You know you're a good mom when...

You see that your son has spit up some of that oh so precious breast milk he just demanded you feed him and rather than get up to get a rag you just watch the dog lick it off the floor.

Even more awesome than that...watching said vomiting son get mad because the dog licked up the awesome puddle of throw up he wanted to smash his rubber ducky in. Yep folks, I have arrived!

(I really do love my life, for serious!)

Things I've Said

This just happened...

"Gary, please don't turn the baby into a tasty treat for the dog with my breastmilk."

Said as Gary sprinkled breastmilk on the baby so that Belle would lick Hudson's belly.

Seriously?!

Camping Preview

Hey all...went camping this weekend. It was an awesome adventure with my boys and my dogs! I'll post the details later. But for now...here's Hudson rockin it in the tent trailer.



Tell me...what color are those crazy eyes?!?!

XOXO

Where o where?

Where did my itty bitty baby go? Now he's a pulling himself up, camera chasing, big mouth boy! I can swear he's yelling "Mom, stop taking my picture and do something funny!" So I showed him my boobs.

XOXO

Flashback

Day 1 and today (just shy of 7 months later).

XOXO

It might be time.

Time for what? Well, it might just be time to start the no sugar, give my body a good kick start, healthy living kind of thing. Why? Well, there are some solid reasons:

1. I have some baby weight to lose. I gained 30 pounds with Hudson. That's great, I was proud of every. single. pound. I grew that child to perfection! Despite losing 20 pounds right away, I am back up a bit. By a bit, I mean 10 pounds. I think this is mostly because I am not as active (it's dang hot) and I've noticed I eat so fast that I eat a ton! And it's not always healthy.

2. My big baby boy is starting solids. He loves the purees and fruits/veggies mashed and mixed with oatmeal or breast milk (or both). BUT...I want to be able to feed him from my plate. That means what's on my plate needs to be healthy. Period.

3. The weather is starting to cool off and there is no reason not to get out there and do some active adventures with my dudes. I don't want to be a sit in the house and stare at the TV kind of family. Every once and a while, surey bob, but all the time...NOPE!

4. I want to set an example for Hudson. To show him that living healthy is an important lifestyle choice. I want us to live that choice.

5. Last night, after indulging to the max in hamburgers and onion rings from The Wineburger (Oh, wow, yummo)...I was exhausted. Gary and I had talked about getting chocolate shakes since it was his 32 birthday but I was falling asleep. Gary said, "You're falling asleep, I guess you don't want desert huh?". My reply, "That's okay, go get them, I'll wake up for a shake." And I meant it. And I did it. I fell sound asleep as Gary went to get the shakes, I woke up, sucked that bad boy down, and went back to sleep. To me, my friends, that is a problem. I am a total, 100%, sugar addict and it's got to stop!

6. I want to feel as good as I did in this picture:



This was taken in 2005 when Gary and I had been dating for about 9 months. Sure, it would be nice to wear that size dress again...but that really isn't my goal. I want to feel like I did then...super duper sexy! Whether I was or not...that's up to your interpretation...but let's be honest...I was totally HOTT Hot! :)


So there it is...I'll let you know how it goes.

XOXO

...6 months

I love my son. I mean, I LOVE HIM. I look at Hudson and just marvel at his perfection. He is crazy awesome! Being a mom is tough. Tiring. Stressful. And WONDERFUL. So my little guy is 25 weeks tomorrow. I can't believe it. A few tidbits about the boy:

LIKES:
-Sitting all by himself.
-Yo Gabba Gabba.
-Gary's silly songs. And his dad in general. He will stop anything when he hears Gary's voice.
-The ABC's, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Pattycake.
-Swimming.
-The dogs.
-Nakey time.
-Food...he's had avocados, bananas, carrots, and sweet potatoes.
-The boob. He seems to understand the sign for milk. If he wants to nurse when I make the sign, he lets me know by smiling, crying, or trying to eat my hand. More on breastfeeding in an upcoming post.


DISLIKES:
-Laying down while awake. Seriously, not a fan.
-Loud startling noises. Went to a baseball game...again, not a fan.
-The carseat. His arch enemy.

Obviously his like list is much longer. I guess that means we have a happy baby. Or maybe it just means we ain't seen nothing yet!

Seriously though, I love him. How could I not?

