Marc & Ash

I just woke up from a cat nap, and I'm feeling ok. A little crampy and tired.

The procedure went well and quick. Everyone at the Fairfax Medical Center was soo nice and caring. Marc was a gem as usual. He was with me through out pre-op, and tried to keep me talking...and laughing. The doctors brought me in a gown, robe, socks, and a dashing blue surgical hat. Since I got to wear all the other stuff, Marc decided that he looked better in the hat. He wore it the whole time, until Dr. Forrest came in to take me back for surgery. I couldn't stop laughing..it was great!

Once I got back to the O/R, I was greeted by an Anesthesiologist Dr. Kim, Dr. Forrest and about 3 other nurses. Dr. Kim has some difficulty with my veins, and they ended up having to go through the top of my hand, whcih was much less painful. We began talking about the trip to England..etc. And then, just like that, I was out. Dr. Forrest told Marc that they had to give me extra juice, to get me to fall asleep because I wouldn't stop talking. Ha!

Once I was awake from surgery, and in the recovery room, I started to ge upset and cry. Something just hit me and I became so emotional. I think my mind finally realized that this was all over and I was no longer pregnant. It was all a little bittersweet.

Posted by Ash at 05:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (1929) | TrackBacks (0)

Marc and I had a follow up appointment today with Dr. Forrest. He wanted to perform another ultrasound just to be sure that nothing had changed since our last ultrasound. Unfortunately, nothing has changed, the placenta still measures 5 weeks, 3 days, and no embryo is present. Sad to say, but this pregnancy will end in a miscarriage. I am scheduled for a D & C tomorrow, (dilation and curettage)  to remove the tissue. Slowly but surely, I will be able to heal both emotionally and physically. As bad as this all is, Marc and I are trying to look on the bright side.  

It looks like there just might be a Bristish pint in my future. As most of you know we are leaving for our trip to England/Amsterdam, next week. After everything that we have been going through, it will be a nice way to start fresh, with a 14 day vacation.

So the baby posts, will be on hold for a little while, and hopefully we will be making some positive updates in the near future!

Posted by Ash at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1623) | TrackBacks (0)

So, this is the first Blog entry in over a week, since Marc and I received some news, concerning our pregnancy.

Its been a long week, and beleive me, this is not the post that I thought I would be making after our first appointment! It has been tough, fearing the unknown, but with Marc's support as well as our friends and family, we are going to come through  this stronger. We have a follow up appointment tomorrow, and should know some more then. 

It has really made quite an impact on our marriage. You think you love someone, but then realize you can love them so much more, especially when times are tough.

Carolyn really put a smile on my face today, when this edible bouquet showed up at my office with a Happy Birthday Balloon attached, from, http://www.ediblearrangements.com/Default.aspx 

It was so yummy!!!!!!! Expecially the chocolate covered apples!!!!

Ashley

According to the ultrasound, Ash's gestational sac is empty and measured 5 1/2 weeks.  Her blood was taken last Wednesday and again on Friday (her poor arm ).  The initial bloodwork done on Wednesday revealed her HCG levels to be quite low at 9,000.  The blood taken on Friday revealed those very numbers to have increased to 13,000.  While something still doesn't seem right - as they are usually supposed to double - we're hoping for the best.  If indeed this is a troubled pregnancy, it's Ok, these things happen and we're there for each other and will try again soon!  Our initial reaction was frustration followed by "shit, we told so many people" but in the end, everyone we told we love so it doesn't really matter.  Yes - we love 73 people.  Most importantly, we're there for each other in times like this and any mountain can be climbed, sometimes you just slide to the bottom.  Love Marc

Posted by Ash at 02:54 PM |

New this week: Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl.

Looking forward to our first appointmanet tomorrow! More updates to come.

Posted by Ash at 11:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (920) | TrackBacks (0)

This entry is a little late, but priceless. We broke the news to my parents by showing up to their house with a stroller in hand. Needless to say they were confused, stunned and happy all at the same time. Here are some pics I was able to snap. I love my Dad's face in the first pic.

Posted by Ash at 09:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (1561) | TrackBacks (0)

Lately, I have been craving foods such as:

*Hard Boiled Eggs

*Garbanzo beans

*Peanut Butter

*Cream of Wheat

Also, I have to eat every two hours, I am like a small child. Feed me Seymour!! 

Posted by Ash at 08:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (2718) | TrackBacks (0)

Our little Blueberry!!

The big news this week: Hands and feet are emerging from developing arms and legs — although they look more like paddles at this point than the tiny, pudgy extremities you're daydreaming about holding and tickling. Technically, your baby is still considered an embryo and has something of a small tail, which is an extension of her tailbone. The tail will disappear within a few weeks, but that's the only thing getting smaller. Your baby has doubled in size since last week and now measures half an inch long, about the size of a blueberry.

If you could see inside your womb, you'd spot eyelid folds partially covering her peepers, which already have some color, as well as the tip of the nose and tiny veins beneath parchment-thin skin. Both hemispheres of your baby's brain are growing, and her liver is churning out red blood cells until her bone marrow forms and takes over this role. She also has an appendix and a pancreas, which will eventually produce the hormone insulin to aid in digestion. A loop in your baby's growing intestines is bulging into her umbilical cord, which now has distinct blood vessels to carry oxygen and nutrients to and from his/her tiny body. (babycenter.com)
 

Posted by Ash at 08:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2286) | TrackBacks (0)

Here is a list of the top names from 2007

From www.Babycenter.com, one of my favorite sites:

Posted by Ash at 01:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (3070) | TrackBacks (0)

We just scheduled our first appointment on February 20th, with our new practice, Dr. Terry Allen, and Scott Forrest, located in Fairfax City!!

http://www.drsallenandforrest.com/index.html

I was recommended to them through a long line of WT Woodson women, who have been using this practice for quite some time. Can't wait!!!

Posted by Ash at 12:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1963) | TrackBacks (0)

Here are a couple of photos from this past weekend at Taft's house on Cathedral. Tom's very excited.

And here's Ash, drinking her seltzer water out of a delirium glass 

She was a trooper this weekend! 

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Rounding out my 6th week, the baby is about as big as a lentil if you can believe that! Pants are feeling a little uncomfortable, but I couldn't be more ready:)

This week's major developments: The nose, mouth, and ears that you'll spend so much time kissing in eight months are beginning to take shape. If you could see into your uterus, you'd find an oversize head and dark spots where your baby's eyes and nostrils are starting to form. His emerging ears are marked by small depressions on the sides of the head, and his arms and legs by protruding buds. His heart is beating about 100 to 160 times a minute — almost twice as fast as yours — and blood is beginning to course through his body. His intestines are developing, and the bud of tissue that will give rise to his lungs has appeared. His pituitary gland is forming, as are the rest of his brain, muscles, and bones.

Posted by Ash at 05:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1285) | TrackBacks (0)

6 weeks today

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