Happy Hula Girl

Grandma Ellen came home from Hawaii last night. Lucky woman to be in Hawaii for a week and a half. She even flew part of the trip first class thanks to her sister's frequent flyer miles. Some day we'll go there right? Some day....anyway...she came bearing gifts last night when she visited which was so sweet. She brought the girls a few things, but one of the gifts was a hula girl outfit. Can't you imagine putting this little one on your dashboard? Just kidding! I would have subjected Lydia to pictures, but she is in Denver this week. Welcome home Ellen! We missed you!

My First Prenatal Appointment

Well, today the whole family packed into the car and headed to my first prenatal appointment. They informed me when I made my appointment that they would be doing an ultrasound, so I though it might be fun if we all went. I LOVE my doctor. She is absolutely wonderful, caring and warm. Her office staff is also exceptionally great! Every time I have called the office with concerns they are quick to help me out.

The doctor powered up the ultrasound machine and sure enough we got to see our little one.

The baby was bouncing and moving around and we could see a strong heartbeat. There is nothing like seeing your little baby. It is such a happy moment! The whole family was excited. It is such a relief to know that the baby is healthy and well. One surprising thing though is the doctor measured the baby at 12 weeks and 2 days instead of 10 weeks and 5 days. She decided to move up my due date slightly (based on the first ultrasound which showed me 6 days ahead), so now I am due 12/22/08 instead of 12/28/08. Woo Hoo! I can't complain about that. I wonder if the baby will come on it's due date. If it does I should be home by Christmas Eve. We'll have to see. There is of course the possibility that the due date could move up again if the baby continues to measure ahead.

I feel so happy that my baby is doing well and I'm looking forward to future appointments. My next ultrasound won't be until I'm 19 to 20 weeks along. At that scan we will be able to find out what the baby is. Yeah for ultrasounds! Seeing that picture makes every thing about pregnancy so worth it!

Lydia the Great!

So school has officially ended for the year and I am so proud of my girl. She got 100% attendance for the year, straight A's, a Gold Medal for reading, and 100% on all of her spelling tests for the year. Since she did so well we took her out to her absolute favorite restaurant. Tepanyaki! It is expensive, but that is what we promised her if she got 100% spelling for the year. We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed watching the chef prepare our meals right in front of us. Lydia totally deserved it! We love her so much!!!!

Adelle found a vent and was our own little Marilyn Monroe.

Congrats again Lydia! You're my hero!!

What does an attorney do...

After a very busy, stressful day in court? This is it! He totally loses himself in the nature that surrounds him. I gently interrupted him when the rain started falling. Who knows how long he would have stayed out there.
Adelle wanted to join in the fun as well.

Rainy Day

I was working at home on Tuesday when a very large thunder and lightning storm rolled in. Adelle decided she wanted to venture out in the rain. She strapped on her snow boots, found an umbrella and ventured out into the storm. She enjoyed looking for snails, especially the baby ones. Before we left to pick up Lydia from school she made sure all of the snails had been moved off the driveway!

What Camera do you Use?

I have loved reading all of your blogs and viewing your fabulous pictures! I am constantly amazed at the level of detail that people's cameras capture and how clear the image is. My camera has been dying for a good long while. My mother-in-law has been very gracious to give me her old camera, which is the same model as my current one, but has been used much less and is still operating well. I have probably taken over 5000 pictures with my camera and that isn't an exaggeration. My camera has done the job, but can be very lacking at times.

I am curious though...what are you using? Some day maybe I will be fortunate enough to buy a wonderful, amazing, detail capturing camera that fulfills my wildest dreams! I am the family historian after all. I am documenting every detail of my family and I love to do that through pictures. Now, I don't think that a new camera will happen anytime soon, but ... maybe... a miracle will happen! Okay, maybe not. But I have to know!

So you must share, spill it! What is your secret weapon that is capturing such stunning photos?

1/4 of the Way

Yesterday I was 10 weeks along and I just realized that I am already 1/4 of the way through this pregnancy. Since I never wrote much down when I was pregnant with my girls I thought it would be nice to write some things this time around.

I have had morning sickness at random times. I never actually throw up, but just get very sick to my stomach. Eating does seem to help most of the time, so I have been eating a lot it seems. I am still trying to keep most of my foods healthy, even though I have an aversion to vegetables. I craved them for a week, but ever since then I can't stand them unless they are cooked well with something else. Some of my favorite foods right now are pizza, sausage, egg muffins, and nachos. I am always trying to find ways to make these foods healthier which often means I make them at home. I have had a really big craving for Joe's Crab Shack crab nachos recently, but I haven't given in yet, probably because it is so far away.

I have been nervous this time around. I don't know if it because I'm older and I know more what can go wrong, the fact that it took longer to get pregnant with this one, or if it is just thanks to the Internet. I belong to an online pregnancy group with other moms that are due in December and every week one or two of the moms will miscarry. It is a large group and the odds of course are there, but it still doesn't help my fears. Prayer has been really great to help me relax and focus on the positive. My sister is also really great to provide down to earth advice and comic release.

I had my first ultrasound at 6 weeks and saw the baby's little heartbeat just thumping along! That is the earliest ultrasound I have ever had before. I know for sure there is only one little baby :) The baby measured 6 days ahead, so I keep wondering if my due date will be moved up. I have my first official prenatal appointment with my doctor this Friday. Lydia didn't know I was pregnant and why we were at the hospital. The girls waited in the waiting room and afterwards Lydia was horribly concerned that something might be wrong with me. She made me promise to inform her if something was wrong with me. I think she was afraid I was going to die!

Lydia hasn't been overly excited to be a big sister again, but as time goes by she seems to get more excited. She is really excited though that she is going to share a room with her sister. Adelle is super excited and will often ask about the baby. When I sit down to eat she asks me if the baby likes the food. She has had MANY questions. She has also told me that my "womb" is getting fat.

Lydia is really hoping for a boy and Adelle is really hoping for a girl. When asked why Adelle wants a girl she says it is because she likes the name Violet. It is the name we have been leaning towards. I am just hoping for a healthy baby, but my instincts make me think it is a boy. I thought Adelle was going to be a boy though so I may be WAY off.

I have outgrown all of my pants and capris that I could previously wear. I have resorted to wearing my "fat" clothes. I held onto a few things after I lost 40 pounds. They are a little big, but I just can't stand to have my abdomen squished. Most of my maternity clothes are horribly outdated so I have borrowed some clothes and I am sure will need to buy some.

I get very tired at times, but found out yesterday that Skittles are amazing energy boosters. Wow! I hadn't had that much energy since before I was pregnant. I will not be resorting to this often for obvious reasons. Instead I try and take naps on the weekend and take it a little easier after a full day of work.

I am continuing to exercise during this pregnancy. I rarely exercised when I was pregnant with my girls. I am glad I am keeping up with this healthy habit. I have had to slow things down a little, but I am not giving up! I will walk, ride the exercise bike or use the elliptical. House cleaning and walking around Ikea counts too, right?

I am planning on having this baby naturally if I can. I had Adelle without any drugs and preferred it so much better than Lydia's birth. I was fully induced with Lydia and received an epidural. I know many women will view this as CRAZY, but I preferred the natural birth so much more! I don't like feeling out of control and honestly the pain was manageable. I liked that I was able to move and walk around during the labor as well as after the baby was born.

I am excited to have another baby! I have wanted this for a long time. I am not overly thrilled about having a baby in December, but I can't complain! I hope everything goes smoothly and that come December we will have a beautiful, healthy baby! I will be taking a full 3 months off and then will start working from home 4 days a week and 1 day in the office.

Here is to the next 30 weeks!