Woo, I'm Excited

My Momma leaves today to come see us!!!

She should just be waking up right about now to get ready to go to the airport. She'll fly from Amarillo to Dallas, then from Dallas to Houston. There, one of Nic's best friends (and mine too... he's great) Viktor will pick her up and drive her from Houston Hobby to Houston Intercontinental (across town). She'll then fly from Houston to Amsterdam, and then FINALLY from Amsterdam to Aberdeen!!! I'm so excited. While I feel bad for her for having to do all that plane hopping... I am so thankful that we were able to get the tickets for her to be here! It's such a wonderful Christmas gift to go get your Mom at the airport!!! We'll pick her up on Christmas day at around 3:45 if all goes to plan and the snow doesn't delay the planes any (fingers crossed!)... so I have roughly 28 1/2 hours to wait. I don't know how I'm going to contain my excitement for that long, and I really do pity poor Nicolas when he has to drive me to the airport tomorrow to pick her up... lol. That should be an interesting car ride. Who knew I could be so bouncy at 9 months pregnant!?

I'm off to make lunch for Nic... hopefully that'll distract me until she calls to say she's at the airport getting ready to board her first flight!!! Hooray!

Almost There...

I think my body may be tired of me being so stinking excited all the time. There have been so many things that I've been looking forward to for so long (like the Santa Cruise, which I will tell you all about in a little bit, my Mom coming, the BABY of course, and Christmas). Now that they are all here (or about to be), I'm exhausted!

The Santa Cruise was wonderful, as usual. Nic and I got up and ready and then headed out to go to our friend Ari's work (where we store the presents until it's time to give them out). We stopped by the Shell station to fill up on our way, and ran into Simmie, another of our friends who was participating in the Cruise. :) We decided we were hungry and stopped by a burger van (I didn't get anything... everything they had was beefy. Boo), but Nic and Simmie had these massive breakfast rolls filled with sausage and bacon and eggs. Then we headed to Ari's where the re-packing of the toys and games was underway. Once we were all loaded up again, we headed over to Duthie Park, where we all meet up and decorate our cars for the actual Cruise. It's always fun, as everyone helps each other out and visits a bit before we go.

After the cars were decorated and ready to roll, we all headed off on our way to the hospital. Normally, this is one of the fun parts, as it's awesome to see a convoy of 20+ decorated Subaru's lining the street, but this year our fun was spoiled a little by a cop who was SERIOUSLY lacking in Christmas spirit. He pulled over Duncan and Donald (who by the way was dressed as Santa), tore the tinsel off of Donald's car, and kept Dunc for half an hour (giving him a fine and making up 3 violations to ticket him for... all of which he didn't do!). His poor partner felt bad, and we could tell but there was nothing stopping this guy. We were not happy with Grampian's finest that day! But, we tried to not let it spoil the purpose of the trip or dampen our spirits... we were doing a good thing for some really sick children, and there's nothing that can take that away.

Anyway, we got to the hospital and had a little photo op for the newspaper (I'll post pictures/scan the article when it comes out) and got to visit with some of the kids. There was one little boy (I think his name was Nathan) who was so excited and was picking out what he wanted to play with first the next day... it was too cute. Then there was another little boy who went out to look at the cars and was SO excited when Ari let him sit in and rev his car (although, I think the kid's dad was JUST as excited... he kept going on about all the "rally cars". Lol). This is what it is all about. All of our hard work throughout the year paid off and we were able to give those kids that had to stay in the hospital a brighter Christmastime and cheer them up a bit.

We also were able to present Clic Sargent (http://www.clicsargent.org.uk/Home) a check for 750 pounds, which was awesome. I'm hoping that next year we'll be able to raise a little more and donate it, as it's such a good cause. They really do take care of kids and families that are affected by Cancer and that really touches me. Having both of my parents go through Cancer was tough, but I can't imagine having my child go through it... and our baby isn't even born yet. The volunteers and workers there really are amazing people and I'm so thankful that we were able to help them to help others this year.

After the presentation of gifts/check at the hospital, we made our way over to the Mill of Mundurno to grab some food, and it was really nice to enjoy a meal with all of our Scoobie friends who mean so much to us. They really are a fun and caring bunch of people and we are so glad we've gotten to know them over the last two years!

I was quick to head home after lunch to nap... and ended up sleeping until 5! Whoops. I needed it though, I was so tired! So, now I'm preparing for Mom to come in 2 days!!! WOO HOO!!! I can't wait! I've given up on my cleaning list for the most part. I've been doing the laundry and dishes but that's about it. I have no energy for the other stuff and she's just going to have to see me for the slob I am! Lol... I'm sure she won't mind too much. I can't wait for Christmas to get here, it's my favorite holiday because everyone is so happy and cheerful around this time of year. PLUS it's been snowing like crazy here! We've easily got 6 inches of snow outside which has made it so beautiful and serene. I really hope it doesn't delay my Mom getting here, but it looks like it's done and the sun is out, so hopefully it won't affect anything. I hope some of it is still here when she gets here so she can see it though, it is so pretty.

Oh, I had a midwife appointment on Tuesday (yesterday) and everything is still looking good. I'm no longer measuring ahead (I was a week ahead for a long time), now I'm right at the size I should be. That's all fine and dandy, I guess maybe we won't be having the baby early. The baby has moved down quite a bit and its head is WAY down, which has been so fun for me and my hips. I'm glad the baby is in the right position though, and am thankful that I'm in the final stages. I can't wait to meet the baby and am excited to see who it is we are having! I'm really glad that it looks like I'll hold out until at least my Mom gets here, that makes me happy. PLUS, I'm considered full term on Sunday, so that is a big worry off my shoulders. I really didn't want the baby to come prematurely, so I'm glad it's sticking in there!

I was going to post pictures, but Nic took the camera to work yesterday morning, and has yet to bring it back home. When he does get home, I'll try to pop back on here and post some of the cruise, the baby belly, and the snow. :)

If I don't though, Merry Christmas! I hope everyone has a fabulous day celebrating Jesus' Birthday!

Early Morning Craziness...

So I couldn't sleep last night for some reason. I don't know if it was because the room was too warm (we have left the heater on ALL day since it is snowing and if we turn it off it instantly freezes everything in the house...) or if it was my unsatisfied craving for something chocolate or what... but I couldn't sleep. So what did I decide to do at 1:30 in the morning? Finish cleaning the bathroom. Lol. I had to laugh at myself as I sat there with my little broom and antibacterial cleaning agents sweeping and then scrubbing down the floor so late at night... while the whole time I can hear my husband snoring away in the bedroom. It's not that I didn't WANT to go to sleep, I just couldn't force myself to do it. Ah well, at least we have two clean bathrooms now and I can fully check that off my list. Now I'm almost back on target as my list is concerned but I've decided some changes were in order (of course). I decided that I don't need to be cleaning out the fireplace, that's a good job for Nic or someone else to do. I haven't done any of the floors yet (except the bathrooms) but I have a reason for that (or excuse... whatever you want to call it). The living room floor has been put on hold since I want to get underneath the furniture (a LOT of lint gets stuck under there) and since I can't do that by myself, I'm waiting on Nic to help. Since he's been busy at work (read: REALLY BUSY since his new simulator just came in) he hasn't been home really to do that and when he does get home he's exhausted and I haven't had the heart to ask him to do anything else. Anyway, I don't really have an excuse for the kitchen floor... I'm sure I could come up with something if I really wanted to. As for vacuuming... I have NO idea where my vacuum went off to! It might have mysteriously ended up in the garage, that'd be my best guess, but it's not in the house and it's been snowing here so I haven't marched my happy butt out there to look for it. Meh. Everything else on the list up until today's activities are done though :) Score.

On a side note... has anyone else noticed that there are only 29 days left until our baby is due!? WOO HOO!! I cannot wait! Well... I can wait another week or so, I'm ok with that. Then my Mom will be here (she gets here in 6 days!!!!) and the baby will be full term. So, one more week kiddo, then you can feel free to come at any time! I got excited yesterday and went and bought two little coming home outfits for the baby (one a cute little dress and one a little blue jumpsuit) to come home from the midwife center in :) I've pulled them out like a dozen times to look at them again, they are so stinking cute (and little!). I can't wait to see which one we'll use! I've also written another letter to the baby for its baby book. I think it is really starting to get squished in my tummy, it keeps moving from the left side to the right side today, like it cant decide which side is more comfortable. Each time he/she does it, my organs get pushed around a little bit which isn't overly pleasant, but that's ok.

Anyway- I'm off to figure out what is for lunch... I'm STARVING today. I actually woke up at 7 (mind you... after going to bed at 3:45) because I HAD to have a bowl of cereal. My stomach has been growling again for like the last hour or so which actually woke up the baby once... so I guess I should eat again.

