Another week closer...

It's Friday, and we are another week closer... to Seattle and Bean and all the little milestones along the way. The pace at home has slowed down a little bit, from frantic to constant. We're starting to feel some momentum, which is good, but the to-do list remains daunting. I will have more time on my hands to tackle it, though, because yesterday was my final day in private practice. *sniff* Counselor C has packed up her shingle, the mental health of St. Louisans is no longer my responsibility. It was a rather emotional day for me, but a reminder of how rewarding my career is. And I have tons of paperwork to finish so I don't forget that for the next few months. In the meantime, I am continuing with my other part-time career, which is helping families who are relocating due to corporate transfers. (Gotta love irony!) My boss has been ridiculously flexible with me, allowing me to work from home as needed and take lots of time off for house-hunting and moving. They will also allow me to work from home in Seattle once we arrive. It's really nice to not have to worry about my job situation, but it is definitely tough to keep working through this transition.

Today we should hear from our relocation management company about what the realtors said. With any luck, we'll be on the market very soon!! Please send positive thoughts to our home and the buyers in St. Louis... we would love to sell it ourselves and not have to take the buy-out from DH's employer. We've decided that we will likely rent in Seattle for 6 months or so before buying. The housing prices up there are so high, we want to make 100% sure that we LOOOVE the house and the area. Besides, this way we can get Bean's opinion on the house, and the dog's, too, because she'll be staying with the dog sitter when we scope things out next month.

Pregnancy update. Currently NOT a fan of round ligaments. Between my growing belly and working around the house -- OUCH, soreness. I'm most comfortable when I'm sitting around. (But who isn't, really?) It's funny, the dog's desire to go outside seems to be positively correlated to my discomfort at the moment. I wonder how that happens.

And how is DH doing? It's been years since he's been this happy, which is so rewarding for me, and a bit contagious. He's over-the-moon about becoming a father, excited to start his new job, and thrilled for the upcoming change in scenery. He deserves all the good in the world, and I'm so lucky to be a part of his life. Oh, and because of his blissful mood, now is the time to ask him for favors. I've already been promised diamond jewelry, a designer raincoat, and several trips to expensive restaurants. Seeing as I pay our bills, it's unlikely I'll approve the purchases, but it's nice to know he cares.

Are we there yet?

Seriously, I am so over this relocation already!! Done with preparing the house for the market, done with mounds of paperwork, done with trying to coordinate 100 things that are all priorities, done with being constantly exhausted, done done done. *sigh*

The good news: there is an end in sight, no matter how far away it seems. We will be house hunting in about two weeks, then we'll make the transition that first weekend in November. While the craziness certainly will not end at that point, at least we'll be over the big hump.

The garage sale was a success, although we still have a few pieces of furniture to get rid of. Anyone need a Nordic Track? (I know, we're so cliche.) We have also met with both realtors who will assess our home, and soon we'll choose one of them and get this puppy on the market. Anyone need a 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath?

Leaving St. Louis feels very surreal to me right now. When DH (dear hubby) and I left Michigan, I knew my family would stay there and I'd return often. A couple times a year, I still get to shop at the familiar mall, visit my favorite restaurants, drive by my high school. Leaving Chicago wasn't too tough, it always felt temporary as a college student. And Cincinnati, that was a very brief stop. But leaving St. Louis is different. We never really put down roots, despite being here for five years. It wasn't because we didn't like it or wanted to leave, it was more a matter of circumstance. The first three years were spent working full time and going to graduate school, and the second two were consumed with infertility. Both of those defining periods caused us to grow closer as a couple -- we have herculean strength now, by my calculation -- but they meant we kind of skirted the outside of the city. I thought this baby would help me finally become entirely present here, but then the situation changed again. So as I look around in this final month in Missouri, it feels as if we are leaving as quietly as we came in five years ago. There's a disconnect in my mind about how everything has changed for me during my time here, yet now I'll just pick up and leave, not sure when or if I'll return. Sorry for getting all serious on you for a moment, these are the thoughts that keep me up at night. :)


Okay, now for the fun stuff! Bean seems to be doing well, we're keeping close tabs. Here are the ultrasound pics from last Friday, at 16.5 weeks. Our "big" ultrasound is October 4, so hopefully we'll have some good shots to share then. We listen to the heartbeat almost every night on our doppler (http://www.babybeat.com/, love it!), which is comforting. I'm starting to worry that I haven't gained enough weight, just a couple pounds at almost 4 months along now. There are actually parts of my body that are skinnier than before! But the doc isn't concerned at this point, so I guess I should just be careful what I wish for...

I also want to mention two friends who recently delivered their babies. Both experienced significant trials along the way, and I am so thrilled that they can now hold their little miracles. One friend had a healthy set of boy/girl twins -- the boy sharing his name with my DH, gotta love him! -- and the other had a sweet little boy and delivered his sister into Heaven. The little angel will be in our prayers.

Belly expands, time contracts

Another quick entry, this week has gotten quite out of control with too much to do. As the title of this post mentions, little Bean is really making him/herself known. This belly pic is from last Friday (15 weeks and 2 days). It is kinda fun to be showing now, but I'm still getting used to seeing the bump when I look in the mirror. Is that really me?!?! I am also including ultrasound pics of Bean from a week and a half ago (14 weeks and 2 days).

Meanwhile, as my belly stretches larger and larger, time seems to be shrinking as we prepare for the move. This week, in addition to our normal working/eating/sleeping schedule that feels busy enough somehow, we are trying to clean and stage our home for the market and organize our "junk" for the neighborhood garage sale on Friday and Saturday. My parents gave us a huge boost on these tasks last weekend, for which they deserve a standing ovation. But there's still a lot left to do! I'm hoping that once the garage sale is over and the house is in shape, we can get a handle on things and I can start sleeping again. Right....

Let the fun begin!

What an amazing couple of months it has been... pregnant with our first child, relocating to Seattle, and now starting my very own blog. Each a life-changing event in itself, but I will attempt to balance them all at the same time. Drumroll please.

I won't get wordy on you -- at least on this first post. Just a simple introduction. I started this blog to make it easier to keep in touch during an extremely busy time. It's hard to send personal updates these days, as instead I'm trying to assess neighborhoods from 2,100 miles away and select a doctor to deliver the baby based on unflattering photos from a hospital web site. I'll do my best to post updates so you will know where we are in the relocation and baby-having processes, and when to send a sympathy card when I lose my sanity.

Thank you for checking out my blog. I hope you bookmark it and come back again. We have been so encouraged by the support from friends and family, it has helped get us through some tough times already. And there's surely more to come, so please leave a note when you visit. :)