Thursday, July 5, 2012

Our First Home

Damon and I are currently very consumed with the building of our new home. Although I am very excited about our new house, I love our current home. Our home is very small and old, but it has tons of character and we worked on it so much when we bought it that it will always have a piece of us. I will probably cry- a lot- when we move out of our home. It has been a fabulous first home.

So, here are some pictures of our current home. Maybe sometime soon someone else will fall in love with it and want it for their next home.

The front of our home:
Inside:











New House Pictures




Our new house is very close to being finished; however, I am behind on sharing pictures by many, many weeks! Here are some pictures of our house's progress.

Pictures from 5/18/12:
Just beginning the brick- Front

Back:

 Coming in front door, looking at the kitchen (left) and dining area (rt.):

Damon, standing in the pantry:

 Great room:

Looking from great room toward the study and hallway:

Study:

 Master bedroom:

Master bathroom (pic 1):

Master bath (pic 2):

Laundry room:

Calum's room:

Spare bedroom:

Pictures from 5/23/12:



I carved this into our back porch while the concrete was still rather wet. Unfortunately, I did not realize they weren't finished and they came back and put a brick border around the edges, covering almost everything up. Oh well, at least I have this picture!

Picture from 6/3/12:

Pictures from 6/16/12:
Cabinets in the kitchen!:

Looking at the great room area from the kitchen:

Great room:

Laundry:

Tile in our master shower:

Our fabulous tub:

Cabinets in the master bath:

Pictures from 6/21/12:
Floors in the great room!

Floors in the kitchen/dining area:

I love my chandelier!

Kitchen:

Picture from 6/27/12:



Damon

This is a very random post, but I just wanted to share a few pictures of Damon. He is a busy guy. When he is not working he is always working on a project at home, at the new house, or at a friend's house. He is my manly man. He can fix anything and works very hard. I love that he loves to be outdoors, because I HATE yard work!

Here he is, doing some work at our new house:
 

Here he is, burning trash at the new house. He takes such pride in his things. He goes out there on his off days and cleans the yard.



One day in June, the air in my car quit working! During an Alabama summer, that problem is tolerable for all of about 10 seconds! I thought it might be something simple, but I was incorrect. Damon took a look at my vehicle and new immediately what was wrong. He went to the parts store, bought the parts he needed and fixed it the next day (after working a 12 hour shift at the hospital). I don't know where I'd be without my personal mechanic! He is so smart!

Here he is, fixing my broken AC:
 


Damon's Ring:

Damon's ring has a whole story. We have been married now for 5 years. I absolutely love Damon's wedding band. We got a band that looks very unique. Over the past few years, Damon's ring has started to get more and more loose on his finger (I wish I could say I had that problem!). Finally, it got to the point that it was really too loose to wear. One evening this Spring, when Damon was burning a brush pile in the yard, he lost his ring. When he went to toss some limbs on the pile, his ring came off his finger and went into the fire! You would not believe the time we had, in the dark, with flashlights, trying to find his ring. Surprisingly, we finally did! The fire had burned the metal though. The etching that was in his ring was basically indiscernable after that. We discovered a few days later that the heat had also caused his ring to crack. It wasn't broken in half, but it was cracked. At that point, his ring found a home on the shelf. It was too big to wear and was too damaged as well.

Well, a month or so ago, I decided to send his ring off to see if I could have it replaced. The company who created the ring has a lifetime resizing policy. Because of the type of ring we picked, with the pattern in the metal, I knew it could not be resized without being replaced (it would alter the pattern). I was hoping if I sent it off, to be resized, that I might get a brand new ring. If they had to replace it to resize it, then I would have to be given a new ring- one that fit and was not burned or cracked. I felt it was a long shot. I was waiting for that phone call from the company wondering what in the world we had done to the ring- BUT about 5 weeks later I got the ring back. Brand new! I was sooooo excited! It looks fabulous and fits his finger perfectly! I think he was genuinely surprised when I gave it to him. Being the ever-observant man that he is, he hadn't even realized his ring had been missing!

Some people have made comments about it being bad luck to replace the ring with a new one, but I don't believe in that. I think a marriage is what you make of it. If a ring is what keeps you together- that is just odd! Besides, I would rather him have a new ring that he can wear, than have a ring that sits on the shelf.

My Birthday

My birthday was... over a month ago, but I am still going to post about it! I turned 26 this year! Wow! I remember turning 18 and 21, and I still think I am 23 on most occasions. Twenty-six feels old. Yes, I realize I am not really old, but compared to high school graduates and new college students, I am. True, I am also more intelligent! :-)

I had to ask my mother what I did for my birthday, because I could not remember that far back. I know- sad! On my birthday, my mom took me, Damon, my brother, and his friend to Jim-N-Nicks BBQ. It was really good. I DO remember being sickeningly full after we ate. Is that a word?

My mom also, among other gifts, gave me the sweetest gift. She gave me a Willow Tree figurine. It was my first. I have always wanted one.

