The Price of the Wire(less)

Let me just vent for a moment and say I loathe Comcast.  For two days we've had really spotty internet service.  Like it would load google and do a basic google search.  But forget about actually loading any pages.  Email, facebook -- even Comcast's website itself (how ironic, when you need to contact them for help, right?).  It went nowhere.  I'm even hesitant to hope that this connection I'm enjoying right now will last through the end of this post.  I managed to get a phone number for Comcast Customer Service.  I get irritated fast.  I told them my issue (and by some miracle didn't have to wait 3 hours to get a real person on the line).  She wanted me to hard-wire the laptop and bypass the wireless router (both the modem and router are ours, not rented from Comcast).  I tried to, but then I couldn't connect at all.  I'm positive it is something to do with a setting or whatever -- because I know nothing about this kind of stuff.  I know I plugged the ethernet cable into my laptop where I think it goes.  And then I had no connection.  So she said they would send a tech out for $3.99 and they could check our equipment.  I nixed that.  I'm not paying for them to send someone out.  Not even $4.  I'm cheap.  Good grief.  And considering I'm having a good connection time at the moment (hopefully), I'm pretty sure the problem isn't our equipment.  Therefore, they should be dealing with it for free, seeing as we pay for a service.  Anyway, I'll have Jeremy try to do the bypass when he gets home if the internet is still garbage. 

This isn't the first problem we've had with Comcast.  And it probably won't be the last.  I'm severely tempted to discontinue the service.  But living in this digital age where we are used to having things at our fingertips 24/7 makes it hard to bite that bullet and go without internet (at least until I found out what other services are available in our area).  This is how we keep tabs on our bank accounts and pay several of our bills.  This is how I check for cheap airfare (another rant -- how do tickets go up $100 overnight when the timeframe is still 6 months away!?!).  And so, it feels like being stuck in a catch-22.

In happier news, I think I was slightly better adjusted for the majority of this week.  Was really busy and definitely had some pouty moments.  But overall, I made a bigger effort to focus outside of myself and stop having a pity party.  Today is my first all-day-at-home this week, and it's officially a glasses and pj kind of day.  Even the sun is hiding behind the clouds.  Tomorrow is my first (of 2) baby showers.  There were so many rsvp's they moved the location from my friend's house to the church building.  Then we have Saria's birthday party.  She is 12 this year.  Which seems crazy to me.

And just so you know I'm keeping with the picture-taking, here's me at 36 weeks, 1 day.  I'll take more pictures tomorrow at the shower too.

I think it's funny how often I wear the same shirt in these pictures.  And I can't believe I'm due in less than 4 weeks!  That seems plain crazy to me.  I don't really have any new news to report in the baby department.  Still wiggling at night -- and providing great entertainment to me when I'm sitting in meetings and watching my stomach move.  Have people telling me I look small for being due in 4 weeks.  I don't take offense to such comments.  Because I know I've gained plenty of weight and that Baby is probably doing just fine according to all we can know at this point.  And I'd rather look small (when I'm not) than look blimpy -- since my weight gain is probably over 30 pounds now.  Yee-haw! So that's about the size of things.  I'm off to do some to-do list stuff.  Prepping the Ward Activity treasures, prepping my Sharing Time lesson for Sunday...  You know.  Stuff :).  At least it's a leftovers kind of night!  Clean out the fridge time :).  Oh, and I should probably take advantage to this rare moment of good internet connectivity and balance our checkbook.  Hmmm...  Fun fun fun!

Oh, and here's a picture for my dad of Desiree at Activity Days girls.  She's 8 now, so every other week she attends this and this past week they had a "grand-daughter reveal" party.  Basically for 2 weeks, the girls took little things to a secret Grandma in the Ward: a home-made card, a little potted flower, a home-made beaded bracelet; and they secretly dropped off the stuff.  Then on Wednesday, the Grandmas were invited to a little party where they would find out who their secret grand-daughter was and then the girls would perform a talent.  Desiree danced to a One Direction song (so Aunt Hila got an education on that boy band while trying to find the song for her to have).  Anyway, it was sweet -- and here's her picture.

