Half way there...

There has been so much going on during the last few weeks that I literally have to stop and tell myself to breathe. I finally finished my A & P part one course and passed with a high B! Very exiting as I thought it was going to be the end of me at some points. Josh and I also got back from Florida Saturday evening. And to top it all off we found out that our new addition is going to be A BOY!!!!! :)

The trip to Florida was wonderful and just what a mommy needed. I actually held up better than I thought for leaving Connor for that long for the first time. The first day was extremely hard and I about lost it on the plane several times when ever I saw kids that reminded me of him but that night we were able to Skpe with him while he stayed with his Nana and Pop. It was reassuring to know that he was doing well ( and didn't seem to miss us much ;). He had a wonderful time with them and they spoiled him absolutely rotten as grandparents should.

Josh and I got to spend one day at Disney World which was a ton of fun. We had both never been to Epcot so we decided to use our military passes for that and add the park hopper option to mine. So we also ventured through Animal Kingdom for a bit. Epcot was great and the majority of the exhibits and rides were insides ( so very nice on a 95+ degree day). And I was very surprised I could be on my feet all day like that and not have any problem... unless you count the blister on my right foot from my flip flop.

We were able to eat lunch in Italy and then even ended the day with fireworks, that was until the torential down pour occurred. Speaking of which Florida weather is bizarre. Our cab driver had told us on the way to the hotel to expect rain around 4-6 everyday but not to worry because it would clear up, lol. He was right about 2 of the days we were there. And it comes with out any warning.

The other days that we were there we lounged by the pool like lizards and worked on our tans... or I guess I should say burns :) But all and all it was a very relaxing vacation and we barely had to spend a dime.

When we returned I couldn't have been more exited to see the little man. If you know me I rarely get exited about allot. Well let me rephrase that... I rarely show great excitement about allot. It is not that I am not exited about things I guess I just do not show it as much. However on Saturday I about lept off the curb at the airport into the car. I missed him so much!

Monday was another big day for us. We FINALLY closed on the refinancing of our house... I mean it has only taken 4 long and tedious months... I have no idea what the hold up... but it was annoying... So that is a blessing that our mortgage payments have gone down by $300 a month. We also found out that our house appraised for $50,000 more than we bought it for in just a year. We live in a brand new subdivision and so far everything the builder has built has been sold and for more than what we paid for our house- so that was such a blessing to hear as we plan to take equity from our home next summer to finish the basement.

But the biggest event to date was yesterday afternoon when we got to find out the sex of the baby. As you see from earlier in my post I am having another boy! I can feel in years to come tat my house is going to be destroyed:) But little boys are wonderful and now Connor will have a little brother to play with.

However during the ultrasound we found out that one of the baby's kidney's ( the left) was quite a bit larger than the other. Josh noticed it when she was doing the U/S. So he said " Is it just me or is that kidney larger than the other one?" She mentioned that she had noticed that and would proceed to take further measurements.

There was only so much she could tell us but she informed us that sometimes this happens in little boys and that I would be monitored closely by the doctors throughout the rest of the pregnancy.

When I met with Dr. Wheelock after my appointment he informed me that the U/S was correct and the left was larger than the right. It appeared that his left kidney was not expelling urine like it should and it was causing the kidney wall to swell. This could be due to an obstruction or an abnormality. He also went onto say that in 4 weeks I would have another U/S to see if the kidney had changed in size. If it had grown then they would send me to high risk specialist at UVA who specialize in this area and they would take it from there as to what to do upon delivery. If it had not changed in size or had gone down they would still continue to monitor it via U/S but it would not be as much cause for concern.

Of course you know me... the moment I got home I had to start my own personal research and I found out that the condition is called "Prenatal Hydronephrosis." or swelling of the kidney's.
The link provided below will tell you more about the condition if you are interested:

http://www.cornellurology.com/pediatrics/prenatal.shtml

As for me I am holding up knowing that my little unborn miracle is in God's hands. It is hard to let go because of my control freak nature but I am really trying to trust in him through this. It was also reassuring to hear from Dr. Wheelock that of all the things that could be wrong with my child I would wish for something like this.

So keep us in your prayers and especially our little man ( who has no name yet).

I will post U/S pictures soon. I need to scan them in.

Goodbye Daddy

So once again Josh has left us, and hopefully for the last time...in a long time for training in Arkansas. He left at 6am on Saturday morning and I stood in the driveway in my PJ's balling my eyesout. I dont know why this time was harder for me than a month ago when he left for PA. Maybe it was that it is twice as far away as the first trip and I just worry about his safety. Or the loneliness that I will feel while he is gone. The only thing I have to snuggle at night is a body pillow and frankly it is just not the same.

Last night my worst fear happened... well not my worst but one that I dread when ever he goes away. At 2:30 am I woke up because the power had gone out. My first thought was OMG! Someone cut the power off to the house, they are about to break in and kill us!!!! Then I ran to the window to see if my theory was true and if all the neighbors still had power. Thank God everyone was out. So either some drunk driver on his way back from a 4th party hit a power line pole on 460 or the pyscho serial killer found away to take out everyones power.

So immediately I picked up my flashlight I had already placed on the nightstand of my bed and went downstairs and had to dig through the stack of paid bills to find the power company's number. I called and reported the outage... apparently not being the first one. Then due to the LACK of noise Connor woke up and started crying. He has also been sick with a cold and started having a croupy sounding cough... Great! So Connor, Woofer & I all sat in my room by the light of one burning candle while I prayed desperately for the power to be restored. Finally after an hour it was... and I put Connor back to bed and drifted off to sleep myself ( with almost everylight in the house on). Now after way to much caffine late this evening I lay awake not being able to sleep... so what better to do than blog.

