Sometimes (OK, a lot of times) I have to remind myself that I should be thankful for the little things. J.Paul would be happy to tell you that I'm a complainer. Well, maybe he wouldn't be happy to tell you, but if you threatened him with torture, you might be able to drag it out of him. Seriously though, I do complain too much.
Just before I decided to update my blog tonight, I was mentally complaining about my nausea, sore ribs, and this (extremely) wiggly little thing inside my abdomen. Tobin is a MOVER in the evenings, but it could also be that he's at the perfect size right now where he has just enough room to move around. Anyway, I have to continuously remind myself that his movement means that he's alive. I'm so blessed to have had a fairly mild pregnancy thus far, besides the greater blessing of even having made it to the beginning of my third trimester. Now that the initial wonder of pregnancy has worn off into a daily routine, I can't lose sight of the gift of life and the miracle that I get to be a part of.
And to keep reminding myself that this miracle is REALLY happening, I have to look no further than just inside my front door. With J.Paul out of town, the FedEx delivery guy was kind enough to lug both Tobin's crib and changing table boxes into the house for me. But that's as far as they go until we take down the guest bed that's hogging Tobin's room. Which may or may not happen in the near future. Though I suppose it depends on how you define "near". Tobin makes his debut in two and a half months - that's starting to sound pretty near to me!
School is done this Friday! This is cause for alternating feelings of happiness and sadness. The sadness mostly comes from not knowing when I'll get to teach another class - I really do love that job. Again, something else to be thankful for - God's provision in showing me a new career path at just the right time. Once school is out, I'll take the next few weeks to do some traveling. J.Paul and I are thinking about a short getaway either to Sedona, AZ or to Vegas for a belated anniversary trip, then I spend a few days in North Dakota with my friend Amber and her two munchkins, and then I get to hang out with my grandparents and mom in Georgia for a week! After that, I might settle down...with just a side weekend trip to San Diego in early August if Tobin's arrival doesn't appear imminent. Gotta get out of this desert heat and take advantage of what travel flexibility I still have!
All this excitement and thankfulness has worn me out. Or maybe it's the pregnancy thing again. Either way, my bed is calling very loudly and I think I should go spend some quality time with my pillows.
Love in Christ ~ Valerie
Monday, June 28, 2010
Sunday, June 20, 2010
Move it Like This
Given Tobin's propensity for motion these days, I can only hope that he doesn't come out showing these kinds of moves... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKgaw4gtxFw&feature=player_embedded. All that's missing is the lampshade ^_^
We're feeling pretty good this week. No 26-week picture to post; I choose to make comparisons over longer periods than just one week. Otherwise, it might just be too depressing to see how fast my stomach starts to proceed me. My poor students are having to scoot their chairs further and further in when I try to squeeze behind them. That classroom was not designed for a pregnant woman to have access to all student seats.
Sadly, J.Paul has abandoned me for the week. Well, not abandoned, exactly. He's gone today through Thursday for our church's youth camp in California. I SO wish I were there with them (because summer camp is always awesome!), but I couldn't just ask for a replacement teacher for a whole week of my class when there're only 5 weeks total. It's kind of lonely around the house by myself, especially in the evenings. Then again, I do get the whole bed to myself - mwahaha.
I keep mentioning school - funny how a job can take over your thoughts so much. And it's sad that this job only lasts 2 more weeks. Meeting every day for longer periods has made it easy to get to know my students, as opposed to a 50-minute meeting twice a week in the regular semester. There are a few challenging students to deal with, but for the most part, the class is full of sweethearts. I received the first bribe offering of my education career - one student offered a donut for a better exam grade. Oh please, like one donut will do it for me. Hello - eating for two here! Just kidding, I'd never succumb to a donut bribe...though I might have reconsidered for two weeks of Dunkin Donuts coconut coffee. Again, joking. But some of those students should spend less energy trying to find ways of getting out of a bad exam grade and refocus on earning a better grade to begin with. Ah well, at least it's exciting!
Love in Christ ~ Valerie
We're feeling pretty good this week. No 26-week picture to post; I choose to make comparisons over longer periods than just one week. Otherwise, it might just be too depressing to see how fast my stomach starts to proceed me. My poor students are having to scoot their chairs further and further in when I try to squeeze behind them. That classroom was not designed for a pregnant woman to have access to all student seats.
Sadly, J.Paul has abandoned me for the week. Well, not abandoned, exactly. He's gone today through Thursday for our church's youth camp in California. I SO wish I were there with them (because summer camp is always awesome!), but I couldn't just ask for a replacement teacher for a whole week of my class when there're only 5 weeks total. It's kind of lonely around the house by myself, especially in the evenings. Then again, I do get the whole bed to myself - mwahaha.
I keep mentioning school - funny how a job can take over your thoughts so much. And it's sad that this job only lasts 2 more weeks. Meeting every day for longer periods has made it easy to get to know my students, as opposed to a 50-minute meeting twice a week in the regular semester. There are a few challenging students to deal with, but for the most part, the class is full of sweethearts. I received the first bribe offering of my education career - one student offered a donut for a better exam grade. Oh please, like one donut will do it for me. Hello - eating for two here! Just kidding, I'd never succumb to a donut bribe...though I might have reconsidered for two weeks of Dunkin Donuts coconut coffee. Again, joking. But some of those students should spend less energy trying to find ways of getting out of a bad exam grade and refocus on earning a better grade to begin with. Ah well, at least it's exciting!
