We're back! Thank GAWWWD.
The trip was a stressOrama moneypit. It was also soul-crushingly depressing for the Hubs and I, BUUUUT WAIT!
It did have its high points FO SHO:
1. O did AMAZINGLY FANTASTIC on both the trip there, and the trip home. He had a couple cranky moments, but nothing major, and Delta airlines just thinks he's a peach. I am one proud Mama. Seriously, I think Hubben and I were crankier than he was.
2. Seeing my Hub's family (we hadn't seen most of them in 3 years, and who knows when we will again?, and we always enjoy our time with them.
3. O meeting those family members.
4. Hub's grandfather's 80th surprise party (after months of planning and stress for my MIL, it went swimmingly).
5. O's christening (he was HANDS DOWN the best-behaved child I've ever seen in a church-I'm not saying that b/c he's mine, either.) was beautiful.
All of that was swell. Warm and Fuzzies all around!
Being stuck without a rental car, Hubs not really having time to look for work/interview (which was why he took an unpaid week off of work) and the amount of money that flew out of of savings account [read: almost ALL] was not. Neither was my body's decision to revolt-making me feel like crap the whole time...My period coming a week early was an especially nice touch.
That could all be overlooked as the perils of traveling, I know.
The knife in our backs was really staying at my Hubby's grandmother's house.
(The house has sat empty for almost 2 years-his Grams now lives in a nursing home)
Why?
Because it was the house we would have moved into if Husbandface had gotten the job.
The house that we spent hours decorating in our minds and making plans for the future. We even talked about having another baby if it happened.
(In hindsight, not the best idea, but we were attempting to be hopeful.)
I think we were both taken aback at how hard it all sort of kicked us in the teeth as we arrived, and kinda hung over us like a shadow the whole week we were there.
We just felt even more stuck. Even farther from where we want so badly to be, if that makes sense...
And I realize that I should have just let.it.GO. but I couldn't stop worrying about money. We absolutely had no business taking a trip (albeit a mandatory one) for a DAY let alone, a WEEK, so I was wracked with panic over it the majority of the trip. I don't think it helped that my darling Hubben was also freaking out over the fact that our plan of him hitting the pavement with a vengeance every day that week to look for jobs/interview pretty much fell flat on its proverbial ass, and there wasn't jack we could do about it.
Did I mention that the Man and I spent that week sleeping on a full-sized bed when we're used to our king? Yeah....
But, we got thru it, and managed to fly home safely with our son (and our marriage) intact.
However, coming back home was rough.
It was like leaving the field utterly defeated.
We walked back through the doors of my IL's house totally broke, having made NO progress while in WV.
Yes, we knew as we left that THAT may be the outcome, but we were trying once again, to be positive.
As for our plan forward, we don't really know. We need a miracle. I've been campaigning for one since I got pregnant with O, so maybe we'll get it eventually.
And before anyone pipes up to tell me how fortunate I already AM, I know.
We are extremely grateful that my husband's parent's have opened their home to us, and even more grateful that through the last few years at least one of us was able to keep his job. We are so thankful for what we have because we know that it could be worse.
That being said, we need to get out on our own. The living with his parents situation is NOT a forever deal. We knew that coming into it, and we've already been here far longer than either party expected or wanted.
Even more pressing, we have a child that we want to give a home to. One that is our own.
Sigh.
On a lighter note,
For the sake of our sanity (and sex life), Hubs and I decided to turn our little "apt." into 2 distinct bedrooms.
You know what that means!
Baby has his OWN room!
It's so cute!
We seriously spent from 9am-12am putting it all together. We totally lucked out b/c friends of ours gave us a crib, and we already had a dresser for him (that we also use as a changing table). So all we needed to buy was a shelving unit for his toys, a crib mattress, some bedding, and some adorable wall decals for art.
Did I mention it looks really cute?!
'Cos it is.
I will add a picture next post.
It's definitely lifted our spirits to give O a nursery. we've been waiting to do that since we got pregnant.