I think it's an adorable picture of her.  In other niece news... Emily got hold of some scissors and did a number on her hair last week.  So Christina had to "fix" it.  She actually looks kind of pixie-ish.  It's cute.  Ah the adventures of parenthood that await me. 

Stretching

I officially have a new stretch mark.  Yes, I said a new one.  Because once upon a time, I weighed this much without being pregnant.  And I got stretch marks then.  Attractive, huh?  But reality.  They mostly faded over time and weren't noticeable.  But I will say getting stretch marks from being overweight is not the kind of thing you want to remember.  Stretch marks from pregnancy stands for something beautiful.  Even if they, themselves, are not beautiful.  So now I have one beautiful stretch mark :).  And don't worry:  I won't post a picture of that.  Haha.

So yes, physically, I am stretching.  And growing.

I think I'm doing that figuratively too.  Not by choice.  And I will be honest:  I'm not a fan of the growing and stretching process for one's character.  It's usually quite painful.  Without the details, I will just say I have had a hard few weeks.  I assume some of it can be attributed to the extra hormones.  I've read the books, and they indicate such.  I have crazy mood swings.  I'm more irritable.  I feel overwhelmed with some of my responsibilities.  I feel frustrated with people.  I feel "not good enough," not likeable, and not liked.  I feel like crying at the drop of a hat -- or when I get a text from Juliebean saying she wishes I was there watching "The 80s: the decade that made us" documentary (because I wish that too).  I feel like running away (and sometimes that entails going back in time -- impossible).  And then I feel guilt.  Guilt for feeling so woe is me.  I feel like an ingrate.  Sounds like fun, huh?  I will say I'm grateful for Jeremy who is riding this wave with me and reminding me that I can keep going forward when I feel like I can't or -- more often -- when I simply don't want to.  I'm grateful for how he loves me and bolsters me and encourages me and tells me that I'm a good person, even when I feel like I'm not.  So I'm trying really hard to push out the sad depressing feelings that are quick to attack.

And Jeremy and I kept our calendars clear this Saturday for some us time -- and a change in routine.  I need it.  I have less than 5 weeks until my due date, and 2 of those weekends are already packed full.  And the other two that aren't right now will have me even bigger than I am now.  Then we will be a three-some.  Our days as a couple are almost over, in a sense.  So we are planning a day together tomorrow, and who knows what we'll do :).  Maybe we'll go to the Cheesecake Factory :).  It'll wear me out -- the walking in Seattle -- but I think it will be fun.

I had another doctor's appointment yesterday.  All still on track.  Baby still head down.  My blood pressure still good.  Weight gain not so fabulous as last time (6 pounds), and, of course, that made me want to cry.  But I'm trying to just stay positive and know that (as indicated in my confession about stretch marks above), I have lost this weight before, so I can do it again :).  The doctor and I discussed more in-depth stuff this time -- like what I plan to do for pain and whether we plan to circumcise if it's a boy.  I will schedule the Stork Express visit at the hospital for next week or so, so I can get pre-registered.  Then it'll be back to the doc a week after that, when I'm at 37 weeks.  Appointments are definitely getting closer together!  I feel baby daily now in one way or another.  Not so many kicks, but lots of wiggles.  It does seem the baby goes into hibernation mode for a couple days where the movements are less frequent.  I think it's an interesting pattern.  I've also noted Baby is much more active at night.  I think it takes after mommy that way ;).  Baby likes to sleep in -- just like I do!

