So.......time to catch up???

hey y'all,

I know I have been slacking, and I thought that as I am also waaaay behind on replying to emails I will whip out a blog. But where to start???

I guess most of you know by now that I am pregnant....big news, and I am still adjusting. Maybe I am waiting for the morning (all day) sickness to go away before I get excited! hehehe Chris is excited enough for both of us and gets emails all the time from parent websites. Which is how I can accurately tell you what size our baby is at all times! We started with a lentil, then bean, strawberry, apricot, kiwifruit, peach and it now currently at orange size (or maybe that was last week). Or 3.5 inches, making fists, developing all sorts of things. I am now 16 weeks, so in the start of the second trimester. Not showing, I actually lost weight, but it is beginning (the rounding of the belly!).

Chris and I have decided to convert half of our enormous closet for the nursery. That way we won't have to run across the house at all times of the night and we can still have guests (and they can have a good nights sleep!). This has met with some interesting responses from people, but we are quite sure that an infant doesn't care if it's hanging out with my clothes! hehehe

I have selected my doctor, or clinic rather, and have been a couple of times. The first time was the most thorough checkup I have ever had. It took over 2 hours, during which I was poked, prodded, questioned, lost 4 vials of blood and had my pee analysed. It was very full on. On my regular visits I rotate between 2 Dr's and a midwife, as they all share the on-call duty and I may get any one of them when I go into labour. So far I have met one Dr and the midwife....and the midwife was lovely! The Dr talked more to my friend I had there for support (the lovely Meaghen), than me!

During my visits I have had a couple of ultrasounds and a listen to the baby's heartbeat. Fast and strong....I will include the pics from each visit. The second time, four weeks ago, the little one was in a feisty mood and was flipping all over the place and refusing to take a nice picture. So, already a lot like Chris!! hehehe

Chris has been on a couple of deployments now, and I can say that he enjoyed the first one a lot more. It makes a big difference if your crew is cool, and if you have a good roommate. The first deployment he had a good bunch, the second...let's just say they didn't see eye to eye on a lot of things....especially religion. Which can be a touchy subject with a lot of people, and most people with a strong faith don't appreciate Chris' ideas and opinions (to put it mildly). His crew held daily prayer meetings outside his room in the hallway. Their reasoning for this was that they can't have both sexes in the single sex bedrooms, and they must have been fans of air conditioning. I won't go into the ways that Chris antagonised them, as I want you all to think favourably of him!! hehehe

One good thing that came out of this latest deployment was Chris' early return. It was the first time in our relationship that he managed to be sly and keep a secret. He was very smooth. He just walked in the door one day with a bunch of roses. I actually wanted to swoon it was such a shock! heheehe

But I am getting ahead of myself....while Chris was gone I had visitors. First Chantel and Kurt came down (and Wally of course, for Charlie). It was lovely having them here, and I must say I have never appreciated someone cooking for me more!! While they were here we took a trip up to the Atlanta Aquarium, which is enormous! They have 4 whale sharks in there and a whole bunch of ....aaah, this is where my hormones kick in and I pull out my 'P' card. I have decided that my brain is now like a sieve, or possibly a colander...things go in and out quite freely. Not much sticks. hehehe Anyhoo, seeing them was a welcome relief from my own company! Which I have had a lot of....wow I am boring!! hehe

After Kurt and Chantel, Gosia stopped by for a weekend on her way from Korea to home for her brother's wedding. It was so lovely to see her. I hadn't seen her since she came out to NZ for Xmas, when I was at home last....about 2 years ago now. We had a great catch up, with some shopping and eating thrown in. She enjoyed the restaurants of Warner Robins as much as I do (which is to say...not much at all!! hehe). Her trip coincided with my greencard interview in Atlanta, so we decided to stay the night in Atlanta afterwards and explore a little before she had to fly off the next day. The interview itself deserves it's own paragraph..so I'll get back to it. I found a reasonably priced hotel in downtown Atlanta. Which is very hard to do, and we found out why when we got to our room. Lovely deceiving lobby, it should be illegal!! They apparently shake some nasty flowery powder on the carpets before they vacuum, and my nose being the super sensitive thing it is lately, well...it was gross! Otherwise, it was ok...built in the 70's was my guess. We decided to explore the local downtown area and heard about a mall. After walking up the road for a while and seeing every chain restaurant imaginable, we finally asked someone about the location of the mall. Across the street, and under ground. Worth a look, you would think, and you would be wrong...like we were!! What a joke.

The next morning Gosia and I had our complimentary breakfast, which is hard to enjoy to the fullest when trying not to heave in the elevators!! And after checking out, we decided to drive around and find the real mall. Which I had been to before and was sure I could find!! After 4 large circles, needing to stop for gas, and getting directions in the ghetto, we found it!! I knew I could!! bahahahaaa...all the rest was just experiencing Atlanta! I was sad to see Gosia go, but at least she was a shade more positive and had less Korea in her system when she left!! ; )

OK, back to the interview. I thought, dress nice. It never hurts to impress the interviewer with a good image, and your fluent English! I was not alone in this thought I found out when I got into the "holding area", or waiting room. But there were some excellent exceptions. After 50 minutes my interviewer came out and called my name, coldly inquired why I was alone (well, uh...my husband is deployed), said she was running late and disappeared. Another 30 minutes later it was my turn. She found the person after me, coldly inquired why she was alone (her husband was in jail, great excuse!!), and we went in. Before I was allowed to sit down I had to raise my right hand and swear to tell the truth. Couldn't hurt, "I do".

Now my interviewer was a thin black woman, wearing a very bright pink, 80's power suit with large gold buttons. She was also a very twitchy person, who did not make eye contact. For 10 minutes she read through my paperwork asking me to confirm things. And by things, I mean all the paperwork I had written, signed and sent in. It was double checking time.
"Do you have a job?", "No".
"Do you have a social security number?", "No".
"Do you have a drivers license?", "No".
Honestly!! That is why I am applying for a greencard lady...so I can get these things. Were these questions supposed to trap me into getting myself in trouble. "Yes, I bought a social from the dodgy guy down the road, and I work as a truck driver, oh...whoops".

On the letter telling me about my interview I was told to bring in a couple of things, like joint bank statements and some photos, nothing specific. So I did. I also had a copy of Chris' military orders, which baffled her. She had to take them, and our bank statement (but how was I getting money??), and ask her supervisor if that was ok. When she returned (reminding me that I was still under oath), she asked me more questions that I had already answered. Ok, trying to be pleasant....
"No, I have never been a prostitute, nor do I plan on becoming one"
"No, I am not a terrorist", and so on.
she asked to see the photos I had brought with me. Granted, I had not gone to a lot of effort, but she rejected all but one of the photos. No, profile, no, sunglasses, no, partially hidden chin....fine!

Then, in the last 5 minutes she asked if I had brought the tax form. What tax form? We had sent all Chris' tax info in. Surely he has filed for joint taxes by now. No, he has not been able to claim me yet. Don't you have a social?? NO LADY, I DON'T! Ok, well we need this form, fax it in when you get home today. By this point I didn't tell her I wouldn't be home that day and just decided to go with it, fine.
When I returned from the airport the next day, after dropping off Gosia, she had left an unpleasant message on my phone informing me that if I did not send the form she would reject my whole application. There's no time to breathe here....now if only it were that simple, if my husband was an organised person, if he was even in the country....it took a full day to find that damn form, print it out and fax it.....

But I have good news...after all of that....my application has been accepted. In the mail tomorrow should be my welcome letter telling me what to do next (like get a social security number, and a drivers license), and within 60 days I will have my greencard!! Finally!! Wooohooooo!!!!

Let's see....that may have been all of the excitement while Chris was away. When he got home I was actually planning a trip to Tennessee to see Kurt and Chantel, so he tagged along (by this I mean he drove and I moaned next to him feeling sick the whole way...good times). Kurt and Chantel both had a few days off work, so we decided to go into Nashville. We stopped by a big park on the way into downtown when we noticed an International Festival was happening. This was a very warm day, and the smell of hotdogs was in the air. We found the world map where people had been marking where they were from. Chantel and I were the first ones from NZ, and both from Dunedin. It was a big day for Nashvillians, I'm sure of it. We found a flag that resembled a kiwi flag, but was really a bad Australian one. Close enough for a picture!!

After the festival we wandered downtown, checked out the sights and the famous bars. Stopped for a couple of drinks before deciding on Japanese for dinner. This is when I was naughty, don't tell my doctor! Mmmm sushi....I heart you! After dinner we met up with a bunch of Kurt and Chantel's friends and family at a Jazz Bar. It was great, although very loud.

On Sunday we went to Kurt's parents house for a BBQ. Charlie and Wally had been hanging out in the backyard and we were trying to figure out why they were all wet. It was an easy mystery to solve. They had been running around and discovered that if they stood on the pool cover it made puddles deep enough to paddle in and run through. Charlie thought it was the greatest thing ever, and he was hilarious trying to swim in there. During our time in TN I had been trying to contact our friend Cris, to catch up with him, and we finally arranged a meeting in Nashville for lunch the next day. We met at a Greek/Mediterranean restaurant and Chris and I met his new wife and son. Lovely family. We all decided to hang out a bit more and roam the mall next door for a while. We figured out that we hadn't seen each other in almost 5 years. Not so long next time Cris!!!

I know this is getting long, I am almost done...I promise! Just a couple more things....hehehe. After Chris' last deployment we had some money in savings and were finally able to get our new bed. It's a platform king sized bed, and I love it!! It's enormous...and Charlie likes it too! hehehe. Charlie had a bad go with skin allergies lately and we had to get him some special shampoo to stop his itches. He was a very mopey pub!

It's Halloween today, and if you are a dedicated reader I'm sure you remember the joy and hilarity I get out of seeing the kids Trick or Treating. So that is tonight's entertainment. On the weekend we went to a couple of parties. On Friday night Chris and I both went as Anna Nicole Smith. I had the boobs, he had the bag of drugs (actually vitamins), and we both had blond wigs. Now Chris in platform heels is quite a sight to behold, but add a corset and he's magic!! hehehe. On Saturday night Chris was Gwen Stefani and our friend Tenaya and I were his/her back-up dancers, or Harijuku Girls (Asian and dressed in Tokyo fashion). The group was a hit...please refer to the pics...it was a weekend of many laughs!!

And last bit of news....we got another car. For me!!! (not that I have been the one driving it! hehe). We got a used VW passat station wagon (which is very uncool around these parts), it's white with tan leather interior. And it's a certified used car, so it still has a warranty. We are really happy with it.

Quick note.....congrats to Hai and Lisa for having their little ones, Hannah and Liam. And congratulations to my sister in law Christine for getting pregnant!!

I hope everyone is well and happy!! I don't know if I forgot anything...but I can always write another one...sometime!
Anna xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx