Yay for cooler weather!

We have been loving this awesome weather lately...and that's about the most exciting thing to happen to us lately!
But I want to do a better job of updating this blog so I'll update anyway.
Things are great for us :) We loved General Conference...

... as you can see.
No we really did, this was just the very end of the second Saturday session. Love my boys. I enjoyed all of the talks, especially the ones on parenting, I thought were especially pertinent to myself. But the talk by President Eyring on the Book of Mormon was awesome. He invited us to drink deeply from the pages of the Book of Mormon daily. I appreciated his message.
The pregnancy is going well :) I wish I could get an ultrasound at each prenatal appointment so I can watch my baby grow. I can't get enough of the pictures I have from my 10 week check-up. I'm now 13 weeks and feeling good. I haven't dealt with a lot of pregnancy sickness, although I have had a cold and flu here and there. I never did get an ultrasound of my rib, but if it was fractured it's slowly healing. I took some antibiotics and that helped a lot with the cough, along with a blessing I got from Jacob. So I'm mostly better! Yay.
Nick had a bad flu last week. It had been circulating around our ward, but he's better now.
We'll find out the gender of the baby on November 28th! I'll be 21 weeks. That's later than I would have liked but it was between either barely 19 weeks or 21 weeks and I don't want to risk having a mis-reading, so I opted for the later.
Jacob is working, working, working! The first couple years as a teacher are the hardest because it's so much to get used to. But we're excited for the end of this first term because then he'll just be re-teaching all the stuff he has taught so far. And he already taught the second semester material during his semester of student teaching earlier this year. So we're going to celebrate by going to Apple Hill on the 15th! I cannot wait! I love Apple Hill because it brings back so many memories from when I was young and it's so wonderful to enjoy the fall season up in the Hills. And of course, I cannot wait for the Apple Pie! Yum, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.
We were tempted to think about buying a house with these phenomenally low interest rates, but we decided it would be better to wait a couple of years, since a teaching job is not exactly the most reliable thing in CA right now ;) I had even found the PERFECT house and everything :( But we don't want to dig ourselves too deep too soon. The place we're at right now is great, and we love our ward. So I'll just have to be patient.
Life is great, we are so blessed! We're so excited for the festivities of this Holiday season, and for all the babies that will be coming to our friends and family within the next few months! It's a mini baby boom. Gotta love it!

A New Addition!

Pierce baby #2 is on the way! I'm 10 weeks, due around April 9th. I'm feeling a girl vibe, but we'll find out for sure near Thanksgiving.

Nick has mixed emotions about the baby on the way...

He's happy...



And sad...



And scared...



And crazy excited!





In other news, I may have fractured a rib from all the coughing I've been doing for the past month. I'll go in for an X-ray this week to see for sure. Lets hope the medicines I was given do help to clear this cough up! I haven't been able to sub because of it, so it's been nice to spend more time with my boy at home, but I do look forward to being well enough to work some.

But in all, we feel so blessed with everything that has happened lately. We found out I was pregnant two days before Jacob got his new job. So now we have a great benefits package that just started up this month. I was finally able to be seen for this annoying cough as well as for the first prenatal check-up. The timing has worked out well!

Update

Hello Everyone,

I know I'm likely writing to myself and possibly just a couple other people, so you probably already know...
Jacob got a job! He will be teaching Biology and General Science at a school nearby. He also passed the Physics CSET, so he is qualified to teach Physics as well, although he won't be this year. (he is also qualified to teach English at the junior high level, but we probably won't have to ever tap in on that.)School starts on Monday so he has been real busy preparing for that. We're so grateful he got this job! We were expecting to have to wait at least a year for him to get a job, so this was a pleasant surprise.

Other than that, the most recent really cool thing to happen in our household is the new Robin cape I made for Nick! It will be part of his Halloween costume; Jacob will be Batman ;) Maybe I'll even be catwoman.





