Happy Halloween!

Around here we love Halloween! We decorate and hand out candy; it's a blast!
I have been so busy and worrying about all my East Coast friends and family so much that I don't have much to say, but I have some photos to share with you to brighten up your spooky day!

IV Fun

Monday night the morning sickness got crazy. I couldn't eat or drink anything and make it stay down. I went to work Tuesday feeling like crap and actually had to leave halfway through the day; I had such a bad headache, was dizzy and continued with the sickness. At home I slept and slept. The sickness continued no matter what I tried to eat and drink. Every 20 minutes another episode.
Yesterday I woke up and knew something wasn't right. I called the Dr to see how you could tell if you were dehydrated and they asked me what was going on. They wanted me to come in. I went into the office in the afternoon and by the time I left I was going home to meet with a nurse who would administer and IV for hydration and some nausea medication as well. This was crazy. I haven't taken any medication and wanted to keep it that way the entire pregnancy. I also didn't want to keep vomiting and felt scared I had lost 4 pounds in a week. I did what I thought was the best for me and for the baby.
Now I'm laying in bed, feeling tired and nursing a Zofran headache but I'm not sick. I actually have to get up and use the bathroom instead of wondering when the last time I went was. I feel pregnant again, which relieves me more than anything.
Shawn helped me so much yesterday: he flushed my IV, changed the bag before bed and cleaned the house so I could relax. He is so appreciated and I hope he knows just how much so.
The animals won't leave my side. They are all worried, and admittedly curious of the noise the IV pump makes. I'm going to curl up with them now and take another nap.
Have a great day and go hug your mother or call her if possible just in case she went through anything like morning sickness whatsoever.

Peach Tries the Safe Glow Dog Collar

A while back a representative from Cade Ryan asked me if Peach would like to try and review one of their new LED dog training collars. Their information on the product:

"The Safe Glow dog collar ($29.95 retail value) is made of wear-resistant nylon and houses a flexible, light-transmitting polymer core that illuminates when the collar is turned on. A reflective stripe adds additional safety by providing passive reflectivity. The collar is powered by a super-efficient (100,000 hour) LED bulb. With three different settings and a durable clasp, we believe the Safe Glow dog collar will become the collar of choice for evening or early morning walks."

We requested a medium sized collar per the site's size chart but we found it to be too large for Peach. She's a "skinny pug" but it is highly adjustable so we hope she will grow into it over the next year. It would be helpful to have the size chart measure in inches instead of by breed since dogs of even the same breed can vary greatly in size.
The collar has a non-safety latch buckle-style clasp so if you use it as a collar to attach a lead to, it will not snap off when your dog sees a rabbit or any other distraction on your walk. There is a sturdy metal loop on the back of the collar for the lead; I believe this placement will protect the LED, buckle and on/off button features; it seems to be a low stress point on the collar.
Peach got used to the collar pretty quickly even though the medium size was roomy enough to slip over her head. She usually does not like to wear things that are too small nor too big so I was glad she allowed us to give it a try. We used it as a supplemental collar over top of her usual harness and still enjoyed the safety feature of the LED light. It also looks really cool at night!
The LED is brightest on the same side as the on/off button. It appears to "fade" towards the other side but once it is warmed up and on in a dark surrounding, it glows well all around. The collar has several settings: constant glow, slow flash, fast flash and off. To activate the different settings, you simply continue to click the on/off button until you arrive at your desired setting. They all function very well and look adorable. I don't know what other colors are available but we received a lime green collar (mommy's favorite!) and the LED matched the collar color so it looks great in the light without the LED on as well.

We didn't take any video of Peach outside in the collar but we shut the lights off in the house to get a few seconds of the LED settings in action.

I think Peach likes the collar now; it might even make her feel a bit fancy. It would be a great and safe addition to any pup's Halloween Costume for the upcoming Holiday!

Guess what...

One month ago, I was late.
I knew when I felt the mittelschmertz September 5th that I had ovulated--on the right (where there's no tube)--and I thought it was just a wasted cycle. There was no way an egg from the right would travel all the way to the left tube and be magically met by Shawn's gametes, fertilized and then proceed to implant in my womb. Right?

I had taken tests on the 15th and 16th which were STARK white negatives. I just "knew" that is wasn't going to happen yet again. But when I got to work on the 17th, something just wasn't right. Still nothing and no sign of the bitch.
On my lunch I went to the grocery store and purchased a test, went back to work and took it. It looked like nothing, as usual, so I set it on top of the TP dispenser and pulled my britches up. I looked again...

OMGWHATWHATWHAT was my first reaction. Then the tears and giggles; I just stared in disbelief. I had been OH-SO-WRONG.
So wonderfully wrong!
We were finally PREGNANT!!!

I went to tell my boss I had to leave an hour early, and when 3 o' clock came around I left and went to see Shawn on his break. I set the test in the passenger seat of the car. He got in and saw it, "What is that?"
"It's positive."
    "How many do you have to take before it's in there?"
"One. This one!!! It's not an OPK; we're pregnant!!!"

Tears and laughter ensued.
Our first appointment was this past Monday, the 15th. Here's our baby:

Happy Birthday, Momma.

We can't wait to see you later. :o)

Just when I thought I knew anything...

It's really hard to grow up. And it's really hard to be a woman.
And it's really really hard to grow up strong enough of a woman to be a mother.

When you want to see the best in people, they show you their worst. A side you never knew was even possible to be seen. It's a cold, hard fact that some people are just mean.
This fact took me 8,936 days to learn and I'm still having a hard time swallowing it down today on day 8,937.
Part of the difficulty I have had in learning this is completely my fault. I give more credit to people than they are worth and I have too high of expectations for people based upon how I conduct myself. People are not me, they are people, and they are all very, very, puzzingly different. Makes the world go 'round, I suppose. But this is hands down the hardest lesson I have learned in my human life so far: some people just suck.

No matter how much of yourself you share with them, no matter how much you give or care, some will never be moved by that. And I must accept that, spend no more time poring over it and move on.

I just have to remember that even though I am forced to work with some of the meanest people I have ever met and will meet (I am sure) in my life, it must not become me; I must be unmoved by them as well. There is nothing wrong with me, dammit; I am nice. I am loving and full of rainbows and unicorns.
I hope I can adequately learn from this and use it to increase my strength. It's going to take a lot of strength to be a good mother one day; this can only be work done towards that.

It's Friday, I'm in LoVE!!! #37

It's Friday and I cannot say enough about how very pleased I am with that.

Today I love me because:

1. Instead of spending so much time being/getting/staying angry at others (crazy drivers, blabbermouths, etc) I stop and remind myself to just worry about me.
2. I'm getting much better at no-guilt.
3. I am being gentle with myself.
4. I don't keep anything from Shawn. Anything.
5. I just want to snuggle at home with my animals and hubby. Work, be over!!!

Have a snuggly weekend! It's going to be cold here!

Never, never, never give up.

I see this on my daily walk everyday... and it reminds me: