Things I'm loving right this second...

Literally, right this second since I didn't even have to get off my ass to take these pictures...

My husband!  A certain baby who is generally even tempered and quiet has decided to be a total turd today and if I'm holding him he just wants my nipple in his mouth.  He doesn't want to nurse, he just wants to use me as a human binky.  Being a human binky makes it quite hard to get anything else done.  Luckily, The Sailor has this magic power where he can lay down with The Seamonkey and the baby falls asleep (The Sailor usually falls asleep soon after, actually).  And even though I'm pretty sure Little Man is teething (yes, I realize he isn't even 12 weeks old yet, but he is legit trying to eat his hand and drooling like a mo'fo) The Sailor's power is still working.

My new sandals.  They're from Payless.  I normally don't buy shoes from Payless because they're super cheap (not economical, poorly made) but my sister had these ones and I kinda fell in love.  They're like flip flops only better because they have a back strap.  And when I went to check them out today, they were actually comfortable.  And they're only $15.  If you decide to go get some, just a heads up, they're on the wall not in the boxes.

Totally killed two birds with one stone with this picture...sleeping baby AND awesome new sandals.  BAM!  And, since it's a crappy cell phone picture you can't even tell I desperately need to shave my legs...

Water with cucumber and watermelon slices in it.  Put fresh cucumbers and watermelon in water magically makes it more refreshing.  The added flavor isn't overwhelming at all, it's just freaking amazing.  And it makes you look super fancy.  Although drinking it out of a Camelbak water bottle does not make you look super fancy - don't judge me, I love this water bottle!  You should totally try it...

So this post wasn't completely pointless, just wanted to let you all know I didn't fall off the planet again.  Actually, The Sailor, The Seamonkey, and I were in Massachusetts visiting my family for a week!  So I'm in the process of putting together a post about flying across the country with an infant!  I'm also still working on a post on babywearing (which actually goes with the traveling post since I don't think I would have survived the flight without my ring sling), breastfeeding, cloth diapers...  Plus I have a few cool DIY projects I should be doing in the next few weeks so you can expect some posts about those.  Bottom line - you should be pretty stoked about my blog for the next few weeks.  But now I have to go shower, shave my legs, and start the process of actually styling my hair because The Sailor's squadron is having a party tomorrow and I want to look cute.  And yes, it takes two days for me to do my hair, especially with a baby in the mix.

Until next time...

Nursery Dresser Transformation

To say that I am happy with how the dresser/changing table combo turned out would be a gross understatement.    I'm obsessed with it.  I'm making anyone who comes to my house go upstairs and look at it.  And for good reason...it turned out flipping amazing!  This is what I started with:

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 There wasn't anything wrong with it.  Actually, like the crib that it came with, it was in near perfect condition.  You will notice the stack of books underneath it though - and that's because it kinda droops in the middle and makes it difficult to open the drawers.  Once The Sailor gets home I'll have him create a more permanent fix for that; for now, a stack of books works just fine!

Step one was to take out the drawers, remove the door (on the right), remove all the knobs, scrub that sucker down, and sand it.  Which, by the way, I finally bought a sander and it's the best thing that ever happened to me.  I'm just sayin' though...

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Then I primed it (with normal primer) and I painted it gray with spray paint.  Don't worry people - it was plenty ventilated (in the garage with the garage door open) and I wore a mask!

All that is boring.  Let's face it.  But now is when it gets exciting...the drawers on the left.

I've wanted to infuse as much color into the nursery through furniture/decorations since the walls are white and the carpet is beige.  I could paint it, but we'd have to paint it back before we left.  The last thing I will be wanting to deal with when we move (probably/hopefully in two and a half years) is painting.  So I decided to decoupage the drawers using brightly colored fabric.

I actually got the fabrics on sale from Joann's and they're perfect.

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The first step was to cut out a rectangle of fabric to cover the front of the drawer.  I didn't worry about having the edges be perfect since I planned to cover the border with ribbon anyway.

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Then I used a sponge brush to spread a thin layer of Mod Podge on each drawer and I slowly applied the fabric.  I used the Mod Podge Decoupage Kit (that I got from Michael's a while back and includes a roller thingy and a flat tool  that you use to get out any air bubbles) to make sure that the fabric was applied evenly and without any air bubbles.  Again, I didn't worry too much about the edges.  This took about 20-25 minutes for each drawer.  Not fun, but the results are awesome.  Then I applied a thin off white ribbon around the edge using a hot glue gun.

I waited about 24 hours and then I sealed the whole thing with another layer of Mod Podge.  This time I diluted it slightly with water (about 2/3 Mod Podge, 1/3 water) and again used a sponge brush to saturate the whole face of the drawer.  While that started to dry, I painted the fronts of the small drawer and door (for the right side of the dresser) an off-white color (to match the ribbon).  I had considered applying fabric to these as well, but I thought that would be a little overwhelming.

