Saturday, April 30, 2011
Treats for Daddy
Today Marley, Emily V., and I made some treats for Asa! Marley and I got to skype with him on Wednesday night, and he asked Marley to make him some special cookies. When I told her that it was time for bed, she starting sobbing about wanting to send Daddy cookies. So, we had to settle for making him a bag of Easter candy that night. But we finally got to do it today! We made him some yummy chocolate chip cookies and delicious homemade brownies! Marley picked out cookies and said, "I think he will really like this one!" Hopefully he will open this package in a few weeks and know how much we all love him!
Labels:
deployment
Friday, April 29, 2011
Not a good day
Today has not been a good day. It could be pregnancy related. It could be that I'm exhausted. It could be that Marley has not listened to 95% of the things I asked her to do today. It could be stress. It could be loneliness.
But whatever it is, today was not fun and I am ready for it to be over. So Emily is going to get us some ice cream and I plan to put Marley to bed and watch movies for a few hours.
And cross my fingers that tomorrow will be better.
Labels:
deployment
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Summer is coming!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Work Out Buddies
One of Marley's favorite activities is exercising with me. She has been a good sport and my biggest fan since I started exercising! But now that I'm pregnant my work outs don't last as long as they used to. So, now I walk for 30 minutes and then I let Marley our of the stroller and she runs during my cool down. It started out just being a 5 minute trip. But now she runs for about 20 minutes around the track while I walk behind her! And the best part is, it wears her out! She is exhausted when I put her to bed at night, which is absolutely perfect!
Labels:
activities
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Last Day Together
The last day we had with Asa before he left was hectic. I had spent weeks fretting about the fact that I wanted our last day to be relaxing and full of special moments together. But it just wasn't.
First, I had to visit the DEERS office on post. I don't know a single person who would think that was fun. And I sat there in tears as the DEERS guy told me that my Power of Attorney was useless.
Meanwhile, Marley and Asa were getting us breakfast to-go from Panera when Marley threw up in her car seat. So, he got our breakfast, swung by and picked me up, and then she threw up again as we were pulling in the drive way of our house.
We had to solve the Power of Attorney situation that day, and there were only so many hours in the day. So, he had to go straighten that out immediately. I carried in my sick baby and our breakfast, put her in the bathtub, and then she threw up again. Asa stripped the car seat and threw all the pieces in the washing machine (the one we had almost taken to storage the day before, but decided to put it off one more day) and then he left for the JAG office.
Marley stopped throwing up, but needed to be held the rest of the day. Fortunately, Asa got the Power of Attorney in about an hour, which is amazing! But, then he had to spend the entire day moving things to storage. His friend Gee helped him, but I couldn't help because our little girl was sick and her car seat pieces were in the washing machine. I snuggled with Marley in between packing things into boxes while Asa made trip after trip to the storage unit.
Marley started acting pretty normal, and we finally got the house to an acceptable stopping place. It wasn't everything, but it was enough for us to feel good about. I was heartbroken being without him all day. Here it was our last day, and there wasn't anything we could do about spending the whole day apart. But we had a date planned for that night, and luckily Marley seemed well enough to handle the trip to our steakhouse in Rolla. We took showers, put on some clean clothes, and headed to dinner.
We stopped on the way to dinner and took some family pictures. We found a nature background, propped the camera up on a truck tire, and tried our best to get Marley to smile. She smiled for her pictures with Asa, but by the time we got to the family pictures she was not in the mood to smile.
We ate a fabulous dinner together, and enjoyed our last evening together. A fancy steak and yummy salad always makes us happy!
On the way home, Asa called everyone to talk to them on the phone one last time. Marley fell asleep, so we sat in the driveway of our house for a while talking about how many things would change the next day and how we would feel. Then, we reluctantly woke Marley up and brought her inside. On the way in, she threw up all over everything. Her clothes, my clothes, her shoes.
We only had a few towels and no washer to wash anything, so all we could do was throw everything in a trash bag for the night. Asa had to run out and buy some medicine, and I wrapped Marley in some sweatshirts we were going to give to Goodwill. I held her in bed while she whimpered and moaned. Our poor baby was so sick.
When Asa got back with her medicine, we gave her some and then snuggled with her until she fell asleep. I had planned so much for that night, our last night of putting Marley to sleep together. We would read her books and tell her stories and sing her favorite songs until she happily went to sleep. But instead she was miserable and all we could do was hope she would go to sleep and feel better. I didn't get the pictures I wanted or the videos that we could have watched all the time.
Marley wasn't asleep until close to 11, and we had to be up at 1:30 that morning. I cried and cried before we went to sleep, thinking about the fact that this was our last night in the same house for a long long time.
I wanted this last day and night to be perfect. Instead it was stressful and busy and way too short. I wanted the three of us to snuggle all day and laugh and play. And instead were spent most of the in separate places. I am so lucky though that my husband was amazing and helped me with every single thing I needed him to.
Marley felt much better the next morning, and in some odd way I felt closer to Asa. We were a great team dealing with our stressful day, and although we never want our baby to be sick, at least we got some good cuddle time together. And I am so thankful that even though we didn't have our perfect night together, we had many other perfect nights before that one to remember and think about.
First, I had to visit the DEERS office on post. I don't know a single person who would think that was fun. And I sat there in tears as the DEERS guy told me that my Power of Attorney was useless.
Meanwhile, Marley and Asa were getting us breakfast to-go from Panera when Marley threw up in her car seat. So, he got our breakfast, swung by and picked me up, and then she threw up again as we were pulling in the drive way of our house.
We had to solve the Power of Attorney situation that day, and there were only so many hours in the day. So, he had to go straighten that out immediately. I carried in my sick baby and our breakfast, put her in the bathtub, and then she threw up again. Asa stripped the car seat and threw all the pieces in the washing machine (the one we had almost taken to storage the day before, but decided to put it off one more day) and then he left for the JAG office.
Marley stopped throwing up, but needed to be held the rest of the day. Fortunately, Asa got the Power of Attorney in about an hour, which is amazing! But, then he had to spend the entire day moving things to storage. His friend Gee helped him, but I couldn't help because our little girl was sick and her car seat pieces were in the washing machine. I snuggled with Marley in between packing things into boxes while Asa made trip after trip to the storage unit.
Marley started acting pretty normal, and we finally got the house to an acceptable stopping place. It wasn't everything, but it was enough for us to feel good about. I was heartbroken being without him all day. Here it was our last day, and there wasn't anything we could do about spending the whole day apart. But we had a date planned for that night, and luckily Marley seemed well enough to handle the trip to our steakhouse in Rolla. We took showers, put on some clean clothes, and headed to dinner.
We stopped on the way to dinner and took some family pictures. We found a nature background, propped the camera up on a truck tire, and tried our best to get Marley to smile. She smiled for her pictures with Asa, but by the time we got to the family pictures she was not in the mood to smile.
We ate a fabulous dinner together, and enjoyed our last evening together. A fancy steak and yummy salad always makes us happy!
On the way home, Asa called everyone to talk to them on the phone one last time. Marley fell asleep, so we sat in the driveway of our house for a while talking about how many things would change the next day and how we would feel. Then, we reluctantly woke Marley up and brought her inside. On the way in, she threw up all over everything. Her clothes, my clothes, her shoes.
We only had a few towels and no washer to wash anything, so all we could do was throw everything in a trash bag for the night. Asa had to run out and buy some medicine, and I wrapped Marley in some sweatshirts we were going to give to Goodwill. I held her in bed while she whimpered and moaned. Our poor baby was so sick.
When Asa got back with her medicine, we gave her some and then snuggled with her until she fell asleep. I had planned so much for that night, our last night of putting Marley to sleep together. We would read her books and tell her stories and sing her favorite songs until she happily went to sleep. But instead she was miserable and all we could do was hope she would go to sleep and feel better. I didn't get the pictures I wanted or the videos that we could have watched all the time.
Marley wasn't asleep until close to 11, and we had to be up at 1:30 that morning. I cried and cried before we went to sleep, thinking about the fact that this was our last night in the same house for a long long time.
I wanted this last day and night to be perfect. Instead it was stressful and busy and way too short. I wanted the three of us to snuggle all day and laugh and play. And instead were spent most of the in separate places. I am so lucky though that my husband was amazing and helped me with every single thing I needed him to.
