Wednesday, March 31, 2010

It's a girl!

World....here is our daughter who is still without a name....we got time. I have a ton of ideas....Kelli shoots them all down. I even picked one out of the baby book at random....Fluffy....seeesh.

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Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Last minute trip to the doctor

It has been 3 weeks since my last visit to the doctor.  Everything was fine then, and I have no reason to believe something isn't fine now, but I have been getting paranoid.  I was trying to just forget about it because we have our ultrasound next week, but I finally broke down and got an appointment for today just to check the heartbeat.  I'm happy to report everything sounds great!  The heartrate was 151 today.  They also checked my weight and blood pressure.  I've only gained 1 pound in the last 3 weeks, so that's definitely an improvement. :)  My blood pressure is really low too, so I don't think I'm in any danger of developing preeclampsia.  Its all good news.  Now we are just counting down the days to our appointment.  Friday is our 5 year wedding anniversary, so we are taking a quick trip up to Boston.  We haven't been there before, so I'm really looking forward to it.  Its going to be cold, but it should be sunny at least.

I have been doing a bit of daycare research too.  I've found a couple of places that seem nice at first glance and at least one I will be avoiding.  My great friend Angela sent me a link to a website where I could search licensed daycare facilities and see all their previous inspection results and the things they were cited for.  Its been really helpful.  Darren even found a daycare that gives a discount to AA employees.  We will definitely put it on the list to check out.  Price won't be a huge factor but it will definitely help if 2 daycares are pretty equal otherwise.  That discount would push it over the top.  We'll see.  That's to worry about in April.

Monday, March 22, 2010

18 weeks

I'm feeling pretty good these days, but my belly is definitely getting a bit bigger.  I don't think I've felt any real movement yet, but I'm told not to really expect it until 20 weeks anyway.  We have just over a week until the big ultrasound.  Hopefully our little one cooperates and they get a good view of what they are supposed to see. :)  I had a coworker once who didn't find out until later what she was having because they couldn't get the baby in the right position to tell anything about the sex.  A friend suggested I drink a large caffeinated beverage before the appointment so the baby is more active.  I probably will do that since I'm supposed to have a full bladder anyway.  Aside from finding out the sex, I'm just anxious to see that everything is still going well.  I will be excited and terrified at the same time that day.

A pilot friend of Darren's suggested that he start filling out his FMLA paperwork now because his company apparently likes to send the paperwork back several times for corrections or more information.  Up until now I hadn't been too concerned about filling out paperwork at my job, but I asked a coworker today about the process and when I need to start the ball rolling.  Apparently it isn't a big deal at my job, so I don't really need to worry about that until about 6 weeks prior.  That's good to know.  At least I'm aware now.  We'll just deal with Darren's paperwork now and mine later.  However, during that same conversation with my coworker the subject of daycare came up and now I'm totally freaked out!  I never realized how early you have to start looking for a good daycare.  My friend said that she had her baby in May that year, but had the daycare reserved in January, and she wasn't even going to need it until August!  She said you have to do it that early because there is always a waiting list and most places have limited spots for infants.  Up until now I hadn't even considered daycare options, but now I really need to buckle down and start the search.  I really want to wait until after our next appointment just to be sure that everything is fine, but I am going to make a daycare search my priority for April.  The only thing I'm really sure of is I want an actual licensed facility with a good reputation and in our city.  It needs to be close to home so its convenient for either me or Darren to pick up and drop off.  I haven't figured out my other criteria yet, but I have found a couple of good articles about picking daycare so I will read up on it a bit.  My friend's husband is a health inspector so she is going to get me the checklist they use to inspect daycare facilities.  I think it will be really helpful so we can notice the things about a facility that typical parents might not be aware of.  I think my germophobic husband might appreciate that information. :)  Of course, doing all this now goes completely against my procrastinating nature, but in this case my blissful ignorance could have led to panic and scrambling later on that I'm glad I will be able to avoid.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Back up, Back up plan

I'm a bit of a planner. I used to be a "free spirit" just doing stuff. Not so much anymore.

For example, before I buy anything worth more than $9 I research it. Seriously. I spend hours reviewing specs, reviews, prices and other like products before I buy something as basic as a digital camera.

On a similar note I almost always have a back up plan. Again it's what I do.

