Waiting

I think I'm officially in that place where being pregnant gets pretty boring. I have about 11 weeks to go and besides actually giving birth, there's nothing really left to look forward to. Unless you count swollen feet, swollen fingers, growing out of your maternity clothes, more weight gain, uncomfortable sleeping and going to the bathroom two and three times in the middle of the night. I don't. :)

And because nearly all the shopping has been done with time to spare, I know what's going to happen. To fill the boredness void, I'm going to want to buy more stuff. Stuff that I totally don't need. Like baby toys. Or baby blankets. Or even more clothes. Hopefully I will be able to resist temptation! Or at least hopefully I will keep it to a minimum...

28 Week Appointment

My 28 week appointment was last Thursday, although technically I was only 27 weeks and 3 days, but whatever. Nothing earth-shattering to report. The baby's heartbeat is in the 150's still, I'm measuring just right for how far along I am and my glucose test was normal. The only slight downer was that my iron is "a tad low" so I'm going to have to take a supplement. I have noticed my energy level has been lower than I thought it should, so that kind of make sense. Hopefully this will help.

It's kind of hard to believe I only have 12 weeks to go (hopefully less). I finally got a car seat, so all the big stuff has been acquired. And I'm still picking up a few clothing items here and there, so we're getting there! 

Glucose Test Adventures

So at 28 weeks or thereabout, you get to take a fun test to see if you have developed gestational diabetes. I've been fortunate to avoid that so far, so I'm not actually even sure what it all means in terms of what they do with you/to you. I do know that apparently as soon as the baby comes out, though, the diabetes go away. So that's good. But anyway...

Today I went to the lab here to take the test, which entails drinking a very sweet beverage, waiting an hour, then having blood drawn. People always talk about this test like it's the worst thing ever. I know in years past, the drink they made you drink was pretty nasty, but it's gotten considerably better in the recent past. The first time I did it, the drink they gave me tasted like a Fresca. Not too bad. Then the second time, I had one that was like carbonated fruit punch. This time it was like drinking orange soda. No big deal. And it's not even that much. 

Now usually, you take the test in your doctor's office and after it's all over, you have your appointment. It's a little different here, though, since you always go to the lab for bloodwork. It's basically up to you to go on your own time. So my plan was to go drink the drink, go do whatever for an hour and then come back. So the boys and I get there just after 8:00am and the place was pretty empty, so that was good. The receptionist checked me in and poured me the drink right there. She told me I had five minutes to drink it (why would anyone need that long?). I chugged it right down, tossed the cup and was about to roll the boys out when she said, "You have to stay here." WHAT? She gave me a very sympathetic look and said I could either change the channel on the TV for the kids or wait on the bench just outside. I chose the bench. We got outside at 8:11am and I wasn't due to have my blood drawn until 9:15am. Wonderful.

The diaper bag was in the car and I was also completely without toys or books. So this should be interesting. First move - I did have a pack of pop tarts, so they each got one. Dominic - thank goodness - is reaching an age where more often than not he stays close and isn't all over the place. So he sat nicely on the bench and ate his pop tart.  Not Clark.  He sat for about two minutes and then scooched himself off the bench and took off. Sigh. After about five rounds of him running away, inevitably losing a piece of his pop tart and me/Dominic chasing him down, I strapped him back in the stroller. I look at my phone - it's only 8:23. Man!

Next, I give Clark the little calendar I carry in my purse. He thinks it's a book and starts to flip through the pages. All is good until he finds a small slip of loose paper in it and tries to eat it. It's 8:28.

So I dig in my purse again and find one of those emergency hand crank flashlights.  Okay, that's not normally something I carry, but it had found its way out of the van and I put it in my purse to put back in. I'm glad I had sort of forgotten about it. So Clark plays with that for a while and then decides to repeatedly throw it on the ground. Dominic is a good big brother and keeps picking it up for him, but it gets old pretty quick. I finally give up on the flashlight at 8:42.

Next up is my cell phone. I lock it and hand it over to Clark. He pushes buttons and pretends to talk on it and then of course inevitably throws it on the ground around 8:50.

I'm still feeling pretty lucky because he hasn't started throwing a fit about being strapped into his seat and Dominic has been content to play with the Lego plane/boat creation he brought along with him. But I am starting to run out of stuff to entertain Clark with. The best thing I can find is an envelope, which he examines carefully. I put it on his head like a hat which amuses him, so that's good. After he tires of that, he decides to rip some pieces off of it and then throw it in the stroller basket behind him. 

Finally, at 8:55, I hand him a pen - the last thing in my purse I think he would enjoy. I'm poised to grab it away from him in case he decides to scribble all over himself, the stroller, his clothes, etc., but he just looks at it and clicks the top a bunch of times.

At 9:00 (almost there!) I decide to let him out of the seat again and run off some pent up energy. So he climbs on the bench, climbs off the bench, runs away, gets dragged back by Dominic, etc. for the next 10 minutes. 

At long last, I put them both back in the stroller and wheel back into the lab. Yes!! I made it.

Cribs

Soo....I don't do cribs. 

That was never the original plan, though. Before Dominic was born, we got a great crib handed down to us from his cousin, Nate. I bought a crib set, sheets, mattress covers, etc. etc. The plan was that when he was first born, we'd put him in the pack and play bassinett in our room and then move him to his room a little bit later. Well, he was sleeping in our room and then Andy decided we should move the pack and play into our little loft off of our bedroom. Immediately I was panic-stricken. Move him a whole 10 feet farther away from me?!?!?! WHAT!? I protested, but I didn't get my way. So then he was sleeping out in the loft. Andy would ask me from time about moving him to his room, but I kept balking. That extra 20 feet and couple of walls was just too far for me. Then I found myself on occasion falling asleep while holding/feeding Dominic at night. Andy would come home from teaching to find us both passed out in our bed. He would wake me up and teasingly say, "I thought you didn't want him to sleep with us." And I would earnestly reply that I didn't. 

And then one night, again while Andy was teaching late, I put Dominic to bed and then went to bed myself. The next thing I know, Andy is standing over me, looking a little miffed and confused. And I also happened to be holding Dominic. Huh? Andy told me he came in and I had the covers pulled up all the way over the baby. WHAT? I had absolutely zero recollection of getting up and getting Dominic, but obviously I did. At that point, we basically gave up all together with the pack and play (and consequently, the crib) for the time being and little Dominic just slept with us. 

Of course, then you start contemplating when you should transition them out. I think we made a few feeble attempts to put him in his crib, usually when he was already asleep, but he always woke up almost right away and was not having it. Then there was the time I gave crying it out a try. I promise I'm not exaggerating - he cried for two hours, and I just couldn't take it anymore. So we abandoned the crib all together. When he was about 18 months, we got a toddler bed and actually liked it! Talk about relief. I guess he felt really confined in the crib or something. Who knows? But even then, we weren't exactly strict about him only sleeping there. He does sleep in his own bed now, though, although once in a while in the early morning hours he'll crawl into our bed.

With Clark,  I bought a regular bassinet thinking I didn't want to go through all the sleeping with us and then having to move him out later again. And shocker! That didn't work, either. I think he slept in that thing for about a week before I gave up on that all together. We ended up getting this reclining baby seat and he actually slept in that quite a bit, and then also slept in our bed. After he grew out of the seat, it was full time in our bed. And in case you're wondering, right now we are in the process of moving him into the toddler bed. He still falls asleep in our bed, but then we move him into his. He inevitably wakes up a couple times at night, but he'll pretty much go right back to sleep once you go in to check on him. So far so good on that front. Obviously we have to push this process a little faster since baby #3 will be here in just three more months. But let me tell you, the first night he slept in his bed, I felt uneasy. lol

So what's my plan this time? I decided to just get real with myself. I definitely am uncomfortable with a little brand-new baby in the big bed with covers and pillows and two big people in there. That definitely makes me nervous. So I bought a co-sleeper that goes in the bed to protect him from all that stuff. Here's a picture:

So I'm hoping that this will appease my primal mommy instincts. He'll be right there, but I won't be panicked about him getting smothered. It's very interesting what you learn about yourself when you have kids....

And by the way, I'm certainly not opposed to cribs or babies sleeping away from their parents. There's just some weird thing inside me screaming, "Can't do it!"

Baby Bargains

The bargain hunting continues...

Yesterday I got a great little swing and baby seat from a lady selling them on Craig's List for just $40. What a deal! Purchased new I would have spent a little over $100. Pics below...

They're not the same items I posted in an earlier entry, but I'm definitely pleased with what I got. :)

Cravings

In general, I haven't experienced any particular cravings with any of my pregnancies, with one notable exception. When I hit the third trimester, I start craving dessert. More specifically, this and its many variations:

I just can't say no when presented with the opportunity to have a piece of warm chocolate cake/brownie with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge on top. Can't do it! Last week on Mother's Day, I very purposefully only ate half of my Quesadilla Explosion salad at Chili's so I would have room for their chocolate motlen cake. It was awesome...

