I am attempting to keep this blog a positive place. It's a place that has recently become all about Audra. I LOVE talking about Audra, mainly because I LOVE to be helpful to a lot of you reading. I know some of my favorite blogs are those where fellow mamas talk about their experiences, favorite products, and life in general with babies. They're helpful, and they prevent me from having to do a ton of research, especially if I feel that I identify with them and can trust their opinions.
But I think it's important to be honest, too. It's not fair to show you only the pretty side of things and make you think that's how it always is. I'm talking about how it's all about Audra. Not just my blog, now. MY LIFE. Don't get me wrong. I LOVE MY BABY MORE THAN I EVEN KNOW HOW TO PUT INTO WORDS. I would give my life for her! I can go on listing other ways to affirm to you how much I love her, but let's just call it good. I LOVE HER. There's no truer statement. But it gets overwhelming. It's such a place of limbo to be in; one that is implied a lot of time, but one that people also choose not to talk about a lot of time. I think it's because people, like this blog, mostly choose to focus on the positive. Because there is SO MUCH positive to focus on! A beautiful, gorgeous baby. Learning new things. Smiling. Kissing. Hugging. Babbling. Laughing. Loving me. But also. BUT ALSO... crying. Clawing at my face. Refusing to let me take a whole shower in peace. Whining when I try to pump. Waking me multiple times a night. Starting the morning with more crying. Refusing to eat the food I spent time making. And generally taking up every single minute of my time. Even when she's sleeping, she's taking up my time. I'm thinking of her. Educating myself on things for her. Buying things online for her. Writing this blog about her.
So I find myself in this limbo. On one side: loving this new life with our baby- both the good and the bad that come with it. And on the other: feeling selfish and wanting to hand her over to my or my husband's parents and just jet off to a sunny warm island and lay on the beach, drinking piña coladas and "forgetting" my baby. For just a little while. I say "forgetting" because I know that the second I hit that beach, I'll be wondering what Audra's up to and how she's doing, whether she's happy and sleeping well and eating her food, etc. I'm feeling like my brain is never going to rest again. And that's probably just the reality of it. But guys? My brain is TIRED. My BODY is tired. My holding-shiz-together-ness is feeling like it wants to quit. Not forever! Just for a little while. I need a break. I mean more than an afternoon. More than even a day, probably. And it can't happen here, at the house, because then I'd just end up cleaning or something, because my OCD self can't fully relax until there's nothing else to do.
Recently, Nic and I finally got to have a candid, honest conversation, and I ended in tears just telling him how tired I am. And how I don't feel like myself anymore. I used to be an adult. One who enjoyed good food and sitting on patios and Happy Hour with friends. One who saw movies in the theater kind of frequently and went shopping for clothes that are in season. And now? Now I feel a little trapped. Trapped because of breastfeeding (can't leave her with anyone for any extended length of time), trapped because of very delicate nap time hours (as I talked about last post ), trapped because of the amount of work that has fallen on my shoulders because of her, but at the same time less time to do it because of her. That's not to say this is ALWAYS how I feel. I think it's just been a very very long time since I've gotten to be... well... ME. Right now I feel like me, the mom. And then sometimes (if I don't fall asleep first), I'm me, the wife. And very very rarely do I get to be me, the adult in an adult world. Something's gotta give. There's got to be some way for me to recharge this mom battery of mine. I do know that this feeling goes away almost as quickly as it comes, but the fact of the matter is that this feeling still exists. And from what I'm reading around the web, it exists in a lot moms.
I HATE admitting this. I HATE the fact that this is sounding like complaining. Complaining is not how I intend this to sound. I mean it to be an honest look at the feelings of a stay-at-home-mom (perhaps ANY mom), from time to time.
It's important for me to stress how much I LOVE MY BABY. I wouldn't trade motherhood for a lifetime on warm, sandy beaches. I wouldn't trade it for anything. There are infinitely more good days than bad; more happy moments than stressful moments; more JOY and LOVE than anything else I can think of.
Sometimes a mom just needs an extended break to be... well... free from being a mom.
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Family. Show all posts
Friday, February 1, 2013
Sunday, August 5, 2012
My 2nd BIG DAY (AUDRA is BORN!!!)
Marrying Nic will always be my 1st BIG DAY. It
was a wonderful, magical day, set by the sea and included a small group
of our closest family and a few friends. Giving birth to Audra will
forever be my 2nd BIG DAY.
My last post left off when I got admitted into San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC) around 2am on Sunday, June 10th. I was just ecstatic that I was dilated to a 4. The contractions weren’t all that fun, of course, but I WOULD BE HAVING A BABY VERY VERY SOON!!! Part of me wanted to cry (already!) because I was so happy; the other part of me wanted to cry because I knew this was only the beginning and I would be in so.much.pain. in the very near future. While I was still in the 1st room (the triage room before a more permanent room is assigned), an anesthesiologist came in to tell me all of my options.
From even before I was pregnant, I had always wanted to have a natural delivery. I don't know if it's that I wanted to be tough, or if it was the negative effects of certain medications that I learned about from documentaries like The Business of Being Born or Born in America, but either way- I felt I had a pretty high pain tolerance and I really was up for the challenge. Every time I've had to over come some sort of pain in life, I've always felt better and stronger for it. So was my goal for delivery.
So in walks the anesthesiologist, and I'm all I'll listen, but I won't be needing that. He had to give his shpiel anyway, and I was intrigued when he said that epidurals don't effect the baby. I'd always heard that they do-- that the baby can be groggy, and a few other things. I don't know if he meant HIS epidurals don't effect the baby, or if the type he uses doesn't... I'm just not sure why his information was contrasting to what I'd heard. Regardless, I wasn't interested. He told me that he'd be in a c-section for a while, should I change my mind, and yada yada yada... that's all good and thanks for telling me.
Around 3:30 or 4am, I get moved into my delivery room. The contractions were becoming much more intense. I really had to stop everything and breathe through them. Looking back, I know that a lot of things needed to be different in that room: 1) The lights needed to be lower, 2) The nurse needed to LET ME GET IN A ZONE. The nurse I had was a SPAZ. She sort of looked like a drug addict (way too thin, highlights grown out), and she was all over the place. She insisted that she had to keep the monitors on me to monitor the baby, even though my water hadn't broken and I've NEVER had any reason to need monitoring. Every time she put the monitor on my stomach, it slid to a spot that made me have a contraction. After a few times, I started to see the pattern of monitor=contraction. Since the contractions were so painful, I was really squirming from the pain each time she put it on. Then it would slide, I'd have a contraction, and the whole thing would start over again. We seriously did this for about 2 hours. There was no "zone" involved. All through this, she's practically screaming, "We HAVE to monitor THE BABY!" I'm all, "OK!!" and she puts it on me, it slides from all the gel again, I have a contraction and she freaks out again because OMG THE MONITOR ISN'T ON THE BABY--- WE HAVE TO MONITOR THE BABY!!! All through the classes I attended, particularly the Natural Childbirth class, I'd been told how you just have to find your ZONE. I couldn't find my zone. Not at all. As a result, I wasn't able to breathe through the pain like I'd been taught, or to imagine those warm sunny places, or picture myself as a strong African woman who can get through anything (for some reason, I think of Sojourner Truth), or to think of the contractions like going up a big hill, then back down. NO, I DIDN'T GET TO do any of that. All I got to do is be annoyed by the stupid nurse and just complain to Nic about how bad it hurt.
Nobody ever tells you what that pain is like. Everyone I knew that'd had a baby was all, ya- it hurts! But nobody tells you the details. Nobody told me that the contractions would take all that my body had; would make me weak in the knees and make me feel like throwing up. They didn't tell me that my body would become so tired from working that every muscle would twitch. I remember looking at Nic, my eyebrows were twitching and my eyes themselves twitching, my lips were trembling, and he said it: Are you having second thoughts about the epidural?... Of course, I'd thought about it! I was glad he said something, because if he hadn't, I would have before too long. He was so loving and told me to go ahead and do it, that he wouldn't think less of me at all. He continually reassured me that there was no way to predict this feeling, and he knew the epidural would help. So around 6:20 we told the spaz that we'd decided to get the epidural. At some point during all of that, my parents had texted Nic to see if they could come back. Seeing as I was in the worst pain of my life, I was in no mood for visitors. I told them, sorry, not right now.
And thus begins our new problem: remember that little bit of information :::...I'll be in a c-section for a while if you change your mind...::: ...I changed my mind. And he was in a c-section. It felt like ETERNITY before he finally got there, but in reality I think it was only 25 minutes. Keep in mind that my pain was to a point that I wanted it that instant, so 25 minutes later it had continued to grow. Someone came in to check dilation shortly before the anesthesiologist got there, and that person said I was dilated at a 7, almost an 8 (out of 10 in case you don't know much about birthing). The anesthesiologist finally came in around 6:45, and told me that I needed to be still while he injected the needle, which would be 10-15 minutes. When your body is spasming and you're in so much pain, it's hard to sit still. Nic stood in front of me, and bore what is now one of my favorite labor memories. I put my head on his shoulder and breathed in his neck; he took long deep breaths and told me to copy him, and I did. That was EXTREMELY helpful, and both of us asked why we didn't remember to breathe like that sooner. Oops. Oh well. [Upon reading this post, Nic says we couldn't remember the right way to breathe because the drug-addict/spaz was too distracting.] Within minutes of the epidural, I felt next to no pain at all. It was amazing. AND I could still move my legs, which I'd always heard I would be unable to do. I told Nic my parents could come back now. We sat and visited for a while, and when Matt & Abi arrived at the hospital, they joined us in the room too. It really was amazing how much better the epidural made me feel. It's important for me to say here, that I have a CRAZY WONDERFUL amount of respect for any woman that gives birth without an epidural. To know that you went through that pain and did so without any numbing is mind-blowing. You will forever be a strong and amazing person for that.
The spaz finally gave report to our new nurse around 7 am. Our new nurse's name was (get this)... AUDRA! And she was the most lovely nurse I could have ever hoped for. I wish she were my night nurse. She was pretty and funny and made me feel completely comfortable and not at all self-conscious. So Matt, Abi, my parents, and Nic and I just sat (well, I layed) visiting for a while. I drifted in and out of sleep since I was tired from Friday's events, and from being up all night Saturday into Sunday. Around 9:30, a doctor checks dilation and breaks my water. I don't remember how far dilation was at this point (to be honest, I was kind of out of it). She also says I should be able to start pushing around 10:30. EEEK! Pushing?!? That definitely made me nervous. But I was too sleepy to get all worked up at that very moment.
Everyone's talking, and I'm sleeping, and in walk all of these people and someone loudly says, "Are you ready to have a baby? It's time to push!" I look at the clock and it wasn't even 10:30 yet. I think it was around 10:25. All of my family except Nic leaves, and I start feeling very overwhelmed. They really startled me from my sleep, and I hadn't had time to process all that was going on in that moment. (Nic jokes that he forgot to tell them I need to look at Facebook on my phone for about 10 minutes, then they could have continued; this is my usual wake-up routine.) (...pre-baby wake up routine that is...) It just seemed that I was sleeping, then all of a sudden, Audra (my nurse) and other people are standing over me, explaining how to push. I'm too confused to even listen to their directions. I just start half-way crying, saying I don't know HOW to push! They all insisted they'd tell me what to do as it happened, but to get ready because when the next contraction came, I would be pushing.
By this point, the epidural had worn off enough for me to know when I was having a contraction. I could feel it building and they told me alright, take a deep breath and push! They held my legs and counted to 10 while I pushed, then once they got to 10, they quickly said "take another deep breath and PUSH!" so I did while they counted to 10 again. By the second 10, the contraction was over so I rested to gear up for the next push. I was so numb down there from the epidural, I had no idea what was going on. After about 3 contractions of pushing, I asked Nic "Is she out?!?" Nic laughed and said no, that he couldn't even see her yet. The doctor said she was making her way around the pelvic bone. I pushed a total of about 50 minutes. Our little Audra was born at 11:17am. I gave my last, hardest push then they pulled her out and immediately placed her on my chest and covered us with a blanket. Nic and I both cried tears of joy and I just kept looking at her in disbelief and feeling her warm slimy little body. I'd waited so long for that moment, and there it was. So THAT is what it's like to have a baby.
We cuddled for a bit, then it was cut abruptly short. The doctor informed me that I had a tear they needed to stitch up, and the lighting in the delivery room wasn't bright enough for them to see. The doctor explained that I didn't tear on the outside, like I was probably thinking, but instead my tear was vertical up the vaginal wall. That's why they needed better lighting. I had never in my life heard of a tear like that happening during birth, so I was kind of surprised. Thank God I'd gotten the epidural! I was completely oblivious to the tear. :) And I really wasn't all too worried about it; I had a new little baby to be excited about!
