This Sassy Classy Momma is Having a...

My 20 week ultrasound and we were told we would find out the sex of the baby. So my cousin Savannah and her 9 month-old son Talon went with me to my appointment. I had planned on recording the entire appointment with Chris' iPod I just bought him, so of course that was the first question I asked. The ultrasound tech told me that it was against policy, but she would put all of the pictures on a cd for me. Not quite what I had planned, but it still worked. Naturally the second question was if we would be able to find out the sex. The ultrasound tech asked, "Do you want to find out?" Two things ran through my mind..."Ummm DUH!!" and "Why in the world would I ask if I didn't want to know?!" I decided that neither of those responses were necessarily appropriate, so I simply replied with, "Yes please!" She goes on to tell me that she going to take some pictures and measurements of the baby and then she will take pictures for us and let us know the sex. So she puts literally about half a bottle of the gel on my stomach (which later took 2 towels to completely get off) and gets to work. She measured the kidneys, spine, brain, stomach, amniotic fluid, placenta, and then she get to the femur. She measures one leg and then goes to measure the other one. At this point Savannah says, "Oh!!! I think I know what it is!!!" The ultrasound agreed and goes back...and there plain as day is a little "turtle." I scream, "It's a boy!!!" and immediately start to tear up. I just stared at the picture for a while, and then I realized something...my son is packing! Seriously, my son practically has a third leg!

Confirmation that we are expecting Easton Michael

So the ultrasound tech finishes taking all of the measurements and pictures, hands me the cd with all of the pictures on it, and leads me out to the waiting room to leave. I very quickly thank Savannah and Talon for coming with me, hug and kiss them both, and dart home so I can get on Skype and tell Chris that he's going to be a Daddy to a beautiful little boy!! I luckily caught Chris right before his laptop battery died so we weren't able to talk long, but I told him that we are having a boy. The conversation went as follows:
Me - "Honey, we're having a BOY!!!"
Chris (with quite possibly the biggest smile I've ever seen) - "YES!!! I knew it!!! Honey, I'm so excited!!!"
We continued to tell each other how much we love each other and how happy we are before we had to get off of Skype. For the past month or so I've had this gut feeling that it was a boy, so I guess my instincts were right!!! Below are some of the pictures from the ultrasound!!! Enjoy!!!

I think Easton was getting sick of taking pictures,

so he was ready to fight!!

Sucking his little thumb!

Can Substitute Teachers Be Sassy and Classy?

So today I worked my first substitute teaching job of the year at the middle school here in town. Let me start off by saying that I have subbed in the past for just about every age group and grade EXCEPT for middle school and there is a reason for that. Kids in middle school are at the age where they aren't considered "cute" anymore and they're no where close to being considered an adult, so they're kind of stuck in an adolescent limbo (which honestly sucks for all parties involved). I hadn't planned on taking any jobs for two age groups...Pre-K and Middle School. Now stay with me on this one...I had a very unpleasant and borderline traumatic experience the last time I subbed for a Pre-K teacher. Let's take a little trip down memory lane, shall we? 


I have always been a lover of all children..little ones, big ones, tall ones, short ones, the cute and the not so blessed. So naturally I accepted a job to sub for a pre-k teacher for 3 days without hesitation (looking back I should have hesitated...BIG TIME). My first day went a little something like this...got there, took attendance, pee break for the kids, read them a story, pee break for the kids, took them to art class, pee break for the kids, took them to lunch where I got mashed potatoes thrown at me, pee break for the kids, took them out for recess, pee break for the kids, nap time, pee break for the kids, snack time, pee break for the kids, PE, pee break for the kids, colored, pee break for the kids, get backpacks together and sent them home for their parents to take them on 1 million pee breaks. Needless to say, by the end of the day I was exhausted, but I was still excited about Day 2. Day 2 went just about the same, except when a little boy decided it would be a great idea to try and take a chunk of some little girl's arm off...that didn't end so well, for either party. Day 3 rolls around and at this point I'm starting to realize that itty bitty little ones (that aren't mine, related to me, or are able to easily pass off) may not be my cup of tea. Day 3 was actually going pretty well until...the incident. My kiddos were lined up and heading inside from recess when I notice one of my little boys poking something on the sidewalk with a stick. From a distance it looked like a rock, until I got a little bit closer at which time the smell hit me like a brick wall and I realized the little boy was poking at piece of poop with a stick! I immediately tell the boy to start and of course, he starts bawling. You would have thought I had taken his favorite toy away, and it wasn't just any normal small child scream...nope, this was eardrum bursting, hurts your stomach and makes you cringe scream. HORRIBLE. I finally get the little boy calmed down, and then it hit me...I still had NO idea who the poop belonged to. Needless to say, it didn't take very long to find out...poor little fella kind of stuck out like a sore thumb.


