A message from a proud mama!

Not even a week in, but I have experienced more intense emotion in this past week than I have ever felt in my life. I have a deeper love for my amazing husband, who (despite his not-so-convincing "you're doing great" coaching) has been nothing short of a terrific father, and friend. He has been so patient, helpful, and it is hard to describe the feeling when you see him with his son. He adores his little man, and is (not surprisingly) a wonderful father. Though my love for this man continues to grow on a daily basis, my love for my son is unparalleled. While Chris was impressed by the fact that I did not shed a tear through the pushing and the contracting...I realized I had been saving them up for the moment they set him in my arms. Words to describe it? There are none. I cannot imagine not having him in our lives.

Pediatrician Update:
- Maxson had his first check-up. The doctor said (note the quotations) "PERFECT!"
- No jaundice
- He has gained back all the weight he lost (so he is back up to 7lbs, 8oz)
- He was alert, but not fussy.
- He is in the 25th percentile for height and weight (small, but not tiny. and very much in proportion)
- Maxson was given the thumbs up for travel whenever we really feel comfortable. We decided that he would have his second check up (first week of October) to make sure he's still doing well at a month and then probably come up shortly after that! Columbus Day weekend perhaps? That way he still has a couple weeks after daddy leaves to continue building up a good immune system and we can have another check-up to see if he's good to go. The doctor's confidence was reassuring :)


Words from Maxson (or at least, if he could talk, I think this is what he would say about himself)

What you should know about me, or what I have figured out so far.
- Hands taste better than pacifiers.
- I like to mark territory. I have already peed on my doctor's table, my bedroom window, wall, and all over myself. I was perfectly content with squirting until I got myself...
- While I am unsure as to whether or not I love or hate hearing my mommy sing...I am definitely intrigued.
- My brother and sister look funny and have not stopped sniffing me.
- If I'm crying, there is an 85% chance that I just wanna strut around for a bit. There is a 15% chance that I have gas...
- I have discovered my tongue. It is delightful.
- I get mad if mommy tries to give me a pacifier. Who does she think she's kidding? I know she's got the good stuff.
- Daddy is scruffy and I like it.
- I love hats, and I look adorable in them.
- I hate socks or anything on my feet...
- I have discovered another fun thing down in my diaper. It is also delightful.
- I have a great sense of humor. For example, I think it is hilarious to wait until right after my parents change my diaper and then poop! Okay, I think it's funny...
- I didn't cry during any of my shots OR my circumcision. Beat that! I'm a manly man.

Well, that's all I've got. I have now been awake for two whole minutes and demand food. And I'm pretty sure I need my tenth diaper change of the day.

Here are pictures of me!
First one -- on my way to the doctor! That pacifier is almost as big as my face... but again, don't I look adorable in that hat? It's a little big for me, but still.



This is my infamous "poop face" picture. Right after my very first bath at home, I decided it was a good time to poop something fierce! I told you I was funny.
If you are reading this, you are most likely part of our "village" - so thank you so much for the support and love you have shown us. We are lucky to have such family and friends.

I love you all!

Pictures

Just so everyone knows, Julia and I are posting all of our Maxson-related pictures out on Webshots. Feel free to browse!

http://community.webshots.com/user/AdmlTolwin

Aw crap, I've got poop on my hand

Quick hits from five days of being a dad:

I was sitting in Jason's Deli the other night, waiting for a to go order. I had poop on my thumb. Six days earlier, I would've been disgusted. This time? I smiled.

I smelled like babies the other day at work.

There was something pretty great about that celebratory cigar.

My favorite picture taken so far is the one of Julia and Maxson, the first time she held him after he was weighed and swaddled. I'll definitely admit that at first glance, it's not the most flattering picture of my wife. But the more I look at it, the more I can't help but notice the look in her eyes. She's seeing her son for the first time. That, and she's totally looped out on drugs.

The nurse tech that was screaming for Julia to "GET MAD! GET ANGRY!" has obviously done this before. I think that was way more useful than my, "You can do it honey!" approach.

Babies apparently follow similar physical laws as buttered toast Alanis Morisette's "Ironic." Little man wasn't making us change his diapers as often as we thought, so we took him to the pediatrician. In the waiting room, he decided to show us that we're a bunch of worrying idiots by peeing then and there.

As a corollary to that, it's entirely true that all new parents find an appreciation for counting the number of dirty diapers. And then talking about it with each other.

As another corollary, I now worry. A lot.

I'll level with you. He doesn't do much. He sits, looks around, does his business, sleeps, and cries. But I've never been so entertained by someone that doesn't do much. I could watch him for hours.

This morning, I spent almost two hours staring at him. Instead of sleeping. What the hell is wrong with me?

Little Man Dreams

Now, if only I could get someone to change my disposable underwear, we'd be an exact match.

Video!

Don't mock the cinematography. He's cute!

Light at the End of the Spaceship?

Okay another update! Complete with Erik-friendly mad-libs so that he does not get queasy while reading this...

Doctor's appointment today. Wait... that means it's been a week since the last appointment, which means the baby did not come in 72 hours?! But...but.... Yeah, I know it has not been fun for me either!

So what's the word?

Baby First:

* His heart is still beating! He's still kicking. These are all good things :)

Mama Second:

* My rainbow is 3 centimeters unicorned.
* The baby is putting a great deal of pressure on my rainbow and that has caused quite a bit of juggling. The stork was amazed that my pot of gold hasn't been stolen. It also made her wonder if it was going to happen on it's own.
* The circus won't let my stork schedule me to luge unless medically necessary or 1-2 weeks past my due date. (LAME, right?) So the stork came up with a plan to cheat the circus! (insert evil laughter and maniacal finger tapping).
* On Tuesday, September 7th at 5:00a.m. I am instructed to go to the circus and tell them that I cannot feel the baby moving, and that my kittens are intense and getting closer together. Yes, my stork is having me lie. Not just lie, but act...and do it well! She has a colleague who will be on call and that colleague will tell them to keep me and ultimately luge. From there they will steal my pot of gold and give me some candy.
* Don't get me wrong, my stork is a good person. While she does not typically lie to the circus, she understands that it has been 8 weeks since I started to unicorn and she does not want me to continue to be so uncomfortable. If she did not have a procedure on Friday, she was going to have me come in before the labor day weekend. Damn!
* Yes, it is still possible for me to begin my mysterious journey before then. Hell, it could be any minute now - but she believes that if it doesn't happen by then, it may not happen without a little help.

SO - Assuming I do not have a baby this week/weekend -- little man will be joining us on Tuesday! It's nice to have a light at the end of the tunnel. I'm still going to be walking and hoping for something sooner - but at least we KNOW! I got your hopes up last week - but this time, I mean it. This is not a prediction - it is a guarantee! Yay!!!


THE LEGEND:
Stork = doctor
Rainbow = cervix
Unicorned = dilated
luge = induce
mysterious journey = labor
circus = hospital
kittens = contractions
juggling = effacement (thinning)
lemonade = amniotic fluid/placenta
pot of gold is stolen = water breaks
candy = drugs/pitocin

Mad Libs!

Hey Family/Village --

I would blog, but this is just easier. We have yet another update :)

Again - there is a legend below. This one may be a bit more complicated....

So after going for a walk last night, I started having some pretty intense kittens. They were about 7 minutes apart, lasting 30-60 seconds. We almost went to the circus, but it was late and we waited for them to get closer together. Alas, they went away. :( The following morning the kittens were replaced with shooting pain. There is no euphemism for that one. It's not graphic. So I called the stork and she told me to come in today and get checked out.

First things first: Baby gets a physical! I had an ultrasound or biophysical exam to look at his movement. Out of 8 he scored....an 8! Kick-ass little kid. This looks at movement of limbs, head, lungs, heart, and lemonade (not, that's not urine. Check out the legend). He is a rock star.

* They are guessing his weight at about 7lbs, 2oz (give or take half a pound).
* His head measured at about 37-38 weeks (which is AWESOME, because I'm 38 weeks, and this means his head may be NORMAL!)
* His not-so-enormous cranium was VERY low. Which most likely explains the shooting pain...

Second things second: Mama gets a physical!

* The stork told me that my rainbow is now 2-3 centimeters unicorned. So I was 1 centimeter for about 4 weeks, and in less than a week I jumped nearly 2 centimeters.
* She also said that my rainbow was juggling and making excellent progress. It continues to be awkward when a stork compliments your rainbow or its juggling.
* Her prediction: She believes I will go into mysterious journey within 72 hours. Of course, she cannot guarantee that. But based on the changes I've made, that would be her guess. She also said that she would be shocked if I made it a week. But crazier things have happened.
* I was told to go straight to the circus if the kittens come back or my pot of gold is stolen.

