35 Weeks

Down to one hand's worth of counting the weeks... eeeeeeeek!  Maybe less, if she decides she doesn't want to wait that long!  Of the 36 mamas in my due-in-July Facebook group, 9 have popped already so we have 10 babies!  It's been crazy and though I don't have any of the symptoms/issues that the others have had, it still freaks me out that it could realistically happen any time now!


I'm trying to bump up my productivity now that I'm feeling better.  It took all last week for the ear infection to clear up, and the whole time I was taking the antibiotics I felt pretty crappy even though I was avoiding dairy and taking them with food and all that.  I'm sure they also caused the raging yeast infection I'm dealing with now.  I was uncomfortable enough from that and leftover ear pain that I had a lot of trouble sleeping last week.  Now that I'm off the antibiotics and on yeast infection cream I'm feeling tons better.  It must have been causing more discomfort than I expected because I slept like a rock the first night for the first time in weeks!


On Monday I saw Sue and everything looked okay, except my blood pressure was creeping up, so with that and the incessant foot swelling she decided to test me for pre-eclampsia.  The prospect of that scared me to death, since that's the reason several of my July girls were induced this early, but luckily the labs looked okay and Amelia's non stress test was perfect.  Still waiting to hear back on the 24-hour urine test since they wanted me to start it Tuesday morning, so it got dropped off this morning.  I see Sue again tomorrow to follow up, probably to check blood pressure again and do another non stress test.  I'm suspecting my blood pressure was more from the lack of sleep and the general feeling of unwell-ness over the last couple of weeks than from anything else, so we'll see how it looks after a few good nights of sleep.  Then next Tuesday I go back and see Dr. B, and she'll check for dilation and stuff and we'll figure out a plan for appointments so I can still save some gas and see Sue a few more times before the main event.  I'm far more comfortable with Sue than I am with Dr. B.


My feet are ridiculous.  I'm afraid to take a picture but I probably should at some point.  I've been avoiding salt (which is hard enough, but to do that while also avoiding dairy made for some interesting half-meals the last couple of weeks), drinking a crap ton of water (evidenced in my 24-hour urine test, which I had to sacrifice a Tupperware for because I filled up the jug they gave me even though I attempted to drink less... TMI, I know, sorry!), keeping them up when I can (noticed that the computer chair is the worst possible chair for me to sit in for my feet, but my back loves it), and trying both ice baths and warm baths.  I think I've narrowed it down to a circulation issue since the ice baths did nothing, avoiding salt did nothing, and drowning myself in jugs upon jugs of water didn't seem to help much either.  Sue thinks that possibly Amelia is compressing some veins so that the extra fluid can't really get pumped back up my legs.  Possibly compounded by my heart murmur, which everyone keeps telling me not to worry about.  A warm bath before bed does help the swelling go down a bit more in the night, so I'll stick to doing that since that's the only thing that helps.  


I've gotten some decent cleaning done today plus swimming with Mom and didn't feel the overwhelming need to nap, but it's creeping up on me now so I should probably give in for a little while. ;)  I've been typing up a template contract for composing music for a web series, which is taking a lot longer than I anticipated but once it's done I won't have to do it all again.  Then, maybe I can start working on some episodes soon!  I should have something else coming up too, helping a friend's dad write his second book (typing, research, probably some editing), so we'll see how that goes once we get started.  At least he'll pay me a little bit for it and it's definitely something I can do from home on the couch :)


Work is still going well for B. His ankle is bothering him some, but mostly he's doing fine. :) He should get his first full paycheck tomorrow or Friday, which is good because bills are due and I'm all kinds of antsy about that!  We should be able to take care of the end-of-the-month bills and the beginning-of-the-month bills, then we'll be on a regular schedule for stuff, but this extra week waiting for a paycheck has about driven me insane.  I need to work in some other bills that have been taken care of by our parents, but I can't really do that until I see what a typical paycheck is like.  Then we'll work on a new mattress and getting him a little pickup.  Naptime, even though Amelia's going crazy at the moment!

