Pregnancy

Well, these 9 months have flown by fast!! Now, in 3 short weeks, Raegan should make her arrival! I am very excited to meet our baby girl and I know that God has surely blessed Benton and I throughout these past 37 weeks!

 

As 2012 comes to an end, I can't help but reflect back on what a great year I've had. Benton and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary by finding out we were expecting a baby! We were able to vacation to the beach a few times and the mountains during the fall! I graduated from my dietetic internship, obtained my first job as a Clinical Dietitian, and passed my RD exam! I have changed jobs, now I work as a consultant dietitian for long-term care facilities and I LOVE it! I cannot wait to see what God has planned for me and my family in 2013!

4 weeks! Baby Sanders was the size of a poppy seed!

5 weeks!

11 weeks - almost time to announce that we are expecting to our friends and family!! (We waited until we were out of the first trimester before we told anyone!)

17 weeks

The proud grandparents-to-be at the gender reveal party

19 weeks! Halfway there (almost :) )

My mother-in-law is very excited!!

23 weeks

24 weeks

Starting to get the room ready - long way to go!!

26 weeks!

27 weeks!

30 weeks!

31 weeks!

36 weeks!

Raegans Room!

Raegan's fabulous bedding by BirdsHaveFlowers shop on etsy! See her shop here:

BirdsHaveFlowers

Babyland - we went and got baby Raegan her first Cabbage Patch Doll!

Yes, I am going natural during childbirth and we are excited about it :)

This was the first 4 of my 37 cloth diapers I ordered! So exciting! They are adorable!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!! What a great ending to 2012! God has been so good to us!

Meet Sassy Fras Sanders! She is my new puppy since my sweet Zoe Bug went to doggy Heaven earlier this year. Sassy has brought so much joy to me during this pregnancy and I can't wait for her to be Raegans best little friend in a few weeks!

Bring on 2013!!

Preparation

Preparing for what comes after graduation in May began the day that I chose my major in college but never has it felt so real as it does during my last Christmas break during my college career.


After taking the GRE I was so excited and I still am but stress is what I call trying to make the "right" decision.


I applied for a job with a health district and listed on my resume that my anticipated graduation date is May 2011. I also applied for a job with a school system in a town nearby with the same thing listed. High hopes is why I applied, how great would it be to know that I have a job right out of college.


Also, I am working on DICAS applications for two distance dietetic internships. I have been working on setting up rotations with potential preceptors and it is neat getting to interact with Registered Dietitians in all of the fields out there in my surrounding community. So the applications are due February 15th and I will find out if I was accepted the second week of April.


Also, I am still working on figuring out which Master's program I want to apply for.


Moreover, I am still planning my wedding. It is less than 160 days away now. I am registered for my casual china, small appliances, linens, and home decor. I am so excited that my first shower is in January! My bridesmaids are getting their dresses in, I have alterations scheduled for February, I have booked the florist, cake baker, photographer, and a lot more! The save the date's have been sent and now the tedious job of finding and booking a caterer!


My mama and I was talking today and she made the statement that my granny thinks that no one actually listens to nutritionists and dietitians in clinical settings. I hate that my granny feels this way, but to some extent it is true. Medical Nutrition Therapy is often practiced but changes are never made in any persons life until he or she is actually willing to change their ways or in this case eating patterns and diet. A diabetic could be a diabetic for years and the damage that occurs to his or her body over time may increase the persons willingness to change their ways and improve their lifestyle, but it may take years for the person to see it. Just like with heart patients, it may take someone having multiple heart attacks for him or her to realize that diet and exercise may really be beneficial. Sometimes a person giving one a diet "to try" is not enough. It takes a willing and motivated heart with a burning desire to change. The same goes with any profession, not just nutrition. Teachers in classrooms can teach a classroom until they are blue in the face but if a student is not willing to put effort into paying attention and studying and actually wanting to learn the material, then the lesson will not be remembered. I think that there are a lot of grateful people in the world that have benefited from a nutritionist or a dietitian out there.


I still get the question: What do you do with a degree in nutrition? There are endless opportunities. In my small town there are at least three registered dietitians that I can name. One is at the health department working with Women, Infants, and Children. One is the School Nutrition Director who is also over the Summer Feeding Program, and contracted out through the local hospital, and the other dietitian is a clinical dietitian at the Medical Center of Central Georgia working with both inpatient and outpatient settings. There is also a dietitian that is contracted through the local dialysis center and at the local long-term care facilities. That is not even near the only job options. Registered Dietitians are all over television now on talk shows, on the food network, and on other shows. Dietitians can work for corporations such as US Foods and Mars M&M. Some insurance agencies hire dietitians in order to reduce their costs. Dietitians can be employed with the military as a civilian on the bases or enlisted. Dietitians work selling products such as natural herbs and in organic stores as consultants. Some retailers hire dietitians to be "personal grocery shopping assistants," some dietitians are lactation consultants, some are private consultants or business owners, programs like weight watchers hires nutritionists and dietitians, some dietitians get paid to write for magazines such as Shape or Cosmopolitan, some dietitians get paid to blog, and there are endless opportunities in media and sales for dietitians. Dietitians also work with research since nutrition is a "new science" and products and supplements are constantly being developed research opportunities are endless. So is nutrition and dietetics a useless field? No! I think not!

Christmas is Saturday! Where has this year gone? It seems like I was just at Benton's (my fiance') friends house for New Years Eve playing catch phrase with friends waiting on 2010. I am so grateful for this time of year though where my Savior's birthday is celebrated because God sent his only son to save sinners like me and you. I am so grateful that I know that my father was born to save! My sins are forgiven and my life is in his hands. All of the preparation in the world could never prepare me for things that he has planned. I constantly try my best to plan every detail of my life, but God is in control and will provide and has every plan already laid out for me and my future. And sometimes, it takes a while for me to step back and remember this.