Yesterday Ben and I went to the doctors to get an ultrasound.  The reason for the ultrasound is not to find out the sex of the baby however they gladly point it out if you want to know. And boy did I want to know!! I’ve felt for quite a while that the baby was a girl.  I’ve always wanted a boy first so my girls could all have the older brother I’ve always wanted.  However, immediately after I got pregnant the Lord began softening my heart towards the possibility of having a girl. I remember even feeling the urgency to pick a girl name. (Ben and I already had a boy name picked out before I even got pregnant.)

Yesterday the ultrasound revealed that the feature that every boy needs to be a boy was missing. I was elated! I was having a girl!

She already acts like a Crane. She was soooo stubborn!! The doctor kept calling her a stinker because she was so hard to work with. She kept her face down in my spine and her legs crossed.  The poor doctor had to piece all of the pictures together in order to find what he needed.  Every now and then she would pop her face up and then right back down like she was teasing us.   She’s already so much like her parents!! She kept her hands rolled up into fists and over her face for the most part. She did do a couple cute things like yawn and interlock her little fingers to hold her hands together. Even with all of her natural biological stubborness we were able to see that she is a healthy, growing baby.  She has all five fingers and five toes, her kidneys and heart look great and she even has her mom’s gut! Poor thing! The doctor copied several pictures for us (he gave us so many because none are super great) and even made us a video.

After seeing her growth the doctor gave me the due date of August 11 at 7 am. (My mom’s birthday!) That is the exact date that the health center gave me when I first found out I was pregnant.  Everything is on track!

I  couldn’t believe how happy I was after I found out. I was finally able to see MY baby and connect with her. Yesterday I had one of the happiest moments of my life and I will never forget it. Little Halle Marie is on her way!

Today I had my four month check up.  When I got to the doctor’s office everyone welcomed me and acted like they had been waiting for me. I told them how good they were at making people feel special. I later found out that Doctor Nance was scheduled for a delivery and was in a super big hurry. They had called all of the later appointments and told them to come earlier. That is all of the later appointments except me! He was paged while he was talking to me and had to run out. (Good thing we were done!)

Today was really exciting because I got to hear the heart beat again. However this time it was crystal clear. The heart beat was incredibly fast and Doctor Nance guessed that the baby is a girl.  I got weighed in as normal and found out that I’ve gained a whopping two and a half pounds. Again I was surprised because of the amount of food I eat I thought for sure I would have gained 8 pounds at least. (Plus my pants are all too tight to button up now.) The nurse said that 4 pounds is the average that they like, but they’ll take the two.  I was super sick last week so that might have something to do with not gaining so much.

I made two appointments for next month. One with my doctor just as a regular check up and another one to find out what the baby is. YEAH!!!! Finally I’ll be able to buy stuff and start planning.  I should also be able to feel the baby move by the next month which thrills me.   That pretty much sums it up, the appointment took about 10 minutes.  Until next month…..

Today it has been a year since Ben and I went on our first date after I got home from my mission. Tender I know! haha So here’s to my man!

What is his name? Benton Deloss Crane

How long have you been married? Eight months and one day!

Who long did you date? 2 months before I left for my mission, and five weeks before he proposed after the mission.

How old is he? 25

How old are you? 23

Who eats more sweets? It depends. If Ben is in his “snacking mood” then he for sure does. If he’s not then I do. He definitely loves Veggies more than I do!

Who said “I love you” first? Ben did. I waited for a moment to make sure I really meant it and that I wasn’t just saying it in response. I found out later that that made him nervous and he thought maybe he said it too soon. I just wanted to make him sweat a little. 🙂

Who is taller? Ben

Who can sing better? Ben, but it’s not hard to sing better than me.

Who is smarter? Ben for sure! He is so diligent and loves learning.
Who does the laundry? Me
Who does the dishes? Ben, which is ironic because he used to pay his siblings to do his dishes on his dish night. Now he would rather clean up than cook and I love it!

Who pays the bills? Last semester I did. This semester he does.

His guilty pleasures? Maple bars and chocolate donuts from Winder Dairy.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Ben

Besides you, who is his best friend? Jeff Harmon. Those two could philosophize forever!!

Who cooks dinner? Me. However, Ben has been really great when I’ve been sick because of the baby.

Who drives? Ben has this thing about riding with people. There are only a few select people he doesn’t mind riding along with. I am not one of them!

Who is more stubborn? How funny we were just talking about this the other day. Him! 🙂

Who kissed who first? Ben kissed me first. He couldn’t resist!

Who asked who out first? We were set up on a blind date by a mutual friend. she gave him my number and he called. I said no and then later called him and asked him out. It’s a long story!