The last step was to put on the new knobs I got (just clear acrylic ones; I got them at Target) and bring the whole thing upstairs!  Since I'm broken (damn back problems), I was lucky enough that Navy Wife Kim and her 12 year old son were willing to carry it upstairs, et voila...

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Have I mentioned I love this thing???

Don't worry, I am getting a cover for the changing pad!  The one I want is currently back-ordered though:

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It has elephants and it's the perfect colors!!!  I'm super excited.  And you'll notice the left hand side is just a big boring gray space:

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Eventually I plan on either placing a diaper pail there, or I might just hang a large wet bag (which is what you keep dirty cloth diapers in until you wash them) off a hook there.  I'm thinking either finding a cool patterned wet bag or just going with a plain yellow one (to match my crib).

Oh, and in case you were wondering, the little white dog thing is a night light.  I got it from Marshall's.  It can glow in a variety of colors and is actually portable (it's sitting on the charging base in the pictures).  I think it's precious and it matches my totally general "theme" - which is animals (any animal, lol) and blue, green, and orange, haha.

So, my first project for "decorate the nursery month" is officially done!  Next up is my DIY mobile, which I'm also very excited about (and shouldn't take nearly as long as the dresser did).  If you have any questions about how I completed the dresser, ask away, and of course I'll never turn down compliments on my work...

Until next time...

It's Official - I'm Manic

Source - Manic & Mania

***Quick disclaimer.  Mental illness is not something to take lightly.  If you believe you may be suffering from any form of mental illness please contact a doctor ASAP***


I've mentioned before that I've had a whole slew of mental illness diagnoses and never really got a final answer as to what is causing me to feel/act the way I do.  One of those diagnoses was bipolar disorder (AKA manic-depressive disorder).  This was a popular diagnosis because of the obvious periods of mania that I've experienced throughout my adolescence and adult life.  Lucky for me, I don't get to a point where I think I can fly and jump off of buildings (which can happen to bipolar people), instead I get this burning desire to learn, work, make money, etc.

There were many times where I held 3 jobs.  Not because I "needed" the money, just because I wanted extra money and was fully convinced I could handle have multiple jobs.  Then 2 weeks, or 4 weeks, or 6 weeks later I would quit my extra jobs (it was common for me to start working at retail stores that I would appreciate a discount at).

While I was planning my wedding to The Ex I decided I should start wedding planning part time on top of my highly stressful full-time job (and on top of planning my own wedding).  So I started taking a class at a local community college and started selling customized wedding stuff on Etsy.  My Etsy shop was actually pretty successful (I closed it when the mania subsided) and the class was a complete joke.

Well, over the past few weeks I have taken on the following:

1. I decided to be a Discovery Toys Educational Consultant (AKA toy sales rep, lol)
2. I decided to take an online Jewelry Design & Repair Class
3. I decided to improve my photography skills
4. I decided to start couponing
5. I decided to start selling some of my hand-knit creations

Seriously - that's kinda nuts.

So, I became a Discovery Toys Educational Consultant.  This is a Direct Sales position (like Mary Kay or Pampered Chef) where your primary source of income is holding "parties" to sell toys.  The cost of the kit (plus shipping and fees, etc.) was $150.  Whether I become the best DT sales consultant ever or its just a passing fad the $150 was totally worth it because the toys are freaking awesome (and no, I'm not just saying that because I want you to buy toys from me, lol)!  Plus, they spend a lot of time educating their sales reps on childhood development (and in turn which toys will aid in the different stages of development) which is really important to me as a soon-to-be first time mom!  If you're interested in buying any of the toys or becoming an Educational Consultant yourself, you can check it out here!

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And I signed up to take an online Jewelry Design and Repair class.  This has a little more back-story.  I recently found out there's a program for military spouses called "Career Advancement Assistance."  Basically they'll pay up to $4,000 ($2,000 a year for two years) to go towards a military spouse getting a certification, license, or associate's degree.  Your "goals" have to be pre-approved and the point is to help you get started in a career that is mobile since we have to move so often.

Now, I would have waited to start something until after I had the baby and settled into be a Mom, but there's a catch.  Once your husband reaches a certain paygrade, you are no longer eligible for the assistance.  Well, if my husband gets promoted, I'm no longer eligible.  He'll be taking the advancement exam again this spring (it'll be his third time taking it) and if he gets promoted (it's more complicated than just passing the test) he'll officially be the higher pay grade this December.  So I potentially have until December to try and take advantage of this!  So I'm technically starting the class on the 18th and then I have a year to complete it but I can do it at my own pace.  

I'm actually super excited about the class.  I've always been into jewelry making; I had my fourth grade Birthday party at the Beadworks in Boston (best Birthday party ever, btw).  And the course includes a bunch of supplies you'll need to design and repair jewelry, so there's no out of pocket cost for me.  If you'd like some more information on the course, it can be found here!