Gary's Something or Other

So I've had this blog "feature" where I share a funny thing Gary said or did. Apparently, I am too mommy-brained to choose one title for said feature.

To date, I've called it by three names:
Gary's Moments of Genius
Gary's Words of Wisdom
Gary's Moment of Wisdom

I think I like "Gary's Words of Wisdom" the best. Something about shortening that to Gary's WOW just strikes my fancy.

For the latest edition of Gary's WOW, join me in the trip down memory lane to last weekend and the start of a cart full trip to Target.

We decided to go first thing when Target opened (8am) to enjoy some empty store time, for what we thought would be a quick trip. We also decided not to use the stroller because Hudson hates it, preferring to look around at all the magical Target sites. So the carrier it would be! Since I am the better (quicker) shopper, I would have control of the cart, so Gary got tagged for baby duty. He dutifully put on the carrier, loaded Hudson up, and snagged a quick coffee drink (remember, it's morning).

As we begin our trek (this quick trip went from a 3 item list to a cart full hour and a half trip- OUCH!),

Gary says, "Look at me!"

So I do.

And he continues, "I'm a fat white guy, drinking a soy latte, and wearing my baby!" There's GOT to be a name for that".

I just lauged. Loudly, like a horse. And then I made him pose for this picture:



What can I say? I love my fat, white, soy latte drinking, babywearing hubby!

Can you also say, Whoa Giant Head Baby, grow some hair?!

XOXO

Simple joys

-Morning crepes that your husband rode his bike to IHOP to get for you.
-Eating those crepes after your ADORABLE son nursed his full.
-Morning couch time with baby boy.
-Pizza and a scifi movie for lunch.
-Family nap time (that includes the dogs).
-Fajita dinner.
-Rocky Road waiting in the freezer.

It's been a simple and joyful day!

XOXO

1 Year Ago Yesterday

One year ago yesterday I peed on a stick. Not just any stick...but the magical dollar store pregancy stick kind of stick! And I'll just bet you can guess what happened...yep...two little lines. I WAS PREGNANT.

So here we are today...1 year later. My sweet little once upon a time Widget is now my ginormous almost 18 week old baby boy Hudson. Okay, so he's actually not that ginormous and is only in the 10th percentile for height/weight/head size...but he's way bigger than he was a year ago. He was only as big as a chocolate sprinkle then. So compared to that, yeah, he's ginormous!

So take a moment with me to cheers Hudson! Way to grow from Chocolate Sprinkle Widget to Ginormous Baby Boy Hudson. Excellent work my child, excellent work!


Last week...he had a bit of a cold and was not feeling his best. Mom wasn't looking her best either, but whatever!

Humdinger

Being a mom is tough. You get screamed at, vomited on, no sleep, sore nipples, covered in boogies, pooped on (yes this happened yesterday), and the list could go on and on!

But when your sick baby finally nurses and then falls asleep on your chest all of a sudden motherhood is sweet baby smells, gummy smiles, tiny giggles, hands sweetly clutched, and all things magical!

Is it tough? Yep! Is it awesomely magical and worth every poop covered minute? Darn right it is!

XOXO

Gary's Moment of Wisdom

So for the last week or so Gary has been on the hunt for his snowboarding/biking helmet that my sis in law borrowed. We knew she returned it but we just couldn't find it. We actually couldn't even remember if we brought it home from his parents, where the his sister had dropped it off for us. So he called everyone...no one knew where it was. Finally, on Saturday, I thought about it for a second. I bet it was where it should be, put away, in its spot.

Me: "Gary, did you check in the laundry room, up on top of the shelves?"
Gary: "I've checked there a thousand times, it's not there!!!" (Said with obvious disdain for my silly suggestion!)
Me: "Okay". (Said with obvious disinterest since it was his helmet, therefore, his problem!)

Fast forward two hours-

Scene: Gary enters the living room and looks at me as I nurse our son. He has in his hand the infamous helmet!

Gary: "Guess where it was?"
Me: "In the laundry room?"
Gary: "YES!" "I just don't know why I can't listen to you!"

Let me repeat that for you, "I just don't know why I CAN'T listen to you". Not WON'T listen to you, not DON'T listen to you, but CAN'T. Like he is biologically predisposed to not being able to listen to my obviously awesome suggestions.