34 weeks

I had all kinds of energy that first day B went to work!  I got a lot done that day.  My productivity dwindled quite a bit after that and my naps got longer and longer... once it hit me that I'm at home now, it really felt like the week after finals or something and I just needed tons of sleep.  I guess that's not necessarily a bad thing, I wish I had gotten more done last week but oh well.  My ear didn't get any better with the drops.  Actually, it got worse, so I ended up going in last Friday to get antibiotics.  It still bothers me a little but it doesn't hurt like it did.  Unfortunately, the side effects of being on antibiotics are worse with pregnancy than they are normally, which contributed greatly to my need for naps... ugh.  Good thing I'm seeing Sue again next week.  My feet are still swelling quite a bit daily and they don't go down much overnight unless I make a conscious effort to prop them way up for several hours, an angle which causes a weird...stretching? in my cervix, so that makes me a tad nervous.  I'm starting to feel that when I stand up too, so we'll see if Sue thinks that's anything to worry about.

Mom recently found out that the Motel 6 in town will let people swim in their pool for $2 per visit!  She's been going 2-3 times a week with a friend to do exercises and relieve the gravity pressure from her back and hips.  I went with her on Wednesday and it felt AMAZING.  Until it was time to get out that is, then gravity hit full-force and I could barely walk. :/  I borrowed an old suit of hers that doesn't fit very well since I didn't see the point in buying one this late in the game.  Then yesterday she found a maternity tankini on sale that fits perfectly!  Next time I go I'll wear it and since I intend to labor in Mom's hot tub (with the temp turned way down, of course) it will definitely come in handy.  Until then, I'll probably wear the top a lot anyway because it's comfy!

B's incision abscesses healed up perfectly and the little scabs are almost gone.  Yesterday he had his final appointment with Dr. G, who proudly pronounced him healed!  We pretty much knew it was done, but it helped to hear it from the surgeon.  We expected them to at least run some blood work or something to make sure, but it ended up being a couple questions and a couple pokes.  He didn't bat an eye at the sugar treatment we did for the incision so it must not be unheard of... okay whatever, it worked!  It's hard to believe that almost 5 months later we're finally done with all that.  He still has some aches and he has to build up more strength, but he's doing really well at work.  He was very sore for a few days last week but we worked through it.

Last Saturday was my birth class at the hospital.  Most of the information was the same as I've heard/read, but at least now I know what the hospital policies are and that they'll support me in my efforts to have a med-free birth and to get breastfeeding right away.  Mom and B went with me and there were probably 25 other couples there.  The chairs were horrible!  Sitting there from 9-4 made my feet puff up like sausages and I had to get down on the floor for a while in the afternoon.  I can't believe I was the only one in the room with that problem, but I was the only one that got out of the chair for a while except for the tour of maternity.  The breastfeeding class was scheduled for last night but after B's appointment, I decided not to go.  I've read plenty and watched videos so I'm perfectly comfortable with what to do until she gets here, and it'll be a whole new ball game then.  There will be a lactation consultant at the hospital and I'll get lots of help from the WIC office and Sue, so I couldn't justify going out to dinner and wasting all kinds of time in Rapid waiting for a class that would've gotten us home late.  I didn't sign up for that one anyway, I was going to wait until after she was born but because it came free with the birth class they just signed me up for it anyway.  It just seemed pointless, so home we came to relax.

I finally caught back up with Robin for exercising and we've done something almost every day this week.  She has some sort of nerve/muscle issue going on that they haven't diagnosed yet, so we're running at about the same speed, which works out well for both of us.  I'm meeting her for yoga this morning.  I'm hoping that stepping up my exercising I'll get more energy to get the house ready and curb my weight gain a little.  I'm still steadily gaining, but I'm sure some of it now is due to retaining water in my legs that I just can't seem to really clear up.  Next on my list of stuff to do at home is go through my old toys for stuff to sell so I can move some other stuff into the shed to make room for baby stuff.  It's not a gigantic project, but bigger than I've wanted to do since my ear has been bothering me.  Hopefully I'll get somewhere with that today after yoga.  Tomorrow my friend Krystal is coming to town to take maternity photos at Kidney Springs, so that should be fun!

I have less than 2 weeks left on my indiegogo fundraiser, so one more share would be appreciated! :)  B's paychecks are much better than mine were but we still have some catching up to do.  His bills are still in limbo so we'll be dealing with that for a while.  TGIF!

32 and 33 weeks

33 weeks, in one of Mom's old dresses.
I have 2 of these and fully expect to live in them all summer.

Last week was a little on the crazy side so a post didn't happen, sorry!  My last day at work was Thursday so now I'm officially a stay-at-home-mom.  Or, work-at-home-mom, if you figure in music writing and little side jobs here and there.  Whatever.  I didn't fully announce this before, but my boss moved the office to a smaller place, basically a desk inside another office, and decided he didn't have room for me there.  So, I've been laid off.  I thought I should be more upset about it, and I do sort of wish that it could've waited another paycheck or two, but honestly, this is okay.  My job ended just as B's job started (he started this morning and will be staying the night at the job site) and I'm pretty sure he'll make something like twice what I did, so we'll be fine one way or another.  Mom and I decided to expand her online book consignment business a little bit to include a local bookstore, so that will bump that up and help both houses.  We might let it become a big thing, we might not, it just depends on how manageable we can keep it.  So, now my job is to get the house ready for Amelia, keep us fed with fresh homecooked food (with Mom's help of course, we share food a lot), and work on scheduling my exercise and writing into my day so that it all gets done.  I'll do really well once I've established a routine.

We had a little scare with B last weekend.  His incision, which had been healed up nicely for 2 weeks, was red, hard, and looked like a giant blister.  We debated going to the ER, going to the local clinic when it opened next (of course, this was over Memorial Day weekend), or waiting until we could get an appointment with the surgeon to look at it.  We ended up having to drain a bunch of stuff out of it on Sunday because it looked like it was going to break open on its own, which made me nervous but it helped a lot, and since he wasn't feverish or anything we waited until Tuesday to get into the clinic.  It turned out to be the right thing to do, since the doctor that was there that day has dealt with a lot of infected wounds and knew exactly what to do.  Dr. G has been trying to get B to go to his own doctor anyway so we figured this was as good a time as any.  It turns out that the scar tissue from the incision trapped a few pockets of infection where the antibiotics couldn't get to them, and once he was off the antibiotics those little pockets went nuts with staph.  Treatment is strange, but simple and extremely effective... he cleaned out each little abscess, opened each of them up with a q-tip, and shoved a clump of brown cane sugar into each one.  The infection and dead tissue gets drawn out immediately into the gauze dressing, so we just need to rinse it in the shower then repack the sugar daily until the holes close up.  This has been by far the simplest recovery of anything we've had to do, and the weirdest treatment, but it works!  It should all be healed up sometime in the next few days.  Oh, how I wish we could've done this for his liver abscess... I suspect it would've worked SOOOOOO much better than what they did... but oh well.  His next (and hopefully final) appointment with Dr. G is next Thursday, then hopefully none of us will have to see him again.

I had my 33 week appointment with Sue today and that went well.  Everything looks fine, except my ear has been bugging me since I got sick 2 weeks ago, so she got me some ear drops to take care of that.  I got two grocery runs done today, the first one when I dropped B off at his carpool rendezvous point and the second after my appointment (because I forgot my WIC checks at home this morning... oops).  I'm taking a break now from attempting to get the kitchen under control after groceries and neglect.  I'm making a conscious effort to sit down and put my feet up several times a day since they get swollen so easily, especially when it's 95 outside and 80 inside.  I'm attempting to keep it cool in here but I'm not having much luck lately.  Normally I can open up the windows at night and the cool night air will cool down the house considerably, but last night there was no breeze whatsoever and the night before we had a storm but it didn't cool down much, so i haven't been able to cool the house off at night so during the day this aluminum box of a house just cooks.  I hate running the air conditioners more than a couple hours per day but lately if I don't turn them on the minute it starts to warm up outside the house gets almost as hot as outside.  Especially doesn't help if I'm trying to cook or run laundry or clean or something.

Speaking of which... the kitchen still needs help and it's about dinner time.  If you have a moment, please look at my sister Sara's indiegogo fundraiser to help with her ovarian cancer surgery.  Her insurance company made her and her doctors jump through all kinds of hoops in order for them to approve the procedure, which wasted a lot of time and nearly resulted in the cancer spreading to her stomach and spine, then after the surgery was done denied the claim.  She's fighting them about that now, but she's on oral chemotherapy and has lots of follow-up appointments to go to so any help you could spread her direction will be deeply appreciated.  I still have a few weeks left on my fundraisers, but I imagine you're all sick of looking at links to them. ;) Have a good week, and I'll attempt to be a good little SAHM :)

31 Weeks

The time is drawing near, I can now count the weeks until our due date on my fingers!  Am I ready to be a mom? Nope.  Am I getting nervous for labor and all that? Not really.  Anxiety only makes labor worse so I just won't let myself go there. 

