All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth

Trip has been working on getting his 2nd bottom tooth for a few days and it finally showed up this morning. He's growing up so fast!

What about Buzz? He's a sweet potato!

Somebody likes sweet potatoes.

(In case you are wondering, the title is a quote from the movie "Shag")

Life lately

We’re still here. We’ve been busy trying to figure out how to balance being parents with the rest of life’s demands.
I love being a wife and a mom. I still can’t figure out how to get everything together though. I’m constantly late. (Ok, I’ve been late my whole life… I’m now even later.) I find myself wearing outfits that I probably wouldn’t have worn before. I’m not talking about “mom jeans.” I’ve just become a little less picky in my wardrobe and have been forced to just put on anything clean that fits. And my concept of matching has become a little broader. It’s a little freeing. I feel more artsy… or so I keep telling myself.
The other morning was really cold so I had to pull out my scarf and gloves. Well, I actually could only find one glove. And I was running late so I ended up just wearing the one glove… on my left hand… just like MJ… and it was cream… which is kind of similar to white… just like MJ. See, I am more artsy!

Trip is growing so fast! I can’t believe he’s already 5 months old! He got his first tooth last week and has started eating some solid food. He’s tried cereal and squash so far. He doesn’t seem too crazy about either one. I can’t say that I blame him.
He is a very happy baby and he loves to laugh and squeal. He does have a little bit of a temper when he gets hungry or tired. He seems to be pretty smart too. He’s already said, “Oahu” and “blue.” Ok, maybe it just sounded like he said those words. :) We’ll wait a little bit before we contact Mensa.

I’ll post some pictures of him sometime soon. We think he’s really cute.

Timing

I posted earlier about getting "down-sized" at work 4 weeks before my due date. In my meeting with the HR director, she stated that I could take time off if I needed to if I had an interview or something. I laughed at her comment as I looked down at my rather large belly and replied, "I can't really go to an interview like this."
I actually did go to an interview like that... I was 38+ weeks pregnant when I went in to interview for an intake therapist position at a mental health agency. My friend had referred me for the job and her supervisor was actually interested in me. I first met with the HR coordinator and I felt like there was a huge elephant in the room (ME!) as we talked about the job but didn't talk about the fact that I could actually go into labor during the interview. I met next with the supervisor and she commented that she was really wanting to get the "right" person in the job instead of being in a rush to fill the position. This actually gave me hope.
I waited for what seemed like forever and finally got a call with a job offer the day before Trip was born. It was such a relief to be able to focus on our new baby without having to worry about a job search. God's timing seemed perfect with this!
I received a call a few days later from my old supervisor telling me that one of the other therapists quit and that they would love to have me come back. I was torn! I had already accepted the other job! My supervisor was really upset that the therapist did not give her any indication that she was looking for another job. She said that, if she had known, she would've had them wait to lay me off. The whole ugly situation could've been avoided! It seems that the timing could not have been any worse.
I'm not really sure why it happened the way that it did. I ended up turning down my old job. I just felt like I needed to honor my commitment with the new place... especially since they were willing to wait for me during my maternity leave.
I start my new job in 3 weeks. I don't really know what God is up to... or even if I made the right decision. I am very thankful that He has provided for us but I am nervous about starting a new job with a new baby. Lots of transition! I think in the long run, the new job will be less stressful as I most likely won't get cussed out or threatened on a daily basis like I did in my old job.
That's gotta be worth something, right?

Trip's Birthday

June 29th, Trip's official due date, came and went without event so my doctor scheduled an induction for early in the morning on 7/5. On the night of the 6/30, I got sick and chalked it it to eating too much at dinner with Will's folks. The next morning I woke up at 3:30am sick again and was having contractions 5 minutes apart (some were 2-3 min apart.) Will had to be at work at 4:00am and in all of the frenzy I somehow failed to communicate to him that I was having contractions. My doctor had told me earlier to go to the hospital when I had contractions 5 minutes apart for 2 hours straight. After the first hour of very steady contractions I called Will at work and asked him to come home.

We left for the hospital around 5:30am on 7/1.