Marley felt much better the next morning, and in some odd way I felt closer to Asa. We were a great team dealing with our stressful day, and although we never want our baby to be sick, at least we got some good cuddle time together. And I am so thankful that even though we didn't have our perfect night together, we had many other perfect nights before that one to remember and think about.
Labels:
deployment
Monday, April 25, 2011
Two Months Down
I feel very blah today. We had a very busy morning and a very lazy afternoon. My mom and Joel are both gone for the entire week, and Emily is usually at school/work/out with friends. So it is basically just me and Marley this week. In some ways that is kind of fun, but it also leaves me a lot of time to think at night.
Which brings me to the fact that I really miss Asa. We have made it through our second month now, and the second one seemed harder than the first. It's encouraging that we are at two months instead of two weeks, and I have to keep reminding myself of that. But I have had less to do this month, and I can tell it makes a big difference in how quickly the time goes by. I get to talk to him about every other day. Unfortunately he only gets to call when it's early in the morning for him and late at night for me. So, Marley doesn't get to talk to him lately. And that makes me really sad.
Tonight at bed time, I made Marley start in her own bed for the first time in a while. I gave her her Daddy doll and told her that if she got scared, to hold it really tight. She said ok, and then I told her that Daddy is always thinking about her. And she asked, "Is he thinking about me right now?" with a big smile. I told her that he was thinking right now about how much misses her and loves her. She hugged her Daddy doll and said "I really love Daddy." He loves you too baby.
I cannot wait for September to be here. I know he won't be back for good, but it's all I can think about lately. I just want him to be here. Marley know he gets to come visit us in September, and I am trying to make it a point every time we talk about it to remind her that he will only be here to visit us, and then he has to go back to work again. But she is still so excited. She has a very long list of things she wants to do with him. That includes: go to a water park, play frisbee golf, go to the zoo, go fishing, camp out, and eat ice cream! Oh and ride a horse. No idea where that one came from, she just said it one day! But the most important part is that we will to it together!
Hopefully the third month will be easier. We will have a lot of down time, but we will also have a lot to do. We are taking a trip to New York City (Marley's first plane ride!), then we've got Mothers' Day in there. And also we will be getting things ready for my brother's wedding at the beginning of June. My mom will be gone for a big chuck on the month for a field trip, but hopefully warm weather and swimming pools will keep us distracted!
Which brings me to the fact that I really miss Asa. We have made it through our second month now, and the second one seemed harder than the first. It's encouraging that we are at two months instead of two weeks, and I have to keep reminding myself of that. But I have had less to do this month, and I can tell it makes a big difference in how quickly the time goes by. I get to talk to him about every other day. Unfortunately he only gets to call when it's early in the morning for him and late at night for me. So, Marley doesn't get to talk to him lately. And that makes me really sad.
Tonight at bed time, I made Marley start in her own bed for the first time in a while. I gave her her Daddy doll and told her that if she got scared, to hold it really tight. She said ok, and then I told her that Daddy is always thinking about her. And she asked, "Is he thinking about me right now?" with a big smile. I told her that he was thinking right now about how much misses her and loves her. She hugged her Daddy doll and said "I really love Daddy." He loves you too baby.
I cannot wait for September to be here. I know he won't be back for good, but it's all I can think about lately. I just want him to be here. Marley know he gets to come visit us in September, and I am trying to make it a point every time we talk about it to remind her that he will only be here to visit us, and then he has to go back to work again. But she is still so excited. She has a very long list of things she wants to do with him. That includes: go to a water park, play frisbee golf, go to the zoo, go fishing, camp out, and eat ice cream! Oh and ride a horse. No idea where that one came from, she just said it one day! But the most important part is that we will to it together!
Hopefully the third month will be easier. We will have a lot of down time, but we will also have a lot to do. We are taking a trip to New York City (Marley's first plane ride!), then we've got Mothers' Day in there. And also we will be getting things ready for my brother's wedding at the beginning of June. My mom will be gone for a big chuck on the month for a field trip, but hopefully warm weather and swimming pools will keep us distracted!