This is "Cherish", the expectant mother:

My friend, Erin got me some cute gifts as well, but what I must share is what she bought for Mr. Calum.

Too cute! It has a squishy fishing pole and fish inside. I know my little man will definitely be a little fisherman, like his Daddy.

Damon gave me money for my birthday, because I was in dire need of more maternity clothing. He chose not to pick the clothing out himself (wise man), so I got to do some shopping! One thing I bought that I am so happy to have is a maternity swimsuit. I love it! It fits so well and I feel cute in it! I have worn it several times already. I have been grateful to have proper swimming attire in this stifling Alabama heat!


Damon also bought items to make me a cake, but... he never did. He had planned to bake the cake for me, but we were showing our house the next day and he said he didn't want to dirty up the kitchen after I had spent the day cleaning. It was actually rather thoughtful. Although I know he can clean up behind himself, it saved me a bit of stress regardless.

Here is what I got the morning of my birthday (Lol!):

Here I am on my birthday. I am 25 weeks pregnant, but you can't really see my tummy.
 

It really was a nice, relaxed birthday. I didn't want to do very much this year, because I felt like we had so much going on. It is TRUE that I actually forgot my anniversary this year (5 years)! I didn't remember until my mother mentioned it to me! I guess I do have a touch of pregnancy brain!

Monday, June 11, 2012

More Kool-Aid

So, I ran out of Kool-Aid. Very sad. Not to worry though- I made more!

While I was in the process of making my new favorite beverage, I realized something very important- things don't read the same way at 12 midnight as they do at 12 noon. It seems that I actually read the directions incorrectly the other night. My Kool-Aid may not have been as doctored as I thought. Lol! It seems I made it correctly, but only in defiance of the directions that I had actually read incorrectly.

I just felt the need to share with y'all. I couldn't have you all thinking I was crazy- I'll just go ahead and confirm that for you!!!

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Kool-Aid... and a whole bunch of other stuff

Hi, All!

I haven't posted since May 15th- almost a month ago. I am pretty ashamed. I blame my internet though! It is terribly slow and uploading pictures can take F-O-R-E-V-E-R, so I guess I just haven't felt like updating. Sorry.

I guess for this spur-of-the-moment post I will just give you a whole bunch of random stuff and then I promise I will try to upload some pictures in the next day or so. Please don't hold your breath- you may pass out while waiting. :-)

It is 11:45 on this Saturday night. I went to bed- well fell asleep, on top of the covers, with all the bedroom lights on- at 8:00 this evening. Damon was watching TV in the living room. When he came to bed at 11:00, I woke up and was suddenly wide awake and in dire need of... Kool-Aid! This has apparently become my new craving. So, as he quietly crawled into bed, I went to the kitchen, found a gallon jug of water (no 20oz. bottle for me) and began funnelling and shaking my way to some Kool-Aid goodness. I did not follow the directions on the Kool-Aid package. It said fill to the 2 quart line for a gallon. Well, 2 quarts is not a gallon, so I proceeded to fill it to the 2 quarts line- twice. No one wants to drink watered-down Kool-Aid!!! I don't know, but my version tastes pretty darn good to me!

So, here I am, on my computer, sitting in the dark (not exactly sure why I am in the dark), eating Pringles and drinking my second glass of Kool-Aid. The first was downed in about 30 seconds. :-)

Let's see... updates...

Well, let me start with the fact that I am very glad to be out for summer break; however, I am still kinda waiting for it to begin. This is my third summer as a teacher and I think it is the first where it has taken me so long to get into the summer groove and start relaxing. I am moving classrooms this summer, because our school is building a new addition. I get a new classroom- which is very nice- but I would rather have not had to move everything. There are several teachers moving rooms this summer (almost everyone is going somewhere new). My classroom is currently full of all the belongings of a few teachers, and my own stuff. It is a disaster area in there! Due to the fact that my maternity leave will begin shortly after the beginning of the school year, and the fact that my OCD-self cannot possibly pack the contents of my room without going through EVERYTHING and re-organizing, I have been up there a few times since school has let out. I also went to a two-day workshop last week and have another three-day workshop this coming week. I am hoping after this next week that I can really settle into my summer break.

My last doctor's appointment was May 22nd. Clearly I have been in a huge rush to share with you all! Let me see what I can remember...
The first thing they do is the usual blood pressure and weight check. Oh yeah, now I remember why I wasn't in a hurry to share. My doctor was less than pleased with my weight gain. Although my blood pressure was great- low, just like always- I had apparently gained a bit of weight over those past 4 weeks. I didn't gain 1 pound... and I didn't gain 1 pound. But- If you put those two 1's side by side that would be the magic number! Crazy! I was very surprised- I think the scale was broken!!! I don't think it would have bothered me so much- I swear my body frame carries 11 pounds pretty well if you ask me- except for the fact that the nurse got a bit sarcastic about it and I'll admit I felt very embarrassed. My doctor gave me a very not-so-uplifting speech and by the time I left I was pretty pissed-off!!! I am never one to think highly of my body shape, weight, etc, BUT I really feel that I do not look like I gained 11 pounds. I feel like I have only gained in my stomach during this pregnancy. So far I am not swollen and have not gained in my legs, arms, face, etc. So, I have decided to blow them off and just go with the flow. Supposedly I am supposed to gain an average of 25-35 pounds in my pregnancy and I am still well below that bottom number, so I am just going to keep on keeping on.

