The Weekend Before

It was another weekend filled with questions like "You're still pregnant?", "Are you sure you're not having twins?", "What's your due date?" and phrases like "we're all just waiting for you now." It's wearing me out! I want this baby to be born as much, if not more, than the next person.

It's frustrating the hell out of me that I made it up until about two weeks ago without stretch marks and now I have them. If the baby would have just been born a week early, then maybe the damage would not have been so significant.

Enough of the complaining... Friday I went with Brenda, my mom and Ariel to get pedicures at this awesome place that Jenna takes me sometimes. They give arm and shoulder rubs with the pedicure, making it totally worth the drive. Alex came along for the ride, but he refused to let anyone touch his feet. Someday we will break him of that.

After the pedi's, we stopped for ice cream at this parlor called Marble Slab. Their ice cream is ridiculously rich, so most of us were unable to finish our desserts. By most of us, I mean all of us except Alex. After he finished his mint ice cream with gummi bears (he's a teenager), he finished off both my ice cream and Ariel's. I don't know how he does that. Wait, yes I do. He runs 6 miles a day and has a heart rate of 57 bpm. That's practically dead!! He's been running once a day here in this humidity and heat and it sounds like it's pretty rough on him. At least he gets a nice view of the Gulf of Mexico while he runs off half his weight in sweat.

Friday night, we went for dinner at this new greek place in Galveston. It was a lot fancier than I thought it would be. The food was great. Turns out we know a couple people who work there, so we were able to get a free appetizer! I don't think I mentioned it, but when Brenda first got into town, we went out for dinner at another restaurant near there. Travis and I know one of the managers their and she gave us 50% off our meal. It pays to know people!

Saturday morning I hung out with my mom. She helped me go buy groceries and carry them to the car and house (Travis had to work). I'm pretty sure I've done everything possible to get ready for the baby. Our freezer, dry food and canned food cabinets are stocked. The house is clean (not as clean as I would get it if I weren't pregnant, but clean nonetheless). All the necessary baby items, plus more, have been purchased, cleaned and put away. Now we just need Lil Wodie (name to be announced soon!).

Brenda surprised us with a few new gifts: a humidifier, several additions to our Dr. Suess book collection and a bunch of 3-6 month clothes. We also have the occasional surprise package waiting for us on our doorstep when we get home from work. This week it was the second baby gate we wanted from Chrissie. Thank you ladies!!

Saturday afternoon I hung out at Ariel and Robert's new house. My dad planned a BBQ for us and my in-laws. We had pasta salad, potato salad, lettuce salads, BBQ pork sandwiches and ice cream for dessert. No wonder my stretch marks get worse as everyday passes! All I do now is sit with my feet up and eat. The strange thing is that at this past doctor's visit I hadn't gained any weight since the last visit. My books say this is normal. I just don't see how it's possible.

Sunday began Day 1 of Travis' paternity leave. We got super lucky and his boss offered to pay him for his week off. Travis doesn't usually get paid leave, so this was a relief to hear. Want to know how he started his first day off? He changed the brakes on his truck. Exciting, huh? Maybe not, but practical at least.

At noon, Travis and a bunch of my family and our friends headed to the disc golf course and spent the afternoon in this ridiculous heat. I just can't get myself to believe that disc golf is that much fun, but apparently it is. Everyone came back burnt and sweating their butts off. My mom and I had appetizers ready and the sides prepared. My mom wanted to grill out burgers and have the family over. When everyone was at the disc course, she pointed out that this will be my last childless party.

I know my partying days have been gone for months, but I didn't think about entertaining in general. I usually spend the entire beginning of a party in the kitchen preparing food. Now I understand the people on those house shows that want an island between the living room and kitchen with a cooktop on it. It would be so much easier to keep an eye on the child AND have people over. I know I have Travis to help me with everything, but usually he's outside manning the grill.

I guess this baby really is going to change our lives. Teehee.

Rebirth of Galveston

Exciting news! Several of the piers will be rebuilding in Galveston. It will take some time, but at least they are coming back!

The piers and their plan Houston Chronicle

Congratulations Nadya & Alexey!

Introducing Kate:

Born June 24, 2009

7 lbs, 10 oz

19 inches

Daddy with his newest pride and joy (mommy isn't quite ready for a photo shoot)

[Sorry the photos are so dark. I didn't want to wake "anyone" up with the flash. I hope to get some better ones soon. If anything maybe I can steal a few shots from other photographers.]

Pop Legend Dies

Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest just a short while ago. I can't believe it!! Ariel and I used to play his cassette tapes and dance around the living room to his music. He was only 50...

Houston ABC13 News

AP Source: Michael Jackson dies in LA hospital

WWTDD: 1958 - 2009

Last Day

I'm super stoked. Today is my last day of work before my maternity leave. I am taking tomorrow off so I have a little more rest time before the big day. Plus, it will give me some more free time with all the family that is currently in town.

