God's protection should never be taken for granted!

Since Superhubby's cousin got killed in a motorcycle accident in 2007, Superhubby and I have always prayed before he leaves the house in the morning for God's protection throughout our day. Yesterday, I reaped the benefits of those prayers more than I ever thought that I would.
I was on my way to work and I was one block away, stopped at a red light. When the light turned green, nobody else was at the light on any of the three other sides of the intersection, so I didn't think anything of just...well, going. As I started into the intersection, I looked to my left and saw a maroon semi-truck barrelling my way. He had obviously already committed to run the red light on his side and I just knew that he was going to T-bone me in my door. This was on one of the back roads behind the restaurant, so there wasn't a whole lot of room to "run". All I could do was decide whether I was going to speed up and try to out run him or slow down and pray that he would be able to go around me and say "In Jesus Name" three times and that's all the time I had. Thankfully, God led me to slow down and I slowly turned to the right as he slowed down and turned to his left...without God's hand on us, there was physically no way that semi was going to stop before hitting me...the noses of our vehicles were somewhere around 2 feet away from each other when we got stopped and my nose wasn't far from the power pole situated on the corner of the intersection. I was able to keep my composure until I backed up enough to be able to turn right (instead of going straight as I had planned because there was a semi in the way) and pull off to the side of the road and I broke down. I called Superhubby, hysterical might I add, and tried to calm myself enough to tell him what had happened. He eventually got the gist and I talked to him as I drove the rest of my commute to work and walked into the restaurant. As people all around were wondering why I was crying and shaking and talking on the phone, I got off the phone and spilled what had just happened as well as I could in Spanish. Everyone was so good to me, had me sit down and calm down enough. They were all worried about me the whole time I was there yesterday. I can't help, even now, to think about God's goodness and when could've happened and cry. All I can see is a big maroon semi, headed my way and a hopeless situation turned around to life and safety, instead of hospitalization or worse. God you're so good to me! Thank you Jesus!

It's getting so close!!!!!!!!!

So, Monday I went to my midwife appt again. Turns out...baby's heads-down! I couldn't believe it! It's kinda facing sideways right now. Its back is on the right side, so the pressure I've been feeling to the right of my belly button has been either its shoulder or elbow.

Saturday we took our child birthing class from 8am-4pm at the hospital here close by. What a gruelling day! When it came to the part about all the pain killers and stuff, I started feeling sick...then light headed and got the cold sweats! I almost passed out! I guess my mind and body have been focusing so much on the natural birth experience that it couldn't take in all the mind-boggling stats. At the end of that section as the Q&A was winding down I started feeling better, then she started in on the C-section portion of the class and I felt it creeping back up, so I told Superhubby that I'd be in the hall until she was done with that part. I couldn't believe it! I know that I don't have a high pain threshold, but I think needles and junk like that makes it worse...I'm preparing myself for the natural pain, not something brought on by others.

Last night at church, I was sitting beside someone and I took a deep breath and exhaled, she looked at me and I said "Look at this!" and she watched my belly move like crazy! I can't believe how much it's pushing on my right hip bone now! Because of all the movement last night, I had a crazy dream! The baby was moving so very much that I started to actually see appendages go across my belly. I saw a hand an arm, so I reached down to grab it and my skin just got really thin and I pulled the baby right out! It was a long, skinny baby and I looked at it and said "It's not ready yet" and just slid it right back in! Talk about BAZAAR!

On Monday evening we are going to the hospital to take a tour of the birthing and maternity facilities. I'm looking forward to knowing what to expect when we get there.

Can you believe Christmas is so close!?!?! We've basically got 15 days left! I spent a lot of time online today shopping because I had only bought one present...now, I'm up to 4! It really crept up on me this year! How 'bout you? You ready yet?

Appointment update

Ok, so Monday afternoon I had my midwife appt and it went well. The gestational diabetes and hemoglobin tests came back perfectly normal. Yay! She said next time (in 2 weeks, well, week and a half now) she's going to check to see if baby is heads down. Wow! I can't believe how quickly this is going by! She also said that at week 36 we'll have a longer appt to meet and talk about my wants and desires as far as birthing goes, basically, we'll talk about my birth plan. The heartrate of the lil' one was 120's-140's this time. Dunno, maybe a boy? Perhaps. :-)

As far as the baby moving is concerned...WOW! IS HE/SHE MOVING?!?!?! I can just sit back and watch my belly roll and jump and jive with every movement...so crazy! I can't believe how big my belly's getting! I'm really lookin' preggo now! Here I go again...using exclamation points all over the place!

Anyway...we're supposed to be getting together with my family tonight for Thanksgiving. I got my work schedule on Monday and she has me working tonight, so we're going after I get off work at 8pm! That's ok though, because mom-in-law is doing the soup kitchen meal tonight from 5:30-6:30 and Superhubby is helping her after he gets off an hour early (I'm helping until I have to go to work.) and then he's going to help with clean-up and then come get me from work and then we'll go see the fam. They'll have already eaten, but that's the only way we could work it out this year. Between crazy work schedules and everything else, there was nothing else to do. Lil' sis is in the hospital with an absess and a really bad infection that they are afraid might be MERSA. They've been cleaning it out and giving her antibiotics through the IV. I feel awful for her! I wanted her to get out of work tonight, but not like this. Please pray for her? The cultures for the infection won't be back until today or tomorrow. She's going to be in the hospital for at least 2 days, they said. She needs your prayers.

Tomorrow, Thanksgiving day, we're going to the in-laws and my parents are coming as far as I know. Then, Black Friday...get up at probably 3:45am, get everything together, go to Staples and set up shop to pass out coffee, hot chocolate, doughnuts and snacks to those standing in line. No shopping for us this Black Friday, just enjoying the spirit of giving. Then I'm headed back home at 6am to hit the sack! I won't be able to function if I don't!

Well, gotta get ready to head out and help mom-in-law with the hot meals for the soup kitchen this afternoon. Have a great Thanksgiving!

In which I use exclamation points all the time!!!

I've come down with the crud. It's not flu-like or anything, just a lot of sinus drainage and a yucky tummy along with some coughing.

I can't believe I only have 10 weeks and 5 days left until my due date! It seems so insanely impossible! I've heard that the third trimester goes slower, but it hasn't stopped galloping yet! I've got too many things to do to prepare the house for baby and I'm now entering the uncomfortable pregnant stage. The last few nights I've gotten to know the restroom really well...I think around 5 visits per night, which really allows for you to get to know the path from bedside to potty with your eyes closed! Superhubby still has to turn the lights on. I guess that's one talent I've gained, if nothing else, from being preggo. My next midwife appt is on this coming Monday...already! I'm not so sure I like driving an hour down and an hour back in trips so close together, I don't know how Superhubby does it everyday! The lil' one is moving a lot lately and I'm feeling a lot more rolls and tumbles in there, more so than the kicks and punches now. Oh, there still there! Just not near as often as the somersaults. Y'know, tying shoes and bending over is getting kind difficult to do now. Guess it comes with the territory!

