A Year in the Life . . .

I thought it would be really fun to do a post with pictures of myself over the last year (not because I am narcassistic) so that those of you who have not had the pleasure of watching my belly become explosively large can see the progression! Trust me, it is a much prettier process in the pictures than it was in real life. Poor Dan had to put up with all the sickness and hormones.

This is a picture of me and my mom, about a year ago. (OK, a year ago in April) My parents came to Moscow because I bribed my mom with tickets to see Elton John. It was an awesome visit, and we had so much fun. At the time, I didn't imagine that within a year I would be twice my normal size!


A few months later in July I went to Fullerton, CA to visit my BFF Jenny because I wanted to see her while she was prego. At the time, she was about 8 months pregnant. I like to look at this picture now, because we have basically swapped positions. Almost as soon as Jenny had little Gus, I got pregnant with little Alma. Literally, almost to the day!

This picture was taken at the very beginning of my pregnancy . . . we just didn't know it yet! So, please ignore the fact that I am in a bar.

My size didn't really start changing until around Christmas time, thanks to the morning sickness that kept me throwing up morning, noon, and night, for the first four and a half months. It was so bad I actually had to get an IV at one point because I hadn't kept anything down in five days. Blech. I am sooo glad that part is over! This picture was taken in January, just as my little belly was starting to poke out. I thought I was huge then! Obviously I was clueless.

By February I was starting to show quite a bit more . . . and people were starting to take notice!

In March I really started to pop out, and we started to take a lot more pictures.

I had to post this picture, because I think it's funny. Dan and I were in desperate need of some fun by St. Patrick's Day, so we had an Irish party. I made corned beef and cabbage, bought fun party hats, and we celebrated together. I was going to buy Dan some Guiness Beer, but when I went to the store to buy it I was too embrassed.





By April I was learning a whole new definition of the word HUGE! When my parents and sister came for a visit we all went bowling, obviously I couldn't bowl, but I felt like I fit right in at the bowling alley since I looked like I had a bowling ball shoved up my shirt.

By the end of April and early May, I was feeling ready to have the baby. I don't feel like it is possible for my stomach to stretch out any further! But, I have resigned myself to the fact that I have no choice over when Alma decides to make her grand entrance into the world. Dan and I are patiently waiting (well, at least Dan is patient) and I can't wait to start posting pictures of her as soon as she is born!

April Showers

I was very fortunate to have two beautiful baby showers in one week! The first was on a Sunday afternoon here in Moscow and was thrown by my Aunt Wendy and my cousin Misty (on Dan's side). This shower was a lot of fun! My girlfriend Jenni, the amazing cake baker, was nice enough to offer her services for a cake. She did an incredible job on this jungle themed cake that was just as delicious as it looks. She must have spent hours cutting out all these little animals, and her efforts did not go unnoticed. Thanks Jenni! You should all check out her blog at www.jennissweettreat.blogspot.com and see some of her other amazing creations. Tons of people showed up for this shower, and it seemed like I spent hours opening wonderful gifts from everybody we know. I got a lot of great things, like a pack n play, a stroller/car seat, and lots of lovely homemade gifts like a quilt, receiving blankets, and some adorable nighties that Grandma Schenck made.

Misty and Wendy did a wonderful job and I cannot thank them enough! I don't have many pictures to post from this shower though, because my camera batteries died halfway through. Perhaps once I get more pictures from Annette I will post them.

The following Saturday I had a lovely shower in Pocatello that my mom and my sister Rissie threw for me. I flew down on Friday night just for the occasion. My mom went ALL out on this shower! We had it at the church, and my mom not only had a professional cake, but she had beautiful table cloths, favors for everybody there, a lovely luncheon, and stunning floral centerpieces. It was the fanciest baby shower I have ever seen. This is a picture of my mom at the buffet table. We had turkey and avocado croissants with several delicious salads and punch.

The room was decorated in lovely shades of pink and my mom used gerber daisies for the arrangements because gerbs are my favorite flower! If you look closely you will see that she made adorable little gift boxes for everybody to take home as favors. She gave the arrangements away as prizes for winning games.

