School's out for summer!

School is OVER! I cannot believe that we are done. It does not feel real, and it was actually really sad to leave. I just stood and looked around my classroom for awhile before locking the door for the last time until November. I love that place and I cannot imagine not seeing all of the wonderful people that I work with on a daily basis. They truly are family, and I cannot picture my life without them. We had our last happy hour of the year on Thursday (sans alcohol for me and another friend who are preggo). We laughed a lot and had some fairly graphic conversations about women things that I think every guy in the bar was listening to! Oh well! It was a great way to end the year.

On Monday, my department (or I should say my school!) threw a baby shower for Steve and me. There were more than 30 people there including the woman who subs for me regularly, our former team leader, my favorite intern from a few years ago, and so many of my friends from other departments in the building. This is what I found hooked to my door the morning of:

I had no idea that they were going to do this! I also had no idea how many people would be there, and how overwhelming it would be. Three families of students that I both formerly taught and currently teach put together a huge diaper cake that had outfits, toys, safety items, toiletries, and feeding items attached to a TON of diapers. I was shocked to say the least, and I definitely cried! I was so touched by their generosity. During the shower we had tons of snacks and icecream cake (yum!). Everyone wrote us little notes on these cute little Disney onesies!

We opened presents for what seemed like forever, and it took me 4 hours to go through everything later to take off tags, unwrap everything, and organize it all. That didn't even include time for putting some items together or the 4 loads of laundry I did for blankets and clothes! Oh my gosh! It was nice to go through everything again because I felt like we didn't even know what our friends had gotten for us until we unwrapped in a second time! We were so blessed by these people! This is what our living room looked like for awhile:

Steve's school threw a shower for us on Thursday, and I couldn't go because it was our end of the year staff party. I'm glad that I stayed for that because more staff were leaving than I expected, and it was nice to say goodbye to them. Plus, I would have missed the last happy hour with my girls, and that would have been sad!

The real reason for week was for underclassmen exams, and those seemed to go well. I was just sick of the questions about grades. If you are scrambling at the last minute to earn a certain grade, that is not my problem! You should have worked harder the other three quarters to ensure that 4th quarter and the final exam were not going to dictate your final grade! It is not my fault if your final exam grade causes your final year grade to go down a whole letter grade...you had everything you needed to in order study! Sorry, side vent :) I've already gotten emails about their exam grades because they cannot see those...I'm not responding! They can wait until they get their report cards!

All in all, it was a wonderful last week of school. Hopefully, I'll have more pictures of the shower soon. This week we have more appointments, we're seeing old friends, and then, off to the beach! YAY!

5 More Days!

I cannot believe that we only have 5 more days of school! As much as I am ready to not get up at 5AM every morning, I will miss many of my students this year. It's been a really good year with them, and I cannot imagine next year's group being remotely similar. I am pretty certain that I think that way every year, and then, I get another group of equally spectacular kids. It's very strange that I will leave on Friday and not return until November. I feel like I'm leaving my home for awhile! It's kind of bittersweet. I may not see some of the people that I love so dearly for months!

It's weird how differently people treat you when you are pregnant. I feel like people are careful what they say so that they don't upset me or that people who normally don't even talk to me go out of their way to be super sweet. Strangers seem drawn to the belly (thankfully not to touch...at least yet), and it seems to be a conversation starter. We have another growth check next week and my biweekly appointments will begin. After that, we are headed to the beach for a bit to hang out with friends, and then, Steve begins curriculum writing and tutoring.

It all feels like an unrealistic whirlwind. Now that the nursery is done, the school year is almost finished, and the appointments are becoming more frequent, it is all starting to feel very real. It has felt like it took forever to get to this point, but I know that it has been quick for others. Hopefully these last 5 days will go faster than last week! Here's to a positive, drama-free end to the school year!!!

Growth Check!

Yesterday, we got to see baby girl at her growth check. I think we have another one next month too which is fun! I figured we would get new pictures, but we really just wanted to make sure she was healthy and on track with her growth...she is! She weighs a little over 2 1/2 pounds and is average size for right now. All of her organs look great too.

