Military Life.....

Hello there friends! Sorry for my absence..I've been battling a bad cold someone passed me last week. Finally getting better now though <3 Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving with their family and friends!

So the past few days we have been talking about ordering our baby furniture because they are behind 10-12 weeks. If we order now it will be here just in time to get it all set up. Well...duty called last night. My husband called to tell me that he has to take a class in Texas from FEB-APRIL. I'm due in April...We DO have a few options. I truly love the guys at his shop. They have always been caring and understanding with family needs. We really are blessed to know these wonderful people. He HAS the option to go in July instead. I chose to have him leave in February because Id rather him miss MY doctor appointments and my belly growing than missing and watching little girl grow. I was always hoping he would be here with me throughout my entire pregnancy but I knew what is always possible.

The one exciting thing about this class he is taking is that it helps him get his next stripe and in turn does lots for our family <3 I'm just overly emotional and I'm playing the WHAT IF game while he is 7 hours away and can't get here fast enough. It's going to be hard juggling my ever growing belly, weekly dr appointments, a business, Mr. Caleb and his activities, Bandit dog and this house all while being strong for the husband. BWAHHHH!!! Thank GOD for my family and my friends for their support all the time. I'd be in a looney bin!!

Well since we only have a handful of weekends to get things together for our new bundle, I better get on it. Bless you all! <3

How far along are you? 20 weeks..She is measuring bigger so we have 2 due dates :D

What I’m Eating/What I’m Not Eating:  Still HATE corn products. Eating anything and everything now! 

Total Weight Gained So Far: -3 (Starting: 135 – Current: 132) 

Workouts: getting there :D

Sleep: Lots please!!

Most Exciting Moment This Week:  Going to our first Dr. appointment where we didnt have any issues. A quick check with doppler and see you in a few weeks<3 That's the way I like it!

Baby is the Size of a: a banana!!

Miss Anything?  I miss my occasional glass of champagne...a few more months

COME ON 22 WEEKS!!!

Howdy there folks!!! Thought I would run a quick update. Today is a super busy day and we are almost half way to BABY time!! I was able to take the week off with my hubby for some R and R and some healing. We had originally planned this trip in Sept to leave this week to see family in Texas but Dr said I should not probably travel. I do not know if I mentioned it in a past post-but I had a subchloric bleed on the wall the baby is on and the main way to heal is by lots of rest. I am so blessed to say the bleeding is down to 10% and I am doing much better!! I needed the time off and it was great to share it with my hubby and actually say 'I AM BORED'! Love it. Tonight we are having a get together for a friend who has orders to another state. We will miss him dearly! But with that being said, I need to maybe shower and get around today at a decent time. I hope everyone has a great Friday! HUGS!

How far along are you? 18 weeks

What I’m Eating/What I’m Not Eating: Eating lots on and off. FISH STICKS!! I DROOL WHEN I SEE FISH STICKS! Craving lots of milk and ice cream. Fruit Loops, powdered donuts, comfort food...ya know...all the good stuff!

Total Weight Gained So Far: -7 pounds (Starting: 135 – Current: 128) 

Workouts: Not quite yet

Sleep: I want to sleep everywhere at anytime. I am wore out!!

Most Exciting Moment This Week: Getting some time with my husband and putting up Christmas decor. I know with his hunting schedule it will not happen if we didnt do it soon :D
Baby is the Size of a: a cantaloupe 
Miss Anything? STILL Going to the bathroom ...TMI..sorry folks!

Stronger

Well this blog is my toughest one so far. We got into a chat a few weeks ago with friends about friendship and what it means to everyone. Well last week my blog said a bit about it and my feelings. I've always kinda let people in my life that probably didnt deserve to and let them treat me and others badly. Those who were not there for me on all levels and this blog is for me to vent and release. So here goes: I'm going to talk about my sister first....

In October 2011 Molly Stevens'  boyfriend noticed a small lump on her neck. After a visit to the family doctor, Molly was referred to a specialist. When noninvasive attempts to diagnose the cause of the lump failed, Molly resorted to allowing surgery to remove a portion of the lump. The sample was sent to Mayo Clinic and on November 8th, at 23 years old, Molly was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkins Lymphoma. At Stage 2 it will be necessary for Molly to receive 4 cycles of chemotherapy (8 sessions). PET scans and a (painful) bone marrow extraction revealed that the cancer was limited to the upper portion of her body and had not reached her organs or bones. Fortunately, the success rate in treatment of Hodgkins at this stage is very high. As of January 10, 2012 Molly completed her 4th session of chemotherapy. Let us hope and pray that when her chemotherapy is completed in March that she is declared free of all traces of this cancer! Molly's resolve is strong, so please follow her journey at:

http://themollyology.blogspot.com/.

