Christian on the Swing

Christian is Laughing!

Christian's laugh is the sweetest sound in the entire world. I think I would chop off my arm if I knew tht it would make him laugh. Mom-Mom and I had a blast making him giggle last night. The only problem is he only laughs at something once and then you have to do something different... I am not sure how many different sounds I can make before I will need to recycle them!

In other news... I am still not happy teaching. I have developed a tolerance for my morning class, but that is about as much as I can say. My kids are difficult .... especially theafternoon bunch. Okay must go make homework packets!

Mystery Woman

Well I think I deleted everything from the blog that would tell the school system who I am.... or at least I made a very good effort at doing so. So now that I have that cleared up let me just say... I really do not like my kids this year. I was going to say hate and although I may feel that way I didn't write it because I didn't want to seem overly dramatic....however I really do feel this way. I have only been at work for a few days and I already dread dealing with them each day.

I just had to get that off of my chest. NOW I will go see how Chris is doing.

What a yucky day..

The day started off wrong when I woke up later than I was supposed to. It continued to get worse when I remembered that Christian & Tim were already gone. When I wake up and they aren't still at home I feel like they aren't real...that's the only way I can explain it. I don't feel like a wife or a mom because they aren't around for me to talk to or cuddle.

The day continued on the wrong foot when I got to work and immediately realized that I had locked my keys in my car. I couldn't do anything about it until the end of the day and so it loomed over me like a dark cloud all day. The day got even better when I remembered that we had a field trip. Ordinarily this would put me in a good mood, however, my students do not know how to behave in the classroom...so why would I want to take them out in public? Hrmmm I think I will go erase the part that says where I teach....just in case things get ugly. Anyways it is also really hot outside and it was a walking field trip.

I was really stressed all day and kept forgetting to call and check on Christian. That always cheers me up so I try to do it as much as possible. My mom called when we were on the way to the library and I could hear the little beast in the background. I think he was saying hello. Speaking of Christian talking I had a dream that he said mommy last night... He spoke very clearly so I was quite impressed.

The field trip ended up not being too horrible. The other grades were completely out of control at times, but the fifth grade did pretty well! Now I am at school waiting for my class to start. I neglected to bring my teacher's guide so I can only do so much planning ahead... so now I am spending my time on the Internet. I was talking to Laura but she abandoned me. I guess that is okay because as soon as it hits 6:00 I am going to call Tim and make him talk to me while he drives home! In fact, I think I will go now that way I can find out what Chris is up to before I do that!

M.I.A.

So I have been missing for quite some time... I would blame it all on the past week, but I have been gone for much longer than that. This last week sucked. I had to return to work earlier than originally planned. The teachers that held my class were wonderful and are still checking on me to make things as easy as possible. I really hate going to work everyday but there is no other option so off I go.

Christian did fine this week. I think he likes spending time with his Nana and Grandma. He was a little beast Thursday night and decided to wake up almost every half hour all night long. I was a zombie on Friday and not in a very good mood...but oh well... I guess that is going to happen when a baby is at home! He slept okay last night so he is in a pretty good mood. I on the other hand am still looking for a nap to catch up on the sleep I missed.

We took him to the Apple Festival today. I really like the festival but it was just too hot today! I hope things are going better for Laura's festival out west... it was 90 degrees!! Way too hot for Chris...so we came back to Nana's house and hung out under the ceiling fans. He LOVES to stare at the ceiling fans! In fact staring at the fans and swinging on the porch swings are his two favorite activities right now. At the festival we got to see Ashley and Caroline for a few minutes. (Caroline is his birthday buddy they were born on the same day in the same hospital in rooms right next to each other!) We spent some time with Raquel, Mary Ann, and Baby Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn seemed to like Chris and Raquel got a really cute picture of her holding Christian's hand! I also ran into a few people that I graduated with... it is really weird running into them now and seeing them with their kids! (But I guess they might say that about running into me!)

I am off to do some lesson plans... hopefully it won't take very long and Christian will stay asleep until I finish...I will try very hard to update this at least once this week!

For My Profile...

I am trying to put my picture on my profile... its says I have to post the picture first.

Back to Work..

Christian is sleeping and mommy is trying to get some lesson planning done... notice I say trying!! It is really hard to sit down and try to lesson plan when I have so long before I have to go back to work! I am trying to be good and get a lot done before I go back so that I am not over whelmed when I return to the classroom. I know that it will be hard to grade papers, lesson plan, AND spend time with Christian in the evenings. I am not going to ignore my son so that means I have to get as much done ahead of time as possible!

It just seems like lesson planning is a lot harder than it was last year... I guess I am out of practice!

Walk on the Promenade

We took Christian for a walk on the Promenade on Sunday...he slept through the entire trip!

Aunt Chris drove ...Leap went along for the ride (you can see him hanging off the side of the car seat)

Christian's First Baseball Game

We took a bath so that we were clean for the game! This was his first bath in the actual baby bath. He wasn't impressed but I think he liked it better than laying on a towel and being sponged off.

The 7th inning stretch a few innings early... we only stayed until the fifth inning but it was 9:30 by the time we left! It was past our bedtime so we headed home and only woke up once last night!!

Daddy got Christian one of those hats that they put ice cream in... his head is too small for the actual hats!

Welcome to the World Mr.Christian Marshall Ryan

I will eventually be able to tell you all everything but for now here are a few pictures of what our little guy has been up to in his first few days!

Lucy and Christian

Mommy's Favorite Picture So Far!

First Check Up With Dr.Litwak

The Happy New Family

Christian and His Nana

Going to the Hospital

I don't know how Jen did it.... but she totally called it! At dinner she said she thought I would go into labor tonight.. Lo-And-Behold my water jut broke! Tim and I are heading to the hospital in about 45 minutes.... the doctor told us to take our time but seeing as how my Mom was only in labor for a short time we don't want to wait too long! We will update you when we can!

I slept on the couch!

no..... I wasn't mad at Tim or anything silly like that! I don't know why but I can sleep easier on the couch.... I think it is because my back is up against something and is supported...whatever the reason last night I gave up trying to sleep in bed and told Tim I was going downstairs AND I slept all night!! I didn't make up until Tim's mad dash through the house this morning at 6:30 a.m...... apparently he was scheduled to be at work at 6 and didn't know it....he thought he was supposed to be there at 7:30....so when Russ called he had to HURRY out the door!

Yesterday was a good busy day.... I went shopping with my mom. We got Nina a shower gift, Christian some stuffed animals and books, and I got yarn to make myself a scarf. My Aunts came over to my mom's house on Friday night and showed me how to use a nifty knitter. I am currently making a white scarf. It is my practice project. If it turns out okay I will attempt more things. So far it looks really good!! I think it is supposed to take three hours to make a whole scarf.... I am almost done but I think I have been working for more than three hours!

Last night Tim and I went out to dinner with Christine and Matt. We went to Box Hill Pizzeria and it was pretty good :-) Tim and Christine got the "famous" crab cakes.... I got grilled cheese because nothing looked good. After dinner we went to see Bourne Ultimatum and it was an excellent movie!! The movie theater was FREEZING (Matt and Christine had on sweat shirts and they were still cold) but once the movie started you didn't notice as much because the movie was that good!

Tonight we have nothing fun scheduled I think I am going to put away all of the "stuff" from yesterday and hopefully Tim will vacuum up all of the Rory hair in the living room. (I swear my carpet is green not white!!) Hopefully at some point tonight I will hear that my dear Lucy and Laura are safe and sound in Havre de Grace. Jen invited me to dinner Monday night so I will get to see them soon!

P.S.

