Surely this is laughable to anyone living further north than say, Dallas, but it did actually snow a tiny bit here last night. The kids LOVE when the weather does anything out of the ordinary. They couldn't sleep and so were outside checking it out and throwing a slush ball or two at about 9:30 and then up at 5:00 wondering if school might possibly be cancelled. :) Here are a couple of photos. I thought it was precious that Sydney wanted to catch a snowflake on her tongue...
Can you believe baby Kiley is 7 weeks old today? She's gone from a skinny, not focusing, sleeping all the time brand new baby to a chubby, double-chinned, smiling, staring at Mama & coo-ing little one. 
Above is a picture of her first bath when she was less than a week old; left is her today at 7 weeks - look at the difference in those arms and tummies!!!
One of my favorite little baby positions that I had forgotten about is when babies stretch really big. They arch their back and squinch their face all up with their hands in fists by their cheeks and their elbows sticking out. Their their legs come up (they naturally cross in the fetal position they were in) and their booty sticks out. I don't know why I find that so very cute and typically 'baby', but I love when she does that. Another thing I love that comes later is when they sleep with their rear ends in the air - can you imagine if we slept like that for even 20 minutes? I wouldn't walk right for a week! :) I LOVED going into a room at mothers-day-out during naptime and seeing a dozen little toddler booties up in the air.
Anyway, she's doing great and getting so very big. She sleeps pretty well. For my birthday a few days ago, she slept 5 hours - YES FIVE - in a row for the first time. Parents everywhere can appreciate how that feels after 6+ weeks of waking up every 2-3 hours to nurse. When she's awake, she still likes to stare at the ceiling fan, but now we get some of her attention as well. And it absolutely melts my heart when she focuses on my face and breaks into a big smile.
On Nov. 10th, we had our first anniversary. With a newborn, it's a little less than romantic, but we managed a nice dinner at Carino's and an exchange of gifts. We stuck with the traditional guidelines, which call for paper as the 1st anniversary gift. Martin had one of those newly popular and really cool photo books created with a lot of our favorite pictures leading up to and including baby Kiley. It is a great keepsake! I gave him a shadow box with a print-out of the reading about hands from our wedding as well as some pieces of ribbon and flowers from the wedding. On Monday (the 10th), Martin took the day off and Elizabeth came over and take photos. You can see some of those at: http://ewrightphotos.blogspot.com/2008/11/baby-kiley-is-welcomed-to-family.html.
Thanksgiving (left is us at Martin's parent's house) came next and we had a chance for Kiley to meet most of Martin's 10 siblings and their spouses and girlfriends. There were probably 30 people in San Antonio Wednesday night for dinner and it was wonderful! We spent the night and then came back through Wimberley on Thursday to have dinner with my aunts, uncles, cousins, brother and Mom. We were home by the afternoon and then arranged playdates for the kids on Friday so it was a great holiday with family, friends and food!
On the 13th and 23rd of Nov., my two best friends from high school turned 40, as did I on Dec. 6th. It's nice that all of our birthdays happen within a few weeks so we can all celebrate (or commiserate :) together. Below is a picture of us - Jill, me, Dawn & Kristi. Dawn is the youngest and doesn't turn the big 4-0 until this summer.
We did our AustinONE service project on the 6th, so I spent my birthday in East Austin working and playing with the kids at one of the housing projects, baby Kiley in tow. It wasn't a bad way to spend the day; it was the stress leading up to the event in order to be ready that put a little damper on the birthday, but all in all I had a great day. We stopped at Pappasito's on the way home that evening and had a delicious dinner. After that, we stopped at the same Starbuck's we stopped at after the first AustinONE. That was two years ago (just two!) and the beginning of Martin's and my relationship but before we had our first date. That night in 2006, we spent awhile in the chairs at Starbuck's talking and getting to know each other better, each sizing the other up in that 'could we make a go of this?' way that you do... On Sunday after my birthday, we got the kids back and went to lunch at Z-Tejas with my brother and Mom, then went to Mom's house and opened presents in celebration of my birthday, my Mom's (Dec. 11th) and my brother's (Oct. 17th, got missed this year with Kiley's birth happening so close). Sunday night we ate at Chuy's with my friend Kristi and her sons. She brought delicious cupcakes and a beautiful bracelet from Sundance. I ended the weekend feeling blessed by family and friends and very, very full!!!
On that note, Mom and I also started Weight Watchers a few weeks ago. Can you guess how I'm doing? HA! The first couple of weeks were pretty good; last week I gained 1/2 a pound and this week remains to be seen but I can tell you that a steady diet of Mexican food probably isn't going to get me very far. I have had to cut dairy out of my diet because it makes Kiley very gassy and colicky at night - so it's surely helping my weight that I can't eat cheese. The first 25 pounds came off very easily; I've lost another 5 the old-fashioned way and it's no fun. The next 25 surely aren't going to get any better, but I'm in it for the long haul.
Now that Thanksgiving, AustinONE and my birthday have passed, I'm hoping to get some combo birth announcement/Christmas/thank you cards out in the next week or so. I'm looking for a nanny to help out with Kiley on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday while the kids are in school. In the meantime I'm trying to get work in when I can but it's tougher than I thought it would be to get focused time between Kiley's naps and times when she needs to nurse. And, when she is awake I feel guilty if I don't interact with her and help her take in all she can to stimulate that growing brain of hers!
I'm looking forward to a number of Christmas parties coming up in the weekends ahead and enjoying time with friends and family. I am trying to really focus more on people and less on commercialism this year. If you haven't seen the advent conspiracy video, check it out at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVqqj1v-ZBU - it's compelling!
Kiley's first words have been echoing in my mind for over a week now. Yes I know she is only a little over 5 weeks old but I hear them nonetheless. We were sitting around her staring into her eyes when she spoke, "ga-go-da-la-ba". You won't find it in any dictionary and if you google it you'll probably get a correction of some sort along with a few unrelated links, but translated it means, "papa, i love my papa". She is the most darling little princess ever.
