28 weeks

I went for my 28 week appointment today. I am measuring great and the baby is finally head down. He weighs 2 lbs and 4 oz. I had an ultrasound and everything looks good there too. My placenta is totally out of the way of my cervix, which is wonderful!! No C-Section for me! (Hopefully.) There has been a shadow on his heart that they were concerned about but that has resolved itself as well. I had to do that nasty sugar test. (You have to drink a nasty drink and wait an hour and then they take your blood. Fun.) I also got a shot in the butt. (Even more fun.) I am Rh negative which means I have to get a shot now and then right after the baby comes. I had to do the same thing with Jenna. (Read more about it here) It was an eventful day at the doctor but everything is right on track now. We're getting so excited about him coming soon! In this picture he is playing with the cord up to his mouth. Funny.

Contractions, Shrek and Land Navigation?

Jenna and I have been staying back and forth between home and my mom's house. Lindsey has been staying with us during the week. We are so ready for Matt to come home!!

Last week I started having some contractions and some pain in my kidneys. I went to the hospital for them to monitor us for a little while. I was having a few real contractions but nothing major. They also did a few tests. All came back negative but one. It showed that I had blood in my urine. I have kidney stones and they were moving around in my kidneys and causing some pain. They sent me home after a few hours and told me to stay off my feet. Ha! I have a 17 month old and my husband is out of town...good luck with that. I go back to the doctor on Thursday. I'm anxious to talk to her about it. And also we'll be getting another ultra sound to see if my placenta has moved up.

Jenna is at such a fun age! She is learning new stuff everyday. Her new favorite thing in this world is Shrek. All you have to do is mention his name and she'll go on forever about watching him and who all she's watched him with. We were wanting to get away from Dora some but uh..Shrek? Is that any better? Now we have Dora and Shrek! She has also started playing with her baby dolls ALL the time. She wants to feed them, give them lotion, give them juice, read to them, cover them with blankets, on and on and on...what she doesn't realize is that she is just practicing for the real thing. Here is Jenna watching Shrek and the Campbell's house. :)

Matt is doing so great at WLC. I get to talk to him twice a day..maybe. Last week he was able to e-mail a lot because they were in the classroom but this week not so much. They are doing lots of stuff in the field and are very busy. (I hope the time is going by faster for him than it is for me!) They have 4 tests to do while they are there. He was very nervous about some of them. He did great though! I knew he would. He had to teach a class and get graded on it..he made a 96! He had to lead PT one morning...he made a 95! He got graded on troop leading and made an 87. He was bummed about that until he found out that it was the second highest grade in the class! He also had to do Land Navigation and got all 3 of his points! He was most excited about that one. He says it's one of his weak points. As you can see, he's doing GREAT! Having said all that..He's ready to come home. He's so tired and burnt out. He has been going non-stop for weeks! He comes home on Saturday night and we can't wait!! He also starts his new job on Monday. He was able to send me this pic and I thought I would share it. I really like it.

That's all for now!

Things Not to Say to a Military Spouse...

I ran across this and like some if it....(sorry about some of the language.)

Things NOT to say to a military spouse.

1. "Aren't you afraid that he'll be killed?"
(This one ranks in at number one on the "duh" list. Of course we're afraid. We're terrified. The thought always lingers at the backs of our minds ---but thanks brilliant, you just brought it back to the front. Maybe next you can go ask someone with cancer if they're scared of dying.)

2. "I don't know how you manage. I don't think I could do it."
(This is intended to be a compliment. Though, its just a little annoying. Here's why: it's not like all of us military wives have been dreaming since childhood of the day we'd get to be anxious single moms who carry cell phones with us to the bathroom and in the shower. We're not made of some mysterious matter that makes us more capable, we just got asked to take on a challenging job. So we rose to the challenge and found the strength to make sacrifices.) - Here's what i have to say about it...He's my husband. I support him in anything he does. That's the bottom line. You would do the same. Right?

3. "At least he's not in Iraq."
(This is the number one most annoying comment for those whose husbands are in Afghanistan. What do they think is happening in Afghanistan? An international game of golf? Guys are fighting and dying over there.) -Things are getting worse in Afghanistan than they are in Iraq...FYI

4. "Do you think he'll get to come home for Christmas/anniversary/birthday/birth of a child/wedding/family reunion, etc?"
(Don't you watch the news? No! They don't get to come home for any of these things. Please don't ask again.) - True story. If they didn't let him come home with he was in South Carolina for Jenna's birth, what makes you think they would fly him half way around the world for one?

5. "What are you going to do to keep yourself busy while he's gone?"
(Short answer: Try to keep my sanity. For those with and without children, we find ourselves having to be two people. That keeps us plenty busy. We do get lonely, but we don't get bored, and drinking massive amounts of wine always helps keep me busy.)

6."How much longer does he have until he can get out?"
(This one is REALLY annoying to many of us whether our husbands are deployed or not. Many of our husbands aren't counting down the days until they "can" get out. Many of them keep signing back up again and again because they actually love what they do or they VOLUNTEER AGAIN and AGAIN to go back to Iraq b/c there is work that needs to be done.) - Matt is one of them. We will always be military family. Always.

7. "This deployment shouldn't be so bad, now that you're used to it."
(Sure, we do learn coping skills and its true the more deployments you've gone through, the easier dealing with it becomes. And we figure out ways to make life go smoother while the guys are gone. But it never gets "easy" and the bullets and bombs don't skip over our guys just because they've been there before. The worry never goes away.) - I can't imagine ever getting used to him being gone...ever.

