Update...

Picked up my pee jugs from el doctor today. We spoke with the nurse in regards to the "no work" comment. We needed further clarification as to what this means. What this means is that I am to not go into the office (I can work from home as the doctor allows - which, really....right now I am laid up in the recliner with Maddie beside me and the laptop in my lap!) She didn't say "bed rest," just to stay home and relax. Nice Nurse even said "consider it a mini vacation before the baby comes." Really...do you know me? Do you know how my mind wanders? Do you know what I'll be thinking about all the time?

I know Martha and LaRay - you don't have to lecture me again. I will rest and relax and all that jazz and hopefully not let myself think about things too much. I know this is all for the benefit of keeping Peanut incubating a while longer....hopefully a lot longer. I just need to suck it up and let people do stuff for me (HA) that I can't do right now.

I guess I'll definitely get caught up on all my blog reading and maybe even add some more to my list as I will have plenty of time!

Thanks for all the good wishes. Talk to you soon!

Bad News

I finally got my results back from my pee test. Only after calling again myself yesterday afternoon. Apparently the cutoff for protein levels in your urine is 299. And mine was.....you guessed it...300. ONE FRIGGIN' POINT TOO HIGH!!

Nice Nurse said this meant no more working. I am hoping they just don't remember or didn't look at my chart in regards to exactly what my "work" consists of. I work in IT, therefore am sitting at my desk all day long, working at a computer.

My regularly scheduled appointment is next Thursday, so I'm home until at least then. She wants me to do another pee test next week. Has anyone ever been put on rest just for a week and if the next pee test comes back ok, then you went back to work? I have to go to the office in a little bit to pick up more pee buckets. At that time, I hope to ask her exactly what "no work" means. Does this mean I am officially on bed rest or is it modified bed rest or is it just no working or what. I hope after I remind her what it is that I do, that she'll allow me to "work from home" i.e. work from my bed and/or couch. I can't and don't want to use my maternity leave and vacation all up before the baby is even here!!! I only get 6 weeks and using 3 weeks vacation. And I just don't think we could swing short term disability since it is unpaid. I wonder what people do who get put on bed rest this early who don't have the ability to work from home?

I am getting way nervous that this baby is going to come way sooner than I am ready for. Just last night, D and I went through all the shower stuff. Because I still had company through Sunday and Monday was the L&D visit, we haven't done crap around here, especially with the baby stuff. We rechecked the gift lists before taking everything out of their bags, removed the tags from the washables, and put away (kind of) everything else. Now I need someone to get some detergent so we can wash everything and put it away. Mom said she was willing to do that, so holler when you can. We also have to return a few things to a couple of stores. I think if I send D with what to exchange everything for, he could manage that?? I think I mentioned before that we got tons of washcloths and towels? We ended up with 17 towels and about 60 washcloths! Can you believe it? We are actually keeping most of them since I hear some of them wear out so fast.

We have our FastTrack childbirth class tomorrow. Obviously we need to be in attendance for this, but I guess I have to ask the doctor to make for sure it is something I can do.

Please keep us all in your prayers while we go through this. And let me know of any tips you know of on how to remain calm and not get so anxious and nervous about something going wrong.

GRRRR to "Satellite Offices"

So when I called Dr. S's main office on Tuesday afternoon to find out what I needed to do with aforementioned pee bucket, Mean Nurse asked if I had orders for the pee test. No, hospital said to just bring it to your office.... So Mean Nurse says I'll have the orders at the front desk. Bring in pee bucket and pick up orders. You will then take it to the lab down the hall.

5 minutes later, Nice Nurse calls and asks if I am still in Pearland. Yes. Ok then you can take it to the satellite office in Pearland since its closer and so you won't have to pay for parking. GREAT. So yesterday morning I dropped off said pee bucket off. Lab is in the office here. Stupid Lab Lady comes out to greet me and asks me back to lab. She looks at orders (which were faxed) and asks ME if that's all. Really? Aren't you the lab tech and aren't you READING THE ORDERS? Yes ma'am. That is all. Are you sure no blood draw - to me - yes, we did that Monday night, thank you. Are you sure no blood draw - to other office person - no, remember we looked at the orders in the computer yesterday...just the pee test.

THIS should have been a sign of things to come.

I called the main office yesterday afternoon around 3:00 (I had to refrain myself from calling too soon) to see if the results had come in yet. No, but she would call when she got them.

