It's a...

BOY!!! The arrow is pointing to the proof!!! James and I couldn't be happier! He is perfectly healthy and that was the most important thing the doctor told us! Here are some other pictures of Patrick James (P.J.)...

PJ's Profile

PJ's Face...

Here is his little foot!

The top of his head and hand.

So I am sad that the weekend is over and that I have to go back to work. My family left today and it was so good to see them, and have them share in this joy with us. Of course they had to go out shopping and buy tons of blue stuff to fill up the closet! :-)

Anyway, James and I feel so blessed to have made this little miracle together and we are looking forward to a lifetime of love and kisses when PJ arrives!

18 weeks and my belly POPPED!

Here is my 18 week photo (taken on July 22nd). My belly has definitely popped, and you can tell I am pregnant! I can't believe I am almost half way there. Friday is the BIG ultrasound and I can't wait to find out if it's a BOY or a GIRL! :-) Hopefully this week will fly by!

Pregnancy is a weight loss plan!

So, I have been doing lots of traveling, thus the lack of blogging! So, i am sure you are wondering about the title of my blog... Well, I have lost 15 pounds since I found out I was pregnant... The thing is, I EAT! I make sure I eat 3 meals a day, but I only want to eat healthy things, like salad and fruits. On a rare occasion I will crave something sweet, but it is VERY rare! The dr. said it's perfectly fine since I am a big girl to begin with... LOL! Other than that, everything is going great! James gives me a daily countdown on when we find out what the baby is... so we have 15 days! :-) He is all pumped to get the nursery ready. Everything is already pretty much moved out of there and cleared out.

I have tons of pictures from all of my trips, but have not put them on the computer yet, so I will get to that ASAP and share what I have been up to since going MIA! :-)

UPDATE!

Ok, so I know I haven't updated this blog in OVER a month... There is a good reason for this.... My laptop BROKE! I know I have had access to other people's computers, but there is a good reason that I just haven't had the time to do so. Here is a rundown of life since I last posted....

School finally ended.. THANK GOODNESS! I was so happy to leave my classroom behind for the summer and have a chance to REST before the baby comes! Unfortunately that hasn't happened yet!

My mom came up on June 2nd, and we celebrated James' birthday on the 3rd. We cooked his favorite meal- stuffed shells, and enjoyed a turtle cheesecake for dessert. At this point I was still in the first trimester and SUPER SICK, so I don't think I enjoyed it as much as he did!!!!

On June 4th, we had another Dr. appointment (the reason that my mom came up) and got another ultrasound:

So there is Baby Hartman at 11 weeks and 1 day. If you look at where I circled the baby, on the left you can see both feet in the air. On the right, is the baby's face looking forward with a hand on either side. The technician showed us 2 arms and 2 legs, we saw the heart beating away, and this time James got to hear the heartbeat, too. The baby was just moving all around, and I seriously think it was the coolest thing I have ever seen. My next appointment is on July 2nd, but I won't get another ultrasound until July 27th when WE FIND OUT WHAT THE BABY IS! :-)

So after the excitement of the Dr. appointment, I went down south with my mom, where thought I would sleep in, take lots of naps, and just relax... HAHAHA! I helped my sister in law with the kids, and actually ended up going to bed late, waking up early, and taking not ONE single nap the whole time I was there. I got to experience what life might be like with 4 kids (including a toddler, and a newborn) and now I completely understand when my sister says, "I'll call you back." and then I never hear from her for at least a few days. I loved every minute of being down there, though! It is always great for me to spend some time with my family, although I missed James like crazy!

Then my mom and I headed back to Tallahassee on the 17th of June, woke up on the morning of the 18th and attended a writing workshop together (which was also my birthday) and then celebrated my big 26th at the Melting Pot that night! :-) It was a lot of fun! My mom left the next day, and I went to a math workshop the rest of the week!

So now, it is the first time I have had to sit and gather my thoughts (with my new laptop that my dad got me for my birthday). I am officially out of the first trimester, although my appetite has not returned yet. As of yesterday, I have lost 13 pounds since finding out I was pregnant, but my belly has definitely started to pop! :-)

It is finally the weekend, and James and I plan to work in the garden he made for us, and I definitely plan to rest, because next week is full of workshops again!!! :-)

Being Pregnant!

I am here to say that all that crap you hear about being pregnant and having these cravings, and eating all the time is just that... CRAP!!! I have no appetite, and when I do, the only thing I want to eat is Cinnamon Raisin toast with cream cheese. Things I used to LOVE make me sick. Just the mere thought of pizza is enough to send me running to the bathroom holding my hand over my mouth. (although I have not actually thrown up at all). And another thing, morning sickness should not be called that... how about ALL DAY sickness, or POPS UP ON YOU AT ANY TIME OF DAY sickness. Those would be better descriptions of what it is actually like during pregnancy.

With that said, I wouldn't change it for the world. Annoying? Yes... Can I deal with it? Absolutely!

James went canoeing with some buddies this weekend... He left this morning and I miss him already. He kept asking if it was alright, and said he wouldn't go if I didn't want him too.... but we both know that after the baby comes, there won't be many trips like that. I think I would be okay with it if I could call him if I wanted, but he leaves his phone in the truck because last time one of the guys rolled their canoe over and everything went into the water... including their cell phone.

So now I am just trying to find something to do to occupy me.... I have grad school stuff to do, and I should get started on that. I have tons of pictures I want to upload to Flickr, and lots of things on my creative to do list...

April ATC- A World in Bloom

April ATC- A World in Bloom
Originally uploaded by fsucutie03.

