How Far Along 38 weeks 1 day How Big is Baby 19.5" long, 6.8 lbs is average for 38 weeks. Total Weight Gain 38ish pounds Stretch Marks There may be some on my lower belly, but I'm refusing to look at that in the mirror at this point Sleep Meh - I give up. Guess I'll sleep when I'm dead. Best Moment this Week Christmas! Movement He moves a lot, but is having longer periods of stillness. Maybe he's developing a habit of regular naps. Food Cravings dark chocolate Labor Signs More and more Braxton Hicks contractions, but they're still not causing any sort of progress. Belly Button The way I'm sitting right now, it's a flattie. So, the same as it's been for the past month or so. What I Miss lack of pain. What I'm Looking Forward To The same as last week: not being pregnant anymore. Soon (ish).
Weekly Wisdom 2nd trimester would be a better time to have the holidays.
Milestones The next milestone, I believe, will be birth.
**Skip this one if you don't want to see a bare pregnant belly**
This afternoon, Nate and I were listening to a little Trans Siberian Orchestra. He really likes it. He was dancing, squirming, and kicking a lot. So, I got out the camcorder to capture a little of it on film. Of course, he settled down once the camera was rolling, but I did get a few seconds of kicks and wiggles.
The best video is during Christmas Canon.
This one is A Mad Russian's Christmas, which is one of his favorites. You can see him moving a little above my belly button in the first half, but the real kicks start after about 17 seconds or so.
I guess I should keep the camera on all the time, focused on my belly, so that I'll be sure to catch the best kicks on film.
I didn't film the entire graduation because graduations are long and boring. But, being the first big event with our camcorder, I did practice with it some. Here is Rodgers walking across the stage and getting his diploma.
Ok, yet another labor and delivery predictor. The previous one, Madame Zwhatever, was completely random. This one is based on my birth, Rodgers' birth (which I don't really have details for - due date, weight, length of labor, etc), any previous pregnancies (which I've not had), and complications during this pregnancy (which I've also not had). So, it's still made up, but it's made up based on something.
Just about the time you think you can't handle hearing one more "when is that baby going to pop?", your baby will decide to make it's appearance. We predict your baby will be born 3-7 days before your due date. Your baby will most likely be born in the morning. Justmommies predicts that your baby will weigh approximately 7.8 pounds and that your labor will be about 12 hours long.
How Far Along 37 weeks How Big is Baby 19" long, 6.33 lbs is average for 37 weeks. Total Weight Gain It was 37 lbs. at my appointment last Friday, but I'll be weighed again tomorrow. Stretch Marks no change Sleep is getting worse and worse and worse. The past few nights, I've been waking up with my hands hurting - I think my fingers are swelling in my sleep. Best Moment this Week Getting the last of our essentials for Nate (a second car seat base and a thermometer) Movement Lots. He kicked for the med student who was checking his heartrate last week. :) Food Cravings I've been drinking more (water and milk), since I noticed the swelling. And it seems like the more I drink, the more I want to drink. Labor Signs I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions. They're only painful if I'm sitting up straight and my tightened muscles crush my bottom few ribs. I'm fairly sure I've had at least one every day for the past week, but they are too irregular to really track. Belly Button Outtie. Sometimes I can't even see it; if Nate's up really high, my belly button ends up pointing downwards, on the bottom side of my belly. What I Miss Getting in and out of the car without grunting. I don't mean to grunt, but somehow it helps me maneuver. What I'm Looking Forward To Becoming unpregnant soon! And also, my nephew being born tonight or tomorrow!!
Weekly Wisdom the 9th month is kind of like reverse Batman. Let me explain: when Batman's driving, and he wants to look out the side window of the Batmobile, he has to turn his torso because he can't just turn his head/neck while in costume. Big ol' pregnant belly gets to the point where the torso will no longer turn, so you have to check your blindspot and merge with traffic and all that just by turning your head/neck. Or, at least, I do.
Milestones 37 weeks is considered full term. Most babies born after 37 weeks thrive. He has been practicing breathing, which we know from the hiccups I've been feeling. But in just the past couple of weeks, I've noticed that, when he's in a certain position, I can feel the rise and fall of his breaths with my hand on my belly. It is very amazing.
After getting engaged last November, we spent a leisurely 4 months planning our wedding. It was a very small, intimate ceremony on March 14, in Brenham, TX, at the home of Pam Franke. We got married in the backyard, in spite of the rain which drizzled on us throughout the ceremony. We honeymooned in Washington County, at a bed and breakfast, called M’s Hideaway, and the Birch Creek Unit of Lake Somerville State Park.
Six weeks later, we had a big surprise! We’re expecting a third member to join our family. Nathanael is due on January 7, 2010. We moved into a 2 bedroom apartment to make room for him, and we’re enjoying setting up the nursery and dreaming of what our son will be like.
Rodgers has been diligently attending to his studies, despite having a pregnant wife to distract him. He took a full load of classes over the summer and is on track to graduate December 11 of this year. In April, we filed all the necessary forms and fees for him to become a permanent resident of the United States. In the beginning, they projected having his case fully processed and approved or denied by mid-October, at the earliest. However, Rodgers’ application was approved and his status adjusted to lawful permanent resident on September 10!
Rachel was hired as a webmaster for the 13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) at Fort Hood last December. For someone who has never before been a part of the military, working for the Army is a cross-cultural experience. She is gradually becoming acclimated and learning the lingo. After plenty of morning (a.k.a. 24 hours per day) sickness in the first trimester, she is enjoying a healthy pregnancy and growing larger every day.
We’ve been more and more involved at Memorial Baptist Church in Temple. We became instant friends with the people in the young married Sunday School class. (Young means “ranging in age from 26 to over 40.”) Besides them, there was really nothing particularly appealing about the church, not much for us to get out of it. But, we found that we have a lot to give to this church. We have initiated a partnership between Memorial and Revival Baptist Church in Mombasa, Kenya. Pen pals have been assigned and both groups are getting to know each other via snail mail and the internet. Our first project was to raise funds to build a restroom for Revival, as they currently have to use a latrine down the street. We exceeded our fundraising goal on November 29! Now, the pastor is encouraging the church to continue giving so that we can eventually send some people from our church to go to Mombasa and meet with Revival face to face. There is a lot of interest on both sides for some Memorial members to join in, hands-on, Revival’s ministry in Kenya.
We’ve experienced lots of major, life-changing events in the past 12 months. God has continued to bless us beyond our wildest dreams this year. We’re looking forward to an even better 2010!
I found a list of some of the more common pregnancy complaints. Some are from early pregnancy, but most are things that develop later. I thought it would be fun to see how many I have enjoyed.
_x_ moodiness [Lately, I've been more prone to tears. The weekend we found out about the pregnancy, before I took the test, Rodgers will tell you he could do nothing right. I didn't intend to be so mean to him, but I guess I was...]
_x_ swollen feet/cankles [the feet, no cankles]
_x_ outgrowing wedding rings [I had to move my wedding band to my pinky a long time ago; this week, the engagement ring may make the move as well]
_x_ outgrowing maternity clothes [I'm ok with it if my belly gets too big for them, but when I can't fit my early maternity pants over my hips anymore, that's a little disturbing]
_x_ crazy weight gain
_x_ morning sickness [I still gag most mornings while brushing my teeth, but nothing like the first trimester when I had to be medicated for it.]
