On Eagles Wings (Is. 40:31)

More jewelry and getting excited

2012-02-11T09:16:00.003-07:00

This jewelry endeavour is working out so perfectly! I am making about half of my teaching salary just working a few nights a week! I am really starting to see the potential for this business and the possibility of me staying home with Levi part time next year is becoming more and more a reality. Not only that, by my sponsor has told me that she has only seen two other people in her 10 years that she has sponsored that have had the drive and natural talent that I do for this. That was very kind of her to say and totally surprising because I don't feel like I am doing anything special. I'm just doing what I always do when I want to be successful at something, so it seems very natural for me. I'm excited about what she said because I know how much money she makes and it is plenty for her to stay home with her kids, and that is my ultimate goal! Hopefully it can happen sooner rather than later.

Levi update:
He has 4 teeth- two on top and two on bottom
He is scooting around on his belly finally. He's not actually crawling, but he keeps getting up on his knees like he wants to but he just isn't sure how.
He is having surgery on Friday to fix his circumcision. We are not super nervous about it at the moment, but of course we are a little concerned because he will have to go completely under before they can do it and that always is a tiny bit of concern. We are just praying about it and asking God to take care of him and give us peace about the whole thing.

Future Plans

2012-01-27T22:39:00.002-07:00

So, my friend and coworker just signed up to do Premier with me. She is coming with me to my show tomorrow. If it works out and she is as successful as I have been so far, then we are going to get to job-share next year! It is so exciting to think that I could be spending time at home with Levi more, and still be bringing in the same amount of money, or more, as when I work full time. Such a crazy thought! We are both so hopeful that it works out, but we are trying not to get too excited in case something weird happens to make it not possible, but I am praying like crazy that it will work out!

I had another show tonight where I made about $100, but that isn't bad for hanging out with some friends (and the ladies that take care of Levi three days a week) at my house even! I didn't think I would like it being at my house as much, but it is actually easier and it makes me clean up, lol. Plus I got to spend more time with Jason and Levi because I didn't have the travel time. Tomorrow should be the complete opposite because I am going to a party about 45-60 minutes away from my house and it is two parties combined into one, so that should be exciting! Hopefully it is fun!

Ok, gotta go to bed. I'm running on empty... Have a blessed weekend :-)

Jewelry!

2012-01-12T20:01:00.002-07:00

I am LOVING this jewelry thing! I've just had another girl tell me she wants to do it and I'm so excited that she will get to do what I'm doing! It is going to be so fun to get to know all these jewelry ladies and to get into this business enough to really make some money. It's so exciting to think about what this extra income could do for us as a family. What an incredible blessing this has become and I can't wait to see it expand and grow like I anticipate. And, tomorrow is my birthday and I am already feeling the love! I am loving life right now. Not to say I wasn't before, but this is just a really fun time! Thank you, Lord, for this season!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T08:33:00.002-07:00

I just want to wish everyone a Happy New Year! We were so incredibly blessed in 2011 that it is hard to imagine what 2012 will be like, but we are ready and eagerly awaiting it all! May God bless you and your families.

Christmas!

2011-12-27T20:10:00.002-07:00

Oh my goodness, my little boy is SO SPOILED! Jason and I set a limit for ourselves when it came to buying presents for him, but apparently we were the only ones. Grammie (Deborah) made him several interactive/learning quilt-toy-things. They are so cute. And goodness is that lady creative! And talented. Hopefully I can get my act together and upload some pictures of the things she made him because they are too cute not to show off. Nana (Martha) got him several decorations for his nursery. I am a huge slacker and still have nothing up on the walls, but thanks to Nana I will have the room finished before the end of this week. *fingers crossed* He got a ton of clothes and other toys, too. It was so fun watching him get spoiled by all of our family on Christmas day. He is one loved little boy!

He had a great night last night. I think he is getting sick, so it was possibly the calm before the storm in that respect. We have decided to let him use the paci instead of feeding him when he wakes up at night. We have agonized over this decision, but we figure if we can convince his body that he isn't actually hungry when he wakes in the middle of the night, then we can take the paci away in a few weeks and he will be good to go. Last night he went to bed at 8 (no paci), woke up at 3, cried for 10 minutes (our minimum before we go into his room), I gave him the pacifier, and we woke up for the day at 7:15. It was amazing! (Other than myself having a ridiculous time falling asleep last night for some unknown reason, but whatever.) I'm praying for another night like that tonight!

My Premier business is going strong! I sponsored my first new jeweler today! It is so exciting to share this opportunity with people and to see how excited they get about it, which is exactly how I felt. It is fun doing this with friends, too. Hopefully more people will seize the opportunity to make great money while having fun, and we can enjoy doing it together.

Hopefully I will have a chance to write again before the new year, but if not: God bless and Happy New Year!!

Christmas Break and Jewelry Update

2011-12-20T20:00:00.003-07:00

I love teaching for many reasons, and one of those reasons is definitely Christmas break! I get to spend two and a half weeks with my sweet baby boy and other family, relaxing, enjoying time together, and EATING!! I am only two days into my break and have done so much already, including finishing up my Christmas shopping, meeting several friends and possibly new jewelers for lunch, and playing in a poker "tournament" with my Arizona family who is in town visiting. I even won one of the prizes! A $25 gift card to Best Buy, to be exact. So much fun. And Levi has gotten to spend so much quality time with his Gigi (Great-grandma). How blessed he is to have so much family that loves and cares for him. I knew three of my great-grandparents and I treasure the memories I have of them. Levi has met all of his living great-grandparents... all 6 of them! So incredible. I'm really looking forward to the rest of this break and all of the quality time that is going to come with it.

As for the jewelry update:
I had my training show and two other home shows and I am REALLY enjoying it! It is so awesome to see how happy the hostesses are when they get to pick out their free jewelry at the end of their show. And I am already making money! After one more show I will have my total initial investment paid off! So even if I decide I don't want to do this any more I will have lost NOTHING and have gained a TON of jewelry! I think I am going to keep doing it though.

In fact, I just opened a bank account just for me because of this jewelry stuff. It is so weird having money that is "mine." Jason and I have always had a joint account for everything, so now that I have my own it is a strange feeling knowing I can do whatever I want with it. I would love to be able to save up to do something nice and a big surprise for Jason, but I haven't figured out what to do yet. I also want to contribute to a fund for Levi for college or whatever, but I haven't completely figured out the logistics yet. Hopefully I can get it all figured out and get a good system for saving and playing and business stuff so that it isn't too difficult to sort out later. And I hope I can keep my priorities straight as I jump into this new adventure: God, family, everything else...

Surgery tomorrow :-(

2011-12-08T07:47:00.001-07:00

Levi is having his surgery tomorrow to correct his circumcision. It should not be a big deal but it is still hard to let go of the worry when my baby boy is going to have full-fledged surgery. Jason and I are both praying about it a lot and would really appreciate any prayers you could share, too. Hopefully we will get it over with early in the morning so we can spend the rest of the day with Levi while he starts to recover. Tomorrow could be a great day or a terrible day, depending on how he reacts to everything. Let's pray it is a great day!

Sick Sick Sick

2011-12-04T18:32:00.002-07:00

We have a sick sick baby... again. He woke up on Thursday night barely able to breathe and it kinda freaked me out. He had a terrible seal cough and was really laboring to get his breath. We quickly steamed up the bathroom and took him in there for a few minutes, then took him outside into the cold air. It didn't work right away but it worked in about 20 minutes. I never want to hear him breathing like that again... Jason ended up sleeping on the couch with the monitor on while I stayed in our room because I needed to get some sleep. It was a long night even with that arrangement. Thankfully we have the best family in the world and my sister took him the first part of Friday and my parents watched him in the afternoon. He sleeps so terribly at daycare that I thought it would be best for him to be with family instead.

Since then we have had one rough night after the other. Last night made three in a row of frequent wake ups, up for hours at a time because of coughing, and steamy bathroom/go quickly outside into the frigid air. Jason even tried to take the baby for a while this morning so I could sleep in, but it didn't work :-( Prayers would be appreciated for my little boy so that he starts feeling better!

First Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T10:21:00.003-07:00

Levi celebrated his first Thanksgiving yesterday with Jason's family. It was so nice to see his family and be around them for some length of time. And Levi did GREAT for having been up for 4 hours by the time we finally headed home. It was quite an evening but he did great. He even had a little mashed potatoes, roll, and pumpkin pie. He LOVED the pie, lol, but he only got a little bit. Tonight we have Thanksgiving with all of my family that is in town. It is going to be an awesome afternoon and I can't wait to eat another feast! Not to mention I made my Gran's world-famous noodles for the first time all by myself, and I'm so curious to see how they turned out. Hopefully everyone likes them :-) I hope everyone had a fantastic Thanksgiving and a restful day. God bless!

Newest Adventure

2011-11-20T14:44:00.003-07:00

So, not only am I teaching while taking care of a new baby, I have decided to add another component of chaos to my life. I am going to be a Premier Designs jewelry consultant. I never thought I would be that kind of person that does the home shows and sells things like this, but the opportunity came up and I am going to run with it! It is a Christian company, so that made me feel good about it right away. The jewelry is very affordable (or I wouldn't sell it), the hostess plans are phenomenal (or nobody would ever host a party), and all of the profit of the company goes into a fund that supports missions. I did a lot of praying, thinking, researching, and talking with other people who are in businesses like this one before I made my decision. I'm excited to get going with it and to make some money for us to be able to do some of the things that are outside of our current budget (like get a truck and a camper for this coming summer). I hope it is as fun as I am anticipating. I know it is going to be "work" but I am hoping that the fun outweighs the work. If nothing else, it is something super fun I can do over breaks and the summer that will bring in some more money than not doing anything. And who knows? Maybe eventually it will turn into something more than a hobby? And, since I can do it in any state in the country, maybe when I travel to see family or friends I will be able to set up some fun "girls night out" things for my loved ones. Maybe that is just a silly dream, but maybe not? I will try to write about it as things progress and as I start throwing parties and whatnot. But, if anyone is interested, let me know and maybe we can plan a party for the future!

Amazing day

2011-11-11T21:06:00.002-07:00

Today was the best day I have had in a really long time. Jason and I both had the day off today, so it was extra special that we were able to spend time together and with Levi. Not to mention we were extra productive today! We:
1. Took my car to the dealership to get the oil changed and get a recall fixed
2. Took Levi to the doctor to have his 6 month appointment and shots. The doctor said they usually like to see babies at 9 months also, but Levi has hit several 9 month milestones that they would check, so he didn't need to be seen then.
3. Got the last part of the things we needed for our bathroom remodel. We can officially use our master bathroom completely!
4. Went by my school to check on my fish. We have had some serious fish difficulties in my class and I wanted to check that they were still alive. They are! At least, the four that were alive on Wednesday. Why are fish so challenging? I thought they would be an easy, straight forward class pet...
5. Ate lunch at one of our favorite restaurants.
6. Got fish for our home aquarium.
7. Went to visit Jason's grandparents whom we haven't seen in several weeks. They were so excited to see how much Levi is growing!
8. I went to a jewelry party a friend of mine hosted and got a little bit of Christmas shopping done.

It was such a good day and the baby was so good, it gave us hope for what family outings will be like in the near future! We know things can come up and the baby can be cranky or whatever, but it was so nice to have a pleasant day with no issues. I am one happy mama right now :-) And tomorrow is Saturday!! Woohoo!!

6 months old

2011-11-04T13:46:00.002-06:00

My little man is officially half way to being a year old. WOW how time flies!! I simply can't believe he is already this old. I know I keep writing about sleep, but last night he only woke up once. It was amazing. I'm hoping now that he is getting older he is going to start sleeping more at night. Although, I've had too many bad nights to be counting my chickens before the hatch at this point. Right now I feel like maybe last night was a fluke and waking 2-5 times is his normal. Ugh. I digress...

He is now sitting up like a pro, reaching for everything in sight, and it seems like he is itching to be able to do all the things Jason and I do (read books, eat, write, walk, etc.) He is amazing to watch and is growing so quickly! I will be honest, though, I don't really miss when he was a tiny little guy. He is so much fun right now and I am enjoying seeing him reach every milestone! He still has not rolled from back-to-belly, but he is sitting up so well he might kinda skip that stage. His trunk control is tremendous. He is not really showing any signs of crawling just yet, but he LOVES being on his feet and bouncing/walking around. He has also started giving us "kisses". They are really slobbery and his mouth is wide open, but I am sure that is what they are. He also likes snuggling when he first wakes up and before he goes to bed. We have still been letting him cry himself to sleep when he is sleepy so he doesn't get used to falling asleep on us, but sometimes I still rock him to sleep just because I want to. I know before long he will be running around and not interested in being rocked to sleep, so I am still taking advantage of it when I can.

Jason was hunting last weekend and he got an elk!! I am so proud of him! It was his very first hunt and they were planning to head back home. They pulled up to a clearing, Jason told my dad to stop the Jeep, he got out, walked around to get a little closer to the animal, and then got it! It was literally 10 minutes before they were going to call it quits and head back home. But, since they got one, they had to stay another night out there, so that meant another night alone with Levi. It wasn't too bad but I'm certainly glad to have Jason back. We have already had some of the meat and it is delicious! There is not much better than super-fresh elk meat... the taste of my childhood. I know Jason was excited and hopefully he continues to be successful so we can continue to have amazing meat in the freezer (and on our dinner plates!).

I think that's it for now. I don't have many new pictures, but hopefully soon. God bless.

Blah

2011-10-30T14:14:00.003-06:00

So, Jason is out of town for his hunt. Friday night Levi and I went to the school's Halloween carnival with a friend and her little girl. It was really fun and super nice to get to see everyone that was there and show off the babies! Friday night Levi only woke up twice, so that was ok. Then we had some company come down to play with Levi. I then was able to go to a mommy-baby Halloween party. It was a ton of fun! Levi was dressed up as a puppy and he did so well.

Saturday evening we ate dinner with Debbie, Christine, and Matt. Thankfully! I wouldn't have known what to eat had Deb not offered to feed me. Then, Levi and I came home and I bathed him and put him right down to bed. He slept until 11:30pm then got up 5 TIMES between then and 6:30am. Ugh. I'm so tired! I'm also incredibly frustrated because he used to be such a good sleeper and now he is reverting back to what he was doing a couple of weeks ago. It is so hard when Jason isn't here to help because I always just end up feeding Levi since he won't calm down for me otherwise. I am hoping Jason will be home tonight but it doesn't seem like it. I haven't heard from him yet, but I'm hoping soon. He will for sure be home tomorrow, but that means I have to take Levi to daycare tomorrow morning, which will be a first for me when I'm working. It is not going to be easy, but I have to do it! I will probably be late to work tomorrow (not late, but later than I normally get there, which will still be early, hopefully). I'm not sure what I am going to do if tonight is like last night, though, because I can't really handle many more nights like that.

Also, I have to figure out how I am going to get my lesson plans and sub plans done. I don't even know what language to do my lessons for because my sub is not bilingual but I no longer have my English teacher's materials since they were taken to another teacher at my school. I'm just at a loss as to what to do. I guess I will have to figure it out!

Thanks for your prayers. I don't know how single parents do it. I'm exhausted and I've just had him by myself for two days and nights. One more to go. I can do this...

Alone again

2011-10-22T17:33:00.002-06:00

Jason and his dad headed up to Jemez to do another scouting trip for his upcoming hunt which means it is just Levi and I, and Abby, tonight! Hopefully he does just as well as he did last night because I can totally do that again :-) He slept from 7:30-3:00, back down until 7:00, then back down until 9:30am. It was amazing! I don't know what he did yesterday to make him so exhausted, but it was great for the night!

My little boy is over leaning on us and just wants to sit up by himself now. I guess he realized he can do it by himself and he doesn't want our help. He is going to be moving around before we know it and I'm not entirely sure I am ready for that. I think I am, but I'm already missing my little baby (even though getting more sleep is so nice).

Pray for us tonight! I've done it before and it isn't usually a big deal, but I have to make sure I eat dinner and pump and all those things that can go by the wayside when I am tired. And pray that Jason and his dad have a good, safe trip up to Jemez and that they hurry home :-)

Sitting up, zoo trip, and first food

2011-10-20T07:49:00.003-06:00

Levi sat up, completely unassisted on his changing table, for at least a minute last night. It was so cool! He was so proud of himself because he would play with a toy and then look up at me and give the biggest gummy smile you have ever seen. It was precious. I can't believe how fast he is growing!

We went to the zoo with some friends a couple of weekends ago. We didn't take many pictures of the animals because I already have a bunch of those, but we did get some cute pictures of the baby and our friends' little girl, Sofia. She is one month and one day older than him but he already weighs at least 2lbs more than her. She's just a tiny little thing. Here are the best pictures we got.

Levi also has started trying to eat baby food. His first attempt was carrots and he HATED them, haha. Here are a couple of pictures of that momentous occasion.

Over the hump

2011-10-06T07:35:00.002-06:00

Yes my friends, Levi has finally gone back to his normal (or better) sleeping pattern! Praise Jesus! Monday night he went to bed at 8pm, woke up at 1am but fell right back to sleep after about 5 minutes, got up at 3am to eat, then back down until we got him up. Tuesday he went down at 8pm, woke up at 3:30am to eat, then back down until we got him up. Last night he went to bed at 8pm, woke up at 1am and 2am, both for only 5 minutes, then up at 3am to eat, and back down until we got him up. Jason hasn't had to get up at night for 3 nights in a row! I have had to so Levi can eat, but let me tell you, after a month of waking up every 2 hours overnight, having a 7 hour stretch feels magnificent! We are hoping this is going to be his new norm and we can eventually move that feed back a little bit, but we aren't going to mess with anything right now. Yay! My little boy is growing up...

Speaking of growing up: Jason finally got to see Levi roll over yesterday. He did it twice about a month ago but hasn't done it since. Jason was gone on a business trip so he missed it. Well yesterday afternoon we were playing on the floor and he did it over and over again. I stopped putting him on his tummy for a while because I didn't want him to get bored, but as soon as Jason got home I flipped him over and he promptly rolled right onto his back. Jason was so excited! (I filmed the event earlier in case Levi decided he didn't want to perform for daddy, lol). It is so cool watching his developmental leaps! I have a feeling my little boy isn't going to be so little for much longer.

