Oh boy.
The last week has DEFINITELY made some changes.
My jeans are now tight and my butt feels like the size of the moon.
And then there's the morning sickness. I've officially decided that whoever named it morning sickness was bat shit crazy. Why didn't they call it all day sickness? I have been fortunate enough to not be miserable with the "sickness" but, I am definitely "feeling" the hormones changing. Just through the last week I have noticed being queasy a lot more and I have to eat every 2 hours or I get nauseated. I haven't been bowing to the porcelain god like a lot of people say they do for nearly 4 weeks of their pregnancy, but I still don't like the "tummy ache", gross, upturned stomach all the time.
ALL physical activity has ceased to exist as it makes me short of breath and lightheaded. I will do the necessary up and down the steps, walk to and from the car, but other than that... I try to avoid walking at all. I got home and I sit. I sit and read and watch TLC "Preggy" shows...
and I cry. I cannot believe the frequency that tears are shed from my eyes! It's a wonder I'm not dehydrated with as much fluid that I loose out of them. It even drives myself crazy.
And then there is also "crazy bitch" who comes out to play. OMG. When my hormones are raging, you better be running. Brad especially has learned that there are times where there is NO stopping me. I will go and go and go until I have released the steam. Sometimes I'm complaining and whining and just flat out bitching and I don't even know why because its something as silly as the printer being out of paper. I get so fed up with stuff so quickly that my fuse is about 1/8 cm long. It takes nothing to piss me off, and when I'm pissed, the hormones start flowing into a raging river.
Brad and I started "baby shopping" this past week.
We managed to get a Crib, Changing Table, AND Drawers all in one set....
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Child-of-Mine-by-Carter-s-My-Nursery-3-in-1-Convertible-Crib-and-Changing-Table-Combo-Mocha/19394579?findingMethod=rr
We also managed to get a stroller and infant car seat for 1/2 the price! (It looks just like the picture in the below link, only ours is blue, brown, and tan stripes instead of circles).
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Graco-Spree-Travel-System-Barcelona/13017422?adid=1500000000000027727720
Brad and I also found a second hand store that carries JUST kids stuff. So that was a blast. We found a TON of cute little books and toys and stuff that we splurged on. I found a whole set of 'Little Golden Books' at "Duck Worth Wearing" and of course, had to get them. I remember my parents reading them to me when I was little... and I'm kind of excited to continue the trend!
Friday morning Brad and I make a visit to the specialist in Des Moines for the genetic testing that we are having done. We are having an Integrated Screen done which tests for trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome), trisomy 18 (Edwards Disease), open neural tube defects (Spina Bifida), as well as "nuchal translucent" sonogram/ ultrasound (Brain Size Measurement). I am kind of nervous for this, but with the history in both of our families we have decided that it is something we want to make sure we get the proper care if something is wrong with the baby genetically and physically.
We also go in on Tuesday, next week, for our 12 week appointment. Its hard to believe that next week we are nearly out of the first trimester! I can't believe how time is flying by so fast! Tiffany has been talking about how she can feel their baby moving and kicking inside of her already, and I am SO jealous that she is to that point. My time is coming, I know, but I'm really excited to be able to have more "reality" hit. :)
Well, Until next week!
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
10 weeks and Counting!
Saturday afternoon Brad and I made the announcement on Facebook that we are expecting our first child!
We visited the OBGYN last Thursday for our first visit. We were pretty nervous to find out if everything was normal and if the pregnancy was viable or not. :) The doctor did her normal exam and then went on to go through all of the screening tests that are available and explained what was expected within the next 3 weeks before my next visit. At the end of the visit she took out the "Doppler Radar" and was able to locate the heart beat. Brad and I both were pretty excited about that. The little stinker's heart was racing at 172 beats/ min, but the doctor notified us that this was pretty normal at 9 weeks along. We didn't get to have an ultrasound done yet, the clinic we are working with waits until week 20 to do the anatomy ultrasound, so we are anxiously waiting that day!
