My Phil

Here is a post all about my wonderful hubby :) I don't mean to brag, but he's pretty awesome. I tried to come up with some questions that aren't too typical for y'all to get to know him! Also, anything in parentheses are my commentary. Enjoy!

How big is your immediate family? How big is your extended family?
2 parents and 1 younger brother. 2 living grandparents, 2 deceased grandparents, 8 sets of aunts and uncles, and more cousins than I care to count for now.

How many places have you lived?
3 towns, 1 state; Tulsa, Norman, and Oklahoma City.


What's your favorite gift you've given to Courtney? What's the favorite gift you've received from Courtney?
Favorite gift I have given was the aquamarine bracelet I gave her for Christmas two years ago. Aquamarine jewelry is pretty rare, so I knew this would be a perfect gift for her. Favorite gift I have received would be when Courtney named a star after me for our first Christmas. She even took it to the next level by making sure the star was in the Taurus constellation, which is my astrological sign.


Was the University of Tulsa your first choice for college?
Not at first. My junior year, I thought I would go to Oklahoma Christian and major in biblical studies. It wasn't until my senior year that I started thinking about a career in chemical engineering. At that point, I felt TU would be a better fit for me.


If you could go back and do one thing in college that you never did, what would it be?
Sadly, I would probably have gone with a double major I contemplated doing during my freshman year. It would have given me the opportunity to get in a few extra classes that would have better prepared me for grad school.


Did you have a recurring dream/nightmare when you were younger?
Never a specific dream, but a common theme would be falling or drowning. Definitely two ways I don't want to die!


Do you have any scars? If so, what's the story behind them?
There is my appendectomy scar from when I had my surgery in Ukraine (that's right). I also have scars on my knees from a bad fall during my second grade jog-a-thon. Aside from that, it's mostly random little cuts and scratches.


What is your favorite brand of toothpaste?
I know this is going to sound really uppity, but I really like Rembrandt even though it's horribly expensive. I guess I've always seen toothpaste as something I should splurge on.


If you had the choice between a lifetime supply of your favorite coffee or having the natural energy to get through the day for the rest of your life, which would you choose? Why?
Definitely the coffee! Even with the energy, I think I'd miss the taste. Plus, I wouldn't know what to do with myself in the morning if I didn't have my coffee to drink.


What is your dream car?
It used to be a 3000 GT VR4, (I don't know either!), but now that I'm older, I'd actually prefer something practical like a VW Jetta TDI.


What goals do you have for Jill?
I guess I want Jill to be happy in whatever life choices she makes. I want to give her everything I can so that she can be successful. Whether that's academics, athletics, or just life in general. I also hope I can be a good example of a good person and a Godly man.


How do you envision meeting Jill for the first time?
I imagine I'll be pretty shocked at first, and maybe it won't even wear off right away. It'll just be amazing looking at her and thinking "I helped to create this tiny life".


What are your hopes for parenthood? What are your fears?
My hopes would be just being a good example and helping her to understand that there's so much more to life than what everyone thinks of you. My fears are her bringing home guys and me having to explain to them how much trouble they'll be in if they treat her poorly (he may need to buy a shotgun for that!).


Cake or death?
Cake? It's tastier.


Do you have any words that make you cringe?
Not really, but I cringe at sounds. Unwrapping plastic spoons from Sonic drives me insane!


If you had the choice of doing the dishes and taking out the garbage, which would you rather do?
I would rather do the dishes because when I finish, I won't have to walk back inside. Plus I don't mind having prune-y hands.

And that's just the beginnin' folks :)

So What! Wednesday

{This is my first So What Wednesday!} 

Today I'm saying SO WHAT! if...

• I wanted to be late to work this morning because the temperature was 75* and overcast, but the high for today is 102*. I just wanted to bask in the glow of a cool temperature.
• I had a major major meltdown about finances and my credit score Monday that resulted in me falling off the face of social media earth while Phil and I figured out our finances.
• Said conversation about finances resulted in me taking over. To be honest, I'm liking it :)
• We were supposed to go to the grocery store last night, but I had a headache so we're going tonight.
• I sometimes lay a certain way, or mess with my belly so Miss Jill will move. I love feeling her move around and it makes me so very happy :)
• I have been dreaming so much about fall that all I want is a turtleneck sweater, a caramel apple spice, a cool breeze, leaves everywhere, and a park swing to take it all in!
• I have already read 2 out of the 3 library books I checked out on Saturday. Two were very fast reads so I may need the rest of my time to finish the last one.
• Phil is really really enjoying The Hunger Games book and I don't know if I'll ever get into it. I always get to chapter 3 before something distracts me and I just don't have the motivation to pick it up again. He promises it gets better, but I don't know...
• I really liked Adele 3 months before she became huge and now I skip to a new station because they're overplaying "Rolling in the Deep"
• Somehow managed to straighten/flip out my hair this morning in 7 minutes flat! How on earth did I do it? I honestly have no idea and I'm kinda sad I didn't have this down in high school! (It took over an hour and it still fizzed out - thanks marching band practice.)
• I still haven't checked out Pinterest... and just might not ever