Next up...I decided to improve my photography skills.  So I bought a book.  This book to be exact:

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This book is great because it isn't overwhelming you with terms and definition, instead it's way more straightforward.  You wanna take a portrait outside?  Turn off the flash, use a medium f-stop number and a low ISO.  Wanna take a picture of your dog playing outside? Again, no flash, but this time use a fast shutter speed.  It does also get into all the scientific mumbo-jumbo, but beyond the basics I just don't have the attention span to read about that, lol, so I really like this book.

Then I decided to start couponing - why the hell not right?  I got a binder, inserts, a Sunday paper...I even clipped the coupons out of the Sunday paper!  Now I just have to put my clipped coupons in my binder and actually start using them.

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As long as I stick with this long enough to cover the cost of my binder/inserts I'll be happy.  If I get really into it and end up on Extreme Couponing I expect you all to lock me in a padded cell, because those people are legit hoarders!  But I doubt I'll get that into it, lol.  It would be nice to save some dough on our grocery shopping bill though!

And finally I decided to start selling my hand-knit creations.  I haven't gotten to the point of creating an Etsy shop or anything yet, instead I'm basically just selling stuff to other people on base.  I already have 3 orders.  I even made a Facebook page!  If you want to go and "like" it, you are more then welcome to.  And if you really wanted to order something from me, I wouldn't say no, but you'll just have to pay for the shipping and the Paypal fee.  And you'll have to wait a while since I still need to finish my first 3 orders.

So yeah, if that isn't full blown mania, I don't know what is.  But like I said, it isn't scary-I-think-I-can-fly mania, it's just I-think-I-can-do-everything-and-won't-stop-until-I-do mania.  With my type of mania, I always end up making some extra cash which is totally not a bad thing with a little Seamonkey on the way!  And this post turned out way longer than I intended it to be, so I'm gonna cut myself off now!

Until next time...

Oh my aching back...

I have struggled with back issues since I was 17 (in case you forgot, I'll be 24 in less than 2 months).

It was when I was 17 that I herniated two discs in my lower back.  In case you didn't know, a herniated disc is when part of the disc (or the squishy part that sits in between all your vertebrae) gets forced out of its proper place.

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This usually happens from an accident where your spine gets seriously jolted somehow.  Mine happened when I was playing the Juniors versus Seniors powderpuff football game and I got picked up and thrown by two Seniors.  The real issues arise when the part of the disc that is sticking out presses up against the nerves in your spine.

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My doctors advised me NOT to have surgery since my sister happened to herniate the exact same two discs (trampoline accident), had the surgery, and the discs just re-herniated.  I just did intensive physical therapy for almost a year and was able to manage the pain.

Fast forward to last year - my back was getting REALLY painful again, so I went and so a specialist.  Turns out the existing herniation lead to "degenerative subluxation" in my lower spine.  Basically a "normal" spine would look like an S from the side, mine looked like a question mark since the lumbar (aka lower part) of my spine was straightening out.

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My back was in between "Phase One" and "Phase Two"

Again, I did 6 months of intense physical therapy and I was able to manage the pain.

Well pregnancy is doing horrible things to my back!  And I can't do my normal exercises anymore because, well, I'm pregnant (they're all ab exercises, basically) and my belly just doesn't do that anymore.  And I've been bad and haven't been stretching properly.  Well, it got to the point where sometimes I can't even carry my own weight (there have been a few mornings where I couldn't walk down the stairs so I had to sit and scooch down like a small child) so I brought it up at my OB appointment yesterday.

The doctor (my Old Swedish Midwife wasn't available so my appointment was with another doctor) did some basic reflex tests and turns out I have a reverse reflex on my right side (instead of my leg kicking forward, it swings back) which is a sign that the herniation is back and better worse than ever.  We want to avoid doing any other diagnostic tests (MRI, x-ray, etc) since I don't want to expose the baby to that kind of radiation so I'm just going to start physical therapy again ASAP.

Physical therapy means seeing a doctor "in town" (aka a civilian doctor) since there aren't any physical therapists at the hospital on base.  That means I'm waiting on a referral, which kinda stresses me out since we all know how well that went last time I needed a referral from the OB clinic on base!  Hopefully this referral will go smoothly and I'll be able to start physical therapy within the next few weeks.

On top of that, I need to meet with the anesthesiologist sooner rather than later because herniated discs and epidurals don't really get along.  Even though I would like to have a natural childbirth (mainly because of my existing back issues) if I change my mind the anesthesiologist is gonna have to know my spine inside and out in order to be able to give it to me.

Oh, and if I lose feeling in either of my legs I have to go straight to labor and delivery because it could trigger labor and I might not even know it.  Since The Sailor isn't here and if that were to happen I wouldn't be able to walk (or drive) I'm gonna have to casually bring it up to some of my friends on base so if I call them and say something along the lines of, "hey, my right leg doesn't work anymore, will you bring me to the hospital?" they will know what's going on.  I still haven't decided if I should warn them that if my back gets that bad, it isn't uncommon to shit your freaking pants (literally - since you'll lose control of your sphincter muscle), hahahahaha.  That could be a really fun surprise during an emergency trip to the hospital.

