This & That

Getting ready

2008-10-09T12:57:00.001-07:00

I've been making these. This baby will be swaddled and cozy.

Biding my time

2008-10-06T22:06:00.000-07:00

I am still here. Nesting from the couch by day and from my bed at night.

My NST today went well. My blood pressure was a little elevated until I'd rested a while there--I guess I was hoping to hear, "Things look great now, no need to stay down anymore," but they told me to keep on staying horizontal. The baby is still active and performing very well on the tests.

The crocheting is done. Photos forthcoming.

I have books on request from the library (Just how long does it take to pull a few books?) and I am keeping Netflix quite busy. I even read the Ensign. I had an old copy of What to Expect the First Year and scanned through a bit of the newborn section. I guess I wondered if I still remembered what to do with a baby. Silly, silly, silly.

Other than reading, movie watching and crocheting, I try to promote household peace or at least holler at my boys to stop torturing each other. I check homework. I listen to my two oldest kids read The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe aloud from their respective copies. (An aside: Good gravy! I am thankful to good old Jack for turning out that book and making my second grade boy stop throwing fits over his requisite nightly reading.)

Most days, my mom has my youngest boy while my older kids are in school. Two or three days a week I have some tests at the hospital and then I come home and nap.

I taught (ordered?) my daughter to sort the laundry. Now she knows why I've begged the kids to turn their own clothes right-side-out after they take them off. Andy washed and dried it. There may or may not have been wet clothes in the washer over the weekend. In fact, there may still be a batch in limbo. I don't know. We had four batches of very wrinkled laundry in baskets all over the living room when my mom returned today with dinner after picking up kids from school. She and the kids managed to fold and put them in the drawers.

Andy retrieved the bin of baby clothes and the kids helped find the smallest size. So, we'll get to try the family laundry experiment all over again with those. Next up--they get to find the bassinet.

I just sent Andy to the store to get laundry detergent, diapers, wipes and nursing pads. You know--the necessities we may be needing soon. He looked at the list and asked, "Are you trying to strip me of my masculinity in one shopping trip?"

He came home with everything on the list after he'd spent a little time perusing the video game aisle. He also brought home motor oil and some snacks--you know, to balance out all that domestic/feminine stuff.

Nesting

2008-10-04T18:15:00.000-07:00

I am nesting from the couch.

Two weeks ago, my doctor declared that I was doing perfectly. How fast things can change. This week my low blood pressure has sky rocketed, I am suddenly puffy and my cerclage has come halfway undone. He has ordered absolute bedrest and we are hoping to squeeze a little more time out of this pregnancy. PIH and Preeclampsia are no fun.

I am crocheting and supervising homework. 34 weeks (35 this coming Monday) is a good place to be. I have to keep reminding myself that things could be and have been (in previous pregnancies) much worse.

So until further notice, I'll be right here.

Stuff kids say

2008-09-29T10:02:00.000-07:00

At church:

(5 year-old) boy: "Mom, can I color in your scriptures?"

Me: "No."

boy: "But someone already did!" (pointing out highlighted verses).

After preschool...

Boy: "I made a new friend!"

Me: "Great! What's his name?"

Boy: "I don't know. He's just like me, except with a brown face."

What I hate about back to school

2008-09-24T09:54:00.000-07:00

(GERMS)

We have had several sicknesses already this school year. Someone always has something at our house. And then they share. We're vigilant at hand washing, airing out the house, replacing toothbrushes, washing sheets, but to no avail....

At least today, my doctor prescribed antibiotics for my apparent sinus infection. I'm hoping to recover soon. This is unlike last week, when they gave me Nasonex and said "Take this, Tylenol and extra fluids." Tylenol Schmylenol! That did nothing for my pounding headache and sinus PRESSURE. (I had to capitalize it--it's that big.) Being sick while pregnant is a whole 'nother kind of awful. Extra coughing=extra contractions. Sleeping and not eating=low blood sugar. It was 55 and I was shaking and darn near passing out when I woke up from a nap. Then I ate my normally carb-calibrated meal and it sky rocketed for no explainable reason other than I was sick. Damned if I eat, Damned if I don't. Gestational diabetes can be irritating.

Anyway, here's to antibiotics and the return of good health soon!

