Black, White & Blue

Black, White & Blue, originally uploaded by LeahC.

Getting lower (but still head up)

(I think)

Looking over at Leah as she was getting ready to go for our nightly walk (she had her stretchy pants pulled up somewhere around her armpits), I noticed something different. She was clearly still pregnant (no doubt), but it was just...different.

Her tummy bulge was pointing more...south. Hey! I think the baby dropped! Of course, as of yesterday we were still able the feel the baby's head sticking straight up, but her ass seems to have nestled gently in between Leah's hips. Which is cool, because it's a nice little sign that things are progressing.

Actually, now that I think about it, how is the baby going to turn if she's really dropped. Isn't it going to be about impossible for her to get a leg down at this point to hike herself around? And if her center of gravity is now somewhere around Leah's belly button, Lucy can't really tip forward to flip over either, right? I mean, maybe she can, but it just doesn't seem possible.

Maybe it's just me (and I'll admit that I'm no medical expert), but I see our little weeble-wobble wobbling but not falling down. I guess we'll find out over the next three weeks.

Love that sky

Love that sky, originally uploaded by LeahC.

Lactation Consulting!

My stepmom's sister is a lactation consultant and so I asked her if she would give us her class instead of us taking the one at the hospital. She being the awesome Cindy she is agreed and today was the day we learned about BOOBS (hee hee I said boobs) and breastfeeding and different positions you can put the baby in and lots of other good information. A lot of information. An overwhelming amount of information. But it was so awesome to be able to have a family member give us all that information and take out her Sunday afternoon to talk to us about it. Hopefully Lucy is a good latcher on-er and we don't run into too many problems with breast feeding. I'm really hoping to breast feed for the first 6 months and then go from there.

Yesterday being Halloween we had some friends over and watched some scary movies and had a great time. These are friends we haven't seen since New Years Eve...seriously they live about 4 miles from us! Lots of screeching during Drag Me to Hell and then we watched Halloween, a classic and one of my favorite movies of all time.

Today is November 1st...and there is this whole NaBloPloMo deal. Given that this is the last month that we await for Lucy to arrive, we are going to give it a try. I know I know, you've gotten so used to us posting like once every two weeks that this will be quite a shock to your system. We hope it to be funny as in 3 weeks from tomorrow (assuming that she doesn't turn around) we'll have some little thing that we are responsible for. That's 21 days. 15 business days. Wait...what do you mean? Who the hell let us have kids? We aren't responsible or old enough. I mean seriously....let's talk about Halloween candy and how much I had this weekend. Hello SPREES! I love you!

So stay tuned, and well, let the countdown begin

Before the street cleaning

Before the street cleaning, originally uploaded by LeahC.

Fall in the City

Fall in the City, originally uploaded by LeahC.

Work and Pregnant Life Balance

I'm tired people.

My belly knocks people over on the el train.

I'm so out of breath in the mornings (I don't know why it's worse in the mornings) that Jason ends up walking my backpack the 3/4 of a mile to work and then turns around and goes back to his company, even though the el stops right outside his door (yes, he's that guy...and thus the best). I hate that I can't do this for myself anymore. I'm a marathon runner and have trouble walking in the mornings...it. is. so. annoying.

I'm so consumed with baby thoughts and stress because I don't think that we are going to get everything done in time that it's even more exhausting.

So right. What's an 8 month pregnant woman to do?

Well this pregnant woman talked to her boss and the woman who is the director of operations yesterday about options. We can take unpaid time off here which is great, but I didn't exactly want to give up all work. SO we came to a conclusion that Friday will be my last day in the Studio and then for the next two weeks I'll do some part time work from home as it comes up.

It's like a giant weight has been lifted off my shoulders. Would I like the money of working full time? Sure! Who wouldn't!?! But there is a balance and sometimes (lots of times!) money isn't everything. When I mentioned to my sister-in-law that we had a crazy, busy, stressful weekend, she suggested that I try and take it easy because in a few weeks my entire world is going to be upside down. And of course she's right. I need some time to get prepared (I know I know you can never really be prepared) and relax and wait for the crazy to come to me!

So starting Monday I'll be doing just that.

