It's not easy being Chewie and Reuben...

This is a typical Saturday in our house - Chewie and Reuben are all tuckered out from playing with each other, and are taking a nap - back to back of course! And they found Aaron's sweatshirt to use as a pillow...
This morning Aaron and I got to sleep in, then have a late breakfast at Lou Henri's - our favorite breakfast spot in Iowa City. They have my second favorite pancakes ever (The very best pancakes in the world are a little gas station diner in Guttenberg, Iowa - Rausch's Petroleum. Go there!). Even Aaron got a pancake today, so you know they must be good since he doesn't really like sweet stuff in the morning!

Anyway, I've hit the big 9 month milestone - I think this last month is going to go by fast for me because I'm so preoccupied with finishing up with school! Yesterday I was walking down the hallway in the clinic and one of the Endo assistants asked me when I was due, asked me how I was feeling, then asked me if I felt like a blimp! Lol I wanted to punch her! I answered the first two questions, but when she asked the third I just kept on walking... Who asks a pregnant woman that??? Do I feel like a blimp... hmm... Well I certainly don't feel very skinny - thanks for bringing it up! :) Good thing I don't work with that woman!

Tomorrow is our baby shower in Iowa City - we are very excited for it! I'll try to post some pictures tomorow. :)

One month left!!!

Today we are officially one month from our due date! It's crazy to think about, and very very exciting! I am so ready to meet this little boy... and I'm also really ready to be done with school! As of right now I only have patients scheduled up to June 19th - I'm hoping that I won't go into labor before then! Today I started the last root canal I need to complete my requirements - this morning I had a new patient but yet again referred her to have her tooth pulled instead. Then this afternoon I wasn't scheduled for a patient, but I got paged for a patient who came in thinking they had an appointment but they didn't. Turns out I finally got to start another root canal! Hurray! :) It's one of the hardest teeth to do, but at least my patient is really young which helps. Anyways... one step closer to being done with my third year of dental school!

35 weeks...

Can you believe it??? We're getting even closer - baby Brummer could be here 2-7 weeks from now! I did a load of baby laundry tonight - all of the newborn and 0-3 stuff that we have, socks, bibs, etc. Then I packed the diaper bag, so it is all ready to go! Really, there's not a whole lot in it - he probably won't need much for the 10 minute drive home from the hospital! :) Aaron picked out his going-home outfit, so that's in there... a couple pacifiers, a receiving blanket, an extra outfit (for when he has a blow-out in the 10 minute drive home :) ), two diapers, and a sample pack of diaper wipes. I think it will be easiest to start the cloth diapers when we get home from the hospital, so I'm not packing those.
Well, I am tired already and it is only 9:20 pm... I need to go pack for Guttenberg before I go to bed! :)

34 weeks

34 weeks and I keep getting bigger and bigger! The baby's new thing is having hiccups almost every day. I was eating lunch at school the other day, and my belly would jump every few seconds - the girls thought that was pretty funny. :)
Anyway, I can't wait to be done with this school year... I did find out my schedule for my externships next year (well, one of them) and I will get to stay in the dental school for it which is a big relief. I have the first five weeks of the school year off, then I have my "externship" in the Special Care clinic in the dental school. After my senior year, I will still have to complete one more five week externship, but I won't know where that is for some time as most offices don't have their schedules set for next summer. I can't wait for my time off this summer though!!!

I'm tired!

Wow, I am tired lately. School has been extremely busy for me, and definitely more stressful as I am getting near to the end of my time in Super block. I have some concerns about finishing all of my Pros requirements in time before Baby boy comes, but I guess the worst case scenario is that he comes early and I have to deliver a few crowns/dentures after he is already here. I'd rather not have to deal with that, but it's really out of my hands! The same with my Endo requirements - I may have to finish a root canal after he's born, but again, that is out of my hands!
Still, it's stressful, and that adds to the tiredness! I think I'm coming full circle on the first trimester - I could go to bed at 8 and be perfectly happy! :) (However, first trimester I slept very soundly once I was asleep - now I wake up all the time!)

Anyway, life is busy and crazy for both Aaron and I, but I think we will make it through! We are both anxious for this little boy to get here - we are getting so close to June! Soon, soon, soon...

32 weeks!

So this is the eighth picture I made Aaron take tonight. I feel huge. He was sitting down taking the picture, so I made him stand up so he wasn't looking up at me... So he took it to the extreme and took the picture looking down! Hey, it's better than the other pictures! It's getting a little crazy to think there's only 8 weeks left (give or take a few) - I'm starting to do some more planning and getting things ready. It was fun to have my parents here this weekend, because I got to show them the baby furniture and some of the things we've already acquired for the baby. We also had a good time at the dental equipment show on Saturday - Mom and I mostly hit up the tables for free candy and stuff. :) We did hit up the mall and did some maternity clothes shopping. I have to take a professional picture at school on Tuesday, so we were on the hunt for a "professional" looking maternity top. Slim pickings, let me say! :) But ultimately Mom found a shirt that will be good - hopefully from the shoulders up no one will know that it's a maternity shirt! :) Aaron has been working a ton lately as two of his coworkers are out for medical conditions - this weekend was no exception. He isn't scheduled for a day off for the next two weeks! Poor guy! And school is keeping me busy, busy, busy! Tonight I finished my final paper for one of my Tuesday afternoon classes - next week we have finals for the other Tuesday classes. After that we will just be in the clinic for the rest of the year on Tuesday afternoons! This will be a blessing to me as it has been getting really uncomfortable sitting through four hours of lecture at a time!
Well, tonight Aaron and I are just relaxing a little before the week starts. Hope you all have a good week!

haircut and Java House...

So tonight I got my haircut - sorry, no pictures - it doesn't look much different than it was. Really it was more of a substantial trim. :) I think my hair has been growing faster since I've been pregnant. Anyway, it just so happens that there is a Java House across the street from where I get my haircut, so I "had" to get a mocha frappe... Why do I love them so much???
Anyway, I'm in a little bit of a nesting and list-making phase right now. As of today we are under two months from my due date, so I think the reality is starting to sink in that I need to be getting ready for this baby to be here! (funny, he has the hiccups right now as I'm writing this) I organized some of the baby clothes we have, took tags off, etc., although it's kind of silly that I folded them because I still need to wash them!
Well, it is ten and I need to go to bed...

31 weeks and counting...

I finished the blanket I've been crocheting - here it is! I like how it turned out. :) The other exciting thing is below:

Aaron put together the last piece of furniture for the baby's room! Here is the five drawar dresser. I really like the furniture, and I think it will be nice to have all of that storage!
It's exciting to think we are about two months out from the arrival of Baby Boy Brummer! I can't wait to meet him!

30 weeks!

