Everything Happens for a Reason

Question of the Day

2010-01-26T06:06:00.003-06:00

I've been pondering... when is it actually time to get a new car? I've always thought that 2 conditions needed to be met in order to get a new car. 1) you worry that the car you have will not get you from point a to point b. 2) you can afford a new car. (The second taking precedence over the first.

I bought my current car brand new in 2001. It runs great, it just has a couple of minor issues.... if you roll the windows down, they don't roll back up, the passenger door handle broke off in my hand yesterday, the little trim pieces inside the car are all slowly making it into the glove department and it has a minor oil leak in the timing belt system.

All of these things are relatively minor and with some adjusting on my part (i.e. not going through drive thrus) are completely manageable. To fix any of these things would cost a pretty down payment on a new car, yet the car still gets me from point a to point b (knock on wood...) and sadly the biggest reason I can't afford it...

So.... in your opinion, when is it really time to buy a new car?

New Beginnings

2010-01-05T08:22:00.003-06:00

I know I'm being silly, hubby and darling daughter both told me so, but I'm going to talk about it anyway.
The company I have worked for the past 14 1/2 years has purchased a new headquarters building to consolidate the 5 offices they currently have in the Dallas area into 1. This is actually a very cost effective decision for them. Beginning yesterday through the end of February everyone is being moved to the new building. Tonight is the night all my stuff gets moved. It really is bittersweet.

I have worked in this building since the year I graduated high school, long before I met my husband, had my children or bought my first house. It is like a second home to me. I keep thinking as I do stuff today, this is the last time I'm going to turn this way to go to work, this is the last time I'm going to badge into this parking garage, this is the last time I'm going to have breakfast in this cafeteria, etc.. I really am going to miss the routine and familiarity of the old building.
On the other hand, tomorrow I begin a new adventure. Learning a new route to drive to work, finding a new parking spot in the garage, learning places to eat and shop around the new building, learning where all of the services (cafeteria, credit union, etc.) are. The building is brand new and I really am excited to be moving there. It will be like moving into a new house!

In other news...
Darling daughter went back to school today after being out for 2 weeks. Long story short, she was not happy about it. On the other hand, little man was raring to go this morning and ready for his day at "school". It's cold around here, way colder than it should be in Texas in January. I might actually have to go buy a coat as the jacket I wear is not cutting it.

That's enough of my rambling for today. Hope everyone has a wonderful day and stay warm!

2010 Already?!

2010-01-03T08:12:00.005-06:00

WELCOME TO 2010 AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! I HOPE ALL YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE THIS YEAR.

WOW! I can't believe it's been over a year since I have actually posted anything. I am going to try and do better this year. That by the way is NOT a New Year's Resolution. I decided a long time ago, that resolutions just aren't working out for me. There are so many things that I NEED to resolve to do every year, and most of them I just don't WANT to do. Other things, if I'm truly living my life the way I should, I shouldn't have to resolve to do it. I should just do it, and I do my best to. So, let's get away from the physiological stuff, it's making my head hurt this early in the morning.

Everyone around here is doing great!

Jon finally got Daddy's Pontiac running and we took it to it's first car show, of course we didn't win a real prize, but Daddy would have been SO proud. Now that it's running we can start working on getting it all one color.

Jon has also gotten REALLY good at his pinstriping. For those of you that don't know what that is, just let me tell you it's not as easy as it looks! You can check out his web page for more details... www.pinstripingbychandler.com

Darling Daughter is as busy as ever. She's still doing cheer leading and just started Girl Scouts. If the boys actually form a basketball team she will start cheering on Saturday's for them pretty soon. Also, it's almost Girl Scout Cookie time, so keep us in mind for all your cookie needs. :-)

Little Man is growing like a weed! He'll be 16 months old this week and is a great kid. He LOVES music, so we got him a drum set for Christmas. I will try to figure out a way to upload that video to my facebook page. He has also mastered: Opening all of the childproofed cabinets in the kitchen (that video is on my facebook page); opening the gate to my craft/computer room, climbing to the middle of the kitchen and living room tables and capturing his Sissy's heart.

I've been so busy with all of their new adventures, I haven't really gotten to work on any of my crafts lately, other than for Baby's Birthday party, but hopefully this year I will find some type to work on the scrapbooks.

So very sad and icky....

2008-12-03T07:45:00.002-06:00

I had to come back to work on November 18th. It was extremely hard to leave little man at that day care. Don't get me wrong... they are nice people and they seem to love him and take good care of him. He doesn't cry when I drop him off and actually giggles at me when I put him in his "School Bed". I think I did really good. I only called twice a day for the first 4 days... and THEN...
Baby boy slept from 9:30 to 5:45 on Saturday night.. Good News right!? WRONG He had his first (of many I'm sure) fever. I took him to the doctor on the 24th and he had an upper respiratory infection. They gave him amoxicillan to take. He seemed to be feeling better by Thanksgiving, but then yesterday he had a bout of diarrhea. ICKY! Poor little fellow would think he was passing gas and would poop himself. Doc said that the antibiotics can do that sometimes and told me to quit giving it to him. He had 2 days of doses left he was suppose to take.... isn't there a reason they tell you to make sure and take all of the medicine? I hope he doesn't get sick again because he didn't get enough medicine.... sucks that giving them medicine to cure one thing makes them miserable in another way... Enough about baby boy.