It's nice working at a company where this was even a possibility as I know there are places were you have to work all the way till the end with no other options. Nice of Obtiva to work with me to come up with a solution that works for all. 

Today I'm officially 8 months pregnant. Jason got up really early to do some contract work and came back to bed at about 5:45 to doze with me for awhile. I think I have mentioned on here that I am a really hard sleeper. I woke up and Jason was like, "dude the baby was going crazy and moving more than I have ever felt her before" I was like...oh really? I slept through it. Back in the day when I was convinced she wasn't moving at all, I bet she moved a ton at night and I just never woke up for it...hopefully I wake up when she cries in the night!

A week from today we have our 36 week appointment and we'll have *another* ultrasound to see what she's doing in there and then we'll have to decide if we want to do the external versioning. Today I'm on the planned c-section bus, but we'll see what the doctor says next week. And of course she could still turn on her own...she's just running out of time and space I'm guessing.

These are exciting times. That's for damn sure.

4 Weeks From Today....Maybe

Well little Lucy, unless you turn that big ass head around we will be meeting you in 4 weeks from today. Yes, yes...your mother likes schedules and plans and loves when things come early and so loves the idea of know the exact time you'll be greeting us. Although...still she's a wary of the abdominal surgery.

Anyone out there have a planned c-section? Advice, tips, stories, recovery (my biggest concern) would be *greatly* appreciated as Jason and I go back and forth a couple of times a day on whether we should try the external versioning or just stick with the planned. She of course might turn on her own too, but assuming she won't I'd like all the information I can get.

We had another jam packed weekend. Hung out with my Dad all day on Saturday and Saturday night we stayed up...wait for it...wait for it....all the way until 11:30! I know....the Coca Cola Classic that I had at about 7:30 kept me up with the big kids. By the way...after about 10 years of Diet Coke (which I still crave and will return to in obscene amounts I'm sure), I freakin' love regular coke. It's so spicy and delicious and it's a little treat on the weekends.

Sunday we did some work in the morning, and then went to Target to get some stuff for the baby's room and some of the stuff to just try and set me at ease. We washed all of the baby's clothes, blankets, sheets and diapers and so the room really is starting to come together. We need a bookshelf still, have to hang pictures, and some other things but we are getting really really close to done in there. Our goal is to be done at 37 weeks as that's when she is full term and so that's when we could most likely really start to expect her....if she doesn't stick to her schedule.

We got rid of a *ton* more stuff, consolidated some storage tubs. Found all my kid books that I've been making us move around for the past 10 years, I knew they would come in handy some day! We do need another "Monster at the End of the Book" though...because my copy was completely disintegrated.

Jason's parents came to visit in the afternoon for a few hours yesterday and after they left, we did some more cleaning, work and then relaxed with some more work and some playoff baseball.

So yeah we're looking at about a month. I still can't believe that we are so close to the end. I can't wait to meet her! No belly pictures today, but here is a great one of a subway performer who was singing old motown songs at the Jackson redline stop in Chicago:

Belly!

Another great weekend for us here at JasonLeahRun. Saturday my Mom was in town from Florida to host a baby shower for me. We had tons of fun and Baby Lucy has a ton more cute clothes. Now that the showers are over we are going to make an inventory of things we gotta get that are must haves and then we'll be ready...well I don't know if you are every *really* ready for a baby...but as close as we can be.

Yesterday we went to visit friends with babies stopping first off to see Baby Ethan who is 3 weeks old and then little baby Eleanor who is 7 weeks old. Ethan is a big baby and it's funny because the two are almost the same size!

In between the visits we went to the forest preserve to take some pictures of the fallness (my photoblog will have a photo *everyday* this week....so don't forget to check that out http://leahcphotos.wordpress.com). While we were there, Jason and I got a little goofy and we decided to take some more belly pictures. Given I haven't taken one since week 22, it's hilarious for me to see the difference. I thought I was *huge* at 20 weeks....yeah. Not so much. All the belly photos can be found here at my smugmug account. Enjoy a select few of the photos we took below (realizing that these are rare, as usually I am hiding behind the lens not in front of it!)...I think I look pretty good for 34.5 weeks through! It's all baby in there!


