"...there ain't no rust on the happiness bus..."

What a good weekend!  Josh and I hit the road and headed down to Austin on Saturday to see my old roomies and hear Mason Jennings play at The Parish.  We got to listen to good music, eat good food, and hang with some of my most favorite people.

As we were driving down, it reminded me of all the trips I made to and from Belton during college, and got me thinking about Rudy's future.  Actually, thinking about Rudy in college started last week when Josh and I watched "Enough Said," and at the end, when they take their daughter to the airport to drop her off at college, I started crying like a baby.  I blame it on hormones, but I was just thinking about how happy and sad I was to leave home and got to school, and how I'll be so happy and sad for Rudy, and I just lost it.  Josh got a big kick out of it.  I also cry when I think about Rudy's future Christmas trees, but that's another story.

Anyway, I was just thinking about how I hope he/she goes to school far enough away to make a "new home," but not so far away that he can't come home on the weekends whenever he wants.  It's always interesting to me how I can feel homesick for places that aren't really my home anymore, and I wouldn't really go back if I could, but how I just get that happy/sad, I guess nostalgic, feeling for different places.  Just driving through made me feel that way, and listening to Mason with my two old roomies definitely made me feel that way.  Hard to believe I was there doing the same thing 10 years ago, and cool that my old life and my new life fit together so well.

Here's a pic of Mason and I in 2003, and one from Saturday night.  I like to think we've both aged nicely.  In my defense, I was at ACL and it had rained on us all morning, but I have no excuses for my fat face...I'll blame it on all the pizza and mashed potato sandwiches I was eating at the time.

Adventures at 16 Weeks

So my last post was really from last week.  I had a panic moment and couldn't decide what to call my blog and I just held onto my post until I figured it out.  I'll probably change it, but for now it will get the job done.

So I'm at 16 weeks now, and went in for my check up this afternoon.  I got to hear little Rudy's heartbeat, but that's about it.  Some blood work to check for anemia, but nothing too exciting.  In four more weeks, we get to have our next sonogram so we can find out if we are having a boy or a girl! I don't have a picture for this week - I keep forgetting.

Last night I had a weird surge of energy and talked Josh into helping me clean out the guest room.  We got rid of our extra queen sized bed and all the stuff that has been taking up space in there, so now it's just empty and waiting to be decorated!  I wanted to tell my doctor that I was having some weird pains to see if they would do a sonogram on me today, but I didn't want to jinx anything and put bad vibes out for Rudy :)  Patience.  Just a little patience and then I can decorate!

I've decided that pregnancy brain is definitely real.  I think I have more sympathy for my ADD friends in my classroom now.  Last night while I was cleaning, I would start one thing, see something else, start working on that, realize I had something else going, and just basically wandered around in circles between five different activities going on at once.  I don't know how many times I've put clothes in the dryer and not actually turned it on, and I hear that it only gets worse.  A teacher told me at school last week that this is the smartest I'll ever be.  Awesome.  Good luck future students!

Last week I tripped and fell on the steps at school.  Luckily, I was only four from the bottom, and in a moment of genius, I decided mid stumble that since I wasn't going to land correctly anyway, I should just jump.  I'm fine, Rudy's fine, but I landed on my knees and just got a little bruise.  To end it all nicely, I yelled "Shit!" just as a kid was rounding the corner.  I guess I didn't really yell it, because I don't think he heard me, but still.  Whoever was monitoring the hallway camera probably got a good laugh.  You're welcome security guy.  You're welcome.

Here we go....

Oh Rudy, it seems like just yesterday you were an apple seed, and today you are an apple! You're getting so big!

15 weeks today, and smooth sailing so far.  According to my pregnancy email this morning, Rudy's ears have moved to the sides of his head (where were they before?) and his joints are moving...sounds like serious business.  Not sure yet if he is really a "he" or a "she" but I have a hunch that my Rudy is short for Rudolph and not Rudith.  If you ask Josh, he's putting his money on a girl.  Only 5 more weeks until we know for sure!  Of course, Rudy won't be the baby name, but I like it better than Fetus.

I was able to share the news with my class yesterday, so I don't have to worry about trying to hide my growing bump.  One student told me she thought I had been looking a little puffy lately, and several kids mentioned that their parents asked them if I was pregnant after the Christmas party a few weeks ago.  I was proud of them for defending me by replying with "No! Mrs. Christopher is not getting fat!" Thanks guys.  I thought I was looking slim and trim before the Christmas! Wishful thinking I guess :)

My belly is definitely growing, and after looking down after walking around Buy Buy Baby for about half an hour and noticing that my belly band had crept up my stomach and my unzipped jeans were exposing a nice portion of my pink lacy underwear, I decided I needed some actual maternity pants.  It would have been nice of some sweet pregnant momma to let me know I was exposed, but at least my undies were cute. 

It's nice that the news is out. I don't have to wear scarves and sweaters to hide my bump and it's nice to know that people aren't thinking that I just ate too many cookies between Thanksgiving (I mean, I did, but whatever).  No cravings so far, but sour and vinegary things like pickles and olives are DELISH right now.  I definitely know why pickles and pregnant ladies go together; I just ate two :)  I haven't done the whole pickles and ice cream together, but I'll probably have ice cream later, so pickles and ice cream in the same day? Check.

So that's the big news! Baby Christopher, or Christ(opher) if you got the Christmas card, is due July 4!  We'll have our own little Yankee Doodle this summer!


Here's my 15 week pic: