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Thursday, December 11, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
bittersweet...
as i enjoy my beautiful children, i think often now of a little boy named milo who is battling a terminal brain cancer. after many months of surgeries and chemotherapy, it seemed to be going well... a miracle even. and then, out of the blue, the tumor returned. he's clay's age. what kind of heartache would it be to know that every moment spent with your child could be his last... to know that he will never grow up. parents aren't supposed to live longer than their children.
every day, i look at both my children and feel incredibly blessed... i wonder if i would be able to bear it if i lost them.
this heartbreaking situation with milo has made me realize how precious my time with my own children is... every minute. live every moment like it could be yours... or their last. nothing else is more important... you can never be too busy to spend a moment with your child or enjoy the world through your child's eyes.
here is a poem that i've always loved:
every day, i look at both my children and feel incredibly blessed... i wonder if i would be able to bear it if i lost them.
this heartbreaking situation with milo has made me realize how precious my time with my own children is... every minute. live every moment like it could be yours... or their last. nothing else is more important... you can never be too busy to spend a moment with your child or enjoy the world through your child's eyes.
here is a poem that i've always loved:
Cleaning and scrubbing can wait for tomorrow,
For babies grow up, I've learned, to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust, go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby, and babies don't keep.
(Ruth Hulburt Hamilton)
tonight, i find myself without words, when usually, i cannot stop writing. but then, there really aren't words to describe the kind of heartache one feels when someone they love is suffering. i cannot imagine what milo's parents... and all the other people whose lives he's touched... must be feeling right now. please pray for this sweet little boy and his family.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
another adventure...
nick wanted to go on a road trip to ohio while i had maternity leave, so we all set off in the minivan. yeah... i know what you're thinking. was i crazy? yes, quite possibly. but we did survive.
we actually drove straight through on the first day and left at 4 am and got to cleveland about 6pm that same day. i do not recommend doing this with small children. the plan was to just get clay out of bed and put him in the car seat right before we left and let him sleep in the car, but he did not cooperate with this at all. he woke up, and stayed awake from 4 am on. he did not go back to sleep, in fact, until we were about an hour away from cleveland, and by then he was exhausted.
ethan did better; he slept the whole way, and nursed when we stopped at rest areas. however, i think i accidentally flashed a trucker at one of the rest areas. i was nursing ethan in the van, and we were parked near a semi where a trucker was sitting reading the paper. i didn't think he was paying much attention, but ethan moved his head and i suddenly noticed the trucker was no longer reading his paper, but staring at the van. hmmmm... guess i gave him an unintended eyeful. probably gave him something to talk about in an otherwise uneventful day. at any rate, when ethan started nursing again, he went back to his paper. probably was a bit of a shock to see until he realized i was just nursing a baby, and not delivering a peep show.
i actually had to pump while we were driving a few times as he got hungry and needed to eat before we could make stops. that worked pretty well, too, if you can handle covering yourself with a blanket, staying covered, and managing to pump all at the same time. i also do not recommend this practice while riding in the car. however, it kept ethan happy, so it worked out.
once we got to the hotel, we were all exhausted, and i went to bed when clay did. however, despite the fact that he had to be exhausted, he was awake at 6:30 the next day. in fact, i woke up to see his little face about an inch from mine.
"mommy, are you awake?" he asked brightly. well, after that, i was... i was wide awake. nothing like waking up to see someone staring at you. but we had fun. clay swam in the pool and loved checking out the "hot pool". he was very impressed with the "bubbles" in the hot tub, and thinks we need to have one at home. i agree, but i don't think our budget would.
at any rate, we are back home, and i have a nice pile of laundry waiting for me, so i suppose i should go and sort that out. yay...
we actually drove straight through on the first day and left at 4 am and got to cleveland about 6pm that same day. i do not recommend doing this with small children. the plan was to just get clay out of bed and put him in the car seat right before we left and let him sleep in the car, but he did not cooperate with this at all. he woke up, and stayed awake from 4 am on. he did not go back to sleep, in fact, until we were about an hour away from cleveland, and by then he was exhausted.
ethan did better; he slept the whole way, and nursed when we stopped at rest areas. however, i think i accidentally flashed a trucker at one of the rest areas. i was nursing ethan in the van, and we were parked near a semi where a trucker was sitting reading the paper. i didn't think he was paying much attention, but ethan moved his head and i suddenly noticed the trucker was no longer reading his paper, but staring at the van. hmmmm... guess i gave him an unintended eyeful. probably gave him something to talk about in an otherwise uneventful day. at any rate, when ethan started nursing again, he went back to his paper. probably was a bit of a shock to see until he realized i was just nursing a baby, and not delivering a peep show.
i actually had to pump while we were driving a few times as he got hungry and needed to eat before we could make stops. that worked pretty well, too, if you can handle covering yourself with a blanket, staying covered, and managing to pump all at the same time. i also do not recommend this practice while riding in the car. however, it kept ethan happy, so it worked out.
once we got to the hotel, we were all exhausted, and i went to bed when clay did. however, despite the fact that he had to be exhausted, he was awake at 6:30 the next day. in fact, i woke up to see his little face about an inch from mine.
"mommy, are you awake?" he asked brightly. well, after that, i was... i was wide awake. nothing like waking up to see someone staring at you. but we had fun. clay swam in the pool and loved checking out the "hot pool". he was very impressed with the "bubbles" in the hot tub, and thinks we need to have one at home. i agree, but i don't think our budget would.
at any rate, we are back home, and i have a nice pile of laundry waiting for me, so i suppose i should go and sort that out. yay...
Friday, October 31, 2008
the big arrival
as most of you know, i've been in clinicals for school -- the last day was the 17th of october; ethan was due on the 19th. so i was a bit nervous about when he'd decide to make his appearance. the weekend before (the 11th), i started having contractions. i thought (rather foolishly) that these were the start of *painful* contractions (insert laugh here). as it was, these built up, but nothing came of them and i made it through the week. saturday passed, and nothing happened, and then we arrived at the due date. during that last week, i'd been reading stuff on natural delivery, and one of the tips was to visualize the baby coming out the birth canal and visualize holding it -- this would help manage the pain. another tip was not to push, but to allow the baby to move down the birth canal...
i decided to take a walk, to get things moving. at this point, i was huge, and waddled like a duck, and ready to have the baby. speaking of huge, i was going to measure my belly every month and lovingly record the changes, but alas, that did not happen. by that last month, "lovingly" was not a word i would use to describe the feelings i had towards my huge girth or my weight. i think i gained 30 lbs with this one.
but anyway, back to my story. i decided to take a walk. so i took off (or rather waddled) down our road, and walked about a mile. one of the neighbors saw me and came out to meet me. she was worried that i might go into labor right there in the road, and decided she'd better walk with me... just in case.
thankfully, that did not happen. i went home, a bit discouraged -- still no contractions. so after lunch, i took a nap, and then got this incredible urge to clean. our closet rod had broken and although nick had fixed the closet rod, he had not put the clothes back, so i decided to put all the clothes back, and get rid of the stuff we didn't wear anymore (namely, my twiggy jeans that i will never again fit into).
then, i carried a huge basket of laundry upstairs and was intending to put the clothes away when my water broke. thankfully i wasn't out in public, because it was something akin to a dam bursting. so i waddled downstairs (rather awkwardly) and informed nick that my water had broken. this was about 7:00 pm. so much for the articles that said that the woman's water breaking (like it does in the movies) in a huge gush without any warning rarely happens... why am i always among that tiny percentage?
"are you sure you ain't just peed your pants?" he asked. "i thought pregnant women had a problem with that,"
"that's afterwards," i snapped, irritated, "and i think i can tell the difference!"
he continued to watch the game. i called the midwife. "is this your first one?" she asked.
"my second," i told her, "but my first regular delivery; my first was c-section".
the midwife informed me it would no doubt be a long night, but to come in and we'd get things started. i called my mom, all excited and giddy, and she said she'd meet me at the hospital.
at this point, i wasn't in too much pain yet and decided to finish putting the clothes away and make the bed. you know, like making the bed is the most important thing in the world to do when you know you're going into labor.
by the time we got out the door -- we had to take clay potty, let the dogs out, grab my stuff, and nick wanted to brush his teeth (!), it was probably about 45 minutes later, and the contractions were starting to get my attention. you would think, with it taking us that long to get out the door, that we would not have forgotten anything; however, nick forgot the camera. however, i was not thinking of that at the moment; what had my attention was that the van was almost on empty, and according to the mileage clock, we had about 4-5 miles left before we were indeed empty. which was not good, as town was 7 miles away.
so i'm breathing with my contractions, which were about 5-6 mins apart, and also silently willing the van to make it into town. thankfully, we made it. for probably the very first time in my life, i told nick not to speed. i was imagining being stopped by an over zealous cop for speeding and having the baby on the highway, while he wrote a big fat ticket. alas, neither happened. nick did not slow down, and we did not get stopped.
finally, we made it to the hospital and got checked in at about 8:30 p.m. i waddled into the the emergency room and checked in and wrapped my coat around my waist because i kept leaking the amniotic fluid and it really did look like i had peed my pants by the time we got to the hospital. i opted for a ride in the wheelchair.
so finally, i get to my room and was informed that because i was vbac, that i would have to be started on pitocin because they didn't think i would progress on my own without it. they suggested that i sleep til about 4am and then they would start the pit. i was horrified; i didn't want pitocin. i wanted to do it on my own. so we decided that i would try on my own for a bit, and then see how things were going.
for those of you *lucky* enough to have had pitocin, you know exactly why i didn't want it, since it makes the contractions stronger and harder. and since i wanted to go natural, this wasn't something that exactly thrilled me. at any rate, they checked me at 9pm and i was only dilated to 2. by that time, i was feeling the contractions, and i started thinking... um... if this is how it feels without the pitocin, what is it gonna be like with that crap?!
as for resting, yeah, that wasn't an option. my contractions were now about 2-3 minutes apart, and i really couldn't get comfortable. at one point, i got on my knees and rested on my arms, to take the pressure off my back. i'm sure i looked bizarre, with my big, fat arse up in the air, while i was swaying back and forth on the bed, trying to get comfortable. i pity whoever had to see that. at any rate, it did feel better for awhile. however, ethan's head was quite low, so there was so much pressure, that nothing really felt comfortable. they checked me again at 2am, and i was only a 3 yet. this was not promising.
about an hour later, i really wanted to get into the warm tub, but i knew that getting in the water too early could actually slow the labor process, so i was trying to hold off until i had further progressed, and the pain was really bad. except that the pain was pretty bad now, but i didn't think i'd progressed enough. so i concentrated on breathing. as for visualizing the baby, yeah right; that didn't happen. i was pretty focused on breathing through the contractions and that was pretty calming. at about 3 am, i felt like i had to push, and since the urge to push usually comes later, they checked me again and discovered i was at a 7. well, that explained the pain intensity of the last hour. needless to say, i got in the tub. we called nick to let him know that he should come down (he was home with clay), and things started (finally) happening.
the tub was heaven. it didn't exactly take all the pain away, but it was alot better. i was able to relax a bit and stay focused. at about 3:30am, i was ready to push, and so got out of the tub. i don't really think i need to add that letting the baby "move down the birth canal with the contractions" was a load of malarky; pushing is hard work. or maybe the fact that ethan was ten pounds had something to do with it as well. at any rate, he wasn't coming out all by himself.
my dad arrived a bit before nick did, and a bit before the baby came out. i think the nurse told me, "your dad is here, do you want him to come in?" um... no.... i love my dad very much, but he does not need to see me like that. i was, at that moment, in the middle of pushing, and managed to get out, "nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!". i think i sounded more like a cow, but they got the message.
i did try visualizing the baby coming out at this point, but it did not lessen the pain any; but it did give me something to focus on. i figured once his head was born, that it would be easy street from there on. i blame the big heads on nicks side of the family. clays head was big too. nick says its because his family has more brains.
about ten minutes later, ethan was finally born, and i was able to hold him right away. there is nothing like holding your baby to make you forget the pain. he was beautiful. he just looked at me and was very calm, once he was in my arms, and he started nursing almost right away.
nick got there about this time, and came in and held my hand, while dad watched clay til things got cleaned up a bit. this time, nick had the camera, and took a few pictures. the midwife was very happy that everything had gone so well.
i called my friend becky (who had given me strict orders to call her no matter what time of day it was) and told her ethan had been born. she then asks me, "so, are you gonna try this natural thing with your next one?"
i pondered this for a bit. "give me a while before you ask that again," i said. i was a bit exhausted.
but the answer is yes, definitely. despite the pain, it was truly a beautiful experience.
i decided to take a walk, to get things moving. at this point, i was huge, and waddled like a duck, and ready to have the baby. speaking of huge, i was going to measure my belly every month and lovingly record the changes, but alas, that did not happen. by that last month, "lovingly" was not a word i would use to describe the feelings i had towards my huge girth or my weight. i think i gained 30 lbs with this one.
but anyway, back to my story. i decided to take a walk. so i took off (or rather waddled) down our road, and walked about a mile. one of the neighbors saw me and came out to meet me. she was worried that i might go into labor right there in the road, and decided she'd better walk with me... just in case.
thankfully, that did not happen. i went home, a bit discouraged -- still no contractions. so after lunch, i took a nap, and then got this incredible urge to clean. our closet rod had broken and although nick had fixed the closet rod, he had not put the clothes back, so i decided to put all the clothes back, and get rid of the stuff we didn't wear anymore (namely, my twiggy jeans that i will never again fit into).
then, i carried a huge basket of laundry upstairs and was intending to put the clothes away when my water broke. thankfully i wasn't out in public, because it was something akin to a dam bursting. so i waddled downstairs (rather awkwardly) and informed nick that my water had broken. this was about 7:00 pm. so much for the articles that said that the woman's water breaking (like it does in the movies) in a huge gush without any warning rarely happens... why am i always among that tiny percentage?
"are you sure you ain't just peed your pants?" he asked. "i thought pregnant women had a problem with that,"
"that's afterwards," i snapped, irritated, "and i think i can tell the difference!"
he continued to watch the game. i called the midwife. "is this your first one?" she asked.
"my second," i told her, "but my first regular delivery; my first was c-section".
the midwife informed me it would no doubt be a long night, but to come in and we'd get things started. i called my mom, all excited and giddy, and she said she'd meet me at the hospital.
at this point, i wasn't in too much pain yet and decided to finish putting the clothes away and make the bed. you know, like making the bed is the most important thing in the world to do when you know you're going into labor.
by the time we got out the door -- we had to take clay potty, let the dogs out, grab my stuff, and nick wanted to brush his teeth (!), it was probably about 45 minutes later, and the contractions were starting to get my attention. you would think, with it taking us that long to get out the door, that we would not have forgotten anything; however, nick forgot the camera. however, i was not thinking of that at the moment; what had my attention was that the van was almost on empty, and according to the mileage clock, we had about 4-5 miles left before we were indeed empty. which was not good, as town was 7 miles away.
so i'm breathing with my contractions, which were about 5-6 mins apart, and also silently willing the van to make it into town. thankfully, we made it. for probably the very first time in my life, i told nick not to speed. i was imagining being stopped by an over zealous cop for speeding and having the baby on the highway, while he wrote a big fat ticket. alas, neither happened. nick did not slow down, and we did not get stopped.
finally, we made it to the hospital and got checked in at about 8:30 p.m. i waddled into the the emergency room and checked in and wrapped my coat around my waist because i kept leaking the amniotic fluid and it really did look like i had peed my pants by the time we got to the hospital. i opted for a ride in the wheelchair.
so finally, i get to my room and was informed that because i was vbac, that i would have to be started on pitocin because they didn't think i would progress on my own without it. they suggested that i sleep til about 4am and then they would start the pit. i was horrified; i didn't want pitocin. i wanted to do it on my own. so we decided that i would try on my own for a bit, and then see how things were going.
for those of you *lucky* enough to have had pitocin, you know exactly why i didn't want it, since it makes the contractions stronger and harder. and since i wanted to go natural, this wasn't something that exactly thrilled me. at any rate, they checked me at 9pm and i was only dilated to 2. by that time, i was feeling the contractions, and i started thinking... um... if this is how it feels without the pitocin, what is it gonna be like with that crap?!
as for resting, yeah, that wasn't an option. my contractions were now about 2-3 minutes apart, and i really couldn't get comfortable. at one point, i got on my knees and rested on my arms, to take the pressure off my back. i'm sure i looked bizarre, with my big, fat arse up in the air, while i was swaying back and forth on the bed, trying to get comfortable. i pity whoever had to see that. at any rate, it did feel better for awhile. however, ethan's head was quite low, so there was so much pressure, that nothing really felt comfortable. they checked me again at 2am, and i was only a 3 yet. this was not promising.
about an hour later, i really wanted to get into the warm tub, but i knew that getting in the water too early could actually slow the labor process, so i was trying to hold off until i had further progressed, and the pain was really bad. except that the pain was pretty bad now, but i didn't think i'd progressed enough. so i concentrated on breathing. as for visualizing the baby, yeah right; that didn't happen. i was pretty focused on breathing through the contractions and that was pretty calming. at about 3 am, i felt like i had to push, and since the urge to push usually comes later, they checked me again and discovered i was at a 7. well, that explained the pain intensity of the last hour. needless to say, i got in the tub. we called nick to let him know that he should come down (he was home with clay), and things started (finally) happening.
the tub was heaven. it didn't exactly take all the pain away, but it was alot better. i was able to relax a bit and stay focused. at about 3:30am, i was ready to push, and so got out of the tub. i don't really think i need to add that letting the baby "move down the birth canal with the contractions" was a load of malarky; pushing is hard work. or maybe the fact that ethan was ten pounds had something to do with it as well. at any rate, he wasn't coming out all by himself.
my dad arrived a bit before nick did, and a bit before the baby came out. i think the nurse told me, "your dad is here, do you want him to come in?" um... no.... i love my dad very much, but he does not need to see me like that. i was, at that moment, in the middle of pushing, and managed to get out, "nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!". i think i sounded more like a cow, but they got the message.
i did try visualizing the baby coming out at this point, but it did not lessen the pain any; but it did give me something to focus on. i figured once his head was born, that it would be easy street from there on. i blame the big heads on nicks side of the family. clays head was big too. nick says its because his family has more brains.
about ten minutes later, ethan was finally born, and i was able to hold him right away. there is nothing like holding your baby to make you forget the pain. he was beautiful. he just looked at me and was very calm, once he was in my arms, and he started nursing almost right away.
nick got there about this time, and came in and held my hand, while dad watched clay til things got cleaned up a bit. this time, nick had the camera, and took a few pictures. the midwife was very happy that everything had gone so well.
i called my friend becky (who had given me strict orders to call her no matter what time of day it was) and told her ethan had been born. she then asks me, "so, are you gonna try this natural thing with your next one?"
i pondered this for a bit. "give me a while before you ask that again," i said. i was a bit exhausted.
but the answer is yes, definitely. despite the pain, it was truly a beautiful experience.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
love...
last week, one of my fellow students had the sad experience of seeing one of her patients die. the patient's husband stayed by her side every minute, and towards the end, he said to her, "i'll love you til the day i die." then, he said, "i'd marry you all over again."
this touched me quite profoundly. i wasn't even there, yet it made me cry; i could almost see it in my mind. it was so sad, but so beautiful at the same time.
that is the best kind of love. to be able to look back and know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that if you could do it all over again, you'ld choose the same person, and love all over again, no matter how heartbreaking the end was.
every once in awhile, someone touches your life in a way that leaves you almost breathless, it is so beautiful and tender.
i don't ever want to lose anyone i love. but i hope that in the end, the people i love will have no regrets with me.
this touched me quite profoundly. i wasn't even there, yet it made me cry; i could almost see it in my mind. it was so sad, but so beautiful at the same time.
that is the best kind of love. to be able to look back and know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that if you could do it all over again, you'ld choose the same person, and love all over again, no matter how heartbreaking the end was.
every once in awhile, someone touches your life in a way that leaves you almost breathless, it is so beautiful and tender.
i don't ever want to lose anyone i love. but i hope that in the end, the people i love will have no regrets with me.
Friday, October 10, 2008
not part of the job description
i came into clinicals today to find out that one of the patients i was supposed to have had gone a bit mad in the night. angry about something, a sweet little 90 year old dear had turned into a mad hag, beating the aide with her cane, and then biting the poor girl when she attempted to take the cane from her. the girl still bore the souvenir of the bite marks, firmly imprinted on her forearm, over four hours later. sounds like an episode off of scrubs... or perhaps house, except that the patient had no mysterious underlying condition that caused the sudden personality switch. at any rate, it was decided she would not be my patient, given the fact that i'm hugely pregnant and being beaten with a cane would not be in my best interest (although i doubt that aide who was beaten over the head last night thought it was in her best interest either).
so... its not always quiet at the hospital. once in a while, something *exciting* happens. although i'm not sure that when the job description states that as a nurse you'll be a part of a strong team, in an exciting environment, that the above situation was the kind of *excitement* they were talking about.
bet even though not all the aspects of nursing is glamorous, there's something special about nursing that makes you want to go back; even when the day is a really rough one, and even if the patients are not so great. its knowing you have helped make a difference (in a good way), and being there for someone when they need help the most.
i had a very busy, but good day today. i had only three patients, but i had to start 3 IV's, got a million doctor's orders, numerous med changes, but managed to get everything done in time and still emerge sane 8 hours later. its really fun when doctors tell you one thing and then give an order for the complete opposite ("let's hold off on the diuretics until the patient is less dehydrated", and then, not ten minutes later, write an order for hydroclorothiazide 12.5 mg ( a diuretic) to be given NOW. then, when clarifying this contradiction, the doctor's nurse tells you that its "okay because the patient is completely rehydrated now..."
strangely enough, my day doesn't sound like a whole lot when its down on paper. oh well... it seemed busy. anyway, only 2 more clinical days after this one! so the end is in sight! :)
people keep looking at me all day long like i'm gonna pop or have the baby right there, but i think i'll make it. next check up is tuesday, so we'll see how far i've progressed. :)
well, that's all for now.
ciao!
nora
so... its not always quiet at the hospital. once in a while, something *exciting* happens. although i'm not sure that when the job description states that as a nurse you'll be a part of a strong team, in an exciting environment, that the above situation was the kind of *excitement* they were talking about.
bet even though not all the aspects of nursing is glamorous, there's something special about nursing that makes you want to go back; even when the day is a really rough one, and even if the patients are not so great. its knowing you have helped make a difference (in a good way), and being there for someone when they need help the most.
i had a very busy, but good day today. i had only three patients, but i had to start 3 IV's, got a million doctor's orders, numerous med changes, but managed to get everything done in time and still emerge sane 8 hours later. its really fun when doctors tell you one thing and then give an order for the complete opposite ("let's hold off on the diuretics until the patient is less dehydrated", and then, not ten minutes later, write an order for hydroclorothiazide 12.5 mg ( a diuretic) to be given NOW. then, when clarifying this contradiction, the doctor's nurse tells you that its "okay because the patient is completely rehydrated now..."
strangely enough, my day doesn't sound like a whole lot when its down on paper. oh well... it seemed busy. anyway, only 2 more clinical days after this one! so the end is in sight! :)
people keep looking at me all day long like i'm gonna pop or have the baby right there, but i think i'll make it. next check up is tuesday, so we'll see how far i've progressed. :)
well, that's all for now.
ciao!
nora
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
check up
had my weekly check up today, and baby is doing well. had a nice steady heart rate of 140. he's pretty mellow in there, just chillin' and occasionally giving me a nice kick to remind me he's around (not that i'd forget, being the size i am). he's dropped quite low now, and is definitely head down. could actually be any time now, although it would be nice to finish clinicals.
the play group is not open tomorrow, so i am going to attempt to finger paint with clay. i shall have to post pics. i have my old newsprint from art college, so those sheets will be nice and big. its supposed to be washable paint, so my floors shouldn't be destroyed if he gets anything on it. at any rate, it should be fun. with school, i don't get to spend as much fun time with clay as i'd like to. i'll be glad when i graduate.
at the moment, i should be doing research for a paper that is due on thursday, but i've hit a standstill and am taking a break. but now i should get back to work.
adieu for now,
nora
the play group is not open tomorrow, so i am going to attempt to finger paint with clay. i shall have to post pics. i have my old newsprint from art college, so those sheets will be nice and big. its supposed to be washable paint, so my floors shouldn't be destroyed if he gets anything on it. at any rate, it should be fun. with school, i don't get to spend as much fun time with clay as i'd like to. i'll be glad when i graduate.
at the moment, i should be doing research for a paper that is due on thursday, but i've hit a standstill and am taking a break. but now i should get back to work.
adieu for now,
nora
Monday, September 29, 2008
three more weeks to go!!!
i'm still hanging in there... albeit bigger and bulkier. the last few weeks have been spent writing papers for school, but those are done now and i can heave a big sigh of relief... for now. don't have much left to do to get ready, although i'm attempting to make a curtain to go in front of the changing table (were most of his clothes will be stored) and am on a hunt to find a little vintage table to store socks and nappies.