They whisked me off to the OR while Nic got to stay in the delivery room and give Audra her first bath. A nice nurse took some pictures of him. As I lay there on the operating table, tears came to my eyes. It was the first time I was able to take it all in. I'd just had our little baby. On Sunday. And Matt & Abi were still there; my dad was there; Nic was off work. It was the most perfect timing imaginable. I got weepy realizing it had to be God helping us in all of this. Any time I doubt or am scared, He's always come through and blessed me even more than I could have imagined. I prayed for a while on that operating room table, and eventually fell asleep. I just had to ask, out of curiosity, how big the tear was. The doctor informed me that it was about 5 inches straight up the vaginal wall. This tear has (obviously) caused me a lot of discomfort, and is something that is still sore to this day (almost 2 months later). It's nowhere near as painful as it was the 1st days after I delivered. If feeling 100% is the goal, I'd say I'm at about a 90. The worst part about it is how much it's prevented me from doing, namely CrossFit.
So I got stitched up, and then joined my little family in the delivery room. The three of us cuddled as a family for a while, and I fed Audra for the first time. After a while, Mom, Dad, Matt & Abi came in and met Audra. It was a really exciting time for all of us. After a few hours, I moved to post-partum. And thus began life with a baby: never really sleeping, always looking at her, and learning what it feels like to be a mommy.
The first few days, I remember being EXTREMELY overwhelmed with love, and lots of worry for our little baby. I'm sure it was largely due to the hormones adjusting, but I would sometimes start crying, thinking about something bad ever happening to her. I would tell Nic, what if other kids are mean to her? What if someone tries to hurt her? What if she gets kidnapped? I just want her to be happy... I would worry that she'd stop breathing in the middle of the night and die from SIDS, or that she'd slip out of her swing somehow and it would keep swinging and attacking her and she'd die. She was (is) so small and helpless. I just felt an overwhelming desire to make all things GOOD for her. All of those 'what ifs' were really getting to me. He finally said something that really hit home for me: God was with her on the day she was born, and He'll be with her throughout her life. Knowing this has helped me when I start to think about all of those 'what ifs' again.
As I type this, she's sitting in my lap, babbling her cute little baby talk and her arm is somewhat flailing about since she still doesn't have gross motor control. She is the most beautiful, sweet baby that I've ever seen. Even when she wakes up at the crack of dawn, for a moment I think, UGH, awake already... but then I see her sweet face, and sometimes she even smiles, then my heart melts and I am JUST SO HAPPY to see and be with my sweet little baby again.
She is truly a blessing, and I thank God for her every day, multiple times a day. Now that we're in Virgina, we're really getting a chance to be together and get to know each other. She's one funny, gassy little gal! ;) We waited for her arrival for so.SO.long, and wondered what that day would be like. It's nice to know that it's over, and it worked out PERFECTLY and now we have a cute little wiggly baby to hold and love.
My last post left off when I got admitted into San Antonio Military Medical Center (SAMMC) around 2am on Sunday, June 10th. I was just ecstatic that I was dilated to a 4. The contractions weren’t all that fun, of course, but I WOULD BE HAVING A BABY VERY VERY SOON!!! Part of me wanted to cry (already!) because I was so happy; the other part of me wanted to cry because I knew this was only the beginning and I would be in so.much.pain. in the very near future. While I was still in the 1st room (the triage room before a more permanent room is assigned), an anesthesiologist came in to tell me all of my options.
From even before I was pregnant, I had always wanted to have a natural delivery. I don't know if it's that I wanted to be tough, or if it was the negative effects of certain medications that I learned about from documentaries like The Business of Being Born or Born in America, but either way- I felt I had a pretty high pain tolerance and I really was up for the challenge. Every time I've had to over come some sort of pain in life, I've always felt better and stronger for it. So was my goal for delivery.
So in walks the anesthesiologist, and I'm all I'll listen, but I won't be needing that. He had to give his shpiel anyway, and I was intrigued when he said that epidurals don't effect the baby. I'd always heard that they do-- that the baby can be groggy, and a few other things. I don't know if he meant HIS epidurals don't effect the baby, or if the type he uses doesn't... I'm just not sure why his information was contrasting to what I'd heard. Regardless, I wasn't interested. He told me that he'd be in a c-section for a while, should I change my mind, and yada yada yada... that's all good and thanks for telling me.
Around 3:30 or 4am, I get moved into my delivery room. The contractions were becoming much more intense. I really had to stop everything and breathe through them. Looking back, I know that a lot of things needed to be different in that room: 1) The lights needed to be lower, 2) The nurse needed to LET ME GET IN A ZONE. The nurse I had was a SPAZ. She sort of looked like a drug addict (way too thin, highlights grown out), and she was all over the place. She insisted that she had to keep the monitors on me to monitor the baby, even though my water hadn't broken and I've NEVER had any reason to need monitoring. Every time she put the monitor on my stomach, it slid to a spot that made me have a contraction. After a few times, I started to see the pattern of monitor=contraction. Since the contractions were so painful, I was really squirming from the pain each time she put it on. Then it would slide, I'd have a contraction, and the whole thing would start over again. We seriously did this for about 2 hours. There was no "zone" involved. All through this, she's practically screaming, "We HAVE to monitor THE BABY!" I'm all, "OK!!" and she puts it on me, it slides from all the gel again, I have a contraction and she freaks out again because OMG THE MONITOR ISN'T ON THE BABY--- WE HAVE TO MONITOR THE BABY!!! All through the classes I attended, particularly the Natural Childbirth class, I'd been told how you just have to find your ZONE. I couldn't find my zone. Not at all. As a result, I wasn't able to breathe through the pain like I'd been taught, or to imagine those warm sunny places, or picture myself as a strong African woman who can get through anything (for some reason, I think of Sojourner Truth), or to think of the contractions like going up a big hill, then back down. NO, I DIDN'T GET TO do any of that. All I got to do is be annoyed by the stupid nurse and just complain to Nic about how bad it hurt.
Nobody ever tells you what that pain is like. Everyone I knew that'd had a baby was all, ya- it hurts! But nobody tells you the details. Nobody told me that the contractions would take all that my body had; would make me weak in the knees and make me feel like throwing up. They didn't tell me that my body would become so tired from working that every muscle would twitch. I remember looking at Nic, my eyebrows were twitching and my eyes themselves twitching, my lips were trembling, and he said it: Are you having second thoughts about the epidural?... Of course, I'd thought about it! I was glad he said something, because if he hadn't, I would have before too long. He was so loving and told me to go ahead and do it, that he wouldn't think less of me at all. He continually reassured me that there was no way to predict this feeling, and he knew the epidural would help. So around 6:20 we told the spaz that we'd decided to get the epidural. At some point during all of that, my parents had texted Nic to see if they could come back. Seeing as I was in the worst pain of my life, I was in no mood for visitors. I told them, sorry, not right now.
And thus begins our new problem: remember that little bit of information :::...I'll be in a c-section for a while if you change your mind...::: ...I changed my mind. And he was in a c-section. It felt like ETERNITY before he finally got there, but in reality I think it was only 25 minutes. Keep in mind that my pain was to a point that I wanted it that instant, so 25 minutes later it had continued to grow. Someone came in to check dilation shortly before the anesthesiologist got there, and that person said I was dilated at a 7, almost an 8 (out of 10 in case you don't know much about birthing). The anesthesiologist finally came in around 6:45, and told me that I needed to be still while he injected the needle, which would be 10-15 minutes. When your body is spasming and you're in so much pain, it's hard to sit still. Nic stood in front of me, and bore what is now one of my favorite labor memories. I put my head on his shoulder and breathed in his neck; he took long deep breaths and told me to copy him, and I did. That was EXTREMELY helpful, and both of us asked why we didn't remember to breathe like that sooner. Oops. Oh well. [Upon reading this post, Nic says we couldn't remember the right way to breathe because the drug-addict/spaz was too distracting.] Within minutes of the epidural, I felt next to no pain at all. It was amazing. AND I could still move my legs, which I'd always heard I would be unable to do. I told Nic my parents could come back now. We sat and visited for a while, and when Matt & Abi arrived at the hospital, they joined us in the room too. It really was amazing how much better the epidural made me feel. It's important for me to say here, that I have a CRAZY WONDERFUL amount of respect for any woman that gives birth without an epidural. To know that you went through that pain and did so without any numbing is mind-blowing. You will forever be a strong and amazing person for that.
Waiting...
The spaz finally gave report to our new nurse around 7 am. Our new nurse's name was (get this)... AUDRA! And she was the most lovely nurse I could have ever hoped for. I wish she were my night nurse. She was pretty and funny and made me feel completely comfortable and not at all self-conscious. So Matt, Abi, my parents, and Nic and I just sat (well, I layed) visiting for a while. I drifted in and out of sleep since I was tired from Friday's events, and from being up all night Saturday into Sunday. Around 9:30, a doctor checks dilation and breaks my water. I don't remember how far dilation was at this point (to be honest, I was kind of out of it). She also says I should be able to start pushing around 10:30. EEEK! Pushing?!? That definitely made me nervous. But I was too sleepy to get all worked up at that very moment.
Everyone's talking, and I'm sleeping, and in walk all of these people and someone loudly says, "Are you ready to have a baby? It's time to push!" I look at the clock and it wasn't even 10:30 yet. I think it was around 10:25. All of my family except Nic leaves, and I start feeling very overwhelmed. They really startled me from my sleep, and I hadn't had time to process all that was going on in that moment. (Nic jokes that he forgot to tell them I need to look at Facebook on my phone for about 10 minutes, then they could have continued; this is my usual wake-up routine.) (...pre-baby wake up routine that is...) It just seemed that I was sleeping, then all of a sudden, Audra (my nurse) and other people are standing over me, explaining how to push. I'm too confused to even listen to their directions. I just start half-way crying, saying I don't know HOW to push! They all insisted they'd tell me what to do as it happened, but to get ready because when the next contraction came, I would be pushing.
By this point, the epidural had worn off enough for me to know when I was having a contraction. I could feel it building and they told me alright, take a deep breath and push! They held my legs and counted to 10 while I pushed, then once they got to 10, they quickly said "take another deep breath and PUSH!" so I did while they counted to 10 again. By the second 10, the contraction was over so I rested to gear up for the next push. I was so numb down there from the epidural, I had no idea what was going on. After about 3 contractions of pushing, I asked Nic "Is she out?!?" Nic laughed and said no, that he couldn't even see her yet. The doctor said she was making her way around the pelvic bone. I pushed a total of about 50 minutes. Our little Audra was born at 11:17am. I gave my last, hardest push then they pulled her out and immediately placed her on my chest and covered us with a blanket. Nic and I both cried tears of joy and I just kept looking at her in disbelief and feeling her warm slimy little body. I'd waited so long for that moment, and there it was. So THAT is what it's like to have a baby.
We cuddled for a bit, then it was cut abruptly short. The doctor informed me that I had a tear they needed to stitch up, and the lighting in the delivery room wasn't bright enough for them to see. The doctor explained that I didn't tear on the outside, like I was probably thinking, but instead my tear was vertical up the vaginal wall. That's why they needed better lighting. I had never in my life heard of a tear like that happening during birth, so I was kind of surprised. Thank God I'd gotten the epidural! I was completely oblivious to the tear. :) And I really wasn't all too worried about it; I had a new little baby to be excited about!
They whisked me off to the OR while Nic got to stay in the delivery room and give Audra her first bath. A nice nurse took some pictures of him. As I lay there on the operating table, tears came to my eyes. It was the first time I was able to take it all in. I'd just had our little baby. On Sunday. And Matt & Abi were still there; my dad was there; Nic was off work. It was the most perfect timing imaginable. I got weepy realizing it had to be God helping us in all of this. Any time I doubt or am scared, He's always come through and blessed me even more than I could have imagined. I prayed for a while on that operating room table, and eventually fell asleep. I just had to ask, out of curiosity, how big the tear was. The doctor informed me that it was about 5 inches straight up the vaginal wall. This tear has (obviously) caused me a lot of discomfort, and is something that is still sore to this day (almost 2 months later). It's nowhere near as painful as it was the 1st days after I delivered. If feeling 100% is the goal, I'd say I'm at about a 90. The worst part about it is how much it's prevented me from doing, namely CrossFit.
Baby's First Bath
So I got stitched up, and then joined my little family in the delivery room. The three of us cuddled as a family for a while, and I fed Audra for the first time. After a while, Mom, Dad, Matt & Abi came in and met Audra. It was a really exciting time for all of us. After a few hours, I moved to post-partum. And thus began life with a baby: never really sleeping, always looking at her, and learning what it feels like to be a mommy.
The happy family.
