Big Update!

Cletus the Fetus is no more! Our baby boy was born on Wednesday at 1:47 pm by c-section. He was 5 lbs 13 oz, 18 1/4 inches in length, and head circumference of 13 inches. The birth was precipitated by bleeding, caused by a combination of placenta previa and severe nausea. While we were hoping to get another 12 days of bed rest, I am happy to report the birth went very smoothly.

The name of our son is Wesley Martin. Wesley is a family name - he was a dear cousin to my husband. Martin was my father's name. Both of these fine men are no longer with us, and we wanted to honor them by naming our son after them. Many folks guessed at the names, especially on my husband's side. We still enjoyed keeping it secret, sorry! To tell the full truth, we had baby names picked out years before we ever conceived.

I'll update the blog later to reflect on the birth, which was a positive experience, and tell you about how Baby Wesley is doing. For now I'd like to say he is a premie, but he's doing very well. He needs to learn how to 'feed' before he can come home from the hospital. So we're working on his growth in the NICU by feeding him donated breast milk and I am supplementing that with any colostrum or breast milk I can produce by pumping. He gets sleepy during feeds, or he gets a little uncoordinated. They call level 2 NICU the 'growers and feeders' so that's exactly what he needs to do before he comes home! I get to go home tomorrow, but will be over at the hospital daily to spend time with Wesley.

Insomnia.

Clam shell here! Little Cletus is as happy as a clam. He moves around, he gives me strong kicks, his heartbeat is always strong on the NST monitors. That makes me the clam shell, of course. (Cute nickname courtesy of my dear aunt.) I watched him kick my abdomen a few times this evening. Then he disappeared when I poked at my belly. Oh, you can run kiddo and you can certainly try and hide, but your jig will soon be up. You'll be swaddled nicely in a few weeks and then we'll see how much you can kick me from the Babby Burrito!

When you're in bed or reclined much of the time, it's difficult to to find yourself tired and ready for bed. I've turned off the TV and played all of my Words with Friends games. It's time to wind-down. So I thought I'd give an update. I slept extremely well last night, with the help of exhaustion and some benadryl. The night before - not so much. I think I fell alseep around 4 am and then snoozed on and off for most of the morning. My doctor was pretty reasonable - so long as I get enough sleep, he doesn't want me to worry about when I get it.

The advice I've seen again and again re: bed rest is to set up a routine. I suck at routines. (That's why an insulin pump works so well for me; it gives a lot of flexibility.) I have two weeks to go and I'm not going to sweat it. Clock watching doesn't help insomnia.  Fortunately now I'm feeling pretty sleepy. Something else helped for the past few nights - a heating pad. Oh, it was lovely on my back and kept me toasty warm. Hospitals have some really cool gadgets, and the water-filled heating pads, or 'K-packs', are pretty magical. They get warm quickly and stay nice and warm. This balances out with the really iffy HVAC system, that's always blowing around air and usually warm if I want cool or cool if I want warm. I gave up on the thermostat. Messing with the dial took it from Cool to ICE or from Warm to ZOMGTROPICS.

Two weeks to the evacuation date! And now Cletus is kicking me again. See what I get for taunting the boy? He's so advanced, he can read unpublished blog pages. ;)

You'll have to ask Future-Dad about his adventures in the Infant-Care class he took on Saturday. He did have someone there for moral support, since I couldn't attend. It sounds like it was a very informative course, and I've been reading the book - it's quite good. Maybe I'll get a few more pages in and then find some zzz's.

Halloween!

Cletus' Mom here, writing from the hospital. No medical news to report. The c-section is scheduled and we're working to make it to week 36.

Halloween was a lot of fun. My Mom asked me if the kids in the hospital were allowed to trick or treat, and I was dubious at first. (Germs and all of that.) But I heard from the nurses that sometimes kids of the staff will come around in costume, so I rethought my Mom's idea of handing out treats. She brought over some decorations from the dollar store, and my siblings put them up for me. I received a lot of compliments, particularly the spooky spider hanging from the doorway. My friends came by on the 30th in costume and we knitted and celebrated! Halloween itself was fun - kids did come knocking due to my 'Trick or Treaters Welcome' sign, and I had a lot of candy folks brought over to hand out, and my good friends J&E to keep me company.