The Gene Pool

I've been trying to get motivated to finish my cleaning from yesterday (yeah I know... I'm already behind and haven't even had my list of instructions for more than 24 hours!) which led me to wonder about our baby.... which genes/traits it will inherit and which ones it will do without. See... my Mom and my sister both got the "clean gene" from my Grandmother. They keep their houses spotless (even Raime's house is always clean with three kids!) and actually enjoy cleaning. When Raime is stressed, she often pulls out the Kirby and goes to town, vacuuming her worries away. Mom has a habit of cleaning when she's stressed too... I guess it's a common thing. My Grandmother LOVES to clean. She's one of those women who will climb on a chair to clean the tops of the ceiling fans (or take it down completely to wash all the parts in warm water/cleaning solvent) on a weekly basis. She moves the furniture to vacuum underneath it. She's such a neat freak (in a good way) that when she had her carpet replaced recently, after having it for 35 years, the carpet guy actually said that was the first house he'd ever replaced the carpet for that the mat underneath was still clean. The only reason it needed replacing was to update the house... not because it was worn out or stained.

Anyway- I apparently have missed out on this "clean gene", unfortunately. I have also missed out on the green thumb (which again... my mom and sister both have). I did pick up my Mom's organizational skills, and list making abilities. I also am obsessed with balancing my checkbook (or at least looking at my online banking for all of our accounts) and when I am stressed I tend to make lists of where our money will be going for the next 6 months to a year (there's something about knowing how you are going to have to move money around to pay bills that makes me feel better... even when it's a challenge and you don't know exactly how you are going to pay for something, figuring out how much you are going to have to come up with and being prepared for it helps me de-stress). I got my love of media (movies/tv/video games) from my Dad. I also got his talkativeness and genuine interest in other people's lives/stories. I am also a bit of a packrat, I owe that one to dear old Dad too... It's easy to see that Nic got his ingenuity and knack for Engineering from his Dad and maternal Grandfather. I think he picked up his love of cars from his Uncle Paul, and his packrat side comes from his father too.

I'm really interested to see what traits our little bug will have. I wonder if he/she will stand with their hands on their hips a lot like I do (and my Dad did), or whether they'll unconsciously lick their lips when they are thinking really hard like Nic does. I wonder if they'll be a daredevil like their Dad or whether they'll have to think everything through like I do. I wonder if they'll be talkative or quiet (I'm kind of hoping for a mix there). I wonder if they'll be right or left brain dominant. I wonder if they'll be super smart and have the mind of an Engineer like Nic or whether they'll be more creative/emotional like me.

On top of all that... I wonder what baby bug is going to look like! Will he/she have Nic's pretty olive skin, or my pale complexion? Will they have hair when they are born- and if they do will it be really blonde like mine was or black like Nic's? Will they have his eye shape or mine? Will it be tall or inherit my short genes? Will it be a rolly polly baby like I was and have chubby cheeks or will it be thin like Nic was?

There are so many unknowns and the closer it gets to being time for us to meet our little one, the more excited/anxious I get! Today is the 17th of December and my due date is the 17th of January... only one more calendar month to go! Then the waiting will be over and we'll be able to meet our new family member that I love so much already!

Nic and I are so excited about it (as is most of our family...) and have conversations about it every day. It's pretty cute, whenever the baby REALLY moves around in there, Nic says that Bug is "trying to find a way out". Lol. Sometimes I think he's right, but I sure hope the baby figures out that it is not coming out through my ribcage or my bladder... that'd be nice.

I think the question about genes really boils down to one big one for us... Will it have the XX or XY gene?! I asked Nic if he still is glad that we didn't find out and I got a resounding NO! Lol. I still am enjoying the suspense and am looking forward to the moment Nic gets to tell me what our baby's sex is, but I think Nic is just tired of waiting. Ah well... we'll find out soon enough!

I really need to clean. The living room is ALMOST done, all I need to do is dust (I hate dusting) and pick up a few things that were brought back out last night. I'm crossing off cleaning out the fireplace though, I've decided that I don't need to do that and that it can wait for Mom. Lol. Then I need to start on the kitchen, although to be fair, I started on that a little yesterday (instead of dusting... I'm bad). Wish me luck... I sure hope the baby has some cleaning genes, we could use them in this house!

Procrastination...

Yes, I know our baby is due in 33 days... and I know there is a chance that he or she could decide to grace us with their presence early. However, I do not have the nesting bug yet. My house is a disaster zone and I have no desire whatsoever to clean it. I would much rather take a nap or wrap Christmas presents (little ones... I couldn't have Nic and Mom not have ANYTHING to open on Christmas) or look up stuff about what the baby is doing in there. I would rather talk to people on the phone, watch tv, or mod podge the letters for the wall in the nursery. I would rather look at craft ideas for stuff Mom and I could make while she's here. Pretty much, I'd rather do anything else BUT clean right now.

Every now and then I'll get an urge to clean (like this morning at 3:30 after one of my MANY pee breaks in the night) but the timing is always wrong... it's either too early/late or right before lunch/dinner time, or right when we are about to go somewhere. How frustrating.

So, I've put it off and put it off and become the queen of procrastination. This REALLY needs to stop, seeing as how I have all of 9 days before my Momma gets here. 9 days. I am so very excited for her to get here, but I'm terrified that my house will look the same as it does now when she gets here! So, here is my plan. I'm going to make a list of what I would like to get done each day and hopefully, I'll stick with it. Wish me luck.

Today (Wednesday the 16th)- Clean the living room. This includes: picking up everything that doesn't belong in the living room and putting it away, sweeping and cleaning the hardwood floors, dusting the fireplace and tv unit, cleaning the large window (inside only, it's raining), clean out the fireplace. Also- do two loads of laundry and the dishes in the sink (there isn't enough for a load in the dishwasher...). Vacuum the carpeted areas (all bedrooms and hallways).

Tomorrow (Thursday the 17th)- Thoroughly clean the kitchen. This includes: sanitizing all the countertops, the table, and backsplash. Clean out the fridges (they need to be wiped down inside). Clean the windows and windowsills, including the front entry way. Sweep and mop the floor. Clear off the kitchen table and put all craft projects away (we don't eat in there, so it is more like my craft table than anything else... since Nic has claimed the dining table for his projects). Put everything on the countertops that doesn't need to be on the countertops away. Do a load of laundry. Keep the dishes done.

Friday, the 18th- Clean the bathrooms. This includes: Cleaning the toilets, washing down the shower (I just cleaned that not too long ago), cleaning the bathtub, washing the window in the large bathroom, cleaning off the mirror in the little one, sweeping and mopping the floors, reorganizing the basket in the little bathroom, putting all the clean towels away into the bathrooms they belong in (instead of putting them all in the one with the shower). Do a load of laundry. Keep the dishes done.

Saturday & Sunday- Keep stuff picked up, keep the dishes done, do a load of laundry. Wash the Subaru for the Santa Cruz on Sunday (in and out). Unload the Hilux (it still has stuff in it from our last trip in the back) and vacuum it out.

Monday, the 21st- Wash all sheets/blankets in the house again. Work on organizing Nic's table and clearing off at least half of it to eat on for when Mom gets here. Keep dishes done.

Tuesday, the 22nd- Work on Nic's table again (I have a feeling it will be a multi-day task). Once that is completed, start working on the study (organizing and putting away Nic's stuff and my paperwork). Make enough room for the air matresses for when Cris and Tony come. Clear off the desk. Reorganize the wardrobe and closet. Do a load of laundry, keep the dishes done.

Wednesday, the 23rd- Work on the study again. Do a load of laundry, keep the dishes done. Wash the couch covers.

Thursday, the 24th- Do a quick pick up of anything that is still out, sweep the floors, wipe down the countertops in the kitchen. Finish washing the couch covers. Dust the bedrooms, vacuum the floors again. Do a load of laundry, keep the dishes done.

Friday, the 25th- Enjoy the day with Nic and Mom! Woo hoo!

I think that's doable. Here's hoping I can stick to it!!!

I Love Holidays :)

I'm having a good day today. I got up to have cereal with Nic this morning and haven't crashed yet... so maybe I'll have some energy today! I think part of it is that I'm super excited now about the holidays.

I was somewhat missing my Christmas spirit earlier this month (I think I wrote a post about it... I dunno) but now it's back! While we still aren't really decorating for Christmas or doing anything Christmas like in particular other than dinner, I'm still excited to get to spend the holidays with some of the people I love most!

My mom gets here Christmas day which has me really excited. I also found out today that Nic gets both the 25th and the 28th off for Christmas, so we'll get to spend 4 whole days with him! That completely made my day! THEN, what's even more awesome, is that he will go back to work for the 29th, 30th, and 31st... and then he has the 1st and 4th off! ANOTHER 4 day weekend! SCORE! Can you tell I'm excited?! Hooray for Holidays!

So, as usual... here's the TENTATIVE plans (and I really mean it this time since we don't know when baby bug will get here) for the next month or so...