What a dillyhole!

So folks out there whose men won't listen to...Gary's moment of wisom should explain it all...they just can't! I'm sure they want to and I know if they did their lives would be better...but they just can't.

Love him and all of his dillyhole-ness! Here's to hoping Hudson did not inherit his dad's inability to listen to me.


Plymouth Rock

And just because I love this picture:

Duxbury Beach, Massachusetts

XOXO

Birth Story

Oh yeah...here it is...just about 15 weeks after his birth. My sweet baby Hudson. WARNING: birth details to follow. It's not too bad, but if you're at all weird about stuff like that, just stop reading! Enjoy. XOXO


Hudson Wilder Barnes
Born Wednesday, 2/23/2011 at 3:58pm
6 pounds 9 ounces, 20.5 inches long

Where to begin? I sit here trying to reflect on your birth story, as you snooze on my lap post-boobie time, I can’t help but think back to my pregnancy. It was a truly amazing and wonderful experience. Even the minor complaints like peeing 2500 times a day, not being able to sleep on either hip for more than 20 minutes at a time, outgrowing everything I own…none of that dampers the memories of growing you inside of me. The bigger problems like high blood pressure and bed rest, those don’t even dent the experience of feeling you move and kick and live inside of me, of seeing your dad’s reaction as he felt and saw you wiggle.

I feel truly blessed that I was able to grow you for 40 weeks and 3 days. For a while, we thought you would come early, or I would be induced. But with the blood pressure under control, you waited until you were ready. For that, I am very thankful.

So let’s get to the good stuff, shall we?!

40 weeks and 2 days


Tuesday night, 2/22, your dad and I went for a walk, just us, no dogs. It was a seriously beautiful night. As we walked through the neighborhood we were talking about your arrival. We knew it would be soon, we just didn’t know when. Our next midwife appt wasn’t until Thursday so we knew if you didn’t start to come before that, we would have a better idea of when that day. I had been having the feeling that you would come on a Wednesday for a few weeks so I thought it might be the next day. We started talking about our ideal labor and delivery, really my ideal since I would be doing to hard work. I said that I wanted my water to break to signify the start, I wanted labor and delivery to last less than 12 hours, and I wanted to deliver you naturally! Little did I know what was on the horizon or I would have thrown in a pain free, push for 10 minutes, and tear free delivery request while I was at it.

4:45am 2/23/11
I woke up feeling a little pop! I knew what it was instantly…my water had broken…hooray. I jumped up and ran to the bathroom so as to not soak the bed Success!! I made it, no major leaks on the bed or the bedroom floor! I checked the fluid and good news, it was clear…so far so good.

Sitting on the toilet I said, “Gary, my water just broke”. Him, in his sleepy stupor, said, “What?!” So I said it again and again he said, “What?!” See, the last few weeks I had been waking up early in a sweat or with Braxton Hicks contractions and getting into the shower or going to the bathroom. For those few weeks, he would wake up out of a sound sleep and say, “is it time?” So by this point, he had finally learned to sleep through my waking. When I repeated myself, “my water broke” he jumped up…it was on! We calmly went down the list of things we were going to do:

Gary- walk dogs, do dishes, take out trash, quick pick up of the house, shower and get dressed!
Kim- shower and lay back down to try to get some sleep.

I definitely liked my list better.

So I lay back down and tried to sleep through the minor contractions I was having. Of course I couldn’t sleep…I was just too excited for you to be here, for my sweet boy to make his debut. So after about an hour, I got a sheet of paper, lay back down, and started to track my contractions. They were coming about every 5-6 minutes. So I called my mom as I promised her I would, we chatted for a bit, and then I went back to timing. Every 5 minutes. They were still very mild, much like the BH I had been having for several weeks.

At 8am I decided to call the midwives and let them know. I sort of thought that they would have me come to the office or tell me to stay home a while, but since my water had broken, then told me to go to the hospital. So off we went. But not before I took a picture wearing the same outfit I did for my first maternity picture. It definitely didn’t fit the same. Even now, I look at this picture and kind of miss my baby belly. It was so magical carrying you inside of me…seriously, a magical miracle!

16 weeks


40 weeks and 3 days


So we loaded up our bags into the car, put down a water proof liner in the passenger seat (that’s me, your pragmatic mom), and we were off!

