family (dys)functions

jilli and the lemon

2011-08-03T20:56:00.002-05:00

jilli and the lemon

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-07-28T22:59:00.002-05:00

jilli g

a day at the zoo...

2011-06-10T21:40:00.001-05:00

our day with my friend jenn, and jilli's friend logan...

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-06-07T20:14:00.001-05:00

Watch "up-to-the-minute with jilli g" on YouTube

jillian is ONE...

2011-05-19T09:11:00.002-05:00

our little bean turned ONE on may 11th! we had a very small party (immediate family only) for her on the 14th. she had a ball! pics soon...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET JILLIBEAN!

jilli's never seen a cat before...

2011-04-20T11:55:00.004-05:00

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-04-05T08:24:00.003-05:00

nothing special... just a one-minute glimpse into our morning.

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-03-28T11:26:00.002-05:00

a one-minute glimpse into our mornings... because i just happened to be recording the good minute. hahahaha kidding. she's usually this happy and more. except when she's sick. which she is. again. ::sigh:: well... enjoy!

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-03-26T01:38:00.002-05:00

judge me not... an unopened sleeve of diapers buys me atleast 10 minutes...

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-03-24T14:33:00.002-05:00

random quickie... and hello to all the grandparents...

big news...

2011-03-23T20:20:00.002-05:00

posting immediately because yall are relentlessly wishing pregnancy on me. i say again... i am NOT pregnant. Haha

two things...
1) i have passed the last class required to get my CLU designation! I just need to fill out the application and return it to get my CLU!
2) all of that hard work, just to give my boss my notice. justin and i have been making some changes so I can be a stay-at-home mom! i'm so excited for this opportunity... we really didnt think it'd be possible. but once we realized we COULD do it, we knew it's what would work best for us. it's going to require some lifestyle changes, and a LOT of self-discipline. but we're committed to making it happen.

ch- ch- ch- changes! good luck getting that song out of your head now... :)

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-03-16T14:25:00.001-05:00

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-02-28T12:21:00.000-06:00

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-02-18T14:46:00.002-06:00

sneaking up on the munchkin...

a moment...

2011-02-05T05:35:00.001-06:00

::love::

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-02-04T16:39:00.000-06:00

jilli's first trip to the park...

2011-01-29T18:09:00.001-06:00

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-01-26T12:56:00.002-06:00

up-to-the-minute with jilli g...

2011-01-21T11:41:00.003-06:00

so i'm going to start posting some short videos of what jilli's been up to lately. none of us are skyping as much as we used to and i want to keep everyone updated. all posts of this nature will have the same title as this one.

streptococcus pneumoniae serotype 19a...

2011-01-19T12:14:00.017-06:00

so i suppose this is kind of a continuation from my last post. it's mainly to inform all the family about what happened. but i figure yall would like to know too. if it just drones on and on and on and on, my feelings won't be hurt if you stop reading. ;)

so jillian goes to daycare on tuesday, no fever and on antibiotic for ear infection. i pick jillian up from daycare tuesday, the area around her ear is quite swollen, pushing her ear out away from her head. behind her ear looks almost bruised-like. i'd heard that one's ear could swell from an ear infection. i'm concerned, but not alarmed. when i get home i bring this to justin's attention. both of us are concerned so i page the doctor. doc calls back but, based on what i'm describing, is unable to determine if it's normal swelling related to an ear infection. doc wants us to head up to houston to one of the children's hospitals as it's the only way for her to see a pediatric ent (ear nose and throat doctor, not a tree herder).

we head to texas children's. she needs a ct scan. not fun, but she kind of passes out, so no sedation is needed. they say ear infection in both ears, fluid trapped in both ears... surgery needed to put tubes in both ears and drain fluid, heavy antibiotics will be used until cultures come back on fluid drained. mastoiditis in left ear... infection has spread to mastoid bone behind ear, antibiotics will treat this also. and possible abscess behind left ear... too much fluid in ear so drum may have perforated to relieve pressure and created a sealed-off pocket of fluid, which may require surgery as any antibiotic will not reach the sealed off pocket as there's no blood flow to it. did you get all that? okay.

and so we're admitted. surgery wednesday to put in tubes, drain fluid. small incision behind left ear to check for/drain abscess, no fluid, good news. now waiting on cultures.

two iv antibiotics since admission (vanco-something and something else).

friday, based on preliminary findings in culture they suspect a strep bug. drop iv antibiotics and go to an oral antibiotic, one that no baby voluntarily takes. except jillian. haha. talk of release on saturday.

saturday, planning to release jillian. still preliminary, strain of strep "superbug" that babies are vaccinated for, but she may have contracted a kind of one-off strain, or mutation. change to a different antibiotic to send her home on. released around 8pm. sent home with dose of antibiotic so no need to find 24-hr pharmacy tonight.

sunday, justin goes to pharmacy to fill antibiotic prescription. they don't have it. five hours later, nobody has it, it's discontinued. i start calling numbers at the hospital until someone can get me in touch with the doctor that treated her. doctor calls me, pharmacy, and prescribes something comparable. justin picks up new prescription around 3pm and jillian gets dose of that med. around 6pm i get a call from the infectious disease doctor that treated her (who also told me they would call if anything needed to be changed, as they planned to research final culture results further). the strain of strep that jillian has is highly resistant to nearly all oral antibiotics. hindsight she wishes the doctors would've kept her for full round of iv antibiotics (10 days). bottom line is there is one oral antibiotic option that is available immediately (other is special order). that doctor calls in new prescription and jillian gets dose late that night. and of course she doesn't like this one because it tastes banana-ish. ::sigh::

i stayed home with jillian on monday and tuesday. with the frequent antibiotic switch i wanted to monitor her. and i don't really want her in daycare again yet. justin's dad offered to come down and stay with her during the day so i can get back in the office. very grateful.

so far she's doing well. she's VERY happy. she's seems to be having some stomach issues. i'll mention them to her doctor tomorrow but doubt that anything can be done as she needs to be on this med.

so there are a few things i need to mention/vent about...

the strep bug jillian has is title for this post, also called strep pneumo 19A. it's a superbug. one from which she should be protected as she's up to date on all her immunizations. like i said before, the docs suspect that she contracted some kind of evolved version, perhaps. however the vaccine still helped in that the infection did not move to her brain (meningitis) or blood (sepsis?), which is what docs were worried about since it went from minor ear infection to mastoiditis so fast. obviously we were dealing with heavy stuff here. so when we got home we did what any normal parents would do... we googled it. it's quite serious and i'm feeling very blessed at the moment.

for any of my medical field friends, please forgive me if i'm doing a hack job on all of this information. it was a lot to take in. i'm doing my best.

jillian's pediatrician is awesome. she was calling the hospital for updates and texting me to see how things were going the whole time we were in the hospital. obviously she had concerns too, as only one day prior this was a little ear infection in one ear.

i felt like we were on an episode of house md. twice a day this whole team of doctors would come in to consult with us, run through the timeline of events. "and this only started how many days ago?" "and this is her first ear infection?" "and she's current on her immunizations?" were frequently asked questions.

have you ever seen an infant get multiple shots, as is the case with immunizations? as a mom it's a little tough, but a necessity, and it's over before they really get started. jillian screams when they give each shot and when i pick her up she calms right down. she's mostly just a little miffed. ivs are just like that. times 1000. heartbreaking. they tried 3 and the vein blew each time. i didn't really think that was the nurse's fault, but it didn't stop me from wanting to jam the needle in her eye. and later i found out that the while a baby is screaming its blood pressure get so high that the veins blow. sorry about that needle in your eye, nurse. anyway, after about 20 minutes another guy comes in, calm as you please, baby screaming, he gets it in just like that. whew. you think the kid's blood pressure was high? i cried in the dark like a little girl after all that mess. jillian just passed out. poor baby was so exhausted by then.

okay, besides some douchebag nurse guy that came in the middle of the night to do vitals and took her temp rectally (never done before) while she was FINALLY sleeping peacefully and then left her blanket up ON her face and the side of her freaking crib DOWN... and besides the fact that they couldn't remember ONCE to bring her tylenol every 4 hours for pain (they offered her morphine for heaven's sake! can she just get some tylenol?)... yes besides those two complaints... texas children's is a fabulous hospital. they even provided my meals because i still give her breastmilk. very supportive. all of her doctors and nurses were wonderful (except previously mentioned douche)... always sweet to her, playful with her... they really seemed to like what they do.

any questions? if you'd like to know more about this superbug, google the title of this post.

just after she was admitted to a room...

after surgery...

the night she was released...

a little video from monday...

yesterday, eating some of grandma jeni's homemade bread...

8 mos old today...

2011-01-11T09:16:00.002-06:00

nekkidness. confirmed her first ear infection (a result of her second cold in 30 days... daycare?) yesterday after a rough weekend, complete with 104.4 fever and a few nights spent on the couch with mommy. she was so frustrated last night she was actually yelling. not quite screaming because that would probably have hurt. just loudly objecting to her discomfort, i suppose. once she finally settled in on me she slept well. hopefully, back to the crib tonight.

adapting...

2011-01-08T16:29:00.001-06:00

so jillian started crawling like this as soon as she hits the cold tile...

still eating those feet...

2011-01-03T08:43:00.001-06:00

merry christmas...

2010-12-25T08:18:00.001-06:00

jilli's first...

christmas eve 2010...

2010-12-24T23:40:00.001-06:00

jilli's first...

the faces this kid makes...

2010-12-16T15:42:00.000-06:00

lindsey... tell meredith this face reminded me of one she catches on kyle's face in pics a lot! LOL
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i am gonna be in so much trouble...

2010-12-12T17:58:00.000-06:00

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trying to stand up...

2010-12-12T17:05:00.000-06:00

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should we tell her...

2010-11-21T10:41:00.001-06:00

...that she's only 6 months? Or should we just start pushing her down?

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and she's crawling...

2010-11-20T20:14:00.003-06:00

so jillian started crawling today! the first time, she was on the floor playing while were eating breakfast. justin and i both saw her do it and talked right through it... and then we both said "did she just CRAWL?!" then she did it a few more times throughout the day, and by tonight she was a pro. i wonder if she'll remember she knows how to do it in the morning? and i got some on video! please excuse my obvious excitement...

hubby's funnies #?

2010-11-14T20:07:00.001-06:00

me: i wish my life were a musical... that's why i sing everything to jilli instead of just saying it... like singing 'you are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me haaaappppyyyy when skies are gray,' instead of just telling her.

hubby: oh... good... because i was worried that hamster wheel had derailed in your head.

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lovin on the kid...

2010-11-12T18:22:00.001-06:00

today was jillian's 6 month check-up. she weighed in at 18 lbs, 27 in.

got the ok to start finger foods. let the mess begin...

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applesauce faces...

2010-11-12T12:10:00.000-06:00

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jilli @ 6 mos...

2010-11-12T12:05:00.000-06:00

jillian turned 6 months yesterday!

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excessive cuteness...

2010-11-08T15:16:00.001-06:00

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no words...

2010-11-08T15:12:00.003-06:00

i posted this to my blog (and facebook) a couple of weeks ago but it didn't load to my blog correctly so i'm posting again. i'm sure nobody will mind... RIGHT?

halloween dress rehearsal and outtakes...

2010-11-03T14:21:00.000-05:00

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'sup yall?

2010-11-03T14:11:00.000-05:00

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practicing yoga or demanding more food...

2010-11-03T14:09:00.000-05:00

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happy halloween!

2010-10-31T10:42:00.000-05:00

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before bedtime...

2010-10-23T19:31:00.000-05:00

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waddayawant?

2010-10-22T11:44:00.000-05:00

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morning person...

2010-10-19T09:38:00.000-05:00

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having a grand time...

2010-10-19T09:34:00.000-05:00

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birth announcement...

2010-09-28T13:52:00.007-05:00

so jillian is about four and a half months now and i FINALLY got all the birth announcements out! i ordered and received them over a month ago, but clearly i'm having a little trouble staying on top of life. my friend tricia designed the announcements for me. she'll also be doing my christmas cards. if you like what you see and are interested in using her talent, contact her at tricianae(at)gmail(dot)com. her prices are fab, because you're only paying for the design. once design is finalized she sends the file to you by email and you take to your photo printer (walgreens, walmart, your desk printer, etc.).

other than never catching up on anything, everything's great! jillian is trucking right along... at her 4 month appointment she weighed in at just under 16 lbs., and she's 25.5 inches tall. she's gonna play football. she's been rolling around, scooting all over, and she's been up on her hands and knees testing out how that works. she gets up on all fours and then shoots all four limbs out at the same time. entertaining. she screams at her favorite toys. she started rice cereal a couple of weeks ago. and she's starting to experience the intermittant discomforts of teething. good times. and me? i'm just tired. i used to think i knew what the word tired meant. i'm thankful that i CAN sleep (recall the end of the pregnancy), but wish i had the time to do it. i'll leave yall with a little bit of baby to hold you over...

she's changing so fast...