Travis has planned to take all of next week off from work in anticipation of the baby. Monday will be his rest day before the chaos ensues. I'm really excited for him to take time off from work, but he's sort of freaking me out. He's talking about doing all this work around the house next week. Not sure how much he will actually do, but just in case, I put in a request for some time spent with the baby and I. Isn't that what paternity leave is for?

Guess what? Nadya had her baby!!! After 24 hours of induction, she ended up needing a c-section (my worse fear - have I mentioned that?). Her little girl was born weighing 7 lbs, 10 oz. No name yet. The parents are having a little trouble in this department. I have faith they will figure it out soon enough. I'm hoping to visit them tonight at the hospital. I'll keep you posted!

5 days until the induction!

Bummed

I woke up this morning still pregnant AND I got soap in my eyes during my shower. UGH. I'm super excited though, because my friend Nadya is in the hospital being induced as we speak. She had the same due date as me, but decided to go in earlier for her induction.

Good luck Nadya!

I had my weekly OBGYN appointment yesterday. No changes. I'm pretty sure I'll be pregnant until my induction next Tuesday. This is taking forever!

I guess this means I'll have time for one more trip to the grocery store this weekend. Plus, Brenda is taking me for another pedicure on Friday. My toenails have already grown out since the pedicure with my mom a couple weeks ago. Prenatal vitamins are wild!

40 Weeks

I am full term now. I read that 50% of pregnancies go past their due date. Yay. The doctor told me to start doing kick counts. Basically, I have to lay still for up to 30 minutes and count the number of times Lil Wodie kicks. If it is under 10, I'm supposed to call the doc immediately. Fortunately for me, Lil Wodie performed 10 "kicks" in four minutes, so I didn't have to sit around for a whole half an hour. Although, I did still sit there and feel his kicks anyway. =) Travis and I attempted to get some video of my belly movement the other night. It was a little difficult. Turns out our video camera does not pick up light very well. Hopefully you can see the silhouette against the couch. Phage (my cat) is also a little distracting. Note: That's Travis' mom Brenda napping on the love seat in the background.

Belly Movement from Nicolette Ward on Vimeo.

Bad news. I've got stretch marks. =( They are forming around my belly button piercing scar. At first I didn't realize they were stretch marks because they are not red like I've seen in photos and videos. I'm pretty sure that's what these are. Dang it. So close! It's gross because I have limited feeling on that skin. Although whenever I scratch it on something, it hurts like hell. Doesn't make sense now that I think about it...

I can't remember if I've mentioned it on here or not that I have started drinking raspberry leaf tea. I thought it was supposed to bring on labor (old wives tale), but it turns out that's not what it's for. It's actually recommended throughout pregnancy to strengthen the uterus and therefore shorten the length of labor. I think I believe this "old wives tale". I have been having crazy strong contractions for the last week and that's how long I've been drinking the tea.

It doesn't take much to set off one of these hard Braxton Hicks contractions anymore either. Every time I get out of bed (which is about 3-5 times a night), walking to and from my car at work, putting away the dishes, bending over to pick something up off the ground. You name it, I'm contracting. My belly turns into a rock. The funny thing is, Lil Wodie is so big now, that he almost always has some limb or butt cheek poking out of my belly. When I have a contraction, it's like my skin suctions around his body like a vacuum. My "baby bump" looks like a lumpy bag of worms or something more endearing than that.

Sleeping has become increasingly difficult. Every night I spend about 10 minutes trying to get as comfortable as possible. Since it's not possible for me to be completely comfortable, I just try to find a position that does not pull or push on this gigantic basketball that I'm carrying in front of me. Travis even gave up one of his pillows to the cause the other night, putting me at five pillows. I don't know how there is any room left for Travis!

Travis has been such a trooper. I know he hasn't been sleeping well lately. I shake the bed like an earthquake every time I get in and out to pee throughout the night. Half the time I end up falling on him because I trip over Callaway, Callaway's toy or the comforter that has fallen off the end of the bed.

I haven't been sleeping all that great lately either. Although the weird thing is that I'm not miserably tired, except for around 2pm every day. This past weekend I woke up at 3:15am for a bathroom break. When I laid back down I just could not fall back to sleep. When the clock flipped to 3:45 and my stomach was growling, I decided to give up the fight and get up for a mid-night snack. I ate a bowl of cereal and played Mah Jong on my computer. At 4:45am, I decided I would have a better chance of falling asleep in my bed than I would sitting up at my computer and headed back to bed. Luckily it was during the weekend, so I didn't have to deal with getting up at 6 for work.