This is all really overwhelming.

So, has anyone else struggled with serious back problems during their pregnancy?  Did you have to do physical therapy?  What the hell do they have pregnant ladies do during physical therapy, lol?

By the way, I'm counting this as my "week 25 update" since this is really all I care about that's going on; nothing else has really changed!

Until next time...

Don't forget, if you want to see the whole progression of belly photos, you can do so here!

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Gallery Wall! (Finally...)

I know it has been eons since I last brought up putting together a gallery wall in my living room, but I promise I sorta have an excuse for not actually putting it up until the other day.

I'm not sure if I brought it up at all, but the Navy recently had a large number of lay-offs (yeah, I never thought the military did lay-offs either); it was technically called the Enlisted Retention Board (or the ERB).  This isn't the first or the last time they've done this, but it usually isn't done on this scale.  The Sailor's rate (which is basically military terms for his position) got cut by 25%.  So literally, 1 in 4 people who do what The Sailor does recently were told as of next spring or fall they will no longer be part of the Navy.  Some rates were cut by as much as 70%.

Well, needless to say, if we were going to be kicked out of the Navy at some point next year I had no desire to be hanging pictures throughout the house.  But, thankfully, we found out a few weeks ago that The Sailor is not being cut!

So anyway, back to my gallery wall.  I've had the stuff I wanted to hang up for quite a while now, it was really just a matter of laying it out and hanging it up.  So, the first step was figuring out how I was going to arrange all the frames, which I did on the floor in front of the wall they would eventually be hung up on (Gabby was helping me):

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The next step is actually super clever and unfortunately I can't take the credit for coming up with it, haha.  Basically any blog that I read who has posted about gallery walls brought up using magazine pages to layout how you want to hang the frames up before you actually hang the pieces and all of them attribute the idea to the blog Young House Love.  But yeah, so first I taped together pieces of an old Ok! magazine so they would reflect how big the frames are:

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Then I taped them up on the wall.  Because I was just picking them up off the ground and placing them directly on the wall, it ended up being a mirror image of what I had on the ground, but luckily it didn't really matter:

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Fun fact - I got lazy after hanging the magazine pages up and ended up leaving it like that for like two days, haha, so classy...

I had also marked on the magazines where the hanging part of the frame was so I just put up the hangers right over the magazine cut outs.  Obviously for any frame that had multiple hanging points I had to use a level to have the the magazine hung up precisely how I wanted the frame to hang; any frame that just had one hanging point was a lot easier.

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And then I pulled down the magazines, and the hangers were in the perfect spot!

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The wing emblem is actually super deceiving.  It looks like it's made out of metal when in reality it's made out of plastic.  And The Sailor had drilled a hole in one side of it (I have no idea how he had it hanging before) so I got to use my drill to make a hole in the other side so I could eventually nail that sucker up on the wall.  But I actually did that last.  And since I only had little gold nails, after hanging it I used a Sharpie to make the nail heads black, haha.  It worked really well though!

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The frames that are in the bottom right and all the way to the left don't actually have pictures in them yet.  The one on the left will eventually have a picture of each of the pets in it and the frame on the bottom right will eventually have random pictures of The Sailor and I (and probably the baby) in it.  Here are some close-ups of what I hung up.

On the right side we have a cartoon picture of a type of jet that The Sailor used to work on that is actually signed by the artist, his Air Warfare wing emblem, a quote about Love ("There is only one happiness in life - to love and be loved" - George Sand), a decorative quote/general words of wisdom about Life, and a random frame:

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 And in the middle we have a drawing of a bridge that The Sailor actually drew (he's so talented), a quote about Life ("Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but the moments that take our breath away"), and The Sailor's "Shellback" certificate.  You become a "shellback" when you're in the Navy when you cross the equator for the first time on deployment. There's a ceremony - which I think is just a politically correct way of saying they haze the younger sailors.  Either way, the certificate is really pretty!

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I love how the whole thing turned out.  And I love that the walls in my living room aren't bare anymore.

Do you have any plans to create a "gallery wall" in your home?  Or do you already have one (and if you already have one, did you use the magazine trick)?

Until next time...

PS - I just had to share this...Every night Gabby, Lola, and Tom all try to snuggle with me on the couch, and last night I just happened to catch a picture of it.  Yes, I am under that grey blanket, lol, and Gabby is snuggling with my foot:

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That Poor Guy...

...and no, I'm not referring to The Sailor.  Who, for what it's worth, is in Dubai right now.  And it's awesome because since they're in port he can actually email back and forth with me, which is basically like texting (since I do the majority of my emailing on my phone) which makes it feel like he's much closer than he actually is!  Before I get into the bulk of this post, I have a sudden urge to show off my sweetie...