Tonight will be the first night he sleeps in there!
Wish me luck...I'll probably cry more than he does.
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Travel. Show all posts
Monday, September 20, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
I can dish it out, but can I take it?
(Advice, that is.)
Hell YES. I can!
Fellow Parents and/or Experienced Fliers (sp?), I need your wisdom!
The Hubs and I are flying to West Virginia Labor Day Weekend to visit his family (for a week), and introduce them all to the baby...and have a surprise party for Spouseface's grand-dad who is turning 80...and have O christened in the church where his daddy was christened...
We have never flown with a baby.
Who will be a little over 10 months old at the time of take-off.
We're a little apprehensive.
Traveling makes me nervous as it is, probably b/c I haven't really done THAT much of it.
I'm always afraid that I'll miss my flight/connection, that I'll get lost (I will get lost in a paper bag, it's pathetic.), that I didn't pack the right things, etc.
My Hubs-he's good at it. He lived overseas, he traveled a lot, he's pretty much got it together when flying...
BUT.
He gets nervous when situations involve the baby.
He's used to just worrying about me, (which he would do even if I was the most seasoned flier to ever have flown, that's just how he rolls) so I'm afraid he might get overwhelmed with anxiety when he adds our son to the worry list.
I'm anxious, and we're a month out. I just know my son. He's a sweet boy, but SUPER active, and he HATES to be confined.
[I have this picture in my head of him SCREAMING bloody murder throughout the duration of the 5 hour flight, culminating in our fellow passengers demanding that we poisoned to death by stale airplane food.]
So help a Mama out:
What's the best routine to get through check-in and security?
What do I pack?
What happens if he has a blow out in his diaper
How do I best combat the Screamies?
How do I help the pressure in his little ears?
What other things should I know?
Is there any hope for us at all?
Hell YES. I can!
Fellow Parents and/or Experienced Fliers (sp?), I need your wisdom!
The Hubs and I are flying to West Virginia Labor Day Weekend to visit his family (for a week), and introduce them all to the baby...and have a surprise party for Spouseface's grand-dad who is turning 80...and have O christened in the church where his daddy was christened...
We have never flown with a baby.
Who will be a little over 10 months old at the time of take-off.
We're a little apprehensive.
Traveling makes me nervous as it is, probably b/c I haven't really done THAT much of it.
I'm always afraid that I'll miss my flight/connection, that I'll get lost (I will get lost in a paper bag, it's pathetic.), that I didn't pack the right things, etc.
My Hubs-he's good at it. He lived overseas, he traveled a lot, he's pretty much got it together when flying...
BUT.
He gets nervous when situations involve the baby.
He's used to just worrying about me, (which he would do even if I was the most seasoned flier to ever have flown, that's just how he rolls) so I'm afraid he might get overwhelmed with anxiety when he adds our son to the worry list.
I'm anxious, and we're a month out. I just know my son. He's a sweet boy, but SUPER active, and he HATES to be confined.
[I have this picture in my head of him SCREAMING bloody murder throughout the duration of the 5 hour flight, culminating in our fellow passengers demanding that we poisoned to death by stale airplane food.]
So help a Mama out:
What's the best routine to get through check-in and security?
What do I pack?
What happens if he has a blow out in his diaper
How do I best combat the Screamies?
How do I help the pressure in his little ears?
What other things should I know?
Is there any hope for us at all?
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Sweet potato pancakes, grits, and gorgeous veils, OH my!
Today has been a weird day. First poor Farrah Fawcett lost her battle with cancer, and then MJ has a heart attack....While it is a sad day for the pop culture community and world at large, at risk of sounding disrespectful, I'm glad they're gone, b/c at least they're (hopefully) at peace. Ms. Fawcett was undoubtedly in immeasurable amounts of pain--in hell, and Mr. Jackson was well, immeasurably fucked up, so in his own brand of hell all the same.
But that's all I'm going to say about that....
On to happier things:
Our trip to Atlanta went REALLY well. It was so much fun, but OH MY SWELTERING. So hot!