The first few days, I remember being EXTREMELY overwhelmed with love, and lots of worry for our little baby. I'm sure it was largely due to the hormones adjusting, but I would sometimes start crying, thinking about something bad ever happening to her. I would tell Nic, what if other kids are mean to her? What if someone tries to hurt her? What if she gets kidnapped? I just want her to be happy... I would worry that she'd stop breathing in the middle of the night and die from SIDS, or that she'd slip out of her swing somehow and it would keep swinging and attacking her and she'd die. She was (is) so small and helpless. I just felt an overwhelming desire to make all things GOOD for her. All of those 'what ifs' were really getting to me. He finally said something that really hit home for me: God was with her on the day she was born, and He'll be with her throughout her life. Knowing this has helped me when I start to think about all of those 'what ifs' again.
As I type this, she's sitting in my lap, babbling her cute little baby talk and her arm is somewhat flailing about since she still doesn't have gross motor control. She is the most beautiful, sweet baby that I've ever seen. Even when she wakes up at the crack of dawn, for a moment I think, UGH, awake already... but then I see her sweet face, and sometimes she even smiles, then my heart melts and I am JUST SO HAPPY to see and be with my sweet little baby again.
She is truly a blessing, and I thank God for her every day, multiple times a day. Now that we're in Virgina, we're really getting a chance to be together and get to know each other. She's one funny, gassy little gal! ;) We waited for her arrival for so.SO.long, and wondered what that day would be like. It's nice to know that it's over, and it worked out PERFECTLY and now we have a cute little wiggly baby to hold and love.
Monday, May 7, 2012
A Happy Heart [36 weeks]
I just had a WONDERFUL weekend with my handsome husband! He had a few days off from his clinicals so he was able to come home and meet me here on Friday evening. Here's a quick recap of my weekend and all the reasons I loved it:
Friday
After school, I went to get a pedicure since we were having pictures taken Saturday morning (the fact that my toes didn't even show b/c I was wearing heels is beside the point). Everything about this month-- the weather, the fact that there are 3 weeks left of school, the fact that the pool is open-- is screaming SUMMER! I opted for a bright pink with teal polka dots. For now, my summer is living on my toes. :)
THE HUSBAND: As if this even needs an explanation... every time I see his sweet smiley face and feel his arms around me, my heart melts and all is right in the world. He gave me my first Mother's Day present!!! Since he won't be here next weekend, he made sure it happened early. It consisted of a really precious card and then a Willow People figurine of a couple with their new baby. The title of it is Our Gift. My mom had gotten us one with a man and his pregnant wife, so this that he got me for Mother's Day was PERFECT! I know our Audra isn't quite here yet, but it's not too much longer! I cried happy tears and we sat in love until we were too hungry to sit any longer. :-D We ate at Cancun then watched TV in bed while I fell asleep (we were both pretty tired as he had just worked a night shift and... well... I'm about 9 months pregnant).
I felt like a giddy little school girl with my husband's presence near me for the rest of the weekend.
Saturday
The same lady that's taking Audra's newborn pics (Lynette Reeves with Only Imagine Photography) also took our maternity pictures. It was great to meet her, and I cannot WAIT to see what she did! We took them in two locations: 1) at the Veteran's Memorial where my dad swore Nic in as an AF officer, and then 2) at a local park where there are lots of trees and a pretty playa lake with a fountain. I'm thinking they'll look pretty sweet!
The rest of Saturday was spent doing CrossFit, finally eating Chipotle again (for some reason the thought of it made me nauseous for months), having dinner with his parents and taking home the baby clothes his mom washed. (She's pretty awesome, btw.)
Sunday
Sunday was our day of relaxation. We slept WAY in, watched a podcast from church, lounged some more then did a bit of shopping. I was able to get some foam paper to use as separators for Audra's clothes, a maternity swimsuit, and Nic got some classic children's stories he'd seen at Barnes & Noble (we got The Secret Garden and A Little Princess). I'm in love with the fact that he wants to read to her SO BADLY. I simply cannot wait to witness this! Almost too much cuteness for one heart to handle.
Nic helped me fine sort the baby clothes (his mom had pretty much already done this) and we got the separators in their spots. Looks good, don't you think?
After that, the only bad things about this weekend happened... and within minutes of each other: Nic left, then the garage door broke. Boo and boo again. I said my goodbyes and then shut the garage as I went inside and heard a huge loud noise as soon as I was in the house. I looked and saw that one of the springs had snapped. Well, crap. We knew it needed to be looked at b/c the springs were loose and it was making weird noises, and finally the thing fell apart. So it's out of commission for a while... hopefully our landlord will have it looked at in the near future.
And before I leave, here's the update:
How far along: 36 weeks tomorrow! 4 weeks till our due date!!!
How big is baby: Weighs about 5 lbs. now! And holy moly can I tell! ;)
Maternity clothes: Just bought a maternity swimsuit today. I don't care if those cute skinny college girls stare at my huge belly... it's HOT outside and I WANT TO SWIM! :) And plus my friend Kristine goes and she's pretty pregnant too, so it'll just be a little preggo party out there for us.
Sleep: Not good. I did make a new arrangement in which I sleep inclined and also with a pillow between my knees. This helps keep my hips from falling asleep, but it's a hassle to turn over since you have to move the pillow, move your belly, etc. I don't think I go more than 1 sleep cycle (about 1.5 hrs) without waking up. Yuck.
Movement: She's our little mover! I love it! Actually, yesterday was kind of a milestone in her movement: she actually hurt me! Her head is down and her feet are up, slanted to my right. She stretched and kicked my right rib right in the bone. I've heard of this happening, but her strength and sneakiness was startling. And we still have a whole month left.
When she's fully stretched out, which she does every now and then, I feel like her head is down past my hip bones and her feet are all the way up by my ribs. It amazes me how BIG she is! She's been pressing out more lately and I can actually feel her little feet if I put my hand under my ribs. If she curls her legs up extra, I can tell where they are. Sometimes when she stretches, her head (or hand) goes right into my bladder area and it's the most sudden insane urge to use the bathroom I've ever experienced to this point. Usually she'll stay that stretched out for only a few seconds, then she'll move back to where she was and the feeling will go away. I guess it's getting pretty cramped in there!
She gets the hiccups multiple times a day. It's fun for me to feel her rhythmic movements. It's fun to let other people feel those, too, since I know she can't stop them. :) Last night when I was sleeping she had them SO HARD that it was jolting my whole body. I was dreaming while this was happening, and I was telling someone in my dream that Audra was hiccuping and having them feel my stomach. Then I woke up and realized it was happening for real. It was kind of funny. She got them again later in the morning and again after we ate lunch. 3 times a day isn't uncommon for the hiccups; for us anyway.
Belly-button: An innie that is sticking out. You'll get to see it when the maternity pics are up.
Exercise: 4 times this past week. Woot woot! Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday. So easy & so quick, but it's something.
What I'm loving: The countdown! I've always been told + or - 2 weeks from the due date... so realistically, she could come in only 2 weeks! I can't believe how fast it's going by!
What I'm NOT loving: Not having a nursery. I had another little pity party moment there earlier in the month because so many of my friends are posting pics of their cute nurseries as they prepare for their babies. And they're due AFTER me. I've got a guest room with a bunch of baby stuff not at all in its place (except for the clothes). The crib isn't set up (and won't be until after we move), we've got no bedding and no decorations for the walls. I know all of this will fall into place VERY quickly after we get to Virginia... I just wish I could do it now. I'm ready to nest her room into perfection but I can't. My mom keeps telling me to keep my head up, that she'll help me get it all settled once we get to Virginia, and I fully believe her. So for now, I just stare at everything while I blow dry my hair in the mornings. I can't wait for her to have her own space.
What I miss: My husband, of course. Being able to bend over. Rolling over without using my hands and feet to propel me. Breathing like normal. Running errands without feeling like I ran a marathon (not that I ever have, but I can imagine).
That's all, and according to Nic, it's past my bedtime. Haha. Goodnight!
Friday
After school, I went to get a pedicure since we were having pictures taken Saturday morning (the fact that my toes didn't even show b/c I was wearing heels is beside the point). Everything about this month-- the weather, the fact that there are 3 weeks left of school, the fact that the pool is open-- is screaming SUMMER! I opted for a bright pink with teal polka dots. For now, my summer is living on my toes. :)
THE HUSBAND: As if this even needs an explanation... every time I see his sweet smiley face and feel his arms around me, my heart melts and all is right in the world. He gave me my first Mother's Day present!!! Since he won't be here next weekend, he made sure it happened early. It consisted of a really precious card and then a Willow People figurine of a couple with their new baby. The title of it is Our Gift. My mom had gotten us one with a man and his pregnant wife, so this that he got me for Mother's Day was PERFECT! I know our Audra isn't quite here yet, but it's not too much longer! I cried happy tears and we sat in love until we were too hungry to sit any longer. :-D We ate at Cancun then watched TV in bed while I fell asleep (we were both pretty tired as he had just worked a night shift and... well... I'm about 9 months pregnant).
I felt like a giddy little school girl with my husband's presence near me for the rest of the weekend.
The same lady that's taking Audra's newborn pics (Lynette Reeves with Only Imagine Photography) also took our maternity pictures. It was great to meet her, and I cannot WAIT to see what she did! We took them in two locations: 1) at the Veteran's Memorial where my dad swore Nic in as an AF officer, and then 2) at a local park where there are lots of trees and a pretty playa lake with a fountain. I'm thinking they'll look pretty sweet!
The rest of Saturday was spent doing CrossFit, finally eating Chipotle again (for some reason the thought of it made me nauseous for months), having dinner with his parents and taking home the baby clothes his mom washed. (She's pretty awesome, btw.)
Sunday
Sunday was our day of relaxation. We slept WAY in, watched a podcast from church, lounged some more then did a bit of shopping. I was able to get some foam paper to use as separators for Audra's clothes, a maternity swimsuit, and Nic got some classic children's stories he'd seen at Barnes & Noble (we got The Secret Garden and A Little Princess). I'm in love with the fact that he wants to read to her SO BADLY. I simply cannot wait to witness this! Almost too much cuteness for one heart to handle.
Nic helped me fine sort the baby clothes (his mom had pretty much already done this) and we got the separators in their spots. Looks good, don't you think?
After that, the only bad things about this weekend happened... and within minutes of each other: Nic left, then the garage door broke. Boo and boo again. I said my goodbyes and then shut the garage as I went inside and heard a huge loud noise as soon as I was in the house. I looked and saw that one of the springs had snapped. Well, crap. We knew it needed to be looked at b/c the springs were loose and it was making weird noises, and finally the thing fell apart. So it's out of commission for a while... hopefully our landlord will have it looked at in the near future.
And before I leave, here's the update:
How far along: 36 weeks tomorrow! 4 weeks till our due date!!!
How big is baby: Weighs about 5 lbs. now! And holy moly can I tell! ;)
Maternity clothes: Just bought a maternity swimsuit today. I don't care if those cute skinny college girls stare at my huge belly... it's HOT outside and I WANT TO SWIM! :) And plus my friend Kristine goes and she's pretty pregnant too, so it'll just be a little preggo party out there for us.
Sleep: Not good. I did make a new arrangement in which I sleep inclined and also with a pillow between my knees. This helps keep my hips from falling asleep, but it's a hassle to turn over since you have to move the pillow, move your belly, etc. I don't think I go more than 1 sleep cycle (about 1.5 hrs) without waking up. Yuck.
Movement: She's our little mover! I love it! Actually, yesterday was kind of a milestone in her movement: she actually hurt me! Her head is down and her feet are up, slanted to my right. She stretched and kicked my right rib right in the bone. I've heard of this happening, but her strength and sneakiness was startling. And we still have a whole month left.
When she's fully stretched out, which she does every now and then, I feel like her head is down past my hip bones and her feet are all the way up by my ribs. It amazes me how BIG she is! She's been pressing out more lately and I can actually feel her little feet if I put my hand under my ribs. If she curls her legs up extra, I can tell where they are. Sometimes when she stretches, her head (or hand) goes right into my bladder area and it's the most sudden insane urge to use the bathroom I've ever experienced to this point. Usually she'll stay that stretched out for only a few seconds, then she'll move back to where she was and the feeling will go away. I guess it's getting pretty cramped in there!
She gets the hiccups multiple times a day. It's fun for me to feel her rhythmic movements. It's fun to let other people feel those, too, since I know she can't stop them. :) Last night when I was sleeping she had them SO HARD that it was jolting my whole body. I was dreaming while this was happening, and I was telling someone in my dream that Audra was hiccuping and having them feel my stomach. Then I woke up and realized it was happening for real. It was kind of funny. She got them again later in the morning and again after we ate lunch. 3 times a day isn't uncommon for the hiccups; for us anyway.
Belly-button: An innie that is sticking out. You'll get to see it when the maternity pics are up.
Exercise: 4 times this past week. Woot woot! Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday. So easy & so quick, but it's something.
What I'm loving: The countdown! I've always been told + or - 2 weeks from the due date... so realistically, she could come in only 2 weeks! I can't believe how fast it's going by!
