When it Rains, it Pours...Literally

The old homage "when it rains, it pours" has never been truer or more literal than in mine and Julie's case here in Greenville, NC. In my first week of school, here's what has happened...

On my first day of school, I was sitting in my class when it suddenly moved. Yeah, that's right: moved. My desk was shaking and I felt like I was on sea. My professor said, "it can't be an earthquake. Those don't really happen here that often. Must be people doing construction outside." Well...he was wrong. It was an earthquake. The first one I had ever sat through. All of a sudden, I was wishing that I had actually listened in grade school when my teachers taught us what to do in natural disasters (was it climb up a tree? Get under my desk? Stand on my desk?) Fortunately, it only lasted about 20 seconds and did just about no damage here in Greenville. Mother Nature decided Greenville had one too many Mormon Yankees and displayed its wrath.

On day two, I woke up early for school so that I could ride my bike to campus (about nine miles away). I took a new route to school that I thought would be safer since it was not on the highway. Well, it turns out that there was a big river in the way that I couldn't get around except for on the highway. This knowledge alone meant I wouldn't be able to shower before class.Then it got worse- my bike chain completely broke off beyond repair and cut my leg open. Since I was closer to home (4 miles or so from home, 6 or so from campus) I walked my bike all the way home because Julie did not have a car to pick me up with. I had to write and apologize to my professor for not making it to class when I finally got home.

On my third day of school, we had to introduce ourselves to one of our classmates. My classmate was from North Carolina and asked me if there was anything I didn't like about her great state. I said the only two things that have been tough thus far are the ridiculous humidity and the stupid cicada bugs that would have made Pharoah decide to let the Hebrews go if God had set them on Egypt. She proceeded to tell me that cicada bugs only show up every 13 years or so in Greenville and happened to be here the year we came. I am not sure if that is true but I hope it is for two reasons: 1- it makes a hilarious story and 2- that means they won't be here next summer.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/05/07/2278836/cicadas-loudly-return-after-13.html



And then, oh, yeah. There was that whole hurricane thing. We have been planning for weeks to come up to Sterling, Virginia to get a car from my brother-in-law and his wife since they are moving to China. We also thought it would be a great excuse to say goodbye to them...and for me to take my nephew to an Orioles-Yankees game. It all came together perfectly, until Irene. This hurricane is appropriately named after the woman who made the first place we lived in hell. The game was cancelled and we may or may not have a home when we go back to Greenville. Needless to say, it's been an interesting first week.

Our First Few Weeks

We have now been in Greenville for two and a half weeks! It seems like it has gone by really fast (and really slow). Here are some things that we've been up to or just other random stuff.

Julie snapped this photo on our way to Greenville from Raleigh on the day we got here. North Carolina is very beautiful and green.

Delmar: "All my sins been washed away, like when I knocked over that Piggly Wiggly." Everett: "I thought you said you was innocent of those charges?" Delmar: "Well, I lied...now that sin's been washed away, too." We have a Piggly Wiggly here in Greenville...unfortunately we haven't taken a picture of the actual store because with the part of town it's in we might not live.

Our first meal at our house. Without furniture, Julie and I sat on boxes and used the only chair we had as our dining room table.

Julie looking more and more gorgeous as this pregnancy goes along...probably doesn't feel gorgeous, though, since it's been hot and humid everyday since we've been here.

Don't worry, I DO THIS!

A phenomenon I had forgotten about since I left Milwaukee. Apparently, the gangsta thing to do is to buy really junky cars, paint them bright colors and put huge rims on them. We see these all over the city.

And again. We point them out to each other every time.

We went up to Richmond to see Julie's brother and sister-in-law and their children. The city is really beautiful but has a very interesting take on the Civil War...er, I mean, the War of Northern Aggression. Apparently, Jefferson Davis was a great man who only wanted to fight for state's rights...of putting chains around black people's necks and ankles and selling them like livestock (they forgot to mention that last part).

This is a very new phenomenon to me. Everywhere you go, there is something about Christianity. You would think that this is just a dry cleaning business. You're wrong! It's a place where you can get your clothes ironed AND find cheap salvation (for a lot less money and less time investment than the dry cleaning)!

San Diego Zoo

(For a related post, with the animal pictures I took, check out my photo blog.)

Our big family outing during my Duke family 'reunion' a few weeks ago was going to the San Diego Zoo together. It was a little crazy, with 27 people, but we managed it by splitting up into smaller groups. We ended up in the one that mostly rode trams around to see the animals (probably because of me, honestly - my poor swollen pregnant body couldn't handle the heat and all that walking...that zoo is HUGE!).
We had a great time, and I even took photos to document it!

Dylan made a new friend with this Galapagos Tortoise

...but this is his real buddy - our nephew, Jonah. These two were pretty inseparable the entire trip. Dylan loves that 'little' kid, who is 7 months old.

When I was 26 weeks pregnant. Gotta prove to Eloise that she's been here!

My brother, Brian, and his girlfriend, Alicia. And Alyssa sitting on his shoulders.

Dylan and our 'Magnet' - Abigail calls both Dylan and me her magnet. She's also Jonah's older sister

Jen and her little boy, Jonah. We at least hung out with ONE kid for most of the day :)

San Diego Temple

While lots of the kiddos went to Legoland, at our 'reunion', a bunch of us adults went to the San Diego Temple. (To see my pictures of the temple itself, and pictures I took of my parents, go to my photo blog.)
After doing a session, we all wanted pictures out in front of it, so we clambered up and down the hill next to it, which is really the only place to get the entire temple in one shot.

My sister, Karen, took these of me and Dylan.

 And then Dylan took pictures of me and my sisters.

 And then he took pictures of me at 26 weeks pregnant.

...with Karen holding my baby bump? what? haha

20 Weeks...which was, yes, over 9 weeks ago.

Hey, better late than never, right?
Now that we finally have our computer up and going full-speed-ahead, I finally am uploading pictures and editing them.
These were pictures taken when I was 20 weeks along. And yesterday I was 29 weeks. So have no assumptions that I look anything like this still. My feet and legs are about twice as swollen as here, as are my arms, and my belly is growing and growing and growing! Meaning, Eloise is growing and growing and growing. Yay!

(whose belly is bigger? haha)

 

Whoa, BABY!

I had to imitate the cheesy heart-fingers-on-belly pictures I've seen. Yes, I love my baby girl, but holding my fingers in the shape of a heart over her just makes me laugh.