So just when everything was getting green and pretty and springy, we get hit with a second April snowstorm. Blizzard is maybe more accurate; I'm not sure what they're officially calling it yet. I do know our schools closed down around 10:00 this morning and it took me over twice the normal time to drive home from the colony. Seriously, it's April 25, did Mother Nature miss that memo?
Not that I'm complaining - unexpected three day weekend! Poor Brandon had to teach a class at 2:00, and they just announced they're closing down campus at 3:00. So close.
You wouldn't believe the snow around here, unless you live in any state touching SD, then you probably got hit too. We've had 9 inches this weekend! On Friday it was blowing around so badly they actually cancelled school; which doesn't happen often in Mitchell. I always have to laugh because if KY got 9 inches of snow, they'd be closed for week at least!
Jack enjoys it, he bounds around like a bunny, falling into all the deep drifts. We took him out for his regular walk, but half way through Brandon couldn't resist the nice prestine field filled with a foot of fresh snow. He and Jack took off running through it, I wish I had a video camera - they looked pretty funny. You can't really run through that deep, it's more like giant steps and bounds.
We've had a lot of fun letting everyone in on the baby news! We told some close friends right away, parents and siblings soon after, but waited until a couple months in to really spread it around.
For those we don't see, like out-of-town friends, we made a little video. We set it up to look like just a video of Jack, our husky-lab, showing off some tricks (not that he knows any). So, turns out a lot of friends, with actual lives, didn't watch it. One even called us later and said "I wasn't going to take the time to watch some dumb dog video!" another e-mailed us back just catching up on regular news and sharing some good news of their own and casually mentioned 'cute video, you guys need some kids.' She obviously didn't watch it! So, jokes on them, because the end of the video was the news - Jack has no tricks, but Vicky has a bun in the oven! You can watch that if you want...
With that news out we were free to talk about it around town. Brandon decided to mention it during 'joys and concerns' in his weekly chapel service at the college. Seeing as it's both a huge joy and simultaneously extremely concerning and scary - this seemed appropriate. So, he says "We wanted to share with you all, and ask for your prayers to be added to ours, because my wife Vicky is 12 months pregnant." Well, instantly all the women in the room start whispering and gesturing to him "12 WEEKS, 12 weeks, not months." Brandon recovers nicely with "oh, yeah, that's right, 12 weeks - I don't think we're gestating an elephant!"
The flu, or something like it, has been going around the colony. Our students are dropping like flies. Sunday morning, it hit me. Brandon was gone, doing a church service out of town. So I, alone, sick, and pregnant was not a happy girl! After lots of throwing up, crying, and talking to my mom on the phone I got through the morning. It was a couple days of yuckiness though; quite the double whammy of fatigue with flu and normal 1st trimester tiredness. I was out of school for 3 days, but it was only a 3-day week, so I had 4 freebies to fully recover.
The good part of all this is we went to the doctor on Tuesday. I was dehydrated, so they hooked me up with some fluids - always helpful. And just before the appointment I noticed some bleeding when I went to the bathroom. Of course, a sick, emotional, pregnant lady doesn't handle that well! I was pretty scared, and just sure this sickness was messing with the baby - although Brandon and the dr kept assuring me it wasn't. But, to appease me the doc set us up with an early ultrasound at the hospital. It was rough sitting around the next three hours in waiting rooms - but it was just incredible to see that tiny baby inside! He/She was 4 cm small at the time, but already moving around and everything. We could watch the blood flow, see where the hands were going to grow out of the little flipper beginnings, and clearly tell head from tail. Pretty exciting stuff! I can't wait until our next one when she/he's much bigger and more obviously baby looking.
Thanks to my good friend and college roomie we had a great plan for revealing the pregnancy to my (V) Mom and Dad. They came down for the weekend just to visit. We attempted a nice dinner, that absolutely fell apart in a series of errors. But, we didn't mind too much, because we had this big secret to share. After dinner we sat down to play Hoopla, a Cranium type game. I was up with a drawing task - draw the person on this card. Well instead of drawing for that clue, I drew this picture you see. Well my parents, being such games, weren't thinking beyond the game. So while my hands were shaking and I was trying to look casual, they're guessing 'obstetrician, gynecologist...surrogate mother'... So finally I draw a big arrow pointing to myself. Mom stares at the picture dumb-founded, Dad looks up and says "you're not, are you?!" It was pretty funny!
We thought we'd start a blog to share any fun pregnancy stories and pics as we go through this new adventure. It's already been a really interesting time; but we don't get to talk to so many friends regularly - so maybe this will be a good way to keep in contact, all be it one-sided. It'll be your job to catch us up on your lives! Thanks for being part of ours!
