Introducing...

Miss Little Pit :)

She was born at 8:35 am yesterday, weighing in at 7lbs, 7 oz and 21 1/2 inches long.

She has a full head of blonde hair which the nurses here just gush over. Every time they bring her into us they say "this is the baby with the beautiful hair, we love her!" and of course, Mr. Pit and I are madly in love with her as well. She makes the cutest little bird noises, but the girl has some pipes and will let you know pretty quickly when she's not a happy camper. For the most part though she has been very sleepy but was quick to nurse and by the late afternoon we had gotten the hang of things thanks to help from the nurses.

I was very lucky labor wise since it only lasted 10 hours, but boy oh boy, I can see why people wait years between kids! It was an amazing experience and I am still in awe that my body could even make a baby and then to deliver it to boot is just insane, but an amazing happy wonderful insane :)

I believe I get discharged tomorrow (Thursday) and will post more pictures when I get more, but for now, here are a few of our newest love :)

Mr. Pit and his daughter...he is really amazing with her, just like I knew he would be!

The little miss with her shocking blonde locks...doesn't she look like a little surfer girl? Too funny :)

Have a great week!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Baby Progress

Hi this is Mr. Pitt here. Mrs. Pitt's water broke at 10:15 PM on Monday, April 26. We made a Virgo like packing job on our hospital bags; meaning we had this all planned out well in advance and we finished packing up the necessities like toiletries, the camera, laptop and ipod. Mrs. Pitt is doing great. Contractions are progressing. Funny story of the day is one of my business colleagues told me the way to get the baby out was through pepperoni pizza, a glass of red wine and some intimate time. We made it through the pepperoni pizza and when Mrs. Pitt stood up to go to bed she heard a pop and her water was broken. So if you need to push out a baby, head for the pepperoni pizza. Not sure there will be any more updates until the baby comes. I am guessing no. Contractions and labor are progressing as they should. Mrs. Pitt is a trooper and I can not wait to welcome our child into the world with her. Lots of love to all.

Mr. Pitt

The last Monday...

Hi folks,
Last Friday was supposed to be my last day at work, but I got talked into working this week since Little Pit doesn't seem to be making any moves to vacate the premises. So, here I am.

Mr. Pit and I had a great weekend, the lacrosse tournament was great, and Katie herself told me yesterday that they had record breaking attendance this year, yahoo!! I was lucky enough to see Katie play wheelchair rugby during the tournament, and then spend the afternoon with her at our friend K's baby shower yesterday.

Saturday night we headed down to the Palm for dinner with my whole family to celebrate my Mom's birthday and we had a wonderful time. The waiter was awful but the bus boys made up for it and the food was fabulous as always. They are definitely getting an email from me regarding the service though, our waiter COMPLETELY disappeared on us after our dinner was served, and we didn't see him for almost an HOUR, grrr. Anyways, we still had fun since that's what we do, but I was disappointed that it wasn't better for my Mom.

The baby shower yesterday was great, K and baby M got LOTS of great gifts and super cute clothes. I also had a great time catching up with friend I hadn't seen in awhile, and K's twin sister M had us all decorate white onesies with fabric pens...such a cute idea! The food was also fabulous and always appreciated by yours truly :)

Then we went to dinner with Mr. Pit's parents at Theresa's Next Door and it was SO yummy. I took FULL advantage of the 1/2 price cheese special they do on Sunday's as well as some yummy potato leek soup and the steak salad...delicious!

Then it was home to watch Amazing Race and River Monsters (a new favorite, last nights episode was about Alligator Gar...scary!!)

And that was our weekend in a nutshell. At no point during the weekend did I get one twinge or feeling that Little Pit was coming early, so we'll wait patiently until the official due date of the 30th and see what happens then!

This week is pretty quiet for me, but pretty busy for Mr. Pit work wise and school wise, but we'll do our best to enjoy our last official week of being a family of 2!

Have a great week!
xoxo Mrs. Pit

Furry Friday!

