And So It Begins ...

While at Wal-Mart today, we just 'happened' to stroll by the Baby Section (an accident? I think not.). Well, let's just say that we left $75 later. Good thing that it was all clearance stuff. Of course, not knowing the baby's sex, it was all gender neutral clothing. If anything, it looks like we'll be well prepared clothing-wise. We still have far to go though.

Yoga and Childbirth

Some of you know that Pamela and I have been practicing Yoga for about 10 months now. I firmly belive that Yoga cab be a great aid in childbirth. There are quit a few websites that agree with me:

Discovery Health Channel
Yoga Journal: Focus on Pregnancy
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=115083
http://www.modernstork.com/content/002483.shtml

(click on picture to enlarge)

What an amazing day today. Today, not yesterday, was the first ultrasound. Not only is it amazing to see your unborn baby, but to see it's heart beating and to actually hear the heart. PHEW! Very moving. Officially, the baby (yes, only one) is nine weeks along. The due date is January 24th, 2007. Good month to be born. I think the baby should be early by 13 days.

Baby Names

Since my good friend Craig had to go and put thoughts in my head like "What are you going to do about Life Insurance? .... What about College? ..." I find myself awake in the middle of the night. I also think that this is also exaggerated by the fact that we're already discussing how we can both can remain working and raise our family. Our best solution would be for me to teach dog classes in the evenings and weekends so I can stay home with our baby(ies?). Hiring a Nanny doesn't seem practical and asking a relative(s) to move-in until the child can go to school [I'm thinking long-term] doesn't seem fair. So, I think I will pursue the dog school with greater vigor.

Excited about the appointment later today, I've been thinking about names for the baby. Of course, I can't think of any other than the one name Pamela and I have come up with for a girl: Sophia. Of course, then we come to middle names, using family names, borrowing someone's name ... Now it gets complicated. What to do, what to do ...

Is there anyone out there that has any ideas / thoughts / name suggestions? If so, please click on the comments link and let us know.

Big Day Tomorrow!

The first ultrasound will be tomorrow. This will [possibly] determine how many babies we will be having (I guess I secretly want Twins) and how far along they are. The due date will be determined.

On a side note, Pamela is starting to show, not much, but she has developed a little belly.

Stay tuned for the official due date and possibly even an early ultrasound picture.

Everybody's Going Baby Crazy ...

Well, maybe not yet ... but we're getting there. I won't say any names, but I have already confirmed three relatives are either shopping or making stuff for the baby(ies?) and at least one non-family member is making something. We've also had about a half-dozen people promise us baby stuff (one person who recently had three children in four years ... that could be a lot of stuff).

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining one bit. Heck, I even encourage it. In fact, we should have a contest to see who can spoil the baby the most :)

Seriously, we are very touched that so many people are so excited about our baby(ies?). It really means a tremendous amount to us. Although our families are so far away, we feel the closeness and love from everyone.

Background Timeline

So here's the basic timeline leading up until today:

May 27, 2006

Pamela is a few weeks "late". This is very unusual since she is extremely regular. It's also worth noting that she just stopped taking the pill around the beginning of April (?).

Anyway, on this day, Pamela takes a home pregnancy test. It states that test results can take up to 3 minutes. It responded positive in about 2 seconds. We both looked at each other and smiled for a while.

June 2, 2006

This was Pamela's first Doctor's appointment regarding possibly being pregnant. Before any pregnancy test we're taken, the doctors started scheduling the next nine months and preparing us for parenthood. I guess she really is pregnant. None the less, she gets to have about nine viles of blood taken for various tests. One of which is very cool; genetic testing for Cystic Fibrosis. If Pamela tests positive, then I get tested. Only if we are both positive, then do we discuss the implications. I guess this makes me a bit nervous, but also glad that this can be tested for beforehand.

June 7, 2006

Pamela gets the results of her tests. They start telling her about her blood work, low platelet's, negative results for Cystic Fibrosis (phew!) ... blah, blah, blah. Pamela interrupts them "I just want to know if I'm pregnant." Their response, "Oh sorry, yes, your are." HA! Anyway, IT'S OFFICIAL!!! Everything else is good, except she needs o go see a Hematologist to work on getting her platelet count up.

Not too long after she gets the results does she start to feel a few symptoms. Nothing major, just more tired than usual and a slight bit of nausea.

June 13, 2006

Pamela's first craving: home-made garlic bread. Of course, this was after 9pm, when we were in bed. And, of course, I make her two pieces, she eats half of one and then she's done. She tells me her tastes are now changing.

Second Official Craving

Pamela's now experiencing her second official craving: Fresh Nectarines. We ended up running to the store to pick her up a couple and we ended up coming home with $26 worth of fresh fruit salad, veggies and other healthy stuff. I guess it beats French Fries and Ice Cream (of course, those are some of her usual desires).

Another Sleepless Night

Can't sleep. Too much on my mind (excited about baby).