We got to the hospital at 8:20 and walked in to the check in area. I was already pre-registered, so it was a quick process and then up to triage. At triage the nurse checked me and I was 90% effaced and 2 cm dilated. The contractions were about 3-4 minutes apart at this point and took a little more concentration to breathe through.
The midwife called the triage nurse and said I could either stay or go home to labor. She thought it would be a while before I would be approaching the 10cm mark. Since I was already feeling the contractions and they were 3 minutes apart, your dad and I decided to stay. We just weren’t sure how fast I would progress and didn’t want to have to deal with coming back.

9:30am
We got to our hospital room…Room 316.





I changed into my laboring outfit, or one of the few I would go through! The contractions were manageable at this point. Painful and uncomfortable? YES, but still doable. I tried lots of laboring positions, bouncing on the ball, and the tub. I had such intense back labor that nothing helped expect leaning forward, rocking my hips side to side and moaning. Moaning sounds I’ve never heard myself make and couldn’t really replicate if I tried. I really hoped the tub would work. While it did feel nice to be in the warm water, I just couldn’t get into that happy leaning forward position that worked for me.



At one point, the nurse needed to monitor me just to make sure all was well. So I hopped (ha, like there was any hopping going on), into the bed to be hooked up for a quick monitoring session. This part sucked. Being flat on my back with the contractions was yucky. During this time, Diane, the midwife on call came to check on me. She was a nice familiar face to see and seemed to think things would take some time since I was chatting and laboring fairly easily. She went to check on another patient but said she would be back.



After about 10-15 minutes, I called the nurse and asked how much longer I needed to be in bed. She said she would come right in an unhook me. Praise little baby Jesus for that. After I was out of the bed, it was back to laboring. For about two hours it was me leaning forward, swaying and moaning. I would sort of signal your dad when a contraction was about to hit and he would jump up to be by my side or rub my back (which was oh so nice).

11:30/Noon-ish (I sort of lost track of time at this point)
Also note, no pictures from this part of the game...too much to do for pictures!
So after about two hours of laboring, things started to feel much stronger. I stood at the window in the labor room looking out at the city (really, I was looking at a palm tree and the mall off to the east) when a whopper of a contraction hit. I uncontrollably pushed and let out some crazy wild woman yell that had your dad bouncing up it total fear, shock, and awe. I started to bleed a little bit so we called the nurse in to check me. Meanwhile, your dad was freaking out a little bit, not crazy “I’m going to pass out” kind of freaking, just a “oh my God this is going to happen” freaking. The nurse came in and checked me…7cm!! Whoo hoo! This was that pivotal moment...could I do this? Was I strong enough? H E Double Hockey Sticks Yes! I knew if I had made it this far I could go the next 3cm (plus pushing) to see your sweet face. So the nurse called the midwife (who was checking on another patient and who thought I would be in labor much, much longer). So Diane came back in astounded that I had progressed so quickly.

Apparently, you were ready to start your travels!

So the laboring continued with me trying more positions like squatting and kneeling and others I can’t even remember. But leaning forward and swaying was the only thing that worked. At this point, Diane and Carrie (the nurse) stayed in the room and helped me with massage and bringing me water. I think this really helped your dad feel better! At one point, I remember squatting at the base of the bed and just being so tired that I had to sit down. So I sat. Bare bottomed on the floor. I think at this point, my body was definitely going through something new, I was entering a tired phase, like it was gearing up for the real work. So a few contractions later, when I was standing on the side of the bed, and I let out another one of those guttural yells, Diane figured it was time to check me. Low and behold…I was 10cm dilated and fully effaced! What does that mean?? Showtime baby. The real deal, not just the previews. It. Was. Time. To. Push. Oh boy!