I'm going to re-do the neck line of the cape so it scoops down and is a little more comfortable.

The first of many costumes to come, I'm sure!

Summer Break!

Hello everybody! Yes, we're still alive.
Tomorrow is Jacob's last day of his credential program! He will be able to teach secondary science. He is going to take the Physics CSET and if he passes then he will be able to teach that as well. He has put so much work into these past three semesters, I am so proud of and grateful for him. This past month he was able to take over as a long-term sub for one of the teachers in his department at school, so that was really nice to get paid for a portion of his time. But we look forward to when he has a job, which will (hopefully!) be this next fall. He will be applying for jobs all around the Sacramento/Elk Grove area. We really love the Sacramento area and most of our family is around here, so we hope to settle here.

Lately I have been working as a substitute teacher, 2-4 days a week, and the event specialist job (passing out samples & selling product) a couple Saturdays a month. Nick has been going to an in-home child care place in EG twice a week, and he has really enjoyed that. It has been good for him to get some time to be with peers and he really likes his caretaker (sounds weird to call her that, I just don't want to put specific names on here...). And he spent Thursdays with Grammy and Papa. He loves going over there, he talks about Papa a lot and now he calls Grammy "Mart-ma", which is what he calls his grandmas and grandpas.It has been a busy semester, and we're looking forward to a break and having Daddy around more.

I am training for a half marathon! On my little boy's 2nd birthday, July 16th, I'll run the Davis Moo-nlight half marathon, in the evening. We'll probably have a lunch party for Nick that day and I'll head up later on to do my thing. I doubt Jacob and Nick will come; that's a bit too late for my little guy to be out. I have been wanting to run a half for a very long time, but haven't been consistent enough in my running. So I'm finally doing it, and I can't wait. I ran 6 1/2 miles yesterday, and I'm pretty sore from that, but I think 2 more months will be sufficient time to get ready.

And next week we're going CAMPING!!! Camping with the Pierces is always a ton of fun, plus this year Nick is going to be able to enjoy it even more. We fully anticipate having a very happy boy while camping; he is going to be in his element :) I hadn't ever been to New Brighton Beach until I started dating Jacob, and it is my kind of camping! It's not just camping; it has the beach just a short walk away, Santa Cruz beach boardwalk like a mile away along with the wharf, it's close to town so you can get supplies pretty quick and go to the movies, plus it has showers, which is always a plus :) It's the ultimate camping vacation.

So we are alive and well. We are trying to soak up each day with our little boy. He is getting so big so fast. I'll do an update on our sweet baby shortly!

It's a Boy's Club!

Alright. Time for some updates and some new pics...
Jacob and Nick and I are now living with Jacob's sister, Jessica, in a great 3 bedroom apartment literally across the street from Sac State. Thank you low-income housing! The place has worked out great for us so far; it has very open and welcoming grounds and is very family-friendly. Jacob has been busy with his first semester in the Sac State teaching credential program, working as a substitute teacher when he can, and working 4-8 hours at ToysRUs on Saturdays, to bring in the big bucks ;)(Every little bit counts!)You would think it would be a great money-saver, living across the street from Sac State, so Jake could walk to his classes. It is, for the classes he has on campus, which is just 2. Most of his classes actually meet in Elk Grove at Kerr Middle School, so he is commuting anyway. But it all works out alright.
I have been busy at home with the little guy. It is such a blessing for our family that I am able to stay home right now! This is my dream job; there is nothing better than being a mother. Lately I have been into jogging with my BOB stroller, working out with my new Yoga DVD, and doing a bit of sewing.
Nick has been busy, busy busy!!! He is crawling everywhere and pulling up on anything he can. He is very curious about everything around him, and he can get pretty upset when he can't get what he wants. He knows what "no, no" means, and he doesn't like it. Yesterday he waved at me for the first time! He was playing in his crib, being all cute, and he looks at me over the top bar with a sly grin on his face, and gives a little wave. It looked more like he was grabbing the air, but I knew what he meant. It is crazy how quickly he learns. He will be 9 months on the 16th.
Jacob is always saying our home is a boy's club, and it's true. Nick LOVES his daddy!




