Friday Fiver

1. What do you try to stay away from?

• Wow. This could go so many ways. I stay away from drugs. I hate drugs. I do not ever do them. I never have. I don't need drugs to be creative and I don't need them to be different. I also don't really drink much alcohol (before being pregnant) I never get anything from it. I also stay away from Celery. And Hot Weather. I hate humidity. I stay away from situations where other people could be in charge of me. I like to make my own decisions and I don't want to put myself at the mercy of some idiots decisions.
  

2. Are you clumsy or graceful?

• Probably clumsy? I tend to run into things and trip. I get bruises. I break my toes. I don't usually break things (besides my toes, I mean like objects. I don't drop things much) and I don't really fall down too much. Usually I think I trip because something is in my way or I am going too fast.
  

3. What is it too late for?

• Um. Well I tend to be pretty positive.... but it's too late to get my money back for a college education that hasn't done shit for me. And it's too late to tell a previous employer to go fuck themselves before they screwed me over royally. It's too late to buy pet insurance for my dog that has Colon Polyps. It's too late to mail my bills on time to avoid late fees.
  

4. What/who was your first love?

• Oh boy. Why are you asking me this? I have had beagles my whole life and loved them all. I have had cows that I loved. I loved agriculture. I loved the idea of working in agriculture and farming and raising animals and crops. But I did have a first "love." A boyfriend who I thought I would be with **forever** and we had lots in common and we had so much fun and really good sex and all those things that come with a "first love" but it also had bad aspects and the bad got worse and the better got less and We went through a tough breakup that pretty much ruined my idea of what love should be (for a while) and made me less trusting and more stronger and probably more demanding. It made me raise my standards and expect more from the person that I love and it made me expect more from a relationship and believe that I deserved better. It was your classic crushing first love and first heartbreak. I don't have to name any names. That's not fair to anyone involved. I really try to not harbor any anger... or resentment... but it wasn't pleasant and I still feel unresolved issues 11 years later. But that's life. Not every Issue has to be resolved.
  

5. Friday fill in:

• I believe that love will prevail.

This has been an especially long week. I have been in early every single day this week, with the exception of today, and worked an 11 hour day on Tuesday. I am so so so happy to see the weekend. I know it's not here QUITE yet..... but it's super close!

I have so much housework to do this weekend! The cleaning people had to cancel 2 weeks ago, so it has literally been 4 weeks since the house has been cleaned. I vacuumed the living and dining rooms and the spare bedroom- but the rest is a nightmare. Dog hair. Dirt and mud from the outdoors and salt granules being tracked in. Laundry and Dishes (although I did run the dishwasher last night) and just plain messy. Every surface covered with papers and magazines, socks, gadgets, bottles of water. It's a nightmare. It will probably take me the whole weekend to regroup. Today is mom's birthday, tomorrow is Evan's Grandma's Birthday, and Sunday is Evan's Dad's Birthday. I have a card for mom but I need to get two more.

Last night we ate a great supper over at Evan's parent's house. Today his brother came over and they got all the cardboard boxes out of the garage to burn at the farm, and went to Menard's to get a new light for our back porch so the pregnant chick (and visitors) don't fall down in the dark.

Last night I tries to spray paint a peg rack that I had for the nursery. I want to hang it above the changing table. I had driven to Peru and bought Rustoleum American Heritage Spray paint in Apple Green, and when I tried to paint, it was leaking EVERYWHERE and dripping in dime sized droplets like rain, all over the cardboard and my hands, and the thing I was painting. I was so upset. Called Rustoleum and apparently the can must be defective. They were going to get another can for me today so I can continue painting, except NOW it's like freezing out and there is a winter storm warning in effect until Sunday night... When this whole last week it has been 45-50 degrees and sunny. Damn. So much for spray painting that wooden peg rack!

Our new KING SIZED Bed should be delivered next Friday. It's only ONE WEEK until I will be sleeping in Pure Comfort! I can't wait! Sealy Posturpedic Plush.... here I come! I need to wash the two new sheet sets and the mattress pad and the bed skirt this weekend, so we are ready to roll. When we got married I registered for King sheets.... and I bought a set identical to our queen sheets when they went on clearance. I also bought 2 King sized pillows a few months ago when Penney's had them buy 1 get 1 for $1. This week I found a king bed skirt on clearance too. The only thing I still want to get is a king sized comforter, I am sending ours with the other bedding to my sister's house for her spare room. We do have several... king ... quilts, but no king comforter. Penney's had a big sale and their down comforters were super inexpensive. A ing was only like $59. But I was buying a mattress pad and the mattress that day, and 3 maternity shirts and my new shoes, so I was limited on my spending spree.

Well, that's all the interestingness (okay so it wasn't really interesting) that I can muster for one day.

Good Day.

