Okay, so I have to take back what I said yesterday a little. Rosa was nursing like a champ in the hospital, but when we got home and Sacha's milk actually came in, things went from good to okay to bad rather quickly.
Last night involved lots and lots of screaming (baby) and patience (Sacha, and me trying to be supportive) and a few good feedings that took about an hour to achieve, because the kid just would not latch. Poor Sacha was cracked and bleeding by this morning. She has a lactation appointment tomorrow with the Kaiser people, but lactation is one of the few things that they are not good at. We knew what we had to do. We had to call Doris.
We had been referred to her by a friend when Natalia was born and couldn't breastfeed for the life of her. Sacha had seen about a zillion Kaiser lactation people in the hospital, plus one outpatient person, plus people in the special care nursery, and none of them could figure it out. Doris came to our house and had Tali latching and nursing within half an hour. She is seriously good. I think she is probably the best in the city. Instead of trying to make the baby change to fit your body, she helps you adjust things to get the baby in her most comfy position, and that makes all the difference.
Anyway, we love, love, loved her at the time and it didn't hurt that she also had a daughter named Natalia!
This time, we didn't wait until our baby was practically starving to call her. We just called right away and she came out tonight. To say it was amazing would be the understatement of the year. It was like a therapy session, a comedy show, a serious lesson in baby body mechanics, and a lactation breakthrough all in one. It was that good. It was like a breastfeeding resurrection.
Sacha now has some really great nipple cream and a shield to help her heal, lots of tips on how to position the baby (kind of cockeyed like she was in the womb) and, most importantly, confidence that she can do this and do it without pain.
Doris isn't exactly cheap, but she is worth every single penny of both her fee and of the hefty tip I gave her. Compared to a year of formula if nursing didn't work out, it was a drop in the bucket. And to see Sacha and Rosa so happy and relieved, and full and satisfied, respectively....well, that was priceless.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Days and nights
So far, Rosa is proving to be one mellow baby. We know this could wear off as she gradually wakes up, but we are definitely enjoying it now. We don't need to bounce her or put her in the vibrating chair or anything, she just sleeps and eats and pees and poops and all that, but she doesn't fuss and she hardly ever even cries. We loooooove her! She is such a cute little burrito and her little head smells so good. It's wonderful to have her out of Sacha's belly and into the outside world. I am just so, so, so glad that the induction worked this weekend. This is pretty great, even if we are all totally exhausted. Totally worth it.
My mom left today and Sacha's mom will be here for a week, and then my mom will be here for the week after. We are so lucky. Also, many, many thanks to my mom and dad and Sacha's parents for all their hard work taking care of the kids while we were gone! We appreciate it so, so much.
I have a goal of taking lots of photos of her, so she doesn't feel shorted as #3, so here are some pictures I took today.
My mom left today and Sacha's mom will be here for a week, and then my mom will be here for the week after. We are so lucky. Also, many, many thanks to my mom and dad and Sacha's parents for all their hard work taking care of the kids while we were gone! We appreciate it so, so much.
I have a goal of taking lots of photos of her, so she doesn't feel shorted as #3, so here are some pictures I took today.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Home!
We're home! Sacha and Rosa got discharged from the hospital this morning and we made it home in time for lunch. We had some really sweet moments in the hospital, including Rosa conking out in my lap early this morning...
...and overall, we just had a great experience at Kaiser. From the midwives to the nurses to everyone else who worked there, it seemed like everyone was knowledgeable, friendly, welcoming, and just good at their jobs. We were even lucky enough to have a nurse today who helped Natalia be born two years ago and who actually remembered us from then. The midwife who delivered Rosa was amazing, as was the one before her who got Sacha to finally start active labor. It may be the post-baby euphoria, but I wanted to take them all home with us and be best friends forever with just about all of them.
Two things on our homecoming: first, Tali is absolutely 100% smitten with Rosa. She wanted to hold her, touch her, read to her, give her a binky, and generally be with her at all times. Her nurturing side came out big time! It was so sweet to see and we hope she continues to be a doting older sister as time goes on. Mateo was also thrilled to have the baby home, but possibly was even more thrilled at the Cars movie collection of cars that Rosa gave him as a homecoming gift. He was amazed that she knew that that's exactly what he wanted!
I have to admit that I (and Sacha) have caught ourselves calling her Drizzle more than once! We just got so used to calling her that that it's hard to stop now! Mateo officially declared that Rosa can be her name and Drizzle can be her nickname, which is fine for us. I'm sure it will fade over time :)
Anyway, I just wanted to say that we're home and now we're a family of five! I can't believe it. How did we get so lucky as to actually, really, truly have three children? I'm trying to savor it all, because I know this will be our last time through babyhood. And, with that, it's off to bed, because the kiddo is still a bit reversed on night and day. Here are just a few photos. Our camera died just in time for homecoming, so photos of that will come later.
...and overall, we just had a great experience at Kaiser. From the midwives to the nurses to everyone else who worked there, it seemed like everyone was knowledgeable, friendly, welcoming, and just good at their jobs. We were even lucky enough to have a nurse today who helped Natalia be born two years ago and who actually remembered us from then. The midwife who delivered Rosa was amazing, as was the one before her who got Sacha to finally start active labor. It may be the post-baby euphoria, but I wanted to take them all home with us and be best friends forever with just about all of them.
Two things on our homecoming: first, Tali is absolutely 100% smitten with Rosa. She wanted to hold her, touch her, read to her, give her a binky, and generally be with her at all times. Her nurturing side came out big time! It was so sweet to see and we hope she continues to be a doting older sister as time goes on. Mateo was also thrilled to have the baby home, but possibly was even more thrilled at the Cars movie collection of cars that Rosa gave him as a homecoming gift. He was amazed that she knew that that's exactly what he wanted!
I have to admit that I (and Sacha) have caught ourselves calling her Drizzle more than once! We just got so used to calling her that that it's hard to stop now! Mateo officially declared that Rosa can be her name and Drizzle can be her nickname, which is fine for us. I'm sure it will fade over time :)
Anyway, I just wanted to say that we're home and now we're a family of five! I can't believe it. How did we get so lucky as to actually, really, truly have three children? I'm trying to savor it all, because I know this will be our last time through babyhood. And, with that, it's off to bed, because the kiddo is still a bit reversed on night and day. Here are just a few photos. Our camera died just in time for homecoming, so photos of that will come later.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Rosa Jane
She's here!! Our Rosa Jane arrived at 7:36 pm last night, weighing in at 7 pounds, 1.9 ounces (just .3 oz more than her big sister) and 19.5 inches long. Sacha reached full dilation around 6 pm and pushed like an amazon for an hour and a half to bring our little girl into the world. Rosa, as it turned out, was posterior, or sunnyside up, so she was a difficult one to get out. Sacha did it, though, and her strength was again amazing to behold. We're so happy to welcome our daughter into the world!
Now it's early morning and the amazing nursing baby is nursing like a champ. Sacha has already got her nursing in the side-lying position (which is good, because Sacha is really banged up from last night's delivery) and the kid latches like she was born to do it (ha ha!).
We are in love and are looking forward to having the kids and Apa and my dad meet her today. She got a hearty welcome from three of her four grandparents last night, which was a great way to end a long and, ultimately, sublime day. Welcome, little one!
PS: Note the new blog title. It's so much fun to go back to our original title, especially for such a great reason!
Now it's early morning and the amazing nursing baby is nursing like a champ. Sacha has already got her nursing in the side-lying position (which is good, because Sacha is really banged up from last night's delivery) and the kid latches like she was born to do it (ha ha!).
We are in love and are looking forward to having the kids and Apa and my dad meet her today. She got a hearty welcome from three of her four grandparents last night, which was a great way to end a long and, ultimately, sublime day. Welcome, little one!
PS: Note the new blog title. It's so much fun to go back to our original title, especially for such a great reason!
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Pre-birth
The day before we went to the hospital, three of our four parents converged on our house. My mom and Sacha's parents all came to stay with the kids, with my dad planning to come on Monday if the baby arrived as planned. We all had fun that evening: we went out to dinner, the kids played with their grandparents, and we got the last things ready for the hospital.
At 8 pm, we went to bed, knowing we'd have to get up in time to get to the hospital by midnight. We were both so wound up that we thought we'd never go to sleep, but at least I did. Sacha slept on and off, and then suddenly it was time to go. We are so grateful to our parents for staying with the kids, and to Apa for going over there today and playing with them and keeping everybody company.
We got to the hospital in no time and Sacha got checked in and got her first dose of misoprostale, to ripen her cervix. It turned out that the little tablet got stuck way far away from her cervix, so it didn't do much, but we didn't find that out until 5 am, when she got her next dose. The next dose did start her on some contractions for several hours, so we walked the halls a million times and she breathed and relaxed and all that good stuff. Time passed until 11 am, when we finally met with our midwife.
She basically laid it out to us that it was pretty likely that Sacha wouldn't have the baby today, because she wasn't having active labor and because she had dilated only a fingertip before the induction. She suggested that she might be able to do a procedure where a small foley balloon helps stretch your cervix to get things going, but thought we might want to consider going home if that wasn't possible, and trying again after Sacha's due date. We were pretty down about this, but everything she was saying made sense. Also, not surprisingly, Sacha's contractions fizzled completely after hearing this.
Then, she checked Sacha and she was nearly at a 2, which was enough to put in the little balloon. It was also enough to sweep her membranes, which started her contracting again right away. Suddenly, the midwife's mood, and therefore the mood of the whole room, changed and she said she thought we could do this after all! She put in the balloon and filled it with saline. The idea was that it would help stretch Sacha to a 3 or 4 and then she would be in active labor and able to get an epidural if she wanted.
In fact, that's exactly what happened. Sacha got the procedure done, and then got into the birthing tub they have here. At some point, after about an hour, she felt a POP! and the midwife said, that must have been your bag of waters, so let's go check you. In fact, it was not her waters, but she had made it to a 4! And, the midwife said she would break Sacha's waters (which both should speed things along and give us a time limit) after she got her epidural. And she did.
Sacha has had a few scary moments with medications along the way. She had a bad reaction to fentanyl and almost passed out, and then almost passed out again when she got her epidural. However, I am happy to say that she is now resting comfortably, is asleep, and that the color is back in her face. The nurse ordered us both to sleep, but I just couldn't, so I'm writing instead. I figured I should write the first part now, because I won't have any time after she's born! It's anyone's guess as to how long the next part will take - it could be a couple of hours or a couple of days - but we are both hoping for a smooth and uneventful birth process. Cross your fingers!
At 8 pm, we went to bed, knowing we'd have to get up in time to get to the hospital by midnight. We were both so wound up that we thought we'd never go to sleep, but at least I did. Sacha slept on and off, and then suddenly it was time to go. We are so grateful to our parents for staying with the kids, and to Apa for going over there today and playing with them and keeping everybody company.
We got to the hospital in no time and Sacha got checked in and got her first dose of misoprostale, to ripen her cervix. It turned out that the little tablet got stuck way far away from her cervix, so it didn't do much, but we didn't find that out until 5 am, when she got her next dose. The next dose did start her on some contractions for several hours, so we walked the halls a million times and she breathed and relaxed and all that good stuff. Time passed until 11 am, when we finally met with our midwife.
She basically laid it out to us that it was pretty likely that Sacha wouldn't have the baby today, because she wasn't having active labor and because she had dilated only a fingertip before the induction. She suggested that she might be able to do a procedure where a small foley balloon helps stretch your cervix to get things going, but thought we might want to consider going home if that wasn't possible, and trying again after Sacha's due date. We were pretty down about this, but everything she was saying made sense. Also, not surprisingly, Sacha's contractions fizzled completely after hearing this.
Then, she checked Sacha and she was nearly at a 2, which was enough to put in the little balloon. It was also enough to sweep her membranes, which started her contracting again right away. Suddenly, the midwife's mood, and therefore the mood of the whole room, changed and she said she thought we could do this after all! She put in the balloon and filled it with saline. The idea was that it would help stretch Sacha to a 3 or 4 and then she would be in active labor and able to get an epidural if she wanted.
In fact, that's exactly what happened. Sacha got the procedure done, and then got into the birthing tub they have here. At some point, after about an hour, she felt a POP! and the midwife said, that must have been your bag of waters, so let's go check you. In fact, it was not her waters, but she had made it to a 4! And, the midwife said she would break Sacha's waters (which both should speed things along and give us a time limit) after she got her epidural. And she did.
Sacha has had a few scary moments with medications along the way. She had a bad reaction to fentanyl and almost passed out, and then almost passed out again when she got her epidural. However, I am happy to say that she is now resting comfortably, is asleep, and that the color is back in her face. The nurse ordered us both to sleep, but I just couldn't, so I'm writing instead. I figured I should write the first part now, because I won't have any time after she's born! It's anyone's guess as to how long the next part will take - it could be a couple of hours or a couple of days - but we are both hoping for a smooth and uneventful birth process. Cross your fingers!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
This is the day! - updated
Hopefully
If all goes smoothly!
I have been up on and off since 4am. I really have been trying to sleep, but at 5 am I finally decided to get up. I was really hungry and not the least bit sleepy. I'm going to go to acupuncture at 9am and then have a nice day with the family. At midnight tonight, we will drive to the hospital to get ready to be induced.
The plan is to start with some gel during the night, and then pit during the day. Last time I only needed the gel to get me kick-started. This time, I seem to be much more ready for labor in my body. When I am walking, I am having some contractions. And last night I even had some while I was in bed (ie reason for getting up for good at 5am). After my acupuncture appointments, I have had some contractions, but they tend to fizzle after an hour or when I sit down.
Short contraction break. I'm back. So . . . my hope is that if I don't really go into labor before midnight tonight, that my body just needs an extra little push.
I've been doing all sorts of research on induction with second labors. From what I can tell, with the second baby and my Bishop score, it has between a 96% and 99% chance of being effective. You have to scroll down to see the stats. The women is rather against inductions in most situations, but the information was useful.
I think it is interesting how I've come full circle. The first time I was very against the idea of induction, wanted to do things naturally if I could etc. This time, I'm like give me the drugs! Once I'm in labor, epidural here I come. I guess the labor part, while still a big deal, doesn't seem nearly as important as what happens after. I would like to not be so exhausted this time around. Hopefully, I won't fall into a comma after Drizzle is born.
No one ever talks about the fact that if you are up for 18 hours+, and were up most of the night, just how tired you will be if you labor the whole time. I know that supposedly there are hormones that kick in and help you feel alert for the next 24 hours. Maybe the epidural meant that I didn't get those hormones. Or maybe it was the stress of the delivery. Anyway, I was not in a state of high alert and energy for the next 24 hours.
None the less, being the person who is supporting the labor is even more tiring than being in labor. At least in my opinion. I would much prefer to go through it than to see Alayna go through labor again. (Unfortunately, I think she might feel the same way about this.)
Another contraction break.
It is really nice and quiet in the house. Everyone is sleeping right now. I'm enjoying typing, and getting up every 10 minutes or so to walk around. Hopefully, this will be a nice peaceful day, at least for a while. I guess we should take some pictures no matter what happens.
One last thing - the plan is if I don't really get into labor at the hospital that I'll come back home and then try again in 2 or 3 days. I'm hoping that this does not occur! Send me good thoughts please!
*******************
Updated to add: The contractions seem to have fizzled out, so the induction looks like it's going to be the most likely end to our day after all. Wish us luck!
If all goes smoothly!
I have been up on and off since 4am. I really have been trying to sleep, but at 5 am I finally decided to get up. I was really hungry and not the least bit sleepy. I'm going to go to acupuncture at 9am and then have a nice day with the family. At midnight tonight, we will drive to the hospital to get ready to be induced.
The plan is to start with some gel during the night, and then pit during the day. Last time I only needed the gel to get me kick-started. This time, I seem to be much more ready for labor in my body. When I am walking, I am having some contractions. And last night I even had some while I was in bed (ie reason for getting up for good at 5am). After my acupuncture appointments, I have had some contractions, but they tend to fizzle after an hour or when I sit down.
Short contraction break. I'm back. So . . . my hope is that if I don't really go into labor before midnight tonight, that my body just needs an extra little push.
I've been doing all sorts of research on induction with second labors. From what I can tell, with the second baby and my Bishop score, it has between a 96% and 99% chance of being effective. You have to scroll down to see the stats. The women is rather against inductions in most situations, but the information was useful.
I think it is interesting how I've come full circle. The first time I was very against the idea of induction, wanted to do things naturally if I could etc. This time, I'm like give me the drugs! Once I'm in labor, epidural here I come. I guess the labor part, while still a big deal, doesn't seem nearly as important as what happens after. I would like to not be so exhausted this time around. Hopefully, I won't fall into a comma after Drizzle is born.
No one ever talks about the fact that if you are up for 18 hours+, and were up most of the night, just how tired you will be if you labor the whole time. I know that supposedly there are hormones that kick in and help you feel alert for the next 24 hours. Maybe the epidural meant that I didn't get those hormones. Or maybe it was the stress of the delivery. Anyway, I was not in a state of high alert and energy for the next 24 hours.
None the less, being the person who is supporting the labor is even more tiring than being in labor. At least in my opinion. I would much prefer to go through it than to see Alayna go through labor again. (Unfortunately, I think she might feel the same way about this.)
Another contraction break.
It is really nice and quiet in the house. Everyone is sleeping right now. I'm enjoying typing, and getting up every 10 minutes or so to walk around. Hopefully, this will be a nice peaceful day, at least for a while. I guess we should take some pictures no matter what happens.
One last thing - the plan is if I don't really get into labor at the hospital that I'll come back home and then try again in 2 or 3 days. I'm hoping that this does not occur! Send me good thoughts please!
*******************
Updated to add: The contractions seem to have fizzled out, so the induction looks like it's going to be the most likely end to our day after all. Wish us luck!
Friday, March 25, 2011
Countdown
3. We went to an extremely cool place yesterday called CHAP, which stands for Children's Healing Arts Project. They do art with kids who have cancer, and they also have an art factory downtown for healthy kids to come to and do art. The fees from the healthy kids go to fund the programs for the kids with cancer. It's a great concept, and it's also just tons of fun. At the art factory, the kids can literally paint on anything - toys, tables, couches, mannequins, etc. Mateo and Natalia and one of their preschool friends had a blast, and we even ran into another family we knew from baby group way back when Mateo was a baby. Here they are, painting like mad:
2. Speaking of when Mateo was a baby, he sure isn't anymore. He tested out our infant bathtub this afternoon and wow, he is such a big boy now. Hard to believe he was ever so little, but he was! Here he is, giving it a test run:
1. And, speaking of babies, we sure hope ours is coming soon! Sacha and I will be going to the hospital tomorrow (Saturday) night just before midnight to start the induction process. Because she's before her due date, if the pitocin kicks her into labor and she starts having regular contractions, then we'll have a baby. If her body doesn't respond to it for some reason, then they'll send her home and we'll try again in a few days. So, let's keep all our fingers and toes crossed for a good labor and healthy baby and mommy this weekend! We'll keep you posted, obviously. So exciting!!
2. Speaking of when Mateo was a baby, he sure isn't anymore. He tested out our infant bathtub this afternoon and wow, he is such a big boy now. Hard to believe he was ever so little, but he was! Here he is, giving it a test run:
1. And, speaking of babies, we sure hope ours is coming soon! Sacha and I will be going to the hospital tomorrow (Saturday) night just before midnight to start the induction process. Because she's before her due date, if the pitocin kicks her into labor and she starts having regular contractions, then we'll have a baby. If her body doesn't respond to it for some reason, then they'll send her home and we'll try again in a few days. So, let's keep all our fingers and toes crossed for a good labor and healthy baby and mommy this weekend! We'll keep you posted, obviously. So exciting!!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
I've been working on the railroad
Mateo found his kazoo today in a drawer. We were cleaning out the "junk" or "miscellaneous" drawer, which had all sorts of things like Natalia's whistle and Mateo's kazoo.
"Then we started playing I've been working on the railroad. And then the kazoo fell out of my mouth." Says Mateo
"I want my song." - Says Natalia (What she means is that she wants to sing Jamaica Farewell, which she has decided is her song.)
Here is a video of all of us playing the song.
"Then we started playing I've been working on the railroad. And then the kazoo fell out of my mouth." Says Mateo
"I want my song." - Says Natalia (What she means is that she wants to sing Jamaica Farewell, which she has decided is her song.)
Here is a video of all of us playing the song.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Auto show
The kids and I were looking for an adventure yesterday morning while Sacha rested, so we went to the Portland Auto Show! We took the MAX train there and back and had tons of fun while we were there. The train let us off right at the Expo Center and there were found three huge halls full of classic cars, all done up to the nines. The kids loved it and so did I. It was fun to just wander the rows and see what we found. The kids even got to sit in one of them, which was especially cool. When we were done, we were lucky enough to have a train waiting on the platform when we got there, so we were home in time for lunch. It was a really fun morning. Must make a mental note to go again next year!
Here are some photos of some of our favorite cars:
Here are some photos of some of our favorite cars:
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| Mateo correctly identified this as a chopper! |
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| Their favorites reminded them of Cars movie cars and this one looked like Ramone |
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| They even had a plane! |
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| Driving a Cobra race car! |
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| The first old fashioned Bug they've ever seen |
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| Here's Mateo next to a massive monster truck |
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| This was apparently in the Scooby Doo movie |
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| This one was a big fave - it looked like Doc Hudson from Cars |
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Keeping busy
I was a bit nervous about stopping school around 36 weeks, but I've really done just fine. Mainly, I've been keeping really busy doing all sorts of little projects. Almost every day I go to an acupuncture appointment, or a Mayan Massage appointment to get myself ready, or a Dr. appointment. Here are some of the activities I've been doing:
1. Cooking
I've cooked all sorts of new recipes from the Volumetric cookbook. They all taste wonderful and have lots of vegetables in them. Obviously I modify the recipes so they are not low-calorie, but overall they are really healthy and yummy. Plus, Mateo and Natalia have really enjoyed eating them. I've made minestrone soup, Buffalo chicken wraps with blue cheese dressing, creamy oatmeal and all sorts of other meals. We have also tried some of the smoothies.
I've realized just how much the food processor is my friend when cooking with vegetables. I really don't like chopping up onions, grating carrots etc. It can all be done in seconds with the processor. Plus, I can just chop them all for the week in less time than it would take for me to use a knife and chop for one recipe.
2. Ukulele
As I've mentioned earlier, I am continue to practice the ukulele every day. Today I learned "You are my sunshine." On Thursday I learned, "I've been working on the railroad." So every few days I learn a new song. It is all quite fun and keeps me very focused. I almost always play with the kids. Mateo is learning "Row, row, row your boat." I also learned "Don Alfredo Baila" today! It's easy to practice when the kids ask you to play for them.
3. Languages
Today I took a lesson online through the library from Mango Languages. Don't ask me why, but I learned how to have a simple conversation in Vietnamese. I have students from Vietnam, and I don't know, it sounded like fun. Random, but it was challenging.
4. New Website
I've put together a new website for my class for next year. I've also created four different requests for my donors choose account. (None of them are up yet.) I learned how to use google apps to create email addresses for my students, but still retain the ability to monitor what they are doing and reset or change passwords as needed. Oh, and how to create videos on the web camera and load them to the website.
5. Upgraded computer
I realized that it is easy to order ram to upgrade our Dell computer. I have updated it from 1 gb to 1.5 gb ram, and am going to be moving it up to 2 gb of ram whenever the next card arrives. I also watched an awesome tutorial about computers to learn what the different numbers mean when you look at a computer. I finally get what all those numbers are about! I also ran the defragger (sp?) and the disk clean up feature. The computer runs much faster now.
6. Got Dragon Speaking software working
I was having a horrible time with the dragon speaking software. I thought that there was something wrong with the sound cards on the PC, so I did some research and bought a new sound card. Got the ram, did other things to clean up the computer. The program was still not working. Finally, I had this aha moment. Maybe the problem wasn't the PC after all. Maybe it was the headset. So, I tried a different headset - problem gone! Too bad it took me so long to think of the simple solution.
7. Enjoying family time
Of course I've been enjoying time with Alayna and the kids. We went on a hike at Powell Butte park today. We all did Spanish time (even Alayna!!) for a while. We played a memory game with the kids, pretended to be characters from the Dora books and sang lots of songs together. The kids really play so nicely together. Both of them did a great job riding their balance bikes down the butte. Natalia did have a little crash, but she got right back on the bike a after a few minutes of cuddling. Mateo zoomed around corners on the downhill and didn't bite the dust once! What a fun family outing!
I'm seeing this time before the baby comes as being my summer vacation. I know that life is going to get a bit crazy soon with number 3. I'm enjoying the calm before the storm!
I do have to wonder if all of this activity is my equivalent to nesting that people do in the last weeks before labor. Maybe it's just taking a bit of a different form for me . . .
1. Cooking
I've cooked all sorts of new recipes from the Volumetric cookbook. They all taste wonderful and have lots of vegetables in them. Obviously I modify the recipes so they are not low-calorie, but overall they are really healthy and yummy. Plus, Mateo and Natalia have really enjoyed eating them. I've made minestrone soup, Buffalo chicken wraps with blue cheese dressing, creamy oatmeal and all sorts of other meals. We have also tried some of the smoothies.
I've realized just how much the food processor is my friend when cooking with vegetables. I really don't like chopping up onions, grating carrots etc. It can all be done in seconds with the processor. Plus, I can just chop them all for the week in less time than it would take for me to use a knife and chop for one recipe.
2. Ukulele
As I've mentioned earlier, I am continue to practice the ukulele every day. Today I learned "You are my sunshine." On Thursday I learned, "I've been working on the railroad." So every few days I learn a new song. It is all quite fun and keeps me very focused. I almost always play with the kids. Mateo is learning "Row, row, row your boat." I also learned "Don Alfredo Baila" today! It's easy to practice when the kids ask you to play for them.
3. Languages
Today I took a lesson online through the library from Mango Languages. Don't ask me why, but I learned how to have a simple conversation in Vietnamese. I have students from Vietnam, and I don't know, it sounded like fun. Random, but it was challenging.
4. New Website
I've put together a new website for my class for next year. I've also created four different requests for my donors choose account. (None of them are up yet.) I learned how to use google apps to create email addresses for my students, but still retain the ability to monitor what they are doing and reset or change passwords as needed. Oh, and how to create videos on the web camera and load them to the website.
5. Upgraded computer
I realized that it is easy to order ram to upgrade our Dell computer. I have updated it from 1 gb to 1.5 gb ram, and am going to be moving it up to 2 gb of ram whenever the next card arrives. I also watched an awesome tutorial about computers to learn what the different numbers mean when you look at a computer. I finally get what all those numbers are about! I also ran the defragger (sp?) and the disk clean up feature. The computer runs much faster now.
6. Got Dragon Speaking software working
I was having a horrible time with the dragon speaking software. I thought that there was something wrong with the sound cards on the PC, so I did some research and bought a new sound card. Got the ram, did other things to clean up the computer. The program was still not working. Finally, I had this aha moment. Maybe the problem wasn't the PC after all. Maybe it was the headset. So, I tried a different headset - problem gone! Too bad it took me so long to think of the simple solution.