She has said many other words over the past couple of weeks and all translate to about the same thing. Not many people can really interpret what she is saying but to her proud papa, it comes through loud and clear.
Above is a stamp of her foot that I thought was just cute. As you might have guessed even her little farts are pretty darn cute to me. ....so it goes. :)
Having a baby is a time of huge transitions - even if it is your 3rd. Here are just a few of the things that have come or gone.
I've said goodbye to...
- the big maternity pillow (like a boppy for a grown-up) that has taken up two-thirds of our queen-sized bed for almost 1/2 a year, but provided invaluable support for my expanding belly
- the Rolaids that were a dietary staple in recent months - I actually threw away what was left of my supply of these. Not very practical, but man it felt good in a strange, symbolic way :)
- the kids turning to hug and kiss and rub my belly as a greeting or parting gesture - this is one that I really miss... Right after the baby was born they turned to do that a few times and realized, 'hey, this is some weird belly now that looks like it should have a baby inside but doesn't' - thankfully that creepy belly is mostly gone now and I'm just left with the 35 pounds I still need to lose
- exceedingly frequent trips to the ladies room
- stabbing pain in the center of my chest where my ribs were torqued out of place
- the sweet connection to my unborn baby that would respond to my touch through my belly
- swollen hands and feet; I actually don't swell as badly as many women do, but it's been nice to put back on my rings and my toe rings :)
And hello to...
- beautiful fall walks with the baby and the stroller to get the kids from school (without contractions!!)
- interrupted sleep and the ditziness that goes along with it - I almost mowed down two pedestrians today at HEB and got a speeding ticket (my first in 10 or 15 years) last week; also last week I worked for an entire day on a work problem that I know should have taken me an hour to solve...
- breast feeding with all the almost unbearable pain that comes with it initially but then with the sweet bonding time that I wouldn't trade for the world; with Jake, I had advice from a friend not to give up nursing before six weeks and between 5 & 6 weeks somehow the pain magically went away and it was wonderful. It wasn't easy to stick with it because the 'experts' will tell you (why I don't know because any mother will tell you otherwise) that if you are doing it right, breastfeeding shouldn't hurt. I think when the baby sucks so hard that it's uncomfortable when they suck on your finger there's no possible way for it not to hurt your nipple - but that's just my take. The good news is that it takes much less than six weeks for the pain to fade with subsequent children.
- our precious baby girl, live and in person; having the chance to see her beautiful features and hold her in my arms
I may add to this list later, but need to take Sydney to tutoring now.
We had Kiley's 2-week well check today and she has gone from 8 pounds, 3 oz. in the hospital to 7 pounds, 10 oz. at 48 hours old - back up past her birth weight to 8 pounds, 7 oz. That officially means that my body is giving her what she needs to grow big and strong - yeah! She still has a couple of red spots in her left eye from the birthing process and the little red birth marks on her nose and between her eyes that sometimes are very obvious and sometimes not at all. Unfortunately Jake and Kiley and I all have a cold right now as well so that's a little tough, but we'll get through it. The only thing the Dr. asked us about that she's not really doing yet is tracking visually to our faces or other objects. I think that will come soon and that maybe she was staring at my face when I changed her diaper this afternoon.
We are getting so close to our 1st anniversary. I feel like we've grown a lifetime as a family already. I was looking back at some pictures from last year today. The kids really are growing up. I was warned that would happen but never realized they weren't joking. And now that we have a new addition to our family, I'm sure nothing will be slowing down. The 11 days that have passed since her birth already seem like a blur.
I must say that we have been so blessed by family and friends that have continued to send us well wishes, prayers, gifts, food and wonderful kindness and support as we adjust to having the added company. Our little peanut is so beautiful. I never would have thought I could be this ga-ga over a sweet little girl. But here I am. I think Jake has jumped on that bandwagon too. He is definitely going to be looking out for her as she grows up. He wants to hold her and look after her every chance he gets.
Courtney and I are looking forward to the 1st of many anniversaries to come.
A couple of good pictures from today, Jake's final game of the fall flag football season.....
I was just thinking about one of our first postings. It was right around Halloween last year which means it's getting very close to our first anniversary. This year Sydney was still excited about Hanna Montana and chose to hit the streets for candy dressed as the teenage pop star. And of course it was Kiley's first as well. The pictures say it all. I think we had more fun than she dressed in her little costume but boy was she adorable.
Jake decided to go trick or treating at his dad's house with one of his friends. We hope to get pictures of his scary Ghost Rider costume.
...And even though she won't admit it I know she had a blast as well. Here are some pics of Syd, some of her friends and our little peanut.
Doesn't she look comfy? :)
Ready for some candy!!
Sydney with her pumpkin
Our close family friend Mona, who was at the hospital bearing lots of wonderful gifts (including food, a beautiful and very special hand-made baby blanket, her camera to borrow, support and encouragement, and her help with entertaining Jake & Sydney), emailed me this...
I realized I never let people know we are home from the hospital. We came home yesterday around 3:30. Our first night was great - Kiley slept for one stretch of about four hours and then was up while we got the kids ready & off to school and then she slept again for about five hours. I got in a little bit of work and a nap, then we picked up kids from school (early release day) and took Kiley to the Dr. for her first appointment (a condition of getting out of the hospital when she was just over 24 hours old). We went to Delaware Subs for lunch after the appointment - her first restaurant experience :). Sydney was a huge help and the Dr. says Kiley is perfect, which is just what we think. Jake arranged a playdate after school so was gone much of the afternoon and then when we got home Sydney invited a friend to play so she had some fun time as well. We found out that some of the neighbors arranged to bring us dinner every other night for a week or two. We feel very fortunate to have such great support. I'll write more about that later - we have received many wonderful gifts and have many people to thank.
and Mom getting a first good look at her sweet new baby
our first family photo
On 10/21/2008 morning Courtney woke me up about 4 a.m. She told me that today was the day. I knew exactly what that meant. :) We called Jake and Sydney's dad while they slept, grabbed the carefully pre-packed bags (baby bag, computers and other knickknacks , Courtney's overnight, etc. I would have packed a bag for myself if I would have been thinking about it. Pretty smart, huh?), and made sure a few other things were done so that when the kid's got up they would have very little to do before coming to the hospital. I did however pull the camera out with the intention of putting it in our bag and forgot it anyway. Not such a great thing to forget on such a momentus occasion. But God provides and fortunately there were plenty of cameras around when we needed them and our wonderful friend Mona left her's so that we could continue even after everyone was gone.
