Be safe

Good luck in Africa Dave and Ceci! I can't wait to see and hear the pics, blogs and stories that you guys will have. Be safe and see you soon!

Getting ready for Miss Melodie

A couple of weeks ago Ryan and I went baby registering at Babies R Us and Target. I was excited to have found the coolest high chair around and we quickly registered for it. When we were shopping at Target a few days later we saw that our "dream" high chair was on clearance, but they (and we came to find out EVERY Target from here to Michigan) were ALL sold out and they weren't getting any more in because the chair had been discontinued. Babies R Us told the same story. Ryan had me go online to get one before the online store sold out and yesterday our high chair arrived! While we're not going to need it for quite some time, it's still fun to picture Melodie in it.

Oil Change

Today Ryan took the Jeep in to get an oil change. After we got back in the car I looked at the sticker in the corner of the windshield and noticed that the next due date for a change was April 27th. That's just one day before our due date! I think that it's coming quicker than I realize.

New Beginnings

After Christmas, one of the families at church gave Ryan and me a gift. It was a small picture frame with a picture of a remote waterfall with the caption, "NEW BEGINNINGS: In life what sometime sappears to be the endis really a new beginning". I'm usually not one for motivational pictures or posters, but this gift came at a very relevant time for Ryan and me. The weekend before we received the gift Ryan and I had been praying and talking about what we felt 2008 held in store for us. Both of us felt that the Lord had been telling us that this year was going to be year of "fresh starts". We knew that part of a "fresh start"/"new beginning" was going to come in the form of becoming parents in the not too distant future. We also knew that we were planning on moving from our current apartment in June, however, where to we didn't know. Two weeks ago, Ryan got laid off and as we were sitting on the couch talking about what had happened and how he was feeling about getting laid off we both laughed at the framed "NEW BEGINNINGS" frame sititng on our coffee table. Ryan had been unhappy with his job for a long time, but it didn't seem a possibility for him to leave his job with our current financial strain and the coming baby. However, we didn't have to make the decision to leave, it was made for us and it gave us both time to sit back and look at what Ryan wanted to do with his future as a career instead of just a job to get him by. He decided that his real interests lie within working with finances, and he soon called the University of Phoenix, got information on their programs and enrolled. (Initially in their BA-Finance program, which has since switched to BA-Accounting for various reasons) He'll be starting school in February, which is something he didn't imagine that he'd be able to do, and he's really excited about. In the mean time, he's applied to numerous jobs and is waiting to hear back from them while he works full time as a manager at Oscar's, a local custard restaurant. He's much happier, and it's fun to be able to spend some time with him either before or after work depending on the hours that he's gotten in. I was supposed to start work the first week of January, but after two days I began having complications and was told by my OB that I'd need to stay home for the rest of the pregnancy and take it easy. I was shocked at first, but have now been able to enjoy some time home and getting ready for Melodie to come. Finally, we had been praying about our church for the past 1/2 year and had both felt that we were supposed to leave Straightway and venture out to find a different church. The only problem was that the timing seemed bad to us, and we didn't know where we were going to go. However, this past weekend we both felt that the time to make the move was now and we "officially" left Straightway, both on good terms, and with our pastor's blessing. So tomorrow is our first time going to find a new church home in the past several years. Ryan had been going to our past church since he was five, and I have been going there the past six years. It'll be a new experience, but hopefully we'll find a home sooner rather than later. It'll be an interesting venture, but we're both ready to meet it head on. This year certainly has already been a year of "New Beginnings" and it will be interesting to see what else is in store.

Fabrics

So I KNOW that these are a bit bizarro, but let me know what you think for miss Melodie's room.

hiccups

The other night I was greated by a strange sensation. I woke up to use the restroom, which has become a nightly venture now that I'm prego, and drank a cold cup of water. When I laid down to fall back asleep I felt bump, pause, bump, pause, bump, pause, bump...for about 10 minutes straight. The funny thing was that Melodie wasn't just moving like normal, the bumps were coming from the exact same spot every time, and they were perfectly timed. She had the hiccups! Poor kiddo, apparently the cold water and me laying down weren't a great combo for her.

Insomnia

It's 6am, and I've been up for the past three hours tossing and turning and trying to get to sleep. I finally gave in about an hour ago and decided to come out to the living room to search google for a bit. I figured that it might occupy my mind enough to make me tired, but alas, I was wrong. I'm still wide awake, and morning seems to have already come. I can hear my neighbors getting up, and getting ready for the day. Thankfully I'm off of work for now, and don't need to worry about spending an exhausted day trying to be productive. However, I'd still like to sleep at night. Urgghh, perhaps if I go lay down again, I might dose off this time. Wish me luck.

Give a man a job...

...and he's a happy man. Ryan started working at Oscar's custard restaurant on Monday, after being out of work for a week and a half. He is a different guy. It's nice to see him smile and be relaxed again. Although Oscar's isn't the ideal job, it's helping to pay our bills and it's nice to see Ryan relieved. It'll be interesting to see what happens over the next couple of months, but for now, it's great to just have Ryan employed.

Back to work

Ryan headed back to work today. After getting laid off about a week and a half ago, Ryan got his old job back at Oscar's Custard Restaurant as a Manager in order to help out our budget until something else turns up. It's been really nice having him home over the past week and a half, but it was even nicer to see Ryan as happy and relieved as he was both last night and this morning. He's a hard working guy, and doesn't like to just sit doing nothing for very long. (He even CLEANED, which he HATES doing....much to my relief, because we now have a room to bring Melodie home to). So, while it's not exactly the type of job that he's looking for permanently, it's a huge blessing to have an income coming in again.

Pregnancy Pics for my Aunt Jennifer

Mom told me that I needed to post some pics of me being pregnant because you were having a hard time picturing it. I didn't want to shock you Aunt Jennifer, so here's the progression:

More pics to follow as she grows. :)

Home

Well, I had my follow-up appointment today with my OB doctor, and I am now officially home for the rest of the pregnancy. Because of the cramping, and the return of the symptoms once I went back to work, she didn't feel comfortable with me heading back. So, it appears that Ryan and I will get some more time to be with eachother, and to take it easy. It's a bit hard to not be working, but I'm glad that Melodie is okay, and is developing okay. It's more worth it to me to have her be healthy than to be working, so now it seems like it's just time to get ready for her to come.

In other news...Ryan officially got accepted into college today! He starts classes on the 28th, and is looking forward to it. I'm really proud of him, and can't wait to see how this opens up doors of oppurtunity for both him and us. He's going to make a great financial planner/analyst! Way to go Ryan! I'm proud of you!

Headed back to school

Well, not me, but my husband is. I'm so proud of him. It's kind of a crazy story about how things came about though. Let me explain:

I went back to work last week Monday and was greeted with a 6:15am to 5:00pm schedule. The schedule is nice because I work four days a week and get one off, however it does mean that I have to get up at 4:45am in order to get to work in time. My co-workers were very welcoming when I returned, and everyone made me feel good to be back. I finally got back into the swing of processing cases on the second day, and made some good progress towards finishing up stuff. However, Tuesday night I woke up around midnight and was cramping every five minutes. After calling my doctor's office in the morning they sent me to Labor and Delivery to rule out pre-term labor. Ryan took me to the hospital, where we spent the rest of the day. Thankfully everything turned out fine, and Melodie is fine and spunky as ever. The perinatologist said that the cramping was probably related to getting back to work too fast too soon. He sent me home with instructions to stay home from work for a week and to follow-up with my usual OB in a week. So the next day I was sitting at home taking it easy when the door opened up around 11am. It was Ryan, who never comes home during the workday. He was unexpectedly laid off, and was home...indefinately. While it came as quite a shock to both of us, it has given us a lot of time to look at what Ryan wants to do with his working future, and where we stand with our finances. After a lot of thought, deliberation and looking at what our options were, Ryan decided that what he'd ideally like to do in the future is have a job as a financial planner or a financial advisor and that the way to go about that would be to go back to school and get a bachelors in finance, meanwhile working in a financial department somewhere gaining experience. After researching a number of schools and options we determined that the University of Phoenix was our best option because no matter where we live he can finish online, and it also is a reputable school. Ryan applied today and it appears that his courses start on the 28th of this month. Our next step is just making sure that he get's a good job in the meantime. It has been quite an adventure since last Wendesday, but it has been a good adventure. We'll see where God takes us over the next few months and years, but it's nice to finally have a direction and purpose to work towards.