During this time my sister was diagnosed the world pretty much stopped. Nothing else really mattered. We were in the middle of selling our home and my thoughts were to take it off the market - we had other things that took priority of our life now.  Cancer-it's such a nasty word to me. How can someone so young and healthy have cancer? 

They had to install a port into her chest and neck before treatment can start. A port is about the size of a silver dollar and it allows the chemo to get into your body without all of the pokes in your veins. This was the one and only time I personally saw my sister in physical pain during her treatment. I wish I could of took her pain away and would do anything to take this away from her. I would go and visit her on chemo days at lunch or at least send a text to let her know I was thinking of her. Going in to hangout with her during chemo was terribly sad. Seeing my baby sister plugged into a machine pumping her full of toxic fluids about makes you want to fall apart. Why?!! I asked God all of the time! There were nights I would just cry myself to sleep hoping it would all just go away.

So many other tests and surgeries and pokes and hair falling out were involved...and you know what? She NEVER complained. The only time I could even come close to getting her to tell me something that was even close to a complaint was when I asked her direct questions. She is such an amazing fighter! <3

I found this video and thought he had lots of good points on life.

Several weeks after Molly was diagnosed, I had an appointment with a surgeon. I have been struggling with gallstones for years now and wanted to have some answers. They did some tests and immediately called the next morning for me to come in. She said I had inflammation of my gallballder and billiary sludge. Which means my gallbladder was full of gallstones and was not working properly. 

I was scared to all means to have a surgery and remove an organ I've had my entire life. She told me to stay away from fat through the Thanksgiving holiday and I would have surgery the following week to remove my gallbladder. I kept telling myself maybe I will feel better tomorrow and we wont have to do this surgery at all. No such luck. I was depressed and sad. My sister was sick..I was trying to be strong for her... I was emotionally and physically spent also. Out of respect to my sister I'm not going to elaborate much more. You can read her journey through her blog link posted above.

During this time, is when you realize love and friendship. We are so blessed for the outpour of love and support during that time.

At times when the nights were quiet and I would try to understand why some people were still absent in our lives. I KNOW that if I had a friend who was going through all of this I would undoubtably be there for them. I know some people just don't know what to say... but even a text, a card or a phone call to say hi would have put smiles on faces. As the months would roll on you realize what is important. 

This blog was a means for me venting to all of the people wondering why we are no longer friends. Were you so wrapped up in yourself during time of need to pick up the phone, etc? Too busy?? I was beyond clueless and needed to just let go and let the burden off of me. I have slowly learned that you have to accept people for who they are and you cant make them care or show you they care. I'm not the same person I was last year. I'm stronger now and have a voice. If you were not there during the bad times don't expect to be around during the good times.

Last year was a hard year, we miscarried in August...I have a dear, wonderful friend, her little boy got sick and now all of this. The reason why I wrote this is because I am so proud of my sister. She is cancer free and just had her 6 month in remission check up. It's been a year to the date almost that we got the cancer news. I have learned so much about life and love and friends the past year. God is good and has blessed us so much.  

We love to be serious.....

all of the time....

<3

CHANGING

Ever look back and wonder what happened??  Ever have that friend that was once joined at the hip with you and now look back and wonder where they are? As I look back I realize we all change. We grow older, possibly get married, have children or just plain 'grown out' of common interests. As with many aspects of happiness, people often assume that friendship should flow easily and naturally, and that trying to “work” on it is forced and inauthentic. Sometimes friendships naturally arise, but sometimes they don’t. 

It's hard for me to still look back at certain friends-even some high school friends I NEVER thought I would lose touch with. We did. It happens. I had a old friend that moved away recently. We lost touch over the years but when I do see her face it makes me smile remembering all the fun we use to have but the honest truth is we just grew apart. We all take different paths. With that being said. I have a wonderful group I love to call my friends. Sometimes we get together with a few friends and sometimes one on one and sometimes a big group of us.  With a turn of events the past few years I have been very choosey who I let in because I am highly protective of my personal life and my loved ones. Sometimes when life throws you curve balls, it really makes you realize and regroup your life.  <------I will touch more on this subject next week......  Here was a website I found with things that made me sit back and look at life.  My heart is big and I'm so thankful for what God has blessed me with. <3

http://shil1978.hubpages.com/hub/A-Friend-Worth-Dying-For-Qualities-of-a-Good-Friend

Friendships are precious. We forge countless friendships as we go on with our lives. We come to expect a lot out of them and of our friends. Good friends, however, are hard to come by. We are often disappointed at a friend having let us down. While it takes a lot to build up friendships, it takes a matter of seconds to destroy them. The disappointment is greater often times because we have not recognized a friend as being a good friend. There are friends and there are good friends. Good friends can be differentiated from the rest by certain characteristics, which may seem obvious, but are rarely reflected upon by most people.

Trust: A good friend is someone you can trust totally with your deepest and darkest secrets, knowing full well that they would not share it with anyone else. 