7. Enjoying family time
Of course I've been enjoying time with Alayna and the kids. We went on a hike at Powell Butte park today. We all did Spanish time (even Alayna!!) for a while. We played a memory game with the kids, pretended to be characters from the Dora books and sang lots of songs together. The kids really play so nicely together. Both of them did a great job riding their balance bikes down the butte. Natalia did have a little crash, but she got right back on the bike a after a few minutes of cuddling. Mateo zoomed around corners on the downhill and didn't bite the dust once! What a fun family outing!
I'm seeing this time before the baby comes as being my summer vacation. I know that life is going to get a bit crazy soon with number 3. I'm enjoying the calm before the storm!
I do have to wonder if all of this activity is my equivalent to nesting that people do in the last weeks before labor. Maybe it's just taking a bit of a different form for me . . .
Back to normal
Mateo is back to his normal self, thank goodness. He was pretty lethargic for an hour or so after he woke up yesterday, but then he bounced back to his normal preschooler energy levels, so we decided not to take him to urgent care. This morning, we all went for a walk with the kids riding their balance bikes and everybody had fun with that. So, I pronounce him and us back to good as new. It was a scary episode that will hopefully never ever be repeated!
Also, on a totally different subject, we had a delicious breakfast of waffles this morning, as we do most Saturdays. I'm amazed this year to find that the fruit we picked this summer has lasted this long. Last summer was short and not very sunny, so we didn't get much good picking done. However, using it sparingly has gotten us to mid-March and we still have some berries in the freezer. Today, we used all strawberries for our waffle topping. YUM. Happy weekend!
Also, on a totally different subject, we had a delicious breakfast of waffles this morning, as we do most Saturdays. I'm amazed this year to find that the fruit we picked this summer has lasted this long. Last summer was short and not very sunny, so we didn't get much good picking done. However, using it sparingly has gotten us to mid-March and we still have some berries in the freezer. Today, we used all strawberries for our waffle topping. YUM. Happy weekend!
Friday, March 18, 2011
Conk
I just had the most awful parenting moment and somehow I find myself blogging about it. I was, as I always do, doing a workout while the kids napped/rested. Normally, Mateo stays put and reads on the couch and Tali sleeps or shrieks in her room. Recently, Mateo has been more wiggly and wanting to run around during rest time, which is really fine as long as he stays out of my way.
Today, I was doing my Jillian Michaels kettleball workout with a 15 pound kettleball. I had told Mateo about a zillion times to stay out off the carpet (where I was working out) so that I didn't hit him, and he seemed to be complying....until I was swinging the thing between my legs with full force and he ran out of nowhere and I hit him in the forehead. I have clonked myself with that thing in the collarbone before, going nowhere near that speed, and it hurt bad. This time, it made a horrible clunk as it connected with his head and I said "OH SHIT" as he burst out screaming.
I figured the crying immediately was a good thing, but I didn't know what else to do, so I called 911. I was afraid they'd bring child protective services with them, but luckily they seemed to believe me. A fire truck came and they checked him out and pronounced him ok. He has a huge knot on his forehead and a headache, but I think he's okay. He did fall right asleep after they left, but it is his normal rest time and the crying and the injury probably exhausted him. Never the less, I'm going to make sure he wakes up in half an hour to make sure he's okay. If he's nauseous or out of it, then we need to take him in. Good times.
I feel terrible. I can't believe that happened. I did everything I could to make the environment safe, but my squirmy 4 year old was one step ahead of me. I'm just so, so glad that he seems to be okay and that a welt is all that he got. I think there's a lesson to be learned here for both of us. For him, listen to me when I say to give me space. For me, realize that a wiggly preschooler may not be able to do that and maybe the kettleball needs to go away for awhile.
Somehow, I feel awful and relieved at the same time. Ugh.
Today, I was doing my Jillian Michaels kettleball workout with a 15 pound kettleball. I had told Mateo about a zillion times to stay out off the carpet (where I was working out) so that I didn't hit him, and he seemed to be complying....until I was swinging the thing between my legs with full force and he ran out of nowhere and I hit him in the forehead. I have clonked myself with that thing in the collarbone before, going nowhere near that speed, and it hurt bad. This time, it made a horrible clunk as it connected with his head and I said "OH SHIT" as he burst out screaming.
I figured the crying immediately was a good thing, but I didn't know what else to do, so I called 911. I was afraid they'd bring child protective services with them, but luckily they seemed to believe me. A fire truck came and they checked him out and pronounced him ok. He has a huge knot on his forehead and a headache, but I think he's okay. He did fall right asleep after they left, but it is his normal rest time and the crying and the injury probably exhausted him. Never the less, I'm going to make sure he wakes up in half an hour to make sure he's okay. If he's nauseous or out of it, then we need to take him in. Good times.
I feel terrible. I can't believe that happened. I did everything I could to make the environment safe, but my squirmy 4 year old was one step ahead of me. I'm just so, so glad that he seems to be okay and that a welt is all that he got. I think there's a lesson to be learned here for both of us. For him, listen to me when I say to give me space. For me, realize that a wiggly preschooler may not be able to do that and maybe the kettleball needs to go away for awhile.
Somehow, I feel awful and relieved at the same time. Ugh.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Sun!
I was all set to write a post tonight about our indoor afternoon, because we decided to stay in after braving the rain for several outings this morning. Then, the sun came out and stayed! So, the kids and I went for a big walk to the grocery store to pick up a few things. The sun was shining and they were both in relatively good moods, which was good because it was a long stroller ride. Of course, it clouded over again just as we got home, but the sunshine made me notice all the flowering and leafing out trees everywhere. Spring is right around the corner! (And, I got to blog early because Sacha is taking some time to just have Spanish time with the kids. Wahoo!)
Non sequitar: last week, I finished formatting our blog book for 2010 on blurb.com and ordered it in hardcover. Weighing in at a whopping 362 pages (what can I say, I took a lot of pictures!), it came today and I looooove it. Many thanks to Briar for editing the cover photo so beautifully! I put it on the shelf next to the three other blog books, dating back to 2006, and realized that I (and Sacha) have written a whole lot since then. Anyway, I just had to photograph the books all together, for posterity.
And, because looking through the book made me realize how glad I am to have captured little slices of life here and there, I photographed Mateo doing his favorite thing: playing with cars. He develops these elaborate storylines and can play for a long time once he gets going. Who knows how long it will last, but it's very cute.
Non sequitar: last week, I finished formatting our blog book for 2010 on blurb.com and ordered it in hardcover. Weighing in at a whopping 362 pages (what can I say, I took a lot of pictures!), it came today and I looooove it. Many thanks to Briar for editing the cover photo so beautifully! I put it on the shelf next to the three other blog books, dating back to 2006, and realized that I (and Sacha) have written a whole lot since then. Anyway, I just had to photograph the books all together, for posterity.
And, because looking through the book made me realize how glad I am to have captured little slices of life here and there, I photographed Mateo doing his favorite thing: playing with cars. He develops these elaborate storylines and can play for a long time once he gets going. Who knows how long it will last, but it's very cute.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
On her own
We got to the hospital this morning for Sacha's external version and found that there was no need for one! The baby had turned on her own and her head was right where it was supposed to be. They did four different ultrasounds (first nurse, charge nurse, doctor, then a nurse again) to confirm this and then insisted on monitoring her, doing a fluid check, etc, for quite awhile...but then they let us go! No version for Sacha!
Our nurse said she had had to have an external version back in the day and that it had taken three men yanking and pulling to get her baby to turn, so we were VERY glad it didn't have to come to that with our baby. Now we just have to wait for her to go into labor or get induced. The nurse practitioner was a bit wishy-washy on the dates last week, so there may be an induction on the 26th or it may be on her due date, which is April 2. Or, maybe the universe will smile upon us and send her into labor on her own before that!
In any case, today was a great relief and we are elated that Drizzle is where she's supposed to be. Great job, kiddo!
Our nurse said she had had to have an external version back in the day and that it had taken three men yanking and pulling to get her baby to turn, so we were VERY glad it didn't have to come to that with our baby. Now we just have to wait for her to go into labor or get induced. The nurse practitioner was a bit wishy-washy on the dates last week, so there may be an induction on the 26th or it may be on her due date, which is April 2. Or, maybe the universe will smile upon us and send her into labor on her own before that!
In any case, today was a great relief and we are elated that Drizzle is where she's supposed to be. Great job, kiddo!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Biker in training
Nearly a year after she got a balance bike for her birthday, Tali has decided in the last week that she really wants to ride it. She LOVES riding bikes outside anyway, but has preferred the safety of her tricycle up until now. Today, it rained almost all day. So much rain. It reminded me of this song Megan sings with the kids about how "if all the raindrops were lemon drops and gum drops, oh what a day it would be!", because we would have been having a candy explosion outside today.
Anyway, we took advantage of a dry episode to go out for a quick walk. Tali went on her bike and her rather cranky brother opted for the stroller (and we opted to pick our battles and just go with it). By the way, they were both post-nap, except that neither of them took naps. This was the second day in a row of no naps for either one of them and they both did mostly fine. Mateo has been in the process of giving up his nap for a long time now, but Tali just seems to have decided she's done.
