Happy 23'rd Week Birthday Mini Mitch!!

So now that we officially know it's a BOY, I've been able to start getting some things together for this little man's room! Here is a picture of the nursery bedding...I think we're going to go with an alphabet theme :) Still haven't decided on paint colors (waiting for the bedding to actually come in) but I think it will be awesome!


                      


I love the lighter blue mixed with all of the different colors! I'm hoping to put one of these awesome trees on the wall too!



So while that has been in the works, I've just been waiting...sitting...to start feeling the little guy! The doctor said its possible I haven't felt him yet because the placenta is right in front shielding me from his karate moves :). Well last night, we had quite a few firsts... went to the hospital and did our tour. Its all still been somewhat surreal until we walked in the labor/delivery area at Sky Ridge and saw the little babies...I couldn't help but picture us when we will be there... and as a typical pregnant woman I was emotional haha. Dustin doesn't understand why I get so emotional, but I just tell him its part of the "process" HAHA!

So when we came  home to relax last night, all the sudden mini was doing FLIPS in there! People tell me its like butterflies, but I wouldn't necessarily agree. At first its like your tummy gurgling like if you're hungry... I have to make sure I distinguish the two or else I'll really be in trouble :) Then as I was sitting in the chair, I saw my tummy jolt. It was truly one of the most amazing feelings I have ever felt. To KNOW....to FEEL that little guy inside of me was just a miracle! Just in time for Christmas and Mini's 23'rd week birthday, we both got to feel something special :)

Merry Christmass to all of you from the Mitchell's... I love this card for the saying on it "Believe in Love, in Faith, in Miracles"...that is EXACTLY what life is all about my friends!

HOT DOG...It's a BOY!

After so much waiting (sorry Lynn & Daddy Dave!) we found out we are having a BOY! Below are some of the most recent pictures from the ultrasound. He looks super healthy, weighs in at just over a 1lb already! Hard to believe you have this little person living right inside of you!

There it is as the u/s tech said "it's butt and all its glory" HA!

Footprint!

Profile picture... he's already so handsome!

Below is the video from the ultrasound...it was a super long ultrasound, but here is the gender part. Notice the giggle the tech made when she first saw it :)

Its about Time!!

At first I was all super excited to get started on a blog, that I had intended on creating on a more regular basis then say...ummm 8 months or so?? But... as with other people, we've been busy! So to get back on track, I'll catch you up with short (well kinda) timeline. Hoping to use this to keep everyone in the loop with our next moves!

This year has been full of hope, doubts, frustration, excitement, and most importantly life. Follow through our journey...

November 2010 - March 2011: We took the first step in deciding to expand the Mitchell family... to our suprise, it wasn't as easy as we had all once thought it would be. I was diagnosed with PCOS (Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome) in January.  Basically, this means that I ovulate infrequently, it is typically a challenge to get pregnant and so we had to start thinking of the next steps.

March - May: We tried desperately to try and try and try with the help of clomid...timing...all those old tricks, but nothing seemed to work. The first part of the year, could very well be why I didn't blog as much. I was becoming depressed, concerned we would NEVER have children, and overall just disappointed. Dustin was such a good supporter and continued to tell me in his normal Dustin (Foghorn) fashion "everything will be alright!! I promise!" and I just continued to believe him.

July 1 - We had our first meeting with a doctor at Colorado Center for Reproductive Medicine (CCRM). They were incredibly helpful, and although I could tell Dustin dreaded it, they put us through a whole slew of tests to make sure we're identifying the right problem! Dustin was proud to report that he was NOT the issue HAHA! Which just made me even more disappointed, but happy it wasn't both of us! The next step was to do an Intra Uterine Insemination (they harvest the sperm from you know who, then implant it into my uterus at the exact time of ovulation). This can get tricky with schedules, and especially since I didn't ovulate regularly. So our plan was to wait and wait and wait till my next cycle....

Mid August  - We continued waiting, I was getting impatient...calling my doctor asking if we can just bring this thing ON! To my avail... no one was interested in speeding things along...so we were back to waiting. Later on the week of the 20th or so, I wasn't feeling so hot "down there" so I went to the doctor. They KNEW we were trying so hard to get pregnant, so before giving out any sort of anti-biotics... they insisted on a pregnancy test. In my mind I'm thinking NO way, but secretly I'm thinking...what if!?

Sure enough, the test came back positive...I had ran to the doctor on my lunch hour, Dustin wasn't even with me! I was so excited that I immediately started crying, my doctor and the nurse we're SO happy for us! They initially thought I was 10 weeks along, so they gave me my first ultrasound and immediately I saw for my very own eyes Mini Mitch :)

Sorry for the long post... the rest won't be nearly as exhausting to read :)

Currently I am 21 weeks pregnant, healthy and well tomorrow is the BIG day we find out the gender...what do you think it will be???

This was mini around 12 weeks...sorry for the old pictures, I will put up the new ultrasounds tomorrow! You can see it's spine and its head is facing downward...check out those alien eyes in the bottom pic!

Not a very big bump yet...this was around 17 weeks. Definitely feel like I'm getting bigger by the day. 

Stay Tuned!

{Isn't it Funny??}

Isn't it funny how your life changes as you get older?

Most of you are thinking "duh...of course you change as you get older!"

I mean one's preferences change so much as time moves on. I was just discussing with a fellow co-workier about how I thought I would really love to travel for work. How I thought I would have loved to have my life be the model to the movie "Up In the Air" with George Clooney (wouldn't be too shabby meeting up with him either *wink wink*) and knowing how to make my way through airports like a professional...run off to another city for a quick meeting...



 I thought I would love to work in the heart of the city, in where all the hustle and bustle is present. Where everyone walks or commutes into the city by train... I thought for sure I would be working in an office like our Boston office at BBH where the buildings are so close you can see the guy working in the office building next to yours but he can't see you...



