18 Week Ultra Sound

Hello Mommy!

Today was our 18 week Ultra Sound! We were both very excited to get the chance to see our little boy wiggle around inside his mommies tummy. It's the cutest thing ever to see him kick his little feet. I can feel the kicks yet, but clearly he is kicking. I do, however, "think" that I am feeling his movements as I do not see how it is possible to eat and then have my tummy rumble at me like I hadn't eaten all day only an hour or so later. Doctor said that he is growing like he should and is measuring right where he needs to be. They found nothing to worry about with him or mommy. His heartbeat is nice and strong as well. He was breach but we have lots of time for flips.

I took my first belly picture at 17 weeks. My tummy is starting to get tighter by the day. We were unable to take our 18 week belly picture because we were out of town visiting my sister and the rest of my dad's side of the family. It was an AWESOME trip. My sister and a couple of our aunts planned a surprise baby shower for me! It's a little early but I may not be able to get back out there again so they splurged, just for me! ... or probably more for Baby Blob than for me, but regardless it was fun and so nice to see the whole family. She also took me maternity shopping for the first time. We also got to spend LOTS of time with my niece, ALYSSA! She is so adorable and boy does she LOVE grandma!!!! We got to watch her go trick or treating and at first she was scared and then she realized that she was getting candy and then she was running to the doors.

Big News !!!!!!!!!!!

Last time I posted, for one, was a very long time ago and also, we had stopped trying to get pregnant. We never did start up the fertility treatments again. The business was taking up a very large majority of my time and JC is deploying next spring. So, we were just not too worried about it. We figured that we would just wait until JC got back and then make a decision again at that time.

Well... I was finally able to take a day off and I literally slept the entire day and night. Then when I went to work I was still exhausted. My new Assistant told me that I probably slept too much and that was why I was still tired. But, it wasn't just tire or even exhausted, I was EXHAUSTED!!!!!!! I was more exhausted than I have ever been in my life. I thought to myself that the first thing a doctor would do is run a pregnancy test and just so happened to have one left from when we were still trying. So, I took it.... and it was POSITIVE!!!!!!!!! I was in such shock that I questioned my ability to read a pregnancy test. I had to get the directions out because I thought I must have done something wrong. The best that I have ever gotten before was an extremely faint line and this one was very clear, there were two lines for sure. I called my doctor and they ordered a blood draw and sure enough it came back positive too.

JC was away at his Annual Training and in a hard to reach location, so I texted him the news and it took forever for the texts to go through. He finally did get them and was very excited as well. I was also on my way out of town to WI to visit with my family. I had to wait till I got home to get an US. I don't normally ovulate regularly on my own so AF is not predictable and it is very common for me to not get AF for months at a time. Having no clue when I ovulate along the way. So, when I was asked when my last period was I had not a clue in the world. I wasn't traking my cycles anymore and it had been at least all summer. So, to date the pregnancy I needed an US and thus Baby Blob was seen for the first time measuring at 6 Weeks 5 Days.

So, we got pregnant literally out of nowhere and with no drugs or any intervention or planning of any sort. We couldn't be happier and more surprised. I do, also, consider myself lucky in the department of pregnancy symptoms as the biggest one was exhaustion. So, lots and lots of sleep. I did feel sick most days, however, for the most part it stayed down. I did get really sick for a couple days with some kind of stomach bug or food poisoning of some sort. The doctor gave me medicine for it and I slept through it. Then I felt GREAT for a day and cleaned and organized, but then I caught a cold and I was sleepy again... and sniffly. 

We did make it to 12 Weeks so the chances of a miscarriage have dropped to 1%. Then we hit 13 Weeks and had the pre diagnostic testing done for Down Syndrome and a few other chromosomal disorders. They all came back negative and also told us the sex of the baby, which actually looks like a baby now.... IT'S A BOY!!!!!!!! We are so excited to have a new little boy and can't wait to hold him and play with him and watch him grow. The pre diagnostic testing also had an US, so blow is Baby Blob at 13 Weeks, looking more like a baby than a blob now.

It truly AMAZES me at how things just work out in the perfect order to create such wonderful things in life. We did everything we could to get pregnant for over 2 years and had no such luck. I tracked my cycles, took my meds, went to my appointments... everything and all I ever got was disappointment. Then to do nothing at all and it just happens out of nowhere. Today we are 15 Weeks and doing great!! 

P.S. If you see or talk to the boys please do not mention it to them. They do not know yet. We plan to tell them in person when they come out for Thanksgiving.

BIG Life Changes

Well, I guess it is about time that I fill everyone in on our MAJOR life’s events. As you all know I had deployed to Kuwait and JC had deployed to Iraq. Both of us being deployed had caused us to rent out our home and thus upon our return we had to stay with my dad for about 4 months. It was a full house and stressful at times but worth the end result. JC and I are now proud new owners of Pine Ridge Pet Resort & Grooming Center. Just prior to leaving Kuwait I had initiated contact with a business broker who took me a lot more seriously once I made it back to the states and could talk to him in person. With the support of JC and my Dad I have become a small business owner and my life has changed in every sense of the word. This probably seems crazy to a lot of people but to JC and I it is very normal for our lives to change drastically and at a very fast rate. We now live in a new city, in a new home and with a new business. Crazy and busy are understatements for us.

Pine Ridge Pet Resort was built in 2001 by Lynn Berryman. She has spent countless hours to build this kennel into the wonderful kennel that it is today. The kennel is fully operational as it stands now and there is a very dedicated staff to include an assistant manager who aspires to be the full-time manager. The kennel is exceptionally clean and well kept. There is space for us to expand on the existing operations to include our many ideas and dreams; one of which is to sell dog treats and dog clothing made by my Aunts Marilyn and Joanne (Taz’ Pride). I can’t wait to get there products in our lobby for our customers to see and try. The next idea that is getting most of our attention is the addition of a dog park in the surrounding 10-12 acres. It is my goal to get this up and running by this summer. Customers have been responding well to the idea and I can’t wait to get started with it. We hope to open it with a grand opening party that everyone will be invited to. We want to set up booths for local shelters, pet stores and vet clinics to set up with their products. We basically want it to be a big party for all pet lovers alike.

The above was also posted to my business blog: King of Hearts, LLC

As far as the baby dreams go…. We did try two cycles while in the process of buying the kennel but neither succeeded and we decided to take a break while we got settled here. We are not sure when we will resume the baby dreams. For now our hands are full and space is limited. Our previous home was close to 4000 sq ft and the new one, which isn’t new at all (100 yrs +), is only 1500 sq ft!!!! So, it is quite the adjustment for us and a challenge to fit all of our belongings into such a small space. There are also only 2 bedrooms, so now Nathan and Brady already are back to sharing a room and we are unsure at the moment where we would even put a baby.