Updates

Cravings...there's nothing like fulfilling a food/drink craving you've had for several hours or several days.  Unless you can't figure out what you're craving.  That's me.  I just don't like eating/drinking right now because nothing is satisfying, and everything leaves a bad taste in my mouth.  Normal?  I don't remember this, so I don't know.  I craved root beer with Lovely (and gained about 35 lbs) and I craved Sunkist with Snugglebug (only gained 23 lbs--go figure).  This one?  Who knows!  Other than cheese (yes, I do like a good Colby Jack cheese right now), I'm craving...something...If you can tell me what it is, I'll clean your house for you.  Well, I'll think about cleaning your house for you, if my house is any indication of my cleaning prowess.  

Starting All Over

 Place:  Motherhood outlet in Indy 
 Lovely:  "Mommy, why does everything in here have this bump?" (points at mannequin)
Me:  "Because that's the kind of store it is."
Pause.
Lovely:  "But why are YOU in here then?"
Me:  "Because."
Lovely:  "Mommy!  Are you going to have a baby?"
Me:  "Maybe."
Lovely & Snugglebug whispering:  "Mommy is going to have a baby.  This is awesome!"
 Five minutes later.
 Lovely:  "Mommy, this is TERRIBLE!"
Me: "What?  Why?"
Lovely:  "A baby is going to keep me up nights with its crying."
Me:  ", you sleep like a rock.  Nothing is going to wake you."   
The title of this post is what keeps going through my mind:  I'll be starting all over.  I had finally moved past the diaper stage.  Lovely is almost out of her carseat.  And now:  starting all over. 

I normally didn't like to announce we're having a baby until after the first trimester, but I am now at 11 wks (although I look like I'm 20 wks!), and the cat seems to be out of the bag.  Hmm...this post may sound like I'm not happy, but really, I am.  I'm just nervous, which I attribute to being a bit older.   And knowing our house is entirely too small for all of us to live sanely.  There will be 6 1/2 yrs between Snugglebug and our newest, which seems like such a tremendous gap.  I had been under the impression that we just weren't going to have anymore children--which means we no longer have a crib, a carseat, a stroller, and numerous other baby items I had tired of storing.  I'm now 33, and I know there are plenty of mothers older than moi, I just feel...lol...old!  (shame on me, I know!)

I've decided I'll use my blog to document this pregnancy, praying it doesn't disappear.  I had kept an online journal through all of my pregnancy with Lovely--and the owner of the site transferred everything, happening to delete all of my posts . I barely wrote down anything with Snugglebug because I was too busy taking care of a 9 mo. old.  So, here goes!  

Current stats:
EDD:  November 16
Med Issues:  High blood pressure at last appt:  150/90.  However, I've taken it each morning & evening since and have not surpassed 133/82.  Thank goodness!  If I had high bp, I'd need to take meds, have weekly fetal stress tests at 32 wks and thereafter, and deliver 2 wks early.  Also, this will be my 3rd c-section.  There is one doctor in the entire area who is willing to do a VBAC after 2 c-sections, even though current research does not show a significant risk.  Anywho, he is in Louisville, and I must stay in S. Indiana this time around. 
Concerns:  I'm scheduled to teach three classes this fall.  I need the experience and the money, and since it's only 2 days a week, 5 hrs per day, I think I can handle it.  However, I'm not sure what I'll do for the few (approx. 5 days of classes) remaining after the birth. 
Predictions:  S told me (once again) that God told him we would have another baby, he just didn't know when.  This time, however, he was also told we'd have a boy.  I'm waiting and seeing.  I'm not eager to begin the battle of names that will ensue if we are having a boy. 

School, Work, & Stuff

Yet another post without pictures...do you hate me?  Well, even I hate my posts without pictures, so I understand if you do, too. 

