What's In A Name?

Corey told me to tell you all about what our wonderful (yes there is sarcasm in that) kitty did last night. And as I was trying to figure out what to write I realized that maybe we need to think of changing Brandy's name. I am thinking maybe Tornado-Kitty, since last night she went through the house like a tornado. I got up at like midnight (one of the wonderful side effects of pregnancy) to find many of the chairs pushed away from the table because Brandy--I mean TK for short--had run at them so fast so she could jump on them and claw the upholstery that she literally pushed them away from the table. Wonderful--I am just glad she didn't actually topple one over in all of her excitement.

Then I stepped on something that almost cut my foot. Huh? She had also hit our shelved lamp and knocked one of our knick-knacks off its shelf. It was broken all over the floor. Yep that is definitely what I want to deal with at midnight.

So I get that kind-of cleaned up, enough so I can go lay down again. Then I hear something in the kitchen. Brandy--no I mean TK--had gotten on the counter (something she really doesn't do often and knows better than to do usually) and knocked one of the small cutting boards and cups off of the counter (there may have been more but I was a little tired by this time.

So I had to clean up the broken cup and get the other stuff off the floor before I finally got to go to sleep. At which point she decided to jump on the bed to snuggle up with me. Okay I won't change her name, Brandy somehow just fits. But I could definitely do without another night where she decides to dismantle the house.

movements?

Since this is my first child--everything is new, everything is an adventure. And I am thinking today my be the start of my next adventure. During my last appointment, my doctor told me I would probably being feeling the baby move any day now. And today, as I have been watching both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600 (Corey has become a rather big fan of motorsports) I began to realize I was feeling something. Not painful, but not exactly pleasant either. And the feeling was moving across my abdomen. Not consistantly necessarily--I would feel it on one side of my lower abdomen, then about 20 minutes later I would feel it in another part of my abdomen.

So for all of you who have had a baby before, I welcome your insight. But for tonight I am going to be excited because I feel like I am starting to feel movement. And just like hearing the heartbeat in the doctor's office--its one of those moments that make it all seem more real and more immediate.

Continuation after reading my cousins' comments:
I am more sure that it is the beginning of feeling the baby moving--it felt a lot like what Andrea described.

And I am not sure that baby circuses or non-stop hiccups sound like a lot of fun...especially at night. But I am sure that I will find out very soon.

And I am about 18 weeks...again its hard to tell for 100% because I am not very good at keeping track of the thing doctor's use to determine more exact due dates. But on my next appointment I should have more exact information because I will be having my first ultrasound. :)

Corey's Contribution

I know that some people say that there isn't enough of Corey on this website--yes Dad I am referring to you. So I wanted to add the video Corey took last night of Brandy. Now I know, you may be thinking "Wow they talk about their cat a lot on this blog." And you would be right--but to us she is part of the family, and until October (or November) she is the only child we have. But I fear it will be quite a shock for her when she isn't the center of attention. What do you think?

By the way--the video is better if you watch until the end.

Disclaimer--Oh and no kitty was harmed in the taping of this video.

Exercising?

I bought Brandy another present--I couldn't resist because it was on a huge discount. And the company called it a Cat Exerciser, and I thought Brandy could use some exercise. Of course she is sneaky. She really likes the toy--umm I mean exerciser--until she sees that Corey and I are watching. Then she stops. So actually she liked it even more then the pictures indicate. She would sit and stare at the toy until Corey and I turned away and then she would go after it like crazy. Then the moment I turned around to get a good picture, she would walk away. She is a very frustrating model. :) But I am still not convinced she is getting a lot of exercise...but you be the judge.

A Day Out With the Girls

One of the only downsides to my job at ASU (have I mentioned that it is really my dream job), is that I ended up moving further away from some of my friends. And I had to leave a few of my friends at UOP (and for that I am sorry because I really don't wish that place on anyone--but that is a post for another day...hehe). So yesterday was the first time my friends and I had been able to get together since like December.

