Working on Crawling...and other news...

Taken today!

Matthew is working really hard at crawling. He gets himself up on his hands and knees, but then has difficulty moving very far. He's so far excellent at pivoting himself around and with the help of a little rolling can move himself pretty darn well.  I can't leave him out of my sight for long.  I have a feeling that he'll get the movement thing down pretty soon, so I better start thinking about childproofing the house a little more seriously.

Oh and I have mentioned that he says Mum & Ma?  Well he does and has been doing so for nearly a month now.  I gotta admit, he definitely charms his Mommy when he says either of them. Especially since everyone told me "Da da" would be first.  We are guessing he can say the M sound sooner, because his name starts with an M and he hears it all the time.

In other news:
I got out my resume and started to work on it a bit.  It's quite rusty, to say the least. I will probably need to take a resume course or something.  Thankfully the Navy offers services to spouses for such things. (Thank you, DOD!)

Matthew's Nana (my Mom) is coming out next week to be here for my 27th birthday. My Mom tries to never miss spending a birthday with me and so far she's only missed one (my 23rd and 1st in Hawaii.) I give her big props. This is a tradition that I definitely think I'd like to pass on with my kids, if they are cool with it.

Miscellany Monday: 8/20/12 Edition

1. Resolved?

I recently took my annual survey that Resolve, the National Infertility Association, asks people with infertility to take so they can get data about infertility.  This year I quite obviously have my miracle and so I could answer the question about having a baby thru IVF with a resounding "YES."  That was great, but the part that bugged me a little was the next question, which asked me if I felt the infertility had resolved itself now that we had our miracle.  I answered, "no" and when they asked why I said, because I feel infertility isn't something that resolves itself generally. You don't stop being unable to conceive naturally just because IVF worked for you one time. To me our infertility will never be resolved. I will still have a twinge of pain when I hear of people getting pregnant normally. I will be envious that people can have their children without scheduling an appointment with a Reproductive Endocrinologist. That's not meant to be negative towards anyone, it's just truth.  However, I will come to a point someday, I know for sure, where I will be content with our family and how it came to be. For now I enjoy our baby boy and thank god everyday that I was given the privilege of being his Mommy.

2.Lighter Fare...New Roof

The previous topic was a bit deep, so let's move on to something lighter.  On Wednesday of last week, they started on a new roof at our house. The noise has been...well, horrible to say the least. Between the hammering and the roofers shouting at each other, I am amazed Matthew has napped at all.  I guess he can sleep through almost anything.  It's been an interesting experience.

3.New Church

Our new church so far seems fabulous!  We are now members at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Bremerton.  I really like the parish for a few different reasons.
1. No one there has a seat that they always sit in.  This is unusual for many Catholics, so when I discovered that I wasn't taking someones seat I was ecstatic! 

2. They have an interpreter for the hard of hearing folks.  She is fantastic.  (I mention this, because MacMurray College, where I went, has a big deaf ed program and I am forever endeared to ASL and interpreting.)

3. The current visiting priest is from Britain and his homilies are filled with interesting stories. I realize he won't be here forever, but just the fact that he's here now rocks my socks.

4. Everyone smiles and says hello!  In Hawaii that wasn't the case and so I often felt a bit isolated at church there.

5. They don't mind screaming/crying/talking children. They have an area in the back you can go and still hear the service. This will be great when we bring Matthew (I haven't done so thus far.)

I think that's it for today.  Have a good one folks!



Is it August already?

Wow, August snuck in on me and the month is nearly halfway over already! 

School finished up and I got my final grade: an A- (missed the A+ by a breath, oh well!)  As of this morning, I was put in the "graduated" status.  My diploma only will take 6-8 weeks to appear at my house. Avery and I are surmising that they must use special imported paper on those for it to take that long. ;-)

Matthew and I traveled to Southern IL to visit my Mom at the beginning of the month.  As usual, my bad luck with United continued with delays, maintenance issues etc!  (For those wondering why I flew that airline, it was because I used airline miles to travel and finagled flying under my Mom's Premier status. The only perk of my air travel experience with United.)  Matthew did remarkably well considering the delays.  He ate and slept and charmed old ladies! He even went to sleep at a strange hotel when we got stuck in Chicago for a few hours. I was so pleased with my little dude. Such a champ. A very generous gal let him play with her iphone at one point.

There are tons of pictures from IL, but they'll have to wait for another day.  Today is a day of catch up.

I ended up having a CT scan of my sinus and yesterday the allergist went over the results with me. My right side has some deviation, but otherwise nothing is wrong with them. So she prescribed 2 different sets of nasal sprays.  I am beyond frustrated at this point. I don't even know what I should do now. I feel like I am stuck. If anyone has advice, please share it.

Otherwise, we are all doing well.  Toodles my friends!

And...I'm done!

I finished my last 2 comments on my classmates discussion questions for school today.  Yesterday (after one final edit), I turned in my final paper of undergraduate.  I had to convince myself to log out of the online classroom. It just felt strange to be done with it. Now I have 6 months to find a job, before my student loan companies start calling.  Actually so far they've emailed me to tell me how excited they are for me. Anyone else find the humor in that? Sometimes I feel annoyed with the repayment process, but honestly those loan companies made it possible for me to get my education. So as long as we all play nice, there should be no issues. (I'll ignore the stalled economy issue...)

Matthew had his 6 month well baby check up today.  He is 15 pounds, 9 ounces. He is now in the 16th percentile for weight. He is also 27 inches long!! Holy height. Definitely doesn't get that from me (I'm 5'5.5"). I am pleased though. He's making progress.  He has eczema so we got a bunch of creams for that. He may outgrow it so we'll just watch it. I am not worried. Otherwise he is a happy,  healthy dude. He got his vaccines and took them like a champ. 

This past weekend, the town we live in has something called Whaling Days Festival.  We decided to go check it out on Saturday.  It seemed like a neat thing.  There were lots of food choices and rides. I think next year may be a bit more fun for us. This year Little Dude is obviously too small/young for rides so we just ate food and walked around. No pictures from it, so I won't be doing a weekend outtakes.

The Olympics have started, if you didn't already know, and we have been watching!  Thank goodness for DVR, since so many events are on late or in the early morning. 

I go back to the Allergist tomorrow and hopefully will get these allergies under control soon!

6 months old!

My absolute favorite of the 6th Month pictures!

A picture Daddy took of Matthew

In his Mickey Mouse pool

Playing in the jumperoo

How I found him yesterday morning. Not sure how he got the lamb in the crib.

Swinging, he loved it, despite the facial expression.

On Monday, July 23rd, Matthew turned 6 months old.  Hard to believe how fast the time has gone! (Wasn't I just giving birth to him??)  At 6 months: he is wearing size 2 diapers, wears 3 month & 3-6 month clothes, has discovered his love for his jumperoo, is eating solids once a day, sleeping in later and giving up the morning nap, has 2 bottom teeth and is thinking about crawling (he gets frustrated and quits!)

We leave in less then a week for Southern IL.  Where it is nice and hot!

I'm Allergic to the United States...and other ramblings..

Okay, now before you groan and think to yourselves "oh no, a political post" I assure you, this is not one of those.  I save my political discussions for.... well no one, with the occasional blurp to Avery. (In fact, I bet very few of my friends actually have a clue about my political leanings...I like to keep people guessing.) No, this post is about actual allergies. 
I suffered from seasonal allergies for a number of years when I was growing up in the Midwest.  However most over the counter stuff took care of it.  Then in college, my doctors prescribed some medications to help me get through the fall and spring time allergy seasons.  Once I moved to Hawaii, my allergies got progressively worse.  To the point where I was taking medication full time everyday and they kept adding to my arsenal of medication while I was there.  When we moved to Washington, I had very high hopes that my allergies would improve here. Well unfortunately I was wrong. My allergies are so under-controlled here that they have added even more medication and are now sending me to see an Allergist. To be able to see her, I have to wean off all my allergy meds. By the time I see her this Thursday, I'll be on nothing and look a hot mess (we're talking red & puffy eyes, drippy nose etc.) My PCM thinks it's time for me to go to allergy shots. We'll see how Thursday goes....

