My Beautiful Days

... but I didn't.  I didn't know at all.  Maybe I was in denial, maybe I was even a little bit scared, but I truly did not know it was contractions that I was experiencing that Saturday afternoon (November 6th).  In fact, I was so confident in the fact that our baby was going to arrive closer to his due date and that nothing had changed within my body that I told my husband he most definitely should go deer hunting with his brother, cousin and uncles for the weekend.  After he confirmed the fact that my mom and step-dad would be coming down to stay with me, he agreed that it would be okay for him to head out.  On Saturday afternoon, when I began to experience a pain I can only compare to menstrual cramps, my mom told me that I needed to call Monte and make him aware of the situation.  I called his cell phone and it rang through to his voicemail, though I didn't leave a message because I knew that he would call back when he saw that I called.  An hour a...

I have a slight bit of a predicament.  You see, I was going along just fine in this pregnancy (except for the fact that I'm a little bit "owley" according to my loving husband!), not expecting to meet this little guy until my due date, which is November 24.  Then I went to my most recent checkup this past Friday and now I just don't know what to expect!  You see, at this checkup, I found out that our little guy is in fact head-down and ready to go, and evidently I, too, am ready to go as I am dilated to just over 3 cm already!  This is news I absolutely was NOT expecting to receive.  I don't really know why, but I was anticipating hearing that everything is fine and moving along as expected and that I would be having a baby on or near my due date.  To have my doctor tell me that many women are already receiving their epidural when they're at 3 cm shocked me!  He told me that it would be a good idea to get my bag packed and be ready to head out to the h...

I believe there are times in our lives when God smiles on us and gives us blessing after simple blessing.  For me, this past weekend was exactly that.  We had an extended weekend at our house, as our kids had no school from Wednesday through Friday.  Having them home was definitely a treat!  My brother, Tory, and his family arrived to spend the weekend at our house on Thursday evening.  It was wonderful to have them over, as I truly just LOVE hosting people at our home!  Thursday was spent catching up and playing with the kids late into the night, and by the time my head hit the pillow I was more than ready for a good nights sleep! Friday was a fairly busy morning, followed by one of the best blessings of the weekend!  You see, our very favorite babysitter, Krista, had sent me a message a few weeks back asking if she could take the kids at some point during this break from school.  Krista is a senior this year and her schedule and ours don't alw...

I know for a fact that's what he wants to hear - that he was right; but maybe, just maybe  he really was!  It may be true that what Tory (my older brother) said was right - my legs hurt entirely because I'm getting pretty fat! :) At 34 weeks pregnant, I would say that yes, I certainly am (please excuse the hair and pudgy face ... it was the end of a very long day!): Yep, much much fatter indeed .. but a good kind of fatter! :)

I went to my doctors appointment on Tuesday.  I saw a doctor that I don't normally see, but she is the one who I could get in to see right away.  She concluded that she didn't know what was going on, and scheduled me to have some outpatient tests performed at the hospital.  Due to the fact that my appointment was already late in the afternoon, I wouldn't have been able to get in to start my appointments at the hospital until late that evening, so I opted to schedule them for the following afternoon instead. So, after dropping Colin off at preschool, I went in for said tests.  They took awhile, but were fairly easy, so I guess I can't complain.  They concluded that I definitely do not have any blood clots in my legs, but that was the only real conclusion that was made.  The reason for the pain in my legs is still a mystery.  Of course, if you listen to my brother, Tory, I guess the reason that my legs hurt so intensely is just because I'm getting fat!...

I know it's been awhile since I've blogged about anything beyond my $100 Visa Gift Card Giveaways (which, by the way, if you would like to enter in this week's contest [sponsored by Kellogg's and BlogHer] you can visit my review blog by clicking here ).  I know this because my brother Jeremy recently told me that he's grown bored with my blog.  Sorry Jerm, I'll try to do better!  The catch of why I haven't blogged is truly the fact that I want my blog to be uplifting and encouraging, and lately I really haven't felt that way.  Tomorrow I will officially be 34 weeks pregnant (I do promise pictures soon!) and lately I haven't been happily pregnant, I've been uncomfortably pregnant!  Due to this fact, I have avoided writing on my blog about it. However, after thinking about it for awhile, the one thing I really come back to is the fact that I want to be honest on my blog as well, and not to avoid blogging just because the time of life I'm in h...

Just a quick update on life, pregnancy, kids and all fun things related. - I am almost 31 weeks pregnant and am growing quite a bit.  My brother, Tory, confirmed this by telling me I'm starting to look huge (thanks Tor .. you're the best!).  I didn't mind, I know he meant it lovingly!  :) - All of the kids are finally getting into their back-to-school routine and seem to be enjoying it.  Claire is in 7th grade, Iain is in 5th grade, Ellis is in 4th grade and Colin is in his second year of preschool (we enrolled him when he was three).  I am absolutely LOVING the structure that our new schedule holds! - Iain and Ellis are both in fall soccer and are enjoying it!  This hot-flashing pregnant woman is enjoying it as well, as it hasn't been too cold to enjoy their games! - I have successfully reached a point where it's impossible  for me to go through the day without getting something or another on my shirt.  Either I'm a lot more clumsy in my ...

