17 Weeks

I've been feeling pretty good this last week, I didn't have any migraines for the most part and not much morning sickness. Roland and I started a workout routine, we are going to the gym 3 days a week for 30 mins. I'm hoping that this not only keeps me from gaining any weight this pregnancy but it helps with my energy levels. My carpal tunnel has is slowly getting worse by the weeks, it's making my hands go numb throughout the day and waking me up from pain and numbness at night. I'm so super excited about getting to buy boy things and get rid of all our girl things as the girls no longer have a need for them. I've decided to try to get a few things every payday that we will be needing for him and of course just some things we want. That way it doesn't seem like we have to get it all at one time. Well not to much more is going on other then that.

Your baby weighs 5 ounces this week, about as much as a turnip.
 Length: 5 inches, head to bottom.

23 weeks to go

 Total weight gain: -7lbs

Stretch Marks: no new ones

Sleep: pretty good

Food Craving: Ice cold water and red meat

Food Aversions: Fish, Chicken, and Bread

Labor Signs: No

Mood Swings: Yes, but I'm trying very hard to controll them

16 weeks

We have movement! I can officially feel the baby moving around. It's not really strong yet and it's not a whole lot but at night when I'm laying down I can feel him wiggling around. I'm so excited to be able to feel this little guy moving around, I told Roland and now he can't wait until he can feel our little guy to. It's so strange to think that we are going to have a little boy, I'm not sure I'll believe it until I'm holding him in my arms.
 The migraines are finally starting to ease up a little bit and so it the morning sickness, which is such a relief. I'm also starting to slowly get a little more energry back as well, which the girls are loving because mommy actually feels like playing.



Your baby measures up to an avocado, now, and weighs 3 1/2 ounces.

Length: 4 1/2 inches, head to bottom.

Only 24 more weeks to go!

Total weight gain: -7lbs

Stretch Marks: no new ones

Sleep: so so, some nights are good and others are not so good

Food Craving: Ice cream, BBQ Ribs and ice cold water

Food Aversions: Fish, Chicken (depending on how it's cooked), Bread, and Pop

Labor Signs: Just slight back cramping after I nurse Charlotte.

Mood Swings: Yes yes yes! I'm kind of a nut case, I'm sure my hubby would agree, lol.

It's a.....

Today we went and had an ultrasound done to find out if we are having a girl or a boy. Now that we know what we are having we would like to share it with all of you as well.

That is right we are pleased to say we will be having a boy! Roland was nothing but smiles when she told us and I'm over the moon.

You can see the little guys goods!

As we said before we won't be sharing this little guys name until we have him.



15 Weeks

Today I'm 15 weeks pregnant and according to babycenter.com our baby is about the size of an apple. It's kind of funny to think of your baby as the size of an apple, lol. In the last week I have had a few days of no morning sickness and then it came back all at once. The migraines haven't really been getting any better so I hope that will ease up very soon.

I had a dr's appointment on Monday for baby and me. First she tried to find baby's heartbeat with the doppler and after a minute she wasn't able to, of course this put me a bit on edge. She decided to do a quick ultrasound, she then found baby moving all around and a nice strong and steady heartbeat. Roland was very happy that he was able to see the baby for the first time as well, he just had the biggest grin plastered to his face. We were hoping she might be able to tell us what we were having but that didn't happen. We are going on Saturday afternoon to a place in town to find out what we are having and get a few good pictures of our new little one. Everything else with baby and me is going well, I have lost about 7lbs since my first dr's appt. My goal is to try not to gain any weight this pregnancy so I don't have to add to the already huge amount that I need to lose after.

14 weeks

Thursday I hit my 14 week mark, and offically I am in my 2nd trimester! I'm so glad to be in the 2nd trimester and I'm so hoping that very soon all the nausea will go away and the migraines won't be as bad. On monday I have my first doctors appointment here in Cali for this little one. I can't wait to hear it's little heartbeat again and if they do an ultrasound I'm hoping they can tell me what we are having! If they don't do an ultrasound we will be going to a place out in town to get one done to find out the sex of the baby. I don't want to wait any longer then I have to to find out what this new little one is. I'm so hoping for a boy mostly because we don't have one and it would be a nice change for us. Of course if God blesses us with another girl I will be just as thrilled and not have to buy anything new!

End of the 1st trimester

It's the last week of my 1st trimester, all I can say is thank goodness. I can only hope that as this trimester comes to an end so does all my morning sickness and migraines. I just want to feel half normal again and have the energy to get up and do things.

I have my first doctor's appointment here in Cali on the 16th, there is a chance that they will do an ultrasound. If they do we're hoping to find out what we are having, if they don't do one Roland and I are going to go out in town and find out. We are not sure at this time if we are going to share with other what we are having. I think it would be great to have a boy of course since we don't have one but if we are having another girl that will be awesome as well.

2 weeks in our new home

Well we have been in Oceanside, CA for 2 weeks now and the only room in our house that is pretty much unpacked and organized is our kitchen. The rest of the house is only half way done, Amelia's room is half way done, Charlotte's room is half way done, our room is half way done and so on and so on. It's hard to get things done with 2 small kids needing you constantly and the husband not getting home until after 5 or 6 every night, and a cracked rib. Of course it also doesn't help that I have morning sickness all day long and migraines every day all day long as well.