 These are some of the jets that The Sailor works on.  In case you didn't know, his technical title is Aviation Structural Mechanic - he's a jet mechanic.  And yes, the jets say "Go Navy, Beat Army" on the wings.  They are painted like that for Army vs. Navy football games...

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Here is a super cool picture of The Sailor working.  At least he claims it's him, he could totally be lying.  But, since he's my hubby, I choose to believe him. (But let's be serious - how could he even know for sure that's him up on the wing??)

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This one is for sure The Sailor working, lol.  I think he's super sexy when he's working...then again at this point I even find the shadow-esque picture of him sexy...

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So anyways, back to the poor guy this post is actually about...my Dad.

He's so darn worried about me being out here by myself.  He gets excited when I say I have plans to do things with other people, haha.  And in all honesty, he's the only member of my direct family that I actually speak to on a regular basis so I end up calling him quite a bit.

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That's my Dad - he hates pictures, and he's a wise ass...

Well, the other day I was chatting on the phone with him and Christmas came up.  I said something along the lines of, "I've been thinking about what I'm going to get myself for Christmas since there really isn't anyone else who will be getting me any presents this year..." and I really didn't mean anything by it.  I wasn't throwing myself a pity party, but seriously who is gonna get me a present other than me?  My husband is on a boat in the middle of the ocean and I'm not speaking to my Mother, lol. He quickly snaps back, "I'll get you a present for Christmas still, Midgie!"

Fun fact, my father calls me "Midgie" which is short for "Midget."  This fact is especially fun since I'm the tallest of his three daughters and almost as tall as him.  At one point, like right after I was born, I was the shortest though...

Then, once we got past that whole thing, I somehow let the words "I've been lonely" slip.  And he instantly goes into protective-Dad-must-fix-everything mode.  Maybe I should plan another trip home (I'm going home in a few weeks to see the fam and celebrate the holidays)...do I want him to convince my crazy sister who I'm not speaking to to apologize to me...he wishes he could afford to take the time off and buy a ticket to come out and visit me...

The thing is, I haven't even really been lonely, per se, since I have made some good friends out here.  I'm just still emotional over my whole family situation.  I'm not speaking to my Mother and there's no hope of that happening any time soon.  I'm not speaking to one of my two sisters and I don't want that to happen any time soon.  Then my other sister pretends to not be super judgemental about my whole life but occasionally starts drilling me about where I'm getting money to pay my bills so I really don't talk to her very much either since I don't feel like being judged like that.

I tried to explain that to my Dad but the damage was already done.  I hope that once he sees me in December he'll realize I'm not a complete hot mess, apart from my constant struggle with pregnancy acne!  Any tips on how to make my Dad worry less, or is it just inevitable since I'm his baby and I up and took off to the other side of the country?

Until next time...

Preparing for Post-Birth Visitors

Living on the opposite side of the country of your entire family really sucks when your pregnant with your first child.

For one, I'm not really getting a baby shower.  Whatevs though, I'm way over that.

What's really bugging me out is trying to plan for visitors after the baby is actually born.  As of right now, our list of visitors includes: my Mom, my Dad, Mama Simms (and perhaps her hubs), best friend from home Kim (not to be confused with Navy Wife Kim), and The Sailor's Aunt, Uncle and 2 cousins.  At this point, I'm not sure if either of my sisters plan on coming out and I don't believe anyone else from our extended families are planning a trip.  That is 5 separate groups of people who are going to come out to visit once The Sea Monkey is born.

Now, I love that I'm getting support from all these people, but honestly we're not going to want more then one "set" of visitors at once; having a newborn will be overwhelming enough as is.  So, I'm trying to plan out who will come when.

The biggest wrinkle in that is - you guessed it - my Mom.  I'm lucky that things between us are much better, she's even coming out to visit for a few days in November.  But, she wants to be here when the baby is born.  Well, you can't say with any level of certainty when a baby will actually be born.  So she was planning on using "emergency" time off through her work.  Well, now she isn't sure if she can use "emergency" time off, so she might have to plan a specific trip and just hope the baby is born during it.

Now she's telling me, oops, I was scheduled to work that weekend.  I don't know if that means she can't ask for it off or what, but it's just adding another obstacle.  Add to that the fact that she can't decide how long she wants to stay, and it's totally throwing off trying to schedule everyone else to come visit!

My Dad is much easier.  When he has the money, he'll come.  Easy freaking peasy.  I have a feeling once The Sea Monkey is actually born (or once we get a lot closer) he'll start looking at finances much closer and try to plan a trip.  But for now, I'm fine with "we'll figure it out later" because I know a) if I called him and something was wrong and I said I needed him here tomorrow, he'd figure out a way, and b) if he called and said "I wanna come next week" and I said "we already have 5 bazillion people at our house, can it be in two weeks?" he'd be cool with that to.  Seriously, my Dad's an easy customer.

