All Grown up and Graduated!

Well, today I graduated! It was great. We got to be the first graduating class to graduate in the new BYU-Idaho center! It is a beautiful building and it resembles the conference center. It is a lot bigger than the Hart auditorium is, but of course it's not nearly as big as the conference center. It seats 15,000 people! Crazy! Anyways, can't believe we made it! Well, I still have to student teach, but we are done in Rexburg FOREVER! I will miss it here a lot, but I definitely won't miss the fall/winter/spring weather! Yes, winter lasts three seasons.... usually. Plus, I am terrified to drive in the snow and especially when there is ice. It's been melting and freezing a lot and if I slide the littlest bit, I will cry... and I have a couple of times... but we're still alive and I am rambling. So, yes. Graduation was great and Marvin K. Jensen spoke to us and it was wonderful. Last night Joe and I went to the graduation banquet and got to have a little reunion with some of our closest friends who have since moved out of the ward. It was so great to see them before we move. Convocation followed and that was fun too. There were a lot of education majors graduating (A LOT more Eled than ECSE though, which is to be expected). It was just all great and I felt bad Joe has been so sick, but has still come because he is the only one here to see me do something I thought I'd never see myself do. Well, the end of the tunnel is here and it feels great. I know I couldn't have done it without my Father in Heaven, My husband, my family, and wonderful, wonderful friends who have done so much for Joe and I. Thank you everyone! :) We are excited for the next part of our life.... very nervous, but excited. We are starting our family and Joe is hoping to find a career that he enjoys. For now, he'll be selling insurance with Allstate...and who knows, maybe he'll love that. That'd be hard for me to love though. Just saying. And I probably won't start teaching teaching until our children are in school (unless something happens and I need to work) and that will be a while. I better make sure to keep my credentials up! I didn't do this for nothing! I really do want to teach one day! :) Okay, anyways, our next step is to pack and clean this apartment out! It'll be a long couple days, but it's worth it to wait and let Joe get over pneumonia and gain strength back. For now, we can do the little things... like decide what we are trashing or giving to D.I. and putting some things in boxes. Anyways, world! Next time I post, we might be in Henderson, so Merry Christmas!!! :)

Joe and I at my graduation banquet...My cheeks are huge.These are our good friends Luke and Mary and there adorable baby boy Max. They've done so much for us, and I served with Mary in the relief society presidency before her little family moved out of the ward. :)Joe got a snap of me before I went to be awarded my diploma (case, haha).Joe and I after convocation...what a trooper. Poor boy was feeling sicky.This is us and our good friends Kristen, Jared, and their cute new baby Ashlyn (they also have another little girl Kaylee who is almost 2). They are really good friends and I served with Kristen in the relief society presidency before they moved out of the ward. As you can see, they graduated together. How exciting! :)Here's a little snippet of the new BYU-Idaho center auditorium. Beautiful isn't it? This is where we had commencement this morning. Joe and I couldn't be there for the dedication of the building because Joe was bed ridden, so when we marched into here from the gym, my eyes got huge. :) I look like I am on drugs in this picture... hahaMe and my two favorite people :) Joe and Ryker. So glad they could share this special day with me! Love you boys! :)

The Promised Post

So, I was going to take a 24 week pic, but I was like what's the point in taking one every week? I should wait another 4 weeks or something and then there will definitely be a difference. I am getting big though. I went into my last appointment here in Rexburg today, and I gained 10 pounds since I went in last, 4 weeks ago. Yikes! That's a little bit more than 2 pounds a week! I don't think it will be quite that much though because lately, I have not been able to eat anything I want because I get full after my first bite! That's a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get my drift. So, we are a little bit nervous about moving and finding a doctor in Vegas and getting insurance stuff taken care of and all that stuff. I'm supposed to get that one shot in my hip at 28 weeks from my RH factor thing. Also, someone gave me advice and said that we should do Lamaze classes because Joe will have no clue how to coach me through labor or something like that. I have no clue, but maybe we'll do that when I'm like 7 months or something. I'm sure we'll be fine if we don't do that classes. Either way, whatevs. So, when me and my team (Amyra and Tandy) went to do our last intervention session for our strategies class, we took the family small thank you gifts and a thank you card for letting us come into their home and work with their child. When we were just about to get in Amyra's car, the mom said, "can you girls come back, we have something for you!" Next thing we know, they hand us all this fancy cosmetic stuff (pics below). I guess her husband used to work for some expensive cosmetic company in the past and had all this stuff the company gave to him. I'm not sure why he gave to him so much except like when the weight of the products were off and they couldn't sell them or something. So, yes. He gave us the following items. Well, he gave me a little bit more than Tandy and Amyra, but that's only because I am pregnant, and they don't need stretch mark creams. haha
So this is stretch mark cream. This is one of those products that they couldn't sell because the weight was off and ya. whatev.
This lotion is amazing. He said that they have 5 pound boxes of this (his wife must love all this) It has been great to put on my itchy itchy womb. Also, the mom came out with the nipple cream. She was afraid I'd be embarrassed, but I was like whatev. She said that I will love this when I am breastfeeding because it is very painful (so I've heard, I'm not expecting anything less than painful).
So, that silvery thing is worth $45. I would never spend that much money on any cosmetic item... well, that small anyways! It is some kind of photo finish targeted pore and line primer stuff. Fancy. They gave me an extra bottle of scar healing stuff and then a tube of scar therapy (not sure what the difference is). They also gave me this fancy tinted moisturizer for my face. Fancy!
I also got some more cute baby gifts from girls who couldn't make it. My friend Leann got all these cute sleepy time outfits!
My friend Mary gave me the cutest little cardigan three piece outfit. The onesie says "handsome like daddy" So cute!!! And my bishop and his wife gave us a soft blue blankey with a cute newborn onesie! So cute! Love!
Wednesday was my last day with the Kindergartners. I will miss this little bunch! They are all little darlings and just so silly! I will also miss my cooperating teacher. I won't use names for privacy reasons, but she is great! Love them all! I will miss the sound of their snow boots clonking around on the floor. That is one of the most amazing schools I have been in!!! :) Go Discovery Elementary Dragons! :) Oh, also I graduate next Friday and Saturday. Can't believe that! Friday they are dedicating the new BYU-Idaho center. It is supposed to be a lot like the conference center and is huge. I heard it is so beautiful. Joe and I are going to go to that and President Eyring will be speaking. We also are going to my graduation banquet at 5:00 that day. Delicious food I'm sure. After that, I will go to convocation and graduate with all my education peeps. Saturday morning will be commencement and I believe someone from the Seventy will be speaking to us, and that will be in the new BYU-Idaho center. It will be great, and I am excited to get pics in a cap and gown. It will feel more real that way... maybe. Okay, anyways, I'm going to eat some pizza and breadsticks now! Enjoy! More of you need to look at my blog! I feel like I update no one on here! Or maybe a lot of you just don't leave comments, except a few of you. You know who you are! :)

24 Weeks and Other Goodies Coming Soon!

I shall post soon, but for now, this is just a reminder to me! :)

Great News!

I have some wonderful news! I did my portfolio presentation on Wednesday. I presented myself in front of a committee of four. I sat at this table and they sat around in desks and watched me while I did a speech on my learning journey in the ECSE program. I have to admit, it was a little scary, but it wasn't at all as terrifying as I pictured. Two of them were smiling at me constantly so it made me a little bit more comfortable. They sent me out after I presented and they asked all the questions they wanted, and ten to fifteen minutes later called me back in. They said, "Cynthia, of course we feel it is unanimous that you are indeed ready to student teach." I was so very happy. Then they told me about my strengths, gave me some recommendations, and then congratulated me. I went out and jumped around with my friend Amyra and helped get her ready to go in. Since she had to sit out and wait for me, I had to wait until she was done with hers. Of course she passed because she is amazing. We went and celebrated after at Subway. She is student teaching in vegas too, so it will be exciting to still be able to see her a little bit. She is coming to visit Ryker after he is born too! :) Anyways, it was like this huge burden was lifted off my shoulders when they said I passed! :) oh, and my cooperating teacher for my kindergarten practicum sat in on the committee and she gave me a gift after. It was so sweet. This is what she gave me:
Cute huh? I love children's books! I must have told her or something. Isn't that so sweet of her? I've really had a great semester! :)
Anyways, last night was my baby shower. It was really fun. We had brownies (the most delicious chocolatey brownies ever), cake, and some yummy grapefruit soda drink. Not really sure what kind it was, but it was delicious. Ryker liked it a lot. It was very nice of my friends Kristen and Alex to throw the baby shower for me. They made it really comfortable and decorated it in a Christmasy setting. It was very nice! My friend Linda got pics of me opening gifts, but I'll post those when she gets those to me. It was super fun, and I got a lot of great gifts! Ryker will love it all! Also, thanks everyone! :)

I got a pack of 5 onesies (they are sports onesies, super cute), three hooded towels (super cute), four receiving blankets, a really soft blanket, two packs of baby wash cloths, two home made burping rags, and like 14 nursing pads. My friend Kristen made them. :)

I was so excited to get all this essential stuff! You can never have enough I've heard! I got 4 things of lotion (one is Aveeno brand) and 4 baby washes (one is Aveeno brand), a little sample of aveeno baby shampoo, some baby shampoo, and diaper rash cream (heard that stuff is magical). :)
I don't know why this pic wouldn't come up the right way, but I got a cute striped sleeper, a long sleeve moose onesie, a bib that says "Thank Heaven for little BOYS" :), a cute little green outfit with little footsies, and four burping rags! :)
Two cute striped onesies with a matching six pack of socks, a bib that says "born to eat," a cute bear blanket, cute little "things that go" book set, and little vans with dinosaurs on them. Aren't those the cutest little shoes EVER!? :)

A little lion outfit that says roar all over it with a lion bib and the pants are backwards just to show off the ROAR butt :) Also, the sleeper right next to it is REALLY soft and a girl in my ward MADE IT. She is so talented! It's for 6-9 months, but I'm pretty sure Ryker won't be that big at 6-9 months, but ya never know! :)
The little sleeper on the left is what Joe picked out right after we found out we were having a boy, a blue onesie with cute little jeans, and a cute little one piece outfit (an up close look below), and some cute little booties! :)
Isn't that so cute? I like the tie and the watch on the arm! haha!This is me yesterday after the baby shower as you can see from the stuff in the background. Over Thanksgiving break I just kind of popped out! yikes! It's exciting now though because people can tell. A little girl in Kindergarten even asked "Mrs. Gebhardt, are you pregnant?" I told her yes and that I was having a boy. She said, "I have a baby boy!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone is having such a wonderful holiday! We had fun in Ogden and had a delicious (as always) Thanksgiving dinner made by mom, and are now enjoying our time in Henderson...we had Thanksgiving dinner (or should I say lunch) with Joe's Aunt Karen, Uncle Mark, cousins, and friends. We are so grateful that they were willing to share this holiday with us! It was delicious of course. Aunt Karen cooked her turkey for 12 hours... it was so tender and juicy. Delish! It truly has been fun despite all the homework I've been doing. Finishing up my portfolio and writing my speech so I can memorize it by next Wednesday. It'll be a scary day, but it will be exciting when it is accomplished! Plus the next day will be my Rexburg baby shower. I look forward to it! I'm grateful for such wonderful friends who are so nice to do so much for me! I'm so grateful for all my family, Joe, and Joe and I are both thankful for our baby boy Ryker! We are also excited to see Kiki go through the temple tomorrow! What an exciting day for her and her family! :) She is going to Indianapolis, Indiana--the same mish her dad served in! :)
Thanksgiving Dinner at Mom's! :) Thanks Mom!
The almost finished product! Can't wait to get this wide load out of my hands and into the ECSE faculty's.

