Summary of Week 1/2 Old

My posts are going to start being a lot different now that D.J. is here. I'll probably write more about him than myself. I wanted to make a quick post while he's sleeping about his first week and half of life!

We came home from the hospital Thursday afternoon. My sister was a big help that night and stayed with us. I'm not sure how we would have made it without her because we took shifts and both Dave and I were struggling with our awake times. We were both sooo tired. Having my sister there to talk with us was a lifesaver. Friday we pretty much tried catching up on our sleep while D.J. slept. Nothing really exciting. Friday night our friends Jen and Aaron stopped over for a little to meet D.J. My brother Teal also came over to spend sometime with his nephew. It's so neat to see my family with D.J. It's a different kind of love that I never knew they had. Saturday we had his 2 day appointment. Unfortunately his weight was down a little too much so we had to go back in 2 more days to check it again. Other than that he checked out fine. The good thing was that I knew my milk was coming in so he should start gaining weight before the next appointment. My friend Jodi's daughters first birthday party was Saturday afternoon. The great thing was that it was right down the street from our apartment. We didn't want to take D.J. out of the car with the other kids. I was very happy to stop by so all the girls could see him and I could spend a few minutes with them. I cannot believe it's been a year since Mackenzie was just like D.J. I wish I could have stayed longer but D.J. was getting restless and I was getting tired.

Sunday we went to my sisters house to watch D.J's first Steeler game. He slept pretty much the whole game until I needed to feed him at the end. It was probably a good thing because we lost. Our season is pretty much over so D.J. will just have to wait until next year to help cheer them on.

Monday we went back to the doctors and he had gained 3 oz. The doctor was pleased with that weight gain so we just have to hope he gets back to his birth weight by his 2 week appointment. Balboa isn't accepting any new patients so we got to choose a civilian doctor. Dave and I were both very happy with that because military doctors are not always the best. We have his next appointment Dec. 16th.

The weather hasn't been the best and actually had a really hard rain storm Monday so we came home from the appointment and stayed in. That's about all we've been doing this week is hanging by the house enjoying our son. There have been some hard times but they don't last long. He ended up waking up Thursday with a lot of mucous coming out of his eye and having a hard time opening it. Dave was worried that it was pink eye so we called the nurse. He told us unless his eye has redness or swelling that it's probably a closed tear duct. I had never heard that newborns could have this but I guess this is pretty common. He suggested to just try to keep it cleaned of the mucous and rub the tear duct. He was A LOT more cranky because he couldn't open his eye when he tried to. Dave had to go into work this morning and having D.J. being extra cranky was hard but I made it. His eye started clearing up tonight and he seems so much better already.

It has been a great first week as a family even though we didn't do much. It sure is different having a baby in our lives. I'm so glad that Dave was able to have this time off with us cause I'm not sure I would have made it. I'm definitely not looking forward to him being back at work this week. Luckily my sister doesn't have to work. We are still trying to adjust to his schedule of feeding at least every 3 hours. Since I'm breastfeeding it has been a little harder on me but I'm managing. I am sooo happy to have him in our lives.

I won't be doing much this week but will update if anything happens at his doctors. My parents come in Friday night so I'm sure I'll have lots to post with Christmas right around the corner.

David James Smith Junior :)

I finally got some time so I wanted to update everyone about his birth. I woke up Tuesday and had some back pains that I hadn't had throughout the pregnancy. I didn't think much since we started walking the night before. I figured I was just having pain from carrying my belly. I went to lunch with my brother and sister and continued to have small pain. When I got home I laid on the couch hoping to stretch out and relieve the pain. It seemed to work a little. Dave got home from work and we went for another walk. As soon as we started I just had a feeling that I was in labor. We made one lap around our apartment complex and the pain just kept getting stronger and stronger. Dave and his mom went to get some food and I jumped in the shower cause I knew we were going to be going to the hospital that night. I started tracking my contractions about 9:30 and they were about 15 minutes apart. Dave showered and tried to lie down for a little. Unfortunately as soon as he was done about 10:30, my contractions were about 6 minutes apart and getting more and more painful. I wanted to make sure that we had enough time to drive to the hospital and get an epidural.

Once at the hospital I was checked and was 4cm dilated so they admitted me at 12:15 am Wednesday morning. After getting into the room the nurse said the anesthesiologist would come and explain the procedure for the epidural. Literally a minute later he came in. They offer it when someone is at least 4cm so it was up to me to get it now or wait. I made sure that it wouldn't run out before giving birth and decided to do it then. It took him 3 times to find the bubble to inject the medicine. That was definitely not a good part. I had to sit hunched over trying not to move through my contractions as he pricked around with the needle. But that little pain and time it took was definitely worth it. As soon as it kicked in I didn't feel a thing the rest of the time.

The waiting game began. Luckily the labor progressed really quickly. The next time they checked about and hour later I was 7-8cm. The nurse told me to try to relax and rest for the big push! We watched Zoolander and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days while we waited. I was also able to close my eyes for a little. Another 2 hours and I was 9cm. The babies head wasn't quite there so they made me wait another hour. I was ready to push after that.

The nurse scared me just a little right before having to push. She warned me that it's up to me how long it could take. At that point I convinced myself I'll do whatever it takes to get him out as quickly as possible. The epidural was working so well that the nurse had to tell me when I was having a contraction and to push. At first it was weird cause I didn't know if I was doing it right. The nurse was a great coach though because she kept encouraging me to push stronger and harder. It did not take long until she started seeing the head and got the doctor. Once the doctor came in, I pushed a few more times and D.J. was out with only 27 minutes of pushing. He joined the world at 6:57am Dec 2.


After that he was taken to the side to be checked, given his shots and cleaned. He was 7lbs. 14 oz and 21.5 inches. The doctor had to stitch me up and soon enough I was able to hold my baby boy. It was such an incredible feeling seeing him for the first time. I was holding it together until I saw Dave just break down and cry. The two of us couldn't be happier though. They were definitely tears of joy to finally start our family.

I was very happy how my body handled the birth. I was in little pain and it didn't take long. It makes me feel good about having more. I love being a new mom and love my two men with all of my heart and soul!!

Thanksgiving Week

Well we had a busy but relaxing holiday week. I took my mother in law to the beach Tuesday afternoon. We laid on the beach until it got a little too windy and cold. After I took her to the Wave House for some lunch. Unfortunately the big wave wasn't running so it kind of defeated the point of going. Lunch was still great though.

My parents flew in late Tuesday night so I spent Wednesday with my fam catching up. My sister was hosting Thanksgiving and hadn't prepared anything so I helped her do some cooking. We made pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, apple pie, cranberries, cut up everything for the stuffing, spinach dip and nacho dip. I was pretty wiped after that. I spent some of the time sitting on a chair trying to help. My mom has a great picture of me in action. Dave and I cooked dinner for everyone that night. Gotta love living in San Diego so we could cook out at the end of November. It was a simple but delicious meal.

We spent Thanksgiving at my sisters place. It was such a great day and dinner was sooo good. I thought how great it would be being pregnant during the holiday to eat what I wanted. Boy was I wrong. Eating all I did made my belly so hard and difficult to move. I have not felt like this whole pregnancy so it was hard. I had such a hard time sleeping that night.

Dave and I started shopping on Black Friday last year and want to continue that tradition. I wasn't going to go but I have the Best Buy card. We took my sis and mom down to the Navy Exchange first thing. We left at 4am and had to wait in a VERY long line until 5am. It was definitely worth it and got some great Xmas gifts for cheap. After we went to Best Buy and got some great blu-ray movies dirt cheap. After we went to Ihop for breakfast. I came home and took a much needed nap. After I walked to my sisters for leftovers and family time. Dave and I put up our outside xmas lights that night. We wanted to do our tree but was too tired after our LONG day.

