Cross stitch

So I got this wild thought that I could be crafty. I guess the mural going well gave me some courage. So I bought a cross stitch blanket kit. I've actually been really enjoying my time working on it. The pattern is stamped on and will wash out when I've finished stitching. I feel like a little kid doing paint by numbers again.

Most people who have heard about this project are speculating that I will not have it done before the baby arrives. I think I'm gonna have to work my tail off to show them up. Wish me luck.

Discipline

We were talking about how we should handle discipline with the kids. We want to be able to agree on discipline and rewards for the kids. I'm reminded of an episode of The Cosby Show where the parents figured out that Theo would go to his mom and the girls would go to their dad when they wanted to get away with something that they knew the other parent would veto.



I don't expect any less from our children. I expect any daughters we have to know how to manipulate their daddy. I won't give in to tantrums, but you shouldn't be surprised to see me buying a pony in response to puppy-dog eyes and and a quivering lip.

This is why we need to agree on things. As a team, we can cover each other's weaknesses. Moriah and I solve a lot of our conflicts with the age-old method of Rochambeau, but I doubt if we can answer "But that's not fair!" with, "Well, you know that paper beats rock."

Boys and Girls

I was in a coworker's office yesterday and saw a picture of her granddaughter in an outfit that Grandma probably picked out. She obviously wasn't happy about wearing it. My first thought was, "My daughter isn't wearing black velour and leopard print."

My second thought followed immediately. "We might have a daughter..."
That was the first time that it really sank in.

Like all men, there's a part of me that assumes we're having a boy. It's not that I don't want a girl, I just don't know how they work. Boys make sense to me. I remember all of the fun toys and games Moriah isn't going to like hearing about. I look forward to giving my son his first pocketknife and teaching him to tie his first tourniquet.

What do you do with a girl? Will I be expected to attend tea parties? Do girls even like pocketknives? How soon is too soon to teach her that boys are different from girls and that difference is deadly poisonous?

Still, there is a part of me that looks forward to the possibility of having a daughter. There's just something about the way a little girl can capture your attention. Maybe it's the way that girls respond to praise.

Great. Now we need to have a second one. I want one of each.

Cravings

So I haven't had much morning sickness or anything so I'm still eating as I wish. The Dr did okay me to continue my healthy eating plan but I'm not being as strict. So my first craving always seems to hit late afternoon when I'm getting off work and somewhat tired. I seem to perk up with a little carbonation so that's when I drink a soda. I thought I was getting off pretty lucky until Friday. Ever since Friday I have been craving spicy foods. Spicier than my usual medium as well. I have been going crazy for Rotel dip. So we made some Sunday and broke it into small containers so I could freeze some to make it last.

Due date

So I had my first visit to the Dr yesterday. After waiting 1.5 hrs past my scheduled appointment I actually got to see the Dr. Being they could tell I was a bit pissed about them wasting my time they did the brand new ultrasound and sent me home with a picture. I also got to see the heartbeat pulsing on the monitor but its too early to hear it. The circle at the bottom is the yolk sac from line to line is phil, head near the top. (phils not much to look at yet....but only I've gotten to hold him :)

Our current due date is March 14th, 2010. Meaning I was 7 weeks and 5 days prego, about what I guessed.

I go back to see the RN August 17th for a blood draw and check up.

Advice

So as we are pregnant with our first we have a lot to learn. Here is what I'm looking for in way of advice...

1. Must-have baby tools/equipment.
2. The books that helped you the most.
3. Benefits/downfalls of finding out the sex.
4. Name ideas
5. Any experiences with a 3D/4D ultrasound.

Cloth Diapers?

So Don wants to use cloth diapers when we have the baby. I am riding the fence on the issue. Please leave comments with thoughts. These are the facts that chase each other in my mind.

Disposables:
+They are disposable....
+Convenient
-Expensive
-Wasteful (Environmentally)
-Diaper rash which then equals chemicals in diaper cream


Cloth:
+Economical
+Better for environment
-Smelly
-Lots of laundry
-Extra time
+Potty train earlier
-Leak potential

Facebook

I have jumped on the bandwagon for facebook. Don't ask about Don he wants no part of this. Please search me and add me as a friend.

Mural Part 1

So we (I) decided to do a mural in the nursery. I picked some pictures of Noah's Ark and let Don have a vote. We got the image onto transparency and got an overhead projector from the church. We had to rearrange everything in the yellow room to have enough space for everything. We've spent the night tracing lines. Pictures to follow. I think it will look cute when were done. Its much bigger than I thought we would make it. It will be such a pain to paint. The next hard step will be picking out colors that work together. At least were getting started now and I feel alright to help. I have a bad feeling Don will be doing more painting than me when I become frustrated.