Baby girl is doing great. She is the biggest helper anyone could ask for and she's always worried about her little brother. She and her daddy have been working on her science fair project. She's also been extremely worried about what we are going to get everyone (specifically daddy and bubba) for Christmas. Christmas? Yikes only 22 more days! We have to go do Santa Clause pictures...

As for me... I'm tired, very very tired. Baby boy likes to go to bed about 9:30 or 10:00 and get up from 2:30 - 4:00. Then I have to get up at 5:30 to start getting ready for work. He'll sleep through the night soon, as long as it's not because he's sick I will be very very happy

I better get back to work. HAVE A GREAT DAY!

1 Month Already :-( (a little TMI)

2008-10-11T09:40:00.005-05:00

I can't believe baby is a month old already! Seems like just yesterday we were headed to the hospital because my side was hurting. He's doing great as far as weight gain and milestones. He's having some trouble pooping, so Doc has us trying some new formulas. We'll see how that works out. He's also still having trouble distinguishing day from night. We have to get that straitened out before I go back to work in November. We also have to figure out where he's going to stay during the day while we're at work. We thought the neighbor was going to watch him, but I've left two messages to confirm and she hasn't called me back. **sigh**

Stats as of 10/10/2008
Weight: 8 lbs 9 oz
Height: 21 1/2 in.

On another note... I was so excited that we were having a boy. Finally someone to watch the football and basketball games with since Hubby and Darling Daughter couldn't care less about either. Unfortunately, Hubby thinks he has someone to help him work on cars and watch Nascar with. He's already trying to teach him how to use a wrench! I better get to work teaching him the sports stuff!

Darling Daughter is having a great time with Cheerleading this year and she's the best Big Sister ever. She loves holding and feeding the baby. She also doesn't mind helping change his diaper..

That's enough for now. Have a great weekend!

How do I thank thee....

2008-09-19T06:14:00.003-05:00

We came home from the hospital on Sunday. Baby did great in the car and Darling Daughter watched him very closely the entire ride. She is a little mother hen and loves holding and feeding him. I haven't let her change a diaper yet. Mainly because he still has the plastibel (sp?) from his circumcision and his umbilical cord hasn't fallen off yet. We went outside Sunday afternoon and there was a huge wooden stork with Baby's Birth statistics stationed in our front yard. It's the coolest thing! I'll post pictures once I get them uploaded. (Thanks Cheri!)

Baby is doing great! He's 9 days old today. He has his 2 week check up the day before his due date. Kind of crazy... He has his days and nights mixed up totally, but we are adjusting.

As for me... Tuesday morning I got up from going to the bathroom and my C-Section Incision started bleeding quite a bit. Baby and I were here by ourselves so I called 911 and the ambulance came to get me. There was a great lady police officer that held baby and gave him a bottle while my Mother in Law made the trip over. I first went to the local emergency room where they got me stabilized and made sure that I had not lost to much blood. They also found me some clothes to wear as I only had on a bra and t-shirt when they loaded me on the gurney. I then had to go to my Ob-Gyn's office where they assured me that the incision coming open is a normal thing. They explained that a lot of fluid sometimes builds up behind it and the incision has to come open in order for the fluid to come out. They said if they were to close it back up I would be at a huge risk for infection so they've ordered bed rest (ugh! again) and DH has to change the dressing on it 2 - 3 times a day. Luckily my MIL had taken off this week to help out and she's been taking care of me, the house and family. She has other obligations today and my Sister is going to come help us. I guess I was just destined for a LONG PAINFUL recovery!

Next week I have to go back to the Doctor on Tuesday for them to make sure the incision is healing and Baby has his appointment on Thursday.

So truly... How do I thank all of the wonderful people in my life that have helped so much through my pregnancy, birth, and now postpartum recovery. I'd name everyone, but then I might miss someone and then I'd feel really terrible...

I hope everyone is having a great day and enjoying this BEAUTIFUL weather!!

sister

2008-09-13T10:57:00.002-05:00

Super Star

2008-09-12T13:49:00.006-05:00

A Birth Story

2008-09-12T07:48:00.002-05:00

The last update you all had received was on Tuesday after my 37w 5d appointment. I was ecstatic because Mr. Baby Boy had decided to turn and we were going to be able to attempt a regular delivery and hopefully forego the c-section. Tuesday night around 10:00 I had this awful pain come up behind my right breast and it radiated into my shoulder and back. I knew it wasn’t contractions, but I had no idea what it was. I tried taking Tylenol and through it up. I took a hot shower. I took Rolaids. I could not get any relief from the pain no matter what I tried and it was becoming so severe that it was making me nauseous and unable to think clearly.