With all the holidays coming up, I really wish we had the time to be able to visit our family down south this winter. Unfortunately, Superhubby was unable to get off when he wanted, because when the calendar got around to him, those times were already taken. We're praying that next year, he's going to get to see the calendar a lot sooner than he did before. I'm just hoping that somehow my grandparents can come up around Christmas or something. It'd be nice to at least see them. I know it's hard to take a long trip like that, but unfortunately, Superhubby can't get the time off... :-(( If nothing else, maybe they can come up when the lil' one is born.

Lil' sis has a stupid work schedule this next week! I'm so angry with her boss! Just because everyone else is going out of state for Thanksgiving means that she has to work on Wed. & Fri. of next week! Just because she lives in state?!?! She lives 2.5 hours away!!!! Grrrrrrrr!!!! I'm praying that her boss will have mercy and allow her to get Wed. off at least. Otherwise she's going to only be home from tonight until Tuesday. *sad*

Well, I think I've ranted enough! You like all my uses of the exclamation?!?!?!?! :-) Later peeps!

Needles & Saws

Ok, so an update from my last midwife appt a week ago:
On my way to the Dr. office, I drank a nasty sweet drink and then when I got there, they were behind on everything because the main Dr. in the office was away at a delivery. Thankfully, not only my midwife Becky, but the used to be intern, now turned certified nurse-midwife, Emily was also there taking care of anyone who didn't want to reschedule. So, Becky didn't have the bulk of the load. My appt was with Emily this time and she was very nice. You all know my hatred of needles, well...this appt didn't help matters much. When they went to take my blood for the Gestational Diabetes and Hemoglobin tests, they had to poke me three times! She first poked me on the left arm at the elbow bend, then the right arm at the wrist, then finally got blood from my left hand. I've only gained 6 lbs during my pregnancy, so I don't know what the prob was...it's not like I ballooned up like the Hindenburg or anything! So, anyway, they took the blood with me laying down this time because of what happened last time and once she finally was able to get blood, it was over in no time flat! She only took 2 vials instead of the 4 that was needed last time, so I was good to go! Baby's heartbeat was 130's-140's...it's what it has been the entire time. I'm really starting to show now, belly's gettin' bigger by the day I think. ;-)

A week ago, my dad gave Superhubby his old chainsaw and bought himself a new one. Superhubby is so happy to have another chainsaw and he calls it his "monster". It's a lot more powerful than the one he had and he's very pleased. So, now we're on our way to replacing all the stuff that was stolen, but it'll take a while.

Well, I have another midwife appointment in a week...we're down to every other week now. It's gone by so quickly! I really need to get the motivation to work on that nursery! Organization is not my forte...unfortunately. Later y'all!

We need an update, huh?

Ok, so I have yet another (now we're at every 3 weeks) midwife appointment on Monday. Not looking forward to getting my blood drawn one little bit!

I think the baby has been having very short spurts of hiccups, like 4-5 hiccups then it's done. I just thought that they were rhythmic kicks, my baby's got rhythm! But I guess it's possible that they're hiccups, who knows!

I had a terrible headache invade my body on Tuesday overnight into Wednesday. I eeeked (sorry Superhubby, it's a word to me!) through the day on Wednesday while going to work and to the previously mentioned non-profit organization that helps with pregnancies before going home and practically crashing for the rest of the night. I hate skipping church services, but I would have been worthless and gotten nothing out of the service whatsoever! It was such a sickening headache that I didn't even eat supper! That's bad for me...now that I'm prego, I can't seem to skip a meal at all. But it's all over now, thank you Jesus!

I can't believe I'm already into my third trimester! Time has just flown by! I'm hoping that over the next few wintry months, I'll have time to get the nursery in order. I've not really worked much on it so far, been trying to keep up with everything else.

Well, I think I'm going to try to make some banana nut muffins for my Grandpa that I'll probably see tomorrow and then gotta get back to the laundry and dishes. Later all!

PS, thanks for all the wonderful comments! Love ya!

New baby stuff!

Ok, so a lot has happened in the last week-ish. Last weekend, Superhubby's cousin who has sworn she is done with bearing children gave us a bunch of her baby stuff. She gave us: a Pack'nPlay, high chair, swing, jumper thing that hangs from the doorway, exersaucer, boppy pillow and a few other small tid bits. I was blown away by her generosity. Thanks cuz! So, now on top of that, we have our crib & mattress and dresser too. We have been promised a slightly used bassinet also. I'm so excited! Now I just have to get the time and energy to really start working on the nursery! Mom-in-law has said that sometime she will come over (I need to get the paint first) and paint a mural of a jungle or something to that effect on one of the nursery walls. I'm pumped about that too! Yesterday I went to a local non-profit organization that helps with pregnancies and preparing for the coming of baby and signed up for their Baby Bucks program. Said program allows you to go once a week and take a lesson about childbirth or raising a baby, etc and you earn "baby bucks" for each lesson and if there is a homework assignment that is completed. There are other things you can earn the bucks for too, ie: OB appointments (midwife in my case), signing up for WIC and others. Once I earn 5-6 baby bucks, I'm going to get a new infant car seat! I'm so excited! I also went home yesterday with some very nice, very desperately needed maternity clothes: 3 skirts & 4 shirts. Most of which came from Motherhood! I'm so excited!

Ok, nuf about the stuff, now about the kid...Early this week I was laying on the bed and the baby really started to kick hard on the front of my belly. So, I laid there watching my belly jump and jive with every kick. It was the craziest thing! I also had my midwife appointment on Monday and all is well. I didn't realize how high up my uterus is already! It's about an inch and a half above the belly button! No wonder I was feeling some high kicks the other day! At my next appointment I have to take the standard Gestational Diabetes and Hemoglobin tests. Yippee...*Sarcasm!* To complete these tests, they must take 2 vials of my greatly needed blood. If you weren't here for the previous blood draw, just look back a few months...I almost passed out (although, in my defense, they did take 4 VIALS!!!). I had never, that I remember, had blood taken before and I DON'T.LIKE.NEEDLES!

Last weekend I also got to go see my lil' sis! Her birthday is this weekend, but she was home last weekend, so we had her party then. It was good to see her. I feel like I never get to see her anymore. Love ya sis! And happy early birthday, since I probably won't blog before end-ish of next week.

Well, I think I'll end this book now. And just out of curiosity, I don't really know how many people read this bloggy thing, so...to satisfy a pregnant woman...leave me a comment. Even if you have to leave it as "Anon" and sign your name to it. I'm just overwhelmed with curiosity.

:-) Thanks! Hasta Luego!

