After continuing to be quite ill for a few weeks, I spent half the day on Sunday and all day on Monday throwing up every little thing that went into my system. I tell you this, not to make you in turn lose YOUR lunch, but to explain why we had to go see the doctor this week. Not to worry- that is not my story! However, I did have to go to the doctor on Wednesday afternoon for the first time.
While at the doctor's office, the nurse did not think they would be able to find the heartbeat, since I am only about 9 weeks along. However, when my doctor came in, she was determined to try. She brought in the doppler, and applied the (cold) gel to my tummy, and begin moving around and listening carefully.
As she pushed on the left side of my stomach, she smiled and said, "Ah- there it is!"
I kind of jumped a little, and said, "really??"
Unfortunately, my jumping caused her to lose it. So then I was extremely still, trying hard to not even breathe.
She pushed a little on the right side of my stomach and found it again. It was beating so quickly, and was such a sweet little sound. I was enjoying it when all of a sudden, from across the room, Jesse giggles (yes, giggles) and says, "Sounds like a boy!"
Needless to say, we all started laughing and it was lost again.
It was so cute to see him get excited, and get to share in the first heartbeat of our little one. Finally, something to be excited about!! Hooray for little miracles along the way!
We will still go back on Nov. 1 for the real exam, and will have the first ultrasound at that time. Yippee Skippee!
Friday, October 20, 2006
My 24th Birthday
My birthday was on October 9, and I was pleasantly surprised. Not only did I manage to NOT throw up all day (quite an accomplishment), but I felt peaceful. I was able to go into the office to get some work done, have lunch with a friend, and then dinner with my family at the Olive Garden. All in all, it was a very nice day!
My parents gave me the "matching" Willow Tree figurine of the pregnant woman, to go with the "New Dad" figurine I gave Jesse the day we found out we were expecting.
Jesse got me a beautiful new "Mommy" necklace from James Avery, along with a dozen orange roses. He has really surprised me with his new sentiments, since learning of the pregnancy. What a sweetie!
My family knows that I have been trying to save money for new bedroom furniture, including a new mattress and box springs. All of my sisters and my parents gave me money to help hurry the process., which I quickly added to my envelope.
We celebrated with his family a few days later, doing a joint birthday party for me and our nephew, Jansen. It was a lot of fun hanging out, and watching Jansen get so excited about his birthday presents. (Ah- remember when birthdays were FUN??)
I had a lot of friends and family send emails, leave messages, and call to wish me a happy birthday, and it meant a lot from each and every one of you! Thanks to everyone who helped make my day so special.
My parents gave me the "matching" Willow Tree figurine of the pregnant woman, to go with the "New Dad" figurine I gave Jesse the day we found out we were expecting.
Jesse got me a beautiful new "Mommy" necklace from James Avery, along with a dozen orange roses. He has really surprised me with his new sentiments, since learning of the pregnancy. What a sweetie!
My family knows that I have been trying to save money for new bedroom furniture, including a new mattress and box springs. All of my sisters and my parents gave me money to help hurry the process., which I quickly added to my envelope.
We celebrated with his family a few days later, doing a joint birthday party for me and our nephew, Jansen. It was a lot of fun hanging out, and watching Jansen get so excited about his birthday presents. (Ah- remember when birthdays were FUN??)
I had a lot of friends and family send emails, leave messages, and call to wish me a happy birthday, and it meant a lot from each and every one of you! Thanks to everyone who helped make my day so special.
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Julie's Senior Homecoming
My baby sister is growing up. Too fast!
Julie is a senior in high school this year, and it is so strange how her growing up has really made me feel old. I love watching her grow into the strong, independent and beautiful person that she is, but it is so hard at the same time!
She had her final homecoming dance on October 7, and I went over to "help her get ready..." which basically means I get to sit, watch, and "ohh...ahhh" a lot. Julie went with a sophisticated look this year, and I really loved the way she pulled it off.
Here she is, completeing last minute preparations before her date arrived to pick her up. Check out the CUTE shoes that tie the whole outfit together! Can you believe she also found a matching purse that completely matched the shoes, at Target? What a stylist!
Susan and I posing with Juls...unfortunately Sarah couldn't make it in town that weekend, but she was there in spirit. Holder girls forever!
Big Brother Jesse is always so supportive and encouraging, taking a part in Julie's life, and wanted this picture to "get it in ink" that he was there.
Julie and Jon, before leaving for more pictures, dinner (at Dave& Busters- how fun!), and of course the dance. Don't you love their matching outfits? They are just buddies, but they sure looked handsome together for the dance!
And to think the beautiful girl started out...like THIS! HA! Gotta love the "before" pictures!
I will miss sharing these special times with my sisters. Once Juls graduates in the spring, the dramatic high school dances will be over, and so will an era of memories with my sisters. Ah, good times, good times.
Julie is a senior in high school this year, and it is so strange how her growing up has really made me feel old. I love watching her grow into the strong, independent and beautiful person that she is, but it is so hard at the same time!
