Well! Without going into any embarrassing details that may traumatize little Jellybean later in his life, allow me to say that I reached the breaking point with my nausea today - and inability to hold back the vomiting in public! (Enough said?) I called my fabulously wonderful OB, Dr. Susie Weber - no relation! - just to find out if she would fill me in on vitamin B-6, which she had hinted before might help. When I told her what happened, she said that she could prescribe something for me. There were a lot of options, but only one that didn't really knock people out for the duration.

So she called in a prescription for me. Apparently it's a pill used to help control nausea in chemo patients, so it's got to be strong. She said that she didn't know if insurance covered this particular drug, so if I walked up to the counter and they said it was like $800, walk away and she'll find something else. (I laughed.)

I walked up to the counter and it was $25. It wasn't until I called my Mom to let her know that insurance did indeed cover it that I checked the normal price.

SIX HUNDRED AND TWENTY-TWO DOLLARS FOR THIRTY PILLS!!!

So! It's no free breadsticks at Fazoli's, but God's grace is evident once again in this pregnancy! (Although I honestly have felt so lousy lately that I might have paid almost $21 a pill if it helps!) I'm praying - and would ask for your prayers as well - that it will be highly effective and not necessary for very long!

Also, everyone at work now knows. Jodi Cutler at the other office just gave birth to the most gorgeous little boy - Jaxson Dale Cutler. (Great name, too!) So I made sure to tell her first, then let it trickle from my boss to everyone else. So I have NO MORE SECRETS! Which will ease my mind a lot! Maybe it will ease the nausea, too...

God's mercy has been so evident in this time of our lives that I guess I feel really whiny for all the complaining about the nausea. Jonathan and I have been confronted with some pretty serious health issues through the past couple of weeks, but we have incredible peace - which for a couple of worriers like us is proof positive that God's grace is gigantic! I just get my socks blessed off when I think of how wonderful things have gone! This kid has the hand of God on him before he has to breathe his first breath!

Ohmigoonness! Let me tell you about BLESSINGS! It's the favor of God, I tell you! So! Tonight I had to give Jonny some rough news about the blood test that I had at the OB. (It's nothing too serious - don't WORRY!) But he flipped out HARDCORE, and I had to talk and pray hard and fast to connive him out of the mood he was in. Unfortunately, I didn't feel so hot myself. So when all was said and done, I knew that what both of us needed was just to EAT!

(The journal entry space is only like four inches long, so I can never tell how long my paragraphs really are. So if I have some unnatural breaks, please forgive me. I'm just trying to have a LITTLE structure!)

Okay! So what they say about craving foods is true, and I hadn't really realized it. I thought I'd be wanting really weird things, so I didn't think I was being affected yet. However, tonight ALL I WANTED in the whole world were breadsticks! MANY breadsticks! And since I can't bear to be in restaurants where there might be weird smells, I tried to think of someplace where I could get breadsticks through a drive through. FAZOLI'S! I seriously hadn't been there since Mandy Harris' folks took us one time early in my college years. I'm not an Italian food fan, don'tcha know?! So I talk Jonny into going over there. How convenient! It's less than a half mile from my house! I see that two breadsticks cost seventy-five cents, and a dozen is $3. Well, I honestly can't eat a dozen, but two isn't enough. (That's a darn lie. I could have eaten a dozen without a second thought. But I'm TRYING to show some restraint!) So I ordered FOUR breadsticks, which is good, because I only have two dollars to my name. The guy comes on the intercom and says, "All you want is four breadsticks?" I say, "Yeah." (High drama here, huh?) So HE says, "I'm not gonna charge you for four breadsticks. Pull up to the window."

I looked at Jonathan and said, "Does that mean he won't sell me only four breadsticks?" He laughed and said, "Pull up, babe - you'll get your breadsticks." Then I understood! So I was like, "Oh, can I pull the pregnant card? Can I please pull the pregnant card?" But I didn't even have to! I got up there, and the guy handed me a steaming bag of deliciousness, and I asked if he was sure, and he gave me a big grin and waved.

