Two For One

I have been meaning to post something FOREVER!! We have been busy, busy, busy with life in general. But since I haven't posted in a while, you get a two for one this time around...

HITTIN' THE GYM

A friend of mine told me about a local gymnastics company that holds an open gym every Saturday. They have one gym for the bigger experienced kids and a smaller gym for smaller kids who are basically just running around and experiencing the equipment in a very rudimentary way. We thought it would be a good way to get Kiki out of the house on the weekends without throwing her into the alternating snow and the mud puddles in our backyard.

We have taken Kiki twice and she LOVES it. The first time, she really just had fun collecting all the hula hoops she could find. She wandered a bit, checking out the trampoline, balance beams, and the flexible tunnel. Ray got some great pictures that time around. And when the session was over, Kiki was ready for a nap.

We took her again his past weekend, and she got a little more adventurous. She swung on the rope swing (that will take a little practice), jumped on the large trampoline, and ran into the foam pit. And the second time, when it was time to go, she screamed and shouted all the way into her car seat.

Here are a few shots from our first trip.













CALLING ALL PARENTS (and other wise ones)

Here is the biggest parenting question I have had to pose so far. This is serious. Are you ready?......How the heck do you get a toddler to let you brush her teeth?

When she first got teeth, Kiki was more than willing to have her teeth brushed. In fact, she seemed to love it!! That is no longer the case. She has 10 teeth and they need to stay clean, but she is having none of it. We now have to fight with Kiki twice a day to get a few swipes at those pearly whites. She does whatever she can to prevent us from succeeding.

We have tried everything we can thing of. Toothpaste, brushing in the bath, letting her have one brush while we use another, letting her watch the tooth brushing process in the mirror, EVERYTHING!!

Does anyone have any suggestions, methods that worked especially well for you?

If anyone has an idea, PLEASE leave a comment. I don't want Kiki losing teeth before she has to!!!!

V-Day Baby

Kiki had her first ever Valentine's Day party at school yesterday. She and her friends exchanged valentines and had lots of fun snacks. I arranged to leave work early so I could be at the party and see Kiki and her friends in action. Although I hadn't planned to get Kiks all dolled up for the party, I happened to get her some pink and red pants during a recent shopping spree, and she and I found some bows for $1 at Taget last weekend...so she was a bit girly for the holiday. Here's the final product...

Superbowl II

Hard to believe how much Kiki has grown in a year!!

Superbowl 2008


Superbowl 2009

Our World Should Be For Everyone

As most of my readers know, my sister is a second grade teacher. Her first year has been full of challenges, as her students are not the easiest bunch to teach. But the more stories she tells me, the more I realize how much the environment that we live in influences the way we learn, what we learn, and which tools are available to teach us.

But a shortage of resources doesn't mean a teacher can't be resource-FUL!! My sis told me about donorschoose.com, and that she had something posted on it. When I went to the website and read her proposal, I wanted to cry!! Aside from being a great teacher, my sister is a wonderful writer and I think she has really conveyed the needs of her classroom. It just made me so sad that there are kids who don't know about their world! Our world should be available to everyone!!

In any case, I would encourage everyone to check out the website. Even if her proposed donation item is not for you (but I hope it is) maybe you can find another proposal that speaks to you, a way that you can help kids prepare for the world around them, and to know that there is even more world beyond them.

An Appeal

We have canceled our cable. It will save us money, and hopefully help me save brain cells. I'm trying to get away from the habit of watching TV at night, and to start reading more. I used to read all the time and have just gotten away from that over the years.

But I don't know what to read anymore!! What is relevant? Topical? Just plain good? What are my friends/family/peers reading?

So, I have recently signed up for Good Reads (goodreads.com). It is a website that lets you "friend" people, similar to other social networking sites. But here you can see the "bookshelves" of your friends, what they are reading, what they have read, their reviews and comments about books, etc. It's pretty cool.

I invite anyone who is willing to share their literary experience with me to sign up for Good Reads, and friend me. Just search for me by first and last name. There are currently only two of "me", so I shouldn't be too hard to find.

I look forward to reading with you!!

Christmas Fun

Phew!!! The holidays are behind us and I can take a deep breath knowing that there are no more parties to go to, presents to wrap, or trips to take (although, I wouldn't mind a few more days off from work!)

All in all, we had a wonderful Christmas. Good company, generous gifts, and Kiki was especially fun this year. Though I don't think she really grasped what was going on, she enjoyed her time with cousin Ev and her new toys are lots of fun. She also perfected her "camera face", which I think is a combination of her knowing she should smile and also anticipating the flash. It's so cute, and cracks me up EVERY time!!



While we waited for people to arrive at Grandpa and Grandma's Christmas party on Christmas day, Kiki tried out one of her gifts from Ray and I. I think she liked it.



Here is a video, so you can see her in action. Listen closely for the giggles.



When we got home, Elena enjoyed her other gift from Ray and I (on sale for $30 bucks, score!) I think Elena and her cousins M and L might have to get together for a bake-off, as they are all now equipped with the proper tools.

A Year in Review

Kiki's First Halloween

Kiki had a very eventful first Halloween. Her school had a costume parade, followed by a party.

When we got to her classroom shortly before the parade, there was activity everywhere as kids got into their costumes. The room heated up very quickly, so all the kids had some water. Halloween is hard work!



After everyone was ready, the little ones got strapped into the buggy for their big debut, and parents lined the sidewalk in front of the school for the parade. There were some great costumes. Kiki was a bit indifferent to the situation...until she saw Mom and Dad with the cameras. Then she really started hamming.






Once Kiki's buggy reached the end of the line, there was a period of waiting around as the other kids paraded. Kiks got a bit impatient and started crying.



When the parade was over, everyone went back inside. The babies were stripped of their costumes and treated to pizza. Kiki learned the lesson of sharing when she was asked NOT to take pizza from other children (she does love pizza).



After the party, we headed home to get ready to welcome trick-or-treaters. Kiki used the trip as an opportunity to "refresh" herself before the evenings festivities.

Aunt Rae came over for a bit to help prepare for the candy distribution portion of the night. Unfortunately, just about the time Kiki was going to hit the sack, her cousin made Aunt Rae want to do the same, so it was a short visit.

There was one little pack of 4 trick-or-treaters that came right before Kiki went to bed. She just smiled, happy to have more visitors.

All in all, we only got about 20 kids. What a disappointment! We saw tons of kids in the neighborhood, but they all went in the opposite direction of our house!! Not even Ray's super-awesome jack-o-lanterns could attract them to our house.





I think we will need to advertise some good candy in the week before Halloween next year.

Taking orders!!

Just a quick post.

We got Kiki's school pictures today. SO CUTE!!! We order the digital version instead of old school printed pictures. We figure this way anyone who wants a picture can just let us know what size they want, we will custom print, and then we don't have extra photos laying around for eternity.

There are two available images: Image 1 or Image 2. If you would like a print (or prints), just let me know which image(s) and which size(s). Available sizes are:

Wallet (2x3)
4x6
5x7
8x10

Kiki in the 9's

Kiki is now 9 months old. It's so hard to believe, but she's come a long way in 9 months. She had her 9 month well baby visit yesterday, and we got nothing but good news.

She is currently 19 pounds 5.5. ounces, 29 inches long. The Dr. was pleased with how she looked in every way, and was very happy on the motor progress that she has made, as well.

Kiki is all over the place these days. She started the army crawl several weeks ago, with the occasional on-the-knees crawl thrown in for kicks. She also started pulling herself up on furniture about 2 weeks ago. She is now cruising around the room with some significant speed. She walks along furniture to move about the room as much as she can, and otherwise uses the on-the-knees crawl. She will occasionally take the daring step away from the furniture. Terrifying for us, and often painful for her, but I think she is well on her way to taking the plunge into walking. As her school said, we will probably begin to see an increasing amount of "Ouch Reports" coming home.

