First off, my oldest younger brother, Jeremy, my brother-in-law, Wilford, and my cousin, Charly Ann, all graduated as part of the class of 2011. Jeremy and Charly graduated from my old tromping grounds, Bingham High School, and Wilford graduated from Jake's old tromping grounds, Copper Hills High School. Unfortunately, the commencement ceremonies were at EXACTLY the same time in different parts of the state and Jake needs to work as much as possible so that he has paid time off saved for when Aaron arrives. So we weren't able to make it to Wilford's graduation. But we still love him and we are so proud of this great accomplishment! I drove down with my sister and brother-in-law and although we were a half hour late due to traffic and had to walk at least 1/2 a mile to actually get to the building, it was fun to be there with the family. We went to J-Dawgs afterwards and had the BEST hot dogs I have ever had in my entire life. It is probably good that it is so far away because I might go there every day if it weren't in Provo. Congratulations to our wonderful graduates!
In more exciting news, my baby brother, Kayden, is currently with my dad at the US Chess School run by Garry Kasparov. You may not know who that is unless you are part of a nerdy chess family like me but he is a former World Chess Champion and considered to be one of the greatest chess players of all time. Kayden earned this special invitation because of his superb performance at the World Youth Open in Greece last October. (Kayden took silver in that tournament.) They are holding the school in a very high class New York club for members only and my dad and Kayden have to wear suits every day.
They are flying straight from New York to St. Louis so that Kayden can participate in the 2011 Junior Closed Championship. From the site I just gave you the link to it says, "The U.S. Junior Closed Championship is the most prestigious tournament in the country for the nation's top emerging talent. Players under the age of 21 will compete at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis June 16-26 for the title of U.S. Junior Champion and an automatic bid to both the World Junior Championship and the 2012 U.S. Championship." This tournament is strictly by invitation only and those invitations are only issued to 10 players under the age of 21. We are so proud of Kayden for even getting invited to this tournament and we hope that he does AMAZINGLY well.
Did I mention that my sister, Alyssa, is also pregnant right now? We are so excited to have another nephew/niece this December! I, unfortunately, think that the new baby will be a girl although I wish it were a boy so that my little Aaron had a playmate amidst so many little girls. But Matt and Alyssa make such beautiful baby girls that it is hard to complain! I mean... just look at this face!
Our niece, Serenthia
On to news about our family! Jake just got a promotion at work. He will be moving from the Charges department to Accounts Receivable. I am so proud of the hard work that he constantly puts in and am very happy that he enjoys his job so much more than he did at Discover Card.
Jake also recently purchased a bike to help save on gas money this summer with the prices so high. He gets a killer deal on a bus pass through his job so he bikes to a convenient bus stop (about 1.5 miles down the road) and then rides the bus into town. He has also biked all the way home one time and wants to do it again. He rides that bike every chance he can get. I think if he could find a way to pull Abrielle and I behind it he wouldn't ever drive while the weather is good.
School continues to be a trial and a pain. His music class is not so bad and we are moving through it very efficiently, but his Legal Environment of Business class is a beast of a class. The homework takes an easy 2 to 3 hours to complete one assignment and the quizzes are completely closed, proctored monsters at the campus. I feel so badly for Jake and wish I could do more to help him out. Meanwhile I continue to encourage him, be there for him, and feed him well while he is trying to push through. Less than 2 months and then this awful semester will be over!
My pregnancy continues to go alright. Although I am most grateful that I am not throwing up every meal like my poor sister, it continues to be challenging in its own way. I have been blessed to have no more kidney stones since the sixth one passed (*KNOCK ON WOOD!!!!*) but have had other problems take the place of the kidney stones. The most recent set of "fun" pregnancy experiences include frequent and painful headaches, painful low back aches and what I believe are mild contractions. I had the unfortunate experience of getting extremely nauseated the other night and ended up throwing up - a first for this pregnancy. But we are so close to the end. I will be 35 weeks along tomorrow and at my appointment on Thursday they will check for the first time to see if I am dilating at all. I really feel like I am so I would be surprised if I haven't, but I will keep you posted!
Speaking of Thursday.... I will be turning 23! Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me! Yes, I am going to the doctor on my birthday. Yes, they are checking to see if I am dilated and doing the strep culture test... yes, it won't be that fun. BUT! Jake will be with me which is why I wanted to schedule it for that day. I always feel so much better to have him along to hold my hand if I need the extra comfort. We are going to go out to lunch together after the appointment and I am very excited about that.
We are also going to attend West Jordan Community Theater's production of Annie Get Your Gun on opening night (my birthday.) My brothers, Jeremy and Zac, are in the play and we are very excited to see it! If you are available on an evening between June 16th and June 25th you should go and see it too! It is at Copper Hills High School. Check out the information here: https://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=170117276386158
Abrielle seems to be moving past the terrible two stage just a little bit... there have been several days in the last while that she has been an absolute angel and I have wanted to sing praises to the sky. Her defiance and stubborn streak are still present but it isn't taking her nearly as long to come around and admit when she needs to say sorry. I hate to still hear her say, "No" on occasion but I believe she is getting better. She continues to make us smile and bring us joy and I guess that is really what matters most - the good continues to outweigh the bad. (*KNOCK ON WOOD!*) This is the most recent picture I have of her and our family:
Last bit of news and then I will wrap up - my mothers and grandmothers threw me a baby shower last Saturday. We didn't have a really huge turnout but it was wonderful nonetheless. I got some adorable things for Aaron and am even more excited to have my little boy here. Thanks so much to everyone who came and sent gifts. You are amazing!
I am scared to scroll back up and see how long this post ended up being but now you are all updated! I will continue to post updates as details come about my pregnancy and how my brother is doing in the tournament. Thank you for reading, we love you and please take care!
Love, Shayla and the rest of the Jacob Bentley Family
1 comment:
I'm so glad tha things are going well. Sorry that I wasn't able to make your baby shower! I was stuck at work all day. :(
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