Guess who's in town?

Yay for my mom coming to town!!  She is staying at my aunt Lisa's house until Saturday.  We are going to go and check out stroller systems - woo hoo!  We are currently going back and forth between Graco and Chicco, which according to friends and online reviews, are two of the best!  Well, maybe not we, I don't think Travis is excited about the strollers as I am, but that's okay :)  We're thinking we're going to get a travel system and then we'll get a lighter more portable stroller.  Since Travis is doing the Ironman this fall, I would LOVE the bob ironman stroller, but as you can see, it's a pretty pricey jogging stroller at $350!  But it does say for serious runners, I probably won't be as serious at first, though.  But in all reality, I think we'll purchase a more affordable jogging stroller - brands aren't everything and I doubt the baby will remember what stroller he/she was in.  So if anyone has any good recommendations, please let me know.  It appears that a lot of joggers are all over the board on reviews.  Babies = lots of gear and equipment, we've learned that much already!  All the stuff is super cute, though, makes me wish I could go back and be a baby all over again! 

Okay, back to homework!  I will be the happiest person in the world when this semester is over!  I was much more on top of things last semester!

A little over 11 weeks!

Well, today was a little bit of a rougher day.  I was definitely really sick this morning and had "saltine time" as Travis likes to call it for a long while.  We had a really yummy dinner over at Patsy (the gal I'll be going to Peru with) and Jim's house last night, but unfortunately, I think it was a little too heavy for me.  The food was really good, though!  However, I literally stayed in bed for a while with tums, water, crackers at my side and a pillow between my legs.  Travis made me bisquick waffles though, so I was able to get one of those down okay. By the way, Patsy and Jim gave us this little kid chair that Jim hand made - super cute and modern.  I dusted it off last night and it's already dusty again today, but that's Arizona for you. 

We also got our first gift off the registry - I set up a babies r us and a target registry just based on what other people had and based on talking to several helpful new moms.  My mom told me to start looking at stroller systems, but of course, I couldn't JUST do that, I just HAD to start a registry and start planning for our new little one that will be here in November!  (Okay, and it's a really good, or maybe bad, distraction from school work and grading).  We'll be updating the clothes once we find out if we will be having a boy or a girl. We got a 4 compartment storage organizer (I LOVE the sage color) and 2 sets of baby hangers!  There are so many reviews and research sites to look at for baby stuff!  Good thing we have lots of friends with babies!

We also went on a tour of the Chandler Regional Hospital Birthing Facility - it's about a 4 - 5 minute drive from here.  The labor, delivery and recovery rooms are really nice and roomy, but after that, you do go to a smaller room.  I forgot to ask how long "recovery" could last, b/c Travis and I were both confused that I would have to go to a different room afterwards.  Oh well, I'll still get to shower and everything in the other room first.  Crazy, crazy!

Oh, and we checked out a few 3 BR apartments yesterday.  We found 2 that we really liked.  1 of which was VERY much out of our price range at $1175/month, but the other one was within our price range, so we'll see.  I think we may end up staying here and I don't think either of us wants to move our stuff anytime soon!  We have to give our notice in June, so right when I get back from Peru, but we'll check into a 6 month lease.  Still think we should buy a house down here b/c they're so cheap, but that wouldn't be the wise thing to do, since we don't know how long we'll be here...

I hope everyone else had a great weekend!  We've been getting a lot of congrats cards and little baby items, which we really appreciate! 

Our future little...

How cute is this little onesie?  Custom designed by Cooper, the baby's uncle!  We love the gift, Cooper and Lindsey!!  And Travis was finally excited about a piece of baby clothing :)  We also received a nice card from Jen & Kory Prendergast - their daughter, Claire, is our baby's 2nd cousin!

Things are moving right along.  I was cramping last night on my side abdominals, which of course made me worry, so I looked it up on several sites and it said that after a harder than normal workout it can happen (check, I worked out a little too hard yesterday probably... sit-ups are getting a little TOO uncomfortable) and it said that the ligaments stretch to support your growing uterus at the end of your first, beginning of your 2nd trimester (doesn't that sound fun?).

I've been wearing the bella band - it's not that I can't button my pants, it's just that it's too uncomfortable having them buttoned and pressing into my abdomen, so I am VERY thankful for that.  Travis laughs at it and compares it to compression gear that you can wear for running/cycling -  the compression tights and socks that improve circulation.  He's definitely jealous of my slimmer look after I put it on... 