Poor Squirt is terrorized. Kiki LOVES to pet him, and advances upon him whenever possible. He, on the other hand, misses the days when she could only look from afar.

The most exciting news to come out of Kiki's appointment was the info on new foods. She is now encouraged to start having dinner with Mom and Dad. For the most part, she will be able to have a smooshed version of our dinner. The meal that the Dr. specifically mentioned was pot roast and veggies. I was super surprised to hear this, but it is also very exciting. We are anxious to start trying her with some real foods, but it will also be a bit of adjustment for us, as we have grown accustomed to not even starting preparations for dinner until she is in bed.

Overall, she is a happy, growing girl. She recently discovered the joys of clapping, and clapped the entire way home from school on Friday. She has also taken an extreme interest in her books lately, especially the Touch and Feel Baby Animals Book with the soft bunny she can kiss (read slobber on). She is growing out of her clothes like crazy, largely due to her length. We even had to retire one 12 month outfit yesterday!!

An update

I know it has been forever and a day since I last posted, so let me bring things up to date.

Kiki is growing like a weed. 18 lbs. 3.5 oz as of Monday. She has been fighting a sinus infection for about a month now. She is also officially out of the incubation period for chicken pox, so she weathered her exposure with NO POX!! YAY!!!!!!!

Kiki's top two teeth are peeking through, so I think we will start getting a bit more adventurous with the new foods we try. She has pretty much been restricted to baby mush and her baby puffs to this point. Kiks has also begun the "I like to see how far I can spit my food" phase, so THAT'S a lot of fun!

We have had to move into super-baby proofing mode recently, as Kiki is mastering the speedy-tummy-scoot and has started pulling herself up on shelves/furniture/anything she can get her hands on.

Things have been busy around the house, with work, school, house/yardwork, and general summer fun. The Olympics have been on pretty much constantly. I will be happy to see them end, Ray will be very sad. He has enjoyed watching the pursuit for American gold.

Props to my fellow Blogger blogger

This blog is hilarious. Professionally decorated cakes gone terribly wrong. I warn you, read only a bit at a time, or you will get a laughter tummy ache!!

Cake Wrecks

My New Passion

I have been introduced to a new social networking tool, one that I LOVE!!! It's called Plurk, and if you like Twitter, Plurk might be right for you. It's easy to use, visually interesting, and VERY ADDICTIVE!!!! Check it out, sign up, and be my friend!

Uh...What's Coming Out of Your Nose?

Yeah, I know. Gross. But that one word pretty much sums up the last 2 weeks with the Kikster. She has had a persistent cold over the last two weeks that has kept us busy in the Kleenex department. Then came the pink eye. Then the sad and sleepless nights (and one LOOOONG weekend!)

When her daycare called yesterday to say that she had developed a cough that was waking other kids, we knew it was time for a trip to the doctor. One sinus infection diagnosis and a dose of Amoxacillin later, she was a much happier baby.

I have to say, this is one part of parenting that I really despise. Yes, I dislike the runny noses and the sleepless nights, but mostly I hate not being able to ask what hurts, to tell her I can make it better, or even to know what is making her so very sad.

Needless to say, when she perked up a bit yesterday, I was quite happy. She and I were sitting on the bed while she played and I tried to put her PJs on. Try as I may, the playing won out, but not before I got the PJs around the top of her head. When I gave up, I thought she would surely pull them off, but she seemed to take delight in her new hat. As she giggled, I giggled in response, which made her giggle more...and you get the idea. Ray captured our fun together.

Oh Happy Day...

My birthday. I've said it before, I'll say it again, I love it. I know it's a bit egocentric, but I love the celebration of it. One day a year when I can really stop and say, "Hey, this is the day I was born. I'm sure glad I was. I have a pretty great life and live in a pretty great world. It needs a little work, but I'm ALIVE and can help make it even better!"

This year was even better, because I had one more person to celebrate with (I love you Kiki-boo). Since my birthday fell on a weekday, I was in my usual 5:00am schedule. Get up to make bottles and prep for the start of baby's day before she decides to start it. When I got to the kitchen, on the counter to greet me was a shirt I really wanted and a card from my dearest husband. What a GREAT start to my day!!

When I got to work, there were doughnuts to celebrate my birthday, as well as a co-worker's. Yum!! Later that day, cake and ice cream and a card to celebrate our birthdays AGAIN!!! I was allowed to depart from work a few hours early, which was great because Ray and I planned to take our little family to the baseball game that night.

Kiki was an angel at the game. She slept through much of it. When she woke up, she was happy to watch all the colors around her (it was Red Hat Society day at the stadium). Tons of fun.

Lots of cards to open from the mail that night, and they continued to trickle in for a few days.

Then the crowning event for the birthday. As you may remember from my birthday post last year, there is a birthday club in my office. I know I am perhaps bias here, but I think the team that does the June birthdays is the most creative and imaginative team. This year's theme was baseball. The food was cotton candy, little hot dogs, a baseball cookie, popcorn, pretzels, and root beer floats. The room was decorated with baseball themed decorations, and a package of baseball temporary tattoos circulated the room (I AM an MVP!) Then on the table for the birthday girls, Cracker Jacks and, get this, a real baseball signed by everyone on the birthday team and each of our respective bosses. IT WAS AWESOME!!!

So a big thank you to everyone who made my birthday so special for another year. And thanks, Mom and Dad, for giving me birthdays in the first place!!!!

News I can use...

While browsing one of my favorite blogs, 43 folders, I became aware of a Boston Globe article that may revolutionize my life. And thanks to 43 folders, I am so organized, I have time to take a nap!!

Giving Aunt Sue A Run For Her Money...

Kiki went to the doctor for her 6 month well-baby checkup on Monday. According to her pediatrician, she is basically awesome, which of course, we already knew. All areas of growth are on course. Kiki put on quite a show of being an active baby for the doctor, who was very pleased to see how she is progressing.

Here are her stats:

Weight: 16lb. 11oz (52nd percentile)
Length: 27in. (89%, watch out, Aunt Sue. She might be taller than YOU!!)
Head Circumference: 43.25in. (74%)

Kiki has been experiencing all sorts of new foods. Peaches, barley cereal and apple juice are the latest additions to her repertoire.

She is also making progress on her sitting up and mobilization. She can sit up unassisted, just needs a hand behind her for the occasional backward slip. She is also making more use of her rolling abilities. Now that she can roll front-to-back and back-to-front, she is starting to roll a short distance to a destination.

No teeth new yet, although the drool is flowing freely enough to imply that more are not too far away.

Pool Party

Kiki's Aunt Rachael has been concerned. She knows how Kiki likes to splash in the tub and felt that Kiki needed a pool. So after about a week of urging from Aunt Rachael, Kiki got a pool.

After considering several models, we decided on the whale pool. It's a blow up pool that is large enough for Kiki and either Ray or I (we could probably all fit on a hot day if we squeezed.) The whale's tail inflates to create a shaded portion of the pool, and there is a working blowhole.

Ray was a trooper and inflated the pool himself. The weather has been so hot lately, it only took about 20 minutes for the inch and a half of water to heat up to an acceptable temperature for Kiki.

We changed Kiki into the bathing suit that her Grandma R bought her. When we put her in the pool, she happily started splashing and playing. I got in the pool with her while Ray took pictures, and then we switched places. About 15 minutes after she got in, the wind picked up, so pool time ended for the day.

We got the pool on sale for $10.00, so I would say that it was a pretty good deal. A few pictures of Kiki's pool experience are below.