Hi all,
Sorry for the late post, work has been crazy! But now I present: FUDGE!!I may have posted him before, and maybe it's just my pregnancy craving for chocolate, but I couldn't resist this guy. I mean, how many people go to great lengths to get a pure bred chocolate lab and here you have one, for free! Who also really needs a good home! A win win? I think so :)

Here is his write up:
It has been said that there are basically two types of Labrador Retrievers; Food Labs and Ball Labs. Fudge is definitely a Ball Lab. He will play catch with you all day if your arm holds out. His energy is boundless and his enthusiasm will bring a smile to your face. He's not all play; he has good manners also. He will sit on command and give you his paws, as long as you promise to play ball afterwards. He's strong and energetic, and will require a firm hand, but he will make somebody a playful and loving companion.

So come on, it will be a gorgeous weekend and you can take him to the Katie Sampson Lacrosse Festival this weekend and show him off!!

Mr. Pit and I are headed to the lacrosse tournament to see my old Alma mater play and watch my younger brother coach- GO SHIPLEY!!

Then we're doing some last minute Little Pit errands and then going out to dinner for my Mom's birthday at The Palm, yum!!

Then I have my friend K's baby shower on Sunday and Mr. Pit's parents are coming down for dinner on Sunday night, so it will be a busy and fun weekend.

Have a great weekend!
xoxo Mrs. Pit

Yesterday...

Yesterday I was sent on a field trip for work, to Havover, PA where they make Snyder's of Hanover Pretzels. Unfortunately, I didn't have to go do quality control on pretzels, rather precast concrete pavers...oh the life!

I spent a LOT of time in the car, but I did manage to drive past all the outlets in Lancaster on the way back as well as a stop at the Snyder's Factory for some super fresh pretzels at a discount.

I got a baby shower present AND a engagement party present in 1 stop (Pottery Barn Outlet) and I felt so accomplished and happy I took the slow way home (Route 30 all the way East as opposed to the Turnpike).

In updated baby news, no update. I am the exact same condition I was last week, which basically means that Little Pit is still pretty cozy and not making any big moves to meet the world any sooner than scheduled (9 days!) This is fine with me, if this child is ANYTHING like me it will be ALL about them and when they are ready to come out...however, as parents we are VERY much looking forward to meeting him or her, so come out anytime, really, we're ready! (We think!)

And this is random, but really fitting for how I feel now as well. I have to say how proud I am of my husband. He has been NOTHING but 100% supportive of me and Little Pit this entire pregnancy as well as our entire marriage (and as long as I have known him), all while juggling a full time job and getting his MBA in all of his 'spare time'. He is going to be done with his MBA work in June and I can't even put into words how amazing he is to get everything done and still have time to make me S'Mores while watching Glee and tuck me in at night so he can go back down stairs to study and write tons of papers while I sleep. He works SO SO SO hard and is just such an amazing husband and will be SUCH an amazing father I can't wait :)

Have a great Wednesday!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Breed Specific Legislation...and why it DOESN'T WORK!

I found this article on USA Today over the weekend and it rung SO true that I just had to post it here again.

Most of you know that Lil' Pup is a Pitbull, or at least mostly Pitbull mixed with something else. Part of the reason he was so hard for Main Line Animal Rescue to place him in a home was that as soon as his breed was brought up, people walked away from his kennel and further down the line, looking for a 'nice dog'. Believe me, Mr. Pit and I would have NEVER brought home a NOT NICE dog, but people have it in their heads that all pits are bad dogs. I've said it before and I'll say it till I'm blue in the face. There are no bad dogs. There are bad owners. Owners who have NO idea how to train a dog, and show no interest in doing so, they simply want this animal and that's as much as they've thought about it.

Training a dog is HARD WORK. No one tells you any differently when you bring an infant home, you have to change a TON of diapers, teach them how to sleep and eat and it's a full two to three years before the little darlings start going to the bathroom like grownups, but you don't see anyone returning their infant because they had an accident! People return puppies to breeders and rescues ALL the time because they are not potty trained and they can't teach them how...well, what if YOUR parents returned YOU because you weren't potty trained, it took you multiple years to get it right! No one smacked you when you wet the bed, no one threw you out the backdoor when you peed your pants...how is that fair?! You have to TEACH your dog how to live in the house. You have to TEACH your dog how to play with other dogs, be nice to kids, not bite the mailman...YOU have to TEACH. I know, it's a crazy concept, dogs should just 'get it' right? NOPE. They don't. YOU are the human and they are the animal. It is your job to teach.