I do have some good news though: my pregnancy and illness are both temporary conditions and thankfully, my non-stress tests and last week's ultrasound have all so far shown a very active, healthy baby. Most likely, only a month or so to go!

So big

2008-09-14T15:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my boy was baptized.

He said (many times), "I've been waiting for this day for my entire life!" He was especially enthusiastic about the confirmation ordinance and he managed to tell everyone he knows about confirmation and the Holy Ghost.

There are moments that I wait for, hope for and when they finally come the moment is so much bigger than I have words to describe. Yesterday he seemed so big, the moment so big. I had no words. Tears, certainly, but no words.

He volunteered (without our knowledge) to share his testimony in sacrament meeting. He said, "I believe in Jesus and I know this is His church." That was all. The other three baptized 8-year-olds did not share. I was pleasantly surprised to hear him say this and I was happy (though not surprised) that he was confident.

The bearded man is my husband, Andy. He tells me he is smiling in these pictures. Hah. I'm glad he was feeling smiley, even if it didn't show. Our youngest manages to make every family picture taking moment an adventure.

I'm a house browsing junkie

2008-09-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

We've outgrown our (temporary) space, even after getting rid of stuff. I'm scrambling to try and squeeze a bassinet into our bedroom. There is not room for a crib, and I know from experience that babies outgrow that bassinet stage mighty fast. So before I throw out my daughter's furniture and buy smaller furniture for her that will also allow baby furniture to fit into a shared girl/baby girl bedroom, I browse the MLS. Not quite daily, but almost.

It's not exactly an obsession, only sorta kinda. I consider my browsing keeping an eye on the market so that when we are ready to buy again, things can fall into place quickly. In my wishful thinking, I see the process as 1) have healthy baby then 2) get the new (higher paying!) job we're hoping for and then 3) buy new house, in that order. Things don't EVER.EVER.EVER. go as planned but that doesn't keep me from looking.

Here are some things I don't understand about Utah real estate:

Why does everything look the same? (Okay--everything new or newish looks the same. I understand the whole tract building mentality. Houses cut from the same mold--or plans--equal more money in the builders' pockets. But still, I lament it.....)

Why are most affordable/semi-affordable, family-sized homes across the lake? It seems to me that all houses on the market there indicate just how awful and expensive that commute is. That's my educated guess and I'll stick to it until someone disproves me.

Why do people paint their walls a rainbow of colors and then try to resell without repainting?

Why does everyone want a McMansion?

Aren't faux finishes a faux pas by now?

Can someone explain to me the popularity of the Tuscan style? I've been to Tuscany. Utah is not (nor will it ever be) Tuscany, I promise.

Are large, cavernous homes really homey at all?

Why do people put basement apartments in teeny tiny houses? 'Cause then a 2,000 square foot home feels a whole lot more like 1,000 square feet. I can discuss this with some knowledge as our former home had a basement apartment. But the apartment was tiny and the home big enough to handle it.

I'm a big fan of Sarah Susanka's ideals from The Not So Big House. Have you read it? I don't see many of these ideals implemented locally. My husband can design houses (I have my own in-house designer, artist and photographer), but it is too expensive to build his designs here, at least, so far on our budget. (By the way, I love FLW's concept of organic architecture. If only I could afford it.) (I often think parenthetically, hence this paragraph.)

Sometimes I think we should go retro and upgrade certain things to our liking. Sometimes I don't. I'm flaky like that. The problem is that I know first hand just how time intensive and costly re-doing things can be, and also that I'd be living with the un-re-done parts for quite awhile. I once had a non-functioning kitchen sink for over a month. That was like a constant picnic in my own home. And not in a good way.

Add your two cents. Chime in. Let me know what I'm missing. Enlighten me. If you love your house, tell me why. Even if it is a McMansion. Go ahead and praise your faux finish.

Letter of the day

2008-09-08T12:21:00.000-07:00

Late last night I realized what the letter of the day was.

For dinner I made:

Salmon
Spaghetti squash
Sautéd spinach
and
Strawberries.

I've been debating between two baby names that both begin with the letter (you guessed it!) S.

So this is what it's come to

2008-09-04T08:30:00.000-07:00

I was just sitting here, minding my own business by wasting time on the Internets when suddenly the underwire in my bra snapped. As in, broke in half under the growing heft of the load. As in the boulder holder can no longer hold 'em. And then I was all...should I upgrade (downgrade?) to the nursing version?