At the last growth check in March, she did not cooperate and would not budge. At this growth check, she would not stop moving! It was difficult to get all of the pictures that they needed. Apparently, most sonogram machines are also 3D, they just have to flip a switch or change the wand piece that they use. We are still hoping to go with my parents to have an official 3D sonogram, especially since she didn't really cooperate yesterday. We did get a few good shots though!

 You can just make out her eyes, nose, and mouth...a little creepy though!

 I love this one! You cannot see her mouth completely because the umbilical cord is in the way, and yes, that is her knee up by her chin!

 a new profile shot! It is pretty similar to the last one. I love her little nose.

Another great face shot if not for the umbilical cord.

It was great to see her on camera again yesterday and to see her move. At one point, we even got to watch her yawn. It was awesome! She kept moving her arms and feet up by her face, so I'm not sure they were able to capture everything, but they obtained the important parts. Now that we're in the third trimester, we have appointments regularly. Here's praying for continued good news and a positive end to the school year (17 more days)!

Disney Nursery

We finished the nursery this week when the furniture was delivered! YAY!

We wanted a chair that we could hopefully use later when it is not in the nursery anymore. It's so comfortable!

 It turned out pretty well! The furniture looks darker in the pictures, but it is actually cherry. Somehow, I missed getting pictures of the larger dresser/changing table...maybe next time.

I painted this a long time ago, but we are finally posting it for all to see. Before, it just seemed presumptuous! We know it's green, blue, and yellow and that we are having a girl. People can say what they will, but I did not want a pink or purple nursery.

She already has more toys than she needs! I'm sure that will only get worse the more we go to Disney World or Disneyland...or even the Disney Store!

Moses already tried to jump from the chair into her crib, but I caught him mid-jump. He has since been locked out and is only permitted in the room if we are in there. I do not want cat hair on her sheets or to have him rip our new chair to shreds.

It feels a bit more real now that we own a crib! I did not expect that! I guess now we are ready (at least physically) whenever she decides to make an appearance. Let's just hope she waits at least 8 more weeks!

For now, it's dinner and bedtime after a long day. More to come when we get more ultrasound pictures and updates!

Hello 3rd Trimester

Well, we are finally seeing the end in sight. It's difficult to imagine that baby girl will be here in about 12 weeks. Sleeping has not seemed to help the exhaustion factor, but I did just find out that I am extremely iron deficient! We'll see if a few weeks on an iron supplement will help coupled with a whole bunch of spinach.

I passed my glucose test, which I wasn't too sure about, but I guess I've been eating okay since I wasn't even near the high end. That test was disgusting! I feel so sorry for those who vomit, pass out, or have to do the 3-hour test if they don't pass. I don't ever want to drink that stuff again. I think the worst parts are not being able to drink any water for an hour and feeling like you got hit by a bus from the rush of sugar.

I just started wearing maternity clothes this week, well, the pants at least. My regular work pants still fit but they are a bit uncomfortable where the button sits. My jeans all still fit, which is a blessing, but sometimes I just want stretchy pants!!! Many of my pre-pregnancy clothes still fit, but maternity shirts are a bit more comfortable at times. I think I've gained 2 pounds so far, but added to all of the weight I lost, I'm still down about 19 pounds...depends on the day.

After getting a brand new dryer, I have successfully washed all of baby girl's clothes and put them in piles by size. She definitely does not need any newborn clothes and she is on her way to having more clothes than Steve and me combined!!! My grandparents bought her infant car seat and an extra base for Steve's car. I am very pleased with what we picked out for her. It's extremely easy to use and seems very comfortable. Even Moses likes it...

...not really, but I had to give it a whirl! He did not enjoy being strapped in! I am grateful for a plastic cat carrier that can be wiped down since our little furry friend gets car sick every time we take him in the car!

I am home today, which has been amazing because I have gotten done some laundry, lesson planning, grading, and just hanging out. I am also waiting for the nursery furniture too! Pictures to come soon!

We have many appointments in the next few weeks (all check-ups), but just keep praying for good news, strong growth, and lots of continued movement. We'll hopefully have some new pictures of her on Monday afternoon. Here's to the start of the last trimester and the end of the school year...19 more days of school after tomorrow! YAY!

Crazy busy!

I cannot even begin to think about everything that's been going on lately. It's been almost a month since our spring break, and every weekend has been full of things we didn't even plan on.

