Tuesday

July 31

On a rare Monday off from work, Jennie spent yesterday clothes shopping with her mom. We are attending my little sister's wedding at the end of August, so we have to get spiffy. After work, I mowed the yard and tended to the tomato garden while Jennie napped on the couch.

REMINDER: Jennie's TV interview will be broadcast tomorrow evening at 9pm CST on the Nashville local Fox affiliate (WZTV, channel 6).

Have a great July 31st!



"Drink several gallons of milk each day!" ~ Ward Cleaver

LINK OF THE DAY: German Love Study - don't get in a rut!

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Monday

July 30

Another Monday morning. Wow, the weeks really seem to be flying by now! Before you know it, Jennie will be pushing and I will be fainting...

Yesterday, I dusted off my bicycle and enjoyed about four and a half miles of the Sulphur Springs greenway trail in Smyrna. It felt nice to quickly pedal down a path surrounded by corn fields and overgrown cemeteries. Throughout my entire ride, I never saw another single person. Needless to say, my legs feel like lead anvils today, but I will live. :)



LINK OF THE DAY: If you ever visited this place, could you tell anyone?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Sunday

July 29

Yesterday afternoon, Jennie and I trekked over to Babies "R" Us. We covered every inch of the store and updated our baby registry using one of their hand-held scanner guns. On gender specific items, we added both the girl and boy version. We *should* know the sex of our little raspberry around mid-to-late September.

Two and a half hours later, we tiredly traveled to Burlington Coat Factory's Baby Depot located in 100 Oaks shopping center. Their registry scanner gun kept rebooting and saying, "session terminated" so we only added items online. They had a fairly good selection of baby junk at the store if you wanted to scour the aisles looking for misplaced or clearance crap. It was starting to get late and we still had not visited Target or Wal-Mart. Uggh... :)

Jennie was craving a Red Robin burger to celebrate Hamburger Day. I obliged her request. How could I pass up a succulent, A-1 Peppercorn Bacon Burger with bottomless steak fries? 12,000 calories later Jennie was re-energized and ready to tackle Target!

By now, the sun was beginning to set, but we knew Target would be a great place to wrap up our day o' registry updating. Throughout the day, I noticed that we were the only couple not thirty-plus weeks pregnant and ready to pop. Are we being a little premature by registering this early? I think not. This is something we have wanted to do for a really long time...



LINK OF THE DAY: Pointless but cool!

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Saturday

July 28

On this day in 1900, the hamburger was created by Louis Lassen in Connecticut. In honor of Sir Lassen, I will celebrate his achievement and light the grill!

Happy Hamburger Day everyone!

Jennie slept late this morning while I played 9 holes of golf with a co-worker of mine (Kishore). The sky has been terribly overcast the past few days, but we welcome the rain (even in sparse amounts). Anytime I can avoid manually watering my yard and garden, I am very thankful.

Once again, Jennie and I do not have any big plans this weekend, but afternoon naps are great! I think I will go take one now and dream of Mr. Lassen's invention!



"Robble, robble, robble" ~ the Hamburgular.

LINK OF THE DAY: The 8 strangest communities on the web

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Friday

July 27

Another day closer to parenthood. Nothing new to report.

Yep, you guessed it. Jennie is doing well. Oh yeah, the Fox TV interview from a few weeks ago will be broadcast on Wednesday, August 1st at 9pm CST on the local Fox affiliate. I will attempt to record it and convert it to a Windows AVI movie for all to see.



LINK OF THE DAY: A great travel blog...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Thursday

July 26

Our baby cashew is doing well inside the incubator known as Jennie's innards.

I guess this would be a great time to create a mental bookmark in the dark, moldy tunnels of my memory bank. My sub-scalar, Macadamia nut is still so small and incapable of doing any wrong. While offering all the promise in the world, will he be a professional hockey player (fingers crossed) or will she be the first female president of the United States? The most important goal for now will be the safety and well-being of this new life.

