Things to Know/Do in Italy!

I decided not to give a travel log of our whole trip to Italy because I figured that would be really boring for everyone to read. I will save that for my personal journal. So for now I will share with you some things to do and know if you are ever going to Italy!

By the way...Sorry this has taken so long to put up here!

1. Before you even leave, just know that you will not get any ice or cold drinks while in this beautiful country! They do not have ice that we take for granted. The "ice maker" is something not found! If you do ask for ice... many times they will not understand you or have a clue what you are talking about, and other times they will bring you a custard dish with 5 pieces of ice meant for 9 people! (Yes this really happened to us).

2. Understand that our dollar is worth NOTHING! The exchange rate is horrible and you will find yourself going... "Oh it is ONLY 5 Euros...wait a minute that is like $10! That is expensive!" So just remind yourself not to think about how many American dollars you are spending!

3. If you go to Venice, you HAVE to go on a gondola ride! They are romantic if it is just you and your significant other, and it is just fun if you are with a group. They are expensive, but it is worth the money!



4. In Florence there are TONS of museums to see! Definitely hit the big things like the Uffizi Gallery and the David statue! They are worth it. I was so amazed at how beautiful to art work is.

5. If you are in Florence, you definitely need to take a day trip is Pisa! Yes, the leaning tower of Pisa. It is amazing to just see it for real.


6. Rome is amazing because there is just flowing water everywhere! You can drink from all the fountains and it is cold and refreshing (or so I heard from everyone else). I had to stick with bottled water only. I guess that is what happens when you go to another country and you are pregnant!

7. When in Rome you will just be overwhelmed with the beauty of the architecture! It is amazing to think that the buildings and especially the Coliseum have been there for so long and are still as solid as they are. The city is just more than you can describe!

8. When flying to and from Italy be sure you understand it is a VERY VERY VERY long flight. If you are pregnant, know that your feet will look like whale flippers once you finish your flight. Yes, mine were huge for like 2 or 3 days! Sorry I didn't get any pictures, but you can only imagine!

9. While in Italy, you have to get your hair cut by a man you just met who is actually from Albania and used to be a weight lifting champion! If you want to know more or if any of you show interest this might be a blog on its own...just let me know.

Before

After

10. Do NOT go in the middle of summer. It was SOOOOOO HOT! Every day it had to be atleast 100 degrees and 200% humidity. They do NOT believe in air conditioner, so you can forget that idea. When you are sightseeing and everything all day...you may DIE OF A HEAT STROKE! Even when we were inside restaurants and things it didn't get any better. They don't understand what it is like to feel the relief of an air conditioner!

And those are just 10 things I learned from my trip to Italy.

We had an amazing time and loved every second of it. All I know is I will not take the USA for granted anymore! I love being able to understand the language, get ice in my drink, drink water from the tap, use the A/C, and so much more!

Oh, and I realized I really didn't take a lot of pictures with my camera. Adam took a ton with his and I don't have his pictures, so I will make him do a blog soon just full of pictures!

Hope you enjoyed the quick trip though Italy!

My "weekly" pictures

Yeah, I am not very good at blogging anymore! Here is my pregnancy picture from last week and then the one from tonight. I am officially 32 weeks and only have a few more to go! Last week I actually took a few pictures from the front and back just to see what I look like, so I am sharing those pictures too. They are actually just so I can keep all of these pictures together for my sake!

So here goes...

31 weeks and a few days...





Front





Back



Side





32 weeks...

Happy Birthday to me!

We aren't doing a ton of celebrating today, but it is always fun to have a birthday. I will have to write again when we actually celebrate...it should be sometime this week. We are all just so busy with the wedding and everything else going on in our lives...I guess that is what happens in the "real world."

I am finally 23 years old!!

And happy Anniversary to Chad and Katie. Yes, they did get married on my special day, but I still love them!

The Doctor

I have been so lucky to be able to see our little girl almost everytime I have gone to the doctor. Once was for a gender check, the next week to see how well the baby was doing. Then a month later I got to see her again because the previous US didn't show everything the tech wanted to see. Then I came home to NC for the summer and have been so blessed to be looked after by a good friend of the family. This doctor doesn't do OB stuff anymore (he is just a GYN), but he still has his equipment. When he found out I was coming home and didn't have a doctor here, he insisted that I come to his office and he would take care of me and let me see my baby. I have been to him twice now and have seen our little girl moving and enjoying herself in her small, squished environment for the time being. Yesterday, Adam and my mom were able to come to be with me and see our little girl. It will be kinda sad to go back to Provo where I won't be able to be so lucky. I guess we only have about 9 more weeks until we get to see her in person anyways!

Just to let you know, I will put up a picture today, I just looked BUH yesterday and didn't want to take a picture of me.

As of yesterday...
-I am 31 weeks along.
-9 weeks until my due date.
-Our little girl has long legs, big feet, and is eating plenty.
-I have only gained 7 pounds from my lowest weight since I started this pregnancy.
-Mishi...just to let you know I am still healthy, but this time my doctor told me I need to try to take in a couple 100 more calories a day. I thought you would enjoy hearing that.


Non-baby things that happened yesterday...
- I talked to my sister in law who is 13 weeks pregnant. THIS IS SO EXCITING!!! She already has onen little boy who will be 3 in a few months, but now all three of the sisters who are married on Adam's side are all pregnant! (One won't be as of Thursday...YAY FOR YOU MISHI!!!!!)
- We think we actually have an apartment to live in when we get back out to Provo in a few short weeks.
- Adam has a great job opportunity back in Provo, for the last year of his schooling.
- My little bro Tyler and his fiance Lauren have only 12 days until they are finally hitched!!!


Yeah I think that is about all for now!

Memory Lane

* M E M O R Y * L A N E * ---Here are the directions:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments. C'mon now, anything funny, strange, cool, embarrassing, or awful you remember about me?? This could be interesting...

Our Little Girl just had a PARTY!!!!

We had a baby shower on Friday night! It was so much fun. I can't believe all the people who showed up and how much I got. I am so grateful to all the women from church and all the other friends and family that showed up. That you so much for your support and love!

I got TONS of clothes and other goodies!

Now, really, all that is left is the big stuff like a stroller and carseat, pack-n-play, etc.

My mom has given us the crib, changing table, and dresser for the room and we have gotten a ton of other "hand me downs" from the 2 sisters I told you about earlier in the blog!

THANK YOU!!!!!!

I would put some pictures of all the stuff I got, but I only got pictures of the individual gifts as I was opening them. I will have to take pictures of EVERYTHING once I figure out where I am moving and we get our nursery set up, but for now everything is already boxed up and ready to be taken out to Utah! You will just have to wait!

30 Weeks and Growing!

This is me at 30 weeks! I have gained a total of 8 pounds (This does not include the weight that I lost at the very beginning...I am just counting from my lowest weight in the pregnancy! I am amazed that I have only put on 8 pounds!!!! We will see what happens in the next few weeks!!

Our little girl is moving ALL THE TIME NOW and causing me to go to the restroom much more often than I would like...especially in the middle of the night.

She is about 3 pounds this week and about 16 inches long. Yay for having only 10 more weeks left. I can't believe how fast this is flying by!

I'm Back

I just wanted to say that I am back and all is well. We had a great vacation and I will write more about it later. That blog will just take a while to write...and I don't want to take that time right now. But we had such a great time, but it is great to be back in the USA!!!

So I will be writing once again. Sorry I have been gone for so long!