What I'm NOT loving: Not having a nursery. I had another little pity party moment there earlier in the month because so many of my friends are posting pics of their cute nurseries as they prepare for their babies. And they're due AFTER me. I've got a guest room with a bunch of baby stuff not at all in its place (except for the clothes). The crib isn't set up (and won't be until after we move), we've got no bedding and no decorations for the walls. I know all of this will fall into place VERY quickly after we get to Virginia... I just wish I could do it now. I'm ready to nest her room into perfection but I can't. My mom keeps telling me to keep my head up, that she'll help me get it all settled once we get to Virginia, and I fully believe her. So for now, I just stare at everything while I blow dry my hair in the mornings. I can't wait for her to have her own space.
What I miss: My husband, of course. Being able to bend over. Rolling over without using my hands and feet to propel me. Breathing like normal. Running errands without feeling like I ran a marathon (not that I ever have, but I can imagine).
That's all, and according to Nic, it's past my bedtime. Haha. Goodnight!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Off we go into the wild blue yonder...
Well, I've alluded to this post many times, but was unable to really spill until now. I did say something way back during the summer, before Nic graduated nursing school, but since he got hired at the Heart Hospital we've kept things pretty mum.
He had done his clinicals at one hospital here in town, and initially interviewed to work there- as they'd encouraged- as graduation approached. The outcome of the interview was that they absolutely LOVED him... but he wasn't in the best interest of the hospital since he'd told them about leaving for the Air Force. They openly said that the job would have been his if they didn't know he was going to leave. He interviewed at a second hospital here in town, and literally the exact same conversation took place. I guess he was hoping that they'd still take a chance on him and would be happy for his loyalty to our country by rewarding him with the job. But no such luck. They said they loved him, but wouldn't risk taking on someone who would be leaving within the year. They advised him to not tell those with whom he next applied. So that's what he did. The honest guy I married had a real moral issue with this, not to mention was dying inside from a) keeping a secret, b) not being able to share his excitement about that secret and c) being afraid that somone would find out and he'd have to come clean before he was ready. Needless to say, we aren't the secret-keeping type. But alas, his departure date is approaching and he had the conversation and put in his two weeks. They weren't exactly thrilled, but in the end they wished him the best and things are going smoothly. He has only one more week left there and then he's all mine for about 3 weeks until he leaves.
People have asked if I'm getting sad and bummed that he'll be gone, and the answer is OF COURSE! He's my husband and I love every second I spend with him and I actually MISS HIM when he's gone! BUT I also know that he's going to be right in his element and I think he'll really love what he's getting himself in to. He'll have cell phone and internet access and I'm sure we'll talk daily or at least every other day, so it won't be the end of the world. AND it'll be less than a month before I see him again, and then we can see each other a bit more regularly.
Each time I talk about him leaving, I get the standard, "Where is he going again?" and "How long will he be gone?" In general, people are easily confused by our timeline (and I would be too) so I'll tell you as much as I know. He hasn't officially gotten his orders yet (which is why he waited so long to put in his two weeks) so there' still a teensy chance this timeline could change, but I'll update you below on as much as I know. Since the arrival of Little Miss Audra is clearly intermixed in there, I'll add that too, because most people eventually get to the question, "So what does that mean for you and the baby?"
May 2011:
Nic is 1 out of 30ish to be accepted into the United States Air Force Nurse Corps that year. He gets a heads up of this probable timeline in advance.
October 2011:
We find out WE'RE PREGNANT! His first concern is leaving me during this exciting and predictably difficult time.
December 2011:
My dad (a retired Army Colonel) comes to Lubbock and swears Nic in as a military officer. This makes Nic an officer on 'reserve' status since he hasn't officially started his training and full-time employment. This ceremony took place at the World War II Memorial, next to Nic's grandpa's brick and was quite a special day.
End of February 2012:
Nic leaves for Commissioned Officer Training (COT) in Montgomery, AL. This is a one month deal where he learns the ins and outs of being a military officer. He can't leave the base nor can he have visitors (until graduation). But like I mentioned before, he'll have phone and internet access, when he has time (which will be minimal).
End of March 2012:
Nic graduates as a Commissioned Air Force Officer. This is the beginning of a long and adventurous road! His parents, my parents and myself will be joining to celebrate the event and also to see how cute he looks in those uniforms. ;)
Beginning of April 2012:
He'll have about one week at home, and then Nic will leave to San Antonio for the Air Force Nurse Transition Program (NTP). This is where he'll learn what it means to be a nurse in the Air Force. He's already received his degree in nursing (an obvious pre-requisite) and this is his step into Air Force nursing. This will be more like his clinicals in that he'll follow an Air Force Nurse and will be able to come and go from the base as he pleases (& have visitors as often as he wants). This will allow us to see each other while he's there. San Antonio is about 8 hours from home.
June 2012:
Audra is due to come around the 4th! Nic's NTP doesn't officially get over until the 21st. This is the part that initially had us worried. He's done some research and is comforted by the information he's found: he'll be able to come home for the birth and will possibly be allowed to stay home and not return to the program without consequence. Staying home depends on whether his commanders feel that he's excelled enough and learned what he needs to know, and if it's near enough to the end of the program. This month holds the major question mark. We'll just have to put it in God's hands and see how it goes!
July 2012:
They give him about a month from the end date of his NTP to his official start date at Langley. Yup, that's the Langley you may have heard of in movies. It's on the east coast in Hampton, Virginia, about 30 minutes north of Virginia Beach. Needless to say, we're quite pumped about being on the ocean and away from all of this dry DUST! What we're nervous about: having only about a month and a half (or so) between giving birth, recovering, showing her off to everyone, getting our house packed up, and then moving 27 hours across the country to a new home. OH and somewhere in there, finding a place to live. Just thinking about it gets my heart racing. WOWZA that is a LOT of things to do with not a lot of time! AND what we'll REALLY be wanting to do is just stay home and be a family! That will definitely happen, but maybe not for as long as we'd like. Duty calls!
August 2012:
Nic will now be working daily as a full-time Air Force Nurse, and I"ll be staying home (at least for a bit) with the baby. We'll be in our new home on the east coast, and *hopefully* things will be coming together quite nicely.
And there you have it! Now I say all of that like it's set in stone and that's just the way it'll be. But I know as well as anyone that sometimes God has a plan that's different (and ultimately better!) from our own. I'm just saying that as of now, that's what we're predicting to happen if all goes according to plan. You'll definitely be updated as time goes on!
Now that he's put in his two weeks, we can talk a lot more about the Air Force and how excited we are to be starting a new adventure in our lives. Well... technically, a couple of new adventures will be starting at about the same time! He's quite pumped about this, so if you're reading and have questions or want to chat with him about it, just shoot him a message & he'd be happy to talk with you. :-)
As always, I hope this update finds you and yours happy and well!
~*Stefanie*~
He had done his clinicals at one hospital here in town, and initially interviewed to work there- as they'd encouraged- as graduation approached. The outcome of the interview was that they absolutely LOVED him... but he wasn't in the best interest of the hospital since he'd told them about leaving for the Air Force. They openly said that the job would have been his if they didn't know he was going to leave. He interviewed at a second hospital here in town, and literally the exact same conversation took place. I guess he was hoping that they'd still take a chance on him and would be happy for his loyalty to our country by rewarding him with the job. But no such luck. They said they loved him, but wouldn't risk taking on someone who would be leaving within the year. They advised him to not tell those with whom he next applied. So that's what he did. The honest guy I married had a real moral issue with this, not to mention was dying inside from a) keeping a secret, b) not being able to share his excitement about that secret and c) being afraid that somone would find out and he'd have to come clean before he was ready. Needless to say, we aren't the secret-keeping type. But alas, his departure date is approaching and he had the conversation and put in his two weeks. They weren't exactly thrilled, but in the end they wished him the best and things are going smoothly. He has only one more week left there and then he's all mine for about 3 weeks until he leaves.
People have asked if I'm getting sad and bummed that he'll be gone, and the answer is OF COURSE! He's my husband and I love every second I spend with him and I actually MISS HIM when he's gone! BUT I also know that he's going to be right in his element and I think he'll really love what he's getting himself in to. He'll have cell phone and internet access and I'm sure we'll talk daily or at least every other day, so it won't be the end of the world. AND it'll be less than a month before I see him again, and then we can see each other a bit more regularly.
Each time I talk about him leaving, I get the standard, "Where is he going again?" and "How long will he be gone?" In general, people are easily confused by our timeline (and I would be too) so I'll tell you as much as I know. He hasn't officially gotten his orders yet (which is why he waited so long to put in his two weeks) so there' still a teensy chance this timeline could change, but I'll update you below on as much as I know. Since the arrival of Little Miss Audra is clearly intermixed in there, I'll add that too, because most people eventually get to the question, "So what does that mean for you and the baby?"
May 2011:
Nic is 1 out of 30ish to be accepted into the United States Air Force Nurse Corps that year. He gets a heads up of this probable timeline in advance.
c
(Sorry for the blurry pic.)
He notified me of this exciting news by bringing me my own Air Force shirt to school. It was quite an exciting day!
October 2011:
We find out WE'RE PREGNANT! His first concern is leaving me during this exciting and predictably difficult time.
He's not fond of this photo, but I like the classic look on his face, when he starts to think of all the things to come...
This was a still shot taken from the video I had running when I told him the news.
December 2011:
My dad (a retired Army Colonel) comes to Lubbock and swears Nic in as a military officer. This makes Nic an officer on 'reserve' status since he hasn't officially started his training and full-time employment. This ceremony took place at the World War II Memorial, next to Nic's grandpa's brick and was quite a special day.
Making it legal... signing the documents!
[See one of our FB accounts for more pictures.]
End of February 2012:
Nic leaves for Commissioned Officer Training (COT) in Montgomery, AL. This is a one month deal where he learns the ins and outs of being a military officer. He can't leave the base nor can he have visitors (until graduation). But like I mentioned before, he'll have phone and internet access, when he has time (which will be minimal).
End of March 2012:
Nic graduates as a Commissioned Air Force Officer. This is the beginning of a long and adventurous road! His parents, my parents and myself will be joining to celebrate the event and also to see how cute he looks in those uniforms. ;)
Beginning of April 2012:
He'll have about one week at home, and then Nic will leave to San Antonio for the Air Force Nurse Transition Program (NTP). This is where he'll learn what it means to be a nurse in the Air Force. He's already received his degree in nursing (an obvious pre-requisite) and this is his step into Air Force nursing. This will be more like his clinicals in that he'll follow an Air Force Nurse and will be able to come and go from the base as he pleases (& have visitors as often as he wants). This will allow us to see each other while he's there. San Antonio is about 8 hours from home.
June 2012:
Audra is due to come around the 4th! Nic's NTP doesn't officially get over until the 21st. This is the part that initially had us worried. He's done some research and is comforted by the information he's found: he'll be able to come home for the birth and will possibly be allowed to stay home and not return to the program without consequence. Staying home depends on whether his commanders feel that he's excelled enough and learned what he needs to know, and if it's near enough to the end of the program. This month holds the major question mark. We'll just have to put it in God's hands and see how it goes!
July 2012:
They give him about a month from the end date of his NTP to his official start date at Langley. Yup, that's the Langley you may have heard of in movies. It's on the east coast in Hampton, Virginia, about 30 minutes north of Virginia Beach. Needless to say, we're quite pumped about being on the ocean and away from all of this dry DUST! What we're nervous about: having only about a month and a half (or so) between giving birth, recovering, showing her off to everyone, getting our house packed up, and then moving 27 hours across the country to a new home. OH and somewhere in there, finding a place to live. Just thinking about it gets my heart racing. WOWZA that is a LOT of things to do with not a lot of time! AND what we'll REALLY be wanting to do is just stay home and be a family! That will definitely happen, but maybe not for as long as we'd like. Duty calls!
August 2012:
Nic will now be working daily as a full-time Air Force Nurse, and I"ll be staying home (at least for a bit) with the baby. We'll be in our new home on the east coast, and *hopefully* things will be coming together quite nicely.
And there you have it! Now I say all of that like it's set in stone and that's just the way it'll be. But I know as well as anyone that sometimes God has a plan that's different (and ultimately better!) from our own. I'm just saying that as of now, that's what we're predicting to happen if all goes according to plan. You'll definitely be updated as time goes on!
Now that he's put in his two weeks, we can talk a lot more about the Air Force and how excited we are to be starting a new adventure in our lives. Well... technically, a couple of new adventures will be starting at about the same time! He's quite pumped about this, so if you're reading and have questions or want to chat with him about it, just shoot him a message & he'd be happy to talk with you. :-)
As always, I hope this update finds you and yours happy and well!
