Wouldn’t-cha know?!

Levi means joined in harmony.

If that doesn’t fit the bill…I don’t know what would!

BREAKING NEWS:

Ultrasound update!

Little man Levi is quite the ham! He waved and smiled at the ultrasound like he was a pro! All of his measurements were perfect and even a little ahead of schedule (which goes along with my theory of him being a big boy!). He came in at a whopping 1lb and 4oz. with a heart-rate of 156! He gave us the best little profile shot and a cutesy picture of his tiny baby feet. All of his measurements show him with a due date of April 22nd which is a little earlier than the one previously given but, I have the strangest feeling he’ll come when he’s good and ready, not when any doctor says so!

We couldn’t be happier or more proud! We’re already convinced he’s going to be the cutest one in his class!

Where has the time gone?

Today, I am 22wks pregnant. Can you believe it? I can’t. I’m over half way done with this pregnancy and that much closer to meeting the tiny little boy growing inside me…it all seems a little surreal!

Friday is Christmas! Matthew and I are very excited even though we are terrible secret keepers and pretty much already know everything that we’ve gotten each other. I did keep one a complete surprise but, I let him open it today because he came home from work with a pulled groin and in much pain. He was very surprised and very happy! Now, after a muscle relaxer and ibuprofen he is softly snoring in bed.

Back to the little papoose, who, according the baby books, is 1 whole pound and around 8 inches long! He looks like a tiny doll I’m guessing. He is getting to be quite strong! Bub can feel him kicking now and LOVES it. He loves to be read to, we are reading King Arthur. He adores music but that was pretty much a given anyway, and really likes when Daddy talks to him. Lately he’s been giving me some trouble getting to sleep but I’ve arranged 5 pillows in a very precise manner that seems to agree with both him and I. All of his senses are really starting to kick in and he seems to like the taste of Rubio’s chicken nachos: tons of cheese, pinto beans, pico de gallo and  guacamole, sour cream and, a lemonade. Also, anything and everything peanut butter. He and I are also avid water drinkers which is good news but juice is always second best. I seem to be hitting all of my target servings a day for every food group except vegetables. Not for lack of trying, they are just my weak spot. I’m doing my best while he’s in there but hopefully, he’ll get Matthew’s taste for veggies.

This weekend was wonderful! We walked around the mall, went to the flea market and found some pretty amazing records, went to a friend’s house and watched some football, and got to see a special showing of Sherlock Holmes on base! I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone! The weather has been beautiful and well, it’s Christmas time! And, to start the new year off right we’re going home to TX the 4-14th! The baby shower will be the 10th and I couldn’t be more excited!

If we don’t talk again before Friday I hope everyone has an amazing holiday! Love to you all! xoxo

p.s. Another ultrasound tomorrow!

Owl City – Vanilla Twilight

Dear Bub,

The stars lean down to kiss you
And I lie awake and miss you
Pour me a heavy dose of atmosphere

‘Cause I’ll doze off safe and soundly
But I’ll miss your arms around me
I’d send a postcard to you, dear
‘Cause I wish you were here

I’ll watch the night turn light-blue
But it’s not the same without you
Because it takes two to whisper quietly

The silence isn’t so bad
‘Til I look at my hands and feel sad
‘Cause the spaces between my fingers
Are right where yours fit perfectly

I’ll find repose in new ways
Though I haven’t slept in two days
‘Cause cold nostalgia
Chills me to the bone

But drenched in vanilla twilight
I’ll sit on the front porch all night
Waist-deep in thought because
When I think of you I don’t feel so alone

I don’t feel so alone, I don’t feel so alone

As many times as I blink
I’ll think of you tonight
I’ll think of you tonight

When violet eyes get brighter
And heavy wings grow lighter
I’ll taste the sky and feel alive again

And I’ll forget the world that I knew
But I swear I won’t forget you
Oh, if my voice could reach
Back through the past
I’d whisper in your ear
Oh darling, I wish you were here

Lessons…

Always the student…that’s me. I mean who knew you have to teach your child manners as early as in the womb?!?! Not me, that’s for sure! Our son has quite the sense of humor already. Most of the time it tickles me pink, but, when he uses my body as the punchline?…well that’s where I start to wonder: what am I in for?!

We’ve come to the conclusion that little man isn’t too hip to the idea of being pushed on. At the last ultrasound he did everything he could to escape, swimming all over my belly. Today, at the Dr. when we were listening to his heartbeat he nudged kicked the wand-thingie! There I am in my perfect world listening to the whoosh-whoosh-whoosh sound and all the sudden, BOOM! I looked at the Dr. and said “What was THAT?”, she laughed and said that he kicked the machine. So she finds his heartbeat again and sure enough, whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-BOOM! I started laughing because I’m picturing him in there floating around and then rearing back his tiny leg and saying, “really? I mean come on, I don’t mash on your growing environment!”