2010-07-30T19:54:00.000-05:00

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she's here!

2010-05-13T19:25:00.000-05:00

and we're home!

Jillian Nicolai German
Born May 11, 2010 at 11:15 p.m.
9 lbs., 3 oz., 21 1/4 in.

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39 weeks...

2010-05-10T15:10:00.000-05:00

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lookit what we did...

2010-05-03T11:50:00.000-05:00

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38 weeks...

2010-04-30T17:21:00.000-05:00

are we there yet?

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36 weeks (100th post!)...

2010-04-20T19:56:00.008-05:00

that's right... it's my 100th blog post! so let's cover a few things here...

justin has JUST confirmed that our baby girl's name will be...

drumroll, please...

Jillian Nicolai German

...Nicolai is my maiden name, for the two of you that may not have known that. ;)

and then there's the 36 week picture. i figured it was time to start taking pics every 2 weeks now instead of every 4 weeks...

and, in case yall missed it on facebook, the update from my dr's appt this past monday...

cervix is soft, 1 cm dilated. baby's head is at -1 station. dr scheduled me for an ultrasound on monday before my next appt. i'll keep yall posted.

and THEN there's the baby's room. it's pretty well done, except for the wooden letters of her name that will eventually hang above the shelves you see...

i'm a sucker for "hand-made" so let me tell you...

that beautiful quilt hanging over the back of the crib was made by my talented high school friend, rachel!

and that super cute monkey sitting on the dresser, holding a light globe was made by my father! it's a touch lamp with a low-watt, 3-way bulb for those late night diaper changes!

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34 weeks and more...

2010-04-09T16:00:00.006-05:00

of course i'm posting at 35 weeks.

so here's glorious me at 34 weeks...

baby shower was on march 27th. it was better than i could've imagined. i was more excited about the people i got to see than the gifts received! though the gifts were rockin too! i don't have all the pictures yet, but here are a few to hold yall over...

all of the gifts are worth mentioning... and i likely do another post with gift pictures. but for now, here are pics of the baby's first sports fan gear!

our #1 team...

our #2 team...

a big thank you to everyone who made the day perfect! thank you all for your hard work, and thank you all for making the trip!

the ladies at the office also threw a shower for me this last week. it was fabulous! thanks to all of YOU ladies too! but i don't have any pictures. :/ in fact, i don't know if any were taken... but i'll find out!

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ultrasound at 30 weeks...

2010-03-05T08:48:00.003-06:00

our little pocket lint (still jillian, so far) is now weighing in at an estimated 3 lbs, 9oz. she should gain 1/4 to 1/2 lb per week until she's born. we've got 10 weeks until our due date!

28 weeks...

2010-02-26T08:44:00.000-06:00

well, technically it's 29 weeks. because I took it today. because i'm lazy.

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the new 'do...

2010-02-16T00:06:00.000-06:00

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hubby's funnies (#10)...

2010-02-11T13:35:00.002-06:00

last weekend we attended a friend's superbowl party. i told justin early in the week and i would make brownies to take over there. when it came time to make the brownies, i announced what i was about to do. he's all "really? i thought she said we didn't need to bring anything." ::sigh:: then i'm all "we don't, but i'm gonna. and i TOLD you i was gonna earlier in the week." a round of "no you didn't, yes i did" ensues. then he says "well then i just don't remember it. you say a lot, you know. it's like you're streaming at cable modem speeds, but i'm only receiving in dial-up."

lol

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an update...

2010-02-02T15:30:00.005-06:00

i'm just gonna kind of ramble on here this post...

it seems like i only post about pregnancy crap now. but really that's what my life is all about right now.

i haven't been blogging much because i feel like all i'll do is complain, and that color doesn't look good on me.

but if i'm gonna fill yall in, you're gonna have to deal with it.

WARNING: if there are some things you'd rather not know about me or pregnancy, stop reading now.

okay i warned you.

let's get the complaints out of the way...
i miss sleep. i think i'm grieving. because i know i'll never get it back. i miss being chunky ole sondra with acceptable skin and manageable hair. i miss being able to put my own socks on. i miss dry underwear. my crotch hurts. really. it's not horrible or unbearable, but it's definitely a NEW feeling. there's a lot of "new" in pregnancy.

and because i really do try to be positive...
i'm still very excited to be pregnant. i feel very blessed to be this fortunate. we nailed it on the first try. i hear that only happens when you're NOT trying. ::chuckle, snort:: let's see... i don't miss zippers. the other day as i left the restroom, i wondered briefly if i'd left my zipper down as i didn't remember zipping up (rightly so). and i was all... oh, hey, how funny, i haven't worried about that in months! i can still shave. kind of. my back doesn't hurt. and i very rarely have reflux. all good. the hubs is being super sweet. probably because i waddle when i think he's not looking. so i guess maybe he is looking. no other explanation. except that i'm carrying his kid. i guess that could be it.

and about baby girl's name...
i am proud to say that i've turned it over to the hubs. he will be naming her. only way to say it is i'm too close to the issue and i'm stressing about it. and i'm so emotional i can hardly stand it. anyway there's just no reason to be stressed about it. over the years i've learned to lean on my husband's strengths... one of which is that he is a very stress free individual. he doesn't let much really get him too worked up. so i'm leaning on him here. he knows which names i like and how i feel about other ones. i trust him to choose a name we will both love... even if i only love it because he picked it. so, today, her name is Jillian, which we actually decided on many years ago! but obviously he reserves the right to change it as many times as he wants before she's born.

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24 weeks...

2010-01-30T21:47:00.000-06:00

here's the 24 week picture folks. except it was taken at 25 weeks. you know how it is. not much else at the moment. gotta get to bed... it's well past my bedtime.

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quick update...

2010-01-11T09:18:00.003-06:00

hey yall... just a quick baby update.

i had been feeling the baby move sporadically since the week of the "gender ultrasound". now i've been feeling her move every day for the last week. i'm enjoying it. because it doesn't hurt. yet.

ever since i felt her kick my hand a few nights ago, i had been putting justin's hand on my stomach for a few minutes to see if she'd kick while his hand was there so he could feel it. then yesterday he finally felt her move! but i don't think he was as psyched as i was. he's always all "sondra i believe she's in there." ::sigh::

we're still back and forth on names. we both liked Gwyneth. and i still do like the name. but sometimes it just doesn't feel right. i've only told a few people my absolute favorite name... Babette. some like it, some hate it, most just laugh. but i love it. justin and i are still discussing it. i think i'm wearing him down. ;) bottom line: i'm not dropping that name off just because some people don't like it. i welcome people's opinions (all yall's included), but it's not going to change mine. name your own damn babies. we'll name ours. thankyouverymuch.

wow, i almost went back and deleted that last part because it's seems a little mean-ish. but i'm not, because i'm feeling a little mean-ish. it's monday. and i'm moody. and i'd rather be at home in bed. maybe i should've waited to post this until friday... :/

20 weeks...

2009-12-29T08:46:00.002-06:00

the halfway point! i was actually 20 weeks on christmas day. of course i forgot to take a picture that day. so this one, taken yesterday will have to do.

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it's a girl...

2009-12-22T10:01:00.008-06:00

but most of you already know that.

yes, we were going to wait until christmas. my appointment was scheduled for 12/23. and then i started going crazy. what if the baby doesn't cooperate? what if the doctor's office cancels? am i putting to much emphasis and pressure on finding out the gender? i decided that i was, and that i wanted to know now. so early last week i called and rescheduled for friday. we told everyone right away. and i'm glad we did. it wasn't the grand discovery i was planning, but that worked out for the best... the moment was there and over before we knew it!

so the tech checks out all the organs... look, measure, look, measure... and then she tells us it looks like a girl. i'm all "really?" she does some more measurements... tells us she appears to weigh about 10 oz. and then i ask her to check the gender again... i was so sure it was a boy! lol she says, "uh, still looks like a girl." and so there ya have it folks.

i think she's laughing at me in the photo above. besides really thinking it was a boy, i had to wrap my mind around actually having a girl! it scares me. because girls have vaginas. i wonder if we could sew that junk closed in utero... and when she's born, be all "gee honey, you were born that way, let's not mess with God's plan." will that level of blasphemy get me a stint in hell? if so, is it worth that piece of mind? i say yes.

anyway, i'm kind of over that feeling... but, for the sake of honesty, those were my initial thoughts. fear. but shouldn't i have the same fears about a boy? about raising a gentleman and teaching him about responsibility? welcome to my mind.

onward...
when we found out we were pregnant we went to target and i picked up a brown sock monkey for the baby. so when we found out we're having a girl, we went to babiesrus to pick something out to commemorate. we ended up with this cute little washable birthday hat (i hate pink, but it's the only color they had). and please stop counting my chins... show a little respect for the knocked-up, would ya?

something our little girl can wear every year (if she wants to) for her birthday. we can tell her it's what we got the day we found out we were having a girl... or we can tell our son it's what we got the day we THOUGHT we were having a girl...

i thought i had so much more to post, but i'm drawing a blank...

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hubby's funnies (#9)...

2009-12-09T20:48:00.003-06:00

so we're watching glee and the dog is restless, pacing back and forth... stopping in front of me every once in a while to whine. the dog is not allowed on the living room furniture, except on the rare occassion that i've been sick and wanted my puppy (a grand total of 3 times). the hubs thinks the dog is trying to tell me he wants up on the ottoman to be near me...

hubby: he so wants up there with you.

me: yeah that's not gonna happen. he doesn't get to come up here just because he wants to.

hubby: what if he's dying and wants to be by you?

me: then he's definitely not getting on the furniture! you know what happens when you die? poop... comes out of... your butt.

hubby: i can't believe your going to be a mother...

i laughed... loud.

[note: the poop quote is from the movie 'the goods' which we just watched last night.]

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an update...

2009-12-07T11:55:00.003-06:00

where to start?

um, baby stuff... i had a prenatal appointment last monday. i thought the appointment was on tuesday. thank goodness it wasn't one where i have to undress because i totally did not shave my legs! thought i could do it that night. ::sigh:: nuchal translucency results were in... all is well... lower than standard risk of down syndrome and that other trisomy (13? 18?). they drew blood to test for spina bifida and a few days later i got the result... negative. so all is well! just need to grow me a baby! they advised me that they have the swine flu vaccine, but they only have enough to vaccinate women delivering thru febuary. i'm due in may. as i'm considered a higher risk (asthma), and a few women have declined the vaccination, she's going to try to get me in sooner for the vaccine. i'll be calling this week to schedule an appointment.

me... i turned 31 last thursday. happy birthday to me. i went to austin to visit beth and cass. cass drove down from arlington. we didn't do anything spectacular but i had a fabulous time. but i admittedly missed my husband more than i ever remember missing him. it snowed for about 20 minutes on friday while i was in austin. it snowed the whole freaking day in houston! of course.

i can't think of anything else at the moment...

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16 weeks...

2009-11-30T12:05:00.004-06:00

so there it is. the 16 week photo. the four month mark. that was my best attempt at a smile.

it's been a long week. and rougher weekend than we had anticipated.

monday night we went to the texans vs titans game. i don't want to discuss it. or yesterday's game for that matter.

we headed for tyler late tuesday morning. we were suppose to have breakfast with jojo and clan, but i couldn't pick up a prescription until later in the morning so we had to cancel. :(

the week was filled with family. it was fun, but not at all as relaxing as i thought it would be. it never is though. why is that? because it's not your own bed you sleep in at night? that's all i can come up with. because we didn't actually DO anything eventful. in fact, i napped. a lot.

we came home on friday. took the photo above. then headed out for some christmas lights. still lots of people out and about. lights overpriced. none purchased.

saturday went looking for lights again. all overpriced. i'll just wait until after christmas as usual. spent the rest of the day pulling weeds and old mulch out of the front flower bed. justin dug out the crepe myrtle i dislike. and planted my foxtail palm i've managed to keep alive since spring (i know you're as surprised as i am). houston garden center has their 70% off sale now, so we picked up a windmill palm to also plant in the flower bed. i'm not sure if there really is a such thing as a windmill palm, or if the guy we asked was just screwing with us. there was no tag on it. i will google later.

sunday we put the 12 foot "frosty" up in the yard. justin put the lights on the roof. i put the tree up and decorated it. and then i got a horrible headache and vomited. twice.

which brings us to today. work. nothing new.

and later this week i'm going to see 2 of my besties. austin here i come. that's kind of a warning.

boy or girl...

2009-11-09T13:16:00.003-06:00

everybody is asking if we know what it is yet or if we plan to find out.

no, we do not know what it is yet. you typically find out the gender at the 20 week anatomy scan (assuming baby cooperates). the last ultrasound was at 13 weeks. it's still too soon to tell for sure. i've heard we could've asked for a guess. but i don't want a guess. i want to know.

which brings me to the next question...

yes, we plan to find out. i had originally wanted to be surprised. everything on my registries is gender-neutral (because i'm a preparer). what better time to be surprised than when we don't already have a million of one type of clothes, as would happen with a second child?! but justin would really like to know.

i'm going to ramble on for a bit here, because i know all of you probably have an opinion.

we could have decided that justin would know, and i would not. but justin would not be able to breathe a word to a single soul. which i know he's certainly capable of handling. but even he could slip up and say he or her to me... and if i'd made it all the way to like 8 months and he slipped, i'd be devastated.

but justin made a good point... i can't wait for anything. and he's right. if i don't have to wait for it, i'm not gonna.

and of course i thought well why can't justin just do this for me? but i decided i'm just not going to push on the issue. he's not carrying the kid. so anything i can do to facilitate baby/daddy bonding comes before me getting my way. again. ;)

so here's the plan...
i will be 20 weeks on christmas day. anytime that week is acceptable. i called today to schedule the appointment... wednesday, december 23rd. and since it's so close to christmas, we've decided to ask the technician to write down the gender on a piece of paper and put it in an envelope. and we will open it on christmas day. the family gets together on christmas eve. but christmas day is just the two of us. it will be awesome. assuming i can wait until christmas morning...

nuchal translucency...

2009-11-09T09:35:00.007-06:00

the things i'm learning. one of which is that no two ultrasound techs are the same.

here are the ultrasound pics... all are profile views... heartbeat is 161 bpm... and we got to see the baby swallowing (neat).

the baby was obviously big enough to take the measurements this time. and it was crazy active... bouncing all over the place! they measured the fluid in the baby's neck, squeezed as much blood as possible out of my finger tip, and weighed me. all those things plus age go into calculating the baby's risk for down syndrome, other trisomies, and other chromosomal abnormalities. i think. should know our "risk" within 10 business days. we're confident that all is fine. we struggled with whether or not to do the screening. but most people we talked with said they weren't all that worried about it, they just did the screening because you get another ultrasound. justin was totally on board with that.

12 weeks...

2009-11-02T11:20:00.003-06:00

i figured 12 weeks would be a good time to start these pictures. but let me be very clear here... the only "belly" you're seeing is the one that's been there the whole time, but that i can no longer suck in. in case you were wondering.

i'll post a new one every 4 weeks... until i'm a hot air balloon... then every 2 weeks, i guess.

.

cousins...

2009-10-28T13:37:00.003-05:00

my cousin megan got married just a couple of weeks ago! here are 2 pics my dad snapped of the cousins...

i flipped the pic of the boys so each of our respective brothers would be underneath us. ocd? a little.

okay, a lot.

.

our kid totally looks like me...

2009-10-27T05:58:00.005-05:00

...don't you think?

except for in this one... this one is all justin.

we got to hear the heartbeat this time... a healthy 163 beats per minute. and they turned the setting to some thermal detecting thingee... and we got to see the blood flow! you can see it go down the umbilical cord, into and all around baby, and back up the umbilical cord. probably the coolest thing to ever see besides the baby. and when, on the screen, we saw the alien face turn toward us and wave at us. for real. it was very sci fi.

unfortunately they weren't able to do the screening because the kid is a couple of millimeters short. yes, i'm serious. i have to go back... scheduled for next friday 11/6. so i'll have some more baby pics!

.

things that make you go hmm...

2009-10-26T12:09:00.004-05:00

bloomingdales.com, $200:

thankfully, they are no longer available. or i might have ordered some. because i never pass up an opportunity to spend ridiculous amounts of money on something that will inevitably end up contaminated with dog poo (among other things... that's my luck).

besides... i prefer the more trendy, flip-flops and legwarmers.

um, don't you?

.

hormones...

2009-10-26T09:30:00.003-05:00

...should be illegal.

we took the baby to it's first texans game yesterday! as if it had a choice. it was awesome. i wish i'd remembered to get a picture. story of my life.

we had a little incident. i cried. in front of the whole stadium. because i didn't have cash for ice cream. not that the whole stadium noticed. i won't go into details, except to say that the situation was rectified. thank you cody.

how.embarrassing.

and then i woke up crying from a dream in the middle of the night.

...the hell?

anyway.

i can certainly deal with the hormones as long as i don't get sick. things have gone quite nicely as far as sickness is concerned. i've had two bad days/nights. i consider myself lucky.

we're going to the monday night game next month. this kid is so spoiled already. i didn't go to my first game until i was 28... this kid will have attended 2 games while only in utero!

that's it for now, i guess. my next prenatal appt is tomorrow. they do a complete physical at this one. but nothing exciting. i have a doctor's appt today to perform the nuchal translucency something or other. it consists of an ultrasound so they can measure the amount of fluid at the base of the baby's neck, and they draw my blood. it's to test whether or not the baby is at an increased risk for down syndrome, spina bifida, and certain other things. i'm sure all will be well. we're pretty positive people like that.

but i believe i'll get a copy of the ultrasound pics! if so, i'll definitely post them.

on 10 years of marriage...

2009-10-16T06:00:00.015-05:00

justin and i have been married for 10 blissful years.

okay, so for the sake of honesty, not all 10 of them were bliss... but they are now... and i can tell you that, for me, it worth having to experience those anguishing moments of the past to be where we are today, which is unbelievably happy...

and pregnant! we are 10 weeks on our 10th wedding anniversary!

i've been tweaking this post for last couple of months. it's a list of ten reasons i fall in love with my husband over and over again... 10 years, 10 reasons. get it?

no it did not take me months to come up with 10, but rather to narrow it down to 10! really!

i had originally planned to slip this list into his pocket or a lunch bag today, or maybe tape it to the shower door this morning. but after further internal debate, i decided to post it on my blog for all to see. i want EVERYONE to know how special my guy is!

so here goes...

1) he helps with so much of the housework, not just dishes or vacuuming, ALL of it. he doesn't complain, he doesn't use it against me at a later date, and he never makes me feel quilty... but i'm pretty good at that myself.

2) he cares... knows just what i need, when i need it. he'll stop me midway through something or en route to somewhere in the house because i have that look... the one that says "i need a hug". he tells me i'm beautiful at the exact moment i need to hear it. you know, like when i'm standing (probably naked) in front of the bathroom mirror wondering which body parts to tackle at the gym first because they all appear beyond repair.