Rory's mommy is on the way to pick her up. I am going to miss her, but it is time for her to move on!

Help Natalie

I don't usually send these kinds of things along but I feel like this is a special case. Natalie is a beautiful girl with a tragic past. I wanted everyone to see this and send it along to anyone who might feel called to respond. Jennifer read Barbara Curtis' blog every day and trusts her. Jen says she would never post a request like this unless she had checked it out thoroughly.

You can read Barbara's post here: http://mommylife.net/and more about the adopting family and Natalie here:http://tippettsfornatalie.onedollaradoption.com/

It's only a dollar, but if everyone sends one dollar and forwards the website to their friends, this could be what Natalie needs to come to her new family.

Read her story, Pray about it and see whether the Holy Spirit calls you to donate, or even more important, pray for this family for the Grace and perseverance to do His Will.


**I took this completely from the email that Jen sent. She said it all! I sent the family a donation and hopefully some of you can do the same!

8th or the 9th??

My doctor swears that my due date is the 9th although Tim and I have thought it was the 8th all along. No matter what today is the day! (or yesterday.....) I am trying to wait patiently... that's not really working. I am going to Wal Mart with my mom later, and then to Havre de Grace to see the new Mrs.McMichael! I have a blood pressure cuff for her and her poor swelling self! I am also going to the Merkel house to see a writing program that Jen is using... I just might use it in my classroom when I go back! My kids are horrible writers! Even the ones that can read usually cannot write worth anything...so I am pretty open to suggestions!

I am keeping my fingers crossed that Chris decides to arrive.... Jen said that normally when they strip her membranes she goes into labor that NEXT night... so I have so hope! If not the 16th is getting closer! Chris doesn't seem to realize that if he waits until the 16th I will miss Nina's baby shower... he has been planning to attend that for awhile so I hope he realizes the error in his ways!

Tim brought a birthing ball home from Tae Kwon Do last night. (Now there is something I never really thought I would say....) at first I made fun of him for it...but then desperation won over and I bounced on it from 11:30 until 1 when I couldn't sleep!

Oh and today is Rory's last day! Her mommy will be picking her up tomorrow morning.... Tim doesn't think we will miss her but I know we will. She is a very sweet and loving dog.....she just has lots of bad habits!

Update

Well we went to the doctors. I was only 2cm dilated which I guess is better than nothing. They stripped my membranes... the doctor said that 75% of women who have this done go into labor within 2 - 3 days. Unfortunately they also have bleeding and cramping so right now I feel pretty yucky. Tim has to go to Tae Kwon Do tonight. I think I am just going to go back to bed!

Oh, and they scheduled an induction for the 16th in case I haven't gone into labor by then!

Today is the day!

Well at least the "official" day when we are to expect dear Christian to arrive! If he is anything like his mommy and daddy we know that he will procrastinate beyond belief BUT at least the day is here when I can come to expect him! And to make things even more exciting I have a new reader AND she left me a comment. Today cannot get much better!

My appointment is at 2:30... of course by that point they will be running late so do not expect any news until at least 4.... I hate it when they run behind but I guess I have to be nice to them if I want them to get this baby out!

It is H-O-T

I just looked at weather.com and the feels like temp for tomorrow at noon is 105!!! Keep all pets and elderly inside! Come to think of it... keep the pregnant people indoors too! I will not be going ANYWHERE except for my doctors appointment tomorrow..... that's right tomorrow they will actually check for "progress" because it is my due date. I have no doubt that they will find no progress but at least we are at the stage where we are looking for it now!

Blogs to Read

I added some people on the blogs to read list. Mostly other moms with adorable babies! I don't know any of them personally but the blogs have entertained me enough that I thought I would share! Let me know if there are any others that I should add to this list :-)

Also, I have changed the name of Laura's Blog to Laura's Blog because she changes the name of it too often for me to keep up. I really like the current name...Appalachian Laughter...but who knows how long it will hang around.

Hospital Tour and CPR Class

Tonight we have our hospital tour followed by an infant CPR class. Tim and I really don't care for the lady who teaches the CPR class... she was rather like a Ms.KnowItAll when we went for the Infant Safety class. However the knowledge she has is valuable so we will suck it up and make it through the class. The hospital tour is definitely a little late.... we probably should have done that like a month ago, but I procrastinated scheduling it and so here we are. We figured if nothing else Chris will come and we can wave to the tour as they go past the room!

Other than that I have nothing exciting planned for the day. I am going to attempt to wash two loads of clothes and one load of dishes. I guess I should think about making something quick for dinner...Tim will get home in time to inhale something and leave for the hospital if my calculations are correct.

On a brighter note I will not be returning to work until November 5th! I am very excited to have some extra time and feel a lot better about going back with this later date. When I return I will have 2 1/2 weeks until Thanksgiving vacation, and then only a month until Christmas vacation. Hopefully that will make the transition back to work easier. The next thing I know it will be January and we will only have 80 days of school to go! I am pretty sure my kids and I started the countdown in January last year...

Quiet Weekend

Saturday was pretty uneventful. I went to Christiana with my Mom, Dad, and Harley. I keep thinking that if I leave the state enough Christian will decide to come.... sort of like a Murphy's law type of thing! At Babies R Us we looked for the car seat that my Mom wanted to buy. They were sold out... but we learned that Towson had three in stock. My Dad bought some golf stuff from Golf Galaxy and we were on our way back home. When we got home my Dad suggested that we go ahead down to Towson and get the car seat so my Mom and I headed out again. We stopped and bought more corn for dinner.... I know we are eating LOTS of corn! At Babies R Us we got some cute stuff for Nina, a cute Pooh outfit for Chris, and the car seat! We headed home and I cooked the corn for Tim and I. We spent the rest of the night watching TV and eating.... I am eating pretty much every hour at this point..... not really small meals either... I am eating TONS!!

This morning we slept in and went to mass at 11.... then we went to WalMart for groceries. After that we came home and Rory and I took a nap while Tim went and got me gas and picked up my refill of prenatal vitamins. Tim woke me up at 4:30 because we were having dinner at his Grandmother's house. We had a really nice dinner with his Grandmother, Dad, Mom, Mike, and Lisa. We had steak, chicken, corn, and salad. I had picked up an ice cream cake which we ate for dessert. Tim didn't get an ice cream cake for his birthday and he really likes it so we thought it would be a good dessert! We came home and we are now watching Human Weapon.... it is about guys that go and learn different martial arts and then try to fight experts in the different arts. Tim is reading over my should and says that these guys are going to get their asses kicked. I tend to agree with him.... but I am more concerned about what I am going to eat... time to feed the baby again! (Yeah I am gonna blame this on him)

Seriously Bummed

I just learned that in order to qualify for loan forgiveness (where the government pays back my student loans because I teach) I have to teach for five years. I don't want to teach for five years! I want to stay home with Chris! I thought I had read the website before and you qualified for a little each year...so even if they didn't pay for everything they would pay for SOME of my loans... now it looks like I will be paying them all back myself or I will be trapped doing something that I don't want for the next four years.

Its not that I don't like teaching... I really do.... I would just prefer to stay home with my own kids!

Update...

Christine is going to dinner in Arundel Mills.....she was very quick to say that she would have invited me to tag along if it had been closer.... which was sweet....so now I am thinking that maybe I should take Laura's suggestion and go to a movie by myself. However, the only two movies that I want to see are ones that Tim would want to see too....so I would have to pick one and just tell him to deal... which I am sure he would but that is not very nice!

I Actually Got To Sleep!

