The Best Halloween Ever

I always enjoyed Halloween as a kid, but I rarely did anything more than dress-up and go trick and treating. With Ben this year - dressed as a Monkey, we marched in TWO preschool costume parades, attended a 1st birthday costume party, and attended TWO community celebrations. When we finally settled back at home, we ate pizza in the driveway, socialized with our neighbors, and passed out candy to trick or treaters (we had a TON this year - went through 1 big bag of candy and 4 small bags!). It was a really fun celebration!!

I had the opportunity to volunteer in Ben's classroom the morning of the Monday costume parade and I really enjoyed the experience. I got to meet some of Ben's Monday classmates (Will, Hunter, Milo, Piper, Brownyn...) and just had fun interacting with all of the little ones. I dressed up as a witch for the costume parade / party (complete with orange and black striped stockings) and walked with Ben through the Y. It was fun though Ben wanted to stop and have a piece of candy after he got the first one and then back in the classroom we put the candy bags up on the coat rack, but a couple kids had them on the table, so he was going around trying to swipe candy from his friends. Joel got to come up and video / photograph the parade / party and Ben got really excited when he showed up at class. ;-)

Marshall's daughter, Mary, turned 1 on Oct 28th, so for her birthday they had a party at the house - a baby costume party. I can't believe she's already 1 - this past year has gone so fast. She's standing and walking and it seems like just yesterday we were throwing Marshall's baby shower and welcoming Mary into the world. Ben had a great time running around Marshall and Mike's house and roaming the backyard (realized how much I love my fenced yard after that party!). I also enjoyed socializing with Susanna's mom and Madelyn's mom. It was a lot of fun to watch all of the babies run around in their costumes. The weather was absolutely beautiful and the food and cake were excellent. What a fun party! (and has inspired me for Ben's 2nd birthday....)

We went up to Birkdale on Halloween with the intention of getting Ben's hair cut at Snip-its and then hanging out at the Halloween celebration, but Snip-its closed early due to the celebration so we put Ben in his costume and walked around Birkdale. We didn't stay long because I wanted us to get back to our Community celebration.

All of the kids in the neighborhood gathered at the clubhouse around 5:30pm for a parade around the community area and then a pizza party at the clubhouse. After the parade, we decided it would be less chaotic to order our own pizza so we walked over to the playground while we waited for our pizza. We met a 4yo little girl named Lindsey and her dad. He was a nice guy - a Charlotte native (they are rare!!) and we found out he lives around the corner from us. He made the comment that he has lived in our neighborhood for about 10yrs but didn't start really meeting any of the neighbors until his daughter was born. I feel it is very similiar for us - these "community" events give us something to do w/ Ben and the opportunity to meet our neighbors :-)

We picked up our pizza and when we got home (Ben still in costume), we decided to sit in the driveway and eat to let Ben run around and not have to deal with the dog every time we answered the door for trick or treaters. Our neighbor Brad was outside as well so we talked to him and I brought over the gift (w/ Ben) to our "new" neighbors Mike and Jessica, who just welcomed new baby Luke. I feel terrible that we haven't met them and they lived in the neighborhood for just over a year. Sadly, I refer to the neighbors next to them as "new" as well and they've probably lived in the community at least 2 1/2 years.....I plan to reach out to Mike and Jessica and invite them over for dinner....we need more mom and dad friends.....LOL

So, all in all, Ben wore his costume approximately 12 hrs....and our $20 costume held up excellently! I think we will have even more fun next year as Ben really starts to understand the celebration better.

PS Ben broke through his first 2yo molar! He is much happier now....we thought he may be teething, but it's always hard to tell w/ Ben (until he has a tooth!). I hope the next 3 come in as easily.

Preschool Transition

Wow, what a busy summer, and now we're already into fall....where has the year gone?? Ben is 20mos old and really becoming a "kid". He started preschool in the "Adventurous 1's" program, from 8:30am to 12:15pm Monday to Friday, at the YMCA. He is having a great time and everyone loves him. However, it is still a LONG day for Ben, who was used to napping no later than 10:30am prior to starting school a few weeks ago. He falls asleep every day in the car ride home, but isn't napping as long as he used to, so he's not happy being kept up until 8pm. I think Ben took the transition to preschool better than I did. I think this has been the hardest transition yet. I really didn't get that upset about him walking or weaning, but him going to school meant that I was going to see him a lot less. I also enjoyed the little time I spent with him during breakfast and playing and reading to him and putting him down for his morning nap. It gave me the best of both worlds - working and being a stay at home mom ;-) Now that he is at school, I get him up in the morning and have breakfast with him and bring him to school and do much of his bedtime routine, but I still miss having him hanging out w/ me in the morning....(even though I am a lot more productive during that 9am hr these days...)

I think the socializing is great for him. It may be school, or just his age, but he's been communicating a lot more in the last few weeks - he's added "Ewww"(which he uses when you say dirty, stink, garbage, yuck), "Uh oh", "Keys" (sounds more like "Eees"), "Cookie" (more like "ok - E"), and "Car". The newest one is "Keys" - he is obsessed with keys, especially the ones with the remotes...he likes to stand at the door and points the remote outside toward the car and listens for either the panic alarm or the chirps for lock / un-lock. He knows it's bad when the panic alarm goes off and his latest response when he pushes this button is uh-oh (of course...so cute...but we wind up having to take away my keys because the transmitter is VERY sensitive...and it's the end of the world to have to give up the keys). Since starting to pronounce the "E" sound, he has started using a fairly generic "EEE" to describe the binky, "Grammy" (the dog), Dirty, and anything that ends in this "EEE" sound. We have a bit of work to go on the consonants but today in the car he was practicing his M's...Ma, Mom, Me (another new word, but not sure he quite understands the meaning yet). Over the last month, he has gone from a vocabulary of about 10 words to probably close to 20 (and I feel these days he's saying a new word almost every day). Despite the many words we've heard from him, "No" is the most common word we hear....LOL! He also says Mom, Dada, Door, Out, Up, Yum (w/ sound effects), Dog, On, Hi, Hot (I've been amazed at how accurately he's applied this to some abstract instances - pic of a cup of coffee on tv and a pic of a turkey dinner on the back of a lipton soup mix box). Some other fun things he's learned to do recently - scooting down the stairs on his butt and sliding down on his belly. He loves to go down the stairs and then climb back up and do it again. He also likes to climb steps w/o holding on now (up and down - I'm surprised by what good balance he's developed). He also is starting to enjoy going down the slide at the park (though definitely prefers just climbing up to the slide and climbing back down). He's been enjoying the pool more (especially after going 3 days in a row while we waited for our hot water heater to be replaced - thank goodness for hot showers at the Y - and our meembership). He's started doing the hand motions to itsy-btsy spider and I think is trying to do the "play" sign that he learned at school. He now doesn't fuss when we get to "school" or when we walk in (he likes to wave to everyone on the way) but still cries a little when I try to leave him at the door. He gives me a big hug and pats me on his back - it's cute, but makes me feel terrible leaving him....but they say he's doing great and I always peek in before I leave to make sure he's playing.