See, this kind of stuff is cute! Little glimpses of his personality before he’s even here! But, lately this child of mine likes to play the game: Don’t laugh, or I’ll make you pee your pants! Sometimes there are different versions like, Don’t sneeze! or Don’t cough! but most of the time it’s laughing. Another one of his favorite activities is embarrassing me in public. (If you are easily offended, this is where we part.) I like to think I’m a lady. Not the most proper, but a lady none the less. My husband thinks it’s hilarious if a “bodily-function” slips out, apparently our son takes after Daddy because lately I can’t go anywhere without getting the worst case of gas….it’s embarrassing. You may wonder why I would blame this on my sweet unborn child? Well why is it that I can be at home alllll day and not have a problem but the minute we are in public I become Gas-y Gail? Hmmm….and of course Matthew thinks it’s so funny. *sigh* What am I in for? Luckily there have been no casualties and we’ve had the area all to ourselves when these “pranks” are pulled.

There is still some pregnant lessons I’m learning too. If you eat like a teenage boy, you have to be active like one too. So far I’ve done really well on my weight gain and I’ve been really proud, but, today going into the Dr. I knew not to have high hopes. Between my visit home, Thanksgiving, and the cooler weather, I knew I was in trouble. Whatya know…8lbs. In 5 wks. Yeah. Now I’m not too down on myself because every pregnant woman has at least one bad weigh in. This one was mine and I’ll do better. But Lord help me to keep on track!

Overall, good Dr. visit. Levi’s heart-rate was 152 and my blood pressure was good. All his ultrasound measurements were great, right on track. We go back for another ultrasound in 2 weeks so we can get a better look at his tiny face…he didn’t wanna give up a profile shot last time.

Hopefully a visit home in the next month, and hopefully Matthew won’t be gone too much longer. Love to you all! XOXO

Courtesy of Kanye West:

While jamming with that wiggly papoose in my belly, Kanye got me in the mood to write.

Since my last entry to you dear folks, I/we have cooked our first Thanksgiving dinner, bought our first Christmas tree and decorated it, taken serious steps toward moving into base housing, and said goodbye to Matthew for another 2 weeks.

THANKSGIVING:

…was really great! I did prep for some things and made the pumpkin pie the night before, woke up with Bub the next morning early and started the turkey and finished the other dishes. We made the turkey, mashed pot., sweet pot., homemade stuffing, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, and the pumpkin pie. We knocked it out of the park! Everyone gushed about how great everything tasted and looked and even though my only competition was the chow hall I beamed with pride We spent the day with the Moran’s and some other Marines w/dates. Had a great meal and played games for the rest of the night!

CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS:

Yesterday, Bub and I got to spend most of the day together because he got called into work all day Saturday so they gave him a half-day as thanks. We went to Souplantation for dinner and when we got home Matthew checked his phone and had a message saying that he was leaving the next morning for ANOTHER C.O.M.E.X. ugh. So we buckled down and packed up all his things, then decided to go to Target to get everything we needed to decorate for Christmas. We bought the tree (our first tree!), and some decorations and decided to do it that night so we could do it together and not have to wait until the week before Christmas. We got home, put up the tree, and made it “ours” with the ornament Dadeo and Bon got us last year! We did a great job. The tree is perfect! And we had a blast listening to music and deciding the perfect place for each ornament. Afterward we felt too legit! Boy are we grown up with our very own Christmas tree hahaha

THIS MORNING:

We woke up suuuuper early and got him to base and said our goodbyes and I love you’s. I drove home and snuggled up with his pillow and passed out. 7:45…..I jump outta bed because someone is pounding on the door. Open it up, and what do you know?! There’s my handsome husband on the doorstep! Apparently he leaves Thursday….fine by me! So he came home and got me up to tell me that we were going to the Housing Office!

MILITARY HOUSING:

Our apartment is cozy and warm, decorated perfectly, and is very much a reflection of us. Our apartment is tiny. TINY. I love it and will be sad when we leave, remembering painting the wall that perfect shade of blue and graffiti-ing our bedroom wall, building the entertainment center and desk, and getting our very first set of furniture and feeling so proud. On the other hand, our baby boy will be here in a couple months and looking around we don’t even know where we can fit a pack of diapers. Awesome. So we’ve been looking at apartments and recently decided to seriously weigh military housing as another option. Yes, we lose our BAH(housing allowance) and that extra money came in handy at times….but this is a HOUSE we are talking about. With a yard, garage, ample space, washer/dryer hookup, playgrounds, super close to base and the lake! Did I mention it’s all bills paid?….YEAH! Already having everything we need to fill it, up it’s my number one choice!

