What A Wild Week

Over the last seven days, I have had so much happening, it's nuts. Here are just a few things I've done.

- Hosted a sales conference for work all week last week. I was at work until at least 7:00 every night.
- My brother and his girlfriend Sherri moved from Austin, TX, they arrived last Thursday and are staying with us until their appt is ready on the 1st.
- On Friday I was lucky to have a friend in town and her husband, Katie and Ryan, that I don't see very often because they live in Utah. We had a great dinner with them; and I really enjoyed seeing them.
- I attended a major community event for YouTube on Saturday afternoon. Go to YouTube and search for YouTube Live if you want to see the footage.
- Jody's birthday was on Saturday, we had a little celebration that evening at Little Star Pizza.
- I attended my friend Megan's bridal shower on Saturday
- I registered for my baby shower on Sunday. My great friend Ann, drove from Stockton to help me figure out everything Maren and I will need. Thank you!
- We hired a landscaper to finish our front yard project and solidified all the details on Sunday.
- My dad and Jody finished all the hardscape of the front yard on Monday before the landscaper arrived on Tuesday to begin the project.
- Griffin, my dog, started acting a little funny on Monday. He wasn't eating his food.
- On Tuesday, he started throwing up and I decided to take him to the ER that night. We were there from 8:30-12:30 pm.
- Griffin still didn't look well this morning, so my dad took him to the vet. And he is now in surgery because he ate something that is blocking his intestines. Crazy Dog!
- Oh. . .I forogt that I started going to the chiropractor 3x per week last week, so have had to do that too.
- And my mom and her boyfriend arrive tonight for Thanksgiving.

So. . .that was a snapshot of the last seven days. Isn't life suppose to slow down when you're pregnant?

And now it's Thanksgiving. I have a lot to be thankful for and I'm hoping for a relaxing weekend; and I'm looking forward to eating a lot of pie. I think I've earned it. :)

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

7 Months Update

I am now 27 weeks pregnant and in my seventh month. This is a shot of my growing belly and my new hairstyle. I thought I looked more stylish with it, but both Derek and Nicole's first comments were, "you got a mom cut." So while I love the change, we'll see if I continue to get more of those comments; and if I do, I may need to rethink things.

What am I feeling at 27 weeks? My back is killing me! I've started going to the chiropractor. I will be on a 3x a week treatment plan for one month and then we'll see how things are going from there. I have a belly brace and a crazy pillow that wraps all around me to help with things. Hopefully the chiropractor will do the trick though; otherwise, I may not be walking by the end of this adventure. Other than that, things are going well. She is a very active little one that loves to do aerobics between 7:00 and 9:00 each night.

Griffin: "I love poop!"

This is Griffin and unfortunately our bath tub, after one of his fun filled adventures with his dog walker and the dog pack. On Tuesday, he had a little too much fun. This is one thing I will never understand about this dog. He loves poop!! And most importantly, he loves to roll in poop whenever he can find it, especially if it is a large pile of poop. So, he found a nice pile of cow poop while out with his friends and went to town rolling in it. The dog walker did his best to try and wipe he off, but he was still a total mess when I got home. His collar was covered in poo; and he smelled really bad. I think he thought he smelt like roses though. :) Needless to say, we (meaning Derek) spent the next hour scrubbing him in the tub. Our tub was a total mess; and then Derek had to proceed to thoroughly scrub the tub. This was one of his first tub scrubbing adventures; and he very quickly reminded me that I need to hurry up and hire a housekeeper because he's not doing that again. :) Griffy is nice and clean now though, thanks to his papa.

Proud to Be An American?

This one may be a little controversial, but I felt I needed to say it.

Election Day 2008. . . what a historic event. We live in a country where we have proven all men are created equal. It was a beautiful thing to watch. And I am excited about the potential for the country. I believe things will change; and I believe we are going to be in a much healthier spot in the next 10 years.

In California there was a bit of a dark shadow cast over this great event. While on a national stage we stated as a nation all men are created equal, we did not make that statement here.

I have considered myself a patriortic person my entire life. I have also been someone that has believed in God. As a partriot and as a religious person I know I have chose to live in a country where we believe all men are created equal and we believe in the separation of church and state. I think many of us forget these two things when it comes to our voting cycle. There are things we must accept as Americans. There are many people all around us with different religous and moral standards; however, we are all created equal according to our legal law.

Those in support of this proposition were concerned about the impact it could have on their children in school. Another wonderful thing about our country is we have a choice in where we send our children to school. We can choose to send our children to school where we can guarantee what is being taught is directly in line with our own personal beliefs. We should embrace this option if we are not tolerant to other ideas.

