It's not a bug...it's a...

SKINK! :) Imagine my surprise this afternoon when going out to the van... :) I was slipping on a pair of crocs that I keep by the door to walk the dogs in the morning... And I see something wiggle under the shoes... :) I see its little blue tail and immediately realize that we have a LIZARD in the HOUSE! :)
While the little Blue Tailed Skink was probably more scared than any Blue Tailed Skink on this side of the equator, I quickly caught him in a little cup and let him out into the garden. :) Definitely a first for me...a little skink in the house!!! :) (No, we're not sure how it got in...but we have have a lot of rain recently - maybe he was just hoping for some dry location?) :)

Farewell, my little lizard friend! Go and run with your other lizard friends! :)

30+ week check-up update, etc.

Hi All :)
We had another appointment on Monday and wanted to give you the latest... The heartbeat was 156, I didn't lose any weight (woo hoo), and I measured exactly where I should be measuring (with the belly tape). We saw another one of the docs in the practice and liked him a lot. :)
Now, we go every 2 weeks for a month, and then we will have to go each week! Fun times! :)
We started school - no kids, just teacher work days - yesterday. I am generally unmotivated...hehe :) Ry helped a lot - setting up furniture, moving books, hanging posters, etc. since I'm so "limited" for lifting and standing on a ladder... *sigh* I think the room looks pretty presentable...I will have a few more things to finish up, but it shouldn't take long... :)
I'm surely tired at night, that's for sure... Those darn Olympics have me glued to the TV late into the evening, but I hope to be in bed earlier as I become less interested in the events or the Olympics end. :)
As it stands, I have 22 kids in my class; the largest I've ever had. I don't know much about the kids, but I hear good things... I will be eager to meet them at Open House on Monday. :) To make me feel old, I am teaching kids who were born the year I started teaching... I actually have a little boy who was a newborn when I met his oldest brother, who was in my first class. :) WOW! :) I hear this is nothing compared to when you start teaching your students' children or grandchildren... :) The question is: Will I make it THAT long? :)
We're praying for a snow day on August 20th - the first day of school. :) That may not be out of the question considering that the temp. yesterday morning (around 6:30 AM) was a chilly 47ish! CHIILY! :)
:)

It's been awhile...

I just realized that it's been nearly a month since I've posted... OOPS! :) Here's what's been going on! :)

~We've been doing lots of random things around the house... Our most notable achievement is finishing the painting in the future baby's room. We had to strip wall paper before applying the primer and then the paint...and then the woodwork and doors needed two coats... It turned out to be a pretty big job, but we finished last week! :) Woo HOO! :) We've also had to empty that room of all the furniture...we got the carpets cleaned...and now it is ready for the crib and the bureau...and other baby things. :) We have a lot of the baby items already - they're in the (yep, you guessed it) basement (finished part) and we'll be recruiting some friends to help carry it all upstairs... :)
In all honesty, I think we "bit off more than we could chew" with our goals this summer... We wanted to do so much...and while we got a lot done, there is still a lot of unfinished/half-completed chores. I know that we will have about 2 months before the baby arrives, but I really wanted to have it all finished before we started school again. *sigh*

~We're trying to organize our VERY cluttered basement. It's become a general dumping ground for anything - paint, pet items, etc. We have bagged up a lot of clothes to donate...and books... We got some shelves and are working on reorganizing a lot of the items that are down there... There is still a lot of organizing to be done...

~After about 2 months of struggling to get a new front door/side windows, a new screen door, and a french door for our kitchen, we finally gave up and returned what merchandise we received... We ordered our doors from a local "home improvement" store, which, unfortunately, has a bunch of incompetent people working in many of their departments. ALL of the doors were the wrong size, we never even GOT the new screen door, the contractor was impossible to get in touch with to schedule installation, the contractor refused to install the doors when he realized the doors were too small...the store ordered the doors too small on "purpose" but didn't bother telling anyone (our doors are odd sized, apparently, and it's normal for the doors to be slightly smaller - but no one told us that!)... All in all, the contractor should have known that he could install the doors but would need to do a little customization...he wasn't interested in doing on the first installation date... He suddenly decided that the work could be done after we contacted the manager of this home improvement store...of course... We're in the process of getting all of our money back and Pella now has our business (and a lot more of our money- they're more expensive! :)) However, there's no price for professionalism, quality, and satisfaction - which is what Pella has done for us so far! :)