3) he's there for me. when ever. where ever. he defends me. even when i might be wrong. but, really, how often is that?

4) he makes me laugh. and he never stops trying! especially now that he gets his own commentary on my blog when he's successful!

5) he still likes to play video games. for hours. like a kid. ...i love guitar hero. he doesn't. but he still plays it with me. and it makes me feel special.

6) he's thoughtful, considerate, and forgiving. he never intentionally says anything to hurt me... because he knows that while hurtful words usually have little affect on me, they are oh so painful when coming from him. and he forgives me whenever i'm hurtful to him... because, really, how good is any marriage without a little hypocrisy, right?

7) he's a car guy. still. no matter how much i tried to change him (oh how i tried). now i'm thankful that he wants to share his passion with me.

8) he is so unbelievably understanding of all things ME. tolerant is probably a more suitable word in most cases. he gets me. not "he gets me" (which he does), but "he gets me". he gets my sarcasm, my wit, my addictive personality, my spontaneity, my love/hate relationship with freckles, my woody wood pecker laugh... and he loves me anyway.

9) he's a gentleman. he pumps my gas. always. because gas stations are dirty. and he opens doors for me. most of the time.

10) he adores me. and he shows it. in public.

11) he's my baby-daddy! (okay, so that's 11... whatev.) and since i've been pregnant he's giving more than i could've imagined in every aspect of our lives.

...and so there they are, in no particular order. and even after all that mush, he's still all man. he mows the lawn, changes the oil, kills bugs, is content with a farmers tan, and insists on wearing work boots to work and sneakers everywhere else no matter how many people tell him it's acceptable for men to wear sandals too. ::sigh::

justin...

you are so much more to me than i could fit into this short list.

and i would've made it longer, but for the fear that the sickening sweetness dripping from this post might make the masses *puke*.

i don't think i could possibly love you any more than i do, and yet every day i feel i love you more than the last.

i love life with you and want to thank you for bringing me along for the ride...

happy anniversary, snuggy! xo -s

some humor...

2009-10-14T09:46:00.002-05:00

somebody e-mailed this to me not too long ago. been meaning to post it. i think it's blogworthy...

I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.

Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There were no internet or message boards or FAQs. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

There is a great need for sarcasm font.

I think everyone has a movie that they love so much it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

Was learning cursive really necessary?

I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".

How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it... thanks Mario Kart.

MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

Bad decisions make good stories.

Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from; this shouldn't be a problem....

You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

"Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'

While watching the Olympics, I find myself cheering equally for China and USA . No, I am not of Chinese descent, but I am fairly certain that when Chinese athletes don't win, they are executed.

I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Darnit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...

As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time... every time...

It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with liquor than with "Kay".

The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like a fat bastard before dinner.

The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.

Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm...Goonies"

What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

I think that if, years down the road when I'm trying to have a kid, I find out that I'm sterile, most of my disappointment will stem from the fact that I was not aware of my condition in college.

bits n pieces...

2009-10-01T10:29:00.004-05:00

i'm sorry this information is coming in bits and pieces. pregnancy is a whole new world for me!

here are the questions people keep asking...

how far along are you?
8 weeks, tomorrow.

when are you due?
may 14, 2010

how long have you known?
since i was 4 weeks (sep 4).

why did you wait so long to tell us?
because i'm a superstitious nutcase. i wanted to get confirmation from my dr that that all was well, and that i am in fact pregnant!

who did you tell first?
um, justin. then ALL of the siblings and parents.

are you sick yet?
um, not so much. i'm pretty sure all of you who have been pregnant are totally jealous... but no, i'm not sick... and yes, it's fabulous. ;)

well then how ARE you feeling?
fine. mostly. tired immediately and without warning. hungry immediately and without warning. i'd say that's the only time i've even felt somewhat sick... when i hadn't eaten for some hours. peeing... all.the.time. among other things... but mostly... fine.

how is justin feeling?
i think he has morning sickness.

did i miss anything? if you'd like to know anything else, i'm happy to share. you know i'm a talker. ask in the comments section and i'll answer you there.

pocket lint...

2009-09-30T08:09:00.003-05:00

first appointment was yesterday... which why all of you now know the news! we've known since september 4th. you feel cheated, don't ya? ;)

in additional to getting a cool picture of some uterine lint, we got to see its heart beating too. it.was.amazing.

i told yall i'd have more interesting posts soon. :)

wordless wednesday (except it's tuesday)...

2009-09-29T17:14:00.000-05:00

game day...

2009-09-27T13:02:00.000-05:00

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

i can look silly all on my own...

2009-09-23T15:57:00.002-05:00

thankyouverymuch.

forgot to mention this little tidbit...

a couple of weeks ago hubs and i went to saltgrass steakhouse for dinner. yes i'm totally bragging.

it was a sunday. i'd been pretty lazy all day. in fact i didn't even get dressed. hubs makes the suggestion for dinner. i'm game. i shower... don't want to offend anybody. i rummage through the clean clothes in the basket for some jeans. score. we leave (obviously fully clothed... it isn't one of those stories).

restaurant is busy but we're seated quickly. we leave. i get in the truck. and from somewhere on my person falls a fabric softener sheet. justin insists it came out of my pants leg. but i didn't feel it so i'm confident he's just trying to make me feel better. so where was it really? i'll never know! isn't that fabulous? at least it wasn't toilet paper... yet. ::sigh::

randomness...

2009-09-23T06:16:00.007-05:00

i promised that my next post would be more interesting.

and i lied.

maybe next time.

i've been meaning to blog more about my garage sale finds. last time i got a little table and big floor vase for the nook in my dining room that previously had nothing in it.

see?

oh you don't see a picture? yeah that's because i didn't save it after i took it.

my bad. i'll try to remedy that soon.

but i did find this cute little tea set! it now adorns my dining table.

how adorable is that?

again, i good photographer would have cleaned the table before snapping the shot... or photoshopped that crap outta there!

i digress...

oh yeah. my dad. i always post "hubby's funnies" but my dad is usually pretty entertaining too.

see, i sent him the following picture, subject line: should i water it?

and he sent an e-mail back that said: yes. definitely. a lot. soak it. send pictures.

yeah.

that's all for now.

too busy to blog...

2009-09-17T14:31:00.002-05:00

it's one of those busy months for us. will n sarah came to visit labor day weekend. girls night was suppose to be last friday but i cancelled it to free up some time. bunco night was last saturday. SO much fun. if you're not a part of a group i highly recommend it. if you can't find a group to join, start your own! my cousin megan may be picking up her piano this weekend. and it's time for my friend jamie's baby shower too. very exciting! then next weekend is another CLU exam (retirement planning), plus my nephews' and niece's birthday party. and in between all that i have to work, study, and sleep. all that, just to say... sorry for the lack of posts, but i'm busy! but stick around... my next post will be much more interesting... i promise. :)

guest room...

2009-07-24T15:13:00.003-05:00

here's the pics of the guest room now. it's a little cramped but it's much more cozy-feeling. the super nice mattress we just bought last year is in there now too. that's how much i love yall. now come visit so you can sleep on it!

the dog is a little confused about the switch. i don't think he understands why we moved his bed so far away from us.

new bedroom...

2009-07-22T10:35:00.007-05:00

i could totally just post the pictures. but since i love to talk, you get a story too!

when the hubster and i were married, we used some of the gift money to buy a new pine bed. we kept using my grandmother's old dresser and we kept our two year old mattress.

um, because we were broke.

and now, 10 years later, we've purchased our first matching bedroom set! we upgraded to king because 1) we have the room now and 2) we need the room now (we're not as small as we once were)!

drumroll, please...

the old furniture (and the fabulous mattress we bought last year) are in the guest room now. i'll post pics of that setup later this week. maybe.

hubby's funnies (#8)...

2009-07-09T08:27:00.002-05:00

yesterday, hubby dropped some giant steel tube (pipe?) on his foot at work. he insists that he's fine. i've learned that i'll have to wait until we have kids to finally have some booboos to fix, because he's not having any of it.

anyway...

so it's dinnertime and i haven't seen the wound yet (because if he's pretending to be macho, then i'm pretending i don't care). i'm already at the table (you know me). as he sits down he must've bumped that foot on the table leg. he gasps through his clenched teeth, and in all seriousness says, "i think the rigor mortis is setting in..."

i laughed.

we're back!

2009-06-10T10:25:00.005-05:00

okay so we've been back for over a week. don't look at me like that... you know how it is getting back into the swing of things!

so canyon lake was beautiful! but we never actually got in the water!

here's what we did do (but not necessarily in this order)...

* the pool. grilled some food and hung out.

* san antonio. saw the alamo, strolled the river walk, ate at "dick's" (lindsey you would be at home there), took a river boat tour, paid for overpriced tickets to ripley's believe it or not to escape a sudden downpour.

* san antonio. again. to spend the day at seaworld.

* schlitterbahn.

* san marcos. the guys went to the movie theater to see the new terminator movie. they dropped us off at the tanger outlet shopping mall. they should really call it the tanger outlet shopping city. no really. we couldn't even see where it ended. we were defeated by a mall. i'm pretty sure that's the most embarrassing thing to happen to a woman. okay i can think of a few things worse, but you get the point.

* san antonio. again. went to a drive-thru wildlife park. it sucked. the animals weren't up for cooperating, other drivers in the park were very inconsiderate, and it really felt more like a waste by time we were out of there. the only excitement was a phishing phone call that my brother got on his cellphone from the "fbi" telling him that his debit card had been cancelled and he needed to input his card number immediately, blah, blah, blah. for those of yall in east texas, sarah said the drive-thru wildlife park in rusk is way better. also, i can tell you that the tiger refuge in east texas is also better than this place. also while we were there, we took this crazy tour of the natural bridge caverns. it.was.awesome. so humid though. we were soaked at the end. 96 degrees felt cool when we exited. seriously.

i feel like i might be forgetting something...

unfortunately most of the pics are on sarah n will's camera and i don't anticipate getting them until next month. at which time, i will share them with you. maybe. only the ones where i don't look too fat. yeah.

but i do have some better close-ups of the deer around the condo. they were just so close!

and so, for your viewing pleasure (click on them to enlarge)...

it's bambi!

2009-05-24T07:44:00.003-05:00

okay so we arrived here in hill country around 4:30pm to check-in. after about an hour wait we were assigned a condo... and it was so worth the wait. we got upgraded to their newly renovated presidential units! i plan to take some pics of our unit when the hubster wakes up and the bed is made. and, aside from being in a condo beneath the noisiest ~~rednecks~~ fellow vacationers ever AND our fridge being broken, it is pure bliss. it's so stinkin cozy here! we ate out at a local restaurant last night that was not that spectacular, but it's not like houston where food choices are endless, so you eat it and you like it! then on our way back to the condo from dinner, we took a detour to see if we could get a glimpse of the many deer in the area (that will n sarah have witnessed on past visits). sure enough they were out wandering and i got to snap a few shots of them with two babies! they were only about 20ft away, but the pic is still grainy from the zoom. anyway, here they are in all their beautifully natural glory...

you may want to click on the photo to make it bigger so you can see all their cuteness.

more later yall...

hill country or bust!

2009-05-22T16:30:00.001-05:00

we are officially on vacation!

i'm so excited! i don't even know how i'll sleep tonight!

tonight i'll finish packing, clean the house (because who doesn't like to come home to a clean house?), and we'll be all set!

tomorrow morning we are bound for hill country! here is where we'll be staying. we'll be in a lodge unit, in case you're wondering. we is me, the hubster, my baby bro (will), and his wife (sarah).

shout out to sarah's parents, joni n brad: i have no idea if yall even read my blog, but thanks for giving us the hook-up on this sweet setup!

hey i also believe justin is actually planning to take some pics on this trip... i know, i know, you'll believe it when you see it, right?

i'll post as time allows so you all can ~~begrudge~~ wish you were there with me!

hubby's funnies (#7)...

2009-05-20T12:35:00.004-05:00

i can't quite recall the actual event that sparked the following dialogue. something about him not paying attention to me when i'm talking. i talk. i can't help it. and if my sentence is longer than one syllable, he zones. he can't help it. so let's enter mid-conversation at the dinner table...

him: i totally pay attention to you!

me (in a not-at-all whiney voice): but not in public! you never pay attention to me in public!

him: i do too pay attention to you in public! you get more public attention than the president!

last weekend in pictures...

2009-04-29T15:41:00.004-05:00

i planted these

and mowed this

and this too

which got me this

because i didn't use this

the end.

maybe next weekend i'll get around to planting this (no i cannot see any dead plants in close proximity, consider having your eyes checked soon)

in here

also... i saw this a few months ago as i backed out of my garage, and have been meaning to post it here for your viewing enjoyment. the picture doesn't quite do it justice, but i assure you it was breathtaking.

p.s. i went to the ymca monday, tuesday (despite this

flooding in the area, photo taken from the nice high seat in my truck), AND today!

so THAT makes it official, right?

an update on "thrifty failed me"...

