Due Date

Well, yesterday in Japan and today in the states was/is my due date. But...still no baby Izaak. So in the mean time, I will give in and do the random facts about me blog too like all my best pals have done. Don't know if I have anything good but here goes.

* I love almost any kind of pasta!
* I miss NC
* Someday I want a Dachshund and a Great Dane
* I used to want 3 kids but really don't want to be pregnant again. (I'm sure I'll change my mind)
* I'm looking into doing an on-line photography school
* I still regret not finishing nursing school but I know everything worked out the way it was supposed to and I might go back someday.
* I never EVER thought I would marry a guy in the military and move across the world with him!
* I'm disappointed in myself for not being the Christian that I should/that I want to be
* I LOVE George Clooney
* The thought of being a mom forever scares me sometimes
* I used to NEVER cry over anything and since I've been with John I cry very regularly (That is a good thing. He allows me to express my emotions where I used to feel like I couldn't).
* I have really bad anxiety and I HATE it
* I want to learn how to quilt on a sewing machine
* I love the beach!!
* I really miss wearing normal people clothes and am ready to shed the maternity pants!
* I never realized how grateful I am for Target and Wal-Mart until I moved here
* I'm a sucker for reality TV shows even if they're really stupid
* I really didn't think I would like the "Twilight" book but I loved it and can't wait to read "New Moon".
* Cleaning out the refrigerator is one of my least favorite chores!
* I have seen someone die
* I'm addicted to country time pink lemonade (and still Dr. Pepper)
* I LOVE getting a foot massage
* I have the best girlfriends anyone could ask for!!!
* I think this is enough randomness about me for now ;) (thanks jess!)

Izaak the wiggle worm!

Thought y'all might like to see this. I tried capturing one his wild nights last week (he was exactly 37 weeks). Enjoy!

Playing the Waiting Game

Well *someone* said I should update my blog. :) But there really isn't much to report. Monday I killed myself cleaning the house and now I'm trying to keep it as neat as possible because I CAN'T STAND when it's messy and I don't want to leave for the hospital with a messy house. Cause I know I won't be able to clean for a little while after I give birth and then we're having company for a month straight. Well actually from Jan 31st - Mar 5th with like 5 days break in between. *whew* Anyway, so yesterday I did my big PX run (for those of you who don't know what a PX is, it's like a very small store that has some essentials in it such as clothes, personal hygiene stuff, cleaning supplies, electronics, etc). Kinda like Wal-Mart but about 1,000 times smaller! And went to the furniture store to once again try to find a rug for our living room (they come and go so fast and I've been looking for one since we got here!) Then to the commissary (military grocery store). I was pretty tired after that. And then my husband made me walk I don't even know HOW MANY stairs last night before I went to bed! He's gonna try to do it again tonight but I'm going to fight him on it. haha. He is definitely more anxious to get this baby out than I am now!! I think he's just ready to get out of work. haha. And then today I mostly relaxed and talked on the phone a lot. When John got home we went to another base to their PX so John could look for a PS3 game and guess what?? I FINALLY found a rug!! I think I like it. We just rolled it out so I'm getting used to it. Oh yeah and I got some baby blue nail polish because our PX didn't have any and I've been wanting some so I can paint my toenails for the birth. So as you can tell...my life is pretty boring right now because I'm just PLAYING THE WAITING GAME!! I know he'll be ready when he's ready and I'm just trying to enjoy these last days of my free time and independence. But I'm ready to get the labor and birth part over with and I'm SO ready to see my son!! It is sad that I won't have any friends or family here when he's born (unless he holds out until my parents get here). And I have a couple friends here who I know will visit. But I wish all my girls back home could be here. :( I guess facebook pics and messages will have to do for now. Well I'm HOPING the next time I post something, it's a LOT more exciting than this! haha.

