32 Weeks

Well, tomorrow I will be 33 weeks, but I did take a 32 week picture last week. I never had a chance to blog, or even really get on my email last week, so I wanted to get caught up.

I wear Mike's clothes around the house a lot. This is one of two shirts that fit. He's too small.
32 weeks
Last week was a busy one. First thing Monday morning the floor guys were here to start ripping up the old carpet. Luckily, I had a neurologist appointment at the AF Academy so that gave me something to do. Better yet, Mike was able to take off of work and go with me. We were excited to drive around the Academy and check it out. Unfortunately, the weather was Terrible! It was the last day of summer and we were getting snow. That's just not fair. The appointment was fine. The doctor knew more than I expected, but like everything else here, it's just different. If/when I have an attack, I have to go to the emergency room at the local hospital and be checked in for probably three days to get the steroid IV. I'm not going to worry about it right now, but What about the BABY??!! is all I can think. Outpatient treatment is not an option at any of the three bases here.
Tuesday, I was on my own. The weather was still yucky so I stayed home. I just spent all day in my bed room while the guys were installing the floor. I tried on almost every pair of shoes that I own. That was fun, and exhausting. Don't worry everyone- They still fit! I was nervous about that! Before I knew it, it was two and the guys were done.
This was the first day of Autumn.

The floor.

Wednesday and Thursday I had to be out of the house so they could sand and stain. I don't even know what I did. I was all over this town. Friday was fun because Mike's squadron had a cookout and softball tournament. I finally met some of the people that I hear about all the time now. It was a great crowd of people. I wanted to take some pictures, but it was at Cheyenne Mountain (where NORAD and all that is) and they do not allow cameras. It was a beautiful area. You could see the whole city from the park.

Our floors are done now and they look great! We are so happy with how it turned out. Sunday we moved our furniture back in, well, Mike and a friend did. It is so nice to have somewhere to sit! I'll have pictures of everything next time.

The baby is great. We are obsessed with feeling him move around and poke those little feet out my right side. It is the sweetest thing EVER. We cannot wait to see this little guy in person. 7 weeks is not a long time.

31 weeks

I feel like it’s been a month since my last blog. Let’s see, what have we been doing….

Last week Mike drove to Montana to get the dog. Tucker has done great since he has been home. He’s really happy to be back with his mom and dad. Mike also got all of the painting done- it looks great. We bought a few pieces of new furniture and they were delivered last week. We got a new couch and love seat as well as a formal dining room set. All of our rooms are pretty much set up, with the exception of the baby’s room. This past weekend we went shopping to get some of the essentials. We got the car seat, the swing and the pack-n-play, which the baby is going to sleep in beside our bed at first. The crib and mattress are being delivered this week. We cannot wait for that!! Even though the nursery is a little bare, we both get excited when we go in there. I think I spent all of last week washing baby items, but it is so much fun looking at all those tiny clothes!

Mike started work last Wednesday. He doesn’t really have anything to do yet, but he knows that he will be working on one satellite in particular with two other people. He likes everyone in his office and things are going good so far. In October he will go to New Mexico for a few days to learn exactly what he will be doing.

I had a checkup this Monday. It was sort of weird because my appointment was at 6pm. Parking and getting through the gate was way easier. I saw a midwife this time. She happened to be the one that goes to Peterson AFB twice a week so people do not have to drive so far. I was told that I could not go see her because I'm considered high risk and have to see an OB, but she fixed that for me. There is absolutely no reason for me to go to Fort Carson, especially since none of them know anything about MS and there is no consistency in my care… sort of pointless. So that is going to be great! We will still have the baby at Fort Carson, but I am going to save a ton of gas money and time going to Peterson for checkups.

This is our patio. Tuck and I spend time out here everyday. Love the fire pit!!
I get my squats in by picking up the ball a million times.

Am I really that big?? Good grief. This is why the blogs have gone down to once every two weeks... it takes me a week to get over how big I look! Hahaha Just kidding! The fact that my shirt is too small doesn't help.

Next week we are having hardwood floors installed in the living area, and having our kitchen area refinished. That is something we have known we wanted to do from day one. It is going to be such a hassle, but we decided to go ahead and just get it over with. I am already dreading it.

29 Weeks

We are officially in out third trimester! Holy cow!

