It's Official

Okay I have to tell you all this very quickly--I am at work and I am pretty sure I am supposed to be doing things other than blogging. But I am so excited I am about to burst from anticipation--and I don't want to burst. So instead I am going to do this quick blog post and then go back to doing the things I am supposed to do.

So here it is--my doctor has officially changed the due date to--drum roll please--October 19th.

The baby will be here in a flash--guess that means we have to go pick out the theme. Corey will love shopping in the baby store, don't you think?

Pictures at last

After much anticipation--particularly on the part of a grandpa-to-be, but I won't name any names...Dad--we have set up our scanner so we can show the pictures of the baby from Friday's appointment.

There is no doubt we are having a girl. :)

The baby is looking at you--okay I admit this one is harder to see. But it was really cool when you could also see the heart beating in her chest. :)And this was the first view we got to see of her. You can see a profile of her cute little face. And can you see her cute little nose. Ahh it was love at first sight for both Corey and me. ")

First ASU T-shirt

My work friend gave the baby her first ASU T-shirt. Isn't it the cutest?

I do have to say that it feels more real to be able to say her than to just say the baby. And the baby has been moving a lot lately. Her favorite time to go crazy is about 2 or 3 in the morning. She just starts tossing and turning like crazy--which for the record makes it very hard to sleep.

And the doctor says...

Thank you to everyone who participated in my little survey. I think there was a clear consensus that we were having a girl. And after the doctor's appointment today I can tell you all--yes you were right. We are having a baby girl. The ultrasound also shows that the baby may be due closer to October 19th (more on this after my next appointment with the doctor). She is about 15 oz. And everything looks really good.

I will hopefully have pictures this weekend--Corey has to set up our scanner.

random updates and ramblings

First--my doctor changed his ultrasound days, so my original appointment to get my first ultrasound had to be moved. So instead of Thursday, June 19th, Corey and I will hopefully find if we are having a boy or a girl on Friday, June 13th. I have to say I find it ironic that we are hoping to find out what our Halloween baby is on Friday the 13. Does anyone think that is a bad

sign? hehe. I put a poll up asking what everyone thinks we are having--Corey's idea. :)One of my favorite things to do as a pampering activity is to go get a pedicure. And usually this event is not worthy of blogging, but for some reason Brandy decided that she did not like this particular color--can cats even see colors? Anyway she has been attacking my toes everytime she sees them. So much for flip flops around the house.

An old friend of mine (and the son of one of my dad's best friends) graduated this week from medical school. So we got to go to Pinnacle Peak Patio for the big party. We had a blast--and other then the fact they made us wait forever for them to start serving (at least forever according to me)--the food was wonderful. It was one of the best, most tender steaks I have had in a long time.

Corey and I also went out on a date Saturday night--thanks to suggestions from many of my friends who keep telling me it's much harder to do that after the baby is born. We had a nice dinner at Brush Fire Grill--a small restuarant right by our house. Then we went to Cold Stone Creamery to enjoy a discount as part of ASU appreciation weekend. I have to love that the founder of Cold Stone is an ASU alumni. :)

It's not ASU but...

Today the baby got his/her first souvenir gift--first gift brought back from someone's trip. In this case, my generous aunt got the baby a gift from her trip to Wyoming to see my incredibly smart cousin graduate from law school.

Now I will forget for a second that it isn't ASU--you know the most wonderful school on the planet (in my humble opinion). I will just admire that Wyoming has wonderful taste in colors--that is definitely something I can get behind.

And while Cowboys aren't quite as cool as Sun Devils--what Nicoll doesn't love Cowboys (as long as those Cowboys aren't from Dallas--but that is another issue). :)

So Corey and I will thank my wonderful, generous aunt on the baby's behalf. :)

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. :)

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.

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. :)

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. :)

Be Still My Heart

Okay I had one of the most exciting expereinces of my life today--even better than getting married--I got to hear the baby's heart beat today. So I realize that this post is really boring because it has not pictures--sorry not to the ultrasound part of this event yet. And I have no audio because they don't record these things--they really should. We should all get a burned cd with the sound because it is clearly the most important and thrilling thing I ever heard, but alas we don't. So I have nothing else to share except that I got to hear the most beautiful sound on earth.

And just in case you are wondering, my sinus infection is better. I am at work today. But everyone is laughing at me for carrying around my own box of kleenex. So I am not healed yet. But it is all okay because I heard the baby's heartbeat today.

Souvenirs

In addition to all the fun pictures that I got to bring from Chicago, I also got to bring home a not-so-nice sinus infection. Luckily my doctors have given me things to take that have helped but also are safe to take. So I am finally feeling better after going home early yesterday and deciding early this morning that I was not going into work today.

But on to happy fun news. I decided while in Chicago that our baby would be a Chicago Cubs fan--really is there any other team to be a fan of in baseball. To that end, I went wild in the souvenir shop across the street from Wrigley Field. So here is a picture of one of the many things I bought for the baby. I think its a perfect addition to the cute outfit my aunt bought for the baby. :)

Bad Shanan

So I went to the doctor today--my second official appointment as a pregnant woman (not including the one I walked out on the doctor because he left me waiting for over an hour--but we don't talk about that one...hehe). And I got scolded--okay scolded may be a little harsh but anyway I got scolded for having lost weight.

This experience constitutes my second--or third--or whichever who can keep track of numbers anyway--weird pregnancy thing. I never thought I would go to the doctor and be told it was bad to be losing weight. Really when does that happen.

Besides--how does it happen. I know any normal person who has eaten my diet--which has consisted of some meals of chips and salsa because that sounded like pure heaven--would not be losing weight.

Anyway--wait for more updates. I am under strict orders to be back in the office in two weeks. And lucky me I get the first appointment of the day (compliments of my wonderful first appointment where I walked out because they left me waiting forever).

First Baby Gift

My Aunt Shirley wins the award for giving Corey and I the first gift for the baby--so I thought I would post a picture and let everyone see the totally cute outfit that my aunt got us.

Thanks Aunt Shirley.