I am so happy that I almost didn't get out of bed today... then I realized that if I didn't get up I would probably have trouble sleeping tonight! By the time I got to bed last night it was 7:30 and I was dead on my feet. I had a great dinner at my moms house and I ate 5 ears of corn! (My dad ate 7 and my sister called us both fat kids...but it was really good and if you think about it 2.5 ears were for me and 2.5 for for Christian.... lol I have never had to use that excuse before!) I decided to take a shower to ward off any itchiness that might prevent me from sleeping and then it was off to bed!

Tim got home around 10:00 and I got very worried because we were both wide awake. I was scared that it was going to be another one of those nights... we came down stairs and I ate chocolate pop tarts and we talked for awhile. I was so happy that I feel asleep when I went back upstairs! I officially woke up at 11:30 today which isn't too bad. I ate some breakfast and then I didn't know what to do with myself! I was sitting on the couch and Rory walked over to the steps as if to say "you know you should just go back to bed" and I was like okay! So we laid back down for awhile. I really didn't sleep much but I didn't get up until 1:45 p.m.

Now I am making some cheese bread sticks for lunch and trying to figure out the rest of my day. I really have only a few things to get done and Tim is going to his brothers house after work for some brotherly bonding time so..... I called Christine to see what her and Matt are doing tonight. I think they have plans but maybe I am pregnant and pathetic enough that they would let me tag along....

Fading Quickly...

I am starting to get pretty sleepy... I think it is because I am not moving around doing things. That is because I am pretty much out of things to do! I am leaving for my moms house at 3:30... all I have to do is make it an hour!

I had my doctor's appointment this morning. All of the doctors were busy delivering babies so I had a nice midwife named Catherine come in and see me. She was very sweet and basically told me to come back next week to talk about induction if I hadn't gone into labor... After my doctors appointment my mom and I ran a lot of errands! We went to Target and I bought a shelf for the closet to store all of Christian's blankets in. I also got hooks for the closet to hang all of his little hats up on! I will take a picture once it is up because it will probably be really cute. We ended up going to Target, Michael's, Babies R Us, WalMart and Klein's. We FINALLY found a lamp for Christian's room but now I am annoyed because I can't put it together (yes assembly was required) so I am taking it over to my dad in hopes that he will fix it. We got some really cute clothes at Babies R Us and we got stuff for my sister to make birth announcements! (This is assuming that a birth will happen eventually......which I am not convinced of)

Tim's Blanket

Tim was very upset that I did not include HIS blanket in my blog. I didn't include it because it was already packed to go to the hospital....yes I choose HIS blanket to go to the hospital not mine... anyways here is the blanket that Tim selected for Christian. He found it at Macy's and literally fell in love with it. It is VERY soft and has stars on it. The silk around the edge is awesome and I know that Christian will love the blanket that Daddy picked for him.

In Case You Are Wondering...

I almost forgot.... it is only 6:30 in the morning and I am writing in my blog.... does anyone else see something wrong with this?? I couldn't get to sleep until midnight last night AND then I woke up wide awake at 3:00 a.m. I think Christian is trying to throw me off the deep end. On the plus side I read the entire Parents magazine from cover to cover last night and it was pretty good.

ATMs in Church?

When I first saw this headline at cnn.com I had one thought.... tacky. Then I listened to the video... now I think it is a great idea. These aren't normal ATMs like from Bank of America. You cannot withdrawal money from them. What you can do is make a donation to the church using your bank card. Now granted a check or cash in the collection plate is just as easy but how many people really carry cash or a check book anymore? Tim and I carry only our bank card with us and there are many Sundays when we just honestly forget to bring a check. Now we usually just mail the check to church on Monday or put it in Tim's wallet so that we do not forget it next week but I can honestly say that there have been times when we have put three checks in the collection plate at once because we had neglected to "give" the previous weeks. It is never because we don't have the money or we don't want to give... its just we aren't used to grabbing a check before we leave the house! Being able to walk to the church office or lobby and tithe would make things a lot easier. The church would receive the donation on time AND we wouldn't feel bad for forgetting! I know the best answer would be if we remembered to bring our checks... but times are changing and checks are out so bring on the ATMs..... by the way the pastor on the video called them Automatic Tithe Machines .... it was a joke they are really called Giving Centers.... but still I thought it was cute!

Free Parents Magazine

When you buy a Boppy you get a certificate for a free year subscription to Parents Magazine. Which I think is a great deal because I wanted a Boppy anyways... and now I have a magazine to read! The first issue came today... I already flipped to the back and read the funny baby stories... now I guess I can read the informative articles.

Tim just got home and I sent him to the store for cold medicine. He sounds awful! He wants to know if he is allowed near the baby while he is sick... I told him the verdict was still out.

Doctors appointment tomorrow.... don't expect much...I am almost positive they will just be telling me to call when I decide to go into labor!

Christian is taking over the house...

I told Tim that our son was taking over the house and he isn't even here yet! I guess that is the way things go.... I took the camera around the house looking for evidence of Christian and I found it in almost every room!
He managed to hit the spare bedroom... we don't even have furniture in here yet but the closet is full! I know we will be thankful for all of those diapers when he gets here! The drawers are full of clothes!! One of the sets is 3 - 6 months and the other is 6 - 9 months. Oh, and the little organizer on top has toddler clothes.... don't ask how he already has those! The jumperoo and high chair are also currently residing in the spare bedroom just for lack of another place to put them! Here is the jumperoo that Aunt Christine put together... it is really cool looking!

I checked our bedroom and found a stack of books on Tim's night stand. He reads to Chris every night so those are VERY important :) The bassinet is also on my side of the bed so he is taking up his fair share of space in our room...

Next stop was the bathroom and what do you know.... he managed to take up residence there as well! The pictures are of two organizers... one is on the back of the door and the other is in the corner of the shower. They are really cute and hold tons of baby bath stuff! The other is one of his two bathtubs... he has another at my mom's house! I can't wait to take pictures of him in it!

Like the nursery it seems that the living room has also taken on a rain forest theme. The swing, pack and play, and bouncy chair are all go very well with our contemporary furniture!

The little bugger has already started to take up space in the kitchen too! What am I going to do for cabinet space?!? I will post a picture once I get it all of the Target baby food organized and put away .... it is going to be quite the ordeal :)

So in conclusion...just as Christian has already moved into our hearts it is easy to see that he has also made himself at home in our little townhouse... now we just need to get him to come out and play!

Christian is not a blanket snob!

You didn't think that was all of his blankets did you??? He also has LOTS of adorable blankets that came from the store... they may not take as long to make but they are just as cute! Christian is not a blanket snob and loves ALL of the blankets that friends and family have lovingly taken the time to pick out for him. Here is a small sample of the blankets that I was able to grab and photograph. He has another whole drawer that I didn't touch! The first two my mom picked up in FL because we realized that the child has no blue blankets.... we were pretty sure that was a crime for a little boy so we attempted to remedy the situation immediately!

Christian the Boy of Many Blankets

I know that babies need to stay warm .... but somehow my son has managed to accumulate more blankets than the Ramada Inn... These blankets are better than hotel blankets though...they are absolutely beautiful! So I thought I would share with you some of the many blankets of Christian's collection. These blankets were all hand made and show just a fraction of how much this little boy is going to be loved!
This is a recent addition to the collection. One of the moms at Tae Kwon Do made this for Chris! I was so excited when Tim brought it home!

My Aunt Cherry crocheted this baby blanket for Christian! It is really soft and I LOVE all of the baby colors in it!