A Trip Down Memory Lane...or Street

The other day a friend and I were reminiscing about PBS programs from our childhood. It made me start thinking about some of the segments I used to love. I remembered specifics skits and got a little teary thinking about how I'd never see them again. And I thought about how my friend and my husband look at me like I'm crazy as I describe the skits in my memory (it was the late 70s/early 80's, they were a little weird). And then I got to thinking about how great the Internet is, and how you can find just about anything, so I started looking. The following are some of my all time favorites from Sesame Street and the Muppets. Enjoy!!

A loaf of bread, a container of milk, and a stick of butta...


Geefle and Gonk (let's get some cooperation going!)


The Ladybug Picnic (1,2,3..4,5,6...7,8,9...10,11,12)


The Lost Boy and the Yo-Yo Guy (this one is a bit trippy...)


Rainy Day (I sing this to Elena in the car on rainy days)


Baby Eating Chocolate Cookie (I see Elena's future here)


Orange Opera


Robot Breakfast (I was never a big Muppets fan, but always thought this one was AWESOME!!)

T is for...

Tummy Time...
Elena has been working hard on her tummy time lately. She is getting really good at holding her upper body up, even without the assistance of her hands. she can also, get up on her knees, but not at the same time that her torso is up. She can also getting her legs kicking SO FAST when she is on her belly. I con;t know how soon she'll be crawling, but she is gonna be a GREAT swimmer!

Tunes...
We got the new Barenaked Ladies children's album. IT IS AWESOME!!! I love it so much. I bought it for Elena, but I have been listening to it non-stop. I would recommend it for any parent who is tired of hearing the same old kids songs.

Tub...
Elena has graduated to baths in the big tub. She loves her baths so much and kicks her feet so hard, that she was sliding herself right off the seat of the baby tub. I was afraid she was going to hurt herself, so into the big tub she goes. She can kick and splash and play with her turtles and be a happy little baby.

Tooth...
This was going to be T for Teething, but I got side tracked. So we had one day of a bit of crabbiness and then there it was. 1 little tooth (bottom, middle) and another trying to poke through.

Baby Whirlwind

Elena is just a little busy baby. She really enjoys her Jumping Jack jumper. She spends lots of happy time bouncing in the doorway as Mommy does dishes or Daddy makes dinner. She also got an Exersaucer today. She hasn't tried it out much yet. Today was a busy day and she was just too tired to focus on her new toy. She tried out the saucers at Grandma and Grandpa H's house, as well as at school, and LOVED it, so we have high hopes.

Elena also started veggies this past week. Green beans have been the pick of the week; peas will start on Wednesday. She REALLY loves her beans. I admit, I tried them as well. They are really good (I can't say the same of the rice cereal.)

There isn't too much else happening in our household. We are all very excited by the news that a new cousin for Elena is on the way! We are also starting to get the yard into shape. Ray's uncle was very generous, buying and tuning up a lawn mower for us. How much fun it is to be mowing the lawn again!!

Here are some new Kiki pics.

Milestones

Elena has had another busy month. This is the Month of the Young Child, so they have had activities at school. Today was pajama day, so she was super cute in her polka dot PJs.

She was baptized earlier this month. We were so busy planning to party, and subsequently partying that we forgot to take any pictures. Luckily, there are lots of shutterbugs in the family, so there are lots of pics out there. Some of my faves can be found at Cousin Jill's website.

Elena also had her 4 month well-baby visit. The doctor was very happy with what she saw. Elena is now 14 lbs 5.5 oz (60th percentile), 25.5 inches long (89th percentile), and 41 inch head (50th percentile). She is also (dum-da-da-DA) teething!! This explains the drooling, fussiness, and the steel trap biting.

The other big news for Elena was that she started eating cereal. She has taken very well to it. She seems to think it is quite yummy, thought her stamina isn't that great yet. A proud daddy got lots of video of her first time with cereal. He also got one of a little indiscretion that she will NOT be happy about when she is 13.

Finally, she has spent a lot of time kicking her legs. It seems to be one of her favorite things to do. Luckily, it's happy kicking from a happy, happy little girl.

The Quick and Dirty

I have been so busy with work and an active baby lately that I have neglected my poor little blog. So, for those if you who use this site as the main means of keeping track of us, here is the quick and dirty run down of what's been going on:

3/13ish-Sarah's email review of the "Lullabies from the Axis of Evil" CD is read on Jumping Monkeys Episode 36. They also mention Elena's birth and she is instant internet SuperStar.

3/21-Elena's school pictures come in. We realize that we can take much better pictures and will not be purchasing any of these!! (Ask Rae and Sue, she looked a bit odd.)

3/22-Per AAA "You need a new roof."

3/23-Move completed.

3/24-Per roofer "You will get a new roof."

3/30-Elena learns to roll, back to front. She also learns she never wants to stay on her back again.

3/31-Lots of rain, basement floods, Ray triumphs over drain snake and empties the basement of water.

4/2-Elena learns to roll front to back. Not so easy as the other direction! Needs a little more practice to do it consistently.

4/3-Per roofer "Your roof will go on this weekend."


You can fill in the gaps with lots of time at work/school for everyone. Free time filled with visit from family (Elena is very popular) and time spent playing. I'll try to keep the blog up a bit better, but you know you've heard this before. Just don't abandon me completely and I'll do my best to keep updated.

Until next time...

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

This was moving weekend.

On Friday, Ray's parents and Patty were here to whip the house into shape before the move began on Saturday morning. The house doesn't even look like the one we bought. More color, less broken stuff, and MUCH cleaner.

The snow storm that hit Friday night didn't even deter us. Ray, his dad, and I did a few loads in the snow. The Hernandez family came out in force Saturday morning to move stuff from the apartment to the house. We got all but a few things out of the apartment on Saturday, which is amazing. Ray and I were able to get the last of it out on Sunday before we left for Easter festivities.

So now we unpack. I'm off through Wednesday to get everything out of boxes, onto shelves and walls, and into cupboards. I have enough done right now that we can sleep, change Elena's diapers, and I can be here surfing the net, drinking my hot chocolate. There is finally a light at the end of the tunnel. Our moving adventure is drawing to a close. We can begin to relax, enjoy the new house, wait for the snow to melt. And then do yard work....

I have but a moment...

It's 5:48 am on Thursday morning. All is quiet for the moment, but I hear Kiki stirring over the monitor. I have been up for an hour, am eating Crispix and taking a minute to read the news.

Our days have been hectic lately. As you may imagine, we've been busy with the house. Ray and I take turns running to do a little of this and that. We can't really take the baby over yet. She gets too bored and probably shouldn't be exposed to the paint and cleaning products (in the hectic life of a new mommy, I've given her VERY LITTLE exposure to cleaning products thus far.) Hopefully this weekend we will be able to complete most of the remaining repairs and updates necessary. (Come one, come all, who wish to lend a hand!!)

Things are really busy at work as well. Still trying to get caught up from when I was on leave. Long/early days this week and next. Ray's car has been in the shop, so Kiki and I have been dropping him off on our way to work/school. Kiki is usually first to arrive at school each morning. I can usually get the best spot in the parking lot.

Kiki is growing fast. For those that were wondering how it would pan out, her eyes are beginning to turn a dark brown, just like her dad's. She discovered her hand last week, and often looks to be acid tripping as she ponders the meaning of it all. She has also learned to scoot. Although she isn't really doing it during floor play yet, she moves around her crib like crazy. Imagine my surprise when I put her to bed with her head on one end of the bed, and got her up the next morning with her completely turned the other direction!!

There is the 6:00 alarm. There is a baby to dressed, a husband to be awakened, bags to be packed, bottles to be fed. But this was a great morning moment for me!!

What's New in the 'Hood?

Elena had her 2 month check-up today. Lots of pokes (boo), a new weight (11 lbs 4 oz), and a belly button check (the infection is gone, inside and out). She was a brave little girl for her Papa and only cried for a short while. Her doctor is very happy with her progress. Next appointment is in 2 months. Hopefully we won't have any illness between appointments this time (knock on wood).