So we went to lunch at Macaroni Grill off of the 101 and Tatum. Usually this is a nice centrally located place to eat--which is easy for everyone to get to because it is right off a freeway. But yesterday no. The 101 was undergoing a major construction thing that involved going down to one lane before closing completely.

Luckily I had decided I wanted to make some stops at other stores on the way (namely USA Baby--since now the only store is in Scottsdale...not cool). So I took the 51 and I got off before it got too crazy. Poor Jenny. She was on the 101, and it was taking her 30 minutes to go 2 exits. Not fun. Luckily I got a hold of Colleen in time to switch from the 101 to the 51 and so she didn't get stuck. But we all ended up arriving late.

We weren't able to hang out as long as we planned--thank you construction...grr. But we did get to walk around Desert Ridge Mall after lunch and my friends spoiled me. Jenny got me a bunch of onies and a full outfit and a cute blacket. Colleen got me some cute socks and a toy that her kids picked out special for the baby.

Overall it was a fun and exciting afternoon. I can't wait to find out whether the baby is a boy or a girl so I can really decide on a theme for the room. There was some very cute stuff for a cowboy themed room if we are having a boy--which is what I think we are having. Corey thinks we are having a girl--but I haven't settled on a theme for a girl. :)

An Overdue Thank You

My incredibly generous cousin sent me some cute things for the baby. But since I have been working like a crazy woman (what can I say--I am racking up the comp time, it may come in handy later...hehe) I haven't been able to thank her. Of course she may not have noticed as much since she is busy preparing for her trip to Wyoming, but still I don't want her to post something on her return to remind me that I didn't properly thank her. My cousin has quite a way with words...hehe (now I am in for it--nothing by love for you Bradi).

And since I mentioned her trip to Wyoming I want to send out a congratulations to my incredibly smart and accomplished cousin Cody who is graduating from Law School. I am only hoping that the next car accident I am ever in (knocking on wood now) Cody can send a letter to make the insurance company play nice. Isn't that what lawyers in the family are for? I would add a picture of my cousin, but I don't have any on my computer. But next time I am at my dad's I will see if I can find a good picture to add so everyone can see what the future lawyer looks (looked--depending on the picture I find...hehe) like.

I hope everyone has a great time in Wyoming and I hope I get to hear about it all very soon.

The Writing on the Walls

Yesterday was an incredibly long day. I promised my friend I would add a post last night, but since I didn't get home until almost 9pm (and started my work day at 8am) I was a little--umm--lets say exhausted.

The highlight of my rather exhausting day was presenting information at the Mesa Grow Your Own teacher program. This program was developed to help graduates of Mesa schools finish teacher preparations programs in the hopes of becoming a teacher in Mesa schools when they finish. This meeting took place at one of the district buildings. And after running to the bathroom (something that seems to become very frequent the further along I am--oops too much information), I looked at the wall and realized all of the plaques were part of the Mesa Schools Sports Hall of Fame. So I searched the walls--and I found my uncle's plaque. It really made my day--and made me realize how long it has been since he was inducted to the Hall of Fame. :)

But I thought I would share a picture(got to love picture phones) of Uncle John's plaque--and hope everyone gets a smile like I did.

Princess and Elizabeth my favorites

My cousin posted her and her daughters results to a quiz to determine which Disney princess each of them was. Since I love Disney (yipee for having a baby because now I can go back to watching Disney movies and no one will think I am weird--hehe) and princesses (afterall Corey was the one that started calling me princess--he set this up himself--hehe), I decided to participate in the fun. And I have to say that I am absolutely not surprised to find that I am Belle. Beauty and the Beast has always been my favorite Disney Princess movie. :)

Now unlike the other quiz that I took--umm Corey is not agreeing to take this one to share the results. I can't figure out why...hehe.


You Are Belle!

Intelligent and kind. Your beauty goes much further than your apperance. Also, you make judgements of people based on their personality and not their looks. Attaining all the knowledge that you can is one of your major goals in life, but you are also a person who can make things happen.
Which Disney Princess Are You?