We've traveled a good amount since my last post - Disney for Memorial Day Weekend, Charleston for July 4th, NY for a week in July and then Beech Mtn twice to visit Nana and Grandpa Johnny. Last weekend we went to Atlanta. Joel really wanted to go to the Southeastern Stamp Show and I enjoyed spending the day with Ben at Zoo Atlanta - he loves running around but did enjoy seeing the giraffes and gorillas and the birds and loves going on the carousel. We rode the train, which seemed like a good idea and he was really excited...until we went in a fairly long tunnel....something that I think reminded him of the car-wash (he loved going to the car wash when he was younger, but is now terrified. This started in July - we tried again about a week ago and he's starting to understand that it's not so scary, but was still really nervous)...and then he was really nervous the rest of the ride, looking for another tunnel. Overall, it was a fun trip (and we got a great deal at the Doubletree in Marietta!). This weekend, we stayed closer to home, but got to play at the Concord Mills play area (and ride the carousel and the train - really cool little train) and today we went to "Africa" at the Asheboro NC Zoo. Joel actually wanted to go an auction nearby in Ramseur, so after the auction, we headed over to the zoo. A fun, but short, weekend (if only the weekend was 5 days and the work week only 2...). We are still firming up plans for Thanksgiving.....we like to keep things a bit spontaneous - a cruise maybe, a tropical island, maybe Europe - Belgium or Italy are candidates at the moment. We also really want to head back to Disney (were supposed to for Columbus Day weekend, but we're hosting tailgating....) - hopefully MLK weekend in January.

I'm hoping to update this more frequently - such a great way to record all of the changes and fun that comes with raising a baby! :-)

Walking and Waving

It's been awhile - I should just write shorter posts and then maybe I could get this updated more often. It's been pretty hectic - Thanksgiving in FL, preparing for Christmas, having Bern, Bridge and Annie for the week of Christmas and then heading into the new year (nevermind the crazy work schedule I've been keeping as of late - it's been hectic!)


Ben turned 1 on Jan 12th - it's amazing that a year has passed already! The other amazing part is how much he is developing every day in the month of turning 1. Each day, he looks (and acts) more and more like a toddler. The other evening after getting up from his afternoon nap he sat on the bed next to me eating his snack (puffs) and I just looked at him and was really taken aback by how he looked like a "kid" and not a baby.....

I didn't really want to make a big deal out of his birthday - he's only 1 for goodness sake - how many years will I have of planning parties and doing all this craziness!?!? We sang him Happy Birthday a million times and Joel went out at lunchtime and got him a cake (awww!). Joel also stopped on his way home from work to get party hats at Target (I thought a party hat was necessary for the birthday cake picture!) So at least Ben had cake and a party hat - isn't that all that's necessary? Also, last weekend, on Sat, Papa and Oma came by to visit and then on Sunday we had Aunt Chrissy and the kids and Mikey and Sharla over for dinner. On Monday, we went to Riverbanks Zoo with Mikey and Sharla - all part of an extended birthday celebration!

In other Ben news - He has been taking a step or two for a couple of months to aid in getting from one piece of furniture to another (or to a wall) but now he is officially walking. The day before his birthday he took 3-4 steps across the kitchen and in the last two weeks has been improving his balance and practicing squatting and turning and he looks just like a penguin walking - it's so cute! Now that he's walking a little more, I have to try and get a video of it...before he gets more steady :-)

Also this month, Ben has caught up w/ some of the other finer motor skills - he is waving (almost on demand, but usually a little late - he had a perfect bye-bye at the dr. office - there was a guy in the waiting rm that called me over to warn me of germs from another patient that was there before me, odd but good, and when we walked away, Ben started waving....adorable!) and as of this week he is clapping (which is also super cute, something about those little (ok, big) hands clapping that melts my heart).

Unfortunately, the last month has also brought Ben's first and second colds and although he was really very good, Mommy and Daddy were also sick and that was no fun. I think our next big "thing" is going to be an array of new teeth popping through. He hasn't gotten any teeth since Sept (though he got 6 of them in rapid succession from July to Sept) and you can see the rest of the bottom row about to burst through - poor baby! He handles teething very well all in all but has definitely been more cranky and clingy than usual.

And a few more friends for Ben - welcome to Baby Cooper and Baby Logan!

Halfway to One....

Ben is 6 months - I can't believe it!! The time has flown by, but in a weird way, it seems that the only thing that is changing is Ben.....some type of metaphysical oddity - the time goes by so fast that it seems to stand still....anyway, he is getting so big and developing so fast. In the last couple of weeks, his first tooth has "erupted" (all you can see is a little white line where it broke the gum but it was still exciting), he has started rolling from back to belly and is chewing on everything!! He is "talking" up a storm, which includes babbling, shrieking and screaming. There are occasions where he looks like he's yelling at you. He has also started blowing raspberries - mostly he does this when he's frustrated but it's so cute that I laugh every time he does it. I'm sure this makes him more mad......He has really started to become mobile so he is enjoying his walker more and we got him one of those foam put together mats that he rolls and scoots around on. He pushes himself up and lunges so I am convinced he will be crawling before we know it. Ben is also just becoming more of a little person and less of a floppy baby - it's cute how he holds on when you carry him and reaches for you when he wants out of his walker or car seat or stroller.

His 6-month Dr. visit went great - he is growing like a weed and Dr. Coyler continues to be impressed with his motor development. Joel came to this visit even though he knew Ben was going to get shots....Joel did not like Ben getting stuck but he was really a trooper (Ben that is). I leaned over him and hugged him and he cried of course but calmed down a lot faster than he had at the 4-month shots. They stuck him twice in the same leg (ouch!) I didn't get a picture this time b/c he ripped off the band-aid later in the day before I had a chance. Thankfully, his reactions to the shots have been mild to non-existent so Joel and I had plans to go to dinner w/ Andy and Nicole that night and Ben was seeming a little feverish by the cheek to the forehead mommy feel :-) He was acting fine so I gave him a little infant tylenol before we left. Later that night Bridgie felt his first tooth had popped through - on the bottom - we're thinking he will have another any day....he is chewing on his fingers like crazy! He was a bit fussy for Bridgie that night but she did a great job and we had a nice night out - I think that was our first time out to dinner w/o Ben :-) It was also my birthday last week - I love my birthday - I like all the fuss, don't care about being a year older - want to celebrate w/ cake and dinner and at least cards (though presents are nice too :-)) Bridgie started the day by collaborating w/ Annie a big breakfast - she made me eggs and bacon (first time she ever made "real" bacon) and waffles w/ cut-up bananas and a cup of coffee - it was delicious! She was going to make me lunch but I actually made lunch b/c I wanted to show her a "real" steak sandwich - can't explain this but I fry up some onions and mushroom in some crazy and slice up the steak w/ the gravy on top of some bread and then top w/ cheese and put under the broiler - her idea of a steak sandwich was cold steak and butter....we wound up going to Dave & Busters for dinner. Joel was willing to accompany us to Chuck E Cheese which I thought would be good for Annie - I felt bad having to work during the week and then going out the following night so thought this would be fun ....and I wanted to play skee ball :-) We actually didn't know the Chuck E Cheese had been relocated until we couldn't find it....so then Joel suggested Dave & Busters - it was fun but had a lot of games that were more a matter of chance than skill.....Joel left me, Bridgie and Annie and took the baby over to the Disney Store and bought him the talking "Doug" dog from "UP" (Ben's first movie)...we had seen it sometime before but Joel couldn't resist this time :-) This dog talks....it is adorable :-) We will definitely be buying the movie when it comes out on DVD.

So, a couple of weeks ago we went back to NY for the first time in 3 yrs. It was an exhausting trip but all in all I think Ben faired well in the car. He shares his mother's distaste for NY traffic, but otherwise Bridgie did a good job entertaining him - the miserable trip from Manhatten to Plainview took over 2 hrs. Danielle's wedding was nice, but the weather was less than cooperative and I was exhausted so we left the reception early (we had Ben w/ us so it was a good excuse regardless). We got to spend sometime visiting w/ Grandma and Grandpa Stankowitz and even got to see Great Nana. It was so nice to see everyone at the wedding but I wish we had more time. We drove back the Sunday after the wedding and did the whole trip in one day (although that sounds bad, it actually seemed shorter than breaking it up on the way down).

I have an unnatural love of fireworks - Joel does not share my love. I had to go see fireworks on July 4th. I was very disappointed that I did not get to see them in Charlotte last year (bad weather) but Joel did give in to watching them w/ me on TV (thank you Macy's). This year, since it was Ben's first July 4th, I was determined to see fireworks in person.....although we did not put a lot of planning into July 4th, we actually found an awesome spot on the top of a parking garage in Charlotte that put us literally right in front of the fireworks (so far enough away to avoid the smoke). The pics came out pretty well. I made Joel and Bridgie pose w/ me - as you can tell, they were not so happy about this - oh well :-) Of course Ben slept through most of the fireworks (amazingly) but he did get to see a few on the walk back to the car....and I got a picture of him awake on July 4th :-)

I was actually off the Fri before July 4th and since Annie was going to be joining us after the weekend of the 4th, I spent this day going w/ Bridgie to the Whitewater center. Joel was also off but didn't want to go rafting so he was the babysitter. We got there at a little after 11 but couldn't get a rafting appt until 5:30pm so we were ok w/ this (we wound up getting to go on both zip lines and take one of the mountain biking courses - that made me realize how out of shape I am...) but Joel was very worried that I hadn't pumped enough for him and that baby was going to be miserable but daddy and baby survived for about 6 hrs w/o mommy. I am happy that I really didn't miss the baby terribly...not to say that in a mean way but since I am with him so much, I worried that I would have terrible separation anxiety but I had a blast hanging out w/ Bridgie and exploring the Whitewater center. Daddy tried to bring Ben down to the Columbia Zoo but Ben started crying shortly into the ride and so Daddy went home....at first he was disappointed by this but then realized he didn't need to "do" anything to entertain Ben - he is very happy to just hang out on the floor and have you make funny faces at him :-)

As of now, we are planning a trip for next month but we don't know where we're going yet.....will keep you posted on that. As I mentioned, Annie joined us after the 4th (Mom drove her over from Beech Mtn) and in a week, the rest of the FL Coogan clan will be up - they will stop in for a weekend visit and then go to NY and then stop back the following weekend before heading back to FL. We have a busy rest of the month - definitely a trip to Carowind's when Dan comes up.....

3 Months

I can't believe it's been a month since I posted last!! Work has been incredibly busy but thankfully my manager came back this past week from his paternity leave so hopefully the workload will be a little more manageable going forward. We need to figure out our babysitting situation now that Ben is starting to get bigger, make more noise and want more attention :-)

So, what has the last month brought? Well, Benjamin is "talking" up a storm - it's so much fun to have a "conversation" with him. He coo's, gurgles, makes "M" sounds (which sound like "Ma" and make my heart melt...), and does a lot of "oooing"....recently, he started doing this thing where he gets himself all excited and goes on a roll ... "oo, oo, oo, oo, oo". It's so cute...and absolutely hysterical.

At 9 weeks old, he figured out how to flip himself from his belly to his back. For a week or two, he would flip over everytime you put him on his belly, but now he is very interested in looking around and doesn't mind being on his belly as much. I almost thought he was going to roll from his back to his belly one morning as he was kicking his legs up and over and would've flipped if he had turned his head over w/ the rest of his body. He is definitely getting a lot more active. Joel and I worry that once his legs and arms get themselves coordinated, he's going to be off. Already he is able to turn 90 degrees while on his back and during the night scoots down on his butt from the top of the crib to the bottom (we find him most mornings with his legs pressed against the bottom bumper in the crib). Speaking of nights, he continues to be a good sleeper. He is on a fairly regular routine, where he goes to sleep between 7:30 and 8 and sleeps until at least 4, sometimes as late as 6. He will get up and nurse and then goes right back down until between 7:30 and 8. He is taking about 3 naps during the day....on the best days they are 2 2hr naps (morning and afternoon) and then an hr nap in the early evening. He probably would go down for the night earlier than we put him down but since Mom and Dad are not early risers, we let him nap in the evening and then go down.

We have had a bunch of visitors, including Aunt Chrissy, who brought Jacob and Megan to meet their new cousin and then Nana (Grandma Coogan) came down for the weekend - the weather was terrible but we did enjoy a nice long trip to Beech Mountain and checked out the general store up there. It was rainy and foggy so it was even longer than usual but thankfully Nana sat in the back w/ Ben and was happy to entertain him (he actually probably would've slept longer if she wasn't there, but either way as long as he was happy....). We also had a bunch of friends over for an ACC shindig - Andy and Nicole, Marshall and Mike and Anna and Jamie (w/ their son Nate). We had lots of snacks and then had BBQ ribs and corn on the cob. It was a lot of fun and the baby was really good, except for having such a massive poop explosion that it not only went through his clothes but coated my shirt and jeans (my ONLY pair of jeans....I really need to go shopping).

Aunt Chrissy, Megan, Jacob and Benjamin


Hanging out with Nana

2 Months

Benjamin turned 2 months last Thursday. I can't believe how fast the time has gone. I went back to work 4 weeks ago and this week technically started back full-time (though in reality I've been working at least 3/4 time since going back). This week has been crazy because I have literally worked 12-14 hr days for the last 3 days. The deal I made with my manager is that I am off on Fridays (or at least mostly off) until the end of April. This was to make up for the fact that work has been really hectic for the last month and a half. Joel says that the hectic pace now is to make up for the not so hectic pace a few months ago :-) I really wish I didn't have to go back to work at all, but I am grateful to be able to work from home and have the flexibility to continue nursing Ben and take him out when I need to. I will be really happy when the weather stays warm. I'm not a big fan of super hot summer days, but I really don't like the winter. I like winter related activities but would rather visit a place that has winter than be in a really cold enviornment (Charlotte is really not that bad, but you really acclimate quickly to your enviornment and realize that it would be really hard to go back up north now that we're used to 40 degree winters....).

Benjamin had his 2-month check-up on Friday w/ Dr. Colyer who was very impressed with his growth and his temperament. She got to see him coo and smile and was impressed with his new sleeping pattern (9p-3a and then 3:30-7:30a). She checked out a hip "click" I have noticed over the last 2 months and decided to send us for an ultrasound yesterday. The ultrasound tech said everything looked good, but we have to wait for the "official" results to know for sure. The Dr. wasn't really concerned, but figured it made more sense to check it out now than to wait for a real problem to develop when Ben starts walking. And, of course, this visit included 3 shots (and 1 oral vaccine)....Benjamin was very upset about the shots....luckily Daddy didn't come to that visit - he probably would've been more upset than Ben :-) I couldn't get a picture with both band-aids in it, but he had a matching Tweety band-aid on the other fat leggy. :-)

This past weekend, we mourned Wake's loss in the ACC tournament (Ben pooped all over his Wake footie...before I could even get a picture of him in it...that's how he expressed his feeling over them losing...LOL). We did have fun having some friends over - Marshall, Mike, Andy, Nicole, Anna, Jamie, and Nate....what a crowd. We had wings and chips and veggies for appetizers and then had Ribs with Corn on the Cob and scalloped potatoes and a ton of desserts, including a beautiful cake from T.Reids. It was great to see everyone, especially Marshall, who I feel I haven't seen in ages. I think I scared Nicole and Marshall a bit w/ some mild details of the birthing experience....I hope Marshall gets pregnant soon - it would be nice to be able to get the families together though at least they have Whammy to hang out with Grammy :-)

What a Weekend......

Although we spent most of Saturday lounging around the house (much needed after spending 2 yrs of Saturdays in a classroom all day!), I feel like we did quite a bit and quite a bit happened this weekend.

As of Friday, I am 37 weeks pregnant....officially full-term. I am so used to being pregnant at this point that I'm not really anxious to deliver b/c I don't want to be pregnant any more, however the longer I have to contemplate what labor's going to be like, the more nervous I get. Since everyone's experience is so unique, it's so hard to know what to expect, but I am so excited to meet little Benjamin or Madelyn that I think it will be ok (and hopefully no epidural, episiotomy, or c-section....) Baby is kicking, punching and rolling around like crazy - I think he or she is getting ready for a grand entrance :-)

According to Babycenter: Congratulations! Your baby is full-term! This means that if your baby arrives now, his lungs should be fully mature and ready to adjust to life outside the womb, even though your due date is still three weeks away. He weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long.

Since it is getting close to d-day, I have started packing my hospital bag. It was cute - last night I was looking on Babycenter at some of the discussion boards re: "what to bring to the hospital" and it made me giggle - kind of like a bunch of girls chatting about what to bring to summer camp. Even though it is online, you can hear the tone of excitement and anticipation and it just reminded me of going away to sleep away camp or a school trip.....amazing how those events prepare us for such vastly different experiences :-) Anyway, last week I made probably my final trip to Destination Maternity (it's a great store, but in such an inconvenient location, especially now that school is done) to purchase some underwear, pajamas and nursing sleep bras and then on Friday night went to Target w/ Nicole (we had Andy and Nicole over for dinner - chicken parm and then left the boys to watch b-ball) and picked up another pair of pajamas and a couple of cute non-maternity shirts that will be good for nursing (I have really lucked out this year that long shirts and wrap shirts have been "in" - they are very convenient for my current maternity needs and future nursing needs).

As I began to pack, I realized that I need a couple of last minute things for me and baby so yesterday I went back to Target for a big shopping spree (yes, Target is my FAVORITE store and I have the good fortune of having one that opened in July about 5 mins from my house!). I had a coupon for 10% off what was left on my registry but there were several things that I wanted for baby that had never made it on to my registry, so I went in, added the items to the registry and then purchased them off the registry to use my coupon (yeah, it was a pain in the neck, but saved me a little more than $20 - well worth it!). What we got - the diaper genie, a boppy (I was going to get the Breast Friend but I was annoyed by the strap and decided that a Boppy has a more useful life span), some bottles (just in case we need them before we expect - I got the playtex newborn set that comes w/ like 5 or 6 nipples - there has to be one in there that baby will take!), and some onesies and outfits in size Newborn (everything we registered for and have gotten is 0-3 months and I figured it made sense to prepare in case the baby is smaller than 8 lbs to have something he or she can wear home that actually fits.....the Murphy's Law in me says that even though Joel and I were small babies and my sisters were relatively small babies, I will have the Christmas Turkey, but want to be prepared in case I am blessed w/ a small or average size baby LOL). Once I do laundry today (a load for me and a load for baby), I will have our bags all packed and ready to go...hopefully we will need them sooner rather than later.

Also, in preparation for d-day, yesterday, I installed the car seat. The funny thing is that I actually had to attend a car seat certification when I was a caseworker, but it was before the LATCH system - I was really excited to get to use the LATCH hooks in our car....ok, maybe too excited. It is cute to see the car seat in there - a little strange, but more cute than strange (and of course during my shopping trip at Target yesterday I made sure to get the mirror so I can see baby from the front seat).

In other baby news, this morning I had a Dr's appt. My blood pressure was a little elevated when I got there (probably the coffee and taking the stairs...) but was ok when I left. I actually lost 2 lbs from last week and in the most exciting news I am effacing and dilating.....sounds hot, huh? I am only finger tip dilated and though I know that really doesn't mean much, it is the bit of good news that I need to be hopeful that baby may actually arrive on time (and maybe even early....ok, maybe that's wishful thinking, but Mia was Kathy's first and she arrived early, so I have faith....I am NOT a fan of induction) Baby's heart rate was 150.....it has stayed between 145-150 most of the pregnancy, so I wonder whether Dr. Rouse's prediction that it's a girl is true (based on the old wive's tale) even though my hunch is that it's a boy....hmmm, I suppose we'll find out soon enough :-) My next Dr. appt is 1/12 at 9am Hopefully we will have dilation progress next week (I scheduled a prenatal massage for next Sat - that means that either baby will make an appearance before then so I miss out on my massage or hopefully that will spur some contractions to get things going....)

Also, this weekend, Joel and I became members of a new church. We have been going to St. Patrick's in Dilworth, which is a beautiful old church w/ a school, but after the Christmas mass, I realized that the church itself is not really kid-friendly and wanted to take a look at some other options. Yesterday morning, Joel went online and found St. Thomas of Aquinas right in the University area - we went to the 9:30 mass and really enjoyed the Pastor and everything that is going on at the church so we decided to become parishoners. I thought it was really neat that the church is run by Franciscan Friars as both my great uncle Danny and uncle JoJo are/were Franciscan Friars and I grew up attending events at the house in Yonkers, NY and meeting Friars from all over. The pastor is actually from the NJ chapter, but he had the opportunity to meet my uncle Danny (Fr Charles) in FL - that was cool and made me feel like we had found our church.