My Great Aunt Betty was able to come for the shower. She is my grandma's sister and we just love her. She is the tiniest woman I have ever met, she makes me look really tall!

This is a great picture of me and some of my Aunt's. There is my mom, Aunt Karla, Aunt Mardyne, and Aunt Jan. My Aunt Karla made not one, but two beautiful afghans for the baby. Aunt Jan made some adorable pajamas and burp rags, and my Aunt Mardyne gave us the cutest little daisy print dress you have ever seen!

At this shower almost everything we received was homemade. We got tons of receiving blankets and burp rags and other items. We did get a lot of clothes, and some awesome stuffed animals. My sister Rissie gave us some amazing picture frames that she painted to match Alma's jungle themed bedroom. I don't have any pics of me and Rissie because she had to leave for work before I could get any! The best gifts though came from my Mom who made not one but two awesome quilts. This one is jungle themed, the other is not, but they are both equally amazing! Thanks Mom and Rissie for an awesome shower! The most amazing part is that I was able to get everything home with me on the plane!

NOLA

In April Dan and I took what will probably be our very last trip together without kids in tow . . . and what better place than New Orleans. Why would Darci fly to NOLA at 7 months prego you might wonder? Well, my BFF Jenny, who also happens to be a genius, was invited to present some of her research at the National Conference of American Studies. Since she has a little baby she invited me to come along and watch him for her while she was presenting. Then, when we found out I was prego, Dan decided to come with me so that I wouldn't have to travel by myself. It was a good thing too, because travelling there was a nightmare! One of our flights was delayed, and we ended up getting rerouted through Newark, NJ, where we had to spend the night before getting to NOLA a day late. Whew - I have never been that swollen or uncomfortable in my life. We did get to see the sun come up over the New York City skyline before we left the next day, so that was pretty fun.


We took this picture the first night there. This is an old apartment complex in the French quarter right on Jackson Square. The architecture in the quarter was amazing!


This is Dan and I just outside the French Market. I really enjoy the fact that my shirt is practically neon and makes my belly look huge!





One of our favorite things about NOLA was riding the trolley everywhere we went. Not only was it cheap, it got us everywhere we needed to go, and saved my feet from being even more swollen than they already were. This is a picture of me, Jenny, and little baby Gus (who was very worn out!)



We rode the trolley all the way to the French Market where we got to see all kinds of interesting things made by local artists. They had lots of mardi gras masks and amazing artwork. Unfortunately, we didn't buy much. Dan did find some awesome hot sauce that he gave his brother for his birthday.

After wandering around the French Market we sat down for drinks and a snack at the LA Pizza Factory, which is apparentaly quite famous.

We had all kinds of interesting food while we were there. Dan was in heaven, because most everything he ate consisted of fried fish - his two favorite things! This is a picture of Dan eating a Mufalletta. I am still not sure what it is, but he felt compelled to eat the entire thing and was stuffed for the rest of the day. Later that night when he ordered batter fried alligator he could barely finish his plate. He say's it was because he was still full . . . but I secretly suspect that it was really because fried alligator is disgusting.

Since we were only there for a day and a half (after our delay) we didn't get to see much outside of the French Quarter. We did get to take a carriage ride around the quarter, ride the trolley cars, eat lots of interesting food, and meet some fun people. Most important though, we got to spend time with Jenny and Gus who we hadn't seen in quite a while (they live in Orange County) and we got to take one last vacation together.

Palouse River Falls

A few weeks ago we had one of our first beautiful days of Spring, so we decided to take a little day trip to Palouse River Falls. I had never been before and Dan assured me it was the perfect time of year to go. So we packed a picnic lunch and drove down. When we got there we were surprised by the amount of people. Tons of people were hanging out sightseeing and picnicing with their families. We staked out a nice picnic table in the shade and enjoyed our lunch. My mom freaked out about this picture of me because she thought I was too close to the edge. So, fear not, I was in no danger! Dan is just the master of angular photography.