Elai: the next chapter

ok, so a lot has happened since that last ultrasound. first, we found out i have gestational diabetes right before leaving on vacation to central california.

in case you were curious, it stinks. basically i have to eat 6 small meals a day, no closer than 2 hours apart. for the first few weeks, i had to check my blood sugar 6 times a day and pee on a strip every morning. now i am down to 4 times a day and the strip is just once a week. this, according to the doctors, is the best it's gonna get.

on top of that, i have a very limited amount of carbs i am allowed to eat. my 6 meals are 30-30-45-45-45-30 in how many carbs i can have. to put that into perspective, one slice of pizza is around 30 carbs. Half a banana is 15 carbs. With all these beautiful summer fruits, I am going crazy.
BUT--I am almost done. Thank heavens! I am now dilated to 3 cm (as of Monday) and 50% effaced. I keep hoping I will go into labor any moment and it will go super quick and be painless. . . yeah, I know. It's not going to happen. But going into labor any day now just might!
I have another ultrasound on Monday and a doctor's appointment on Tuesday. I hope I go into labor on Sunday. :)

Due Date

So, along with finding out our little trickster is a boy, we also found out he is due earlier! Thank heavens it is earlier and not later. I would have cried harder if it had been later.
The new due date is August 28, 2011.
I'm a little disappointed it is not on our anniversary, but this is good, too. :)
The pregnancy is going well. I just had another exam and I got measured and poked and prodded. I am supposed to go in and get some more blood work done in the next two weeks and then another appointment in 4 weeks where I get to hear about how I have amazing blood and the baby is great.
Sometimes the appointments seem redundant or silly, but I must say, as a first time mother, I am kinda happy that I have them so I can be reassured that there really is a baby in my belly and that he is alive and healthy.
I also have another Ultrasound at 28 weeks to see the rest of that which they couldn't see at this last one, stuff on the face/head. All I have to say is that if she tells me this time that it is a girl, I am going to throw a fit. I am seriously considering not finding out for any other children what it is we will be having, just so I don't have to have it change on me.
The joys of motherhood.
It does get better, right? Once the baby is in your arms and happy and peaceful and looking at you like you could never be anything less than perfect. That's why us women go through all this, right?

Easter Fun!

This was Julie and I's first Easter as a married couple. We were talking about what we would want our Easter baskets, when we came up with this fun idea. We gave each other a budget, and then to help us figure out what to buy, we gave each other words to use. Julie had to use MICHAEL ALAN, and I had to use JULIE THOMPS. We had to find something for each letter in our assigned words. For example, with the letter M, you could use a microwave, an M&M/Mars candy, or a movie. So the item name, brand, or type of item could begin with the letter M. (A descriptive word could be used if necessary; e.g.- mini candy bar for M.)

We first went to Dollar Tree and then to Target. Julie ended up going to a few other places as well. It was a lot of fun, but some of the letters were difficult. Once we found everything for our letters, we could use the remaining budget to get other stuff for the basket. We also decided to keep what we were buying hidden from each other; that way we would be surprised on Easter. Well, Easter came and here is what our baskets ended up looking like:

We then proceeded to explain what items were for what letters:

This is what I got for Julie:

J- jelly beans

U- umbrella

L- "Lulu Dark and the summer of the fox"

I- "The Italian Summer"

E- egg puzzle

T- travel sewing kit

H- hershey's mini candy bars

O- orange flip flops

M- movie ("The Waterhorse: Legend of the Deep")

P- peanut butter wafers

S- suncatcher

This is what Julie got for me:

M- marshmallow treat

I- illuminated hat

C- candy quax (candy duck)

H- "How to train your dragon"

A- air heads

E- egg filled with pop rocks

L- licorice

A- art project

L- "The Legend of Luke"

A- activity book

N- net bath band

All in all, it was a very fun Easter. We have decided that we will do this each year, but will pick smaller words that have to do with Easter. It will be a great way to bring the true meaning of the holiday into the traditional activities associated with Easter.

Broken, Broken Tradition

Yesterday, Julie and I went to have the 20 week ultrasound. While there, we learned that Emma is doing great! She is healthy and growing good, and she weighs one pound. We also learned that Julie is now due on the 28th of August. We are sad that it isn't on our anniversary any more, but Julie is ready to be done and is glad to know it will be over sooner.

The biggest surprise is that we discovered, Emma's a boy!!! I know! Julie and I were both in shock for a couple hours, and then the emotions started setting in as we realized what that meant. We are both saddened that we aren't having a girl, but are excited for our little boy. We have chosen the name Elai (pronounced e-lie) Beck.

We will have one more ultrasound before he is born, so who knows what will happen at that appointment. We have decided that a neutral theme will be best just in case the gender changes again. Stay tuned for more updates!

Broken Traditions

So, as you know, Julie and I are expecting our first child come September. We have been thinking about names for a while now (even before we were trying, we were thinking of names). Since we found out we were pregnant the day before my mom passed away, we decided to name this child after her. After thinking of names, we decided on either Mykal Elaine (for a girl) or Elai Beck (for a boy). Later, we decided to change the girl name to Emma Elaine. The original plan was to have the gender ultrasound while Julie's mom was in town. However, this didn't work out since the technician was going to be out of town. We told this to the family and let then know we would just wait until the 20 week appointment to find out. We then decided to surprise our families by finding out early. So last Wednesday, we met with the technician and discovered that (drum roll please) .......... Emma Elaine Thompson will be born on or around September 4th, 2011. That is right, Julie and I have broken the thompson tradition of the first born being a boy. We are having a girl and we are way excited!!!!! Now we just have to wait to see and hold her!

Ode to The Husband. Sorry if it is too sappy for ya. ;)

As I was driving to work today, I was thinking about all the guys who have treated me badly in my life. The ones who just never understood how to treat a daughter of God. The ones who thought I was worth less than I am and who convinced me of it through their words and actions.
Then, it dawned on me.
I have a choice son of God who sees me for who I am. He doesn't judge me because of my weight. He doesn't disown me when I get angry or upset. He knows that certain people, places, and objects scare the living daylights out of me one day and I am perfectly fine with them the next and he is patient with that.
He holds me close, tells me I am worth more than I can believe, and kisses me goodnight.
I am blessed more than words can allow me to convey.

Michael Alan Thompson, you are my knight in shinning armor, my heaven-sent best friend, and the best man I know.
Thank you.

Kinect With Me

Matt & Elise, Michael's brother and his wife, splurged this past week and purchased an XBox 360 with Kinect. It is incredible! Michael and I are hooked and have played a few times over the course of the week. It really gets you moving, and you don't have to worry about losing the controller. Evan is even able to play and typically does really well at bowling!

They have a bunch of games, and one that I am looking forward to when the pregnancy is over and we own a kinect, is The Biggest Loser Workouts. You enter your info and put in goals and they have a lot of different types of exercises and challenges so you don't get bored. The reviews sound great and I am excited to try it out in 7 months. hahaha. Wow, yes, we plan ahead.

Check it out! They're so cool!

We're pregnant!

So, Julie and I just wanted to let you all know that we are going to be parents!!!!!!!

We are so excited! We had an ultrasound yesterday to confirm how far along we are and will have our first official appointment at the beginning of February. We don't have an official due date from the doctor, but the tentative one is September 3rd. We are way excited for this, and will keep you updated!

