The Calm Before the Storm

This is a birthday shout-out to my fabulous mom! Happy birthday!

Birthdays are always such a nice excuse to get together with family. And with a family as busy as mine is (my sister-in-law in knee-deep in nursing school - the accelerated program, no less; my dad just finished up his doctorate (!), etc) it's a rare treat to find ourselves all in the same room. But for our wonderful mom, we definitely make it a point to show up.

And we somehow manage to all buy her the exact same present. Which happens to be the exact present she was secretly lusting after. Are we good or what? It was an awesome afternoon of catching up and staying cozy in the monsoon that decided to open up over Atlanta.

This weekend was also nice because I had Friday off from school. I actually got to drink an entire cup of coffee! While sitting down on the couch! And watching a tv show that wasn't a cartoon! Ah, it's the small things. Then I took myself to Old Navy and got some actual maternity clothes (as opposed to the random things in my closet that I can still squeeze this belly into) using a gift card (considering I'll never wear these clothes again, they better be free!) After that it was off to lunch with some book club gals, and we actually talked about the book (gasp!) I rounded off the day with a relaxing pedicure. Some day you just have to spend with yourself, know what I mean?

It's probably the last relaxing day I'll have in the next four weeks, so I made sure to soak it in good. Matt is coming off of two business trips, and has two more planned in the next three weeks (one during report card week... thanks hubs). There is something booked for every Saturday and Sunday through May (fun stuff, like Braves games, birthday parties, weddings, neighborhood garage sales, but stuff nonetheless). The race to the last day of school is officially on (so much still to teach, so little time!) This month is going to fly by and I'm just planning to hang on for the ride.

You know that verse, "Be still and know that I am God"? I'm going to try and really live that one this month. Looking forward to finding that peace and stillness in this merry, mad month of May.

Bits and Pieces

So here are a few tidbits that don't warrant their own post, but nonetheless I feel like sharing.

I felt the baby kick for the first time today. I happened to be eating potato chips at the time. Coincidence?

I told my students I was pregnant on Friday. I announced it via a spelling test. We always have dictation sentences they have to write on each spelling test, and on last week's, the sentence was "My... teacher... is... going... to... have... a..." And at this point I heard the whispers start up. When I finished with "...baby" all the boys wrote the word and the girls all looked up with "really?!!" It was cute. They were very excited and all wanted to know if it was a boy or girl.

And speaking of gender, yes we are finding out. I'm surprised how many people have asked that question. With the first baby, every assumed we'd find out, no big deal. But I guess the cool new trend is to keep it a mystery. Even my doctor got in on it - "It's so much fun to find out in the delivery room!" But according to my very unscientific poll, teachers will always want to find out the gender in advance. I guess it's the type A planner personalities the profession attracts.

I went to a baby shower this weekend and oh my how it all rushed back. The never-ending diaper changes. Outfit changes. Endless pumping parts/bottle parts/pacifiers cluttering up the kitchen. Lugging a diaper bag around. Lugging a infant carrier around. Mercy. For all Violet's whines and tantrums, at least she is fairly self-sufficient. Once she figures out how to turn the tv on herself, she pretty much won't even need us anymore! But babies... oh baby.

My allergies are still killing me softly. I don't know if I'm allergic to the pollen, the cat, our house, or just being pregnant. Perhaps all of the above. But I haven't had a decent night's sleep in over a week. If I'm lucky I can manage to find the one position in bed that lets me breath. If I'm not so fortunate, I'm pacing through the dark house at all hours, desperately trying to clear my sinuses. Awesome.

There are only five weeks of school left! I'm simultaneously thrilled and freaking out. There's an awful lot to get done these last 25 days. And so many of them are already spoken for: field trip, field day, end of year celebration... yikes! Here's hoping spring fever doesn't set in too early.

Well, that's it for now. There's a certain little girl who needs pajamas and a bedtime story. And Violet needs to go to bed too!

Going Bowling

Going bowling for the first time...

 Violet got to go to a bowling birthday party today in honor of my little neighbor's fifth birthday. Ah, I remember the time I had a bowling birthday party... to celebrate my 28th. Good times! This event was just as fun. In no time at all, Violet was letting us know in typical Violet fashion that she had this bowling thing down, no assistance required thank you very much. She declared herself a winner every time a pin went down, and laughed hilariously when she missed them altogether.

Ready... aim... bowl!

Typical Violet, doing her own thing.

She also got to play some games in the arcade. Every time Matt tried to steer, she very insistently took his hand off the wheel. Good thing we have a few more years before attempting to teach her how to drive!

No Daddy, I do it!

This Time Around

Currently - 15 Weeks

Violet - 16 weeks

So they say the second time around, pregnancy is different. They aren't lying.

Last time - no morning sickness. Never threw up once.
This time - blerg. There were a couple rough weeks there. Some definite nausea. But things are good now.

Last time - trying to prove I had a baby bump at 16 weeks. Loved my cute little belly. Was proud of it!
This time - getting lots of shocked "whoa!" comments from co-workers who spot the belly coming down the hall at them. None of my regular clothes fit anymore, but my old maternity clothes are so stretched out from my nine month belly that they just look frumpy on me. I feel... big. I'm already concerned at how this body is going to bounce back.

Last time - all cold weather maternity clothes. Everything that might remotely fit me in a few months is a sweater.
This time - I'll be huge in the height of summer weather. Awesome. Last time I had no swelling, I wore my wedding rings to the delivery room, no problem. I imagine that will NOT be the case come September.

Last time - the sense of wonder! The magic of new life! Amazing! I mean, how cute was I?!
This time - the wonder is gone. Not necessarily in a bad way. But I know what's coming (heartburn, sleepless nights, the kitchen being overtaken with bottles and warmers and bibs, oh my!) I'm not reading my pregnancy books with overwhelming excitement, examining every little symptom. I'm not patting the belly fondly as I daydream of what life will be like in a few months. I feel more grounded. Routine. Reality.

But mainly I just feel big.

Scenes from Spring Break

We discovered Guster likes bath time.

Braves Opening Day!

Cupcake decorating Easter fun!

Guster also likes my classroom gerbils.

Practicing her flower girl pose!

Big Girl Room

Now that Violet is going to be a big sister, one of my goals for spring break was getting her in a big girl room. Conveniently, our guest room came painted purple when we bought the house, so it was a no-brainer to pick this for Violet's new space.

The guest room.

 Matt and I set a pretty high bar for ourselves on Tuesday. We left the house at 9 a.m. with a goal of getting everything we needed at Ikea in one day. By the end of our shopping spree, we had a full cart including a new bed and mattress, dresser, end table, lamp, and some random do-dads. I was happy everything we wanted was in stock and even more thrilled that it all fit in our car for the ride home.

Ready to pack the car!

Once home, we tackled the boxes and lovely illustrated Ikea directions. Everything went smoothly. It was much like putting together Violet's nursery (oh, so long ago! The memories!) except on a much larger scale. My primary job was counting all the pieces and turning the pages of the instruction booklet. I like to think I was an invaluable part of the team.

Matt helps to test out the new bed - just right for some bedtime book reading!

A mere four or five hours later (it started to run together there at the end), we were done! I still need to find a bedding set (I'm having trouble finding a fun, colorful one), bright curtains, and some fun little accessories to finish off the project. But not bad for one day's work!

It's True!

It's true! We are having another little Loughman. Perhaps this is news to you, or perhaps you've been privy to the world's worst kept secret, but I'm glad to finally be going public with it. Especially since my belly has been going public with the news for what seems like a month now.

I'm officially due September 27. Which will be good, because I'll be able to get things on a roll at school, then take off hopefully through the Christmas break. Violet knows, and has even started telling people herself (she announced to her teacher at school that "Mommy has a baby in her tummy"). Although I'm not quite sure she understands what it means for her. She wants a sister (no surprise) and wants to name the baby Violet (shocker). The other day she asked if the baby had arms (yes), and if germs make the baby yucky (no). We've started amping up our "sharing" conversations.

Some of you may remember how I officially found out I was pregnant with Violet. It was at the university health center, where I imagine a positive result on that particular test is not usually greeted with great joy. Talk about downplaying one of my life's biggest moments!

Well, this time around was just as strange.

Let me preface this story by saying that Matt and I have been trying to get pregnant for a long time. Much longer than we tried with Violet. Like, make a doctor's appointment because something is definitely wrong with me long time. Over Christmas we went though our first round of Clomid, the first official step on the road of infertility. It's a long, messy story that I would love to share with you some other time. All you really need to know right now is that our first round of Clomid was stressful and apparently unsuccessful. Awesome.

On top of that, I was feeling awful. It didn't take too long back in the classroom for me to catch some crud. Finally I couldn't deal with it and I called in and promptly drove myself to the local immediate care. I was the first customer of the day. I basically told them I was a teacher and begged for drugs. They agreed to give me some antibiotics and a steroid shot, but I'd have to take a pregnancy test first, just to be safe.

I avoid pregnancy tests. They are just a bummer. Besides, I already knew the Clomid hadn't worked. But whatever. A teeny, tiny part of me hoped, but the rational part of me already knew I'd be seeing the no-nonsense, Germanesque nurse striding in with her shot, ready to yank down my drawers and stick the needle in my butt. Which she did. Proving to me definitively what I already knew. I wasn't pregnant. But at least I'd start feeling better, right?

I was home all of five minutes before the phone rang. It was the doctor at the immediate care. Sheepishly she explained that they really needed me to come back in. Apparently something had gone wrong with the pregnancy test. Probably nothing, a false positive. The nurse had forgotten to throw the test away after the three minute mark, and when she came back later to do it, something had shown up. But not to worry, just come on in for the blood test, it would be fine.

And did part of me start hoping again? Perhaps. But the bigger, sicker part of me was just annoyed. And frankly, a little nervous. My butt was still sore from that shot they gave me that is only for people who aren't pregnant. So regardless, this couldn't end well, could it?

Fifteen minutes of waiting, and not one but three medical staff come through the door. Never a good sign. "So..." says the doctor... "you're pregnant...."

The Clomid worked, but not until after bloodwork came back negative. As it turns out, I was all of two weeks pregnant. No wonder this pregnancy test didn't register anything the first time around. And as it turns out, that steroid shot is the same one they give pregnant women to help mature a baby's lungs in case of early delivery. They were very nice and called my OB, sent over all my medical records and info. Still, not the ideal way to find out. In fact, I had trouble even believing it was true until we finally had an ultra sound three weeks later.

So it's been an odd start. But now that I'm in my second trimester and we've seen the little bean jumping around on the ultrasound and everything looks great and I'm feeling great again, it's all sunk in and we are thrilled. The baby bump is out and proud!

Violet has Something to Tell You

We're just as excited as she is!