Getting Closer

Why can't pregnancy come with a side of patience? I ask myself this every single day as I become more and more irritable at work. I know that my present state is not the kids' fault, but I mean... sometimes I wonder who coined quote "there is no such thing as a stupid question." Whoever said this needs to spend one day in my shoes. Just saying. I feel for my students as "D-Day" (delivery-day) approaches. Ok. I feel better. Moving on.

We recently had our last ultrasound of Mr. Ross. I usually despise the 4D ultrasounds, because they look like some form of an alien. My baby, of course, is perfect :) Here are a few random facts that we learned about our baby. Number one- He is completely bald. Just like his daddy. Number two- He is going to look like a mini-Josh. Number three- He does not like to be bothered. I had to move all over that table to get him to move his hands and feet from his face. The tech was also swatting my belly the whole time. She about saw my chocolate covered donut a second time. Number four- Ross is a chunky monkey. He is estimated to weigh 4 lbs 10 oz. He is supposed to weigh somewhere around 3 lbs. They said his new due date could be January 12th as opposed to the 28th. Fine. By. Me. They said I will probably have to have another ultrasound to monitor his weight.

I am beginning to become anxious about my new life-role. Being a mom is intimidating. I am excited and scared all at the same time. I am trying really hard to savor every second I have with just Josh and I. What sweet times. I know things will change once Ross comes and I know it will be for the best, BUT I am taking it one day at a time. Here are a few pics of my little man...

26 Weeks

26 Weeks. We are getting closer! At times I feel like Ross is trying to kick his way out of the womb! This morning, I am convinced that he was shaking the bed with his kicking fit. It was so funny! I didn't want to get out of bed, because I loved feeling him move around and play! I can't imagine how hard it will be when he is actually here, and I have to give him to someone else to care for, while I go to work... I know I should not stress about that yet, but I can tell it is going to be very difficult when that day comes.

In other news... Josh and I are really praying about where life is going to lead us next. We have a few options, and options are good, but ultimately it is not OUR decision. We know that we only want to be where God has us to be. The crazy thing about that is, it is not always what we would choose for ourselves. That is the beauty of it- He knows best. Not us. Here is the other part to this saga, right at this moment we have 2 options. 2 VERY DIFFERENT options. One would be comfortable. What we are semi-used to. Josh is great no matter what he does, so he would thrive... and the other is SO far fetched and out there as far as I am concerned. It would be a dream come true, but very overwhelming. As things start to unfold, I will reveal more and if you know us then you probably know what I am talking about. Others will have to wait.... ha! All 2 of you......

I also failed my one hour glucose test. I took my 3 hour on Monday. STILL have not gotten my results. They might be getting a call from me today begging them to let me know before the weekend. In most cases I do believe that no news is good news. This could be different. We shall see.

My Biggest Blessing.

I know I totally fell off the face of the earth after our first visit, BUT I am back! I know that all 2 of you are excited! Whoop whoop!

I am currently 6 months pregnant!!! My last post I was 8 weeks. I am now 24. That is so nuts to me. A lot has happened in the past 3 months of my life. To make a long story short, Josh and I are no longer at Golden Springs Baptist. It is has not been a fun or easy few months, but we are surviving nonetheless. We are now living in Heflin (where I teach) in the cutest little white house. I LOVEE it!! It so small, but it is just what Josh and I need. Because Josh lost his job, most would say "but, you are PREGNANT!!! What are you going to do?!" Now, I will not lie. This was my first response as well; however, it never seems to fail that Jesus has the perfect plan. This little baby has been my BIGGEST BLESSING of all! If it were not for my pregnancy and the baby, I would have lost my mind by this point. It has given me purpose and drive. Jesus is really using this to keep my motivated and to make the trials we are going through seem so trivial.

Speaking of my biggest blessing of all, HE is doing so wonderful! Most of you probably know by now that Baby Miller has a penis!! Yes... he is very proud and we have no doubts. If for some reason down the line, we find out that "he" is a "she" I will be asking what it is that is growing between the legs of my little girl! And yes, he has a name..... ROSS NOLAN MILLER. I am so in love already. He has been wiggling since I was about 16 weeks. It started out with flutters, went to flips, and now he is doing karate chops. It is so fun to feel all of his little (and big) movements. His heart rate has also stayed steady between 150-155. It never gets old hearing his little heartbeat.

