Goose Egg

Last night I had a bad mommy moment. Griffin and I were sitting on the orange shag rug in his room giggling and tickling and hanging out before bedtime. Mike can in with the bottle and I got up and asked Griffin to get his sleep sack so he could go to bed. He smiled and started runningfor the door and I leaped ahead and went to push the door closed. Unfortunately Griffin didn't stop in time and he hit his head on the edge of the door and got a big goose egg on his forehead. I felt so bad as we watched it get bigger and bigger and Mike got all doctor-like on it poking and prodding and checking him out. We gave him some Tylenol and he went to bed like normal - even slept through the night which he hasn't done for about 3 weeks now. Mike and I went in to check on him before we went to bed and it didn't get any bigger, but we knew he might wake up with a black eye. Luckily this morning it is just a small bruise on his forehead, and no black eye. This is only my 3rd or 4th baby mommy moment I've had in 18 months, so I guess thats not too bad...and I've had thousands of good mommy moments, so hopefully that outweighs this not-so-fun memory.

Random Thought

I hate on blogs when people nickname significant people in their lives so they don't reveal their identity. For instance, if your husbands name is Thomas Knudsen the 4th, please don't call him TK4, its just silly. If you have a nickname you normally use for your spouse or child routinely, that is fine and understandable and fun, as it lets readers into your life a little. Its okay to leave your last name out of the mix, but I think calling your child on your blog by their "internet nick name" instead of their first name is just strange.

Travel

The family and I are headed out of town tomorrow for 11 days to Mike's hometown. We are really looking forward to it. Being up there is really relaxing, and his family is great to be around. We also have babysitters (hurray!) that are awesome and free! We have quite a few fun activities planned while we are up there, so I hope to have some new pictures to share when we get back.

Because they get it

Tonight Griffin and I went to an ice cream social that was sponsored by the Resident Support Network at the University of Michigan. The group is open to residents and spouses and offers opportunities to get together. The events range from playgroups to tailgating parties to wine and cheese events to movie nights. The group is funded by the house officers association, so most events are free, and some even include some cash to help cover the cost of a babysitter.

Griffin and I had a great time! There was even a little boy that Griffin used to go to daycare with who we found out whose dad is also a doctor. They ran around the playground laughing and chasing each other. It was a nice to talk to people who had kids and are going through the same struggles we are. I'm not saying that others don't understand what our lives are like, but at the same time unless you live this life, its hard to explain and understand. He can't call in the middle of the day to say "hi", he doesn't "get off early", being done at 7 really means he's done at 8 and taking a "sick" day doesn't ever happen. Mike's schedule is really busy with extremely long and changing hours. On top of that he works two other part time jobs to add to the chaos. When asked where Mike was tonight I said he was on night float and one woman just smiled and nodded. I didn't have to explain what that meant to her, she understood and it felt nice to be surrounded with people who just got it, at least for tonight!

Shorts

I think everyone should leave Michelle Obama's shorts alone! Do we really not have bigger things to concern ourselves other than the length and style of her casual wear?

Sick Boy

Griffin woke up with a fever this morning. We took him to the doctor this afternoon as every time he has a fever, he has an ear infection. This time he didn't. On the positive side, he doesn't have an ear infection, which means most likely his ear canals are growing in the right direction and we'll be able to avoid putting tubes in. On the negative side, we have a sick little boy with a 102.7 fever who can't go back to daycare until its been gone for 24 hours. Mike was luckily home today and will be tomorrow, and I'll have to take Thursday and potentially Friday off. I feel so bad when he's sick. I know he gets bored laying around, but he doesn't feel much like doing anything either.

And as always, I hate that even minor illnesses can have scary complications (although rare). I need to not look at Google any more.

Stopping at the store on the way home for some pudding pops and popsicles to make sure he stays fed and hydrated.

Healthcare Debate

I created a long post this morning that I decided to take down after I posted it. I'm not for universal health care coverage for a variety of reasons. If you want to know why, feel free to ask, otherwise that is all I'll have to say about the drama that is going on right now in Washington. Everyone is so heated about this topic and I don't believe they have all of the facts in hand to truly debate it.

Reflections on the past 16 months

Trying to bring my blog back up to date with a very large missing gap has been perplexing me for awhile. At first I was going to abandon it, but decided for a variety of reasons to keep it.

Motherhood - what an amazing journey it has been for me so far. It is unbelievable how quickly you can bond to your child, the depth of the love that you acquire and the instinct that developes to protect them at all costs.

Griffin has filled my life with more love, fun, joy and happiness that I could have ever imagined. I continue to be amazed by looking back at pictures of him from birth through current, all of the ages and stages we went through together, and all of the memories we've made. Every minute, every second with Griffin is a precious gift, and although it isn't always easy, it is the most awesome responsibility and honor I will ever have the opportunity to have.

There are lots of milestones of Griffin's I posted on his blog. Both as an easy way for friends and family to watch him grow from far away, but also as a psuedo baby journal to easily look back on pictures, events and milestones. Now I'm ready to restart my blog so that I can look back and continue to see how I've grown and changed.

Reflecting back over the last 16 months, aside from all of the wonderful things Griffin has learned and accomplished, I am proud of myself, personally, most for one thing the most. Breastfeeding Griffin for an entire year. This may seem like a no-brainer for a lot of people, and not something to pat yourself on the back for, but I'm giving myself a little pat. Pat, pat, pat. I was the one who got up for every night feeding, changing, rocking back to sleep (not that I would have had a choice with Mike gone a good percentage of the time, or wanted one because I LOVED our nights together), I was the one who pumped milk 3 times a day at work, I was the one that gave up alchohol, most over-the-counter medications (sorry - tylenol was necessary at times), nights out with friends. I did it for Griffin, and I did it for me. I believe the bond that we created during countless hours of nursing sessions is something that will resonante forever between us. I'm proud that I made a committment to do it for a full year and stuck through with it.