Today we have a doctors appointment in the morning. I don't think Lucy has turned freakin' anywhere, but we'll see. I'm pretty sure I felt her giant head up near the top of my stomach...but we'll see, maybe I'm not a doctor and don't know what I'm feeling :).

Enjoy the start of the week everyone!

Baby's Room Part II

Last weekend we spent a lot of time in the west suburbs buying baby furniture and crib mattresses as we had use of my cousins hatchback car for the day. After doing all of that we spent the day building the crib and changing table, putting in new lighting in the room and also putting up some curtains. The room is starting to really come together. My mom is in town this weekend for a baby shower and when she comes over on Saturday night we'll go through all the stuff we have and make lists of all the stuff we need, and she can help us put the furniture in good places. Should be a great time and I can't wait to see her!

So here are just some pictures from our Saturday furniture putting together extravaganza. Notice that the cat is all ready to suck the baby's breath out. Seriously we put together the crib and she jumped right in!

Best Sleep Ever

Seriously, I would like to know what 33 week pregnant woman is sleeping as much or as hard as I am at night. I go to bed at like 9:30 and read for about 30 minutes, and then I'm out like a light until the alarm goes off at 6am. Which I then snooze for about 45 minutes. In addition to the sleeping, the dreams I'm having I think are movies they are so vivid and detailed (not to mention super super strange!)

I maybe would sleep like this when we were in the midst of marathon training, but seriously it's crazy. The good thing is that I'm way full of energy in the mornings....the bad thing is that at night I'm dead and feel like crap. I have always always been a good hard sleeper from like 2 weeks old apparently, so it's not like something totally new. I just thought when I was this far along in the pregnancy I would have trouble sleeping. I just think it's hilarious that I'm sleeping so much and so hard. The feeling like crap in the evening I have noticed is more exaggerated when we don't go for a walk or anything in the evenings. I walk a lot to get to work and back but I think I have to do extra to combat the sitting at work all day.

I know a lot of woman at this stage of their pregnancy have to get up a lot in the middle of the night to pee or are in general just uncomfortable. Given that Lucy is all folded up like a lawn chair and upside down in there, I'm wondering if her head is not sitting down on my bladder like it would be in the normal case and so I don't have that problem. And as far as the uncomfortable goes, I'm fine. Sometimes at night she really gets rocking and rolling and it's not the best feeling in the world and it kind of makes me sick, but again..maybe because all of her business is up near my stomach and so when she moves she's doing funny things to my tummy. Who knows.

All I know is I feel great, and have been sleeping great and have about 6-7 weeks to go. Which is crazy.

This weekend we trading cars with my cousin Lisa and using her hatchback to go to IKEA to get the furniture for the baby's room. Then we are going to spend most of the day tomorrow putting that together and getting our bedroom put together better, throwing more things out and hopefully getting books together to donate. Sunday we are doing work type things and that's all we have planned so far. So busy as usual for the weekend, but good busy.

Are You a Gymnast Already?

Hey there Little Lucy.

How you doing in there? Remember 4 weeks ago when we got some pictures of you and you were all nicely head down? That was a fun time wasn't it? But no, you apparently don't agree and have decided that you are much more comfortable with your head up and your legs right in front of your face.

Sigh.

We were so surprised when the technician told us that you were in the breech position, and you are in the frank breech position. We are 32 (almost 33 weeks) and so you are running out of time to flip around.

Luckily we seem to have the best doctor in the world who talked to us for a good 20-30 minutes about what the next steps were and actually there are no steps for the next 4 weeks, but if you are still enjoying kissing your knees at that point we are going to need a new game plan. If you are sticking with your breech positioning we'll be scheduling a c-section for you on November 23rd. Now. Your mother likes to have plans and schedules AND even more loves to be early for things. So in this sense that makes her giggle like a little school girl. However, a vaginal birth is of course better for everyone.

We also got a measurement of your head. Of your giant giant giant head. We just went to visit your grandpa and grandma Sue and spent roughly 1 hour teasing you about your giant head. Sorry! But you are being born into a big headed teasing family so you can get used to it. Your father who has a nice normal sized head compared one of your pictures to the picture of Darth Vadar sans his helmet and I can't help but agree:
Other than your giant headedness (You get that from your mom's side of the family. Sorry kiddo!) you look great. You have long legs, and all is well with your growth. Just the concern about the breech stuff and we'll worry more about that in 4 weeks. We think you might have some Angelina Jolie in you as well with this kisser:
Here you are just looking cute and not making faces at us...although that head. whew. It's big. Maybe if you do turn we'll have get you out through the front...don't know if your Mom is ready for that business.
As for me, I'm doing good too. Blood pressure still on the high side although a little bit better than 4 weeks ago. We got back to visit the doc in 2 weeks and so we'll see if anything interesting happens then.

In other news around here. Your room is getting more and more done, and your Dad has realized how much has to happen before you get here and has gotten a little bit on the concerned and stressed out side...which is cute cause your Dad is never ever stressed out.

So if you feel like being a gymnast in there and turn yourself around, go for it. Either way we'll make sure you get here safe and sound in about 7 weeks. I can't wait to see you in real life!

A Baby Room Makeover

So yeah, I wanted to paint the baby's room green. So we got some paint card things, and compared the colors to the sheets and art prints we have in the room to find a match. We picked one that didn't seem too bright, but wasn't pale either so you could tell that there was something on the walls.

Yeah.

Well it's going to be a damn happy room! And she won't be able to sleep because it's so bright that she she closes her eyes she'll be seeing some little green spots. Well ok it's not that bad, and after a few hours it's totally growing on me. PLUS once we get more furniture in there and stuff on the walls it won't just be an empty room with bright green walls, it'll be a baby's room...with bright green walls which is fun. So there. We also replaced all the outlets and covers since the previous painters just did the lazy paint over the outlets and covers thing...which is ugly. So now it's all nice and waiting for baby furniture. Here are some pictures from before, during and after, and if anything we can say that the before was *really* ugly.

Where's the Time Going?

So yeah, tomorrow we hit the 32 week mark. On Monday we hit the 2 months to go mark. What the what? When did that happen?

In the last week my good friend who has been about 9 weeks ahead of me in pregnancy gave birth to a boy named Ethan. We went to visit them in the hospital and all of a sudden I was very much, "Um, we don't have anything ready for Lucy" So I am starting to panic a little bit although we've gotten a lot done this week and hopefully the room will be looking more baby like by the end of the weekend as we are giving the room a fresh coat of paint and we were supposed to have furniture, but then we went to visit the said furniture and the furniture I thought I liked I didn't when we got there (although it's totally fine if that's what we go with) and the one I did like turns out is apparently part crib, part baby killer. I don't understand these review sites. So this crib apparently has a gap between the mattress and the bars, and so all these people are like, "THIS IS OBVIOUSLY BAD AND DANGEROUS!!!!" But they don't say why it's bad and dangerous and Consumer Reports rated this crib 2nd on it's list of best cribs. So I don't really understand what the problem is. I would like some scientific fact and experiments saying, ok, this could be bad because this and this could happen. Not just, well obviously that's bad. I also think we can get a little bit of a wider mattress and it would take care of the problem. I'm just really annoyed because it was the only crib/changing table I have seen that hasn't made me want to vomit all over it.

Ok. Ok. See this is what I'm talking about. Panic.

The crib we are looking at is the Leksvik crib at IKEA. Just do a search for "Leksvik mattress gap" or something and there are a few google things to see. Why does a mattress need to be super snug to the rails? Does anyone else have this crib and see no problem with it? I've found a few posters that have said it's no big deal and other that are like, OH MY GOD THIS HAS TO GO BACK TO IKEA RIGHT THIS SECOND BUT I'M 6 HOURS AWAY FROM IKEA AND I'M CURRENTLY IN LABOR. So I mean there are ranges, I just want to know what could go bad with a space like this or if it's just some overly worried parents being nuts because I'm sorry the first thing my parents did when the got me home from the hospital is put me into a bassinet who's legs then went out from under it and I went shooting out the back of it...and I'm fine. I mean...I wouldn't recommend baby bassinet shooting, I'm just saying it seems that the crazy has gone up lots of notches in the last 30 years.

Alright. That's my rant and some LeahC crazy to brighten up your Thursday morning.

***NOTE***
At the bottom of the post on the baby bargins site about this crib they say that they heard back from the CPSC and they have ruled that the crib gap does NOT pose a safety concern. That is, it does not violate any current standards.

They said they heard back from them after they went to print and will update the book in the next printing....I think it's funny that they went to print with unscientific evidence about a product. Like maybe you should have heard from the people that deem safety stuff before saying that something is not safe and putting it into a book that obviously gets a lot of press. So Anyways. It looks like it will be fine.
**********

As far as Miss Little Lucy goes, she's doing great. She's moving weirdly now and I can feel her rolling over. Yesterday we would see little feet or hands or I don't know what poke out of my belly and the roll around. Jason was like, "Well that's a new one." I'm still sleeping pretty well although if I roll over on my back I wake up with a lot of pain in my stomach area so that can't be good. After I woke up though I rolled over and then had lots of dreams of the baby moving a lot and being nuts and I wonder if she really is being nuts and I'm just such a ridiculous sleeper that I'm not waking up fully to feel it. Also in the dream I was in labor, so that was fun.

And finally to the two douche bags on the train this morning, if you see a pregnant woman standing next to you don't just talk to each other loudly about things like "Can you be with a baby mama if the baby daddy wasn't around" or "Maybe I just need to sow my wild oats and get some strangers pregnant" and not give up your seat because you have obviously seen the pregnant lady standing and you are just choosing to try and channel Jack Black or Seth Rogan and be "funny" And you aren't funny. Jack Black and Seth Rogan already did the bit, they already have the act going. You can't just copy it and think you are just as funny or clever or witty. BECAUSE YOU AREN'T. YOU AREN'T FUNNY. You are just two jackasses that talked loudly on the train because you thought you were funny and clever and you weren't you just looked like assholes. So there.

Everyone is out of my office today except for me which makes things a bit on the quiet side. I'm meeting my Dad for lunch at 12:30 so that should be a nice time.

So yes, it's almost Friday. Almost 32 weeks done. And we are looking at the Baby Killer Crib 1000. GRRRRR!

Well It Happened

Today I turn 30. I decided to take the day off of work, and thus in effect I'm calling in 30.

So I guess this is one of those years where it's a turning point right? The big ones 16, 21, 25, 30 then maybe just every 10 after that....who knows. When I look at my life and where I am in it and I ask, "Is where I envisioned myself at this age" (Oh who am I kidding, I never thought I would turn 30, that's like old people town. Kidding. Kind of.) I have to answer yes.

I have a great husband and honestly I never thought I could find someone I could love that much. Lucky me that boy is also my best friend and partner in crime. We live in a great apartment, an apartment that I always dreamed we would live in (especially after the last shithole where the little Dagny cat would find some little furry friends to play with). We are expecting our first child in the next few months...hopefully she'll keep on schedule and not greet us early.

We decided to wait on kids and I think we were so smart on that. Jason and I had such a good time in our 20s, we traveled, maybe became too regular at Sheffields or Murphy's or Fill_in_the_blank, we studied our asses off and got our PhDs in physics, we ran marathons, we traveled (oh I said that already...but it's an important one). Most importantly we learned more about each other. We had a life with each other and it didn't revolve around what the kids wanted or needed and now we know what WE need and what WE want. Just because you have kids doesn't mean that you have to give up that, give up yourself or your desires or your relationship as you know it. There is this fear that when you have kids everything has to change. AND yes, things change...BUT, they can just morph into a new similar shape, and not become a life that you don't recognize. We recognize that we always have to keep that in the forefront our minds to keep ourselves happy which in effect will keep our kids happy.

And so today, well tonight at 7:47pm (30 years ago my mom was in *a lot* of pain and not progressing in her labor) I'll say goodbye to my 20s and know that I wouldn't have changed one damn thing. Ok...maybe I wouldn't have rented that apartment in the Ukrainian village, but I guess it'll always be a story that we can laugh about. And I expect the 30s to hold many of the same things as the 20s did as we don't plan on deleting who we are (of course!). But we'll be able to do those things with a little bit more money, and little more security and well...hell, it's going to be a great decade.

