The Schindlers come to visit

Adam and I (and the 'nut) had a good time with the Schindlers (and Paul!) on Saturday night. It was tempting not to kidnap Nikki's daughter Kaitlyn (who is 6 and not in the picture because she was already in bed) and ship Peanut to Nikki when he is born since she obviously knows how to raise a well-reared child! I'm not saying this would have to be permanent....we could swap back in 6 years.

Happy Birthday, Nicole! Love, Gestational Diabetes

It's official - I have gestational diabetes. Boo! I failed my second glucose screen and the doctor was gracious enough to call me yesterday and tell me. I wish she would have looked at my chart and said "You know what? I think I'll let her turn 30, eat some cake, and then break the news to her."

I now need to go to the Diabetes Center (not sure exactly what happens here, but I presume I will meet with a nutritionist) and have regular ultrasounds to make sure Peanut is doing ok and not gaining too much weight. Apparently baby weight gain is one of the biggest concerns of gestational diabetes and therefore may result in a c-section. I've found the best information here. I'll know and post more once I've actually learned more!

Now, off to have a high protein lunch with Adam!

Merry Christmas from Delaware!

Today is the first time ever that I did not spend Christmas in WI. By the sounds of the weather forecast, it was probably a good thing we didn't try to make our way back. Here are just a couple of pictures from Adam and my first (and probably only) Chrismas alone. We opened some presents and then went up near Trenton, NJ to see the re-enactment of Washington crossing the Delaware 233 years later.

Peanut's present to daddy - a onesie that says "my dad made my mom a mixtape and all they got was me" For those of you who know how much Adam loves his mixtapes, you can appreciate how fitting this onsie is.

"Wisconsin on a stick" was a little slice of home and Adam's present from Andra.

Wii Fit to help take the Peanut Poundage off!

Merry Christmas from George W. He's about to forge the Delaware!

Crossing the Delaware!

The Roddler

A friend sent us a link to this stroller today saying he could see Adam and I "rocking" it. Little did he know that Peanut has a grandfather that loves to rebuild hot rods and would be all too pleased to see his first grandchild in such a "ride." Too bad the price point is a LOT out of our budget ($2,000). Only in LA, I think......

Baby boom

Just found out that another good friend is pregnant! That brings the total to 7 and we're nice and evenly spaced out:

Feb 14 (Peanut)
March 1 (baby girl)
March 22 (baby girl)
April 1 (baby girl)
April 20 (twins - boy and girl)
May 15 (baby boy)
July 10 (too early to tell)

Anyone want to take the June slot?

Peanut has a Pediatrician

One of the things that all the books recommend you do before giving birth is find a pediatrician. I probably never would have thought to find one before he was born, instead waiting for the first sign of sickness. I went to an orientation last week at the pediatrician's office and sounds like Peanut will be seeing a lot of that office in the first year, just for normal check-ups. There are two female pediatricians in this practice and both seem very nice and flexible!

Many thanks to my colleague who also lives in Wilmington who has recommended a cleaning lady, a dentist, a doctor and now a pediatrician to us! Word of mouth truly is the best form of marketing.

Peanut the Volunteer

We're getting Peanut started early with his volunteerism by donating his cord blood which is chalk full of stem cells to the Delaware based Brady Kohn Foundation. Jamie Thomson (the UW researcher who discovered stem cells) would be so proud!

Snowed In

Earlier in the day - notice the lantern

Last night - no more lantern!

Yesterday we got lots of snow (12-15 inches) so Adam, me and Peanut stayed hunkered down at home. I did a little bit of "nesting" by taking tags off of clothes and blankets we've received so we can wash them.

Ugly Holiday Sweater Party

On Friday night Adam and I went to an Ugly Holiday Sweater party. Adam's "outfit" is a holdover from when we went to a similar party in Chicago but I had to go out and find myself some new gear. JCPenny didn't have much to offer, but I figured an ugly holiday sweatshirt would be close enough!

Needless to say there was a lot of food there and this was the night I learned my lesson from eating 1) too much and 2) too close to bedtime. I ended up sleeping in the living room chair because I had such terrible indigestion! No more food after 8 pm for me......

Failed

I don't think I've ever failed a test, but they say there is a first for everything. Yesterday at my monthly doctor's appointment I learned that I failed my first glucose screen for gestational diabetes. Instead of just getting a nice fat F and going on my merry way, I now have to go back on Monday morning after 12 hours of fasting and do the following:

-Have my blood taken
-Drink sugary drink
-Have blood taken after 1 hour
-Have blood taken after 1 hour again
-Have blood taken after 1 hour again

Ok, so I'm probably making it sound worse than it is. I am a total baby when it comes to needles, but I do know how lucky I've been with having such a smooth pregnancy thus far so I'll stop here. And I think the odds are on my side - only 15% of women who have the second screen done actually have gestational diabetes.

Go to sleep

Dear 'nutter butter-

I don't know if it was you or your daddy that woke me up at 4 am this morning, but the kicking and punching certainly didn't help. I know you are just preparing me for things to come, but can you save it for January?