Slacker's my name and puttin' things off is my game...

So, I've been rightly reprimanded. I didn't realize it had been so long since I had posted, I'm sorry. Time has just flown by over this last month with all that is going on right now. We've been trying to get wood cut for the cold weather ahead of us (that's already here!!!), trying to get the rest of the garden harvested, getting the house cleaned up from the week and a half of sickness that plagued our home and working at the restaurant...I don't feel like I've had time to breathe! There have been many a day over the last while that I've been too busy to take my afternoon cat nap...NOT.what.you.want.to.be.around...a.napless.pregnant.woman!!! So, things have been crazy, and I apologize for my slacking blogginess.

Update on baby: (because that's why you're here, right?)
Just this week, Superhubby felt the baby move for the first time! It was so cool! The baby has been moving a lot lately and kicking like mad! One of the guys I work with said I'm going to have a soccer player...I told him "I think so!" and he laughed. I have my next appointment with my midwife on the 19th, so in a little over a week. The last appointment, the heartbeat was in the 140's and she said everything looked like I was growing at the right size for 20 weeks. I'm now 23 weeks along and beginning to show. I still have the waist line thing going on, so I still look fat instead of pregnant, but people are starting to say that I look pregnant now. So, I guess that's a good thing. I'll have to break down soon and take a belly pic for y'all to see. I've been avoiding them thus far because of my plumpness anyway.

Other news in life:
We had the police out to our house last night because Superhubby went out to the shed to get some wood and went to split a larger-than-would-fit-in-the-stove piece of wood and couldn't find his ax, so he got to looking and not only was his ax missing, but his sledgehammer AND his chainsaw! We checked everywhere...they were nowhere to be found. After the deputy came out to file a report, he told us that another theft was reported on Wednesday up the road of a weedeater and some other stuff stolen out of a shed. So, I'm thankful that we have as much wood as we have cut so far this year, but just when things have gotten tight over the last couple months, we have to fork out more $ to replace these items by spring. We definitely need a new ax soon, but I think the others may be able to wait...we'll see.

This morning, I went to leave the house and slipped on a muddy spot on the sidewalk and fell flat on my face! I actually did hit my forehead, but it only hit a soft spot of grass, so it just got muddy, but my left knee got scraped up pretty bad and my left ring finger popped when I fell too. So, I took off my wedding band in fear of swelling, but I think it's ok...it just smarts. The baby is still moving a lot, so not to worry there. Just my graceful self (I get it natural) showing off again.

I also translated (in Spanish) a church service for the first time last Sunday night...or tried to. I actually did better than I thought I would. Yay Me!!!
Well, I think that's all for now. Toodles!

We have movement!!!

It's crazy, but I have definitely been feeling baby move more and more over the last few days. It's not what I was expecting, although I really don't know what I was expecting to feel. I can tell you that I don't think I liked it at first because it was really weird...pressure...almost (ALMOST, mind you) painful. I didn't really know what it was for obvious reasons, but the more I felt it, the more I knew. Now, the more I'm feeling it, the more I'm liking it. It really makes you feel close to your baby like no one can describe. It's a wordless sensation...women try to put words to it, but it's not the same coming from any one woman. Some say it feels like gas bubbles, others say butterflies, I had one woman tell me it felt like a little worm inside. Truly, none of those things describe it for me, it's just the reality of knowing that my baby really IS inside of me, because it's indescribably awesome. I sat down this morning, eating french toast and chocolate milk and felt the baby begin to move and I had to smile because I think it got a sugar high. ;-) I think it's just so cool...

In other news, I'm working the main restaurant tonight...yes...Friday night. I'm scared out of my wits! You see, during the school year, with two colleges in the vicinity, that place is crazy! I'm glad to find out that there are going to be 1-2 other people there at the front helping me with the various duties of a host/ess. The things I am expected to do:
1) Seat customers while trying to keep it fairly split for the waiters/waitresses.
2)Run the register, which includes the credit card machine.
3) Insert tips into the credit card machine while in down time.
4) Answer the phone
5) Take down to-go orders & take them to the kitchen
6) Get the to-go orders bagged up with the correct stuff in them (salsa, chips, utensils, tortillas if needed, etc.)--this is a crazy task if you have many to-go orders...I had 7 at one time the other day!.
7) Just keep smiling, smiling, smiling!

I'm sure there are other things I'm expected to do, but that's mostly what I do and it really keeps me busy as a bee. Well, my name does mean 'honeybee'! So, I'm glad to have someone else to help when it's crazy busy tonight...because that's just way to much for my little prego brain to handle right now.

Well..I guess I outta post huh?

I have a new job! As of last week on Thursday, the owner of a Mexican restaurant in the area called me back and asked me if I could work in two hours! I said, "YEAH!" So, I got ready and headed in to get trained. Since then, I have worked:

Thursday -2 hours lunch shift
Friday - 2 hours lunch shift
Saturday - 2 hours lunch shift & 3 hours dinner shift at Express
Monday - 2 hours lunch shift
Tuesday - 2 hours lunch shift
Thursday - 2 hours lunch shift at Express
Then today, I must work the 3 hour dinner shift at Express
and tomorrow, the 2 hours shift at Express.

Whew! What a busy week!!! I'm really not good at getting in the groove of a new routine. So, I'm still trying to figure out how my day should go if I work the lunch shift or the dinner shift...the things I can get done and the things that must be done in the short few hours that I have at home.

I LOVE MY JOB! I haven't really spoken Spanish much since I quit teaching two years ago, so I was really scared that I wouldn't pick it back up as easily as I'd like to. However, I'm not doin' so shabby if I do say so myself. I have made mistakes though...my forte is really not taking to go orders over the phone or in person. The food tickets must be just right and the menus are different for the two restaurants. So, it's kinda hard to remember which restaurant has which items and for what price and how to write them down on the ticket so the cooks understand it. Yesterday, I made the cooks make 2 chimichangas more than what they needed to. Ooooops! I'm getting the hang of it though. One of the waiters just got back from a two month trip to Mexico last week and he speaks so fast it's not even funny! And who's the one to help me understand how the menu and tickets work yesterday...yes...it's him! So, surprisingly, I got the gist. I don't think I've heard anyone speak that fast since I was in Costa Rica! Crazy stuff! I like the interaction more than I do the actual work though. I've been hoping to get a little closer to this group for a long time. Now we seem to be making a connection.