Here I am today... People at church were asking me, "When are you due again?" Apparently I now look pregnant enough that no one is worried about asking me if I'm pregnant and I'm actually just fat. :) It's exciting to be at 30 weeks - Baby Boy is moving and rolling around, and almost all of his organs are functioning (just those lungs - he needs to bake a little longer to finish those up :) ). It's also crazy to think that the countdown might not be ten weeks from today, but maybe six or seven weeks. It's very possible he could come early - especially since I would prefer he came on time or a little bit late just so I can get through more of the school!
Anyway, I went to the Williamsburg outlet mall today with my mother-in-law, and we hit up Carter's and Osh Gosh B'gosh. I got a coupon to both stores awhile ago, and it expires this month, so I thought it would be fun to use it. We got some fun, comfy clothes for Baby Boy - some for this summer, some for this winter, and some for next summer. Here are some of the things we got:


Aren't these overalls super cute? They are for next summer when he is maybe toddling around. :)

I love this swimsuit outfit!!! It is completely impractical, really, because how much swimming will he do this summer. :) But the shirt is SPF 50, so my little fair-skinned boy will need less sunblock! :)

This little outfit is for this summer (hopefully :) ). I think the little athletic shorts are just so cute!

These are also for this summer - how cute will these be??? The one has a whale on the bum, and the other has a dinosaur!
I got some other onesies and pants for 6 and 9 months - I think they will be really nice for day care. Easy on, easy off!
Anyway, life is pretty crazy lately for Aaron and I - he is getting into the busy season at work, so he is working a lot more! I'm in a pretty busy time of school now too - I have a lot of requirements to get done before this baby comes! I can't wait to be done with them!

Hiccups

I haven't blogged in a little while - life has definitely been busy lately! This past weekend Aaron and I went back to Cedar Falls to celebrate Easter with my family. It was a good time to catch up with everyone - it's crazy how fast the nieces and nephews grow!
This week will be fairly busy for me school-wise - tomorrow night I have to be the lab monitor, so I will most likely be at the school until 11pm. Yuck! I only have tomorrow night and one night in May left, and then I'm done with lab monitor duty. I doubled-up in April because I figured I wouldn't want to be up that late in June! Tomorrow will be a pretty busy day for me in the clinic too, so we will see how it all goes. I will be a very tired girl at the end of the day!
Anyway, today I felt baby boy Brummer have hiccups for the first time. I was sitting in the dental school lobby waiting for Aaron to pick me up, and I felt him sort of jump every other second for about a minute. Normally when he kicks or moves around he will move a few times, then rest, then move some more, so this was different. It was exciting for me - kind of silly, I know - but I'm just getting so ready for him to be out here and not in there!
Well, hope you are all having a good week!

28 weeks

Finally in the third trimester! Some of my prego books say the third trimester starts as early as the 25th week - most agree that by 28 weeks I'm definitely in the third trimester. Crazy, isn't it? Time flies... Little baby boy Brummer probably weighs somewhere around 2-2.5 pounds and is 15 inches long now. I had my 28 week appointment on Friday, and I had my glucola test and Rhogam (sp?) shot that day. Hopefully my glucola test will have a good result, although I would understand if my blood sugar was high because I did drink a Decaf Skinny Mocha Frappe right before my appointment. I asked the barista if he could make it sugar free and he said no... At least I asked, right? :) Just about every time I go to the hospital for my appointment, I stop at the Java House for a treat - it's kind of my celebration for making it to the next milestone of this pregnancy! So why break tradition just for a glucola test??? :) I had a different nurse at this last appointment, and she lectured me about having the frappe right before the glucose test - if they cared about what I ate or drank before the test, they should tell me to fast for a couple hours! She was just plain grumpy though - I'm glad that I usually have Tuesday morning appointments because my experience with those nurses so far has only been good.
Well, I really need to tidy up the house a bit and get some laundry done. Hope you all have a good week!

Today's Crusade...

I have to say I'm not surprised by all of the reactions on Facebook to the Iowa Supreme Court ruling that will allow same-sex couples to marry. I have seen Facebook statuses ranging from "Way to go Iowa" to "So glad I moved out of Iowa" or "Disappointed in Iowa"... Hmm... I guess this post is more in response to those who are in the "So glad I moved out of Iowa" camp.
I feel like many Christians today are on a modern-day crusade when it comes to what is the law in America. Many Christians are raised believing that America is a Christian nation and our laws should mirror Christian morals. It's almost ironic that many Christians want to make it so that all of America has to live under laws that they decide are the moral authority, when the founders of America stood for freedom of religion and separation of church and state. I think the founders realized that when you try to regulate religion through the state, you create the Crusades all over again - trying to force everyone into your belief system because this is "God's will." When did it become the Christian's job to tell everyone else how they have to live?
Really, the reaction to the legalization of same-sex marriage by Christians scares me. How high and mighty are we, that we would have the audacity to cry when we don't get our way about a legal issue? Is this really a moral issue? Really? As a Christian, I do not feel threatened by the legalization of same-sex marriage by the state. Personally, I don't need the state to sanction my marriage - I know that the committment between me and my husband IS a marriage in God's eyes. That's all I need to know. Whether or not another couple's committment is a marriage in God's eyes really isn't a concern of mine.
I challenge Christians who are so out-spoken about their disapproval of legalized same-sex marriage to get out of their bubble and rethink this issue. What is it about legalizing same-sex marriage that bothers you - that someone will do something that you don't approve of? That this is one more step down a "slippery slope" toward the moral decay of America? Oh dear.
Maybe I should care more about this issue, but I am having a hard time finding a reason to be upset.

The diapers are here!!!

I'm super excited! The cloth diapers that we ordered arrived today, and they are super cute! We ordered two different types - newborn size prefolds and diaper covers, and then one-size pocket diapers (like the one in the picture). We have enough of the newborn size for doing cloth diapers full time, but we will probably have to buy more of the pocket diapers (they adjust to fit the baby as he grows so you don't have to buy multiple sizes) down the road if we want to use that type exclusively. We registered for the pocket diapers at Target, though, so we may get some more of those that way... Either way, we are covered for the first month! :) We also ordered a diaper pail, cloth diaper wipes, "bottom cleaner" spray (you spray that on and use the cloth diaper wipes instead of the disposable wipes), a few extra inserts for the pocket diapers, a large diaper tote bag for the diaper pail, a small diaper tote bag for the dirties when we are out and about, and some additive-free detergent to wash the diapers in. It was quite a full box! It's just nice to get all of the details taken care of, so we can start cloth diapers right away after Baby Boy Brummer is born.

27 weeks picture

The bump just keeps on getting bigger...

27 weeks...

and some weird, yucky weather today! I think this weekend has brought a lot of snowy/sleety weather to most of the midwest - we haven't had too much accumulate yet, but the ground is just about all white again. This is not good news for me - I can barely fit in my winter coat! I need April to stay in the 50's and 60's! Most of my non-maternity shirts are completely unwearable now - unless they are longer than normal and fairly loose and stretchy. There's another girl in my class who is pregnant and due a few weeks after I am - according to some of my classmates I am carrying our baby "low" and she is carrying "high" and therefore she must be having a girl! She and her husband have decided to wait to find out the sex of the baby - to each their own!
This past week was fairly eventful for me at school because I finished my first root canal on a patient (don't tell her it was my first root canal! :) ). I also sent out two cases to the lab - one to finalize a partial denture and the other to set up teeth for upper and lower dentures - hurray! It's exciting to be close to finished with two cases!
Anyway, it's been a really low-key day for me. I've really needed to just relax and catch my breath...
Hope you all are safe and warm!

