So much to be thankful for!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! This year in particular, I feel like I have so much to be thankful for: a wonderful family, fabulous friends, the best husband anyone could imagine, a great job, followed by an even greater job I'll be beginning in 2010, a healthy and happy life, and of course, my little peanut--who has already brought me so much joy and happiness.

Yesterday, the Hubs and I went for our first trimester ultrasound. Peanut was it's usual stubborn self, curled up in a corner, not wanting to be bothered. As a result, the ultrasound technician could not get any measurements. I kept flipping around from side-to-side, but Peanut was happy where s/he was. We took a little break and I made a much needed bathroom visit and told Peanut to be a good little Peanut so we could get a good look at it. Well, it worked! When I layed back down, Peanut was in the perfect position and even showed off it's dancing moves. It was such a thrill to both of us! What a character s/he is already! Here's a sneak peak:

If you look closely, you can see an arm by it's face and a leg sticking out

Excuse the poor picture quality, the scanner is on the fritz, so this is my attempt to photograph the photo! I'll update this post when the scanner is back in action. Happy Thanksgiving!

I guess I won't be one of thoooose pregnant gals...

Last night was one of those nights that I didn't get a good night sleep, but surprisingly woke up on my own at 6:30am. As I layed in bed, I thought about how I could definitely benefit from a little bit of exercise. Apparently, walking from the fridge to the couch 10 times a day doesn't count . So, I got up out of bed, (before the Hubs!) put on my running shoes and headed to the gym for a leisurely walk on the treadmill "workout". Hey, it's better than nothing...right?!?

I walked a steady 3.8 pace for 35 minutes and was feeling pretty damn proud of myself, that was, until I stopped and felt so dizzy I was worried I was gonna fall over. After quick grab of the arm of the treadmill and some water, I felt better and left that gym so fast you'd think I was being chased out. On the drive home, I was waiting for the endorphins to kick in, pat me on the back and say things to me like, "Aren't you glad you did that?" or "Ahhh, that felt good!" or "I'm going to do this everyday!" Instead it was like, "I feel sick" and "I'm soooo hungry" and "I miss bed".

The weird thing was while I was walking, I did enjoy listening to my i-pod and just zoning out. Normally when I exercise, it's the opposite: I hate it while I'm doing it and after I feel great. Even weirder, I felt this heaviness the whole time, like I could feel Peanut swimming and bouncing around which makes sense since there is something in there! I will attempt to go more, hoping that the long term effects will be more positive than the initial ones. Be on the lookout tomorrow for some ultrasound pics as we are going in for our first trimester screening. It will be Hubs' first look at Peanut too!

Lots of excitement!

The past 3 days have been full of excitement for us. On Friday afternoon, I got the great news of being offered a promotion! My new position will begin on January 1st, and I could not be happier. I think the new job will be much more conducive to my new life as a working mom. Not having to drive 150 miles a day while being 9 months pregnant will be a definite plus. More importantly, the position is full of new challenges and opportunities for the future. My only concern is telling my new boss in a few weeks, "Thank you for offering this position to me, I am so excited to start...oh and by the way, I'm pregnant, so I'll be taking a chunk of next year off! Aren't you so glad you picked me?!" I'm going to let my future self worry about that for now...

The second piece of excitement revolves around telling the Hubs' parents our big news. We made plans to have dinner with them Saturday night and of course tell them that they were going to be Grandparents (Amma and Opa) for the third time. We had a couple gifts stashed, but we knew that if we just gave them the gift bag, they would know right away. Instead, the Hubs concocted a brilliant idea to divert their thinking. Here's how it went:

Hubs: "So, we have some news to tell you..."

(Amma and Opa look at both of us with ear to ear grins)

Hubs: "A has gotten a promotion at work!"

(Amma and Opa clap excitedly, but with a wee bit of disappointment in their eyes :) )

Amma: "You did?! That is great! Congratulations!"

Opa: "That is great news! Is the position here? You won't have to move, will you?"

Me: "Nope, it's here!"

Hubs: "That's right because we have to stay close to Amma and Opa..(pause)..we're pregnant!"

(Amma and Opa yell with enthusiasm, hugs and tears all around)

Their reaction was priceless! We had a great time at dinner and playing cards after with Cousins Stan and Barb. After revealing the big secret to both of our families, we spent the drive home talking about how lucky we were to be bringing a baby into a big family that has so much love for Peanut and it's not even here yet. I am so looking forward to Thanksgiving, where our secret will be shared with both of our extended families and also on Wednesday where we get to get another sneak peak of Peanut (who incidentally is now bigger than a peanut!) and make sure he/she is growing healthy and strong. I'm definitely not leaving the office until I get a picture this time! Stay tuned...

10 weeks.

"With bones and cartilage starting to form and vital organs beginning to function, baby is making major progress. Body length will almost double in the next three weeks, and arm joints are now working. (Soon, legs will too.)"