Today we have reached the 10 week mark. I am officially 1/4 of the way through my pregnancy! I can't believe how fast the time is going. It seems like just last week we found out we were pregnant, and now, here we are, 1/4 of the way through it!
Morning sickness has hit just within the last few days. I was hoping and praying I'd miraculously be able to skip that whole section of the pregnancy, but it caught up with me. =/ I started school yesterday, so it has been kind of a hassle keeping my tummy full with carbs and fluid throughout the day, but I have been managing. The sickness isn't extremely horrific, I just have this constant urge to hurl, even though I haven't yet! :) It's just this constant feeling of "ickyness" in my stomach that just makes me walk around like a zombie (or at least that's how I feel).
Brad and I were both pretty surprised when we found out I was pregnant, but we are both very excited for the future as well. I'm just going to chug through the semester as well as I can and hope and pray that this is a normal pregnancy and that nothing drastic happens when it's not supposed to. It helps that two of Brad and I's best "married" friends are pregnant as well. We are only 6 weeks behind Mike and Tiffany Van Roekel, and 2 weeks behind Matt and Nikita Kleyer. No, the 3 of us did NOT plan our pregnancies all together, it just so happened that the Kleyer's and Van Roekel's were trying to conceive without each other knowing, and then Brad and I "whoopsidentally" got thrown into the bunch! The three of us are all very excited to be pregnant together as we get to share our personal horror stories and excitements throughout the pregnancies. I'm very much looking forward to the holidays when the three of us are all hanging out and, with only one bathroom in the VR's house, I have a feeling all of us will be fighting over the bathroom!
It is a very exciting step in our lives, although it is a very large step, we are looking forward to it none-the-less.
<3 amp="amp" brad="brad" nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
We visited the OBGYN last Thursday for our first visit. We were pretty nervous to find out if everything was normal and if the pregnancy was viable or not. :) The doctor did her normal exam and then went on to go through all of the screening tests that are available and explained what was expected within the next 3 weeks before my next visit. At the end of the visit she took out the "Doppler Radar" and was able to locate the heart beat. Brad and I both were pretty excited about that. The little stinker's heart was racing at 172 beats/ min, but the doctor notified us that this was pretty normal at 9 weeks along. We didn't get to have an ultrasound done yet, the clinic we are working with waits until week 20 to do the anatomy ultrasound, so we are anxiously waiting that day!
Today we have reached the 10 week mark. I am officially 1/4 of the way through my pregnancy! I can't believe how fast the time is going. It seems like just last week we found out we were pregnant, and now, here we are, 1/4 of the way through it!
Morning sickness has hit just within the last few days. I was hoping and praying I'd miraculously be able to skip that whole section of the pregnancy, but it caught up with me. =/ I started school yesterday, so it has been kind of a hassle keeping my tummy full with carbs and fluid throughout the day, but I have been managing. The sickness isn't extremely horrific, I just have this constant urge to hurl, even though I haven't yet! :) It's just this constant feeling of "ickyness" in my stomach that just makes me walk around like a zombie (or at least that's how I feel).
Brad and I were both pretty surprised when we found out I was pregnant, but we are both very excited for the future as well. I'm just going to chug through the semester as well as I can and hope and pray that this is a normal pregnancy and that nothing drastic happens when it's not supposed to. It helps that two of Brad and I's best "married" friends are pregnant as well. We are only 6 weeks behind Mike and Tiffany Van Roekel, and 2 weeks behind Matt and Nikita Kleyer. No, the 3 of us did NOT plan our pregnancies all together, it just so happened that the Kleyer's and Van Roekel's were trying to conceive without each other knowing, and then Brad and I "whoopsidentally" got thrown into the bunch! The three of us are all very excited to be pregnant together as we get to share our personal horror stories and excitements throughout the pregnancies. I'm very much looking forward to the holidays when the three of us are all hanging out and, with only one bathroom in the VR's house, I have a feeling all of us will be fighting over the bathroom!