My doctor's office called me yesterday to let me know the details about my induction. It is scheduled for Tuesday, June 30th. If I am still pregnant by then, I will go in the Monday before for bloodwork and to fill out some paperwork. Then I have to be in the hospital at 7am to start the Pitocin drip. I hope, hope, hope that I go into labor before then. I do not want to wait until I am 41 weeks to have this baby! He's just going to grow more as the time passes.

The Grandmas are here!

I had Friday off from work for Texas Emancipation Day. It's so crazy the holidays that get celebrated here. But I'm not complaining! I'll take a paid day off from work anytime. My mom and I just played it lazy for the most part. We tried to meet Ariel for lunch near her work at this really great sandwich place, but it didn't work out for her. She has been ridiculously busy for the past month, standing in for the manager at the bar. It's been a whole new experience for her. I think it has really forced her to grow.

Anyhoo, lunch was awesome. We both settled on the BLT that had an insane amount of bacon on it. I'm not complaining. It was tasty. I shared a chocolate toffee cookie with my mom before we headed over to visit Ariel for a few minutes and drop off some leftovers. We found out on the way there that Travis was working at a place across the street, so we walked over to say hi to him.

Travis' mom, Brenda, arrived that evening just in time for dinner. My mom planned a meal of eggplant with spaghetti, since eggplant was on the list of possible labor inducers. Unfortunately it didn't induce anything. It was, however, delicious! I didn't think I liked eggplant. Turns out, if you smother it in Parmesan cheese and marinara sauce, I love it. Ha.

We had a great meal, and Brenda headed to her hotel by 10pm because we are all old folks here. ;) Travis had to work Saturday, as usual. Brenda came over in the morning to relax at our house. While I attended a baby shower that afternoon, my mom and Brenda visited Ariel at work. Travis ended up getting out of work early, so he met them for a couple drinks at the bar.

The baby shower I went to was super cute. It was for a fellow employee who is approximately 5 weeks behind me in the incubation period. She is expecting a boy too. Her and her husband are naming him Luke. I'll give you a hint with Lil Wodie's real name: it's not Luke. =p But that is a great name! I'm just happy it's not the same as the name we have chosen. Because then we would have to silence someone...

After the shower, I ran by the grocery store for a couple items. By the time I got home, everyone was on their way back from visiting Ariel. Travis made tacos for dinner and we called it another early night.

Sunday was Father's Day. Happy Father's Day to all those daddies and daddies-to-be out there!! Travis and I made an attempt to sleep in, which amounted to about 7:45am. Not sure why Travis got up, but I am beyond uncomfortable laying down, so I can't really sleep in anymore. Don't get me wrong, I'm still getting over 8 hours of sleep (minus the bathroom breaks every 2-3 hours).

I gave Travis his Father's Day present first thing: Two books (Where the Sidewalk Ends and Hop on Pop) for Travis to read to Lil Wodie and a bunch of gum. The gum thing is a roll over from what we do for my dad on his birthday and Father's Day. He has this obsession with cinnamon gum and candy, so every year we load him up on cinnamon goodies. Travis is more of a mint kind of guy, so I stuck with mint gum for him.

For breakfast, Brenda and my mom joined us for homemade breakfast burritos, Travis' favorite. Then Travis headed off for a round and a half of disc golf, just him and Callaway. He got back in the early afternoon and we basically spent the rest of the afternoon lounging in the AC like Travis wanted to do. We tried to get Ariel and Robert over for dinner, but again, Ariel is busy with work. I prepared all the food, but Travis cooked it all on the grill.

That was our attempt to keep as much heat outside of our house as possible. For some reason, our AC has not been able to get the house below 78.5F during the day. I need to call around for quotes on getting our system checked out. I know that it has been hot outside (mid- to high 90's + heat index = temps in the 100's), and we are in the middle of a drought, but we never had this much trouble last year. With a baby on the way, I'm much less tolerant of such inadequacies. =D

Stay cool!

Chinese and The Hangover

Travis and I went out for Travis' attempt to force me into labor last night. Chinese food and a movie. That food was actually pretty awesome. Buffets and pregnancy seem to go hand in hand. I'm sure there is that select group out there thinking the exact opposite. That buffets are breeding grounds for bacteria, but I say fooey! There were so many things to choose from, it was easy. I had a little bit of everything. Travis hit up the sushi bar and the low mein chef. We've never been to this restaurant, but we will be back for sure.

After dinner, we went to see The Hangover. I did not particularly want to see this movie. Thing is, I didn't want to see a sad movie, or anything that would keep me tense throughout the whole film. I needed a light-hearted comedy and this was our best bet. Travis really wanted to see it anyway. I thought it was okay. I laughed pretty hard at a few spots, but I won't be the one to run out and buy this on DVD.

There were a couple really strange things that happened at the theater. One, on the way into the theater, we found this little guy scurrying across our path.