Spring break was filled with house projects, a ton of new curriculum, and spending time with family. Mom and I went shopping, and we got some amazing deals on clothes for baby girl! I thought that this new burst of energy was supposed to hit during the second trimester, but I'm almost to the third and have yet to see that!

We did a reveal cake for the extended family at Easter:

 Steve worked on the nursery and our office over break and got little Mo moved downstairs to the office. He doesn't seem to miss the other room and has adjusted perfectly to having his litter box in the office closet.

Right after spring break, we had some work done with the yard; Steve and a friend got the flower beds cleaned up and everything weeded and trimmed back. New mulch makes such a difference! I think he was glad to get out of the house in some warmer weather.

Spring break ended with the discovery that the dryer had died. This is the third time in five years that we've had issues with this dryer. It was not heating at all, so we ordered some parts, and it still didn't work. Then, we ordered some more parts, and it still didn't work. Steve has spent countless hours trying to fix it. We finally decided that we've put too much money into it already, and we broke down and bought a new one this week. We won't get it until next weekend, so we have one more weekend of having to inconvenience Steve's dad by doing laundry at his house.

School has been fairly busy too. I have finally finished mapping out the majority of the new curriculum for the rest of the year. I sent the last of the copies and my final exams off to print shop, and now I just have to sort all of the copies that came back this week. Then, I can focus on getting all of my maternity leave stuff in order over the last few weeks of the school year. We are in the full swing of paperwork for next year's National Honor Society candidates, and it makes me dizzy just looking at all of the selection materials for each kid. Graduation was announced, and now we are counting down the last of the days for the seniors. They currently have 20 school days left which includes their exams and their awards ceremony. Last night, we held the World Language Honor Society induction for all 4 languages at our school. Thankfully, I didn't have to put this one together, but I wanted to go to support my kids since all of the Spanish inductees were my current students. The night was brief, to the point, and now, it's over! I thought our cake was actually quite funny since it is for an honor society...clearly someone in our department has issues or someone at the bakery needs to read carefully. HAHA! This was my favorite part of the night...that and my kids from last year attempting to name our baby. That will have to do for another blog post though.

Hopefully, it won't be a month until my next post! By the next time, I hope we have a new dryer, a date for our nursery furniture delivery, and most (if not all) of baby girl's piles of clothes washed and ready to put away!

So there was this rug...

We have been looking for a rug for the nursery for awhile. Rugs are expensive!!! I did not want a plain color or something that screamed nursery either. I found a few rugs on the JCPenny website that seemed promising, and they were having a sale. I decided to order an 8X10 rectangular braided rug with blue, yellow, and green running through it. A week and a half later the following rug appeared on our doorstep:

Seriously? It is hideous for one, and two, it was only about 2X4 or so, like a kitchen rug. It came in a small bag, and Steve and I were hoping it would unroll to be bigger. No such luck, and not matching! We took it back to the store, and Steve called and yelled at them. The woman he spoke to (many times) was super sweet every time. They said they would send the new rug with rush delivery. Two or three days later, the same rug appeared!!! Steve called again and it turned out that the SKU number was incorrect in their system. When I ordered the rug originally, it never listed a size on the order. Apparently, the ugly black and multi-colored rug was the correct price, but the wrong size. What? We were not about to pay triple the price for the real rug we had ordered in the first place. Steve called yet again and refused to pay more. We basically got what should have been a $600 rug for a third of the cost!

Here's our new rug in the nursery...a little sneak preview picture...we are just waiting for the furniture to be delivered.

                                         
One more thing off of the checklist...

It's a Girl!

  

It's official...it's a girl! We went for our anatomy ultrasound this week, and we found out that we are having a girl within 5 minutes of the appointment! Consequently, she did not cooperate very well for the necessary pictures, and we spent almost an hour and fifteen minutes attempting to get her to turn over. Thankfully, she did, and the technician and the doctor were able to get all of the pictures that we needed. That was the longest appointment of my life, and I don't think I could really breathe until the doctor said everything was fine. 