It is a very exciting step in our lives, although it is a very large step, we are looking forward to it none-the-less.
<3 amp="amp" brad="brad" nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
Monday, August 13, 2012
Trip to Tennessee for Interview
Thurday afternoon at 3:15 I left Omaha, NE on my first solo plane ride ever. I was so freaked out about flying on my own, not to mention the fact that I was going to be "interrogated" the next day for 6 hours straight by 7 different superior men who are well established within the company.
My flight to from Omaha to Minneapolis went flawless. We didn't fly very high and I was able to see everything on the ground. We flew over Iowa, I was able to see the interstate, fields, lakes, rivers, towns. It was amazing how much I could see. The clouds were gorgeous as well. We flew just above the level of the clouds, but they were perfect floating marshmellow's up in the sky.
When we landed in Minneapolis I had about an hour and a half until my connection flight. I gathered some food and sat and read for the remaining wait. My flight wasn't until 7:15. The flight ended up being delayed by about 45 minutes, so that put me landing in Nashville around 10:20. We took off to Nashville at our delayed time, and then we landed in Nashville around 10:15. I was informed by PIC that there would be a car waiting upon arrival with me. I walked out to the luggage collection and there, with a big "hollywood movie" sign... "PIC: ROSLYN PUNT". :) I felt famous. :) lol.
I checked into my hotel at 11:00 pm Thursday night. Showered, got settled, and was awake at 6:15 the following am to prepare for a long day of interviews, checked out of my hotel, and got everything packed up and ready to go again.
The interviews went well. It started off at The Cracker Barrel at 7:30 am. My first interviewer took me to breakfast, and after, took me to the main office in Hendersonville, TN. I was then questioned and asked questions to the next 5 interviewers for the morning. At 11:30 another one of the interviewers took me to lunch at a mexican grill, which was very good and filling, and then we returned to the office where I went on to be interviewed by one last person.
The interviews went very very well, I do believe. I was nervous at the beginning, but as I started to relax, I realized that the people were asking very good, concerning questions. I had a nice time getting to meet a bunch of new people and learning about PIC. After the interview, another car came to pick me up from the office where he took me to the airport in Nashville.
My flight from Nashville to Atlanta was delayed by an hour and a half, therefore giving me much needed time to change out of my interview clothes into something more comfortable, and then, I managed to get in some more reading time and was able to relax a little more. My flight to Atlanta was very short, but I was anxious by now to return home. When I landed in Atlanta I had about 45 minutes to get to my next flight. I landed in terminal G and needed to make it all the way to terminal A. I didn't manage to get much time to look around, but I did make it to my gate in time, just so they could delay my flight by another half hour. =/ The plane we were taking back to Omaha had just flown in from the Bahama's and needed to have a "cross country contamination" check done for any foreign animals or diseases.... I guess. :s
When we finally made it onto our plane, and were preparing for take off, they decided that the weather was too harsh for us to take off. So, our plane sat still for another hour, on the runway. We weren't able to turn any electronic devices on, nor take our seat belts off, so it was a long wait. We then took off about 1hr 45 min after we were supposed to and flew through a thunder storm for the first hour of our flight. We weren't allowed to take our seat belts off during the entire flight, and I really needed to use the bathroom. :( It was a miserable flight and we didn't land in Omaha until 11:30. We were supposed to land at 10:15. Brad was kind enough to pick me up from the airport though, and I was able to sleep in the car on the ride home.
The job I interviewed for was a Field Research Technician. I would be traveling anywhere from 3-5 days a week, all commercial flying, and then I'd be spending most of my time between barns collecting data, as well as within pork plants collecting data there as well. It is an awesome job for anyone to take. I'm waiting to hear back from the company as to weather they will offer me the job, or to someone else. I won't be able to start until late December, due to graduation not being until December 20th. But, I still look forward to hearing from them.