___ melasma
_x_ acne [This has gotten a lot better, but still more acne than prepregnancy. Also, Rodgers developed more acne after I got pregnant. :) ]
_x_ heartburn/indigestion/acid reflux [eating dinner without Zantac = disaster]
___ Hemmorhoids
_x_ gas that could clear a room
_x_ going to the bathroom every 10 minutes [10 minutes is an exaggeration, but really, I could go all the time.]
_x_ peeing yourself
_x_ fatigue
_x_ insomnia [ironic, huh?]
_x_ shortness of breath
_x_ general aches and pains (ribs, back, etc) [I have a heat wrap on the ribs right now.]
_x_ waddling [I'm not sure if it's an official waddle, but I do walk funny. It hurts to try to walk normal.]
My hair falls out when I wash it. Before I was pregnant, A LOT of my hair fell out every time I washed it. Now, it's only a little bit. But, I got into the habit of gathering up my fallen out hairs in my hands to throw away, rather than letting them go down the drain, so that I don't have to use so much 10-minute Hair Clog Remover.
The last time I washed my hair, after throwing away the mass of fallen out hairs, there was still one stuck to my hand. As I unstuck it from me, it caught the light, and I noticed that it was much more brilliant-silvery-white than my usual blonde-almost-invisible strands. I thought it couldn't possibly be, so I stuck it to the mirror and ran my fingers through my hair until a real blonde one fell out. When I compared the two, it was unmistakable. The first was definitely a white hair.
Being blonde, there's no telling how many more white hairs are mixed in there. I never would have known if this one hadn't fallen out. How long have I had white hairs? That one was at least 6" long. Dang.
When we started dating, Rodgers told me he had 1 white hair. After a quick look, I could tell that he actually had 3, he just couldn't see 2 of them. Now, he's got about 7. The contrast between them and his other hairs and skin color is so great that you can find them easily. But they get no more than a quarter of an inch long. It's possible I could have more than him, but we may never know...
How Far Along 33 weeks 6 days How Big is Baby 18" long, 4.75 lbs is average for 34 weeks. Total Weight Gain 35 lbs. Stretch Marks They seem not to have changed lately. Sleep I'm taking a Benadryl before bed every night, but failure to stay asleep is plaguing me more and more. Best Moment this Week Saturday was our joint baby shower with Claire. It was so much fun, and we got all kinds of great stuff! Movement He's still a very active baby and kicks me hard enough to inflict pain on a daily basis. Food Cravings None this week. It's Thanksgiving, so I'm looking forward to many yummy treats, despite the fact that I'm not supposed to gain any weight. Labor Signs None yet. But, at this stage, things change a bit. Previously, if I had 4 or more contractions in 1 hour, I should go to Labor and Delivery. Now, I don't go to L&D until I'm having consistent contractions 3 to 5 minutes apart. Belly Button The elastic of my jeans goes right over it, so it's flat today. :) It still changes periodically depending on Nate's position, but more out than in most of the time. What I Miss Being able to sit at my desk all day without an increasing intense pain growing in my ribs. What I'm Looking Forward To As I was washing and sorting through the gifts we got at the shower, I found myself daydreaming about giving Nate a bath. He would hate it and scream a lot. But then, I'd wrap him up in an adorable soft hoody towel and dry him off, lotion him, and dress him in a fleece sleeper. Then he would settle down and get all cuddly. So that's what I'm looking forward to right now.
Weekly Wisdom To the non-pregnant people: telling a pregnant woman that it will only get worse from here on out (or to just wait and see how much life sucks after the baby is born) is the opposite of helpful. To pregnant people: a numb or tingly feeling in a small region at the top of the belly is a common experience but the Dr doesn't really know what causes it. It's something stretching or pushing or something.
Milestones After today, they will no longer stop me if I go into preterm labor. So, Nate will definitely be born sometime between now and January 17 (a week and a half past my due date is when they would induce if I wasn't going into labor on my own).
From The Girlfriends' Guide to Pregnancy, by Vicki Iovine Chapter 13 Coming into the Homestretch "I Can't Sleep!"
Being unable to sleep and stay asleep were my greatest challenges at the end of my pregnancies. Being tired was no guarantee that I was going to snooze when I went to bed each night. Some Stepford Wives cheerfully told me that this was nature's way of preparing me for the sleepless nights that I would experience as a new mother. That's like saying dieting will prepare you for starvation! As far as I was concerned, a nature that was capable of giving chameleons the gift of disguise wouldn't be stupid enough to think that the cure for no sleep was more no sleep.
No, you can't sleep for two major reasons. First, the baby is pulling or sitting on every part of your body but your face and your feet (and those are swollen from water retention). Second, you are so preoccupied with what lies ahead—labor, delivery, motherhood—that you have a hard time turning your brain off at night. (Which is kind of ironic, because you will swear that you haven't been able to turn your brain on most days.)
The day you deliver, outside will be rainy. Your baby will arrive at night.
After a labor lasting approximately 13 hours, your child, a boy, will be born. Your baby will weigh about 8 pounds, 11 ounces, and will be 19 inches long. This child will have hazel eyes and be completely bald.
I must admit that I kept getting new readings until she predicted a boy.
A lot has changed in the past 2-3 weeks since my last belly picture!
How Far Along 32 weeks
How Big is Baby 16.75" long, 3.75 lbs is average for 32 weeks. The nurse who measured me yesterday said he may not be bigger than he should be, but he's definitely not on the small side at all.
Total Weight Gain 30 lbs.
Stretch Marks Despite Halloween candy and Thanksmas treats, I think they're the same.
Sleep It took me so long to fall asleep last night. Then, I dreamed about The Godfather, since we had just finished watching it before bed. It was interesting.
Best Moment this Week It was when the nurse practitioner told me that I am "the picture of health in pregnancy"
Movement He's a very energetic guy. Not many kicks today, he's mostly been sticking his butt out under my ribs. And hiccupping. A lot of hiccups.
Food Cravings Froot Loops. But as I was eating them, I was kind of wishing they had marshmallows in them.
Labor Signs None yet.
Belly Button Most definitely out today.
What I miss Buying cute shoes at Payless. I stopped by Tuesday after work and none of the shoes fit me. I need an 8W now, but I couldn't find any wides. Then, I tried on some 8.5s, and they were wide enough, but way too long. Looks like I'll be sticking with my 2 pairs of "maternity shoes" that I bought a few weeks ago.
What I'm looking forward to Baby shower a week from Saturday!!
Weekly Wisdom 1 Zantac in the am and 1 before dinner makes for a happier tummy
Milestones Nathanael should have fingernails and toenails now!
Total Weight Gain Up 28 lbs total as of Tuesday last week
Stretch Marks I keep getting more and more on my thighs, but the belly is still stretchy-free
Sleep Getting worse at this all the time. If I take no sleep aid, I wake up hourly or more frequently. If I take something, I sleep for about 3 or 4 hours straight, then wake up hourly after that. If I take another dose when I wake up, there's no hope of getting up in the morning.
Best Moment this Week I'm really looking forward to the weekend. I'm not sure anything this week will be better than that! We're celebrating Thanksmas with the Atkinson Jrs, since Trey and Amy will be in Mississippi for Thanksgiving, Claire and Matt should have a newborn at Christmas, and Rodgers and I won't be traveling at Christmas.