~I had a glucose test a few weeks ago - typical for this stage of pregnancy. The orange flavored soda-ish drink wasn't bad...and I haven't heard anything, so I assume no news is good news... :)

~I've been feeling pretty good... I find that my "range of motion" is more limited - meaning I don't bend so easily any more... :) Sleeping isn't as fun as it used to be... I'm finding that my lung capacity is another thing that is lacking. I have to take deep breaths after going up a set of stairs...or after bending over to pick things up! :) My bladder is seemingly smaller...and I make more frequent trips to the bathroom... :) I hear all of this is typical... :) I try not to push myself too much...I seem to tire after about 4-6 hours of good, hard, physical work... :) If I work beyond these hours, I seem to pay for it the next day with soreness and just an overall fatigue. This makes me sooo excited to begin a school year... I wonder if I could slip a short nap time into our schedule each day??! :) hehe ;)
I still don't have a cute "round" belly...and have been told I hardly look pregnant. As a matter of fact, many people don't even know that I'm pregnant...they must just think I am fatter! :) I am carrying very "internally," they say...which makes everyone say that I'm going to have a girl. :) I, on the other hand, feel that I look much fatter... I don't know if I'll get that nice round belly, but I will take whatever I get. I'm at the 30+ week mark... :) I can't believe that in about 9 weeks, we'll have a baby... WOW!
I had a dream last night that we had a baby boy...5 lbs. 5 oz. - with no name. :) Yes, we haven't picked out any names yet...but we do have a list of names we like. :) I also kept forgetting to feed the baby in this dream... I am going to look forward to the dreams as this birth approaches...I hear they can get quite vivid! :) hehehe :)

~We had our birthing classes and tour of the hospital at the end of July. That was fun... I decided to go into this whole giving birth situation with a completely open mind. I feel like I have a pretty high tolerance to pain, but I hear that labor and its pain is something we can never imagine... :) I don't know if I'll get an epidural...or any meds...I may need them... I want to see how things go before I make that decision... After talking to my mom, she "only" labored for around 9 hours without any real medication (she thought she had a shot of Novocaine?) and said she just laid there for the entire evening without any pain! :) Then, she pushed for only 24 minutes before I was born... I pray I have her genes in this area! :) I love the hospital where we will have the baby...they are very patient-oriented, caring, giving, and the rooms are like home... I think it will be a wonderful place to be... :)

~We made on last "summer" trip up north to see our families. Beezer and I spent time in PA with my parents while Ryan traveled about 1 1/2 hours northeast to Bradley Beach, NJ to spend time with his family. We had a nice time... :) On Saturday, the 2nd of August, Ry's mom gave us a baby shower in NJ. We had a great time playing games, eating (of course), and opening lots of wonderful and sweet gifts! My mom came, too, and had a wonderful time! :) It was great to see her out and about... :)
My mom is doing really well... While she is still recovering, I noted how much more animated and funny she was... Her humor is coming back, and that's really refreshing. We had a great time at Babies R Us doing some shopping, too, and I loved just spending time together. :) Her most recent trip to the doctor revealed that her throat/tonsils look WONDERFUL and completely normal/healed... What a blessing... :)

~We officially head back to school on Aug. 12th - just the teachers. The kids will return on August 20th. :) I hear that I have a very nice class and recognize some of the children...they are siblings of students I've taught, etc. It should be another fun year... :) It will be a difficult transition for Ry and I - getting up around 6 AM will be a change...we will be in for a very rude awakening! :) hehe :) We'll see how all of that goes... :) I'm sure there will be lots of stories... :)

