It was a good weekend!

My little boy officially turned 3 months Sunday! Where has time gone??? (I know it flies!) We are thinking he just went through a big growth spurt because he looks so much bigger & he has been trying to work at sitting up. Of course he is not strong enough yet but he has been lifting his head & shoulders up like he wants to at least lean up & look around at more than his horizontal view. He is really enjoying the treats Papa slips him, sitting like a big boy in his new assisted sitter chair & swinging outside has become a favorite activity.

I did more than I expected myself to get done & still feel very relaxed & refreshed. The refreshed part could be largely to my parents getting up with LT two nights in a row. Thank you guys! I mowed, edged & weed-eated my front yard, even pulled a few weeds. Then went inside to kick the dogs out so I could clean the floors, while they were drying I cleaned my kitchen & reorganized a few things in the cabinets. Then cleaned out my new & old purse & downloaded some music. All before 1300 too! I was a busy girl! Then I headed out to see LT at my parents & enjoyed some time with him, did a little shopping with Dad, Mike & Katie, was thankful to eat dinner at a full table & then headed home to get some sleep. I still have just a couple things to do before Steven comes in, but nothing major. I am planning on getting a jump start on things Wednesday & spending some quality time with my little man, while hopefully not glancing at my watch too many times in excitement to see Steven! I cant believe tomorrow & can say I will see him tomorrow!

You can call me Wonder Woman

I don’t enjoy deployments, I don’t think I will ever get use to them either but they are a time that I can take the time to work on who I am. I was given another little piece of wisdom by my mother, do things with a purpose – raise your kids with purpose, love your husband with purpose, live life with purpose, don’t just get by to get it done. So, after a little bit of thought I have decided to live out the rest of this deployment with purpose. Here is my list as of right now, knowing in time they may change:

1. Work on my weight. I really miss feeling really good about my body and I commit to myself that I am going to work on dropping some weight. Thanks mom for being my buddy in this feat.

2. Work on learning Spanish. I have always wanted to learn Spanish, and Steven and I have talked about it several times, so with our bi-annual TX trip coming up I figure now is as good time as any to commit to learning at least some Spanish. I don’t know that I will pick up the full accent but I will try by best.

3. Working on bettering myself as a wife. I think we can never stop striving to be better at what we do, and a large part of what I do is to be a wife. Why not be the best wife I can be for my husband. I commit to myself, my husband and my marriage to strive to be the best wife I can be.

4. A nothing large part of who I am now is a mother. I wouldn’t trade it for the world! I am starting to work through the awkwardness of it, as 0-6 months is not my favorite age, but as every day goes by LT is becoming more aware of the world and himself and that makes it more and more fun. I commit to having more fun with my little man.

I am looking forward to being a happier person and enjoying life to its fullest. The thoughts that will keep me going are these: the look on Steven’s face when he walks off that plane arriving home from deployment and getting to surprise him with all the hard work I put into loosing weight, enjoying weekend morning goofing off in bed together as a family, hearing and seeing the happiness in my husband as he knows he is loved dearly & lastly, getting to go to TX & when we pull up to a drive thru and they greet us in Spanish or when we go to Mexico I will be able to understand them!