I had my appointment with Sue yesterday and it went well.  I'm still gaining too fast, but she's not very worried about it if I'm making the effort to eat well and be active.  I could be doing better on both fronts... now that concerts and everything are over that will help me get back on track.  When I'm pulled in too many directions the first thing to go is my exercise regimen, second is meal planning.  Work will be done soon (sooner than I would've liked but oh well) so that will help too.  Overall, my iron is a little low so I need to bump up the iron in my diet, otherwise everything else is looking good.  I'm measuring 1.5cm big (which translates to 1.5 weeks ahead), which is pretty consistent with the last couple of measurements so she's not worried about it and it's not a big deal unless it's 3cm+ more.  Monday was a rough day.  I felt generally crappy all day, breakfast came right back up (which is extremely strange for me, considering I made it all the way thru my first trimester and the 10 years prior without throwing up), and all I wanted to do was stay in bed.  I didn't feel actually sick with body aches and everything, but just low enough that I knew I had to take it easy.  I have been fine since, so maybe it was just the stress from the previous week being so crazy.  I always knew that stress made me sick, so apparently that plus pregnancy makes for a bad combo.  Surprised that it didn't happen this way before considering everything that's happened, but maybe I'm more delicate in the 3rd trimester than I was in the 2nd.

Amelia is head-down and squirmy!  Her new favorite thing to do is stick her little butt out right above my belly button.  She does this every few hours during the day and it's pretty funny.  I'm feeling all of the kicks on the right side, so Sue confirmed that her back is along my left side for now.  Very strong heartbeat and very active, so that's all good.  I've been having some Braxton Hicks contractions, which really just feels like I suddenly have more room to breathe.  It's a wonderful feeling, actually!  She's not showing any signs of coming early yet so hopefully it all stays this way for a while.

I'm really hoping the job that B has lined up pulls through.  No reason why it shouldn't, but I'm always nervous about this stuff before it actually gets going.  He needs to put some real effort into getting up and about more so that he can keep up with the new job without pushing himself too hard.  I should be able to get unemployment for a while so that will help. 

I got a new diaper in the mail today!  It's a bit ridiculous how excited I get about new diapers.  Not sure if I've talked about it before, but we'll be using cloth diapers!  There are still plenty of naysayers (often the same people that say maybe I can't breastfeed, and most of them don't have kids... what??) but I'm gung-ho on this.  The initial investment is higher, but in the long run they'll save us THOUSANDS and we can reuse them for future kids and/or sell them.  Try doing that with a disposable. :P  Plus, customized fit and absorbancy, complete control over the chemicals that come in contact with her little bum, and look at how freaking CUTE that print is!  I've decided to go with Softbums because they can be used with a pocket or not, since the insert snaps in, and I didn't want to have to wash the whole diaper every time like you do with pockets or all-in-ones but didn't want the hassle of messing with prefolds (yet... I may experiment with that down the road, we'll see).  I've got a good starting stash of these now, in lavender, mint green, and brown plus this "Miss Kitty."  I've registered for white and two different blues and B wants a bright green one, so I'll pick one of those up at some point too.  I've been getting myself about one a month to build up the stash before she gets here without putting too much stress on the budget.  They don't often have prints, mostly it's just the solids, but when I saw this one I couldn't resist!  It was on sale too, with free shipping! :)  These aren't the cheapest brand but they got great reviews on Padded Tush Stats and I'm even more in love with them now that I have some.  I can even use different inserts with them if I want to, I just like theirs because they come in different sizes and the huge ones fold over for more absorbancy but still dry quickly.  Next thing I need to figure out is a clothesline.  Specifically, where I want to put it...  I'm pretty sure I can get one at Ace for pretty cheap.

We've got about a month left on our online fundraisers at indiegogo and giveforward and it may be time to start looking at bankruptcy attorneys even though all the final bills aren't in yet, at least to get a consultation.  I'm pretty sure we'll need those funds either for filing his bankruptcy or to offset the fact that I'm losing a month of paychecks before Amelia is even born, and I'm unsure about going back to work afterwards or not.  I'm putting off that decision until she's here and she and I have a good rhythm set.  That also depends on what B will be making, and we can't know that until he's been there for a little while.  I'm trying not to worry about it, I know things will work out one way or another. 