Movement The nurse practitioner had me start doing movement counts. Even on his mellow days, Nate moves way more than he needs to to pass the movement count (10 movements in 2 hours)
Food Cravings Today, I just wanted tacos. So I got 2 tacos for 99 cents at Jack in the Box, and my sandwich that I brought for lunch is still here in the office fridge. Maybe I'll eat it tomorrow.
Labor Signs None yet.
Belly Button It's more and more out, but still has a mote
What I miss Belly sleeping. With the body pillow I can sleep kind of halfway between side and belly. But I can't stay that way for very long.
What I'm looking forward to Thanksmas!!
Weekly Wisdom There can be good things about morning insomnia - like being up early enough to see a mouse scare the crap out of Rodgers!
Milestones We started childbirth classes! The first week, we talked about some of our fears and anxieties, anatomy of a pregnant woman, and watched a video that I don't remember. This week (week 2) we talked a lot more about actual labor, some of the devices that mom or baby could be hooked up to, breathing techniques for surviving contractions, and watched a video of a natural birth and one of an epidural birth. I was afraid that watching the births and seeing the epidural put in would freak me out, but I kept my eyes open through the whole video and didn't get freaked out at all. I'm very proud. Gold star for me. 2 more weeks to go. Next Monday is the much-anticipated tour of Labor and Delivery.
So we thought we were done with the mice. I plugged up all the mouse holes and extra space around plumbing with steel wool. I occasionally hear them in the wall, but they don't pull out the steel wool. It has been a long, long time since we saw any, and that was the day that I plugged up the holes.
Rodgers mentioned this morning at breakfast that yesterday he thought he saw something scamper across the floor and under the oven, but he might have been imagining things. I asked if he looked behind the drawer under the oven to see if the mouse hole back there was still plugged up. He hadn't. So, he pulled out the drawer, and laid down in the floor to see. The steel wool is still plugging the hole, but they chewed a bigger hole!
I suggested getting one of the other mousetraps we have left and putting it right under that hole. To the right of the stove are 4 narrow drawers. We only use the top 3. The last time we found mice, there were little poops in every one of those drawers (but, oddly, none in the drawers where we keep food). So, I put a trap in the bottom drawer, with some fragrant peanut butter in the middle of it. I check it every so often, but it never catches anything. Also, there have been no more poops in the other drawers. He went to get that trap to put behind the under-the-oven drawer. As he reached in to pick it up, he abruptly withdrew his hand, as we heard, "EEK! EEK! EEK!"
I had been sitting at the table, finishing a cup of coffee while this was going on. I very nearly fell out of the chair laughing at Rodgers so hard. I've never seen anything make him jump like that. I mean, this man plays with all kinds of creepy crawly things (but nothing that slithers).
We still have 2 traps left. One is still in a bathroom and one is now behind the under-the-oven drawer. I wonder if we could just pour poison down the wall. Or maybe we should get a cat.
First of all, it's completely hilarious that Playmobil made this product, a toy airport security checkpoint. But, even better, Amazon allows for customer reviews of the product. I'm giddy with delight. Click here if you have an hour or two to do some online reading.
At my 22 week appointment, I had gained 10 lbs in 5 weeks. That is a bit more than "recommended," but not an outrageous amount, in my opinion. Dr told me that I really shouldn't be gaining so fast, so we need to try to slow that down. Well, I eat healthy, but hadn't been getting any exercise at all. So maybe there were some things I could do to slow that down.
At my 27 week appointment, I had gained 7 lbs more. Still a little over the recommended gain, and the Dr reiterated that I should not be gaining so much so fast. I calculated that, were I to keep gaining at that rate, I'd gain a total of 45 lbs, rather than the 30-40 lbs recommended for my starting BMI. That's only 5 lbs more. What's 5 lbs? Anyway, the Dr told me she wanted me to gain a half pound per week from here on out. Yeah right! I had started getting a little exercise, and decided to just continue eating and exercising as I was.
So, today, at my 30 week appointment, the Dr was out of town, so I saw the nurse practitioner/midwife. It had only been 3 weeks, so I should have gained 1.5 lbs, according to the Dr. I gained 4.0. The NP/MW didn't have a problem with it, even though it says "Watch her weight" in my chart. She just asked if I'd gained weight, checked the sticker I got from the weight/blood pressure station and said, "Good!"
Four lbs in 3 weeks is about the same rate as 7 lbs in 5 weeks (1.33 lbs per week versus 1.4). So I'm gaining at the same rate. Dr says it's too much, NP/MW says it's good. Therefore, I can only conclude that the Dr is a weight nazi.
The fun part is that she gave me instructions to do fetal movement counts. During a 2 hour period every day (any 2 hour period that Nate's active) I should be able to count 10 movements. I counted 20+ movements as I was sitting at a red light on my way to work after the appointment. That was easy. :)
And, I now have my 32, 34, 36, 37, 38, 39, and 40 week appointments scheduled. Scheduling that 40 week appointment was a bit scary. It's on the calendar now. It's really coming!
When it's warm to hot outside (70 and above), I have to bring sweaters and jackets with me to work and have a little heater on beside my desk. When it's "cold" outside (anything under 70), it's so hot in the office, I should be wearing tank tops and mini skirts. The idea of central air is to keep the building one comfortable temperature throughout the year, not just to make inside the opposite of whatever it is outside. Wish I had control of the thermostat. [Cut to me, pouting and sweating, with my sleeves and pant legs rolled up, my hair in a haphazard ponytail, and my shoes kicked off because the heat makes my feet swell, and they don't fit me right now.]
So I've been to some baby showers that had diaper cakes. They were generally made by the hostess. I just saw an ad on craigslist to buy one. They didn't have any pictures of examples. I started thinking that maybe what I think of as a diaper cake isn't right because why would someone buy that? I googled it, just to be sure. Turns out, diaper cakes are exactly what I thought they are. I still don't see why someone would buy one rather than making it. But, this one is freaking cute!
We order from Papa John's about once a month. Since I order online, they email me coupons every week. When we get a large 3-topping for $10.99 (or large 7-topping, with a 2-liter drink for $11.99) coupon, that means it's Pizza/Movie Night at the Kahindi house. And we have Netflix, so there are always movies to watch.
Usually, we order the pizza, then start the movie so that we don't notice having to wait for the food. Mostly, it's so I don't notice because as soon as I see the Papa John's website, my stomach starts growling. I get into the movie, and the next thing I know, it's pizza time!
Two weeks ago, we were so into the movie we were watching that we didn't notice our pizza was late. They don't have one of those "under 30 minutes or it's free" policies, anyway, so I never pay much attention to how long it takes. If we had noticed, all that we could have done would be to get annoyed. The next afternoon, I had a voicemail from Papa John's (not Papa himself, though, it was a woman), apologizing for our pizza being late. I thought that was very nice of them, but that was the first I knew our pizza was late. Then, on Wednesday this week, we got a coupon in the mailbox for a FREE pizza. Not one of those "buy one XL 7-topping pizza, get a medium cheese pizza free" ones either. It's a free large 2-topping, without having to make an actual purchase.
Papa John's values the Kahindis. Pizza/Movie Night will come twice in October. Woohoo!
