well, he's gone.

Is there a way to turn this blog blue, just for this entry? Not that I'm depressed or anything. I'm actually feeling much better than I anticipated feeling after Seth left, but he's still gone. He left on Thursday, called me frorm Hawaii, let me wait for two days, and then called me from Guam. It turns out that his cell phone doesn't get reception on Guam, even though our plan covers Guam. Go figure. Anyway, that means that even when they're not at sea, it's unlikely that I'll hear from him. Perfect.

The worst part is that I'm not able to force myself into busyness like I usually do. My usual deployment habits include taking on new projects or community activities, reading for hours, working myself into a frazzle until 11:30 and dropping exhausted into bed, and hopping in the car or on a ferry to catch a friend or visit relatives. Now I'm just too tired to do all that. I'm almost too tired to maintain what I've already got going (almost, not quite). But I'm not too tired to feel how empty this house can be without my husband in it. At least not all the time.

On the other hand, the best part is how many people pop out of the woodwork to care for a pregnant woman. Friends, neighbors, and acquaintances have all made it clear that all I have to do is ask for help in order to get it. People I haven't heard from in almost a year are dropping by for visits and making sure I have everything I need. At this point, if I go into labor unexpectedly, the question will not be "do I have a person I can rely on?" but "which reliable person should I call?" I'm just not going to be able to call Seth and tell him because his phone doesn't get reception. Being able to talk to each other on deployments was the whole reason we got two cell phones in the first place. Sheesh.

Baby's trousseau (or whatever you call the collection of stuff a baby needs) is coming together. We have
a bassinet courtesy of a family from our church
an heirloom crib as described in previous posts
a changing table
a rocking chair
two stuffed animals
a nightlight
some decorative bits -- wallpaper pictures, a vase, a figurine, a poster
a lamp
5 onsies
1 sleeper
1 sweatshirt that says "Dordt College" on it -- Thank you, Laura
1 pair of shoes
2 mattress covers
1 blanket -- knitted
an infant carseat
a stroller
a high chair
1 bottle of baby shampoo
a box to put baby socks in
and 1 rubber ducky.

So, you experienced mothers out there, tell me what else I need to get before baby arrives. I have to put together a list before baby showers start. Here's what I know:
diapers (big time)
sheets -- for crib, bassinet, and changing table
bottles -- just a couple for emergencies
clothes -- preferably feminine because everything we have so far is neutral or masculine
a baby bathtub
That's a surprisingly short list, so I know I must be overlooking something. Or maybe not. Maybe it's just all been provided.

Love to you all, and for those of you who know my phone number, I'm probably home and wouldn't mind hearing from you.

Love,
Jennifer

Happy Holidays

Well, it's January 2nd, Seth has gone back to work, and I'm trying to figure out what I should be doing with myself. It's not that I have nothing to do; it's just that I'm not sure what I should start with. Doing the dishes is an obvious option. It's been three days since they got done. And there's always laundry. Plus there's worship practice tonight.


All in all, I'm not surprised that I've been really tired lately. I did not see the New Year in, though Seth stayed up to greet it with root beer floats and computer games. And I confess I spent most of New Year's Day in bed too. Of course, my pregnancy emails say that I will be getting more tired now that I'm in my third tremester. As if I needed more fatigue!

But God provides. For instance, my family came over for New Years, and wouldn't you know, the first thing my mom did was my dishes. They also mounted the shelf in the baby room and helped Seth put the crib together.

So the baby room has become something of a multipurpose room. As you will notice, the tv is still in there. It will be until the bowl season is over, or at least until Seth leaves for his boat. Seth says he can totally see himself sitting in the rocking chair (see below for general idea) with a baby in one arm and a can of pop in the other. I told him that in such cases, it would be up to him to change the baby because I'm not climbing through all that to get to the changing table. He laughed.

I also have some history on the crib, for those of you who asked. My grandfather built this crib for my uncle, who is turning 60 this year. It was painted with lead paint and everything. When my uncle became a dad, he removed the lead paint and added the decals on the side. Then the crib withstood both of his kids, who are now grown, and the four kids of my aunt, who being the youngest in the family was in a position to receive a lot of hand-me-downs like that. When my aunt wanted to get rid of the crib, my parents said, "Hey, we've got kids near marrying age. They might need a crib." And so the crib came to us. We gave it a new coat of paint, and there it sits. We are thinking that the tv will fit nicely under the crib, while it's stand can fold up and fit anywhere. So Seth's football watching dreams are not that far-fetched.

Speaking of Seth, there's another provision. His leaving date was postponed for a week, so that's one less week that I'll have to spend alone before baby comes. (I've been kinda nervous about that. Anticipating the departure of one's spouse can really put a damper on the holiday season. ) Here he is with his Christmas beard. He grows a beard every leave and stand down period. And then he has to shave before he goes back to work. Poor guy, he really likes his beard.

Behind Seth, you can see our version of a Christmas tree this year. We went to Seth's parents' house for Christmas (sorry, no pictures), so the only decorations we put up were our lights and the garland you see above. All those cards are the cards we received from friends and family. So you might say that you made our Christmas (tree). :) Love to you all and a Happy New Year.

Jennifer