We got checked in and went to the triage room where they checked me and found that I was only dilated 3 cm. I begged the nurse to not send me home and she said that they would keep me for a little bit to monitor me and may go ahead and induce me since I was past my due date. The contractions were so strong that I was ready for some pain relief.

I got an epidural at 8:00am and it was wonderful. (Here I am putting on makeup while the monitor in the background shows my contractions.)
The doctor broke my water at 9:00am and by 10:30am I was 10cm dilated and fully effaced.

I started pushing at 10:35am and Trip was born at 12:36pm!

7lbs 6oz, 18.5"

Pink cheeks, 10 little fingers and toes

Our little family!

When Enough is Enough

Ever feel like the smallest thing can just put you over the edge? I'm there right now. With trying to finish up everything at work, looking for another job, (thinking about) getting ready for the baby, and trying to muster up some energy to clean my house, I feel like I cannot handle one more thing.
Last night I came home from work late around 7:00ish and Will was trying to take a nap (He had to be at work yesterday at 4:00am!) I decided to be a good wife and took the dogs outside so the house would be quiet. When I walked outside, my front yard looked like downtown Mobile after a Mardi Gras parade. There was trash and paper everywhere. I stood baffled for a few seconds and then looked to the little lab sitting to the left of me.... AMELIA!!!! Apparently we had received some type of package and on one of her earlier ventures outside she decided to take care of it for us. I looked around the yard again and noticed that all of the paper wasn't actually paper... it was baby bibs and onsies... covered in mud. Ralph Lauren onsies to be exact.
As I was about to collapse into tears a neighbor approached for a neighborly chat. I held myself together and began gathering the sad, little muddy clothes from all over the yard. The neighbor offered his empathy and support but refused to adopt Amelia. After a few minutes of searching, I finally found the card in the grass. The package was from my sweet brother and sister-in-law. It made me want to cry even more. I held it together though and finished my conversation with my very chatty neighbor.
When I went inside, I threw out all of my productive plans for the evening and decided to eat chicken nachos and ice cream with strawberries and watch the Bachelorette.
(I ended not being able to sleep and was stressing out over all that I didn't get done so I got up about 11:30pm and cleaned for about an hour.)

In Need of Direction

Last Wednesday, my heart stopped for a moment as I received some pretty difficult news. (Don't worry, the baby is fine. Praise the Lord!) My agency is doing some "restructuring" and eliminating two treatment units... and one therapist... ME. This news came exactly 4 weeks before my due date.

Of course they said "it's nothing personal" and absolutely not based on my performance. It's not me... It's them. Actually, it IS me because I'm the therapist with the least amount of seniority. I've been there 9 months while the next in line has been there 7 years. So, it was pretty clear who had to go. It just really stinks being the low man on the totem pole.

So now I feel a little lost and incredibly scared. I'm not sure what to do or how to move forward. The timing seems to absolutely suck. I'm not exactly in the best condition to go in for interviews and I won't be available to work until mid-August (assuming Trip comes on time.)

Will continues working really hard on his job search... perhaps with a little bit more fervor now.

We would both really benefit from your prayers and some direction. We are truly having to lean on the Lord and look to Him to meet our needs... and pay our bills. It is so hard let go of worry and actually trust that He is good. But, He has always provided for all of our needs and will continue to do so. We are more than lilies.

5 weeks and random thoughts

My due date is now just 5 weeks from today. It feels like time is going by very quickly now... maybe too quickly since we have SO much left to do. Will and I completed our Childbirth Preparation Class at the hospital last week and afterward went up to see the babies in the nursery. It was after 9:00pm and the nursery was packed. There were babies everywhere being swaddled, changed, weighed, etc. We both walked away feeling more excited about baby Trip. I have always felt really nervous holding newborns but after seeing how rough the nurses were with the babies, it helped me to see that they are not quite a fragile as I thought.
And, for those of you who don't know, we have (finally) decided on a name. The baby is going to be William Douglas III and we are going to call him Trip. Well, I guess I should say that everyone except for Will is going to call him Trip. Will wants to call him Will when its just the two of them. It can be their special thing.
We've joked that Trip's first word is going to be "Off!" since we say it so much to Amelia. It's probably going to be a toss up between "Off!" and "No!"
I had two coworkers tell me the other day that we are going to have to get rid of our cats. They believe that cats try to get the milk out of the baby's mouth and can suffocate him while trying to do this. Really??? I think it's an Old Wives Tale but I now have one more thing to worry about. Well, we're not planning on shipping the cats off... yet. We'll just have to keep them out of the nursery and out of Trip's mouth.

