tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-297409012024-03-13T00:33:15.896-07:00Becka's BabbleRamblings of a Romance WriterBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.comBlogger415125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-55204255225502566762009-01-30T21:34:00.001-08:002009-02-23T12:45:28.307-08:00MY BLOG HAS MOVED!!!To all the readers of my blog, Becka's Babble has officially moved to WordPress! You can now find my ramblings directly off my website located at <a href="http://www.rebeccagoings.com">http://www.RebeccaGoings.com</a>.<br /><br />All my latest blog posts will be found in the upper right-hand corner of my new website.<br /><br />Please be patient, my website is under construction, so you won't find all my information readily available. As the weeks go on, I plan to get all my books listed and up. :)<br /><br />It's been nice knowin' ya, Blogger!<br /><br />See ya at Rebecca Goings dot com!<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-57114341448077436472008-12-31T16:26:00.000-08:002008-12-31T16:37:40.796-08:00Got Our New Insurance CardsDH and I got our insurance cards recently, so the health insurance snafu was deftly avoided by the skin of it's teeth. LOL We're still set to be induced this Saturday and all is well. I asked the doc if she'd be open to inducing me early before the end of the year and she basically said no. Since my blood sugars have been good, there's no reason to get the baby out, as every day in the womb is beneficial to the development of the lungs. <br /><br />She told me birth at 38 weeks and birth at 39 weeks is the difference between 97% and 99% with regards to survival rates. Both percentages are very high, but with the addition of just one week, there's one heck of a chance of having a happy, healthy baby. A little disappointing, since both my good friends Karen and Val have HAD their children, and thus get themselves a nifty little tax break. SIGH<br /><br />No such luck for me having baby by midnight tonight. My doctor, although she said she wouldn't induce, said she's not against "helping things along" for natural labor. She stripped my membranes on Monday, and told me it gives you a 50/50 chance for your cervix to thin on it's own due to the release of prostaglandins, and thus speed along a natural labor. If anything happens, it happens within the first 24 to 48 hours.<br /><br />Nothing's happening. Like I told a friend of mine, guess I'm like Fort Knox until we can break through the walls with Pitocin. <br /><br />I've only ever been induced with Pitocin once in all my four previous births. From administration of the drug to babe in arms was 3 hours. Of course, I was a week overdue and my water had already broken two hours before, so my body was ready for labor then. Not so sure about now. Yes, for those of you who can do math, my second child had only a 5 hour labor, that is, if you count the 2 hours of nothing between my water breaking and the Pitocin drip. Otherwise, it was 3 hours.<br /><br />I'm going in at 8am. If I have another 3 hour labor (wouldn't that be wonderful??) I'll have baby Sophie before lunchtime. But, if it's like I suspect, I'll probably labor into the afternoon and/or evening before having her. I just don't think my body is ready this time to slam into labor. But who knows? I've been feeling "pre-labor" for weeks (popping/spreading hips, false labor, Braxton-Hicks). Perhaps I just need that Pitocin push one more time. :)<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-37392397337644500382008-12-28T11:58:00.000-08:002008-12-28T12:10:00.850-08:00No Baby Yet, But...I've had some pretty good contractions this morning. They did indeed taper off (darn it all), but they were strong with lots of pressure. I'm still having a few off and on, but they're not painful as much as it's downward pressure. Probably just some intense Braxton Hicks.<br /><br />Aside from that, I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow for my non-stress test and I'm going to ask her if she can induce me early.<br /><br />I know, I know, January 3rd isn't that far off (next Saturday!) but seriously, DH just got a new job, and we don't have our health insurance cards or even our member numbers yet (which the hospital will need to bill them) so I'm kind of in between a rock and a hard place. We paid for Cobra this month to keep our current insurance, but that's up on the 31st. We'd like to avoid paying hundreds of dollars to Cobra again just for a few days in early January. DH thought he'd get his new health insurance information by now, but he hasn't, which means... what exactly?<br /><br />Well, according to his new job, we ARE covered. We have health insurance right now through them. But they haven't given us cards or numbers as I stated above, and I really don't want to deal with the CF *THAT* would mean with a two-day hospital stay and trying to get new insurance sorted with no information to give them. Aside from the fact of new deductibles and/or co-pays and/or premiums we've already paid through the old Cobra insurance.<br /><br />If I can convince my doc to induce me before the end of December, I could avoid all this.<br /><br />Now, I know it's cutting it down to the wire. We thought we'd have his health cards by now, which is why we waited. But now that it's after Christmas and fast approaching New Year's and we don't have them, it's a mad scramble to figure out what to do.<br /><br />So I'm going to talk to my doctor about it. Maybe it won't be a big deal. Perhaps they'll be able to verify our new coverage with just DH's name and SS#. Or, perhaps the doc will be amicable to inducing early. Maybe by some miracle, we'll get our new cards sometime this week (crosses fingers). I tried to get a hold of my doctor earlier than NOW, believe me I did. But she was on vacation, and due to the snow, the doc's office was totally shut down, so there was no one else to talk to.<br /><br />I hate crap that's down to the wire like this, but what can you do? BIG DRAMATIC SIGH<br /><br />Anyhow, that's my update. Next time I blog, I may or may not have a new daughter and an interesting story to tell. :)<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-45712623653784403142008-12-23T11:18:00.000-08:002008-12-23T11:30:48.953-08:00Getting Ready for Christmas!I'm getting excited about Christmas, finally! We've got all our gift shopping done, everything is wrapped, now we're just waiting for DH's mom to get here. She was scheduled to fly in on Sunday, but due to the horrible record-breaking snow we've gotten lately, our airport has pretty much been shut down. So her flight was canceled. She was told there was another available flight out of Palm Springs, so they got their tickets transferred, drove the hour out there, only to find THAT flight had been canceled as well. :( So, they decided to drive, because they were NOT missing Christmas with the grandkids. <br /><br />We've gotten about a foot and a half of snow so far, with more promised to come on Christmas Eve. Aside from the headache of poor Grandma trying her hardest to get to fricken' Portland, the snow hasn't been too bad for us to deal with. Thankfully, we live a few blocks from our grocery store, so if we do have to go out, it's not that far. Chains are required everywhere around here, and if you don't have all-wheel drive or studded snow tires, you'll get ticketed if you don't have chains.<br /><br />You see, this is the heaviest snowfall we've gotten in 40 years, so Portland, OR is NOT as prepared as other places around the country might be. We have to truck in our snowplows, borrowing them from here or there. In fact, our local Target's parking lot was plowed by two backhoes because they had nothing else!<br /><br />Another friend of ours had been stranded in Sacramento after going to a funeral, and as luck or Divine Providence would have it, my DH's mom just so happened to be going through Sacramento on her impromptu drive up. She was able to swing through and pick her up and they're going to be here later today. Thankfully, due to the CF that is their vacation traveling, DH's mom was able to get a few more days off of work so she doesn't have to turn right back around and go home after getting here. Hopefully, they'll still be in town for Sophie's birth!<br /><br />We shall see...<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-4636377067485054652008-12-19T23:00:00.000-08:002008-12-19T23:14:39.604-08:0037 Weeks and Feeling BetterDespite all the pain I've been having recently, I'm finally feeling a little better. The sharp pains in my pelvis come and go, which is a good thing, since the other weekend I was in Deep Hurting. My doctor said it could be the position of the baby, with either a shoulder or an arm dropping down and pressing on things, since sometimes sitting for a few minutes will "fix" the problem.<br /><br />Rolling over in bed is nigh impossible, comparable to a three-point turn, and is a maneuver that wakes me up every time. Therefore, I spend most of the night on my right side, which means that whole side gets numb by the time I wake up to use the bathroom. When I go back to bed, I try to lay on my left side, but DH says I snore when I lay on that side (LOL) and lying on my back is both comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time. So I can't lie on my back for longer than a few minutes, which means it's back to my numb side for the rest of the evening. Needless to say, I'm pretty tired by morning.