Monday, October 12, 2009
* How far along: 27 weeks * Total weight gain: 24 lbs * How big is baby: 2 lbs, 14.5" long * Maternity clothes: With the cooler weather, I've been pulling out my warm maternity clothes. It's like when I first started wearing maternity clothes - new clothes every day!
* Stretch marks: Just on the inside of my thighs still. None on the belly yet. * Sleep: More and more difficult. I sleep on my side hugging a body pillow. I have to wake up several times during the night to change position, take the covers off because I'm too hot, put the covers back on because now I'm cold, go pee, etc. Insomnia is also more frequent. * Best moment this week: Shopping with Rodgers, we found some very warm infant pram suits. There were only a few on the rack; they seem to be changing over their stock at that store. One of them was super cute, Child of Mine by Carter's, and it looks like a teddy bear. The only one they had was a 0-3 month size, which is how old Nathanael will be during the coldest weather. Rodgers is very concerned about him getting cold, so we bought it. We also looked at a lot of other things. I'm trying to find a coming home outfit for Nathanael. Rodgers wanted to buy just about every boy outfit we saw, but we didn't. I love seeing him get into preparing for the baby. * Movement: There are fewer sporadic kicks now, and more controlled-feeling rolls, swimming, and wiggles. I have felt some hiccups. The kicks are increasingly stronger, and seem more intentional. He found my ribs a week ago, and I pushed his feet down with my hand. Then, he started kicking my hand even harder than he'd been kicking my ribs. At least it didn't hurt my hand. * Food cravings: Nothing out of the ordinary. I've been wanting chili, stew, mashed potatoes, other cold day type foods, but they are weather appropriate. * Labor signs: None. * Belly button in or out: Out, with a little mote around it * What I miss: Good sleep. * What I'm looking forward to: Cuddling. I nearly cried when I saw a picture of a new mom cuddling her baby boy because I'm really looking forward to cuddling mine. * Milestone: Gestational diabetes glucose test, Rhogam shot, and my first ever flu shot all happened last Monday at my appointment. If I had not passed the glucose test, they would have called me. Since they haven't, I should be alright.
I always like to compare myself with old wives' tales about the sex of the baby. Here are some that I found. What's true for me is italicized. And I'm leaving out some of the TMI ones...
It's a boy if: You didn't experience morning sickness in early pregnancy Your baby's heart rate is less than 140 beats per minute You are carrying the extra weight out front Your belly looks like a basketball You are carrying low - (I don't really think I'm high or low.) You are craving salty or sour foods You are craving protein -- meats and cheese Your feet are colder than they were before pregnancy The hair on your legs has grown faster during pregnancy Your hands are very dry Your pillow faces north when you sleep - When I got pregnant, but not at our new place Dad-to-be is gaining weight, right along with you Pregnancy has you looking better than ever Your nose is spreading You hang your wedding ring over your belly and it moves in circles You are having headaches You add your age at the time of conception and the number for the month you conceived and the sum is an even number
It's a girl if: You had morning sickness early in pregnancy Your baby's heart rate is at least 140 beats per minute You are carrying the weight in your hips and rear Your hair develops red highlights You are carrying high Your belly looks like a watermelon You are craving sweets You are craving fruit You crave orange juice You don't look quite as good as normal during pregnancy You are moodier than usual during pregnancy Your face breaks out more than usual You refuse to eat the heel of a loaf of bread Your pillow faces south when you sleep You hang your wedding ring over your belly and it moves from side to side You add your age at the time of conception and the number for the month you conceived and the sum is an odd number
Since I work for the government, I have TONS of holidays, and today's one of them! Federal employees win!
Rodgers does not have the day off. He had class this morning at 8, and is now at work for the rest of the day. He works at an after school program. The schools their kids go to are closed today, so the after school program has kids all day long.
That means I get to be a housewife for a day. :)
Since my body sticks fairly closely to a regular sleep schedule, I have a hard time sleeping in on the weekends. Sunday I sleep a little bit later than Saturday. And when I have Monday off, too, it's like I've had 2 days to practice sleeping in. I didn't get up until 8 today.
I had breakfast, cleaned out the fridge and freezer, emptied the dishwasher, loaded dirty dishes from last night and this morning, scrubbed the sinks, moved our jackets from the nursery closet to our bedroom closet and moved my prepregnancy clothes from the bedroom closet to the nursery closet (we're having cooler weather and will use our jackets more than my clothes I can't fit into anymore), and now I'm catching up on what's new on the internet. But the best part is: I'm still in my pj's! Later, I will get dressed, though, so I can take the trash out to the dumpster, sit on the balcony and read a book, and go grocery shopping.
* How far along: 24 weeks * Total weight gain: 17 lbs (I haven't been weighed in the past 2 weeks) * How big is baby: About 12 inches from head to heel - that's the length of an ear of corn; 1 1/2 pounds * Maternity clothes: I'm living in them.
* Stretch marks: I have one on my thigh, of all places! * Sleep: I haven't been sleeping as well this past week. I'm exhausted during the day, but I think I'm getting used to it. * Best moment this week: (last week actually) We bought a crib! It was so fun watching Rodgers put it together, looking like a proud daddy. * Movement: I've been feeling more flips and upside down jumping (usually kicking his feet against my waist band and ramming his head into my colon) * Food cravings: I really wanted jelly beans this week. Jelly Belly brand is great for pregnant women because you can get weird combos if you just grab a handful and eat them all at once. The best combo I had today was watermelon and cinnamon. * Labor signs: None * Belly button in or out: Pretty much the same as 2 weeks ago. Just getting flatter and flatter. Nathanael kicked it last night and it turned into an outtie for a second before flipping back in. That felt weird. * What I miss: Sitting in my favorite chair with Rodgers. It's a chair and a half with a big ottoman up against it, so it works like a chaise lounge. It's so comfy, but I can't get out of it without help or moving the ottoman. I've moved to the recliner for the most part. * What I'm looking forward to: Now that there's a crib in the nursery, I'm looking forward to finishing the rest of it! * Milestone: Nate's now considered a viable fetus. Here's a chart from some kind of scientific medical place. If Nathanael were born 1 week ago, he would have had a 10-40% chance of survival. If he's born today, he has a 40-70% chance. Of course, he would be considered a micropreemie and wouldn't be able to breathe yet - his lungs aren't ready. He'd be in the hospital for a long, long time if he were born so early. So I'm not saying I would want him to be born today, or in the next 3 months. It's just a milestone, people!
It's thrilling how quickly and smoothly the green card process went for us, despite our case being delayed for a month. (We initially filed the wrong Affidavit of Support, so they sent us a letter requesting the correct one. The letter was addressed wrong and returned to them. Then finally it was re-sent to us, we received it, submitted the correct form, and got back on track.)
So, the process is thus: file forms, receive notification that they received the forms and opened your case (NOA - at this point, all previous visas really don't count anymore), receive a Request for Initial Evidence (RFE - if you did something incorrectly or left something out), receive Advanced Parole travel document (so the applicant can travel out of and back into the US while their status is pending), Biometrics appointment (fingerprinting), interview, decision, receive Green Card.