December 10th- Nic goes to London :(
December 11th- Nic comes home from London :) and Jen has breastfeeding class.
December 12th- Aberdeen Scoobies Santa Cruise Shopping Trip & hopefully Nic gets a haircut.
December 18th- Nic's simulator is delivered, and he goes to his office Christmas Party
December 20th- Santa Cruise :)
December 22nd- Midwife appointment at 12:15
December 24th- Christmas Eve & Mom starts her journey over!!!
December 25th- Christmas! Cris' Birthday! Mom gets here! Nic has the day off! WOO HOO!
December 26th- Boxing Day!
December 28th- Nic has the day off and I'm considered FULL TERM! YAY!
December 29th- Appointments
December 31st- New Years Eve- go see the fire balls in Stonehaven :)
January 1st- New Years! Nic has the day off!
January 4th- Nic has the day off! Bob should get back to Aberdeen!
January 5th- Midwife appointment
January 7th- Nic has physiotherapy for his knees.
January 8th- Our 5th Wedding Anniversary! WOO HOO!
January 9th- Edith's Birthday!
January 16th- Cris and Tony get here!
January 17th- OUR BABY IS DUE!!! (Fugro's office party- we won't be going...)
January 20th- 3 year anniversary of my Dad's passing :(
January 26th- Nic's Birthday!!
January 30th- Cris and Tony go home

Whew... Somewhere in there we've got to get this house in shape! Maybe I spoke too soon about not needing a nap ;)

Nap Time!

It doesn't matter what time of day it is... whether it is 7 am or 3:30 in the afternoon. It's always nap time. I have NO energy whatsoever. It's like my body has decided that it wants to relive the memories of the first trimester. Seeing as how I love naps, you think I'd be ok with this trip down memory lane... but I actually have the desire to get stuff done before the baby gets here. I want to have a clean, organized house and I would love to have everything decorated and nicely stored away. I would like to read another book, or maybe exercise more often. However, I don't even have to move a muscle in order to wear myself out. I actually wake up sleepy.

People keep telling me that I'll get an energy burst before the baby is born so that I can get some last minute stuff in... I sure hope so! There's a ton that has built up while I've been sleeping!

What is great is that my Momma is coming to help me! Woo hoo! I feel bad for leaving so much for her to do and for letting her see my house this way (I don't like to let anyone see my house even slightly messy... it really pushes me over the edge!) but I honestly don't have the energy to do anything about it. She's coming on Christmas Day (YAY!) and is staying until the middle of March! I'm so pleased with that, it is going to be so nice to have her around to help with the baby/house. Now I just have to convince this baby to stay in there until after we're ready.

We had our 34 week midwife appointment yesterday and everything still looks great. I'm still measuring a week ahead, but other than that, everything is on target. The heartbeat was good, the baby is still moving around well, and the baby is growing like a weed. He/she still is in the correct position (head down) and has moved down a little bit. This is fine, it just means the baby is getting ready to make an entrance sometime in the future and that it is able to headbutt my pelvic bone whenever I move into a position it doesn't like. I will say that I am so very glad that my baby is hanging in there, growing and getting stronger by the minute. I will also say that sometimes I think the baby does things JUST to cause me pain... it even follows up those activities by sticking its little booty out at me (usually followed by a punch in the bladder). I've apologized for not providing enough entertainment (what... you wanted cable in there?! sorry!), for running short on space, and for serving the baby something that isn't on its "favorites" menu. I really feel the punishment that I receive is a little extreme sometimes though.

Nic actually laughed at me today because I had asked him to hand me my sudoku book and when he did the pencil fell out. I tried to bend over to pick it up and when it was out of reach, I just gave up and started looking for something else to do. He thinks it is kind of funny that everything is so hard for me now... what is funny about that, I don't know. I honestly plan on renting him one of the pregnancy suits one day and making him wear it for a week or so. We'll see who is laughing then!

Wow, I sound mean. I don't mean to. I really do enjoy being pregnant... it is such an amazing process and I love the little kicks and hiccups. I love having the baby all to myself and watching it roll and move around. I'm just really looking forward to meeting the baby and getting my body back.

Dropping Babies

I think maybe the baby has dropped in the past day or so... I can certainly breathe a lot easier and the baby seems a lot lower than it has been in the past few months or so. I'm not positive, as it could just be positioned differently (the baby has been head down for the last two months or so, but this morning I was feeling kicks on my side, so maybe it's just turned sideways?). I've never done this before, so who knows.

I'm so excited about the baby though and it's getting more and more difficult to contain myself about it. A few friends have had their babies recently (that were due about the same time as me) and I can't help but think that that's what my baby looks like inside me. Then it dawns on me... HOLY cow, there's a real baby in there. Not a pretend one that I've always dreamed of, a REAL one. A big real one. The baby is supposed to be 16.7 inches long and 3.75 pounds right about now (according to Babycenter). That's pretty big.

We went out with some of Nic's work buddies on Saturday for some pub golf (I didn't participate obviously) and everyone seemed to have a different opinion about the baby. I think more people thought it would be a boy than a girl, but we'll see. One of the guys said that he was really good at guessing when babies would be born and he thought I'd have it around Christmas. You know, I've always been fairly sure that I'd carry full term (not sure why...) but this whole having the baby early way of thinking has me a little concerned. What if I DO have the baby early? Two days after Christmas I'll be 37 weeks, which is considered to be full term. That's when the baby's lungs should be fully developed and it begins to really focus just on gaining weight etc. I would be ok with that I guess, although I'd prefer to have the baby stay the full 40 weeks, just for good measure. So, then I began to think about how soon that is... I'll be 37 weeks in just 4 1/2 more weeks! My baby's lungs will be ready in 4 1/2 weeks. How crazy is that?! This whole pregnancy has flown by. Sometimes it seemed like it would never be over, but looking back, holy cow, it's been a super fast 8 months. I only have 7 1/2 weeks until my due date! Wow!

I feel ready to have this baby. The only thing that has me unsettled is that my house isn't as clean as I'd like it to be. I do pick up, I do the laundry and the dishes, etc... but it just doesn't feel CLEAN like my Mom's house does. I know this has to do with my disliking of dusting (I'll admit, I don't do it as often as I should) or the fact that my floors are lint/dirt magnates. That, and it feels cluttered to me. We have a lot of stuff... and I keep looking around thinking about how in 6 or 7 months we're going to have our hands full trying to keep the baby out of everything! That leads me to my next thought... as much as I love wood flooring, I don't think it's the most baby friendly flooring in the world. It makes me miss our old house, simply because it had nice new squishy carpet.

To be honest, I miss the U.S. in general. I've been really homesick lately. I'm not sure if it's just because the option of flying home is now out of the question (I'm too far along according to the airlines) or if it's my huge desire to be closer to friends and family or what... but I do miss home. I know Nic does too. We talk about going home quite often. We ask each other what we miss the most and what we think we'll miss about living here when we do decide to go back. We have this sort of conversation probably once a week or so.

Nic is being so cute lately. He rubs my belly as he's going to sleep and has been asking loads of questions about how we are going to parent (ie: "How close do you think is too close to the TV?", "What age are you going to let our kid play Halo with us?", "Do you think we should ship over my old tricycle?", "Are you singing to the baby during the day? Make sure you diversify... I want it to know more than just Ani songs" lol...). I love it. The other day, he even offered to eat more veggies so that I wasn't the only one eating them at dinner time (for those of you who don't really know Nic that well...he only likes three vegetables really- Okra (fried), potatoes, and corn). He asks me on a daily basis whether or not I'm drinking enough water, and if I've taken my vitamins. It's rather cute and I love seeing this side of him. Oh, did I mention, he's already started in asking for parts for the mini robot that would match his? Yeah. I told him we could wait on that one! Lol.

Anyway, I'm off to take a cat nap before I do my afternoon clean up of the house!

Gestational Diabetes

I thought I'd update you all on my recent trip to the maternity hospital for my second glucose screening.

I left the house (starving!) at 7:40 for my 8:35 appointment hoping that I had left myself enough time to get there (it's about a ten minute drive without traffic) and then started to worry a bit when I went all of a mile in half an hour. I did manage to get there on time, but only just. The ladies there were absolutely wonderful and the lady that took all my blood samples was a superstar. You can't even see any holes or anything so I don't look like a pregnant crackhead (like the other time I had my blood taken by the midwife in training... that was bad!). They offered to let me watch tv, which I refused because I had brought my new book with me. The whole test went rather well... they even let me have the lemon lime stuff instead of the horrible orange that everyone kept warning me about. It didn't exactly taste good by any means (think two packages of kool-aid with enough water to make half of one package) but it wasn't THAT bad. I will say I'm glad it wasn't the orange kind, but that's a personal preference, as I don't usually like orange flavored stuff. Anyway- the end of the test was the best part! They brought me decaf tea and two slices of toast! They said they didn't want me to get light headed or anything on my way home... how sweet is that?! I was very grateful, as by that time it was 11:30 and I was really really hungry.

They told me that they would call me if my scores were high again (meaning I had GD), otherwise I'd get a letter in the mail with my scores... so no news is good news.

Well, I got a phone call today... but I DON'T have Gestational Diabetes. They had forgotten about the Royal Mail strike/problems going on right now and didn't want me to worry about my scores so they thought they'd call as well as send my letter. My scores were absolutely perfect, exactly in the middle of the range they prefer. I'm so happy! Seeing the number on my phone scared me quite a bit, I assumed she'd be telling me I did have it after all and it wasn't just the orange juice... so I was pleasantly surprised when she said she had good news!

Hooray!