At 6:15 Wednesday, September 10, 2008 I gave in and called the On-Call Doctor for advice. He recommended I meet him at Labor and Delivery (L&D) to be checked. Jon was already at work and had to come back to Rowlett and pick me up. While waiting on him, I packed the hospital bag, fed the dogs and cried I was in so much pain. Finally, he gets there to pick me up and we head to the hospital. Of course, its 7:30 on a weekday morning and traffic is bumper to bumper. We get checked in and put in an L&D Observation room and await the Doctor. Doc comes in and explains that the pain I’m having sound as if it’s related to my gallbladder or liver. He ordered some lab work be done and sends me for a level 2 sonogram. No pain meds until we figure out what the issue is…

They come in and take me upstairs to have the sonogram done. First they check on Baby Boy. He is doing great! Heart and lungs appear to be functioning. He’s still head down, but he’s not engaged (ready to come down the birth canal). The sonogram also estimates that Mr. Baby Boy weighs about 8lb 15oz (10 oz more than yesterday!) Also, it does not appear that I have any type of gall stones and my gall bladder does not appear to be inflamed. The Sonogram Doctor (Patton?) comes in to explain his thoughts on the results. He first explains that since my Gall Bladder looks fine that the only other explanation for the pain I’m having is that my liver is preparing to get very sick or fail. This is caused by the hypertension I have experienced the last month. The only “cure” at this point is to get Baby Boy delivered. The Doctor then goes into a discussion around delivering Baby Boy. He points out that 1) Baby Boy is a BIG baby, 2) Baby Boy is not engaged in the birth canal, 3) Inducing labor will probably not work, it will just put my body through 12 – 14 hours of hell to end up with a c-section anyway. 4) Baby may not fit through the birth canal. He’s talked through his recommendations with Dr. Griffith (my Ob-gyn) and they are in agreement that a c-section would be the best way to get Baby Boy here. He sends me back to L&D to await Dr. Griffith so we can make the final decision.

Back in L&D, Dr. Griffith comes in and we collectively decide that a C-Section is best and we will do it in 4 short hours at 4:00. I finally get some stadol to ease the pain in my side and shoulder and begin to drift in and out to sleep. About 3:30 the anesthesiologist comes in to start my epidural. The process goes fairly quickly and in a matter of minutes I am completely numb. They then try to lower the bed and get me back into a resting position. Unfortunately, the bed has decided it no longer wants to work at the hospital but it would rather be a see-saw at the local playground. Only the foot of the bed will move at this point and that’s where I’m sitting as numb as can be! So picture a hugely pregnant woman, numb from the waist down, sitting on the down side of the see-saw and a panicked anesthesiologist and 3 nurses trying to figure out how in the heck they are going to keep me from falling and get me back up into a bed and ready for surgery… The staff at my hospital is very innovative and cleverly figures out that a lot of people lifting and a working bed is the best way to save the day.

At 4:16pm they wheel me into the Operating Room (OR). The room is not what I had imagined. It’s very white and cold. They put up the sheets all around me so that I can’t see the incisions they are making. They turn on a country music radio station and get to work. At 4:38pm Wednesday, September 10, 2008 we welcomed Baby Boy Chandler to this world weighing 7lb 7.8oz. He was 19 ¼ inches long. (Not such a BIG baby after all!) I didn’t get to hold the baby right away, but Jon did and he brought him over to me so I could see him and the nurse snapped a couple of pictures. They all went off to the Nursery while Doc finished sewing me back up and I headed for recovery. I finally made it up to my post partum room about 6:00. They finished up Baby Boy’s admissions and brought him to the room around 8:30. Big Sister had to leave about 8:15 to go home and get ready for school on Thursday. She was NOT happy that she didn’t get to hold her brother! She will get to hold him on Friday afternoon and there is a picture of her that she made him at Sibling Class in his hospital crib, so he always has her nearby.

Sorry this was so long! Baby Boy is precious and I love him dearly.

Toby is here!!!

2008-09-10T20:05:00.004-05:00

7 pounds 8 oz

19 1/4 inches

4:39 pm sept 10th

37w 5d - Plans have changed a little!

2008-09-09T13:18:00.002-05:00

So I went in today for my final OB visit before my scheduled C-Section on Friday afternoon. To everyone's surprise Baby Boy decided to turn in the last week or so. I really think it was yesterday as he was a lot more active than usual. He is currently weighing about 8lbs 5oz, is still practicing his breathing and his HR was 142.

Doc says due to baby's size, my history the past month with high blood pressure, seeing floaters, protein in my urine and almost passing out, that we still need to go ahead and get baby delivered.

He gave me the option of inducing or continuing with the scheduled C-Section. He did give me the disclaimer that my Bishop's Score (http://209.151.26.25/bishop.htm) does not really put me in a favorable position for an induction and that I may end up with the C-Section anyway.

I chose to try the induction first... I REALLY don't want a C-section if I can avoid it. So.... instead of going to the hospital on Friday afternoon at 2:30 for a 4:30 c-section, I will be going to the hospital Thursday night at 10:00pm. Around midnight they will place the Cytotec to start to ripen my cervix. Then about 7:30 or 8:00 Friday morning they will start the Pitocin.

Here's hoping for a regular delivery on Friday, September 12th and THANK YOU Baby Boy for turning around for Mommy!!!!

36w 5d Appointment

2008-09-02T12:34:00.003-05:00

I went in to see Doc for the first time since my hospital stay last week. He said all of my tests came back High Normal... meaning as long as I don't see any more flashers, black out or start swelling in my hands, abdomen, or face then we are good to let baby boy cook a little while longer. I'm still officially on Bed Rest.

Tuesday I go back in to discuss all of the details for a c-section, have a final sonogram to see if Baby Boy has turned (Doc said he was still head up today and he doubts it, but for me not to lose hope...)

Doc wants to schedule the C-Section for Friday, September 12th. I'll be 38 weeks and 1 day at that point. At the last sonogram (week ago today) Baby Boy was approximately 7lb 5 oz and was practicing his breathing and moving around really well. Doc says he should be fine if we can keep him cooking another week.

So now.... I'm waiting on the Scheduler to call so we'll know what time on the 12th baby boy will be making his appearance.
I'm worried of course....
I'm hoping baby boy doesn't act out and decide that he wants to pick his own birth date a week earlier than planned....
I don't want to have a c-section. The only surgery I have ever had in my life was my wisdom teeth removal. I'm going to try and get my mind set around it soon....
I still don't have my "To Do" list completed. (Hubby says we'll get it all done this week and weekend.)
I am also excited... I in just 10 days I'll have my baby boy in my arms!!
Thanks for listening... I hope everyone is doing well today!

35 w 5 d Baby Update

2008-08-27T08:24:00.002-05:00

Yesterday at work I walked outside and nearly passed out. I ended up sitting down for a few minutes in the grass. Then when I went back in the building I checked my blood pressure and it was 135/85. I called the doctor and he wanted me to come in right away, even though my regular appointment was scheduled for today. When I got there my blood pressure had gone down to 112/62, then when doc checked it again it was 130/78. There was also protein in my urine. I told him about the floaters I was seeing on Saturday, and reminded him about the hypertension I had before Savannah was born.
He decided to send me for a sonogram while he thought about what we should do. The Sonogram showed Baby Bot sitting up tall, fat (7lbs 5oz), and happy. He's practicing his breathing and moving around. It does not appear that he is in any type of distress.
Back at the Doctor's office he's decided to admit me overnight to monitor my blood pressure, take a 24 hour urine test, do some blood work, etc. etc. He says if all the tests come back OK then we should be able to keep baby cooking for another couple of weeks and then do a C-Section (if he still hasn't turned), if something is amiss we may have to consider going ahead and delivering.
So here I sit on the postpartum floor at the hospital listening to all of the babies crying and families laughing, praying that my blood pressure and tests do what they are suppose to do so baby can join us in a couple of weeks happy and healthy..

Busy Wednesday...

2008-08-21T05:02:00.003-05:00

So yesterday was very busy!

It started with a day at work, but in the afternoon my Sister and two of my friends held a baby shower for me at the office. Toby got lots of cool stuff and Darling Daughter even got a scrapbook set that we are going to work on together. I'm really appreciative for them throwing the shower. They put a lot of work into it and everything was perfect. My niece is throwing me a shower this weekend and I bet it's going to be awesome as well.

Then straight from the Shower to the Doctor for my 34 week 6 day check-up... I lost 2 pounds from last week to this week. My blood pressure was fine. He's not really worried at this point that I can sometimes feel my heart pounding out of my chest. He was concerned that there is still protein and sugar in my urine and that Baby Boy is still sitting up Frank Breech. He also kept mentioning how big he's getting. He did some blood work to make sure the protein and sugar are not getting to dangerous levels. We should get those results in the next few days. Next Wednesday at abt. 36 weeks we are going to do another sonogram to see if he's still breech and to see how big he is. If he is still breech next week they are going to schedule my C-Section. Doc says it would probably be best to do it 9/12 or 9/15. He also said that even though we schedule it, if Baby Boy turns he'll let me deliver regularly or if my blood pressure acts up and we can't control it with bed rest then we'll have to deliver sooner via c-section. 9/12 or 9/15 would be best for baby I think... the longer he can cook and grow the better off he will be. 9/15 will be 10 days prior to the due date so hopefully he won't have any problems.

Then... from the Hospital to meet the teacher night at school. Darling Daughter is going to be in 3rd grade this year and can you believe they actually start changing classes! She's going to have like 7 or 8 different teachers. I don't think I started changing classes until middle school. Her homeroom teacher seems nice enough. We didn't meet any of the other teachers, the place was packed and I was tired. School starts on Monday. I think we're ready.... except we still have to get shoes... Ugh! Anyone want to volunteer to take an 8 year old Diva shoe shopping the week before school starts?

Enough for today. Off to get ready for another day at work.

Hmmm.. What do you think?

2008-08-17T07:42:00.003-05:00

So I was enjoying the beautiful weather we are actually having in Dallas... Can you believe it's in the low 70s this morning? Anyhow, I was sitting outside reading Time and ran across this article... http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1832864,00.html

It's about some school districts across the US that are switching to a 4 day school week to save money on diesel by running the buses less. (They also save money on heating/ac, food, etc. that they don't have to doll out.) The kids have to go to school an extra hour a day and have every Monday off. Sounds like a good deal for them.. BUT what about those of us that have to work and have to pay extra for our kids to be in day care all day vs. just before and after school? What about those of us that don't use the school districts bus system? Are we just moving the debt from the school districts to the parents who already pay way to much in school taxes? Aren't parents facing the same price increases as the schools? What about those poor babies that already have way to much homework and are already exhausted by the time they get home from a regular school day? What about when these kids have to go into the real work force and have to work 5 days a week, is that going to be a culture shock or what?

