Drive by excuse

Busy packing. We're going to drive, with Navy Bean and Wes's two kids, to east Texas, then Oklahoma and then Dallas, to my parents' house. We're driving straight through. I know you wish you were me! Meanwhile, enjoy the sleeping baby.

Why the Navy and babies don't mix.

Wes is finally getting off his current ship, after more than three years on it. Last night they had his Farewell party, which means that all the officers get together, drink, eat and tell stories on each other. It turns out, these hardened military men also love babies, so Navy Bean and I went along. It was nice to get out of the house and to hear all these great things about my husband, but I did notice something disturbing.

Hey, who bought Navy Bean a beer?

She's never going to wake up now!

Keep this man away from your daughters!

I hope everyone has a great, non-hectic weekend!

Navy Bean is 4 weeks old, and still cute!

We have made it four whole weeks!!!! I am still alive, Navy Bean is still alive and we still love each other!!! I consider this a huge success. She is progressing very well for someone so small. First, she's already grown out of almost all her newborn clothes. I don't know who told her she could do that! I told her she had to stay my little girl forever, but apparently she is intent on getting big. I try to convince her that she is already "soooooo big" but it is not working. She is smiling more, her eyes actually follow the mobile (on occasion), she is "talking", and her neck skills are very impressive. Her spit up skills are also very impressive. One downside to breastfeeding, when she spits up, it runs down your belly. How fun is that!?!

Navy Bean getting her first bath where she sat in the water.

She really liked it.

Is there anything more pathetic, or cuter, than a pouting baby?

When I was little, my grandma used to tell me that a bird would

come and poop on my big pouty lips. Was anyone else

ever told this? Wes thinks it is weird.

Making funny faces at daddy.

She has started to fight sleep, which she must have gotten from Wes, because we all know I will sleep anywhere, anytime. Yesterday was our first trip to the park. The weather was warm, and she was fighting her nap, and thus, a car ride to the park was just the solution. She slept through the whole park, but I got outside and got some exercise.

On a slightly related note, my husband and I are dweebs. We discovered that we've been giving everyone the wrong anniversary date for us. See, we eloped, so it's not like there was a date on the calendar for a year before it happened. Neither one of us remembered the exact date, so I've been going by the expiration date on my military ID. We just realized my ID expires the day before we got married. So we've been celebrating the wrong date too. Whoops!

Someone called CPS on IQ and no, it was not me. I am a little ticked about it though, because I think it was the social worker that's supposed to have been helping IQ. She's been leaving hints with IQ that her house is a mess, but because IQ has the mental capacity of a middle schooler, she doesn't take hints. This lady should have sat IQ down, spelled it out for her, given her a list of things that needed to be done, and then helped her clean. Instead, she passed the buck. Now IQ is in the system and he husband was gone when it happened, so now the Navy also knows about it (they made him fly home) which really damages his career (although he could have gotten off his lazy ass and cleaned too). Anyway, CPS gave her a very long list of things that needed to be done and a week to do them. When they come back, they are going to sit down with her and give her a chore chart/calendar. I hope she realizes though, that this is not just a one time deal. They will continue to check on her and she will have to maintain her house, otherwise, they will take IQ Jr. And I don't want that. The stupid social worker was supposed to help prevent this, not cause it.

Random things

So Beth tagged me to do 5 random things about myself (I think that's what it was), and since the baby really doesn't do much yet, I've been looking for something else to blog about. I'm supposed to link Beth, but I'm computer illiterate (it's amazing I can blog), so she's the link on the sidebar that says (wait for it), Beth. I've decided to go with a Christmas theme. So here we go, 5 random things about Christmas.

1. I won a classic i-pod at Wes's Christmas party last night. This is wonderful because the most technologically advanced music player I have is a CD player. This also means I will probably have to have my sister show me how to use the i-pod. I almost didn't go to the party too, so that was pretty darn lucky!

2. When I was three, we were really poor. Really, really poor. My mom stole construction paper from the school she taught at and made a Christmas tree on the wall.

3. We lived in Arizona at the time of #2, and my first memories of my dad are singing Chipmunk Christmas songs while riding his motorcycle (yes, at age 3). I remember the helmet being really, really heavy.

