End of the 1st Trimester

We're on to week 14 which means I'm done with the first trimester. Funny thing too, just like the text books say I'm feeling great now and have energy again. I'm back to my old self. The blah days are gone (hopefully for good), Yeah! I ballooned out almost immediately and havn't gained a pound in the last two months. I'm sure that will change here quickly though as baby is already the size of a lemon.

Where to register?

Calling all women...

I need some help from any gal who's had a baby and registered for baby stuff before. Where do I register that is most convenient for people in Alaska and out of state? Are there specific items that you wished you would have registered for and used/use all of the time? Now's the time ladies. I need you help!

On that note...

A nice bonus of being pregnant and having a "sugar daddy" to take care of me is that I have the option to work or not to work after baby is born. Now don't get me wrong, two paychecks is REALLY nice but with my demanding work schedule I've decided to take the summer off by quitting my job May 29th. We'll decide what to do after baby is born and we get used to the idea/schedule of being parents. Likely I'll be looking for part-time work come next January. In the meantime I'll be enjoying this summer with my baby-bulge. I can hardly wait.

Activities that I can't wait to endulge in this summer are: blueberry picking, fishing, hiking, kayaking, camping, running (albiet slowly), picking farm fresh veggies at the Palmer You-Pick Farm, saturday markets, having a reindeer sausage-dog downtown Anchorage on a sunny day and the list goes on.

Yeah for summer! You can't come quickly enough. :)

Excited about summer!

Alaska is a hard place to live for most people. It's not the crazy moose that walk through your yard causing all the dogs in a mile radius to start howling, It's not even the ruralness or isolation of being up here by our onesies (without the rest of the Lower 48). No I'd say it's the cold temperatures and most of all the darkness that gets to you after awhile. I never noticed it before I moved away and was exposed to normal light from 6am to 9pm or so everyday and LOTS of sunshine. Now I am acutely aware of it and find myself giddy with more light everyday and sunshine to boot. It doesn't matter if it's still 20 degrees out. It doesn't matter if there's no green on the trees yet. No, what matters is I have sunshine shining in my face at 8:30 in the morning now. Life is coming back into my veins and I can't help but be VERY EXCITED about this upcoming summer. Bring on the fishing folks!

Introducing Poe Baby #1

Although the picture quality is not up-to-par, you can tell where the head and belly are. It even has little arms and legs that were dancing all over for us during the ultrasound. The hand is up by it's mouth and the legs were crossed at the time of the picture. We will find out in about two months what "it" is and then off to the store to shop, shop, shop! :)

Bumped up to 12 weeks!

We had our first prenatal appointment on wednesday and found out that we are ACTUALLY 12 weeks along based on baby development. Because we weren't able to hear the heart beat with the normal probe, we had the pleasure of doing our first ultrasound. What did we find? A perfect, healthy little "it" dancing around in my belly. The little poenut is about two inches long and was already as active as a two year old. Wow, do we have our work cut out for us! J/K :) It was truely amazing to see our little one for the first time and really hit home that we are going to be parents the beginning of September. This is definitely the most WILD ride I've ever been on despite my many previous life adventures. When I get a chance to scan in the picture, you'll to be able to see our cutie patootie as well. :)

What to do!!?!?

Since finding out that there's a little poe-nut on the way, it has stirred up all kinds of chaos in our house. So many question, too few answers. Should we buy a house? (cause I'd really like to nest) Do we stay in Anchorage or move to the Valley? (cause housing in Anchorage is VERY expensive) Do we stay in Alaska or move back to warm, sunny Colorado Springs? (cause I'm going nuts in all this darkness) How long do I work before I quit my job? (cause it really helps having two incomes to save for a down payment on a house) When do I go back to work after baby comes? (cause I'm not eligible for the FML Act to receive 12 weeks paid vacation) Do I still try to do the Mayors Marathon in June, not run it of course but walk a 1/2. There's all these things scrambling around in my brain causing choas with my delicate emotional state (besides my raging hormones). PLEASE PRAY with us as we face so many HUGE life decisions in such a short amount of time. I am convinced God has it all figured out but we need to be attentive to his voice and get a clue too.