Nick and I no longer have internet at our house, so it gets to be a while between visits to my parents to use their internet. So don't feel like I've just abandoned my blogging efforts. It just takes me a lot longer to get around to doing things these days.
The past two weeks have been rather exhausting for us. Nick ended up getting the flu all last week. I think I got a little bit of that myself. Nick had chills and body aches and the such where as I had extreme hot flashes where I couldn't cool off and I was tired all the time. This is more than just what I feel from my pregnancy. Then Nick developed a cough toward the end of last week. My cough came a few days later. Nick's turned into pneumonia and he's been on antibiotics and strong cough syrup for the past few days. I'm pretty sure I got bronchitis but I haven't gone to the doctor to get it checked out. There isn't much you can do for bronchitis. I've been watching myself carefully to make sure that things don't progress and get worse. The last thing I need is pneumonia while pregnant. But we seem to be on the mend. We finally got out of the house today to do a few things. I'm tired, but hanging in there. Both our coughs are subsiding, thank goodness. Thankfully the boys have not shown any signs of being sick. It's been bad enough taking care of my sick husband, two crazy boys, being sick myself, and being pregnant on top of all of that. I'm exhausted. I need a vacation!
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Update
Things are going well for the Surdukowski's. Busy, but well.
We cancelled our internet and cable service a little while ago, so we haven't had continuous access to the internet like we would like to. When we got internet and cable when we moved into our current place, we did a 6-month deal for $50 a month. After the 6 months were over, it literally doubled to $107. We were a little peeved that we couldn't find any good deals now that didn't require a year contract. If we weren't going to be moving in with the parents again in March, we would have made a few deals. As it is, we occassionally make it to my parents for a quick check of things and then back to the nothingness of our townhome. Oh well, we can live without it for about 4 months.
Nick had a tooth removed the other day. He actually was put under to have it removed. That has to have been the funniest thing I've ever experienced in out marriage yet! The proceedure only took about 20 minutes. They wheeled him out to the car afterwards and managed to get him in without too many troubles. He kept telling the nurses how great they where and what a wonderful job they did. He told me about 3 or 4 times how much he loved me and appreciated me. You have to remember that he is doped up and with gauze in his mouth, he sounds like a drunk guy. So funny! He repeated a few more things numerous times. He would just start laughing for no reason for about 3 minutes straight. All I could do was laugh at him. Trying to get him inside was a joke too! I had my mom come out and help him up the stairs to his bed. I didn't want him falling on my in present state - 6 1/2 months pregnant. As soon as we got inside he went straight for the kitchen saying, "I'm hungry". We had to corral him up the stairs so that he wouldn't just go get in the refrigerator. Once we got him on the stairs he realized he didn't want to take his lunch pail upstairs and he tried turn around and take it back down. We finally got him to lay down and he ended up falling asleep. Like I said, I've never laughed so much at him. It was so funny!
My pregnancy is going well. I don't have any problems with my blood pressure. My sugar test came back normal. The baby is progressing well. I feel like garbage most of the time, so things must be going well. I'm having trouble sleeping. I hurt everywhere from the waist down. I'm completely exhausted by day's end. We finally have a first name pinned down. His first name is going to be Bennett. We're still trying to think of a middle name. But we'll have one by the time he gets here in December.
I have a brand new nephew. Kevin and Patty welcomed their baby yesterday at 2:07pm. Anthony Caleb was 7 lbs 1 oz and measured 21 inches long. He's doing well. He had some air trapped in his lungs so they kept him in the NICU overnight but he's doing well. Patty is doing pretty well. Kevin, I think, is overcoming the shock of everything. I saw pictures that my mom took and he's a cutie pie!!
That's us for now. Not too excited, but enough to keep us busy.
We cancelled our internet and cable service a little while ago, so we haven't had continuous access to the internet like we would like to. When we got internet and cable when we moved into our current place, we did a 6-month deal for $50 a month. After the 6 months were over, it literally doubled to $107. We were a little peeved that we couldn't find any good deals now that didn't require a year contract. If we weren't going to be moving in with the parents again in March, we would have made a few deals. As it is, we occassionally make it to my parents for a quick check of things and then back to the nothingness of our townhome. Oh well, we can live without it for about 4 months.
Nick had a tooth removed the other day. He actually was put under to have it removed. That has to have been the funniest thing I've ever experienced in out marriage yet! The proceedure only took about 20 minutes. They wheeled him out to the car afterwards and managed to get him in without too many troubles. He kept telling the nurses how great they where and what a wonderful job they did. He told me about 3 or 4 times how much he loved me and appreciated me. You have to remember that he is doped up and with gauze in his mouth, he sounds like a drunk guy. So funny! He repeated a few more things numerous times. He would just start laughing for no reason for about 3 minutes straight. All I could do was laugh at him. Trying to get him inside was a joke too! I had my mom come out and help him up the stairs to his bed. I didn't want him falling on my in present state - 6 1/2 months pregnant. As soon as we got inside he went straight for the kitchen saying, "I'm hungry". We had to corral him up the stairs so that he wouldn't just go get in the refrigerator. Once we got him on the stairs he realized he didn't want to take his lunch pail upstairs and he tried turn around and take it back down. We finally got him to lay down and he ended up falling asleep. Like I said, I've never laughed so much at him. It was so funny!
My pregnancy is going well. I don't have any problems with my blood pressure. My sugar test came back normal. The baby is progressing well. I feel like garbage most of the time, so things must be going well. I'm having trouble sleeping. I hurt everywhere from the waist down. I'm completely exhausted by day's end. We finally have a first name pinned down. His first name is going to be Bennett. We're still trying to think of a middle name. But we'll have one by the time he gets here in December.
I have a brand new nephew. Kevin and Patty welcomed their baby yesterday at 2:07pm. Anthony Caleb was 7 lbs 1 oz and measured 21 inches long. He's doing well. He had some air trapped in his lungs so they kept him in the NICU overnight but he's doing well. Patty is doing pretty well. Kevin, I think, is overcoming the shock of everything. I saw pictures that my mom took and he's a cutie pie!!
That's us for now. Not too excited, but enough to keep us busy.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Decisions Made
After what was probably the hardest month of my marriage we've been through yet, we've made it through with a few bumps and bruises, but stronger all the same.
I finally broke down and told Nick exactly what I was feeling about him doing this program. After hysterical tears and a few hugs later, I was certain that Nick wasn't going to do the program. At least that's what it seemed like. After some miscommunication, or rather, misleading, Nick tells me that he's doing the program with or without my support, and that it's going to be the best thing for us. Okay, so after more hysterical crying and drama (darn this pregnancy hormone stuff!), I finally accept what he's decided.
I've known about all the benefits that will come from this program. I want all of those benefits, but I have a hard time seeing the end result because I'm still a little focused on the getting-to-that part. The 6 months of him not working. Six months of him being gone. And so forth. But I know it'll be the best thing for us.
So here we are. In six months we will put all of our things in storage, move in with my mom and dad for those months Nick's in school. Nick will quit his job just before starting this program on March 15. He'll finish up the end of August. Hopefully find a job shortly after because we only have enough money for 8 months of him not having a job. So, this will require a lot of prayer from our part. A lot more faith on my part. And hard work from Nick. I'm still not thrilled to be doing this, but I know that it will work out. I just wish I knew where we were going to be next Christmas, but time will tell.
I finally broke down and told Nick exactly what I was feeling about him doing this program. After hysterical tears and a few hugs later, I was certain that Nick wasn't going to do the program. At least that's what it seemed like. After some miscommunication, or rather, misleading, Nick tells me that he's doing the program with or without my support, and that it's going to be the best thing for us. Okay, so after more hysterical crying and drama (darn this pregnancy hormone stuff!), I finally accept what he's decided.
I've known about all the benefits that will come from this program. I want all of those benefits, but I have a hard time seeing the end result because I'm still a little focused on the getting-to-that part. The 6 months of him not working. Six months of him being gone. And so forth. But I know it'll be the best thing for us.
