I can’t believe it’s been over a month since my family came & we went to San Antonio! Jay & I were up all Tuesday night (6/21/11) due to the severe thunderstorm & then me getting sick to my stomach for a few hours. As Wednesday wore on, my sciatic nerve acted worse & worse til by the time I got home, I made it to my recliner & then it was torture every time I had to venture to the bathroom until we went to bed. Mom, Dad, Virginia, Chris, & Kim drove in that night though, so Mom & Kim threw their own baby shower for Jay & me, gifting us with Hawaiian chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies & li hing mui gummy bears & chocolate covered coffee beans along with all the baby goodies Mom & Kim hand-made! These included 2 quilts, a crocheted blanket, the cutest crocheted button-up hooded jacket, curtains for all 3 windows, a crib sheet, the crib dust ruffle, a boppy cover, a nursing shawl, & a wet bag to go in the diaper bag Mom’s making out of the material she brought! Mom had already given us a crocheted bunny finger-blankie & a crocheted swaddling sleep sack & cap when she helped Chris move to V’s after he graduated Portland State U earlier this year.
My back felt a LOT better by Thursday (6/23/11) morning; this improvement however just meant I could walk mostly upright throughout the day, if I took I walked slowly & didn’t try standing too quickly. I was still in no shape for a long roadtrip, but we weren’t exactly waiting on just my back. We ended up eating breakfast in shifts at IHOP while Kevin was in class & Jay was working. Mom, Kim, & I left early to meet a lady who was selling her boppy pillow on craigslist. Virginia went to visit some people at HSU then came home to pick up Chris & Dad & they took the van to Walmart to get new tires since we had a tire replacement plan there, but Walmart didn’t have any tires to fit the minivan. By this time, Kim & I had ordered & almost finished eating. Dad dropped off Virginia & Chris at IHOP & Mom followed him over to Sears to get the tires there. We ordered for Mom & Dad just as they pulled up; Chris & Virginia were finishing up their meals. Then we only had one car & it couldn’t hold all of us so Mom & Dad walked the 2 blocks to Sears while Chris drove Kim, Virginia (on crutches from her knee surgery), & me. We walked around while waiting for the van, then Virginia took Chris & Kim on a mini tour of Abilene’s music shops then to downtown’s little shops while Mom, Dad, & I went to Dillard’s to get mom’s dress for [my cousin] Dexter’s wedding & then we headed to JC Penny & Kohl’s. We all got together & ate dinner at Cracker Barrel then headed to Prime Time! We thought it would be more interactive & we’d get home sooner than going to the drive-in movies. Interactive, yes. Coming home early? Not even close, lol.
The next morning (Friday 6/24/11) we finalized where we were taking this family trip & booked our hotel rooms as we packed last minute items & loaded the van! We drove to Fredericksburg where I almost felt like a tour guide leading my family around :P We stopped to take a picture by the sign stating the historic birthplace of Chester Nimitz, Fleet Admiral for the US Navy during WWII (who happened to have 6 kids). He helped write the papers for the surrender of the Japanese & a highway in Hawaii is named after him. We ate a late lunch at the Bavarian Inn (fun fact: Virginia & I were born in Bavaria, Germany) then headed to find our hotel in San Antonio. We found the Fairfield Inn & checked into our rooms then headed out to meet up with Dad’s cousin Dan Villarreal & his family. We ate at one of their friend’s restaurant, La Hacienda de los Barrios. It was “muy delicioso,” or as we say in Hawaii, “so ono!” We talked a long time then headed to their house & talked some more J. We made it to our hotel & I don’t know about anyone else, but I couldn’t sleep in the stuffy & muggy room; the AC wouldn’t work & the room kept getting warmer as the night wore on! Oh well, in the morning, we ate our complimentary breakfast & toured the Alamo for a refresher history lesson (fun fact 2: we can trace our Dad’s side back to one of the original families who settled the town of San Antonio, after coming through Mexico, having left Spain & the Canary Islands years before).
After that, we made it to Sea World where we were able to take advantage of the Here’s to Our Heros military program (we got in free, thanks to Dad & Virginia!) & we literally spent the rest of the day splitting up & meeting together, seeing shows, eating, & walking--lots of walking. Chris, Kevin, & Kim rode 2 roller coasters & a water slide while Virginia & I took turns riding the motorized wheelchair, lol. I cooled off by walking through the kiddie water park & then went again after getting completely soaked with fishy-smelling water at the Shamu show. We left the park at 10pm with Dad driving the first 2 ½ hours, me taking over from Fredericksburg to Brady, & then Dad drove the rest of the way to my house. We got in at 3am & took showers. Kevin & I were the last to our respective beds at 4am, but I haven’t been able to sleep past 6:45am for over a month now so…. yeah.
Jay had to work at Sears Friday & Saturday so he didn’t get to go with us, but he worked on Makaela’s room & sent us pictures; it’s looking awesome! :D
The wedding was short & cute, almost entirely family present- we filled up every chair & people were standing along the back wall! It was the first happy occasion for a family reunion in many years & it was really nice. J Granny, Mom, my sisters, Makaela, & I took a “4-generation of women” (who also all happen to be the oldest girl in each generation) photo.
My Granny was also able to move back into her house that week as well; she looked so happy!
Time has sped by since the wedding & I’ve set up my maternity leave with HR, although we still need to find another SLP to help see all my kids. 7/7/11 marked 30 weeks of pregnancy & Jay & I went to our first childbirth class. I also decided to stop wearing my silver anniversary rings while I could still take them off. By 7/11/11, my engagement ring came off & 4 days later made 31 weeks. 7/14/11 also happened to be the day our friends Joel & Ashley Wood had their baby boy!
That weekend I was making another trip to the laundry room when I had to stop as I passed Makaela’s room. I had looked inside & it made me smile all over again. It suddenly felt like this whole pregnancy thing was a little more real as it hit me that this wasn’t just another old room that needed to be redone, but we were working on it because it is going to be our daughter’s room! It’s odd that I can be this obviously pregnant & it still sometimes seems like a dream. I know she really will change everything. We are both nervous as I’m sure every new set of parents are, but we are SO excited to meet her too!
Makaela was particularly active 7/24/11. I love watching her, as well as feeling her, move! Jay felt her during the service where Caleb was preaching on worship. Our friend Marabeth later said she wished she had a video camera on Jay because she'd never seen such a "proud Daddy" face when the baby is still INside :-D
I have been around babies & kids since I was one & the only dream that hasn’t changed as I’ve grown older is I want to be a Mommy. I can’t believe after tomorrow I’ll be able to say we’re having our baby NEXT month! I am SO getting the best birthday present this year—a baby of my own!
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