Be sure to link up with Shannon at Life After I "Dew" and tell us what you're saying SO WHAT! to :)

And Now For Something Completely Different

{via}

Even though I am the "author" of this blog, it is designed to be about my family. With that in mind, I decided to do something fun this week...

I'm going to do a post on Thursday that's all about Phil :) I may talk about him on here, but knowing the real guy is pretty awesome too! So, I thought I would give you guys an opportunity to give me some questions you would like him to answer. I, (with Phil), do reserve the right to refuse a question if it's too personal, or not appropriate, but I'm not too worried about my main followers. If I don't get many, or any, questions, I'll just come up with my own.

Please leave your questions in a comment and I'll be sure to include it!

In a quick Jill update, I felt 3 kicks at lunch today that I could actually see!! It was the neatest thing and made me wish Phil was there to witness it too. Though, she is definitely earning a new nickname - Karate Kid. Even with 3 kicks, when she does kick, it's just once. One kick and I'm sure a faint "high-ya!" It's almost as if Miss Jill wants me to continue guessing if it's her or indigestion. I'm on to you sister! ;)

Happy Monday!

Bébé Week 22 Update

{I did two this week since I feel like I look more "round" :)}

Today's date: August 6, 2011

How far along: 22 weeks

Total weight gain: I'm at a loss of 3ish pounds to date. I'm slowly getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight, but luckily not too fast!

Size and growth of the baby: 
Jill is now the size of a papaya! She's settling into sleep cycles, snoozing about 12 to 14 hours a day. It shouldn't be hard to figure out when -- just pay attention to those kicks as they start and stop. (Seems we have a morning bird on our hands!) {per}

Sex: It's a girl! My Jillybean

Maternity clothes: Pants are maternity unless they are my gauchos from 5 summers ago. I wear a mix of regular and maternity shirts. No matter what I wear, it's quite obvious I'm with child :)

Sleep: I'm starting to get the hang of sleeping on my side, but when I wake up on my back, my lower back usually hurts a little.

Best moment(s) of the week: Feeling a real kick on Thursday :) There was no mistaking that one, but of course Miss Sass did it just once and not again. I have a feeling she has my stubbornness HAHA

Movement: I don't feel her everyday, but I feel her moving more than I have. She's more of a somersault/rolling baby.

Food cravings/aversions: Same aversions as before. Hot chocolate, black bean & lemon soup, crescent rolls, oatmeal, tomatoes, and anything cold are my biggest cravings and seem to stay.

Morning sickness: I still take Zofran everyday at lunch just to be safe. I felt nauseous a few times, but it could have been from all my allergy drainage. Otherwise, my appetite is much better than before :)

Symptoms: Obvious baby bump, peeing a lot, a few stretch marks (but I don't mind!), lower back pain in the morning, heartburn/acid, gassy, and pretty emotional.

Labor signs: None

Belly button in or out: In

What I miss: Nothing really :)

What I'm looking forward to: Registering, seeing my mom next month, and finding out if my placenta has fixed itself.

Something extra: Jill gets to meet her godmother Carrie today! She's visiting from San Diego and I just know Jilly will love her! Plus, I started on this project and ended up finishing it this afternoon. It's a hair bow holder and it's painted in her nursery colors. I will probably reveal a few more projects I'm planning for the nursery before revealing what the theme is. Again, we won't get to do a full nursery until we move out of our current apartment so I don't want to say what it is before we can do it :)

p.s. When we went to Michael's today for the material for the bow holder, I noticed all the Halloween/Fall stuff out and it made me SO happy! And the pumpkin spice potpourri? Heavenly :)

My Strange Sense of Humor

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I've had another somewhat challenging week at work. It's interesting because it can be quiet about 80% of the time, but when it's not? It's messy. I mean, really really messy. Who knew that the plumbing fixture business was so full of drama...

Anyways, so to make light of what's gone on with me, I've made sure to laugh really hard at 1 thing every day. However, I have a feeling some of the things I find hilarious probably seem ridiculous to most people. In hopes that you find at least one of these things funny, I will share a small insight about my strange sense of humor.

