17 Weeks - Update

Well, today I am 17 weeks in to this pregnancy - and it's starting to show!!



I've had a lot of firsts these past few weeks...heard the heartbeat for the first time at 14 weeks (a kickin' 154 beats/min...it's ALWAYS 154!), graduated up to maternity pants at 16 weeks, and yesterday had my first stranger ask me when I was due. :) It has been so much fun so far and I just pray that everything continues smoothly. I would be a liar if I didn't admit that on occasion I sneak away from my nursing duties and doppler the baby's heartbeat :) Ahh, the advantages of working in medicine...

We have our 22 week ultraound the second week in December and we have decided to NOT find out the sex of the baby! We want to be surprised. Most people I tell this to think we are crazy (there are a few exceptions) but we just think it will be such a special surprise. So in the meantime, we get to pick out a boy AND a girl name, which is fun. Dave and I are each making a list and when we are done, we will compare names and go from there. I of course already have my completed list...Dave is a bit behind, but I'll cut him some slack since he works over 80 hours a week.

All of this is going by so fast...I guess April will be here before we know it!

New Addition!

We're having a BABY!!!


I'm thirteen weeks and due April 22. Of course we could not be more excited! Dave and I had been trying to conceive for quite some time, so I was ecstatic when I went to a doctor's appointment and she told me the good news! I have honestly never been so surprised in my life! It was so hard to believe and I still have trouble wrapping my head around it. However, now that we have a couple of ultrasounds under our belt and the belly is starting to expand, it's starting to become a little more believable.


And just to make things more interesting, my sister Marion is getting married May 29! So there will be another guest at the wedding - a newborn! We will have our hands full that weekend, so wish us luck!! Can't wait to see the baby sister walk down the aisle though!

The weather this summer in Virginia has been absolutely wonderful!!! Much different from the summer we experienced here last year, this summer has been warm but not at all humid...a nice change from Alabama summers. This excellent weather has gotten us searching for any and all outdoor activities we can find - and they are bountiful around here! A few weeks ago I joined some friends for a Sunday afternoon picnic and polo match at King's Family Winery (sadly, Dave was working). I was so excited about seeing a polo match for the first time. It was so neat! You definitely have to pay attention, as we found out the hard way. These horses do not slow down if the ball ends up near you so you have to be quick to your feet!! Halfway through the match, we got to stomp the divets. It totally felt like Pretty Woman!! Like always, I found myself in disbelief at how beautiful the mountains are around here. What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!!!






Dave and I also recently visited yet another winery with our bestest of friends Zach and Lindsey. We sound like a bunch of winos!!! This time we ventured to Veritas for Starry Nights. This is held once a month from June - September. Everyone brings a picnic, blanket, chairs, etc for a night under the stars with good wine and entertainment!! The night we went there was a Beatles cover band ("Abbey Road") performing so I absolutely loved that. Once it gets dark, a big bonfire commences! I was amazed at the number of people in attendance - it was quite the event. But the winery is huge and there was plenty of room to spread out. Hoping to make it once more this summer!

SUMMER!!!

Summer is here and we have had a great one so far!!! We kicked off the summer with a visit from Mom and Dad over Memorial Day weekend. Had a great time as usual! We didn't actually do too much sightseeing, but managed to make it to DC for a Nationals game. We spent the rest of the time eating good food and just hanging out. It was so nice to have them around for a few days. I miss living close by - we used to get to do that anytime we wanted!







Dave and I also recently went to Virginia WineFest with a group of our friends. There are tons of family owned wineries in and around Charlottesville. Before we moved here, I had no idea that Virginia was such a big wine producer! This festival was particularly cool because it was held at Ashlawn-Highland, which is the home of James Monroe. It's located just a couple of miles from Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson (or TJ, as he is fondly referred to around here). It was a beautiful day to be outside!!! There were several local wineries there for tastings and a few arts and crafts exhibits set up on the lawn. And of course, no festival would be complete without yummy food! We are just really loving living in Charlottesville - there is always something fun going on!!! And it doesn't hurt that the scenery around here is BEAUTIFUL!!!

Matt's visit to Cville

Matt came to visit us in Charlottesville a few weeks ago and we had a great time! Poor Matt - both times he has come to visit we have been moving so he has been forced to help us move twice. We did try to do some fun things while he was here. We went out to dinner with friends to celebrate Lindsey's birthday, hiked Humpback Rocks, and Dave and Matt finally convinced me to eat Indian food and I loved it! I admit it. :) Sydney definitely appreciated Matt's visit! She loves Matt and it was nice that he was here while she adapted to the new house while Dave and I were working. Here are a few pics from his visit as well as a couple of pics of the new house!

Trip to the National Zoo

Dave had a rare Saturday off last weekend so we decided to take a road trip to DC and check out the National Zoo. We had such a great time! The weather was beautiful and the Zoo is amazing!!! The main attraction is the Giant Pandas but unfortunately we missed out on them. We had saved them for last and by the time we got around to visiting them, there was a HUGE line snaking around the building where they are kept. By this time, we were hot and tired and I was sneezing my head off (stupid pollen!!!) so we decided to forego the visit. We got some great pics of the various animals in the Zoo - enjoy!!

Woes of Residency

As I sit here watching TV and doing laundry on this Sunday evening, my hardworking husband is fast asleep upstairs. Yes, he did turn in for the night at 3:30 pm this afternoon after working 34 straight hours in the MICU this weekend. And how crazy is that!!! I find it hard to believe that young physicians learn this way. I guess they do as this is the way things have been done in medicine for eternity. But is that really safe for patients? I know I don't want someone performing a procedure on me if they have been deprived of sleep for 30 hours. I am so proud of him but I worry about him constantly. On long days like that he doesn't eat or drink much and just ends up getting run down. It will be wonderful when these days of residency are done!! I look forward to the days that we can spend more than 20 minutes together on the weekend. Dave has decided to do a fellowship in renal - so he will be a kidney doctor. That particular fellowship is an additional 2 years after residency. No thoughts yet on where he might want to pursue his fellowship. I really like Charlottesville and have made some great friends here, so I would be more than happy to stay here. And of course I would always be happy to move back home to Birmingham to be closer to family. It's hard to believe that Dave will start the application process all over again this fall. Time flies!!

Christmas

Christmas 2008 was a bit of a first for the Bains....our first Christmas without family around!!! Dave's vacation happened to be the week before Christmas, so we made the 11 hour drive to Alabama (after heavily drugging Sydney, of course) to spend time with both of our families. We had a great time visiting with friends and family and enjoyed the 70 degree weather! Back home in Cville for Christmas actually ended up being great! Dave was off on Christmas Eve and I only worked half a day, thank goodness. We spent our Christmas Eve eating spaghetti, going to church, and then heading to a local Italian restaurant for coffee and tiramisu. Mmmmm. Christmas Day was a lot of fun - we got up and ate breakfast, opened stocking gifts from each other, and then headed over to the Henrys for a delicious Christmas Day lunch and lots of fun playing board games. So, all in all, we had a great Christmas!

In other news, the Wilhoite family is gearing up for another wedding! Marion got engaged on December 23 while visiting Jason's (the fiance) family in Michigan!! We are so excited for them both!!! Looks like the wedding will be Memorial Day weekend 2010 after Marion graduates from nursing school. She's chosen to get married in Huntsville, AL where we both grew up. A fabulous choice!!! Looking forward to having a new brother-in-law!!!!