Peanut's First Pictures!

Our precious baby had "his" first pictures taken this afternoon! Matt and I walked in for the routine OB appointment, and Dr. Reiter said that he was going to do a first trimester ultrasound just to make sure everything looked good. Well, everything looked great! Peanut is measuring exactly where "he" is supposed to, and his little heart is beating 177 beats per minute.

Not to worry anyone, but I do have a placental hematoma that is inside the sac with the baby. The doctors didn't seem too concerned with it, but I did get to have two different ultrasounds today. The second one confirmed that there is no blood flow from the placenta to the hematoma, so it shouldn't be growing in size - which is definitely a praise! I will go again in 4 weeks, and they will check it via ultrasound... So, be looking for updated pictures of our precious baby!

Cooper's First Haircut!!

Cooper went to the groomer's on Friday and got his first haircut! Matt called during the day to check on him, and they said that Cooper hated the clippers and grooming him was a process! Our Cooper... NO WAY!

He came back and looked and smelled like a little man dog! I swear they put cologne on him.. He smelled so handsome! We saw his paws for the first time, too! They are so black and so cute!!

Cooper was VERY glad to be back home with Mommy and Daddy! We were glad he was home, too!

The Coop Scoop

It's been a while since we updated everyone on Cooper's growth and progress... He went to the vet (a.k.a. "Uncle Nick") yesterday for his last round of puppy shots. He weighs 9.5 pounds (more than twice what he weighed the day we got him), and he is--by all indications--a happy, healthy puppy!

He isn't housebroken yet, but he's making good progress. About 90% of the time, he'll go to the door to let us know that he needs to do business... The other 10% of the time - well, we're still working on that. He has a penchant for chewing on DVD cases - he got Varsity Blues off the shelf three times!

He is doing great with his kennel - he doesn't cry when we put him in there, and he can stay for up 6.5 hours without having an accident (which has only happened once when I didn't get home on time). Our care of him has been greatly assisted by his Puppy Nanny, Mary Claire (a good friend from law school). She has been taking care of him in the middle of the day three or four days a week, and we think he likes her more than he likes us!

His two favorite activities lately are: (1) laying on his back while we rub his tummy and (2) playing fetch with anything that we can find to throw for him. He's a lot of fun to be around (most of the time), and we're very glad that he's a part of our small (but rapidly expanding) family!

Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle of Rum

I remember when I was a kid, I dressed up like a pirate at least two different Halloweens... Pirates, then and now, are icons of adventure, bravery, and fun! We have movies, mini-golf courses, and restaurants that are entirely themed around the exciting antics of our favorite bad guys.

Now, though, the dark side of real piracy has come out.... And I have to say - these Somalian pirate are really starting to tick me off. Who are they to give pirates a bad name?! Who are they to seize American (or French or Egyptian or Greek or _____) ships and steal what doesn't belong to them?! Who are they to kidnap honest, hard-working sailors and hold them for ransom?! They're giving real (fake) pirates a bad name!!!

All I have to say is that this needs to be taken care of - sooner rather than later. Does anyone remember how the East India Trading Co. took care of pirates in the Caribbean back in the 18th and 19th Century? If they captured a pirate (or a ship full of pirates), they hanged them from the nearest yardarm, tree branch, or gallows. I think this is the approach the international community needs to take with today's pirates: If we catch them, we hang them - no questions asked. Or maybe we should just let Navy SEALS take sniper shots at their heads. Either one would work for me! After we've hanged (or shot) a few dozen of their buddies, maybe the rest of these good-for-nothing fake (real) pirates will hang up their swords, pull down their Jolly Roger flags, and head for dry land. All I know is that we need to leave pirating to the real (fake) pirates of yesterday!

Pregnancy Survey

A fun little survey for everyone!

THE BASICS

Your name? Cori
Fathers name? Matt
Are you still with him? We've been married for almost 3 years
Were you trying to get pregnant? No

WHEN YOU FOUND OUT

When did you find out? March 23
Where did you find out? At home
How far along were you? 4 weeks
What was your reaction? Completely and utterly shocked!
Who was the first person you told? Jennifer - my best friend
How did you tell the father? It was his birthday, so I picked him up from class. There was a birthday present waiting on him, and it was the pregnant Willow Tree figurine and the 2 tests I had taken.
What was his reaction? "Are you serious?" Then he cried... Then he got scared!

ALL ABOUT YOUR PREGNANCY

When is your due date? November 28
Did you have any morning sickness? I did for weeks 5-6, but feel better now.
What are your fears? Continuing to be the best teacher while also being a great mom and wife...
What are you most happy about? The fact that I am going to be a mommy!
Did you want a boy or girl? I don't know... I think it would be so neat for my kids to have a big brother, but I also just love little girls.. So, I think I just want the baby to be healthy.
What did the father want boy or girl? Matt really wants a boy!
Do you know what you're having? Not there yet, but we will find out!
Do you have a name picked out? Kathryn Elizabeth "Katie Beth" or Carter Lee
How much weight have you gained? 2 pounds
Have you felt the baby move? Not there yet...

WHEN YOU HAVE THE BABY

Do you plan on a natural or medicated birth? Epidural!!!
Are you scared about labor? A little, but the baby definitely outweighs the fear
What do you think will be the worst part of labor? Hopefully not too much since I am having an epidural.
Have you taken any classes? No, but we plan to.
Who will be in the delivery room? Matt, my mom, his mom, Mischelle (Matt's sister), Jenn, and then anyone else who wants to be in there!
Are you having the birth videotaped? If the hospital will allow it!
Do you think you will cry when you see the baby for the first time? Oh my goodness, yes!! I cry at the thought...
What do you think the fathers reaction to the baby will be? I am pretty sure he will be in tears, too!
How do you think family and friends will feel? It will be the first baby on my side, so they are going to be absolutely thrilled!!!! Matt's family will also be very excited...

I have finally become the cool big sister...

I always wanted to be the cool big sister, but Emma never really had any friends that she did stuff with until lately. She has a new best friend, and her name is Kennedy. They are like two peas in a pod. They both love to dress up, wear make-up, play dolls, sing, dance, and they both have an incredible love for Hannah Montana! So, Mom and I decided to take the two little girls out to lunch and to see Hannah Montana the movie. Everywhere we went, I could hear Kennedy say, "I want to be by your sister.. She is so cool." And then came, "She's not cool... She's just my big sister." Kind of like a sword going through your heart. When I was leaving, Kennedy was like, "don't go Cori..." And Emma finally said, "don't go Cori, you're helping us have fun." She may never admit it, but she thinks I am a cool big sister!

The girls had a blast today! And I must admit that it was nice getting to hang with the girls. It definitely makes me look forward to being a mom!!

It's Official!

Cori and I went to her first OB appointment this afternoon... And it's official - Dr. Reiter said that his pregnancy tests agreed with ours: Cori is pregnant! That's still so weird to say, but we are both extremely excited! After telling our families this weekend, we broke the news on Facebook early this week and were very pleased with the outpouring of support we received from family, friends, classmates, and coworkers. Cori is exactly (if such a word can be used during a pregnancy) five weeks and four days pregnant... So we have a long way to go - and we plan on enjoying every second of it!