Changing Table

So we were gifted a free changing table (Thanks Morgan Family). Spent the night washing it down and reassembling it so Don could have his parking spot back in the garage. Man was I tired after all of that. I didn't get nearly enough done. Glad I still have like 7.5 months left, but I have a feeling it will go much faster that I expect.

How we told my parents the news

So I'd planned for awhile how I wanted to tell my parents we are pregnant and had some help from the Internet. So the first day we found out, I called mom's local bakery to place an order. I ordered a dozen cupcakes, 6 chocolate & 6 white for some variety. The icing was going to be pink & blue booties. Cost $9.00. They even agreed to wrap up the box so my mom couldn't peak. On top of the box was a sign saying DO NOT OPEN until you are with the Evans (parents) & Hilde (sister) families. (pictures to follow)

I had faxed the below poem to the bakery to put in with the cupcakes:

I do not have a face to see
Or put inside a frame
I do not have soft cheeks to kiss,
I don't yet have a name.
You can't yet hold my tiny hands.
Nor whisper in my ear
It's still too soon to sing a song,
or cuddle me so near.
But all will change come March 2010
That's when they say I'm due.
I'm your new grandchild;
I can't wait till I meet you
All I ask between now and then
Is your patience while I grow
I promise I'll be worth the wait,
Because of all the love we'll know.
So what I have to give to you now,
Is a wish to you from me
I cannot wait to be a part
Of this wonderful family.

So all things were set, cupcakes with extras ready for pick up Monday 7/13 by 4pm. Monday I talked to mom 3 times & dad once and told them I got them a going away present for their trip to Europe (They fly out 7/18 for 2 wks) & to have them open the package with my sister's family. So Monday she didn't pick them up because they didn't go into town.

Tuesday I called mom 2-3 times to find out the plan & she informs me she thinks they'll do it Thursday. I try to tell her & not give anything away that she will kick herself if she waits.

Wednesday: I called mom from work at 3 pm & she tells me: "I have the box in the car and they wrapped it up so well I can't even peek". I start to giggle & have to hide it. She tells me they are going to Fargo then will see Robin's family that night so the night of waiting begins.....

Finally at 7:30 that night we get a call from an ecstatic grandma. Her first question is "Why didn't you tell me when you were here"? Now if you read the first post that says I didn't know you will understand but try to explain that to an excited grandma.

So then she puts my sister Robin (Mother of 2) on. She asks why we didn't tell them while we were there. Same explanation given. Robin says Congrats & sounds some excited. Robin was one of the first to see the cupcakes after my nephews opened the box & she said "What do pink & blue booties have to do with going to Europe? Oh my God, their pregnant".

The last person I talk to that night is Dad who sounds happy & surprised. Same explanation of why we didn't tell them in MN. (If one more person asks me this question, I may just go prego crazy on them). Now when my sister was pregnant my dad wanted to be able to ask about the baby and not call it baby so he gave them womb names. Baby 1 was George & Baby 2 was Sam. So he starts naming off cousins so we can choose a womb name for me. We settles on Phil as in Phyllis (Nana) or Philip so we are gender neutral. Don still tries to call it Philbert (aka. Filbert) because that's what my mom calls Hazelnuts & he finds it funny because it annoys me.

Interesting point. For the first 2 grand babies, my dad gave womb names to, the first initial of the womb name became their first initial in their real name. George became Garret & Baby 2 was Sam who became Stephen. Wonder if this will hold true for our child too?

Yes, We're Pregnant!!

So, the news is out....We are expecting our first child. We think due in March, but we will update when we see the Dr.

Here is the story of how we found out we are pregnant.

We had just returned from our vacation in MN to see my family. We left MN on Monday July 6th (The day my cycle was due) and returned to KY Tuesday morning at about 1:30am. We crashed and thought nothing of it. Wednesday was my dad's birthday called and chat and nothing new. Thursday 7/9 my breasts started to hurt. Then I had my birthday Friday 7/10 with sore breasts. My breasts hurt all weekend which finally made me start to think something was up. So Monday 7/13 I was 7 days late so I took an electronic home pregnancy test @ 6:10 am. The instructions said it could take 3 minutes so Don was still laying in bed. Due to his sleepiness he missed all the excitement when in less than a minute the test came back pregnant.

That first day of knowing was a bit of a blur. So much to do.....I called to make my MD visit. I see the Dr 7/31. We were still keeping this a secret for the time due to it being so new, but I could hardly contain myself. It was so funny trying to talk in code and be all secretive at work with all these things to do. See future post on how we told my parents but all of the set up was done that first day.

So first day of knowing was a storm of emotion. I was so scared & excited. I was glad we kept the news to ourselves (mostly) at least for that day due to it being so new. It was fun to just experience all those emotions but it was also exhausting. (Sorry guys I know you have the emotional range of a teaspoon so you won't totally get that concept).

So now the news is out. Watch for future updates.