Before we moved from Jacksonville, I found out I was pregnant! In the very beginning, pre-move, I honestly enjoyed my pregnancy. I experienced some of the typical symptoms, like tiredness, occasional mild bouts of morning sickness, but nothing too extreme. After I finally got to tell Frank, I couldn’t help myself and I started telling everyone. During that last week, my wonderful co-workers at my internship threw me the sweetest going-away party and included some gifts for me and the baby. I’ll always treasure the lovely people I met and worked with there. Nevertheless, at the end of July, 2019, we found ourselves in a brand new apartment back in Naples, FL. We unpacked our things, bought some new furniture, and soon settled in!
Early Pregnancy
Frank had started that new contract before I got there, and it was going fairly well. However, I could not quite say the same for myself. Morning sickness hit me with a vengeance soon after I arrived. My senses, particularly my sense of smell, could not handle whatever scents filled our new apartment. One specific (and sad) example involves lavender-scented garbage bags. (Wow, even writing about this makes me gag, that’s wild.) I love the smell of lavender. Frank knows this. Therefore, Frank bought me lavender-scented garbage bags for the apartment before I moved there. Unfortunately, being anywhere near those bags made me violently gag. We moved them all over the apartment, trying to ease my queasiness. They finally ended up in the backseat of Frank’s car. Sorry, Frank!
I spent roughly every day of the month of August on the couch, watching anything and everything, trying to figure out if anything might sound remotely appetizing. As these blog posts may have already proven, I LOVE FOOD. Yet, during my first trimester, it wasn’t necessarily a struggle to keep food down, but even thinking about food would trigger nausea. Every night, Frank and I played an exhausting game: “Okay, what sounds the least terrible for dinner?”
F: “What can we eliminate? How about chicken?”
J: “Sounds disgusting.”
F: “Your Korean beef bowl?”
J: “Absolutely not. And I don’t have the energy to cook.”
F: “Okay, what about Outback Steakhouse?”
J: “Maybe that could be somewhat tolerable.”
F: “Pizza or Mexican food?”
J: “Blegh, no.”
F: “Grouper and Chips?”
J: “Nooo, that sounds awful.”
F: “Outback was tolerable, how about that?”
J: “…I guess we can try it.”
And repeat. Every. Night. Poor Frank, he tried so hard to be patient with me!
Things are Looking Up
I finally started my last counseling internship right at the beginning of my second trimester. This coincided perfectly with an increase of energy, less nausea, and an eagerness to finally be doing something again! I also cannot help but think that having others to focus on and keeping myself preoccupied really helped ease my symptoms, as well as made the time fly faster. Once again, I learned so much about how to be a counselor and how to help people in times of crisis. In addition, I really liked my co-workers! Frank’s job was progressing along as well, and thus work-wise, life was good! Furthermore, we also made time for fun and checking off bucket list items!
Kennedy Space Center ✅
Growing up on the Space Coast, I have visited the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) perhaps a dozen times. Yet, Frank had never been, and I just knew that he would love it! So, in September, we drove across the state to visit my family again. Just a short 20 minute drive later, and we got to soak in the history and excitement of space exploration! Our first stop after we arrived there was the Rocket Garden, full of life-size, authentic past rockets that populated the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo space programs. Though real, they were never launched, as in the earliest days of the space program, they did not reuse or retrieve launched rockets.
Soon after, we took the bus tour around the eco-reserve, which took us past fascinating structures like Launch Pad 39B (currently in use by SpaceX) and the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). The VAB is a massive edifice (525 feet tall and 518 feet wide, spanning 8 acres!) with retractable doors the height of the building, built so the Saturn V rocket, and later the Space Shuttle, could exit vertically on one of the mobile launch platforms. You might recognize it from its cameo in Apollo 13! The tour ended at the Apollo/Saturn V Center, one of the gems of KSC.
Apollo/Saturn V Center
The Apollo/Saturn V Center contains a real Saturn V rocket, the kind of rocket that brought humans to the moon! One of only three left in the US, this rocket measures 363 feet (111 meters) long, 60 feet (18 meters) taller than the Statue of Liberty! Few words can encapsulate how breathtaking this rocket is, or the awe at what those brilliant humans were able to accomplish with such limited technology. The rest of the Center pays tribute to the Apollo Missions and all things moon-related. This has always been a favorite exhibit of mine, and now it is Frank’s as well!
Other KSC Highlights
The Kennedy Space Center also offers many other enchanting exhibits. We passed a section dedicated to honoring “Heroes and Legends,” the pioneers of NASA’s early space programs, and briefly considered looking into an exhibit focused on NASA/SpaceX’s plans for the Mission to Mars. Next time we visit, we will surely check those out. On this trip, we watched a thrilling IMAX movie and explored another exhibit that pays tribute to the Space Shuttle: Atlantis. I actually grew up watching Shuttle launches from my backyard, but it was still awe-inspiring being so close to such an important slice of history. These things still only scratch the surface of the depths of riches at this incredible location-10/10 would recommend! If you or anyone you know is ever in the area, you won’t regret a visit to the Kennedy Space Center!
Frank’s Birthday
October 2019, Frank turned 30! As much as I wanted to do a big blowout birthday extravaganza for him, it proved a bit too difficult being so pregnant and all. Nevertheless, we got together with our dear friends Nick and Jessica. We ate absolutely delicious German food in North Naples! We had no idea it existed the first time we lived in the Naples area, so we were very excited to discover it. Frank enjoyed the specialty sausage platter he got, and I sure loved my Sauerbraten! As always, we also loved the company!
Corey Billie’s Airboat Rides
In November, we made a point to take advantage of the natural resources in our area and Finally booked tickets to take in an airboat ride in the Everglades! We drove about 20 minutes east to Collier Seminole State Park on a warm, slightly cloudy day for our little excursion. Our guide on our ride proudly identified as one of the “swamp people,” stating that his family settled in that area 150 years ago. He possessed extensive knowledge and deep affection for the mangroves and alligators in the swamp. Also, he frequently gunned the airboat on straightaways, which was sooo much fun! This particular region had a rather large concentration of alligators too, and several swam up to our boat! We very happily got our ✅ for the bucket list. Yet, we intend to go back when Victoria is older and do it again in Everglades National Park!
Planning Ahead
Also during the month of November, Frank and I started having tough conversations about our future. Though we had Nick and Jessica in the area, they still lived roughly an hour away, so getting together regularly was tough. We also did not quite have the energy to try and make a new community of friends. With the baby on the way, we began asking ourselves if perhaps we ought to move closer to one of our families, to have extra hands on deck to help us with our firstborn.
Within roughly two weeks, we came to the conclusion that, if possible, we should move back to the Toledo area. Frank has his immediate family and many aunts, uncles, and cousins in Toledo, Sylvania, and Temperance, MI, so we started trying to identify ways to get back there. After jumping through a few hoops, Frank got permission to start working his contract remotely, and by Christmas, we moved again!
Prior to that move, I wrapped up my last internship and classes, and finally achieved my goal of obtaining a Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling! Just in time to not use it at all, and have a baby LOL. In addition, right after Thanksgiving, my mother threw me an ADORABLE penguin-themed baby shower! I forgot to mention-we opted to wait until our baby’s birth to find out if we were having a boy or girl! No regrets, either. She was a wonderful surprise!
Next up: Back to Toledo, for our longest stay yet, and the greatest adventure of our lives thus far-parenthood!