This weekend we are going to the Balloon Fiesta and the zoo. Should be fun! Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend :-)

Great-grandparents

2011-10-04T07:57:00.002-06:00

This week Levi got to meet and spend time with his Gran and Grandad (my dad's parents). He has now met 6 of his great-grandparents. I was fortunate enough to have known 3 of my great-grandparents, but my Memaw (the last one) just passed away a couple of months ago. We were so wanting to take Levi out to Texas to visit her, because we knew the time was coming, but it just didn't work out. I am so blessed to have known this wonderful woman for 24 years, and she will truly be missed. But I'm so grateful that Levi is getting to know so many of his great-grandparents! I know so many people don't even get to know their grandparents, much less one more generation. I've just been thinking about this a little bit recently so I wanted to get it out. My little boy is so blessed with how much family he is going to get to know and love! Not to mention how much they are already loving on him...

Babies!

2011-10-01T12:10:00.002-06:00

So many new babies are being born to friends of mine and it is such an exciting time! It's so fun to think about all the little blessings in our friends and families' lives. I can't wait to meet all these little guys (and girls) and to start forming a play group for Levi to grow up knowing and playing with.

Last night I was reading through the journal I started in December. I read the story of Levi's birth and it brought back such memories. Then I was reading the entries leading up to his birth. Early in April a bunch of us made predictions about when he was going to be born. Apparently, I picked May 3rd... Crazy!! We eventually made a pool and everyone put in $5 for the date they picked. I didn't end up picking May 3 because my sister picked May 2 and I wanted to spread out the guesses a little, but I should have picked May 3 because I knew that was when he was going to come. So crazy that I knew (or at least had a gut feeling) that he would come that day, of all days I could have picked.

Levi has now put himself to sleep twice again today. The second time I laid him down he was asleep in 2 minutes. It is so neat to see how much he is growing and becoming more independent. I know I am going to miss this time when he is grown, but I love watching him grow. He is also going through a stage where I seem to be the only one that can calm him down. It was cute at first, but now he screams every time I walk out of the room. Jason can usually calm him down, but he really wants me. I LOVE how he lights up whenever he sees me. His smile and laugh are so contagious that I can't help but join along with him. Being a mom is so much fun, even though it is totally exhausting. I hope I can start enjoying it more when he eventually sleeps better. I will take what I can get though.

Babies everywhere!

2011-09-27T20:49:00.003-06:00

It is so much fun being at the time in our lives when many of our friends are having children of their own. So many babies to enjoy all at the same time! Some friends of ours are in the process of having their baby right at this very moment. She went in at 9pm (TX time) to be induced. Baby boy will be here in no time and I am so excited for them! Another friend just found out she is having a little boy, a third friend is having a little girl, and even another friend is going to have her baby girl in just a couple of weeks. And yet another will find out tomorrow if she is going to have a son or a daughter. It's crazy to think that we are at this stage in our lives. I still don't feel old enough to have a job and be out of college, much less be a married home-owner with a 5 month old son, a grown-up job, and friends with all those things, too! It's so fun.

On more of a reality note, Levi is starting to sleep better. Last night he only got up twice, which is about half the amount of times he has been getting up recently. It is a nice change. I'm trying not to get my hopes up for a sleeping turnaround, but it is nice getting more sleep.

Here is the latest picture of him in his jumperoo that his Grammie got him. It was taken on my phone so the quality isn't great, but he is precious nonetheless.

8 hours

2011-09-18T08:25:00.002-06:00

Yes my friends, Levi slept 8 straight hours last night. It is a miracle! There wasn't a storm or anything, he just slept! I think he may have woken up once but promptly put himself back to sleep. He hasn't felt well this morning so I didn't get to sleep in, but he is back asleep now and has been sleeping off and on for 12 hours! I don't know if this is going to be his new norm, but I certainly hope so. I am still going to take a nap today, but I hope my little man has started to figure himself out so we all get some more sleep. Maybe he will take another good nap this morning so I can sleep some more too. Thanks for the prayers, they work!

So Tired... again

2011-09-17T12:12:00.003-06:00

I know I sound like a broken record, but I'm so tired!! Levi has been sleeping terribly recently and I am just not able to catch up when the weekends roll around. I guess that is the problem with doing the bathroom remodel right now because our house is nice and noisy on the weekends. It is so hard to find the solution to get him to sleep. Yes, we have tried everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. You name it- We have tried it. I'm not sure how Jason is functioning as well as he is. Oh wait, he doesn't have to entertain 22 2nd graders all day long on 4-5 hours of sleep. Ugh. I told him I am going to NEED a nap today, so hopefully he gets enough done in the bathroom to give me some time to sleep and not worry about the baby.

Other than that we are all doing really well. Work is going just fine for both of us. Jason has been doing a lot of trainings recently so he is learning a whole bunch of new stuff, so he is really enjoying that. He is ready to have his security clearance so he can work on real projects, but for right now he is enjoying learning. My kids are getting better with each day and we are all making progress towards being a well-functioning classroom. I am thrilled at how well they are learning Spanish, considering many of them have never heard a word of Spanish in their lives. It is going to be so interesting to see how much they know by the end of the year.

I also need to ask for some prayers for a family friend. They adopted a boy at the same time my parents did and he is threatening to leave to go back to Ukraine. Long story short, his dad is fed up and bought him a plane ticket, but cancelled it when the boy decided to stay for "a little longer." They are living moment by moment through this emotional roller coaster and it is stressful for everyone involved. Thankfully, though all this, my family realized how my brothers feel about going back to Ukraine and they both think it is a completely idiotic idea, which we are really glad to hear. Both of them have talked about going back before, but they both understand how much better their life is going to be here. But this other boy does not have the maturity to see that. Please pray for this family.

Sleep situation and remodel

2011-09-13T07:46:00.002-06:00

Our little Levi decided he does not like sleep. At least, he doesn't like it as much as his dad and I do... So, unfortunately for all of us, we have started having he just cry himself to sleep when he wakes up in the middle of the night. We always go in to check on him when he wakes up, and then periodically while he is awake to make sure he isn't stuck up against the side of the crib or anything like that, but we are not picking him up (or feeding him) anymore. His doctor said that after they reach 9 lbs they have enough sugar reserves to be able to last the night and they just get up out of habit. Last night was the 4th night we have done it and so far we are seeing few results. Although, he doesn't just cry uncontrollably. He will cry for a little bit (3 minutes maybe), then whimper for a bit, then is usually back asleep well within 20 minutes of when he woke up. If it was longer than that then we would know something else was going on and we would pick him up and feed him. It is so hard on a mama to hear her baby crying when she knows she can fix it, but at what cost? It isn't good for any of us for him to eat several times at night when we know he doesn't need to. So hopefully we will get into a good routine soon and he will start sleeping longer than 4 hour stretches. It is so hard to be working and not getting much sleep. I know people do it all the time, and I am one of them currently, but I would love to get just a little more sleep at night! We have also started giving him a tiny bit of rice cereal to see if that helps him sleep longer at night. So far no luck, but hopefully soon.

We have started the last remodel project in our house. We are completely redoing our master bathroom now. It is gutted, down to the studs and the concrete, and the rebuilding will start this weekend. I'm so excited to FINALLY have a nice, clean bathroom. The people before us didn't really take care of the bathroom so it was disgusting when we moved in. The drywall was falling apart, there were holes from where mice (?) once lived, the floor was peeling up, there was mildew and possibly mold in the shower, and not to mention it was horribly outdated. It's going to be so much different and I can't wait! We even got a fancy bathtub that has little air bubble holes. They aren't strong like jets, but there is like 100 little holes where heated air can come out and it just stirs the water a little. I think Levi will love it when he gets a little bigger, too.

So there is the most recent update. Thank you, Lord, for the amazing family I have and that, even though I am exhausted, I have such a fantastic blessing that is making me feel that way. Please help me through the day with my second graders!

Must... sleep...

2011-09-09T20:26:00.004-06:00

We are severely lacking in the sleep department these days. Levi got sick while Jason was out of town and was up three times a night during that period. Well, he hasn't slept well since then. It is SUPER frustrating to know he isn't hungry but to have to feed him anyway to get him to go back to sleep. We are probably going to just let him cry (with us rubbing his back and trying to soothe him in his bed) and see if we can get it down to just once, or no times, a night. I'm so exhausted, I hope something works quickly because I can't keep this up! It's even more frustrating because he was down to just once a night before he got sick, then I don't know if he got in the habit of waking up or what, but now he is up at least twice, but usually more like 3-4 times each night. Not easy on this working mama! Speaking of, I should head to bed. Here are some recent pictures of our little guy.

"I'm 4 months old today!"

Playing with mommy

Going to work in the garden with dad. (He promptly fell asleep as Jason was watering the garden)

Rolling over

2011-08-30T21:00:00.002-06:00

Levi rolled over for the first time this evening!! Unfortunately Jason is in South Carolina for a business trip so he wasn't here to see it. He will see it tomorrow though, and I'm so excited for it! Levi had help twice then did it completely by himself twice, and it was such a strange feeling that I had. I felt so proud, even though I had nothing to do with it. I guess that is what it feels like to be a parent, and what it feels like to be proud of your kids. I loved it. It is so fun to see him reach all his milestones. I know I am not supposed to wish away any of his stages, because he won't be little forever, but it is so much fun seeing him grow and change so much. Hopefully I can get some pictures of him rolling so I can show him off :-)

Memaw

2011-08-06T14:48:00.002-06:00

My great-grandmother, Beulah "Memaw," passed away yesterday afternoon. She had been battling some kidney issues for a couple of weeks, and I'm not sure if that is what the major issue was, but she was in a nursing home because her daughter could no longer care for her at her home. At 94 years old she was still living "alone" at her home, and relatively healthy, although she had a lot of back pain from a surgery she had several years ago.

Enough about her physical health... She was so sweet and loved all of her children, grand children, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren so tenderly. I believe she had 8 great great grandchildren, Levi being the youngest. She was a phenomenal baker and made the best pies in Texas. She also made biscuits and chocolate sauce that were amazing! And the very best part about her was her heart for Jesus. She always, as long as I have known her, has exemplified the Christ-centered life and I'm so happy that she is now dancing in Heaven with her husband, both praising Jesus with everything in them. It is such an amazing thought to know that I will see both of them again some day!

I am so blessed to have known my great grandmother. I'm sad that Levi won't get to know her but he will certainly hear stories about her. I love you, Memaw, and I'm glad you are no longer in pain. See you soon!!

Pictures

2011-07-29T11:30:00.003-06:00

I was told that I failed to keep my promise of uploading pictures, so here you go, I'm making up for it. These are all within the last couple of weeks. Enjoy!

Lack of sleep

2011-07-25T07:45:00.002-06:00

My little boy has decided he does not want to sleep anymore. Last night, for example, he woke up 6 times between 12:30 and 5:45. You do the math. We are completely exhausted and have no idea what to do to help him stay asleep. He is not hungry and rarely needs anything except to be cuddled and put back down. It is so FRUSTRATING!! This has been going on for the past 3 weeks and I'm at my wit's end. He sleeps great on his tummy during the day and I can get some good naps out of him. But nighttime is a different story. I spent more time praying last night for better sleep than I did actually sleeping. I don't know what else to do. I know some babies sleep well and others don't and there is nothing we can really do about it, but we keep trying new things and NOTHING is working. We've tried swaddling, inclining his bed a little, white noise, different pajamas, fewer blankets, more blankets, bath before bed, no bath before bed, many naps during the day, keeping him awake during the day, etc. ARGH!! I'm so exhausted I can barely think straight, and all that is running through my mind is how I am going back to work in two weeks. It makes me want to cry when I think about it. Please pray for us that we can make it through this and keep our sanity, and that whatever is waking Levi up will sort out and go away so he sleeps better at night.

Yet again

2011-07-08T16:47:00.002-06:00

So I know it has been a while, again, but I have an excuse this time. I have been at training for the last 4 days for work. Does that count? lol

Actually, there isn't a whole lot of new stuff to report, only that Levi is growing like a weed! He is 13+ lbs, 24 in long, and as cute as a button. He has been smiling like crazy and sleeping in his own room. He has also started taking bottles regularly while I am gone during the day. He is spending a lot of time with his Grammie and Grandpa Ken, and overall is doing fantastic! We are still lacking in a routine, but hopefully he is getting closer to falling into one. As soon as I upload some more pictures I will post them. Keep praying for us that we find a routine soon, and that he starts sleeping more at night. Thanks so much and I promise I will do my best to post pictures this weekend.

Outings! Routine!!

2011-06-23T15:09:00.003-06:00

Today was Levi's first outing to a restaurant with my family. He went to a restaurant yesterday for lunch, but it was informal and quick. Today, though, we went for lunch as a family and he did GREAT!! He was wide awake the whole time, hung out with my mom for a while, me for a while, and my dad for a while with no complaints at all. It was awesome!

Also, he seems to be getting into more of a routine during the day. He gets up at 6am (no matter what, and it can be frustrating when I just want to sleep, but at least he is predictable!). He eats, we play for a few minutes, he sleeps for 30-60 minutes, eats again or plays for a while, then takes his morning nap from 2-3 hours long (during which time Grammie comes over while I go to Zumba and shower). Then he wakes up to play, eats, plays some more, and eats a little more, then sleeps for 2-3 more hours in the early afternoon. Recently he has been staying awake after than until about bedtime, sometimes 4 hours! Then we start the bedtime routine at about 8:30. That means eating, bath, lotion, more eating (hopefully) then he is out for the count. He will sleep anywhere from 3-5 hours the first stretch, then gets up every 3 hours after that. It seems pretty loosey-goosey, but it feels like more of a routine than I originally thought. I love the predictability :-)

Anywho, there is the latest update. I hope things continue to go as smoothly as they are right now. I think I am getting this down finally (and I know that means things will change now, lol). I love being a mommy!

Growing boy!

2011-06-19T14:49:00.002-06:00

I know, I know, it's been a while since I have updated. Thankfully, nothing much new has happened to catch you up on. Levi still sleeps about the same amount of time at night (4-5 hours at first, then 3 hours after that, up at 6am regardless of what time he ate last). We have started to figure out a nap pattern, which includes him napping for a good long stretch right after lunch-ish. He is sleeping right now, as a matter of fact. He LOVES sleeping on his tummy, but we only let him do that if we can watch him like a hawk. It will be a while before we are OK with it when he is on his own. We are starting to toy around with the idea of him sleeping in his own room, but I'm not quite ready for that yet, even though I'm sure I would get better sleep. He grunts, moans, and groans a lot, but doesn't always wake himself up, but it certainly wakes me up!

He is gaining weight like crazy. In fact, he is gaining about double the average. Doctors like to see 1oz a day of gain, but my chunker gains 2 oz a day. He is almost 12 lbs already! It is easy to see how much he is changing already. He is getting great head-control, can track objects with his eyes, and has been smiling regularly. It is pretty much the most precious thing ever.

I am going to get back into Zumba and working out in general this week. Before that happens he has to be good at taking a bottle, though, and we are still working on it. For whatever reason he won't take a bottle. I expected to have him not take one from me, but he won't take one from Jason either. My sister has been successful, although she said she doesn't have a secret or a trick. It is frustrating because we end up wasting so much milk when we try and he just doesn't take it at all. I know he will get it eventually, but at the moment we are unsuccessful.

I think that is all from us for now. Hope all of the daddies and daddies-to-be had a great Father's Day! Take care and God bless.

Levi's "procedure" (and some pictures)

2011-06-04T10:38:00.003-06:00

This week we took Levi to get circumcised. It started out a little rough because he was hungry when we got there, so he was very unhappy. The Dr. didn't let us (my mother in law went with me) go in the room with him while they did it, but we could hear him crying from the waiting room where we were. I knew he was in good hands so it wasn't so bad. Then, when we got back in the room the doctor said he did well then he let me feed him.

When we got home, he was sleeping. After a couple of hours I tried to change his diaper and it was soaked in blood. Blood was dripping all over the changing table and it took me several minutes to get another diaper back on him. I called the doctor back and they said to bring him in again. Fortunately, it didn't seem like he was in any pain. When we got to the doctor's office they called us right back and got to work on him. Apparently something happened to him that had a 5% chance of happening (lucky us) but the doctor just fixed him right up. The hardest part was holding Levi's hands while he was laying on the bed while the doctor was stopping the bleeding. He was SCREAMING because he was so uncomfortable without a diaper on, someone messing with him, and being on his back while nobody is picking him up. It was so hard and yes, I did cry a little.

I'm so grateful that the doctor got the bleeding stopped and he has been doing well ever since. It was pretty traumatic for me, but everything is good now. He is healing well and definitely not in pain. Being a mom definitely comes with more difficulties than just sleep deprivation. My heart breaks when he cries and I can't figure out what is wrong. Even when I know he is safe, not hungry, etc., it is still hard to hear him crying uncontrollably. I guess I am going to have to toughen up a little, huh! He is adorable and right now is sitting with his dad on the couch, just sleeping.

Life is so different now than it was before, and everything is twice as hard. For example: showering and doing my hair is basically impossible when I am here by myself. Eating can be a challenge sometimes, too. I have spent a ton of time on the couch watching tv recently and I'm really ready to get back to my active life. This past week I spent 3 days at school packing up my classroom and finishing all of the end-of-year paperwork. Levi came with me and was really great for the most part. It was still hard getting everything done, though. Thankfully my mom and mother in law came and helped me out. I don't know what I would do without them!

Now I get to enjoy my summer and just hang out with Levi without worrying about school stuff. Oh how different this summer will be...

Pedicures, Patios, and Sleeping Babies

2011-05-28T09:11:00.002-06:00

Yesterday my fantastic, wonderful, kind mother-in-law came over to watch Levi while I went and got a pedicure. My feet were desperate since I hadn't done anything to them since a week before Levi was born. It was so nice to know that he was safe and happy while I was out enjoying myself for a few minutes. I love being a mom, and I love my little boy more than I thought possible, but sometimes it is really nice having a little time for me.

Jason has had an interesting work schedule this week. He had a job interview on Thursday morning, joined us at Levi's doctor's appointment in the afternoon, and took Friday off. He and his dad have been working on making a back patio for us at our house. Right now they are out picking up the flagstone in town. It is going to be so nice to have a larger patio where we can entertain and hang out in the backyard. We have a porch right now, but it is pretty small and barely holds the table we have out there. We are going to have a Memorial Day get-together to break it in, so hopefully they get it finished! Shouldn't be too hard since they made so much progress yesterday.

In baby news, Levi slept for 5 straight hours last night! I thought I was dreaming when I looked at the clock at 3am (having gone to be at 10pm). He ate like a ravenous child then promptly went back to sleep. Ok, maybe not promptly, but once he was asleep he didn't wake up again until 6am. It was a great night and I feel much more rested than I have in a while. Should be a good day!

Settling In

2011-05-22T13:32:00.002-06:00

As Levi sleeps I figure I should take this opportunity to write a short update. We are still doing well. He slept for 4 hours straight last night and Jason and I felt so refreshed when we woke up this morning after that! There is a huge difference between segmented sleep and straight sleep, just fyi. Levi only really got up once last night, then once early this morning, so that made a huge difference. And on top of that Jason got up with him at 7am so I could get a little more sleep. I feel like I have so much energy today! Too bad I can't get much done because the baby is sleeping and I don't want to wake him up. Hopefully I can get something done because our house is a mess.

Yesterday Jason went fishing with a friend, my dad, and my brothers. My fabulous mother-in-law came over in the morning so I could get some school work done. I have report cards to do and math tests to grade, so having her there to keep Levi occupied when he wasn't eating was a huge help. I even got to eat breakfast at a reasonable hour because she was there with us. She stayed until lunch time. I then got a shower while Levi was sleeping (not easy to do because he normally screams his little head off while I am in the shower, and sure enough, when I got out he was crying. It breaks my heart! I know it is OK for them to cry, and I knew he wasn't hurt or anything, but it is still hard to listen to.). My mom came over around 3pm so I could finish up my report cards, which I did. It was so nice to get those done! I have to bring them back to school on Wednesday completed, and I'm so glad they are done before Tuesday evening.

This week should be pretty laid back. Wednesday I am headed to school for a staff luncheon to say "goodbye" to the teachers that are leaving. I am not looking forward to seeing any of them go and they are ALL going to be missed. Thursday Levi has his 2 week checkup, although he will be 3.5 weeks old (his doctor is out of town). I know he is gaining weight, though, because I weighed him last Wednesday and he weighs 8lbs+. Yay for a growing boy! Jason is going to take off Thursday and Friday of this week, and he has next Monday off, too, so we get to have daddy home for several days. It is going to be so nice! I feel bad for always calling my mother-in-law to come over when I have to get something done, even though I know she really enjoys it, so having Jason home will help me be a lot more productive (hopefully).

OK, I think that is all for now. Here is a picture of our little man that I took last week. He keeps changing! I'm so excited to see what he is going to look like as he grows up, and to see what kind of a man he turns into. Mommy-hood is incredibly difficult, but so rewarding. I love my new role :-)

Two weeks old

2011-05-17T19:49:00.002-06:00

Levi is two weeks old today. I can't believe I have been a mother for two weeks! It still amazes me that God has entrusted this little life into Jason's and my hands. He must know something I don't (duh) because I am completely ill-equiped without His help.

We are making good progress with getting into a routine. Levi will sleep for 2+ hours in his bassinet at night. During the day he either sleeps in his swing or his bouncer. He is doing great with breastfeeding and I'm looking forward to pumping so Jason can help with some of the feedings. It will probably be at least another week or so before I start pumping for real because I want to make sure I have a really good milk supply before I begin. I am going to talk to a lactation consultant about it tomorrow, so hopefully I can get a plan together. Jason took him outside for a while this evening when he got home to water some trees and our garden and he seemed to really enjoy it. That could be a secret weapon that we use on him when he is super fussy because going outside really seems to calm him down.

I feel like I am holding my breath for that horrible day where he is inconsolable and cries all day/night for no obvious reason. We have been so blessed thus far with how he has been, and no matter what I will do what it takes to make sure he is happy and comfortable, but I'm just dreading that first time. I'm praying for the strength to get through it when it inevitably happens.

Tomorrow should be very interesting. It will be the first time I am going to try to get ready to go to town without any help here. Every time someone comes while I shower and get ready he just sleeps the whole time, so I am hoping that is how it goes tomorrow. I actually have to "be someone" tomorrow as I have a doctor's appointment, mommy support group, lunch with a friend, then I'm going to school to pick some things up and pay a visit to show off Levi to some of the people I work with. I hope I can handle all the time away from home, and I better make sure I have everything in order first thing in the morning so I make it to my appointment on time. Say a prayer for me if you think about it because I am going to need all the help I can get tomorrow morning!

Breakthrough!

2011-05-15T10:21:00.003-06:00

Last night Levi slept in his bassinet! He woke up to nurse and he woke up once or twice other than that but Jason was able to rock him right back to sleep. It was amazing that Jason and I both got to sleep at the same time and in our room! Until now we have been taking turns staying in the living room because he wouldn't sleep except on one of us, and we didn't want to keep the other person up. It worked so great and we are hoping it stays this way from now on (and hoping it wasn't a fluke). He is asleep right now in his swing which has given me a chance to get laundry going and to do some straightening up in the nursery, something that hasn't happened since he has been home because he has had to be carried everywhere or he wouldn't sleep. It's a good day.

I have found that through this journey (so far) I have done more praying than I have ever done in my life. Don't get me wrong, I completely believe in the power of prayer, and I prayed constantly through my pregnancy for this little boy, but there is something about him being here and me having to take care of him that has forced me to trust God and to constantly ask for his help. I have had a few emotional evenings and frustrating moments (mostly with feeding) and i would not have made it through those very well without prayer. God is so faithful and He is reassuring me that He didn't make a mistake by giving me this precious gift to take care of. It's true that you don't know what love is until you have a child. It's still unreal that he is actually ours to raise and take care of, and we are still fumbling through the days. I pray every day that God gives me the wisdom and knowledge and skills to raise Levi to be a God-fearing man, and that he comes to know Christ at an early age. I'd appreciate your prayers for that as well! Thanks so much and I'll try to keep updating as new things happen!

Sleep deprived

2011-05-12T07:48:00.000-06:00

Everyone always tells you how much babies sleep. They don't tell you, however, that they always want to sleep ON SOMEONE. This is the case with Levi. He only sleeps well if he is being held, making it very difficult for the person holding him to get any sleep. He is doing better and is actually starting to sleep other places, so I hope we are making progress, but this has definitely been the hardest part of being home. He is feeding extremely well and is only 3 oz away from his birth weight. He was down 7 oz on Friday but is creeping back up. He has until Tuesday to gain the rest of his weight, and I don't think it is going to be a problem!

My mother-in-law has been an absolute saint. She comes over around 9pm every evening so Jason and I can both get some sleep, then she goes home around 1am (or 2:30am as was the case last night!). I don't know how we would do it without her, but I do know we would both be a lot more tired. She comes over almost every day to watch him while I shower or nap or clean or whatever else I need to do. It is going to be a sad day when that isn't happening any more. Hopefully Levi will let us all get into a little bit of a routine so she doesn't HAVE to come over all the time, but she can just come when she wants. We'll see I guess.

Other than the sleep issues everything is going really well. I have an awesome baby boy and I'm trying not to take that for granted. He doesn't stay up for all hours crying. He eats and makes plenty of dirty diapers. And he is absolutely adorable on top of all that :-) God has truly blessed us by giving us this precious gift and we pray every day that we can raise Levi to love the Lord as much as Jason and I do. We would appreciate your prayers for that as well. Thanks! More pictures to come soon.

New phase

2011-05-09T11:37:00.002-06:00

Jason has gone back to work, starting today, so I am on my own with Levi. Actually, that isn't quite true because I am getting so much help from my mother-in-law. She actually stayed until 1am this morning to take "first watch" with him so Jason and I could get some sleep. I don't know what we are going to do if he doesn't start sleeping on his own because I don't want to have to rely on her to do that very often, but I'm so grateful she was willing to do that for us. He is starting to be a more independent sleeper and will actually spend more than 30 seconds in his swing to sleep, which is a huge milestone. I'd love to get him to the point where he can sleep in his crib or bassinet, but I am going to take these small victories. He is really an easy baby, so far, and continues to eat well and just be content, in general.

Here are a couple of pictures so the world can see my handsome man. I think he looks like Jason...

Levi is here!

2011-05-06T20:20:00.002-06:00

Our baby boy was born on May 3, 10:40am. He was 7 lbs 11oz, 21 in long, and has a full head of dark hair. I wanted to have a natural birth, if possible, and that is how it worked out. In fact, we made it to the hospital at 9:30am and he was born an hour later, so whether I wanted meds or not there was no time. My parents, Jason's mom, my sister, and of course Jason were in the room when he was born. I thought I only wanted the moms and Jason there, but by that point I didn't really care. I couldn't hear a word anybody except Jason was saying to me because they put oxygen on me and the mask was really loud. But, he is here an healthy, so I guess I did ok!

The whole story:

Sunday I had some labor pains starting at about 6am. They weren't very organized or intense, but they were definitely contractions. Then I took a nap at 2:30 pm and woke up and there were no more contractions at all. I was so frustrated because I thought it was time, and then nothing.

Well, because of that I decided not to go on my field trip on Tuesday to Santa Fe. I got everything squared away with my sub and she agreed to go on the trip for me. I went to work on Monday, got everything else squared away for when I was eventually going to be gone, and didn't have a single contraction all day. People kept saying how surprised they were to see me at work, but I was still almost a week away from my due date, so no biggie. I went home a little frustrated that I hadn't had any more contractions but I tried to take it easy and just wait for God's timing for the baby to come. Went to bed at 9:30, then...

3am- I wake up to horrible stabbing pains in my belly. I knew pretty immediately it was a contraction, even though they felt way different then the contractions I was feeling on Sunday. Sunday they felt a lot like cramps. Tuesday they felt a lot like stabbing, sharp lower belly and upper thigh pains. I managed to stay in bed for an hour before having to get up to go walk around. Jason decided to get up even though I told him he didn't need to. By 5am we had decided I was, indeed, in labor, as the contractions were about 7 minutes apart and they lasted about 1 min and 15 sec, or so. Jason emailed in to work and let them know that he wouldn't be in that day, and I decided we should start getting ready for the imminent trip to the hospital that we would be making later that day.

7am- we called our families and let them know that we would probably be going to the hospital that day, though we didn't know when. The contractions were staying pretty consistent, not really getting much closer, but they were getting stronger. Jason's mom decided to come over and help me out. My parents were planning on going to Santa Fe for an errand (an hour away) and even after finding out that I was in labor they still thought they had enough time to go, and we agreed, so they made their plan for the day.
I found that laying down was completely out of the question- I had two contractions while laying down and the pain made me throw up. So, I found a comfortable position in one of our chairs and just hung out there. Jason was awesome about helping me through each of the contractions and reminding me that the pain would be over in a few moments. We were a little curious about why the contractions weren't getting much closer together, at this point from 5-7 minutes apart, still lasting a little more than a minute, but decided we should get ready to go to the hospital.

9am- We are finally ready to leave and got things prepared in case we were going to be at the hospital for a while before he was born. I was starting to question whether I could make it through without medication of some kind. At the moment, though, there was nothing I could do about it except make it though each of the contractions, one at a time. In the car I only had three or four contractions, which just reinforced the thought that I would be in labor for quite a while longer.

9:30am- We make it to the hospital, I have a contraction in the car right when we got there then I thought I could make it into the building because it shouldn't take 5 minutes to walk in. Well, how wrong I was... I got out, had a contraction. Walked 10 steps, had another contraction. Walked 10 more steps, had a contraction, and my water breaks. It was INTENSE. I was having them every 30 seconds (it felt like) and they were REALLY painful. Two people stopped us in the hallway to ask if we were OK. The first time we said yes and that I could make it. The second time I felt like I had to push the baby so she went and got me a wheel chair then hurried me upstairs.

9:45am- I get up to triage and they get me into a gown, have me sign my forms, and take me in to a room to a bed. I get checked and I am 8cm dilated. 8 cm!! No wonder they hurt so bad! They asked me if I wanted any meds to help with the pain. I was wavering so I asked how long they thought it would be before the baby was born. She said, "not long, but if you want meds now is the time." I said I would pass, but then told Jason that I think I did want them. They monitored me and the baby for a while, I'm not sure how long, gave me my wrist bands, then wheeled me off into the delivery room. Jason called my parents, told them NOT to go to Santa Fe, and also my sister.

In the delivery room (I'm not sure what time it is at this point) they hooked me up to monitors and the contractions are still coming on strong. I was feeling more and more like I need to push. I asked if I could push if I felt like it and she said yes, but not too much because we needed to wait for the midwife. After the midwife got there it was all a blur. They said the baby's heart rate was a tiny bit distressed, so they put something under one side of me. I put on the oxygen mask and then all I remember is pushing until he was born. He was born at 10:40 am. It was insane!

I guess his cord was tied in a knot, which must have happened a while back because he was too big to move around that much towards the end. They asked me if I wanted to feel his head after his head was out and I said "nope." LOL. They placed him on my chest when he came out and all I could feel was pure relief and joy. It was amazing. Jason cut the cord, they cleaned him up a little bit, and then I just got to cuddle with him. We finally were able to tell everyone what his name is and everyone loved it! I can't even describe every emotion that I felt that day, but it all ended in complete joy. He is so perfect with the most precious face, everything was worth it. Not to mention, all the pain and discomfort went away the second he was born, which was amazing. (It would soon be replaced by new pain and discomfort, but it didn't matter at that point.)

My plan was to have a natural birth- check!
My plan was to NOT have a party in the delivery room- close.
My plan was to rely on God to get me through every part of this experience- sometimes it was hard, especially when the pain was at it's worst, but He was so faithful to me through it all that now I know He didn't leave my side the whole time.
My plan was for Jason to have a positive experience- check! (I think)
My plan was to give birth to a beautiful, healthy baby boy- double check!

There is a whole lot more I could write about the hospital stay and the days after, but I will leave that for another time. God is good. I have an amazing husband. My family is so great and supportive. Our baby boy has joined us and now we begin a whole new adventure!

9 days left!

2011-04-29T14:40:00.002-06:00

Yep, the countdown is officially in the single digits for how many days are left until my due date. It is ridiculous how close it is, but unfortunately it still feels so far away. I am still working full time, have obligations outside of school, and I'm starting to think about next year. It is funny to hear the countdown of the other teachers here- 21 days left of school! Then I quietly mumble that I hope I have 5 or fewer and they say things like, "is it really that close??" etc. It is funny. I am in the middle of an assessment window, though, and I hope I can get most of those finished before I actually leave. I am mostly done, but not completely. We will see how far I get and when this baby actually comes. I just thought I would let the world know that I will be a mother in less than 10 days *fingers crossed*

One more appointment down

2011-04-27T08:09:00.002-06:00

I went in yesterday morning for my 38 week appointment. It didn't start off well as I was the very first one in the office and they didn't call me back until 20 minutes after my appointment was supposed to be. I don't know what the hold up was because I was supposed to be the first appointment of the morning but whatever. I haven't gained any more weight in the last 2 weeks, which is really good, and puts me at a grand total of 37 lbs at the moment. I don't feel too bad about that since I had one really rough month (think Thanksgiving and Christmas time...) but otherwise have kept it under control. I'm still partly watching what I eat, but not nearly as closely as I was a while back. Anyway, my midwife didn't check me (I told her it just makes me anxious so I didn't want to know) and basically said, "If you don't have a baby I will see you next week." *sigh* I really badly want to have this baby really soon. I am so uncomfortable and tired all the time, I'm having a very difficult time focusing at work, and I just want to be able to hold/hug/kiss/love on this little boy. I know God has everything planned out to be perfect timing, but I wish He would let me in on His plan because patience is not a virtue I possess!

Jason has an interview today at another company. A while back there was some question as to whether he was going to be able to stay where he was because the program he was working on ended. When that was happening he applied to several places and is just now getting interviews, even though he has been assured a spot where he currently works. He decided to go through with the interview just to see what happens and then we will take it from there. He thinks he is going to stay where he is because he just moved departments and is excited about all he is going to be learning, but depending on how this interview goes and after some prayer we will make a decision. Say a prayer for him today! He told me several weeks ago when he knew this interview was coming up that I wasn't allowed to have the baby today. I asked him, "what if I wait and just go into labor at like noon? That should give you plenty of time at your interview then we can still have the baby today." He didn't think that was very funny.

I'm so thankful that I have everything ready (more or less) to go at school for when this child decides to make his arrival. I am not worried at all about how it will go when I have a sub in here full time. I'm supposed to go on a field trip next Tuesday to somewhere outside of the city for an all day excursion. I'm not entirely sure I want to go, just in case something happens. I think it will be fun and my kids are going to love it, but it makes me a little nervous. Although if I'm still pregnant at that point then I may want to go do a bunch of walking around to see if I can get anything moving. We will see!

Ok, gotta go get ready for the day. Take care and God bless! 10 days until my due date!

Next year

2011-04-22T08:38:00.002-06:00

I just found out this week that I definitely have a job next year at the school I am working at right now. I can't even express how amazing it feels to know this so long before the end of the year! At my last job I was a short-term hire, so I knew that in May I would need to start applying for other jobs and hunting around. I didn't get this job until the day before teachers went back to work, so that made for a long summer of interviewing, applying, and wondering. To know that I won't have to do that again this summer is so wonderful. I can just relax and spend time with the baby.

Speaking of the baby, I had an appointment with my midwife on Wednesday. Apparently my blood pressure is pretty high, so she had me get some baseline blood work done and will see how I am doing on Tuesday when I go back in. If it is still high and my blood work changes any, they will induce me. Part of me is really excited about this idea because that means I get to meet my son earlier than anticipated. The other part of me doesn't want this to happen because I know my chances of making it through an induction without any kind of pain meds are slim to none. I am not totally opposed to pain meds, but I want to try to have a natural birth if possible (plus the meds are so expensive!). I want to try to have him at the water-birth center in our hospital, although I will not be having a water birth. We will see what happens though, and the most important thing to me is to have a healthy baby, so I will do whatever I need to to make that happen.

That's the update for now. Stay tuned for more!

Baby update

2011-04-14T08:13:00.002-06:00

I had an appointment with my midwife yesterday and she did my Group B Strep test. I don't really know what that is, but I had to undress from the waist down and I'll have my results in a week. She offered to check me yesterday and of course I was really curious to see if I had made any progress, and sure enough! I'm "at least 2 cm dilated" and she could feel his head. She also said my cervix is pretty soft, although I'm not sure what that means. Haha, can you tell I'm a first-time-mom? She did not check to see how big he was but I'm figuring he is between 6.5 and 7 lbs, according to my last ultrasound and baby's "average" weight gain.

