What. A. Week.

This week has been full of ups and downs-- too many to even recount here.

David and I filed a claim against his previous employer because he has yet to pay us the two paychecks that are now 3 and 5 weeks late. Hopefully with the government's help we will see that money eventually. And we'd love to see him pay some penalties for his bad behavior, but that'd just be icing on the cake.

It is stressful to have the holidays upon us when we are not in a position to give to others-- at least monetarily. We are giving what we can. It feels good to give, even if it isn't much.

I've been mildly ill this week, no thanks to allergies. They are just getting worse, so I will probably have to see the doctor on Monday before we head out of town. Hopefully the doctor will give me some antibiotics or something that will help get rid of whatever I've got.

Merry Christmas to you all :)

24 weeks, already?

I can hardly believe this last week has gone by so quickly! Camille and Heidi came home nearly a week ago, and Adam came on Sunday, so I have been spending most of my time with family! It's been so nice to catch up with everyone!

David and I were rear-ended on Saturday, and I had whiplash symptoms on Sunday, and though they aren't as bad anymore, they're still there. David's back and neck seems to be fine. I had previous back issues from a sledding accident in 2006, plus I'm pregnant, so I guess I'm more sensitive. I've been getting headaches, and tylenol doesn't help. I am seeing my baby doctor today for an ultrasound to make sure the baby is okay, and that the placenta is still intact, and they'll likely send me to a physical therapist as well. The baby has been acting normal, so I'm not too worried. The accident was at low speeds, and I don't think there was any trauma to my abdomen, but you always have to check to be sure.

The holidays are going to be tough, only because the chances of David being contacted about a job decrease greatly until after the new year. It will be a long two weeks to get through-- God is testing our patience, I guess :-P

I can't express how grateful we are for the support from our family and friends. We wouldn't be surviving without it. I definitely have a lot more empathy for my mother and other families who have endured times of unemployment. It is really quite stressful.

On another note, I have had several people actually notice and comment on my belly! It's exciting to finally be showing enough for people to notice. I think it's funny when people in my ward act so surprised. I would think people would have gossiped the news all around long ago. Either they're really good at acting surprised, or they really didn't know!

23 Weeks!

Week 22 sure brought some new symptoms, namely insane round ligament pain and headaches. Thursday morning I woke up and could not stand up straight because of round ligament pain. For those of you who are not well-versed in pregnancy jargon, there are ligaments on either side of the belly which support a woman's uterus, and as the uterus grows and begins to weigh more, the ligament gets stretched and becomes thinner, which for some women like myself, can be very painful.



When I was finally able to stand up straight, it hurt to walk, and it even hurt when I was sitting or laying down, and any sort of movement at all was painful. The pain didn't go away enough to function relatively normal until Monday, which is when the headaches kicked in. Today I am feeling much better though, luckily!





Tonight I can SEE the baby moving in my belly! When he kicks, you can see it! I have had fun watching him punch/kick me from the inside. I can't wait to meet the little guy... I'm glad the kicks, punches, and nudges are not painful. Though being kicked in the bladder is not much fun.

Today was my last final, so I am officially done with my first semester of grad school! I know I got A's in two of my three classes, which is great! I am still waiting on grades from my 3rd class, which I highly doubt that I got an A in. I'd be thrilled with a B! We'll see what he thinks of my paper and exam...

As far as the job search, today was eventful, but not in a good way. David had completed a design test for a company, and heard back today that they did not select him. They did, however, bother to communicate with him, and even offered a critique of his design test, which will prove very helpful for design tests in the future, which we appreciate.

So, I haven't put many details in here about why he is looking for another job... but I think it's okay to share now. His former employer ran out of funds, and was a month late on paychecks, so David said SOYONARA! He has been at home for two weeks now, and we still have yet to be paid for his last month of work. We applied for unemployment benefits, but did not qualify because of dumb rules about "base pay." You have to earn a certain amount (base pay) with a company, but they do not count any wages from the current quarter (sept-dec) or the quarter before that (june-aug). So, only wages from Feb-June were counted, and he did not earn enough in that time period to qualify. Very frustrating, to say the least.

Please pray that we will be able to find David another job, an even better job. (any job would be better, honestly) I won't smack-talk the company he was working for, but I will say that there were a lot of things going on that we were not crazy about, completely aside from the whole no-paycheck situation.

I am glad that David and I have each other and the Lord to lean on. We also have a lot of family that has been really helpful and supportive during these trying times. There are a lot of things about our current situation that are FAR from ideal, but we are handling it the best we can...

Second Ultrasound!

We had another ultrasound today to check up on baby's spine, since baby did not cooperate last time! The spine looks great, and we got to have another peek at our little cutie!

It was so fun to see our little guy again. The resolution of the sonogram machine was actually pretty high quality, so when she zoomed in on our baby's face, you could actually see him! He's so cute!!! I can't wait to meet him and hold him. :)

I had her verify that he is in fact a boy, because sometimes their first look is not accurate. This is what we found! Our baby is DEFINITELY a boy. Loud and proud.

22 Weeks!

Baby is as active as ever, and I love feeling him! He seems to be most active in the mid-afternoon, and around 11pm. At least that's when I notice him the most. Apparently the baby is developing a sleep cycle already. Cool, huh? We have another sonogram tomorrow afternoon, and we're really excited to be able to see the baby again! Hopefully we will get more pictures too. :)

David has applied for 12+ positions in various parts of the country, and we heard back from the first company on Monday! They sent him a design test, which he has been working on since then, and plans to complete tonight before he goes to sleep. It will be a late night, but they asked him to get it done ASAP so they can make a hiring decision. We're crossing our fingers!

Osiris Legends is now available in the app store, which is really exciting! There are plenty of things that need to be done to promote and update the game, but until things improve at the company, it is in the air whether or not those updates will happen. We'll see!

Osiris Legends

Barking Lizards has finally released Osiris Legends to the iPhone app store! After months and months of being on the verge of finished, the game is finally on the market!

David and I are very excited because this is his first published title in the video game industry, which opens a lot of doors for him as far as further employment in the industry. It is good timing since he has been applying for positions all over the country!

To check out what the gameplay is like, you can check out this youtube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hhcccy7-mJo