Thursday, November 6, 2008
We Need a Getaway!
Jeremy and I need one last little romantic getaway before our lives are completely taken over by Baby Barclay!! We need somewhere within driving distance that isn't too expensive. I really wanted to go to New York City during the holidays (I've never been) but it looks like that's out. So give us some ideas if you have any!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Election Day!
Well, this isn't exactly pregnancy-related, although I guess the outcome of today's election will impact my little one in some small ways.
I am one of the least political people you will find. Clearly, I did not pay attention and/or have forgotten 99% of what I learned back in those good ol' Government and Economics classes. I regret that because there is so much I don't understand. I also despise "fakeness" and people not being themselves or not representing their values just to impress others. I digress...
But how can you not find this year's election just a little exciting. One way or the other we are really making significant history here, something I feel like our generation hasn't seen a lot of. (We just haven't competed with WWII, JFK, MLK Jr, etc.)
The high school that I work at held a mock election among staff and students yesterday. With the students, Obama had a 30% lead. With the teachers, McCain had a 9% lead. Isn't that funny? I can remember participating in some kind of nationwide election in 7th grade where Clinton had a landslide victory among the students. The kids will always vote for whoever is younger, better looking, and more popular. :) There were kids cheering for the opposing candidates in the hallways today and I was tempted to ask if they knew anything about what the candidates actually stand for, or if the kids were rooting for them based on less important things.
I always feel a little frustrated by voting. There is just no way I can vote that fully encompasses my values. I am "conservative" (Which, by the way, is a funny way for society to label my Christian values. Come on, Jesus was the biggest radical of all time :) But I also value equality, standing up for the oppressed, helping those in need, and all those good Democratic things. However, I can't stomach abortion (no pun intended), especially these days, and I can't go for gay marriage. Sorry, God called the holy union between a man and a woman marriage. They need to come up with another term for their relationships. And we can't really afford to hand out much more of our income to Uncle Sam. Not with the state of things.
So where does that leave me? I go with my gut I suppose. I'd probably vote Independent but what does that count for? Actually, unless you live in a swing state, your vote doesn't matter that much anyway right?
And then there are my relatives who send out political emails. You know who you are. I have never seen so much fear raised by a single politician. I think that most likely Obama will win tonight but I'm not going to be anxious about it, even though I don't particularly trust the guy. God has it all planned out. He is not surprised or dismayed by anything. God will do what he will do, and he doesn't need our help. In our homegroup, we read over an old sermon of our pastor's last weekend. It was about Sodom and Gomorrah (sp?) and how the real problem wasn't sexual deviance. Shocker. That was only a symptom of the condition of the hearts of those people. Keeping abortion and gay marriage illegal doesn't change the heart of the nation.
Well, enough of my ramblings. Either way, it was about time for some excitement in this country...and hopefully our next President will be an agent of change in making some positive outcomes.
I am one of the least political people you will find. Clearly, I did not pay attention and/or have forgotten 99% of what I learned back in those good ol' Government and Economics classes. I regret that because there is so much I don't understand. I also despise "fakeness" and people not being themselves or not representing their values just to impress others. I digress...
But how can you not find this year's election just a little exciting. One way or the other we are really making significant history here, something I feel like our generation hasn't seen a lot of. (We just haven't competed with WWII, JFK, MLK Jr, etc.)
The high school that I work at held a mock election among staff and students yesterday. With the students, Obama had a 30% lead. With the teachers, McCain had a 9% lead. Isn't that funny? I can remember participating in some kind of nationwide election in 7th grade where Clinton had a landslide victory among the students. The kids will always vote for whoever is younger, better looking, and more popular. :) There were kids cheering for the opposing candidates in the hallways today and I was tempted to ask if they knew anything about what the candidates actually stand for, or if the kids were rooting for them based on less important things.
I always feel a little frustrated by voting. There is just no way I can vote that fully encompasses my values. I am "conservative" (Which, by the way, is a funny way for society to label my Christian values. Come on, Jesus was the biggest radical of all time :) But I also value equality, standing up for the oppressed, helping those in need, and all those good Democratic things. However, I can't stomach abortion (no pun intended), especially these days, and I can't go for gay marriage. Sorry, God called the holy union between a man and a woman marriage. They need to come up with another term for their relationships. And we can't really afford to hand out much more of our income to Uncle Sam. Not with the state of things.