Cars: We've been a one car family the entire time we've been married. It's been annoying at times, but otherwise fairly tolerable. Once we had Matthew we knew we'd want to get a second vehicle, we had just planned to wait until I was working again in the fall.  Well....that isn't going to happen. Our car is having issues again, so we've decided to get another car soon...very soon in fact.  As for our current car, we'll probably fix it once more, but I am done putting tons of work into it beyond that.

Solid Foods: Matthew turns 6 months next week Monday, can you believe it?? His first half year of life has flown past me quickly!! I decided to wait and introduce solid foods at 6 months and our pediatrician agreed with me especially as we've been dealing with his medical issues. Next weekend we are going to introduce solids though. I am pretty excited for this. We've been getting him used to the high chair, so he'll be ready. I plan to make most of his baby food, but did buy some pre-made stuff for when we're traveling in August.

School: I did all the work for third week of my last class yesterday, so today Matthew and I are having fun together. I cannot believe I only have 2 more weeks left. I am almost there. It's surreal after all this time.

Matthew is demanding fun...toodles friends!

Matthew Kidney Update

 Matthew at the hospital seeing the Kidney Doctor. I LOVE the little hospital gowns!

On Friday, Matthew and I drove the one hour to Mary Bridge Children's Hospital in Tacoma so he could see the kidney doctor.  I was afraid this would take all day, so I was pleasantly surprised that we waited 5 minutes and then they called us back.  (It was such a nice change from my days of going to Children's Memorial in Chicago for my spine where appointments meant waiting for hours.)  The hospital is so nice and I was super tempted to put Matthew in the little rowboat they have as decor/place for the bigger kids to play. I resisted...this time...next time we're there, Little Dude is going in that rowboat for a picture op.
They took his medical history, the nurse came in and tried to get a BP (he didn't care for this so it was initially a no go), weighed him & measured him.  Then the doctor came in.  Dr. Y is fantastic!!  We loved her.  Apparently the renal u/s report that was sent over from Naval Hospital did not contain that much information, but she was still able to make a diagnosis.  Matthew has hydronephrosis.  Which basically means that his left kidney is enlarged and urine is possibly refluxing into it.  What are they doing about this?  For now, nothing, because the American Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend doing anything invasive on a baby his age.  We will return in 3 months for another renal u/s and then see the kidney doctor again.  However, if he has a fever at any time, he must have a urine catch done.  So we're playing the wait & see game.

About his weight: Matthew weighed about 15 pounds at the visit, putting him in the 14 percentile for weight.  The doctor was concerned about this and informed me if he is still having a hard time gaining weight in 3 weeks (at his 6 month well baby appt), she wants blood work done on him.  She couldn't say if the kidney issue was related to this.  And to answer the question someone asked my Mom: YES, we feed him. His intake is monitored.

Thank you everyone again for your thoughts and prayers.  We are doing alright. :-)

Our Little Dude is 5 Months old!

5 month picture (He didn't want to smile.)
For those that asked: onesie is from BabyGap

Blackie Cat wanted in the picture.

I finally got him to smile when I gave him his sailor Octopus toy.

Matthew turned 5 months old on June 23rd!  He is just over 13 lbs (we weighed him on the home scale, so I can't get the most accurate number.)  Just yesterday, he finally moved to size 2 diapers. He is also getting his first tooth!  We can see the very tip of it peaking through on the bottom. He loves to laugh and swing. He also loves toys that play music.  

On July 6th, he sees the kidney doctor to figure out what's going on with his kidneys.  I filled out the kidney questionnaire and was kind of shocked at how many things he matches on it. The visit will be interesting!

Father's Day and Matthew Update

Matthew & Daddy meeting for lunch.

Last year, Avery was deployed and I was pregnant with our little dude.  This year Avery is home and we are a week away from celebrating Little Dude's 5 month birthday.  What a year! I remember asking a friend of mine last year, if she ever wondered what kind of Dad her husband would be before their baby was born. She said "no" and I recall feeling awkward having asked.  I asked not out of malice towards Avery, but of sheer unknowing. Yeah, we'd discussed kids tons of time, but I really had no idea how either of us would be as parents.  I can say honestly, seeing my husband be a Daddy to Matthew has been a joy. He loves our son like no other.  When I lose patience he's there and vice versa. Matthew adores his Daddy and I know the feeling is mutual.  With that I say- HAPPY FATHER'S DAY, AVERY!

Update on Matthew: As I have mentioned previously, Matthew came down with a fever shortly before Mother's Day.  At this 4 month well baby appointment, his pediatrician asked me if the ER had ever called to tell us what the outcome of his urine culture had been.  (Since she was not the doctor who ordered the urine test, the results weren't sent to her immediately.) The ER had not called. Turns out Matthew had a UTI, but since he had been given the 24 hour antibiotic shot at the ER, she felt he was probably fine. Nevertheless, she wanted to have him get an ultrasound of his kidney's just to check him out.  He had the u/s this past week Tuesday.  The tech said she saw some "fullness" in his kidney's, but did not elaborate and the radiologist didn't come in to see us. Lt. D (his pedi) called on Thursday and said she also saw the fullness, so Matthew is being referred to a kidney doctor in Tacoma at the children's hospital there.  Naval hospital is great, but they are very small and do not have all the resources we may need for him regarding this issue. We are not worried and feel good to have a doctor who is so proactive with Matthew's care.

May 2012 in Review

This month has been such a busy month filled with so much stuff!  I've been busy with school, so blogging hasn't really been the priority that I keep meaning it to be.  May was a busy month for us filled with firsts.
[As you all already know May started off with Matthew struggling to gain weight and fighting off the threat of hospitalization. Thank goodness we got past that.]

Our first ER visit: Then we made our first ER visit with Matthew.  Right before Mother's Day, Matthew came down with a high fever, so we took him into the Naval Hospital to get checked out. They took blood, urine and did a chest x-ray.  Because we delay vaccinations, they decided to give him a 24 hour antibiotic just in case and after only 4 hours we were home.  With the exception of them disagreeing with our vaccination plan, Naval Hospital Bremerton, was fabulous.  Everyone was so nice and the time passed by quickly.  The next day we saw Lt. D, Matthew's pediatrician, who tested him for the flu (a horrendous test that had Matthew screaming more then getting the blood & urine draw the night before.)  He did not have the flu and his fever was gone within a day.



My first Mother's Day with Matthew on the outside: My Mom flew in 2 days prior to Mother's Day and Matthew and I were there to greet her. My Aunt & Uncle drove up from Portland too. It was a great weekend.  The weather was lovely and Matthew was as sweet as can be!

Holding a sign to Welcome Nana!

Matthew and Mommy on Mother's Day 2012

 First (and only) Four Month Birthday for Matthew:  Matthew turned 4 months old in May.  He's a very active little dude.  He likes kicking his legs and continues to roll over, as he's done since 2 months of age. His play mat and vibrating chair are his 2 favorite places to be.  He continues to sleep from 9pm-6am.  His current favorite activity is "eating" his hands.  Just recently at his well baby appointment he was 13 lbs and 26 inches long (his weight is still low for what he started at, but he's gaining enough to appease them). The Corpsman said we have a basketball player on our hands. I think she may have been correct. His infant car seat only goes to 30 in. so we are investigating convertible car seats and hoping to find a good deal on one, since we're going to need it sooner then we expected.  He still wears size 1 diapers (we've been in those since 2 months) and is in 0-3 month clothes, with a few 3 month outfits mixed in. He can also still wear some NB sized clothes.

4 month picture

First (and only) Four Year Anniversary for us:  Avery and I celebrated 4 years of marriage at the end of May.  We went to The Melting Pot for fondue and left Matthew with a babysitter.  We had a great evening out alone.  Unfortunately I completely forgot to have any pictures of us taken. Oh well!

