Over halfway there!

So I had a check up earlier this week and everything still looks good. I've gained about 9-10 lbs. so far and the baby's heartbeat was 155. Since we know the baby is a boy now, we've started picking out stuff and thinking about how we want to decorate the nursery. I've included a pic of the bedding I think we're going to go with. It's called Down Under and reminds me of Australia so I really like that. And we both like that the colors are different from the typical baby boy blue. We're planning to keep the name a secret but at this point, even we don't know! The name is still under discussion. Who knows? He may not have a name until the day he is born.

It's a .....

So we had our 20 week ultrasound this afternoon. The baby looks healthy, and it is measuring right on schedule. It's about 2/3 of a pound and about 10 inches long. The baby is breech and if it stays that way I will probably be getting a c-section but they often turn when positions this early. I haven't felt the baby move much yet but it's definitely kicking and punching around in there. I have my doctor's appointment on Tuesday and they will check my weight and heartbeat and all that good stuff. The baby's heartbeat is starting to slow down, it was 146 bpm today. And now for the big news, it's a boy! We were really surprised, we had thought it was a girl. Almost everyone thought so and going by the old wives' tales it seemed like a girl too. The heartbeat had been in the 160s and I am craving sweet things. But we're excited about our little boy. Now we just have to start looking for cute little boy stuff. So anyways, here are some pictures.

4 months...

So I'm a little over 16 weeks along, almost halfway there. :o) I had my 16 week check up today so I thought I would post an update. I don't have any new pictures but there's a fun site with info and pics for how far along I am, http://pregnancy.baby-gaga.com/calendar/week16, if you want to check it out. I heard the baby's heartbeat again, this time it was 155 bpm. Everything looks good so far and I'll have my "big" ultrasound in a few weeks. In spite of my recent craving for sweets, I have only gained 4 pound so far! That's about all. Remember to vote in the baby pool, I'll be closing it just before the ultrasound.

Results and Registry

So I got the results from my first trimester screening and everything looks good. It's not a diagnostic test, so basically what you get is a ratio of how likely or unlikely it is. So for down's syndrome, before the test for my age my odds were 1 in 700, now they are 1 in 15,000, so it's very unlikely the baby will have down's syndrome. They also test for trisomy 13 and 18, for those for my age before the test, the odds were 1 in 1,300, now they're 1 in 26,000, so it's also very unlikely the baby will have either of those. All of the measurements were good. I go in for a check up the end of this month and then we'll have our "big" ultrasound where we found out what the baby is (as long as the baby cooperates) November 21. We'll send out an email as soon as we get back. It will be a nice present for Thanksgiving to find out what the baby is!

Also, we started a registry at Babies R Us. Obviously, it won't be complete until we find out what the baby is and can look for little boy or girl stuff but most of the basics are there. You can look at it online at babiesrus.com and then search for our name. Here are some cool ways to save money since we're out of state for most of you. To avoid shipping costs, you can call the store near us directly and buy an item over the phone, and they'll let us know to come pick it up. They even have free gift wrap. I thought that was cool, because I hate paying shipping costs. Also, you can sign up for their mailing list, and get coupons like once a month for 15-25% off one item, or $5 off a purchase. I signed up for those, I'm sure I'll find things to use them on, heehee. Once we found out what the baby is, we'll probably register at Amazon too because the crib bedding we like for a boy or a girl isn't available at Babies R Us.

Well, that's all for now. And don't forget to put in a guess in our baby pool, there's a link in top right hand corner of this page. I'll probably close the pool just before our ultrasound so no one can change their guess once we found out if the baby is a girl or boy.

Almost out of the first trimester...

So I'm almost out of the first trimester, yea! Although I have been very lucky so far, very little morning sickness, just more tired and stuff like that. I had my 12 week check up on Monday, everything looked good except I had lost 2 pounds since my last appt. This is probably because I had a sinus infection a week or two ago so my doctor wasn't too worried. I'm starting to get just a little bit of a baby bump. I heard the baby's heartbeat again and this time it was 168. Today I had another ultrasound for the first trimester screening. I won't get the screening results until next week but the neck measurement is well within the normal range, so it's unlikely the baby will have Down's Syndrome. It's very early and therefore not accurate enough to go buy baby stuff based on, but the sonographer's guess is that the baby is a girl. I was really surprised because I've been thinking that the baby is a boy, but we'll see. We should know for sure by the middle to end of November. And just so everyone knows, we're keeping the name a secret until the baby is born. We want there to be some surprise! We got some cute ultrasound pictures, it's amazing how much the baby has grown!

