doctor, doctor

Well, it was Bella's first trip to the doctor.

Super Dad was home last Thursday, (snow day, yes, you heard me, snow day, the middle of April) then home Friday sick. Then all weekend he was sick, it was great fun. Booger bombs everywhere. (for those who don't know what a booger bomb is; a wadded up kleenex so wet with snot it sticks to your foot if you step on it, i.e. a "bomb") Well, then he stayed home sick Monday too. And of course Bella had gotten considerably more and more stuffed up. So, mom checked her temp, and a low grade fever had emerged. Thanks dad.

I would have just let her heal on her own, but the fever is my line I do not pass. I will treat all kinds of dreaded kukamunga sickness with vitamins, herbs, rest, chants, etc. until a fever presents, then I give in to those who are degreed in that sort of thing.
Doc said she's fine (of course her fever had subsided by the time we got to the office) and she is just congested and a lot of drainage (which explains her upchuck Monday morning) so Benedryl if it gets to where she can't handle the drainage. So far I have not had to use it. More boob juice for Bella! (studies show that increased breastfeeding during illness heals babies faster!)

You'd be interested to know that our little princess is now 11 lb.
I KNOW! Where did my little one go?

Another milestone... the onesies she was wearing in the hospital... now TOO SMALL!! I had to move some of the 3-6 month clothes over to her armoire/shelf from the spare closet last night.
Well, I guess its time to pack up some of the newborn clothes for the next baby!

Then earlier, we're in front of the computer.. Bella's happy, smiling of course, then a little fussy, so I started singing the theme song to Sesame Street, and she stopped being fussy and started smiling, almost laughing! It was so neat to know someone likes my singing! See, I told you all I could sing well.

other than that... going well!

I hung some laundry on the line... (Bella helped by holding a clothespin) working on my side job (I make scrapbooks for people, they pay me... its great!)

The weather is supposed to be great today, I think Bella and I may go for a walk. My mom is supposed to get my stroller for me, I CAN'T WAIT!! Then we can go for walks ALL THE TIME!

well, back to work. I've got Bella in the Moby and its so nice. May I suggest to all pregnant women and already mom's with kids less than 45 lbs. BUY A MOBY! BUY A MOBY! BUY A MOBY!!

home again, home again, jiggity jig

Super Dad was home today.
It was a great Bella day, a horrible dad and mom day.
We found out he didn't get the job he was "perfect for". That's not my quote, that's the man who called to let him know that they picked someone else despite the fact super dad was "perfect for" it. The reason? He was too honest. He told them that he was looking into multiple job opportunities in the hopes they would let him know the job status as soon as possible. That, apparently, has been a problem with previous employees, so they decided not to take a chance on super dad.
So he was home again working on sending out MORE resumes, and filling out MORE job applications.
While he was home Bella had a wonderful day. She of course slept all morning as usual and then was awake in the afternoon. She and super dad played, and laughed (well, not laughing yet, just smiling) and farted together. A great time was had by all.
Super dad keeps saying that she looks and feels so different, so much bigger so we got on the scale... sure enough... 9lb 4 ounces. She is just over a month, and was 6 lb 8 oz. at her one week checkup, so she seems to be gaining weight well! Then we measured her, born at 19 in. now she is 22 in. It sure is amazing how fast they grow.
Her gas seems to be calming down as of late, a lot less crying lately.
I was very excited the other day to find out that Bella really enjoyed side-lying to nurse. That made me exstatic to know I could lay down and relax to feed her.. but recently she has been spitting up after she eats while lying down. So... maybe I'm not as excited as I thought.
Her schedule seems to be smoothing out as well (unless its a gassy day). Then we're up in the evening working out a poop or a really good fart. We eat then go to bed from 11:00-12:00 pm to 4 or 5 am, then eat, then sleep till 8 or 9 am then eat then sleep till 12 or 1 pm then eat then awake for an hour or so then eat again, then sleep from 3-4 to 6 or 7 then eat every hour until about 11 or 12 pm. Of course this changes if she's gassy. and if you come over to visit or ask me on any day it'll be different.

well I hear her crying on daddy's lap. I fell asleep with her and asked him when we fell asleep (I can't remember) so I don't know how long it's been, but I BET SHE'S HUNGRY!!!!

-mom

home alone

The day has come.

Super dad has taken maternity leave with me and has been home up until today. But now, he has gone back to work today, so Bella and I are home alone.
The past 4 weeks have really gone fast. Our little Isabella is one month old.
Every time I mention that to super dad he just says, "yes, and she will turn 1 year old, and 10 years old, and 50 years old. Look forward to the next 'one'"
He's right, she will always be growing and learning.

