I Feel YOU! ergo, I shall prepare for you...

For the first time in my pregnancy, I have undoubtedly felt little kicks in my belly over the past week. The only way I can describe it is imagining that you have little smurf inside of your stomach poking around with a big blue cartoon finger. I was originally going to write it off as indigestion, but then I realized that I could feel the poking by placing my hand on my stomach. I can FEEL YOU!

One afternoon she was being especially active and I told Brian to sit down with me; I put his hand on my stomach (secretly possessing a fear that she would stop the moment he tried to feel a kick) and instantly, she alerted him to her presence. I think Brian responded with a "whooooaa..." and then he said, "Hey, why is she doing that to you? Does it hurt? We're going to have some words once she gets out here..." He's going to be a great father :-)

Luckily, the movements have not felt uncomfortable. Maybe a kick here and tug on the umbilical cord there...the only thing that makes me feel odd is when she pokes at my bladder. For once in my life I stand there thinking, "do I have to go the restroom or is she just tricking me?" At only a pound in weight, she can't do much; but I heard that it's only a matter of time before the pokes get stronger and she throws an elbow into my ribs. Although, I kinda look forward to that elbow because then I know she'll be a FUTURE BALLA!!! Overall, I'm thrilled to know that she's moving!

This heightened sense of her presence made me realize this past week that we have absolutely nothing in preparation for her. Wellll, I guess we have 3 baby onesies/bodysuit thingies and a gorgeous white baptism blanket that my grandma made - so maybe we could handle one day of being parents, but otherwise...hmmm
SO this week, I began registering!

I tried out Babies R Us, their website was NO WHERE as easy to search and register as Diapers.com. Diapers had everything - organic and cloth diapers, diverse stroller options, cool baby gear...the majority of what we want and will most certainly need can be found on this website. But, I also registered at Target.com. Let's face it, despite their awful return policies, they have the market on some really cute clothes, good detergent for washing cloth diapers, and Johnson & Johnson bathing supplies. I look forward towards the end of this next month when my mom comes to town to help me complete the registry in person! For being a newbie at this, I look forward to hearing her motherly wisdom - Thank GOD for Moms!

As for Baby furniture - they all look like boxy prison furniture...except for these two bedroom sets. If anyone can find this two-tone look for cheaper than listed on these websites, please let me know!

This set I found on simplybabyfurniture.com


I found this at Overstock.com



A special note of thanks goes out to my sister-in-law: I began registering this week, looked at all the baby options and instantly became overwhelmed - due to her brilliance in mothering 4 of my beautiful nieces and nephews, she helped me keep my focus :-) Thanks Lindsay! Feel free to check out her great blog...

I Daydream of Marathons...

I've recently been observing a ream of posts from military wives completing the Kingsville Base's Iron Goat extravaganza. This is where one completes a 26.2 mile run, rides 112 miles on a bike and swims 2.4 miles throughout the month of August. Upon completion, they even get a t-shirt! You GO GIRLS! I must admit that in my competitive nature, I'm a little jealous. This made me daydream about my marathoning days. For those of you that want to hold me to my word, when I turned 20 years old I said that I wanted to complete 10 marathons before I turned 30...I still do. Here are my stats so far:

Age
20: Paris Marathon

21: rest
22: Chicago Marathon

23: nada
24: zilch
25: 'scuze me but I'm prego
26-30: ?

Two DOWN eight to go...So, I've kinda fallen away from my goal but that doesn't mean that it's unachievable. Imagine the kind of x-training I could have with a stroller in tow; I could be a muscle woman! So here's how it's going to happen: I've gotta do two races a year until I'm thirty. This will all depend upon where we live in the future, but here are a couple notches I would like in my belt:

Grandma's Marathon
Why Duluth, Minnesota? Why not?!? This is a smaller and scenic course that follows Lake Superior in the beginning of June. I normally like to run in cities, (with lots of visual distractions), but my step-dad is really wanting to do this race...and who would ever deny a race buddy? With a name like Grandma's Marathon, this may be the best lead into the continuation of my goal. Click HERE to see their website.

Marine Corp Marathon
A friend ran this race a couple years ago and loved it. This race began in 1975 when Colonel Jim Fowler saw a decline in the support of troops after the Vietnam war. This race is the 4th largest marathon in the U.S. and takes place in the streets of Washington D.C. Fall in D.C. should be pretty beautiful and I always enjoy reasons to promote our troops! Click HERE to see this years race information.