Speaking of weight gain, since I have cut way down on the sugar I only gained 1lb in the last two weeks, compared to the 3lbs I gained the week before. I am up to a grand total of 37lbs so far and I hope I can keep it under 40lbs by the time he is born. I know everyone is different, and I had a really rough month in there (Thanksgiving to Christmas) which made my weight skyrocket. My midwife seems very pleased and not at all concerned about it, though, which makes me feel good about it. I've been very active the past few days (hence the dilation?) and feeling great, overall. I'm exhausted by the end of the day usually, but I haven't had as much swelling in my feet/hands, and the heartburn is subsiding for the most part.

Thank you for the continued prayers. One thing that has really been weighing heavy on our hearts has been how we are going to raise a Godly child. Neither Jason nor I were raised in a Christian home, and while my parents are Christians now, I can't really get any pointers from them on how to raise young children to love God. We have some other couples we can use as examples, but we are just praying that God gives us the wisdom and the strength to do what is best for our little boy and guide him to Jesus. As scripture says, "Train up you children in the ways of the Lord and when they are old they will not depart from it." We are confident in that promise and trust that God will take care of him.

More updates to come as things progress!

4 weeks left

2011-04-09T16:41:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was April 8, meaning I had one month left to make it to my due date. That is crazy! As of tomorrow I have exactly 4 weeks to make it to my due date. It feels like just yesterday (ok, maybe last week) that I was finding out I was pregnant and then going to my doctor's appointment. How can I be so close already? And I'll admit that it has been a little hard to focus at school recently. It doesn't help that it has been 2 straight weeks of testing for my kids, which means I have a lot of down time where I just have to monitor them and not teach, so my mind was free to wander at will. And trust me, it was wandering like crazy. I spent a lot of time working on sub plans this last couple of weeks and I actually have 4 weeks of them completed. I am only required to have two weeks for my long-term sub, but I needed to have something planned in case I went into labor early because my sub has another obligation that week so I don't know who would be in my class that week. Then, I made a week's worth of "emergency" plans for if I am out sick or something. If those don't get used up then my sub can use them the last week of school. I'm glad I was so productive but now I can spend time thinking about other things that need to get done before the baby comes (laundry washed and put away, bed made, closet finished, etc.). Hopefully being back on a normal schedule will help me focus and be distracted, rather than obsessing over this upcoming change.

Not only that, but it is very possible I will have to find another job for next year. There is a pretty serious budget cut here which means my school has to get rid of several teachers. Seeing as I am at the bottom of the seniority list, that means more than one or two people have to either retire or transfer for me to be able to stay there. I want to stay, of course, but I know there is nothing I can do about it so I am just leaving it in God's hands and trying not to think about it too much. I have faith that He will place me exactly where I need to be, as He has done with my last couple of jobs. Prayers are appreciated!

Counting Down

2011-03-31T21:21:00.002-06:00

We are smack dab in the middle of state testing right now and it is getting old quickly. I want to get back to teaching! My students are doing great, though, and are working really hard during EVERY test. If only it didn't take 2.5 weeks to finish the darn thing. Anyway, I thought time was going by really slowly, but I just realized that I have basically 5 weeks left and then I will be done with the year and get to spend time with my baby boy! I can't believe how close it really is. I think it is really going to hit me when my colleague goes on maternity leave starting next Friday, because I know I am only 4 weeks behind her. CRAZY!!

I spent the evening organizing all the gifts from my first two showers. I had a shower yesterday at work (with this same girl I work with) and I hadn't gotten around to organizing the stuff from my Lubbock shower. It felt good to get the room in order a little because I know there will be tons more presents coming this weekend. I have both family showers this weekend and I can't wait to see everyone, especially those who I haven't seen much since becoming pregnant. It is going to be tons of fun. I wish EVERYONE I loved and cared for could be at my showers, but I know that is not possible, so I guess they will just have to be with me in spirit.

Prayers would continue to be appreciated for Jason, me, and the baby. We are getting so close and are starting to get a little nervous. Not to mention I am getting much more uncomfortable these days. (Oh, and I have to completely cut out all processed carbs and sugar... long story short- I have an "infection" of sorts and my midwife said this will really help. I hope so because it certainly is a sacrifice for me! I admit that I love my sugar and my carbs...)

Lubbock baby shower pictures!

2011-03-26T13:51:00.005-06:00

Here they are! I can't possibly put all of them up, but here are the best ones. Thanks to Rachel and Joni for throwing the most wonderful, special shower for me. I don't have words to express my appreciation! And thanks to everyone who made it, it was a very special day for me to get to spend celebrating this new life with my nearest and dearest friends.

Shower, traveling, and testing

2011-03-24T07:46:00.003-06:00

I had my first baby shower! You'll have to excuse the lack of pictures. My camera has them but I haven't hooked my camera up to my computer for the first time yet, and I'm not sure what all that will take, so I just haven't gotten around to doing it yet. Pictures will be coming, though, I promise! Anywho, this shower was in Lubbock and hosted by my wonderful friends Rachel and Joni. It was a small shower with my dearest friends from Lubbock, although some of them don't even live there and still made the trip up (thanks Sunnie, it was awesome seeing you!). I got some wonderful gifts, but most of all I was able to celebrate the new life inside of me with some of the people that are closest to my heart. My mom and grandmother were even able to make the trip. (My mom happened to be in Lubbock anyway that day, traveling back from visiting my grandparents, and my grandma wanted to come so she drove 3.5 hours each way just for the shower. I love her!) It was so special and I'm so glad I got to spend that time with my nearest and dearest friends.

Yes, Lubbock, TX was our destination. It wasn't the most exciting drive, and I had to stop every hour to go to the bathroom. Aah, the unsung joys of pregnancy. Going out there wasn't bad at all, except for the stopping all the time. Coming back, however, was pretty much torture. I was miserable in the car. If I had been thinking I would have ridden with my parents in their RV, as they were going back at the same time as we were, but I thought I could handle it. WRONG!! I mean, I made it, but I whined and moaned and complained the whole time. I guess my traveling days are over until this little guy comes and no longer puts unnecessary pressure on random nerves and muscles.

This week is the start of the state test here in NM. My kids are all really nervous, and since this is their first experience with this test, they don't really know what to expect. Say a little prayer for them if you think about it today! I am confident they will all do OK, but I'm not sure they are so confident. Gotta love testing time, right? Two weeks of pure testing, coupled with stress and weird schedules. Aah...

Baby shower #1

2011-03-19T09:10:00.002-06:00

Jason and I are in TX for our first baby shower this weekend! My fabulous friends Rachel and Joni are throwing it for me and I can't wait to get to celebrate our little guy with all these friends that I haven't seen in months, or longer. I got a sneak peak at the decorations yesterday and they are SO CUTE!! I wish I was that creative. I'm really looking forward to the shower, and it really has nothing to do with the gifts. Getting to be around so many friends during this joyous time in our lives means so much, and I hope I remember to take good pictures so I can show little man how much everyone cared for him, even before he was born.

The ultrasound I had the other day went fine. He was 4lbs 6oz, heartrate 132, and everything looked good. I'm so relieved! I haven't had any more bleeding, thankfully, and feel great. The only new thing for me is the swelling. My fingers and feet have started swelling at random times during the day. I hear that the best way to combat this is to drink a TON of water, but unfortunately I seriously dislike water, and it takes all the will power I have to drink a glass every now and then. I guess I am either going to have to get over it or be OK with being swollen all the time. Ugh. I'm also noticing my face getting a little more "plump" which I'm not happy about. Jason claims it isn't too bad, but it is still frustrating to not be able to control where the weight (or swelling?) goes...

We have a name picked out for our little one, but stay tuned until May to find out what it is!

Slightly Nervous

2011-03-14T07:09:00.002-06:00

I have had some bleeding yesterday and today, and as far as I can tell it is nothing to really worry about, but the midwife on-call said she is going to have me go in for an ultrasound to get checked out. She said it is not an emergency but because it has happened twice then she wants us to be sure. I'm trying really hard not to freak out about it, but it isn't really all that easy. Now I have all these things running through my head-

What if I go into labor? (That would be insane since I haven't even turned in my paperwork to HR yet about maternity leave, or talked to a sub)
Is the baby ok?
Am I ok?
Will I still be able to go to lunch with a friend today?
Will I still get to have my massage tomorrow?
Will I still be able to go to Lubbock this weekend?? (I think so, but it is still a thought I've had...)
Is the baby going to come much earlier than we thought, even if it is not "now"?
What is going on if both the baby and I are fine?
What is my midwife going to say at my appointment on Wednesday?

So yeah, I am a little bit of a nervous wreck, even though I'm not really worried about the baby because I still feel him moving around and everything. I haven't had any contractions that I know of, and no pain that is unusual (my back always hurts these days). I'm going to call the clinic in about an hour and make an appointment for an ultrasound, then take it from there. Jason and I prayed for the baby and me this morning and I feel better since then, but it is hard to come to terms with all of these feelings and thoughts running around inside my brain.

I appreciate any and all prayers. I know God is in control of this and that He has a plan for my life and my son's life, and whatever that means at the moment I don't know. God has never let me down, ever, and I know He will not start now. Thanks in advance for the prayers! Have a blessed day.

Promised picture

2011-02-27T14:59:00.002-07:00

Here is the picture I promised to post at 27 weeks. I am currently 30 weeks, as of today, but we don't have any new pictures. I feel like I am not changing much, so maybe I'll take one next week and see some growth. So, our initial name choice is not what we are going to go with, we don't think. We have another one we are going to use for a while and see if we like it enough to make our final decision. Who would have thought that coming up with a name would be so hard? Anyway, it will still be 10 weeks or so before we announce what his name will be, but just so you know we are getting closer :-).

We are getting closer to getting all of our nursery furniture as well. We are going to go to Babies R Us tomorrow after my doctor's appointment to order it. We were both really impressed by the store, and even though it is a little more expensive than Target or anything like that, we are still going to register for some stuff from there. We like the play yards that they have there better, and possibly some of the other "big" stuff like a swing and other things. We will see.

Anywho, nothing else is new. Just counting down the days/weeks until he gets here! And I just realized there are only 3 weeks left until my first baby shower. How exciting!

Reality check

2011-02-19T14:25:00.003-07:00

Yesterday one of the other ladies at school had her baby. Congratulations on baby Alexandria! The crazy part is she was at school yesterday until 12:30 (she has been working part time because of blood pressure issues) and as far as I knew hadn't been feeling weird at all. I heard later she had started feeling a couple of contractions, but they were really irregular and unpredictable. Well, I got a text at 7:00 last night saying she had a baby girl! I was so shocked!! How can it go so fast? I hope mine is like that, and that I am able to work through the day and then give birth in the evening. That sounds like it could not have gone any better.

I call it a reality check because for the whole year it has been Carla, then Jessica, then me when it comes to when our babies will come. Well, now it is just Jessica and I. Holy guacamole! Jessica's baby shower is tomorrow and I'm really looking forward to giving her the gift I made her. But she is only 7 weeks away, and I am only 11. I guess now that Carla had her baby it seems like this pregnancy is just going to fly by, it is insane.

Ok, I'm sure a lot of that didn't make sense and for that I apologize. I am off to visit Carla and her new baby! What a blessing new babies are. Please say a prayer for Carla, her husband, and the new baby. They are first time parents just like Jason and I will be and I can only imagine what is going through their minds less than 24 hours after their daughter made her appearance. I'm sure they would appreciate your prayers!

Quick update

2011-02-18T08:13:00.002-07:00

I know it has been a while since I posted last, but such is life during testing time at school! I am feeling fair. I am no longer sleeping through the night (training for the future?), I have pretty severe sciatic nerve pain throughout the day, and I'm completely exhausted by the end of the day. I went to see my midwife earlier this week and she said everything looks good. I'm measuring a little farther along than where I am, but she said it is not uncommon and babies just grow at different rates. I only gained 3 lbs this month, which was a HUGE relief. I have been trying really hard to watch what I eat and exercise because the month before was horrendous. Hopefully I can keep it around that and not go crazy with my cravings! I have to go in every two weeks for the next two months, then every week after that until he makes his grand entrance.

I wanted to put a picture up of me at the beginning of the third trimester, but apparently I don't have them on my computer yet. Hopefully soon!

I hope everyone has a blessed day.

Third Trimester

2011-02-07T21:35:00.002-07:00

Apparently it rings true within me that the third trimester brings a lot of discomfort. I am more uncomfortable now than I have been for my previous 6 months. I haven't slept for the past two nights, I can't get comfortable, I'm exhausted, my sciatic nerve is killing me, and my back hurts much more. The good thing is I feel our little boy moving all the time, and apparently he likes the front of my belly rather than further back because we can feel him all the time even when he is laying still. It is kinda cool but kinda weird at the same time. He is such a little weirdo already! Gotta love him though.

Oh, and we think we have a name picked out... but that won't be known for sure until May when he makes his grand appearance.

Lord, please help me get some rest tonight!

I'll post a picture as soon as I have the energy.

Bassinet and baby shower

2011-02-05T17:16:00.002-07:00

Yes, I finally broke down and bought my first baby item- a used bassinet from a second hand store. I know, its a biggie :-) A friend found it for me at this store and I finally made it over there to get it. To tell the truth, I'm surprised it was still there because it is so cute and in such good shape! I'm not sure where we are going to put it because our room doesn't really have a place for it the way we have everything laid out right now, but we might have to do a little rearranging no matter what we put in our room for the baby. I'm glad to finally have something for him, though, because I'm starting to feel a little unprepared. Hopefully this next weekend we will do some furniture shopping and get a crib and changing table for his room so I can start putting things together, but I don't know what next weekend looks like yet. I know there is still plenty of time (I will be 27 weeks tomorrow) but I don't have a ton of free time once work kicks back into full gear (4 snow days threw me off a little). I'll just do what I can when I can I suppose, I don't really have any other options.

I got a phone call today from my bestest friend who is planning my baby shower in Lubbock. I'm so excited about it! I know it is going to be a ton of fun. All I need is to have my friends there, but I know she and the other friend planing it are going to make it special and I can't wait. They are so awesome and I couldn't ask for better friends. She asked if we have a name picked out for our little man, but we don't, so I couldn't help her there. Then she asked if we have a brand of diapers picked out. Lol, umm any ones that can be thrown away because I am not dealing with cloth diapers, no matter what their environmental benefits are. (Plus, I hear that ever child is different so I am just going to have to experiment with them until I find ones that work best. It was so nice of her to ask, though, in case we actually had picked something out.) Sorry I couldn't be more help! You guys are awesome and I truly am blessed to have friends like you. Thanks Rachel and Joni!

Snow day!!

2011-02-01T20:47:00.002-07:00

I don't remember the last time I had a snow day, but we had one today!! It was so much fun to just get to stay home, by the fire, with movies on, working on quilts. It was so lovely. I managed to be a little productive in that I made dinner, did dishes, and even managed to tutor my brother, not to mention I got the entire top of the quilt done. All that is left is quilting and binding! I forgot how much I enjoyed quilting, so I'm glad I got to do that.

In baby news, nothing much new. I am steadily losing weight, surprisingly. I have lost 4 lbs (according to my scale) in 2 weeks. It is a good thing because I gained way too much over the Christmas break. I hope I can keep it up and, even though I'm not trying to lose weight, I want to keep the good habits up (less sugar, more exercise... go figure!). He is kicking up a storm ALL THE TIME and I really love feeing him moving around. He is especially active right after I workout, and when I wake up in the morning. I have started being able to feel him when I am standing, teaching, and walking, and those are all new as of this week. He is getting bigger!

I just found out a great friend of mine and her husband are expecting their first baby. I'm SO EXCITED for them!! Please pray she has a healthy pregnancy and that she has no bad symptoms. She and her husband are an incredibly Godly couple, and I know they will make amazing parents. I just wish we lived closer to each other so we could go through this experience together and have our babies be friends. Love you guys! We are praying for you!

Nursery

2011-01-30T12:50:00.002-07:00

The nursery is finally painted! I have been working on it off and on for the last few weeks and it is finally completely painted (except for the closet, but we are going to redo that anyway). So here is a picture to show the paint scheme. We don't have any furniture yet, so the room is empty. I'll take more pictures once we get everything we need for in there.

In other news, I have lost 4 lbs (according to my scale) or 2 lbs (according to the doctor's calculations from my last visit) in the last week and a half. This make me very excited because that means that the changes I have made are working! I have been walking a LOT more and eating less. I am not trying to lose weight, I am just trying not to gain anything between now and my next appointment, so my average will come back to normal. So far so good. I'm not expecting to be able to keep off everything because baby is growing pretty rapidly, but at least this is a good sign that I am doing the right things. We will see how it goes at my appointment in a couple of weeks!

Completely irrelevant

2011-01-24T10:32:00.002-07:00

This post has nothing to do with my pregnancy, just fyi :-)

Last night I got a text message from some number I don't know. It said, something like, "You have signed up for inspirational daily texts. This will charge $9.99/month to your phone bill. Thank you! If you wish to stop, reply STOP. For help, reply HELP." So, basically I freaked out and sent back "STOP" immediately. I told my husband about it 10 seconds later and he said, "don't send anything back!" To which I replied, "too late!" Anyway, I got a text back saying, "you will no longer receive texts or charges, thank you" But after that I have gotten 2 more!! I am so frustrated about it! I called AT&T last night to make sure I wasn't getting charged for it, and if there was any way to block texts from numbers like that. They said I was not being charged (yet) and that the best thing to do would be to reply "STOP" like I did. I will be calling again today to make sure I am not being charged for them. It just bugs me that people do this and that I was dumb enough to write back. I tried writing them an email but, surprise surprise, it is not a real email address. I guess I'm just bugged... Sorry for the totally irrelevant post. I just want it to be fixed!! Not a good way to start out my week...

