New Poll Updated

Sorry to those who have already voted...please take the time to vote again! I HAD to add to the list of book choices on my poll. You will notice a fifth option for a book. When talking to my husband last night, I told him Good Night Moon was winning (at that time.) I told him gleefully because that is the first book I have bought and Tony thinks it is a "dumb" book and laughed incessantly when our little Cole kicked me so hard two nights ago my belly moved while reading Good Night Moon. Tony is sure that he kicked me that hard because he was sick of the "stupid" book I was reading.

Anyway, back to why I changed the poll. Two of Tony's suggestions for books are on there (I wont tell you which yet) but apparently he felt I left off the most important choice, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. I do not recall this book as a child but apparently it was a favorite of his. Tony went on to tell me the story (I don't find it that great and said I think it sends a different message than he does...more later on that) but he even went so far as to find it on the internet so if I should see the book around I could buy it AND so I would know what a steam shovel was and the storyline in greater detail :) With that said, I have added Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (apparently her name is Mary Anne) to my list of choices :) Happy voting!

Poll Results: Which is Easier to Raise?

So it appears that most of you feel that boys are easier to raise. Part of me wonders if you are saying that because I am having a boy and don't want to fully scare me yet regarding what I am in for and the other part of me agrees. I work with a lot of preschoolers and find the boys require more structuring but ultimately, are much less "over the top."

My question for you, do you think if I start out laying the baby's "rights" down from the beginning (see cartoon) he will just comply? Perhaps taking this approach will work in making him a breeze to raise. Yeah, I know, who am I kidding :)

Both of us at 12 Weeks

So if any of you were waiting on pins and needles for another shot of me (ugh...sorry about the underwear shot again...I did warn you last post!) here is my 12 week photo as well as our little man's "photo" at 12 weeks. He sure had grown in just two weeks! Remember my photo is 4 weeks since the last photo you saw of me :) I think I just look fat. Even though I am 3 months in this photo I don't think it is noticeable that I am pregnant. I think it just looks like I have gotten fatter. I must be right about this too because nobody thought I was pregnant before I told them and this is right around (the day before actually) when we told people (including my parents and in-laws) that we were expecting our little miracle.

Two more apologies, the mirror is in fact VERY dusty and not a good quality one. Second, excuse the mess bulging from the closet behind me. This was pre new bedroom set, as you can tell by looking closely, so things were a little less organized. And for those of you who know me, you know I am NOT organized anyway. My husband is actually the neat freak in our house. I am VERY organized in work and outside the home so I think when I get home I just honestly say, "The hell with it." (Pardon my language.)

Anyway, back to the photos. I look horrible and the photo of me is horrible so I apologize. Our little miracle however was starting to look more like a little person in this "photo." Remember it is a picture of a picture so not the best quality but it gives you an idea. You can see his adorable profile with his little nose, big forehead and his lips. You can't miss his big belly either! His hands are at his side so that is hard to see. We didn't get very good photos from this ultrasound as the tech was horrible. I almost cried (I am a pregnant hormonal lady of course!) It was Tony's first chance to see the baby and I wanted it to be great for him. Our little one's hand moved at one point and Tony said, "Is that the hand!" and the tech didn't answer. She never pointed anything out and wouldn't tell me even what she was doing. I was very disappointed.

My first two ultrasounds (due to spotting) were at a local hospital. This one was at the big one in our area and I swore I wouldn't go back there. I did though because I had to have a more detailed one (future post.) We were so fortunate to have a different lady who was fabulous and got us many shots and good ones! Again, that will be a later post though :)

Well, I think I must go. The little one is kicking like crazy right now so I think he is ready for his nightly music session.

Stay tuned!

Poll Results: Which Name Do You Like?

Well the results were definitely overwhelmingly for one name over the other. Tony and I were leaning towards Cole Michael and it appears that most of you feel the same way.

When I posed the question on a baby website the results were very close with Cole winning by only one vote. Tony's brothers and their friends like Wyatt. Most people I talked to like Cole because it is a name they haven't heard a lot. However, my parents named me Jennifer when it was not a common name and I ended up going to college with like 8 Jennifers that I personally knew! So, Cole will probably be common when our little one goes to school. Regardless, as I watched the poll throughout the week I really liked the way Cole Michael Hyson looked.