clay is still unsure that he wants to share his mommy and daddy with anyone else; he's gotten quite possessive. hopefully, he'll like his new brother. clay is growing up so fast! he's getting very tall (and skinny), like his daddy. he's been very imaginative lately, telling me long, detailed stories about his toys, especially his toy trucks, which he loves. oh and we mustn't forget his toy trains. thomas and the other train... he even kisses them good night.
we went to a play day at the sports center. he loved it, so i think we'll keep going. this monday, however, of course, i was busy, but plan on going again soon. its a huge room full of toys and slides and he can run as much as he wants. he can also make as big a mess as he wants and not have to clean it up. he was having so much fun last week that he turned down his snack, which is unheard of for clay! like his dad, he can eat extraordinary amounts of food and not gain an ounce. me on the other hand... (sigh).
i think tonight i will sit and relax and just enjoy watching him for the evening. it is much more relaxing than studying. :) i want to be sure i spend lots of time with him before the baby is born, so he doesn't feel left out. he is used to having all the attention.
adieu for now!
nora
clay is still unsure that he wants to share his mommy and daddy with anyone else; he's gotten quite possessive. hopefully, he'll like his new brother. clay is growing up so fast! he's getting very tall (and skinny), like his daddy. he's been very imaginative lately, telling me long, detailed stories about his toys, especially his toy trucks, which he loves. oh and we mustn't forget his toy trains. thomas and the other train... he even kisses them good night.
we went to a play day at the sports center. he loved it, so i think we'll keep going. this monday, however, of course, i was busy, but plan on going again soon. its a huge room full of toys and slides and he can run as much as he wants. he can also make as big a mess as he wants and not have to clean it up. he was having so much fun last week that he turned down his snack, which is unheard of for clay! like his dad, he can eat extraordinary amounts of food and not gain an ounce. me on the other hand... (sigh).
i think tonight i will sit and relax and just enjoy watching him for the evening. it is much more relaxing than studying. :) i want to be sure i spend lots of time with him before the baby is born, so he doesn't feel left out. he is used to having all the attention.
adieu for now!
nora
Saturday, September 13, 2008
5 more weeks to go!!!
only five more weeks til baby is due. i can't wait. i feel big and awkward; like a big walrus. if i sprout flippers and tusks, i won't be at all surprised. baby is starting to feel crowded and i think is trying to kick his way out sometimes. every once in a while, i'll get a particularly forceful jab from within, reminding me that i'm not the only one who's waiting until d-day. :)
i was looking at a website that gives helpful suggestions to expectant moms, and one of them was to wear satin pajamas or have satin sheets so that you could slide in and out of bed more easily. this sounds like a good idea til i think about how heavy i feel. i wonder if when i got into bed, if i would just continue sliding on those wonderfully slippery satin sheets and fly off the other side with the speed of a torpedo. so it's no to satin sheets. i'll take my chances with cotton for now. although, getting up is the awkward part. remember the weeble wobbles that kids used to play with about 30 years ago? well, anyway, they never fall over, they just wobble from side to side. well, that's kinda how i have to get up... wobble from side to side a bit to get momentum, and then haul myself upright. after this momentous amount of effort, i have to sit at the side of the bed and then finally, i can stand up. talk about work.
we are mostly ready, at any rate... just have to get a few odds and ends. but it's better this time; i know what i want and what is really necessary this time. :)
well, i'm off for now. clay has just discovered my back pack and has taken everything out and i have to go retrieve everything.
i was looking at a website that gives helpful suggestions to expectant moms, and one of them was to wear satin pajamas or have satin sheets so that you could slide in and out of bed more easily. this sounds like a good idea til i think about how heavy i feel. i wonder if when i got into bed, if i would just continue sliding on those wonderfully slippery satin sheets and fly off the other side with the speed of a torpedo. so it's no to satin sheets. i'll take my chances with cotton for now. although, getting up is the awkward part. remember the weeble wobbles that kids used to play with about 30 years ago? well, anyway, they never fall over, they just wobble from side to side. well, that's kinda how i have to get up... wobble from side to side a bit to get momentum, and then haul myself upright. after this momentous amount of effort, i have to sit at the side of the bed and then finally, i can stand up. talk about work.
we are mostly ready, at any rate... just have to get a few odds and ends. but it's better this time; i know what i want and what is really necessary this time. :)
well, i'm off for now. clay has just discovered my back pack and has taken everything out and i have to go retrieve everything.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
kids are so honest...
the other day, clay was looking at me, and i said, "clay, does mommy have a big belly?"
he looked at me and said, very seriously, "no. mommy has a big butt!"
lovely. thankfully, my belly is bigger, though. six more weeks to go!! woot! i should really post some big mama belly pics up here so you can see how big that belly is. people seem to think i'm going to pop at any moment.
well, i'm off for the night. just had to post some of the cute stuff clay says. i just hope he doesn't tell anyone else they have a big butt.
he looked at me and said, very seriously, "no. mommy has a big butt!"
lovely. thankfully, my belly is bigger, though. six more weeks to go!! woot! i should really post some big mama belly pics up here so you can see how big that belly is. people seem to think i'm going to pop at any moment.
well, i'm off for the night. just had to post some of the cute stuff clay says. i just hope he doesn't tell anyone else they have a big butt.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
BC and AD for parents...
my life has significantly changed since i've had clay. there was the stuff i did b.c. (before children) and the stuff i do now - a.d. (after delivery). here are a few more amusing changes. i suppose you have to be a parent yourself to even remotely appreciate this
travel:
b.c. - spur of the moment trips, jump in car and go, stay out as long as you want, listening to the radio on your road trip and singing along
a.d. - plan trip for weeks (then have to cancel due to baby developing some kind of illness)
- packing the diaper bag with enough snacks, drinks, change of clothes, wipes, and diapers (you'll always be one diaper short)
- listening to baby cry and singing silly songs to make him happy again.
privacy:
b.c. - a luxury that you take for granted
a.d. - showering and going to the bathroom in private become a thing of the past as your two year old barges in on you and says, "hi mommy!", as you hope fervently that no one comes to the door before you can get dressed.
nursing:
b.c. - you (rather immaturely) laughed when you heard stories of other moms who had major milk leakage in public.
a.d. - you're not laughing so hard when you look at your own shirt (at the mall) and realize you're the one who can't contain her bounty now...
body:
b.c. - you hate buying swimsuits that make your butt look big
- you panic and eat salad for a week if your size 6 jeans get too tight.
a.d. - you realize your butt looks big. period.
- you look at your size 6 jeans and finally come to the acceptance that your hips have morphed into something that will have difficulty squeezing into a 10, let alone a 6.
eating:
b.c. - you actually enjoy going out to eat. you take your time with your food and savor every bite.
- your food is actually hot when you eat it.
a.d. - you think going out to eat is a good idea, until you get there and your child decides he's unhappy. no matter what you order, he'll want something else, and your food gets cold as you try and coax him to eat his food and ignore the other patrons' glares.
- hot meals are a thing of the past.
planes:
b.c. - you would get irritated when kids wouldn't stop crying and think, "why can't they get him/her to calm down"
a.d. - your own kid won't calm down, and you get irritated when people on the plane actually are stupid enough to ask you that question.
shopping:
b.c. - a fun way to spend extra cash that's burning a hole in your pocket.
- kids throwing tantrums in the store would cause you to think smugly, "my kid will never do that."
a.d. - a race to get everything on your list before a.) your toddler has a meltdown, or b.) your toddler sees something he has to have, or c.) your kids knocks something off the shelf with the cart he's "helping" you push.
- there is no such thing as extra cash. period.
- the "my kid will never do that" arrogance of old comes back to haunt you.
television
b.c. - settling down to watch that movie you've been dying to see as soon as you can rent it.
- enjoying a show in relative quiet.
- doing things you needed to do at commercials
a.d. - renting the movie, and then not getting to see it because you're too tired to watch it after your toddler has gone to bed.
- wondering what the show was about anyway, because you couldn't hear over your toddler.