Using visajourney.com, I figured out when all of these things should happen for us, based on statistics they had on the website for then current applications. From filing to the decision, it should have been 183 days. Even with our 1 month delay, it was only 139! The timeline on visajourney.com projected Rodgers receiving his Green Card on November 4, but now, we're expecting it next week. Amazing! Part of it is that USCIS is moving cases quickly right now. The other part is a mystery. We're told that typically, no decision is made at the interview. They gather any additional info, take your statement under oath about whatever, and then there should be some process after the interview, which ends in approval or denial. However, towards the end of our interview, the interviewer went through Rodgers' passport, canceling all his previous visas, including the one that was still current. She removed his I-94, which shows that he entered the country at a legal point of entry. Then, she added a new stamp which says he is a lawful permanent resident and eligible for employment! And she stamped "Approved" on his application. We had taken all kinds of documentation and copies of documentation with us, but she didn't care about most of it.
In order to save all this info, so that I may return and marvel at how blessed we are, I'm recording our projected dates and actual dates here.
Filed (I-130 Petition for Alien Relative, I-131 Application for Travel Document, I-134 Affidavit of Support, I-485 Adjustment of Status): April 24
NOA: (projected) May 4 // (actual) May 4
RFE (submit I-864 Affidavit of Support): June 6 case delayed 1 month
Advanced Parole: (projected) July 8 // (acutal) June 26 two weeks early
Biometrics Appointment: (projected) June 1 // (actual) July 10 a little over a month late
Interview: (projected) October 15 // (actual) September 10 a little over a month early
Decision: (projected) October 23 // (actual) September 10 six weeks early
Receive Green Card: (projected) November 4 // (actual) September 25 ~six weeks early
This morning, a friend of mine on Facebook posted their status as "just another manic Monday..." Not surprising, as it is, in fact, Monday. Of course, other friends proceeded to comment on the status with subsequent lines of the song.
Friend 1: just another manic Monday...
Comment 1: wish it was Sunday...
Comment 2: cause that's my fun day...
Comment 3: my I don't have to run day...
Then, another one of my friends posted the same status. These 2 friends do not appear to know each other. The rest of the song is beginning to build up on her FB page as well.
Friend 2: Just another manic Monday...
Comment 1: wish it were Sunday...
What makes it weird is that these 2 friends have the same first name. What are the odds that 2 people I know, who don't know each other, but share the same name, would have the same FB status posted on the same day? That's kind of twilight zoney, right?
* How far along: 22 weeks * Total weight gain: 17 lbs * How big is baby: Apparently he's about the size of a spaghetti squash - 11 inches head to heel, about 1 lb. * Maternity clothes: I think I may be growing out of some of my early ones, though I can still wear some of my longer, stretchy non-maternity tops.
* Stretch marks: Not yet (knock on wood, fingers crossed, belly cream within reach) * Sleep: I wish I could sleep for 8 hours, be awake for 4, then do it again. I am loving my body pillow, but I often find myself sleeping on my back, which is strange because I'm a belly sleeper. * Best moment this week: Watching my belly bulge out about an inch and a half extra when Nathanael kicked. He's like a little ninja in there. * Movement: Every day! He kicks, punches, and wiggles. I feel a lot on the inside, and sometimes we can feel and see it on the outside as well. * Food cravings: I want to eat everything. Absolutely everything. Except onions. * Labor signs: None * Belly button in or out: In, but flattening. The center almost comes out right after a meal. It won't be long now. * What I miss: Staying up late. I still feel more mentally alert at night, but my body gets so tired, I have to go to bed early. * What I'm looking forward to: Having a baby shower * Milestone: Just kicking more and more. He seemed to respond to the doppler at the doctor's office yesterday. He got all squirmy when the med student was trying to find his heartbeat.
Story #1 Sunday morning, I woke up too early. Rodgers was already up, shaving in the other bathroom, so as not to disturb me. But since I was awake, and since I'm pregnant, I decided to go to the bathroom and then get back in bed. When I get up with the intention of going back to bed, I don't put my glasses on.
As I was leaving the bathroom to return to bed, I noticed an odd dark patch in the fake wood pattern on the floor. I thought that it could be a big ball of lint. We had been doing laundry Saturday, so it could have come from that. I needed to know whether it was something or part of the floor, though. I kicked it, very softly, thinking if I kicked nothing it was the floor, and if I kicked something it was lint.
I kicked something alright, but it wasn't lint. It was much heavier. It skid across the floor about 6 inches and stopped. I bent down to take a closer look and saw that it was a tiny dying mouse!
I didn't want to touch it. Touching dead animal post-butchering, I'm ok with. But I don't like touching un-butchered dead animals or dying animals. I assume they fumigated the apartment before we moved in and the little mouse got into that, and as a result, was taking its last breaths on my bathroom floor. I went and told Rod, "I have a job for you." He took the little guy, who was laying on his side, with all four feet twitching like it was trying to get away, outside.
We did report it to the apartment office, and they gave us a mouse trap, just in case there are more.
Story #2 This morning, Rod got up super early, as usual. I heard him occasionally as I hit the snooze button on my alarm. Around 6:45 he came into the bedroom to get something, gave me a kiss, and then went out again. Shortly afterward, I heard a car start up and drive away. I thought it was quite early for him to be leaving for his 8:00 class, but he's like that.
A few minutes later, I drug myself out of bed and started my morning routine.
I watch a lot of horror movies, suspense thrillers, teen screams, etc. They have one thing in common. The killer likes to sneak up on the victim when they're oblivious, have their vision obscured, or are otherwise preoccupied. Then, the killer waits until they are noticed by the victim, gives the victim time to scream, then goes in for the kill or torture, whatever the case may be. Sometimes, when I'm not totally awake, I get nervous about this scenario as I'm washing my face because 1) I'm not wearing my glasses and 2) there's soap and water in my eyes, so I most likely have them shut for a few minutes.
After washing my face this morning, I stumbled around in search of my face towel (my acne treatment bleaches most towels, so I have designated face towels which either aren't the type of dye to be bleached or are already bleached). I turned around as I was drying my face and heard a toothbrush clink in the toothbrush holder. Odd, I thought. I didn't think I was close enough to the vanity to hit a toothbrush with the towel, but that must have been what happened.
Then, I took the towel off of my face and someone was there, right in front of me!!! My heart stopped for a split second before I realized it was Rodgers. I didn't quite have time to scream, but I did feel the meaning of the phrase "jumped out of my skin."
He had not been the car that drove away at 6:50, after all.
I think Nathaniel can hear in there now. There are different schools of thought on when a baby can hear in the womb, some say as early as 16 weeks, some say not till 26 weeks.
Nathaniel sure kicks a lot when Bob Marley is playing, though. He does not, however, kick much when The Killers are playing. So it could just be coincidence. But, perhaps he is showing a preference. Perhaps, like his father, he just prefers reggae.
I just got tagged in a game of blog tag by my e-friend, Momfetti. Here's the deal - the rules:
Link back to the person who tagged you.
List six little things that make you happy.
Tag six bloggers and let them know they’re “it”.