Along the way knowing this could be a long morning, we stopped for a nutritious breakfast at Whataburger, that's right taquitos. I am mexican after all. After the short detour we were on our way. We made easy time so early in the morning and check in was a piece of cake. Once we got to our room it wasn't long before the IV was in place and the epidural was underway (about 1.5 hours). I didn't watch the IV because I've seen that so much on ER and House it just didn't hold any interest for me, that, and I hate the site of needles. However the epidural, I was very curious about. Courtney told me they stick a needle in your spine and I wondered how they went about that and allowed you to lay down at the same time. So I watched 'em do that. For those of you that watch the many medical dramas on television you probably have seen them do a spinal tap. I was a little afraid it would be something similar but Courtney didn't seem to be in that kind of pain. She sat kris-kros apple sauce while they put in the needle that was connected to a long micro tubular thing-a-ma-jig (you can say that in Texas) that connected to the medication. You can see it in this picture....IV in usual spot, micro tubular thing running along the Court's right side, over the bed to that thing by my head.
So Courtney is all ready to go. Now all we need is a little petocin to go with those fluids to get labor really moving. I almost forgot....just before the petocin and the epidural Dr. McIntyre manually broke Courtney's water. It looked like it hurt. OUCH.
So then we waited....I had this call I needed to be on and at the time thought that I left the camera in the car, because there is no way I would have forgotten it, right? So while I took the work related call I went out to the parking garage. The call was a really big deal and it seemed safe enough to spend time on the call. Right before I left to the garage Courtney's Mom arrived and we had already talked to Mona. She was on her way. I left Court with her Mom and headed to the garage for the camera and to make get on the call. When I got back to the room the kids had arrived. We were now ready to welcome baby Kiley into the world.
The next few hours were filled with "how much longer" and "why can't we stay in the room the whole time" and "when is baby Kiley coming", but never "this is boring". We reassured the kiddos as much as possible that it would not be long and that it would be so exciting when she was here. Overall the kids were fantastic....and their Gran was fantastic. Gran stayed and entertained them the whole time we were in the delivery room which amounted to a few hours. She feed them, took them to the gift shop to buy stuff for their new baby sister (and themselves) and when they didn't have anything left to do they worked on homework or read. She was dynamite! The kids as anxious as they were, occupied themselves and were pretty awesome. I wasn't out in the halls but every time Jake stepped into our room he was out of breath. I'm sure it was from the excitement and not the running in the hallways. Imagine a 9 year old kiddo full of joy running to see his momma who was about to have a little baby girl, his sister. Every time he came into the room he was smiling. I don't think he could have helped it if he tried. The kids are not suppose to be in the delivery room at any time unless they are at least 12. But Jake and Syd didn't seem to mind that rule was in place and often stopped by, possibly by eluding the nurses in the halls, to stay until they were kicked out by the checkup visits by our nurse (her name was Tina). Tina was a pretty good sport about it but shoo-ed them off each time.
After being in the room for almost 8 hours it was time. Dr. McIntyre and Tina both agreed and when it was time they let Courtney know that she should not push until they were ready. They wheeled in a cart that had everything they needed for after Kiley arrived. Stuff to wipe her up with and stuff to get mom ready for delivery.
When it was time they pulled half the bed apart and set it aside and put Courtney's legs up in stirrups. Probably very comfortable but it's just one of those things. Once she began pushing it was the most incredible thing. Kiley appeared almost instantly and with two more pushes she was out. She was beautiful, she was amazing, the most adorable little girl you could imagine. Dr. Mac held her for a just a few seconds and in that time she began to cry. The first thing I noticed was all the black hair on her little head. It was just about the first thing everyone has noticed. She had 10 fingers, 10 toes (okay the toes were especially cute.)
Little Fingers
Little Funky Toes
Jake having a bite to eat after deliveryShe's here! Baby Kiley was born yesterday with a full head of black hair, a big appetite, long fingers and toes, and a little 'angel's kiss' birthmark on the bridge of her nose. It's amazing to think that she was growing on the inside yesterday and now here she sits in my lap so complete and perfect. The delivery was very easy and we had no issues with the baby or with me. We are hoping to go home today but apparently since I had Sydney they changed the standard stay from one night to two. My Dr. has released me to go home whenever I'm ready, but we haven't seen the pediatrician so it will hinge on what he says. Kiley has been with us in the room for all but about an hour yesterday when they bathed her and checked her out. We had a pretty good night. She slept for one stretch of about 2 1/2 hours and I awoke feeling rested... HA! It's amazing how quickly you can become grateful for what little sleep would have seemed pathetic just two nights before. I've slept about 7 or 8 very interrupted hours in the last two nights, but I feel good all things considered. I'm a little bit sore but have only taken a couple of motrin for pain. My back aches probably from some combo of contractions and the epidural, but it already feels better than it did yesterday and I'm starting to feel like I can move around again after feeling so sluggish and awkward at the end of the pregnancy.
I talked to my Mom this morning and she said that Jake couldn't sleep last night he was so excited about the baby. He was angling to stay home from school again today so he could see her. They both really want to be there when the baby goes home for the first time - to see her in the house, in her bed, and see the dog's reactions :). If it works out perfectly today, maybe we'll get out of here in time to pick them up from school and then all go home together. That would be ideal. We have pictures that we will post later - so check back for updates!