My wiggly baby refuses to perform for her dad. She will be punching and/or kicking along and as soon as Andy placed his hand on my belly for palpable proof -- poof-- she's gone into a deep slumber until he gives up, at which time she resumes her party of gymnastics, karate chops and strategically aimed kicks. We've got a tease, I tell you. A tease we all already love.

Also, she apparently takes after her nocturnal dad and wants to party into the wee morning hours. He has, with our other kids, often handled the 3 A.M. burping and diaper changes after I nurse the baby and promptly pass out on the bed from exhaustion. So I'm counting on them bonding in the middle of the night. (Right sweetie? I'll count that as a yes, since he never reads this blog.)

Last week, we had the biannual family visit to the dentist. The hygienist informed me she couldn't even tell I was pregnant, despite my third trimester status. I was aghast. Honestly, I am a fluffy/curvy/chunky gal (especially these last 12 years of 9 pregnancies), but I don't normally look like THIS.

I'm thinking she was trying to make me feel better, but sheesh.

I am glad to be at this point. I am 30 weeks plus a few days. Today I got a steroid shot that will hopefully help the baby's lungs mature quicker. We may need it if all this preterm labor I'm having turns into anything real at all. Thirty weeks is a good place to be, especially considering my other kids were all born at 36 weeks. I'd better get busy. My crochet hook is calling me. It's the one crafty thing I can do. Those blankets will not make themselves!

Bounty

2008-09-01T08:35:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we went to watch the BYU Football game at my parents' home. I reclined and the kids played with my boy's dog, Dixie. Did you know that my son's dog lives with his grandparents? (It's a story for another day.)

We came home with our bellies full of delicious garden fresh dinner and take home bags of additional fresh garden goods. We are enjoying the bounty of their garden. Last night we had a wonderful whole wheat pasta with garlic, basil, zucchini and Parmesan cheese. Yum. Try the alternate verse to The Prophet Said Plant a Garden........Love Someone Who Plants a Garden.

This is much better than the low-brow fare I'd been snacking on.

I still need my parents.

Love for Nie Nie

2008-08-28T08:30:00.000-07:00

Today being spendy is a very good thing. Auctions all over the blogging community are being held today to raise money for Stephanie & Christian Nielson's recovery fund.

Go to Design Mom for a list of participating bloggers auctioning off great things. There's something for everyone--whether you're into BYU football, jewelry, art, chocolate, hotel stays, rock-n-roll, quilts or so many other things. Go check them out and put your money towards helping the Nielsons as they recover.

It took 5 years

2008-08-26T14:18:00.001-07:00

My baby turns 5 today. He is the sweetest little guy. He is my sidekick. He's a breath of fresh air. It was a bumpy road at the beginning, but look at him now!

(Swimming at his uncle's home.)

(Playing arcade games with cousins)

(Caught in the rain with his big brother.)

It's taken five years, but now that my youngest is five, I think I can say that I've succeeded in brainwashing a child. On Sunday, just after we had settled into a pew at church, Max scrambled over to me with a concerned look on his face. "Mama, did we miss the sacrament?" he asked. "No, the meeting hasn't started yet." He was still perplexed, "then why are these kids behind us coloring already?". We have a little rule of not coloring before the sacrament is over to try to establish some sort of reverence keeping at church. Apparently, our family rules are translated into applies-to-everyone rules for Max.

WARNING: birth story details ahead. Click away if you're squeamish!

Five years ago today, I went to the hospital for my routine Non-Stress Test. These are routine for high risk pregnancies and I have them 3 times a week starting around 30-32 weeks. I had dropped my two kids (ages 4 and a half and barely 3) off at my mom's house. I ate a hamburger that was left over from a family BBQ. I headed to the hospital for the NST.

I was hooked up to the monitor, amniotic fluid was measured, baby's heartbeat was thumping along. The nurse then left me while I lay attached to the heart rate monitor and the contraction monitor. I lay there, half reclining, thinking how dreadfully uncomfortable the chair/lounge contraption was. A couple of minutes later, I had a contraction.

The nurse came back in just after that. I casually mentioned that I had a contraction. She glanced at the printout from the monitors. "Yes, you did," she said, "and your baby didn't like it." She then proceeded to grab one side of me and turn me abruptly on my side, feel for my pulse and turn me again to face the other side. I wasn't sure what was going on. She ripped off the monitoring strip and RAN out the door, only to return with my slightly out-of-breath perinatologist. All I remember is him saying, "If your OB isn't here, I'll do a c-section right away." Then I was quickly marched down the hall to labor and delivery.

I wiggled into a gown and I was poked. My OB (he was there!) and a L&D nurse kept on feeling for my pulse. At the time, I thought, "Can't you tell I am alive?!" I didn't realize that there were trying distinguish my heart rate from my baby's heart rate, which was imperceptible at this point. I was told to make one quick phone call while they prepped me for the c-section. I called Andy's work number (this was before we had cell phones) and told the secretary that he needed to come to the hospital now. (Sidenote: he thought I was being induced. He casually saved his work, shut down his computer and mosied to the hospital. He arrived after all the action.)

The nurses asked, "What time did you last eat? What did you eat?". Then they began wheeling my bed into a c-section room. The nurse and the doctor had a shouting match over my head. "You can't use a general! She ate lunch!" the nurse hollered over and over again. Then my (normally very calm) OB lost it and yelled back at her, "I don't care! I AM using a general! This baby has to come out now!" Suddenly a needle was shoved into my hand, catheter shoved you-know-where, cold betadine thrown across my belly, a mask thrust on my face and I was told to count backwards.

The next thing I remember is waking up back in the original L&D room. My mom was entering the door to the room. I could hardly talk, my throat was scratchy and sore. I squawked at her, "The baby? Is the baby ok? Where is he?".

"He's in the NICU. Andy is with him" she said, "He's had a hard time, but they are taking good care of him."

Suddenly our pediatrician poked his head in the door and confirmed what my mom said. He continued, "The NICU team got him stabilized initially, but it looks like he's going to need some extra help now. He's under a box that helps him breathe, but he may still need more help."

Next, a nurse and Andy materialized to move me to Mother Baby. They stopped at the NICU, wheeled my bed right inside and then I saw my baby for the first time. He was on his tummy with his knees pulled up under him and his little bum in the air. He was pink with fine blonde hair. I couldn't see his face. He was under a plexiglass box that was providing some extra oxygen. He was beautiful and plump. (My biggest baby at 7 lbs, 15 oz. 20.5 inches long. Not bad for 36 weeks.)

Andy later told me that when he arrived, Max had already been born (extricated?). The doctor had him out in less than one minute from the first incision. Andy was rushed into a room where he saw a very purple, unresponsive baby. The NICU team worked their magic, basically bringing our baby back to life. Andy glanced into an adjoining room and saw a person (ME!) on the table, insides splayed open. His stomach churned and he thought, "That poor person!" and then he was told it was me and they were still finishing up my surgery. He was then ushered to the NICU with Max.

The next days were a blur. I eventually made it out of bed and spent days trying to not pass out, breastfeed, pump and recover. The pain was intense and I don't do well with most drugs prescribed for pain--they either make me loopy, hallucinate and/or throw up.

I finally got a better look at my baby. I kept offering prayers of thanks that he was alive. Andy took photos of every toe and every wrinkle. We were shocked that we produced such a fair-complected, fair-haired, blued-eyed baby. We counted his toes and we noticed his toes were weird exactly like Andy's toes. His mouth is the same as Andy's too. I'm adopted and Andy likes to refer to my genetics as a wild card. I think, for this reason, I am so fascinated to see our traits reappear in our kids.

Max stayed in the NICU, he needed a ventilator for a few days and then a nasal C-PAP and then a cannula and by the time he was about a week old, he didn't need any additional oxygen. He came home with only bili lights.

He took to breastfeeding like a (starving) champ. I spent the three days after I was released from the hospital but before he was released in the hospital. The NICU's Rooming In room was unoccupied and the nurses (bless those nurses!) must have noticed that I could not leave my baby because they lent me a key to the Rooming In room and let me sleep there. They called me on the phone if I didn't wake up when it was time to breastfeed and I would shuffle down the hall to my wailing, hungry and now strong baby boy. He was the biggest baby in the NICU, but I've got no doubt he that he was still very much a miracle.