My six:
Fortune cookie fortunes. I love the ones that are slightly nonsensical. I got one once, which I keep on the refrigerator, that says, "Alas! The onion you are eating is someone else's water lily." I can imagine what it means, but it just sounds silly to me, so it makes me laugh. Also, it's fun to add little phrases to the end of the fortune. The most popular of which is "in bed," but I prefer, "and then you'll die." I suppose it appeals to my dark sense of humor, plus there is an element of truth in it. The fortunes Rodgers and I got this weekend work well with either one. He got, "People are naturally attracted to you." I got, "You will always be surrounded by friends when you need them." I'm giggling right now. I love them.
Text messages, as long as they aren't the free messages from AT&T advertising something, or the ones that you have to pay for because some solicitor got a hold of your cell phone number, is sending you messages, and to get them to stop, you have to send them one. I hate that kind. But texts from my actual family and friends are great.
Food - just about any kind. I have an insatiable appetite these days. I know Nathaniel doesn't need many calories per day right now. He's so small, he only needs for me to eat one extra snack every day. But, honestly, I could eat every hour, and I do sometimes...
Nathaniel's kicks and punches. They're so tiny and cute right now. Sometimes, if they're directed the right way, I can feel them through my tummy with my hand. Rodgers hasn't felt them yet because as soon as I feel one with my hand and want to call him over to feel it, Nate seems to adjust his position so that he can punch my internal organs. That's not so cute.
Rodgers, for obvious reasons.
Puppies - the squirmier and slobberier, the better. I mean, who (aside from those with hearts of stone) can attempt to hold a squirmy, slobbering puppy without at least smiling, if not laughing aloud?
We had our big ultrasound this past Tuesday. It was a most wonderful experience.
We got to see major organs and watch the baby squirm, kick, and punch. The Dr. showed us the face, straight on. We could see the eyes, and the little mouth kept opening and closing. He printed us a picture of the open mouth. We saw arms, legs, hands, and feet. We actually got a pretty good picture of a foot with toes!
Then, at the end, the Dr. found us a clear shot to tell the sex, and had me guess what I thought it looked like. I'd been doing my research by looking at ultrasound pictures online, and I was pretty sure it looked like a boy. I was right!
All the ultrasound pictures are in my pregnancy photo album. Here's our little Nathaniel:
The classic profile shot. I think he's cute, even if his head is still too big for his body.
Last year, when my brother and sister-in-law were expecting, we were introduced to the concept of a babymoon. I really liked the idea: one last chance to go on vacation as a couple before the baby arrives.
Even though we just went on our honeymoon a few months ago, I wanted us to have another child-free (and child care-free) trip together. Rodgers had classes all summer, but has most of the month of August free before the fall semester starts on the 24th. These 3 weeks were really the only opportunity we'd have for more than a weekend trip together.
Before Rodgers convinced me to stay in Brenham/Somerville for our honeymoon, I had been looking at Corpus. It's a fun place: sights to see, beaches, dolphin encounters, seafood, Tex-Mex food, aquarium, the Columbus ship replicas (which set sail from Spain in 1992, 500 years after Columbus did), the USS Lexington. Since we skipped out on all that fun in March, we decided to go for it on the babymoon.
Our babymoon daily schedule was thus: get up moderately early (i.e. around 7:30ish), have some breakfast in the room or go out for breakfast around 8, do something fun (most stuff opens at 9), have lunch, do something else fun for an hour or so, back to the hotel for naptime, dinner, a movie or tv until bedtime.
We had a great time. Saw the USS Lex, the Texas State Aquarium, went to the beach, saw the Pinta and the Santa Maria in drydock at the museum (but the Nina is on the water downtown, so we didn't really see it), and ate some good food. The only thing I kind of wanted to do that we didn't get to do was a dolphin encounter. I've gone on one before. They take you out in a little boat to where the pods of dolphins play, and the dolphins follow the boat around for a while. The sun is hot out there on the water, though, and I wasn't enjoying that hot sun on land, so we skipped that.
I entered a contest online. I didn't expect to win, of course, but the only task for entering was to write a very brief description of a favorite childhood memory. So, I entered.
I forgot about the contest, but then got an email (which seemed fishy at first) saying that I was one of the winners! There were 600 winners, so maybe that's nothing to brag about, but it did come with a prize. All I had to do to collect my prize was to take a chance that the email was real and reply to it with my mailing address. I went for it, and about a week later, look what arrived:
Noah's ark themed sleeper, 2 onesies, pants, little hat, bib, and a surprise teddy bear. It's yellow, so it will be appropriate for a boy or a girl baby (speaking of boy or girl: 4 days till the ultrasound!).
I was just looking at reviews for a crib mattress at Walmart.com. It's super cheap, and I wanted to see if it was no good or one of those inexpensive things that's acutally going to be useful. I checked the reviews to see if people were saying that it retained its firmness and lasted a significant length of time. Out of 80 reviews, 56 are 5 stars and only 5 reviews are 2 stars or less. And 2 of the 1 & 2 star reviews are low because the mattress isn't soft...aren't you supposed to put infants on firm mattresses? Isn't that the point? I'm going to consider those 5 stars. Now 58-5 star reviews and 3-2 stars and under. That's encouraging.
Anyway, to the point. A sentence in one of the reviews strikes me as absurd: "I even stand in my son's crib almost on a daily basis (to hang his quilt back on the wall, because he rips it down everyday)."
Would you not think, rather than climbing into the crib every day to replace the quilt hanging over it because your child rips it off the wall constantly, it might be better to a) move the quilt to a different wall, or b) don't hang it on the wall anymore? Who, in their right mind, re-hangs a quilt on the wall every single day? She must be crazy! Still, good to know that the mattress withstands constant standing-on by a full grown woman.
As a bonus, here's the greatest review, a 3 star one: "didn't wont it to hard ,, its just right ,,"
This one brings a fun mental image: "It is very bouncy. My baby seemed to like it however. I just worried that he would bounce himself onto his side or belly while asleep." I'm picturing a sleeping infant who spontaneously starts bouncing, kind of like Tigger. I've been around a lot of sleeping infants and have never seen this happen, but maybe those weren't on bouncy mattresses.
With reviews like this, maybe I shouldn't trust other consumers to tell me whether or not a product is good quality.
We will be having our anatomy ultrasound on August 11. We hope to find out the sex of the baby at that time. But, in the meantime, we have a poll at the top of this blog, where you may vote what you think we'll find out!
I think it will be a girl; Rodgers thinks it will be a boy.
We're planning on having our nursery in African animal prints. Mom's got some patterns to make bedding/storage/other stuff for the nursery in our theme. But, we won't do it like this. [I'm emailing this post in, so we'll see if the picture actually shows up...] Change the red to a slightly more subtle color, and don't cover the walls in animal print. Then it might be bearable. I like the trees with the monkey and the swinging elephant in them - those are cute. The giraffe print hat box is a keeper. But what is that in the lower right hand corner?
We're accenting animal print in beiges and turquoise. It is a bright turquoise, but used somewhat minimally, and it doesn't burn the retinas like that red does. Our walls will remain white, with some animal pictures on them.
I can't stop looking at the picture! Its hideousness draws me in. This is a prime example of what shows like Trading Spaces are doing to the average homeowner. Everyone thinks they're an interior designer.
We've begun collecting things for our baby. S/he won't be born until January, but we came into some good deals, so we've got a crate of baby stuff and various large items as well.