Labels:
deployment
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Easter Festivites
The Easter Bunny visited our house a day early this year! We will be really busy with Asa's family tomorrow, so we wouldn't have a chance to celebrate together. So, we woke up this morning to an Easter surprise for everyone!Marley oohed and ahhed over everything in her basket. She got a card from her Daddy, Easter stickers, a bunny, and some ceramic eggs to paint. And Easter eggs of course! She had some filled with Reese's pieces, some with Starburst jelly beans, and some with coins for her piggy bank. She loved the surprise of each one. She shook them by her ears and guessed what might be inside. It was a blast to watch her.
A little later in the morning, we started the egg hunting. Last year, this was her favorite activity. She hunted eggs about 7 times a day for a week straight. And then we finally had to hide the eggs because we were a little tired of it. This year will probably be the same! She needed about a 20 second refresher course on the point of the game and then she was off. She squealed with excitement when she found one, and then ran back to us with her egg and a huge smile! She was so proud of herself!
When we needed a break form the hot sun, we came inside and painted the ceramic eggs. I was really impressed with how she handled the paint brush and having to dip it in the water. I will admit that sometimes the perfectionist in me wants to "fix" her drawings and paintings. I am always so tempted to make it something else, not let her mix the colors, or tell her how she should do it. But I bite my tongue, and I am always so glad I do! She is such an awesome artist and I love what she makes. It means so much more to me when it was completely done by her. And it means so much more to her! When she finished today she announced, "These are so pretty!" I love watching her confidence grow.When she had finished her last egg, she was ready for more egg hunting. We hid them for her, she hid them for us, and we all had a great time. When it was our turn to hunt for the eggs she had hidden, she led us around the yard and found them for us. She was so excited to show us where they were, she couldn't wait for us to find them!
Last but not least, Emily painted Marley's finger nails for Easter today. I voted for a basic pink color, but I was overruled!
Happy Easter, everyone!
A little later in the morning, we started the egg hunting. Last year, this was her favorite activity. She hunted eggs about 7 times a day for a week straight. And then we finally had to hide the eggs because we were a little tired of it. This year will probably be the same! She needed about a 20 second refresher course on the point of the game and then she was off. She squealed with excitement when she found one, and then ran back to us with her egg and a huge smile! She was so proud of herself!
When we needed a break form the hot sun, we came inside and painted the ceramic eggs. I was really impressed with how she handled the paint brush and having to dip it in the water. I will admit that sometimes the perfectionist in me wants to "fix" her drawings and paintings. I am always so tempted to make it something else, not let her mix the colors, or tell her how she should do it. But I bite my tongue, and I am always so glad I do! She is such an awesome artist and I love what she makes. It means so much more to me when it was completely done by her. And it means so much more to her! When she finished today she announced, "These are so pretty!" I love watching her confidence grow.When she had finished her last egg, she was ready for more egg hunting. We hid them for her, she hid them for us, and we all had a great time. When it was our turn to hunt for the eggs she had hidden, she led us around the yard and found them for us. She was so excited to show us where they were, she couldn't wait for us to find them!
Last but not least, Emily painted Marley's finger nails for Easter today. I voted for a basic pink color, but I was overruled!
Happy Easter, everyone!
Friday, April 22, 2011
Sick baby
I don't have the energy to write a real blog tonight. My poor baby has been sick and sad all day and it is time for me to go snuggle in bed with her.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Honey
One of Marley's favorite books right now is The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse.When I was little, my mom would read this to me all the time and I could quote most of the book. And evidently my mom and Marley have been reading it enough that Marley can quote it also!
So, a few nights ago I was putting lotion on her after her bath. She tooted.
Me: Oh, Marley! That's stinky! Can you smell that?
Marley: "I smell a smell of honey!"
So, a few nights ago I was putting lotion on her after her bath. She tooted.
Me: Oh, Marley! That's stinky! Can you smell that?
Marley: "I smell a smell of honey!"
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Camping with Mimi
Marley is spending her night away from me tonight. Well, technically she is camping in the backyard with her Mimi. But it is still the first night that I'm not in charge of her! That's a big deal to me, but luckily she isn't concerned about it at all. She is so excited to sleep in a tent and read stories with Mimi!
