Running and Pregnancy

I could leave this post blank and that would be enough. That's what running is like, being pregnant. Empty! Blank. Worthless! It's quite frustrating. Let me explain...

I started running in October of 2010. I became obsessed with it quickly and developed a love I never knew I had. I used to loathe running! Since that time, running became one of my biggest hobbies and soon was one of Derrick's biggest hobbies, too. We were constantly training for something and most of our weekends involved some type of race. We loved it! We still do. However, since learning of this pregnancy, my running has taken a turn for the worse. The weekend after I found I was pregnant, my 10k time was almost 10 minutes slower than 2 weeks before. Sure, maybe I'm more aware of things and being cautious. But for a competitive runner, 10 minutes is not acceptable. For the past year, I was waking up at 4:30ish to run with friend before work. Since my new job, that time was pushed to 6am, which was great. However, when you wake up feeling nauseous, running is the last thing on my mind. Luckily, I found a resolution for this. Anyways, my point is the struggle. Races just don't bring me the same excitement, knowing I won't be placing, nor will I be making a new PR.

Running used to be my stress reliever. My time to think about all the things going on in my life. When I ran with friends, it was a time to talk about life and support one another. Well, now, my runs stress me out even more! I'm learning to cope. I'm learning that I need a new plan. But it's not easy. I can no longer run with the endurance I had a mere 9 weeks ago. My run has become a slow jog, intermittent with walking. I get out of breath within 5 minutes of fast jog. I'm really not okay with this but I'm learning. Everytime I'm out there, I remind myself... at least I'm out here. I've heard over and over, "but you're pregnant now"! I don't care! Well, I do care, but I still miss my running!

I was signed up for my first marathon in early October. In the back of my head, I had convinced myself that even if I wound up pregnant before then, I could still walk/run it. I wasn't planning on being 35 weeks pregnant the day of the race. I've finally come to the conclusion it won't be happening. And mostly because I don't want to drive to Chicago and flying is not safe that late. I'm pretty bummed, but I've already decided I'm going to do one after the baby! Hopefully that keeps me motivated during the next 8 months to continue with what I can. I will be doing the Peachtree in July. I'll be 20 weeks then, so I'm sure walking will be involved, but it will still be fun!

Right now, I long for the day when I can have a "good run". Where I come back being refreshed and excited about my time! I'd make do with a nice glass of red wine, too, but that's not happening anytime soon either. :)

I really am happy I'm pregnant, but I refuse to write a blog only talking about the good things. There are negatives, but I know it will all be worth it in the end!

And I'll get that good run in, with a cute little baby in the jogging stroller with me :)

Telling the News

This past weekend, we spent telling lots of people about the big news! We were able to tell my sister on Thursday when she came over to hang out. If you know my sister, you know she's slightly dramatic. And by slightly, I mean immensely. She has a crazy idea that when you have a kid, your house is full of poop. She thinks when you go to the store that anyone within a 10 person radius will be sprayed with poop. And I'm not exaggerating. We had just been talking about this so I covered a shirt with Hershey's chocolate syrup and put it on my face. She opened the door and we proceeded to get the best video ever. It's on Derrick's phone and he's not here but I'll try to post it at some point. If you ever questioned how dramatic she is, you will no more.

Telling my parents was more complicated. Long story short, we were supposed to tell them Friday afternoon but plans kept changing so we were not able to tell them until Saturday afternoon. We had dinner with some friends on Friday night and were able to tell them that we will be joining both of them in the baby world! Yay!! Saturday morning we went to breakfast with Derrick's parents and told them immediately with a gift we had gotten them. Shock is what hit their faces! Followed by excitement! For my parents, it was the same. And my little brother immediately claimed it would be a "he". Words can't describe telling them. It was so fun!

I was even able to tell 2 of my best friends on Saturday and proceeded to make a phone call to the other 2, in which the conversation consisted of "oh.my.gosh!" over and over again. We told Derrick's sister Saturday (over the phone since she is out of state) as well and I think she cried! We were also able to inform our small group friends from church. 2 of them are expecting (one in July and one any day now), and the other is the leader, with 3 kids already! We're already baby surrounded!

Sunday, we ran a 1ok and my time is already slowing! It took me almost 10 minutes longer to complete than it did 3 weeks ago. That's gonna be tough! Worth it, but tough! My October marathon plans are over (more than likely), but I'm thinking that a marathon will be a really good chance for me to lose baby weight once the baby is here! We shall see!

At this point, a plethora of emotions constantly fill me. Last night, watching TV, I sat and cried like a baby while Derrick enjoyed laughing at that. Other than that, no major symptoms to report. Let's pray that continues!