~*Stefanie*~
Friday, January 27, 2012
The Gender Reveal (& other fun info)! [21 weeks]
To jump straight to Gender Reveal Party details, scroll stright through the 21 week update. :-)
How far along: 21 weeks / 1st week of the 6th month
How big is baby: 10.5(ish) inches long (length of a full-sized carrot)
Maternity clothes: I bought some shirts at a big Old Navy sale, and was also given a large box of maternity clothes from my friend/coworker Charlotte. I've been wearing some of those, but I have *yet* to get the much-needed maternity pants. So the belly band and rubber-bands have been getting quite a bit of use (and also bottoms with elastic).
Sleep: I've been sleeping through the night without getting up, which is AWESOME in itself! (Though Nic tells me I toss and turn so much that he often thinks I'm awake.) BUT I've also been having some pregnancy dreams. I was actually quite a vivid dreamer pre-pregnancy (we're talking 2-3 per night that I could still remember in the morning), so dreaming in itself isn't all that strange. What IS strange, though, is dreaming that I'm taking tumbling classes while pregnant and feeling scared that I'm going to fall on my stomach. It's kind of fun to be thinking about little baby in my dreams. :)
Gender: This is the exciting part! We had our Gender Reveal Party last week Monday (see end of post for party details), and it was AWESOME! Through the party, everyone was able to find out that IT'S A GIRL!!! Hurray, no more keeping secrets! And her name is...
AUDRA KAYTE WILLIAMS!
How we picked the name: Audra: Nic and I both really like the name Audra. It's been on our list since we first started thinking of having kids and talking about names. Truth be told, though, I just couldn't decide. I knew I liked Audra, but was it the one? What about Kinley? And Danika? And Alyson (Ally)? How do you decide on a name to last a LIFETIME? Then, after we'd been talking about names for a while, the talk in the kitchen happened. Nic and I were both in there, just standing (I think waiting on the microwave) and he did something that confirmed her name for me. Out of excitement, I hugged him and said something like, "Babe, I'm so excited to be a little family with you!" And he said, "Yea, just you, me, and (points to my belly) Audra." That was the first time he called our baby by name with such conviction and intent... not as a suggestion, but as a statement. My heart melted inside me. Yes, that was it, no more wondering. Her name is Audra.
It's fun to think of baby Audra (which is what we call her), toddler Audra, elementary-aged Audra, middle and high school aged Audra... college-aged Audra (Lord help us), adult Audra, Mom Audra, and old lady Audra... it's a name that we feel can withstand centuries. We think it will fit her perfectly. Right now as I type these words, I'm wondering how many times in my life I'll type the name Audra. It doesn't flow freely from my fingertips YET but I know it will eventually. :)
Kayte: My mom's middle name is Kay, which she also gave to me. I always knew I wanted to keep the 'Kay' tradition but I also wanted to put a spin on it and make it my own. I thought of a lot of different options: Kaycey (after my brother's middle name Casey), Kaylee, Kayla, etc. But the one I REALLY liked best was KAYTE. Something about it is so feminine and cute, and now elegant (thanks to Kate Middleton); I just LOVE that name! In fact, I thought of Kate for a first name, but decided it would fit more perfectly as a middle name with Audra to carry on the tradition. And so it is. :)
Movement: About 3 days after my last post, I was laying on my stomach on our bed, playing on the computer. I felt a little rumble, which demanded my attention. At first I thought it might be gas (let's be real, it happens). But then, I felt it again. Each time, it was for only a few seconds, but I knew it was different from what I'd ever felt before. The next day I felt it again, but only once. For about half a week there, I was feeling it only once a day for just a few seconds. Then toward the end of that week I would feel it twice or three times. Now this week, I feel her multiple times throughout the day, but each time it's only fore a few seconds. Almost like she's just shifting position to get comfortable and that's it. I wish she would keep moving! I know as she continues to get stronger I'll feel her more often and for longer periods of time. It's the coolest thing for me! Before I was pregnant, I'd always ask my pregnant friends what it felt like. Some have described it "like a floppy fish" and some say "like a butterfly fluttering its wings." For me, I guess the closest one would be the floppy fish. Not like a little goldfish, that's too small. More like a long fish you'd catch in a lake. It just moves around so you can feel it in your whole stomach (well, uterus). I know that's kind of weird to think about (because Audra will DEFINITELY be cuter than a fish) (yet will possibly come out equally slimy), but it's the best I can do.
Belly-button: Still an innie. Is it weird to say I kind of like the look of it when it's stretched tight over my stomach? Now if only I can make it look that tight AFTER being pregnant...
Exercise: My goal of 3-4 times in one week was not met. But 2 times in one week was! Better that than nothing. :) Yesterday when we got to CrossFit, I put on my heart rate monitor and went to warm up. I was surprised to see that my heart rate was already 155 before even beginning! I tell you, I guess growing a baby and giving it blood and oxygen and nutrients and HOUSING it really does require a lot of work from your body, and particularly your heart. It didn't make me not work out or anything, it's just shocking for me to see; I'm not used to it. It WOULD explain the being more out of breath lately and how it's generally harder to breathe even when I'm just sitting in a booth at Cattle Barron eating my salad and NOT working out. The CrossFit Mom workouts that were TOO easy in the beginning are just perfect right now. I can complete the Advanced workouts and get a small sweat going, when before I felt like "What was the point in even coming? This was too easy."
What I'm loving: LIFE pretty much! I love: 1) knowing the gender and calling her AUDRA!, 2) that we found a doula I think I'll love, 3) Nic being happy and excited for Officer Training (see next post), 4) the kids, particularly my "hardest" class being such a joy to teach lately, 5) feeling her move, 6) the fact that Nic put in his two weeks and they were actually happy for him and his future (HUGE relief for him), 7) all the travel plans we've made (also mentioned in next post), 8) registering for baby stuff!, 9) our sweet families and friends that are so eager to be there for us and help, what a blessing!, and 10) being HEALTHY right now! I've got so much to be thankful for, and I really am just one happy girl right now.
What I'm NOT loving: 1) the fact that breathing is getting harder, 2) people I don't know putting their hands on my belly... not cool..., 3) the lack of exercise happening despite the great desire within me, 4) that Nic is leaving exactly one month from today (see next post), 5) the HOURS of grading ahead of me this weekend, 6) Nic still working nights (but only for two more weeks!), 7) feeling hungry all the time even though I KNOW I just ate and can't possibly need more food, 8) how much all this cute baby stuff costs, 9) the lack of motivation to do house work, 10) having 3 months and 3 weeks to meet AUDRA.
What I miss: My husband! Our schedules were so opposite last week: I had SMART board training right after school (which is when we usually have dinner together before he goes into work), then he had a staff meeting after he got off at 7 AM (preventing the 30 minutes we have together before I go to work). It was about a 48 hour period that I didn't get to see him, yet he was in the house and one point and so was I. It pretty much SUCKED. I know I'll (obviously) go much longer without seeing him after he leaves for Officer Training, but that'll be different: at least I'll know he's out of town. It was no fun having him so close but yet not here. :( Thankfully he doesn't work too many more days until he's finished at the hospital here. It will be nice to go to bed at night with him a few more times before he leaves.
The Gender Reveal Party!
Hosted by: Erin Vaubel (whom Nic met in nursing school) and also Lindsey Harkey (also a friend from Nic's nursing school) helped a lot.
Party Details:
Cast Your Vote: I got a cheap chalkboard from Hobby Lobby and partiers put a mark for their prediction. More people thought boy!
"What do the Old Wives Tales say?" Game: I found this idea on another blog, and it worked out perfectly! See the link for the Old Wives Tales we used. (FYI- the Old Wives said it would be a BOY!)
Guess the arrival date: This was one of Erin (the host)'s ideas. She had a small chalkboard and people wrote when they thought the baby would arrive, judging from our due date of June 4. These pics are of Erin and Lindsey, since they helped so much & it was Erin's idea.
These are also great photos to see one other thing we asked of guests: wear blue or pink to cast your prediction.
Food: I had a "rainbow" cupcake theme in mind, and I think it turned out pretty cute! To drink, we had the classic sherbert-ginger ale punch (but we also added ice cream to make it creamier). We also had a counter of my cravings... just because I thought it was a cute idea and I didn't want all of the sweets to give people a sugar coma.
The Big Reveal: Erin and Lindsey did a REALLY awesome job making the cake. A few days before the party, Erin and I met to party plan- at which time I told her the gender. She told Lindsey to get some cake assistance, but the two of them and Nic and I (well, and our doctor and ultrasound tech) were the only ones that knew! After we played the Old Wives Tale game, everyone gathered around the cake/cupcake table (we took off the punch bowl) and Nic and I cut right in! The grandparents and Nic's sister's reaction was priceless. SO FUN to have everyone find out at once!
So there you have it! All the fun details of how we told everyone we're having a sweet little GIRL!
Sorry this post was so long, but I hope it found you well!
How far along: 21 weeks / 1st week of the 6th month
How big is baby: 10.5(ish) inches long (length of a full-sized carrot)
Maternity clothes: I bought some shirts at a big Old Navy sale, and was also given a large box of maternity clothes from my friend/coworker Charlotte. I've been wearing some of those, but I have *yet* to get the much-needed maternity pants. So the belly band and rubber-bands have been getting quite a bit of use (and also bottoms with elastic).
Sleep: I've been sleeping through the night without getting up, which is AWESOME in itself! (Though Nic tells me I toss and turn so much that he often thinks I'm awake.) BUT I've also been having some pregnancy dreams. I was actually quite a vivid dreamer pre-pregnancy (we're talking 2-3 per night that I could still remember in the morning), so dreaming in itself isn't all that strange. What IS strange, though, is dreaming that I'm taking tumbling classes while pregnant and feeling scared that I'm going to fall on my stomach. It's kind of fun to be thinking about little baby in my dreams. :)
Gender: This is the exciting part! We had our Gender Reveal Party last week Monday (see end of post for party details), and it was AWESOME! Through the party, everyone was able to find out that IT'S A GIRL!!! Hurray, no more keeping secrets! And her name is...
AUDRA KAYTE WILLIAMS!
How we picked the name: Audra: Nic and I both really like the name Audra. It's been on our list since we first started thinking of having kids and talking about names. Truth be told, though, I just couldn't decide. I knew I liked Audra, but was it the one? What about Kinley? And Danika? And Alyson (Ally)? How do you decide on a name to last a LIFETIME? Then, after we'd been talking about names for a while, the talk in the kitchen happened. Nic and I were both in there, just standing (I think waiting on the microwave) and he did something that confirmed her name for me. Out of excitement, I hugged him and said something like, "Babe, I'm so excited to be a little family with you!" And he said, "Yea, just you, me, and (points to my belly) Audra." That was the first time he called our baby by name with such conviction and intent... not as a suggestion, but as a statement. My heart melted inside me. Yes, that was it, no more wondering. Her name is Audra.
It's fun to think of baby Audra (which is what we call her), toddler Audra, elementary-aged Audra, middle and high school aged Audra... college-aged Audra (Lord help us), adult Audra, Mom Audra, and old lady Audra... it's a name that we feel can withstand centuries. We think it will fit her perfectly. Right now as I type these words, I'm wondering how many times in my life I'll type the name Audra. It doesn't flow freely from my fingertips YET but I know it will eventually. :)
Kayte: My mom's middle name is Kay, which she also gave to me. I always knew I wanted to keep the 'Kay' tradition but I also wanted to put a spin on it and make it my own. I thought of a lot of different options: Kaycey (after my brother's middle name Casey), Kaylee, Kayla, etc. But the one I REALLY liked best was KAYTE. Something about it is so feminine and cute, and now elegant (thanks to Kate Middleton); I just LOVE that name! In fact, I thought of Kate for a first name, but decided it would fit more perfectly as a middle name with Audra to carry on the tradition. And so it is. :)
Movement: About 3 days after my last post, I was laying on my stomach on our bed, playing on the computer. I felt a little rumble, which demanded my attention. At first I thought it might be gas (let's be real, it happens). But then, I felt it again. Each time, it was for only a few seconds, but I knew it was different from what I'd ever felt before. The next day I felt it again, but only once. For about half a week there, I was feeling it only once a day for just a few seconds. Then toward the end of that week I would feel it twice or three times. Now this week, I feel her multiple times throughout the day, but each time it's only fore a few seconds. Almost like she's just shifting position to get comfortable and that's it. I wish she would keep moving! I know as she continues to get stronger I'll feel her more often and for longer periods of time. It's the coolest thing for me! Before I was pregnant, I'd always ask my pregnant friends what it felt like. Some have described it "like a floppy fish" and some say "like a butterfly fluttering its wings." For me, I guess the closest one would be the floppy fish. Not like a little goldfish, that's too small. More like a long fish you'd catch in a lake. It just moves around so you can feel it in your whole stomach (well, uterus). I know that's kind of weird to think about (because Audra will DEFINITELY be cuter than a fish) (yet will possibly come out equally slimy), but it's the best I can do.
Belly-button: Still an innie. Is it weird to say I kind of like the look of it when it's stretched tight over my stomach? Now if only I can make it look that tight AFTER being pregnant...