In addition to my princess quiz I thought I would share the results of the quiz I found on another cousin's blog. I am having fun today--who needs to work when I can find quizzes to take...just kidding. hehe

Take the Quiz here!

What To Wear?

Corey and I had lunch (or dinner--or whatever meal you eat at 3:30pm) with Corey's mom today. Corey's mom has obviously been working up a storm on things to give the baby. Pictured below you can see that she has made a cute little white jacket/sweater (really I live in Arizona, is there a difference?), a toddler-sized bib, and a bunch of booties. Personally I think the booties will match the Cubbie outfits very nicely, but for some reason my Massachusettes-born in-laws are thinking Red Sox. :)

Owie

My dad keeps telling me that I need to tell everyone a little more about what is going on with Corey. This isn't as easy as you may think--Corey is not much of a talker and generally doesn't like to share too much about himself. Seriously it is like pulling teeth to find out how his day was--which should give me good practice for when I am talking to the baby about school every night. :)

Anyway, I do have something to share about Corey. He broke two bones in his hand at work. So for the next 6-8 weeks he will be wearing the brace you can see below. Don't expect any long handwritten letters from him--yep he's a righty.

The Celebrations Continue

Third-My friend and coworker celebrated her 28th birthday today. She is horrified at how much closer she is to 30. And I am shocked to find out that I am really the baby of the office--I thought we were the same age but alas no. Anyway I have a little bit of a reputation for setting up the parties on birthdays. This reputation may come from the fact that I completely covered my other coworker's office in over the hill things for his birthday--I wish I had pictures because you would laugh at the amount of over the hills stuff I found to cover his office. It was great.

Anyway, I had to keep it up. But not quite to the same degree, afterall I have to leave myself something to do when she beats me to 30. So I bought balloons and gave her balloon animals for her birthday, and maybe some banners that say happy birthday and a few streamers and some cupcakes. But really it was subtle--hehe

Here are a couple of pics of the birthday girl:

After the morning of cupcakes and milk (we had to have something healthy), we decided to go to the new Sweet Tomatoes for lunch. Have I mentioned how nice it is that all of these restaurants are moving out to the boonies where I live and work. :)

Celebrate Good Times

First--I have to celebrate the fact that my wonderful, creative, and very talented aunt gave me another wonderful gift for the baby. A hand-made burp cloth and receiving blanket. It is so exceptionally cute that I had to share a picture.

Second--I have to celebrate finishing my first semester as a graduate student at ASU!! Which--just in case you were wondering--is much harder and more stressful then being a graduate student at UOP. But it is also a lot more rewarding. :) Now I have a couple of weeks before summer school begins. :)

Brandy saves the day--well sort of

Okay--so I cursed myself. Just as I was secretly (okay maybe not so secretly) celebrating the fact that the nausea part of this little adventure was over--yep you guess it--it came back. :(

So all day I have not been feeling 100%--actually all weekend. But to try to take my mind off of it I decided to buy Brandy a present. You know the kind of present that is equally fun for me as for Brandy. So I thought I would share some pictures of Brandy going crazy over the laser light--of course there were some that were moments that were even funnier but unfortunately I was laughing too hard to take a decent picture. And of course the excessive laughing didn't help the nausea issue. But it was worth it.

On this last picture you can't really see it but Corey has the Laser Light shinning on one of the pink beads on Brandy's toy. She went bonkers--actually she is always a little bonkers, but this time it was just more picture-worthy. :)

Another side note--I finally made the plunge to maternity clothes. I am much happier because they are much more comfortable then the other clothes, and now I look a little less like I am just letting myself get fat and more like I am pregnant. But it has been funny at the office because I am still at that point that if you know I am pregnant then you say "oh you look so pregnant" but if you don't know then you are afraid to ask because what if you are wrong. So I am getting lots of second looks and sideways glances. hehe.