I called the main office today at 9:45 to see if the results had come in yet. Mean Nurse - no, but we'll check on them and call you back. Nice Nurse calls back 5 minutes later after speaking with Stupid Lab Lady (see above) at the "satellite office" she is informed that they only "Do" that test in the afternoons and that the results were not in yet. EXCUSE ME? I dropped it off yesterday M.O.R.N.I.N.G. Wasn't yesterday afternoon considered an "afternoon?" WTF??? She said yes, but apparently the courier didn't PICK IT UP until yesterday AFTERNOON, therefore will not be processed until THIS AFTERNOON.

Don't they realize this is a critical test and that it is imperative that both Dr. S and myself know the results ASAP??? I swear, sometimes I wish we could have seen Dr. H - The Almighty and Wonderful RE - for the duration of this pregnancy....It seems he and his staff cared a little bit more than these OB morons...

Results coming soon. Maybe THIS afternoon....

UGH!

Sisterhood Award

Thanks to BrandiH2007 at Dreaming of Baby for nominating me for this award – and sorry it took me a few days to get it re-posted. It makes my heart smile to know that my random musings have helped you through your IF journey. And now I would like to return the favor…

So here are the rules:
Put the logo on your blog or post.
Nominate at least 10 blogs with show great attitude and/or gratitude.
Be sure to link to your nominees in your post.
Let your nominees know they have received the award by leaving them a comment on their blog. Be sure to link this post to the person who nominated you for the award.

Here are some blogs that have helped me get through...

1. uncomplicateme @ (un)complicate me
2. Martha @ A Sense of Humor is Essential
3. AJsMom @ Adventures in Toddlerhood
4. OnMyMind 24/7 @ Finding Motherhood
5. PJ @ Infertility on the Brain
6. Eve @ Infertility Rocks!
7. Amy @ Justamere IVF
8. LaRay @ LaRay’s Crazy World (this is more of a IRL award since she is a bloggy baby)
9. Nikki @ My husband calls me weird
10. s.e. @ Riding the Roller Coaster

This list includes those still on their IF journey, those who have received their BFP and waiting to welcome their little ones, and those who are managing parenthood and careers. Please click and read them. They have each touched my life in one way or another along this narrow way. I hope they can do the same for you.

Thank you Brandi!

Pee Check

Just wanted to let everyone know that I am back at work with my feet propped up, drinking lots of water. Dropped off the pee jug this morning. We should have the results back today...and if we don't, I will be calling! I feel lots better after resting all day yesterday.

Oh, and I just made our "New Mom" appointment to meet and greet the pediatrician-to-be. Is it a bad sign that even THAT appointment couldn't be made until MARCH 12TH???

24 Hour Pee Bucket & High BP

So Dr. S had told me because the BP has been high the past 2 appointments (even though it lowers after laying on my side for 10 minutes) that if I get another headache that Tylenol can't cure, to call the office immediately.

So on the way home yesterday, I started getting one. I took 2 Tylenol when I got home and took a nap. When I woke up at 6, the headache was still there. Dean had 2 teeth extracted yesterday also (a piece of a lower filled molar broke off on Saturday exposing the nerves) so he wasn't feeling up to par either. We laid around on the couch waiting for our pain to go away. Ate a late dinner and by 8:00, the headache was still there.

I didn't want to be a nervous patient, so I wanted to check my BP before calling the after hours line. Nobody in my neighborhood had a BP cuff available, so we drove to to CVS to use theirs. It was 139/83 both times we took it. So I called the office and the on-call doc said to go to L&D at the hospital for some monitoring and bloodwork...

The experience was totally NOT what I was expecting. I was expecting to lay on a bed with my clothes on with a BP cuff and have them take it every 10 minutes or so for a couple of hours. I was NOT expecting to have to completely undress and put on a hospital gown. I also had to pee like nobody's business, but the doctor wanted a urine sample via catheter. EEK - WHAT? So she used a catheter to get the sample and drain the rest of my bladder.

Next up was the fetal heart rate monitors strapped to my belly to monitor Peanut's HR. Then the BP cuff for me which read my BP every 10 minutes. After a couple of hours, the print outs were taken to the doctor and all is well - both Peanut and my BP. Of course it was high when I got there, but since I was laying down the rest of time, it was low.