We have the signing for the house on Friday morning. Renovations begin promptly Saturday morning. We have roughly 4 weekends and a few after-work hours to do everything before we have to be out of the apartment. Hopefully things will move along quickly and we start moving our stuff in mid-March; definitely by the end of March.

We have a solid date for Elena's baptism. For those of you interested, plan on April 13 at 1:00pm. I'll be sending out info regarding the location of the church and directions to our new place (cuz we gonna PARty after!)

Elena has found her smile and is working on her laugh (she sounds a bit psychotic when she tries). We are trying to get a good minute or so of smiles on video, but she clams up when the spotlight is on her.

Elena is also beginning to recognize faces. I'm putting together a project for her new room so she can start to learn faces of family members that live far away. If you have a good, clear shot of your face, send it my way. Digital pics sent via email or flikr link are best, since I can print a large size. I hear that babies especially like pictures of other babies' faces (hint, hint, M and L) Thanks in advance for all donations!!

Superbowl Baby

I know this is a little late, but here is a picture of Elena's first Superbowl. As you can probably tell, the picture was taken a few moments before bedtime.






Jersey courtesy of Uncle Jeff. Football courtesy of the Detroit Lions.

Did I ever tell you...?

So, in the excitement of Elena's birth, I don't think I ever told the story of what REALLY happened when I went into labor.

It was a Wednesday. I came home from work early that day. There wasn't much to do at work, as all elements of my job had already transitioned to the temp that would be filling in for me. I was to the point in the pregnancy where my energy was tapped by about 3pm everyday, so I was grateful that my supervisors were flexible enough to let me go early.

I had eaten two frozen burritos for lunch when I got home, and then rested through the afternoon. After Ray got home, the evening progressed as normal. By 10pm, I was in bed. I needed plenty of sleep to recoop and get up for work in the morning.

Unfortunately, those burritos had come back to haunt me. I was having some pretty annoying lower abdominal pressure. "I really need some sleep tonight. This is just great," I thought. "I hope I can sleep this off."

By the time Ray went to bed, the pressure was no better. At midnight, I was up and walking around, trying to relieve the pressure somehow. I was a few days overdue at this point, so I figured I might as well put some of those techniques from the child birth classes to use for SOMETHING!! I walked, I massaged, I walked more. No relief; it was worse, if nothing else. By 2, I thought, "This doesn't feel the way labor is described, but maybe I'm wrong. Maybe I'd better start timing these pains."

So I started timing. The pains came at odd intervals. 8 minutes, 6 minutes, 10 minutes. No, this wasn't labor. This was bad burritos. More walking, more massaging. God love Ray, he got up every now and again to check on me. I'd tell him there was nothing he could do to help. He'd go back to bed, only to get up a half hour later to check again.

Finally around 4am, we decided to go to the hospital. Maybe the Birth Center in town could give me something to help with the pain. So off we went to the hospital. of course we took all our "going to have a baby" stuff, but this was just bad burritos.

When we arrived at the hospital, I told the nurse that I was having gas pains and just needed an assessment. The glance that passed between nurses was not lost on Ray or I. It was a knowing glance. Here's another woman who is having "gas pains."

A nurse took me into an exam room, strapped on the monitors and within a short time told me that my contractions (contractions?! What?! No, gas pains!!!) were 4 minutes apart. How could this be? When my contractions are 10 minutes apart, I will leave for Ann Arbor. That is the plan. We planned this. This plan has been in place for months. Nope, back up, do over.

At that point everything went into fast forward for a few hours. I needed to get to Ann Arbor. Would we make it? The doctors weren't sure. If we were going to go, it would have to be with some speed. More speed that we could legally do on our own. So the ambulance came, the "going to have a baby" stuff stayed in the car, and we rushed off to Ann Arbor.

Once we got to Ann Arbor, fast forward ended, slow motion began, labor progressed SL-O-O-O-WLY, 19 hours passed, and the rest is Elena's history. As stressful as the situation was at the time, this was a really good lesson for me at a critical time. As a result of this experience, I realized very quickly that I would not be able to plan my life the way I had in the past. I realized that life with Elena would be VERY different!

Her Smile Isn't the Only Thing Infectious...

I am happy to report that Elena is over her stomach flu bug. I am also happy to report that the same bug is done being passed around the house. That's right, we all got it.

By Thursday night, it was obvious that I was coming down with the flu. My dear baby was very considerate and slept through most of the night, so I was not up and down with her through my nighttime shift, and was able to get a little sleep.

By noon on Friday, Ray was clearly the next victim. Luckily, we had already made arrangements to visit his parents in Troy for the weekend, and they welcomed us with open arms, despite our germs.

Ray's dad did baby duty all Friday and Saturday night, giving Ray and I two solid nights of sleep, something we have not had since Elena was born. It was heaven!!

Unfortunately, the germs didn't stop their momentum. By Sunday morning, Ray's mom had the bug. This is a tenacious illness, but we are all feeling better now!!

On a lighter note, unless some other crazy thing happens in the interim, we will be homeowners by the end of February. We won the auction for the house we wanted. Yay!!!

She's In The System

Elena has been initiated. She has joined the ranks of children across the nation who are bound by an unfortunate circumstance. She caught the flu at daycare.

Yes, it's true. I got a call just before 5:00 today to say that she had thrown up. By the time I got to the facility to get her, she had thrown up again (on a teacher.) She threw up a few more times at home and is now sleeping in her chair. She has been banished from daycare until she had a doctors note.

Poor, Kiki. Hang in there baby!!

So, whatever happened with......

First Day Back At Work/Daycare

My first day back at work was great. There is a ton of stuff to do and it is awesome being back with my work friends.

Elena's first day of daycare went very well. She got a very good report card (curios all day and only fussy when she was hungry or sleepy). I think she had fun and she slept almost straight through the night (to bed at 7:30, up at 2 and 5 for a bottle, and as of this moment, not yet up for the day.)

It wasn't too hard to leave her. Probably partly because the 2 weeks in the hospital trained me up for this, and also because she is so close to work. But by the end of the day, I was certainly looking forward to picking her up.

The House

A continuing saga. Long story short, the bank that owns the house and their agent were not communicating very well. The agent took our offer to the bank, the bank said they had just put the house up for auction. So, we are doing an inspection today, and if all goes well, we will be bidding in the auction for the house. We won't know the outcome until the end of the weekend. I think I jinxed the situation by picking paint colors!!

If Jilly Asks, She Shall Receive...

Here's my baby...






Here are my babies...




Here's "my" house...

What was I thinking?

It's simply a bad equation:

Impatient Sarah + Making an offer on a house on Friday + Holiday weekend = Horrible anticipation!!!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho....

...it's off to work we go.

On Tuesday, I return to work (Monday is a holiday.) Elena will be going to daycare. I am excited to go back to work, being that I enjoy my job.

I also look forward to (hopefully) getting Elena into a schedule. I'm thinking that the teachers at the daycare will be a bit more successful in keeping Elena occupied and engaged during the day. I'm afraid that my library of things to do with her during the day is quite limited, so I think that she was bored much of the time, leading to sleep filled days and sleepless nights.

I am interested to see how I will react to leaving Elena at daycare for the first time. I don't think that I will be upset, especially since she will be so close. It's really not like me to get emotional in that type of situation. But time will tell. This IS a totally new situation. Either way, I WILL miss my baby all day long!!

Fingers Crossed

We put an offer in on a house in East Lansing today. Send us good thoughts that it gets accepted!!

Music Picks from the Cradle

Anyone who knows us knows that Elena will be a tech savvy baby. As such, she already has an MP3 playlist for the iPod. This playlist includes several lullaby compilations, as well some silly songs (thanks Garrison Keillor!!)

By far the favorite so far (and Kiki's music pick from the cradle) is the album "Lullabies from the Axis of Evil." She received this as a gift and it has been played MANY times already.

