Travel Often

“I see my path, but I don’t know where it leads. Not knowing where I’m going is what inspires me to travel it.” — Rosalia de Castro

Love Deeply, but Laugh Along the Way

"Happiness is only real when shared." - Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild

View Marriage as an Adventure

"Love is a flower which turns into fruit at marriage." ~Finnish Proverb

Fuel your body with GOOD (It's the only one you get)

He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything. - Arabian Proverb

Open your Soul to Motherhood

A Grand Adventure is About to Begin - Winnie the Pooh

A New Kind of Love is Born

Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while, but their hearts forever.

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

I Am Pregnant! - Round II - Week 5

Week 5 (February 19, 2014)

All at Once

OK. Wow. Everything happens at once, right? So we are now home owners and will be moving in May. WooHoo! AND I’m for sure pregnant. WHOA MAMA! Is this not crazy!?!

Let’s just face two HUGE changes at once, right? That just seems to be how I roll these days.

So now I’m worrying about baby since I have been so stressed out. Hope I’m not harming him or her with all this constant anxiety. I pray everything is OK. Jackson and I pray every night for a HEALTHY HAPPY baby.

And speaking of healthy, I NEED TO GET TO THE GYM. I’m going on TWO weeks of no gym. Another reason I’m so stressed out. I need my endorphins!

We don’t go in for our first baby appointment until March 11. I bet that day comes QUICK though…
Oh, crazy life how I love you.

I took one final pregnancy test on the morning of day 29. Those lines turned FAST. And were VERY bold this time.  Still, this hasn’t totally set in and I know it’s because there is SO much going on. Sometimes I forget I am. Sometimes I worry things aren’t right because I know so many who miscarry. That makes my heart hurt.


Here are some stats and symptoms:
Starting Weight: 145 pounds
Height: 5’10”

I’ve been waking up at 4:12 every single morning totally alert. I don’t know what it is. Then I think. And think. And think. So by 3:30 in the afternoon, I’m TIRED. Not exhausted yet, but I know that’s coming. This is why I’m purging our house NOW while I can. I’m a crazy woman. A tornado.

I am HUNGRY a lot. Part of me thinks that I’m hungry so I can fatten up. Once I became a mom, I realized sitting down to eat was a thing of the past. I shovel food in or I share it with Jackson. I’m eating less and I’m moving around more. I’m two pounds from my wedding weight without trying one bit. A diet everyone should try.  

Cramping. I’ve been feeling cramping here and there. On Saturday it was pretty annoying but I thought maybe things were shifting down there and my body was getting ready.

I got my first killer headache this morning. Now, this could very well because I felt TOTAL RELIEF once the papers came back that the house was ours. AHHHH. And I was in TOTAL RELAX mode.

I’ve noticed the more water I drink, the better I am. So I am chugging.

Looking back on Jackson’s blog, week 6 is when things started getting TOUGH for me. Not every morning, but there were definitely some tough mornings in there. Will next week be it for me?


I feel like I’m in a race right now. A race to get projects done around the house while I feel well. A race to get tons of stuff at work done so when I am feeling gross, I can give myself time to step away from my desk and breathe. A race to write up lists of what needs to be done closer to moving day because by then my brain MIGHT be fried. 

Or maybe I’ll get REALLY LUCKY this time and have no symptoms??

Visiting Papa After Open-Heart Surgery

Great Trip Back Home

Karl and I decided to make a quick trip to Illinois to visit my dad. We waited a few weeks after his open- heart surgery so we wouldn't overwhelm him. He was in the hospital for 5 days. The craziest part was I talked to him on the phone 24 hours after his surgery!!!

I wasn't sure what to expect, but when I saw him, he looked like the guy I remember but skinnier and maybe a little jaundice. But he was also standing under a weird kitchen light and tearing apart chicken when we walked in. Only him!

Jackson nursing Papa back to health with his Prayer Shawl


For those of you wondering, my dad is on his second pacemaker. He passed out on our driveway during a HOT August summer day on my older brother's 21st bday (years ago) and this is when they found out his heart was in A-Fib and beats VERY slowly. Since then he's already gone through TWO pacemakers and was STILL VERY out of breath, even if it was walking up three steps. He's not skinny by any means but he's not fat either. So it was weird.

And he was ALWAYS TIRED. Napping shortly after getting up and then once again and again.

Welllll, doctors found a hole LARGER than a quarter in his heart AND discovered that his mitral valve was leaking. Hole is now closed, pig valve in place AND his heart is in rhythm. He claims that he noticed a difference in how he felt the second he came to. Every HOUR after surgery he felt better. The first thing I noticed was he wasn't breathing heavy when he talked. Usually he was gasping for air after every few words.

Isn't it crazy how someone can survive day to day with a large hole in their heart and a leaky valve??? The human body is SOOO amazing.

We wanted to get to their house earlier but Karl and I were running around and made ONE more walk-through on the beautiful house we've been eyeing up (the owners were probably so annoyed with us!). WE ended up getting the house last night!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WE ARE HOME OWNERS!! YESSSSSSSSSS!!!
Papa made sure Sparkles the horse was all ready for Jackson. Heeee-Haww! (I used to ride this horse!!)

Having fun at Papa's

Someone found the winter clothing stash



Anyway, instead of leaving at night like we usually do and making the 5 hour trip while Jackson is sleeping, we left on Friday during the day. Uffdah. It was pretty stressful but we stopped a couple times and eventually MADE IT.

Jackson was so excited to see Papa and Grandma. He loves them so much. We planned on staying until Monday but a snow storm was brewing so we left Sunday night and that went really smooth, other than Jackson getting a terrible cold. Then Karl getting a fever the next day.
Loving up Papa and Gma

Being silly!


Anyway, feeling really blessed these days with GREAT FAMILY. Sure do love my parents and all they do for us and how much they LOVE US. Such a GREAT feeling. Truly the BEST gift you can give your children is LOVE, LOVE, LOVE.

It's the best feeling in the world to know I AM LOVED, Karl is LOVED and Jackson is VERY LOVED.