Ramblings

I have somehow come across some depressing TV show about gangs on the History Channel. I don't know why I even turn it on sometimes.

Things have been fairly exciting around here. We got Oasis tickets earlier this week...I was on the presale list so we got good ones. They are in the balcony (I didn't want to be too close because I'll be like 34 weeks pregnant by then) in the first row, seats 1 & 2. Perfect for those of us who have to use the bathroom constantly. I'm excited about the new album-which I've heard streaming on My Space. It sounds great, a bit more heavy than previous releases. I'm sure this is unexciting talk, but I haven't seen them since 2001. It was a relief the doctor said I could still go.

Bernie was excited to see the Cubs in the playoffs but is a bit depressed now that they are not doing so well. Hopefully they can pull it together tomorrow. He was selected to buy tickets to one of the playoff games in the next series (if they make it). He bought those today. If they get there, we will drive from Minneapolis to Chicago after the wedding to see them. It will be quite the trip. Bernie's actually leaving next weekend for pheasant hunting in North Dakota. Then he'll meet me when I fly into Minneapolis in about two weeks.

Then there's the new car. We've been on a waiting list for a new Prius for over 2 months now. We found out that we could get a blue one in about three weeks. Not my favorite color, but I suppose that's a silly reason to turn down a car. We'll have to make a decision tomorrow.

Bennett is growing and becoming more active. We decided that his middle name is Owen (which is my favorite boy's name). I feel great in general, other than the back/hip pain. It doesn't help that I sit so much for schoolwork. I try to get some mild exercise in every day-even if it is just some stretching. I took a prenatal yoga class last night which also helped.

Bernie and I went to Babies R Us last weekend to try and figure out what Bennett needs. That was a mistake. It was totally overwhelming. We had no idea there were so many choices to make. After the car seat and stroller sections, I cried for a bit. Then we moved onto bedding, which is much less stressful. We are going to get organized with a list this weekend and try to narrow things down a bit.

We got new phones last week with Colorado numbers. I think we've contacted everyone out there who needs to know them, but if you didn't get the message-let us know.

A boy chicken

That's what I told Melanie we were having, because she always calls it a chicken. The appointment went well. He has all the essential parts and everything measures exactly to my due date. There was no doubt left that he is indeed a he-we got a very clear butt/genitals shot. He weighs about 3/4 of a pound which is right in the 50th percentile. Very exciting stuff, I know. His name is Bennett, middle name unknown. Bernie and I will have to fight it out.

Back in school

I started again about 2 weeks ago. So far, everything is going well. I'm only taking 6 credits (compared to 12 for past semesters), so that's a bit of a relief. I'm still busy though. The class I'm teaching has about 65 undergrads in it and it is a bit more work than I anticipated. It takes me about 3-4 hours to put together one presentation and I do two per week. I'm about 3 weeks ahead right now and hope to stay that way through the semester. This week I get to put together the first exam. The class I'm taking is about management in the aging network. The only other thing I have to do to graduate in December is my portfolio. It's sort of a capstone project in which I have to prove the knowledge and expertise I have gained in the program. The home stretch is here.

We have two more weddings coming up (for a grand total of 5 this year since June). We are going to Grand Forks in about two weeks and then to Minneapolis next month. The other trip we have planned is to Phoenix for Thanksgiving. We have not been down to visit Bernie's sister and her family at all since I've known him-which is ridiculous. I'm excited to see Emily and her new little brother. Bernie's parents and various other family members may also be there. All these plans seem like a lot of travel, but soon it won't be so easy. I am going to take advantage while I can!

Speaking of our life-changing event...tomorrow is our 20 week ultrasound. Stay tuned for the gender announcement. It's cool that I'm over halfway now (by one whole day). Right now, I'm having some back pain and some nasty pain in my right hip. But overall, I am enjoying the experience. I have been feeling the baby move around consistently for the past five days. Bernie hasn't really gotten to feel it yet, so hopefully that will be the next milestone.

I tuned into the first part of the VMA's tonight. I have not actually watched them since probably 2002, so it was a bit strange. I was curious to see how Russell Brand went over on this side of the pond. He walked out to "Rock N' Roll Star" which was great. I watched his opening monologue and then tuned out. I just don't get MTV or any of that anymore. I think I have officially moved into the next generation. I think Russell is pretty funny, but I'm not sure he's going to make sense to most people around here.

