Life at the New Post

I'm going to do this update as briefly as possible since it has been a few months.

• We moved in July to the Mid-West to a new duty station.
• Eily turned 2 in July
• DH is now in school at the new duty station with us
• Obviously we didn't go to Korea
• I'm making jewelry and will attempt to post photos
• Eily speaks in complete sentences now
• Eily can do some addition
• Eily can read a few words
• Eily can spell a few words
• Eily loves to swim and is a great jumper too
• Eily has her bottom 2 yr old molars in but not yet her top ones
• She is almost potty trained and she gave up the potty chair in preference for the toilet with a reducer ring.
• She is 36 inches tall and about 30 lbs
• She brushes her own teeth, can dress herself, and is doing good on learning to wash up too.
• She can use fork, knife and spoon and eat off of a plate with ease.  Well not so much the knife we are still working on the pressure to cut with that a bit.
• Eily helped me assembly and build the new bed frame when the moving company broke my old one.  She is pretty good with an Allen Wrench.

Now for photos:

blue topaz 8 inch bracelet

Eily age 25 mos

Disappearing Act

Yesterday my household goods arrived.  Some of the things that I need the most are missing and not on the inventory.

For example I have my washer but the hoses are missing.

I have my china hutch but the glass shelves are missing.

J is missing his work bench.

Jamal from the moving company gave us a hard time yesterday.  The man is disrespectful and has a real attitude.  We ended up on the phone no less than five times yesterday and ended up having two screaming matches with him.

Jamal started complaining that he couldn't use our toilet.  First off the cat is in that room.  Secondly the water for the whole cul-de-sac had been turned off.  It wasn't turned back on until 1700 hrs.  He continued to complain about the fire hydrant being open and the rushing water noise making he want to pee more.  Dude just shut up.  I'm pregnant, I have a full bladder too and it isn't like I can just up and go off in a vehicle to go pee somewhere like you can as I have to be here to supervise.  This was the first full move J has done and needed to be guided. J didn't even know that I could request them to unpack our goods too.  I decided to decline because this crew were idiots and that is putting it politely.

The first screaming match was me telling Jamal to please stop talking.  He is worse than someone trying to sell you something over the phone and just won't shut up.  Finally I told him to leave the house I was going to call his boss and if he didn't leave I was going to fire him from the job.

They refused to open up the crates and put in place the furniture first to ensure that the boxes could be placed around them which would have prevented them from having to move the boxes three times or more to fit all the furniture into the house.  IDIOTS!

We ended up with the Quality Assurance personnel department for the installation sending out their representative named Nellie.  Nellie gave a few choice words to Jamal, Bryan and the other work man.  They weren't doing things right and scuffing up the walls and damaging our inventory.

Nellie hung around until 1500 hrs but had to leave after that.  She did tell me to keep an eye on Jamal as he has an attitude.  Well not long after she left Jamal started in again.  Come 1630 hours when it was evident that we are missing items and he refused to look for them I had had it.

Jamal had plunked his sweated, dirty body down at my dining room table on the nicely reupholstered chair and decided to do his paperwork there.  He didn't ask if he could sit down on the chairs making them grubby.  He had plenty of room at the kitchen counter to sign his paperwork.  The rest of us including the two other crew members were looking for the items.  I asked him if he was going to help look for the items. He gave me lip that he had to do his paperwork.  I told him he could do it at the counter.  He started in on my attitude.  I said we weren't going to sign off on the paperwork until we found the items or he surrendered the papers for missing items of which he refused to do when he should have for damage reports.

Finally he gets up off his lazy butt and starts to look at boxes complaining that it could be anywhere.  Really?!?  As if I didn't think of that.  Here I am 7 months pregnant and obviously I'm stupid to boot.

He started to get in my face and just wouldn't shut up again. As soon as I turned my back he'd start complaining about me again wanting him to basically do his job.  Yes, after they left we called up Nellie to file a complaint.  But first I'll tell you that Jamal accused me of cursing at him and raising my voice.  I said what cursing?  I didn't even say the word "crap" in his presence.  Then I said you haven't heard me raise my voice yet but if you don't stop talking you will.

Finally I had to scream at him to "Just get out of my HOUSE!  NOW!".  He wasn't looking for anything and he was causing more issues.  I explained to him several times throughout the day that I am a high risk pregnancy.  At one time I started in with contractions he had my blood pressure up so much.  I had to leave and chat with the gals in the neighborhood in order to calm down.

Back to the get out of my house. The nameless co-worker started pushing Jamal verbally and physically to leave the house while all the time Jamal was getting more verbal with me.  As soon as Jamal was out the door J got on the phone to Nellie and I locked the door.  The workers rang the bell but I refused to answer as our peep hole had been painted over and I wasn't sure it was them.  I had told Jamal on the way out the door that he can come back in if he apologizes for his behavior.

