A little something extra before Manila-

I've dropped off the face of the planet recently. I know. Here's why-

YUP! Three Schniers are going to Manila! Over the past couple weeks we've been able to share the good news with family. Most received phone calls, but Dave's dad's visited Lima a couple weeks ago so Dave was able to tell him in person! We then traveled to Arequipa with them, which was delightful! Exhaustion and nausea hasn't been so fun and Arequipa was the perfect place to take it easy! (I'll have to do a separate post on that delightful city!) We told both Dave's mom and sister over the phone- we were pretty sure they both had figured it out weeks before and wouldn't you know it! They had! For my side, not only will this be the first grandchild but it will be the first great-grandchild on both the maternal and paternal sides, so we had to do something a little 'extra.' We sent my mom a book of baby quilt patterns- I can't wait to see what she's going to make! For my dad, we sent him a 'Best dads get promoted to grandpas' t-shirt then had him wear it to my grandparents' to share the news with them!

Our next OB appointment is next week- we're hoping for some new ultrasound pics! Here's what the chick looked like last time:

Teeny tiny but we got to hear a heartbeat before 6 weeks! We checked out the heartbeat again last week but no pictures that time :(

The chicken's expected the hatch around Oct. 1 making our move to the Philippines extra complicated! Here's how we think it's going to work:

July: Leave Lima in early July and fly to VA for a wedding (!!!) then head south for family time at the beach. We're stoked but mainly worried about Riley (the large orange cat) at this point. He doesn't travel so well...

August: Head for the northern east coast (where it's cooler) and get all the family time in that we can before Dave and Riley head to post. The day Dave's scheduled to depart is exactly 6 weeks before my due date- which means not only will State not give me medical clearance to go to post, no airline would accept me if they did. I'll settle in to Arlington for at least 12 more weeks (6 before, min. 6 after). I already have docs and a hospital there, so we're very comfortable with my staying put! Plus, that gives me so much more time to catch up with all the wonderful folks back home!

October: We're hoping the chick decides to take his or her time- showing up late and/or a long labor would give us the best chance of Dave actually making it back to DC in time.  In an ideal situation, transit from Manila to DC takes about 26 hours. Healthy is of course the top priority though! Dave will take as much time off as he can post-arrival, but will head back to Manila well before chick and I can.

November: At some point med will clear us to join Dave at post, at which point the only thing standing between me and my new home with be 3 flights and 26+ hours of transit with an infant!

So yeah! Lots happening in the Land of the Llamas and Schniers!