It's Cruise Day...

Friend's and Family Day Cruise on the IKE that is. Notice that I am here instead of on a large Navy Aircraft Carrier? I can't go since I am pregnant. You have to sign a waiver and all saying that you are not pregnant and such and there is no way that I could pass for "not pregnant"...haha I have been up since 3AM because I had to take Mark's dad to the ship and then we picked up Mark and had to go pick up 2 other families of guys who are on watch and were not able to pick them up. Would I much rather be on board rather than sitting here typing this up? DEFINITELY! I love the FFDC! The whole experience!! Now, don't get me wrong, I wouldn't rather go on FFDC rather than have McKenna, DUH!, but that doesn't mean that I can't wish that I was there. It is such a great experience, the FFDC. I mean you go out and you are ON an aircraft carrier!! How many people can say they have been OUT ON a carrier?? The the airshow...that is so great! It is so cool to see the bombs and the air show and the breaking of the sound barrier and all...oh my goodness...it is so incredible! I have pictures from last year, I will see if I can find any good ones and post them...maybe my father-in-law will let me have some of his if he gets any.

Mark go in from his underway on Thursday and was able to come home for a few hours and then had to go back on board where he has been since. He was not supposed to be able to go with me to pick up his dad from the airport but I am glad that he did. He was able to spend a few hours with us and then we had to take him back to the ship. From there his dad and I came back to the house and watched Jeff Dunham (which, by the way, if you have not see you should!) and then it was bedtime since wake-up time was 3am. So at 3 I got up and got dressed, like I was going on the FFDC nonetheless....not completely sure why since I knew I was coming right back home. Anyway, I got dressed and we, father-in-law and I, left and headed to base. We got there at 413 (haha I checked as soon as we got on because we had to be there at 415 to go pick up the other two families...haha) and picked up the families and then I dropped them off and came home. So, being home alone all day what do I have planned, you ask? Homework. I am thinking that I might go to Kohl's and/or the new Bed, Bath, and Beyond that opened next to it later but I don't know. We'll see. Homework is a for sure though. I want to get as far ahead as I can get.

My latest McKenna stories are pretty funny...when Mark was home for those few hours on Thursday we were sitting on the couch and Mark said he wanted to hear her heartbeat so I went and got the fetal monitor and he put it on my stomach trying to find her heartbeat and she kicked him. haha She kicked him hard too. So he moved the monitor over, still looking for the heartbeat, and she kicked him again. haha This went on for a few minutes. It was pretty funny. She does that to him all of the time; he will put his hand on my stomach and she will kick it so he'll push back and she'll kick him again. Mom says that I used to kick my daddy in the back when she would lay behind him...haha I am just waiting on McKenna to do that.

The other story that I have occurred this morning; the alarm went off at 3am this morning and I have it set on that annoying buzz function they come with...haha...anyway, when it went off she kicked me. It was almost as if she was like it scared her and she was like "It is way too early, what are you thinking?" haha

Margie and Abe (my mother-in-law and father-in-law) are on the Alaska cruise that Mark and I were supposed to go on. AAHH!! Not fair!! #1. Mark was not able to get off work to go, and #2. I am pregnant and can't go. Once again, I would not trade McKenna for anything but you know, IT'S ALASKA!! We were so excited about going and it was just not meant to be. We will go one day though, we have already decided that! haha

Well I guess that is all that I have to report on. I must say, this weekend has not been a bad one at all, it has actually be going pretty well! I can't wait to see what the rest of the weekend holds! OH!! I do know one thing that the weekend holds...BRAD PAISLEY! Mark and I went to his concert last year and had a great time so when we heard that he was back in town we really wanted to go. Last year the line-up was INCREDIBLE! This year I am not excited about. Last year was Taylor Swift, Rodney Adkins, and Brad Paisley (OMG AMAZING!); this year is Jewel, Julianne Hough, Steve Azar, and Brad Paisley (EH...), hence, we are going to see Brad.

Ok, for real this time, I guess it is time for homework...or a nap, the more I sit here the more tired I get.

Ciao!

Dear Non-Pregnant Person...

