Nursery

Back in January we started the process of converting our office to a nursery.  Jeff was sad to give it up.  Now his "office" is one end of the living room.  But baby is happy to have a room of her own!

Here are some before and after shots of the office/nursery.

Before:

The command center

The captain enjoys his office one last time



All the necessary office accessories



After:

The desk gives way for baby's crib!

Last Belly Shot!

Here's the belly at 40 weeks! Right on my due date. This was taken in the evening of the 23rd, between contractions. Which means 6 hours after this moment I was in the hospital. 12 hours after this moment Claire was here!

Welcome!

Claire Catherine
5:38 am on February 24, 2011
6lbs 3oz

Everyone is doing well and coming home today.

Hurray!  I'm going home!

Sleepy time is all of the time.

She's Here!!

Claire Catherine has arrived! And she's adorable, if I do say so myself. More details and pictures when we have more than iPods to post with.

Valentine's Day!

Here I am at 38 weeks (and 5 days) on Valentine's Day.

We had just returned from a yummy Valentine's Day dinner at a local Italian place, Francesca's Fiore.  Mmm, raviolis and tiramisu!  All that food must be why my stomach is so big!  (Hahahaha! I crack myself up!)

We're not big Valentine's Day people.  Usually we try to do dinner and cards, maybe a little candy.  Depending on schedules, dinner may not even be on the actual day.  We're happy with something low key and we stuck with that this year.

After a hiatus of a few years, Jeff returned to the tradition of giving me a "handmade" (put together on the computer) card.  It can be a time consuming process.  In previous years, the business of being a doctor kept him a little too busy, but this year a well timed day off worked in my benefit.  Usually there's a little poem, with a combo of funny and sweet that you can't help but love.  And this year's card did not disappoint.  I did try to respond in kind with a homemade card of my own.  My poetry skills just aren't at his level, so it was a little more prose.  And I gave him some Reese's peanut butter hearts.  All the holiday shaped Reese's (hearts, Christmas trees, pumpkins, easter eggs) have a different peanut butter to chocolate ratio that we both appreciate.  He even shared a bite with me!  It must be love!

So there you have it.  Our last Valentine's Day as just the two of us.  Next year we'll have a little addition to dress up in pink and red and hype up on goodies.  Or maybe foist off on some relatives to head off to dinner by ourselves.  Or both.  Yes, I like that plan.  Hype her up on sugar and then ship her off to grandma/grandpa or an aunt/uncle.

Two weeks to go!

Wow, only two weeks until the due date!  Yikes! Where did the time go?

Time for a little check in with more Frequently Asked Questions:

How am I feeling?
Considering I'm 2 weeks away, I'm feeling way better than I expected to.  That's not to say that it's great, just much better than I had anticipated. Sure my hips are tight, my back is stiff and easily fatigued, my shoes and rings are getting tight, and baby limbs are poking into me all over the place. And I'm congested which causes intermittent dulling to my sense of taste, sore throat, and coughing. But there's no debilitating back pain, hugely swollen feet/hands/face, carpal tunnel or leaking pee when I laugh or sneeze. Hooray!  The biggest issue I'm combating is the tiredness. I even had a dream last night about waking up after not sleeping well and being exhausted and having to go to work.  Hmm, wonder what's weighing on my mind these days?  I do get a little more uncomfortable each week, so I'm sure I'll be singing a different tune a month from now if she comes late.

Am I excited/nervous?
Yes and yes.  The closer it comes, the more surreal it seems.  Sure we've been going through the baby prep motions: showers, nursery set up, baby laundry, organizing little clothes, etc.  But this thing is actually going to be here soon!  And I have to push it out!  So yeah, excited to meet the little one but also nervous about the whole labor thing.  I choose to be in denial about the bringing baby home part, steadfastly believing we'll have a little angel on our hands until proven otherwise.  Nothing I can do about it, so why stress?  We'll deal with feeding/sleeping/crying issues when they come.  And my mom will be here to help, which is a relief both for me and for Jeff since he can't take much time off of work.

Do we have a name?
Yes. We're 90% sure on a name, but I reserve the right to change my mind.  So we're not sharing.

When's my last day at work?
I don't know.  I'm playing it by ear.  I'm thinking sometime after the 18th (if she doesn't come before that) and no later than the 24th.  We'll see how things go.  I'd love to be done with work but also don't want to be sitting around twiddling my thumbs and burning through my sick leave if she's late. I've still got quite a list of things to get done. So I'd like another week or two to get those accomplished.  But I've detached enough from my normally large sense of responsibility to feel that if she comes early, oh well, I did what I could.  And someone else can handle it.  But, there are some things I'd still prefer that I do. We have parent-teacher conferences at work Wed and Thurs this week and I have to sit there all 3 hours each night.  So I plan to use that time to write up those last few reports that I want to get done.  I always have grand plans to get stuff done, but hopefully this time the little extra motivation will ensure it actually happens!