I wonder if there is some karmic thing happening here with both of them stopping napping right before the baby is born? We've had two loooooooong afternoons, let me tell you. I've been so spoiled to have four years of kids napping every day. Anyway, we'll see how long it lasts, but the long afternoons are balanced by the fact that it sure has made her bedtime (and incessant chatting to herself after lights are out) easier.
My whole point is, on our bike/stroller expedition, we ended up going all the way down to our favorite coffee shop and all the way home and she rode her bike the whole way. And, Sacha came with us, which was an extra treat. We just mapped it and it was .9 miles! (I think this is the second longest Tali's ever traveled under her own power, with the longest being one time when she insisted on walking home to our house from Mississippi Pizza, which neighborhood residents will know is a very long walk for a two year old.)
As well, not only did she ride her bike that whole way, she also showed some flashes of balancing. She's going to be zooming all over the place before we know it! Hopefully Mateo's love for his own bike will return when the weather gets nicer and we can go on some family rides together. We will fit in extremely well in this bike-crazy city if we go out for a ride with our baby strapped into her carseat which is strapped into the bike trailer!
Anyway, we took advantage of a dry episode to go out for a quick walk. Tali went on her bike and her rather cranky brother opted for the stroller (and we opted to pick our battles and just go with it). By the way, they were both post-nap, except that neither of them took naps. This was the second day in a row of no naps for either one of them and they both did mostly fine. Mateo has been in the process of giving up his nap for a long time now, but Tali just seems to have decided she's done.
I wonder if there is some karmic thing happening here with both of them stopping napping right before the baby is born? We've had two loooooooong afternoons, let me tell you. I've been so spoiled to have four years of kids napping every day. Anyway, we'll see how long it lasts, but the long afternoons are balanced by the fact that it sure has made her bedtime (and incessant chatting to herself after lights are out) easier.
My whole point is, on our bike/stroller expedition, we ended up going all the way down to our favorite coffee shop and all the way home and she rode her bike the whole way. And, Sacha came with us, which was an extra treat. We just mapped it and it was .9 miles! (I think this is the second longest Tali's ever traveled under her own power, with the longest being one time when she insisted on walking home to our house from Mississippi Pizza, which neighborhood residents will know is a very long walk for a two year old.)
As well, not only did she ride her bike that whole way, she also showed some flashes of balancing. She's going to be zooming all over the place before we know it! Hopefully Mateo's love for his own bike will return when the weather gets nicer and we can go on some family rides together. We will fit in extremely well in this bike-crazy city if we go out for a ride with our baby strapped into her carseat which is strapped into the bike trailer!
Tomorrow
Argh. The hospital called this morning to say they were short-staffed and would need to reschedule....so we're going in tomorrow morning instead. Thank goodness for our flexible friends who will be babysitting! Save up your good thoughts for tomorrow, ok? Thanks!
Monday, March 14, 2011
37 weeks
Here's Sacha, rockin' the 37 week belly! Needless to say, she looks gorgeous. She has her external version tomorrow at 9:30 am, so hold a good thought for her and the baby, if you feel so inclined.
We've been enjoying our last days (and perhaps weeks) of our family of four. It's funny to look back on our adjustment to having two and how that seemed like such chaos. Things still seem chaotic now sometimes, but overall it just seems normal and we have our routines and such.
It's going to be very interesting to see how this transition goes! I imagine we'll be much less mobile for awhile, but I have every intention of getting back into the swing of things as far as adventuring goes. That goes for this summer especially, which I am waiting for rather impatiently. Sun, farmer's markets, splashing at the park, barbequing, time with friends, our family reunion, our trip to family camp, and so many more things. Let's hope we're sleeping enough by that point to enjoy it all!
We've been enjoying our last days (and perhaps weeks) of our family of four. It's funny to look back on our adjustment to having two and how that seemed like such chaos. Things still seem chaotic now sometimes, but overall it just seems normal and we have our routines and such.
It's going to be very interesting to see how this transition goes! I imagine we'll be much less mobile for awhile, but I have every intention of getting back into the swing of things as far as adventuring goes. That goes for this summer especially, which I am waiting for rather impatiently. Sun, farmer's markets, splashing at the park, barbequing, time with friends, our family reunion, our trip to family camp, and so many more things. Let's hope we're sleeping enough by that point to enjoy it all!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Massage and Music
I've tried two new things this week. First, on Wednesday I went to listen to Mister Ben, which I mentioned a few days ago. After listening to him, I signed up for my first Ukulele lesson. I tried learning guitar when I lived in Chicago. Actually, I took weekly lessons and practiced most every day. No success. I could barely play a few songs, and it really hurt my hands. Turns out guitar was not for me.
I had never considered learning the Ukulele before. For whatever reason (needing a project right now?) I thought - why not? He said that within 4 weeks, if I practiced at home, that I would be able to play simple children's songs. It has only been 4 days since my lesson. I am already able to play a number of songs.
Today, I learned to play, "Are you sleeping" with finger picking (as opposed to strumming). I'm having a ton of fun learning a new instrument. And it's a great thing to keep my mind off of the baby and the upcoming EV.
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Massage
My friends Sheila and Caroline came over on Saturday to hang out with us. Sheila mentioned that Mayan Massage can help with aligning the uterus, and might help me out with the transverse situation. I figured, as long as it's safe, I'm up for trying anything. She gave me the names of three different certified practitioners. It turns out that the North Portland Wellness Clinic (our favorite place for everything) has one of the few practitioners in the city!
Tiffany, the massage therapist, was amazing. After 15 minutes of massaging, she was able to show me how Drizzle was transverse. It was amazing, you could totally see how she was in a diagonal position. She also showed me some gentle exercises that I can do at home. The massage was so great that I went back for another one today!
I'm not expecting that the massage will turn the baby. On the other hand, if it does help so the EV is easier, that would be great. And it can't hurt! The baby was still transverse today, but you could see that she had moved slightly more towards the center than she was the day before!
I had never considered learning the Ukulele before. For whatever reason (needing a project right now?) I thought - why not? He said that within 4 weeks, if I practiced at home, that I would be able to play simple children's songs. It has only been 4 days since my lesson. I am already able to play a number of songs.
Today, I learned to play, "Are you sleeping" with finger picking (as opposed to strumming). I'm having a ton of fun learning a new instrument. And it's a great thing to keep my mind off of the baby and the upcoming EV.
--------------------------
Massage
My friends Sheila and Caroline came over on Saturday to hang out with us. Sheila mentioned that Mayan Massage can help with aligning the uterus, and might help me out with the transverse situation. I figured, as long as it's safe, I'm up for trying anything. She gave me the names of three different certified practitioners. It turns out that the North Portland Wellness Clinic (our favorite place for everything) has one of the few practitioners in the city!
Tiffany, the massage therapist, was amazing. After 15 minutes of massaging, she was able to show me how Drizzle was transverse. It was amazing, you could totally see how she was in a diagonal position. She also showed me some gentle exercises that I can do at home. The massage was so great that I went back for another one today!
I'm not expecting that the massage will turn the baby. On the other hand, if it does help so the EV is easier, that would be great. And it can't hurt! The baby was still transverse today, but you could see that she had moved slightly more towards the center than she was the day before!
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Starting to save
When Mateo was about a year old, some friends gave us a great book on teaching finances to kids. It's called Raising Financially Fit Kids and it is chock full of ideas for kids from ages 5 to college. We've been waiting for Mateo to get old enough to start trying some of the book's ideas, and now that's he's almost four and a half, we just couldn't help ourselves from starting one thing: an allowance.
The book's take on allowances is one of our favorite parts. It basically says that an allowance is a way to practice managing money. It's not something that you pay for doing chores and it's not something that kids can just do whatever they want with. It's money that they get every week that they divide into three categories (save, spend, and share) and then use accordingly. The singular purpose is to educate them about using money responsibly. This struck a chord with us, so we decided to give it a try at some point. Mateo has been showing some interest in coins and money recently, so we thought we'd start up the allowance and see what happens.
This was our first week of doing it, and we started by deciding where Mateo wanted to share his money. He decided on his own that he wanted to help kitties at the Humane Society. We counted up the change he's been collecting, plus the third of his allowance that we had just give him, and then went to the Humane Society to donate it. He was SO proud of himself and so excited about the little thank you packet they gave him that it could hardly have been cuter.
We also went to the bank to get a bunch of $1 bills, for future allowance giving, and ended up opening a savings account for him. We started him off with $25 and he added the saving part of his allowance at the end. We figure we'll go periodically, maybe every time he saves up $10, to make deposits.
Overall, it was a very cool morning. We feel really good about getting this started in a fun way. When he gets a little older, we can try some of the other ideas in the 5 to 8 year old section, but for now, this is good. Here are some photos:
The book's take on allowances is one of our favorite parts. It basically says that an allowance is a way to practice managing money. It's not something that you pay for doing chores and it's not something that kids can just do whatever they want with. It's money that they get every week that they divide into three categories (save, spend, and share) and then use accordingly. The singular purpose is to educate them about using money responsibly. This struck a chord with us, so we decided to give it a try at some point. Mateo has been showing some interest in coins and money recently, so we thought we'd start up the allowance and see what happens.