On Monday we took her for her first hike. The weather was gorgeous. UNTIL we got to the property we hike on, and I had her in the Moby wrap, HOLY HANNAH.. it got HOT! I was sweating... I had a tank top on, so at least I was sleeveless. Super dad just laughed. THANKS!!

Then Tuesday we hung around the house and took tons of "I'm One Month Old Today" pictures. Then we got Wings for dinner and rented some movies.

It was sad to say goodbye to daddy this morning, but who knows what's in store. Maybe he'll get to say goodbye to me in the mornings and he can stay home with Bella, or who knows. Hopefully, he'll be able to find a new job. Yeah, as horrible as that sounds, super dad's job is being cut... so... we're off on a new adventure. If you remember the poem written for our wedding by a super aunt, we're always looking for our path, on new adventures.

I know we'll look back and say this all happened for a reason, and something good came out of it. But being stuck in the middle of it.. right now... it's downright shitty!!!

-the mom

days gone by

It's such a cliche.

Time Flies...

It really has. My mom came up to visit this past weekend and I just couldn't wait to hear her say she can't believe how much Isabella has changed. (she was there at the birth) But, despite all of the things I pointed out that I thought had changed, nope... she couldn't see it.

Maybe it's just me, but I sure can.

Her cry; it was so meek that first week home. Now it always has a purpose. It's not very often either. Gas is usually the culprit.

Her hands; she was always in a "Bella burrito" and her hands would get swaddled along with the rest of her. Now.... they have to be out, and if they aren't she finds a way to make sure they are out.

Her eyes; we didn't see much of her eyes that first week, but now, they are open and ready to learn. I hope we can keep your eyes as busy as possible my Bella....

Best of all... her smile; yes, I have mentioned it before, she smiles. I KNOW it has a purpose.. I KNOW it's not just gas.

There are so many more little things that I could go on for days. But these days are fleeting, and my time with her at this age is short. I must go and enjoy my beautiful baby.

Oh, and we are still welcoming visitors!!! So far.. only 3 takers, and 2 were grandparents so that doesn't count. :)

hmmm... maybe a nap is a good idea too.

-the mom

EEEWW.. no we're not saving it

So, today was another milestone..

Bella's cord stump fell off..
People keep asking us if we are going to save it. um, eww, NO!!

We also had some visitors today.. YAY! human contact!

Well, all has been going well.

more later...

-the mom

Part 3 - Catch This

Continued from Part 2 - Contraction Action

So now that we have Mom-to-be in position it was time for the serious work of getting the baby out of her.
I'm not saying up until now was a picnic, or that Mom-to-be wasn't serious mind you. I'm only saying that now it's commitment time. No turning back. Going for broke. Giving 110%.
Ok, enough with the clichés, you get the idea.

The Midwife had some hot compresses and olive oil ready to massage the perineum. This technique is supposed to help prevent tearing. And for those of you who are thinking that an episiotomy will help prevent tearing, you might want to check out some recent studies that suggest that this is actually a bad idea and in some cases will help accelerate tearing.

Anyway, back to the story. So at about 1:30 everyone gets in position. I'm at my station talking to the wife and getting myself ready to lift the pillow during each push. Ok, I know that doesn't sound like much and in the grand scheme of things it really isn't , but it's all I'm really there to do. That and to be sure someone eats the meatloaf (see Contraction Action for more on that).
Funny thing I haven't mentioned up to this point. I started to notice that during each contraction while Mom-to-be was trying to relax. Her ears turned red. I could actually tell when a contraction was about to happen by looking at the shade of her ears.
So the first contraction; big contraction, hits and Mom-to-be bares down. We start to get a play by play from the staff at the receiving end, but from our angle there isn't much to see.
They do have a mirror on the ceiling for Mom-to-be to watch, but at this point we can't see much.

Now it's kind of a cruel joke for the Mom-to-be because during every push the baby comes out some, but then it ducks back in. After several minutes of pushing someone said they could see the head. So during some of the pushing I caught Mom-to-be trying to catch a glimpse of her baby through one eye as she was baring down. I have to say it's a really a good thing we saw SO many videos of birth in class. Simply put... "desensitization".
Birth; folks, is a VERY messy affair and you really want to be ready for it. The last thing I wanted to do was to scream, "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!" and then faint dead away.
Nope, that didn't happen. Instead I stood there and watched my baby being born, and I have to tell you that nothing can compare to that. Knowing that your partner would put forth this kind of effort to bring into the world a little one, that you both get to share. It's pretty humbling really. And also, there is no way she can ever say she is too tired to hike just a little further, because I now know better.
So, after pushing for just over an hour our little girl was born. I cut the cord and welcomed her into the world.
She cried and cried. I was so incredibly happy, I really can't put it into words.

