16 weeks and 4 days

I went to the doctor yesterday for my 16 weeks appointment. All is well, my blood work came back all normal and for the first time in my life, my iron was normal! It's always been on the low side, but since I've started taking prenatal vitamins, it has increased a bit. I met with a different doctor this time, and I absolutely loved him! And I get to see him again for my 20 weeks appointment, so I'm happy about that. My mom was off of work, so she came along with Scott and me, and we all got to hear the heart beat. Doc said it was in the 150-152 range. At first, he had a hard time locating it, but he was up too high on my tummy, and as soon as he moved the wand down lower, it started beating like crazy! I still don't feel pregnant, so it's things like this that bring the biggest smile to my face. I still haven't gained any weight, but my clothes are getting tighter and tighter as the days go on. It's strange to think that one day, I'm just going to "pop" and finally look pregnant. I definitely got my appetite back, and my goodness, I get hungry so much faster now. Scott and I have visited Babies R Us several times now and have narrowed down a bunch of items that we want...that place is so overwhelming! I've absolutely fallen in love with a travel system, so now I just have to patient! A few weeks ago, our church had their semi annual consignment sale, and we got a brand new, in the box jogging stroller for much cheaper than if we bought a new one in the stores. Of course Scott already put it together and we have it sitting in the baby's room closet waiting to be used. I know it will get lots of use since we are at the ball fields at least 2 times a week! The most exciting news we've gotten this week, is that we find out what Nugget is on April 18th! We absolutely can not wait!! So we just have to get through a few more weeks and then we can start working on the room more!

Tornadoes DO go through downtown Atlanta

This week is a two for one. Last night, Scott, Melissa, Mike, their cousin Justin, and I experienced being in a tornado for the first time of all of our lives. I must say, it was by far the scariest thing I have ever been through. I will set the scene for you. We ate dinner at Ted's Montana Grill on the corner of Luckie and Spring Streets in downtown Atlanta. We were one block from Centennial Olympic Park. The restaurant was part of a Ted Turner building that was about five stories high with the restaurant on the first floor, and was set up in an L shape. While waiting for dinner, I commented about how the weather was so much nicer than it had been earlier in the day....big mistake. They seated at a round table for 5 and we were the 3rd or 4th table back from the front windows that faced Spring Street. We all ate a wonderful dinner and were all enjoying our evening, we kidded about stupid people, airport security, and Geico commercials. Scott made a comment about how he thought we were in a storm because as we all looked outside, we saw rain, trees and debris parallel to the sky. At that moment, the glass windows started bowing out. The super hero that he is, Scott stood up and started moving us to the back of the restaurant where kitchen, restrooms, and emergency exit was. People quickly started to follow, there was probably about 60 or so people in the restaurant at the time, and we all got away from the windows in time. I couldn't see Justin or Melissa and started to panic. I tried so hard to stay calm, but as I was looking for them, the front windows started popping out causing rain, leaves, etc. inside. Melissa and Justin found an alcove to protect themselves and we all moved into the kitchen. I'm not so sure the poor kitchen guys knew what was going on, they had quiet the confused look on their faces. As quick as the tornado came through, it was over. No, it didn't sound like a freight train, and had absolutely NO warning. I did loose it, it was down right scary and all the stupid movies really had me believing that we were gonners once the windows blew out. Our bill was well over $100 and Ted's comped everyone. Scott's brother, Mike parked his new XTerra across the street in a pay lot that was highway robbery at $20, and unfortunatey, had his back and rear passenger glass was blown out. Scott's truck was in a parking deck and has minor scratches down the one side, but nothing compared to some cars. We definitely experienced the brunt of the storm and it's still surreal. Many buildings had glass windows blown out and some hotels had curtains hanging out the windows. It did look somewhat like a movie warzone and I kept thinking this is nothing compared to New York City. Amazingly, there have been no fatalities, and no serious injuries. I don't have any note worthy advice to give other than it's pretty scary, but everyone is ok. I'm sure Nugget had the time of his/her life and has already been through a tornado at 14 1/2 weeks!

And how does this all work?! 14 weeks and counting

I figured since we are going to be PARENTS, I would set this up for family in state, out of state, and everyone in between. The story of our journey begins the Wednesday after Super Bowl Sunday. I was extremely late and bought "the" test. You know the one I'm talking about. I went to the Walgreens right by our house...big mistake. I was certain I was going to be caught, my heart was racing, and I wanted to take the test and run out. But what happens? Well, the stupid thing wouldn't scan! I was starting to break out in a cold sweat, and the sweet old lady behind the counter told me I might want to get another test, because this one wasn't scanning. I wanted to die. I was waiting for someone I knew to walk through the doors and thinking of something I could say. Luckily, no one I knew appeared at the Walgreens that day. I went home, took the test, and BAM! Positive. And I don't mean a faint line...it was the darkest shade of pink I have ever seen in my entire life. Of course after taking the test, I decided to read the directions. Shoot! The test works best when taken in the morning. Thankfully, I bought the 3 pack, and waited impatiently for the next day. Again, it turned bright pink and I began to panic. I waited, and waited, and waited until Valentine's Day to tell Scott. He was the first one I told, yes, I kept it my secret for almost two weeks...will power my friends! Plus, I knew the minute I told someone, it would become a false alarm. I gave Scott his card after I cleaned the entire kitchen and dining room. I was trying to stall and the panic was coming back. My heart was pounding like it's never pounded before and I thought I was going to loose it right there, well actually I did. Scott wasn't even done reading his card and I was already crying. At the bottom of the very mushy card I wrote,"I have a present for you, but it won't be here for another 9 months. You're going to be a dad!" Scott's response was so sweet and comforting to me, and I will never forget that moment for as long as I live. Fast forward to Feb. 25, our first doctor's appointment. Everything is fine and I had an ultrasound done that confirmed that there is in fact a Nugget in there. It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. You could instantly tell that there's a kid in there. We go back on March 28th, and I will be almost 17 weeks, so I'm going to beg, plead, and cry if I have to to get another ultrasound done to determine what this little nugget is. Scott's already got our office cleaned out, my sister in law brought me enough clothes to get me through my entire pregnancy, and friends and family couldn't be happier for us. So, there you have it, the beginning of Nugget's life.