I just found out I was pregnant in April, so this was my interpretation of "A World in Bloom"

MY BIG NEWS!!!!

MY BIG NEWS!!!!
Originally uploaded by fsucutie03.

This is Baby Hartman at 7 weeks!!!! We kept it pretty quiet until we saw the heartbeat at the ultrasound. It was the most wonderful thing I have ever seen. Things have been going pretty well! I am super tired all the time, and don't really want to eat anything. (well, except a starbucks decaf white mocha!)

I had to go to a specialist on Monday because I come from Jewish decent. I am very low risk since I am only 1/2 Jewish, and since James is not Jewish at all. That means that our baby has a 1 in 64,000 chance of having something wrong. I figure I would get the tests done anyway to make sure I am not a carrier of any disorders, and this way I can tell my kids when they get older and have their own kids!!! The best part about this appointment on Monday was the fact that I got to have another ultrasound!!! The baby had grown the appropriate amount, and I even got to HEAR the heartbeat!! It was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard! :-)

I love...

Tinkerbell
Originally uploaded by fsucutie03.

TINKERBELL!

Inspired by Jess

Inspired by Jess
Originally uploaded by fsucutie03.

Sickness, stress, and love

So I am finally over the pneumonia!!! Woohoo!!! If only the doctor had taken care of me the first time I went in maybe the stressed part wouldn't be!!!

I missed a whole week of school from being sick.... the 3rd nine weeks just ended, and last week was Spring Break... Those 2 events mean 1)report cards and 2)lesson plans. My report cards are due tomorrow afternoon, so I came home after school today thinking I could work on them from home, right? WRONG!!!! I have tried to log in 5,000,000 times and each time it won't work... it goes right back to the log in screen!!!!!!! So now I am going to have to somehow finish them tomorrow morning because there is no way I am leaving my house right now to go back up to school to finish them. When i got to school this morning, I had no idea what I was going to do with my students. I basically gave them busy work all day just so that I could get through the piles of papers on my desk from the week I was out. I am definitely not a "busy work" kind of teacher. I also got a new student today from England. I felt horrible just giving the kids busy work... I don't want her to think I am a boring teacher, but I also had to get things ready for her!

On a lighter note, I spent the last 4 days in Tupelo, Mississippi... the birthplace of Elvis Presley. My cousin got married and I was a bridesmaid. The wedding was wonderful and they were so happy and in love! I love watching 2 people in love... What I love more than that, however, is watching my husband watch people in love. On our wedding day, when I walked down the aisle, my husband's face was TO DIE FOR! His nostrils got all flaired up as he tried to contain the tears, letting a few slip by and softly fall down his face. Ever since that day, whenever we are at a wedding and he watches people take their vows before God, family, and friends, his nostrils do the same thing and he tries his hardest to contain the tears... If you know my husband, you know this is not a typical characteristic of his personality. So I am standing up in the front with my cousin and I look over at him only to see the nostrils are flairing, and he looks at me, smiles, and mouths "I love you." How sweet is he??? Everytime we are at a wedding, he thinks about our wedding day!!!

So, when I think about the last 2 weeks and the stress I am feeling right now, I am comforted by the fact that I have a wonderful family and a loving husband.

I love Starbucks!

This is a sketch I did in my new moleskine watercolor in response to an Illustration Friday prompt from the beginning of March- "WIRED". This is my favorite drink at Starbucks and you can tell it will surely keep you W-i-r-e-d!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

SICK, SiCk, sick!!!

I have not been at school for 2 days... I caught the nasty flu and it has knocked me out completely. The only reason I am vertical at this point is because I am filled up on 800 milligram Ibuprofen to help with my 102 fever.

Sunday night, James and I went to see my friend Marie's new place that her and her fiancee' will be moving into. We got there, took a look around and then went out to get something to eat at the Mello Mushroom. I was feeling PERFECTLY fine! I got home and began to work on a baby shower invitation for my sister-in-law. I started coughing and wheezing and finally was able to go to sleep around 12am. When I woke up yesterday morning, I got dressed, packed my lunch and headed off to school. That lasted for maybe about 15 minutes. I felt so dizzy and weak that I had to leave...

At 5:00 I had an appointment at Urgent Care where the Dr. told me I caught the nasty flu. You are fine one minute, and BAM! you can hardly move. He also told me that I should not go to the work for the rest of the week... Yea right, we'll see how that goes...

James started his new job today and last night we couldn't even celebrate... He was too busy taking me to the Dr. and to pick up medicine, gatorade, and chicken noodle soup... What a wonderful man I married...

So now, I can't smell anything, my husband has to use a mask when talking to me, gloves when he brings me something and all I hear is the constant spray of Lysol to kill all the germs... (okay so it really isn't that dramatic) I guess it is better that it happened now because next week is Spring BREAK!

Dr. Seuss Day 2007

My students and I celebrated Dr. Seuss' birthday on March 2nd. It was a fun filled day with lots of reading, acting out books, and even eating green eggs & ham!

Angel Babies...

Our trip to the Dominican Republic- June 2006

My Sister, My Friend

My Dachshund babies!

Faith, Hope, and Love...

Here is a scrapbook page I made that represents the progression of my marriage from our first picture, to our wedding, to now...

Our puppies...

DOGS LIVE HERE
If you don't want to be greeted with paws and swinging tails don't come inside because dogs live here. If you don't like the feel of a cold nose or a wet tongue, don't come inside because dogs live here. If you don't want to step over many scattered toys, don't come inside because dogs live here. If you think that a home ought to smell of perfume, don't come inside because dogs live here. If you don't mind all of this, you will be instantly loved when you come inside, because dogs live here. Author Unknown