Watch Dog

Sometimes I'm not convinced Lucy is a real dog. Besides snuggling, her favorite activity is to look out the window. She doesn't prefer to play or explore the outdoors (unless we're with her), but she is frequently found doing this:

It seems she just enjoys observing nature rather than be in it. The ledge is at the perfect height for her to rest her chin on it, so she seems rather comfortable. Mostly it's at random, but lately I've noticed that she does this when the neighborhood kids are getting on/off the school bus and when she thinks Keith should be coming home from work.

Maybe someday I'll time it right to video her when she sees Keith coming home from work. It's sweet to see how excited she gets when she sees the car...she'll go bananas looking for her toy, then run from the window to the door and back again. Once he's in the door, she turns into a cat and starts running in circles around him while rubbing up against him.

Grateful

Keith and I are so blessed with generous family and friends. It started with Amanda (sister) and Haley (friend) who both gave us a bunch of clothes, socks, hats, etc. from their boys. They have 2 boys each, which means Baby G now owns 4 boys worth of clothes!

The first weekend of December we headed to Iowa for a baby shower my mom and friend Lisa threw for us. Everything was wonderful and it was great to see everyone who was able to come! My favorite part was that guests were asked to bring children's books in lieu of a card, meaning that the sweet messages will last much longer! We now have quite the collection of books for Baby G.

**Side note: Since Keith will deploy late Spring/early Summer, we will record him reading these books to keep Baby G familiar with his voice.

Furniture has now been ordered and things are arriving! His room is still a mess of randomness for now, but it will come together soon!

Baby G Update

Yesterday I went to a specialist in Topeka for an ultrasound to see whether or not Boy Gilbert has spina bifida or heart problems. Good news - he looks perfect and healthy! Here's what else we learned:

-He made sure we knew he was a boy.
-He has lots and lots of hair...visible in 2 and 3D. (This explains the wicked heartburn.)
-Weighs 4 lbs 15 ozs.
-Has very active limbs...he sucked on both hands and a foot while we were watching. Dr. actually asked if anyone in the family talks with their hands (cough, Bev, cough).
-Based on fluid levels, he will probably come early. I was told to be ready by January 10, but due date wasn't changed.
-Those same high fluid levels will make me look and feel further along than I really am.

I was really excited to get to see him in 3D, but he didn't let us get a good look at his face. He had one or both hands covering him. When the tech pushed a few times to get him to move, that's when he then brought a foot up to block our view more. I'm not sure where this stubbornness is coming from! However, there was a brief peek at his little nose and mouth. I predict he will have Keith's lips and his aunt Amanda's nose. :)

I won't post the ultrasound pics this time. The only clear 2D one shows his boy parts prominently (we'll save that to embarass him later), and the 3D ones show his hands/foot. We're looking forward to meeting the little guy!

Thanksgiving 2011

We road-tripped with Laura and Trever to Canon City, CO.

Thanksgiving dinner was DELICIOUS!

However, the Chocolate Angel pie was my fav.

We all watched Robin Williams before bed.











The next day, the women went to see Twilight: Breaking Dawn.

The men played 4 Mile.

No trip to Colorado is complete without an intense game of Risk.

I totally thought Keith was being nice to me for once, but it turns out I was being isolated in Asia so he could personally take me out...Cindy beat him to it. Ultimately, Rex made the ultimate comeback to win the game.

On Saturday we all went shooting. (I stayed in the car to protect Baby G's little ears.)

Then we headed to The Springs for some shopping.

Dinner was at Edelweiss in Colorado Springs. This German restaurant is deLIGHTful!

Amanda, Steve, Kyle, Owen, and Madi were missed! We're looking forward to seeing them at New Year's!

Over and Over Again

Even though I just posted (I did get 4 things done on my To-Do list before I typed this out), I'm still thinking about the question of what civilians should know about military life. I have another answer, one I like even better.

I get to fall in love with my husband over and over again.

