4th of July Weekend

So as I mentioned in my previous post, Lee's family from Oklahoma came to spend the 4th of July with us. His uncle Larry from Michigan also came down for a couple of days. Lee's aunt Beth and Larry had not seen each other in nearly 30 years!!

Beth, Ed, and their son Alex came in on Friday night. We had a cookout and just enjoyed the time together. We set off our own fireworks and attacked the neighbors who typically send fireworks over our house all the time. We stayed up way too late, but it was great reconnecting. We hadn't seen them since last 4th of July on our trip to Oklahoma.

Saturday (July 4th) was very wet here in south-central Indiana. We took Beth, Ed, and Alex on a tour of Bloomington, showed them where John Mellencamp lives (Beth is a big fan!), and took them to Lake Monroe. Unfortunately, the weather never did clear up, so we couldn't get out of the car and explore. We went back to the house for another cookout, and after a little while decided that we needed to get out of the house.

The fireworks in Bloomington were not cancelled, but we also didn't want to sit in the rain. So instead, we went glow bowling. Never in a million years did I think we would go bowling on July 4th, but we actually had a great time. Taylor and I also got to see some of the big fireworks from the bowling alley's front door.

On Sunday, Larry went home, and we spent the day at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway - touring the track, museum, media center, gasoline alley, victory podium, timing and scoring, etc. The above picture was taken of all of us there along the start/finish line - Alex, Beth, Ed, Taylor, Richard, Lee, and pregnant me :-).

His family left early Monday morning, and we were already missing them greatly. If only we lived closer or they lived closer :-(. But, it was an all-around great visit!!!!

99 days and counting……….

My official due date is now 99 days away. I can’t believe how quickly this is all happening. At times it feels as though it is standing still, and other times, it seems as though we can’t get enough done quick enough. We know that she can really come at any time in September or October, so 99 days is just the projected number. But, it certainly puts things into perspective.

Also, tomorrow is the 3rd anniversary of our home ownership. Time certainly does fly. And, oh, how life has changed in those 3 years.

Lee has been working on the basement renovation since mid-March. We intending on renovating our basement at some point in the future, but when we found out that we were expecting our little girl, the renovations became a top priority. Lee has been using our new nursery as his office for the past 3 years. Seeing as we now need that bedroom, his office needed to be moved downstairs. We also created a “den” area in the basement. It took 3 months, but the basement is now complete (see above) and furniture is continuing to be moved in, so we can begin work on the nursery.

At the end of May, we found out that Lee’s aunt, uncle, and cousin will be visiting over the July 4th weekend. They, as a family, have never been to Indiana, so we are so excited to have them come!!!! Finishing the basement became even more important, so they had a place to stay. With that, Lee installed a shower in the basement bathroom so that any guests we have would feel more at-home. As of today it is still without plumbing, but that will get fixed before the end of the week.

And, in other news, Lee and I purchased a new (used) vehicle this weekend (see above). Lee’s truck was a 1997 S-10, and my Kia was a 2001. Both were certainly showing their age, and neither was a good “family” car. So, this weekend we purchased a 2007 HHR. It only had 15,500 miles on it, great options (leather seats, seat warmers, remote start, tinted back windows, etc.), and we got it for a good, fair price. Unfortunately, this means that Lee’s truck was officially traded-in. He has put his heart and soul into that truck and modifications for it, but it was not conducive to having a family in it. The “new” vehicle is great and was desperately needed!

Baby Girl Lawmaster (Part 2)

Well I had my final ultrasound yesterday afternoon. Baby Girl Lawmaster is doing wonderfully. Her heart has four chambers, and everything else looks healthy.

My actual doctor's appointment was today, and I learned that she is measuring big - very big. She is in the 97% for 24 weeks, and I am only at 23 weeks. So, I am measuring big as well, but I still haven't gained too much weight, which is the positive. She is now 1 pound 9 ounces, and she has long legs! They will keep an eye on her and see how big she gets.

It was great to get to see her again, especially since I know I can't see her again until she is born. But that time will be here before we know it!

Baby Girl Lawmaster

Yesterday, May 13, Lee and I discovered that we would be welcoming a daughter this fall! Lee is concerned because he is very protective of his little girls, but I know she will make a great addition to our family.

The ultrasound went fairly well. She co-operated enough to tell us she was a girl. However, we believe she was sleeping and didn't move around enough to see some important vital parts - including her heart. Next month I will have another ultrasound so the doctor can analyze those things.

Baby Girl Lawmaster is measuring a little big right now. Her due date is October 6, but she is measuring as though she is due September 29. Her organs seemed to be fine including her umbilical cord, kidneys, brain, etc. She had herself in a "U" position where her feet and her head were beside each other. I don't know where she gets that flexibility from!