My favorites of the weekend - My friend made a Nerd Herd uniform from the TV show Chuck, complete with lanyard and name badge. SO CREATIVE! And the Star Wars family - Momma Leia, Darth Vader, and a diminutive Yoda. I wish I'd thought to take photos! My niece and nephew looked awesome, and came by with their parents to visit. My niece thought the make up was itchy but she made a great kitty cat with just enough spooky. My nephew is two, and as Batman really had the hang of this trick or treat thing. He was walking up to every adult in my room to ask for help with opening his candy!

My Home Away From Home

Big Changes since I updated last. Baby Daddy mentioned it, but I'm in the hospital for the next four weeks.

My visit home was really brief after being discharged on Monday afternoon. I was back in triage on Wednesday morning, and knew what the recommendation would be: I would stay until delivery so the nurses and doctors can monitor me if anything goes wrong with the placenta. The day and a half at home was short - and I felt a little bit bashful when I returned to the hospital so quickly - but I'd followed the doctor's advice and enjoyed every day I could be home. I had two baths. I slept soundly in my own bed. I enjoyed a special dish prepared by Future-Dad (was delicious!). I could wander into the next room and give him an impromptu kiss, although I'd be ushered back to bed. Fortunately he made trips for the same purpose. It was/is hard to miss him like that, but we're always texting or talking or using skype. He's a supportive and loving husband and Future-Dad.

Now that I'm back, he's helping me to cozy up my room. So far a nice houseplant and family photos are cheering up the place. The triage nurse picked out a room with a view (that is, not the wall of a building but instead a trees and the parking lot). Even seeing the world outside reminds me that I'm a part of it. It's sunny and lovely today, particularly from my climate-controlled environs. Ha!!

Cletus, he is the Good Thing To Come after all, is doing great. His heartbeat is strong and the nurses and doctors say he looks 'beautiful' on the monitors. He's moving around, kicking and overall just being a healthy little guy. The doc says that since the placenta is taking up room at the bottom of the uterus, his head isn't inclined to nestle into the lower portion and keep him in one position. He's free to move about and do back flips at will! We're prepped for a c-section, including the steroids to help develop his lungs early, so now we're just hoping the placenta holds on until the third week of November so he can keep growing in utero. If I don't need a transfusion, so much the better. We're in a good place, and being well taken care of.

Now We're in Week 32 - Working to Get 'Un-Bummed'

I'm home from another visit to the hospital. For whatever reason, I knew mentally that the placenta previa would cause bleeds but I thought it was something I did that caused them. Not necessarily! The uterus is stretching and growing, and Cletus is growing as well so he needs the room. The uterine growth can cause that placenta to stretch or pull away slightly and bleed. There's no way to prevent it, and no way to know if it'll be mild or serious. In fact, now that I've had three different bleeds - it's interesting to note that all of them occurred while I was laying down. I'm done feeling guilty about it.

The third time at the hospital wore me down emotionally. I was really bummed out, and then really thrilled that they agreed to let me go home. Going home wasn't a for sure thing - they prefer to keep you after #3. Since being at home I've slept a ton, enjoyed a nice bath, and been taking it easy, just like I'm supposed to. Have been working to adjust some settings on my insulin pump to help with blood sugars.

I had an ultrasound yesterday. Kiddo is an estimated 4 pounds 3 ounces, and in the 71st percentile for weight. I take these measurements with a grain of salt because the larger a fetus gets the harder it is to estimate weight accurately. His organs still look great. I saw the bladder, kidneys, heart, brain etc. He's still super active, with a lot of fetal movements on the NST monitor and he's still got a great heart beat. It's very comforting that he looks so healthy. He still looks to have some hair on his head!

I finished one knitting project, and have started another one. I painted a little birdhouse when I was in the hospital. I've been watching a series called Downton Abbey, which is fan-freaking-tastic. I try to catch The Big Bang Theory on TV on Thursday nights. Was anticipating part two of Ken Burns/Lynn Novick Prohibition series but it was a repeat of part one. Boo-urns! (Aside: I saw a show about ice cream that said a lot of factories switched from making/bottling beer to producing ice cream after Prohibition passed - I hope the documentary mentions this. ICE CREAM YAY! I'd so rather have some ice cream than a cocktail.) I play a lot of Words With Friends (email me if you want me screen name), and my Mom and I have a good Scrabble rivalry going. There are a million diversions at my disposal, but sometimes I don't feel like doing any of them. I love that my friends and family still visit me and message me. In fact, some buddies were going to bring a costume party to me at the hospital next weekend - but I was cut loose from the clink! Worth missing out to be home, all in all.