**They were back inside about 15 minutes after I posted this. Marley was not feeling well and didn't even end up going to sleep until almost 11 pm! We will try again another night!
**They were back inside about 15 minutes after I posted this. Marley was not feeling well and didn't even end up going to sleep until almost 11 pm! We will try again another night!
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Random Things
We got our first official package from Asa yesterday, full of Mothers' Day presents! It was so exciting to get something that he put together and gifts that he picked out for our mothers. We really miss him, and little things like seeing his handwriting and looking at his pictures and videos made me a little emotional. Marley is loving playing dress-up, and she gets very creative about how to wear things!
Marley got a really cool weekly gift from Daddy this week! She got her very own leotard and tutu to wear to her gymnastics class. She is also ready for a ballet class if we can find one for her! She was so excited to get them!
Marley has been spending Monday mornings with Grandma, and they are having a lot of fun together! They made art for Daddy, fed the chickens and collected their eggs, gathered things from the garden, and "just played around" according to Marley. I am so happy that they get to spend that time together and I get a little break for the morning!
Marley got a really cool weekly gift from Daddy this week! She got her very own leotard and tutu to wear to her gymnastics class. She is also ready for a ballet class if we can find one for her! She was so excited to get them!
Marley has been spending Monday mornings with Grandma, and they are having a lot of fun together! They made art for Daddy, fed the chickens and collected their eggs, gathered things from the garden, and "just played around" according to Marley. I am so happy that they get to spend that time together and I get a little break for the morning!
Monday, April 18, 2011
28 Weeks Pregnant
Today, I am 28 weeks and 3 days pregnant. That's crazy to me! When I was in the first trimester of pregnancy, it seriously felt like it was never going to end. But here I am, in my third trimester getting ready for an actual baby to be here! This is what I look like today:
Want to see something crazy? This is what I looked like at 26 weeks with Marley:I'm like a totally different person! The differences in my pregnancies is apparent to me every single day. And the biggest reason for that is how much healthier I am this time around. I started this pregnancy 25 pounds lighter than I did with Marley. I actually eat the way I am supposed to this time around, where as with Marley I was eating anything and everything I could get. I exercised exactly zero times when I was pregnant with Marley, and now I am averaging about 5 days a week of exercise. And I KNOW it is making a huge difference! That will be my biggest piece of advice for anyone who is pregnant! Around this time when I was pregnant with Marley, I couldn't even go grocery shopping because my body hurt so much, and my feet were so swollen that I couldn't fit in tennis shoes.
The baby moves all the time. At my appointment today, I was given a sheet to do kick counts, which was always so hard for me to remember when I was pregnant with Marley. According to Dr. Hill, the baby should move about 10 times in an hour. It has been 45 minutes since I started counting at the baby has moved 27 times! I can actually feel knees, elbows, and a bottom this time also. Sadly, I didn't feel that at all with Marley.
It is hard to watch the scale go up every week. I know that I have to gain weight and that it is necessary for a healthy baby! But after all the hard work that went into losing 71 pounds in the year before I got pregnant, it still hurts a tiny bit to watch the number go back up. Fortunately, I have learned how to be healthy and how to lose weight, and it shouldn't be that hard after the baby arrives to get back into shape. I am actually looking forward to it.
I say this all the time, but Marley is so excited to be a big sister. We talk about it constantly. She still thinks the baby is a girl (I have that feeling right now also), but no matter if it a girl or boy, she wants to name the baby Sally. She has felt the baby move twice now. The second time was last night while I was putting her to sleep. I asked what it felt like and she said, "It feel like.... owls." Very random. And one night while she was sleeping with her leg leaning against my belly, the baby was kicking her leg over and over again making her leg pop up. It made me smile that the new baby was trying to tell Marley what to do. It doesn't stand a chance though. Marley will be telling her little brother or sister what to do for the rest of her life!
At my appointment today, my blood pressure was the best it has ever been, I found out that I passed my gestational diabetes test (I was borderline with Marley), and my weight gain is pretty much in track. All of the problems I had at this point in my pregnancy with Marley and nonexistent, and I can't even explain how happy that makes me!
