Baby Shower

My mom's best friend Laurine and my sister Jenny helped put on my baby shower. We planned it for right after Christmas when Jenny was still home for the holiday.

Of course the theme of the shower was sports! Laurine had a friend of hers make the the cake and it was so awesome. We had the themed plates and napkins and decorations every where. All the snack food was my favorite things like peanut m&m's and kit kat candy bars.

My sister put together two games for everyone to play. One was guessing the prices of certain baby items. The other game was unscrambling common baby related words.

Then it was time for opening gifts! There were a lot of them and I do love opening gifts! I got a lot of great things. Aaron is going to be so well dressed too.

Mom and I had a fun time washing all the clothes and putting everything away in his room.

Christmas 2010

This year was different for Christmas. I had to work on Christmas Eve and was on call until midnight that night.

Since I had to work on Christmas Eve, my parents and my sister drove to Hermiston and made our traditional clam chowder and a new tortalini soup at our house. Then my mom and sister brought soup to the hospital for me to eat. We were able to sit and visit for an hour and a half before I was needed again for an x-ray.

Jeremy and I got up Christmas morning, quickly packed and made our way to my parents. Breakfast was already made when we got there and we dug right in. Then we started in on our stockings and gifts. We had a great time taking our time and enjoying the morning. I even filled in for Santa a little bit. However, I was sitting on the floor and had to have help getting up and my legs were numb.

Funny thing is I believe our baby Aaron James who is still in my belly got more Christmas gifts than everyone else!

We had a wonderful meal with steaks that Jeremy cooked and shared it with my mom's cousins. Later we headed over to visit with my g-ma and wish her a Merry Christmas. She was in a great mood, we took great pictures and had a wonderful time.

It was great spending time with family and relaxing. Next year will be so different with the baby and so exciting!

CT Test

I was trained in CT at work during the month of July. It was great learning a new modality and getting to split my time between CT and x-ray.


There was a new law starting January 1, 2011 that stated if you weren't registered in modalities like CT, you would need to be re-certified every 10 years. Otherwise you would be grandfathered in and wouldn't have to worry about it.


I had to complete my list of exams that were required before I could send my paperwork off to schedule my exam. When the paperwork went through I scheduled my exam for December 6. I wanted it to be over before Christmas so I could enjoy the holiday.


Life was a little stressful with being pregnant and having to force myself to study whenever I had the chance. I really had to discipline myself to focus. Brittany, a fellow coworker and I studied a couple of times and I was feeling pretty good. However the test was way harder then I thought and I just wanted it to be over as soon as it began.


I wasn't feeling very confident when I pressed the submit button but lo and behold I did pass and that was all that mattered. Now I could move on and put the studying behind me. Such a relief!

Thanksgiving

This holiday was different this year since I had to work a 12 hour shift. I knew my time was coming since I hadn't worked any holidays the last year.

Jeremy had the day off and had invited his brother to come but he wasn't able to make it due to weather. So my parents drove up from Tri-Cities and came with Jeremy to the hospital to have lunch with me.

The cafeteria had made Prime Rib and so my dad and Jeremy were excited! Guests were able to get quite the meal for only $7.

It was great to spend time with my family even though I had to work. Then I got to go home and spend time with Jeremy and eat leftover turkey, mashed potatoes and all the fixings that my mom had left for us.

Halloween pregnant belly

1st Anniversary, 10/10/2010

First anniversary:

- 5 months pregnant

-our anniversary gift to each other was buying a crib for our new baby boy coming

- Oregon Ducks game at WSU

- spent night at Couer d'Alene resort

- spent time with mother-in-law Carla -great laid back anniversary

Jack Johnson Concert

Back in April of this year, Jenny brought to my attention that Jack Johnson was coming in concert to the Gorge Ampitheater in October. Of course I wanted to go see him!

