24 Weeks and other things

Not much change, but my oh my, is it growing!

I've been meaning to post about a few other things we've been up to lately. Not a lot, but things I'd like to post about. Marty LOVES to go out in the garage and build things. Anything really. I requested a shelf for my shoes but he had something he wanted to build before he started on my request. He did a fantastic job building this toolbox for our 5 year old neighbor. We found some wood decals at Joann to decorate it. His dad works in ordnance at the same squadron as Marty, so we thought it was pretty cool to put a plane and a bomb on it. The look on Richard's face when we brought it to him was priceless along with a big "wow, I love it." That made our day.

October 10th was Rayleigh's 4th birthday too. Yup, she was born the day after we got married. Very cool. We aren't sure of Molly's birthday, but it's some time around Rayleigh's, so we just consider the 10th hers too. Molly is 2! We took them to Sheridan's for a frozen treat, which they LOVED. Sorry about the picture quality, all we had were our phones. The flash works a little to good on them too.

I've been having trouble getting comfortable at night. I'm a stomach sleeper and I can't exactly sleep like that anymore. So, I have to switch from side to side all through the night. My hips tend to fall asleep and are achy in the mornings. Marty said he would buy me a Snoogle pillow. I have slept so good since I got it. Looks like Daddy and the puppies like the pillow too.

Something else I needed to post about was how we announced that the baby is a boy to our moms. I might have already posted about it, but I know I didn't have a picture. We had flowers delivered to our moms instead of just calling them up and saying "It's a boy!" It would have been exciting no matter how we told, but we wanted to make a bigger deal of it.

I was so worried about Marty's mom's flowers. She had knee surgery that day and the flowers were left on the porch. I was so afraid something was going to happen to the flowers (chickens and dogs, haha) or someone was going to see them before they did and ruin the surprise in some way. It all worked out the way we wanted, so we were pleased. Both moms loved finding out this way too, even better.

23 Weeks

So, how come people told me this pregnancy would drag by? Because it's not dragging by at all! 4 months until Jack's due date. Maybe it's going by so fast because it's been easy so far. Here is today's picture at 23 weeeks!



The little guy has become much more active too. This morning I woke up to a rock hard belly and some strong nudges. I think he was ready for me to get up for the day. He also likes to kick the second I lay in bed at night. I'm loving it!

Marty felt the baby!

Jack always moves around a bit once I lay down at night. Marty is usually out within minutes of hitting his pillow. Like last night. We were watching Las Vegas (we'll never finish our DVR'd episodes, EVER) and Jack began his wiggling. I think I scared Marty when I grabbed his hand oh so gently to place it on my stomach. He thought something was wrong. Poor guy. Once he figured out what I was doing we laid real still. Jack started his kicking and wiggling and his daddy got to feel it! He said he felt tiny thumps. I was so happy about that!

I know Marty and I have both already developed a bond with the baby. It means so much to me to involve Marty with as much as possible. I am so happy I'm at the point in this pregnancy that he can feel his son growing bigger and stronger. He gets to hear about all the discomforts too. He's a good man to listen to the crazy things pregnancy has done to my body.

Somehow, my feet have grown at least by 1/2 size. I've heard this is common. I'll be going shoe shopping tomorrow. Every pair of shoes in my closet that is not flip flops is too snug. Not just in width, but length too. Ouch.

Anniversary Present

Marty and I only exchanged presents our first anniversary. Something always comes up that we can't get out shopping or something happens that we HAVE to go out and spend money. Well, it happened again this year. I won't complain any since this year's gift was supposed to be, according to traditional anniversary presents lists, new appliances.

We have ourselves a brand new washer and dryer set! They arrived one week before our anniversary. I didn't mind doing laundry too much before. I LOVE my new set. No more awful banging from the mis-matched washer and squeaky dryer. It got to the point that I didn't want to turn the dryer on for fear of something smoking and sputtering.

We also decided the day before the new set arrived, to hang up something in the backyard.

Pretty ironic, right? I don't know why we didn't do this sooner. Our electric bill went up to $300 over the summer. Energy costs are ridiculous here. The heat is unbearable, so maybe I put it off because I didn't want to break a sweat before I got the first towel hung on the line. It brings me great satisfaction not having to pay to dry my clothes. The new dryer hasn't been used as much. At least we're cutting back on that energy bill!

22 Weeks

Same shirt, different day. That's an Old Navy maternity shirt, and it's heavenly to wear something so comfortable that also offers the questionable pregnant look. Well, I am pregnant, not just packing on the pounds. So, I'll go with it since it's so comfy.

I've grown out of two pairs of maternity jeans. They didn't have the full panel of stretchiness that seems to be more comfortable. They pretty much were jeans that had the waistband replaced with a wide elastic band. Perfect for the beginning, but not so much with the growing belly. Plus, my thighs seem to have grown and weren't going to squeeze into them much longer. So, I'm down to two pairs of jeans and it's all I wear. Comfort is #1 for me.

My parents came in this weekend too! We were headed out the door when we snapped today's picture. We (mainly me) were starving by the time 11:00 rolled around when Taverna opened for brunch. I had OJ and everyone else had bottomless mimosas. That was the most delicious meal I have ever eaten. As are all of my meals lately. Have I mentioned that I eat man-sized portions?

We dropped the guys off at the house and Momma and I headed for Babies R Us and the mall. We came across some great sales. She told me no more onesies, only outfits. This is what I already have for onesies:

She was right, no more onesies for us. Here are some of the cool outfits Jack will be wearing when he arrives.

This is the only thing I paid for full-price. I couldn't resist it. I knew if I passed it up, I would be on a mad hunt to find it later. So, it had to be bought. It says "perfect (just like my dad)."

The boy needs shoes too. The pair on the left came from a previous shopping trip to Target with a friend. The ones on the right came from Babies R Us. Awesomeness.

Jack's clothes, shoes, etc. so far:

I told my mom we needed to get home because my toes were beginning to look like little sausages. I don't want to deal with any kind of swelling, so I take it pretty easy. After our shopping trip we stopped by Starbucks and headed home. We had dinner with the guys at my favorite BBQ place. Mom and I went to see Nights in Rodanthe after dinner. It was a wonderful day with my mom. I told my dad this morning I was mad at him for taking my mom away from me. He says they'll be back in a month. I hope they keep up the monthly visits. I love that they're willing to make the drive to come see us. Sometimes it's not as easy for us to pack up and leave for a weekend.

Now I miss my mom :-(

October 9, 2004

It's been 4 years since Marty and I said our I do's. As cliche as it is, I truly did marry my best friend. He's the one I want to share everything with. Having moved away from family and friends, he's been the person that's been by my side through it all. I wasn't even the tiniest bit nervous on our wedding day. I was more than ready to marry such a wonderful man.

I am blessed to have Marty in my life. He has a heart of gold. Really. My family and his family all adore him. He is kind and gentle. There are so many things I love about him. I wish I had half his patience. He loves to learn and to teach. He gets excited about the little things in life. I love the way his eyes light up when I surprise him with a lemon meringue pie. He loves to make me happy. I love to make him happy. He doesn't ever need bigger and better things to be happy. I can tell he is right where he wants to be when we're together. I miss him when he's away. He gives the best hugs. I can feel in his hugs how deeply he cares for me.

Okay, now that I've wiped away the tears. I can't help myself. If anyone reads this that knows Marty in person, you know the kind of man he is. I wish I was better at putting my thoughts into words to explain it to those that don't know him. I am one lucky lady, that's for sure! My mom makes sure to tell me how fortunate I am to have him. I know it too.



Marty and I met March 2002. Carla, his sister, introduced us. He was on leave after a deployment. I worked with Carla at an insurance company back home. Our team sent Marty care packages with books, snacks, candy, etc. I also had my mom's fourth grade class write letters to him. He wanted to meet us all. He came by our work first. I was the last one to walk in. I looked up and he's in his Blues. Wow. We all chatted and looked at some pictures he brought.

Then it was off to my mom's school. He didn't want to go alone, so I volunteered to go with him. Um, no twisting of my arm needed! We talked the entire drive there. He met my mom's class and answered questions while I kept my cool off to the side. He took me back to work, again, talking the whole way back. I so didn't want him to take me back. We're both having a hard time remembering, but we think we went on our first date a few days later. Marty said we can say it was whenever we want, so that's when it was! I do think it's true though.

Marty started emailing me at work. Then at home. Then we got to know each other through instant messenger. That turned into phone calls. He came home when his nephew was born and we got to see each other again then. We were "just friends" still. Since he was in San Diego, he didn't want to get into anything serious. He wasn't sure where he was going. He was waiting on orders for flight engineer school. He ended up getting the orders and moving to Pensacola. He started coming home every other weekend then. We became closer, spending at least one evening together while he was home. We talked every day at lunch. We loved getting to know one another.