In 2002, President Bush coined the term "Axis of Evil," identifying specific countries as the enemy in the fight on terrorism. Acts such as these do much harm to divide the peoples of the world, to set us all apart as fundamentally different. The producer of this album identified one thing that makes us fundamentally the same the world over. The lullaby. So simple, and used around the globe to soothe and comfort.

This album is a collection of traditional lullabies from artists in these "Axis" countries with translations from a variety of Western artists. The songs are beautiful performed and exquisitely arranged. There are some that are great for a bit of calming dancing, and others that are perfect to listen to as you fall asleep.

This is by no means only an album for babies. Elena and I would recommend it for anyone. Some of our favorite tracks are Lalolalo-Don't Worry My Child (Kulsoom Syed Ghulam & Lila Downs), Stars Are Rising (Sun Ju Lee & Eddi Reader), and Garibe-Watch Over Me (Halla Bassam & Ricki Lee Jones).

(E and J-If you want to borrow, just let me know.)

Last Trip to Ann Arbor

Yesterday Elena officially had her last appointment in Ann Arbor. Her 1 month surgical follow-up was performed and it was deemed that all future checkups will be conducted with the pediatrician at home. We basically just need to monitor her weight, to see that she continues gaining. She no longer has to take Zantac and she had her first "real" bath today (not a huge hit with the baby).

The trip itself was a challenge. The peds surgery office was a bit backed up, so our 2:40 appointment really began around 4:45. Luckily, we brought a few bottles with us. One we used during our time in the waiting room. The second we used in an emergency pit stop at Aunt Carol's house.

We thought we were going to make it home before feeding Elena, but she had other ideas. She began crying almost as soon as we got on the expressway. Thankfully, Carol lives in Brighton, so we made a quick stop to mix some formula and to feed Elena. We visited with Carol and played with Everett a bit, and then continued on our way.

Very exciting not to have to go back to Ann Arbor and to know that Elena does not have any further restrictions or medications. Good job, my quick healing baby!!

4 Weeks Already!?

As of Friday, Elena is 4 weeks old. She has had a very busy first 4 weeks of life. 2 weeks in the hospital. Christmas with both sides of the family. Ringing in a new year. And sadly, her first cold (RSV without the bronchiolitis).

With so much going on, it has been a bit difficult for her to settle into a schedule. But slowly, as she begins to get over her cold and all the holiday activities draw to an end, we begin to get acclimated to our life together.

Ray is back at work, so Elena and I currently spend our days together. Last week, Aunts Suz and Rae came over two days to help mom and get to know Elena a bit better. It was much appreciated and they really worked their magic with her. She will sleep in her bouncer or even her crib occasionally now!!

Monday brings a visit to Ann Arbor to check in with the surgeon. Hopefully our last trip! I will return to work on January 22nd, so the schedule this Tuesday will include a visit to daycare, just to check things out one last time. Friday will hopefully include a visit from Grandma R.

As things continue to settle down, I'll keep you all updated. Sorry it was so long between posts this time, but I've been busy, as you can imagine!!!

Oh So Tired....And Happy

We're home!! All three of us. It has been a long day, but Elena has been discharged. We will be able to celebrate Christmas with all our families. Every one will be able to meet Kiki.

Now we begin to sort out our new schedule, feedings every 3 hours (bottle and NG tube only so we can track volume), when will I pump, when will I SLEEP?

Time to take a quiet moment, relax, and reflect on my new family. :)

Latest update

Elena is doing well. We are learning that she 1) has a temper, 2) likes to assert herself, and 3) it's her way or the highway.

Earlier this week she was feeding by bottle, then had a little bit of trouble tolerating the food. I think perhaps the quantity of food was increasing a bit fast for her little system. As a result, she was on IV food all day on Thursday, no milk. Poor Kiki.

Yesterday she began bottle feeding again, at 15cc per feeding, increasing by 5cc every 9 hours. She was very hungry all day, inconsolable at times. Last night she was so upset that she was finally given a bit of morphine so she could get some sleep. The feedings continue to go up and she continues to tolerate the food. As of 7pm tonight, she is taking 40cc per feeding. If she does the same at 10pm, she will increase to 45cc at 1am and then increase by 5cc every 6 hours.

Ultimately the goal is to get her to take and tolerate 66cc of milk for consecutive feedings and then have a few days of weight gain after. The weight gain should not be a problem, as she has been gaining steadily. Born at 7 lb. 13 oz, she is now up to 8 lb. 6oz.

Her incision is healing beautifully. Right now it just looks like a scabby belly button. Her tum has been round and firm, but today finally softened, meaning that she has a bit let gas and discomfort. She is pooping up a storm (I know, why do parents feel that the world wants to know about their babies poop?) But this is a very good sign. It shows that things are moving well through her system, despite the section of her bowel being removed.

All in all, Elena is steadily improving. We hope to have her home very soon, although we are also prepared to spend an intimate Christmas at U of M.

Thank you to everyone for their well wishes and visits. It helps to be supported so well by family and friends!!

She likes it, she likes it!

Elena has officially eaten! On Monday, she had several feedings of 15cc of breast milk. Today, she had several of 45cc. Once she has had several feedings of 66cc, she tolerates them, and can show a few days of steady weight gain, she'll be coming home. Keep your fingers crossed. In the meantime, here is a video of her first feeding!!

Baby, we have a baby!!!

Just a quick post.

Elena Marie was born on 12/07/07 at 12:47am. 7 lbs 13 oz, 19.5". I went into labor around midnight on the 6th. Went to Ingham Regional for assessment, contractions were 4 minutes apart. A quick ambulance ride to Ann Arbor and 24 hours of labor later, we had a little girl.



Elena went into surgery around 4pm on Friday, came out around 7:30. She ultimately had a small potion of her bowel removed. She is recovering well, came off the vent on Saturday morning. Last night she had some stomach juices backing up out of her nasal tube, but x-rays show no blockage and this morning this seems to have decreased almost completely. She has a bit of a rash on her tum around the surgery site, so she will be put on antibiotics as a precaution against infection.

Our current course of action is to wait for the Drs. to determine that she can start getting small amounts of breastmilk ans she how well she digests. This was supposed to happen today, but because of the stuff backing up, Drs. are being cautious. Let's hope for tomorrow. Once we can see that her bowels are "awake", handling food well, and she poops, this little lady is home.

Quite honestly, we have heard several anticipated lengths for her stay. One nurse said that Elena will probably spend Christmas, but most others sound like it will be slightly sooner. Fingers crossed for sooner!!

Here is a short video of Elena on Saturday night. She has been a very calm baby. They have her on very little sedation right now. She is quite tuckered out and sleeps much of the time, but when she is awake, she is very alert and active.

Slo-o-o-o-w Going

I went for a Dr. appointment this afternoon. I did not get the news that Ray and I were hoping for. Essentially, things have not really progressed at all this week. I am not even far enough along to be induced. Boo!!!!!

Since I am currently 40 and 2/7 (that is medical jargon for "Come on already, Elena!!) I will start going to the doctor twice a week.
My next appointment is Friday. I will sit on the fetal monitor for 30 minutes, have an ultrasound, and meet with the doctor. Same drill two days next week. If nothing has happened by next Friday, then we'll take some next steps.

Unfortunately, the longer Elena puts off birth, the more likely it is that we will have to go the route of a C-section. Elena's going to keep growing whether she is in or out. And as the doctor put it, "You can't really naturally give birth to a ginormous baby when she's got part of her belly sticking out." Poignent, and not what I wanted to hear.

With any luck, I will suddenly progress quickly and the next thing you know, we'll have baby Elena here. Everyone keep your fingers crossed and think labor related thoughts!!

Week 40

So this is the "last" week of pregnancy. So far it has been a busy one.

