Our Baby Shower

With the estimated arrival of baby Jay soon approaching, Donna and Kassie threw Charles and I a 'BaBy Q' shower! Being of the non-traditional nature we are, Charles and I wanted to have a big celebration for family and friends - male and female - not just the traditional 'girls only' baby shower.
Donna and Kassie put together quite the awesome BBQ shower for us, and I can't quite thank them enough for all their hard work - as well as Pat, for cooking all the AMAZING food! - and hey, that's coming from a pregnant woman... so you know it was good ;)

Decoration wise, Donna and Kassie put up a gorgeous canopy in the dining room, of all different colors, to hang to flawlessly above the food.

At the front entrance, the staircase was lined with several little baby girl outfits, and of course a bunch of stuffed animals. My favorite - was our little girl's initials on the wall <3

Our extremely talented cousin, Sarah, made us the most delicious, most beautiful cake for the event - and I can't possibly tell you how lucky we are that she put in all that effort!

My silly self has been so forgetful, and of course I forgot my camera at home. I didn't get many photos of the set up, or the event, but I truly appreciate all the hard work that was put into this even for us and our little girl - and all the people that came out to support us. Love you all!

It's been a while

It sure has been quite some time since we've updated our blog! Since we last wrote, well, things have progressed...

I'm now in my 30th week of pregnancy with baby girl, Jacqueline Maxine Ritchie. Charles and I have been busy gearing up the nursery, and the house to prepare for her arrival. In an upcoming blog, I'll share pictures of her room, but for now, it's onto other creations ;)

I pulled out my mom's crochet hooks (to make it a bit more special) and crocheted the very first blanket that I will ever make for any of my children. I know it doesn't sound like much - but I grew up watching my mom crochet, learning from her, and sharing patterns with her. I did so, because I liked to do it, and I liked that bonding time. I never wanted children, I never even wanted a husband. Making this blanket with the thought that it will be for my child, a life I created, sort of made me realize just how much my dreams have changed.

Then, I pulled out my mom's old sewing machine. Yes, when I say old, I mean it. That 20+ year old machine and I sure fought each other every step of the way, but what I was trying to make - needed to be done. I kept seeing car seat canopies for sale... everywhere! Unfortunately, none of them seemed to fit what I had in mind for my little girl. After falling in love with the colors of the blanket I crocheted, I wanted something in that color scheme. I resigned to having to make one for myself... so I did. Poor Charles had to watch me fight with the sewing machine, and the pins getting dropped everywhere - but he didn't say much...

More updates to come in a later blog post, about baby Jay, and the other non-baby related things going on in our world.

Baby Ritchie

I haven't posted in a while because, quite honestly, my baby and my body have not been getting along. Since about 7 weeks into my pregnancy, I've felt like I have a permanent hangover without the glory of knowing I did stupid stuff the night before. I have severe aversions to all food, and when I can eat, it's very small amounts and I have to fight to keep it down.
Anyway, I'll try to keep updated more frequently. I am now halfway through my 11th week of pregnancy. The morning sickness symptoms have started to lessen, though the last two days have been rough again.

A week ago, Charles and I went to my first doctor appointment to check on the baby. While there, we heard the little pickle's heartbeat, loud and clear. The doctor said that the heartbeat was 170 bpm, which is perfect. Right after that, she looked at me with a serious face and said, "Well, you're definitely pregnant". I like this doctor, she's a bit of comedian ;).

I know this may sound awful, but I've been trying not to thing about this baby very much. When I think about the baby, I think about my Momma, and that makes me sad. I'm hoping to get to the point soon where I can think about the baby and not be so sad, but I know that every step of this journey is going to be very difficult for me - emotionally, and not with the normal emotional stress that pregnant women/first time moms go through. Since I haven't been thinking about this baby very much, I didn't realize how hard it would hit me to hear the heartbeat. I don't know why, but I guess I didn't expect there to be one or something? When I heard it, I thought, 'wow, there really is a life in there. I really do have a baby to look forward to'. Honestly, this little pickle has made me think about my life differently since my momma left. After losing my best friend, I think I lost a lot of the dreams and drive I had. I didn't look forward to anything in my life, and husband and family were the only reason I got out of bed in the morning. One thing I know for sure, I had no desire to take care of myself. That, that is something I feel guilty for now, knowing that I was possibly effecting the baby I didn't know I had inside of me. Hearing that heartbeat though - changed my outlook. I still get emotional when thinking about my mom, but this baby has given me different goals - or I should say this baby has given me goals, since I had thrown all my other ones out the window. This baby has given me that sense of importance, that motivation that I need to still move on with my life and be my best self.

A matter of days later, we returned again to have an ultrasound. Seeing the baby wasn't as much of a shock to me as hearing the heartbeat, because I had already gone through that, but it was still an amazing feeling. I never wanted to get married, and I never wanted children. Of course, meeting Charles changed all of that for me, but I didn't expect to be as excited as I was to see the baby. I guess we continue to change in ways that we don't think we will.

Anyway, I had been truly dreading announcing this pregnancy to the world. I know how excited everyone would be for me, but I just kept thinking that the one person whom would be the most excited, wouldn't be here to ever show me that reaction I so longed to see. In turn, I feared that everyone's excitement would hurt my heart a little. I know, it's a dumb thing to fear, but I can't help it, so I planned on waiting until it was almost obvious before I told the world. It's just my luck that some events transpired that forced me to announce my pregnancy earlier than I had planned, and while I am still not clear of the first trimester yet. So I announced it. I got an overwhelming response of excited and love from friends and family alike, and it didn't hurt as much I thought I might. It was a nice change to see people excited for me, rather than sad for me.

Reading back through this post, it sounds quite depressing. Haha! I am excited for this baby, and my excited grows a little more each day that I adjust to the new world I am surrounded by (having lost my best friend, and having my hormones go into a rage of chaos). But as I said previously, I think about baby - I think about mom. Naturally, some of my posts are destined to come off sad. I'm sorry - I hope I don't bring you down too much. I'm trying to get out of my head more, but having lived there for 23 years - it's quite the adjustment to try and get out of it.

And Our Next Adventure Begins!

In August, I told my mom that I stopped taking my birth control. She was more excited than I was, and so happy that I would start trying to have a baby. Momma wanted that baby - probably more than I did. When I returned from my UK trip in October, she asked almost every two weeks, 'Are you pregnant yet?'. That's why, when I took the pregnancy test on the morning of 12.15.2013, my range of emotions about the situation varied.

1. Shock. I'm not sure why I was shocked - considering I knew the exact dates of when Charlie and I had sex, when I was ovulating, and when I would be menstruating: all due to how extremely I have tracked this information over the past 5 years to ensure I didn't have an unplanned pregnancy. But I found myself shocked anyway. I didn't expect it, I just took the test because I was little late - but I thought my body was still adjusting to its usual cycle not being controlled by birth control. The test was just in case. I found myself just staring at the test for a minute
2. Excitement. Next, I was excited for the thought of a life growing inside of me. I was excited for the reaction that I knew would come when I told my husband. He wanted this almost as much as my mom did.
3. Guilt. That thought of my mom - that made my brief moment of excitement make me feel guilty. My Mom. God I miss her so much. She wanted this baby like no one could understand. She wanted to see me be a mom. And because I waited so long to try for kids, she didn't get to see that.
4. Sadness. That guilt, that thought of mom never getting to meet my babies, me never getting to see her hold them - that brought on a sadness I didn't want to realize. Mom obsessed about her grandchildren. She had to see them more than once a week, and loved nothing more than playing with them. She wanted so badly to be that amazing Nana to my babies too, but I didn't give them to her in time.
5. Fear. Terrified is more like it. Fear is a normal emotion to experience in regards to pregnancy, but losing your mom so suddenly less than a month before you find out your pregnant - now that's a whole other reason to be scared. I always turn to my mom for advice for work, school, life, everything - how am I supposed to learn how to be a mom and raise children without her? Even in this last month, in regards to my life, I'm having a hard time making decisions without talking to her. There is no way that I'm going to be able to do this without her. My fear, is that I won't be the best mom I can be because she is not here to teach me. I know that I've learned the best from her, and it's my responsibility to take it... but there is only so much you can learn and retain before experiencing it for yourself. 
6. And finally, Comfort. After just being slapped in the face with all the emotions I didn't want to face, I found a small sense of comfort. Almost a sense of purpose. Something telling me that I am supposed to do this. Telling me that even though my mom isn't here, I have to plow forward and do the things in my life that she would want for me. I have to finish school (slowly still, but finish), I have to raise a beautiful family, I have to be a good wife and mom, I have to give more not take, care about people more, and forgive. I have to be the person that my mom wanted to watch me be. I have to be the mom that she would have been proud of. I find comfort in now feeling a sense of purpose, because after my mom passed - I didn't have one. I lost all goals and ambitions, because I wouldn't be able to share my accomplishments with her. With this baby - this tiny little person growing inside of me - I have been given a purpose, and I can only hope that I will be a quarter of the mom that my mom is.