Mr. Calum seemed pretty happy during the appointment. I won't have any more ultrasounds during this pregnancy, unless I decide to pay for them or unless there is a problem. So, this appointment just came with another Doppler heartbeat listen. I love those and look forward to them every time I have an appointment. Calum was his usual squirmy self. Every time she got his heartbeat he would move and we would have to search again. His heart rate was 168bpm! I was surprised by that high number. Because he was so active, the nurse asked me if I had stopped for a snack or something on my way in. Seriously?!?! She asked it in a pretty condescending way- after my lovely weight check. I quickly informed her that I had consumed a bottle of water- NOT a milkshake or anything! She quickly replied that a cold beverage can do that to babies sometimes. I did not volunteer the fact that my bottle of water had been sitting on my desk all day at work and was far from cold. I think I just have a little wiggle worm! He has always been very active during my ultrasounds.

My next appointment is the 25th of June. I am curious to see what my weight is then. I think Calum and I just had a growth spurt that month. I don't expect this next weight check to be quite so dramatic. I will also have my glucose test during that appointment. I am really not looking forward to that. I am anticipating that I will fail- I don't think I know a single woman who passed on their first test- and the thought of drinking large quantities of that pure sugar stuff makes me a bit queasy, even now. But, we will see...

Hmmm... what next?

As far as how I am feeling- I am still feeling pretty great! No complaints, just instances here and there. I have been very blessed in this pregnancy. Any pregnancy related symptoms have been mild or just occasional. I have experienced some pretty intense heartburn. I still can't figure out what triggers it. It seems if I eat hot wings I am a-okay, but look out for those sandwiches with absolutely nothing spicy in tow!!! I think my body just picks random times to surprise me. I have also had some fun times with my sciatic nerve. I guess Calum likes to position himself in a certain way that makes my tailbone, rear, and legs pretty unhappy- whether sitting or standing. Lying down usually helps alleviate that, but is rather inconvenient and does not cure- just offers a bit of relief. Again, luckily these times are just occasional, not daily.

My body's thermostat has definitely changed. I have always been an Eskimo- always in need of a blanket, but not anymore! I really like my AC lately. Poor Damon doesn't understand my temperature change. I freeze him on most occasions.

Other than my delicious Kool-Aid (fruit punch, by the way) I have not really craved anything in particular, but I have noticed my usual salty taste buds have decided to change to a sweet tooth. When I get hungry, I usually want cookies or cake or ice cream, etc- BUT I "always" deny that, at least until I have had something substantial first. Usually...

I have been working on my baby registries. I never realized how much time it would take. Baby registries are not like wedding registries. A lot of research goes into picking items- at least if you are me... and only slightly controlling and OCD about...everything. ;-)
I think I finally finished those today. I have showers coming up in mid-July. I am very excited about all the baby stuff! I don't have anything for his nursery. I think if our house were finished it would be a different story, but I have nowhere to store things right now, so it will just all have to come together in my 8th/9th month.

I have visited two new babies this past week or so. Miss Camryn Elizabeth was born on my birthday! How very special! She picked a good day. I kept telling Vicky all through her pregnancy that May 29th was a fabulous day! She was supposed to be induced a few days later, but I guess Miss Camryn was ready to greet her family and friends! Miss Greta Elizabeth was born two days after Camryn, and I got to go visit her and her mommy, Brooke. Brooke and I worked together during my first year teaching. I don't see her nearly enough, but I always enjoy catching up with her. Miss Greta is just gorgeous- looking very much like her older sister, Ava.

Visiting these babies in the hospital make me think about Calum. I can't wait to meet him and for all of our family and friends to come meet him too! My third trimester starts tomorrow- or I guess today, since it is after midnight! I can't believe it! Where did my second trimester go? It is exciting, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that, at times, it also makes me feel slightly nervous, at the thought that there isn't another trimester to go- just BABY!!! I wonder what he will look like...

Our house is... hardly changing. It has been a while since I have posted about it, so I am sure it will have changed for y'all, but it has hardly changed over the past three weeks. The outside is completely finished, but the inside has hardly moved. They have the primer on the walls, and they just painted the ceilings today. They laid the tile in the bathrooms and laundry this week- BUT I am pretty sure one of the bathrooms has the wrong tile in it. I am waiting to hear back from that. The cabinets still have not arrived, although I have been hearing about them for three weeks. Hopefully this will be the week they appear! I will definitely post pictures later. As far as I know we are still on schedule to be finished mid-July and moving in at the end of July.

I hope you have enjoyed my post of random updates. Sorry there are no pictures, but at least I updated, right? I guess, now that it is 1:00 a.m., I will head back to bed. Good night!