Babysitting

2011-01-22T20:52:00.003-07:00

Tonight I got the wonderful pleasure of spending 6 hours with my niece and nephew. My sister went to a dinner thing and needed someone to watch them. After a slight hesitation (only because of how late she would be out) I decided it would still be worth it to spend the time with them. Jordan has been in a really good mood, except for one small incident where he didn't want to share toys with his sister. Shelby has been adorable and babbling away. She keeps calling me "mama" and when I remind her that I am "auntie" she says, "huh??" It is too cute. I can't imagine what kind of work it would be to be pregnant and have a little one like that! I don't know how people do it, because she takes 100% of your time and attention, and she is extremely independent! It pretty much confirmed to me that I want to wait a few years before having a second child. We will see what God's plans are, since they are often different than my own, but I think it would be really challenging to have two children that close in age right at first, even though I'm sure the benefits are worth it when they are best friends later in life.

Pregnancy update- I still feel great. The newest development is waking up in the middle of the night because of a forceful kick coming from within me. Overall my weight gain is OK, but it is more than I would like. People keep telling me it will all come off eventually and to not worry about it, but I want it to come off sooner rather than later. We shall see. I'm watching what I'm eating more, although tonight I didn't do so well. Dion's, why are you so delicious??

Second Ultrasound

2011-01-21T07:48:00.002-07:00

I got to see my baby again yesterday! I wasn't nearly as anxious for this one because I had one before, and we already knew he is a he, so I just got to enjoy it! Unfortunately he was not cooperating and his head was way down behind my hip bones, and his feet were up near my ribs. It was crazy seeing him kick on the screen and feeling it at the same time. Weird! She tried to get a 3D picture but he wasn't ever facing the "camera." He had his hands up around his face, too, which made it difficult. She said she got most of the measurements she needed and after I walked around for a while he still hadn't moved, so she estimated at the size of his head and sent us on our way. He is 1.8 lbs already and is going to have my dad's long toes and big feet. It makes me wonder how tall he is going to be. Anyway, here are a couple of pictures from the appointment. I love seeing my baby's face :-)

Church baby

2011-01-17T09:29:00.002-07:00

Apparently my little man really likes church. Some background...
On Saturday I was starting to get a little concerned because I had only felt him move once or twice all day. I tried waiting for him to move when I was laying down (almost always happens), after I ate something sugary, and nothing. I figured I would give it another day and then see what happened. Fast forward to Sunday morning. After singing the first couple of worship songs, we sat down to listen to the band play a new song. Well, I don't know if he was dancing or what, but he was moving so much that both Jason and my dad were able to feel him. It was so much of a relief and I'm glad he woke up or got some energy or whatever happened to make him move around. And last night Jason could see him moving on my tummy. That is the weirdest thing! And he isn't all that big yet! (about the size of an eggplant, 1.7 lbs and 9 in long)

We have another ultrasound and doctor's appointment this week, so I'm looking forward to getting to see him again. Hopefully he cooperates this time and lets us get a picture of his face. Last time he kept his hand in front of his face the whole time, like he knew we were taking pictures and he was feeling shy. He wasn't all that shy about his parts, though...

Painting and weight

2011-01-08T15:28:00.002-07:00

We are going to finish painting the baby's room this weekend? I spent about 2.5 hours painting this afternoon while Jason was working on our entertainment center. Tomorrow we will do the stripe, and then the painting will be finished! (Until we do the closet, that is, but that is another project entirely.) I will take pictures as soon as it is finished, but you will have to excuse the lack of furniture, as we don't have anything except one piece. But you will get the idea!

In weight news: I have gained 10 lbs according to the doctor, but at that appointment I thought it should have been 14 lbs. I don't know why there is so much of a difference, but the doctor thinks I am doing really well. According to my calculations I should be up about 20 lbs at the moment, so I am really curious about what the scale will say when I go back to the doctor in a week and a half. I hope it doesn't look like I gained 14 lbs in a month! I would cry. We shall see how it goes. Two people at work have told me I look the most pregnant of the three of us at work who are pregnant. The kicker is I am not that big! And the most pregnant lady is at 33 weeks right now. I don't know why people feel the need to tell me how huge I look, it is not very nice to tell a pregnant girl how fat she looks. I am not terribly bothered by it because I have only gained the weight in my belly, and the other girl has gained all over (not to be mean, she just started out stick thin and now actually looks normal and she is super adorable). I guess I just don't need people telling me I look more pregnant than I actually am because I feel huge already.

Overall I am feeling great. I'm a little tired, but I think that has more to do with teaching than it does with anything else. I have started having backaches, which is unfortunate, because I don't have a supportive chair at work. I haven't had any weird cravings, although veggies do not taste as good as they used to. I pretty much avoid them all together. I have been eating healthier snacks these days, like trail mix, and that seems to make me feel pretty good. Fruit is also delicious, so I eat as much of that as possible. Especially apples, which I used to not care much for, are what sound the best most of the time. Pregnancy is so weird and changes your body so much in crazy ways. I just hope my backaches and sciatic nerve pain don't get worse because they are not pleasant.

All of this and I can't think of a better prize at the end of it all- getting to meet my son! We still don't have any names decided on, but hopefully we can decide in the next few weeks so I can finish getting the nursery ready. Who knows, though, because Jason really needs to think about big decisions for a while, and this is a huge decision. I know we will decide within the next 4 months or so, since I'm due exactly 4 months from today! Holy cow...

Dreams and Painting

2010-12-30T09:51:00.002-07:00

Last night I had a horrible, terrible dream. I dreamt that Jason and I went to the doctor for our routine monthly visit and the doctor discovered that we had lost the baby. I was horribly panicked, stressed, and it woke me up. I laid in bed for more than 30 minutes just waiting to feel him move around. I felt him basically right away, but still laid there to make sure I felt him and not just a muscle spasm or something like that. It was a devastating feeling right after I woke up, it was horrible. It made me realize how much I love my son already, and how much I want to care for him and prevent anything bad from happening to him. It was a very scary dream and I hope it doesn't happen again.

On a happier note, Jason felt the baby move for the first time yesterday! It was so funny because I asked him, "So, what did you think?" He said, "It was weird." Ugh, boys. They have no sense of sentimentality. I hope he gets more excited about it as time goes on and as the kicks get stronger. He is actually doing really well with being supportive, loving, caring, and at least pretending to be excited. He is starting to try to figure out how we are going to make everything work once the baby gets here, but I guess I will leave that to him for now, at least until it gets a little closer.

And finally, we are painting the nursery either today or tomorrow, yippee! We (meaning I, because Jason trusts me with this decision apparently) picked chocolate brown, teal, and green. It would have been pink if it was a girl, but since he is a boy he gets green instead. Hopefully I will be able to take pictures when we are finished. We don't have any furniture except for a rocking chair, so it will be a while before we get everything together and finished, but hopefully Spring Break will be our deadline. Let's see if I can convince Jason of that :-)

Hope everyone has a blessed day and a fantastic New Year!!

shopping

2010-12-27T21:15:00.002-07:00

I finally broke down and got some maternity tops. I went to the store Motherhood Maternity and I love it!! They have some really cute clothes and they actually fit me and my growing belly. It isn't like buying things that are just extra large to make room for baby, but I can buy my normal medium size and it fits much better everywhere else, and there just happens to be room for the baby also. It is definitely a good thing. I also found some impulse-buy shoes at Kohl's, but I always find things there. I found some boots I really wanted but I wasn't convinced they were worth the price. Now I'm kinda regretting that decision, but what's done is done, right?

Tomorrow I will be playing golf for the first time since starting to grow a child. I think it might be pretty funny to see a pregnant lady out on the golf course, but hopefully I will get in some good exercise without looking too ridiculous. And it will probably be cold tomorrow so I can wear some big jackets and I won't look as obviously pregnant. We shall see how it goes, but I'm not too optimistic about my score at the end. Partly because of my belly, partly because my balance is not as good as it once was, and mostly because I haven't played in several months.

On a sadder note- I found out about a family who lost their mother last night to a bad car accident. There are three small children, one who was just delivered prematurely yesterday when she reached the hospital after the accident, and a husband who is now missing the mother of his children. I did not know this family personally, but it breaks my heart to know what they are going through. Please send prayers their way and ask for the Lord to comfort them. They are believers, and they will all be reunited in heaven one day, but it does not make the situation feel much better at the moment. I just pray they can find peace in the Lord and still trust that He is in control and He is who He says He is.

21 weeks and Christmas

2010-12-26T16:24:00.002-07:00

Those are the big things that happened in the last couple of days. Since we found out we are having a boy we have been sharing the news with all of the family and friends we have been around in the last few days. It makes it seem so much more real now that we know he is a he, and we can call him a him now, rather than just "squishy" like Jason calls him. We even got some baby Christmas presents from the grandmas (a baby photo album, socks, a bib, and a glider rocker). We haven't bought anything for him yet, because, while we like to plan ahead, we want to make sure of what we want before we go buy anything. Having the rocker is very exciting, though, because it was one of those things I really wanted but probably would not have bought for myself, so thanks mom! 21 weeks means the countdown is officially in the teens. Can that be real? I can't believe it. I have another ultrasound coming up in about 3 weeks and I can't wait to see our little guy again.

I'm starting to feel nervous about what it is going to mean to be a mom to a newborn. I know how much work they can be from an outsider's point of view, because I have never been around an infant for any length of time to see what all it really takes. Like I said, I understand the idea and can kinda get a feel for it, but I'm totally unprepared for the total exhaustion that is going to come along with motherhood. Don't get me wrong, I've wanted to be a mother for a long time, especially since Jason and I got married 4.5 years ago, but the reality is starting to sink in and all I can think about is that I just want to do a good job and not mess up. I know, I know, every parent messes up here and there, but I still don't want to :-) All I can think about is, "will I be a good mom?" "How will I make sure I raise a God-fearing, God-honoring son who is respectful to everyone and places the Lord before all else?" "What am I going to do when I am so tired I can't stand up anymore but he still needs things from me and to be taken care of?" Yeah, the list goes on and on. It is very daunting but I keep reminding myself that this is God's plan for Jason and I, and He would not have given this beautiful baby boy to us if He wasn't going to equip us for the job. All I can say is, "Lord, make me strong and help me be the mother I need to be for my son."

It's a BOY!!

2010-12-23T13:41:00.002-07:00

That's right, we are going to have a son! It is so hard to believe because I always thought I would have a girl, and always pictured myself with a girl, even though I wanted a boy first. So I am still a little in shock about having a boy like I wanted. Jason is very excited to have a son, although he would have been just fine having a girl, too. The baby is already showing his stubborn side and wouldn't cooperate yesterday at our ultrasound. The tech had to poke and prod him before he would let us take a picture of his "stuff" that proved he was a "he." He then kept his hand over his face so we couldn't get a good picture of his profile, and all the pictures of his face have his hand in front. It was really surreal looking at him all over the screen at the doctor's office yesterday. It made it really real that I am having a child, and that he really is in there. He is measuring about 4 days ahead of schedule, but they kept my due date the same because his growth can fluctuate between now and when he gets here. Hopefully he comes really close to his due date!

We decided we are going to keep the name a secret until we have him in May, but that would be more of a challenge if we actually had anything picked out yet, which we don't. We have one we have talked about, but Jason doesn't love it, so we are going to keep the discussion open until we decide on something we both like. The funny thing is we had a girl name picked out, but that doesn't do us any good right now :-) So, I will post when we have a name decided on, but nobody gets to know until he makes his appearance and we can introduce him to the family!

In other news, today we are making tamales and posole with Jason's family. We wanted to start this tradition last year, but Jason had a terrible stomach virus so we had to stay home instead of coming to their house to help. We get to help this year, though, and it is going well so far! It is going to be wonderful when we actually get to eat these things on Christmas day during the White Elephant gift exchange that takes place every year with Jason's dad's family. Talk about a riot! It is hilarious because most people just bring junk from their house, but they try to make it seem much better than it is. Anywho, I will definitely be looking forward to the tamales! I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas and that we all remember the reason for the season. God bless.

1/2 way there

2010-12-18T19:28:00.002-07:00

I can't believe tomorrow marks the half-way point of growing this baby. I feel like a blimp, and things are stretching, pulling, and twinging all the time. The good part, however, is I can feel baby moving all day long, and I finally have my energy back! I'm still tired all the time from teaching and whatnot, but the pregnancy fatigue is waning. Jason has yet to feel the baby moving, but I'm really looking forward to when he can feel it! We have our gender determination ultrasound on Wednesday and I can hardly stand waiting. We keep calling it a "he", but sometimes "she" slips out, and Jordan decided that while it is a boy, it is a "she" when he talks about it. So there is no real feeling either way, so it is going to be a surprise no matter what! I just hope the midwife doesn't say I've gained too much weight, because I feel like I am really packing on the pounds!

In other news, we have a completed remodel! Our livingroom and all the bedrooms got carpet yesterday and it is so wonderful to get to walk around comfortably in our house without shoes on. And having carpet means we got to put up our Christmas tree! Neither Jason nor I feel like it is Christmas season yet because we didn't have any decorations in our house until today, but hopefully now we can get into the spirit. We have been listening to Christmas music for the past few weeks, so hopefully that will help. It's super nice getting to sit by our fireplace and enjoy our Christmas tree now.

Jason is going to take this week off from work so we will both have two full weeks to hang out. We are going Christmas shopping tomorrow and Monday. We are making tamales and posole with his family on Thursday. Friday is luminaria day. What an awesome time of year it is!

Ok, I think that is all from my end. Hopefully I will get some pictures up of the bump and of the livingroom remodel here soon. We will see how productive I can be this week that I have off :-) Have a blessed Christmas!

sick

2010-12-04T09:04:00.003-07:00

Unfortunately, I have caught a cold. Who wouldn't? I mean, I work with 20 sniffling, sneezing, coughing children every day, I have stress out the wazoo, and I'm pregnant. I'm shocked I held off this long! I have a horribly head cold and have gone through an entire box of lotion Kleenex in 3 days. It is kinda rough. But it is much more work for me to call in sick than it is to actually go to work, so I have just been going to work. Thankfully I have the weekend to rest, but it is going to be a pretty busy one. I get to have lunch with a friend who I worked with last year. Tonight is dinner with Jason's parents. Tomorrow is church and lesson planning. I'm so glad there are only 2 weeks left of work, then I can have a true vacation, and enjoy our new livingroom hopefully!

The electricians are here right now finishing up the sockets and everything. They say they will be done today which means we can finally use our fireplace! Of course we missed the cold snap we had last week and couldn't use it then, but we will be using it the moment we get the OK. It is still going to be a little while before we get carpet and tile down in the livingroom, which is a little bit of a bummer, but it is going to be nice not having workers here all the time. Hopefully I can get some pictures of it almost completed so everyone can see the progress. I hope they hurry because I want to set up our Christmas tree! We may have to leave it up an extra week or so since we can't set it up when we wanted to.

OK, I think that is the update. Oh, Jordan is being incredibly cute about the baby. He always asks how the baby is doing. He talks about him/her growing and getting bigger. Last night he said a prayer for the baby. And when we left my parents' house last night he gave the baby a hug and a kiss. Literally, he hugged just my little belly then kissed it. It was adorable!! Him talking about it makes it feel much more real for me. I am +10lbs so far, although I lost a pound this week, so I'm not sure what is going on there. I'm looking forward to the next appointment because we get to see the baby and find out if it is a him or a her. So exciting! I hope everyone has a great weekend! God bless and take care.

Thanksgiving x2

2010-11-27T09:25:00.002-07:00

That's right, two Thanksgiving dinners. Talk about amazing! Thursday we had dinner with Jason's dad's family up in Albuquerque. It was really nice to see everyone! We haven't seen them since I told them I was pregnant, so that was kinda fun. Then yesterday we had dinner with my family. If you count the babies there were 34 of us at one point! It was so crazy but incredibly fun. I actually was able to carry on a tradition, with the help of my Gran, of making homemade noodles in a broth/gravy type sauce. They actually turned out pretty good! They would have been better if we had some of the turkey drippings instead of just using chicken broth, but I think overall they turned out pretty good. Now I have the confidence to make them without my Gran here, if that happens. I'm glad they came out for Thanksgiving and I think they might be coming for Christmas, so that is going to be great. We used a pasta extruder for cutting the noodles and she said either we have to use that when she comes here or if I go out there I have to take it, lol. She surprised me by letting me use the extruder this time, because she is very much for tradition, but it was so easy that I don't think she could resist getting away with less work! It was fun spending yesterday cooking with her and learning some of her tricks.

Today we are going to go shopping in town. Hopefully all the maniacs went yesterday and the crowds today will be much more pleasant. I have some clothes picked out that I want to show my mom for Christmas present ideas (on her request). Then we are going to go to an Arts and Crafts fair and have dinner with my grandma. I love the holidays! Between all the eating, the family, and the time off work, I don't think there is a better time of the year.

Uneventful doctor's visit

2010-11-24T10:28:00.002-07:00

Which I guess is a really good thing, right? We didn't have to wait an hour like last time, which was awesome, and the appointment pretty much consisted of getting weighed (+7 lbs so far), the midwife answering questions, then hearing the heartbeat again. It is the coolest little sound. And next time we go it will be for an ultrasound! I haven't had one yet, which I thought was kinda uncommon, but apparently that is the norm, and those who get ultrasounds more often are the exceptions. I am so glad that everything is going well for me, though. The only problem I am having is sciatic nerve pain like crazy. It is the worst when I walk around for a while, sit down, then stand back up. I feel like I am going to crumple from the pain. Not cool. Other than that I'm doing well. I'm still tired all the time but I think I have to attribute that to being a first year teacher and not so much the pregnancy anymore. I have a 5 day weekend right now, so hopefully I can fill up my energy stores and be able to make it through the next three weeks (until Christmas break) with gusto. We'll see.

Before you ask, yes, at the ultrasound we are going to find out if we are having a boy or a girl. I am too much of a planner not to know. I thought it would be fun to have the surprise at the birth, but then I realized how much I dislike the color yellow, and everything I would buy would be yellow or green, and I'm not a fan. So this way I can be prepared, have the nursery ready, and I think I will finally get Jason to start thinking about names. We think we have a nursery theme picked out (the colors at least) so that was a big step for him. He doesn't want to talk about these things yet, I think because it isn't quite real to him. Although, he has started talking to my belly periodically.

In house news: They have knocked down our existing livingroom wall and opened up the space into the addition. It looks SO DIFFERENT!! I couldn't believe it when I came home on Friday and saw it because it totally changes the way our house feels. The stucco is done on the outside, although by "done" I mean it is just the gray scratch coat because we aren't going to stucco the whole house quite yet. We have to replace the windows first and that isn't going to happen for a while. Constant work in progress I guess. The fireplace is installed and they should be working on the stone and all that around it here pretty soon. They only have a week from today to be finished, so they better get on it! When they are done we are going to put carpet in the livingroom (our easiest, cheapest solution since the hardwood we like is really expensive) and stain the existing parkay floors (hideous, but we can't afford to take it all out to change it yet) to match our kitchen floors. We are kinda just hoping it works well because we don't really have a backup plan at the moment. We shall see! The roof is finished thanks to Jason, my dad, and Jason's parents. The wood for our front and back porch beams and posts is being stained as we speak and there is also a drywall guy here finishing up mudding the drywall so it can be sanded and then textured (which I think is happening today if I remember correctly).

I think that is all from me for right now. This turned into a much longer post than I had anticipated. My grandparents are here from Texas to stay with us for a week, so we are really enjoying that. I will be sad to see them go whenever they have to leave. I'm really looking forward to all the Thanksgiving activities, but yesterday my midwife told me to stay away from sweets. That is a HUGE bummer because holiday sweets are my FAVORITE sweets. I guess I will just have to pace myself. I hope everyone has a fantastic, blessed Thanksgiving!!

15 weeks

2010-11-14T09:29:00.004-07:00

That is my official week count as of today. Unfortunately, I don't have many new things to say, other than I am feeling pretty good and I'm excited that I'm starting to show a little. And I'm finally looking less fat and more pregnant. Here is a picture I took last Sunday at 14 weeks. I haven't changed much, hence no new picture.

Belly

2010-11-12T18:33:00.002-07:00

And so it begins- the growing tummy. Last night I noticed that when I laid down my tummy no longer sank down and my ribs nor hip bones show anymore when laying down. It was actually pretty exciting seeing the proof that my tummy is growing. That is weird for me to say, that I'm happy about getting fat, but knowing what it means makes it all better. And I took a picture of myself recently (when I was full and slightly bloated, mind you) and there is definitely a "pooch" which I am going to think of as a bump rather than just a big belly. I went shopping today for some clothes with a friend of mine and actually had to consider what I am going to look like in a couple of months (or sooner). (The girl I went shopping with is exactly 4 weeks ahead of me in her pregnancy, so it is fun getting to shop with her and talk about having babies and compare stories and feelings. She is really close to me in age and it seems like we have a lot in common, so that helps, too.) I feel like I am starting to gain quite a bit of weight, but I've also realized that my weigh fluctuates like crazy, so I have no idea how much I have actually gained. I like the scale at the doctor's office, so I think I will probably go by their measurements :-)

I got to go to a training today to learn how to use my new interactive whiteboard!! It was so informational and wonderful, and I learned a TON of stuff. We even got to start making things we could use on our board, and practicing some different tricks to make the board even cooler. I'm very excited to start using it as soon as I get the remote that turns the thing on! (Long story...)

I think that is it for the updates for now. Oh, our remodel is coming along quite nicely. The livingroom is completely framed in, and the bones of the front porch are up. The windows and the fireplace are installed in the livingroom but there is no insulation, drywall, or anything else up on the walls yet. It makes the space feel very real, though, which is cool. I don't know what the next step is, but things seem to be moving along pretty quickly. The roof is going on this weekend, in fact Jason's parents already started putting it on today. It is really going to make our house look different! It is a silver metal roof, rather than the red and black shingles that were on there before we started this whole project. I think the contractor's next move is to put the stone around the fireplace, so we have to go pick out the stone we are going to use for the hearth. It is pretty exciting that we are to the point that we get to pick out more details! I asked Jason to take some pictures of the house yesterday afternoon, but I don't know if he has or not. You know how guys are ;-) Hopefully I can get some good pictures soon!

Beating Heart

2010-10-28T20:36:00.002-06:00

There is a baby growing inside of me!! I mean, I knew there was, but now I have heard proof that there is actually life! It was so amazing to hear that sound yesterday, and it just made it completely real. Ok, maybe not completely real, but definitely more real than just a positive pregnancy test. I have my next appointment on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, then we get to have our ultrasound (to find out the gender and see the baby for the first time) on the Wednesday before Christmas. That is going to make for some interesting holiday-time conversations! I know our families are so excited, though, and that just makes it all the more enjoyable. I love my baby so much, and it is going to be +/- 30 weeks before I can even meet him/her!

On a slightly different note, it seems like EVERYONE is pregnant right now. I have three college friends, two childhood friends, and two coworkers that are all expecting right now. It is crazy! I used to feel really jealous of those people because I want to be a mother so bad, but now I get to join them! It is exciting and I'm looking forward to sharing my experiences with these people.

And, on a completely different note, we have officially started our livingroom remodel. Our front porch is gone (they are going to repour the porch concrete and make a pretty roof over the porch to make our house not so rectangular), and our back porch is gone. We are adding on about 300 sq.ft., including a fireplace. I'm so excited about it because it will finally feel like a home, rather than a college house that is long and straight, like we are just living here for now but will move when the opportunity arises. This way, when the work is done, it will be the house we have made our own, and we won't want to move right away, because it is just like we want it. I hope the financial commitment is worth it, but from what I keep hearing it will be completely worth it. I'm excited and it is cool seeing the progress that the crew makes every day while we are at work. I'm thankful we are able to afford to do this and to make this house a home we can grow as a family in. God is good!

Names

2010-10-10T15:23:00.002-06:00

Ok, so I know it is a little early to be thinking about names, but I can't help myself. I read through an entire baby name book and found approx 20 names that I like. Even though I think I am going to have a girl, I actually found more boy names than girl names that I liked. Fortunately we have a while to decide... about 30 weeks, because Jason and I have a hard time agreeing on these things. We are going to keep talking about it and hopefully narrow it down a little, because I'd like to know at least what his opinion is about the subject. I think we have talked about it a grand total of one time, and we can to a pseudo agreement, but nothing concrete. Luckily, we both know what we DON'T like, so that makes it a little bit easier. Now, if I could just get him to talk about nursery themes with me...

We will find out the sex of the baby hopefully the week before Christmas. That will be my 20th week, and supposedly that is when I get to have my ultrasound. I should probably make that appointment earlier than they suggest, so I make sure I can get in that week. Thankfully I won't be in school for that week, so that gives me quite a bit of flexibility. We shall see.

Another thing I hope to happen before Christmas is our house remodel to be completed. We are going to add on to our livingroom and add a front porch. The front is mostly just to break up the straight line that is our roof, but it will extend the porch a tiny bit, so that will be nice. And it might pave the way for us to add some room to the front to make a dining area. The living room addition is to help our house feel less like a straight line and more like defined spaces. We are going to add a back porch area (patio), a fireplace, and a couple of windows. It will make our livingroom about 300sq.ft. bigger, so it is going to be really nice. Hopefully the cost is worth it, though, because goodness is it going to be expensive. Thankfully we have family that can help us out while we get our financing figured out, so we can get it started before that.

Life is so full of happenings right now that I sometimes have a hard time keeping track of them! Hopefully I don't get lost in the shuffle. Have a blessed day!

ah, the life of a teacher

2010-10-08T07:52:00.002-06:00

So, this is going to be less about pregnancy and more about my life right now.

I had a very stressful week. My kids were crazy, some of my teaching resources were taken away to be "reaccounted for" and those happen to be the only thing I have for teaching that particular thing. I have to do the benchmark test on all my students in reading right now, and if they don't "pass" at one level I have to retest them at different levels until they do. I never have all of my students in the room at the same time, so coming up with times to do class talks or rewards is incredibly difficult. Not only that, but my classroom opened up yesterday and the school is still trying to figure out a way to get us (3 other teachers and me) a day or two next week to work on our classes, but right now there is a lot of disagreement. I understand both sides, but it sure would be nice to have some help at least a little next week. Some parents are going to come help over the weekend (I hope) so that should ease the burden a little. I'm just trying to figure out how the most efficient way to organize everything is so that the kids have the least amount of disruption and the most gets done in the new room before the kids start in there the following Monday. Ah, the may hats that a teacher has to wear- organizer, holder of knowledge, politician, beggar, planner, mover, decorator, mom/aunty, caregiver, and disciplinarian. It is not an easy job. And for anyone who think it is, they should try it for a day. In fact, they can come to my class and I will help them, and they can still see what it is like just for one day. It is the most rewarding (paid) job in the entire world and I love it, but sometimes I just wish it could be a little easier.

The pregnancy is going well, nothing to report. I'm 9 weeks 5 days today and am getting a massage (because I gotta unwind from this week). Hopefully that won't be a big deal, but I'm assuming they would have said something to me when I booked if it was, since I was upfront about that information. Hope everyone has a blessed day!

school and happenings

2010-10-07T08:03:00.002-06:00

I am, in fact, sitting at school right now, trying to figure out something to make my stomach feel better. It has been an interesting week or so because I haven't really felt sick at all, but last night was horrible, though still no throwing up. This morning is no better and now I have intestinal pains (gas bubble?) that I'm trying to remedy before my students come in 45 minutes. Thankfully today is the last day of this week because we have "fall break" tomorrow. One day off, but that means I get to sleep in, so I will take it. Tomorrow is busy because I am going to have a massage, take Abby to the vet for some shots, visit my husband's cousin who has a book for me, and we are going to the Special Shapes Glow-deo at the Balloon Fiesta. Hopefully I am feeling better tomorrow!

In other news, the architect and school inspectors are coming to check out my newly renovated classroom today! That means I get to start moving in this afternoon! A lot of good that does me since I can start class in there until the 18th, but at least I can start putting up some posters and things so I won't have to do that in a week or so. The movers for the furniture aren't coming until the 15th, so I can't move any furniture until then. Hopefully I will have a lot of help next weekend from family and students' parents so I can knock it out in one day rather than having to come on Saturday and Sunday next weekend. Unfortunately, we are going on a field trip on Friday afternoon, so I won't be able to do anything then. I'm sure it will work out and I'm super excited to finally get to be in the building with everyone else!

I'll keep everyone updated if anything interesting happens with the baby, but hopefully it will be pretty uneventful and then I will get to hear the baby's heart beat at my next appointment which is on October 27. So far!! But I can do it. Thankfully my job keeps me so busy that time usually flies by. Have a blessed day!

Appointment Update

2010-10-02T20:42:00.002-06:00

I guess in this case no news is good news, right? All the doctor did was go over our medical history and remind me how "healthy" I am. This is a really good thing for baby (who Jason has started calling "our squishy" like from Finding Nemo) but not so much for me because I really wanted to see him/her. I get to wait until the regular ultrasound at 20 weeks for that. This is going to be right around Christmas so it is going to be a great Christmas present. She confirmed my due date at May 8, which happens to be mother's day. And it was pointed out to me that we told our parents we were pregnant on grandparent's day... we didn't even plan that! I thought that was kinda cool though. So yeah, that is the update. She did a pelvic exam and tells me, "your uterus points backward, did you know that?" Me: "No, what does that mean?" Her: "Oh nothing, it's relatively common. It just means you are going to have more backaches." Me: "Great!"

So that was it. It was about as uneventful as it could have been. I peed in a cup and got some blood drawn. I felt bad that I drug Jason with me because it ended up being so boring. Oh well, I think next time we get to hear the heartbeat, so that would be cool. I like my midwife and will probably stay with her for the duration of my pregnancy, unless something unexpected happens.

Other than that I have been feeling pretty good. I have backaches now, like she predicted, and my hips are really starting to bother me, especially today. That could be because I spent the morning pulling weeds, though. My nausea is going away and I haven't felt sick for a few days now. I'm still exhausted most of the time, but I'm hoping that will get better here in the next couple of weeks. It is supposed to anyway. We shall see. Thanks for all the prayers!

First appointment

2010-09-28T14:33:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is the big day! I get to go to the doctor for the first time. I'm so excited and nervous at the same time. I'm nervous because I want everything to be OK. If I'm being honest, these last few days I haven't felt very pregnant. It is probably mostly because I have a cold and that pretty much trumps everything right now. I had a tiny bit of food aversion this morning, but I still ate breakfast, and I'm kinda tired, but I figure that could be from the cold as well. Who knows, I guess I'm just playing tricks on myself. I have no cramping and no bleeding, which apparently are both good signs. I don't know why I am worrying, either, because I can't do anything to control this either way. I guess I am just going to have to try to keep my stress level down so that I don't do any unintentional harm to him/her. I will update tomorrow once I know how everything is going and if anything has changed! Wish me luck!

Give me PICKLES!!

2010-09-23T20:35:00.002-06:00

You heard me, pickles. Dill. Right now. Please?? So far that is my only crazy pregnancy craving. And there is nothing I can do about those when I am at school, it is pretty frustrating. I would love to be able to just keep a jar of pickles in my desk, but I'm pretty sure my students would think that was really weird ;-). Other than that I am feeling pretty good. I have my morning sickness in the evenings, which is a mixed blessing (I would like to feel good when I get home, but at least I'm not sick when I'm trying to teach). It is pretty mild and I haven't vomited... yet. I still have some difficulty with breakfast, but i think I've found something I can eat even when I'm feeling puny. I drink a glass of milk right when I get out of the shower, then I can eat waffles with fruity syrup (not regular syrup, yuck) later in the morning right before I leave. So far it is working OK. At least I am not starving to death. Lunch seems to be the only meal I don't have problems with, which is a good thing because its either eat what I brought or don't eat at all. Not many choices! Maybe I should take a jar of pickles and put them in the lounge, then if I can't eat lunch at least I'll have a pickle!

Knowing and waiting

2010-09-19T21:00:00.002-06:00

I think most of the family finally knows! You don't know how much family you actually have until you have to call them to tell them important news like this. And unfortunately I don't have everyone's number, so I am relying on the news to spread on its own to the remaining few. Now all I get to do is just wait for my first doctor's appointment. It is in about a week and a half and it is going to take SO LONG to get here. I don't even know if they are going to do anything exciting at that appointment, like an ultrasound, but I certainly hope so. Supposedly it is a TON of paperwork and blood tests and thing like that, but I haven't heard any confirmation about whether I will get to see/hear baby or not. I guess I am just going to have to wait and see.

My symptoms are no different. I haven't had any morning sickness in the last couple of days and I am not as tired as I have been. I hope this means I am on the up-swing and will feel better for a while. I know the symptoms come and go, but I kinda hope they stay away, as long as it still means a happy baby.

We have started discussing nursery ideas, but my darling husband thinks it is entirely too early to even start contemplating things like that. I keep bringing it up anyway ;-) We have only talked about potential names once, and I even feel like it is a little early for that. We are just going to let this baby marinate for a while and then figure out the important things, like a name, further on down the road I guess.

On a different note, this weekend (ok, just today) I did a whole lot of planning and prepping for this week, and I am hoping that will mean that this week will go much more smoothly than last week did. I have all my things in bundles for the copies I need to make, and I have most things planned out for the week (I think, unless things take a whole lot less time than I am anticipating). This week starts a different part of instruction that I have to include in my mornings (ESL) and it is going to definitely be a different routine in the morning for me. Oddly enough, it is pretty much just me that is going to be affected by it, the kids won't really notice a difference. Unfortunately, I have a training that I have to go to on Tuesday morning, which means the third sub in 4 days for my poor students. I hate being out so much, but mandatory training and illnesses are impossible to avoid. Hopefully this is the last time I will be out for a while.

Now the world can know...

2010-09-18T21:40:00.003-06:00

That I'm pregnant!! I am so excited I can barely contain myself!! We found out about 2.5 weeks ago but just finished telling the family, so now it is safe to spread the news on the blog. I plan to use this as a pregnancy updater, of sorts, and hope to be diligent about posting now that I know several people will be reading it.

What I know so far: Not much. I have an "estimated due date" of May 8th (Mother's day) but that is just from an online calculator. I can't go to the doctor until I am 8 weeks, which is next Sunday, so my first appointment is the following Wednesday. Yep, tomorrow makes 7 weeks. I still am in shock that I am actually pregnant, but I definitely have all the symptoms. Ok, most of the symptoms. I'm tired all the time, I have some morning sickness (that doesn't just happen in the morning, by the way), I'm sore, and a tiny bit emotional. It isn't horrible yet, just a little uncomfortable.

We have told all the family that we needed to tell. The rest are going to find out through the grapevine I'm sure. We were pleasantly surprised at all the reactions we received. We did not plan anything elaborate to tell our parents, although I thought that would have been fun. We just had them over for dinner and told them all at once. My parents and Jason's mom were all in tears, my sister was so excited, and Jason's dad hugged me with a big smile on his face. It was so wonderful. The only one missing was Jason's sister, but she had to go back to college :-( Darn that school.

I haven't quite figured out how I am going to tell my boss yet... He is a really nice guy, and the school has a family atmosphere, but I don't want to stress him out with my due date being so far away. I think I will tell him after my doctor's appointment, if I can wait that long. The problem is there is another pregnant teacher at school, and I don't want him to get stressed out about having multiple teachers gone at the same time. She is due like 3 months before me, so hopefully it won't be a big deal. We will just have to see what happens when I finally tell him though.

Other than that I don't have much to say. I'm still trying to get it to sink in that we are going to be parents, but it is harder than I thought it would be, lol. We know what room is going to be the nursery but that is about it. We have some other home improvement projects we would like to do, but we aren't sure if they are going to happen before the baby comes, after, or at all. Should be interesting trying to figure that out...

Teaching is going well. It has been a challenging year so far, but I keep hearing that is just how it is being a first year teacher. I have tried a bazillion different things it feels like, but nothing is working quite like I envision it. I guess that is why being flexible is so important! Hopefully I can figure something out soon so that my kids can really start to get into a routine and we can settle in. Like I said, hopefully soon.

Jason and I were both laid up sick yesterday with the stomach virus that is going around right now. It was horrible and it was still lingering a little bit today. I was supposed to go to a math training today but that didn't happen because I was still feeling puny this morning when I woke up. Plus, I didn't want to get all the other nice people at the training sick because apparently this is super contagious. My sister, niece, and nephew had it first, and now the only person in the entire family that hasn't gotten it is my younger brother. Even my parents' foreign exchange student got it! It is not pleasant. Thankfully I am feeling better now and I am looking forward to a really good night's sleep.