Thanks for reading along folks.  Matthew and Avery are getting shots today. I am the lucky one who does not need to get shots this time around. :-)

What's Up With Matthew?

For those that know me on Facebook, you're aware that Matthew has been seeing the doctor pretty much ALL WEEK. (I am getting to know the Naval Hospital pretty well.) And for those that follow here, from a previous post, you know that my milk production was down and we were supplementing.  Well I finally have time to explain fully what's been going on.  Let's start at the beginning, shall we, and bear with me this is a bit lengthy.

We moved from Hawaii when Matthew was almost 6 weeks old and shortly after we got here we noticed what were believed to be colic symptoms.  He was crying on and off during the day.  We got him a pediatrician (and by got, I mean Tricare selected one from a list and assigned Matthew to this guy we knew nothing about.)  At 7 weeks old we saw Dr. P and mentioned the crying & the fact that Matthew was not going #2 without help.  Dr. P simply told us that Matthew had colic and the #2 thing wasn't a big deal (he actually said it was fine for Matthew to go over 2 weeks without having a bowel movement.) I questioned this immediately and started asking Navy wives in the area who they liked as a pediatrician (something I should've done in the first place, ah well you live you learn.) They came up with Lt. D.  Lt. D unfortunately couldn't see Matthew until he was 12 weeks old.  When we arrived at that appointment, his weight was just 2 ounces more then it had been at 7 weeks of age.  This was a definite concern and Lt. D agreed that his bathroom issue was also not okay.  She immediately suspected my milk supply, so we began supplementing and I saw the lactation consultant. Despite the best efforts and doing everything the LC suggested my supply continued to drop and we had to supplement Matthew more & more.  Lt. D wanted to check Matthew again at 14 weeks (this week) and at that appointment he had gained no weight, which meant he'd gained only 2 ounces of weight in 7 weeks. She asked me to go completely over to formula, saying I could nurse him only after I'd formula fed.  And she said if he had not gained any weight in the next day, he'd have to be hospitalized.  Thankfully, he did gain a little weight.  He is still considered underweight for his age and will continue to be monitored.
Thank you for all the prayers and I will try to update again.

Matthew's Birth Story

Okay...here it finally is! Warning: long and detailed.

On January 22nd, I went in for a scheduled induction, because I was over 41 weeks and had made no progress towards labor. The started by giving me Cervadil, which is a medication that helps you dilate. In my case, it also made me contract irregularly. They hurt but were not unbearable.

Still smiling, because the cervadil had been in only a few hours.

Once the Cervadil was in, I just got to wait around. I took a nap for awhile, because they told me I should get some sleep.  When I woke up that's when I noticed the contractions and honestly, it just felt like a bad back ache.  The pain was gradually getting worse though. There seemed to be a lot of uncertainty on whether I could eat or not. At first it was a clear liquid diet and I really appreciated the food. Then they said I could have regular food. So Avery went and got me some junk food (it was what I wanted and no I don't care if you disagree with it), unfortunately by time he got back they had decided I couldn't eat regular food, grr!  I tried again to sleep and Avery read to me from a book that I can't even remember to try and distract me from the pain. It worked and I was thankful he read to me. It helped me stay calm.  Our Doula, Keri, came to check on me every few hours too.
After 12 hours (at around 1am on January 23rd) they removed the cervadil and checked me. I was still only 1 cm dilated. At this point, I cried my eyes out, because I was in pain and irritated that the induction wasn't going as well as we were hoping. The medical team re-grouped, gave me a shot of fentanyl and put in a catheter to see if it could help me dilate more. It took the residents 3 tries to get it in and the fentanyl lasted about 10 minutes.  I also started bleeding and I was a bit scared, but it was normal they said. The contractions got worse and I couldn't lay still, I just kept getting up all night, thinking I had to use the restroom, until 3:30am when they checked me again, a little progress had been made and they gave me more fentanyl. This time it worked for about 3.5 hours until my ob/gyn arrived to check on me at 7am. He told me to get the epidural at that point and I did. The epidural felt fine going in and I was so happy to get it. (Unfortunately, this started the long process of trying to figure out why I was still feeling the contractions despite the epidural....I had what they called a "window" which means an area where the meds just can't seem to hit.  They were very nice though and kept giving me more meds & boosters to try and get it to work.)  Through out the day, my family and friends were texting, wondering how I was doing. I am so thankful for my cousin's wife, my Mom, and my friend Becky for keeping people informed as I was not in the mood to be on Facebook.  At 1pm, they removed the catheter and were able to finally start the pitocin. Our doula came to help me get through the end of it, because due to that window I was in a ton of pain. The doula and Avery had to hold my hands to get me through the contractions. I remember Keri telling me to try and relax every muscle in the short break between contractions so I'd have energy to push. I was crying to get through them at that point. At 3pm, they discovered my water had broken on its own and I hadn't realized, because I couldn't feel anything. My doctor was called and at 3:30pm I started to push. At 4:12pm HST on January 23rd, Matthew Orson entered the world. He looked perfect! (I am guessing due to him being overdue! He wanted to stay in longer just to look good for us. Hahaha!!) They laid him on me while I was stitched up.  Despite reading that epidurals can make babies tired, he was not. He was very alert and breastfed with no problems. After the stitching (which took awhile and scared the medical student out of Ob/gyn practice, LOL!), they took Matthew to get cleaned up and got me ready to go to the post-partum floor. As they were moving me I suddenly felt very ill. I'd had so much medication that my stomach got upset. I remember them asking me to try and move my legs...I couldn't. So the nurses did the moving for me. Once I got upstairs, my Mom came and we waited for them to bring Matthew up from the nursery. I missed him! The awe of having him was intense...I just stared at him for hours until exhaustion took over. We stayed in the hospital 2 nights, because he had mild jaundice.

His first picture!

First family photo!

He was 8 lbs. 3.8 oz. and was 21.5" long.

Leaving the hospital on January 25th.

Hanging out at home in his swing.

He will be 3 weeks old on Monday. I can't believe how quickly the time is passing, which is so cliche and I can't believe I am saying that. We move to Bangor in just a few weeks, which I also can't believe that our time in Hawaii is so quickly coming to an end.

In case you weren't aware....

My miracle was born after I had to be induced and then be in labor for over 24 hours. (Yeah it sucked and my epidural didn't work completely, but oh well.) The birth story is for another time when I actually feel like typing it out.

I'd add pictures, but blogger picture upload isn't working for me tonight. Boo!

Stay tuned for more blogging soon.

Reflections on Pregnancy

Today marks 1 day past my due date and no signs of the baby showing up anytime today. There are loads of fill-ins/survey things/whatever you call them all over the blogosphere that allow you to reflect on your pregnancy on a consistent basis. I clearly never did them. At first it was that I feared I would jinx myself and then it was more of a I didn't want to hurt people's feelings who were struggling with infertility. Now, today, I want to do a little reflecting on my pregnancy, so that I have can come back and recall my thoughts.

The 1st Trimester:
Week 4: I find out I am pregnant and it's amazing. There's not much else to say.
Week 5: Morning sickness sets in. I suddenly am way more understanding of all the women I've ever known who have complained about morning sickness. I honestly had no clue it could be this bad.
Week 6: First u/s, I find out one embryo survived and see the heartbeat.
Week 7: I spend 9 hours in the Seattle USO super sick and trying not to kill people for being noisy.
Week 8: Last appt. with my infertility specialist. I cry saying goodbye to his office, I will miss them all.
Week 9: I am relieved to finally be at this milestone, because I read somewhere that if you make it to 9 weeks, you're 90% likely to have a successful pregnancy.
Week 12: First appt. with my ob/gyn. He's great and makes me feel at ease.

2nd Trimester:
Week 16: Morning sickness is finally letting up. I find out it's a BOY!
Week 17: Just kidding....morning sickness comes back for a few days before finally letting up again. We confirm, it's a boy for sure.
Week 20: Celebrate making it to the halfway point with my Mom in Maui. Another wave of relief sets in, as I have made it to another milestone I set in my head.
Week 23: Anatomy Scan at Kapiolani W.C. Hospital. Baby looks good.
Week 24: I hit a 3rd milestone I have set as baby is now considered viable.
Week 25: Avery returns from deployment.

