12 weeks today...

11/23/09

2nd Appointment

My 2nd prenatal appointment went well. We couldn't quite get the baby's heartbeat on the doppler (still too small), so the doc did a quick sonogram. The baby was moving around (aww!) and the heartbeat was nice and strong. I couldn't see the heartbeat on the monitor, but I could hear it. The doctor is pleased with how the pregnancy is progressing. I'll be 11 weeks on Monday.

In other fantastic news, my doctor also told me that it was perfectly fine for me to resume my 1 cup/day coffee habit. Yay! I've missed it a lot.

I am really looking forward to being able to feel this wee babe inside. It still doesn't seem real to me yet, even though I know he/she is in there, kicking away.

Thoughts on a November day...

Ah, November!! The beginning of my favorite time of year. I love the cooler weather, the warmth of comfort food, looking forward to the holidays, anticipation of good times with family and friends.

And an update on me...

-I am 9 weeks pregnant today.
-I am due June 6, 2010.
-I have been feeling very fatigued lately.
-I also have quite a bit of nausea, but I'm very thankful that I haven't actually been getting sick. I just feel like it a lot of the time, especially in the evenings.

We have much to be thankful for this year. I will hit the 12-week mark on the Monday before Thanksgiving. If I start feeling better at that point, I will be even MORE thankful. ;-)

If a picture is worth a thousand words....

Here are a couple that are worth far more than that to us...

65 Years...

My maternal grandparents celebrated their 65th anniversary this past weekend. They are 91 and 88, and still living on their own in excellent health. It is such a blessing, and I'm very thankful to have had them in my life for so long.

A few photos through the years...

Sweet Ride

I drove around like this for over 24 hours before I noticed the nice grill decor. On my way home from work one day last week, I remember running over a styrofoam cup that bounced my way on the highway, and I guess it ended up here. I didn't notice it stuck there until the end of the following day. I am so dang cool, I can't stand it.

August Birthdays!

My dad's birthday - 8/10/09

My parents

Look, Shamwows! :-D

Brian's birthday - 8/22/09

His beloved TCU season tickets

Brian's parents came to visit us for his birthday this year.
My sweetie turned 35. I robbed the cradle!
With Brian's folks at Joe T. Garcia's restaurant in Ft. Worth.
My lovely inlaws. We so enjoyed their visit!

Here's a visual...

I forgot to take any pics with my grandparents when we were visiting them last weekend, but here's one from my Granddad's 90th birthday party last year.

Doesn't Brian look "little"? LOL! He's the tallest one in the picture. My teeny grandparents are so cute. They will celebrate their 65th anniversary this October. <3

Out of the mouths of old people...

Brian and I went to visit my grandparents in Memphis over the weekend. My granddad will be 91 next month and my grandmother is 88. They are in great health for their ages and still very independent. I am blessed to have had them in my life for so long.

Granddad has never had much of a filter on his mouth, but it's gotten worse and more comical as he's aged. He greeted Brian when we arrived by saying, "Wow, you look so much bigger in person. You look so little in pictures that I always think you are small." Yeah, every man loves hearing that. He said it again when we left, too! As if once wasn't enough. LOL!

Brian is 5' 10" and towers over my Granddad, who was once all of 5' 8" but is much shorter than that now. Who's the little one??! I don't know where he comes up with this stuff!! It sure is entertaining - most of the time!

Tough Decisions. Major Changes.

It's official. After 12.5 years of service, my last day as an accountant at Southwest Airlines will be April 30, 2010. I still can't believe it. My career here has spanned nearly my entire adult life.

I didn't get laid off. SWA has never had layoffs, and none are currently planned. I elected to take a completely voluntary severance package. SWA has offered similar programs in the past, but never one with such excellent terms as this.

Interestingly, news of this severance package was announced in May, the very same month as our 3rd wedding anniversary, which also happened to coincide with the timeframe Brian and I had planned to start thinking about having a family.

We had many long discussions and crunched the numbers over and over. We prayed fervently over the decision. Ultimately, we realized that if we were very careful with the severance payment, we could use it to supplement Brian's salary and potentially stretch it out long enough to allow me to stay home with a baby for 3, maybe even 4 years. This was an exciting idea, because prior to this the best we had hoped for was for me to be able go part-time once we have a family. However, even with the severance payment, our household income during those years will still be cut in half. This felt pretty risky and honestly quite a bit scary, but we believe God was leading us to take the risk and step out in faith. So I had a talk with my manager (we both got a little verklempt) and then turned in the paperwork.

The toughest part of the decision was having to make it prior to actually expecting a baby. I'm 36, so I am well-aware that things might not happen as quickly as they might have when I was younger. Also, what if we end up being unable to have a family, and then I've given up an excellent job for no reason? That's another huge risk, and I must admit that this possibility still concerns me when I think about it too much.

If April rolls around and we aren't expecting, instead of making plans to be a SAHM I'll be updating my resume and pounding the pavement for a new accounting job. That's the worst-case scenario, and I REALLY hope it doesn't work out that way. (I suppose the bright side is that we'll still end up with a nice chunk of savings that we could use to eventually remodel our kitchen or something!)

It's in God's hands now. We'll just have to wait and see how the next ten months unfold!

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Because I'm feeling nostalgic about my time at SWA right now, here are some pics from one of the coolest things I've ever done. My accounting group was given the opportunity to accept delivery of our newest aircraft back in December, 2005. We were given a tour of the Boeing factory in Seattle and then rode along on the ferry flight back to Dallas.

Me inside the engine!

In the cockpit...

Riding in the cockpit jumpseat during takeoff...

The view from the cockpit during flight.