OK, I think that is all from me for now. Like I said, hopefully I will be able to keep this updated for everyone who is curious. Please pray for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby as a result! Praise the Lord that I am going to be a mother! I know things can still happen this early on, but I want all my friends and family's support if anything does happen. We will just have to wait and see as it is in God's hands for the next 7.5 months! And after that, too, but you know what I mean :-)

Labor day weekend

2010-09-06T12:39:00.002-06:00

This weekend was a pretty good one. After the week I had I needed a break. On Friday night a friend of ours from TTU came into town for a visit. Unfortunately, my mom's uncle passed away about a month ago so there was a HUGE family dinner on Friday night that I wanted to go to. The boys went to eat with another friend instead of coming to the family dinner. Then, Saturday we went up to Jason's parents' cabin in Jemez. It was so nice and relaxing to just sit up there with no tv (or video games or football) and we just hung out, played games, and ate. We went for a nice little hike on Sunday morning, ate lunch, then came home. Last night we watched the TTU vs. SMU game that Jason recorded, and then they watch most of the OSU vs. TCU game. The friend that went to dinner with Jason and the other friend joined us for all of these escapades as well. It was just spending a weekend with friends since I don't get to do that very often. Today we woke up, Jason and Jonathan went to get donuts (day old unfortunately, because everything is closed on Labor Day), I washed my car, showered, and now the boys are playing video games while I try to finish up laundry. Overall it has been a very good weekend.

I'm so excited to see what this week is going to have in store for me, because I'm starting to get the class under control and to figure out some fun things to do with the kids so that they are still learning but having fun at the same time. It seems like third grade is difficult for them because up until now there has been a lot of hand-holding and coaching throughout the day, not much independent work. Now, however, with the need to do reading groups and the math program, there is a lot more time during the day when the students need to be independent. They are slowly but surely getting the hang of it, but I'm afraid it might be a little longer before we run like a well-oiled machine. However, I'm still just excited that our a/c works again!

Tonight we are going to go eat dinner with my parents before we have to take Jonathan back to the airport. I think we are having ribs, corn, and tomatoes (fresh from the garden!) yum! We are considering having both sets of parents over this coming Friday night since we haven't had them over in a while. We will see if they want to come or not. I hope everyone had a great three-day weekend and has an even better week!!

Two weeks down

2010-09-01T17:37:00.002-06:00

Today was day 10 of school and I'm grateful to say I am finally finding a groove. I am planning enough but not too much (usually), and the kids are relatively happy. I don't have the slightest idea about what I am going to do when I have to start pulling small groups a couple of times during the day, but I guess I will have to figure that out! It will be interesting, especially at first. I don't have a choice, though, and the kids are worth me figuring it out.

There is such an interesting dynamic at my school. There are so many people with so much experience, and then there is me. There is another teacher who has been there since October of last year, so she is relatively new, but she has almost a whole year under her belt. It is really nice having another young teacher to commiserate with. There is another young-ish teacher who has helped me out a lot, although I think she has taught for several years. I'm just so glad that everyone is so helpful!

I know that wasn't much of an update, but I haven't blogged for a while so that is what you get. Hopefully something more interesting will happen in the next few days so I can blog about that. Take care!

1/2 days are the best days

2010-08-24T20:32:00.002-06:00

One week down, about 39 to go! I am starting to get a little bit overwhelmed with how much I have to teach my kiddos this year, and I don't understand how to use some of my curriculum yet. It is pretty stressful. I know that feeling overwhelmed is completely normal for a first year teacher, and for all teachers at this time of the year. Thankfully my colleagues are taking care of me and calming me down the best they can. I just feel so inadequate for all I have to do for my kids this year. What were they thinking giving me a teaching certificate?? haha. I know I will get into the swing of things here shortly, but I've also heard that I will feel overwhelmed for the whole year. I certainly hope not, because I might have an anxiety attack if I do... ugh. I wish I had more time to hang out with my husband and to do the tutoring that I promised I would continue, but so far work is completely consuming my life right now. There is so much prep work that goes into what I am teaching, and since I don't have many materials, I have to make everything from scratch. I also have several online teacher's editions that I am trying to decipher and I need to start learning how to use my SmartBoard. Gah! There are so many things I need to do!

Thankfully, tomorrow is a half day for the students which means there is at least 1.5 hours of prep/planning time in the afternoon that I plan to make full use of. I have tons of copies to make and several things to get organized. I guess I need to work on not getting too overwhelmed when thinking about all the things I need to do, and just take it one thing at a time.

Ok, I'm just getting more stressed out when I think about all the things I need to do. I just had the first evening off since I started work and was really enjoying it until I realized what I needed to do. Thank the Lord for 1/2 days on Wednesdays!!

4 official days

2010-08-20T21:17:00.003-06:00

I have been an APS employee for 4 days, officially, even though I have been working for the last week and a half at my school. I have 19 students in my class. 4 are legally blind and require special services daily. It is an incredible challenge and I learn something new every day from them. I am completely exhausted after only 2.5 days of teaching. I hope I'll be able to get into a routine sooner as opposed to later, but so far I am still having a hard time figuring out what kind of flow to have during the day. Thankfully, Monday will start pullouts and specials, so it will help break up the day a little bit more. I'm love working at this school and everyone is so supportive and helpful, even though I am sure I am really irritating several of them with all of my questions. It has been a good week, though, overall, and I'm glad that I will get a weekend to try to catch my breath and recover before next week.

That's all the news for now. More updates to come!

First year jitters

2010-08-13T21:18:00.002-06:00

Yeah, they are starting to set in. It probably mostly has to do with not officially being hired at this moment. Yes, I got the call that I had a job on Tuesday of this week, but my background check still hasn't made it to the APS central office. Supposedly this was the fastest way to do it, but apparently I should have paid the $30 to just have my fingerprints taken again, because I might not get it in time to start on Wednesday. It is stressing me out! I'm sure I am not the only one that is going through this, but it is super frustrating.

My principal and the staff I work with are amazing. Don't get me wrong, I really miss my previous school's staff and will always miss them, but I feel so welcome at this school and everyone has helped me tremendously. I have so many more resources and materials than I started out with, which was NOTHING, so I'm very grateful for that. Several teachers have taken me under their wings to show me the ropes and help me out with these first few days of school. The school is wonderful with technology as well. Every classroom has 5 computers, I have a laptop, and my classroom has a document camera, a smartboard, and an LCD projector. It is wonderful!! I now have to learn how to do all those things, haha.

My class is going to be very unique. I have 6 ESL kids, 4 visually impaired kids, 3 gifted kids, and several "in the middle" kids. I am really looking forward to working with all these students! I have to teach in Spanish for 45 minutes each day and I have to give an ESL lesson every day for the ESL kids. It is going to be really interesting and I'm sure there will never be a dull moment! What a way to start out my teaching career.

Speaking of never-a-dull-moment, I am ready to go to bed. Have a fabulous weekend and I will do my best not to stress out over the weekend!

Job news

2010-08-10T21:17:00.001-06:00

I got a job! 8th time's a charm apparently, because that is how many interviews it took, but I don't care anymore! 3rd grade bilingual... So excited and nervous and curious and all kinds of other emotions. Let's start at the beginning- what does one do on the very first day of school?? Anybody know?

New hobby

2010-08-10T09:21:00.003-06:00

Just a quick job search update- still nothing. I have another interview today that I am extremely excited about, but I'm trying really hard not to get my hopes up. We will see what happens.

So, my new hobby is painting. I did my first one in a class in college (art for kids or something like that) and gave it to my sister. Then, this Christmas I made one that kinda matched it for her. She wanted to learn how to do it so that's when we made the one for the kids. She branched out and made one for herself but I designed it for her. I just finished my first one for someone that isn't my sister, lol, and it turned out so cute! I love doing these and they are relatively quick and easy to make, so it's a doable hobby. Anyway, here they are!

The very first one I made in that art class.

The matching one.

The one I did for Jordan.

The one Lauren made for Shelby. This was her very first one to paint, I think she did great!

The one my sister made for herself.

The one for a cousin's baby.

Waiting game

2010-08-04T15:15:00.002-06:00

Yep, here I sit, still waiting for the job God wants me to have. I was so optimistic that I would get a ton of job offers after several interview and I would have my choice of where I wanted to work. Well, apparently God did not have that same plan for me. I have done 7 interviews now, including the one for kindergarten I did today, and still nothing has popped up. I got a call yesterday from HR asking if I still wanted to sub starting in the fall. It really hit me then that I might not be a full time teacher, but instead I will be making half that as a sub. Not that it is all about money, because we all know teachers don't make enough to begin with, but we have some things going on and having a salary would be a much greater benefit for me than just being paid hourly. I want a class of my own because I really rely on routines and being in a different class every day would be really difficult for me. Not to mention my slight fear of strangers and strange situations (which every day would be...). My wonderful husband is so supportive, and says amazingly encouraging things to me about why I haven't gotten a job yet. He tells me I am a great teacher and I would bless the lives of the kids in my class, that he knows I can teach anything anywhere in Spanish or English, and that God must have something super special lined up for me or else why would He have me wait this long? I could not ask for a better man to be by my side through this.

I don't really have anything new to say on the subject. I'm still waiting and there is nothing I can do about it. There are three openings in the school district that is closest to me, but they are going to wait just long enough to hire someone so that person will be classified as "short term" like I was and then that person will have to reapply again next school year. It is pretty crummy, but again, nothing I can do about it.

I am starting to get excited about my upcoming trip to Lubbock. I get to spend the weekend with some fantastic friends, and go to a wedding for another friend. It is going to be so nice that I am afraid I am not going to want to come back, especially if I don't have a job waiting for me.

I get to play soccer again this weekend. I haven't played in 6 years, except for once in Honduras and two or three times in Peru a couple of years ago (on dirt fields). I played last weekend with a friend who needed more girls on his team and it was so much fun! Thankfully my skills came back pretty quickly and I was able to settle right into playing. Unfortunately I am not in as good of shape as I was when I played all the time, but it was OK because we had enough subs to cover when one of us got tired. I'm looking forward to playing again and I hope I can make this a semi-regular thing, although I think this is their last game for a while. Maybe we can just play for fun? If only Jason played, too, then it would be even more fun. But I will take what I can get for now.

Ok, off to the grocery store. Have a blessed afternoon!

life as of late

2010-07-19T16:19:00.002-06:00

In all reality, nothing much is going on in my life. I am still enjoying my summer as much as possible. I workout (ZUMBA!!!) every morning, which is really enjoyable because it gets me up and moving for the day. Then, every day but Wednesday I tutor. I am thoroughly enjoying tutoring and it makes me so happy to see progress being made even in a short amount of time. I think I can really make a difference for one of my tutorees, and that is really exciting. Then, inbetween tutoring and everything else that happens during the day I am spending a lot of time with my sister and her babies. It is so nice to get to see them so much and I know I am really going to miss that once school starts again in August.

Speaking of school starting, I am still without a job. It is so frustrating because there are a ton of jobs I am qualified for but because my Spanish is not perfect I keep being passed by for other people who speak better Spanish. I am very confident in my teaching capabilities, however my Spanish is not that of a "native speaker" and that puts me at a huge disadvantage. Unfortunately, the only way I am going to get better at it is if I practice by teaching! Nobody is willing to give me that opportunity at the moment, though, and I don't know what I am going to do to convince someone to hire me. I know my Spanish is good enough for most situation, but I do not interview well aparently because nobody else has seen it yet. It is just a bummer. In fact, I applied for 8 jobs today alone. Half are middle school math jobs, but it doesn't look like I have the right endorsements for those jobs. I think I need to get my math endorsement, but I don't know. We will have to see.

And, I am going to Colorado with my sister on Wednesday to pick up her son who is with our parents right now. This just adds a little more stress because I have to rearrange some stuff that is on my schedule. I hope I don't get called to do any interviews on those days or I am not going to be able to go. I hate playing this waiting game, but for whatever reason God wants me to wait for something to come up, and as hard as I try I can not get Him to tell me what is going on. I know He will take care of me, and of us as a family, but I am so ready to have a job so I know what is going on in August! But alas, I am just going to have to keep waiting.

Ok, I am sitting in a super messy office and an even messier desk, so I suppose I should get going. If you would say a prayer for me that I would be patient in listening for God's voice in all this, I would really appreciate it. I know it isn't the end of the world if I don't get a job in the fall because I know I will be able to sub, but that is definitely not my preference. *sigh*

Vacations and interviews

2010-07-12T16:55:00.004-06:00

We got back from Lake Powell about a week ago and it was such an amazing vacation! There were 18 of us on a houseboat, not including Jordan. This houseboat was pretty fantastic and fancy, but it was still a lot of people in a relatively small space. Thankfully the spot we found to park at for the week had room for several tents on shore, so 6 people slept in tents. There were plenty of beds and enough room on the top of the boat for people to sleep. The guests included Jason and I, both our parents, my brothers, his sister, my aunt, uncle, 4 cousins + 1 exchange student, and my grandparents. Add Jordan and all we are missing is the partridge in the pear tree. It was super fun spending so much time with so many of my loved ones. We had plenty of food and drinks, a lovely fridge and freezer that allowed us to keep all our homemade meals fresh until we ate them. The water was a wonderful temperature and we could pretty much swim at any time, which was lovely. And I didn't even get sunburned! Between swimming, boating, and playing on the tubes/skis/boards/etc, I figure it was a pretty big deal that there was no sunburn. Unfortunately, pretty much everyone got sunburned, David so bad that his face blistered starting on day 4. Not good. And on top of that he lost his glasses going off the slide. He is as blind as a bat without them, so that made the game playing and lure tying pretty interesting. And, in the middle of all the chaos, I had a phone interview while on the water. Jason had to take me to the middle of the lake to get cell phone service that was strong enough for my interview. It was interesting and I feel like it went pretty well.

Turns out, it must have gone pretty well because the asked me to come in for a second interview. I had that interview today and I don't think it went quite as well. They asked me exactly the same questions as my first interview, although this time all of the questions were in Spanish, which means I had to answer them in Spanish. It was pretty difficult and I don't think this interview went quite as well. I thought it was going to be different, but nope. And I did all my prep work compiling my portfolio and everything for nothing, because they didn't even want to see it. I would really enjoy working at this school, and it sounds like a great place to work and a wonderful fit for me, but I don't know if they are going to be of the same opinion. I guess I am just going to have to wait and see!

Here are a few pictures from my vacation. It was so much fun and I can't wait to go back.

Broken Computer

2010-06-22T14:45:00.002-06:00

That's right, my computer is broken. It gives me an error message every time I try to turn it on, and unfortunately we don't have the financial resources to get it fixed right now. That is mostly because we just bought a car, and we are going to Lake Powell for a week (which can be quite pricy once you add in food and gas purchases). There are just a couple of things I want to get off of my computer and then it can just go away (as I am using Jason's computer right now), but all of our pictures are on there and a couple of other things that I would like back. Who knows when it is going to be taken care of, but I guess I can handle it until then.

So recently I have been playing quite a bit of golf. I played several days ago, had a lesson yesterday, and played 18 today with my dad and brothers. I actually did pretty well, and I can tell I am getting better because the most I had on any one hole was 8 strokes, and usually I have at least one 10 in there somewhere. So it was a good day, even though I was really sore from my lesson yesterday.

I have found a new hobby- painting. I have painted a couple of pictures for my sister (usually just words and simple shapes), and now she wants me to teach her how to do it. We are going to make some paintings for Jordan and Shelby with their names and a verse on each one. They are going to be so cute! I wanted to do that for them for Christmas, but I didn't have time to get my act together. Really, I have only done two paintings, so I am still new at it, but it is fun and I can do it really quickly (like 2 days from start to finish). Speaking of, I have a quilt I promised to make a friend of mine that I have not finished yet. She says I don't have to worry about finishing it, they are in no rush to get it back, but I have had the stuff for 6 months and I haven't done it yet, what kind of friend am I?? Not a very good one, that's for sure. hopefully after Lake Powell I can get on it and finish it. We'll see what happens!

In reading a friend's recent blog post (the same friend I owe the blanket to, lol) I realized that Jason and I are coming up on our 4 year anniversary. I never thought I would be married for 4 years and not have a child. I just always thought it would happen sooner for us, but it hasn't. Not that we have been trying, I'm just saying. I know I am still relatively young to want kids, but in my mind I have always thought I would have children about 2 years after getting married. Now I am going to have to completely change my expectations, since we are double that right now. This is neither good nor bad, I've just been thinking about it.

Alrighty, gotta run. Have a fabulous Tuesday!

Frustration and spending

2010-06-11T15:25:00.002-06:00

Gah, I'm so frustrated! So, Jason and I bought a car at the beginning of this month. We had to put down a big down payment because we didn't want the monthly payments to be over a certain amount. Then, yesterday and today, we start getting bills in the mail for medical and dental appointments that I went to at the end of May. Apparently insurance is not going to cover nearly as much as we thought it would and we not have to pay several hundred dollars to these different places for services that we thought were routine. For example, the insurance is not covering any part of my annual OB appointment. Those are practically required and are good for preventing any kind of illness, and yet they don't cover ANY of it!! And my dentist... I just had a bunch of cavities filled but the insurance is not covering as much of that as we thought they would because "the cavities are on the back teeth" and they don't cover the back teeth the same as the front teeth. This is ridiculous!! Thankfully I got my 5-in-1 check yesterday so we won't be terribly insufficiently funded, but I just wonder why we have insurance if they don't cover these simple, routine things. What is going to happen when I am pregnant? Are they going to cover any of it? It makes me want to scream.

Summer happenings

2010-06-07T14:49:00.002-06:00

So far this summer has been pretty relaxing. I have played golf a couple of times, including this morning. I played awesome on Friday. I didn't play so well today, but it was still fun.

Another exciting thing that has happened recently is we bought a car! We don't own it yet, but supposedly it will be in tomorrow. I'm excited to get it asap. We kinda were thrown off guard when we went to test drive cars on Saturday and we were almost forced to buy one. Thankfully it was the one we wanted and were going to buy anyway, but they gave us a trade-in deal we couldn't refuse. They said the car wouldn't be in for 7-18 days, but when we called yesterday to get some clarification on some things and the sales manager told us it was already in route. I'm trying not to get my hopes up about it coming in today, but I can't help it.

Anyway, tomorrow is tutoring and hopefully getting my car, if it doesn't come in today. It's so flippin' hot today that I don't want to do anything. Blah, I guess I'll go take a shower. Have a great week and stay cool!