Husband went off to "rough it" with the boys in the woods of North Carolina (if a swank cabin with flat screens, beds, and a jacuzzi coupled with frat-level drinking games are part of a general wilderness motif), and I stayed in Hotlanta with my new SIL and her friends. They were a fantastic group of women, and so sweet.
The weekend was filled with fantastic food (my life is forever-changed after the introduction of Moose Tracks), bridal celebrations, drunken texts (from the boys), silly pictures, and scandalous lingerie (all in the name of Jesus...lol).
All in all, the makings of a memorable weekend.
I loved getting to spend time with my SIL-to-be, as we really didn't know each other AT ALL before this trip. After, however, we've discovered a menagerie of commonalities and have made a pact. Haha.
The best part of the trip was being able to go with her to try on her dress and be a part of the veil-choosing. Dealing with the aging Southern Debutante, not so much.
To the woman's credit though, she did show us one of the coolest tricks to do with your veil that I have ever seen.
As far as little Owen, we are in 20th week, and feeling pretty good. All I want to do is eat, which kind of freaks me out, because I want to be really careful about my weight gain, and unfortunately, I'm not craving veggies and cottage cheese, if you know what I mean....
We have our scheduled U/S through the perinatal office on the 29th. This was supposed to be our anatomy screen, but as you all know, I jumped the gun, and went to a third-party place on my own.
I'm nervous that this U/S will tell us that it's a girl. Not that we'll be any LESS thrilled, it will just be kind of weird....like: JUST KIDDING. Sorry, Owen. You'll now be known as Olivia. Awkward!
In reality, all I care about is that he's healthy, which is why I love U/S's because you can get a more accurate reading of the heartbeat, position, movement, measurements, etc. If I had it my way, I'd have one every month! Haha.
In other baby news, I've started the prep for baby shower time!
I think I'll put all of that in a separate post though, as I'm starting to lose focus! Oy! Mommy brain!
But that's all I'm going to say about that....
On to happier things:
Our trip to Atlanta went REALLY well. It was so much fun, but OH MY SWELTERING. So hot!
Husband went off to "rough it" with the boys in the woods of North Carolina (if a swank cabin with flat screens, beds, and a jacuzzi coupled with frat-level drinking games are part of a general wilderness motif), and I stayed in Hotlanta with my new SIL and her friends. They were a fantastic group of women, and so sweet.
The weekend was filled with fantastic food (my life is forever-changed after the introduction of Moose Tracks), bridal celebrations, drunken texts (from the boys), silly pictures, and scandalous lingerie (all in the name of Jesus...lol).
All in all, the makings of a memorable weekend.
I loved getting to spend time with my SIL-to-be, as we really didn't know each other AT ALL before this trip. After, however, we've discovered a menagerie of commonalities and have made a pact. Haha.
The best part of the trip was being able to go with her to try on her dress and be a part of the veil-choosing. Dealing with the aging Southern Debutante, not so much.
To the woman's credit though, she did show us one of the coolest tricks to do with your veil that I have ever seen.
As far as little Owen, we are in 20th week, and feeling pretty good. All I want to do is eat, which kind of freaks me out, because I want to be really careful about my weight gain, and unfortunately, I'm not craving veggies and cottage cheese, if you know what I mean....
We have our scheduled U/S through the perinatal office on the 29th. This was supposed to be our anatomy screen, but as you all know, I jumped the gun, and went to a third-party place on my own.
I'm nervous that this U/S will tell us that it's a girl. Not that we'll be any LESS thrilled, it will just be kind of weird....like: JUST KIDDING. Sorry, Owen. You'll now be known as Olivia. Awkward!
In reality, all I care about is that he's healthy, which is why I love U/S's because you can get a more accurate reading of the heartbeat, position, movement, measurements, etc. If I had it my way, I'd have one every month! Haha.
In other baby news, I've started the prep for baby shower time!
I think I'll put all of that in a separate post though, as I'm starting to lose focus! Oy! Mommy brain!
Saturday, June 13, 2009
"Early Father's Day", and "To Crash, or not to Crash?"
Father's Day came early this year in our house. This was due to hectic travel schedules on everyone's part. My FIL is leaving tomorrow morning for a business trip, and then on Thursday, my husband and maybe myself (more on the maybe part in a minute), will be flying to Atlanta to visit his brother and his fiancee.
We won't be back until late Sunday night which meant that we had to celebrate this weekend....
I decided that for F Day, I really wanted to surprise my hubby with the baby's gender. How perfect is that, right?
Well, my OBGYN attempted to thwart my plans. He wanted me to wait until I was 20 (to date, I'm almost 19) weeks to have my ultrasound, so he scheduled me for the 22nd of June. Well, BOO on that, sir!
I was soooo bummed! But then, a friend suggested something brilliant:
Just go to one of those 3D imaging places, and pay them to do the ultrasound.
(She's a genius)
Off I went! Granted we're trying to save money and all, but this was too perfect!
After almost a half an hour of the baby hiding the goods, my MIL and I got the news:
It's a BOY!!
I totally started bawling. Happy Tears, of course!
I found the cutest little frames that have the "What are Boys Made of?" rhyme on them, and inserted the two best u/s pics....
We presented one to my FIL and one to my hubs last night.
The look on his face was PRICELESS. :)
He's over the MOON to be having a son, and it's kinda cool because my husband was the firstborn son to his parents, and the first grandchild to his parents, and our son will follow that line as well.
Get ready world, Owen Christopher Guillermo is on his way!
Now on on to the 2nd part of today's blog--
Like I mentioned at the top of this post, my husband and I are supposed to fly out on the 18th, and spend the weekend with his brother and our soon-to-be sister-in-law, to celebrate their respective bachelor/ette parties, but I think that I may be bowing out.
This makes me very sad, as I was really looking forward to spending time with them, but the problem is, well, our lodging arrangement while there.
My husband and I will not actually be together for most of the trip, as he'll be going out to the woods to rent a cabin and do "manly-man" man things with his brother and the other groomsmen.
I, on the other hand, will stay with my new SIL, as we celebrate bridal things, and have Girls Night Out, etc....
Awesome, I know. Except for the fact that I would spend three nights crashed on their couch in a very cool, but small loft-type studio.
This is going to make me sound like a spoiled brat, but I can't really crash on people's couches/floors anymore. Not with my 80-year-old-lady joints.
And as I mentioned before, pregnancy has compounded this problem quite a bit. I'm pretty much in pain all the time.
In the middle of the night, it's worse because of sleeping in one position or another for an extended period of time. I have a hard time getting up and out of bed, I have to hobble to the bathroom (constantly, as little man has taken up residence directly on my bladder), and sometimes I don't always make it, ahem, successfully. The pain and stiffness issue should go back to the level I'm used to after i give birth, but it doesn't help the situation at hand now.
As you can see, this doesn't really bode well for crashing on a couch (one that I have never seen, nor have any idea if it's actually big enough to handle a 5-months-pregnant disabled woman--both my BIL and SIL are no bigger than a minute), and navigating terrain in the dark that I'm not familiar with.
I just don't think it's going to end well, and my husband hasn't been okay with the arrangement from the get-go. He doesn't want me to be uncomfortable and sleepless for 3 days, but mostly, he's afraid I'll fall down and hurt myself.
At first, I just thought he was being a worry wort, but given my pain level these days and my recent falls, I've started to feel apprehensive myself.
Our original plan was to get me a hotel/motel room, so that the bathroom would be steps from the bed, and I'd be able to leave the bathroom lights on all night to help me see...
But as this trip is already breaking our bank as it is, that arrangement is out of the question.
I want to go! I'd hate to miss out on this, especially since we're missing out on the wedding in October.
So what's a girl to do? Do I just go armed with cane and a nightlight, suck it up, and hope for the best? Or do I resign myself to staying home?