Saturday Dave, my dad and brothers went golfing. I spent the day relaxing cause I was pretty tired from the last couple of days. It was actually an ugly, rainy day so I didn't mind laying on the couch. I had a little scare with the baby. I hadn't felt him very much that day. He's been a very active baby during this whole pregnancy so I felt something was wrong. Once Dave got home we called the hospital and they said to come on in to get checked. We got there about 5:30 and they didn't have any rooms until 6:30. Once we were in, they put monitors on me for the baby and my contractions. I ended up having a few pretty strong contractions once hooked up. I thought that might be the start. Unfortunately I was wrong cause after about 30 mins they stopped and didn't come back. They monitored the babies heart beat for 20 minutes and said he looks great. They did an ultrasound to check a few other things then checked my cervix. I was about 90% thinned and 2cm dilated. They sent me home after that since there were no signs of labor starting.

Sunday Dave took his mom to the swap meet and I spent time with my parents. We meet up with my brothers for lunch then came back to my sisters place to hang out. The Steelers game was Sunday night so I cooked my meatloaf for everyone. We played Baltimore and needed to win. Ben ended up not playing because of a concussion and our normal back up was hurt too. We played Dixon who had never played an NFL game. He didn't play too bad until he turned the ball over in overtime. That pretty much cost us the game. We lost by a field goal in overtime. It's been a depressing few games to watch cause we're not playing well. I'm done talking about it cause I'm getting mad.

My parents flew out early this morning. I had an appointment today since I haven't given birth yet. Our normal midwife went home sick so we saw someone else. She was very nice though. She did the normal measurements and check up. Everything looked good and D.J. is still heads down!!! When she checked my cervix she asked if I wanted her to scrape it. That sometimes helps get the process going a little faster so I said sure. Little did I know how weird and painful that was going to be. She was able to open up my cervix though. She said that should help cause it could be delaying going into labor being closed. If I haven't given birth by Thursday, we're going to another appointment for them to monitor the baby to make sure everything still looks good. And if he still hasn't come on his own, I will be induced Monday at 9pm. So he should be here no latter than Dec. 8th. I'm very excited to know the end is almost here!! We're still hoping he comes before Dave's mom leaves but that's not up to us.

Dave's mom leaves Thursday afternoon. I'm looking forward to having our house and piece and quiet back but it's been great having her out. We discovered skype so she's kind of accepted not being here when D.J. is born if it's after she leaves. I have a feeling we're going to be getting skype calls all day long between his mom and my mom. That's a pretty neat free service though. We have used it the last 2 days to talk to Dave's nieces. We haven't seen them for almost a year so it was great talking and seeing them. If you have skype let me know your name so we can chat.

Well if anything happens with our baby this week I will try to update as soon as possible. Have a great week!

Getting Annoyed

I didn't get time to update with my 38 week appointment because my mother in law came in the next day. Everything went well. She checked my cervix and I was 75% thinned out. Dave and I were hoping that meant he might be coming this weekend but that has come and gone and still no baby. I have been having a few contractions but nothing major yet. I don't really mind though because I would love for my parents to be here. They get in Tuesday night so after that I'm going to be talking to him to get him motivated to join us!! With it being the holiday there wasn't any times to see the midwife this week so if the baby doesn't come this weekend we go back Monday. I'm hoping he comes this week though. We're going to ask to be induced sometime next week if not. Both grandparents are out and they will not be happy if they miss him. Especially my mother in law.

Dave and I had to pay to fly her out. She leaves Dec. 3rd and not sure when she will get to see D.J. if he doesn't come while she's out. She keeps threatening that she's going to stay until he comes so he better cooperate or I'm going to go insane! If you know anything about her you know she's very strong willed and says whatever is on her mind. She hasn't been bad this last week though. Only a few things have gotten on my nerve. The biggest thing that's getting annoying is that she keeps telling me to get this labor started. Like I have anything to do with it. She keeps saying she wants to hold him and what not. I'm trying to ignore it but it's like Dave and I haven't been waiting to hold him for 9 months? We had to tell her last night that she can't stay at the hospital and she "joked" about sending Dave home so she can stay there. I knew she was joking but had a tint of truth. Dave's going to have a lot to talk to her if she continues when the baby's here. But it could be A LOT worse. She's been much better than normal.

Dave's 26th bday was Wednesday and he had the day off. It was so nice to have him off during the week. We took his mom to South Beach Bar and Grill in Ocean Beach for lunch. We had to share our love for their fish tacos. We went walking on the beach afterwards. That night we met up with my sis and bro at Cheesecake Factory to celebrate Dave's bday. Thursday she went up to the pool while I relaxed. Friday my sister and I went to see New Moon. Let me tell you how good it was!! I've read the books but a few times my sis and I kept saying I don't remember this from the book. I've become motivated to reread the series because of that. The movie was a little slow at times but I didn't mind because I love the series. I would definitely recommend it. Saturday we went to the outlet mall. I did really good walking around being 39 weeks pregnant but didn't last very long. I was ready to go after about 4 hours. Luckily Dave's mom was feeling the same way so I didn't feel bad asking to leave. Dave found some great deals at Nautica and they of course had to have a kid section. It was scary how much we could have spent there for D.J. I have a feeling we will be going back there a lot because their clothes were sooo cute for him. We weren't planning on buying D.J. anything but the sales there were unbelievable. I got 2 pairs of shorts that were originally $32.50 for $5!!! I love sales and couldn't resist. That night we were all a little exhausted so we just hung at the house watching movies. Dave cooked his delicious bbq chicken and corn on the cob from the grill. It's sooooo good!! Sunday we watched the Steelers lose a horrible game against Kansas City then took naps. We were still a little tired from the outlet shopping. At least I was.

I cannot believe it's Thanksgiving already. I'm looking forward to seeing my parents tomorrow night. We don't have anything planned besides dinner at my sisters Thursday. We are all hoping there will be a little addition to our family this week to take up our time. I will update if anything new happens. I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Past Weekend

It's been awhile since I've updated because not much has happened. We finally had an exciting weekend to give me something to post! Friday Dave and I met up with my sis for dinner before she flew out to Phoenix. Afterwards we got some movies to watch.

Saturday we were invited to go with some friends to watch TCU play SDSU college football. We got there before the game to tailgate. That was a lot of fun even though I couldn't drink with everyone. The game was a blow out which made our friends happy since they were routing for TCU.

Sunday my friend Jodi and I met up to go to the outlets. I had heard about them but had never been. I was definitely excited to shop and spend time with Jodi. It's been forever since we did anything together. We had a lot of fun shopping and catching up. I did a great job of bargain shopping. Everything I bought for D.J. was on sale so I got lots of clothes for real cheap. Maybe that was a bad idea because I'm itching to go back already!

This week I've been working on getting everything done that needs to be done before I go into labor. I finally packed our bags and sanitized everything that needed to be. So I think we're pretty much prepared for our little guy to come.

From my last post you knew that D.J. was breech and we were scheduled for an ECV. We had to go to the hospital for this procedure since there could be some complications. When we got there they put us in a room and had me change into those lovely hospital gowns. The nurse drew some blood then hooked me up to an IV. She then strapped a heart monitor for the baby and one to monitor my contractions around my belly. She then left us alone while they watched D.J.'s movements. She kept coming in explaining that the doctors didn't want to do anything until they got 20 minutes of "good movement" from him. That probably took about an hour until they thought he was looking good enough to do the procedure. The doctor came in and explained the procedure and answered our questions. I wasn't really nervous until she explained that if I do have to go for an emergency c-section then I would be knocked out and Dave wouldn't be able to be in the room. Dave wasn't the happiest because he wants to be there when our first child is born. It was sad thinking that neither one of us would see him being born. After I signed a consent form she did an ultrasound to see how he was laying. He ended up being heads down!! That meant we didn't have to do the procedure!!! I was so happy that D.J. cooperated. I just couldn't believe we were at the hospital for about 3 hours for nothing. The good thing is that I know what will happen when I do go into labor. I also had a few contractions so I now know what they feel like. So I guess it wasn't all for nothing. I just wonder why they didn't do an ultrasound before getting me all hooked up. We could have avoided the whole thing if they would have checked first. I guess I'll never understand that one. The doctor said there is still a chance he'll flip back up since he hasn't settled all the way down yet. Now we are just praying that he stays heads down for us.

This weekend I think we're just taking it easy and doing a little more cleaning. Dave's mom flies in Tuesday afternoon until Dec. 3rd. We are going to just relax together this weekend before his mom comes in and possibly the baby is here. Dave's bday is Wednesday so we're going to have an eventful week to come!

36 Week Appointment

Yesterday was our 36 week appointment. There was an unexpected outcome to this one. It was a normal check up starting with the measurements and heart rate. The midwife ended up having a really hard time finding the heart beat. She wasn't concerned because she could tell he was moving a lot. After about 15 minutes of trying, she decided to use the ultrasound. It turns out the reason she was having a hard time is because he is breech. I couldn't believe it. The last appointment he was head down so within a month he somehow managed to flip on us.

She recommended doing a procedure to turn him head down. I would go to the hospital where the doctors try to manipulate him from the outside of my belly. At first Dave and I weren't 100% sure about this. There are some risks is why you do it at the hospital. If something would go wrong during the procedure they may have to preform an emergency c-section. The other thing is that he might still flip back around. If he is still breech, I would be scheduled for a c-section at 39 weeks. I would much rather have him vaginally is why we decided to go ahead with the procedure. After thinking about it and talking it over, I think giving it a try is better than not. They will be watching everything during the procedure so if something does go wrong they will stop.

So right now I was given some exercises to get him to turn on his own that I'm going to do. I'm hoping that those will help him and then we won't have to worry about doing the procedure when we get there. If not, it is scheduled for Nov. 12. I go back to see the midwife Nov. 16th and pray that he has stayed head down so I won't be scheduled for a c-section that next week.

As soon as she told me about the emergency c-section, my mind started racing about all the things we still needed to get done before we are ready. I still have a few loads of his laundry to do. I need to get his room completely set up. Even though I plan to breast feed, I still need to sanitize his bottles in case. So this weekend we are going to work together to get everything ready. Hopefully it'll work out so I can relax a little bit more about all of this.

Officially Unemployed

This past week was my last week of work. It was really hard knowing that I wasn't going to be working with the family anymore. It turned out to be a great week though. Hayden was wonderful. He started saying my name the last 2 weeks. It's the cutest thing. Go figure that he would learn my name when I'm leaving. I didn't want to leave on Friday though. It was definitely tough saying good bye for the last time. I really hope the new nanny works out for them because they deserve it. Even though I've got my fingers crossed that it doesn't and they ask me to come back in January. I said that I would love to continue to babysit so hopefully it won't be too long until I see them again.

We didn't end up doing much this weekend. I was going to go to this craft thing with my friend Jenny but she couldn't get out of work and I didn't get home in time cause I had to do some running around after work. Dave and I went to Applebee's for dinner was our big thing that night. I have been craving buffalo wings and they have really good boneless ones. It's so weird because I usually don't eat or like hot/spicy food like that. I guess we can call that a pregnancy craving for sure. Dave's hoping I continue to like hot food because he loves it. Saturday we went to pick up our recliner we bought so I can use to feed D.J. We decided to rearrange the living room furniture so Dave could use the chair to watch tv. It's pretty funny because once we were finished, I don't think he's left the chair since. I have to admit it's really comfy and a great purchase for us. We kept asking each other why haven't we gotten one of these earlier. Dave is already planning on buying another before we go to Guam. I wanted to check Old Navy out for their maternity clothes. I need to start looking for some nursing shirts and bras. We went shopping and I was a little disappointed with their selection. I got 2 pairs of comfy pants but that was it. We also went to Border's and got the book Baby Wise. The family suggested it which helped them get Hayden to sleep through the night at 6 weeks. We're definitely going to do it because I want D.J. to be able to sleep through the night as soon as possible. I hope it works cause I need my sleep too! :) Today was a great day because we watched the Steelers beat Minnesota. Minnesota came in undefeated so it was a big game for us. It was a great game to watch too. Our defense ended up taking over in the fourth quarter. The Vikings were driving for a score when we recovered a fumble and ran it back for a touchdown. After that we allowed a kick off return giving them another chance to win. The next drive when it looked like Minnesota was going to score, we got an interception for a touchdown. That pretty much sealed the win. That makes us 4-2 and still in the hunt! It was another close game which makes it hard being pregnant. I swear I'm going to go in labor during one of these Sundays. The rest of the day I just relaxed or I should say napped on the couch. A pretty easy, uneventful weekend for us.

It's pretty weird that I won't be getting up to go to work starting tomorrow. I love that but it's going to be different. I've got a list of things that I want to get done this week though. I'm going to do a major cleaning within the next couple of weeks in each room of our place. I just want to get everything cleaned for when the baby comes. Tomorrow I'm going to work on our bedroom and bathroom. I'm also going to try to get at least one scrapbook page done a day. I still haven't finished our cross country album that I've been working on FOREVER. I need to finish that so I can start D.J.'s album so I stay on top of his with the little time I'll have. Tuesday afternoon we have a tour scheduled at the hospital for labor and delivery. Wednesday I'm going to fleet and family support center to have them help me apply for the teaching position in Guam. I'm hoping they can answer the questions I have about that position as well. I'm going to check the Navy exchange for any nursing tops/bras while I'm down there too. I'm going to take Thursday easy because I'm sure I'll be a little tired from running around the last couple of days. I'll probably do lots of scraping that day. Friday we have our 36 week appointment in the afternoon. Sometime this week we need to get/make our Halloween costumes for the party Saturday. I'm going to be a peanut m&m since I have the belly and everything. I need to look for a yellow tshirt that I can pin an M on and white gloves. We aren't sure what Dave's going to be yet so we need to do a little shopping to see what we can put together. Even though I won't be working, I'm hoping to get a lot accomplished this week.

Big Changes

This was a pretty emotional week. I found out Monday that I won't be returning to nanny the boy I watch now. They weren't able to find a replacement for the 2 months that I was going to be off on their own. They tried using Craig's list and another nanny agency but didn't find anyone. They decided to go back to the agency they used to find me. That meant they had to spend a good amount of money for the service. Because of that they decided to keep the lady full time. I'm still upset they couldn't ask her to work only 2 months but there's nothing I can do about it. I have accepted it but it's still going to be tough not seeing the boy everyday. Plus the parents have been so great. I'm hoping to be able to spend sometime with them on the Friday's she has off. My last day is Oct. 23rd. I'm looking forward to having some time off before the baby comes though. I hope to use that time to officially get everything ready for when he's here. I've been a little worried about what I'm going to do come January but I have put my name down at a daycare already. It's a private daycare that a few of my old coworkers work at. One of my closest friends Jodi has her daughter there so it's been great to be able to talk to her to see if I would really want to put D.J. there if I work there. I think I have a good chance of getting the job so I'm keeping my fingers crossed things work out for us. It will be a little weird not having a job to rush to everyday. Oh what I hope to accomplish!!

Wednesday after work I come home to find out what orders Dave is going to take come next summer. His shore duty is up in Aug so we've been hoping to get back to the east coast to be closer to Pittsburgh. The Navy has changed the way it's giving orders away. Long story short, he was offered a sub in Guam. Dave asked his detailer what happens if he doesn't want them. He was told that he would be forced to go to Iraq or Afghanistan. The Navy is the military being forced over there right now. Since no one is volunteering, they are using the transfers to get people. So much for Obama pulling our troops out but that's a totally different post.

I wasn't the happiest when I heard this. It's just sooo far away. After talking with Dave I've accepted it and started to look forward to it. I would much rather stay as a family and Dave be somewhere safe. The thing is that Dave will have to extend for a year and half for these orders. He only had a year and half left to finish his duty on a sub. He was leaning towards getting out once that was up. Guam requires people to stay there for a 3 year tour. That will take Dave to 11 years which means he will most likely stay in for 20 for retirement. There are definitely some pluses with going there. The sub Dave will go to doesn't make 6 month deployments. They will only take 6-8 week missions, which is a big plus. We will actually be able to afford living in a house! It's very close to Australia so I am hoping to take a few trips to the place I've always wanted to visit. When Dave is done with this tour, he will be back on shore duty where ever he wants. There are special circumstances with these orders that allow Dave to get first pick. We will most likely be the closest we can to Pittsburgh. I most likely will be able to get back into teaching elementary. There are US based schools run through the government. From reading the website I would become a government employee starting at at least $80,000. I'm not 100% sure about the salary yet but I'm going to use the fleet and family support center out here to help me apply and answer my questions. We are hoping I would make that much cause it would get us out of debt and be able to save money to put on a house when ever we move back. Even though it's going to be soooo far away and expensive to get back to the states, we are taking this as an experience we might never get again.

There are still a ton of things to figure out but it looks like we will transfer sometime between June and September. Dave thinks he should have a month leave before having to be over there so we would leave Diego June, be in Pittsburgh for July and fly to Guam in Aug. My parents seem to take the news better than I thought. I think having my mom retire has helped her be happy cause she'll be able to come visit and stay with us as long as she wants. My sister doesn't like this at all cause she is REALLY looking forward to having a nephew. I can understand her feelings. Hopefully she will be able to come visit. We haven't told Dave's mom cause we are both very worried about how she will handle it. She hates us being clear across the country now. She also wants Dave out of the military so that will be another hard thing to tell her. Dave is going to wait until after the holidays to tell her.

Once I find out more I will update everyone with the latest.

Glucose Results

Well I had a little scare with my sugar levels from my last appointment. The hour glucose test I did about a month or so ago came back just a slight higher than normal. I had to do the 3 hour glucose test to see how I reacted on Saturday. I was supposed to hear from my midwife Monday and never did. She said to call Tuesday if so. We ended up missing each other so I spent most of the day trying to track her down today. She ended up calling and reassuring me that the test came back normal!! That made me feel sooooo much better. I have been worried about it since Friday. I just kept thinking about having to take my blood to track my sugar levels. That was the last thing I wanted to worry about the last 2 months of this pregnancy. But everything turned out great!! That was a such a relief.

Baby Update

Well Friday was my 32 week appointment. Things were a little mixed. It turns out that my glucose came back just a little high so they are concerned that I might have gestational diabetes. I took the test about a month ago so I totally wasn't expecting that bad news. They were supposed to notify me immediately if something was wrong. The midwife isn't sure how that happened but that meant that I needed to do the 3 hour glucose test as soon as possible. Luckily we didn't have anything planned Saturday so I could do it in the morning. Other than that everything looked good. Even better news is that the midwife was very happy with my weight this time!!! It felt good cause I've been eating better and working out. So hopefully the glucose screening comes back fine and I don't have to worry about checking my sugar and what not. I should hear Monday, Tuesday by the latest.

We went to check out this center that my old director and a few of my friends work at now. I wanted to go speak to her about any openings come January and check out the center if we need to put D.J. in. It seems like a great center and makes me feel better that it's my old director running the place. She's not sure about any job openings come January so once I find out if I will have my nanny job or not I will let her know to keep me in mind. I still have mixed feelings about all of this. I hope the family finds out soon just so I know what I'm going to have to do in January.

The best part of our day was getting to see our little guy at the 4d ultrasound. We did one when my parents were out and had a coupon to come back later. I was definitely ready to see how much he had grown and changed. It was the best experience. He was pretty much sleeping the whole time but we did get to see him move a little. He was head down laying up against my belly. He had his left hand covering his one eye pretty much the whole time. The lady said that we shouldn't be surprised if that's how he sleeps when he's born. Every once in awhile he would bring his foot up to his hand. He was kicking and we got to see him move a little. It was neat to know how he was laying so I have a better understanding of the movements I feel. We think that he's got Dave's lips and nose. The whole time I kept thinking how cute he is and I cannot wait to meet him. I want to be able to kiss those chubby cheeks and hold those fingers. He's so going to have me wrapped about his little fingers. Seeing him really made me excited for the end of November. If anyone is pregnant or for future pregnancies I would definitely recommend doing a 4D ultrasound because they are the coolest thing to be able to get such a real picture of your child.

Here are a few of the great pictures we got from the ultrasound.

Nothing New

We had a very uneventful weekend. The week was long, even though I was called off Monday because Hayden had a head cold. He wasn't very cranky just wasn't himself. He absolutely hated when I wiped his nose but I had to do it like every 5 minutes because it wouldn't stop. I felt sooo bad for him. By the end of the week he seemed to be starting to kick the cold but I was exhausted. Friday night I slept on the couch until dinner. We watched some tv then I was ready for bed. Unfortunately Saturday I woke up pretty early and wasn't feeling good at all. I didn't feel sick but my belly was really bothering me. I'm not sure what it was. I laid on the couch and feel back asleep then woke up when Dave got up. I ended up falling back asleep about an hour or so later. So that was my Saturday pretty much. Not feeling good and sleeping. Luckily Sunday I woke up and felt sooo much better. We went and hung at my sisters place. She was gone for the last week and half so it was nice to spend sometime with her. We watched the Steelers lose another game. What kills me is that we gave the last 2 games away. We should have won against Chicago if Jeff Reed would have made his field goals. Yesterday we should have easily beaten Cincinnati if we would have scored touchdowns on 3 of our red zone visits. It was very frustrating to watch knowing it should have been a blowout and we ended up losing.

I'm looking forward to this upcoming weekend. Friday is my day off and 32 week appointment. We're going to try to do another 4D ultrasound that day too. I cannot wait to see how much D.J. has grown and changed. Sunday my friend Jennifer is having a food party. It will be great to see everyone and eat delicious food!!! I hope everyone has a good week!

Marrying a Pittsburgh Girl

I just had to post this because I laughed so hard after reading it. I wonder what Dave thinks about this?!!


Three men were sitting together bragging about how
they had given their new wives duties.

The first man had married a woman from Baltimore
and bragged that he had told his wife she was
going to do all the dishes and house cleaning. He
said it took a couple days but on the third day
he came home to a clean house and the dishes were
done.

The second man had married a woman from Cleveland.
He bragged that he had given his wife orders that
she was to do all the cleaning, dishes and the
cooking. On that the first day he didn't see any
results, but the next day it was better. By the
third day, his house was clean, the dishes were
done and he had a huge dinner on the table.

The third man married a girl from Pittsburgh. He
told her that her duties were to keep the house
clean, dishes washed, lawn mowed, laundry washed,
and hot meals on the table for every meal. He
said the first day he didn't see anything, the
second day he didn't see anything, but by the
third day most of the swelling had gone down and
he could see a little out of his left eye; enough
to fix himself a bite to eat, load the dishwasher,
and telephone a landscaper!

Katie's Visit

This past weekend my friend Katie came to visit from D.C. She flew in Wednesday night. It was her bday so we took her to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. I tried to get Thursday off but the mom wasn't able to take off. I felt bad but she was fine with just relaxing around the apartment. After work we took her to get the famous fish tacos at South Beach Bar and Grill. She absolutely loved them. The entire weekend she kept talking about them. It was pretty funny. She's now going to try to make them at home. We went out in PB for a few drinks and to hang out. We came home to rock out on Guitar Hero. Dave had Friday off so we decided to go to the beach Friday afternoon. It was hazy when we first got there but cleared up. We were there for quite a while so needless to say we all got a little burnt. After we went to the Wave House in Ocean Beach. It's a bar that has a man made wave that you watch people surf on. It's a really neat atmosphere to get some food and drinks. We were pretty wiped from the day so we watched a movie and took naps. Friday we met with Katie's college friend for dinner. Saturday we just relaxed at the apartment. Saturday night Dave's friend from work was ordering the Mayweather boxing match so we went over there to watch it. After there were a bunch of beer pong games and card games. I had to pull the pregnant wife card to get Dave to finally leave around 1 am. Even though I was sober it was still a lot of fun. Katie had a blast so that helped too. She left Sunday afternoon and it was very hard to see her go. She's one of those friends that nothing changes between us no matter how much time has gone by. I love her to death and wish we could see each other more often. I am so grateful that she was able to come out here. I couldn't have asked for a better weekend.

Not Much New

Well we didn't do much this past week/weekend. It was very tough to go back to work after the 4 day weekend. Luckily Hayden was great and made the week fly by. They built his toddler bed and it's just the cutest thing to see him crawl into it and go to sleep on his own. I can't believe how big and grown he is getting. I really do hope I am able to come back come January. They are in the process of looking for a replacement for Nov and Dec. They are just not sure if they will find someone as qualified as I am to only work 2 months. They have mentioned that if they find someone who wants to be here longer than they will have to offer it to that person. :( Which means I have no clue what I will do for a job. I have thought about going back to a preschool where some of my previous coworkers are now working. I would be able to collect unemployment if I do that when we transfer from here between June and August. I am just waiting to hear from the family to see what they find before I try to stress myself out too much.

Thursday was the Steelers home opener against Tennessee. I felt like it was a playoff game though how close and nerve racking it was. I felt so bad for D.J. My heart was pounding and I was nervous pretty much the whole game. He just kept moving throughout the whole game because of that. It's going to be a long last 3 months of this pregnancy if the Steelers games continue to be like that. We ended up winning in overtime by a field goal so that made us very happy! :)

Friday Dave and I just hung out at the apartment and caught up on some tv. We want to have the dvr mostly cleared since a lot of our shows are coming back this month. I am very excited that most of the fall seasons are starting this week or next!! Back to having at least 2 shows to watch a night. One bad thing about that is it will take away my time to scrapbook. I'm still trying to finish our cross country album. ugh, it's like never ending. Saturday Dave and I went to this baby safety meeting in the morning. It was good but ended up being a guy trying to sell a crib and high chair from this company that doesn't sell things in stores. I was definitely ready for it to be over after about an hour. We did get 6 free photo shoots at sears to use when D.J. is here and these codes to get a free vacation and groceries. That was definitely worth the time. Dave is a huge Notre Dame fan so we had to get home to watch them lose to Michigan which made him very upset. I guess to clear his head he wanted to go shopping. We went down to the Exchange and bought a few more baby things since they were having a big baby sale. Saturday night my sis came over and drank with Dave while we watched Fight Club. Sunday was spent watching football at my sisters place. She bought the Sunday ticket through directv. We had another couple over to watch the games. We had so much fun watching the games and hanging out. They are one of the couples that we always have fun with when we hang out. I just couldn't believe how quickly the weekend went though. I felt like we really didn't even have one since we didn't do much.

My friend flies in Wednesday night so we are taking the next 2 nights to make sure the place is clean and ready for a visitor. I am so excited to see her. I haven't seen her for over 2 years. Luckily I have Friday off so we'll probably spend the day at the beach. Saturday night is the Mayweather fight that Dave wants to see and a friend from work is buying it so we're going there. Not sure what the plans are for the rest of the time she's out here. It will just be so nice seeing her again.

Last thing is I just saw the newest trailer of New Moon and wanted to share it with you. It looks soooo good. Unfortunately the movie comes out 6 days before my due date. I wasn't going to go being so close but after seeing this trailer I might just have to. I cannot wait!!

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

It took a few times before I liked Zoolander

I didn't get all the funny parts in this movie until I saw it again and again and again. I thought the concept was soooo stupid the first time I saw it. Watching it again made me appreciate all of the funny parts to the stupidity. Everyone in this movie is just hysterical. This is one of those movies I continue to love no matter how many times I've seen it.

Long Weekend

I absolutely loved being off for 4 days. It felt like a mini vacation that's how nice it was. Friday was our 28 week appointment. Things were just as quick as my previous appointments. Only difference was I had to do the glucose test for diabetes. If I don't get a call this week then it meant that everything is looking good. I go back in 4 more weeks, making me 32 weeks. Crazy how fast this is going at times. Friday night my sis came over and her and Dave tried to drink 2 cases. It was pretty funny watching them. I definitely miss drinking at times like that but it's definitely entertaining being sober. I think they ended up only drinking one case and they were feeling it.

Saturday I was motivated to clean. My friend is flying in next week so I wanted to get the bathroom and bedroom cleaned up. I still had all of our presents from the baby shower in a pile. After cleaning the bathroom I started organizing and putting the gifts away. Since some of the stuff needed to be put together, Dave was my assembly man! He put together the pack and play and bouncer seat. Once all of that was done, we headed over to my sister's place. We watched some tv and hung out. You know what happened from my previous post when we got home Saturday night.

Sunday Dave and I ran out to Babies R Us for some baby shopping. I had a bunch of coupons that needed to be used before next week. We ended up using our gift cards to get the majority of things that were left to buy. We only have a few more items to get. It feels good knowing that we are almost ready for D.J. to come!! Since I didn't get much sleep I was pretty warn out after we got home. I took a pretty long nap. Once I woke up I completed one scrapbook page then got ready to go to the drive in. We have been wanting to go back but either didn't have the time or there wasn't a movie we wanted to see. We had both wanted to see Halloween 2 since it came out. That was with District 9 that Dave heard was pretty good. We were both very glad to be at the drive in to see Halloween because there were parts that were hard to see what was happening that we didn't want to see. I probably would have been covering my eyes if I could see it. It was a good movie but a twisted Rob Zombie movie if you know what I'm talking about. He just has some very weird parts to his movies that you aren't sure what's going on at times. District 9 was not very good though. It was just a weird concept that Dave and I couldn't get into. But spending $14 for both of us to see those movies was definitely worth it. I love the drive in. We're going to try to take advantage as much as possible before D.J. comes.

Monday we went to my sis's place to hang out. She made her delicious taco dip. My mouth is watering just thinking about it now. We played cards then watched the college football game. My brother came over for dinner. It was just a nice, relaxing Labor Day. It was tough knowing my long weekend was coming to an end though.

What to look forward to this short week....Steelers season opening game this Thursday against the Titans. Can't wait!!!

In 2109, my personal robot attendant will do laundry, dishes, and clean up

laundry, dishes, and clean up
These are the tasks that I hate doing but have to. I would want my robot to do these things so I wouldn't have to. Wouldn't that be great??

Gotta Love Renting

So we were over my sisters place last night until about 1 am. I needed to use the bathroom when we got home. When I go into our room I notice our sink is flooded and the floor is soaking wet. I was so annoyed that something happened to cause our sink to flood. We had to call emergency maintenance and they weren't able to come over for another hour. I felt bad having Dave stay up by himself because we were both pretty tired. Plus I was going to have to sleep in the other room and I didn't feel comfortable doing that by myself. When the guy finally arrived all he did was clean the sink up and Viacom the carpet. He said that someone would come to fix the sink between 8-12 Sunday morning. Keep in mind this was already 3 am when he left. We decided to still sleep in the spare bedroom since the bathroom was out of service and I use it at least twice a night. For some odd reason I just couldn't sleep being in a different room. First we could hear the people upstairs banging around. I kept thinking WTH are they doing at 4 in the morning. I think I fell into a light sleep then started hearing people talking outside. I'm not sure if they were across from our place or the same people outside on their porch upstairs. It was sooooo annoying cause I couldn't fall back asleep. I finally turned the tv on and was able to sleep. It still wasn't the best sleep though. Then at 8 am we get a call that maintenance is coming over in 20 minutes which meant no more sleeping for me. I would say I got about 5 hours of sleep at the most but it wasn't consistent sleeping. Weird thing is I'm not tired but I have a feeling I'm going to crash a little later today. I'm hoping to run out and do a little baby shopping while I have the energy. I like this no work on Monday thing!

Past Weekend

It was great I had this past Friday off that I could spend some time with my mom before she flew back to Pittsburgh Sunday. My mom absolutely loves Legoland. She was planning on going there during the week, but with my sister moving she didn't have much time. I told her that I would go up with her Friday if she waited. We went up there about 2 years ago. Since being there, they have built an aquarium so I was looking forward to seeing that. The aquarium was such a cool thing. There were actual fish and in some of the tanks, they had built and put in Lego figurines. I just couldn't stop saying how neat it was. I loved it as an adult so I can't imagine what children think about it. Here are just a few of the many pictures I took from our visit to the aquarium.