Nice, huh. Two, someone lit up a cigarette IN the movie theater. I couldn't believe it. At first, the smell was light, so I thought maybe someone had been smoking somewhere else in the building and it was just reaching us. But then it got overwhelming. I was getting ready to go make a complaint when the woman in front of me got up to do just that. Problem was the theater was already filled with smoke by this point. Even without lighting another cigarette, we were stuck with what was left. There was only half an hour left so we just roughed it. But how rude is that?!

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Will this be my last belly photo at 39 weeks?

39 Weeks

The other day, I was eating breakfast while sitting Indian style at the table. When I stood up, I had this strange sensation in my right foot like it was more swollen. I looked down to find this:

I know you probably don't have a good idea of what my feet looked like pre-pregnancy, but let me tell you they did NOT look like this. Do you see that spot on the top right where you can actually see veins? That's where my foot pressed into the chair while I was sitting with my legs crossed. All the swelling moved to the rest of my foot. EW.

At this point, aside from my child, the part I am most excited about when it comes to having the baby is the thought of all this swelling going down. It is SO uncomfortable.

I had my weekly appointment with the OBGYN this past Tuesday. I am still only 1 cm dilated, meaning I have not progressed at all. We made a standing appointment for an induction on Monday, June 29th. That way if I'm still preggers by then, there is an end in sight. My doctor is gone on vacation all of next week - the week of my due date. I scheduled my appointment for next week with one of the other doctors. That way, my chances of having a doctor I know in the delivery room increases slightly.

Doc says the baby is big, but not ridiculously huge, so we will wait for now. I have officially begun with all the old wives tales in hopes of bringing on labor: spicy food, raspberry leaf tea, walking... My doctor even recommended trying them, which is hilarious. She also said she heard eggplant can bring on labor, so my mom has the ingredients ready to make eggplant casserole Friday night for dinner. Travis is convinced that Asian food is going to do the trick, so we are going out for Chinese and a movie tonight.

Honestly, I have a feeling that this kid is going to wait until that induction to come out. I can sense his stubbornness. I am beyond uncomfortable now. I can say with complete certainty that I am ready to have this baby. I was feeling nervous for the past two weeks because I am so big, but I did not have that I'm-so-miserable-just-get-this-baby-out feeling. I'm totally over that. There's a chance I'm not even scared of the delivery anymore either. Ha!

Dogs at the Beach

Our second weekend with my mom in town was a laid-back busy weekend, if that makes any sense. I think we did a lot of hurrying around just to get somewhere different to sit. Friday I got out of work a little early, so my mom and I went to get our hair cut. I just got a trim, but my mom got her hair cut to her chin. After the salon, we met Ariel at her and Robert's new house. Travis met up with us there when he got off of work.

Ariel and Robert moved into this house the weekend before and it seems like they have had nothing but problems. When they tried to switch the electricity bill from the landlord's name into theirs, the electric company suddenly decided that the place needed to be inspected before turning the electricity back on. This is something that every home in Galveston had to do after the hurricane. Thing is, this place was already inspected and has had electricity for months. After several calls to the city inspector from Robert, Travis and his boss, they finally got it turned back on three days after they had moved in. Then to top it all off, this past Saturday night, their AC blew a hose. Since it was the weekend, they had to wait until Monday to get it fixed. =(

Back to this weekend... After getting the grand tour of Ariel and Robert's new place, we went to a locally owned restaurant for BBQ. I got a BBQ stuffed baked potato. It was awesome and I ate the WHOLE thing. That's a big deal. Those potatoes are HUGE. Yummy! After dinner we were all full, so we headed home. On the way, I convinced my mom that we needed ice cream, so she suggested stopping at the McDonald's near our house. When we got in there I asked what flavors of McFlurry's they have. The cashier informed me that they were OUT OF ICE CREAM. Ahhhh! I quickly asked my mom if she was up for driving a couple miles to Sonic. I had ice cream on the brain!

We get to Sonic, sit there for 15 minutes and the carhop comes out to tell us they are out of ice cream too!!! The world was out of ice cream! Thankfully, they had made my Blast and ran out when they made my mom's sundae. I felt horrible that my mom had to watch me eat that Sonic Blast the whole ride home. ;)

Saturday, my mom and I just hung out at the house while Travis went to work. Jenna stopped by for an hour in the evening to chat and then we went over to Chris and Alexa's for dinner. They grilled out kabobs and we sat out on the patio for the rest of the evening. We had our very own live show - several frogs ingested a gazillion june bugs. It was the weirdest thing.

Sunday we decided to do something outdoors. We settled on the beach, even though it was hot as hell. Needless to say, both my mom and I are fried. The only positive thing here is that we were wearing clothes, not swim suits, so our skin exposure was limited. Unfortunately, part of my burn area includes my shins and the top of my already VERY SWOLLEN FEET. Here are a couple snapshots from our day of frying at the beach:

Travis and Callaway baking in the sun.


My mom and her dog Pierre.

Tossing the frisbee.

Pierre doesn't like the water.

Mi Madre and me.



The Dog

3-Year Comparison

Good god! What has happened to me?! These photos were taken a span of three years apart. It's amazing how much a person can change in that amount of time. Even Travis' baby face appears to be going away. So maybe that's why he doesn't get carded all the time anymore??

June 10, 2009

June 10, 2006

The Curious Case of Up Stories

Travis and I have seen a few movies lately. I guess I've been trying to fit in as many as possible before this little one swoops in to steal our alone time. Not that that is a bad thing! (BTW - I'm still pregnant...)

A week ago we went to see Up with Rachel and Scott while it is still in the theaters. I think we all agreed that it was a really great film. My only problem at this point are the raging hormones that make me cry whenever someone so much as drops their lunch on the ground. In my defense, Rachel said she teared up at a few parts during the movie too. I think I cried three times in the first 45 minutes and barely five words were spoken that entire time! I know they give you the gist of the film during the previews with the old man flying his house with a cub scout, but they don't show all the reasons why he's flying away. And all the reasons why the elderly man continues on throughout the end of the movie. Who'd a thought a Disney Pixar movie could be so heart wrenching?

Another movie we've seen recently was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. I'm sure you've seen a preview for this film, since at this point it is in DVD. I thought it was a great fantasy film, albeit a long one. Fair warning: set aside about 3 hours to watch this one. It's based off of a short story written by F. Scott Fitzgerald.. An interesting thought - how does a 3 hour movie come from a short story? My mom made a good point when she said that the problem with book-based films is there is no way to fit all the details from the book into the movie. With a short story, you can almost do that. Now, I have not read the book, but I thought the film was great.

The most recent movie we've rented was Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler. I did not really want to see this movie, so I did not have high expectations. In the end, I was surprisingly pleased. My mom and Travis on the other hand, wanted to see the movie and thought it looked hilarious - they were both disappointed. Either way, it was a light family film that allowed me with an excuse to put my swollen clodhoppers up for several hours. It's strange to think of Adam Sandler with all his vulgarities in a Disney film. I thought he still did well considering the level at which he had to tone it down.

Good movies, good times with friends and family. 14 days max until the birth of this baby!

The Giraffe

Remember back in March when Travis found this giraffe coat rack in the attic while we were doing starting the rewire on our house?

It was covered in roofing tar and the colors were not all that attractive. Well, the ever-talented Rachel repainted it for us.

Thanks Rachel!!!

Don't Use Craigslist!

If you want to die, then you can use Craigslist. Otherwise, I don't recommend it. Check out this psycho...

Suspect in pregnant woman's murder left trail of Craigslist clues

3 Years

It's officially been three years since Travis and I tied the knot at my mom's friend's house in the middle of a corn field in Illinois. It's so crazy to think how much our lives will change by our next anniversary. It's amazing enough to think about how much it's changed in the past three years.

Wowzer. All I can say about that photo is CHECK OUT THOSE TREE STUMPS. Those sandals barely fit my feet anymore. I DON'T FIT FRICKIN SANDALS. How is that possible? Even my face is swollen. I can't wait to be not swollen anymore. No more than 3 weeks for that to get into motion!

Travis came home from work with lilies. He was going for our wedding colors, but that was the closest they could get to red flowers. Beautiful! I can't wait for the rest of the flowers to open.

Last night, Travis and I went to Cheddar's for dinner. I ordered tilapia and ate EVERYTHING on my plate. And then? Then we ordered a Cookie Monster and I ate three quarters of it. Holy cow it was awesome. Having fish for the main course made me feel slightly better about eating way too much chocolaty goodness. YUM. Travis and I had a great evening with just the two of us. It may be our last outing together as a family of two. Eek.

Finishing Touches

A blanket my mom made for the baby (she's currently working on a second)

Ariel bought a picture book for me to use as art


A cute wooden zebra from the grandma-to-be



Travis wanted everyone to think he painted these wall decals in the nursery. So if he asks, tell him you believe he made them all by himself. ;)

New shelf and wall decals. We have another decal that is the first initial of his name that we are waiting to put up for now.

I'm thinking about dangling something mobile-like from the shelf as a distraction during diaper changing.

Progression Update

Lil Wodie's Baby Site - Journal Entry

Sunday, Part Deuce

Sunday, my mom and I went shopping (Travis, again, went off to play disc golf)! My mom bought us all sorts of loose ends for the baby, plus a super cute wooden zebra to hang on the wall. Then we went to Motherhood Maternity and my mom bought me a couple items to wear while nursing.