- hearing, "potty! quick!!!" right at the best part of the show, and by the time the "quick" potty has been taken care of, the moment is over and you don't know what happened.
girl's night out
b.c. - your friends call you to ask if you want to do girl's night out at 8pm, and you think its a great idea. and you go.
a.d. - your (childless) friends still call you at 8 pm to go out, but you're too tired to get off the couch to answer the phone. furthermore, it does not sound like a good idea at all. it sounds crazy.
housework:
b.c. - your house is immaculate and you wonder why your friends with kids are such slobs.
a.d. - you clean your house only to have it turn messy again in less than 10 seconds.
but all in all, life with kids is great. you wonder what you ever did before you had kids and where your time went. despite the (sometimes) unglamorous changes, you love your kid(s) more than anything and wouldn't trade them for the world.
travel:
b.c. - spur of the moment trips, jump in car and go, stay out as long as you want, listening to the radio on your road trip and singing along
a.d. - plan trip for weeks (then have to cancel due to baby developing some kind of illness)
- packing the diaper bag with enough snacks, drinks, change of clothes, wipes, and diapers (you'll always be one diaper short)
- listening to baby cry and singing silly songs to make him happy again.
privacy:
b.c. - a luxury that you take for granted
a.d. - showering and going to the bathroom in private become a thing of the past as your two year old barges in on you and says, "hi mommy!", as you hope fervently that no one comes to the door before you can get dressed.
nursing:
b.c. - you (rather immaturely) laughed when you heard stories of other moms who had major milk leakage in public.
a.d. - you're not laughing so hard when you look at your own shirt (at the mall) and realize you're the one who can't contain her bounty now...
body:
b.c. - you hate buying swimsuits that make your butt look big
- you panic and eat salad for a week if your size 6 jeans get too tight.
a.d. - you realize your butt looks big. period.
- you look at your size 6 jeans and finally come to the acceptance that your hips have morphed into something that will have difficulty squeezing into a 10, let alone a 6.
eating:
b.c. - you actually enjoy going out to eat. you take your time with your food and savor every bite.
- your food is actually hot when you eat it.
a.d. - you think going out to eat is a good idea, until you get there and your child decides he's unhappy. no matter what you order, he'll want something else, and your food gets cold as you try and coax him to eat his food and ignore the other patrons' glares.
- hot meals are a thing of the past.
planes:
b.c. - you would get irritated when kids wouldn't stop crying and think, "why can't they get him/her to calm down"
a.d. - your own kid won't calm down, and you get irritated when people on the plane actually are stupid enough to ask you that question.
shopping:
b.c. - a fun way to spend extra cash that's burning a hole in your pocket.
- kids throwing tantrums in the store would cause you to think smugly, "my kid will never do that."
a.d. - a race to get everything on your list before a.) your toddler has a meltdown, or b.) your toddler sees something he has to have, or c.) your kids knocks something off the shelf with the cart he's "helping" you push.
- there is no such thing as extra cash. period.
- the "my kid will never do that" arrogance of old comes back to haunt you.
television
b.c. - settling down to watch that movie you've been dying to see as soon as you can rent it.
- enjoying a show in relative quiet.
- doing things you needed to do at commercials
a.d. - renting the movie, and then not getting to see it because you're too tired to watch it after your toddler has gone to bed.
- wondering what the show was about anyway, because you couldn't hear over your toddler.
- hearing, "potty! quick!!!" right at the best part of the show, and by the time the "quick" potty has been taken care of, the moment is over and you don't know what happened.
girl's night out
b.c. - your friends call you to ask if you want to do girl's night out at 8pm, and you think its a great idea. and you go.
a.d. - your (childless) friends still call you at 8 pm to go out, but you're too tired to get off the couch to answer the phone. furthermore, it does not sound like a good idea at all. it sounds crazy.
housework:
b.c. - your house is immaculate and you wonder why your friends with kids are such slobs.
a.d. - you clean your house only to have it turn messy again in less than 10 seconds.
but all in all, life with kids is great. you wonder what you ever did before you had kids and where your time went. despite the (sometimes) unglamorous changes, you love your kid(s) more than anything and wouldn't trade them for the world.
clay is introduced to the star wars world
the minnesota museum of science had a star wars exhibit, and i met with my friend molly and her son jack and i took clay, and we introduced them to the force. nick told clay he would save him from being a nerd (nick is not a star wars fan). clay was most impressed with a kind of hover car that glided on air. we got to ride on it -- it was fun, but hard to describe. he wasn't impressed with much else, but he did like the big white hairy wampa from the planet hoth. so did jack -- although clay called it a bear. leave it to boys to be drawn to the scariest predator on that particular planet. clay threw a tantrum halfway through the exhibit (due to his refusal to take a nap on the drive up there), and nick had to (or used this as his excuse) to take him out and wait for us in the main museum area, where he snacked happily on his chicken strips (which he'd refused to eat earlier). after molly and i had toured the star wars realm, we went out and met nick in the main museum area. i was a bit disappointed; i'd wanted to have my picture taken with chewbacca, but apparently, the characters only were there on week-ends. i don't know what my parents would think of chewie being one of my favorite characters ... if i brought home a tall, massively hairy dude who had a bad temper and didn't speak a word of english, i think they might be slightly alarmed at my choice of friends.
in the main museum, clay was well impressed with the dinosaur bones, especially the stegosaurus, and the diplodocus. in fact he liked them so much, he tried climbing into the exhibit several times. he didn't like it much when i told him he couldn't do this. however, we did find a kid-friendly area and he soon was happy climbing all over that. regrettably, i forgot our camera, so i can't post any pics. then he went into a big tube that was about 4 feet or so in diameter, that was supposed to represent the size of a dinosaur's stomach. nice. he and jack had lots of fun climbing into the tube and running back and forth. clay later declared that he liked jack and that he was "a good friend" (he'd only met him that day).
we also went to como park zoo for a while and clay saw some animals and also went on some rides in como town. he went on the train, some cars, and a horse and cart ride. he especially liked the train and talked about it for hours afterwards.
as a bonus, i got some great baby gifts from molly. she gave me a cool smashing pumpkins lullabye cd (all instrumental). its really beautiful the way the music is done; i think its great. i also got a tie-dyed onesie for the baby, so he'll be really stylin when he's born. totally rad. then i got some cute placemats for baby and one for clay. clay promptly called his a "treasure map" and started telling me what all the animals were. i think that means he likes it. :)
speaking of clay, he's being too quiet right now, which no doubt means he's up to something he's not supposed to be doing, so adieu for now.
in the main museum, clay was well impressed with the dinosaur bones, especially the stegosaurus, and the diplodocus. in fact he liked them so much, he tried climbing into the exhibit several times. he didn't like it much when i told him he couldn't do this. however, we did find a kid-friendly area and he soon was happy climbing all over that. regrettably, i forgot our camera, so i can't post any pics. then he went into a big tube that was about 4 feet or so in diameter, that was supposed to represent the size of a dinosaur's stomach. nice. he and jack had lots of fun climbing into the tube and running back and forth. clay later declared that he liked jack and that he was "a good friend" (he'd only met him that day).
we also went to como park zoo for a while and clay saw some animals and also went on some rides in como town. he went on the train, some cars, and a horse and cart ride. he especially liked the train and talked about it for hours afterwards.
as a bonus, i got some great baby gifts from molly. she gave me a cool smashing pumpkins lullabye cd (all instrumental). its really beautiful the way the music is done; i think its great. i also got a tie-dyed onesie for the baby, so he'll be really stylin when he's born. totally rad. then i got some cute placemats for baby and one for clay. clay promptly called his a "treasure map" and started telling me what all the animals were. i think that means he likes it. :)
speaking of clay, he's being too quiet right now, which no doubt means he's up to something he's not supposed to be doing, so adieu for now.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Big Mama goes to the fair...
So we had the annual fair in town this weekend, and so we took Clay to the fair. He decided he did not like the rides this year, and after one round of giggles and laughs, the tears came out and they had to stop the kiddie ride for him to get off. I ran to rescue him and carried him back, and asked him (now safe in my arms) if he had been scared. "No," he said bravely, without giving the ride a backward glance. But he didn't want to go on any more.
Two of my friends were in a demolition derby, so Nick took Clay home and I went to that. It was great fun. They both won in their heat, and then competed together in the final, and won 1st and 2nd place respectively. They were actually sister and brother, so after they had knocked every one else out of the running, they decided to take each other out. The brother won, and after it was over, he ran over to his sister's car to make sure she was okay. Their mother was in the stands, trying to tell some guy that those were her kids. When he finally realized (it was a bit loud) what she was telling him, he expressed his amazement quite colorfully --
"They're BOTH your kids?! Well.... blankety-blank!" Apparently, when you are at a loss for words, swearing works to fill in the gaps. It can mean anything.
I didn't do anything as exciting as win a derby, but I did manage to climb (or waddle, rather) the bleachers without them collapsing (or me falling) and that is a feat in and of itself when you are 7 months pregnant. The one good thing was that people parted like the red sea when they saw me coming, especially the guys. I didn't have to fight any crowds! It did get quite uncomfortable sitting there, trying to find a comfortable position. I got a stupid cramp in my side and thought, "Well here would be a great place to go into labor!" My city-slicker husband would have loved that legacy for his son (He thinks we're all a bunch of hicks). Fortunately, the cramps didn't amount to anything. When I finally stood up to stretch, I felt much better. Of course, the cramps could have been from the bucket of greasy cheese fries I was sharing with my friend Becky. Fair food is not exactly recommended on the "what to eat during pregnancy" list. It was probably better than a fried pickle I noticed on the menu. Hmmmmm.... I don't even want to really think about that. Yuck. However, despite all that, the baby must not have been bothered too much; he slept through the whole thing. Didn't start kicking 'til I wanted to sleep later that night.
I'll be glad when the weather cools down a bit and I don't feel like I'm in a furnace all the time. The extra poundage and weight is a big contributer to that, but there's not alot I can do about that -- at least not for a couple of months. I'll have to post some pics of my big belly. :) I look like I stuck a beach ball under my shirt.
Alas, Nick needs the computer, so I must go. Adeiu for now!
Two of my friends were in a demolition derby, so Nick took Clay home and I went to that. It was great fun. They both won in their heat, and then competed together in the final, and won 1st and 2nd place respectively. They were actually sister and brother, so after they had knocked every one else out of the running, they decided to take each other out. The brother won, and after it was over, he ran over to his sister's car to make sure she was okay. Their mother was in the stands, trying to tell some guy that those were her kids. When he finally realized (it was a bit loud) what she was telling him, he expressed his amazement quite colorfully --
"They're BOTH your kids?! Well.... blankety-blank!" Apparently, when you are at a loss for words, swearing works to fill in the gaps. It can mean anything.
I didn't do anything as exciting as win a derby, but I did manage to climb (or waddle, rather) the bleachers without them collapsing (or me falling) and that is a feat in and of itself when you are 7 months pregnant. The one good thing was that people parted like the red sea when they saw me coming, especially the guys. I didn't have to fight any crowds! It did get quite uncomfortable sitting there, trying to find a comfortable position. I got a stupid cramp in my side and thought, "Well here would be a great place to go into labor!" My city-slicker husband would have loved that legacy for his son (He thinks we're all a bunch of hicks). Fortunately, the cramps didn't amount to anything. When I finally stood up to stretch, I felt much better. Of course, the cramps could have been from the bucket of greasy cheese fries I was sharing with my friend Becky. Fair food is not exactly recommended on the "what to eat during pregnancy" list. It was probably better than a fried pickle I noticed on the menu. Hmmmmm.... I don't even want to really think about that. Yuck. However, despite all that, the baby must not have been bothered too much; he slept through the whole thing. Didn't start kicking 'til I wanted to sleep later that night.
I'll be glad when the weather cools down a bit and I don't feel like I'm in a furnace all the time. The extra poundage and weight is a big contributer to that, but there's not alot I can do about that -- at least not for a couple of months. I'll have to post some pics of my big belly. :) I look like I stuck a beach ball under my shirt.
Alas, Nick needs the computer, so I must go. Adeiu for now!
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
tempting fate...
so i signed up for my final semester today and discovered that God has a sense of humor. my last day of clinicals is october 17th. the baby is due october 19th. how many of you want to bet that he'll actually wait to be born on his actual due date? i thought not. oh well, we shall see. i signed up for clinicals at the same hospital where i'll be delivering, just in case. i won't temp fate any more than i have already. although... my dear friend molly was most horrified to learn i succumbed to the temptation of the sinful delights of chinese buffet. she will be reassured, however, to note that crab, along with some other seafood is acceptable if not eaten in excess. (See Article:)
and really, it is the BEST, absolute BEST crab rangoon i have ever had anywhere, ever.
and really, it is the BEST, absolute BEST crab rangoon i have ever had anywhere, ever.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
contemplations of a mom...
i wonder what this baby is going to be like...
i wonder what color eyes he'll have, and what color hair. maybe he'll be a redhead like me! :) hmmm... do you think he'll have a temper then? we redheads are supposed to have a reputation for that.
at any rate, it will be fun watching his little personality grow and develop. i am amazed every day by the new things clay does and learns. its so fun to watch this little person grow in front of you. i suppose you have to have a kid to understand what i mean; its not easy to explain the beauty of it.
it's amazing to me that we can carry a little human being inside of us for 9 months, and already love them so much before they are even born! and then they are born and all the unglamorous stuff -- the poopy nappies, the sleepless nights, the sticky messes, the stains on your clothes from a dirty hand or spit up -- none of it really matters when you look at this beautiful little person in front of you and watch them grow and develop into amazing people.
its also amazing to me how human beings, with our intricate workings and parts and functions, are created in such simple and uncomplicated way. life really is a beautiful thing.
i wonder what color eyes he'll have, and what color hair. maybe he'll be a redhead like me! :) hmmm... do you think he'll have a temper then? we redheads are supposed to have a reputation for that.
at any rate, it will be fun watching his little personality grow and develop. i am amazed every day by the new things clay does and learns. its so fun to watch this little person grow in front of you. i suppose you have to have a kid to understand what i mean; its not easy to explain the beauty of it.
it's amazing to me that we can carry a little human being inside of us for 9 months, and already love them so much before they are even born! and then they are born and all the unglamorous stuff -- the poopy nappies, the sleepless nights, the sticky messes, the stains on your clothes from a dirty hand or spit up -- none of it really matters when you look at this beautiful little person in front of you and watch them grow and develop into amazing people.
its also amazing to me how human beings, with our intricate workings and parts and functions, are created in such simple and uncomplicated way. life really is a beautiful thing.
i love school, really, i do...
so we are studying pregnancy complications right now. how very unexciting and not what i want to hear at this moment. i'm just glad i'm at the point where the baby could be saved if there were complications. but i still don't want to think about them right now, even though i'm supposed to know this stuff. i don't think baby thought much of the class either. he gave me several well placed kicks during the lecture.
ah well, it won't do me any good to tune the teacher out, as i'll be tested on this stuff. i'll be glad when its done though.
ah well, it won't do me any good to tune the teacher out, as i'll be tested on this stuff. i'll be glad when its done though.
happy belated 4th of july
I'm back! I had to work on the 4th, and then picked up some extra hours this weekend, so haven't had alot of time to post. There was a parade at 3, but I had to work at three, so alas, we missed the parade this year. I think Clay would have been impressed with the firetrucks. We did make it to the fireworks; Clay had refused to take a nap that day so was pretty tired towards the end of them, but liked the show. We didn't get home til 11pm and then he decided didn't want to go to bed at all, but stay up and play. After many tears and protests, he finally went to sleep, though. I don't know who was more tired -- me or Clay.
I'm getting huge!!! i think that the baby is sitting directly on my bladder, because I'm running to bathroom constantly. Along with my hugeness, i am finding it increasingly difficult to weed the garden. So now the garden is just that -- weeds (mostly). some of them of kind of pretty, though, so perhaps not all is lost. Its been HOT! I am so glad we have the window AC for upstairs; its a lifesaver at night. One of our friends was telling me about her first pregnancy. She was in her last month, and it was unbearably hot, and they didn't have an air conditioner. Due to the heat, she was on her third day without any sleep, and decided enough was enough. She went to her husband and calmly told him, "Get an air conditioner, or I'm going to KILL you!!!!". He got the air conditioner that very day. She said it was much better after that. Ah, hormones, they're so great. Alas, our electric system is so old that I think we'd blow a circuit if we got an AC for downstairs. I'm serious. Whoever installed the electric here must have gotten his certification out of a cracker jack box, because most of the power is on ONE circuit, so if you turn to many things on, the power for 3/4 of the house goes out. It's great. In the winter, when the heaters are going, have to turn off the fish tank filters to vacuum, or we'll blow a fuse. Ah, the joy of old houses. It's not like we have a supervac that takes a tremendous amount of power either. Maybe they should invent a solar powered one.
We finally went to the China Buffet in town today. It was lovely. Their crab rangoon is the best I've had anywhere and I absolutely adore it. It is fab-spectaculous. I think the baby liked it too. They had green tea flavored ice cream. It was lovely as well, and even Clay liked it. We'll definitely be going back. :)
I'll have to post pics soon of my huge belly and of clay. Adieu for now!
I'm getting huge!!! i think that the baby is sitting directly on my bladder, because I'm running to bathroom constantly. Along with my hugeness, i am finding it increasingly difficult to weed the garden. So now the garden is just that -- weeds (mostly). some of them of kind of pretty, though, so perhaps not all is lost. Its been HOT! I am so glad we have the window AC for upstairs; its a lifesaver at night. One of our friends was telling me about her first pregnancy. She was in her last month, and it was unbearably hot, and they didn't have an air conditioner. Due to the heat, she was on her third day without any sleep, and decided enough was enough. She went to her husband and calmly told him, "Get an air conditioner, or I'm going to KILL you!!!!". He got the air conditioner that very day. She said it was much better after that. Ah, hormones, they're so great. Alas, our electric system is so old that I think we'd blow a circuit if we got an AC for downstairs. I'm serious. Whoever installed the electric here must have gotten his certification out of a cracker jack box, because most of the power is on ONE circuit, so if you turn to many things on, the power for 3/4 of the house goes out. It's great. In the winter, when the heaters are going, have to turn off the fish tank filters to vacuum, or we'll blow a fuse. Ah, the joy of old houses. It's not like we have a supervac that takes a tremendous amount of power either. Maybe they should invent a solar powered one.
We finally went to the China Buffet in town today. It was lovely. Their crab rangoon is the best I've had anywhere and I absolutely adore it. It is fab-spectaculous. I think the baby liked it too. They had green tea flavored ice cream. It was lovely as well, and even Clay liked it. We'll definitely be going back. :)
I'll have to post pics soon of my huge belly and of clay. Adieu for now!
Sunday, June 29, 2008
the name game
so i was working yesterday, and was listening to an opinionated old lady share her views on the names kids have these days. she was horrified because her granddaughter had named her sons, Riley and then... horrors, Ethan. I then struggled to keep from laughing as she went on to say, "I told her, why can't you just call him Bobby! Then I could remember it!"
I told her that i thought Riley was a lovely name, and she sniffed loudly.
"Well!" she said, eying my belly suspiciously. "What are you going to name yours?", as if expecting me to blurt out a name like Melchezidik or something equally ridiculous.
"We haven't decided yet," I told her.
"Oh," she says, sounding let down, like a sailboat that just lost its wind. Now of course, there was nothing to criticize whatsoever. Thankfully, I had other patients to see, so excused myself from the room, before she could start again.
Well, that was easy. Much easier than trying to answer, "Why did you pick that name?" (As if you had just announced that you were going to name your child after some evil dictator). So I think we'll do the same thing we did with Clay -- keep it secret 'til after he's born and then tell people.
I told her that i thought Riley was a lovely name, and she sniffed loudly.
"Well!" she said, eying my belly suspiciously. "What are you going to name yours?", as if expecting me to blurt out a name like Melchezidik or something equally ridiculous.
"We haven't decided yet," I told her.
"Oh," she says, sounding let down, like a sailboat that just lost its wind. Now of course, there was nothing to criticize whatsoever. Thankfully, I had other patients to see, so excused myself from the room, before she could start again.
Well, that was easy. Much easier than trying to answer, "Why did you pick that name?" (As if you had just announced that you were going to name your child after some evil dictator). So I think we'll do the same thing we did with Clay -- keep it secret 'til after he's born and then tell people.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
i just saved almost 2 grand!!
so i had this cavity in my molar, but the dentist didn't want to work on it until after the baby was born, just to be on the safe side. he said to call him if it gave me any trouble.
well,about 5 months goes by, without any problems, them my tooth breaks. of course, all of this happens on a weekend, when the dentist isn't open. my tooth being in pain, i rummage through our medicine cabinet and come across something called "dental gum" which is some stupid wax substance filled with benzocaine (or something similar) to kill the pain. i stick it in the hole in my tooth and immediately i'm in the throes of agony. i managed not to scream, because clay was already in bed, and gingerly take the stupid dental gum out and throw it in the bin. now, not only my tooth, by the whole left side of my face is throbbing. i foolishly take a drink of cold water, thinking that will help. it does not help, and i wonder if labor pain is anything like this (clay was c-section).
the pain is so bad that i start visualizing taking it out myself. i get a vivid picture in my mind of tom hanks extracting a tooth with an ice skate and rock in that stupid movie where he gets stuck on that island for a couple of years. i then remember we have a pliers and hammer in my toolbox and wonder -- if i put the pliers in the right spot, and a get a well placed blow from the hammer to knock out the tooth, if it would work. i decide, maybe, if i'm still in this much pain in the morning, that i might be desperate enough to try it.
i try to go to bed, thinking that perhaps the pain will soon subside, but it does not. then i realize that clay has some orajel in the bathroom medicine cabinet downstairs. frantically i run downstairs like a herd of stampeding elephants and rip the cabinet apart. of course, i can't find it right away. finally, i discover the tube of orajel, and grabbing it triumphantly like it was the holy grail, i almost weep with relief. i slather it on and immediately my lips feel numb and fat. this is a good sign. sure enough, my mouth finally stops throbbing and i eventually fall asleep. i scheduled an appointment with the dentist and discover that the nerve root is indeed exposed and that i need a root canal and a cap, neither of which (surprise!) are covered by insurance. the root canal alone will cost about $900 and the cap (a stupid tiny cap the size of the tip of my pinkie) will cost about $1,000! oh and by the way, it will probably break anyway and have to be pulled in the future, i am told. my other option is extraction. so i tell them to forget the root canal and just pull the stupid thing. i had mentioned the dental gum; he tells me next time i have pain, not to use over the counter products, but to call him right away. i don't mention the pliers and hammer idea. i don't think it would have gone over too well. so i get to have the tooth extracted. i hope they give me lots of novacaine, because i don't want to feel anything.
i mentioned the hammer and pliers idea to my mom today on the phone and she was horrified. "oh, don't," she said. "i get sick just thinking about it!" (maybe that's where i get the weak stomach; maybe its not the pregnancy at all.)
at any rate, we have saved some money. so there's a positive spin. and i discovered something else. that orajel stuff is great.
well,about 5 months goes by, without any problems, them my tooth breaks. of course, all of this happens on a weekend, when the dentist isn't open. my tooth being in pain, i rummage through our medicine cabinet and come across something called "dental gum" which is some stupid wax substance filled with benzocaine (or something similar) to kill the pain. i stick it in the hole in my tooth and immediately i'm in the throes of agony. i managed not to scream, because clay was already in bed, and gingerly take the stupid dental gum out and throw it in the bin. now, not only my tooth, by the whole left side of my face is throbbing. i foolishly take a drink of cold water, thinking that will help. it does not help, and i wonder if labor pain is anything like this (clay was c-section).
the pain is so bad that i start visualizing taking it out myself. i get a vivid picture in my mind of tom hanks extracting a tooth with an ice skate and rock in that stupid movie where he gets stuck on that island for a couple of years. i then remember we have a pliers and hammer in my toolbox and wonder -- if i put the pliers in the right spot, and a get a well placed blow from the hammer to knock out the tooth, if it would work. i decide, maybe, if i'm still in this much pain in the morning, that i might be desperate enough to try it.
i try to go to bed, thinking that perhaps the pain will soon subside, but it does not. then i realize that clay has some orajel in the bathroom medicine cabinet downstairs. frantically i run downstairs like a herd of stampeding elephants and rip the cabinet apart. of course, i can't find it right away. finally, i discover the tube of orajel, and grabbing it triumphantly like it was the holy grail, i almost weep with relief. i slather it on and immediately my lips feel numb and fat. this is a good sign. sure enough, my mouth finally stops throbbing and i eventually fall asleep. i scheduled an appointment with the dentist and discover that the nerve root is indeed exposed and that i need a root canal and a cap, neither of which (surprise!) are covered by insurance. the root canal alone will cost about $900 and the cap (a stupid tiny cap the size of the tip of my pinkie) will cost about $1,000! oh and by the way, it will probably break anyway and have to be pulled in the future, i am told. my other option is extraction. so i tell them to forget the root canal and just pull the stupid thing. i had mentioned the dental gum; he tells me next time i have pain, not to use over the counter products, but to call him right away. i don't mention the pliers and hammer idea. i don't think it would have gone over too well. so i get to have the tooth extracted. i hope they give me lots of novacaine, because i don't want to feel anything.
i mentioned the hammer and pliers idea to my mom today on the phone and she was horrified. "oh, don't," she said. "i get sick just thinking about it!" (maybe that's where i get the weak stomach; maybe its not the pregnancy at all.)
at any rate, we have saved some money. so there's a positive spin. and i discovered something else. that orajel stuff is great.
not eggs-actly helpful
so today we had beans on toast with eggs for lunch. don't ask. its a brit thing. baked beans, on toast, with fried egg. so, i was in a hurry to make lunch and get it on the table. we have, unfortunately, a stove that is ancient, and on its very last legs. the burners and the oven are rather patchy in the times they decide to work, and so cooking is more down to luck than skill at the moment. thus is was, that lunch was on the table, and we were all eating. I was almost done with my egg when and was bringing a forkfull of egg to my mouth when i saw this gelatinous glob of raw egg white hanging indecisively from my fork. well, being pregnant, it doesn't take much to make my stomach rebel, and immediately i knew i was going to be sick.