<br /><br />I've been going in twice a week for my non-stress test, and so far, the baby has been moving just like she should, with a perfect heart rate. In fact, this next week, I only had one appointment on Monday and the doctor asked me to make another appt. for Christmas Eve at the hospital since no one would be at the office. *SIGH* So I go in to the actual birth center where I will be giving birth to have my second non-stress test of the week. Might have to do the same thing on New Year's Eve as well, assuming baby Sophie decides to stay cooking in there.<br /><br />I think she will. All my babies have gone to term. Only one of them was 11 days early. We shall see, I suppose.<br /><br />My good friend Karen, who is also just as far along as I am with her second child, is actually in the hospital right now due to labor complications. She'd been scheduled to have a c-section on Jan. 4th, but the baby has had different ideas, flipping around to be breech on top of making Karen go in and out of false labor. She's 3 cm dialated, and I guess her amniotic sac is bulging a bit, so they've moved up her c-section date to this Sunday. So she'll have her baby in two days.<br /><br />My other good friend Val is also pregnant, with a c-section scheduled for her on Dec. 30th. Even though we all got pregnant at or around the same time, I'm going to be the last of the bunch, trailing both of them with an induction on Jan. 3rd. Nope, not jealous at all. Lalalalalala, I can't hear you! :P<br /><br />My baby is right on schedule with her growth, weighing in at about 6 lbs. By the time she's born, she should be just over 7 lbs., as babies gain 1/2 a pound a week in their final weeks. Even though I'm the last to have my baby out of our circle of friends (assuming I don't go into labor before-hand), Jan. 3rd is only 15 days away. JUST over 2 weeks. <br /><br />It's seriously not long now!<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-6182266878959576832008-12-12T21:15:00.000-08:002008-12-12T21:34:55.275-08:00This One Goes to Eleven<object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/d54UU-fPIsY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/d54UU-fPIsY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><br />If you've heard the phrase above, the title to this post, but don't know where it comes from, here is the classic scene from Spinal Tap that will familiarize you with this particular piece of pop culture.<br /><br />You see, I've posted this funny vid because I've been complaining lately. Complaining about my pain level ever since Sophie dropped. Sure, I've had to waddle around, but it's just been within the past couple of days that my pain level has gone "up to 11".<br /><br />Usually in my OB visits, they ask me if I'm having any pain and I've been telling them my pelvic pain is about an 8 at it's worst, which is usually at night. When I get up to go to the bathroom or roll over in bed it's the worst. But during the day, it's more annoying than anything, probably a 4 or 5.<br /><br />Well, Thursday, I went in to the doctor for my twice-weekly baby monitor check-up (where they hook me up to the monitor that records baby's heartbeat for about 20 minutes) and my regular doc wasn't in, she was at a conference in Las Vegas. Okay, my appointment was with another doctor, but SHE was out due to one of her own patients who'd gone into labor that day. So I was seen by yet another doctor, who seemed to be swamped with everyone else's patients that day. Instead of 20 min. on the monitor, I think I spent closer to 40. But, I understood, so I didn't complain.<br /><br />She goes to help me up, and I don't get up some weird way, I'm not flailing about, she holds on to me, but still, I feel this sharp-ass pain in my belly, like almost bringing me to tears. But, the baby seems fine, she's still rolling around in there, all seems well. Maybe I'd just squished something.<br /><br />Ever since then, my pelvic pain has been almost unbearable. Sitting down, I'm completely fine. But the moment I stand up, my entire right side screams at me. My right hip feels like it's threatening to dislocate whenever I walk. Just lifting my legs is excruciating, whether it's climbing a staircase or getting into a car. Moving my leg from the gas to the brake is also painful. Hence, the 11 rating of which I spoke.<br /><br />Of course I hobble around all day today, even going to our local Freddy's because I desperately needed some things at the store. By the time I get home, I'm in serious pain. By this time, it's about a quarter to 5pm on Friday evening, but I still decide to call the doc just in case she might be there. Nope, everyone's gone home except for the poor lady stuck answering the phones. She suggests scheduling an appointment with the doc on Monday and if my pain gets worse, to go to the Urgent Care or the ER.<br /><br />Well, I already HAVE an appointment on Monday at 10:15am due to my monitor tests, but my doc always told me to call if I had concerns... Guess that doesn't include almost 5pm on Friday evenings. Dammit.<br /><br />So, it seems as if I have to wait out the weekend and take things easy until I can go in and see the doc on Monday. Monday is also the date of my final ultrasound. Perhaps they can figure out if the baby has an arm or a shoulder wedged into my pelvis along with her GIANT FREAKIN' NOGGIN!!! lol<br /><br />DH doesn't believe me when I say she's enormous in there. "You say that with every one," he poo-poos. I dunno. I think I've got an elephant growing in there. Iii-yii-yii.<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-74972227667596935162008-12-08T17:33:00.000-08:002008-12-08T17:42:28.889-08:00Went to the Doc TodayToday was the first of my twice-weekly doctor visits to be hooked up to the baby monitor. They're measuring the fetal heartbeat to make sure it has ups and downs, basically, whether the baby is active or lethargic in there.<br /><br />The doc told me in 20 minutes time, they like to see about 2 or more ups and downs in baby's heart rate, but at least 2. Sophie had about 25 spikes! The doctor said that was a very active baby. :P She scheduled my induction date on January 3rd at 8am, just in case I don't go into labor on my own. She did say if I went into labor right now, she wouldn't stop it. Baby is growing just fine, and in fact, the doctor busted out the sonogram machine and confirmed the baby had dropped with her head down (hence all my painful pelvic...pain. lol). While she was looking around on the sonogram, she could see Sophie "practicing" her breathing, with her little chest puffing in and out. So cute!<br /><br />Since the baby has dropped, she did mention I could go into labor at any time, but it's no guarantee that I will go into labor on my own. Some women can "drop" a few weeks before they give birth while others don't "drop" until they're in labor. I'm seriously hoping it's sooner rather than later. Despite having an early baby, I kind of want the whole hullabaloo over with before Christmas.<br /><br />Ah well. She'll come when she's ready. If not in December, at least by the beginning of January. Assuming I don't spontaneously go into labor, Sophie should be here in 26 to 27 days! Little less than 4 weeks. :) Woohoo! There IS a light at the end of this LOOOOONG tunnel. :D<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-39929918785672850242008-12-07T21:25:00.001-08:002008-12-07T21:40:22.365-08:00Had a Great Baby Shower!My good friends Joleine and Michelle threw me and my other good friend Val a baby shower this past Saturday. A good time was had by all, and both Val and I received some awesome fat loots.<div><br /></div><div>I got lots of outfits for Sophie, most of which are Classic Pooh, which I love. An awesome tie-dye onesie/hat/pants outfit specially ordered, along with many footies, socks, and other hats. I also scored some fluffy blankies, none of which were duplicates - a green Pooh, pink Pooh, and purple fuzzy blankie I wish they made in adult size.</div><div><br /></div><div>I got the bouncy I'd registered for (although my registry at Target was apparently ONLY online, not available in the stores, bugger all. I don't know why, though, as I WENT IN to the store to register... GRR) and also a shelving unit that rolls on wheels that stores diapers, wipes, blankets, towels, etc. Pretty cool!</div><div><br /></div><div>Speaking of diapers, Joleine made me an awesome tiered "cake" of diapers. She'd taken a cardboard cake holder and placed rolled up diapers around the perimeter, secured with rubber bands, then placed a smaller cardboard cake holder on top of that, doing it again, and finally a third time. In the middle of the diapers, she placed a bottle, a bib, some socks, baby shampoo, Desitin, etc. secured with some pink ribbon (placed strategically so as not to see the rubber bands around the diapers), then wrapped the entire thing in cellophane. Totally an awesome idea. Val and I were both in awe of the three tiered diaper tower. :D</div><div><br /></div><div>We played some fun games, both blindfolded. The first was to spoon cotton balls into a bowl, the player with the most wins. Not as easy as it may sound. The second was to identify tiny gold safety pins from uncooked rice. They all feel the same! So weird!</div><div><br /></div><div>Yummy food was had, homemade pasta salad, deviled eggs, croissant sandwiches, crackers and veggies with dip, not to mention a super nummy punch I probably had too much of. Heheh</div><div><br /></div><div>After the shower, DH and I decided to go to Target and purchase the items we didn't receive. We bought mundane things such as shampoo and diaper rash cream, along with more bibs, hats, spit-up rags, bottles, formula, baby monitors & a baby gate for our stairs. We've found a swing that we want (but it was sold out at our local Target) and I still need to buy a bath tub that will fit in our sink until baby is old enough to sit up on her own. Aside from all that, I do believe we're finally ready for this little one whenever she decides to come! Both mentally and materialistically. :)</div><div><br /></div><div>~~Becka</div>Beckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-29975087536946197122008-12-06T08:57:00.001-08:002008-12-06T08:57:35.209-08:0035 Weeks Pregnant and MiserableWell, here I am, 35 weeks pregnant. If I don't go into labor on my own this month, my OB is going to induce me by January 3rd. My due date isn't until Jan. 10th, but due to my diabetes, the longer the fetus is inside me, the higher the risk of fetal demise. She mentioned the fact I take medication to control my blood sugar has something to do with it. Anyhow, the point is, I'm not going to be allowed to get to my due date, much less go beyond it.<br /><br />However, that still doesn't comfort me.<br /><br />I don't know if it's because I'm older now (It's been almost 6 years since my last pregnancy) or because I've simply "forgotten" what it was like. But holy moly, this is getting old. <br /><br />DH says I complain during every pregnancy, and he's right. But I don't remember being quite this miserable. Sure, I had my fair share of aches and pains. In fact, my son's pregnancy was, perhaps, one of my hardest, considering he was Sunny Side Up. (If you don't know what that means, Google the term for babies.)<br /><br />Also, my pregnancy with my second daughter was hard as well, considering I'd gotten pregnant a mere 5 months after I'd given birth to baby #1. I don't think my body had fully "recovered" from the first.<br /><br />But now, with this baby, I have mad ligament pain. Getting up from lying down or even sitting is a major chore, and even then, I can only "limp-waddle" to get to where I need to go. I can feel my lower back and hips "popping" when I walk sometimes, no doubt my pelvis getting ready for business. It's almost impossible to lie on my back, even though it is simultaneously THE most comfortable AND the most uncomfortable position I can lie in. For my body, it takes away the stress of a hunched-over back and evens out my hips. But for the baby, it's like placing a watermelon on my belly. She literally sits on some nerve in there, making the left half of my face and scalp numb. Weird, eh? Not to mention the pressure she exerts on my colon. Not fun times, my friend.<br /><br />I'm currently measuring 36 cm from pelvis to the top of my uterus, and I'm going in for my final ultrasound on December 15th. It will measure the baby's size to make sure I don't have Baby Kong in there. The doc seems to think she'll be normal weight seen as how my sugars have been doing good (aside from the occasional lapse when I eat rice or tortillas lol).<br /><br />But Ho-lee-crap, she feels like a 15 pounder. I know in reality, she's probably 5 *maybe* 6-ish pounds right now, but wow, it feels like she's the size of Simone! (my petite 7 year old). <br /><br />Braxton Hicks are getting stronger now, and in fact, it's just pissing me off when they stop. LOL I'll have one, then look at the clock hopefully wondering if labor is actually beginning! But alas, no such luck. I really don't want to give birth to a preemie, but at this point, I'm ready to trade those sleepless nights for these aches and pains. It's seriously so draining, that I'm constantly exhausted.<br /><br />DH says, "Oh, you say this every time." Perhaps I do. But I don't think the man appreciates just how uncomfortable it is to carry this bowling ball in my gutsky day after day...<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-29391493570064478112008-11-26T21:52:00.000-08:002008-11-27T00:13:37.418-08:00Okay, I Gotta Blog About This...DH and I decided to go out to the Dollar Tree tonight to buy new ornaments for our Christmas tree. Yes, we're on a budget since DH lost his job, so we can't (or shouldn't) buy the uber-expensive nice Christmas ornaments. Believe it or not, Dollar Tree had some decent stuff. In fact, I'll probably go back when it's time to fill up on stocking stuffers.<div><br /></div><div>Anyhow. So we come out and realize we gotta go to Target (same parking lot) for a tree topper, as they didn't have anything we liked there. No prob. On our way out to the car, we meet up with some people who are selling tamales for $1.00. Ooo, we think. Awesome. But we still gotta go to Target. We tell them we'll be back because we wanted the tamales to stay hot while we shop.</div><div><br /></div><div>We get our tree topper, come back, and there's a few people buying tamales from these people already. Now mind, they're just average people selling food off the back of their truck, with tamales in ice coolers, presumably to keep them warm. So, DH and I buy 20 of them, because there were two kinds, made with either red or green sauce. We got 10 of each.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now, these people were very nice, and they were also offering free Mexican hot chocolate, which has a distinct flavor of something cinnamony. It was really good. They had their kid with them, and they seemed more than happy to serve us, along with two other ladies who'd noticed them selling tamales.</div><div><br /></div><div>Of course, the draw of tamales is that it's one of my favorite Mexican foods, and handmade tamales are the shizzy. Not to mention tamales made by Mexican folk. Our neighbors, whose daughter is our daughters' best friend, make kick-ass Mexican food. They sometimes send over their Chicken Mole or homemade tamales and tortillas to which we will never say no. Scoring Mexican food made by Mexican people is nothing but a win-win situation in my book.</div><div><br /></div><div>We come home, we eat, and I feel the need to Twitter my experience because the tamales are frickin' good--better than I've ever made. Two of my Twitter friends are aghast that DH and I trusted random strangers with food in a parking lot. I've got to wonder to myself... why?</div><div><br /></div><div>These folks were obviously thinking outside the box to earn a little extra cash for the holidays. They knew people love tamales - they could make tamales - sell them for a buck each and have a few extra dollars in their pocket. What's the harm?</div><div><br /></div><div>I can only think it's the inherent "terror" we have of "strangers". You all remember hearing, "Don't take candy from strangers!" as a kid. Or the reports of wackos putting razor blades in carmel apples for Halloween (as a result I could never have any homemade stuff little old ladies dropped in my Halloween bag as a kid because my parents were paranoid). But seriously, is this where the "fear" of strangers comes from? </div><div><br /></div><div>I believe most people are good. They are. What's wrong with trusting someone you don't know?It's few and far between you'll meet someone who actually *is* a wacko out to specifically hurt you. </div><div><br /></div><div>"But Becka," you say, "They could have spat in those tamales!" (because I'm seriously not gonna buy the "razor blades" in the tamales argument, come on! --cue Gob from Arrested Development). Well, seriously, how is it any different than buying a tamale from a restaurant? Or a roach coach that's in a random parking lot? Because they have a license to make it? Because they're in an "establishment"? Reality check, folks. ANYONE CAN SPIT IN YOUR FOOD, DON'T MATTER WHERE YOU EAT.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, I choose to believe most people are good, and I choose to give most people the benefit of the doubt. Just because some old man behind me in line might pat my kid on the shoulder doesn't mean he's an OMGCHILDMOLESTER - KILL IT WITH FIRE! lol</div><div><br /></div><div>You get my point.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, someone explain to me how buying tamales in a parking lot is any different than accepting food from my neighbors or buying it from a roach coach. It's not, really. Like I told my friend on Twitter, it's not like they were in a back alley selling crack, stolen watches... and tamales! I seriously doubt food made for the public would be made in unsanitary conditions. I suppose it *could* happen, but no, again, I choose the benefit of the doubt.</div><div><br /></div><div>Bottom line here is... Christ would have eaten those tamales from the poor folks trying to make a buck for the holidays.. I'm confident of that. (They were chicken, not pork thankfully haha) That's good enough for me.</div><div><br /></div><div>Then again, they *were* made with lard... Perhaps He wouldn't have after all. LOL</div><div><br /></div><div>~~Becka</div>Beckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-5684617540405327332008-11-22T11:43:00.000-08:002008-11-22T12:05:35.002-08:00The Adventure That Is My LifeOkay, so yesterday, I decided to go to KFC to pick up dinner for the fam. As I'm leaving, DH gives me a grin and tells me to pick up some wood while I'm out, as he wanted to start a fire. With all the camping we've done this year, we depleted our wood supply. *SIGH* All right, I'll go, but only because I need to get dog food, too.