Is there a baby...

Any time that Kale gets a little too rough around my belly, I remind him to be careful.  Then I ask him if he remembers why he has to be careful.  He always answers with "because there is a baby in your belly." 

He gets it, well, kind of anyway.

This morning, as he cuddled up next to me in our bed, he started to put his feet on my legs.  We have slept like that since he was oh...a newborn.  All of a sudden in his 6am slumber, he asks "mommy, is there a baby in your legs?"

I tried not to giggle.  I answered that there was not a baby in my legs.  He said ok and snuggled a little closer...both feet resting gently on my legs.

Tuesday

Tuesday was full of fun and/or interesting moments...like me being stuck by myself in an elevator for about 15 minutes.  Then there was Kale telling me that he and daddy DO NOT have a baby in thier bellies. 

The funniest was when Kale had been crawling all over me on the couch and I reminded him to be careful of my belly.  He then asked if I also had a baby in my arm or in my leg...because he wasn't going to crawl on them if I did! 

There was also the moment I scored a great newest Medela breast pump (smaller than my current one and it also has a rechargeable battery) for about a fourth of the price of buying it brand new.  I just have to buy replacement tubing and I will be set to go next summer. 

The most sobering moment came when I nearly dropped to my knees right in the middle of a parking lot.  The woman who sold me the pump...she is a mother of five and the oldest is 14.  When she was pregnant with the fifth child, she also found out she had breast cancer.  Due to her situation, she ended up with a 6 week preemie too.  As for the cancer, she has beat it.  She is currently under the reconstruction process.  Her attitude was priceless and she referenced God several times in our conversation.  I wasn't sure what to pray for first...forgiveness for all the things I take for granted or thankfulness that God has allowed this woman to continue being the mother that her kids need and also spreading His message in her everyday life as well. 

In all the hustle and craziness of these final days leading up to Christmas, I hope we all take a moment to remember to count our blessings...its not about the material gifts, but rather about the ones we all take for granted all too often.  Its about the funny little moments and the bigger moments that stop you in your tracks.  Also, don't forget to say a prayer for all the families struggling this Christmas with the loss/missing of a family member who is now in Heaven. 

Kale's suprise afternoon

Yesterday afternoon, we picked up Kale from school and had an adventure.  It started at the Laman Library train exhibit.  I am not sure who was more entertained, Kale or his daddy.  Its an interactive exhibit and Kale loved it. 

From there, we headed to American Pie Pizza for dinner.  Oh, and Santa just happened to be coming by during dinner.  While we waited for Santa, I dropped the baby bomb on Kale.  We showed him some ultrasound pictures and the furrowed brow look was hilarious.  We made him guess what the pictures were and he asked if it was me...close kid, close!  In a way, I guess he was right.  Then, I told him there was a baby in my belly.  He was quiet for a minute and then moved on to something else. 

We had a picture taken with Santa, but Kale wasn't as brave as he was when Santa visited school...so Kale sat in my lap and I sat beside Santa. 

After dinner, we made a visit to the grocery store.  That left us getting home around 8pm or so....and Kale went to bed somewhere between 8:30-9pm.  He was TIRED!  He was soooo tired that he slept all night in his bed until 7am! 

Too bad we can't have every afternoon be that busy and fun....but I am pretty sure that I would fall over from exhaustion if we did! 

Ultrasound Day

In some weird combination of the Thanksgiving to Christmas rush and just everyday life unfolding, my ultrasound day was here before I could blink.  I remember the day we had Kale's ultrasound...it took F.O.R.E.V.E.R. to arrive.  This one seemed to just kind of arrive in a whirlwind of activity.  It probably helps that this one was scheduled two weeks earlier in my preganancy than my ultrasound with Kale. 

For this baby, I got sent to the perinatologist because I am....old.  According to the maternal age charts anyway.  Here is what that really means....because of my age, I am at a more elevated risk of the baby having complications such as Down's Syndrome, etc.  So, my doc sent me to the specialist who performed a more detailed and lengthy ultrasound this morning.  I have no idea how long we watched our baby on the screen, but it was quite a while longer than we ever saw Kale at this stage!  There was not one single thing that concerned the specialist.  We talked about Kale's heart condition and the inability to see that condition from inside the womb.  However, the baby's heart looks perfect for now.  We saw fingers, toes, feet, hands, arms, face, spine, ribs, head, chest...we saw this child from head to toe...twice.  We even saw a really close up view of the beating heart.  Amazing.  Sometimes it was hard to tell if the baby was moving or it was simply the ultrasound wand moving.  I only got tears in my eyes twice through the experience.  Pretty good for a hormonal momma who has been worried just because, well, I worry. 

The baby is healthy, measuring EXACTLY on time (17 weeks, 2 days), and weighs 8 ounces.

This little one already seems to have an attitude.  The doc had to jiggle the wand in my belly to get the baby to cooperate for one measurement...the baby was being stubborn and didn't want to move to a spot that would allow the doc to get a good measurement.  However, the jiggling worked and the baby moved. 

We saw the gender stuff too.  In fact, we saw that portion of the baby twice as well.  The baby wasn't shy about that part.  We aren't revealing the gender to our families until Christmas.  After they know, the world can know. 

Until then, its a guessing game.  Apparently, my father in law is taking bets on the gender, date of delivery, and something else (weight maybe?).  If you want in on that $5 action, let me know...

Need a YUMMY gift?

We all have someone on our list who either has everything or is just plain difficult when it comes to gift ideas.  I have a solution for you!  In fact, I have two solutions!  How about sending them something yummy? 

Oh, and don't forget about gifts for your boss, neighbors, etc!  These are perfect gifts for those folks! 

Hey, don't you deserve a gift?  Sure you do!  Treat yourself! 

You definitely need to check out Cherry Moon Farms as they have lots of yummy treats.  Their selection ranges from fruits to chocolate to fruit covered chocolate. 

You can also check out Shari's Berries for more tasty treats! 

Thanks to these two sites, I am now craving a chocolate covered strawberry....yum, yum!!!!!

Give them a try and let me know what you think!!!

Dad

Over the past couple of weeks, Kale has been making a transition.  Its been subtle.  Suddenly though, he seems to sound like a 10 year old when he wants his daddy's attention.  It started out as....daddy, daddy, daddy, DAD!  Now, he has moved on to just starting out with dad, dad, DAD! 

This morning, he got out of his bed at 6:45 or so (Yes, I said HIS bed) and immediately went to the hallway.  His daddy was in the living room, so Kale yells this down the hall: Dad, I want you to come back to your bed. 
There was no daddy involved.  Just dad. 

More and more, he skips over the daddy these days.  I can't hardly stand it because it makes his sound so much older.  Funny, the little things that can tug a parent's heartstings. 

Garage, Round 2 = Crate from now on

Goose in the garage, round 2, took place last night.  I was lenient and let him stay out of the crate.  Stupid me.

While we slept, a six pack of kid's Nutripals (liquid nutritional supplement) was torn into and several of them were consumed.  I keep them around for the times when Kale just hasn't seemed to eat very well for a few days and I start to worry about him getting enough nutrients and vitamins.  I guess Goose was feeling nutritionally deprived.  Either that, or he needed something to wash the baby formula out of his system. 

My husband waited until I was in the shower to ask me what I was going to do about the stuff that Goose peed on....which turned out to be not as bad as I stood in the shower imagining.  Thankfully, my husband cleaned up the remnants of the Nutripal mess. 

Thankfully, the weather is supposed to be warm enough for Goose to stay outside for a while...but the next time he has to come inside...to the crate he will go!

It snowed in our garage

Its been a really long time since I have referenced our dog here.  Today is his day.  He is a black lab and his name is Goose. 

So, with the weathermen preaching about how cold it would be last night, I went out into the enclosed garage and prepared it for Goose.  We have a crate out there for him.  He hates it.  I don't blame him.  I kinda hate it too.  However, after his little antic last night, he might have to just hate that crate tonight as he look out from inside the metal cage.

This wasn't his first stint inside the garage.  We are pro's at this and every time we (I) prepare the garage for him, I wake up the next morning to my husband telling me what a mess that Goose made with the xxxxx that he found. Last time, he found a box of Gerber Graduates fruit twists.  He tore into the box and then managed to get about 3 packs of them open.  He also found a box of fruist snacks that night.  I guess he had a thing for fruit at the time.  No matter how hard I work to make sure that there are no food items he can reach or find....and that any toy that might look chewable are out of his reach or inside the house, he ALWAYS find something to entertain himself with out there.  One time, I tried to deter him by giving him a gigantic rawhide.  That backfired, literally, out his backside and left us with a nasty, smelly mess! 

