Popcorn

Last post was in September? Seriously? I think that goes to show how much my life has changed since early September and how preoccupied I have been with other things to post any updates.

Regardless, I know not a lot of people read this, and all of you that do probably know the main updates to my life that I'm about to reveal (because of Facebook) but I like often going into elaborate detail, more than the amount of detail I can go into on Facebook and text messages.

Last time I wrote, we were hoping to adopt a dog we met at a rescue in Cedar Rapids. Well, we got him! We renamed him Dexter, and he's been such a joy to have around. I missed having a dog in my life so much, and I love finally having one again. He's silly and has quite the personality - still has a lot of youth and energy in him, but he is turning out to be a good family dog and even does so well in the apartment all day while we're at work. He's done a few naughty things, but his cuteness and entertainment outweigh the mischievous moments.

Second, Jake got a new job! He is now no longer at a call center (thank heavens - it was really starting to wear on him), and got a job with the Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce. He's an office manager there, and does a lot of everything, really. He is really enjoying it and appreciates being treated like an adult for a change. Also, he works closer to where I do, so we carpool together most of the time now.

Third, not new, but I'm still at my job with the Univ. of Iowa. That's good, since it's the reason we moved here... I am still liking it for the most part and really enjoy the people I work with. Sometimes the job is really great, and other times it wears on me and is kinda "eh." One thing I noticed: this job has a tendency to be reeeeeaaallly busy for a few weeks, then reaaaaalllly slow for a few weeks, then reeeeeeallly busy, and the cycle goes on. It doesn't gradually go from slow to busy - it takes giant leaps. I miss being the same amount of busy most of the time - not overwhelmingly busy, but not super slow. I know that not every job is perfect, but there are a lot of perks and great benefits to being here as an advisor. I just don't feel like this is what I want to do for a long time.

The fourth, and most amazing, terrifying, beautiful, and exciting thing to happen since I posted last, is that................

WE'RE HAVING A BABY!

This is where the title of my post comes in, because right now as I type, the baby is squirming like crazy and it feels like popcorn popping in my belly! I just started feeling it about two weeks ago, and it tickles. like. CRAZY. I make squeaky noises involuntarily whenever it gives me a tiny little punch or kick.

We found out in late October. I started just feeling, "off," and not longer after feeling "off," I realized I was late. Then queasiness and nausea started. And a couple other symptoms. Then surprise! Two pink lines on the stick. Cue the breaking down and sobbing uncontrollably and getting makeup all over Jake's shirt.

The shock wore off, a week later we told close family and close friends, and in 8 days we will know whether it's a boy or a girl :) (That is, if he/she isn't crossing his/her legs over his/her parts...) Morning sickness stuck with me like a siamese twin from the 5th until about the 12th week of pregnancy. Now it's an occasional visitor, like a relative that I am not particularly fond of but feel obligated to accept now and then because of family ties - or in this case, because it's normal. The toilet and I had a good relationship going there for a while, but it was time to loosen our ties to each other a bit. I'm not entirely sure how I survived two busy phases at work during the fall semester when I could hardly keep my eyes open to stay awake.

It's hard being so far away from my family. It's amazing having Jake and our dog, but I miss home. A lot. There have been a few visits, and there will be more in the next few months, but nothing beats being within driving distance when I want to see them for the weekend. The cold weather and sickness didn't help my melancholy feelings, but I have been feeling better. Jake and I don't know how long we'll be there, and I'm still hoping that it won't be very long, even though I can't define "very long" just because there are a lot of unknowns. I want our child to have their grandparents nearby to have a close relationship with them, as well as his or her aunts and uncles. I try to have faith that we'll settle where we're meant to settle (but I'm hoping that means close to Los Alamos!).

Yet again I've written a very long post, but what is anything without the details? I'll try to be on here more often. Here's to being bombarded with many changes in a matter of a few months!