Is everything ready?
Close enough I guess. The nursery is pretty much ready.  A few more things to be be purchased and a few more to be washed and put away. The apartment is a mess and could use a good organizing and scrubbing.  It bugs me but not enough to work up the energy to do much about it.  I'm getting to it little by little so we'll see how much gets done before she arrives.  Most everything I think of to pack in a hospital bag is something I am using regularly.  So I don't want to pack it up.  So the new plan is to just make a list and grab what I need once I realize labor is starting.  I don't anticipate an emergency rush to the hospital so I should have some time to grab those essentials I just can't part with yet (comfy pants, ipod, etc).  Baby outfits are packed and ready to go.

What do the doctors say about the baby's size/when you'll deliver/how things look?
Frankly, not much. What can they say?  There is no way to predict if I'll go early or late.  What the midwives do say is that things seem to be progressing along well.  I've had no early signs of progress/labor so they haven't really been concerned.  My belly is measuring within the normal range.  There are no concerns about the baby being too big or too small so I won't being having any "sizing" ultrasounds unless that changes.  Heartbeat sounds good, my blood pressure is good, so we're just cruising along until baby girl decides she is ready to make her grand entrance.

Big belly!

Here are weeks 34, 36, and 37. The really brave can scroll down and see the BARE belly!  Look if you dare!

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What a difference 24 weeks makes!

12 Weeks vs. 36 Weeks

Blizzard 2011

We had ourselves a bit of blizzard here in Chicago Feb 1st-2nd.  It went by various names: Snowpocalypse, Snowmageddon, SnOMG, and the Groundhog Day blizzard.  Nearly 2 feet of snow in a 24 hour period.  Not such a big deal to our New England friends who have gotten slammed with lots of major storms this winter, but a pretty big deal here in Chicago.  This storm ranked as number 3 of all time for snow totals.  And it finally ended the annoying trend of frequently getting a few piddly inches - just enough to ruin a commute but not nearly enough for a snow day.

My school district closed for 2 days.  It was a much needed break for me and allowed me to get some stuff done around the apartment in the baby's room.  And to sleep in!  And to just relax.  I did help dig us out though.  I haven't lifted a shovel all winter thanks to this whole pregnancy thing.  Jeff has been awesome about keeping things shoveled and salted.  But I felt this was just too much snow to leave all for him.  Plus we needed to be able to get our cars out before he headed in to work at 4 on Wednesday afternoon.  (My school hadn't cancelled for the second day by the time we started).  So yes, this 8 month pregnant lady was out there shoveling snow of her own volition.  I wanted to be out in the midst of what is probably the last big snow I'll see.  I started before Jeff got up since I was tired of waiting for him (he was sleeping in since he had to work late).  When he did get up, he popped his head out to see what I was doing.  To which I replied "sweeping off the stairs."  Because that is what I was doing at that moment.  I neglected to mention that I was planning on shoveling off the walk next.  That way I avoided the argument that would have inevitably followed.  So he retreated inside to wake up and I continued on my merry way, enjoying being thigh deep in snow.  :)

Here are a few pictures from our adventure.

The fire hydrant slowly disappears.

There's a car there somewhere!

Jeff starts shoveling out behind my car.

This is what he had to contend with.

We can get to the garage!  I did a fair amount of this and then Jeff cleaned up behind me

The garage is cleared!

Miscellaneous

Jeff told me yesterday that after the baby is here we need to buy him a toy.  This was said after he dropped a two bags from Babies R Us in his former office, now the baby's room.  Which is currently covered with clothes, toys, and books from recent showers waiting to be put away.  Poor guy!  All these gifts coming in and trips to the store and nothing for him!  I guess our exciting purchases that evening of burp cloths, bath towels, and bottle nipples must have made him jealous.  I oh-so-sympathetically responded that his birthday would be coming up soon after the baby's arrival and I would buy him something nice...like maybe a Reese's peanut butter cup.  :)

Speaking of showers, there was another round of showers recently, this time with co-workers.  And once again we were showered with generosity.  I was thrilled to receive lots of books to build our baby library.  If I can find my camera, maybe I'll post a few pictures.

I'm up to weekly doctor appointments now.  Everything seems to be progressing along fine.  The baby has been head down for a while now, so that's fabulous news.  She seems to prefer hanging out on my right side, which is not so great for me.  There's often a foot wedged in my side or ribs and I can frequently be seen pressing down on my side or belly trying to coax the appendage to move.

One month to go!

We're coming down to the wire. Only one month til the baby's due date. We have a nursery mostly put together - there's a crib and mattress, changing table, glider, and some decorations on the wall. A few more organizational issues to take care of and upcoming shower gifts to find homes for. After all that's set, I will post pictures to the blog for your viewing pleasure.

In anticipation of the one month countdown, my body provided my first stretch mark. (Well, the first pregnancy related one at least.) What a gift! I noticed it Thursday evening but wasn't sure if it was just a line from the waistband of my pants. But it was still there on Friday. I had Jeff confirm since it's a little hard for me to see the underside of my belly. Mentally I'm cool with it. One little one didn't throw me for a loop. We'll see how I feel about it when more show up.

And in other positive news, I was able trim my own toenails last night! I noticed they were long and got concerned about whether I could be bent up long enough to trim them up. But I managed just fine. And unlike one of the ladies in our childbirth class, I can still put on my own socks and tie my shoes! Gotta celebrate the little things.

The post of shame...

It's time I admitted it.

I am avoiding thank you notes.

There I said it.  For shame!  People have been so loving and generous, showering our growing little family with love, attention, and gifts.  But can I take a few minutes to write a short note of thanks?? Apparently not.  I just can't get motivated to do it.  My first shower was 2 months ago.  The latest was last weekend.  And I have three more coming up at work in the next week or two.  But have I written even the first thank you note? No, I have not.

So, if you are one of the wonderful people who has given us one of the many fabulous gifts we have received, please know that we are ever so grateful.  And I will get a thank you note to you.  I will!

And if your name is Brandi, get busy writing!  You have no excuse anymore.  You are not too busy on this dreary three day weekend to get some done!!

The joys of the 3rd trimester

The first few weeks of the first trimester were a continuation of the relative bliss of the second trimester.  It was the calm before the storm, creating a false sense of security!  How things change.  All those 3rd trimester issues I've heard about are now rearing their ugly head.

First, and most frustrating for me personally, the insomnia is back.  I just don't enjoy laying awake for two hours in the middle of the night a few times a week.  Go to sleep!

Then there's the heartburn.  It hasn't been too horrible so far but still not pleasant.  And it can be brought on by chocolate.  What kind of twisted humor is that??

And although I've been tired the entire pregnancy, the fatigue is definitely worse.  Issue #1 certainly doesn't help.

Oh and the congestion.  How could I forget about that??  I was packing up to come home from work the other day and heard this weird rhythmic noise.  I wonder to myself "What is that noise?" I stop and look around.  Oh.  It's me.  Breathing.  The funny noise happens each time I inhale.  Lovely!  And most annoying is that interferes with my precious sleep!  It's a vicious cycle: I'm all congested so I have to breathe out of my mouth, which annoys me.  Then my mouth gets dry and my lips get chapped.  And I'm even more annoyed and distracted and can't fall asleep.  The humidifier we have going every night does help.  And I bought some of those nose strips to try.  Those actually seem to be helping, at least enough for me fall asleep.  Thank goodness!

As I'm sitting on the couch the other night, Jeff pushes up my pant leg while asking if my legs are all puffy yet.  Just as I'm about to happily respond "Nope, don't have that issue yet," he starts poking at my leg and says "Awww, Brandi has edema."  Which would be doctor speak for puffiness/swelling from fluid.  I glance down in shock to see that my lower legs are indeed a little bit puffy.  When did that happen?!  I was not aware of this.  I am not prepared for this development!  I finally break out of my shock long enough to tell Jeff to stop poking my leg since he's hitting my shin bone and it hurts.  I believe he even asked me if I had played with this yet.  No dearest husband, I haven't sat around poking my finger into my puffy legs for the fun of it!  I'm consoling myself with the fact that my ankles hadn't completely disappeared.  And that my legs looked normal in the morning.  Because you can be sure that I checked.

But all complaining and joking aside, I try to be positive and acknowledge that things are pretty good overall.  Sure I have some discomfort from the growing belly but it's manageable.  My back aches now and again, but it did before pregnancy too.  And some good stretches and yoga poses help manage that.  I've got strategies to manage most things.  As long as the insomnia doesn't get too bad I'll be fine.  And I'm healthy, feeling okay and growing a healthy baby.  And those are the most important things!

