David's mom arrives tonight and my mom arrives on Friday night to help out with baby stuff, kid stuff, moving stuff, and hopefully have time for some pleasant visiting on top of all that :).
I had to drive up to Columbia today with the boys to pick up the lease so we can sign it and make things official with our new home, and it hit me kind of hard all day today that this was going to be the "end of the Campbell status quo as we know it". Not that the past 2 years have been exactly "status quo" for us, because they've actually been pretty crazy with all the relocating and everything. But we started out 2 years ago in David's rotation program as a family of 5. We've traveled together and bonded together amidst our adventures and misadventures in Buffalo, Colorado Springs, and 2 Virginia locations as 2 adults and 3 kids. One major constant for the past 2 years has been our little nuclear family, and now we're about to totally change the dynamics of that constant. And now Help is on its way for the imminent baby delivery, which just makes it all the more real that everything is going to change.
We will be a family of 6, and we'll have a newborn in tow with all the feeding, changing, and sleeping demands that newborns come with. I'm not really worried about things being worse than they are now (although I know the first few months will be more difficult as we all adjust and are sleep-deprived). It's more like I'm already starting to miss the routines and normalcy that we've grown comfortable with. I can take the 3 boys out on big or little errands by myself (which I remember seemed SO daunting when Peter was tiny!), and I feel confident that they will behave well, and if they don't, I can handle it. I think right now I feel the most confident and calm in my mothering and teaching career than I ever have, and I'll miss that feeling! I know I'll get it back eventually, and of course our family will adapt just fine and it will be hardly any time at all before we feel like our family was never complete without baby David. But, still, it was an odd and slightly bittersweet feeling today that there is no turning back from this point.
That being said, I wonder when baby David will make his arrival! No feelings yet that things are getting close. It's a huge relief that we have family arriving in town that can wrangle the bigger boys while David and I go to the hospital. We had some friends from church offer to help out, but I know the boys will be much more comfortable if they can just be at home instead of being juggled between various people's houses. Plus, I worry a bit about making sure everyone is up to speed on Jack's nut allergy and someone doesn't accidentally forget about it. I felt terrible a couple of weeks ago when we got sandwiches from a sandwich shop, and the boys had little bags of potato chips, and I noticed *after* Jack had eaten a good handful of them that they were cooked in peanut oil! He was fine, no reactions (I've actually heard that peanut oil is usually refined to the point that peanut proteins are filtered out), but it bothered me that it escaped my radar when I'm supposed to be most on top of it!
We will keep you updated when anything interesting happens. In the meantime, we appreciate your prayers for healthy and safe delivery and a good adjustment for all of us.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Summer Rambo
For me, the words "summer rambo" immediately brings to mind something like the image below:
As it turns out, the house that we'll be renting in MD is on a street called Summer Rambo. We found out a couple of days ago that they accepted our rental application and now we just need to sign the lease and we're al set! We're really excited because we think it will be a great house for us.
The street name, though, really puzzled us, because it just seems like "summer" and "rambo" don't have any business being thrown together like that. Granted, we have come across much worse street names in our travels (Purgatory Dr. and Deliverance Rd. in Colorado Springs, and even Maleady Drive in VA reminded me too much of "malady"). Still, it seemed like there must be an interesting story behind Summer Rambo.
We learned, actually, that it's a type of apple. Many of the streets in that area are named after apple varieties, and someone picked Summer Rambo for our street. Now, why in the world someone decided to call an apple Summer Rambo is beyond me, but there it is.
So, David has a great job, we have a house, and slowly but surely our to-do list is growing smaller and smaller. It's been quite a while since the stress in our lives has been on the decrease rather than the increase, and the change is very welcome. Next on the list is having this baby! I'm due exactly 2 weeks from today, and I'm starting to get a little restless. My body is kind of limping its way through these last weeks of pregnancy. I'm healthy, thank goodness, and the important stuff like blood pressure are normal, and I'm even keeping up OK with taking care of David, the boys, homeschooling, the house, etc. But everything seems harder with a big, cumbersome tummy in the way, and I'm just plain tired. :). Again, that's par for the course at 38 weeks, but it's humbling!
At doctor's appointment last week, my doctor seemed very confident that I'd be able to have a successful VBAC. He was much more reassuring than the previous lady doctor I saw, so it was a great visit. It was just what I needed to hear. Now I just hope that my body and the baby cooperate, if possible, so that I go into labor on my own before I go overdue. I really don't feel like I will last 2 more whole weeks (but that might just be wishful thinking!), but I also haven't had any indications that labor will be coming anytime soon. We'll just have to see. It's exciting that whatever kind of birth I end up with, we only have at most about 2 more weeks of waiting!!
This week is a busy one. David has his graduation from his rotation program on Wednesday night, and if I haven't had the baby by then, I get to go to the graduation dinner and celebrate with him. I'm excited -- it's been a long road! David's mom and my mom are also coming out to help this week, and I have another dr's appointment and a drive up to MD to finish up our lease paperwork. I hope the next update will be a "we're going to the hospital" or "we've had the baby" post!
Monday, September 12, 2011
Less than three weeks to go
We've all been doing well this past week. David has been working very hard at his job -- lots of stress and long hours -- but he is hanging in there. The boys have done well with school this week and are getting more and more excited about Grandmom and Grammy coming out to visit within the next couple of weeks, and of course baby David arriving. There is a fair amount of surplus craziness around here that I'm sure comes from our upcoming move and the baby's arrival. It's a double-whammy of change for them, and we're all feeling the stress a little. I'm trying to be extra patient and understanding, since *I* have trouble not being anxious and grouchy and I'm an adult with lots more reasoning power and life experience. We're all excited, though, and looking forward to when the dust settles after October.
We took a trip up to Columbia on Friday and found a great home. We put in an application and we'll see in the next few days if they'll accept it. We have high hopes -- but we're not actually starting our lease until the end of October, so it's possible that they'll turn down our application in favor of renters that can actually move in this month. We'll see. It seems like there are homes that get put up for rent each week, so I'm confident we'll find something good even if this house falls through.
The boys are getting excited about Halloween and have picked out their costumes. Jack wants to be Black Spiderman, Thomas wants to be Darth Vader, and Peter wants to be a Phoebe Giraffe :). I'm excited because I'm actually going to try and make their costumes this year. Last year I ordered them last-minute from Wal-Mart because we had just moved and it was the easiest solution, and I think the year before that I had pieced some makeshift costumes together a few days before Halloween, but I didn't give myself enough time and my sewing machine was also broken -- so they didn't turn out too well. Not to mention that we were in Buffalo, and it was freezing cold and drizzly and no one was answering their doors when we went Trick-or-Treating! That was a pretty sad Halloween!
So, I decided it would be fun, economical, and a good waiting-for-baby distraction to work on the boys' costumes over the next few weeks. They're excited because they get to add in their input and help customize them. I found a bunch of clearance clothing items online last week and once they arrive we can add the fabric paint and embellishments and see how they turn out!
Other than that, I have a dr's appointment this Wednesday and hopefully we'll hear more about our rental house by then. I'll do my best to post an update!
We took a trip up to Columbia on Friday and found a great home. We put in an application and we'll see in the next few days if they'll accept it. We have high hopes -- but we're not actually starting our lease until the end of October, so it's possible that they'll turn down our application in favor of renters that can actually move in this month. We'll see. It seems like there are homes that get put up for rent each week, so I'm confident we'll find something good even if this house falls through.
The boys are getting excited about Halloween and have picked out their costumes. Jack wants to be Black Spiderman, Thomas wants to be Darth Vader, and Peter wants to be a Phoebe Giraffe :). I'm excited because I'm actually going to try and make their costumes this year. Last year I ordered them last-minute from Wal-Mart because we had just moved and it was the easiest solution, and I think the year before that I had pieced some makeshift costumes together a few days before Halloween, but I didn't give myself enough time and my sewing machine was also broken -- so they didn't turn out too well. Not to mention that we were in Buffalo, and it was freezing cold and drizzly and no one was answering their doors when we went Trick-or-Treating! That was a pretty sad Halloween!
So, I decided it would be fun, economical, and a good waiting-for-baby distraction to work on the boys' costumes over the next few weeks. They're excited because they get to add in their input and help customize them. I found a bunch of clearance clothing items online last week and once they arrive we can add the fabric paint and embellishments and see how they turn out!
Other than that, I have a dr's appointment this Wednesday and hopefully we'll hear more about our rental house by then. I'll do my best to post an update!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
One wait down, another to go
We decided that relocating to Columbia, MD for David's work is the best decision for our family now, so the waiting and agonizing over which job would be best is finally over. It is a huge relief to have made a decision, but it was so difficult! When we left CA two years ago for this program, I had the expectation that we would be returning at the end to pick up our lives there where we left off, with maybe a raise and promotion for David. It wasn't really a possibility in my mjnd that we would not be returning.
It was heartbreaking for us to learn that the job climate and job future for David's line of work in CA and in many other areas is very shaky right now, and to return at this point would not be the wisest decision for job security.
However, David received many excellent job offers from the MD and VA area, and business is much better out here. He accepted a great position that is very stable and interesting, and will be good for his career. We drove up to the Columbia area and it is very nice and family-friendly. Our next step is to find a rental home there and plan our move.
With that behind us, we have one more big wait ahead -- I'm nearly 37 weeks pregnant so baby David could come at any time. His checkups have being going very well, and my ultrasound yesterday estimated that he is currently 7lb 8oz, which is a little big for his gestational age, but not terribly ginormous. We'll just have to see if my doctors will want to schedule me for a c-section of if they'll let me deliver on my own. I'm getting excited about meeting this little guy finally and recovering from whatever delivery I have so I can start feeling like myself again. Between my large tummy and my achy hips, I have developed quite the waddle! But I'm doing well, all things considered, and have been pretty busy putting together my hospital bag, cleaning house, and arranging emergency childcare if I go before my mom and David's mom arrive. It is hard for me to believe that whatever happens, I have just about 4 weeks left at most before baby David is here!!
It was heartbreaking for us to learn that the job climate and job future for David's line of work in CA and in many other areas is very shaky right now, and to return at this point would not be the wisest decision for job security.
However, David received many excellent job offers from the MD and VA area, and business is much better out here. He accepted a great position that is very stable and interesting, and will be good for his career. We drove up to the Columbia area and it is very nice and family-friendly. Our next step is to find a rental home there and plan our move.
With that behind us, we have one more big wait ahead -- I'm nearly 37 weeks pregnant so baby David could come at any time. His checkups have being going very well, and my ultrasound yesterday estimated that he is currently 7lb 8oz, which is a little big for his gestational age, but not terribly ginormous. We'll just have to see if my doctors will want to schedule me for a c-section of if they'll let me deliver on my own. I'm getting excited about meeting this little guy finally and recovering from whatever delivery I have so I can start feeling like myself again. Between my large tummy and my achy hips, I have developed quite the waddle! But I'm doing well, all things considered, and have been pretty busy putting together my hospital bag, cleaning house, and arranging emergency childcare if I go before my mom and David's mom arrive. It is hard for me to believe that whatever happens, I have just about 4 weeks left at most before baby David is here!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