Sadly, we also took down our Christmas decorations this weekend :-( I hate to see Christmas go, but I want to make sure that everything is put away before we are consummed by baby :-) The tree is actually still in the living rm since garbage day is Wed, but the ornaments, lights, and stockings are back in storage - it's amazing to think that next Christmas there will be another stocking hanging from the mantle and a little person waddling through the wrapping paper....The outside lights are also down except for one strand of garland lights that is hanging from the garage (my proudest achievement in light hanging this year!). Joel suggested we leave that strand up at least one more night (I think he was sad to see Christmas go too!) I have pretty bummed out about the lack of christmas decorations left after christmas this year, but then last night Nicole and I went to Michael's and it was like I hit the jackpot. I was able to get some new ornaments and outside lights for 80% off...and some wrapping materials and mugs! I must've brought home 10 bags/boxes of stuff and only spent $60 (which $16+ was due to a frame for a stock certificate that Joel purchased and of course was not on sale....despite the fact that all other frames were 50% off - that bugged me but the frame is really nice, so oh well)

As much as I've written so far, I didn't even mention Sat night's auction, dinner at Firebird's (probably one of our favorite restaurants) and a trip to Border's (very excited about my gardening book). All in all, even w/ everything that has happened in the last couple of days, it was a very relaxing weekend :-)

34 Weeks - Insomnia and Christmas Lights

It is Sunday morning and I should be sleeping in late. Rather, I was up at 4:38am and haven't been able to get back to sleep. I stayed in bed until about 5:30 and then figured it was a decent time to get up and not feel like I was getting up in the middle of the night (although it's still pitch black out). I figured it would be a good time to throw in a load of laundry, check my e-mail and Facebook (a new addiction), and get some other errands done. Now that I've been up for a couple of hrs, I'm starting to get tired - Joel and Graham are still sleeping so I may join them for a nap :-) I actually was dreaming that I was running code for work and kept getting these strange summary results.....it was one of those dreams where you wake up, dismiss it and then go right back to where you were in the dream. That is fine when it's a good dream, but sucks when you're dreaming about work. Work has been pretty busy, which is good.



Last night, we went to the tree lighting in Freedom Park. There were actually 2 trees, but they were only decorated in some strings of white lights - they were nice, but I was disappointed. We met Andy & Nicole there (and Emma) and walked around the lake where they had a couple other light displays set up. My feet were already sore when we got to the park from setting up Christmas lights all afternoon -our house looks like a Christmas wonderland (well, almost, I have a few more to plug in today). We haven't gotten a Christmas tree yet - probably early this week - Monday or Tuesday. I love Christmas! :-) After walking around the park, Nicole and I went to a couple of stores and sent Joel and Andy home with Emma and then we all met up at the mall. I didn't get as much done as I would've liked, but KB and Circuit City are closing and there were a couple of good deals there. We went to dinner at Firebirds - we had gotten a $10 gift card as a promo in the mail so it seemed like a logical choice....best part was that for redeeming the $10 gift card, we got a $5 gift card (they'll just trying to rope you back in LOL).

In Baby News, Joel and I have our hospital tour on Wednesday and our Labor Support class on Thursday. We were supposed to do the Prepared Childbirth Class before Labor Support but they can't get us in until the 28th for that class, so they said we could go ahead and sign up for Labor Support. I think the Labor Support class will be better than the Prepared Children Class, so it's good that we get to go to that one first because we can ask around and see if it's worth going to the other one. Joel is also going to go to Daddy Boot Camp - some of the schedules are a little strange, but I think we'll be able to get him in the first week of January (NO MORE SCHOOL!). I am 34 weeks as of Friday and as of today, there are only 40 days left till my due date - I can't believe it! It seems like it's gone so fast - now if only the labor goes as fast (ok, that's wishful thinking....) According to Babycenter: Your baby now weighs about 4 3/4 pounds (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers — which will help regulate her body temperature once she's born — are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is also smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. Hmmm, I wonder if it's a she or he.....I suppose we'll find out soon enough.

Next Dr's appt: Friday, Dec 19th Then we start going every week.....I'm sure between the holidays and the dr. appts, the next couple of weeks are going to fly by!

29 weeks - Going Perm

This past week has been a crazy one. Luckily, class on Saturday was fairly benign - we got our case grades back for Strategy and averted a quiz in Marketing by the flip of a coin....unfortunately next weekend we have an in-class exam for Strategy and the following week our research paper is due in Marketing. I suppose I will be thankful this past Saturday wasn't too bad.

So, last Monday, my manager asked for my resume and explained that his manager was going to get it over to HR and see what they could do. On Tuesday, my manager called and said they were going to make me an offer for a permanent position. I was working from home and forwarded my phone but couldn't figure out how to get to my voicemail....so Tuesday came and went with no information. On Wednesday morning, my manager asked me if I had heard anything. I had a missed call from a number that I didn't recognize, but my phone wasn't showing that I had any messages. I was about to tell my manager I hadn't heard anything and figured I would call into the VM system anyway and sure enough, there was a message (strange!). She explained the details of the offer - I accepted on the spot b/c the offer was better than we expectd and not like I have a lot of options being 7 months pregnant! :-) I did my fingerprint and I-9 eligibility on Thursday and my "official" day 1 is scheduled for Nov 24th (this is very exciting b/c it means I will get paid for Thanksgiving as a holiday!). It is strange to go through all this hoopla and then be doing the same job. Nevertheless, it is great news and although I will not qualify for maternity leave (you have to be there 12 mos) - I will be able to take sick time and vacation time to help fund my leave. Plus, I will be able to work from home and have the added benefits of working for the bank (11 holidays!) and a short commute when I do go in the office. This news couldn't have come at a better time! It was very stressful to turn down the position at Lowe's over the summer, but I had faith it would work out and I'm thankful it has.

As of Friday, I am 29 weeks pregnant. I can't believe that next Friday I will be 30 weeks pregnant....to me that signals the home stretch. It's amazing how when you're pregnant, 10 weeks doesn't seem like a very long time but when you're in college (or high school) it seems like nearly an enternity. :-) My inflamed rib is still bothering me, but ice seems to help and luckily it's more uncomfortable than painful. So, what is baby up to this week? According to Babycenter: Your baby now weighs about 2 1/2 pounds (like a butternut squash) and is a tad over 15 inches long from head to heel. His muscles and lungs are continuing to mature, and his head is growing bigger to make room for his developing brain. To meet his increasing nutritional demands, you'll need plenty of protein, vitamins C, folic acid, and iron. And because his bones are soaking up lots of calcium, be sure to drink your milk (or find another good source of calcium, such as cheese, yogurt, or enriched orange juice). This trimester, about 250 milligrams of calcium are deposited in your baby's hardening skeleton each day. Baby needs calcium - good reason for mommy to eat ice cream! :-)

On Saturday, we went over Kathy and Sam's house for dinner and to hang out. I can't believe how fast Mia is growing. She seems like such a little person - already not a baby anymore. Mia and the baby will be a little less than a year apart - it's amazing how little Mia looks now and how big she's going to look when the baby is born. It is really exciting to share this experience with them. It is nice to have friends who we enjoy spending time with and who are going through the same life stages we are. Hopefully, Marshall and Mike will be pregnant soon too - it's a much easier transition to parenthood when you go through it with friends :-)

Baby Shower

Saturday was our Baby Shower. Our friends Andy and Nicole threw the shower for us - a "Teddy Bear Picnic". The food was great and we had a good time hanging out with our friends and family.

It was great that Angelique, Walter, Chris and Nichole came down from Albany - they got to see the house, Chrissy and the kids and come to the shower. They arrived on Thurs night and spent the night w/ us at the house and then we got to hang out on Fri. Like most of our out of town guests, they left early Sun morning - I hope they are able to visit longer next time!

