Life in the Ward Family

We got back from Wyoming on Wednesday and I haven't downloaded pictures yet but thought I'd give an update on everything going on in the Ward family. Life never slows down. Jocelynn continues to grow, learn and won't slow down. I continue to try to enjoy every moment. I'm 22 weeks pregnant and it has gone by fast. At first when I was sick, it felt like a long time but now time seems to move faster. My stomach is a lot bigger this time around then with Jocelynn. I was still getting sick after the 1st trimester and was wondering what was the deal. It was frustrating. I'd be super bloated, nauseous and felt like only laying in bed. Finally after talking with my friend, she had the same problem, I realized it was what I was eating. When I was pregnant with Jocelynn, I worked everyday. Left my house by 5am and got home by 5pm. I packed lunch everyday and it was all healthy things. When I got home I rarely cooked. I would eat chicken or salad. No wonder I felt so good, I ate well. Now that I stay home it's a lot different. I cook every night and you can't just cook chicken and salad for kids or they won't eat so I cook a variety of things. Not all of them are healthy, though I try my best. Here are some things I've eliminated form my diet and feel much better . . .

• Ground beef (this is the worst, the thought makes me sick)
• Onions
• Anything spicy
• tomatoes
• Anything too greasy
• Certain chips

Since I've tried to stay away from that my pregnancy has been much better. The baby still doesn't move all that much. I get this sweet feeling when the baby moves. The baby feels so calm. I know this all can change as time goes on. It's just different then Jocelynn. She kicked, danced, etc 24/7. I may not feel the baby as much also because I'm constantly moving all day. With Jocelynn, I was sitting at a desk and was still all day long. I take Jocelynn to the appointments with me and really enjoy doing that. It's something we get to experience together. She lays on the table with me as the doctor checks me. When we saw the baby last time, she put up her shirt for the doctor to check her baby in her tummy. It was sweet. She can't go a day without talking to the baby. We've been around so many pregnant women the past year that I really think she understands. She says to me "Baby gets bigger and then comes out of mommy!" When she talks to the baby my shirt has to be up. She has learned that we can't do that out in public. I'm excited for her to be a big sister. I know she'll be a good one. She loves babies and this past year we've been around so many that it has been good for her. A couple more of my friends will be having babies before me so it'll be good for her. She sweet and gentle and can't wait to experience these times with her.

Jocelynn will be 2 1/2 years on April 4th. She always seems a lot older to me. Her communication is amazing. She speaks so clear and continues to ask questions. SHe uses her 5 W's often (Who, what when where why). Her newest question was "Mom, what are you talking for?" I thought this was very rude and didn't know how to respond. I was thinking because I want to! I finally noticed after a couple of days she was asking this, when I was talking to someone. She meant to say "what am I talking about?" Last month, she learned how to sign and spell her name out loud and has learned the alphabet in sign language. I continue to try to help her to grow because she soaks it all up. We also worked on "Same and Different." The game Memory helped with that and that is her favorite game. She gets so excited when she gets a match. Jocelynn loves to play games, play outside and read books. She loves to pretend. A new book we got was called "Pete's Pizza." It's about a little boy who is bored and his dad pretends to make him into a pizza. He lays him on the table, kneads the dough, puts( pepporoni checkers), cheese (paper) and puts him in the oven (on the couch) and then pretends to eat him. JOcelynn says to her dad last night "Can you make me into a pizza and brought him the book." It's cute to watch them together. She loved it! Many of her books are memorized and she reads them herself. She is a great helper and is great with helping me with laundry. She gets her stool, puts soap in the washer and I put a pile of dirty clothes next to it and she puts one in at a time. She also loves to wipe down the tables with a sponge. I know she would love to wash the floors with me, if I would do it when she's awake but I can see that being a wet mess so I usually don't do it when she's awake. Although Jocelynn is smart and sweet, there is also another side to Jocelynn. She can either be outgoing and funny to those she knows or sassy and quiet. A couple months ago she started throwing bad tantrums. Many times I've had to leave the store and go home. Walking up 3 flights of stairs with a toddler arching her back and being a pregnant is a lot of work and can be emotionally draining. She has a hard time gaining control of her emotions. Many times she forgets why she's so upset and I hug her to calm her down. She says while she's throwing a fit "I just want to be happy mom!" We've used time outs and taking her favorite toys away when she shows bad behavior and that seems to help. She is very shy and takes awhile to warm up to people. She gets nervous in new situations and will not say a word if she's not comfortable. She won't say Hi to people and won't smile at you. When people say Hi at the store I say "Jocelynn say Hi and I wave her hand." It's kind of funny because I know she can and she knows she can but she doesn't want to. She continues to make James and I laugh.

MOnday was our 7 year anniversary. Hard to believe 7 years has gone by. So much has happened.

• Lived in Corona and Ontario
• Moved 2 times
• Both graduated with Bachelors, James his Masters
• Had a child with another on the way
• Bought our first place
• Bought 1 car since we've been married
• Took our first vacation out of state last year to Oregon

I'm so excited for the future. James and I have so many goals in life that nothing will stop us. "Success is our only option." That has always been our motto. I have plans to be a Speech Pathologist either in the hospitals or in the school system. James has his career goals also. We look forward to expanding our family, traveling the world and growing closer to our Savior and each other. Life is so wonderful. I know we have hard days ahead but now is the time to anchor our testimonies with our Heavenly Father and when that time comes we WILL be able to make it through with him by our side.