My Aunt Wilma started this blanket as soon as she found out that I was pregnant! I love the white and yellow in it :)

Okay... this one needs a little bit of an explanation. Nana (my mom) bought this one for Christian at Christiana Mall. The first picture is the head of an elephant... that is one corner...the second is the butt of en elephant (complete with tail!)..... that is at the opposite corner... then the blanket has his name embroidered on it in baby blue. Sorry... that picture is a little hard to read. It is adorable and really soft. We love it because of the jungle theme in the nursery!
I am very proud of this little blanket because with Jennifer's assistance I made it!! Brendan was so impressed that he asked me to make him a blanket! Unfortunately for him I don't own a sewing machine.... he told me to look into buying one.

This is MY baby blanket!! My mom started it as a school project I think... but since we share the same desire and ability when it comes to knitting it was never finished....when they found out that my mom was pregnant my dad stole it and had one of his aunt's finish it as a surprise! I am very proud that I still have it!

This beautiful quilt was made for Christian by Jennifer. We absolutely adore it! I wish I would have thought to take a picture of the back because it is really cute too! This is what people who know things about quilts call a panel quilt. She is also making him a quilt that is pieced together.... I know it will be just as beautiful!

I hope that I haven't missed any blankets... I have started putting things where I need them so there is a chance that a blanket is already in a diaper bag.... in fact I know that one is in the car.... I will have to add that one later! We LOVE all of these blankets and know that Christian is going to cherish them for a very long time to come.... we can only guess which will become the coveted blankie!

Take Target for Everything...

Well Laura being the devoted nestie that she is learned of a coupon online from Target that gave you $1.00 off any two Gerber products. Well the little containers of baby food are only 84 - 92 cents depending on which Target you shop at. So for about 84 cents you could purchase two packs or four servings of baby food. Not a bad deal.... you could also use the coupons for juice and cereal.

Being the devoted Aunt and Soon-To-Be-Mommy that I am I volunteered myself and my mom to do the shopping for both of us since poor Laura is out in Targetless western MD. Yesterday we went to the Aberdeen Target and bought 100 things of baby food for $32. Quite the steal... Today we went to the Bel Air Target.... now we were a little disappointed because instead of the 84 cents of the previous day we saw that the baby food was 92 cents at this Target...after some discussion about the difference in price we decided to go ahead with it because it was still a good deal. Besides Aberdeen was cleaned out and who knows when Mr.Christian is going to appear... now is as good of time as any to get this shopping done! So my mom and I bought ANOTHER 100 containers of baby food, 16 boxes of cereal, and a TON of juice. All together on both shopping trips I ended up spending $152 but Laura and I talked and we think we have enough baby food to last us until the end of stage 1!

So needless to say Lucy and Christian are set for awhile... especially considering they won't start making a dent in the food until they are 6 months old! Now us moms just have to find somewhere to keep it all!

Here is a picture of what the "loot" from todays trip looks like. I haven't started to put it away yet...

Excitement just makes you sleepy...

So poor Tim is probably had a very lousy day today... yesterday was pretty calm. We went to Smokey Bones for dinner. It is in York, PA so it was a bit of a drive....but the food was really good! Apparently there is one near my parent's house in Florida so they knew that they liked it... Tim and I came home and went to sleep almost right away.

I woke up at 2:00 a.m. with really bad stomach cramps. When your a pregnant stomach issues are really weird because our stomach is squished up under your ribs so instead of a tummy ache it feels like one of your lungs is about to explode... My back started hurting too and I knew it was going to be a long night. I didn't want to call the doctor because they really isn't much they can do and well if I can't sleep at least someone else deserves to!

I tried laying, sitting, standing, etc to get rid of the cramps... and then I attempted to take a hot shower but nothing worked. Tim was very sweet and rubbed my back for me and kept me company while I whined... Finally I told myself that if it didn't stop hurting by 4 am I was going to call the doctor. So at 4 I talked to Dr.Wienreb and he said it was probably labor. He told me to try walking around and that when the pain got to be too much to go to the hospital and call him.

I almost didn't tell Tim because I was pretty convinced that I wasn't in labor and I didn't want to get him excited but I wanted to walk and I couldn't go by myself so I told him to get up. I googled contractions to see if something would describe what they felt like and the only thing I learned was that if they were real contractions they would increase with physical activity. That sealed the deal and at 4:15 I dragged Tim out the door to go for a walk. He was a very good sport and walked with me for 40 minutes! We came back in the house close to 5 and my stomach didn't hurt anymore...go figure. So we waited for a little bit to make sure it didn't come back and then we went to sleep.

Poor Tim's cell phone rang at 9:30 and it was Russ. He needed Tim to come into work... it never fails. The only time he gets called in is when I have some sort of issue and keep him up all night! He was a pretty good sport about it but I know he had to be frustrated!! He is on his way home now and I am making corn on the cob for dinner. We are going to eat corn and hot dogs and then we are going to watch Night at the Museum. I know its a kids movie but I really want to see it...

Baby Stuff is Tough...

Christine came over yesterday and ended up putting together the high chair and the jumperoo. Baby stuff is really hard to put together!! She has put everything together. The highchair, jumperoo, swing, bouncy seat, play yard, and stroller. She is an amazing aunt an Chris isn't even her yet! Oh, Daddy put the crib together and Grandpa put the Bassinet together. Lucky for Chris I have put NOTHING together. I will stick to picking out cute clothes and toys so that he stays safe.

My Son Has Style...

This is what Christian is planning to wear home from the hospital. Notice the matching bib, hat, socks, and shoes. We will take plenty of pictures and then let him strip down to his diaper so that he is truly happy...

I have things to write... just nothing that exciting....

How many times do I write that I am going to do laundry? Probably more than I can count... well I have been doing okay with it. I just haven't gotten done everything that I want. So maybe today is the day. Jess is coming over to paint so I can't really leave and there isn't much else to do. So I will focus on getting the laundry all caught up.

The nursery looks really cute... I am waiting for my furniture but other than that and some shelves that Matt (Christine's boyfriend) is going to make everything is actually in the room. Tim even took his tools downstairs and put them away because we won't be needing them anymore! The shelves are going to hold all of his stuffed animals because like his mama he already has quite a few!! They can't stay in the crib so I figure shelves above the crib is the next best thing! I am hoping to convince Matt to make me two so that all of the animals have plenty of room. We wouldn't want to squish Mr.Tiger....

I am officially done adding music to my ipod. It says that I have six full days of music stored on it. Now watch I won't even remember to take it to the hospital with us! I think I may get out the thing that makes it play in the car and start using it again. It seems like such a waste for all of that hard work to just be sitting in the hospital bag...

Okay off to find something productive to do while that clothes are drying...

Has it been two weeks yet?

Yes we still have a whole two weeks before Christian is supposed to get here... it seems like a very long time even though it is actually not that bad!

My mom, Tim, and I went to Babies R Us today. We bought an outfit for Christian to come home in and we exchanged the car seat base so that we have the right one. Tim and I went to Wal Mart to do grocery shopping after that. We were both starving so we ended up buying tons of food. That is actually not a bad thing ..... there was nothing to eat in the house so we really needed to stock up!

We came home and ate lunch.... and then Tim went down in the basement to pay bills... he hasn't come back up yet but when he does he is going to hang the curtain rod and the parrot in the nursery. He also is going to call the furniture store to see if my rocking chair has arrived yet. I was really hoping it would be here by now...

In other news I am almost finished with Christine's CD collection. After her CDs I guess that will be about it.... I don't know who else I would take CDs from. I am up to almost six days of music on my ipod so I really cannot complain. I am definitely running out of things to do... and starting to go a little stir crazy. Which doesn't seem possible because I really leave the house quite a lot.

