Ultrasound Picture

I added a picture of Baby Bennett's face from the ultrasound. The baby kind of looks like a creature from out space, don't you think? The left to right with the chin on the right. You can see the mouth right above the chin; the dark area on the left is the brain.

About My Day Yesterday

Well, it was the day of my 20 week ultrasound. The kids are on Spring Break so I thought it would be fun for them to go to the ultrasound and doctor appointment with Mark and me. My doctor is really great and I was excited for the girls to meet him. It didn't really turn out like I envisioned.

The kids were bored at the ultrasound and the doctor was doing a C-Section so we didn't even get to see him. The ultrasound tech was not the friendliest person and seemed kind of bored herself. I brought a VHS tape to record the ultrasound as I did with the girls. She offered to burn me a CD instead. When I got home and watched it, I discovered about 60 seconds, if that, worth of the 10-15 minute ultrasound. Luckily, I called her and explained that I didn't get what I thought I was getting (as in a video of the whole ultrasound). She offered to have me come back in and video tape another u/s for me. NICE! Then I was on hold for 19 minutes waiting to schedule the appointment. I know it was 19 minutes because I have a timer on my phone. I finally asked that someone call me back to schedule, but they never did. Frustrating! I know they are busy, but COME ON!

Other than the kids being bored, the ultrasound was great! The baby is measuring right where he/she is supposed to be and we saw everything we were supposed to see as in a 4 chamber heart, 3 vessel cord, stomach, brain, no cleft lip or palate, etc. And we didn't see what we didn't want to see as in boy or girl parts. We will truly be surprised at the birth. I was worried about "accidentally" seeing something, but we didn't!

Another reason I was bummed about not seeing the doctor is because I've been having horrible pain in my pelvic bones and I can hardly walk at times. The nurse says my hormones have caused my pelvic ligaments and bones to relax and thus are separating making it painful to walk. So, physical therapy it is for me. I did some further research on the net, of course. Symphysis pubis dysfunction is the name for it, I guess. I am really hoping it just goes away. I invested in a lovely maternity belt and will be getting some support hose to wear to work so my circulation doesn't suffer when I am standing for 8 hours! How old am I? I certainly don't feel 34 right now! More like 74.

I did have a proud moment at the mall yesterday when I went out to purchase my stylin' maternity belt. I drove around the parking lot for several minutes looking for a spot that wasn't on the other side of town. I really didn't want to walk too far because I am in pain and it is far enough inside the mall to the Motherhood store. Finally , I get to a spot that isn't particularly close, but it'll do. Someone is ready to back out and I will take their spot. But wait, here comes someone behind me as I am backing up to let the other person out. I stop, she doesn't. I motion for her to back up and point to the spot where the car is leaving. She stares at me and doesn't budge. Now the person backing up can't get out. If I drive away, I lose the spot and the lady behind be gets it. I motion again. Stone cold stare. OK lady, you are NOT going to get my spot. I do some fancy maneuvering and am able to get my spot! Ha Ha!

I have been wanting to get a pedestal for my front loading washer and my dryer so I don't have to sit on the floor when I load and unload laundry. However, it seems that I have to special order it now because they "deleted" the pedestal for my set as they are 4 1/2 years old. HUH?
I waited on hold for 10 minutes for them to tell me they would have to call me back with "availability and pricing" information. It's a good thing I am a very patient person (except when I want a good parking spot)!

Today should be better. The sun is out. I am doing laundry and grocery shopping. Maybe I'll get good news about my laundry pedestal. Honestly, it would make my day!

Growing Up and Other Things

Olivia turned six years old on March 17. I thought I had a hard time when she started kindergarten, but I think it will be just as hard, if not harder, when she starts first grade. The last few weeks she has been singing a song she is learning for her Spring music program.

(To the tune of "New York, New York"):

Start spreadin' the news, I'm leavin' today..... I want to be a part of it, First Grade, First Grade.........We've worked very hard, our teacher is proud......So open up those doors to First Grade, First Grade...............

When she started singing it the first time, I expected to hear New York, New York. Then she said "First Grade, First Grade" and my eyes welled up with tears!

FUNNY THINGS MY KIDS HAVE SAID RECENTLY:

Olivia says to me last week "I think you are having a girl because girls are all you know how to make!"

Anika came outside to tattle on Olivia for something. We told her to go back inside and work it out with Olivia. Silence. Then she says "What? You want me to hit her with a ballon? OK." She turned around and closed the door and went back inside.

OTHER HAPPENINGS:

My 20 wk ultrasound is tomorrow. The kiddos are going with us. We hope not to see any gender parts. That reminds me, I need to get a video tape!

I went shopping for maternity clothes today. It wasn't as fun as I hoped it would be. Old Navy's (Anika calls it Old Lady) selection is very small. Target's selection is even smaller. I found a few shirts at one of the consignment stores. The only clothes I REALLY liked were the new nursing uniforms I bought. Sad. Can't wait to go to work!

Olivia learned how to tie her shoes last week and Anika wrote Olivia's name without having to ask how to spell it.

I think I've changed my mind on the name "Irene." Yes, already. That didn't last long, did it?

I am going to try some "Once a Month Cooking" in April. Well, I don't actually forsee myself doing it "Once a Month" or even "Twice a Month" at first, but ultimately I want to cook and freeze 3-4 weeks worth of meals in one or two sessions. I'll start by doubling or tripling a dinner recipe and then move to a half-day session and then a full day. I've been wanting to do this for awhile now. What better time than now to start!

Jethro

Since my blog address is mark3kidsandadog, I thought I'd do a post about our dog. Shortly after Anika was born, we put our dog, Daisy, a Redbone Hound, to sleep because she had a large tumor under her armpit which turned out to be a cancerous tumor of her blood vessels. It was very sad. She was in a lot of pain and well, the rest of the story is history. Well, we decided not to get another dog for awhile. With two young kid- and a brand new house, it just wasn't the right time. We figured someday down the road, we would get another dog. After my Dad got Sadie a few years ago, we started thinking more about it. Sadie is SUCH a good dog and the kiddos just love her.

So last October, Mark was browsing through the local paper and he came across an ad for Redbone Hound puppies. We had always said we would get a Boxer or another Redbone Hound (I was partial to Boxers since Daisy was not a very intelligent dog, in fact, she probably could have used some antianxiety medication). There were only 2 puppies left, but we decided to look anyway. We were skeptical. Redbone Hound dogs are used for hunting large animals, and well, we live in Idaho so who knows what kind of a person we would be dealing with. What kind of conditions would we find this dog to be living in? What were the parents like?

We were happy to discover the owner was a very pleasant fellow who lived in a clean house and obviously took good care of all the dogs. Whew! There were 2 puppies left, but he wanted to keep one as she was receiving medication. So, there he was, the one male puppy. He was a bit bigger than the female. We let him out of his little play area and interacted with him a bit. He walked around and sniffed everything around him. He seemed playful, but not crazy. When we asked the owner if he had been calling him anything, he said "Well, he was the biggest of the litter so I've been calling him Grande." We should have known.

We named him Jethro on the way home. Mark came up with that name and the girls liked it. After we got home, I thought of the name Luther. It's a Southern sounding name, right? We all liked it except for Olivia. NO WAY were we going to change his name now!

We brought him home the first Friday in November. His first trip to the vet, he weighed 21 lb. His second trip to the vet, three weeks later, he weighed 31 lb. I thought that was a lot to grow in three weeks. Well, three weeks after that, at just under 4 months of age, he weighed 45 lb. Holy Cow, Wow! At 5 months he weighe 62 lb. We weighed him about 2 weeks ago at the six month mark and he was 67 lb. Our vet said large breed dogs are usually about half of their full grown weight when they are 4 months old. So, I guess that means he'll be about 90 lb!

The kid- just love him to death. So far, he seems to be very intelligent. He does great on a leash and loves to play fetch. He has a few bad habits we are working on, but they are manageable for now. He has a VERY loud bark so I feel safer with Jethro here when Mark isn't home. One of his favorite things to do is to go upstairs to our bedroom, plant himself at the window and watch for people walking on the trail behind our house (it's about 100 yards away) and bark as loud as he can. Yeah, I feel safe, but we have to work on the barking. Afterall, we do want to take him camping with us!

The Week in Review

It's been a great week! I am feeling so good nowdays! Could it be because it was 70 degrees yesterday?

Both the kids had the stomach flu the weekend before last. They started getting sick within 2 hours of each other. There's nothing more fun than having 2 kids throwing up one after another for hours after only having 3 hours of sleep myself! The nice thing about it was they were both 100% better 24 hours later! I am just thankful Mark and I didn't get sick!

The comments are starting to come in about how big my belly is already. I remember these comments when I was pregnant with Anika-she only weighed 7 lb 2 oz. Come on already! Yes, my dates are correct and no I am not having twins (and yes, I am sure of it because I've had 2 ultrasounds, but if you want, I can check again when I have another ultrasound in 2 weeks)!

I got to have a short ultrasound last Thursday. I was having lots of contractions at work so the doctor wanted to make sure everything was OK. It was. The baby did 2 somersaults right away and did not stop moving! I didn't feel any of it (the movement, that is)!

So, our boy name is Luke Jackson Bennett (after my Dad and my Grandpa). I am liking Irene for a girl- I think.

The girls spent the night at Grandpa's house last Friday. We were going to go to Brian and Beth's for a get-together, but Mark and I were just beat. So we watched a movie at home instead. We both fell asleep by 9:30pm, I in the recliner w/ my extra large body pillow and Mark on the couch with the dog. Ahhh, life in your 30's.