Jeremy let me know he didn't want to go a couple of weeks before and so I was able to get my friend Tiffany to go. However a week before she found out she had to work that weekend. So I asked my friend Erin and she was delighted. I was so glad I found someone to use that other ticket. I drove down that day to pick Erin up and we met up with my sister and my cousin Lisa from Seattle. We found a great patch of grass up towards the top and spread out our blankets. We discovered the incline made it difficult to sit without sliding down and so we decided to rent some chairs to sit it. Boy did they make a difference!

There were two acts that sang before Jack came on. What a beautiful night to sit out listening to great music and watching the sun go down.

New car

With a new baby coming, Jeremy and I wanted to get a new car. We knew we couldn't keep his truck because with it only being a single cab he wouldn't be able to take the baby with him.

Jeremy wanted a safe car that we could keep for many years and I wanted an SUV type vehicle so we could have cargo space and sitting room. We put everything together and decided we liked the Chevrolet Traverse.

We ended up going to the Chevrolet dealership in Hermiston to get the best deal. It took them about a month and a half to find the one for us. It was a 2010 white Traverse, used with 9300 miles on it. We put some money down and traded in Jeremy's truck. They really did great working with us and getting the price down where we needed it to be.

We love the new car and we both want to drive it as often as we can!

We are having a BOY!!

Since I had been getting weekly ultrasounds, Amanda the ultrasound tech said I could bring Jeremy in and she would let us know if the baby was a boy or girl. She would get this look on her face and lean closer to the screen and go "mmmm". I turned away quickly because I didn't want to see anything premature.

We had planned on our regular wednesday and would have Jeremy come in towards the end of Amanda's shift. Instead we decided we wanted to go in a day early and surprise everyone. Almost right away Amanda found what she was looking for and saved the picture. Our baby had their legs wide open and their was a little nub in the middle!! Our baby was a BOY!!!

Amanda said she first saw it at 13 weeks but wanted to keep looking to be absolutely sure. Jeremy had a great time taking pictures and videos and asking Amanda questions.

Afterwards we called my parents to see what they were doing that night and told them we wanted to run to Costco and have dinner with them. We went to Walmart and bought an Oregon Ducks jersey and decided to put it on the dinner table later and see their reaction. We took a picture of the jersey for Jeremy's mom Carla and said her new grandson would wear this next year to a game. I called my sister and she said I told you so since she had said it was going to be a boy. When we put the jersey on the table later, my mom grabbed it and knew immediately what it meant!

Now we could start thinking about decorating, thinking of names and buying baby clothes for a boy!

Shinedown concert

Concert highlights:

-riding with friends to concert

-eating dinner at Red Lobster and having crab legs

-getting to hear 10 years, Sevendust, Puddle of Mudd and Shinedown perform

-knowing it was the last concert on their tour and they were recording it live

-getting to meet Shinedown and get their autographs

*Favorite moment: Jeremy worrying that the music was too loud for the baby. I then tell Randy next to me who says not to worry that the baby will come into this world "rockin out!!"

Cannon Beach

Every year going to the beach is such a highlight and something I look forward to. This year we couldn't go as long but it was still well worth it.

Just like last year, Jeremy was up bright and early ready to go. Most mornings I got up with him but it was vacation and that means relaxing and getting extra sleep.
What's great about my family is everyone gets up and randomly decides what they want to do. We either go on our own or ask if someone wants to tag along. There are so many things to do that sometimes it is hard to decide.
We spent time walking down on the beach, reading books, building bonfires and making s'mores, eating pizza from our favorite place, setting up camp on the beach to read, flying kites and sun bathing, collecting sand dollars and driftwood, watching movies, eating ice cream and shopping in downtown.



Another great year at the coast with my family.

Umatilla County Fair

Highlights from fair week:

Tuesday:

- Rachelle and I work in hospital booth for two hours
- scout out food to eat
- eat hotdog, elephant ear, nachos and kettle popcorn
- walk around a bit to walk off food!

Wednesday:

- hadn't planned on going today
- Jeremy worked at the elephant booth from 11am to 2pm
- Jeremy asked me on a date to go
- got off work and ate dinner Jeremy had made
- went to fair and watched Joe Diffy perform, one of Jeremy's favorites

Friday:

- at work and excited to go to fair and listen to Uncle Kracker
- got off work and had another fantastic meal Jeremy had made
- met up with Rachelle, Jennifer and her boyfriend Chris and Brittany
-watched and sang along with concert
- ran into Ron, Lori, Calvin and Trevor and got to visit
- visited briefly with Roy, a guy Jeremy works with

It was a good year at the fair this year!

Jeremy the softball fanatic!

Jeremy loves being busy and being involved with sports.

Not long after he was done coaching baseball at the high school in Umatilla, the softball season started for the competitive co-ed team he plays on.

Of course, I went to show support and cheer him on. The schedule ended up being double headers on Monday nights. Gradually I was asked to help keep the book and I really liked doing that. It helped me pay attention more to the game and I got to know more of the players. I had a great time joking around and visiting with everyone.

It was a competitive league they were playing on and sometimes things got a little heated. It was hard for me to understand that since I'm not competitive and really it was just a softball game. Sometimes my thinking didn't go over so well! Haha!

In addition to the league games there were also some competitions on the weekends. One of those was called the Watermelon Festival and it's held in Irrigon, OR every year at the end of July. I was able to be there both Saturday and Sunday to watch the team play and visit with everyone. It was mighty hot and I wasn't the smartest about putting sunblock on and got myself a nice shade of red. Oops!

The team really had a good time even though they only won two games. The rest of the time was spent having our own batting practice, playing volleyball and just sitting around talking and laughing.

The other competition is held in La Grande, OR and it's called Moonlight. The reason for the name being that the games are played all night long regardless of the time. Jeremy was able to ride down there with some teammates. Unfortunately I had to work and was on call and couldn't make the trip down there.

Their first game was at 10pm on that Friday night. They lost that one and then played again the next morning and won that game. The next game wasn't until 3pm on Saturday but they lost that game and ended up being out of the running. They could have come home that night but since Jeremy rode with other people he had to wait until the next day. It worked out fine though since I was on call and wasn't home that much that night anyway.

The softball season has come to a close for the year. We will see what next year brings with the new baby and our schedule.

First prenatal appt

Our first prenatal appt was on July 30th and I was almost 11 weeks along. I was able to get off work early and Jeremy met me at the hospital. We walked down to my doctors office and got right in.

The doctor did an ultrasound on me and Jeremy got to see the baby for the first time! I heard him gasp a little bit and lean forward to get a closer look. The baby was an inch and a half long and you could see the head and arms and legs. The doctor printed off a picture for us and right away Jeremy took a picture of it with his phone and started sending it to everyone!

So far everything is looking good. Doctor said we were moving right along. I haven't gained any weight yet but I'm sure that will soon change!

We were able to have a question and answer time with the doctor. I had written down a bunch of things I wanted clarification on and it was a big help. We were given some goodies and paperwork to read through. She gave us a big book from the Mayo Clinic all about pregnancy and the babies first year. All my appts were scheduled ahead of time for me and I got some magazines and a packet of paperwork that would be helpful. After that it was off to the lab to have blood drawn.

It was a great first appt and I can't wait to see the changes that will be happening!

Mariners game

For Father's day, my sister and I bought Mariners tickets for my dad. We let him pick the day and he chose July 25 against the Boston Red Socks.

Since the game was on a Sunday, I already had the day off and Jeremy was able to get the day off work. We left home at 6:30am and got to Seattle at 10:30. We all rode down in one car and dad found a great parking spot and we didn't have to pay!

We decided to buy the cheap hotdogs on the way in this time and we also bought some peanuts and licorce. We saved some money but maybe next time we get the food on the inside where it is so much better!

After getting inside the park, Jeremy and dad decided to go watch batting practice and us girls found our way to our seats. Jenny was able to find us tickets on the third deck in the first row in between first base and right field. They were great seats! You could see everything on the field, the Seattle skyline and the main screen.

During the game there was a chance to send pictures to a website and then they would post the ones they received later in the game. I had already taken a picture of Jeremy and I and when the announcement came up, Jenny helped me remember the address. Later our picture was only one of 10 on the big screen. We were famous!!The score was pretty close in the beginning and the Mariners were behind. It wasn't looking very hopeful until a couple of bunts made all the difference and then they ended up coming from behind and winning the game! Go Mariners!!!

After the game we drove back to Jenny's apt and then walked up the street to have pizza outside on the patio with my Aunt B. We had a great time even though we knew we were going to get back late, it was worth it.

The trip was fast and furious but awesome!

Random ultrasounds

One of the perks about working in my dept at the hospital is being close to the ultrasound techs. My friend Amanda, one of the techs has been giving me impromtu scans!

We usually go a week in between and I just tell Amanda when I really have to go pee and my bladder is full. Rachelle, another tech who works with me usually comes in to watch and has taken a couple of pictures for me.

Its been great to see how much the baby has grown over the weeks especially when not everyone gets that chance and the doctor won't give you that many ultrasounds.

My mom bought a photo album for her purse and I will keep giving up updated pictures so she can whip it out and show off her first grandchild! I'm also going to send pictures to my mother-in-law for her purse and to update the picture in the frame I gave her.

4th of July 2010

4th of July highlights:

- my favorite holiday

- seeing my family and sister

- driving to Tri-Cities

- eating good food at a bbq

- visiting with friends and telling them I was pregnant

- walking across to neighbors bbq to visit

- surprising family with Jeremy driving up

- walking down to the river for the fireworks

- watching one of the best firework shows in awhile

- watching a fire start right after someone set off illegal fireworks

- spending time with my husband and family

Telling parents about baby

Now the deliberation began on how and when we would tell our family. I kind of wanted to wait until I was further along and I had been to the doctor but my first appt wasn't for another 6 weeks and that was way too long to wait.

Finally after talking it over we decided that we were too excited and wanted to be able to tell people. Jeremy had a softball tournament coming up that Saturday after finding out and he started cooking up a plan.

He was able to get his mom and stepdad Jerry to come down for the day on Saturday to watch him play softball and then come to the house for dinner after I got off work. My parents made it down to watch a couple of games and then came back that night for dinner.

Since it was the day before Father's Day, we gave the dad's cards and then put the giftbag with the baby bib in front of my dad. One of the best parts was that the moms weren't suspecting anything since the focus was on the dads. My dad opened up the bag and slowly unwrapped the bib from the tissue paper. When he finally saw what it was, he immediately looked up at me and said, "Are you serious?!" Now that got the moms attention and they asked what was going on. I burst out in a huge smile and said, "Yep I am pregnant!"

Carla, my mother-in-law started crying and my mom just turned and stared at me like she didn't believe it was really happening. Jerry looked pretty excited about a new baby in the family too.

Then my dad took a picture of the bib on his cell phone and sent it to my sister. She was really stoked about the baby and becoming an aunt!

The rest of the night flew by with everyone visiting and talking nonstop about the new baby.

I am PREGNANT!!!

This day started out so normal but ended anything but...

In the afternoon Jeremy and I drove to Umatilla High School together. I was helping my friend Tamera in the concession stand. Tamera is Scott's wife that is one of Jeremy's best friends and who he coachs basketball with. She was almost not going to come because she had a nasty cold and was losing her voice, but she decided at the last minute to come and hang out with me. During the course of the night we talked about all different things. Someone else came to relieve us, but Jeremy and I had come in the same car and I had no way to get home. So we decided I would get a ride with Tam over to her house and we could hang out until the boys came home.

Tam and I continued our chatting at the house and somehow we started talking about the headaches, cramps and need for blizzards I had been having. She knew we had been trying and all of a sudden realized she had an extra pregnancy test she wasn't going to use. It happened to be a day before I was supposed to start my period and I was skeptical that anything would show up that early. She however became very excited and got me a cup to pee in and the test and directed me towards the bathroom. I was watching the test while washing my hands and couldn't believe that faint positive line showing up. I was a little in shock when I walked out of the bathroom to show Tam. She came right over, took one look at the test and started screaming!