Mama Simms is pretty flexible too, and she says she'll come whenever I tell her to.  But she doesn't want to be here when my Mom is - historically speaking, they don't exactly get along.  Add in the way my Mom treated me when I initially got here and Mama Simms really doesn't want to see my Mom.  Now, if only my Mom would make up her damn mind as to when/how long she's coming, I could give Mama Simms a more precise window of when she should plan to come.

Then there's Kim.  She wants to be here when the baby is born.  Or at the very least within a few days of the baby being born.  I suggested she waited until school was done (she's a teacher) and she freaked.  "THE BABY HAS GOT TO SEE MY FACE SOONER THAN THAT!" She doesn't care who else is there, as long as the baby is.  So I guess she's pretty easy too, I just wish I could give her a more precise time frame as to when the little sucker is going to make their grand entrance so she could start planning the trip now.  Because if she comes out here before the baby is born and I don't go into labor before she leaves, she might have a fit.  And try to force me into labor.  And refuse to leave.  And then lose her job for not coming back.  It just wouldn't be good.

And finally we have The Sailor's aunt, uncle, and two cousins.  They're pretty cool customers like Mama Simms; they just want me to tell them when to come.  Once again, this would be much easier to accomplish if my Mom would make up her damn mind.

The whole thing is just overwhelming.  I've started putting together calendars for April and May.  My next step is to start researching statistics for when baby's are actually born based off of their due dates and then try to convince my Mom to make real plans for when she's going to come out and go from there.

How did you handle making time for everyone on the planet after you gave birth?  Seriously - I need as much help as I can get!

Until next time...

First Real Knitting Project - Kitty Kuddles Blankie!

So, I had mentioned a while back that Navy Wife Kim had taught me how to knit, and yesterday I finished my first real project!

I based it off of the pattern found here but I actually changed a few things about it.  First of all, it called to use US 10.5 knitting needles.  Those things are just plain uncomfortable to me.  There's no way in hell I could finish a project (no matter how small it is) with those suckers.  So, instead I used size 8.

The lower half of the body I did exactly as the pattern instructed, but I did the hands completely differently.  Instead of adding a shit-ton (aka 20 more) stitches, I added 4 on either side (so 8 in total).  I still did the same number of rows as the pattern call for (4 in all) but instead of having to tie knots in the ends, mine are just kinda there.  And I like it that way.

Then, once I got to the head part, if I had only done 40 rows like the pattern called for, this poor little kitty would have had a very rectangular head! Check it out:

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That is with 40 rows

 So, if I had kept only 40 rows, once it was folded in half this is how strange the head would have looked:

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So, I ended up doing 55 rows.  If I make another one of these (which I probably will just so I can have a few for the baby in case we lose one or if I make one for someone else) I'll probably do 60 rows for the head part so I have more room to embroider on the face.

Once I did the 55 rows, I embroidered on the face (and I think I did a pretty good job, if I do say so myself) and sewed together and stuffed the head.  I'm not 100% happy with how the finishing seam along the neck looks, so I might add a ribbon of sorts once I find out the gender of The Sea Monkey. But, overall I'm quite happy with the results considering this is my first knitting project!



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Meow.  Sorry, I just had to say that, lol.

As far as things I need to work on - definitely using a consistent gauge.  Some rows I knit much tighter than other rows and up close you can definitely tell.  Is it still adorable? Heck yes, but a seasoned knitter would definitely be able to tell I'm a total amateur!

And since this project uses what's called a "garter stitch" it's seriously the easiest knitting project ever, lol.  A garter stitch is just knitting every single row (where as normally you would knit a row, then purl a row so you're actually doing two different stitches).  So, if you're just learning how to knit I totally recommend this as a starting project.  Not only is it a super easy pattern, it also isn't that big, so you shouldn't get overwhelmed by it.

Next up on my list of knitting projects - a boob hat for the baby to wear while breastfeeding.  Very much like this one:


Source

That's a photo from the blog MODG (which I looooooooooove btw, so you should totally check it out if you're into witty/hilarious Mommy Blogs) which is where I originally saw a boob hat.  I ended up finding a pattern to make a similar hat, but I might be using a knitting loom instead of just knitting needles (because I have a bunch of looms that I've never used before) so I might just kinda wing it.  We'll see how it goes.

So, are you completely impressed with my above average amateur knitting abilities?  Or am I just a tool for DIYing so much crap for my future kid, lol?

Until next time...

DIY Matting & Framing

This was seriously a new challenge for me, and I'm not gonna lie - I found it quite difficult.

I preach that when you are doing a DIY project you cannot expect perfection, but I still want things to turn out really nice!  And this project was hard to accomplish that for sure.  If you remember {from this post} I found some decorations The Sailor had that were really cool looking but horribly framed. So, this past week I decided to mat and re-frame them.