We are here at the hospital and Courtney is resting comfortably. The kids are here with Court's mom and Wanda (a close friend of the family). They are having a tough time trying to keep busy while waiting for the arrival of their little sister. But I know they will be happy with the result of their patience and mamma's labors. :)
I'm playing the same waiting game as the kiddos but I get to be here with Courtney which is really nice. I'm doing my part too. Because of the epidural she can't feel or move her legs. It's kinda funny. I had to move her leg for her. We laughed about that. :)
We are at the hospital now - got here about an hour ago. I was having some contractions and some (normal) bleeding during the night. I am only 1-2 centimeters dilated, so they are going to start Petocin in a few minutes and get things moving. She will be born today - hopefully by lunchtime, and we'll keep everyone posted.
This week may be the week. In fact, Courtney told me just a few hours ago that it may be today. Her contractions are coming fairly consistently right now. I'm very excited!!
Over the last couple of weeks we've been really getting ready. Putting final touches on our little baby girl's room. Setting out all the wonderful gifts that we were given to make that room special and so that our latest angel will be comfortable and cozy and have some really fun things to play with when she's old enough to care.
We recently got some pictures back and I absolutely love them. You can see them in a previous post. Heather generously had them put into a slide show. She really captured the beauty I see in our family. The laughter and fun side of that beauty. One of my favorites is where were all laying down on the grass surrounding Courtney and especially the one where are feet are all together. I wasn't sure about that one but it came out great.
I know our little girl will enjoy the photos of when she was still in her mommy's tummy. That will be a few years down the road, I think. :)
In the mean time we are about to become parents again and this is the first time that I'll be a daddy for a tiny little one. It's good that I have Jake and Sydney around to break me in for the later years but this is all new territory for me and even though I know I'll do fine caring for our new little girl, it's still a little scary. I'm faithful that God and my wife will guide me through this new chapter of our life.
We went to the Dr. this Tuesday - and the verdict is "same 'ol, same 'ol" - baby hasn't dropped; I'm not dilated or showing any signs of being ready to deliver. He did, however, say that when we come next week once I am 40+ weeks then if we want to induce he is willing. I feel like the induction is as likely to work at 40 weeks as it is at 41 weeks, and so I am thinking that Wednesday might be our day! Martin has worked hard to get the nursery in good shape and we officially have all the 'stuff' we need. The baby has gotten bigger even in the last week and I am really uncomfortable with my rib pain, so I am very ready. Just to give you an idea of my size, below is a photo from a month ago - Sept. 20th. I'll have to post another one this weekend for comparison.
I also wanted to include pictures for some of the previous posts - here is one of Jake after their first big win at football, and two from Sydney's cheerleading debut. 
I got tagged! Thanks Karen, who has been both a great friend and mentor to me at Gateway the past couple of years, and who is expecting her first baby.
Here are the rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random thoughts about yourself.
4. Tag six or so people at the end of your blog.
5. Let the tagger know when your entry is posted.
Random thoughts about me:
1. I could make Coke Slurpees their own food group in the summer. When I had mono in high school I lived off of one giant slurpee a day for some number of weeks.
2. I love holding hands with my husband.
3. I hope to always live in Austin, but also to travel the world again someday when the kids are older.
4. My favorite vacations are beach vacations. Something about the ocean and the waves makes me feel at peace.
5. I love my babies but I don't particularly like being pregnant.
This may seem silly to some... I'll try to put it in context, but have to admit up-front that I got noticeably teary in Jake's school conference today :).
This year has seen such a change in Jake. He is reading for pleasure - of his own accord! Less than three years ago, Jake was tested and qualified for special education, largely based on his inability to recognize all of the letters in the alphabet, sound out simple words, etc. - in spite of being obviously 'smart' in other ways. His main diagnosis was severe dyslexia. When I asked people at that time (like the diagnostician and the director of the dyslexia school here in Austin who helped interpret his test results for me) if he would ever read, no one would give me a solid answer or really even much reassurance.
OK, so here's what made me cry today, and granted my hormones and emotions are a little off-kelter, but still it was huge to me. Jake takes the TAKS test this spring and has to pass it in order to pass 3rd grade. They gave the kids a pre-test, using the actual TAKS test from June that was given to 3rd graders who didn't pass the spring test -- and JAKE MADE A 100 IN READING!!! They don't expect 100's; they are testing to get a baseline to know what to teach and focus on for the next few months until the tests are given to the 3rd graders. I am so proud of him and so happy that he is going to be a reader and enjoy the many doors that will open for him. I have to add that, once again, we have been blessed with an amazing teacher for him this year. She turned his face towards hers today and told him she wanted to be sure that he heard her say that he is a strong reader. She said to him, 'you have dyslexia and I have freckles... Working with Mrs. Sternad (who is doing his special ed time with him this year) is a blessing to help you with the dyslexia, but nothing about being pulled out of class to work with her means that you are not a strong student and a strong reader.' I love our school - thank you Mrs. Neuman!
A few weeks ago we had maternity photos taken with the kids, and we just got a link to a slideshow with the images. We LOVE these photos. Heather did our engagement pictures as well and she's great. Anyway, I don't know how long the link will be live, but check them out at: http://www.heatherwalkerphotos.com/courtneymaternity/.
Well, we thought we might be having the baby today - I was having contractions some yesterday and then all through the night. They were pretty frequent and some were painful, but they weren't consistently spaced. So, the Dr. asked us to come to his office this morning and sure enough I'm showing no signs of being in labor. I'm a little disappointed and feel a little silly, but am back home and going to try to get some work done and some rest. Martin is working from home. The kids' school is having their annual cook-out today where the parents come and eat with the kids, so we'll go to that around 11:30 but nothing else is planned for the day.
