Transitus Tiber

I have three of my four finals completed. Statistics was due Friday, I handed in my Anthropology paper today, and finished my Biogeography final at 4:35p this afternoon. All that's left is my Java programming class (tomorrow at 8a, cheat sheets allowed) and I am done with my undergraduate career.

Naturally, anyone who knows me well can expect that I am joining the ranks of Compulsive Grades Checking, which I am. I just need to see what Statistics came out as - the other classes I am confident in passing and am not stressed out by them at all.

I am spending my downtime from studying packing up our apartment. Greg will be doing all the heavy lifting, my lifting will come from stuff like the sheets and towels. Since the majority of our stuff will be in storage for a while, I'm wrapping up delicates like our crucifixes, statues, and candles so they survive the move up. We're hoping to be settled in an apartment shortly - we just have to wait for it to be finished. Greg's parents have so graciously offered to convert their basement into a self-contained apartment until our house is ready sometime next year. This takes a lot of stress off of us in trying to find an apartment, show proof of employment, and all that stuff. I have no problems with Greg's parents and will be quite happy to have them nearby for when the inevitable questions come up with Elise. It will also be cheaper for us in the long run.

I still have no job and we have to wait three weeks to hear if Greg got the job he interviewed for last Thursday. I'm thinking about going to the Cathedral and seeing if they need a pregnant volunteer to help with stuff this summer, like Vacation Bible School or stuffing envelopes or something. I need something to keep my mind and hands occupied - the thought of spending the entire summer doing nothing scares me. I'll be spending a lot of time resting - which is good - but I have to do something. If that makes any sense.

Nothing new on the injured family friend. I suppose this is a time when no news is good news, but we do know that the doctor's have told her parents anything, so that may not be such good news.

I did get my Statistics final finished up and handed in, so that's a relief. Now I just get to sit and wait and see if I did well enough on the final to pass the class. My professor said I'd have to work hard on failing the final to bad on it. I hate being this paranoid about things, it's just the fact that my entire Bachelor's degree hinges on this one class.

Greg and I are going to a Parkinson's Disease treatment seminar tonight for my mom. The topic is deep-brain stimulation and it's something that her neuros have talked to her about as a possibility for her. I've been researching the clinical studies and stuff, mainly for instances of hardware failures and side effects from the procedure and stuff.

If anyone has any personal experiences with the Activa Deep-Brain Stimulation system, please let me know. I'm looking for good experiences, bad experiences, OK experiences ... any experiences. You can leave me a comment or email me at blog at hekhet dot net.

Between the family friend's car wreck, Statistics, and this Parkinson's seminar; I'm feeling a little stressed out. I have to write an Anthropology final over the weekend and then have 2 more finals (one on Monday, one on Tuesday). Then, I'm done and can help Greg pack up our apartment and move. Ugh. Pray for me, as well.

This is NOT the kind of post I want to be posting, but some close family friends are in extreme need of prayers. One of their daughters has been severely injured in a car wreck in their city. Her dad called my mom, trying to get a hold of my dad (they are military buddies). My mom called me, as Dad has his cell phone shut off for the night (he's on a business trip) and was trying to see another way of getting a hold of him.

Anyways, if you could remember the family and the injured daughter in your prayers, that would be awesome. There were 3 other people injured who also have severe injuries, please pray for them and their families, as well.

I received my Statistics final today - it's due Friday. So, I have about 48 hours to do this thing and be done with Statistics. I also have an Anthropology final due Tuesday, so these next few days are going to be busy for me.

I am pretty confident I will pass my Statistics class. I have a 78% on homework and a 75% on the first exam. This final is worth as much as the first exam (35% of my grade) and the homework is the remaining 30%. Regardless, prayers are always beneficial.

Greg has his job interview tomorrow, so prayers for a successful interview and a job offer if that is where God wants him is also appreciated.

Time to get working on that final! I'll be back sometime next week!

