Hey! It's Me!

(On a date with Mason before he left; way too much ice-cream even for me)

I decided that many of my blog posting lately have been about my dear husband, so I decided that I would take to time to focus on M-E, although I’m not sure I’m actually that interesting these days. I have approximately 10 weeks left in Grad school which thrills me to no end. I’ve enjoyed learning new tidbits and strategies that I can use in my classroom, but by this 9^th course, I’m getting repeat information and am just done with the weekly papers that aren’t really teaching me much. I have an E-portfolio that must be completed by the end of my program which basically consists of more repetition and LONG papers that require a lot of work. Anyone who scoffs at an online degree should go get one, because I’ve worked just as hard as anyone else I know in Grad school keeping up with assignments and work. I’m pretty proud to say I have a 4.0 GPA which I am hoping to end my program with as well. Mason says I’m crazy to complain when I get an A- on a paper, but I’m at that stage I guess where I really just appreciate the straight A report card look and feel. The class I am currently in will be finished in two weeks, so my hope is that I can bang out these last few assignments early and complete the majority of my portfolio pieces from the last section before I go home for a little vacation.

Which brings me to my next topic that I am going to be home in Evanston for two weeks simply chillaxin. With Mason gone this seemed like a good opportunity to take before the baby was born and not having to worry about leaving my man behind. It’s sort of strange to think that it will be my last kid-free trip back home. I’m looking forward to drinking lots of Jamba Juice and eating Deep Dish Pizza! Yum-o!

With Mason gone, my energy to cook has dwindled. I had finally gotten back to the point where I didn’t really mind cooking, and I actually had the time and then he skipped town and I’m not going to cook elaborate meals with tons of leftovers for myself. I’m also still not really into looking/preparing/cooking with raw meat, so right now my house has no meat in it. That makes it challenging not to chow down on Pasta (or some variety) every night because it’s just easy and not meat; plus I could eat pasta every day. My friends have been nice about inviting me over or going out to dinner, but that can’t be an everyday event. The other night I had a big bowl of popcorn for dinner, which left me feeling satisfied, but questioning if I was really getting BK all the nutrients needed. My doctor also told me at my last appointment that I was dehydrated so I’ve been focusing on getting my fluid intake each day which is somewhat filling.

Baby Kehs seems to be hitting a growth stretch because it feels as though my belly has suddenly “popped” out. In most attire I feel like I’m starting to look more recognizably pregnant and not just fat. I went this week and bought some maternity pants and some longer shirts to cover the expanding belly and hope that they will take me to the end of this pregnancy. Mason even commented during a Skype conversation that he could see the belly while I was just sitting in the chair, although this was probably after I went on and on and on about my expanding girth. I’m almost into the six month, which is really exciting and I’m happy that other than being EXHAUSTED from the Louisiana heat and growing a baby, I’ve been feeling pretty good. BK reminds me that they are all tucked in there by kicking away, although the strangest thing is that although I feel the kicks daily they seemed more frequently and stronger when Mason was around either when he put his hands on my belly or just when we were going to bed at night. It’s as if the baby already senses Dad’s presence, which I think is pretty cool.

The first week of deployment has gone fairly smoothly with a few bumps in the road. I’m on my summer night time schedule. Last night I went to bed as the sun was coming up and birds were coming out…but I just couldn’t put my book down and kept reading. I’ve been to the pool a few times with friends and just been out socializing and working at Sylvan. Nothing to wild. Now that it’s 1:30 am I’m contemplating writing a paper for Grad school or getting back into my book…I think the paper will have to wait for now. Night!