So here I sit, at home on the couch with the laptop and Maddie, watching Deliver Me and Bringing Home Baby (yes, at the same time) so I can do a 24 hour urine collection in the comfort of my own home. I am sure my co-workers appreciate me not lugging a pee jug between my cube and the ladies' room. The pee jug is chilling in an ice bucket. That is so weird to me that it has to be cold when it comes out hot? Anyone? Mrs. Martha RN I know you know why I have to "chill" my pee bucket...

Q&A - Why I Blog

I picked this up from Martha....and in appreciation of ICLW week, it's rather appropriate, especially for any new clickers...

1.What do you hope to achieve in blogging?
2.Why do you blog?
3.What do you blog about?


1. I don't really plan on "achieving" much of anything. This is just an outlet for me to vent, share some laughs and general randomness about my every day life.
2. The blog was initially started to journal our IF journey. I had read a few other blogs about IF and decided it would be a good way to track our progress, as well as keep family and friends up to date on our appointments and such - in lieu of sending emails out every time. Also this way you didn't have to hear about it if you didn't want to since you actually had to "go" to the blog to read. It has morphed into a journal or diary of our everyday life. I hope to keep it up even after our little baby has arrived. Perhaps I will start a new one to close this IF chapter of my life...but it almost doesn't seem fair to all my IF buddies to leave them. Although I will never truly "leave" them...
3. I blog about whatever floats my boat that day...IF, random life stuff, baby stuff, news headlines, what I had for breakfast...whatever really.

So that's why I blog... Let me know why you blog if you want...

ICLW status check

ok, so I was not online when ICLW started so today was my first day at it. But let me tell you...I just caught up! Mel had said if you miss a day, just do 6 more to catch up. Holy Moly - I just left 18 comments! WHEW!

ICLW, 31 wks, Familia & a Baby Shower!

MAN! The past 5 days have been a blur! Here's a recap on the familia visit, the doctor visit, the baby shower and ICLW!

• Family came and went. It was a good visit.
• Wednesday we went to JCP for some family photographs. That was a hoot. The photographer was a young (newly pregnant) girl who was funny and being that D and Josh were acting their usual selves, we all got along quite nicely. We took some family shots, some D and grandkid, some D and kids and a couple of funny ones. I haven't checked my hotmail lately, but supposedly they email all of the poses to you, even the ones you don't purchase.
• Thursday morning was my OB appt...more on that at another bullet....After I got home, we took them to NASA for a tour and for C (Grandkid) to play with all the kid stuff...what am I saying...for D to play too. Then we drove to Kemah to visit the Kemah Boardwalk and for dinner. Most of the rides are still closed to Ike, as were most of the restaurants. They are slowly coming back though. We had dinner at Joe's.Crab.Shack and eventually made it back home. I was B.E.A.T. Too much walking!
• Friday we all slept late, had breakfast and decided to see a movie. C picked Hotel for Dogs. It was really cute. I cried! At a Nick.olodeon movie! Must have been the hormones....that plus the fact that I'm a sucker for animal movies. Hell I BAWL at Old Yeller! Then we went to the Children's Museum. It was lots of fun. C had a blast. We finally got home around 5:30...just in time to make dinner for 13 people at 7:00. I was expecting we would be really busy on Friday and not have time to prepare dinner so last Tuesday I spent 3.5 hours preparing everything and froze it for Friday. Since the familia was flying out Saturday morning, the rest of the family (including my parents who have never met the daughter, husband or C) wouldn't have a chance to see them at the shower on Saturday. So we arranged this dinner instead. We had chicken broccoli casserole (?? the website I found this posted on didn't have a name for it, so I made one up), seussgirl's homemade mac n' cheese, salad, and chocolate elegance for dessert. Everything was a hit! I made a double batch of the chicken and the mac so we would have enough. There was still some leftover that I hope to partake in tonight!
• Saturday morning, we got up EARLY and got ready for the day. We had to have the fam at the airport around 9AM. Then we waited in the "cell phone lot" (isn't that a good idea to wait for arriving passengers?) for my friend L to arrive from CO. They had to de-ice the plane before taking off from CO, so it was a little late. We finally left the airport with L around 11. Had lunch at Gringo's. Made a couple of stops and then it was finally time for us to "arrive" at the shower around 2:15 (started at 3) so we could get ready. The girls had been there since 11'ish setting things up and we were prohibited from being at the house.
• Before starting in on the shower, let me give the OB update first. The baby's hb was 144....boy or girl? I still can't tell from just the hb. My BP was high - 140/80 so she had me
  lie down for "10 minutes" to recheck again. Well they were running behind as usual, so I had me a good little 35 minute nap. After Thursday, I damn well needed it. When she came back, it was 114/80. She said there is a little concern since it seems to be high, but after resting comes back down. Wants to watch me carefully for possible pre-eclampsia. Belly measuring 33 weeks...
• The shower was A.W.E.S.O.M.E. We wanted it to be coed/mixed/family friendly so that D could participate too. We think there were over 40 people there at one time! We have such awesome friends and family. We got so much stuff that we needed. We are so grateful for everything! Especially all the washcloths and towels - WINK, WINK! (Apparently since the gender is unknown and people don't want to buy neutral clothes, the next best thing is bathing essentials. I seriously think we have at least 40 washcloths and 12 towels!! But we love them all!) We got the car seat, walker, bouncer, bouncy seat, pack-n-play, clothes, toys, diapers, wipes, pacifiers, bottles....I think we might have enough "baby gear" to get this party started!!! Special shout out to the BS Team - S, S, L, M - for throwing the best shower ever - the decorations, food, and the baby love were awesome! Much love to T for helping last minute and Mom for making a super yummy cake too!
• Pics on all of the above TBD
• And finally - after a long winded post as it is....ICLW for February 2009 started last Saturday. I am already behind and will definitely not be an Iron Commenter this month, but I will do my best to catch up...Even if you didn't "sign up" for ICLW, click on over to Mel's blog and click on some bloggys who are participating. You'll be glad you did. There are some great writers/bloggers out there!