Miss me much?

Yes...this is baby daddy...finally posting something in over a month (maybe two).  As I sit at the dentist office, waiting to get my teeth polished up, I figured "blog??  Why the hell not". 

*off topic* getting your teeth checked feels so much like a class exam to me.  You go in, they poke/prod/scrap your teeth up.  If you pass, 'gold star'!  If you fail...needle-time in your mouth, lots of high screeching machinery and your face is numb for the afternoon.  Now if I was a good boy, I'd be all flossing, brushing, mouth-washing every freaking day and night.  But, I was never good with my homework...reason I'm waiting like a deathrow inmate at the dentist

Back to baby talk.  Really, what it comes down to my absence from blogging is 1. My ADD kicked in and 2. Just been busy doing other things (which compliments my ADD well.  As baby mama has mentioned, in previous blogs, baby is doing well.  Mom is doing well (although going tir crazy from bedrest)  shes in the hospital again *boooo*  hope I can pick her up tomorrow.  But were in the homestretch!  Late november we'll have a new roommate! 

Oops, time for my teeth torture.  More later :)

More Favorite Things!

This bed rest thing gets me bummed out sometimes. It's required giving up more of my autonomy than I'd care to, and I try to remind myself it's for a wonderful cause (Cletus!).

Here are some happy things, to make both me and you smile:

Peanut Butter! I can eat it on a spoon. It's excellent on apple slices. There are other people with Type 1 diabetes who are PNB fiends like myself. Brett Micheals for one. Not that I consider him a role model, but we do have that common bond.

Manicured Toes! I don't often put polish on my toes, but I am vain about my feet. I keep them well-groomed and lotion-ed up. My Aunt did my nails for me a few days ago - in OPI's "I'm not really a waitress" red. HOT! They make me smile every time I look at them.

The Joy of Others! My husband has been playing around with his media center.This means organizing DVDs, recording our CDs into digital form so we can play them via our network, and adding features to his big entertainment center on the cheap. It's highly creative and he has so much fun with it. Plus it's essential like a DVR for us, so if I want to watch something later he can record it for me.

Baby Giggles! I'm on a parenting message board that tells it like it is. The joys and travails are enthusiastically shared, lamented, and support abounds. Folks post their videos and photos of babies and kids, and the giggling baby ones are the best.

Our Doggies! Okay, sometimes my girl Lucy annoys me. She's not the brightest, and she's not the pleasantest - she's actually sort of stinky with a big bark - but she's a very happy girl and does come and sleep at the end of our bed at night. Anya is sweet and she comes into the bed room and lays down; I'm going to assume it's to keep me company. Although she does give me the eye if I'm laying on her couch, as if to hint 'So, ya gonna move already? I wanna lay down!'

Baths! They are awesome. I'm allowed to take them again, and it's very luxurious. My sister even gave me some nice bathsalts. Classy ones - they don't smell like artificial flowers, just lavender and calm. I never used to like baths but then again, I never had an extra weight strapped to my front either. Buoyancy for the win!

Another Checkup Down

We went to the clinic yesterday for a check up with the doctor. I'd just seen one of the docs from my clinic on Sunday, and were in again, talking to another doctor on Thursday. They're getting to know us! Our favorite nurse was there, and we were glad to see her. She's jovial, kind, funny as heck, and loves Diet Coke. Oh yes; knowledgeable and wonderful nurse to boot. Even better - she gives my husband a hard time, always. I like it.

Baby sounds good on the doppler. Great heartbeat, still moving around a lot, and at the end had some hiccups. My blood sugars are looking pretty good. The focus right now is to avoid high blood sugars as much as possible. Lows are disruptive to me but less dangerous for Cletus. Next week we'll have an ultra sound to check for size, and status of the amniotic fluid and placenta.

I chose a new perinatologist to be my main doctor, since mine is leaving the clinic at the end of this month. Sad! I'd picked her more than four years ago! I did have plenty of warning about this transition, and no thanks to my couple of hospital visits, I've met and liked several of the practitioners. Smooth sailing. I don't even think it's me being easy-to-please; they are all really good.