She had her final homecoming dance on October 7, and I went over to "help her get ready..." which basically means I get to sit, watch, and "ohh...ahhh" a lot. Julie went with a sophisticated look this year, and I really loved the way she pulled it off.
Here she is, completeing last minute preparations before her date arrived to pick her up. Check out the CUTE shoes that tie the whole outfit together! Can you believe she also found a matching purse that completely matched the shoes, at Target? What a stylist!
Susan and I posing with Juls...unfortunately Sarah couldn't make it in town that weekend, but she was there in spirit. Holder girls forever! Big Brother Jesse is always so supportive and encouraging, taking a part in Julie's life, and wanted this picture to "get it in ink" that he was there. Julie and Jon, before leaving for more pictures, dinner (at Dave& Busters- how fun!), and of course the dance. Don't you love their matching outfits? They are just buddies, but they sure looked handsome together for the dance! And to think the beautiful girl started out...like THIS! HA! Gotta love the "before" pictures! I will miss sharing these special times with my sisters. Once Juls graduates in the spring, the dramatic high school dances will be over, and so will an era of memories with my sisters. Ah, good times, good times.
Friday, October 13, 2006
Happy News
Jesse and I found out on September 13, 2006 that we are pregnant with our first baby.We had decided to get off birth control back in June, but were still using other methods of protection until all the hormones were out of my body. This was our very first month with nothing, and lo and behold, we are pregnant!
I had read all kinds of things saying how sometimes the mother can feel the implantation in the uterus, and that it might be accompained with some bleeding. Though I did not have any bleeding, I did feel some sharp pains in my abdomen one night, and casually dismissed it as PMS. However, for the next week or so, I feel a wierd, non-painful cramping in my abdomen quite frequently, which was strange considering I rarely cramp with my periods. I kept saying to Jesse, "Something is different..." and he would nod and smile, and go on with life. Finally, after over a week of me saying it, he said, "If you're so sure, take a test!" So I did...three times. All three were negative. Jesse calmly says, "Do you think maybe you want it so bad that you are imagining these 'feelings'?" Ummm...NO. I decided to wait and see if I started my period, and be done.
The day before I was expected to start, I was working from home, and I just kept having this nagging feeling that wouldnt go away. Jesse was at work, so I told myself if I took another test and it turned out negative, he would never have to know! So, I took one. I sat in amazement as it showed up positive! I still was not convinced, so I took another one, and it was positive again.
I had to take Jesse's grandmother to one of the local hospitals for some tests that day, and when she went back to get her test run, I walked over to the gift shop. They had the WillowTree collection, and right in front was a "New Dad" holding this little baby; I decided that was how I would tell Jesse. But first, we had to speak! See, I had been slightly emotional (again thinking, PMS) the past few days and had mouthed off to him the night before, pretty rudely. So, I sent him a text message, knowing if I called him, he would hear it in my voice, and just apologized and told him I loved him. He replied back, saying he loved me too.
I wrapped the "New Dad" in a gift bag and had it in my office with me when he got home. I walked into the living room to see him and he immediately came over and gave me a big hug. I apologized again, and then handed him the gift bag. He said, "Mel, what is this for?" I said, "It's my apology gift for being so emotional and rude lately." He hugs me again and says, "It's really not a big deal, babe..." I said, "Just open it."
He began to open the box, and didnt notice the name on the box or the little card that read "New Dad." When he saw the figurine inside, he just stopped and stared at me. "Seriously??" I smiled, and said "Seriously." He just started hugging and kissing me and even got a little emotional himself! (Shocking, I know!) I showed him the two tests, and told him I still wanted to go get the ClearBlue kind that say straight up "Pregnant" or "Not pregnant," so went right then and there. Sure enough, as you can see in the picture, "Pregnant" popped up right away.
The Friday before we left for Mexico, I went to the doctor and confirmed. She said everything looked normal, and gave Baby Shulse an approximate due date of May 25, 2007. We will go back on November 1 to meet the real doctor, have the first ultrasound, and listen to the heart beat. I'm sure it will all become a lot more real after all of that.
Please join us in praying that everything will be okay with the baby, and that it's development continues to thrive. Also, if you would not mind saying a quick prayer for my morning sickness, I would sure appreciate it! I will post updates as I know things, but I'm going to try to not become obsessive about this- so if I get annoying, just say so!! I'm just excited and want each of you to share in this rollercoaster with me; you are all so important to me, and I know you will be important to Baby Shulse as well. :)
Our Mexican Vacation 2006- part II
This may be my last post for awhile...I'm so frustrated with Blogger!! I have tried to upload these pictures probably 9 times!! Errrrr. Anyway, on with the post.
Once again, here is me enjoying the hammock on the patio balcony of our casa. I spent a good deal of time in this hammock, and as you can tell from the nasty pictures, I was pretty dang relaxed!!