Also, in the last week...our melon patch that is full of different kinds of melons...watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydews, European melons, muskmelons, etc...was getting really close to producing vine-ripened melons for us. Notice, the "was" in last sentence. Suddenly, we noticed the vines being trampled and melons MISSING.....yes...I said missing!!! There was no trace of some of the French melons that we so wanted to try once they ripened...the ones that were closest to being ripe were GONE. At first we thought it was either a family of raccoons or a groundhog, but we had a problem...how were we going to figure out which it was? So, we went out to the patch and numbered all the melons that were close enough to worry about and we had 17 at that point...we had already lost around 4-6 of them. So, every morning and evening we went out to count the melons and one or two of them showed up missing during the daytime. This was odd, because Superhubby instructed me to try to keep the dogs outside in the backyard where the melon patch was as much as possible. Very odd, melons coming up missing with Molly in the backyard...she's our watchdog when it comes to vermin. So, upon recognizing the melon-napping in the early evening, Superhubby and I went back to the patch to re-count just in case I had missed the melon. On our way there, Superhubby decided to stop by the "shredding grounds" (a spot in the yard where Belle, our newest, has picked to bring things to chew on for a while) and guess what he found? Melon #12!!!! Our Springer Spaniel is eating our melons!!!!!! Granted, they're smaller "gift" melons that she can pick up on her own, but shouldn't she be having intestinal problems by now? Melon #12 was still green...or unripe for those of you who don't know gardening lingo. This dog is crazy! So, when my father-in-law asked if we caught a coon yet in the live trap, we said, nope, we caught a dog! CRAZY DOG!

Oh, and the baby's doin' fine....I think I might be feeling the beginnings of movement in there, but I don't really know for sure yet. Midwife said on Monday that I'm right on target for week 17, so all's good so far.

And thus ends my book....

The Bazaar and Miraculous, all in one post!!!

Sunday night I had a crazy dream, for those of you facebookers out there, you already know how bazaar it really was. So, Meagan and I were talking after church on Sunday night about her baby moving and mine just beginning to move. She said at one point that it was really weird sometimes and I said "like an alien inside, huh?". Well, that comment got me a really nutzo dream. That night, I dreamed about my baby moving, well...stretching as I've felt it doing over the last couple days, no kicking yet, but small little stretches. The baby stretched so hard in my dream that an appendage stretched through the skin! This appendage was not a hand, foot, arm or leg, but a TENTACLE!!! Talk about crazy prego dreams!

And I have a praise report!!! I've been praying that God would provide for us over the last couple months and help us pay our bills, because since I lost my job back in April, we've had some hard times. Well, it's all God this month, and we and He knows it. I've been thanking Him for helping us pay our bills daily, and I've felt still hopeless (as most good Christians should probably get to that point at one time or another to realize that God is in control and we are not) and helpless to the situation. I've learned to trust in God more because He knows His plans for us, and we....well, don't. So, anyhoo...last night, Superhubby called cellphone company because we were going to cancel 2 of the 4 phones on our plan (in-laws are also on our plan...cancel Superhubby's and mom-in-law's). My phone is still under contract until the coming April or May, so I had to keep mine and mom-in-law just wanted to get rid of hers anyway. So, he called them and told them that we needed to drop two lines on the plan and the person gave him over to a special person that could work wonders from God. (well...probably not, but in this case...yes) Since Superhubby has been with cellphone company for 10 years, they really wanted to keep him in as much capacity as they could. So, for the same price we were going to have to pay for the most basic plan for my phone and dad-in-law's add on...he gave us the most basic plan for me & Superhubby's and dad-in-law's add ons to the plan. Now, we lowered the amount of minutes we had to something that fit within our needs anyway and got rid of the texting...sorry all you out there that text me, they're blocked now. But here's a couple clinchers...Superhubby's phone is shot...that's part of the reason that he was just going to get rid of his anyway...they GAVE...yes...gave him a free Razor (no, not the best phone, but free!!) with free activation!!! AND...yes, there's more...he back dated the plan change by 3 months, and gave us a credit to our bill....thus NO CELL PHONE BILL THIS MONTH!!! Praise God for providing! Now, granted, that's just one of the bills, but it's a wonderful, miraculous start. God is soooooo good!

Why Lord, Why?

Why is it that even though you trust God to provide and you praise Him for it daily, you still come up short? I don't have the answers, only tears and frustration. I thought I had the answer, but it seems to be put off week after week and I don't have the providence to make up for the loss. What can I do, but keep trusting and praising? I'm lost.

Praise God for cooler weather! AC off-windows open! We got a heavy rainstorm last night. It just popped up out of the blue after all the other storms had passed and we got nuthin...thought we had been neglected AGAIN, but God gave us rain! It was probably around 10 or so and we heard thunder...checked the radar and sure 'nuf...here she came. What a great way to cool the weather down! It's going to be a beautiful day today!

I really haven't felt like blogging the last few days. I've been trying to get caught up on everyone on facebook and then I got addicted to cloth diaper shopping! I had no idea that they had come so far! Some friends of ours just showed us a bumGenius diaper that they use on their one year old and I was AMAZED!!!! I think that's the brand I want to go with, especially the one size ones because they will go with your child until they're potty trained. I stand in awe...

So, last weekend, Superhubby and I were laying in bed and I felt the baby "lump" like I had before and I said "There's the baby!" Superhubby asked "Where?" So I put his hand where mine was and HE FELT IT! It was so cool! Then he said "It moved..." and he chased it around my belly for a couple minutes. Even though we're not feeling it kicking and tumbling around, it's cool to be able to feel that it's there. They neatest feeling when he actually felt it. So amazing!

All about baby...

Ok, not a lot to talk about this time...but here we go anyhooo...

Since last Monday when my midwife found the heartbeat of the baby and I could feel a "lump" which was the baby, I've felt something in the belly a few times. I can't really explain it other than I'm positive it was the baby, whether it was moving or just up against some flexed muscle or what I don't know...but the baby nonetheless. I've felt it twice, both times I was going from a sitting to a laying down position in the bed and I felt a tightness like I've never felt before in my lower belly (about where the midwife found it on Monday). I told Superhubby the first time: "That was weird. I think I just felt the baby." and his normal reply for everything having to do with stomach: "It was gas." You must know my hubby to know that his reply for many things is "gas". If you feel a rumbly in your tumbly and you say so, even though you're hungry, it's "gas" to him. He's just funny. I let his comment go, because I knew it was the baby. I know I'm not supposed to feel fetal movement until towards the end of this month, but I'm not sure it was movement, just presence.
One more thing: So far, I've gotten predictions from two ladies at church. One had a dream about me having twins, the other said on Sunday "you're having a girl." My mother-in-law told me yesterday that she remembers a dream that she had about a baby that wasn't hers that was a boy. I have had dreams (see previous posts) about the baby, and one was really odd and didn't have any gender, but one was a boy. Lately, I've had dreams, the plots of which I have no memory, but I do remember dreaming all night Sunday night about a baby boy. I just don't know what to think. I guess we'll find out in a few months if nothing else. huh?

The good, the bad & the scary!

Ok, without going into details...
Friday night into Saturday morning, I was afraid that I was miscarrying the baby. No severe symptoms, just enough to scare the snot out of you, y'know? So, anyway...I've taken it easy since and by Saturday afternoon all the symptoms had pretty much all gone away. I knew I had my OB appointment with my midwife on Monday (yesterday) so I called her Saturday morning to give her a heads up. She basically told me to watch it and take it easy and if anything worsens to call her or go to the ER. This all came after talking to Jana on Friday afternoon and saying that God had given me such a peace over the last 4-5 weeks that I wasn't going to miscarry and that things were going to be just fine. Because early on I really had a lot of fears and misgivings about the whole thing. Then this all happened Friday night. At 2am, I cried my eyes out and Superhubby prayed with me to calm down and for everything to be okay. It calmed me enough to stop crying, but I didn't get hardly any sleep that night.
So.....yesterday I had my midwife appointment at 1:15. Superhubby went along because we dropped our insurance and we had to set up a payment plan with the Dr. office. My midwife decided that after all the craziness of the weekend, we probably had better use the Doppler to hear the heartbeat just to make sure all was going okay. I agreed to it, even though I really didn't want to use the Doppler, because I wanted to make sure that the baby was alive and well. She asked me if I wanted to do an ultrasound, but I declined because hearing the heartbeat was enough to convince me. I do have to say though, that it was the neatest thing! When she found the baby and was pushing on my belly where he/she was, I could feel the "knot" that was the baby in my belly! It felt like it was about the size of an apricot or a plum. We heard my heartbeat right away, but then when she found the baby, you could hear the baby's heartbeat behind mine. Mine was much slower, then you could hear a faster little baby heartbeat in the background, she said about 150 beats per minute. It made us smile! THERE REALLY IS A BABY IN THERE!!! I can't wait until I can feel it moving around! I've fallen in love with a little baby inside me, what a different kind of love...what a new feeling altogether! So...SO...Amazing!

12 weeks and counting & a soapbox ranting

Ok, today marks the beginning of the 12th week...aka...end of first trimester!!! I don't know how many people wait until the end of this 12th week to tell anyone that they're expecting!! I think I would've died if I had to wait that long! I have my next Midwife appointment on Monday of this coming week. Not really looking forward to it, but it's somethin' I gotta do.
Next week also marks the beginning of the County Fair. Can I just tell you that I'm really dreading it? You see...our church parks cars in the afternoons/evenings for a huge fundraiser that we do every year. This year, the County Fair falls on the same week as Family Camp for our church at 'the lake'. Therefore...many will duck out of the fair job using Family Camp as an excuse and not even go...or the usual...some will use the fair job to get into the fair and not even do the fair job. Y'know, I'm pregnant and really not wanting to stand on my feet for HOURS ON END...and I know of a few others that are even more pregnant than I am, and they're going to be there. I know one said she's taking her chair and they'll probably put her at the end of an aisle to block the way. I don't know if I'll be able to be as mobile as I usually am. AND Superhubby may not be able to work as much as he usually does because Big Bank is requiring some overtime that week. Gee...does that figure or what?!? He even has to work some on Sunday! That's just rediculous!!!

You know what? I really have something eating at my crawl...I have a problem with "Apostolic/Pentecostals" trying to buck the system, so to speak. If you don't believe what the church teaches, then why do you even come? You've been coming for years...and years...and years and complain the whole way about our standards on clothing, movies, music...our doctrine on baptism and the Holy Ghost and salvation. If you have a problem with these things, maybe you should sincerely pray that God shows you the truth instead of not having a very spiritual relationship with God outside of the church building and talking bad about people and the way they are trying to uphold the basic foundation of THE CHURCH. Obviously your heart isn't in the right place if that's what you're complaining about...Y'know what? If we're wrong, I have NO COMPLAINTS, but if you're wrong, you'll have an eternity of complaints now won't you?
There...that feels better. Maybe we can just chalk this up to pregnancy hormones gone wild...or...maybe not.

Ok, so I'm a looo-hoooo-ser!

I feel like I've not posted in soooo long! Oh, wait...I haven't! I got sick last week...still coughing and junk like that, but feeling much better than I did on Thursday and Friday! That's basically all I've been up to since then. Cough...sneeze...blow the nose...repeat.

I didn't get a chance until now to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY SWEETHEART!!!! Sunday (12th) was our anniversary. We've been married for 6 whole years! It's crazy how it really doesn't seem that long, but I can't really truly remember life without him! I love you Baby!

I also didn't say last Wednesday (8th) when I posted Happy Birthday Tiff! We miss you and love you so much! See you on the flip side!

This pregnancy thing with all the fatigue and forgetfulness is killing me! I have forgotten to do so many things in the last few weeks...I'm starting to make myself little notes and put them where I'll remember them. Can I tell you...it still doesn't seem real? I'm now in week 11 (according to what my dates say) and I'm almost out of the first trimester! I don't think it'll really seem real until I start feeling the baby move. I don't want to use a Doppler to listen to the baby's heartbeat because it's just a strong ultrasound machine. And I've already talked about my feelings on ultrasounds. So, I want to use a fetoscope (fetal stethoscope), but my midwife says that I'll have to supply my own because they don't own one! So, I've got to see if I can hunt one down. Maybe if I hear the heartbeat it'll seem real, but they also say that sometimes you can't hear the heartbeat with a fetoscope until week 16-18. So, I don't know...

I've got to say to the Muffin: I knew you'd pull through it! Once you got into the swing of things, you'd get your mind off of being homesick and really see the newness of it all. Keep pushin' for your goals, it'll all pass by so quickly and you won't want to leave when the time comes. Love ya girl!

Ok, my list of things to do today:
1) Get off here so I can get my list done.
2) Weed the watermelon plants in the garden. They need it badly if we're going to want melons!
3) Take a package to the B-burg post office.
4) Empty and fill the dishwasher
5) Strip and re-make the bed.
6) Get some laundry done!
7) Try...do try to straighten up the living room today.
If I get all of these things done today, it'll be more than I've been able to accomplish in the last couple weeks altogether! Between the sickness that I currently have and the fatigue that pregnancy has gotten me down to take a nap (long nap) in the middle of the day every day, I've really been a horrible housewife. I'm sorry Superhubby! You've been so understanding. I love you!

Don't worry, I've been a slacker otherwise too!