So we went to the housing office today and filled out all the paperwork and got put on a house! We gave a move-in date of Feb.1st and can opt out at any time at no penalty just in case getting out of our lease doesn’t work. It’s beautiful! Matthew and I both love it and already have plans in the works to get us out of our apartment lease with no penalty. All seems to be going smoothly and I couldn’t be happier. Little man won’t be a sardine in a can….he’ll have plenty of room!

BREAKING NEWS!!!! We just got two packages! Fudge and rice krispy treats from Beccamama that will make your eyes roll back in your head and your toes curl! AND, 2 adorable onesies plus the cutest pair of camo baby converse you’ve ever seen! Thanks Mom and Dad or should I start addressing you all by your new names? Granmahja and Papa Mojo, Memaw and Papaw(?) Murphey, and Nana and Grampa Higgins

IT’S A BOY!

…and we’ve got the pictures to prove it!

Unfortunately our memory card crapped out on us and you’ll have to wait until Matthew gets home from work to see them!  Until then, here are the details about our little man!

18wks and 1 day (and his size proves it!)

9oz.

Heart rate was 152

and he is quite the little mover and shaker! He was everywhere! The ultrasound technician was chasing him all over my belly! We got some really good pictures of him, and he’s a charmer! We didn’t get any profile pictures because he was too busy looking right at us! We did get an awfully cute one of his legs crossed and what would be his tiny butt That was my favorite! He lays just like his Mommy! Matthew fell in love with him when she showed us his little heart beating and I had to tell him to quit shaking my legs so much cause I had to hold still! It was hard enough with how bad I had to pee and I kept giggling because I was so excited.

The other pictures are:

his little leg with tiny foot and toes included!

his arm and it looks like he’s flexing his muscle!

the proof that he is in fact a boy!

and body profile shot!

Needless to say we are in love with our little boy! I am super happy I can talk to my belly now and say Levi instead of baby! Matthew is over the moon! He even teared up a little and that melted my heart! So shower us with Congratulations because we love hearing them

 

Don’t worry about a thing…

I don’t know if it’s the Holidays coming up, my appointment tomorrow, normal pregnancy, or my Mom’s birthday, but something had me awfully wishy-washy yesterday.

I felt kind of “blah” all day but at some point I just got overwhelmed and felt sad. Sad that I wasn’t there for my Mom’s surprise party and sad that we would be having our first Thanksgiving away from family. I had one of those days when I just wanted my Mama. I did talk to her and she told me how much she loved me and how wonderful of a mother I’m going to be and how she has days when she just wants me too. I love my Mom more than she’ll ever know or I could tell/show her. I hate being so far away from her but, I love that she always makes it seem not too far. Today is her birthday, Happy Birthday Mahja! Hard to believe that when she was my age she was already putting up with my incessant babbling and tangled hair!

And yes, Thanksgiving without our family is a bummer but it’s not like Matthew and I will be alone. We’re having a combined Thanksgiving with other Marines and their wives/girlfriends. Gisel and I will be doing all the cooking and it makes me happy knowing that we have another sort of family to spend the Holiday with. I know we’ll have a great time and it will be one that we’ll always remember.

As always, when a Dr.’s appt. approaches I begin to fret. I know it’s silly, and everything will be okay but going weeks without seeing or hearing the baby is torture! So yesterday in the shower I’m thinking about how I’m 18 weeks pregnant and still haven’t felt the baby move. That’s almost the first thing everyone asks now, have you felt the baby move yet? It’s due time for that little stinker to be letting me know, I’m okay in here Mom! I flash back to a day I forgot to take my prenatal or a day that I let myself eat terribly and I worry that I’ve done catastrophic damage. I know everyone reading this is chuckling and rolling their eyes but I was serious! Matthew put his head on my belly and said everything is A-OK in there….the baby is beatboxing. When I talked to my Mom she said that I was going to be awesome at being a mommy and that “she” is just laid back like I was. (My mom is sure it’s a girl and that I’m going to give birth to a tiny replica of myself.) I told them both that they are right and I know everything is okay but in the back of my mind it was still there.