You wait all of this time, hoping something is alive and moving in there. Every appointment seems scary until it's over and you can relax again. I know that we have no control over it, but it doesn't make it any less terrifying. Even after seeing her prior to this and hearing the heartbeat various times, it seemed more real this time. I feel 10 million more times better now that all of the bloodwork and pictures show that she is healthy and does not seem to be at risk for anything! We know that anything can change at any point in a pregnancy, but we are continually praying for a healthy little girl on loan to us from our loving Creator. 

Here are some new pics of our girl:

she spent most of the appointment in this position waving her arms and legs all around!

a little "L"...she knows sign language already!

waving hello

I love her already! I even started crying during 2nd period the other day while the kids were taking a quiz. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice. I have purchased a couple of things for her, but I am not going to do much more because she won't need much to start out! My favorite so far is this:

We also bought a Vinylmation Minnie to add to our collection! Too cute!

Happy almost spring break, blogger world! Until next time!

Almost there...halfway at least!

We're getting closer to 20 weeks! YAY! We had an appointment this week, and everything looked good. We'll find out whether we are buying pink or blue in the next few weeks...if he or she cooperates.

We had a wonderful surprise yesterday with a snow day. While most of our coworkers literally saw no snow, we had snow fall most of the day. Although it is quickly melting, it was still nice to have something this year. Most people are mad that we had a whole day just for rain, but we didn't really see that! I didn't feel so great yesterday, and I am home today with a sore throat and earaches. I don't know if this is going to turn into something else or not, but prayers are much appreciated that I can kick this soon and protect this baby along the way.

I felt bad taking off today because there are a bunch of other people out too, but it was really the only day the rest of the quarter that I could possibly take off. I just have to make it through the next 3 weeks, and we will have 10 glorious days off from work! While it will more than likely be spent working on the new curriculum and getting the nursery ready, it is still 10 days without students, hopefully extra sleep, and relaxing to prepare for the last quarter of the school year.

Supposedly, I was supposed to get more energy this trimester, but I haven't seen too much of that yet. I have been able to say up a little bit later (8:30PM!), but I am exhausted before the school day is even over, and on days off, I cannot sleep past 8AM. Maybe this will improve. I'm just thankful to not be throwing up like I was. I still get nauseous regularly, but now it is if I don't eat enough or eat regularly. My work schedule just does not afford me the ability to eat regularly, but once the students know, maybe!

Well, it's back to trying to be somewhat productive while also resting so I can go back to work for Friday and at least pretend that I feel better for the day.

Happy Valentine's Day

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Mo sent me a new poem for Valentine's Day...due to the hormones and how much I love the little guy (and Steve!), I sat at my desk and cried! FYI...we do not know the gender of the baby yet.

Mom,
    Dis is Moses.  Dad brote me to werk with him so i could send you mi pome for Valentimes Dae.  I no you wer mad when i was scratching at the carpit this past wek but i was trying to writ out my pome.  But u cliped mi claws so it didnt werk.  Anyway, her is mi pome.

To the best Mom on Valentimes Dae:

Mom, you smell nice
i like when u feed me human fud (not rice)
I lik it when you let me bake in frunt of the heeter
no udder mom culd ever be sweeter
You always take good care of me fo sho
witch is why I know youll be a good mom to my little bro

I know you think Ill be jealous when i become a big brother
but the truth is i culdnt be excited more
Cuz i can teach him when hes older
to opin the tall pantry door

then ill be in cat snax heaven
and ill eat till i puke
but i know u wont get too mad at me
even if u may rebuke (i dont no what that meens-dad told me to rite it)

I think ur rel pretty
and the best mom in da werld
Dad and i r sure lucky to have you
thanks fer being r girl

I luv u.....
    Moses

12 weeks!

Friday, January 25, 2013

I was excited to hit twelve weeks because I feel like it's a milestone...at least that's what most of the books and websites say. I was free of throwing up for almost 10 days! And then, it hit again this weekend. I don't know if it's because I'm tired, not sleeping well, still having major aversions to food, or something else, but I cannot keep much down again. I couldn't even think about eating my lunch today. I threw up when I got home from school and felt a good bit better!

We stopped for coffee this morning, and I think they gave me caffeinated instead of decaf. My body did not respond well to that since I have not been consuming hardly any caffeine. I felt clammy and nauseous...it could just be exhaustion though! I am thankful for the two-hour delays and early dismissal that we've had because they have allowed me to rest, but it just never seems like enough. People (that's such a loose term right now!) have been telling me that the energy will return and the nausea will subside, but I don't know who I believe!