So with that, I'll stop here.

Next up Part 4 - The Voyage Home

HikerDad

It's not JUST gas...

Today was a big day for me. Super Dad got Isabella to smile today. I'm not talking gas smiles either.

How do I know it wasn't just gas? We were in the computer room and Dad had her on his lap. (in the "on the computer" lap position; one leg crossed and up on the other leg, which makes a perfect spot to hold baby, thanks Grandma!!) So Dad had her looking up at him and she was cooing and happy, then out of the blue he starts tickling her sides and making a goofy noise.

She started to smile, and squirm. The more he tickled the more she smiled and squirmed..I couldn't believe it!! She was smiling... a big goofy, happy smile!!

(of course the minute he stopped so I could get the camera, she stopped laughing, and wouldn't do it again)

She has changed so much just in the past week and 3 days since she has been born.

I just can't take it all in, it's all so beautiful.

Everything about her is beautiful, and today, I don't know how, but it just got better.

Quick Update

So this is going to be a quick update and then we'll get back to the birth story in a minute.

This morning off the coast of Diaperville a Poonami was sighted. It did extensive damage to both the sleeper, blanket, and the will of the people.
The hazmat team has been called, but one of the members was overheard saying, "uhuh, not me. That's nasty."

OMG this kid just had the biggest blowout I've ever had the misfortune of seeing. I mean she was sleeping happily minding her own business when I overheard a loud "brakkkkthhbitttt". I looked at Mommy and said, "uh, oh".
Then with a slight of hand skill even Houdini would have been impressed by, I spun the little one around so the business end was facing Mommy. This didn't go unnoticed, but was quickly overshadowed by what Mommy found waiting for her under just a few cm of cloth.

The wife looked at me with a very serious expression and said, "Bath. Now."

The Mom briefly contemplated just tossing out the sleeper, and if in fact it wasn't so warm and fit so well I would have agreed, but instead it is being salvaged as we speak.

Sadly, I can't say I'll ever be able to eat butterscotch pudding again.

HikerDad

Part 1 - SURPRISE!

So it happened.
The day we've been planning for, for almost 9 months. Notice I said "almost 9 months".
Our little one seems to take after Dad and decided to arrive a few days earlier than expected.
But that's neither here nor there, so let's get down to business.

The following is the birth story from the Dad's [and mom's] point of view. [Dad-2-b is in orange, mom-2-b is in blue]

For those of you who might be expecting or are planning on expecting or are even remotely curious about the idea of expecting sometime in your life let me give you a bit of sage advice.
SLEEP!
[no shit....]
This cannot be more pointedly expressed than in the events of the birth of our child.

I had gotten word the night of the 25th that I would not have to work on the 26th so I spent more time messing around until after 1am (I usually go to bed at 10). I had done the same thing the night before because it was the weekend, but I had gotten up at my usual time of 6am both days.
[My sleep had been off as well. I called in sick to work on Friday the 24th. Like I said, I hadn't slept well, and felt kind of weird. Then through the weekend I stayed up as well, working on the shelving unit (check previous post). Then Sunday night I still didn't feel any better.. so I called in sick again.]
During the day of the 26th Mom-to-Be and myself took a short 2 hour nap around 4pm.
[thanks to me... I had to MAKE him, now who's the genius?]
So as you can see we were both a bit sleep deprived as the events started to unfold.

As the evening of the 26th approached we had a bit of snow so I headed out to shovel. Mom-to-be wanted to help and over my objections she spent some time shoveling a path from our house to the driveway (30ft).
[what?, I felt fine.. leave me alone]
When she got to the driveway I really had to tell her to stop. I mean if people thought I condoned my wife’s shoveling at over 8.5 months pregnant I'd never hear the end of it.
[he really did make me stop]
So while I shoveled Mom-to-be made mini snowmen on the hood of my car.