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
My flight to from Omaha to Minneapolis went flawless. We didn't fly very high and I was able to see everything on the ground. We flew over Iowa, I was able to see the interstate, fields, lakes, rivers, towns. It was amazing how much I could see. The clouds were gorgeous as well. We flew just above the level of the clouds, but they were perfect floating marshmellow's up in the sky.
When we landed in Minneapolis I had about an hour and a half until my connection flight. I gathered some food and sat and read for the remaining wait. My flight wasn't until 7:15. The flight ended up being delayed by about 45 minutes, so that put me landing in Nashville around 10:20. We took off to Nashville at our delayed time, and then we landed in Nashville around 10:15. I was informed by PIC that there would be a car waiting upon arrival with me. I walked out to the luggage collection and there, with a big "hollywood movie" sign... "PIC: ROSLYN PUNT". :) I felt famous. :) lol.
I checked into my hotel at 11:00 pm Thursday night. Showered, got settled, and was awake at 6:15 the following am to prepare for a long day of interviews, checked out of my hotel, and got everything packed up and ready to go again.
The interviews went well. It started off at The Cracker Barrel at 7:30 am. My first interviewer took me to breakfast, and after, took me to the main office in Hendersonville, TN. I was then questioned and asked questions to the next 5 interviewers for the morning. At 11:30 another one of the interviewers took me to lunch at a mexican grill, which was very good and filling, and then we returned to the office where I went on to be interviewed by one last person.
The interviews went very very well, I do believe. I was nervous at the beginning, but as I started to relax, I realized that the people were asking very good, concerning questions. I had a nice time getting to meet a bunch of new people and learning about PIC. After the interview, another car came to pick me up from the office where he took me to the airport in Nashville.
My flight from Nashville to Atlanta was delayed by an hour and a half, therefore giving me much needed time to change out of my interview clothes into something more comfortable, and then, I managed to get in some more reading time and was able to relax a little more. My flight to Atlanta was very short, but I was anxious by now to return home. When I landed in Atlanta I had about 45 minutes to get to my next flight. I landed in terminal G and needed to make it all the way to terminal A. I didn't manage to get much time to look around, but I did make it to my gate in time, just so they could delay my flight by another half hour. =/ The plane we were taking back to Omaha had just flown in from the Bahama's and needed to have a "cross country contamination" check done for any foreign animals or diseases.... I guess. :s
When we finally made it onto our plane, and were preparing for take off, they decided that the weather was too harsh for us to take off. So, our plane sat still for another hour, on the runway. We weren't able to turn any electronic devices on, nor take our seat belts off, so it was a long wait. We then took off about 1hr 45 min after we were supposed to and flew through a thunder storm for the first hour of our flight. We weren't allowed to take our seat belts off during the entire flight, and I really needed to use the bathroom. :( It was a miserable flight and we didn't land in Omaha until 11:30. We were supposed to land at 10:15. Brad was kind enough to pick me up from the airport though, and I was able to sleep in the car on the ride home.
The job I interviewed for was a Field Research Technician. I would be traveling anywhere from 3-5 days a week, all commercial flying, and then I'd be spending most of my time between barns collecting data, as well as within pork plants collecting data there as well. It is an awesome job for anyone to take. I'm waiting to hear back from the company as to weather they will offer me the job, or to someone else. I won't be able to start until late December, due to graduation not being until December 20th. But, I still look forward to hearing from them.
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
Monday, August 6, 2012
Internship Finale!
Friday, August 3rd I presented my final presentation to the AMVC Staff and other 2012 Interns. I had a wonderful summer working with such a wonderful group of Swine Producers that I'm more than willing to go back next year! :) I am really looking forward as to where I can go within the Pork Industry, and AMVC was wonderful to open that gate for me this summer.