Seeing him in the Colorado Springs airport after 8 months of his Iraq deployment was just great! (See pic captioned 'R&R 2009' on the side) I only had 2 weeks with him, but they were pretty awesome. Then when he came home for good 4 months after that...there are no words. Seeing pictures from that day or hearing the Toby Keith song (playing when they walked in) on the radio will bring on the tears as those memories come rushing back.

His year-long deployment, and of course those month-long training exercises, give me a chance to truly miss him. It deepens my appreciation of what he does around the house on a day-to-day basis, both big and small.

Here are some pics of MY "battle buddies" with their husbands on redeployment day:

Keith and I

Sheri and Todd

Christy and Ryan

Leslie and Jake

Scheduling in Pencil

An interesting question was posed to military families recently..."What is the #1 thing civilians should know about military families?"

My short answer (which is good advice for military families too): I schedule everything in pencil because it's bound to change.

My long answer: I schedule everything in pencil because it's bound to change. Luckily not all of the following have happened to me personally, but they have happened to friends of mine.

Deployment dates - when they leave, when they're coming home for 2 weeks in the middle, and when they're coming home. (Yes, employer, I would love to give you exact dates, but I don't know myself!)
PCSing (AKA, moving) - You have orders to go (insert post here). Just kidding, you have orders to go (insert post across the country here).
Training dates - Soldiers will be doing this training from x -x. FRAGO, it's from y - y. FRAGO, it's from z-z. FRAGO, it's back to x-x. This can go on and on, eventually it gets to the point where you believe it when they're actually gone.
Wedding dates - For MONTHS, a friend had been planning to get married in June. Deployment orders came up and he was going to deploy in March, obviously missing the June date. They got married at a courthouse in November...only to find out the deployment got pushed back to July, meaning they could have had the June wedding. (I have a few friends with slight variations to this scenario.)
RSVPing - I know I told you that there would be 2 of us attending, but it's just me.

These are just a few examples. Once I learned how permanently flexible the Army dates are, the better I was able to cope. Coping doesn't mean I like it, or will always handle it with grace, but I'm now more likely to generate backup plans.

Quotes From Students

This isn't about our family, but still will make you laugh! I'm so thankful for the opportunity to stay at home and raise our kids, but I will miss my other 'kids' from school. When working with teenagers and teaching them reading/writing, you never really know how the day will go or what will come out of their mouths. I kept track of some of the highlights of my 4 years with 9th and 11th graders.

On Shakespeare:
They had metaphors back then?

Me: What do you already know about Shakespeare?
Student: He was poisoned and died on stage.
Me: Close, that's Romeo, a character.
S: No, pretty sure that was Shakespeare.

If Shakespeare is so old, how do we still know about him? Was he writing plays on cave walls?

Me: If you were Romeo, would you choose your family or your woman?
S: I'd go Dragon Ball Z and take everyone out, I don't need anyone.

He's dead?!? Tell me he's not dead...man, he's stupid! What kind of movies are you showin us?


Sassiness:

You know what I want, just give it to me...I was appropriate, I didn't use bad words.

That girl can't even do her own hair and she be walkin' her tail to school like she is all that! Then she had the nerve to hit on MY man...she's lucky I didn't beat her down right then and there.

Me: Well, I think it's about time we call your parents to talk to them about the choices you've made in class today.
S: Wanna bet?

Sorry, sorry, sorry. Want me to spell it for you? SORRIE!

You really need MY luck for your FAKE game tonight?? Brotha, please!

I'm rockin' crocks today y'all...no more of this socks with flip flops! (Insert male model walk)

You heartless WENCH! (I wouldn't accept his assignment 2.5 weeks late.)

Can I get extra credit if I get a fleet of freshmen to follow me around for a week?



What do you say??
S1: Mrs G, is it bad that D doesn't even know how to say his girlfriend's name?
(D keeps mumbling something, which was apparently his girlfriend's name)
S2: Just give her a nickname, like 'Boo Boo.'

Guess what I did on my day off yesterday? I built a DOG-gloo...an igloo for my dog!

Me: We have a tornado drill at 2:00 today, don't get scared by the alarm.
S: But it's FREEZING outside, do we really have to go?