Busy Body

Well... Life has officially started to become busier here in the Alvarado household. It's amazing how much stuff we are trying to pack in to such a short amount of time. Somehow, I think we'll make it work and get everything done. I've been proud of myself this week, I've managed to keep afloat regardless of all the stuff that's been happening. We've had quite a bit of emotional turmoil this past couple of weeks (not Nic and I, just other stuff that I don't think is blog material) and somehow we've managed to keep the house picked up, get the septic tank emptied, go to the midwife, and spend some quality time together. I'm proud of the teamwork that my hubby and I have going on... I'm proud of us in general. I have to take a second and be a sappy pregnant woman- I adore my husband. Even though he's super messy and has the attention span of a 5 year old most of the time, he makes me incredibly happy. He knows just the right things to say most of the time and can make me laugh when I feel like my world is falling apart. He is my absolute favorite person and I am so thankful to share every day with him. I swoon. Ok, enough of that.

My midwife appointment went rather well last week. I am measuring a week ahead (I was measuring 29 weeks at 28) but that's normal, or so I'm told. Maureen (my midwife) said that anything within a two week period is normal, as babies have growth spurts and most of the time it will even out. Even if the baby is a week ahead, that's perfectly fine, as I'd rather be ahead of the game as far as development is concerned than behind. The heartbeat sounded good as well. However... my blood results came back and my sugar was a little high (normal is a 7, mine was a 7.8- Not THAT bad...). Anything above normal requires extra testing, which means I'm heading to the hospital tomorrow for a three hour glucose test to make sure I don't have gestational diabetes. I'm pretty sure I don't and that the spike in my blood sugars from last week was due to the fact that I had forgotten to pee in my little cup before the appointment (I had already gone twice that morning!) so I panicked and downed 16 oz of orange juice before I left for the appointment hoping that it would help me find the urge to go (nope... I did REALLY need to go afterwards though lol). Orange juice has a lot of sugar in it and I know my body didn't have time to break down the sugars before she drew my blood. At least that's what I'm hoping.

I'm not really looking forward to the test though... it requires me to spend 3 hours in the hospital without food. In fact, I have to fast from midnight tonight and won't get anything to eat until nearly noon tomorrow... that doesn't bode well for me since the longest I could hold out today without feeling famished was 9:30 this morning. I've bought myself a Jodi Piccoult book to pass the time quickly hopefully, and will be bringing my ipod and sudoku book as well. I'm hungry just thinking about the test though. Oh, did I mention- I also have to drink this super sugar drink while I'm there? I've heard horror stories about that drink and was happy thinking that I was going to get to avoid it last week. Oh well. At least I don't have a phobia or disliking of needles necessarily, so the 4 vials of blood they'll draw won't be a problem. Nic isn't going with me this time... I don't blame him. I wouldn't want to sit for 3 hours if I didn't have to and his slight phobia of needles would make the whole process really uncomfy for him I'm sure. He stands on the opposite side of the room when I get my blood drawn for the midwife appointments (and she only takes one or two!).

Anyways... we start going to our labor classes next week. I'm kind of excited about them but at the same time, I wish we could get them all over with at once instead of in installments... it seems like a waste of time sort of to have them spread out like that.

Here's our tentative schedule for the upcoming classes/events:

~Nov 7th- My sister's birthday! (Happy Birthday Raime!)
~Nov 10th- Coping with Labor class
~Nov 14th- Nic's sister's birthday! (Happy Birthday Karin!) and Laura's Virgin Vie ( like Mary Kay) party
~Nov 17th- Midwife Appointment and then Coping with Labor (part 2) class
~Nov 20th- Aberdeen Scoobies Quiz Night (my event!)
~Nov 21st- Fugro Pub Golf Night
~Nov 29th- My birthday!
~Dec 1st- Preparing for Labor class
~Dec 8th- Midwife Appointment
~Dec 11th- Breastfeeding class
~Dec 17th- Coping Strategies for Labor
~Dec 22nd- Midwife Appointment
~Dec 25th- Christmas! Nic's mom's birthday! (Happy birthday Cris!)
~Jan 1st- New Years!
~Jan 5th- Midwife Appointment
~Jan 8th- Our 5th Wedding Anniversary (I love you honey!)
~Jan 17th- Our Baby is DUE!!!
~Jan 26th- Nic's birthday! (Happy birthday honey!)

Between now and Nic's birthday, there is a lot going on... but there is also a lot of little things to do to get ready for the baby! I still need to get my Mom's flights sorted out, get a few last minute things for the baby (like a changing table that fits on top of the crib for example), finish planning the rest of the quiz night, do some stuff for Deeptrek, get Nic's diving certification sorted, as well as some other odds and ends. It's going to be a busy time but I'm so very excited for the outcome!

I can't wait to hold our baby!

Oh Christmas Tree...

Why do I have a Christmas carol stuck in my head? Why do I keep dreaming about Christmas time and decorations? Why am I panicking about the possible Royal Mail strike (and therefore the possible delay of my Christmas cards arrival to their final destinations)? What is my obsession with Christmas this year?!

Is it perhaps that we aren't really planning on celebrating as usual this year? Who knows. All I know is that on Christmas day, I will be nearly 37 weeks pregnant and probably in no mood to decorate anything unless it is my baby's nursery. Nic and I had decided that we would forgo the hubbub this year to save money, time and effort since it will be just he and I here anyway. That seems sensible. However... I still have a little guilt that we won't even have a tree or anything up. I have a little Scottish Santa that resides on my fireplace (yes... year round. He's cute.) but that will be about it as far as decorations go. I am quite aware that it won't really feel like Christmas. Especially without all the usual yummy Christmas foods. I'm not sure what we'll have that day, but I doubt it will be the feast that everyone thinks of. Will I even want to eat a big meal then? I barely have room for food now, I can't imagine how squished my stomach will be in 9 more weeks (Holy cow! Is it really that soon?!).

I'm thinking, maybe Nick and I should do something that will focus on us this year, since this is our last Christmas as just us. I just don't know what that may entail. On top of that... I need to think of something for our 5th Wedding Anniversary (the 8th of January). I will be 38 1/2 weeks then... oh how fun. I don't see us doing anything wild and crazy, that's for sure. The traditional gift for the 5th anniversary is wood. I wonder if the crib counts. LOL.

Does anyone have any ideas about how to get in the festive spirit when you are really pregnant? I'm all out of ideas.

What's in a Name?

I'm a planner. I've always been a planner. I'm pretty sure that I'll always be a planner. Because of this, Nic and I picked out names for our kids (one boy name and one girl name) YEARS ago. I mean, we had them picked out when we were engaged to be married. Some people think this is a little odd, but it's always been a little comforting for me. We've been happy with our choices, and still are, and didn't really question the fact that we would name our child one of our pre-chosen names.

Until now.

The only name that is up for debate is the name we had picked out for a girl. What is strange I guess is that neither of us are unhappy with the original choice. In fact, if our baby is a girl and the next child we have is also a girl, we are planning on using both of the names we have selected. The dilemma I guess, is which name to use first. We've kind of decided to wait until the delivery day, and IF it is a girl, see which name seems to suit her more.

I'm still getting used to the idea of not fully having everything planned out... as there are a lot of things still unknown in the birth of our child. I have a birth plan (of course...) to have the baby naturally and I am really hoping for a water birth. However, there is only one pool available and if some other lucky Momma is in it, it's not an option for me. So, the question is... what happens then? I still plan on having the baby naturally but I do have to admit, it does make me a little anxious since the water is supposed to be my pain reliever of sorts. I'm sure it'll be fine either way, billions of women have done it before me and will do it after me.

Then there's the plan of when the grandparents will get here... Cris and Tony are thinking about coming from the 20th to the 30th and I think Mom is going to be here from the 10th to the 31st. My only concern I guess is that what if the baby is earlier than that? While it would be nice to have some alone time with just our little family, I really want my Momma to be here to help out, I know we'll probably need it!

Today I was looking through one of the pregnancy boards that I read and some of the ladies were posting pictures of what outfits they had picked out for their babies to wear home from the hospital. I have no clue what our baby will be wearing yet. It's not because I don't want to pick something out, or haven't thought about it... it's simply that I don't know which color the outfit should be. I'm happy about the surprise, don't get me wrong... I really think that will help me out in the end (especially if someone is in my pool!) and am really looking forward to hearing my husband announce what the sex of the baby is. However, the planner inside me is screaming bloody murder because I can't plan what outfit our child will be wearing home. YES, the baby could wear something that it has in its closet (the baby already has a healthy selection of clothes), but it won't be sex specific and I'm not sure if that's ok (the planner inside me says no).

Another thing is the art in the baby's room. I plan on putting our baby's name on the wall above the crib (or at least their initials), but I can't do that until afterwards. We don't even know which name we are using, how would we know what letters to put up?! Can you tell I'm a little anxious for the arrival of our little one? I just can't wait to see who is in there, and what they look like, and be able to share that with the ones I love. I'm so excited about this child, and I am just becoming a little impatient.