Now I actually decided to take the sub job at the middle school for two reasons: it was only a half-day and it was for the girls p.e. teacher. Thinking it would be a piece of cake, which it was, I confirmed my sub job for the middle school. The day actually went off without a hitch, until a 8th grade girl decided to start asking questions. She had just come out of the locker room and the conversation goes a little like this:
Girl - "Can I ask you a question?"
Me - "You sure can."
Girl - "Are you pregnant?"
Me (with a big smile on my face) - "Yes I am."
Girl - "Okay I was just wanted to know if you were pregnant or just fat."
Me (smile no longer on my face) - "Not fat, just pregnant."
Girl - "Cool."


While getting dressed this morning, I made it a point to put a a shirt that was tighter around my belly so you could tell, without question, that I am in fact pregnant. Turns out, I could have been wearing a tent and somebody still would have asked me. It's not the being asked part that bothers me, actually it's just the opposite. I actually love it when people question if I'm pregnant because 9 times out of 10 they will usually oh and ah over it, ask a few more basic questions and then be on their merry little way. The part that I don't quite care for is when people insinuate and/or flat out call me fat. That kind of rubs me the wrong way, but at this point, it's kind of a "whatever" kind of situation. 


Hopefully you now understand why I don't do Pre-K and had previously not planned on doing Middle School.


Even with the fat comment, subbing at the middle school wasn't too bad, but then again all I did was sit in a gym and watch kids play dodgeball all day. Let's be honest, that's not a hard task...even for The Sassy Classy Air Force Wife!

An Air Force Kind of Pregnancy

Let me start off by saying, I am extremely thankful for what the Air Force provides for me and my family, especially when it comes to healthcare! Now, with that said, I did not have the best experience with TriCare (the military insurance company). As soon as Chris and I found out that we were expecting our little bundle of joy, I called the clinic on base to get an appointment to "confirm" that I was pregnant. I thought that the 3 pregnancy tests that immediately, and I mean IMMEDIATELY turned positive pretty much confirmed that I was indeed pregnant, but turns out, you have to go to the clinic, pee on another stick AND have blood work done before they will refer you to an Ob/Gyn (WHO KNEW!!!). So I call the clinic and tell them that I need to make an appointment to confirm that I am, in fact, pregnant. "You don't need an appointment honey, just come on in!" Sweet, this is going to be quick and painless...man oh man was I wrong. So I take myself into the clinic and inform them of what I was told over the phone. "Not a problem! We can get you in right now!" Too good to be true right? RIGHT! After about 15 minutes of very impatiently they inform me that since Chris and I just got married, I was not yet covered by TriCare, so therefore they couldn't do anything. So I leave, frustrated and feeling completely overwhelmed. Now keep in mind, Chris was due to leave in less than a month, at which time I traveling cross-country with our dog to Oklahoma. So this was just one of about a gazillion things we had today before we both left. Chris actually beat me home that day, asked me how the doctor went, and thanks to the wonderful pregnancy hormones that were raging through my body, I start bawling. I'm now talking about just crying about something...I mean you would have thought a family member had passed away. I'm a crier to begin with...the hormones just intensify it! Long story short, we were being told about 5 different things from about 5 different places on base...and then, the light at the end of the tunnel...we finally got a hold of our TriCare representative who tells us to call a certain women's clinic in our town and I would be able to be seen. Sigh of relief right? Wrong. I call the women's clinic to set up my appointment. I'm about to confirm my appointment when the receptionist asks if I would rather have my monthly appointments during the beginning, middle, or end of the month. At that point I tell her that I will be moving to Oklahoma at the end of the month for the duration of my pregnancy, and I just wanted to make an appointment to find out my due date and make sure the baby is doing okay. She informs me that they "don't do that." That unless I will be there for the entire pregnancy they wouldn't see me. I try and explain to her that I really wanted to get this done BEFORE my husband deployed for six months. Her exact words were "That's just too bad," and then she hangs up on me. Hormones or not, I HATE being hung up on...more than just about anything! So let's just say that she got another phone call from me and it wasn't pleasant.

At this point we were pretty much convinced 

that I was pregnant!

The very first belly picture!!

About another month goes by, I've made it to Oklahoma, and to my surprise I was able to instantly get into an Ob/Gyn for my first prenatal appointment. That day was one of the most memorable days of my entire life. They do the blood work, urine analysis, and then it was time for the ultrasound. Now, miscarriages run very high in my family, and I had a nightmare the night before that when the doctor did the ultrasound I wasn't pregnant at all and she got mad at me for wasting her time...so needless to say, I was holding my breath and scared to death. She put the freezing cold gel on my tummy, places the wand thingy to my stomach and gently presses down. I had been staring at the monitor the entire time, just knowing that I wouldn't see anything...but then I did. I saw our perfect little baby wiggling around and instantly started crying and wishing Chris could have been there with me. Then I got to hear the heartbeat...single best sound I've ever heard in my entire life. Seriously, if you hear a babies heartbeat and don't smile, you probably have a black soul. My doctor, who by the way is the most wonderful doctor EVER) tells me that I am about 12.5 weeks along, tells me my due date is January 15, 2011, and prints off 5 beautiful pictures of our precious little baby and tells me that everything looks wonderful! As soon as I got done with my appointment I get on Skype and tell him every little detail about the appointment, everything the doctor said, and finally show him the ultrasound pictures. He immediately has the biggest smile I've ever seen come over his face and begins to tear up. It was a wonderful moment for my husband and I.

