Ah, Blogger. How I've missed thee.

I'm back. *evil laugh*
My apologies for the absence; things in our world have been quite hectic and tumultuous over thepast few months, hence my neglect of this blog. Again, bad choice, but hey, it happens. Life takes over.... things, important things, suffer.
Though for now, life is semi-back on track and here I am, writing away.
Everything with the incoming Baby R is on track and I have finally recovered from the first trimester nasties. Thank God! It was getting ridiculous, and really, who can survive on McDonald's and yogurt?! No one! I hit 21 weeks today and have gained 12 glorious pounds since making it out of week 12. My knees and hips are feeling those pounds, as I have never gained so much weight in my life. I know, I know, make all the snarky "skinny twig girl" comments you want, but it's true and the pain & general joint strain is true, too. Yucky. Other than that, things are back to normal for our little family at Alcatraz.
We took an incredibly wonderful trip back up to Michigan June 26 - July 3. I was in a dear friend's wedding (hence the new picture) and had a great time! I got to spend three days leading up to the big day with the lovely bride and some friends, getting pedicures, setting up for the reception and just catching up. Made me feel old to watch her get married (even though I've been hitched to Shark Fin for almost two years!). It was really a great time though and I wish both Casey & Jon much happiness! :) Loves!
Shark Fin & I had a combined baby shower for Baby Jethro while we were up there, and man, what a turn out! We were the recipients of a ton of great stuff.... so much we couldn't fit it all in our Jeep to come back to Virginia and his momma is bringing the rest of it down this weekend. THANKS TO EVERYONE that came for helping us get this baby set up right!
Now that we know what we're having.... did I say that? Yes, we know, we just ain't telling!...... I can work on adding some gender-appropriate accents to my sage green and chocolate brown stuff. I am so darn excited for this baby!
I am still working for the city and I will probably be here til they close our office doors on October 3. After that, I am just going to focus on having a healthy baby for a while. Shark Fin & I have been really concerned about our financial status once I go out on maternity leave and whether I would need to find a job after the baby is born to help keep us afloat. (One thing I do have to say I hate, loathe, despise about Virginia is the ridiculous cost of living.) Turns out, though, after some finagling with our monthly budget, it looks like I will be able to stay home with the little person for a while. We will still get a small monthly "allowance" (what Shark Fin & I call the money we don't have to be accountable to anyone for) to allow us some freedom and Shark Fin will be able to rest easy knowing his little person is not trapped in a disease infested daycare center (which is a discussion for another post entirely. I went to daycare!) At any rate, that is a huge blessing and we are extremely thankful for it.
I am , however, already thinking up some schemes for making a little money on the side. We inherited an incredible Singer sewing machine from my grandmother by way of my mom, and once I get it cleaned & oiled, it will become my new best pal. I have plans for aprons, dish towels, burp cloths, blankets, crib sets, binky leashes... pretty much any textile item I can think of. Watch for me on Etsy. I'm gonna be a star! Haha.

I think that's it for now. :) LOVE!