Palatial palace

I'm at a beautiful hotel, in a luxury suite watching a movie on my iPad that Shawn rented for me, and waiting for my PaPa Johns pizza and wishing we were back home so I could stress with my cats in our house that soothes me.  Poor Shawn, I love that he is being so great about my literally checking out of our little mini vacation and just sitting by the phone.  My Nana is like my second mom, she's never just been a grandparent.  I can't imagine a world without her stubborn self in it.

Oklahoma bound

Just got update from doctor on Nana; positive for viral meningitis; positive for west Nile.  Kidney failure, on ventilator dialysis on Monday, possible trach and tube if she wakes up.  Doctor says we are on day five of a possible two week journey all based on her kidneys everything is based on that.  So all in all, not good.  Prayers please.

Best laid plans

Stopped for the night on our way to Vegas in Orem, Utah.  Thanks to a true friend I was alerted a hour ago that my Nana is in ICU in Tulsa for the last four days and is under medical sedation with a breathing tube.  Please send prayers.  Based on what the doctors tell me tomorrow I might be headed to Inola. — with Shawn at Hampton Inn & Suites Orem.

Vegas baby!

We are head to Vegas in a hour and it'll take about 12 1/2 hours to drive down.  Luckily we are travelling in style and comfort in Shawn's Xterra where I can just relax and recline my seat and sleep.  I'm at least five days DPO and on cycle day 20 (I say more but I am going to go by this trying to conceive app), so implantation should or will have occurred by this Sunday and I can test by next Friday or so since Aunt Flo is due 9/13.  I never wanted to got to Vegas, like ever in my life but Shawn really enjoys it there and we are staying at Caesar's Palace in a suite for free with all his points. 

So our plan is to stop in Salt Lake and get some Krispy Kreme because ours in Montana doesn't open until the end of October, and grab a Subway sandwich and then we'll stop and stay in a hotel on the way since we aren't due to check in until tomorrow at 11 a.m. but once we check into Caesar's I'm going to Bath & Body Works in the hotel mall and picking up our Lemoncello olive oil soap and then to Build-A-Bear  to make the (soon to be) baby it's first bear and then I'll be in the hotel room reading on my app free Kindle Fire that Shawn got me and enjoying the a/c since it's 110 there versus 45 here right now; staying germ free.  I agreed to go on one fancy dinner date with Shawn, but I guess I should pass on going dancing like I wanted.  I was thinking about going to their adult arcades, because I just don't GET gambling, but alas no adult beverage for this possible mommy to be. 

I was going to see the Titanic exhibition, and the Shark Reef, which I still might, but shouldn't I try to stay as healthy as possible for Abbey/Finnian?  I downloaded a ton of new parenting books, because I have read at least one a day for the past three weeks.  I am particularly interested in learning about attachment parenting or secure attachment parenting; in essence never putting them down except to shower or put them in their co-sleeper.  I plan on working from home after maternity leave so that we don't have to put our baby in day care, and stay with him/her until pre-school.  Shawn is allowed 15 days paternity leave which I am grateful for but why not six weeks like the mother? 

I hope Shawn's family comes to visit after the baby is born since I am lacking in that department.  I've never focused so singularly than I have on every little feeling inside to see if I can feel implantation.  Any symptom I feel is scrutinized beyond all reasoning.  I feel like I have the dream job, the dream partner, the dream home, heck I even love our paid off vehicles!  This won't complete our lives, simply enhance it.  So dear reader picture me in a suite with the a/c on 60 degrees and my feet propped up on pillows reading to my heart's content and enjoying brief boyfriend visitation in between his table games.  Mini-vacations with your partner means doing whatever it is you want and visiting in between each other's plans.  I am feeling peaceful and content, and really excited.  Please send prayers and good thoughts my way.  Here's wishing everyone Baby Dust!

Stay off WebMD

So my boyfriend and I are officially trying to start a family so I started this week long journey of blood tests, the obligatory annual, and a mammogram tomorrow.  Here at St. Pete's where I work we have what's called the Patient Portal where you can get test results.  Many of you may know how impatient I am so when I kept checking my results and nothing was there I decided to call medical records and ask if they had anything on me yet, and of course some results had come in and were being sent to my doctor; so you are able to get a copy of those if you sign a medical release; which of course I did.  BAD IDEA.  AWFUL.  I just assumed after working for doctors my whole career I could read the jibberish that is test results.  Wrong.  So I go back to my desk and start trying to decipher the hieroglyphs on WebMD and successfully convince myself I am dying of some horrible disease and that I will never be able to be a mom and have my little family I've dreamt of forever.  Alright, so I call my doctor and they tell me she is in clinic for another couple of hours but that she will call me back. 

The wait was horrendous, and the more I thought about it the more upset I became.  So my doctor calls exactly when they said she would and she's talking to me like she hadn't gotten the message about me already seeing some of the results.  "So Sam I got your results back on some of the tests, and all is well and I see no problem with you conceiving naturally and there was no issue on your lab or ultrasound".  I replied "What, but I read the report and it says..", she responds with "How did you see the results", and I explained I couldn't wait, she said, "Stay the hell off WebMD Sam"!  lol  So yeah, freak out much?  WHEW but hey at least I know I am good to go, and 100% healthy as I assumed until my curiosity got the best of me.

Moral of the story:  Curiosity gave the cat an anxiety attack, but didn't kill it!

