Just Pictures Today...

Rawwwrrr....



Chilling with mom...



Cutie Face....



Even cute when she's angry...



A visit from Karen...



Thanks to everyone for all the thoughtful gifts and food - we feel very loved and supported.

Every Day: Building on Success

Well, we try to get a little better every day and learn new skills. Today was a definite milestone! Since the little one is officially 2 weeks old today, it was time to try the bottle. (We were told 2 weeks was a good time by the lactation consultant at the hospital.)

So this morning DH took a shower and then I took a shower. Usually I walk out of the shower to a hungry, fussy baby - even if I just fed her before the shower. I don't even get time to put on my lotion, q-tip my ears, put toner on, etc... all those little things I took for granted before baby. But today I took an extra long shower (shaved AND washed my hair - big stuff) and then when I stepped out all I heard was...

... music! Daddy and littles were rocking out to Bob Dylan. (I am not a huge Dylan fan so DH usually listens when I'm not around...I guess he's teaching the little one to like it with him so I'll be outnumbered.)

DH was totally successful in giving her a bottle of expressed breast milk. This is so great. I felt this huge rush of freedom! I blow dried my hair and put on makeup! So wonderful! I then offered to run to the store but DH was like "whoa! just because I gave her one bottle doesn't make me Mr. Mom" - it was pretty funny.

I think DH really liked it too because now they aren't dependent on me for anything when he is watching her. He can change diapers like a pro and now he can feed her. So this is really great.

We used the playtex drop ins bottle and it seemed to work fine. I have two other kinds of bottles here and I didn't know if we'd have to try several. But I wanted to try the cheapest and easiest one first.

Another thing that's been pretty useful lately is our skip hop diaper changing wallet. Instead of bringing littles all the way to the changing table, I can just use that wallet and change her on the floor in the main room where we all hang out. We have been letting her nap on a blanket on the floor so she's close to us. We do put her down in her crib sometimes too so she's used to it and at night she sleeps in her crib until her first night time wake up then she stays with me so I don't have to get up to feed her. It's pretty funny, I'll wake up in the night feeling these little sucking motions on me and I know she wants to eat.

We have officially opened the visitor floodgate. I have a friend coming over this afternoon and tomorrow and DH has a friend coming over for dinner tonight. We feel like we've gotten the hang of it enough to be able to have friends by. I do think it was great to have that first two weeks be mostly just the three of us and pretty uneventful. It was nice to just take the time for ourselves and our family.

I am so glad it's Saturday and I don't have to work. This week was a little hectic for me at work and I hope next week is a little better. Usually August is slow so it was strange to have so much to do. But, I do feel I can handle it. DH is going in to work on Monday but Super Auntie is coming out to help. I am grateful for that.

Have a great day!

I Take Back What I Said About the Itzbeen

OK - earlier this week I said that the Itzbeen was a waste of $24. I take it back. I think it's pretty useful now that I don't have the feeding log. Right now it's pretty good for her feeding intervals - it keeps track of how long it's been since she ate and also has a timer. So I have it set for 3 hours during the day and I'll do 6 hours at night. I don't have to worry about it. Today without the feeding log I kept trying to remember the last time she ate and then setting my alarm on my phone to remind me if she went too long. Now I don't have to. Also it has a little button for which side she last ate on - left or right.

We had another outing today - it's not even really notable anymore. The only bummer is that the weather is so hot right now. I hope it cools off soon.

Well, that's about it for today. Tomorrow the little one is two weeks old! I can't believe it. It's been a great time so far!

Happy Birthday Lola!!!

We love you!! Enjoy your special day! Can't wait to celebrate with you!





















Much Love from Your Family!

Pro Outing

So today we decided to push it a little. Out outings have been pretty successful so far, yesterday we went to TCBY in the evening after we had already gone out to see our pediatrician. Today we decided to walk to the Lobster for lunch. This is a pretty good walk and the Lobster isn't fast food, so we knew that there would be a possibility we'd have to feed her and/or change her on the run. We were prepared and we decided to try it.

Here we are in the restaurant... I made it all the way through lunch before she woke up...



I took her down to the restaurant lobby to feed her - it was pretty stealth I think. My friend Katja gave me this nursing cover (the brown and blue thing) and I must say it is essential. I did not even think of buying one or registering for one. Breast feeding mommies - this is a pro tip! Get thee a nursing cover!



Walking back through Palisades Park...



Yay! Fun outing!



We had almost made it all the way home and the little one started crying again - hungry. We stopped at the park near our place and I pulled off another public nursing as well as a public changing. The diaper bag worked out well. Here is daddy burping her after she ate in the park...



Yay! Another great day.



In other news, I think I'm over the feeding log. I had been recording which breast she ate from and when, whether she had a poopy diaper or a pee diaper and when. This was great to have when she was in the hospital with jaundice. But since she gained so much weight and we don't have another pediatrician appointment for a month, I think I might just stop with the recording. I guess I still need to know when she ate last but that's not too hard to remember. Also I guess we could try the Itzbeen again.

Well that's about it. Happy Birthday Lola!! This is your day!

Great Visit to Dr. Huang

Hooray! We had a great pediatrician's appointment today. We couldn't believe it but littles has gained an average of 2 oz per day since her last appointment. This is a lot as Dr. Huang says the average is 0.5 oz per day. Well, I know my milk is working. She is in the clear for jaundice and we are thrilled. We are getting better at the whole getting out of the house thing, especially since the diaper bag is already packed and ready. There was a little incident where we couldn't find the car key but we got to the appointment right on time.

Work has been really busy but manageable - I can't believe it but we have another distribution tomorrow. But I can get it done. It's actually good for me to balance things I think - helps prepare me for that inevitable day when I have to go back to work.

For those of you wondering how many diapers newborns go through in a day, the little one goes through an average of 11 - wow - that is a lot! She eats about every 3 hours or so - sometimes she eats in clusters and that's about every hour - but she feeds pretty quickly now that my milk flow is so strong. Sometimes she pulls off mid-meal and man, it's like a fire sprinkler! Milk going every which way! The good news is that she is gaining so much weight we can let her sleep up to 6 hours at night. Dr. Huang said that hopefully by 1 month she'll get to sleeping 8 hours at a time. I am glad she sleeps well but sometimes I feel like this should be more challenging! She basically eats, gets burped, gets changed, then sleeps. It's not really overwhelming at all. So preggos out there take heart! You can do this!

Also, I've mentioned before but breast feeding mommies you have to learn the laying down breast feeding thing. It's so easy. The brest friend is great for when I'm working, eating or socializing but the laying down thing is awesome for sleep and pretty much every other time. I just lay with her on a blanket on the floor - it's relaxing for both of us.

So I've said some of the products I really love, one thing I haven't used much is the Itzbeen. That little contraption that records how long it's been since she's last eaten, slept, etc. It was $24 and a waste if you ask me. We also have WAY too many clothes. She basically can wear the same shirt for a whole day and we have our laundry done every week so I'd have been fine with about 10 shirts/onesies or so and I probably have 35. Oh well. At least I got a bunch of stuff at Ross so it didn't cost too much. We're still waiting for her umbilical cord to fall off so we can snap the onesies but it can take up to a month I guess. I can't wait for it to fall off so we can try the wash pod.

We do use a TON of receiving blankets but we haven't run out. I think we have around 16 or so of those. When we run out of burp cloths, which always happen, I start using receiving blankets.

We have switched from using the cotton wipes from the hospital that we were wetting with warm water to pampers sensitive wipes and it's been fine on her skin. We also use pampers swaddlers newborn size and they are great. We've only had one diaper leak. And man, when they say that the diapers should be yellow and seedy looking, they mean YELLOW. Her diapers are like school bus yellow a lot of the time. It's funny.

Well, all is pretty good here. She gets fussy after she eats but there is always a burp and then she feels better. We're having fun with her. DH returns to work next week. We've both been working from home but he'll probably be going back into the office. It will be more challenging without him here but hopefully he'll still work from home some days.

Lastly, I want to send some loving out to Super Auntie. She has been having a bit of a rough year and a terrible day today and we are thinking of her. We know she will do well in the end, this is just a rough patch.