Well, it's so far been a nice and productive weekend, even if the house is still a wreck. On Friday I went and picked up my glasses in Geneseo, then to Peru where I had an ultrasound just before lunch. The ultrasound was good, the baby looks good, heartbeat, pulsing umbilical cord, the whole deal.... but the baby was moving so much that he couldn't really get a good picture so I don't have much to "show." The specialist is releasing me to my midwife for care now, so that is good news.

After the ultrasound I went shopping for a new mattress. Lay's in Peru had the BEST Prices and a huge 40% off sale. I grabbed a Sealy Posturepedic Plush (King sized! YEE!) that was originally $1600, for $944, so with tax I came in just $11 over my tax return budget. The sales people were EXCEPTIONALLY nice. Not pushy, very informed and polite. Did you know that if you get a stain on your mattress it voids your warranty? Jeez! Nazis! So they wanted to sell me a $75 waterproof mattress pad, but I found one at Sears in the mall for $40. I can just picture my water breaking on the new bed someday, or baby spitting up all over or something like that. Even though we don't have kids, I have already had one kid pee in our bed since we've had it. So I bought a waterproof protector. My friend Anya said that when she was pregnant, she put a plastic shower curtian under her mattress pad in case her water broke in bed. Smart! So the only issue I do have, is that the bed frame was $75, over my budget, and more than I wanted to spend. So I have two weeks to find a metal king sized bed frame. If ANYONE in my area has one to get rid of, please let me know!

Friday afternoon I grabbed my Ultrasound Roast Beef (Arby's is my ultrasound tradition) and then went to Menard's to buy green and antique white spray paint to match the baby's room. I have some wall things that need painted. I also picked up the safety 1st blind cord wraps, which I have wanted for a while, but they are hard to find in a store. I got 8, that's enough to do all the roman shades and mini-blinds in the house, as well as the roman shade we plan on getting for our bedroom very shortly.

After Menard's, I ran through the mall. The plan was to pick up a new Penney's catalog, since my card came in the mail and look at the mattress pads. When I got to Penney's they had a huge maternity sale, and they had $16 t-shirts by Duo for $8, so I grabbed a turquoise one, a hot pink one, and a red one. Great deals. I also grabbed a little JC Penney Maternity Catalog. Cute Stuff in there! There weren't any waterproof mattress pads in Penney's so I walked the entire length of the mall to Sears. My feet were killing me. That was when I remembered that I keep promising myself new tennis shoes for this pregnancy, something with lots of support since my feet have been hurting already. So in Sears I bought a pair of New Balance on sale, that you don't have to tie, they are regular tennis shoes but they have this cool elastic tongue and elastic laces. White with Pink and light silver accents. They are super comfy. Before I walked back across the mall I put them on and was so much happier!

Friday night I spent 5 hours making 6 loaves of Italian Sweet Bread. I watched my TIVO'd episodes of The O.C. and Grey's Anatomy. Anya and Ava stopped by for a while.

Saturday I had my scrapbooking potluck day. It was a snowy and blustery day. I took my gondola bread and we turned it into garlic bread with cheese. I made a baby brag book for my mom to use once she has her first grandbaby. It turned out really cute. It just took a cereal box to make the covers, cardstock and coordinating paper, and 3 notebook rings. And some embellishments.

Saturday evening I put together the new glider and ottoman. They forgot to send the allen wrench! I had a set of allen wrenches that look like a swiss army knife, and was able to tighten all but two of the screws because the allen wrench I had was too large to fit into the tight space, so I hand tightened them. One of the padded armrests had the velcro sewn on backwards and had a dime sized stain on it. Otherwise it was a very nice set. I called Target and the only way to fix that is to send me an ENTIRE new glider and ottoman. For an arm pad and an allen wrench. She said the parts orders take upwards of two months. So they are sending me another glider, I take out the pieces I need and ship it back, all at target's expense.

Saturday night I finished the assembly of the Changing table that Evan had started. Then I put stuff on the shelves and in the drawers, which helped with the clutter in the nursery. Eventually I will probably unpack all the sleepers and put them in one of the drawers, and socks and stuff. The more furniture we get in there, the smaller that room looks and the more I think we might not be able to keep the twin bed up in there after all. That is kinda bothering me, but since there is no closet, I REALLY want to have room for an armoire. I don't think it will all fit and not be too cluttered without taking the twin bed out. Only time and a crib will tell me that.

Of course I was awake at 7:30 again today (ick) and couldn't get back to sleep although I tried for two hours. Evan's snoring was driving me nuts, so I just decided to get up. Now I need to clean the kitchen and do laundry but I refuse to do it alone while he sleeps. After all, I did make bread, clean the living room and the spare bedroom, and assemble the furniture. By myself. So I think cleaning needs to be a joint effort today. So until then.... I will just kill time.

Sunday.....Shopaholic!!