4. I think my best Christmas was 1985. That year, I got a 10 speed bicycle and my mom told everyone she was pregnant (that would have been my sister). I was super excited about both.

5. I think my worst Christmas was 1997. I knew my marriage was over, but my entire family had gone to Colorado for Christmas and they didn't want me to leave my husband while they were gone (because they weren't sure what he would do and they weren't there to help me). So I stayed with him until after Christmas. I refer to it as the Christmas that never was.

So there you go. And now I have to go check on the Navy Bean. I'm sure this Christmas will probably replace 1985 as my best.

Defying logic

You always hear new parents talking about the indescribable love they feel for their babies. How they didn't really know what love was before they had a baby. How they would die for their baby. How everything in life changed and became more meaningful and real after they had a baby. And they sound so, weird. I mean, I knew having a baby did those things, I just didn't think it was as significant as they made it out to be. And then I had Navy Bean.


But, those feelings just don't make any sense at all. I mean, lets look at the facts. In phase 1 of Navy Bean's life, she made me fat, she kicked me, she kept me from having good sleep, I couldn't eat certain foods that I love (like certain cheeses) and because I was so wobbly, I couldn't bird watch the way I wanted. Nothing there that really elicits unconditional love.

Phase 2: she ripped me a new one, she shredded my nipples, she kept me from getting any sleep (so it felt), she cried for no reason, she pooped more than any person should poop, she peed on the couch, and just this morning, while getting her out of her bath, she pooped on me.

Phase 3: we really don't know yet. I mean, genetically, she should be intelligent, but also strong willed and stubborn. And we really don't know how she'll turn out. She may be horrible. She may never amount to anything. She may save the world. We just don't know.

Yet, I melt when I see her. I'm filled with absolute joy when she smiles at me (it's not gas!). I feel unconditional, undying love when I stroke her little head. I love holding her, even when she's crying (for a while). She has become my life and I can't imagine it without her.

And it dawned on me. That's kind of how God loves us. We don't deserve his love, yet it's there. He even knows whether or not we'll reject him, and yet, he loves us. How awesome is that!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

This is how she got here

I suppose I should record the story of Navy Bean's birth. Well, the day of the 10th I decided that maybe working in the garden would help jump start labor. I think it may have worked because I was in inactive labor the rest of the day. I didn't tell Wes though, because I really didn't want him to freak out about it. And, the contractions weren't getting worse, or closer together. At bedtime, I had just about given up hope that it would happen. And then I noticed that I was feeling a little wet down there, and I had just gone to the bathroom. I smacked Wes and told him to get me a towel, my water had broken. I managed to get to the bathroom without getting anything anywhere and Wes thought I was just "leaking". Except, I went to take a shower and leaked everywhere and I wouldn't stop. This was about 11:35pm. So, we finished packing stuff up, I ate a bowl of cereal and called my mom and Camille and we head to the hospital. By the time we got there, it was about 12:30am.

We head up to labor and delivery and they stuck me in a room and came in twice to see if my water had actually broke. This, despite the fact that I was going through pads like crazy because I was clearly leaking. Finally, they hooked me up to a monitor to make sure the baby was ok (she was), and to see if I was having contractions. I was, but they were erratic and not that painful. Finally, at about 1:30 to 2:00 they moved me to a delivery room. Because my water had broke, they had to induce labor and so started the pitocin. I was only dilated to maybe a 2 at this point. The contractions started coming regularly at this point. Now, I had wanted to have a very active labor, walking around, squatting, that sort of thing. However, if you know anything about me, you know I love to sleep and at this point, I was beyond exhausted. I tried to sleep between contractions (they were still several minutes apart) but just couldn't do it and I was too tired to do anything. I was really afraid that I would be too tired to push when we finally got to that point. Finally, at about 5:00 I decided to get some narcotics, I was also dilated to about a 3. I don't know what they gave me, but they allowed me to sleep, but they didn't do anything to reduce the pain.

Now, the narcotics. They made me hallucinate. I was very upset that the hospital was allowing Dennis the menace to run around because this was not something a kid should see. And then, I was upset because the Russian guy who was supposed to bring me the giant purple mushrooms with white spots, the mushrooms that would make the pain go away, lied to me. The mushrooms did not make the pain go away, they made it worse. And I was upset that the narcotics made the contractions farther apart and I told Wes that. They had to be at least 10 minutes apart, because of the sleep and the hallucinations. Wes looked at me and said "baby, they're 1 minute apart, that's it." So I guess the drugs worked.

At around 7:30am I felt like I needed to push, but the nurse said I would probably only be dilated to 4 or 5. Finally, Wes made her get a doctor to check me. I was dilated to 9. Go drugs!!! And the pushing began soon afterwards. The pushing actually hurt less than the contractions and I felt like I was accomplishing something. The nurse finally said she could see the baby's head and she had a full head of dark hair. I'm pretty sure I told the nurse that wasn't our baby because our baby wouldn't have any hair. I might have even asked her if she was looking at the right vagina. I'll spare you the bloody and disgusting and painful last minutes of labor (including getting my giant placenta out, which ripped out half the stitches they had already done. What idiot decided to do it in that order?). She was born at 9:43 am, weighing in at 7 lbs, 10 oz. and 21 1/2 inches long. She is a very long baby. And she is very beautiful. Which is good, because she's been kind of cranky and can't figure out her days and nights. I'm a little tired.

But, she was totally worth it. Here's some silly pictures of her making faces.

Working on a yawn.

Such munchable cheeks!

I think we're going to keep her. I've become rather attached.

And, as Beth noticed, I'm not giving out her name. You can e-mail me if you would like it.

Wow!!!!

The little Navy Bean made her debut on Nov. 11, 2008 at 9:43am. It was brutal but could have been worse. I'll write more about that later, now, I'm just going to post a few pictures and then probably try to feed her again. She is beautiful and I'm very happy. We are both home and healthy (she's not always happy, which makes me unhappy, but we're good).

Look at those long munchable toes!

We have no idea where all that dark hair came from!

Isn't she just beautiful. Her cheeks are so huge!

She's perfect and I'm happy!

On the way

I interupt the regularly scheduled program to bring you this update: my water has broke and I am on my way to the hospital!!!! Hopefully it will be short and sweet (but I'm not even really having contractions yet). Update as soon as possible!

Forty weeks (and counting)

Guess who's due to have a baby today? ME!!!!! Am I having a baby today? Probably not!!!

Look at the size of that thing!!!!

Yesterday, someone asked if I was having twins!

I've tried everything: walking, swimming, cleaning, dancing, talking to her, threatening her, nothing seems to work. She is warm and comfy (I am not comfy!!!! But I am warm, actually, pretty hot all the time). Due to when my husband has to return to work and when my parents will be here, if we haven't had her by next Wed., we will discuss induction with the doctor. So we do know it will be within a week. Which excites me and scares me. But mostly excites me.

I received a wonderful box from Sandi and David this week (Fighting Maturity). It was filled with tiny little cute clothes. When faced with baby clothes I always have the same reaction: I can't believe my baby will be that small!!! Then, I can't believe I have to push something that big out of my body!!! But we didn't have any newborn clothes items, so they were needed. (Although I think someone, maybe a grandma or a daddy went a little crazy with the shopping when they discovered they were having twin girls!) Wes and I are still trying to figure out how we went from having no baby clothes only three weeks ago, to our unborn baby having more clothes than both of us combined! Although, I guess the majority of those clothes are onesies. I want everyone to take a moment, close your eyes and imagine all the people in the entire world wearing onesies. This is definitely worth one little moment! (I keep picturing Barbie in a onesie!)

The rest of today will be spent cleaning and having Mexican food. And hopefully I'll have baby pictures to post soon!

Over-heard at the gym

While changing at the gym the other day, I over-heard two mid-life women talking.

"I drank soy milk and ate soy products for years, not knowing."
"Yeah, my doctor told me that they could cause osteoporosis because of all the estrogen."
"I know. I used to give it to my kids too, including my son. No wonder there are so many gays! I bet their moms didn't even know about all the estrogen in soy milk."

There's not even anything you can say to that!

We can do it, we did it, we will do it!

I can't let the election pass without saying a few words. Before I was a mommy to be, I was a historian, one who studied totalitarian governments. Therefore I know how important voting is. It is a privilege and a right, one that too many people take for granted, thinking their vote won't make the difference anyway. You know what, it may not make a difference, but if enough people see it that way than it won't make a difference and it will be taken away from us.

John McCain is a brave, honorable man and I respect him and his service to our country. He has endured things that no one should have to go through. However, I did not think this made him the best choice to lead our country. And even if I had supported him, once he picked Palin, I would have changed my vote. I thought his concession speech was gracious and I hope he continues to try to encourage Republicans to respect and hear out our new President.

Barack Obama is a historical figure. I am very proud that I will be able to tell my daughter that the year she was born, mommy, daddy and the United States made history. I am thankful that Obama's acceptance speech was not about mandates from the people to disregard Republicans, but rather how it is time for the country to unite. That we are all Americans and that he will be the President of all of us, regardless of whom we voted for. That is the message we need and I hope that we all continue to work towards that goal.

Obama has a very rough four (hopefully 8) years ahead of him though. However, I think that even if all he accomplishes is to improve the reputation of the United States with the rest of the world, and he is able to mend relationships and open new lines of communication with countries we have disregarded for so long, then he will have been a successful President.

I encourage everyone to keep the fervor of the election alive and to remember that we are all in this together. We are united and will remain united. That we made history and we can do it again. That we need to pray for our government, regardless of if we agree with them or not. And we need to remember how blessed we are, because at least we get a voice.

I have a nursery

I know I've been promising to post pictures, but I finally got around to it. It seems like everything takes twice as long these days, and I have a feeling that by having this baby (like I have a choice now), everything will take even longer.

Pack n' play, in our room. I paid less than half of its retail cost on Craig's list!

My aunt made this. It is amazing!

And here's the nursery! All those baskets on the bookshelf, another Craig's list deal.

I'm starting to wonder, is the rest of my life going to be me wishing I could do something (sometimes, anything) but can't because I've decided to have a baby? I mean, I want to have a baby and I want to be a mom, but I know being a parent is not exactly conducive to having one's own personal life. When will I be able to sleep through a whole night again? When will I be able to read a whole book in one afternoon? Can I still crochet and sew? And I'm very upset that I missed the whole fall migration season.

I know that how we raise the child will play a large role in what we're able to do. If I read to her everyday (and I do occasionally read to her now), hopefully she will love reading and we can spend time together reading. If we spend a lot of time outside, she may better appreciate birds and nature and then that becomes family time. If I crochet and sew, she becomes interested in crafts. That's the theory anyway. But what if I have a difficult child. They happen, often through no fault of the parent. I don't mind if the Navy Bean is interested in other stuff, as long as she engages in life. I don't expect life to stay the same. I expect it to get more challenging, more interesting and more meaningful. I expect to grow as a person. I expect my world to become so much larger than I ever thought it could. I just wonder if I'm up to the challenge, because now, it's not just my life I could potentially waste, it's hers too.

This is starting to get old

So I'm still pregnant. And I'm huge. Really huge. And I can't figure out why because there is only one of them in there. One! (Although I had a dream it ended up being twins, but after 5 (FIVE) ultrasounds, if it ended up being twins, I think I would sue someone.) Anyway, we decided I should get some "classy" pictures. To remember how freaking huge I am. Fun times.

Dancing the day away!

Pay no attention to the badonkadonk. It's keeping me balanced!

This looks all serious, but I'm telling her that she has 2 weeks until I'm evicting her.

The bags are packed, the birth plans copied, the phone list on top of the bag. The baby clothes/blankets/sheets are washed. The nursery done (pictures at a later date). The car seat checked out by three firefighters. Every single time I call my mom she answer with "did you have a baby?" Like I wouldn't call her on the way to the hospital. The little Navy Bean still hasn't dropped, but I've had other (gross) signs that labor will be soon (I'll spare you). The 6th of Nov. would be the perfect day, from Wes's job's stand-point, but we don't really have too much control. Now we just wait and I dream of sleeping on my stomach again and munching on little toes.

This is easy enough

Beth tagged me for a meme and I think it's a great idea because my brain is fried and really, how much more bitching about how pregnant I am do you really want to hear?

