My Exciting Nightlife.....

So, I realized I haven't posted lately about the progress of our pregnancy, so for those interested, here it goes....I was officially 9 weeks along as of yesterday, which is definitely exciting. That means I still have roughly 4 weeks till I'm officially through with the first trimester, and thankfully, everything that goes along with the first trimester. Don't get me wrong - I've been EXTREMELY lucky as far as symptoms go. I'm borderline nauseous most of the time, but it's not too bad and I have never gotten sick. Other than the nausea, my only other real symptom has been fatigue. Let me tell you, you wouldn't think that something the size of an olive could make you that tired, but trust me, it can!! Mostly, my fatigue has been at night (although there was one horrible week a couple of weeks ago where it was all I could do to lift my fingers to type on my keyboard, I was THAT tired!). Basically, I get home at night, make dinner and eat with Ryan, manage to watch about one hour of TV and then absolutely crash on the couch - usually with Pearl cuddled up next to me. A picture to prove it (as if you needed proof):



This picture is actually pretty damn funny - it's like Pearl could sense that the camera had been turned on her so she had to roll over and put herself on display, literally flashing everything God gave her to the camera! Of course, I'm completely oblivious to it all and dead asleep.

I personally like these pictures of Pearl alot better, where she isn't flashing the camera - she loves to root around the pillows on our couch and loveseat till she finds her perfect cozy spot for a nap. As evidenced by these pictures, she usually ends up in a weird spot:





All joking and Pearl pictures aside, the pregnancy has been wonderful and I've been very lucky to have only mild symptoms so far. Plus, my life isn't that boring, consumed only by working, nausea and sleep! After judging a moot court competition for UofL's law school yesterday morning, Ryan, Pearl and I joined Andy, Amanda and their dog Gus at "Bark in the Park", an annual event they hold for dogs and their owners at Seneca Park. We had a blast. We followed that up with dinner with Andy, Amanda, Mark and Natasha at Sweet Peas, a restaurant on Frankfort Avenue that serves Southern comfort food. Of course, I came home afterwards and promptly fell asleep but what else is new?!

I couldn't help myself.....

Yes, we live in Louisville now, but rest assured, folks - that doesn't make me a Cardinals fan!! Having my beloved Wildcat alma mater beat UofL two weeks ago was sweet, to say the least. Of course, we've got one of the toughest schedules ahead of us (LSU alone will be a blood bath!), but I'm so happy to see the Cats off to a 4-0 start!

New Appreciation for Jenny McCarthy

Can we just say how much I love Jenny McCarthy? Even before I was pregnant, everyone kept telling me that I had to read her book called Belly Laughs, which is a short one-day read about her experiences while pregnant with her son. This book is laugh out loud funny, but it will also scare the shit out of you, all at the same time! This woman went through EVERYTHING with her pregnancy - all of the horror stories you hear about what your body could possibly go through? She lived it. I finished the book wiping tears from my eyes from laughing so hard and also thinking, 'I hope that doesn't happen to me.'

Unfortunately, Jenny's son was diagnosed with autism a couple of years ago. Oprah had McCarthy and Holly Robinson Peete on yesterday's show to discuss the issues they have faced with the autism that has afflicted their sons. McCarthy was her usual self - strong, ballsy, and in your face - but incredibly eloquent as well. Of course, I probably shouldn't have watched it....I keep stumbling upon shows, books or magazines which make me start to fear what could possibly happen to our baby. Now I can add autism to the list. Especially scary was the fact that McCarthy and Peete (as well as many mothers of autistic children, apparently) believe that their children developed autism due to their early vaccinations. Who knows if that is true - but it's enough to place some fear into you when you start thinking about your child's immunizations! I've got to stop tuning into these programs or reading these things in books and magazines - I'm going to turn into Chicken Little, otherwise, and become a paranoid mess!!

Louisville Dining Originals

Last night, Ryan and I shared an incredible meal for our 2nd anniversary at Equus, a local restaurant in St. Matthews that we could have literally walked to from our home. I can't get over how spoiled we are by the wealth of fantastic restaurants in Louisville - we have not had a bad experience yet at any restaurant we've been to. The problem is we'll have a great meal, vow to come back again, but then realize that we have dozens of more restaurants to try! There is a great website that lists many of Louisville's top-notch restaurants: http://www.louisvilleoriginals.com/. It's a must have resource for great dining in Derby city.

Our First Ultrasound Picture

This was taken on September 13, 2007, at which point I was 6 weeks and 5 days. If you're like me, you can't tell a whole lot from this picture - but that little circle in the middle is the baby.

Emmys Fashion

I watched the Emmys last night, mostly to check out what everyone was wearing as opposed to who won the awards (although I was very happy to see that America Ferrara (sp?), the star of Ugly Betty - one of my favorite shows - won Best Actress in a Comedy). There appeared to be very few misses last night and everyone looked great for the most part. I think Ali Larter looked absolutely phenomenal. A close 2nd and 3rd would be Eva Longoria and America Ferrara, respectively.

Our 2nd Anniversary

Today marks our second wedding anniversary - wow, time really flies by. What a wonderful day we had two years ago - lots of good friends, good food and drink, good music, and tons of laughter and well wishes. Even now, stories still come up on occasion about something that happened at our wedding reception! Even more remarkable is the number of developments in our lives since that great day....new jobs, a new house in a new city, a sweet dog to add to our family, and the biggest development, the little addition to our family which we are expecting in May.

A Derby Baby!!

I had my first appointment with the doctor this morning and had my first ultrasound - wow, was that an incredible experience. I saw this tiny blip on the screen that was my baby. It was like that episode of Friends where Rachel repeatedly failed to see her baby on the ultrasound - that was me this morning. Then the neatest thing happened - they flashed some red on the screen which signified blood flow, and then turned up the volume on the monitor and I heard my baby's heartbeat. What an incredible moment - very overwhelming emotionally, to be sure. My doctor confirmed that I am 7 weeks pregnant this Saturday, making my due date Saturday, May 3, 2007. Yep, that's right, folks - I'm due on Derby day! I guess the only way I get to wear a fabulously huge hat this year is if I wear it in the labor and delivery room!

What...the...hell...was...this???

It was like a freaking train wreck, I couldn't watch, but then I couldn't tear my eyes away, either. Oh, how the mighty (and I use that word loosely) have fallen....

Congratulations Jane!

I've been meaning to post for awhile a HUGE congratulations to my dear friend Jane on her (somewhat) recent wedding. Jane and I used to work together at Clark & Ward and we grew very close - no one can make me laugh quite like Jane with her stories! I miss her terribly now that we're in Louisville and I don't get to see her smiling face down the hall every day, but I am so, so happy to see how everything in her life is going so beautifully. This is a pic of us from her recent bridal luncheon. Love ya Jane!

Prego Update

I've been delinquent on posting this week - I've been in trial this week so this is my first chance to get to post an update on the pregnancy. Things are going great, so far - the initial shock has worn off, and now we're (okay, me) just reading up on a bunch of pregnancy books to see what to expect (if you can put into words just what the hell to expect with this!). Actually, I've had to put the books away, because quite honestly, they scare the holy shit out of you. Really, you read these things and with all the ailments they tell you that you're going to experience over the next 9 months (actually, it's 10 months or 40 weeks - this whole 9 months thing is a huge conspiracy....), it's a wonder why anyone would want to subject themselves to a pregnancy. Good thing I never flipped through any of these books before!!

No, in all seriousness, I'm sure that whatever I have to go through physically/mentally/emotionally to get there, it will be worth it a million times over in the end. So far, I've been incredibly lucky - I've had a little bit of fatigue and only one pseudo attack of morning sickness, but no other "symptoms" of first trimester pregnancy. Of course, it's still early and all of those things could rear their ugly head around the corner.

I believe I'm nearing in on 7 weeks in my pregnancy, but we'll know for sure when we have our first appointment tomorrow with the obstetrician. I'm very hopeful that we'll be able to have an ultrasound tomorrow to confirm how far along I am and the due date....I'm still betting this will be a Derby baby!

I'll be sure to post an update tomorrow after our doctor visit (and will continue to leave out any personal and/or gross details of pregnancy that you, my dear friends and family, certainly do not want to read!!!).

A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words

Yep...I'm pregnant....and yes, the picture has two tests. In fact, I took a third test at home and promptly followed that up with a blood test ASAP at the doctor's office. As a skeptic attorney, I am nothing if not thorough!

We found out this past Monday evening (first two tests)/Tuesday morning (third test, blood test), though deep down I think I have known that I'm pregnant for a little while. Though I haven't had my first official appointment with the obstetrician, I believe I'm approximately 5 or 6 weeks along, which means I will be due around Derby time.

The fact that I was able to even type the first two paragraphs of this post should demonstrate that my initial shock has worn off, at least a little bit. We had always discussed that we would try to have a baby after we have been married two years, and wouldn't you know it, we'll be married two years next month. Still, when that little blue plus sign pops up, you're flooded with a range of emotions. Needless to say, the past week has been quite a rollercoaster of feelings and thoughts. However, we are very happy and excited to share the news with our friends and family (and via this post, I guess I'm sharing it with the world wide web!). We originally planned on waiting to tell people about the pregnancy until I was through the first trimester (with the exception of our parents and siblings), but I was about to bust with the secret and Ryan and I decided to start sharing the news. It was a tough decision, but I know we made the right one - everyone has been so happy with the news and very supportive. Plus, if, heaven forbid, something bad happened, I would certainly find solace in the support from our friends and family.

I've enjoyed having this blog for the past several months to post general musings - and I'll still most likely post random non-pregnancy related thoughts and ideas on this blog. However, I think this blog will be a fantastic way for me to update all of our friends and family, whether they live next door or across the country, about the progress of our little one. I hope that in the next few weeks my posts won't be about morning sickness!!!

With all that being said, welcome to the newest, scariest and most incredible adventure of our lives. What a wonderful time to be alive.