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Thursday, January 13, 2011

Biggest Project Reveal Yet!

Hi guys!!

After three weeks of a blogging break, I'm back.  Before I get to the big project reveal, I have a few things to share...

First up - the real reason I went on a bloggy break is because we went on vacation.  For four weeks.  Yep, that's right, an entire month of vacation.  Since we weren't going to be home for that long, I opted to keep it a secret just in case I have any crazy stalkers.  I'm pretty sure the only person who stalks me is my handsome hubby, and that's completely fine by me, but still...ya never know!  (I pre-posted my last three posts prior to leaving.)

So, where'd we go for a month?!  Hawaii!!!

Kauai, HI
One of my best friends lives out there, and is awesomely amazing and offered to let us stay with her for an entire month!!  Our timing was impeccable...my friend closed on her home the morning we left, and is moving back to the mainland on Friday.  Because she was leaving the island, she only had a few of the essentials, and kept saying she couldn't wait to read a blog post on her 'amenities'...

So here goes ...

We were so fortunate to have one pot and one skillet to cook with.  While this might seem scarce to some, it was a perfect way to plan our meals, and it was so much easier to clean just one pot and just one skillet.

We were so fortunate to have 4 knives, 4 spoons, and 4 forks to eat with, even if they were dollar store bendy silverware.  They provided great entertainment for mixing stuff, much laughter when we bent our silverware back in place, and made us appreciate the next item all that much more!

We were so fortunate to have one good butter knife.  Those things are amazingly strong.  They can cut fruit and chicken and potatoes without flinching.  Well, a good butter knife and a strong hubby.  The strong hubby might be key to that equation, but I will never again under-estimate the power of my butter knives.

We were so fortunate to have paper plates to eat off of.  It was so nice being able to throw our plates in the garbage, and made cleaning up after dinner every night that much easier.

We were so fortunate to have a bed, even if it was made of air, to sleep on.  It was one of the most comfortable air mattresses ever, and we slept like babies.  I'll get more into why this was so comfortable in a bit.

We were so fortunate to have a friend that we can hold great conversations with, days on end, hours at a time and only stop chatting because it's way past our bedtime.  The conversations we enjoyed without the interruption of TV and internet (she has no cable) were great, in-depth, intelligent, fun, and heart warming conversations that bonded all three of us that much closer.  We will forever cherish that time we all had together.

Here's a few pics from the millions that I took :

Hawaiian Monk Seal on Waikiki Beach, Oahu, HI
Sea turtle off of the Ho'okipa Beach Rocks in Maui, HI
Chris and I at the falls at the end of the Pipiwai Trail in Maui, HI
Poipu Beach Area in Kauai, HI

Seven Sacred Pools in Maui, HI
Red Sands Beach in Maui, HI
Haleakala Crater in Maui, HI
Hanauma Bay in Oahu, HI
So now that I've filled you in on our wonderful vacation, which included wonderful and amazing trips over to the islands of Maui and Kauai, both of which we could afford to do because of our generous friend that we're so fortunate to have on the island of Oahu, I'll get onto the next item of business.

Chris is DONE.  D.O.N.E. DONE with school.  WOO HOO!!!!  He worked so hard for his Master's, put in so much blood, sweat, and tears (okay, maybe not blood...but I bled for the both of us on some of these solo home improvement projects, so that counts for him too), and I couldn't be more proud.  He didn't walk with his class, he decided he'd rather be walking in Hawaii than in Gainesville, FL ... but the sense of accomplishment and pride and joy and relief is all there!!

And finally ... the big project reveal.

A pictures worth a thousand words, so here it is :


Yep, that's me at 20 weeks pregnant (and Chris being a goof)!  This was taken on our last full night in Hawaii.  We couldn't be more excited, elated, scared, and happy all at the same time!  If you go back to September, you'll notice that my posts start dwindling down quite a bit.  Morning sickness and the pure tiredness of the first trimester hit me pretty hard.  I had a few 'do over' days where I didn't get out of bed at all and decided that I'd just try again tomorrow because today wasn't a good day.

That's all over though...I'm feeling amazing, overwhelmed, and big!!!  The amazing part might have something to do with being gone for a month in Hawaii, but nonetheless!  Oh, and the air mattress that we slept on was amazingly comfortable because it absorbed some of my new found belly so I could enjoy sleeping semi on my stomach for a few extra weeks.  I'm still trying to figure out this side sleeping thing!

Sorry I waited so long to tell you bloggy world!!  I actually just officially made the announcement today at work, and I have no idea who reads this blog, so I waited to say anything until I let the cat out of the bag.

The main deets that everyone will want to know...my due date is May 30th, 2011, and we find out Saturday morning if it's a boy or a girl!  Do you have any guesses of boy or girl based on the way I'm carrying?!  I have no idea...this whole first time Mommy / pregnant thing is all new to me, so I'm not guessing!  We'll find out soon enough!!