After the shoveling we were very hungry, but I had a little project to work on for the wife so I set out to do that around 8pm. Mom-to-be said she’d make sandwiches and bring one down to me.
[I did...and this is when we first should have realized something was up.. when I went to the basement and gave him his sandwich I realized my breasts were leaking.. this was new to me. I am in no way saying that leaking is an indicator of labor... but who knows???]
It wasn't until just before 10 that I learned that although she made me food, she hadn't eaten. Well, I had some harsh words with her on our intercom phone via the basement to the upstairs computer room (2 floors away).
[He was right though.. I needed to eat a long time ago.. but got busy doing something else]
Then just after 10pm I heard a faint whistling sound. The same whistle that we use to find each other in stores (it's kind of an audible ping we've worked out). But this was strange because we have the phone intercom system. Then it hit me, if she wasn't calling on the phone, then she must not be able to GET to the phone.
[So I'm sitting at the computer, we get off the phone, and I stand up to go get myself something to eat, then as I turn I see something on the floor of the closet, one of the LED lights we put up had fallen so I went to fix it. I bent over to pick it up and GUSH!! well, not really, more of a light trickle. Yes, it's just like everyone says.. you question yourself to see if you just wet yourself or if its the real thing.. so I get to the bathroom ASAP. YES SIR... WE HAVE RUPTURED MEMBRANES!!!!!!!! So then I'm sitting there, and I yell.. PATRICK!!!........... no answer.........PATRICK!!!!!!...... no answer......... PATRICK!!!!!!!!!!!......... no answer... shit.. how am I going to ge...*ding* light bulb, *whistle*....*whistle*.... then I hear him coming up the stairs]
I walked up the first flight of stairs calling her name with a sort of questioning tone in my voice.
She responded with, "Umm, I think my water broke".
"Oh really?" I replied.
"Uhh, yeah....” she continued with an explanation of what happened.
Yep, it was true the baby was on the way.

What happened next was a kind of blur. Not that I was in anyway panicking. Ok.. at one point I did have a bit of an oh-shit fest, but this was well out of earshot of Mom-to-be as I didn't think she needed to see me starting to unravel. After I composed myself (only minutes mind you) I called the midwife and gave her the low down. She asked us into the hospital ASAP as Mom-to-be needed to start some antibiotics.
I didn't like the idea of going in early as contractions hadn't started and I knew it would be a long night, that might be followed by an induction with pitocin, something Mom-to-be and I really opposed.

So, we spent time going over our check list, getting a quick shower in, packing a few more foods into our second bag and just really taking our time to be sure to have everything we needed.
[Dad-2-b really wanted to get going... I wanted to "putz" around the house and make sure that every last thing was ready for baby. He had to literally pull me out of the house. The funnest part for me was calling work to say... MY WATER BROKE, CALL THE SUB!!!!]
We left home at about 12:15 a full 2 hours after the midwife had asked us to. I was a little nervous about this as I didn't want her to start to worry. Little did I know, it would be the quick email to my family that would start the "Panic Train" down its tracks, (more on that later).
[I only had to call my mom, and we agreed to call her from the hospital to let her know how urgently she needed to get to the hospital]
The road to the hospital was pretty snow covered and not well traveled. Actually it looked like a very long snow covered football field. It is normally a 45-minute drive to the hospital, but this night it took over an hour. All I could do was stay between the trees and hope I was on the road.
We got to the hospital a little after 1am. We were met by a staff that was very relieved we were there. It turns out one of the Aunt's-to-be started a rallying cry from across the country to find the missing couple. Later after reading the email I sent out I could see how it might have incited panic in a person, so next time I'll a be a bit more specific with my info. The Aunt-2-b enlisted a henchman, so my brother showed up at the hospital shortly after we did!!!!

After arriving at the hospital and getting Mom-to-be checked out, on the antibiotic, and sure things were as we thought.
[We planned to not be on constant monitoring, so that meant that they needed a baseline of the baby's heart rate, and my vitals, etc. etc.. The nurse also checked me and I was at 31/2 cm, -1 station 90% effaced. the 20 minute required baseline of the baby's heart rate took about an hour. She was moving SO MUCH they couldn't track her until I held the monitor in place.]
The wonderful nurses brought Mom-to-be a little box lunch to keep her strength up. Then we set out to see if we could stimulate contractions. Walking was our best bet so we did that for a while. After looping around the circular corridor almost 40 times (2 miles) we thought it best if we go rest for a bit.
Contractions were just not happening and we really wanted to be sure things were on the right track.
[Well, contractions were happening, just not regular and NOT progressing]
We took a break and Mom-to-Be had some more food and I set out getting things ready in the room.
I had a couple of little surprises for Mom-to-be. I had gotten (from the Mother-in-law) some really nice LED candles. They gave the room a nice relaxing glow and as they weren't open flame they didn't violate any hospital rules.
[They were so nice. I really wanted the room to have a relaxing homey feel, and those LED candles did the job!!]
Mom-in-law showed up sometime after this and she got settled in as well.
It wasn't much later and we were reaching morning (6am) and the day staff was arriving. The midwife arrived around 7am to see how Mom-to-be was doing. 4cm was the results, only .5 more than the night nurse and this isn't really an exact measurement.
We were told to keep working on it, so we went for ANOTHER walk as well as Mom-to-be began some thumb sucking to help move contractions along. This seemed to work a bit, but it gave her a headache.
[I also felt pretty foolish sucking my thumb, but it worked! I was progressing the contractions, but not getting them more regular]
Then around 9 the midwife came back for another check up. Things hadn't changed much and she was talking pitocin or natural stimulation. The thumb sucking didn't seem to do it so it was on to the more interesting form of stimulation, which I'll leave to your imagination.