This was sent to me by another fellow pregnant woman and I got a good chuckle from it and had to pass it along. To those who have been pregnant or are pregnant, how true this is! haha

Dear Non-Pregnant Person,

I hope you find these guidelines helpful in your interactions with pregnant women as failing to follow them may result in serious physical harm.

..If you are thinking, "surely she doesn't mean me"- then you should probably read this twice.

1) The appropriate response to a couple telling you they are having a baby is "Congratulations!" with enthusiasm. Any other response makes you an a$$

2) Through the wonders of science, we now know that babies are made ONLY by the mother and father - not grandparents. Unless the baby is in your uterus or you are the man that helped put it there, you may not ever use the phrase "my baby".

3) On the same note, unless you made the baby as defined in 2, the pregnancy, birth and raising of the child are not about you.You do not have input. No one wants to hear your opinion unless they ask for it. The same goes for the name of the baby.

4) The body of a pregnant women should be treated the same as any other body.You would not randomly touch someone's stomach if they were not pregnant, nor would you inquire into the condition of their uterus, cervix, or how they plan to use their breasts. Pregnancy does not remove all traces of privacy from a woman.

5) Likewise, no women wants to hear comments on her weight - ever. A pregnant woman does not find it flattering that you think she is about is pop, must be having twins, looks swollen, or has gained weight in her face. Telling her she looks too small only makes her worry that she is somehow starving her baby. Making such comments invite her to critique your physical appearance and you may not act offended. The only acceptable comment on appearance is "You look fabulous!".

6) By the time we are 20-30 years old, most of us have picked up on the fact that the summer is hot. We are hot every summer when we are not pregnant. We don't need you to point out that we will be miserably hot before the baby comes.

7) There is a reason that tickets to Labor and Delivery are not yet sold on Ticketmaster. Childbirth is actually not a public event. It may sound crazy, but some women really do not relish the idea of their father-in-law, mother-in-law, or a host of other family members seeing their bare butt and genitals. Also, some people simply feel like the birth of their child is a private and emotional moment to be shared only by the parents. Like everything else in life, unless you receive an invitation, you are NOT invited. This includes doctor appointments, ultrasounds, labor, delivery, the hospital, and the parents' home. You do not decide if you will be there for the birth or if you will move in with the new parents to "help out". If your assistance is desired, rest assured that you will be asked for it.

9) If you are asked to help after the birth, this means you should clean up the house, help with cooking meals, and generally stay out of the way. Holding the baby more than the parents, interfering with breastfeeding and sleeping schedules, and making a woman who is still leaking fluid from multiple locations lift a finger in housework is not helping.

10) The only people entitled to time with the baby are the parents. Whether they choose to have you at the hospital for the birth or ask for you to wait three weeks to visit, appreciate that you are are being given the privilege of seeing their child. Complaining or showing disappointment only encourages the parents to include you less.

I hope this helps - it sure makes us feel better.

Signed,

This and All Pregnant Women

Aerobics

My goodness! Well let me start by saying that today was nothing special. It was just me, McKenna, Bailey, and Roxie and where it was an ok day it was just nothing special. I had a headache most of the day and that is never fun. I figured it was because I had not had my Dr Pepper for the day so I at about 2 I grabbed one and drank it while I did some homework. At 3 I decided to take a bath. Oh did that bath feel so good!! By this time I had finished my Dr Pepper and no sooner had I gotten in the bath that McKenna started going crazy! haha She was kicking and turning and...well doing her baby aerobics. Don't get me wrong, she does this for a few minutes every day or so a couple times a day usually, atleast that is when I feel her, but today she went on for over an hour. I was shocked! lol I started out having a pretty blah day. Not bad and nothing happened but I guess my hormones were just all out of whack and I was just sad and blah...once she started up though I couldn't help but laugh. I kept trying to catch her and watch her but at first every time that I would look down she would stop and as soon as I would look away she would start up again. I eventually caught her though...haha

At the end of the day I can say that my day was good. Between McKenna and Bailey and Roxie they can always bring a smile to my face and brighten my mood.

I just wanted to share that with ya'll!

Ciao!