So, Aunts and Uncles, Nanas and Popis, Mops and Pops, creepy guys that will throw things at my baby (Omar....), oh yeah and father of my future child....there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Pun intended. Let's hope this stork of mine is good at predictions, because she has gotten my hopes up!

Love you all!
Jules





THE LEGEND:
Stork = doctor
Rainbow = cervix
Unicorned = dilated
mysterious journey = labor
circus = hospital
kittens = contractions
juggling = thinning (effaced)
lemonade = amniotic fluid/placenta
pot of gold is stolen = water breaks

Erik-Friendly Update

Hey family and friends! I have an Erik-friendly update available :) If you cannot figure out what I'm saying, well, there is a legend at the bottom...

Stork appointment today!
1) Luckily, my rainbow is still only 1 centimeter unicorned.
2) Little man is still active and thriving :) And I'm measuring at 36 weeks still.
3) I go off bed rest next week! Yay!
4) The stork is most likely going to keep me on the candy an extra week since I seem to be responding well and she really wants me to make it to 37 weeks. That may change depending on our stork appointment next week, but at this point, I'm on the candy until the 20th.

Funny, as the stork gets less anxious about premature mysterious journey, she makes comments like "Hope to not see you before next Thursday!" or "just go straight to the circus if you start having goosebumps."

So everything is going well :) Little Man could come at anytime, but hopefully not for a week or two at least. Crazy to think he could be here in a week or two!!!

LOVE!
Jules




THE LEGEND:
Stork = doctor
Rainbow = cervix
Unicorned = dilated
candy = medication
mysterious journey = labor
circus = hospital
goosebumps = contractions

Baking on bed rest....

Captain's Log. Day 14 on bed rest. Every time I think I could lose my mind and go completely stir crazy, something fun happens to remind me what I'm resting for! Whether it's getting more gifts for the nursery, or a new family car, or 4-D pictures of our little one... I have had a crazy, exciting completely boring couple of weeks!

A few things I learned from my hospital stay:
1) One size fits all hospital gowns can double as circus tents. Even with the strings on the back that are supposedly designed to help tighten the gown, this piece of cloth will fall off of you at embarrassing and inconvenient moments...

2) The nurse who says "this is gonna hurt" or the nurse who counts down before sticking you with a needle, is the nurse who is nervous, inexperienced, or just plain bad at what she does. Photographic evidence below. This same nurse had to stick me 5 times...
3) The IV is a needle inserted into your vein which connects to a bag or several bags, which hang on a pole, which are attached to infusion equipment which rolls with you everywhere, yes, everywhere. This entire system becomes an appendage from which you cannot stray more than a few feet. While this concept does not seem so confusing, one should not assume that the hospital cleaning staff is aware of this rule. And yes, it will hurt like hell when he/she attempts to remove your appendage to sweep around it...

4) In the middle of the day, you cannot find your nurse. Don't bother, she's gone. In the middle of the night, she gets lonely and wakes you up every two hours.

5) Magnesium sulfate is evil. It will not stop your contractions, but somehow it does speed time and cause menopause to start early. Your hot flashes will never cease and your husband will suffer through you dropping the temperature to 55 degrees while still requiring a fan. (Picture of a contraction below!)
6) You get your own television. It has 20 channels, 15 of those channels are hospital guides. The TV is attached to the ceiling and practically unreachable for the vertically challenged. The remote consists of 1 button that changes the channels in only one direction. You will have memorized all the hospital guides before you give up and decide to watch a marathon of Cash Cab.

Now for a medical update and cute pictures!
We had another doctor's appointment today. I surprisingly have not gained any weight in the past week, and he hasn't really gained much in the past 2 weeks, but little man is still thriving and active as ever!

• They estimate his weight at 4lbs, 9oz. (completely normal) While his cranium is bigger than expected (cough, CHRISTOPHER, cough), it's only about a week further along than it should be.
• There is still some pressure from little man's head on my cervix, but I have not really progressed in the past week. Yay, bed rest is working!
• We got a 4-D ultrasound...and I hear it's perfectly normal for the baby to try to chew on their own umbilical cord...He really wants out of there....