Good news came my way yesterday!  The news: I absolutely do NOT have gestational diabetes and can continue to enjoy my Special K bars as frequently as I would like to have them! :)  Now that I'm back on a more regular eating schedule (considering that fasting before my appointment completely threw my system off), I'm really enjoying the thought of preparing meals for the weekend and baking goodies for Iain's birthday (which comes up on Sunday).  Yesssssss .... 'tis a good day! So, today consists of the kids and I heading out to do some school shopping, along with preparing some goodies for the weekend.  I may be out of touch for awhile again, but I promise that I am going to be back more consistently very soon! -- Don't forget to visit my review blog for a chance to win a $100 Visa Gift Card (sponsored by BlogHer and Kellogg's).

Sometimes I feel as if I am on a whirlwind ride that is going so fast that I will miss everything if I blink; other times I wonder if I will ever move forward in this pregnancy!  It seems like so long since I wrote this post when I was only 21-weeks along, yet here I am at 27 weeks and I'm feeling completely amazed at how much has changed! The biggest change, aside from the size of my belly, is the fact that I have switched OB's.  I know it's not common to change doctors in the middle of your pregnancy, but Dr. T. (the OB I was previously seeing) only delivers at a hospital that is roughly an hour drive from my home in good traffic.  Imagine a traffic jam or a snowy November day and I all-of-a-sudden wasn't so comfortable going so far away from home to have this little guy.  So, regretfully, I talked to Dr. T. about how I was feeling and informed him that I would like to transfer to an OB who is closer to my home.  I say "regretfully" because I truly love...

I will admit that, while we don't necessarily need one yet , I have been perusing through Craigslist searching the ads for cribs for sale (preferring those that also include a matching dresser!).  While I have thoroughly enjoyed going through these different ads, I find myself frustrated by the time I walk away from the computer.  Why?  Well, the ones that I want to check out are usually $600+ ... and there is no way on God's green earth  that I will be spending that kind of money on furniture for the baby's room!  The other thing that annoys me is when someone has their crib listed, and they show a picture of it completely taken apart and stacked against a wall, or they show a picture of just one side of it leaning against a wall.  C'mon people!  My thought is that, as a consumer, I would like to be able to see a full picture of what I may potentially be purchasing.  It's those ads that make me click the back button in a hurry, because I'm very u...

We are officially 21 weeks pregnant, and my bump is officially growing!  Here are a couple of pictures taken this morning of our little guy growing inside of me.   I do have to say that I think it's funny that my belly looks bigger in the second photo.  The only change is that I adjusted my shirt so it wasn't pulling down on me.  Silly silly. Lately I have been feeling more and more of the 'case of the tireds'.  Afternoon naps are welcomed and being out-and-about exhausts me.  I also am realizing that I am no longer comfortable just sitting on the floor or laying on the beach (*sniff, sniff*) .. I have to be supported by a chair or my back is extremely uncomfortable.  However, on the upside, I still am feeling really great!  I'm getting more housework done than usual (maybe because I've made the kids play outside so I can get it done?!) and am enjoying whatever form of chocolate comes my way! :) Thus far, 21 weeks is proving to be great!

Today, my husband and I got a rare treat in the fact that we were able to run the many errands we had on our schedule together.  Claire stayed home and watched the boys, so Monte and I headed out mid-morning and ventured out to Costco, then to our apartment complex to fill the soda machine and collect rents, then to my appointment with my OBGYN, then to the bank and finally back home. On the drive home, Monte and I were discussing possible names for our baby and the ones he was coming up with were just driving me crazy!  I'm uncertain if it was just my husband trying to push my buttons (which he does quite frequently!) or if we really are that far off on our opinions, but part of me thinks that my husband is under the impression that we're birthing an 80-year-old baby, because he kept suggesting names such as Roy, Jeff, Renaldo, Melvin or Albert.  After taking it all in for awhile, my response to his suggestions could no longer be held in as I looked him in the face and...

Just when you thought I was back on a good run of blogging .. I go and disappear on you yet again.  I'm sorry!  Did I forget to mention that we were headed up north for a family reunion, then immediately headed to Wisconsin for a few days of relaxation at our friend's cabin?!  If I forgot to tell you, then I am really sorry!  We are home now, just getting back into the swing of the busy life and getting ready to see some of our family for the 4th.  We celebrated Ellis's 9th birthday yesterday (June 30) and had a baseball and soccer game to head to shortly after we arrived back home.  We have been SO busy, but I'm not complaining! We go in for our ultrasound tomorrow and should know whether we are having a boy or a girl!  I am so blessed that this appointment came when it did, as Monte has the day off tomorrow, so he will be able to attend this one with me.  I don't know what it will be like to have him there, as it is usually Colin who comes wit...

