Worries Worries...

Let the worrying begin. I knew as a mom I would worry, but I didn't know how bad it would be. I worry about everything. I never thought I would be obsessed with the color and consistency of another person's poop, but I am finding myself worrying about that among many other silly things. Is it normal for a baby to have hiccups several times a day for what seems like an hour each time? Is it normal for his little lip to quiver half way through a feeding when he is getting ready to start eating again? How much sleep is normal? Can I let him sleep through the night if he wants to or do I need to wake him up and make him eat halfway through the night? Is he breathing when he doesn't wake up and want to eat? What is that noise that he just made? Is it okay that some nights I am so tired that instead of listening to him make noises in the bassinet that I just lay him on my chest and let him sleep in bed with me? Is it okay that he turns red and cries every time he has to poop (which is quite often.. About every 2 hours)? Is he warm enough at night? Is he too warm at night? Is he crying because he doesn't feel good, or is he really hungry again even though I finished feeding him only 45 minutes ago?? Am I making enough milk to satisfy him? Is that why he is hungry again? Why is he sleeping so much today? Is the bath water too hot? Too cold?

There is this constant barrage of questions and worries running through my mind. His pediatrician says that she would worry more if I worried less, so that makes me feel good. Sometimes I will ask my mom something and she will get a smile on her face and tell me that it is completely normal. The biggest freak out I've had is when his poo turned green. It is supposed to be yellow from everything I've read and learned... But apparently the vitamin drops (the APA now recommends babies who are exclusively breastfed take vitamin D drops to prevent rickets and brittle bone disease?) had iron in them, which I think changed his output to a different color. The drops smell so nasty I wonder how anyone would want to eat them, so I am going to try to find a different set... But another thing I worried about, him getting too much iron. :) I know that as he grows the worries will change from being poo based to being about even scarier things like drugs, sex and all that crazy stuff that you worry about when they get older.. And then there's the girl he's going to marry... I just hope she's nice and that we get along... Can she be like me? I mean, I get along great with my in-laws, and I try really hard to make sure they are involved... Can I get so lucky?? Maybe I should quit worrying about that for now, and get back to the green poo??

He is growing up so fast! And he is STRONG.. The nickname "bam bam" that he got from Daddy's shipmates is all too appropriate.. He can already pick his head up and turn it when he is on his tummy, and the other day, I had him in my lap reclining, and he sat himself up.. Granted, he couldn't maintain that position, but he was able to get himself into a sitting position before he leaned over.... It makes me wonder when he'll be doing these things for real? He has been pretty clingy the past couple of days, but maybe it isn't that.. Maybe its that I feel good enough that I feel the need to start doing more around the house... Like laundry, filling out his baby book, and perhaps getting a shower? And now that I want to do that, he doesn't sleep for long by himself... :) Daddy will be home on Tuesday, so I really want to get things organized before then so that we can spend time with him rather than spending time working on things around the house... It's getting very very exciting around here!!

The Daily Grind...

So.. I guess I am getting used to having a little bundle around... Although, I can't really say that I am getting used to it, because honestly, I am having a hard time remembering what life was like without him. We have been busy in the last week. I am as fully recovered as I think I can be... I really won't be fully recovered until week 6, but I feel pretty normal already.. Except for the fact that my body has changed forever.. that doesn't matter as much as soon as I look at my little Milk Monster's face though. Our schedule is pretty tight. He eats about every two hours.. So If I want to leave the house, then I pretty much have to be prepared to listen to his wailing starving screams, or feed him wherever I go... Getting anywhere takes a lot longer than it used to... Mostly because I have to feed him right before we leave, and then there is the whole getting in the shower and getting him dressed... That alone can be quite an issue as he usually will fill his pants right before we are ready to leave somewhere. :) I love him still...
Daddy will be back in the states tomorrow, and home next week! I am getting really excited for that. This has probably been the longest 6 month deployment we have been through, except that he left a few weeks late, so it really hasn't been a full 6 months for the two of us... I know daddy can't wait to meet his little man... I expect to be fully absent for the entire holiday season because Daddy will be home then...
Anyways, the kid and I are getting used to life together... He loves his Momma, and I love him.. :) How could you not love this??