<br /><br />So I get to Safeway, and notice a minivan with the driver door wide open, lights on, nobody's home. I didn't think much of it, I thought perhaps the owner was scrounging for something and I just couldn't see them. But it still raised a red flag for me. My daughter Simone and I go in, pick up the dog food and the wood, pay, then go back out to the car. As I'm loading up, I notice the van is still wide open with no one in it. I warred with my own conscience at that moment, because I was so very hungry, you see, but being somewhat of a goodie-two-shoes, I knew *I* would want to know if I accidentally left my car door open.<div><br /></div><div>I go back inside to the customer service desk and wait for about 5 minutes to tell someone about this, after I got the license plate number of the car. Finally, someone took down the info I had and announced it over the loudspeaker in the store. Feeling good for doing a good deed, I go back out to the parking lot with my daughter, only to find the minivan was gone. I'm happy the person who owned the vehicle (I'm assuming) drove off after realizing their mistake, however, I became extremely annoyed that I'd "wasted" 5 minutes of my time going back into the store to do my good deed for the day when the person had already left the parking lot.</div><div><br /></div><div>At this point, I keep telling myself I'm racking up treasures in Heaven. Treasures in Heaven, Becka. LOL</div><div><br /></div><div>Okay, so we drive to the KFC, order our food, and the guy taking my cash has an "Are you kidding me?!?" moment. My order was $30.04. I handed him $40.04 in cash. This kid hit some button that didn't show him the change he needed to give me, so he LITERALLY, and I kid you not, hit the cancel key to re-enter it so he could figure out my change. I'm staring at this kid in disbelief, mind, because my own seven-year-old could tell you I should get back a ten dollar bill. YOU knew that, right? Because I couldn't believe this kid wasn't that bright. Maybe I didn't understand what he was doing and he had to do that for the drawer count after hours. But I don't think so. WOW.</div><div><br /></div><div>So after we get our food, I have to remind them of one other meal I'd ordered (they'd forgotten it in the bag), then I go back out to the parking lot only to find someone had parked their GIANT SUV about 6 inches away from the driver's side of my car. Like, literally, I'm surprised my side-view mirror was still attached! My daughter had to slide in from the other side while I went around to assess whether or not I could get in the car.</div><div><br /></div><div>Despite my giant 8-month-pregnant belly, there was NO way. Not even a super skinny person could have done it. </div><div><br /></div><div>At this point, I'm so upset (low blood sugar + pregnant + are you kidding me moments = cranky Becka), but I'm one of those "non-confrontational" people. I'll get in your face if you get in mine, and I'm a biatch on the road, but I don't go looking for a fight. So while marching back into the restaurant and giving the SUV owner a piece of my mind made my inner dark side grin with glee, I resisted the urge. If I'd had a piece of paper and a pen, I WOULD have left a note on their car. I was sorely disappointed I didn't have any. GRRR</div><div><br /></div><div>In order to appease my raging temper, images of slashing tires and keying their passenger door flitted through my mind with unabashed abandon, no doubt cancelling out the "treasures in Heaven" I had just racked up for my good deed of the day not 15 minutes earlier. </div><div><br /></div><div>Therefore, I had to get into my car through the passenger side and climb over the console into the driver's seat while being both overweight and 8 months pregnant. It must have been comical. I think I sat on the emergency brake. Fortunately, there wasn't anyone else in the parking lot to observe, other than my daughter, who thankfully, didn't laugh at her mama.</div><div><br /></div><div>I hate people.</div><div><br /></div><div>LOL</div><div><br /></div><div>~~Becka</div>Beckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-34336182811482965242008-11-19T21:43:00.000-08:002008-11-19T21:56:58.978-08:00The Dreaded Dentist<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rfh4Mhp-a6U&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rfh4Mhp-a6U&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Oh yeah, the dentist. DH and I are actively trying to spend our flexible spending account for health related issues through his old work, because if we don't use it by November 30th, we lose it.<br /><br />So, we've been to the eye doctor, gotten new glasses for him, me, and our youngest daughter Simone. Now, it's on to the dentist.<br /><br />They called us out of the blue to schedule cleanings for us, so we decided to go. I knew I had some cavities which I neglected to take care of due to the hubbub of my pregnancy, and let's face it, my own procrastination. Well, they wanted to EXTRACT my wisdom teeth! GAH! No, didn't want to go through that while pregnant.<br /><br />Come to find out, my dentist tells me after the age of 25, they don't like to extract wisdom teeth unless they REALLY REALLY have to, because recovery time is so much longer and painful for us fogies. I have a couple of cavities in them, but she was confident she could fill them rather than pull them. She didn't want me to be in agony with only a few weeks until baby bunting is born. Nice lady. We like this doc.<br /><br />So, I schedule my first filling appointment for the very next day after my cleaning (which was today) and now my teefies hurt. :P Of course, that is to be expected with all the poking, proding, and **shudder** drilling they were doing. I have to go in next Tuesday to get the other side worked on, as well as a third appointment yet to be scheduled. ACK!<br /><br />Not all of my fillings are for cavities, per se. Some of my teeth are cracked on the top, needing to be filled in lest they become top cavities or what have you. I dunno, I'm not a dentist. Thankfully, they break it all up so I don't have to endure a marathon dental hell.<br /><br />But it does mean all my appointments have to be close together in order to use up the flexible spending. And damn Thanksgiving for closing down the dentist! That third appointment I've got to make will likely be in December, meaning I'll have to pay out of pocket for that one. But oh well. At least I'll have all my dental crappola done once Sophie arrives, AND, I don't have to have my wisdom teeth extracted!<br /><br />The dentist did say they have to be diligently brushed more than the other teeth, since they're against my actual jawbone and hard to get a brush back there (hence my cavities), but just because you have wisdom teeth doesn't mean they have to come out. Truth be told, they've never bothered me. I had enough room in my mouth for them to come in without crowding my other teeth, and they came in straight. Other than filling them, I've had no problems. So yay! No horrific torture for me! <br /><br />The dentist did keep telling me I didn't "look" 8 months pregnant, which I'm still trying to decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing... I seem obviously pregnant to myself and to friends, and the dental assistants had no problem assessing the state of my pregnant-ness. Of course, the doctor didn't see me STANDING, which could have been part of the problem. When I sit, I do resemble just a fat lady with a Buddha belly. LOL<br /><br />Maybe I *should* take offense to that after all... :P<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-29434371145226067532008-11-13T21:26:00.000-08:002008-11-13T21:43:23.827-08:00Operation Christmas ChildI heard about Operation Christmas Child back in July, but decided to put off blogging about it until closer to... Christmas. I'd never heard of it before, but it's apparently a big organization, bent on giving children in need gifts for Christmas from total strangers in a shoebox. Here's the link to the webpage:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/">http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/</a><br /><br />It's a Christian organization, in case you haven't put 2+2 together, but you don't have to have anything Christian in the shoebox or BE a Christian to donate. Here's the link to how to pack the shoebox:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/">http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Pack_A_Shoe_Box/</a><br /><br />Basically, you find a standard size shoebox OR one of those shoebox sized Rubbermaid containers. You don't wrap the gifts inside, but you can wrap the box and the lid separately, so don't wrap it as a single gift. They have to open the boxes to inspect what's inside to make sure people aren't giving knives and shards of glass, etc.<br /><br />You determine if your box will be for a boy or a girl, and you print out their nifty boy/girl card on their site along with a $7 donation (to cover the cost of shipping and such) and put this inside your box as well. You also determine the age group of your child, so toddler, child, or teen.<br /><br />Then, you go to any store you like and buy small items that would make a child happy. Here's a list of their gift ideas.