And then, sixteen years from now, when junior wants to borrow the car for his or her first *hot* date, I can cringe with the fears of parenting! I suppose an NRA membership will be a must if I have a little girl? hehe



LINK OF THE DAY: Will it blend? Things NOT to do at home...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Wednesday

July 25 ( 7 weeks pregnant )

Back from the dentist! Neither Jennie nor I had any cavities... yee hoo :)

Our ultrasound appointment is at 1pm CST today.

ACTUAL PHOTO OF OUR BABY FROM JULY 25


EVENING UPDATE: Well, we are finally home from a long day of doctor's visits and some light shopping.

** drum roll ** We are having 1 baby! Yep, a singleton. While my wallet let out a sigh of relief, we mourned the loss of embryo #2 for a while. See the gestational sac in the photo above? Our child is currently 6.9 mm in length and has a healthy heartbeat of 139 beats per minute. We were able to see the tiny heart beating, but it was too faint to hear today. On August 8th, we should be able to hear the heartbeat during the next ultrasound (9 weeks pregnant).

We are pretty exhausted so I think it is nap time!

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Tuesday

July 24

Tomorrow is the big day! Jennie and I will begin the morning with a routine dental cleaning and then just after lunch, we will proceed to NFC for Jennie's 7-week ultrasound.

Today, a childhood friend of mine is having a minor, surgical procedure. I wish her all the best and a speedy recovery!

Does anyone remember Koogle peanut butter from the early 1970's? When I was a young Army brat living abroad in West Germany, my mother used to buy Cinnamon Koogle (by Kraft) for us to enjoy on a nice crispy piece of toast. To this day, I still dream of the magical flavors of Koogle. How could Kraft Foods take away the chocolate, cinnamon, and banana flavored peanut butters? :) I know, I know. You are probably thinking, "Dave, why don't you simply buy some Nutella or Goober Grape and get over it?" But, I assure you that it is not the same and nowhere near as delicious. One day, I will set up a laboratory in my basement, like Grandpa on The Munsters, dedicated to the fine art of discovering Koogle's secret recipe!



LINK OF THE DAY: Origin of familiar phrases...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Monday

July 23

Back to work already? Another weekend has come and gone. Summer is flying by and before you know it, your winter coat and scarf will be dusted off and ready for battle. Who am I kidding? It is still ninety degrees outside! :)

One month from today, Jennie and I celebrate our 10th year anniversary. Being the goof ball I am, we also celebrate monthly anniversaries -- so, today is our treasured 119th anniversary (in months). What kind of gift should I give for the 119th? We play a silly game every 23rd day of a month to see who can say, "Happy Anniversary" before the other. Jennie has won the past 60+ in a row for sure. But, not today!



Two more days until Jennie's ultrasound.

LINK OF THE DAY: Scared of heights?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Sunday

July 22

Three days to go. One or two?

Yesterday, Jennie and I hung around the house. Nothing terribly exciting. She spent some time updating her baby registries and I did some minor housework.

The weather has really cooled off here this weekend (reaching only the high 80's). The airy breeze feels so much like autumn at dusk. Other than the occasional mosquito bite and the view of our neighbors' disease-ridden, chartreuse pool water, relaxing on our back porch is heavenly! Can anyone in good conscience let their child swim in a pool several shades darker than our lake water? At least the lake has natural filtration and non-stagnant water. I really need to take a digital photo of my neighbor's pool to emphasize my point. Seeing is believing, and the previous owner (the one who installed the pool ten years ago) ALWAYS had the most inviting light blue pool water (his Italian machismo, excessive gold jewelry, and swagger were second only to his desire to be the world's most adept pool boy!). He kept it so meticulously manicured with chemicals, you would never think twice about diving in. Now, we see the new folks remove stray frogs from the pool filter and scoop out a few tablespoons of dry chemicals weekly (when they need to shock it with about 5 gallons of chlorine). Maybe the resulting ear infections and cholera outbreak would help keep our local medical clinics on their toes?