Week 30 is nearly done. I've been pretty lazy this week. Haven't been stressing about getting much done. Watched some interesting videos online, listened to music that Cletus' Dad put up on our 'media center', knit a few rows, read some online forums. One of my favorite diversions is playing Scrabble on my phone. My friends are smart as heck, and keep me on my toes. Some of them regularly kick my booty, but I keep on going back for more! (Plus it helps my vocabulary, ha.)

The Eve of Week 30 - II

So as I was writing that Cletus kicks sporadically, he went kicking-spree. Kick, kick, kick! Funny kid.

Good things I'd like to tell you about this week:


The nursery walls and ceilings are painted - Future-Dad got that handled. Trim is next up. My sister is going to come over and shampoo the carpet for us. My FIL will probably be able to paint the changing table. My Mom is still working on painting the dresser, and making some themed clings to adorn the walls. My MIL is talking about finding a bassinet or cosleeper for us. The nursery is looking great! We have some photos of the work in progress to put into an album.

I'm consistently reminded of the generous friends and family I have - lots of visits, text messages, a few calls and emails. Thank you keeping in touch. It makes being confined to bed much, much more bearable.

I had a few low blood sugars, but not as many high blood sugars as in weeks past. I'd prefer them to stay steady and stable, between around 80-95 before meals and at waking, and then no higher than 135 two hours after I eat. Having fewer high blood sugars means baby Cletus won't need to overproduce insulin. Since it's a growth hormone, too much insulin can mean baby grows too much. Since he's coming early, it's not my biggest concern - but I don't want him to have his insulin/blood sugars out of wack at birth either. It is a delicate balance and I'm doing well, with just the occasional wobble.

Oh, I saved the most delightful for last! Cletus was kicking today before dinner time. (Aside: We all had the most fantastic turkey dinner - SO GOOD. And I'll have some berry cobbler for dessert. GOBBLER AND COBBLER.)

Yes, the kid was kicking - that's pretty normal. Cletus' Dad was in the room, and I was able to warn him and point out the spot. He placed his hand on my belly, and Cletus kicked again!! It was so exciting. The fetus has been elusive in the past, and certainly isn't cooperative enough to kick on command. We had to go in for the sneak attack when he was on a roll.

Of the three of us, one of us was hollering and jumping up and down, one of us continued to kick, and the third one beamed from ear to ear. I'll let you decide who was doing what.

The Eve of Week 30 - I

Spent a little more time at the hospital this week. Had a tiny bleed on Tuesday, and the docs kept me around for observation. The nurses and staff are fantastic. The doctors on round always ask if I have any questions and help me out. The food doesn't suck (too much). I was still very discouraged and bummed out by day four, and by day five I was itching to get out. When I was released this morning, I couldn't wait for Cletus' Dad to arrive, save me from the castle, and carry me home in his chariot - our blue Honda Fit.

Same information to report: Baby looks great. Cletus is moving and shaking, and his heart is very healthy on the monitors. He kicks sporadically, so I'm not looking forward to 'kick counts'. I'm doing fine too. My iron levels and blood sugars are good, as is my blood pressure. It's the naughty placenta at it again.

The fact of the matter is that I overdid it last week, and it may have precipitated this small placenta bleed. I'm being VERY good now. I'm either horizontal, reclined, or taking care of human needs - like showering or toileting. I've felt very powerless over my life since starting bed rest and it's definitely starting to get me down. But I need to keep on reminding myself I have even less power over the placenta, and if the uterus gets irritated (read: contracts) or a bleed starts - there's not much I can do personally to stop it. Aside from going to the hospital. Everything I've heard of magnesium sulfate tells me it's a medicine I don't want to need.

Week 30 tomorrow. So another week down. Let's go, week 36-37!

 I guess this is the bummer part of the update; I'm going to give an update on some of the happier stuff next.

Sprucing up the Nursery

Fetal-host here, reporting on the news from the nursery. From the comfort of my bed.

The nursery is our former spare room. It also housed a ton of craft stuff, books, old school papers, and random things, along with an antique sewing machine and an antique hospital bed. The furniture had been gradually moved into the office, temporarily, along with a lot of the baby gear. My Mom helped me to pare down, and I recycled old papers and magazines. I don't want to even think about the yarn or fabric stash. It can move to the garage.