The Milk Wizard

Okay, so it was really a lactation consultant.. But she was a miracle worker!! I was so ready to give up on the whole breastfeeding thing, which was completely depressing to me.. My entire life was consumed with pump, feed the baby, sleep or eat or do laundry. Start over... The pump/feedings took an hour, then there is an hour off...

I went to see her today, and she really helped me teach him that there was something yummy to be found.. So far today, I've only had to give him 1 oz by bottle, and that was only to settle him down because he was hysterical from being so hungry... Everything else has been all me.. So when I pumped this time, it was because I WANTED to so I can build up a supply for my hubby so he can feed the litte tyke when he gets home.. It will help with the whole bonding thing... But it is really nice, because I feel more free than I did before.. I feed the baby when he is hungry, and that's it... It may still take an hour sometimes if we are having issues, but it is a heck of a lot more relaxing to feed him that way than to listen to the droll of the pump for 20 to 30 minutes every two hours!

Announcing...

I finally had my baby!!! And had blogger been working last night, I would have posted this then.. I have been meaning to post for quite some time, but as things go with a new baby, I have been pretty busy. This post will probably be quite long to compensate.

So, Sunday morning I went into labor... for real. I was having some contractions that weren't exactly comfortable.. I took a nap and around 4:00, I woke up to one that was really uncomfortable.. By 6:00 or so, they were 5 minutes apart. I called my midwife, and she said I sounded too "perky" to come in.. Which was fine.. I was having some back labor so I got into the shower and smashed my back into the shower wall while I leaned on the other one.. And that helped so well that at one point, I stopped smashing, thinking the contraction was over, and quickly realized it wasn't. I called back when they were 3 minutes apart, and the midwife was supposed to call me back... Well, she didn't for an hour.. At that point I started to panic a bit.. So I called back again, and she called me back while I was on hold with them... So... She told me to come in.. I was 7 cm dilated when I got there, so I didn't have much longer to go!! My water broke shortly after I got there, and that was exciting.. I was able to have a nearly entirely natural labor! I did fine until my SECOND water broke.. (yes, I had two!) then I the contractions got out of control. I had a shot of fentanol, and was good, well my mom said I got really funny at that point.. But I was fine. I started pushing at 3:00 and at 5:24 my little man arrived!!! He was 9 lb 10 oz and 21 3/4 inches long.. YES he was a BIG BIG Baby!! So many moms want to tell their pregnancy/delivery horror stories, but mine was picture perfect! My mom and sister were there, Kelly taped and my mom coached me and rubbed my back. I also had my midwife there from the beginning (one of the wonderful things about having a midwife rather than a doctor). Besides that there was the nurse I had, and a student. It was literally one of the most empowering, spiritual and wonderful experiences of my life... It is amazing how much our bodies can go through and how quickly they can recover... It also made me wonder how anyone who has given birth can question the existance of God... I used prayer a lot during childbirth, and I have to tell you it worked.. Every time the contractions got too intense, I would pray, and I would get a little break... When it came time to pushing and I got tired, I would pray for a longer break between, and it came... I could talk about it forever. =o)
We came home on Halloween, they let me bring him home early, becasue I hated being in the hospital. The only condition was that he had to go get weighed at the Pediatrician's office the next day. When we got there we were told he was losing weight too fast.. (babies lose weight if they are breastfed because milk doesn't come in right away).. They had us start supplementing with formula. And that has been the beginning of a huge mess.. After being told he was going to be put in the hospital if he didn't start gaining weight, I freaked out.. So formula came first, and I came second.. My milk came in finally, but now he is having trouble latching on because of the formula stuff.. He is getting breastmilk in a bottle, and I have a meeting with a lactation consultant tomorrow to see what we can do... He just SCREAMS bloody murder nearly every time he sees one of my "girls" and pushes it away.. Now, I know he is only a few days old, but it is still a little traumatic for me.. We'll get through it though, I just have to keep the positive attitude I've had the whole time.
All in all, though he is my perfect little man.. He IS a man.. Demanding and hungry. I feel like all I do is pump and feed him.. but that's okay.. If you could meet him you would understand why I don't mind. Daddy is super excited to meet him and is greedy for pictures! He wants more pictures all the time.. I think I have already sent him close to 40, but that just isn't enough.. =o) But who can blame you when he is this darn cute???

Still here...Still Pregnant

And I was fine with that until the on-call girl at my doctor's office made an "oops." I was told to call when contractions were 5 minutes apart... So. Friday night they were 5 minutes apart for several hours, I called.. They were painless... but they were 5 minutes apart.. So I called.. She called the on-call doctor, rather than the midwife and they sent me to the hospital... Turns out I wasn't progressed very far, and it basically turned out to be a long and depressing night... So.. Now I am home.. Having contractions today, and they are "good" ones.. They are pretty uncomfortable, but I'm not calling until they are bad and five minutes apart... and then I'll demand that they call the MIDWIFE rather than the doctor... So... There shouldn't be any mistake this time... I could go on like this for a couple of days though I think..... (I might go crazy) but it could be a while before I go in... But anyways... I had my "false alarm" hospital run in the middle of the night... So next time I go in, I better come home with a baby. =o)

His shirt WAS off.. I just forgot

How I could forget that? I'll never know. I blame it on being pregnant. Did you know your brain shrinks when your pregnant? It causes you to forget things.. Important things.. Like the fact that Hugh Jackman DID have his shirt off in the movie "The Prestige." There are actually 2 incidents where it is off, and I remembered one, but that wasn't exactly flattering.. If I say any more, it will kill the movie.. So I'm not.. But yes yes yes.. Hugh Jackman DID in fact remove his shirt.. And now I have to go... I have some daydreaming to do...
MMMmm.. Hugh Jackman with his shirt off.. :o)***

By the way.. My husband knows about this little issue I have with Hugh Jackman. He fully supports it. Wolverine is his favorite X-Men character. With good reason.. He's HOT!

Warm and Snuggly

I'm sure that's how my baby is... I mean, I am a pretty good heater, and I know he has to be snuggly, because I think I'm nearly out of room! He's still tucked away inside. My life has been consumed with waiting for labor.. Every time I have a contraction I think.. This is it.. It's starting... I even had regular contractions every 10 to 30 minutes the other night, so I folded my laundry and went to bed thinking for sure I would be awake in the middle of the night, but alas.. I woke up at 7:30am still pregnant, contractions gone...

Today I went to a movie to pass the time. I went by myself. This is a HUGE thing for me. Movies are a social thing, and I don't do "by myself" very well. When my husband is out to sea, I live on take-out and homecooked food. The poor guy is traumatized when he comes home because all I want to do is eat in a restaurant. I don't go out by myself. You would seriously think that after 4 years of marriage, I would be able to do that.. but nope. Today I did take a serious step though. I don't know why I didn't go to more movies this summer. I guess I am just silly. Too bad I didn't think of it before. I saw "The Prestige." Crazy plot twisted movie.. But it had Hugh Jackman in it, so I would have liked it no matter what.. Even though he stayed fully dressed throughout the entire movie. I was slightly disappointed.. He has lost his shirt at least in nearly every other movie I have seen him in, but not this time. =o)

Not Yet.

This is still the only picture I have of the baby. I'm still pregnant. I'm due tomorrow.. He has either decided when his birthday will be, and has it planned for the future, or he is still trying to figure it out. My husband is hoping for Halloween. I think that it is mean to wish your wife to be pregnant longer than the 40 weeks. He'll catch heck when he gets back for that. =o)

My horoscope was equally ominous today, but I won't post it. I know they are general, and if I was doing anything it would seem like it fit my life. That is the way they are written.. Plus, I know that they are completely different depending upon where you go.

This weekend was good... Friday I went to breakfast with my in-laws. We went to IHOP and boy did IHOP smell like bacon! It was good and fun, like it usually is...After that my mom got home, and we headed to walk around. She wanted to get something for lunch. We ended up at Old Chicago. It was around 2 so I ate a salad and dessert.. It had been a few hours since I ate, and I didn't eat anything heavy at IHOP... We were walking around the mall, and I walked by Gymboree and noticed that their little costumes/buntings were on sale.. I bought a beaver one for $8. It is very cute. Then we drove through Starbucks so I could get my decaf caramel machiatto, but I dropped my wallet on the floor just as my mom was ordering. She has trouble ordering anything there anyway, but when she saw me trying to reach my wallet around my ginormous stomach she started laughing so hard she could barely talk... We get to the window and the very confused barista lady was just as pregnant as me, and agreed that it wasn't nice to laugh. She is being induced tomorrow so I asked her if I could join her. I also told her about the awesome sale at Gymboree since her little one will be here early enough to wear it.