This morning, Jennie and I went for a nice 2-mile stroll around one of the Long Hunter State Park trails (Couchville Lake circle - wooded trail but a paved loop, great for old fogies). I made sure it was not too strenuous for the growing baby / babies. We came home afterwards, unloaded some groceries, and Jennie is still napping as I type this now.



I began reading a book by Harlan Coben yesterday called Tell No One. After only a few hours, I am already hooked and cannot put it down! The book moves at a VERY quick pace (as I am eight chapters and 85 pages in). Jennie is thrilled I would read something other than computer or hockey-related news. While Stephen King or Dean Koontz usually tame my palate, I thought it would be nice to change it up a bit with an author she really enjoys (especially since hockey season starts in a few weeks). hehehe :)

LINK OF THE DAY: Harlan Coben website

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Saturday

July 21

Four days to go until the ultrasound. Will it be one or two?

Over the past few weeks, many people have questioned if we will be disappointed to not have twins. While it certainly would be nice to have two right away, we will be thrilled with one happy, healthy child. Plus, we still have a good eight to ten more weeks before knowing if it or they will be: a boy OR a girl OR one of each OR two of a kind!



Jennie and I will be staying around the house this weekend (no big events planned thankfully). Sometimes it's really nice to unwind and read a good book (well, you know me, I like to look at the pictures). Slavey Davey will proceed to clean the castle while Queen Jennie relaxes on her throne and Court Jester Maggie entertains by squeaking her dog toys.

LINK OF THE DAY: Need a fresh slogan?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Friday

July 20

Happy July 20th to everyone!

On this day in 1810, Columbia declared independence from Spain. Thirty-seven years ago today, the first baby was born on Alcatraz island. And, happy birthday's go out to actress Natalie Wood (b.1938, d.1981), country singer T.G.Sheppard (b.1944), and the following rockers: John Lodge (The Moody Blues, b.1943), Kim Carnes (b.1946), Carlos Santana (b.1947), Paul Cook (The Sex Pistols, b.1956), Chris Cornell (b.1964), Stone Gossard (Pearl Jam, b.1966). Whew! That's a lot of musicians...

Last night's Predators rally was an overwhelming success! Many thanks to everyone who went out of their way to attend! It is estimated that over 10,000 folks attended throughout the 15-hour marathon. Jennie and I were only present for the rally at 6pm, but we thoroughly enjoyed the electric atmosphere and renewed passion for hockey in the South. Although the process of retaining our team is still ongoing, it is clear to see that neither Canada nor Kansas City will be able to poach the Predators without a fight to the death!



Phil Bredesen (governor of Tennessee) held a rally sign on stage that read, "GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY DAMN TEAM". I hope this message resonates to Canada and anyone who believes Nashville does not deserve hockey. It deeply angers me to no end when people question our love for the greatest sport on Earth.

Enough of my ranting for today. Jennie is doing well. Five days until her ultrasound.



Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Thursday

July 19

This morning Jennie had a case of morning sickness. It's ironic that I spoke with my mom just last night about how Jennie had not experienced any morning sickness...

Needless to say, Jennie is excited with being sick! Only six days to go until our next doctor visit.

Tonight I will be attending the Predators Rally from 5pm until it ends. If you are in the Nashville area, you really should make every effort to be present. Beginning at 6 AM today, the rally hopes to generate enough local interest to keep the Predators in Nashville for years to come. Early word from the Sommet Center is that Dell, Merrill Lynch, Play It Again Sports, Chefworks and a few other local corporations have stepped up today and make large ticket purchases and pledged support for the team!



LINK OF THE DAY: Predators rally site

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Wednesday

July 18 ( 6 weeks pregnant )

Welcome to another edition of The Waiting Game! :)

Jennie must wait one more week before hearing heartbeats via ultrasound. The doctor will be looking specifically for yolk sacs in her uterus. The number present should clue us in to how many cribs we will need...

Remember last week when Jennie was interviewed by the local Fox TV news anchor Laura Faber? It will be broadcast sometime next week and I will capture it at that time.



LINK OF THE DAY: Check out this cool website...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Tuesday

July 17

In eight days, we should know how many babies Jennie is carrying (one or two). But, we must wait more than two months until we discover the sex of it or them.

Dates of interest:
  • July 25th (week 7 ultrasound)
  • August 8th (week 9 ultrasound)
  • August 23rd (11 week ultrasound)
  • sometime around September 19th (week 15 ultrasound)


Jennie and I began working on establishing some Baby Registries at Walmart.com, Target.com, Amazon.com, and Babies R Us yesterday. We are not quite finished yet, but I think we have plenty of time... :)



LINK OF THE DAY: Can you believe this guy?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Monday

July 16

Well, another weekend has come and gone. I really wish there were more hours in a day...

Jennie and I really enjoyed watching the Stephen King movie "1408" last night with (our friends) Mike and Tori. If you love horror movies, you should definitely give this one a look.

Jennie is doing well. She has nine more days until her next ultrasound.

LINK OF THE DAY: 1408 - The Movie Website

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Sunday

July 15

What a busy weekend! We spent the afternoon with some friends in Clarksville (Bill and Erica) yesterday. They graciously sent us home with a bunch of goodies (baby swing, crib and mattress, bassinet, etc).

I spent this morning putting together a baby crib. If we do have twins, our front guest room is going to be VERY crowded. Jennie and I created an Amazon.com baby registry, but still need to go through and select items we need. I guess it's safe to say we need one of just about everything... :)

Tonight, we are meeting some friends (Mike and Tori) for a movie and a snack. I'm not yet sure how we will give Jennie her progesterone, but we will figure something out.



LINK OF THE DAY: 3-D Virtual Chinese Painting...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Saturday

July 14

Maggie has a veterinary checkup this morning. She sustained a minor scratch to her cornea last week and we have been treating her with an antibiotic ointment. I could not help but laugh when she would prance around the house wearing the e-collar (it looks like a lampshade fastened to her neck).

MORNING UPDATE: 10:02AM Back from the vet. Maggie's eye is healed. She will have foggy vision for another week or so, but she's fine...

We watched the animated movie "Over The Hedge" last night. It was hilarious! I recommend it if you like that sort of thing. Enjoy your weekend!



LINK OF THE DAY: More weird news...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Friday

July 13

Happy Friday the 13th! How apropos? Last night, Jennie and I thought we had a ghost in the house!

Just before drifting off to sleepy-land, a muffled crash of glass-on-metal rang throughout the house. Hmm... ever so cautiously, we searched the kitchen, the bathrooms, the guest rooms, the closets, and found nothing broken. Very peculiar. We agreed it must be trash day tomorrow and someone must be chucking some empty beer bottles into their trash container somewhere on our street.

Then, a few hours later, a smoke detector near our guest rooms sang its piercing song to the tune of 115 decibels. Jennie and I both jumped from the bad in fright. Ever wonder why fire alarms decide to fail at 3 o'clock in the morning? Stupid 9-volt battery... :)

This morning Jennie found a plastic grocery bag full of light bulbs that must have fallen from a shelf in the laundry room onto our dryer. So, I guess we don't have a ghost after all.

Jennie is relaxing at home today. Somehow, I think she *bribed* her mom to come over and vacuum the living room. Hey, I need to get some pointers on how to pull that off! Well, not much else going on.

Enjoy your weekend!

LINK OF THE DAY: How do you dress appropriately?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Thursday

July 12

Today is Jennie's interview with Fox TV. I will try to capture it to a video file if I can and maybe stream it through a privately accessed YouTube location.

Even after taking naps, Jennie is still very fatigued. She desperately wanted to fall asleep yesterday while grocery shopping! I have heard that fatigue and nausea really calm down in the second trimester, right?

Oh well, not much else going on... I will keep you posted if anything exciting happens.



LINK OF THE DAY: Brain Quirks You Didn't Realize You Had...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Wednesday

July 11 ( 5 Weeks Pregnant )

Jennie's final beta hCG test will be today at 9:30AM. Can you believe she is 5 weeks pregnant today? I will post the results of her test later this afternoon.