*****

There is a commercial that runs at least twice every commercial break during my lunch hour while I watch "Who Wants to be a Millionaire". It's for a local college. There is one particular commercial that is really hard for me to keep a straight face for. First of all, the college is called Brown Mackie. Not too bad, until you read the webpage address at the bottom of the screen: mybrownmackie2.com. It is not only funny for the "my brown mackie" part, but then it adds the number 2! The cherry on top of this pretty little sundae? The guy in the interview is wearing brown scrubs. Brown! I can't make this stuff up people!

*****

This is more awkward funny than anything. I take at least 2 snacks at work for before lunch, then 2 for after. Usually it's a string cheese, an apple, a banana, and some pretzels. Today, I was ready to eat my banana as an afternoon snack. I was in the office alone and began to peel. Once I finished and tossed the peel in my trash can, the phone rang. I answered and helped the customer while still holding my banana at eye level at an angle. As soon as I hung up the phone, my male boss walks in and tells me he forgot something but is leaving again for the day. He had a weird look on his face, but I assumed it was because of something going on with him. When he left the room, I realized I was still holding my banana up high in an awkward way. Whoops!

*****

An area where work and pregnancy symptoms seem to overlap is my gassiness. I have been really gassy all week and I'm pretty thankful I'm usually alone at the time for a few reasons, 1) It can get pretty smelly. I'm sure if my boss needed something from the file cabinet, which is directly behind my chair, he would probably run for the hills instead, and 2) It can get loud! The other day, I let one out gently and it sounded like a long fog-horn. I couldn't help but laugh at myself. I usually can burp like that, but never from the other end ;)

*****

Phil and I will tape "Doug" episodes that air at 1 a.m. and watch them later in the day. We recently watched an episode where he becomes Quail Man. The following conversation happened:

Doug: I may not be big, but I am small and I'm about to unleash the powers of the quail!

Phil: What on earth could that be?

Me: Hiding in bushes? (Doug/Quail Man jumps in one of three bushes on the screen)

Technically I was right, but not what Quail Man was going for.

*****

If you have never seen the first Harry Potter movie, you should at least rent it for the first flying lesson scene. First of all, it's my favorite because Ron gets smacked in the face with his broom. Secondly, if you listen to the professor and just have your mind in the dirtiest gutter you can, it makes the scene unbearably funny! I had tears pouring down my face because I couldn't stop laughing. I promise I'm not usually like that, but something happened the last time I watched and I couldn't get it to stop. Now? I'm kind of glad it did because I enjoyed laughing so hard!

*****

I'm sure most of us have watched "America's Funniest Videos" at some point. Can I tell you the things that make me laugh the hardest? The slapstick. You know, the videos where people get smacked in the face then fall off their bike, or just fall down period. Sure, all the others are funny and/or cute, but those? Those are my favorite :)

Happy Friday!

Phil's PhD

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{I know Phil loves these comics and thought this was hilarious :)}

This has been one of the greatest challenges in my life. Why my life when it's Phil's degree? Short answer: I'm a control freak.

I knew getting married in 2008 would mean Phil would be a graduate student while I finished up my degree. It wouldn't be easy and we'd have limited funds for a few years, but it would be worth it. This is Phil's dream and I want to help him achieve it. I knew what I was getting into for the most part.

The part I wasn't prepared for? Papers taking a nose-dive and needing to be completely re-written from almost scratch. Experiments flat out not working. Phil toying with the idea of just quitting. I was not prepared for any of that.

The last time I mentioned Phil's degree, he was hoping to defend by the end of July and he was walking across the stage at graduation since he didn't want to wait almost a full calendar year to do so. He did walk across the stage and it was a very proud moment. It gave him an idea of what he's been working so hard for. Defending this summer? Yeah... that's not happening.

Before his advisor left for about 3 weeks in June, he found something really wrong with Phil's first paper - as in he said the thesis and conclusion did not reflect what the results of his experiments showed. Now, Phil has to write/publish 3 different papers that will become chapters in his dissertation. The first paper? He finished writing it in 2009. Now, his advisor has admitted recently that he was a little too lax with making Phil's papers a priority. He is now, now that we have a child on the way. Anyways, so he has spent most of the summer trying to repair the paper as best he can. His advisor has made it clear he will make sure Phil gets to defend by the end of the fall term so that we can see his degree before we see Jill's face. That sounds nice, but I'm honestly skeptical.