Saturday I visited a friend. I haven't seen her in a while, and it was nice to just sit and catch up and hang out for a while. The huskers played Texas and lost, but who cares. I was more worried about the snow falling. Yes, it snowed. I am not sure I am ready for the cold and the snow. I do wish that the baby would make an appearance soon because I am running out of clothes to wear. I do have some sweaters thanks to my sister-in-law. And I did buy two new pairs of maternity pants, figuring I'll still be wearing them for a while after the baby is born anyways.

Saturday night I was really tired so I went to bed early (earlier than normal.. I don't go to bed early).. but I woke up at 4 am to use the facilities, and couldn't go back to sleep. I was secretly hoping I was going into labor, but no such luck. We went to church, where I spent the majority of the time praying that 1) I wasn't going to pass out and 2) My water wouldn't break and 3) for help listening better. I felt horrible because I was having a terrible time paying attention. I was having contractions and really thought that I was going to have to leave. After I got home, I just laid down and tried to nap since I was up so early, but that didn't work. I was having backaches and other pre-labor issues, or at least I was hoping they were pre-labor related. We also visited my Great-Aunt. My mom is back at school and she was interviewing her about being.... Well, about being old to put it bluntly. It was interesting to hear everything she had to say, and heartbreaking at some points. Her husband was killed in Vietnam after having 5 kids and travelling all over the world with the military. I got home after that and did end up getting a nap. I needed it.

All in all, somehow it was a busy weekend without being completely exhausting. I want you all to know that there IS internet acceess at the hospital, so I plan on having my sister log on and at least post a one liner saying the baby is here. AFTER of course, I recieve a reply from my husband.. He gets an email first, and once I know he knows, then I'll tell the rest of the world.. After all, doesn't Daddy deserve to know first?

More Horoscopes

Okay... So either I am getting some major signs (I still haven't finished my laundry and a few other things, but I got the IMPORTANT stuff done) to get stuff finished while I can??

My tarot.com horoscope for today is:

These are intense times as you are being required to tie up loose ends while simultaneously thinking about what is ahead. Your future is rapidly arriving and the big question is whether or not you are ready to put your plan into action. Don't tip over the applecart by trying too hard. You have a much better chance of succeeding if you don't move too quickly.

This is beginning to be torture.. I think I'm going to quit looking at it.. =o) (yah, right!)

Horoscope

I don't buy into the whole horoscope thing.. But sometimes they crack me up.. And while I KNOW that this is general, and it could just mean that tomorrow is Friday and maybe I'll want to do something fun so I should get my "chores" done.. Being so close to my due date has made me start to freak out because if I go into labor I don't want to have a bunch of things left to be done... So.. Anyways, my point is that my horoscope has been awful to me lately, making me think maybe I am going to go into labor at any second, which makes the waiting worse..

This is my horoscope according to tarot.com today

Try to tie up as many loose ends as possible prior to the Moon's return to your sign this afternoon. If you have been withholding your true intentions, it's better to get them out into the open before beginning a new cycle of activity next week. Don't procrastinate; it may be more difficult to get as much done by tomorrow.

What am I to make of this? Do I need to begin running around and getting things cleaned up? Wash the final outfit I bought for the baby? Tell work NOT to send me anymore designs to complete? Perhaps I should whether this means I will go into labor or not.. But then I would be bored all weekend. =o)

Start Break Dancing

That's what the little bugger needs to do.. Start break dancing... At least the part where he spins on his head.. He is facing out, (his arms and legs are on my tummy rather than my back). And if he doesn't spin around, that will mean I have a higher (supposedly) chance of back labor, long labor and emergency C-Section.. Yuk. So.. Send him "spin vibes," pray he'll turn.. Do whatever you need to.. Meanwhile, I am going to walk around my house on all fours, because that is supposed to help with that.. :) That's what my midwife suggested. I looked online and found a few other tips too. She said I have officially dropped, though, his head is IN my pelvis, which would explain why Wednesday I was able to eat like a pig when I went out with my sister. I hadn't been able to eat anything at all, and at lunch I ate a salad, two bread sticks, an entire plate of ravioli, had nearly 2 glasses of water and a caramel machiatto.. That's a lot of food!

