There have been quite a few little things going on around the Bee House that I've failed to mention.
1. Xander fell in love with the baby chicks. It has been several days since we saw the chicks at the Tractor Supply Store but he still asks if we will buy him a "shicken." I think a baby chick would last about 15 minutes max in Xander's hands because I think he would literally love the chicken to death. And that would make everyone cry. So no chickens.
2. We've loved the spring weather. Anytime Brandon gets off work at 3pm we are headed out the door shortly after. Brandon and I have begun wandering around the county. One day, while wandering down a winding country road, a herd of about 12 does ran across the road into a large field. They were beautiful.
3. Brandon and I are hoping at most, to only need to sign another year lease here. That would bring us to October 2013. We are kind of hoping that our landlord allows us a shorter lease period for the second lease or the ability to move to month to month renting. We have been exploring neighborhoods and looking for a new casa. In the meantime, we will aggressively be saving a down payment. Brandon and I do not desire a huge house (our current space is about 1600 sq feet and that feels good to us with a few tweaks here and there.) We are also not interested in having a large price tag attached to the house- so it could take some time for us to find the best casa for us. More as that starts to unfold.
4. Isaiah's arrival will leave us one open seat in our van. While we make it work for short trips around town, it is quite crowded for a longer trip. Brandon and I will be looking at those options and saving for that as well. We aren't interested in carrying a car payment (Dave Ramsey folks here!) so this may get pushed off for a bit longer still. But we will need to start looking, eventually.
5. Brandon is thriving at his new company. I expected nothing less, but he has started to receive a few comments here and there about his performance. (Good comments.) So he is keeping his head down and continuing to do his very best. We are hoping that he is accepted into the general manager in training program later this fall.
Chugging along nicely,
Stephanie
Showing posts with label update. Show all posts
Showing posts with label update. Show all posts
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Friday, March 2, 2012
Updates!
Thursday, I went to my OB appointment. We had a scare with the heartbeat and the first nurse could not find baby's heartbeats and left us alone in the exam room.
I started crying. Brandon was rubbing my hair and trying to reassure me about "those crazy machines" when the second nurse walk in.
She walked in and said "Oh let's find this wiggleworm!" And when she came around, she noticed I was crying. I don't hide crying well. My face gets splotchy red and my eyes swell up. (I have a certain daughter that does the same exact thing when she cries.) So she said some reassuring words to me, but I'm not really sure what they were because I was praying so hard for a heartbeat to still be there and the baby to cooperate.
And finally we found it. It seems like we have a little drama king or queen on our hands.
We discussed the ultrasound in the hospital with our doctor and he let us know that things could go either way. In our favor, we have a baby measuring ahead of date (so the placenta is nourishing baby well), a strong heartbeat and an active baby... along with prayers of our family and friends!
But bleeding in pregnancy is always worrisome. It is less worrisome since we have a cause and can monitor it and compare.
My ob went ahead and started the process to get the P17 shots ordered for me. I'll take one every week until I am 32 weeks and then we will discontinue. My doctor chuckled as he said this could be my longest pregnancy ever with the shots.
The shots have to be compounded and approved through our insurance so I should hear more this week about when to come in and have it done. Pray for me, they'll be teaching Brandon how to give me shots. EEKS! I'll be really sweet to him those days.
After we left the OB we got called back because it looked like I had an UTI but the first nurse dumped out the sample. So... I had to go back. I'm now on antibiotics.
My doctor is out of the country on his daughter's spring break trip so, we are praying double that this week is uneventful!
Thursday afternoon, we also found out that Xander's cdiff lab came back negative. The Flagyl is working, which means that it is more likely to be SIBO (Short Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth) which is not contagious.
Xander is doing the best he has in months. The day I came home from the hospital, my aunt had dressed in him blue jeans!!! He has refused blue jeans for quite some time, opting only for stretchy, sweat pant material that he kept low on his waist. He is eating a variety of foods now, eating larger amounts and most importantly, not having ANY diarrhea. In fact, when we tracked his dirty diapers, Solomon and Xander had the same number of dirty diapers in a day.. at the same times!
We are praising God for His mercy. It is so relieving to me to see Xander do well even though we are highly concerned about our wee one as well.
In a move of optimism we chose baby names tonight. In Bee tradition, we will not announce the name until we know the gender. BUT, we may find out sooner this pregnancy than any pregnancy before. I have a follow up ultrasound/peri/OB appt on March 12th and we may get a look at gender.