Jess has started the mural. She is about 1/3 of the way finished....maybe more. It looks really cute and I can't wait to post pictures of it! I'll wait until it is finished to do that. Once that is finished all we need to do is move the furniture in and we are done!

I really have no idea what I am going to do with myself for the next two weeks. I am out of books, sick of TV, and running out of places to clean! We shall see what I find to get into...

Sorry... but I told you he was staying put

Doctor's appointment went fine. Next one is August 2nd... I told you the kid isn't going to show his face :)

Jess is coming to work on the mural tomorrow!

Jess called this morning and said she wanted to start sketching and painting tomorrow! I am really excited even if it means I have to get up before noon! My mom and I are going to go buy the paint before my doctor's appointment so we should be leaving soon!

Things that Rory has Destroyed

1. My Brown Old Navy Flip Flops
2. The Carpet in my Spare Bedroom
3. The Fan in my Spare Bedroom
4. Her dog bed
5. 2 bags of the cat's food
6. An entire bottle of Tide
7. The carpet under the door to the washing room
8. The grass in our backyard
9. The dog crate... she hasi the metal bent every which way
10. My sanity

She leaves August 8th.... she is cute and I like her, but I will not be sorry to see her go.

I don't think he is ever coming...

I know every person who has ever been pregnant has said the same thing...but I am pretty sure Christian is not coming. He has decided that things are too good on the inside and he has no reason to go through with this whole birth thing....

On the plus side Christine is home!!! So if I do go into labor I am actually able to give birth! I can't imagine how I was going to go about explaining to Dr.Weinreb that he needs to keep the baby inside until Sunday..so it is a relief that she is home and available.

I am still adding music to my ipod... my mom's CDs are almost all added. I am up to three days of music! Next I am attacking Christine's CDs. She doesn't know it yet but she will in a few hours when I get to the house.. or sooner if she reads this I guess!

My mom agreed to make me hot dogs for dinner. I am not sure why but I have wanted them for dinner quite a few times over the past month or so. Anyways I am taking Rory with me because now that she can break out of the crate I am not sure how to contain her... I have to figure this out before my doctors appointment tomorrow.

A Little Excitement

We had a bit of excitement yesterday... I had a really bad headache all day and when I called my doctor to let them know they had me take my blood pressure. It was 144/90 so Heather, the nice nurse, told me that labor and delivery would be expecting me... I called my mom and she said she would drive me. I called Tim and he said he would meet us there. Now don't get mad that I didn't call you... I was convinced that I wasn't staying!

They monitored my blood pressure for an hour and it kept going down to the point that Tim joked that they were going to keep me for low blood pressure. They checked on Christian and once he decided to cooperate they were able to see that he was doing just fine. Dr.Bellantoni said I don't even have to go on bed rest. I just have to spend time when I am not doing anything laying on my left side...oh and I think this weekend's marathon will have to be cancelled :-) I have another doctor's appointment on Monday so I will let you know how that goes.

Anyways...Tim brought me home, fed me pizza hut, and sent me to bed. All is well.

I am adding music to my ipod right now... I am up to two full days of music. I think that is pretty impressive! I am contemplating a trip to the grocery store. I am hungry and haven't found anything in the house that I would really like to eat. However, that would involve locking up Rory and putting on shoes... I really don't feel like going through all of that effort!

In other news... Tim helped me out on Tuesday and Thursday and we got almost everything on my list completed! The only thing we have left to do is finish catching up on laundry and hanging a curtain rod in the nursery! Pretty impressive!

Another Productive Morning

I have only been out of bed for an hour or so... but it has been a very productive hour!

I called the hospital because I never signed up for all of those new parent classes that you are "supposed" to take.

Even though Chris is due soon I was able to get into most of the classes that I wanted! Of course the hospital tour and CPR class are scheduled for the day before his due date.... but the first baby is always late.....right?

I also signed us up for an infant safety class. We are not exactly sure what that is but I called Nina and told her to sign up too. So Chris and Lilly will both be safe.... I don't think Andrew and Laura took a safety class so we will have to keep a close eye on Lucy.

Finally I signed up for a prenatal breastfeeding class. It is this Saturday. So I actually have things to do this week! AND I have a baseball game Thursday night!

Christian has no clothes!

To be more accurate Christian has no clothes in newborn sizes. This is a mystery to me considering the child has more clothing than Opera. Laura said the same thing happened to her, but I am still in disbelief. He has three little outfits. Two of which are pants so it may be too hot for him the actually wear them. The third outfit has a spot on it and although this is fine for around the house Nana will not stand for her grandson to come home in something with a spot on it. I agree completely and so this weekend when we got to Babies R Us we are going to be on the look out for something for Chris to come home in!

Late Night...

I couldn't sleep last night so I decided that I would start rereading the last Harry potter book. I figured this way I would "be ready" for the next book which comes out on July 21st. I finished the book last night... I didn't really plan on THAT. Still I just slept late this morning so it wasn't so bad!

Today is Tim's birthday. My car is at the shop so I can't leave the house.... my mom is coming over to help me organize the nursery. We have stuff piled everywhere. Anything that was purchased in the last two weeks is just sitting in the floor. After we organize everything she is going to take me to the grocery store. I am picking up corn on the cob as a surprise for dinner. Tim LOVES corn. I am really not sure why he loves it as much as he does....but I thought it would make a nice birthday dinner. I have to figure out what to fix with the corn...

I think tonight he will watch the last Harry Potter movie. Tim loves the Harry Potter movies and I think Wednesday we are going to go see the new one. He likes to see the old one an extra time before going to see the next one... so Christian got him the DVD for his birthday and I got him movie tickets to see the next one. Its not much but we are trying to save money so hopefully he will enjoy it.

My mom will be here a little before 2:00 so I think I should probably go take a shower and try to clean up the kitchen before she gets here!

Busy Saturday

Today started off slow... Rory and I slept in while Tim headed off to work. My mom came over and we went out to run some errands. I took a box of books to the book thing in Baltimore. (www.bookthing.org) It is a really cool place where you can go to get free books. Whenever I find books that I no longer want I always put them aside for them. They say that their mission is to find a home for unwanted books. Then I dropped off some papers at Notre Dame for Tim. After that we went to Babies R Us and picked up a bassinet for my mom's house. She is very excited to have her own! We also picked up a Halloween costume for Christian!! He is going to be a giraffe!! It is going to be soooo cute! After that we went to Barnes and Noble to pick up Lucy's baptism gift. We finished our day at Target where I had to pick up some odds and ends.

When my mom dropped me off at the house I had time to show Tim all of the wonderful things that we picked up. After that I had time to take a short nap before it was time to go to dinner with Tim's mom. We headed out to Ruby Tuesdaysand had a very yummy dinner. We stopped at the groccery store on the way home and picked up water so that I can make more Kool Aid.

As we pulled up to the house Tim got a phone call. He got called into work. So now I am home alone :( I am not sure what I would like to do.

Even More Progress!

I have so much done! I am currently putting music on my ipod so that I can take it to the hospital with me. The kitchen, living room, and bedroom are all clean. I did a load of dishes...but I should do another. Then the sink would be empty. I should REALLY go downstairs and put another load of clothes in the washer.

We are going to Coakley's tonight and I am getting excited because I haven't left the house today. Tomorrow my mom and I are going to Babies R Us, Target, and Barnes and Noble. I am going to pick up Lucy's baptism present. I already know what I am getting, but I have to pick it up!I think I am going to raid my moms CDs too. She has lots of really good ones and who knows what I will be in the mood to listen to when we are waiting for Christian!

More Progress...

