Announcing Baby Kennerly!

Andrew and I are SOOOO very excited to tell you all that we are expecting a baby on October 13! Today was the 3 month doctors appointment, and it was SO fun! We got there and the doctor tried to find the heartbeat with a little handheld device, and she couldn't find it so we go to have another ultrasound. Right when the doctor put the thingy (I obviously have no idea the terminology) on my belly, we could see the baby and it jumped! I think The Blueberry (Andrew and I refer to it as The Blueberry because we don't like saying "it" and when I found out I was preggers the book said the kid was the size of a blueberry) was comfie and she disrupted him/her! It was so cool to see the baby involuntarily move, I was instantly relieved and started to cry a little. Once we heard the heartbeat, that was when Andrew started to relax a little more! Unfortunately this picture isn't as good as what we could see, but the little kiddo was waiving at us! We could see all it's little fingers, and even a nose. PRETTY DAMN COOL if you ask me, but I suppose I'm just a little biased.
I'm actually starting to feel a little better too, which is really exciting. I haven't felt like myself the last 6 weeks or so, I've been SO tired and feling sick about 50-75% of the day. No barfing though! Andrew and I are thrilled and nervous and a little overwhelmed, all at the same time! We got a few little onezies from some friends, and both of us looked at them like there's NO WAY we'll have something that tiny, but it's true. We are going to find out the sex, but not for 2 months, so stay tuned!!

I realize I am weird. .

BUT, today I was in the soda isle at Target at lunch, when something caught my eye in the freezer section. Now, I got so excited about this you would think someone invented fat-free, calorie free yummy ice cream, but no. I found the superpretzel. 30 seconds in the microwave and bam! a salty, chewy, bland delishious snack. Thought I'd share, in case you may feel the same way.

Exactly how I like to spend a Sunday. . .

Last Sunday I spent a FABULOUS day with my 3 day Girls at Karen's house. She's the best hostess I've ever encountered, and there is something about hanging out with these women that just makes me feel better. We're very unlikely friends, ranging in age from 23-64, but I have a feeling we'll be friends for A LONG LONG time. We had such a great time, just talking and laughing ALL DAY LONG. Karen actually fed us 2 meals because we stayed so long. What a fun day!!

Things I've been thinking about today. . .

It's really been a long time since I've posted to this blog! I was going to post about a week ago, but then I realized that it should be a good one and I lacked motivation. But my mind is going a mile a minute today, and I thought there are a few things share-worthy. It actually started when I was checking my personal e-mail (at work, bad girl, but I don't feel a bit bad about it seeing as I was here until 7:30 last night) and seeing this quote from Christopher Reeve:
" We can either watch life from the sidelines, or actively participate...Either we let self-doubt and feelings of inadequacy prevent us from realizing our potential, or embrace the fact that when we turn our attention away from ourselves, our potential is limitless."

—Christopher Reeve

I though this was pretty remarkable. I'm in a funk at work, but I know it's all me, and I think I'm going to write this on my desk so every once in a while I come across it and remember it. That's one thought I've had.

I also keep thinking about my CRAZY dream last night. There was a lot of water, and I was wading through it looking for clues hidden in cell phones. Then, suddenly I was in a parking lot and saw Cynthia (who lives in Boston) and she was suddenly an interior designer and knew everyone in the parking lot. As I am thinking about that now, she was in the Coffee Bean parking lot in Mission Valley- that's weird. THEN, suddenly I was watching her from outside somewhere (like a voyeur), through a window, and she was holding a very white baby (which is weird because she's Mexican, but married to a white guy, so maybe that's where it comes from?). I don't know, I'm weird.

Another thought I keep having is about Grandma. I am scared of losing her someday - half her body is numb and she thinks it's a pinched nerve.

I had lunch with my friend Keelia (and Mason) today, and it was fabulous. I was thinking how funny it is that I never really thought about being attached to my friends kids. I remember a long time ago thinking about the days when we would all have kids and they would run around together, but I never thought about becoming attached to the actual kid. It's fun, how I imagine being an aunt would be.

I also keep thinking about how fun our "girls night" was on Saturday. If you were there, you know what I mean. In the past, it could be awkward bringing different friends together, but I think we may be getting past that stage in life! Or perhaps it was just the entertainment. . . .

Our Receptionist at work has a daughter my age and she's just finding the man she wants to marry(the daughter), and our Receptionist is so happy about it (because she wants grandkids). She was telling me about it today (I have worked, I swear) and she said to me that the way I talk about Andrew she can tell I really love him. That struck me, and I'm happy that others can see it. It made me feel very lucky to have Andrew as my husband.

Now my nagging thought is that I should get back to work. One other though about work- I always thought that I want the job where I can work independently and do my own thing, but I didn't know how responsible I would feel for all the decisions I would make. Like I said, I'm in a job funk. That's all she wrote!