At first he was not happy. Mr. Grumpy Gills does not like to be woken up. He prefers to do the waking. :)

He just has such a tough life, doesn't he? Don't worry, the pictures after this one show a much more content little boy.
Below you see a much happier baby boy! He's content and quiet, but that cord keeps getting in his face.... it was difficult to get a clear picture, especially of his mouth.Then you see him falling back into a pretty sound sleep. Isn't he adorable? I'm biased...I wonder if he'll actually look anything like this later....

Okay, so there is your update! Like I said, it has been a boring and dull, amazingly exciting couple of weeks. I love this little one more than I can say. His room is completely ready, the overnight bags are packed, all we do now is wait :)

I love you all! We will find a way of letting you all know when he decides that it is time.

Week Getting Closer to the End...or the Beginning

Just wanted to put out a couple of quick highlights from this weekend.

Man Baby Shower

Really big thanks to Omar and Scott - you guys are some really good friends. These two guys put on a totally awesome Man Baby Shower, which, at its core, was an awesome way to justify going to Clear Lake Park at 10:00am and cracking open a couple of Miller High Lifes. Can anyone else think of a better way to celebrate impending fatherhood?

Omar and Scott also organized a pretty great "Man About to Have a Baby Emergency Kit", filled with some shop towels and Monster energy drinks, among another things. They also got folks to pitch in for one of the best gifts of the weekend:





"Real" Baby Shower

Julia also had her baby shower this weekend, and it was equally awesome. Sure, it wasn't "walk around in the park with a forty" awesome, but it was still pretty great, nonetheless. Tamsin, Smashers, and Rosleen - you guys did an AWESOME job. From what I can tell, the party was an huge success. I'll let Julia fill in the details, but really, these ladies went way above what we expected. Thank you so much.

Here are a couple gift highlights:










One Last Gift

I thought this was one of the cuter gifts of the weekend, courtesy of Mr. P. Sure it was for the shower, but it has a little extra meaning on Father's Day.



Thanks!

Thanks again to everyone for the weekend. Really, really awesome.

Hello 3rd Trimester, good-bye blood....

Greetings to the 3rd trimester! We have less than 3 months before our little man joins us, and the thought of that is both ridiculously exciting and unbelievably terrifying.

Oh, Lorraine....
Our first story is about a nurse named Lorraine. She means well. I suppose that says it all. I received a call from Lorraine last Friday where she simply said, "Your hemoglobin looks good, but your glucose is 160. You need to come in for more tests." Well, I'm not the smartest person, but I understand what hemoglobin and glucose is...but I have no idea what my glucose should be. So after trying to ask several questions, she simply responded that they worry I have gestational diabetes. How did I hear that? Well, you know that commercial where they ask if you are suffering from GINGIVITIS...... yeah, that voice.
G-E-S-T-A-T-I-O-N-A-L D-I-A-B-E-T-E-S.

Well, she could not answer any of my questions. What does this mean? How can it impact the baby? Should I be changing my diet? I got nothing. So I scheduled another test and did what no person should do...I googled.

Test 1: Fast the night before, chug the second nastiest beverage ever (50 grams of sugar), wait one hour and have your blood drawn.

Test 2: Fast the night before, have your blood drawn (#1), chug the nastiest beverage ever (100 grams of sugar), wait one hour for another draw (#2), wait another hour for another draw (#3), and wait, oh yes, wait one more hour for another draw (#4).

Did I mention I'm pregnant, and hungry, and thirsty, and in all that time I cannot drink or eat? So during the week of not knowing, what is Julia doing? She's avoiding carbs, any types of sugars and restricting herself to vegetables and meat and lots of water. I denied myself fruit! That takes will-power. I get a call yesterday (not from Lorraine) saying "perfectly normal, you look healthy." And the clouds part, and the light shines down and angels sing...okay, so I was happy. That was such a relief. The funny part? The nurse tells me, "I don't know why you were worried. When your normal weight and good health, if you get a positive on the 1-hour test, it's typically a false positive, I'd say 95-98% of the time. It's not uncommon to get a false-positive. The 3-hour test is just a precaution." Oh Lorraine...that would have been nice to know. All that worrying for nothing.
The history of Lorraine:
-- Julia has back pain, calls the doctor. Lorraine says "whatever you do, rest. Stay laying down as much as possible." Later the doctor says, "Whatever you do, move around and stretch it out. It'll get worse if you rest too much."
-- Julia has been exposed to whooping cough, calls the doctor. Lorraine says, "Oh my GOD! Let me find a doctor, they're not here, I'll page them, wait I'll call her cell phone. We'll probably need you to come in and take labs and get on antibiotics right away." The doctor says, "No symptoms yourself? You've been vaccinated? You'll be fine. We'll keep an eye on it, but the baby won't get it unless you have whooping cough while giving birth."