Exercise: My goal of 3-4 times in one week was not met. But 2 times in one week was! Better that than nothing. :) Yesterday when we got to CrossFit, I put on my heart rate monitor and went to warm up. I was surprised to see that my heart rate was already 155 before even beginning! I tell you, I guess growing a baby and giving it blood and oxygen and nutrients and HOUSING it really does require a lot of work from your body, and particularly your heart. It didn't make me not work out or anything, it's just shocking for me to see; I'm not used to it. It WOULD explain the being more out of breath lately and how it's generally harder to breathe even when I'm just sitting in a booth at Cattle Barron eating my salad and NOT working out. The CrossFit Mom workouts that were TOO easy in the beginning are just perfect right now. I can complete the Advanced workouts and get a small sweat going, when before I felt like "What was the point in even coming? This was too easy."
What I'm loving: LIFE pretty much! I love: 1) knowing the gender and calling her AUDRA!, 2) that we found a doula I think I'll love, 3) Nic being happy and excited for Officer Training (see next post), 4) the kids, particularly my "hardest" class being such a joy to teach lately, 5) feeling her move, 6) the fact that Nic put in his two weeks and they were actually happy for him and his future (HUGE relief for him), 7) all the travel plans we've made (also mentioned in next post), 8) registering for baby stuff!, 9) our sweet families and friends that are so eager to be there for us and help, what a blessing!, and 10) being HEALTHY right now! I've got so much to be thankful for, and I really am just one happy girl right now.
What I'm NOT loving: 1) the fact that breathing is getting harder, 2) people I don't know putting their hands on my belly... not cool..., 3) the lack of exercise happening despite the great desire within me, 4) that Nic is leaving exactly one month from today (see next post), 5) the HOURS of grading ahead of me this weekend, 6) Nic still working nights (but only for two more weeks!), 7) feeling hungry all the time even though I KNOW I just ate and can't possibly need more food, 8) how much all this cute baby stuff costs, 9) the lack of motivation to do house work, 10) having 3 months and 3 weeks to meet AUDRA.
What I miss: My husband! Our schedules were so opposite last week: I had SMART board training right after school (which is when we usually have dinner together before he goes into work), then he had a staff meeting after he got off at 7 AM (preventing the 30 minutes we have together before I go to work). It was about a 48 hour period that I didn't get to see him, yet he was in the house and one point and so was I. It pretty much SUCKED. I know I'll (obviously) go much longer without seeing him after he leaves for Officer Training, but that'll be different: at least I'll know he's out of town. It was no fun having him so close but yet not here. :( Thankfully he doesn't work too many more days until he's finished at the hospital here. It will be nice to go to bed at night with him a few more times before he leaves.
The Gender Reveal Party!
Hosted by: Erin Vaubel (whom Nic met in nursing school) and also Lindsey Harkey (also a friend from Nic's nursing school) helped a lot.
Party Details:
Cast Your Vote: I got a cheap chalkboard from Hobby Lobby and partiers put a mark for their prediction. More people thought boy!
"What do the Old Wives Tales say?" Game: I found this idea on another blog, and it worked out perfectly! See the link for the Old Wives Tales we used. (FYI- the Old Wives said it would be a BOY!)
Guess the arrival date: This was one of Erin (the host)'s ideas. She had a small chalkboard and people wrote when they thought the baby would arrive, judging from our due date of June 4. These pics are of Erin and Lindsey, since they helped so much & it was Erin's idea.
These are also great photos to see one other thing we asked of guests: wear blue or pink to cast your prediction.
Food: I had a "rainbow" cupcake theme in mind, and I think it turned out pretty cute! To drink, we had the classic sherbert-ginger ale punch (but we also added ice cream to make it creamier). We also had a counter of my cravings... just because I thought it was a cute idea and I didn't want all of the sweets to give people a sugar coma.
The Big Reveal: Erin and Lindsey did a REALLY awesome job making the cake. A few days before the party, Erin and I met to party plan- at which time I told her the gender. She told Lindsey to get some cake assistance, but the two of them and Nic and I (well, and our doctor and ultrasound tech) were the only ones that knew! After we played the Old Wives Tale game, everyone gathered around the cake/cupcake table (we took off the punch bowl) and Nic and I cut right in! The grandparents and Nic's sister's reaction was priceless. SO FUN to have everyone find out at once!
The icing completely covered the inside, which reveals the gender...
Excited to tell everyone...
The cake was pink! IT'S A GIRL!
So there you have it! All the fun details of how we told everyone we're having a sweet little GIRL!
Sorry this post was so long, but I hope it found you well!
Sunday, December 18, 2011
...December and There's Reason to Believe... [16 weeks]
Ok, well... that little goal of writing twice a week- yeah, that didn't happen. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if you forgot this thing existed. Not only did I not post twice a week, I didn't even post ONCE a week, or AT ALL for that matter...for four months! So I'm sorry, and I agree- it's been too long! I'll try to get better. :-/ I promise I have a good excuse (and I bet by now you already know what it is)!
THE BIG MOMENT:
About a month and half into the school year, I decided I couldn't take it anymore. I'd read about the symptoms, and they were spot on. After Nic went to work, I took the test and didn't really expect the outcome that it gave (despite the aforementioned symptoms). Instead of 1 line, there were TWO! So you guessed it, WE'RE PREGNANT! Nic and all of our families, of course, are elated. We knew some sources advised on waiting to tell family and co-workers, but, um... we didn't really do that. We told our families the same day we found out (because I'm really REALLY bad at keeping secrets), and I told my best work friends within that first week. My reasoning is that I WANT my support system there for us, should something go wrong. I don't really want to keep something like this (good or bad as it may go) to myself. So anyway, the day we found out was one of the most exciting days of our lives (I think it's safe to speak for him on this one), and even now- a few months later- it's all pretty surreal.
THE DISBELIEF:
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A BABY. Isn't that something that other people do and I only dream about? It's a similar feeling to the one I had when I realized we were really getting married. Marriage... that's for other people. It seemed so unattainable for me, and then I met Nic and it happened and it was real and unbelievably amazing! And now, a baby! It's still hard to believe that WE will have OUR OWN BABY! Something that started from nothing, is going to grow into a huge baby, that will one day be on the inside of me- and the next day, will be on the outside of me. How strange.
THE BABY & THE JOB:
The due date is June 4. Yes, to those of you who are teachers (or think along the school timeline) that means I have the lovely pleasure of being pregnant almost the whole.entire.school.year. JOY! (Could you sense the sarcasm?) There aren't many things I can think of that are more miserable than having 28 8th graders, at their peak of adolescence (and corresponding attitudes), trying to TEACH them things they DON'T REALLY want to learn, while experiencing all of the pain that pregnancy brings. I've already gone through the first trimester (which meant I felt like puking on them at times) (too bad I couldn't, b/c I bet that would teach them to not mess with me), but I anticipate the 2nd being much better.
THE 1ST TRIMESTER:
I would be lying if I said my 1st trimester was completely miserable. I feel very fortunate in my pregnancy thus far. I haven't thrown up once (although the all-day nausea wasn't really that fun), and although I fall asleep MUCH earlier now, I don't feel like the baby has kept me from doing the things I most want or need to do. Score on that end! I look forward to my energy level picking up even more in the upcoming weeks. (And for those of you who may be wondering, yes I'm still doing CrossFit, but have begun doing CrossFit Mom workouts. Google it. :-) )
THE CONFUSING MATH:
Anyone who knows much about having a baby knows that the math is quite confusing. We've always been told it takes 9 months for a baby to come, right? Well, we found out we were pregnant at around 6 weeks, and now we're at week 17 (tomorrow). And we all know that 4 weeks x 9 months should equal 36 weeks (which would make the due date at the beginning of May) but they actually put the due date at 40 weeks (beginning of June). So, in my opinion, all of the talk about 9 months just makes things confusing to people. The kids ask me on nearly a daily basis how far along I am and when the baby's coming. It's confusing for them to hear that I'm starting on my 5th month this week, then they count on their fingers and and the end date comes out all wrong. Yea, I'm with you there, kids. Sometimes math is hard.
OK, enough baby talk. Let's talk about other things!
THANKSGIVING:
We had "Thanksmas" with my family in Missouri. It was SO great to see all of them! It was my parents year to host the BIG family, so that was just some icing on the cake. Our big Christmas gift this year was an AWESOME camera which we love. We spent quality family time dancing with the X-Box Kinect, putt-putt golfing, and of course- eating! :)
POST-GRADUATION:
Given the length of this post already, Christmas posts will have to wait until next time. (And I promise the next will be more recent than the last!)
I hope this finds you all happy and well. Feel free to comment so I know you're actually reading! :) Take care!
~*Stefanie*~
THE BIG MOMENT:
About a month and half into the school year, I decided I couldn't take it anymore. I'd read about the symptoms, and they were spot on. After Nic went to work, I took the test and didn't really expect the outcome that it gave (despite the aforementioned symptoms). Instead of 1 line, there were TWO! So you guessed it, WE'RE PREGNANT! Nic and all of our families, of course, are elated. We knew some sources advised on waiting to tell family and co-workers, but, um... we didn't really do that. We told our families the same day we found out (because I'm really REALLY bad at keeping secrets), and I told my best work friends within that first week. My reasoning is that I WANT my support system there for us, should something go wrong. I don't really want to keep something like this (good or bad as it may go) to myself. So anyway, the day we found out was one of the most exciting days of our lives (I think it's safe to speak for him on this one), and even now- a few months later- it's all pretty surreal.
THE DISBELIEF:
WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A BABY. Isn't that something that other people do and I only dream about? It's a similar feeling to the one I had when I realized we were really getting married. Marriage... that's for other people. It seemed so unattainable for me, and then I met Nic and it happened and it was real and unbelievably amazing! And now, a baby! It's still hard to believe that WE will have OUR OWN BABY! Something that started from nothing, is going to grow into a huge baby, that will one day be on the inside of me- and the next day, will be on the outside of me. How strange.
THE BABY & THE JOB:
The due date is June 4. Yes, to those of you who are teachers (or think along the school timeline) that means I have the lovely pleasure of being pregnant almost the whole.entire.school.year. JOY! (Could you sense the sarcasm?) There aren't many things I can think of that are more miserable than having 28 8th graders, at their peak of adolescence (and corresponding attitudes), trying to TEACH them things they DON'T REALLY want to learn, while experiencing all of the pain that pregnancy brings. I've already gone through the first trimester (which meant I felt like puking on them at times) (too bad I couldn't, b/c I bet that would teach them to not mess with me), but I anticipate the 2nd being much better.
THE 1ST TRIMESTER:
I would be lying if I said my 1st trimester was completely miserable. I feel very fortunate in my pregnancy thus far. I haven't thrown up once (although the all-day nausea wasn't really that fun), and although I fall asleep MUCH earlier now, I don't feel like the baby has kept me from doing the things I most want or need to do. Score on that end! I look forward to my energy level picking up even more in the upcoming weeks. (And for those of you who may be wondering, yes I'm still doing CrossFit, but have begun doing CrossFit Mom workouts. Google it. :-) )
THE CONFUSING MATH:
Anyone who knows much about having a baby knows that the math is quite confusing. We've always been told it takes 9 months for a baby to come, right? Well, we found out we were pregnant at around 6 weeks, and now we're at week 17 (tomorrow). And we all know that 4 weeks x 9 months should equal 36 weeks (which would make the due date at the beginning of May) but they actually put the due date at 40 weeks (beginning of June). So, in my opinion, all of the talk about 9 months just makes things confusing to people. The kids ask me on nearly a daily basis how far along I am and when the baby's coming. It's confusing for them to hear that I'm starting on my 5th month this week, then they count on their fingers and and the end date comes out all wrong. Yea, I'm with you there, kids. Sometimes math is hard.
OK, enough baby talk. Let's talk about other things!
THANKSGIVING:
We had "Thanksmas" with my family in Missouri. It was SO great to see all of them! It was my parents year to host the BIG family, so that was just some icing on the cake. Our big Christmas gift this year was an AWESOME camera which we love. We spent quality family time dancing with the X-Box Kinect, putt-putt golfing, and of course- eating! :)
(Nic & my brother... I wish I had gotten their faces; this was BEYOND hilarious!)
POST-GRADUATION:
- Nic graduated and found a job at a hospital here in town. I knew he would-- he's too great to pass up!
- He got commissioned as an officer into the Air Force just this very weekend. My parents came into town and my dad (a retired Army Colonel) swore him in. It was quite a special time for him (and us).
- Of course, there's more to this Air Force story, but we'll have to wait until the time is right to tell you all about that. :)
Given the length of this post already, Christmas posts will have to wait until next time. (And I promise the next will be more recent than the last!)
I hope this finds you all happy and well. Feel free to comment so I know you're actually reading! :) Take care!