Last week I finally had a doctor's appointment, actually I had two appointments. The hospital and doctors that I will be using are at Fort Carson, a huge Army base. It takes an hour to get to the actual hospital by the time you get through the gate and find a parking space. My first appointment was Wednesday. I met with a nurse, she went through a bunch of information (available classes, nutrition, etc.), weighed me, took my blood pressure, and told me to come back on Friday to see an OB. That was VERY annoying. Thank goodness I did not have anything else planned for that day. My second appointment I met with my new OB. I was anxious to get to know her, hear my baby's heartbeat, and hear her thoughts on MS and pregnancy. After talking with her for a while, I find out that she knows nothing about MS and then find out that she is not my OB. I do not really have one OB in particular. I will most likely meet with a new person at every appointment and have to tell them my medical history each time. This is a very new concept for me. I had such a wonderful, knowledgeable doctor in Montana that I had great relationship with. I was shocked. And after the shock, I was really upset. When I called Mike crying, he was shocked and upset too. So we decide to take a step back and put things in perspective- as long as my baby is healthy, which he is, it doesn't matter who delivers him or checks us at our appointment. I don't HAVE to have that. What I do have to have, if nothing else, is a neurologist that knows something about MS. I am hoping to find out at my next appointment who that will be.


Last week was a little stressful, BUT THEN Mike came home on Saturday! WooHoo! Now everything is right in the world. He has been working his little tail off in this house. He likes to tell people, "Yeah, Katie put me right to work as soon as I got here..." But the truth is that he got in around 7:30, I showed him the house, and he couldn't even sit down for a second. He wanted to get right to work because he was so excited. He started breaking down the mile high pile of boxes that Jeremy and I had in the garage... and he hasn't stopped since. The house is really starting to come together.

Yesterday we bought all of our paint for the house. Mike got started right away on this lovely baby room the previous owners worked so hard on. They put so much effort into this circus theme! Now Mike has to put so much effort into covering it up.

Here my large self is at 29 weeks. Things are getting to be more difficult for sure. I feel my energy level going down a little bit. Picking things up and tying shoes is always an event. My back, feet, and hips tend to hurt a lot. Yes Melissa, I hear you right now and I STILL have not gotten a yoga dvd! I really need to.

Little Dylan is still so active. I decided to do a fetal kick count the other day. The chart I have instructed me to count ten good movements and log how long it takes. If he doesn't do ten movements within two hours (I think) then I would need to call the doc. Well, D did his in less than ten minutes! He tries to beat his record all the time. Sometimes he gives me the creeps when he rolls around, or whatever he is doing, and my belly makes these huge waves. It's so weird!

Other baby news includes a change in nursery bedding. I know this is going to disappoint some of you (Nancy and Emilee), but before Jeremy left we went to a huge kids consignment sale called Just Between Friends- http://www.blogger.com/www.jbfsale.com There was a ton of stuff at great prices. Natalie, Melissa, Ryann, any of you with kids- there were really nice clothes there for older kids too, not just babies. I was too overwhelmed to know what size baby clothes to buy, so I ended up with none. Luckily, there will be another sale in the spring. Anyhow, my point to all of this is that Jeremy and I found a really nice, cute bedding set that included everything for $50. I don't know who was more excited- me or Jeremy.

Our new address is: 10173 Angeles Rd

Peyton, CO 80831

Phone #: 719-495-1401

27 weeks!!

We are in the house and mostly unpacked!  Jeremy has worked his little butt off.  We started unpacking in the kitchen as soon as the movers left on Monday.  I have so much cabinet space that I cannot fill it up.  It's great.  Doing the kitchen took a couple of hours.  After that, we just kept going.... and that is where I made my big mistake.  I don't know what I was thinking.  Monday night I got up to go to the bathroom and almost collapsed as soon as my feet hit the ground.  My legs literally could not hold me up.  I think that I spent so much time on my feet that my lower back just couldn't do it anymore.  I made it to the toilet (thank goodness!) by supporting myself with the bathroom sink.  I really could have used a walker.  I stretched a little and didn't get back in bed until I could walk on my own.  It was a little scary, but Tuesday morning I was fine.  My lower back was stiff, but I could walk.  Needless to say, I learned my lesson and now take a lot of breaks to put my feet up.  