Yesterday was a wee bit stressful to say the least. FedEx was supposed to deliver Jennie's new prescription for Crinone (progesterone cream) or so we thought. The IVF nurse at the clinic FORGOT to order it on Monday after Jennie's appointment. In fact, if Jennie had not been proactive by phoning the Texas-based IVF pharmacy, we would still be waiting for this critical medicine. I understand we are all human and prone to making mistakes, but why not at least be apologetic? The nurse acted as if she had done nothing wrong. Oh well, thanks for letting me vent.

Luckily, we had just under a CC of left over injectable Progesterone remaining to cover us for last night. So, hopefully, FedEx will deliver the new medication today by mid-afternoon.



AFTERNOON UPDATE: Jennie's final beta hCG level was 707. Everything is looking good and right on track. Jennie's next ultrasound will be on Wednesday, July 25th at 1pm CST.

News personality Laura Faber from Nashville's local Fox affiliate is doing a story on infertility tomorrow and Jennie was asked to appear in the piece. Along with an interview of the Nashville Fertility Clinic's Dr. Glen Weitzman, Jennie will get to answer a few questions about her experiences leading up to IVF. But the main focus will be on a new product that tests a female's FSH level and a male's sperm count prior to proceeding with infertility treatments. The product will be sold at pharmacies right next to the pregnancy tests and other family planning items. Cool, huh?

LINK OF THE DAY: People who should think twice about hyphenating their names...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Tuesday

July 10

Not much to report today. All is well with Jennie... :)

Tomorrow, she will have another beta hCG test. For now, we just have to sit back and wait for the upcoming ultrasounds.



LINK OF THE DAY: an interesting blogger...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Monday

July 9

Last night I gave Jennie her final injection! She began laughing as soon as I plunged the needle into her rump and could not stop. She will have a nice booty bruise to remember that last shot...

This morning at 9:30AM, Jennie has her second of three beta hCG levels. We are hoping for something in the 200 - 220 range (as it should double every 48 - 72 hours). I should know something by mid-afternoon.



MID-DAY UPDATE: 11:28AM Jennie's IVF nurse called her at home with terrific news! Her beta hCG level came back with a value of 355 today! It has more than tripled since last Friday. Wonderful news! Jennie has one final beta hCG test this coming Wednesday morning (almost 5 weeks pregnant).

The next big dates are: July 25th (ultrasound, 6 1/2 weeks pregnant) and August 8th (ultrasound, 8 1/2 weeks pregnant).


LINK OF THE DAY: Anagrams never lie...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Sunday

July 8

Jennie and I just woke up from a nice, long nap. After waking up early this morning, I prepared breakfast and we enjoyed an online crossword puzzle. We were so exhausted from the puzzle, we decided to take a nap. Oddly enough, we have been taking lots of little naps lately. Jennie's exhaustion is understandable, but mine is purely sympathetic... hehe

Today, we are attending a baby shower for Jennie's friend, Marnie. I suppose I should get out and mow the yard once we get home. To pick up all the wonderful firework debris our neighbors deposited into our yard, it will easily take an hour. Oh well, no big deal.

LINK OF THE DAY: How to chill a hot beer or soda in 3 minutes!

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Saturday

July 7

While yesterday's pregnancy test came back positive, I learned the actual hCG number is not as important as its rate of rise over the next two tests. For example, a beta hCG value between 5 and 476 would have been acceptable yesterday. Jennie's 110 should double every 48 to 72 hours over the next few weeks peaking upwards of 288,000 before coming down to the 150,000 range at childbirth!

Since her LMP (last menstrual period) was June 7, 2007, Jennie is considered four weeks and two days pregnant right now (even though conception was June 20th). If all goes well, the EDD (estimated due date) will be approximately March 12th, 2008.



July 11 to August 15 is the greatest risk period for birth defects, so I will try to keep Jennie sheltered as much as possible during this time. The risk for miscarriage decreases after August 29, 2007. That seems like forever from now...