My mom, Dan, and the girls came up from FL. Bridgie had 12 stitches in her forehead after a jet-ski mis-hap the previous weekend that had to be removed on Fri morning, so they didn't arrive until late Fri night (probably around 11pm). Erin flew in Fri morning (she had a much easier trip than the drivers, but had to get up at 3am to catch her flight!) - she hasn't seen my family since the wedding (5 yrs ago!) so she had a good time reminescing w/ them. Joel was really tired from all of the excitement, but we stayed up and hung out w/ the sisters for a while. Bridgie was the first one to feel the baby move, but Bern got to feel the baby Saturday night, so all was well in the end between the sisters :-) LOL Annie was much more interested in catching up w/ Graham, but I got in a few hugs and kisses!

Mom, Dad, and Baby Levy got lots of great stuff and look forward to putting it to use! :-) Erin and Nicole did such a great job on the favors, decorations, and food (and Chrissy brought a delicious cake). One of Erin's ideas was to make a Daddy Tool Belt for Joel - I helped her pick up the stuff and put it together - it came out really cute! It's hard to tell in the picture, but it says "Daddy on Duty" - to help him be prepared to take care of whatever baby dishes out (we even included a mask and goggles!)

I am 6 1/2 months pregnant - we would've liked to do the shower in another month or two, but between the holidays and our school schedule, this was the only weekend that we were off before graduation. As Nicole put it - no one will care when the shower is as long as you look pregnant - well I definitely have that one covered! We have a ton more pictures - thanks to Anna and Walter - so I created an album on Shutterfly - hopefully we'll get them all up before the end of the week. Something funny I noticed in looking at the pictures was that I am very expressive in my conversations - as I opened pictures and they shot picture after picture, I am making all sorts of faces (some good, some bad!) - unlike Joel who has about 3 different expressions - smiling, serious and thinking :-)

Anyway, we wanted to thank everyone for the baby gifts and hope everyone enjoyed meeting our mish-mash of friends, family, and co-workers! :-) And Thank you to Andy and Nicole for pulling everything together!

25 weeks: Who's belly is bigger?

As of Friday, I am 25 weeks pregnant. I can't believe the baby shower is next Saturday! Where has the time gone??? The house is coming together slowly but surely. Today, they finished laying the hardwood in the foyer, living room and dining room, which means the end of the contractor work....but there is still a lot of work for us to do to put the house back together. Tonight, we had a study group meeting for school because both Dan and Joel will be traveling next week (no school next weekend - YIPPEE!). We stopped at Lowe's on the way home and picked up felt pads to start putting on the furniture to try and minimize scratching our new floor. Once we get everything back in order, we will post some before / after pictures......I didn't take before pictures w/ our furniture in the room but I have some from when we first saw the house and the night of the closing (the rooms are empty). It's funny b/c some of the changes - like the paint in the great room and the carpet upstairs aren't really noticeable to anyone but us because the colors aren't terribly different than they were and probably most people didn't notice the color of the rug upstairs, but to us, it's like a new house. It would also make a big difference to a potential buyer because those are the people who see every scratch, crack and water stain....who knows when we will put the house on the market, but it is definitely ready when we do decide (though we could stay here another 5 yrs).

On Sunday, we had dinner w/ Andy and Nicole and Andy's Dad Frank. It was perfect weather to eat outside and then Nicole and I went over some baby shower details (we're getting together tomorrow to go to Sam's Club) and the guys got to watch football. I had Nicole take the picture that is posted here - I think I look like I have a REALLY round head - I got my eyebrows waxed on Sunday and the girl went a little overboard.....that and my hair pulled back makes me look like my face got really round....although Joel has always said I had a round head. Joel was upset that we took the picture b/c he said he would've worn something nicer, but I am just glad that we have a picture of the 2 of us. I think we will go in and get professional pictures taken at about 8 months or so - when my belly is REALLY big!! It's amazing though - I feel like everyday my belly is getting a little bigger and baby is stretching out a little more. Joel actually got to feel baby kick today. He came home from work a little early (he's still not feeling well!) and I laid down w/ him before we needed to leave for study group. Baby did something in the family of a roundhouse kick and Joel felt it. It was really neat because it's been hard for me to tell whether I can actually feel some of the movements on the outside or on the inside, but they are definitely getting stronger and I'm sure soon they'll be pretty easy to see and feel from the outside.

In baby development this week: Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

23 weeks - Playing Matchmaker

I am 23 weeks pregnant - almost 6 months! I can't believe how time is flying - it's almost October and I feel like summer was just starting....I wonder if life will seem to move just as fast once baby is here, or whether school is part of the reason why the days, weeks, months seem to be just vanishing before our eyes.

So, playing matchmaker....Joel's friend Mike left this past Saturday but before he left, we had a single girlfriend of ours over for dinner.....Mike is still in school, but will be done in the spring and will be in a position to relocate. We'll see what happens - they seemed to hit it off, but obviously need more time (and us out of the way) to get to know each other. I made bbq ribs and smashed potatoes for dinner. That is usually my first "get-together" dinner - I think the second is usually london broil....or lasagna. Funny how that works out. I actually cooked just about every night last week - it's a lot of work, but I definitely prefer it to eating out.

Joel and I have spent the last few days deciding on carpet / wood / painting (all 3 guys have come to the house today for estimates) for upstairs / downstairs. One of the best parts (aside from the finished product) is that in having to pack up everything to prepare for the carpet installation, it'll hopefully help us organize and get rid of some stuff that we really don't need. Yesterday, I spent several hrs putting together another shelving unit for the garage and re-organizing and cleaning up the garage (our car used to fit in there.....). It looks really good - I was hoping to finish it last night or tonight, but I need to finish an online test for school.....how exciting.

As for baby news - I feel pretty good - will continue the physical therapy for at least another week. I did my yoga tape on Saturday - hoping to get that up to at least 2 times per week. Also picked up a pilates tape that I want to try. I think a lot of my back/leg pain can be attributed to not only the pregnancy but just being out of shape :-) Baby has been moving around a lot - I tried to find the heartbeat with our stethoscope last night, but couldn't find it - maybe next week. A doppler is a lot more sensitive and depending how baby is positioned, may be a couple more weeks before I can hear baby w/ the stethoscope. I have a dr's appt next week (Oct 7th) - interested to see how much I weigh and when I have to get my glucose tolerance test - I am trying not to become a pregnant hippo, but not really obsessed about the weight gain...curious how big baby is....

According to Baby Center this week: Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

Weekend Mania

This past weekend was a crazy one! On Saturday, we had class, and were the first group to present for our strategy class - glad it's over! One assignment down - 5 to go! After class, I drove Joel home and then went down to the scrapbook retreat at the GAB House. I was so disappointed b/c originally I thought the retreat was next weekend (we don't have school - yeah!) but then realized that it was this past weekend, so again I had to miss Sat and since we had our presentation, I missed Fri night too!