I was waiting to pull pictures off the camera to post, but realized that a few friends and family are reading this blog to get baby/delivery news so I figured I would post a quick update. We went to the Dr. today for our weekly appointment and there have been no changes. The baby is growing and has a healthy heartbeat. I am not showing any signs of being ready to deliver so we'll just keep going weekly for the next couple of weeks. We moved our appointment to Tuesday of next week because Mondays aren't good for Martin's work schedule - so my previous estimate of a 10/21 birthday for Kiley is likely to be 10/22 (or 10/29, but I'm really hoping for 10/22). I like even numbers more than odd, and the sooner the better. It would be nice if there is a week between her birthday and Halloween so she can have her own party each year and not have to roll it into some kind of Halloween shindig unless she chooses that.
We had a busy weekend - Sydney had two soccer games, Jake had football, and Sydney cheered at her first game. Jake WON!! They had a big win on Saturday morning and were so excited. They really focused on correcting mistakes they had made in the past and they played great offense. It was very exciting. Sydney's team won one game and lost the 2nd by 1 point, but she really hustled and scored a goal on Saturday. It's been good that the last couple of teams they have played have provided some competition for them - I think they had won every game so far up until Sunday. Sydney's first impression of cheerleading is that it's kind of boring. But, her regular coach was out and so things weren't as organized or high energy as I think they will be. I heard from another parent that the coach may miss 1/2 of the season because of traveling, so that's not ideal, but we'll see how it goes. She does seem excited to learn the cheers and she looks adorable in the outfit. We will post pictures soon!
We continue to make baby steps towards being really ready for the baby, but I feel like we're going to be in good shape. We found and bought a glider/rocker today off of craigslist. I had been reluctant to spend a ton of money on something we would only use for a year or two. But, when they come up for sale they go FAST so I was about to cave and buy one new. Now we won't have to...
I know this isn't a very exciting post - I'm not feeling really entertaining these days - just ask the kids or Martin :). But, it's only a few more weeks and we'll get to meet our sweet baby girl. We can't wait!
This title could apply to more than one aspect of life right now :). First, it is relevant to Jake's football game tonight. His team is mostly new to flag football - and naturally it shows, although they are working hard and getting better. They have lost their first four games now, but last night was SO CLOSE! They ended the first half up by 1 point with a score of 6 to 7. The boys got stomped last week and all want so badly to win a game, so they were very excited. In the 2nd 1/2, the other team scored but failed to get the extra point. Our team answered with a touchdown and extra point, so we were up by 2. There were 37 seconds left and the other team got the ball very close to our end zone. The boys knew they pretty much just had to hold them for one play. And yet... the defense let the other team get behind them, the QB threw a pass to one of their players and off he went the length of the field for the winning touchdown. It was really hard on the boys.
Jake made his share of mistakes in the game, but none that resulted in big plays or scores by the other team. All in all, he played fairly well - he got the flag a number of times, and on that last touchdown run he was trailing the opponent with the ball by several feet but he chased him down with full effort the length of the field and that made me proud. After the game, one of his teammates was in tears, and as we got to the parking lot Jake asked, 'why do we have to lose every game we play?' I told him they were getting close; they had lost on one type of play that they could practice defending against in the future, and that their time would come. Fingers crossed that it will motivate them to work even harder next week! We forgot our camera again - so will have to post football pictures after next week's game on Saturday morning.
On the pregnancy front, I'm getting close, and yet each day is LONG and it still seems far away. Our Dr.'s appointments are weekly and remain uneventful. The baby's head is still very high as was the case with Jake & Sydney. What that means is that even though I am having contractions and the baby is looking likely to be big again, my body isn't really getting ready to deliver. Until the head puts pressure on my cervix, she's staying put. So, it looks likely I will carry her all the way to the due date or past. If history repeats itself, the Dr. will decide at one of my appointments that I am likely to respond to induction and he will tell me to be at the hospital the next morning. Assuming my appointments continue to be on Mondays, it means I am likely to have the baby on the 21st or 28th of October. If it happens just as it did with Jake & Sydney, the baby will be born on the 28th, so that's kind of the date I have in my mind, although I would love for it to be sooner. Regardless, Kiley will likely have many lively costume parties for her Birthday!
I was thinking about it tonight - with other things in life, even really big things or really bad things, you have moments in each day when you forget. Sometimes it's just those first few seconds after you awake in the morning before the gravity of life hits you, but still there are moments. For me, at the end of pregnancy, it kind of becomes all-consuming. There really aren't any waking moments when I'm not aware of being pregnant - it's not a bad thing, but it's kind of a constant distraction for me - sometimes welcome, other times not. So many weird things happen when you are pregnant. In the past week, I have been in pain because my ribs are out of place, I ran a fever one night of 100.5 - completely inexplicably and gone within hours, and one day I was completely depressed - feeling like a horrible mother because I have so little energy right now, but I was back to normal the next day. All in all, I'm excited and ready, having a hard time concentrating on work, and dreaming of getting my body back. We worked some this week on the nursery, went to Babies R Us and bought a few more necessities, and are just a few steps closer to being well-prepared.
Jake's best friend is named Spencer, and Spencer's Dad sent an email out today asking for votes in a pretty cool contest. If you have a couple of minutes, you can click the link in his email below to hear about their story of a 2-year battle with Leukemia and Spencer's remission - yeah!! I've included a picture from Jake's Birthday party a few weeks ago - Spencer is at the top-left of the photo.
but it gave us a chance to celebrate a BIG birthday with her that we missed in August. I guess I can say it - she's about as likely to see anything online as I am to sprout a 3rd eye :) - she turned 80 in August! She's my Dad's only living relative except for maybe some distant cousins with whom neither she nor we have any contact. Anyway, it was nice to see her and get to celebrate with her. 
a few days in San Antonio at the Hill Country Hyatt and then Jake's sleepover party in celebration of him turning 9. We had six boys spend the night and it went well. A highlight of the party was a show by Mr. Puppet, a ventriloquist who Jake had seen perform at Magic Camp.
r elementary school. I am hoping to get some more intensive intervention for Sydney this year to bring her up to grade level across the board. I am trying to find the right tutor to work with her a day after school as well.