I'm conferencing with students today.  I love conferencing with students because they can tell that I really care about their work, that I'm on their side.  And then, there are the students who miss conferences.  Of all my pet peeves, I think absences are among the greatest.  Why?  Because I went back to work three days after my father passed away.  Because I took a single day off when my grandmother passed away to drive all the way to Pennsylvania and back again.  Because I took (and take) commitments seriously.  There.  I've said it.  I've vented.  Phew!  Ok, so maybe all that wasn't entirely healthy for my mental state, but the excuses of working late hours or getting strep and therefore taking off a month just don't fly with me. 

I'm also having a conference with Lovely's teacher, per my own request.  I want to make sure she's getting all she needs.  More on that to come.

As for another confession, I've been cheating on you.  "What?!  How dare you!" you exclaim.  Yes, I know, cheaters never prosper and all that.  Actually, I've felt the need to develop a separate blog that focuses on my writing & teaching experiences.  I only just started it, and I have a whopping two followers (I'm actually being serious--no sarcasm here)--total strangers who actual see some value to my writing.  Or they accidentally hit the "follow" button.  We'll see.  Anyway, I've found it's a good place to share my ideas and articulate my thoughts, separate from my home/family posts. 

Speaking of work (again), I'm still looking for other work.  I put in my request to teach this fall, which I absolutely love, but let's face it--bills need to get paid and teaching won't start back up again until the end of August.  Online teaching jobs have fierce competition, I'm finding.  I'm even considering going back to administrative assistant work, but then I realize, it's not 10 years ago anymore--there aren't many of those jobs out there.  I saw a job that interests me at The Learning House, but I hate rejection-- and I still have to teach for 75 minutes two afternoons a week, through the end of April.  S had had an extremely busy Jan., but then Feb. rolled around and he got sick (for about 3 wks), and work has been pretty slow again.  Moral of the story is:  if you see a job I might be interested in, send the info my way; I'll be grateful :)

A Black & White Kinda Feelin'

I just found these on my computer and fell in love.  I hope you enjoy!  Oh--and I've done nothing to them--no photo shop, no Picasa, nada!

This is S's normal face when I ask him to smile for the camera (which explains why his pic isn't often featured on my blog):

"I'm having fun, Mama, I am...the sun is just so bright!"

A sweeping view from Catalina.  Why didn't I appreciate this when I lived there?

"I think I found another cactus sticker..."

My camera kept going back to this dead saguaro, refusing to leave its post until it completely withers and rots away...

This is just typical Snugglebug.  PERFECTLY captured, attitude and all.

Again, caught red-handed, all Snugglebug:

Who doesn't enjoy watching someone else eat sticky marshmallows?

And who doesn't chuckle when a bit of marshmallow lingers at the corners of such a cute mouth?

Twixie

Introducing Twixie, our newest family member: 

We drove to W. Virginia to pick her up from a long-time friend.  She is 3/4 lab, but we're thinking the last 1/4 is rottweiler.  She loves people and came practically house-trained, and she's now 11 wks old.  She has beautiful tan markings that make her paws and face look gorgeous.  Of course, S always said he'd never have an inside dog, but she's been living in the house for the past two weeks (S says it's too cold outside for her short hair...hmm).  I put her out when I go to work, but so far, that's only been for 2-3 hrs at a time, only during the week.  She's visited both grandparents' houses, and my mom admitted wanting a dog now, if only she could take care of it. 

There's something relaxing about having a dog curled up at your feet. 

Perdita

A Fond Farewell....(no, she didn't die)


We finally found a new home for Lovely's guinea pig, Perdita.  Although it was difficult to sell her, it was something that had to be done, for Perdita's sake and mine.  I've been coughing/sick for five months.  Count them:  FIVE MONTHS.  I don't know if it is all due to Perdita, but my throat did start to close in the last time I had to deal with her cage.  As in breathing became difficult.  Very difficult. 

Yes, Lovely adored her.  However, in a round-about way, this is her way of getting what she really wants:  a puppy.  Yes, you read that right.  I have officially lost my mind and promised the girls a puppy.  Her daddy has lost his mind as well, obviously.