Here I am at 27 weeks!  See why my back hurts so badly?  There's a lot of weight up front. I have definitely grown compared to the last blog picture.  The lower part of my belly has filled out.

      Yesterday at the mall I found this belly support thing.  It is the BEST!  It takes a lot of pressure off of my back.  J made me take this pic  b/c he thinks it's so funny.  
So to get even, here is a picture of him TRYING to hook up my washer and dryer.  It took him FOREVER and he was very mad at me for snapping this shot.  To his credit, it was way more difficult than any other washer/dryer that I have ever seen.
And yes, he did get it working.

I have to hand it to the boy- he has really been great.  There is no way in this world that I would have been able to do all of this myself.  He even cooks and cleans!!  I will be sad to drop him at the airport on Saturday.

Tuesday I am having Internet and a phone line installed.  My phone does not work at all in this house.  That is why I haven't returned any of your calls.  It is driving me crazy.  I can't even talk to Mike!  Speaking of him, he will come home a week from Saturday!!  I cannot wait.  I miss him so much.  It is going to be so much fun fixing our nursery, hanging pictures, shopping for furniture...  all of that stuff.  He is really ready to come home too.  

Colorado

Mike and I are officially homeowners again!!  Jeremy and I arrived in Colorado this past Thursday and I closed on the house Friday.  Today we were able to go out and be tourist.  We went to Garden of the Gods and to Pikes Peak.  Both are amazing places that are right down the road.  Pikes Peak has an elevation of 14,110 feet!  In town the temp was in the 80s, on top of the mountain it was 42.  I was lucky to have that jacket in my car, even though I could barely zip it up!

Jeremy is afraid of heights, so the drive up the mountain was hilarious.  There were not many guard rails, so he could barely stand it.  I thought we were going to have a head-on collision because he wanted to ride in the lane closest to the mountain.  There is a train that you can take to the top, but the increase in elevation is so intense that they do not recommend pregnant women ride.  Plus, Jeremy would be on the floor the whole time and that would be embarrassing.  
                       Garden of the Gods is so neat.  This formation is called Falling Rock.  

                                                   This formation is called Kissing Camels.

My brother and I have had a lot of laughs so far.  He is having a blast checking out the town and I am enjoying his company and help!  The movers will come Monday, so tomorrow we are going to do a little bit of cleaning and some grocery shopping.  

OK- Baby News...  I CANNOT get over how fast we are growing!  I will be 27 weeks on Tuesday.  I'll have to take a good belly shot so you can see the difference.  Dylan is moving around more than ever.  He loves grapes!  Every time I eat them, he goes crazy.   

I am hoping that I can get on base Tuesday to get a referral for a new doctor.  I am definitely due for a checkup.  

24 weeks!!

I am finally in NC! Mike and I got to Mema and Papa's on Saturday. We really enjoyed spending time with them (and eating yummy food), even though there is never enough time.
Mike left on Sunday for Alabama. I miss him a ton already. We were spending so much time together and now we don't get to see each other at all. I know the time will pass quickly, but I just hate it. I don't make a very good military wife. I couldn't imagine him going overseas for months at a time. I would want to go with him!

Here I am at 24 weeks. It is hard to believe. November is going to be here before I know it and I feel so unprepared.
Here's Mema and Papa The Great.

Baby boy Stobie moves a lot more these days. He is growing so much. Sometimes I feel him move on opposite ends of my tummy at the same time. We are pretty certain that we are going to name him Dylan Michael. I guess the spelling of Dylan is up in the air, but right now I like it spelled that way.

23 weeks

I don't have any pictures this time because I'm lazy. The camera is down in the car and we are about to check out in a few minutes. We are in Wyoming right now on our way to Denver.

This past week was really hectic. We had a lot of little things to take care of, but now we are officially out of Montana! Well, the dog is still there, but in another month he will be out of MT too. Tucker is going to stay with the same people that he has been staying with this whole time. Mike is going to go pick him up after he is done with his training in Alabama.

We have a long four days ahead of us. Today we will make it to Denver, drop off my car, then start heading east. We should make it to Mema and Papa's (by-the-way, we are coming to your house Mema and Papa! I will call you today!) by Saturday, then Sunday Mike will go to Alabama.

We have to get on the road now! We will keep you updated.