Soap Box

Warning: Potentially preachy/whiny/ranty blog entry ahead...lol

In the world of having babies, there is so much information out there, there are so many choices, it's ridiculous! Then there's the infinite number of opinions on everything from what kind of birth to have, to feeding, diapering, sleeping. And of course there's choosing the "right" baby gear, clothes, toys, etc., etc. Ugh. It can be very overwhelming. 

We all want to be the best parents we can be, and want to choose all the "right" things, but inevitably we question our decisions from time to time, especially if we've made any choices that are deemed at all controversial. Am I a bad mother if I have an epidural? let the baby stay in the nursery while I'm at the hospital? if I use formula? let my child use a pacifier or bottle after a certain age? let my child sleep with me? use disposable diapers? send my child to daycare? watch TV? nurse my child after a certain age? stop nursing before a certain age? (the short answer to all these questions, is of course, no.)

I could make this list go on for days. 

And parenting magazines are THE WORST. I don't know what purpose they actually serve other than to thoroughly confuse people. Articles with their varying viewpoints, ads that often seem at odds with what the articles are preaching and the occasional opinion column that inevitably says you should just go with your gut and do what makes sense to you is enough to make your head explode. 

Anyway, I can say with some certainty that one of the advantages of going through all of this baby stuff for a third time is that the vast majority of those nagging questions have just *poof* disappeared.  It's a nice place to be. I know what works for me - it took two kids to figure it all out. That's not to say I have all the answers - not even close! But I definitely feel more comfortable in my mommy skin than I used to. I have also learned to just say no when offered free subscriptions to Parenting and American Baby magazine! HA!

Prenatal Care

So I'll be actually delivering at Tripler, but all of my prenatal care is right here on base at the OB clinic. I think it's a great set up. As long as you are not deemed high risk, you can be seen there. Otherwise, you have to go to Tripler for everything.

Anyway, the OB clinic is run by several nurse practitioners and they have doctors who come in on occasion. All of my appointments have been nice and quick, and on time even! Everyone who works there seems to be really friendly. Well, except the lady who schedules the appointments. She always seems perturbed about something, but whatever. 

My favorite part, though, is that I don't have to give urine samples at every appointment. lol Trivial, but as your pregnancy goes on, it gets increasingly more difficult to complete that task. That last month, too, when you go in every week, it becomes absolutely ridiculous.  

My next appointment is in a few weeks, for the oh-so fun glucose test. And I imagine I'll be moving up to bi-weekly appointments here within the next month, too.

Moving right along!!

Compare and Contrast

I always hated "compare and contrast" essay questions on tests in school. They always felt so contrived. I never really understood why we couldn't just make lists. lol

Anyway, people ask me a lot how this pregnancy compares to the others. It's definitely more like my second than my first. I'm guessing that's because the first time around, my body had never gone through all the changes you go through. Plus, I wasn't already chasing around any little ones.  That definitely makes a difference.  Mainly, my energy runs out a little faster, and my body feels creaky and worn out at the very end and very beginning of each day. And I still have three weeks before my third trimester officially starts! But other than that, I have no real complaints. Sure, I wish there was no swelling, no additional stretch marks and that I would only gain 25 pounds, but that's definitely not in the cards.  So no need to worry about it! :)

TAMC

So I will be having this baby at the military hospital here on the island - Tripler Army Medical Center. It's a big, pink building on the side of a big hill (I can't exactly call it a mountain) that you can see from many places all over the island. Here's a picture:

Parking is a nightmare, and the place is huge and it has a reputation for being inept and unfriendly. I'm really excited! Actually, the maternity ward has recently undergone a major renovation and they are now touting all private LDR rooms and postpartum rooms. And supposedly they now have birthing pools and birthing balls and all that good stuff so women have options when giving birth. Actually, that's another thing on my "I don't care about that" list. I was on my back strapped to who knows how many devices for both of my previous deliveries and it was fine. It didn't slow anything down, so birthing position/location is not a concern for me. 

Well, I actually would like to be located at the hospital when it's time. One of the things about Oahu is that practically everyone who lives in the state of Hawaii lives here. 898,000 people on an island that at its widest and longest is 30 by 40 miles.  On top of that, a big chunk of it is consumed by two mountain ranges. Needless to say, traffic can get pretty bad. Given the fact that when Clark was born it was only three hours from the time my water broke until he was out, I am a little bit nervous about getting there in time.