Shortest calling we have ever held

Julie and I have been attending the BYU Married ward in our area, and a few weeks after being in the ward, we got called in to talk to a counselor in the bishopric. He extended us a calling to serve on the Activities Committee in our ward. We accepted, and the next week we were sustained. Two weeks later we inquired about being set apart. The bishop said there would be a meeting for the Activities Committee after church, and he would talk about it then. We came, along with the rest of the committee, only to learn we were being "fired," as the bishop put it. He explained that the church has decided to eliminate the Activities Committee church wide and just have the Ward Council plan the activities. Because of this decision, we were all being released from our callings within the Activities Committee the following week. All of us just stared at the Bishop with surprise. Most of us had just been sustained a week or two before. Then the Bishop reassured us that there were plenty of callings still, so don't be worried that you will get bored. In the end, we found the whole situation pretty amusing. I guess now we will just have to wait and see what happens next.

T-Day

Cali for thanksgiving!!!!
We can't wait for our road trip. It's going to be great spending time with Mom & Dad DeLoura, going shopping, going to Harry Potter, the San Diego Temple, and getting to see the Aguiars.
11 days!

Frozen Cow By-products eaten with Precious Metal Utensils

So, the "golden" surprise I mentioned in the last post is...


(drum roll please)


Golden Spoon is now in Orem, UT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


This is Julie's all-time favorite frozen yogurt shop in the world. I would even venture to say it is her all-time favorite frozen dairy dessert, aside from Chocolate Malted Crunch. Here is how the surprise came about. Yesterday, on my way home from work, I stopped by Harmon's in Orem to pick up a couple of things. As I was leaving the parking lot, I was looking at what other stores are by Harmon's. (I don't go to Harmon's all that often.) I knew there was a Brick Oven location next to it, but just as I was getting ready to leave the parking lot, I saw Golden Spoon with a sign saying "Open". After recovering from the shock and excitement (and from almost hyperventilating and being a danger to other drivers) I decided I would surprise Julie with a trip to the 'Spoon of Golden Awesomeness'.

When I got home, I told Julie and had a surprise for her. She tried questioning me, but I refused to ruin the surprise. I quickly changed and then Julie and I headed out to run our errands and head to dinner. As we were driving, I started heading north. Everything we had planned was to the south in Provo. Just before we got to Harmon's I told Julie to close her eyes and not to peek. I turned into the parking lot, parked the car, and helped Julie out. With her eyes still closed, I led her to the door and into the shop. Once inside, I told her she could open her eyes. She did and after and few seconds, it registered as to where we were. She immediately started squealing like a kid who got everything they wanted and more for Christmas from Santa. This alerted the worker, who had been in the back. We then enjoyed the golden deliciousness and headed on our way.

One month!

So Julie and I have been married for one month! Can you believe it!? Neither can Julie and I. We keep wondering where the time went. Anyway, so yesterday was our one month anniversary, and it was glorious! Here is a little bit of what we did:

Work and School (not really part of the celebration, but had to be done)
Julie received flowers, chocolates, and a huge glorious and "golden" surprise
DI drop off
Pass of all Passes are official
Free dinner, compliments of the Provo Marriott Hotel
Season 4 finale of House, MD
Dessert quest and other awesomeness
Red Velvet and Turkey with the Frizz

All in all, it was an amazing one month anniversary!

Honeymoon, Part Deux

Uh, ok. So here's the deal:
We went on our honeymoon to SD to see all our friends and family, but it was short and filled with friends and family. We love you all, but we wanted a "get away from everyone and do our own thing with no time tables or responsibilities or people to please and take our picture unless we decide we want to" time. That's such a mouthful that we are calling it our "second honeymoon" or "Honeymoon, part 2".
As some of you know, "The Lion King" is performing in Salt Lake at the moment. Michael had a pair of fantastic tickets for Thursday evening. Who would've thought he'd be taking his wife? :D
So, we went to Salt Lake on Thursday afternoon, went to The Lion King on Thursday night, spent Friday running around SLC, Saturday at the Farmer's Market, and then took the long way home.
Fantastic!
Some Highlights:
1. Julie got done packing before Michael.
2. We got to SLC and Julie realized she forgot underclothes.
3. We had to find a Wal Mart or Target.
4. We found an AWESOME Wal Mart. It had an escalator, two-story parking, and a cart-lifter.
5. On the escalator, we found a dust ball that was desperately trying to get up or down. I tried to help it down, and well, it just came back up to where it was in the first place. Maybe it was just trying to stay where it was, the stubborn piece of dust.
6. We did a session at the Salt Lake Temple.
7. Wow.
8. Church History Museum = Way cool artifacts from way cool people who helped shape a culture.
9. Farmer's Market.
10. If you've never been to a FM, you need to find one. (In San Diego, there's one in Little Italy every Saturday morning and you can get delicious coconut pancakes). This one was awesome. It is at Pioneer Park and it had everything from photos to eggplants and tortillas and kettle corn. Fresh Bread, atmosphere, and candied nuts. *sigh*
11. Chicken Gnocchi Soup from Olive Garden
12. THE LION KING. Breathtaking. I cried. Twice.
13. Spending 3 days with the love of my eternities. Glory.