We've been telling friends and more family about the pregnancy, and it's been going pretty well. I feel bad telling friends who've been trying awhile because we know what that feels like when other people used to announce their own; it's not that you aren't thrilled for them, but it is difficult to be so excited when you aren't pregnant yet. I hope we've been respectful of that for others. There are just so many people we want to tell, and I don't want to miss anyone!

It's a bit weird at the moment because I've lost a ton of weight (even though it doesn't look like it!), but some of my other weight has shifted to the front...go figure! All of my regular clothes still fit, but some of my pants feel a bit tight by the end of the day. I ordered a bunch of maternity clothes on sale from JCPenny and Old Navy, and none of them fit yet. The maternity pants are SO comfortable though, so I am looking forward to wearing those! I still need a few more pieces for work, plus some bras and underwear, but I think I have some great options for the second trimester.

Those are some of the "highlights" for now. Hopefully, in the next two weeks I'll have good news that this nausea has diminished or disappeared!

Welcome 2013!

Friday, January 18, 2013:

Morning sickness is a misnomer! It’s more like all freaking day sickness! I have not posted much in awhile because I have been throwing up, going to work and throwing up there, coming home and sometimes throwing up more, taking a nap, being woken up to eat dinner, and going back to sleep. Repeat! It’s like that movie Groundhog Day!

We have had multiple appointments at the OB and multiple tests done already. Thankfully, we haven’t seen anything out of the ordinary, and everyone tells me my vomiting is normal. Vomiting is not normal, but I guess in this context it is permissible and I have done my best to handle it.

We had our first ultrasound at week 9 and saw little Baby A. Thankfully, there was just one in there! Although we didn’t get to hear the heartbeat, we did get to see it; everything measured fine and the appointment was fabulous! I think we’ll get to hear it at the next appointment in February. 

backside, bottom: head, top: butt

 We are now at week 11 and I do not want to jinx it, but I have been vomit-free for 5 days! I feel like Ted from How I Met Your Mother (vomit-free since ’93!). The weekend before was terrible and I spent almost all of it throwing up. None of the home remedies that people have told me or that I have found online have truly worked. The only two things that seem to work for me are drinking lemonade and chewing gum. I now chew gum ALL DAY LONG! I rarely chew gum anymore because it makes my jaw hurt and usually causes headaches. I don’t care! I would rather have a headache than vomit! I love how most websites and doctors have no idea why women get morning sickness. Really? We don’t have any money in the medical budgets to figure that one out and get some solutions that work??? Half of our world is women that will most likely be with child at one point in their lives. I think fifty percent of the world is enough to constitute a medical or research study.

We have told all immediate family now and some coworkers. We are starting to tell friends as we see them, especially ones that we do not want to find out via Facebook or email. It’s going to be difficult to try to see all of these people before we make it public, so we are sorry if we don’t get to you before and you are offended! Our coworkers have been amazing, and I especially could not have made it through these last few weeks without them.

I am ready for some of my energy to return so that I can actually make dinner again. It would also be nice if my appetite returned a bit so that I can stop eating super nutritious food like ramen noodles and bagel bites! Nothing ever sounds good, especially for dinner! Current aversions include coffee, hot beverages in general, all meat, vegetables (especially salad), some fruits, and occasionally, milk. Current tolerable foods are ramen noodles, bagel bites, soft pretzels, strawberry Cliff fruit rope, organic string cheese, and Annie’s five grain mac and cheese. Can we say carbo load? Oh well, I lost a bunch of weight since Christmas, so I suppose it’s okay.

My wonderful husband has been even more AMAZING! He brought a table upstairs next to my nightstand and created me a pregnancy station with snacks, morning sickness pops, lotion, my kindle, and other things that were cluttering the floor next to our bed. It’s like my little oasis now! I cannot tell you the last time I’ve made dinner either…probably before we left for Disney World in early December. He’s been doing all of the cleaning, cooking, laundry, cat duties, and even going upstairs with me at 7:30/8PM when I’m ready for bed. He even filled the car with plastic grocery bags and paper towels so that we’d both be ready when I threw up! Now, that’s love!