I'm writing my breakup letter to Oprah; she's going to be really sorry she screwed me over!

Glitter is the herpes of makeup, it never goes away!

After a discussion about 'real' men and women with juniors, the first the gals listed as a characteristic of a man was "education." The guys on real women: "Makes me a sammich."


They mess with me, too:
Mrs. Gilbert, there is Swine Flu in your trash can. (I'm ashamed to admit I looked.)

That picture was taken in 2001? That was SOOO long ago!

While comparing bicep buffness..."Wow Mrs. Gilbert, you're a beefcake!"

Hey Ms. G, do you want to be in my zombie movie?


There's plenty more, but I have lost them for now. Teaching is many things, but it is never dull!

Boy Gilbert's Beginnings - Now

Boy Gilbert doesn't have a name yet. I think once Keith and I do decide on a name, we'll probably still keep it to ourselves until he makes his arrival in mid-January.

Here's the story of how Keith and I found out we were pregnant:

While visiting Kansas for Laura's KSU graduation in May, I spent a lot of time riding in the back seat of Amanda's van. (Thanks for hauling us though, Amanda!) Sometimes I felt nauseous, and sometimes I didn't. I attributed it to riding in the back. I noticed my hunger levels were finnicky, which isn't unusual when you're traveling. I was a little 'late' by a couple of days, but nothing that made me think about being pregnant. In general, I enjoy taking naps - so that wasn't a sign to anyone either that something was up.

Since we were trying to get pregnant, Keith suggested I take a test once we were back home in Georgia. This was the first month I had tried an ovulation test and honestly didn't think it had really happened. Lo and behold, 3 minutes later there were 2 unmistakable lines! After showing Keith, I took the 3 other dollar store tests just to make sure. Then we went and got a fancy digital test too - so we could make sure some more. They all said the same thing!

Keith and I kind of sat on the news for a while. Of course we were excited, but wanted to wait until we were safely into the 2nd trimester to share with everyone. We waited for official confirmation from the doctor before sharing the news with family. She told us the same thing - we are officially pregnant!

Boy Gilbert has been very good to me! I got a little nauseous (mostly in the Georgia heat), but no morning sickness. I may be a little hormonal, though Keith may think it's a bit more than 'a little.' :) I have wicked, wicked heartburn, but it's soothed by my Nexium and Tums. Oh, and Round Ligament Pain, which isn't really his fault. I nap a little more often too. That's it!

More milestones:

10 weeks: We first "saw" him on an ultrasound! He was really more a blob with a flashing light for a heartbeat. Keith was excited to be called "Dad" by the tech!

12 weeks: In early July, we announced publically and to the world of Facebook that we were pregnant! The post read: It's official...Keith and I are expanding our house by 2 feet in January!

16 weeks: We got to see him again since he was moving too much to get an accurate heartbeat read with the dopplar. Keith got to be there with me for that appointment too, which is where we saw an actual baby-shaped object on the screen with kicking legs! I love that Keith is just as excited as I am and asked if I could feel his little kicks. I couldn't at the time, but it was coming!

17/18 weeks: Baby flutters could be felt!

20 weeks: Baby G is definitely Boy Gilbert! Pressure officially off of Keith for continuing the Gilbert name. The best response came from Rex, Keith's dad, "Well Grandpa will be ****ing thrilled!"

::Insert move from Georgia to Kansas here. It's now a blur, which is why there are no 'milestones' to report.

23 weeks: Boy Gilbert kicks Keith in the bum while we're snuggling! They're definitely kicks and no longer flutters.

24 weeks: Strangers now know I'm pregnant and not just chubby looking. This is a relief because they've stopped giving me funny looks, which seriously affected my hormonal self.

28 weeks: Where I'm at now. Boy Gilbert is now 2.5 times bigger than he was in the U/S pic, and boy do I feel it! He must be a little cramped too, which is why he's stretching, rolling, and jabbing at miscellaneous internal organs.

(I'm re-starting this blog for like the 3rd time since Keith and I got married. Instead of introductions, I'm just going to pretend like I've been blogging for a long time!)