back in the game

I feel like it has been FOREVER since I posted last. Oh yeah, it has.....my bad. I have taken on some new adventures and wanted an outlet for them. My first new adventure is preparing to be a mom of two. I am so scared and excited at the same time. Sometimes I wonder if I was temporarily insane to have another baby while my son goes through terrible twos, but I guess we will find out. I am due July 14 and am hoping not to have a repeat of the preemie drama we went through with Reese. Either way, I feel much more relaxed about this baby boy and will probably not cause myself near the stress this time.

My second new adventure is couponing. Judge if you want, but I am addicted. I have been researching a lot lately and have put my learnings to the test. So far I have saved up a hundred or two in just two weeks. And built up a year's supply of body wash, razors, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and lots of other stuff for up to 80% off what I would have paid full price. I have started watching TLC's extreme couponing (even Sean has gotten in on the fun) and although am not at that point yet, I give props to the women who are. It takes A LOT of time, planning, and patience. Not to mention some gumption to occasionally correct a cashier or politely ignore the line of people behind me. Sorry :) Reese is even my little coupon partner and holds them for me in the stores. I am gonna post some good deals I got from time to time just to make myself feel good if anything lol. Hope all is well with everyone. Jess

Green thumb

So I have ventured into the gardening world. I inherited my dad's love of gardening, but have yet to receive the patience it takes. Since our yard is sloped, Sean and my dad built some really great raised beds. Our soil is very heavy clay (not exactly the best for growing vegetables) so we mixed in plenty of peat, manure, and top soil. I decided to start from seeds to save money. I very carefully labeled all of my seed starters, watered them plenty, and watched my little seeds grow into plenty of seedlings. I thought, I'll show all those people who said I should just go buy seedlings! When they got big enough, I planted them in my awesome new beds. However, I failed to realize that you should always check the last frost date before planting seedlings, and you should also leave the seedlings outside for a few days before planting to harden up? Good to know right? Needles to say I have two of the maybe 20 seedlings that I planted that have survived. So, I broke down and bought some bedding plants. No biggie I guess. I thought I was in good shape then. I watered my garden plenty, put in pleny of fertilizer, and weeded it almost daily. I failed to realize all of the outside factors that can affect your garden. For instance, the caterpillars that eat my spinach, the fungus growing on my tomatoes, and the neighbor's cat that that daily uses what it thinks is a giant litter box. Seriously? My once organic garden now has been exposed to insecticide, fungicide, cat repellent, and moth balls. Funny how I thought growing more vegetables would help improve my diet. I might grow a third eye, but I will get my 4-5 servings.

Back in the game

Been awhile for sure. My bad. Now that life has fallen into some sort of routine (which I am sure will change as soon as I am dumb enough to write that), I feel I can venture into the blog world again. Just a few updates. Sean and I have bought our first house. Lovin the space. The maintenance? Not so much, but beats listening to rap music through your walls at 4am. We have some really nice neighbors and are looking forward to (hopefully) some missionary oppurtunities. Reese is 13 months now. Time has seriously flown by. He is developing quite the personality (nice way of saying he is very determined). Don't know where he got that from :) He has outgrown reflux completely (yea!), but is still having to do some therapy for a physical develpment delay (not so yea, but ok). I have to laugh at how different things are with Reese compared to what I pictured when I was pregnant. Or rather how different I am as a mother. I always said I wasn't going to be THAT mom. You know, the mom who says NO at the beginning of every sentence. The mom who yells at her child for yelling. That mom. I finally had a wake up call when I realized that weird sound Reese was making was his imitation of my exasperated sigh. Oops. It is a work in progress, but I enjoy it. I hope there is a special place in heaven for first born children. They are such guinea pigs.

Back from CA

This pic is current with me at 29 weeks. Officially in my third trimester!
Sean and I recently returned from spending Christmas in San Diego. We had a really great time and his family even threw me a surprise baby shower! We got a lot of great things and can't wait to visit again. We took it easy for a few days and have now started to prepare for baby. We finally got around to putting away our Christmas decorations and will be crib shopping tomorrow. I have made a huge list of all the things I want to get done before the baby arrives. Lets see how realistic that goal is :) I have a new OB, Dr. Taylor, she is really nice and I am relieved that I get to deliver on this side of the river now. I was having nightmares at getting stuck in rush hour traffic in Louisville while in labor! Sean and I start our baby classes on Monday. We are taking a six week course on preparing for the baby (I think it includes labor and delivery and basic child care), an infant CPR/first aid class (I need a refresher), and I will be taking a breast feeding class. I am also getting ready to host my sister's baby shower at the end of this month. Phew! I put in my two weeks notice at Logan's. The extra money was nice for Christmas, but I can honestly say I won't miss it too much. It was a nice break from nursing, but I am ready to get back into health care for sure. I forgot how frustrating serving can be sometimes. Well we hope all is well with our friends and family. Keep us updated! Love Jess

Into my six month

So according to my book I am now into my 6th month which is the last of my second trimester. I have been feeling the baby move a lot. I recently had to switch doctors due to insurance so Sean and I were kind of upset by that. The good news is we just switched to a different doctor in the same OB group who happened to take our insurance. It is the same doctor who delivered my cousin back in march and she really liked him. He specializes in high risk pregnancies (not that I am), but it is nice to now he knows how to handle those situations. Sean recently went on his first hunting trip with my dad. It rained all day, but he said it was still fun. He only saw one deer and it was too far away to shoot. He will be going again on Friday and my dad is really enjoying having someone to go with him. Sean keeps sneaking out before I can get a picture of him in his camo, so I will have to try again on Friday. We are looking forward to Thanksgiving on Thursday. We will be with all of my extended family at my aunt's house this year. Sean and I (well me mainly) are in charge of bringing a dessert. I think we are bringing brownie walnut pie. I made it several years ago and everyone really like it. We are looking forward to seeing everyone for Christmas. We will be in the Tuesday before and will stay until the following Monday. I can't wait to see how the McCollums do Christmas. Jess

Ultrasound pics

Here are some of the pictures from our US today. I have all of them on my facebook account or you can email Sean or I and we will send you them. We are very excited about having a boy and can't wait to meet him!!!! Love jess

Falling into routine

(This picture is current at 20 weeks. Halfway done!)

Life is finally getting some routine to it again. Sean is really having a good time working at Service Net and I am actually having a lot of fun waitressing at my old job. I have still been applying to nursing jobs different places, but am not really having luck. We have been starting to get the apartment "baby ready" by making space for all the stuff. We find out Monday what we are having so we will be sure to let everyone know. Now that I have some extra time I am looking forward to trying some things I have always wanted to do. Things like crocheting (I think I spelled that right) and meal planning. I have also been put in charge of the budget and bill paying which I actually like doing. It saddens me sometimes that I am not nursing. I really miss my patients, but my dream was always to be a mom. Nursing was not really my passion, although I loved doing it, and I am excited to start doing what I think will be my passion. I get really excited to think that I don't have to miss out on anything or come home really stressed about a hard day. I will always try to keep up with my nursing (I worked too hard to get that degree), but a this point in my life I am concentrating on what I think is most important. That being my family and home. Jess