A return to blogging

Its been 15 months since I've blogged on this site and I'm ready to make a return to it. Motherhood has been the most awesome adventure and gift, and I've enjoyed every second of the journey so far. I've been fairly good at keeping Griffin's blog up and running, but definitely pushed mine aside to make time and room. There are only so many hours in the day, and as a result this blog stopped.

Now, what to write about?

The Baby

I guess I've only been posting pictures of Griffin to his own blog. If you'd like to see his blog and don't already have the address, leave me a comment or email me and I'll send you the link!

Delayed Posting

My postings are very far behind, becoming a mom takes more time than you can ever imagine! I am hoping to update some in a few days, there is so much to talk about, I just need the time to get it all down.

Overdue

I'm 4 days overdue and so ready and excited to meet this baby. Of course with each additional day the fear of actually going through labor mounts too, so I'd love nothing more to get it over and behind me so I can focus on the fun stuff...the baby!

ER and Labor & Delivery

Last night we made an unplanned trip to the ER when I woke up around 2:45 with heart palpitations. When we got to the ER the admitting clerks looks at each other, my 37 week belly and said "Should we just send her straight up to L&D?"

They decided to bring me back into the ER and got me settled into a room. They did an EKG and watched my heart for about and 2 hours. The EKG was normal, but my heart palpitations were caused by something called PVCs which from what they said are normal in late pregnancy because of all of the extra blood you have in your body (40% more than normal).

The doctor assured me all was well, but because I was so far along they wanted to send me upstairs to labor and delivery to have the baby monitored. After having to pee in a cup for the 2nd time in about an hour - which is a feat when you have massive belly protruding out and its hard enough to see down, let alone make the catch into that tiny cup, I got settled into the triage room. They hooked the baby and I up to monitors and watched us for awhile to make sure everything was still normal and at 6:45 this morning that said to go home, relax and come back if I continued to feel strange.

So, no baby yet, and I'm feeling better, but after they announced that I was going up to Labor & Delivery it became very real to Mike and I that I could very well have this baby at any time. Its both scary and exciting and makes me realize how much I am looking forward to his arrival!

Ice Roads

The road we live on is unpaved, but it is so packed with ice you can't even tell what kind of road it is. It reminds me of that show about truckers in Alaska who drive on the ice. When I turned onto our street today I saw an SUV that had gone into the treeline where the road makes a T and a policeman parked next to it waiting for a tow truck. I'm not sure what is so hard to understand about not being able to drive on ice differently than when there is no ice?

Time Crunch

There are 4 weeks left today until the little guy gets here (give or take 2 weeks if he's early or late). I am starting to feel overwhelmed with all there is to do beforehand, although most of it is done. The little details are what are bothering me at this point and nothing I can really hand off to anyone to assist with.

1. Pack a bag for the hospital, something that Michael said he can just "run and get whatever I need" once I get admitted...yeah, right. If he thinks he's leaving to run errands once I'm admitted, he's sadly mistaken.
2. Clean out the car
3. Compile email list for Mike to send to once the baby arrives as he'll have to send it from outside the labor & deliver floor since there is no Wifi there
4. Have carseat inspected and installed
5. Move treadmill out of babys room
6. Buy an ottoman or stool for the nursey
7. Get the graphics we ordered put on the walls in the nursery - if they ever arrive
8. Take a breastfeeding class
9. Find a daycare - this is a biggie, I'm a planner and don't want to wait. I'd like this set so I don't have to worry about interviewing providers after he arrives.
10. Shave my legs - gross, I know
11. Finish all of the parenting books I'm halfway through. I'm sure all of of the material be lost in my brain for the sleep-deprived weeks to come, but at least I can say that I've read them and hopefully retain something.
12. Buy a few more nursing bras. I already bought one, and let me tell you, they are neither attractive, nor inexpensive. Plus, knowing that they will grow even more than they already have is both scary and amazing.
13. RELAX! A nice dinner out for Valentine's Day should help with this.

Changed my Mind

I changed my mind on the bedding for the nursery. After I had the curtains hung, the other pattern was just too dark for a baby. I returned it and got the new set below, which I am loving now. This weekend I'm going to make some curtains to match as the company doesn't sell any. I'll be posting pictures of the nursery as soon as the decorations are up the treadmill is moved out.

Congratulations!

Elaine and Matt, congratulations on your engagement! I am so happy for the two of you!

Good Wife

With the baby due in under 40 days, I've been feeling as though Mike is getting less attention from me. I'm sure he doesn't mind, it probably clears up more Xbox playing hours for him while I'm getting stuff ready for the baby. However, last night I actually suggested we stop in his favorite comic store to pick up two new books that were released this week that I knew he liked. He must have thought I was taken over by aliens to suggest such a thing, not to mention that I had actually went online to see if anything was new.

Bitter Cold

The last couple of days in Ann Arbor have been exteremly cold. Yesterday it warmed up to a balm 6 degrees, by mid-afternoon. Today is a little better at 17 degrees. I'm ready for this cold stretch to be over, especially being that my "winter coat" right now is just a fleece jacket because I refused to buy a maternity coat that I would only wear for a few months.

Mike and I both had today off so we spent most of the morning and early afternoon cleaning the house. I love how much more you seem to get accomplished over a 3-day weekend. Being able to relax and get those not-s0-fun chores done is great.

Ready for vacation

I leave tomorrow for Seattle and I can't wait! I wish Mike were able to be there for the holiday, but it will be great to be around family and friends. And to make it better, in just over 24 hours I will be eating Black Pearl for the first time since January, and its going to be delicious!