On the opposite side of the table... I would like my baby to stay inside for as long as it needs to. I want to ensure that everything possible is done to make sure we have a happy healthy little one and that it is "fully cooked". I'm pleased to say that our baby is viable now, and that if I were to go into labor it would most likely survive (it's something like 90% viability at 27 weeks), but I wouldn't want my baby to have to struggle to breathe or have to stay in the NICU for any period of time. I'm really hoping to walk out of the hospital the same day with my baby. Actually, if all goes as planned (meaning, I have the baby naturally, without drugs and any problems) we'll hopefully leave the hospital a mere 3-4 hours afterward. I would LOVE that! I think we'll be much more comfortable at home and that I'd be able to rest easier that way.

Ok. I'm off to take a quick nap before I head off to the grocery store. We are going to dinner tonight with Bob and Roger, as well as a couple VP's of a company that we are hoping to get some equipment from. Tomorrow we are all heading to the west coast of Scotland to do a little survey work and then we'll hopefully be back tomorrow night... if not, Sunday.

Cribs, Bedding and Bellies... Oh my!

Here's a picture of our baby's crib for your viewing pleasure. I love it and can't wait to see our little one in it! I love the height, simply because you don't need to drop the side down to get the baby in/out easily which definitely helps when they are sound asleep. This picture was taken before we moved some furniture around, so ignore the chairs and such around it :)


And here is a picture of the bedding set that we are getting... it's being shipped to my Mom's house, so it'll be a little while (like right before the baby comes) before it gets here. It comes with the three wall hangings, the curtains, the mobile, blanket, crib sheets, diaper holder and dust ruffle. I am going to add some teal colored accessories to the room (including the brown and teal blanket that my Momma is crocheting!). So exciting!
Wow, I'm getting big! This is me at 26 weeks... I have no idea how big I'm going to get in the next 14 weeks, but if my growth so far is any indication I'm guessing HUGE! I might just get to the point where I'm wider than I am tall...


I ordered my glider and car seat today and am super excited to get those... hopefully they'll come this week sometime! I can't wait! Once they get here, I'll take a picture of the glider/stool and the stroller/car seat. I am really starting to feel prepared and can't wait for the baby to get here (at the full 40 weeks of course).

Oh- also, I've added a list of the blogs I read on a regular basis (except the ones that are set to private and the ones that I only check occasionally). Check them out if you'd like and/or are bored. They keep me entertained to say the least.

Num Num Num!

I'm an eating machine lately. I want to eat EVERYTHING (except cow of course... I haven't quite lost my disliking for red meat). I especially want to eat apples, cheese and crackers. Together. MMM.... so good. To be honest, I just finished off a plate of that exact thing. Two apples, 10 cheese slices, and 10 crackers later I'm one happy camper.

This, however, has lead me to gain a little weight... so now my weight gain for the pregnancy is up to 12 pounds so far (I'm at week 24)... so while I'm not doing too bad I do need to curb it a bit I think. This concern only comes from the fact that I only had gained a whopping 3 pounds or so up until a month ago. Yes. I have gained 9-10 pounds in the last month. No, I don't plan to continue at that rate. At least I hope not. The baby, however, would like me to gain 10 pounds a week I think. Baby bug is a hungry hungry hippo that wants me to eat ALL THE TIME... but in semi-small quantities. If I eat too much I do get massive objections from my little karate star in there. Usually this means I'm being kicked repetitively in the bladder, or punched in the stomach... whichever it prefers that day.

I'm more and more entertained by this little person growing inside me... I think he/she has got quite the sense of humor already and I'm starting to love its little personality. The baby will play games with me now, as in- when I poke my belly it will kick back. It isn't afraid to show when it is displeased with something (like the fact that I'm trying to bend over and inadvertently squishing it or when the midwife is poking it with the fetal doppler to find its heartbeat) by kicking the crap out of whatever is pushing on it. The baby also likes to play a game where whenever someone else tries to feel it move (like Daddy for example), it will immediately stop moving until they move their hand away. This game that the baby plays is a little frustrating, but at the same time kind of funny. It's like the baby is listening in to our conversations and can hear when I say "ooh, I think you'll be able to feel it... put your hand here". It's like a game of freeze tag. The other day I was giving it love pats (a tradition in my family... we're rockers and patters) and every time I'd stop the baby would kick like crazy until I started again... then would be still until I stopped again. It was too cute.

I can't wait to meet our little baby and really get to know him or her. I'm so excited!

Windblown and Sunburnt...

We're in Wales again finally... we got here last Friday after spending Thursday night in Liverpool at Jay's Mom's house. We got unpacked and settled in somewhat and were looking forward to getting starting on getting some serious work done. Then Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday it was a weather nightmare. The rain was heavy then light, but always around and the wind was at hurricane force. It was to the point where you had to walk at a 15 degree angle to get anywhere you wanted to go or else risk being picked up or blown over by the wind. Ridiculous. Thankfully the weather lightened up and was STUNNING yesterday... it was perfect. The sun was shining the whole day and the wind was just a breeze now and then. Some of the guys actually got to go out yesterday and get some diving time in (Bob, Jay and Warwick) and somehow Bob managed to use up 4 tanks! Nic and I spent the day working on one of the other RIBs but got so much done it's not even funny. We installed the other camera/light, made a removable table for the comms box, Nic re-wired the umbilical and I re-wrapped it, we got storage for the unorganized gear room, and tied up a few more odds and ends. I ended up a bit red, I think from the sun yesterday but it could be a bit from the wind the past few days as well.... who knows. We were proud of our productivity considering the day before we had worked all day and hadn't gone to bed until 1:30. Poor Nic was exhausted since he has to get up at 4:30 every morning to go with Bob to check the swells on the site to see if it is ok to dive that day. We've been going non-stop since we got here, despite the weather. Actually, I think we are actually busier when we have bad weather since we are trying to get everything done and then make up for lost time when we actually can get in the water.

I'm a little bummed that I'm not going on the boat this trip. I'm used to being out there with the guys and it's really strange to not be able to suit up and get out there. The water is just too rough though and I don't think it's worth the risk to the baby to be out there. Hey... next trip is either the Bahamas or the Keys in our new yacht though, so I'm pleased enough knowing that is one trip I won't have to miss :) Things are happening and I'm so excited about them. I can't post anything here, because nothing is finalized and we still need to secure some stuff first... but I can't wait!

The baby has been kicking up a storm lately (more so than usual) and I love it! I look at the new ultrasound pictures every night and can't help but fall more and more in love with our sweet baby. I can't wait to see what the next 18 1/2 weeks brings and meet the baby!

OH! I just realized I haven't written about the ultrasound yet! Sorry! We went to the ultrasound on Thursday morning, right before we left for the trip. We got to spend about half an hour watching the baby yawn, stretch, and do somersaults. It was really clear and we could see all the little details (except the sex which we were glad of!) like the eyes (you'll see in the picture...), all ten fingers and toes, the organs, it's skull and spine, and just how freaking cute its little profile is. Everything looks great and is right on target which was fantastic news. It's so comforting to see that! We got a really good look at the baby's heart, which was pumping so rhythmically and efficiently... we even got to see the way the blood flowed through it (it would color incoming blood blue and outgoing blood red... so we got to see how its heart actually was working- AMAZING!). It is absolutely indescribable the feeling that you get watching your baby like that.

Anyway... Here's the pictures from the ultrasound so that you can see for yourself.
This one shows the baby as it does a somersault. You can see the spine really well and the head on the right. You can also see a leg on the left.

Here's our sweet baby. I love this one, it is a great view of the baby's profile. So adorable!

This is actually both of the baby's feet. You can see the heel of one on the left and then the sole of the other one on the right. The baby had its legs crossed most of the time... just relaxing and trying to take a nap.

Here is a blurry picture of the baby's profile. It was laying perfectly still until the tech tried to take this picture and then it moved a bit, so it's a little smeared. You can see an ear and part of it's face (the smudge makes it look like a monkey!). You can also see the little arm and hand in this one, it's rubbing it's neck or something...

Here's the last one... but one of my favorites. The baby is looking straight at the camera and you can see it's eyes and skull shape, as well as both of the hands and it's belly. So amazing. This is right before the baby let out a HUGE yawn and tried to push against the walls to get some more room. I'm SO in love!

Meh...

I have a lot to do this week but am seriously lacking the motivation to do any of it.

Here's my to do list so far:

1. Clean the house! - We are going to be in Wales for a while and would hate for the house to be dirty when we get back... that and the landlord has a habit of doing inspections when we are on holiday. I need to do a quick clean of the kitchen (I did most of it this weekend), thoroughly clean the living room/dining room, pick up the study, vacuum the carpets all over, put the clean clothes away in our bedroom, and clean the bathrooms (I did the toilets this weekend, but the rest still need done). Whew.

2. Mow the yard. This would be easier if it wasn't raining this week. I've been ready to do this a few times and then couldn't because it was too wet.

3. Pack for the trip- I need to get Nic and I packed for however long we'll be there. We need both cold and warm clothes, swimming gear (which I have NONE for me that fits now), our dry suits, all of the Deeptrek gear that we have at the house, and all my preggo stuff (like prenatals, pillows, blanket making stuff, etc).