UNC is in the same sports division as Montana. The Griz will be here in late October to play football and I do plan to attend. In my Montana gear. I have not developed any sort of loyalty to UNC.

Hmmm...Garbage

This hungry guy was about a mile from our house. Yikes!

In Great Falls again

I flew in Friday night to stay with my mom for the weekend. She was in a nasty accident last week after a Holiday Inn Van made an illegal left turn out of a parking lot and almost hit her on her bicycle. She stopped suddenly to avoid hitting her and fell off. She broke seven ribs and punctured a lung. She was in the hospital for five days. So I decided to come up and be of some use (mostly by driving her around since the narcotics prevent her from doing so). She is in a lot of pain and VERY stressed out (as usual), but she will recover. There is some extra fun drama added in because the police did not cite the driver and reports seem to be mysteriously missing. Hopefully, that all gets resolved tomorrow.

I'm headed back to Colorado tomorrow. Bernie's been at home all weekend and had some fun without me. He went golfing and out to dinner with some friends today. Now he owes me some golf and dinner. School starts up in two weeks. I am getting anxious about that, well mostly just the teaching part. I'm sure once I get the hang of it I will be fine. What should they call me? Amanda? Mrs. Meier? Professor Meier? I don't know. A lot of them will be close to my age so I need some sort of respect. Mrs. Meier makes me feel like an elementary school teacher. I have permission to use professor, but I don't want to mislead people.

The little one seems to be doing well. We heard the heartbeat again last week and everything was progressing normally. We will find out the gender on Sept. 8th. I can't wait to shop for gender specific items! I've recently gone on a maternity clothes shopping spree, so it's someone else's turn. Also, we became an uncle and aunt again on Friday. Bernie's sister had a boy named Grant Bernard. He was a big boy at almost 9 lbs.

OK, it's time for bed. I need to get up early to drive my mom on some errands before I leave.

flowers before and after

Summer in Colorado

It's nice here most of the year, but the summer is still a bit hot for my taste. I have always been somewhat of a whimp about the heat. I just try to go out in the mornings and evenings as much as possible. Now most of my flowers and tomatoes love the heat. I will have to post some photos since everything has gone crazy out there.

We've been back from our forays into seeing the families for almost a week. Overall, we had a good time. We went to three very different weddings. The most unique one was for our friends Bob and Melissa who got married on her parent's ranch in Stanford. The ceremony was in a pasture and we sat on hay bales. It was really beautiful (a little hot) with the views of the prairies and mountains. The reception was in a barn that had been cleaned and shined. It was great. They fed all almost 400 people and had a live band (not that great). One of the weddings in North Dakota also had 400 people and a Catholic mass-which is all a bit much for me. It was also 4th of July themed per the bride's desire. Again, a bit over the top for my taste, but she seemed pleased with all of it. The last one was for one of Bernie's high school friends. This one was significantly smaller and also lovely. However, as I am not supposed to drink, I have had enough raucous partying for awhile. I think Bernie has too!

I think everyone knows now, but for an official announcement...We are having a baby in January (the 24th to be exact). I was actually 12 weeks yesterday. We have known since 4 weeks but have been slow about letting the news leak because of the whole first trimester paranoia. But things seem to be going well. I actually had an ultrasound at 10 weeks and got to see the heartbeat and even the arms and legs move. At our appointment last week, we heard the heart beat. Very exciting stuff.

Now that the news is out of the way, I will continue with rambling about the trip. The most non-positive excitement we had was related to my dad. I don't remember if I ever posted about his sink. Well, the faucet has been broken since November and the water was running about a gallon a minute since then. He was very stubborn and would not let anyone fix it because "God broke the faucet and if I have enough faith, God will fix it." Yeah, he has pretty much gone off the deep end, which when coupled with his physical decline is not very much fun. Anyway, we got into Great Falls and stopped by his house first. He warned me it was bad, but I was unprepared. For the past month the faucet had basically been flooding the kitchen. The carpet was soaking squishy wet and it was dripping into the basement. It smelled horrible and there was mold growing. When I asked him what he was doing, he said "still waiting." So my family and I basically had to force him to get it fixed. At first he was very upset, but has since done an about face and said that he isn't going to fight with us anymore. He is bizarre.

I will be done with my summer class in about 10 days. Then the preparation for my final class and teaching begins. It should be fun to be big and pregnant in front of up to 150 undergraduates! Not so much looking forward to that.