101 Why I Love My One and Only

1. You take out the trash without being asked
2. You always find a way to make me laugh
3. Your laugh
4. Your smile
5. You married me
6. You gave me our son
7. You’re a great kisser
8. You know how to wash dishes
9. You barbecue
10. You know how to wash clothes
11. You love me
12. You learn quickly
13. Your butt
14. You enjoy “talking” to me
15. You are up for trying new things
16. You play video games with me
17. You can be motivating
18. You let me play beer pong with you even though I couldn’t drink
19. You can say your sorry
20. You listen
21. You know how to cook
22. You care about my feelings
23. You do your best to call me at least once a day on deployment & sometimes more than that! Thank you, a LOT!
24. Your dimples
25. You learnt quickly how to change a diaper & now don’t mind doing it
26. You are not scared to be a ‘get your hands dirty’ dad
27. You let me pursue my interest – even if I always manage to kill the plants I keep – I am really trying this time & they are still alive & doing well! :o)
28. You encourage my dreams
29. You have goals
30. You treat me as an equal
31. You enjoy family
32. You are respectful
33. You are fun to hang out with
34. We can hang out & do absolutely nothing & still have fun
35. You try to involve me in just about everything you do
36. You enjoy getting dressed up every once in a while & going out
37. You have self drive
38. You listen to me vent after a hard day
39. You don’t hold grudges
40. You let me work on projects with you
41. You enjoy spending time with my family
42. You are simple
43. You try to teach me things about your job & what you do when you explain something to me about work
44. You are a problem solver
45. You are determined
46. You aren’t scared to learn something new
47. You are laid back
48. You realize you don’t know everything there is to know about everything
49. You don’t mind that I am not perfectly shaved all the time
50. You like such a wide variety of food
51. You are never scared to try a new food
52. You are cultured
53. You don’t mind that I am the true American girl & would just rather French fries & a burger sometimes & clearly spoken English
54. You don’t mind ordering Chinese for me
55. You enjoy some of the same shows I do & even endure some you don’t enjoy sometimes
56. We have our secrets
57. You take turns being the DD with me
58. We have a lot of the same friends
59. You don’t mind that sometimes I am just one of the guys
60. You enjoy talking to me
61. I can say what I really think about the world & others without it going beyond you
62. You are a safe driver
63. I can trust you
64. You always make sure I am okay
65. You clean our toilets
66. You are a problem solver
67. Your style
68. The way you walk
69. That you enjoy partying with me
70. That you tell me that you will have no fun at an event without me
71. That you are willing to spend a Friday night home with me on the couch
72. You clean the shower drain
73. Even though I am capable, you deal with computer issues for me
74. You let me cuddle with you after having a bad dream
75. You always get up to kiss me good night if I am already comfy
76. Some times to try to ‘talk to me’ in your sleep
77. You’ll wrestle with me occasionally
78. You let me tickle you without getting mad
79. You enjoy theme parks
80. You’ll stop by the store for me when you can
81. You’ll pick up candy you know I like every once in a while
82. It is simple for you to make me smile
83. You pick on me cause you love me
84. You take care of me & put me to bed if I have drank too much
85. Your beer of choice is Bud Light
86. You ride roller coasters
87. You are considerate of my fears
88. You are strong
89. You have a taste for wide variety of beers
90. You don’t have to have name brand things
91. You enable us to pay our mortgage
92. You enjoy playing with our dogs
93. You don’t mind being silly
94. Your sense of humor
95. You have common sense
96. You are the father of my child
97. You encourage me to try new things
98. You enjoy fishing
99. You’ll go to the gym with me
100. You are my best friend
101. You are a wonderful husband & all mine!

Happy Anniversay Steven! I LOVE YOU WITH EVERYTHING I AM!!!

Not Too Busy Today 12/61

This week as been a full week for me at work, meaning the days have been flying by. We have an audit coming up that I have been preparing for and my replacement for maternity leave starts Monday so I have been also preparing for that too. Yesterday I just about wrapped up all my work for the week & fixed all my computer problems so now I am just sitting here waiting on the week to be finished. I did find out though that I would be able to take a week off early, early if the baby doesn’t arrive until induction, to relax & enjoy before Landen comes. So today & tomorrow I will be finding anything I can to keep me as busy as possible so I can finish up this week as quickly as possible.

In Bed before the Sun 13/61

Steven has been working the mid-shift this week so he has been leaving the house at about 6-630pm, so I only get to see him from 3pm, when I get home until 6 or so when he has to get ready & leave. So needless to say I have been missing my needed afternoon naps. Then when he gets home, somewhere in the middle of the night or morning he comes in to say he’s home safe & good night, so I manage to get broken sleep. So my solution to this dilemma is to head to bed before the sun. I have managed to be in bed around 8-830 the past 2 nights, & luckily I feel pretty normal throughout my work day. It seems that these days I can never get enough sleep.

The Green Light 14/61

Well at my doctor appointment this afternoon, I got the green light that if I went into labor anytime beyond now that it would be perfectly normal & fine. So now I just have to try to figure out how to relay that message to Landen. I keep thinking that the sooner he arrives the more time he will have with his daddy & the more time his daddy will have with him. I would really love to give Steven more than just the 1-1.5 weeks he would have with Landen if I was to wait until they induced me. Not to mention that will be a very busy time because Steven & I would be preparing for deployment. I just really hope, wish & pray that he will come soon so Steven can really bond with him & leave really feeling like a father instead of just knowing he has a kid at home that he never really got to connect to. I keep thinking this weekend, for Steven (and my dad’s) birthday would be a PERFECT time for Landen to come!!!