Decisions, decisions

2010-05-31T20:53:00.002-06:00

Our lives are full of decisions right now! First of all, we are trying to decide when to have children. We want the timing to be right for us, but we also want to trust God to tell us when He wants us to have kids. It is really hard giving up that control, but we are at the point where we are just going to place our trust in Him and let Him lead us.

Another decision is getting another car. We have started looking at cars to replace our Tacoma. We don't really "need" a new car until we have children, but because we are such planners we are trying to figure out how what we want now. We will probably get a car sooner rather than later, simply because my truck is worth more now and it will help us pay for our new car. That makes it a little more complicated because we will need something that can pull our boat if we get it now, and if we wait until the end of the summer we won't have to get something that can pull the boat, but we will have to have another vehicle that CAN pull the boat at the beginning of next boating season. It is all very tricky. We also don't need a 4WD vehicle, because we don't do much off-roading or anything, but there are occasions, about once or twice a year, where we head up to the ski area in the snow, or drive up to the cabin in the snow, and it would be really nice to have 4 wheel drive at those times. This is a hard decision for us. We are looking between the Highlander and the Pilot right now, both 4x4 and both can pull our boat. Oh, another qualification is it has to hold Abby with no problem, which means we either have to get a 3rd row seat that can fold down, or a very large trunk area. Those two cars both have a 3rd row seat that folds down. It might be tricky taking Abby with much stuff, but we could make it work, especially before we have kids. We are only doing this because my truck will not hold a rear-facing car seat, and that is kinda important for when we have kids (obviously). But, considering I am not even pregnant, there is no rush. I don't know why this is eating at me so bad! Not to mention, the Tacoma was my dream car that I paid for outright when I was in high school and I have loved every minute of driving that truck. If it held a car seat we would not even consider getting a new one. Blah. I'll keep you posted.

On a positive note, I am going to be tutoring this summer. I will be tutoring two kids in both Spanish and Algebra, and a third kid in reading. The two that are doing Spanish and Algebra are doing it to get ahead for next year, so it will be fun to work with them and I think they will work really hard for me, even though I will be making them "do school" during the summer. The child who will be doing the reading is going to be a little more tricky. He is unable to attend school for medical reasons and it seems like the school doesn't really care, they just tell him to "come when he can" and that will be enough. Well, thankfully his mother really cares about his education and wants to see him reach his full potential, so she asked me to work with him. I am going to try a new program I have been trained in and I hope it helps him. I think it will, but it is going to be a matter of how much time I can spend with him each day and each week. I got enough materials to work with him for 20 lessons, an hour and a half each. I don't think we will get through that much, but I am going to try to work with him as much as possible. I hope it helps him! Luckily, this money that I am going to make while tutoring will be enough to cover our future car payment (that we have never had to make before because both the cars we own now are completely paid for). That is a good thing since I am not entirely sure I will have a job next year.

That brings me to another thing. I have to keep reminding myself that I will at least be able to sub next year, even if I don't have a job. Several of the subs at the school I was at this past year are going to be doing their student teaching in the fall, so that opens up some permanent sub positions at the school. I don't know if I would get hired there, but it is worth a shot, if I don't get a job somewhere else. What makes me a little more hopeful is that there are so many bilingual openings in Albuquerque, and even though I can't apply for them right now, I don't think they will all be filled by the time school is supposed to start in the fall, because none of them are going away when I check the website. I'm so glad God put it on my heart to get my bilingual certification, because without that my opportunities would be much more limited. I keep praying something comes my way and God would open those doors for me (and all the other teachers who have lost their job in this budget crisis).

Ok, enough of my rambling for now. I'll post more when some things happen. God bless our troops on this memorial day!

??????

2010-05-28T20:11:00.002-06:00

How is it possible that in one school district, there are 3 job openings for teachers, and two of those are just for the summer? And in another school district, there are 45 elementary teacher jobs available, but completely unopen for the general public to apply to?? It is so frustrating!! There are several jobs that I want to apply for, but can't. Should I just send off my resume anyway? Should I wait and see what God has planned for me? Does God want me to keep trying as hard as possible? Or does He want me to just relax and let Him take care of most of the details? It is really confusing. I just don't know what to do.

Day 1 of summer

2010-05-24T10:02:00.003-06:00

Ok, so this is really a post about the whole weekend, but today is officially the start of my summer break! And as exciting as it is, I got to have 4 cavities filled this morning... yippee! My whole lower face is numb and my jaw is killing me. Welcome to summer.

On Friday I had to say goodbye to the school I had worked at since January. It was pretty sad because I am going to miss everyone so much. I know God has a plan for me, and at the moment that plan does not include that school, but I am just going to miss everyone, especially the students. Apparently they are getting another teacher from another school to take my place, and that is only because of the budget crisis. I know the school would like to keep me if they could, but the budget is not going to allow that, unless something drastic happens in the district. Anyway, I know I will be missed and they know I will miss them. We will just have to see what happens.

Saturday all I did was clean the house. It was disgusting because we hadn't been home the last two weekends and it was in desperate need of a scrub-down. So I got that taken care of while Jason hooked up the A/C. We went to lunch with Jason's parents and went to an Isotopes baseball game with some friends that evening. It was fun, but we sat so far away that I couldn't see much of the game. It was a really high-scoring game, though, so that made it a little more fun, as far as baseball goes.

Sunday we went to church then ran some erands in town. We went and looked at cars! We are interested in getting an SUV and trading in our truck. We went to the Toyota dealership and looked at 4Runners and Highlanders. I thought I wanted a 4Runner, no question, but then I sat in a Highlander and I really liked it. We are still in the pre-planning stages of this adventure, but hopefully we can make a decision relatively soon so we know how to budget for this purchase. We are trying to decide if we need one that can pull the boat or if we will just get it after we are all done going to the lake for the year and then get a truck by the time we start going to the lake again next year. Who knows what we are going to do, but it is fun to think about getting a new car! After that we went and looked at plants at a nursery in town. We are working on landscaping right now and we wanted to see some of the plant options that are at the local nurseries. Finally we made dinner for our families- fajitas. It was nice having everyone over.

I am not looking forward to this week because Jason is going to be out of town from Tuesday through Friday. This will be his first business trip and it is going to be really good experience for him, but I don't enjoy being apart from him at all, much less for three nights. I told my family that I might be joining them for the evenings and just hanging out at my house when I have to, lol. I doubt that will be the case, but we will have to see how it goes.

Well, my face is still numb and I am hungry, so I will see if I can eat something without making too much of a mess. Have a fabulous day!

Closin' in on the end

2010-05-16T20:31:00.003-06:00

Ok, I admit it, I'm a terrible blogger. I haven't been on in several weeks, my apologies. Really there is not a whole lot new in my life, at least that I can think of. School is out in 5 days. I can't believe I am already done with my first grownup job. Yep, I am officially not going to be at that school next year. I had thought that was going to be the case for a while now, but as of Friday it was pretty official. Unless something miraculous happens between now and August. I'm so thankful I have my bilingual certification, though, because without it I wouldn't have been able to get this job in the first place, and it is definitely an experience I am glad I had. I have learned so many things at this job that I will take with me wherever I go next year. I am going to miss the school terribly, they were like a family for me while I was there. They accepted me right away and I made some great friends that I hope I will continue to see regularly. This summer is going to be rough, though, because of the anticipation of having to wait for a phone call about a job in the district. I just have to have faith that God has me taken care of. I was skeptical about this job at first but it turned out to be a huge blessing, so it is easier to trust him now. I know that isn't the right attitude and I should trust him no matter what, but he helped my faith by doing this for me.

Jason and I went to the lake this weekend. We have gone a couple of times now and it is so nice to just get out on the water and relax. We had a big group of people this time as my whole family and Jason's parents went. It was fun, though, and other than our dog driving up bonkers with her whining (she always wants to be on whichever boat she is not on, or swimming...) it was super relaxing. I was even able to work on my tan a little because it was beautiful weather. We slept great, at least the second night, and now we know some of the kinks we need to work out of the boat before we go to Lake Powell in a month and a half. I'm REALLY looking forward to that trip.

I'm feeling kinda lonely here these days. It is hard not having friends here like I had in Lubbock that I could just call up whenever and go hang out. And the friends I have here live so far away it makes it even harder. It is really nice being so close to our families, but I feel like they are pretty much our only social network, except for the occasional dinner out with friends (once a month or so). What I really miss is going over to my best friend's house, playing video games or watching a movie, and just laughing the evening away. Oh what I wouldn't give to live closer to her. It would be extra nice to have some couple friends here, too, of which we have NONE. I don't even know how to go about making couple friends.... any ideas?? Our church is so huge that it is hard to get plugged into anything. The only class they have for young couples is a newlywed class, which we don't really fit into anymore (depending on your definition of newlywed). Plus it is on Friday night, and we do stuff on Friday nights a lot of times. It's just hard making a whole new set of friends. I'm thankful for the friends we have here, don't get me wrong, but I just miss the closeness that we had in Lubbock.

Our house is coming along, slowly but surely. We are working on landscaping right now, which is really exciting. The sprinkler lines are trenched and we have a plan for the back and the front yards. Our garden is coming along and I'm really looking forward to having fresh veggies! We have garlic, onions (hopefully), carrots, tomatoes (yellow and red), corn, green beans, zucchini, bell pepper, and green chile. So far they are all good, and we only killed the tomatoes once (a late freeze) but we replanted them. All the seeds we planted are sprouting (it's like watching children grow, lol, I get so excited when I see a little sprout sticking up through the dirt!) and the plants are thriving. It is going to be awesome when the veggies start growing.

Ok, I guess that is enough for one post. This weekend really got me thinking about how much I want children... but that can wait for another time. I will hopefully have more time to blog when school gets out, but no promises... We know how I am.

Looking forward

2010-04-23T21:55:00.003-06:00

There are so many things I am looking forward to in the relatively near future-

1. Jordan's birthday party on Saturday. I can't believe he is 3 already... sheesh!
2. Going to the lake this weekend. It will be really nice to get away.
3. Lunch with some friends from high school, one I haven't seen in 2 years, one I haven't seen in 3.5 years.
4. Getting skinny. I have never really been overweight, and I've never been really in shape, but I want to get in really good shape for this summer's trip to Lake Powell. I have been running and going to Zumba, and I'm trying to make do something at least 4 days a week. It really is difficult with a life that you have to work around.
5. Getting to see my students on Monday. I have been at a workshop for the past three days and I thought I would really enjoy the break, but I really did miss the little toots. They always make my days so interesting and I feel like I am making a difference for them, but when I don't get to see them it makes me sad. Thankfully I will get to see them on Monday, even if we don't have class.
6. Getting a new computer! My computer is about to completely crash on me, it is just a matter of time. I either need a new one or to get mine completely cleaned up and repaired so that it runs more smoothly. It take it about 15 minutes just to start up. Yeah, that is ridiculous, I know. I have to think about starting my computer up 15 minutes before I actually need to use it. This is not an easy task, but I guess I am making due as it is.

And things I'm looking forward to in the slightly-further-away future-
1. Getting some grass in our backyard. I know it seems like a really little thing, but at this point it is a huge deal for us and the next thing we are going to spend money on for our house. I think Abby is looking forward to that, too.
2. Putting a new roof on our house. We have shingles now that fly off in the wind, and we are going to get a metal roof this summer. I'm ready for that to happen so we can start saving money for some other thing.
3. Going to Lake Powell for a week on a houseboat with our family. No explaination needed.
4. Starting a family. I'm not entirely sure when this is going to happen, but I have high hopes that is isn't too far away. I'll keep you posted on that when more decisions are made.
5. Getting a permanent (long term) job. I just found out this week that I don't have a job next year, at this point. I'm not worrying about it, but I just wish God would let me in on His plan so I could start making a plan around His plan. I know that isn't how it works, but I can dream, right?
6. Getting a new car. This is not going to happen until I am pregnant, whenever that happens to be, because the truck we have now will not fit an infant's carseat. I know, that is a really weird reason to need a new car, especially when you already own a truck, but that is just how it is. The back seat isn't big enough, and that is all there is to it. I don't want to get rid of my truck because I still love it, but if I can get a 4Runner or something (very similar to my Tacoma, which is probably why I want one) then it won't be a huge deal.
7. Really settling into our lives here. We still don't have friends here. Well, I have some friends at school, ladies that I work with, but we have only hung out once in the 2.5 months I have worked there. Jason has some friends from high school that live here that we hang out with some times. We just don't have any couple friends. My very bestest friend still lives in Lubbock, and I miss her tremendously. I think she and her husband should just move here once he is done with school, but she doesn't seem to think that is the best idea. Oh well, I will keep trying ;-)

So, apparently I have been thinking about the future a lot recently. It is hard to not try to plan out every single thing in my life, but I am trying to follow what God wants for us as I am planning. It is just my personality that I want to know what is coming before it gets here. Unfortunately, as anyone over the age of 5 knows, that is just life. However, listening and talking to God is really helping smooth things over in my mind. I am not stressing like I normally would. I have several positive influences around me that give me good, sound, spiritual advice and I'm so thankful God has put these people in my life so they can help me stay focused on Him.

Ok, enough for now. I'll let you know as I am able to cross things off the list!

so much change

2010-04-21T19:37:00.003-06:00

Yeah, this is going to be a long one. I have had so much stuff happen in the last couple of weeks and I have not been very good about keeping this updated. Last week was state testing, and that is all we did. My students did great and it was really nice getting to work with students that I work with daily. It was also awesome seeing how hard they were trying and that they got the answers right that they did. I'm glad it is over though, but now I have to give more tests next week and I am really not looking forward to it. I have a training that I am going to for the next couple of days. It is really boring, honestly, and I am not enjoying it at all. But, supposedly it will make me more marketable in the future, so I am doing it.

Another interesting that I am doing is homebound teaching. There is a young student who is not able to attend school for medical reasons and I am working with him a couple of hours a week. Today was so enjoyable, it was so much fun. Is it possible to get paid to play with kids? I'm pretty sure I have the best job in the world. I'm so glad God placed teaching on my heart because I know He made me to do this.

Speaking of which, I found out today that I don't have a job next year at the school I am at right now. I knew it was a possibility, so it wasn't all that shocking, but now I don't have to worry. Our principal mentioned that there have to be 3-4 cuts at our school, and since I am short-term, I am the first to go. People keep telling me about how much can change over the summer, and I am trying to keep that in mind. Like I said, I am not terribly worried because I know God has a plan for all this. I just have to keep my ears and my heart open to what He tells me. I would appreciate all the prayers you could manage. Thank you in advance!

On a happier (maybe) note, my nephew turned 3 years old yesterday!! I simply can't believe that he is already three. He is amazing, smart, funny, and adorable, and I love every moment I get to spend with him. We are going to his birthday party on Saturday with a bunch of family so that is going to be fun. We got him an adorable present that I hope he loves.

My brothers are doing well. I take David to school in the mornings. He is taking a special ed biology class and a regular ed photography class at the high school right next to my school. He really enjoys going to school, mostly because it gives him a break from my parents and his brother I think. He likes it, though, and that is what matters. He has also started seeing a psychologist. It is too soon to tell if it is doing any good, but hopefully it is making a difference for him and will help him sort through some things. Nothing much is new with Sam, other than he has been diagnosed as mentally retarded. This shocked me because he is so socially capable. My mom said, "yeah, but you have never been in the same school room as him." Which is a completely true statement. I'm still not sure it is an accurate diagnosis, but I guess it makes sense to my mom. Anyway, he isn't going to school in the mornings yet, just twice a week in the afternoons. I guess that is the update for the boys!

Ok, enough for one post. Take care and God bless!

ZUMBA!!!

2010-04-10T14:35:00.004-06:00

Yes, that's right, I am now part of the Zumba nation. I took my first class today from some Zumba guru from Las Cruces. It was outside, there were about 50 people there, and it lasted for an hour and a half, or slightly more. It was so fun! A lot of the moves are Latin dance movies, for those of you who are unaware. Many of them are a little risque, but you get an amazing workout. I have been home for an hour and a half and I am already starting to feel sore. I want to start going to other classes throughout the week, although I am not entirely sure when I will have time, or energy, to go. Luckily, it doesn't feel like working out, really. And, I heard a rumor, that if you do every move with high intensity, you can burn 800 calories in an hour. Average is about 500 calories per hour. Not bad if you ask me!

Jason, his dad, his friend, and another guy all went fishing up near Jason's parents' cabin today. Jason's mom went, too, but I don't think she is going to be doing any fishing. I think there is still a bunch of snow up there, so I'm glad I didn't go. I'd rather hang out here, where it is 80 degrees, and dance the day away :-)

Not sure if we are going to church tonight or not, but I need to go get ready just in case we are. Hopefully I can find some time this weekend to start working on a quilt for some friends of mine who hired me in December... They told me not to rush, so I'm not, lol. I need to get working on it or they are going to think it is never gonna get done. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend! God bless.

short one

2010-04-06T20:49:00.002-06:00

I know it has been a while since my last update, but really not much has happened in the last week. We filed our taxes, went fishing, and hung out with family for Easter. Taxes are nothing special (until we get our refund). Fishing was a bust, although it was a beautiful day and spending it on the boat at the lake was fantastic. And Easter was lovely, but it is always lovely.

I have started to watch my niece and nephew in the afternoon so my sister can start working out (so she will quit smoking, hopefully) although I have not been very consistent. It is hard to make any kind of daily commitment like that when one is working. Speaking of working out, I have not really stayed with it as much as I should. I have decided to make sure I don't eat any more than 1500 calories per day, and I did it today without any problem, so I think I may need to cut it down a smidgeon more. We will see how it goes with me keeping my food journal though. Tedious, I will admit, but hopefully effective.

Tomorrow I get to see my aunt! Woohoo! I haven't seen her in a few months and she has not seen our house yet, so it will be fun.

Testing starts on Thursday at work, nothing exciting other than I don't have to worry about planning any lessons for the next two weeks, which will be nice. Unfortunately I heard today that I probably will not have a job next year, at least not in this position. That is super stressful, as we can not really afford for me not to work next year. But, that is not in my hands and I have to keep reminding myself that I can't control it and God has everything under control. Pray for my peace of mind, though, if you would.

I think that is about it. Like I said, not much new in my life. I hope this week continues to be uneventful!