On the way home, we stopped for a pedicure at the nail salon. It was nice to have someone else take care of my toe nails. I made sure to request cool water for my foot soak. I don't think my swelling would have done well in the hot water they usually use. The foot and calf rub was the best, although I did feel sorry for the woman who had to deal with my swollen feet. I'm sure it was comparable to giving giant marshmallows a rub down.

My mom and I left with beautiful toes and headed for home. I was excited to go through all the baby stuff. Travis had run a load of baby gear in the wash that morning. Included in this were the sheets for the co-sleeper that came in the mail Thursday. Travis put the co-sleeper together that morning and I finished it off with the liner and sheets that evening. Now it's taking up an ungodly amount of space in our bedroom. I was so excited to get it put together that I didn't even think about that. Oh well. I guess we're ready now!

I also put together the nursing stool and washed a load of extras we got (sheets, waterproof pads , etc). I think we are officially ready for the baby. We now have everything we need and want for the first few months of Lil Wodie's life. There is a high likelihood that we will have to go back to get more of certain items, but we are set for now!

First Weekend with Mom

Hooray! My mom made it to our house all the way from Illinois! =) Last week when I pointed out to Travis that my mom would be leaving for Texas on Friday, he flipped out a little. It finally hit home to both of us that this means it's almost time for the baby to get here. I'm really hoping that I can make it close to my due date so it will be easier for my sister to visit us in the hospital.

Ariel took over the duties as manager during the first week that her boss opened up a second bar. June 22nd, the manager is suppose to get back into town and Ariel will resume work as an assistant manager with normal hours again. Until then, she's working her butt off. She has made arrangements to have someone cover her if I do go into labor before my due date, but it will be hard on her. I hope I can make it a couple more weeks!

Anyhoo, my mom got in late Friday night. I showed her the nursery and various other baby stuff that we have collected so far and then we called it a night. We got up the next morning with plans to help Ariel and Robert move into their new apartment. They moved from an apartment complex to a duplex in the Galveston historical district. The house is broken up into the first and second floor. They have the second floor, which will be a great peace of mind throughout the hurricane season.

I had to go into work Saturday morning for a few minutes, so we came into Galveston even though we hadn't been able to get a hold of Ariel or Robert. By the time I was finished with my work, Ariel said that Robert had plenty of work and wouldn't need us our my vehicle for moving. We wanted to visit Ariel at work in Galveston, so we killed some time while she finished her opening duties and went to lunch on the Seawall. We ate at this awesome burger place called The Spot. We sat on the deck on the second floor with a great view of the Gulf. It hasn't been very windy lately, so the water was actually blue-green, as opposed the the brown murkiness that happens when the sand is kicked up.

After lunch, we headed straight over to visit Ariel at work. She was able to sit with us for over an hour! The weather was nice, so we sat at a table on the street. Travis worked until noon and he met us at the bar. There were a lot of tourists out and about, walking from shop to shop to bar to shop. Despite the heat, I really enjoy the atmosphere of Galveston during the summer. It's like being on perpetual vacation. Except I have to go to work Monday through Friday. :/

Ariel had to go back to work, so we just headed home and took it easy (Travis opted for a couple rounds of disc golf). My mom took a nap and I made tortellini for dinner.

I need to go to my OBGYN appointment now, so I'll finish the weekend story tomorrow...

Mohawk Runner

This past weekend, Alex ran in the Illinois high school state track meet. To prepare for the big day, his whole team shaved their hair into a mohawk.

Alex sent me this picture via cell phone and his text said, "The other team is gonna be scared."

Here is a crappy picture of the article in the paper the day after the meet that my dad sent me (via phone). Alex made it in there with his mohawk! (He's the runner on the right.)

Sadly, he did not win. His personal best for the 2 mile is 10:37. That is so crazy to me. I can't run one mile in that time (especially not right now). He ran it in 10:51 this past weekend, which put him in 18th place out of 19 guys. =( The first place time was 9:36. It's amazing how fast these kids can run.

Returned the Short Bus

Turns out, getting a rental car paid for by the dealership really helps push the vehicle through the mechanic. After sitting at the shop for three days, the technician called to say the Murano was ready for pick up. He called me BEFORE NOON. LOL! The technician even got the hint and started to be nice to me. Almost sickeningly so. I returned the short bus and picked up the Murano with no problems. Until I was driving home...

During the evacuation for hurricane Ike, we had to pack a bunch of luggage on top of the truck. In the process, Robert accidentally broke a section off of the visor that deflects water from coming in the sunroof.

After months of driving with that piece missing, the seal between the visor and the vehicle has finally come loose. It started flapping in the wind on the drive home from the dealership. =( Travis is going to look at it this weekend and hopefully that is something we can just get from Auto Zone. It is held on by two bolts, so nothing we can't handle ourselves. No sense in paying a mechanic to do something so trivial. I know this repair is just your average wear and tear, but SHEESH.

