a sad goodbye

Yesterday, we said a very sad goodbye to our pup, Schnitzle. He was almost 16 years old and had been my best canine friend since I was 12 (and in eighth grade). I miss him terribly and, even though we were prepared for his passing, I don't think I'll be able to think about him without crying for a while. He slept with me, let me cuddle him when I was upset and was generally an amazing, loving, and wonderful dog. I will miss his smell, the way he bounced in the air when he was excited, his stubbornness (like a true Dachshund), the digging game, his love of dismembering stuffed animals, the way he would look around for me whenever I left the room and how he would cuddle right up next to you on the couch.

Schnitzle went into the end stages of kidney failure about 3 weeks ago after, probably, months of slow progression of the disease. He was very active and alert up until about a week ago when the toll on his body became overwhelming. We made sure he was comfortable and cared for at home as long as we thought it was fair to him. By the end of the journey, his body was exhausted and it was time to say goodbye.

Through all the sadness that an ailing pet brings, it also reminds us why we love them so much in the first place. They provide everyday joy and hold a special and important place in our families. They love us even when we don't always deserve it, they get excited to see us even when we've been gone for 5 minutes and they make us laugh when we feel like crying. I hope everyone has a chance to have a pet that makes them as happy as ours make us and that they have as many wonderful years with them as we had with Schnitzy-bug.

We are very, very sad but so happy to have known such a wonderful pup and to have shared our lives with him every day.

much love, L&N

19 week photo

Here's our 19 week photo

We hit 19 weeks on September 14th and since that was my 28th birthday, we decided to commemorate it with a cute little birthday hat :) Also, I have to give a shout out to my little brother, with whom I share the day :) Happy 20th Austin! I love you! :)

We're getting closer to making some more decisions for the nursery and can't wait to really get started in there! 

STATS:

Foods I'm craving: I've been really wanting some champagne lately. Maybe because of my birthday? :)

Foods I can't stand: Nothing, really. There are still things that don't sound really yummy but nothing that makes me nauseous anymore!

Symptoms: backaches, difficulty sleeping and gas :/

Maternity clothes: yep! 

Weddings rings (on/off): on

Favorite thing this week: my birthday! Nick took me thrift/vintage furniture shopping (one of my favorite things to do) and took me out to lunch then made me my traditional birthday dinner, shrimp and grits, that night at home. It was exactly how I wanted to celebrate! 

much love, L&N

Graduation!

It's ridiculous that I haven't updated about this yet! I graduated with my Master in Public Health on August 4 and the weeks leading up to and right after were a little packed, so blogging went by the wayside for a little while :)

It was wonderful to have my family here to celebrate the conclusion of two years of hard work! I really couldn't have done it without the support of my absolutely amazing husband and my family and friends. I can't even count how many nights the kitchen was a mess and the laundry wasn't done because I was busy with schoolwork, or how many times we didn't meet up with friends during the week because I had something stressful to handle. I'm so proud to be finished (and to have done it with a 3.84 GPA- woot woot!) but I'm a little sad that I won't be spending time with my wonderful classmates and professors anymore. My program was a wonderful mix of learning, collaboration and inspiration- on a daily basis- and I'm sure I will miss the HPAM offices soon enough!

Here are some photos of the day...

My (not-so-little) little brother and I

with the Hubs

Momma and Daddy 

The whole family (including baby)! 

It was a great day even though I was just barely out of the 1st trimester and everything I ate was still making me nauseous :) I love having my family around and we had a great time just hanging out. We went to Etienne (in Athens and one of our favorite places) for a celebratory dinner where my sweet parents gave me a GORGEOUS pair of earrings and set it up with the restaurant to bring out a chilled bottle of sparkling grape juice for me to toast with. It was a wonderful way to end the two years of work that I put in and to celebrate the beginning of my career! 

much love, L&N

p.s. I have a ton of stuff to update, so many posts on their way!

It's a...

little video from Baby Wiese to share some much-awaited news! ;)

Baby Wiese Gender Reveal 2012 from Laura Wiese on Vimeo.

We are SO EXCITED!!

much love, L&N

sneak peek

Tomorrow we will have the big gender announcement! Stay tuned...

much love, L&N

16 week photo

Hi everybody!

Here's our (late) 16 week photo...and a new haircut!

There's finally something to see that looks more like a baby and less like too much pizza :) I actually had a woman ask me how far along I was when getting my hair cut and even though I thought to myself, "Wow, you have guts to ask that to a stranger!" it was nice to know that I actually looked pregnant and not just chubby :)

Also, for some reason, I look really washed out in this photo. Maybe the background color? I'm not sick or anything...I guess my skin just doesn't agree with teal walls :)

When I started having trouble getting into comfortable sleeping positions I went and ordered the Summer Prenatal Pillow from Bed, Bath, & Beyond after reading reviews that it was amazing. It came in last week and I have to say, this pillow has changed my life. For anyone, really anyone, out there who can't get comfortable because of back problems or injuries, go buy this pillow! It's a little pricey for a pillow but it has certainly paid for itself in restful nights. Even Nick loves it!

STATS:

Foods I'm craving: nothing consistent except sandwiches (which I mostly can't eat) and yummy fall beers (like our local Terrapin Pumpkinfest and Sam Adams fall sampler, which just showed up at our grocery store)

Foods I can't stand: the only things that still make me a little queasy are ginger, galangal, and some seafood like crab (it just smells rotten). I can eat shrimp and fish, though. Weird. 

Symptoms: headaches, bloating, having to pee all the time. nothing too horrible- I'm definitely enjoying being pregnant at this point :) 

Maternity clothes: definitely. I can still wear dresses and some shirts from before baby but many of my t-shirts are getting tight and I had to buy some new pj shorts and pants as well

Weddings rings (on/off): on

Favorite thing this week: figuring out that I can eat sandwiches from Firehouse because they steam the meat on everything! Glory, hallelujah! 

much love, L&N