Driving along the highway I constantly keep an eye not only right ahead, but behind, to the sides and way ahead of my car. I like to be prepared in case something happens. This has become natural and relaxing for me as driving a 3000 pound car at 70 MPH is many times easier than landing a 67,000 pound plane at 150 MPH.

Before deciding to increase the intelligence of the gene pool, I was overly concerned about being financially prepared. My parents worked very hard when I was a kid to make sure I had what I needed. During the crappy early 80's my dad traveled all over the United States in search of work. I remember him working in Louisiana for months at a time along with Arizona. They struggled, but made it work (I mean come on....I'm just shy of being total perfection....in humor).

Anyways one the of top 24 reasons for not wanting to increase the intelligence of the gene pool was money...or the lack there of. I don't make a ton of money. Kelli does okay. I know millions of people have kids who have fewer (not less as it's something that can be easily counted) financial resources than we have....good on them. I don't want to struggle. Ever. Whoever said the struggle makes you stronger, simply didn't plan enough. Kelli and I live a decent life. Nothing extravagant....outside the slot machine....just an average middle class household. We don't overspend. We live within our means. Life is good.

Prior too signing on the dotted line for having a spore, I had peace of mind that there was a back up plan for finances. Of course it takes a little more than 9 months for the spore to spawn....and things change. Kelli has been saving up an emergency stash which is one level of back up. The back up of that isn't likely to be available. Now I need a new back up plan. Pondering getting a real part time job. Just need to find one that's truly flexible. Gotta do some researching.....because it's what I do.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

17 weeks (and 1 day)

I am 17 weeks pregnant this week.  Things are still going fine as far as I can tell.  Getting through the next 2 weeks will be difficult though.  I am very anxious to get back to the doctor to make sure everything is fine.  I have considered going to just have them check the heartbeat, but I haven't done it yet.  I've been feeling pretty good this week and not much has been going on, so there isn't much to say.  I did have my first really odd craving last night.  I was just sitting on the couch and got this sudden craving for garlic bread.  Of course, I don't have anything like that available in my house.  I was being lazy and didn't want to go to the store so I tried to just ignore it.  Apparently when you have a craving for something it is extremely difficult to ignore.  Luckily Darren was home.  He can be pretty creative when it comes to cooking and thought of an alternative.  I took a hot dog bun, split it into the 2 halves and buttered each half then put garlic salt on top and broiled them in the oven for a few minutes.  It wasn't perfect, but it was exactly what I needed to satisfy the craving.  I was totally fine after that.  Pregnancy is a strange thing.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

16 weeks (and 2 days)

I know it has been 2 weeks since my last update.  I don't like to update blogs.  I get lazy.  I don't have a lot to say.  I have had a lot of pressure from Darren to update this one.  Perhaps he should post something if he wants a post so badly.  I didn't make this blog anyway.  Blah.

I went to the doctor last week.  I thought I would get an ultrasound, but I didn't.  They checked the heartbeat with the doppler and all sounded fine.  I did get scolded for my weight gain so far, so now I have to try and watch that. :(  My next appointment is scheduled for 19 weeks, so we should find out the sex at that time.  I can tell you its a boy, and even if we find out its a girl, it will still be a boy to everyone else for a while.  That is for the benefit of my sister-in-law who is adamant we are having a girl.  We will just keep everyone guessing for a while.  I am really looking forward to getting through the next couple of weeks.  I am starting to "show" now, but its only really apparent to me.  To everyone else I just look fat.  It will be nice to be visibly pregnant so at least there is a reason for the weight gain.  I know it will mean I am a bit less comfortable, but its better than just looking fat I think.

I am currently in Washington.  I flew in last night and I am flying back home today.  Last week I was in LA, and I may have to go back to LA next week.  I really enjoy traveling, even if it is for work sometimes.  I am not looking forward to being grounded for 3 months.  That will be my longest travel drought since before Darren started with the airline.  I hope our baby is a good traveler.  There was a very fussy baby on the plane yesterday and the poor mother was getting death looks from a few passengers.  I felt bad for her because she was doing absolutely everything she could to quiet the baby.  If everything works out correctly our baby's first flight will be at about 2 weeks old.  Hopefully with regular travel at such a young age our child will be a seasoned traveler from very early on and we will never have problems.  Perhaps a love of travel is the one thing both of us can pass to our child.  That would definitely make life easier.