As this little baby may one day read this - I want you to know that I love you, and I am excited for the future, yours and mine. I am happy that you are on your way, and I promise to always  do my best to support you like my mom supported me, to be there for you no matter what, and be the best mom I can be. Your Nana, though you'll never get to meet her - loved you before she knew you existed, and would have been the greatest person you'd ever met. If you are a girl - I only hope that with your life, you will honor her name by wearing it proudly.

British Museum, Queen's Private Church, and London Eye. 09-30-2013

Today held some frustration among the adventures. It started out with a bus and subway ride into London, and a long walk to locate the British Museum. Once we arrived, we stopped outside the gates to get some chili-dogs, and frustrate our husband by feeding the pigeons ;)
The British Museum does not charge an entrance fee, but does have areas set up for donations. We walked through the ancient Roman exhibit, the Viking exhibit (my favorite), the Egyptian exhibits, and much, much more. The museum is massive - and we honestly could have spent several days walking through it. Unfortunately, it was inside the museum that I realized I left my SD card in my computer from the night before - and could not take any photos. This also happened to be the only day on the trip so far that both Angie and I left our backpacks at the apartment - containing all extra camera supplies. This was the first frustration - but to my expensive luck, a Cannon store was nearby where I was able to purchase another SD card to document the rest of the day.

After the British Museum, we set out to locate the Knight's Templar. This was high on Matt's list of places to find, and we probably spent a total of two hours trying to locate it. This marked the second frustration of the day - our inability to locate the Knight's Templar. However, like everything else this trip held - we stumbled upon a pleasant surprise during our search. On a side street, we found a man updating printed pictures and signs on a corner of a small black fence. We asked him for directions to the Templar, and pointed us in the right direction, but not before asking us if we wanted to view his church. We initially said yes out of courtesy, but he then explained that he is responsible for maintaining the small, but private church of the Queen of England. He said that the Queen pays for all maintenance and fees for this church out of her own pocket. The man explained that the church is not open to the public, but wanted to show us around. He proceeded to explain that someone from the royal court visits the church 1-2 times per year, and his faced glowed with pride upon telling us that they are expecting someone very soon - and that they have been working their hardest to make the church look perfect. During our tour of this quaint church, a group of people came to the door to look inside, and they were told that this was a private church - and not allowed inside.

After the Queens church, we set out to find the Templar again - with no success. So we decided to get lunch instead. We stopped at an Australian eatery and marked off a couple more items on our bucket list; tasking kangaroo, and drinking a fishbowl beverage.