He also loves what his daddy loves.


Nick also loves going for walks/jogs, going on the swing, and playing with his toys.



And by "playing" with his toys, I mean eating his toys and using his feet like a monkey!



Signing out for now...

I am so bad at blogging!!!

Nicholas Jacob Pierce was born on the 16th of July at 1:16pm. He was 8 lbs 9 oz and 21" long.



He is now 3 months old, 16 lbs and about 25" long!

Such a happy boy :)


We have been enjoying bath times...




Nap times...


Lazy Sunday mornings...




Walks to the park...








Sleeping in the stroller...


And lots and lots of smiles.














More recently, Nick has been enjoying his teething ring...




Reading with Grandpa...




And his brand new froggy hat from Apple Hill.


These past few months have gone by quickly and have been so much fun. Jacob just finished a job that was temporary, but extremely helpful. He is applying for substitute teaching and has applied to Sac State's high school teaching credential program. We'll find out soon whether or not he was accepted.
I have recently begun to work out again! Just jogging, very slowly, so far, but I'll work my way up. I am feeling more and more normal each week.
Life is pretty good. We are healthy and happy and enjoying the California weather ;)

Time Flies...

So it has been an interesting last few months. Jake and I finished school!!! We did not walk, but celebrated on our own with friends. We were planning on staying in Provo through the summer and moving back to Cali after the baby was born so Jacob could start substitute teaching in the fall. However, about two weeks before the end of the semester we found out that since Jacob was graduating in April, he could not work for BYU custodial over the summer. This came as quite a shock and changed all our plans. Since we were coming back to CA in August, nobody would hire Jake for just a few months, not to mention companies were cutting back all over the place anyway. So after much thought and consideration we decided to come back to CA in May and get things going here. With the job market as it is, it has been some rough going trying to find a job here. So we are staying with Jacob's family until we are able to get a job, which hopefully will be the end of summer at the latest (cross your fingers). Surprising news: as of now we feel pretty good about Jacob becoming a cop! There's an application process that includes a bunch of tests over a few months, so he would likely not start the academy until December or January. We will still try for the substitute teaching in the fall, but we'll see how that goes since teachers are being laid off all over California. Jake and I are both taking he CBEST- the test required for all substitute teachers- this Saturday, and then we can start applying :)

Our Graduation Announcement


Moving pics. Leaving our first apartment :(






BABY SHOWER!
My best friend, Emily Pearson, threw me a baby shower before we left. It was a ton of fun with friends and family that were able to come! Emily made the Relief Society room look so nice with her creative decorations and delicious food! I wish I had taken more pics of the actual shower, but here are a few pre-shower pictures.











JACOB'S BDAY!
Jacob had his 25th birthday on Monday the 8th and since we are here in CA we got to celebrate with family! His sister, Stephanie, works at Round Table pizza and she got us a good deal there. I tried my hand at making a cake and decorating it. Jacob's mom is an experienced cake decorator and had a lot of awesome decorating tools. Had I given myself more time I could have been more creative, but it was fun nonetheless. Jacob got some nice gifts and had fun being able to celebrate with family.











PREGO PROGRESS
As far as our little guy is concerned, things seem to be going really well. As of tomorrow I will be 36 weeks along! Before we know it, we'll have our baby with us. He is getting so heavy that I can no longer sleep lying down, even on my sides, because my stomach gets too squished and I become nauseous. So for the past couple of weeks I have been sleeping propped up on the couch. I have been lucky because Jacob's parents actually have very comfortable couches for sleeping on.

So that's pretty much it for now. Things have gone very differently than we had planned, but we are so blessed to be able to stay here with family. After being away at school for so long, it is very nice to be close to both of our families and be able to share this exciting time with them!