Next up "Part 2 - Contraction Action"

HikerDad

Tick, tick, tick

The following blog was saved as a draft a few days before the BIG event. I thought it would be nice to still post it.

------

So as those of you who have been following our blog know time is short.
I mean REALLY short.
Phenomenally short really.

But surprisingly things are actually coming together.

I was able to (with the wife’s help) finish a shelving unit for the bedroom. It holds a college-sized fridge and all the accessories necessary for the daily tasks involving the little one.

I built it with ¾ inch MDF, which I’ve never used before, but I’m a bit of a fan of now.
Then we headed off to the new Menards to buy some paint and the wife picked out a nice light green. So that evening we put it together in the bedroom and while I was building the feet for the unit she started painting.
I like the way it came out. Now if only the cradle would go as smoothly.

Now that I've completed this project I'm starting to feel a bit more prepared for what's to come.
Oh, I know one can't be REALLY prepared, but you do the best you can and move on.

So let's go down the list.
1. Bags are packed.
2. Car seat bought (need to install it).
3. Bed set up.
4. Baby gear, storage done.
5. Baby classes finished.
6. iPod music, set.
7. The Oh-God-I-forgot-something panic. Started.

Good.. I think we have everything.

HikerDad

sale? baby stuff sale? huh? where?

Today I went to my first mom-2-mom sale. It was nice. Indoor garage saleing. Life is good. I spent about 35.00 that would have been about 80.00 in a store. (super dad-2-b thought about 100.00)

Super dad-2-b caught you up on our second shower with my family. I couldn't believe how many people came! I mean, the weather was HORRIBLE! such dedication I tell you. The food was good, but to put your life on the line like that! just kidding. I love my family and couldn't have been happier to see everyone! My sister and mom put on a WONDERFUL shower.
I must admit I was nervous to let mom: 'Queen of planning' and sister: 'Queen of accessorizing' work on something together. But, it turned out spectacular! (of course we still have jungle animal balloons bouncing around our living room, and parts of a jungle cookie bouquet in the kitchen, and jungle toys on the coffee table, and a jungle rug in the baby stuff room, and a blown up monkey and tiger hanging out in my bedroom, I'm not even going to mention anything about the palm tree, need I say more?)

Then on Friday Feb. 9 I had a party given by great friends at work. It was fabulous as well. I think I stayed too long though, people were starting to think my tiredness was grouchiness! I got some more wonderful gifts. Some that even super dad-2-b got excited about! (this was the only shower that super dad-2-b didn't go to, so I got to have fun showing him all the cool stuff when I got home!)

Tuesday Feb. 13 was my last shower. This one was given by all the staff at the school I work at. It was a dual shower with another lady from work who is due 2 days before I am. Both of our husbands came, but mind you, they only came because the other husband did.
Again, got some really cute things. The staff collected money so I could go online and ORDER THE CO-SLEEPER!!!!!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!! It arrives on Tuesday!

So, I think I am almost ready! well, not me, ready, getting the things I need ready. The car seat is set in super dad-2-b's car, (not properly installed yet, but we're waiting for a call back from the state trooper who is "PROPERLY TRAINED" to install it) The room is ready for the co-sleeper. The hospital bag is packed, baby clothes are being washed as we speak!

Now I just have to accept the fact that this is real, and soon we'll be responsible for a little bundle that makes poo. (you do know that is their only superpower until it changes to a new superpower, SCREAMING!)

OH, I am so tired lately too! I just can't keep my eyes open. time to go nap.

Sunny with a chance of showers

So we've just finished up two showers. The first was (as you've read below) put on as a male/female party.
We live several hours away from the location of the party that everything had to be done by our friends who were setting it up. And boy did they do a nice job!
We had a pool table, foosball, air hockey, food, root beer, friends... and oh yeah, baby stuff.
But really it was food and pool that most interested me.