I'm not saying I agree or disagree with the proposal... I just have lots of questions...

33 weeks 6 days Baby Update

2008-08-13T16:58:00.003-05:00

So I went for my 34 week check up today. They did a sonogram to see how baby boy is doing. He was moving around quite a bit, his heart rate was at 141, and he was practicing breathing. All good signs! He currently weighs in at about 5 lbs 14 oz and is still sitting up Frank Breech (with his feet in his face). All in all... he's doing great!

As for Mom..... Doc says that if he doesn't turn then it'll definitely be C-Section for me. He's going to be a BIG baby! He still has plenty of time to turn even though his quarters are getting a little (well a lot) cramped. I was telling Doc about the one time last week that I was seeing floaters and that I have had a headache since Sunday. He also noticed that my feet are swelling. He's concerned that I'm developing Toxemia. (http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/preeclampsia-eclampsia) Now, I have to go see him every week and if my blood pressure starts to go up then he's taking me off work and putting me on bed rest. In the meantime, he says to get lots of rest, drink plenty of fluids, take Epsom salt baths (for the swelling), stay out of the heat, and hang out in the pool (if I had one!).

On another note... they finally scheduled Sis' biopsy. It's set for September 3rd.

Curse ?!?

2008-08-07T20:56:00.002-05:00

So do any of you believe in Curses? I don't think I do, but then again... sometimes you just have to wonder. I love my Family (even the weird ones!) but it seems that someone or something in this darn family has permanently put a hex on us. You see nothing can ever be simple and easy. We all have to go through trials and tribulations I get that... but enough is enough!

Sis went for her biopsy on Wednesday and today I took her to get the results. The Doctor walks in and says "You're doing great, the spots were benign!"... Yeah!!! Let's go home... no wait a minute... The doctor wants to show us the mammogram pictures of where the spots were and now where they shouldn't be... but the spots are still there.. You guessed it.. They removed the wrong calcifications to test. So NOW Sis has to have a different procedure, which is actually a day surgery where they completely put her under so that they can get the actual spots they intended to get on Wednesday. It's a lot more invasive and she'll take quite a few days to recover. You know those documents they make you sign before any procedure that says all of the things that could happen and they say this is worst case, but just so you know it could happen? This exact thing was on there!!! It was something like.. There is a possibility that the wrong tissue will be taken during the procedure. Ugh!! Only in our Family.......

Baby Girl started cheer camp tonight. The High School where they were practicing didn't have any air conditioner and they still made them cheer and work out for over 2 hours. What a crock!! These are 8 and 9 year old kids. It would have been cooler to practice in the 95 degree heat outside! They SWEAR the air will be fixed before camp tomorrow. All I can say is it dam well better be.

Enough for tonight. If you made it this far, thanks for listening!

Ramblings

2008-08-02T07:48:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was one of my Summer Days Off. I've been working 4 10-12 hour days so I can take off one day a week. I had a lot of stuff on the To Do List. School starts 8/25 so I was going to go to Wal-Mart, Target, JcPenney etc.. and get prices on School Uniforms as this is the first year Darling Daughter will have to wear them. I need to get my car cleaned (as it is WAY to hot for me to do it!), We need groceries... etc. etc. etc...

So we (Darling Daughter and I) started with breakfast at the local Cafe. All she would eat was half a bowl of cereal.. What's up with that?? She usually orders the biggest breakfast there is and eats everything on her plate. Then we head to Target to check uniform prices and add some stuff to a registry to help me remember stuff I'm going to need to get before Toby gets here. Darling Daughter (who is 8 and weighs a good 90 lbs) keeps asking if she can ride in the buggy because she's tired... She slept 11 hours last night.. hmmmm... So it's time to check out and she asks "Mommy, can we just go home, I'm really tired". So off to home we go to figure out she has a mild fever. She took a shower and laid down for a couple of hours.

For Dinner she ate A LOT so I'm guessing she was feeling better. I gave her Motrin before bed and she's still asleep (11 hours later). We'll see if we can get any of our errands run today. Of Course, it's suppose to be 104 today and with the heat index and humidity they say it's going to make your body think it's 110. UGH!!!

PRAYER REQUEST
My Sister has to go in on Wednesday for a biopsy on her breast. Please pray that it turns out to be just fibroids or something and not anything serious.

ON ANOTHER NOTE!
My wonderful niece finished the invitations for my baby shower on the 23rd. They are AWESOME! You'll have to check out her blog (Curse of the Competent) to see a copy (as I don't have one yet), but several people have called me just to tell me how cute they are. They are complete with the 3D picture of baby boy. I'm so excited about my shower, mostly because everyone is going to be together and it's at someone elses house so I don't have to do anything! I'm so grateful to my niece and friends for pulling it all together. I'm really blessed that they love me that much.

ONE LAST NOTE BEFORE I GO... I cannot believe it's only:
23 days until Darling Daughter starts 3rd Grade
21 days until Baby Boy's Baby Shower
54 days until Baby Boy is due to be here

Stubborn Little Man!!!

2008-07-25T19:17:00.003-05:00

We went back for our 2nd try at a 3D/4D Ultrasound today. Baby is still breech and STILL has his legs up in front of his face. He moved them for about 10 seconds and the tech was able to get the following pictures.

