No more maternity leave :(

Yesterday was technically my last day of maternity leave, I go back to work the day after tomorrow. I couldn't have picked a better week. Rhett had a great week at daycare and by the end of the week we had gotten him up to the entire day. He loves the teachers and they really love him, too. He did his first piece of "art work" where they basically covered his hand in paint and plopped it on a piece of paper that they had already painted. Of course I thought it was terrific...such a sucker! He didn't take his naps very well but we knew that would happen. This kid is WAY too curious.

We also hit a big milestone this week! St Pat's was his 3 month mark!! I have pictures from this week - his first day of daycare, St Pats and his 3 month pic!

This week I've also locked down hard core on the paleo diet and was able to get to the gym 4 times so far! Hoping for a 5th tomorrow. I am going for 6 weeks and hope to be in decent shape by the time our April beach vacation and wedding season kick in. We'll see!

I was also able to go to the chiropractor for a postpartum adjustment and the dermatologist for a skin cancer scan and to check out all the freaky things pregnancy did to my skin. I'm happy to report that I have my first adjustment completed and I am skin cancer free!! Sadly, that was my first ever "annual" scan so I was a little nervous considering what I've done to my skin over the years. I also started a new skin care regimen to reverse some of the damage to my skin over the next 60 days... I anticipate looking like a new woman in about a month or two! Ha ha! We'll see how that goes.

So our big milestones this week were daycare for Rhett and no skin cancer for me! Plus starting the lock down to try to lose the last of the "baby weight" which should more aptly be called the "chicken finger, french fries, sweet treats weight" since that's really where it came from.

And he's off!!!

We had a huge milestone over here in the Tribuzio house today! Rhett went to daycare for his first day! I have to go back to work next week so I wanted to start to ease him into daycare. Don't be fooled - this is not at all for his benefit, but for mine. I knew I would miss him way too much and worry that he wasn't getting enough sleep for his naps if I didn't ease him in a bit. I have some appointments (dermatologist, hair - hey, don't judge unless you've seen this mop, chiropractor, etc) this week so it worked out great -- I'll have plenty to do to keep myself busy during the day while Rhett is at his new "school" and I won't miss him quite as much.

I am happy to report that it is a little after 5 and Rhett is home safe, sound and happy and he is napping right now! He actually did sleep a little at daycare. I took him at 11 or so and he took 2 short naps where he might usually have a 2 hour and a 1.5 hour nap. I figured he would be so excited and curious about everything going on around him that he might not be up for naps. Plus, for his naps, we still swaddle him at home and they don't at daycare. I held off until almost 4 before I went and picked him up. I wanted to give him his last feeding before his bedtime feeding later tonight - he's super sweet when he's eating and when I burp him, I can hug him and pretend I'm just burping him :)

I don't really have quite as much to report since I wasn't with him all day. I asked what he did all day (which is a tough question to ask without sounding accusatory I realized) and he pretty much studied the other babies and "talked" to them. He was in a swing when I picked him up and was happy as could be! I am curious to see what toys he likes since they have everything under the sun there. They were really surprised at how strong his legs are and that he (big announcement coming here) is getting a tooth soon!!! Miss Roberta, one of the teachers in his room, was apparently very smitten with Rhett. He was flirting with her hard core when I left him this morning so I wasn't surprised at all to hear that he charmed her!

He wore his onesy that Liz's family gave him that had his name on it, just for fun. It'll be fun to pick out his "school" clothes this week as he goes in each day...though I'm sure that'll get really old really fast. I had to pack some extra clothes and socks for him to keep at daycare in case he had an accident or lost a sock. I had to admit to Miss Roberta that he doesn't really wear socks all that often unless his feet are really cold, but that I had seen all the other babies with their feet covered and didn't want to be "that mom" that didn't put socks on her kid. Miss Roberta and I are going to get along just fine...to give you an idea of how funny Miss Roberta is - when she saw that Rhett had a tooth coming in she said "now that is my kind of man - he's gonna be eatin a chicken leg in no time at all!"

Of course I took pictures of this, I just need to get them on the computer so in the meantime I shall post a picture of Rhett at bath time in his Cookie Monster towel and his Fat Tuesday look... BEADS!!!!

MilkFace JellyBones the Incredible SLEEPING Baby!

He did it! We did it!! I mean he gets a lot more credit than we do, but he is out of the swaddle and sleeping all the way through the night!! Not phony baloney through the night like 11pm to 5am, but he goes down at 8pm and we get him up at 6:30am. We haven't had to get up in the middle of the night one time since we took him out of the swaddle. I also had an awesome tip that I think is very much a part of the equation. Allison told me I could put a bigger diaper on him at night and it would help keep him from waking up with a full diaper. That woman is a genius!!

I can't begin to explain how proud I am. And how much more sleep I am getting! He woke up this morning around 5:30 and just kept himself quietly occupied till I went in and got him at 6:20 or so. I still wake up and check the monitor or hear him if he's moving or grunting but he was so good - no "hey mom, come get me". Just a lot of "yum, those are my hands, they taste awesome!!"

FJ and I also had a big milestone this weekend. We left Rhett for the whole day and attended a St Patty's festival downtown with several of our friends (and took a cab home, of course). We are very lucky to have several friends who love Rhett and don't mind watching him. And even luckier to have several mom-to-be friends whom we trust who want the practice. Our friend Melanie came over and spent the whole day with Rhett. Don't worry, I didn't take total advantage of her, I paid her in baby items since she wouldn't give me an amount she would normally charge someone. I had a blast at the baby store picking up all sorts of odds and ends that I use regularly but never would have thought to register for. These things add up even though they are mostly just $3-10 items so I was happy to fill up a bag for Mel and of course got some for myself. Point being, FJ and I were able to leave for the day and enjoy some time with our friends. We came home to a sleeping baby and when I woke him up the next morning, I was excited to see him, he was excited to see us but he had gotten a good nights' sleep and Mel had sent us pics throughout the day so I knew he had a blast.

In addition to sleeping through the night and us being able to leave him for a whole day, we had another kind of cool milestone. Rhett laughed. He's laughed before, so it wasn't just that. Kate came to meet Rhett and he LOVED her. He laughed for about 3 minutes straight to the point that Kate, FJ and I were laughing so hard we had tears in our eyes. I tried to get it on video but was a bit late due to the fact that I was hunched over laughing so hard. We have no idea what sparked it and he didn't do it for the rest of the day. Apparently Kate triggered the laugh factory (probably cause it's the first time someone barely bigger than him has held him - sorry Kate - you knew you weren't getting out of this without a short joke). I did get a few more cackles out of him this morning so at least I know that I don't have to kidnap Kate from Augusta to get Rhett to laugh. It's absolutely crazy how awesome the sound of our baby laughing hysterically can be. And just to emphasize that it's not just mom gushing going on, even Kate had tears in her eyes from laughing so hard with and at Rhett. It was really cool!

So, Rhett is 11+ weeks and it is crazy to see how many milestones he's passed and how much he grows and learns. It's going to be very sad when I have to take him to daycare next week and go back to work the following week. I don't mean sad for him, I mean sad for me! Ha! Rhett is going to love it. He loves other babies, he loves playing, he tolerates sleeping and he loves eating so daycare is like paradise for this kid. I am definitely going to miss him but I'm excited that he'll be able to play with other kids and with new toys and that he's going to learn a ton that I would never know how to teach him.

MilkFace JellyBones the Incredible Peeing Baby!

In case you couldn't guess by the title, Rhett has figured out that it's funny to pee outside of his diaper! Unfortunately for all involved, I think it's pretty funny, too and can't help but laugh. Since I live in PJ's these days it really doesn't offend me to jump in front of his stream and since the laundry is constantly running, I don't think anything of using the onesy I just took him out of to soak up his stream. And most importantly, because I am beyond brilliant, he has a washable waterproof pad on top of his changing table covers and on top of that is a disposable waterproof pad so it really isn't a huge deal when he does this. I use the verb in the constant and present tense because not only did he JUST do this about 5 minutes ago, but he's done it about 4 times in the past 3 days. And he just laughs and laughs (probably because I laugh and laugh). Poor FJ, though - he got the worst of it when Rhett tested outside of the diaper bathroom usage on his other end. Whoops!

As for MilkFace JellyBones, that is pretty self explanatory. He's almost 11 weeks and we've had a few big strides in the past week or two. We've moved him to medium flow nipples which means that he doesn't have to work quite as hard for his food and his feedings are much easier on us. But this also means that he enjoys himself quite a bit more and ends up smiling through the feedings and getting milk or formula all over his face. And of course I laugh at this, too, which causes more laughter on his part. JellyBones came about because this kid LOVES to stand. He really likes to lay down on my knees and have me help him pull himself up to a standing position. He'll stay standing for as long as you let him. But occasionally he'll get himself all geared up to stand up or I'll want to show someone and his bones are all of the sudden made of jelly. He just slithers back down or if he wasn't up to begin with, it looks like I'm yanking him by his arms.

So MilkFace JellyBones has had a big week or two! Here are some of the things Rhett has done over the past week or two:

1. He is now open hand swatting at things in the air which might not sound like a huge deal, but it is! He sees things and is trying to grab them and realizes that his hand needs to be open to do this!
2. He has found mirrors. This could be dangerous if he is half as vain as his mom.
3. He's started wearing his 6 month (3-6 month) clothes!! I mean he's 2.5 months so I guess that's standard, but still, a milestone of sorts!!
4. He was able to get in his jumpy swing (jumperoo?) with the help of this pillow vest type thing I bought him especially for babies who want to jump before they are the right size for the jumping toys. He jumped for almost 2 hours one day. The swing hangs from a door jam and unfortunately for him the only door jam in our house on the first floor besides the garage is the pantry. So he jumped by the liquor, dog food and other pantry items for 2 hours. He didn't seem phased, but of course I took pictures and those are logged away for yet another day when he decides he's cooler and smarter than me and I need to take him down a peg.
5. He's been sleeping through the night for a few weeks now - or rather not needing to be fed. I still have to get up and reswaddle or change him from time to time, but in the past week or two, he's also figured out how to get back to sleep without being reswaddled. Which means he either sucks his thumb or his whole hand or tucks his little hands under his head. This is huge and it leads to my next point....

Tonight is the big night!! Rhett is going naked in the bed!! Well, he'll be wearing clothes, but he is going swaddle-free!!! I'm pretty scared and nervous, but I've been waiting for weeks to get him out of this swaddle. If he can learn to sleep without it, I don't have to get up and re-do it! And it opens our world of baby sitters up to endless possibilities!!! It's supposed to take a few nights of torture (on the parents) to get him there. Every change in the routine is supposed to take a good 3 days. But we are keeping our fingers crossed that he flows into it pretty naturally. FJ is off work tomorrow and Friday so we have 3 nights where we can lose a little sleep... well, where FJ can lose a little sleep. I can't lose what I've not had in almost a year! Ha ha!

So this is a big step and milestone and I'm sure in 6 months I won't remember when we took him out of the swaddle or when he "found his hands" or when he found mirrors, so I'm just trying to document it all! Plus, I'm obviously proud of him, excited for him, amused by him and intrigued by him! It's so crazy to see these little creatures figuring these things out. He can learn to breathe, eat, go 10 hours without eating, self regulate, self soothe, etc in less than 10 weeks but it takes months to figure out long division and I before E.... crazy!

Long Overdue!

So maybe I have been avoiding updating the blog... Half the time I feel like there is so much to update that I won't have enough time before Rhett wakes up from a nap and the other half of the time I think I am completely boring and unentertaining which is embarrassing since that's kind of part of who I am. Rhett is not yet asleep, we are trying to get him to go down for his 11:30 nap and it's 11:50...that's the kind of week we are having. So I'll give this a try!

Last week on Monday night, my throat started getting that tickle that means I'm about to be all out sick. Usually when I get that, I dose myself with a combination of OTC drugs that is probably illegal and would impress Paris Hilton. That is not an option at this point since I'm still breast feeding and more importantly, I can't be brain dead for 2 days with a 2 month old to take care of. Wouldn't that be nice? Along with not utilizing my usual cocktail of sudafed, antihistamines, cold meds, cough syrups and Mucinex, I'm not exactly getting the "rest" prescribed by all doctors for anything that ails you. As a result, it's over a week later and I'm not quite better. As an added bonus, Rhett is now having some congestion and is not feeling well which means that he is fussy. This is new territory for mommy and baby - we aren't used to this. My entire "let him cry" thing has gone out the window...whatever sick boy wants, sick boy gets. Unfortunately sick boy seems to know this and while I know he feels just fine during the day, he can give me one pitiful quiver and I feel soooo guilty for sneezing on him that I cave.

As far as updates over the past few weeks, we have plenty!! Suz came out and took pics of him around 8 weeks. He was loving the camera more than me after several cocktails. We had some trouble getting smiles out of him since we woke him up for the photo shoot but he was mesmerized by the camera...and maybe by Suz, too! The pics turned out terrific and we are very grateful to Suz for spending her Sunday afternoon out here with us. It's awesome to have talented friends who are happy to help you out!!

In other Rhett related news, he is finding his hands!! He is a tummy time and back time machine and can hold onto anything that you give him (aka wrap his little fingers around) for quite awhile! He's making more and more sounds and noises and gave me a little laugh yesterday! It amazes me how he just smiles with his entire face. He can also see a little further and hear us. For example, today I was on the couch while he was in his swing and he was getting bored so I just told him he was doing a good job and I was proud of him (he was trying really hard to play with the toys on his swing AND he had the death grip on a toy I had given him 10 minutes before) and his whole face lit up...so we proceeded to have a conversation.