Finally! A Weekend With Nothing (Much)

This weekend was the first time in a loooong time that we didn't have anywhere to go (for the most part), our apartment was back in our own hands as my Dad and Stepmom moved into their place on Saturday morning and Jason and I could just *be*.

It. Was. Great.

On Saturday we took the Great Expectations class at the hospital where were learned about the birthing process, what to do after the baby and got the grand tour of the hospital. The class was pretty good. I gotta say, those women that do it naturally...doesn't look like a lot of fun. At. All. So yeah, maybe I'll be saying, "Yes, Please!" for the epidural. I'm not going in with any set plans, just an idea of what I think I'm going to want. The tour was awesome. All the rooms are private at Northwestern. And the Labor and Delivery room is awesome. I guess I didn't really know what to expect. But you labor and deliver in the same room (giant room with giant windows looking out over the city), so they have the baby station and everything so you never lose sight of the baby which is great. The post delivery rooms are smaller but still private and pretty nice. I'm so excited that the next time I'll be there I'll be delivering little Lucy.

Now. Let's talk about the the breathing exercises. So we are sitting on these birthing balls (and I would like to know if the birthing ball or the workout ball came first as they are the same thing) and we are going through some exercises on some breathing techniques that you can do when the labor starts. The partners sat behind the pregnant woman and squeezed their shoulders "simulating" a contraction...or at least how the pressure will build and build and then hold steady for awhile and then drop off....and then the woman are doing these breathing things. Now. It is a well known fact that I am a) a jackass and b) a giggler. So we go through one round of said breathing and I'm doing ok. Then the woman leading the class (who was great) said that there was no encouragement coming from the Dads and that they should say things like, "You're doing great" or "Almost done!" etc etc. Jason knows that I am not a fan of such cheerleading and that when he would that to me when we were running I would just about kill him. But he tries because he doesn't want to get in trouble with the nurse and I'm not kidding, I totally lose it.

I mean. Gone.

I am laughing so hard, that tears are rolling down my face, my makeup is everywhere. I'm sweating and my face has apparently turned the color of a ripe tomato. I'm still trying to do the breathing and Jason is going "You're doing great" and that sends me deeper over the edge. The nurse/teacher lady was like...are you ok? I was like...yeah I'm really sorry.....I just can't reel it in. I hope I didn't ruin the class for everyone else...but really 10 minutes of breathing exercises is probably not going to get me through the labor pains very easily. I'm just happy we didn't take one of those long birth classes because it would have just been more of an exercise in LeahC learning to not be a jackass and less of here's how to have a nice calm birth.

So that was that.

After we got home we went for a long quick walk on the path and met the parental folks at a bar they were hanging out at. Then we came home and ... did...well....not much.

OH YEAH! We did have an electrical fire in the bathroom off our bedroom on Saturday morning. So that was exciting. Electricians are coming today to fix it. Gotta say, not trilling to see black smoke blowing out of some outlet holes. We've had the breaker off for that bathroom and our bedroom for the whole weekend which has been pretty annoying.

On Sunday we went for a walk and went to the grocery store and then did some rearranging of the bedroom to allow the desk to come in there and out of Lucy's room eventually. Plus we are now using the space a *ton* better as we have a whole extra wall to work with. I've gotten really good at using smallish spaces in apartments and I get really excited when things work out the way I think they'll work out :).

No big plans this week except the looming of Thursday which is the day I'll no longer be in my 20s. Should be a fun day as I'm taking the day off work and going to enjoy the City. Hopefully it'll be a nice day out.

Happy Monday All.

Baby Shower! Lockdown! Big Belly! Oh My!

Well here I sit at 30 weeks....ok almost 30 weeks which is why this post isn't titled 10 WEEKS TO GO. The flip over date for my appointments is on Fridays. So I'm *in* the 30th week. Hey...kinda like I'm in my 30th year so I won't really be turning 30 next week as that really happened last year. Yes. I know it doesn't make sense...but if you were in LeahC's head it just might.

So right...I'm sitting here checking in some code at work, and thought I'd throw out a blog post. This past weekend I had my first baby shower which was a total blast. The theme was 'I Love Lucy' which was one of my favorite shows when I was little (hell it still is...that Lucy, she's so wacky!). A good time was had by all and Little Lu got some cute clothes and jumping contraptions and clothes and I got some cute diaper bags. We got a nice black messenger bag type one so that Jason and I can share that duty. I also got an *awesome* Vera Bradley one from my Aunt in a new pattern that I love. Oh ... and more clothes.

Jason and I are going to be putting ourselves on Lockdown. We have been so overly booked and busy the past, well I'd like to say few weeks but I think it's more more like 6 weeks. With the baby coming I really want to make sure Jason and I enjoy some alone downtime together. Next week is my birthday and we are going to Wildfire (my favorite restaurant in the world) and I think that's about the only plans we have. So if you ask us to do something and we say no, it's not because we hate you, it's because we are really big losers. :) Fall is also coming and is my favorite season of all time. Just walking around the city with the air a little crisper is just about the best time I think you can have.

My belly continues to expand which now apparently gives strangers, coworkers and random office people the right to say things to the effect of, "WOW YOU'RE HUGE!!!!" To which I say, do you want me to stick this pen in your eye? No? Then shut the hell up. I'm growing a baby! I've been doing some more walking and that feels great. No more running because when I tried to run the other day (for like 3 minutes :( ), I had a pretty hard time with it. Poor Bridgette was out with me and was like...um, are you ok? It wasn't the best. But walking is good, and so Jason is making sure we do that together most nights. I really really miss running, and not running like a 3 mile run but getting out there and cruising through 9 or 10 miles. It'll take some time to get back there and I know I have to patient...good thing I'm so good at being patient!

So right. 10ish weeks to go, which should seem like nothing and yet it seems oh so far away. Dad and Sue move out on Friday so then we can really get rolling on the baby's room which is going to be really really exciting. We totally redid our closet and threw out *tons* of stuff which is a good step and we have to do more and more of that as the closet in the baby's room became a "put stuff here for now" place. Which is always a little scary.

We are all more and more excited to meet Lucy. This weekend we are taking the Great Expectations baby class at Prentice hospital which should be a lot of good information and I'm looking forward to getting a tour of the hospital.

Checked in code worked! On the branch, but unfortunately the trunk line build is broken so can't check in there yet. One more bug to look at ... if I can even find the text field that the tester is referring to. OH yeah and today is my last day at the client site and I'm looking forward to rejoining the Studio crew tomorrow.

Ok I Broke a Sweat Alright

*note* I'm not that concerned about my weight gain....just frustrated at the doc a bit...this will come out in the following post.

So all good at the docs yesterday except my apparent elephantness. Even though when I look at myself in the mirror all I see is baby belly bump. No nothing anywhere else. In fact I would say my arms have gotten a bit thinner. ANYWAYS.

TheDoc apparently doesn't agree and so I took her advice and went for a 45 minute cardivascular workout yesterday. Does anyone else think it's strange that she is telling me that I should be doing that much working out every day WHILE I am also dealing with some high blood pressure issues at 28 weeks pregnant. Not that I think 45 minutes of working out is hard by any means, but I just think it's strange.

SO FINE. I'll break a fucking sweat alright. So I walked to the lake front path in about 14 minutes (quickly!) and then ran for about 10 minutes and then quickly walked back home for a total of about 50 minutes. No problems except some pretty bad round ligament pains which is just more uncomfort than something to worry about. I'm going to try and do the same tonight although might cut it down to just a 30 minute brisk walk since we are going to meet a possible pediatrician at 5pm and then Mrs. Bridgette is getting here at about 7:30. But I think we can do both.

I'm going to keep eating healthy and just see what happens at the next appointment. I also should have a plan of what our birth plan is...I think its a positive plan. I plan on having a baby. I bet that doesn't cut it. My plan right now is to go as naturally as possible. I'm going to hold out on the epidural if I can, but if I get one I won't be super dissapointed. I'm going to try and not be induced unless the doctor thinks it's the way to go and has a good reason...other than, well we need to schedule it so it fits into our schedule. So yeah, that's my plan right now. As always I'm guessing this will change as time goes along.

Going Cloth and Lucy at 28.5 Weeks

I've mentioned in the past that we are going to cloth diaper our baby. So you make that statement and then there are like 8000 different options to choose from. For example there are Fuzzibunz which have one sized diapers as well as something called the perfect sized diaper. Then there are prefolds and covers and other all in one diaper brands. It's an endless amount of information!