This was our first week of doing it, and we started by deciding where Mateo wanted to share his money. He decided on his own that he wanted to help kitties at the Humane Society. We counted up the change he's been collecting, plus the third of his allowance that we had just give him, and then went to the Humane Society to donate it. He was SO proud of himself and so excited about the little thank you packet they gave him that it could hardly have been cuter.
We also went to the bank to get a bunch of $1 bills, for future allowance giving, and ended up opening a savings account for him. We started him off with $25 and he added the saving part of his allowance at the end. We figure we'll go periodically, maybe every time he saves up $10, to make deposits.
Overall, it was a very cool morning. We feel really good about getting this started in a fun way. When he gets a little older, we can try some of the other ideas in the 5 to 8 year old section, but for now, this is good. Here are some photos:
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| Sorting change... |
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| Future allowances all together! |
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| So proud of himself! |
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| Proud new savings account owner :) |
Friday, March 11, 2011
Volcano, Volcano - a new song by Mateo
Mommy has just started taking Ukulele lessons with Mister Ben. She was playing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, when Mateo had an idea for a new song. The song uses the same melody, but has different words.
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Lava flowing into a river
Lava flowing into a river
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Mt. St. Helens is in the ring of fire.
Mt. St. Helens is in the ring of fire.
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
What do you call a mommy volcano
You call her a "magma magma" mommy
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Lava flowing into a river
Lava flowing into a river
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Mt. St. Helens is in the ring of fire.
Mt. St. Helens is in the ring of fire.
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
What do you call a mommy volcano
You call her a "magma magma" mommy
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Volcano, volcano spit out your eruption
Thursday, March 10, 2011
One version, to go
We just got back from Sacha's big ultrasound, which was to determine if the baby had turned from transverse to head down. Sacha has been giving it her all this past week - she's had acupuncture almost every day, she's done the various positions and exercises you're supposed to do, and she really felt like the baby had turned. She was feeling a lot more downward pressure.
Turns out, that was because the baby has lodged herself in one corner of Sacha's pelvis and is in nearly exactly the same position she was in last week, just a bit further down (hence, the pressure). Still transverse, although really she's diagonal, and not appearing to want to budge.
So, they scheduled an external version for next Tuesday morning. Hopefully that will get the baby to turn, which would be the best case, and then Sacha could get induced sometime around 39 or 40 weeks (the nurse practitioner was much more in favor of 40 weeks this time - she seems to change her mind a lot!). Worst case, the baby goes into distress (this is rare) and Sacha gets a c-section right there. Middle ground, baby turns and Sacha goes into labor right there and then has the baby at some later point. I guess maybe we should pack a hospital bag just in case?
Anyway, that's the status of things right now. I know it's only three weeks and a few days until Sacha's due date, but it feels like forever from here....and that's from me, who's not pregnant! Poor Sacha is feeling pretty down about the whole thing. However, she went out tonight to her college alumnae book club and I hope that will provide some needed distraction. At the very least, we know we won't be waiting two weeks post-due-date for a baby like we were last time, which is something to be happy about regardless!
Turns out, that was because the baby has lodged herself in one corner of Sacha's pelvis and is in nearly exactly the same position she was in last week, just a bit further down (hence, the pressure). Still transverse, although really she's diagonal, and not appearing to want to budge.
So, they scheduled an external version for next Tuesday morning. Hopefully that will get the baby to turn, which would be the best case, and then Sacha could get induced sometime around 39 or 40 weeks (the nurse practitioner was much more in favor of 40 weeks this time - she seems to change her mind a lot!). Worst case, the baby goes into distress (this is rare) and Sacha gets a c-section right there. Middle ground, baby turns and Sacha goes into labor right there and then has the baby at some later point. I guess maybe we should pack a hospital bag just in case?
Anyway, that's the status of things right now. I know it's only three weeks and a few days until Sacha's due date, but it feels like forever from here....and that's from me, who's not pregnant! Poor Sacha is feeling pretty down about the whole thing. However, she went out tonight to her college alumnae book club and I hope that will provide some needed distraction. At the very least, we know we won't be waiting two weeks post-due-date for a baby like we were last time, which is something to be happy about regardless!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Kidisms
Two funny things Mateo's said recently that I want to remember:
1. In a conversation about what Drizzle might look like, we speculated that she could look like a mini-Tali or a mini-Mateo. Then Mateo said, "or, she could look like a miniVAN!" and laughed uproariously, as did we.
2. Tonight was date night and Mateo overheard that we were going to Powell's, which is a huge independent Portland bookstore. Hearing this, he said very seriously, "there are only kids' books at Powell's, Mommy. You have to go somewhere else for grown-up books. Maybe you could get some kids' books though." Or something like that. It was hilarious to think about, because he's been into Powell's several times and walked through the rooms and rooms and aisles and aisles to get to the kids' section, and yet, to him, it's all full of kids' books from floor to ceiling. Actually, it's a great childhood fantasy to have, so we did nothing to deprive him of it.
In other news, we had a lovely family day today. We even went to the local garden shop and picked out some starts for our containers. We have lettuce, arugula, radish seeds, pea seeds, kale, spinach, and even chard starting out. We're very excited. Now that our new house thing is a phone call away from being over, we put our planters back up on our steps (having taken them off after freshly painting the stairs) and are getting ready for lots of spring and summer veggies....
...and, a spring baby! Little Drizzle appears to have turned head down, thank goodness. Sacha's been to acupuncture nearly every day and we've been doing the moxa thing outside every night, which is no fun for either of us, but it seems to have worked. We'll hopefully get confirmation at her OB appointment tomorrow. Then, we just need to wait and see if she goes into labor on her own or gets induced on the 26th. It's nice for both of us to know that there's an end date in sight!
It's supposed to rain all week and it's making me feel like hibernating. Good thing I'm about to head off to my comfy bed. I have to enjoy it for all it's worth between now and the 26th!
1. In a conversation about what Drizzle might look like, we speculated that she could look like a mini-Tali or a mini-Mateo. Then Mateo said, "or, she could look like a miniVAN!" and laughed uproariously, as did we.
2. Tonight was date night and Mateo overheard that we were going to Powell's, which is a huge independent Portland bookstore. Hearing this, he said very seriously, "there are only kids' books at Powell's, Mommy. You have to go somewhere else for grown-up books. Maybe you could get some kids' books though." Or something like that. It was hilarious to think about, because he's been into Powell's several times and walked through the rooms and rooms and aisles and aisles to get to the kids' section, and yet, to him, it's all full of kids' books from floor to ceiling. Actually, it's a great childhood fantasy to have, so we did nothing to deprive him of it.
In other news, we had a lovely family day today. We even went to the local garden shop and picked out some starts for our containers. We have lettuce, arugula, radish seeds, pea seeds, kale, spinach, and even chard starting out. We're very excited. Now that our new house thing is a phone call away from being over, we put our planters back up on our steps (having taken them off after freshly painting the stairs) and are getting ready for lots of spring and summer veggies....
...and, a spring baby! Little Drizzle appears to have turned head down, thank goodness. Sacha's been to acupuncture nearly every day and we've been doing the moxa thing outside every night, which is no fun for either of us, but it seems to have worked. We'll hopefully get confirmation at her OB appointment tomorrow. Then, we just need to wait and see if she goes into labor on her own or gets induced on the 26th. It's nice for both of us to know that there's an end date in sight!
It's supposed to rain all week and it's making me feel like hibernating. Good thing I'm about to head off to my comfy bed. I have to enjoy it for all it's worth between now and the 26th!
Monday, March 7, 2011
Of houses and forts
Part One: The Ugh
We had our home inspection today, and it did not go well. It turns out that a house can look perfectly fine from the outside and yet have current water leakage from a brand new roof, dry rot, a faulty electrical system, a self-done plumbing system with no permits and not up to code, and so on. Sacha spent the majority of the day out there, dealing with the inspection and the lead and asbestos testing. We should get the results of everything tomorrow: the test results and the final inspection report.
Our realtor is suggesting a new, much lower bid on the house and, if it is not accepted, that we run away as fast as we can. If we get the much lower price, we'll have the money we need to fix everything and have a great house in a great neighborhood. If not, we don't need to buy an expensive money pit.
We're both pretty sad about it, because we loved it and all the possibilities we saw there....but if it's not meant to be, then I guess the right house for us is waiting out there somewhere. If this falls through, which looks likely, we'll plan to stay in our house until Sacha establishes a regular paycheck history again (her maternity leave is going to mess with this) and then start looking again. If nothing else, we're learning a lot about real estate and this neighborhood in particular. In some ways, I'm glad we're really getting to know the area before buying, even if that is the silver lining in a cloud of disappointment.
Part Two: The Fort
Except for the kids' music class and an ensuing trip to the coffee shop near us, the kids and I spent a lot of the day playing inside. They have been entertaining themselves so well lately that I can hardly even believe it. Loretta's blocks, which I referenced in an earlier post, have come into favor again, and Mateo built some really cool forts with them today.
They also did painting, bike riding, playing in the basement, and finally consented to go out for a walk with me in the early evening, because they had been inside for way too long. Here's a photo of Mateo and his fort. Hey, if we can't land our dream house, at least he can build his!