Slightly off topic here: Did you know that women are not allowed to have home births in Hawaii? You can have a midwife, but you have to have your baby in a hospital. Crazy, right? 

That's all for now - I would just like to say congratulations to my friend, Sarah Fischer, who just found out she is having a girl today! Sarah is also planning a home birth (she lives in Richmond, so she's not breaking any laws), so major props to her!  If I find out she'll also be using cloth diapers, I will be beyond impressed. :)

Baby Shopping

Shopping? Don't I have everything already?

Well...since there were no plans to have anymore babies anytime soon, there was no need to keep any of Clark's baby gear. So I got rid of it. All of it. The clothes, too. Figures, right?

Thank goodness for Craig's List and the base thrift store!

That's not to say this kid won't have anything that's new - I did go on one little spree to WalMart and bought a nice little pile of clothes. And whatever I can't find on my list second-hand, I'll get it new.

The gear, though, will definitely all be procured through Craig's List. I've already scored a couple of great bargains - a Boppy and extra cover for $10, a Baby Bjorn for only $20 and a co-sleeper also for $20. Sweet! I still have the big stuff to get - a swing, a bouncy seat, and of course a car seat. I did actually save our pack and play, so that's one less thing to worry about. I really like the Fisher-Price Rainforest collection, and apparently lots of Oahu Craig's List sellers do, too, so if I decide to go with that for the swing and bouncy seat (or maybe the travel swing, I keep changing my mind) I'll definitely be able to get a good deal.  Here are a few pictures:

Other than the gear and clothes, mainly I'll be stocking up on diapers and wipes, and other boring practical things like that. Actually it's not boring; it's still pretty fun to buy all that stuff. :)

Names

What the heck are we going to name this kid? 

Sure, there are plenty of names out there that I like, but so far, none of them have been deemed "right" for this new little one.

Many people have suggested that we give this child a B name, since then we would be Andy, B?, Clark, Dominic & Emily. Pretty cute, but so far the only name we haven't absolutely said no to is Benjamin (yes, my brother's name). Of course, Andy says he'd want to call him Benny (from Rent); I'm not exactly on board with that. Plus, it's hard to tell when Andy's joking (meaning "I'm not actually considering this as a viable option"). The only other name that we've discussed at all is Alexander. Again, Andy says he'd want to call him Lex. As in Luthor. So we'd have Clark (Kent) and Lex. He did name the first two after fictional characters, so who knows?

And in case you're wondering, once we pick it, the name will not be a secret this time around. Keeping Clark's name a secret was more of a headache than listening to the occasional unfavorable comment about Dominic's name.

And even though Andy chose the first names for Dominic and Clark, I still don't particularly care who picks this one's name, as long as I like it.  There's quite a bit this time around that I don't really care about/doesn't bother me, but I'll save all that for another post!

Here I go...

A blog! How original of me! 

I decided, though, since I live 4000 miles away from my family and the vast majority of my friends, this might be a good way to keep everyone updated on how things are going out here with this pregnancy and beyond. 

And if people aren't all that interested, then it will at least be a good record for my own memory-keeping. :)  I do have two other friends who are also currently pregnant and keeping a blog, and I've enjoyed reading theirs, so hopefully this one will be interesting/entertaining to a few folks.

Here's a quick recap of this pregnancy so far:

My due date is August 18th, and my "turnover" day is Monday. So each Monday, I am officially another week pregnant. Right now I'm 25 weeks along. And so far, this is another uneventful pregnancy. Thank goodness! This pregnancy was a total surprise, and it actually took me almost my entire first trimester to get with the program and be happy about it.  We weren't supposed to have any babies while living in Hawaii - between being so far away from family and Andy inevitably having to go to Iraq for another deployment, I didn't think this was quite the ideal time to add a third little one to our brood. But, what are you going to do? My adult life has been full of unexpected, um, adventures, so why should they stop now? Plus, I don't want to seem ungrateful - I'm very lucky to be blessed for a third time!

Anyway, I had no inkling one way or the other about what I was having this time, although there was definitely a part of me hoping for a little girl. It would be a fun change of pace to buy pink things for once. But, it is not to be. My baby-psychic of a stepmother (she is eerily accurate about guessing/knowing what you're going to have) told me when I was pregnant the first time that it didn't matter how many babies I had, they'd all be boys. Three babies in, and she's still right!

I guess this is enough to get started. I'll do separate posts about names (no, we haven't decided on anything), baby shopping, the hospital, etc., etc.

Until next time!