My appointment today went well! It was pretty quick & painless... I won't get into the gory details! Dr. L says everything looks good and there are no concerns! Yahoooo! My hCG number skyrocketed from 178 to 2500! So that's really good news! It was such a relief. The whole appointment was a relief! He said I measure at about 7 weeks and gave me a due date of March 6. Now... I'm not buying it! lol. I still don't feel like I'm quite that far along for some reason. But I'll go with it for now. My next appointment is on August 25. That will just be a normal appointment and that's when we'll schedule my first ultrasound!! Which will be done at 12 or 13 weeks. Sooooo excited to see my baby and hear the heartbeat!!!
That's all for now. I'm pretty happy!! :)
Friday, July 23, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Just Me Talkin'...
I've been a slacker with the blogging! Not that anyone reads it anyway. Okay one or two people read. How would I go about getting more readers anyway?
My SIL Robin & her 2 little ones... Ellie & Garrett... are gonna be here on Sunday or Monday! I'm sooo excited to see them! They're gonna stay at our place for a few nights and on the 29th I'm going with them to Safford for about a week. My other SIL Kallie & her not-so-little ones... Holly & Jace... will be there too. I'm catching a ride back with Kallie as Robin has lots of people to visit! Then I think on the 16th or so we'll all be in Bagdad (Arizona, not overseas) at Kallie's for about a week. So the next month or so will be quite busy! Busy is good though... I think.
I have my first OB appointment tomorrow and I can. not. wait.!!! It's really evil for them to make pregnant women wait so long for an appointment. I need some reassurance! I had a little scare the other day but I think everything is okay. My hCG levels weren't as high as they should be but it most likely just means that I'm not as far along as my last period suggest.. which actually makes a lot of sense! It took me too long to get a positive.. but if we concieved later, it all adds up. So I'm sure that's all it is. I got another blood draw though and I'll get to hear all about it tomorrow. Can't. wait.!!
So far my pregnancy is going well. No severe symptoms. I've been super lazy lately. Today was the first day I got very much done. Yahoo! Saturday I plan to get lots done too! Gotta get ready for Robby! I won't get anything done Sunday because that's Clint's day off. It just won't happen.
I suppose I've nothing left to babble about. I'm sure I'll update after my appointment tomorrow!
My SIL Robin & her 2 little ones... Ellie & Garrett... are gonna be here on Sunday or Monday! I'm sooo excited to see them! They're gonna stay at our place for a few nights and on the 29th I'm going with them to Safford for about a week. My other SIL Kallie & her not-so-little ones... Holly & Jace... will be there too. I'm catching a ride back with Kallie as Robin has lots of people to visit! Then I think on the 16th or so we'll all be in Bagdad (Arizona, not overseas) at Kallie's for about a week. So the next month or so will be quite busy! Busy is good though... I think.
I have my first OB appointment tomorrow and I can. not. wait.!!! It's really evil for them to make pregnant women wait so long for an appointment. I need some reassurance! I had a little scare the other day but I think everything is okay. My hCG levels weren't as high as they should be but it most likely just means that I'm not as far along as my last period suggest.. which actually makes a lot of sense! It took me too long to get a positive.. but if we concieved later, it all adds up. So I'm sure that's all it is. I got another blood draw though and I'll get to hear all about it tomorrow. Can't. wait.!!
So far my pregnancy is going well. No severe symptoms. I've been super lazy lately. Today was the first day I got very much done. Yahoo! Saturday I plan to get lots done too! Gotta get ready for Robby! I won't get anything done Sunday because that's Clint's day off. It just won't happen.
I suppose I've nothing left to babble about. I'm sure I'll update after my appointment tomorrow!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Expecting.
Finally!! After a year of trying, we are expecting!!
Now I feel kinda silly for that super-long post about trying. Especially because as I was posting that, I already had a little fertilized egg making its way to my uterus.
So here's how that cycle went:
I was really positive about it at the beginning for two reasons. 1) I ovulated the previous cycle. 2) Several months ago I got a Cheri22 reading. She is like an online psychic and she predicts when you're gonna get pregnant. She related me to July (meaning I would concieve, find out, or give birth in July) (and she predicts a girl). But as the cycle went on, I never got a positive ovulation test. Grr! But we still did the baby dance on a regular basis around the time I expected to ovulate.
On June 28 I had a little spotting. I thought I was maybe about to get my period early, or it was implantation bleeding. I tested in the next day or two, and saw an ugly negative! But I was really feeling pregnant. So a few days later I took another (July 3). Still negative. At that point I figured it wasn't likely that I was pregnant. I was discouraged and bummed. I still hadn't started my period 4 or 5 days later so I tested again. AGAIN, a negative! So really I did not think this was our month. Throughout this time, I'd had some period-like cramping, but still no flow.
Sunday July 11 we were going camping with some friends. I wanted to be sure it was okay to drink and there it was! A beautiful faint pink line!! Clint was in the kitchen getting things ready and I was just waking up. When I saw the positive I freaked out (in the best way). I didn't know what to do! Clint was so focused on getting headed to the lake. But obviously I had to tell him! So I went into the kitchen with the test and told him, with tears in my eyes, "I don't think I'll be drinking this weekend!" and wrapped my arms around his neck and started crying and laughing at the same time. It was so cool. Two days later I tested again with 2 tests and this is what I saw:
It really doesn't get any clearer than that! Definitely pregnant! It was so exciting! We had called our moms from the lake, and his sisters when we got back. Once we got this further confirmation, I told my brother, dad and best friends. Today I finally put it on Facebook. It's official- Janessa's knocked up!Tuesday I called my doctors office (as soon as they opened) to set up an appointment. Today I had OB Orientation. It was a lot of paperwork, followed by a powerpoint presentation with loads of information about the doctors, the hospital, what to expect, do's & don'ts and more. Then it was time to see the nurse. I peed in a cup (I'm an expert at that after a year of TTC), got weight, blood pressure taken, she asked a few questions and that's about it. She gave me a lab req for blood work. I went to the lab, got my blood drawn (4 vials!) and came home!
My appointment with the OB is a week from tomorrow. I'm soooo looking forward to it! I don't know why... I'll be poked & prodded. But he'll be able to tell me that indeed there's a baby in there! And that will be comforting to hear!
Based on my last period, I'm estimated at 6 weeks & 1 day along. Due March 9th. That's likely to change once I see the doctor. I'm not really sure.
So far I don't have a lot of symptoms, but here's what I do have: Frequent mild cramping, leg cramps, sleepiness, hunger, thirsty, and I've only had a couple mild waves of nausea. No pukey pukey yet.
This is so much fun. I'm happy, Clint's happy and I kinda think Zoey knows. Life is good!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Marley & Me
Last night I finished reading the book for the second time. It's really a wonderful, funny, heartwarming story. It makes me think about Zoey, and how she's our Marley. Granted, she's 90 lbs lighter. But John & Jenny adopted Marley early in their marriage. Marley was there when they brought their babies home and through all the transitional times of their lives.
In the final chapter of the book, he talks about the farewell article he wrote for The Philidelphia Inquirer in honor of Marley. I did a little googling, and found that article. I'm going to share it now.
Saying Farewell to a Faithful Pal
John Grogan
In the gray of dawn, I found the shovel in the garage and walked down the hill to where the lawn meets the woods. There, beneath a wild cherry tree, I began to dig.The earth was loose and blessedly unfrozen, and the work went fast. It was odd being out in the backyard without Marley, the Labrador retriever who for 13 years made it his business to be tight by my side for every excursion out the door, whether to pick a tomato, pull a weed, or fetch the mail. And now here I was alone, digging him this hole.
“There will never be another dog like Marley,” my father said when I told him the news, that I finally had to put the old guy down. It was as close to a compliment as our pet ever received.
No one ever called him a great dog — or even a good dog. He was as wild as a banshee and as strong as a bull. He crashed joyously through life with a gusto most often associated with natural disasters.
He’s the only dog I’ve ever known to get expelled from obedience school.
Marley was a chewer of couches, a slasher of screens, a slinger of drool, a tipper of trash cans. He was so big he could eat off the kitchen table with all four paws planted on the floor — and did so whenever we weren’t looking.
Marley shredded more mattresses and dug through more drywall than I care to remember, almost always out of sheer terror brought on by his mortal enemy, thunder.
Cute but dumb.
He was a majestic animal, nearly 100 pounds of quivering muscle wrapped in a luxurious fur coat the color of straw. As for brains, let me just say he chased his tail till the day he died, apparently convinced he was on the verge of a major canine breakthrough.
That tail could clear a coffee table in one swipe. We lost track of the things he swallowed, including my wife’s gold necklace, which we eventually recovered, shinier than ever. We took him with us once to a chi-chi outdoor caf and tied him to the heavy wrought-iron table. Big mistake. Marley spotted a cute poodle and off he bounded, table in tow.
But his heart was pure.
When I brought my wife home from the doctor after our first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, that wild beast gently rested his blocky head in her lap and just whimpered. And when babies finally arrived, he somehow understood they were something special and let them climb all over him, tugging his ears and pulling out little fistfuls of fur. One day when a stranger tried to hold one of the children, our jolly giant showed a ferocity we never imagined was inside him.
As the years passed, Marley mellowed, and sleeping became his favorite pastime. By the end, his hearing was shot, his teeth were gone, his hips so riddled with arthritis he barely could stand. Despite the infirmities, he greeted each day with the mischievous glee that was his hallmark. Just days before his death, I caught him with his head stuck in the garbage pail.
Life lessons learned.
A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours.
Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things — a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity.
Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty.
When his time came last week, I knelt beside him on the floor of the animal hospital, rubbing his gray snout as the veterinarian discussed cremation with me. No, I told her, I would be taking him home with me.
The next morning, our family would stand over the hole I had dug and say goodbye. The kids would tuck drawings in beside him. My wife would speak for us all when she’d say: “God, I’m going to miss that big, dumb lug.”
But now I had a few minutes with him before the doctor returned. I thought back over his 13 years — the destroyed furniture and goofy antics; the sloppy kisses and utter devotion. All in all, not a bad run.
I didn’t want him to leave this world believing all his bad press. I rested my forehead against his and said: “Marley, you are a great dog.”
In the final chapter of the book, he talks about the farewell article he wrote for The Philidelphia Inquirer in honor of Marley. I did a little googling, and found that article. I'm going to share it now.
Saying Farewell to a Faithful Pal
John Grogan
In the gray of dawn, I found the shovel in the garage and walked down the hill to where the lawn meets the woods. There, beneath a wild cherry tree, I began to dig.The earth was loose and blessedly unfrozen, and the work went fast. It was odd being out in the backyard without Marley, the Labrador retriever who for 13 years made it his business to be tight by my side for every excursion out the door, whether to pick a tomato, pull a weed, or fetch the mail. And now here I was alone, digging him this hole.
“There will never be another dog like Marley,” my father said when I told him the news, that I finally had to put the old guy down. It was as close to a compliment as our pet ever received.
No one ever called him a great dog — or even a good dog. He was as wild as a banshee and as strong as a bull. He crashed joyously through life with a gusto most often associated with natural disasters.
He’s the only dog I’ve ever known to get expelled from obedience school.
Marley was a chewer of couches, a slasher of screens, a slinger of drool, a tipper of trash cans. He was so big he could eat off the kitchen table with all four paws planted on the floor — and did so whenever we weren’t looking.
Marley shredded more mattresses and dug through more drywall than I care to remember, almost always out of sheer terror brought on by his mortal enemy, thunder.
Cute but dumb.
He was a majestic animal, nearly 100 pounds of quivering muscle wrapped in a luxurious fur coat the color of straw. As for brains, let me just say he chased his tail till the day he died, apparently convinced he was on the verge of a major canine breakthrough.
That tail could clear a coffee table in one swipe. We lost track of the things he swallowed, including my wife’s gold necklace, which we eventually recovered, shinier than ever. We took him with us once to a chi-chi outdoor caf and tied him to the heavy wrought-iron table. Big mistake. Marley spotted a cute poodle and off he bounded, table in tow.
But his heart was pure.
When I brought my wife home from the doctor after our first pregnancy ended in a miscarriage, that wild beast gently rested his blocky head in her lap and just whimpered. And when babies finally arrived, he somehow understood they were something special and let them climb all over him, tugging his ears and pulling out little fistfuls of fur. One day when a stranger tried to hold one of the children, our jolly giant showed a ferocity we never imagined was inside him.