Stay tuned for more fun (hopefully, vomit-free) and what we pray will continue to be positive news!

Merry Christmas Break

Saturday, December 29, 2013:

Christmas break has been a blur of laying on the couch, sleeping, and food aversions. I cannot keep down any of the “pregnancy super foods” that websites suggest. Oh well! It’s difficult to believe that there is actually something in there, but then, I feel crappy again, and decide that it must be something.

Christmas was a bit busy. It was wonderful to spend time with Steve’s family on Christmas Eve, but it was at our house. Since his brother did not know we were pregnant, they couldn’t help out as much as we really needed. It took everything we had to get the house clean and most of the food made once school got out for the break. We had a blast with them, and it always a pleasure to see our nieces and to watch them grow.

We spent Christmas Day at my parents’ house sans my brother and sister-in-law who traveled to Santa Fe for the week. I couldn’t hold it in any more to tell my parents that we were expecting so we did it as soon as we got there. I think they may win for best reaction to the news. Mom sobbed and exclaimed, “I don’t need anything else, take it all back!”. Dad cried and said, “It’s a Christmas miracle”. We all cried, but now, I just laugh when I think about how cute they were. We gave them an ornament with Santa and his sleigh on it with the stork flying overhead. On the back it said something like “Santa’s not the only one coming to town this year”. We thought it was clever, and I cried when it came in the mail, so I knew it was perfect. We spent the rest of the day opening presents, eating, and spending some time with extended family. We have not told them yet, and I am holding off as long as possible. I am not ready for the inevitable intruding questions, commenting, or pregnancy/parenting advice.

On that same note, it’s amazing how many people want to try to share their stories or someone else's story with you. That’s all well and good, but some of them are miserable! I don’t want to hear about your friend who had 3 miscarriages or your delivery room horror story. Really? A newly pregnant woman does not need to hear these things, and every experience is different. Keep them to yourself, please! I am not affected by them, and I don't dwell on them at all, but it's just not appropriate. That is going to be one of my biggest pet peeves throughout this process…unsolicited advice/stories! I have decided that this process is kind of like a secret club. Women who find out you are pregnant just can’t wait to share “their story”; while some are sweet and mean well, many try to one-up each other like having the worst delivery story makes you some kind of superhero. This is not a secret club! Many women get pregnant, have complications, go on bed rest, and have issues during delivery. It’s NORMAL! You don’t get a medal or trophy at the end…you get a baby. Be grateful that you are blessed with that! Sorry, side note tirade complete. This will not be the last of it, I’m sure! We have amazing friends and family, but some women just think they are superior now that they've become mommies. PLEASE remind me of this if I ever remotely become like that...I cannot handle it!

That's about all for break...we're having Chinese new year (regular New year with a theme!) with friends in a couple of days, and I am looking forward to the pajama night we have planned to go with it!!!

SO tired!

December 15, 2012

I thought women were crazy and just used pregnancy as an excuse to not do anything...I have been wrong about a lot of things the last few weeks! I am EXHAUSTED!!! It does not help that I have been sick on top of it, so sometimes I do not know if I really am that tired or if this sickness is part of it too.

Before we left for our vacation, I visited my regular doctor and all went well. I see the OB this week for my first official appointment. I do not have my hopes up too high for getting a sonogram since it's supposed to just be a medical history and check-up. We'll see though...

We had to tell Steve's dad and the rest of the family on the Disney trip about being pregnant because I was limited in what I could ride and we did not want there to be any questions. We also do not want to lie about this either. If someone asks, I hope that we can be honest as long as things are going well. It was pretty cute when our nephew would ask why I wasn't riding something; we didn't want him to be afraid of any rides, so we just told him it was because of the baby. His mind couldn't completely understand that so he kept asking me if the baby was afraid of the ride!

It was definitely a magical moment to tell Steve's dad. We walked into Magic Kingdom about an hour after we arrived in Florida, and the location to see Mickey Mouse is to the right as soon as you walk into the park. We looked, and there was only a 5 minute wait. We went in, waited for 2 families in front of us, and then, the three of us took our picture with Mickey. Then, Steve asked if we could do one just us and if Mickey could hold something for us. His dad was so surprised!