Earlier this week we had the original aluminum-framed window replaced. It was drafty and a pane had cracked a few winters ago. The new window is fantastic and the contractor did a great job. (actually all of our windows could stand to be replaced, but one thing at a time!)

Cletus' Dad and I settled on paint colors on Friday evening, and he went to the hardware store to get them mixed up. I stayed home and watched The Big Bang Theory online with my Mom. I have it rough with this bed rest thing, I tell ya.

Then, my Mom came over today and began to paint. She enjoys painting! It's what she assures me of again and again. The ceiling is finished and the walls have part of their first coat of paint. The trim will be last, and will match the color of the repurposed (read: hand-me-down) curtains, dresser (which my Mom is also painting) and changing table (which Mom may not yet know she'll be painting). It's so exciting! We also picked out some decals for the wall. A theme will certainly emerge.

Meanwhile, as my Mom is slaving away painting, I got to go on an outing! Future-Dad and I went to visit his folks across town. The seat was fully reclined but I saw a few trees and the grey skies out the window. We're in the third trimester and into Autumn in earnest now.

When we arrived, I promptly set myself up on the bed. Even If I'm going on an outing, I will maximize my horizontal time! His folks fed us a delicious lunch and we were able to chit chat and catch up. We picked out some ultra sound photos to send to Cletus' great aunt, who lives out of state. (She'd already purloined one of the 20 week photos we sent down for sharing at the family reunion - you go Auntie! Can't help but laugh and be tickled.) and I showed off the album I started -of course the most recent pictures show the fetus' cute face. Naturally my in-laws sent us home with generous portions of leftovers, so they are feeding the work crew! (gestating is too work!! :) And future-Grandpapa, I should say Lolo, is going to help clean up the backyard and get it winterized. We're really fortunate folks. (I keep on saying that, huh.)

Papa installed a new light fixture in the nursery. I'd wanted to do that, but bed rest intervened. It looks and works great. Can't wait to get the furniture into the room! Then I can start looking through clothes help sort out the gear. With help, of course. I think this nursery is a big, collaborative project.

Week 28

Counting by weeks now. It'd drive me nuts to count by days. The adjusted due date is 36-37 weeks. That puts it in late November, around the 28th. The c-section won't be scheduled until a few weeks prior. I'm seeing the doc weekly so progress and that naughty placenta will be monitored.

We didn't actually need an ultra sound today. Too bad, because Cletus was unusually mellow this morning. Usually he's so squirmy. The doc and sonographer were awesome about it (just a wee mix up as we'd had one last week) and still Doppler-ed the heart and took a few images. I love hearing the heartbeat! It was 136 bpm.

It's funny to go from thinking we'd have a Christmas baby to a Thanksgiving baby. My wonderful OB said she'll hope for the 27th, so babe can be a Sagittarius like her! Too fun.

I'm making an album with the sonogram images. Can't believe it. Usually my crafty tendencies stop before photo albums and scrapbooks. S'okay, it'll look homemade but they will be in an album! Like I'll have any desire to do that after the kid arrives. I'll be sneaking in naps.

Speaking of naps, one sounds good about now...zzzzzz

No News... is Good News

Baby-Mama here. Been on bed rest for two weeks now. Nine more to go!

It is a little tiresome. I balance asking for things to be brought to me, and getting up periodically. My doc said I can and should get up now and then. We're still being really careful since we want so much to avoid a second bleed. It may not be avoidable, but staying relatively horizontal seems to be a good thing! Baths are a treat, as are the occasional foray into the kitchen to grab a snack.

I was joking how much bed rest puts me in common with the older folks I took care of when I was a caregiver. Use of assistance devices? Check! Love my shower chair. Monitoring my medications carefully? Yes, I have a pill box and time taking my meds and vitamins throughout the day. Looked forward to visiting the doctor? Oh heck yes, that meant an outing in the car! The fresh air was fabulous and I could see the leaves changing color, even from my reclined position. Obsession with my bowel functions? 'Fraid so! Those iron pills and vitamins plus not moving around much makes me very happy to have Colace.

