Stopped by the USPS today to mail a few packages and saw these stamps. Not sure how new they are but they were new to me. I bought a sheet even though I still have a handful of the comparatively boring Forever stamps. These make me want to write a letter. However, “want to” does not necessarily equal “will do.”
Tonight was the monthly meeting of APWBWGTTD. I had stopped by once before when the meeting was at Fox Bros. They were out of Mac&Cheese and I vaguely remember a mini-hissy pitched by yours truly. I’m pretty sure Dave thought I was a nightmare but - hey - I was pregnant and hormonal.
Tonight’s meet-up was literally around the corner from our house at the Ujoint. I RSVP’d that I would attend, having the best of intentions to actually post a couple of times between then and now to validate my appearance at said event. Well - I think I managed one post. I showed my face anyway thinking that if I didn’t go when it was in my ‘hood I would never make it there. Everyone was very welcoming and I came away giddy. Giddy that they didn’t care that I have been a slacker in the blog department. Giddy that I could carry on a conversation that didn’t revolve around diapers or day care arrangements. Giddy that I was able to have a beer, meet up with good people, and be back home in less than two minutes because I live that close to a fun little bar. (Gainesville, VA - I’m not missing you one bit!) I came in the door glowing with giddiness. Kristen and Randy were having a hard time believing that I had only one beer. I was that excited. So thank you - APWBWGTTD - for being such a welcoming group. I look forward to next month. BTW - they got a shout out in the AJC.
On a completely UNrelated note - I made up a new word tonight. I took Gnarsty (a word I learned from Kristen) one step further. To describe the extreme gnarly nastiness that was the kitty fountain prior to today’s cleaning, I created the word Fugnarsty. Trust me. It was more than appropriate. Poor kitties.
I can see by my blog stats that there are some faithful folks out there who continue to check back despite the record stream of inactivity. And for that I say, “Wow, you must be really bored.” No, seriously, thank you for checking back. And my apologies for my blogging slackerness. So - we have had a few glasses of wine on our newly furnished back patio………..and here is a mini update.
We FINALLY bit the bullet and upgraded the back patio furniture several steps above the plastic green chairs that Randy has toted along with us since his townhouse on Glebe Road in Arlington…….pictures will be posted soon.
Randy spotted a rat investigating our garbage. How lovely.
Kristen (Randy’s sister) has been staying with us since mid-may when she graduated from Clemson. Today she officially moved into her new apartment in Smyrna/Vinings and we already miss her terribly. There are few people that could crash at our small house for multiple weeks and not drive us insane………she is one of those rare birds.
Nate is growing like a weed. He is rolling over in both directions, eating cereal, loving Fatsby, laughing, and greeting us every morning with a huge smile. We continue to be amazed that the two of us produced such an easy going baby and are grateful for every day. He truly is a Joy.
Randy’s Mom gave him a webcam for his birthday. We somehow managed to get it up and running and have had three successful video chats with her. So if any of you out there have a skype account and want to give us a ring………feel free!
We have lost all control over Chops. He INSISTS on sleeping on the kitchen island and I am tired of shoving him off of it. The other day he jumped up 4 times in the same minute after being pushed off / scolded each time. He is one persistent cat and can usually be found sleeping on the island or in Nate’s high chair. We give up.
If you haven’t already checked out the Robert Plant / Allison Krauss CD - give it a listen. Four thumbs up from this household.
Saturday morning Nate rolled over from his back to his tummy for the first time. He had come close so many times before but just couldn’t get past that arm. He did it while Steph and Sara were here so I think he was inspired to show off.
Usually Nate wakes up in the middle of the night after having been asleep for 4-5 hours. We feed him and he goes back to sleep until about 7am. He must have been plum tuckered out from his adventures at the World of Coca Cola because on Sunday night he slept MUCH longer than usual.
