My pondering about what really matters in life, brought to you by Ambien

As I sit and ponder about the most important things the world is facing, many things come to mind:

• will I ever have cute ankles again?


• will the new horizontal stretch marks appearing on my belly give me a large canvas to play tic tac toe while I have some down time during labor?


• once I'm done having kids, will the plastic surgeon be able to reconstruct my humpty dumpty body all together again?


• if I got a nose ring, wouldn't that just be the coolest thing ever? come on, everybody's doing it, which means it's a total must!

and the most important question of all...

1. who was in charge of helping the top 12 girls from American Idol pick out their wardrobe?


2. and...what was Kara smoking?

Eric and I have our favorite weekly shows, but American Idol has been hit or miss the past couple of seasons. Neither one of us could stand Adam Lambert, so we stopped watching that season the further along he got.

This season we saw a lot of promise in the initial cities, but there were also a lot of people getting golden tickets that needed to keep their day jobs. And by having Katy Perry as a guest judge, has made me stop listening to her music all together...she is a hateful heifer in my book!
Anyways, back to the wardrobe choices...it's like it was a game to see who could look the most ridiculous! The first girl had to be sewn into her outfit which was a black lace shorty jumper with a horrendous belt. Then there was another girl that looked like she put on granny's nighty, but wore it over one shoulder to show her massive style, and polished it of with...I bet you can't guess...a hideous belt! Another girl wore 'jeans' that looked like they were about 5% cotton, and 95% Lycra. DiDi, who I actually really like, was wearing was looked like grandmas rug from under the coffee table...but it worked with the vibe of the song.
Simon says this is the season for the girls, but I was utterly unimpressed. I normally don't babble on about things like this but if Ellen somehow has the credentials to judge a singing competition b/c she "appreciates music," then I feel I have every right to make my opinions known (to the 5-10 people that read my blog) because I have a deep appreciation for music and class.

At least when Paula was there, you were glued to the screen to find out what crazy move or swarm of words she would expel...or, there was always the hope for a true flat faced knock out onto the judging table. Kara is getting more hateful every season, and I have NO clue what she was talking about in relations to the "pitch" problems for two of the singers...maybe it's where they are sitting during the performance, or how it's relayed into the TV...we just aren't connecting this season.

I think might be time to just stick with Survivor this season, it's Heroes vs Villains, and so far it has been VERY entertaining.

Now, I'm feeling very tired and having problems concentrating on the words on the screen, so it's time for me to go pass out.

Mary, OUT!

It's been a long week

I've been having contractions off and on for about the past two weeks, but lately they are the worst between 2-3am til about 8am. This has translated into me not really sleeping at all. I can't seem to get comfortable, and getting in and out of bed every 45 minutes to pee is starting to grate on my nerves.

But, I had an appointment with the Perinatalogist at Sacred Heart, and Little Man is now weighing in at 5lbs 2oz, and Hoss is 5lbs 6oz. That's a lot of babies!!! They were both practice breathing during the ultrasound, and were hopping off the NST monitor with every contraction...and I was having them up to 6 minutes apart. But, not consistent enough. So I was sent on my merry way and told to go back to the hospital when the "pain was so bad you can't take it." Because I'm over 34 weeks, they won't try to stop labor.

So, I headed home for another sleepless night, and day, then another night, and day.

Bright and early Friday morning, with about 2 hrs total of sleep, I headed to Eglin AFB Hospital for my OB appt. The doc gave me some Ambien to try, at the lowest dose, because he was worried about how fatigued I was getting. I also talked with him about doing the Group B Strep test early since I could really go at anytime, so which he said, "you read my mind!" He also promised me that if I make it to 36 weeks, he will schedule an induction for 38 weeks. With how big the boys are now, it will really be my only chance to have a regular delivery.

Then I headed off for my NST, and the nurse couldn't find the heart beats, so another OB came in and did an ultrasound and found that the boys are laying transverse now (sideways)...even though they were head down on Tuesday. I barely have enough room to breath, yet they are flipping around on me! Silly boys!

I'm trying to hang in for another couple of weeks. Sorry if I've been absent from my normal tasty stalks, but the longer I sit at the computer, the bigger my feet and legs swell.

So, keep your fingers crossed that the boys will do one final flip back to being head down, and I can start sleeping and return back to my utterly charming & witty self ;o)

Happy early Valentine's Day!

Eric and I seem to have an Army mandated tradition, we are never together on Valentine's Day. Out of the 9 we've shared, only 2 have been in person. He was either deployed, TDY at a school, or for the past couple years he's been in the swamps with the Ranger students.

This year we were excited that he had the day off...until 4 days ago, and now he will be at work all day. So, we cashed in a $25 gift certificate to a local steak house and had an early dinner on Friday to celebrate. And...he loves his gift, can't you tell?Also, it snowed here in Florida! Can you believe it? It started as sleet in the early afternoon, then we had huge flakes for about an hour...then it stopped and all melted away before 6pm. It was funny driving around because people were standing on their porches in flip flops (or bare foot) and tank tops holding a video camera...the last time it snowed here was over 20 years ago. I did find out Koa is NOT a fan of snow, as shown in the picture below. He ran outside, then ran even faster back through the doggy door. But, if you look closely, you can see the snowflake on his back :o)
Happy Valentine's Day everyone, and I'll probably do another post after my appointment with the Perinatalogist on Tuesday...because bedrest is really boring and I don't have much else to talk about.