Growing Belly!

Here are the latest pictures of the growing bump!

Christmas in Atlanta

I flew down to Atlanta on the 26th and celebrated Christmas with my side of our family that evening.  Jeff made it down on the 29th and we flew back on the 31st.  On the 29th we did Christmas gifts with Jeff's parents.  We took our moms out for lunch and a movie on the 30th.  Mmmm, Mexican!  That evening we visited with my brother and sister-in-law at my parents while their schedules allowed.  We celebrated New Year's Eve with the Schulze family at a great lunch hosted by Dave and Karen (Jeff's brother and his wife).  There was Chick-fil-a nuggets and Karen's dad's famous white chili involved! Yum!  Then we flew home that evening for a quiet toast to the new year at home.  With sparkling grape juice of course.

Here are a few pictures from Christmas with my family.

Lots of present waiting for me to wrap

Stockings at the Simpson house

Tree after our presents were added

A little something for Grandma-to-be

Someone's excited....

For his Buck Hunter game!

I didn't have any pictures of my mom with pregnant me so we had to fix that!

The annual Christmas picture of the two of us

And a little something for baby-to-be

Christmas in Chicago

As Jeff noted in his post, it was the last Christmas with just the two of us.  We’ve been very fortunate with Jeff’s schedule to have made it to Atlanta for Christmas in past years.  This year didn’t allow for that so we celebrated in Chicago.  Jeff had to work until midnight on Christmas Eve, so I was on my own.  It was harder than I expected it to be as Christmas Eve isn’t typically a big day for me.  But I was feeling lonely.  So I went to church to sing some good Christmas-y songs (and be reminded of the reason for the holiday, of course).  As a non-Catholic I felt weird walking in to the Catholic church all by myself, even though it’s the same church we go to every weekend.  The walls didn’t crumble around me and no lightning bolts came from the sky, so I think it was ok.  And the song selection didn’t disappoint. 

Later in the evening I used Skype to video chat with my family and participate in the Simpson Christmas Eve ritual.  This consists of hanging stockings, toasting the season, and opening our Christmas Eve gift (pajamas).  The jokes, jabs and insults traded between my family members assured me that even though we’re all growing older and venturing out on our own, some things never change.

Christmas morning came and I once again Skyped with my family.  I got to see them open some presents and hear them talk about ones I couldn’t see from my particular viewpoint. I got passed around to different laps as people took turns moving the laptop to change what I could see.  Although not nearly the same as being there, it was nice to have a way to feel a part of things.  I had to talk loudly enough for them to hear me and my voice carried into the bedroom and woke Jeff up.  He stumbled out and promptly crawled under the blanket on the couch.  He wasn’t real interested in any on-camera appearances.  He turned on the 24-hour marathon of A Christmas Story and texted key lines back and forth with his sister.

Once we finished up with all the Skyping, we had our own Christmas.  We each had stockings full of candy and small gifts.  Apparently Santa decided to take note of this pregnancy thing and gift me with some chocolate covered potato chips.  I’ve only had one so far, but they are definitely full of greasy goodness.

Jeff got me an ipod touch, which I am now addicted to.  Thank goodness I can’t access the wireless internet at work with it and thus can convince myself to leave it at home.  I also got a pregnancy pillow, some books, and a very cool customized vinyl skin for my Kindle.  Jeff used some wedding photos of us to create the front cover and a vibrant flower picture from our Canada trip to make the back.  It’s pretty cool.  I was telling my mom about it and she said “See, now that’s romantic.”  And while it does sound a little silly, I know what she means and I agree.  I appreciate the time and effort put into thinking up the idea, picking out pictures that would be meaningful, and cropping and adjusting to make them fit.  That is, lots of time spent thinking about what I would like.  Can’t go wrong with that.

Back

Front

Jeff received a miscellaneous assortment of items including some books from his wish list, some stubby, flexible head ratchets, and a soda rack for his cans of Jeff water (flavored seltzer water).  His big gift was a gift certificate to an online lens rental company so that he can try out all these fancy lenses on his wish list.  I don’t know how he feels about his gifts, but I don’t think it was one of my better gift-giving occasions.

In the afternoon we went over to Jeff’s grandparents house for the Schulze Christmas gathering.  I contributed stuffed mushrooms to the party, which everyone raved about.  They’re a good group to cook for; whatever I bring gets such enthusiastic response.  We had a Italian/Chicago feast of lasagna, sausage, and Italian beef and enjoyed spending time with all the family.

The next day I was off to Atlanta for Christmas, round 2.