Yeah, pretty much hating this HUGE fatigue thing that goes along with pregnancy. Not only have I slacked in blogging, but the reason for that is because I've slacked in everything else too! There's really nothing to blog about because of the slackiness of my life this last week. And yesterday I literally laid around the house all day until Superhubby came home because I had a monstrous headache and my stomach was following the pattern. It seemed that anything I ate yesterday upset my tum tum, with the exception of a small baked potato with butter, cheddar and salt on it. I think my bod has been trying to fight off the cold that Superhubby has had for the last week because I've occasionally sneezed. Well, Superhubby's cold started with a large headache and last night before I went to bed, a sore throat. YUCK!!!! I can feel my sinuses draining. So, I'm going to attack it full force. Not only am I taking my prenatal vitamins, but I'm going to take a bunch of Vit. C and drink tea--herbal tea that includes things good for the immune system: elderberry, echinacea, hibiscus flowers, rosehips, green tea, stinging nettle, red clover. It's steeping as I type. So, hopefully it won't go full force on me and I can just kill it where it lays.
I just got on facebook and it's amazing the people that come out of the woodwork when you sign up! I already have 35 friends and I just signed up last Thursday! I really wasn't planning on doing much, but people found me, so I guess I'll try to stick with it. I'm still trying to figure the thing out. Do you just comment on people's comments or what? I feel like there should be more, but I've not found it yet. Ok, well...gonna play on facebook a few more minutes, then get to my tea and vitamins. Bye y'all!

Midwife appointment

I arrived safely at the doctor's office where my midwife works, so no problems on the road. Found it perfectly! (Thanks for the good directions Superhubby!) After doing the preliminaries in paperwork and filling out my family medical history, they took me in and weighed me. I always hate that part, why can't they take your word for it? I weighed myself yesterday morning and of course in the middle of the day and dressed I'm going to weigh five pounds more!!! Yuck! I still say I haven't gained a bit since I got prego...yet. Then, they made me pee in a cup. POSITIVE RESULTS!!!! Guess what everybody? I'm pregnant!!! As if we didn't know before. Then they took me into a room with a table and three chairs, took my blood pressure and then the midwife came in with the student midwife that they're hoping to sign on by the time my baby is born. Both were very nice! They let me ask any questions that I had after she told me about her and the practice. They also said that my self-calculated due date was right. February 2, 2010. She said as of yesterday I was 8 wks 6 days. That makes me 9 weeks today! Then she left me with the student nurse-midwife for some "education". She went through the usual dos and don'ts of pregnancy and how to get a hold of them if it's not within regular business hours. Oh! Remember all the shenanigans that I went through to get a simple question answered at Mr. OB/GYN's office? Yeah, Mrs. Midwife said that if I call and don't get a call back within 10----TEN MINUTES!!!!!------to call back because there was a miscommunication somewhere! That is AMAZING! Soooo cooool! After the "education session" the fun began. They took my blood. I've never had blood taken before. I hate needles (I think I've mentioned that before). So, I didn't look at the nurse at all once I sat down. Thought it would be easier that way. Sure, we talked, but I never looked the way of the needle. It went in painlessly and when I realized she was taking blood, I told her thank you for being a good aim. :-) She said around about the third vial is when I said "I'm feeling kinda weird." (She only took four....THAT'S A LOT OF BLOOD!!!) So, knowing me (Mom) I almost passed out. I probably would have if the other nurse hadn't come in and put smelling salts under my nose. I also gagged a few times, and when I came out of it all I was sweating like crazy! She told me that it was the coolest room in the place and to me it felt like 100 degrees! Once I cooled down and wiped the sweat from my brow, face, neck and arms :-) I left. (Mrs. Midwife said that the next appointment will be the physical and all that usually goes with the first appointment. She said the first time she meets with someone, she'd rather not see them naked! I appreciated that!) And arrived safely (with a lightheaded feeling) home. By the time I got home I needed to lie down. Superhubby was going to be home in an hour and I told him when he called what the plan was and he said ok. I felt woozy all evening long! It's a good thing Superhubby was making supper! The steak, potatoes and salad were wonderful! We even had a couple slices of mom-in-law's homemade whole wheat bread with butter! Yummy! It made me feel better, but I still couldn't stand up quickly or I'd lose my balance. I feel better today. So, much to do! Much to do!

Miscellany

I'm going to my first midwife appointment today at 1:15. The one thing I'm really not looking forward to is driving to the Big City all by my little lonesome. I don't do that kind of driving...without much persuasion! Since my appt. is in the middle of the day, Superhubby can't accompany me either way (there or home). So, even though I'll be a few miles away from him, I probably won't even get to see him until he comes home tonight. BTW-Look at the pregnancy tickers! My baby actually looks like a baby now! (That is if my calculated due date is correct...I'll find out today.) :-)))

OH! OH! We're having marinated steak (that Superhubby does on his smoker grill---WONDERFUL!), baked potatoes (with butter, cheese and salt of course!) and salad tonight!!!!! I'm so excited! We really haven't done steaks on the grill and went all out for a nice meal like this in a while. Lately, the only things that have hit the grill are burgers and chicken...both of which are lovely, but nothing, I repeat...NOTHING beats a steak a la Superhubby! We've picked out some T-bones from the freezer and they've been marinading since last night. The plan WAS to start the marinading on Friday night, but we were so busy this weekend that we kept forgetting. :-(

Speaking of being busy...Saturday we did both farmers markets in two different towns and pulled it off! Mom-in-law and I did the one farther away and Superhubby did the normal one. This last Saturday must not have been a great market week, because neither did well at all. But, that's how markets go...great one week and poopy the next. I love doing the new market, what I hate is the getting up at 5 something AM. If you know me at all, I'm NOT a morning person. And with Superhubby wanting to stay up late to get things done for the market after getting home from Friday night pizza at the in-laws, it makes for a very short night. When we finally got home in the afternoon Saturday, we both crashed for a 3----THREE HOUR nap! We were soooo pooooooped out! That basically left enough time to feed the chickens and go back to the in-laws for supper. We usually do Friday pizza and whatever Mom-in-law gets a hankerin' for on Saturday. Since we moved out here closer to them, we've pretty much been doing it that way. It's not like a set-in-stone thing, but we like it and do it as often as we can. Who can pass up Mom-in-law's cookin' anyway?!? Nobody I know of! Well, I may come back and blog this afternoon after my appointment. Either that or in the morning. But I'll let you know if I found anything out (due date wise, etc.) that I didn't know before. Love ya's!

Not morning sickness, but what is it?!?

I think I seasoned the beef to go into empanadas on Monday night a leeeetle too much. My tummy just didn't like it...my mouth, yes...tummy, no. I basically spent all day yesterday laying around holding my belly and running to the loo. Then, stupid me...I didn't realize until after the fact what it was and I ate another empanada for lunch yesterday too! It got worse, so much worse! It tasted great! But my belly just didn't like it.

I was supposed to go to my "Meet & Greet" with my midwife yesterday afternoon. About 20 minutes before I was to leave the house I get a call from her office saying she got called in to a delivery. I should expect that, right? So, I told them to just schedule me for my first OB appointment instead of wasting more time. So, I have my first appt with her on Monday (when my original OB/GYN appt was to be anyway).

