Springtime in NC

Robert planned a four day trip to Georgetown over the weekend so I took the opportunity to visit my parents during that time.  They met us in Florence where we did a switcheroo as we headed north and Robert headed back south.

I realized just how much I miss North Carolina in the spring as we drove past the beautiful pear trees in full bloom, one after another.  They literally took my breath away.  With spring definitely comes a sense of renewal and a surge of energy and positivity.  It felt so good to be back and experience the nostalgia of home.

Experiencing home also means visiting with some of my favorite people.  Evan and I spent Sunday afternoon with the Farrells - Sarah, Dan and Dylan.  Unfortunately Evan woke up on the wrong side of the crib so instead of a smiling face like I had hoped, Evan gave us all his infamous scowl for the majority of the day.  Dylan did her best to engage Evan and cheer him up, but even a double dose of delight couldn't alter his mood.  Evan could've totally scored a girlfriend if he had dropped that attitude of his.  Maybe he'll win her over on their next date.  They'll have the romantic setting of the Outer Banks in their favor.

Evan had a great weekend with Mimi and Papa too.  I think my dad read all ten of Evan's books at least a dozen times in a row as Evan made his demands very clear.  "Again!"  "Another one!"  My dad knew every word to Paul the Police Car and Felix the Fire Engine by the time we left on Tuesday.  And Mimi of course remains a favorite because where else will Evan get to chow down on cookies and candies until his heart's content?  Grandparents have it so easy. 

Hello Baby

For no purpose at all other than to change things up a bit, I will refer to baby as "she."  If baby turns out to be a boy, sorry for the embarrassment, buddy.

We have a healthy little baby thus far.  And when I mean little, I mean all 3.5 cm.  As you can see she has distinct arms, legs, hands and feet now and the object sitting directly behind her is the yolk sac.  This is providing nourishment until she is able to completely rely on the placenta.  My uterus was said to look "nice" which didn't surprise me considering how roomy it must be the second time around.  But I didn't need the ultrasound to confirm that - I have a nice bulge that is quite indicative on its own.

This ultrasound image measured the fetal heart rate of the baby.  If there's any truth to the old wive's tale, we just might have a little girl in there.  Her heart was rapidly beating about 167 beats per minute.  I was trying to remember Evan's heart rate around this time and I want to say it was about 148 - but not positive.  In any case, the doctor seemed very pleased.  Evan wasn't the least bit interested in the images on the screen, but when she let us hear the heartbeat he immediately looked up and said, "What's that?"  And then it was back to what he was doing again.

This last image measured the baby from "rump to head."  As I mentioned before she measured a tiny 3.5 cm.  It really is amazing how rapidly they grow in just a month's time.  My next ultrasound will be the biggin' where we'll find out the sex and check in on all the vital organs.  That is scheduled at 22 weeks which should be June 14th.  The baby's growth also seems to be right in line with my last period which means the due date of Oct. 15th is now official.  Just like last time I'm feeling a little more in touch with my pregnancy now that I've had a glimpse of the life growing inside. It's just as fascinating now as it was then.

Tournament Time

It's a sad, sad year in basketball for me when I have no other choice but to root for Tennessee in the NCAA tournament (sorry to my Tennessee clan - nothing personal).  But I will add with much excitement that I hope they go ALL - THE - WAY!  With top-rated teams falling left and right I honestly think TN has just as good of a chance as anyone.  I could kick myself for not putting them through further on my bracket.  I guess it doesn't really matter considering my bracket is completely jacked thanks to Georgetown, Cornell, Villanova and Kansas.  Not even into the Sweet Sixteen games yet and two of my final four are already knocked out.  So much for a perfect bracket and $10,000.

I still have to give Carolina some props (even though I witnessed the most pathetic season ever played in my lifetime) for finally showing up to play basketball - even if it is the NIT.  For the first time this season I''ve actually been engaged in each game.  I sprung up off the couch cheering a few times today which is a far cry from what I was doing during the regular season.  Let's just say my cheering was more like spelling out profanities with a great deal of emotion - for Evan's sake of course.

Are Tennessee/Carolina dual tournament titles possible?  That would be pretty incredible, but then again, Robert would be completely intolerable.  I guess I could give him one title.  That just means Carolina football has to step it up a notch.

Germ Invasion

After almost 21 months the inevitable finally happened. Evan has come down with his very first cold.  Pretty unbelievable, huh?  Other than some wheezing issues a few months ago, this goes down in the books as his first sickness.  And I'm not really enjoying the change.

Due to his inability to breathe, Evan only managed a half hour nap yesterday and woke up twice last night crying.  I felt so bad for the little guy because, no matter how old you are, not being able to breathe just plain sucks.  He also picked up a pretty bad cough which of course worsens when you're lying down.  Evan's love for sleep is being messed with in the worst way - and he's clearly very frustrated.

I'm hoping in a few days we'll all be back to normal - we just have to figure out a way for Robert to leave all those germs back at the restaurant.

Sensory Overload

Almost 10 weeks - this is supposedly what my baby should look like or at least resemble.  The little nugget is said to be the size of a fig.  I've always wondered why the comparison is always to a fruit or vegetable.  But then again, I can't think of a better alternative.

The nausea is still hanging around.  It's not nearly as bad now that I'm not taking the prenatal pills.  What seems to be most bothersome at this stage are the various smells that make me sick to my stomach.  And they're not the obvious smells such as Evan's dirty diapers or Robert's morning breath - they are smells that I actually normally enjoy.  For instance, the laundry.  Not right out of the dryer laundry, but laundry that has been folded and put away and then taken out to wear - yep, turns my stomach.  The smell of our house ranks up there in the top three.  Every time I walk in the door I have to exhale really hard to prevent from gagging.  Pre-preggo I never even recognized a specific smell from our house.  But the worst of all, and by far the most shameful, is Evan.  I have to breathe out of my mouth when I'm holding him.  His smell which I normally LOVE makes me so queasy.  This could go hand-in -hand with the laundry, but it's the combination of baby wash and lotion too that just puts it over the top for me.  Strange, I know.  And I'm ready for it to go away!

In other news, my little pooch has definitely popped out.  I'm not in need for the belly band or maternity clothes yet - I basically look like I have a beer gut.  This stage of pregnancy is always so flattering.  People just assume you're fat.  Nothing a few blousy shirts won't fix.  I'm thinking in about 3 weeks I may have to do a little shopping.

Next stop on the preggo train - first ultrasound on Monday.  Stay tuned.

Race for the Cure

Amanda and I were among 10,000 participants on Saturday who were "racing for the cure."  The hurricane-like weather I drove through to get to Fort Myers moved out of the area just in time for the early morning event.  It was a beautiful day - sunny, maybe 72 degrees.  Perfect.

We ran the majority of the race, but I chose to walk some because I was a little nervous about overdoing it - considering I did zero training for this race I thought it best not to traumatize my little kumquat growing inside.  Amanda and I felt accomplished nonetheless.  We made a point to at least beat the old man who managed to pass us while we walked.  Even with an obvious hip problem, this man - probably in his mid 70's - was full throttle the entire race.  If it was a power walking race he would've won - no doubt.  We actually sprinted the last .2 miles just to catch up with him and beat him.  I haven't yet decided if we should be embarrassed or proud.

We raised $1,000 for Kathy's Kure which will benefit the Susan G. Komen foundation.  Thank you to those of you who supported us in this event.  I have a lot of personal attachment to this cause and I hope our dedication will one day prove to be worthy.

This was for you, Mom & you, Grandma, & you, Aunt Ruthy.  Survivors.  I love you.

Check out the News-Press gallery for more pictures.

Gum on Cart

Several times a day you'll hear me ask Evan what he has in his mouth.  And he's really good about spitting out whatever it is he's working on when asked.  I'm actually fortunate that he doesn't ever put random objects in his mouth, but rather only things resembling food.  And we all know what that resemblance has been in the past.

We were in Publix yesterday doing a little gro gro shopping.  Evan loves riding in the carts that double as a car.  He turns that steering wheel as though he's really going places - and does the sound effects the entire time too.  It really is adorable.  In the midst of my aisle browsing I noticed Evan was moving something around in his mouth.  I held out my hand and asked him to spit out whatever it was he was chewing. At first I couldn't make out what it was, but after further inspection I realized that Evan was chewing GUM!  Gum!??  Where in the world did he get gum?

To those of you who are guilty of sticking your gum to the underside of a table - shame on you.  There's no telling who was the original owner of that piece of gum that was stuck to the inside of the cart - but there is no doubt that they have a new spit brother.  And I'll just convince myself this was an effort to build up Evan's immune system.

Starvin' Marvin'

I committed a long time ago to eating healthy and maintaining a reasonable weight during my second pregnancy.  The fact that I want to eat my own arm off every minute of the day certainly doesn't help in my quest.  I am so incredibly hungry ALL the time.  It's quite annoying actually.  My stomach is literally growling 10 minutes after I eat a meal.   I've tried eating fruit or popcorn or even cereal to satisfy the hunger pangs just so I won't be consuming a million calories per day - but none of these options are doing the trick.  So of course I'm trying to convince myself to just eat and make sure to exercise to make up for the extra calories.  Riiiiiight!  We all know that the intention is always good, but the reality - not so much.  And this example should sum that statement up real quick - I've been planning my exercise schedule out in my head:  jog with the jogging stroller 3 times a day and do my yoga sessions at night.  Well, the fact that my jogging stroller has been sitting in the foyer for several weeks with deflated tires kinda throws a wrench in my plan.  And my yoga sessions have been replaced by web surfing and catching up on recorded tv shows.  Have I done anything to fix this problem?  Negatory.

I see you, dreaded 49 lbs. from last pregnancy!  But I still have time to hide, right?

Product Advice

Naturally, I've been taking interest in new baby products that I've come across while surfing the web.  I'm not sure why I'm even giving them a glance considering I learned pretty quickly with Evan that the majority of the "stuff" I accumulated to prepare for his arrival was absolutely unnecessary - and for the most part, useless!  For all the misinformed mothers out there who have no clue what they actually need, let me share with you a few items that you might want to think twice about purchasing.

          #1  The Bumbo Seat

This product was actually recalled awhile back for lack of direction and information on how to use it properly.  I guess too many babies fell over and the number of head injuries caused a bit of a stir.  Beyond reported injuries, this product also discriminates against fat babies.  Evan was never able to use the seat because his legs were too fat for the leg holes.  I managed to squeeze him in a couple of times, but when he realized he was paralyzed from the waist down he became a little agitated.  I would suggest finding this seat second hand.  Definitely not a must have!




          #2 The Exersaucer

Ok - now this product is a matter of personal choice.  Evan had absolutely no interest in this contraption.  In fact, he would get so bored with it that he would fuss after 3 minutes of play.  It's also important to note that even with the platform moved all the way up, Evan was not able to use this until he was about 5 - 51/2 months old.  The advertisement claims it's for babies 4 months and up.  Evan was always in the 98th percantile for height so they're basing that claim on an NBA star's offspring - not mine.   Again, puchase second hand or request as a gift.




         #3 The Diaper Genie

I can't even express how useless and disgusting this product is...DO NOT PURCHASE.  The perfume scented baggies that wrap the dirty diapers up like sausages may seem like a "genius" idea - but trust me - it is quite the opposite.  By the time the storage bin is full there may be 10 - 15 soiled diapers that have marinated for 2-3 days while the pungent mix of baby poo and perfume begin to build like pressure in an air cylinder.  When you open the storage bin to release your diaper links the overpowering smell of flowery waste will hit you in the nostrils like a ton of bricks.  Not to mention once that smell takes over the bin it is always there.  Take my advice - tie your dirty diapers up in a grocery bag and throw them in the regular trash.  It's easy, free and can save you a meal that you'll inevitably lose to the toilet.

Yabba Dabba Doo

Just as my friend, Kylie, suggested - I have started my double dose of Flinstones vitamins.  I called my nurse this morning to inform her that I couldn't keep the prenatal pills down.  She advised me to take two Flinstones vitamins per day until my next appointment.  At that point I could talk with my doctor to see where to go from there.

Hopefully I'll be having a gay old time soon!