We had our home inspection today, and it did not go well. It turns out that a house can look perfectly fine from the outside and yet have current water leakage from a brand new roof, dry rot, a faulty electrical system, a self-done plumbing system with no permits and not up to code, and so on. Sacha spent the majority of the day out there, dealing with the inspection and the lead and asbestos testing. We should get the results of everything tomorrow: the test results and the final inspection report.
Our realtor is suggesting a new, much lower bid on the house and, if it is not accepted, that we run away as fast as we can. If we get the much lower price, we'll have the money we need to fix everything and have a great house in a great neighborhood. If not, we don't need to buy an expensive money pit.
We're both pretty sad about it, because we loved it and all the possibilities we saw there....but if it's not meant to be, then I guess the right house for us is waiting out there somewhere. If this falls through, which looks likely, we'll plan to stay in our house until Sacha establishes a regular paycheck history again (her maternity leave is going to mess with this) and then start looking again. If nothing else, we're learning a lot about real estate and this neighborhood in particular. In some ways, I'm glad we're really getting to know the area before buying, even if that is the silver lining in a cloud of disappointment.
Part Two: The Fort
Except for the kids' music class and an ensuing trip to the coffee shop near us, the kids and I spent a lot of the day playing inside. They have been entertaining themselves so well lately that I can hardly even believe it. Loretta's blocks, which I referenced in an earlier post, have come into favor again, and Mateo built some really cool forts with them today.
They also did painting, bike riding, playing in the basement, and finally consented to go out for a walk with me in the early evening, because they had been inside for way too long. Here's a photo of Mateo and his fort. Hey, if we can't land our dream house, at least he can build his!
Sunday, March 6, 2011
36 week project
Today, I turned 36 weeks! Yah! Alayna took a picture of me posted here. I am feeling pretty good and actually felt some downward pressure for part of the day.
The other thing I did today was remade two of my terrariums, and created a new one. I love terrariums. Unfortunately, when I keep them at school, my students tend to either over-water them or under-water them. Either way the plants end up dying :(
Now that they are at home, hopefully they will stay alive. Here are some pictures of each of the three terrariums that I made today. The last one came out a bit blurry, but here they are anyway.
The other thing I did today was remade two of my terrariums, and created a new one. I love terrariums. Unfortunately, when I keep them at school, my students tend to either over-water them or under-water them. Either way the plants end up dying :(
Now that they are at home, hopefully they will stay alive. Here are some pictures of each of the three terrariums that I made today. The last one came out a bit blurry, but here they are anyway.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Why Bubby and I smell like pot
I kid you not. But, we were not doing anything illegal. We were using a Chinese herb called Moxa to help turn the baby.
This afternoon I went to acupuncture for an hour to help get the baby move to a head down position. After the appointment (and a fabulous dinner) Bubby and I spent a lovely 15 - 20 min. outside in the cold, smoking my feet. You put the moxa on the baby toe and it somehow moves the baby. While it doesn't make any sense to me, there appears to be some research showing that it can actually work. The moxa has a very potent smell, so we didn't want to do that in the house!
Before the moxa treatment, I tried doing an inversion - which had me with my knees on the couch and my head on the ground face forward. After holding that yoga like pose for a minute, I was to crawl around on the ground for two more minutes. I then did the inversion treatment again after the moxa.
So, I'll be trying this for the next few days. I did find some good news. If I have to have an external version, they have a 90% success rate with transverse babies (unlike full breech babies, where the success rate is 50 - 60%). The moxa supposedly has a 50 - 75% success rate. So, it's worth a try!
This afternoon I went to acupuncture for an hour to help get the baby move to a head down position. After the appointment (and a fabulous dinner) Bubby and I spent a lovely 15 - 20 min. outside in the cold, smoking my feet. You put the moxa on the baby toe and it somehow moves the baby. While it doesn't make any sense to me, there appears to be some research showing that it can actually work. The moxa has a very potent smell, so we didn't want to do that in the house!
Before the moxa treatment, I tried doing an inversion - which had me with my knees on the couch and my head on the ground face forward. After holding that yoga like pose for a minute, I was to crawl around on the ground for two more minutes. I then did the inversion treatment again after the moxa.
So, I'll be trying this for the next few days. I did find some good news. If I have to have an external version, they have a 90% success rate with transverse babies (unlike full breech babies, where the success rate is 50 - 60%). The moxa supposedly has a 50 - 75% success rate. So, it's worth a try!
Turning east and west
While Sacha and her mom are having a quiet weekend at home, the kids and I are out visiting my brother in eastern Oregon. Megan again traveled with us, which was wonderful for both the company and the help with the kids. It's really cute to see how much the kids LOVE to come out here. They love Uncle Galen, they love Megan, they love his house, they love the parks around here, and they never want to leave. The parks are actually surprisingly awesome. We went to one today that was better than most Portland parks and clearly had been a huge community effort to finance and build.
And, wow!, I just got the news last night over the phone that Drizzle is going to be a March baby! We have some good friends whose daughter was born on March 27th, so maybe they will share a birthday. We are really, REALLY hoping to avoid an external version, which is where they try to turn the baby at the hospital. We're going to try a lot of the things our friend Erin tried, successfully, when her baby was transverse, and hope that little Drizzle goes head down and stays there. She has definitely been head down before, but she just doesn't stay that way. She likes to be wrapped around Mommy instead. :)
Not surprisingly, it's really starting to hit me that we are going to be having a baby, and soon! I can only hope that it will be smooth sailing and that we'll roll with the punches when it's not. I can't wait to meet little Drizzle and welcome her to our family, chaotic as it will be! Also, I'm just hoping for a smooth and relatively pain-free birth for Sacha. She sure deserves it after the last time!
Here's hoping that the baby turns like she's supposed to and that we have a few more weeks to do last minute things like, you know, buy a house, before she comes out!
And, wow!, I just got the news last night over the phone that Drizzle is going to be a March baby! We have some good friends whose daughter was born on March 27th, so maybe they will share a birthday. We are really, REALLY hoping to avoid an external version, which is where they try to turn the baby at the hospital. We're going to try a lot of the things our friend Erin tried, successfully, when her baby was transverse, and hope that little Drizzle goes head down and stays there. She has definitely been head down before, but she just doesn't stay that way. She likes to be wrapped around Mommy instead. :)
Not surprisingly, it's really starting to hit me that we are going to be having a baby, and soon! I can only hope that it will be smooth sailing and that we'll roll with the punches when it's not. I can't wait to meet little Drizzle and welcome her to our family, chaotic as it will be! Also, I'm just hoping for a smooth and relatively pain-free birth for Sacha. She sure deserves it after the last time!
Here's hoping that the baby turns like she's supposed to and that we have a few more weeks to do last minute things like, you know, buy a house, before she comes out!
A "Go Not Past" Date
I went to my OB yesterday and now have a "Go not past date." I think this date is much more important than the due date - especially after Natalia's delivery. What is my end date? March 26th!
Little Drizzle continues to be transverse. Next week I am going to go to acupuncture and try treading in the water. My OB said that treading in water sometimes helps. Who knew. If the baby has not turned by Friday, they are going to send me in to the hospital to try and turn the baby.
Yesterday was my last day of work. The students wrote me all of these really nice thank you letters. They also wrote letters to next year's students. They seemed to really enjoy learning math and science this year.
It was very cute. Almost all of the boys wrote in their letters about the classroom management plan. Practically every boy wrote, if you don't pay attention, you get your name on the board. If you talk back or do something else you get a check. Then you have to call your own parents to explain what you did and miss recess. If you get another check, you don't get to be in the classroom. (I would like to point out that I only gave maybe 5-10 checks the entire year, and never a second check.) Apparently, though, the plan made quite the impression.
After they wrote their letters to next year's students, I put a few to work packing up my personal belongings for the classroom. I ended up with 10 or so packed boxes that are all labeled (and will stay at the school for next year). I just brought home four little things, knowing that we might be moving.
I didn't lift a thing. An adult volunteer was in the room all day. For the first three hours she helped one or two kids packing (they wanted to). At 11, when my day officially ended, I had 5 kids helping the two of us pack up. Seven students even asked to give up their recess so they could help me pack. I love 5th graders! I'll miss them, but I'm also glad that Friday was my last day.
Little Drizzle continues to be transverse. Next week I am going to go to acupuncture and try treading in the water. My OB said that treading in water sometimes helps. Who knew. If the baby has not turned by Friday, they are going to send me in to the hospital to try and turn the baby.
Yesterday was my last day of work. The students wrote me all of these really nice thank you letters. They also wrote letters to next year's students. They seemed to really enjoy learning math and science this year.
It was very cute. Almost all of the boys wrote in their letters about the classroom management plan. Practically every boy wrote, if you don't pay attention, you get your name on the board. If you talk back or do something else you get a check. Then you have to call your own parents to explain what you did and miss recess. If you get another check, you don't get to be in the classroom. (I would like to point out that I only gave maybe 5-10 checks the entire year, and never a second check.) Apparently, though, the plan made quite the impression.