We joined a new bible study group that meets on Wednesday nights.  We can fit this one into our schedule with school.  It is a spin off of our Sunday school class and there were 2 other couples there last night and our group leaders.  The other 2 couples were not able to make it.  We actually really enjoyed it - we're going to start a DVD series first, which means no extra reading yet (GREAT - b/c I don't need anything else to complain/whine about with school laying it on thick right now, lol.  Sure Travis is tired of hearing me say I'm stressed, lol).

Well, I hope that everyone is having a good week so far!  SO excited it's almost the weekend - we are going to look at 3 bedroom apartments on Saturday and we have a birthing facility tour - Chandler Regional - it should be a fun day! 

Our first few gifts and cards!

Well, we are facebook official and I am 10 weeks along! Craziness! We got a LOVELY gift from Grandma and Grandpa Riley (Travis' parents) last night and we opened it up. We got an adorable pink and brown outfit in case it's a girl and an adorable blue and brown in case it's a boy. They have cute little hats too - the boy hat has little bear ears! And we got a little lullaby lamb, with a twist key to play the lullabys.

And here is a picture of some of the cards we got as well! 

Thanks to everyone for the congrats and the support - we really appreciate.  AND, I talked to both of my supervisors yesterday and they are super excited for us and are going to work with me to get a good schedule figured out for school as well.  Just awesome! 

We have been having fun hanging out with Ben and Mitchell who came up here from MN to visit us!  It has been super fun having friends around the apartment!  They have nicknamed the baby Gumbi b/c Travis said it looked like a gummy bear on the ultrasound picture.  Hope everyone has a good weekend!!

Baby poem inside the frame (creative way to share the news)

Some people have emailed me and asked what the poem said inside the frames that I made for all the (great) grandparents and to Trav's brother and his wife:

Dear Great Grandpa & Grandma Byram,

I do not have a face to see, Or put inside a frame.

I do not have soft cheeks to kiss. I don't yet have a name.

Not yet can you hold my tiny hands, Nor whisper in my ear.

It's still too soon to sing a song, Or cuddle me so near.

But all that will change come next November; When they say I am due.

I am your newest grandchild (or great grandchild or the newest Riley);

And I can't wait until I meet you!

All I ask between now and then is your love for me to grow.

I promise I'll be worth the wait; Just think of all the joy we'll know!

So as you're waiting patiently, Please pray lots of prayers for me.

I cannot wait to be a part Of this wonderful family!

Love, Baby (lastname or nickname, if you would like)

P.S. "Me gusta el bebé" - Travis

So I originally told Travis, you better start brushing up on your Spanish, to which he said, “me gusta el bebé”. That means “I like the baby”. It was probably the cutest, most adorable thing ever. For me, listening to people speak Spanish or try to speak Spanish and actually use a complete sentence (with a verb) is AWESOME, no matter how "easy" the sentence is.

Our bebé is coming in November!!

Well, we shared our big news and our big blessing a few nights ago!  I made frames for the grandparents and for Aunt Lindz and Uncle Cooper.  We were actually able to tell my parents in person over spring break, which is really nice.  So, here are the ones for my grandma and my mom that I made:

I also had my grandma & grandpa put together a puzzle before we handed out the frames - its says "guess who's arriving on or around November 16th, 2010?  Congrats, grandma and grandpa"  My grandma had no clue what that meant, but my grandpa goes, isn't that around your race time, Travis?  (Thanks, Dad).  So I had to say, yep, so we're having a baby and then my grandma understood.  They were all super excited.  (Our updated and estimated due date is now November 14th, yes, that would be one week before Travis' full ironman here in Tempe, AZ).  It will all work out :)

We waited until after our first ultrasound to tell Travis' family, per his request, and then I put together a box with 4 frames and sent it off to Rick and Karen's house.  I told Karen she had to wait for me to open the box and I had to make up an excuse (we've got that darn 2 hour time difference) until Travis could get home from work as well.  So, she opened the box with us on speakerphone and it was really exciting - we weren't able to tell them face to face because the timing didn't work out last weekend, but this was the next best thing!!  Cooper and Lindz were over there too, so it was really nice. 

We told my aunt Lisa and uncle Marty last night and I actually just handed the envelope with pictures inside of it and she was super excited!! We had a really good dinner and chat with them last night - uncle Marty even said a really special prayer for the baby before dinner and it was really sweet and special.  I don't know how to scan the pictures in, well, I don't work somewhere where I could do that now, so we'll show them to people in person.

Anyway, I just would like to say that yes, this was all planned out and yes, you can get pregnant right away (and some people do take the average 6 mths to a year).  Travis actually said, "I want people to know that it was planned, we Rileys do things the right way", LOL.  So, there you have it.  No missed pill or oops baby over here, lol.  All joking aside, we are so blessed by God's little miracle and are super excited to add another member to the family.  We are still trying to adjust to the shock of it all, though. 

