Three of the most stressful things in life...

are changing jobs, having a child and worrying about their future, and moving. My family happens to be going through all three of those items at the moment.

Don has decided to leave little ol' (hole in the ground) Beecher and move on to Rich Township High Schools to teach Chemistry. He is still waiting to hear about the head volleyball position but we are pretty sure he is going to be getting that position also. I know that he is a bit nervous. He has been in Beecher for 15 years, he has a great volleyball team with potential to go on to state, but he is greatly unappreciated as the
Technology director and as a coach so he has decided to make a move now when there are both a teaching and a coaching position available at a school close to our home. I know that he will do great, and if he doesn't like it, well he can move on at a later date. One of Don’s goals is to coach Grace if he wants to do this someday he needed to get out of a small school and get into a bigger conference and class. We would like to send our children to the LincolnWay High Schools in Frankfort or New Lenox, Home of James Augustine of FIGHTING ILLINI fame,
so hopefully someday he will have the opportunity to get into that school district so he will be able to do what he prays of... he really wants to coach his girl. (They are building a new school so hopefully that will be his chance!!) I worry that he will not like the change since he won't be doing technology and I hope that he won't ever be upset with me in encouraging him to leave Beecher. He just dislikes it there so much I hated seeing him miserable. The grass isn't always greener but he will be making more money and getting closer to his goal of coaching his girl by moving to a larger school district.

Then as you may have read the purpose of this blog is to keep stories for my kids.
Number 2 is on his way. We still do not have a name and have narrowed our choices but aren't really talking about them. I don't think Don is necessarily as stressed about having another child as I am. Being an only child I have learned in the last few years, it's not all about me. I want it to be but it's not. BUMMER. I try to remember that Don needs to come first, our marriage first, then the kids. Sometimes I'm not that great at remembering that but I try to. If mom and dad are happy then so will the kids. I have three weeks left for the baby to get here and we have done nothing. I'm currently sitting here watching Don file papers so that I know it gets done and then we are going to be out for the day, We are trying to spend as much quality time with Grace that we can prior to the baby getting here. Her world, as she knows it, is going to be knocked off it's axis. I want her to always know how special she is to me and us but you know when the next one comes along everything multiplies. Right now we are struggling because she is allergic to the grass and she sooooo loves to play outside so we are trying to find things to do with her that do not require contact with grass. Maybe we should move to Arizona...

Which leads me to our main stressful situation in our household these days... MOVING.
We have known for at least 3 months that we are going to have to move. The city that borders our land wishes to purchase the property to build a shopping area. That is fine and great. This is a fabulous opportunity to get rid of all bills, have no mortgage, and live comfortably with our two kids. The problem is too many people trying to tell us what we should or should not do, where we should or should not live, what we should or should not spend. I finally had to tell my husband that I am not going to listen to any one and if it is a place that I want to live that is all I need. He, on the other hand, wants to listen to what everyone has to say and procrastinate about making the decision. When I started my draft of this blog... we were in the middle of trying to bid on a house... I felt that family got WAY too involved. I don't mind suggestions but I do mind interference. Unfortunately, the house we placed the bid on was not meant to be ours... the owner did not want to accept our bid because we have to wait for the closing of our house. In the meantime we have continued our search and have actually found a piece of property that is on foreclosure and if it goes to sale it is almost as nice as the property I really wanted. We will do what is best for our family and hopefully our family will be there to support us, give advice, but remember that it is our home.

Needles, Blood Tests and Shots... OH MY

You know growing up I had to have blood test once a week for almost a year because I had the symptoms of Rheumatic fever. One time, at the age of 5, I went to sit in the seat and a beginning phlebotomist was given the job of sticking me with the needle to take my blood. I have horrible veins, did then and they are worse now… this phlebotomist couldn’t find the vein and decided to just stick the needle in my arm and then find the vein. I still remember the scream I let out, I remember my mother running into the testing room and being very upset with the doctor who put this girl in charge. To this day every time I go to have a blood test I cringe.

You know when you have a baby, maybe you don’t know, but when you have a baby you have to get stuck with more times, with more kinds of needles then you care to count. A few weeks ago I went to get another blood test, this time to see if I had gestational diabetes. I sat in the chair and waited for the phlebotomists to take my blood. A week before I had been in the same office and the tech that day listened to me when I told her I had bad veins, listened when I told her what arm to use, and wham bam she found a vein and I was in and out of the office. This week however… I GOT THE NEW GIRL!!!! She didn’t listen to me. She took that rubber band and put it on one arm poked and poked and poked. Then she put it on the other arm and poked and poked and poked. FINALLY she found a vein. Instead of leaving her finger on the vein, leaving the rubber band on my arm, BEING READY TO JUST TAKE THE DAMN BLOOD… she takes the band off and then gets ready. After putting the band back on she can’t find the vein. Go figure idiot. So what does she do??? You guessed it… she sticks the needle in my arm and then searches for the vein. I could have kicked her. I was sooooooo mad! A blood test that should take only a few minutes, I had been in this room about 10 minutes.