Oh, and... HAPPY 1 year bloggy anniversary to Kara's Korner!!!  I can't believe how much this has grown over the past year, and I hope to continue and build on how far I've come thus far.  We've got so many projects on our to-do list, that we can accomplish TOGETHER now that Chris is done with school.  And yes, that includes a nursery!!  So make sure you stay tuned to see what this year's fun projects have in store!

Hope everyone's 2011 is going well!  Our's so far is awesome!
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16 comments:

  1. YAY YAY YAY for the baby! You are the most adorable preggo lady ever! Yea, I'm a little biased, I know. Well, I have to throw out my vote now that you can actually see your bump, I'm gonna go with boy. I have scientifically based it on how you're carrying and the ancient chinese gender chart which is up to 100% accurate! LOL. I have a 50/50 shot right?! Can't wait to find out with you guys!!

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  2. Congratulations!! That is soo exciting!

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  3. yay! yay yay yay on all fronts! congratulations on baby, that is so exciting. and a month in hawaii! i'd be super jealous (well, more jealous than i am) if i couldn't say that i'd been there. we went for 10 days last april and we had an amazing time! i snorkeled right past a hawaiin monk seal who came up and beached himself. they erected this makeshift barrier around him til he went back into the ocean. too funny! congrats again!

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  4. I completely agree with Erin! Except I'm going to say it's a girl just to be difficult :-) And I think I'm completely jealous of your prego body because I know I won't be as buff, tanned and toned as you (whenever I get pregnant that is)! I'm not even that without being pregnant!

    So glad you're back too. Missed you tons! Funny, I had no idea what the big reveal was going to be! hehehehehe

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  5. Congrats! You look like you just ate a big burger thats all! Good luck and a huge congrats! Glad you enjoyed Hawaii! I live on Kauai, but I wouldnt stalk you I promise!

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  6. Congratulations! You look beautiful & Hawaii looks amazing! You will never forget that trip. Take it from a veteran, the key to sleeping while pregnant is a Snoogle pillow, expensive but worth it!

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  7. CONGRATULATIONS!!!! I'm so happy for you! That is so exciting! I'm 30 weeks, so just a couple months ahead of you.

    I cannot wait to hear what you are having! I posted a list of Old Wive's Tales about predicting the sex of the baby on my blog here: http://davidandcarolineparker.blogspot.com/2010/10/sex-prediction-old-wives-tales.html

    And wow, I'm super jealous of your trip. Sounds like an amazing time!

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  8. Awesome! Congrats!!! That's so exciting! I just had my little girl a couple months ago. Mommyhood is amazing! My husband and I honeymooned in Hawaii and saw many of the sights you posted here! We loved it! It's so beautiful. But, I'm totally jealous you got to spend a whole month there!! Congrats again!

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  9. Yay!! Congrats!! Looks like you all had a wonderful time!

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  10. I think it's going to be a boy because the baby actually moved up and you are carrying high. I also don't think you look that pregnant...it looks like you're arching your back more to stick out more which makes you too skinny ;-) Oh...and the pictures of you in a bikini...I couldn't even tell...I agree with your friend. You can tell more when you're wearing tight shirts than you can in your bathing suit. You do look adorable though...I wish I could come up Friday, but I'm going to Warner Robins next Friday for a week and don't want to miss more time away from the family. You'll call right away though...promise!

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  11. What a loaded post!! So much going on in the life of Kara! Congrats on everything - Chris being done school, a wonderful vacation and a baby on the way! I can't imagine how stressed you must have been with the last little bit of Chris's schooling, your grandfather's passing, and being pregnant! Sounds like you definitely needed the vacation. I can't wait to see what you have planned for 2011!

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  12. Congrats on your wonderful baby news, to graduating hubby, and your vacation pics look and sound absolutely wonderful!

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  13. Congratulations!!! Looks like 2011 has started off well for you two!!! The Hawaii trip looked like a lot of fun!!! Glad you are back to blogging!! You were missed!

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  14. Oh, yea, yea, yea!!!!!!!!!! Happiness everywhere you go, huh?? Glad you got this vacay in. . .it might be your "last" for a long, long time :) I'm sure fun adventures lie ahead for you and this blog. . .

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  15. Thank you ladies so much for all your wonderful comments on this post. Your excitement and wonderful comments and compliments mean the world to me!! Trust me, I feel like I ate more than just a burger, or at least it was a REAL HEAVY burger that I ate so far. The vacation was absolutely amazing, and after the end of 2010, SO needed!! I feel refreshed, recharged, and ready to take on the world!! Talk to me again though when I hit the 3rd trimester, and lets see how I feel then!

    Thanks again ladies!

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