I haven't told my husband that all that might happen, but I'm assuming he knows already. I really don't want him to freak out. He's good at that. He has been a wealth of knowledge since he left. You see, I bought him a set of books. "The Expectant Father" and the one that goes with it that talks about the first year or so... While some of the stuff he comes back with is correct, some of it makes me bust out laughing so hard I nearly pee my pants (that is a lot easier these days.. peeing my pants, not laughing). But I try to take all of his advice seriously. He is trying really hard to stay involved from such a long distance. I can't imagine being so far away from all of the exciting things that are going on here. The book is great, but sometimes he comes up with some greatly odd recommendations..

I am due in exactly one week, and I am ready to have him. Well, so long as he spins around on his head first. It is getting hard to sit here and wait. This is when I wish I had a job outside of the home, because then I would have to get up, get dressed and think about something else for a few hours a day. I am thinking about driving out to Milford tonight for dinner just to have something to do, but then again tonight IS Gilmore Girls night, so it isn't like I'll be bored like I was last night. Hmm.. Decisions decisions...

No News

Well, let's see... The last time I posted was the 8th. Since then I have been remarkably lazy. I have done my job and sent off my work, but then I always do that... I have tried (failingly) to keep my room clean because I really don't want to come home from the hospital to a messy room, and laid around like a BUM... Just in case you are wondering, I AM still pregnant.. and there seems to be no end in sight...

This is one of those times in my life that I have a hard time. You see, I like to have CONTROL.. I have learned to give a lot of that up since I married my huband.. Because he is in the Navy, I have virtually no control over where we live, how long we live there, and really, any plans we make could be changed last second because of something the Navy needs him to do... That hasn't been too bad.. But this time, well, it's getting old.. I have no control over when he is going to come... and that bothers me. I try to take everything one day at a time, but I hate to think that I am going to leave something undone... I have tried to tell my employer that it might not be a good idea to send me new work, but they continue. I am going to work until Tuesday. Then I am going to tell them that it is stressing me out knowing that work could be put off because I could go into the hospital at any moment. Once the baby comes, send it again (I work from home), but I don't want to leave anyone hanging...

The closer and closer I get the more scared I get. I really want to try to do it without an epidural, but we'll see how that goes.. Just the little guy's movements are getting out of control. He has had me nearly in tears recently with his poking and smashing and clawing or whatever the heck it is he is doing... BUT I have been trying to enjoy myself. Just the other night, I spent 20 minutes after I had finished my dinner watching my plate do a little dance on my belly. The baby hates it when I use him as a shelf, and tells me by trying to knock whatever it is I am storing there off.. He also tends to move a lot when I scratch my belly... It itches because the skin is stretched way beyond what I thought was possible by now. Another thing that makes him upset is when I cough or sneeze.. He gets all squirmy then.. EVERY time he squirms because I am scratching, sneezing or using him as a shelf I try to remind him that if he would come out, he wouldn't notice so much when I scratch my tummy or sneeze or cough.. and I definitley won't be using him as a shelf or a table anymore... He hasn't gotten the hint...

I know, I sound like I'm complaining, but I don't mean to. I only have one more week (and a couple of days) until my due date, so really in all reality that is about 3 weeks at MOST left... They still let you go 2 weeks over most of the time if everything is okay... So.. Not too bad, right? 3 weeks, a total really of about 24 days.. Then, he'll be here... And the second I think that.. I start to freak out, because I am not sure that tomorrow I'm going to be ready to be in charge of a whole other person whose life depends upon me. That is a scary thought. I'm not sure I'm mentally stable enough for that.. ha ha. =o) Let's hope that tonight isn't like every other night where I fall asleep, pray for labor and wake up still pregnant in the morning...

Weekend Fun?