Superhubby met with Mr. Insurance and got me more Dr. visits added to my policy. So, that's taken care of. Yay! Things are falling into place! I knew they would. Now, just if I can get my belly to feeling better, I'll be doing great!

Good news and Bad news...

So, I think I'm going to be able to go with the midwife after all! Superhubby is going to call Mr. Insurance man soon and get all that junk straightened out. I got ahold of the one midwife that I thought I was going to go with, but turns out, she doesn't deliver in hospitals, only at home. So, she recommended two. I called one who works in a doctor's office, she delivers at St. Anne's and it sounds like this is probably who I'll go with. I have a "Meet & Greet" session with her next Tuesday (which is a free session!). God love free stuff! I've got so many questions! And I think I'm going to cancel my appointment with the OB/GYN. The first midwife I talked to didn't really have a lot of good stuff to say about him. I really want to try to avoid certain things, such as: ultrasounds, amniocentesis, c-sections, induction, epidural, etc. I want to do this naturally, and she said that he told her to her face that he thought "women should be managed"!!!! He calls them "managed births". Something that happens naturally does NOT need managed!!!!!!! She said he had about a 50% c-section rate!!!! DEAR LORD!!!!!!!! THAT'S INSANE!!!!!! And I told her that I was overweight and she said that if he thinks I'm slightly overweight, he'll pressure me to do a c-section! NOOOOOOO! I want to avoid this as much as possible! It's just insane how much of that stuff goes on in the OB/GYN practice. So, anyway. After getting stressed out while talking to her, I got de-stressed and called this other midwife and she is going to see me next week! That's crazy considering that it's taking me a whole month to get in with this other guy!

Oh, and I didn't tell you the best part! I decided to call Mr. OB/GYN and find out if I don't want an ultrasound if he would be willing to work with me. I first called last Thursday, they said he'd call me back by the end of the day...nothing. So, I gave him most of Friday and called back in the afternoon. Do you know what they said? Here, I won't keep you guessing: "I'm sorry, the office is closed for the rest of the day, can I have him call you on Monday?" So, I sighed and said "Sure." Monday came and gone, nothing! I called back yesterday and guess what they said this time? "You mean they didn't tell you he's been on vacation since Friday? Yeah, he won't be back until Thursday this week!" Whaaaatt?!?!?!?!??! I'm not very happy about this! This just shows me how incompetent that office really is! They don't care about you! All they care about is the money! Grrrrrr!

BUT, that's okay, because I've got a midwife! I'VE GOT A MIDWIFE! :-) I'm pleased with myself, because I didn't think I'd find one that worked out of hospitals! Yay me!

Dreams...

A couple of ladies at the church have told me of their dreams they've had about me:

1) I had twin girls and named them Tanya Ann & Tiffany Jo! (YUCK!!!)

2) I had triplets!!!! (HAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!)

And I know this sounds funny, but since I'm not going to have an ultrasound and find out what the gender of the baby is...I've been praying about it! No, really! The last few nights when I can remember, I prayed before going to sleep that God would give me a dream about my baby and that I would remember the dream. Here's the results so far...

1) Very vague dream that I had a healthy, happy baby boy. Man was he cute!!!!

2) Last night's was strange! I was in the hospital, having the baby--no pain! Baby pops out, they take it, don't tell me anything about it, say something about busting an aorta and run away. Superhubby and I are there speechless, they bring the baby back in a diaper and leave again. Superhubby and I are like "Boy or girl?!?" I open the diaper and there's NOTHING there! It's flat! There was no gender identifiers there! I said, "Girl?" :-) I have no idea what that one was about! Weird!!!!

Soapbox Rantings

So, many of you don't know and will soon...and probably will try to talk me out of many things (it won't work) having to do with this pregnancy...some of which you'll find out about in the next couple minutes. But I really want to go with a midwife--at the hospital. The county I live in, the hospital does not allow you to use a midwife in said hospital. So, I must go to a neighboring county's hospital to use said midwife...not really a problem. They are all three pretty much equidistant from our home. But the insurance company does not cover midwives. Okay, not a problem...but when I called said insurance company to ask that question, Mr. Insurance Man tells me that the MASSIVE amount of moolah that we fork out for medical insurance only covers 2--TWO doctor's visits per year!?!?! Excuse me?!? When we signed up for this "Wonderful Medical Insurance" we were told that if I do get prego, all prenatal visits will fall under one visit because of a reoccuring condition. So, Superhubby is going to call said Mr. Insurance Man and chew him out! (At least I hope so.) I would do it, but I'm not near knowledgable enough about insurance to really do a decent job of knawing someone's head off. I might try to gum them to death, but that usually doesn't work. Teeth are really needed for that job! So...I'm thinking that this midwife that I'm wanting to go with might be a better option for multiple reasons.

1) She works around your income as to how much she charges.

2) I could drop my medical portion of insurance for the year after my first appt. on the 29th with my OB/GYN because all of my TWO allotted doctor's visits are used up...making for less of a monthly insurance payment.

3) I'll keep the hospitalization portion of insurance so that I'll be covered when going into labor.

4) And she's a woman!!!!! Definately a plus for me, because I really don't feel comfy having another man doing whatever they do down there. Ask my mom, I've always been modest! And it's not because I'm Pentecostal! I've been modest from birth! No running around the house naked as a jay bird for me as a toddler!

Ok, now that I'm off my soapbox about the insurance--YUCK!--I'll jump to the next one. It's called "I've made up my mind, and you won't change it, no matter how hard you try!"

Issue #1: I'm not getting an ultrasound as long as it's medically possible. If there is a desperate need for one, maybe...but I would really rather not. Reason: (If you're pregnant and agree with ultrasounds you might not want to read this!) There has not been any significant research done on ultrasound machines and their safety. They were made, and since then, no one has really checked to see if there are any long term problems that pop up from having one or many on your baby. One also doesn't need to have any kind of certification to man an ultrasound machine. There are celebrities that buy u/s machines to use in their homes!!!!! How rediculous is that?!?! There are many other reasons, I've done my research, but really don't think you want to read them all. But I do have my reasons. Thank you for listening!

Issue #2: I'm not going to get an epidural...PERIOD. Many may say that they're the best thing since sliced bread, but I don't want one! Reason: It is known that there are risks that go with putting a large needle in your spine. AND I DON'T LIKE LITTLE NEEDLES, WHY WOULD I WANT A BIG ONE IN MY BACK?!?

Issue #3: I want to go with a midwife, not an OB/GYN. Reason: The above two issues are usually pushed (especially Issue #1) when it comes to OB's. I don't want any undue pressure on me when it comes to decisions I have made. I want the person helping me to be understanding and follow through with what I want and need. Not trying to "pull the wool over my eyes" and give me something that I don't want, or don't know what it is.