I'm currently up at my in-laws. Greg and his parents are working on de-shrubbing the vegetation on the lot where our house will be built. I took pictures that I'll post later on - some of the de-shrubbing and some of the house. Being the carrier of Elise means I'm forbidden from helping apart from bringing juices and water over (and carrying stuff like rakes around).

Greg's exam yesterday with a potential employer went very well. They said that if Greg got higher than a 70% on the exam that they would call him within the week for a job interview. Sometime between my Statistics class and the 90 minute drive up to the Capital they called him and wanted to interview him! So, his interview is on Thursday. I am praying it goes well and they want to offer him the job. It has full benefits from day of hire for Greg and his dependents, which is exactly what we need.

I applied for yet another job and have heard nothing back. Is this a new trend - to just leave people hanging and not even send them rejection notices?

Elise is currently kicking around. Earlier today she had the hiccups, which was incredibly cute. I cannot wait to meet our little girl - but I can definitely wait until August to do so!

Next week is "Dead Week" - the last week of classes before Finals Week of Doom. For once, my professors are not waiting until Dead Week to make things due, but rather are wanting things due this week. I'm sure I will enjoy Dead Week better this semester as opposed to semesters past. However, it means that writing will be even more spotty than it already is. I only have some Java programming and a Statistics homework left to do, sadly those require a lot of time to focus and concentrate (especially Statistics).

Greg was called by a prospective employer and on Friday he needs to travel up to the Capital for an exam. His results on this exam will determine if he continues on the hiring process or not. Please say some prayers! He also applied for what's basically his dream job, hopefully he gets that or the other one.

Finals Week is also moving week for Greg and I. We'll be moving permanently to the Capital, so things will be crazy for the next couple of weeks while we move to a temporary location, then as it gets closer to August/we find a good deal on an apartment; we'll move again to get ready for Elise's arrival. It's hard to believe that May is almost here. May 11th is the start of the third trimester. I am so grateful for the intercession of the various Saints I've been talking to over this pregnancy, particularly Our Lady of Guadalupe. Not only has things been going textbook for Elise, my anxiety and worry level has been pretty low, all things considered. Deo gratias!

At any rate, it's time for lunch and get ready for the rest of today. Hopefully I can get on some sort of regular posting schedule once school simmers down!

that the latest Catholic Carnival is up!

Greg applied for a couple more jobs - we heard back from one saying that his application had been received and is being reviewed by the hiring committee! Deo gratias! He's also going to apply for some more jobs, one in his field of study. I am hoping and praying that he gets the one in his field of study. Please keep praying for him.

I applied for a temp job and never heard back. Hmm, guess that means they don't want me, eh?

There's no sense in putting the gender at the bottom of this post since that's the #1 question asked to us now that we've had an ultrasound. I will add in that we couldn't get a good moneyshot, but the tech is pretty confident from the peaks we got that it's a girl. But we're aware that we could have a sweet baby boy come August. Either way, we're thrilled.

Now that the gender question is out of the way, here's the health-related stuff:
* Heartbeat was 150 bpm
* We saw all four chambers of her heart and it's beating very regular and normal.
* We saw her brain
* And her kidneys!
* We know she pees well because we saw her full bladder at the beginning of the ultrasound, and it was empty by the time the radiologist came in, lol
* One of the very first things we saw of her was her swallowing some fluid. Her tongue is TOO CUTE. Okay, everything about her is TOO CUTE.
* She likes to stretch out (her feet were found incredibly high - up by my lungs) and her head was in my pelvis. Holy mackeral.
* The radiologist said everything is NORMAL and HEALTHY - Deo gratias!

We're totally on cloud 9 over here.

Scratching her nose (better than picking it, eh?)


Little Miss Twinkle Toes - explains why I'm short of breath, that's for sure!


Enjoying her uterine home.


It may be hard to see in such a small picture, but she's looking right out at us and is smiling. I came unglued at that point. :'-)
In addition to seeing our little one, today is the second anniversary of my Confirmation. It's been quite a day, to say the least.

With all that being said, I'm going to do some dishes and go lay down. I'm drained from today's excitement!