So here we are. In six months we will put all of our things in storage, move in with my mom and dad for those months Nick's in school. Nick will quit his job just before starting this program on March 15. He'll finish up the end of August. Hopefully find a job shortly after because we only have enough money for 8 months of him not having a job. So, this will require a lot of prayer from our part. A lot more faith on my part. And hard work from Nick. I'm still not thrilled to be doing this, but I know that it will work out. I just wish I knew where we were going to be next Christmas, but time will tell.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Lock Out
Nick hands me all the sets of car keys to which I put them on the back of the couch and takes the boys outside while he's working on the truck. I decided it was time to make dinner. I had just put some blueberry muffins in the oven to go with our dinner -- we had breakfast -- and went out on the front step to see how things were going.
Tanner decides he wants to go inside to get his drink. He shuts the door behind him like a good little boy and I proceed to check out what Nick's doing. After a few minutes, I realized that I needed to check on the muffins. To my detriment, Tanner had managed to lock the door. And the keys were inside the house. So I'm trying to get Tanner to unlock the door so that we can come in. He's crying because he just wants to come outside.
Nick won't do anything but continue to work on the car. I yelled at him for a little while to do something while I tried to get Tanner to unlock the door. Of course Nick wouldn't do anything. He wanted to call the landlord to get a key, but he wouldn't call them. I was so mad at this point! Finally, after a constant stream of "DO SOMETHING!" he finally called the property manager. So mad at him for that! Of course the property manager didn't answer. His wife answered at home and Nick explained what was going on but she wasn't sure if she could get in touch with her husband. At this point, I called my dad to come down with the spare key that they have, but it's a 20 minute drive down here. Remember, 2-year-old locked inside and muffins in the oven! After hanging up with my dad, the property manager's wife showed up with a key. Tanner, all sweaty from crying so much walked right out like nothing happened. The muffins were a little burned, but all was safe.
Lesson: Always keep a house key with you when you are outside, even if you think you don't need it!
Tanner decides he wants to go inside to get his drink. He shuts the door behind him like a good little boy and I proceed to check out what Nick's doing. After a few minutes, I realized that I needed to check on the muffins. To my detriment, Tanner had managed to lock the door. And the keys were inside the house. So I'm trying to get Tanner to unlock the door so that we can come in. He's crying because he just wants to come outside.
Nick won't do anything but continue to work on the car. I yelled at him for a little while to do something while I tried to get Tanner to unlock the door. Of course Nick wouldn't do anything. He wanted to call the landlord to get a key, but he wouldn't call them. I was so mad at this point! Finally, after a constant stream of "DO SOMETHING!" he finally called the property manager. So mad at him for that! Of course the property manager didn't answer. His wife answered at home and Nick explained what was going on but she wasn't sure if she could get in touch with her husband. At this point, I called my dad to come down with the spare key that they have, but it's a 20 minute drive down here. Remember, 2-year-old locked inside and muffins in the oven! After hanging up with my dad, the property manager's wife showed up with a key. Tanner, all sweaty from crying so much walked right out like nothing happened. The muffins were a little burned, but all was safe.
Lesson: Always keep a house key with you when you are outside, even if you think you don't need it!
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Complete Frustration!
Okay, so I've been trying to be good about a lot of the decisions that we've had to make in the last month, but I'm really having a hard time with them. Nick finally made a decision to accept his seat in this MRI program in Philadelphia. It's a 6-month program where he'll be training to get his certification. It's a program through one of the university hospitals up there, but it's not technically considered a school, so he won't be qualified to get a traditional student loan in order to pay for the program. That leaves most of it on us, or getting a loan which we'll have to pay back as we go. Here are a few of my reservations:
1. He has to quit his job for those 6-months because it's a full-time program. And it's not like he can get a part-time job because the program is sometimes during the day , and other times it's the evening shift. In this time of uncertainty, I just keep thinking that he has a job now and he wants to voluntarily give it up not knowing if he'll get one when he's done?
2. He wants to commute. We live about 90 minutes from where the hospital is. Can we say gas guzzler? We still have the Jetta, so that's not too terrible, but still. Ka-ching!