Here are some pictures...

Me and littles sleeping - DH said this was a long exposure because it was dark:



All ready to go to the pediatrician in her panda outfit:



The whole family laying on the floor:



One more with the little one turned the right way and Mr. Russell making his escape:



Have a great day everyone!

Another Good Day

First of all - some housekeeping. Does anyone know who sent us the cute Mrs. Beasley's basket? We got a little bassinet filled with treats and there was no packing slip or anything for us to know who to thank.

Also, a moment we had been waiting for since before the birth arrived - Diana came over with her famous Gruyere macaroni and cheese. It sure was delicious! We ate it last night for dinner and again today for lunch. Thanks to our friends we are eating like kings!

Today we took the little one on a walk to Palisades Park - which is along the ocean. It was such a nice day! We even took her out of the stroller for a little bit to lay in the grass. Here are some pics:







AHH! Such a cutie!!




Also, some of my preggo friends have told me they appreciate the little tips and things I sometimes post. Well here is a lifesaver product! I got them from diapers.com of course:



















They are mini disposable changing pads. We just put them right on top of the changing pad w/cover so if she has a poo or pee explosion when we're changing her we can just throw it away. We only have two changing pad covers so we'd be doing laundry all the time without these. We usually get quite a few uses out of one. I know, not the most "green" thing ever but whatever. We're already using disposable diapers so well, it's just one more thing to throw away. We are bad people.

Day two of being back to work went okay. I was much more busy today than yesterday, we are doing a distribution tomorrow and that takes quite a few steps on my part. Plus there are a bunch of other things going on. But I just told people I'm not working full days and I'm pacing myself slower than usual. I think everyone is being understanding, we'll see how it works out.

Tomorrow is a busy day for the Cummings family. DH and I have medical exams in the morning to get approved for life insurance and then littles has her pediatrician's appointment at 11. DH has two conference calls and I have a distribution to get out. Should be interesting!

Nobody Puts Baby in a Sling!

Well, the little one is doing really great. She is a good eater and a good sleeper - we are thankful. However, she really doesn't like being swaddled or being in a sling. I have a hotsling as well as a parents of invention sling. I have tried to put her in both of them so I can do "baby wearing" but the minute you put her in there she just cries her heart out. I don't think she likes the feeling of tightness around her. We can't swaddle her either. She likes her arms out and also likes kicking her legs around. She just won't be confined! Hopefully as she gets bigger and I can put her in the slings a different way she will like them, but if not that's okay too. Luckily I have my brest friend so that's been pretty helpful.

I returned to work today - well, working from home that is. I was planning on taking 2 weeks off but last week I was still responding to stuff on Blackberry so I thought why not just officially sign in on my computer and get things done. I have to remember to take it slow though - littles is the priority.

DH went to the grocery store today and we're pretty stocked up. I also got a few things from diapers.com. I don't feel overwhelmed. I was even able to pick up the place a little today too. The only thing we don't have enough of is burp cloths but we're using small receiving blankets so it's working out. Who would have thought that someone so little would have so much spit up? So make sure you preggos out there get LOTS of burp cloths.

Okay, well back to my darling daughter!

Successful Outing Today

Today was a nice Sunday. We started the day with the little one getting some sun with the new hat from Lola. We try to get her some sun each day to keep the bilirubin levels in her blood down.



We don't want to have to go back to the hospital for more photo therapy. Here is a picture of her in the light box from Friday - so sad. :(



So today we dug the Bugaboo out of the closet and put it together. Here is Miss littles all ready to go out for her first big city walk!



The first place she went was the Santa Monica Library. We had to return some books. Here is DH with her...



We took turns pushing the stroller. My turn now...



The outing was going so well that we decided to walk to Montana and go have a snack at a cafe. It worked out well - no problems. We are pros!



Here you can see how much my belly has already gone down - I can't believe it; I've lost like 20 pounds already. I still have a lot more to lose but it's nice to have progress.



We felt like we were finally legit on Montana! Whenever we walked around on Montana before we were one of the only ones without a stroller and now we are part of the cool club. Ha ha.

Things have been going really well though. The little one is eating like a pro and I don't have any more nipple problems. For you preggos out there reading this - hang in there with the breast feeding. It was very hard the first few days when I just had the colostrum. She was eating constantly and the sucking was painful. I even bled and scabbed a little. But once the milk came in (and BOY did it come in), everything got much better. I don't have to worry about how she latches or anything - it's very simple. I think breast feeding might be harder than bottle or pump in the beginning but now that I've got the hang of it - it is really simple. There is nothing to fuss with, all you need is a boob and a baby. Although you need accessible clothes so I'll probably need to get some more stuff like the dress you see in the picture. It was perfect. I've been pumping for 3 minutes a day to get some milk stocked up for next week when we can start her on the bottle. I will still breastfeed primarily but it will be nice for DH to have the option to feed her once a day or so as well. It seems like every time I take a bath or a shower she wants to eat! Even if she just ate. Maybe she just likes me dirty. :P

People have been asking when they can come and meet her and we MAY start having visitors next weekend. We just are really enjoying our time alone with her and we're learning how to read her cues and be the best parents that we can be. We really need to just focus on her right now. Of course - short visits to say hello for a few minutes are okay - we are especially thankful for the lasagne I mentioned yesterday - we are currently eating it for the third time right now. Yum! Monique rocks.

Well - we are feeling pretty proud of ourselves for accomplishing such a big outing. We may even try to go somewhere tomorrow. We'll see.

Home is Great!

We are really enjoying being at home instead of being in the hospital! It was so nice to sleep in our own bed last night. It's so funny because before the little one was born I thought that co-sleeping was crazy talk, but it makes sense for the late night feedings for me. We put her in the crib for some naps (right now she's napping on me while I type) but at night she sleeps with me so I can easily feed her. I learned how to feed her while lying on my side pretty early and it's been a great skill. So much easier for night feedings. We haven't had any problem with the cats or anything like that.

Super Auntie visited us on Friday and my mom - who wants to be known as Lola not grandma - visited us today. Here are some pics:

Isn't Super Auntie beautiful?



Lola loving



Our sleeping angel



Rock and Roll!



Precious



So far I've definitely had some products that I can't live without:

My Brest Friend - this thing is great. Totally wonderful for positioning during feeding.



The $11 Walmart nursing tank top - these are great. Probably not the best for going out but super for wearing all day and night at home. I have used the two I already have and ordered four more today so I have plenty. We get our laundry done once a week so I try to have enough stuff to last me a week.



I also ordered one of the $45 bravado nursing tanks. A friend gave me an old one she had and it's the right size - score - and it's a little longer and nicer looking. I'll be able to wear it out so I thought it would be worth it. Also I am really loving the lansinoh nursing pads - very essential because I am a leaky faucet.

Oh and I used my PJ's comfort breast pump 3 times now. It's REALLY great and I highly recommend it. I am starting to store up milk in the freezer so DH can feed the little one starting next week.

So today our precious angel is 1 week old! I love every minute with her. She is such a great baby and so much fun. We just love her so much. DH is so great. He does the burping and changing with some of the night feedings and it's so helpful.

Also today my friend Monique surprised us with a drop off of homemade lasagna! Yes! It's cooking in the oven right now, we can't wait. We are getting another food delivery on Monday from some of my college girlfriends and that will be much appreciated as well. DH was going to have to go shopping and now he doesn't. Hooray, more time for us to stare at our girl and take pics and things.

Well, it has been a wonderful Saturday. :)

Home Again Home Again!

Well, we made it. The little one's bilirubin count went down enough today that we were released from the hospital. It's so great to be back home. Another great thing that happened today was that we saw our labor & delivery nurse, Gregg. We stopped by L&D on our way out and he was working. So great to see him!

Here are the pictures I was promising yesterday afternoon before I knew we'd be spending 24 hours in the hospital:

Vogue



Pensive



What you talking 'bout Willis?



Happy Girl



Daddy is the burp master!



Waiting to take her blood test at the lab



Trying to sun her at home before we found out she had to go to the hospital



Well, of course we'll have some more pictures soon! We even got some of her in the "tanning bed". Right now littles is spending time with Super Auntie and DH is making lobster sandwiches for dinner. Much better than hospital food again!

Happy Friday to everyone.

Pediatrician just checked her out and we can hopefully go home today or tonight... Blood test at noon. Still working on her LA "tan". Pedicure is next. Hee.

Good news! Second blood test results just came back from the lab and bilirubin levels have come down... We may be able to go home tomorrow afternoon...

Good thing we live close so dh went home to get stuff. It really sucks having her in this thing but I say all LA girls need their tanning bed sessions.

Well... Turns out she is too jaundiced. We headed back to the hospital for photo therapy. We thought it would be an hour or so but we are in for the night.

First Pediatrican Appointment & Thoughts on Parenting So Far

Today we took the little one to see Dr. Huang - best pediatrician ever. Our action plan was to get ourselves ready first, get a diaper bag ready, get her ready, then feed her right before we had to leave so she'd be more happy for the trip. I'd say the plan worked pretty well. She got upset getting into the car seat but then she was okay.

The pediatrician appointment went fairly well. It turns out she is jaundiced so we had to take her downstairs to the lab to do a blood test. This was so sad for our little one! I tried to keep her on the breast most of the time so she had something else to focus on but it was still pretty upsetting. We are waiting for the results from the test to see if we will have to bring her into the hospital for photo-therapy. In the meantime, we are exposing her to sun in the house the best we can - 1/2 hour on one side and 1/2 hour on the other side. She's like a little tanning diva. We'll see how it goes.

So being a parent...what a trip! I can't believe it. I think my emotional state can be summed up by this little anecdote:

Last night DH went to pick up yet another lens for the new camera. At least he got this one used from Craigslist. Seriously the guy is now a camera hobbyist. So while he was gone, I thought that I would read littles this book:



It's a cute story about a big bunny and a little bunny and well, how much they love each other. I couldn't even get through half without breaking down sobbing! I just love this little person so much I can't even get over it. She is so perfect and beautiful and I can't believe she is here.

I was actually kind of nervous about how I would feel after the birth. I definitely felt her presence as I was pregnant but I had trouble visualizing what it would be like to have a baby. It is so much better than I ever would have thought. I keep thinking of that quote "my cup runneth over" - I think it was from the movie Hope Floats. I never thought I would be so bowled over by love so entirely. DH and I just love laying with her and looking at her, touching her little limbs and kissing her cute little head. We're so proud of how well her vacuum "hickey" is healing and just how robust she is. Of course we think she's the smartest and cutest baby in the entire world. And she actually is really well behaved - it's awesome.

I think about how lucky I am to have a husband who is sharing all this with me - I know some moms do it on their own. He is great - he is the burping champion. I do the feeding and then he walks her around and does the burping. He just has this great touch I don't have. He even does changes and everything. Oh and he feeds me which can be a tough job!

I also think about the small silly details - like how funny it is that I even bought waterproof mascara to the hospital. I look like I straight survived a war zone in the birth pictures - I have these mild black eyes, I think from all the pushing and probably all the blood running down for the birth process. Oh my gosh, even if I had lush full lashes in a perfect color I still would have looked like a mess.

One thing that I actually DON'T think about that much is the birth itself and the pain. I had heard that you basically forget all about it and it's true. I also heard people say before - nothing else matters in the birth - the only important thing is having your healthy baby. I pretty much believed that but I was kind of worked up about trying to have the natural birth and how much "better" that is for the baby and all this. You know, I had it all folks - pitocin, epidural, prostoglandin, vacuum - I don't think it affected our bonding at all. She is breastfeeding like a champ and I really think it's all fine. It would have been great if I did have a natural birth but I can't believe how unimportant it is in the scheme of things. I think about what I will do if we have another child and I'm just not sure yet. I certainly wouldn't want another identical labor and delivery but also it wasn't the worst thing in the world. Yes, I had to have an episiotomy and things are kind of crazy down there but that can happen with natural births too.

Well anyway, I guess all I can say to those of you who are pregnant with your first and reading this - don't worry to much about the birth process. Whatever happens, as long as you and your baby get through it healthy - it is a success. You will forget all about it soon enough. It's just not something to have a chip on your shoulder about either way.

Lastly, I want to add that being a parent can be humbling. I remember when some of my friends would say "I didn't even have time to take a shower today" and I would feel all smug and think of them as helicopter parents. I mean, of course you have time to take a little shower - just don't freak out. The baby will be okay! Well, there have been days where I have missed a shower. I just can't tear myself away. But now that my milk has come in she sleeps for longer stretches so hopefully it will get better. And of course I still have DH here which is really helpful. But it's just funny. Also I remember my mom saying your nipples get sore from breast feeding and I thought well - she just didn't know about proper latch technique like I read in the books. Ha ha ha. Well yes, I try my best but you can't always get it just right and yes, your nipples get sore. You just deal with it. I am sure for the rest of the little one's life I'll find that my prior thoughts about something were just dead wrong - it's all part of the journey.

Well, I was going to close this with some pictures of littles but DH is really taking his time selecting them. We have about a zillion as you can imagine. So hopefully I'll have some to post later this afternoon.

Thanks to everyone for all the congratulatory messages - we appreciate each and every one. This is truly a celebration for us and the happiest days of my life so far. I just can't imagine anything better.

Our Birth Story

Shoot! The slideshow has been deleted accidentally....technical difficulty. I will try to fix.
-The Mama

Ps... She is perfect!!!

Will blog birth story and pics when we have time...constantly breast feeding...she is an amazing eater...

Just wanted to say that all is well and we are home. Got home yesterday...deadline from hospital on name is tomorrow so we are working on that...

Our baby came into the world at 7:06 pm today, Saturday august 15th, weighing 7 pounds 9 ounces and measuring 20 and 1/2 inches. It was a difficult labor, but that is a story for another day. Mom and daughter are healthy and resting.

More Fun Visitors - Still Waiting

Well, I am still just waiting for something to happen. No signs, no nothing. I guess I just have to sit tight!

Today we had our friends Heather & John over - no pictures though because I wasn't wearing makeup and I was wearing that green old Navy dress again that is really starting to look worn out. Lucky I bought it in two colors because I basically just trade off and wear those most days. They are so comfortable. They are starting to look kind of nubby and worn out but I will just keep wearing them!!

Today I officially finished buying everything I wanted for the birth. I went to Ross and got the BEST robe ever. I had been looking and looking for a robe and had basically given up that I would find one I liked. Most cute ones are those really thick ones that are like poofy bath towels. But this one I found is still terry cloth but lighter weight. It has a hood and pockets, it's just so great. It also happens to match my gownie!!! Yes! So now I feel like I have everything I need for the hospital.

**If you are a guy and reading this you will want to skip this next paragraph**

I also found some witch hazel today. I bought that because our birth class instructor told us to soak some pantyliners in witch hazel and put them in the freezer. They are supposed to feel nice after the birth for some soothing. I also bought a spray bottle because she said it's nice to fill with warm water and spritz yourself when you have to urinate post birth. Just makes things feel more comfortable.

**OK for guys to start reading again**

So anyway, more waiting and waiting. DH and I thought it would be fun if Baby C was born this Saturday the 15th. It's the 4 year anniversary of our first date! For those of you who don't know, we met on eharmony. I think it's the best dating website there is and I've tried a few. Some people think that dating on the internet is for losers but I totally disagree. I met lots of guys in different places: work, bars, through friends, etc.... but I think eharmony was just so wonderful. I really believe DH and I are matched so well personality-wise. We never fight. Really. And it's not because we're both just avoiding fighting. We just really get along and agree on the big fundamental things in life. We truly respect and protect one another - we are a very strong unit. Hopefully that strength will help us through the tough sleepless nights of having a newborn.

Well friends, tomorrow is Friday! TGIF! Enjoy it!

Pizza Night - Yeah! & Visit from Tiffiny

Today was a good day. My dear husband made pizza from scratch - well, everything but the sauce. We've found that you can use sauce from a jar but it really makes a difference if you make your own dough. It's pretty easy, you just have to leave enough time to let it rise. It really makes for delicious pizza - and we have leftovers too - mmm.

Another great thing today was that my friend Tiffiny and her daughter Ella came and visited us. Here we are:




Tiffiny and I have been friends since we were 13 years old! Wow! DH got some cute ones of Ella but I wasn't sure if Tiffiny wanted her up on the blog. I guess I didn't ask Tiff's permission to go on here herself but I just took the liberty. :P

I have to say that Ella is so well behaved and a great kid but this is because my friend Tiffiny is an awesome mom. From what we've discussed about raising kids, she and I agree pretty much on how to do things. I hope that I can do as great of a job as she does - she is really an inspiration. Even DH was very complimentary of how great she does and how well mannered Ella is. Now you know if a guy notices - that is some great parenting.

I feel lucky to have a bunch of friends who are already moms to be role models to me in many ways and people to bounce my crazy ideas off of.

Oh - and if today wasn't nice enough - I received a very cute gift from my friend Sarah: a cool outfit for Baby C! It's a spiffy Dutch brand and hey I love the Dutch! Always fun to get fun little surprises in the mail.

Work has still been clipping along but not as bad as last week, thankfully. Everyone keeps asking me when the baby will be here! Well, I have no clue. Even our doula called today to check in. But nothing really is happening. All I know is it will be sometime in between now and August 23 (when I will have to induce if she's not here).

Oh, man, I think that some of my pictures from the blog may have been deleted from the blog by Picasa. I did this huge backup of all our picture files and moved them around. So I'll have to go peeping around on the blog to see what damage was done - darn it.

Well that's it. Another day closer to being a mom.

Another Busy Day & Sweet Baby Fashion

Well, I had another very busy day today - lots going on at work still. However, I also got to do some fun stuff - I met my friend Paige from birth class for lunch in Westwood before her 38 week appointment. We had a good time laughing about pregnancy stuff and just getting to know each other better. It's really great to have someone to talk to who is pretty much at the same place in the pregnancy. So we're both just waiting around for our babies to come!

I got around to washing and sorting the clothes that my friend Katja gave to me and I can't believe how much there is! It is so exciting. Even DH was like "wow - she gave you all that?" We are very thankful!

Here are a couple of pictures of Baby C's primary clothing drawer:

Everything in this drawer is just for 6 months and younger! We have another drawer for 6-12 months that is also getting pretty filled up. I also have a drawer with little sleep sack type things and socks. How cute are all these little clothes? I think Baby C has more to wear than me! Certainly if you just count my maternity clothes - I feel like I've been wearing the same thing every day forever. Today I changed it up a little because I went out. Woo.

Tomorrow my friend Tiffiny and her daughter Ella are coming for a little visit so that will be fun.
Have a good one everyone!

Waiting Around for Labor - Similar to Waiting to Get Pregnant

So here I am at week 39 according to my ultrasound or week 40 according to my last menstrual period. I am not quite sure why I keep insisting on listing both but well, that's just how it is. This time reminds me a lot of when we were trying to get pregnant. It took us about 5 months and I remember every month I thought I had pregnancy symptoms, only to get my period again. You know, you read all the books and you're thinking - hmm, maybe I am tired and nauseous, maybe my breasts are swollen - I must be pregnant! But then, nothing. You realize you are just making it up because you want to be pregnant.

Of course, we got pregnant the one month that I totally gave up trying - November. I thought shoot, this is hard so let's just get through the holidays and try again. Besides, I wanted to be able to drink on Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years... Well, that plan didn't work out. I even chilled at my work holiday party fully sober. Definitely not half as entertaining than going and drinking it up but at least we saved money by not having to cab it.

Anyway - this time is a lot like that. Our doula told us that when you are getting close to labor, sometimes your face looks more ashen and you get dark circles under your eyes because all the blood is flowing down to your uterus & the baby. So of course every morning when I wake up I think that I have more dark circles than the day before. But really I think it's just that I am not wearing makeup and I'm looking so closely.