Anyways, on to the article, I have cut and pasted below. I love it, and the fact that it comes from a Vet, I think it's even better. Enjoy.

At the outset, let me state that I am unwaveringly in favor of gun control measures designed very specifically to keep guns out of the paws of our country's criminal element.

With that in mind, it seems reasonable to assume I'd be blanketly supportive of more restrictive gun control measures. And yes, when it comes to confirmed criminals, I'm all for keeping arms as far from them as possible. Surely we can justify that as a penalty for their offenses.

But recently, I tuned into arguments put forth by those who convene inWashington, D.C., today to march in support of gun rights. In so doing, I couldn't help but observe the almost identical nature of arguments made by those who support the preservation of basic gun rights and those who oppose breed-specific legislation such as the pit bull ban we have here in Miami-Dade County.

Icky though that may have sounded to a leftish-wing animal lover who would never deign to keep a firearm at home, my individual rights-supporting side won out. I got the message — part of it, anyway.

Why?

As a veterinarian, Miami-Dade resident and former pit bull owner, I've been a close watcher of breed-specific legislation. And consequently — let me speak plainly now — I hate these laws.

They are based on:

• Biological misinformation (pit bulls' jaws don't "lock").

• Lack of attention to dog-bite statistics (breed bans have not curbed dog bites).

• A profound lack of attention to reality (pit bulls are even more popular now that they're banned).

• A failure to recognize the obvious (those who want aggressive dogs will raise them, regardless of breed).

And these laws are so arbitrarily enforced that those who would socialize their dogs properly in park settings are predominantly targeted over those who would wreak violent havoc with their (mostly hidden) dogs.

These myopic, tyranny-of-the-majority-enacted bans are fear-based. Aimed at the lower end of the socioeconomic scale, they have no regard for science or public welfare — just for the kind of political expediency that prompts municipal leaders to get their names attached to a proposal that any safety-loving voter stands prepared to swallow whole.

But then, I guess it'll always be sexier to ban something than to actually work hard to deliver intelligent laws — or to enforce them.

OK, rant over.

But perhaps you see my point now. The ban on pit bull dogs (among other breeds), as for weapons, would seem anathema to our national values given that the Second Amendment is right there with all responsible dog owners: You can't take away my dog based on her breed any more than you can take away my revolver just because bad people tend to use a .357 Magnum. The law doesn't allow you to make those decisions for me. Not if I haven't given it just cause to discriminate against me.

Sure, the problem with the Second Amendment is that our forefathers never foresaw a nation of AK-47-wielding street thugs terrorizing common citizens with their drive-bys, or an urban culture where spike-collared, muscle-bound dogs (of all breeds) straining against their chains was considered the epitome of street-sexy.

As a mother and a frequent animal-bite observer, of course I'd like more laws targeting these evildoing, dog-wielding creeps (not least because the dogs suffer, too). But am I willing to accept the consequences of such laws? Not when they unfairly target the dogs instead of the people. What we need is not more laws crafted to punish the dogs. Rather, we simply need to enforce existing laws to punish animal cruelty offenders and those whose dogs commit violent acts.

As with guns, the push should be to punish the criminal, not his weapon, and not to penalize those who would choose to peacefully keep a dog of any particular breed.

Now, don't condemn me for equating pit bulls with guns. As a former pit bull owner (and a defender of dogs in general), I don't typically see dogs in this light at all. But that doesn't alter the fact that those who would ban them do. And with that recognition comes the obvious conclusion:

If you respect an individual's right to bear arms, whether for protection, sport or collector's obsession, then any censure of an individual breed of dog (ostensibly for its inherent danger to the population at large) deserves the same broad protections — along with the kind of enhanced enforcement of crimes that result from their abuse.

