funding our three kids

Last Monday was our first anniversary.  We cannot believe how much has happened and how quickly a year has gone by.  We moved into, remodeled and furnished a house.  I developed a laundry system for two people that works pretty well, I think.  We endured a juice fast.  I grew flowers.  We got pregnant.  We put up our first Christmas tree, among other holiday firsts.  I survived my first first trimester.  Dan survived 19 weeks of husbandry to a pregnant wife.  Dan started a new job.  We bought a crib.  We got two dogs.  We are continuing to learn how to support and love and communicate with each other.

So many life changes.  One of them has been a major shift in how we spend money.  Gone are the days of eating out twice a day and stopping in at Nordstrom "just to shop" (one of Dan's favorite activities...).

In order to make room in the finances for dog ownership and the other recent and upcoming milestone events, both of us have made some changes to our personal spending habits... for example I have not gotten a pedicure or manicure since right before my wedding.  I have recently stopped dying my hair (we'll see how long I can make it... the grays are really starting to bother me), and I haven't paid someone else to tend to my eyebrows in oh so long.  I haven't purchased a new pair of shoes in almost a year.  I drive the Prius to work now.  These things might seem small but they represent a lifestyle change that I am very excited about.  I even went all of last week without wearing makeup. 

ME AND BABY GRIFFIN at 19.5 weeks

APOLLO GRIFFIN

LUNA GRIFFIN

Daniel has made some financial sacrifices too.  He recently so humbly proclaimed that he was letting go of his dream to optimize our sound system and buy a new tv, on account of being more excited that we have dogs and a baby on the way than about having the coolest movie-watching experience possible.  This was something he had been saving for.   He has always been a bargain shopper for clothing and shoes, but he has really taken this to a new level... it warms my heart.  Together, we even switched to generic toothpaste and Costco hair products after being so fond of, and accustomed, to Aveda.  And for those of you who know Dan's grooming habits, he loves quality (read: expensive) products.  I still haven't convinced him to start painting again and selling his paintings as a side business... but I'm working on it (this will be a way to tell if my husband actually reads my blog.)

I know I know, we 'don't even know what's coming' in terms of how our financial habits are going to have to change once the baby comes.  We've already contacted our financial planner about starting a college fund (what? wasn't I just IN college?).  And we are considering getting pet insurance.  (yes, there is such thing as doggie health insurance, apparently!)

But this is what it's all about.   Our marriage and the family that we felt called to start with one another is blooming.  If real parenting is even a small fraction of how rewarding and fulfilling it is to be doggie parents, we've got a lot to look forward to!

  

oh hello belly, I didn't see you there

For a while my 'baby bump' was surfacing very gradually as a mere soft something extra that made it hard for me to fasten my pants.  But a few days ago, I noticed that my bump had grown significantly, and was firm like a sandbag and round like a... small pregnant belly!  Since then, both Dan and I have been baffled at how my body has changed so much in this one week.  I know that this is nothing compared to how I'll be when our little munchkin, now the length of my hand, is almost ready to come out and greet us in five more months... but I am most definitely feeling pregnant!

We've been taking a photograph of my tummy every Saturday morning since I was ten weeks pregnant, thinking that at the end of these eight months, these photographs will make a great flip book.  Here's a preview...

I think I *might* have felt the baby move this week, but I'm not 100% confident that that's what it was so I'm not going to officially report it yet.

Most commonly asked question at this point in my pregnancy has been: "Do you know if it's a boy or a girl? / Are you going to find out?"

The answer is that we haven't decided yet if we are going to find out, or be surprised.  And if we do find out, we haven't decided if we are going to disclose that information to others or let it be our little secret as a couple.  Stay tuned...