What are people out there using. We are starting with prefolds and covers because it seems fool proof for the most part and when she's so little she won't be moving that much. We have no idea what we'll do in the future, but maybe as she gets more mobile we'll switch to a pocket diaper or an all in one.

Any tips and or advice from anyone out there?

In other news, Lucy had her 28 week appointment today and is looking good. SEE:


I apparently have gained too much weight. I didn't look at the number when I was weighed but then Mrs. Doctor woman was like, "Ha ha ha let's talk about your weight gain this month". And I was like um ok. It's not like I'm eating that much and I've way cut out eating out and I don't eat a lot of salt in general. So I have to workout more because I'm not doing that. So I have to walk 30-45 minutes and work up a sweat. Yeah, that's almost like running 10 miles.

I'm a little frustrated at that but so happy that our little baby girl looks so beautiful and is healthy. Oh and her head size is in the 66th percentile (ouch!) and she already weighs 2lbs 15oz! And she's right on track for being at 28 weeks. So that's all good news.

She's Funny, Dad's Running and Bloomington Here We Come

Well...at least for the last few days anyways. Monday and Tuesday of this week she was really really inactive. Enough so that I called the doctors office to ask them what a reasonable amount of movement at this stage would be. Turns out I'm golden and she's doing fine.

From Wednesday evening on however she's been a little motor in there. On Wednesday night Jason got out of the bathroom and I asked him to press on the left side of my stomach and then on the right side of my stomach and I asked if they felt different. He said, Holy hell the right side is way harder than the left. So he pushed a little harder and Lucy pushed back. Then he started feeling around and thinks he could feel a foot or something. Something was kind of pointy and rounded off. So that was kind of crazy. Then last night my stomach looked like an ocean of waves. I still think she's calmer than a lot of babies, but that's ok with me! I mean if it's true that behavior in utero translates to behavior after birth. But she's funny to watch and I'm getting more and more excited to see her! Actually..because my blood pressure has been on the high side we have to get some extra ultra sounds meaning that we get one this coming up Wednesday, so we'll get to see her then! I can't wait to see how she's changed in 8 weeks!

Today we are at 12 weeks to go. 12. weeks. to. go. Wow. that's crazy. I need a list. Because there is a lot to do before the big day. And really it could be a little as 8 weeks. Right. Need to make a list. I'll start it with, "Throw your shit away so there is room for the baby's stuff".

My Dad and Sue have finally gotten their apartment drama settled and found a great place just south of Belmont on Sheridan. They are about exactly one mile from our apartment. AND apparently their building has a pool on the roof deck. Look out Summer 2010.

As I have mentioned my dad is going to run the Chicago marathon in 2010. Right now he is dealing with a cramp popping up in his right calf about one mile into his run. I suggested he ice and rest it until next week. Everything else feels good so I know how frustrating that can be. He looked great running last Sunday though. He's a smooth runner and doesn't look like he's straining too bad. If you want to follow his Chicago running trials and tribulations and also I'm guessing grandchild updates in the near future please check out and subscribe to his blog at: http://runmarathonmaybe.blogspot.com. He loves tips, advice and comments so go say hi!

This weekend we are going to Bloomington, IN for a belated anniversary trip. On Sunday night we are going to have dinner with one of our favorite people on the planet, our old advisor. I haven't seen him for...well shit, a year? When I defended I guess. Wow. Yeah, so that should be a great visit. Hopefully the rainy forecast is wrong and we can just enjoy the town and walk around and read and relax and just enjoy the only small town that we like :). Maybe we'll go bowling in the union, where Mrs. LeahCStraightBall can actually beat JasonRFortWayneCityBowlingChampion because apparently they don't wax the lanes right...or they wax them too good...or whatever. And I'm kidding I'll never come close to beating Jason at bowling..except the one time he bowled a 94, but we like to pretend that didn't happen.

So that's all from Chicago. Thinking of a new project that could combine photography and me needing to know how to develop a Rails site from scratch as this front end only stuff has gone on too long. We'll see how that turns out and more details to follow.