12:30 or so (again, lack of time awareness but according to picture times, this was about right)

I start pushing with contractions. To any future mom out there, when they say to push like you’re pooping, they mean it! So that’s what I did, in a variety of positions…I pushed like I was pooping, for a LONG time. I was so tired, that I couldn’t maintain the squat position I thought was best. So I hopped (again, hahaha), into the bed, and used the squat bar to do a modified laying/squatting kind of thing. And. I. Pushed. So it continued, Carrie giving me sips of water, Diane encouraging me and telling me what was working and what wasn’t, and your dad cheering you on. Yes, I said “You”. He kept saying, “come on baby boy” “come on baby boy” over and over. He was so stinking excited to meet you. At one point I said, “aren’t you supposed to be cheering me on?!” The sarcasm never ended. Diane and Carrie were so wonderful the whole time. I never felt stressed or rushed or wrong! I felt like they were the teachers just there to guide me and help my body do what it was grown to do. What was crazy about the whole thing was that the contractions mellowed during this time. They were less painful and the urge to push only came every few contractions. So I went with it, pushing when I felt I had the energy and when my body demanded I do it. Every so often a crazy one would hit me and I would push and yell like the savage beast woman I am. I was getting so close. They could see your head start to come down with each push, but you would sneak back up after I pushed. So the progress was so slow. Your dad kept cheering you/us on. I felt so supported. It was fantastic. So it continued.

I had been pushing for over 2 hours [closer to 3] and finally, I had reached my point. That point where utter exhaustion has set in and I just didn’t know how I could finish this. Then I remembered, there was a baby at the end of this journey. Sometime near this point in the story Diane had me reach down and feel your head…you were right there. You, my little boy! So I said (out loud), “okay you stubborn little sh*t, it’s time to come out” and I PUSHED. I mean, like crazy. Diane’s face lit up and she said, “a few more of those and he will be”. So I did it. Every single contraction. Urge to push or not. I pushed. HARD. Within 9 pushes or so, the excitement level in the room skyrocketed. Diane, Carrie, and your dad were all cheering for us. “He’s right there” “You can do it” “Just keep going”. That final push and you would be mine. So I pushed. Through the contraction and past it. And you know what? We did it. And there you were. 3:58pm marked the first minute of your life, the first minute of the rest of our life together. My sweet baby boy!

Diane laid you on my chest. You were the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Of course you were covered in goop, but I didn’t care. And you had the biggest cone head, it went on for days. I guess that’s what we get for taking almost 3 hours to push you out. Your dad likes to say that while I was pushing he was worried that you just had a giant head, since he felt like it took forever to see your ears. He even joked that we would have to rename you after the lead character, Beldar, in the movie Conehead. So funny, that guy. You had a covering of dark hair (like mom) and a butt chin. The cutest little butt chin. As your cord finished pulsing all that good blood into your tiny body, I rubbed your back and talked to you, and helped you get that goop out of your lungs. The nurse did your Apgar test (you scored a 9- good job big guy) while you laid on my chest and took the first breaths of your life outside of me. After a few minutes your dad cut the cord and they took you to the other side of the room to do your measurements. The results: 6 pounds 9 ounces and 20.5 inches long. You were a long, skinny baby. My long, skinny baby.





I had so much adrenaline/endorphins running through my body, I was absolutely high. Here’s where things are blurry. I know I delivered the placenta (can you say best feeling ever?!) and got stitches for the 2nd degree tear. Somehow, the needle for the numbing still hurt. After delivering a baby, a needle still pinches. Who knew?! Thankfully that was done pretty quickly thanks to Diane’s skillful hands. I know you were given a vitamin K shot and brought back to me. I was able to nurse you then...you were only 20 minutes old and eating like a champ! After about 40 minutes, the nurse came back in and bathed and re-wrapped you and brought you right back to me.



Once all the necessities were taken care of, your dad and I were left alone with you. And we just sat in awe. Staring and taking in the reality of you. You were here. Real life (outside the womb) baby!





We just marveled at your existence. And we couldn’t have been happier. We could not be happier.

That’s your beginning Hudson Wilder Barnes.

And here you are now:


Hudson thanks you for reading his story! (His mommy does too!)

XOXO

We're Back...Again!

So sorry about that little lie I told when I said we would be back regularly! Ha! I started back to work recently and between that and wanting to snuggle my little wiggly worm Hudson all the time, and occasionally Gary too, blogging took the backseat!



So here I am. I’m a mom. A mom with a baby who will be 13 weeks old tomorrow. I have a 3 month old people. A 3 month old little human being.