Most of all... I never thought how much I would miss home. What I have learned is that I don't want any of that. Although, its nice to be able to get a taste of this lifestyle I once thought I wanted, I want to go home to D and Dubbs (aka Wendy).

I miss coming home to her being so excited to see me...
I miss going to sleep at night next to D and waking up next to him in the mornings...
I miss seeing my niece and hearing about her exciting first day at preschool
I miss driving a CAR (isn't that crazy??)...

Fortunately just 1 more day left in Beantown all by my lonesome and then its back to home I go... I just can't wait! While I was here though, I did get to visit and taste some of these things (enjoy!!):

Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market - Local vendor market place


Cheers (looks NOTHING like the set... but the set was modeled after this location)


Union Oyster House est. 1826 (longest running restaurant in America)


Fenway Park (Although D is a big Yankees fan, the history here is amazing!

Haaavard Yaaad (Harvard Yard for non Bostonians)- we felt SO intimidated with all the intelligence here :)


Till Later...
~Rach

{Alone...but Together}

It is truly amazing how one's life can impact your own without having ever met them. Through a free spirit who used to work at BBH, but recently quit, I was introduced to Valerie Koop (You can read her blog here). She seems to be the woman/wife/mother/family member/friend/talented artist that I ever imagined. However, as I've been following this beautiful woman, her husband had been losing his battle with cancer. Wayne, her husband, had just lost his battle only 2 weeks ago. I find myself constantly checking on her blog (someone I don't even really know, but I feel like I'm her best friend) to see how she has been doing. Its devastating to hear the pain and mourning she is going through. I can't help myself but to begin thinking how thankful I am that I am not alone.

I just read one of her most recent blog entries about being "Alone" and while I sit here in this boring Hilton hotel in Boston, all by myself, just after D left me to head back to Denver, I too felt alone. Its so hard to put into perspective one being alone as a widow and one feeling alone by literally being alone. It makes me reevaluate my life to know that although I am alone right now. Right this minute. I know that I won't be alone in a few short days. I will get to see my hubby, my beautiful niece, my amazing family and friends and go right back to living my life. While this role model of a woman will still be "alone". So my heart breaks for Mrs. Wayne Koop as she attempts to bring her world back together to shine again as that amazing mother/wife/friend/talented photographer that she knows she can be.

There are amazing people out there...really willing to jump up and help when someone is in need (I need to be more like them). So jump up and send along your prayers to the Koop family and take a look at this great auction being put together to help the Koop family to heal and provide for their needs.

~ Rach

New Ventures

Although most people make New Year's resolutions at the beginning of the New year, I made mine as of 02/01/11 (that's still at the beginning of the year right?). I officially made the step to join Weight Watchers to once and for all take control of my health. There are so many things that I want and want to do, but just know my body wouldn't handle it right now.

I have taken over this new challenge with my sweet/hilarious/awesome friend Erin. She said it perfectly when she described her first night starting WW. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend the first week she did, but she described the meeting very clearly to me. She said she really liked it...she said it was a bit of an older crowd, but the WW leader was great, and the thing I mostly took away from her was that she had said this time felt different....like she was really in this for the long haul.

I've gone on many different diets (well...attempted them) and they all ended in a very short time. I've been overweight almost my entire life. I played softball...was always a muscular girl, played other sports, even in the nerdy marching band. I look back and realize just how in shape I was back then... those days are long gone and while I know I can't go back to them, I look to the future to be as in just as good of shape if not better. So while my great friend Erin said "this time was different" it really struck a nerve with me. I too feel this time is different. I am constantly looking at what I'm eating and most importantly, I have not yet missed a day of tracking what I'm eating (that's a whopping 14 days already!) Don't they say it takes 3 weeks to make a habit?? I know I'm on the right track to getting where I want to go. As of my first weigh in, 2/8, I am already down 1.2 lbs. While you're thinking "what's the big deal... a whopping 1lb" but I see it as a victory, a loss, on the right path.

So here's to 2011, to a new year and a new me (at least the outside at least)!

Cheers
~ Rachel

Tribute to Yessica

{Life is Precious}

I have never gone through a whirlwind of emotions in one whole day. Today I learned an old dear friend of mine, Katie Schiessler, had passed away...or so I thought! She must feel such a need for help and trying to cry out to loved ones as she posted something on Facebook in the wee hours of the morning stating "KT had passed away and the funeral was planned for Thursday". Yes you heard me right...SHE wrote this on her own wall. Immediately I was contacted by friends and was left with shock, disbelief, she was too young, how could this happen to her...all to find out a few short hours later that she had created this havoc herself. I feel sorry for Katie, I wish she knew how many people truly love and care about her, and most importantly this situation taught me to think of what precious things I have in my life.

I know our time on earth is not forever (although our blog might state so), but it really makes you sit back and think of what means the most to you. So here are a few things that are super important to me ~

*Going to bed every night with my wonderful husband...we always make a deal to go to bed together and not leave one of us up late.

*Seeing my beautiful niece run up to me saying "Ray Ray" and hugging me to death saying "I've missed you so much"...just melts my heart

*Seeing Wendybird so SO excited to go to bed at night, get up in the morning, and snuggle on the couch. Her expressions are priceless and Dustin & I laugh about them all the time!

* Spending many a nights with the Hall clan and enjoying every moment when we visit the Mitchell clan in VA.

Its funny when you think about whats important to you, you never mention accessories, materialistic things, or statuses in life...its simply just a feeling. Its hard to think about, but someday when I'm gone, I hope that people remember me for the feelings they felt when we were together and not anything less! I'm going to try and focus more on my feelings for 2011. Cheers!

~Rachel