~*Stefanie*~
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Missouri Trip- July 2011
So... maybe my plan of posting a couple of times a week has kinda failed. Miserably. BUT, at least I have a good excuse: I was in Missouri visiting family and friends!
As mentioned in an earlier post, my brother got married! The night before the wedding, the wedding party all went cosmic bowling. As usual, my game started out with some beginner's luck, which made me really happy and giddy inside, and ended with some no-longer-a-beginner-and-you-suck-at-bowling scores, which made me sad. But considering I've bowled less times than I have fingers, I'd say I did alright! More than anything, I enjoyed playing on the same team as my brother, and getting to know his Best Man, Travis (Jessie's brother-in-law).
After Cosmic Bowling, I stayed the night with the girls at Jessie's house. It was nice to be around them and get to know them, even if it was just a little bit. They're all really sweet girls. It's times like those that make me wish I'd walked away from college with better girl friends. I'm not sure how many times I've wished I hadn't had my head so up in the clouds and around a boy, and wished I would have spent more time with good GENUINE girls. I almost get teary-eyed thinking about what great friends people can be to each other. I love that they have such good friends to share their special day with.
The next day, I went with the girls to get their hair done. Isn't little Kylie SOOOOO adorable? Possibly one of the most hilarious kids I've met, as well. (At the reception this girl was THE Dancing Queen. I mean this girl can CUT.A.RUG.)
The reception decorations were also, of course, AMAZING. The night was truly magical, and most importantly- I think the bride and groom had a BLAST. I'll post some of the professional pictures once Bri & Jessie get them up, but until then I'll have to make due with just a few. (I somehow managed to be too engaged in what's going on to remember to take pictures, so these were taken by Katie Shea, one of the bridesmaids.)
They honeymooned in JAMAICA and just got back yesterday. Excited to hear about their adventures!
Monday, Nic and I headed to Columbia to get the remote start to my car replaced. I can't say enough nice things about Sound Performance. They upheld their warranty with ZERO questions or issues. It's really nice and refreshing when businesses actually DO good business, you know? We had them drop us off downtown in The District to kill some time while they got it installed. Who knew four hours could go by so fast? We had to stop in at Lollicup, so we could grab a couple of snows (since there's not one in TX). Then we walked around in the scorching heat, delighting in our ice-cold drinks. I swear, I felt- for just a second- like I was Carrie Bradshaw, walking the streets of NYC, browsing the shops, drinking my drink, wearing my cool shades. Yes, I REALLY enjoyed walking around downtown. We ate lunch at The Rome, where we used to go about once a week, and will always be a favorite of ours.
After we got the car back, we headed to Les Bourgeios since we had plans to meet up with some Columbia people. Despite the fact that nobody was able to make it to the winery in the end, Nic and I had ourselves a great time. We split a bottle of wine and dreamt about the future, discussing fun things like moving, babies, traveling, and US and OUR LOVE. ;)
Despite the fact that we had a gorgeous view of the Missouri and a cool bottle of wine, we were getting eaten by mosquitoes and the bees seemed to smell the sweetness of our wine. We decided to take the party indoors- to Addison's- where we split the famous Crab Rangoon dip and then the Creamcicle Cheesecake. (No, that's not on the CrossFit diet, and YES the calories were TOTALLY WORTH IT!) It turned out to be one of my most favorite Date Nights that we've ever had.
Thursday I had dinner with my Jeff City girls (who ALL made it!). Afterward, we had dessert at Culver's and then a few came over to watch a scary movie, just like old times. :) It's nice to have friends that you've known since the beginning years of elementary school.
My stay was longer than Nic's (he had to get back from some clinical shifts) because I wanted to be sure to attend the 2nd Annual Run for Hope 5k. The money from this 5k goes to Hailey's Hope and also March of Dimes, both causes that are now more important to me than they used to be.
Rachelle Glavin is my very best friend in the whole wide world (she's wearing the grey shirt & black jacket in the pictures above). I was her Maid of Honor when she got married, and she was my Matron of Honor when I got married. I've known her since elementary school, and we have too many fond memories to count. Even today, despite our busy schedules and lack of talking like we used to, when we're together it's like no time has passed at all. So Rachelle and her baby, Hailey,'s story became more personal than others I've been told. It would take a while to tell the whole story the way it should be told, but PLEASE check out the link to hear her inspiring story. One result of her story is that there is an annual Run for Hope 5k in Jefferson City, to remember Hailey and to remember to have hope. I was honored that I was finally able to be in town to support my dear friend during this time.
SO... that's what's been happening since my last post. Weddings, visiting Columbia, time with friends, time with Rachelle. A lot of busy-ness, a lot of EATING, and a lot of seeing people that I love in Missouri! Now that I'm back, it's time to get back in the swing of eating right, working out, and posting here more often! School starts in just a few weeks, and I'm itching to hit the pool right about now seeing as there are only a few more days to make that happen.
I hope this finds you well, and I hope you leave a comment so I know you read this! Take care!
As mentioned in an earlier post, my brother got married! The night before the wedding, the wedding party all went cosmic bowling. As usual, my game started out with some beginner's luck, which made me really happy and giddy inside, and ended with some no-longer-a-beginner-and-you-suck-at-bowling scores, which made me sad. But considering I've bowled less times than I have fingers, I'd say I did alright! More than anything, I enjoyed playing on the same team as my brother, and getting to know his Best Man, Travis (Jessie's brother-in-law).
After Cosmic Bowling, I stayed the night with the girls at Jessie's house. It was nice to be around them and get to know them, even if it was just a little bit. They're all really sweet girls. It's times like those that make me wish I'd walked away from college with better girl friends. I'm not sure how many times I've wished I hadn't had my head so up in the clouds and around a boy, and wished I would have spent more time with good GENUINE girls. I almost get teary-eyed thinking about what great friends people can be to each other. I love that they have such good friends to share their special day with.
The next day, I went with the girls to get their hair done. Isn't little Kylie SOOOOO adorable? Possibly one of the most hilarious kids I've met, as well. (At the reception this girl was THE Dancing Queen. I mean this girl can CUT.A.RUG.)
(Photo by Katie Shea.)
Saturday, July 23rd, Brian and Jessie tied the knot. The ceremony was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. My favorite part (that I SO wish I had thought of for our wedding!): when they washed each others feet to symbolize servanthood and putting others before themselves. It was really touching. The reception decorations were also, of course, AMAZING. The night was truly magical, and most importantly- I think the bride and groom had a BLAST. I'll post some of the professional pictures once Bri & Jessie get them up, but until then I'll have to make due with just a few. (I somehow managed to be too engaged in what's going on to remember to take pictures, so these were taken by Katie Shea, one of the bridesmaids.)
Monday, Nic and I headed to Columbia to get the remote start to my car replaced. I can't say enough nice things about Sound Performance. They upheld their warranty with ZERO questions or issues. It's really nice and refreshing when businesses actually DO good business, you know? We had them drop us off downtown in The District to kill some time while they got it installed. Who knew four hours could go by so fast? We had to stop in at Lollicup, so we could grab a couple of snows (since there's not one in TX). Then we walked around in the scorching heat, delighting in our ice-cold drinks. I swear, I felt- for just a second- like I was Carrie Bradshaw, walking the streets of NYC, browsing the shops, drinking my drink, wearing my cool shades. Yes, I REALLY enjoyed walking around downtown. We ate lunch at The Rome, where we used to go about once a week, and will always be a favorite of ours.
After we got the car back, we headed to Les Bourgeios since we had plans to meet up with some Columbia people. Despite the fact that nobody was able to make it to the winery in the end, Nic and I had ourselves a great time. We split a bottle of wine and dreamt about the future, discussing fun things like moving, babies, traveling, and US and OUR LOVE. ;)
Thursday I had dinner with my Jeff City girls (who ALL made it!). Afterward, we had dessert at Culver's and then a few came over to watch a scary movie, just like old times. :) It's nice to have friends that you've known since the beginning years of elementary school.
Jenna & Aubrey
Rachelle & I
Jenna, me, Rachelle & Aubrey
The rest of the week was spent with mom and dad, and also I got to see some good friends, Ashley and Jared Jones (wish I had a pic). 
My stay was longer than Nic's (he had to get back from some clinical shifts) because I wanted to be sure to attend the 2nd Annual Run for Hope 5k. The money from this 5k goes to Hailey's Hope and also March of Dimes, both causes that are now more important to me than they used to be.
Rachelle Glavin is my very best friend in the whole wide world (she's wearing the grey shirt & black jacket in the pictures above). I was her Maid of Honor when she got married, and she was my Matron of Honor when I got married. I've known her since elementary school, and we have too many fond memories to count. Even today, despite our busy schedules and lack of talking like we used to, when we're together it's like no time has passed at all. So Rachelle and her baby, Hailey,'s story became more personal than others I've been told. It would take a while to tell the whole story the way it should be told, but PLEASE check out the link to hear her inspiring story. One result of her story is that there is an annual Run for Hope 5k in Jefferson City, to remember Hailey and to remember to have hope. I was honored that I was finally able to be in town to support my dear friend during this time.
SO... that's what's been happening since my last post. Weddings, visiting Columbia, time with friends, time with Rachelle. A lot of busy-ness, a lot of EATING, and a lot of seeing people that I love in Missouri! Now that I'm back, it's time to get back in the swing of eating right, working out, and posting here more often! School starts in just a few weeks, and I'm itching to hit the pool right about now seeing as there are only a few more days to make that happen.
I hope this finds you well, and I hope you leave a comment so I know you read this! Take care!
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Don't make me think too hard about this.
Being a teacher is full of perks. First, there are the occasions when kids actually listen to and (dare I say it) ENJOY their time with you, then there's also that added bonus of you filling their heads with knowledge they didn't have before. There are those times when kids say really funny things that you then get to share with your boring-cubicle working Facebook friends (Male Student: I peed on the stick, so I know it's not mine). And of course, working with people who experience the same student body throughout the day gives you an instant bond; and if they're of like mind and humor, that's even better! Oh yea, and there's that little two and a half month(ish) thing you get called SUMMER. Where you get to STAY HOME. But you STILL GET PAID. (I felt guilty about it at first... but then I quickly got over it.) Of course, like any job, teaching definitely has it's stressful moments (sometimes lasting weeks), but it's not a bad gig if I do say so myself.
Since it's July 16th and all, I haven't really been getting near as many stress headaches as I used to during the school year. It might have something to do with there being a lack of... stress. That's not to say that I've been doing completely NOTHING (only about twice or 3 times a week). I've attended a few trainings, learned some great things that I plan on using in my classroom when school starts again, and even taken some kids to Student Council camp for a week. But all of those things have been pretty fun and enjoyable endeavors. For the most part, summer has been... well, what it used to be: relaxing, pool-allowing and fun-having. It wasn't until recently that I began to get a stress headache, and it came from a very unlikely source.
Ever since the Totaling My Saturn Incident of 2008, I have been in love with my gold Chevy Equinox. And to this day, none of the before-mentioned stress has been the actual Equinox's fault. It's always been comfortable, reliable, and most importantly- cute. (Obviously all very important traits of a vehicle.) ;) So when my lovely vehicle WOULDN'T START (this happened while I was away at StuCo camp), well, some investigating had to be done. So we took it to a trusted local auto shop that Nic has used as long as he's been in Lubbock. They're one of those places that will look at your car for free, and even give you little dinky equipment pieces for free, and will tell you honestly- you COULD get X replaced, but realistically, it'll last you Y more miles, and you'll be fine not getting it done for a while. So we trust them, right?
Let me back up a little before I go on. We had a little financial hiccup with summer not being part of the academic year (affected Nic's student loan), then traveling to a friend's wedding in MO + me being home and spending more $ = us being low in the funds. So we waited until after Pay Day to get the car taken in. Not a big deal, we have two cars. EXCEPT NIC DRIVES A STICK SHIFT. So that was STRESS HEADACHE #1: Learning to drive a stick shift.
There MAY have been one time, shortly after *learning* the stick, when I stopped for a red light at a busy intersection AND COULDN'T GET THE CAR TO GO AGAIN. I did everything Nic taught me: pushed in the clutch, made sure it was in 1st, let the clutch out slowly... but IT JUST KEPT DYING. I kept restarting the car, and when the cars behind me started honking and going around me, well, I got a little panicky. I could feel the sweat on my forehead forming and my heart-rate started to rise. There MAY have been one moment when I, in that state of panic, ACCIDENTALLY TURNED ON THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS AND THE HEADLIGHTS. Yea. It was that bad. It must have been the Grace of God that got me going again; I definitely didn't know what I'd done to start moving again. (The rest of the drive was spent going down side neighborhood streets. It took me over 20 minutes to go what usually took 10. But I got there ALIVE.) Nic was sure to go on some review drives with me after the Scary Incident on 50th until I felt comfortable going out on my own again. I eventually got the hang of it. In fact, I ACTUALLY LIKED IT! I felt COOL driving a stick (even it it was on a Subaru that *kind of* resembles a STATION WAGON). I liked feeling coordinated and having a skill that not everybody has. It took me a while to get there, and yes, gave me a STRESS HEADACHE, but I finally got there. Sigh of relief.
