sound nurse was doing everything and the baby would NOT move. I was drinking coke, laying in different positions, and trying everything to get that girl to move. But she had a mind of her own. After 25 minutes (they only wait about 30 minutes before they make you deliver the baby) she moved her finger. I guess that was enough because they sent me home. So the next week, one week after my due date, my doctor gave me an option. I could deliver tomorrow (Friday) or wait until the next Thursday. I did not know what to do. I wanted this girl to come on her own but I was a week over and I had not had a single contraction and the incident where she would not move scared me to death. After a lot of thinking, planning, and praying, Sven and I decided that I would be induced tomorrow. Being induced is different in Kentucky than it is in Utah. I did not get a specific time. I was told to call the hospital at 5 am and they would say if they had room for me or if I needed to call back later. Lucky for me, I was on the high priority list since I was already past my due date. So in to the hospital we went. Sven and I were still discussing names on the drive there.
     Once in the hospital, it took over an hour to get signed in and hooked up to all the machines. About 11 hours and 12 contractions later our little baby girl was here. 7 lbs 12.3 oz, 20.5 inches long, and a full head of dark dark hair.
     I am so fortunate to have had my mom here for 3 full weeks after I delivered. If it was not for her, I may not have survived it. Amelia had a ROUGH transition into this world. I think the carpet is worn out from walking laps around the kitchen isle. If Amelia was awake, she was crying. It took her a long time to figure out this crazy world. It was not until Amelia was about 4 months old when I realized that I could have a baby and still be myself. I realized that I can still have goals, dreams, etc. in my life. It has been getting easier and easier ever since we both figured out how to live together. There are still many hard moments but Amelia is the sweetest baby girl any mom could ask for.
     As for what is going on in my life right now...I am a stay at home mom living in Louisville, Kentucky. I teach fitness classes and personal train at the YMCA. I recently ran the St. George Marathon- thanks to my lovely sister Christina who talked me into it. It has been over a week and I still have symptoms from the run. But hey, finishing a marathon after not being able to run the 5 weeks prior is an accomplishment in my book. It took me 4 hours and 7 min-longer than I thought but I was glad to be done.
     Amelia is almost 1 year old. She is saying a few words like "dada," "okay," and "get it" but she has no idea what they mean. She is scared to death of walking but she loves to dance, play, and most of all she likes to be around people. She is such a joy to have in our little family. That is all the updates I have for now. Peace out all!

Well I am not the best at updating a blog. I have been super busy for what feels like months. Working at the eye doctor's office has been a lot of fun. It is good hours and I am able to eat dinner with Sven every night.     We moved two building down in July. It was a ton of work. A lot of people told me that it was more work when you moved somewhere close than it is when you move far away. I don't know if that's true since we were pretty prepared for the move, but it was still a lot of work. I moved over all of our clothes that were hanging in the closet. I would lay the clothes on my left arm, balance them with my right arm, walk over and hang them in the new apartment. I could not feel my left arm for days. I still have a handful of boxes that I am not unpacked yet. It is hard to find motivation to unpack clothes that don't even fit me.
     Sven and I found out we were having a girl. We went to the ultra sound and told the nurse that we did not want to find out. We asked if the nurse would call my sister and tell her what we were having. My sister wanted to send a package so we would be surprised. At first the people at the doctors office thought it was strange but by the time I left, I think they were more excited about it than I was. My doctor asked it I would know what the gender is at my next appointment. I could tell from the look on her face that she was relieved when I said yes. Two days after my ultra sound, we got the package filled with girl clothes, bibs, bows, etc. Sven wanted a girl so he was pretty excited. We still do not have any names picked out. We have a lot of work to do in the next 8 weeks before she makes her debut.
     In early August we were able to go and see Mammoth Cave and Cumberland Falls. Mammoth cave was really cool. We didn't get to see much of it since we got there later in the day but it was still amazing to see how water can make such a big dent in rock. Cumberland Falls was alright. It is apparently the biggest waterfall east of the Mississippi next to Niagara Falls. We went to see the moon-bow which is one of the only places in the world you can see one. It is pretty much just a rainbow made from the moon light. It was too cloudy to see the night we went.
     We also were able to go up to Nauvoo for a day. We stopped at Carthage jail. That was probably my favorite part. It was crazy to see the living situation of people back then. It makes life now look so much easier. Then we went up to the Nauvoo temple. That place is huge. Five stories for a temple- it was crazy. I have gotten used to the Louisville temple, which is one of the 3 smallest temples in the church.
     Anyway, things are going fine. I had another ultra sound last week. Shaniqua (my baby's womb name) was 3.4 pounds, which is in the 12 percentile. My doctor said I will be lucky to get a 6 pound baby. When I looked online it said she was normal weight for this stage. I don't know what to believe. I tend to believe my doctor more than the internet. My doctor had me back off a bit on my exercise and I have to go back for another ultra sound in a week to see how she is doing.
  Other than that, there is not much else going on. Sven is back in school and studying a lot. I am super busy trying to get prepared for the baby and attempt to maintain our apartment. You wouldn't think it would be that hard to maintain but it completely exhausts me. I get to go home to Utah in just over a week. I am super excited to have a break from all this work. Well that's all about me, maybe I will update in another few months. :-) 

 

Well, I am officially 16 weeks along now. We are not going to find out the gender for at least another 4-5 weeks. My doctor isn't going to do an ultra sound until the end of my 20th week, but I'm not in any hurry so that is okay with me. I have gained about 2 pounds but it feels like more since I am gaining inches. Well, technically, I lost 2 pounds and have gained 3 so I guess I haven't gained too much. I have gained a lot of inches around my waist/love handle area but I just look a little pudgy-not pregnant. My "fat pants" are really tight these days so I will have to give in and go shopping for maternity clothes soon.

Sven and I went down to Nashville last weekend. We went to the Country Music Hall of Fame, Studio 8 (where Elvis recorded most of his songs and some people still record there), and the Grand Ole Opry. The Country Music Hall of Fame was surprisingly dull. It was mostly about all the super old country artists that I have never heard of. The actual Hall of Fame was cool. However, there was a bunch of people in the Hall of Fame and I have only ever even heard of 5: Reba McEntire, George Strait, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, and Elvis Presley. With all the great country artists these days, I was surprised that none of them were on there. Then we went and saw the Grand Ole Opry concert with Carrie Underwood, Brad Paisley, Love and Theft, Scotty McCreery, and a bunch of new artists I have never heard of. It was a lot of fun.

That is about all that is new with me. I am sure everyone is amazed at my incredible blogging talents. :-) But seriously, this took me forever to figure out the pictures. I don't think there will be regular posts on this thing.