.... Oh give me a break, yes the baby stuff was important and cool too. Shesh.. I'm not that shallow... but it really is a nice pool table.

Here is a list of all the little people we need to thank.. I've encoded their names to protect their identity.
fefyej, bream, raky, bojan, dancea, nala, nicval, nad, oje, byobb, lelchime, bro, cillechor, sejes, nanaibr, nadrami, and also the 'rents of all the above who helped as well. especially those of you who made food because as we've already established I really enjoyed the food.
Oh, and Todd you suck so I'm not encoding your name. Ok, what the hell, dotd.. I can't help myself, it's just so much fun.

The second party was held a week later by her family. They decorated like crazy and the balloons really entertained me. It was a bit more traditional so alas I was the only guy there. Yep, it was just me in a sea of estrogen.
whee.
Ok, it wasn't really that bad. I had a lot of fun and oh yes they had really good food there as well so I was set. They had a pool table, too, but sadly it was under the food. I tried to eat my way to it, but the all the meatballs stumped me. There was an unmanned bar there as well (VFW hall) and though I'm not a drinker, when the ladies started to compare birth stories the vodka started looking mighty tempting.
I was really happy about how many people showed up as they had to drive through a blizzard to get there.. -30 wind chill, whiteout conditions, drifting snow, llamas dropping dead on the side of the road (just checking if you were paying attention).

The midwife says the baby is doing well and the wife agrees. I'll have to take their word for it as I don't have the inside information that they seem to have. From my perspective the baby kicks a lot and makes Mom-2-be yelp in pain once in a while. It's pretty interesting really, to be talking to your wife and all of a sudden she yelps like someone just stepped on her tail.
Oh, and for those of you who aren't women. It's a good idea not to laugh when your wife yelps in pain. You might get away with it ONCE, but after that you are taking your life in your own hands. Trust me on this one.

As for my part, I've got my bag packed for the hospital, and I'm starting to get some of the necessary supplies together as well. The iPod has some birthing music on it, the tennis balls are packed, survival snacks are ready, and I found my swimsuit.
Now I know what you are thinking.. but trust me on this one I actually need these things. I'll explain it all later, but I'm telling you everything here is essential.

Ok I think I've bored you enough for today.
More later,

HikerDad

the first shower

We had our first baby shower on Saturday, January 27.

It was a couples shower, thrown by great friends of ours. They put so much work into it! The husband friend says that he didn't do anything, so let me rephrase. Our friend did so much work on our shower it was great! Her husband on the other hand.... (just kidding) the work he did taping up some insulation was phenomenal.

We received so many wonderful things. When I returned to work on Monday people asked, "did you get a lot of this.. or that?" I could honestly answer "No." I received so many unique and thoughtful gifts, it was just perfect!

The length was good too. Our friend was the party hostess QUEEN! She made sure that we didn't dawdle between presents, and that everything ran smoothly! It sure did.

I received a few homemade things. One blanket and burp cloths from a cousin, a blanket from a friend. The most shocking one, was from my husband. He made me a quilt. He took our Scottish tartan and quilted it. I just about fell off my chair. He had spent some nights "staying after" at work, and was working on it. Isn't he great!

Oh yeah, my mom made me something too.. *tee hee* just kidding mom.
I have always told super-dad-2-B that I always wanted my baby to have a blankie that Grandma made. Thank you.

All in all it was a great party. I don't think I will ever forget it. We truly are blessed with a great group of friends and family, and I don't think this baby will ever be in want of needing to feel loved.

-the mom (oh wow, that's weird)

a big help

My sister came over this past weekend and WOW was she a HUGE help!

Our task was to get the basement ready to hold more storage from the upstairs closet in the spare 'oom. This closet was an unorganized "chuck it" area, that is now going to hold baby storage/clothes/stuff/etc. You get the idea.

She was awesome I stood there beside her and pointed and she lifted, then we worked on where this tub should go, where that tub should go.. I cannot express how thankful I am she was here.

She has mentioned how sore she is, and that she is going to punish me for it. but, ahhh, she forgets how much we helped with her kid.. so WE'RE EVEN SIS!!!

but, I don't think she'll forgive me for the spiders!

Super dad-2-be got some shelves up in the shed so we could take some more things out there!

The hard part now is the sorting, and reorganizing of boxes so they fit back into the basement!

I also picked up my rocking chair. Very excited. The first thing I did was put the blanket I made for baby on the back. It looks like it belongs. Super dad-2-be reminds me, "You got a sewing maching for christmas so you can make a cushion for it!"

oooohh, that means shopping at JoAnn's!

time for a nap.

