What big teeth you have!

Today was BamBam's one month check-up. I knew he was huge, this appointment confirmed it. He's 12 pounds, 8 ounces, 23 inches long/tall, and his head is 15 inches around. His weight has him passed the 100-percentile, and his length in the 95 percentile. Which means (I'll admit it, I still have to think about it this way). He weighs more than 100% of babies his age, and he's taller/longer than 95% of them. I guess all that spitting up he's doing isn't harming his growth. He didn't get any shots today, they come next month. I hope he doesn't scream bloody murder, the way he does when I pull something over his head to dress him.

*rabbit trail* I just got a whiff of my shirt...yuck...BamBam spit up on me. Suppose it comes with the territory. I was going to change it, but I fell prey to the But-First Syndrome. I was going to change my shirt, but first I should do the laundry so I have clean clothes, but first I should nap while the bambino naps, but first I need to update my blog so my husband doesn't do it for me, but first I should find something to make for dinner, but first I should read my emails and blog readers...and on it could go. So, I found something for dinner (I think, if I'm adventurous to make it), I read my emails, my shirt still smells like spit up, the laundry is sitting in the basket staring at me, and I'll be falling asleep about 8pm tonight. Don'tcha love it?

Blondie has gone off to a real live college this fall. Last year, she stayed at home and went to a community college and worked. This year, she's out in the hills?...mountains?...lands! of Tennessee. I clicked through her pictures on facebook, and was surprised to see that she's already made quite a few friends-several guys too! She had her arms around one, she and another girl were kissing another guy's cheeks...and this is a "Christian" college? I mean, I'm not all for the BJU style "absolutely no touching, don't even think about touching to push him out of the way of a falling piano" strict, but I think this college is waaay over on the liberal side. Know what they told her about clothes? Her shorts have to have at least a 6 inch inseam. AT LEAST 6 INCHES?! That's like, what, just enough to cover your butt cheeks? I just had to get that off my chest. I'm good now.

Back to family news. Thing One is headed up to NY with Dad to check out a merchant marine academy. He's been trying to get someone to go since I went off to college! I'm not sure what the merchant marines are/do/is, but I've always imagined that they all work on mast ships selling and traded wool and stuff like that. I mean, the name is very dis-leading. Merchant-why not say clerk or cashier or something else that gives that impression? Merchant--like, Hello, I'm a shopkeeper from the 1700's. Nice to meet you. Then there's Marines. I think of tough, dirty, buff soldiers, don't you? No hair, thick muscles, decked out in BDU's or something. Those two words just don't mix, like Microsoft Works. No it doesn't. Heh, I made a funny!

Forget what I said about falling asleep at 8, I'm propping my eyelids up with toothpicks right now. So I'm gonna go take a little snooze while the bambino is sleeping, maybe he'll sleep for longer that 45 mins. That's been his going rate these days. Crying is good for the lungs, right?

Some times no news isn't good news

I'm still cooking this child. I have another appointment tomorrow, and I might be able to be persuaded to be induced, *MIGHT* I haven't hit the nesting phase yet, at least where I clean and clean and clean. I've organized our new TV stand with our DVD's, BlueRays, XBOX games, and such. I think it looks pretty nice :D We're getting rid of this huge wooden entertainment center that was a hand-me-down, and we're giving to one of MCM's friends. We're also giving him our most comfy recliner *sniff* It was also a hand-me-down. But Alan is ecstatic to get anything for free. I mean, his whole family hoards junk like nobody's business! They'd rather keep and try to fix it, no matter what it takes, than buy a new one. They keep *EVERYTHING* But anyways, to each his own.

I just have to find a place to put our pictures and such that sat on top. I was thinking maybe those wall shelves. But then I'd have to make holes in the walls, and I don't think I have enough time before the baby comes.

I did get asked today when my baby's due. I looked at her, smiled and said "Yesterday." The lady checking out in front of me laughed that knowing laugh. *sigh* I'm not looking forward to the questions at church. Don't know I could citizen-arrest them for harassment?!?!

I just realized, while I was shopping at WallyWorld, that since I'm out of work for a while, I can do my nails all fancy and with tips :D I liked them the one time I had them, but they tore up my nails. I did pick up a french manicure kit. That's really all I like on my fingernails. Anything else gets distracting. and when it chips or gets scratched....drives. me. up. a. wall.

I might see if I can convince my wonderful loving husband to get Taco Bell for dinner. I really want one of those new bacon burritos. I'm excited about it because I don't think it has beans in it :D

The days seem so long, the weeks forever

Saturday, the 4th of July brought about a sleepless night. We had attempted to make big party plans, because everyone knows that if you make plans assuming you won't go into labor, you will, right?! Anyways, everyone we tried to invite over couldn't make it or was going out of town-we got shot down quite a few times. We did manage to wrangle one couple in to coming over for lunch. And we had a great time. They got here about 12, and didn't leave till like 6! I really had no clue it was that late.

Anyways, the evening brought...contractions with it....I finally started timing them about a quarter till 8. They started about every 10, then got down to about every 6. MCM and I went walking. We walked and we walked and we walked. I think we walked for about an hour or so. We kept saying, lets wait one more hour. Finally about 1, I called my midwife...but she wasn't very helpful. She said, well if you think it's the real thing, come on in. I could have decided that. Anyways, we waited another hour, and headed to the hospital about 2. The contractions themselves didn't hurt as in pain, they were squeeze-y and made me have to stop and focus. But what was different was all the pressure I kept feeling "down under." So off we went.

You know, I should have taken some contraband pics of the room. Whatever. I got all dolled up in my back-less gown with the monitor stuff on my belly and waited. The nurse came in about 230/245ish am and did her nursey stuff. She checked my dilation, called me a 2, and gave me the impression that I should be writhing in pain with these contractions. Whatever. The midwife came in about 4am (she was delivering a few babies), and checked me, called me a 3, said if I get to 4cm and my contractions stay good like they were, about every 4-5 minutes, I could stay. She strongly encouraged me to get out of bed and I jumped at the chance. MCM and I walked the halls. He begged off to go try to sleep. Poor guy, he hadn't slept at all. So I walked and breathed and contracted. He tried to sleep in this recliner chair of sorts. I don't think it worked so well for him.

Back in bed about 530, they checked me again, said 3-4cm, not quite 4, but it seemed as if the contractions were tapering off. I tried walking again to get them going, I tried the birthing ball, but he kept twisting his head down on my nerves and such that it was just too painful to move my legs. I climbed in to bed about 7am with my contractions that were now about every 10 mins again and tried to sleep some cause I knew I was probably going home. How true that was. I had signed my papers and on my way home with my pregnant belly by 8am.

I was really disappointed, really disappointed. I honestly thought that when I left, we'd have grown to a family of 3. *sigh* Needless to say we didn't make it to church that day. Besides who would like to have to answer the question, "You haven't had the baby, yet?" when clearly *looks at my abdomen* I haven't. I know it's rhetorical of sorts, but can't you just come up with a different comment. One that doesn't seem to imply a condescending message. How about..."you look so good for how far you are" or "I love what you've done with your hair. I bet it's quick to do in the mornings." Something like that would be so much more appreciative than "You haven't had that baby yet?!" or "You've been pregnant for years/ever/a long time!"

I have two days of work left. Tomorrow, an 8 hours shift, then on Friday, a 12 hour shift. Although, I'm not sure how good I'll do on Friday. Will you come rescue me if I need it?! Please? And I'm supposed to be team leader. I hope with all my heart that we will have at least 5 if not 6 nurses, cause I will *NOT* be able to take 6 patients AND team leader AND secretary AND everything else they decide to through in my lap. I turned down team leader when I come back from maternity leave. I wasn't really given the option to do it, just kinda thrust into it because I have the mad skillz needed, and I probably would have taken it anyways. But it's nice to be asked. Right?!

Now, back to baby news. I had another appointment today. Let's see. They estimated he weighs around 7 pounds 2 ounces, although it could be off by a pound or two either way. They can tell he's not 'overly chunky' as the ultrasound tech put it. I've lost 2 pounds, but since he's gained, I've actually lost more than that, but *shrugs* oh well, I'm still healthy. I think my uterus is measuring about 37-38cm, which is good. Then came the depressing news. Remember how waay back up there ^ they called me a 3-4 cm? Well, Doc came in (Midwife was busy at the hospital delivery every one else baby but mine!!) and called me 2cm. TWO CENTIMETERS!! *TWO* and he said that was being generous, that anything else than that would be insulting. I was literally devastated. When he left I turned to MCM and just...cried, practically. So I have another appointment next week Thursday. The receptionist was nice about it. She's like, see you then. I replied back (firmly believing) "I hope not!" But I'll probably be there. McMillen babies like to be about a week and a half late. I was on time, so maybe it'll just end up being a week later, rather than two or so.

Ok, I can rest easy now. That is, if I can find my tums...

Too Big, Too Small...I'm confused

So, I was reading in this one baby book a friend lent me. It was telling me all about the 28th week, what tests the docs would do, what's developing in the baby--everything you'd expect to find in a baby book. Then I read this sentence..."Your weight gain should be between 17 to 24 pounds by now." Seventeen to twenty-four...I'm like right in the middle of that. I guess because I started small, I should be closer to 17 than 24, but I'm smack in the middle of it...why would Doc decide that my weight gain is too rapid? That's what she said, "We (as if she's going to be working on it with me) need to sloooow down on the weight gain." I know I'll be gaining about a pound every two weeks for the last two months or so (and by me gaining the weight, I know it's really Brendon), but I feel like I'm right on schedule.

And to make matters worse, no one can make up their mind if I look too small or too big. I know they all feel like they just *have* to say something, but couldn't they all agree?!? Like today, I was talking to Gwen at work, and she's like "You're so tiny, look at the bitty baby bump." Then I mentioned how I feel so huge (cause I do!!), and she's like "don't you dare starve that child!" And then I told her how Doc wants me to slow down on the weight gain, and all. She said

My mind just blanked. I *hate* it when that happens. Hang around, it'll come back...I hope.

Oh yeah. She asked how much further I have, and when I told her 12 weeks, she goes "Oh yeah, you'd better slow down on the weight." Talk about mixed signals!?

Then we discussed how that if this child has the genes to end up huge, like his great-grandpa (a 13 pounder), then there's he's going to do it. And in the next breath, she says you'll need a C-section for sure. How does she know what my inside measurements are?! I learned in school (from an experienced OB nurse, Wuanita) that just because a woman has a small frame, does not mean she cannot handle a 10, 11, or 12 pound baby; and just because a woman is "large boned" doesn't mean she won't get stuck trying to push out a 6 or 7 pounder.

But whatever, I am going to eat healthier, like cut back on the sweets (sugar cereal, fruit juice, and sugary snacks) so that at my next visit I can say I'm trying it. I am currently drinking a vanilla coke, though, but that's only because I can feel a huge migraine coming on (something I haven't had since about week 15 or so) and it's the only caffeine in the house.

But I guess the bottom line is listening to Doc (cause they do this sort of thing every week), but also listening to my body and not starving little Brendon.

Oh, on a good note, I had my 1 hour glucose test yesterday. My glucose was only 123, so I'm good for not having gestational diabetes. My hemoglobin was 12, they also told me, which is on the low side of normal but I don't have to take iron pills. And my blood type is still B negative. Glad to know it hasn't changed since my blood donating days :D. That also means I have to get a shot tomorrow, RhoGAM, and another at delivery so I don't make antibodies to this and subsequent babies' blood.

Oh Baby!

I'm participating in a....something. Here's my baby pics I had laying around my computer

At first, I thought this was the only one I could find, but then I found others. I don't know if those are my bangs or if they're attached to the headband...

My first Christmas

Let me tell you, this shirt...I think my two older brothers wore it before me. And probably my younger sister and brother wore it after me...if it was still available. It's seen lots of years. Hey, if those two hands are there...who's taking the picture and in what weird position did they have to get it...
"Move your head back a bit more"
"No, you move your armpit out of my face"
I don't think I want to know.

Don't my happy looking face fool you. This doll is the creepiest thing. She's bigger than I was!! But I must say, my ruffles outdo hers any day!

And because no post would be complete with out my baby's picture. This is at 24 weeks and 1 day, right at the beginning of month 6. Speaking of the baby, I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. Apparently, Dr. Know-It-All, thinks that my gaining 15 pounds in 6 months for this baby is WAAAAAAAY to much. He's like "I'm not going to say your weight in front of these people (my mom, sister and husband), but it's too much!" I just nodded and okayed him. My mom...you would have thought he was talking to her. She rolled her eyes and huffed at him. I just brushed it off. I mean, I do still fit in to my pre-preggers jeans, mostly. I can't button them, duh, and my hips are spreading, but it's not fat, it's because my uterus has no place else to go. Whatever. I haven't changed my eating habbits much. I eat breakfast more often now, and I have a snack between lunch and dinner. That's about it. He'll get over it; I'm not going to worry.

Okay, I'm done ranting. The ultrasound went well, those spots on his brain resolved, and he's still a boy :D We saw some really cute 3-D picture of him, but they weren't worth 12 bucks for a CD with 3 pictures on it. And the pictures the tech did print out for us are all blurry and really bad looking. Whatever, he'll be here soon enough and I can take all the pictures of him I want.

Mornings and Cooties

Did you know how much I despise mornings and waking up? Like, always. When I was little my brothers and sisters would take great delight in getting up super early, like 5ish to play games and stuff. I was the one who liked to say in bed. I remember this one time, we, as a family, had played Monopoly one evening. About 11 or so, we called it quits. Dad would make unseemly deals with those who were going bankrupt and the game would just go on and on. My little brother, Marine, had so much fun, that he woke up super early the next morning, like 5 or so and was like, KL, let's go play Monopoly again. I was having none of that, so he got Blondie to play with him...get this, they were like 9 and 6 or something, could barely read, and had no clue what to do. They played for hours though. Thing 1 and Thing 2 liked getting up early too. They usually kept each other entertained in their room. Their favourite things to play with were 1) beanie babies, or 2) plastic bottles. Yeah, like shampoo, sprays, empties, fulls, anything plastic. Thing 2 especially liked this game. She'd group them up in families in the bathroom and play house, make them talk, walk and such. We'd frequently have to raid her room before we'd shower or bathe.

So back to early mornings...I like sleeping. MCM is a morning person. Saturdays are a conflict of interests. This morning, about 6ish, while I was still reveling in the sleep, He was awake...paying more attention to me than I wanted. I tried everything, fake sleeping, moving away, huffing, grumbling, and bartering. He was persistent. I finally got him to let me sleep until 7:15. AFTER all this he decided to go downstairs so he wouldn't wake me up. AFTER I was already up. AFTER I couldn't go back to sleep again. AFTER I started getting hungry for breakfast. Wasn't that considerate of him? I love him, so it's all good. That really only happens on Saturdays. Weird, I know. Sundays he sleeps later, at least 630 or 7.

I went to a friend's baby shower today. Here's some pics. She's about 35 weeks, having a little girl. Can you imagine all the pink?

It's kinda funny. When I was in high school, all my friends were getting boyfriends/girlfriends and going out. When I was in college, all my friends were getting engaged and married. Now that I'm *whispers* an adult (SHH!!) */whisper*, everyone's having babies and such. There's Rebecca, Devon, Susan, (someone else), a doc at work, a nurse at work, a physical therapist at work, a pharmacist at work, a dietician at work, two more nurses at work...I think it's contaigious, so I'm going to just wear a HazMat suit to work from now on. That'll protect me from baby cooties, and bodily fluids too!

Speaking of babies, Noah, who I mentioned a little while ago, is doing pretty good. I forget what I had mentioned, but here's the scoop. Before he was born, the docs were concerned about his kidneys not working right. After he was born, he was peeing pretty good, but they ultrasounded his kidneys and found out that one of them was pretty much just a mass of cells, not a kidney, and the other was trying to overcompensate for it. They took him to surgery a few days ago to remove the mass (it was 10 cm!). The biopsy came back benign, but it's a type of fast growing benign tumor, so they'll have to keep him under watch. During surgery, they found out that his diaphragm (the muscle under your lungs that helps you breathe), wasn't entirely intact. They fixed it, attaching to the back of his abdominal cavity. Currently, he kidney is working well, with no reflux (backwards flow), and he's eating well now that he's got some extra room in that tummy. I think he even got to go home today! Here's some pics from my cell phone that I took a the day after he was born.

Things I've Learned From TV

My increasing exposure to the medical field has awoken my sarcastic attitude toward TV shows with medical stuff in them. Like, House, MD and ER. It makes me laugh, watching these shows. Let's start with ER.

1. Every single patient is seen by at least one, usually more than one, doctor within seconds of walking through the door (or riding on a stretcher through the door).
2. The doctors take a personal interest in each person's little problems.
3. The various doctors communicate with each other, at the patient's bedside.

In reality...

1. Every patient has to wait at least 30 minutes before the registration people come in to see them.
2. They don't.
3. Their communication between each other exists of a written order stating, "Change patient to Dr. So-in-So's care at 7am, and inform him of the change."

As for House, MD, I guess the title should be enough to let you know that it basically only portrays "MD's" not nurses. If there are nurses, they're the ones that come running a doc yells, "I need a nurse in here!"

1. Doctors hang IV meds, give patients pills, run lab tests, etc.
2. The doctors personally give pain medications to make them comfortable.
3. CPR/Code Blue is started by a doctor.

In reality...

1. The closest they come to giving any medications is thinking about it and writing it down.
2. We nurses have to squeeze anything stronger than Tylenol out of them like they were Ebeneezer Scrooge and we were Bob Cratchet.
   
3. They attend the Code Blue, but leave the sweaty work to nurses.

I'm not complaining about how they are, I'm just laughing at how good TV likes to make it appear. Of course, it doesn't stop me from watching House on Mondays at 9pm :) If I remember, that is.

I had plans to show the great change in our apartment. After working Thursday and Friday (twelve hours shifts), then driving after work Friday to my parents' house for the weekend, coming back Sunday in time for church, and then working again Monday and Tuesday (twelve hour shifts again), the apartment was a disaster zone. But I really didn't want to be embarrassed by physical pictures. But now, it's like...clean!

Did I mention that Mark's family is coming down? They are, the second week in July. I think they're coming from like Saturday through Sunday of the next following week. Mark's mom, dad, sister with her daughter, other sister, and brother are all coming. The only one not coming is Josh, Mark's bother-in-law, who just started a new job. Have you seen the space we have here? Granted, we'll be in the town house by then, but it's not THAT much bigger. But it'll be fun, I've taken that week off, but Mark still will be working. I guess that means I'll have to make real meals. Got any ideas for some easy yummy lunch or dinner foods?