Musings, and Other Out-In-Left-Field Ramblings

Greetings!
First and foremost... take a look. This isn't exactly the best picture, but it's the one I have access to on this computer. Home inspection went well, no major issues to worry about! Woohoo!!!!

I've been hard at work for the past two weeks on the data entry for a telecom audit. In English, that means that I am working with two other temps to enter any line item that has a charge associated with it into a database. When we first started, Adrian and I laughed at the concept of three banker boxes even taking us the two weeks they projected. Then we tried to read and tackle the entry for the first bills. Telecom covers cable, internet, networks, circuits, land line telephone, wireless phones, wireless access for computers, etc. Some of the bills have been 600+ pages long. Usually, it's a lot of detail to support the 10 or so pages we need to do our job... but the experiences have left me with some questions...

- Have you ever wondered if there is actually a department in the telephone company whose sole purpose is to make the bills so confusing to read/understand that we just ignore it and pay whatever they bill us?

- Did you know that there are actually line items called "Service Charges for Service Charges on XXX"? I was totally shocked and amazed that they charge service charges on service charges...

- If you've ever looked closely, there just might be a "billing surcharge" listed in the fine print. Now call me silly, but if I want to get money from a client, I usually have to send them a bill--it's just a part of doing business. Amazingly enough, there are routinely "billing surcharges" listed on invoices...

- Have you ever gotten home and realized that you spent the entire day wearing one black shoe and one navy blue one? That was the day that I couldn't find my badge in my purse, but once I did, it didn't matter because it didn't work. Then I had my computer crash twice, and managed to lock myself in the bathroom stall and almost hit panic when it wouldn't let me out... That was just one of those really long "should have covered my head" days... :)

- On the subject of paint colors... who knew there were that many versions of tan. I'm beginning to feel like a boy... Isn't brown brown? ;)

On the friends front...
- I got to see Libbey and her beloved Larry this past weekend. They were driving through to Missouri and stopped for brunch. I was glad to see them. I'm not sure I'd seen her since before our wedding!

- We also got to have lunch with Brett's friends from Memphis--Josh, Kim, & Jacob--a couple of weekends ago. We hadn't seen them in a while either, so that was fun. Feel free to let us know when you might be driving through.

- Riley is sensing spring I guess because he's been jumping up and down and barking at everything in sight. If the wind blows in Africa, Riley lets us know about it. OH, and he's actually lost three of the eight pounds the vet was wanting him to lose. He can't wait to hit the new backyard. We took him to see it last week, and he's already met the next door bog Bogart.

- If you ever want some humor, check out my sister's blog (banditsbeauties.blogspot.com). She's been posting video and pictures of the girly girls. They are growing so fast that Auntie Mel can't keep up!

I guess that's it for tonight. Sleepy time so I can go find new and interesting charges tomorrow.

Random thoughts from Nashville....

Happy Easter!

I'm a bit bummed that we aren't getting to spend it with my parents, sister, Allison & Emily. I was looking forward to decorating Easter eggs and then hunting them (yes, I'm a child in a 37-year-old body...). But alas, the folks up north haven't been feeling up to par, and I'm not ready to get sick again, so we decided to phone our appearances in each day...

Thankfulness..
I know Easter is a solemn occasion for many, but this year I feel so much like doing a grateful dance that I find it hard to contain myself. I have a wonderful husband who does a fantastic job of taking care of me (even when I don't actually cooperate), a close and loving family who checks on us frequently just to say "HI! how was your day today?", great friends who love me in spite of my failings, and of course, I have a Riley Dog who shows everlasting love no matter what the occasion. This year isn't that far along, and we're having a banner year. Brett has a job at a great company that is filled with friendly, welcoming people who have made our transition here much easier. We're going to have a munchkin--which is definitely an unexpected but exciting adventure... And we're finally going to have a house. Apartment life isn't bad, but we just have really missed stretching out and getting comfortable. I get to work some--maybe not quite as much as I'd like, but considering the economy, I can't complain. I honestly am not sure that life can get much better for us. So thank you for being a part of our wonderful life.

On a lighter train of thought...
We've been watching a lot of NCAA since Thursday, and I have an observation. I am finally over the age of the commercial demographic for most commercials. I look at Brett and frequently say "was that actually supposed to be funny?" or "okay, I guess I missed the meaning of that one all together..." I can't decide if I'm getting old or just have absolutely no sense of humor. I always thought of myself as somewhat witty, but maybe not!

Basketball thoughts... I didn't fill out the bracket this year, but if I had I would have already had several bracket busters. I would have picked both Nashville teams--Belmont and Vanderbilt--neither of which won. That said, Belmont should have won, and I was happy to root for WVA in the game against Duke. Of course, there's still TN and Memphis (that's Brett's favorite to root for it appears). I guess I'll root for TN and the rest of the Big 12 (minus Kansas of course Natalie... I don't want war in the family.) Anyway... it's been a fun weekend of entertainment!

Paint colors... Who knew there were so many colors of paint in the world... It always looks so easy on DIY and HGTV. :) Wish us luck as we start THAT adventure. :)

I guess that's about it for now. It's time for the TN vs. Butler game. Gotta go practice wearing Orange and singing the Rockytop song...

Happy Easter All!

Rupert PASSED!

For all of you who have emailed, called, etc. we received word today that Rupert has passed his first test! What does that mean exactly? Well, as accurately as science can predict without invasive techniques (i.e. CVS or amneo) Rupert is free of chromosomal disorders or abnormalities. For me, it means that unless we just want to be obsessive, I don't have to be poked and stabbed in very uncomfortable tests that might cause a miscarriage. For that, I'm quite grateful.

Talk about excitement...

Please forgive my tardiness in posting, but we've just been really really darn busy here. After a month or so of looking, one failed contract offer, lots of driving and driving and driving, and one very patient saint-material real estate agent named Brady, we have FINALLY found a house and have a signed contract. So, in theory, if the home inspection works out and the mortgage guy was honest about his preapproval, WE WILL HAVE A HOUSE ON APRIL 30!!!!

I never realized just how intense and draining the whole house hunting project can be. This was almost harder than lots and lots of blind dating...! but alas, we think we've found one. The basic details: 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, 2616 sq ft. all brick (very important to Brett) on 1.26 acres (also very very important to Brett). It's all on one level except the 616 sq ft bonus room above the 2-car garage. It's 12 years old, has only had one family live there, and they are moving because of a job transfer. It's in a neighborhood of about 30 houses (in what I call) in the middle of no where, but hey, to get the house that's all brick and on at least an acre for a reasonable price you've got to trade off something! (If you want to look on the map, look for 59 Colonial Drive, Lebannon, TN--it has already been removed from the MLS system here).

Truthfully, we're 15 minutes from "everywhere"--Mt. Juliet, Lebannon, and Gallatin. We're about 45 minutes (with traffic)/30 minutes (without traffic) from downtown. So while I'm pouting about leaving Cool Springs where literally every store I could ever want or need is less than 5 minutes away, I'll adapt. :)

Our home inspection is Tuesday... so wish us luck. Pictures will come after that... :)

Now it's time to get really used to going to Lowe's... joy joy! :)

Greetings all!
Sorry to be distant... Let me try to begin to fill you in on our world.

Rupert's Latest Pictures
I've been a bit slow about posting Rupert's latest photos. Here you go--in all of his fuzzy glory. Yesterday was our 12-week appointment. We heard his little heartbeat for the first time yesterday. It went a fast 150 beats per minute, but seemed sure and steady. Everything seems to be going along swimmingly for the munchkin. After our appointment, we went back for the ultrasound testing (to help detect chromosomal issues). We tried that last week (see previous post) but Rupert wasn't cooperating so we had to re-do it yesterday. It took some coaxing, but he finally got into the position Ms. Kathy needed him to be in. So far, this kid seems to really like laying on the right side and waving and kicking anytime there's a camera in play. When baby moves, it usually is by standing on the head rather than the feet--like cartwheels. It took lots of jiggling and four laps around the inside of the doctors' office to get him to show us his backside, but alas, he finally did.
From all I can tell, he looks like a munchkin... but again, it's all more than a bit blurry to me.

Questions people have asked...
- We won't have a chance at figuring out boy or girl for at least another six weeks. We don't care which as long as Baby is healthy with the right pieces in the right places.

- No, the poor child will not be named Rupert or Huckleberry. We have real names chosen, but aren't ready to use them until munchkin arrives and we can make sure they "fit".

- Themes for Baby's room... We haven't actually decided on this one yet. Since we're living in an apartment right now, we haven't actually been focusing on a theme. All we have room for is a bassinet to stay in our room. If/when we find a house to move to, then we'll begin to nail down more of a theme/decor. Brett and I both like Winnie, but we also are thinking pretty seriously about generic theme of animals so that we're not bound to just one type of motif.

- How do I feel?... Well, if I didn't know I was pregnant, I wouldn't know I was pregnant. Rupert has taken it easy on me, thank goodness. I haven't had morning sickness at all. I sometimes get tired, but who doesn't?!?!!?! I lost 20 pounds over the winter, so I still have lots of room in my clothes (which is good since no one seems to make decent plus-sized maternity clothes!)... I haven't really gained any weight so far, but my belly might be getting a bit rounder if you look at it just right... (that's one of the joys of being plus-sized... you don't show so fast!!!:) )

Okay... that's it for this setting. Next post... The joys of trying to find a new abode! :)

I hope everything is going well where you are. Feel free to post comments or just email me.

New pictures of Rupert...

Monday we had to go for testing. Since I'm 37 and consequently considered high risk, we went for our first round of screenings. Here are new very fuzzy pictures of Rupert. The first one makes my eyes water, but the second and third I can kind of make out our munchkin. My advice is to click on the image so that it opens as a full-size image in another window.

Oh, by the way... after 30 minutes of poking and prodding, Rupert decided that he didn't want to cooperate and show us the back side. So, we go back again next Thursday to try again. Kathy, the lady doing the screens, needs to see his BACK, not his smiling friendly front... Looks like we have ourselves a somewhat stubborn child. Imagine that!