When we finally had that positive pregnancy test last September and we started thinking about what pregnancy, the birth, and life with a newborn would be like, never in a million years would we have predicted or even considered a global pandemic impacting our lives. Much of what is going on today during the COVID-19 outbreak seems more like it belongs in a Sci-Fi movie than real life, and to consider that all of this chaos really just unfolded over the course of 2 months is just incredible. As I sit here writing this, we’re about a week out from having this baby. It’s been such an emotional rollercoaster and I really wanted to document these emotions and thoughts before our world changes forever and we become a family of three. We’ve learned so much about ourselves and have gained new perspectives through this entire ordeal. This blog post will cover the crazy ride as we have navigated the good, the bad, and the ugly of pregnancy during a pandemic.

Read More

Here we are, week #4, and the world is still upside-down. But will it ever be right-side-up? I don't mean that in a pessimistic way by any means, I just wonder if the world will change for the better. My mother said something the other day as we enjoyed each other's company from what seemed like miles away from each other in the driveway. She said that some of her co-workers were talking at the hospital about how their children would remember this 15 years from now. One of the responses was “oh you mean that time that we had no school for weeks, played outside all day long, and ate dinner together every night? That was the greatest!” I can only hope that this time will make us all appreciate everything that we are currently not allowed to do. I hope we can all be a little more thoughtful, a little more kind, and a little more compationate towards everyone.

Read More

Another week of quarantine is in the books. We can do this, I promise! This weekend was one of the harder weekends to stay motivated and positive to date. The grey skies and damp ground left us hunkered down inside the house feeling like we had no escape. However, we made it through. We made a ton of progress on the nursery project. All of the electrical outlet upgrades are complete, the baseboard trim is installed, and the doors and windows are painted. These activities gave some distraction, but we actually had to sit around and wait for paint to dry. Something I never thought we would have to do in our lives is wait for paint to literally dry. These activities also gave time for reflection. In between coats of paint, I found myself wondering how can I help? Navy Seals are taught to care about the WE before they care about the ME, meaning, your actions need to be about helping everyone and not just yourself. So what can I do to help? How can I be part of the WE? We tried making masks, but they were not allowed in hospitals, so what's next. This week I plan to focus on the WE, and it starts with donating blood. First thing in the morning, I am going to schedule an appointment with the local Red Cross. With social distancing in place, blood donations have dropped significantly, so this is one thing I can do to help the world, while still staying safe for my family. #donateblood #redcross

Read More