So where does that leave me? I go with my gut I suppose. I'd probably vote Independent but what does that count for? Actually, unless you live in a swing state, your vote doesn't matter that much anyway right?
And then there are my relatives who send out political emails. You know who you are. I have never seen so much fear raised by a single politician. I think that most likely Obama will win tonight but I'm not going to be anxious about it, even though I don't particularly trust the guy. God has it all planned out. He is not surprised or dismayed by anything. God will do what he will do, and he doesn't need our help. In our homegroup, we read over an old sermon of our pastor's last weekend. It was about Sodom and Gomorrah (sp?) and how the real problem wasn't sexual deviance. Shocker. That was only a symptom of the condition of the hearts of those people. Keeping abortion and gay marriage illegal doesn't change the heart of the nation.
Well, enough of my ramblings. Either way, it was about time for some excitement in this country...and hopefully our next President will be an agent of change in making some positive outcomes.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
16 Weeks and Happy Halloween!
Ya gotta love it! We had a little get-together at our house on Halloween night with some friends and had a great time. Here is the spread that Kelly helped me prepare:
Crazy weekend! After Halloween, we celebrated my mom, dad, and brother's birthday on Saturday evening at our house with some chicken chili and cake. Then today we are taking the snacks to our homegroup from church. I have never cooked so much in one weekend.
Here is my 16 week pic:
Jeremy was thrilled because he thought for sure people could see a little belly this week. :) Lots to report. Had my 3rd OB visit this week. It was kind of a bummer though. She just listened to the heartbeat, asked a few questions, and I was outta there. The last two visits I left the office glowing after seeing my baby. :) Strangely enough, I walked out of the office and found Keeli Williamson (not sure of her married name) sitting there, more prego than me. She lives close by and sees one of the other docs in the practice.
There are so many new experiences to be had when you are pregnant! I had the privilege of having my nonexistent belly patted down by a couple of virtual strangers (though they know Jeremy) a couple of weeks back. When my aunt did this recently, I laughed because really all that's sticking out at this point is the fat and intestines that are being pushed up by my expanding uterus. :) Also, since I think my blog viewship is basically female, I will add that I have more boobs than I know what to do with these days. I have gone in the last several weeks from a comfy B to a big mama D!! Is this really going to continue at this rate for the next 24 weeks?! If so, they won't even be able to find my belly when it comes time to deliver this child. And the "roadmap of pregnancy" finally appeared this week. Thought I might get out of that one. OK, OK, no more about the boobs, I promise. I just can't get over them...no pun intended...heehee. And then I purchased my first maternity clothes this week, a fabulous red wool coat and a pair of jeans, to have ready and waiting. I have had to retire some of my more snug-fitting things now. And who knew all the "normal" body functions that are disturbed by pregnancy? I had to visit the eye doc this week after seeing "sparks" flying around. This is apparently caused by changes in blood pressure or iron. And I did not know that your nose could be made so stuffy/runny by pregnancy. Although I'm not convinced that allergies aren't playing into that one. Lastly, the nausea report. My doc kept telling me that it could last as long as 16 weeks. Well, here I am. This week she told me it might take me an extra week longer. Gee. But I am feeling better at least!
Whew, that was a long one! My next appointment and sono is November 20, when we will hopefully confirm that we have a little Noah on the way. Have a great week everyone!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
In the Beginning...
For those of you who are not MySpacers, I decided to repost my blog describing "how we found out." Looking back, it is of great amusement to me. :) Enjoy!
08/08/08 5:30am
It's the morning of the Birthday Bash Cruise. Literally, only cruise ships get me up at this hour of the day. We have an early flight out of DFW, bound for Orlando, FL. From there we will rent a car and drive to Port Canaveral to embark on Royal Caribbean's Sovereign of the Seas ship, to spend 3 nights cruising around the Bahamas. We are totally pumped about our stops in Nassau and Cococay, and we're excited about the day we plan to spend at Disney World when we get back.
