What a crazy month!

December has been an incredibly busy month! I was the matron of honor in my cousin's wedding. It was a beautiful wedding. I think it brought Angie and I even closer. I've always thought of her like my sister and it was such an honor to get to be a part of her big day.

Once we got through the wedding the focus has been Jay going to Myanmar. Jay is going on a mission trip through our church. There are several orphanages and colleges they sponsor. He's going to be helping with construction and playing drums. The most stressful thing was his packing. He has two large suitcases but they are filled with supplies for the orphans and they are going to be installing some clean water filters (I think). He only had his carry on bag and a backpack. They are flying China Airlines and their carry on can only be 15lbs or else you face some hefty charges. I joke with Jay all the time that he is more high maintenance than I am, seeing  him try to cram all his liquids in a 1 quart bag was entertaining. I'm super excited he gets this opportunity. He knows it's going to be a life changing experience and looks forward to it.

He left today...I'd like to say I didn't cry at the airport but my preggo hormones won't let me. It doesn't help when he gets emotional either! We've never been apart this long. I've had to travel to Wisconsin numerous times for work but never for this length of time. Also, I am not sure how much we will get to communicate. I think that's what makes it the most difficult for me. Jay and I have been married for 4 years and together for 7. We are still attached at the hip and love to be with each other. I always joke that Jay talks way more than me (I'm not really joking) and I will miss that about him, even if some of the times I am not listening fully :P I look forward to hearing all about this trip and his experiences. We both know this trip was God's way of opening his eyes to the world and seeing how God works. I hope I get this experience in the near future and I am excited he gets to go with amazing people.

The baby hasn't been forgotten! How can I with this growing belly!!?? We are pretty much set on the name Liam Eugene. I have hesitations about going and getting anything embroidered with his name or initials because I fear in the 8th month I'll decide I hate it! We call him Liam and talk to him all the time. The middle name was already decided on before we knew the sex. Both our mom's and dad's have the same middle name. Weird right? So it was just a matter of deciding on a first name. I've really been able to feel him move and the kicks are getting stronger. Jay got to feel him move for the first time on the 23rd. His eyes lit up when he felt Liam. He has been so anxious to feel him. I have an ultrasound on Thursday since they weren't able to get all of the baby anatomy scan at the beginning of the month. Hopefully little man will cooperate! I hate that Jay can't be there but I'm glad he was able to be at the one that we found out the sex.

My right hip has decided to be a pain. Although, I can't say it wasn't my own fault. Jay was playing the first weekend of December at church and I went to Sam's while he was playing the second service. I needed bottle water and since I am impatient I picked up a case of bottle water, several times... That's when it started bothering me. Angie and I were at the mall later that week and I thought I was going to get a wheel chair because how much pain I was in. I call my doc and got a referral to physical therapy. My right hip is rotated forward and I've had several visits with a physical therapist. She does deep tissue therapy to loosen my muscles and ligaments and then we re-adjust my hip. It's really helped and I'm hoping I can stop the therapy soon.

One of my biggest struggles has been letting people help me. Jay has been a huge help at home. He'll grab me stuff and do laundry for me since the washer and dryer are in the basement. However, I don't let a lot of other people help me. We were leaving my grandma's Christmas Eve and my mom was trying to help me walk out since it was snowing. I yelled "I'm not disabled, I'm pregnant". I felt really bad later on because she thought she had done something wrong. My dad understands me and my moods pretty well (because I am so much like him!) and explained to her I am struggling with the changes of being pregnant. I absolutely hate the feeling of not being able to take care of myself. I told Jay I am struggling the most with this and his words were "I know and you need to calm down". It's all about how you approach me, yes I am like a 5 year old you have to play mind games with! I'm working on this little issue and realizing I can't do everything I would normally do especially with my hip liking to move it directions it shouldn't!

We have a boy!

We are having a boy! The USD was a lot of fun. Jay was able to take off work and go with me. He was super excited and asking all kinds of questions. The night before the USD we had talked about how we would be kinda disappointed if we found out we were having a girl. Not that we would feel any different about the baby but we knew we wouldn't have a great reaction. When we were driving to the USD we both said we felt like we were on neutral ground and would be happy as long as they were healthy.

It was a lot of fun getting to see this little person and how they are developing and growing. He was curled up, head down, and sitting very low. His head was at my cervix. We didn't get all of the anatomy at this appointment since he was so low. She couldn't get the heart or profile view of his face. I will go back December 30th for another USD. He made it very clear what sex he was. When the tech was showing us she said, "I have to say, I'm impressed". We both died laughing.

I thought it was only appropriate during the USD the radio had "Over My Head" by The Fray playing. I was thinking "Crap, I really am in over my head". As much fun as I had at this USD, it made everything reality. I really have this little person growing in me. He is developing this little personality and I am going to be fully responsible for him and making sure he knows he's loved more than anything. I'm going to have be responsible for taking care of something more than my cat! Time has been moving way too fast. I remember my friend Michele telling me with her first pregnancy time moved so quick and she was taking the full pregnancy to prepare herself but with her second one time wouldn't move fast enough. I feel like I need to be reading all these books and preparing myself but will put it off thinking I have tomorrow to do it and then tomorrow is here and long gone. Time to start being proactive and prepare myself for this life changing experience!