So we will know by 9/15 if we are pregnant this cycle, and if we are; it'll be due 5/22/16 and named either Abbey-Marin or Finnian-Elijah.  I already have our Pinterest and Amazon wish lists started!  I told Shawn about my desire to do a pregnancy Vlog from live pregnancy test to the full birth but I will keep up my posts here throughout what I hope will be a healthy pregnancy.

It's been too long

The smoke in Helena is so bad that the air quality hazard is up on the Weather Channel app.  I've never encountered anything like feeling you're in the middle of a fire but not seeing flames.  I opened the window to our bedroom and said to Shawn, "it's like waking up next to a campfire, the smoke is so thick and smells so strong".  Now if you know me, you know that I buy these little bundles of wood and burn them to get that smell, so imagine my shock when I wake up and for miles around my city it's smoke filled and with that same pungent smell.  What saddens me the most is the land that will be scarred for quite some time as it heals.  I hate to think of how the fires are displacing my beloved forest creatures.  Since I've moved to Montana, a full year ago now I've seen three moose, a mountain goat, a massive heard of deer in an open field (and occasionally right in my front yard or meandering down the middle of the street in downtown Helena) and a ton of elk.

I had my first nail biting experience when two weeks ago this Saturday Shawn and I went for a drive in his 2010 Nissan Xterrra that is completely paid off mind you.  We were exploring a random road as we often do, when all of a sudden the road disappears and we are driving in a washed out road with no ability to back out or turn around as we are completely surrounded by dense forest all around us.  This road went from smooth and car safe, to MAYBE meant for a dirt bike or four wheeler.  For miles and miles we were tossed around trying to navigate razor sharp jutting jagged rocks, worrying that any moment one of the downed tree logs that kept getting stuck under the truck, or super sharp rocks were going to pierce the gas tank or some other vital undercarriage car part as we literally kept being slammed down on the rocks for MILES to the point that the side curtain air bags deployed on us on one of the unforgiving and particulary ugly portions, and that is saying something.  Later we would examine the vehicle to find a massive dent on my passenger door side by the underside of the truck, so imagine how hard we had to slam down to dent metal. 

One of the most difficult things was that our road literally disappeared on the map and on our gps phone apps, so we had no clue how far we had to navigate this practically impassible road.  Two hours basically.  Now it's not like we planned to go off roading, no we truly didn't. Shawn and I both have extensive intentional off roading experience and know better than to go off alone without backup on an untraversed road in a vehicle that was almost unable to make it through.  Shawn was in a tee and shorts and Birkenstocks, and I was just in leggings and a tee and flip flops. 

Now Shawn is an experienced back country hiker and camper going on annual ten day Manventures as he and his friends refer to them, parking at a trailhead and packing in their gear for a eight mile a day trek, so he would get out and scout a mile ahead to see how best to drive his truck through this evil road.  Once as he was getting out of the truck to check a nasty part of the road he gashed his forehead open and had blood pouring down his face, and he just blew it off, he's made of tough stuff.  At one point when I was lucky to get signal I posted on Facebook "Lost" in case we didn't manage to get out in the truck and had to hike out in bear infested back woods without bear spray someone would know where to at least start looking.  My friends would later post, "Really, or Seriously"?  I was like "who jokes about that"?!  I don't cry wolf folks! At one point we had to go over this thrown together rotted, termite infested log bridge over a raging river, with a vertical climb right after it, and I just looked at Shawn and said "go as fast a possible"!  Long story longer we finally made it out and we realized we had went in one gigantic circle!  I told Shawn I'd like to hike back in there and put up hazard signs saying "Turn back now, not fit for vehicle" or "last chance to turn around" or "lift kit and back up required"!  So luckily the truck still has full coverage and it's in the shop getting fixed, but we are looking at almost three to four weeks before we get it back.

I was approved to be a Big Sister and may have connected with a Little Sis so I am really excited about that.  Shawn and I went to Malta, Montana this past weekend to see my sister and her two sons and her daughter-in-law and Robbie's new son (he now has two little girls and a boy).  There is NOTHING in Malta except mosquitoes and the Edgewater motel which was actually alright, rustic like the Village Inn at Glacier National Park, except the Edgewater had a flat screen and a/c, but I loved the Village Inn more, for the view and it's lack of electronics and mod cons.  Truly, who knew I'd love that so much.

It looks like we are headed to Las Vegas, as I've never been and Shawn is a pro on the tables apparently, so that should be a lot of fun, perhaps they have bingo, I do love bingo, especially if I am playing for kitchen toys.  I hear they have some great shows in Vegas also so we'll have to check those out as well.

All is quiet and peaceful on the homefront, and I really couldn't be happier.  I hope the same can be said for you and yours.

New iPhone 6 plus

Loving my new phone and all its capabilities!  Sold my old iPhone for a great price on Craigslist, didn't get as much though because the iPhone 7 is coming out soon; oh well.  Point is I'll be able to post far superior pics and vids!  Shawn is headed to Colorado for his second Iron Man triathlon Wednesday morning and our house will be too quiet for the week he'll be gone.  New experience from tornadoes to grass fires here.  Townsend burned so much acreage, and two fires here in Helena in just a couple of days.  Glacier, our beloved Glacier thousands of acres are still burning.  Loving my job and coworkers and that I literally live next door to work.  We discovered a spa called Paws Up in our weekend exploring trip.  We were able to get a new roof put on the house before winter, and the downstairs bathroom remodeled.  I'm excited about all our plans to really make this house as comfortable as the local B & B's we see around town.  Hoping our out of town guests will enjoy the fruits of our labors, God bless Pinterest.