Update

As of today I am starting my 15th week of pregnancy. I'm amazed at how quickly the weeks are going by. This baby is going to be here before we know it. I think I've been in denial about the inevitability of a growing belly. I need to get a few items of clothing ordered or one of these days I'll find myself with no clothes that fit. It hasn't been a problem yet, of course, but just last week I noticed my waist is starting to expand. Yikes!!

I hate to admit it, but my house is in serious need of a deep cleaning. It's been a long time since I felt good enough to really clean so it's been neglected for awhile now. Last weekend I started repainting the main floor and thought stopping to clean in the middle of it would be counterproductive since after painting it'll need cleaned even better. It really drives me crazy to live in this state of waiting for one thing to be done before I can put it all back together. Hopefully this weekend I'll get the rest of the area painted and able to put everything back in place.

Thankfully, I've been feeling much better this past week. I still have moments throughout the day when I feel incredible sick (as in just this morning), but more and more often I feel pretty good. It's nice to see a light at the end of the tunnel of nausea, even if I do still have a ways to go.

Last Friday (31 Oct) I had an appointment with the kidney specialist. I wasn't too concerned, but in the back of my mind I knew I would feel much better after hearing from the doctor. She said that my creatine levels are low, but that's normal during pregnancy. Just to be sure, she did an ultrasound on the kidneys, but other than a cyst on my left kidney everything looked normal, for which I'm very thankful.

Then Thursday we had our 3rd appointment with Dr. Van de Castel and I finally received my Mutterpass. Sam asked her why during the previous appointment my weight and blood pressure hadn't been checked. She said at those appointment they were doing just the preliminary requirements. I guess doing the different tests on my blood. Yesterday she did check my weight and blood pressure. I think they were just waiting until they had the Mutterpass to record it all in. Now instead of going back every two week I'll be going once a month. At our next appointment the baby will be 18 weeks, so I'm really hoping to find out if it's a little boy or girl. I would love to know before going home, so I can do some shopping while there.

Once again we were able to see the baby during the ultrasoud. It's now 7 cm from crown to rump. It's still very active. The doctor commented on it being a very healthy baby because it's moving every time we see it. Then again, with Sam as it's father I wouldn't expect anything different :) We took the camcorder this time and Sam tried to capture the baby moving. At one point we were watching in 3D (it was a side view) and we could see the little hand (and could even count 5 little fingers!!) moving up to it's face. I'm not sure if it was sucking it's thumb or not, but it was thrilling to see that tiny little being becoming more and more like a baby. It's still amazing to me to realize that little life is growing inside of me.

For awhile now Sam and I have been discussing when I'll stop working. Before getting pregnant I always imagined I would work right up until the baby came, but being pregnant I feel differently. I now feel like this is a great time to be at home. Finishing things up that I probaby won't have time for after the baby arrives. Not to mention this will be the last time it's just the two of us. With all of that in mind, we've pretty much decided that I'll quit in December. We're going to Alaska over the holidays anyhow, so I just won't be returning to work when we get back. It feels like the right time and I'm so thankful that we're at a place in our lives where I don't really need to work. I feel very blessed that I'm able to stay home with our child.

Today we drove to Heidelberg because they're having a Holiday Bazaar this weekend. For lunch, we met up with our friend, Kris Davis, and her parents. I always really enjoy our time together. It's a shame that we live so close yet rarely get together. Hopefully, that will change once I quit work. We enjoyed our day and even found a couple of things to buy. We always see such great pieces of furniture, but unfortunately we don't have the space for any more furniture right now. When the time gets close for us to leave Germany we plan to start buying some pieces that we can take back to the states with us.

Well, that's what's going on with us. Until next time...