2 Awards, A Tag, And A Meme...

The Award #1: Honest Scrap

I was given the Honest Scrap (Is this really pronounced Honest CRAP??) Award by Martha the Great.

The attendant rules:Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in content or design. Show the 7 winners names and links on your blog, and leave a comment informing them that they were prized with "Honest Scrap." Well, there's no prize, but they can keep the nifty icon. Then, list at least 10 honest things about yourself.

I would like to invite LaRay, AJsMom, BeautifulMess, Mel, SeussGirl, On My Mind 24/7, Ashley to play along in the Honest Scrap pile.

1. I cannot go to the grocery store without a handwritten list. I am anal about crossing items off of it and if I think of something else I need NOT on the list…I add it to the list just so I can cross it off! The husband can do it from a text message. UGH
2. Maybe TMI here, but hey – it’s honest! I cannot go #2 without a book and/or my phone to play Bejeweled!
3. I have a shoe rack in the closet but most of the shoes are on the floor. I HATE to put them in the rack for some reason.
4. I, like Martha, love to cook and bake, even though most people like one or the other. Although the cooking has slowed WAAAAY down since becoming with child…
5. I hope to make every one of my kid’s birthday cakes myself.
6. I plan to be involved in everything the kiddo does, making all the crafts/snacks/goodies myself. Don’t be jealous LaRay!
7. I really wanted this baby to be twins so it would have a playmate growing up as the financial burden of creating this one probably means we won’t be having another.

And since you only give this award to 7 people, I think 7 Honest Scraps about me is enough!

The Award #2: The Lemonade Stand Award

The next delightful Award is from Amazing Martha, funny, quirky blogger who always brings a smile. Thanks Martha!

Here are the rules for The Lemonade Stand Award:

1. You must link back to the person you received the award from.

2. You have to nominate 10 bloggers who are deserving of this award!

The 10 bloggers I would like to invite to The Lemonade Stand are:Kathy, Mel, Nancy, Ashley, Nikki, Ashley, Kirke, LaRay, AJsMom, uncomplicateme.I love your lemonade!

The Tag: 5th pic in 5th folder of your photos

I was tagged by dear sweet Martha for a Photo Tag. It’s the 5th pic in the 5th folder of your pictures on your computer. You must then describe it. Luckily I recently created new folders, thus moving the order around…otherwise it would have been the same Baby Andrew Evacuee picture as last time!

Tagged for 5th picture are: LaRay, AJsMom, BeautifulMess, On My Mind 24/7, Ashley.

5th folder is called Art Projects….

This is our Christmas card 2007. It’s filed under Art Projects because I had to use Photo Shop to the pic black and white, leaving the lights, socks, hats and Maddie’s collar in color!