Now it is back to reality and being responsible and doing all those things we wish we didn't have to.

We just wanted to thank everyone for the support you have shown Julie and I. We have been married now for a little over two weeks, and are still madly and deeply in love. We are quickly adjusting to married life and are enjoying establishing our home together. Thank you again for your support. We look forward to our marvelous and wonderful "Happily Ever After."

Our Announcement

Gift Ideas

We are registered at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. If you search for "Julie DeLoura" in the registry search, it's the only one you'll find.

If you are searching for other gift Ideas not on the registry, here are a few items we would really enjoy, but weren't available at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. :)

Rosetta Stone for Italian
Netflix Account
Tool Set
TV Shows on DVD (House, Gilmore Girls, Glee)



For those attending the Open House in San Diego, gift cards would be GREATLY appreciated. We will be living in Utah and won't have the means to transport many gifts. Gift cards to Walmart, Target, Bed, Bath, & Beyond, and department stores like Sears would be best.

Our Story

So, anticipating the questions concerning the engagement, we are writing this note so you all will know how it went down.
Michael Alan Thompson and Julie Christine DeLoura met at College Terrace Apartments back in September of 2009. We started dating towards the end of November. Seven Months later, He proposed.
Any questions?

Hahaha. I thought so.
Here's how it went down:
We had been talking about getting married for a week or so, going ring shopping and plotting and planning and all that before anything was even "official".
I had an inkling something was up on Friday night when his sister sent me a text asking to go "play" on Saturday. I said I wasn't sure what my plans were yet and what did she want to "play"? Her response: Oh, you know, just play.
Fishy.
Saturday came and we (me, Laura, and Leanna) went to go get supplies for an art project for the family reunion. Then we went to In-N-Out. Mmmm. When we got back into the car, Leanna, from the back seat, handed me a purple envelope with coordinates on it. Such a Michael move. :D
The coordinates led us around Provo/Orem to significant locations of our dating and courtship and friendship. At each stop, I was given a new envelope with new coordinates. The last clue led us to the LDS Mount Timpanogos Temple, where Michael was waiting with a bouquet of red roses. His sisters let us have some alone time, but stood there taking pictures the whole time.
Michael told me some sweet nothings and then got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I told him, "yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!".
There was lots of hugging and rejoicing.
Then we called family and went to dinner with them.
Yay!
We are getting hitched on September 4, 2010 in the LDS Mount Timpanogos Temple, with a reception to follow shortly after at Neilson's Grove Park in Orem, UT. There will also be an Open House in Santee, CA on September 6.
Thanks for all your congratulations! We are happy. :D

We are engaged!!!!!!

Yup, It's been done.

Michael proposed on June 19, 2010 at the Mount Timpanogos Temple, and Julie said Yes!

So far, plans are to be wed on September 4, 2010 in the Mount Timpanogos Temple with a reception to follow at Nielsen's Grove Park in Orem, UT. Don't worry, our San Diego friends. We will have an Open House at the DeLoura residence on September 6. :)

Yay~!