Lorraine can be hysterical. She makes an unknowing-first-time-mother....hysterical. Next time she calls, I may have to ask to speak to another nurse. She means well.

Baby Class!
Yes, as Chris said, this class is informative and necessary. But as others say...ignorance is bliss. I mean, who really needs to see that epidural needle? I don't need to see it, I'll close my eyes, turn around, and you do what you need to do. And wait a minute, what are these other tubes and and catheters...plural? Where are you putting all those...oh no no no. Something is supposed to come out of there, you're not supposed to be putting more in. Yes, people say childbirth is natural and beautiful. Those people have no watched these videos. Those tubes are not natural, and they're not pretty. And forceps sound harmless, right? You see a picture, and giggle...but wait...take a look at those forceps next to a pair of tongs or something...forceps are HUGE! Why are they that big? Why do they look like the bad guy's hand from the Terminator? Why is Chris smiling?!

A big thanks!
A big thanks to Pops and Terri who helped us finish up furnishing the nursery with a glider!! Comfiest piece of furniture ever, and I'm already using it.


Baby
He's doing VERY well. :) Kicking like a champ...in the middle of the night.
Leading names:
Maxson
Parker
Cooper

Feel free to vote!!! My beautiful sister is getting married in 3 weeks! We are Buffalo-bound very soon and cannot wait :)

Week 25-ish: Hey! That's not an umbilical cord.

After a brief hiatus, here are a couple of the most interesting baby-related developments:

We finally decided on her name. It’s…Chuck?

No, we didn’t really pick her name, but we were pretty close. Until she grew a wiener.

To be honest, this totally threw me for a loop. It’s not that I wanted a girl or a boy in particular, but it’s a total change in perspective (interesting that he’s not even born yet, but there’s already the gender role influence). Pretty weird how one extra little (no jokes) appendage can change things.

In the end, it doesn’t matter if she’s a he or he’s a she. Now I just have to replace all the “Daddy’s little hockey princess” shirts with “Daddy’s ass-kicking hockey goon” shirts.

In terms of names, Julia and I are miles apart.

Actually, that’s not true. We’ve got a decent list of five or so names that we both really like. What is true is that, in typical good-versus-evil fashion, my top name (the good one) and Julia’s top name (the evil one) were simultaneously removed from existence. It was like matter and anti-matter coming into direct contact. Black holes formed, and our top names were no more.

Seriously, though, I’m pretty pumped about the names we have left. This is going to be one cool kid. He will have adoring fans, charisma will ooze out of his pores. Ladies will flock to him like…wait a minute. We’re naming him Eugene.

Welcome to birthing class! Here’s an excess showing of areolas.

We started going to birthing classes. Here’s my serious statement: in the end, I think these classes would help any first time parent. They’re educational, calming, and a good way to spend time with your wife. You realize you’re not the first one to blaze this path – there’s so much research and great advice out there for you.

On the flip-side, I’ve never seen such an unattractive showing of fifty-odd breasts. You hear “video on breast-feeding”, and your inexperienced ears perk up. Five minutes later, you’re searching for a spoon to gauge your eyes out with.

And then there’s the video where you get to watch the baby crown. Where’s that damn spoon!?!?!

Like I said before, it’s a great resource. In the end, it’s totally worth it. But during? Just imagine how awkward it is to be sitting in class when the instructor flashes a picture of her feeding her own kids up on the board. “Hey, that’s your bo…oh.”

One more note on the “It’s a boy!” thing.

Make all the jokes you want about that boy’s genetic inheritance. I’ll reiterate what Julia’s post said. The ultrasound doc said he’s “a boy ALL DAY LONG.”

SURPRISE!!!!!

She's a he? Whaaaat? That's right....surprise!! It's a BOY! I still cannot stop laughing. I guess he has a wonderful sense of humor. He definitely had us fooled...

The doctor's appointment went wonderfully! He started off hiding his face again, but after a while he was willing to smile for the camera. Again, he is not a morning baby. The picture below was our doctor's favorite, because he kept rubbing his eyes with his tiny little hand.

He was also sucking his thumb and kicked the ultrasound wand. I cannot describe being able to see what I am always feeling. I feel the baby kick and squirm in there, but it is a beautiful experience to see him stretch and then feel it at the same time.

Funny story: So when you get pregnant, everyone asks you what you, as the mommy, predict the gender to be. Mothers, nurses, and doctors alike claim that mothers have this ability to sense or feel what their baby is...when asked, I thought the baby was a boy. At first, I even had a hard time coming up with girl names! After being told that he was a she, I would still have dreams about a little boy. You can call B.S. if you want, but ask Chris, if I had a dream about a baby, it was a boy. I felt like I was just a bad mom. So when they told me "Oops, we were wrong...it is a boy." I could NOT stop smiling. It all made sense! I'm not a bad mom! Yay!! While we would have been happy either way, it is just fun to me that I was right!! Somehow my body or my brain knew! Take that science!

Oh and for those of you who do not believe me when I say it's a boy....well, the doctor took literally 9 pictures of his pee-pee up close! And direct quote, "It's a boy all day long....no doubt." While I hesitate to put such pictures online, I cannot imagine this being dirty....he's not even 2 pounds, and it's just a cute willy! Yes, looking back at that sentence seems weird.
Oh, another funny story. My friends are throwing me this VERY wonderful and sweet baby shower in a month. I got the invitation today....on the way home from the doctor's appointment.... oh funny! (look below) I guess I have some explaining to do...
Okay, this is a picture-full blog, but also hilarious to me... I'm at the doctor's office, a purely OB-GYN/Maternity office....and the reading material? American Baby....a TEXAS magazine, and American Rifleman....not really, just guns all over the place. Next to the baby magazines... clearly I don't understand their target demographic....
Final picture. I have had a couple requests for the bump. So as we are approaching month 6 and the 3rd trimester, it only seems appropriate. I'm getting HUGE! Enjoy!
Fast facts:
His little foot -- just over 1 inch long
His heart -- 158 beats/minute
His weight -- 1.5 pounds
His head -- not abnormally big!!!!
Mom has gained -- 8 pounds total (normal is 25-35 by the end) So a lot more to gain in 3 months...

He looks healthy, active, and happy! If you have any name suggestions, feel free to pass 'em my way! We're starting from scratch! More pictures to follow from daddy - more face shots and little toes. Hope you enjoy!!!

Week More Than Halfway There

It's been a rough couple of weeks. I've just been BEAT. The good news? We got this REALLY soft baby blanket from Miss Sandy.


But, in all seriousness, we've had a really productive past couple of weeks. We've been putting a lot of effort into the nursery, as documented in these tremendously cute pictures:

Most. Adorable. Elephants. Ever. The room is completely painted, most of the furniture put together (still need to purchase a glider/chair), wall stickers (like these elephants) hung up, and the shelves and wall hangings have been put up. We even have an orange pseudo shag carpet on the floor.

Ferocious lion perched on the top of the door frame. Pretty sure he's got his eyes on those elephants.

Surprisingly, there was a minimal amount of profanity resulting from putting the crib together. I did end up with a few extra pieces, though. The manual said they were "optional safety accessories."

We hung these bookshelves, too. So far, we've only got two items to put on them. The one on the right is home to Erik and Heather's creepy expressionless lamb, and the one on left...

...is home to The Flying Circus of Physics. Would anyone believe me if I told you that Julia put that one up?

And finally, there's the flower-light hidden behind the giant leaf, and this is the changing table/dresser combo that Mops bought for us. This thing is a miracle of engineering design. Whereas the crib was an easy hour long project, this monster took an entire night. The cashier at Babies R Us told me this was the only model that didn't come pre-assembled. This thing had fifty different pieces; it's more complicated than the Space Shuttle. But I was triumphant (see triumphant picture from Julia's post for reference).