The first picture of our

precious little Peanut!

14 weeks along!

My cousin Savannah went with me to my next appointment, where we expected to find out the sex of the baby! Chris and I were on edge the entire week prior to my appointment. So Savannah, Talon (her precious little boy) and myself get to the doctor's office giddy as ever! The doctor comes in, puts the cold gel on my tummy, presses down, and BOOM! there's my little bundle of joy HUGE compared to the last time and literally standing on it's head! My doctors said everything looked great, and she was about 80% sure that little Peanut was a boy, but since our little one decided to do gymnastics with their legs pinned together, she wasn't sure. Talk about a let down!

16 weeks pregnant!

Now here we are, 20 weeks pregnant, and scheduled for my first 3D scan on Tuesday!!! I was told that I will 100% find out the sex then and this couldn't have come soon enough!!! Chris and I both think that we are being blessed with a little boy, but a lot of our family members are saying girl...so I guess we'll find out!!!

20 weeks pregnant!!

Welcome to The Sassy Classy Life of an Air Force Wife

Hi everybody!!! My name is Stevie Nicole and this is my very first blog post...ever!!! I'm really excited to get started on this!!! 

Me in Chris' helmet thingy before heading out

to dinner one night!!!

First, let me start off by telling everybody a little about myself. So here we go...

My name is Stevie Nicole (which by this point you have more than likely already figured out) and as you also have probably figured out, I am a VERY proud Air Force wife!!! I was born in Oklahoma (Go Pokes!!!) and raised in Arkansas(Wooooo Pig Sooie!!!). I'm a very easy going, laid back, and fun-loving person. I am a HUGE sports fan...ANY sport. Football, baseball, basketball, hockey...you name it, I'll watch it, especially when it comes to football!!! On any given Saturday (and Sunday for that matter) in the fall, you will find me (and my husband) either AT a football game, or watching one. We are both incredibly competitive, but believe it or not, I'm usually the one screaming, yelling, and throwing things at the television. 

Now that you know a little bit about the person behind the blog, let me tell you about the most important things in my life...my husband, the starting of our own little family, and of course the elephant in the room...the Air Force.

In the fall of 2008, I moved from Oklahoma, where I was a Reading Sufficiency Teacher's Assistant and surrounded by family, to North Carolina. Long story short on that BIG move...I was in a terrible relationship and decided that for my own safety, I desperately needed to get out. So I made the 1,350 mile journey cross-country in my 2001 Nissan Xterra that, mind you, did NOT have cruise control. Needless to say, it was a very long trip all by my lonesome. Now at this point you're probably asking yourself, "Why in the world would she leave a town with her entire family in it, to some place where she didn't know anyone?" Well, to answer that question, I knew one person...my ex-boyfriend/best friend from high school. From the outside looking in, this seems down-right stupid right? Well let's just say that the relationship I was "running away" from, was more than worth it. So I get to the small Air Force town on Goldsboro, North Carolina and begin dating my ex. Long story short, that didn't end well...for him at least. Because of that relationship, I was introduced to Chris, my now husband.

Chris and I met as soon as I got to Goldsboro and just about instantly became friends. Now, I have always had more guy friends than girl friends, because let's be honest...most girls are dramatic biotches. Chris and I continued to build our friendship until it turned into the wonderful relationship we have now. Chris and I dated for a little over a year and then on Wednesday, April 14, 2010 before he had to leave for work (stupid C-shift) he asked me to make him "the happiest man in the world" for the rest of his life and marry him. I, without hesitation, said yes and we immediately began planning our wedding. Chris had found out in March that he was going to be deploying in July to Iraq for 6 months, so we decided to go to the courthouse and get married on Friday, May 28, 2010 (we are having our actual wedding ceremony for friends and family in July 2011). We got the surprise of our lives on the morning of June 1, 2010 when we found out that we were expecting our first child. We have both ALWAYS wanted children, and even though we weren't necessarily trying to get pregnant at that time, we were beyond ecstatic. Since the hubby was going to be deploying for most of the pregnancy, we decided that it would be best for me and our child to have the support of our families, so I temporarily moved back to Oklahoma. 

Chris & I a few weeks before we got

engaged. 

Chris & I on our "Courthouse" wedding day!!!

The first picture of our little Peanut at 12.5 weeks!!

My husband is still deployed in Iraq, and even though we get to Skype almost everyday it's still hard. I am currently 20 weeks and 1 day into my pregnancy and everything is going wonderful!!! (I'll post another thing JUST about the pregnancy). 

I hope I didn't bore everyone too badly.