random update

So... I am pretty much dead from the combination of moving, unpacking, Thanksgiving and Black Friday...

BUT... I did manage to come home and drag one of our Christmas trees up from the basement. I'm debating on putting up two trees this year since it's the first time I've had two large windows to work with, but I'm a little tired and don't know if I should be concentrating my efforts there or in the general furnishing of the new house. One day I'll have pictures, but I would prefer that the pictures not show the many boxes that are still unpacked. ( I would rather decorate than unpack! There's so much to do!)

Anyhow, thought I would share the quick supper I threw together tonight when I got in. We had chicken breasts that needed to be used, so I boiled them in a mixture of chicken broth and water after coating them in pepper, poultry spice, garlic salt, and who knows what.

After that, I shredded the chicken, popped open a can of cream of chicken, mixed some leftover mashed potatoes with a half stick of melted butter, crumbled a handful of oyster crackers on top and baked for about 20 minutes at 350.

Surprisingly, it's good!

So now I'm going to trot off and straighten out the branches of one of my trees and simultaneously watch Stacy and Clinton transform some more people. Someone please vote for me to get on that show!

I am not dead.

This is just an update to say that I am not dead.

I am just completely and utterly exhausted from this move, working, and pregnancy.

I know that ten days doesn't really signify a major time lapse in blogland, but I felt like I owed an explanation. I have been in a black hole of busy work, packing, and more packing. Both houses are a mess, and it's just not fun right now.

And... I have not been able to get a good night's sleep. Sleeping on my side is no fun, and it takes me an hour and a half sometimes before I can make myself power down. Even then, I always wake up because I somehow roll to my back and cannot breathe!

So... maybe I'll be talking again in December. For now, November's definitely too much for me!

irrational fears

Praying for peace of mind today! I am the kind of person that worries incessantly over things and becomes uncontrollably anxious. I am a worse-case scenario kind of person, and it really gets on my nerves. Today, Brandon and I decided to get a head-start on cleaning out the basement. Cue me lumbering around and hoisting boxes from the back of the basement, sweeping up tumbleweeds of cat hair, and deciding I would clean out the basement shower stall (where we keep both litter boxes). Many of you might recall my freak out a couple of months ago because I'm pregnant and we have cats. I pretty much diagnosed myself with toxoplasmosis and was a nervous wreck until my blood test results came back negative. I have never had the disease and was not immune to it if it should show up during pregnancy. Keep in mind that I'm not usually the one changing the litter, but I had exposed myself to some form of cat waste that had been the product of someone's (not naming any names) incontinence!

Anyhow, shift to today when I'm cleaning out our basement shower stall. I'm happily lifting out litter pans and putting them down on the floor beside our open door ( score for ventilation) and making a lot of progress. I then start to sweep up scattered litter from four corners of the shower stall, making a big pile that I can suck up with the vacuum cleaner. I'm also wearing gloves (score for hand protection). My eyes then fall on a paint can in the back of the shower stall (no idea why it was there) that looks like it's stuck to the floor. Apparently, a full can of paint has busted. When I attempt to pick up the paint can, it's stuck to the floor. I tug and tug and finally pry it loose, leaving a trail of beige wet paint in my wake. I decide that I must vacuum up litter particles before I even attempt to work with the paint mess. I go upstairs, nearly die dragging the vacuum back down the stairs, hook up my extension and get to work. In the next minute or so, my vacuum gets dangerously full and I have to empty it. While pulling apart the compartment, litter flies everywhere. It's in the innards of the vacuum, and I'm pulling it out with my gloved- fingers. Around this time, my nose starts to itch from the combination of dust and cat litter. Without thinking, I know I lifted one of my hands up at one point to scratch my nose. My fingers had been near the litter. Granted, the litter was not covered in fecal matter and was just loose litter, but -- do you see where my mind's going?

Of course, I wasn't worried about any such thing at the time. My mind was engaged by trying to get my vacuum put back together. If you ever wanted to see a tantrum, I'm sorry you weren't there. I'm pretty sure I swore and hit the vacuum multiple times before giving up and waiting for Brandon to return from the dump.

It wasn't until we had come up from the basement that my mind went there, there being that dangerous place that it goes when I let my fears rule my mind and heart. Insert my mad googling rampage about toxoplasmosis. The links on google were still purple from the last time I went through this. I know that it's not really likely that any of my cats are infected with toxoplasmosis. They are not outdoors and eating wild game or raw meat. I have a greater change of contracting the disease by not washing my vegetables or eating undercooked meat than I do of getting it from my cats. There's just that small, rare possibility that scares me.

And then I realize that these fears usually come on the scene after something really great has happened. I saw my wonderful, precious baby girl via ultrasound on Thursday. You think I'd be set. No, it means it's time to go around looking for more irrational fears to weigh me down. If it's not caffeine, it's paint. If it's not paint, it's cat poop. If it's not that, it's hot showers.

So, tonight, I ask, if you have a moment, that you would pray for my peace. I am so nervous and anxious about everything and nothing these days. I want to trust God and lean on His promises. I'm about to go search for some bible verses to repeat if these feelings latch on too strongly again.

Anyhow, Brandon was getting tired of, "Do you think I have toxoplasmosis? Do you think Natalie's going to be okay? Do you think she'll be handicapped?" -- so I had to come here.

I have a hard time trusting. Can't you tell?

I have popped! My stretch marks confirm this.

I'm somewhat embarrassed. When I lifted up my shirt to check out Natalie this morning, I saw the smattering of stretch marks she left me through the night. My stomach had this awful stretching and pulling thing going on all through the day and I had a hard time sleeping, and now I see why! Time to slather on more cocoa butter. Man, I thought I was going to be one of the lucky ones in this area. I just need to get a grip on them before they turn bright red and purple! Ah, not that I could ever get away with a bikini... but I don't suppose I really can now... hehe! At first I thought they were indentions left from the sheets, but now I see they aren't going away. Oh, to have elastic-y skin...

Well, it's time for an update, isn't it? I'm taking a little break from breaking down the guest room and laundry so I can strut my stuff all over the internet and announce my happy news...

We are blessed to be having a baby girl sometime in March! I am deliriously happy because I've always dreamed of having a little girl. A small part of me was sad to not be experiencing a baby boy this time around, but we're probably not going to stop at one child, so it looks good.

Last night before the ultrasound I could barely sleep. I was suffering from an extremely fluttery belly (not the baby, just nerves-- kid on Christmas Eve kind of feeling) and developed a charlie horse. I woke up in the middle of the night to pee and had a hard time falling back asleep until it was, like, 4:30 or so. I then slept until 7:00. I had aspirations of being up at 5:30 and doing full on hair and makeup in order to capture the news on film, but we all know that didn't happen. We rolled into the parking lot around the time of the appointment, 8:30 AM. Luckily, there was a wait due to patient volume, so we didn't cause any of the medical personnel to wait on us. (And really, when has that ever happened? Every time I go to the doctor, my appointment never starts on time.)

So, my mom, MIL, Brandon, and I killed time in the waiting room by exchanging stories about our childhoods. The ultrasound started around 9:00. I loved the bedside manner of my technician, a combination of humor and her own experiences in childbearing. The cold goop was dumped on to my gut and the party started. As opposed to my last ultrasound, as soon as the "wand" laid against my stomach a clear image of the baby popped up on the screen. We were able to identify the head, spine, arms, legs, bum, and to quite easily rule out that it was not a little boy. This little girl was sleeping on her belly with her head nestled somewhere against my hipbone. (Ouch! Move over, baby! The tech said that explained any soreness I was having in my tendons...) We were never able to get her to roll around to her back so we could get a clear look at her face. We were able to see that her heart looked healthy with four chambers, but the doctors feel more comfortable when the spine isn't blocking the view. That being said, I get to see my little dumpling again when I go back in four weeks. I hate that I didn't see her today, but I love the chance of getting to see her again before I deliver!

When I actually sat down and talked to my doctor, I told her that I was fearful that I hadn't felt any movement yet. We then narrowed it down that I was feeling movement, I just thought it was mostly gas. She said that when you're pregnant, your bowels kind of move over to the side so anything felt around the pubic bone is definitely baby and not gas bubbles. Good to know. We all know me. I panic.


Okay, tired and hungry again. Check out my facebook for pics of our girl!!