Loyalty: A good friend is absolutely loyal to you through thick and thin. A good friend doesn't betray you when the going gets tough. A backstabbing friend is no friend.

Honesty: A good friend is someone who is not a "YES person." They will not be afraid to criticize you or point out your flaws. A good friend will not think about pleasing you at all times by saying YES, when in fact the situation warrants that they say things which may be unpleasant, but true.

Accepting: A good friend accepts you for what you are, no matter what the world thinks of you. A good friend does not try to change you, except for suggesting things you can improve upon and pointing out where you are going wrong, constructively.

Supportive: A good friend always supports you, especially when you need their support. A good friend enjoys your successes as if it were their own. A good friend isn't jealous or envious of your successes.

Helpful: A good friend is someone who takes the time to help you out with things you need helping out with, without looking at it as a chore or avoidable hassle.

Understanding: A good friend is one who understands you and knows when something is troubling you. When others can't see anything wrong with your body language, a good friend knows something is up, seeks to find out the source of the trouble and helps come up with solutions to the problems you are having.

Sacrifice: A good friend makes sacrifices for you and isn't selfish and self-centered. You matter equally to them - their world doesn't just revolve around themselves.

Money: A good friend doesn't let money get in the way of your friendship. They don't hang around with you for your money or the perks that come with it. A good friend stays with you and supports you irrespective of whether you are rich or poor.

Share Interests: A good friend may not always share all of your interests, but should at least share a few of them.

Listener: A good friend is a good listener, who is there to listen to you whenever you need to share your thoughts.

Respectful: A good friend would not put you down in front of others. They would respect you and would treat you just the way you would treat them - with respect.

Friends are hard to find and good friends, harder still. If you have a truly good friend, you are one of the lucky few because good friends aren't that easy to find these days, so count your blessings and keep your good friend! They are truly invaluable and irreplaceable.

15 weeks and counting

How far along are you? 15 weeks

What I’m Eating/What I’m Not Eating:  Been craving a lot of sandwiches this week. I've stayed away from juice and noticed that my stomach doesnt feel like it is tearing from the inside. I'm just sticking with water for now. To think about corn products makes me want to vomit EVERYWHERE. We ate mexican food last night. Just looking at the tortilla chips I almost lost my fajitas. UGH!!! 

Total Weight Gained So Far: -11 pounds (Starting: 135 – Current: 124) 

Workouts: Kidding right? I use my free time sleeping

Sleep: I want to sleep everywhere at anytime. I am wore out!!
Most Exciting Moment This Week: hearing the heartbeat on the doppler..Loved it so much that I ordered one <3
Baby is the Size of a: an orange
Miss Anything? Going to the bathroom ...TMI..sorry folks!

Soul Food

My soul food for the day...sometimes you wonder what is going on in this world of ours.....I'm very somber today. This song always makes me feel better <3

BOY OR GIRL?

WE WILL KNOW SOON! :D Thought I would use these in combination with my chalkboard weekly posts if I EVER get my chalkboard done...sigh...anyhow...Things have been going well this week so far. We had a sonogram yesterday to check on the cyst. It has stayed the same size which is good news. Other good news is baby is healthy and we got a guess on the sex but can't quite say yet for sure. We want to make sure we are 100% before we share! :D Hope everyones week is going great so far! XOXO

How far along? 13 weeks
Total weight gain: down 7 pounds
Maternity clothes? Yoga pants and some rubber bands for my jeans
Stretch marks? none 
Sleep: good and bad nights...mostly sleeping 9 hours
Best moment this week: seeing baby at the sono yesterday...moving around and doing flips! 
Miss Anything? Not really, mostly being able to go out to dinner and not running to the bathroom when someone orders seafoodMovement: little flutters
Food cravings: pasta pasta pasta...husband took me to Noodles & Co yesterday...my oasis!
Anything making you queasy or sick: still meat...seafood...sugary snacks...ick!
Gender: shhhhh!! 
Labor Signs: No
Symptoms: overall feeling okay...tired and queazy a lot
Belly Button in or out? in
Wedding rings on or off? on
Happy or Moody most of the time: Had a roller coaster of emotions this week... but so very happy.
Looking forward to: baby's growing big and strong... The holidays and spending time with friends and family! <3

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK....

Today is talk about my husband day!....Happy Monday!!! Hope everyone had a great weekend! Sorry once again for the delayed posts. It was a very busy week last week and still trying to catch up on things. It was a wonderful weekend with friends and family!