This is dedicated to the one I love...

Eric has been exceptionally cute lately, and I felt the need to share.

As my belly becomes larger and larger, doing things like standing for more an a minute, and getting in and out of vehicles has become more and more difficult. So, my sweet Sexy Beast has been automatically dishing up breakfast/lunch/dinner for me (b/c I'm now beyond the stage where I can stand and cook), and helping me out of the car. One morning he even brought me breakfast in bed! He has always opened my door for me to get in the car, but I told him early on it was a waste of time for him to open my door for me to get out...but his muscles have been much appreciated lately.

He has become the organizer and builder of the babies' room. He has put together everything we've received and as of yesterday it all has the appropriate amount of C batteries (who uses C batteries anymore??). Last week he put the car seat bases in my car, and put the carriers in the trunk with the diaper bag that has everything we might need for the trip home...this is all his idea!

We were watching TV and at the beginning of the show I had mentioned that I would love some cake right about now...but that is something I craved before pregnancy. Halfway through the show he said, "I could really go for some Publix desserts." (Publix is a local grocery store with an exceptional bakery) So I told him that we have a DVR, and I can pause it while he goes...and within 2 seconds he was up getting his coat on and out of the door. And, he even called me to make sure he got something I wanted.

Also, we went out to eat with some friends for the main purpose of watching a UFC fight at Buffalo Wild Wings. Eric called them and told them we would meet them a little later than planned b/c he didn't want me to have to sit too long, in what he knew would be uncomfortable chairs.

He doesn't tease or make comments about the fact I stay in my PJs unless I have somewhere to go, or that my hair is always a disaster (since I gave up blow-drying two weeks ago b/c I didn't have the energy to stand and do it).

And, last but not least, he left this morning to Ft. Benning to a board for Officer Candidate School. But yesterday he wanted me to make sure and call Vanessa, or someone else in town, to let them know he would be gone overnight and to make sure they are available if anything should happen.

This pregnancy has been very physically and emotionally demanding, but he has made it so much more enjoyable. Every time I start to freak out, I just watch/listen to him and see how excited he is, and all my fears are taken away. I'm so glad he was patient with me the past 8 years, and has truly been a partner in this whole process!

**10,000 points to the person that can name the artist/group that inspired the title**

New pix

At the beginning of my pregnancy when someone suggested I get "belly shots" it was an easy, Heck No! I am very self conscious because I was so overweight for a very long time and my ENTIRE stomach is covered in stretch marks just due to being fat...so the last thing I wanted was to show them off, and I wasn't sure how much weight I would have gained by then.

I changed my tune when Vanessa asked to take pix for her photography class, because she shots had to be "meaningful." She also joked with me constantly before my 20 week mark that I needed to hurry up and find out the gender so she could live vicariously through me.

So, she researched and found poses that she like and Eric and I accommodated. Since these are for a class, she developed the film herself in the darkroom at school, and I scanned the negatives onto my computer and played with them a little. Here you go!

Valentine's Day

I realized last week that Valentine's Day was creeping up when Eric and I were joking that maybe the boys would be born that day (I'm totally in the not wanting to be pregnant anymore stage).

So, with limited funds I started searching for something fun to get him this year. Normally I go with the newest Xbox game, but he has started pre-ordering those, and they are over $60! In the past, he has joked that he was going to get me a personalized license plate with a scuba flag & diver in the background with the words "I like it deep." While thinking about this I had a great idea! And here is what I came up with:
With the recent purchase of a car, we decided that he would start driving the truck to work b/c of the dirt roads, so I think it will contrast nicely with the all-black truck...don't you??

No worries, he doesn't read my blog. AND I spent less than $30, and it arrived in less than a week! Here is where I got it.

What are you getting your special someone this year?

Pardon me while I drool, trip, and completely lose my train of thought

I'm not a complete moron, I knew pregnancy wouldn't be easy, but there have been quite a few surprises so far. You always hear about, or in my case had to study, all the weird things that can happen while your pregnant...but it's still really weird when they actually happen.

For instance, drooling. I've never been one to have wet spots or stains on my pillow in the morning but lately I wake up in the middle of the night with almost half my pillow case saturated. It's quite disgusting, and pretty funny. Also, I've been spending a lot of time in my recliner and I find myself choking on my own spit multiple times a day. It's like I've completely reverted back to childhood!

And the word clumsy doesn't even begin to describe my actions lately. I've always been one to brag that I can trip over flat surfaces, but never thought it would be this bad. My hands started swelling about 2 weeks ago, and subsequently have become very painful, which leads to me dropping EVERYTHING. My latest adventure with Chinese food resulted in Eric handing me a small bowl of sweet & sour sauce which ended up down my shirt and jeans. It wasn't even that full or heavy.

And lastly....wait, what was I saying?? Oh yeah, I lose my train of thought with such frequency it is now one of the only things I can count on. I walk into rooms with no clue why I went in, and trying to do mental math or think through a problem is completely impossible.

Some good news is that Baby A seemed to wake up 2 days ago and is starting to move as much as Baby B. The bad news, both babies are kicking the crap out of me. But, it is quite entertaining to put things on my belly and watch them dance or get knocked off completely :o)