So, last night.  Ready to know what he found?  3 sample cans of Enfamil Enfagrow.  That stuff has has a really long expiration and it was left over from when Kale had to use it.  So, its just been kind of hanging around the garage over in my "stash section" and just waiting for a baby to come along that needed it.  Last night, Goose tacked not one, not two, but THREE cans of that stuff.  This is powdered formula folks....In aluminum type cans, sealed with a pop and pull top with a plastic lid on top of that.  My husband aptly said that sections of the garage looked like we got a couple inches (ok, he exaggerated and said 4 inches) of snow last night.  When I finally got the courage to go see the damage for myself, I found this:

• 3 cans that were torn into about 25 pieces
• 3 plastic lids with teeth marks all over them and 3 pop/pull lids that looked more like a human had released them. 
• Formula all over the place....but specifically on his dog bed. 
• 1 formula scoop, and since one comes in each can, that means two are missing...

My best guess is that he did literally eat about 75% of each can.  Those cans are either 8 or 12 ounces...I can't remember which and the labels would be too torn up for me to read anyway!

One of us made the comment that "he will have the runs for days!" and that is probably true.  Lovely.  With another cold night on tap, he needs to come inside tonight.  Great. 

Just a post

**Editor's Note:  I am getting good at this writing a post and not immediately publishing thing.  Geesh.  This was written last week, just prior to me being attacked by the head cold from.....you get the point.**

I'm not going to waste my time trying to think of a clever or fitting name for this post.  Here is your warning, it might me a little jumbled. 

We received Kale's medical records yesterday from the hospital.  Random, I know.  I have always wanted to have them for a multitude of reasons, with one of those reasons being the fact that I want to know what I don't remember or what I somehow missed.  In reviewing his records last night, I learned (or relearned) a few things that had faded in my memory.  I have always wondered if they did anything to help him with the pain of being shocked...now I know...they did.  Now I also know that the second shock was twice as strong as the first unsuccessful shock.  I was also reminded of how close to death he came. 

This morning, a family in my original hometown had a memorial for their baby girl.  She lived an amazing 128 days.  She was born with a fatal condition.  Their public sharing of her life has been pretty remarkable.  I can't imagine the grief that they are feeling now.  My heart absolutely breaks for the two older brothers that she left behind. 

I told my husband last night that I am just moving from one appoinment or event to the next.  At least that is how it feels.  The next month is not only full of holiday celebrations, but also doctor appointments and adjusting to big changes.  I am just trying to savor each day and find the blessings....and there are sooooo many blessings!

It's a.....

I went to the doctor this morning.  The baby is doing well, but hid from the doctor as he tried to find the heartbeat.  Even more proof that I think this one is a girl...being so fiesty.  Kale never hid.  I am thinking that maybe this one will be missing a sweet tooth, much like daddy.  Ep rarely eats sweets, unless you count the Oreo's he eats nightly with a glass of milk.  Kale and I are sweet-aholics.  Except right now, sweets are generally unappealing to me, to the point that sometimes just thinking about them makes me feel sick. 

I wish I could already tell you that its a....... but I can't.  I don't know yet.  We will find out a little bit before Christmas at my level two ultrasound.  Fun times, me being Advanced Maternal Age (AMA).  You would think my past experience with pre-eclampsia or Kale's congenital heart defect would have some play into me being sent to the specialist.  Nope.  Its all because my body will be a whopping 35 years old by the time I have this kiddo.  So, in a few weeks I go see the specialist and then we may wait a few days to share because I am pretty sure that would be a Christmas gift that a couple of grandparents would never forget....

As for names, we have played with a few...but haven't been really serious about any just yet.  We also haven't decided for sure how we will handle not telling anyone the name, yet preparing Kale for the arrival of baby whoever.  So, maybe this time we will be telling the name.  Maybe not. 

Just be glad we aren't making everyone wait until the end of May to just find out the gender!!! 

My theory

I am fourteen weeks pregnant and pretty sure this one is a girl...and here is why:

1. Hello all day sickness, you were nowhere to be found when I was pregnant with a boy.  In fact, I didn't get sick at all!
2. Hello acne, what new spot would you like to appear today?  You were nowhere to be found when I was pregnant with a boy.
3. Hello fever blister on my lip, this is the third one in three months.  Possibly from the extra hormones of little miss trouble growing inside me?  I had one, if that, fever blisters when pregnant with a boy. 

Of course, all of these are just my theories, so who knows!  And then there was the dream I had last night.  All I remember was a little stockly blond boy running across a field of tall grass.  So yeah, who knows...

I guess we will find out in a few or more weeks...not sure yet when I will be seeing the doc for my level 2 ultrasound.