Aside from the nursery, we did have Mops in town, and as Julia pointed out, she went flat-out berserk at Babies R Us. I now finally understand that the word "grandparent" comes from the Latin word for "buckets of money." Julia's right, though, this little girl will not be short on love.

One awesome item of note: yeah, I finally got to feel the little girl move. Pretty great feeling. It's really amazing to know that there's someone IN THERE, moving around, living the high-life. I sort of imagine her just relaxing in there. Cold beverage in one hand, headphones on, lounging in a bean bag chair.

I think I know what the next addition to the nursery is. Anyone know where I can buy a baby-sized bean bag chair?

Hurricane Mops hits Houston!

Jules here! We're in week 23 now, and while I am often impatient to meet this little one, I am also shocked at how quickly the time flies! Apparently I am already supposed to be pre-registered with the hospital and scheduling birthing/baby classes. Crazy, huh? And we are only 2-3 weeks from the 3rd trimester!

We had a visitor this past weekend, and well, the people of Babies-R-US loved her and for good reason! Mops had only one real mission for her trip - and that was shopping! If you think I'm joking, look below.

Yup, and this picture does not even include the changing table! We also worked out some of the details for the baby shower this July and talked names (though she mostly kept her opinion to herself). Chris was quite adorable, because as soon as we got home he had the irresistible urge to assemble the stroller. Yes, he had to do it right away. It was not as easy as it looked...

Instructions only helped slightly....

But he had a real sense of accomplishment after its was done....

The nursery is REALLY starting to come together! We have the changing table and crib all put together (if Chris can say "we" are pregnant, I can say "we" put them together). This room not only makes me happy because I can imagine holding our little girl in it, but because it shows how much love she has from her family already! Her grandparents have already made it look like a nursery (changing table from her Mops and crib from her Nana and Popi). She truly is blessed.

While I know I promised certain individuals pictures of the nursery, I heard my husband snapping those pictures this morning and I know he is dying to show them off in his blog. So I cropped out some sneak peeks of a couple of my favorite wall stickers to hold you all over! Though they're a little blurry, they make me smile and you get the gist, no doubt. A very whimsical jungle for a our baby girl.

The monkey is to the right of the crib, and the giraffe is to the left, looking in. There are other animals as well, and flowers and trees, but I'm going to let Chris show those off :)


Sea monkey had another doctor's appointment. She's right on track. As a matter of fact, she's quite active and kicked the doctor's heart monitor right off mama's belly. Chris is finally feeling her move, but again, I will let him describe that. Another ultrasound is in less than 2 weeks!

Oooh, the names are updated....please vote!
Eliana (Ellie for short)
Taylin

Love you all! Don't forget to call dibs on a weekend to visit if you have not already!
Jules

Making Room!

We're about to enter week 21! Which means we are more than half-way! In just over 4 months, the little one will be here, and my nesting instincts have started to kick in. Well, I will pretend that it was nesting, and not procrastination for a final exam. Which is in about 4 hours....

So new babies need space, and while Chris and I still are not sure what the future holds I can still pretend that this room right next to ours will be hers, and give it to the time and attention that she deserves! Of course, her bedroom was once the spare room. Which means her closet.....was a disaster as many spare room closets are full of things that are rarely touched and mostly forgotten. It is times like these where I truly miss having a basement! These are also times when I wonder....we could do some damage if we went shopping...in New Zealand. And we could have one hell of a poker tournament with our three different sets of poker chips. Oh, and if anyone likes cigars, can you give some to us, because an empty humidor is pointless!

After many hours of work, and frequent requests that Chris lift something heavy...she has her own space! Her closet is pretty bare except for some books, a few outfits, her mommy and daddy's stuffed bear and monkey (the bear was my grandpa's and the monkey was his grandma's). And of course the intimidating emotionless lamb from Uncle Erik and Aunt Heather (which by the way, I'm not sure if your brother has sent you the message, but thank you so much for our package!)

You can also see that Nana took me to IKEA and we got a very spiffy door organizer! Right now it is full of little toys, but if you look closely, you can get a glimpse of the bump in the mirror! It also has a detachable hamper and so many pockets which will come in handy as it will be right next to the changing table :)

Oh and just so you have a close-up of the lovely frame that was sent by Uncle Erik and Aunt Heather.....
And if you do not get the skeletor or alien reference, you have no been paying attention to the blog. Question though...which one of us is big foot?...I wear a size 6 and so does Chris....I think.

The baby is doing well. She's been kicking and dancing and I'm constantly hungry! In the next week or two she should hit the 1 pound mark, if you can believe it! She'll just be packing on the pounds for the next couples months. Right now she's the size of a cantaloupe. And now I want cantaloupe....yup, I'm hungry again. Grazing on fruit is one of my favorite past times. Ask Chris. Really, constant watermelon and grapes. Thank goodness this is summer-time!

Oh, and I will leave you with one final image...a warning to Uncle Erik. Apparently just the scent of you on the box was enough to send Caden into a violent rage. I caught the box's destruction on video. Warning: All materials were actually harmed during the making of this video.

Week 18: When We Dance, Our Stomachs Touch

Eighteen weeks down. This parent thing is EASY.

I fully understand everything that's wrong with that statement. At this point, I have it easy. No back pain (except as the result of falling while playing hockey), no changing body (well, i think my voice is finally changing), no random medical mysteries (what is this lump??). There's no standard parenting stuff yet, either. I do have it pretty good.

Poor Julia. Before someone tells you that I've been calling her "Shuffles the Slow-Moving Clown" or "Gimps McGee", I want you to realize that I feel downright awful for her. This back pain thing is just awful. She's doing a really great job keeping a positive attitude and doing a lot of the things she's always done (except for that side job as a piano mover). It's pretty amazing what a woman signs up for when she has a baby.

The good news, though, is that she felt well enough to spend two hours walking around Babies R Us putting together the start of a registry. Somehow, picking out all the stuff you'll need for the baby makes two hours of walking seem like nothing.

Julia mentioned that she can feel little Skeletor moving and grappling around in there - how awesome is that? I'm pretty sure she's getting into the playoff hockey spirit and celebrating every Sabres goal. That, or rock climbing.

The last thing: I was looking back through some of the ultrasound pictures from last week, and thought this one was just awesome:

Fingers! Just...awesome.

Week 18: Dog years?

Week 18 has come and gone!

Baby girl has been very active, which causes me to giggle at random times...including but not limited to: meetings, classes, and a therapy session. Luckily, the therapy session was with an 8-year-old who did not seem to notice. That was just about the only time that an ADHD symptom was helpful and functional.
At some points I imagine this is how an anteater feels as the ants crawl around in the stomach and tickle the evil anteater from within! The best torture ever...

Updates on me: Well, I had 5 doctors appointments in 5 days and then got a break! For one whole day! I was referred to a wondrous place called "Total Body Work" which mixes massage, stretching, and chiropractic and helps me not only to relax, but eases my pain! Thanks be to Jebus. Of course, in true chiropractic nature, they gave me a plan of 15 visits over 5 weeks. Luckily, my insurance covers much of it. So while I'm not completely pain free, I am able to function now, which is beyond appreciated. I am very grateful for the place that gives me a massage, adjustment, and stretch three times a week, despite their goofy ways (goofy meaning making me take a class on health and claiming to have a chiropractic cure for autism).

More importantly Chris had his birthday this week!!! Yay!! Of course, he had to work, but then he had hockey championships! Wait...did he win? Did he score? Did they go down in flames and ruin his day? I will let him tell you that in his blog!

While he got gifts from me, I felt he also should get a baby gift that he would truly appreciate. Girls' outfits are cute and all, but they don't typically humor the dads.... but I found the solution!



Yeah, I found these. But hey, the rocket scientist one is pink! Clearly for a girl!

Dream Update:
I have to explain the "dog years" title of the blog. Just last night I had a dream about our baby girl. We had just taken her home, she was tiny and cute and perfect. I put her down for a nap and when she woke up she could walk. She was not even 5 days old, and she could walk! And then I put her in her car seat to meet some friends for lunch, and she was repeating some of the words that I would say. She was already a toddler by dinner, and by the time we were heading home to see daddy, well, let's just say I should have started planning for kindergarten earlier.

It was a crazy dream, but I guess many parents out there would say there is some truth behind it. I could not tell if it was a nightmare or not. Regardless, it felt like the baby was aging in dog years or something. Quite strange. When do the normal dreams return?


Hope everyone is doing well! We love and miss you!
LOVE!