4. Finish up doing the laundry- This won't be hard... I have one load to go and then I'm caught up completely, including the sheets and blankets in the house.

5. Get insurance for the cars and the hilux... this is proving to be really difficult actually for some reason. I've been working on this all week and have got nowhere. It's really frustrating.

6. Finish fixing the Hilux and RIB- The parts for the RIB still haven't come in yet, so that we are just waiting on... but it needs to be done before Thursday. The Hilux is currently in the shop getting repaired, but we'll see if it gets done in time.

7. Go to dinner/movie with Nic, Bob, Jacqui, Mike, Jenny, Stavros and Fiona- this doesn't really need any preparation, it just takes one night of time (Tuesday).

I'm sure there is other stuff I'm forgetting, but that's all I can think of at the moment. Let's see... it's 2:30 on Monday and we leave (hopefully) at like lunchtime on Thursday (after the ultrasound!). So I have a little less than 3 days to get it all done.

Here's hoping I find the motivation needed to get my booty in gear.

I figured I'd throw in a picture as well for those of you who aren't on Facebook so you can see the bump (although Papa thinks I'm past the "bump" phase and onto the "mound" since I'm big... lol).

The Halfway Point

Yay! I'm halfway there... I'm 20 weeks pregnant today and I'm so happy.

I had this whole blog planned out last night while I was up rocking myself trying to get my back to stop hurting, but I've forgotten most of what I was going to say. Chalk up another one to pregnancy brain. I was laughing at myself the other day because I had gone to visit people at work and couldn't for the life of me remember what I did with my phone. I was going to call Nic to tell him I was on my way over there (I drove the car to the park and ride, then rode the bus in) and knew that I had the phone in my hand right before I left the house. I figured I had left it in the car and didn't worry about it too much. Then, after my visit and lunch I headed back home so that I could go to the grocery store... and found out that my phone was not in the car. So I drove home and tried to retrace my steps. I found my phone (yes... my mobile) on the phone charger for the house phone. The house phone was right beside it... waiting patiently for it's turn. Why I put it there, I don't know. This isn't the first stupid thing I've done (I've put my keys in the fridge, washed NUMEROUS loads of laundry without remembering to put the soap in, tried to cook things without turning the oven on, called people then forgetting why I called... etc). Hopefully my mind will come back eventually.

I was just reminded of one of the things I was going to talk about... the lovely back pain associated with pregnancy. Oh my gosh. I've hurt my back before, back in high school. I had to go get massages/see a chiropractor/got horrible migraines/had a physical therapist that worked with me etc... and all I can say is that pain was nothing compared to this. It's almost as if my bones and muscles have decided they don't want to be friends anymore and now refuse to work together. For the last week and a half now, I've been averaging all of 2 hours of sleep per night. Yes... TWO. It's annoying to no end. What's crazy is that I'm less upset about the lack of sleep as I am about the freaking annoying backache that just won't quit. It doesn't matter what I'm doing... I can be sitting, standing, stretching, laying down... it doesn't matter. It's there. Sometimes I can ignore it and it's ok. Then other times it's so bad that I'm nauseous and want to cry. Nick has been laughing at me a little bit because when it starts to hurt I begin to rock myself from side to side or in a circular motion because sometimes that keeps it at the annoying stage. Probably 85% of my day is spent this way... rocking. I don't even realize that I'm doing it anymore and will look over at him and he'll be doing it too so I notice. I talked to my mom about it... apparently she had the same problem because as soon as I said my back was hurting she instantly started in with the "oh, honey... I'm so sorry. I know what you mean" talk. She recommended getting one of the pregnancy back support things so I've ordered it and am not so patiently waiting its delivery. I'm praying it will get here before we leave for Wales on Thursday.

Our 20 week ultrasound is on Thursday and I'm so excited! I can't wait to see the baby again... it's something that I'm really looking forward to. Since we've decided not to find out the sex, this will be our last ultrasound so I'm hoping the lady is a little slower this time and we get a really good look. I'm also hoping that our baby measures up ok and that everything is fine in there. The doppler that we bought really has helped me to relax quite a bit because I can check at home (even though I don't really need to anymore since the baby kicks to let me know that it's alive in there). I just can't wait to see it's little face again and watch it moving around in there. I thought I might second guess myself about finding out the sex but I'm not at all. I really am excited about waiting now.

I don't remember what else I was going to write about... but if I remember I'll come back and post it.

U.S. Healthcare Reform

Normally I stick to writing about things that are happening in my day to day life and leave politics and religion and everything else out of my blog. However... I'm SO irritated with my home country and their refusal to change (when only months ago they were shouting for it!) that I'm going to rant a little bit.

I've seen numerous posts on facebook and news channel websites, watched videos from CNN and political sites, and listened to people explain why government run healthcare will be the downfall of the U.S. and how that makes Obama a Socialist. Blah Blah Blah. Is anyone actually listening to what they are saying? Are Americans doing research on the statistics for the uninsured/high risk individuals that are still (gasp!) American... and therefore just as deserving of proper medical attention as anyone else that can actually afford the high cost of health care in the U.S.?! If you, for even one second, are serious in your allegations that the change will have a negative affect on the U.S., I DARE you to go and sit in an Emergency Room for an hour. Just go sit in there and look around. You'll see families that are worried sick, not just because someone they love is injured, but because they know the bills for the visit will eat a large amount of their annual salary and they probably aren't able to afford the necessary visit. Take for example when Nick was sick a few years ago. It was a Friday night and our doctor's office wasn't going to be open until Tuesday because the Monday was a public holiday. We did not have insurance (we were both full time students and all our income from our jobs went toward our bills and my tuition). His fever was so high that he was beginning to get emotional (which is VERY rare for him) and was talking crazy talk. He was losing it. So we tried treating him at home with over the counter meds and cold baths to get his fever down. That didn't work. So we hesitantly went to the ER. Two hours later, he was feeling better and his fever was under control... and our pockets were SEVERELY drained. I'm talking $4,237 drained. Did we have that kind of money? Hell no.

I did a lot of volunteer work for the then Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation (now Susan G. Komen for the Cure) when I lived in the States. I have seen with my own eyes women who cannot afford health insurance and couldn't afford to go to the ER or a clinic but had Breast Cancer in the late stages. I have seen a woman with tumors so bad that her breasts looked like they were actually falling off. It's the most graphic thing I've ever seen and it kills me to know that no one was willing to do anything about it. It kills me to know that if the U.S. had a system like the one here, in Scotland, she would have been seen and treated without hesitation. Or what about the kids that don't get taken to the doctor as often as they should because their parents don't make enough to pay for insurance for them? I don't want to hear about the CHIPs program or the other little programs that the US is currently offering to help sort this problem out. They are lame attempts to cover up a system that is failing miserably.

I then think about my Mom and Dad... both had cancer. My mom has insurance... always has. They pay a ton for their insurance each year and their premiums on top of that. When she was undergoing treatment for her breast cancer, she reached a "cap" for what her insurance would cover. What?! Isn't that what you pay for insurance for? So that when you need it... it will pay for your treatments? The rest of her treatments and medications had to be paid out of pocket. She's not awake yet or I would call her and confirm the ungodly amount that she had to pay (and I believe is still paying 5 years later...) out of pocket. Dad was the same... but he didn't live through his treatments and so the life insurance that he had went to paying off the hospital bills- not to his kids or widow. It's a good thing he had life insurance though, or I'd be the one paying still. Talk about kicking someone when they are down. If you are sick, they charge you exorbitant amounts of money for treatments that you cannot live without.

Ok... so let's talk about this "Crazy" or "Socialist" healthcare system that seems so wrong to so many people who simply don't get it. I've experienced both systems... and I have to say that I definitely prefer the National Healthcare System that they have here in Scotland to the private system that we have at home. I can tell you honestly, that 7.5% of my income here went to National Insurance. Nick, who is in a much higher tax bracket than I am pays 9.5%. That's it. I don't have to pay anything for private insurance (but can if I would like to...), I don't have to pay any premiums, when I go to the doctor or my midwife I walk straight out without paying a penny afterwards. My prescriptions are ALL only 5 pounds. Actually... now that I am pregnant they are free (and will be for all of this year and next year). Regardless of what it is that I take, it's 5 pounds. I told this to my Grandmother and she nearly had a heart attack. She pays HUNDREDS on top of what medicare pays for her monthly prescriptions. There have been months for her where it determines what they have for dinner... because it's either pay for their pills that day or have a steak. My grandparents have worked HARD all their lives, and this is how we repay them? My grandfather served his country in war bravely... and this is how we repay him? By letting him struggle to pay for his medications? It's ridiculous and it pains me to no end to see that. I am fine with paying a percentage of my income so that everyone here can see the doctor and not worry about whether or not they can afford it. I think it's my duty to take care of those around me... that may be because I'm Christian, but I would like to think that it's because I'm a decent human being that deserves the same treatment as everyone else (whether they are rich/poor/old/young or whatever!). Who are we to deny people the right to medical attention because they cannot afford it?! Come on people... it's time to get over ourselves and realize that it won't be long until no one can afford or even qualify for insurance anymore. Once you can't afford to go to the doctor, you'll see how important health care is and what you are willing to pay to make sure everyone gets an equal shot at it.