What was your first date? We jumped on his motorcycle and went and watched some fireworks. Little did he know those were two of my favorite things. Motorcycles and fireworks! Later we went back to his house and talked and played some games.

Who proposed? Ben. On my parents driveway while I was wearing his sweatpants after we spent the night at his parents house. haha

Who has more siblings? Ben has five other siblings. I only have one.

Who wears the pants? Ben, but I buckle the belt. 🙂

What is your favorite thing about him? Everything! Ben is such a hard worker and a good lover. Everyone said that I would love him more as time went on but I wasn’t sure how that would be possible because I loved him so much already when we got married. Now I know!

Love ya Benton!

Ben and I went to the doctors yesterday for my monthly checkup. It was a pretty quick appointment. They took my blood pressure, weighed me, let me ask a few questions and the best part of all we got to listen to our babies heart beat. Anyone who knows me knows that I am a big worrier! Since I’ve been pregnant I’m constantly worried about the baby. When I heard the heart beat yesterday, many of my worries were put at ease. It was hard to hear the babies heart beat with mine in the background, but it was there as rapid and strong as ever. The worry of my weight gain was also put at ease. I had secretly weighed myself at a friends house and according to that scale- I had gained 8 pounds. I didn’t doubt it for a second because I have been eating like crazy. Every couple hours to be exact or else I get really sick. Anyway, I figured if I kept gaining that much by the end of my pregnancy I would have gained over 60 pounds. I can’t afford 60 pounds!! (Even if I am pregnant!) Yesterday when they weighed me at the doctor’s office I was prepared to hear how much I gained. To my surprise I had only gained one pound. What a relief!!! The nurse told me that was about how much they wanted me to gain and now after the thirteenth week they wanted me to gain a pound a week. I haven’t quite got used to the idea of gaining a pound a week from here on out, yet I’m just happy I only gained one pound instead of 8 so far. The moral of the story-always compare weight using the same scale! 🙂

Even though I’ve not quite gained two pounds from the pregnancy I’m starting to get a little belly.  The part from my belly button down sticks out and won’t suck in.  My pants are indeed tighter and from the looks of things elastic waist bands are going to become my best friend really soon.

My emotions have been off the scale lately. On Monday night we watched the very sensitive movie Rocky II. During which I started bawling and couldn’t stop. I didn’t have any reason to cry, yet I couldn’t stop. I’m so grateful for Ben. He is so good to me. He just hugged me and let me cry. I’m sure he thought I was crazy but he never suggested that. Everyone deserves a husband as great as I have.

A couple of years ago my husband had the fabulous idea of keeping one’s journal online. He was sick of carrying around his journal and trying to find time to write in it. For awhile he kept it in his backpack or locker trying to find a few spare minutes here and there where he could pull it out and jot down a few things. As he carried it around he got more and more frustrated. He then had the brilliant idea of using the computer and the internet to keep all of his journal entries in one place where he could access them anywhere at anytime. I’m willing to bet that the average American spends more time on the computer than off. With this in mind it makes perfect sense to combine journaling with the ease of using the internet. Enter Pyxlin! Pyxlin is Ben’s idea of keeping one’s journal online. One is able to access it anywhere they have an internet connection. Pyxlin allows one to title entries and categorize them, and to add pictures to entries and tag people or subjects within the entry for an easy find later on. Pyxlin also allows one to click publish and the company MemoryPress will print the journal into a beautiful hardbound book. Keeping a journal has never been so easy! You never need to worry about anyone reading your journal or it being destroyed or lost. Because it is on the internet it is always preserved and safe. If you do print one out and then lose it, no worries it is all still safe online. Also as far as being private, every time you access your journal you are required to log in with your personal ID and password. Making your journal for your eyes only. If you go to the website www.pyxlin.com you can try it out with the free trial. It will be amazing to see how the ease increases the amount of times you write in your journal. Journals are so important and we all know we feel guilty for not writing in them as much as we know we should. Here is your chance to improve and get rid of that guilty feeling.

One of my favorite quotes is, “smile, you never know when you are making a memory.”

Now write it down so you will remember it!!!

I found out early last month that I am expecting a baby and I have been sick ever since. When I went to the doctors for a different aliment they asked if it was possible that I was pregnant. I told them that it was a possibility and then they started listing off symptoms- all of which I had been experiencing but hadn’t given a second thought. After peeing in a cup and waiting 15 minutes I was told I was going to have a baby and my due date was August 11th (My mom’s birthday). After crying from the shock I couldn’t wait to go home and tell my husband. Unfortunetly I couldn’t go home until my last class finished at 5:30. All day I felt like I was going to burst with the news I was keeping as a secret. I considered calling Ben but decided I wanted to tell him in person. Ben and I continued to keep our secret for about a month until we gave our families a Christmas gift of Baby items. They were all so ecstatic because this will be the first grand baby on both sides. (I know spoiled rotten immediately comes to mind.)