Today we are 18 weeks pregnant.  According to the weekly pregnancy calendar, that means that my baby is the size of a pickle.  Sound odd to you?  It does to me, too!  However, since I have been receiving so many requests for a picture of my "bump" (which has just began to show, by the way), I decided to put one up here just for you.  In order to get that done, however, I had to do it right away, as I had already been procrastinating from doing this for awhile!  I was all set to do it last night, but the battery died on my point-and-shoot camera (and I forgot my DSLR camera at my in-laws' house this past weekend!), so I had to wait until this morning.  So without further adieu (and without any makeup, teeth brushing or hair styling), I give you me and baby at 18 weeks: For those of you who didn't want to see my bare belly .. you have my apologies.  It's just ... you can't really see the bump any other way! :) Hope you are all fabulo...

I had my check-up with my OBGYN this past week Monday.  It came as a bit of a surprise to me to find out that I'm currently 16 weeks pregnant.  I imagine if I went back and correctly calculated, it would have come out right, but somehow my head got confused (I want to blame my husband for this one because he's always playing tricks on me regarding how far along I am!) and I thought I was only 14 weeks.  Crazy crazy crazy! So, Colin and I went to the appointment together and he sat nicely and played with the toys we brought along, tying them all up with a rubber band (it's amazing how simple things like that will amuse a child!).  The nurse came in and asked the usual questions and then asked me to lay back so she could listen to the baby's heartbeat.  She put the little sound machine on my belly and moved it around.  We heard only my heartbeat.  She moved it again .. and again .. and again .. and again.  After about two minutes of searching with...

Being an expectant mother who has never gone through pregnancy before, I figured it was a good idea to do a little reading to get myself up-to-speed on the goings on of my baby.  So, naturally, when I saw the book, "What to Expect When You're Expecting" at a garage sale for 50 cents, I snatched it up.  I skimmed through the first parts of the book, as I am already starting my second trimester and kind of believe that the first-trimester information doesn't so strongly apply anymore.  However, as I began skimming the subtitles in the book, I realized that this book, in fact, is likely NOT the one I want to read.  The beginning was telling me all about how I am worried about the fact that my baby will have a deformity or that my baby will be born with a handicap (physical or mental) or that I'm not growing like I should or ..... the list went on and on! After spending about 30 minutes skimming through the subjects in the beginning of the book, I couldn't help ...

Good morning!  Or shall I say, "Happy greasy Friday morning!"?!  Confused by that?  Let me explain.  You see, we've been having issues with our water heater all week long.  We've gone from having fluctuating temperatures (see the meaning of freezing cold to scalding hot) when we shower to having a water heater that randomly shuts off all the time.  What does this mean?  Well, for one, it means that we just have enough hot water to warm it up before it shuts off.  For two, it means that I haven't showered in four days.  Gross, I know!  So, this morning, Colin and I will be traveling up to my sister's house (about an hour away) to give him a bath and for me to take a shower!  Crazy to travel that far, I know ... but when you've gone so long without a shower, you'll go anywhere to get one!  At some time today, we will have our plumber out as he is replacing our water heater with a new unit (due to the fact that we purchased this t...

Dear Energy and Motivation, It had already been explained to me that, during my first trimester of pregnancy, you were likely to slip away and not be near.  I guess I expected it a little bit.  What I didn't expect is just how far away you would go.  Can I confess that I miss you dearly?  I miss waking up and being ready to start my day at 6:30am, as opposed to having to drag my tired butt out of bed at the very last minute in the morning.  I miss playing alongside my kids and not feeling like I have to take a rest.  I miss my afternoons when Colin would nap and I would be productive and get stuff done!  Guess what?  Now, in the afternoon, I take naps while Colin sits on the couch by me and watches "Gospel Bill" on DVD.  I understand that I'm almost through my first trimester, and rumor has it that you will be finding your way back soon.  So I write this letter to ask that you please please PLEASE don't hesitate to come back - you will...

Guess who has taken a big ol' break from her blog?  Well, if you've checked here in the past week, I think you already know that it was me.  Between fighting the stomach flu and fighting off morning sickness, between baseball and soccer, between overnight guests and road trips life has been so BUSY!  By no means does that mean I'm complaining, though.  I really happen to like the busy! Okay, pregnancy update.  I'm currently 10 weeks along and experiencing all-day nausea.  I'm not complaining about it too much, though, as it remains just nausea.  In other words, I'm not spending a majority of my day (or any of my day, for that matter) hovered over the toilet.  I recently went in for my 9 week appointment, which was basically just registering me into the computer system as a pregnant woman (not that I wasn't already in there, but I guarantee you that after I answered the bajillion questions they asked, I am most definitely in their system now!). ...

That is the lesson I learned today.  Throughout the start of my pregnancy, the only thing I seem to be hungry for is fruits and vegetables.  The very thought of meat makes me want to gag (which is odd because I normally just LOVE me some meat!), so I have been filling up on fruit, fruit and more fruit ... and the occasional vegetable.  The problem?  I am experiencing some slight nausea, and I discovered that it doesn't go away until I get some carbs.  What does that mean?  Well, a trip to the grocery store of course! So, the three older kids and I headed out to Target (Colin was in preschool and my older kids didn't have school today) because I had some purchases to make for our addition (you know, closet hangers and the missing screws to complete my desk assembly!).  Somehow, most of the purchases I ended up making were food!  While I already stocked up on fruit yesterday at our local grocery store, today was the day to stock up on carbs, inclu...