A House Divided

It's no secret that we are a VERY divided house. Chelsea being a University of Oregon graduate and Cody being an Oregon State graduate has made for several rough football season's around this house. Let me tell you the first 2 years of our courthship was especially hard during football season. I am pretty sure both of those years we not on speaking terms by the end of the Civil War game. Its a wonder our relationship ever lasted!! Somehow, we managed to figure things out and football season has been a little less painful in more recent years.

Now that we have a baby on the way, we are going to have all new civil war issues to overcome! I think we are going to have one very confused child when he/she is wearing Beaver gear one day and Duck gear the next (obviously depending on which one of us was able to get up and get the baby dressed first!).

Grandma Olson has already started the battle!! When we were killing time in the Denver Airport, she found a little stuffed Beaver that she just had to buy! I told her I expect her to even up the score board and make sure Baby gets a stuffed Duck too!

Houston, TX

Girls trip to Houston to visit Courtney was a blast with only a few bumps to overcome.

Day 1: We flew in on a Thursday evening. Courtney picked Kim and I up from the airport then took us to her apartment to drop off our luggage and freshen up before we heading to an amazing Seafood dinner. After dinner, we came out to find her car GONE! Our first thought was that her someone stole her 4-runner but it turns out, it just got towed. So, we got a great tour of the impound yard on our first day.

Day 2: The second day was a lot better! We spent the day in Galveston and had a blast...

Boot shopping...

A walk on the beach...


Bike ride....We rented a 4-person bike and rode around the Galveston beachfront. We only almost ran over 3 people, 2 poles and 1 concrete block! Who knows how many miles we rode for but our bums were sore for the next few days!



Day 3: I woke up thinking I was experiencing my first dose of morning sickness. It was horrible but I got up and got ready for the day anyway and we made it to our pedicure appointment on time. I tried to nibble on a Luna Bar and drink a little water. I made it through the pedicure but ended up throwing up shortly after. Kim and Courtney grabbed a salad lunch and ordered me some wheat toast that I barely picked at. I managed to get enough energy to do a little shopping then we headed home. Despite the headache, stomachache, and backache I tried to lay down and relax, determined to feel better before dinner with Courtney's co-worker Barbara. Kim encouraged me to drink a little Ginger ale and eat a few crackers which seamed to help. As soon as we got home from dinner, I took a warm bath which really helped to relax my muscles. Once I laid down for the evening, I started to feel like I was running a fever. That is when I realized, maybe this wasn't morning sickness and was some kind of flu or something. The next morning I work up feeling pretty good, still just a little weak. So, I really think it must have been a 24 hour flu.

Day 4: Was a low key day. We did a little shopping, watched a movie, went on a walk around Courtney's neighborhood and Kim made dinner at home for us. I fell in love with all the homes in her adorable neighborhood and Kim's stuffed peppers were not only amazing but this was the first real meal I had in nearly 48 hours!

The next morning, we had to pack up and say our good bye's to Courtney. There was a pretty good storm brewing in Texas so initially our flight was delayed. We headed to the airport anyways to find out they reversed the delay in hopes to get us in the air before the storm really hit! Even though the rain and thunder and already started I guess the real storm hadn't even began!

Thanks Courtney for having us! Kim and I left Houston feeling a lot better about Courtney being there. She lives in a great area, impressively knows her way around pretty well, and it was great to see what a wonderful person Barbara is and a great friend...She truly is a blessing. We love ya Court!

Saturday Night Beverage

After a full day of studying for Cody and cleaning for me, we decided to kick back and relax last Saturday evening. Together, we cooked dinner and Cody tried out his bar tending skills. He was pretty impressed with the margaritas he made from scratch. He proceeded to tell me (you, know...me, his pregnant wife!) how AWESOME his margarita was. So, I had to try really hard convince myself how amazing my Diet Hansen's soda was :o) This made me think about the approaching summer. We plan on doing lots of camping together but it is going to be a long summer of sitting around the campfire without my favorite cocktail. Oh, but how this baby will be well worth it!!!

Codys Beverage vs Chelsea's Beverage:

"How did that happen?!"

When I first told my brother Caleb that I was pregnant, his response was pretty funny, ”What? Really? How did that happen? My response: “I don’t know….a couple cocktails and a weekend at the beach.” Well, although that is true, the whole story is that part of it was planned and the other part was just letting things happen when they are suppose to.

You shouldn't be surprised that Cody was fully involved in the planning portion. Almost two years ago, he emailed me an Optimal Date of Conception Spread Sheet. This spread sheet was full of all his financial goals for us, how each of them could be met, and precisely at what point we could “afford” having kids. I had goals of my own but mine were a little different. My to-do list before children consisted of: A trip to Japan, new floors and new furniture. Not only did we accomplish both of our goals by Cody’s original projection date but I even managed to squeeze in a couple more vacations.

Just from taking notes from friends and family around us, I really thought it would take us much longer to get pregnant. So, when we found out we were, I was a little shocked (of course excited, but shocked). However, I am a true believer that everything happens for a reason. Being prepared in all aspects of our life but giving up control and letting things fall into place was the best thing we could have done.

11 Weeks Down, 29 To Go

It was Friday, March 2nd at 6am when we confirmed what we already knew deep down. Cody’s confidence was high but Chelsea on the other hand was slightly nervous. She was afraid to get her hopes up then later be disappointed if things didn’t go our way. But after Chelsea was several days late and complained of swollen, tender breasts one little stick confirmed the biggest, most exciting change in our life…a baby! It was a surreal moment-we hugged and cried tears of joy. As we embraced, Chelsea tearfully whispered, “We are going to have a baby! Are you ready to be a Daddy?” Cody nodded then squashed the moment minutes later when the first words out of his mouth his mouth were, “Honey, you better call Kaiser and find out what this is going to cost us so we can plan accordingly.” Chelsea just laughed. She wouldn’t expect anything less of him!

Cody headed to work and Chelsea called Kaiser with hopes of being able to get in right away. The OB receptionist informed Chelsea that she was only about 6 weeks along and they didn’t want to see her any sooner than 8 weeks. So, the appointment would have to wait until after we returned home from our Hawaiian vacation…bummer!

In the meantime, baby names were already being discussed. We already have already agreed on a boy name, but have had a harder time with girl names. Cody keeps coming up with girls names that would make someone think that our newborn was already in her 95th year of life. Cody believes the older generation names have “character” but Chelsea honestly believes he’s just trying to keep the boys away. Needless to say, we are prepared to play the name game for quite some time. Good thing we have 9 months on our hands to work with!

Our first Dr.’s appointment was on Friday, March 23rd. At this appointment we met with our midwife and got a first look at the baby! We clearly saw the baby in the ultrasound and saw the flicker of his/her heartbeat. It was pretty amazing!!!! Chelsea had been feeling so good that up until this point she wasn’t completely convinced she was even pregnant. So, this was the confirmation she had been waiting for.

According to the ultrasound, Baby’s due date is November 2nd but we will have another ultrasound done at our next visit to confirm the due date. So, we had to break the news to Miss Maxi that as of this fall, she will no longer be the baby of the house!

At 8 weeks old and measuring in at 1.61cm, we would officially like to introduce Baby O…



We are now in week 11 and things have been going great. Chelsea has been fortunate enough to have not yet experienced any kind of morning sickness or anything of that sort. However, she has recently been experiencing a little over-sensitivity that both her and Cody need to remind themselves that it is just the pregnancy hormones!

We will continue to update our blog during this very exciting time in our life. You will notice future blogs will be written from Chelsea’s perspective so everyone can get the pregnancy details first hand!

With Lots of Love,
Cody, Chelsea, and Baby Olson