Superman

I don't know if everyone knows this, but I am married to Superman. Every day he amazes me with his super strengths and skills. Yesterday was no exception.
In the morning, he got up early and painted my toenails for me before I went to work. (It's getting really uncomfortable for me to bend over and reach my toes.)
He worked on the nursery for 12 hours straight insulating and hanging dry wall. It was probably about 100 degrees in there since we have the vents closed and the window unit is jammed full of pieces of plaster and dust. And did I mention that it was his day off?
Last night he rescued a baby Starling that I found in the basement. We have a nest of them in the eave of our house and I guess this baby fell down through the walls to the basement. Our cats were circling in and Will came in just in time to carry it to safety (using gloves, of course.) And he knew just what to do to make sure that its mother would find it and save it.
My hero!

A Lesson in Tact

I had another interesting conversation in my group therapy session with my residents yesterday.

Girl: Ms. Cheryl! You're getting fat!... (pause)... Is that okay for me to tell you that you are getting fat?

Me: When is it ever okay to tell someone that they are getting fat?

Girl: Well, you ARE as big as a warehouse!!!


Hmph... I should've just left it at fat.

Practice Run

Last Tuesday found me at the hospital. My doctor had sent me there to be monitored for an hour. That hour turned into almost 8 and involved lots of tests, 2 ultrasounds, an IV and a shot. I was having very small contractions but couldn't really feel them. It was such a surreal day. I was hooked up to machines, had fluids running in me, had nurses and a doctor coming in and out all day and I felt perfectly fine. I wasn't even worried. Wouldn't it be nice if labor was really like that. Poor Will was stuck at work and calling me every chance he could to get an update. My superhero mother-in-law sat with me, advocated for me and brought me lunch, cookies and limitless drinks (when they FINALLY let me eat). At the end of the day, everything checked out okay. I was fine and the baby was fine. We have been so blessed with health! If nothing else, it was a good opportunity to rest and try out the hospital where I plan to deliver. I'd say the hospital, medical staff and my mother-in-law all passed the inspection test. Let's just hope I don't have to go back there for about 12 more weeks!

A different world

22 Weeks

Yesterday during group therapy I had a very interesting conversation with some of my clients.

Girl #1: Dang, Ms. Cheryl! You're getting big.

Me: It's great to see you too!

Girl #2: It's not supposed to be round like that.

Me: (Silence... Wasn't quite sure what to say to that.)

Girl #1: Can I see your stomach?

Me: No.

Girl #2: (A little later) I hope you're engaged.

Girl #1: Girl, don't you know that Ms. Cheryl is married?

Me: Yes, I've been married for almost 4 years.

Girl #2: Does your husband know about it?

Me: (Laughing and joking) How could he look at me and not know? Yes, he knows and he's very excited about it.

Halfway

Here are some 20 week pictures:

It's A... (for real this time)

BOY!!!

We went for an ultrasound on Monday and found out that little Baby King is a boy. Will and I are both very excited. (And now Will won't have to be the only male in the house... all 4 of our pets are females.)

The ultrasound and my blood work all appeared normal- Praise the Lord! Little BK now weighs 9 oz and from his profile ultrasound pictures, he looks just like Will did as a baby. He was very stubborn during the ultrasound and did not want to get in the right position to let the technician look at his heart chambers. It took about 10 minutes of me flipping from side to side and on my belly to get him to move so that we could see that all 4 chambers of his heart are present and functioning. I guess we shouldn't be surprised by his stubbornness... Will and I are two of the most stubborn people around :)

Now we just need to decide on a name. We had one picked out but we started having doubts when we found out that it is a boy. It feels like such a big decision.

Word to the Wise

Unless you really like standing out in the cold for long periods of time, don't adopt a puppy in the middle of one of the coldest winters.