3. I'm going to be all by myself for the duration with three kids under the age of 3. One of those being a brand new baby. I don't want to be by myself, but he thinks that I'll be able to handle it. That's not the point. I don't want to handle it all by myself. It's hard enough as it is with two kids, let alone three.
4. He has to have health insurance for the entire program. Once he quits his job, we'll have nothing. He looked into how much paying through the COBRA program at work would be. About $1900 a month. Who can afford that?! So now he's looking at health insurance on the internet. Nick is so trusting that he almost always falls for scams, so that has me worried.
5. We just got our settlement check from my accident last year. It's a significant amount of money that I want to use some place other than paying for living expenses for 6 months. But Nick wants to use it for just that. It's an amount that we'll never ever get back in the bank. We'll never have that much money again for a down payment on a house, or to by a bigger vehicle outright.
6. He wants to either move back in with my parents or move back in above his parents like we did when we were first married. I don't want to do either. I will if I must, but I really don't want to. Moving in with Nick's parents would mean a different ward. I'm not sure I want that yet. Moving in with my parents means that we have no personal space. I know that living with either/or will save us tons of money, but when we moved out of my parents' house in March, I didn't plan on moving back in.
The list goes on. These are just a few of the major issues that I am struggling with. If I had my choice, we wouldn't do it. I want the outcome because it's a $17,000-$20,000 increase a year. That will get us into a better house than what our options are now. It'll give us a little bit more of a cushion with a growing family. But I have so many reservations about doing this. Being that Nick is the patriarch of our household, I do support him in the decisions we have to make, but this is probably the hardest decision I've had to make. I guess maybe I'm being selfish, but I'm completely scared straight! I don't want this!
1. He has to quit his job for those 6-months because it's a full-time program. And it's not like he can get a part-time job because the program is sometimes during the day , and other times it's the evening shift. In this time of uncertainty, I just keep thinking that he has a job now and he wants to voluntarily give it up not knowing if he'll get one when he's done?
2. He wants to commute. We live about 90 minutes from where the hospital is. Can we say gas guzzler? We still have the Jetta, so that's not too terrible, but still. Ka-ching!
3. I'm going to be all by myself for the duration with three kids under the age of 3. One of those being a brand new baby. I don't want to be by myself, but he thinks that I'll be able to handle it. That's not the point. I don't want to handle it all by myself. It's hard enough as it is with two kids, let alone three.
4. He has to have health insurance for the entire program. Once he quits his job, we'll have nothing. He looked into how much paying through the COBRA program at work would be. About $1900 a month. Who can afford that?! So now he's looking at health insurance on the internet. Nick is so trusting that he almost always falls for scams, so that has me worried.
5. We just got our settlement check from my accident last year. It's a significant amount of money that I want to use some place other than paying for living expenses for 6 months. But Nick wants to use it for just that. It's an amount that we'll never ever get back in the bank. We'll never have that much money again for a down payment on a house, or to by a bigger vehicle outright.
6. He wants to either move back in with my parents or move back in above his parents like we did when we were first married. I don't want to do either. I will if I must, but I really don't want to. Moving in with Nick's parents would mean a different ward. I'm not sure I want that yet. Moving in with my parents means that we have no personal space. I know that living with either/or will save us tons of money, but when we moved out of my parents' house in March, I didn't plan on moving back in.
The list goes on. These are just a few of the major issues that I am struggling with. If I had my choice, we wouldn't do it. I want the outcome because it's a $17,000-$20,000 increase a year. That will get us into a better house than what our options are now. It'll give us a little bit more of a cushion with a growing family. But I have so many reservations about doing this. Being that Nick is the patriarch of our household, I do support him in the decisions we have to make, but this is probably the hardest decision I've had to make. I guess maybe I'm being selfish, but I'm completely scared straight! I don't want this!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
And the Winner is...
We had our ultrasound of the baby on Monday. After rescheduling the appointment for a week later than was originally planned, we were pleased with the results of the scan. The baby is developing just perfectly. No holes or things out of place. The spine looks fabulous and all four chambers of the heart are in working order. The tech got a picture of the profile of the baby. She held the wand there for us to get a good look at the baby. We got to see the fingers moving and the head, and everything else. It's a very active little thing!
