Beach Day

Paul and I celebrated our 8th wedding anniversary and we celebrated by going to our favorite place: Seaside, OR. Charlie put his feet in the ocean sands for the first time, in the same place where his sister did, and at the same age (7 months). We had a blast. I wish we could do that every month.

19 Weeks and Grad School

How far along? 19 Weeks
Weight gain/loss: N/A
Wardrobe? I'm currently lounging in a pair of yoga pants and a black exercise top. In the picture above I am wearing a pair of size 9 non-maternity slacks (usually swimming on me), a black tank top and a non-maternity top. I was getting ready for my grad school interview.
Stretch marks? Nothin' new.
Sleep? So far it has been restful, but lacking.
Best Anna/Baby moment this week? In the above pictures, I asked Paul to snap some photos. Anna was very excited about being in the pictures. She wanted to be in all of them and touch my belly. Gosh, I have a lovely daughter.
Boy or girl? We find out in 6 days! (June 9th)
Belly button in or out? Innie.
Movement? Lots of kicks to my cervix. You know that's fun, right?
Nausea: Done! Although, there have been times where I've eaten something and not finished because it tastes awful to me.
Symptoms: Braxton Hicks, kicking, feeling like a small house... Good times. :)

On an unrelated note...
Yesterday (the day of the above photos), I had an interview for graduate school. The interview went splendidly. The lady who interviewed me told me that I have a personality of someone who would pursue a doctorate and asked why I wasn't applying for that program! That boosted my confidence. I know I can do well in the program... I'm a total geek and I can't get enough psychology... but I guess I have low confidence in myself sometimes. I didn't think I could do well enough to pursue a doctorate. That's a five-year program... how old would I be? 32? Goodness... that would take a while. With the MA program, I'll be done in 2 years flat. I'm sure once I'm done with this program, I'll crave the PhD. For now, though, I think this is the next step that I need to take. I will find out if I've been accepted into the program on June 17th.

Also, Paul's job is looking hopeful... We're praying he gets it. Things are looking up!!!

As for Anna, her preschool picnic is tomorrow and on Monday, we'll be attending her class trip to the zoo. This will be a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to getting a peek into her little world and meeting all of the friends she talks about. :)

It's Science!

Degrees and Diapers

I don't think I've written about our experience here at the university. It certainly is an unusual experience. Whenever I would tell someone that my husband and I were graduating on the same date, both going full time at the university, and had a daughter, I was often met with shock or surprise. I guess I didn't think about it like that. I didn't leave time to think about it being difficult. Life is difficult in general. This was just our own personal journey.

We certainly sacrificed a lot to be here. Paul worked full time while I watched Anna. We dropped out twice. We lived with family for a short time. We struggled. We returned to school. We have never been on a vacation - although we did go camping as a family when Anna was two. We have a lot of unpaid bills. We put off having another child for a very long time. We bought second-hand and lived on a tight budget. When was the last time I had a haircut, anyway? Paul gets plenty of haircuts via Salon du Sarah (ME! And I'm pretty dang good at it, if I might say so). I remember when I bought each of my pairs of shoes because I haven't bought that many. We could seriously use a new dresser - the drawers are falling off the tracks. Anna needs a mattress for her bed that isn't old and freaky.

And yet... there's not a whole lot to complain about.

I have gotten to see all of Anna's firsts. First laugh, first time she rolled over (both ways), first time she sat up, first time she stood and walked, first time she said my name, first time she stepped onto the bus for preschool. No, it isn't a fancy preschool - it's Head Start. Over the last two days, we constructed and painted a paper mache volcano, filled it with Baking Soda and vinegar, and set it off. Anna laughed and squealed! Today, we're making rock candy, in hopes of passing our love of education on to her. She asks, "Can we play science?" We walk to the beach on sunny days and Anna plays in the sand. We go on walks every evening - as a family. My husband is an amazing father to our little girl - what special memories she has of building Kinex machines with daddy!

No, joy is more than money. Real joy comes from family and memories. So, I don't mind the little sacrifices here and there. The truth is, I've never been richer in my life.

On to grad school!