I thought coming back would be easier this time since I had been here once already and it wouldn't all be so new to me. But I was very wrong, it does not get easier being so far from everyone that you love and care about. It does not get easy to leave your family and friends that have become like family. It does not get easy to leave a church where you know the people and they love and care about you as much as you love and care about them. None of this ever gets easy no matter how much you do it, when you do it or where you go.

I'm sure part of me is only feeling so sad and lonely because of all the baby horomones I have going through me but some of it is just not having anyone here to talk to or hang out with. I want to make friends but I honestly don't even know how you do that. I always made friends through jobs, school, and through other friends. Grr moving your life from one side of the country to the other is just a hard thing to do and right now I'm not enjoying it.

Finally our day has come

Take a deep breath... In just a day my family will be reunited! My husband, my kids daddy, will be flying in from CA to take us back with him. Some days I just never thought this day would come, and now that it's almost here I can hardly believe it.

Roland flies in on Wednesday morning, he will be taking a small nap before spending some time with his family. Then on Thursday we will pick up our Uhaul and get it all packed up, get the car packed up and do any last minute cleaning. Daddy will be going to bed early so we can get up at 3am and get the kids up and the car packed, we hope to be on the road by 4am on Friday morning.

The girls and I have enjoyed our year here in Ohio with family and friends but we are more then thrilled to be back with hubby/daddy and living together as a family again. Life just isn't the same when we aren't all together, and this moment has been a long time coming for us. Thank you so much to everyone that has been supporting us, and helping us throughout this very long 13 months.

Maxson Baby #3 on the way

This is the first $1 test I took.



These are the 3 test I took after that one, not all the same day of course.

Well it's 4 pregnancy test official, we are expecting our 3rd baby! When I took the first test I was in shock and I cried, I was not really ready for this to happen quite yet.

 To give a bit of background Roland and I decided to use the family planning method because my body can not handle any type of birth control, NONE! Believe me we have tried everything and the only thing left for us to do is just not be intimate together (like that would ever happen) or use a form of birth control neither of us is comfortable with. So we decided that we would just do the family planning to try to avoid getting pregnant but it was ultimately up to God.

Now of course we knew that this was possible but I honestly did not think that God would decide to give us another blessing so soon. I keep telling myself to just be happy and know that God's timing is ALWAYS the right timing (I just wish He had waited a bit longer).

Of course my husband is not in the least bit apprehensive about this, he is just so proud of himself, lol. All I can seem to do is think about all the financial aspects of it and wonder what I will do if he deploys again. I keep telling myself that God gave us this baby because he knows Roland will be home for the birth and to enjoy this baby with me. And of course we are hoping for a boy because we already have 2 beautiful little girls, but we will be happy with another girl as well.

The REAL Housewives of the USMC

I have to say that the TV show Army Wives should not be aloud to be aired. Although it is a good drama it is not true to what real life military family and friends go through and face on a daily basis. I have said for years now TLC or some other reality TV station should do a show called The Real Housewives of the Military. I don't mean follow an officers life I mean follow enlisted families that have been in for 5+ years. The world should get to see what a REAL military family goes through on a daily basis. Our lives are far from normal and believe me when I say there is never a dull moment, because even when you think your life is finally settling down and your can settle into a “normal” routine, BANG, you just got hit with something else.

Through this all I have had the amazing blessing of meeting some of the best women God could have ever dropped into my life. Melissa is one of the most loving, caring and passionate people I have every meant. She will walk through fire to help a friend in need if she has to and just about nothing can keep her from being there for you if you need her. I am so lucky and blessed to call her friend. Then there is Carla she is a smart, funny, and amazingly strong women. She inspires me on a daily basis to reach for my goals and for the goals I have for my family. She is so supportive and always ready to help and encourage me in everything I do and want to do. I am so happy that God dropped her into my life right before I had to go through one of the hardest things I would face and she was a blessing every moment I needed her. These two amazing women I am honored to call friends, they are the closest things I have to sisters. I know they are sisters to me because we can disagree on things, get into knock out fights and be separated by hundreds of miles and in the end we are still there for one another. We are still encouraging and supporting each other through all the ups and downs we go through as military wives.

 Carla, Scott and Maggie

Melissa and David

It's been a little over a year since I got separated from these ladies (my husband got orders to Camp Pendleton, CA). Since then it seem like all our lives have been twisted and turned upside down, all our husbands got deployed in that time. Melissa stayed at Camp Lejeune, Carla and Maggie moved to FL and stayed with her parents, and Amelia and I moved back to OH to be close to my family. Carla has since moved backed to Camp Lejeune and the girls and I are getting ready to move back to Camp Pendleton. Of course it wouldn't be a true military life unless something was happening. Well today Carla and her family got orders for Okinawa, in JAPAN for a 3 year tour! I have to be honest I had a bunch of different emotions flood over me at once. I was upset at first because I am selfish and I don't want to, in a sense, lose my friend. On the other hand I know this is our life and I'm happy and excited for her and her family and everything they get to experience. I just know that this is all in God's plan for them, and I just pray it's an amazing blessing for them.

Carla, Me and Melissa

This was right before we were all separated.

So what is in store for us all next, well I can't really say. I know what we would like to happen in our lives and for each other. But only God knows what we need to happen in our lives and he has our best interest in mind even if we can't see it at first. I just pray that some day in the future we can all be close to one another again and share in those amazing moments in each other lives.