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
Working on my MA in Modern European History at SMU
Working as a bill collector for a cable/telephone company
Getting a divorce
Geez, 10 years was a long time ago, how am I supposed to remember?
I think I moved (I'm pretty sure I did)
Pretty much changed my whole life (see above divorce, and MA)

5 Things on my to do list today:
water plants
write thank you notes for baby gifts
pack hospital bag
unpack my winter clothes, even though I doubt I'll be able to wear any of them this year
clean my gross kitchen

5 snacks I like:
apples with cheddar cheese
raw veggies
candy, especially Sour Patch kids and snickers
cheez-its
cheese

5 Things I would do if I were a millionaire:
pay off all our debt, including student loans
give 10% to my church
travel everywhere
give money to my family and Camille
buy a house

5 places I have lived:
Marshall, Minnesota (total of 5 years)
Las Vegas, Nevada (total of 7 years)
Dallas area, Texas (14 years)
Madison, Wisconsin (5 years)
Virginia Beach, Virginia (2 1/2 years, so far)

5 Jobs I have had:
Phone ho at Pizza Hut
Janitor at Peterbuilt truck company (this was a cool job, as I worked at the factory where they developed new trucks)
Bill collector for a cable/phone company
Clerk at the Wisconsin Historical Museum
TA at the University of Wisconsin

I am supposed to tag 5 other people, but I'm too tired to figure out who, so now I'm going to go take a nap.

It's not what you think

I have not had the baby. I know it would be easy to think that, since I've been gone for a week, but I've just been busy. And really tired. We didn't go to the wedding, but our friends did stay with us, and we had a great visit. I had my baby shower on Sunday, which went very well and we got a ton of great stuff. Monday and Tuesday we went out and spent a TON of money on all the other baby stuff we hadn't gotten, but thought we might need (we still spent less money than IQ did on her crib alone!). So we got things like a crib mattress, sheets for the crib, sheets for the pack n' play, sheets for the Moses basket, a few more receiving blankets, onesies (because I didn't get ANY at my shower!), a baby carrier. Stuff like that! All that shopping left me tired! But then I had to WASH all the stuff we bought. Meanwhile, my husband set up the pack n' play in the bedroom (we're using the bassinet for the first couple of months. The moses basket is going downstairs). So the baby has a place to sleep! Actually, two places!!! And the crib has been ordered. And the baby's room is starting to look empty. Which is good, because last week it had a ton of boxes, a huge computer desk, a filing cabinet, two computers, and a bunch of other crap in it. That's all been moved out and I think by the end of today, it will be set up (minus the crib, so it'll look a little funny). I'll post a picture soon!

Today, I need to do some clothes shopping. Yes, I know, it is a strange time to do that, only 2 1/2 weeks before the baby is due, but the weather has changed and ALL my maternity clothes are summer clothes. And we're going to Texas for Christmas, and I doubt I'll be in my regular clothes by then. I'm just going to go to Goodwill to pick up one other pair of pants, and maybe a couple of large shirts. After the baby and before Christmas, I'll go back to Goodwill for a few larger non-maternity pieces. We also put the baby seat in the car (my husband did that without cutting all the tags off of it) and we'll take it to a fire station today to make sure he did it correctly. And I'll also try to get to the many thank you notes I need to get sent out. I also haven't packed my hospital bag yet, but that's partly due to a lack of clothing to pack in it.

I am feeling good about stuff, but also want to get all the stuff on my to do list marked off. What I really want to do though, is sit down and crochet or read a good book. I miss reading! Since almost everything is done, I hope I can manage to read something non-baby related before the baby is born. As long as it's short. And while I love my magazines, since I voted on Tuesday, I don't really need to read any more political crap. I wonder if I have time to read The Brothers Karamazov again (ok, that's a joke. The book has about 1,000 pages. Although, I really would like to read it again soon). But I guess I should get started on my to do list. I think it'll be done by the end of the week, and then I can just relax until the baby gets here!

One last thing, I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and now the doctor is saying the baby is probably not going to be as big as she originally thought!!!! YAY!!!!!

We're not going.

Well, the doctor strongly suggested we not go to the wedding. Her concern was that the baby might be too uncomfortable, especially since her head is sitting on the edge of my pelvic bone (which would explain yesterday's pain) and not engaged, that she might actually flip and go breech (who knew). So, we decided to stay put. I haven't had contractions today, but we only have 3 weeks 2 days to the due date, and like she said, this stuff can happen fast. The good news is that some of our friends who flew out for the wedding are staying with us, so at least we get to visit with them.

We ordered the crib today. I'm not sure how long it'll take to get here, not that it matters because we still don't have any place to put it, but at least it's ordered (it's apparently very popular because ever single place we've looked has been sold out for the past month). And I got a couple of different packages today, so we're starting to feel like we're a little more prepared (ok, for a couple of minutes, and then panic sets in again). Overall, things are going well, and I'm waddling right along.

Just try to roll over

The house is quiet and empty. The kids and Wes's dad left yesterday. The house is a mess. He was supposed to have today off, but unfortunately, one of the other officers had a death in the family, so Wes is working for him. We were going to clean the house today, because tomorrow, we're having company! So I've been trying to clean, but um, I'm having these pesky contractions. And I've been having them off and on for a week. And they're starting to hurt and they don't go away quite as quickly as they did before. I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow, and Wes wants me to ask about them, but there's only one problem. We're having company because some friends of ours are getting married on Friday. But they're getting married in North Carolina, an hour and a half away. I would like to go (not at the risk of Navy Bean, of course), but I know if we ask about the contractions, that'll probably be a no (Wes doesn't understand why, which kind of confuses me). So I'll take it easy today, and hopefully they'll go away on their own. I'm sure I'll let you know either way.

They had a crane!!!!

But they took the crane away before I could use it! I did manage to get on the ship though. Wes was very happy to see me, and I him. Since I don't have 10,000 words, I have a picture.

Don't they have a crane?

Wes gets home today!!!! I am so very excited. I'll leave here in about an hour and we'll watch the ship come in (literally) and then Allison will climb aboard, and then I'll wait for the giant crane. I asked Wes how they will get me aboard. I mean, I am really big and round and have no balance or coordination. He said I could climb up the ramp. Not unless someone is pushing me (and have blocked off the ramp, it's hard getting up and down it when other people are on it and you're not 8 1/2 months pregnant). In his defense, I haven't sent him a picture in a month! And yes, I do have to go aboard, unless I want to sit on the pier for a couple of hours while he finishes everything up. Fun times!!!!

I feel bad for Allison. She has been stuck here with just me since Friday morning. Not that there is anything wrong with me, but um, I'm not used to having an 8 year old kid around. I'm not used to having anyone around. And I love playing board games, but can really only sit on those dining room chairs for an hour before my entire body screams in pain. And getting on the floor to play, hahahahahahahahaahaha!!!!! I've been trying to break the day into smaller parts, doing stuff, like shopping, or making cookies (which she's never done before), but I can tell the poor child is bored to death. She's not used to playing alone (she has one brother and two step-brothers) and she's not a reader (at her age, I would read for hours by myself. Matter of fact, for my seventh birthday, I spent my birthday money on the Little House on the Prairie set). So I'm glad the guys will be back today.

Well, I have a few things I need to finish up and I should probably shower. I hope everyone has as great a day as I know I will have!

Utter nonsense

Well, the rental car thing is done. Not exactly what we were looking for, but at least we have one reserved. I don't have to worry about it anymore. YAY!!!

The doctor (my regular doctor, who I saw yesterday) says my baby is going to be fat!!! My baby is not going to be fat! She is going to be squishy and edible and have huge chipmunk cheeks!

Which leaves us with the continuing saga of the Heroscape game! Let's see, where were we. Oh yes, no one at Hasbro knew what was going on. Tuesday afternoon another person called me (not the same person as any of the other times). He informs me the game has already been shipped so they cannot send it priority mail, but since I live in Virginia, and this game is being shipped from the Virginia distribution center, it should be here quicker than the 8 to 10 business days. Can you guarantee that? Um, no, but there's a pretty good chance that it will happen. Really, well, can you tell me what happened to the other game then? Um, no. Ok then. This is what I am going to do. I am going to order another game off of Amazon and I will send your game back and I expect a full refund. Ok, you can do that. Thank you and good-bye.

So I ordered the game off of Amazon. Their standard shipping is only 3 to 5 business days, and I actually paid less than buying direct. Their game shipped the very next morning (not the 2 to 3 days later that Hasbro did). Then today, the doorbell rang, and it was a Heroscape game. From Hasboro. I think it was the first game, since I got it only two days after it shipped, and it said it came from Pennsylvania. We may end up with 3 games. Does anyone need a Heroscape Master set?