She finally gets the blood and begins to write on the label, while she is doing this I am waiting for the stinking band-aid so that I can leave the room. As I’m waiting I hear her say, “hmmmmm”, she takes the vial and leaves the room. I hear her talking to one of the other phlebotomists... SHE USED THE WRONG VIAL!!! What the heck is that all about??? What are they going to do now?

As I sat there I thought… do I ask for a new tech? Do I want to make this girl feel bad? Everyone needs to learn sometime? But it’s MY ARM!!!! So they come back in the room tell me what happened, and I say just get it done. So I’m thinking that she will find the vein in the other arm, yes it takes a minute but it’s there… NO she gets out the dreaded butterfly needle and say, “If you don’t mind I’m going to stick you in you hand.” What am I to say… YES I MIND!!!! I did ask her to look for the vein in the arm, but I could tell she was having trouble. In the mean time I hear my husband in my daughter in the waiting room. Grace is a good girl but 15 minutes in a little waiting room with a water dispenser… she was pretty wet by the time I got out to them again… Anyway I digress. The girl cannot find my vein, so I just say, “Do the hand.” She could tell that I was getting frustrated and did as I asked.

She apologized a million times, but you know when you have been traumatized over the years from blood tests any amount of apologizing does not help. I said, “Well we all have to learn.” I took a sticker to give to Grace and was out the door.

I just hate needles. I hate shots. But you know when you have to do things for your child you will do what every you have to do. As a result of that last blood test I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes and three times a day I have to give myself a shot in the stomach. I remember telling my husband on the way to the doctor, “If I have to do shots you are going to have to do them for me. I just won’t be able to do it.” To this day Don has not given me a shot. I have done every shot, dealt with the few bruises I have given myself because I didn’t do it quite right, and will continue to count the days until this baby gets here so that I can quit with the needles, blood tests, and shots… OH MY.

Am I Wrong...

I just returned from lunch at one of my favorite Mexican restaurants and there was a mother there with her two children and a girlfriend. She was sitting at the table breastfeeding her baby, while drinking Margaritas. I think there is something wrong with that. Yes it takes about 12 to 24 hours for the alcohol to metabolize in the breast milk... but honestly... Why not just give the kid a Margarita drip? Maybe I'm becoming a prude in my old age and having kids but I just think this is wrong. If it had been only one Margarita it might not have made me feel this way. I might have looked at her funny but after they ordered their third drink I really wanted to call someone. Who was going to drive those children home? Man have I changed in the last four years. I can't tell you the amount of times that I got behind the wheel when I had no right doing so. I could have killed someone else's child when I think about it... But this mom is drinking with one child attached to her breast and the other sitting there eating chips. Then they are going to get in a car together and drive somewhere... It worries me... Am I wrong to feel this way???

When will I learn...

Not to watch FINDING NEMO!!! You know when you are pregnant it is just not a good idea.

The first time I saw this movie I was 8 months pregnant (with Grace) when Don and I decided to go to a movie. We thought we'd see Nemo, it looked like it would be cute and happy. Little did I know? In the first 10 minutes of the film the mother fish lays her many eggs, her and Nemo's dad are discussing names and being all happy... and in one fleeting minute a Barracuda comes along sees the eggs and the clown fish. Nemo's mom does what every mom would do, goes to protect her children!! Next thing you know the father is looking for the mother and the eggs... the only thing he finds is one lone egg. Nemo.

If you have never been around a pregnant woman you might not know that hormones and subjects of this nature will make her cry at a moments notice. We are sitting in this theater, FULL of young kids and their parents, and my husband turns to me and says, "You're crying aren't you?" I must say this was one of those embarrassing moments you wish had never happened!!! As he says this to me, I try to squelch back the sob, but NO it comes out loud and clear. Yes everyone the pregnant lady in the middle row is crying at the cartoon on the screen. Little kids turned and looked, adults turned to look. You would have thought I had just lost my best friend the way I was crying. In my mind I'm thinking of the conversation I had just had with Don regarding if I were in an accident during my commute to work just keep me alive long enough to get the baby, do whatever he had to do to make sure the baby lived.

I could not get over the beginning of this movie and sat there the whole time thinking... I am not going to let my child(ren) watch this film. I wanted to get up and walk out!!! I thought I am never going to watch this film. I was outraged thinking this film had been falsely advertised. It was suppose to be a feel good movie. What part of losing your children and/or your parent is feel good? I hated this movie and I told the world.