We then headed to the London Eye. The lines were ridiculously long, and since we at the end of our trip- we just paid the extra 10 pounds to skip the lines. All I can say about that - totally worth it! It would be getting dark soon, and we had some buses and subway trains to catch back to our apartment. (By the way - the creepers definitely come out in full force at night time. Though my dear husband Charlie didn't notice a single thing, Angie and Matt found it hilarious that Angie and I kept getting stared at. haha). Anyway, the London Eye was simply amazing! Here are some photos from that:

View from the eye

Me and Angie

Charlie and I

Charlie, me, Angie, and Matt

Matt photo-bombing Charlie

Matt and Angie

This was essentially the last of our trip. We slept in the London apartment this night, and flew back to Dublin the next day. We settled in a bed and breakfast in Dublin, walked the Temple Bar District (which I recommend over the other parts of Dublin), got some beers, and relaxed the rest of the day. That evening, we watched a traditional Irish Dancing show, with a local band as the opening act. This was performed at the Arlington Hotel in the Temple Bar District. I did not get photos, but the performance was purely outstanding. If you ever find your self in Dublin - be sure to see this show.

Walking London, Stonehenge, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham palace, the Parliament 09-29

During our stay in London, Matt, Angie, Charlie and I rented an apartment to stay in for 3 nights. Stay City Serviced Apartments are apartments that are used like hotels - to give travelers a less expensive alternative to the over 150 pound/night (for low end) hotels in the city. Because of this - we were able to unpack our bags for more than one night, and rely on the subway and bus systems to navigate London.

About eight months prior to this trip, Angie reserved us spots in the early morning Stonehenge experience. This is only offered to about 20 people per day that they are open, and it allows people to actually enter Stonehenge, opposed to only seeing it from behind the rope. All people that travel to see the Stonehenge later in the day, are note allowed to enter. The downside, you must be at the henge a 6:00am.

Today started out with a drive out to Stonehenge. Stonehenge is located about an hour and half outside of London - so we had to rent a car for the day, since we had to leave our apartment at 4:30 in the morning - and public transportation would not be efficient. When we arrived, we were given the list of rules to follow, number 1 being to make sure that we do not touch the stones as there are plants and moss species growing on the stones that can be harmed. We were then directed up to Stonehenge, and given free range to roam the grounds for an hour. It was still dark when we arrived, but watching the sunrise from Stonehenge, was truly beautiful. I've placed some photos below:

Stonehenge Photos:

Charlie and I - all bundled up

We returned to London by 9:00am, and dropped off the rental car at the airport. After dropping off the car, it was time to rely on public transportation. We bought some bus tickets back to our apartment, and had our first ever bus ride on the top deck of a double-decker bus! (yup - checking off another item on my bucketlist)

We then planned out the rest of our day, and and took an hour to figure out how to navigate the bus and subway system throughout London (taking a subway - yet another check mark for my bucket list. Yes, it's the simple things in life that make mine worth living ;) ). After this hour, we headed to the heart of the city to see Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, and the Parliament building (Big Ben). After our early morning at Stonehenge - today was to be a walk around the city, and relaxing evening in the apartment. Photos below :)

Walking London:

The front of Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace - Flag is up, the Queen is home

Charlie and I in front of the gates at the Palace

The Parliament

Charlie and Matt waiting for Angie and I to finish taking photos at Westminster Abbey

The beautiful front of Westminster Abbey

Big Ben - attached to the Parliament building

Charlie and I, with Big Ben behind us

Welcome to London 09-28

     09-28 was a bit of a rest day for us. We took a train to London today and located our apartment - which, BTW, is pretty dang cool - and settled in for the night. We worked out the bedroom situation, and went to the little store down the street to get food for the next couple of days, as well as some wine to get relaxed ;)
     This was my first time on a train, as well as Charlie's. With that, we also experienced a ride on a double decker bus for the first time. With that said, I don't have many pictures for today.
     Oh, since our train arrived in King's Cross landing, we also got to see the 'Platform 9 3/4' sign from Harry Potter. I had planned some stuff for photo ops with this sign, but the line in front of me planned something as well. Since I don't have much patience - It just didn't work. Here are the photos :)