Another possible labor symptom is feeling like you have the flu - being more tired, etc. So of course I keep thinking I feel more tired. But really I think I'm just psyching myself out. From what I've heard from all my mom friends - you definitely know when labor is upon you. Although I do have a friend who made it to 5 cm dilated without knowing she was in labor.

Well anyway, nothing really happening here, despite me psyching myself out all the time. I am still working and there is actually quite a few things to finish up. Not nearly as bad as last week when I was slammed but still, definitely stuff to do. Continuing to drink tons of water and eat as healthfully as I can. Have replaced ice cream with sugar free, fat free instant pudding mix!!


















Hello! So much more healthy than the ice cream! I am not sure if I wrote here but I was really bummed to find out that the little generic brand ice creams we were eating and thought were under 200 calories - well, they were 2 servings per container! This is so much crap. I mean, they are these tiny things that come with their own little spoon - one spoon. They are not re-sealable. So what you are supposed to share with someone and share the little spoon? I was so bummed. What a bunch of jerks!!!!

So the cool thing about the pudding mix is that even if DH and I split the whole recipe (four servings) - two servings of pudding is still less calories than any one serving of the ice creams. So we get to eat a whole bunch more for less calories and no fat. We use fat free milk. So this is our new dessert of choice. So far I've really enjoyed the banana, cheesecake and pistachio flavors. I even put a little bit of finely chopped dark chocolate on top of the cheesecake flavor last night. Mmm, it was good.

OK - queue the Jeopardy theme song for more waiting and waiting!

3 Down, 3 To Go

So out of the 6 women in our birthing class, 3 have already had their babies! Everything is going great with the babies that have been born and I am so glad. I'm actually the next in line due date wise, but again, you never know.

It's so nice that everyone from birth class is keeping up with one another. DH and I actually want to host a little meet and greet party once all the babies are born and everyone is settled - like a mini-reunion. Hopefully that will work out.

Well, not much on our radar for today. I think I may go to Ross to get some more thank you cards. I tell you, running out of thank you cards is a great problem to have because it means we have a lot to be thankful for.

Also, some sad news to report. This weekend, our super bro & sis lost their cat Jack. It is a big tragedy because he was young and not supposed to go this way! He was a great cat and very loved by his family. :(

Car Seat Installed

Today we got our car seat installed. It actually wasn't too bad. We ended up buying the Graco Snugride in Brentwood. Yes, we are so fancy, Brentwood:






















I actually liked it better than some of the other color combos because it is gender neutral and some of the others were pretty ugly. All in all, it's just two big pieces of plastic with kind of cheapy padding but whatever, it has a good safety rating.

We were actually going to get the Chicco Keyfit - which had the best safety rating according to Consumer Reports - but my friend Shawna had this to loan us:




















This strange contraption is a connector that can snap the Graco Snugride into the Bugaboo Frog stroller. Not sure if we'll end up using that option but the little connector is like $40 so I thought why not just get the seat that works with this in case we need it.

You can see a fashionable celebrity type person with the Snugride / Bugaboo setup here:





















Car seats are so crazy - the one we have is only good until the baby is 22 pounds. Then we have to get the next size car seat. It's actually California law that kids have to be "properly restrained in the rear seat" until they are 6 years or older or weigh 60 pounds or more. So I guess we'll be dealing with this stuff for quite some time.

We also purchased some car seat accessories -

My friend Monique recommended this mat - it protects your car from being dented by the car seat or scratched... it also has some pockets in the front that look like they can be helpful for storing things...





















We also installed the Baby in Sight Mega Mirror, seemed like a good idea.















So that's it for our car seat stuff! I was kind of dreading the installation but it was really pretty simple. I was thinking of going to the police station or the fire department and having them check on the installation but I doubt it's necessary. Our car has the LATCH system and it went in pretty easily. DH feels pretty good about it and I agree.

So yeah, that was pretty much the last thing we had left to do. I do have to put away the clothes that my friend Katja brought over so I guess I can do that tomorrow. I also have to wash all my breast pump stuff but I was going to wait on that.

OK baby - we're ready for you! Now, we wait.