"Amarillo, Amarillo: You're Home, Sweet Home, to Me"

Here are some pics from my land of origin. You can get a vague idea of what the new house is like.This is Grammy holding Micah, my cousin Amy's son. He's gotten SO big! Grammy is Spud's great-grandmother (Dad's mom)

Chatting
Showing off my new little things for Spud to Amy. The crazy colors blankie is from my Aunt Lois. She made my blankie that I slept with (really... big confession coming up) until I got married!

Micah and his dad, Marcus
These are the tulips that Brendan had sent to me for Happy Tulip Day, April 25th. It's an invented holiday to commemorate the day that Brendan first gave me a red tulip and ALMOST asked to date me. He actually did it two days later :) We've been together now for 7 years. This was the first time we were apart for Tulip Day. I was tickled to death that he sent flowers! That's not typical Brendan behavior, but he just gets better every second. As sad as I was to leave my mom and dad, I also couldn't wait to get home to Rib! He missed his Spud a lot.

My time with my parents was great. I miss them!!! I love the new house, and I can't wait to go back at Christmas with my husband and son :) Mom and I had a great time scavenging the town for non-dorky baby bedding but really had no luck. She did get Spudkins some AWESOME grey and white onesies, socks, and little newborn pants. Very Seattle. We also made a few final maternity clothing purchases for my every increasing girth :)

Leaving Again

I'm sorry I didn't get any good pictures post from the Indyennessee trip, but, truly, everyone else already put up all the good stuff anyway. Brendan did a new batch the other day, so you can always try threebrothers.org/brendan.

I'm preparing to once again depart. I'm going to Texas to be with my mom and dad for a few days. They got a new house a couple months ago, and I'm going to see it and confirm all of mom's design decisions. Also, they'll get to have some fun pregnant time. So far, they've only gotten lame first trimester visits during which I didn't look pregnant, they couldn't feel him, and I was sick and tired the whole time. Now, although I'm back to getting very easily tired, I've got a belly, and Spud is always showing off. My favorite trick is his elbow making circles on me when we rest on my left side. I wish I could see him do it! It feels really funny. For all his wiggles, though, I'm pretty sure that he's not doing much major changing of positions. Every morning I can feel his little rear end in the same place to the left of my belly button. ANYWAY, I'm excited to be there in 'rillo with them.

Sadly, Whitney will not be there. I don't think I've ever been home and not had her there. I'm really bummed about that because I miss her, and she needs love and attention! I guess I'll just have to lavish it all on the dog, Skeeter. He, too, is a worthy recipient. I will have to console myself in Whit's absence with the consumption of large amounts of home-cooked Texan delights- like steak, stuffed jalepenos, grilled you-name-it, and Texican food. Thankfully, mom and dad are very healthy folks, so getting all the good vitamins and nutrients Spud needs will be easy to do too while I let myself eat a little extra fat and salt than normal :). And that steak will be good for my low iron!

So, don't expect much posting from me in the next week or so. I've been so bad about it lately! Indications that, at least for the month of April, I've sort of had a life! May will be busy with moving and our birth/early infancy class. Then, it's the home stretch! I cannot wait to meet Spud! And give him a real name... which, by the way, we've made no progress on! But, no, thanks, I don't need suggestions :)

Moving to Eastlake!

We picked a place, and everything is good to go! We'll begin renting it May 1st. That gives me 6 weeks to clean both places, move everything, and FINALLY get excited and busy with making a home for my Spudkin!

It's right on Eastlake just down from Hines, 14 Carrot and all that. I'm excited that we get to be in a very urban location. Eastlake is great because it is so close to downtown and Capitol Hill (for Rib to get to work), and we're just blocks from Lake Union. Parking may be annoying at times, but (except on Fourth of July!) I don't expect it to be a problem. As long as I don't begin labor around 10 pm on Independence Day, we shouldn't have any problem! Otherwise, I could be giving birth in the car in a post-fireworks traffic jam.