I have been set from day #1 of College that I wanted to become a beef specialist whether it be within Vet School or just regular schooling. But I knew that I wanted to be in the Beef Industry. AMVC opened my eyes to another industry that is striving to become more efficient, more productive, and lower prices for both farmers, and consumers. I look forward to the challenges that the Pork Industry is facing with the whole Gestation Crate debates currently going on, and to see where we end up in the future. I can't wait for the improvements to come.
AMVC was a wonderful company to work for this summer, and they welcomed all of us from no animal experience to growing up with hogs. I got to meet so many powerful, representing folks within the industry that have spent years dedicated to the industry, as well as AMVC. Although AMVC is located in Audubon, they manage barns all across the US. They do such a good job representing the company and being able to manage farms from hundreds of miles away. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting so many important, knowledgeable, and amazing people within the company and industry.
Thank you AMVC for an unforgettable summer. Both inside, and outside of work, my memories will not fade of a very determined, well established company.
To learn more about AMVC, or to learn about their internship program please visit: http://www.amvcms.com/
They are all more than willing to help interns out, and to open the doors for new opportunities and improvements within your schooling efforts. Please, consider AMVC for an internship if you are interested in the Pork Industry. Even if you aren't, this is still a good internship to open your eyes to any type of production and the work that is involved "behind the scenes".
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
I have been set from day #1 of College that I wanted to become a beef specialist whether it be within Vet School or just regular schooling. But I knew that I wanted to be in the Beef Industry. AMVC opened my eyes to another industry that is striving to become more efficient, more productive, and lower prices for both farmers, and consumers. I look forward to the challenges that the Pork Industry is facing with the whole Gestation Crate debates currently going on, and to see where we end up in the future. I can't wait for the improvements to come.
AMVC was a wonderful company to work for this summer, and they welcomed all of us from no animal experience to growing up with hogs. I got to meet so many powerful, representing folks within the industry that have spent years dedicated to the industry, as well as AMVC. Although AMVC is located in Audubon, they manage barns all across the US. They do such a good job representing the company and being able to manage farms from hundreds of miles away. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting so many important, knowledgeable, and amazing people within the company and industry.
Thank you AMVC for an unforgettable summer. Both inside, and outside of work, my memories will not fade of a very determined, well established company.
To learn more about AMVC, or to learn about their internship program please visit: http://www.amvcms.com/
They are all more than willing to help interns out, and to open the doors for new opportunities and improvements within your schooling efforts. Please, consider AMVC for an internship if you are interested in the Pork Industry. Even if you aren't, this is still a good internship to open your eyes to any type of production and the work that is involved "behind the scenes".
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
Thursday, August 2, 2012
As the Internship Winds Down....
My internship is quickly coming to an end! I can't believe summer has gone by so quickly!
The last few weeks I have not blogged. I'm sorry. I have been SWAMPED with finishing summer courses, working 10 hour days, County Fairs, and finishing my Project Presentation for my internship.
The last few weeks have been the same thing as previous weeks. Daily motions have become a ritual and I'm officially "part of the team" as its not nearly as much information overload as it was the first part of the internship. I have been keeping busy doing daily tasks, described in previous posts, and have been doing a lot of finishing up on my project.
Over the last 10 weeks of my summer I have been recording Gestation, Farrowing, and Breeding data on over 175 sows spanned out over 8 weeks of breeding (weeks 8-14). We are currently on Week 31 and all of my sows have now farrowed. Through recording data daily I compiled a huge Excel Spreadsheet of information. I randomly chose the sows so that I had 10% out of each week/group (about 27 sows per week). I recorded their ID #, Parity #, Gestation Body Condition (Thin, Good, Heavy), 114 Day Farrowing Date, Farrowing Room and Crate, Date Farrowed, Born Alive, Stillborns, Mummies, Total Born, Monitored Time (Day, Night, Unattended), # of Piglets Dried, Split Suckled (or not), Scours (or not), if Sow was Induced, Oxy'd, Assisted, or High Temp, the Day 1 Date (day piglets are given birth shots), Processing Date (day piglets are castrated), All piglet Deaths for every individual sow, any piglets fostered for every individual sow, if sows were nursed on (piglets added on after sow was weaned), Wean Date and # Weaned, Pounds Ate, Total Lactation Days, Pounds Per Day Consumed, Condition at Breeding (Good, Heavy, Thin), Date Bred, Cull Date/Reason, Dead Date/ Reason, and any special notes (Early Wean, Replacement Sow, Step-Wean, Cull After Wean, Cull After Farrow, Injuries, Nurse Sow).