So since I was at the doctor's clinic, I ran some more errands in that area.  One of them was to get an actual maternity something for my baby showers.  I can't believe how expensive these things are!  I guess I'm just cheap.  But I wanted something nicer than just jeans and a t-shirt.  I found something I liked, and it was on clearance for $10.  It's just a top, but I can wear it with jeans and it looks dressier.  So I'm happy with that.  And I happened upon an awesome sale at JC Penney's!  Nothing maternity (they informed me they only carry maternity stuff online now), but all these kids' clothes for $3!!!  So I got some Christmas presents for the nieces and nephews!  5 pairs of jeans and 2 shirts for $23!!!  I walked the whole mall -- and it wore me out.  But it was pretty fun to find such a deal!

And so I have some pictures.  Sorry for the abundance of them, but I took a few this past week and figured I'd just post them all.

This is me at 34 weeks and 1 day. After a walk in the misty rain with Tawni.

This is the view I see when I look down -- at 34 weeks 6 days.

And here I am at 35 weeks exactly.

And here is my new shirt -- front view. 35 weeks 1 day.  Dressing room shot ;).

Side view. At least this makes my legs look skinny ;). Haha.

34 Weeks, Among Other Things

We'll start with the all-exciting day of Chuck E. Cheese. Where a kid can be a kid. And an adult can lose her mind.  I generally try to avoid the place.  I am hoping it will not be a large part of my future as a consequence of having children.  But I will allow my children to have a childhood.  Even at the cost of Chuck E. Cheese.  Sigh.  Anyway, so what was I doing at Chuck E. Cheese?  Well, I happen to have a couple nieces who were invited to the birthday party of a little girl they knew from church.  And since they go to church with us, that means Christina has no clue who these people are.  And so, not wanting to leave them out of the fun stuff -- and not wanting the little girl who was celebrating her birthday to not have some friends there due to such a technicality...  I picked up Desiree and Emily and took them to Chuck E. Cheese.  Here they are, at pizza time.  It's funny.  Desiree totally understands the tokens and tickets concept.  Emily... Not so much.  She would have been completely content, I believe, to play in the completely free tunnels (gotta love a kid like that!).  Or, on the other hand...  If she's going to use a token, she wants to know if it's going to be in a ride that "moves."  Haha.  You know, the ones that don't offer tickets up for being awesome.  And that would all be fine and dandy if, at the end, there wasn't the all-important opportunity to pick out your Oriental Trading-quality prize!  So, I usually use a few of Emily's tokens to win her some tickets, just so she can "buy" a prize.  Yes, it would be a good lesson on choice and consequence ("Well, Emily, you chose to use your tokens in things that moved, but didn't give you tickets, so now you don't have tickets to get a prize.").  But this mommy-to-be was exhausted after 3 hours at Chuck E. Cheese, and didn't want to have to deal with that life lesson.  So, she had enough points to buy a little purple plastic wand with a star on top.  Totally worth it.  Anyway, they are cute, and I love them.

We got a surprise package from Pottery Barn kids via UPS the other day!  Thank you Stefanie (and Brady)!  Very cute bunny crib sheet (which we definitely were needing one of those!) and a cute soft stuffed bunny that Baby can one day snuggle :). 

And this is a knitted blanket a lady from church gave us.  The same lady who is teaching me to knit and who made the other knitted things.  Sweet lady.  There is a pair of knitted booties she gave us as well.  I'm tickled to have such precious items to welcome our baby with.

This past weekend was Conference weekend.  We usually drive to the church and watch it on the satellite there -- mostly to keep us in that "church" mood of things.  Because I have noticed that, in years past when I'd watch it at home with my mom, I'd be unloading dishes, etc -- and then I missed a lot of stuff.  So we decided we would go to the church until we have kiddos who won't enjoy that all that much.  But, when we showed up at the church building for Saturday morning session, we were met with the news that the satellite wasn't working.  So we could choose to go to one of two other sort of nearby church buildings, or just come home and watch it online.  We totally opted for the home choice.  Back into jammies and onto the couch and snuggling under the blanket while we watched Conference.  It was nice and relaxing.  I think we took naps both days after both sessions were done, too.  Haha...  I enjoyed Conference, as I usually do.  Appreciated the reminder to let our children have a childhood.  And that I need to be a little more patient and forgiving with the weaknesses of others (because I certainly have my load of my own weaknesses that I hope others will be patient and forgiving of).  And yes, I loved what Elder Perry said about how obedience to law is liberty.

The other thing I got excited about this Conference is that we totally achieved our 72 hour kit goal!!!  I didn't want to unpack all of my stuff, but here is my backpack full of my stuff.  Jeremy has one too.  I have 7 different categories (food, clothing, kitchen/cooking, hygiene/toiletries, miscellaneous, survival, and another I can't remember right now) and each category gets its own gallon-size bag.  While we hope to never have to use them, we are happy that we are prepared in case we ever need to.  And I'm happy to finally have that goal crossed off my list (and our family goal list).  Now it's a matter of maintaining the kit -- rotating out the food and other things that expire, like headache medicine).  When Baby is born, I'll make a kit for Baby as well.  And then, every 6 months, at Conference, we'll get into our kits, eat all the food that weekend, and replace with new food :).  And try to get an idea of how practical our kits really are.  We bought a couple of wind-up items that use our strength to keep them going (one is just a flashlight, and the other is a flashlight/emergency radio combo).  So yeah, the initial outlay is a little spendy -- depending on what you put in there.  But it's done. 

And so the next goal is to get all of our food storage.  We do pretty well, and I think we'd survive 6 months easily on what we have in the house.  But our canned goods could be improved upon.  And to do that, we are finding it necessary to get one of those food rotation systems.  Jeremy would rather design and build one, but there just isn't enough time in the day for all the things he'd like to design and build.  And since we want this goal achieved within the next few months, we'll just go the route of buying one.  If you're not familiar with what I'm talking about...  Go to the soup aisle at the grocery store.  The way they have all the soups now is what I'm talking about.  It will help me use the oldest stuff first and will be so much better organized than what I have going now!  We could potentially store up to 400 cans!  Anyway...  So that's our next biggie.  But that'll be another preparedness goal checked off our list.  

In less "preparedness" category, but still "goal" category...  I've started cross-stitching Christmas ornaments.  Here it is April and I hadn't begun.  I didn't want a repeat of last year where I was trying to get them all done starting in October (and I failed, by the way).  So, I now have one done (just have to turn it into an ornament) and only 12 more to go.  I'm almost done with the 2nd one.  That's definitely a benefit of being an at-home-wife... I have time to sit and do these things, even amongst the other day-to-day chores and to-dos.  I want to get several of them done before munchkin arrives....  Because my time will be used slightly different then.

Here I am today at 34 weeks.  Baby wiggles a lot and I watch my stomach move a lot.  The other night when I went to bed, Jeremy rolled to face me, put his hand between my stomach and the bed, and the baby kicked him.  It was funny.  I'm pretty much a side-sleeper these days.  With a pillow tucked between my legs.  There have officially been a couple nights where I have seriously considered coming out to sleep on the couch, simply because the couch cushions are softer and therefore more enveloping, and I was thinking maybe I could get comfortable faster.  Because when I can't get comfy, it takes me about an hour and a half to fall asleep.  Nothing infuriates me more.  Haha...  If I do make the mistake of having "too much tummy" on the bed (not enough on my side), I pay the price when I start to move.  It's like the baby settles or something, and I'm lugging this huge weight.  It's been amazing, this pregnancy experience.  In so many ways so different than I anticipated.  But an amazing miracle in all ways.  A true blessing.