Yesterday I was feeling a little off. Over the weekend I had pulled a muscle in my back/shoulder, and you all know that takes a little spunk out of your step. But I hadn't been seen by the doctor in over a week, was feeling a little swelling in my limbs and a few occasional moments of a racing heart. I called the doctor's office to see if I could move my scheduled appointment up to be seen that day.

The nurse called back to get a little info on what I was experiencing. I explained, she said there were no appointments, but that I should head straight for Ingham Regional for an assessment. It sounded to her like the beginnings of preeclampsia. So off we went to the hospital. I was strapped to monitors, explained symptoms to a billion people, and within an hour was told that I just felt "yucky," which I agreed with. Within a few hours of leaving work, I was back at my desk, happy that everything was OK. Yucky I can deal with.

So today I had my scheduled appointment. It was a usual quicky appointment with a short exam. Sparing you all the gory details, some things are progressing quickly; others, not at all. I know those values of effacement, dilation, and station don't mean a whole lot until I'm in active labor, but it would have been nice to be a little further along.

So many people have given statistics on how many babies are born/on time/late, it makes my head spin, but the conclusion I've come to is this: she'll come when she comes. So far we haven't had any contractions, not even Braxton-Hicks. It seems that this first-timer will get all the "fun stuff" at once with no practice. Oh well, it doesn't make it any less exciting!

The current plan of action? My next appointment is next Tuesday, if we make it that far. If I make it to one week past due, we will schedule for inducement. Elena is active as ever and seems perfectly happy, if not a bit cramped in her current home. If there are any changes, we'll be sure to get the word to all of you.

Last trip to Ann Arbor

I had my last regular exam in Ann Arbor yesterday. Everything was normal, nothing amazing or interesting to report. Elena is still head down, which we like. No ultrasound this week, so no weight estimate, but the doctor's pelvic palpations lead to the comment "Normal sized baby."

We're at 15 days and counting until Elena's due date. Pretty much everything here is set and ready to go. Everything is washed and in place. Bags are packed. Contact lists are written.

Yesterday the doctor requested that I schedule inducement at 1 week overdue, so Elena will be here within 3 weeks for sure!! Yay!!! Actually, 3 weeks feels like forever. I swear this baby girl has been trying to claw her way out for the past 2 weeks. Either that, or she's throwing a MAJOR tantrum in there.

In the meantime, we will stick close to home and await her arrival. We intend to enjoy one last Thanksgiving as just the two of us.

Hope everyone out there has a great holiday!!

Kiki's Bedroom Toursplosionpalooza 2007

Here it is. Enjoy!

A Quick Update

Sue and I went to Ann Arbor Thursday for what I THOUGHT would be my last trip there before labor. No such luck. While I did have my last ultrasound, I still will need to go back for an OB appt once more before delivering (assuming Elena doesn't surprise us with an early arrival.)

Nothing too exciting to report. Elena weighed in at 5 lbs, 2 oz, but the Dr also noted that, at this stage in pregnancy, that number could be off by as much as 15%. So really, she could be anywhere between 4 lbs 6 oz to 5 lbs 14 oz. And she still has 1-2 lbs to grow!

Right now Elena is content to be a little rocker and roller. She rarely takes time to sit back and relax, but stays on the go constantly. And she is still as strong as ever. She kicked (pushed, nudged, whatever) so hard yesterday, it cracked my back!!

So we are at 5 weeks and counting, further excited by the birth of Linnea, which is going to happen at any moment (or at least I hope, for Jilly's sake!!)

Home Sweet Home

Thanks to the generosity of family and friends, Elena's room is really coming together. She has a nice clean bed, complete with sheets, to sleep in. She has a soft, comfy changing table to get changed on. She has enough clothes to fill her dresser for the next year, and tons of toys. She will certainly be living the high life!!

I have washed everything and put it away. It wasn't as hard as I anticipated to find space for everything that we received as gifts. It just required me to clean a few areas of the apartment that had been neglected!!

I'll try to get a few pictures of Elena's room up soon so you can all see. These last few weeks in utero are going to be busy ones, so no guarantees!!

Elena goes to school

Actually, it's her parents who are going to school. We are now 3 classes into our 6 session Child Birth program. So far, we are both skeptical. Is it bad that every relaxation technique I've been shown so far, I think "Well THAT'S not gonna work"? I guess I'm just not a lavender aromatherapy/Kenny G kind of girl.

It's actually funny because many of the techniques require equipment that we would have to take to the hospital with us. I am imagining Ray's Beetle chock full with a birthing ball, rice sock, CD player, fan, car seat, suitcase, etc. Where would this laboring momma sit!?!

We also had another appt. in AA today. Pretty run of the mill, nothing too special. For a moment I thought we might get a 3-D ultrasound pic, but Elena had herself situated so that there wasn't enough fluid around her face for a clear picture. She's gonna make us wait to see her (although Ray is convinced that she has her mom's nose).

The good(?) news is that she has FINALLY turned around to the right position. No more breech baby!! Hopefully she will stay that way for the next few months. AND her new position makes it SO much easier to kick me all day. We've really started to bruise...uh, I mean bond.

And she is getting heavy, too!! She weighed in at about 3 pounds 3 ounces today (43rd percentile for her age, up from 35th). So far I am comfortable with this. Given her "big boned" parents, I was thinking I might have to give birth to a turkey large enough to feed the whole B clan!!

Back to the Dr. in Okemos in 1 week and back to AA for probably the last ultrasound in 1 month. We're getting closer!!!

One, Two, Three...KICK!

I went to the Dr. last Friday for my first appointment of the third trimester (good result on the blood glucose test!!) They gave me some paperwork to read over that outlined things to know for this last phase of pregnancy. One new thing that I was instructed to do was start counting Elena's kicks, to help monitor that she is remaining active and healthy.

Now, the Dr. said the average baby will kick around 3 times per hour, and 10 times in periods of high activity. It's this ten kick hour that you want to make sure the baby has. The suggestion is to have a snack and then shortly thereafter, lay down and start counting. I don't have time to lie around for an hour and count!!!! So, ever resourceful, I devised a plan. I created a spreadsheet (I do love my Excel) that covered my hours at work. Since I am at my desk much of the day, I figured "I'll make a tick mark for each kick and track it that way. Not too disruptive, and then I can easily determine if she has kicked 10 times in an hour. GENIUS!!!!"

So there I was yesterday at 8:30am, sitting with my chart, ready to go, expecting 26 to 33 kicks over the course of my 8.5 hour day, based on the averages stated to me. Maybe a few more, since we all know this baby seems to have a bit more energy than others. Imagine my surprise (exhaustion, irritation) when 5:00pm rolled around and Miss Elena had kicked, swished, punched, head-butted, and poked me 99 times!!!!

Now, don't get me wrong, I am elated that this is an active baby, full of life (although I see some LOOONG nights in our future.) However, this exercise of drawing attention to how active she is MAY have been a bad idea. I think the genius plan will need to be revised so that once I have hit that ten kick mark, the chart goes away for the day, and I try to forget that I've got an aspiring punter with me!

A Day at the Fair

In our annual tradition, we went to the Michigan State Fair yesterday to see all that Michigan agriculture has to offer. It was a bit of a mixed bag. There seemed to be less agricultural displays and more sponsorship displays. It seemed a bit weird that the "Miracle of Life" display, formerly housed in a tent in the center of the fair, was tucked in a side building behind several rows of Chevy cars and trucks.

One thing that we had never done before was go to see the Anastasini Circus performance. It was pretty good. It was your typical, predictable circus stuff, but isn't that what makes the circus so great!?!

We only caught a bit of the pig races, which was OK with me. The group that put on the races really need to get a new show!! Another old standby that I love, even though the program never changes, is the lumberjack show. I love to watch them demonstrate with their saws, and also have log rolling contests. Being a lumberjack must be a really hard job!!