After all of my data was collected I then compiled another massive Excel Spreadsheet of numbers and "stuff" that gave me my final presentation.
I will enlighten you on another day what my presentation shows and what the data I collected concluded. The main focus of the research was to determine feed consumption and its effects on weaning and the sows conditions. We also wanted to see what drying and split suckling of piglets effected, and if it helped or harmed the piglets.
In order for me to not spoil my presentation tomorrow, as I know many of the people who work for AMVC read my blog, I will describe my presentation in detail at a later date!
Thanks Everyone for following me this summer through my internship. It has been a lot of fun to present you all with everything that I have learned and done throughout the summer. It has been a WONDERFUL experience for me, and I am glad to say I worked for such an awesome company.
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
The last few weeks I have not blogged. I'm sorry. I have been SWAMPED with finishing summer courses, working 10 hour days, County Fairs, and finishing my Project Presentation for my internship.
The last few weeks have been the same thing as previous weeks. Daily motions have become a ritual and I'm officially "part of the team" as its not nearly as much information overload as it was the first part of the internship. I have been keeping busy doing daily tasks, described in previous posts, and have been doing a lot of finishing up on my project.
Over the last 10 weeks of my summer I have been recording Gestation, Farrowing, and Breeding data on over 175 sows spanned out over 8 weeks of breeding (weeks 8-14). We are currently on Week 31 and all of my sows have now farrowed. Through recording data daily I compiled a huge Excel Spreadsheet of information. I randomly chose the sows so that I had 10% out of each week/group (about 27 sows per week). I recorded their ID #, Parity #, Gestation Body Condition (Thin, Good, Heavy), 114 Day Farrowing Date, Farrowing Room and Crate, Date Farrowed, Born Alive, Stillborns, Mummies, Total Born, Monitored Time (Day, Night, Unattended), # of Piglets Dried, Split Suckled (or not), Scours (or not), if Sow was Induced, Oxy'd, Assisted, or High Temp, the Day 1 Date (day piglets are given birth shots), Processing Date (day piglets are castrated), All piglet Deaths for every individual sow, any piglets fostered for every individual sow, if sows were nursed on (piglets added on after sow was weaned), Wean Date and # Weaned, Pounds Ate, Total Lactation Days, Pounds Per Day Consumed, Condition at Breeding (Good, Heavy, Thin), Date Bred, Cull Date/Reason, Dead Date/ Reason, and any special notes (Early Wean, Replacement Sow, Step-Wean, Cull After Wean, Cull After Farrow, Injuries, Nurse Sow).
After all of my data was collected I then compiled another massive Excel Spreadsheet of numbers and "stuff" that gave me my final presentation.
I will enlighten you on another day what my presentation shows and what the data I collected concluded. The main focus of the research was to determine feed consumption and its effects on weaning and the sows conditions. We also wanted to see what drying and split suckling of piglets effected, and if it helped or harmed the piglets.
In order for me to not spoil my presentation tomorrow, as I know many of the people who work for AMVC read my blog, I will describe my presentation in detail at a later date!
Thanks Everyone for following me this summer through my internship. It has been a lot of fun to present you all with everything that I have learned and done throughout the summer. It has been a WONDERFUL experience for me, and I am glad to say I worked for such an awesome company.
<3 nbsp="nbsp" p="p" roz="roz">
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