<br /><br /><span class="block-container"><h1>GIFT IDEAS</h1><p> <strong>TOYS</strong><br />small cars, balls, dolls, stuffed animals, kazoos, harmonicas, yo-yos, jump ropes, small Etch A Sketch®, toys that light up or make noise (with extra batteries), Slinky®, etc.<br /><br /><strong>SCHOOL SUPPLIES</strong><br />pens, pencils and sharpener, crayons or markers, stamps and ink pad sets, writing pads or paper, solar calculators, coloring and picture books, etc.<br /><br /><strong>HYGIENE ITEMS</strong><br />toothbrush, toothpaste, mild bar soap (in a plastic bag), comb, washcloth, etc.<br /><br /><strong>OTHER</strong><br />Hard candy and lollipops (please double bag all candy), mints, gum, T-shirts, socks, ball caps; sunglasses, hair clips, toy jewelry, watches, flashlights (with extra batteries)<br /><br /><strong>A PERSONAL NOTE</strong><br />In a separate envelope, you may enclose a note to the child and a photo of yourself or your family. (If you include your name and address, the child may write back.)<br /><br /><strong><em>DO NOT INCLUDE:</em></strong><br />Used or damaged items; war-related items such as toy guns, knives or military figures; chocolate or food; out-of-date candy; liquids or lotions; medications or vitamins; breakable items such as snowglobes or glass containers; aerosol can.</p>~*~*~</span><br /><br />If you want to send a shoebox, you need to do it fairly quickly, as the drop off times are this month. Here's the info:<br /><br />Place a rubber band around each closed shoe box and drop off at the Collection Center nearest you during our collection week November 17 - 24.<br /><br />For locations and hours of collection visit our <a href="http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/Drop_Off_Locations/">Drop-Off Locations</a> page where you can find the nearest place to take your shoe box by entering your ZIP Code or you can call 1-800-353-5949.<br /><br />~*~*~<br /><br />I just love this idea, it's cheap, and if you go on You Tube and look up Operation Christmas Child, you'll find so many inspiring videos of kids who literally light up upon opening their box full of awesome "wonders" to them. I've become a sap since I've had my own children, and watching TV shows and commercials with children in need, sad, or injured, makes me tear up and ball like a baby myself. So I think I'm going to do this, which means I need to get out and shop NOW, but how awesome for some little kid somewhere in the world who can have a Christmas morning because of you. :) Make the world a better place, one child at a time!<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-14887967792530680352008-11-08T11:47:00.000-08:002008-11-08T12:05:07.272-08:0031 Weeks PregnantI'm 31 weeks pregnant today! Which means "little" Sophie is about 4 pounds and 17 inches long. At my last ultrasound, she was 3.3 pounds, which was 3 1/2 weeks ago. Considering the baby will be gaining about 1/2 pound a week until birth, I figure since then she's got to be around 4 lbs.<br /><br />My Braxton Hicks contractions are getting a little more "powerful" than a mere tightening in my belly. Whenever I get them, they last for about an hour or so. They're more uncomfortable than they've been in the past, so whenever I get them, I'm very aware of how long they last and how frequent they come. I've never had a baby *this* early, but dang, these contractions sometimes feel like the beginnings of real labor, so I'm more in tune with them.<br /><br />Of course, it could be my own anxious-ness to have the baby. :P<br /><br />My next doc appt. is on the 13th, next Thursday, and I'm assuming at that point my doc is going to have me schedule my final ultrasound to check baby's weight at 36 weeks. I have 9 more weeks to go, but I'm thinking it's actually going to be sooner than that, since the doc wants to induce me early, and there's talk of doing so before the end of the year. I'm kind of hoping the baby will come on her own in December so I won't have to be induced. I'm not a big fan of "La-tee-da-feelin'-goo-<span style="font-weight: bold;">HOLY-CRAP-I'M-IN-HARD-LABOR</span>!!" :P<br /><br />Anywho, just a quick update with me and bebe. We're doing good, I feel like a stuffed turkey most days, sometimes describing it as feeling "15 months pregnant". LOL The only thing that sucks about Braxton Hicks is the tightening also pulls on my ligaments and I've got to lay down or risk Deep Hurting. Ah well, par for the course, I suppose.<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-21173630640467674702008-11-06T00:12:00.000-08:002008-11-06T00:51:05.582-08:00Life, Personal & PoliticalWow, so many things to ponder, I don't even know where to start. I'm pretty darned uncomfortable these days, and I can't believe I have just over 9 weeks to go in this pregnancy. UGH. Thankfully, I'm not going to be allowed to go past my due date, and in fact, have probably a 100% chance of delivering early, due to when my doctor wants to induce me. So yay on that front.<br /><br />Scary thing is, DH was recently laid off from his work, meaning, we'll have to pay for Cobra to keep our health insurance unless he can get a job soon. We might just pay for Cobra until after the baby's born anyhow, since we've already paid all our co-pays with this baby. Good news is, because all the programmers and designers at Jive Software were in their late 20's, early 30's, the premiums for health insurance are relatively low, due to the collective age and good health of the company. Meaning, DH and I won't have to pay out the nose for Cobra. I thought we might end up paying $1500 a month, but it turns out it's only about $650, plus another $125 for dental.<br /><br />His work laid him off on Oct. 10th, but allowed him to stay on until Oct 31st to wrap up loose ends and such. Because the company was very nice, they decided his official last day was Nov. 1st, so his health insurance wouldn't run out until the end of November. I thought that was very awesome of them, something they totally didn't have to do.<br /><br />Which means this nation's elections were specifically poignant this time around for the Goings family. DH and I are registered Republicans, but we could not bring ourselves to get behind McCain. His policies were vague where Obama spoke of specific plans, not to mention his age and his unfamiliarity with technology. Or his "yeah yeah yeah we'll get to that" stance on global warming and what we need to do to turn things around.<br /><br />I voted for Obama, I'll come right out and say it. Why? Because I want health care reform. I want to find other energy sources that don't harm the planet. I want to get out from underneath the Middle East's thumb with regards to foreign oil. I want more jobs here in the U.S. of A. I want the dang national debt to get smaller, if at all possible! Geez! I want my kids to have the opportunity to go to college or at least get college funding if DH and I can't hack it for whatever reason. If these things mean higher taxes, well, then it's got to be done. Taxes aren't necessarily evil. Where does the federal funding for these kinds of projects come from anyway? If we want this country to change, we've all got to do our parts.<br /><br />Aside from the issues, I just could not stand country bumpkin Sarah Palin. Enough with the winking and the you betchas. Her Christian faith wasn't enough to sway me, nor was the fact she was female. And even the tried and true stance that Republicans are traditionally against abortion wasn't "enough" for me to vote with my party this time around. Not to mention the fact I've become somewhat ashamed to be a Republican in the first place with people shouting "terrorist" and "kill him" at McCain's rallies. Even during McCain's concession speech, they were vehemently booing Obama. Did you watch Obama's acceptance speech? He praised McCain and the crowd was respectful and clapped for him. Where did this hatred in the GOP come from? It disgusts me, frankly.<br /><br />I'm not a "Democrat", but I'm not sure I'm Republican either, at this point. Heck, even now, I'm not sure what either party stands for.<br /><br />The fact Obama is a black man never even entered my mind, and shame on those people who didn't vote for him because of it. I must admit, I got a little misty when they announced he'd gone over 270 electoral votes to claim the presidency. My children got to witness history being made. On that note, so did I! I always thought a woman might get there before a black man. But I believe it was Obama's likeability and his clear intelligence that won people over. Imagine, someone who doesn't make stupid jokes and stumble all over himself in the White House! What a breath of fresh air! :P Seriously, who wants a president who acts like your crazy Uncle Jethro you never want to put up with at family BBQ's? We've had enough of that for the past 8 years. God forbid we have more of that with Sarah Palin as veep.<br /><br />I'm very proud to be an American right now. Not just because the guy I voted for won, but because I believe the best candidate won. And if he can live up to his promises, he just might be one of our greatest presidents. If he doesn't, he could turn out to be one of our worst. Only time will tell. There's a tremendous amount of pressure on the guy right now, but if there's one thing Obama is, it's cool under pressure. Let's hope he brings some of that into his administration.<br /><br />And let's hope this country is finally headed in the right direction with our heads out of our butts and our priorities straight.