 

Jeremy and I are officially planning our Alabama trip.  We're looking at the end of October, mostly in the interest of cooler temperatures down that way.  Plus, by then, Baby will be around 5 months old.  It's funny, because we actually have to remember that we will have a baby in tow.  I think it may change our mode of travel significantly.  When he and I went down to visit in 2011, we took the light rail in Seattle to the airport.  This, plus the ferry ride at 4:15 in the morning, tacked on extra time to our travel.  I don't think if we're going to want to do that again or not -- with an infant.  It might be worth the $35 each to get the airporter...  Who knows.  It will be an adventure.  We'll probably have to go ahead and suck it up and check luggage (and pay for it -- boo!) for the first time since they started charging to do so.  Because I just don't think everything we'd need would fit into our allotted number of carry-ons.  And we'd still need to take the car seat.  So yeah, we are already thinking ahead.  But I'm excited.  I need a vacation :).  And probably some Mikata.  Because we will be there around my birthday, after all :).  And I'll probably also need some chick-fil-a and some O'Charley's potato soup.  Because those are must-haves, you see.  Maybe some Italian Express too.  Mmmmm...  I should stop now ;).

On a foodie note (as if the last few sentences weren't enough):  I had a dream I was at a fair of some sort, and I was horrified that none of the food booths sold nachos.  I actually said in the dream, "What kind of a fair doesn't have nachos!?!"  I've never gotten nachos at the fair, so I'm not really sure why I was so indignant.  I think almost every dream I can remember has me involved with food in some way, shape, or form (it's best when I'm eating it ;)).  Is this abnormal?  Haha...

Trying New Things

Last week was a rough week.  Very busy!  And for some reason stressful.  I'm glad it's over :).  The baby shower I hosted went well.  We did a storybook theme, and played about 4 different games (guess how many m&ms in a baby bottle; The Price is Right; Baby Shower Bingo; and a guess the book quote game).  The food was all based on books.  And that's pretty much all I took a picture of at the shower.  Haha...  So here are a couple pictures of the food.

 The food was:
"Chicken Little" Salad Sandwiches
"Dragons Love Tacos" doritos
"Three Little Pigs" in blankets
"Green Eggs and Ham" deviled eggs
"Peter Rabbit's" vegetable garden
"The Very Hungry Caterpillar's" fruit
"Blue [Green] Fish" Punch (because it didn't occur to me that the orange juice would change the color of the blue jello to more of a slime green...)

I did chocolate chip cookies as the party favor from "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" and used a quote I liked: "Children are made readers on the laps of their parents" -- Emilie Buchwald

And dessert was cheesecake, courtesy of "The Stinky Cheese[cake] Man" ;). 

Sunday was Easter, and the girls wore their pretty Easter dresses.  And I didn't take any pictures.  But I did take a picture of the dreamsicle trifle I made for dessert :).  It is a total keeper recipe!  I found it on pinterest and I will definitely keep it to make again.  Yum!  And definitely tastes like orange creamsicle :).  Which I happen to love.

You can find the recipe here.  And it's not really hard to make :).  A few steps, but not hard.  We enjoyed a delicious Easter dinner at my grandmother's house.  My mom made a crock pot ham (it was good -- and way easier, which was the goal!), her delicious (and bad-for-you) mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, and jello salad.  I made the trifle, creamed spinach (on my facebook 3M cookbook... soooo good!), and biscuits (that looked more like cookies, because when I wrote the recipe from pinterest, I accidentally wrote 1 cup instead of 1/4 cup of water!  Aaach!  I plan to try those biscuits at another time -- the right way :).  And I took punch from the baby shower (it makes a ton and you freeze the base of the punch in 2 parts...).

And this is my newest thing...  I'm learning to knit.  I went to a little sewing group with some of the ladies from church yesterday.  They have it weekly, but I don't think I can commit to that often, so I'm planning on every other week.  Mondays are pretty busy for me.  But anyway, one of the ladies there (she gave us the bunny blanket buddy and ball I showed in a previous picture) is teaching me how to knit.  So now I'll spend the next couple weeks working on this so I don't forget the technique :).  And then she'll show me some other stitches!  Knitting seems like a practical skill.  I cross-stitch, and I enjoy cross-stitching and giving gifts like Christmas ornaments.  But it's less useful -- whereas with knitting, you can make a hat or something :).  Anyway...  We'll see how I do with it and if I stick with it :).  For now I'm excited to be expanding my horizons!