Well hello there!

Hello all,

I will take the initiative to be the 2nd person to post on Bettger Big-Top! It looks like Aunt Shelly is out on the list of participants, and I hope the list grows to include others!

Our big news is that we're now in our 10th week of pregnancy! We're 9 weeks pregnant and quickly approaching 10!

I'm counting the days til Tuesday - that's the day we get to hear the babe's heart beat for the first time. The chances of miscarrying are significantly less after you hear the baby's heart beat, so I am excited to pass this milestone.

I'm still staying active. I biked to work about 5 more times after finding out we were pregnant (had been biking 2-3 days a week since August), but with the time change that makes it get dark earlier, it makes it a little freaky to bike home at the end of the day. Still going to the gym - went this morning; had pilates yesterday, and will have pilates tomorrow; plan to do cardio and weights again on Friday.

Sleeping has been hard. The first 1/2 of the night is good, until I have to get up to pee, then when I get back in bed, my back decides to ache, and my stomach ligaments hurt. This usually occurs at 12 or 1 am, so I have 4-5 more hours left to try to ignore the pain and sleep. I hope that I will have a period of respite between the 1st and 3rd trimesters, when I can actually sleep the whole way through. I think it's possible.But when I wake up, I do feel fresh, and seem to pretty much forget the fact that I didn't have a 100% comfortable night.

This last weekend Pat and I were at Whidbey Island Friday - Sunday (came back just in time for the dinner; had already cleaned the house). We had a really good time, got some hunting in, and spent a lot of good time being together. We love it on Whidbey - very pretty; artistic, rural, and just all around nice. Lazslow likes it there too. ;)

Then we had Thanksgiving dinner this past Sunday with our intimate group of friends, the Olmsteds (baby Madelyn), Hintzes (twins & baby Owen), and Hagertys (Rachel). We enjoyed our time together, and while Pat and Nicole weren't 100% sure the turkey was fully cooked, we have had no indications of food poisoning or salmonella. Always a good thing. We looked at old pictures of our group of friends on our TV, and just in general had a good time of thankfulness and togetherness.

I made cookies last night for a Bake Sale today to benefit the United Way. Mom's recipe, with milk chocolate and butterscotch chips. Mmm-mm-mmm! Tomorrow I have Book Club.

Man, after Tuesday, the reality will set in, and we will have to hit the ground full speed ahead to get some of the pesky things done that we've been meaning to do for so long ... like moving from a double bed to a queen bed, getting projects done, clearing out rooms, etc. We'll be kicking it into high gear for certain.

So good to hear that Tim's cast is off and that he's feeling good about this milestone, and we're still praying for healing in the arm and continued healing in the foot and hand. Pat's parents and family are also praying - Pat's brother Doug was in a serious motorcycling accident 2.5 years ago, so they know all the ups and downs that come as a part of the ongoing healing.

Are Cheryl & Carl & co, and Pam & Ken & co going to join up too? What about Aunt Toni?

Molly