I am relieved to say that the worst is over! (I think.) Amelia seems to be catching on the to idea of pottying outside and will actually go outside on her own now to do her business. We can just watch her from the window and don't have to be out there with her. She is doing great!!! She actually goes to the door when she needs to go out and she hasn't had an accident inside in several days.

She and Maddie are still getting along really well and Maddie is playing more with her. She can fit Amelia's entire head in her mouth! It's pretty funny to watch.

The cats are still taking their time to warm up to her. Amelia cornered Gidget the other day and tried to eat the bell off her collar. So, I don't blame Gidget for keeping her distance when she can.

Anticipation

Monday is the big day where we are hoping to find out if the baby is a boy or a girl!
Will thinks it's a girl.
I, at first, thought it was a boy but now I think it's a girl.
Will's dad is convinced that it's a boy.
My mom thinks it's a girl.
It's a mixed bag.

Does anyone want to take a guess at what it is? :)
At least there's a 50/50 chance here.

Retail therapy.... or not

I have begun the hunt for maternity clothes now that I am down to only 1 pair of jeans that I can fit into. I've been trying to be thrifty and have only bought stuff from resale shops or on clearance. I have been having a really hard time finding jeans that fit that don't cost a fortune. My hunt on Saturday took me to the JCPenney outlet (about 30 mins away.) A friend informed me that they had a lot of maternity clothes for really cheap. I was excited. As I've mentioned before... I love a good deal!
Well, it took me a while to find the maternity section. It was back in the corner of the plus-sized clothes. I searched through all of the pants and could not find one pair of XS. I asked the nearest sales associate if any of their pants come in XS. She responded, "This is the maternity section." -As if it is impossible to for a pregnant woman to need a size other than an XL. I left the store frustrated and empty handed.
This experience reminded me of a trip to Macy's with Will when we were shopping for a Christmas present for my dad. We were wandering around the Big & Tall section and Will asked the sales associate a question and the associate responded, "Do you know where you are?" Although perfectly sized, it is obvious that Will does not need Big & Tall clothes and the sales guy felt the need to point that out.
Shopping can be so frustrating sometimes!

It's A...

Girl!

Meet Amelia- our new 10 week old chocolate lab puppy.

It's not exactly what I was expecting (or exactly planning) for this year but we adopted our 4th pet this past Saturday. She is going to be Will's lil' fishing and adventure dog. She is really cute and sweet and has a lot of personality. We are really enjoying her so far. Maddie is really sweet with her but puts her in her place when needed. Maddie is Amelia's favorite toy. She loves jumping on her and licking her face and pulling her hair. Poor Maddie.

As for Baby King, we are eagerly awaiting the ultrasound on January 31st and hope that it isn't too shy to show us if it's a boy or a girl. (Above is my 16 week baby bump picture.)

The Third King

Will and I have been married for a little over 3 1/2 years and last year was the first year of our marriage that we did not have an addition to our little family. The 1st addition was Rory, a little grey 6 week old kitten we adopted at the Humane Society. After Rory came Maddie, our big, sweet Newfoundland. And then on a whim one day Will came home from work with Gidget, a really sweet, mellow 6 month old dilute-tortie kitten.
During the past 2 1/2 years, Will and I have been hoping for a not-so-furry addition to our family. After a lot of disappointment, tears, specialists and surgery we were ready to pursue an adoption of the human kind. We decided to wait a little longer and take some time to mourn the loss of our dream of having our own biological children.
In light of all of that, we are so thankful to God to be able to announce that we are expecting. I am 14 weeks pregnant! (15 weeks tomorrow.) God willing, we will be meeting our little one somewhere around June 29th. We are hoping to find out the sex from my next ultrasound on January 31st. Will thinks it's a girl and I think it is a boy. So, at least one of us will be right :)
There's a lot that we need to take care of over the next 25 weeks and we covet your prayers. The main thing right now is that Will needs a better job with better hours and significantly more compensation. We are both beginning to feel the pressure of the time-crunch and are starting to experience more anxiety and stress.
Please pray:
1) For a healthy baby
2) For a better job for Will
3) That we will look to God and trust that He will be faithful to provide for ALL of our needs

Thank you!