I cried...that's why I don't look extremely happy in the picture! We took a ton of pictures, and Mickey asked for the sign so that he could write on it. We were probably in there for 10 minutes or more, and they didn't let any other families in with us. We could not have planned this any better.

Disney was really tough this time, and not because I was limited to what I could ride. I was so tired that I had to stop frequently to rest, pee, and drink water. I pushed it too much at EPCOT and Magic Kingdom a couple of days and I should have gone back mid-day to the hotel to rest. I needed a vacation from vacation when we got back.

I am very thankful that we had done almost all of our Christmas shopping prior to this trip because I could not fathom mustering the energy to do that now. I am still wondering how we are going to put Christmas Eve dinner together, but I suppose it will just happen. Hopefully, I will be over this sinus infection by then, and all will be good!

Now, we are just praying for positive news for these first few appointments, and that everything is okay, including the baby!

A New Adventure in the Game of Life

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Well, I had an interesting evening on Friday, November 30th. Steve was out for the entire night to celebrate the birthday of one of our dearest friends. I knew I wanted to relax, watch a chick flick, and do some chores. Something told me to take a pregnancy test, so I did, and I still cannot say why. I have had a stash of the strips under the sink in our bathroom for quite some time now. They actually came as a "bonus" with the ovulation strips I ordered. I took the test, and it looked like it was a faulty one so I left it on the counter in the bathroom, did some laundry, and went back downstairs to hang out with Moses. Later, I went back upstairs around 8:30PM and saw that the test had actually finished...one dark line and one faint line. WHAT?!?! Knowing you should never trust results after the allotted time period, I took another test and paid closer attention to what I was doing. Within 2-3 minutes, I had the same result. Since these are just test strips and not clear pregnancy tests, I debated for about 5 minutes before I changed out of my pajamas and drove to CVS to get a digital test. I quickly drank a ton of water and tried again. Here's the result:

I ran the gamut of emotions immediately after! The test showed the result in less than a minute. I did not know how I would feel when this day finally came. Part of me really wished that Steve had been here, but then again, it also allowed me to have some processing time for myself. I cried immediately and prayed! I figured 3 positive pregnancy tests were fairly legitimate, and saved another one to take on Saturday (just to be completely sure)! Needless to say, I did not sleep much that night and I could not stop smiling.

This has been a long journey for us already. We have been trying to get pregnant for about a year and a half. While this does not sound like a ton of time, it is when you get your hopes up every month, have late periods, and then, discover nothing. After the first few months, I stopped keeping the real pregnancy tests in the house because I knew that I could be consumed over this. Once I did that, I gave this entire experience to Jesus, and I have actually been extremely calm and content. I think Steve has had a more difficult time, but we've had many honest discussions about the entire process and just knew that we were not in control.

When we first started, we were so naive to think it would happen right away. It was difficult to watch others become pregnant almost instantly and to watch friends, family, and coworkers seem to conceive so easily and to begin their families. After all of this, I can honestly say that I will try to never ask a couple when they "plan" to have a baby or tease anyone about when the "next one" is coming. We cannot even begin to tell you how insensitive people have been. They mean well, and they didn't know we were trying, so I guess we cannot really blame them. Now, I know how it feels when you are in the middle of this process and you hear for the billionth time things like, "when are you going to have a family?", "you're in your 30's now, it's about time to begin thinking about a family", etc... Please smack me if I ever say these kinds of things to anyone! You just never know what someone is going through behind closed doors!

This has definitely been a test of patience, as I am sure it will continue to be. I knew from the very beginning that I did not want to be tested to see if I could or couldn't get pregnant, I did not want to do any hormone treatments, and I did not want to do IVF or AI. I have been adamant since I was a teenager when I did a project on all of this in a class called Major Christian Issues. I do not judge the choices others make in regards to their own fertility, and I am elated for those who can wisely make those decisions. I just know that they are not what is best for me. We went to an adoption conference last year, and that is still something that is on both of our hearts; it is an extremely expensive process, but we know that if that's what God wants for our family that it will happen regardless!

Although you will be reading this post weeks after it has actually happened, please join us on this crazy journey through the game of life, a new life! Baby Ammann should be making an appearance sometime in August 2013!