8. "My husband had to go to Europe for business once for three weeks. I totally know what you're going through."
(OK. Do NOT equate your husband's three week trip to London/Omaha/Tokyo/etc. with a 12-15 month or more deployment to a war zone. Aside from the obvious time difference, nobody shot at your husband or tried to blow him up with an I.E.D., your husband could call home pretty much any time he wanted to, he flew comfortably on a commercial plane, slept between crisp white sheets and ate well, paying for everything with an expense account. There is no comparison. We do NOT feel bonded to you in the slightest because of this comment and, if anything, we probably resent you a bit for it. Comparing a 12 month combat deployment to a few weeks business trip is like comparing a shitty ford taurus with mercedes convertible.)

9."Wow you must miss him?"
(This one also gets another big "duh". Of course we miss our men. There are some wives who do not and they're now divorced.) - You have no idea.

10. "Where is he exactly? Where is that?"
(I don't expect non-military folks to be able to find Anbar Province on a map, but they should know by now that it's in Iraq. Likewise, know that Kabul and Kandahar are in Afghanistan. Know that Muqtada al Sadr is the insurgent leader of the Mahdi Army in Iraq and that Sadr City is his home area. Know that Iran is a major threat to our country and that it is located between Afghanistan and Iraq. Our country has been at war in Afghanistan for seven years and at war in Iraq for five years. These basic facts are not secrets, they're on the news every night and in the papers every day ---and on maps everywhere.)

11. "Well, he signed up for it, so it's his own fault whatever happens over there.
(Yes, ignorant, he did sign up. Each and every day he protects your right to make stupid comments like that. He didn't sign up and ask to be hit by anything, he signed up to protect his country. Oh, and by the way, he asked me to tell you that "You're welcome." He's still fighting for your freedom.) - Amen.

12. "Don't you miss sex! I couldn't do it!"
(hmmm, no i don't miss sex. i'm a robot. seriously...military spouses learn quickly that our relationships must be founded on something greater than sex. We learn to appreciate the important things, like simply hearing their voices, seeing their faces, being able to have dinner together every night. And the hard truth is, most 'normal' relationships probably couldn't withstand 12 months of sex deprivation.)

13. "Well in my opinion....."
(Stop right there. Yo, I didn't ask for you your personal political opinions. Hey, I love a heated political debate, but not in the grocery store, not in Jamba Juice, not at Nordstrom, not in a bar when I'm out with my girls trying to forget the war, and CERTAINLY NOT AT WORK. We tell co-workers about deployments so when we have to spend lunch hours running our asses off doing errands and taking care of the house, dog, and kids, they have an understanding. We do not tell co-workers and colleagues because we are giving an invitation to ramble about politics or because we so eagerly want to hear how much they hate the President, esp. while we're trying to heat up our lean cuisines in the crappy office microwaves.)

14. "OH, that's horrible...I'm so sorry!"
(He's doing his job and he's a badass. Don't be sorry. Be appreciative and please take a moment out of your comfortable American lives to realize that our soldiers fight the wars abroad so those wars stay abroad.) - And pray for them. They need it.

Washington

Matt is in Washington DC this week. His unit got sent up there for the Presidential Inauguration. He didn't get to do as much as he had hoped. They were mainly there for backup. Some of them got to go out but since Matt is a mechanic he was left behind "just in case." They stayed at what used to be an elementary school. No showers. But they made it work. Luckily he got to go out today and tour Washington. I think he loved it! He really likes American History. I'm so happy that he has the opportunity to see so many places because of the Army. He was there on his birthday and I'm sure it'll be one he'll never forget. He took a camera up there with him so when he gets back if there are any good pics, I'll post them. He did send me some from his phone. Here's a good one...

He gets back tomorrow. But he leaves Friday morning from Chattanooga for South Carolina for WLC(Warrior Leaders Course). I don't know much about it. I do know it will help him get his next rank(E-5) and he thinks the first couple of days will be like BCT(Basic Training), which means we won't hear from him and they'll be all in his face yelling and making him do a million push ups. Don't let him fool you, he lives for that kind of stuff. His goal is to be a drill sgt. I can totally see that happening. Anyways, so we will get to see him for less than 24 hours and then he'll be gone for 2 weeks. It's what they call the "Guard Turn Around."

Jenna is missing him so much! My sister is staying with us while he's gone. Lindsey was sleeping on Matt's side of the bed and Jenna looked and me and said "Daddy Bed!" She also thinks every time we hear a car pull up that its him and she runs to the window and yells for Daddy. So sweet. I know she doesn't understand why he has to be gone. I hate that part! Maybe its just preparing us for when he leaves this summer for a year...

Me and Jenna are making it without him. I'm so happy Lindsey is staying with us and we have spent a lot of time at my parent's house. Matt's parents have gotten Jenna a couple of times so that I can have a break. We'll be so happy when he's home for good.

He starts working at the armory full time when he gets back which is an answer to prayer. We are so excited!

Pink is my favorite!

I just couldn't resist posting this picture. I got some of Jenna's Christmas money out to buy her a few new outfits. She just needed a few things to get us through the rest of the winter. I found this dress on sale at Khol's for $6! I couldn't pass it up. She wore leggings under it and she looked adorable! It's so fun dressing a little girl everyday. Pink is my favorite!

We miss you, Nathan!

A dear friend of ours passed away last night. Nathan Andrew Smith. He was 27. I don't even know where to start to tell you about the kind of person he was. Genuine. If I could use only one word that would be it. He went peacefully and he is at home with the Lord. He finally has new lungs and is breathing deep with no pain. We'll see him again one day. We miss you, Nate! RIP Nathan took me to my Jr. prom. We had a blast. A night I'll never forget with such a great friend.

Baby Update

We went to the doctor today. Carson is doing great! He weighs 1 pound 3 ounces. My placenta is still low but good news...its moving up slowly! Another ultrasound in 4 weeks! Wahoo! (I am 23 weeks!!)