The Final Countdown

 

There are officially less than 100 days until Elena's expected arrival. Exciting!! We got this little Baby Countdown clock from Ray's mom early in the pregnancy. It hasn't held TOO much interest until today. And now we're in DOUBLE DIGITS!!!!

Last night we went to the parent's baptism class for preparations for Elena's baptism. Now, I know what you are thinking, "This early? Isn't that jumping the gun a bit?" Elena will be baptized in January 2008. The preparation class for that group of baptisms (and incidentally, the next available class) will occur during the period that we may still be in Ann Arbor with Elena. Luckily, we looked into baptism early, and did not miss our chance to go to the class this time around.

Per the request of MANY people, here is a quick glimpse into Elena's room. There's not much to it yet, but it is starting to take shape.

3 More Days.....

....until my next post. Stay tuned!

A Day in Ann Arbor

It is 6:00 and we just returned from a full day in Ann Arbor. Four appointments in one day. Quite a lot, but well worth the time, as we were given good news all day long!!

As evidenced by the many tests, pokes and prods she endured today, Elena is doing very well. She currently weighs in at 1 lb 1 oz, up 2 oz since our last visit. Her heart looks very good (the cardiologist couldn't stop taking pictures!!)

But the best news of all came from the surgeon. While we have been taking all precautions and considering all possibilities that are wrapped up with an omphalocele, the surgeon said that he feels that Elena's condition is more consistent with an umbilical hernia. This is better for a number of reasons. Needless to say, we are VERY happy and relieved parents-to-be today.

We also got a tour of the NICU and labor and delivery areas of the hospital. This baby is gonna be born in style!! We were happy to see stellar facilities, and were happily surprised to see how friendly the ENTIRE staff was.

Other highlights of the day were our lunch excursion to Krazy Jim's Blimpy Burger and a visit to our nephew on the way home.

All in all, a very good day for this family (seriously, how many times did I use the word "happy" in this post?) Now we can kick back, relax, and concentrate on battling the heat!!

Baby Bling

Following our good news on Thursday, we had a burst of energy and decided to complete our baby registry. We're registered at Target/target.com and amazon.com So it's done!!

We actually had a lot less to add than we thought. And I'm sure we'll think of other things that we need, but for now, the list is about perfect. One advantage to having an amnio is that we know with certainty that this little girl IS a little girl. That makes choosing bedding and clothes a bit easier.

It was so much fun picking out books for the Amazon registry. I picked mostly books for older kids, but I couldn't HELP myself. I think I'm gonna need help finding baby books.

Little by little Elena's room is beginning to fill with her baby stuff, mostly toys at this point. I think the cats will be a bit sad when they are displaced from all their favorite lounging spots.

Elena's first triumph and test (of Mom's patience)

We got the awaited call from U of M today. The tests from the amnio came back completely normal. This means that many of the most serious chromosomal abnormalities can be eliminated from the list of possible complications.

The call from U of M was one that we were both dreading and wishing would come sooner. Needless to say, we are very happy with the results and we continue to have a very positive outlook.

It is becoming increasingly clear that little Elena is going to give her parents a run for their money. She seems to be very headstrong (could this possibly come from her mother!?!?) and likes to kick. Hard. Today she sent Mom to the the Dr. with what felt like persistent and uncomfortable spasms. After a quicky ultrasound and tonal heart check, we found that Elena was positioned belly down across Mom's tum, kicking her way toward "the exit."

As she writes this, Mom is in bed, as ordered by Dr, hoping that "Kiki/Kicky" will find a more suitable position for BOTH of us. Luckily, nothing at all serious, but scary none the less. Do they make soccer shoes in size newborn?

Reunited......

Sunday was our annual family reunion. I love the family reunion and always have. When I was small, once I was out of school for the summer, I would start counting down the days until we could go to Uncle Dick's.

Once there, I knew I could expect to gorge on hot dogs, salads, cheesy potatoes, and, of course, Y's cookies. Then I would play in the lake, in constant fear that the seaweed would touch my feet if I ventured into the deeper water. Then a ride on the boat, the FAST one, not the pontoon!!!

Throughout the day I would enjoy running around with my sisters and cousins, occasionally stopped by an older relative that obviously knew who I was, but I certainly didn't have a clue who they were. By the time mom or dad said it was time to go, I would collapse into the back seat of the car, exhausted, happy (and full, if we stayed long enough for Second Feeding.)

These days, it's more difficult to make it to the family reunion. Work schedules, previous engagements with the in-laws, and distance have all prevented me in the past. But in those years when I can go, I still count down the days, and arrive with my ears pricked for that dinner bell.

Facebook Frenzy

I'm obsessed with Facebook. For at least a year now family and friends (all younger than I) have been telling me to start a Facebook account. I couldn't bring myself to do it because it seemed like I would I would be the creepy "old person" offering candy to the kiddies.

But I relented. And it's awesome. I can't stay away. I have to know if anything has been updated. Did someone write to my wall? Is so-and-so on Facebook, too? I must know, and now!!!

When will the madness end!?!?!?

More thoughts from Parenthood

Just a few of my hubbie's thoughts on our bundle of joy...

Baby Updates

So our first ultrasound was yesterday. And....it's.....a.....girl!!!!!! Elena Marie is expected to arrive on December 2 (ie. no change in due date.) Though, as her mother, I am biased, Elena is as cute as a button. Granted, a button that looks like a Doplar radar map, but cute none the less. We were given 5 pictures to take home (Elena's first work to go up on the fridge!!)

We did get a bit of a surprise. There is a complication with some of her abdominal development that is currently being explored. We spent the morning at the U of M perinatal assessment center, speaking to a genetic counselor, doing another ultrasound (5 more pretty pics!!), and ultimately a decision to have an amnio done (ouch!)

At this point, we are just waiting. 2 weeks until the test results are back, so we have a better idea of what we are dealing with. We got a lot of info and are just taking it in right now. The focus, of course is on the positive. Aside from abdominal abnormality, at this time everything else looks great. She is currently weighing in at 9 oz (imagine my brief panic as I momentarily confused ounces with pounds and considered the size of my HALF-TERM baby).

We'll be sure to keep everyone updated. In the meantime, you can check out a few of Elena's poses.



P.S. Shout out to my Huron Towers crew!!!!

Birthday Bliss

I can't believe I didn't say anything about my birthday last week!!! It...was...awesome!! And it just keeps getting better!

I took a little teasing because this one was the big Three-O, but I say "who cares!!" I'm a girl who loves her birthday whether it is Three-O or Three-O-O.

My husband couldn't quite wait to give me my gifts, so he gave them to me the day before. FUN!!

Then my team at work decided to do it up for me. First was a little prank. When I returned from lunch, everything that usually resides on the right side of my desk was on the left, and vice versa. FUN!! Then were the flowers and balloons delivered to the front desk. FUN!!! Finally was the ice cream cake. FUN!!! FUN!!!!

When I got home, we went to a BBQ at a friend's house. We hadn't hung out with them in a very long time, so I really enjoyed the opportunity. There was hot dogs, cake, kids and video games. You guessed it...FUN!

Today, was the day where we celebrate all June birthdays at work. It was "Christmas in almost July." It was so cool. I have to say that the team in charge of putting the party together did such a good job. There were little Christmas trees with presents for the birthday girls. There were Christmas lights and carols playing. The treats were brownies, Christmas cookies, chex mix, Christmas-y Rice Krispie treats, and punch. It was the coolest.

Overall, this may be the best birthday I've ever had. It's been a really fun week. So far, 30...not too bad!!

Making Progress

We now have a crib and a changing table. "Kiki's Room" is beginning to look legit. It's weird because we are currently in this middle limbo of being very prepared and also pretty far away from needing any of this stuff. On one hand, I feel better knowing that we are gradually collecting things that we will need when Kiki arrives, but at the same time s/he won't need any of it for another 5 months or so!!