All of my visits have been pretty uneventful. The latest visit was my 24 weeks check-up and glucose test. At my visit I learned a few things:

1. Ross does not like to have anyone mess with him. He always kicks the doppler when the Dr. tries to hear his heart beat.
2. I am retaining extra fluid in my arms....
3. Because of this, I have Carpel Tunnel Syndrome (the preggo version, that is supposed to go away after pregnancy)
4. The glucose drink that everyone says is not "that bad" really is "that bad" yuck!
5. I HATE having to take a number anywhere! It is terrible.
6. My belly button is beginning to see the light.

I am currently working on Ross's room. I will post some pics once we start making progress. Other than that, Fall Break is HERE!!! We are headed to Starkville to visit the Pugh Family, and then onto Forest for my first baby shower. I will post pics when we return!

Amy

Appointment Number One

On Thursday I had my first appointment! I am certain that I have never been so nervous about a doctor's visit in my entire life. Josh was nervous too- which gave me comfort for some strange reason. I think it's because he usually laughs at me when I get nervous over silly stuff. This was far from something "silly" and it reassured me that my nerves were totally justified.

It went a lot faster than I anticipated. When we went to the back my heart rate and blood pressure was pretty high- imagine that! I told the nurse that it would probably be high, not realizing that it would cause a little concern when my doctor saw my stats. We finally got back to the room and I thought I would throw up by this point. Luckily, there was a little boy in the waiting room that provided much comic relief. He saw that I had "dum" in my purse and it was his personal mission to make sure that he got a piece of "dum" from the lady with the purple purse. It gave Josh and I something to take our mind off of how nervous we both were.

Now ladies, I am not sure how many of you have ever had your husband at the OBGYN with you, but that was a little strange for me- and him! But I won't go into detail. So the doc finally comes in. He can see that we are both extremely nervous, so he doesn't waste any time. With ultra sound in place, this is what we finally get to see...

It looked a little more human-like on the actual screen. I was too nervous to actually notice if it was moving or to pay attention to detail. I just kept thinking "oh my gosh, this is MY child and it is growing inside of me!" Wow. What a thought. I have never been so relieved in my life. Period. Baby is doing great and we could see its little heart just a beating. It was so cool! Praise God!

I am really looking forward to the next appointment when we get to actually hear the heartbeat. We are due January 28th. That is 2 days before Josh's birthday. Kinda cool. Life is good.

WHOA BABY!

I guess that I started this blog just in time for our big news that most of you already know....

Yep. I am pregnant. That is what all 4 of the tests that I took said. I guess that means it's for real! 2 weeks later, we are still in a state of shock. We most definitely did not plan this pregnancy, but we know that Jesus has a plan and that we will be having a little Josh or Amy sometime the end of January. I don't have a set due date yet, but the computer says January 28th. We will see in a few weeks how reliable the online calculator is.

I have not had too many symptoms yet. The only one that has been a problem is the fact that I have NO appetite at all. Everyone knows that Mexican food is my favorite. At this point, the thought of eating Mexican makes me want to vomit. It is terrible. I am also tired of eating Ritz Crackers. Blah. Everyone keeps telling me that nausea is a sign of a healthy pregnancy. I hope they are right, because if not, I am convinced that Baby Miller hates me and wants me to suffer (ha, I am kidding. Sorry for being such a drama queen.)

In other non-preggo news, I am officially on summer vacation. I don't quite know what to do with myself. I don't have enough energy to really clean like I need to. I recall last summer going through some type of 2 weeks depression when school got out because my life came to an abrupt stop. It can mess with your head. It does mine. Big time.

I am sorry that this has been one long blog of random thoughts. Get used to it. These hormones make my head foggy! Next week... Vacation Bible School! I am taking pictures! Yay for me. I don't have to teach this year. For this I am thankful!

Ellie Dog

Back in September, our house was broken into while Josh and I were both at work. It has always been one of my biggest fears, and it happened. They broke in through the carport door and went through EVERYTHING. They dumped every drawer onto the floor and flipped things upside down. It was a mess. They only got away with a few things, but they the most important thing they stole was my security. I was terrified. Josh's solution- a "guard" dog. He thought that it would make me feel more secure to have a little company when I was to be home alone.