A Few Things That Annoy Me 15/61

I can’t complain about this pregnancy (too much), as it has been a very easy ride, even though it is starting to get to me. There are not too many things that are daily activities that I am not able to complete myself. I can still bend down to get things off the floor fairly easily, even though I look like a 1 year old squatting down, I can still get up off the couch by myself & my favorite I don’t waddle. So, standing at the sink doing a few last dishes that wouldn’t fit into the dish washer I realized how hard it was starting to get to wash dished standing a foot back from the sink or bent over like an old lady. Then I was thinking there are a few other things that are a bit annoying to me – like how I sometimes cant have a conversation with out sounding like I am running a mile while I talk, or how the simple task of taking clothes out of the washer to put in the dryer or just taking them out of the dryer seems to kill me. Walking is something else that is starting to get to me too, ugg, I feel like I am carrying floating bowling ball behind my pubic bone & with every step it bounces up & down on the back of my pubic bone, I feel like I am just waiting for it to just break. Wow, would that be a sight! While none of these are huge deals & I am thankful that these are things I am just complaining that these things are getting harder as I can still do them. Completely off topic of things that are harder to accomplish, but on topic with things that annoy me, while I sit here & endure my darling little one’s hiccups – let me just add though very cute in the beginning boy are they annoying now & he sure seems to get them a lot! Ugg… Ok, I’m done complaining.

Cinderella!?!?! 16/61

I have heard a few people say that if you want baby out, then scrub your floors. Well I have managed to scrub my bathroom floor & bathroom, which was an all day event. I think I cleaned some spots that have not been cleaned since we moved in 3 years ago! It is so clean now that we debated on eating dinner in there the night I finished. Steven kept coming in to check on me, to lend a hand if I needed it & to make sure I wasn’t doing anything too crazy or the cleaners getting strong. So today I decided after Liz’s party & a visit with family I would go home & be productive, so I decided to scrub my dinning room & hallway floors. They look better than ever now! I am slowly running out of floors to scrub…Steven keeps asking me “what’s up with being Cinderella?!?!?!” The work is keeping me busy though.

An Easier Day 17/61

It was a beautiful day and we set to enjoy it. We didn’t do much, as Michael & I managed to get the front yard work done the night before. I am thinking my neighbors think I have fully lost it though, I mowed – by my choice, which Mike edged, which was an over grown task of its own. It was the first time of the year our front yard was cut, we got lucky to wait so long. So with not much to accomplish on Saturday, after we all got breakfast I wandered off to get a pedicure. Not that I cant reach my feet, because I still can & manage to paint them on my own, it just takes me 3 times as long as this belly of mine manages to get in the way. After completing the endeavor of trying to pain my own toe nails I sound like I have just ran a marathon & need a nap after all the hard work. It was really nice to sit back & relax while someone else did them.

Congrats to Liz! 18/61

Liz graduated today with her BA! Congratulations!!!!

A Day Late but Not a Dollar Short 19/61

Yesterday was Administrative Assistance Day, which is not a big deal to me, but my General Foreman got me a card, which was really sweet & thoughtful of him. This being said there has been questions from my Deputy Director asking for votes that he is my favorite out of the 4 guys I mainly work for. Mostly he is looking for validation, I think. Anyways after confirming with him, for sake of his ego, that he was in deed my favorite just Tuesday, yesterday I had to inform him that I had to drop him to the bottom of my favorites list. He forgot Admin Day! It was even on his calendar & he forgot! I gave him a little bit of a hard time all in joking & ended it at that. This morning though I was presented with a vase of a dozen orange roses & a thank you card from all 4 of them. I was really surprised & thankful. It is such a nice feeling to know you are appreciated, even if it was a day late.

A Little Disappointed 20/61

I know it was a little early, but I was hoping that little Landen was ready to join us…Nope, he wasn’t. Not just yet anyways. I know I only have 3.5 more years…oops I meant weeks left but it seems to be painfully dragging by.

I’m So Over This! 21/61

I have 2 more weeks left until I am full term & sometimes I feel like it is 2 years! I am so over this pregnancy! Some days aren’t bad but others I wonder if I have the sanity to get me through the next, possibly, 4 weeks until my induction time. I know I am luckier than others because the doc has a plan to induce me at 39 weeks, but that is so far away! I feel like I don’t have anymore room for this baby to grow anymore & I am so ready for him to come out & meet his daddy! All I keep thinking is the sooner he comes the more time he will have with his daddy & the happier & more relaxed mom will be. My desk guide will even be done today. Being patient is so HARD!!!!!