As I look at marriage in America, I see many many flaws. Our divorce rate is out of control. Hetrosexuals are not getting it right either. I don't see any laws trying to pass against those that have been married multiple times because they can't figure out what marriage really means. I don't see people concerned with what their children learn when Tommy has 5 brothers and sisters all from different fathers or mothers from various marriages or un-wed pregnancies. There are so many ways in which "marriage" is flawed in society today, especially if you hold it against a religous standard.

In spite of all of this, we have chose to say gays do not have the same rights as others; and that two people that love one another can not legally marry.

This makes me very sad. Over the past 10 years, I have been fortunate to bring into my life many gays. Two of Derek's best men in our wedding are gay. They are wonderful people who deserve to have every right I have as an American.

For everyone that voted Yes on Prop 8, if your child comes to you and tells you he or she is gay, are you going to want them to have the same rights you have in this country? I hope so.

Happy Birthday Grandma Roark

This is grandmother's weekend for me in the blog world. Today is my Grandma Roark's 76th birthday. Unfortunately we were not able to make it down to Corcoran to celebrate the day with her, but I wanted to acknowledge it nonetheless.

Over the past ten years, I think I've grown closer to my grandma than I was as a child. On my dad's side of the family, I was the only girl. So, the majority of things we did with that family was centered around the boys. I was able to get in and hang with the best of them, but I leaned towards wanting to hang out with my girl cousins on the other side of the family a bit more.

I've really enjoyed getting to know my grandma more as an adult and better understanding her personality and the person that she is overall. She is the matriarch of our family. She is the pillar that has held everyone up during hard times. She is very caring and would do anything for her family. Derek always comments that he finds it odd my dad still calls her mama, but it is her love for him that keeps him calling her that.

Since I'm not there to take photos of this years party, I thought I'd throw up a few from her 75th last year. Happy Birthday Grandma!

My dad, Grandma, Aunt Lisa and Uncle Jimmy

Grandma and her long time friend Clemme

Arkansas (Continued)

Ok. . .I'm still trying to get the hang of blogging and formatting. So, I'm having to break this into two posts to get the pictures right. I'm sure I'll get the hang of this soon. :)

Here is a picture of the house in Arkansas I own. It is 2x the size of my house in Oakland and was 1/6th the price. Maybe I should move to Arkansas! I returned from my trip to find out my renters are moving out. That was super exciting news. :) So, if you know anyone interested in this lovely home and would like to live in the beautiful Ozarks, let me know. (I should do a blog entry on rental properties. I have too many stories to tell. . .unfortunately.)

Outside of spending time with my grandma. I also, hung out a lot with my aunt Tammy and her family: Eddie, Kyle, Lacey and Trey. They are great people and I love them to death. And my uncle Rick decided to stop by and say hello a few times while I was there too.

Arkansas

Last week, I spent 5 days in Arkansas visiting my family. (This trip reminded me how bad I am about taking pictures and I really need to step it up a notch.) I grew up very close to my mother's side of the family. They lived in a "suburb" of our small town. It was about 15 minutes away and we were always together. I spent so much time at my grandparents house. It was like a sanctuary. I remember very often escaping to their house when times seemed tough and it always made me feel better to be there. My grandparents played a very important role in my childhood and I can only hope my daughter, and any other future children, will have as wonderful of a relationship with their grandparents as I had with mine. I really had a special relationship with my grandmother. I was very close to her. She was a rock that I needed at various points in my life. And I'm so grateful for her in so many ways. Over the years she has started to develop Alzheimer's. This is a disease that runs in our family, so we're all looking to that day when it lands within us. The disease has been impacting my grandmother for a few years now, but it has really impacted her life over the last year and a half. It is hard to say this, but she's just not the same person anymore. I found myself getting very frustrated with her while I was there--which saddens me. But I had to keep reminding myself that the person I know is hidden somewhere within the strange new body and mind; and I needed to have patience because I knew she was in there, but it was very difficult. My aunt Tammy is the person that cares for her on a regular basis and I now understand the unbelievable challenge she faces on a daily basis; and I have to thank her from the bottom of heart for taking on this task and trying her best to remain sane while doing it. I am thankful for the time I was able to spend with them; and the next time I see them it will be with my own family in tow. I hope this will be at a point when my grandmother will still remember and understand that this is my child because she always told me I'd be a good mother and she couldn't wait for me to have babies. I love you grandma.

On my trip last week


On my trip last week.

At my wedding.

My mom, grandma and Tammy at Christmas the year before my grandfather passed away.

Me, Jody and Grandma Thanksgiving the year after my grandfather passed away.