It had been Randy’s turn to take the middle of the night shift. I woke up at 5:03am. Not recalling him getting out of bed at any point, I asked him if he had gotten up with Nate yet. He said No. HOLY SHIT! The Boy slept for 9 HOURS! We both scooted out of bed and into his room where we found him sound asleep. Most parents would be overjoyed at such a long slumber but we were scared that he had gone too long without food. Before you think us paranoid parents…………
When Nate was one week old, we got an unexpected call from the Emory Genetics institute. As part of the newborn metabolic screening tests mandated by the state of GA, Nate tested positive for a Fatty Acid Oxidation Disorder (FAOD), specifically Very Long Chain Acyl-CoA Dyhydrogenase Deficiency or VLCAD. What does THAT mean? Basically, he is unable to break down fatty acids to produce energy during periods of fasting. This is treated with diets low in certain fats and frequent meals but can have serious consequences if not properly managed. So by sleeping 9 hours he had nearly doubled the longest he had gone previously without eating. We tested his blood sugar and were elated when it read 103 as a good fasting blood sugar level is between 80 and 110. At this point we do not plan to make a habit of letting him go that long but it is comforting to know that he can. With VLCAD, however, that may not always be the case.
On a more entertaining note, this morning I experienced Nate’s first unmitigated blowout on the changing table. I will leave the rest to your imagination. But suffice to say that this is not what one hopes for at 3:15am.
Checking in on Mingaling’s recent post got me thinking about my own bridezilla moment(s). I would like to think that - as far as bridezilla’s go - I was relatively tame. However, in the 4.5 years* we have been married there are a few things that haunt me and if I could undo them I would.
I had this notion that, on our wedding day, nobody outside of my bridesmaids and parents should see me prior to my walk down the aisle. I am not sure why I felt so strongly about this. If I hadn’t been so stubborn about it, we could have done pictures prior to the ceremony and enjoyed that much more of our reception. But no, I insisted on maintaining the ‘element of surprise.’ The ceremony was to start at 4:30pm and I entered the church at about 25 after thinking that most everyone would be seated or at least heading that way. I beelined for the room just off the vestibule only to find that several friends and family members were hanging out and *gasp!* seeing me before the start of the ceremony. With a tone of voice more appropriate for Wendy Whiner than an elegant bride I remember saying, “Moooooooooooom, make them go sit dooooooooooown!” I don’t know if anyone heard me but, if they did, I would not blame them for thinking I was a complete brat.
*April 13th is 4.5 years EXACTLY.
Chops was delivered to the Vet this morning to have his teeth cleaned. Despite the fact that nothing good ever comes from being put in the cat carrier, he went in without resistance and continued purring even after we closed the door. Apparently he has forgotten the trauma of his last vet visit, otherwise he wouldn’t have been all over the carrier as soon as Randy brought it up from the crawl space. Lovable, yes. Smart, not so much. Now I am 100% sure that all of you are wondering, “What about Nickel?” Well – despite eating the same food and treats – he somehow avoided the buildup of kitty tartar. Maybe there is a purpose to his gnawing of the door stops. And all this time I just thought he was hungry.
Fortunately it was not too late. I continued to wail through each contraction, worrying that I wouldn’t be able to hold still for the anesthesiologist to do his thing. I remember asking in the middle of a particularly painful contraction, “How. Do. People. Do. This. More. Than. Once?!” I now know that the epidural is the answer to that question. After the catheter was inserted in my back they told me I would soon feel like a new woman. And – thankfully – they were absolutely right. Once the drugs kicked in, the only indication that I was having a contraction was the big spike that could be seen on the fetal monitor.
The next part is a little fuzzy. I just know that it took a while for me to reach full dilation and that, after 15 minutes of pushing, Nathan was born. When Dr. Kleiss asked if Randy wanted to cut the umbilical cord, he politely declined, trying hard to mask his squeamishness. When Dr. Kleiss asked me if I wanted to hold Nate right away or wait until the nurse cleaned him up, I took the clean baby option. She probably thought us to be horrible people.
He had a boatload of dark hair and kept trying to roll over on to his side while the nurse was checking him out. He didn’t cry. In fact it was about 36 hours before we heard much out of him at all. He did make little goat noises when eating though and they melted my heart. The goat noises gave way to turkey noises and now, at almost 12 weeks, he has moved on to cute little coos and gurgles much more befitting of a baby boy.