~Stephanie
I started crying. Brandon was rubbing my hair and trying to reassure me about "those crazy machines" when the second nurse walk in.
She walked in and said "Oh let's find this wiggleworm!" And when she came around, she noticed I was crying. I don't hide crying well. My face gets splotchy red and my eyes swell up. (I have a certain daughter that does the same exact thing when she cries.) So she said some reassuring words to me, but I'm not really sure what they were because I was praying so hard for a heartbeat to still be there and the baby to cooperate.
And finally we found it. It seems like we have a little drama king or queen on our hands.
We discussed the ultrasound in the hospital with our doctor and he let us know that things could go either way. In our favor, we have a baby measuring ahead of date (so the placenta is nourishing baby well), a strong heartbeat and an active baby... along with prayers of our family and friends!
But bleeding in pregnancy is always worrisome. It is less worrisome since we have a cause and can monitor it and compare.
My ob went ahead and started the process to get the P17 shots ordered for me. I'll take one every week until I am 32 weeks and then we will discontinue. My doctor chuckled as he said this could be my longest pregnancy ever with the shots.
The shots have to be compounded and approved through our insurance so I should hear more this week about when to come in and have it done. Pray for me, they'll be teaching Brandon how to give me shots. EEKS! I'll be really sweet to him those days.
After we left the OB we got called back because it looked like I had an UTI but the first nurse dumped out the sample. So... I had to go back. I'm now on antibiotics.
My doctor is out of the country on his daughter's spring break trip so, we are praying double that this week is uneventful!
Thursday afternoon, we also found out that Xander's cdiff lab came back negative. The Flagyl is working, which means that it is more likely to be SIBO (Short Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth) which is not contagious.
Xander is doing the best he has in months. The day I came home from the hospital, my aunt had dressed in him blue jeans!!! He has refused blue jeans for quite some time, opting only for stretchy, sweat pant material that he kept low on his waist. He is eating a variety of foods now, eating larger amounts and most importantly, not having ANY diarrhea. In fact, when we tracked his dirty diapers, Solomon and Xander had the same number of dirty diapers in a day.. at the same times!
We are praising God for His mercy. It is so relieving to me to see Xander do well even though we are highly concerned about our wee one as well.
In a move of optimism we chose baby names tonight. In Bee tradition, we will not announce the name until we know the gender. BUT, we may find out sooner this pregnancy than any pregnancy before. I have a follow up ultrasound/peri/OB appt on March 12th and we may get a look at gender.
~Stephanie
Friday, March 4, 2011
Where I've been..
So I haven't posted in awhile... But I haven't forgotten my blog. I've had some things come up and it's just a busy season in my life. So here is what I've been up to:
~Stephanie
- I had an allergic reaction and had to see my doctor.
- We attempted to move Solomon into the nursery.. he's still in our room. ;)
- I had to see the dermatologist to have the site where a mole was shaved off my arm checked out. I was once again told that I'm a "super healer" and it was new skin that made the lump. Apparently some mole cells were left behind and it re-pigmented in the new scar, but I do not need to worry that it is asymmetrical because the labwork from the original mole came back fine. She stuck TWO needles in the lump and injected a steroid in it so that the lump will deflate. I return in 2 months to see if I need another dose.
- I've been restocking our pantry. During the winter I really use it down (because I hate to go out in the cold.. brrr...) so in the spring I need to do quite a bit of shopping to restock.
- While I was at the dermatologists, I asked about chronic hives. I figured the allergist's suggestions weren't working so I'd go after it from a different angle. It's been a YEAR of hives folks... I've now been hive free for THREE nights in a row and haven't needed Benadryl. Oh and did you know that Zantac is a histamine blocker? I now take three medications and I'm adjusting to the new haze of drowsiness. We are blocking H1's and H2's. (different histamines.)
- I've developed allergies living here! I enjoyed two springs with no allergies... but they are back. The 3 medications I'm on should help with the sinus irritation.
- My dear friend suffered a devastating loss. She was due in June and went to the midwife for an appointment and there was no heartbeat. I visited with her and took a meal over Wednesday. She was induced and delivered him this morning. Could you pray for her?
- Xander now adds "Mama" on the end of all of his requests. It's SO cute! "Please, mama?" "More, Mama?" "Cup please, Mama?" Tonight as I was cooking supper he stood nearby repeating Mama over and over. Mamamamamamamamamama! When I looked down he smiled and when I went back to work, he started again. I'm soaking it in!
- Xander now gives the BEST hugs. He pats your back when he hugs you, priceless!