But I want a baby Bango and I want one now!

For Christmas Ryan and I got his parents tickets to the Bucks vs. the Miami Heat game. We chose this game because former Marquette dymamo, Dwayne Wade plays for the Heat and all of us are fans. At halftime of the game the announcer anounced that in honor of "take your kid to work day" Bango, the Bucks mascot, had brought his son to work with him. It was possibly the cutest thing that I've ever seen at a sporting event.

Too fast and furious

Well I started work on Monday for the first time in four or five weeks. It went really well and everyone was really nice, warm and welcoming me back. It was a good feeling to feel so appreciated at work. Monday was a long day, but went well and Tuesday was also very early and very long. By the end of the day I started cramping again, but chalked it up to my body adjusting to work. At 12:30am, however, when I was cramping (not contracting, but cramping)every five minutes for several hours, I decided that perhaps my body might be doing something else. I called my doctor's office who quickly sent me to the Labor and Delivery Unit at the hospital to be evaluated for pre-term labor. Thankfully after a day full of tests and monitoring they sent me home. The ultrasound had looked fine, and the perinatologist (whom Ryan and I have actually grown fond of) checked us out and gave me instructions to be home for a week and then get rechecked by my OB about going back to work. Apparently I did too much, too fast with too much driving. So, I'm home now again for another week and figuring out how to file again for short-term medical leave. However, I'm might relieved that Melodie is okay and is a whopping pound and a half! She's getting big, and can stay put and get bigger and healthier. :) It'll be interesting to see what happens over the next 16 weeks, but it'll all be worth it. I couldn't help thinking yesterday at the hospital, that hopefully the next time I was laying and waiting in an L & D bed that it would be a few months from now, and we'd be having a beautiful girl to meet soon.

What a weekend!

I head back to work tomorrow, and I'm actually looking forward to it. It'll be nice to be productive and have some sort of social interaction during the day besides racing my "fluff friend" on facebook all day. I was looking forward to a weekend of relaxing and football with my husband, but it seems that my body had other plans. Last week I came down with a bad cold, and his morning it knocked me on my butt. I got up to get ready for church today but my husband took one look at me and sent me back to bed. I ended up sleeping until 1 and then getting up for some lunch and sleeping until about 5:30. My throat still hurts, but I'm hoping that the extra sleep and water today will knock the cold out of me before getting back to work for the first time in about five weeks.

Happy Anniversary to me!

Three years ago today I had my spine fused. January 3rd also marked last of a laundry list of surgeries, and since then I've been healthy, active and able to do tings that I didn't think would be possible. I'm able to run, play sports and most excitedly..conceive! Melodie had her final "neccesary" ultrasound today and everything checked out great. All of her measurements are perfect, she's still a she and is as active as she's ever been. I now know that the bumping I've been feeling has actually been her legs and feet kicking me, and not her arms or little body. :) We also found out that her spine looks completely healthy, and that there appears to be NO spina bifida or malformations of the spine or neural tube. Praise the Lord! There should be no spinal fusion anniversaries for her in the future. Ryan and I are very thankful for the good report, and now are focusing on getting the extra bedroom ready for our little one. We were a bit bummed that we didn't end up with another set of 3-D pictures, but we had a different perinatologist today who seemingly had less personality than our usual one. I suppose that we'll just have to wait a couple more months to see the real deal. :)