Exciting Things to Come

Well, here we are after all this time, FINALLY moving out of Bishop's Landing! In just one week we will make the move to our cute new house in northeast Norman. Jon and I are so excited, and can't wait to start our lives in a new place. Yesterday was Jon's 28th Birthday, and we went to Bison Witches to celebrate. We also ended up in Oklahoma City to purchase a bedroom set, mattress, coffee & end tables, and a few lamps. I think decorating this house is going to be so much fun....although Jon and I disagree on exactly how to decorate it. If he had his way, everything would be OU related....and if I had my way, everything would be damask print. Despite our strong opinions, we have managed to compromise with each other. Oh, and I am now 22 weeks pregnant! I can feel Riley kicking me...which wakes me up almost every hour of the night. I just want to say thank you to Jon for putting up with me. I know that I am extra emotional (crabby) right now, but I still love you with all of my heart. I'm starting to feel hot all the time....I can't wait for July...I'm sure I will be miserable. I also wanted to say congratulations to Jon for promoting to Case Manager II. Well, that's all for now....we are beginning a week of packing/moving! I can't wait to have you all over for a visit! I wanted to add a momento....this is a picture of the apartment Jon and I currently live in....

First-Time Homeowners!

Jon and I are very excited to report that we are under contract on a house in Norman! After a long process of finding a home, we finally found a great one. It is 1407 square feet, 3 beds, 2 baths, 1 living, 1 dining, 2-car garage. It was built in 2006, and the seller is the original owner. Let me explain a few things about how we scored this house. I found the listing on OpenHouseOK.com, a popular real-estate website. Jon and I looked at the house on a Sunday, and called the realtor to place an offer that same night. The seller came back the next night with a counter-offer, which was okay, but $ 2,500 over our offer. So, my father advised us to let the counter-offer expire.....which was really hard! But, in the end it was the best thing ever because we then had the bargaining power to stand firm on our original offer of $ 134,000....which the seller agreed to on Wednesday! The house is in great shape, the seller hadn't hung anything on the walls, and lived alone. There are a few upgrades Jon and I would like to make in the house: new bathroom and dining room lighting, adding a microwave above the stove, and of course painting what will be little Riley's room. All in all, even though this process was super stressful, I recommend that everyone own their own home, it is worth it! Oh, and the $ 8,000 tax credit isn't too bad either. I hope that everyone can come for a visit, because we now have an extra bedroom....no more couch surfing! Although, both Charles and Ajay have claimed the extra bedroom as "their room". Thanks to Leslie, Kellie, Kenny, Kathleen, David, and Charles for offering to help us during the moving process. Lastly, I want to thank my dad for all his patience and help throughout this entire process. The pictures are below....and this is not our cheap-o furniture!

Our Little Riley

Well, as most of you know by now....It's a boy! We found out on February 23rd, that little Riley is a strong, and healthy baby boy. I must admit this was not a shock to me...call it mother's intuition. I had a feeling the baby was a boy, and Jon was of course convinced that he could only bear boys! Haha. I couldn't wait to buy little baby boy stuff. I bought the cutest pair of socks yesterday, that look like little tennis shoes, with laces and everything! I am so happy that we know that the baby is a boy for sure. Now I can call him Riley, instead of "it". I uploaded a video and several pictures from this ultrasound...I know they are fuzzy, but I will try to explain what each photo shows. On another note....I just found out that we did not get house #2. I am so upset! The person whose offer was accepted offered less for the house than Jon and I, but their realtor took zero commission, while our realtor took 5%....causing our offer to be lower by $500. I really never thought buying a home would be this awful! I just don't know what to do anymore...it is like a rollercoaster, up and down all the time. But, life goes on, and I'm sure we will find something that is right for us. We keep praying that God blesses us with a home of our own.


This picture is Riley's profile view, you can see his spine at the bottom, and head to the right of the screen.
This picture shows the bottom of Riley's butt, back of his legs, and in the midde, are his little boy parts.

This is another picture of Riley's boy parts...there is a little pointer to show where it is. This kid is not shy when it comes to having his picture taken down there! Haha, he had his legs open the whole ultrasound, as if to let us know for sure he is a boy!

This is a 4-D image of little Riley's head, and body from the side.

Another profile view of Riley, laying down, curling his legs up.

This is a picture of Riley's face....the bones glow, so it looks a bit skeletal.