But let me get back to Friday morning, 5:30am, my bathroom. (I'll try to leave out some of the TMI details.) I have decided that I should take a pregnancy test just to be safe, since things are unfortunately due to start rockin' and rollin' that day, and not just the ship. All I have are a couple of Equate pregnancy tests (read cheap, generic) that I grabbed for occasions such as these. I use one and am thinking, no big deal. Until I notice a faint semblance of a vertical line accompanying the usual single horizontal line. I yell at my peacefully snoozing husband, "Jeremy, get in here!"
He squints at the test for a several seconds and asks, "Are you pregnant?" I respond, "No, I think it's just a cheap, fluky test. I'll take another." I proceed to reenact Juno by consuming lots of orange juice while I finish getting dressed. Jeremy sits on the bed watching me, every couple of minutes repeating, "Are you pregnant?" Eventually he gets dressed and begins teasing me by patting my belly and talking about "the baby." I roll my eyes and laugh and go take the remaining test. It is negative. HA, I say. We leave for the airport, but that fluky test continues to come to mind. I decide that we will stop and purchase some sort of quality pregnancy test on the way to the ship, just to be absolutely sure, since of course there is much alcohol involved in cruising it seems.
(Here we are at the Orlando Airport. Still SO not pregnant!)
We stop at Wal-Mart somewhere in between Orlando and Port Canaveral, where I purchase the motherload of digital Clearblue Easy pregnancy tests. (No fluky vertical lines on these bad boys! They either say "pregnant" or "not pregnant" and simple is what I need at this point.) Of course, Jeremy, Brian, and Stacie are cracking jokes the whole way to the ship and I keep saying, "You guys, I am SO not pregnant!" We get checked in and have just a few minutes to go to our rooms and grab our life vests for that ridiculous "just in case the ship sinks drill." I excuse myself to the bathroom, and for the 3rd time of the day, pee on another stick. I wash my hands and then go back to look at it. I swear I stood there for a good 30 seconds, staring and trying to figure out where the word "NOT" was. In a zombieish state, I tell Jeremy the news, along with Brian & Stacie, who are in ear shot, and we all just stare at each other for a few seconds. Then there is much excitement as we are rushed out the door to the "muster station" for the drill, wearing big orange life vests. (I am still in zombie mode and can't really think of what to say, but all the others are chattering away.)
If you have ever participated in one of these ridiculous drills, you'll understand. They line you all up on the tiny deck like sardines wearing big orange sumo life vests. It was really hot and my traveling buddies seemed to be making incessant comments about my being pregnant. I started feeling a bit claustrophobic, crammed in with all these strangers, who are looking curiously at me and know far too much about my reproductive status. Then I can't breathe. Next, I am pretty sure I am going to throw up over the side of the boat, in front of everyone, and on top of whomever might be below. I tell Jeremy that he needs "to get me out of there." He quickly leads me through the mass, shouting to all the staff that his wife is pregnant and about to get sick, and leads me back inside to the air conditioning. I sit down and my stomach goes back to where it should be.
(Here is me thinking about barfing over the side of the boat.)
Over the next couple of days, I gradually lose the zombie-like state and start to get excited about the whole deal. I did end up taking another test a couple of days later after the first digital one ran out on me, just to re-confirm that the whole thing was real. Yes, that makes a total of 4 tests, if you're counting.
So my blog about this vacation is a little different than those of the past! Here's my review in short: We didn't like Nassau. It was pretty trashy. Cococay, which is Royal Caribbean's private island was pretty cool though. We did some great snorkeling there. And I don't recommend Disney World in August, especially when your insane friends insist on visiting 3 parks in one day, and especially if you are pregnant.
(Ahhh...here's a happy face. No more zombie. Just wait another week and a half until the nausea hits her!)
08/08/08 5:30am
It's the morning of the Birthday Bash Cruise. Literally, only cruise ships get me up at this hour of the day. We have an early flight out of DFW, bound for Orlando, FL. From there we will rent a car and drive to Port Canaveral to embark on Royal Caribbean's Sovereign of the Seas ship, to spend 3 nights cruising around the Bahamas. We are totally pumped about our stops in Nassau and Cococay, and we're excited about the day we plan to spend at Disney World when we get back.
But let me get back to Friday morning, 5:30am, my bathroom. (I'll try to leave out some of the TMI details.) I have decided that I should take a pregnancy test just to be safe, since things are unfortunately due to start rockin' and rollin' that day, and not just the ship. All I have are a couple of Equate pregnancy tests (read cheap, generic) that I grabbed for occasions such as these. I use one and am thinking, no big deal. Until I notice a faint semblance of a vertical line accompanying the usual single horizontal line. I yell at my peacefully snoozing husband, "Jeremy, get in here!"
He squints at the test for a several seconds and asks, "Are you pregnant?" I respond, "No, I think it's just a cheap, fluky test. I'll take another." I proceed to reenact Juno by consuming lots of orange juice while I finish getting dressed. Jeremy sits on the bed watching me, every couple of minutes repeating, "Are you pregnant?" Eventually he gets dressed and begins teasing me by patting my belly and talking about "the baby." I roll my eyes and laugh and go take the remaining test. It is negative. HA, I say. We leave for the airport, but that fluky test continues to come to mind. I decide that we will stop and purchase some sort of quality pregnancy test on the way to the ship, just to be absolutely sure, since of course there is much alcohol involved in cruising it seems.
(Here we are at the Orlando Airport. Still SO not pregnant!)
We stop at Wal-Mart somewhere in between Orlando and Port Canaveral, where I purchase the motherload of digital Clearblue Easy pregnancy tests. (No fluky vertical lines on these bad boys! They either say "pregnant" or "not pregnant" and simple is what I need at this point.) Of course, Jeremy, Brian, and Stacie are cracking jokes the whole way to the ship and I keep saying, "You guys, I am SO not pregnant!" We get checked in and have just a few minutes to go to our rooms and grab our life vests for that ridiculous "just in case the ship sinks drill." I excuse myself to the bathroom, and for the 3rd time of the day, pee on another stick. I wash my hands and then go back to look at it. I swear I stood there for a good 30 seconds, staring and trying to figure out where the word "NOT" was. In a zombieish state, I tell Jeremy the news, along with Brian & Stacie, who are in ear shot, and we all just stare at each other for a few seconds. Then there is much excitement as we are rushed out the door to the "muster station" for the drill, wearing big orange life vests. (I am still in zombie mode and can't really think of what to say, but all the others are chattering away.)
If you have ever participated in one of these ridiculous drills, you'll understand. They line you all up on the tiny deck like sardines wearing big orange sumo life vests. It was really hot and my traveling buddies seemed to be making incessant comments about my being pregnant. I started feeling a bit claustrophobic, crammed in with all these strangers, who are looking curiously at me and know far too much about my reproductive status. Then I can't breathe. Next, I am pretty sure I am going to throw up over the side of the boat, in front of everyone, and on top of whomever might be below. I tell Jeremy that he needs "to get me out of there." He quickly leads me through the mass, shouting to all the staff that his wife is pregnant and about to get sick, and leads me back inside to the air conditioning. I sit down and my stomach goes back to where it should be.
(Here is me thinking about barfing over the side of the boat.)
Over the next couple of days, I gradually lose the zombie-like state and start to get excited about the whole deal. I did end up taking another test a couple of days later after the first digital one ran out on me, just to re-confirm that the whole thing was real. Yes, that makes a total of 4 tests, if you're counting.
So my blog about this vacation is a little different than those of the past! Here's my review in short: We didn't like Nassau. It was pretty trashy. Cococay, which is Royal Caribbean's private island was pretty cool though. We did some great snorkeling there. And I don't recommend Disney World in August, especially when your insane friends insist on visiting 3 parks in one day, and especially if you are pregnant.
(Ahhh...here's a happy face. No more zombie. Just wait another week and a half until the nausea hits her!)
Sunday, October 19, 2008
14 Weeks
Well, I now am in that stage where people will probably judge me as someone who has eaten one too many donuts, rather than a pregnant chick. (I only did that once, I promise!) There is a small tummy but it really just appears like too much lunch at this point.
I'm still feeling sick sometimes but maybe it's getting better now. I'm a little terrified that I will be one of those that is sick for 9 months. Not much else to report.