2009-04-28T08:29:00.003-05:00

if you haven't read the post i refer to above, scroll down a couple of posts and do it! i thought yall might this little update...

so one of my mothers-in-law, jeni (hubby's stepmom), shared the following information with me after laughing maniacally at the "thrifty failed me" post...

jeni: 1) never put wood in the dishwasher!

me: oops.

jeni: 2) most wooden bowls back in the day were used specifically for caesar salad. the dressing was made in the bowl first, and the lettuce was tossed in later. originally, most caesar dressings were made with anchovies... they were smashed up (minced is probably the word she used but i like smashed up) in the bowl in the dressing prep.

me: oooh. ew.

two things...

2009-04-23T09:30:00.003-05:00

1) i forgot to tell yall that i passed the exam i took a few weeks ago! the course was "Financial Planning for Business Owners and Professionals" ...the 5th of 8 courses required to achieve a CLU (Chartered Life Underwriter) designation. just 3 more courses/exams and i'll be Sondra German, CLU. yes, envy me.

2) i did it! i finally DID it! i left my house around 5:15 this morning and headed for the YMCA. i have officially started my morning workout routine! okay, maybe i have to do it more than once to call it "official" but it's my blog so go with it... this is the first day of the rest of my life! <\dramatic tone>

lessons learned...

2009-04-17T13:36:00.002-05:00

some people have to learn from their own experiences. i am one of those. for the rest of you, the ones that will take advice from others who've "been there", i give you today's lesson:

do not begin taking your new fiber supplement until friday evening...

if you know, you're laughing. if you don't, you will.

thrifty failed me...

2009-04-17T11:20:00.003-05:00

so i try to be thrifty. when my sister-in-law (soulmate) comes to town we hit as many garage sales as we can the very next morning. last weekend we stumbled on this little consignment shop right in the middle of a neighborhood (zoning is a little quirky in the area) that had only opened a week ago! the prices are mostly NOT firm, so i managed to negotiate my total from $50 down to $35 (with minimal effort on my part). then we hit the goodwill store... i didn't find anything but sarah found some fab jeans and brand new shoes. and the salvation army store... don't remember what sarah found, but i found a pair of lightly-worn jeans (that actually fit!) for $4, and a set of those old school wooden bowls (with which i fell in love) for $1. which is where my story turns sour... see, i was slightly worried about purchasing wooden bowls, but i figured if they passed the "sniff test" they were worth the $1 i was gambling. ::sniff, sniff:: great, they smelled like wood. i figured we could be friends. i went home, showed hubby, who wasn't all that thrilled because apparently he has some "issue" with buying used dishes. whatev. i threw them in the sink knowing they'd make their way to the dishwasher by morning. except that they got wet while they were in the sink. and they started to kind of smell... bad. so i threw them in the dishwasher knowing that scalding water would kill anything (our hot water heater is turned up a little hotter than normal). hubby came home from work the next day and started the dishwasher while i was on my way home. i entered the house via the door in the kitchen and nearly threw up in my mouth. i said "UGH! honey what is that SMELL?" apparently that hot water wasn't killing... it was mutating! the entire kitchen smelled like dead fish! we don't even COOK fish in the house because i hate that effing smell! he said "probably those bowls you bought!" so we ended this little melodrama by stopping the dishwasher mid-wash and tossing the dead fi - i mean bowls in a trash bag all their own. so i probably should've know better than to buy wooden bowls that were used... you never know how the previous person cared for them. but they passed the "sniff test"!

marley & me: a movie review...

2009-04-13T13:24:00.003-05:00

only the 2nd movie i've added to the list of flicks that made me sob out loud. i hate crying over movies... seems so pointless to me. there are millions of other things i could be crying over, like the news, for example. but there are always a few that make me tear up a little... usually because i wasn't expecting it. but i knew what was gonna happen, and i still cried nearly uncontrollably while holding my dog. and i did it front of my husband. balls.

just so you know, my husband never laughs at me for crying over a movie. isn't that super sweet? probably saves it for his coworkers. smart man.

and, in case you're wondering about the other movie on the list... it's "fried green tomatoes". best.movie.ever. "secret's in the sauce!"

i want a roomba!

2009-04-06T15:53:00.003-05:00

click HERE for a video and more info... of course, i HAVE to have one!

LINDSEY...

2009-04-02T11:19:00.004-05:00

that's right, girlfriend... you get your very own post on my blog today!

HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY!

xo -s

i suspect foul play...

2009-03-30T11:16:00.002-05:00

i know it's a little weird (read as "creepy") but i had to get a picture of this to share with yall.

in case you can't tell, that is a lizard impaled on a newly-formed branch of my baby oak tree.

seriously... what are the odds?!

proud aunt...

2009-03-25T14:18:00.002-05:00

here's a video of one of my nieces and nephews. my blog is public so i'm withholding names/info for privacy. i think they are so stinking talented (i'm bias, i know). enjoy!

hubby's funnies (#6)...

2009-03-18T11:07:00.002-05:00

you've probably noted my previous complaints regarding hubby's one-syllable responses, namely to questions i send him via text message.

today i sent a text message that contained only a statement, and to my surprise, i received a response! (my lucky day, i know.)

me: fyi... we're having chicken strips and velveeta shells n cheese for dinner.
hubby: mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

so, either he's on a roll, or i'm just easily amused lately... because i laughed.

hubby's funnies (#5)...

2009-03-16T10:55:00.002-05:00

*please excuse the language*

this weekend was jam-packed, my friends. preparing for a surprise party, awaiting someone's flight arrival that had been delayed overnight, awaiting other family members driving in, hosting the surprise party, shopping, family birthday dinner, more shopping.

while preparing my house for the aforementioned barrage of guests...
me: geez, both bathrooms are almost out of toilet paper again. didn't we just buy a 12-pk like two weeks ago?
hubby: well we've had a pretty shitty month...

took me a split second to process it, but then i laughed.

on nutella...

2009-03-03T08:49:00.002-06:00

i went to ihop for breakfast last weekend. i browsed the menu, considering my options... when out of nowhere, in big BOLD print, "nutella crepes" jumps off the page! oh, did i ever indulge... they.were.divine.

nutella crepes: swedish crepes slathered with nutella, sliced bananas, folded up and topped with strawberries.

i encourage each and every one of you to try this heavenly creation. but mainly you lindsey... i don't even have words... just "mmmmmmm".