The Meme (what DOES that word MEAN?): 10 Quirks About You

This is a twist on the Honest Scrap Award as you can see by the yes, you guessed it, More Rules:

From Momma Val - "Instead of saying where you live, what state your hair is in, etc. you will share bizarre little things about yourself. Maybe you have some guilty pleasures, maybe you have some OCD that you desperately try to hide, whatever the case may be this is your chance to spill it. Let's all remember to be honest, not to judge, and to have some fun being able to embrace our oddities and laugh at ourselves. Thought this might be a nice mid-week tension reliever.So please, if you are tagged, copy and paste this entire post. Then replace my quirks with your own and tag up to ten people, unless you have A LOT of quirky friends then tag em all!!! Have fun!"

The 10 bloggers I would to tag for the 10 Quirks About You Meme are:Kathy, Mel, Nancy, Ashley, Nikki, Ashley, Kirke, LaRay, AJsMom, uncomplicateme.

In the spirit of fun, I will be a good sport and share 10 quirks about me.

1. I can remember names and faces from days long ago. My high school friends can’t believe I still remember some people we see out and about!
2. I also can remember phone numbers like nobody’s business. Who needs a contacts list in a cell phone when you have my yellow pages brain?
3. I have to wear the same color socks as my pants.
4. I still drink milk from the carton (as long as I know we aren’t having visitors anytime soon).
5. We are trying to be greener, but I can’t let go of my paper lists (see #1 on Honest Scrap).
6. I clean under my fingernails with a pocketknife like my Grandpa used to do (when I have nails long enough that is).
7. I can NOT sleep with socks on. It’s like I am suffocating.
8. I always have to have the latest holiday kitchen towel/décor out. I put out the St. Patrick’s Day towel and door decoration yesterday.
9. I like making crafty crap. Off the top of my head, I have 3 canvas paintings, wine cork mirror, wine cork wreath, wine cork trivet, rag tie wreath, valentines door décor, 3 glass block lighted Christmas presents, and a floor tile clock in my house that I made.
10. These types of lists about myself always stress me out. Like I could get a bad grade on it or something!

WHEW – that is a lot of URL lookin’ up!

Also, I will be MIA (no, not M.I.A. the rapper who sang at the Grammy’s, 9 months pregnant, with the WORST top on I have EVER SEEN. Check the video. Yes it is see through with polka dot patches on the boobies, baby bump, and butt!) and not posting probably until Monday.

Dean’s daughter, husband, and granddaughter are in town visiting from Maine, Wednesday – Saturday, (coincidence on the timing as they are leaving before the baby shower). And then the baby shower at our house is this weekend. My dear friend from college is arriving at the airport around the same time they are departing so we’ll be hanging out the rest of the weekend.

So, congrats on all the Award winners and good luck to all the tagged people. I look forward to reading your responses when I return!

Crafty McCrafter

So 2 weeks ago, I had a wild hair about wanting to make something crafty. Why? I have no idea. Maybe its my semi-nesting coming out, although it was totally UN-baby related... Anyway, I found a website that showed how to make a rag garland or wreath. It seemed easy and cheap enough so I did it.

Stuff you need:
3 different "valentine's" fabrics - 1 yard of each
1 roll (it was 50% off) of valentine ribbon
1 wire hanger - FREE

Since I no longer have the URL to where I stole this fabulous idea, I'll throw in some abbreviated Kimbo directions.

1. Form hanger into wreath shape. Wind hook around to form a smaller "hook" to hang wreath from.
2. Cut fabric into 1 " x 7" strips.
3. Tie fabric strips into a knot on hanger, alternating fabric colors as desired.
4. Be sure to squish them up together to get as many on the hanger as possible. You want it as full as it can be.
5. Tie a bow of ribbon at the hook.

TA-DA! I actually had enough fabric (can you ask for 1/2 a yard of material? I always feel like such the Virgin Seamstress to ask Mrs. Hobby.Lobby) to make 2 of them and being that I don't need 2, I gave one to LaRay. I thought she would donate to her daughter's "From the Heart" valentine-y auction thingy at school, but she kept it for herself!

Speaking of Valentine's....guess who popped out a Valentine's Day baby? Jenepper from Maybe If You Just Relax!!! Apparently she was in denial that her water broke and decided to go ahead with her hair appointment!! Pop on over and congratulate her on Olivia Audrey's arrival!