Here we are, all sunscreened/oiled up, ready to go kayak and snorkel. Don't you love the one-arm-out, picture-taking ability of my talented husband?
Jesse returning from snorkeling around the bay.
One of our many Scrabble matches. Jesse won 8 times, I won 2 times, and we tied once. Can you believe he beat me that bad?? I know...I can't either.
This is Jesse with Canela, one of the many friendly dogs who lived there on the beach. Canela would literally stay on our patio all night, wait for us to wake up in the morning, follow us down to the beach, and wait by the back stairs when we left the casa. I think she adopted us!
Once again, here is me enjoying the hammock on the patio balcony of our casa. I spent a good deal of time in this hammock, and as you can tell from the nasty pictures, I was pretty dang relaxed!!
Here we are, all sunscreened/oiled up, ready to go kayak and snorkel. Don't you love the one-arm-out, picture-taking ability of my talented husband?
Jesse returning from snorkeling around the bay.
One of our many Scrabble matches. Jesse won 8 times, I won 2 times, and we tied once. Can you believe he beat me that bad?? I know...I can't either.
This is Jesse with Canela, one of the many friendly dogs who lived there on the beach. Canela would literally stay on our patio all night, wait for us to wake up in the morning, follow us down to the beach, and wait by the back stairs when we left the casa. I think she adopted us!
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Our Mexican Vacation 2006- part I
I am pretty late in posting, but do not take that as a negative sign!
We had a BLAST. We really did not do much, other than hang around the Casa, kayack and snorkel in the bay, nap, and play Scrabble. It was wonderful. We both were able to fully relax and catch up on some much needed sleep, as well as quality time together. The house did not have a t.v., and the radio it had was only in spanish, obviously. Some prior guests had left a few CDs, but we had not heard of any of them. Since we went during the low season, I think there were only two other couples/families on the entire beach. It was QUIET. The ocean provided the background music, while the leaves from the surrounding jungle made the melody. Very peaceful.
I'm having a hard time uploading more than 5 pictures at a time, so I'm going to have to give you pictures in installments. :)
This first picture is me standing in the ocean, looking back and taking a picture of a few of the cabanas. Ours was the one on the far right, with the four lounge chairs. I spent a lot of time on those chairs!
Yes, those are my feet, relaxing in the hammock on our patio. We had the top unit, so the view was fabulous!
This was the entrance to our Casa- Case de Canciones means "House of Songs," which was certainly appropriate!
Another pretty picture taken from our patio balcony.
One day, we visited a lagoon in Akumal called Yel-Ka (pronounced something like Jul-Ka). It was a very quiet, secluded place, full of vegetation, wildlife, and the lagoon itself. We snorkeled around (as you can tell by the mask lines on Jesse's face), and it was very different than snorkeling in the bay. There are warm spots and VERY cold spots...so you are swimming, and all of a sudden your body breaks out in goose bumps, then a few seconds later, you go through a place warmed by the ocean water, and the goose bumps subside. Weird. Supposedly, people usually see a TON of fish that are very different from the fish you see on the reefs, but we did not see all that many. Maybe it was the time of year. Regardless, it was fun to get out and see something different.
More pictures to come in the next entry!
We had a BLAST. We really did not do much, other than hang around the Casa, kayack and snorkel in the bay, nap, and play Scrabble. It was wonderful. We both were able to fully relax and catch up on some much needed sleep, as well as quality time together. The house did not have a t.v., and the radio it had was only in spanish, obviously. Some prior guests had left a few CDs, but we had not heard of any of them. Since we went during the low season, I think there were only two other couples/families on the entire beach. It was QUIET. The ocean provided the background music, while the leaves from the surrounding jungle made the melody. Very peaceful.
I'm having a hard time uploading more than 5 pictures at a time, so I'm going to have to give you pictures in installments. :)
This first picture is me standing in the ocean, looking back and taking a picture of a few of the cabanas. Ours was the one on the far right, with the four lounge chairs. I spent a lot of time on those chairs!
Yes, those are my feet, relaxing in the hammock on our patio. We had the top unit, so the view was fabulous!
This was the entrance to our Casa- Case de Canciones means "House of Songs," which was certainly appropriate!
Another pretty picture taken from our patio balcony.
One day, we visited a lagoon in Akumal called Yel-Ka (pronounced something like Jul-Ka). It was a very quiet, secluded place, full of vegetation, wildlife, and the lagoon itself. We snorkeled around (as you can tell by the mask lines on Jesse's face), and it was very different than snorkeling in the bay. There are warm spots and VERY cold spots...so you are swimming, and all of a sudden your body breaks out in goose bumps, then a few seconds later, you go through a place warmed by the ocean water, and the goose bumps subside. Weird. Supposedly, people usually see a TON of fish that are very different from the fish you see on the reefs, but we did not see all that many. Maybe it was the time of year. Regardless, it was fun to get out and see something different.
More pictures to come in the next entry!