I cleaned the kitchen some more... I cleaned up the bedroom.... I packed my hospital bag and Christian's bag.... I addressed all but five of my thank you notes.... and I called to harass JHU.

I still haven't started laundry although I did sort it. Tim isn't here so no progress on things moving around the house. I feel pretty good about the progress but now I am on the couch again and having trouble getting off. The Kool Aid helps... but only to a certain point! Rory has slept the entire time.... lazy dog doesn't she realize we are accomplishing things today?!?

UPDATE!

Well the kitchen is ....cleaner. I don't sweep because Tim is nice enough to do it for me so the kitchen needs to be swept but after that it should be good.

I am currently working on the living room and it looks like Christian's toys are making themselves at home!

Lilly and Leap took over the bouncy seat!

The Monkey is in the pack and play!

To Do List

I thought maybe if I put it in a list I would feel more prepared for getting things done. Plus then I can ask Tim for help with finishing the list...

1. Wash dishes
2. Clean Kitchen
3. Clean Living Room
4. Move Books from Closet to Basement (Tim)
5. Take Bassinet Upstairs to Bedroom (Tim)
6. Clean Bedroom
7. Organize Nursery
8. Wash clothes - 5 Loads and counting :(
9. Find Addresses for Remaining Thank You Notes
10. Pack Hospital Bag for Self and Christian

So I guess 10 things really isn't that much... especially since I can't move heavy things so I have to depend on Tim for two of the items. I am going to go drink a large glass of Kool Aid and see if I can get started.... but don't be surprised if I come back without much progress.

Almost Fully Recovered

Well it has been five days since my baby shower and I think I am (almost) recovered. It was amazing and perfect!! My family did such a wonderful job, they thought of EVERYTHING! It has taken all week to get everything put away and we are not quite there yet. I think my mom is coming over today to help put away clothes... that's pretty much all I have left to do! Christine and my mom came over on Tuesday and helped assemble everything. Now it really looks like Christian has moved in! He has stuff in almost every room of the house... including a swing in the kitchen. I am working on finding a home for the swing, but I think it is going to involve saying goodbye to one of my end tables. We were already planning on getting rid of the coffee table to I guess it will be okay. Luckily we can store everything at the furniture store and maybe one day it can makes its way back to our living room!

Christian is going to be spoiled beyond belief.... I think I already may have known that, but the baby shower just confirmed it! Tim and I are so lucky to have all of these people in our lives who care so much about us and little Chris! This baby has everything he could possibly need or want... and many things that he doesn't even know exist. I can't wait for him to be old enough to realize just how lucky he is!

I am going to go do a load of laundry. I think getting two loads of laundry done and packing my hospital bag and I guess Christian's hospital bag are my only goals for today. That is until my mom comes over .... then we have a huge stack of clothes to put away and organize!

So far.... not so good

I started the cake baking process at 9:00... yes that means I am up way too early yet again. Fate is very cruel...all school year I have to struggle to get out of bed before 7 am and here it is summer time and I have to struggle to stay in bed until after 8am.

Anyways the first cake is in the oven and almost done. I have already had to problems. Problem one is the mystery location of my hand mixer. To resolve this I had to call my poor mother and ask her to meet me at the place where I am getting Tim's oil changed so that she can hand over the rest of the cake storage things AND a hand mixer. I had to mix the first cake by hand.... I hope it turns out okay. Problem 2 is that I was trying to be efficient and so I have already started the icing for cake #1. Once I finished reading the directions I realized that the icing is supposed to be put on warm. So the cake needs to cool down and the icing needs to still be hot.... see my problem with timing? The icing was easy so if need be I will make another batch....

Oh an additional mini problems is the fact that the sour cream container lies and does NOT actually have a cup of sour cream inside... but I have to go to the store to buy more sugar to make another batch of icing anyways I guess it isn't a huge deal....

However I am proud to say that I cleaned up the kitchen after the first cake and it still looks good so I am holding my own. I think Tim is afraid he is going to come home tonight to a house in ruins... usually when I bake one cake the entire kitchen is a mess! We will see how it holds up against six cakes!

P.S. Don't worry I am having fun with the whole process... no regrets!

Should have started a cake...

Well I refuse to go down stairs and do the last load of laundry because I am hot and sweaty. I have left comments on every one's blog.... including Emily a friend of Laura that I do not know. I am pregnant and stuck in the house so hopefully she will not think I am too weird.

I get to leave the house again in fifteen minutes and I am looking forward to it. I have to stop by Jennifer's and pick up the cake storage things so that my cakes don't go stale. Then it is off to my mom's house!

Here is a picture of a really weird looking frog that was sitting on my porch one night when my mom left. She has been waiting to see the picture.... hopefully you can see his cool stripes!

Now I have to go wake Rory up. She is sleeping peacefully in the living room and is NOT going to like the idea of going back into the crate. I feel bad....but there is nothing else I can do! I must leave the house more than once a week or I will go crazy!

Ready...Set....Bake!

I just returned from a shopping trip with my mom. Unlike our normal trips Christian did not get anything BUT I now have all of the supplies that I need to bake the cakes for the shower. I was going to come home and start one, but I have to be at my parents house at 4 to help Christine with her final so I think its best if I wait until I get home!

I have pictures of the supplies so that you can see what a massive undertaking this s going to be!

Here are the "dry ingredients" notice the boxes of cake mix. I am not ashamed. The Cake Doctor and I will turn these simple boxes into culinary masterpieces.

There weren't as many wet ingredients to add. There are strawberries hiding under the OJ for the strawberry cake!

I shouldn't even be awake yet....

I am really not sure what caused me to get u at 6:45 a.m. Maybe some sort of flash back to school? Tim and I had a lousy nights sleep and I wish I could nap, but I don't think I would fall asleep. I just finished the third season of Gilmore Girls... Jess is in CA, Rory and Loralie are on their way to Europe, and they are about to buy the Dragon Fly Inn... so anyone who knows the show will at least know where I am.

I just put the first load of laundry for the day away! I am thinking dishes are next. Then Christian's room. I want it nice and neat before the baby shower.... that way it will be easier to put everything from the shower away. Maybe I will take some pictures of the room so you guys can see it. It is really cute!

For some reason my thirst is out of control. I have consumed three glasses of water this morning and am working on another bottle of water at the moment. I think I may abandon the organization of my classroom library. I just can't find the energy to care. Maybe I could make it a class project of some sort. I think that might be best.... that just leaves me with one problem.... Where do I store all of these books until next school year?!? I have like six milk cartons full of chapter books!

Anyways I was just catching my breath and resting for a minute. I can't seem to hold still ... poor Chris is going to think its all work and no play out here. At this rate he'll never want to come out for fear of being put to work!

Busy Large Pregnant Bee

well i couldn't very well say little bee could I?

So today I have washed three loads of clothes, done a load of dishes, cleaned up the living room, begged for cake storage containers, and finished helping Christine with our "special project." If you don't know about the project too bad. Just be happy for me that it is over.

I am very proud of all of this and it is only 3:00 so there is the possibility that even more will be accomplished! I would like to get up to Christian's room and organize in there but we will see..... right now I am going to rest and eat waffles!

Apparently I need to update more often!

I have been informed that I need to update this more often.... very possibly true.

So Laura sent me pictures of the cookies she is going to make for the baby shower and they are adorable! I can't wait to see everything. Everyone has been so sweet and put so much work into this shower! Hopefully people will take plenty of pictures because I want to remember everything!

I really have not been up to much this week. In fact this evening was the first time I left the house since Sunday afternoon. Tim and I took Rory over to my parents house so that she could run. She LOVES going over there and being able to run in the backyard. She is so exhausted!