- Lainey has read four chapter books on her own: Boxcar Children, Boxcar Children #3, Ramona Quimby, Age 8, and James and the Giant Peach.
- Julianne has a sudden interest in helping around the house and she loves being read to.
- Solomon is now sitting up! Just as I told the pediatrician last month, he just needed the milestone adjusted for his gestational age. He's drinking over 32 ounces of formula a day and loves to chew on the tags of his blankets and our dinner napkins.
- I sent Xander's birthmom a lengthy update of apple picking, Thanksgiving, our Disney Trip and Christmas.
- Brandon had a day trip for work to Washington, DC. He got to rub shoulders with the upper management of the company he works for and feels super positive about what he heard and the direction of the company!
- Another friend's grandmother died and I'll be attending the funeral tomorrow afternoon.
- The majority of our homeschool curriculum was ordered and arrived after a shipping fiasco. I'm pleased with it and can't wait to get more time to look through it in more detail!
- I got bad news from back home. My brother is in jail. I pray that this is his rock bottom and that he straightens his path. I learned a long time ago, that I can't make anyone change, but myself. People have to want to change. It is what it is, but it was still awful to see his mugshot.
- I've been working on a plan for next week. Brandon's schedule changes to 3 thirteen hour shifts this coming Monday. The four days off a week will be nice, but the three days he is gone will be long. I'll need to pace myself those days and have plenty of structure.
~Stephanie
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
It's been busy around here!
Well.. more busy than usual. *grin*
Brandon and I have always seemed to have a very fast paced life. So what we consider a "slow time" still receives comments from friends and family like "Don't you EVER slow down?" Oh and we got lots of "Number 2 will slow you down." And that was followed by "Number three will slow you down." Well.. now we are starting to get "Number 4 will slow you down." HA! I think each one adds a little bit more speed to our "busy." But we do slow down.. in our own way.
So let me catch you up.
1. I've been busy thinking about revamping our homeschool for the 2010-2011 school year. Our homeschool is an ever evolving process and I'm okay with that. After 20+ years of watching my mom change her thoughts and plans as a public school teacher, I see this as a normal and good thing and it doesn't freak me out. January starts what I call "Homeschool Season" with new catalogs arriving and conventions. I've been keeping a working document on my computer with my thoughts and what I'm looking for for each subject so that will help me decide. This next year will add the challenge of adding another "little" as I teach Lainey who will be in 2nd grade this coming fall. 3 littles, 1 student and 1 teacher/mom. Some days it feels frazzled but Lainey gave me the best compliment that I could ever receive as a homeschool mom. We were at a restaurant and someone asked her what grade she is in. She said 1st. Next they asked about her teacher.. do you like your teacher? She said "Oh she's great.. and she's my mom. We homeschool." This big blob of hormones had to fight back tears.
Sooo.. we are keeping Math-U-See. As a visual learner this is a definitely a plus in my book (and Lainey's.) She loves the video lesson that she watches once a week and loves playing with (ahem.. manipulating) the blocks as she does the work each day. Thumbs up!
For science and history/social studies we'll be using a unit study approach by Christian Cottage. Unit studies will be new for us but I love the way the curriculum is laid out and compared to other unit studies, this is a steal of a bargain!
Bible, phonics, reading and grammar are still up for discussion although the field is narrowing quickly. I'm also looking at more "fun" elective type things for Lainey to explore this coming school year. One of the huge advantages of homeschooling is that you can really tailor your child's learning to the way that they learn best and what they are passionate about or interested in. The flip side of that, is that the choices are numerous so you really have to pick and choose what works best for your family.
2. We are going to a convention! HEAV has their convention in Richmond in June.. but it is pushing it due date/delivery wise, especially if I follow my past pattern. I've not seen a due date yet without holding a baby in my arms (for successful pregnancies.) Walking a convention either hugely pregnant or newly delivered is not my idea of fun. So we branched out. We'll be attending the Midwest Homeschool Convention in April! It's in Cincinnati, Ohio which is exciting for Brandon and I since we've never been. Brandon actually has never been to a homeschooling convention and I only attended one day of the HEAV convention last year.
3. We are taking a detour to the Creation Museum the day before the convention starts. Brandon and I have wanted to go for quite some time and we are finally going to be near enough for a little detour. I can't wait to report back!
4. There is a tiny rumor that we are expecting snow on Friday and Saturday. Saturday is my new shopping day after being moved for Brandon's schedule. Normally that would not worry me but since we've been doing the Pantry Challenge, things were looking pretty bare. So we went shopping to replenish things.
5. Xander is highly mobile! We've had to put the Bee House on lockdown with babygates. Not only is now a speed crawler he is also pulling up on things and taking steps to reach for things. He also has a new found love for touching things that are not his. He is by far my youngest mobile child in the history of Bee children at 9 months old. For example: Lainey was barely pulling up and walking holding onto both of my hands at 13 months. We have a record breaker on our hands folks!
6. Lainey's 7th birthday is coming up and we've been busy preparing for that celebration. Since moving so far from family, we've greatly toned down birthdays. But they are still fun and she'll still feel special on her special day. I'm trying not to think about how much my first baby has grown and blossomed because I do not want to get mushy. I'm usually fighting back tears around 4:48pm on her birthday which is when my first princess made her appearance now almost 7 (goodness is that really right?) years ago.
7. I'm 19 weeks today! Given my above mentioned history of delivering early, I'm over halfway through this pregnancy! It seems to be flying by! Maybe the distraction of my three little blessings are helping that right along. I'm still feeling good. I do have some back pain but after three surgeries on it, I think I'm holding up okay. I'm still losing weight and don't have much appetite. My love for chicken has returned.. so that is nice! Every now and then I do experience nausea but it's nothing my little friend Zofran can't handle. Sleeping isn't going so well lately but I'm just dealing with it at this point. I'm craving protein A LOT and carbs just aren't doing it for this former carb junkie. Brandon is a little concerned about my lack of appetite and he doesn't think I'm eating enough. We'll see. My next appointment is February 2nd and hopefully we will see a beautiful, healthy baby and know the sex. I can't wait to announce the name we've chosen! This was the easiest name decision we've had so far, although actually finding names is quite difficult for us.
8. Speaking of craving protein, Brandon and I realized that Q Barbeque is here in Richmond! Brandon has been watching TLC's BBQ Pitmasters and I put two and two together when we saw the logo after my dentist appointment. So we stumbled in yesterday. And guess who was standing behind the counter? Tuffy Stone himself. He is a very nice, friendly, humble gentleman and he chatted it up with Brandon. Brandon asked if he could take a picture with the pit and Tuffy said sure.. and even took pictures with us! It was BY FAR the best BBQ I've ever had... although that may get me disowned by some of the in laws since I married into BBQ Royalty. Oh well.. I'm honest.. right? Oh and this Georgia girl approves their sweet tea and banana pudding! (It's very hard to find good tea here and the pudding tastes just like mine.. so maybe I'm a touch biased?)
9. The Church hunt is back on. We actually have a few candidates on our list. They are a bit of a drive (25 miles) but we are thirsty and hungry and NEED a church home!
10. Taxes are prepared but not filed. We are waiting on Xander's birthcertificate to arrive and then we can apply for a social security card. I'm SO excited and can't wait to call Dave Ramsey with our debt free scream! It's coming soon folks!
PS: I finally figured out how to hyperlink! Thanks Google!
Brandon and I have always seemed to have a very fast paced life. So what we consider a "slow time" still receives comments from friends and family like "Don't you EVER slow down?" Oh and we got lots of "Number 2 will slow you down." And that was followed by "Number three will slow you down." Well.. now we are starting to get "Number 4 will slow you down." HA! I think each one adds a little bit more speed to our "busy." But we do slow down.. in our own way.
So let me catch you up.
1. I've been busy thinking about revamping our homeschool for the 2010-2011 school year. Our homeschool is an ever evolving process and I'm okay with that. After 20+ years of watching my mom change her thoughts and plans as a public school teacher, I see this as a normal and good thing and it doesn't freak me out. January starts what I call "Homeschool Season" with new catalogs arriving and conventions. I've been keeping a working document on my computer with my thoughts and what I'm looking for for each subject so that will help me decide. This next year will add the challenge of adding another "little" as I teach Lainey who will be in 2nd grade this coming fall. 3 littles, 1 student and 1 teacher/mom. Some days it feels frazzled but Lainey gave me the best compliment that I could ever receive as a homeschool mom. We were at a restaurant and someone asked her what grade she is in. She said 1st. Next they asked about her teacher.. do you like your teacher? She said "Oh she's great.. and she's my mom. We homeschool." This big blob of hormones had to fight back tears.
Sooo.. we are keeping Math-U-See. As a visual learner this is a definitely a plus in my book (and Lainey's.) She loves the video lesson that she watches once a week and loves playing with (ahem.. manipulating) the blocks as she does the work each day. Thumbs up!
For science and history/social studies we'll be using a unit study approach by Christian Cottage. Unit studies will be new for us but I love the way the curriculum is laid out and compared to other unit studies, this is a steal of a bargain!
Bible, phonics, reading and grammar are still up for discussion although the field is narrowing quickly. I'm also looking at more "fun" elective type things for Lainey to explore this coming school year. One of the huge advantages of homeschooling is that you can really tailor your child's learning to the way that they learn best and what they are passionate about or interested in. The flip side of that, is that the choices are numerous so you really have to pick and choose what works best for your family.
2. We are going to a convention! HEAV has their convention in Richmond in June.. but it is pushing it due date/delivery wise, especially if I follow my past pattern. I've not seen a due date yet without holding a baby in my arms (for successful pregnancies.) Walking a convention either hugely pregnant or newly delivered is not my idea of fun. So we branched out. We'll be attending the Midwest Homeschool Convention in April! It's in Cincinnati, Ohio which is exciting for Brandon and I since we've never been. Brandon actually has never been to a homeschooling convention and I only attended one day of the HEAV convention last year.
3. We are taking a detour to the Creation Museum the day before the convention starts. Brandon and I have wanted to go for quite some time and we are finally going to be near enough for a little detour. I can't wait to report back!
4. There is a tiny rumor that we are expecting snow on Friday and Saturday. Saturday is my new shopping day after being moved for Brandon's schedule. Normally that would not worry me but since we've been doing the Pantry Challenge, things were looking pretty bare. So we went shopping to replenish things.
5. Xander is highly mobile! We've had to put the Bee House on lockdown with babygates. Not only is now a speed crawler he is also pulling up on things and taking steps to reach for things. He also has a new found love for touching things that are not his. He is by far my youngest mobile child in the history of Bee children at 9 months old. For example: Lainey was barely pulling up and walking holding onto both of my hands at 13 months. We have a record breaker on our hands folks!
6. Lainey's 7th birthday is coming up and we've been busy preparing for that celebration. Since moving so far from family, we've greatly toned down birthdays. But they are still fun and she'll still feel special on her special day. I'm trying not to think about how much my first baby has grown and blossomed because I do not want to get mushy. I'm usually fighting back tears around 4:48pm on her birthday which is when my first princess made her appearance now almost 7 (goodness is that really right?) years ago.
7. I'm 19 weeks today! Given my above mentioned history of delivering early, I'm over halfway through this pregnancy! It seems to be flying by! Maybe the distraction of my three little blessings are helping that right along. I'm still feeling good. I do have some back pain but after three surgeries on it, I think I'm holding up okay. I'm still losing weight and don't have much appetite. My love for chicken has returned.. so that is nice! Every now and then I do experience nausea but it's nothing my little friend Zofran can't handle. Sleeping isn't going so well lately but I'm just dealing with it at this point. I'm craving protein A LOT and carbs just aren't doing it for this former carb junkie. Brandon is a little concerned about my lack of appetite and he doesn't think I'm eating enough. We'll see. My next appointment is February 2nd and hopefully we will see a beautiful, healthy baby and know the sex. I can't wait to announce the name we've chosen! This was the easiest name decision we've had so far, although actually finding names is quite difficult for us.
8. Speaking of craving protein, Brandon and I realized that Q Barbeque is here in Richmond! Brandon has been watching TLC's BBQ Pitmasters and I put two and two together when we saw the logo after my dentist appointment. So we stumbled in yesterday. And guess who was standing behind the counter? Tuffy Stone himself. He is a very nice, friendly, humble gentleman and he chatted it up with Brandon. Brandon asked if he could take a picture with the pit and Tuffy said sure.. and even took pictures with us! It was BY FAR the best BBQ I've ever had... although that may get me disowned by some of the in laws since I married into BBQ Royalty. Oh well.. I'm honest.. right? Oh and this Georgia girl approves their sweet tea and banana pudding! (It's very hard to find good tea here and the pudding tastes just like mine.. so maybe I'm a touch biased?)
9. The Church hunt is back on. We actually have a few candidates on our list. They are a bit of a drive (25 miles) but we are thirsty and hungry and NEED a church home!
10. Taxes are prepared but not filed. We are waiting on Xander's birthcertificate to arrive and then we can apply for a social security card. I'm SO excited and can't wait to call Dave Ramsey with our debt free scream! It's coming soon folks!
PS: I finally figured out how to hyperlink! Thanks Google!
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