I wanted to talk a little about the McConnell Air Force Base Air Show. We went with wonderful family friends of ours. Nick was super excited to share his knowledge of the planes with someone new :D

Inside of KC 135

I noticed as we neared the KC135 my stomach went into knots. That's the plane my husband works/worked on. Currently,  he teaches about the plane and doesn't deploy or TDY near like he did. I found myself sweating as we entered it. I looked on the walls at where he use to sleep and it made me so emotional. I know, I'm emotional right now anyhow but it was to the point I had to get off that plane. It wasn't until we got home that I realized that plane is so symbolic to me. It use to take my husband away from me all of those times off to places he sometimes couldn't even tell me about or even call from...for days, weeks, months. They always blended together and felt like eternity. I know this is his job and I know I must always be strong for him but it never gets easier. 

Views from above

I'm so thankful for his new job but know he only has a few more years where I can spend time with him every night and have dinner with him consistanly. Last time, dinner time was the hardest for me. It was when I had time on my hands and knew no one else was coming home. Just me and my bub. It's amazing some of the simple things I missed that some people take for granted. I still find myself settling into this new life we have together and forgetting how it use to be. I'm so thankful for every moment. He still has 10 more years in the Air Force and that time will come again when I get to wait  on the runway, looking to the sky for that plane to land so I can finally see him come down those stairs and hug me and know that he IS real. I'm so proud of my husband and what he does for this country. I love him dearly. As I told my girlfriend Amy, If these walls in the airplane could talk...they would have so many stories. God Bless America!

Here is a video of what the plane does....That is the boom that drops and fuels the B-52 in this video...

Sorry for all of the delayed posts. I haven't been feeling like myself lately :(  The past few days I have been feeling very naseous. My medicine stopped working and I'm highly frustrated. To top it off, I have really bad cramps. Which led me to the ER today. The doctors have been watching a cyst on my left ovary since before I got pregnant. Well, at first it was doubling, now its HUGE (as the sono tech said today)  It's roughly the size of a small grapefruit or a large orange. It is double the size of the baby right now. I was absolutely heartbroken. I have been praying so hard it would go away and it keeps getting bigger by the week. My only option at this point is to possibly do a lap surgery during the 2nd trimester which starts first week in October. BUT, all these worries went away the moment I saw this little gummy bear bouncing around on the screen. Oh my goodness, my heart filled with so much joy. Baby has a great heartbeat and was waving its arms at us, almost waving. The sono tech was in stitches watching our dancing baby. <3

You can see a baby arm on the bottom of the sac. The head is left and body is right  Baby is waving!

I have been resting most of the day today. My parents came by and hung out to watch some KState football....I really needed some family time tonight.  Until I start feeling better my posts will be limited.

XOXO Love you all! <3

Morning Sickness!!

Hey all!!! Hope everyone is having a great week. Mine has been very tiring! I've had one good day where I didn't feel sick at all. The rest were me collapsing in bed as soon as I got home with something light to settle my stomach so I didn't get sick. I am currently wearing SeaBands and they work somedays and others they don't. It's so frustrating most days and I really miss spending time with my boys. Nick and Caleb have been such big helpers for me. Rushing around making things for me that sound good and will agree with my stomach, house cleaning and laundry. I'm such a lucky girl! 

On Saturday afternoon we decided to do the Red Cabbage gender test. If it turns purpleish blue/green it's a girl and if it turns a pink/ red its a boy!  HA!! It was so much fun to see what would happen :D We have a sonogram again tomorrow to find a heart beat. As soon as we do, I can make this blog public and share with everyone! Hope everyones weekend was awesome! Thanks for following!! <3

FINALLY!!!

 That is all I can really say at this point. We have been waiting almost a year for this! 

WE ARE PREGNANT!!

We suffered a miscarriage last August and it took a year but we finally got a positive reading this time.  I called the doctor last Monday and they set me up an appointment for the 20th of August but wanted me in that day to check my levels. They had me at 1600 and they needed it to double within 48 hours. The next day I went in for a sono since at this point I was called "High Risk". I got to see the fluid filled sac and they told me I had a delivery date of April 18, 2013. The next day my levels were at 5800 so they more than doubled! They were so excited for us they sent us in for another sonogram today to check for heart beat. None yet but we did get to see a yolk sac and a pole. We were THRILLED!!  I just adore the doctor office I go to and all of the love they have shown us. Just wanted to share our news with everyone! I'll keep updating when possible! XOXO!

Bloggin

Hello there friends and family!!!  I have finally decided to write a blog. It's so much easier than posting it out on Facebook and I'm eventually going to phase out my Facebook so this will be my other form of contact. I hope everyone has had a great summer so far!

Baseball is done and we are on to Football. Caleb has been practicing 4 days a week and it gets exhausting trying to juggle work, eating dinner at 9 o'clock and practices. He is doing so awesome with his position. I can't wait to watch him play this year!

School starts on Tuesday...I can't say I'm all that excited. I have really enjoyed having him in the barber shop with me this summer. He was a huge help and made things flow smoothly for me. :D
As soon as I figure this blog thing out, I'll have more to say. Hope everyone had a great weekend!