After I heard their truck leave I went outside to apologize to the neighbors.  The soldiers were there and wondering if I needed help when they heard me screaming to the workers to get out.  The soldiers also heard Jamal talking smack about me outside to his co workers.  Jamal is not professional.

Two hours later the moving company sent out a different man, a man who knows Jamal and he apologized for him and said he shouldn't have acted the way he did.  We signed the paper for the main inventory and were given the papers for the missing and damaged items along with papers for the damages they did to our housing unit.  The man they sent would have preferred if we had signed off on all the damages last night but when I brought out my camera and started showing him all the photos I took he said he'd leave the paper work with us to write it all down and pick it up in 75 days after he found out I would be doing all the unpacking because of J's long work hours.

This morning I was able to unpack two dish packs of bar ware and have still yet to find the glass shelves for my china hutch.  If they can't be found they'll have to be custom made and it will leave me with dish packs for months to come.  I hope they can be found because I'm now into crunch time and want to get the nursery cleared out of boxes and set up for Baby Hiccup.

28 Weeks

Finally made it to the third trimester.  If I do my math correctly I am considered to now be in the seventh of the tenth month of pregnancy.  Mind you my mind is total mush now and I often have to search my brain for the word I am looking for during conversation; much like how I was after my last TBI.  I feel like such a dull-witted fool.

Carpal tunnel issues along with the spinal stenosis are getting worse but that is just par for the course.  Thyroid levels are holding the same which means I'll be staying on the 75 mcg dose.  My next OB appointment is this Thursday.  I'll be finding out how much I've gained in the past two weeks.  Can't believe it has been almost two weeks since my last OB appointment here.  Oh and I know I've gained about four pounds in about a week's time because I've been weighing myself and watching my feet swell to the point that they look like puff balls.  Now if only I had some furniture besides the card table and chair set and the blow up bed to put my feet up on during the day.

Tomorrow the household goods shipment will be arriving.  I can only hope for two things:  first that my cat stays in the bathroom and doesn't mind it for the almost six to eight hours that the movers will be here and that very little is going to turn up broken.  I know there will be a few broken things as that happens with every move.

J and I have finished buying all the baby gear.  Truly it did cost us about five thousand dollars to equip this baby and no I didn't end up buying the expensive Origami stroller either.  We decided to go with the Bob revolution SE stroller with the Britax infant car seat.  Seems that it has become a gimmick to ensure that all new parents have to purchase infant car seats if you want to use a stroller during the first six months of your child's life.  So that meant the adapter for the stroller too along with the sun shield, weather shield, bug netting and so on.  Weather here in Georgia is just the whole gamut in just a days time I swear.

We are loving our trial subscription to Amazon Mom and I think I'll continue it.  Nothing better than getting your packages, most of them, delivered within two days.  We purchased a metal shelving unit for the utility room.  At Lewis I had a nice wooden built-in one that I used for pantry and storing my appliances.  Unfortunately the cabinets in my kitchen here, though I have more of them, have fixed shelves.  Rather a pain in the but when I can't even put a bottle of olive oil in the cabinet because it is too tall!  We measured out the space between where the washer will go and the hot water heater sits and we can fit an 18 inch deep by 48 inch wide shelf unit.  This house was built in 1978 and it needs a lot of work.  Really wishing I could tear out a few things and make it more mine but with renting one can't do that.

The bassinet, I bought for $10, is up and sitting in the baby's bedroom.  I'll be putting it later in our bedroom but that will have to be after I dig it out from the mountain of boxes that will be arriving tomorrow.  Anything that was in drawers or trunks they repacked into boxes so I have double the stuff to work through.

Yesterday I scored a Munchkin microwave sterilizer at a yard sale for just a buck.  I also purchased two pieces of outerwear and a newborn onesie for $1.75.  Most everyone with a yard sale was closing up when it started to rain, even those having it in their garage.  That wouldn't happen at Lewis as rain is a given most days.

Sad to say but I still have over sixty more items on my Amazon registry that I'll be needing to purchase.  Mostly just the nipples, bottles, teethers, toys, Christening outfit, books and sundry things.  But still I swear it is like it is a never ending list.  I dreaded spending all that money but knew it had to be and J was good about it, the one person I thought would put a halt to the spending of such a large amount from our savings.  I was pleasantly surprised.  Maybe it is because he likes the idea of getting to assemble all of the equipment?

Yesterday when the infant car seat came in I had him take it out of the box and line it up next to Bugsy's cage.  Before it arrived he swore it wouldn't take up any more space than that large cage though I told him it would.  I don't mind moving my seat up another notch as I had some room between the cage and me during the 3000 mile trip.  So yes he was surprised to see it was an inch or two longer than the cage.  We have a medium sized pet kennel for Bugsy since he is a large cat. 