So in other eventful news... the day before Josh left for Arkansas we took Connor to the park to play. I have included some pictures for your enjoyment. He loves more than anything to get down and run around - and apparently away from us. So we took him to the baseball field where he could run around in a CAGED area :) Josh and I stood there and watched how far he would actually go... and he kept going and going until we decided to run after him. It was kind of heartbreaking that he is so independant.

You know you read in all these books and hear mothers scold you for co-sleeping with your child for as long as we did ( which was up until he was a year old) but to be truthfully honest, and while every child is different. Connor is ANYTHING but dependant! He is the polar opposite of that. We had no problem getting him to sleep in his crib and the more I think about it - I think he was trying to tell us that is what he wanted for a while before we ended up doing it. He moves around during the night more than any child I have ever seen. He also plays really well by himself and isnt clingy unless its in a new situation where he seems overwhelmed and even then its just for a minute.

While I cant say I will co-sleep at all with my next child, or I do for as long as we did with Connor I will say that not only did I treasure every cuddly moment of it( until I was kicked profusely in the stomach by my mammoth child) but I feel as if it gave him a sense of security and that is why he is as independant as he is. He knows that his mommy and daddy love him very much and so he is secure enough ( yes even at 18 months) that he can be his independant self :)

So now we are going on two days w/o daddy and we miss him very much. Only 11 more to go until we see him again.

Cant wait!

It's been awhile... and I have been extremely busy...

So it has been awhile since my last post. I am absolutely horrible at blogging (just because it is on a different site than facebook). I think I need to start making myself go to this site everyday and then maybe I will post more.

Things have been absolutely crazy here. I started my first class back in May which was an INTENSE two week intensive. That really got the ball rolling on the hectic life that I believe I will be living for ... well here to eternity. Up until now it was pretty much smooth sailing. I was a stay at home mom with an angel for a child and a great husband and no other real commitments. Now I am going back to school, and getting ready to have another child in December. What was I thinking :)

My Anatomy and Physiology course is going better than I expected. Somehow by the grace of God I have maintained an A average while taking this demanding course online. I never thought it was possible. I guess I have always been better at school when I actually had the desire to do it, not just going for the sake of going. So maybe that is what is happening here. By the end of the fall semester and just short of baby #2 arriving I will have all my core classes for nursing taken care of except for Micro Bio which I will take next summer. All of my courses so far I am doing online and I hope to keep it that way during the fall.

I also picked up a small side job that I do sporadically where I address envelopes. Its great pocket cash and relatively simple. So that is always nice. Hopefully I will be getting at least one job a month if not more.

On top of going back to school, raising a toddler ( which to say the least is crazy and draining), being pregnant, Josh is going out of town yet again. This will make the third time in just a little over a month. He was gone for a week at the end of May, then two weeks in June and is leaving Saturday for Arkansas for two more weeks. When he arrives home we have one day until we drive down to CLT leave Connor with my parents and head for what could be our last "couple" vacation for a LOOOOOOOOOONG time.

This will be the first time I have left Connor for more than just an overnight stay. I have only left him one time and that was back in October. So I am pretty sure this wont be the relaxing vacation I was hoping for but we do desperately need it. And I know that I am leaving my child in good hands so that puts me a little at ease. At least I am only a 12 hr drive or a 1 1/2 plane ride away if there is an emergency.

We actually won this trip because of Josh's hard work and dedication to his job over the past year. For the first three quarters of the fiscal year Josh was TOP RECRUITER IN THE STATE OF VA! So proud of him. Technically he still is if the recruiters in VA Beach didn't cheat and feed one recruiter each year. Also Josh has given away 12 potential applicants just so he could help out other guys in his area... He is ridiculously talented and great and what he does. So we are being pampered as we rightfully should be and having our vacation paid for in full. A Kin Deluxe Suite at the Caribe Royal in Orlando right outside of Disney World, Paid Air fair and daily expenses, and we get to go to Walt Disney World!!!!!!! That is the only thing that has to be paid for, at least for me anyways. Military personnel get to go to DW 365 days a year at no cost and I only have to pay a minimal fee. Its great! In a couple years when the kids are old enough to enjoy it we will go back. I cant wait to take my kids one day.

In other related news. I just finished hosting about 9 guests at my house last week. All family from Josh's side. We had a great time. We ended up going to the Zoo in Natural Bridge in 95 degree weather but we did have a blast. I am not sure if Connor really cared about the animals but he seemed slightly intrigued. I think he was more exited about running around and taunting the roosters they had there...lol. He did also like the monkeys!

We also were able to finally check out Amazement Square downtown. I was really impressed. I must say that I have wanted to go there for the past 10 years but have had a reason until now. One of THE BEST kids museums I have ever been to. My husbands niece and nephew said that it was better than any of the museums they have been to in Chicago. Which made my day! We also took his niece and nephew to play putt putt which surprisingly they I had never done before. Unfortunately my wining streak against Josh ended but I did get a hole in one! So that was exiting. I also found that I am really good at ski or ice ball. Always good to know.

Now we are preparing for Josh to leave again and brace the next to weeks. But hopefully with all my course work, birthday parties to attend, people to visit and envelopes to address these next to weeks will go by fast.

On Monday we are off to visit my best friend Kathy, her husband and her son who is about the same age as Connor, just a little younger. We have been friends since early grade school and she moved away a little over a year ago to NOVA. So that should be a lot of fun. I miss her so much and cant wait to be able to have some quality girl time with her.

Josh and Daddy looking at the animals...
Elena ( our niece) feeding the donkey... she had absolutely no fear of any of the animals that were roaming free...

More to come...