Issue #4: I want to use cloth diapers. Reason: Disposable diapers don't deteriorate for like a million years! When Superhubby took Environmental Science in college, he talked to me a lot about what helps and hurts the environment and it really stuck. Am I a "Tree Hugger"? No, but I think the less trash I put out there, the better this world will be. By the way, Mrs. Lemon, can you make any suggestions? Or anyone else with input for that matter, as to what brand to use, etc, etc.?

Issue #5: You know, I really don't enjoy being "teased" or what have you about having multiples! Twins...triplets....whatever! I love you all, but please...PLEASE?!? Don't talk to me about having multiples! If we find out that we are, fine. But it scares the bejeebers out of me and I don't think the baby needs that kind of undue stress right now. Thank you.

Okay, I think I'm off the soapboxes for now. I just really had to get all that off my chest. I feel better now...really, I do!

Pregnancy symptoms & VBS don't mix!

So, we have VBS at our church this week (Monday-Thursday). I was supposed to be in charge of the "Choir class" and we also had a "Praise singing class". I'm not entirely sure why we had both, considering that we both do basically the same thing AND we have to compete with classes like: Clowns, Puppets, Cooking (my mother-in-law does choc-chip cookies in that class!), and Crafts! Monday I went to help out (as an obedient Godly woman would) and I had 1--ONE child sign up for my class and there were three that signed up for praise singing. How can you have a choir of ONE? So, we decided to combine classes that night. We had five adults to three registered children that showed up. I think the odds were good that with me feeling the way I did (stomach feeling like a rock and heartburn like crazy and more tired than I had ever been), I really wouldn't be needed the rest of the week. And I'm glad I talked to the guy in charge and asked him if that was ok, because last night it got worse! It was to the point that, if I would have waited any longer to eat, I would have vomitted (don't ask me what, because there was nothing in the tummy!). My back was killing me and so was my foot (which for some reason decided that a bone was going to displace itself in the top of my foot on Saturday) and I couldn't stand for long periods of time. So, there I was with Superhubby trying to help me make supper (my mexican feast of chicken and cheese enchiladas, rice, beans and guacamole) because I got really desperate. He saw me almost doubling over from the stomach pain (nausea?) and leaning against the freezer from the foot and back pain, I guess he felt sorry for me and decided to help. So, needless to say, I'm really glad I backed out of VBS for the rest of the week. I don't think I would've lived through it.

Speaking of Superhubby...he has been so good to me. (He always has been, but even more so now.) Last week I had a craving something fierce for onion rings! It started on Tuesday, but we didn't have them and he was going to the store on Thursday. So, I mentioned it again to him while at the store and he really didn't say much. He DID, however, show up at the house with a huge vidalia onion and he made me HOMEMADE onion rings!!! I don't remember what we had them with, but those onion rings were sooooo gooood!!!! We made them again at mom-in-law's on Saturday with hamburgers. Then I made one comment yesterday while he was at the grocery store that I'd like some Oreos with milk. He came home with a pack of Oreos! Now, mind you, I'm not (yet, and hopefully won't be) the pregnant woman who scarfs down everything she sees, or eats a whole pack of Oreos by herself in one sitting. But I do enjoy these cravings as much as I can while still being conscious of my weight and what I should and shouldn't be eating and how much. But I have also found that no matter what I eat, it's going to give me heartburn, just since last week. I hear that if you have a lot of heartburn during pregnancy, your baby will have lots of hair at birth. We'll see.

Have you heard the news?

Well, most of you now know. I'm preggers!!! Here's what was SUPPOSED to happen. This was Superhubby's plan. We were supposed to have mom-in-law put "Missy & baby" on the prayer list in last night's service. (Thus the poll on the side asking about prayer lists!) And then we were going to wait and see who came up with the information...........Well, it didn't exactly happen that way. Yesterday MORNING, Superhubby (y'know, the one with "THE PLAN") writes on his Sunday School kids' papers "Missy's pregnant, Don't tell!" and expects it to not be told by a bunch of teenagers between the ages of 12 and 15!!!!!! The nerve?!?!?! So, a nice young lady that is in his class comes up to me and says "Missy, is this true?" and points to the paper. Immediately I recognize my traitor of a husband's handwriting and say, "He wasn't supposed to tell! I'm gonna kill 'im!!!!" So, I head up to his classroom and he's already gone. I call him and say "Where are you? Cuz I'm gonna kill ya!" And he laughs and says "I'm in the sanctuary, come right ahead!" So, I go to the sanctuary and he and my mom-in-law are standing in the back of the santuary with what Superhubby calls a "'possum eatin' poop grin" on their faces! I get back there and he of course says "I put DON'T TELL on the papers! Nice Young Lady, you weren't supposed to tell!!!" Mom-in-law proceeds to say, "I told Nice Young Lady's mom this morning!" I said, "You weren't supposed to tell until tonight!" Then, it happened. Pastor's daughter-in-law overhears and says "Tell what?" and I knew it was over! Mom-in-law says "She's pregnant" and I turned away, knowing that I--who was trying to uphold my own traitor of a husband's wishes to the death--had just lost. While I was turned away, some kind of agreement went on between mom-in-law and Pastor's daughter-in-law and I felt my whole head turn bright red as P's D-in-law YELLED ACROSS THE SANCTUARY.........."HEY EVERYBODY!!!!!!!! MISSY P IS PREEEEEGGNNNAAAANNNNT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" And the hundred or so people left at church fell silent and looked our way. I was so embarrassed! Glad it was out, but embarrassed! So, I figured it was time to notify everyone else that I had cell numbers for and began texting people the wonderful news. So, Mrs. Lemon knew before I even posted this time.

So, here are the answers to your questions. I'm due probably in early to mid-February, which puts me at about 4-6 weeks. I have my first appointment with my OB/GYN on June 29th, but I'm really thinking about using a mid-wife if my insurance covers it. I'm really interested in doing this thing as naturally and without technology as much as I can. Since sis-in-law passed on, we as a family have really tried to clean up our act. We try to stay as natural and organic as possible. So, sorry peeps, but that means that we probably won't know what it is until he or she comes out. Speaking of "he or she"...I have had 3 or 4 people already call it a "HE". Is that prophetic? I don't know, but I think everyone is sick and tired of the lack of little boys running around the church. I feel sorry for all the little girls that have been born in the last 3 years, because their youth group is going to be much like mine was...boys few and far between. It wasn't fun or easy trying to find a knight in shining armor in that crowd! Many of us had to go elsewhere to find ours. Turns out mine was there most of the time and I didn't even realize it! Ok, well...I have TONS of things to do today. So, I'll stop rambling and let you comment. Love ya's!

Hi Y'all!!

Welcome me back!!! I'm going to try to be more faithful to you. Do you forgive me for my unfaithfulness over the past year? I'm sorry! Become my follower and I'll be better, I promise!