Say hello Baby :-)

My Daddy... and pregnancy hormones....

2008-07-22T07:11:00.003-05:00

So today my Daddy would have been 67 years young. He was a wonderful man that led a full life. He served our Country in the US Army for 20 years serving in Vietnam and Korea. He then worked for the City Inspections/Permits Department for almost 20 years ensuring things were built to code and that people were safe. In his spare time he volunteered at the local Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) post, serving as both Quartermaster and Commander. Every Christmas they held a Christmas Party complete with Santa Claus for any kids that were able to come and also delivered huge boxes of food and necessities to the needy in the area. He has 4 kids that all turned out to be good kids. I mean, although some of us were hell as teenagers, none of us ended up in prison, we're all married with families and homes we can call our own. He has 8 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren which brings me to one of the many reasons why I've been crying ALL morning. He has a grandson on the way... due Sept. 25th. They will not meet each other for many, many years. I can only hope that Papa is watching us from Heaven so that he knows his grandson. But what about the flip side? How is my Son ever going to know how wonderful his Papa was? You can only tell a person so many things, what if he just doesn't get it? I'm probably being way to hard on myself and I know I should just go with the flow... Deep down in my heart I know "Everything Happens for a Reason" and that I shouldn't chase the reason down. It'll show up when it's time.

In the meantime.... Happy Birthday Daddy.. I miss you, please keep an eye on us and someday we'll be together again. Love, your Baby Girl.

A little history...

2008-07-18T13:12:00.002-05:00

So I told you all a year or two ago whenever I set up this blog that I would probably never keep up with it and guess what I was RIGHT! I have to be in a particular mood and/or putting off something that I just don't want to do to actually sit at the computer and write anything. I was never the literary one in the family. Math was always my thing and the only reason I even went to Literature class is because it was required. Anyhow... I'm going to go backward in time all in one post just to catch everyone up a little....

Pretend it's February 1st 2008...
Well, the last couple of weeks have been really interesting. On Tuesday, January 22nd I realized that I was a couple of days late with my period and decided to take a pregnancy test.. It was positive, oh my gosh, that couldn't be right! We've been trying for a couple years to get pregnant and it never happened so we had pretty much given up. So second test, yep it says positive too! Gotta call the doctor. Called the doctor at 9:00 and set up an appointment for 10:30. The doctor's office kept congratulating me and gave me all kinds of paperwork and advice. They did a blood test that would be back the next day confirming what the at home tests said. SO I stayed home from work to wait on them to call. I left a couple of messages and never heard from them... Uh oh, is something wrong, did the test say I'm not really pregnant.. Now I'm nervous. Back at work on Thursday, not really feeling it. Can't concentrate on anything but waiting on the doctor to call, leave a couple more messages. Finally, around lunch time nurse calls and says yes your pregnant it's still very early, but the test is positive, doctor will call you later with the rest of the results. Doc called and said congratulations and that all the other test results are good. Looks like baby will be here around 9/25. Have to go to in for a sonogram on 2/12 to confirm the edd (estimated date of delivery) and find the heartbeat. I've had some pregnancy symptoms, mainly really sore breasts, sensitivity to smells and nausea and throwing up (especially with toothpaste and spray deodorant.)Darling Daughter is very excited about the baby. I showed her a picture of what baby looks like right now and she said it looks like a goldfish so we've been calling baby goldfish for now.. :-) Today I'm really tired and of course starving (even though I've already eaten). I wonder if it's a state of mind to be hungry all the time when your pregnant or if your body really needs all of that food! Since we're still really early I worry about baby all the time. I remember from with Darling Daughter once you've heard the heartbeat and start feeling baby move the worry cuts down a little, but that seems so far away. It kinda feels like the first time since it's been nearly 8 years since the last time I was pregnant. I hope everything is OK and I'm sure it will be.

Now it's February 13, 2008
Well, we had our first sonogram yesterday afternoon to confirm the due date (9/25/2008) and make sure everything was looking OK. They found only one baby and his/her heartbeat was at a strong 156 bpm. Baby is about the size of a bean right now and growing super fast. I'm still nauseous and already gaining weight... ugh! But it's all worth it for our little miracle. At our next OB appt. in March we will do another Sonogram and blood test to check for down syndrome and something else. I can't believe we are already at 8 weeks! 4 more weeks and we'll tell the world (well those that don't already know.)

Now it's February 17, 2008
I can't wait any longer to tell SOMEBODY else..... So I sent an email to my family that didn't yet know... Here's a copy
Subject: It's a....
Well we don't know yet. We do know we are having a baby and it's due 9/25/2008. We are truly excited and are hoping for a healthy baby. Although, Darling Daughter does say if it's a boy we have to send him back! I'll eventually figure out how to explain we can't send him back. I haven't told work yet, we're waiting on the 12 week mark (March 6) and for appraisals to be over (March 1st).

Now it's March 11, 2008
Another Sonogram today. Baby is doing fine and has a strong heartbeat. I finally got up the nerve to tell my boss about the baby. She seems truly excited for us..