Thursday was pretty uneventful. Friday I had a Dr. Appointment in the morning. That was great.. Everything is moving along nicely, and I am where I should be.. She guessed (emphasis on guess) that the baby is about 7 pounds or slightly less than that.. So... Hopefully he joins us soon!! After that we did some shopping, enough shopping that I was sick and tired of it by the time we were done... We went to Olive Garden for lunch, and I guess now you can 'taste' their wines for free... She offered it to me, before she realized I was pregnant, and then went on and on about how awesome it was.. I think there are strangers in this world who are more excited about my new child than some people I know! ha ha.

This weekend we went camping.. My last camping trip until December.. And it was really NOT camping like I grew up with. My parents have an RV, so we had beds and bathrooms and some of the more important comforts of home... It was a beautiful, albeit windy, weekend and I had a lot of fun... The next time I go camping, it will be in a "modern" cabin in December with my husband and brand new baby... We will want to "play house" as my mom puts it somewhere other than my parents house. My dad's prediction. I will be pregnant all next summer too. Ha. Not if I have anything to say about it.. At least I'm ready to be rid of my pregnant body, my pregnancy symptoms and limitations for now... Plus, I kinda want to get to know our first kid before bringing another around...

I am now nearly 38 weeks pregnant, which means the little bugger can come out now, officially.. He is considered full term.. So, while I am still fairly comfortable (I'm not ready to reach in and pull him out myself yet) I might start trying some of the old wives' tales that are supposed to get labor started... So bring on the spicy food, walking (even though it may be slow) and well, if my husband were here, he'd be happy, but since he's gone we wont' be trying that method.. Unless I can find that guy from the park bench downtown.... I still have that top.. and the shirt.. Okay, just kidding... I don't know what else. Any methods (other than castor oil) you guys know of?

Happy Birthday to ME!

Today was a good day.. Although, for some reason birthday's just aren't the same as they used to be.. I don't really know why. Is it because I am turning 26? It isn't really a "landmark" year... Maybe it is the 9 pound kid inside of me squirming and kicking me, maybe its just that I'm a grown up and still have to work.. Maybe its that my husband isn't here.. Who knows.. It just didn't feel like my birthday this year... I think it is mostly that I didn't care about my birthday. Didn't expect anything spectacular, and am more concerned about the big day that is approaching.. Hopefully in 20 days or less.. :) It is probably equally that my husband is gone.. He did send me a cute email though! and I am also more concerned with the day he comes home, that will be a couple of weeks after our child makes his grand appearance.

Today was my deadline for the baby though.. He had to stay in until today... I am now 37 weeks and 1 day, which is pretty much full term.. They won't stop labor anymore, and they can pretty much make sure he would be fine if he was born now... No chance of him being born soon though.. I am still carrying him high as a kite... How do I know? Someone told me I would know when he dropped when I "wanted to cut my legs off every time I used stairs." I use stairs a lot, and I have not yet ONCE wanted to cut off my legs... I have however wanted to remove my pelvic bone when I turn in bed... AND I have wanted to have my stomach moved to a different location so that 1) I can eat more than 10 bites of something without wanting to be sick from feeling full, and 2) I can eat something or lay down without getting massive heartburn... My feet are a bit swollen, and my shoes don't fit, but I don't have it nearly as bad as many people have had it. Next week, my sister's birthday. (By the way none of my family other than my in-laws and my parents remembered... I was ignored by BOTH sisters!) I will be doing something nice for her, unless of course, I am in the hospital... Have I mentioned that I am starting to get a bit panicky about that?? Not the labor thing.. I'll get through all of that... If I can't handle the pain, that's what drugs are for, right? I am really freaking out about taking care of another person... It's one thing to restrict alcohol soft cheeses and deli meats, not lift anything over 25 pounds and all, but to take care of a whole person.... I think it has really started to hit me, because I can feel him moving in there, and he is making movements like newborns make.. When they twitch their arms and legs when they are startled, etc. and I can TELL that is what he is doing.... He is that BIG!!

Anyways.. Today was good.. I got a prenatal massage this afternoon.. My birthday treat to myself.. I told my husband that he had gotten it for me for my birthday since he usually does something like that anyways..It was wonderful.. They didn't have one of those beds with a hole in it, but it still was really nice... I definitely reccommend it... If he doesn't appear on his due date, I will schedule another one and beg them to rub the pressure points that bring on labor. I gave a tip, but I am curious if I gave enough.. What is the protocol for tipping people when you get a manicure/pedicure/massage/hair style type thing?? Is it 10%, 20%, a couple of bucks?? I always wonder about that...

