Introducing Elin Grace!

Well it's August and I promise you the truth when I say I've been trying to get an entry in since June 21st. On June 21st Colin and I welcomed our daughter Elin Grace Chance into the world. Elin (pronounced "eee-lin") weighed in at 8 lbs 1 oz and 21 1/2" long. Since then, well, we've been busy. The shock & awe of being thrown into full time parenting is unbelievable. Being a person who doesn't function (AT ALL) on little sleep, it's been quite a roller coaster. But I must admit, it's been pretty awesome. We've had a very eventful six weeks, lots of relatives in town and an unexpected stay at the Children's Hospital have kept our schedules full. I'll have to catch you all up on that later but for now, here are a couple of photos of our cute little bug.

And so here I am...

still pregnant! Granted my due date is still two days away but if you've ever been pregnant you probably know, it gets old! I left my job on June 8th and since then I've been forcing myself to nest. I've decorated the baby's room. Scrubbed the floors. Done about 86 loads of laundry. Scrubbed the bathrooms. Planted flowers. Washed baby clothes. Set up the baby swing and pack-n-play. And baked. Baked my brains out. I am prepared to accept full responsibility for Colin's squadron's failure at next the PRT (Physical Readiness Test) as I've baked some lovely treats...sometimes three times a week. Sorry guys. This girl is nesting.

Pregnancy is a wonderful thing. But all wonderful things must come to an end. I'm just trying to figure out when this little gal will decide that is going to happen. So far two of my good friends, Tessa & Alyssa in our squadron gave birth to handsome little boys 11 hours apart two weeks ago. Alyssa shared my due date. Grrr. As if that isn't bad enough, another gal due July 5th is on the verge of labor right now. Drat. And then I check my Facebook at 4am this morning (sleep is a long lost memory). My friend Allison gave birth to her baby girl yesterday. Her due date was June 27th. Good grief! Either I'm going to have a very patient little daughter. Or I'm going to have one heck of a stubborn, "I will come when I'm darn well ready" type of daughter. Either way, judging by her size on the last ultrasound and the sudden growth of my stomach in the last two weeks, I'm going to give birth to a whopper of a child.  I never thought I'd be so excited yet terrified in my life!

So until she arrives I will continue to nest, rest and relax for hours in the pool like I did today. It was glorious people. I highly recommend it when you're 14 months pregnant and it's 95 degrees outside. Really, it rocks.

And since I have no desire to give you nightmares tonight, I will not post a picture of myself in a bikini. Instead, here's are a couple of photos I took last week.

Can that bump get any bigger?

Nesting is in full gear!

So I hit my 36 week mark and have just one more week until this kid is considered full term. Honestly, by the way I'm looking, I'd say this babe is cooked. But that is just her mother's opinion...which I think is fairly valid considering I am walking (er, waddling) around carrying a bowling ball (who gains an ounce every day!) everywhere I go.

 A picture of me at 33 weeks. Dear goodness...

So since I'm at 36 weeks I think I hit my nesting point. For example, Colin and I hit up Home Depot on Thursday morning. We came out pushing two full carts of plants, planters, potting soil, a ceiling fan and more, yes more paint supplies. I put myself to work planting hydrangeas, a new planter of herbs and a mum that although I believe is seasonal, refused to die and therefore I have decided to try and relocate it to a new home for the summer. Hopefully it'll survive better than the two gardenias and boxwood that keeled over this spring. 

A few rows of corn, tomatoes, carrots, basil & onions. Whenever Cheddar gets thrown outside she retaliates by eating the corn leaves. This may explain why the onions and basil are sporting a trampled look. 

Encouraged by my friend Peyton at Peyt's Island, I decided to try my hand at herbs again. After the first planter did so well this spring I decided to add another planter. The parsley and rosemary look like they're on steroids. As much as I hate throwing away herbs, I have to keep them from overtaking the smaller plants! 