Sooner than Later

Well... it has certainly been a while. But I don't feel bad in the least about that! I made a New Years Resolution that when I was done with grad school, I would pick this back up. It should be noted that I'm not done with grad school and I'm starting sooner. There is a reason for that.... We're expecting a baby!!

A year ago, I would have said "Not a chance....3 more years..." Well, our hearts changed. We decided to throw caution to the wind and I think we were both shocked that it only took 2 months. I was convinced I was going to have to adopt children. I have a tendency to think the worst... all the time. It's a problem, I know. Anyways, my hope is that I can keep everyone updated with what is going on with this new journey for us, through here! I'll start from the day we found out...
Actually... I'm going to back up a little bit. From the first month we decided we wanted a baby, I obsessed over every little symptom I had. Seriously... it was ridiculous. People don't tell you how hard the waiting and anticipation is. I seriously have a soft spot now for women trying to conceive, and my wait was not even long! So for about a week before we found out, I was having small symptoms that I was not letting myself obsess over and chalking it up to some reason I could find. I really was not going to let myself be disappointed for however long it took us to get pregnant! Derrick had told me I had to wait a couple days before I tested due to the amount of money we poured out on home pregnancy tests last month. Ha... he's funny. I told him I would wait till Tuesday (3/6/12) but I clearly did what I wanted to. I tested on Monday... at about 5:15 in the morning. It quickly showed that I was pregnant. And honestly, my first reaction was OMG. My next reaction was... I won't have to deal with womanly things for 9 months. Looking back on that though, I bet my opinion will completely change! Anyways, I went back to bed and was determined not to tell Derrick anything! I wanted to tell him in a fun way. So for the next hour, I downloaded a pregnancy app and started reading! Yes... I have a problem. I like to be prepared. Deal with it! That day (which is today, I'm writing and not posting till we announce), was a whirlwind of emotions. Crying at the drop of a hat has already been on the list the past week, so I teared up over EVERYTHING. Ridiculous things. I worked all day so my mind was constantly going back and forth over things. I went for a run, and was paranoid the whole time. I never went over 5.5 mph, which I normally run at 6.5 or faster. And I alternated with walking. This baby is already taking over my life! Anyways... I drove past Derrick's truck on the way to the gym and teared up thinking, "I'm about to change his whole world". I wasn't sure if I should say change or ruin... we'll let you know :)

Telling Derrick

I had come up with several silly ways to tell Derrick. Pinterest royally let me down, btw. I decided to get a card and put it on his truck and stalk him till he left work and read it. I teared up looking at cards, scared to death someone would see me and know what was up. Who cries when they're looking at baby cards? Anyways.... I followed through with the plan. Once I put the envelope on his truck, I circled the parking lot a few times looking for "the spot". I didn't just need any spot. I wanted to be in the best creeper-ability spot in the massive lot. Well, I found that spot. Only to have someone sitting in their car directly in front of me. I kept watching for Derrick, and he kept profiling me in case he needed to give a description later. As he was leaving, Derrick was approaching his truck. Creepily, I rolled down my window and only stuck my iPhone out the window to get good shots of his face reading it. The guy seriously probably reported me. Oops. Well, Derrick decided to get in the truck and read the card. So all my creeping was for nothing! I got out of the car and walked up to his truck just in time! He had the biggest grin on his face! He was like a fat kid in a candy shop :) I quickly snapped his pic and then made him read the card again. Then, I ruined the moment by telling him about my creeping abilities :) We went to dinner to celebrate and made our plans for how and when we would tell people.

We still can't really believe it. We're super excited but not sure how to feel at this moment! We're just excited to spread the news!!

Lagging Behind

I have contemplated blogging quite often lately, but just never get around to it! I feel like I have been doing a whole lot of nothing, but when I think about it, it has been so busy! Since the last time I blogged, we have moved like 3 times, I have had surgery, finished up grad school for the semester, been to Kentucky, and done tons of shopping for my new classroom, as well as start setting it up! We moved from our old place, into our new one with the help of our wonderful families, however we were not allowed to live there until they got the permits. So we packed up what we needed, stayed in our new place, had to move out of it so they could clean it for the new people, so we moved into another one, and then finally officially arrived in our new one about 2 weeks ago! All while I was recovering from surgery. If you ask me, it was an ideal time because I couldn't lift one box :) jk. I did not like having to sit around and watch, but am thankful for all those who helped! My mom came up and helped me set everything up and get it into place, as well as my mother in law, who helped me clean! And Derrick deserves some attention here, as he was a champ, unloading and putting things where I pointed!

Surgery has been a whirlwind! I stayed at my mom's house a few days right out of the hospital so Derrick wouldn't have to take off work and cater to me. My mom was wonderful and spoiled me! It has still been crazy though. I was so relieved to have it under my belt, but I think I have been focusing too much on the end result of being healed, and did not quite prepare myself for how long that would take. It's only 6 weeks for total recovery, but that is a long time when you can't do anything! And pains meds make me crazy. That's a while different story! Any of the things I would do to distract myself, I am not allowed to! I can't work out, clean, organize, move things around.... nothing! It has been hard! But it is slowly getting better, and I'm almost to the halfway mark.

I ventured to Kentucky with my mom and brother for a few days this week and visited with family and had a good time! Now, I am back home and have big plans for my classroom next week! Pre-planning starts on the 16th for me and I want my room totally ready before that so I can do whatever else they say is necessary! And by the e-mails I am getting, I feel like it might be a lot! I am getting overwhelmed already. Excited, but overwhelmed! I just want the first day to be here and over with so I can be prepared! I'll probably be laughing at that statement in a few months!

Grad school has wrapped up for the summer for both of us and will be coming at us full force again in about 2 weeks! I will be done in December, and I am counting the days already!

I think that is about all for now! I will post pics of the new place soon! and my classroom :)

A Quiet Sunday Afternoon...

Yeah right!

Let me start by prefacing that a long time ago, almost 14 years ago, my mom was pregnant with my little brother. I was 10, so I still went with her everywhere, doctor's appointments included. After one appointment, we were walking out and all of a sudden, my mom got very pale and immediately ran into a room. I followed and they sat me in the waiting area while they took her back and took care of her. I had no idea what was going on and was very attached to my mom and was scared to death. They finally let me go see her, where she was lying on a table and they had an IV in her and she did not look so hot. Ever since that moment I have been terrified of needles and hospitals. Which leads me to our Sunday afternoon:

I have done a pretty phenomenal job at avoiding hospitals at all costs. Until Sunday. Derrick and I had been up pretty late Saturday night, so when Sunday morning rolled around, we tossed back and forth the idea of sleeping in till the later church service. However, I decided to just get up and get ready. We left and went to church and were out by about 10. A couple days earlier, I had found some rugs I wanted Derrick to see, so after church, we went to Publix (to get my coupons!) and to TJ Maxx Homegoods. During this time, Derrick commented that we might not be out long today, as his side was hurting pretty bad. I figured he didn't want to go rug shopping :) Homegoods was closed so we went to a nearby Wal-Mart to pick up a few things we needed until we could get in to Homegoods. Well, we were shopping around and Derrick was hurting, but we both thought it would pass. He decided to go back out to the truck and wait for me. I hurried and when I went outside, he could barely stand up straight as he was doubled over from the pain. He was talking with his dad on the phone, and after talking with him for a few, we decided I should take him to the ER... luckily, it was about 2 minutes away. So we walk in, and they immediately know it is him. We didn't wait at all. At this point, I'm ok. Derrick is in immense pain and they are taking his bp and getting some information. Well, after that, they put him in a wheelchair and take him back to his room. At this point is when I am struggling to keep it all together. I hate hospitals. I hate the smells. Just seeing that room made it all to real for me. The doctors thought it was appendicitis or kidney stones. I was freaking out at the thought of appendicitis as the thought of him in surgery and me not in control, was not a good combination! They were giving him some meds, thank the Lord!, and waiting for a CAT scan to see what was going on. About 20 minutes later, they take him back, and after waiting about 10 for the results, the diagnosis was kidney stones. During this time he was away, I broke down. I was trying to be the strong one, as any time I would tear up, he was more concerned about my well-being than his ridiculous amount of pain. I don't even know why I cried. I guess it was all just scary and I didn't know what it was going to be. Long story short, he passed it there and we were released and came home and took a much needed nap! Not to mention all of our family is out of town! Only his dad is within a 2 hour drive from where we were, and he could not leave. Luckily it wasn't anything more serious!

We are so thankful for all the prayers from those of you who were aware! It meant the world to us.

And now my fears of hospitals are even more elevated, as it was still just as scary. But we had a wonderful experience!

And I can't get the smell of hospital off of my hands. ick! And we will continue our rug shopping another day :)

One Year

Well, it has been a while, but life is busy, so deal :)

Today is the mark of our one year anniversary! Prior to this, we were able to spend a week at the beach with great friends! And, before our anniversary we got the great news that I'm pregnant! just kidding! But we did get the great news that I got a teaching job. I'm thrilled! I will be teaching 4-5 grade resource, behavior disorders. I'm so excited!