Finally, here is a 3 second video of Riley, you may be able to see his little heart beating.

Cravings....and Pregnancy Updates

So I have started to have some cravings during this pregnancy. Among the cravings, the strongest urges I have are for grape-flavored slushes from Sonic, and sour sweettarts. I really don't know why sour foods taste so good right now. I can also tell you that I LOVE anything spicy...preferably hot sauce. But, as most of you know, I've always loved spicy foods. Everything is going great in the pregnancy. Today marks week 14, and I am excited to be getting closer to my fourth month of pregnancy. My next doctor's appointment is on February 9th...it should just be a routine checkup...nothing too exciting. After that, I am scheduled to have an ultrasound on March 9th. This is the big, important ultrasound folks! Jon and I will find out if this little busy-body inside of me is a little girl, or little boy. We haven't really been able to agree on a name for either sex, but we do have a few that we like: For a Boy: Peyton, Ashton, and Holden....For a Girl: Peyton, Chloe, and Addison. I will tell you that among our friends, Chloe was the choice for a girl....and Ashton for a boy.

Right about now...this is how Jon and I feel...like we live in a sardine can. The one-bedroom apartment we currently inhabit is so small, that we find ourselves unable to have a space that is all our own. We truly cannot wait until June, when we can bid the small-college apartment goodbye. So, the house dreams continue...

New Year....New Possibilites

Jon went to Miami last week to attend the National Championship game with his best friend Derek. He said being in Florida was fun, but preferred not to talk about the football game, for obvious reasons. I'm glad he was able to go on one last "BOYS TRIP" before the baby comes.

Okay, a couple of days ago, Jon and I got to see the first ultrasound of the baby. It was amazing! I can't believe there is this little person growing inside of me. The funniest thing about this experience was the fact that the baby was moving so much! Jon continuously asked me if I could feel the baby moving, however, it's too early for me to feel kicking. It looks like we are going to have an active baby. There are so many things going on, sometimes it is a bit overwhelming, to think that in 6 months we will be parents. We also got to hear the heartbeat for the first time, and I almost cried....darn these pregnancy hormones. We are happy to report that the baby is healthy, and that all the blood tests came back as normal. I'm elated to not have any complications with this pregnancy, we are very lucky. We're also blessed to have such wonderful family and friends in our lives. A big thanks to Kellie, Kenny, Leslie, and Derek for being supportive. We couldn't do any of this without the support from those we love.

2009 And All The Changes It Brings!

So, as most of you know by now, I am 3 months pregnant. Although I am very excited to have a little one, I am becoming more and more nervous. I'm such a procrastinator, and I have just started reading some of the many pregnancy books I was told I needed to read. I am finding that things I wasn't concerned about before are now crossing my mind. There are so many things that can go wrong in a pregnancy...and thankfully nothing bad has happened to me personally, but I now have some new worries about the baby's health. My next doctor's appointment is on Monday, January 13th, and I can't wait to hear the heartbeat....which will hopefully ease some of my fears. I'm starting to think that reading these pregnancy books is more troubling than educating. Also, I hate to sound bitchy, but I really don't like being pregnant. I have had the worst morning sickness, and have been soooooooo exhausted! I know that in the end, i.e. when the baby is born it will all be worth it...but it has been hard. I guess I'm just hoping to have the perfect child, so that I won't want to have anymore children. Lol. Jon is getting more excited as the days draw closer to delivery. I really love him....but lately I've been confronted with opinions from others about the fact that we are not married. Yes, I realize that it is normal to get married, and then have a baby....in that order. But, those of you who know what kind of relationship Jon and I have had, know that we don't exactly take steps in the correct order. I know we will be married someday, but excuse me for not wanting to have a shot-gun wedding at 6 months pregnant. On a happier note, Jon and I have been house-hunting. This basically consists of me touring 20 houses, and picking out one for Jon to come look at. We really hope to buy sometime in February, and move-in sometime in May. I just can't contain my excitement on this issue! I am somewhat a perfectionist, and I want the best house we can get for our money. Shifting subjects, I am starting the new semester on Monday, and I am starting to wonder if working towards my MBA, working full-time at my job, and being a first-time mother will be too much. I hope to take as many classes as I can before the baby is born....because I do not want to be busy with school during the baby's first year of life. Wow! This blog is beginning to get a bit long. In closing, 2009 is going to be a busy year for me. I look forward to all that has yet to come!