Right now I am procrastinating (what's new?).  I haven't done any Aire-Master stuff for like 3 days and I am dreading touching it.  But I know I have to tonight before I go to bed because I have to do statements tomorrow.  I also have to clean my house since I didn't do it today (I convinced Chad to stay home since it was so icy….and I just can't clean house when anyone else is home).

We went and registered for baby stuff this morning.  It was so overwhelming.  They give you all those checklists and they're all different and you're just hoping you get enough of everything, but not too much….and you're really hoping you don't forget anything.  We got the majority of it done in the store, but I'm tweaking it online now.  I'm done for tonight, though.  I'll probably finish over the weekend.

On our way back from registering, we stopped at PetCo and bought some stuff for Buddy.  We bought him the paste that goes in his kong (we always used to just put treats in it), two bones, and a "tennis ball" that's shaped like a bone.  He *loves* the paste in his kong, he chewed through an entire bone in about an hour and it's just hilarious watching him and Chad play with the tennis ball bone.  I was laughing so hard watching the two of them.  I wish I'd gotten it on tape.  The downside is that the bone squeaks, and Buddy is being really, really annoying with it.

Well, if I ever want to get to bed, I need to go and tackle that Aire-Master stuff… 

Posted: November 30th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 2

Chad and I just took more belly pics this morning, so they're in my photo gallery, too.  Warning:  It's gotten A LOT bigger!!

Posted: November 30th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 3

My photo gallery is up and running again (Thanks, Jeb!!).  I have two belly pics in there, but I really need to take another one, because my belly is *a lot* bigger than that, now.  I'm still working on the ultrasound pics, too….that will have to wait until tomorrow or maybe the weekend….I'm not sure what's wrong with them, but they won't load into any photo albums.

Posted: November 29th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 2

We are in the middle of our first "snowstorm" here in Kansas. I'm kind of shocked because the weather says it's still pretty warm in Wisconsin!  I worked with Chad all morning and it started sleeting right when we were finishing.  I'm not expecting much accumulation, but the weather sure is nasty out there and we're really glad we just get to spend the rest of the day at home (Buddy is too, since he was outside this morning).  I think we're going to watch Click this afternoon….and I'm going to try to buy Finding Nemo online….I love that movie and now I finally have an excuse to buy it!  (for the baby, you know….)

Posted: November 29th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 1

We had a nice Thanksgiving.  We ate waaaaay more than we should have and it seemed like every time I stood up, it made room in my stomach for a little more food! 

Now we're finally back home and we get to sleep in our own bed for a whole month before we have to go away again!!!  It's nice seeing everyone, but it's definitely nice being home, too.

Today, I have to wait for a delivery to come and then I have to go out and do the grocery shopping.  I'm hoping to cut back a little in the next few weeks so I can save for our anniversary.  I'm not sure what I'm getting Chad yet, though.  We talked about combining the money we were going to spend on gifts for each other and buying a digital camera, but I'm not sure.  Anyway, after that, I've got a little bit of paperwork to do and then I can start on the quilt I'm making for Ava!  I can't wait!  My grandma gave me some fabric for it yesterday, and I think it's going to look really nice when it's done.

Anyway, I've got to get moving now and make my grocery list…..and I think I have food in the oven that I should probably check on…. 

Posted: November 27th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 3

It's a…….

GIRL!!!!!

Her name is going to be Ava Loren and we're sooooooooo excited!!  Now we get to start buying stuff and registering for stuff.  She's a big baby, though…she's a pound right now, which puts her in the 82nd percentile.  At my little brother's ultrasound, he was a pound and if he had gone to term, he would have been 9 1/2 pounds, I think.  My doctor didn't officially change my due date, but her measurements said she should be due around March 25.  Hopefully, she'll be early.

I've got lots of other things to write about, but it'll have to wait until tomorrow.  I'll post ultrasound pictures as soon as I get them scanned in.

Posted: November 19th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 8

"Before you were conceived, I wanted you.

Before you were born, I loved you.

Before you were here an hour, I would die for you.

This is the miracle of life."

Only 8 more days until we find out what the baby is!!  I can't wait.  I've started having Braxton-Hicks contractions, but I'm not too worried about it.  I was reading about it online and it said that you actually start having them at around 6 weeks, but you can't feel them until mid-pregnancy.  I'm glad I found that out, because otherwise I would have been worrying about pre-term labor, etc.  We sure have an active baby, though.  It seems like every time I sit still, it starts moving.