Baby furniture is here!!!

Aaron picked up the nursery furniture, and put two of the pieces together! He put the crib together and the changer/dresser. Here they are...


Way to go honey! :)

Las Vegas!

Aaron and I went to Las Vegas with my parents this last weekend - we had a lot of fun while we were there! On Friday we all got massages at the spa - I got a prenatal massage where I got to lay on a special foam thing with a cutout for my belly. It was amazing to lay on my stomach - I haven't done that for months!!! We were outside for most of Friday, so I did get a little sunburned. Oops. :) Saturday was pretty relaxed as well - we went on a tour of the Marriott Grand Chateau on the strip in Las Vegas. We had dinner at the restaurant at our resort, and it was really good - a really good deal too! $20.09 for a three course dinner! I forgot to take my camera on the trip, so I only have this picture that I stole from my mom. :) At least you get a straight on shot of me for once! :)

Well, it's back to reality tomorrow. I had today off from school because the seniors are taking their boards - it was nice because we didn't get home until late last night! Tomorrow we have classes but no clinic, then Wednesday it's back to normal. Hurray for a short week!

BRRR!!!

The last few nights it's been such nice weather that we've been sleeping with the bedroom windows open. I guess I forgot that they were open all the time, because this morning I woke up and it was very chilly in our bedroom! I went downstairs and the thermostat said 59 degrees!! It's a good thing we have the heat turned off, otherwise it would have been running all night. :) I closed the windows, so now hopefully the morning sun will warm the house up again!
Anyway, the last few days I have been cleaning the house and organizing the guest room/soon-to-be baby room. The guest room was no small task, as we have let three years of stuff accumulate there. It's kind of the catch-all room - if I don't know what to do with it, I put it there! So I cleaned it out and got rid of all of the stuff I don't know why we were saving. It's a good feeling. :) We ordered our nursery furniture this week, so maybe by next week it will be here! I am very excited to get it all put together and up in the guest room to see how it will all look!
Tonight Aaron and I are headed to Las Vegas with my parents - we're staying at the JW Marriott resort of course :) - and we'll be there until Sunday. I think it will be a nice weekend getaway - Aaron has been working so much and I have been so busy with school it will be nice to see him for more than a couple hours each day! I am actually pretty much packed already, which is so unusual for me. :) We are packing in our carry-ons so we don't have to check any luggage, and therefore don't have to wait for baggage claim when we get to Las Vegas! (my backpack is stuffed... but it fits! :) ) Anyway, hope you all have a great weekend!

25 weeks picture... a little late :)

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies!

Last night Aaron and I decided we wanted a snack, and so I thought of the different cookies I could make. Aaron requested oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, which I haven't made before, so I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, with a few modifications. I think they turned out really great!

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
*** Cream all of these together ***

1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
*** Add these together ***

2 cups of rolled oats
2 cups of chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate, but the recipe calls for semi-sweet)
*** Mix these in by hand ***

I use the "Trunnell cookie scoop" which looks like a little ice cream scooper, but the recipe just says drop the dough on the pan by Tablespoons... Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes, depending on how crunchy you want them. I think these are actually better just a little darker - then they are crunchy and chewy!
Aaron gives these two thumbs up!

Anyways, it is great to be on Spring Break and sleep in. I'm a big fan of my bed!!! And the weather has been beautiful this week - Chewie and Reuben were outside a lot yesterday, and I bet they will be today as well!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!

24 week picture

So the belly is continuing to get bigger... I am pretty much in all maternity clothes now and then scrubs for school. Thank goodness I can wear scrubs to school otherwise I would have to buy alot more maternity clothes! Aaron is cringing thinking about this, because it can get a little dramatic shopping for maternity clothes. Tonight we went to the Motherhood store in the mall, and he stood outside of the dressing room, getting me different sizes and options, giving me thumbs up, or laughing outright at me. The laughing hurts a little. :) But he's mostly laughing at me grunting and groaning to get some of the clothes on, and me saying things like, "It looks like I'm wearing a tent." Or, "I think they took all of the leftover ugly fabric and decided to make maternity clothes out of it." (because really, have you seen some of the prints they use on maternity shirts and dresses? Seriously??? :) ) I should probably be more polite in the dressing room, but sometimes I just can't help myself. Tonight was fairly successful - I did try on every pair of black capri pants in the store, and I ended up with the first pair I tried on. :) They are actually cargo pants that roll up into capris, but I think they should work for spring.
Anyway, three days until Spring Break! I'm very excited to have some time off from school, and I think Aaron and I are going to try to conquer the guest room so we can get the baby room furniture. Exciting!
Hope you all have a good rest of the week!

24 weeks...

and another week closer to meeting Baby Brummer! It's crazy to think that there is a baby inside of me that could potentially survive at this point if he was born. I'm definitely wanting to keep him in there for quite a few more weeks though of course! I will try to post a 24 week picture tomorrow - I try to dress it up a little for church, so those are better pictures. :)
Anyway, as if I wasn't busy enough already I waited tables tonight at Redhead again. Some of the regular waiters/waitresses had some things come up, so Kim, the owner, called me to see if I could fill in. It's hard to turn down because the tips are pretty good, so I helped out tonight. And she made it worth my while - I got to have my favorite chicken sandwich, sweet potato fries, and chocolate cake! It was a good night! :) Our last table left around 9:15, so I still made it home at a decent hour. Aaron is still at work though, poor guy. He just called me and probably won't be home till 1:30 or 2am! At least he has Sunday and Monday off though!
It is pouring rain right now - it has been pretty drizzly all day! Maybe it's a sign that spring is on it's way??? I hope so! At least Spring Break is coming soon - I just have to make it through this week at school (which is going to be a doozy :) ) and then I have a week off! I can't wait!
Hope you all are well and dry!

23 weeks...

And I'm definitely starting to feel pregnant. It seems like in the past couple weeks I've really started to pop out, and with that comes some of the aches and pains of pregnancy! Sitting through lecture is not the most comfortable thing any more - even sleeping is not what it used to be! The other night I woke up on my back and I rolled to my side, then I got a huge cramp in my calf which NEVER happens to me. I'm wondering if it's a sciatic nerve thing or something like that. It's just weird to feel different again. I feel like I had a few good weeks there where I didn't feel sick but I didn't feel uncomfortable. I know I can't complain, because I'm only going to get bigger! I'm just surprised it's starting so soon!
Anyway, I went back to Target today, and they did have swim bottoms and more swimsuit options in the maternity section. So I tried some on and found one that is pretty good. They didn't have my size in the boy shorts that I liked, but they did have a swim bottom with a little skirt over the top of it. I bought the top and that bottom, but I ordered the right size of boy shorts online to see if those will fit. Either way - both are better than just a little bikini bottom because with the maternity tops being so long and flowing it doesn't look like you're wearing any bottoms at all unless they are shorts or a little skirt!
Well, time keeps on flying by... school is really keeping me busy lately. I've been doing lots of labwork lately, and I've had some long appointments doing procedures for the first time. I'm learning a ton, but it's exhausting! :) I think I'm going to go to bed early tonight! Have a good week everyone!

22 weeks!

Over halfway through this pregnancy- exciting! According to one of my baby books, Mr. Baby Brummer is 7 and a half inches from crown to rump and weighs approximately 12 ounces. However, I think he may be bigger than that, because at our ultrasound he was estimated to weigh 12 ounces (and that was two and a half weeks ago). I feel like he and I went through a growth spurt recently, but now I think it is slowing down again - thank goodness! I was getting a little frightened of the bathroom scale! :)
Today Aaron and I did some shopping at Coral Ridge - I thought it would be good to do some maternity shopping, maybe find a dress or something like that. I also wanted to look at some swimsuits because Aaron and I are going to Vegas for one of the weekends of Spring Break. Well, I think a man designed the maternity swimsuits because they were AWFUL!!!! I tried on two different suits - a black one and a brown one. The black one made me feel like Shamu, and I'm not even that huge yet! They were not a good look - a tent on top of teeny bottoms. Seriously, who makes little bikini bottoms for maternity swimsuits??? Lie to me - even if they are huge just label them a normal size! :) Needless to say, I did not purchase a swimsuit today. I wanted to try on a swimsuit at Target, but they only had the maternity swimsuit tops in. That's right - no swimsuit bottoms, just the tankini/tent tops! Why wouldn't they sell them together??? Well, I asked one of the salespeople, and he said that he thought they'd be getting them in soon. Seriously. I suppose I could try to buy regular swimsuit bottoms with the maternity top, but I'd like to think the maternity bottoms are designed a little differently!
Well, we did buy a really adorable little plaid jacket for Mr. Baby Brummer - it was on the sale rack at Target. I think it will be really cute for this fall! We also updated our Target registry - now that we know we're having a boy we picked out some bedding - fun stuff!
Anyway, hope you all have a great week!

Rocking chair!

Aaron and I found a rocking chair with an ottoman on Craigslist for a reasonable price - the only downside was that it had pink and green striped cushions (not very boyish :) ). So, we still bought it and today I recovered it with a lot of elbow grease from my hubby! We did buy some new foam for the seat cushion - the back cushion was still good - so here is Aaron cutting the foam to size with yes, his chef's knife. :) It actually worked really well!

Here is the finished product! I'm pretty happy with how it turned out - I may refinish the wood on the chair at some point, but it is good for now.

Finally! Ultrasound pics!

Here is a view of our baby's back - you can see the spine and ribs and back of his head.

Here is a little foot... :)

This is my favorite picture! I love this profile view of our baby!

This is our little boy's face - frontal view. His mouth and nose are to the right of his eyes.

He must be a big boy already, because he was projected to weigh about 12 ounces at our ultrasound - all of my pregnancy books say at 20 weeks he should be closer to 7 or 8 ounces!

20 weeks left, and 20 weeks left!

I'm officially over halfway done with my pregnancy - whether or not that is the case, we'll see! I'm hoping to not go too far over my due date. :) And, I am also halfway done with my third year of dental school - on Monday I will start my last rotation which is 20 weeks long! You can do the math - with Spring Break in there, I'm due a week before I finish my third year. I'm hoping my instructors will be nice about it - I have to talk with them this week as we are getting oriented to our last block. It's kind of funny how the two milestones line up, though - halfway through pregnancy and halfway finished with third year rotations. I've enjoyed the first half of this year, and I feel like I've learned a ton. I've done a lot of things that seemed scary or intimidating the first few times, but now I'm am much more comfortable doing them. I remember the first time I had to do a filling on a little kid's tooth, and that was scary! Baby teeth are little! :) Now I am much more confident in my ability to diagnose what is needed and to do it! I'm hoping this will carry over into my last rotation - I will be doing crowns, bridges, dentures, possibly implants, root canals, and deep cleanings (scaling and root planing). Tomorrow I have orientation all day long for endo (root canals), and I have an entrance exam I have to pass before I can start clinic. I think possibly Tuesday or Wednesday I have a test for Pros (crowns, bridges, dentures) that will be much more difficult to study for just because there is so much more material!
Anyway, I need to get back to studying. Hope you all have a good week!

Baby Brummer is a boy!!!

We had our ultrasound this morning - exciting and scary at the same time! It probably took about 15 minutes - we got to see just about everything, from the baby's head, heart, arms, legs, fingers, toes, etc. Oh, and some important anatomy too! :) The ultrasound tech said she was 99% certain we are having a boy (she said she will never ever say 100%), and I would have to agree with her after seeing the ultrasound. We are very excited! I hate to admit it, but I did cry a little bit getting to see the baby today - it just makes it seem that much more real. According to the ultrasound, our baby weighs 12 oz. and his size is consistent with a 20 week 3 day baby. We are actually closer to 19 weeks 3 days, but according to the tech, being within a week is normal. So our due date is still June 28.
Anyway, I will try to post some of the ultrasound pictures soon...
Yay for blue!!!

Baby stuff...

I've been knitting some diaper covers for the baby lately - I have two done. The first one is cream colored - it's my prototype - and I think it's about 12 month size. I followed a pattern I found online for the first one, then I modified it for the second one, which is green. The green one is made of merino wool and is very soft! I think it is about 0-3 months.
(Side note: the baby is kicking so much right now! I think he/she knows how excited I am to see him/her tomorrow! Or, he/she really likes jambalaya- that's what we had for dinner tonight. I've got to eat all the spicy food now to get the baby used to it! :) )
Anyway, I'm knitting another cover right now - I'm about 2/3 done with it - and it is yellow. I think it will end up being closer to 3-6 months. I'm just excited to be able to knit something in a gender specific color soon!!! Pink or blue... we shall see!
Thanks for all of the votes on what we're having - Aaron is still holding out hope for twins, and I am praying desperately that that is not the case! :) I'm not sure what kind of ultrasound we'll have tomorrow, but I'm sure we'll get images of some kind. I'll try to post them tomorrow night!

19 weeks!

Today I am officially 19 weeks! Three more days until our ultrasound - we are so excited to get to see the baby!
It's been a very good day so far - we both slept in this morning and then we went to a late breakfast at Lou Henri's, a great little diner in Iowa City. I had way too much to eat, but that's how it's been lately! I'm hungry all the time!
Anyway, this morning Aaron felt the baby kick for the first time, so that's pretty exciting! Up until now I've been able to feel the baby but as soon as I would tell him to try to feel, the baby would stop moving!
Today the baby is 6 inches long from crown to rump and weighs about 7 oz. Looking at how much weight I've gained, it's a little depressing to think that only 1/2 of a pound can be attributed to the baby! :)
21 more weeks to go!

Yawn!

It's Wednesday - halfway through the school week - and I'm tired! Today was a busy day for me at school. In the morning I was at the Center for Disabilities and Diseases (it's right next to the dental school) to observe the Pediatric Dentistry residents at work with kids and adults with special needs. It was a very interesting morning, as there was a wide array of patients with all different kinds of disabilities. Then, in the afternoon I was scheduled with a little four-year-old boy who has lots of cavities - it was supposed to be his third visit to get more cavities filled, but today he was not going to have it! Poor guy, he put up with it the first and second visit, but today even with nitrous he would have fussed through the whole appointment. So it was a good experience for me to get to use the nitrous with him, and also to see when you decide to call off treating the patient. Hopefully his parents will decide to spend a little extra money and have him sedated and seen by faculty. The other patient I was scheduled with this afternoon was a little girl who is a month from being 2 years old. I did a very short exam with her, brushed her teeth, and put on some fluoride - all with her crying and yelling! It was a day for yelling and screaming and crying!!! She did calm down as soon as we were done - as my instructor said, she was exhibiting completely "age appropriate behavior." :) Even with all of the fussing and crying, I still love to see the little kids - it's very rewarding when you can earn their trust, and also rewarding to do everything you can to keep them from having problems in the future (Please, mothers everywhere, get rid of the sippy cups with juice! :) ).

So now I am home - Aaron works this evening, so it's me and the boys. I was going to take them for a walk, but I only had one leash - the two leashes we normally use are in Aaron's car from when we went to my parent's this weekend! I took them on a walk one at a time, which I think really confused them but they did pretty well. They really don't like to walk on sidewalks that have been salted - I'm not sure if the salt itself is sharp to their paws, or if it is more of a chemical reaction. I felt bad when they would hold up one paw at a time as if to say "OUCH!" so I tried to wipe them off and then avoid more of the salted sidewalks... They are just fine now, so I'm not too worried about it. Still, I'd like to know what it is about the salt that bothers them. Anyway, now they are snoozing - I've been a good girl and I've done some studying since Aaron isn't here right now. And now I'm burned out from studying and I'm going to watch Top Chef! Good night!

Just 7 days...

Until we find out whether we are having a girl or a boy! It feels like the last week went by pretty quickly, so I'm hoping this week will feel the same! I'm really getting excited for this next appointment - not only to find out the sex of the baby, but to get to see the baby on the ultrasound! Super exciting!!!
I feel like I'm having a bit of a growth spurt - I got on the scale again this morning, and it's definitely going up! It would be depressing except I know it has to go up so the baby will grow - still, I haven't weighed this much since my freshman year of college! Good ole' Freshman Fifteen - well, I'm not sure exactly what I gained that year from my senior year of high school, but I know the cafeteria food, late night pizza, and meeting for coffee (latte's) all the time didn't help!!! I think I'm still 8 - 10 pounds off of what I weighed the most in college, so I'm actually fairly encouraged because I know I've lost the weight before!
Still, looking in the mirror, it is just a weird change to watch. I don't have a waist anymore - I just feel thick in the middle - and now I just want a belly to pop out so I look more pregnant and less fat! lol It's ironic that the women are the ones who carry the baby and go through such a body change, when we are the ones with the body issues already! :)
Anyway, it's snowing this morning - it hasn't snowed in a week or two, so it'll be nice to cover up all of the dingy snow. I hope it doesn't snow too much though, otherwise we'll lose a lot of patients the rest of this week! I just want it to warm up soon... :)
Hope you are all having a good week - I can't wait for next Tuesday to post what we are having!

baby kicks... or punches???

It's so funny to sit here on the computer, and feel little bumps from the baby. At first I thought I must be imagining it, but now I am very certain of what it is! Little Baby Brummer is saying hello! Aaron and I are getting impatient about finding out whether we are having a boy or girl - I think the next two weeks are going to feel like forever!!! When we were in Des Moines, I found a little snow suit that would be just right for this next winter - it was at Von Maur and was marked down to $12! The only catch - it's blue! :) I bought it anyways, because it's a 50% chance that it's a boy- however, I'm sure that I just confirmed that indeed we are having a girl! :) We'll see - at least we have a Von Maur in town so I could take it back if it's a girl. Either way, I still may keep it because maybe someday we will have a boy!

I'm really ready for the cold weather to move on - I know it has warmed up a little, but it is still cold enough that I have to really bundle up to walk to the bus stop. I'm ready for spring! Let's melt away the snow!

Fun in Chicago...

We are back from our long weekend in Chicago with my parents - we had a very good time and ate very well!! :) On Saturday we went to a matinee of Wicked, which was really fun (a lot different for us the second time around as Aaron and I know all the words to the songs because we have listened to the CD way too many times! :) ). We went to dinner afterwards at Gioco, an Italian restaurant near our hotel. We stayed at the Blackstone (thanks to Aaron's Marriott discount :) ) which is right on Michigan Ave. so there were some really great views. It's a historical building and we got to take a quick tour on Sunday evening - we even got to see the Presidential suite on the top floor, and "The Smoking Room" where some of the Republican big-wigs picked Warren G. Harding for their presidential candidate. It really was a neat thing to see, and fun to imagine all of the famous people who had been where we were standing! Anyway, Sunday morning we went to M. Henry, the top rated restaurant out of 4300 in Chicago on Trip Advisor! We went for brunch, and it was so good! It was so hard to choose what to order because so many things sounded so good! We went shopping after that - we stopped at Pottery Barn Kids and Babys R Us and another mall. We've decided on a crib from Babys R Us - I'll post a picture sometime. I really like it - it's very simple and has clean lines.
Some exciting baby-related news: Yesterday and today I have definitely been feeling the baby moving! It's so exciting to actually feel something, even though they are just little tiny bumps. I can't wait for some bumps that Aaron will be able to feel!

Chicago time!

Tonight Aaron and I are headed to Chicago with my parents! We are excited for a little get-away and time off from reality. We are staying in a Marriott downtown (of course :) ), and tomorrow we are going to see Wicked! Aaron and I have seen it with his family, but we loved it so much we are very excited to see it again! Hopefully we will have some good shopping time to go look at cribs and such - too bad we don't know what we are having yet!
Anyway, I'm hoping it warms up soon - it is just so bitterly cold and I'm not thrilled to think about what the utility bill is going to be next month!
Have a good weekend everyone!

Diapers and formula

Yesterday when I was at the Motherhood maternity store, they asked for my contact information so they could send coupons between now and my due date. I decided sure, why not, and the clerk told me that two of the companies that send out coupons are Huggies and Enfamil. This makes me laugh, though, because these are two companies that I probably won't use when our baby is born - not because I don't like the companies, but we are planning on breastfeeding and cloth diapering. I don't think it's all that ground-breaking to say that we plan on breastfeeding, but the cloth diapering is still something that I don't think many people get. I have my reasons for cloth diapers - one of the biggest reasons is environmental impact of disposable diapers. We live in a very disposable society - anything you can use once then throw away is very convenient, well convenient for us in the short term. The diaper companies know what they are doing when they get you hooked on the convenience - you are a customer for years!
The financial benefits of cloth diapers are another reason for me - the average amount spent on disposable diapers is a couple thousand dollars per child, whereas with cloth diapers it can be much less, and the diapers can be used for more than one child. Sure, there are costs for laundering the diapers, but they are still far less than the cost of disposables...

Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox for now. :) No, really I don't want to be on a soapbox - this is just my place to explain why we are going to do what we are going to do. :) And I just find it funny what you get in the "free gifts" from stores for expecting parents - did I mention I also got a Playtex bottle with bottle liners from the Motherhood store when I registered? And Baby's R Us gave us a box with coupons and samples of Huggies wipes... lol They start so early with marketing!

Preggo pants revisited

Today I went shopping for a pair of dressy preggo pants as none of my pre-pregnancy pants fit anymore! I had tried on jeans at Target before and that was not fun - they did not fit at all! Then before Christmas I found some jeans at Kohl's that worked, so those were my only pair of preggo pants. When I'm in school I wear scrubs all the time, so those still fit (for now :) ). I did stop at the uniform store today to try on the next size up - they were huge! I ended up getting a different petite style in the next size up so they weren't quite as huge all over, and they do have elastic on the back of the waist. Scrub tops, however, are either very fitted if they are made for women, or they are cut completely wrong if they are unisex. I may have to get creative later on and do some alterations on the next size up.
Anyway, I went dress pants shopping today and was pleasantly surprised with Target - I found a pair of brown slacks there that are my pre-pregnancy size (which makes me feel better :) ) and they sit below the belly. I think they will be great for post-partum as well! I also went to the Motherhood store in the mall, and I found a pair of gray slacks there - they have a thin stretchy waist that goes all the way up over the belly. They should be pretty comfy! It was fun to spend some time at the mall today now that I'm starting to feel better.
Well, Tuesday is our 16 week appointment, and then we get to schedule the ultrasound appointment! Last time the doctor said that we would only have three weeks in between this one coming up and the ultrasound appointment, so that would be February 3rd! Exciting!

Hawkeye game

Tonight Aaron and I went to the Iowa basketball game - it was a close game with some bad calls, and sadly we lost. :( But we still had fun! Aaron got two tickets from the Marriott - they were actually courtside, second row! They were pretty great seats, and in the seats right in front of us there was a guy with his little boy, probably 4 years old. The little boy was so cute - he would cover his eyes from time to time, then watch the cheerleaders for awhile. Then he was eyeing our ice cream, and after half time he and his dad came back with some ice cream and he looked very happy. :) It was a fun night and only would have been better if the Hawks would have won!
Anyway, I'm very happy tomorrow is Friday - I am very ready for the weekend! I really need some time to do some research on daycare - it's really overwhelming at this point, but all of my books say I need to get on it because there are waiting lists! I'd really like it if the dental school said I could strap the baby on my back like a papoose and bring him/her to school every day! (seriously though, how cool would it be if the dental school had a daycare??? The University has a few, but several of them only take age 2 and up.) I've found a few places online that I want to call and check out - we'll see how it turns out!
Hope you all are having a good week!

Best day yet!!!

I think today has to be the best day I've had since I've been pregnant - I woke up feeling good (always starving, but still good :) ). I had a very busy day at school with a break at lunch for a Sloppy Joe from the cafeteria! Yum!!! I really am starting to feel better because a Sloppy Joe just sounded awesome - I went back up to the clinic after lunch and regretted not getting another Sloppy Joe! :) Then I had a busy afternoon again in the clinic and Aaron picked me up from school. We went to Texas Roadhouse, and I still felt good, and none of the smells got to me, and I ate lots of good food... I told Aaron today that I think I've turned the corner on this pregnancy thing - instead of feeling sick or just at 50% most of the time, now I feel good but am always hungry! It's wonderful to enjoy food again though. For awhile there nothing sounded good, and it was the most frustrating thing trying to figure out what to eat that woud sit okay. So, all in all a good day. I think my prego book says that from here on out I will probably average about one pound a week until I deliver - a little frightening to think about, but with how hungry I've been today I believe it!!!
Anyway, I'm getting a little guff about not posting any pregnancy pictures, but I have to say I'm really not showing right now. I just look like I've been eating what I ate today every day! :) I have a healthy pooch right now, but if you didn't know I was pregnant right now I think you'd just think I'm chunky. :) But, I'm posting two pictures anyway. The first is from Christmas day when I was 13 weeks and 5 days pregnant.

The second is on our trip to Phoenix, and I believe I was 14 weeks and 1 day pregnant that day. The Phoenix picture makes me look more pregnant because I have a billowy shirt on. :)

I will take more pictures soon, probably this Saturday at 16 weeks. We'll see. :)

15 weeks!

Photo is from Flickr- Jay Titcomb

So today I am officially 15 weeks along, and according to my book the baby is about the length of a pear! Aaron and I got back last night from our trip to Phoenix - we had a good time there despite the majority of the family getting sick about halfway through the trip! I'll try to post some pictures later - I'll have to do that from Aaron's computer though because he downloaded the pictures to his computer. Anyway, when we got back the house was 59 degrees! Brrr! Our dogsitter called us while we were gone saying that the furnace wasn't working, so we called our AHS people and got someone to go out and fix it. Well, they thought it was better, but last night it was cold, and this morning it was down to 51 degrees! So we got on the phone and called again, and the same guy came back and fix it - apparently some wire wasn't properly connected. Now it is a toasty 70 degrees in the house, and I'm going to turn it back down to where we normally keep it. But it's nice to know it can get to 70 degrees!
Well, it's nice to have the weekend to catch up and get ready to go back to school on Monday. Then the countdown is to Spring Break!

Heartbeat!

Today we had our second doctor's appointment and we got to hear the baby's heartbeat! Very fast - whump, whump, whump, whump... :) I forgot to ask the doctor what the rate was so we could guess the gender of the baby. Next time I'll ask! In two more appointments we'll have the ultrasound to determine whether we are having a boy or a girl- pretty exciting! Aaron and I will have a hard time not going overboard once we do find out what we're having!
Anyway, two more days of school and then it's Christmas break. I'm so excited for a break! Can't wait!!!!

12.5 and counting...

According to one of my books, this week the baby is the size of a little lime! When I look at my stomach, I can't imagine a lime in there. I'm starting to get a firm bit of pudge on my stomach, but I bet it will be awhile till I start to show enough for people to notice. I'm still fighting the queasiness, although some days are better than others. I'm hoping that it will start to go away soon though! Tomorrow we have our second doctor's appointment, and hopefully we will get to hear the heartbeat with the Doppler.
Today I had my two finals for my 1st semester classes. The first one was fairly difficult, but I'm sure I at least passed. :) The second was actually open book, so it was pretty easy. It would be pretty terrible if I don't get an A on that final! :) When I left school today, it was snowing - we've probably accumulated 2-3 inches so far and it's really light and powdery. I shoveled our sidewalk and driveway, which was probably in vain since it's still snowing, but at least if we have to do it again, there is less to shovel!
Anyway, three days left in clinic and then it's Christmas vacation!!! Maybe then I'll find the time and motivation to clean my house... :)

Chewie is picking up the slack...

So tonight Aaron and I were watching TV in the living room, and out of nowhere, Chewie comes in with the hand broom in his mouth! Apparently Chewie is sick and tired of our house being a pit, and he knows Mommy is not her usual pick-up-on-the-weekend self so he took it upon himself to do a little housework! :) What a good dog... I wonder if I could get him to clean the toilets too??? Poor Chewie got a little miffed when I had to take the hand broom away... Now he's licking the carpet. Okay, I get the hint - time to sweep the living room!

10.5 weeks and counting...

So according to one of my prego books, the babe is close the size of a strawberry right now. Cool! It's amazing how fast they grow - just 8 weeks ago the baby was the size of a poppyseed and did not even look remotely like a human! I am counting down the weeks till the second trimester - I am really ready to be done with the queasiness! Plus, I know I will eventually be pining to be the size I am now, but the grass is always greener... :) It'll be a nice to have a bump to remind me that there really is a baby growing and I'm not just feeling sick for nothing!
Anyways, Thanksgiving break was great but it felt too short! It was nice to catch up with the fam and we did have a lot of fun making tons of cookies! For pics of that, check out Ellen's blog. I'm looking forward to Christmas break - two and a half weeks away!

First time to see the baby!

Today we had our first appointment with the doctor, and our official due date is June 28, 2009! We are pretty much right on track with where I thought we are at - today I am 9 weeks and 3 days along. The doctor did a "mini ultrasound" today just to confirm how far along we are and to check out the baby. This kind of ultrasound doesn't print pictures or anything like that, but we did get to see the baby's heart beating! Very exciting! The rest of the appointment was pretty normal - lots of paperwork to fill out, bloodwork, etc. I really like my doctor - she talks pretty fast but she seems fairly laid back.
Anyway, the last few days I felt pretty horrible, but today I felt a little better (probably because it's the day of my appointment!). I can't wait to get past the nausea!!! Maybe just a few weeks more...
Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

GO HAWKS!!!

I'm watching the Hawkeye game right now, and we are just demoralizing Minnesota! And, Shonn Greene just beat Tavian Banks single-season rushing record! I'm glad I'm not a Gopher fan today! :)
The puppies are really cute right now - Reuben keeps curling up right next to Chewie or he even lays his head on Chewie. I think he's trying to tell us to turn the heat up! :)
Anyway, I felt pretty good this morning, but the longer I'm awake today, the worse I'm feeling. I think right now how I'm feeling is really related to how tired I am. I didn't sleep in a ton today - I woke up around 7 and dozed for a little while after that. That's still sleeping in, and I did go to bed fairly early last night - who am I kidding, I go to bed early every night! (at least lately... :) ) I think I'm going to go to bed after the Hawkeyes finish steam-rolling Minnesota.
Just a few more days till our first OB appointment! And, just after that is Thanksgiving! Hurray!

A good day...

Today has been a pretty good day - probably the best I've felt in awhile! I was still a little sick this morning, but this afternoon and evening I've felt pretty good! I even felt like I could eat anything at all, which is really rare!
A week from tomorrow is our first doctor's appointment, and I'm counting down the days!!! I know that it's not going to change anything since I already have a good idea of my due date, but it just seems so official... And it's just one more step on the way to getting to meet this baby!
So I was at Target yesterday shopping for one of my friend's wedding showers, and on a whim I decided to try on a pair of maternity jeans (I have to admit my next-size-up jeans are getting a little snug!). Anyways, I don't know what pregnant woman would want SKINNY LEG jeans!?!?! But the only style they had were that style, and even when I tried on a few sizes bigger than what I used to wear, they were still really tight! It was kind of a depressing trip, because honestly I didn't think I had gained very much weight so far! I'm optimistic that other stores will carry other styles - I'm think something more like a relaxed fit is going to be the way to go! :) I don't need the maternity pants yet, but I'm thinking in a few weeks it might be more comfortable! Maybe by Christmas break I'll be needing them - I don't think the jeans I have now would be very comfy for a plane ride to Phoenix!
Anyway, I have two tests tomorrow, but both for classes that are kind of "fluff" classes. I should probably get on with my studying... Hope you all have a great week!

Fun stuff!!!

I got a package from UPS today, and this was inside! Aren't they cute??? They clip on the stroller or car seat so that they can't be thrown out by the baby! Thanks Ellen and Jim! It's a fun reminder that there is an end in sight to this pregnancy business, and it will be worth it in the end!
Honestly, this first trimester so far has been so different than I imagined it would be. I had no idea how tired I would be, and how sick I would be! There are all kinds of smells that really get to me - it's funny some of the things that really set me off. When I was in the Oral surgery rotation, the plastic that the suction tubing came in smelled so bad to me, and when I open the fridge and there's leftover pizza or something like that, it's pretty bad too! Last night we went to Old Chicago with my classmate and her husband, and nothing really sounded good to me except chocolate milk! Then all of the food came, and that just about did me in - my nose is so hypersensitive now! I bought a book about morning sickness, and I really like it. It's very encouraging and doesn't just say "eat crackers in the morning" or "just deal with it - it will go away in a few weeks." I'm starting to figure out what foods always sit well with me - they are usually pretty bland! :) Today has been pretty decent as far as the past few weeks have been - maybe as I get the food stuff figured out, the queasiness will be a lot more manageable!
Anyway, it's less than two weeks till my first doctor's appointment - it'll be the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Hopefully we get to hear the heartbeat!

Fall table

I'm a little late in posting this, but better late than never! Aaron gave me flowers for my birthday, and he coordinated them to go with my fall decorations on my kitchen table! I thought he did a good job!

Good day...

Today has been a pretty good day! This morning I slept in really late, then Aaron brought me breakfast in bed, then I stayed in bed until 1pm watching TV! It was wonderful! :) Then my friend Mary called me, and she came over a little bit later to watch the Hawkeye game. (Aaron started his new position at work today, so he had to be there at two this afternoon.) So we really expected the Hawks to lose the game today, so when we kicked the winning field goal with ONE SECOND LEFT!!!! we went crazy! Anyways, we met up with some other friends downtown later, and then we went to another friend's apartment later - it really felt like I was back in undergrad, but I feel old! I've been going to bed a lot earlier lately because I've been exhausted - I guess sleeping in as much as I did today has to count for something!
Well, I think I'm going to get ready for bed. Hopefully Aaron will be home from work soon!

Rachael - hope you are feeling better!!! We are praying for you!

queasy queasy...

Well, I haven't been feeling the best these past few days. I'm certainly convinced now that I'm pregant! :) Last night I gave Aaron a list of things to get from the grocery store that I thought sounded good. I've read that ginger is good for settling down queasy stomachs, so I had him get some ginger snaps and some ginger tea so I could try that. I also had him get some Honey Nut Cheerios, Cheeze Its, apples, and cottage cheese - tonight, none of it sounds that great! Truthfully, nothing sounds that great.
I can't complain, it does come and go - right now I'm doing better than earlier today.

I voted today - I'll be interested to see how the election pans out. I'm not even going to watch the election coverage on TV though because I think it's really annoying. All they are going on are exit polls and maybe some incomplete results... The next few days will be more interesting to watch!

Hope you all are doing well!

Hurray for breakfast...

The past few days I've been a little queasier than before, and it's funny how it does seem to peak right around the time I get up in the morning. My pregnancy book says it's because I have an empty stomach, and I believe it! You can ask Aaron - I'm probably the crankiest right after school when I'm STARVING! and I don't feel very good when I'm getting ready in the morning for school (I can't say I'm cranky then because Aaron is already gone to work, so I don't have anyone to be cranky with! :) ). But once I eat breakfast I do a lot better. It comes and goes.
Anyway, this morning I made pancakes and now I feel a lot better! Chewie and Reuben always like it when I make pancakes because they usually get the leftovers or the ones that are a little dark. It's too hard to make up batter for only one person, because you can't cut an egg in half! :)
Well, I'm going to try to be more productive today than I was yesterday. Our house is pretty much a disaster right now and I need to do laundry... Hope you all have enjoyed your extra hour of sleep!

Exciting news!!!

We're pregnant! So this obviously isn't the pregnancy test, but I thought it got the point across! We are about six weeks along, so it's still pretty early. It was too hard to keep it a secret! I haven't been to the doctor yet - my appointment is in about three weeks, so that's when we'll get the "official" due date. My guess is the end of June/beginning of July, which is right when I'll be finishing up my third year of school. Good timing! :) We're excited!

long time no update!

I realized I haven't updated my blog since very early in my Oral Surgery block, and I'm already halfway through it! Life has been busy lately, as cliche as that sounds. I've started an IV in oral surgery, and I'm scheduled for another on Friday. It's good to know how to do it, but I don't think I'll be doing IV sedation out in practice - it's a really big liability, and I think the cases that require that much sedation are better referred! But, it's fun to do it now in school.
I felt like a big dope at school today though, because I couldn't find the right codes to put into the computer today for some of the patient appointments, and then I accidently put in the wrong code for a patient today and I had to have the faculty approve the change... Ugh... The computer can be really annoying. I feel like I'm doing okay clinically, but there is always so much paperwork - even more than when we are in practice because there are eval's we have to have people fill out, and it's easy to forget to have the instructors fill them out. My mind is elsewhere lately... :)
Anyways, hope everything is going well with all of you!

Almost one week down...

It's Thursday night and I'm pooped! This is the first week of my Oral Surgery rotation, and I've been on hospital assignment for the last two days. Yesterday and today I had to be at the hospital at 6:30 am for rounds, and I have to be there again tomorrow morning for rounds. That's early! Yesterday I was there till 5pm and today I was there till almost 6pm. I've gotten to observe alot and assist some too - today I scrubbed in on our afternoon surgery which was pretty cool but tiring! On Tuesday I saw my first oral surg. patient - I was scheduled for a pt. with 5 teeth that needed to be pulled but he rescheduled, so I was reassigned an emergency case that came in. That pt. had a swelling and a broken down tooth, so I just pulled that tooth. It went really well and I learned a lot. I'll be a lot more confident this next week when I see more patients.
Anyway, I am happy to be home for the evening! I have some pictures from the I-MOM weekend I want to post, but I can't find the camera cord right now...
Hope you have a great weekend!

One block down!

So today I finished my Oral Diagnosis and Radiology rotation! I took my radiology final this morning, and then we had the rest of the day to finish up our requirements (which I luckily got done yesterday so I had the rest of the day off!). There were out of state interviews today for dental school applicants, so I volunteered to give a couple tours around the dental school. It was a lot of fun - they had a lot of good questions to ask, and they made me feel old! I've really enjoyed dental school so far, so I hope they all left with a feeling that it isn't too horrible! :)

Tonight I"m heading up to Cedar Falls to spend the night before I-MOM tomorrow - should be a busy day!

Weekend in Atlanta!

This is the view from our hotel room downtown Atlanta. We flew down last Friday evening with Aaron's parents and met up with his sister there. On Saturday, we went to see Les Miserables at the Fox theater which was really cool!!



We had a lot of fun in Atlanta and we would love to go back sometime to see more of the city! We got back on Sunday and got caught up for the week. This week has been pretty crazy busy for me - I had a Pathology test today and on Friday I have a Radiology test. This weekend I'll be heading up to Waterloo for Iowa Mission of Mercy, a weekend of free dental care donated by Iowa dentists, hygienists, assistants, dental students, lab techs, etc. This is the first year that Iowa has done this, and I think it's pretty cool! My dad and I went to Texas the spring of my undergrad freshman year for TMOM and that was a really cool experience. I think that's what really cemented what I wanted to do in life, and it was inspiring to see so many people helping out people who really need the help. This weekend I get to practice in the capacity that I work in the dental school, so I will get to do drilling and filling, shots, etc. when I'm there. I'm very excited for the weekend! I'll try to post some pictures after the weekend.
Anyway, it's bedtime and I'm sleepy! Good-night all have a great rest of the week!

What I've been up to lately...

This is from Labor day weekend - Aaron and I spent some of the weekend with my family in Guttenberg. It was really great to see them all since we don't get to see them as often as we would like. I like Alex's "smile" in this picture. :)

I love this picture! Aren't they cute - definitely full of mischief! :)

One of Aaron's good friends got married last weekend and he was an usher in the wedding. The couple spent the night at the Marriott where Aaron works, so we decorated their hotel room. I made these chocolate covered strawberries, put together a little gift basked with snacks, and Aaron bought some champagne to put in there too. Add some rose petals, and voila!!!


I've been working on crocheting a baby blanket for my friend Mandie who is due October 6th. Here's the finished blanket - it ended up a lot bigger than I thought it would be, but atleast her baby can grow into it! :)

I went to a baby shower for her today - she is one of my dental school classmates, so about 30 of the girls in my class came for her baby shower. One of the girls in my class made this cake- we got a kick out of it!

She got a lot of cute stuff, and we had a very good time. Good luck, Mandie!

Back to school!

I have been back to school officially for five days now - we started back last Thursday and Friday with Orientation and then Monday I started my rotation in Oral Diagnosis, Radiology, and Pathology. I think this is a really great rotation to start out in because I am getting to learn the ins and outs of the new computer system (we just switched to paperless records this summer). No drilling and filling for these five weeks - I am doing comprehensive exams and treatment planning in Oral Diagnosis, I'll be following a Pathologist for part of the rotation, then I am in Radiology for the rest of the time making radiographs and writing up reports. Yesterday I had my first patient in Oral Diagnosis and tomorrow I have two more. Today I was in Radiology all day and learned a lot - I made radiographs for three patients. I am learning so much already! There is still such a learning curve in dental school, but it's alot of fun to see all of the knowledge we already have being put into use. My next rotation is in Oral Surgery - I don't think there is any way to really practice pulling a tooth until you actually do it, so that will be quite the experience the first time I do it! I'll let you all know how that goes. :)
Anyway, it's going to be a busy year - hopefully Aaron won't forget what I look like! :)