So it's almost two years later and Grace owns FINDING NEMO. It is her favorite movie to watch when we are in the car going to and from my doctor's appointments. Today as we were driving to the doctor I was listening to the dialog. I was getting choked up just listening to different parts and remembering the scenes. I never thought that I could feel the way that this father feels. I never knew there was this instant bond that makes you so neurotic you would kill if anyone hurt your child. I am a worrywart to no end and I admit it. I waited far too long for these children and I want nothing to happen to them.

On the other hand this father wants his child to do nothing. He constantly tells him Nemo he can't do things because he has a small handicap, a small fin. I hope that if either of my children have a handicap of any sort I don't keep them from doing things they love. If they could hurt themselves I might want to be close so that I could help if something were to go wrong, but this father DRIVES ME NUTS.

I'm amazed that Disney puts out movies where someone is killed or dies, generally a mother or a father, and then something bad always happens to the child. I guess in their own way they are trying to teach children that they can over come any obstacle... I just don't get I suppose. I didn't get the concept when I was a kid and watching Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella. I just saw the cute little fairies in Sleeping Beauty wishing that I could have a dress of pink magically appear. As for Cinderella I wanted my own prince to come along someday.

Do these movies teach us that is how life should be? I don't know, but I let Grace watch them, I will worry about her and her baby brother forever, as all parents do and I hope that I remember to allow them to be independent, and growup not being afraid to take chances.

What's in a name?

Did you know that for many men it is REALLY important for them to name their first born after themselves? I am currently dealing with this situation.

With my first born, although we did not find out, I just had a feeling I was going to have a girl so I did not discuss a boy's name much with my husband. This time, however, I wanted to know what I was having because I felt there was going to be a problem with naming this child if it was a boy. Well in my belly is a large baby boy, weeks from delivery, and well... I just don't like the names we have "chosen".

My husband loves the fact that he was named after his father. He loves his father so much, looks up to him the such respect, in today's society it really is a wonderful thing to see. Because of this, Don feels that we should name our boy Donald Lee H. The third. Don't you think that is a bit much? We aren't regal, we don't live in an area where that is popular, I just don't know that I can have a Donald Lee the third.

We have discussed that if he wants to keep the first name as a family tradition I think that I could do that as long as we had a middle name that I liked and then we could call the boy by his middle name. My cousin's family has done this. My uncle's father was John, my uncle is John B. (they call him John), my cousin is John Anthony (Tony), and then his son is John William. I can deal with this. HOWEVER... My husband wants the middle name to be MacIntyre. Another family name on his side. His mother was a MacIntyre and once his mother's family has gone there will no longer be any MacIntyre's, as his uncle has never had children. How do I call my little bundle of joy Donald MacIntyre? Is it horrible... No! But I just can't see calling my baby "Mac".

Crazy things cross my mind when thinking of this name... My husband and I are not small people. I'm 6'1 and once this baby is born I could afford to still lose a few pounds. My husband is 6'7 and use to be super skinny but has put on the sympathy 25 during this pregnancy. I'm worried that I am lending to name calling long before it is necessary. I can see it now... "Hey Big Mac"... "Here comes the Mac Truck". The possibility of this child having red hair is greater then not and if you invert the name he could end up Mac Donald, I foresee more teasing. How dare I do that to my child? You know as a parent I just want to protect my child from any undue stress and sadness. I don't want my child to come to me at the age of 9 asking me, "What were you thinking when you named me?"

On the other hand, could this be a good thing? What if he should end up being 7'2, play basketball, (hopefully for the Illini and can play under the basket unlike the 7'2 player they had this year who thought he was a guard and shot 3 pointers... But I digress) and McDonald's would hear about my child's name? How could they pass that up? Should I pass that up.

I don't know... I never thought naming a child could be so hard. The good thing to know is in 7 weeks I won't have to worry about this anymore and I will have a name for this big baby boy. In the meantime, does anyone know where I might find a painter to create this mural on the baby's room?

Trying to figure this all out!!!

I heard of blogging like many others I'm sure... on tv... but it wasn't until my friend Kelly started posting her own blogs and sending me her wonderful stories that I thought to myself this was something I should do. I am not the best writter on earth but I thought it would be a great way to start keeping records of my beautiful girl Grace and her soon to be here baby brother. Kelly is who cam up with Baby Chonicles... I thought it would be appropriate to at the "of a Middle Aged New Mom". I'm going to keep this first blog short and sweet as I want to try to post this, with a picture and see if I can get this to work out. I always thought that I was quite good with computers and figuring all this "stuff" out... this however is showing me some challenges. Hopefully I will get this posted and begin my stories tomorrow.