Rock and Roll Marathon
These marathons take place in several cities across the U.S. As a victim of good tunes while working out, I would love to run along a course that wouldn't require my iPod. Click HERE to see the possible locations - I'm leaning towards the Nashville, San Diego, Seattle, or Virginia Beach Rock 'n' Roll marathons. It will probably depend upon where we live.

Chicago Marathon
This was a great race the first time around and I wouldn't hesitate to do it again. Running in the streets of one of my absolute FAVORITE cities in the world is an incredible feeling. It's also nice to carb up on chicago pizza, cheesecake and beer...at some point.

Honolulu Marathon
My brother ran this race and every time he wears his Honolulu shirt, I want to steal it. (It's a bad case of marathon t-shirt envy). He said it was a beautiful course because not only does the island pack a natural beauty, but the race starts at sunrise with fireworks. After running in a race all day, you can spend the latter part of your day with a Mai Tai looking over the pacific. Since this race falls in December, you can think of all your friends shoveling snow - but, hey, you just ran a MARATHON....in Hawaii....heavenly.

Boston Marathon
What marathoner doesn't want to run in the Boston Marathon? My required qualification time (for a female between the ages of 18-34) is 3 hours and 40 minutes. That's an 8 minute mile pace for 26.2 miles....wow. OR - I could do some fund raising and try to get in through a good cause. I raised money for the Chicago Marathon for "Girls on the Run" - which encourages young girls to be physically active and proud of their bodies for life - it's a pretty cool organization. Fund-raising would be great, but qualifying for that race would be pretty darn amazing too.

Grade A Boston Carbs...

As for the other TWO marathons, I'll play those by ear. I would love to have at least one other international venue like my Paris experience. I like the idea of either of the Berlin, Greece, or Amsterdam races....THOSE would be pretty amazing...Runner's World has the World's Top 10 Marathons listed. Which one would I want the most? Which one of the above races would YOU like to run with me?

Guess I'll need to get training after the December due date!

Being Married to the Military...Man

Can't believe it's the end of August. We have some friends at the Corpus base getting their track selections (aircraft and location) in mid-September - this is a major wake-up call: "Wait a sec...they can't leave!" But that's how it is and how it's going to be for no less than the next 8 years. It's only a matter of time until we get our track selection!

Before I get ahead of myself, let me explain what primary flight training in Kingsville has been like so far - from the significant other's perspective...the Sig. O...or, as I personally like to be called, the Sig. Officer. (After hearing so many acronyms and weird military words on a daily basis, I feel I can take liberties. If people can check their flight schedules with Frank Sinatra, I can do whatever I want. CNATRA stands for Chief of Naval Training - where the flight schedules are located).

As for Navy training in the T-45 - it's wonderful and marvelous. It's been hard for me to not have a job - (that will soon change as summer winds down and schools need substitutes) - but having my husband around at weird hours has made me feel like we're back in college again! There are days when he can be gone for a couple hours or he can be gone the majority of the day. While the majority of the time his schedule is great, he can also have something scheduled at 0530 - (meaning he gets up at 0400) - or have a flight at 2200, meaning he won't get home until after midnight. And while Brian doesn't have the freedom to take leave for a trip to Alaska, (or anywhere cold :-), we DO get to enjoy the "honeymoon" of the Navy = flight training. “Honeymoon” means that he is in the same town as me - I do NOT take that for granted one bit. I also realize how amazing God's timing is in allowing us get pregnant so quickly; Brian is and will be a part of this pregnancy - we may not have that luxury in the future! The Psalms are right on: Be thankful in ALL things!

(Side note: the baby just kicked me, she agrees, be thankful...:-)

So it's wild to believe that Fall is nearly upon us and we've already lived here for 6 months! For those of you that remember about the progression of Brian's training, there is a big split between the tail-hook trainers in the next month. Some will go on to train for strike positions. (F-18 pictured below)

and some will go the E2/C2 route. I’m showing a pic of the C2 – the E2 has a big disc on the fuselage.


This is how I understand our future if Brian can choose the first strike route:

"Hi Honey, you're home! ...what was that? You're going to be deployed for 6 months? Well, that's what we expected. Wait, what did you say...? You’re going to train in Death Valley, CA, 3 months before deployment? That's nowhere near here! You might as well be deployed for 9 months - sheesh! But, you sure are having a lot of fun, right? I'm sure there are a ton of work-ups to do but it's gotta feel pretty cool to pull G's and kill evil people...(ding) welp, the roast is ready!"