So, I have started calling him Cole and Tony seems to be softening to it as well. He liked Cole the best but thought the middle name sounded better with Wyatt than Michael. (Michael is after my Father in case you didn't know.) When I said to people, "How often will we use the middle name anyway?" Many people responded, "When he is in trouble." :) Lets hope that isn't a lot (yes, I know, I am kidding myself.) I will keep you posted as it isn't official yet, but it is looking like our little man will have the name Cole Michael Hyson.

Our Little Gummy Bear!

So here is our little boy at 10 weeks. Just 2 weeks after the first ultrasound and look how much he has changed! He went from a "blob" on the screen with a flicker they told me was the heartbeat to my "little gummy bear," as I like to call him in this picture, with an obvious head, body, arm and leg buds and a strong heartbeat that was obvious on the screen. Tony asked me when I showed him the picture what that was between his legs and yes people, our little gummy bear still had a tail.
It was amazing though. The tech was great, she pointed out his spine already forming and he even wiggled on the screen. She even pointed out that the placenta was forming (if you have good eyes you can spot it at the bottom of the "big black area" also known as my uterus...lol. I couldn't believe how much changed so quickly. Little did I know by my 12 week and then my 20 week I would be even more amazed! It was scary to have the bleeding in the beginning but it was nice to see these ultrasounds as he grows in me. I would never have known what he looked like at these various stages.

Sorry people, no photo of me at 10 weeks (I am sure you are all sad you can't see me in my underwear again.) I chose to do the photos every 4 weeks so I could feel like I actually saw some change in them.

I apologize for the poor quality of the photos but they are photos of photos (do you get what I mean?) since I don't have a scanner. I think you get the picture though...lol. More photos to come so stay tuned! Can you contain your suspense? LOL.

From the Beginning

So I am a little "unsure" about posting these photos but I know that as a viewer of some other blogs I enjoy reading and seeing this stuff so for those of you who are interested, here is the start of the photos of me (warning...I am not a cute little pregnant woman AND I am in my underwear for them) and more importantly, here are pictures of our little boy as he grows inside me.

First, here is the first evidence that we had that this little miracle had begun. Sorry it is blurry. The top test was so faint that both Tony and my OB suggested waiting a week and trying again. The second test was a definate positive. So exciting!


I had some bleeding around 8 weeks, which is also when I was convinced that my "bloat" was enough to take a photo, so here is me and then the baby at 8 weeks. The round thing above the "blob" is the "yolk sac" which feeds the baby since I didn't even have a placenta at this point! The "blob" is the baby...you can see a tiny white spot in the top part of the blob and that is the baby's heartbeat. It was amazing that at 8 weeks I could already see it flickering on the screen.




So those are the starting pictures. I will post more I promise but my internet is so slow it takes forever to download. Thus, I leave you in suspense until next time :)

Team Gutsy Guys and Gals

Although the weather was less than ideal our loyal team walked for Crohn's and Colitis on Saturday, May 31st. A special thanks to Karen for "hanging behind" with me as this pregnant lady just couldn't keep her normal pace this year. A HUGE thank you goes out to my Uncle Tom and his wife Karen for raising over $1,000 for our team; with a late fundraising start too! You guys are amazing and will be fierce competitors for us next year :)

Next, thank you to all of you who donated...you helped me raise over $400 (my personal best) and helped our team raise just under $2,000 this year. As always, words cannot describe how much I appreciate your generosity.

Poll Results: What Are We Having?

So as many of you may already know, we are having a boy! I am surprised how split the votes were this week! 2 boy votes, 2 girl votes, and 2 you wont find out! I also can't believe nobody picked twins, it runs in Tony's family (his Dad is a twin and his Mom had twin siblings that passed away soon after birth.) No twins though! They would have been cute but a lot of work! We had to find out, we wanted to be able to call the baby by name when we talk to him (see my poll for names) and Tony couldn't wait to find out.

Tony and I are so excited. We both were initially a little sad as Tony was so sure it was a girl that he had drilled it into my head too so there was a moment for him he said where he was like, "Oh, no 'Daddy's Little Girl'" but within moments he couldn't wipe the smile off his face about the news. I was a little sad as I knew if we had a girl she would be a little princess with Daddy and his three brothers! However, I too am ecstatic that Tony is getting the boy he has always wanted and I really didn't have a boy or girl preference.

Even more exciting news though is that our little boy is healthy. As of our ultrasound last week all seemed well and he was measuring right on schedule. I have to go back to Maine Medical at 32 weeks just to recheck things where Dad had hydrocephaly (water on the brain) but so far, thank God, all is well. That to us is the most important thing of all of course.