Speaking of Bugsy, he has lost 2.8 pounds in a little over 6 weeks.  No we haven't had him on a diet but with the move he wasn't eating as much nor getting as many treats.  I would actually say that he is close to no longer being obese with just 2 more pounds to lose.  Still wishing he didn't lose it so quickly.

Finally the bump photos.  Even with the suspected weight gain I am still weighing less than what I did when I found out I was pregnant.

I still have a waist to put my hands on.  Don't mind the roll under the bra line as I've always had that from wearing ill fitting bras.  I can't seem to find one with a band that goes under the boobs to hold me in so I go without the band type bra and just learn to deal with it.

Moving Update

We decided to stay a bit longer at my mom's house after arriving here yesterday.  Today dad was moved out of the ICU and into a private room at the VA hospital.  Dad and Mom both asked us to stay longer as they haven't seen us in about seven years. 

Most likely we will be hitting the road on Monday.  That will be the last day of J's 18 day leave.  I'm okay with that and he is too.  He doesn't actually have to report to his new duty station until 10 June but we don't want to use up all of his leave he has been saving up for the past three years in just this move alone.  We are hoping to use some of his leave for the birth and the christening.

While in downstate NY last on Palm Sunday we spoke to the Bishop of J's home church and the man agreed to do the christening with a penciled in scheduled for either Thanksgiving or Christmas when block leave opens up.

Now that we are at my mom's house we are trying to find my christening gown for our daughter.  Not having much luck finding it so far and will most likely have to tear apart the closets in all three bedrooms.  Mom did find my dad's christening gown but it has a few problems with it in that it is really thin, might be too small by the time Christmas comes around and some of the stains might not come out from 1937 when it was last used.

Maniac Movers

Now supposedly the moving company that was hired to move us is quite reputable but I'm having my doubts.  One gal that showed up to pack us up yesterday was rude and inconsiderate about my condition.  She blocked in all power outlets and cut down the walk space through door ways with her box walls.  If I had a big belly at nearly 23 weeks I'd be shit out of luck with trying to get to the kitchen.

Unfortunately they sent the same wench back today.  She is working alone.  I don't like how she labeled the boxes.  I don't like her methods of packing.  I heard her drop a few glass items to the cement floor behind the bar.  I can only imagine how they'll be when they arrive. 

She was rude enough to tell me I shouldn't be sitting at my own dining room  table reading my book I'm trying to finish while she is in the kitchen, open floor concept, packing up my china.  She said I was watching her.  Well I beg to differ and the nearly 200 pages I read yesterday in my book would prove to her I was indeed reading but I have my doubts this creature even ever cracked the spine of a book except to throw it as a weapon.

She propped up a mirror box containing an antique dresser mirror against another box.  It fell over in the middle of the night flat on its face.  So yeah we are going to have some issue when we unpack.  I won't be forgetting her name any time soon as she has the same first name as a relative of mine.  Usually women packers are a bit more careful.

I've had very little sleep in the past five days.  Breathing is getting to be more difficult with the growing uterus.  I now have stretch marks on my upper abdomen where I had none before.  I don't care about the stretch marks but it does show that the uterus is intruding into the lung cavity area making it the reason for my breathlessness.

Two meals of eating take out yesterday and I find that I've gained nearly two pounds of bloat overnight.  It feels like it too.  I really detest being this sodium sensitive.  Yes I still weigh myself daily and am taking my scale on the road with me.  I will be actively trying to find lower sodium food options at fast food restaurants as that is about all we'll be able to afford or have the time to stop at with a cat in the car.  I'd rather not fry Bugsy's brain with having to leave him in the car just because I desire a real sit down meal.

22 Weeks

I can't believe it is Sunday already.  The time is just flying by as we prepare to move to Georgia.  Church this morning hit a good note with me as the sermon was about something I've been working on in my life...legacy.  No not just having a child but not passing on certain things and learned behaviors from my parents.

No bump photo to show any of you.  Still weighing about the same.  I weigh less today and for the past few days than I did the day I had the embryo transfer.  I doubt the belly button will be popping any time soon.

I did break down and do a little more maternity clothes shopping yesterday.  Since we are moving to a warmer climate I need shorts and a maxi dress.  I went to Kohls only to find out that they don't have maternity clothes in the store, only online.  I went next door to Target and bought a two piece swim suit, two pair of shorts, a maxi dress and a pair of 6 months size jeans for baby girl.

Yesterday I washed all the clothes and packed them in the suitcase.  Tonight J is going to do the pre-pack of the suv to make sure all of what we want to bring with us will fit.  What doesn't fit will have to sorted out by priority and put into the household goods to be packed up.  Movers will be here to pack the house as early as this Thursday.