Now it's March 12, 2008
Well with the boss told and 12 weeks behind us I can tell everybody.. right? I started telling people at work. Of course, the big question was: "What does Darling Daughter think of that... see 2/17 for the answer (LOL)

Now it's April 10, 2008
Hubby, Darling Daughter and I are all at the Doctor's office to have a sonogram to find out if Darling Daughter is going to have a brother or sister. Of course, we're still dealing with Darling Daughter threatening to send it back if it's a boy and Hubby calling the baby "Sister" all the time. During this, I'm of course secretly wishing for a baby boy.... We get in the sonogram room.. baby is doing fine, growing well, strong heartbeat and looks like everything is perfect as can be and what's that?????? IT'S A BOY! Darling Daughter promptly sticks her tongue out at the Sonographer and Monitor and begins to pout and I'm ecstatic beyond belief! It'll grow on her and she'll be fine with it by the time he gets here.

Let's skip a few months to July 3, 2008
I'm 28 weeks pregnant today! So I had the long appointment. It started with a trip to the sonographer (sp?). Baby is still a boy :-), his heart rate was 142, he's sitting up breech and he weighs approximately 3lbs 2oz. She said he is in the 92 percentile. What does that mean??? It means that only 8 percent of babies his gestational age are bigger than him. Most babies gain .5 lb a week from now until delivery... 12 weeks to go = 6 more pounds... Baby we need to talk.... I also had to do the 1 hour glucose test today. If everything is fine, I won't get the results until I go back for my next appointment in 2 weeks. They'll call me if I have to come back in sooner for the 3 hour test. Let's hope I don't hear from them. I can't believe it's already time to start going every two weeks. The end of September is right around the corner! Finally, I got the doctor's signature to go for my 3D/4D Ultrasound next Friday. I can't wait!!!

July 11, 2008
So we're all here Mom, Sis, Niece, Darling Daughter, Granny and Hubby and we're ready to see the 3D/4D Ultrasound.... It's going to be totally amazing I'm sure. I'm hoping Darling Daughter has a better time with this one. She can't see anything on the other 2D ultrasounds and calls me crazy for saying look at your brother.... Maybe she'll be able to really distinguish on the 3D/4D. Our Turn!!! Baby is breech with his feet up at his head and his hands behind his knees (I think they call this Frank Breech) so they couldn't get a picture of his face. The tech had me switch sides, walk around, go to the bathroom, etc. and the little booger wouldn't move his legs for anything. We have another appointment to go back 7/25. She is hopeful that he will turn by then or at least move those little legs.. So no pictures this time, but let's keep our fingers crossed he turns in the next 2 weeks!

July 17, 2008
Doctor appointment went well today. I had actually gained back the 3 lbs I had lost over the last 7 months. All of my blood work came back good and I don't have Gestational Diabetes. HOORAY! Next appointment in 2 weeks.

July 18, 2008
That brings us to today (I'm sure I've forgotten something, darn pregnancy brain...) I've been working 4 - 10 hour days so I could take Friday's off. Today the plan was to take Darling Daughter to Day Care so she could go swimming and to the movies and I was going to do laundry (since EVERY towel and piece of underclothes in the house is dirty.) I Took Darling Daughter to school around 8:00 and have been playing on the computer or laying down ever since... No, I haven't separated the laundry, no I haven't picked up the laundry room so that I can get to the washer and dryer, and I don't want to.... but I will... I mean, it's only 2:00, I have all day right! BAD MOMMY! I just have no energy and momentum to do anything. It's 100 degrees outside, I'm 7 months pregnant and I just DON'T WANT TO...

Lifestyle Change

2006-09-30T08:42:00.000-05:00

Well I knew when I started this whole blog thing that I wouldn't be very diligent in keeping it current, but I can't believe it's actually been over a month since the last time I updated it. A lot has been going on the last month, baby girl has football games (or as she calls them Cheer Games) every Saturday. That was a mess for the first two games. Apparently they changed some rules this year and both of our games ended up starting an hour and a half late! The last 2 games actually started on time so things are getting better. On September 19th I went to visit my Primary Care Doctor (let's call him Dr. Cutie) and boy was I in trouble. My cholesterol was off the charts, my glucose levels were high, and a liver test was kinda odd. So collectively we decided that I have to make some lifestyle changes, you know the stuff, quit smoking, eat better, lose weight, yadda yadda... So I set a date (September 25th) to quit smoking. Man, this is hard stuff.. I haven't completely quit, but I have cut down a lot. That counts for something... Right? Before starting to quit I was smoking a pack (about. 20) cigarettes a day. On the 25th I smoked about 10, on the 26th I smoked 7 and then on the 27th I had some tense situations at work and ended up smoking around 12. Yesterday was 8. Now I'm completely out of cigarettes and am fighting the very strong urge to go buy more. At home there is no-one to bum a cigarette from, so it actually takes buying a pack and once you have the pack you feel the need to smoke all of them with the justification that they are to expensive to waste... At work it's not the same. I have A LOT of friends that smoke and can bum a cigarette here and there, I think that makes it harder because getting the cigarettes are so much easier. Anyhow, it's 8:35 am on Saturday Morning and normally by this time I've had about 4 or 5 cigarettes and I haven't had any. My plan is to take it 30 minutes at a time...
I'm thinking about taking baby girl to the Fair on Monday since they are out of school. It makes me a little nervous for just she and I to go with all the crazy people in this world, but hubby and granny can't take off work, sis and mom really can't walk that much and che che is already going with someone else, so we'll see what happens and how baby girl acts between now and then. Sis is having replacement knee surgery on Wednesday and next Sunday I fly to Chicago for a 3 day training class so things never really slow down do they? Well, I better get back to work on my Bible Study (your suppose to work on it a little each day and I put the whole thing off until today) and write out some bills which is really depressing and will probably end up being the determining factor of whether I smoke today or not! Anyhow, have a great day and I'll try to write on a more consistent basis.

