7 Quick Takes #12

1. I know Spring is technically here and has been for a few weeks but the Kansas City area has not yet received the memo until now. This is the first week I have seen green in... I don't know how long! And we had thunderstorms. With rain. Not snow. Rain. It's still not quite warm enough for shorts and skirts though... which is probably good because I'm so dang pale.

2. Patrick and I have been brainstorming some landscaping ideas. The people that owned our house before us didn't have much and since it was a foreclosure turned short sale... well they just weren't taking care of it. So now that our house is looking good on the inside it's time to move outside and work on that. Unfortunately, my knowledge of plants that can grow successfully in the midwest is slim to none. Apparently I only know about plants that grow in topical climates. So if you have any suggestions throw 'em at me!

3. I am 16 weeks pregnant (rounding up 2 days :)) and getting more and more excited by the day! I can't help but be a little nervous still though. I have been more worried in the last week and I'm not sure why. The only thing I can think of is that this is about how far along I was will Anna when I learned she wasn't doing well. I'm looking forward to being able to feel some movement in the upcoming weeks... that will make me feel better.

4. Oh, and I get to find out if it's a boy or a girl within the next month! yay!

5. Speaking of baby stuff... We had a shower for a friend at work. My friend kept talking about how she thought it was going to be awkward because she isn't really "friends" with most people at work. It was actually a great shower though. LOTS of people bought gifts.... like a LOT of gifts. It's amazing to me how much money people will drop when it comes to baby stuff. Maybe I need to be more generous. I will say it is very tempting to go overboard... baby stuff is just so dang cute!

6. Sister is in town this weekend. I like it when she is here. It makes me feel like I'm not so far away from home.

7. Speaking of being far from home... I am planning my trip for late May to go down to Texas. There are already big plans in place. Two baby showers that people are throwing for me AND Jimmy Buffet will be in town at the Pavilion. So obviously we are going. We never buy tickets though. There is a big green space right outside the Pavilion and we camp out there for the evening. Only bummer about it is I will not be drinking margaritas this year.... sad day. But I am so excited!!!!

Boring QTs over here. But go here for better ones!

7 Quick Takes #11

I know I have been M.I.A. recently.... again. But it was only because I knew I couldn't write anything without spilling the news!!!!

1. We are expecting!!!! Baby Gorman #2 is on the way and due to arrive into our arms in September! I can not even begin to explain the vast array of emotions that we have felt over the last couple months since we found out. Obviously there was/is a lot of excitement and joy and anticipation but there has been fear and worry that accompanied all the good feelings. I am beyond happy to report, however, that the ultrasound we had a few weeks ago should ZERO signs of any abnormalities and Baby seems to be doing very well! Praise the Lord!

Baby at 11w4d

2. Sick and tired. I, on the other hand, have not had an awesome time so far. With Anna, if I hadn't seen so many positive pregnancy test, heard the heart beat on doppler, and seen a little baby swimming around inside me on the ultrasound I never would have known I was preggo. I had basically no sickness and my fatigue was pretty mild compared to this one. I have been borderline miserable and the only thing that I can really eat without feeling bad is carbs... lots of carbs. BUT I am in a strange way very thankful for the sickness because if its a sign that Baby is doing ok in there.... I'll take it!

3. A lot of other things have happened recently that are very news worthy. For one, my dear sweet husband had a birthday! Patrick turned 27... I don't know why that seems old to me. I guess just because he is getting closer to 30 and its not that 30 is old... its just a new decade and wow. But we had a lot of fun celebrating. We went out to a fancy restaurant which was way too fancy and expensive for frugal people like us but ya know... we had a gift card so... we had to. I am not exaggerating when I tell you in was THE BEST food I have ever eaten!!! And of course I made him a cake.

So fancy!

We also bought our dining room furniture that weekend so I guess we are just big spenders now!

4. My best friend, Katie, just had her baby! She gave us all a scare when her blood pressure got too high and she had to be admitted and was told her had to stay on bed rest until she was 37 weeks and then they would induce. THEN they ended up inducing when she was only 35 weeks... for whatever reason this was a very stressful and emotional day for me. I was a mess! I was worried! And I hated that the hospital she was at was like an hour away. But great news, everything is fine! Sweet little Ellie was born and other than her weight (and having a hard time maintaining body temp due to her weight) she has not had any problems! She is strong just like mom!