Our baby loves me and I’ll tell you why:

Matthew was making dinner and I was watching Juno trying to cheer up. Water in one hand, tissue in the other. Then, *angelic music* I felt it. It wasn’t some big boom boom, or anything that you would expect. It wasn’t butterflies, or tadpoles, or popcorn popping. It’s so hard to explain, but I guess those will have to do cause that’s as close as I can get. I felt it and thought to myself, Holy Cow!, that was the baby. I sat there for a minute wondering if I was hysterical and nothing happened then, there it was again! I don’t think I’ve ever smiled that big in my entire life. I’m crying typing it now because it makes me so happy. I always thought I’d go running and screaming the first time I felt the baby move but instead I just sat there enjoying it like it was our little secret and I told the baby how very much I loved him/her and that he/she was perfect and liked to play tricks like Daddy. I didn’t tell Matthew for a little while and I couldn’t tell you why I just wanted to savor it I guess. It was like baby was saying, cut it out Mom, I’m fine in here! And then another little nudge to say I love you. I did tell Matthew about 15 minutes later at dinner and I’ve never seen him look so happy. And then and there I knew not to worry,

cause every little thing, is gonna be alright.

p.s. Doctor tomorrow @10 to find out boy/girl!

 

the moon makes him crazy….

or maybe just the best husband in the world

Yesterday after Bub got home from work he took a quick shower and then we went to one of our favorite hole-in-the-wall places, Rigoberto’s, for dinner. I highly recommend it if you are in the San Diego/Mira Mesa area and want quality Mexican food. Dahling,….it’s to dieeeee for! And for those of you that read these, you know I’ve been in a “taste bud funk” so it was magnificent because my #1 hit the spot! (Pulled Beef Taco w/Cheese Enchilada in red sauce, rice and beans) So we finish there and Matthew wants something sweet which is code for ice cream and he’s had a rough week at work so who am I to turn the man down? We head to Coldstone and Bub isn’t in the correct lane so me being the passenger driver that I am:

“Matthew(in my special tone you all know and love), you’re in the wrong lane. Coldstone is on that side of the street(pointing).”

“Oh, sorry babe I’ll pull in and turn around.”

We don’t just turn around and I wasn’t in the mood to be messed with because it was coming between me and Coldstone. I mean sure I’m going for him, but COME ON! hehehe So in a calm and even tone I ask where we are going.

“Honey, where are you going?….Holy cow look at all the people outside the movie theatre already! It’s only 5:30!”

Matthew: “Well I know you wanna see the new Twilight movie so I thought I’d try to go and get tickets.”

I leaned over, kissed him on the cheek, and said “that’s very sweet my handsome man, but I’m positive it’s sold out. Look at all those people lined up for the seats they already bought! It’s alright though, we’ll go sometime next week for a matinée, no screaming crazed fans. And I want this to be as painless for you as possible for you seeing as how you’ve agreed to go in the first place….unless you’ve joined a team?”

He laughed and said, “Oh I’m Team Jacob, you know that! But I wanna check anyway it’ll be fun just stay here.”

I laughed and agreed. He comes back 5-10 minutes later and says, “You were right. But, we’ll go next week okay?” To which I responded, “Sounds perfect! Now let’s get some ice cream!” He gets back in the car but not before trying to get a rise out of everyone camped out in front of the theatre by screaming “Team Edward!”…that husband of mine….

We get our ice cream and are walking out to the car and he asks if I really wanted to go to the movie tonight because he knows how excited I am about it. I let him know that, yes, I am excited for the new movie but I’m not the type of fan that has to go to midnight showings and wear capes, or claim a team. I’m happy to let all those fanatics get their special time and let me watch it in peace.

We get in the car and he says, “well I hope you don’t mind it too much cause I got tickets”.

Yeah……..!

“What?!?!, you got tickets?…I thought you said they were sold out?, are you joking me?, how did you…”

He smiles and says the people in front of him in line just so happened to return theirs so he got them. I was like, whoa, that’s crazy. But I should have known not to believe his fickle stories! He smiles and says, “I’m kidding Emily, I just went in to pick up the tickets I had reserved.” Yeah, all nonchalant like that…no biggie. PFFFT! Well me being the emotional 4 month pregnant woman that I am, I got a little misty over the sweetness my husband had just shown.

I leaned over and kissed him and he’s laughing at me! I was NOT crying over New Moon….let me make that clear because if you heard this story from him that’s the version you’d hear! I was simply overwhelmed by the romantics my husband had so cleverly pulled off! I had just found out that my husband had purchased movie tickets to a movie he had no desire to see and kept them a secret for X amount of time without so much as the tiniest hint. He’s a terrible secret keeper when it comes to things that make people happy! So there I am, crying and eating ice cream and Matthew is glowing! We’re talking a smile from coast to coast! We get home and decide we’ll go up to wait in line about 8:30.

8:30

We show up, find the correct line and take our places. The line was long but we talked and goofed so it wasn’t too bad until around 11:15 when the other lines are all filing in and I’m wondering why we weren’t first because we have the first showing. We were the 12:01, the other lines were 12:10 and 12:15. So I stand there a little longer but my back is killing me and it isn’t exactly tropical weather outside and the “wolf-pack” at the front of the line is getting antsy. hahaha Finally, at 11:45 they let us in and Matthew and I found decent seats. We were entertained by the people FURIOUS over the fact that they were sold out of New Moon posters and the cape-wearers. Then, the theatre goes dark and previews start and Matthew and I play the, I wanna see that/that looks terrible game. He’s added a new category of that’s gonna make you cry. Then movie time!

It was a good movie. A little overdone in certain places and some corny dialogue here and there but definitely a decent book-to-film adaption. The fans died down after the first couple shirtless scenes and the other comments were humorous. We had a really good time and Matthew was very happy that I enjoyed myself. All in all, perfect evening with my perfect man.

 

Babies, Babies, everywhere….

and not a one to kiss….not yet anyway

So my loving, adoring, amazingly handsome husband has been on a major baby kick lately and you won’t hear a peep out of me over it! He has been wanting to look at everything baby and I am soaking it all in! Not only have we had a blast but, we have made quite a few baby decisions lately too! Keep reading for the “deets”…..

Bub and I get to find out if we are expecting a boy or a girl next Tuesday, but, when picking out things such as stroller, swing, and high chair we still want to keep it generally gender neutral for much farther down the road

So far I am in serious like LOVE with the Combi Travel System. It comes in fun colors, lightweight, very easy to steer(and boy did Matthew put it to the test!), easily managed by moi but tall enough for Bub as well. Perfection if I do say so myself! Matthew must have opened and closed it down 30 times so it got his seal of approval as well!

I found a nursery chair that made me wish I could rock that tiny baby to sleep tonight. It’s at IKEA and well, we all know that just makes it even better on top of all my other praises. Hahaha. It’s more of a bouncer than a rocker I guess?…all I know is that it’s easy to sit in and easy to get out of, super-duper comfy, and comes in a variety of styles! We chose black/brown wood with Alme med.red fabric. All for the reasonable price of $89! Yeah, go ahead and shed a tear….I know I did!

We have also decided on a high chair that gets strapped to a normal dining room chair because it’s a space saver and let’s face it…you can never have enough space. Especially when you live in a teensy weensy apartment. We’ve opted for swing instead of bouncy because I like them better and it seems more practical for our lives….when it’s swing time it’s because Mommy has dishes so she can’t bounce with her foot and clean too! I’ll try my best if that’s what it comes down to but we’re gonna try a swing first hahaha!

And as the Holidays get closer it isn’t visions of sugar plums dancing in my head…it’s baby room decor! Granted once we find out boy/girl it’ll be a tad easier but, for now I love looking at both! I’ve had a little trouble finding any sort of bedding that screams “our child” so I’ve started looking at fabrics instead. I am ga-ga for vintage type children’s fabrics!!!!! I’ve found a couple of good websites and am having a blast looking at all the different ones! I love the idea of “old-timey but hip”, and if you know anything about Matthew and I, it’s a no brainer that our child will be one of a kind! So all of you that swing through to read my ramblings; if you know of anything unique or original for baby rooms or some neat places to find interesting fabric, let me hear it! Por favor.

As for Mommy/Baby updates….Baby is well I woke up this morning sure that I felt the baby moving last night but I don’t know if it was a dream or not hahaha. I’ve had some trouble sleeping lately with tossing and turning so I often waking up not knowing what really happened the night before! Lately, nothing at all sounds appeasing to my palate. Lame?…..you got it. Hopefully the taste bud funk hits the road soon. Other than that I feel wonderful and can fully vouch for the 2nd trimester being wonderful! Matthew loves that my belly is growing and that we are having such a good time getting ready to be parents. He often makes me blush because I’ll look over and he’s just staring at me….to which he says: “Do you know that you’re beautiful?” Yeah, I know, he’s a keeper! I can honestly say that we are back in the sappy love we were in when we started dating. All starry-eyed and holding hands, kisses on the cheek, copious amounts of test messaging to say nothing but “I LOVE YOU”, and flowers when he walks in the door. Waking up with him before work to make his bowl of cereal…..I know, *gag*. What can I say, we’re happy

So I guess the conclusion to this is, life has NEVER been better!

XOXO