She immediately grabbed her purse and said we had to go to Walmart to get another test for me to take since the first one had been from the dollar store. Both of us were so excited and not thinking clearly that she forgot to lock the front door of the house and we both forgot to buckle Alyssa into her carseat. Thank goodness we hadn't even pulled out of the driveway yet!

We get to Walmart and go stand in front of the pregnancy tests. We look at all of them and try to figure out what ones would be good. Randomly Tam asks if I have an extra one at home and in the moment I had forgotten I did. So we get back in the car and head to my house. Thank goodness I had an extra house key in my purse since I had given Jeremy my set of keys so he could drive the car. As I am unlocking the house, I couldn't remember if we set the alarm or not and I didn't have the remote to turn it off. I'm was scared to open the door and finally Tam just pushed it open. No alarm thank goodness!

I run into the bathroom and get the test out. I don't know if it was my nerves or that I hadn't had much to drink that I couldn't get a big enough sample for the test. I thought it would be sufficient until I took the test out to the kitchen and realized it wasn't working no matter how many times I stared at it. I told Tam I don't think I had enough pee and she busted up laughing. So back in the car and headed to Walmart for the second time.

We stand in front of the tests again and deliberate. We don't want to buy too many of them and have them expire. We also don't want to buy the cheapest or most expensive. Finally we decide to get a two pack of the Clear Blue Easy digital tests. We felt it was a special enough occasion to spurlge a little! As we were walking to the register I was trying to conceal the test but to Tam it looked like I was trying to hide it in my jacket sleeve. I didn't want to run into anyone I knew and have them be curious. Also before we had left home I had grabbed a bottle of water and was making sure I had plenty of liquids in me.

On the way back to the house Tam told me she wanted to see the test as soon as possible even if my pants were barely on. So I went straight to the bathroom and had plenty of pee this time!! I barely had one button done and ran out to the living room to give it to Tam. While the test is working it has a flashing hourglass and then will flash the word pregnant or not pregnant. I handed the test off to her and went to the kitchen sink to wash my hands. Before I could even turn the water on she was already yelling, "Oh my gosh!" She came running in to show me that it said pregnant and had flashed that within 2 seconds of me giving it to her. I think I was still in shock but she started jumping up and down and getting very excited. It's almost like I didn't think it was real yet.

Then she got online and started looking up cute ways to tell your husband and family you are pregnant. She suggested I take pictures of the tests so I could have them for memories and boy did I take a lot! Tam told Alyssa what we were so excited about and she kept saying, "Baby in her tummy!" Since it was going to be short notice telling Jeremy we couldn't get too creative. So we headed back to Walmart for the third time.

Perfect timing that Father's Day was that coming sunday and I was able to find Jeremy a card for a father-to-be. Then we found a baby bib that said, "I Love Daddy" and wrapped that up in tissue paper and put it in a gift bag.

If the boys asked why we were in Hermiston, we had to come up with a good reason that they wouldn't suspect. We knew they would be hungry and said we came into town to get food for them and they took right to the idea. We headed back to Tam's with the food and got there before the boys. I was starting to get nervous about telling Jeremy and not giving something away when he walked in.

The boys started eating and I put the card down in front of Jeremy and told him I had found a card for him while at Walmart. He finished eating what he had in his hand while Tam and I were staring him down! Scott thought we were acting funny but didn't know why. Finally he opened the card and read it twice before it registered. All of a sudden he looked up and said, "I'm going to be a dad!" Scott's head shot up and he was totally surprised and said, "Wow, that's cool!" Then Jeremy opened the bib and I showed him the tests I had taken.

He finished eating in a daze and Tam and I got online right away. We first looked up what the approximate due date would be and it said February 20, 2011.