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PS - Mi madre got into town last night. That means the baby time is coming soon! That ticker on the side of the screen is trying to give me a heart attack.

Anti-Itch Cream

This is embarrassing on so many levels, but it is another one of those Must Share Moments...

The other night, Travis got home from work, took a shower and was complaining about a heat rash on his stomach. I asked him if he had put any cortisone cream on it, to which he replied no. Well, stop complaining and do something about it. Does he want me to do everything?

He shuffles into the hall to grab the cream out of the closet and is back sitting with me on the couch. After about five minutes, he starts complaining about how that cream didn't help at all - it actually made it worse. Now the rash was burning too.

I instantly recalled a few weeks ago when I had run into a similar situation with an ant bite on my calf, "you didn't use the pink cream, did you?"

"Yes, why?"

"Cuz that's not hydrocortisone cream. It's Vagisil."

"What?! No it's not! It says Anti-Itch Cream in big, bold letters on the the tube!"

"Vagisil is an anti-itch cream. But obviously not the one you need."

"How am I supposed to know if it's for the vag or for a rash?"

"Look under the giant letters and see if it says 'Compare to Vagisil'."

Checking he tube, "Ah man! Where's the stuff I need?!"

"Check in the drawer marked 'Allergy'."

Needless to say, he quickly washed it off and reapplied the correct cream. Good times...

A slow and terrible death

Again with the crappy Murano... Remember back in April, when I brought the Murano to the dealership only to find out it needed hundreds of dollars of repairs? If not, you can read up here. The part where I wrote it would be $325 to repair the rotors was not completely correct. It's $325 PER AXLE. And they said all four rotors need to be repaired. If you do that math, that's $650. Uh, not okay.

We decided to try out Just Brakes to see what they would charge. According to them, my front rotors and brakes are fine, but the rear needed to be fixed. They repaired the rotors, replaced the pads and calipers, and bled/replaced the brake fluid all for $300. The dealership was going to charge me more than that just to repair the rotors. Unfortunately, Just Brakes noticed that there was damage to the CV joint. The damage is such that it cannot be repaired - the WHOLE axle must be replaced.

We made an appointment and dropped the Murano off Monday night, so it could be checked Tuesday. Tuesday afternoon rolls around and no call updating us on the situation. Travis tried calling but got disconnected. Then I called and they said they had not gotten to it yet, but they would that afternoon. Closing time comes and NO CALL. Travis called them and they said they never got to it, but they would first thing Wednesday morning. They weren't even going to tell us! I am so TIRED of these people. More specifically, the technician who always takes care of our vehicle.

From here on out, I'm requesting that anyone but him takes care of the Murano. Everyone else is always pleasant with us, so I don't know what the big deal is. We bought this piece of crap from that dealership. I don't want these problems and I don't want it to be made harder by a tech that doesn't want to help us out at all.

Turns out, this repair will be covered under the power train warranty. The crappy technician said that if the damage was caused by me, as opposed to normal wear and tear, then it wouldn't be covered under the warranty. How they would know the difference between a tear caused by running over a curb and a tear caused by a rogue rock on the highway, I don't know The technician that accepted our vehicle Monday night said that it WOULD be covered by the warranty. Next time I'm requesting that guy. Because I have a feeling there will be lots of "next times" with this vehicle. =(

So! Wednesday morning they finally checked my car. They confirmed the damaged CV joint, but also said there was some serious corrosion on the battery and fuse box. We decided to have them go ahead and clean that off for us. It's something that Travis might be able to do, but we don't want to risk any electrical problems with that corrosion in the fuse box. That we have to pay for though.

I asked for a rental car before we dropped off the Murano on Monday and they said no, they don't do that. Well, today, when they called to say that the CV axle needed to be replaced, but the part wouldn't be in until tomorrow, they finally offered up the rental car. I thought they said they didn't do that, but whatever. I'm not going to fight it. I left work early with Rachel, so she could drive me to pick up the rental.

We got stuck in traffic due to a horrible fire that destroyed a condo building and I was worried we wouldn't make it on time (the building was still under construction from Ike so very few people were actually living there). When Travis originally talked to the crappy tech, he said we had to be there by 4:30pm. I called the dealership to see if it would be possible to come in later because I was stuck in traffic. The crappy tech finally admitted that if we were there by 5:30, we could still get the rental.

We made it to the dealership just after 5pm. Enterprise came to pick me up 15 minutes later and I was quickly put into a 2008 Nissan Xterra. Bright frickin' yellow. Shouldn't be hard to find my car after work today! While he was processing my car, the Enterprise guy said that usually when a client is put into a rental car under payment by the dealership, they fix the vehicle in a more timely fashion. I wanted this dang thing three days ago, so I was getting this rental. If the Murano is fixed and ready to go tonight, at least Travis won't have to leave work early to take me up to get it. I will be able to do it myself since I have the Xterra. And if it's not ready, then I still have a way to get around in the meantime. WHAT A PAIN!!!