Time has literally flown by ridiculously fast, like hummingbird wing fast. I am going to post Hudson’s birth story tomorrow coming up here soon but here are some of the things I want to remember about Hudson right now:

The way he smiles at me with his big gummy grin
His patchy little balding head (I thought he might not lose that newborn hair, but alas, it’s falling out)
Watching him really see the things around him for the first time
The way he sleeps snuggled up to me, with one hand on me at all times (yes we co-sleep, more to come on that later)
The way he wakes himself up with the farts ever morning
Feeling his little body relax when I pick him up if he’s upset
Feeling his little tooth try to pop through while he drools and gnaws on my knuckle like it’s the most delicious T-Bone steak (yep, he’s teething already)
How he smells
The munchy little face he makes when he nurses
Seeing his eyes light up when he sees his dad (watching them together is magical)



This list could go on forever. We spend so much time just watching him exist. We call it Hudson TV…and it is so entertaining (for us at least). We have about a billion nicknames for him including: bubba, bubs, mr. bubinski, wiggly worm, wiggly biggly, boobaloo, dude, duder, duderface, chunkermonker…and the list goes on. We are ridiculous and we know it. Don’t judge us. You would nickname the H E Double Hockey Sticks out of your kid if he was as cute as Hudson:)



We were really blessed to have our wonderful Sister-in-Law Keara take family photos of us. In fact, all the pictures in this post belong to her and she rocks it hard core to the max (barnesblog07.blogspot.com). These pics are unedited and so awesome in all of their unedited glory! I can't wait to see the suped up versions! YAY for Keara:)



In more recent news, tomorrow night we fly to NY for a friend’s wedding and then off to Massachusetts to visit some family. I am super nervous about flying with a 3 month old, but am optimistic that he’ll just sleep and eat the whole time. Wishful thinking? I don’t know- I’ll let you know when we get back. Any who’s a what’s its…that’s all for now folks. Hudson, Kim and Gary OUT!




XOXO

Yo to the yo!

We're baaaaaack! That's right...Gary, Kim, and Hudson are making our way back to the bloggyhood! We plan to be regulars and hope to see you in the neighborhood:)

DDD

DDD=Due Date Day!



Yep, today is our due date. Baby is officially 40 weeks old today. We decided to celebrate today by lounging around, going to see a movie, sneaking in snacks to said movie, eating cheese steaks for lunch (Gary is picking them up right now), and who knows what other crazy fun we might get in to.

Also, the waiting isn't that bad now. Really, I mean it, really! I don't love it, I am anxious to meet our little boy, but if he needs time to cook, so be it! Also, if he can wait until the 23rd, I won't have to go the long way around to get my Short Term Disability. Pragmatic much? I know, but it does help my patience.

Most importantly, mom and baby still appear healthy and we are so freakin crazy excited to smother this baby with kisses.

Oh, and I am really excited about my cheese steak...hurry up Gary!

XOXO

Ummm...

That ticker thing over to the right...it says 4 days! Oh My Goodness Mercy Beans!

That's all...still waiting.

XOXO

Tres Palabras

For those of you who don't know Spanish, and/or didn't have the pleasure of the Senoras at North High (MUSTANGS! Anyone?!)...that means three words. What are those three words you ask?

SNUGGLE
NAPPY
TIME

What in the world is Snuggle Nappy Time?

Well it's this odd, very odd, ritual where a 31 year old man (who hasn't had a Saturday off in months), his 29 year old wife (who is 39 weeks pregnant), and their two beasty dogs (pitty pitterson and carolina the belle dog) climb into bed at 1 o'clock on a Saturday afternoon and snuggle and nap for 2 hours.

Why would we do such a thing?

With baby due anytime, and therefore no more good solid sleeps for the forseeable future, why in God's green Earth would we not???!!!

Sidenote, mom and baby both look good. Medicine and rest brought the BP down, so now we wait for labor to start on its own:)

So Flippin' Excited!

XOXO

Gary's Moment of Wisdom

Gary: "Oh my God! You're mutating into a mom!".
Kim: Blank stare.

Just what an almost 39 week pregnant woman wants to hear.

But somehow, I still really love him.

Update on the Update

Yo yo out there! No baby yet. Got an ultrasound on Thursday, baby looks fantabulous. Still on the smaller side of the normal range, but that's totally consistent, so he's growing perfectly. They guesstimated him to be about 6lbs 5 oz. So a nice, healthy little guy:) Fluid level looks good, placenta looks good, we are good.