I have decided that pregnancy is similar to faith. Someone tells you that you are pregnant and you believe them. You begin having symptoms or maybe you’ve already been experiencing a few of them. The symptoms remind you that you are indeed pregnant and the nurse was telling the truth. Every now and then you begin to doubt and think how is it possible? I don’t have a belly yet and I haven’t felt any overwhelming spiritual connection with the little person inside of me. Do you see the connection to faith? As we begin to develop faith we see little reassurances along the way that what we are starting to believe is true. Then doubts enter our mind and we wonder if it’s all true. Maybe at times we think something is wrong with us because we aren’t having this amazing spiritual experience and everything seems a little normal. Our lives haven’t changed drastically and we wonder if we were wrong to believe in the first place. Yet, deep down you truly believe and you are excited at the thought of the future that lies ahead of you with your new information.

Just like faith produces amazing results when allowed to develop, the little person inside of me is going to change the world. At least my world. I’m grateful for the opportunity to be pregnant and I wish every woman had the opportunity to experience what I am just now beginning to.

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Originally uploaded by crane.brittany

I’m married to a football player and didn’t even know it! This past semester Ben played in the BYU-Idaho tackle football league. He had never played tackle football in an organized league and seemed pretty excited as he got started. Ben played on the Knights team which ended up being the best in the league and ended their season with seven wins and only one loss. I was impressed by the crowds the games brought out. (Especially the 10 pm games)
On thing that I think helped was how Ben’s team seemed to “bond”. Ben’s team had several team dinners, provided by some of the local teammates mothers, and even an early morning breakfast at JB’s. Ben went by Benton the entire season because their were two other Ben’s on the team. Ben played the corner back position because of his speed. He was positioned on the outside edge and guarded the receivers. (In case you didn’t know what a corner back was.) One particular game they finally called a “superstar” play (one Ben had been requesting) and Ben sacked the quarterback. It was awesome!
This picture is of us after his last game. A game that was at 9 pm in 13 degree weather. I had my thermals on and a blanket and still shivered the ENTIRE game. I don’t remember being so cold! It ended up being a close game and they won in the last couple of minutes by one point. Boy was I nervous!
Well, like I said before I married a football player and didn’t even know it. The funny thing is I don’t think he knew it either. The season lasted about two months and now his cleats are hung up and he is retired. Ben would protest that he wasn’t any good but it’s not true. I’m glad he got his dream come true of suiting up and playing in the “big leagues” haha

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Originally uploaded by crane.brittany

I’m married to a football player and didn’t even know it! This past semester Ben played in the BYU-Idaho tackle football league. He had never played tackle football in an organized league and seemed pretty excited as he got started. Ben played on the Knights team which ended up being the best in the league and ended their season with seven wins and only one loss. I was impressed by the crowds the games brought out. (Especially the 10 pm games)
On thing that I think helped was how Ben’s team seemed to “bond”. Ben’s team had several team dinners, provided by some of the local teammates mothers, and even an early morning breakfast at JB’s. Ben went by Benton the entire season because their were two other Ben’s on the team. Ben played the corner back position because of his speed. He was positioned on the outside edge and guarded the receivers. (In case you didn’t know what a corner back was.) One particular game they finally called a “superstar” play (one Ben had been requesting) and Ben sacked the quarterback. It was awesome!
This picture is of us after his last game. A game that was at 9 pm in 13 degree weather. I had my thermals on and a blanket and still shivered the ENTIRE game. I don’t remember being so cold! It ended up being a close game and they won in the last couple of minutes by one point. Boy was I nervous!
Well, like I said before I married a football player and didn’t even know it. The funny thing is I don’t think he knew it either. The season lasted about two months and now his cleats are hung up and he is retired. Ben would protest that he wasn’t any good but it’s not true. I’m glad he got his dream come true of suiting up and playing in the “big leagues” haha

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Originally uploaded by crane.brittany