We celebrated our anniversary by heading to ATL on Friday afternoon. We had plans to eat at Dante's down the Hatch. It is a fondue restaurant and the attire was dressy. Well, I sometimes loie for Derrick and I to have the same color scheme... just for picture's sake. Well, Derrick hates this. To the extent that he will change if we accidentally have on the same colors. I find it amusing. Anyways... we have our outfits picked out, not the same colors, but acceptable. We decided we should check into our hotel first, so Derrick hangs up his things so they won't get wrinkled. Well, we finish packing and head out. About 30 minutes out, I hear Derrick say, "Oh, no!" This is not a typical saying. Long story short, Derrick left his "dressy attire" hanging on the wardrobe. Awesome. We had some extra time, but not a lot. So, we stop at a nearby Belk to get Derrick new clothes! Let's just say, after his fashion faux pas, we showed up at Dante's..... matching :) Anyways, dinner was wonderful and they gave us a special glass celebrating our anniversary. Except Dante presented it to us, and he's rather old, and he thought he gave us one that said 2009, since that was the year we married, but it clearly states 2008. ha. It's the thought that counts! Saturday we shopped around in IKEA and came home to relax!

I thought it would be fun to make a list of things I have learned in my first year of marriage. It'd probably be funny to get Derrick to do a list to, but that won't happen. His only comment would be, she always wants to match. haha. Ok, so here goes, and in random order!

1. Boys are messy
2. The TV changer is ALWAYS in their hand
3. Boys always think they are the better driver. I think this would be true even if we were sitting in a head-on collision with him as the driver. It clearly would not be his fault.
4. Getting a boy to pick up EVERYTHING after himself is like nailing jello to a tree
5. Whether I have on make- up or not, he never knows. I don't know if I should be offended by this or happy. I tend to take the offensive stance.
6. The amount of time it takes a boy to get ready is ridiculous. I always knew this, but I grow more jealous daily.
7. Quiet is not something men are.
8. Issues of importance are radically different from male to female. My hair looking bad is not important to Derrick, when it is clearly at the top of my list :)
9. Money really doesn't grow on trees (sorry, mom and dad :))
10. Husbands and wives (at least in this house) never want to watch the same thing
11. Volume levels are never agreed upon
12. AC levels are also never agreed upon
13. Cooking really is my job. Unless I want Totino's dollar pizza nightly
14. Creating ways to organize and filling Derrick in on them is of high importance. Note # 8
15. Grocery shopping takes 10x longer with a boy
16. Grocery shopping is 10x more expensive when said boy comes along
17. Sleeping in, in the summer, when husband has to go to work early does not exist. Might I add, that for 10 months out of the year, he is not woken up by my early mornings :)
18. With above statement, revenge is often necessary :)
19. When are you going to have a baby? is the question of choice after the wedding day
20. Guy time(for Derrick) and girl time (for me) is crucial to sanity!
21. Other people's wedding and honeymoon pictures are much more exciting and interesting to look at now. I could do that all day.
22. Derrick is much better at folding t-shirts than I am. He probably wishes I didn't know this.
23. You must make a man do something immediately. Remembering does not often happen.
24. Flaws (of my own) are much easier to see being married.
And last, but not least...
25. Writing a list of things I've learned being married will probably make said husband not very happy.

Happy Anniversary Derrick! Love you :)

Catching Up

My goodness, it has been quite a while! I've thought about blogging from time to time, but had no motivation. Sleep or food sounded like a much better idea at those times. Life has really been pretty much the same in this household, with a few exciting touches.

Since the last post, Derrick and I have been able to pick out all of the furniture for our new place! It was beyond exciting, for me at least :) We went to Ashley furniture and said, "we want this, that, that over there, this right here...." (you get the point), and finished with, "and bill that NGCSU!" That's right, not paying a penny here! Man oh man! Life is sweet! Too bad that won't ever happen again in our lives! I literally sit and fantasize about all of our new furniture. It's quite pathetic, actually. We will finally have a large sofa! woo! Our little one is not fit for two. And a Queen bed. O.M.G. That, plus the sofa, was enough to please me, but we threw in plenty more, don't ya know! I love Derrick and all, but a Full bed just does not cut it! So, you're all welcome to come visit once we get settled! We'll have lots of room to seat you!

Grad school is over for both Derrick and I. Praise the Lord! That took forever! One semester for me down, 2 to go! Derrick has more than 2, but we celebrate anyways.

We have a beach trip planned with some great friends May 29-June 5. Can not wait! It's always so nice to kick off summer with a good beach trip! Speaking of kicking off summer, only 15 more days with the little ones! And hopefully I will hear something about a job in the next few weeks! I sure hope so! '

I was just looking through one of my scrapbooks and realizing that one year ago, we were being showered with love at all of our awesome showers. If only those continued :) just kidding! We are so grateful for all of that, still. I am also grateful, yet envious, of the super long hair I had then. Summer mission: Get it back! Second summer mission: Divorce Derrick and get re-married to someone else so I can have more showers :) ok ok. only kidding. I'll re-marry Derrick :)

Well, I told you not much was going on! I'll try to be better about this blogging!