Doggy Daycare

Our little Hilo has been growing fast... He can sit, lay down, shake, leave it, and kennel up. All are extremely important commands! Since September, he has been battling Kennel Cough. I think we are finally getting it out of his system but it has taken forever. And because he was sick, he couldn't go to "Doggy Daycare".


For those that are not pet owners, this is a place where you can take your dog for the day and he will be cared for amongst 20 other dogs. We started taking Hilo when he was 4 months old and it was unbelievable how tired and exhausted he would get. Which is good for both him and us. It gets him around other animals and people, tons of exercise, and helps him burn much needed energy. It allows Jim and I to work during the day and run errands later that night. Otherwise he would be kenneled all day and need lots of running/play time in the evening. It is relatively cheap too... $15/day. Which let me tell you is definitely worth 1 day/week because Hilo generally will sleep for the next 2 days! The other crazy thing with the doggy daycare we use is they have cameras that stream live video over the internet. So at work... I can go to the website and watch Hilo play with the other dogs... or should I say annoy the other dogs...


So we are really hoping he officially is over the kennel cough this year and we can start bringing him back in the new year. That way he can start playing with his friends again and getting much over due exercise!

Felt the BABY!

So I am officially 18 weeks pregnant and had not felt the baby move. After reading a bunch of information and talking to other new moms, I was ready for anything from butterflies to muscle spasm type feelings. Then it happened!

On the drive home from work, I was at a stoplight. The radio was off and I was just sitting there in the peace and quiet waiting for the green light. All of a sudden it felt like I had been going over the highest peak of a rollercoaster 4-5 times in a row really quickly. I immediately thought I was getting sick but then it ended. I wasn't sure what to think. Then is started again although this time it hit me... that is the baby! I was so ridiculously excited I started to cry!

I can't WAIT for the ultrasound January 3rd... And for the first real hard kick... to hear the heartbeat...

Goodbye Nausea!

So it has been at least 4 weeks now without the all day nausea! Although chicken and turkey are still not working out. I have the same reaction to these to old favorites as I do to fish... instant gag!

As for cravings, salty... no more needing sweets after every meal. Actually chocolate is almost repulsive like the chicken and turkey. Okay, not really. But definitely don't have a problem passing up the holiday cookies at the office these days... something I wouldn't even consider passing on before being pregnant!

Heart Beat is 170 bpm

Today we had our first appointment with the new OB doctor. Her name is Dr. Marley Kercher and was highly recommended by many of my coworkers. I had previously been going to my family practitioner for the checkups. So we had a lot of information to go over and there were lots of health history questions for Jim and I. Once that was over it was time to hear the heartbeat.

She put the wand on my belly and moved it around until you could hear this definite "Whoosh, Whoosh, Whoosh," sound and she began counting... 150, 160, 170 bpm! We listened for about a minute and just grinned... To us it sounded like a washing machine.