30 Weeks

Big progress this week!  Sunday we received the check from the church fundraiser and it was something like twice what we were expecting!  How incredibly humbling and exciting that we can finally take care of the little niggling bills that have fallen behind.  The propane bill is taken care of and I requested another fill-up so we'll take care of that bill also then be set for the summer.  My bill from my first doctor visit to confirm pregnancy has been paid off finally (for some reason, my Medicaid didn't backtrack that far so I owed for that appointment), I'm signed up for the birth class at the hospital, and we went to Target for some toy storage!  Then on Tuesday we spent the whole day cleaning up the office, setting up the cube shelves, and moving the dresser out of the bedroom and into the office so now we have a half-nursery corner with the dresser/changing table and toy storage drawers/shelves, which then opened up enough space in the bedroom for me to go through my summery clothes finally and find what I had that could still work for the summer.  That was one heck of a day but I was so relieved to get all that done!  Nesting must have hit me full-force or something.  Bedroom is next on the list, then possibly trying to sell the big armchair in the living room to make space for the baby furniture that's starting to come in!  It's getting exciting!

I'm feeling about the same as last week.  Good thing I have a belly support belt now, it's helpful if I wear it for a couple hours a day to give my back a rest.  I ordered a nursing bra online, but it doesn't fit and I can't return it, so I figure I'll try it on again a couple months into breastfeeding in case the "girls" shrink down a little, and if not I'll try to sell it.  It has the tags on and everything still.  This is why I hate ordering clothes online.   I ordered a nursing-friendly maternity shirt at the same time, and it's huge!  I don't mind the way it drapes, but the neckline is super wide so the shoulders don't stay up.  Mom and I figured out that if we attach a ribbon at the shoulder seams I can tie it behind my neck and that should help.  Hemming the shoulders up would have been a nightmare. 

There is news on the job/maternity leave front, but I'm not sure how public I should be about it yet.  For now, let's just say we got my maternity leave worked out.  Details later.  But, B contacted his new future boss and they'll get everything set up so he can start working around June 1st, which will be great!  He got his last drain tube out on Monday at his appointment and needs to check back in a month, but Dr. G is pretty confident that we're done with all the surgeries!  Good thing too, it's about time we were able to focus on Amelia's arrival!

I was able to make my appointment next week with my midwife Sue instead of Dr. B, which is fine by me!  Sue is far more helpful.  I don't need to drive an hour each way to get 20 seconds of "oh don't worry about that" and "everything looks fine" every time.  I'm definitely finding a different doctor next time. 

29 Weeks

Oy, my hair needs some serious help.  I'm thinking I'll let it grow out so it's easier to tie back like I had it when I was working at the store, but the bangs will take a long time to get there and the rest could use a reshaping.  And highlight touch-ups before my maternity shoot.  It all seems like wishful thinking at this point!

So.  I'm feeling about the same as I have been, just feeling the sleepiness creep up on me more and more.  Amelia is still very active, and I can tell she's still vertical but can't tell which end is which.  I think I'll make an appointment with Sue, my midwife, for next week now that she's back from surgery so we can get things going there.  Maybe I can do most of my laboring at home then get in the car, but I want to know how much she's willing to help before I go up to the hospital so we can get some sort of game plan set up there.  Since Dr. B cares so little for birth plans, I'll just need to stick with Sue for that part.  I also need to quit procrastinating and get signed up for the hospital birth class before it fills up.  I've been putting it off because I don't want to write the check for it yet, but now that we're on food stamps it should be fine after this next paycheck.

Still nothing from the church fundraiser yet.  The foundation is certainly taking its sweet time getting everything processed... I've promised the gas company payment from that and haven't been able to pay them yet.  I had no idea it would take so long.  I asked my boss today about how he wants to handle my maternity leave and what my concerns were, and he said he hadn't thought about it at all yet.  Hopefully he'll think on it now so we can come up with something.  Mom had an idea yesterday that I could work some extra days now so that I don't miss as many full paychecks when I'm off, but I'm not sure he'll go for that.  It's not like I can schedule when I go into labor (well, I could, but it's completely unnecessary!) or how long it takes to recover.  Frankly, I'd love nothing more than to stay home with my baby girl and write and garden, but that may not be in the cards.