Love,
Your (going to be sleepy in 4 hours) mommy

Buttons & Bows

Tonight we went to our first baby class called "Buttons and Bows." We talked about neither, but we did learn how to bath, diaper and swaddle an inanimate object. Adam was so overwhelmed that he came home, put on Monday Night football and cracked a beer. Just kidding....he was a pro! The actual childbirth classes start are in January. Next up? "Interviewing" the pediatrician on Wednesday.

31 Week Update

How far along? 31 weeks

Total weight gain? 24.8 lbs

Maternity clothes? Are starting to feel a little snug. :-(

Sleep? Actually sleeping a bit better on most nights, although acid reflux is now a part of my vocabulary.

Best moment this week? Getting to see my twin 8 year old nieces and their 2 year old sister. Nothing like a little view into what our life will be like!

Movement? There have been a couple jabs that have taken my breath away.

Gender? Still thinking it's a boy. Speaking of which, I think we've changed our minds on what we want Peanut's name to be if he's a boy.

Labor signs? Nope, not even a Braxton Hicks contraction (that I know of) yet.

What I miss? Feeling like I had plenty of time before this babe arrives.

What I am looking forward to? Christmas at home, for the first time ever! Although I will miss all of our family, I think the overnight travel is officially over. My next hotel bill will be from the hospital. I wonder if they take Starwood points?

Weekly Wisdom? Don't eat peanut butter. It feels like it just sticks to the inside of your chest.

Milestones? Not killing Adam when he wondered what I was going to do with all my time off for maternity leave.

Our last weekend trip for awhile

Adam and I spent the weekend down "south" - one night in Alexandria, VA and one night at Gaylord National Resort across the Potomac in Maryland. This was our last little getaway before Peanut arrives and we had a great time. We went to see Mount Vernon on Friday night, went shopping in Old Town Alexandria on Saturday, went to see the ICE display at Gaylord National, and then today went to see my brother Jason, his wife Milly, and their 3 girls for an early Christmas. More pictures of our weekend here and here.

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!

Check out my t-shirt collection

This is a t-shirt (e.g., onesie) collection to make Grandpa Bob proud! Grandpa "Pop" I'm sure appreciates the "patent pending" t-shirt we couldn't resist when we were at the US Patent and Trademark Museum in Alexandria, VA this weekend.

Peanut's First Christmas Ornament

It's a yearly Christmas tradition (borrowed from my parents) for Adam and I to buy a Christmas ornament that represents something that occurred that year.......and we know that Peanut "occurred" in 2009.

Hoochies Weekend

The first weekend in December was an annual girls' weekend in Chicago dubbed "Hoochies." Nothing was going to stop me from a weekend that we have been doing since 2001. This was also the first year in many that we have the "original" Hoochies back in action (all in very different places in their life)!

Just plain crazy

When people ask me what my "birth plan" is, I simply say "lots of drugs." Although I have both a doctor and a midwife, either one (or neither of them) could be the one to deliver Peanut, so I quickly realized that even the best laid plans are bound to be disrupted. This article caught my attention and although I'm all about personal preference, delivering a baby on your own is just plain crazy!

Peanut is going to be a Badger

When I was at Adam's parent's house a few weekends ago, Aune and I had some fun with the camera.

29 in my 29th week

For my "golden week" of pregnancy I was treated to one final ultrasound and the requisite glucose screen. Peanut was not in any mood to be photographed today, which I blamed on the glucose drink solution which probably put him in a sugar induced coma.

He refused to turn his head for a picture even after some prodding by the technician. I was able to see some hair on the back of his head and the technician seemed to think that in 10 more weeks Peanut was going to come out with a mop of hair.

She also confirmed that he's laying across my body, with his head on the left side of my belly and his rumpus on the right side. Turn baby, turn!

The technician also confirmed that my cervix looks good so no need for me to continue to have it measured.

Good idea

Although I won't be hiring one myself, I can see how future parents would be willing to hire a Baby Planner to help them get prepared for their baby's arrival. I have been procrastinating choosing a stroller simply because the choices are overwhelming! Read the article.

Baby brain

If the scientific community needs proof that "baby brain" is a true occurrence, they should read on......

I had a volunteer meeting tonight in Elkton, MD that I needed to go to after work. I got off the train, walked to my car, found the car next to me parked SO close to me that I had to get in from the passenger side with other commuters watching. For the record, I don't think I would have been able to get in pre-Peanut either. This should have been my sign......

I then proceeded to drive 25 miles into the middle of nowhere in MD to this woman's house. I pulled up, saw no other cars parked there (there were suppose to be about 25 of us), and the house dark. At this point, I look at the email again to realize that the meeting is on Friday and NOT Tuesday. I don't think I've ever done something like this before. $6 in tolls and an hour later I was at home eating Adam's canned ravioli and a piece of lefse. Peanut brains, I tell you.....