So I learned how to drive a stick (Stress Headache #1), and then we took the car in. We finally got the car back, with some very disturbing news: the remote-start had a huge short in it and practically caught on fire when they tried to get the car to start, which then drained the battery in its effort to find power, so they had to take it all out. Let me re-state: THEY TOOK OUT MY EXPENSIVE REMOTE-START and also REPLACED THE BATTERY. I couldn't decide which I was more sad about: having to pay for a new battery (OK, not THAT big a deal) or the fact that my expensive remote-start was gone (the fact that TX doesn't get cold enough to need it is beside the point!). So we paid the mechanics and left the auto shop, only to discover that also, MY STEREO SYSTEM WOULDN'T WORK and NEITHER WOULD MY KEYLESS ENTRY. Ok, quadruple frown. That's 4 things now that had been affected by this incident! I wouldn't really care all THAT much, except (as I said in my last post) my brother's getting MARRIED, which is going to require a drive to MO. 13 hours in the car with no music?!? Please no, please please no!!! So, in order that I not fall asleep on the long drive... also, so I don't go INSANE, we went to a local car audio business to get the stereo looked at. STRESS HEADACHE #2.
"Well, first off, there'll be a $40 diagnostic fee for what we find." "When they took out the remote start, they must have been in a hurry, because they yanked out some wires needed for your stereo, and possibly wires needed for your module to work as well. You'll definitely need a new stereo (at least $140), and possibly a new module ($120). It'll cost $65 for them to install a new stereo, and $75 more if you want them to hook it up to the steering-wheel. We can discuss the cost of module installation if you actually need one."
OK this is the conversation I'm having. Alone. Me and the audio guys. Nic's at a 13 hour clinical shift at the hospital, and I have no idea what to do. First, the problem is I DON'T GENERALLY LIKE SPENDING LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY WITHOUT MY SPOUSE PRESENT. Second, Nic is able to install stereos... maybe I should just wait, ghetto rig the music for MO, and let him install it? Third, if he installs it, would it work if a new module is needed? Fourth, which stereo would I choose? Fifth, do I really need that extra $50 cable he mentioned? Sixth, I ALREADY PAID THE MONEY FOR A NICER STEREO LAST CHRISTMAS AND NOW I'M HAVING TO BUY ANOTHER ONE?? Also, why is everything SO freaking expensive, and WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME? I ALREADY PAID FOR THESE THINGS AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY AGAIN!!! I kind of felt like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz when the house is spinning around her and nothing is very clear. I would have loved to just plop down on my bed and take a long hard nap and when awoken, everything will have worked itself out, all bright and colorful and beautiful. Alas, there was no bed. And no time for napping. I'm pretty sure that from the moment he told me what I needed & what it'd cost to the time my head started hurting was approximately 0.764 seconds. And one more thing- the front right tire has a nail in it. !!! :(
I tried to call Nic, but he was too busy to answer. Tried to call my parents and explain, and luckily, they were able to give some advice. I think they felt bad that all of this was happening. The remote start was a gift from them for my birthday (granted, I chose where it got installed), and that was the thing that stemmed the problem. Also, they knew that we couldn't help the series of events. They decided to do one of the kindest, most unexpected gestures: they offered to pay for the new stereo and installation. Wait, what? You want to WHAT? But WHY? ARE YOU SURE? No... you don't have to do that. It's really ok. REALLY? But WHY? So after some prodding, they told me to go ahead and get it done. (Haha I had already told the guys that I'd come back on Monday with my husband; they closed up the car & the wirey mess, only to have to open it all up again after my parents' sweet news.) So mom and dad came to the rescue. Nic and I definitely COULD have paid for it, but that's a pretty decent chunk of money to us. Not to say that it's not for my parents, but they make just a *little* more than we do, as they've been working a *little* longer in their lifetimes... plus, they love being sweet to their children. In the end, Vision Audio felt sorry for my depressed, frowny little face and decided to cut me a decent deal on a few aspects of this whole thing. I felt good knowing that mom & dad weren't shelling out an amount that, frankly, was quite ridiculous. ...only an amount that was SLIGHTLY ridiculous.
In the end, I walked away with this beauty:
She looks gorgeous, and sounds AMAZING! THANKS MOM AND DAD!!!! And while I waited, I called my remote-start company and found out that it has a LIFETIME WARRANTY! While in MO, I'll stop by and *hopefully* get it replaced! :)
So, the drive to Briboy's wedding will be a LOT more enjoyable now! I leave the day after the day after tomorrow (i.e. in about 3 days) and couldn't be more PUMPED! The actually wedding is ONLY A WEEK AWAY!
So the moral of the story is, you can even get headaches during the times you most anticipate to be full of relaxation. But even then, if you can stick through it SOMETHING good will likely come of it (learning a new skill or getting something new are a few good things). So how about you- any sources of stress lately disrupting your fun in the sun of summer? Was there light at the end? How'd it go?
Since it's July 16th and all, I haven't really been getting near as many stress headaches as I used to during the school year. It might have something to do with there being a lack of... stress. That's not to say that I've been doing completely NOTHING (only about twice or 3 times a week). I've attended a few trainings, learned some great things that I plan on using in my classroom when school starts again, and even taken some kids to Student Council camp for a week. But all of those things have been pretty fun and enjoyable endeavors. For the most part, summer has been... well, what it used to be: relaxing, pool-allowing and fun-having. It wasn't until recently that I began to get a stress headache, and it came from a very unlikely source.
Ever since the Totaling My Saturn Incident of 2008, I have been in love with my gold Chevy Equinox. And to this day, none of the before-mentioned stress has been the actual Equinox's fault. It's always been comfortable, reliable, and most importantly- cute. (Obviously all very important traits of a vehicle.) ;) So when my lovely vehicle WOULDN'T START (this happened while I was away at StuCo camp), well, some investigating had to be done. So we took it to a trusted local auto shop that Nic has used as long as he's been in Lubbock. They're one of those places that will look at your car for free, and even give you little dinky equipment pieces for free, and will tell you honestly- you COULD get X replaced, but realistically, it'll last you Y more miles, and you'll be fine not getting it done for a while. So we trust them, right?
Let me back up a little before I go on. We had a little financial hiccup with summer not being part of the academic year (affected Nic's student loan), then traveling to a friend's wedding in MO + me being home and spending more $ = us being low in the funds. So we waited until after Pay Day to get the car taken in. Not a big deal, we have two cars. EXCEPT NIC DRIVES A STICK SHIFT. So that was STRESS HEADACHE #1: Learning to drive a stick shift.
There MAY have been one time, shortly after *learning* the stick, when I stopped for a red light at a busy intersection AND COULDN'T GET THE CAR TO GO AGAIN. I did everything Nic taught me: pushed in the clutch, made sure it was in 1st, let the clutch out slowly... but IT JUST KEPT DYING. I kept restarting the car, and when the cars behind me started honking and going around me, well, I got a little panicky. I could feel the sweat on my forehead forming and my heart-rate started to rise. There MAY have been one moment when I, in that state of panic, ACCIDENTALLY TURNED ON THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS AND THE HEADLIGHTS. Yea. It was that bad. It must have been the Grace of God that got me going again; I definitely didn't know what I'd done to start moving again. (The rest of the drive was spent going down side neighborhood streets. It took me over 20 minutes to go what usually took 10. But I got there ALIVE.) Nic was sure to go on some review drives with me after the Scary Incident on 50th until I felt comfortable going out on my own again. I eventually got the hang of it. In fact, I ACTUALLY LIKED IT! I felt COOL driving a stick (even it it was on a Subaru that *kind of* resembles a STATION WAGON). I liked feeling coordinated and having a skill that not everybody has. It took me a while to get there, and yes, gave me a STRESS HEADACHE, but I finally got there. Sigh of relief.
So I learned how to drive a stick (Stress Headache #1), and then we took the car in. We finally got the car back, with some very disturbing news: the remote-start had a huge short in it and practically caught on fire when they tried to get the car to start, which then drained the battery in its effort to find power, so they had to take it all out. Let me re-state: THEY TOOK OUT MY EXPENSIVE REMOTE-START and also REPLACED THE BATTERY. I couldn't decide which I was more sad about: having to pay for a new battery (OK, not THAT big a deal) or the fact that my expensive remote-start was gone (the fact that TX doesn't get cold enough to need it is beside the point!). So we paid the mechanics and left the auto shop, only to discover that also, MY STEREO SYSTEM WOULDN'T WORK and NEITHER WOULD MY KEYLESS ENTRY. Ok, quadruple frown. That's 4 things now that had been affected by this incident! I wouldn't really care all THAT much, except (as I said in my last post) my brother's getting MARRIED, which is going to require a drive to MO. 13 hours in the car with no music?!? Please no, please please no!!! So, in order that I not fall asleep on the long drive... also, so I don't go INSANE, we went to a local car audio business to get the stereo looked at. STRESS HEADACHE #2.
"Well, first off, there'll be a $40 diagnostic fee for what we find." "When they took out the remote start, they must have been in a hurry, because they yanked out some wires needed for your stereo, and possibly wires needed for your module to work as well. You'll definitely need a new stereo (at least $140), and possibly a new module ($120). It'll cost $65 for them to install a new stereo, and $75 more if you want them to hook it up to the steering-wheel. We can discuss the cost of module installation if you actually need one."
OK this is the conversation I'm having. Alone. Me and the audio guys. Nic's at a 13 hour clinical shift at the hospital, and I have no idea what to do. First, the problem is I DON'T GENERALLY LIKE SPENDING LARGE AMOUNTS OF MONEY WITHOUT MY SPOUSE PRESENT. Second, Nic is able to install stereos... maybe I should just wait, ghetto rig the music for MO, and let him install it? Third, if he installs it, would it work if a new module is needed? Fourth, which stereo would I choose? Fifth, do I really need that extra $50 cable he mentioned? Sixth, I ALREADY PAID THE MONEY FOR A NICER STEREO LAST CHRISTMAS AND NOW I'M HAVING TO BUY ANOTHER ONE?? Also, why is everything SO freaking expensive, and WHY IS THIS HAPPENING TO ME? I ALREADY PAID FOR THESE THINGS AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY AGAIN!!! I kind of felt like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz when the house is spinning around her and nothing is very clear. I would have loved to just plop down on my bed and take a long hard nap and when awoken, everything will have worked itself out, all bright and colorful and beautiful. Alas, there was no bed. And no time for napping. I'm pretty sure that from the moment he told me what I needed & what it'd cost to the time my head started hurting was approximately 0.764 seconds. And one more thing- the front right tire has a nail in it. !!! :(
I tried to call Nic, but he was too busy to answer. Tried to call my parents and explain, and luckily, they were able to give some advice. I think they felt bad that all of this was happening. The remote start was a gift from them for my birthday (granted, I chose where it got installed), and that was the thing that stemmed the problem. Also, they knew that we couldn't help the series of events. They decided to do one of the kindest, most unexpected gestures: they offered to pay for the new stereo and installation. Wait, what? You want to WHAT? But WHY? ARE YOU SURE? No... you don't have to do that. It's really ok. REALLY? But WHY? So after some prodding, they told me to go ahead and get it done. (Haha I had already told the guys that I'd come back on Monday with my husband; they closed up the car & the wirey mess, only to have to open it all up again after my parents' sweet news.) So mom and dad came to the rescue. Nic and I definitely COULD have paid for it, but that's a pretty decent chunk of money to us. Not to say that it's not for my parents, but they make just a *little* more than we do, as they've been working a *little* longer in their lifetimes... plus, they love being sweet to their children. In the end, Vision Audio felt sorry for my depressed, frowny little face and decided to cut me a decent deal on a few aspects of this whole thing. I felt good knowing that mom & dad weren't shelling out an amount that, frankly, was quite ridiculous. ...only an amount that was SLIGHTLY ridiculous.
In the end, I walked away with this beauty:
She looks gorgeous, and sounds AMAZING! THANKS MOM AND DAD!!!! And while I waited, I called my remote-start company and found out that it has a LIFETIME WARRANTY! While in MO, I'll stop by and *hopefully* get it replaced! :)
So, the drive to Briboy's wedding will be a LOT more enjoyable now! I leave the day after the day after tomorrow (i.e. in about 3 days) and couldn't be more PUMPED! The actually wedding is ONLY A WEEK AWAY!
So the moral of the story is, you can even get headaches during the times you most anticipate to be full of relaxation. But even then, if you can stick through it SOMETHING good will likely come of it (learning a new skill or getting something new are a few good things). So how about you- any sources of stress lately disrupting your fun in the sun of summer? Was there light at the end? How'd it go?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)