~I am going to try to be better about posting more... I know that I get on daily to read several people's blogs...it's something that I really look forward to reading. I'm sorry that I'm not being as productive and serious as others! :)

~I hope all of you are doing well! :) I will be writing more... I promise! :)

:)

Week 26+

Another trip to the doctor today! All is well... Things are progressing along as scheduled. I actually got measured for the first time today...stomach, that is... He said that I measured between 26&27 weeks, which is right on schedule! The heartbeat, which was found on the FIRST try this time (woo hoo), was between 140-150.
I did get spoken to about my lack of weight gain throughout this pregnancy. I didn't get the feeling that I was in trouble at all, but he just reminded me to eat several small meals a day, especially since I'm not interested in food at all and fill quite easily. He suggested that I supplement my calories with an Ensure or a Boost each day to help with calories and to get some essential vitamins that I may be missing from my issues with many foods. We'll see... I don't want to do anything to hurt the baby, of course, so we'll see how things go! :)
We go back to the "lab" next week for the infamous "blood glucose test." This is to test for gestational diabetes. I get to drink a very sweet drink (orange flavor :)), and after an hour, I will have my blood taken to test my sugar level. If I fail the test, I get to go back for the same test again, but the retest would last for over 3 hours. Ryan informed me that he wouldn't be sitting there with me for over 3 hours, so we'll hope and pray that I pass on the first try, or I'll have one very grumpy husband! :) hehe :)
Well, I must sign off... One of my favorite shows, The Closer, is having its season premier in just about 4 minutes... :) Yeah!!!!! :)
:)
Hope all is well! :) Lots of love to all! :)

It's becoming more real!

On Monday, Ry and I traveled to Fredricksburg, VA to officially begin the "baby shopping" life... We had lunch at the Olive Garden! (yum!) Then we shopped a little around at various stores before heading to Burlington Coat Factory's Baby Depot. We had heard that their cribs and other items were significantly cheaper than places like Babies 'R' Us and other comparable stores, so we decided to take the road trip to find out...
We spent over 3 hours in the baby section. I kept saying how overwhelming it was to see everything...it was like we didn't know where to start!
We did register for some items there...things like a stroller, a pack 'n' play, a bouncer seat, etc.
We didn't find lots of clothing items or blankets, though, so we'll register at a place like Target and/or Babies 'R' Us for those items... It was neat to register; we've never had the chance to do that! :) Ryan enjoyed going around and using the scanner on each bar code... :) I think we may have registered for around 50 items...
We also made a decision for the crib... We walked around looking at the cribs and other matching furniture about 10 times...only to find another area with more furniture! The "hidden" area was where we found the crib and hutch we ended up deciding on...it was so pretty! It seemed much nicer than some of the others...and we liked the other 2 furniture choices that matched with the crib. So, we brought home the crib, a mattress, and the hutch... The hutch will work as a bureau first...and then we'll attach the shelves. The hutch will be the changing table, too, which is good...it looks really nice! It's a natural wood finish with a honey tone. (I've posted pictures below...)
We also picked out the bedding - Winnie the Pooh's "Hunting for Hunny." It's really cute...and it features Eeyore, one of our favorite characters! :) It seemed non-gender specific and is a cute, bright, and cheery choice!
I realized a few things while we were shopping...
First, it's really hard to find items for a baby that you don't know the gender of just yet... It's very obvious that retailers cater to those who find out the sex of their little one. I kept telling Ryan that it would nice to know what we were having after shopping at the Carter Outlet and at Burlington! :) He didn't see my humor... I still stand by the wonder and amazement of having a wonderful surprise in October... I think it will be so neat! :) Plus, we have a lifetime of choosing clothes for the baby after it's born... :)
Second, buying things for a baby is really expensive!! :)
Third, there are soooooooooooooooo many things out there for babies! We we were amazed at the choices out there... Wow! :)
Finally, there are lots of nice people who shop in the baby section! :) We met a nice lady with an 11 month old little girl (who was very cute, by the way :)). We were wearily looking at the 15 bouncer seats...and I just said to Ryan, "Choose which one you like the best...I don't really care" after not knowing which to pick! This lady was looking at car seats close to us and asked if we wanted her advice...and thus began our conversation! :) She gave us ideas and her evaluation of things from a more experienced point of view...after all, she knows a lot more than we do at this point! :) She not only helped us with the bouncie seat, but she also told us about the strollers, various brands, and the Consumer Report information she knew about different products. :) She was so helpful... :)
At 8:30, We left Burlington a little exhausted...but I kept glancing at the packed van (with the furniture) and grinned... It's really real... :) I'm getting more excited... :)

America...