5. Also, I have been anxious about where my best friend would end up getting her residency. I could not imagine her moving away right now and I know that is a little bit selfish but sometimes a girl just needs her best friend! More happy news! She isn't moving! I cried a little when I got that text because I'm crazy and clearly hormonal but I was just so dang happy! I know she wont stay here forever but I get to be close to her for a few more years and that is something to be thankful for!

Found this gem from way back in sophomore year of college! We look young!

6. Monday this week was my should-have-been due date for Anna. It was also Patrick's birthday and day one of my second trimester with Baby #2. My emotions were out of control. Getting past her due date was a sort of milestone for me. Not a day goes by that I don't think about her and miss her but I'm glad that time is passing. She will not be forgotten but time is slowly healing the pain of losing her.

7. I love babies. And today I got to hold Miss Ellie! She slept the whole time pretty much but I could have looked at her sweet little face all day! That's one cute baby! 

This is me in my happy place :)

For better bloggers go here and read some sweet quick takes!

White out!

It's Tuesday... I almost never blog on Tuesday because I am almost always working. Not today, my friends! I am 25 year old nurse and I get a snow day!!!

So I guess I'll update you on my weekend and ruin my chances of a decent 7QT on Friday. Whatever.

This past Friday we had a little snow and my little sister was planning on coming up to spend the weekend with Patrick and me. Thankfully, I did some weather investigation and she timed her drive just right so that she made it safely. I should be a meteorologist.

Ya know how I was supposed to have a bunch of girls over on Friday night? yeah that got cancelled because of the weather. I wasn't that upset. I really prefer to spend my evening with Rachel and Patrick anyways! And I think I fell asleep around 9-9:30. I'm so lame... and totally ok with it!

Saturday we hung around the house in our sweatpants and I would say we were anything but productive. Wait, I did laundry! All the laundry! But other than that we sat around, watched TV, played a lot of Scrabble, I read Catching Fire (I'm not done yet so don't spoil anything like my sister tried to!), and Rachel watched the final episodes of One Tree Hill. She cried when it was over. Patrick laughed at her. It was perfect.

Patrick made chili and that man makes the best chili. I love him.

Give it up, Rosalyn... Rach isn't giving in!

Sunday we went to church. We always go to the 7:30AM mass which I realize is really early for some people but not for me. I get up at 5:30 for work at 7:00 during the week so it's not big deal. Rachel, little miss college student, hates it though. I went to go make sure she was up at 6:45 and she wasn't obviously. I shook her and said, "rachel, are you going to mass with us?" and she shook her head no and groaned. I replied with, "Let me rephrase, you have to get up. You are going to mass with us!" I will be such a great mom someday haha. It worked!

After mass we went to a local cafe for breakfast and it was delicious. If you are ever in the KC area make a trip to The Corner Cafe. They make the best food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. You haven't lived until you have had it!

The rest of the day we got ready for the Super Bowl. I made an ungodly amount of food.... for 5 people. And entire crockpot of cheese dip (queso for you Texas people that know what that is), no-bake cookies, raspberry chipotle and cream cheese dip, sausage and cheese wontons. Our best friends, Katie and Steven, joined us and they brought a huge pizza and cute football shaped desserts! It was great to see them. Our weekend schedules haven't worked out recently and I am not sure we had seen them in about a month or maybe more. Katie has the cutest little bump now! I have a fear of getting fat (because I'm kind of vain) when I'm pregnant but if I can look like her than I'd be thrilled! *fingers crossed*

Now I really like football, but I was a little disappointed in the game. The Bronco's didn't show up and they blew it. They should have been more evenly matched but you never would have known that watching the game and seeing the final score. And the commercials were mediocre in my opinions. But that Budweiser commercial with the puppy... how could you not love that!?!

Now here I am sitting at home with nowhere to go... and boy, am I happy about that!!! Snow is really starting to come down. Poor Patrick had to go to work but luckily they gave him a half day. I just hope that he is able to make it home ok! The news is showing white out conditions. Prayers, please! For Patrick and everyone else that is having to be out in the nasty (yet beautiful) weather... including my mailman that just drove by and dropped off my mail... that I'm too lazy and warm to walk out my driveway to get!

She loves snow days, too.

Depending on how the day goes I may update with pictures.... we shall see what this snowy day brings!!!