I think this article is well written, precise and exactly to the point. I love the line about punishing the user of the weapon, not the weapon itself. Such a good point that not many people think about.

You all know my stance on rescue dogs in general, and I am not saying everyone has to go out and adopt a Pitty, because they aren't the right dog for everyone, neither is a Golden Retriever or a Chihuahua.

What I am saying, is that if every dog owner was a RESPONSIBLE dog owner, we wouldn't have half the problems that we have with Pitbulls getting blamed for every dog bite you hear about. I am sure there are some mean and nasty Pitbulls out there that aren't socialized and would harm a child, a mailman, another dog and all sorts of things.

Another thing I am sure about though is that there are quite a few Pitbulls, Lil' Pup included who would rather snuggle with you on the couch or take a nice long walk through Valley Forge Park before they would want to get in a fight or harm a child. I also know that Mr. Pit and I have to CONSTANTLY remind Lil' Pup that WE are the Alphas in the house. EVERY morning we remind him that we feed him, we let him out and it is up to him and his behavior of how smoothly these things occur. 95% of the time he is great about it, but we still have to teach everyday. It isn't his fault he pushes the boundaries, it's what he does, it is OUR responsibility to confirm those boundaries and reteach him when he thinks he has successfully moved one.

Ok, this is now officially the longest blog post ever.

Have a great week!! xoxo Mrs. Pit

Furry Friday! Meet Driver!!

Will you take a look at this handsome boy? Main Line Animal Rescue thinks he's only about 4 or 5 months old and what a cutie! Those big puppy paws just crack me up, and those little spots are just to die for!!

Here is his write up, and I agree with them, this guy will be adopted quickly, so get out there!!

Driver is one of the cutest puppies we've had in quite some time - truly - and despite his beginning of being abandoned, he really is one of the sweetest dogs we have! He has this great coat of white with some red/brindle patches and he has the most beautiful amber colored eyes - they are really gorgeous and of course he uses them to his best advantage - wooing the volunteers to take him out "just one more time" or "just one more minute of snuggling". He quite young - we are estimating 4-5 mos old and we've all been trying to figure out his breed makeup - he's tall and lean but has a bit of a boxer face but not the jowls... regardless of breed he is a truly wonderful dog. He loves other dogs, he's a bit submissive with them now but really is coming out of his shell and learning that other dogs are fun and he's learning how to play a bit more now too! He LOVES people and can't get enough attention, snuggling, kissing - he even tries to get on everyone's laps which is proving difficult given he's a pretty big puppy! We know a puppy this great won't last long here - so if you are interested in Driver I'd hurry up and get an application in to come meet him!

Plus, as a golf aficionado (or at least one who appreciates a good walk around the course trying to find my ball for 18 holes) I can't help but love the name :)

Mr. Pit and I are out to dinner and a movie tonight with friends, and then the rest of the weekend we're going to play by ear. The weather isn't supposed to be great, so tending to our vegetable garden isn't exactly the most appealing thing to do while it's in the 50's and rainy, though one of these weekends we need to get in there, clean it out and till it up. One day!

Hope everyone has a great weekend! Go adopt an animal, or two, they need you!!

Busy

It's another gorgeous spring day here in Philly and I am busy at work getting everything organized for the hopefully smooth transition of my work to my colleagues.

I never realized how much responsibility I had here until I had to start putting things in binders for my coworkers. I have to make sure that all my notes, phone calls, emails and any other correspondence was organized in a way that someone other than myself could understand it.

I am not saying I am unorganized, I *AM* a Virgo for crying out loud...but organized to me (with my color codes and post it notes) isn't the way that everyone else does it (mostly because I am a woman and EVERY other person I work with is a man).

I follow 11 contractors for this jobsite. That means I am in charge of their contract, any financial changes to their contract, any PENDING financial changes to their contract (so we can forecast where our budget is) and their procurement and installation schedules as well as approving their 'shop' drawings and any materials that they want to use in the field. The project I am working on is going to be certified LEED Gold, so we have to track every single piece of new material as well as materials that go in the trash and recycling and lots of other fun details.