First Christmas and New Year's in Okinawa

Well this holiday season sure was different from what I'm used to! Typically I would be in Indiana in a 3 story house with about 10 or 12 other people, MOUNDS of presents under the tree, homemade candy everywhere you look, cousins and aunts and uncles I haven't seen in a year, Nana's blackberry cobbler and Memaw's noodles. And for New Year's I would be back in Statesville at mom and dad's with friends pouring in from different states, eating all of mom's snacks she loves to prepare for my friends, playing DDR, catching up on girl talk with all my girls (and Jordan because he's one of us), ringing in the New Year with champagne toasts, sleeping all over the house wherever we can find room, and taking a million pictures the next day! What amazing memories I have of those days and how blessed I am to have my friends and family who have helped make those special memories. Even makes me want to cry as I'm typing this. (Darn these hormones!) But there was a very big part of me missing last year even among all the family, friends and craziness. My husband John was finishing up his 1 year tour in Iraq and I missed him and ached for him daily. Throughout that very difficult year without him, I remember telling everyone, including God, that I would go anywhere the military sends him, just as long as we could go together. It was actually the day after Christmas last year that I got a call from him where after about 10 minutes of catching up he said, "...What do you think about Okinawa?" I remember coming back with, "What do you mean?.....To LIVE there??" And when he said "yes", all I could say was, "Baby, I'll go anywhere you go. If this is what you want, I'm with you." And 1 week later, he had orders! It's been a crazy year with him coming home, re-adjusting to married life, finding out 3 months after his homecoming that we were expecting our first baby, morning sickness, packing up our apartment...again..., not leaving when we were supposed to, more morning sickness, living with 3 other crazy marines, living in a condo on the beach, and FINALLY arriving in Japan in November...5 months after we were supposed to get here. But hey, what's life without a little excitment and un-predictability? (is that even a word?) I'm finally starting to feel a little bit settled (it's been so long I'm not sure how it's supposed to feel!) But the nesting has definitely kicked in and since I could have this little guy any day now, I feel like I can't sit still and always need to be on top of the laundry, dishes, etc. *sigh* And to add to that, I've had horrible insomnia recently making it impossible for me to fall asleep before 3 am usually. I guess my body is preparing me for sleepless nights. But anyway...back to the holidays. We went to a Christmas Eve party at a family's house across the street from us. John works with the husband and they seem really nice. There were several other families there too that we are getting to know better. So far it seems so different here. Much more family oriented and much less drunken rowdiness! And so far I haven't heard of even one divorce in progress which is...a miracle! So then John and I spent a quiet Christmas in our little apartment together. I missed my big family get together but remembered how lonely I was last year without John and it made me thankful that we could spend this Christmas across the world together. :) It only took about 10 minutes to unwrap our presents. haha. Then we spent the rest of the day watching movies, taking a nap, I cooked a lot for lunch, and then we made some cookies together that night. For New Year's Eve we went to some other friends house (but pretty much all the same people). The wives talked and held the babies. The guys played cards and sang karaoke. We ended up staying there 'til 4 am! But it was a great time and I'm so thankful for our new friends even though I missed my best friends back home very much. Well...I think that's about it. I'm just rambling now and I feel hung over from not much sleep last night. So maybe I will go put in some more laundry and then take a nap? yeah right! Oh we have our maternity pictures tomorrow and I'm so excited! Well I guess I'll end with wishing you all a very happy and blessed 2009!! Much love!

And His Name Shall Be........

So after 20 weeks...yes i said 20 WEEKS of discussing what our child's middle name will be and my husband saying over and over "I don't know what I want it to be", he has decided!!!!!!! I thought I was going to pass out (and it certainly didn't alleviate these contractions I've been having all night!) You ready for it??? Our son's name IS.....................

Izaak Raiden

For those of you who don't know, the 2 names we've had it narrowed down to are Raiden and John. But hubby John decided he didn't want that to be his middle name after all. Also:

1. Izaak is the German spelling of Isaac and John is German on both sides. Plus we think the spelling is really cool (although I realize people will always and forever mis-spell his name. oh well. there's about 1,000 ways to spell my name!)

2. Raiden is a unique and cute name (we think) and it's Japanese and he will be born in Japan! So that's something he will always have.

*thanks for letting me share in my excitement!!

40 days and 40 nights

....that's how much longer i have before my little man is due! in a way it seems like it will NEVER get here and i will ALWAYS and FOREVER be pregnant! but it's really just around the corner! i'm trying to enjoy the last few weeks i have of no crying, no breast feeding, etc. but as far as sleep, i'm not getting much of that these days so it really doesn't matter. at least i can attempt to take naps right now if i want to. but he usually likes to wake me up with his feet in my ribs and banging his head on my bladder or having the hiccups (which he gets all the time!!) so it's safe to say that i am now pretty darn uncomfortable and tired. but besides all that, i am SO ready to see my baby! i try to imagine what he's going to look like but i really can't. i'm anxious to see if he has hair and what color it is, what color his eyes are, who he looks most like, how much he will weigh, etc, etc. i want to hold him and kiss him so bad! at the same time i'm scared to death for him to come into this world! i think i'm starting to get mommy anxiety and i know it will only get worse! i fear everything from how will i know he's getting enough to eat? to when should i vaccinate? to will we be good parents? will he grow up being a good person? it's so exciting bringing one of God's miracles into the world but so frightening at the same time!! i guess all i can do is read books, trust my gut, and pray that we make the right decisions and do everything we can to help mold him into who he's supposed to be. well...just thought i'd put that out there. :)

Getting My Feet Wet

WELL...here I am world! Thanks to my best pal Jessi, I now have a blog! It's something I've been interested in for a while but something I was a little scared to commit to. Some people seem to pour their hearts out in these things and I'm the kind of person who doesn't even keep a journal in the house for fear someone will read it someday!! haha. But I think it might be fun and it will be nice to have a way for friends and family to keep up with me and my life. So that's all for now. I just wanted to say hi and try this thing out. I promise I will be posting again soon though so stay tuned.