I'm not sure what else to write about right now.  I'm just bored out of my gourd.  Chad is playing video games and I don't feel like doing any Aire-Master stuff (you can only do so much, before you don't want to even be in the same room with it anymore).  Chad's parents are going to get here either really late tonight or tomorrow morning and they'll be spending the weekend with us, so we're excited about that.  We miss everyone up there a lot. 

Posted: November 9th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 4

Buddy had a little adventure yesterday.  We had plumbers come (again) at around noon and they brought their big machine in through the back gate (that keeps Buddy in).  Buddy was in the house, so it wasn't a problem then.  When they left, though, Chad forgot to close it (he was out there with them) and I never even thought about it when I let Buddy out.  About 15 minutes later, we were leaving to go do some errands and I noticed that the back gate was open and Buddy was nowhere to be seen.  I was so mad.  Chad said we should just go do our errands and he'd probably be back by the time we got home.  I didn't believe him because Buddy doesn't know the area at all.  We left, though, and on the way back, we drove up and down a few streets by our house.  Chad said we should go home and see if he was there and call the Humane Society before we looked for him anymore.  We pulled into the driveway and the gate was still open, but I could see Buddy peeking through the gate, right where he belonged!!  He came running out to meet us and jumped in the van.  I was so happy he was back.  I know Chad was, too, because later I overheard him tell Buddy, "I'm very proud of you.  You made Mommy cry, though…"   He's doing really good at staying with us, though, when he's off his leash.  Chad was cleaning out his van the other day and we let Buddy out of the gate so he could be with him.  Buddy jumped in the van and sniffed around in there the entire time Chad was out there.  I've read that labs are one breed that you're never supposed to trust off of its leash, but he's proving that he can be trusted.

Chad did two days' worth of work today, so that he can be home all day tomorrow.  I think he's going to work on the raking.  I've got to clean the house, do more paperwork (it's endless…it really is), and bake a few things for the freezer.

Only a little over a week before we find out what the baby is!!  I really can't wait… 

Posted: November 7th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 7

Chad got to feel the baby move for the first time on Thursday night!  I don't know which of us was more excited!  He keeps asking me if the baby's kicking now because he wants to feel it again. 

I can tell the baby's getting a lot bigger now.  At least once a day, it ends up sitting on something in my belly that causes sooooooooooo much pressure in my lower belly and makes my back and hip ache.  I don't know what it is, but when it sits on whatever it is, it stays there for an hour or two and refuses to move.

We got Chad's van fixed yesterday and we got a really, really good deal on it.  We got it fixed at one of our accounts and the mechanic didn't have anyone to go pick up the part he needed for the van, so he asked us if we would.  We did, because if we picked it up and paid for it, we got the mechanic's discount AND the mechanic didn't mark it up at all.  We saved $80 right there!  Then, when it was time to pay for the labor, it was only going to be $75 and the mechanic suggested a swap since Chad servicing his deodorizers and bathrooms twice costs him $75.  So we did and we got out of there for well under $100!  When we got home, though, we found our credit card bill (), phone bill, car insurance bill and electric bill in the mailbox.  Yikes.  

Posted: November 4th, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 10

I am sooooooooo tired this morning.  I don't know why, since I actually slept all through the night (which barely ever happens now that I'm pregnant).  I'm just about ready to go take a nap, even though it's only 9:00!

Yesterday I worked with Chad in Junction City.  We got home at about noon and we went to the zoo.  It's not as big as the zoo in Madison, but they had a lot of animals.  We fed the ducks and geese, too.    And on the way there, I found a dog park that I can take Buddy to!  I'll probably wait until after I get my car back, though.

On the way back from Junction City, Chad's van started making funny noises.  When we got home, he saw that a belt (he thinks it's the timing belt) started shredding.  It still has 3 treads left on it, but we went through 2 just coming back from Junction City.  But he still decided to go to work today in Lawrence.    If he gets home without it completely shredding, he's going to take it in this afternoon.  Hopefully it will only take a few hours to fix, because that's the only vehicle we have right now.  And hopefully it won't cost too much.

I started a load of laundry this morning and when Buddy and I went down to put it in the dryer, the basement floor was covered in about an inch of water.   The hose was in the drain, so there shouldn't have been any problem.  I have no idea what happened, but I'm going to wait for Chad to get home and deal with it.  I tried tiptoeing through the water to get the laundry, but I got my shoes all wet and gave up.  I hate the plumbing in this house soooooo much. 

Well, I've got to get moving.  Since I worked with Chad yesterday, I've got a ton of paperwork to catch up on, plus my QuickBooks came yesterday, so I need to install that. 

Posted: November 2nd, 2006 under Random Thoughts.
Comments: 1