Weekend in Pictures

2008-08-25T07:42:00.000-07:00

We threw a joint birthday party for the boys that included cousins, swimming, pizza and cupcakes. In order to make this all work, we threw the party at the home of my brother & sister-in-law. This featured one very loud, dramatic rendition of "Happy Birthday."

I know it's time and all, but I feel like the predictable mom wondering how this child can possibly turn five tomorrow.

J. turned 8 on Friday. Again....how??? I don't know. Here he is with his (already) well-loved bug collector gifted to him by his all-knowing aunt. I am happy to report I caught an elusive spider and put it inside. I felt pretty cool for a few moments.

My girl--doing what she does best-- being herself.

On Saturday, we launched our balloons of hope for Stephanie & Christian Nielson.

(Yes, that is me in all my round pregnant-ness.)

Our wishes, love and support soared and soared until we couldn't see them anymore. Here is an additional way to help:

All I've been able to think about

2008-08-19T07:55:00.000-07:00

Some of you are likely readers of NieNie's delightful blog. Stephanie and her husband, Christian, were in a plane crash Saturday evening. Please add them to your prayers. Stephanie's sister, CJane, is kindly posting updates on her own blog.

Refreshing

2008-08-08T22:36:00.000-07:00

In our house, we divide and conquer.

Wife takes care of certain things, husband takes care of other things. Yeah yeah, I've heard the whole speech that both couples give 110% all the time, but honestly that doesn't sound like doable math to me.

We don't total up what we each do, but he knows that I am giddy when he takes out the trash without me hinting about it or fills the van with gas. And hey, he goes to work everyday and still helps out around the house. He can't really comprehend shopping for a week (or more) at a time or cooking daily for our family of five or sorting the laundry. He can handle a quick trip to the store, say for 3 items, but any more than that and I have to walk him through the entire store via cell phone.

Our quasi-division of labor has blurred even more lately.

It's come down to this: errands are difficult for me right now. I can't lift anything and sometimes I can't go anywhere at all. Andy is not exactly a gifted or patient shopper which is why I normally shop solo. We have undertaken some errands together recently, which means the kids are along for all the fun.

Just yesterday, we went to purchase a few needed items. Our offspring have inherited my deep and abiding love for school supplies. They scoured the aisles for the perfect folders and pencils. Andy went to find a new fluorescent light bulb tube and returned to find all of us fondling packs of colored pencils and pearl pink erasers.

With a few groceries and some laundry detergent added to our cart, we headed for the checkout. My easy going husband was obviously surprised by the cost. We haven't bought any school clothes, shoes or a single backpack yet.

It's so sweet that he now realizes I was not simply driving around town tossing greenbacks out the window.

I'm among the living/ The next big thing

2008-08-04T09:47:00.000-07:00

Another day....another box of tissues. That's what I've been up to lately.

Today the ebb has slowed and maybe (purty please) I am on the other side of the mucus war.

I haven't left the house since Thursday. Yep--I'm pretty much a hermit now. But I guess my kids haven't noticed, they're too busy with Bionicles (boys) and Legos (boys) and listening to ipods (girl) and running about like ruffians and snarfing whatever is in the pantry (all 3 kids) to notice.

Now that I can actually string a thought or two together, it's dawned on me that change is on the horizon. This big belly of mine will equal a new person in approximately two and a half months. (Duh!) While this has been the goal for more than two years now, the actuality will be here soon. A real baby.

The due date is such an ambigous date. Mine is actually the first part of November, but I have had to have all my kids around the 36 week mark. My middle baby was almost 37 weeks. In the past, it has not been exactly optimal for my pregnancies to go much farther. So, if this pregnancy follows suit, we're looking at October. I only count the weeks to 36 weeks, anything on top of that is gravy.

When I go to my Perinatology appointments, I feel like a kid with a bunch of bad grades on my report card. On the flip side though, at my regular OB visits, it's as if I am closer and closer to getting some kind of award. Most of the time I hear, "You're not out of the woods yet...." But at the last visit: "You've officially reached viability! Way to go! Keep it up!" I feel like someone is going to tell me to keep my head in the game or call for a huddle and pat me on the hiney.

We are over the moon --to steal a cliché--and yet I feel as though I am floundering. It's been five years since I had a baby. Will I remember what to do with one? Will I remember how to breastfeed? That was no small feat with my first baby and the lactation experts were not right about everything. Let's just say I have my own strategy. Will I forget to feed the baby? Have diapers evolved significantly in the last five years or am I still going to be dealing with mustardy blow outs? I am hoping for that evolution, but I have my doubts.