This is my new family. Aren’t they cute? They would probably all kill me for saying that. haha On the left we have Tyler or T-Ray who is the baby of the family. He is a stud of a football player and pretty hot on the dance floor. All the coaches and girls are after him! He is also quite the trash talker. Next we have Marci. Marci intimidated me at first because she is so intelligent. But after spending time with her she has a personality that puts everyone at ease. She is actually quite hilarious and always makes me laugh. One thing that I love about Marci is how she is able to open up on the dance floor. She can move! She is also great at constantly improving herself. Marci has so many talents that we could all learn something from her. Then we have LaRae and Kyle. LaRae is super mom, super business woman, and super relief society counselor. I don’t know how she does it but she does it marvelously! I have always loved how welcoming LaRae is. Despite Ben bringing home a new girlfriend every month she managed to still make me feel special. I love chatting with her and feel like I’ve known her forever. Kyle swears. The odd thing is that I laugh every time he does it. Kyle is also quite the story teller, which Ben has picked up on. (I often find myself asking Ben to tell me another story.) Kyle is a great dad and will be a fabulous grandpa! (One of these days.) Then of course we have Shawn or if you are Tyler you call him Shane. Shawn just turned 16 and is finally having to live up to all his high talk of his dating life. I love Shawn because I always eat his food. (Mostly just his mangos.) Shawn, like Tyler, is quite the ladies man. Girls are constantly calling the house asking for them. Shawn is also an amazing runner and an amazing observer. He notices things about people that others don’t and I like that about him. And last of all my favorite new family member~ Ben. Ben is a stud and such a go getter. He does well on everything because he always gives it 100% of his effort. Ben loves to get reactions out of people and do the untraditional. He refuses to put up Christmas lights for me but has consented to buying me a Christmas tree. I love my new family and I’m grateful for them welcoming me into their hearts so quickly.
Not pictured~ Brogan and Alix (both on missions)
Alix makes me laugh every time I’m with her. She felt like a sister to me right away. She is also an amazing missionary.
Brogan seems hilarious but this I will have to wait to tell for sure. All I know is that most of Ben’s wise cracks are Broganisms. I’m excited to get to know Brogan better. One thing I do know is that Brogan is a super baller missionary!

For my Motivation and Management class we have been assigned a book called “Setting Limits in the Classroom” by Robert J. MacKenzie. The book is fabulous and has caught my attention enough for me to bring it to my husbands football games and read it in between plays.

The book itself was written for school teachers hence the title, “Setting Limits in the CLASSROOM.” However I have come to see the relevance to parents and setting limits in the home. After all lessons at home affect lessons at school. Have you ever recognized the amazing similarities between parents and children. Every time I meet one of my students parents suddenly their behavior and personality make more sense and I can see more of the reasons behind why they are the way they are. I noticed it in myself when I moved away for college and caught myself reacting to my roommates mess the exact same way my mother would have. At the time I was shocked to realize I had become more like my mother than I had previously realized but after the shock factor wore off I found myself laughing because I had just proved true what everyone always said about becoming your parents. I think that is one of the main reasons I went into teaching. I wanted to do something with influence. And just as parents have influence at home that carries over into the rest of the child’s life, teachers have influence at school which also carries over into the child’s life. How exciting!

Anyway, back to the book. Robert MacKenzie teaches how children do research to see what adults limits are. He claims that most of what we consider to be misbehavior is actually limit testing or children’s attempts to clarify what we really mean. Isn’t that an eye opener! When children misbehave we often wonder what is wrong with them and why don’t they follow directions. Some parents and teachers have even had children tested for learning disabilities when in reality nothing was wrong with the children, they had just done their research and found out how far they could push adults limits each time. MacKenize addresses the fact that we teach children two rules in effect: a rule in theory and a rule in practice. We often believe that we teach a rule by simply conveying it verbally. Over and over again we ask children to turn off the television and do their homework. Verbally they know our rule and most likely could repeat it verbatim back to us. But we are missing the second half which to children is signifcantly more important and perhaps the only real rule they consider. It is our action. When we indicate it is time to turn off the T.V. we must give them all the information they need to make an acceptable decision. For example, “Brandon it is time to turn off the T.V. and work on some homework.” Brandon has heard you say it a thousand times before and knows its the rule. However, Brandon also knows that he has at least five more minutes before you will actually make him turn the T.V. off and begin his homework. He was done his research! In order to correct Brandon’s limit testing we must follow through with our rules in a matter of fact manner allowing choices. “Brandon it is time to turn off the T.V. and do your homework. You may turn it off now or lose your privilege of playing with friends after your homework is done.” Brandon now has all the information he needs to make an acceptable choice concerning his behavior and because he knows his parent will follow through with the consequence (which he has learned through experience) he turns off the T.V. and completes his homework without a power struggle.

That was probably way more information than you wished to read about the book but it has honestly been an interesting read for me. I have found information that is of great worth to me as both a parent and a teacher. I hope you find the same.

One of my favorite quotes that reminds me of my influence in the classroom says, “Teachers can’t control the faulty lessons children learn at home, but they can help children move in a more acceptable direction by teaching their rules effectively in the classroom.” (Page 77)