Just give me a laptop and a credit card and I can make a boring Sunday turn into a FABULOUS Shopping extravaganza! LOL. Last night I ordered the Changing Table in Antique White from JC Penney, and the changing pad and a changing pad cover in light green. Today I am so excited I can't hardly wait for it to arrive, I spent Friday and Saturday nights lying on the twin bed in the nursery arranging it in my mind. I am thinking all about the little socks and sleepers that I will put in the bottom drawer of the changing table and how I will stack diapers and wipes. Good fun.

When I got home Friday night I put all my new books in the bookshelf and now, it is full. I have readhed my limit on books for a while. Plenty to read here!

After ordering the Changing table (I got free shipping before Feb 15th) I got an email from Target today, with 10-20% off my furniture purchase, and so today I ordered the glider and ottoman. So essentially I got free shipping on BOTH Pieces or furniture. I coulda got $$ off the crib, but I don't have that kinda cash lying around. I am sure there will be another sale before September!

I also bought three other things I have been coveting since about a month or so ago, when mom and I were at Target in the Quad Cities. There is a Maternity sweatsuit that is tea green, really soft and pale and has all distressed edges and ruching between the breasts.... but the top and bottom together were $40! But I was like "I could REALLY use something like that to wear when I want to be relaxed, like on the weekends." My own adidas pants are already becoming tight and uncomfortable.... so I bit the bullet and ordered that too and added in a green fold-top purse that I was coveting so that I can get free shipping. The sweatsuit color is much neater in person, online it looks grey.... but I saw it at a store and it's adorable.

Now I am done. Scouts honor. I also ordered (Friday night) Evan's valentine's day present, which was a $40 t-shirt that he saw and really liked. I HOPE that it gets here on time... but it may not so I might have to print a picture.

This week is Valentine's Day! Yeah! Evan is taking me to get a Pre-natal massage and then we are going to purchase goodies for him to cook me a fabulous dinner. This weekend I will probably be assembling furniture and shopping for a new mattress since our tax return will be back! Yeee! I am hoping that the sales people will feel at least a little sympathetic since I am pregnant and I can get the bed frame thrown in for free. Cross your fingers! We are SO going King this time! I have three unopened king sheet sets and all my comforters and quilts are king. We registered for King sized sheets for our wedding because we KNEW we would be upgrading soon. I can't wait to get them all out and wash them and sleep on a new bed with smooth new sheets! Just one more week!! yeee!

I did get some crystal light lemonade... and I LOVE it, but wouldn't ya know it's giving me TERRIBLE heartburn? Damn. Maybe in another few weeks that won't happen anymore. Thanks Michelle for the Crystal Light offer, but I don't want to take you up on that until I know that It won't give me heartburn! LOL.

Yesterday I received THE MOST FABULOUS pink and yellow swap from fourlittlebirds! It was FABULOUS! I can't wait till my secret swap partner receives the swap that I sent!

Saturday I started and finished the 4th book in the Traveling Pants Series. It was good. It had been so long since I read the first three that I was confused at first.

Don't Touch my Belly. Actually, How about you just don't TALK.

So today, at work (in an undisclosed location with an undisclosed employer), I had a woman who works for the same undisclosed employer, Say to me "So how far along are you" and I said "I am 10 weeks, so in my third month now" and she said "oh. And you are ALREADY wearing maternity clothes?" with this look of disdain on her face. And I said "Yes. I wasn't that skinny to start with."

What the fuck is that about? She has two kids. Why do mothers judge other mothers like that? So what if she's like a size 8. She doesn't do her hair or put on any makeup, and I look better pregnant than she does on any given day. I don't judge her for that. She's a mom. I support whatever she does. Who cares if I am wearing maternity clothes at 10 weeks? I am pregnant. My old clothes don't fit. I have only gained 2 pounds in the past 3 months, and that is mostly water weight. If you are pregnant, and your old clothes don't fit anymore, aren't you SUPPOSED to wear maternity clothes? Isn't that why they make them? It's not like I am a knocked up 16 year old trying to hide it from my parents. I am a 28 year old happily married pregnant woman. In Maternity clothes.

Jeez. I have had THREE people touch my little belly. One was okay. It was nice. The other, was a stranger, in an elevator. Not okay. She seemed sweet but probably a little mentally disturbed. The third was one of those people who you don't really get along with, but you deal with because you have to as a part of your job, and it was like, uh... okay. What part of our acquaintances makes you think it's okay to touch my belly? I have to admit that I have heard of lots of stories about people randomly thinking that they have permission to touch your belly, and I am sure it is going to get much worse. But let me tell you, it is much more uncomfortable and awkward than I thought it would ever be. Except for that one person who I felt comfortable with. Why do people DO that?

So that's this week in pregnancy. Another ultrasound tomorrow. "Ugh. You have had TWO ultrasounds and you are only 10 weeks? That is SO uncool." Whatever. And tomorrow I pickup my glasses (they got new lenses) and we also get our taxes done and find out if we have enough return $$ to get a new mattress as ours has springs poking through and is very uncomfortable. Cross your pretty little fingers!~