3rd Trimester:
Week 28: The final trimester begins.
Week 34: Another anatomy u/s at Kapiolani as there are concerns over my lack of weight gain. Baby is fine.
Week 36: I hit the 4th milestone I have set, as baby is now full term.
Week 40: My due date has come. I have one more milestone for myself and that is to deliver a healthy baby.....hopefully that happens soon.

At this point, I am tired & crabby. I miss seeing people other then my Mom & husband. They're great, but I want to have the baby and get into a routine and feel like I am living for real again. I am anxious about our March move. I have it as planned out as possible, yet still feel a lack on control. I wish we could just magically transport ourselves and our stuff to Bangor.

Finally an update on us

It took me awhile, but here I am to save the day (update you all!!)

Right after Thanksgiving, Avery was honorably discharged and then re-enlisted in the US Navy for another 3 years. (It seems so silly that they have to discharge them to re-enlist them, but that's how it works. I sort of laughed when they said congrats you left the Navy and still got paid.) Avery is very nonchalant about the whole thing, but I am filled with pride. In the grand scheme of things, people who serve in the military are a very small part of the population. I really appreciate the fact that my husband is one of those who volunteers to do the work needed to defend not only our nation's freedoms, but also the the freedoms of other nations.

We got our official on paper orders for shore duty. Soo...where are we going?? Despite asking to stay in Hawaii, the detailer gave us our 5th choice and that is Bangor Naval Base! We should be there shortly before Easter. I am slowly getting used to the idea of leaving Hawaii and finding things about Bangor to love.

In case I didn't make it official on here, we did name our son finally. His name is Matthew Orson. He was breech for quite a long time and due to his head smashing my stomach I gained no weight for over a month. This led to concern and had me at Kapiolani (the hospital where I will deliver) for another growth u/s just to check on him. Thankfully there was no need for concern, he was/is fine and at 34 weeks they estimated his weight at over 5 pounds. The perinatologist estimated he will be between 7 and 8 pounds at birth (praying this is true, I have a slight fear of having the biggest baby in the hospital...crazy fear I know.)

Tomorrow is my 37 week appointment. We are almost at the end and ready to meet our little boy. My body is very sore and in much pain, but Avery has been amazing at taking care of me. He's such a good husband. He always tells me that I am the best, but I am the "best" simply because he's my husband.

Hope everyone else is doing well.

Tired and Grumpy

Clearly, since you all can read, I just can't seem to get into blogging at all lately. I am tired all the time and grumpy, because I am tired. I can't seem to sleep due to the pain in my sinus' and just the usual insomnia. Mix that with the fact that my ob/gyn decided that Ambien is no longer a drug he wants me to take and you get a sleep deprived, b*tchy lady. Everyone is convinced that as soon as deployment is over and Avery is home I will sleep fine. Well guess what guys?? I am not one of those ladies who can't sleep without their spouse. Sorry if that makes me a bad wife, but my sleep is the same whether he is here or not here.

School is ridiculously busy right now. I am dealing with a difficult professor, who I plan to report to the university at the end of this class. I'd do it now, but I hesitate to rock the boat when she's already a pain in my side. Seriously....if you don't hear from me, don't take it personally this is one of my last classes and I will not let this women railroad me out of a good grade, so I've been hunkered down working harder then I usually need to.

On the bright side of things, if you aren't friends with me on Facebook, we are having a baby boy! (He had a name, but then Avery decided to 2nd guess the name....so I will reveal it as soon as we can both agree on a name again.) I've started planning his room theme and can't wait for my Mom to get here so we can buy the furniture. Then when Avery gets home he can put all the furniture together! Avery will NOT get to miss those obligatory pictures of the Dad-to-be putting the crib together...muahahhaha!

Deployment is counting down now. We passed the halfway point over a month ago. We are getting there. Yay!