Mom and Dad took me out to dinner at Macaroni Grille, where we got the BEST service we've ever gotten there.. The lady was absolutely cute.. She kept reminding my parents that their meals weren't as important as mine because it was my birthday.. I tried the Chicken Rigatoni for the first time.. Why have I never had it before? Beats me... I will definitely get it again though, because it was delish! The only bummer was tonight was the night they ran out of tiramisu.. The entire reason for going there. Bah. We got their chocolate cake though, which was very very good..

Still Pregnant, Now with NO SLEEP

So... I had some pictures taken by the gal who runs Angelic Creations Photography. She is very nice and took some neat pictures... The great thing is that she puts together a scrapbook for you, so you have something nice even before you have time to put it together yourself, and she'll come to the hospital to take pictures... You can tell I'm getting quite huge now, and that means I can't sleep at night anymore.. Of course, I had just told someone from Virginia that I was doing just fine and was sleeping through the night, minus a bathroom trip or two... So.. I am jinxed. Hopefully not too jinxed though...

I am now officially 37 weeks pregnant, and I can have a baby at any time... And now, I think I may be ready enough.. I still have to finish packing my bag for the hospital, but I'll have a few hours at home to get some final things done before we leave... The longer I can be at home, the better!

I am really pretty much in awe at this point that soon, I won't feel an alien squirming around inside of me, but instead that I will have a little tiny human to take care of... I also am having a hard time actually remembering what I looked like before I was pregnant. I can't wait to be somewhat normal again! I also can't wait to be able to....

1. Get in and out of a car/chair/bed without rolling around like a beached whale.
2. Get that caramel macchiatto without feeling guilty about its caffeine content... (now I am drinking the decaf mostly)
3. Have a margarita, a beer, and a Colorado bulldog
4. Eat fish that might contain mercury
5. Sleep on my tummy
6. Fit into my shoes again.. NONE of my previous shoes fit!
7. See my feet, heck anything below my belly button will be nice.
8. Paint my own toenails
9. Walk around without carelessly crashing my tummy into things
10. And of course, Hold and love and meet my baby

It is my birthday this week, and it will be the first time since I was probably 19 that I haven't had a beer or a celebratory glass of wine, or some other fun beverage with dinner or whatever... Oh well.. I will be able to partake soon enough... I did however schedule a prenatal massage for that day! Not that I really need one.. I don't have a lot of stress since I work from home, and at my own pace, etc. But it will still be nice. My mom wants to know what I want for my birthday... What should I ask for??

Torture? No such luck!

This is what happens when I TRY to torture my dog by putting her in the baby's high chair... I think she wanted dinner!

Ready to Go!!

Soooo sorry it has taken me the entire summer to update this page.. I have been really busy this summer... Here is a recap.:

June, I moved to Nebraska to live with my folks because my husband, his parents and my parents teamed up and told me I had to because he was going to be gone for well over a year, minus a few weeks to visit over the holidays and I am pregnant. (Due Oct 24 ). We spent every weekend at the lake, playing and camping and having a good time. I got settled in, we moved everything into my storage space, and I got my room finished and started working on the Nursery.

July, Gretchen came to visit from Australia which was an absolute blast. The baby got to hear his first fireworks (which I am not sure if he liked or not). He bounced around in there almost like he was having a siezure. If he is deaf or very skittish I will be blaming it on sitting at Oak Lake watching them. I got hit on by some high guy downtown using the line.. ."that's a nice top, and your shirt is nice too." To which I responded.. "Yah? The top is new.. It goes with the bottom." When I moved my purse and it became obvious that I was pregnant.. It still took me a while to convince him that I was happily married and planned on staying that way. July was also the Cornhusker State Games. Waterskiing was involved for the first time this year. I announced the event. It was fun, even if it did feel like the gates of hell had opened up on Nebraska. It was well over 100. At one point I took a break, even though there were still people skiing, to swim because I was dying.. and someone had the audacity to complain about it.. It's okay.. They complained to my mom who told them to shove it.. Only in a nice way. :)

