Baby Stories

I'm totally taking a cue from my favorite mother blogger.  She just reminded me of all the colorful "baby stories" we have had.  Hers were pretty chaotic and I was THERE for most of them.  Funny, how we just rolled with it at the time. Reading back over it leaves me shaking my head.  In an attempt to try to just relax and enjoy what will likely be the last 37 days of me EVER being pregnant, I decided to do a little recap of my previous two baby stories.  In comparison, this has the potential to be the most serene birth and homecoming of any I've had...  Besides the logistics of getting my Mother here in time and when I need her and boy do I NEED her!  This child will be born under the care of just ONE OBGYN, she'll have a father present and (barring accidents) in one piece.  She has a permanent home and a nursery too.  And I thought we were lucky, she's pretty lucky too!  Here's a look at our previous baby stories:

Jackson

We had bought our first home in November.  We purchased our first "family vehicle" in March.  We were preparing to start a family when April rolls around and we find out we are expecting.  Fast forward to September, I was about 5 months pregnant when the Army throws us a curveball of a TDY.  Temporary Duty Move for about 9 months to South Alabama.  It was assigned as a TDY and return meaning we would come back.  This meant leaving my brand new house and any hope of a nursery to move into temporary housing in Alabama.  So I transfered ALL my medical care to south Alabama.  I was due December 23.  Yes, that close to Christmas.  All of our families live in Alabama, just 6 hours to the North.  This particular post shuts down for 2 weeks at Christmas so no training would be going on during that time.  We decided I would transfer doctors again and actually have the baby in north Alabama where we would have family help.  I would have to stay up there after Thanksgiving but that would give Jason time to finish his schooling and still get there for the birth.  It was all set and we were making the best out of our tiny duplex and makeshift furniture. We left most of our things in North Carolina in the house we would return to.  We had the opportunity to attend a few college football games being so close and those were fun, besides my bulging belly.  Before one of the games, Jason was engaging in some hand to hand combat in the wee hours of the morning.  He and his best friend possibly took it a bit too seriously and around 6am, I woke up to Jason limping into the bedroom...ON CRUTCHES.  Here I am well into my 3rd trimester and he has a broken leg?  We find out later that week, it's not only broken but needs surgery and soon.  On my 26th birthday, he went in for surgery and got a rod placed in his leg.  If you thought a hospital chair bed was uncomfortable, you haven't tried it at 33 weeks pregnant!  There was no way he would be off the crutches before Jackson's arrival.  So, Jackson was born and taken home to a temporary nursery in a townhome in South Alabama.  He didn't even get to see our NC home until he was about 6 months old.

Lincoln:

This one takes the cake!  Lincoln was conceived very quickly after Jason returned from his longest deployment.  He had been gone for 15 months and Jackson really wanted a brother ;).  In December, Jason was informed he would be taking on a job that was NOT the army job he was promised.  It was not exactly good news for us but he took it anyway.  We learned pretty quickly that this job would also require ANOTHER deployment.  Your kidding, right?  NOPE.  Not only would he be leaving but the deployment got moved up significantly.  As in BEFORE I had the baby.  He was only home for 9 months total before he had to leave again.  For a year.  So at 33 weeks pregnant, I said goodbye to him and sent him into a war zone...AGAIN.  I also packed up our belongings and put them in a uhaul to Alabama where I would once again change medical doctors with a bit of comedy in the process.  I had to see a general doctor to be referred to the OBGYN.  The general practice doctor had to do a pregnancy test on me.  I was 34 weeks!    It was positive!  There was no chance of Jason coming home for the birth of this baby.  You have to be in country for 6 weeks before you can start leave.  We had decided if that wasn't a possibility, then we would wait for a more fun time to take the leave and for him to meet his second son. THIS is how the birth of our second child went down.  It was viewed over webcam and around 8000 miles between us.  It was a bizarre experience.  I can't imagine meeting my child over the internet, and not holding him for another 4 months or living with him for a full 11 months.    I spent a few months in Alabama adjusting to "single mom of 2"  and then I packed us up again and went back to NC to weather the remainder of the deployment.  It was possibly the hardest time for me.  It was as much to do with the timing as it did Lincoln being a "difficult" baby.  Maybe we both had a bad attitude.  But seriously, who wouldn't?  Anyone who knew me during that time can find humor in the sign I held at "green ramp" his place of homecoming.  It said "NEVER AGAIN".  We had made the decision to get out of the army but it wasn't official or public yet.  I didn't care one iota.  I wanted the WORLD to know, I would never again go through a year like that.  

And so as we prepare to bring this baby home to our house, her nursery and BOTH parents, it's comforting in that we've got this.  We finally got this last one right!

New Year's Resolutions

You might think that procrastination should top my list of new years resolutions.  Well, I've had them written down since new years eve but, well, I got busy and I also think no big resolutions should start mid week!  Since I didn't even stay up until midnight, it didn't feel like anything major happened when the clock struck 1/1/2014.  

I felt like most of them could wait until Monday, therefore I had a few extra days of living before I had to buckle down and make life altering commitments.  I've had better, more profound resolutions in the past.  Some years are better than others.  I let circumstance dictate how in depth my resolutions go.  Sometimes they are shallow.  I'm ok with that.  For what it's worth, here they are!

1.  This year (7 weeks to be exact) I'm trading in my "boy mom" title for the "mom of 3" title.  We will officially be out numbered by children.  I can't say I grew up wanting 3 children.  I knew I'd have 2 but never considered more. I just never felt complete or done and know this God's plan for our family.   I pray every day that I am exactly what my children need, when they need it.  Raising boys has been a challenge because I have never been a BOY!  I don't always understand their antics.  But I do know what the Bible says about raising them as MEN and into God fearing husbands.  That is what I hope for them.  This little bundle flipping around in my belly right now, she's a whole different story.  I HAVE been a girl and I'm not sure whether that makes me more excited or scares me to death!  Both, I think.  What I do know is, it might have been a tough decade or so back in the 90's.  It wasn't the dial up or cheesey sit-coms that made it so difficult.  Nope.  It was the drama, theatrics and down-right hateful things I did as a teen girl.  I look back now and I'm thankful I wasn't MY mama!  But just on the other side of that, I came to a beautiful epiphany.  Yes, it was a long time a coming but I realized...(mom, make sure you are sitting down) SHE WAS RIGHT!  Not only was she right about everything but from that point on, she's been my very best friend.  Besides my sister of course, she's my go to, count on you person in every single situation.  So as I take on the "mom of 3" title.  I hope and pray I can be what each of them need, when they need it most.  And I hope I will always remember that one day, they too will have that full circle epiphany.  

In short:  I wanna be a good "boy mom".  I want to play basketball when they ask and toss the baseball around with them.  I want to cheer them on from the sidelines, however, I won't be wearing a "bling baseball" shirt.

I wanna be a good "girl mom" too.  I want to make sure she's always dressed adorably and sporting a matching headband.  Hey!  She will be an infant, as long as I make the milk, she'll be happy!

2.  (Shallow alert!)  I want to be back in shape by summer.  No, no, not every single pound or even to say I'll be happy about the way I look but I want to be in the process of back to eating clean, weight training and being aware of what I'm putting in my body.  I did really well last spring before we moved.  Knowledge is everything and I did the research to fully know what's good and good for me.  I was in a routine of cardio, weights, HIIT and eating what I knew was right and good.  I even had the family doing it for a while.  Being pregnant and SUPER sick for 4 months really kicked that habit and I vow to get back to it.  This includes drinking my water.  I need to be drinking about a gallon a day.  Even now, it's very important.  It's something everyone can do and easily.  So you won't be seeing me without my trusty water bottle and multiple bathroom trips.  I downloaded "Waterlogged" app to help me track my water for a few weeks until I can remember to pick back up the habit.  I've also been using my soda stream to make awesome sparkling lemon water that adds flavor and fizz without the calories of soda.  

3.  To accompany the resolution above, I need to get back to meal planning.  The ONLY way to succeed in eating right is to plan your meals and food prep.  If it's not there and ready, it's much harder to succeed.  Having the right things on hand to eat is key to survival.  When you are eating as many as 5-6 mini meals a day, you have to know what's available and make it easy.  I need to get back to buying my Aldi produce weekly, A bi-monthly Costco trip and a once a week regular grocery store stop.  I haven't been doing that either and it will cost us!  Having the staples on hand make it much easier to make good choices.  Some of my staples include:  Spinach, berries, greek yogurt, egg whites, organic chicken, ground turkey, black beans, avocados, bananas, almond milk, celery, ezekiel bread, cucumbers and deli turkey (nitrate free).  

4.  I want to make FUN a priority.  Being an adult is not usually FUN.  Sure I like a clean house but it's not FUN to get there.  I want my kids to see me as FUN, to remember their childhood as FUN and know that I know how to have FUN.  I think they see their father as fun and me as a workaholic.  Yes, a home workaholic.  I can't watch cartoons, I have to fold clothes, I can't go out and jump on the new trampoline, it's just not for pregnant moms.  I tried a lap around the circle with the basketball and thought I might pass out!   This little baby probably isn't going to make FUN a lot easier to accomplish as she will require more work than FUN but I want to make it a priority to have FUN with them.  To let them know that mom can also be FUN, do FUN things and make FUN memories.  

5.  I want to use the gifts God gave me to bless others.  I'm still discovering what exactly those entail but for now, I know I love to cook.  I'm not half bad at it although Jason may beg to differ when I begin cooking quinoa again!  I want to take meals to people who need them as I know how much of a blessing this can be.  I want to be uplifting to friends that need it.  I want to encourage those who feel dragged down.  I want to be a blessing to the people that know me.  I want to build a legacy for HIM, in HIM.  I want to LOVE with the love of Christ and use the talents he bestowed upon me for His purpose.  

6.  I want to get involved in our church and our community.  I want us to make couple friends.  I want to broaden and deepen my friendships here.  It's not been as easy as places in the past that I've lived to break into circles and feel like you've arrived.  You have people you can really truly count on.  I'm still working on building friendships here.  I'm still searching to find my place and to find people that we can hang out with as a family.  I want to get involved in our church and the community it serves.  I know service is the best way to feel connected to a place.  I want to be led to the right friendships and families.  I also wouldn't mind someone that I could drag to IKEA, Sephora and Costco with me on a regular basis!  

As a side note:  I would love to declutter and become a bit more organized in my home along with a better cleaning schedule but seriously, with a new baby coming along, that seemed a bit too lofty so I decided to save that one for next year.

Here's to a year of FUN, fitness and eating quinoa (sorry, Jason!)!