<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-14065034738938915062008-10-30T22:01:00.000-07:002008-10-30T22:18:02.558-07:00Good NewsWell, I saw my doctor today and have some good news to report. First of all, the placenta moved away from my cervix, so I no longer have placenta previa and I'm all clear for a vaginal birth. Yay!<br /><br />Second of all, I've only gained half a pound since the last appointment. Considering that's probably the baby's weight, since it is now putting on a half pound every week until birth, I'm pretty stoked! :D<br /><br />Also, my doc said she wants to induce me in the week before my due date of Jan. 10th regardless of the weight of the baby. Because I'm a diabetic that's on medication, they have to monitor me very closely in my final weeks, moreso than a diabetic who's controlling their diabetes with diet. So she mentioned the week between the 3rd and the 10th, in there somewhere. DH mentioned, "Or the 31st?" She looked at him and said, "Oh sure, for the tax break? You bet!" LOL<br /><br />I suppose the baby will be healthy enough at that point being 38-39 weeks old. She will be at term by the end of the year. Hopefully she was serious about the end of December induction! LOL Maybe I can whittle her down as the weeks go on. Heh I have to go in twice a week in December so they can hook me up to the fetal monitors to make sure there's no stress on the baby. I just don't want to be in the hospital on Christmas day. Baby can come before or after Christmas, but not ON! I want to be home opening gifties with a warm fire, some cinnamon rolls and holiday cheer, darn it! <br /><br />I bought a few things for the baby just in case she decides to come before I have my baby shower (many smooches to Joleine and Michelle for throwing me one. :). I have about 5 onesies, 3 jammies, 3 pairs of socks, and 3 hats. I know, not much, right? Jim's mom already bought us the uber pack-n-play complete with a baby changing station, mobile, lights and music doo-dad, and an adjustable bed height for infant or toddler, along with a carseat/stroller combo. So, if baby comes early, all we really need now is some diapers and wipes. I'd considered buying a giant box of diapers from Costco, but read online that you should really only buy a few packages of newborn-size diapers, since the baby grows so fast. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do about that situation. We shall see. The rest of my kids didn't grow like weeds, so perhaps Sophie will be the same way. <br /><br />Anyhow, just thought I'd share that info. Funny thing is, the tech at the ultrasound told me baby's head was down, but my doc found baby's heartbeat high up on my belly, which means she's probably sitting head up at the moment. Guess the wee one is still rolling around in there! Let's hope she rolls back into position before D-day... :P<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-92154434945477868722008-10-28T20:42:00.000-07:002008-10-28T21:08:05.311-07:00The Goings Last Camping Adventure....for awhile at leastIn case you didn't know, DH recently got laid off from his job. Couple this with the fact I'm just a housewife, who happens to be pregnant, and the sudden, dramatic downturn of our economy, this doesn't bode well.<br /><br />However, there are a few irons in the fire for my ol' hubby and his job prospects, so all is not hopeless. Due to this craptastic crapfest, we decided we needed to get away for awhile and relax. As you know, we've gone camping a few times in the past, but never "by ourselves". We've always gone with friends. This time around, we decided to meander on up to Ft. Stevens, Oregon on our own, a place we've actually never visited - the only stretch of American soil to be shelled by the Japanese in 1942 (as Hawaii wasn't a state when they bombed Pearl Harbor).<br /><br />Anyhow, it was awesome to camp out there, amidst the many different batteries protecting the mouth of the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean. We had fun exploring the catacombs of the bunkers and the old giant gun pits.<br /><br />But that wasn't our only adventure. The first night, we discovered our air mattress had a hole in it. We tried patching it, but to no avail. Thankfully, DH had just bought an air mattress for the kids, a "king" mattress, which is actually two twin mattresses that will zip together to make a "bigger" bed. Well, that first night, they were sound asleep, and we didn't have the heart to steal it from them then. So we "roughed it" on the hard ground with just our blankies and two half-inch thick foam pads we had. You might think this is what camping is all about, but not when you're 7 months pregnant! Holy cow, I couldn't sleep at all that first night. I was so uncomfortable.<br /><br />Not to mention the LEGION of raccoons that descended upon us once we were safe in our tents. Once we'd doused our lantern, they were bold enough to enter our campsite while me and my oldest daughter were sitting at the campire. They were trying to get into our chip and bread duffel bag. LOL Okay. So I shooed all FOUR of them away - yes, four - and my daughter was freaked out while they snorted and hissed at me, little buggers.<br /><br />I then proceeded to put our dry goods bags in our van which was just a few feet away from our site thinking, "They can't open the ice chests. We're all good."<br /><br />We finally go to bed, and a little later, we hear THUMP. THUMP. THUMP. Little bastardos CAN get into the ice chests! Let this be a lesson to y'all. So we put a few of our heavy items on top of the ice chests while DH shooed away SIX of them. The four came back with two of their friends, I guess. Cute as all get out, but dang, are they little pests! One even tried to make off with our kids' clothing bag which had their toothpaste inside, which we figured they could smell. LOL He was snorting, huffing and puffing, trying his hardest to drag it away, but it was just too heavy, I suppose. We got a good laugh out of it all, especially when raccoons lined the pathway to the bathrooms a few yards away. Fun times when you're heavily pregnant and have to get up 2 to 3 times due to shivering.<br /><br />Yeah, when I shiver, it makes me have to go more often for some reason. And I was shivering. Why? Because it wasn't just cold, it was BASTOGNE cold. Holy cow.<br /><br />So the next night, we steal the air mattresses from our kids, tell them to deal with sleeping on the ground (with our pads and a few extra blankies as more padding to lie on), but even these mattresses suck due to the gaping CHASM between them! Sure, you can zip them up, but there's still a crack about 2 to 3 inches wide in the middle. And since the nights were BASTOGNE cold, cuddling is a must to stay warm. So that crack didn't do any wonders for DH's back, lemme tell you. LOL<br /><br />We managed to go for a family bike ride to one of the batteries, which was fun, and another day, I was exhausted (due to lack of sleep), so DH took the kids for a longer ride. We had good food and many a roaring fire, played Apples 2 Apples Jr. with the kids, and had a fun time. <br /><br />We originally were going to stay there for four days, but the cold and the uncomfortable mattress situation made us come home a day early. But it was fun nonetheless.<br /><br />You might think we're crazy for going camping at the end of October, but it was only because baby Sophie is going to make her debut sometime in January, and camping with a newborn isn't going to be pleasant. So while DH might be able to take the kids on his own, I won't be able to go camping with the baby until she's older. Fort Stevens was our "one last hurrah" as a family. Also, there was NO ONE else at the camp site aside from a few older folks in their campers, which was probably why the legion of raccoons descended upon us as easy picken's. :P<br /><br />We liked the empty campsite because we never had to wait for the potty and we always found an open shower. (Yes, there are showers, we don't like "roughing it" camping in the back woods). Well, let me rephrase. DH would probably like that, but I like my car-camping. I don't necessarily mind if there are showers nearby or not, but there MUST be some sort of outhouse/toilet/honeybucket on hand. I can't stand hiking, so trekking to the campsite with gear from the car doesn't appeal to me.<br /><br />Anyhow. :) DH has his perspective of the camping trip on his blog at <a href="http://www.jimgoings.com">www.jimgoings.com</a>, or you can see our camping pics at: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimgoings/sets/72157608393198748/">http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimgoings/sets/72157608393198748/</a><br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-41042888986142266972008-10-20T16:28:00.000-07:002008-10-20T16:50:14.582-07:00What the Heck is Wrong with Other People's Kids?!?Okay, folks, time for a rant. What the heck is wrong with other people's kids? Seriously?<br /><br />Today I was taking my kids to their art class. We have to go to the Cultural Arts Center, which is a converted Lutheran Church, and their classes are downstairs. There's a little swinging gate on the stairs down the kids love to take turns opening.<br /><br />Anyway, we go downstairs, I drop off the kids and head on back upstairs. When I'm literally on the top stair right at the swinging gate, a troupe of four kids go racing by me, none of which say, "Excuse me" or even look at me as I'm forced to wait for them to thunder on by before I can continue on my way. When I do, one more child who must have been in the rear of the pack comes around the corner and literally PUSHES me out of the way so he can get by me. PUSHES!!!<br /><br />I was this close > < to yelling, "Excuse YOU!" But then came mom, who didn't say one word to me, didn't even look at me. Nothing like "Excuse us" or "I'm so sorry". I was appalled! Now, keep in mind these kids are older, maybe 7,8,9 years old - they should know how to be polite. I might expect a toddler or little kid to push by me, but older kids? And not even MOM was polite??<br /><br />It takes a lot to offend me, folks, but today I was. I don't know if it was the pregnancy "Bitch" hormones going into overdrive or the fact it was my snacktime and I needed to boost my blood sugar. Perhaps it was just plain ol' righteous indignation.<br /><br />Because seriously, if you don't instill MANNERS into your kids, no wonder they turn into little hellions.<br /><br />My second daughter Miriam asked me the other day while we were at Fred Meyer's, a big grocery chain here in Oregon, "Mommy, how come every time we come here we hear that?"<br /><br />"Hear what?" I say.<br /><br />"That baby crying."<br /><br />I listen, and sure enough, there's some kid wailing away a few aisles over. I guess I'd just tuned it out.<br /><br />"Well, I don't know," I answer. "Guess someone's cranky."<br /><br />So when we catch up with said squawking child, he's throwing a tantrum in the cart and mom is shopping like NOTHING'S GOING ON!!! Uhm, woman, your baby's crying, and you might think ignoring it will make the child stop, but I'm here to tell you that you've gotta instill some kind of DISCIPLINE to your child, yes, even in the MIDDLE OF FREAKIN' FREDDY'S IF YA GOTTA!!!<br /><br />When my kids act up at the store (on those very rare occasions), I speak softly to them, so no one else can hear (because really, it's no one else's business). I say, "You keep this up, I'm going to smack you right here in the store, I don't care who's watching."<br /><br />My kids, knowing that I MEAN what I say, back off and behave afterwards, perhaps all the while misty-eyed at the thought of Mommy punishing them in public.<br /><br />I'm telling you right now, I was downright afraid of my mother when I was a kid. She didn't ask for respect, she demanded it. I'm not talking fear like OMG she's going to beat me, but fear as in I knew she meant every word she said and I didn't dare test her limits. This is the same kind of mommy I wanted to be with my children, albeit loving on the same token.<br /><br />I love you to pieces, but if you give me attitude, disrespect, or disobey me, there WILL be Hell to pay.<br /><br />Now I don't beat my children. Please. I do believe in smacking their hand, and we have, on occasion, spanked our kids. But our kids learned early on not to do the things that prompted spanking, and now, it's very RARE we ever have to do it. Just the threat usually reins them in.<br /><br />Of course, we also teach them to be respectful, to wait until it's their turn to speak, never to push anyone, say "please" and "thank you" not as an afterthought, but as the first thing you say when someone does something nice for you.<br /><br />This just seems like common sense to me. My husband and I did NOT get "lucky" four times over. We were not blessed with overly angelic children. We simply taught them early on the meaning of respect and that they are expected to obey our rules. Why is that so hard for some parents? I just don't get it.<br /><br />Perhaps I can't expect too much from that mom who had no manners herself...<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-77155770242914382602008-10-19T22:36:00.000-07:002008-10-19T22:51:07.708-07:00Random Ponderings...I'm officially 7 months pregnant - into the final stretch - the third trimester. Baby is about 15 - 16 inches long and weighing in at about 2 1/2 pounds. I'm going to have another ultrasound on Wednesday to measure the size of the baby and the location of the placenta. Last ultrasound, it was 2 cm away from my cervix. Apparently, it can float away during pregnancy and attach itself elsewhere, so they want to monitor that and see where it goes (if it goes).<br /><br />What's really weird is despite feeling the baby kick and my expanding waistline, and having to make a 3-point turn in bed just to roll over, it's hard to wrap my head around the fact there's a baby in there! I guess it's just been so long since I've been pregnant. But it's not much longer before we'll have a new little one in the family! My mom-in-law just sent us off our gifties of a new carseat/stroller combo and a pack-n-play. <br /><br />Friends are talking about throwing me a baby shower and I need to go buy some stuff as well. I just want to be prepared. I'll probably buy some newborn diapers, wipes, and some onesies and jammies. At least we'll have the carseat - that's a big load off! (Thanks, Mom! :D)<br /><br />Aside from baby news, I just recently went to a book club meeting to discuss my book <a style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" href="http://www.mybookstoreandmore.com/shop/product.da/the-wolverine-and-the-rose">THE WOLVERINE AND THE ROSE</a> with the ladies at Powell's Books in Beaverton. Pretty awesome, I've got an "in" over there. The lady who coordinates the book club is also the same woman who does the signings AND who orders the romance novels for the store. So she told me to send her all my ISBN info on my other print books and she'll order them. They love to support local authors, and I think that's just fabulous! :D<br /><br />It's too awesome to say I've got books on the shelves at Powell's! :D Just need to conquer Powell's downtown next...<br /><br />I got my cover for my latest book coming soon! It will be released in November from <a href="http://www.champagnebooks.com">Champagne Books</a>, and it's entitled <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">ONCE A DREAMER</span>. Here it is along with the blurb:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.rebeccagoings.com/images/onceadreamercover.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px;" src="http://www.rebeccagoings.com/images/onceadreamercover.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">When her adoptive mother dies in a bank shootout, orphan Karina Vadislav is sent to live with Patrick Baker, her uncle in Dodge City, Kansas. After years of abuse, she flees, meeting Benjamin Sawyer, a gambler with a sordid past. He agrees to help her claim her inheritance in Topeka, posing as her husband to keep her safe.</span><br /><br><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">But there are men who are out for Ben’s blood and will stop at nothing to see him dead. Coupled with Karina’s bloodthirsty uncle, neither of them is safe on the trail.</span><br /><br><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">When bullets fly and truths are revealed, will Ben and Karina’s fragile love survive the ultimate betrayal?</span><br /><br />~*~*~<br /><br />Anyhow, that's all for now! <br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-85466962810228916752008-10-14T22:51:00.000-07:002008-10-15T07:25:04.638-07:00FINALLY Updated My WebsiteIn case you haven't noticed, my website has been full of dead links forever. Mainly because DH and I switched Internet providers an eon ago and I never got around to having him make me an FTP log in to update things. Not to mention the fact that two of my publishers also totally changed their eBookstores in the interim. SIGH<br /><br />Anyhow, I've finally poked around in there and updated all my buy links for every single book, as well as updated the new releases featured on the front page. I still have a few things left to do, as the print release of LEATHER & LACE isn't on my site yet. But if you see another dead link or a typo or something that seems out of place, let me know.<br /><br />Otherwise, you can check it out at: <a href="http://www.rebeccagoings.com">http://www.RebeccaGoings.com</a><br /><br />Who knows how many sales I might have missed out on with all those dead links? Yikes! Laziness does not PAY folks. Nyuk nyuk.<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-50404996552844155972008-10-10T21:39:00.000-07:002008-10-18T20:39:59.774-07:00Okay, This Thing is the Coolest Device I Have EVER OwnedYes, yes, I know I already have a post about this, but I've just got to spread the Gospel of iPhone to the masses. I have a 3G, which retails for $199. Considering everything this nifty little device does, that's a SCREAMIN' deal.<br /><br />Let's review what it does for ME, Beckabecks:<br /><br />It's a calculator. Handy for when I'm at the store.<br /><br />It's a notepad. Handy for when I want to jot down a grocery list or reminders to myself.<br /><br />It tells me the temperature of any city I choose. Excellent for finding out what the beach might be like this weekend.<br /><br />It's a clock.<br /><br />It's a map. Enter any address and it will pop up a map. If you're in the map app (lol), you can also enter in say... "Thai Restaurant" and it will show you all the local Thai restaurants in the area. Oh, would you like to call them? Here's their number. Just push "call". Do they have a website? Yes? Why don't you browse it?<br /><br />Which brings me to it's connected to the Internet via the cell network. So you never have a "disconnect" to the Internet. Nope. Check email? You bet. Browse You Tube? Go ahead! In fact, you can turn your iPhone sideways and it will play the video in a "widescreen" format. Can you go to websites? Need you ask? And no, it's not the craptastic text only websites. You can totally see every picture and every inch of pink on Becka's Babble. :P <br /><br />And let's not forget that if you have to squint to read that text, you just pinch your touch screen to zoom into the text and/or website. You can spread your fingers wide to zoom back out.<br /><br />It's a hand-held game device. There's an app store with hundreds of games you can either pay for - and some for free! Some apps aren't even games. You can download the dictionary, for example. Or the Bible. Or a bajillion other things. One of the things I downloaded was a Diabetes program that keeps track of your blood sugars throughout the day.<br /><br />And yes, I bought Bejeweled 2 for it. Love that game, as well as some other word games, solitaire, hangman, and an app for Pandora, the FREE Internet streaming radio (for lack of a better example.) You put in an artist you like to listen to, and it will pull up that person, and play *other* artists that are similar, that you might like. Pandora is cool in that it's not just for the iPhone, it's also online. You should check it out.<br /><br />Oh, did I mention that this nifty thing is also an iPod? Sure, I have an iPod already, but I could ditch it if I wanted.<br /><br />It also does awesome texting, as it's smart, with a "qwerty keyboard" (all touch screen, of course, no buttons), and if you happen to make a typo, it suggests a correction for you, and 9 times out of 10, it guesses the word you were trying to type. It also remembers previous texts, so you can browse through your older texts to your contacts.<br /><br />It's a calendar, and I can make appointments on whatever day I choose.<br /><br />It's a camera. Want to take a picture of something cool? No prob. Point and shoot. Want to email that photo? Okay!<br /><br />Oh yeah. And it's a phone.<br /><br />:)<br /><br />I never thought I'd use one as much as I have used this little thing. I was so wrong. Now I wonder how I lived so long without it.<br /><br />I love the thing so much I've named it "Vera", after Jayne's beloved gun in Firefly. LOL<br /><br />Seriously, folks, if you've been thinking of getting one, you really should. $199 is NOT that expensive for everything it does. And I'm just in awe of all the apps that are available for it. My phone could do SO much more if I downloaded more apps.<br /><br />THIS is why I will always keep it charged and always keep it close to my person. Never again will my phone be lying useless, dead on the counter. Forever and ever, amen.<br /><br />**snort**<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-86780555519031960622008-10-06T11:27:00.000-07:002008-10-06T11:42:45.110-07:00Becka's Newest ToyYes, DH loves me... Yes, DH loves me. Yes, DH loves me... for my iPhone tells me so! :D<br /><br />Yes, that's right, DH gave me an early birthday present this weekend, my very own iPhone 3G:<br /><br /><center><img src="http://www.compareindia.com/media/images/2008/jun/img_51471_iphone_wb.jpg" /></center><br /><br />I've wanted an iPhone for a long time, pretty much ever since DH got his about a year ago. Thing is, I'm not really a "gadget" person, and put off getting one for myself because I thought it would be too much for me.<br /><br />Turns out, this phone is exactly what I need. My old cell phone was this archaic flip phone from like 1950 or something (lol). Texting on it was a PITA, as you had to press the number buttons a few times to get to the "letter" on that button. Gah. I always forgot the thing, and never charged it, because I never used it.<br /><br />But the iPhone is so much more than just a PHONE. Sure, I don't have many people to call, and I basically have a "phone" just so I can make the random phone call or when something "bad" might happen - flat tire, dead battery, etc. But this gadget lets me connect to the Internet. No matter where I am, I can check email, visit my websites, check the news, play games, listen to music on the built in iPod feature...<br /><br />With all the bells and whistles, it pretty much ensures that I'll keep it charged and with me at all times, much to DH's relief. Every time he calls me, I never answer, because like I said, the phone was never charged, or I forgot it at home. :P I don't think I'll be doing that anymore!<br /><br />Woohoo! I have been assimilated!<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-19936416170723319062008-10-03T22:41:00.000-07:002008-10-04T00:49:53.958-07:00Becka's Birthday BashHello everyone! If you've been following my books for the past few years, you might know I hold an annual birthday party for myself every year. :) It's called Becka's Birthday Bash, and it lasts for an entire week, the week of my birthday, October 9th.<br /><br />This year, it will be held from Oct. 6th to Oct. 10th on my author loop, <a href="http://groups.google.com/group/themagicofromance">The Magic of Romance</a>. I will be posting excerpts, posting fun facts, fun questions, holding contests and giving away sweet wrapped "mystery" birthday gifties. :D If you'd like to come and partay with me, you can join my group at:<br /><br /><a href="http://groups.google.com/group/themagicofromance">http://groups.google.com/group/themagicofromance</a><br /><br />The best part is, all of my author friends are coming as well! (Well, most of them. :P) You'll be reading their excerpts and entering their contests as well! So it won't just be a Becka Bonanza. :D<br /><br />I'll be giving away some sweet prizes - you don't want to miss it!<br /><br />Remember, Oct. 6th thru Oct. 10th, Monday through Friday of next week. Hope to see you there!<br /><br /><a href="http://groups.google.com/group/themagicofromance">http://groups.google.com/group/themagicofromance</a><br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-67191007810718775552008-09-30T20:21:00.001-07:002008-09-30T20:55:43.773-07:00Well, It Was Inevitable...I am starting to gain weight nowadays. :( Thankfully, it's not a lot, fluctuating between 3 and 5 pounds so far. Some days it's up, others it's back down. Of course, it could be due to the funky digital scale I have...<br /><br />But the baby is fast approaching 2 pounds herself, so I know it's not all body fat. In fact, I can still fit into my "medium fat pants" comfortably, AND bend over to tie my shoes. Heheh I can tell it will only be a matter of time, though, before baby will expand beyond these pants' waistline.<br /><br />Yes, I am planning a trip out to the maternity store at some point to buy clothes. I'm tired of looking merely fat rather than pregnant. I need more shirts with an empire waist! LOL I look OBVIOUSLY pregnant when I wear those maternity shirts, but when I just wear a big t-shirt, it's "Yup, there goes a fat lady." :P<br /><br />I'm a little bummed the weight has started to creep up on me. Hopefully I can keep it down to a marginally acceptable amount. I expect I might gain another five or so just due to the baby's weight. SIGH<br /><br />I've thought about getting into my exercise regime again, doing my walking videos, but the problem is my feet have started to swell to epic proportions from just doing normal, everyday things. I think I have varicose veins in my feet, seriously. My mom has spider veins in her feet, so I think it's hereditary. It's sooo bad, though, like a hundred times worse than what Mom ever had. Friends freak out and think I have some kind of broken foot because of my large purple-ish "bruises". Ever since my blood volume has increased during this pregnancy, one of these bruises has just been swelling and aching. I can barely get through my house-hold chores without having to take frequent breaks and prop up my feet. It's getting worse the farther along I'm getting.<br /><br />Even my Diabetes doctor said I should see a vascular specialist for it. I have some discoloration on my legs due to Diabetes, but the "bruises" aren't caused by it. It's so bad, I've considered getting an Ace bandage to wrap up my foot to keep pressure on the spot so it can't bulge out. Gross, I know. And probably TMI. But hey, all this talk about my "cadaver foot" (as DH likes to say) is leading up to the point that I'm not sure I could do my exercise video now without being in deep hurting for the rest of the day. Even just sitting is painful without propping my foot up. :(<br /><br />Hopefully there is a light at the end of this tunnel. After I have the baby, I might just see that vascular specialist. If they can inject something, shoot a laser, or just plain cut it off, I'd be happy. Seriously. I should have DH take a picture just to gross y'all out. LOL<br /><br />~~BeckaBeckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29740901.post-48914097778001669682008-09-30T16:15:00.001-07:002008-09-30T16:15:39.954-07:00Awwww!!!<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimgoings/2899401075/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3234/2899401075_fbb426975a_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimgoings/2899401075/">IMGP2239</a><br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/jimgoings/">jimgoings</a></span></div>Simone loves Sophie!<br clear="all" />Beckahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09591963226430102010noreply@blogger.com0