I was not excited about the thought of having a pet. I am just not an animal fan. At all. One day Josh came home and said, "ok, we are getting a dog." I gave in. Now keep in mind, we were going to get a guard dog.... This is what we ended up with.
Meet Ellie- Aka Ellie Mae, Ellie Smelly, or Ellie Dog. She looks ferocious, right??? She is a pek-a-tzu. We love her. She is bigger now and has a massive under bite. I will upload a recent photo very soon!

Other than that, we only have 8 more days left at school with kids and then we have 1 teacher work day. I am SO excited about what the summer will bring. I need a break. Yay for summer!

Phenomenon

Being a teacher you have to keep up with what is considered cool in the eyes of a middle school student. Now, most of what is considered "cool" seems ridiculous to me. Meet the new fad...

Tech Decks- A mini toy skateboard. They have become so popular that they are banned from school. It is amazing how something so small can be so entertaining. I just do not get it. What is so fascinating about this small miniature skateboard? Any ideas?

All about us.

So I have decided I should tell the blog world a little about Josh and I. I know that most of you reading this already know us, but on the off chance you randomly stumble upon our blog, you will know a little of what we are about! We shall start off with me (Amy). Here are a few random, yet important, facts about myself...

# 1- I am a middle school teacher. I teach 5th and 6th grade math. If I ever decide to post about my job it will probably be in general terms. I feel that some things are better left alone. Posting about your job is not always the best idea. So, as far as my job goes, I love teaching and I feel like this is what I am supposed to be doing in this season of my life. Yes, I said season. I am not sure if this is what I am supposed to do forever... but for now, I am perfectly content! I love my students and the friends that I work with! P.S. I teach math... not English. I will make many grammatical errors.

#2- I am a MISSISSIPPI girl. Although I currently reside in Alabama, my roots are firmly planted in Mississippi. I am also a proud graduate of Mississippi State University.

#3- I love donuts! I know this seems a bit shallow, but I think donuts are a little slice of heaven. If you know me, you know that chocolate donuts are my weakness. I could eat them everyday and be perfectly happy. and fat. :)

I know I only gave you 3 facts, but I don't want to make this post forever long. Let's move on to Josh...

# 1- Josh is a Youth Minister. Ok, so when I typed in "Youth Minister" into google I got some pretty funny stuff. Nothing that would be fitting of Josh, though. Being a youth minister is a lifestyle. It is not a job. We stay VERY busy with youth events and just hanging out and being apart of their lives. Josh is a wonderful person for this position. He is very compassionate and tries to love kids where they are. Being a youth minister's wife can be trying at times. I think I need to find a youth minister's wife support group! But seriously though....

# 2- Josh is an athlete. He hates for baseball to be his identity, but it was for quite some time. He first played baseball at Louisiana Tech. Then, he transferred to East Central (which was where he met his beautiful, loving, wife:). Last, he played at Jacksonville State. I really enjoyed watching him play. I think he misses it more than he lets on...

#3- Josh is addicted to two things- Diet Coke and coffee! Sometimes I think he loves them more than me! I have to admit that I love Diet Coke. Anytime, day or night, you will catch Josh drinking one of these beverages. Josh has this weird thing where he drinks coffee to make him SLEEPY. I would be twitching all night if I drank even one cup before bed. I am not a coffee fan. At all.

The last thing that you need to know about Josh and I (but, most important) is that we are followers of Jesus. We strive to make Him the center of our lives and our relationship. Without Him, we would be nothing and would have no hope. We hope to glorify Him in everything we do.

This has become extremely long. Hopefully you know a tiny bit about us now. I promise, there will be more to come. I am sure that a future post will consist of our first "child", Ellie. She is a mess... but we love her.

Hello World.

After much debate, I have decided to make my blog (which was originally created for an online CEU project) a personal blog to share with family and friends. I have found myself being very fascinated with the world of blogging. I spend a lot of time reading friends' blogs and even blogs of people I have never met... yes, I realize that makes me a blog stalker!

Mine and Josh's life is not that entertaining; however, I figured with all of the trips and such that we will be taking this summer, that family and friends might enjoy seeing pictures and know what is going in our hectic lives!

So, let the blogging begin...