Valentines and Other Stuff

I hope everyone had a great Valentine's weekend. We did the same as last year and every year for the past 6 years... We had dinner at Crappito's. The food and wine (boo - I didn't get a whole glass, just a little spittle) were awesome as always. Josh - the stepson - was our waiter again. They have a smaller menu, for Valentines Day only, so this is what we had:

D - crab cake, caesar salad, pork rib chip served with Risotto alla Milanese and mixed vegetables, chocolate mousse cake
K - fried calamari, balsamic vinaigrette salad, cappellini di mare - angel hair pasta with grilled shrimp and lump crabmeat in a sherry cream sauce, chocolate mousse cake

MMM, MMM, MMMMMMM!!

And now for a photo comparison of Valentines Day 2008 vs. 2009.

2008 we had just begun our IF journey so mucho vino was partaken...as if you couldn't tell from the photo. Yes, that is my wine intoxicated self.... And it looks like my grape colored teeth as well!

VDay 2008

Can you say this red "sweetheart" cut top looks as if it is about to bust out of its sweetheart seams??? Man alive!

VDay 2009

Hope you and your sweetie had a great Valentines weekend. Whether you spent it at home or out with the rest of the suckers....

Also, for some updates on the bloggy. Last week I added 2 links/pictures on the left side bar. One is to my Relay for Life webpage. I actually won't be walking in it this year due to Peanut's expected arrival is 2 days prior to the event, but my friend S and I are going in together. I made the webpage and sent the donation email and she's doing the walking for both of us. Our team name is Camo Crew and we're "Hunting for a Cure." You can view the site to find out who and why we're supporting.

Above that is a link to the March of Dimes webpage that belongs to AJsDad. We walked on their team last year in support of AJ, AJsMom, and AJsDad. This event is 4 days after Peanut's expected arrival so we will not be able to participate in this one either. Please click the picture (AJsDad really should update his link with an actual picture of AJ like his mom did....) to support Team AJ!

My Heart Is So Happy

I really want to bitch about the octuplets' MORON of a mother and that entire dramatic, welfare, food stamp situation, but I think most of you guys have already had some type of post about it or read 1400 news stories about it. Plus I had a fired up lunch conversation about it already. Thanks AJsMom. But also thanks for lunch. :0) This having no debit card for a week is KILLING ME. My cash flow runneth outeth.


Anyway, what I really wanted to post about was this. My daddy called me at work today. Know why? To check on how his grandbaby was doing. That makes me smile and makes my heart so happy. I am so glad to know that he is excited about his first born grandkid. Not only can I not imagine myself having a baby in just 10 (or less) weeks, I also can't believe that my parents will be real grandparents (minus the fur grandkids) at that time either. It is just so exciting!!!

Martha - I promise to follow up on your memes and awards tomorrow.


Ready for the belly pic of the week?

30 weeks

30 Weeks!

My 30 week baby, the cabbage head!

Your baby rivals a good-size cabbage in weight, tipping the scales this week at 3 pounds and length: about 15 3/4 inches, head to heel. (according to baby.center.com)

Holy Moly! Can you believe I have been pregnant for 30 weeks? Only 10 more to go!!! It seems like yesterday Dr. H was calling with news of the BFP. I have loved every single minute of being pregnant. Yes, even the barfing. It was a beautiful symptom that meant I was eventually going to have a baby! Our little nursery is gradually filling with lots of baby stuff. And the more stuff we get, that means the closer we are getting to D-Day...as in Delivery Day!

We truly are blessed and grateful every day for this little Peanut growing inside of me. IF was such a roller coaster of emotions, heartbreaks, and financial strains. But I am so happy that we were able to conquer the bitch and hopefully in the next 2 months, bring home a real live baby!

Speaking of real live baby...he has been kicking the crap out of me all morning long. And not just in one spot and not just one jab...continuous kicking/poking/punch/stretching all over!

Thanks to all of you in blogland as well as IRL for all your thoughts, support, prayers, and hugs (even though they were sometimes virtual) while we have been on this journey.

***30 week belly pic coming later***

Checking Account Fraud...

Look at me - 3 posts in one day....


See I told you that this started out being a crappy day....

Looks like I have been the victim of identity theft. Ok, not really my identity per se, but someone has my debit card number AND PIN - which everyone knows is a direct line into your checking/savings accounts...