Remember the 90's?

Check out those buckaroos! I had to wear head gear for over a year in middle school because of them. I really hope our children are not cursed with my horrid orthodontics.

I'd also like to point out the acid wash, tapered jeans and tubular vest. I think this photo dates sometime around 1991. As you can see, I played the piano and the recorder. I had piano lessons for seven years, but only played the recorder for one year before joining band in middle school. At that point I began playing the alto and bass saxophones. I was bad ass.

Diaper Party

On Sunday, this past weekend, we went to a BBQ put on by Ariel and Robert. It was a party mostly for Travis and his friends to celebrate his impending fatherhood. What better way to do that than with disc golf, burgers and a keg?

We got to the park at 1pm to help Robert set up and to make sure we had a spot saved that was at least in partial shade. Robert borrowed this crazy set up from a Galveston restaurant for the keg that involved a tank of carbon dioxide and a tap.

Mike, Travis and the keg setup

Robert grilled some really great burgers while the rest of us sat around and enjoyed the day. There were a bunch of kids there, so it was fun to watch them all run around, getting into bubbles and playing in the ice.

Sara, Alexa and Blair

Robert tried out Alex's beer bong. I guess Travis did too, but I missed it. After the burgers, the guys went off to play a round of disc golf. They took all the dogs with, which added up to four canines.

Scott, June and Callaway

Travis breaking Callaway's neck. Not really. But it looks like it, right?

Rachel and I

The park closed at dark, so we packed up and everyone went home. Since there was still half a keg left over and a bunch of uncooked burgers, a couple of the guys came over to our house afterward. Travis got to use his Man Room, so it worked out great for me. We have satellite set up on the TV out there, plus the futon, a foosball table, then they added a keg and pulled out the grill. I went to bed at 10pm, but was unable to fall asleep until sometime after 10:45. I am so used to having Travis there when I go to bed that I have trouble when he's gone. Sounds like they had a good time all in all.

That next day I had to make the request that Travis stay sober for the next month. I woke up around 3 in the morning to a painful contraction. I stared at the clock for 10 minutes awaiting another contraction. When it never came, I finally let myself fall back asleep. It really scared me though. I was imagining me going into labor and having to figure out how to get to the hospital when my husband was probably too drunk to drive. That did not settle with me well, so I had to put my foot down. LOL! He seems to understand where I'm coming from.

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Today I am officially full term. I had an OBGYN appointment yesterday afternoon and the doc confirmed that I am yet to show any signs of labor. She even went as far as to request that I hold it in for at least a week so she will be able to deliver the baby. This weekend she's not on call, so I would prefer to wait too.

Doc says I'm measuring between 37 and 38 weeks pregnant, putting me pretty much right on track. She also said that the baby is long and lean, meaning he's not a fatty yet. That was reassuring for the most part. The crappy part there is that means that most of this 168 pounds I'm carrying around is me. Explains why my feet hurt ALL THE TIME. You can see in that last picture with Rachel that I'm starting to swell up - let the edema begin! Another fun fact: Lil Wodie's heartbeat is down to 139 bpm.

We're rounding the final bend!

Whale in the Water

Another weekend passes. EEK. That means only three more weekends until this baby is due. And there's no telling when he'll actually show. Again with the EEK. Travis' boss was out of town, so Travis decided to take Saturday off. He spent the morning getting the yard work done and out of the way. Then we headed up to Chris and Alexa's to relax. The pool was just what I needed. Some place cool to rest the swollen hooves.

Blair under his sun protection with Mom (no good shots of Chris - I'm slacking on the photo taking!!)

I thought this one was cute of Travis and I. My dad keeps making the remark that every picture of Travis and I together since I've been pregnant has contains at least one beer. This photo is no different. Sorry Dad! I promise that other beer in the floaty is not mine. I just happened to have the only cup holders in the pool, making me the holder of beer.

This picture is just plain funny. I was trying to lean on Travis so I could float the belly above the water line for a photo. As soon as my feet were up, there was no controlling my balance. Travis pushing my back up from underneath didn't help matters either. I felt like a turtle on it's back. Hence the leg kicking into the air. You can sort of see how I felt about the lack of control in my face. Oh and it's also hilarious how far under the water Travis is going. Before I leaned on him, he was almost entirely above the water in that floaty. HA!

For dinner, Chris and Alexa provided homemade sliders. They were AWESOME. Sometimes certain foods just hit the spot. Those mini-burgers doubled with scalloped potatoes were just what I needed. I guess it helps being out in the sun all day. There is something about the outdoors and grilling that go so well together. I suppose a grill indoors is not smartest idea...