I love visitors. Makes me feel connected to the outside world. Lots of folks have come by and I'm so happy to have them. I have tons of magazines, and books, borrowed DVDs, and the internet - my smart phone, a borrowed iPad, and my laptop. My knitting project is nearby and I've added a few rows here and there. I can take a nap at will. So far, so good. I'm not going nuts yet!

We're Home!

They let me out of the hospital yesterday. Hurrah!

Evidently I had ~2pints of blood loss. I'm taking iron to build my stores back up. Bed rest is the doc's orders so I'm either laying in bed or on the couch. I am allowed to get up to go to the bathroom, shower or bathe, or grab a quick snack. Thursday I'll go to a follow up appointment.

Life is good! I'm so glad to be back at home. Ask me again in 2 weeks - by then I may be going stir-crazy.

Here we are.

It's midday on Wednesday. Cletus is doing well! Mom-to-be is doing well.

Monday was not such a great day. The placenta position is a full placenta previa, resting completely over the cervix. We've known about this for weeks. It's not preventable, as the position of origin seems to be determined at the time of implantation (when lil Cletus chose his spot to 'stick' on the wall of the uterus). It can cause bleeding, sometimes severe, particularly if the placenta has a full previa.  I've been hoping it would move up and off of the cervix. Sending it secret messages to move move move up up up!

No dice. I had bleeding and fluid loss on Monday morning. We rushed to the ER, and went straight to Labor and Delivery. There were IVs and monitors, and baby Cletus was hooked up to the NST. I was able to hear his heart beat and they could watch for contractions. The biggest concern was making sure labor wasn't starting and that the bleeding wasn't severe. I was hooked up to an IV with drip insulin and glucose solution to keep me hydrated. I couldn't eat or drink, in case they needed to send me to surgery for a c-section.

Even though I was anxious and scared, it was delightful to realize how often little Cletus had hiccups. From what I can figure, the glucose solution went straight into me, then into the amniotic fluid, and baby boy swallows that fluid to get his nutrients. Well straight sweet stuff gives him those hiccups!! He was also a very hyper guy, flipping and flopping around. It was even hard for the nurses to find him on the monitors, because he was so squirrrely.

They have been taking good care of us. Fortunately the bleeding has subsided and now they are just keeping an eye on things for the next 5-7 days. I'm off all of the monitors, back on my insulin pump, and am allowed to eat and drink. I'm on full bed rest, and will be for the rest of the pregnancy. What happens in the next few days to few weeks will determine if I do my bed rest at home, or in the hospital. We want Cletus to stay in utero for as long as possible. I'd love it if we can stretch the 26 weeks we're at now to 37 weeks. 32 weeks would be okay. Every week we can gain is a blessing to let his organs continue to develop and grow. I'm comforted to know that our hospital has a great neonatal intensive care unit. It'd be even better to skip the NICU altogether.

We are lucky to have wonderful family and friends, coworkers and online buddies. Thank you all for your love and support. Every bit of positive energy is appreciated and welcomed. I apologize if we haven't been able to get in touch in person; it's been a bit of a crazy time. I've been telling you all about this from the Mom-who-is-gestating-perspective, but I can say that Pappa is doing a great job of taking care of me. And taking care of our two dogs, and the house, and communicating with everyone, and bringing me things to keep me entertained while I'm laid up. Even though this situation is less than ideal, we're doing all we can to follow the doctor's orders and stay positive.

There is a lot to be happy for. Hang in there Cletus! You're not done yet, you need to keep on cookin'.

Preggo Brain. Forgot about the u/s.

I never believed in "preggo brain". I thought it must be an exaggeration or a product of poor sleep. Now I know that it's real. I missed a friend's bbq yesterday, because I thought it was today. Oops. I walk into a room forgetting what I wanted to grab. I've pulled up a browser and forgotten what I exactly I was going to type into the google search bar.

So, the ultra sound last week. It was good! Baby Cletus still has great looking internal organs. He's still as cute as all get-out. 1 lb and 11 oz in weight, but I couldn't tell you how long he is. Good size, good sonogram results. The placenta still isn't in the right place, and we're still calling it placenta previa. Meh, we'll see if it decides to move to a more suitable position or not. If not, it'll be a scheduled c-section for Cletus. On the plus side, he'll end up with a nicely shaped melon via the birth-canal bypass. Or as I've come to call it, the 'Escape Hatch'!