To be more honest? The hardest part for me is not being able to help him. I can't do experiments for him. I can't donate my blood to run experiments. I can't stand up to his advisor when Phil's too worried to. I can't do anything but support him. And in reality? Some weeks are harder than others. I'm tired of living off of students loans and now my full-time paycheck which is still not that large. I'm tired of living in apartments. I'm tired of not knowing when he'll get a job, where, etc. I'm tired of having no control over half my life. And most of all, I'm tired of making it about myself.

The days he came home looking for bachelor-level jobs because he was fed up, those were hard. Those seemed to happen on the days I was at the end of my rope. It took everything in me to not tell him "Yes! Get a job!". I had to swallow my selfishness and remind him that this is his dream. Being so close to the goal, it's easy to just give up when you're tired. However, he is so close he'd be mad at himself if he were to quit now. Once he was in a better place, I would admit to him how hard it was to encourage him. Sometimes I even apologized because I want to be even more loving and supportive. It's just hard to relax his fears when mine and my anxiety were taking over.

He's still not done, and he can get upset from time to time. The one thought that keeps me going is "This is temporary". At some point, he will be finished. Whether it's when his advisor promised or not, it will happen. I will get my house someday. We will find out where we will live/where Jill will grow up. We will stop living on loans and have real paychecks. I can be a SAHM if I choose when we get there. Someday, I can look at Phil's PhD on the wall, smile and know that we made it. That he accomplished his dream and it had nothing to do with me. Regardless of how mad and upset I get about my loss of control over the situation, the point of it all is Phil. This is his dream, his goal, and his accomplishment. I'm already so very proud of what he has accomplished thus far. I know I will have nothing but more admiration for the man I love when he finally defends.

My biggest hope? That he's not in the middle of defending when I go into labor! HAHA I mean that, but that's not my biggest hope. My biggest hope is that he knows how amazing he is doing. Whether he finishes his degree in two months or two more years, he is amazing period and we are very proud of him :)

Bébé Week 21 Update

I did take this picture on Saturday, but after the week I had, I was happy to do nothing in particular this past weekend. Please excuse the tardiness of this post :)

Also, I don't know if I've mentioned this before or not, but both my parents are going on a mission trip tomorrow to Ghana! I know it's a once-in-a-lifetime kind of trip, but I am anxious for them to get home safe. If you could keep them and their group in your thoughts and prayers, I would definitely appreciate it :) They get back on the 13th and my mom is hoping to come for a visit over Labor Day Weekend. I'm pretty calm about it, but like I said, I'll be much happier when they're both home safe and sound.

Today's date: August 1, 2011

How far along: 21 weeks and 2 days

Total weight gain: I'm at a loss of 6ish pounds to date. I'm slowly getting back to my pre-pregnancy weight, but luckily not too fast!

Size and growth of the baby: 
Jill is now the size of a banana! Her digestive system is busy creating meconium (a tarry black substance made of swallowed amniotic fluid, digestive secretion, and dead cells), which will fill the first diaper after birth. And her womb is now stocked up with her lifetime supply of six million eggs (the number will drop to around one million by birth) {per}

Sex: It's a girl! My Jillybean

Maternity clothes: Pants are maternity unless they are my gauchos from 5 summers ago. I wear a mix of regular and maternity shirts. No matter what I wear, it's quite obvious I'm with child :)

Sleep: I've been pretty tired, but part of that could be the sinus stuff/allergies I've been fighting. It's not an infection because my mucus is not discolored, but I'm pretty tired of sniffling and sneezing/the headaches. Anyways, I had to sleep with a humidifier to help and it was easier to sleep on my side because I didn't toss and turn as much. However, I would wake up from time to time on my back and my lower back would be sore. 

Best moment(s) of the week: Feeling movement, picking/browsing for clothes and hair bows, and hearing her healthy heartbeat this morning at the doctors :)

Movement: I don't feel her everyday, but I feel her moving more than I have. I don't feel kicks per se, I think she's more of a somersault/rolling baby. I did feel a movement at the movies the other day and it was super cute!

Food cravings/aversions: Same aversions as before. Hot chocolate, black bean & lemon soup, crescent rolls, oatmeal, tomatoes, and anything cold are my biggest cravings at the moment.

Morning sickness: I still take Zofran everyday at lunch just to be safe. I felt nauseous a few times, but it could have been from all my allergy drainage. Otherwise, my appetite is much better than before :)

Symptoms: Obvious baby bump, peeing a lot, a few stretch marks (but I don't mind!), lower back pain in the morning, heartburn/acid, gassy, and pretty emotional.

Labor signs: None

Belly button in or out: In

What I miss: Nothing really :)

What I'm looking forward to: Registering, seeing my mom next month, and finding out if my placenta has fixed itself.