August was more waterskiing, camping at the lake and fun stuff. Jim skiied at Regionals this year, and got 2nd place Overall and 4th Place in Jump. That is awesome! Regionals was quite the ordeal, they had relegated all of the people with RVs to the far end of the lake, where there was no access to the activities without walking a mile around the lake, and they were pretty downright rude to most of us.. But that was okay, because we all made friends because of it. Mom's birthday was a pretty scary day for all of us... Jim came home from Menards one day, and said he'd had to stop by the side of the road to "catch his breath." He did walk, but it is less than a mile to Menards, and he shouldn't need to stop for that short walk. Anyways, we told some people at the next waterski tournament because we had been harrassing him to go to the doctor for weeks.. They told him they weren't going to ski with him until he went.. So he scheduled an appointment and they sent him to the hospital with an aspirin. They wanted to send him by ambulance. At the hospital, they determined they needed to do an angiogram to see what was going on in his heart... They scheduled it for two days later... Mom's Bday was the day before the angiogram.. We went out to dinner and it was great, except my Mom didn't get her dinner and then I made the waitress feel bad because I told her it was Mom's Bday... The next day was the angiogram. The doctor wasn't sure if they'd be able to fix his 90% blockage with angioplasty or if they would have to do open heart surgery, but there had been no heart damage, so he hadn't had too many mini-heart attacks.. They were able to fix it with 3 stents, but things were pretty scary around here for a while.. When I was at the hospital, nearly every nurse I saw thought I was there to deliver, and the only OB doctor I saw thought the same thing.. so I must have been getting 'large.'

September has been a good month.. I am still pregnant, as I should be but many of my friends who are due near my date have had their babies already. The nursery is finally complete, and really the only thing I need to add to it is a baby!! I will be 37 weeks in a couple of days, so he is allowed to come at any time.. I have decided that he needs to wait until after my birthday, but that's it.. I got some professional pictures taken while I was pregnant.. I really like the photographer.. She has a package where she'll come to the hospital and take pictures and then a week later she'll come to you or you go to her, and take some nice pictures as well.. I begged to switch the hospital session for one with my husband when he comes home. It will be our chance to get a couple of nice family portraits taken.. and some good cute artsy fartsy ones done of the three of us too if we want to..
http://www.angeliccreationsphotography.com/Mary/index.htm
These are untouched up, but I like quite a few of them... At any rate, I am ready for this little bundle to make his escape plans... I would really like him to come sometime mid-October.. Even though I panic everytime I think about being a parent.. An actual parent... That is crazy.. Some of the things that you go through are insane when you are pregnant.. I am finally used to the fact that I am pregnant, and I finally got over my body changing (my girls have swollen to about 3 times their normal size, and my tummy, well, if you saw the pictures, you saw the gi-normosity of it) and don't care much about the weight that I am, considering it is one I thought I would NEVER see on a scale that I was standing on by myself... And now that is all going to go away and I'll have a whole new set of things to get used to...

I hope to be on here more posting things a bit more often.. :)

New Nebraska Life

I'm officially, well, I have been for a while, but NOW I'm officially living in Nebraska again. My husband is in the Navy, and of course, he has to be gone for the birth of our child, who is due in October, so he and my mom teamed up and made me move back here. It's been fine, except for the lack of beaches and free concerts (which I probably wouldn't have gone to many this year anyways). I will be getting this site up and running since it is easier to work on than my old Angelfire site!

Meet the Family

Not the Momma (NTM) is my loving husband. The man who rules our roost, so long as he's in it, rather than a tin can floating somewhere in the ocean.

Little Monster (LM) is our first child. He lives up to his nickname daily. Whether he's a monster like Grover or a Gremlin (the green slimy kind -- not the cute fuzzy kind) is up for debate on a day to day basis.

Butterball (BB)-- is our second child. She was names by her borther who had a hard time saying her name at first. Hopefully someday, after she's gone through high school and Junior high with a nickname that only a turkey can appreciate, she'll forgive me for using it as her bloggy name. Otherwise, it will be one of many things I'm sure she'll be able to speak with her therapist about.