9AM

7 Quick Takes #10

1. This has felt like the slowest weak of my life and because of that I have very little to share.

2. I have been trying to be better about keeping the house clean so I don't have to spend all day Saturday picking up my atrocious mess and catching up on dishes and laundry and cleaning etc. I still refuse to do laundry during the week so not much I can do to help myself there but so far things are staying relatively put together. *fingers crossed* that it stays that way! When I get home from work at the end of the day though, cleaning is the last thing I want to do. It's a miracle I ever get dinner on the table...

3. I am having a group of girls over tonight that Patrick was friends with in PT school and so I also became friends with them sort of by default. I'm realizing how different things are now and how people just grow about for no reason sometimes. We are all in different places in our lives now and I'm just feeling like I don't have much in common anymore. It's always good to have girl time so I am looking forward to that, but let's just hope it isn't weird... and that none of them read blogs :)

4. THE SUPER BOWL IS THIS WEEKEND!!! I used to never care about watching the Super Bowl but now it's something I look forward to even if I am not a fan of either team. As long as they play a good game and there are some decently funny commercials... it's good. I have all kinds of fun appetizer and dessert things planned AND I get to watch it on my own couch. I love that.

5. Because it is the Super Bowl this weekend I sort of tricked my sister into coming up. She was going to wait until next weekend but I asked what she was doing for the big game (knowing her well enough to know that she had not made plans). I hooked her! Best part is... I thought she was just coming on Sunday but she is coming for the whole weekend! Woot!

6. Snow. Again. Really? I'm not asking for it to be summer yet. Trust me... I'm not looking forward to this summer. I just want to be able to go outside to the mailbox without a winter coat. I know I complain about the weather every week but I feel like its been a little ridiculous. I don't feel bad about it.

7. While I normally don't get excited about the upcoming work week I have to say I am looking forward to actually being busy when the doctor I work for get's back from vacation!!! Cuz ya know... 10 hour work days really drag when you have nothing to do. 

P.S.- If this blog post were to receive an award it would be for "Most Boring QT's EVAH"

P.S.S.- For a good read (since this was not) check out some GOOD Quick Takes here.

Texas, Our Texas

Last week on Facebook I came across a post that a lot of people from back home had shared so I clicked on the link and ended up taking a trip down memory lane. The site showed "20 Things Nobody Warned You About When Moving Away From Texas." Here's my take:

1. Nobody comprehends how huge Texas really is.... This is the God's honest truth. I grew up in a suburb just north of Houston. I chose to go to college out of state. It was 9 ish hours away in Kansas. Funny thing is, my friends that stayed in state and went to Texas Tech were also 9ish hours from home. That's ridiculous. Also, one year I went to the Sun Bowl in El Paso. That was a 14 hour drive. I think I could have driven to Florida in that amount of time.

2. You can get decent BBQ but you'll die a little inside because it's not Texas BBQ...  I really believed this was true until about 2 years ago when I had Oklahoma Joe's for the first time. No other BBQ will ever hold a candle to Okie Joe's. The Z-Man is heaven in the form of a sandwich topped with onion rings. Sorry Texas... you just don't win on this one.

3. People just assume you wear boots and cowboy hats every day... This is false, though entirely acceptable. Everyone should own a good pair of boots no matter where you live, but unless you actually live in the country or are a famous country singer.... lose the hat.

4. You'll have nightmares over not being able to get Kolaches anywhere... Fact. Sausage and cheese kolaches are the bomb. No one can argue that. I even got my Kansas husband turned on to them. I have seen something similar up here that people call sausage and cheese rolls. It doesn't even sound good. It doesn't hold a candle to my beloved kolaches. Now why is there no Shipley's anywhere in Kansas City!!!!!

5. Nobody cares about their state flower outside of Texas... this is a sad fact. And it is probably because nowere else do people experience the phenominal fields of one flower. When they bloom you will see them in fields and people will pull over on the side of the road to take family pictures or engagement pictures in them. It is beautiful. And it is so Texas!

Try and tell me that isn't beautiful...

6. You'll miss Tex-Mex more than you can ever imagine... The band Bowling For Soup was right when they said' "Mexican food does such north of here anyway." It's bland. It lacks melted cheese. It's just not the same. In Kansas City's defense, I have had some decent Mexican food. But it kills me that people rave over the flavorless ground beef and stale tortilla chips.

7. No Ren Fest comes close to Texas Ren Fest... I'm told this is true. I was never a huge fan of the Rennessance Festival and only went once in Texas in high school. I thought it was weird. I have never had the desire to go in Kansas City.