Not just any puppy.  A puppy from W. Virginia.  Yes, you read that right.  We will be driving five hours to pick up this puppy.  One of my old friends (I hesitate to mention just how long I've known her now) has a dog with a litter of cute, mostly lab puppies.  We have already picked out our newest addition, named her, and shopped for her.  I had to take Lovely to Rural King to shop for doggie things after we dropped off Perdita--Lovely was sobbing in the backseat.  Hmmm...more manipulation?  naaaaaah.

Kid's Room Chaos

Every feel like a change?  I've always felt like that when it came to furniture arrangement.  However, the small rooms in my home are extremely restrictive...I guess even houses resist change!

Here's what's going on:  I decided to clean out under the girls' bed in order to give them more storage for toys, etc.  I had a bunch of old baby stuff under there and it doesn't look like we're having any more babies, so it's (past) time to clean house.  But once I got started, I found this terrible smell...so I had to borrow my mom's carpet cleaner and get to work.  Now, I'm debating what on earth to do with this mess.  Any ideas?

The bed is full-size and was used by me, my sister, and my aunt.  It matches a corner table, a dresser, two nightstands (that we're using in the livingroom as a joint tv stand), a chair (that's being used in the dining room), and a desk with a bookcase (which is being used at my mom's house).  I don't want to get rid of the solid old furniture, but my rooms are considerably smaller than my parents' and grandparents' houses.

On a positive note, here are some projects I created last summer for the room that I'm still partial to:

No, they aren't L and S, as you've guessed.  I took these letters and let the girls pick which colors they wanted, painted various designs, glossed them, and stapled a pink ribbon on the back for hanging purposes. 

I found three hooks like these at Hobby Lobby and hung them above the bed lentghwise.  They are used for bathrobes and one cute purse in the middle.

Last but not least is my hair center creation.  I couldn't figure out what to do with all the girls' hairstuff, so I took a summer-y metal half-bucket and glued some whimsy purple ribbon to it.  The ribbon is perfect for barrettes and clips.  The flower on the front hold those little pronged clippies, the basket holds ponytail bands, and headbands rest nicely over the edge.  It's not fixed nicely like back when I first made it, but it's lasted really well, I think. 

Now, I just need to figure out what to do with the rest of the furniture in the girls' room, including a guinea pig & her cage.  Wish me luck!

The Girls' Great-Grandma

The girls' great-grandma, my brother, and my niece, Summer 2010

I had planned on posting pics from our vacation to Tucson and Christmas, but we only got back last Sunday, I went to school & work the next day and throughout the week, and then my grandma went into the hospital on Thursday afternoon.  I will have to post the other pics later; now, I want to remember my grandma.

She was born in March 20, 1922 and passed away January 15, 2011 surrounded by family and close friends.  Grandma suffered a massive heartattack about five years ago, resulting in a triple bypass because there wasn't enough tissue/veins to do a quadruple bypass.  The surgeons didn't expect her to live, and yet she did.  She began having more consistant heart problems once again this past summer, but the Lord let us keep her with us until Thursday, when she suffered another heartattack.  Although the doctors brought her body back, I believe she left us before she even got to the Code room (And who could blame her?  I'm sure she's with my grandpa, my uncle, my father, and many others.).  She remained physically unresponsive, and so family made the decision to turn off the machines. 

Grandma was a truely unselfish lady.  When we would ask her where she wanted to eat, she refused to say anything other than, "Oh, anywhere is fine with me.  You pick."  My girls loved their great-grandma, and Snugglebug was always hugging and kissing her.  I know I'm a bit stand-offish when it comes to physical displays of affection (other than with the girls or Hubby), so I'd vicariously live through Snugglebug's ability to charm and delight my grandma.  I have memories of the only time I stayed with my grandparents as a child, sleeping on their bedroom floor, and going to Village Inn for breakfast where I got smiley-face pancakes.  I cherish the memories of the family Christmases at her house with all of my aunts, uncles, and cousins. We will miss her dearly, but I believe she's not only happier, but younger than me now!