Lee and I are struggling with names at the current time. We've had a boy's name picked out for 1 1/2 years, so it makes sense that we would have a girl :-). We'll be asking Taylor for her ideas as well. At least we have 4 1/2 months to make up our minds :-)

NAGAP Conference and NYC

Last week Lee and I took a trip to NYC. It was fabulous! We did a lot of things and were exhausted, but the trip was one for the books.

We arrived in New York last Wednesday on April 22. I had a NAGAP (National Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals) conference. The conference was at the Marriott Marquis Times Square, which is also where we stayed. We were right in the heart of Times Square and could even see part of the ball outside our window.

The conference was wonderful. I saw several people from IU there, and it was nice to meet admissions professionals from all over the United States. Sessions were Wednesday night, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday morning. It was quite exhausting, but I feel that I learned a lot as well.

After my conference sessions were over for the day, Lee and I took to the streets. While I was in sessions, he explored NYC on his own. Since we arrived in the evening on Wednesday, we didn't do too much that night. We ate out and turned in early.

On Thursday, Lee walked down to Washington Square Park to see the Arch and take pictures. He loved Greenwich Village! When I got done with sessions, we decided to explore lower Manhatten. We first went to Ground Zero where there is a covered fence surrounding the area due to construction of the new building. We then walked down to Battery Park and took the State Island Ferry. This way we could get close to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty for free. We then walked up to the Brooklyn Bridge, took the Subway back to Greenwich Village, and toured Grand Central Terminal. What a busy afternoon/evening.

On Friday, Lee ventured down to the Today Show and got to see Meredith Viera up close. While we don't think he got on TV, he had a great time. After my sessions were done, Lee took me back to Rockefeller Plaza, and we stopped in St. Patrick's Cathedral. We also had to stand in line FOREVER to go up in the Empire State Building. It was line after line after line, and we were there for hours. We also got to go to the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) for free later that evening.

By Saturday we were exhausted, but we knew it would be our last day in the city for quite some time. After the conference session was complete, we took the subway up to Grant's Tomb, which is the largest tomb in the U.S. It was amazing! We also spent some time in Central Park after passing by The Dakota, where John Lennon was killed. On Sunday, we flew home.

All in all, it was a great trip!!! I'm glad that we went, but it certainly passed by way too quickly!

Home Remodel

It has been quite some time since I posted a blog. As always, we have been pretty busy. Not only do we both work full-time, but Lee has class two nights a week; I sit on a local non-profit board of directors; and I am pregnant. But, because of impending arrivals, we are also remodeling our basement.

Now it isn't what you think as a typical remodel, but it is a huge undertaking nonetheless that Lee has pretty much taken on. We have stripped all the walls of paneling to find out exactly what is underneath those walls. It turns out that things are in much better shape than I anticipated. The insulation looks good. The foundation walls look good. The first major concern we encountered was a wall full of ants. However, they were immediately killed, sprayed for internally, and sprayed for externally.

Lee has replaced both light fixtures downstairs with our old standbys we love. We started buying them when we first bought the house and replaced the upstairs light fixtures. They are beautiful! He has also wired the basement for phone, cable, LAN, and redid the outlets. He also installed new sound-proofing insulation for the wall between the utility room and the soon-to-be office to deaden the sound of the heat pump and washer/dryer. He is currently finishing some concrete work.

The one half of the basement is done except for new paneling, painting, and floor staining. This half will be Lee's new office.

The other half is currently being worked on and should be easier to deal with considering there is much less wall space. This area will be the new guest area/sitting room. But once it is complete, it will also need new paneling, painting, and floor staining.

So far, we are on budget, and I hope we stay that way! I am the budget police :-). Of course, once the basement gets done, the office will move downstairs, and the work on the baby's room will begin. My overall goal is to get everything done by/in August. I don't want us rushing at the end with baby only days away. I'll keep you updated!

30 years + 1 Day

Yep, I survived my 30th birthday. I must say that my 29th birthday was much worse than my 30th, but at the same time, I had other things to preoccupy me this year.

My husband was wonderful for my birthday. He asked all the women in my life that are close to me and over 30 to write me advice, words of encouragement, etc. on scrapbook pages. He then put all the pages into a scrapbook for me. Needless to say, I cried my eyes out when I read it. What a wonderful present that I will cherish forever!!!

In the afternoon, he took me to Cheeseburger in Paradise and had a surprise party waiting on me with about 25 people in attendance. My family, close friends, and co-workers all came out to surprise me. I was also given a collage of pictures of me from all stages of life. It was wonderful!!!

Then our good friends from Evansville surprised me and spent the night. We hadn't seen them since November, so that was a great present as well. All in all, it was a fabulous day!

Thank you, Lee, for being a great hubby and planning such a wonderful day for me!!! I will never forget it!!!!