Hubby found a $165 charge for an HCA Hospital in Nashville.TN last Thursday. I called the bank and answered many questions. Including: did you see a doctor on 2/5? I said coincidentally yes (the OB) but not in Nashville! And there was no charge (because its a f/u OB visit). Anyway, they have started the claims process and because it hasn't actually posted (still a pending charge as of today) they can't issue a credit just yet. My debit card has been canceled and a new one should arrive in 5-7 business days. UGH. This means I have to be Cashola Kim this week....and for those that know me IRL, this will be a challenge as I am usually known as No Cash Kim.


At least we caught it now and am able to get a stop to it. AND thank God it was only $165. We could have been really screwed as the mortgage was paid today!!!


***UPDATED 02/10/09....Response from Shell:

Please accept our apology for any inconvenience you experienced at one of our locations. Delivering world-class customer service is a high priority for Shell. We are disappointed when we fail to meet your expectations, and we believe the experience you had is an exception to the way Shell branded retailers typically operate.
Our review indicates your experience occurred at one of our independently owned and operated locations. Please be assured that we have formally recorded your feedback and the appropriate party will be notified. Customer feedback helps us to identify opportunities for improvement.
Thank you for taking the time to share your concerns. We value your patronage and hope you will continue to choose Shell's quality products. If you have additional questions, please contact Shell Customer Care toll-free at 1-888-GO-SHELL (1-888-467-4355) or send an e-mail to shellcustomercare@shell.com.

Sincerely,
Shell Solutions Center
Customer Care

BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. Thanks for the pat answer that you send everyone that has a complaint. Makes me feel like a real important customer.***

72% Addicted to Blogging

I am 72% addicted to blogging. How much of an addict are you? Let me know with a comment here!

Blog Addiction

I am now reading 41 blogs and I feel like I can't start my day until I check my reader!!!

Shell's Shitty Customer Service

This morning at 6:15 AM CST, I stopped into my local Shell Station located at xxx PEARLAND, TX for a bottle of juice (As I was extra thirsty because I ate half a brownie on the way and arrived before the vanpool did so I had time). There was only 1 worker behind the counter and I was the only customer in the store. I picked up my juice and set it on the counter. The salesperson saw me, said nothing to me, turned his back and continued on his business of moving clipboards around, checking his cell phone, putting something into his backpack.

I am still standing there. He looks over at me again and I pick up the juice bottle and say, “Just this,” in case he thought I was getting gas as well. He turns around as if I had not spoken a single word and continues to shuffle things around behind the counter. This went on for approximately 2 minutes. There are still no other customers in the store.

Finally I say, “Thank you very much,” leave the juice on the counter, and walk out of the store. (What I really wanted to do was take the juice and leave but then thought he was such an ass he would probably write down my license plate and report the theft! I also would have just left money on the counter and taken the juice but I only had $5 and didn't want him pocketing my change!) I didn’t get as much as one word out of him. No apology, no goodbye, nothing. I have never been treated so poorly in all my life. It was as if I were invisible to him.

This is the closest Shell station to my house and my vanpool pick up. Needless to say, I will not be giving my business to this store ever again – in simple purchases like juice, nor gasoline.

**All of the above minus the parenthesied info was sent in an email to Shell's customer service department. Not that I will receive a response or any type of action on their part, but just so they know what happened. NOT a good start to my day....my Monday at that!***

29 Week Update & Shower Pics

Ooops. So I am a bad updater. I had something to do like every night last week so I never got around to posting pics or even a 29 week appointment update! Don't be too mad at me!

Baby's HB was 140.
My blood pressure was good. I had gained 3 pounds in the 2 weeks since the last appointment which puts me at 13 lbs total (post IUI drug weight - since we started seeing the OB).
Belly measuring at 31 weeks. EEK! She said not to worry, that every measurement can be +/- 3 weeks so it doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to pop early!

The 29 week belly

My view from above

My first shower was this past weekend. I was SO nervous. I've never had a been the focus of a shower before, not all by myself at least. Our wedding shower was couple's so Dean as on the spot with me!! 3 neighbors co-hosted. The theme was baby jungle animals. Everything was precious! The cake, cupcakes, diaper cake, decorations, food, punch.... We got tons of goodies. Lots of yellow and green, duck and turtle outfits! Apparently that's the norm for "gender neutral" babies! LOL. We are so grateful for our hostesses for putting this on for us, as well as all the guests who came to celebrate with us. Believe it or not, a couple of people who came didn't even know I was pregnant until they got the invitation in the mail. WOW - I thought we had shouted it from the rooftops by now. It was great seeing everyone and I am so glad they were able to celebrate Baby A's upcoming arrival.