Overwhelming!

I had my first mental breakdown yesterday for the first time in a very long time... I just felt so overwhelmed with school, my calling, and the fact that we'll be moving in the next month. It's so sad! I am really going to miss Rexburg, but I know that it will be much fun starting the next chapter of our lives. It's exciting, yet very scary! I have my portfolio presentation the Wednesday after Thanksgiving break. I am TERRIFIED...as is everyone else who has to do theirs this semester. They start presentations today, and I bet my peers will do great! It will be so nice once I'm past that point. That's the scariest part of this whole program. I'm not even scared to student teach compared to this! I have to present for fifteen minutes in front of a committee (including ECSE faculty, my cooperating teacher for Kindergarten, and some dude high up in the education department) and be able to show them that I know what I need to know to move on to student teaching. They ask me any questions they want after I'm done presenting, and I have to answer them right there. Then, they send me out for like ten more minutes and wait until they call me back in. They tell me my strengths, weaknesses, give advice, and then tell me if they feel I am ready to move on to student teaching. If they don't feel I am, I FAIL. Well, they'll just have me present again the next week. Usually people pass though. The next couple weeks they look over my actual portfolio (that I've worked like 10+ hours on--still not done). This is really all I fret about right now. For my calling, I have to do visiting teaching interview, which aren't hard. They last about 5 minutes, but I'm just starting them and I have 18 girls to interview... and half of them probably won't sign up or even show. I fear it is because they haven't done their visiting teaching, but we tell them that it is okay and that we would still like to talk to them. Also, we are leaving Friday at noon to go to Utah and then Vegas for the break. We want to start moving stuff down, so we don't have to worry about getting a UHAUL, but I feel like I have NO time to start packing that stuff because I have all these other assignments. We have a Relief Society activity Thursday, which I'm second counselor so I must be there. I have an intervention session for my Strategies class Wednesday night, and aside from this I have to do the interviews. Joe is studying for a huge test to get licensed for insurance because we think that will help him get a job easier when we move, and he has been overwhelmed too... he just handles it better than me. Other than that, I am so happy and excited that we know we are having a boy! His name is Ryker Thomas. Don't judge. We love that name and that is his name! We've decided. Ryker because we just like that name and Thomas after Thomas S. Monson. Cute huh?
We had stake conference this weekend and it was wonderful, but I just get so distracted by the babies and especially the boys now that I know we are having a boy. Joe was quite distracted himself. So cute! Also, I just love looking at baby clothes, but I need to just hold off until it's baby shower time! I'm hoping someone here throws me one, but I'll end up having one no matter what, so it's okay. It'll all be fun! My friend Jessica who is the Relief Society president found out the same day that she is having a girl. Everyone thought that we would have the girl and she would have the boy. It's always the opposite of what we think. But Jess and I say that we both knew deep down inside that she was having a girl and I was having a boy. Anyways, I really need to go do some homework. Love you all family and friends! :)

It's a BOY!!!

We are pleased to announce that we are having a wonderful little boy! We are super duper excited. She didn't print any pics that show proof that it is a boy, but we have some great pictures of his head! He's so cute! They gave us a DVD of the ultrasound, and I just watched it. Definitely a boy. Not that I doubted it because I'm pretty they wouldn't make a mistake, but when she said it's pretty clear I kept missing the screen because I was looking at Joe and talking about how surprised he was. He was sure it was a girl, but he is very excited to have a boy too. We both are! Ah! I can't even describe how excited I am! I think it's just the fact that we finally know to say "he." Ok, since everyone has been asking... we like the names Ryker or Ethan. We haven't really looked too much into it though, so we aren't sure on first or middle names or whatever. Anyways, we are so excited about our baby boy! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!!!