what's up yo?!

:) well i've made it through a week of feel great! a couple hiccups, but i think that was due to staying up late and not eating properly. i have to admit the food i've been eating this week hasn't all been the best foods, but i wanted them and i was bound and determined to eat them:) i.e- i had gyros two days in a row. mmm, that yummy tzatziki. cheetos, payday bars, pickles, chips... oh my. i didn't eat like this before i was pregnant. i think i'm just overcompensating for all the bland/boring food i have been eating. that's not to say i'm totally able to eat whatever i want. i'm still feeling a bit reserved and cautious.

i'm still craving tangy things. like the aforementioned pickles. i can just keep chomping down on those. and i love the combo of pickles and plain potato chips. i really would love to have this right now. damn work. even though i had those gyros, with real meat. i'm still very hesitant to eat a burger or chicken. i think the gyros were ok because it wasn't very meaty tasting to me, just spiced goodness. i'm totally in love with larb gai too (a laos dish of minced chicken, green onions, lime juice, fish sauce, mint, etc.). i really liked this before pregnancy, but the flavors are just what i'm looking for now. and i don't tasted the chicken. all this food talk is making me hungry (yah!!)

in terms of work, it's driving me up a wall right now. it's been gorgeous out for the past week, and i would love to just be outside. i take as many chances as i can when i have my colleague with me. on my days by myself, the hours seem to drag by. we still aren't getting much business, which makes me nervous. so far today i've had just two people in asking questions. i've been here for 6 hours! that's ridiculous. the colleague i have working with me is newer. i'm constantly trying to dredge up something for him to do, when all i want to do is tell him to go home (or do so myself) and read a book. sigh. i'm doing what i can to keep myself occupied also. it's all really tedious work though. brain-numbing.

enough bitching. i have a three day weekend because we have our rugby rookie party this saturday. it's when our rookies "graduate". no this doesn't involve embarrassing hazing. we just have them do a skit and answer questions about veteran on the team:) it's great. i always have a good time. it'll be different since i can't drink, there always copious amounts of alcohol. i'll just have to be the sober observer this year. the camp-out is being held at a teammates parents house that is on the water. kayaking and other fun water play are promised. can't wait. i've been wanting to go swimming really bad recently and don't have a means to do so. summer here i come!

more good news, i just found out that we are going to start closing my store an hour earlier, like all the other stores. woo hoo!!!

IT'S A GIRL!!

kidding, of course:) it's april fool's day you know. we won't know the gender until around 20 weeks, if we're lucky. although, i have a feeling it is a girl. we'll see.

our midwife appointment went well. everyone was happy and surprised to see us so soon. they had helped with getting our paperwork in to the sperm bank. the midwife we met with, let's call her midwife S, was very nice. she was the same one that we met with for our consultation in january. she answered all our question. it seems like everything is moving on the right track. this visit was more preliminary. we needed to fill out my health and family history. we'll need to give the donor history too. basically, we just chatted for an hour, and she took my blood pressure :)

we made our next appointment for five weeks, instead of four weeks. usually during the first trimester, appointments are for every four weeks. we want to hear the heartbeat though, and we might have a better chance if we wait a little longer. if we don't hear it, it's ok. it will still be early.

we decided also to not do genetic screening. i didn't feel that it was necessary. we will love this baby no matter what. i understand that some people want to be prepared, but i'm ok with waiting. you never know what will happen, and i believe, whatever it is, is for a reason.

otherwise, things are ok. i've been nauseated for most of the day. annoying. i finished inventory at work early and since there was nothing to do, i came home at 2 for a nap before our appointment.

i found out my colleague is going to be semi-leaving me. as a refresher, i'm an art framing manager for a retail shop. i have one employee (called "colleagues" at this company). she's terrific. she's almost 60, has been with the company for 7 years, and is very caring. she has been up to date from the beginning regarding anna and i making a baby. she's very supportive. she's always there to listen and give advice on her pregnancies, and her daughters'. her daughter that lives in town had her third child about a year ago. she's decided to go back to work and asked linda if she would nanny for them. they would prefer this over hiring a stranger. linda did it a little bit before for them. anyways, next week will be her last regular week. then, she'll just work on sundays, one of my days off. i won't really see her, unless i make a special trip. i'm going to miss her :( i really felt that being pregnant and working would be easier because i had such a great colleague. now i'm crying. ok, i'll be alright. -sigh-

work!!!!

ok i need to rant about work for a little bit here. why do people ask why it costs so much!?! do i ask you why it costs so much to clean my teeth, to poke me with needles, to bring me groceries? no. i don't. i consider what you are doing for me and the benefits. i understand that you are doing me a service. it costs for your time, for your materials, for the delivery of those materials, for making those materials.

i'm a custom art framer. there is so much that goes into this. it's not like i step into the back room wave a wand and *poof*, it's done. you use my time, my knowledge, my expertise. you use my companies time, gas, storage, materials. these materials are made all over the country. they are made out of trees and dyes and metals. it takes work for all of these things to be created. yes there are materials that cost less. the reason they cost less is they are made with cheap crap material!

another thing, why are people doing things when they don't have the money? they come in to frame a poster. i give them the price. they say "oh i don't have the money for that". i adjust. i bring it as low as i can without giving it away (and losing money). they still can't do. well why the hell did you come in here!?! i try, i really do try.

don't get me wrong. i love my customers, most of the time. i love my job. it's very rewarding, too. but i swear...