Moving to the inside, we are almost finished with the baby's room. Tired of painting and with one room to go, I picked out one sample color and decided it was good enough. Since I doubt our kid is going to have issues later on regarding the paint color or her room as a baby, we decided to go with that color. It's a pretty pale, lime green which will go nicely with the sea coral curtains and crib skirt my mom is putting together. Since the room does not have a closet we bought an armoire from Pottery Barn to double as a closet and dresser. Seriously, this kid is well on her way to a fancier wardrobe than me, or even her Aunt Courtney...which is really saying something:

Based upon the recommendations of several friends we purchased a Babi Italia crib. I am already in love with it. 

Baby still has a quilt in the making but if its anything like the one below, she may reach her first birthday before it's finished. I started this butterfly quilt during the hurricane last year and just finished it up a few weeks ago. I'm great at starting projects. Terrible at finishing them. 

That's it for now. We have a few more small projects on tap and hope we can accomplish those sooner than later. Between work and school, Colin and I are staying busy right up until D-day!

April Baby Shower Fun!

So I have to admit things haven't been all that exciting around here lately which is why the blog has taken a backseat. Although I think the real reason is I have avoided the camera like a disease as I've come to find pregnancy weight just isn't all that flattering on me! 

However I did want to share my latest (and last trip before baby) trip to San Diego last month to see my family. It was a great week. My good friend Chelsey came down for a visit with her two boys! My sister Courtney treated us to a Padre game on Friday night which was a blast. Court works for the Pad Squad (the Padre's pep squad) and was able to not only get us park passes but free parking. We were expecting a spot in the parking lot adjacent to the stadium (which totally trumps a $20 spot in the twelve story parking garage that takes 30 minutes to exit after a game). Imagine our surprise when the Chief of Police escorts us to a private spot right in front of the stadium. Apparently it was law enforcement appreciation night, imagine our luck!

The next day my good friend Julie threw me a baby shower at my parent's house. We must have had a good time because we all forgot to take pictures! Thanks to Chelsey we did get a shot of the yard before the guests arrived. 

Navy girls! My good friend Crystal from Guam came with her adorable daughter Caroline. Mickey to my left made an amazing quilt (in ONE day no less!) for the baby. She rocks! Chelsey is looking AH-MAZING after having a baby last year. I hope I can do the same!!

Me in all my enormity with Courtney and my dad before dad escaped the mass arrival of baby shower guests. 

I received a ton of adorable gifts for the baby. Getting it all home was quite a challenge but with the help of my mom and the USPS, we managed to get it home to Virginia. It really makes me realize how fortunate I am, I haven't lived in San Diego in 3 1/2 years but so many women made time to come to my shower! I really had a great time in San Diego and can't wait to bring Baby Girl back to see everyone in a few months!

As if one shower isn't enough my sister Carissa and friend Tessa threw me ANOTHER baby shower in Norfolk last weekend. They did a spectacular job and once again Baby Girl came away quite the winner!

She'll be rockin' some sparkly pink TOMS thanks to Andrea!

Every heard of a diaper wreath? Isn't this awesome? Thank you Sara!

Humble pie moment. My reaction to this object? "Aww, a chew toy!" That's Tessa next to me letting me know that dogs have chew toys, babies have teething rings. I guess I still have a few things to learn....

Rissy made Baby Girl a quilt and diaper bag, The quilt has this awesome yellow minky backing that is super snuggly!

My good friend Mary.

Team J&A: My coworker Kristyn and my boss, Amy. I love them!!

Team Guam. My Guam girls who now live in VA and NC came to celebrate with me!

My neighbor Joanna who gave birth to a baby boy just 8 days before my shower. Isn't she amazing??

The fabulous hostesses with the mostesses! Thanks Tessa & Rissy!

Working Girl!

One of the fun (or not so fun, depends on your preference) things about being a Navy wife is the lack of employment options. It's fun because if you're like me you get to quit your full time job, get married, move to a tiny island and declare yourself a stay at home wife. For most of my time in Guam my job pretty much consisted of: going to the gym, swimming in the ocean, golfing, scuba diving and socializing. I took a part time job with Hallmark towards the end of our tour there but for the most part, it was all play, very little work.

Then I moved to Virginia. I started to feel pretty silly not having a job when most other women I knew did. So I searched. For ten months. Not kidding, the job market just isn't what it used to be. Then again, I'm sure you're aware of that. I'm sure I could have gotten a job at Macy's or as a waitress if I really needed to but from experience, I knew I'd be borderline miserable and what good would that be for me? So I waited. I volunteered, worked with the Spouse club at Colin's squadron, traveled to see family and friends. Then I got pregnant and figured it was time to put that hope away and focus on my new permanent job 9 months down the road. Of course, what better timing than to get an offer? Right after Christmas, J&A Racing, a company that puts on 4 major running races here in Hampton Roads contacted me and asked if I could fill in until the baby is born. I find it hilarious that that very morning I was lying in bed trying to figure out what to do with myself for the day when I once again pitied myself for not having a professional purpose in life. Literally fifteen minutes later I opened my email and discovered the offer. If that isn't God speaking I don't know what is!

So two months later I'm still enjoying myself. It's a great company and we're getting ready for our biggest event, the Shamrock Marathon weekend. The company does a great job putting on family friendly races that appeal to everyone from toddlers to first time joggers to elite runners. We wrapped up Virginia is for Lovers 14K this month which was a blast. The 8-ish mile course featured music, candy stations, cheesy pickup line signs and even a wedding! The weekend was exhausting but nonetheless a blast. It felt great to be back in the running world again.

Shamrock is in a couple of weeks and the comedy here is that my coworker is due the week after the race. If she goes into labor before then, well her job becomes mine until she comes off maternity leave! I've got some tough shoes to fill so I'm hoping for the sake of 28,000 runners that the baby decides to hang on until d-day!

It's a........!!

So it's been awhile. But I suppose pregnancy will do that to you! Anyway, just a quick update on the happenings in the Chance household:

I'm feeling better! Gone are the nauseous days of the first trimester. I'm eating much better and still running 8-9 miles a week. This baby LOVES to run, always settling in for a nap once we get going.

Colin started grad school. So when he's not flying 5 days a week he's studying his tail off all the time. I wish I had half his motivation.

I got a job! Great timing I know. However it's a fantastic setup for me and will allow me to work up until the baby is born. I work for a local race event company. We just finished the Virginia is for Lovers 14K yesterday and still have our biggest event, the Shamrock Marathon next month. It's a great job worthy of a separate blog post for later!

Perhaps the best update of all. We found out on Thursday that we're going to have a  baby GIRL!! It is sufficient to say I'm absolutely elated with the news. Colin's adjusting very well. Mostly because he has an excuse to buy a shotgun now. I think he's going to be a pretty awesome daddy. If anything, he got to accompany me to the ultrasound and he thought seeing his daughter for the first time was pretty stinkin' cool. 

It was a fairly eventful appointment in the fact that she was NOT interested in showing us her girl parts. Hence why we found her curled up in a ball with her legs crossed. The technician patiently spent over ten minutes wiggling my belly in hopes of waking her up. Finally after I shifted to my side, followed by some more wiggling she gave us a peek, probably in hopes we'd let her get back to her nap. The appointment was only 25 minutes but I was so anxious to find out that it felt like an eternity. The phone calls that followed later were fun, my parents are pretty excited, as are Colin's. I even got my first baby girl outfit from my co-worker, it even has little ballet slippers sewn into the feet, how cute is that? I think it's all starting to feel more real. More real than just the thought of a goldfish swimming around in me. I'm sure it'll get even more real as I continue to expand in more directions than I care to accept. At least I know it's all for a great cause. :)

Me at 19 weeks.

Baby Chance at 20 weeks!

It's a Girl!

Despite being ticked off at being woken up, she gave us a little wave. How cute is that?

Oh baby!

Sooooo, I suppose it's been awhile since a real quality post. I feel pretty bad about that but I suppose it's because I have just been feeling, well, bad. I know I was warned but man, growing a human can be exhausting! After three months I'm happy to share that not only am I pregnant, but I have made it through my first trimester! Let's hope the nausea and fatigue subsides soon and I can start feeling like myself again!

Here's a glimpse of our little peanut, taken at 11 weeks. It was such an amazing moment to see a little babe wiggling around inside me!

Baby Season = Baby Gifts

It seems like it's baby season around here. Ever since I took up quilting I've found myself trying to "make" something for my expectant mommy friends. One (or three) thing I figured out in Guam was:

a) it's a freakin' baby factory

b) baby showers had the frequency of happy hours (mostly because it's an excuse to have a party) 

c) it was very difficult to find an original gift when your shopping options are limited to the BX and NEX. 

So of course I started to wish I had the ability to make unique baby gifts that the mother could actually use. So fast forward to this year when I finally learned how to sew. One thing my sister warned me about when making a quilt for a friend was to never promise a finish date. Well that just confirms I am a slow learner. Because the following two quilts were made in a combined total of four days. I'm the queen of procrastination but I promised (really, myself more than anyone) I would get these done in time for a baby shower and Thanksgiving. The first one was made for my friend Mary who is expecting a baby girl next month. It was my first time trying applique and while a bit time consuming, I think I'll get better at it and therefore I can venture into names or at least initials soon!

The next quilt has been in the works (ie: my head) for months. My dear friend and former Guam neighbor Julie is having a baby girl next month as well. I called her up a few months ago to let her know that I wanted to make her daughter a quilt. Based on her plans for the baby room I picked out some fabulous Moda and Michael Miller fabrics along with an adorable shabby-chic-esque pattern. In my usual ways I started it but didn't get serious about it until about two days before we were headed down to North Carolina to spend Thanksgiving with Julie and her family. Yikes! Since I just don't trust the post office with a hand made piece like this I was determined to hand carry it with me for the occasion. Fortunately when I get working on something I can't stop and I guess that worked in my favor last week. I finished it up the morning we left and whew! It's done! It was my second attempt at machine quilting (sewing patterned lines throughout the quilt instead of tying little knots over the span of the quilt, like the first one) and while it takes twice as much time to do, I think the effect is fabulous!

I think I'm going to take a short break on quilts for now but I am sure it won't be long before my mind is conjuring up another creation. 

It's so wrong...but so right!

I feel like I'm committing the Cardinal Sin. Done the dirty deed. Considered the unthinkable....

I've started playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving. 

Where have my standards gone? I've always sided with Nordstrom in keeping all things Christmas to the day after the day of Thanks.  I suppose it's relief from the two 80 degree days we just had. Or my two years in tropical Guam. Tonight it's a chilly 43 degrees outside, rainy and downright cozy inside here. With a fire in the fireplace, batch of bread in the oven and our Christmas letter in the works, I just had to turn it on. And if I didn't, I'm pretty sure the Mister would have ESPN on.

Joy to the World!

Checking out the local sites with family!

So a few pictures of our adventures with Mom and Dad while they were here. This is also to prove that I didn't put them to work during their entire visit.

A visit to the squadron of course. Dad and Colin convinced Mom to climb in the cockpit. This is pretty much her "Get me out of this claustrophobic pit before I hurt you" face. =)

The next day consisted of a visit to Kitty Hawk, NC. Of course we checked out the place where the Wright Brothers made their first flights (Just to the right of the long sidewalk you see in the picture). 

Nags Head, NC

Before heading up to Washington DC we all made a detour to Charlottesville and of course Monticello! We stayed at a charming B&B called The Inn at Monticello and spent the day checking out Jefferson's cool digs. 

As we headed north we checked out the Shenendoah Valley. What a gorgeous drive!

We spent a few days up in DC with my sister. Mom, Rissy and I spent Saturday at an enormous quilt show. I'm pretty sure I was the youngest person there. But I did pick up some fabulous fabrics for future projects. Plus, I won three tickets and five free classes for next year's show. Not bad eh? To ensure the validity of their man-cards, Dad and Colin ran in the complete opposite direction (wise choice) and checked out the Air & Space Museum and Manasses National Battlefield Park. Good decision boys. 

 After DC we checked out Jamestown and Williamsburg. The first time I saw these places was on my 8th Grade Washington DC trip. All I remember is a bunch of old boats and houses with people dressed up in costumes. Not much has changed.

Overall a very busy but exciting visit with the parents!