Here's Peanut!!!

Yesterday's ultrasound went very well - much to our relief and excitement. Peanut's heartbeat was 175 beats per minute, and s/he is measuring at 23mm, about the size of a kidney bean. The difference between the week 6 and week 9 ultrasound was just amazing to see! You could see 2 arms and 2 legs, as well as the umbilical cord attached to the baby and myself. And you could see the blood moving through the umbilical cord as well which was just wild!!

I could've stared at Peanut all day. S/he was moving about, and you could see the spine, and part of the hip bone that was forming. In the above picture, the "A" indicates an arm and the "L" indicates a leg - they aren't fully formed yet - they are just buds. But how cool?!?!

The nurse said that Peanut was "quite the chubber"! as s/he is measuring a few days ahead of schedule. But things really look great for where I'm at (9 weeks). Oh, and in case you're wondering, we won't be finding out Peanut's gender until s/he is born....

Yesterday also marked my graduation from my fertility specialist, which was bittersweet. I've really grown to love these ladies who care and nurture me so well. They never made me feel like a number, and they always were encouraging to us. I will now see my regular OB once a month; my next appointment is next Monday.

I still need to post pictures and stories from my CA trip last week. I'll get around to that I promise!

I'm it!

I've been tagged by Melissa so I had to reply.

Jobs I've had (in no particular order):

• Waitress (many places)
• Lottery clerk at Foodland
• Pharmacy clerk at a private family-owned pharmacy
• Project Manager
• Software trainer
• Sales clerk at women's clothing stores
• Shoe salesperson

Places I've lived:

• West Mifflin, PA
• Idaho Falls, ID
• Pittsburgh, PA
• Norwin, PA
• Bridgeville, PA
• North Oakland, PA

Foods I love:

• Sushi
• buffalo wings
• brie & goat cheese
• chocolate covered strawberries
• BBQ potato chips
• milk chocolate

Where I'd rather be:

• at the doctor's getting my ultrasound (so nervous)
• Aspen with 8" of snow
• coastal Maine in summertime

TV shows I watch:

• Lost
• The Office
• Grey's Anatomy
• Brothers & Sisters
• Scrubs
• The Dog Whisperer

Books I love:

• What Dreams May Come
• Conversations with God (the entire series)

I now tag Lisa and Kelly!

Just got back from CA tonight and will post tomorrow after the doctor's appointment. Considering I have no symptoms this past week, I am totally freaked out.

Leavin' on a jet plane...

Just got back this afternoon from a long weekend in Providence to see my brother-in-law Mark & his wife Kacey. We had a great time away! Though the weather was very rainy on Friday, we took a drive to Newport to see the area and mansions. Luckily the rain stayed away from the Newport area and we had a great drive along the sea cliff looking at the huge homes. We toured the Rosecliff mansion which was really interesting. It was beautiful but I can't honestly say I'd like to live there - nothing all that warm or inviting about 12ft high ceilings. But I'd sure love to have a big party there!





Our time with Mark & Kacey was just wonderful really - we don't get to see them too often and they've had so much going on with family health issues and moving and jobs this year. It was nice to just hang out and eat and chat and drive around.

We took a trip Friday night (in the pouring rain!) to an awesome fall event where there are over 5000 carved pumpkins on display. And when I say carved, it isn't your average 2 eyes, a nose and a mouth. These are intricate pumpkins that are themed! This year's theme was "Around the world" and they had pumpkins carved to represent a lot of the countries, ideas, etc. So at night, all these illuminated pumpkins are just awesome to see! Unfortunately due to the rain, about half of the pumpkins weren't lit so they gave free return tickets. But even what we did see was just so cool!

Lots of time spent in the airport this weekend - we got home this afternoon and I'm prepping to fly out tomorrow AM to CA for the week. Most of it vacation, but a few days of work too. I'll be attending the CA Women's Conference which always has amazing speakers. It's a single day event, and then after a day of work in the office on Wed, I'll be driving up the coast with a girlfriend. (I've always wanted to drive highway 1 along the CA coast). We'll be going to Napa Valley and some wineries and a spa. I'll be back Sunday night. Here's a picture of where we'll be staying...

The only "bad" part of this weekend was that #1 - I hit my head on Mark's door really, really hard. So hard, I spent 5 minutes crying (trying to hide it) on our way to breakfast. I felt dizzy and weird and my head was really hurting. Thank heavens Kacey gave me some Tylenol because I don't know if I'd have made it home okay. And #2, we got home to discover that our poor cat had been neglected all weekend! Our normally dependable neighbors just didn't come over to feed her while we were gone, so she went without food for almost 48 hrs. I felt awful that she was so distressed (and she really was). Poor baby!

Almost 8 weeks pregnant, and I've been feeling okay. Just morning sickness when I do not eat. So physically not too bad. Mentally I am a wreck recently. It was about this point of my previous pregnancy when I miscarried the twins. So I find myself constantly thinking "is everything okay?" and wondering if something has happened again unknown to me. I know that I just have to relax as much as I can and trust it will be okay, but easier said than done. Next week's ultrasound will help a lot. If you don't mind, please send up some prayers for our little one. Oddly enough, this is also my original "due date" week from the twin's pregnancy so maybe that is on my mind too. I think the travel will be good for me and a nice distraction this week. I just wish I knew everything was okay with our little peanut right now.

Well, off to finish packing and eat some Triscuits - that pesky morning sickness is back!

Baltimore Marathon

My husband has always been a winner to me, and this weekend he toughed it out for marathon #2. The weather was perfect and cool for running, and the participants were ready for the challenge. I'm happy to say that everyone survived without being too worse for the wear!

Dave was making **great** time (his half-marathon was under 2 hrs) and he was right on track to achieve his goal of finishing in under 4 hrs. Unfortunately, a severe pinched nerve kicked in around mile 17 and he had to walk for a few miles. This set him back and for the next 4 miles, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to finish at all. But he was able to start running again around mile 21 and completed the marathon in 4 hours 41 minutes.

It is really amazing to see these runners going the course - some were juggling, some skipping rope, some were running for a cause and in memory of a loved one, and some were just running to achieve a personal goal. They were all amazing, and I don't know if I could ever train, or push myself, for something so tough. (Pregnancy is tough enough for now!)

I wanted to post some pictures:

Dave at mile 7

Dave at mile 13

Dave heading towards the finish line

Club marathon

We had a great time with the family in Baltimore, though I am happy to be home since I'm not feeling 100%. Plus, I am just a home-body at heart! Next weekend we're off to Providence to see Mark & Kacey and Dave's step-siblings. Looking forward to that as well!

How I know I'm pregnant......

Hi - my name is Beth. I'm 6 weeks pregnant and cranky as all get out! That's how I know am pregnant.... I'm really really cranky. So I apologize in advance if I'm short or curt or snappy with you, because I'm seriously hormonal. Sometimes I feel like I am crawling out of my skin and just need to be by myself. (Not to mention work has me completely stressed out and I'm still slightly worried about progressing in this pregnancy.)

On Monday we had our ultrasound. Things are measuring very well. One baby, who is currently about 3mm long right now. That' s like half a grain of rice. But we were treated to seeing the baby's heartbeat, which was totally unexpected. The heartbeat was this flickering of light - too small to measure in beats per minute, but totally there. Honestly, to me, the moment was more surreal than exciting.

Which leads me to comment on the word excitement.... I think that's a fairly strong word to use and a little too strong for how I am feeling. Happy? Yes! Relived? Definitely! I honestly don't think I am going to exhale until I'm out of my 1st trimester. I honestly intend to enjoy this pregnancy as much as I can, and to think positive, but there is still that part of me that is still keeping my guard up just in case I'm hurt again somehow. I think that's somewhat normal and to be expected.

This weekend we're going to Baltimore as Dave is running in the marathon on Saturday. Wish him luck, just not to "break a leg"!

Happy Anniversary

2 years - time just flies by! 2 wonderful years, and many more to come! We celebrated by being ourselves today. Well, on Friday Dave sent me some beautiful flowers. I've been enjoying them all weekend (and so has Zoe, who has an affinity for chewing on fresh flowers).

But this morning Dave and I exchanged gifts (boudoir shots for him, which he loved, and a wonderful spa package for me, which I can't wait to use!). We went to breakfast at his favorite place (Pamela's in Shadyside). And then I told Dave we were going somewhere special to watch the game. It was kind of obvious when we were on the north side and I paid $20 for parking. I gave him a gift bag and he opened it to find personalized Steeler jerseys with "Sprague" on the back and 07 (our wedding date). He loved them!

So we put on the jerseys and I told Dave we were going to the Jerome Bettis restaurant to watch the game. We walked over towards the stadium through the crowd (wow was it hot outside!) and talked about getting on the waiting list for season tickets one day. But as we approached the restaurant, Dave noticed we were walking past it. And then I told him we were actually going to the game. He was pretty excited!!

And what a game it was! The first shut-out at Heinz field ever; I credit our Sprague jerseys! The game was awesome and we even saw Steely McBeam. Dave refused to get his picture taken, so I volunteered. (One day when this horrible mascot is gone, I can tell our kids how I had my picture taken with him.)

We went to dinner for sushi / hibachi and then came home and ate some pumpkin pie. Mmmmm! A great day filled with things we love!

Happy Anniversary tomorrow to my friends Jessica & Robert, and coming up soon to Michelle & Hank, Suzie & Greg and Tobi and her husband (whose name escapes me - sorry!) Tomorrow is our first ultrasound, and then a trip to Trax farms to pick pumpkins with my niece & nephew.

Light the Night

Last night was the 9th Annual Light the Night walk for Leukemia & Lymphoma - it was my first year walking. I walked as part of a team of ladies (and some husbands and children) I know from online. We walked in memory of Joe Lin - my friend Karen's husband. Karen and Joe's parents showed up as well, and it was very nice. We did GREAT with our fundraising goal and exceeded the $1000 goal we set. (total values aren't available yet). When we watched the fireworks at the end, all I could think about was what a view Joe had from heaven....

Our Team A great skyline view

In Memory of Joe

As we walked: And no event in Pittsburgh is complete without fireworks!Just a small pregnancy update - I'm feeling okay, just a little tired. Our first ultrasound is on Monday and I'll feel much better after I get confirmation that everything is okay!

Our second wedding anniversary is on Sunday (can you believe it's been 2 years??) and I have something planned for Dave, but it is a surprise.