A shark swimming behind the Lego man

Another shark just swimming by

Yes those are real Lego's under water

My mom, a happy women, in front of one of the tanks

After we went into the park and did a quick walk through. Not much had changed even though I was having a hard time remembering most of it from 2 years ago. The neatest part was that they portrayed Obama being sworn into office. That was really cute to see. Here are those pics.

Everything is Lego's

Obama being sworn in with wife and kids

Saturday we had lunch with my mom and brother. Afterwards we went out and bought our crib. We ordered it so are waiting it's delivery. Now we just have to get a few more essentials then we should be ready. This weekend I'm hoping to get D.J.'s room organized now that my mom is gone. We just have all of the gifts from the shower in a pile. Then we came home and relaxed as a family. The Steelers played that night so we watched the game then grabbed some dinner. It was nice taking it easy since my mom was leaving at 6:15 Sunday morning. It was definitely hard to see my mom leave. She was out here for almost 3 weeks which made it feel like she lived here. Sunday I kept thinking I was going to get a call from my mom or sis asking what the plans were. It is nice having some peace and quiet again though.

Since Dave was golfing and I had the house to myself I actually decided to take some time to scrapbook Sunday. It has been FOREVER since I actually did that. I have been working on our cross country album for probably over a year. I want to get that done so I can start getting D.J.'s album started. At least the pregnancy part done so when he does come around I'm not trying to catch up. I'll hopefully be able to stay on top of his album but who knows. I got 5 pages done which means I only have a few more to complete the album. If you check my slide show you can see the new completed pages. I'm planning on getting it done this weekend since we're going to take it easy. I was so happy when I realized that it's not going to take me as long as I thought. I only have one more stop, Yellowstone, to do. That shouldn't take me as long once I figure out what pictures I'm using. I'm hoping to keep it to 3 or 4 pages. I will update this weekend if my plans worked out or not.

My review of 'The Haunting in Connecticut'

I really don't like watching scary movies. Every once in awhile there will be one that I just have to check out. This was one of those movies only because it was based on true events. I couldn't believe that all the things in this movie happened in real life. I was definitely scared and freaked out throughout the whole movie. I think I was clinging to my husband so hard he was getting bruises. I absolutely loved how it ended and made me be able to sleep without nightmares. If you are into scary/real movies I would definitely reccommend this movie.

I'll take a tattoo of a butterflies

Peacock Butterfly in the morning

I know that I already am getting a tattoo when i'm done being pregnant and breastfeeding. I am going to get two butterflies intertwined to represent me and my husband. Then I want a smaller butterfly around us that will represent our son. I will continue to add butterflies for our family! I am not 100% sure about where yet. I'm thinking probably on my back somewhere. I have sometime to think about that though.

Australia, here I come

I have always wanted to visit Australia. I'm not sure why but it just looks so beautiful and a place I would want to check out. I love the sun and water and it's got plenty of them. Plus it's a continent that speaks English so I wouldn't feel lost. I'll make it there someday!!

Next birthday, I'd like to getting my first tattoo

getting my first tattoo
I wanted to do this on my last birthday but I ended up being pregnant. It will actually work out though because I can get what I want at one time rather than having to come back. It's going to represent my little family we have! :) I hope nothing stops me this time.

Weekend Filled with Stuff

I realized that I started writing this post a week ago and never finished. This was 2 weekends ago.

Saturday was my baby shower. My sister was throwing it but I knew most of what was going to happen since she did most of the planning at my place. We had it at The Cottage in La Jolla Saturday at 2:30. It was a restaurant that we got to sit on the patio to eat and celebrate. It was such a beautiful day too that it was the perfect place to have it. The people there were wonderful too. They were sooo helpful and nice. The food was excellent as well. I would definitely recommend that place for a baby shower that's how great it was.

We sat around and mingled while we waited for everyone to get there. We ate a late lunch/early dinner once everyone was there. I had the Cobb salad which was delicious. It seemed like everything everyone ordered was good. After eating the guests decorated bibs that D.J. can wear when he eats. They were all so cute and creative. We played a guessing game that asked how many diapers D.J. will use within the first week. My guess was WAY off but the answer was 56. Hopefully most of those 56 won't be too smelly or nasty. Then I opened gifts. D.J. got clothes (which are just adorable) a bouncer he can sit in while I do some things, a shopping cart cover, babies r us gift cards, blankets, bibs, washcloths, burp clothes, toy rattles. My friend Jodi brought her 8 month old daughter Mackenzie. She made a card from Mackenzie that had her feet prints on the front. It was just the cutest. Afterwards we had some cupcakes that were SOOOO good then hung out some more.

What was so nice was being clear across country from my hometown and still having the best friends to be able to celebrate with. Everyone got D.J. such great gifts. I felt truly blessed to have made those friends. Another nice thing was being able to celebrate with my mom and sister. My sister planned it during the time that my mom was going to be out here. I'm so grateful that she did that because it was very nice having my mom there. I really don't think it couldn't have been any better. I had the best baby shower I could have imagined. Here's a group shot minus 2 guests who left before taking it.



Sunday was a VERY long day. We got up to try to eat breakfast at Cafe 222. We have heard only excellent things about this place. My mom even heard about it in Pittsburgh. Unfortunately there was almost a 2 hour wait so we passed on that. We grabbed some breakfast at Souplantation that was excellent. Probably not as nearly as good as Cafe 222 but it still hit the spot. Afterwards my sister wanted to check out the swap meet for a few things for her new apartment. I wasn't feeling up to walking around in the heat and sun so I spent some time shopping at Target. That was dangerous because all of the baby stuff is just adorable there. After the swap meet we went to check out the Body World at the Natural History Museum. That was such a neat experience because it shows the parts of the body made from real humans. Crazy. Neatest part was getting to see the development of babies during pregnancy. I did tear up reading about how these babies didn't make it to term but it was great to be able to relate to my experience at the moment. Unfortunately you aren't allowed to take any pictures because that would have been great to add to my California scrapbook. I did get two outside in front of the sign though.

Tales of the middle child

I am the third of 4 children. I have 2 older brothers and a younger sister. Because of having 2 older brothers who loved rough housing and playing sports, that's how I grew up. I was and still am not a girly girl. I absolutely love sports, watching and playing them. My older brothers also tried picking on us younger sisters. I didn't let what they said or did bother me. I learned to let what people say about me roll off my back. I developed a strong sense of self because of my family position.

Start with 'Hands Down'

All of Dashboard Confessional's songs are awesome. I have not heard any song on any of their CD's that aren't great.

Hands Down by Dashboard Confessional

Vindicated by Dashboard Confessional

This Bitter Pill by Dashboard Confessional

4D ultrasound

Last night Dave and I took my parents and sister to see little D. We went to a place called Babies First Ultrasound. They perform 4D ultrasounds. It's a very clear picture of your baby compared to the blurry 3D ones. You can see everything with 4D. It was such a neat experience being able to actually see his facial features and everything. We got the basic package so it was a 15 minute ultrasound. I think the lady went longer but we all didn't mind. It was hard for it to end though because I wanted to keep watching him move around and be adorable. He's still breached right now with his head near my belly button. Most of the time his left hand was over part of his face. The craziest thing was his legs were up near his head with his right hand under them up against my wall. That's probably why I feel him ALL the time. The lady kept saying that he's very active and going to be a happy baby because he was smiling throughout the whole scan. I hope that turns out true. My parents had never received ultrasounds with the 4 children they had because nothing was ever wrong with my mom's pregnancy. It was so great that we could give them that experience. They really enjoyed it and kept saying how neat it was. They are going to spoil him so much I know it.

We have 2 of the best pictures that happened in the very beginning and at the very end. As soon as we started the lady made sure the sex. Low and behold there he was the same way he was when we found out the first time he was a boy. His legs wide open with his penis showing. Dave and I couldn't stop laughing. I guess he's not going to be shy about that.


The lady continued to show us different pictures of him. She had me turn on my left side a few times to get some different shots. She was great about answering my parents and sisters questions about what they were seeing. We couldn't see the umbilical cord but she infrared the area to show us where it was. That was pretty cool. Finally she announced that she was going to get one more picture and it turned out to be my favorite. He has a smile with his hands under his chin. It really is just the cutest and I can only imagine the personality he's going to have!!


Dave and I are planning on going back most likely between the 30th and 31st week. The place we went to had a discount to come a second time during the same pregnancy. We can get a longer ultrasound with color pictures and a bunch more things for the same price as our first visit. We just can't turn that down! That will be when he's all chubby and what not too so we're both looking forward to that.

Quick Weekly Update

My mom flew in Tuesday afternoon. Tuesday night we had my fam over for some homemade meatloaf and to catch up. Wednesday my dad flew in in the morning so we did dinner at Red Lobster than did a little shopping at the Navy Exchange. Thursday we hung at our place and cooked steaks on the grill. My dad experienced a Blu-ray movie for the first time. He was definitely impressed with the clarity. He keeps saying that he needs to update his outdated tv and dvd player. We might have convinced him on that. Friday we had our 24 week appointment. Everything seems to be going fine according to the nurse practitioner. We made an appointment for next month where I'll do another glucose test to make sure I haven't formed diabetes. I'm not supposed to eat 2 hours before so that should be interesting since I always seem to be hungry. Friday night we cooked hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill and hung out some more. The boys were golfing Saturday morning so the girls went to see Harry Potter in 3D at the Imax. 3D was only the first 12 minutes but it was still pretty neat. It would have been awesome to see the whole thing in 3D but I guess it would have cost them a ton since the movie was 2 1/2 hours. I still loved it the second time around. Afterwards we went to Micheal's and Joann's to get some things for the baby shower next Saturday. I'm really excited to see some of my friends who I haven't seen in a while. Tonight we are going to the Padres game. Tomorrow we have set up a 4D ultrasound to see little D again. My parents have never experienced an ultrasound so we wanted to give them a chance to see their grandchild. They are both very excited. I will have more pictures to post whenever I get some more time to sit down this week. Not sure the plans for the rest of the week. My dad leaves Thursday but my mom is in town for another week and half. I will try to update whenever I can.

Week Off

I can't believe it's Sunday already and my week off is over. I'm very excited to see Hayden but it was so nice to have a week to do what I wanted. I could definitely see why people don't work. Now if I could only make money doing nothing :)

Here are some of the highlights from my week off. My sister and I saw the new Harry Potter movie. It was soooooo good. After watching it I wanted to have the last movie out to see it end. Even though I'll be disappointed when they are all over. I think I'm going to start reading the series again until the movie comes out. When my mom comes out here in Aug, my sister and I are going to take her to see the movie in Imax 3D. Can't wait for that.

Dave and I went shopping and found the crib we are going to buy. That was a big relief and one thing off our list of things to buy. We also registered and figured out a lot of the things that we want and need to buy. That was a big weight off our shoulders. Now we just need to slowly start buying everything. Crazy less than 4 months to go.

The other big thing my sister and I did was go to comic con on Thursday. I couldn't believe how many people were there. It took us about an hour and half to get down to the convention center and find parking. Then it was another half hour to wait in line to get our badges. We wanted to see the New Moon preview and see some of the actors from the movie. The show wasn't until 1:30 but when we got there at 11, the hall was already filled and people weren't leaving. So we didn't get to see that but still walked around and saw some crazy things. It was definitely a neat experience that I'm glad we did.

Unfortunately Dave ended up having bronchitis this week so we didn't get to do much. Every time we went out to do something he got sooo drained that we couldn't stay out long. Which I totally understood but sucked cause we didn't get to go away this weekend. I know we'll find another time to do something special one of the long weekends I have. All in all it was still a great week off because we got to spend the time together.

Great Week!!

This was a such a great week. It started off Tuesday with our 2 year anniversary. It was much better this year than last because we actually got to spend it together. Last year Dave was in Pittsburgh taking care of his mom. She was having health problems once again. I couldn't get off work at such a short notice so I wasn't able to get home. I was happy Dave's work gives them anniversaries and bdays off because he needed a day off. I wish I could have had the whole day off with him though. We ended up going to dinner at Buca Di Beppo. It was sooooo delicious!!! Afterwards we wanted to do something special so we went to Babies R' Us to shop for our little guy. We got some great ideas and pretty much know all of the major things we are going to buy. A little overwhelming knowing all the things we have to buy and get ready in less than 4 months but we had a good time shopping. I think the hardest thing is deciding the theme of his room so we can buy his bedding stuff. I liked soooo many of their things. We're going to shop around this week then make our minds up so we can register and be done with that. Dave bought me/us a baby monitor so we can hear our little man move and what not. Listening to him move around inside my belly was the perfect ending to our anniversary.

Work wasn't too bad this week because I knew I was going to have a week off when the family takes a vacation. I love that I'll still be getting paid so I'm a happy girl!! The week was topped off Friday after work when I felt David junior for the first time. After work on Friday I was laying on the couch watching some tv with Dave. I started feeling something different in the lower left half of my belly. It felt like gas bubbles popping so I didn't think much of it. Then it continued to happen and I didn't have gas. I told Dave to put his hand where I was feeling it. As soon as he put his hand on my belly he kicked. Dave unfortunately couldn't feel it. We decided to use our monitor to see if we could hear what was happening. He was definitely moving and kicking around exactly where I was feeling. I couldn't believe it!! I kept wondering when I was going to feel him. Now that I have he doesn't seem to stop. I'm afraid he's taking after his dad and going to be non stop. GREAT :/

This upcoming week should be just as good. Since I have the week off, I'm going to see Harry Potter tomorrow afternoon with my sister. Cannot wait for that! Then Dave is taking Wed, Thurs and Friday off. We're going to use that time to register and get a lot of things done. Dave said that he's going to surprise me and take me somewhere Friday so I'm very excited/nervous about that one. He's sooo good with surprises though so I'm more excited than anything. I'm sure I will have lots to write after the week off.

Great Friday Off

I absolutely love having every other Friday off. This one was exceptionally good. The nice thing is that someone at Dave's work was getting out of the military so they had the option to go golfing instead of work. Dave was more than happy to get out a day of work to play golf. Unfortunately he could only play 9 holes because we had our 20 week appointment at 12:30. I didn't mind though because that gave me more time to be with him on my day off.

So we went to our appointment and everything is great. The baby is developing right along schedule. It was a very short appointment but kind of annoying. Let me explain why. First off going through the military you have to check in 15 minutes early. I'm totally fine with that but they don't take you back until your appointment time. Then, the last 3 appointments we've had, we've been put in a room and had to sit at least 15 more minutes before the midwife comes in to see me. The midwife comes in and does her thing then we wait for a nurse to come schedule our next appointment. Sometimes they come in right away. Yesterday we sat for another 15 minutes before she stuck her head in to say she forgot about us and will be back in a few more minutes. We were there for an hour when the appointment took 15 minutes. Very frustrating.

The other thing that bothered me about yesterdays appointment was the midwife I saw. Each time I've gone, I had a different lady. It's just worked out that way because I need the Friday's I have off and sometimes the same one isn't available. The first two midwives we've seen were great. I had such wonderful experiences with them. Well, this one was horrible. She was very quick and short with me. She wasn't very friendly at all. She even called me fat!! How do you call a pregnant lady fat??? Ok, maybe she didn't say those words but sure felt like it. I know I gained a little bit of weight but I'm not too worried. Dave is back on weight watchers which means we are back to eating healthy. I definitely wasn't doing a good job of that so I wasn't surprised I was a few pounds over the recommendation. But the way the midwife approached the subject was not very nice. She asked me if I exercise. I told her that I take the boy I nanny for a walk everyday. She says that's not exercise, maybe for the boy but not for me. I try to explain that I push him in the stroller but she still said that wasn't exercise. I'm sorry but if you've ever pushed a 20 pound baby in a stroller up and down hills for a half hour, you know that it is exercise. That just made me angry and want the appointment to be over. So I definitely will be requesting not to see her again.


Ready for our appointment...do I look fat???

Our boy is developing right on schedule. My blood work for diabetes came back normal so that made me very happy. I was a little concerned that I haven't felt any kind of movement but after looking at the paperwork from our last ultrasound she said that my placenta is in front acting like a cushion. She checked his heartbeat and had to actually push on my belly because he was moving around so much. She couldn't get the heartbeat because of his movements. So he's definitely an active baby. I should start feeling him move within the month. That gave me a sigh of relief too. I go back for another appointment in a month.

After our appointment my sister came over. It was great to spend some time with her because she's been in Pittsburgh for 2 weeks. She is going to be gone for another week starting today so it was great to spend the night with her. When my mom was out she really liked the place we are living in. She had been thinking about having my sister get a 2 bedroom apartment so she would be able to come out anytime she wants to see her grandson. So yesterday I took her to the leasing office to see if there were any places that she liked. She ended up finding a 2 bedroom townhouse that she liked. She is going to move in Aug 18th. It's great that my parents will have somewhere else to stay when they come out once the baby is here!! After that LONG process, we just hung at the apartment chit chatting. Dave and I have been wanting to go to the drive in for a few weeks now but just haven't. We all decided that it would be a great idea last night. They were showing Public Enemies and The Hangover together. Both of those movies Dave wanted to see so we went. We all had the best time. We opened Dave's Tahoe trunk and used it as a bed to watch the movies. It was very comfortable. I kept saying that I can't believe we just saw 2 new releases for $14 for Dave and me. It would cost us more for the two of us at the theater to see just one of those movies. We are definitely going to go back. Cheap and a fun time, can't go wrong with that.

Not sure what the rest of the weekend entails but it was a great start!!

I'll get around to cleaning one of these days

I'm avoiding cleaning my bedroom and bathroom. I'm avoiding my bathroom because I absolutely HATE cleaning bathrooms. I've left my bedroom dirty for too long so it just looks overwhelming to clean. I already have my mind set to tackle both rooms this weekend though. Hopefully I can stick to it!!

Drama, Drama, Drama

I'm not sure who all reads this so I don't want to put my foot in my mouth. All I want to say is that Dave's mom didn't take it well that we were asking her to stay in a hotel room when the baby is born. She thought she was going to be able to come out for Thanksgiving and stay with us through Christmas without even asking. Dave asked her if she comes for the birth to stay in a hotel or wait until Christmas to stay with us. She threw a fit and caused a lot of drama last night. She said some really mean things about me that are still hurting today. I have the best husband though and he didn't want to hear his mom talk about me like that and isn't on speaking terms with her now. The sad part is that Dave and I already talked about paying for her hotel room so she can be out here for the birth. I guess that didn't matter though cause she said that she will just see her grandchild whenever we make it back to Pittsburgh.

I don't know what to do about her. She is a big part of Dave but continues to try to come between us. It will truly hurt Dave if he doesn't have his mom out here when his son is born. Is it too much to ask for her to stay in a hotel though??

The other thing she was pissed about is the baby shower. My sister and I haven't even planned anything yet. All we know is that it will probably be within the first 2weeks of Aug. Dave's mom thinks that we are trying to exclude her in the planning of that like she thinks we did for the wedding (which is another post entirely). What can she do from Pittsburgh though and we haven't even started planning. It's just so frustrating cause we never know what she's going to be like when we talk to her.

She just doesn't understand how much we try to do for her. Dave and I talked about flying her out for the shower and 4D ultrasound we want to do then too. But again she didn't care to listen to us. She just feels like I'm the cause of all of this but doesn't realize that this is how both of us feel. We would like to begin our family with as little drama as possible when he first comes home. I just had to vent a little of the story even though there is plenty more. I'm sure this won't be the only time I have to vent about her either.

Need Some Advice

I know it's still awhile off but I started thinking last night laying in bed about having family out for our babies birth. I want as many people as possible to come out when I give birth. The thing is that I'm becoming nervous about having people stay with us. Particularly Dave's family. My parents have already stated that they will be here. My parents will either get a hotel room or stay with my sis though. They already know they don't want to get in the way. Plus I know I can tell my fam to give us some space and they will listen. Dave's family will barely be able to afford a flight out here let alone a hotel room. The thing is that we would have Dave's mom, step dad, his sister, his 2 nieces (7 and 5) and boyfriend. The problem is we only have a 2 bedroom apartment with one extra queen size bed.

Let me sidetrack real quick to give you some background why I'm really starting to freak. When Dave and I lived in Virginia, his family came to visit all at the same time. It was his mom, step dad, sister, 2 nieces, husband, and grandma. Luckily we had a house but it was still only 2 bedrooms. We had his gram sleep in the bed and the rest of the family slept on air mattresses. His mom and step dad were in the dining room. It just got WAY too crazy to have that many people in such a small place. And his family doesn't get along the best either so it was very stressful.

So I started picturing all of that happening again when they come out here in our small, and I mean small, apartment. On top of that we will have a newborn to take care of. I don't know how I'm going to react to having a newborn around either. I'm going to breastfeed so that means a lot of sleepless nights for me. I'm not the best when I'm tired and don't feel like having to entertain his family. The other thing that is bothering me is thinking about how his mom is going to constantly tell us what we should and shouldn't be doing. Since this is our first, I want Dave and I to have that experience of figuring things out ourselves. Dave is allowed 10 days leave when the baby is born. I kind of want Dave and I to have those days to bound with the baby and not have any kind of drama while he's off. Am I crazy to feel this way?? I'm hoping we can convince Dave's family to come out for xmas. That would give us some time to bound and adjust to a baby around but we'll see.

MIA

I just looked at my blog and realized that I haven't posted anything in FOREVER. I just don't seem to want to be on the computer when I get home from work nowadays. I was finally able to connect to the families internet at work so I'm hoping to be able to post a lot more now.

So much has happened I'm not sure where to start and if I even remember all of it. The past week and a half my mom was out visiting. We had such a good time. The first day she was out I was lucky enough to have a Tuesday off so my sister and I took her to the Aquarium. None of us had ever been so we thought it was a perfect place to go. It was really neat. The best part is there is a huge tank with all different kinds of fish. The day we were there they had divers go in the tank to clean and feed the fish. I have some really neat pictures from the day and hope to post them soon. My brother, Dave and I also took my mom to the San Diego county fair. We all enjoyed walking around and eating all the crazy stuff you can there. Dave tried a fried snickers that was pretty good. I could only eat 2 bites because it was too sweet for me. It was sad to see my mom leave but she already has plans to be out here Aug 4-24. I'm hoping my dad can make it out with her this time.

The most exciting news that we received on Saturday is we are having a baby boy!! We had an ultrasound only for that reason. Dave and I were both pretty nervous to find out. We both really wanted to have a boy and seemed scared about having a girl. Dave because he didn't want to think about dealing with her dating when she's older. Me only because I felt like I would have to teach and show her sooo many things that I learned on my own. My mom was never the best at telling us certain things about being a girl. But we don't have to worry about that because it's a boy!! That seemed to make this pregnancy A LOT more real to us.

Speaking of the pregnancy I couldn't be happier with it. I have had a pretty good one so far and hoping things continue like they are. I haven't taken a picture but I am definitely showing. I had to go out a few weekends ago to get maternity clothes. They are very cute and EXTREMELY comfortable. I joke with Dave that I could wear these clothes all the time even not pregnant. We have another appointment July 10th so hopefully everything continues to go as smooth with me and the baby.

Dave's one friend from his old sub is staying with us for a month while he takes a class here. I'm sure there will be plenty of things going on while he's here. We haven't decided on the plans for the 4th of July weekend yet. My brother mentioned having people over so if so we'll most likely be there. I'm thinking of taking a few trips to the pool while the weather has been pretty warm. Warm at least for San Diego ;) I hope everyone has a good and safe holiday weekend.