This is just a tiny baby update for you all. She is like kicking the crap out of me right now! My stomach is really creepy looking because it's moving all over the place.



Also it's creepy looking because of the really dark deep purple stretch marks all over it. It kind of upsets me that my body is changing and that it can never be the same again. But I guess that is just another part of life, that most women go through anyway. Some are really lucky. And I don't think that it will really seem like that big of a deal once I see my baby, and see that it was all worth it.



I love to feel her move inside me. It makes me think that she is happy and comfortable. Although, I hope that she is not too comfortable so she will come out of me, because I would like to hold her eventually in my arms.



It's funny trying to explain to my loving adoring husband what it feels like to have the baby moving inside of me, or what certain pains feel like. He does his best to understand, but really...there is no way he can really get it.



I have been having a lot of Braxton-Hicks lately in the past week. And also a lot of nausea has decided to present itself. The Braxton-Hicks feel like menstraul cramps except I feel back pain a long with it and instead of it lasting for fifteen minutes it only last for a couple and then comes back again like 20 minutes later. Last week when I went to work, I threw up every day in the morning before 10am. One of my co-workers was kind enough to mention that the whole building shook when I puke. Great. Like I wasn't embaressed about blowing chunks already, now I have to be nervous when my stomach tries to make its way out of my mouth.



Sometimes I feel like some women think that pregnancy is not big deal. It's hard for me to understand where they are coming from because it's a really big deal to me. It has been so hard for me to deal with the way my body is changing and dealing with different pains and sicknesses. I also have a hard time dealing with my hormones. I think to myself...why am I crying about this?? and then I realize the reason I'm crying is because of my hormones and it makes me angry and cry even more because I feel like there is nothing that I can do to stop it.



Even though I complain about the hardships of my pregnancy, I'm so happy and grateful to be bringing a new life into this world, and even more estatic to have such a wonderful loving man by my side. I know Mackenze will be an awesome dad, and more importantly I know he is ready to be a father. He has been so supportive of me throughout this pregnancy, and I couldn't ask for a better person to be with.

Christmas Eve 2008 was pretty exciting. We spent most of the evening at Mackenze's parents home. This is a picture of our niece Gabree, and Mackenze's Aunt Amy.

This is Mackenze playing with his other niece, Gabree's sister, Christi. The kids had a lot of fun jumping on him.

And here is Mackenze's cousin Jarron jumping on him. Jarron is Amy's son.

This is Mackenze's Grandma and his Uncle Adam. She's chowing on some very yummy turkey noodle soup.

This is Keesha Mack's sister and her hubby Richard. They are enjoying a fleece rubber ducky blanket, one of many that I made for our family. This one is for their little boy, soon to join them!

And here we are standing in the kitchen. From left to right: Christi, Chris, Gabree, Penny, Justine, Mackenze, Melissa, Richard, and Keesha. We had one great Christmas Eve!

Christmas began early this year and the first event we attended was Aunt Sue and Uncle Bill's Christmas Party.

There was a taco theme for the food and everyone was suppose to get there at 5pm, but no one showed up until 6pm so we didn't eat until 6:30pm and let me tell you, Aunt Sue was starting to get a little uppity about it, but we don't mind we just love her anyways.

So there was about forty people there I heard, and there definently seemed like there was. We had a White Elephant gift exchange. Mack got this really cool key chain that is like a digital picture frame, and it holds 60 pictures. And the best part is that it's pink.

Oh yeah. And I got a toy security camera. I'm not sure where it went. As you can see, I'm not too broken up about it. We kindly donated some picture frames, and metal napkin rings.

These are the only two pictures I was able to get. I forgot the memory card to my camera.

Coco.

That is what we named our American Coot who came to visit us.

She fell into our window well by our bedroom sometime during the huge snow storm we had a day ago. She has beedy red eyes, full black feathers, green chicken looking feet, and a white beak with a spot of black at the top.



I had to look up on the internet to figure out what kind of bird she was, and all the while I was wondering why she didn't fly south for the winter, because as far as I knew that is what all birds did. Turns out this type of bird is year-round here in Spokane, WA but they mostly keep to marshy areas. They need water to propel themselves into the air, and they are kinda like a cross between a duck and a chicken. A chuck if you will.




She began all burrowed down in the snow, probably trying to keep warm. When we would walk into the bedroom near the window she would get up and become all territorial.




Anyways, we left her there figuring that she could just fly out if she wanted to. So, I was down
stairs doing the laundry and I kept hearing a strange tapping noise. I went into the bedroom and found the bird freaking out and flying into the glass over and over again. I seriously thought that she was going to hurt herself, and I wouldn't be able to bear a dead bird in a window well...at least not one this big...if it was like one of those stupid parakeets I wouldn't mind...the world could do with a few less of those suckers.

So I got out the shovel and dug myself a little path around the house to the window well, and just sort of scooped her up with the shovel and she kinda flopped out and skidded/ flew across the snow. I let her go from there I figured she would be ok.


So now you know. I'm an American Coot rescue agent.

Sorry the page has not been updated in a while. There will be a thanksgiving post coming shortly.