he family and friends. We all went to a little neighborhood bar and hung out upstairs while he took her to dinner and pretty much strung her along. She knew the proposal was coming and had expected it for awhile so I think everytime they went out she wondered if it would be 'the night'. A few days before she had asked what to wear out that night and he said something like, 'I don't care what you wear, I'm wearing shorts and a t-shirt.' He said you could just see her deflate. That night, they did get dressed up and he took her to a very expensive dinner where they had the best seat in the house reserved with flower petals on the table, etc. Towards the end as she waited expectantly, he casually asked for the check and again she was thrown for a loop. So, when they got to the bar, she seemed totally caught off guard by so many family and friends being there. The proposal was great - down on one knee in front of everyone - and she was so excited. We were happy to be there and share that with everyone. Here is a picture with Martin's parents and brother on the left and Erin's parents and Erin on the right.
me at 7 months pregnant...
I won't let another month go by without an update again - I promise. We are officially 6 weeks from our due date and all is well with the baby and expectant parents!
On Friday night, Martin's sisters Jacqueline and Virginia and Mom gave us a shower in San Antonio. We got VERY cute (and pink :) things for our little girl. It was so nice of eveyone. A friend of Jackie's prepared wonderful food and cake and my Mom and two of my aunts came as well. My Mom is making an adorable quilt for baby Kiley. Here is a picture of my big belly!
Today we've run errands and been working. Not so exciting, but it is good to be nearing the end of the project I've been on for so long. Martin is helping me create a website for data entry by my client's customers and it's fun to work together on that.
It's a special treat for Sydney when we take a bath together in the big bath downstairs. Sometimes we get out the beauty products and turn it into a real girlie fest. Last night she was tired and needed to get clean, so I suggested a bath. So, we were in the big bath with mud masks on and in walked Jake. The conversation went like this -
Jake: "What's THAT?"
Sydney: "Mud mask"
Jake: "What does it do?"
Me: "Well it's supposed to help get your face really clean..." - even as the words were coming out, I was trying to anticipate his next question or comment and figure out how it made sense to me, much less to an 8-year-old boy, to slather yourself in mud in order to get clean.
To my surprise, his next comment was nothing that I anticipated as he said... "And keep you single!" HA - where does an 8-year-old get something like that?
Kids today are wise beyond their years and it's a funny time when they start to understand more grown-up things and to give you glimpses of the young adults they will be. Jake is in that transition period where one minute we will have a really grown up conversation about his feelings and observations he's made or opinions he has - and the next he's whining about the toy he wants and hasn't gotten.
Anyway, this week has been SO much better than last. We had a good weekend. On Sunday we took the kids to Schlitterbahn and, even though Martin and I weren't initially thrilled about the prospect of spending our Sunday in the crowds, we ended up having a blast. The kids are loving Magic Camp and I'm making good progress with work and getting caught up on some things I had hoped to complete last week. Martin is enjoying being home and catching up on yardwork and rest, and we got to have a date night tonight!
Martin's been out of town for work this week and, let me just say that life in general and parenting specifically is more fun and much easier with my wonderful husband in town! Here were some highlights from the week:
-- Tuesday morning about 2 a.m. Sydney came crying into my room saying her tummy hurt. She was soon vomiting (thankfully, into the toilet!!), but then she was able to go back to sleep, while I was up for the night.
-- Tuesday night, Jake fell off his electric scooter and scraped his face up on the sidewalk. He has some pretty good battle scars, but thankfully no need for stitches. Sydney was very sweet and worried about her brother. His face was bleeding pretty badly when it happened and I think it scared them both.
-- Wednesday morning, I dropped the kids at the bus for camp and then got an email on my phone on the way to my client in S. Austin from the camp director telling me that Jake isn't mature enough for the new camp (Camp on the Move) that they started this week. She basically made a snap judgement based on one incident on Tuesday when he couldn't find his shirt on the bus and got embarrassed. I had given her a heads up that Jake has ADHD and would benefit from a patient counselor and some help/reminders keeping up with his stuff. When I called her Wednesday morning after reading the email, she asked me if he is emotionally disturbed and suggested that since they have a ratio of 1 counselor for 5 kids and can't give him the one-on-one attention he would get in special education that a different setting would work better for him. I kept my cool, but told her I was meeting the bus to get my kids off, pulling them from the camp, and expecting a refund from them. She told me if I needed them to, they would take the kids this week. I told her if she didn't want my kid then I didn't want him there with her. So, I canceled on my big client for the 2nd time this week (Tuesday because of Syd throwing up and Wednesday because of Jake being kicked out of camp), and pulled the kids off of the bus.
-- Thankfully, the rest of Wednesday was pretty uneventful and the kids were actually nice to each other and got along, which makes such a difference in the day. The lack of sleep from Tuesday night caught up with me, and the kids let me nap while Syd napped with me and Jake had a water gun fight with the boys down the street. On Wednesday afternoon, I was also able to get them into Magic Camp - I had to pay for the whole week and it is in East Austin, which is a haul, but I am grateful to them for their willingness to take the kids and the fact that they make the kids feel really welcome and happy.
-- So Thursday, I was able to finally make it to my client and resolve a technical issue I had been struggling with all week, when I'd had time to work. When I picked up the kids, they were awful to each other - back into full fighting mode. I came very close to sending them to bed around 6 p.m., and they finally got the point and settled down. In the end, we had a fun night. We put on the Camp Rock cd, turned out the lights and danced with glow sticks for awhile before bed.
-- When they went to bed on Thursday, Jake shut my door (I let them sleep downstairs this week on the couches in the living room) and two of the dogs were in the room with me. I guess one of them had an upset stomach, so I woke up at 4 a.m. to the overwhelming stench of poop and had to clean out my closet. Again, I was up for the night.
All in all, I have (mostly) kept my sense of humor, but I was thinking this morning that I wouldn't mind a do-over on this week :). I'm definitely ready to start a new week - hopefully one with MUCH fewer bodily functions and fluids, and with my husband home with me!