The good news is that B has a job lined up for when he can go back to work!  He'll be on the contractor crew for all the window and door installations for Lowe's in Rapid City!  This means some travel, but we think he'll be able to carpool to the sites most of the time (and might have to until he gets his own vehicle, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it) and hotels and such are covered.  No benefits of course, but what job around here has any?  He'll be working with some guys he knows from his old job so they know what he's been through and will work with him as far as his physical capabilities are concerned until he gets back in shape and completely healed up.  We're not sure what kind of hours or schedule it will end up being until he's been there for a while, but maybe it'll be good enough to afford me some sort of maternity leave longer than 2 weeks.  That would be nice.  It won't take much to get us there actually, since we've been surviving solely on my paychecks and some direct donations, and both online fundraisers will run out in July and distribute their funds then.  Maybe we'll be okay after all. 

No word yet on the hospital's financial aid.  Maybe they're folding this last batch of bills in with that or something.  No bills from this hospital or ambulance since the first ones, so we have no idea how much he actually owes yet.  Not that we could pay it anyway, but it would be nice to know at least.  I think my nesting instinct is going to include the hospital bills too... it would be very nice to get all that sorted out long before Amelia comes.

Well, I guess I've rambled enough for one day.  Only 11 weeks left... EEK!

28 Weeks

Well, here we all are!  Family pic at 28 weeks!  I was practicing wrapping my new Moby (thanks Bubble!!!) and showed B how the baby will fit in there using the American Girl doll I saved my allowance for months to buy when I was 7 (I was always ridiculously proud of that doll for some reason).  I'll be spending a lot of time in that dress this summer too, even though it's not technically a maternity dress.  It'll work until my belly is absolutely huge. :)

Yesterday was my 28 week appointment with Dr. B.  According to their scale, I only gained 5lbs in the last month, which is still too much but she said 3 when she was talking to me (not sure why, but I wasn't about to correct her!).  At least I managed to slow the gain down by half.  Everything's looking good, Amelia's heart rate was nice and strong, and she's such a wiggleworm that it's a little strange when she's not moving around in there.  I brought my birth plan to discuss with her, but she basically dismissed most of it saying "well, just keep and open mind and stay flexible, nothing goes according to plan." I don't like how she's still dismissing most things I say, but oh well.  It'll go how it goes and it's up to me to prepare anyway.  She doesn't think it's necessary to get a hotel room for labor, but unfortunately there are no tubs at the hospital. :( She thinks we'll have plenty of time to get to the hospital when the contractions are close enough since first labors typically take forever. So, I guess I'll be laboring at home, or possibly at Mom's house since they have a much nicer tub than mine, and trying not to panic in the car for the hour drive when contractions are 3-5 minutes apart.  It's mandatory to get an IV also... that doesn't make me happy either since it'll get in the way of movement, so I guess I'll just wait as long as possible before going in and not worry about the drive.  Hopefully my midwife can help with laboring so I don't freak out too much.

B came home from the hospital on Monday.  He's feeling much better this time around now that all the infection is out of there.  The chest tube has to stay in until the abscess cavity closes up completely and there's no chance of the infection building back up.  It's a big tube, but luckily it's in a better spot on his back than the other tubes were so it doesn't hurt him as much.  He's anxious to be back to normal and is helping around at home as much as he can.  We did manage to get him back up to his starting weight but now he needs to build his muscles back up.  He's been sleeping heavily at night, which is a good thing for his healing, but he's feeling good enough during the day to skip pain meds.  That was very much not the case the first 2 times he came home from the hospital.

As far as I know, the hospital is still working on approving our financial aid.  I haven't heard anything from them lately about it but now they're probably working on adding the most recent surgery and hospitalization.  There's been wonderful progress on indiegogo and giveforward as well as some direct donations so THANK YOU EVERYONE who has helped us out!  I can't stress enough, without your help we would have no hope of staying afloat!  The church benefit is done now so we're waiting for the check with matching funds from the foundation.  I have no idea how much that ended up being, but hopefully that can help us take care of some bills at least.  Once B can go back to work we'll need another vehicle too, so I'm keeping my eye out for a little pickup for $1500 or less.  Might be a futile effort there, but it's worth looking, right?  We'll probably have to get a few of his paychecks under our belts first so transportation to work will be interesting for a while if we're working on the same days, but we'll figure it out. 

I got my rep display kit yesterday and my first Park Lane paycheck today!  I'm so excited!  Now I just need some parties scheduled people!  Hostess bonuses are ridiculous! ;)

Feeling good this week, but tired.  Starting to feel the crunch until Amelia Belle's arrival.  Now that B's feeling better maybe we can start really getting the house ready!