Travis came to my first ultrasound (U/S) appointment and it was very funny (for him) and very exciting (for us).  It was a vaginal U/S since we were only 8 wks 4 days at the time and Travis had no idea what actually went on at those sort of things.  He laughed at the feet stir-ups, he was shocked at the plastic wand that captures the U/S image (and where it went...) and he was almost in pain watching the doctor perform what usually is only performed at a women's annual appointment.  (He was by my head, don't get grossed out or get any weird ideas).  We got a welcome to pregnancy bag and our insurance costs estimated for visits and delivery - I have to admit, the student health insurance through ASU is pretty good.  But I guess they bill separately for U/S and lab work.  Here's our baby "grape" at 9 weeks.

I've been feeling pretty sick, I've only thrown up 3 times, but my favorite foods are potato chips, crackers, bean and cheese burritos and cereal bars.  I lost 2 lbs since my first apptmt.  No worries - I take my pre natal vitamins and an omega 3 supplement every day.  However, Sali Armstrong, one of our bridesmaids is due 2 days after we are!  And Rebekah Chapman, a gal in our small group is due October 17th, so I'm glad that I have people that are right in it with me.  Rebekah said I should be back to normal foods in 2 - 3 weeks, thankfully!!

Otherwise, I am still going to Perú May 15th - June 12th (to Cuzco) by Machu Picchu and the doctor didn't express any concern, but prayers and thoughts are always welcome!

Now that I've written a novel, I'll end our post.  Thank you again for all the prayers, love and support - we are thrilled and so thankful to God for giving us this miracle :)

2 year anniversary and catch up :)

I just realized it's been forever since I wrote anything!  Travis and I were officially 2 years married on April 5, 2010, but we celebrated the weekend in Sedona, AZ - going to the hippie type shops and hiking all day Saturday!  We even had coldstone on Friday, but it's just too rich for me - Travis has more of a sweet tooth than I do!

So we did 2 separate hikes on Saturday - Cathedral Rock and West Fork.  The elevation was 5000 ft and in Phoenix we are only at 1500 ft, so it was noticeable when you are hiking, so we were out of breath a couple of times, but adjusted quickly.  The view at the top of Cathedral Rock was just amazing. 

West Fork was really cool as the majority of the hike is by Oak Canyon Creek, which is at an all time high b/c of all the rain we've had this year (yes, we've almost had 2 years worth in these 4 months).  We actually got into West Fork for free after we parked far away and walked in.  It was still $2/person to walk in, but we didn't any cash on us, so the nice park ranger let us in for free!  However, West Fork had 5 crossings one way (10 in all, there and back) and those got a little tiresome.  On the first one, Travis literally took off his shoes and socks and walked across the river instead of taking the log/rock way (which honestly was pretty shaky, people were falling in left and right).  Then he rinsed off his feet with the water and a paper towel.  The water was freezing cold, but he said it was worth it.  He crossed on the log/rock path on the way back.  I think we got better on the way back.  Also, on another crossing, Travis actually ended up crawling and bracing each leg on one log, which of course, I was laughing hysterically at that point, but he had the camera, so I didn't capture that kodak moment.  And on the last crossing, trying to help, I found a huge log and threw it in the water hoping it would catch with the other logs and all it did was soak Travis and almost bump him off, so that was funny too.  He was a good sport about it, lol. 

Other than that, Travis is most definitely in full time training mode, he gets up early (4:30) 3 days a week and goes biking and to track, swims and lifts at night and then has his long bike ride/run/swim on the weekend.  I, on the other hand, have been pretty lazy, and maybe getting to the gym 3 times a week. 

Kaia was in town for about 6 days a few weeks ago and that was super fun!  We didn't take any pictures together :( but she always makes me laugh and we had a lot of great talks and went to the pool a couple of times and went on some pretty long walks.  And of course, we ate out plenty.  I wasn't feeling the greatest that week, so I felt pretty bad about that, but we had fun.  We also tried the Latin Fusion dance class at the gym, and that was a total blast!  The music was all in Spanish and everything. 

Well, other than that, I received a "teaching excellence and service" award yesterday at the honor's reception, which was pretty cool.  I am so anxious for school to be done because all the final papers and projects are due in these next few weeks and my students have 3 exams left, which means 52 X 3 to correct for me (yes, whine, whine, whine), so I feel like there is a lot looming ahead.  But then it will all be done and I'll be on my way to Peru with Patsy!  Which I'm definitely looking forward to, not excited about being gone for 4 weeks, but it will probably be the last time I get to do something like this, so Travis and I decided I should go. 

Hope everyone has an awesome week!!