33 weeks

Thank you so much to all who saw and appreciated the picture of super-dad-2-b and I in front of our Christmas tree!

Today was another doctor appointment. I lost 4 lbs. I don't know how.. but I did. The doctor says its allright as long as I am still eating a good balanced diet. (does Ben balance Jerry out?)
Total weight gain so far: 12 lbs.
33 weeks: feeling fine. baby likes to camp out in my hip and make my leg go numb, VERY active baby!
cravings: Oranges, orange juice (I can finish off a gallon in 2 days)
still NO NAMES!!!!

Thursday is our last baby class. I am a little sad. Happy to be getting our Thursdays back though.

My mom and sister have been offering to come up and help work on the house. Oh, am I going to have a list or two for them!

We figured out the cause of our "global warming meltdown" the other day. I apparently am needing to "nest" and haven't been able to. But this past weekend we got a lot done, and my 'nest' has a few more feathers in it.

Time for bed.
-the mom-2-b

Tears and Fears

So, if you don't know yet, pregnant women are just a teeny bit emotional, at times.
We had a small meltdown last night ("small" as in, "Uh, where'd that glacier go that was here last year?")

It was a bit difficult to translate through the high pitched, dogs-can-only-hear speak and nose blowing fest, but I was able to ascertain that we have a lot to do and only 2 months to get it done by. Which means, for all of you who have yet to experiences this blissful time of life, "GET YOUR ASS IN GEAR OR I'M GOING TO SHOVE THAT... ". Well you get the idea.

Anyway, I've been helping Mom-2-be to get the rooms cleaned, shelves up, and generally just being there for her when she calls. This, by the way is the best way to succeed in a relationship. Ignore all that Dr. Phil, "You need to be sensitive." crap and just be sure to never to be out of earshot for more than a few minutes.
During this "blissful time" the amount of time she has to wait for you is in inverse proportion to how happy she will be when you do finally show up to help her with something.

We took apart an old futon we had and I'll be using the wood from that for some future projects. Mom-2-be will be out today doing a little shopping (nesting) while I finally get back to work on the cradle, which at my current pace will be done sometime around when the kid goes away to college.

Good news is I'll be headed to HomeDepot today which for me is sort of like a hardware Nirvana. I think spending the afternoon there better explains why women spend so much time in scrap booking stores.
Oh, and the amount of time you get to spend in HomeDepot is also a direct reflection on how much time she had to wait for your help with that last task.

As for baby news, everything is going well.
We've had several classes and only one to go. Last week we met with students from the last class and it was very informative. Two of the couples actually had the same birth team we have so we were able to interrogate them a bit and we did find out the name of one nurse to be on the watch for. Cool beans.
Mom-2-be is doing well. The baby is getting very active and the Braxton hicks contractions are getting more prominent.
The other night we tried something different. We read somewhere that the baby might react to a flashlight placed on the mothers stomach.
WOW, did it ever. I mean this thing was kicking, moving, and pushing. We didn't do it for long as we can't tell if it liked it or not. My luck I'll end up with a child who is afraid of the light.

On a sad note though, I've had to give up my membership to the He-Man Woman Haters Club as I was caught using the phrase, "I just read this article in Mothering Magazine". In my defence though the article was about a legal issue. Ok, yes the issue was about breastfeeding in public, but still it WAS a legal issues.

Anyway, that's my post for the day.

HikerDad

growing days

Today is the last day of 2006.

Tomorrow starts 2007, the year we become parents.

quite humbling really
We are both very excited.

I have begun to realize how different the days become. Last week about December 22, 23, on through Christmas the baby decided to settle in my hip, not a bad thing, until he/she used a nerve for a pillow. He/she would lay on this nerve, make my leg go numb and send shooting pains through my right leg. My left leg felt nothing. ( I think it was jealous)

But then around the 26th or so, no more pain since then.

Yesterday was an exercise day. Kicking, flipping, moving, rolling, punching. It was pretty much like a UFC fight inside me. Baby VS Uterus. Baby won.

Today is a growing day. Not alot of kicking, punching, just moving and trying to come out "Alien" style. (remember the movie "Alien" when the thing came out the stomach)

But I feel so good. A lot more Braxton Hicks. My uterus is going to be the most fit uterus ever. Between the Pride Fights with the baby and the workouts the Braxton Hicks give it......

Anyway,
time to go party - It's New Years Eve!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Can't wait to meet you baby!