Well, they were not normal sizes at all!  Getting a frame is easy enough, it just has to be bigger than what you're framing, lol.  But then to fill the gap between the picture/certificate you have to get a mat that fits.  Well, those didn't exist for the two things I was framing, so I had to custom cut them - and this was the part that was not fun.

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The pictures how The Sailor had framed them (lol), the
new frames, the mattes, and the cutting supplies.

For the first one, a cartoon-ish picture of a jet that The Sailor used to work on that was signed by the artist, at least I was able to buy a pre-cut mat, but then I had to make the opening bigger.  That's easy enough - measure the picture, draw out how much bigger the hole has to be, and cut it.  I used an acrylic ruler and a rotary cutter.

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This sounds easy enough, but seriously, those mats are freaking hard to cut, even though I have a nice rotary cutter that I take good care of.  And getting a clean cut is difficult!  I finally got it cut, and since I measured twice (to cut once {like my Dad always says, lol}) the picture fit perfectly.  Then I actually smoothed out the edges with a nail file, haha.  Hey, don't hate, it works!

Then, the second piece, which is a really cool looking certificate thing (not even sure what it's exactly for, lol {I'm a horrible Navy Wife sometimes} but its super cool looking) was so big I couldn't even find a pre-cut mat to work off of, so I just had to buy a massive poster board type thing that is actually matting material.

So first, I had to cut it down so it was the correct outside dimensions.  For that I traced the standard poster/picture that came in the frame and then just used scissors to cut it out.  Then I measured and cut out the opening in the middle the same way I did with the first piece (nail file and all).

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I am happy with how they turned out, it was just a lot more frustrating than I had anticipated:

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Now I'm one step closer to starting my gallery wall!

Do you have any tips for custom cutting framing mats in case I have to do it again in the future?

Until next time...

Mmmmm...Cheesecake!

So, Friday I made cheesecake for a little get together Navy Wife Kim planned for last night with some other wives on base, and it turned out awesome...

I've made cheesecake a bunch of times before, and I always use the same recipe ( http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/New-York-Cheesecake-102592 ) then I put a raspberry glaze on it and we're good to go. This time I wanted to make a peanut butter swirl cake, so instead of trying a completely new recipe, I just changed the one I always used.

First of all, the crust. Instead of graham crackers, I used Oreos (yummm). I then crushed some peanut butter cups and put that on top of the crust.

Then, I made the batter per the recipe except I omitted the orange zest completely and only used about half of a lemon worth of zest. On a side note, do not neglect to scrape down your bowl between each egg addition. Yeah, it kinda sucks, but its completely necessary.

Then I separated about 1/3 of the batter into a different bowl and added two heaping spoonfuls of smooth peanut butter to it. Then I layered the batter over the crust/peanut butter cups with a layer of regular batter, then the peanut butter batter, then the rest of the normal batter. Then I kinda swirled it together with a butter knife. Was that step completely necessary? No - since the peanut butter batter basically sinks to the bottom, but it was worth a shot.

Then I followed the recipe for baking it. Except I always use a water bath even though the recipe doesn't call for it. (Basically put some water in an oven-safe pan and put it on the bottom rack in the oven to prevent cracking) And my cheesecake has NEVER been done in the 1 hour the recipe calls for. It's taken anywhere from 3 to 5 hours for my cheesecake to cook through. Either every oven I've ever used (3 in all for this recipe) is edged up, or the author of the recipe is on crack.

And since I'm a strong believer in decorating desserts (at least they'll look pretty even if you bombed the recipe) onto the finishing touches...

I decided to do a chocolate and peanut butter drizzle, so I got a nice Lindt chocolate bar and some Reeses peanut butter chips. Then I assembled a ghetto rigged double boiler (aka a Pyrex bowl placed over a pan) and first melted the chocolate. Then I scooped the melted chocolate in a plastic bag and cut off the tiniest bit of the corner. Then I used that bag to drizzle chocolate on the cake.

Next I did the same thing with the peanut butter chips and I even used what was left of the melted peanut butter to help secure peanut butter cups around the edge. Et voila...a delicious and beautiful cheesecake! It was definitely a hit last night!

If you have any questions about how I executed this recipe, be sure to ask!

Until next time...

So yeah...he's gone...

The Sailor's flight was at 6 am. So, we had to get up at a little before 3 am in order to get him to the airport on time.  Plus side - the stars out here in the middle of nowhere are gorgeous at 3 am. Downside - it was fucking 3 am.

I made him drive there. I was exhausted, and my eyes we still adjusting to the middle of the night. We really didn't talk much. Honestly, what was there to say? I'll miss you...? That's a given, and its been said enough already. Are you nervous/excited/whatever...? We really talked about that in length already.

So, what do you say to your husband when you're on your way to the airport to drop him off to get deployed and won't see him again for 5 months? I chose nothing; just held his hand.

When we said goodbye I didn't cry. I didn't get teary eyed. I just said goodbye. I probably won't cry when he gets back either; I'm just not that kind of crier. Luckily The Sailor was well aware of that, so he wasn't expecting a dramatic goodbye.

We said our goodbyes, he grabbed his things, and he was gone.

But in the grand scheme of things, 5 months is not that long. Especially when it comes to deployments.

I'm lucky {that as long as nothing bad happens} he'll be back before the baby is born. And although I've never experienced a deployment before, I have lived 100% by myself before. That may not seem that important, but honestly, it can be strange being all alone at first. It takes time to adjust to cooking for one person.

I'm lucky to have my amazing dogs. Honestly, they keep me sane; they keep my life in some sort of schedule. Not to mention they're the best cuddlers ever! And thank goodness I've already met some people on base.

So yeah, it sucks. My husband is being shipped off to a boat where he'll miss all the major holidays as well as my birthday. Nobody wants that. But it could definitely be worse, and I can't forget that.

I'll probably post my 12 week update (as well as the results of my NT scan/ultrasound pictures from that appointment) either today or tomorrow. But this is all I've got for now.

Until next time...

PS - totally took this pic of Gabby this morning...how effing perfect is it?

Being a Navy Wife Sucks Sometimes

The Sailor is being sent to the boat on Wednesday.

We knew this was coming. And as much as I didn't want to accept it, I knew it would be last minute (he just found out this morning). But we thought he would get a little more information than he did!

Yup, all we know is that he's leaving Wednesday. Don't know where he's leaving from, what time, or even if he's going straight to the boat or not! I'm just annoyed.

And I feel bad. I went out for the majority of Saturday with Navy Wife Kim. After I had been gone for a few hours, The Sailor texted me and said, "this could be my last weekend home..." But I thought to myself, it also might not be. And I can't live my life expecting you to leave for the next however many months. But he was right, and I feel bad for not spending every minute with him.

This just sucks. I don't want him to leave. I don't want to be alone in this big house. Shit, I don't want to be alone period! But I knew this was coming, and it won't be the last time he gets deployed. At least he's scheduled to be back in time to be there when the baby is born.

Until next time...

Gettin' In A Groove

I'm happy to announce that despite the fact that I quit my job at Michael's I am getting into something of a schedule (finally).

I'm totally a creature of habit. I thrive on a set schedule. That may be why I wake up at the same time every day, regardless of whether I have something to do or not. When I was in Pittsburgh (and working full time) I got up at 630, even on the weekends. But I wouldn't have my first cup of coffee til 7. I just like structure.

Lately, I've been waking up at 7. It's not like I set an alarm or anything, but every day I just wake up between 645 and 7. Then the dogs notice I'm awake and they start scrambling (:: Time to go out? Time to go out? Time to go ooooouuuuuuut! ::) so I get up and let them out.

While they're out I do the dishes. I totally blame my mom for this habit; she never did the dinner dishes at night, she always let them "soak over night" and the kitchen would be clean when we all woke up. When I was living with The Ex, he was OCD and I think he would have died if a pan sat in the sink overnight, so he always did the dishes. But The Sailor couldn't care less, so I just do them in the morning!

Then I let the dogs in, do some general tidying, bring out the trash/recycling as needed, and I Clorox Wipe all the hard surfaces downstairs (what - I'm terrified of getting sick while pregnant). Then I finally brew some coffee, feed the dogs, pull together some breakfast and go watch the Today show.

After I eat my breakfast I either dust or go pick up dog poop in the back yard (I alternate doing those things) then grab cup of coffee number 2 (dont worry, its half-caf) and I watch the Today Show til 830, which is when I bring the dogs on a quick (25 minute) walk.

I get back just in time to watch Regis and Kelly, and while I watch I drink some juice and eat some fruit. After Regis and Kelly the scheduled part of my day comes to a close and I either go work out, get dressed, or whatever. I would like to get into a habit of either vacuuming (need to get a vacuum first - I know, its horrible...I don't have a vacuum), swiffering/mopping the hard floors, doing laundry, or cleaning a bathroom after watching Regis and Kelly. But, we'll get there eventually I'm sure!

After I get more stuff I'll hopefully spend my afternoons doing DIY Projects. But this afternoon I have to go get dog licenses and upholstery cleaner so I can clean our yellow couch. And hopefully Navy Wife Kim will help me figure out the knitting pattern for the Kitty Lovey-esque Blanket so I can start making that!

Overall, my life is pretty boring, but you know what? I'm loving it! I feel like I can get so much done and for the first time in my life I don't feel grossly overwhelmed with life. And, I'll enjoy the boring leading up to baby because after the baby comes I'm well aware it'll be a while before my life has any sort of schedule again!

Writing this post is now interrupting my Regis and Kelly time, so I've gotta wrap this shit up.

Until next time...

PS - pictures of my four-legged babies just because they're perfect...HAH!