Yesterday Rory and I stayed in the house all day. Tim didn't get home until late so we were alone for a very long time! I put lots of pictures into frames and watched lots of Gilmore Girls. Today I think I accomplished even less than yesterday. I did, however, make it to the third season of Gilmore Girls.

I hope to accomplish more tomorrow. I have such a long list of things that I would like to get done.... I just lack the motivation to get them done! Maybe tomorrow I will wash clothes....

Productive Day

It is only 12:30 and I have already cleaned out the closet in the spare bedroom, vacuumed the spare bedroom and the hallway, and put away all of the books that go on my bookshelf. Of course I now have milk cartons full of books in my kitchen that need to be sorted by genre and reading level.... oh and I have a box of pictures in the living room that need to be organized. But what else am I going to do during the week when I am keeping this psycho dog company?

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Sunday!

Tutoring... is it for me?

I was talking to my mom today about how I would like to be able to stay home and possible home school Christian once he is old enough. I mentioned that I had considered tutoring as a way to bring in money, but still stay at home. Then this evening I was talking with Jennifer about her new endeavors into the world of professional organizers and I mentioned my desire to tutor.

It really got me thinking about how wonderful it could be to stay home and still work with kids. It would definitely be a different situation than working in a classroom, but it might be nice! I am not sure how quickly it will happen, but it is something I would like to keep in mind. Not necessarily the back of my mind... maybe the middle or somewhere close to the front.

I am going to go google somethings and see what I can find out. I may be back with an update.

My Ankles are Swelling

My dear sister just pointed out that my ankles are swelling. I have been very proud of the fact that nothing has swelled and everything has been going well. Luckily at my last doctors visit they told me that my blood pressure is doing very well so I am not too concerned. However, if they start swelling now they could be huge by the time Chris gets here which is not cool.

In other news... Christine and Matt came over this evening. I didn't want to leave Rory home alone again so soon, so they were nice enough to come over here. We ordered from Box Hill Pizzeria so that Christine could try a REAL crab cake. I had an open faced hot turkey sandwich. It was only okay because it had tons of pepper on it which made me not want to eat. (Of course I ended up eating most of it..... but I did leave the fries on the plate)

Tim says that I have a boring blog. I think he is boring.

Schools Out For Summer

Would you believe they actually played that song the last day of school? How cliche.... but totally adored by the kids I am sure...

So my first week of no school and no life has come to an end. I had lots of doctors appointments and things to keep me busy. I am sure that you will all be happy to know my toes are doing well... oh yeah and so is Chris :)

This week I managed to clean the living room (and get it dirty again) and the kitchen. Next week I hope to tackle the much feared basement. Christian's room is coming along nicely. We are waiting for the rocking chair and a small table to be delivered from Ryan Furniture. Jess is supposed to paint the mural in July sometime. The only other thing we have to do is hang the curtain rod! I am pretty impressed with how everything came together. Once everything is finished I will take some pictures for the blog.

I am really excited because next weekend is my baby shower. I wasn't supposed to be involved but I have convinced my mom to let me make cakes. I just made a list of the ingredients that I will need to buy and I need 23 eggs! At least it will give me something to do near the end of the week. I am trying to stay home a lot because Rory tends to freak when I leave the house... I don't want her to drive the neighbors crazy barking!

I will try to do better about updating this or Laura may just take me back off of the links list on her blog.... but for now I am going to go try and find out if my husband is planning on coming home from work anytime soon!

Rory and I watching TV

We watched the first DVD for season 1 of Gilmore Girls today.

Strawberry Festival

I am off to the Strawberry Festival at Good Shepperd. I am not sure if leaving Rory here is a good idea or a bad idea. I am thinking she might need some time alone to adjust but then again she could feel abandoned... I am going to let her outside to run around a little and then I am off to meet Laura at the school. We are going to breakfast!

I think I fixed the clock...

The times on my blog were off.... if you know me you know that I didn't get up at 6:00 a.m. to write a blog... so I tried to fix it...not sure if I was successful. We will see. This is a test!

Well we are officially dog "owners"

I guess technically we don't own her, but she is ours for the summer. I will try to put up a picture of her soon. Rory is still very upset because her mom only left about 20 minutes ago. I am trying to give her space and let her roam around. As long as she doesn't great a mess, which she hasn't tried to do, we will be fine.

Today is the last "full" day of school

Tomorrow is a half day so today is our last full day with the kids. A field trip is scheduled for Annapolis and all but four of my students are supposed to go on it. I told the other four that if they showed up and helped me write my name on all of my stuff that is staying in the classroom I would let them watch Ice Age 2 when we are finished. After that I plan on lending them out to other teachers that are not finished packing. Yeah for the last week of school.

Oh, and today after school is the staff pool party. Tomorrow is John's pool party. Two pool parties in two days... how will I ever contain my excitement.

I attempted to drown the cat this morning....

So every morning when Tim or I get into the shower we turn on the faucet and let the cat drink from it. She only seems to drink running water so we try to do it at least twice a day... well this morning I turned on the water and hopped in the shower. About half way through my shower the cat was meowing like crazy and pawing at the doors trying to escape. I really don't pay that much attention to her so I went about my business and finished up in the shower. When I turned the water off in the shower I could till hear water running. I got out of the shower and stepped in about an inch of water. Apparently last night the cat hit the cap to Tim's contact solution down the drain. The cap wouldn't let the water drain so water was EVERYWHERE. It took us a good fifteen minutes and ten towels to get the situation under control. Needless to say the cat survived unscathed... I am off to find other ways to convince her she doesn't like living here anymore.

Cograts Grad and Happy 40th Birthday...

Well my family had a party today to celebrate my cousin Kate's graduation from high school and my Aunt Patty's 40th birthday. Unfortunately Tim & I couldn't stay the whole time (because we were coming to meet Rory.) We did, however, enjoy the time that we were at the party! Tim played volleyball and I took some pictures for my Aunt who was hosting the party. Harley had a lovely time AND she did really well with the kids that were at the party! (I was very proud of her) She also managed to find time to pop a volleyball, chew up some sticks, and eat her weight in food! Tim & I left while the party was still in full swing so we will have to get an update on how it went.... but I imagine everyone had a wonderful time!

Rory the Dog

Well Tim and I met Rory today. She is the dog that I volunteered to watch for the summer while her owner goes on a mission trip of sorts. She is going to South America to teach children for the summer, and would not have been able to go without somewhere to leave her beloved puppy. I was probably temporarily insane on pregnancy hormones when I agreed to it, but I am really glad that I did. She is a very sweet and lovable dog. She is very hyper and has TONS of energy, but hopefully that can be worked off by running around my parents back yard. Plus she will be able to keep me company while I am stuck at home all summer. Her mom goes home the day that is Christian is due so with any luck there will not be too much of an overlap between his arrival and her departure!

Rory will "move in" Thursday night. Her mom, Tammy, will stay with us Thursday and Friday so that Rory is comfortable. Then her mom will fly out on Saturday morning and it will be just me and Rory!

Adopt a Platoon

The woman from adopt a platoon called me last week to let me know that my application was being processed! Apparently Memorial Day is a busy time for them because more people remember soldiers.... it is sad that it takes a holiday to do this. I will get an email from the head office eventually letting me know who the soldiers are and how to get into contact with them. I will keep you posted :)

Baby Shower is on the way!

My mom and Barbie went out shopping for the baby shower today. At first I wasn't allowed to come because I am supposed to be staying home ......but I called and invited myself to lunch so I at least go to enjoy lunch at Boston Market with them! They had already purchased lots of really cute things and were on the way to the party store after a short stop at Target. They (Barbie, Wilma, Christine, & my Mom) are doing a wonderful job planning the shower. The only job I have been given is tracking down RSVPs (after the due date on the 15th) so if you haven't RSVPd watch out!

Taking it easy :)

So I came home from work yesterday because my blood pressure was high and the doctor wanted to see me. It is a little frustrating because my blood pressure is only high when I am NOT in the doctors office. So of course they told me that I was fine and I could leave... Tim and I checked it a few times yesterday and anytime I do any sort of activity (walking around the house, up the stairs, etc.) it goes up to numbers higher than they want it to be.

So I called the doctor today and explained my theory. We are concerned because if just walking makes my pressure go up high should I really be doing everything that I am doing? (walking up and down three sets of stairs, chasing kids, planning field trips that involve walking, etc.) The nurse just called back and at first she wasn't listening to my question and gave me the warning signs of preeclampsia speech again.... I got a little loud and made her understand that I wasn't worried about preeclampsia... just high blood pressure. From what I have read just high blood pressure can cause the baby not to grow as quickly and to come earlier than normal. (So I think it is a justifiable concern...) Once she actually listened to me she told me that I would not be doing summer camp and that I might need to take it easy all summer. That is the unofficial word right now. She is calling Dr. Lawson who is one of my favorites and the nurse will call me back after they talk and decide what my plan for the rest of the pregnancy is.

More later I am going to go find more cereal!

Just a thought..

maybe I should attempt to update this more often so that the posts are not so long.... sorry about that!

Nothing to write about??

I told Tim that my life was pretty boring right now... he gave me a look that said I should reconsider. I think he was more referring to Christian, but I guess I do have some good things going on! Chris is pretty mellow and doesn't really cause much excitement these days. We are in our waiting period... with around ten weeks to go things are pretty much routine for the two of us right now.

I did have a baby shower at work on Thursday... which I neglected to tell everyone about. It was very sweet of them to think of me! Not everyone could attend, but I was so glad to have so many people sending us warm wishes! I really love the school that I work at... the people are very sweet and always looking out for each other! I got some wonderful gifts at the shower too! I think I am going to do a special post of the cool things that Christian has managed to accumulate... there is too much of it to discuss now! We also had a yummy cake and took some pictures that I will try to put up!

Friday I had two ingrown toe nails fixed. (I told you lots of exciting things going on...) It was actually a pretty amusing experience! The nurse was not the usual nurse and she was really freaked out that I was pregnant. The doctor was fine with it (as was my OB) but for a little while I wasn't sure she was going to let him fix my toes!! Chris didn't help things by moving constantly. I was afraid she would see my stomach moving and go running for the hills!! Eventually she allowed the doc to get started and I even made it to lunch with Laura, Nina, Jen & Lucy!

Lunch was fun... Nina ate cheese. I am pretty sure she ordered tacos or something but all I saw her eat was cheese!! Jen is making Christian two quilts so we went to the store to pick out fabric. I am really excited about the quilts. She makes such pretty things!! I am glad that Christian will have them to use and as a keepsake! The fabric is really cute and I know that when she is finished they will be gorgeous! Laura and I also bought fabric to make little flannel blankets. Jen showed us how and I actually sewed some of Christian's myself! Needless to say I am very proud of this blanket and took it with me all weekend to show people!

Friday night we made the blankets and I was at Jen's for cake and ice cream to celebrate Laura's birthday. I also got to spend a little time with little Miss Lucy and she was a gem! My parents are finally home from Florida. They got home late Friday and I thought for sure my mom was going to miss meeting Lucy again. Luckily Jen and Laura were nice enough to say that she could come over and visit on Saturday before the Cooke crew headed out of town. I am pretty sure my Mom is in love with Lucy. She was on her best behavior and charmed my mom like only Lucy can do! I know she is really looking forward to Chris getting here now that she had a taste of baby!

Saturday Tim had to write a paper so we hung out at my parents house while he did that. Then we went to the furniture store and I picked out my rocker! It is a glider and it swivels. (That means it goes in circles and it goes back and forth) At first I didn't like it very much.... but Tim convinced me and now I can't wait to get it in the nursery! We also picked out a small table for the lamp to go on. Once those things get in the room there will be NO room for anything else! It is a tiny room, but he is a little guy so hopefully he will be happy in it! After picking out furniture Tim and I went out to dinner with Grandma & Dad. We went to Grumpy's which was really yummy. If you have never tried sweet potato fries I highly recommend you do so very soon! I am a huge fan and was really excited when I saw them on the menu! Originally we were supposed to go to a carnival with Russ and Ann after the dinner, but I was exhausted so Tim brought me home and I went to bed!

Sunday was another busy day... Tim had class but only until noon. My mom came and got me so that we could go to Target. I picked up a Boppy and a bottle warmer while we were there :) Then I came back home to meet up with Tim. We went to see Alyse at Dead Freddy's in Bel Air. We had never been to Dead Freddy's before.... although I am not crazy about the name.... the restaurant is really cute! They have seating outside, under a patio covering, and inside. The neatest part was that instead of serving you glasses they give you little mini pitchers. For pregnant ladies that drink a lot this is perfect! Alyse and I exchanged baby gifts (she is having her baby any day now!) and she picked out some really cute things for Christian!!

After meeting up with Alyse we headed to the mall. We went to Macy's because I had a gift card that I had been dying to spend. Christian got more really cool things which I will tell you all about at another time and then we headed to Barnes and Noble. Tim has to read The Bridges of Madison County for his class.... I find endless amusement in this because it is a love story and he is really not enjoying it. After our errands we went to the 5:30 Mass at St. Frances. We usually do not go to the Byzantine Mass, but it was confirmation for Russ so we were excited to attend! After mass we went grocery shopping at Wal Mart. Which was lots of fun except here it is Monday and we are already almost out of milk... Tim is going to kill me if I don't stop drinking it all. He never gets any milk because I always finish it first :) Maybe we should start buying two gallons at a time....

I think that is about enough for now! I am sleepy and it is almost past my bedtime! (8:30)

Catching up on the news...

So I know that I am not the most informed person in this world. During the beginning of this year I was so busy with new teacher things that I had no clue what was going on in the world. Now that the school year is winding down I have been trying more and more to read the news. It is discouraging though when I go to cnn.com and the top stories are about odd colored lobsters, the loch ness monster, and crawling baby races. Seriously? This is news? Nothing on the warin Iraq, world hunger, or something else of more relevance? Maybe I didn't miss anything this year afterall...

For me it is officially the weekend!

I am not going to school tomorrow so for me it is officially the weekend! I am very excited about this and cannot wait to sleep in tomorrow morning! I have to go to the doctors tomorrow at 11 and have two ingrown toenails fixed. (Doesn't that sound like fun!) But the doctor promised that it takes almost no time to have done and that I will be fine to eat lunch with Laura, Nina, and Jen!


P.S. I am very excited that I get to see Nina.

I want to eat veggies...

I am trying so hard to eat healthy for Christian! It really frustrates me that just the thought of vegetables makes me sick to my stomach. I made veggies tonight to eat with our burritos and Tim is currently eating mine because just the smell makes me gag.

On a brighter note I LOVE my new toothbrush apparently pregnant women have very sensitive gums. I bought an extra soft tooth brush and my mouth is super happy!

On a completely different note I am growing a marigold. Not a garden... just one marigold. Tim and I both know it is all that I can handle without killing everything. But look how well it is doing!

I know it is hard to see but there are two buds on it!

That is all for tonight Tim and I have to go talk about paying off student loans... oh the joy.