All was well at my Dr.'s appointment this week. My blood sugar was well within the range it needed to be in, as was my iron. The baby is so extremely active and the Dr. told me again that is a good sign. He said active babies are usually very healthy. He said it might be difficult to monitor the contractions I am having because there have been a number of days alrea
dy where they have been frequent enough that he would typically send me to the hospital for monitoring. But, some women just have them more than others and so he said to consider what I've had to be the norm for me and to raise a flag if they increase or I have any other symptoms. He will check my cervix at our regular appointments ongoing just to make sure it stays closed until baby Kiley is ready to join us!
We have a bunch of photos on the camera that have been there for the past couple of months, but will get them off soon. I found this self-portrait (those are always great, right? :) from around Mother's Day, and will post more pics soon.
We just got back from the hospital for our 2nd visit to the labor & delivery unit in just over a week - and let me start by saying that everything is perfectly fine with the baby (we're naming her Kiley - not sure of the spelling) and with me. I started having repetitive cramping last Wednesday and called the doctor to be told to go to the hospital for monitoring. They didn't track any contractions on the monitor, my cervix was closed, and they said I was slightly dehydrated, which can cause contractions. They sent me home pretty quickly. The cramping continued a little bit that night and then the next day, but stopped after that.
A couple of days ago, it started again, but this time were the contractions I remembered from my pregnancy with Jake and not just a cramping feeling. They have continued for a couple of days and so today I called the doctor and he sent me to the hospital again. They did register the contractions on the monitor, but they were not severe and not regular in their timing. They ran a few tests that all came back with 'perfect' results according to the nurse, and she gave us a 0% chance of going into labor in the next two weeks. So, we went home with a clean bill of health and no restrictions. That is a HUGE relief, as I was very anxious at the prospect of 10 weeks of bedrest, and then scared for the baby when they told us they were running a test to check the odds of going into labor in the next two weeks.
The history is that, with Jake, I started having the Braxton-Hicks (also called 'practice') contractions but they got more intense and regular, and at 34 weeks I went to the hospital for this same monitoring and was determined to be in pre-term labor. They put me on medicine to stop the contractions and on bedrest for two weeks. Once I got off of bedrest, I carried Jake for another 5 weeks to just past 41 weeks of pregnancy. I think the doctor thought that after he let me off of bedrest with Jake that I would go into labor soon but I carried my babies high and, since they never really dropped, I never dilated or showed any other signs of being ready for labor. I had both of them 8 days after my due date with the help of being induced. For that reason, I wasn't really worried about having the baby early, but more about the prospect of bedrest and what that would mean for our family. Anyway, it's a good night tonight and we are very relieved.
We see the Dr. tomorrow for a regular visit, the diabetes test, and a Rhogam shot since I am Rh-. It should be pretty uneventful. I promise to soon write a light-hearted blog entry - as we are having a fun summer!!
n that my center of gravity is off right now so my balance is not what it would be normally. I am hoping that we'll have no more of that kind of excitement - surely I must be pushing my luck at this point :) And, I've missed two really good opportunities to make easy money on America's Funniest Videos!!
We had a great weekend last weekend... On Friday, Martin took off of work and we went to Jim's for breakfast (awesome pancake & breakfast taco!). Then, we went to Babies R Us and registered for stuff for our little girl. The rest of the day we just took it easy. On Saturday, we got up and went with a group from church to Krause Springs, a natural spring outside of Austin, where we ate a picnic lunch, lounged in the water, hung out, and watched people do tricks on the rope swing. Saturday night, we went and saw The Hulk - and I actually enjoyed it. Sunday morning we got up and went to San Antonio to visit with Martin's family. His sister, brother-in-law and their two kids were at his parents house, so it was a really nice chance to visit with them. We came back to Austin and went straight to get the kids.
They had a blast in Turks and Caicos. They came back very sunburned and peeling, so that night when I was putting lotion on Jake's face, I barely brushed his ear and he yelped! Both kids had swimmer's ear infections and couldn't go to camp on Monday because 1) they couldn't swim and it was a swim day and 2) they needed to go to the Dr. to get the antibiotic ear drops. I was pretty frustrated at losing a day of work, but we hung out and had a good time. I was asleep before 9, which has pretty much held true most of the week. It got me thinking...
What a difference a week makes. This will be an unintentional birth control argument for some, but last week when they were gone, I worked about 10 hours a day, took roughly 3-4 hours/day for a date night or girls night out, and slept about 8 hours a day. I didn't cook, didn't really clean or do much else. This week, I am taking about 3 hours a day - not for a relaxing night out but to run errands, go to the grocery store, pick up kids from camp, etc. I spend another 2 1/2 hours a day on my feet getting the kids ready and out the door, making dinner, doing dishes and laundry and cleaning/picking up. A couple of hours go to hanging out with the kids - getting them ready for bed, reading, playing ball, riding scooters, playing games, etc. I sleep about 1 1/2 hours more/night because of the extra physical and emotional energy I'm spending, which leaves me about 7 hours/day to work - on a good day... HA! I love my life but I absolutely need to limit my work time to 5-6 hours/day. Unfortunately right now, I need to work 40 hours/week for the next six weeks in order to finish this project I've been working on by our deadline of August 1st. Oh well, I've faced crunch times before and I have no one to blame but myself. If I'd worked a few more hours each week up to this point (I've been working on this project for almost six months), I wouldn't be in this boat.
Even with my time issues, I like summer fun with the kids and am not going to give that up. Tonight, Sydney has a sleepover with her friend Bria, and Spencer is staying over at our house. Tomorrow night, Sydney goes to a Camp Rock Premier party - Disney's new movie that comes out on t.v. - at a friend's house, and we're going to have a house full of 8-year-old boys here to play, make pizzas, and watch the movie. Fun!