Really, though, that's the only negative about the place in my mind. It has a cute little kitchen, and, because I whined, the landlord is being kind enough to install a portable dishwasher for us at no extra charge! That means that the place satisfies all my requirements: cool neighborhood, walking distance to grocery store and coffee shop (and much more!), dishwasher, washer/dryer with utility area, gas heat, wood floors (no nasty carpet for my baby's face!), and lots of natural light! It has private entrances, front and back doors. Each door has a little porch/deckish landing for planters and our grill. We can even paint if we want. I'm dreaming up fun design possibilities for Spud's room. The bedroom is already a green that I like, so we'll probably leave it. It isn't huge, but it's a fine size for us. The best part... it's about $200 cheaper than most of the other places we seriously considered!

I'm so thankful! I had no doubts, but I'm still thankfully surprised that we found a good place relatively easily. God is good. For the record: I'd think that even if it had been harder :)

Back in Seattle

I don't have the energy to do the big photo post right now, but I promise to get to that sometime later this week. For photos you can go to Robbins or Partain blogs (links at right)!

Meanwhile, I'll just tell you a bit about how it felt to be there and feels to be back in Seattle. My bed felt great, although we were very comfortable on our trip. I enjoyed grocery shopping yesterday, and I'm excited to get back to cooking and meal planning. Other than those things, though, it mostly is really hard to be back home. I cried intermittently the whole first day or two that I was with everyone in Indie because I just couldn't stop thinking about how different and, often, lonely things are back here now that those folks are gone. I felt like the tired two year old who doesn't know whether to laugh hysterically or cry whenever something fun would be happening. After I settled in (and recovered from my exhaustion from traveling), the crying urge went away, and it was just WONDERFUL to be back in easy, fun, familiar, encouraging company. I loved enjoying that phenomenon of encounters with old friends through which you feel like no time at all has passed since you last were together. Actually, it did feel like time had passed, time that made us closer as the absence, I think, had definitely made our hearts grow fonder. Of course, it was only a matter of time before everyone's little idiosyncrasies emerged, and we were back to pushing buttons and yanking chains in the old way too! Even that was great, though; they feel like my siblings.

Being at Redeemer Indy felt like being at the former Green Lake, Jason was a pastor at GL back when I started going there. He was the youth pastor when Rib and I started dating. So, with Jason preaching and Nathan leading worship, it was major deja vu. That made me cry a lot too. Things are just SOOOO different now at our church here. I believe that God is causing and controlling all the changes, but that doesn't make them emotionally easier to deal with. I didn't know I was having such a hard time with how different and unfamiliar my own church feels until recently. I'm trying to be open to the changes, though. Even though they are hard for us and things feel weird sometimes, we try to be advocates for what the church is doing because we believe that God is guiding us. We're definitely not in a phase of laying back to enjoy; this is a time of serious work and conscious attempts to avoid complaining, sadness, and crabbiness! I kind of feel like the summer was just such a huge emotional blow that I basically cocooned myself, and I'm just now coming out and seeing how everything around me and I have changed. There are two choices of how to respond: crawl back in cocoon and mope about it or get with the program, pray that God will show me his will for me, his church, and our lives in this city and move forward. I'm trying to do the latter, and by God's grace, I know I will. He certainly has helped me to do it before! This is all very familiar in some ways because I went through a similar phase when I had to transition out of dancing. It just takes time.

Speaking of things that take time, my time of baby incubation is really almost over! I'm 7 months now. So, that means I have about 2 months and 3 weeks left. I'm actually looking more pregnant these days. Over the last week, I think Spud really started getting bigger. My abs have been in denial, but I think they are finally starting to let go so that the Spud bubble can hang out some more. I'm glad! I'm tired of having muscle cramps and spasms in my belly! Although, given the amount of expansion that still will happen over the next months, I'm sure I'm in for some more discomfort. All part of the package, I guess, a very, very worthwhile package. He's adorable. I love him like crazy, and I consider every kick, scrape, wiggle, and hiccup a personal message from Spud to me and Brendan to remember that our God loves us and obviously has some big plans for us! I guess, really, that Spud is just the practically unconscious messenger carrying these reminders from the Lord, but who knows what can go on in the heart and mind of a little Spud growing, I pray, already in God's grace. If rocks and trees could cry out if they had to, then I'm sure little incubated babies could too!