Here's baby waving!

Here's baby kicking!
Cute little baby feet!
And here are some 3D ultrasound pics!

We're going to have a baby!!!

Hi all! Just wanted to share the exciting news that we are going to have a baby! We had our first doctor's appointment and ultrasound today. It was so fun to see our little baby, I think it's finally starting to feel real now. Everything looks good so far, the baby's heartbeat was 162 bpm and was measuring a couple days behind my estimated due date but the doctor said that's normal. For now, my estimated due date is April 12th but my doctor may change that at some point. So I'm about 8 weeks along, wish me luck for the rest!

YEA!

Just wanted to share the good news, Ben got a new job! He went to interview yesterday and they offered him a job on the spot. It's downtown but other than that the job is great, this company even has a game room for their employees! So he starts next Wed. We're very excited and relieved. Thanks to all of you who have been praying for us.

Happy Friday the 13th!

Happy Friday the 13th! It turned out to be a pretty good one for us. We went to a bbq and just got home a little while ago. It was fun. Sorry I haven't posted in awhile, I'm not sure where the time has gone but it's sure been going by quick! It seems like I should have a lot to tell you all but there really hasn't been much excitement. I'm still trying to figure out school and everything but I'm just waiting on God to show me the right direction and when. I heard from the one speech pathology school I had applied to for the fall and I wasn't accepted so I guess it's good I had decided not to go, heehee.

We've been going to a new church and we really like it. The young marrieds group is great, that's actually the group we went to a bbq with earlier. We've already made a few friends. I so wish we had found this church a long time ago. The first time we went was a game night. We played a couple games as a big group and it was so much fun. We just went again this and the group went bowling. It was fun but we are definitely not good bowlers! I think I may have gotten just about the worst score ever, I think it was a 40. Good thing becoming a professional bowler is not one of my life goals! It is was nice to go out with a group of couples our age though. One couple we've already hung out with a couple times. Inger, the wife, is originally from Norway. I want to go, heehee. She and I get along pretty well and it's fun to have couple friends who both Ben and I enjoy. Jaime, the husband and Ben may work on some Web sites together on the side for some extra money. The leader's wife is a reading specialist, which is pretty similar to what I do now so that's kind of fun too. And she just had a baby girl who is so cute! We've also been to the Saturday night service and it was really good. I like going Saturday night so I can sleep in Sunday. :o)

We also finally met our next door neighbors. They're about our age which is fun. She and I went to lunch, but we don't each other that well yet. Still it was nice.

In other news, Ben was laid off from his job recently. He already has some possibilities, including an interview next week. But we could definitely use prayer that everything works out. We're hoping it turns out to be a good thing, maybe better salary or insurance or a job he likes better. So that's about it for us, hope you all are doing well.

Relaxing Summer

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. Life has been a little crazy but I think it's finally starting to calm down. I'm looking forward to a nice relaxing summer (famous last words, heehee). This year has been so crazy that I decided to take a break this summer from school. For one, I needed a little down time and for two, I am reconsidering my school plans. I love my job, so I am considering doing something like that instead of speech-language pathology. The company I work for, Dyslexia Institute, is actually a franchise, so I could one day do that and own my own business (something I have always wanted to do), although I think I would need to get a teaching credential or an MA in education first. And it's not something I want to do right now, but I think it would be a good fit for me. I already know I do it well and enjoy it, and it's a pretty good set up. The office I work for now is only open Mon-Wed, mostly in the afternoon and evening and the company provides all the lessons and tests and everything. Even if I get an MA in education, it would still be less school, which also means less money and time. So anyway, that's what I'm leaning towards.