As the years passed, Marley mellowed, and sleeping became his favorite pastime. By the end, his hearing was shot, his teeth were gone, his hips so riddled with arthritis he barely could stand. Despite the infirmities, he greeted each day with the mischievous glee that was his hallmark. Just days before his death, I caught him with his head stuck in the garbage pail.
Life lessons learned.
A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours.
Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things — a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity.
Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty.
When his time came last week, I knelt beside him on the floor of the animal hospital, rubbing his gray snout as the veterinarian discussed cremation with me. No, I told her, I would be taking him home with me.
The next morning, our family would stand over the hole I had dug and say goodbye. The kids would tuck drawings in beside him. My wife would speak for us all when she’d say: “God, I’m going to miss that big, dumb lug.”
But now I had a few minutes with him before the doctor returned. I thought back over his 13 years — the destroyed furniture and goofy antics; the sloppy kisses and utter devotion. All in all, not a bad run.
I didn’t want him to leave this world believing all his bad press. I rested my forehead against his and said: “Marley, you are a great dog.”
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
Plain Jane
Have we all seen commercials for the CW's latest gem, Plain Jane?
Each week they give an average, not-so-attractive woman a makeover. Hair, make-up, wardrobe, even confidence building exercises! Then the no-longer-plain Jane surprises her crush and tells him how she feels. Hopefully now that she's a knockout, he'll fall in love with her!
Really? Is this what we're teaching our daughters? "If you look hot, the man of your dreams will love you!" I'm all about bettering yourself whether it be your health, your appearance or your attitude. But do it for you. Don't expect it to cause the object of your affection to fall for you. Chances are if he's known you for more then a few months and hasn't developed feelings for you, he's probably not going to. At least not the kind that will last. It's no way to start a healthy, long lasting relationship. And chances are Mr. Right isn't perfect either. But do you think he's gonna go whiten his teeth and get a stylist? No.
So, ladies, do what you have to do to make yourself happy! In time the right man will come along, and he will love you for your inner and outer beauty, and he will accept you as you are!
Each week they give an average, not-so-attractive woman a makeover. Hair, make-up, wardrobe, even confidence building exercises! Then the no-longer-plain Jane surprises her crush and tells him how she feels. Hopefully now that she's a knockout, he'll fall in love with her!
Really? Is this what we're teaching our daughters? "If you look hot, the man of your dreams will love you!" I'm all about bettering yourself whether it be your health, your appearance or your attitude. But do it for you. Don't expect it to cause the object of your affection to fall for you. Chances are if he's known you for more then a few months and hasn't developed feelings for you, he's probably not going to. At least not the kind that will last. It's no way to start a healthy, long lasting relationship. And chances are Mr. Right isn't perfect either. But do you think he's gonna go whiten his teeth and get a stylist? No.
So, ladies, do what you have to do to make yourself happy! In time the right man will come along, and he will love you for your inner and outer beauty, and he will accept you as you are!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Zoey turns one!
My Zoey turned ONE on June 28th! I can't believe I didn't blog about it that day, so I'm doing it now!
We got her in Bullhead City. We went with the intention of finding a puppy... The moment I saw her, she stole my heart! We took her to PetSmart right away and got the basics- bowls, food, leash, collar- then we brought her home and showed her her new home! The first time I weighed her she was just about 2lbs. So tiny and so furry!
Here we are on the way home from Bullhead that first day!
It took her a little while to warm up to us. The first week or so she didn't care if we were home or out, playing with or ignoring her. Whenever we couldn't find her, she was hiding under the couch.
Now she's all grown up, weighing about 7lbs. The days of not caring much about us are long gone. Anytime I leave, I can hear her crying and barking till I'm in the car and sometimes she runs outside and watches me drive off through the gate. When I get home it's like she hasn't seen me for days (even if I was only gone 10 minutes). She loves to go for walks and even more than that, LOVES the dog park! And she's a good traveler! She likes to go new places and explore! I'm so glad she came into our lives, I can't imagine what I'd do without her!
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