This week, I decided to pull out the crocheted booties and bonnet that I had as a baby. So, I took my keepsake crate down from the top of the closet and found them. There's a pair of red and white booties, some that look like white sandals with brown soles, and a pair of blue booties with a matching bonnet. After I found them and replaced the rest of the contents of the crate, it was time to leave for my haircut. So, I left the crate on the ottoman, to put it back in the closet when I returned.
As I walked in the door, this is what I saw:
Peeking out from under the lid are the fingers of one of my dolls, as if she's trying to get out.
A close up.
I've watched enough horror movies to be seriously creeped out. I wanted to just poke her fingers back into the box, and press the lid down. But images in my mind of the lid flying open and a demon doll attacking me prevented this.
So I rationally took the lid off, made sure the doll was not actually possessed and trying to escape the crate, repositioned her, and closed the lid. As far as I know, she's still in there...
Currently, we live in a 650 square foot one bedroom apartment. It's plenty of space for the two of us, even though we seem to have a ridiculous amount of possessions. Closet space is adequate, and they are all well used.
But, there's nowhere to put a baby! No room for all the stuff that comes with a baby, either. Therefore, we will be moving when our lease is up. There is a nice 2 bedroom apartment that will be available at the beginning of October, and our lease ends at the end of October, so it's just about perfect.
I've heard that pregnancy hormones cause more vivid dreams. This is definitely true for me. Last night, I dreamed that Rodgers and one of the ladies from the office took me to the apartment that will be available so I could look at it and start planning how we'll arrange our stuff there.
It was an amazing apartment. The entry had a huge coat closet, which the current tenants had full of junk, but we would use for our 35 coats (now, tell me, why do we need so many coats? We only have like 10 coat weather days per year!). The living room was about the size of our current apartment (not our living room, our whole apartment), and had hard wood floors. It was down a couple of steps from the entry, with a vaulted ceiling. To the right was the kitchen, up a couple of steps, with a lovely breakfast nook. Next to that, towards the back of the apartment, was a glamorous formal dining room. There was also a doorway from the kitchen towards the front of the apartment, which led to the master suite. (This tells you how important food is to me right now, my dream bedroom opens into the kitchen!) The outside wall was all windows, which were open. The bed had a mosquito net over it, which was blowing in the breeze. The bedroom was very large, but there was hardly anything in it besides the bed and an antique oak dresser. I don't remember the bathroom, but there was one in there. Then, we went back to the entry, which had a door to a child's room, which I had not noticed before. There were 3 closets in the child's room. They were all full of toys. Next to that room was another bathroom. When we came out of the child's room, I noticed that on the other side of the living room, there was a hallway. I asked about it and the office lady said that there was another bedroom, bathroom, and an office down there. At this point, I became quite confused because Rodgers had told me that we were getting a 2 bedroom apartment. I got very upset. I was reasonably sure that this apartment would cost significantly more than the 2 bedroom that I thought we'd be moving into. It was a beautiful apartment. I loved it, and I wanted it. But I thought it was the 2 bedroom that's only $100/month more than our current place. Rodgers would have known that I'd love it. But he should have told me the truth about how big it was and how much it cost. I mean, I'd figure out sooner or later that there were extra rooms. And I'd figure out the price the first time I went to pay rent.
I was so upset with him that I woke myself up. Now, after seeing that impossibly huge, beautiful apartment, I think the place we move into will seem like a dump.
It's not the taste that I love, nor the inevitable indigestion that follows eating a meal on an airplane. What I love about airline food is how organized it is.
Everyone gets a tray that is put together like a puzzle: a little cup in one corner, with a mini thing of water or juice; fork, spoon, knife, napkin, wet wipe, salt, pepper, creamer, and sugar in a little baggy on the side with a tiny tub of margarine or soft cheese; dessert and fruit courses in their own little bowls at the top; and the main course in its bowl. All those foods have plastic or foil seals on top of the bowls. Then, they give you a roll out of a basket, so you feel like the bread is fresh.
I have little appetite when I'm flying. Mostly, I just want to drink gallons of water and, if there's complimentary champagne, some of that, too. But I get such a kick out of the organized meal trays that I must eat at least a little bit of each item. And when I'm done, I put the tray back together in a slightly different order - never put anything back the way it was.
I just had a Lunchables. Usually, I like to bring leftovers or a frozen dinner and have a hot lunch, but we don't have a microwave right now, so I'm stuck with either cold lunches or lunches that can be cooked with nothing but boiled water (I have an electric kettle at my desk). Getting tired of those lunches, I decided to go with Lunchables this week. I enjoyed the Lunchables box much like I enjoy airline food - the little bitty drink on the side and tray with several tiny compartments in it: one for a stack of crackers, one for turkey, one for cheese, and one for a mini snack pack and little red spoon. It's like everything you need for lunch, right here in this box, and nothing extra.
Since Rodgers and I started attending our church last November, we haven't seen much ministry happening beyond the walls of the church building. This was very discouraging to us, and we shared our discouragement with a couple who has been there longer. They suggested that there may be a way to change this, if we stick around and are willing to do something. But, for several months nothing really happened. We were focused on planning the wedding, then being newlyweds, then dealing with morning sickness, fatigue, and all that comes with the wondrous first trimester.
A couple of weeks ago, something exciting happened. Rodgers called me at work and asked me if we could spend the evening at Richard and Georgia's (that's our Bible study group leaders). So we did.
Another couple from church met us at their house. We had coffee and desserts and discussed an idea that the four of them had earlier in the week. It was something that Rodgers and I had been waiting for!
They asked if we could set up some sort of partnership between our Bible study group and Rodgers' home church in Kenya, Revival Baptist Church. In doing this, we could take a more active role in ministry overseas. We wanted to do this, and actually Rodgers' pastor had commissioned him to this very thing, but we felt that it wouldn't be quite right for us to introduce the concept ourselves. We needed to have someone else come to the point of wanting to be involved first. I don't know if that makes sense, but it's the way we felt.
Friday, we made a presentation to our Bible study group. We thought that our group would be receptive, but we didn't know how enthusiastic they would be about our proposal. After our presentation, people brought up different concerns that they had about the partnership, reasons it would be difficult, reasons it might not work out. Then, a man who hasn't been in the group very long stood up and basically said, "We've all already made up our minds that we're going to do this, so, rather than discussing reasons why we shouldn't, let's just figure out what our priorities are and where we go from here." That excited everyone, and we were able to start working out our plans.
There was one couple who have only visited the group once or twice. They are still church shopping and don't know whether they'll wind up staying with us or not. I was surprised that they came Friday night. Even more surprising was that, on their way out, they told us that, whatever church they wind up at, they want to be involved in this partnership with us.
We stayed at the church longer than we'd planned to that night. Finally, as I was dragging Rodgers out to the car, we were intercepted by the man who inspired everyone and his soon-to-be-wife. We talked with them forever. Though it was past my bedtime, and I was struggling to stay awake, it was great getting to know them better. It was sort of a brainstorming, mixed with them sharing bits of their past with us. Their enthusiasm for the partnership blows my mind!
Our first projects: connect couples/families in our group with families at RBC, to be pen pals and get to know each other a little more personally; raise funds to build a bathroom for RBC; work out the details of how we're going to do this.
I think most of our readers know this already, but for those who are out of the loop - we're having a baby! I am 14 weeks pregnant, due Jan 7. We will find out the sex of the baby on Aug 11. We have names picked out, but until we find out which one it is, we call it Kibuyu.
I haven't been shopping for Kibuyu much. Mom and I shopped for some fabric for the nursery this week while she was staying with Rodgers and me. She's going to make a bedding set in animal prints. Today while Rodgers and I were out, I decided that I wanted to buy one thing for Kibuyu. We looked through some baby clothes - all very cute, but hardly any gender neutral. Then, we saw this one little sleeper. I love the giraffe heads on the feet:
On the newlywed side of things: since we got the original sized photos from our photographer (Trey), I was able to make us a photo memory book. We used Walmart.com since it's super cheap. The quality of the prints is acceptable, but not great. I would assume that the places that charge twice as much are significantly better. BUT, I ordered the book on Tuesday, and it arrived today! That's super fast, and I'm more than satisfied. I could flip through it all day long. I will say, though, that for the hardback books, it would be better to add extra pages of pictures. It looks kind of silly with only 20 pages.
Finally, our wedding video is on YouTube. It was a little complicated, but worked out in the end. There's a video of the ceremony itself and a video from the reception. They have been cut in half because they were too long for YouTube's maximum ten minute length. So, without further ado, the videos!
I am holding the DVD to our wedding! We just watched it, and it was wonderful! I'll be uploading it soon for those of you who couldn't come, but want to feel like you didn't miss anything.
That a DVD has been burned today which contains our wedding video!!! Next step: YouTube. Don't worry, we haven't forgotten about our overseas people who couldn't come to the wedding and have been anxiously awaiting seeing it. More than likely, they've all forgotten that there was ever a video to be had. Don't despair! It's coming!
No doubt it's there because of the new movie coming out based on this old TV show. In effort to free my mind from this song being on repeat, I looked it up on YouTube, as usual. Very helpful, that YouTube. I just don't remember the "special effects" being so..."special."
Rodgers has an old Cavalier. It's been a trooper, but it has lots of mechanical problems. Last time he took it to the mechanic, the estimate to fix it was $500-700. Blue book on that car is only $805. Since it's still running (though not well and could die completely at any moment) we decided to skip the repairs, empty our savings account, and buy him a good cash car - an older Toyota or Honda would do - and he could continue to drive the Cavalier to school, work, and home while we looked for a car.
So we found an Accord coupe, with very shiny red paint, for sale for a great price. We met up with the owners Sunday for a test drive. It runs great. One of the rear windows is a little ghetto-fied, but it still looks pretty good. I mean, I've always thought the Accord coupe looks rad. And it has a sun roof.
[This is where it turns into a rant.] Monday, we called the owners, told them we want to give them $$$, and asked when we could meet up to get the car and pay them. They said that they would meet us in Belton Monday evening. We got money orders (their preferred means of payment) in the agreed upon amount, though Rodgers wisely prevented me from filling in the seller's name when I was signing them. We got to the meeting place and waited...and waited...finally Rodgers called and asked if we would see them. They didn't answer the phone, he left a message, and they called back, at about 30 or 40 minutes past the meeting time saying they couldn't make it and could we reschedule for Tuesday morning?
I had a Dr.'s appointment Tuesday morning, and have to take sick leave in increments of 4 hours, so once Rod's class was over at 11:30, we could meet them. I called them at 11:25, and they were not on their way to Belton to meet us (they live in Killeen). No, they were in Copperas Cove. They asked if we could meet them there. It wouldn't be such a stretch because I was going to be on my way to Fort Hood to work in the afternoon, and could just leave early, take Rod to Cove, let him get his new car, and go to work. However, she had neither a time or meeting place decided upon and would call us back. I told her I had to work in the afternoon, but it was possible that it would work out. When it was time for me to head to work and we hadn't heard from them, Rodgers told me to go and said he'd give them one more chance to sell us their car. We absolutely didn't want to get stood up in Copperas Cove when I had to be at work at 12:30 and Rod at 2:30. And Rod without a car.
She called me after I was already at work. I did not answer the phone, but told Rod, and he called them. He said, "If you want to sell us this car, meet us outside of where I work in Belton at 5:45 this evening." They said, "Ok!" They found a car in Cove that they wanted to buy, but needed the money from us for the down payment. They called Rod several times that afternoon while he was working, telling him how it was all going to work out, and it was a good time because they could get back over to Cove before the dealership closed at 8.
So, 5:40 rolled around, I was waiting in the parking lot, Rodgers had just gotten off work, and where do you think the car sellers were? AT HOME IN KILLEEN. Rodgers called and asked if they were planning on showing up. They asked if we could meet them somewhere else. In the end, he hung up on them. We're not buying that shiny red car.
So I looked at a car today that's for sale at a dealership. He'd give it to us cheap because he's desparate to get rid of it, and it needs some odds and ends. It needs a new paint job, a new handle for the inside of the driver's door (there's one there and it works eventually, but it's broken), a cover for the console, cupholders to fill the cupholder hole, a cover for the ash tray, a new horn pad, a motor in the passenger's door to run the power window, 2 wheel covers, and a brake job. With the car being so cheap, we could afford fixing the brakes and horn, and maybe even replace the windshield which has an 8" crack in it. I don't think Rod's too picky about the paint not being pretty, and we could get a paint job in the future if we wanted to. The rest of that stuff, he assures us we could find at Pick 'n' Pull, which is probably where we'll be selling Rod's car.
I want to drive a Toyota VITZ. It's basically a hatchback Yaris, and...they come in pink. If we are to buy a car, a 4x4 is probably more practical. Getting around town, we can just use public transportation or walk. It's very easy to do both in Mombasa. And if we are to need a car of our own, it would be for an out-of-town trip, or to take someone to (or pick someone up from) the airport. Or if we wanted to go to the national park for a safari without having to pay the fees for renting a vehicle. So...a subcompact wouldn't be practical at all. They are useful for navigating city traffic because you can squeeze in to tight places, and there are a lot of those. Oh, but I would have to get over my fear of Kenyan traffic before I could drive one there. But the pink VITZ is very cute, see:
I would never want to drive a subcompact in the US, though. Other cars are too much bigger. But Kenya has a lot of tiny cars. Even their 15 passenger vans are small.
A week or so ago, Rodgers mentioned that our bathroom sink wasn't draining well. I had not noticed, but he usually turns the water on full blast and I don't, which I guess is why he noticed the slow drainage first. I figured that, over the past few months that I've lived here, some of my hairs must have fallen into the sink while I've been combing out my hair. I never wash my hair in the sink. I have long hair and lots of it falls out, so it seemed viable. We picked up a jug of 10 Minute Hair Clog Remover. After one treatment, the sink got a little better, but was still slow. At that point I discovered that, though the plug isn't removable, the top flat part of it is. This is the kind of plug it is:
So I unscrewed that part of the plug (the body of it was still in the drain) and saw tons of gunk. Using some long, flat devices, I began to pull the gunk out of the drain. The gunk was enough to make me gag. But, as I pulled it out, I discovered that the gunk was stuck, not to my hair, but to dental floss! Yards and yards of dental floss, cut into single-use lengths. I spent a good 20 minutes pulling dental floss out of the sink drain. So here is a PSA to the previous tenants of this apartment: used dental floss should be thrown in the garbage, not rinsed down the sink drain. I'm going to go throw up now.