Love in Christ ~ Valerie
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Big Mama
It's been awhile since Toby was the size of an ear of corn or a mango - we've moved on to a rutabaga (don't everyone go measure the one that's sure to be on your kitchen counters all at once, now) and the 1.5 pound mark. He'll be growing pretty quickly from now on and, by default, I suppose I will be too. And to start marking the changes coming more and more quickly, we're finally starting the "stand awkwardly in one place and look huge" pictures. So here's Valerie and Tobin at 25 weeks (please keep in mind that it's a Saturday so I'm not lookin' my Sunday best).
Many of you will notice the umbrella in the corner. We still live in Phoenix, so I'll give you a guess as to how many times we've needed that particular instrument since moving here...ZERO. In fact, we overjoyously celebrated a high temp in the low 90's today since we've been rocking the triple digits for a few weeks now. And let me tell you, being pregnant feels like I'm carrying a portable space heater in front of myself. Just in case you were wondering.
In spite of the heat, I've been feeling pretty good. Had some scary continuous cramping last Friday, but the Dr said to first try drinking more water before we did anything else. Lo and behold, poor Toby was dehydrated. It's hard to remember to drink as much water as I should, especially in the mornings when I'm constantly moving around for class, but I'm doing the best I can. It's rewarding to feel him move around when he's happy and hydrated, so that's pretty good incentive. Poor kid - I can barely keep plants watered and alive and now I'm responsible for watering another human?? Guess this is just one of the first ways habits will have to change!
And the reason I haven't been blogging lately is my "part-time" summer teaching job. Don't get me wrong - I am SO GRATEFUL that God blessed me with the opportunity to plan and teach freshmen accounting at ASU this month. It's a huge resume-booster and even better experience to use as a push-off for a career in education. But it's definitely no part-time job, usually requiring 8+ hours a day. And I'm not even having to design much of my own materials. Thankfully, I was offered the June session rather than July because I'm not sure I would have had enough energy to try and tackle this at 6-7 months pregnant. I'm also thankful for the ability to realize my limitations. When I think ahead to the Spring semester, I arrogantly thought I would be ready (with a 3-month old to consider) to take on 3 courses, which is the full 9 hours allowed an adjunct professor. Because of this summer course, I realize that immersing myself in that much would probably not be best for myself or my expanded family...I want to be able to give Tobin more time than just tired scraps at the end of the day, which is what J.Paul has wound up with the last couple weeks more often than not. Lots to think about - thank you, Lord, for the ability to see the bigger picture before I buried myself by taking on too much in January.
One other big thing we're considering right now is whether or not we should trade my car for a "family-friendly" vehicle. This isn't easy for me; "Shelly" (my Phantom Blue Mazda RX-8) has been my dream car and a ton of fun to drive. The young, crazy adult part of me isn't wild about giving up the fun for a sedan. But then the practical side (come on, you knew I had one...I'm an accountant) said a sedan would be better for carting around a baby. We're looking into it, watching for a great deal on a used Honda or Toyota. I hate my practical side sometimes.
Keep watching as we keep growing. Only three more months till Tobin's debut. Seems like so long and, yet, it's coming up fast!
Love in Christ ~ Valerie
Many of you will notice the umbrella in the corner. We still live in Phoenix, so I'll give you a guess as to how many times we've needed that particular instrument since moving here...ZERO. In fact, we overjoyously celebrated a high temp in the low 90's today since we've been rocking the triple digits for a few weeks now. And let me tell you, being pregnant feels like I'm carrying a portable space heater in front of myself. Just in case you were wondering.
In spite of the heat, I've been feeling pretty good. Had some scary continuous cramping last Friday, but the Dr said to first try drinking more water before we did anything else. Lo and behold, poor Toby was dehydrated. It's hard to remember to drink as much water as I should, especially in the mornings when I'm constantly moving around for class, but I'm doing the best I can. It's rewarding to feel him move around when he's happy and hydrated, so that's pretty good incentive. Poor kid - I can barely keep plants watered and alive and now I'm responsible for watering another human?? Guess this is just one of the first ways habits will have to change!
And the reason I haven't been blogging lately is my "part-time" summer teaching job. Don't get me wrong - I am SO GRATEFUL that God blessed me with the opportunity to plan and teach freshmen accounting at ASU this month. It's a huge resume-booster and even better experience to use as a push-off for a career in education. But it's definitely no part-time job, usually requiring 8+ hours a day. And I'm not even having to design much of my own materials. Thankfully, I was offered the June session rather than July because I'm not sure I would have had enough energy to try and tackle this at 6-7 months pregnant. I'm also thankful for the ability to realize my limitations. When I think ahead to the Spring semester, I arrogantly thought I would be ready (with a 3-month old to consider) to take on 3 courses, which is the full 9 hours allowed an adjunct professor. Because of this summer course, I realize that immersing myself in that much would probably not be best for myself or my expanded family...I want to be able to give Tobin more time than just tired scraps at the end of the day, which is what J.Paul has wound up with the last couple weeks more often than not. Lots to think about - thank you, Lord, for the ability to see the bigger picture before I buried myself by taking on too much in January.
One other big thing we're considering right now is whether or not we should trade my car for a "family-friendly" vehicle. This isn't easy for me; "Shelly" (my Phantom Blue Mazda RX-8) has been my dream car and a ton of fun to drive. The young, crazy adult part of me isn't wild about giving up the fun for a sedan. But then the practical side (come on, you knew I had one...I'm an accountant) said a sedan would be better for carting around a baby. We're looking into it, watching for a great deal on a used Honda or Toyota. I hate my practical side sometimes.
Keep watching as we keep growing. Only three more months till Tobin's debut. Seems like so long and, yet, it's coming up fast!
Love in Christ ~ Valerie
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