Another Week; Our Registry

Well not too much is going on this week. Mark is out to sea still so it is just Bailey, Roxie, and I here at home hanging out and getting ready for classes to start. I have already paid for classes and bought my books so I am just waiting on those to come in. I have one book already so I really want to get started reading that one. Hopefully I will be able to get ahead. Classes officially start on the 25th though so that is coming up soon! BUT it is my last semester!!! I will finally have something to show for all of these years and trials of school!!

Roxie has been in heat the past few weeks so that has kept me busy busy busy! Bailey gets pretty hard-headed when Roxie goes into heat so he keeps me on my toes. Now that she is finishing up her cycle he is just exhausted! For about a week or Roxie's cycle he won't eat, hardly sleep or anything so now that she is finishing up he is just exhausted. Poor thing. Last night I was sitting on the couch and he came up and sat down beside me and just looked at me with his eyes all half closed and you could just see it in his face that he was so tired. Then today he had slept all day. I mean, don't get me wrong, I slept a lot of the day, and Roxie too but I think she slept more because she was bored...which makes me feel bad...but Bailey has been out of it all day. I am sure his energy level will be back in a day or two.

Everything with McKenna is good...perfect even. She has her days where she allows me to feel her moving and kicking and punching and then her days where she just seems to be calm as can be. Today has been kind of in the middle; she has been quite active and yet at the same time just chillin'.

I have been working on my registry tonight. I do not know that I will be able to have a shower before McKenna gets here so I thought that I would put up a registry that has everything in one place; instead of having registries at Target, Baby Depot, Babies R Us, WalMart, etc. I have one registry that combines it all. You can get to it as http://www.myregistry.com/Visitors/Welcome.aspx?sid=110b60a1-7775-449d-8ced-3ef7992c2e7b Let me remind you though that you do not HAVE to purchase online or anything it is just easier to have one registry as opposed to 3-4 different ones. I tried to put down what online store I found the item on but was not able to remember each time's store.

Well it is late and I am finally getting tired so I am going to head to bed. I'll update again soon!

Ciao!

Excitement and Dread

This week has been great!! Not only has Mark been home but Eric has been here! We have all had a blast! First off let me start out that Mark and I went to Ruth's Chris for the first time to celebrate our anniversary and his birthday. Oh my goodness! It was SO good! Definitely worth the wait (we kept saying we wanted to go and yet never did). So we did that and then Eric got here and we all went to Busch Garden's...YAY! It was so much fun! I didn't feel bad this time that Mark didn't get to ride rides because Eric rode with him!! I don't ride roller coasters or anything, just don't like them, but I love going to amusement parks and all so it was a BLAST! We have been to the malls and all in all just hung out. Mark had a 4 day weekend so he was able to be home the whole time. Even today he went to work at 6 and was home by 830 so he has had the chance to spend the whole time with us...which is not often.

Yesterday, the 11th, Mark and I had our doctor's appointment; Eric was able to go with us as well and that was cool. I know that he was probably bored most of the time but he said that seeing the ultrasound and hearing the heartbeat was cool so hopefully he was not too bored the whole time. Everything looks good, we were able to see McKenna and her brain and her spine and just watch her move around. She was pretty active and all which was fun to watch. She was in a little ball a bit of the time and had her knee to her mouth. haha It was fun. She was just hanging out and moving about.

So that was the "Excitement" in the title, now on the the "Dread"...Mark and Eric BOTH leave tomorrow. Like seriously, Mark has to be into work at 7 and Eric leaves at 3. I mean atleast I get a little time with SOMEONE before they all leave but my goodness what a sad day it will be!! Last time that Eric left I cried like a baby! (Dang hormones!) This time I can only imagine...with both of them leaving and all...UGH!

Along with both of them leaving, as soon as I get my husband back he has to go back out to sea for a Friends and Family Day Cruise which I am NOT looking forward to!!! I am not able to go because I am pregnant by the way. He has to go though so I get him home and he has to leave again. I just want to have him all to myself!!!! Contrary to popular belief, we do not get a lot of time alone...

Ok well I guess right there is a good place to end this entry...before my word vomit gets too bad.

Ciao!