I probably won't be able to go in the spring b/c I think it's really early - like Feb and the baby will just be too small, but I'm definitely looking forward to next Sept! :-) I had a great time catching up with Marshall and Missy. Marshall's pics from her trip (Spain and Portugal and I think part of France) were awesome! I can't wait to get back to Europe - we definitely want to get to Italy and Spain. It was good to catch up about RV too - they are going to Puerto Rico for their annual trip - which is really cool, but as Joel put it, anything to not have to pay the employees higher salaries. It sounds like they're continuing to lose employees b/c of salary differences - it's sad - hard to really build a company when you can't keep experienced talent.

After the retreat on Sunday, I was going to meet up with a girl I found on craigslist to see the maternity clothes she had for sale, but I couldn't get in touch w/ her, so I went to Destination Maternity in Southpark. I only went there for a "Bella Band", but I wound up spending at least an hr and a half and leaving w/ a bunch of outfits and no bella band (I just don't think I have enough pre-pregnancy clothes I could use it with to justify the $26 elastic band - would rather get a pair of maternity jeans!). I was pleasantly surprised - I had avoided going because I really thought it was just a high-end boutique (b/c of it's location) but when I talked to Kathy, she told me that they have a bunch of different lines, including Motherhood Maternity, which is really affordable. I love a Mimi shirt that I found and just grateful it was on clearance for $20 (compared to an original price of $68). I tried on a ton of clothes and realized what a workout it was to do this 5+ months pregnant - at least I'm think I'm set for a while now.

I want to post some pictures of me in my new outfits, but of course I brought my camera to the scrapbook retreat and not only did I not take any pictures, I left it there! Luckily, someone dropped it off at Kimberly's house and I'm picking it up on Friday - I will add pictures as soon as I get my camera back! Joel's friend Mike is flying in on Friday for a visit and the 3 of us are going to go down to SC for the weekend. We're going to Lake Marion, which is supposedly the largest lake in SC and a tourist destination, but I haven't talked to anyone who's actually been there! It's about an hr from Charleston, so I figured less driving on Friday to get there and then we can go down to Charleston on Saturday! I'm excited and will definitely post next week about the trip.

17 wks and Dr. Visit

Today, I am 17 weeks pregnant. Tonight, my mom and 2 of my sisters - Bridgette and Annie are coming to visit. They are flying into Greensboro and then driving down to Charlotte (I don't understand why the small airports have better fares than the big city airports....). Anyway, I figured I would catch everyone up on the latest Baby Levy details while I'm waiting for them to arrive (now that the house is cleaned!).

On Tuesday, we had a visit w/ Dr. Rouse. This was the first time that we had an afternoon appt and it was very frustrating b/c as we learned last semester in Operations, the longest schedule delays occur later in the day as the delays from all of the other appts during the day accumulate. We were supposed to be seen at 4:15 and we were in the exam room and ready but I don't think Dr. Rouse came in until right about 5 (Andy and Nicole were scheduled to come over at 6 which complicated our schedule even more, though the Dr. is only about 5 min from home). We heard the baby's heart beat - it was in the 140's, which is in the "boy range", but we're not sure what to make of it b/c all of the other appts have been in the morning - this was the first time that we were seen in the afternoon, so maybe baby was resting. :-) I scheduled my ultrasound for Aug 28th and will then see Dr. Rouse again on Sept 12th.

After our Dr. appt Andy and Nicole came over. After dinner (reheated lasagna), Nicole and I went to Hancock fabrics (finally! we've been trying to get there for at least a month now) and picked up the fabric for the curtains for the living rm - it was expensive but probably not much more than I would've paid to buy them already made - I picked out a light brown suede for the valances (the couches are a light blue suedeish fabric) and then a striped sheer that matches the stripes on the pillows almost perfectly. We also stopped in the new Super Target - it is great having it so close!

I enjoy the process of making the curtains and it's nice to get exactly the fabric you want. I also decided to re-do the curtains on the side-lights - after I cut up the curtains I bought, I realized that I could've done it a lot neater and nicer, so for another $10, I bought a new set and fixed them. The sidelights are both done and 2 of the valances for the living rm are done. After I post this, I am going to try and finish the 3rd and get them all hung up - the most challenging part of hanging these is that it's a bay window and I'm trying to even all of the valances perfectly even - the method that I used made this particularly challenging, but now I know for next time. I also have some strips of the brown suede left that I'm going to save in case I want to make ties for the sheers. I will probably start work on the sheers next week or the week after. Definitely "nesting" in preparation for the baby - it'll be great to have the house in order and be done w/ school just in time for baby's arrival :-)

In baby news, according to Babycenter: Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.

I should be able to feel the baby move any time in the next couple of weeks - it is strangely exciting - I wonder if I will really know what it is when I feel it or if I will just think it is my gurgly intestines that are getting increasingly squished as my belly gets bigger - I'm starting to wear my maternity clothes more and more and this will likely be the last week that I wear my jeans for a while. We went out on a ride on the motorcycle the other day (and I got a fancy blue and white helmet) -it was a lot of fun, but you have to get used to it. We just rode around some of the backcountry roads by the house - probably won't be able to do it too much longer, but it will be nice when the weather is a little cooler (though I am grateful for the drop in humidity and temperature this past week!).

I will post some pictures after the weekend - we are planning on doing some school shopping and going to Carowinds. I can't go on a lot of rides, but I am looking forward to the water slides and seeing Bridge and Annie get the last "bang" out of summer!

13 weeks.....look it's a baby

Today, I am officially 13 weeks pregnant. I still don't feel remarkably different than I did pre-pregnancy, but I am definitely getting a little belly (will upload pictures soon!) and I'm sure I'll start seeing a bigger difference in the weeks to come.

Here is the babycenter update: Fingerprints have formed on your baby's tiny fingertips, her veins and organs are clearly visible through her still-thin skin, and her body is starting to catch up with her head — which makes up just a third of her body size now. If you're having a girl, she now has more than 2 million eggs in her ovaries. Your baby is almost 3 inches long (the size of a medium shrimp) and weighs nearly an ounce.

Joel and I thought it was really cool that the baby has fingerprints and nails and hair follicles starting to grow - it's amazing how much is already formed! The majority of the pregnancy from this point is developing the baby's lungs and making baby into a marshmallow baby :-)

I will have an ultrasound at 18 weeks - I can't wait to see my belly at that point as well as the baby - I'm very excited.

So, in other baby news, I started looking at breast pumps. Exciting, huh? Well, when I set up the baby pool, there was a link to the baby registry (Target). I set up the registry a couple of weeks ago (registration info, mailing address, etc.), but was a little too superstitious to add any baby stuff yet. So, now that I have the baby pool set up and we're going to send out the blog link to everyone, I wanted there to be at least a couple of things on the registry. One of the biggest expenses (aside from the furniture) is likely going to be the breast pump. Although I would like to stay home full-time, it is not the best financial decision for us right now, so I will likely be going back to work when the baby is 8-12 weeks old. I think breastfeeding is one of the most important things you can do for a baby and am determined to continue to breastfeed for at least 8 months and transition right to milk. However, in order to do this and work, it means that I have to pump.....and Medela is THE pump (based on what I've read and my 2 years experience working in Postpartum at St. Peter's). However, it is electric and therefore has a motor and is like bringing a mini power station to work!! So, you have to consider the noise level and the style of bag you carry it in and the cooler capabilities and how long and how much, so forth and so on. What a big decision......and certainly an important one for baby. Anyway, I was looking at a couple of other brands, but ultimately came back to the Medela....it's probably the best equipped for the job :-) The way the Target registry is set up, it offers you the "Most Popular" or "Goes With..." items as soon as you add one item, so the registry started w/ a breast pump and now has about 10-15 items. It doesn't have any of the other important "big" purchases because I really want to go to the new Super Target (it is opening NEXT Sun!!!) with Joel to pick out some of that stuff. I know he really couldn't care less about which breast pump I picked as long as it did the job, so I figured this was a good place to start, but I know he wants to be part of picking out some of the other stuff, so we'll finish it together!

