Nothing

By now, most of you know that I can no longer work due to extreme shortness of breath with activity and heart palpitations. It's nothing dangerous, but since my job requires A LOT of activity, my OB said it was best to just leave work until after Elliotte is born. She is perfect and not having any problems. I think most people would be overjoyed at not being able to go to work, but I have to limit my activity. I can't exercise, do a lot of walking, go up and down stairs, etc without having to catch my breath. So, for the next 4 months (or however long it takes Elliotte to come), I am going to have to be creative with my time. I can tell you all about daytime TV:
GMA: Diane Sawyer is the most beautiful woman over 40 on TV. Ben tells me this every morning. I usually only catch the last hour.
Regis and Kelly: They are hilarious. Regis gets a little annoying at times, but it's worth it to hear Kelly rip on him.
The View: I don't really like all the bickering, but Sherri Shepard is so funny. Sometimes they have good discussions.
Martha: This lady is a serious control freak. She belittles everyone on her show in her covert way. I turn her off when she starts enunciating her words too carefully (this is so pretttty) or when she starts telling her guests how to do what they know how to do best.
Channel 4 News at Midday: Have to see what's going on in the world and watch the weather.
More at Midday: I can't stand Tim Ross! He has to be the most annoying person on the face of the earth! Sometimes I put up with him, but most days I want to reach inside the TV and choke his neck.
Better: I like this show. They have good ideas and are not the least bit annoying.
Days of Our Lives: I started watching this in high school during basketball study hall. I'll be the first to admit that it's insane, but I get sucked in. Right now, Sami had EJ's baby but he doesn't know it, but Nicole who is now married to EJ stole Sami's baby and replaced it with a baby from a high school girl because Nicole miscarried EJ's baby and was afraid to lose him. So basically, EJ should have two babies that are the same age by women who hate each other and live a few streets apart. Only in Salem...
Ellen: My FAVORITE show on TV. She is a genius. I don't agree with her lifestyle choice, but she is compassionate and caring and truly loves to give to people. I laugh so hard every day.
Oprah: I only watch Oprah now if there is someone on her show that I really like. She's a nut job.

That about sums up my day of daytime TV. Now, I don't normally watch all these shows back to back. Usually I try to get out and do something very slowly. I can still go to the grocery as long as I walk around slowly and get the sweet guys at Publix to take out my groceries. I'll go to mom and dad's and sit around there to get away from my crazy bubbies at home who are so confused that I am home every day now. They don't know what to do with themselves. Once Nanny gets home and opens up her pool, I plan to be the tannest pregnant woman ever by lounging in the pool every day! I am going to try and enjoy this time as much as I can since in 4 months I will never be bored again! So if anyone wants to come over and watch TV or go to the pool on your day off just let me know. I can still grab lunch too!

Happy Birthday Ben!

Today is Ben's 29th b'day, so I surprised him with breakfast this morning since he had to go to work. I made scrambled eggs, bacon, and biscuits. He was very happy since we usually just sit on the couch and eat cereal. He opened his gifts after breakfast and was VERY happy with his presents. He received Bass Pro gift cards from mom and dad and his favorite candies: Twizzlers and Reeces. I had to do a lot of looking for his gift this year. He mentioned awhile back that the Sopranos series would be the "ultimate" gift probably thinking that I would never get it for him. I searched online and on sale it was over $300! I couldn't pay that for his b'day, so I decided to see what I could find on eBay. After some careful watching and last second bidding, I got it for $125! I was very happy with myself. He was so surprised by the gift and said he would be the envy of all his friends. He quickly added that he would not be watching it with Elliotte around. I don't need her picking up on gangster lingo before she can speak.
While eating breakfast, Ben asked me if today really was his birthday? I said it was last time I checked, and he said great! Then he proceeded to feed Buster some of his bacon. Now, I NEVER give my dogs table food. Pugs gain weight very easily, so we just stick to dog food. It also makes them beg even more. Ben likes to sneak food to them when I'm not home or not looking. He just grinned as Buster was inhaling the bacon. He said "it's my birthday and you can't get mad at me!" Well played. Buster sure did enjoy the bacon. Luckily the other two were outside or they would have knocked over the table trying to get to it. Buster will probably have the runs later today, and I will hope that he makes it outside!

Ben about to enjoy his breakfast. Notice Buster looking intently at his plate.

Ben was very happy with his presents.

I also gave him a baby book for him to read to Elliotte.

Silly Pug

I had to post this video because it was so cute. When the weather is nice outside, I usually leave the back door open so the dogs can go in and out as they please. Occasionally, I get some unwanted visitors...this day it was a brown beetle that Belle found. She was so funny trying to figure out what it was and trying to play with it. By the time I got my camera she was almost done with the beetle, but I still caught her being silly.

It's a GIRL!!!

Well, today was the big day! Our ultrasound apt was at 8am so Ben could get to work by 9:00. As I was lying on the exam table, I had my first feeling that it was a girl. I just knew it. The US tech said she was 85% sure it's a girl. She just didn't want to move the right way. There was a lot of movement going on, and the tech said she really thinks she would have seen evidence of a penis if there had been one to see. I just kept saying "I don't see a pee pee" and Ben was holding his head in his hands. He was a little shocked at first, but now he's really excited. He's always wanted a girl, but he thought it would be better to have a boy first so she could have an older brother. He said I turned out fine being the older girl, so he's not worried. We got some great US pics and a DVD of the exam. I didn't get to see my regular doctor today b/c she was in India on vacation, but I saw another great doctor. She had actually done a rotation on my floor at the hospital a few years ago, so we talked about that for awhile. It was nice to know that one of the other doctors was just as nice and personal as Dr. Haney. I just love my OB.

Of course, right when I was finished with my doctor's apt, I went straight to mom and dad's. They are really excited. I told dad he was going to be coaching some softball again in the future. Mom and I went to Babies R Us and did some girl shopping. Not too much though. We also looked at fabric for the nursery and found some that I think is going to work. I'm eager to get started now that the nursery is almost cleaned out. Just a few pieces of furniture to move downstairs. The dogs have been moved to the downstairs bedroom (since the nursery was their room), and Buster has not adjusted well. He's "marked" everything from Ben's weight bench to Ben himself. That was pretty funny, but not to Ben. I knew Buster would need some extra time, so we moved him early so he could adjust. I'll just have to watch him to make sure he doesn't "mark" the baby when she comes!

Elliotte Lynn Miller frontal view. I think she looks like me. Ha.

Profile view. She has her hand to her face.

Butt view. No pee pee!