Feeling a bit spoiled, but loving it!

Having a baby is a pretty life changing event. I'm not staying anything new there. We're pretty lucky because we were able to plan it out, relatively loosely, and that conceiving worked out for us. The planning was important for Mom-to-be's health (that's me!), since having Type 1 diabetes makes being pregnant a little more complex. We feel ready. We really want this.

Now, that doesn't mean I stop dead in my tracks once in awhile and think "OMG, WHAT HAVE WE DONE??" We're in it to win it; not only do we want it, we are willing to trade in sleep, privacy in the bathroom, going out at the spur-of-the-moment, and any glimmer of a chance that we'll have an un-messy house. (Ha, like we ever had a spic-n-span house to begin with!). It's a glorious thing to want this baby. It's still very intimidating to be 100% responsible for a tiny human being!

So many of our family and friends (my almost-typo was 'fiends' right there. I count my favorite fiendish-ones as some of my closest friends!) are so happy and excited for us. I love it. We love it. We're so appreciative of the love, care, and support. Future-papa enjoys the brutally honest words of advice from his coworker, a Dad with four kids.

Can I just brag a little bit about how darned spoiled we are? I was so tired last week, and my Mom not only took me out to dinner but she also helped me clean up around the house for an hour. I've been given baby clothes in many sizes, maternity clothes appropriate for work, a nursing pillow, breast pump, bpa-free bottles, changing table, jumper, two strollers, two car seats, baby bath, convertible crib with bedding, vibrating baby papasan chair, tummy-time play mat, diaper pail... We LOVE it. I mean, our hardest problem right now is figuring out where to store things, which technically really isn't a problem.

I'm learning that a lot of circles of friends will save baby and kid things to pass along to each other. It seems to me that as soon as we don't need something, we can do the same and help another parent-to-be. Beautiful, re-use circle. I love that too! My local university has a 'clothing closet' for student parents to trade clothing in/out of as well.

I'm particularly thankful because we have some home repairs to do before Cletus arrives and we want to hop on them. My Mom has offered to help paint the nursery, and we want to put in some new carpet. Oh yes, carpet that the dogs haven't sullied. It isn't time to panic (YET), but we're going to get a jump on some of our 'projects'.

We're more than half-way there!

Tired.

Baby is still moving around in his little hot tub. It's less fluttery now and feels more substantial. To me, my tummy looks baby-bumpy. Maternity clothes are getting more comfy. My co-workers haven't pried (nice, respectful folk I work with!), but it's fun to let them know the happy news.

Tomorrow is yet another ultrasound. I don't even really know what they're looking for this go around. At 24 weeks? Maybe Cletus' size or how the placenta is doing?

I'm very excited - future-Dad and I agreed to have a Doula help us. It will be support for childbirth. The doula is in training, but is a parent who has attended several births. The most exciting thing to me is support for my support person. A tag-team, as it were. If Pappa needs a break, he can take one. More than one person to hold my hand. To test my blood sugar, if I can't manage it. To remind me this seemingly momentous task can be done.

Turn on your heartlight...

We went to another ultrasound and appointment yesterday. They did an echocardiogram of Cletus' heart. It's looking great, in fact, the doc said the images were 'beautiful'. Music to our ears!

The fetus is moving and a-shakin, fluttering around in there. He responds to cold drinks and caffeine, and the movement is more intense now.

Movin' and a Shakin'

In the past couple of days, in fact just after commenting that I hadn't felt any movement, I've had a few small movements. Small movements in my abdomen that can't be explained by something else. It feels like a flutter or an almost-tickle from the inside. Baby boy is moving around!

I'm sure after he's kicked me in the ribs for the upteenth time the novelty will wear off. But for now, this is thrilling.

Let him eat cake...

How about Jalapeno cake??

So this week is suppose to be the start of where baby boy can develop tastes for certain foods.  It depends on what wifey is willing to eat.  So maybe if she tries some of these foods it will be a good thing.

Bananas!
Jalapenos (build up baby's spicey tolerance)
every known meat (maybe take her to one of those Brazilian Grills)
sushi!!!

Is this too much to ask of my wife?  Apparently so :-(.  Not sure if she's agreeing to any of this...