A parting word:
Travel as a pregnant woman is an exercise is in the control of what I like to call "peemergencies." In the last 10 days, it is safe to say that I peed in 9 different cities. Think about that!

Being at

Having a Great Time!

Still here. Still having fun! We leave from the P'tains to go to Franklin this afternoon with Beth and Dan. Brendan has posted some pictures, so you can check those out on his site: threebrothers.org/brendan

Leaving!

Yay! Less than 24 hours before our trip! I'm busy packing and such. Spud had a particularly active morning and a few of the kicks sort of hurt! That was the first time for that.

Also, we might have found a place! It's an incredibly cool 2 bedroom/1 bath house on a LARGE private yard. The whole place is absolutely adorable. It has a handcrafted exposed wood beam ceiling, tile in bathroom, wood floors everywhere else, utility room with full-size washer and dryer. There is even a hammock in the trees! The bedrooms are small... but it's such a cool place that we don't even care! We are hoping we will be picked! The owner is reviewing (what I imagine to be a huge stack of) applications tomorrow. I went the extra mile and wrote a nice letter about ourselves and how badly we want to live there!

Finally, I received my first unsolicited or informed pregnancy comment! I was standing in line at the Safeway pharmacy, and this 12ish year old boy just flat out said, "Are you having a boy?" I looked at him with wonder and amazement and said, "Why yes I am! You're a good guesser!" At this, he blushed adorably and sheepishly said, "My mom is having a girl." His (had to be) babysitter or grandma looked dumbfounded. It was great. That was a nice first comment to receive.

We'll see if I can do any postings while we're away. Visiting Beth or Sarah's blogs will probably get you pictures ;)

Frazzled

Busy + Emotional + Pregnant + Apartment Hunting + Expanding Rib Cage = Frazzled

I cannot wait for my vacation, the hugs of my friends, and the continual presence of Brendan! I'm so tired of feeling like a fish out of water in my own city, church, apt., etc. I'm just not used to the new ways things are. I'm hoping that renting a new place and getting it all ready for Spud will help me to settle down and feel some new stability.

I just got finished bawling about Speck... ok, thought I was finished... typing that started things up again. Alright, I'm better again. Anyway, just sucks that babies die. Mine and other people's. I've been doing better with it all lately, but something set me off today. I was probably long over due for it, and it has been a kind of emotional week beginning to look at new places to live and stuff. Of course, that is fun in a way too. I think I'm also just tired a little... umm, a lot. This year has just flown by, and it had so much stuff crammed into it!

Meanwhile, Spud is doing great. He continues to grow satisfactorily, and all his little kicks and jabs still feel great. He was kicking a lot while I cried just now, and that just makes me cry more! I love him so much. It's unbelievable how intertwined our lives and health are right now. Rib and I enjoy trying to distract him from his kicking for fun when he really gets going. Brendan will sing to him, or we'll gently rub his little protrusions. Quite often, Spud stops what he's doing whenever we're giving him some sort of stimulation. Then, when we stop, he goes back to his dancing or whatever it is he's doing. I love it! It's like he's tuning in to whatever is going on outside. Yesterday at our monthly check-up, he kept kicking the doppler while our midwife was finding his heartbeat. That was hilarious. Such a jokester, that Spud.

Last thing, if you think of it, please pray for my rib pain. It's really becoming a major frustration. And, no, I don't mean Rib as in Brendan! I can go to physical therapy, but it seems to just keep hurting the same amount. I'm a little worried about being on the planes this weekend and missing a week of therapy. The house hunt is another request, though no major concern because we still have tons of time.