Back from the Amazon

So it looks like the wife and I have been a bit neglectful of our Blog.
Rest assured everything "baby wise" is going smoothly. We've been continuing our Bradley classes and I'm beginning to make a list of things I'll need for the hospital.
In one of our classes the husband instructor gave a talk about his experiences with his first time and what he would have done different, lots of stuff to think about. So as strange as it sounds (and my future sister in-law found it HILARIOUS) I'm going through my hiking gear to find just the things I'll need. No I won't be packing a Swiss Army knife "just in case" but much of the clothing I have is made for comfort while wearing it for long periods, that combined with some trail type snacks and I should be good to go. Besides if this takes too long I know of some nice hiking trails near the hospital I can sneak off to.

The baby is really developing fast now. His/her kicks are getting much harder and it's pretty easy for me to feel it when he/she kicks.
We found out that whenever the baby is kicking/moving, if I start to talk the baby will stop moving. It was frustrating at first because Mom-2-be would call me over to feel the baby, but as soon as I did, nothing. Now we know why. Little stinker.

Ok, that's my quick update. Hopefully more will follow soon,

HikerDad

relax and read

Well,
I was supposed to come to bed to relax and read. Yeah, um.. no

I have definately been feeling some contractions tonight and it's not so bad. Kinda freakin me out though. I thought coming upstairs and relaxing would help me with this, but nope, things just kept rackin my brain. So here I am.

Like I said before the contractions are definately just Braxton-Hicks practice contractions. Last Wednesday at our midwife appointment she said it's perfectly normal to have your uterus contract and release for "practice". "It's a good thing," she says.

So to update these past weeks. (And for my sanity) what has been happening you ask?
Middle of October: started feeling "baby/fart" (where you don't know the difference if it's the baby moving or a gas bubble)
Week 20-21 was October 18th to October 25th: I started feeling the baby at about the same time that super-dad-2-b could feel baby too. There wasn't much of a time difference. It was pretty cool it happened at about the same time.
End of October and Beginning of November: KNEW the difference between baby/fart
Middle of November: "my husbands child" kicking the heck out of my intestines
End of November: "my husbands child" playing "lets see how far I can bend OUT mommy's ribs with my head"
December 1st or so I laid in bed and put my belly against super-dad-2-b's back, and he could feel the baby. IT WAS SO COOL!

Every Thursday is our baby class. It's WONDERFUL!!! That's what I was coming upstairs to read was our required reading for class. "The Bradley Method of Childbirth-Husband Coached Childbirth" It's great. I feel so much better because it explains everything. Specifically, the why's and how's (insert appropriate joke here) that I'm incessantly asking super-dad-2-b.

Thanksgiving was torture. I ate way too much of course.

My rocking chair is in. Now where in the hell do I put it! :)

Dug out some of my neice's baby clothes, washed them. Now where in the hell do I put them?! :)

Have to go register for more baby stuff THAT I WON'T KNOW WHERE IN THE HELL TO PUT EITHER!!!!!!

sorry,
momentary lapse of sanity.

Cute story:
Every night we have been playing classical music to the baby. And he/she/it/whatever moves quite a bit when the music is on, then settles down after I turn it off. So then, one night I turn off the music and super-dad-2-be does my favorite thing and puts his hand on my belly (which ALWAYS makes the baby move around) and gets the baby all riled up. I looked at him and said "okay, now look what you've done"
So, he then started talking to the baby, and the kid STOPS moving. I couldn't believe it. One second, flipping around like crazy, the next, he's actually listening to his father! :)

enough ramblings...

gotta go eat dinner

what's next on the list?

This past weekend was a good one.

Super dad-2-b was in the basement making sure his workshop is ready to make the cradle.
I on the other hand was really busy doing organizing stuff. The bathroom shelves are maximized for space, and ready to hold baby stuff.
So many more project to do.
For our wedding we set up a white board to organize the tasks at hand, and it worked really well. The dreaded white board has made a comeback and is FULL of things to do.

My mom called this weekend to say that she found a changing table. I hated telling her that we didn't want it, cause if we were in a different house we would want it. It just won't fit here. I am kinda sad that my mom and I are so far away. I really want to just hop over to her house and go shopping for baby stuff. Instead we have to PLAN time and make time to go instead of just popping over.
*sigh*
I would love to have her here to help me organize too.
*sigh*
I could put her to work for days!!!!

We had our first baby class this past Thursday, it was very good. We are taking classes on the Bradley method. Natural Husband-coached childbirth.
I LOVED the idea of just laying in the hospital bed not thinking of anything or worrying about anything except the PAIN! It's going to be great!

That's it for now. time for bed. a snack first, grapes, with cottage cheese! YUM!!!

good night!