As many of you know, we traveled to the mid-west to visit with my grandmother last week. It is a long trip but well worth the time with one of the most amazing ladies I know! :) It takes us around 13-14 hours to make it from VA to little old Fairmount, IL. :)
We decided to break the trip up this year (we usually drive straight through) as we traveled to and from my grandma's. We left IL to return back home home on July 3rd and stopped in Cross Lanes, WV. We had around 5 hours of our trip remaining when we left on July 4th. While driving somewhere in Eastern WV or Western VA, we were surrounded by mountains covered with trees and little streams. As I was looking out the window admiring the beauty, I spotted one of the most amazing birds I've ever seen...a large bald eagle perched on a leafless tree. I've never seen a bald eagle in the wild before...I wish we weren't driving 65 mph so that I could have gotten a picture. So, you'll just have to imagine the eagle...an appropriate symbol of America on this 4th of July. :)

Third Time's the Charm :)

Well, we had our THIRD ultrasound today! :) The second one, about 2 weeks ago, went well but they couldn't get a "good look" at the aorta, the spine, and the cord. (I see Little Rakow is being uncooperative at an early age! :)) So, off to the doctor this morning for a follow-up, and I'm pleased to say that Little R was much more cooperative! :) The aorta, spine, and cord were all "looking good" (as the doctor put it), and as it stands, things with the baby look normal and healthy! :) Here are some stats: Today, the heartbeat was 147 bpm (it was 150 two weeks ago). Two weeks ago, Little Rakow weighed in at 14 ounces, and today it weighed 1 pound. Contrary to the wishes of some, we did not look for certain anatomy during either ultrasound - a surprise will be in store! (Although I think I saw a "little something" between the legs, but I'm not a certified sonographer...maybe it was the cord?) Perhaps Ryan's chants of "third leg...third leg..." for the last 2 weeks may be paying off?! We'll have to see... Oh, and I'm 23 weeks and 3 days along... :) I'm feeling completely normal - no complaints at all! I'm still not really interested in food or eating, but I eat so that we don't have a "malnourished Ethiopian child" (Ryan's words). :) I'm still not wearing maternity clothes...all of my regular clothes fit just fine, so I'm sticking with them for now. As I've said, in this area, it pays to be on the fatter side! :) I think I've lost around 8-10 pounds so far... I do have bouts of heartburn, but 2 Tums or a glass of milk seems to do the trick for curing that small malady. I'm feeling lots of movement now...it feels like I have a roller coaster in my stomach at times. The baby seems most active during the evening and late-night hours... :) I guess he/she is getting me conditioned for those late nights and lack of sleep?
Here are some pictures... :)

Home Wet Home

We had been out of town for about a week last week...a trip to PA for the night and then onward to NY (Albany) for Brittany's graduation...and then back to PA for a few days... It was a good trip! :) We arrived home on Wednesday night around 8:30 to find that we had a leak in our finished part of the basement... I thought there was an animal in the basement but soon realized that the rustling sound was the water hitting a plastic bag I had sitting in a box...

When I poked a hole in the ceiling to help the mystery water drain, about 2 gallons poured out of our ceiling in about 3 minutes... I got smart and turned the water off to the house until we could figure out where this small flood originated. Needless to say, we called for help from Dwayne, our dear friend, and at 10:00 PM, our plumber arrived and had the hole in our cold water pipe to the upstairs sink repaired in about 15 minutes. We have no idea how long the leak had been going on, but we now have a 4 ft. x 2 ft. hole in our ceiling and carpet/padding that's in the process of drying... We are really blessed - we know it could have been MUCH worse... :)

And to think I was anticipating a nice, quiet night in my own bed... :) I got there, eventually - around 1:30 AM :)

Remember us?