For some very strange reason, I am not worried at all about having two kids. Those of you who have more than one child must be thinking I am insane at this point. I just feel like I've got that part for some reason. I feel like I can handle Marley and a new baby, especially since Marley is such as awesome little girl. Obviously it will be a big change, but I just feel like I can handle it. Now, no one is allowed to say "I told you so!" if things aren't as smooth as I want them to be. I fully admit that I could be totally wrong about this! But that's how I'm feeling right now- not worried about it. After all, I have plenty of other things to worry about, right? Why should I spend extra time worrying about the fact that I'm not worried about having two kids! I can't wait to meet this baby and see Marley loving on him or her. It will be an awesome experience, even if it ends up being harder than I think.
Want to see something crazy? This is what I looked like at 26 weeks with Marley:I'm like a totally different person! The differences in my pregnancies is apparent to me every single day. And the biggest reason for that is how much healthier I am this time around. I started this pregnancy 25 pounds lighter than I did with Marley. I actually eat the way I am supposed to this time around, where as with Marley I was eating anything and everything I could get. I exercised exactly zero times when I was pregnant with Marley, and now I am averaging about 5 days a week of exercise. And I KNOW it is making a huge difference! That will be my biggest piece of advice for anyone who is pregnant! Around this time when I was pregnant with Marley, I couldn't even go grocery shopping because my body hurt so much, and my feet were so swollen that I couldn't fit in tennis shoes.
The baby moves all the time. At my appointment today, I was given a sheet to do kick counts, which was always so hard for me to remember when I was pregnant with Marley. According to Dr. Hill, the baby should move about 10 times in an hour. It has been 45 minutes since I started counting at the baby has moved 27 times! I can actually feel knees, elbows, and a bottom this time also. Sadly, I didn't feel that at all with Marley.
It is hard to watch the scale go up every week. I know that I have to gain weight and that it is necessary for a healthy baby! But after all the hard work that went into losing 71 pounds in the year before I got pregnant, it still hurts a tiny bit to watch the number go back up. Fortunately, I have learned how to be healthy and how to lose weight, and it shouldn't be that hard after the baby arrives to get back into shape. I am actually looking forward to it.
I say this all the time, but Marley is so excited to be a big sister. We talk about it constantly. She still thinks the baby is a girl (I have that feeling right now also), but no matter if it a girl or boy, she wants to name the baby Sally. She has felt the baby move twice now. The second time was last night while I was putting her to sleep. I asked what it felt like and she said, "It feel like.... owls." Very random. And one night while she was sleeping with her leg leaning against my belly, the baby was kicking her leg over and over again making her leg pop up. It made me smile that the new baby was trying to tell Marley what to do. It doesn't stand a chance though. Marley will be telling her little brother or sister what to do for the rest of her life!
At my appointment today, my blood pressure was the best it has ever been, I found out that I passed my gestational diabetes test (I was borderline with Marley), and my weight gain is pretty much in track. All of the problems I had at this point in my pregnancy with Marley and nonexistent, and I can't even explain how happy that makes me!
For some very strange reason, I am not worried at all about having two kids. Those of you who have more than one child must be thinking I am insane at this point. I just feel like I've got that part for some reason. I feel like I can handle Marley and a new baby, especially since Marley is such as awesome little girl. Obviously it will be a big change, but I just feel like I can handle it. Now, no one is allowed to say "I told you so!" if things aren't as smooth as I want them to be. I fully admit that I could be totally wrong about this! But that's how I'm feeling right now- not worried about it. After all, I have plenty of other things to worry about, right? Why should I spend extra time worrying about the fact that I'm not worried about having two kids! I can't wait to meet this baby and see Marley loving on him or her. It will be an awesome experience, even if it ends up being harder than I think.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Car Wash!
Marley worked really hard on Saturday helping Deedee wash her car! She sprayed, scrubbed, and sprayed some more!
This was the perfect opportunity for her to finally use her new water shoes and for her to be in charge of the water hose! I don't know how many times she sprayed Deedee, but I know that Marley got sprayed!
She told Daddy about all her hard work, and he wants his truck done next!
This was the perfect opportunity for her to finally use her new water shoes and for her to be in charge of the water hose! I don't know how many times she sprayed Deedee, but I know that Marley got sprayed!
She told Daddy about all her hard work, and he wants his truck done next!
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