I read a lot of blogs and news sites (I don't like to watch the news... I'd rather read it) and I think what got me going today was one of the blogs I read (Jon's Blog) was responded to by the White House. I think it's great that the government is finally listening to their constituents and are actually providing information for the public- even if it's not in their favor. There are two links that are provided by the white house in that post that are pretty interesting. Please also read this: Ebert Ropert Blog ESPECIALLY if you are a conservative (I'm kind of in the middle to be honest...).

I am thankful that we live here right now. One, because it's a beautiful country and I'm happy here. Two, because I probably couldn't afford to stay at home during my pregnancy at home. Three, because we probably STILL wouldn't have insurance because of how much it costs at home and would be severely out of pocket for this baby. The medical system here has relieved a TON of stress from me personally and I am VERY happy with the treatment I've received here. I've always received doctors appointments the same day I call (with the exception of Nick's knee... which is a specialist). I can ask anything I need to and they don't reprimand me and say that I need a different appointment for that since it has nothing to do with what I came in for. The hospital/midwife center where I will give birth has many options (like a birth pool) that I wouldn't get at home unless I went to a specific hospital. I can't say enough good things about the system here...

I know it isn't perfect. The dental system here needs a TON of work, as does the specialist care. However, for the general needs of the public it's nice to know that it's available to everyone.

I'm off my soapbox because I have stuff to do... but I'm still riled up about it and I'm sure I'll talk about it again.

150 days to go... 150 days.

Today I was looking at my google calendar and noticed that today there are roughly 150 days until the baby is due (I say roughly, because of course it's give or take two weeks as only God knows when I'll have our baby). This excited me to no end! YAY baby! I'm so excited and happy and can't wait to meet our new little family member!

Today, being today, also means that there is only two more weeks until the ultrasound! I can't wait to see our baby on the monitor again! It's such an amazing thing to see him or her swimming around in there! This time we'll get to see the baby for longer too, since they have to take all the measurements and do all their checks. We will not find out the sex this time. We're pretty sure we aren't going to find out the sex until the baby is born. How exciting!

I've started to work on a baby blanket. I'm crocheting off and on all day, depending on how achy my fingers get. Somehow my baby blanket looks nothing like the blankets my mom crochets. I don't get that... but oh well. I think it still looks alright and I'm getting there. I tried to pick a gender neutral color that I thought was pretty (it's a dark teal color) but Nick thinks it looks really "boyish". Whoops. I was going to get two colors and do every other row each color, but I don't know how to do that. All I can do is make flat things in straight lines. I'm sorry baby, I'm not the best at making blankets. Don't worry though, Mamo (my mom) is making a blanket for you too and I won't hold it against you if you like her's better.

Oh... we went to the movies last night and I got starbursts again (this is the second time I've done that instead of getting my usual Malteasers.... I know.. crazy!) and was greeted by the same response from the baby this time. LOADS of kicks. :) Either it's way too much sugar for the little person, or they really like starbursts. Nick thinks it's all in my head so I think I may get some and let him listen with the fetal monitor until he can feel them himself. It's too funny. Seriously, like 5 minutes after I eat one... it's like the baby is doing aerobics in there! Love it!

It's two weeks until we leave for Wales again (we're supposed to leave right after the ultrasound)... this time for nearly three weeks! It should be exciting and we're looking forward to it. It'll be good to see everyone again and to finish up some projects with Deeptrek. It's also about 6 weeks (well... 6 weeks 2 days) until Cris comes to visit. Fun stuff coming up!

OH! I almost forgot. Lord help me.... I finally caved in and decided to get a couple new bras because it was getting to the point where it was painful. So I've moved up from my lovely 36 C's to the ridiculous 40 D's. Yeah... no wonder my ribs were killing me that one week (if I didn't write about it, I've complained to a couple of people... it hurt to breathe or move really because it felt like my ribcage was breaking and poking my lungs) ... they were expanding 4 inches. Nick seems to think it's great, while I on the other hand am a little concerned. Yeah, big boobs are cool and pretty to look at, but oh my gosh are they heavy! Everyone keeps telling me... "oh you just wait until your milk comes in" and I'm not sure I want to! How big are they going to get?!

Belly Post (18 weeks)

I thought I'd put up a picture of me when I'm not in my pj's. I was getting ready for bed though, and since I had just bought that dress that day it hasn't been ironed yet... so excuse the wrinkles! Someday I'll take a decent picture! I just usually forget until the night time and so I'm scrambling to get it done before I go to bed.

Parenthood

Every now and then it hits me... I'm going to be a Mom. Nick is going to be a Dad. Wow.

I really get to thinking about what it's going to be like to look into the eyes of our child and see bits of ourselves inside. It's a really huge feeling. I can't describe it any other way. Huge. It's one I've always looked forward to and one I still am so excited for, but at the same time, I feel like I'm missing something. I can't wait to share all these big occasions with my parents (and Nick's too) but then I get all teary eyed because I'm not going to be able to share them with my Dad the way I really wanted to. He won't get the chance to meet our little one in the way that I had hoped. I won't get to see him hold him or her and be the one to tell him that he's a Grandpa for the first time. That utterly breaks my heart. I think it's honestly the thing in my life that hurts me the most.

I'm not sure how to deal with it because there isn't anything I can change about the situation. He's gone. I'm having a really hard time coping with that.

My child will be lucky in that he or she has plenty of people that are there to love him (6 great grandparents, 5 grandparents, 2 parents, 3 Aunts, 4 Uncles, 6 cousins so far... and loads of 2nd cousins and great aunts and uncles), but that one missing grandparent means a lot to me. I am so sad that they aren't going to see what a great story teller he was or hear his infectious laugh. I'm so heartbroken that they won't get to experience the love that he gave or how great it felt in one of his hugs.

I've been trying to avoid this whole conversation with myself because it's so difficult for me to deal with. I think that's why I've just now got around to calling Kristy to tell her that we are having a baby. I wasn't able to get a hold of her on the phone so I left her a message on her answering machine. How cheesy is that?! I felt like I cheated or something, that isn't how I would have told Dad. I feel horrible for that. I wish I had a better relationship with her but I feel like I can't because it's too damn hard. Talking to her brings back so many memories of my father, and it's hard to shut the flood gates once they are opened. Ryan is getting older now though and I know that I need to be there for him as his big sister. I have so much that I want to share with him, so much to tell him about Dad so he doesn't forget. He was only 3 when Dad passed away, he is bound to have limited resources when it comes to memories of him. I don't want him to forget, just like I don't want my children to not know who he was. Ya know, when I was growing up, I REALLY was sad about not ever getting to meet my Grandfather (Dad-O, my Dad's father) because he had passed away before I was born. My dad spent hours telling me stories about him and I loved to listen to them. Dad would tell me how much he would have loved me and how he wished I had got to meet him. He would tell me which features of mine reminded me of his father. I just realized how much I appreciated that. Now I'm going to have to do the same.

It makes me wonder about Parenthood... and what that actually means. There are some things that, as a parent, I want to control in my child's life. I don't want them to have to experience some of the pains that I had to go through. I want them to be happy and know how much they mean to me. Even now, before my baby is born, I am terrified that I'm going to let them down or break their heart. But is that part of parenthood? Is it something that I am just going to have to get used to? Death is a really hard thing to go through, and I hope that I can at least better prepare them for it than what I was with Dad. I hope they don't have to let us go as soon as I had to let Dad go. I don't know why I keep saying "let"... like I had a choice.

I miss my Daddy, more than I can say. I hope my child is old and gray before they feel the way I feel.

Wannabe Craft Freak

I am in a really crafty mood lately... All I want to do is crochet or mod podge or make silhouettes or decorate. However, I'm able to do none of the above due to lack of supplies. I have crocheting needles (thanks to a recent purchase on ebay), mod bodge (again... ebay), and fabric squares (need I say where from?). I don't have yarn or spare magazines (other than car ones...) or anything to mod podge, or large paper or any other required essentials for my crafty desires. It's annoying and to be honest a little depressing. Especially since I have all of the above needed items in my storage unit in Texas. That's helpful. BOO.

So, instead of being crafty, I've been a bookworm. So far this week I have finished Husband Coached Childbirth (a book on the Bradley Method), Belly Laughs (Jenny McCarthy), Baby Laughs (again, Jenny McCarthy), The Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy (actually the best so far...) and am debating starting another book tonight. Our friend Liz so generously gave us several books to read when Nick was in Houston (Thanks Liz! You're a star!) so I've got another two or three from her to read. I'm also ordering one on water births from ebay (surprise surprise) and am looking forward to that.

Oh Baby!

So yesterday I felt a few "bubbles" in my lower abdomen and thought it felt a little weird. At first I thought it was just gas (what isn't gas nowadays?!) but then nothing happened. Then I felt a couple more. You know when you are a little kid and you blow spit bubbles? It feels like that when they pop. It then dawned on me that this is probably the baby! How exciting that it's not gas! haha! So I laid still and tried to see if I could feel it again. I told Nick about it and he immediately put his hand on my tummy to see if he could feel it too (nope.... too soon). For now this is just a me and the baby trick and to be honest, that's really cool. I felt it again this morning before I got out of bed and am really looking forward to them getting a little stronger and Nick being able to feel them too. I know he's excited about it and I'm looking forward to letting him in on it with us.