So here's a BIG SHOUT OUT to the people of Fazoli's. You guys have made me the happiest little camper in the world tonight, and I and my Jellybean thank you!

(You know the next time I go back I'll make sure to order a dozen so they never think I'm trying to take advantage of them again, right? Yeah - that's what I'll be thinking!)

It's Sunday afternoon, and I'm supposed to be doing meaningful things, but I just can't make myself do anything productive! I don't want to even mention how much sleep I've gotten today, but I think it bears publishing. I went to bed at 8:30 last night, and read a while - The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy. (It's a hoot, by the way. It is a true affirmation that all the crazy things I'm dealing with aren't psychosomatic or abnormal. Phew!) I slept until about 8:30 this morning, with only two brief hiccups in the evening - the first to holler at my hoos-band that his movie was too loud, and the second to let my littlest pooch out to potty. So that's darn close to twelve hours of sleep, right? Well, Jonathan and I made the mistake of spending some time in bed talking this morning - and after we took a shower, we both fell back asleep! So I got another ALMOST four hours of sleep. The reason it's important to know, is because at just a shade past five o'clock in the evening, I'm ready to go BACK to bed! I really would, but we have to meet some friends and tell them the good news at dinner!

A nausea note: I haven't been overly pukey for the last two days, even though I don't always feel so hot, but I fear it might be because I'm not taking my prenatal vitamin. Wendy takes Flinstone vitamins, because her prenatals made her so icky, so I was thinking about doing that. (And I bought some toasted wheat germ at my sis' suggestion - mix it with yogurt and BANG! Extra folic acid!) However, my momma put the kibosh on that pretty quick. I quote: "Honey, right now, your baby's health is more important than yours." Hmmm... even though I know she's right, it's tough to admit. Anyway, the Girlfriend's Guide says to pop them at night, so I think I'll resort to that. Tonight - I swear!

We got our first baby "thing!" Angela and Levi Smith, who have three boys of their own, are being mighty generous with their hand-me-downs! We got a link-a-doo vibrating baby chair! It's bouncy and has a battery that makes it shake just enough that babies enjoy it, I guess. Coolio!

Jonathan is still doing magnificently. He's getting more and more excited! We were out shopping today, and he's grinning like banshee at every little kid we pass. When we were getting ready to leave the parking lot, he said in a tone of awe, "I can't believe how different our life is going to be in such a short time!" (I was a little snotty in my head and thought about how different my life is NOW, but I think I may have been able to keep it internal...)

Welcome to my journal! Please know that I don't EXPECT you to read this - as Johnna Weber so eloquently put, "Can't you just synopsize?" Sorry, kiddo - I don't know the meaning of brevity!

As you saw on the homepage, I also had the great joy of hearing AND seeing his/her heartbeat! (For the sake of sanity, I'll just be calling Jellybean HIM, and if Jonathan ever wants to post, he calls Jellybean HER. It's funny!) Anyway, I think they don't usually do the ultrasound that early, but I honestly had no idea how far along I was - oops! - and they were willing to sneak me in so they could try to figure it out! The best they could come up with on Monday, March 14th, was six weeks and five days - which gives us an estimated due date of November 2nd!

My Dad, Gene, has his fingers crossed that he'll get a "Tank" for HIS birthday on November 8th. (Ever since we were kids, Daddy's joked that he was gonna call his first grandbaby Tank - even if it was a girl!) I understand that the due date is a pretty loose estimate, so maybe he'll get what he wants!

Finally, just a mom-to-be note - I've made comments to a few people that anyone who goes through this more than once is either insane or a glutton for punishment. Please understand that this is the extraordinary nausea talking! I have never felt more gross in my entire life. Thanks for those great genes, Mommy! Anyway, I'm doing what I can to keep the queasiness under control - and if anyone has any suggestions, PLEASE feel free to offer them!

Jonathan couldn't be happier! He talks to my tummy every morning and every night - and keeps telling Jellybean to HURRY UP! Something tells me that it's going to be a long seven months!