Now the BP, eh, still high. So I am taking a medication for that. Oh, and I have to collect my pee for 24 hours. That's right! Who will be peeing in a bucket tray thingy and pouring it into a container for 24 hours tomorrow? Me, that's who! They want to check my real protein levels, not just the pee on the stick at the doc's office.

If there are high levels, induction time. If not, I visit again on Friday to recheck the BP and go from there.

So, yes, we are still waiting. But at least baby and mom are healthy for now:)

XOXO

With the quickness

Quick update:

Monday: Went to the midwife...everything was the same. Same BP, same fingertip dilated, same 70% effaced. Got more blood drawn.

Tuesday: Call from midwife...blood work looks good. Levels on uric acid and liver enzymes, all within normal range.

Wednesday: Call from doctor's office...come in for ultrasound on Thursday to check baby's growth, come in for consult with one of the docs on Friday.

What does all this mean?? I'm not sure. It seems to me that it's all leading up to an induction. I have accepted that. It's not what I wanted, but if it's to be, so be it. I just really want the midwife attended birth. So I will be able to chat with the doc on Friday to see if that's still a possiblity. I bet it will be. I am willing it to be. Of course, if the ultrasound looks iffy, we'll go with what goes.

So I'm just praying to go into labor on my own today or tomorrow. Then we will proceed as normal and this baby was ready to come on his own. So for those few readers out there...send some good contraction energy/prayers my way. Let's get this baby going:)

XOXO

Lil' Update

On Friday, I returned to the midwife (after that oh, so, magical appt on Tuesday) and had some good news: lost 4 lbs (peed out that water weight), no protein in pee, bloodwork looked better than normal for even a non-hypertensive woman, baby still kicking, head down, 70% effaced, fingertip dilated, and feeling good:)

Bad news: blood pressure is still high. What does that mean? Well, basically I have gestational hypertension and they will watch my BP very closely. It also means I got put on a reduced in-office work schedule. They said no more than 4 hours in office and then pretty much sit or lay my butt on the couch. My wonderful and supportive bosses said, go ahead and just work from home (unless a meeting requires my attention). That's great!!!

It also means that all that nesting that I want to do- (you know, clean, organize, clean) I can't do. Nope, just couch and computer time for me. My lovely mother came over on Saturday and did laundry, cleaned floors, emptied trash, etc, etc, etc. Thanks Mommy! Gary is finishing a few things as we speak (e.g. installing a utility sink in the laundry room- a must for the hopefully cloth diapering parents we are going to be).

I did get our new wireless printer hooked up, that will make working from home much nicer. And my hospital bag is packed, so we are almost good to go. Whenever "go" decides to happen!

Well, I go back tomorrow for another BP check, so we shall see. They want baby to come sooner rather than later, but aren't talking induction yet:) I also made Gary watch 3 births today. 1 water birth, 1 squatting, and 1 standing. He is totally freaked that I have to do that. Who wants to take bets as to whether or not he passes out?!

Oh My Stinkin' Goodness...we are having a baby people, a baby, a little human. Pheeeewwwww, had to get that out.

Any-whose-a-whats-it, here are two 37 week pictures for you all to enjoy.

You like my hair, I know you do.


Shiny, round, basketball belly for you all to enjoy.


XOXO

So close

So close is right! 25 days until our due date, February 20th. We all know that due dates are not be all, end all dates. In fact, the chances of me actually giving birth on that date, not so good. Yesterday was my 36 week check up (36 weeks and 2 days).
Bad news #1: If this baby comes before February 23rd, I probably won't qualify for my short term disability pay. Bummer.
Bad news #2: I gained 9 pounds! That's 9 pounds in 2 weeks. Ouch.
Bad news #3: My blood pressure was 150/90. I had them recheck. Three times. Guess what? Still 150/90. That's high, way high.
Bad news #4: Pee stick turned green. For me, that means protein in the pee.
Bad news #5: Blood draw, 3 attempts before she struck gold!
Bad news #6: If this sticks around, we might have to induce. Inducing is not what I wanted, trying to avoid the possible snowball effect (watch The Business of Being Born, very interesting indeed).

What news 3 and 4 might be=preeclampsia. Google it, it can be bad.
What news 5 might tell us=how bad 3 and 4 really are. Won't know until Friday when I go back to the doctor. If everything looks okay with my bloodwork, they will probably just watch the blood pressure. Although that depends on what my numbers are that day.

I spent so much time yesterday thinking about all the bad. Bad news this, bad news that. Then today I stopped myself and started thinking about the good things.

Good thing #1: I have a great job that is super flexible with me and a wonderful support network to help me through whatever comes my way.
Good thing #2: Baby looks healthy and strong. Strong heartbeat, lots of kicks, my sweet wiggly boy.
Good thing #3: I have only gained 30 lbs so far, still within healthy range, so no big deal really. And no stretch marks yet either.
Good thing #4: No other signs of preeclampsia, so even if it's there, it's mild. On that same note, baby is almost considered full term, so if they had to induce, he should be big enough and strong enough:)
Good thing #5: I am married to a wonderful man and have two really cool dogs!



With all the bad and all the good, I am reminded that this is just how life goes. Never perfect, but glorious in all its wonkiness. Yep, I said wonkiness.




Embrace the wonky with me people. And send good thoughts my way for Friday.

XOXO

Time flies

Time is just flying by. The first trimester of this pregnancy seemed to eek by. We found out at 6 weeks but wanted to wait until we heard the heartbeat to share the news. We heard his little wooshwooshing at 10 weeks. Those were the 4 hardest weeks so far. Not in terms of sickness or physical things (although I did get yucky tummy if I didn't eat, so you guessed it, I just ate). It was hard because we were nervous. Would his little heart be ticking? Would we miscarry? Would this happen or would that happen? We just had to learn to stop worrying.




Then the second trimester...easy peasy. Started a new job (which is fantabulous), felt great, started showing (yay for belly bumps), started dreaming about what it would be like to have a baby. Except for the nasty acne that cropped up, and the occasional hip cramp/back ache, I felt better than ever. We started marking time by the upcoming holidays...we knew Halloween would come, followed quickly by Turkey Day, and then in no time Christmas. After that, only 2 more months!!



Then on NYE, my lovely sister-in-law Keara took some maternity pics of us at our house and at the park where we got married. Those that you are looking at now. She was AWESOME! And it was COLD! Like 35 degrees cold. Which for Gary in his jeans and sweater was fine (even though he complained, "I'm so cold", the whole time). For me, in my skirt and short sleeved top, not to mention the pulling up of the shirt, it was icy! But still so fun.




Now this baby is right around the corner. Just over 5 weeks until my due date, Feb. 20th. Which means no more than just over 7 weeks until baby is here since our midwives will let us go 2 weeks over due before inducing. 5-7 weeks at most. That's if baby doesn't come early. Freak out anyone?! Last week I had my family pick out due dates, baby sizes, etc. The average: 2/19 DOB, 7 1/2 lbs, and 19 inches long. We shall see. Feel free to place your bets in the comments box:)

We are really excited. The nursery is just about done, it just needs some decorations on the walls and a fan and lights and such.



As for funny Gary moments, I have this one to share from last night:
Scene- Gary rubbing and smooching my belly
Gary: "Hey there little guy." "How's it going in there?" "I can't wait to meet you." "I am going to love the crap out of you Ferris!"

Now you might be asking yourself, why is this funny or weird at all? That's really sweet.

Well, we are not naming our son Ferris. That is our dog's name. Yep, our dog.

The best part...it took a solid 15 seconds of me laughing for him to realize what he said. Then he laughed. Then he said, in all seriousness, "Well, I am going to love him as much as I love that dog!". Let's all hope paternal instincts kick in a bit more and the baby gets a little more love, I mean, just a little!




XOXO

Phewww!

Hello all! The holidays were awesome, time with family and friends was priceless. This is our last Christmas without a little one in tow and it was really nice to spend some quiet time with my hubby. I will say that we spent a lot of time talking about next year when we have a baby with us to celebrate. We are definitely excited about this baby! Like my psuedo-sis in law said, I am having a baby next month! Provided he comes on time or not too early/too late. I am super super excited:)

My wonderful sis in law took maternity pics of us on New Year's Eve. Let me tell you something...IT WAS COLD! But so much fun. She will send a sampling soon and I will get those posted for sure.

In the meantime, I put a little video thing together showing my belly pics from week 18 to week 33. My greasiness in many of the pics is overwhelmingly awesome, so enjoy!

XOXO