Me, Susan and Kim R - 2 of the hostesses with the mostesses. Kim R is the one I took cake decorating classes with last year. By the looks of things, you can tell who became the professional of the 2 of us. She made all those animals, cake and cupcakes herself. SO TALENTED!

The diaper cake with a cutie giraffe on top!

The cupcakes!

Me cracking up with the cake!

After the shower, mom and sister came over to make our handmade decorations for Peanut's room. We each took an animal from the bedding and painted it on a canvas. We signed them Grammy, Mommy, and Aunt Melissa....They are already up in the nursery (pics soon - as soon as the final details are worked out) and they look awesome!

Grammy = Bear Mommy = Monkey Aunt Mel = Doggy

And finally....the Super Bowl/Birthday Cake we took to AJsDad's house for a bday/Super Bowl party... This was my first (and second) attempts at frozen.buttercream.transfers. I will try again, but with different directions. I don't like the way they look "taller" than the cake...
Oh and that's AJsDad's version of his Mii character from Wii...

Scrapblogging...

WOW - 3 posts in one day. It's a miracle. Ok, not really. Just slow at work...Hi Boss Lady! (who isn't here anyways due to PC issues....)

Last month at Bunco, I saw a couple of those Shutter.fly books on a shelf and flipped through them (with the hostess of course - I am not THAT nosy!) They were super cutie. She made one for each of her kids for their 1st year of life. (What a grand idea for Peanut I thought!) Then every year after that, it's been a family book - their comings and goings for the year. They were precious and looked so well put together. I had created one of the same at Shutter.fly last summer when we got back from our Alaskan cruise, but never ordered it. I did so thinking it would look better than a bunch of pics in an album. So after seeing my friend's, I finally ordered mine. It came in and looks fabulous.

Then I saw a friend with these awesome scrapbooky pages on her Facebook and wondered how she got them. I asked if she was using some fancy schmancy digital scrapbooking software and she said no, she uses scrap.blog. It's totally free and totally online. I watched the little tutorial and it looked easy enough, so I thought I'd give it a test run.

Then I was perusing Shutter.fly's website and found that you can actually upload your digital scrapbooking pages and make them into a photo book - instead of using their kinda bland themes! How awesome is that! I am so excited to make one for Peanut's first year.

What better model to use than the Maddie Girl!

Blogroll Update

Ok, so 2 posts in 1 day....well the first one doesn't really count. It was just something for you internets to read. This is the "real" post of the day...

So I have been adding a few new blogs to my blog reader and to my "Blogs I Read" sidebar. (I use bloglines) I think I'm up to 38 now. I still have all of my IF friends, but have been adding some IF'ers that have real life babies too. Guess because its getting to be that time for myself...

Anyway, if I read you, or you read me, or you are just lurking on me, please let me know so I can add your bloggy blog (I love to call it that for some reason) to my blogroll. You can do so by commenting on this post or by emailing me kimbosue2(AT)hotmail(DOT)com. I love to read new blogs and get perspective into other people's lives!

One Word

As I am having a bit of blogitis or bloggy block, I found this somewhere and decided - hell why not. At least its something to post. Tomorrow is belly pic day so that will be a little exciting...

USING ONLY ONE WORD! It's not as easy as you might think! It's really hard to only use one word answers.

1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your significant other? working
3. Your hair? UGH
4. Your mother? guilty
5. Your father? quiet
6. Your favorite? chocolate
7. Your dream last night? odd
8. Your favorite drink? tea
9. Your dream/goal? mommy
10. What room you are in? cube
11. Your hobby? baking
12. Your fear? mommy
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? happy
14. Where were you last night? pedicure
15. Something that you aren't? needy
16. Muffins? blueberry
17. Wish list item? stroller
18. Where you grew up? TEXAS
19. Last thing you did? ate
20. What are you wearing? sweater
21. Your TV? On?
22. Your pets? sleeping
23. Friends? everywhere
24. Your life? awesome
25. Your mood? sleepy
26. Missing someone? always
27. Car? Zoe
28. Something you're not wearing? earrings
29. Your favorite store? BRU
30. Your favorite color? green
31. When is the last time you laughed? yesterday
32. Last time you cried? weeks
33. Who will resend this? bloggers
34. One place that I go to over and over? home
35. My favorite place to eat? LosCucos
36. Favorite dessert? chocolate
37. Last movie you cried at? 7 LBS
48. Favorite birthday present? lots