On another note... it has sunk in that in a couple weeks I'll find out the results from my blood tests. I wasn't at all nervous until I read about someone who's baby has Trisomy 18/Edwards Syndrome. For those of you who haven't researched this online for more than half an hour (like me last night.... why oh why did I do that?!) this is a disorder where the baby gets an extra 18th cromosome (or partial extra one). This is very serious (and is the second most likely to occur autosomal trisomy next to Down's Syndrome) and has a very low survival rate. I'm talking 95% don't make it to birth, then 50% of the remaining 5% don't make it past 2 months, then only 1% of those children make it past age 10. It's truly heartbreaking. Of course, now I am terrified. Nick and I had always said that we were ready for anything that could come our way and that we'd get through it, but now that I'm pregnant, I'm not ready for that! I hope and pray that our baby is healthy and happy, because those mothers (the one's with babies that have genetic disorders, etc) are much stronger than I am. I'm sure that if the news did come that something wasn't quite right with my baby that I'd be my usual self and look up everything there is to know on the subject and then find a way to deal with it, but I'm hoping to God I don't have to. I can't imagine losing my baby. Scratch that, I can (and do from time to time when I get in panic mode) but don't want to. So, I find out if my baby is at a higher risk for a whole load of problems in a couple weeks, so until then, forgive me if I'm a little anxious or moody.

If our baby does have a higher risk for anything, we have decided not to do an amniocentesis or CVS... we figure we'll prepare for the worst and hope for the best, but are not willing to take the risk of miscarrying the baby just because we want to find out sooner rather than later. This is our own personal decision and in no way am I saying others shouldn't.

Thank goodness I bought the fetal doppler... that thing has been SO reassuring lately. It's so nice to sit there and listen to the heartbeat and kicks with it. It somehow makes me feel so much better to know that the little heart is beating on and getting stronger.

On a lighter (or heavier... depending on how you look at it) note... GOOD LORD IS MY BUTT GETTING BIG! Geez. I can't help but sing baby got back when I look in the mirror... it's crazy. Where in the world is this coming from?! I still have not put on weight but yet my tummy, butt and boobs are getting huge! What?! How is this possible? My legs and arms aren't shrinking... so where is this fat coming from? Are my muscles shrinking? I've attached a picture (17 weeks) for you, but keep in mind, nightgowns are good at hiding booties. Oh, and yes, I now realize that my pj's are on backwards. No, I did not intend to do that. Yes, I have some pregnancy brain issues.

And Breathe....

I love my husband. In fact, he's my favorite person in the whole world. However... He's also one of the only people that can completely drive me up a wall with good news (and I don't necessarily mean that in a good way).

I love to hear him excited about anything, it makes me smile and get those butterflies in my tummy just like when we were dating (and no... it's not the baby moving around in there). The only problem with that is currently it doesn't take a lot to make me worry or get worked up about anything. With the extra blood in my system, my heart is working overtime and it's easy to confuse those extra heartbeats for anxiety or even rage sometimes. It takes me half a second to raise my voice and completely go off my rocker in a hormonal rage these days (even if it IS NOT my intention to do so, nor my desire).

Anyway- He had some exciting news to report from some of the conversations at the conference and all I could think of was the changes it would make us go through. Unfortunately, the time line for these changes would be from November (of this year) to February (of next year). HELLO!!! OUR BABY IS DUE JANUARY 17th!!! NOW IS NOT THE TIME FOR MASSIVE CHANGES! At least not the kind that could be negotiated to a different time frame. I'm torn between being super excited for my husband and terrified for myself and baby. I quit my job because we felt the stress/drama involved with it was not worth it to me and the growth of our baby. Why would we go against that theory and add MAJOR stress (even if the outcome is GREAT) to our lives now?

I'm not at liberty to discuss exactly what I'm talking about, so this may not make any sense... but it helps me not feel like I'm going to have a heart attack. I may be overreacting, or jumping the gun a little (especially since nothing is in stone), but I am a planner and like to know everything as soon as I can. I don't like not knowing what is going to happen... especially with the possible changes drastically affecting the birth of our first child.

Would the changes better our lives in the long run? Most likely.
Would I consider them in any other time frame? Absolutely.
Could it be that I'm blowing everything out of proportion? Certainly.
Will this drive me crazy until I know what the whole story is? Without a doubt.

Urgh. I'm off to take a bath to relax and calm myself back down. I love my husband and God will work this out for me. I just need to remember to breathe.

Thanks for listening.

Sleep Deprivation or Sleep Preparation?

I haven't been able to sleep right all week and have noticed a pattern in my new sleeping habits. I am able to sleep for about 3 hours before I wake up (either because I have to pee or my hip hurts or I've realized I'm on my back or stomach). Then I can't fall back asleep until about 5 hours later. Then I'm back asleep for about 3 hours and up again for another 5. So basically, I'm still getting 9 hours of sleep a day, just in broken segments. I have tried to break this habit by having a warm glass or milk or a cup of decaf tea, reading a boring book, watching a movie I've seen a million times, just laying there staring at the ceiling... all to no avail. I now have a new theory- could it be that I'm on the same schedule as my baby? I wonder if the little person in there is awake or asleep and wonder if that's why I'm not able to sleep too. Babies usually sleep more than that though, so I'm wondering what the deal is.

On a different topic- I've decided that I don't want to find out the sex of the baby until delivery day. Well... about 98% decided anyway. The more I think about it, the more I don't want to know. I'll go into it in detail later, but as for now, I'm waiting for Nicolas to call me to let me know how his presentation went (he should be done for the day any minute) and then I'm off to bed, for it has been all of 5 hours and 12 minutes since my last nap and I'm knackered ;)

Waaahhh!

This is at 16 weeks, below is at 15 weeks... huge!


Warning: I'm in a mood at the moment so this may just be me complaining the whole time!

Ok, so I'm SUPER emotional lately and I hate it! Not only do I hate it, but it makes me MORE emotional because I get really frustrated with not being able to control how I'm feeling. I'm either super bitchy or really easily offended. Those are your two options... there is no middle ground. There isn't really a happy state or mellow state- that's all you get. I'm ready to be back to my normal self, where I'm not a spaz all the time!

Nick is gone this week (he left really early this morning and doesn't get back until Friday). I'm hoping that I am back to normal soon because this whole weepy thing is really annoying. I miss him a ton and have now realized how much I rely on him to improve my moods... I'm lonely and irritable. I look forward to talking to him so much, then when he calls I am cranky because he didn't call me sooner... poor thing! Then I get off the phone with him irritated, which follows with me being miserable and then getting mad at myself for being that way and wanting him to call again. Oh so frustrating!

I'm also really irritated by several people lately. I won't name names, but geez... if my hormones don't calm down soon I'm sure they'll realize who they are soon!

Anyway... I'm going to try and get off my tangent (no guarantees!) and update on other stuff...

Top 5 Pregnancy News This Week:

1. I'm 16 weeks, as of Sunday the 2nd... which is 3.6 months completed (so I'm almost done with my 4th month... Nic hates that method of counting!)
2. I can no longer sleep very well... which could be causing the crankiness... I can't get comfy!
3. Round Ligament pain sucks. That's all I'm going to say about that.
4. My appetite is back for the most part, but I still am not gaining weight. I have technically lost 4 pounds since I have become pregnant. I don't know whether to be happy about that or worried! Lol... I'm definitely bigger so I'm not that bothered. I think I'm going to be the size of a house by the time I'm through, I'll attach pictures in a second so you can see what I mean.
5. Nic and I are now debating if we want to find out the sex of the baby or not... At first I really wanted to, and he kind of did, but now we're not so sure. We'll find out eventually in the end anyway, what's the rush? Plus, I want to have a drug free childbirth and maybe that will help me stay motivated to finish the job if you know what I mean. We wouldn't get to find out for another month and by that time we're already halfway there... so I dunno. Is it worth it? I'm not sure.

I've been reading up on the pregnancy which is good...I feel like the more I know the better prepared I am. I've read the Pregnancy Bible, the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, and am currently reading Husband Coached Childbirth (about the Bradley Method... which is interesting). You have to take everything with a grain of salt (especially on the last two) but I'm liking the ideas. Nic can't stand Dr. Bradley, but that's because he speaks in absolutes and doesn't think that any other method is ok... which I know is false. People who have never heard of his stuff have had babies just fine, but I like the ideas behind his thinking for the most part and hope to use some of his techniques when I'm in labor. I'd like it to be a positive experience, not one where I'm screaming bloody murder at Nic for "doing this to me".

Ok... here's the pictures, I'm going to try and go to bed (I've tried for a couple hours then gave up and am now ready for trying again... it's 2:30! )

I can't get the pictures to go where I want them and I'm too grumpy/sleepy to mess with it so they're staying up there. @#$%!