Our son's first name will be Noah (that's a whole nother blog) and the middle name is undecided right now and will not be announced until the day he is born. I am thinking about posting a poll on this blog and letting people vote for their fave! Of course, voting results may not impact the final decision :) Here is what I am pretty sure it cannot be: Caden, Aidan, Jayden, or Braden. Seriously, at my high school reunion, one-quarter of my graduating class had sons named one of those. And it's unfortunate because I LOVE Aidan but it seems to be the most popular name lately.
In the tradition of the Chamblee's, we are going for major nesting projects before the birth becomes imminent. I was afraid I had bitten off more than I could chew but its turning out nicely actually. We have a great contractor who has spent the past week constructing a new master shower for us. The old one was truly disgusting. I won't even tell you what he found when he tore it out. :) We also took on painting all the cabinets in the kitchen and master bathroom ourselves this weekend! BIG thanks to our sweet parents for each spending a day bailing us out. I'll post some pics after we get it all finished.
Oh and for those keeping up, sign up and leave me some comments! Apparently there are several people following and I have no idea about it. Have a great week!
I'm still feeling sick sometimes but maybe it's getting better now. I'm a little terrified that I will be one of those that is sick for 9 months. Not much else to report.
Our son's first name will be Noah (that's a whole nother blog) and the middle name is undecided right now and will not be announced until the day he is born. I am thinking about posting a poll on this blog and letting people vote for their fave! Of course, voting results may not impact the final decision :) Here is what I am pretty sure it cannot be: Caden, Aidan, Jayden, or Braden. Seriously, at my high school reunion, one-quarter of my graduating class had sons named one of those. And it's unfortunate because I LOVE Aidan but it seems to be the most popular name lately.
In the tradition of the Chamblee's, we are going for major nesting projects before the birth becomes imminent. I was afraid I had bitten off more than I could chew but its turning out nicely actually. We have a great contractor who has spent the past week constructing a new master shower for us. The old one was truly disgusting. I won't even tell you what he found when he tore it out. :) We also took on painting all the cabinets in the kitchen and master bathroom ourselves this weekend! BIG thanks to our sweet parents for each spending a day bailing us out. I'll post some pics after we get it all finished.
Oh and for those keeping up, sign up and leave me some comments! Apparently there are several people following and I have no idea about it. Have a great week!
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
12 Weeks: Bonus Edition
We went in for our "Sequential Screening" today and found out some big news! IT'S A BOY!! Apparently there is no external genitalia yet but there is some sort of marker that indicates what is to come. The technician said not to go shopping but that it's normally very accurate. The doctor said the same thing and sounded confident. But of course, I knew it already :) The purpose of the test (can't remember what the heck the medical term is? occlumency? no, that's harry potter.) is to check for Down's Syndrome, open neural tube defects, etc. The doctor said that everything measured normally. The really cool part was getting a 4-D ultrasound. The tech even made some short little video clips and burned them for us.
The 4-D pictures made him look a little alien-like so here is a regular picture.
Isn't he the cutest?? A little over 5 centimeters long now.
Peace out from the Barclay's.
The 4-D pictures made him look a little alien-like so here is a regular picture.
Isn't he the cutest?? A little over 5 centimeters long now.
Peace out from the Barclay's.
Monday, October 6, 2008
12 Weeks
Sorry, my 12 week post is a little late. We went to my 10 Year Reunion in Paris over the weekend AND the Cowboys game on Sunday.
The Reunion was good...it was great to see old friends. Everyone seems to be doing well, which was good to see. And I felt really good all weekend pretty much. I was thrilled thinking that the morning sickness is finally over...but then I was sick all day today. Go figure. Everyone keeps commenting about my lack of belly, although I now have a nice roll around the middle that I am sure came from the 15 desserts I had this weekend. Best of all, I got my hair done. :)
I had another doctor's appointment last week that went very well. She couldn't find the heartbeat so I got to have an extra sonogram! The little guy was kicking and flipping around in there even though he's just over 2 inches long...and I would never know it otherwise. That is so awesome to see! We go in the morning to have some tests done that include another sonogram and then no more until 20 weeks. Then we'll find out the sex for sure!
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