The third trimester begins on December 12th, 2007.

LINK OF THE DAY: Ever wonder why Snooze is 9 minutes?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Friday

July 6 - Day 57 of IVF

Today is the day of truth...



I will have updates throughout the day.

MID-DAY UPDATE: 11:07 AM CST Jennie's beta hCG level came back at a 110!!!! She is very PREGNANT! The nurse said a level of 50 or greater is positive and less than 50 would be iffy. Now, not putting the cart before the horse, we still have to continue having more tests over the next week or so.

Wow! I called Jennie at work immediately and I could tell she was dancing a jig... She goes back Monday for pregnancy test number 2 of 3. I cannot tell you how relieved we are; so many doubts and negative thoughts have passed through our minds the past few days. Granted, it is still early and we should not get too excited, but I have never had this feeling of elation in my entire life! I pray to God that we can bring a healthy, happy life or two or three into the world...

Amazing.

LINK OF THE DAY: Stuff You Can Use...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Thursday

July 5 - Day 56 of IVF

Well, it has come down to the final 24 hours of waiting...

This 56-day month of IVF has been a long journey. Hopefully, a reward of one or two munchkins will be produced as a result of this process. Only time will tell.

Today, I am exhausted. Fireworks were going off as late as 3AM in our neighborhood last night and my dog notified me after each explosion with barking. Just in case I missed the artillery shell, Maggie told us all about it... :)

I guess I should be grateful that Maggie no longer "makes us a hat". She used to be so scared of fireworks that she would tightly snuggle around your head like an imported fez. Meanwhile, she would shake like a cheap hotel bed after inserting 50 cents.



LINK OF THE DAY: Ponder this, Batman -- an ekpyrotic universe. Read about this new 'Big Bang' theory. Couple this with 'Flat Time' theories and it will blow your mind.

WORD OF THE DAY: There you go using big words again, Davey! What does this nutty 'ekpyrotic' word mean?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Wednesday

July 4 - Day 55 of IVF

Merry Independence Day! This is the only day of the year I actually don't hate living in this region's largest subdivision. 360 degrees of fireworks exploding at all hours and whistling by your ear as you sip a cold one under a gibbous waning moon. Ahh! That's the life!

Well, this year our yard should not catch on fire as it has in the past. Rain has fallen frequently enough in the past week or two, the old lady next door can keep her water hose rolled up and not worry about people's crispy yards flaming up from fireworks gone awry.



Less than 48 hours to go until Jennie's pregnancy test. I am still crossing my fingers and toes for twins! Use the COMMENTS feature below if you have any thoughts or wishes for this holiday...

LINK OF THE DAY: The No Clown Zone

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Tuesday

July 3 - Day 54 of IVF

Happy "the-day-before" Independence Day! As you probably guessed, we are still patiently waiting for Friday to hurry and arrive. Jennie is still getting slight cramps in her mid-section throughout the day. From what I have read, I suppose this is a good sign and seems to be fairly common.

Today, the embryos are 13 days old. In another week, heart tubes will begin to fuse, divisions of future vertebrae will appear, and a neural groove (future spinal cord) will form with a brain bulge at one end. Exciting, isn't it? :)



Well, I could probably ramble for hours, but I will pause for now...

LINK OF THE DAY: Want some useless knowledge?

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Monday

July 2 - Day 53 of IVF

Jennie's pregnancy test is still four days away. The July 4th holiday coupled with the three days she works this week should help keep her mind off of everything. We are still holding out hope for twins. :)

LINK OF THE DAY: Guess the word

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.

Sunday

July 1 - Day 52 of IVF

Nothing new or exciting today. Jennie is still anxious for her pregnancy test. I really don't know how we are going to make it until Friday. It's tough to keep busy and not think about it. :)

Oh well, Jennie goes back to work tomorrow for the first time in nearly three weeks. Her co-workers will have tons of questions, I'm sure.



LINK OF THE DAY: Random photo fortune...

Until tomorrow,
Dave T.