The 3 Day

I think I'm the luckiest girl around! I signed up for this crazy task of walking 60 miles in 3 days, and not one of my friends or family members told me I was crazy, they only supported me!
I think I was a little crazy to sign up for this, but I'm SO glad I did it. It's been a long time (I can't even think of something, actually) since I've been this proud of myself. I pushed through the mental and physical barriers and kept going. The women I met through this experience were the only reason I could push through, and my wonderful Husband/Sherpa!
We started out on Friday morning full of energy- dancing and laughing and crying. Opening ceremonies was really emotional, I could have gone into the REALLY ugly cry, but stayed at just the ugly cry. EVERYTHING that the Susan G. Komen foundation did to put this shindig together was so well thought out. They really thought of everything, except an amputee station for our feet! We walked our little hearts out on day 1, and I came into the finish line thinking I have no idea how i'm going to get up and do this again!
Day 2 I was really sore, but it's amazing what the body will do- I started walking and got a rythem and just kept going. My blisters got really bad about mile 6 or 7, and I debated for a long time if I should take the sweep van. I cried and cried- the ugly cry- about it, and hopped in the "pimp mobile". I felt like I was giving up. I was transported to lunch, skipping about 6 miles, where the nurse who fixed my feet told me that I should stop walking because of my blisters, so I could finish the walk on Sunday. I cried. Are you sensing a pattern? The nurse, Paula, fixed me all up, and I decided I'd finish the last 6 or 7 miles of the day, and I did! I'm so glad too, what a fun afternoon (even though I would have paid someone to amputate my feet)!
Day 3 I was ready to be done. I woke up VERY sore, and my feet were throbbing before I even started. Day 3 was LONG, even though it was the shortest day (15 miles), it was LONG. Everyone was sore and our feet hurt- most of us were walking on blisters, but let me tell you, the people out there supporting us were AWESOME. I don't think I could have done it otherwise. I think that day was the worst pain i've ever felt, but that last 2 blocks with people cheering and crying, people saying thank you. . .and then we walked into Petco park, where the men and women who had just walked 60 miles were all standing, screaming, dancing with the music blaring, cheering ME into the finish line. Wow, I'll never be able to describe what that was like. The body is amazing, suddenly my feet didn't hurt. I cried, and must have given out 1,000 high 5's, and then went and got my VICTORY (aka $2500) t-shirt!
I'm so proud of myself for completing this journey. I can't believe I really did it. The girls in the pictures have become wonderful friends. The whole point of the walk is to dare to go further than you've gone before, and to DEFEAT cancer with the boundries that we've broken through. I'm not sure that I'll do it again (my feet officially hate me), but holy shit was that a great experience. $11.3 million dollars were raised, and some money's still coming in! Maybe I've done my part so that I don't have to worry that anymore of my friends or family will be affected by this disease. Thanks for your support!

Breast Cancer 3 Day

No on 8!!

Doesn't matter who you're voting for, or if you don't agree with me, just remember to go out and vote next Tuesday! I know this is very opinionated, and I hope not to offend anyone, but I thought there were some GREAT points made in this e-mail I got today. . . #4 and 5 are my favs. .

10 Reasons Gay Marriage is Bad

1. Being gay is not natural. Real Americans always reject unnatural things like eyeglasses, polyester, and air conditioning.

2. Gay marriage will encourage people to be gay, in the same way that hanging around tall people will make you tall.

3. Legalizing gay marriage will open the door to all kinds of crazy behavior. People may even wish to marry their pets because a dog has legal standing and can sign a marriage contract.
4. Straight marriage has been around a long time and hasn't changed at all; women are still property, blacks still can't marry whites, and divorce is still illegal.

5. Straight marriage will be less meaningful if gay marriage were allowed; the sanctity of Britney Spears' 55-hour just-for-fun marriage would be destroyed.

6. Straight marriages are valid because they produce children. Gay couples, infertile couples, and old people shouldn't be allowed to marry because our orphanages aren't full yet, and the world needs more children.

7. Obviously gay parents will raise gay children, since straight parents only raise straight children.

8. Gay marriage is not supported by religion. In a theocracy like ours, the values of one religion are imposed on the entire country. That's why we have only one religion in America.

9. Children can never succeed without a male and a female role model at home. That's why we as a society expressly forbid single parents to raise children.

10. Gay marriage will change the foundation of society; we could never adapt to new social norms.

Just like we haven't adapted to cars, the service-sector economy, or longer life spans.

3 Years from now. . . .

OH YEAH! Three years from now we probably won't be having the same discussions at our monthly dinners, but I guarantee we'll still be talking about the time when we went to Sammy's and ate 2 MESSY SUNDAE's (that could have been free .. . )

Hilary- thanks for the picture that I stole, and all the honesty about baby T! We're all so thrilled for you and Paco, and can't wait to meet the little guy! (or gal!)

Kristen- thanks for keeping me up to date on the nerdy stuff, and the comedy relief!

Jen- your insight is SO appreciated. When we all have kids we'll have an on-call child psychologist!

Thanks for another fun filled night ladies! Love ya!