My baby gear is mostly thrashed, thrown away or given away. Apparently that's what happens five years after you have a baby. I have a bassinet and playpen. I may or may not have a crib. We'll have to see if it can be fixed with some new hardware. I am going to buy a new car seat. Our infant seat was purchased in 1999, so I'm okay with needing a new one by now.

I feel like I'm figuring this whole baby gear thing out again. Do I need a sling? I never used one in the past, but my rolly babies make it difficult to lug the car seat/carrier around after 3 or so months and the Baby Bjorn hurt my back. I am not a really crunchy mom, but I do wear Birkenstocks, so take that with a grain of salt.

Do tell...sling or no sling? What is your best baby gear advice? I need answers.

Blech

2008-08-01T10:30:00.000-07:00

Just two nights ago, I was tucking my youngest into bed and I thought how wonderful it is that I have not gotten sick for at least two months. The kids had a stomach virus about six weeks ago, but I didn't get it. Whew!

The next day wah-BAM! My middle kid and I are both sick. Congested, headachey, sore throat, body aches, runny nose and sneezy. J. even threw up. I can only hope we don't have two viruses, but that may very well be the case.

It's only a matter of time for the rest of the family.

Because I am lazy

2008-07-30T09:17:00.001-07:00

We've had fun this summer. I have not done it justice here, instead posting about my lazy days on the couch. (Boring!) I was jolted back to reality last week as I made my next ultrasound appointment, four weeks into the future. In four weeks (now three weeks!), my kids will be back in school. And then I had to practice my frantic birthing breathing skills as I realized I have not even thought about buying new school uniforms or scissors or backpacks or notebooks.

While I prefer certain things about our school schedule (hello routine!), I also love having them home and taking things as they come during the summer. I like being able to say yes more often. Yes, we can go to the movies. Yes, we can eat ice cream. Yes, you can go swimming. And conversely, I love not asking, Have you done your homework? and not having to say, No, we can't, it's a school night.

As we have been organizing our 16 billion photos, I realized I've posted very few summer photos. So, here you go. This is a scrolling photo post.

Andy took the kids to our local Summerfest. J. was surprised at by how heavy a fire fighter's outfit is! Then we learned that the equipment adds another 80+ lbs. on top of that.

Of course, they all had to get into a fire engine. Here is the obligatory fire engine photo. My oldest was all..."Hey, I've done this since preschool...." but the boys were still into it.

Andy's parents came to town and we had a great time at the earth science museum, movies and just spending time with them. Andy's dad is a scientist and here is my daughter listening to an explanation.

J. loved watching the paleontologists. He has a thing for dinosaurs. He has said for years that he wants to be a Paleontologist. He's added a few additional occupations to his to-do list: demolitionist, builder, fire fighter and race car driver. We'll see what finally ends up holding his attention.

The kids really got into hamming it up for the camera. That's what happens when your dad takes a gazillion photos.

The kids adored playing with Papi. The kids were spoiled by early birthday gifts (and more). They had a blast and kept begging to live closer to Nona and Papi. There were tears involved.

Last week, my friend, Melanie (who is still blogless), came to town. We got together with Annalisa. The three of us were roommates way back in the day at BYU. It was a blast to catch up. What do three English major friends talk about? Books. Family. Movies. And more books. We had a great time while our kids played together. Here we are watching our families swim.

Then we ate. Annalisa's husband, Brett, grilled some great food. My two boys were eager sidekicks.

And that is the first installment of our summer fun photos. I really do get off the couch sometime-- just not for very long at a time. I am glad pregnancy is not a permanent state. Like I said, we've been taking things as they come this summer. I'd better quit now that I'm belting out Summertime.......

Still Growing

2008-07-27T17:29:00.000-07:00

I'm still growing one very wiggly (hence blurry) girl. Here is the latest ultrasound image taken earlier this week. I was hoping for a clearer profile, but this is one busy in-utero child. She keep turning away from the ultrasound transducer. My perinatologist got a better look at the vessels of the heart and other teeny tiny details than he did last month. He deemed that she looks healthy.

(Further) Proof that I am a nerd

2008-07-21T11:19:00.000-07:00

I just edited my grocery list. I did not add or subtract items on the list, but instead scrutinized for spelling errors. (There was one--I feel so dirty!)

I turned off my phone yesterday while at church. I never turned it back on. Today when I picked it up to call Andy, I noticed the ringer was off. Well, no one calls me anyway, was my thought. It's true. There were several important messages. People called me and left messages. For some reason, this makes me feel very important today.

I am simutaneously embarrassed by my pregnancy woes and frustrated that people just don't know my issues. Why--oh why--do I have to explain myself? Why can't people just know? Um...earth to Rynell...no one is reading your mind. Your medical charts are equally protected. Hello...HIPPA?

My biggest pet peeve? Subject verb disagreement. It's worse than that cliché of long fingernails scraping the chalkboard. Even if you are from Sigurd, Utah. "They seen..." is never a good way to begin a sentence.

I have to be at an ultrasound in less than an hour. I just called Andy to harass him to return home to watch the kids. Then I decided to write a blog post and edit it instead of getting ready on time.

There you have it, folks. I am a nerd.

Silver linings and other Pollyanna-esque musings

2008-07-16T11:33:00.000-07:00

There's no way around it: pregnancy sucks. I've clued you in on some of the reasons why this rings true for me. But there is an upside to everything. Terrible pregnancies still equal sweet babies.

Here are a few of the upsides of this pregnancy:

• I have a maid. She is 9 years old. She makes a list of the chores as she does them and then I dole out spare change according to the difficulty of the tasks, the length of time it took to accomplish and how thorough her housekeeping is and...how much moola I have on hand.

• I nap. This may be the last time for several years I get to luxuriate amid my pillows every afternoon. My youngest (nearly 5 years old) is easily entertained by his two older siblings for a couple of hours. I often drift in and out of sleep and they wake me up if there is something wrong. Naptime is glorious.

• Simple meals are on the menu. I've dubbed this The Summer of the Tortilla because any day I can't figure out what to make for dinner, I chop up some stuff, drizzle it with a sauce or fresh salsa and shove it inside a tortilla, specifically the tortillas that come uncooked. They are delish after just a minute or two in a pan. If I was hardcore like Azucar or Lindsey, (WHY won't Blogger link to these ladies right now?) I'd make my own, but it's all about simplicity right now.

• My kids play together. They like each other most of the time. This is a very big deal as I can't handle much coming and going (play dates, trips to the zoo and whatever else) right now. We're keeping things low-key with some flexible planned activities. The rest of the the time we are just hanging out. Isn't that how summer is supposed to be?

On the 4th of July

2008-07-08T16:14:00.000-07:00

Our celebrations were festive. Our bellies were full.

We had a small family BBQ at my brother and sister-in-law's home.

Our pyrotechnic tendencies were fulfilled.

Who doesn't want to climb into an empty swimming pool? It's only a 10 foot drop.

We're celebrating some additional freedoms with our patriotic trifle.
This week we learned that M. can tolerate eggs. This is wonderfully good news. I wanted to shout, Let him eat cake! He enjoyed it very much.

His food allergies once prohibited all dairy, eggs and nuts. Now he is able to handle dairy (though he refuses to drink milk), eggs (so far only in baked goods, but in a few months we'll move up to pancakes and then eventually plain cooked eggs). Nuts are still troublesome. The progress is liberating, especially when it comes to cooking for my family.

So that was our Independence day. It felt a little subdued for us, especially being the party animal that I am, but the kids were giddy and plenty tired by the end of the night. Tired kids--that's how I measure an evening.

No news is good news

2008-07-07T11:00:00.001-07:00

At least as far as my pregnancies go. So far. so good--no trips to L&D, no hospital stays (overnight or 3 month long stints...and yes, I've done both before). I feel like I deserve a medal or something.

And then I remember that I have the fattest multi-volume chart at my OB's office. The complications are still there, but I have been ever so cautious. I am in the "minimum maintenance mode" which means I do the bare minimum. I keep my family fed and clothed. I can't do much by way of real housework. Which means Andy gets to do more than normal, which means it isn't done consistently. That's fine for now. My kids have learned to help out. My daughter is surprisingly good at cleaning bathrooms. And my J. sure loves to scale counters putting the dishes away.

Two or three hours seems to be the longest I can be up and around at a time. It is annoying, but it is what it is. This means that most Sundays I haven't been able to attend all 3 hours of meetings. By the time I've been up and getting ready for awhile, then at church for an hour or so, time's up. There have been some cramping-all-day Sundays when I couldn't even do that.

Yesterday it became obvious that I have either been considered invisible or inactive or....perhaps that I just had a really severe case of morning sickness. I don't know what people thought. I was feeling pretty good yesterday. I stayed beyond the first hour. I was living on the wild side! Being a normal church-going person for the first time in 3 months or more.

As Sunday School ended, I was approached and asked to speak in church and also to do something (not sure what exactly...just an "oh! You're not in Primary anymore, we could really use your help.") in Relief Society. Neither person had a clue as to my very high-risk pregnancy status. I don't blame them. I've been lying low, doing what I had to do to get by. But I sure walked away frustrated that I had to explain myself. How do you tell someone you hardly know that you have a faulty cervix, pre-term labor and at least 5 other complicating factors? I didn't say all that. I just said I was in the middle of a high-risk pregnancy and I'd be able to say yes to these requests in a few months. I've never felt so alone in a crowded room before.

One crazy old lady in our ward happens to be the only one to know a little of my issues. She has made herself our little adopted Argentine abuelita. She adores my husband-- that he speaks her language (if you have heard Argentines speak, you know what I mean) and that his family knows some of her family.

She manages to ask about me every week. Yesterday, she was next to me waiting for a stall in the bathroom. Her heavily accented words and kisses on my cheek comforted me. I wished I could speak her language better, but it wasn't really necessary. She understood. She told me about her miscarriages and then I understood.

Random stuff

2008-07-02T10:08:00.000-07:00

Ok, I have left my unborn child's private parts on display long enough. I don't have anything magical to say. No unicorns or magic beans. Just a rundown of our daily and weekly un-adventures.

(My long winded disclaimer: As for these less than stellar photos, that's my fault. I used Andy's camera and I am retarded about F stops and aperture settings and whatnot. I just stuck it on "program" and let the flash help me. I have decided he must teach me the photography mumbo jumbo because my photos are horrible. And we're having a new baby that's likely to have very cute moments while he is at work and I'll be photographically responsible to capture them....what pressure...)

My girl is practicing taking care of a baby girl cousin.

My youngest boy surprised me by intently following directions to create Lego something-or-others. Legos are a BIG DEAL for my three boys. That includes Andy.

Andy put together some bookshelves for me. I just love it when he breaks out a power tool. It means he is going to put something together or fix something.

He also replaced a broken faucet this week, which required three trips to the hardware store. It made my heart all a flutter. That man deserves some cookies. But first, I need to get him to put a bike back together.

Here is J. playing Gameboy upside-down.

See the need for a (fixed) bike? Yeah. He's my very active, creative little boy playing Star Wars with a head rush. Notice the popsicle stick on the floor? Head rush and sugar rush. Notice the black trash sack behind him? I've been going through kids clothes and getting them ready to give away and/or donate.

Andy wants us to agree upon a name right.this.minute. For some reason, I can't. There were girl names I LOVED when I was pregnant with my boys. But, that was 5 and 7 years ago, and sadly, those names became very popular during that time. I am looking for something either slightly different or classic that is not widely used and that is easy to spell and pronounce. I don't want my child being teased over their name or have it repeatedly mispronounced and misspelled like I did. If you've got some great girl name ideas--please share them with me in the comments.

The other day Andy came into a room and said every single girl name that came to his head and then he just started saying random words to see if I was hip with naming our child "Tree" or "Book." So, you see, I really am anxious for your good ideas.

The Proof

2008-06-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

So today I had an ultrasound. My 10th for this pregnancy, but whatever. It was the first time they checked all four chambers of the heart and the spine and the brain and the kidneys and all that. All is well. Oh and the gender. THE GENDER.

"Do you want to know the gender?" the tech asked.

"YES" I said.

It's a GIRL!

And I think she's cute.

She was very active and slightly uncooperative during parts of the ultrasound. She kept putting her thumb (and/or possibly fingers) in her mouth as well as shaking her head in a back-and-forth (NO!) type of motion when they tried to get nice shots of her profile.

I am already in love with the baby in these grainy images.