"well, don't throw up on the table!!" nick said, panicking.
i gave him a dirty look and wished fervently that men could be pregnant.
as i'm being sick in the bathroom, i can hear clay imitating my retching noises, and nick saying in a rather amused tone, "mommy's being sick! don't think you'll be having eggs for a while, mate"
i groan, which seems to be nick's cue to continue. however, the worst seems to have passed - then...
"a little raw egg won't hurt you," he says. "i used to drink 3 or 4 raw eggs a day when i was training," he adds brightly. this triggers another series of violent retching which doesn't seem to phase him.
"you know", he continues cheerfully, as i try desperately to tune his voice out, "rocky balboa drank raw eggs in his health shake too, when he was training. it never hurt him either!"
i finally top being sick and tell him (somewhat icily) to shut it; and emerge, a faint tinge of green, from the bathroom.
nick is grinning and i give him a dirty look before sitting, rather weakly, back at the table. i think darkly that it will be awhile before any eggs are fried in this house. maybe, if the oven is destroyed beyond repair, he will let us buy a new one. do you think he'd notice if, for instance, it was smashed with a sledgehammer in a few choice places? i could tell him i was running with the hammer, slipped on the floor and fell onto the stove.
at the moment, i'm heavy enough; it might be a convincing story. only one burner is completely not working at the moment. i would have to destroy the remaining three; and unfortunately, clumsy as i am, i doubt he'd be convinced that i tripped and fell with the hammer three times.
maybe i could tell him i was trying to kill a wasp and i got carried away. because normal people always kill wasps with a sledgehammer. riiiiight - he'd buy that story. *sigh* looks like destroying the stove beyond repair and inventing a story about its demise probably won't work.
at any rate, maybe i can convince him we need a new oven. soon. i'll tell him the money we saved by me not having to have a root canal (another story) can be spent on a new stove.
and he's right. we won't be having eggs for a while.
"well, don't throw up on the table!!" nick said, panicking.
i gave him a dirty look and wished fervently that men could be pregnant.
as i'm being sick in the bathroom, i can hear clay imitating my retching noises, and nick saying in a rather amused tone, "mommy's being sick! don't think you'll be having eggs for a while, mate"
i groan, which seems to be nick's cue to continue. however, the worst seems to have passed - then...
"a little raw egg won't hurt you," he says. "i used to drink 3 or 4 raw eggs a day when i was training," he adds brightly. this triggers another series of violent retching which doesn't seem to phase him.
"you know", he continues cheerfully, as i try desperately to tune his voice out, "rocky balboa drank raw eggs in his health shake too, when he was training. it never hurt him either!"
i finally top being sick and tell him (somewhat icily) to shut it; and emerge, a faint tinge of green, from the bathroom.
nick is grinning and i give him a dirty look before sitting, rather weakly, back at the table. i think darkly that it will be awhile before any eggs are fried in this house. maybe, if the oven is destroyed beyond repair, he will let us buy a new one. do you think he'd notice if, for instance, it was smashed with a sledgehammer in a few choice places? i could tell him i was running with the hammer, slipped on the floor and fell onto the stove.
at the moment, i'm heavy enough; it might be a convincing story. only one burner is completely not working at the moment. i would have to destroy the remaining three; and unfortunately, clumsy as i am, i doubt he'd be convinced that i tripped and fell with the hammer three times.
maybe i could tell him i was trying to kill a wasp and i got carried away. because normal people always kill wasps with a sledgehammer. riiiiight - he'd buy that story. *sigh* looks like destroying the stove beyond repair and inventing a story about its demise probably won't work.
at any rate, maybe i can convince him we need a new oven. soon. i'll tell him the money we saved by me not having to have a root canal (another story) can be spent on a new stove.
and he's right. we won't be having eggs for a while.
Friday, June 13, 2008
on a more serious note
i've just recently learned that a my friend Gen (Genevieve) has been diagnosed with a follicular tumor on her thyroid, and that there is a 95% chance that it is cancerous. she has four young children, and her youngest is 3 months old. your thoughts and prayers for her and her family in this difficult time would really help. it's a pretty scary time for them right now. i can't imagine what i would do if i got a similar diagnosis. it is hard for me to understand why bad things happen to good people, but i am amazed at her determination to keep a positive attitude and find something good out of all of this.
she will have surgery to remove the tumor next week on the 18th, and it will be a pretty delicate surgery. for those of you that pray, please pray that the surgery will go well, and that no complications will occur, that it will not be cancerous, and that if it is, they will get it all and it will not have spread.
thanks,
nora
she will have surgery to remove the tumor next week on the 18th, and it will be a pretty delicate surgery. for those of you that pray, please pray that the surgery will go well, and that no complications will occur, that it will not be cancerous, and that if it is, they will get it all and it will not have spread.
thanks,
nora
scrubs
you know, i'm a nurse, so i wear scrubs to work. i'm 5 months pregnant, and there are people that still act surprised when i tell them i'm pregnant. i know scrubs are really shapless and bulky, but c'mom! you gotta be able to realize that my extraordinarily large and perfectly round belly is not due to krispy kreme doughnuts. and then i had someone tell me i wasn't very big for 5 months. oh really? define big, because big to me is any point where you find yourself unable to pick up a pencil off the floor without having to grab something to haul your huge arse back up to a standing position. it amuses me, because other people will say, "are you sure there's not twins in there?". yeah, i'm pretty sure. unless the other one is really, really good at hiding. at any rate, if i had twins in there, i think i would dislocate my hip i tried to squat down and pick anything up off the floor. well, i should go for now, claybear is suddenly quiet, and that is never a good sign. he must be into something and i need to discover what that is.
i think, therefore i get?
ahhh... pregnancy... the cravings you get when you are pregnant. i've been craving chinese food like there is no tomorrow and guess what is opening up soon in our town? a "china buffet"!!! anyway, i'm pumped because this means i won't have to drive 25 miles to get some good food (well, food that i don't have to cook). anyway, baby is getting big. it is starting to get to that difficult part where you can't get back up after you bend over to pick something up. with that thought, i suppose i shouldn't eat too much of the really good stuff. i'll have another ten pounder!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
a rare moment of free time...
so i dragged myself away from my textbooks and went to see prince caspian with my mom today. the baby must have liked the music because he kept jumping around during the loud parts. anyway the movie was lovely. however, hormones are not. i got teary eyed about a dozen times. but alas, its one of those trade-offs that come with pregnancy. it was nice to get out of the house and do something fun. i told myself i was going to see it before it came out on video and i actually succeeded. lately my trips out of the house have been going to class... or grocery shopping.
clay thinks we should name the baby "baby jaguar" like on "go diego, go!". hmmmmm... don't think that's quite what i had in mind. at any rate we have like... 4 more months to make up our minds about the baby's name, so hopefully we'll come up with something better than that. :P
right now, we are in the throes of potty training, and i think he's finally ready. except when you ask him, "do you have to go potty," he'll always say no. just because he can. but we've been having alot fewer accidents and that's worth celebrating. my goal is to have him potty trained by the time the baby comes.
well, it's 8:30, and i need to get our little munchkin ready for bed, so adios for now.
clay thinks we should name the baby "baby jaguar" like on "go diego, go!". hmmmmm... don't think that's quite what i had in mind. at any rate we have like... 4 more months to make up our minds about the baby's name, so hopefully we'll come up with something better than that. :P
right now, we are in the throes of potty training, and i think he's finally ready. except when you ask him, "do you have to go potty," he'll always say no. just because he can. but we've been having alot fewer accidents and that's worth celebrating. my goal is to have him potty trained by the time the baby comes.
well, it's 8:30, and i need to get our little munchkin ready for bed, so adios for now.
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