More Work Left to Do 22/61

I know with first time moms they say baby usually doesn’t come early but it is not something unheard of. I have been trying to do everything I can to get baby to come early, not too early, but as soon as he is full term, which would be the first weekend in May. I have been trying to stay active & taking some extra time to walk more, eating fresh pineapple & kiwi (which is so hard – NOT!), taking evening primrose oil & trying to get some extra love, when I’m not under the weather. Hopefully something will work & we can coax Landen out that first weekend in May, dad & grandpa would be ecstatic to have such a big birthday present. Anyways, I had the thought all weekend, as I kept getting more & more Braxton Hicks contractions, that my little boy cannot come now, I’m not ready! My desk guide is not done! So this week I will be in work mode with trying to finish up the last half of my desk guide & make as many notes as possible for my replacement. Then I will be able to sleep a little easier

Very Productive Day 23/61

I was feeling a lot better, the pain in my tailbone was minimal & usually only occurred when I sat back against something so I figured with feeling better I should get some things done around the house & run to pick up a few things. I got one of the last items we need for baby, now all we have left to pick up if the traveling system (stroller & car seat). Then I made it home to start washing some clothes & working on cleaning our bathroom. The bathroom ended up getting a deeper clean that I originally intended but it really sparkles now! I managed to scrub down everything & make it shine. Now I would feel comfortable with a guest viewing & using it. We have plans to finish up the last few touches on the rest of the house next weekend in preparation for baby’s arrival. There is not too much that needs to be done, but there are things that I don’t want to have to worry about taking care of once baby arrives.

The Baby Room is COMPLETE! 24/61

Even though I was still in a good amount of pain from the cyst procedure I accompanied Steven & Michael to Home Depot to get the final few touches for the nursery, a ceiling fan & curtain rod. When we got home I sat in the baby room, in a very comfy chair & watched then install both items, I even managed to help a little bit. Now, though, we can say that the nursery is finally COMPLETE!

An Unpleasant Surprise 25/61

My tailbone has been bothering me since Monday & I just figured it was more moving & shifting of my body in preparations for baby. Much to my surprise the worsening pain came along with a hard bump about the size of a dime. So I decided I couldn’t take the pain anymore & headed into the doctor’s. I thought they were going to tell me it was a small problem, give me some antibiotics & tell me to take Tylenol & send me on my way. That was not how it went at all! After taking a look at the sore area & bump they told me it was a pilonidal cyst. The doctor called in the surgeon to see what he suggested to do with it since I am pregnant & so far along. The typical cure for the cyst is surgery to remove the cyst & the area that caused it, but since I am only weeks from my delivery date that was not an option. So the short term fix was to cut a pea size hole in the cyst to relieve the pressure of it & give me some pain relief until after baby comes. After baby gets here though & I recover enough from that I will have to end of having the surgery to remove the 3-4 inch area to solve the problem completely. Ugg…

A Special Day for Me 26/61

This year we decided to do an Anti-Valentine’s Day, I did a special day for Steven early in February and Steven decided to wait until it warmed up a little & treated me to mine today. I woke up to a wonderful surprise breakfast in bed. He snuck out of bed early to make cut up some fruit and make cinnamon rolls; he displayed it all so beautifully on a platter with a white daisy. Then we got ready & again he surprised me with a trip to the zoo, it was the perfect day, it was breezy & sunny. We had so much fun watching the animals, I think the moneys & the baby jaguar was the most fun to watch. We also managed to get in about 5 hours or walking & I was feeling great afterwards. We headed home & Steven told me he was thinking about Japanese for dinner, which sounded wonderful. We sat at the hibachi grill this time & ended up with the whole grill to ourselves, the food was great & the time spent with him was treasured. He did SUCH a wonderful job! Thank you Steven!!!

Fish, Turtles & Alligators. Oh, my! 27/61

It was a beautiful afternoon so Steven & I decided it was a good idea to take the boat out to grab some dinner & do a little relaxing. We decided to take the trip to Clark’s Fish Camp, which is always a fun & yummy experience. We sat outside so we could feed the fish & turtles before & during dinner right from our table. Then after dinner we decided to take a minute to feed the fish out at the front of the restaurant, we were presently surprised to find a small alligator hanging out in the shallow waters there. He was only about 2.5 feet long and didn’t seem to cause much commotion. After watching him for a while we decided to head back out on the water to find a place to anchor to relax and take in the evening. It was really a nice time spending some quality time with Steven out on the boat, just me, him & the water surrounding us.

Smooth Sailing Again 28/61

The waters have been a little rough at our house the past few days & now that everything is sorted out it is smooth sailing & sunshine again. If we never have the storms we forget how much we love the sun! I am very thankful though that I have such a strong marriage & that I can see that. I have a lot of faith in my marriage & my husband, he is so wonderful!