I give Marty so much trouble over not telling me sooner that he liked me. April 2003 was when he finally fessed up. Well, he just kissed me. No words needed. I think deep down, we both knew in the beginning we would end up together. We got along so well and had the same goals in life. I spent the next year travelling to Cherry Point and Little Rock to see him while he was going through training.

Marty proposed June 11, 2004. We were married a few months later. We've lived in Little Rock (AR), Cherry Point (NC), and now Fort Worth (TX). I could not be any happier sharing my life with him.

I look forward to bringing our son into our lives. I know Marty is going to be an amazing father to an amazing little boy.

The big news!

Most of you already know. I do know there is at least one lady that stumbled across my blog through Penny Lane designs and she doesn't know yet. So, I HAVE to make a new post about our little baby boy!

Jack Martin is still due February 15th and he's measuring right on time. The doctor said he looks perfect. He weighs 1 lb. right now too! Marty is beside himself. The tech had "the" shot on the screen and left it up to us to figure out. Um, no doubts that Marty is going to have a fishing buddy. He proudly stated that fact in the u/s suite too. The tech is such a sweetheart. She remembered us from the very first u/s and that Marty is a Marine. Her husband is a Navy pilot. She was about to hand over the pictures she printed and made sure to tell us to kinda hide them from those in the waiting room. haha She gave us 12 pictures!

Here is our little Jack!




Jack was super cooperative. He only wiggled a tiny bit and wasn't any trouble at all. She got all of her measurements easily. I can feel him moving around now though! Marty is still waiting to feel him. I found out the placenta is anterior, so it may take him even longer to feel good movements from the outside. We left the doctor's office once we were told all was okay and headed straight to Toys R Us, Old Navy, and The Children's Place where we bought a few outfits.

The Children's Place if full of cuteness. Don't go in that store. How could we resist the little gray onesie with the car that says "High Maintenance"??? And the shoes. Oh, my. The shoes! The cool "Awesome Academy" shirt that's paired up with the jeans came from Old Navy. Yes, my kid is already awesome

I go back in 4 weeks for the dreaded glucose test. Yum.

Our moms loved the way we announced it to them. We had flowers delivered to them in a little blue cube vase with white flowers and a mylar "It's a boy" balloon. My mom was so tickled when she called me. She got them around 1:45. I had told her our appointment was rescheduled for 3:00, when it was actually at 11:00. I had to make sure the delivery had plenty of time to make it there! She said she loved finding out that way instead of just hearing over the phone "hey, Mom, it's a boy!" Nothing wrong with that, but we didn't announce the pregnancy in a big way, so we wanted this to be special.

Marty's mom had knee surgery today. From what his dad told me, she still LOVED the arrangement we sent and was very happy about it. I'll check up on her tomorrow to see if she's feeling any better since she had a bad reaction to the anesthesia.

Overall, it was a SPLENDID day for everyone!

Did everyone vote?

Looks like lots of people think it's a boy! I guess you'll all find out tomorrow afternoon! I have things in order to make the announcement to our moms. I want them to know first, then I'll post so you can all find out. I have no idea if my brother and sister read this, but I sent them the links, so I'm not taking any chances! I hope they're able to tell what the baby is, because I have people on pins and needles waiting to find out. This Momma and Dadddy are ready to know, that's for sure!

21 Weeks!

3 More Days!

Can you tell I'm ready for Tuesday?

Another milestone

Last night as I got into bed, I put my hand on my belly just to see if I could feel the baby if he/she decided to move. I haven't had any luck with feeling him/her from the outside yet. As soon as I rested my hand on my belly, bam! I got a big kick. It was the strongest kick I have felt so far and I can't believe I felt it from the inside and out! Crazy! I heard Marty pull into the garage, so I called for him to come feel. Of course, he didn't get to feel it. It had already been a few minutes, so the baby had chilled out by then. I hope he's able to feel his baby moving around like I have been able to very soon.

The end is in sight!

Marty was unexpectedly put on night crew a while back. Then it was extended to the end of October. I'll keep it simple by saying I hate night crew. I'm glad I'm not working, and I can be on the same schedule so we can spend some time together. Our sleep schedule sucks though. Our eating habits are not something I want to talk about either. Maybe the growing belly actually is from all the ice cream and burritos. I promise, there is a baby in there people! Speaking of the baby...

5 MORE DAYS!

Say a little prayer or chant, whatever it is you do, that Baby C cooperates so I can stop referring to my child as "It".

Anyhow...night crew comes to an end October 25th. We will be celebrating this fine occasion the following evening by attending a Randy Travis concert. Remember??? Whee!