8. Weather isn't bipolar in other states... I'm not positive this is true. I will say that in Texas there were days we needed the AC during the day and the heater at night. That was insane, sure. But Texas is mostly just hot and people freak out if it get's below fifty. And they close school if it below freezing... because it's cold. Kansas City however will go from upper fifties to single digits in 24 hours. Kansas City wins for most bipolar weather.

9. People think Friday Night Lights is an exaggeration... It's not. Texas football is actually that out of control. People live for it, and for good reason. I'm not going to lie to you... I enjoyed my high school footbal games way more than my college ones. It's such an energetic environment!!!

This is actually my high school stadium.

10. Nothing is hotter than Teas heat, and your new friends will hear about it... I disagree. Kansas City heat is just like Texas heat. It might be slightly less humid but let's be real once it's over 100 degrees any humidity sucks.

It's hard to look good when you are sitting outside sweating in the heat and humidity. But man, did Jimmy Buffet put on a show!!!

11. Ask for a Coke and you'll only ever be given a Coca Cola... this is true. It hurts me a little every time I say 'pop.' It's just not me. But if I say coke people get confused. All I really want is a Diet Dr. Pepper!!!

12. You'll miss Rodeo season every damn day... Fact. I have tried to explain the importance of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo to my dear sweet Kansas-born-and-raised husband. He doesn't get it. The last rodeo I went to Jason Aldean preformed. He said and I quote, "you know you've made it big when you get asked to play at the Houston Rodeo." See? Even Jason Aldean understands. He is a smart man.

I actually know people that ride bulls... and not the mechanical kind.

13. People think the Texas side of the Gulf is nice... It's not. The water is brown. Unless you go to Corpus Christi you will be seriously dissappointed in Texas beaches. But that doesn't mean I never brag about how close I used to live to the beach and how often I went. I am a Texan afterall :)

Not Texas.

Texas. This is the Gulf... seaweed and all.

14. Not many people have heard of South Padre... I completely disagree with this. What college student hasn't heard of South Padre??? Again, I'm not crazy about it. I never went except once with my family in elementary school. I was never a big enough partier to go during college either.

15. Not everyone waves when you wave at them... this is something that have been hard to grasp. Not only do people not wave back at me but I learned the hard way that in the Midwest it is not acceptable to give someone a hug when you are first introduced to them. Even if you feel like you know them because your close friend talks about them all the time. It's weird. People never hug. They are friendly, but clearly they value personal space... maybe to a fault?

16. No other state would be fine being banned form the country... probably because no other state would survive. I'm not saying they should secede but it's kind of nice to have options, right?

17. Everyone assumes you know how to ride a horse... I haven't ridden a horse since I was a kid. It was awesome. But I only know one or two people from back home that even owns horses.

18. People who have never been to Texas can draw Texas... I think this is probably semi true. I for one couldn't draw any state that isn't a rectangle... other than Texas... obviously.

19. You might actually have to drive far to get to a Dairy Queen, if your lucky... True. I think there should be a federal law that there should always be a DQ within 20 miles of everyone. It's just the right thing to do.

20. Floating the river usually involves a boat outside of Texas... I think this is true though I haven't been on many float trips. Here is the truth though... there is nothing like floating down the Guadelupe in a black tube with a floating cooler for hours. There are usually nice places to stop and rope swings to fling yourself into the river. It's a blast!

The Alamo... obviously.

7 Quick Takes #9

A day late but here we go:

1. I always thought that Texas had bipolar weather but I was clearly mistaken. Texas is mostly just hot with approximately 2-4 weeks (not consecutive) of "winter" weather. Kansas City, on the other hand.... bipolar. According to my phone and the very nice weather lady I have an interesting few days ahead.

Really? 57 to 18 degrees?! Such a tease!

2. Since I have waited until Saturday night to write this I get to tell you how beyond thrilled I am that I have no obligations this weekend. I had forgotten how wonderful it was to wake up on a Saturday with nothing to do. No rooms to paint. No picture frames to hang. No closets to orginize. It is GLORIOUS!

Patrick and Rosalyn are enjoying doing nothing, too :)

3. I tried a new recipe tonight for dinner... thank you Piniterest. It was Hawaiian BBQ chicken in the crockpot. It is literally just chicken breasts, a can of crushed pineapple and BBQ sauce. I served with rice and broccoli. I thought it was so deliscious! Patrick thought it was too sweet... which I found strange coming from the man with the biggest sweet tooth ever! Yeah... and then we went and got some sweet ice cream afterwards. I think he needs to try it again haha

4. Have you ever encountered someone and heard their story and found yourself so grateful for what you have? That happened to me this week. A friend and co-worker of mine has been having trouble at home. I won't go into details but it absolutely broke my heart. I hate what she is going through but it is things like this that make me so thankful for the gifts in my life. Everyone has struggles and mine have certainly been difficult but through it all somehow I still feel blessed.

5. Homesickness never really ends. Patrick and I really getting established here in our new home and it is home. There is nowhere else I would rather be. But I can't help but miss my family sometimes. The funny things is I would have to be in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Hawaii simultaneously for that feeling to go away. I think we should plan a reunion! Or I should just ask my sister to come up next weekend or something :)

6. I'm about to start my hunt for dining room furniture and I honestly I have idea what I want. My style is fairly traditional but I like unique pieces. I don't even know where to begin! I'll take any helpful suggestions :)

7. I'm not one to obsess over weight because being 6 feet tall you learn that weight is just a number and unless I'm on my death bed I will never weigh as little as my friends who are mostly between 5' 2'' and 5' 6''. However, I've been feeling a little... soft?... ever since I had Anna in November. I'm sure the holidays and a short bout of self pity didn't help. Anyways, I am going to start walking and toning. Maybe that will give me more energy. I have been so lazy! Darn netflix!

Netflix and Starbucks have been taking up a lot of my time.

Have a lovely week! And check out Jen's blog for way much exciting QT's :)

Same belief, different perspective.

It's that time of year... people all over the country are flocking to D.C. for the March for Life. And more are heading to their state capitols for the same reason: to stand up for the innocent, the unborn, and to give them a voice.

Before I get too far into this I feel like I should preface with something. I AM Pro-Life, and always have been. I just see things differently than I have in the past. Life happens and sometimes are experiences give us better insight to the depth of our beliefs.

Without a doubt, I believe that life begins at conception. And anything that prevents that little life from happening is ultimately murder. That might sound pretty drastic but that's because it truly is. Even a young child could tell you that taking a life is equivalent to killing. It is black and white... there are no grey areas.

Many people believe there ARE grey areas though. That in certain instances, maybe it is ok to take away that life. I'm not just talking about a 16 year old that accidentally got knocked up but actually really intelligent people with doctorates believe this. They are wrong. Again, there is no grey area. 

The difference between how I feel about being pro-life now and how I felt about it last year is that I can relate to those people that see the grey. I now know what it is like to be pregnant and it not be exactly what you thought. My pregnancy was planned but the chromosomal abnormalities were not. I know what it feels like to worry and wonder about how this child will change your life. I know the fear that you won't be able to take care of the child well enough. I know the anxiety over the uncertain future. And I know what it's like to hear people tell you that the easiest thing would be to end it. And for that split second to think, "Yes. It would be easier." It was never really an option for me, but I still hated myself for that second of weakness.

But here is what I know that the people that see grey don't know. Taking the life of my sick child would not have been easier. I still lost my daughter but my conscious is clear because I know that I loved her for every second of her short life... even in my weak moments. I know that that little life ending doesn't really make anything go away. None of it really ends. I know that every life has a purpose even if it never takes a breath. Anna had a great purpose and I am convinced she converted more hearts than I ever will be able to. I know that life matters. I know that no diagnosis can define a person or put a barrier between a mother or father and their child. I know this.

I also know that love is a funny this. It creeps in and takes over you. Even when the life is gone, love lives on.

Sorry to be cheesy... And I know that kind of rhymes. I stole it from a song sort of because I'm not cool enough to come up with something original. This song is actually about a woman that lost her husband but the theme still works. And if you actually listen to the song do yourself a favor and grab a box of Kleenexes. You are going to need them, I promise.

Ok... I got off topic. My point is, my position has not changed. If anything I am even more rooted in my beliefs in the Pro-Life movement. But I have a place in my heart for those who felt the panic and the worry and fear. Even if they made the wrong choice. I think we need to remember that some of these women felt like they had no way out of their situation. Trapped. And we need to love them through it all. Because I'd be willing to bet that maybe they didn't know they loved their child... but the love for them still lives on.

Seriously.... listen to the song :)