The field staff (superintendents) take care of the work actually being done, and then we get together to discuss the financial implications of any changes made to details, elevations or plans while in the field or via the architect or owner. If there are changes to a detail or a room or a door or anything like that, it is my job to coordinate that change with the subcontractor it affects and anyone else who's work is congruent to it (if we change a door I need to talk to the door guy AND the carpenter since the door guy gives the door to the carpenter to install, making changing a door pretty darn expensive!)

So, with 11 subcontractors, that is 11 binders with approximately 8-10 tabs for each depending on what work they do. (The earthwork sub is practically finished, where as the signage subcontractor is just getting started). It is a LOT of tabs and a LOT of organizing, but now that I am actually doing it, I realize I should have had it this well organized the whole time!!

Hopefully my coworkers won't be cursing me when I am not here and I'm really hoping my phone doesn't ring between May and July...but I have a feeling Little Pit will have a good sense of Mommy's job pretty soon after coming home!

Hope all the East coasters have a chance to get out and enjoy this lovely weather, looks like today will be the last nice day for a bit, so enjoy it if you can!

See you tomorrow for Furry Friday!!

xo Mrs. Pit

Little Pit's Room- The finale

Here is the final result of Little Pit's room. Not as fancy as some of the other nursery's I have seen online ( Suburban H.I.T's room for her little girl is amazing and SO SO SO cute with the hand painted murals!) but I love the way this room turned out.

View from the doorway

View of the quilt hung on the wall and the super comfy recliner/glider

All of the Peter Rabbit/Benjamin Bunny figurines that were given to me when I was a baby

Peter Rabbit crib sheet and bumper (I am guessing these will stay clean for about .5 seconds, but it's cute now!! And a view of the farm animal mobile...

The Bellini changing table we found for a STEAL on Craigslist

And last but not least, my fabulous baby bag courtesy of Mr. Pit via Kate Spade...can't wait to use it!!

As I figured...

All the 'progress' that has been made doesn't amount to much. I don't feel any different than I have the last few weeks, so much to my bosses pleasure, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon.

The fact that my work countdown is now single digits is pretty crazy though...8 more days of work until August...eep!

And I know I failed as a picture poster, in fact, last night after yoga and a shower and dinner I didn't even take the pictures I meant to...so tonight is the night hopefully! I don't have anything planned except some good old resting on the couch with Lil' Pup out of this cold damp rainy yucky day.

Looks like the weather will be good through Friday though, and then it looks like another cool and sunny weekend here in Philly, which is fine with me, I know in the middle of the summer I will be begging for cool days, so I might as well enjoy them now right?!

Hope everyone's having good Tuesdays!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Progress

So, I had my 37/38 week appointment today, and it's official...progress has been made!

It's not a lot, but it's progress nonetheless. The nurse told me she might see me next week for my next regular appointment, or she could see me sooner if things happen faster. Basically, as far along as I am right now, I could stay this way for the next 2-3 weeks with nothing happening, or I could have a baby in the next 24 hours depending on what my body and the baby decide...isn't that nutty?!

I don't feel any contractions as of now though, a little tightness here and there, but nothing drastically different than anything I've felt the last few weeks...but I'll keep you updated I promise!

I have a feeling that Little Pit is pretty comfy where he/she is at the moment, and as well as I think I know my body, the nurse reiterated that anything can happen and I should be ready for it.

EEK!!

In other news, we finally finished the nursery this weekend as well, all the shelves are hung, the books are in place, diapers are ready and well...all we need now is a baby Pit!! I will post pictures tomorrow of the finished product, I am quite proud of Mr. Pit and I (and my awesome brothers) for getting everything together.

Hope everyone has great weeks!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Some more shots of spring...

Here are some more photos from around the yard this April. It is a GORGEOUS weekend here in Philly and Mr. Pit and I are enjoying our last few weekends as just the two of us. This one certainly tops the list in terms of relaxation and errand completion, we have gotten a ton done while still being able to watch the Masters and finish up a few things in Little Pit's room. All in all a great time!

Some pink blooms on the tree in our front yard

The tree from the cul-de-sac looking up towards our house...I love our house AND that tree!

Pink blooms everywhere!

Lil' Pup enjoying the sunshine, and chewing on a stick

And a big smile from Lil' Pup!

Happy Spring!

Furry Friday- BROTHERS!!

GAH!!! These puppies are too freaking cute for words, and the fact that they haven't been adopted out yet ASTOUNDS me...look at these guys! This is Backswing and Backspin and they are some of the newer residents of Main Line Animal Rescue.

They are a mere 5 months old and are a mix of St. Bernard and something equally adorable.

Could you imagine the fun you would have with these two in your house?! TOTALLY my dream dogs (did I just type that?! Sorry Little Pup!)

It will take ALL my will power (and the knowledge that Little Pit is due to arrive in 21 scant days) to NOT pick up these cute puppies this weekend, but YOU totally should!!!

Just click HERE to find out more info on these two and lots of other dogs and cats that need homes from Main Line Animal Rescue.

Mr. Pit and I have some really fun plans this weekend, first is dinner at Flemings tonight with 2 sets of friends, and then my BFF's engagement party is Saturday night!! Sunday looks like it is going to be nice and relaxed, and we are really looking forward to it.

I also just realized that I only have 2 more weeks of work left before Little Pit comes! I am taking the last week of April off as vacation because I am terrified to go into labor at work and feel like I should be home resting and getting last minute things done. Then we'll just have to see if the little one comes on time or not :)

I hope you all have great weekends!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Signs of Spring, and Easter!

Here are what things look like near the Pit house...

Cherry Blossoms...

Tulip Trees

Azaleas...

Daffodils

And the Pits at the Golf Club enjoying the wonderful weather on Easter Sunday :)

Rescue Stamps!!

I just saw a poster about these stamps over the weekend, and I am so excited for them to come out! Amazingly enough they are being officially issued on April 30th, Little Pit's due date!

From the USPS Website:

On April 30, 2010, in North Hollywood, California, the Postal Service™ will issue a 44–cent, Animal Rescue: Adopt a Shelter Pet special stamp in ten designs, designed by Derry Noyes of Washington, DC.

With these 10 stamp designs, the U.S. Postal Service hopes to raise awareness of the need to adopt shelter pets.

The pets depicted on the stamps were photographed by Sally Andersen-Bruce near her home in New Milford, Connecticut. All had been homeless at one time; all but one had been adopted when they were photographed.

How great is that?! The USPS getting involved with shelter pets, I love it!!

I have already pre-ordered 5 books of stamps so that I can mail the baby announcements out with them, horray!!!

A great Easter!

Hi all,
It was a great Easter weekend at the Pit house and with the wonderful weather, it just made everything THAT much nicer.

I took some great 'spring' photos but of course didn't get around to downloading them yet, but I'll do that tonight. I got some great shots of the cherry blossoms on the trees in our neighborhood, as well as lots of local daffodils and hyacinths in peoples yards. We also got a good family photo at the golf club yesterday, and lunch was DELICIOUS as always.

Tonight I have my 37 week checkup...how nutty is that?!, then we'll be home to make dinner (steaks we got at Wegmans) yum!

I hope everyone had a great and long weekend!

xoxo Mrs. Pit

Oh, and apologies on no Furry Friday post, the day was busier than expected, so I promise a really good one this Friday!

Photo Updates

Hi all, thought I'd amuse you with some updated photos from the Pit House.

Here is my belly at 35 weeks, 5 days. It honestly doesn't seem that big on my body, but in the picture it looks humungous!

And here are a few of Little Pit's room. We still have some things to put away, and we haven't put the bedding on the bed yet as we don't want it to get dusty and have to wash it again, but I really like it so far! We are also planning on moving the mobile to the side of the crib since it's not working for me aesthetically where it is now.

Enjoy!

The ugly green pillow is totally not staying on the glider, and as I said, lots to still be put away, but we're getting there!