We're nearing the end of our last kid-free week at home for who knows how many years :). We'll have others, but they will be much harder to plan and we surely won't go to the trouble unless we're going on a special vacation with just the two of us. Unfortunately we didn't have the option of taking a vacation since we had the time off for the wedding and the wonderful honeymoon. Can't complain about that... We are both taking tomorrow to play (not sure of our plans), but we've made the most of our week.
Last weekend, Martin arranged for a massage for me at a swanky salon downtown - it was VERY nice. Then, we ate dinner at Castle Hill (one of our favorite Austin restaurants). Finally, we went to see Sex in the City, which we both really enjoyed and would recommend to anyone who hasn't seen it. This week, we went to Bellagio for dinner on Monday. On Tuesday, Martin did all kinds of honey-do's while I went to dinner and a movie with girlfriends - he mowed the lawn, edged, changed light bulbs, etc. - what a man!! On Wednesday, we headed downtown and ate at Austin Java. Then, we walked over to Zilker to check out Blues on the Green. It wasn't our kind of music and none of the friends we invited last minute could come, so we didn't hang out long, but it was a nice walk and good people watching - hee hee. Tonight, we're off to a neighborhood Mexican restaurant and then we'll see what the rest of the weekend holds. On Sunday we're going to San Antonio for lunch and a quick father's day celebration with Martin's parents and then back to get the kiddos.
We had our ultrasound yesterday and saw a perfect little baby girl! The kids are excited - Sydney maybe slightly more than Jake at the thought of having a baby sister :). My Mom was thrilled to be there with us again.
We saw amazing detail of the inside of the brain and the heart. In the heart we could see the four chambers and the two valves letting blood through with each beat. We saw two little hands and two little feet, a well-formed upper lip (no cleft pallet), the stomach, kidneys, spinal cord, etc. Everything looks great and, based on this ultrasound, the Dr. reduced our odds of a Downs baby from 1 in 260 to 1 in 390. We weren't really worried about that, but it was nice to hear.
The due date based on my last period they report as October 20th, and the due date based on the measurements they took yesterday was October 23rd - so they said the due date will remain the 20th. The good thing about that is it means the baby is actually three days smaller than the norm - so maybe I won't have another 9+ pound baby!!! That will be nice, I think, although there was some comfort in handling a newborn who came out the size of many 3-month-olds! Jake was 9 lbs., 5 ounces and Sydney was 9 lbs., 4 ounces. I still think I'll play it safe an skip buying the newborn sizes in clothes, but we'll see if that turns out to be wise.
A couple of the sonogram pictures are below. I left one out with a front view of the skull where you see the eye and nose sockets and it looks like an alien, and Martin veto'ed posting the one with the private parts :). He's already looking out for his little girl!!
We've had a busy couple of weeks. Martin had to do a phone system installation out in Taylor which meant he didn't have to travel but was working from very early in the morning to late at night many work days in the last two weeks. The kids hardly saw him and I saw him slightly more given that several nights I was asleep by 9 and he wasn't home yet. We missed him!!
The kids had their last day of school yesterday - complete with junk food celebrations, movies in the classroom, and a picnic in the park involving a reptile presentation including lots of snakes and other creepy critters. Unfortunately, I didn't take the camera but a good time was had by all.
Tuesday of this week, we went to the Dr. again just for our monthly check. These visits are quick for us and we've never had any issues. They take blood pressure and then get a weight and urine sample - which they check for protein or sugar, I believe, which could indicate issues including gestational diabetes. Then, the Dr. comes in and uses a doppler device to listen to the heartbeat and checks for size and proper growth of the uterus and baby. We heard a strong heartbeat and the Dr. observed LOTS of movement and said both were good signs. I've gained more weight than I'd prefer, but I've lost it before and I'll lose it again...
We scheduled the sonogram for this coming Friday at 8AM and will again take the kids and my Mom. The results of our first sonogram and genetic screening from a couple of months ago showed our chances of having a baby with Downs Syndrome to be 1 in 260. The official cut-off that our lab gave for it being a "positive" screen (not what you want) is 1 in 250, so we were just outside that range. I googled and found sites that listed the cut-off as 1 in 270 and I worried for a day or two, but ultimately decided that we saw enough indicators of a healthy baby that we just weren't going to focus on the possibility of an issue. We decided not to do any further testing (amnio or CVS test) that carries a risk to the baby of between a 1 in 200 or 1 in 300 chance of miscarriage. Our Dr. (whom I respect and trust immensely) is very matter-of-fact and told us that any major issues will be revealed by this upcoming sonogram. Best of all, we get to confirm the sex so we can get serious about naming the baby, registering for a shower, and preparing the nursery - FUN!
Yesterday we went to Sydney's play called "Nuts!" It is strategically planned immediately following their schools PTA meeting's which slightly bumps up attendance. Sydney was so excited about the play. She was talking about it for days and when she got home from school that day she was asking when the play was going to start. It was only 4 hours before.... :)
Their school is right in our neighborhood so we walked. Well, Courtney (our new baby to be) and I walked, while the kiddos skateboarded and scootered. When we got there Sydney reminded us that we were not allowed in the music room where they prepared (I snuck in and snapped a picture anyway).
The kids seem to have a lot of fun doing the plays, Jake's was earlier this year. Courtney helped put the costumes together for this one. She colored about a thousand squirrel faces. It was all very cute. Afterwards I took a picture of Sydney with two of her friends. Sydney was a walnut, I think Arushi (to syd's left) was a squirrel and Brooke (to Syd's right) was a hula nut. Okay, I know that's not a real nut but I couldn't think of what she actually was.
We haven't been great about taking pictures of my growing belly, but here are a couple. Right now, we're 17 weeks pregnant. Today she was kicking over and over and I put Syd's hand on my tummy and asked her if she felt the roughly 6 kicks about 30 seconds apart and she didn't!! My hand was right on top of hers and I can't imagine how she didn't feel them, but maybe next time. Martin has been feeling the baby move for about a month now, which has been fun for both of us.