Sometimes, my Cerebral Palsy really pisses me off.
But, I can't be too whiny. The most important thing is that my husband will get to spend some time with his brother, which he's stoked for, and lest we forget:
We're having a SON!
We won't be back until late Sunday night which meant that we had to celebrate this weekend....
I decided that for F Day, I really wanted to surprise my hubby with the baby's gender. How perfect is that, right?
Well, my OBGYN attempted to thwart my plans. He wanted me to wait until I was 20 (to date, I'm almost 19) weeks to have my ultrasound, so he scheduled me for the 22nd of June. Well, BOO on that, sir!
I was soooo bummed! But then, a friend suggested something brilliant:
Just go to one of those 3D imaging places, and pay them to do the ultrasound.
(She's a genius)
Off I went! Granted we're trying to save money and all, but this was too perfect!
After almost a half an hour of the baby hiding the goods, my MIL and I got the news:
It's a BOY!!
I totally started bawling. Happy Tears, of course!
I found the cutest little frames that have the "What are Boys Made of?" rhyme on them, and inserted the two best u/s pics....
We presented one to my FIL and one to my hubs last night.
The look on his face was PRICELESS. :)
He's over the MOON to be having a son, and it's kinda cool because my husband was the firstborn son to his parents, and the first grandchild to his parents, and our son will follow that line as well.
Get ready world, Owen Christopher Guillermo is on his way!
Now on on to the 2nd part of today's blog--
Like I mentioned at the top of this post, my husband and I are supposed to fly out on the 18th, and spend the weekend with his brother and our soon-to-be sister-in-law, to celebrate their respective bachelor/ette parties, but I think that I may be bowing out.
This makes me very sad, as I was really looking forward to spending time with them, but the problem is, well, our lodging arrangement while there.
My husband and I will not actually be together for most of the trip, as he'll be going out to the woods to rent a cabin and do "manly-man" man things with his brother and the other groomsmen.
I, on the other hand, will stay with my new SIL, as we celebrate bridal things, and have Girls Night Out, etc....
Awesome, I know. Except for the fact that I would spend three nights crashed on their couch in a very cool, but small loft-type studio.
This is going to make me sound like a spoiled brat, but I can't really crash on people's couches/floors anymore. Not with my 80-year-old-lady joints.
And as I mentioned before, pregnancy has compounded this problem quite a bit. I'm pretty much in pain all the time.
In the middle of the night, it's worse because of sleeping in one position or another for an extended period of time. I have a hard time getting up and out of bed, I have to hobble to the bathroom (constantly, as little man has taken up residence directly on my bladder), and sometimes I don't always make it, ahem, successfully. The pain and stiffness issue should go back to the level I'm used to after i give birth, but it doesn't help the situation at hand now.
As you can see, this doesn't really bode well for crashing on a couch (one that I have never seen, nor have any idea if it's actually big enough to handle a 5-months-pregnant disabled woman--both my BIL and SIL are no bigger than a minute), and navigating terrain in the dark that I'm not familiar with.
I just don't think it's going to end well, and my husband hasn't been okay with the arrangement from the get-go. He doesn't want me to be uncomfortable and sleepless for 3 days, but mostly, he's afraid I'll fall down and hurt myself.
At first, I just thought he was being a worry wort, but given my pain level these days and my recent falls, I've started to feel apprehensive myself.
Our original plan was to get me a hotel/motel room, so that the bathroom would be steps from the bed, and I'd be able to leave the bathroom lights on all night to help me see...
But as this trip is already breaking our bank as it is, that arrangement is out of the question.
I want to go! I'd hate to miss out on this, especially since we're missing out on the wedding in October.
So what's a girl to do? Do I just go armed with cane and a nightlight, suck it up, and hope for the best? Or do I resign myself to staying home?
Sometimes, my Cerebral Palsy really pisses me off.
But, I can't be too whiny. The most important thing is that my husband will get to spend some time with his brother, which he's stoked for, and lest we forget:
We're having a SON!
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