She then asked us if we wanted to know the gender of the baby. Of course we said yes. It was killing Nick to not know. He was sure it was a girl. It was nothing else to him. As time progressed, I wasn't so sure. So when the tech told us that it's a boy, I wasn't too surprised. Excited, but not surprised. Nick asked the tech if she was sure, and she said that she was pretty positive of the gender. So baby boy #3 will join our family sometime in December. I'm grateful for everything going well up to this point. I continue to pray that he will continue to grow healthy and strong. We don't have any names picked out. Boy names are a little more difficult than girl names I think. So if you have any suggestions, we're open. Just don't be offended if we don't choose one of them.
Monday, July 20, 2009
New York Vacation
We've been planning on taking a five-day camping trip up to the Finger Lakes region of New York for months now. Last week, we actually did it. We - meaning the four of us, my mom and dad, and my cousins, the Walde's - left early Monday morning to spend the week touring our Church historical 
sites, along with a few of the natural beauties that the state of New York has to offer. We camped in a nowhere town called Bristol. Definitely off the beaten path. It's about 30 minutes south of Palmyra, NY. The boys had a great time. Tanner especially because he was outside for five entire days. He was in heaven!!!
sites, along with a few of the natural beauties that the state of New York has to offer. We camped in a nowhere town called Bristol. Definitely off the beaten path. It's about 30 minutes south of Palmyra, NY. The boys had a great time. Tanner especially because he was outside for five entire days. He was in heaven!!!
Tuesday we started the day touring the Peter Whitmer farm in Fayette, NY. This is the site where The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was restored. We toured the chapel built there and the visitor center. We then went over to the farm house and got to take a look around there. From there we went to Palmyra to the Joseph Smith farm and checked out the log home and the frame house that the Smith family lived in. There is a Cooper shop and an 
old barn there that you can take a look at while you're there. After that, we took a stroll through the Sacred Grove where Joseph Smith saw God, the Father, and Jesus Christ. That's one amazing place. We were able to see parts of the Palmyra Temple as we toured the farm. That's a pretty cool Temple. It's the only Temple that has a clear glass window in it. It overlooks the Sacred Grove. Pretty awesome! 
That night we stayed for the Hill Cumorah Pageant. What a spectacular event! It doesn't start until after 9:15pm. But there are hundreds of actors from all over the country that come and portray the story of the Book of Mormon from the time of Lehi and his family, to the birth, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, through to Mormon and Moroni, 
then on to where Joseph Smith was shown the Gold Plates and testifies of the divinity of Christ and of His Second Coming. Awesome doesn't even begin to explain how you feel during the pageant. After a long day though, the boys zonked out before the start of the pageant. It was quite cold that evening, so Spencer was covered in blankets while Tanner slept on Papa's lap under the heavy blankets.
Wednesday we went back to Palmyra to climb the Hill Cumorah. We found a mom and pop place that serves incredible portions of ice cream. Really good though. Everyone but Spencer and I took a walk up to the Erie Canal after lunch just in time to see a few boats go through the locks. That was pretty cool from what I heard. That night we hung out at the campsite and played cards.
Thursday we drove over to Letchworth State Park, about an hour west of where we were camped. It's referred to as the Grand Canyon of the East. It was pretty cool. There are three falls that you can hike down to and get up close and personal with. That was probably the highlight of that day. I'm not a huge hiker, and being 4 1/2 months pregnant, it was a big day for me. But it was impressive to see, 
nonetheless.
nonetheless.We packed up Friday morning and drove home. We were sad to leave. The weather was perfect. It was pretty cold Monday and Tuesday. We ended up having to bring Tanner into our bed with us once so that he wouldn't freeze. Spencer did fine with his blankets. But the week warmed up nicely. Nick really enjoyed that part of New York and now wants to move up there. He even looked at different hospitals to see if anyone was hiring. Who knows, maybe we'll become New Yorkers. 
All-in-all, it was a fabulous trip. It was hard to come home to hot, humid temperatures, but it's also nice to be home.
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