Awful Day

2006-08-16T20:25:00.000-05:00

Have you ever had one of those days that started off on the wrong foot and went down hill from there? Today was one of those awful days. I've been working 4 -10 hour days through the summer so that I can take off on Fridays. This morning due to a unwilling child and no enthusiasm I didn't make it to the office until 7:30. Then when I signed in to my computer all of my folders and documents had been removed and I couldn't get to my work email.
I have to give a little background on the next thing that happened, only because I need to vent! The school district that we live in is a "choice of school" district. Meaning, you can choose which ever school in the district for your child to go to and it doesn't have to be the one closest to your house. The down side is that although your child attends that school for one school year it doesn't guarantee them a spot at the same school the next year. When deciding who is going to which school they first take the kids that live closest to the school and then meet the racial quotas and then if there is room your child can return. Well this happened to us. Baby Girl went to one school last year and we ordered the school supplies for this year from that school. Then we found out that she couldn't get back in that school for the upcoming school year and they wouldn't refund the money paid on the school supplies. I talked to the PTA Person that is over the school supplies a couple weeks ago and she assured me that I would be able to pick up the supplies this morning in time for meet the teacher tonight at the new school. Sis went to pick up the supplies this morning and they weren't ready. I FINALLY got in touch with the PTA lady at 3:05 and she told me the supplies were ready but that I needed to be there by 4:00 in order to pick them up. I run out of work and head to the school and then I get behind a "wide load" truck taking up all 3 lanes of the road... Time is ticking! I finally get to the school, run in and grab the supplies and run out the door. On down the road (and after 4:00) I realize that they gave me supplies for a 3rd grader, which would have been fine except baby girl is going in to first grade! I ran to wal-mart and grabbed all of the supplies except the forbidden supply that no-one ever has (writing tablets). I finally found them at Dollar General and we go to the school where it felt like the air wasn't on and there were 25000 (exaggeration) people there! Finally, on my way home. Grab some dinner at sonic (so much for the diet) post this blog and off to bed! And they still don't have my computer fixed at work. Since I only worked 7.5 hours today I'll be at work until late late tomorrow night if I still want to take off on Friday.. What a mess and really trivial in the whole scheme of things. Actually seeing it all written out makes me realize a lot of folks have it a lot worse and don't complain near as much. Maybe I need to work on that (and the diet). Well, I better go.. Have a great evening and tomorrow will be a better day!

Monday Again!!!

2006-08-14T07:15:00.000-05:00

Do you ever feel like time moves faster on the weekends than it does during the week? Seems like we are just got up on Saturday Morning and all of a sudden it's Monday again... Kinda sucks! We had a good weekend. No wrecks, baby girl went to the dentist on Friday and didn't have any cavities AND she learned how to tie her own shoes.. I went to the big JcPenney sell to get the kid some school clothes and all they had was winter stuff and a bunch of brown. I don't know about all of you but when it's 110 degrees outside I just can't bring myself to buy long sleeve shirts and sweat pants. So I didn't buy much of anything. I also finally got a picture of baby girls hair and cheer uniform. Isn't she the cutest cheerleader you have ever seen! I guess I have a pretty boring life, that's all the news I have right now. I hope everyone has a great day! Oh yeah, one more thing.. Happy Birthday JCD. I forgot to mail your card, but I'll put it in the mail at work today..

Why Not

2006-08-08T09:02:00.000-05:00

Well the weekend came and went and I didn't get everything accomplished that I had hoped. It was a good weekend despite all that. On Saturday we went and saw Talledega Nights. It was pretty funny... but for those of you that have elementary kids I wouldn't recommend taking them along. Baby girl has cheer camp this week and weekend and my niece and nephews may be coming over saturday, so it's going to be another busy weekend. I wrecked my car on Friday and have been dealing with insurance adjusters the last two days. NO FUN! especially since the wreck was my fault... I backed into another car (I know sis, I have to work on using the reverse!) Anyhow, I better get back to work. Everyone have a great day

First Post

2006-08-05T09:42:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd give this blog thing a try. On one hand, it's seems kinda silly publishing your journal on the internet, but on the other hand it might be much easier than actually remembering to write in the journal! So yesterday was a long day. I had 3 doctors appointments and then took my daughter to get all of her hair cut off. I really didn't want to, but it was the best thing. Now she can actually brush it herself. I know I'm being selfish, but I REALLY liked her hair being long and now she looks so much older than she really is! I've been running for months with gma and gpa moving to a new place, cheer practice starting, vacation, business travel that hopefully today I can stay home and get some stuff done around here. (wishful thinking I'm sure!) Well, I better go and see if I can finish getting this blog thing set up so I can move on to other projects. Have a great weekend!

***Everything Happens for a Reason***