In case you forget what we look like...not the best picture of me (pale and tired), but it's good of Ry and Brittany (sis-in-law)... This was taken last Friday at China King Buffet... :) Use it to scare away the mice... :)

Long time...nothing to report! :)

I haven't written in a really long time...so I figured that I should probably write something so no one thinks I've fallen off the edge of the earth...
We only have 6 more days of school...and trust me when I tell you I'm counting down the hours. I really have NO reason to count...my kids are really a tremendous blessing...and I know that I will miss them terribly. However, I'm just so tired and worn out that I will enjoy waving to the big yellow buses on June 6th as they pull away. :) We had a field trip today that involved a lot of walking...I think my poor legs are just plain old exhausted... Early to bed tonight!
I'm still pregnant, I think... My last appointment (2+ weeks ago) was not eventful... We barely heard a heartbeat (the doctor struggles to find it each time...but we heard the heartbeat in the placenta area, I guess, he said... My thinking is that it must be like finding a needle in a haystack?)... I had to have a joyous exam (sigh) b/c of higher white blood cell counts in my urine...but he didn't find anything. I guess we'll see how the levels are when I go back on 6/10.
I lost another pound...the nurse made me think I was going to be sternly spoken with about that...but as it turns out, he wasn't concerned. I still have no interest in food...I eat to keep myself going...but it's a serious chore. For example, tonight I could barely eat a baked potato and some macaroni and cheese... I guess this pregnancy "diet" is just what I needed...maybe I won't be so fat when the kid comes out... :)
I can still wear all of my clothes...and I'm approaching 20 weeks... I know that I'm really blessed...of course, it helps that my fat belly was already fat before the whole baby thing came along... :) I have a feeling we'll be making a trip to Motherhood Maternity soon, however...I don't think I can live in dressy pants for the summer... :)
For the next appointment, we'll be having the last ultrasound... It's the big "do you want to know what you're having" ultrasound... I still don't want to know, but Ryan and every other person we know wants us to find out. My opinion is that there are few surprises in life...and the gender of a baby, at least for the first birth, should be one of those incredible surprises. People are bribing me, telling me it will be so much easier to know... I still feel like I don't want to know... Ryan told me, however, that he knows I'll be able to tell what it is during the ultrasound...I have that weird medical mind (wanted to be a doctor for as long as I can remember) that can tell these things... Of course, it will probably be more obvious than my medical knowledge... :)
We're not teaching summer school this year... I'm eager to enjoy the lazy days of summer...which won't be so lazy... We have a basement to clean/organize and a baby's room to prepare... I'm sure we'll be shopping for furniture for the baby's room...and taking birthing classes... We'll be traveling some in June... First, we'll head to Albany, NY to cheer on my sister-in-law at her high school graduation... We'll stop in PA to stay with my parents going and coming back... Then, in late June, we're going to Illinois to spend some time with my Grandma... As I mentioned in my first blog, she had a stroke in mid-February...and well, she's an incredible woman... She's now at home and has recovered amazingly... While she said she still struggles for words at times (they're in her brain but she has to "find them"), she has done wonderfully. She enjoys the flowers outside and listens to the birds... My mom and dad will be going to Illinois at the same time...so we'll all be out there together, which will be pretty awesome. I can't think of a better way to honor the two most influencial women in my life... Both of them are just so incredible... These last several months have made me feel so honored and blessed by their strength... :)
So, I will try to blog in the coming weeks...after our next appointment. I love to read what a friend of mine writes about her cool kid stories... I don't have much to share at this point, but at least you all know what's going on! :)
In the meantime, I'll go and finish my "slurpee" from this afternoon...that's really the only "craving" I have... Lord help this child when it comes out hooked to the pure sugar frozen drink... :)
Lots of love to all of you... :)