With any luck, in less than 2 weeks I can stop writing s/he and we will have a specific gender, along with a specific name. My ultrasound is on July 9. I have been practicing drinking 32 oz of water and holding it for an hour or more. Yeah, I think that we are just going to have to hope that the Ultrasound tech is very skilled and can get a good picture on MUCH less water than that!!

The Kikster stays the course

I had my doctor's appointment. All is well in Kiki's little uterine world. Heartbeat is strong. 1 month until the ultrasound. Yay!! Then we'll finally know if this growing bulge is XX, XY, or as I suspect, BWWW.

I have to say, i find it a bit annoying that the doctor's appointments are so incredibly short at this stage. I'm sure my insurance company shares the sentiment, since those things cost a pretty penny whether they are 5 minutes or 50 minutes. I'm not sure why this is so irritating to me, but it really is.

I'm now beginning week 15 of pregnancy. So far, a fun, if not completely nauseous experience. I have not been lucky enough to have that experience that so many women have told me about. "My morning sickness was so bad on Friday, and then by Monday I felt great!!" Uh, no. That has not happened. I still feel like I got hit by a bus most days, but it's all for a good cause!! I have resigned myself to the fact that I may be sick for awhile. I just found out that my mom had morning sickness for the first 4-5 months of each of her pregnancies. Is that genetic?!?!?!

I am VERY lucky, though. I am married to super-husband, who has been taking VERY good care of me through my lazy/nauseous phase. I suspect super-husband will make a nice transition to super-dad.

At my appointment last month, we heard the baby's heartbeat. It sounded like a steam engine in the distance. A kind of fast shh-shh-shh-shh sound. Really cool. It took a bit to find it cuz mommy has a lot of, um, mass in her belly area to try to hear through.

Slowly but surely we are beginning to amass baby stuff. We got a call yesterday from my in-laws that they bought a great crib/changing table set for us at a garage sale, so I'm pretty excited about that. I suppose we should begin thinking about getting a registry together, as several people have begun asking about it. We have started touring daycare centers as well. I figure, it's probably best to get on a waiting list once we find one that we like and can afford.

Also, we WILL start doing belly shots soon. I promise!!

My next appointment is later this week, so I'll try to do an update soon after. Not sure if there will be anything new and exciting this week, but, hey, isn't it all new and exciting?!

Learning to bake

That's right, I'm learning to bake....as in a bun in the oven. I found out I was preggers on April Fool's Day. I had a moment when I thought it was a cosmic joke, but then realized that the blessed event had finally happened!!

So now I am headlong into the joys of first trimester pregnancy. Just enough nausea to be perpetually uncomfortable, but not enough to be pukey. Too many details? Sorry, but this IS the beauty of nature.

In any case, I'll try to keep everyone updated throughout. Ray's going to take lots of pictures, he's promised. This is gonna be some ride!!

The Greatness of Being a Cousin

Cousins are great!! I have a lot, and I'm the oldest of them all. It's been fun seeing them grow and change. And now we're (almost) all adults. It's so crazy!!

Recently I have had contact with two of my cousins. My "writer" cousins. Ironically, both wrote/write for the State News in East Lansing.

I had not seen my cousin K in a very long time. We were reunited this summer after a family tragedy. Little did I know that she literally lived minutes from me, despite the fact that I had relocated several times since leaving our home town after high school. We talked a bit that day, tentativley becoming reacquainted. Since then, I have been following her articles in the State News. We got to meet for a quick lunch, and continued to get to know each other. I'm so excited to keep finding out about her and what her life has been since we saw each other so many years ago. It's funny, even though it was probably 13 years that passed between our meetings, I see the very same person in her eyes. Even though we don't really know each other, I KNOW HER!!

Not quite as much time has passed since I have seen my cousin E, but I do miss her. She, her husband and son live "al sur de la frontera" and have for a few years. (Fingers crossed) they will be back very soon, but it makes me miss all the things that they've missed with us, and we've missed with them. Little M was born while they've been away, and I haven't been able to see the first member of our next generation grow!! I am looking forward to the time ahead when, hopefully, we can all share in that experience as that generation of the family expands. A whole new set of cousins!! (Incidentally, E, I have the picture of M at the zoo, with the bear, on my desk at work. What a pick-me-up!!)

I know that this has been a sappy post, but I write it with all my heart. Never forget how lucky you are to have family.

This post is dedicated to E, J, J, A, J, A, TL, K, K, and J. I love you guys!!

Where Have All The Movies Gone

Is it just me, or has there been a veritable drought of good movies lately? It seems like the last year or so, only one OK/Good movie has come out at a time, and they are few and far between. You spend 2 hours watching it and then you're bored again, until the next one is out. I remember the days when there were 4 or 5 really awesome movies out and you had to play rock-paper-scissors to decide which one to see first!!

Basically what I'm saying is that I need to see a good movie. If there's any oldies but goodies that I should see, let me know!!

Day Off!!

I had the day off today. It was awesome!! I love a three day weekend. I especially liked this one.

My brother-in-law and his girlfriend came over Saturday/Sunday. He went to school in the college town my husband and I live in, so we went to the local bar (one of the best!) for dinner. Then a late night of playing the Wii and watching "the Office" re-runs. What more could you ask for?

Today, my sisters and I took a road trip to the local IkeaIkea to do some serious shopping. It was really fun!!

Back to work tomorrow, but it's a four day week now, so I'll survive.

Podcast Mania

I have just rediscovered my love of Podcasts. Back 6 or so months ago I was totally into listening to a few Podcasts. Especially Diggnation. Then I drifted away for one reason or another.

Now I have a new job where I can listen to music or whatever during the day. I got a bit tired of music all day, so I thought to myself, "Hmm, perhaps I should load a Podcast or two, just to break up the monotony." So, I did. And then I loaded some more. My husband also suggested a few. Then I decided to check back in with Diggnation, my old favorite. Basically, podcasts all day.

Then, as I listened throughout the day, I started writing down things that I wanted to look up, or check out, or whatever, when I got home. Listening to Diggnation also brought me to the realization that the Ctl+Alt+Chicken concept that was just a gleam in Alex Albrecht's eye was a now a reality. So now, as I surf the web at night, looking up all those things that peaked my curiosity throughout the day, I learn how to "cook" with Alex and Heather. I am obsessed!!! I figure that, as long as I don't start resorting to IM to communicate with my husband, I'm still not too foregone.

I did have to reel it in a bit at work. I was laughing so hard listening to Diggnation, I was starting to sound a bit loony (headphones+ me laughing uncontrollably= no one else knows why I'm laughing= Sarah looks insane).

But on the bright side, my new web-based addiction has brought my blog back to the forefront of my mind. So, I've got that going for me.

Any how, here are some of my favorites:

Ctl+Alt+Chicken
Diggnation
TWIT
Net@Nite
Security Now
Windows Weekly

Wow-Wii

We FINALLY got a Wii. It was totally worth getting up at the butt crack of the morning and standing in arctic conditions (ok, we only had to stand in line for 5 minutes before they handed out the tickets.) It took forever, but we finally did it, and it is FUN!! Plus you get "exercise" if you use the Wii Fitness function.

In any case I love it. I will wait with bated breath until my favorite game of ALL TIME becomes available for dowload. My life wasn't the same after Adventure Island.

My husband is currently playing Zelda, which I have heard is very popular with new Wii owners. I've got to be honest, there is a creepy little kid-type being in the game that speaks with a super creepy spritley voice. It is CREEEE-PY and I hate it. So, for money, the game is only great with the volume off.

I'm Back!!!

I'm back in business!! I have not forsaken you, my devoted readers (Thanks, Ray. Thanks, Sue.) In any case, I will try to keep up on my blog a bit better. Don't hold me to it, but I'll try. More to come...I hope...