Help!! I don't recognize that person in the mirror!

I don't like looking in the mirror anymore. It kind of freaks me out because I honestly don't really recognize the reflection of my face. I stare at it for a few seconds... then try to smile to see if that helps. Nope, the smile definitely makes it worse. It emphasizes my swollen cheeks, and makes my eyes look even smaller! Ahhh! Im terrified what I'm going to look like in three months from now! I can't believe that's all I have left. But each day that goes by, three months is seeming longer and longer!

Even when I leave the bathroom mirror, I can't escape this new, foreign body that seems to have taken me over. I look down at my feet (it takes some work to even see my feet), and get startled for a second because both my ankles look they have been broken. My ankles are swollen, my feet are swollen, and they are topped off with swollen toes. Then I remember... they are not broken, this is just my lovely new figure. I attempt to put on my ring in the morning and some days it ends with the realization, "Nope, this isn't going to fit today."

My appearance is not my only gripe. I feel uncomfortable most of the time. I don't know how much bigger this baby can get, it already feels like there's not enough room for him in there! It's impossible to try to lay down and sleep comfortably. Something jabs my rib, my bladder, or some other internal organ no matter what position I'm in. It's actually more comfortable for me to sit up than to lay down. A few nights I have found myself tossing and turning in bed, debating if I want to go back out to the couch and try to fall asleep in more of an upright position.

I am so tired of throwing up! It doesn't even phase me anymore. I just get up and run to the bathroom, as if it is part of my daily schedule.

I am so excited for our little bundle of joy, and can't wait for him to get here. But I look forward to the day when it doesn't feel like an alien life form has taken over my body :-)

There's a new dog in town

We have moved! The past couple weeks have been quite the adventure. Finally we have reached our destination in the the Happy Valley. All in all the move went pretty smooth. We had tons of help from Jareds family. There's no way we would have been able to do it without them. I've learned that pregnancy and moving do not mix well!

I cannot deny the fact that there have also been a couple bumps in the road of our moving experience. After some deep white glove cleaning at our last apartment, we arrived at our new one to find that the last tenants had not had the same courtesy. And the management decided not to take it upon themselves either (so messed up!). So the next day, before we even unpacked a single box, it was off to the store to buy more cleaning supplies.

A couple days later, on New Years Eve, we awoke to quite the surprise. The last tenants had requested that the gas be turned off. Now this is understandable considering they were moving out, but we were given no sort of notification. No information on what gas company we were supposed to use, let alone a way to contact them. No note saying "by the way, figure out who to call and open your account within 2 days, or you will be shut off." That might have been helpful.

"Okay", I thought, "no big deal. I will do a little research, call the gas company, and get this straightened out." I finally find the website, and see that they are closed for the holiday, but an emergency number is provided.

I called it and said "Hi, we just moved into our new apartment and the gas is turned off."

The kind lady on the phone informed me "We are closed holidays and weekends, the earliest someone will be able to help you with that is Monday."

"Monday? That's in five days! We have NO gas. There's no way we can get this turned on before then?"

"No."

So here we are, five days later, and still without heat and hot water. That's right. No gas = impossible to take a conventional shower, very difficult to do dishes, and an apartment which has averaged about 55 degrees. Luckily we have a little space heater that has been our saving grace the past couple days. We carry it around from room to room with us and stick it right next to us. I kind of feel bad for it. Every so often it overheats and shuts off from working so hard to heat our whole apartment around the clock. lol.

Despite our setbacks, our new apartment is beginning to feel more like home everyday. (Our fingers are crossed the gas will return tomorrow!) We are excited for Jareds first day of school tomorrow. I am going to be a little bit sad though, it's been fun having him to hang out with all day over the break!

Here are a few shots of our new home!

*UPDATE: I called the gas company this morning, and they informed me the earliest someone would be able to get out here is TOMORROW, unless I want to pay a $100 same day service fee. Do they even realize I've had to wait a week for them to decide to come in the office?! He also informed me that when the guy comes out, he will only remove the lock and not actually turn it on. I will be responsible to find someone to do that as well! Ay yi yi!