Next week Monday the movers will be here to pick up the boxes and furniture.  From that day on, 31 March we will be sleeping on an air mattress, a nice air mattress.  We borrowed from a neighbor a card table and folding chairs.  I will be keeping a phone on at the house until the second and turning in the modem and cable box on the 3rd when I have the cleaners show up to clean the inside of the house.  J and I will be cleaning the garage, shed and exterior of the house.

I'll be glad when we hit the road!

The new duty station is still being a bit of a pain in the housing department.  I had to get yet another modification form signed stating that I cannot having carpeting in the house.  I mean sheesh wasn't the first modification form signed by the doctor enough...no they needed it spelled out that with asthma I can't have carpeting.  It is the south and I dread to think of the crap caught in the carpet from the previous tenants even if it is steam cleaned.  Roach droppings, assorted bug poop, animal leavings permeating the padding below the carpet, mold from the padding not drying completely and so on can raise havoc with my allergies and asthma.

On another note, I'll be making mac and cheese tonight to last a few days so what with our busy schedule we don't have to think much about cooking.  J is going to help with the prep work as my right shoulder is acting up and grating the cheese is going to be painful.

Well time to figure out what to eat for lunch besides frozen fruit and frozen veggies.

Computer Issues

Looks like my NVIDIA card is fried in my desktop computer.  Right now I am using my husband's laptop just to post something today to let all of you know about this past weekend.

Baby Hiccup is kicking me a lot while I'm trying to type up this post.

Baby shower went well.  Had some photos to share but they are on my desktop.  I had just save all other photos the day before my anatomy scan to the external drive.  This means I can't share baby shower photos until I replace the video card.  I talked about that with J, since I don't use my desktop for gaming I can just get a cheap replacement video card before we move in two weeks.  But I do worry that with it going into storage for quite a while that the desktop might become further damaged.  Thinking I'll just wait and hook J's laptop up to my work station after I dismantle the tower for packing.

So for the next few weeks posting to my blog will probably be scant as I begin to take things off of the wall and pre pack them before the movers show up.  I will try to post from the road trip East if I have adequate signal.

I might even have a change to post some baby shower photos before long as a friend was taking photos at the party.  I just need to attach my external drive to J's computer and down load them to there. 

That is if I remember.  Ugh, baby brain is getting so bad.  I have to basically chant to myself or even out loud what I need to do later in the day for appointments.  Yesterday I went to almost a panic thinking it was a week later in the month than it is and that I was already running out of time to get inventory done. 

More later when I get used to J's laptop and get some photos to share.

RE Appointment

Today was a good day, well so far at least.

J got home from CQ and went to the doctor's office with me.  But before I get into that I need to tell my readers that J is going to be able to re-enlist.

Yes he has his job for another three years.  This afternoon he'll sign his new contract.  We already know where we are going.  We won't be staying here at JBLM, WA.  I won't reveal where we are going until we get orders stating when since those orders could chance as the Army has been known to delete order a week before a move.

 Lauren at http://notjustanarmywife.blogspot.com has inspired me to lose weight.  She is on the South Beach diet and well I decided after looking at my ever increasing waist line that I too should do something about the twenty pounds I gained from the fertility treatment.  So for the past two days I've been counting my calories.  I haven't really been sticking to a set calorie amount but I have lost weight.  I have lost 3.6 pounds in two days.  YAY me!

As some of you know that I've been getting positive OPKs for several days in a row.  I stopped testing after the fourth positive OPK. 

The ultrasound results today showed that I haven't ovulated yet.  But I will after the trigger shot given to me by Nurse S in the exam room.  It felt like a luxury to not have to give myself a shot.

Remember this is a totally unmedicated cycle until I got that trigger shot today.

Left ovary: 1 follicle measuring 13mm

Right ovary: 2 follicles measuring 21 and 17.5

UNMEDICATED!

Waiting on SRM to call me with the time for the IUI tomorrow.  I might just get knocked up this cycle.  Though that 13mm is too small.   I'll start the progesterone support on Monday.

We discussed with Lt.Col.B., so nice to have him back, doing donor eggs.  I'm to call on cycle day to set up the SIS.  He said that the latest studies done in Spain were this:
A person with endometriosis using donor eggs from a woman without endometriosis is most likely to have a good pregnancy.
A person without endometriosis but using donor eggs from a woman with endometriosis is most likely to miscarry.

Thus there is no evidence so far, unless the SIS says otherwise, that I'll need to be cleaned out since I'll be using donor eggs from a woman hopefully without endometriosis.

Even with our move away from the PNW we could still start the donor eggs asap and always do the FET later on down the road since J has family here.  I'm sure they wouldn't mind me visiting for such a good reason.  I have been keeping them in the loop.