Finally with my growing knowledge of technology here are some of our out dated wedding day pictures.

DSCN1336

Originally uploaded by crane.brittany

I did it! I finally graduated from College with my Bachelors Degree. It is a great feeling to have time to relax, but it still feels like I’m just having a break and I’ll be back for more.

My parents and Ben were gracious enough to drive the four hours to watch me simply walk across a pulpit and shake a few hands. It was fun to see some of my classmates that had gone their separate ways for student teaching. I wish them all the best of luck and I’m a tiny bit jealous that they actually get to teach. (I’ll be staying home with Hallie.)

The commencement was perfect. President Clark spoke about letting the light of Christ shine through us where ever we may be and what ever we may be doing. Then Elder Ballard spoke about how Jesus Christ was the master teacher and that nothing will be more important than teaching others whatever profession we chose. He also mentioned the fact that we need to always be improving. He said that after conference the quorum of the twelve and the first presigdency got together and discussed what they all thought about conference. He said they saw room for improvement and discussed what needs to change.

Going to college was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I will never regret choosing Idaho or my Elementary Education major. Softball, church callings, roommates, crazy activities, service counsel-kid connection, devotionals and so much more made college an amazing experience for me. The Lord has led me every step of the way and I will miss the college scene.

So here’s to the next chapter of my life. Raising a family.

This was my companion Jill Evans’ wedding. We were companions in the MTC and in the mission field. We hit it off right away and haven’t stopped laughing ever since. I owe much of my mission sanity to her. She is one friend I defiantly can’t go without.

This was my companion Jill Evans’ wedding. We were companions in the MTC and in the mission field. We hit it off right away and haven’t stopped laughing ever since. I owe much of my mission sanity to her. She is one friend I defiantly can’t go without.

Thanks to an invite from Ben’s friends, Trent and Kara, and my parents flipping the bill, we took the last weekend in March and went down to Moab.  It was a Blast!  Ben and I went to Moab for part of our honeymoon and love it there. My parents rented a four door jeep and we took it wheelin’. The sights were breath taking and the obstacles in the jeep were fun.  Moab is defiantly one of my favorite places to go and we hope to one day own an off road vehicle.

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!

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.