Not much else going on. Next week Joel is going to be working late because he has a number of important business dinners, so I'm going to go hang out w/ Nicole and help her finish some of her curtains before her friends come to town. It's fun to hang out w/ her and I plan to bring Grammy to hang out w/ Emma, so it'll be a great play date (too bad Joel can't go to hang out w/ Andy). It's also good practice as I prepare to make some more curtains for my house (I am going to go look at fabric next week for the living room, great room, and MBR). It definitely makes the house feel more like a home.

Feeling Better

As of Friday, I am officially 9 weeks pregnant, or entering my 10th week. (*Note: With the ultrasound results of 6/17, I am actually 7 weeks at this point)
See, I signed up for two different weekly e-mails - one from BabyCenter.com and one from WhatToExpect.com (from the creators of the famous What to Expect When You're Expecting book!) and they each have a different way of talking about gestational age.....For example, on Friday, Baby Center says "You ARE 9 weeks pregnant" (meaning 9 weeks have passed) and on Saturday, WhatToExpect says "You are IN your 10th week". Obviously, I understand the difference, but it's kinda funny and makes you wonder what you're supposed to tell people who ask....do I say 9 wks or 10 wks? Oh well......obviously I don't have much going on in my life to have the opportunity to think about this :-)

So, when I read the e-mail on Friday, I realized that up to this point, even the people at Baby Center have thought that the baby looked like an alien......

9 wks pregnant: "Your new resident is nearly an inch long (about the size of a grape) and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks."

Ok, actually "crystal skull" is looking more and more like a baby, except for the ears and the oversized head! :-) It's actually amazing how much development has gone on in the last week - it's the most efficient machine I have ever heard of.....they should have a "How It's Made" episode on making babies.....I don't think any NASA engineer could figure out how to replicate the process :-)

We had a busy weekend this past weekend. I finished a tabbed valence for the bathroom (I am SOOO proud) on Friday night, went to school on Saturday (I never thought we'd make it to the end of Project Mgmt - btw - Joel caught the stomach bug) and then on Sunday Marshall and her husband Mike came over with their dog Whammy. It was A LOT of fun. It was the first time that they have been to the house, so obviously, the visit was preceded by a major house cleaning (the house looks great if I must say so myself LOL). Whammy is such a cute dog and the first boy dog that Graham has played with (he is part German Shephard and part Rottweiler and something else b/c he's probably 1/3 the size of an avg German Shephard or Rottweiler). I think we all had a great time. Graham is such a good dog - she shares well (if she is playing tug w/ another dog and pulls it away from the dog, she will actually bring it back....) and is very trusting and passive. At one point, Whammy got a little riled up and Graham didn't know what to do, so she came and sat by me....I couldn't really tell if she was scared or trying to protect me. Whammy didn't seem aggressive, but he was barking and since Graham is not really a barker, I think she was a little confused. I wish I had gotten a picture of Graham and Whammy, but this picture is of Graham from Dec 2007.

It was great to catch up with Marshall and I think Joel and Mike had a good time (and I think Joel convinced Mike that he needs to buy a 50-in plasma......). I can't wait to get together with them again - Marshall and I still haven't made it to Yoga, but we are determined.....I may actually see if Nicole will join me since Marshall is going to be out of town for a couple of weeks (Nicole said she wasn't that crazy about Yoga, but maybe I can convince her to give it a try :-) ) I made a BBQ feast and it was good, but I was a little disappointed. I love to cook, which also makes me very picky about the presentation and quality of food that I serve to company - it's frustrating when it doesn't come out perfect!!!

I think today was the first day that I did not spend the entire day falling asleep or avoiding throwing up...I actually felt almost back to normal. I am still uncomfortably bloated, but luckily I have a decent collection of sun dresses and stretchy skirts (although I think it's time to go shopping again) which are a lot more comfortable than the pants that are starting to get tight :-)

Going to the Dr.

So, today was my 2nd dr's appointment, though I

didn't actually see the dr. I went in and sat w/ Dana, the med tech and filled out a bunch of information regarding family hx and personal medical hx and then had to go to the lab to get blood drawn, which was unpleasant but relatively quick and painless. I go back in 2 weeks - June 17th and have my first REAL appt w/ the dr. - I think Joel is going to come along too - hopefully we will get to hear the heartbeat! Today, when I was at the dr's, they did send me home w/ a goody bag, which had a book from the American Association of OB-GYNs about pregnancy as well as a couple of magazines and the registration information for the hospital. I think today was kind of a turning point - the pregnancy suddenly seems REAL and moving full steam ahead.

I talked to Alicia last night and she offered to hang on to her pack and play and swing and play yard for us - we're hoping to get up to see them sometime this summer and pick up the goodies - I am hoping to get our house fully organized and "de-junked" before the baby so that we have room for all the furniture that seems to accompany these little ones.

This past weekend we went to see Mia, Kathy and Sam's baby girl. We had lunch w/ Kathy and Sam and got to catch up w/ them a bit - they both work at Deloitte and Joel used to work w/ Kathy - we haven't seen them in over a year!! Mia is 3 months old. She is so tiny and I was holding her and just looking at her little fingers and toes.....I have probably held thousands of babies, but this was the first baby that I've held since finding out I was pregnant and it was completely different - I just couldn't believe that the little kidney bean growing inside me (babycenter.com likes to use food to describe fetal size) would come out looking like this....it really is amazing. I don't care if I have a girl or boy, but right now, my main concern is that it's a smaller baby - 7lbs max.....I will keep my fingers crossed :-)

This weekend we also had a chance to go hang out at the Domazos residence. It was great to see Andy and Nicole - we helped them get their patio set together and took the dogs for a nice walk around the development. I've really enjoyed building friendships in Charlotte - for the first time I feel like my life is settled.....aside from STILL being in school.....and I suppose it won't be settled for much longer......as Sam put it, "everything changes".....I think I understand that but I suppose that you have to live it to truly understand!

Unfortunately, the latter part of the weekend I came down w/ an awful stomach bug, which after talking to a couple of people seems to be going around. Work was miserable yesterday, so I was happy to work from home today. I'm feeling better, but unfortunately still nauseous - which will likely hang around for a couple more weeks - I've figured out that as long as I keep eating I feel ok, but obviously my dr. and my wardrobe will not be fond of that idea.....I guess I will have to figure out something else.....

Tomorrow I am going to try Yoga for the first time. I am going with my friend Marshall if all goes as planned...it'll be good to see her and share the news, which seems to be spreading like wildfire :-) (BTW- I told Erin last night) Yoga is supposed to be good for pregnancy - I will share my experiences in the next couple of days. ;-)