We haven't been up to too much that is interesting. Ben has been busy at work and we haven't even been able to work on the house much. I did have lunch with a new friend on Friday and it was so much fun, we really hit it off. And we found a new church that I think may really work for us. It has four services on Sat night or Sun morning, it's only about 10 minutes away and it has a young marrieds group that meets every other Friday. We're going to try out the young marrieds group Friday, I really hope we like it. Other than that, we've just been watching episodes of 24. We never watched it, so we started from season 1 (now we're on season 2), and we both like it. It's a pretty good show. We get the videos from the library, yea for free entertainment.

Haha, I just thought of a funny story. Brooke discovered that doggie door (from the previous owner) that goes from the yard to the garage. Not only did she get into the trash, but she got out yesterday and ran circles on our front lawn and around our culdesac. She was so happy and proud of herself, it was the funniest thing. We had to block the door so she can't do it again, but hey, at least she enjoyed herself. You should have seen the look on her little doggie face! I wish I had gotten a picture.

Hope you are all doing well.

Here's what's new...

Not too much new here. We're been doing a lot of work on the house, especially the yard. Below are some pics of flowers I planted. They look a little sad but hopefully they will grow. I never how much work went into a yard, mowing, spraying weeds, planting and trimming. There was a huge massively overgrown bush on one side of the house (you can see part of the bush behind the planted flowers). We've been cutting it back, filled up three trash cans and there's still more to trim! It's not perfect, but it's looking much better. When's it's all done, I'll post some pics.


In other news, I am considering not going to grad school for speech pathology as planned. I recently got a job working with kids with dyslexia and I love it! So I'm considering pursuing this instead of speech pathology. It would probably mean less time in school, easier classes and already know I enjoy it. And the company I am working for is actually a franchise so one day I could do something like that and have my own business (something I have always wanted to to)!For now, I'm going to finish up my second BA in communication disorders in several weeks and then see what happens. But I'm leaning more this way now.

Hmmm...what else? Our fourth wedding anniversary is next week. We're not doing anything big, probably just going out to dinner or something. Maybe I will have to think of some fun little thing to surprise Ben with, any ideas? We'll do something more fun next year, 5 years is something to celebrate, heehee.

Oh, I found this pic from when we first came to Denver. It's us standing on the step of the capitol building that is exactly one mile high. I thought you guys might enjoy it. There's also one of the capitol building in Denver. Have a great week!

Finally done--Woohoo!

Woohoo! I am finally done with finals. Since I couldn't access the school site for almost a week, I was given extra time to take my last final but it's over now, thank goodness. Our ac will be all fixed tomorrow too. They fixed most of it last week, but wouldn't you know it by the time they came it had cooled down again so they couldn't calibrate it or something until it was at least 60 degrees and so they have to come back. It's supposed to be above 80 tomorrow so it will be heavenly to get that working again. Not that all of you will care but I got a total steal on a couple fans at Target today. There was a tag on the shelf that said one was $3.74 and so I put it in my cart, but when I ran it under the price check, it came up at 14.99. I got them to give it to me for the three dollar price since that's what the shelf said, so I got two! Heehee. Gotta love a deal like that.

Let's see what else is new? I finally met one of our neighbors, her name is Louise. She has two dogs like we do, and thought our puppies were adorable. I met her because Brooke and Sydney got out when I went to get the mail and of course ran over into her yard, just as she came home--what a great first impression, oh well. Either I didn't close the screen good enough or Sydney has learned how to open it when we're not looking...

Not much else is new, we're just plugging away on the house. I'll try and post some pics of the house soon. My next semester starts Monday, ugh. I so need a vacation. Hopefully we'll be able to take a little trip this summer after school is over. Hope you all are doing well.

The No Good Bad Very Bad Day

Have you ever just had one of those days where everything goes wrong? That was my day yesterday. I intended to spend the day studying for my last final and finishing up my last assignment. So I went to the school Web site where I log in and instead of the page coming up I get a messsage, "Internet Explorer cannot display this Web page." Argh! I checked our other computer, same thing. It worked the day before so that was weird. So I thought the Web site must be down so I did some other things for awhile and came back and still got the same message. So then I called the school's helpdesk, and spent over an hour on the phone with them, installing Firefox to try that, running spyware and virus scans, trying to bypass the redirect, all to no avail, and of course it seems to be working perfectly fine for everyone but me! They finally sent me to the head guy who told me he would look into it and call me back, argh! I had Ben look at it but he was stumped too, except he thought maybe comcast had put up a new firewall or something. So then I called comcast, our internet service provider to see if they could help, and they decided it was probably a router problem and forwarded it to the Network Engineers. They had told me it should be fixed within 12 hours, it still isn't. If I can get it to work from the library, it looks like I'm going to have to work there. Very aggravating.

So yesterday, Ialso went and took a couple pics of flowers and stuff that I planted over the weekend to show you all and then popped the memory card in the computer, and the files wouldn't open because apparently our memory card is broken! Oh, and I forgot the best part of all, during our record April warm spell, our ac stopped working! It has been suffocating in our house. We have every fan we own going. I guess I should be grateful that it broke now instead of in July and Aug when it gets up to 100. And we have a buyer's warranty so they should pay to fix it. Well, all, thanks for listening to me vent. I'm off to bother comcast some more and see if I can get them to fix it. As if finals weren't enough just by themselves. Hopefully tomorrow is a better day.

Spring semester is almost over!

When did time start flying by so fast? Finals this semester really snuck up on me. This semester has gone by so quickly, I don't feel like I ever really caught up. I also have a couple assignments that I need to do in the next week or so. This semester has probably been my hardest ever and I had so much else going on too. And I just found out that summer semester starts three weeks earlier than I thought, so I only have a week off after finals before I start again, argh!

I applied to a master's program that starts this fall but even if I am accepted, I don't think I am going to go. I have really been thinking and praying about that one. If I do that, the program starts just a couple weeks after the summer semester and I need more of a break than that. Ben and I need a vacation! We haven't been on one since we moved here. Plus, my first choice program starts in the spring so I think that I would rather see if I am accepted there and if not, then I can apply to other schools later. I'm taking a risk and I may kick myself later but I think it's what I need to do. One of the lessons God has been teaching me over the past couple of years is to not take on too much and balance my time better, so I'm trying to do that but I forget sometimes. I'm already looking forward to the time off!

At least the summer semester will be a pretty easy one. One of the classes is one I have been looking forward to and another is basically just observation hours. The other two aren't bad either, at least I don't think so, hope that I am right about that. Maybe I will finally be able to get more done around the house. I have a few projects that are have finished or not started that it would be great to complete. Just so you can see the sort of thing we have been up to, here's a couple pics of the puppies "helping" us install the floor downstairs! This is the best they were all day. The floors aren't quite done yet, heehee, too bad they can't help more. When we get more finished I'll post some pics of the house.

Welcome!

Welcome to my new (and first and only) blog! I just thought it would be a fun and easy way to keep in touch with our friends and family.

For those of you who we haven't talked to recently, here's a brief summary of what we have been up to the last few years. Most of you know, Ben and I got married on May 24, 2003 in San Diego. Shortly after that, we moved up to Camarillo, about an hour or so north of LA and we lived there for a couple of years until Ben finished his degree. In June of 2005, we moved here to Colorado. Ben works as a Software Developer about 5 minutes away from where we live. I went back to school online to work toward becoming a speech-language pathologist. It will take me a few years but hey, I never thought I would go back to school at all. I recently got a job I love working part-time as a language therapist for children with dyslexia. I'm so grateful for it because it pretty much allows me to do what I want to do while I'm in school. After we moved here, I developed all sorts of allergies which was not fun but it's under control now (I guess there wasn't much to be allergic to in CA, heehee). A couple of months ago, we bought our first house. It needs some updating but we've been doing some work on it, and it will be so nice when it's done. We live in Highlands Ranch now, about 20-30 minutes southwest of downtown Denver. We have two puppies, mini aussies, Sydney and Brooklyn, and they are the cutest buddies and the closest thing to kids we have for now. :o) Here's some pictures of our wedding, our house and our puppies (Sydney is the big one and Brooke is the small one)! Check back for updates.