At first talking to my infant felt a little strange. Almost narcissistic... I was literally talking to hear myself speak. Now I will be the first to admit that isn't a stretch for me... I like to chat. But when you narrate your day to a subject that you know can't understand a word, you start to feel a little psycho and even a little lonely. Poor Rhett is going to grow up with some developmental issues from watching so much Law and Order as an infant. But now we have conversations sometimes... granted he's not the most articulate thing in the world, but I figured that over the years I have had far more ridiculous conversations where neither participant was speaking much English after the 2am hour and under the influence, so why not make that much effort with my own son? I mean, I would be lying if I said I hadn't had a glass of wine or two and started babbling on to him but give me a break - my tolerance is low and I shouldn't have to wait for 5:00 since my work day starts around 6am and I don't get a lunch break. I figure I have as much right to a 4pm cocktail as people who work for 10 hours and go to happy hour.

So his "vocabulary" is ever increasing and I read that if you mimic the sounds to them, it encourages them. Since I am completely out of things to say aside from the normal praises of how awesome he is and how much I love him, I have no shame in mimicking his various coos and ahs. To my surprise, he seems to like it!

I keep waiting for this magical moment when he finds his hands....like it happens all at once. That's what it seems like when people tell me about it. But then again these same people probably told me that when I was pregnant and sick that it would just stop all the sudden and of course after I felt better, it felt like all of the sudden, but I know it took a few days. So I'm trying to be patient. I am sure it's not that exciting to other people to see him find his hands or the idea of finding his hands, but to me it means that I don't have to play the pacifier game where I give it to him and he spits it out and we repeat until one of us is asleep or dead because he can shove his fist in his mouth! The other morning I found him out of his swaddle with his thumb in his mouth but I believe this was a one off :( Anyhow, if he can figure out how to put his hand, thumb, finger, whatever in his mouth, he can self soothe and if he has enough control to do these things, he won't randomly swat himself in the head and we can be done with the dreaded swaddle. Though let's be clear, I have no idea what to do next! How in the world will he know it's sleep time if he isn't bound?! That will be my next great adventure.

That's what is going on here. Oh, and Rhett got his first round of shots and was a complete champ about it! So it's been a rough couple of weeks with me being sick (and of course FJ was a little sick, too and then Rhett being quasi sick/smart enough to milk this for all its worth from me), Rhett getting shots, etc. Hopefully the clouds are parting - literally and figuratively!!!

Just a quick update...

Due to the biggest storm to hit Chicago this century (really? It's been 11 years...), we had to cancel Rhett's baptism in Chicago. We decided that in addition to the tricky flight situation (we could easily check to see if our flight was canceled or delayed so there was no chance we would be at the airport for days, I just didn't want to get our seats reassigned or have to deal with the idiots who DID camp out in the airport), we didn't really know how to drive in 18 feet of snow and didn't want to risk that with Rhett. I'm pretty relieved. I wasn't excited about traveling with him before his vaccinations and I definitely wasn't excited about trying to figure out breast feeding and pumping with him in the airport or even in Chicago with the family.

FJ still took his couple of days off so we are excited about a few days together. I am excited to get out of the house alone to run errands. It hadn't occurred to me that little things like shipping packages at the UPS store would be virtually impossible. I can't carry a baby and a box at the same time!

In other big news, I also started back at the gym yesterday. I can barely move today and it's only going to get worse!!! I'm so scared! Ha ha! But it felt great and I can't wait to get back into shape. I'll be a much better mom and wife and even person to myself if I can get back on track. But until Monday, I'm going to eat as much junk food as possible! Ha!

Rhett is sleeping great. He's so close to making it through the night. He consistently makes it to 6 am but we do have to get up a few times to reswaddle him or give him a pacifier. But he's really close and I am so proud of him.

He also had a hip ultra sound this past week as a precaution because he was breached. He is is 100% a-okay and he did sooooooooooo good at the doctor's office. He didn't cry or fuss at all and I was so proud of him!

He's growing and getting more and more personality everyday! He had a growth spurt last week and is over 11 pounds now and up to 23 inches. He is a very smiley, happy baby and I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop! Ha! Last night I did the bath and bedtime feeding that FJ normally does (he did the middle of the night swaddle/pacifier game and the 6am feeding) and we said some prayers and talked about our day. That is one sweet boy!

There's not really much of an update, but I put a few new pics of him doing tummy time. Hardly his favorite time of the day, but necessary. There are also pics of him just hanging out. We need to get some really good smile pics so we can do his birth announcements!

Super Stalker Mom

I'm now convinced that babies and video monitors can be put on the list of torture devices used by government agencies! I came to this conclusion by using this torturous combo on myself and can certify that it will drive someone crazy! I stared at that video monitor for over an hour while I laid in my bed in the dark. I got up 3 times to put the pacifier back in Rhett's mouth (add pacifiers to torture devices...It's pretty mean of me to give this kid a pacifier and then bind his hands in a swaddle blanket so that as soon as it falls out he can't get it - well let me clarify, he hasn't found his hands quite yet so even if he had his hands he couldn't put it back in, but actually having them bound in a blanket seems even meaner).

Side note - I am stalking the video monitor telling it to "go to sleep, little boy" as I type this...it's not working :)

These monitors are even designed for psycho stalkers like me. The video will shut off after a minute or two and you have to actively turn it back on. I'm sure the manufacturer would have you believe it is to save the battery life, but I know it's to cause further torture by making me actively participate in this whole process even more.

So, last night he woke up at about 4 and started grunting and moving around. He wasn't out of his swaddle. I was waiting on him to break free and really wake up and let me know he was hungry. This is a game we play every night (well, except the rare nights that he sleeps all the way through). So in addition to waking up to feed him, I'm awake about 30 minutes before I feed him and for about 15 minutes after as he falls asleep, so it's over an hour for me. (I just tapped the button to turn the video back on). I decided after about 20 minutes this time since he was still secure in his swaddle to try to give him a pacifier and see if that calmed him down. I was just trying to buy time till 5am. If he sleeps till 5am I don't have to get him up at 6 to eat so while 6 is the overall goal, I was really just shooting for 5.

The clock was ticking down and the pacifier would fall out and I would jump up and run to his room and find it and put it back in in the dark which is not as easy as it might sound like (from my stalker monitor, I knew about where the pacifier was but had no easy way to determine where his mouth would be since he hardly stays still during this part of the game). (Click - video turned back on, Squirmy in there is fighting his nap). At 4:50 I decided not to get up to get the pacifier for him when it fell out. I figured he could get himself nice and worked up and it would be after 5 and I was home free. I watched that monitor for 20 minutes as he slept just waiting for him to grunt and start the process that lets me know it's time to feed the little guy. I was fighting off going back to sleep myself, there isn't much that is more frustrating than dozing back off for 7 minutes.

The next thing I knew, my 5:50 "feed Rhett" alarm was going off. Literally, I have alarms set on my phone set for 10 minutes before his feedings and they're marked as "feed Rhett" just so I don't let time get away from me if I'm, for example, updating the blog! I couldn't believe it - that little man had gone all the way back to sleep and I had to go wake him up to eat. So, I completely lost that game since I was still up for 1+ hour even though I didn't feed him and he technically didn't get up, but I'm more than happy to concede victory to his full night of sleep! (Click - just turned the monitor back on...keep in mind, I can hear him grunting... I know he is trying to get out of his swaddle and I can tell my the grunts/cries that he's not out yet and is getting really tired of trying - I just want to torture myself by seeing it, too).

So back to my original point, who stares at a video monitor for over an hour in the middle of the night? And then doesn't learn their lesson?!?! I admit that sometimes I click the monitor when he's napping so that I can see his sweet sleeping face. But most of the time it is to stalk him. (Click...his eyes are shut, he's silent...they were when the screen went off, too...no real need to click it back on but I do...it's a compulsion). I'm pretty sure that the baby/monitor combo should be registered as a weapon in psychological warfare because I can recognize that it is 100% absolutely crazy to do what I have done in the past 8 hours.

When the monitor is actually plugged in to the wall (at night), I don't have to re-click. It stays on if it's on. It was a huge milestone when I was able to start sleeping with it off. I'm sure FJ appreciated getting rid of the night light (and for those who are wondering, he sleeps through all of this...none of it even causes him to stir -- even on Saturdays when he takes middle of the night duty, I have to wake him up when it's time to feed the baby so I still get to play a lot of the game, I just don't have to get up).

So I guess that is somewhat of an update!! He slept through the night though I'm not ready to give him the victory all together. But again, I'll take it!

Click -he's asleep. Has been the last two clicks. I still click because I'm sitting still so why not? --- Oh, wait...he's wiggling, grunting...shifting...back asleep... false alarm...okay, time to go change laundry, fix lunch, make some phone calls and get ready to start this cycle all over again. But I'll admit that this past cycle I let him sleep on my chest for about an hour. He was so warm and sweet and I thought I deserved the reward for not just feeding him at 4:30 and getting him to sleep it out!

For those who are on the edge of their seats...

Well, he didn't sleep through the night again but he made it to 4:30 which isn't half bad. Of course this means I woke up at 4 when he started grunting and moving around, but I'll take what I can get!! He had a great day yesterday and so did I! We went to Perimeter Mall to see a friend, Carrie Ann and her new little boy that was born 10 days before Rhett, Carter. She and I just walked around, nibbled on some food and chatted. It was nice to get out of the house and have some company. We also went into some stores and I somehow managed not to buy anything!! Mostly because it would have been a pain, not so much because I have self control. My idea is that when I get back to a realistic, normal size, I can reward myself with some new clothes. Until then, I've gotten some sweaters and tops to try to get me through till I am somewhere near my pre-preg self again.

Rhett took some good naps yesterday, we had our adventure out and about and I got some chores done. Hopefully he is set up for another good day today. Tomorrow FJ is working, but I am going to head out for a couple hours sans Rhett when he gets home so that should be fun and interesting. I'm sure I'll be anxious to get back to him, but I haven't been away from him for more than 1 hour at this point (long enough to go to the store or one time to get my nails done - thank you Joani!!).

It's not that I want to be away from him but I have a stack of things I need to do outside of the house that would take much longer with Rhett (boxes to send, things to return, small items to buy in Target - yeah right - let's just say spend $100.56 in Target in 15 minutes or less). And of course I want FJ to be home with Rhett alone through at least one feeding cycle so he can feed him, change him, play with him, put him down and get him back up. It's not that I want him to see that it's not necessarily easy...I want him to have that bonding time...hahahahahaha... YEAH RIGHT! Though I'm sure an afternoon away won't exactly prove a point to FJ. I have figured out that if he thinks that I'm on "vacation" he should be able to do what I do on his day off since it's vacation and all!

Sunday we are having some good friends over to play with FJ's new green egg (which we have been using all week!!) and to celebrate some big news for them! Congratulations to Tony and Lyndsey who are expecting!!!! So exciting!!! I can't wait to meet Baby Milligan in August!!

We snapped some pics in the bathtub last night. He's way too cute in the tub not to take pictures. Definitely rehearsal dinner material for this poor kid!!!

It's been a good day!

The past few days haven't been great, but so far today (and it's not even 8am yet) has been awesome! Rhett missed a few naps and had a doctor's appointment so his routine was a little off. On top of that, he's so strong that he breaks out of his swaddle...naps, middle of the night - it doesn't matter. When he's ready to be free of the swaddle, he breaks out like Houdini! This wouldn't be such a huge problem if he had any control over his hands, but he doesn't. He doesn't have purposeful movement...he can't take his pacifier out or more importantly put it back in. But he has these reflexes that cause him to randomly move his hands...and frequently when he does this while he has a pacifier, the reflex is to swat the pacifier out of his mouth. Awesome, right? When he is sleeping and he gets his arms out, his reflex is to smack himself in the face and obviously he gets upset about that. I mean, can you imagine minding your own business, laying in your "bed" and just getting smacked in the face or having a pacifier that was just given to you ripped out of your mouth by a total stranger?!

So yesterday was the third less than stellar day in a row. Keep in mind that a bad day for Rhett is like a good day for a lot of babies, so it's all relative, but I'm so spoiled because he's such a good, easy baby! So he's been a little fussy and hasn't gone to sleep or taken his naps well.

Well last night, he slept THROUGH THE NIGHT!!! It could just be a fluke so I'm not jinxing myself by saying he's starting a new chapter. He stayed in his swaddle all night (he breaks out of his swaddle = he smacks himself in the face = he wakes up) and I was soooo proud! I woke up at 2 and again at 4 and checked the video monitor as well as the clock and I was keeping my fingers crossed. I can't believe he did it! I got him up at 6 to eat and play a little and put him back down for a nap at 7 and he went right to sleep. Fingers crossed that he's going to have a good day - but either way - he slept all night. Which means I slept THROUGH THE NIGHT!!! I feel like a million bucks!

Another big milestone - and this might not seem big to most people, but I am able to wear all of my rings! I have my engagement ring and two wedding bands. A couple weeks ago I was able to wear one wedding band for the first time since October (my fingers have really swollen with all of the weight gain and water retention). As you put on more rings, they fit tighter. This morning I was able to put on one band and I tried my engagement ring and it fit so I went for the last band very cautiously (don't want them to get stuck!! If I have to get them cut off, I know FJ won't replace them!!!) and it slid right on!! I couldn't believe it so I went to pull all 3 off at once to see if I had to do it one by one or if they just slid off. I was able to pull all 3 off at once!

So what does this mean? I'm getting the old me back! Slowly but surely. Little milestones make me feel much better. But really this was just the icing on top of the cake from Rhett having such a good night. I am so excited for him that he slept so well and so proud of him! My fingers are crossed that he is going to have a good day - he deserves it!

As for my day, I'm about to go make breakfast and get ready for his 9am feeding! The bug guy is coming at 11 (this is always an ordeal as he is rather chatty and insists on calling FJ to confirm whatever decision I just very clearly made) and then I am meeting a friend and her new little guy to hang out and catch up. Hopefully we can get Rhett a good afternoon nap. We're having chili tonight that is already made and the flavors are just soaking in in the fridge. Point being I don't have to make anything for dinner!!

Today has all of the makings of a great day. I don't want to put any pressure on myself or Rhett but it's started out fabulously!

I need to take some more pictures, but here are some from the snow storm that kept us all locked in last week. It started snowing Sunday night and the entire city pretty much shut down for the majority of the week. FJ didn't have to work on Monday or Tuesday. Everyone I know had cabin fever but I was just fine - I realized I didn't exactly leave on a regular basis anyway! ha! Rhett and I went on an adventure on Friday once the roads were safe and went to Target and Kohl's for an hour or two. Taking him out by myself is still a little tricky but we're getting there!

Snow Day!

We got lots of snow last night and today and FJ even got to stay home from work and spend another day with us. This was awesome since he had to work on Saturday and really only got a one day weekend. We did absolutely nothing but hang out with each other and Rhett all day! We watched movies, caught up on DVR and didn't even venture out of the house to eat. I made homemade waffles this morning from scratch and FJ made me lunch and dinner. It was a really great day.

We didn't take Rhett outside to take pictures - partially because that would have required one or both of us to get all bundled up. Poor Tucker did NOT enjoy the snow. We forced him to go outside and had several laughs at his expense.

Rhett is still sleeping pretty well. He is very sneaky and gets out of his swaddle even though we put him in there so tightly he grunts. I like to think it is because he is smart, but it's really probably operator error. Either way, if he gets out in the middle of the night, his arms hit him in the face (he ultimately hits himself but since he doesn't really know those are his arms nor does he have control over him, I feel it's unfair to say he hits himself) and that wakes him up. And once he's awake, he wants food and a clean diaper. I can't really blame the kid. So, as long as he stays pretty swaddled, he can sleep for awhile. Last night he actually slept until almost 4. I woke up at 3 and waited on him to wake up, though...psycho, I know!

So he is still sleeping well - a few times he has slept through the night. I'm not sleeping nearly as well but I'm sure it'll come. Besides, it's not like I was able to sleep a full night before he got here. The last time I slept more than a few hours in a row was maybe June? But I do see light at the end of the tunnel!

There isn't much of an update right now. He's doing great. We put together his swing and he LOVES it. It's probably gas, but he's smiling a little and I'll take it! He is also doing really well with his routine and has been great when I've taken him out. I'm just trying to figure out my routine with him...I'm sure once I get it nailed down, his routine will change. I'm actually guessing that is my life for the next 20 years in a nutshell! And I'll love it! Ha ha!

SMILE!!

I realize that this is probably gas or a fluke, but I caught him smiling and had time to get my phone, use the camera and take several shots because he kept smiling! I really don't care if it wasn't really a smile, it lit up my entire day!!! What a sweet, sweet boy!

Rhett is super clever, I've determined. He manages to claw his way out of the tightest of swaddles. We put together one of his swings last night (of course he has multiple swings) and he had a blast in it. I had him in his bouncy seat for awhile after his 6am feeding this morning and he was loving that, too. I'm still trying to figure it all out - I guess I never will get it all figured out. But sometimes it's fun to figure it out. Sometimes it's frustrating. But luckily it's a lot more fun than frustrating so far.

I can't believe he is 3 weeks old already. Week 1 of FJ being back at work is almost over. He has to work every Saturday this month so it's not quite over. He got home last night a little after 6. It was great! I felt like we had so much more time. We weren't in a rush to eat dinner, either! It was a terrific night even though Rhett didn't really get his last nap in.

And for those who are wondering, Tucker is holding up okay, too! Rhett sleeps in the nursery at night, he's never slept in our bed, so Tucker gets to snuggle with us at night. He's doing pretty well with Rhett - he doesn't quite get it, but he knows that Rhett is important to us so he is a little protective, but he's not totally on board with it. I guess he better sign up - Rhett's not going anywhere! Rhett is totally fine with with Tucker, though. His barking and running around doesn't phase Rhett at all!

Okay, well, just wanted to check in and show off his quasi smile!

Much Better!

Just a quick update to let everyone know that we are all alive, well and in good spirits and he made it through his fussy evening and even got in a cat nap! FJ and I made it through a terrific fajita salad with flank steak and Rhett slept till 5:30 this morning!!

We (Rhett and I) are going to see FJ at lunch at his new bank today. This will be my second time taking him out by myself so hopefully I'll be a little better at it. I wasn't that bad yesterday, but I couldn't find my phone and it wasn't an option to leave without it...I knew I would be asking for a flat tire if I did.

And on a very positive note - after some inspiration from Allison yesterday who kept telling me great I look - I packed up all of my maternity clothes. Thank you Space Saver Bags!!! I have so much room back in my closet. I still have a whole row of clothes that I won't even bother to look at, but I now have clothes hanging in a section of my closet that I can actually wear so my options are there. They are limited, but they are there. And organized!! Sweaters, plain tees, button down shirts, etc. No pants...still not really able to wear pants. Ha ha! Thank God for leggings. I refuse to spend money on decent jeans right now because I refuse to stay this size for long. I'm a WAYS from my pre-pregnancy/goal size so I'm thinking a good pair of jeans or two will be my reward when I get there. Hopefully for my 30th bday!

I do have some clothes to unpack that I put away when I hit about 5 months because they depressed me by even being there when they weren't an option. So this should get interesting. I'm going to hold off on opening that Pandora's box of clothing until I am a little closer to my goals...that way it'll be like shopping!

Well, our little man is starting to wake up for breakfast and to start his day (he zonks right back out after his early morning - 5-6ish feeding, but after 9, we get to play for a little bit before it's nap time again).

Only today and tomorrow until the weekend gets here and FJ gets to hang out with both of us for a couple days! Very exciting stuff. It's crazy how life and the definition of excitement has changed. I'm guessing I'll keep looking forward to the weekends when FJ is here with both of us, but I'm sure the weekdays will get easier as I work my routine into Rhett's.

Thanks for stopping by!!

Checking in

Well FJ is back at work and it's just me and Rhett! Well, we still have a lot of visitors and actually had a lunch date today and we are going to see FJ at work tomorrow for lunch.

We've had a lot going on. We've gotten onto a good routine and Rhett is sleeping really well all things considered. The Moms On Call folks have been great. The consultation went amazingly well and they have been so responsive to our millions of questions. As have our awesome and supportive friends.

Right now, I am letting him cry it out from another room. It is taking everything in me not to go pick that sweet boy up and hold him because I know he will stop crying if I do, but I also know he is not hurt and he is not even uncomfortable, he's just tired and really needs the last 30 minutes of his nap (he woke up from his nap because he worked his way out of his swaddle - this long legged/armed man is like a magician).

FJ has had to work late the last two nights which I know breaks his heart. For those who don't know, he got a promotion 2 days before Rhett was born (not sure if I mentioned that or not before). So he has a lot of work in front of him and a lot of challenge, but also a lot of reward and recognition. Rhett loves bed time - he gets to spend time with his dad. FJ gives him a bath and feeds him a bottle and then puts him to bed. He goes straight down whenever FJ does it so he must have the magic touch...I wish I had it right about now (still wailing).

I'm trying to work out my routine now that we have Rhett on his. It's getting better each day. (I swear this kid can see the video monitor camera - he is staring into it with these little eys...okay now he has them slammed shut and his mouth is gaping open as he screams bloody murder...then stops and looks around again).

This sequence of events is highly unusual, he is never fussy at all so I feel for him because I know he must be tired.

A few random things that I wasn't aware of about after you have a baby...night sweats...not so much fun. But definitely worth the time after he eats that he just lays on my chest and makes these little baby murmurs. I also didn't realize that the whole "eat, sleep, poop" thing was 100% true and that the pooping part is continuous. I have yet to "waste" a diaper unless he somehow peed or pooped on it before I got it on him. Which technically isn't a waste.

So this is hardly a warm and fuzzy post, but it's realistic which is the point of recording all of this. When I'm having a blast with him, I can't exactly get to the computer because I am holding him and rubbing his soft head of hair or kissing him on his yummy face.

I need to get more pictures of him. I discovered that my camera is not that great (he moves too quickly for the shutter speed I guess?)! I can't wait to have Susan come take some good pics of him!!

Okay, he's down now! I have a few minutes to go get dinner started so that when FJ comes home he can play with Rhett and we can eat before it's bed time for all of us!

More to come later this week, promise!!

Quick Update

Well, our little man is officially 10 days old and we have been home with him for a week. In some ways it feels like it's gone by so slow and in other ways it's gone by too fast. I'm not looking forward to FJ going back to work! But at the same time, I think we're getting a routine down and we've been out and about with him so as soon as my driving privileges are reinstated I should be able to take him places with me. Not sure exactly where I will go, but right now if I want anything I have to ask someone to get it for me. Not that we don't have a great deal of help and support, but there are just some things you don't want to ask people to bring you! ha ha!

Of course we are reading articles left and right...one makes us feel terrible so we keep reading until we find out that we are NOT at risk for SIDs or he IS supposed to sleep this much or he might not have an outie just because that is how it's looking right now! (Love ya Curt, but nobody wants an outie...). I have nothing but time when I'm feeding him in the middle of the night so I am on my iPhone reading ridiculous articles which is probably the worst thing I can do. The good news is that you can always find an article that agrees with what you want it to say. The REALLY bad news is that Amazon.com has an app that lets you buy things online ridiculously easy. SCARY!

Everyone tried to tell me about the love you feel for your child. I realized it would be intense and even the mothers that told me about this said I wouldn't understand till it happened (which after 9 months, became really annoying since they were admittedly trying to explain the unexplainable...but then again, everything was pretty annoying after 9 months). I love Rhett so much! Everything he does makes me smile and laugh. He's so funny and his little personality is coming out more and more each day. I am so glad I get to spend so much time with him over the next couple of months and I already know I am going to miss him when it's time to go back to work - but at the same time, I'm excited for all that he'll learn and develop in daycare (except the colds, ear infections, etc). He is absolutely adorable. When he cries, my heart breaks for him even though I know he is just cold because I am changing him or he needs to burp and I put him on his side to try to eat. I'm getting used to it, but WOW what a change.

Our friends and family have been TERRIFIC!!! I am 100% biased, but I do believe he is one of the cuter babies I've ever seen and our friends and fam are being kind enough to go along with this theory. Not only are they supportive, but we've had tons of food dropped off including breakfasts, lunches, dinners and treats! People have offered to help run errands, too. It's been awesome. My sis was able to come for a few days. Rhett was able to meet some of my family, too as they were in town for Christmas at my uncles. It's so neat that he was able to meet his great grandmother (my grandmother, Nonny). He'll meet his other great grandmother, Mimi in Chicago in February when he gets baptized (eeeek -- we still have to take a class at the church for that).

I have also had a handful of friends who have recently had babies who have been tremendous help and support. I ask them very blunt, stupid questions. My brain was a bit scrambled in the hospital when they gave me some of my instructions to take care of myself and my c section incision so I've been able to just ask. I have also asked about feeding, sleeping - anything and everything under the sun. These girls are so quick to respond and without any judgment!!! What an awesome network.

As for our friends who are baby-free - they are just as awesome!! Everyone is so genuinely excited for us and Rhett and just smitten with our little man!! Even Aunt Jill who swore she wasn't going to hold Rhett till he could hold his own head up can't get enough of him!!!

There is so much to say about how he is doing. He can move his head. When he's hungry he thrashes his head all around and it's not very nice of me, but I burst into laughter because it's so funny. This is actually a baby reflex (rooting) so it's not unusual but I find it to be hysterical. He makes certain noises and faces when he sleeps, dirties his diaper, etc and of course I laugh uncontrollably when he does this...anyone who knows me knows I think that bodily functions are quite comical. He is tolerating clothes a lot better. At first he hated us maneuvering his body to put on his clothes - he is working with us rather than against us. He randomly stretches his arms and legs out. My fave is what I call "touchdown baby". He just throws both of his arms straight above his head, it's pretty awesome! He also fist pumps on occasion, OF COURSE!!! He has his dad's finger toes and I have mixed emotions about this since I'm not overly fond of FJ's finger toes -but they are shared which makes them adorable (on baby, not on dad - for the record, I am not changing the rules about FJ keeping his finger toes off of me!!!). We keep his hands in little mittens to keep him from scratching his face for the most part but he can grab a hold of my hand through the mittens. His legs and arms are long like a monkey! It's awesome!!! I think he might end up being pretty tall which runs in my family. His eyes are blue and gorgeous. I'm not sure if they'll change or not, but he can see about a foot in front of him and he stares at me sometimes and I know he can see me and it's really awesome! So essentially, as expected, I am absolutely in love with him!!!

Rhett is HERE!!!

What an adventure!!! Rhett arrived safely at 8:51 on December 17 weighing in at 8 pounds, 9 ounces and measuring 21 inches long. He has a full head of light colored hair and pretty blue eyes. We aren't sure what color his eyes or hair will be, but he's gorgeous!! He has the prettiest skin and the sweetest demeanor. He has been so good and is so lovable. He's met several of his fans already and loves being held. Even in 2.5 days, he's already growing and changing.

I had a c section and require as much if not more care and attention than Rhett. FJ has been AMAZING. With me and with Rhett. And I've probably cried a little more than Rhett!! FJ has changed almost every diaper (the nurses have changed a couple), is a swaddling expert and has figured out certain ways to do things that Rhett really loves. Rhett lights up when his dad picks him up and I love watching FJ grab Rhett with confidence and take care of him. Watching my husband and seeing him be such an awesome father fills my heart. I thought the day that I married FJ was the most perfect I had seen him - in a church promising to love, honor and cherish me for the rest of our lives with tears in his eyes. But seeing him these past few days I realize that I am luckier than I ever could have thought possible!!

We've been taking a lot of pictures and most of them are terrible. I just grab the camera and say "oh that is so cute!" and snap away. I'm trying to collect some of the "best of". I'm pretty sure I will have tons to report on in the coming weeks. For now, we are all doing great. FJ is working hard to take care of both me and Rhett. We are all healthy according to the doctors. We should be going home in the next day or two (Monday or Tuesday) and the adventure will really start. I can't wait to discover all of these new things with our son. Wow. Our son!!! That still has such a strange ring to it!!

Happy Birthday, Rhett!!!

If all goes according to plan, we should meet Rhett in about 3.5 hours!!! I can't believe it! Of course, I'm not counting on everything going as scheduled - that would be setting myself up for disappointment! ha!

So here's what happened to lead up to this point. First off let me say that we are both healthy and doing great, so no need for any worry. We have a c section scheduled for 8:30 this morning at Northside Hospital (Atlanta/Dunwoody/Perimeter location). FJ will have my phone as well as his and will call folks if we need anything at all. We appreciate all of the thoughts and prayers being sent our way this morning. The support we've received from our friends and family over the past 9 months has been unreal. Rhett is a very lucky little boy!

Yesterday morning at 9:10 I was supposed to have a doctor's appointment. The roads iced over Wednesday night in Atlanta. Folks who live in ATL know that this means the entire city shut down and the roads were taken over by absolute idiots. FJ and I showed up for my appointment (FJ wanted to go to this one for whatever reason) and the Kaiser office was closed. Someone told us they were on a 2 hour delay. On our way back home, I called the Kaiser office to see if I was supposed to just come on in at 11:10 or what.

This is why they should give pregnant women their own phone number. When I called, they offered to reschedule my 39 week check up for next week. I calmly, or not so calmly pointed out that I already had an appointment for next week...a 40 week check up. So a 39 week check up at 40 weeks was hardly helpful. The woman on the phone tried to calm me down by explaining that they were simply looking out for the safety of their patients and staff by delaying the opening of the offices until 10 and canceling all appointments before 10. I, in turn, explained to her that my safety was hardly considered when I wasn't alerted of this and drove to the office and back home anyway. I settled for a 3:50pm appointment with the Physician's Assistant that we had seen for most of our appointments before 36 weeks.

We went for our appointment and at the beginning, Susan (our PA) mentioned that she could get us into the ultra sound room to take a look at Rhett. She did the usual exam and I'll spare the details but she did some other 39 week tricks to see if they could tip the scales and get him moving. Let's just say it was not comfortable. Or fun. We almost left without the ultra sound, but FJ asked and she got us in there. Immediately she noticed that his head was where his butt should be. This is bad. They had thought for the past several weeks that his head was down. Again, I'll spare the details, but for 3 weeks in a row, they had been able to "confirm" that he was head down. Apparently there is a part of the butt/spine that feels like the head... ewww. So many jokes coming to mind -this kid's rehearsal dinner for his wedding is already loaded with stories and jokes. Poor thing.

She went over some options as she was taking some measurements, including bringing me back Monday to see if he had turned on his own and making that appointment at the hospital so that they could try to turn him if he hadn't. Apparently this often stresses the baby and will cause the hospital to induce labor and results in an emergency c section. That sounded like no fun. After getting some calculations (of course he was not cooperating, why would he?), she determined that Rhett was around 8.5 pounds...which is huge. There is no turning this huge baby!!!

Susan went to find out doctor, Dr. Smith to find out who was on call for Friday and if they could get us in to get him out. Dr. Smith was the doc on call for Friday (today) and called Northside to schedule our c section. She came in and talked through our options with us. We obviously did NOT need to be sold on skipping out on the scary, procedures with the risks of harm to the baby. Sign us up for the express route!

So, here we are. I'm so excited and absolutely terrified. I don't know too many folks who love to have blood work done, have IVs and are overly fond of needles, but I do have a bit of a physical reaction to these things which includes tears, light headedness and the occasional passing out. So this should be an adventure.

Today is major surgery, but we are fully prepared. So much so that I haven't had anything to eat or drink since midnight and about to die of thirst - mostly because I can't have anything! Our bags are packed, we are walking out the door to go meet our little guy. We have a few hours of paperwork, blood work and prep. Assuming nobody in "real" labor or with an emergency comes in, we'll go in for surgery at 8:30 and Rhett will join us around 8:45 or so! It's pretty quick and easy, the recovery is the hard part!!

Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers!! We'll be at the hospital all weekend. We'll probably be a bit preoccupied so don't get offended if we aren't answering our phones or returning emails or texts. :)

We'll follow up soon!!!

A few of my favorite (pregnant) things...

With Christmas 12 days away and our due date 10 days away, I thought now would be a perfect time to share a few of my favorite things...for being pregnant (otherwise, at this point, this post would be all about wine...). I have had a lot of friends who have gotten pregnant in the past couple of months and of course I can't resist giving the type of unsolicited advice I hate getting. Though there are a handful of people who are always welcome to advise me - I'd say they can give me unsolicited advice but I don't think I've left them alone long enough to (Allison!).

I have sent a handful of emails where I intended only to share a link to a body pillow and of course they ended up 3 pages long. Shocker. So I figured I would try to put the majority of it here so I can just send THIS link when I'm being nosy and rude to my friends during their exciting times. I really don't mean to kill the magic and mystery so if you have no interest in this or don't want spoilers, stop reading!!!

The single most important thing that I possess that has gotten me through the past nine months is my body pillow - affectionately referred to as "Body Pillow".
http://www.amazon.com/Leachco-Snoogle-Total-Body-Pillow/dp/B0000635WI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292340222&sr=8-1
Amazon does free shipping on orders over $25 - a curse and a blessing.

I would strongly recommend getting the ridiculously expensive covers, too. They aren't hard to put on and the pillow gets a little gross after sleeping on it every night, so the pillow case is a definite necessity to help cut down on the acne that if you are like me is going to come no matter what you do to prevent or treat it!

Another life saver has been maternity leggings (Gap has my faves - extra comfort worth the extra $$) and Old Navy has some great maternity jeans, even skinny jeans! Target has good maternity tees and tanks that are longer and cover the belly as it grows. I invested in some PJ shorts from Motherhood Maternity that I have probably worn about 6 nights a week...I've done laundry around the timing so that I can have them dry before I go to bed... I've been able to get through a lot of the colder weather with sweaters that are really short sleeve sweater dresses - I just wear long sleeve tees under them. Super comfy and I've gotten a lot of compliments. Clothes are a pretty personal thing, I guess. I just had no idea where to shop and a lot of places are mostly online. Plus it's hard to try things on because you honestly have no clue how big you are going to get or what the weather will be like when you do!

Along those lines - Bella Bands! They were great for the first part and I plan on using them again after Rhett gets here. I think I got them on Amazon, but you can just Google them. I got one in white, one in nude and one in black. They look like tank tops coming out of the bottom of shirts or sweaters and can buy you a few extra weeks in your normal clothes!!

I wish I had a cure for the nausea - that almost did me in. Aside from trying to keep my blood sugar from dipping, I got nada on that! A lot of snacks throughout the day, fruit especially. The headaches - those were terrible. Sadly the only thing that made them better was to move around and get some exercise. But of course it hurt to move around. Catch 22! I do believe that exercising as much as I did (and please know I could have done MUCH more) was super helpful. It also made me feel a lot better about getting bigger. It's a mind trip for sure!

I have no idea about the next chapter - nursing accessories, post pregnancy clothing, etc...but I'll try to keep yall posted on that, too. I don't have a whole lot of advice or key items at this point, just the handful I've mentioned above!!

Good luck to all of our friends who are on their way down this crazy path and thank you to the ones who have gone before us who gave me the tips that I used!!

Last day of work...(this year)

So today is the day. I got in my car this morning for the last time and made the dreaded commute. I stopped at Dunkin Donuts which I've only actually done once before. I've meant to, but I haven't. I'll spare all 3 of the blog readers my order, but I did satisfy the craving I've had for hot chocolate for weeks now. Which also means I got to avoid the shot of caffeine that normally comes with a Dunkin Donuts run. Please note I said I never stop on the way to work - not that I don't go there.



I've been working since May to make sure that when today came, I would be able to wrap everything up and leave (for a couple of months) with my head held high and knowing I didn't leave anyone in a bind. Of course issues come up and there are ongoing projects that haven't been completed, but I think a lot of my work has paid off. I'm not as stressed as I thought I would be. But I've also been pretty okay about putting things into perspective, though, so that's been helpful.



I'm definitely going to miss my work friends and office gossip. I'll miss our emoticons on our corporate IM (these things are ridiculously awesome). I'll even miss the challenge or the feeling of accomplishment when months of work come to fruition and a deal is signed! I'm actually very close to being 100% for the year on my main measurement and I'm over 100% for the last trimester (we don't use quarters), so those are both great pieces of news.



So, all of that is very boring... the exciting part is that we are that much closer to Rhett being here!! As of this past Wednesday, AKA my last doc appointment, we aren't expecting him this week (weeks begin and end on Wed/Thur in my doc appt world), so I'll hopefully get to enjoy some of my vacation. Of course I have a long list of errands I need to run, but I'm a lot less worried about getting them done now that I'll have some more time!!



I can't wait to see what he looks like and see FJ holding him! This is going to be so awesome. I'm fully aware that it's a lot of work and we are up to the challenge, but we are both really excited and it's been awesome to know that so many of our friends and family are, too!!!

Just an update

So with all of the updates on what we've been up to, I've forgotten the thing people want to know the most... the doctor's visits, arrival schedule, etc.

Our actual due date is December 23. At this point I am going to the doctor every week. This past appointment, Thursday of last week, they said that they didn't think it would be in the next week. This isn't really an exact science so she immediately followed up by saying "but it could be tomorrow."

They can't really tell us if they still think the 23rd or not. We are just waiting and seeing. They estimated that he is about 7-7.5 lbs right now...he's a big boy!! EEEEK!!!! So if I go to December 23, he'll be a little over 8 lbs. Again, just another estimation. Good news is that big babies are typically healthy and sleep well? Bad news is they are big.

I am 1 cm dilated. I am not effaced. Sorry if that was TMI. I won't go into what either of those mean. And honestly there is not much significance to those measurements since labor is different with every woman and every pregnancy. Some women dilate from 0 cm to full on labor quickly, some stay at 3 cm for weeks. Some women drop (baby sits lower) weeks before labor. Some drop in the hospital. So there really just aren't any boxes to be checked saying I'm on the way. I'm literally just waiting and seeing. And we all know how I feel about that! Ha ha!

I'm being a pretty good sport, I think... We have 2+ weeks left till our due date so I'm hardly impatient. I've said it 100 times in the past 3 or 4 days, but while I am ready to not be pregnant, I'm not quite ready to have the baby here. I know how to take care of him right now - eat well, get rest, etc... I know where he is 24/7 and he is protected. When he's out, I have NO clue how to take care of him. And I have a feeling he'll be a bit more vocal :) I'm honestly not looking forward to being newly un-pregnant either. A lot of folks have a misconception that your body just snaps back to pre-pregnancy mode. I'm not looking forward to the hormone flood - I didn't handle the one going into pregnancy very well. And I'm not looking forward to yet another new body to get used to and come to terms with. And obviously, the physical pain of the recovery is not too exciting. A lot of people, including me formerly, do not realize the trauma that having a baby puts on a woman's body. When you stop to think of it, it's really common sense. However, I think the magic of a new little baby kind of distracts from the common sense of it all.

As strange as it sounds, I'm also nervous about seeing him. I know I'll love him - he's our son!!! I get that, so I'm not in need of a speech about how my life will change or I will feel a love I didn't know existed. I'm reallly excited for all of that. But babies look funny on those first few days and they arent' necessarily all pretty and soft and cute. So I'm nervous to see him and meet him...again - I know none of that will matter and I will love him and he will be beautiful. I didn't say this was rational, I'm just sharing that I'm really nervous about it all!!

It will be so funny to look back at this in a few months or years and remember how strange all of this was to me and how silly my feelings seem then. But for now, they are VERY real and VERY strange! ha ha!

So that's the update. We (Rhett and I) are both healthy as horses (or ponies). All of our vitals are strong and I can't speak for him, but I feel fine aside from the obvious discomforts. The first few months were terrible with the pregnacy symptoms (I'll spare everyone including my future self from the details), but after about 15 or 16 weeks, it's been pretty smooth sailing!! FJ might disagree as a passenger on this crazy train, but God willing - I could be convinced to do this again with some wine and nice jewelry!!!