After they wrote their letters to next year's students, I put a few to work packing up my personal belongings for the classroom. I ended up with 10 or so packed boxes that are all labeled (and will stay at the school for next year). I just brought home four little things, knowing that we might be moving.
I didn't lift a thing. An adult volunteer was in the room all day. For the first three hours she helped one or two kids packing (they wanted to). At 11, when my day officially ended, I had 5 kids helping the two of us pack up. Seven students even asked to give up their recess so they could help me pack. I love 5th graders! I'll miss them, but I'm also glad that Friday was my last day.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
What's a domestic partner?
I've been teaching sex ed. this week at school. At the beginning of the week, knowing that it was my last week with the students, I made a big list of all of our unfinished business. I then let the students vote on their top four choices.
What made the list?
1) Sex Ed. - they let me know that they would really prefer I teach it over a sub.
2) Literature circle time - when they read novels. This is amazing, because at the beginning of the year they could barely sit for 20 minutes to read, and now they wanted to do literature circle time where they read for 45 minutes at a time.
3) Math test prep - our state changed the standards this year for math, and increased the cut scores for passing the test dramatically. Did we have different materials to prepare students for the test? No.
4) Thank you notes to people that have helped them out.
I was actually surprised, and pleased, by their choices. I really don't mind teaching sex ed. Obviously, I'm not doing the whole curriculum in 5 days. We have covered ground rules, puberty, crushes and pregnancy. I spend about 30 minutes teaching something, and then the students have 30 minutes of Q & A time. They write their questions anonymously, and put them in envelopes by topic. I try to answer all their questions.
Today, we were talking about pregnancy. The questions ranged from, "What is the egg?" and "How does someone get pregnant?" to "Is there a difference between if a woman gets pregnant at a sperm bank or with a man?" and "If someone is raped, will they get pregnant?" Some of them no next to nothing, and others know a bit more. A few have been exposed to way more than I would hope any 10 or 11 year old would ever be exposed to.
Today, while we were talking about pregnancy, the kids wanted to know who would take care of the new baby. I replied that my partner would stay home and take care of the kids.
Now, I've never said to my class, "I'm a lesbian." I have, on the other hand, modeled writing an "I have a dream" essay about gay and lesbian parents. I explained that I knew kids at my school had been bullied (it was dealt with) because people thought that they had two moms or two dads. My kids actually did have two moms. I shared the dream that my kids could go to any school and not have to worry about being bullied.
Did the students understand what I meant? Nope. No clue.
Back to today. After I said that my partner would take care of the kids, there were a few other questions. About five minutes later, a girl asks, "What is a partner?" So I explained that in many states two women or two men can not get married to each other, but they can become domestic partners. . . etc. I also explained that there were some states where my partner and I could marry, as well as many places outside of the US where that was the case, like in Canada and Mexico City. The only response I got was, "Well, that's not fair." Wow.
And still, some of my students didn't get it. Amazing. But most of them did this time.
What made the list?
1) Sex Ed. - they let me know that they would really prefer I teach it over a sub.
2) Literature circle time - when they read novels. This is amazing, because at the beginning of the year they could barely sit for 20 minutes to read, and now they wanted to do literature circle time where they read for 45 minutes at a time.
3) Math test prep - our state changed the standards this year for math, and increased the cut scores for passing the test dramatically. Did we have different materials to prepare students for the test? No.
4) Thank you notes to people that have helped them out.
I was actually surprised, and pleased, by their choices. I really don't mind teaching sex ed. Obviously, I'm not doing the whole curriculum in 5 days. We have covered ground rules, puberty, crushes and pregnancy. I spend about 30 minutes teaching something, and then the students have 30 minutes of Q & A time. They write their questions anonymously, and put them in envelopes by topic. I try to answer all their questions.
Today, we were talking about pregnancy. The questions ranged from, "What is the egg?" and "How does someone get pregnant?" to "Is there a difference between if a woman gets pregnant at a sperm bank or with a man?" and "If someone is raped, will they get pregnant?" Some of them no next to nothing, and others know a bit more. A few have been exposed to way more than I would hope any 10 or 11 year old would ever be exposed to.
Today, while we were talking about pregnancy, the kids wanted to know who would take care of the new baby. I replied that my partner would stay home and take care of the kids.
Now, I've never said to my class, "I'm a lesbian." I have, on the other hand, modeled writing an "I have a dream" essay about gay and lesbian parents. I explained that I knew kids at my school had been bullied (it was dealt with) because people thought that they had two moms or two dads. My kids actually did have two moms. I shared the dream that my kids could go to any school and not have to worry about being bullied.
Did the students understand what I meant? Nope. No clue.
Back to today. After I said that my partner would take care of the kids, there were a few other questions. About five minutes later, a girl asks, "What is a partner?" So I explained that in many states two women or two men can not get married to each other, but they can become domestic partners. . . etc. I also explained that there were some states where my partner and I could marry, as well as many places outside of the US where that was the case, like in Canada and Mexico City. The only response I got was, "Well, that's not fair." Wow.
And still, some of my students didn't get it. Amazing. But most of them did this time.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
BFFs, plus new news
Mateo has all but given up napping, by which I mean that he doesn't nap in his bed, but instead falls asleep on the couch every day while I'm working out in the living room. Some days, he stays awake, but mostly he falls asleep. His sister, on the other hand, always naps and she does so in her bed, in her room.
Today, neither one of them fell asleep. She chattered to herself for about an hour until Mateo decided he had to use the bathroom, which led him into her/their room, and then they were both up and around. I always tell Mateo that I don't care if he naps or not, but that naptime is still quiet time and, more importantly, it is my time to do my workout. So, he can play or read or sleep or do pretty much anything except lie there and watch me exercise. When Tali came trotting out of her room today, I decided to go with that for her, too. She could play or look at books or whatever, but no standing and gaping at the tv.
The amazing thing is, it actually worked! She and Mateo started playing together in their room and Mateo emerged periodically to say, I kid you not, "thank you for still working out, Mama!" I couldn't understand it until after I finished, when Mateo was absolutely crushed that his "special time with Natalia" was going to be over. It was just about the cutest thing ever, like all my hopes and dreams for them as siblings coming true. Ok, that might be a bit of hyperbole, but it was great to see them getting along so well and enjoying each others' company so much. With a bit of encouragement from me and Sacha, who was home by that point, they continued to play and have special time together for several more minutes, which is a lot for them.
Then, after a quick snack, we went out to see a house that we are strongly considering buying out in a nearby city. It's near the school we hope the kids will go to, near my grandma, near a lot of walkable places, which is a rarity for the suburbs, and it's a great house. We're at the point where we've made an offer (several days ago), they countered (this afternoon), we accepted (this evening)....and now we wait to see if we'll get approved for the loan and be able to close this month, because obviously things are about to get crazy with Drizzle's arrival. We weren't really planning to buy now, but we've looked at a lot of homes in that area and felt like we had to jump at this one when we found it.
We're lucky, so lucky, to have the resources to buy before selling our current house, so we won't have to work out moving a new baby, moving, and selling our house all at the same time. Instead, assuming we get the loan, we'd probably close on the new house, have the baby, get used to having the baby, move, get our house ready to sell, and hopefully put it on the market in June, when the garden is really blooming. So, we'll see where this takes us. We have our fingers crossed that it works out!
Today, neither one of them fell asleep. She chattered to herself for about an hour until Mateo decided he had to use the bathroom, which led him into her/their room, and then they were both up and around. I always tell Mateo that I don't care if he naps or not, but that naptime is still quiet time and, more importantly, it is my time to do my workout. So, he can play or read or sleep or do pretty much anything except lie there and watch me exercise. When Tali came trotting out of her room today, I decided to go with that for her, too. She could play or look at books or whatever, but no standing and gaping at the tv.
The amazing thing is, it actually worked! She and Mateo started playing together in their room and Mateo emerged periodically to say, I kid you not, "thank you for still working out, Mama!" I couldn't understand it until after I finished, when Mateo was absolutely crushed that his "special time with Natalia" was going to be over. It was just about the cutest thing ever, like all my hopes and dreams for them as siblings coming true. Ok, that might be a bit of hyperbole, but it was great to see them getting along so well and enjoying each others' company so much. With a bit of encouragement from me and Sacha, who was home by that point, they continued to play and have special time together for several more minutes, which is a lot for them.
Then, after a quick snack, we went out to see a house that we are strongly considering buying out in a nearby city. It's near the school we hope the kids will go to, near my grandma, near a lot of walkable places, which is a rarity for the suburbs, and it's a great house. We're at the point where we've made an offer (several days ago), they countered (this afternoon), we accepted (this evening)....and now we wait to see if we'll get approved for the loan and be able to close this month, because obviously things are about to get crazy with Drizzle's arrival. We weren't really planning to buy now, but we've looked at a lot of homes in that area and felt like we had to jump at this one when we found it.
We're lucky, so lucky, to have the resources to buy before selling our current house, so we won't have to work out moving a new baby, moving, and selling our house all at the same time. Instead, assuming we get the loan, we'd probably close on the new house, have the baby, get used to having the baby, move, get our house ready to sell, and hopefully put it on the market in June, when the garden is really blooming. So, we'll see where this takes us. We have our fingers crossed that it works out!
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