This is how I understand the second route, (which would ideally be the C2's):

"Hi Honey, you're home! ...what was that? You're going to be deployed for 6 months? Welp, I understand. You want us to meet you in Hawaii? Okay, that'd be great - it must be nice to be on the boat for just a little while and then land on international land bases too. What…the avionics suck because the plane is so old? That doesn't sound like fun, but hey, you don't have the paperwork work-ups like some of the other pilots do. Hey, that means you'll be able to make it to our little girl's birthday party before you leave, right? (ding)...welp, the roast is ready!"


In a nutshell - option one: lots of long and challenging missions with a sweet ride or option two: old plane with a little more freedom.

Brian changes his opinion every day. I can't blame him - I'm glad I'm not in his flight boots. The second option may sound great for me, but if the aircraft really does end up sucking because of its age, I would rather have him gone more in a newer F-18. I just want him happily fulfilled in his career when he comes home. Whatever will happen, all we can do now is pray and look forward to whatever we get in a month!

Living in Kingsville, TX

Kingsville is HOT. Many of you are probably annoyed with my complaining about the weather - I'm starting to annoy myself with how much I talk about it...but it really is hot. Luckily, I'm becoming conditioned to it because I walked out of the store yesterday and thought, "sheesh, it feels great!" When I looked at my car thermometer, it registered at 95 degrees - it was 10 degrees cooler than it normally is - that's not counting the heat index, people!

Otherwise, the small town aspect has had its perks and negatives....I'll start out with the latter...

Negatives:
HOT
Lack of options because it's a poor town (no coffee shop, lack of nice restaurants, church scene stinks, lack of organic options...)
Stray everything everywhere (weird dogs, cats, and people roam the streets of our 'hood at all hours)
Small town mindset - it's cute at first and then you realize that people are stuck in certain "ways of doing things"...that's partly why the downtown district has had difficulties restoring itself

Perks:
Takes about 15 min to get from one end of the town to another
Sno-cones are cheap
Palm trees are pretty
Close to Corpus and the Gulf (45min to an hour)
Small hospital that seems well-equipped and not "busy" enough to throw me on drugs when I start going into labor (recent concern of mine)
Tex A&M satellite campus is well-kept and a block from our house - in fact, the picture below is a part of campus that we walk next to every evening


That's K-ville. Exciting, Huh?

It's amazing to think that there are towns like this all over the U.S. Meanwhile, it seems that government has become more focused on gaining national power than allowing states to run themselves. Take, for example, immigration issues. Living here has given me a new perspective on illegal immigrants. We hadn't lived here but a couple months before we heard about a high speed chase that ended in a town 20 minutes north of us. Border Control took custody of 18 illegals that were crammed into a Chevrolet Suburban. Meanwhile, Washington D.C. and other states way north of us want to "weigh in" on what it's like to have illegal immigrants? I've only begun to hear the stories about the drug cartels that do business in "the valley" - the region directly south of us and close to Mexico. (We live 2 hours north of Mexico). When John Stewart can sit in his cushy Comedy Central studio in New York, I kinda wonder how he can make his "make fun of" commentary on anything. Even with the five year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, there are reams of reporters flocking from their big cities to tell us what life is all about? This makes me wonder, who has the clout to make commentary on anything?

Already in this military moving experience, I've discovered a different landscape of our country. And personally speaking, I really like the diversity of living in different regions. Maybe some day I could have the clout to make educated commentary.

Belly Shots Part II

It's wild to believe that I'm already past the half way mark - so it's about time for some Belly Shots!


Brian said that he's already noticed some changes in me. Aside from the belly, he claims I've recently had the "pregnancy glow." I guess I can understand if I do; I have a prominent pooch and "it" is now a "she"! It also eases the mind to see that she's healthy and reclining in my belly with her hand behind her head. Ultrasounds are so amazing! You can't really see that aspect in the photo below, but you can certainly tell that she's bigger from the last viewing - currently 12 oz. vs 3 oz. in the last ultrasound. Those 9 ounces have made elastic clothing very dear to me.

Poco Pico

Pico de gallo makes my husband a better man. Yes, he's wonderful to begin with, but when I see that he's in a pico de gallo mood, I know he's about to shine. Recently, we stumbled across a little outdoor farmers market, (we call it Tijuana), complete with Mexicans, wicked Texas heat, and a loud speaker that blares the Mexican polka. This is where we bought loads of onions, tomatoes, limes and a cantaloupe for $5.30. As soon as we got home, this is what happened:

Brian, as if consumed by his inner Mexican, started chopping tomatoes and onions...the jalapenos and cilantro were also not safe from his knife...next came the lime, garlic, salt, pepper and a touch of chili powder...maybe a hint of cumin - I have no idea.

All I can recount is the fact that I sat at the bar with my newly purchased sugar cane Dr. Pepper and waited oh-so-patiently with my Tostitos Hint of Lime chips for the final result.

Simply the best. Sombreros off to you, my Dear, a poco of your pico makes me a very happy woman and makes you a very handsome man. :-D

Nesting

Since I can't decorate a nursery due to a military move in the spring, I've taken to nesting through textiles! (I've been sewing with onesies....) It's been a lot of fun and a great process to help me internalize (maternalize...ha) that we are having a baby in the next 4 and a half months!!! The first two onesies are for our future little one and the other three will probably be given to some friends of ours that recently had a baby boy. Next: some bandannas for Tommy and Juneau so they don't feel left out :-)

How to Shop for a Church

I hit the wall last Sunday. My husband and I were both baptized Lutheran and felt that because of theology, we wanted to be apart of a Lutheran church. (We can't deny our beer-drinkin' German roots after all...). This past Sunday, the preacher approached the pulpit and gave his sermon. It went a little something like this: "Don't be anxious for tomorrow [add weird preacher-man voice inflections] because the birds and the lilies of the fields don't worry about how they will be taken care of - God takes care of them, so don't be anxious." We walked out of there completely exhausted. For one, the preacher made no relation between the message and his audience. And amidst the random hymns and standing up and sitting down I checked out. This is the God of today? This is the God that we cling to when we're in times of trouble? This is our strength and anchor in times of need? This is the God that hears my sins and forgives me because he ultimately sacrificed EVERYTHING for me? We repay that God with worship that we trudge through with random notes and ancient lexicon...that doesn't seem right.

So, Brian got a second wind and said, "Let's go check out a church in Corpus." I was about ready to crawl into bed, but instead, I agreed to the long road trip that had another long sermon waiting upon our arrival. We finally arrived (15 min late) to a racially diverse congregation - so racially diverse that I picture it being what heaven will look like someday - and they were gettin' dooown to gospel. Arms were raised, voices were loud, refrains were sung a million times over and people were running through the aisles. This was worlds different than our Lutheran experience 45 minutes prior. After a Kirk Franklin song, a speech from guest missionaries from Israel, offering and announcements (a good hour and 15 minutes in) the lead pastor took the helm. That day we were going to talk about Ephesians and how men and women should treat each other. IT was amazing. Had I heard this passage taught before? - OF COURSE. But have I ever had it told to me by a hilarious older black man that brought the scripture to life in an evangelistic, love-the-lord, "let's get rowdy for jesus" sort of way? - Nope, that was a first. After he preached, they continued with closing praise and worship...sooo at about 2 hours, Brian and I called it: it was time to go.

After experiencing both corporate worship experiences, Brian and I gathered our thoughts over a Sunday brunch. We ultimately pondered, how should we shop for a church? With a baby on the way, we feel the additional pressure to be rooted in a christian community during the Big Event. So what do we need? This is what we ultimately concluded:

1) praise and worship that is current with music one may hear on the radio
2) a message that is applicable to life and theologically sound (using the Bible)
3) a preacher that is a humble leader, interesting speaker and an intelligent student of the Lord
4) a community that is relatable to us (either in the same age group, socio-economic background, or life path)
5) opportunities for us to get involved and use our spiritual gifts (serving, singing, teaching, etc.)

I have concluded that those 5 aspects won't always rank chronologically on our scale of "church needs." Based upon where we're at right now, I need 2, 3, 4, 1 and 5 (in that order). So what I realized is that it's semi-easy to figure out what I need; here is a short list on what I don't need...

1) church that makes me feel exhausted after a sermon
2) guilt trips from the pastor or community
3) feeling that church is worlds different from the real world
4) church community that distracts me from the worshiping experience (please, if your baby is crying....LEAVE THE SANCTUARY)

As a Christian, it's so hard to make these sort of lists without instantly feeling guilty. There's the thought that the people are the church and if your church sucks...well, that kinda means that you suck. My little caveat to that argument is that for families that are mobile (i.e. us in the military), we need a church that we can fit into, not start from scratch. That's the latest thought process on the church search. Please pray for our continued search this weekend!