I can’t believe that the day to return to the office is already here. It seems like years ago that we were at the hospital for Nate’s birth but the calendar brings me back to reality. It has been just over 11 weeks. We have gone from incessantly sleepy Nate to (seemingly) incessantly cranky Nate to where we are now - which is holy-cow-how-is-it-possible-this-cute-smiley-kid-belongs-to-us Nate. Now that I have said that out loud I have probably tempted the Gods to turn Nate back into the incessantly cranky* baby we had about 6 weeks ago.
*Cranky Baby = 3 Modes of Operation: Sleeping, Eating, Fussing
On this eve of returning to the office it seems like an appropriate time to share the story of his arrival. Of course - the truly appropriate time has long passed but what can I say? We have been busy navigating the roads of Parenthood. And we can’t seem to find a map, but thanks to our family and friends we are getting around quite well. So far.
So rewind, if you will, to December 26th. I went to Dr. Kleiss for my weekly check-in and was told that I was at least a week away from going into labor. This was fine with me as we still had a fair amount of preparation to do for the arrival of the Boy. I hadn’t packed a bag for the hospital, the nursery was far from complete, the guest room was trashed (leaving no suitable place for the Moms who would surely be arriving), and we had a few key items to get at Babies R Us. In addition, I was not overly uncomfortable despite being almost 38 weeks along. This surprised me as, earlier on in the pregnancy, I fully anticipated that at 38 weeks I would be chanting “Get this baby out of me!” to anyone who would listen.
The next day at work several people asked me how long I planned on working. Sure that Dr. Kleiss was right about still being a week off, I told them that I would be in at least through the following week. That same day I also had a funny conversation with a coworker/new mom about what contractions felt like. I had no idea because I hadn’t had one yet. Would I know it when it actually happened? Apparently not.
That night I woke up at 3am for my usual middle of the night bathroom visit. Walking through the dark room, a wave of discomfort swept through my abdomen. I think I was so focused on getting back to sleep - after all I was going to work in the morning - that I didn’t really pay attention. Besides, I was very used to random aches and pains at this point. Then 5 minutes later, back in bed, the same sensation washed over me producing an involuntary moan. Randy stirred, asked me if I was OK, and I said that I thought that I was. Five minutes later, the same feeling, the same uncontrollable urge to voice my discomfort. Randy, looking at the clock, realized before I did that these were evenly spaced occurrences. Until this point, I had not even had the thought of contractions let alone labor. After all, I was still a week out right?
With the realization that this could be “it” the panic set in. What if we go to the hospital and get sent home jumping the gun at the first indication of labor? What if we don’t go and this is really happening and I don’t get there in time for the epidural? Being a wuss with next to no tolerance for pain and less desire to go the route of natural childbirth, this worried me more than the first scenario.
Four minutes apart.
Randy disappears from the bedroom and returns with the handbook we were given at the Piedmont Labor and delivery class. We review the signs of possible labor, false labor, and labor.
Three Minutes.
Oh shit! This is really happening. Randy starts fumbling inside the TV cabinet that was recently moved out of the extra bedroom to make way for the Boy. He is intent on something but I don’t know what. The cats are oscillating between curiosity of the open TV cabinet and horror at the unearthly noises coming from my mouth every few minutes.
“What are you doing?” I ask in exasperation.
“We have to watch the Happiest Baby on the Block DVD!” he says.
Mind you, this TV has not been hooked up since leaving Virginia. I convey my disbelief with a few choice words since we clearly missed the window where educational videos would be of any value. We call the doctor’s answering service, Dr. Kleiss returns our call and tells us to come to the Hospital.
Less than 3 minutes.
I throw together a bag pausing every few minutes to bend over and writhe through another contraction. By 4:20am we are ready to go. I step outside and cling to the front porch railing while Randy swaps the cars in the driveway. I wail thorough another contraction worrying that I am waking up the neighbors but am unable to help myself.
We arrive at Piedmont and I am whisked from the car directly to a labor and delivery room. They tell me I am 7cm dilated and the first question I ask: “It’s not too late for the epidural, IS IT?!!”
It has become apparent that I won’t finish this post tonight. Stay tuned for Part II
Originally uploaded by PenelopePR
Randy received this card along with some awesome brownies as a thank you for doing business with the Keen Team of Real Source Brokers in Oakhurst. Good Stuff. Wanted to share it with you all a while ago but just got around to scanning it today.
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